Holidayssss

So 'tis the season...to save money on gifts.

The above picture is only 1 of many that my brother and I took for our gift to our parents for Hanukka. We spent a little under an hour at Santa Monica Beach to take some pics and choose 1 to frame for our parents. My friends, and amazing photographers, Paul Dunkan and Emma Hopman-Fuller took the pics and did an outstanding job. And yes, we went for the "white top / khaki bottoms" clean cut look - never would I be caught dead in this outfit for real.

As for my Hanukka gift this year from my parents, I decided to get myself a heavier coat -- yes, that's correct -- a warmer jacket for southern LA. If it's one thing people know about me, it's that I love warm weather and I hate to be cold. So the jacket I have now is fine, but honestly at night, I have found myself shivering - yes physically actually shaking, in my jacket. Believe it or not people, it gets chilly at night here!! Now of course it's not like NYC chilly, it is bearable .. but I'd like to be a little more comfortable. It's not like I sought out to get one of those puffy jackets, like for skiing -- I still want to look like a functioning member of society. So I started my search in Loehmann's. After getting distracted in the shoe section, I finally found my way to their Coat section ... or lack there of. I was shocked by the limited selection, not to mention the selection in my price range and taste. After trying on several, I found myself in this nice grey peacoat by Marc by Marc Jacobs. I was almost gonna buy it until after walking around in it for a bit it started to itch my neck -- and I had a scarf on .. so, back onto the rack it went, and I walked out empty handed. ( And yes, I still hadda pay for parking - ughh). Then I tried Bloomingdale's, Nordstroms.. and J. Crew ..and Abercrombie -- NOTHING! The selection out here is very slim - I get it, it's not like it goes below 0 out here, but still, this is America, a capitalist society, - people at least travel to colder climates!... right?? or are like me and want to be warm in a grey peacoat so that it'll match with everything, and preferably with a hood. Not too hard to ask for.
Finally I remembered this little store called H&M. I saw a few coats up front on their sale rack, but nothing perfect. Until I reached the back corner of the store, and (Cue angels singing "aahhh") - a shit ton of peacoats!! I went crazy and tried on nearly all of them. Unfortunately my cell phone died so I couldn't take pics and send them to my mom for approval, so I went on my gut instinct and bought 2 - 1 grey one and 1 brown one, anticipating to possibly return one later on. After a few days of them hanging in my closet, I decided to check out Nordstrom Rack, the very last store to resort to - if there was nothing there, then there was nothing else in the entire state of CA for me.

Side note - It was going to be my first time at Nordstrom Rack out here, and many of you know parking can be confusing. So I pull into what I think is the proper lot, only to find a security guard standing there telling me it's only for CVS customers. So I said where's parking for NR? The sign for it is right here.. this doesn't make sense. After shamefully pulling out of the one-way lot, I circled around, and voila - a metered spot opened up on the street, so I grabbed it, without thinking twice of driving around once more to explore. It might have had something to do with the fact that I was on the phone with my aunt, so my brain was only half paying attention. I gave myself one hour on the meter, and aimlessly walked around. I found myself at a weird deserted underground parking lot, that looked more like a construction zone. I walked all the way across it to the stairs, walked about half-way up to discover none other than construction workers - clearly not NR. So i quickly tip-toed away, and then climbed this other set of stairs that was outside, but that led to a loading zone for Marshall's -- wtf?? .. Finally decided to walk through the CVS parking lot, and down the sidewalk ... finally I found "Beverly Connection" with it's own parking lot (of course) .. and followed the signs to NR.
Their selection was much more what a jacket selection should be. I saw several styles that I liked, so I tried them on right there in front of one of those mirrors they attach to the pillars - I didn't even bother with the fitting room (who does for solely jackets anyway, am I right??).. After many rational scenarios playing out in my head for each coat, I decided on a grey peacoat with a hood by Miss Sixty - yay!

