USA fitness to Speakeasy fitness. Still poorly managed.

Speakeasy fitness now, it was USA fitness before.  My experience with both were unsatisfactory due to poor management.  Here are the circumstances:

1.  After I did all the required paperwork to cancel my membership, USA fitness continued to deduct monthly due on my bank account.  Evidently, the person I met to cancel my membership did not file the paperwork properly, so billing was not aware of my cancellation.  I have to return to the gym and show my proof of cancellation which was a big hassle.

2.  Last year, I tried to join Speakeasy fitness because I saw a great yearly rate.  I went to the gym to join and pay but they told me that the rate advertised in their website is wrong and needs updating.  I was required to pay a higher fee.  I tried emailing the manager about it, but I never got any response.

3.  This year, I eventually rejoined Speakeasy fitness because I saw that they have a great yearly rate again.  I paid my yearly membership fee in full and avoided giving them any credit card or bank information.  Lately I have to give them my phone number because my ID card was malfunctioning.  As it turns out, they could not locate my membership because the staff entered a wrong phone number.  Super annoying.

4.  There is a leg press machine that is broken for at least 4 weeks now.  How long does it take to have that repaired?  And on many occasions, the solitary water fountain would be broken too, and it took an unreasonable amount of time to get it fixed.

5.  Several weeks ago, the elevator was under maintenance.  Let it be said that the only access to the gym floor from the garage was via the elevator.  Otherwise, we have to walk out to the street and enter the gym front door.  Why can they have the elevator maintenance done when the gym is close as to not disrupt customer access to the gym floor from the garage?

6.  Every time it rains, the ceiling leaks into the gym floor.  Granting that it rarely rains in southern California, it should be fixed permanently.

These are my real experience with this poorly manage gym located in panorama city.

The undocumented Brazilian

 My friend Fernando is married to a Brazilian guy.  His husband has a Brazilian friend living in San Diego who Fernando and his husband think might be a good match for me.  Let us call him Edwardo.   Edwardo is undocumented.  He came to the US with a valid visa, but that visa has expired.  From what Fernando is alluding, Edwardo will need to marry an American citizen to get a valid status.  I was not too keen with this arrangement.  If I marry, I want to marry for love and mutual respect and not for Green card.   I saw Edwardo's pictures and he was not unfortunate looking.  He was not exactly my type, but he appeared to have the same interests as me.  We both ski and like to travel.  That was a big plus.  So, despite my reservations, I agreed to meet him.  We first chatted online then progress that to video chat.  He was charming and had a nice body.  So, over a 2-month period of almost daily chats, I began to like him.  From what he was alluding to Fernando's husband, he seems to like me back.  The chats were encouraging to say the least.   Then we agreed to meet in person.  I drove to San Diego to meet him.  During our lunch, he was not very engaging.  I thought he might be nervous.  He did entertain me by bringing me to a museum and the seaside to watch the wildlife.  He seems friendly but not overly friendly.   Since I am a pragmatic person, I did not hesitate to test the sexual chemistry in bed while I was there.  That was when the problem showed up.  He was bad in bed.  Or perhaps he was just not that into me sexually.  Upon my return to LA, I spoke to Fernando about it.  Fernando thought that I should not give up yet and still give it a chance.  He might be nervous in bed.  I did agree with Fernando and agreed to continue the chats with Edwardo.  I invited him to come to LA so he can see my place as well.  He made several excuses about not wanting to go to LA because to the trouble with ICE raids and protests. I did not push him and gave him time, but it became apparent that he did not want to come to LA at all.  He then told me that things were moving too fast.  That he wanted to slow things down.  I did not beg or argued and I just told him, "que sera sera".  That was our last chat.  Months went by and I gave up on Edwardo.  I had some self-reflection and came to the conclusion that he was not really into me.  I was sad loosing that possibility of having a BF but the more I think about it, I was not really sad in losing him in particular.   I did not realize that I really wanted to have a BF and was willing to compromise that much with him.  Over time I thought of him less and less and life returned to normal for me.  Things were as if I never met him to begin with.  

