Last Call For Abbot's Habit!

Today is the very last day of Abbot's Habit being open on the corner of Abbot Kinney and California in Venice. That was hard to type.

My Mom and I were just in there having one last coffee, exchanging hugs, and generally not wanting to leave. Not wanting it to really be over. Not wanting to accept that our beloved local hang is closing its doors for good.

Gentrification, man. We all lament it, but it just keeps on happening. People keep raising rents, selling out to the highest bidder, and making it harder and harder for genuine lovers of Venice to stay in both business and in residence. The big picture seems to have been lost in a haze of money and greed that has been changing our town for the way less cool for a while now. Venice is losing its edge daily.

I got choked up several times while sitting in there listening to the regulars exchange stories, and wonder where they'll hang out now. For anyone that was a Habit habitué, places like Intellegentsia or wherever just don't cut it. You want to be where locals are, not where hipsters think is cool. Where will the corner guys hang now that the Habit is gone? Like Stanley Behrens wrote on a goodbye poster hanging up there today, "This was my favorite corner." Ugh, I'm choking up again.

Change happens, we know, we know. But the astonishing rate of turnover on Abbot Kinney, and the lack of vision it is accompanied by, is just downright sad - and wrong. Driving out everything that made Venice special will only make it boring ... the same as everywhere else. Generic. Who wants that?!

We finished our coffees (there was hardly any food left for sale after an intense morning of folks wanting their one last bagel special, etc...), shared more hugs, and will be heading back over there in a little bit to pop some bottles of thanks and one final finalé with Nina. With for sure some more tears.

Thank you for everything over the years, Abbot's Habit. You will live forever in our wonderful memories.

Last call!!!

R.I. P. Abbot's Habit!!!

Meow-ural On California

On my way back from the beach this morning, I saw a bunch of Missing posters up and down Venice Boulevard, looking for a lost cat. The reward for lost cats has really gone up, as this one was offering $20,000 for its return. Twenty G's. For a cat. OK. When I passed a human person sleeping under one of the signs. I hope a very poor person finds it and can afford their Venice rent this month, and there will be a very happy reunion with the very fancy cat and its owner. Everyone wins. Right? Wow.

Back on Abbot Kinney, I was waiting for my friend outside of Abbot's Habit and noticed a new mural on the wall outside of Salt & Straw. An old-timey milkman is now out there feeding some cats to entertain the long lines of sheep/people waiting for ice cream on California Avenue. They all appear to be strays, but you never know on Abbot Kinney. It might be where the $20,000 cats go to hang out these day. Keep your eyes peeled.

Meow.

Show Me Your Mumu Opens In Venice!

I'm so excited to report that Show Me Your Mumu has opened their flagship store here in Venice, right around the corner from Abbot Kinney Boulevard on California Avenue (next door to Salt & Straw). This is especially great because Show Me Your Mumu is the company of my friend and former downstairs neighbor, Cammy Miller (and her partner, Cologne Trude), and because a big chunk of my wardrobe is made up of Mumus (most from the incredible sample sales that they throw fairly often).

Mumus are great because they have gorgeous prints, are super comfortable, ultra-stylish, and you can pack your frocks and pull them out of your luggage looking great and ready to go. Rare. The styles are pretty ageless too, as I've given them as gifts to everyone from tweens to my Mom, and they all look great. You can be skinny, big, short, tall ... you'll always look good in a Mumu. They're all extra versatile too, for instance, say it's a bit tight in front, you can turn it around and have the back be the front ... just be creative!

All the Mumus are made, as the say, "In the Gorge USA", in a warehouse in downtown L.A., but the spirit of the clothing is purely Venice, where the owners continue to live. From two college girls slinging dresses out of their apartment in New York, to having a tiny shed in Robin's Sculpture Garden, to them now having their first real brick and mortar location, it's all been a dream come true. And now, just walking across the street to check out the new 'Mu is pretty dreamy too.

Congratulations, Welcome, Love, and Happy Mumu Monday to Show Me Your Mumu!

Show Me Your Mumu
529 California Avenue
Venice

Kook House

Driving down California Avenue last night, heading home from work, I have to say, I kind of enjoyed this bit of graffiti. It let me know that someone out there feels exactly the same way I do.

Now, I'm not saying that I endorse vandalism, but in this case ... I think they were asking for it. This monstrosity is located at the corner of California and 7th Avenue, directly across from Oakwood Park. It's a bit "In your face", Have Nots.

To come in and build something like this, smack dab in what has long been one of the lowest income areas of Venice, is such a level of unawareness and disrespect for a community, it's really pretty mind boggling - and concrete and grey and lifeless. Wherever you choose to live, you need to be mindful of where you are, and what it was like before you.

The ideal would be that someone would come in that cares about the neighborhood and either restores what was there or builds something that fits in with the tradition of our bohemian beach community. Of course they don't have to ... you'd just think they'd WANT to. Because now you've already estranged yourself from your community, everyone (besides maybe people on your payroll) thinks you're douchebags before you even move in, and a big corner of Venice is (for now) the most obnoxious eyesore in town. Good job, Kook House.

*Addendum - as it's there, and not likely to be torn down to build bungalows for affordable housing, maybe brighten it up with a mural done by the kids at the park across the street or something ... something to show they're trying to fit into the community. Just a thought.