The next day I went back to H&M to return the other grey one, so I'm finally set with my Hanukka present - 2 jackets. I wore the brown one tonight actually, and lo and behold, a button already popped off ... luckily it came with a spare one sewn on the inside, so I was able to fix it right away, but usually those always last the age of the coat, so I gotta be careful!

Anyway, tomorrow is Christmas Day ... stay tuned for my blog on my movie marathon and Chinese dinner! haha
Thanks for reading,
Harley's Hype

To All my Fans ..

To all my fans out there, 

I know you think hosting comes naturally to me, and while yes it does, I'm not perfect. Take a look at my blooper reel. Hope you like it!

xx,

Harley's Hype 

The Comedy Store, Hollywood Museum, and El Compadre

Yesterday was a big day.

I filmed a segment about The Comedy Store for my reel with my friend and trusted videographer, Jessi Marsh - look her up, she's legit. (The video wouldn't upload here, so please check it out at: http://vimeo.com/33753169).

Then we headed over to Hollywood, to visit the Hollywood Museum, as the Lucille Ball exhibit had been extended. Hollywood Blvd reminds me of Times Square but worse -- hard to describe, but I get more of a slimy vibe from the Hollywood bums and husslers than I do from the NY ones. If you've been to both, you might know that I mean. Anyway, the museum was great and the Lucy and Desi exhibit was really good and so interesting. What was also kinda weird but cool was they had stuff on show from "today" too -- High School Musical costumes, Twilight costumes, and Glee costumes in the mix of the legendary things, including Michael Jackson. Then there was some movie exhibits, and even original Max Factor make up rooms - pretty cool! -- TIP: if you go to the museum, it closes at 5 - get there at 4 and they will probably discount your ticket price. If not, make sure to bring your student ID and you can get a student discount. If not, just go whenever and pay full price.

Then since I was already in WeHo and had a dinner there that night, I had more time to kill. So I dropped off the cupcakes I had just gotten for the bday girl at the restaurant so they could be kept a surprise, then meandered across the street to some audio store. The sales guy was really nice, and showed me around. I pretended like I knew what I was talking about, or more like I understood what HE was talking about. I just nodded and said "cool" a lot. Then I inquired about a "start up DJ kit" - what would he recommend. Basically the cheapest way was slightly under $400 - including a device if you wanted to record any of the mixes you made, which you could easily exclude, but then it's like what's the point. Then I asked if they sold free standing microphones. They had a decent one for only 30 bucks, but of course I would bling it out. The sales guy asked what I need a mic for so I told him I film some random segments about cool things around LA and he actually got a piece of paper for me to write down my name and where he could find my work online -- I have to admit, I felt pretty cool. I asked him where he DJs, after getting the feeling that he did that on the side. He said at "HAWT" - I think I spelt that right .. some club off of Roberston that I've never heard of nor have any desire to go to (if you're reading this, sorry I faked an interest, I just didn't know what else to say). After a good 20 minutes schmoozing my way through the tiny tiny store, I hadda get outta there. But with more time to kill before dinner, I kept walking around. Found myself entering The Guitar Center - yeah that huge one that you always pass on Sunset Blvd but never go in to because you're not a musician. But with my leather boots and cut-off fingers gloves, I totally fit in. The store was actually pretty cool - they have this whole handprint in concrete thing on the entryway to the store of famous 80s bands and musicians. So after staring down at the ground for a good 5 minutes like a homeless person looking for change, I finally entered the store. It looks way more massive from the outside than it actually is, but I was astounded at how many guitars they had - correction - astounded at how many different and unique guitars they had. And they aint cheap! Even the ones that were on sale or "gently used." Prices ranged from $350 - $1200 (from what I was able to see).  Then upstairs is all percussion instruments -- really took me back to my middle school band days - I played the drums. There was one drum kit that I would've bought in a heartbeat if I was rich and still a drummer -- it was pink/champagne colored sparkles - perfect. I looked down at my watch - time for dinner :)

