Women of Elegant Leisure take Los Angeles

A significant portion of my ward is made up of young married couples. The husband is usually going to dental/PA/PT/grad school and the wife is home with the kids or working full time.  They are usually not from around here. So Katie and I have started taking a few gals along on excursions into the city. They are days full of laughing and good food, which is the same as book club and stitching group and restaurant club - only with more hobos.  Highlights of yesterday's Women of Elegant Leisure LA Trip include:

1.)  Getting off the freeway at the fabric district and assuring the ladies that we would not be murdered, despite all the evidence to the contrary.  It is not in the prettiest part of town, but the deals are great.

2.)  Breakfast/lunch at the Nickel Diner, the same place I went for my birthday dinner.  It was just as awesome.  In fact, we met the owner this time and she remembered us from when we came last month and to thank us for coming back she brought out slices of buttered toast (everyone should know that toast is the way to my heart - somewhere on this blog is a lovingly crafted ode to it.) and her "special reserve" nectarine jam.  Um, HEAVEN!!!!  Their strawberry jam, which is at every table, was also incredible.  We tried some of their famous donuts, a maple bacon which was off the charts and a strawberry, which was sweeeeet but tasty in small doses.  I am now convinced that every trip into downtown needs a stop off at the Nickel Diner.

3.)  The bearded man walking through Union Station with a guitar slung across his back shouting, "I'M WIDE AWAKE!  I'M WIDE AWAKE!" and the security guard following close behind him.

4.)  The air conditioning on the subway car. Also, the air conditioning in Sephora, the giant fan in the station, and the $1 fans we bought at the sparkly tchotchkes shop. Not to mention the giant frozen lemonades we all bought and sucked down as we strolled up Olvera Street. Holy Cats! It was so hot and sticky and humid yesterday. Dear Autumn, we're ready. Love, Rachel.

5.)  Hanging out with some of my favorite people.  I know that someday your husbands will be done with school and you'll move away but we'll always have that ghetto part of LA.