I do like stopping here from time to time. I think every town should have a pub. I always bring my dog with me when I go out so I’m glad for outdoor tables, albeit a bit cramped.

The food is pretty good for pub fare, and for a beer and a quick bite, it’s definitely worth it.

I discovered the best time to photograph neon is at dusk…still enough time to get an exposure, but dark enough to see the glow.

London’s Do-It-Yourself Approach to Safer Streets from Streetfilms on Vimeo.

Here’s an inspiring little video about people getting off their duffs and improving the quality of life on their block.

Here’s Chef Alex Ramirez smiling from behind the counter at The Market Grill on Shamrock across from the park on the east side of town. They’ve gotten quite a few positive write-ups (see their Yelp listing), and so out of curiosity I decided to try out the fare today and will be back.

It’s quite nice they are across from Shamrock Park, and if you plan ahead and bring a blanket, you can have quite the nice picnic.

Next time I want to try their soup and/or their veggie burger. They make their own hamburger buns and have homemade iced tea, which is a rarity in most restaurants.

Wow, this shot makes the Aztec Hotel look rather otherworldly, which is is, but in it’s own way. I think David Lynch might have lived here at one point, and got inspiration for his films.

If you tour the rooms you will know what I mean, although the animal cages in the lobby are worth the drive over there. The only thing missing is a live tiger roaming around the patio. I wouldn’t be surprised if I came upon a paper-mâché version in a tight hallway somewhere upstairs.

I think the best night to go would be Halloween. I could wear a mask and do crappy karaoke and no one would be the wiser.

Props to “lostinangeles” for this.

I’ve been doing a lot more cycling lately and was wondering if anyone else out there would like to see more accomodation for bikes in and around Old Town and Monrovia in general. Do you think if we had bike lanes and racks it would encourage people to ride more? I’m not one of those people that dares to pedal along Foothill unless it’s deserted (which rarely happens when I’m out). I also try to Avoid Myrtle in Old Town as cars tend to rush around and people get impatient; plus, the angled parking makes it tricky.

I do like to cycle around Old Town for the “out-and-about” aspect, so I end up crossing Myrtle on Palm or Lime instead of riding down Myrtle. I never leave my trike (yes, it has 3 wheels) anywhere since there are hardly any bike racks and I’ve got lights and stuff that would be easy for someone to remove if they wanted to.

Instead I ride around on it for fun, and quite often people smile, since it is a rather unusual contraption, being a semi-recumbent. They sell them at Sun Bicycles, but you have to have them assembled at a local bike shop. In case you were wondering, my model is the EZ-1, and it’s very easy to ride, but you still have to pedal hard going uphill.

Yummy! I love the fresh organic Farmer’s Market produce. I have to only leave the house with so much cash or I’ll be tempted to keep buying stuff. Today I left with a purple cabbage that is going to be made into sauerkraut; along with cauliflower, broccoli, bread and hummus.

One lady wanted to sell me grapes, but I told her I had some growing in my backyard, and boy was she surprised. It’s my first harvest this year and they’ve done well. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the “Red Flame” or the “Thompsons” as long as you give them something to climb on and don’t overwater them (or they will burst).

I was glad to see a few people wandering about with dogs. They’ve been getting overzealous with the signs at the Friday Night Festival. I used to walk my dog along the sidewalk and skip the actual Farmer’s Market area to comply with the signage, but now they’ve moved the signs to the very outskirts of the festivities, so me and my poochies are left out. ;(

I went to the Sunday morning Farmer’s Market today for the first time and really enjoyed it. If you like a slower pace than the Friday Night Festival market, I would definitely switch to Sunday morning.

There are fewer vendors, but still lots of produce available, some bread, coffee, nuts, fresh cobbler, gumbo, plants and even jewelry.

Cool shot of something I haven’t seen before here in town. I guess I need to hang out more by the train tracks!