We got to the restaurant, and if you've ever been to El Compadre on Sunset Blvd, you know how amazing the food is and how fun the atmosphere is. After waiting about 30 mins for our table to be ready, we were seated at the best table in the house -- cute cozy booth in the corner - very intimate, although we still hadda talk really loudly to hear one another over all the background noise and mariachi music. Endless amounts of hot tortilla chips kept a steady rotation coming onto our table, so by the time the main entrees came, I was already full -- although I still of course ate my ENTIRE quesadilla (and then dessert). Then a piece of flan with a candle came unexpectedly to the table, with the mariachi band, to wish Klare a happy bday. ENTER: confusion - those are not the cupcakes we brought ... so Rachel slyly exited the booth, got a handle on the situation, and minutes later the band came back with the cupcakes, but Klare was in the restroom!! So we shut them down, and told them to come back -- awkward haha. ... Then Klare returned and shortly after, so did the band and the cupcakes. AND THENNNNN - at the table next to us?? ... Michael Rapaport - yeah you've guessed it - Gary, Phoebe's boyfriend from Friends (amongst a shit ton of other roles) but that's how we recognized him. But we didn't get a picture or anything cuz we didn't wanna bother him at dinner. What's the rule when you see a celeb? When is it right or ok to ask for a photo or autograph?..

All for now, thanks for reading!
-Harley's Hype

So it's been approximately 2 months of unemployment! I am ready to work again ..so if anyone out there reads this that is planning on hiring me .. haha the joke's over .. ok i get it, ... u can hire me now!! ...

nope, still unemployed.

I didn't think i'd be without a job for this long, but I'm experiencing the holiday slump in Hollywood . . so i know it's not me, it's the industry (right?) .. I apply to about 5-10 jobs online a day -- it's exhausting but i figure, why not? might as well submit my resume, you never know.

Trying to fill my time with being proactive, and exploring LA, but since i got back from NY, I wasn't feeling well so I was taking it easy ...and that put me in a slump for sure, so I'm working on myself to get out of it. If you could recommend any fun free activities during the work week days, that'd be fab. (no hiking groups though, please).

I did go to Ice the other day. It's santa monica's outdoor ice skating rink. The city builds it every year in november and it's up till jan 16th. it's super fun and has a little snack stand too. But if you go, make sure to skate with hockey skates - NOT figure skates. If you've ever skated in hockey, you know what i mean ... the difference is amazing - it's so much easier to skate in hockey skates than figure --so try that out and get back to me. Also, the best time to go is at 2pm when they open, that way you get fresh, smooth ice.. i was there around 430 and it was already pretty snowy.

alright, that's all for now ... you're welcome for a short post.

more to come,
Harley's Hype

Thanksgiving!!!

so, thanksgiving ... 2011 ... what's there to give thanks for? .. a whole lot! .. but that isn't what this post is about .. my thanksgiving experience is unique. why? many reasons. ..

so i wake up on thursday in the afternoon, very hungover. My mom and her sister have been up and at 'em in the kitchen since probably 9am. We host thanksgiving every year, and my aunt, her husband, my 2 cousins, my brother, and a cousin's boyfriend all move into the house for the long weekend. My mom and aunt are in charge of everything. They lay out all the serving dishes on the table, and label each one with a ripped piece of paper so they don't forget what and where they are serving. My aunt also prepares a spreadsheet consisting of what will be cooked at what time, for how long, with what ingredients, and in what size pan. They've gotten it down to a science, somewhat, except for this year, about an hour or so behind schedule.

Despite my tired and hungover-ness, I had to get out of the house - - I know to stay out of their way and out of the kitchen ... I do not want to be called on for help, because no matter what i do, it's wrong, or i become in the way, and then it causes my mom to yell -- no thank u! so i eat a quick breakfast, and go for a jog around the neighborhood -- which, unfortunately did not last long at all, due to it being soo cold out -- i couldnt handle it. so back to the house i went, but avoided the kitchen at all costs.

Finally, the other company arrives for dinner. They are our neighbors, a couple with 2 girls, 8th and 9th grade. Great, fun-loving family, but very a.d.d. stricken -- or maybe it's because they're house is so close that they come and go throughout the night just because they can.

