So another week. Week four of a discussion of, among other things, my deep, abiding  (& only vaguely obsessive) passion for coffee and my newfound respect for oatmeal. It’s the end of October. We’re approaching (and will endure) Halloween here in Los Angeles. And I keep thinking it’s actually fall and it’s going to get chilly and lovely but once again I couldn’t be more wrong because we are after all just dwelling here on the surface of the sun; and at midday the word “autumn” is just not within earshot in Hollywood. Or Silverlake. Or even Century City.  (Although to be fair on a recent trip to Boston, where it really is crispy and chilly I didn’t catch the word “autumn” falling from anyone’s lips there either).

So among other week four accomplishments, I purchased a new car. It’s sleek, moderately fuel-efficient and entirely Teutonic in function. But not showy at all. Low key. As I think a car should be. In fact, it’s a sedan that essentially has the words “adult” subliminally etched across its understated albeit substantial grille. Color? Arctic blue. And so what if I had accidentally let my California state driver’s license lapse the day I purchased it --  thus pitching myself headfirst into a legal morass that rendered me – for four days – the Indie Morning Show’s Unlicensed & Uninsured News Reporter? And who knew I was supposed to pay for New York State license plates two cars ago – now they tell me? But of course that, like the Bonne Bell Lipsmackers I loved as a ‘tween, is all behind me now.  Anyway I mentioned it’s got two cupholders (not to mention the a) CD player and b) power windows – both long-wished for dreams now finally satisfied for me)…

I still like the oatmeal. Is it healthy? Absolutely. Is it completely, entirely and wildly good for you? No question about it. Am I particularly healthy? Probably not. But that has more to do with the cigarettes than anything else. The oatmeal however, is no joke. It’s amazing & fresh and they have it ready in 3 minutes. I time them now. Plus, I’ve actually become one of those creepy consumers who will just inadvertently duck into a Starbucks, order the oatmeal and then time it to make sure they’re as quick as they say. They have yet to disappoint. There’s one on LaTijera where my oatmeal must have been heated via some kind of nearby molten core because it was hot &  fresh had it hot &  ready to go in under two minutes. It took me longer to get the doors of my fancy new adult sedan open.  

But really and truly. I love the car. I’m hooked on the lattes. Iced in summer. I love the oatmeal. I put brown sugar in it. Sometimes fruit when I’m feeling outdoorsy. But most brown sugar. And all kidding aside…guess what you don’t do when you have the oatmeal for breakfast? You don’t eat garbage the rest of the day. You wait til you can have a healthy(ish) lunch. That’s why the oatmeal works. And believe you me, I’ve noticed a difference. Plus, that and my regular skim latte with extra skim which takes the edge off plus my new car and I am joining the ranks of reasonable people doing something reasonably healthy. Try the oatmeal…and let me know what you think. Because I’m sold.

More thoughts. I’m pretty sure it’s week three. And turns out I was dead wrong about the weather but dead right in my initial assessment of the Starbucks oatmeal thing. The guy at Starbucks, the cute but guileless barista with whom I’m managing to develop a pretty good banter these days. He’s no fool. And he waits like a spider for me every morning now, just poised & ready to defy me with what we’ve begun to call the “Under 3”. The oatmeal is now ready alongside my skim latte with the extra skim in under three minutes. He watches me enter the Starbucks and he smiles and he waves in an odd way like some member of the Scandinavian royalty. The fact that I’ve spent as much time considering the speed with which food is prepared that will be consumed in under 5 minutes in a moving vehicle in the dark is something I’m not necessarily proud of. Still, you do what you can.

I got to moderate a panel last week at the Getty Museum. It was really intriguing and we had these two hipster rabble-rousers speaking. Well, I called them rabble-rousers who – because of their own insight and sharp commentary – have been thrust into the political activist spotlight. First we had Dan Savage, journalist, Editor, Sex Columnist, author of 4 books, and now political pundit. (You know, what with the election and all). Then we had Robbie Conal, whose name may not be on the tip of your tongue but if you look him up his art is immediately recognizable. He’s a guerilla poster artist – one of the first in LA – who draws political figures with sinewy and slightly creepy faces. I’m sure you know his work. Anyway, the whole “College Night” evening was a big success and we had loads of college kids and everyone asked questions and we got everyone chattering. Basically I just tried to direct questions and then get out of the way. And afterwards, two students marched up to me and after shaking my hand announced that “I was dead wrong in my antiquated opinion of government arts funding but that I had been absolutely correct about the Starbucks oatmeal. It was ready in less than three minutes and it was super super tasty”. They had just wanted me to know that.

So there’s that. More later.