Recently while having dinner with Fernando and other friends, Fernando told me that Edwardo met someone and was getting serious with this other guy.  That Edwardo was sad that his BF took back the offer to meet his family in Arizona.  That is all I know.   This latest news about Edwardo just reinforced my belief that he was just not that into me.   He was willing to meet his BF family but not willing to drive to LA.  So things were not moving too fast for us.  It was just his way of ending things.  It was a euphemism for "I want to end things" but just did not have a courage to say so.  

I am actually relieved that things did not work out between me and Edwardo.  Otherwise, I would have been worried about him getting caught by ICE on a daily basis.  And with the recent news that the Trump administration is suspending immigrant visa from 75 countries including Brazil, I got a bit of satisfaction.  If we got married, I would not be able to petition him as a spouse and give him a green card because of Trump.  So am I glad that we did not become a couple?  Am I just sour grapes for his rejection of me? Yes I admit that I was annoyed that he rejected me, but I recovered from it.  Indeed I am over him.  How do I know?  Well I do not have a desire to report him to ICE even though the thought crossed my mind.   If he gets deported, it will not be my doing.  If he gets deported, I might be little sad.  Or will I be indifferent about it?  Who knows....

Facetime with friends for New Years eve

 New years eve this year was actually more fun than the previous years.  Usually it is just me and my mom watching TV and not even paying attention to the strike of midnight to welcome the new year.  But this year since my friends all stayed at home and avoided the gathering with their family/friends, they were available to video chat.  And I actually had something to do besides watching TV for New Years eve.  Video chatting with good friends is more fun and diverting than just watching TV.  So for that, I say thank you pandemic.  It is a nice silver lining.

Happy new year everybody.  Hopefully 2021 is a better year.

Thanksgiving during the Pandemic

 Thanksgiving has never been a big holiday for me to celebrate.  It probably has to do with the fact that I grew up in the Philippines and we do not celebrate that there.  And for me, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year are just one big Holiday season.  I start putting out my lights after Halloween and I keep it up till after New Year.

This year with the pandemic, Thanksgiving will even be relegated as another "ordinary" day for me.  I am not going to family or friends nor am I inviting them over.  It will just be another day off for me to do my yard work.  In fact I am working the Friday after Thanksgiving.  I am not even going out shopping for the sales.  Just being safe at home.

For what it's worth, I would like to greet everybody a happy Thanksgiving.  I am thankful that I am healthy and have my job.

Biden/Harris our new POTUS and VP or are they?

 It has been 2 days since the news network has declared Biden and Harris as the presumptive winner of the elections this past November 3, 2020.  I could not say how long I have waited for this and how much anguish and fear I suffered leading up to the election.  It was very long and a lot!  The past 4 years has been one circus show from Donald and his antics.  But now he is on his way out and I can feel at peace again.  Or can I????  Still Donald does not want to concede defeat and continues to spew out conspiracies and falsehood about election cheating.  There is still the nagging feeling that he will do really stupid and improper things up until the inauguration.  And since he has the super majority of conservatives in the SCOTUS, he might just wiggle a judgement to his favor and steal the win away from Biden.  Oh I wish I could see the future and know for sure that he is indeed on his way out.  For now I can rest and be partially at peace.  I will be fully at peace after the Presidential inauguration.  A few more weeks of waiting ensues...

Mulholland scenic drive during the pandemic

I have been itching to travel but with pandemic, it is not fully safe and realistic.  So for the most part I stay at home except errand and work.  Mom for sure is getting bored at home too so we decided to take a scenic drive around here in LA.  After a quick google search, I found this article.  I decided to take the Mulholland drive since it is close by.  At least this way we get to get out of the house but stay safe in the car.  We did step out 3x but maintained physical distancing from the few other people in the vistas.  People were wearing mask too so I feel we were being safe.  Here are some views of the valley we were treated to.