Meanwhile, Mason, the boyfriend, had been working on the special dish for several hours now - - deep frying the turkey!! My cousin had wanted to do this last year, but got shut down. For some reason, we gave in this year, and i'm glad we did. Deep frying food is very dangerous, especially a huge turkey. You gotta control the temperature, and the exact timing, otherwise you're up in flames. Luckily Mason knew the science to this, and produced a perfectly golden-brown, deep fried turkey. THE BEST THING THAT HAS EVER HAPPENED TO ME OVER THANKSGIVING! .. no joke, deep fried turkey is the only way to go. It's crunchy on the outside, and juicy meat on the inside-  perfect combo.

Fast forward to the dinner table -- my mom is drunk off of one martini, and keeps insisting she do her Leslie Mann impression in between her praising the creamed spinach, which no one else liked. (i tried to upload the video of it, but it took too long, so check it out on my facebook page)

At the end of what seemed to be our quickest dinner yet, my aunt starts passing around pens and scraps of paper. What are we gonna do, write down what we're thankful for and share to the group? ughh .. nope, even better -- we are gonna rate the dishes - from best to worst, to decide what to keep and what to nix for next year. She tried coming up with a number/letter system that would coordinate to each dish - sounds simple, yet somehow she made it quite complicated. On mine, i just wrote "keep the deep fried turkey" due to me tuning out the rest of her proper instructions. (i tried to upload the video of it, but it took too long, so check it out on my facebook page)
 My aunt's always coming up with these kinds of things to do. 2 years ago she decided we should all write our names down, put them in a bowl, and pick one out. Once you got a name, you had to say something nice about that person, or how you were grateful for them in your life. Sounds cheesy, but kind of nice if you're solely around your family, where everyone knows one another. That year we had another family over, and their daughter scored my aunt's husband (2nd marriage, so not my uncle). AWKWARD!!!  what was this 23 yr old gonna say about a 60-something year old guy she just met??? cue the nervous laughter. oye.
so dinner wrapped up and it was someone's idea to play catch phrase after dessert. I am the best at this game, and rarely lose. My mom, however, not so great - especially when she's not sober. On our last round she kept pushing the "start/stop" button instead of the "next" button, which in turn forfeited our time on the clock. In turn, she cost us the game by ONE POINT!! ... next year, she will not be on my team.
Despite the craziness, i truly love thanksgiving at our house. Family comes together, and we spend the day just having fun and a good time. What's your best thanksgiving memory/story?? ... cant wait till next year!

my high school reunion beats ur high school reunion

so last night I traveled from LA to NY for the big Thanksgiving trip. My brother and I had our parents drop us off straight from the airport to the yearly high school reunion at a local pub. Every Thanksgiving eve, all of my friends, including all other grades spanning around 5 years or so, come in from our apts in the city, or out of town, and all meet up at a neighborhood bar.
Let me backtrack real quick - I grew up in a small suburb outside NYC. My entire town all grew up together - preschool, elementary school, middle school to high school. All the grades were pretty small, so it was hard not to make friends with people in other grades. We all know each other, and each others families, for the most part. We're a pretty tight knit crew, and it can be a little uncomfortable for any outsider.
In general, post college, people move into an apartment in NYC, and always come home, to the houses we grew up in, for Thanksgiving. So reuniting everyone at a bar Thanksgiving eve has just naturally become an unspoken tradition.
Now for me personally, I'm one of the very few that actually moved to a different state - cross country, to Los Angeles, to be exact. So it's very exciting for me to come home to see all of my friends I left behind. But because I was so close with everyone, it's almost like I never left - and I love it. It's great to come back to a group of people and fit right back in. That's what I love about my friends, about my community. You can come back, catch up real quick, and slip into how it used to be. And I rarely come back to NY for visits, so partying with my friends is very important to me.
SIDENOTE - after living in LA for over a year now, I'm used to bars closing at 2am, and lasts calls being around 130. That doesnt happen in NY. So when i look down at my watch and it reads 2:30, I'm slightly confused. But confusion quickly turns to happiness, when I realize the night is young and we can keep drinking. And somehow I didnt pay for one drink last night :)
Next thing I know, the bar crowd dies down a bit, and I find myself making my way to the 24-hr diner next door. And i'm not surprised that when I walk in, everyone else from my school that was at the bar too, is also there, taking up numerous tables around the restaurant. The party continues!
The conversation turns into more serious talks -- high school memories. Who was going out with who, who broke a bottle over someone's head that one time, who had a secret crush on so-and-so, pointing out who was the town athletic hero, etc etc.
Finally around 4:15a, we call it a night and decide to go home. While everyone was scrambling to find rides and call the last taxi in town, my table discretely walked out of the restaurant, trying not to make a big deal of our departure. (we had a DD and maximum people in the car, so we didn't wanna risk anything if there should be random checkpoints). I eventually passed out around 4:45.. not to mention I woke up the next day remembering i had the most random and detailed dreams.

