Have A Real Venice Weekend!

I've been running around all over the place and not had as much time to either really enjoy or write about Venice as much the past few weeks. So, it was with extra anticipation and enthusiasm that I finally got to enjoy a fully Venice weekend last week. And I'm about to do it all over again ...

Both weekend days were beach days, though Saturday was a lot cloudier than Sunday. No matter, as you still get that Vitamin D through the haze, and it was plenty warm enough. With a TON going on. There was a Venice Festival (don't know who put that on, but there were booths and food and live music - by the likes of Venice's own Venice's Mark Lennon and John Vester - and a bunch of fun and good vibes). There was a skate contest at the skatepark (I got there when it seemed to be for the 50+ age group still getting it!).

Walking to the beach, I noticed a perfectly Venice patio, all colorful and inviting, with just enough kitsch to make it feel like groovy old Venice.

I ran into people I knew all both days, which is always the best part about a great day in Venice. I had the breakfast burrito from Hinano's for breakfast on the beach. I swam in the Pacific, whose water has finally warmed up enough to make it a delight, with almost zero easing in time. Especially Sunday, when the sun was all the way out and it REALLY felt like Summer.

While on my human rotisserie beach blanket, I used my new koozie from the funeral of my dearest friends' dad's (Larry Hendrickson) funeral (funeral merch!), and thought about its wording ... "The PriZe is worth the PriCe." That is almost always true, and it could apply to so many situations, but I was thinking of Venice ... and how hard it is to still live here, with the ridiculous rents, the annoying Bird/Lime users, the BUBs, the traffic, the scenester restaurants, people who walk down Abbot Kinney like it's the airport, all slow and haphazardly, the corporate chain stores, the line at Salt & Straw, the "New Venice" people that warrant constant eye rolls, sad gentrification, etc ...

... but then you see your pals, and watch the skaters, and swim in the Pacific, and find out there's a new store for old school rollerskates in town (Moxi Rollerskates on Main Street), and you get that the Venice Vibe is still very much alive and well. As are the people that love it and want to keep it cool. I know, because I saw a ton of them last weekend. And I hope to see even more on this one ... starting very soon.

So, get out there and enjoy all the Venice you can - and get funky. Wear a costume. Paint a mural on your house. Go for a rollerskate. Jump in that awesome water. High five an O.G. Be happy ... because Real Venice is still here for your enjoyment. Dig that.

The Neptune Festival Declares It Officially Summer 2016 In Venice!

June Gloom split right on time and Sunday was hot and sunny for the annual Neptune Festival held in Venice each year to officially proclaim it to be SUMMER!

The party started at The Sidewalk Cafe, where sea-themed revelers caroused and prepared to parade together to the Ocean.

This year's King Neptune was Jeremy Parker and his Queen was Kaycee Smith, both all done up in vintage Hawai'ian threads, leis, and elaborate headdresses. Their royal court were all in similar attire, and everybody was ready to make a big scene in the name of Summer fun.

The group was called to order outside of The Sidewalk Cafe with a blast from the royal conch shell, and we all lined up behind the sparkling Venice sign to process down the Boardwalk, across the sand, and down to the water.

My favorite part of the Neptune Festival is seeing all the unassuming tourists and beach goers who have no idea what's coming or happening. The chants of "Hail The King! Hail The Queen Hail Summer! Hail Venice! Hail Yeah!" were repeated all along the way, and the parade grew in size as pleasantly surprised fellow lovers of Summer joined the gang.

Mermaid Queen Smith read her official statement, stressing the importance of our Venice traditions, especially in light of all the change going on around town. She encouraged us to live by example, "To skate more, and to love more!" Hear, hear!!!

With another blaring blow to the conch shell, King Neptune Parker read his royal decree next, urging that there be music and feasts, and "Fine wine, women and friends!" "We are all humans! We are an example of love and unity for the world! I declare that SUMMER IS HERE!!! To the Water!!" With that proclamation, we could now declare it to officially be Summer in Venice! It was awesome.

The King and Queen went into the water for the ceremonial dunking that the Neptunes must do to make it all legit. They were joined by several members of the royal court and a whole bunch of folks that just wanted in on the fun. Last year's Queen "The Visqueen" Dakota Rayfield had my favorite quote of the day when she looked out at all the summery chaos and said,  "Look, we're just reigning beautiful mischief all over the place!"

The entire group posed for photos together, then traipsed back across the sand to carry on the party at The Sidewalk Cafe with live bands and royal revelry all the rest of the day, until a golden sunset put the perfect exclamation point on the wonderful day.

May we all have a Summer absolutely FULL of beautiful mischief! Hail Yeah!!!

Nature Makes Us All Kin

I know I'm not alone when I look around and think the entire world is going insane. Times are crazy, and volatile, and scary, and ... does any of it really matter if we don't have a livable Earth? In yesterday's political hubbub, I didn't realize until the evening that it was World Oceans Day. I LOVE the Ocean. It really is the only thing sometimes that keeps me sane. Indeed, yesterday I had to shout out to the Pacific Ocean and Radiohead's A Moon Shaped Pool for keeping me from either self-destructing or getting into an actual fist fight with all of the mainstream media. Instead, I breathed in deeply and thanked my lucky stars that I had all of this beautiful water to calm me down and appreciate all of the beauty in the world.

And then I saw the dead bird. Just about every morning I see something dead as I walk along the shore, from bees and butterflies to a big, fat seal bloating in the sun. It's awful, and I don't know why it's happening, but it is. I pay close attention to the Heal The Bay water scorecards, and though it might say "A" for our water, they can't test the whole ocean, and something is killing things on a regular basis. The Oceans sustain most of the planet for food. It's all connected, and if human life becomes impossible on Earth, it really won't matter at all what political party you're a member of or what candidate you support (it doesn't feel like it matters anyway, with all of the corporate calculation going on, but that's another story for another non-World Oceans Day).

As I was thinking about all of this, I walked over to check out the brand new mural by my lovely friend, Diana Garcia, in the back patio of the Tom's Shoes store on Abbot Kinney Boulevard. The gorgeous deer/peacock spreads its tail and reminds us that "One touch of nature makes the whole world  kin" - from Shakespeare's Ulysses. In that moment as I read those words, I felt that profound truth, and decided it far better to focus on what we can do TOGETHER to help the world, not fight it. To lift each other up, and hold ourselves to better standards of respect for our Earth and all its Peoples.

Truly, none of the rest of it matters if we don't have that.

Thank you, Diana! #Bewhatyoudream

Take A Breather - Gone Fishing!

I'm leaving today for Summer vacation back home in Minnesota, so Blogtown is taking a little breather while I'm away as well. As I was walking down Abbot Kinney this morning, I saw a whole bunch of Buddhas sitting there, reminding us all to remain calm. To take it all in. To breathe. To relax. To be here in the moment - now.

That sentiment carried on as I walked along the beach, soaking up and breathing in all the fresh, salty beach air to sustain me while I'm in the Land of Lakes. And Rivers.

I'll leave you with a little beach meditation and Summertime Pacific splendor ....

... and hope you all have the best time ever while we're apart. I sure plan on it.

Happy Summer Vacation!!! Yessss.