Bake when in quarantine

I take this COVID 19 pandemic seriously.  And one simple way to prevent me and my mom from getting it is to self quarantine in our home.  I only go out to work and the essential errands like grocery.  Since I am home a lot, I keep myself busy by tending to my yard and learning to bake.  I recently discovered how to make Leche flan from youtube and it was a success.  I dare say my flan is tasty.  The problem with making flan is it only needs egg yolk in the recipe.  So what am I to do with the egg white???  I do not want it to go to waste so I scower the internet for a simple meringue cookie recipe since I know it only uses egg whites.  I made some but it can get quite messy filling the piping bag with the beaten egg white.  Using a simple spoon or spatula makes for some oddly shaped cookies.  Mom suggested Angel food cake so I searched the internet once more for that recipe.  I tried making it and it was a success again.  Instead of using vanilla extract as the recipe calls for, I used orange extract.  It is yummy indeed.  Maybe next time I will use a different extract like banana or purple yam.  I dunno...

First hand Frenemy experience

My theater enthusiast friends have given me one account on Broadway Tony Award winner Lea Salonga.  They said that Lea is not the friendliest toward filipino who waited at stage doors after watching her perform.  Yet Lea is friendly and animated enough with Americans.  So my friends dubbed her the "Frenemy".  They love her for her talent and yet hates her for how she treated them.  Hence a friend and an enemy, frenemy.

I thought this account of Lea is at the very least intriguing.   I was not yet prepared to form a hard opinion of her based on this account.  After all, I have admired Lea since she snagged the role of Kim in the West End production of Miss Saigon.  Then when the show was brought to Broadway, she also played Kim garnering her a Tony Award for best actress in a musical.  She also won the best actress in the Laurence Olivier Award in London.  So her talent and singing prowess is not to be question.  I have listened to her sing on my own copy of Miss Saigon soundtrack countless of times that I could sing along pretty much 80% of the track.  Needless to say I was a big fan.

I was a big fan enough that when my friends invited me to travel to NYC to watch her on her new musical Allegiance, I jumped into the chance to see her perform first hand. But it was not meant to be since she was absent during the show that I saw.  It was her understudy that I saw.  So I was sorely disappointed.

When another chance came up to see her perform in person, I took it.  My friends invited me again to see her perform in Once on This Island.  Finally I saw her live and indeed her talent and singing did not disappoint.  On a side note, I did not care for the musical but seeing Lea live did not dampen my mood.  Now came the moment to meet her at the stage door.  True enough, she was aloof towards me, a Filipino fan ,yet animated towards the American fan.  So I guess my friends' account of her when they met her before was accurate.  She is not friendly to Filipinos.  Now I can form my own opinion of her on closer acquaintance.  For my friends, she is still the Frenemy, but to me she is just the enemy.  Ever since that day, I have sworn never again to patronize her shows.  I will not fly to NYC just to see her.  Even if she has a show in LA, I will not go see it.  No need wasting my money on her.

My Appendectomy experience.

Two weekends ago, I had acute appendicitis which was mitigated by laparoscopic appendectomy.  But before that, I suffered chronic appendicitis which was never diagnosed properly so no medical intervention was done.  Here are the chronological events that lead to the surgery.

About 2 years ago, I celebrated a friend's birthday at Black Angus steakhouse.  The next day, I suffered intense tummy ache which I attributed to food poisoning.  But none of my friends who dined with me had the same problem. They were all fine so I thought perhaps the steak I had were too raw.  The symptoms kind of resolved itself the next day and I was back to normal.