But, it was another one for the books. I believe that was my 3rd time going, and I dont want it to ever stop! it's too much fun! ... (sigh)... 'till next year ...

-Harley's Hype

monday mondayyyyssss

so my monday consisted of this : jog around the 'hood, trip to the Paramount lot, home-cooked lunch, walk to starbucks, packed about 95% for NY, home cooked dinner, amazing monday night tv. Then ... dun dun dun...the internet (where my day gets interesting, keep reading).

My jog was pretty uneventful, so i'll get to the juicy stuff. I arrived on the Paramount Pictures lot, after sitting in about an hour of traffic. But it was worth the drive. I got a personal, private tour of the lot, highlighting only what i wanted to see: the set of the tv show, Happy Endings. After I got the pics of me i needed for my "Hollywood" stash, I hit the road. Cooked a nice lunch at home, then decided to walk to Starbucks to sip and read a bit. It was freezing, but a quick 10 min walk, and it was kinda nice. I had an apple spice -- i highhlllyyyy recommend it -so good, "fall-like" and cozy! All of a sudden the neighborhood drunk/homeless/crazy man came in. Ordered his Usual, sat down at a table, and started yelling/talking to himself. Very amusing.

I may add here that I think i'm a good packer, but i'm such an over-packer. I know I am though, and that counts for something. I like being prepared, and hate to leave something behind, just in case. Luckily i get 1 checked bag for free, so i'm not stressin about bringing a carry-on size. Also strategically leaving room for shopping, duh.

Fast fwd to Monday night tv - the lineup? Beverly Hills housewives (omg, taylor!), Gossip Girl (omg, i want chuck and blair together!) and House (OMG - that girl and the little boy!!).

Then i browsed the internet for a bit, and remembered how I emailed this guy via OkCupid a few days ago, so i wanted to check if he ever wrote back. NOTE: I rarely, practically never, initiate a message/make the first move on dating sites. Primarily because i never know what to say, and secondly, i havent found anyone that's good-looking enough to try to pursue. However, i came across this one profile, the guy looked cute, and like he'd be fun, so shot him a message. I basically said we should get chipotle sometime (because he mentioned he could eat that any day), and asked if he was british, because he used the word "mum" somewhere. I closed it with how he can send me a message back via the website, or via email, whichever he preferred. here was the response i got back: Hey Harley - hope you're doing well. Let's go grab some Chipotle and make sweet sweet love in the corn fields. haha. Being silly. I like to pretend I am British when I am writing profiles for dating websites...it's kind of my thing. Hope you're having a great day. What kind of email shall I send you? 

Brett

I know, i was very disappointed when i read the response too. The 4 "o-no" moments for me? 1. "sweet sweet love in the corn fields" - i get that it's a joke, but its not funny.. 2. he pretends he's british when writing profiles -- what???? .. 3. "what kind of email shall i send you" - actually that one can break down into 2 .. i dont like the word "SHALL" from a guy. but mainly, that he didnt understand my emailing option.. so, womp wommppp. and 4, "brett" is my brother's name .. don't wanna be shouting that one out in bed!!

