Good day

Today was a very good day. I spent the morning leisurely getting ready for the day, reading the paper and watching Moonstruck for the 100th time.

Later Tony came over and we went to lunch. We then headed over to Stats to get in the holiday spirit. I go to Stats every year to get "in the mood" for x-mas because it never fails me. Tony had never been so I was excited to show him around. First we stopped by the miniature village room. I love it! That dark room lit up with Christmas villages is so great. We walked up and down each aisle and ended up in what I call the "grand finale room": The Christmas tree room. I bought some ornaments for my new cubicle and Tony got some great things for his apartment. We decided his color scheme was very masculine and gorgeous.

Tony had never seen South Pasadena so I drove him down Fair Oaks for a taste of the place. I then took him to one of my favorite stores called The Folk Tree. It's filled with Mexican Folk Art brought up from Mexico. I haven't been in a long time and, while I still love the contents of the place, I was disappointed that the prices have quadruped since my last visit. Bummer! Looks like I'll have to take a trip to Mexico to get some of the stuff for myself.

We went to The Folk Tree Collection (a sister store) up the street. They were having a sort of open house. There were lots of great things to see but I resisted buying that bracelet I loved. I did, however, pick up a few stocking stuffers.

We left and walked out into one of those evenings that reminds my why I love California. The sun was beautifully setting and it was warm and breezy out. We rolled down the windows in the car and opened the moon roof and headed home.

This is one of my favorite ways to spend a Saturday, lunching with a good friend and visiting unique shops. As a result, I've decided I'm banning malls this holiday season. I'm going to see if I can buy all gifts from independent stores. I don't know if I can do it for the kids but I can definitely do it for the grown-ups in my life. No malls for me!!

Here are a few more places I plan to visit this holiday season between shopping stops:

Huntington Library
Nixon Museum
Laemmle Theaters
Norton Simon Museum