Then about 3 months ago, I had another episode of intense tummy ache that started from the belly button to the right lower abdominal quadrant.  I could not think of anything that I ate but I did think it was my glass of soda that may have been contaminated by flies.  The notion of appendicitis did cross my mind since I was not having the usual accompanying symptoms of rebound tenderness and fever.  My bowel movement was liquid in consistency but not completely absent.  I was able to take in food without vomiting so my doctor cousin did not think it was appendicitis also.  The tummy ache and low energy (from not eating much) lasted for about a week and I eventually fully recovered.  But I must say my bowel movement was never the same since then.  I would go 3-4x a day with diarrhea consistency almost after every meal.  I planned to see the GI doctor about it but then this acute appendicitis happened.

Two weekends ago, I woke up with a bloated sensation on my tummy and eventually turned into tummy ache.  I thought why am I getting food poisoning so often.  Do I have cancer of the bowel?  It is something else?  Appendicitis barely crossed my mind.   I put up with the pain until it became unbearable and I vomited the water I ingested.  I decided to take the Uber to the ER at Valley Presbyterian Hospital not too far from my house.  I thought I would at least get tested properly and I would get IV fluid to re-hydrate me.  CT Scan was performed and it revealed acute appendicitis.  It was a Saturday late afternoon when I went to the ER, I had laparoscopic appendectomy surgery early Sunday morning.

I stayed in the hospital till Tuesday.  At the hospital, I had IV fluid and antibiotics since my appendix was perforated.  I also was given IV push morphine as needed and Norco on a scheduled basis.  I have to stop taking those opiates prescribed by the doctor since the nausea side effects was worse than the pain.  We also tried Tramadol but that also gave me nausea.  So I refused them.  Upon discharge, I was just taking Ibuprofen or Naprosyn for pain.  The pain was there but I put up with it.  My drainage tube was attached still till it was taken out Monday (8 days post op).  That tube started to hurt more later and it was barely draining anything.  It should have been out earlier but it was the surgeon's decision.  Now that the tube is out, my wound feels better.  I am doing daily dressing changes to it.  It still drains very little but nothing that a dry dressing can't handle.  The only other problem that I have now is the left thigh tingling/numbness and shooting electrical pain when I move my hip a certain way.  Obviously a nerve was disturbed during the surgery since the Surgeon had to access one of his laparoscopic tool on the left lower abdomen.  The surgeon says it will eventually go away.  I hope he is correct about this cause this can be debilitating at times.  My energy level is slowly getting back to normal.  My surgeon sent me to the ER last Monday because of the night sweats that I was having.  He was concern that an abscess might have developed internally.  But at the ER, blood work and contrast CT scan were able to rule that out.  I am out of the woods and on to full recovery.  Now it is just a matter to time to be back to 100% normal.  I am scheduled back to work 2 weeks post op which I think is sufficient time.

This appendicitis/appendectomy was a disruption to my work and life but I am glad it is almost done with.  Now I do not have to worry about getting another episode of "food poisoning" which in hindsight were likely the manifestations of my chronic appendicitis.  I am sort of glad it happened and I hope to loose 10 pounds from this.

Changing jobs

A lot has happened the past couple of weeks.  The most important is my impending change of job.  I have been with my present employer for the past 2 and a half years now.  Lately at work I have grown dissatisfied.  I felt that my voice is not being heard.  I requested a dialogue with my boss/owner twice but she was too busy to meet with me.  Perhaps she did not feel that my request was that important which made me feel taken for granted.  There was also the issue of the place literally getting too crowded as they hired more staff.  Also there was a coworker that is just getting too unsavory to work with.  Add to that the low professional satisfaction, I decided to search for a new job seriously.  I had 3 interviews total which kept me busy and preoccupied.

At one of the position I interviewed, I felt I had a good chance of being offered the position.  Then they declined to offer me employment which made me despondent for a couple of days.  Unexpectedly out of the blue I received a phone call from the lady that interviewed me saying they wanted to offer me the position.  A pleasant surprise and change of position indeed.  After several more phone conversations and negotiations for my potential employment and another phone interview, I began the extensive application process, drug test and references verification.  Now I am approaching the final steps of my application process which is such a relief.