Anyway, I'll let you get some sleep - at least one of us has work in the morning. More to come, thanks for reading.

-Harley's Hype

A nice little saturday

so today was a nice little saturday .. woke up early to rally for the Yale / Harvard football game at brett's apt (brett is my older brother, but, we're tight),.. what a terrible game. The 2nd worse loss since 1915!! yeah they keep track that far back, I was shocked too. not to mention someone died during the tailgate -- didnt even make it into the stadium!! not to also mention, that the Yale quarterback had quite a decision to make regarding today's game ... he was invited for a Rhodes Scholarship interview! He chose to play the game, but wow, what a "good" problem to have. What do you think he should have done? What would you have done if you were him?

Anyway, after the defeat, me and brett went to a free screening of "Young Adult" starring Charlize Theron. It was actually better than I expected/better than the trailer made it out to be. Very interesting story line, and something I think we can all relate to on some level. It's about going back to your hometown you grew up in, and longing for something that once was. Everyone has their "what-if" moments from their past. But the choices we make in our lives is what shapes us and make us who we are. It's not about making the right decisions, it's about making a decision, then making that decision right. (credit to Hunter Grey) And we have to live with those decisions, good or bad, because in the long run, it's always for the good, it's always in your favor. Which brings me to my "life mantra", if you will, that everything happens for the best. You may not realize it at the time, but the universe works in magical ways. Think about it.

I don't mean to get too deep on you, but that just flowed pretty naturally haha.
Well, now it's almost 6, verryyy dark out, but the night is young. On tap later is a bday party at Hemingway's. Never been there but heard some good stuff. Stay tuned for the next hype!

-Harley's Hype

BORED

Ok, so it's unemployment day 10 (approx, plus the one week of temping at E!)... and i am sooo bored. I officially hate being unemployed. On the upside, I will be receiving unemployment checks soon.
With all the time on my hands I would love to take a trip - but alone?? Will it still be fun if I dont have someone to share it with?? hmmm something to think about ..
So far my daily routine is waking up, around 11 or 12, eating a good breakfast, then going on a walk/jog around my neighborhood. That's about it. Then I apply to about 10 jobs online. Then watch TV ... then hopefully something different will come up that day. For example today, I got a coupon for Old Navy, only good for this one day .. so I ventured out. Now, please note, I neverrrr shop at Old Navy, but I can't resist a coupon, and sometimes that store has those random staples you need for your closet. Luckily, I found a cute sequins tank top .. but as i was taking if off, my bra ripped a tiny hole!.. and of course they didnt have any others left in my size. So I told them it was ripped at the register, and got 35% off! wooohooooo!!
arite, back to watching TV ... more to come
-Harley's Hype

First Post!

ok so here is my first post, ever! not even sure who i'm writing to, which is actually kinda cool .. anyway, where im at right now is approx 2 wks unemployed. I haven't been unemployed since 8th grade in middle school, so it feels kinda weird, and actually kinda stressful because I don't know for how much longer it'll be this way.
However, this past weekend was kinda cool. Fri night I got to work Katy Perry's 27th bday, which was fun and a great people watching spot. Then Monday I worked the red carpet for the Twilight Breaking Dawn premiere at the Nokia Theater, which was awesome to be a part of, even though I'm not a twilight fan at all. But the amount of people that showed up was astounding.
Tuesday I ventured out to the Petersen Auto Museum, on Wilshire/Fairfax. It was cool, but i'll never go back - its the kind of place you could go once and get everything out of it. Unless they change their exhibits, then maybe I'll reconsider.
I've taken up jogging around the neighborhood, which takes up about 30 mins of my day .. but at least it's something! And I actually feel really good after it. Not to mention how I make up a ton of music videos in my head while listening to my ipod - I know you do the same thing.
All for now,
Harley's Hype