Pork Rollin' Recap

What a crazy few weeks this has been! So the whole blogging while moving plan didn't work out very well. We put in some long days driving and then some technical difficulties got in the way. Once I got back to Jersey, I expected to have time to get settled and used to life on the East Coast. Then I went in to work on Friday to get fingerprinted and finish my paperwork and by the time I got home Friday I got a call telling me I'm starting on Monday. Here's a recap of Team Pork Roll's first few days on the road. More to come...

Monday, April 18th 

Team Pork Roll headed out of L.A. - first stop Vegas!

The hungry (and thirsty) team members hit up Margaritaville where Amy and I were hit by the Perfect Margarita. Damn, those drinks were good...and strong!

Fueled by the Perfect Margarita, I was determined to go see the pirate show at Treasure Island and the fountains at the Bellagio. Tony and Amy joined me on my drunken trek. Meanwhile, Pat went to the casino and was the only one to actually win something. 

Tuesday, April 19th

We headed out of Vegas and soon left civilization. Driving through Utah was just amazing. There were miles and miles of giant red rock formations and barely another soul around. At times we were the only 2 cars on the road. Unbelievable!

The original plan was to get to Denver on Tuesday - but good sense prevailed and we stopped in Grand Junction, Colorado for the night. It was my first full day of driving and I was beat. We all quietly sat around at dinner, barely able to put sentences together.

Wednesday, April 20th
On through the Rockies Wednesday morning.Another day of amazing mountain views, complete with snow and skiers.

My dear friends Heather and Charlie were Team Pork Roll's Denver tour guides. We didn't make it to Denver in time to go to a Rockies game but we did get a chance to go by the stadium.Then on to a local brewery where they have Silver Back ale, which explains the gorilla statue!

Dodger Dogs

Sunday - Part 2
After brunch, we headed out to Dodger's Stadium where we had awesome VIP seats thanks to Garry Marshall.

Dodger Dogs- grilled, not boiled!

The Dodgers and Cardinals were tied at 0 for most of the game. The Cardinals scored 1 in the 9th inning, then the Dodgers scored 2 in the end of the ninth for the win!

We had plenty to do after the game - more furniture moving and packing up the cars. Just 12 hours left in LA!

The Pork-Rollin' Has Begun

Team Pork-Roll has been rollin' for a few days now - here's what we've been up to.
Sunday - Part 1

Team Pork-Roll: Me, brother Tony, cousin Amy & Pat

Team Pork-Roll joined my LA family for one last champagne brunch. We enjoyed good food and time with friends. I cried, but just a little.  

Champagne bruuuunnnncccchh! 

Busy, Busy, Busy

It's my last day in L.A. and I still can't believe I'm leaving! The last week has felt like a fun vacation with family members and friends visiting. The only thing that's different is that most of my belongings are in boxes and my apartment is practically empty. I think it may hit me a few weeks from now that I've actually left L.A. Probably when I'm working at my new job, looking for an apartment in New York and complaining about how cold it is in NJ in May.

Team Pork Roll is Complete
Tony and Pat arrived on Thursday after driving for 5 days from NJ. Or, I guess it would be more accurate to say Pat drove for 5 days while Tony got to sight-see from the passenger side.

We headed right over to Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles for dinner - a perfect "welcome to L.A." meal. A waffle covered in butter and syrup paired with a crispy piece of fried chicken - sounds disgusting, tastes delicious! They also had some of the best mac & cheese I've ever had! (Mental note: look in to why I talk more about food than anything else in this blog, after I finish breakfast.)

Friday we stopped by the San Antonio Winery in downtown L.A. to stock up on wine - because you can't have too much wine when you're driving cross country. Then to lunch at the House of Pies (yes mom, we went to the House of Pies without you) where our waiter was overly enthusiastic about everything Pat ordered - "the fried pickles, they're my favorite!" "key lime pie, oh you tease me!". We ended the night celebrating Deirdre's birthday with drinks and red velvet cake at the Blue Room.

Team Pork Roll's final member, cousin Amy, arrived yesterday afternoon. To help her get on West Coast time, we decided to keep Amy up past her bedtime by going to see the L.A. Derby Dolls last night. We told her if she couldn't stay awake she was going to have to put on some skates and join a roller derby team! We watched the Sirens with team members Amber Alert and Mourning Wood defeat the Broadzilla, Tara Armov and the rest of the Fight Team.

This morning we'll go to Mo's for one last champagne brunch with my friends. Then, to a Dodger's game where we have VIP seats 10 rows off the field. And we'll end the day moving out the rest of the furniture and packing the cars. Busy, busy, busy!

Parties, Pork Roll, Princesses and Ponies

The last few days have been pretty busy - full of parties, pork roll, princesses and ponies. My cousin Chris and her 5 year old daughter Emily arrived on Saturday afternoon. We had just enough time to have a bite to eat before I left for my going away party.
Here's a little re-cap of what we've been up to.

Party Time! 

Margarita machine, Eduardo the burro pinata, and me - hard to tell who was most popular at the party!

Saturday night my amazing friends Erin and Matt hosted the Hasta la Vista Fiesta. Erin was in Margaritaville all night long - keeping us supplied with tasty drinks. Eduardo, the burro pinata, was hiding some adult goodies - lottery tickets, candy cigarettes, condoms, water pistols and, of course, Jesus themed games. There was a full house all night with friends eating, drinking and being merry. What a great way to say "see you later" to all my wonderful L.A. peeps!