Meanwhile at my current employment, the boss/owner decided to finally meet with me face to face upon receiving my resignation.  They offered me more money and to match whatever I was getting at my new employer.  Evidently, they really wanted me to stay.  I suppose the quality of work I produced was not unnoticed.  But I feel it is a bit too late now.  I have committed myself to the new employer and I was honestly just done with my current employer.  I needed a fresh start.

What surprised me more was the fact that this is the second time I was offered more money by previous 2 employers in an attempt to keep me from resigning.  I should not let this get to my head.  If anything else I get too hasty to move on rather than stay at any signs of potential trouble.  I will not wait around till my employer will screw me over.  I suppose my past bad experience with one employer in Chicago has overwhelmed me to act this way.  We are after all a product of our experiences.

Chevy won, Toyota lost

About 2 months ago, I bought a pick up truck.  I ended up buying a Chevy Colorado but what I really wanted was a Toyota Tacoma.  The Chevy was slightly cheaper and I am not regretting my choice.  I also considered a Nissan Frontier because it was the cheapest of the 3 but the price did reflect the quality of the vehicle.  So I abandoned that option. 

When I went to to the Hamer Toyota dealership, they were not very enthusiastic when they learned I wanted a Tacoma.  Why?  It is because the Tacoma is so in demand and they know they can sell them anytime.  One sales person even suggested I pay more than the MSRP.  Are they kidding me?  No fucking way am I paying more than the MSRP.  So I brought my ass to the Keys Chevy dealership.  I learned that the Chevy Colorado would end up cheaper than the Tacoma and the feature of the vehicle are better.  Just more high tech.  The sales people are also so welcoming and nice.  I did end up getting my Chevy from the Allen Gwynn Chevy dealership because I know somebody who had a good experience there.  They even gave me 2 grand less than the MSRP which sealed the deal. 

So Toyota, you lost out.  I would have gotten a Toyota if you people were not so smug.  Chevy end up getting my business and winning.

Renewed faith that many things are resolved by talking

The other day at my ghetto gym, I had an encounter with one member that renewed my faith in humanity.  It reaffirmed my belief that many conflicts can be resolved by talking.

I was at the gym and was ready to use one machine.  There was nobody there but a bottled water at the foot of the machine.  So I began to move the machine to my desired setting.  Then a man came over saying he IS using the machine.  I told him that he was not otherwise he would be actually using it.  He said he was at the other machine and he left is water bottle to indicate that he is using the machine.  I told him that he can't really reserve a machine.  If he is not using it at that moment, anybody else can use it.  And I left it at that and told him he could have it.  The other machine that I also wanted to use became available and I was not in the mood to argue any further with him.  He looked like the type that I would not want to mess with anyways.  The ghetto brute violent looking type.  So I left.  After using the other machine, I decided to talk to management.  I know that reserving machine is not suppose to happen but tolerated by management.  I asked the front desk what needs to be done cause this brute looking man was reserving a machine he was not using.  Management confirmed my belief that I did have the right to use that machine if he was not there.  Management further added that we were suppose to share and take turns using the machine.  Management said they would talk to the said member.  Before I left, I saw the brute looking man again and decided to peacefully talk to him once more.  I told him that I spoke to management and that we should share the machine next time.  And to my surprise, he was very agreeable.  He added that he was gonna suggest sharing the machine but I left before he could.  I was half expecting him to be unreasonable and act all intimidating but he was calm and smiling.  His reply totally caught me by surprise.  People do response to peaceful resolution in many cases.

Antivaxxer, gluten free, etc etc

I worked with this woman who was my manager from a previous job.  She is white, college educated, middle age and middle class.  She only eats gluten free food and she talks about glutathione like she is a chemist or nutritionist or medical doctor.  She is the type of person who have enough education on some liberal arts degree to know how to search the internet and understand the surface of some scientific facts and then forms a conviction on something that is controversial in the scientific community at best.  I find these kind of demographic quite annoying.  They are the type who easily joins a bandwagon on some exercise fad like pilates or some food fad like gluten free without truly understanding that fad.  Some of these fads are harmless and perhaps marginally helpful while some are downright harmful.  And one of these harmful fad this demographic tends to have strong opinion on is the anti-vaccination.  They believe claims that have been refuted by an overwhelming majority of the experts in that particular scientific world.  To top it off, they don't even understand fully what they are believing in.  They are educated but not on the right education to be an expert on the very fad they hold a strong conviction on.  So annoying.  So stupid.  If I hear of an antivaxxer mother, I instantly picture that ex manager of mine.  And the thought of her makes my eye roll.

Sunday brunch at the Queen Mary.

This past Memorial day, we decided to visit the Queen Mary ship docked at Long Beach for Sunday brunch.  It was one of those things I have always wanted to try.  The buffet style brunch food was good.  It was fancy and there were a lot of selections.  Plus there was a live musician playing a harp providing classic tunes.  It was delightful indeed.  The people dinning were varied in their attire.  Some very casual.  Some in their Sunday church outfit.  The only downside to this experience was the cost.  It was $208 for 3 persons.  That is a bit steep for buffet brunch.  But I get to walk around the ship after dinning and get to self tour it.  That made the cost a little bit easier to take.  It might have been expensive but I guess this was one of those things I was willing to swallow for the experience. Something I will not do again for sure.

Universal Fitness club, my review

I recently joined Universal fitness club at Panorama City by the corner of Roscoe and Van Nuys.  It is walking distance to my house so the convenience is a big plus.  Also they have a very reasonable monthly fee.  If I paid the full year up front, I get 3 months extra and the total monthly cost will only be $19/month.  That is definitely another plus for joining this gym.  Also I checked out the inside and the machines are fairly new.  It is basic.  No frills and it is not a fancy facility complete with spa like wet areas.  That did not matter to me.  I am going there to lift weights and walk home after.  I did not need a jacuzzi or steam room or sauna.

On my third visit to the gym at around 9 pm, I noticed that the temperature was very warm.  I asked the front desk about it and they said the air was being fixed.  Then 2 more visits at night after that, I noticed that it was still warm despite the air running.  It was not as warm as that night when the air was broken but still warm.  I mentioned it to the front desk.  Nothing was done about it the subsequent visit.  And then my most recent visit, the air was broken again and the gym felt like a sauna.  The outside temperature was at least 10 degrees cooler than inside.  Mind you this was summer time in So Cal and night temp were not that cool.

So I guess I get what I paid for.  The monthly fee is indeed low but the customer service is poor.  I feel the management is trying to save money by keeping the air running on low.  If this gym is not so conveniently close to me that I could walk to it, I would have left it and pay for a more expensive gym that is comfortable to exercise and lift weight in.

Be warned!

"Bless you"

"Bless you."  That is what most people would say to somebody who sneezes.  As an atheist who suffer from allergic rhinitis and constant sneezing, I hear that a lot and it can get tiresome often.  I know it is only polite etiquette so I usually just ignores them.  Or if I can not ignore their "blessing", I would fake a "thank you" to be polite.

Last Sunday at a store, I sneezed.  This woman who heard me said "bless you".  I was so ready to just ignore her but she said "bless you" again louder to emphasize it to me.  She was obviously expecting me to thank her for the blessing she feels I got from her saying it.  So I just bluntly told her that I do not believe in her god.  And then proceed to fake thank her just to be polite.

As I said, I know people are just being polite by saying it.  But why can't they say "salud" or "gasundheit" which both means health?  I would rather get a positive energy towards my health than a blessing from some useless deity that do not exist.  It is high time people should stop assuming that we all believe in their god.  After all, we have stopped assuming that everybody celebrate christmas so now we do not say "merry christmas" during the holidays.  Instead we say "happy holidays".  It is about time.