Somehow I was sober at the end of the party and decided to go back home rather than spending the night at the Matthews'. I get home around 2 a.m., open the door slowly, trying my best to be quiet and  not wake Chris and Emily. The door opens a few inches and then stops - the chain lock is on the door! Now what?! I call Chris's name a few times, there's no response. I head over to my neighbor Emilie's place, thinking maybe I can crash on her couch, but there are no signs of life. I open the door again, squeeze my arm in and start working on breaking into my own apartment,  the whole time praying that Chris and Emily don't wake up and see my hand reaching in through the open door. I got it open in just a few minutes - a feat both miraculous and frightening! As I make my way to my room Emily opens her eyes, "Hi, Jessie!". "Hi honey. Go back to sleep, it's late". What a night!

Pork Roll

Chris, Emily and I headed to the Farmers' Market on Sunday for some lunch and the best crepes Chris has ever had. There, in the middle of the Farmers' Market, is a butcher that sells pork roll! If I had learned of this earlier, I wouldn't have had to travel all the way back to Jersey for it! Tacos for lunch and damn good crepes for dessert.

We went over to Santa Monica beach where Emily entertained herself picking up driftwood and seaweed while Chris and I chilled (literally, it was cool and breezy) on the sand. We came across a guy on the pier with his pet parrots. Emily got to take some pictures with them - highlight of her day!

Princesses

Disneylaaaaannnnddddd!! Yesterday was a blast! We weren't in the park more than 5 minutes when Emily got to meet Cinderella, the princess she was dressed as. I think the grown ups were more excited about Emily going on the "big girl rides" like Big Thunder Mountain and Space Mountain for the first time than she was. She earned herself some cotton candy after Big Thunder and after Space Mountain, she made a request for a "soft" ride. Erin and Matt voted Emily "coolest kid ever" - she was so awesome! Her favorite ride of the day - It's a Small World - I guess you can't go wrong with the classics.

Ponies

After a very long day at Disneyland, Chris and I needed a nice "soft" day today. We went to Griffith Park where there is lots of open space for kids to run free. Emily rode the ponies and then spent hours at a playground while Chris & I sunned ourselves. Being with a child is exhausting!

I'll take Chris and Emily to the airport early tomorrow morning, then spend the day to getting things ready for Tony and Pat's arrival. They're in Amarillo, Texas tonight and should be in L.A. in a few days. I still can't believe I have less than a week left in L.A.!

 

Full Circle

I'm enjoying the calm before the storm, my last day of solitude before the moving extravaganza begins. It's funny to be on the cusp of a major life change. It makes you think about where you started, where you've been, what's changed. When I arrived in L.A. I was so done with New York. After living in the New York/New Jersey area for most of my life, I was exhausted by the rat race. I needed space. I wanted to explore new ground, have some adventures.

Living in L.A. was definitely new ground and I have had plenty of adventures. I built a great network of friends, my surrogate family, who has made my life here so wonderful. We created our routines - girls' nights, happy hours, champagne brunches - all of which usually included plenty of alcohol to make life a little better. I explored my adopted home state - driving up and down the coast, stopping in places from San Francisco to San Diego,  Needles to the Salton Sea. I started working at UCLA, went to grad school, got a Master's degree in Public Health. I went to Brazil, Costa Rica, and Argentina and returned to Venezuela after a 10 year hiatus.  Looking back on the past seven years I have to say, "not too shabby!"

Tomorrow my family arrives, the family that's waited seven years for my return. All of these adventures have prepared me to go back home, ready for the next chapter, new adventures.  A week from now I'll be packing my last few boxes and heading back east. The plan is to be back in New Jersey by Easter Sunday - interesting because I first visited L.A. on Easter Sunday 2004. East to West and back East - Full Circle.

Moving is Exhausting!

I'm tired! Every time I get a few minutes to write, I sit down to "rest my eyes". Next thing I know, I have couch marks on my face, a drool stain on my shirt and two hours have disappeared!

Planning a move is exhausting enough, but I'm not just planning a move - I'm coordinating a cross country pork-rolling team, plus a going-away extravaganza complete with visiting guest stars, my cousin Chris and her 5 year old, Emily.  No wonder I'm tired!

Team pork-roll's travel plans are nearing completion. Team members Anthony and Pat are scheduled to leave Jersey next Sunday, the 11th. They'll take 4 or 5 days to roll on out to L.A. In the meantime, Chris and Emily get here on the 9th and will keep me company for my final week in L.A. We'll hit the beach, Disneyland and be all touristy for a few days.  Chris leaves on Wednesday, Tony and Pat arrive on Thursday, but the family parade doesn't end there. Team pork-roll's final member, cousin Amy, flies in to L.A. on Saturday - just in time to start rolling.

The plan is to leave on Monday the 18th, first stop Vegas! We'll hit up a buffet, maybe play some slots, win a little extra gas money. We'll have to be sure not to enjoy ourselves too much because we've gotta hit the road early Tuesday morning.

Tuesday will take us through southern Utah, where we will appreciate the natural beauty of Bryce Canyon and Arches National Park from the car while burning rubber on the way to Colorado. Denver is the next stop where original High Street Gang member Heather and her fiance Charlie have generously offered to put Team Pork Roll up for the night.

We'll then be rolling through Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania before reaching the pork roll promise land. 

What are some things we should see and do while on the road? Any favorite road trip games?

Moving is exhausting, so please support team pork-roll any way you can!