A visit to the Hearst Castle.

The Hearst Castle is truly a magnificent estate.  Built by News Paper publisher William R Hearst in collaboration with architect Julia Morgan from 1919 to 1947.  To this day it is considered unfinished because it was only the death of William R Hearst that terminated the work on the estate.  The Hearst Castle is also called La Cuesta Encantada.  It is located in San Simeon by the coast of California up in the hill halfway from LA to San Francisco.  Today the Hearst Castle is owned by the California State Park because it was donated by the Hearst family to the state for 11 million dollars of tax right off. 

The estate boast a main house called Casa Grande, 3 guest houses (Casa del Mar, Casa del Monte and Casa del Sol), one magnificent outdoor pool called The Neptune Pool, an indoor Roman Pool, 2 tennis courts and several courtyard/fountain/terrace.  It even had a zoo when Hearst was alive.  Now the enclosures for the animals are empty.  The present day fauna found in the estate are domesticated cows along with wild animals.  The only way to the castle on top of the hill is a meandering private road from the visitor center below.  The Castle does boast a fine prospect as one approaches it.  From the castle itself, the view of the Pacific and the surrounding mountains are truly breathtaking and serene.

Inside the Casa Grande, WR Hearst filled the rooms with antiques and art work from his vast collections.  Tapestries, paintings, panelings, furniture, sculptures and religious items from Europe.  Works ranging from the 16th century to the 19th century from many Masters.  It is a museum inside I say.

For California residents who have little opportunities to visit the grand castles of Europe, I say this Castle is one that should not be missed.  It is very accessible by car from SF and LA.  Just a mere 2 hour drive.  And the tickets for the  different tours are no more than $30.  Very reasonable indeed for what one gets from the visit.  I enjoyed my visit so plan a weekend trip now.

Medieval Times in Buena Park (Metro LA)

My family and I went to Medieval Times for New Years Day.  We got nothing better do so and my mom kept on hinting how she wanted to check the LA Medieval Times.  You see, she had fun at the Chicago Medieval Times many years ago so she wanted to see it again.  I remembered it was a novelty and since it was a long time ago, I was not oppose to seeing it again.

I was diverted.  Perhaps more so if I was 10 years old but still it was fun.  There were a King, a Princess, and 6 Knights.  We were assigned to the "Black & White" Knight and I was happy about that cause our Knight was the handsomest of all the Knights.  The Archery contest, Jousting and spear throwing contest were nice.  There was some OK horse performances too.  Then there were sword fights which I could totally tell were choreographed.  But the kids behinds us sure could not tell.  They were cheering and shouting for our Knight to "kill" the other knight.  Unfortunately our knight was the first who got "killed" or "injured".  In the end, the villain from the other kingdom has to be subdued by the winning knight.

The meal that was served to us was 5 courses.  It may seem grand but it was actually just soup, roast ribs, roast chicken, baked potatoe and some pastry.  Drinks were either soda, water or tea.  Nothing grand but it filled me up.  We had to eat it with our hands which I totally expected from my previous experience. 

Outside of the arena was a waiting area with middle ages painting and items hanging on the wall.  There was also a gift shop to lure the kids to buy fake swords, chain mails, crowns, jewelries and even jester hats.  I would have bought a chain mail if they had one similar to the one Pippin wore.

The whole experience was a novelty to say the least.  A good entertainment for kids and tourist.  Repeating it probably will loose its novelty but first timers should enjoy it.

Candy Cane lane of Santa Clarita

We recently went to check out the Holiday Lights on the houses at Santa Clarita.  It's called "candy cane lane".  There were a lot of people checking out the lights so we were not able to park the car and walk around.  We just drove slowly around the street.  Here are some pictures.