Empire

I spotted this stone in a friend's backyard the other day. One thing I love about Monrovia is that it has a wee bit of history, compared to many other new communities in the Southern California area. I don't know what this one means, and so this adds to its mystery and charm.

Laundromat Carousel

How deluxe to have a carousel inside a laundromat. I love the blue horse's come-hither expression.

New Big Machine

The eternal daylight of laundromats. Are they trying to be cheerful or luring you in with a promise of efficiency?

Watching clothes dry

Just another Saturday night in Monrovia.

Hot Wings is now open...

I just noticed that these guys in the background were waving at me!! :)

Auntie Em's Kitchen, Eagle Rock

I strayed out of Monrovia the other day to visit Auntie Em's Kitchen in Eagle Rock. It was worth the drive. A friend had recommended it and I enjoyed the home-grown quality of it. I love "mom and pop" type restaurants and this was no exception. I had an onion and bacon tart with scrambled eggs and fresh squeezed orange juice. The place is bustling with life and local character. As with other places that are still somewhat affordable, Eagle Rock is bustling with young artists and students. I wish Monrovia would get a few more places like this. They played great music and the whole place just reeked of a laid-back hipness that is so appealing.

Stepping Stones

I got some tumbled Bluestone from Southeast Construction in Monrovia and am making a path with it. It's quite heavy, so the 44 cents per pound price escalates quickly! But I have been buying small amounts for some time now and my path is starting to fill in nicely! I'm planting creeping Thyme, which looks pretty and doesn't mind being stepped on. You can see a bit of it on the left.

The Wizard of Bras

A funny shot of the Wizard of Bras by "dogwelder." Note the placement of the hydrant in the foreground.

Movie Shoot

I've heard Monrovia is a popular place for the film industry to use as a backdrop, but so far I haven't caught them in action. "matuko.amini" caught this shot.

Blog stickers

I got the idea of creating stickers rather than cards for this blog. I want to give away avocados and put my blog sticker on them. What do you think? (The white background is for objectivity only. The stickers would be round.)

Monrovia in Black and White

I love this moody night shot by "matuko.amini." Our little town closes up pretty early most nights, so it's not surprising that she got this shot without people in it. I wish we had at least one late night eatery on Myrtle, but perhaps there wouldn't be enough diners. Oh well. One can dream.

Canadian Cafe

Has anyone eaten at the Canadian Cafe yet? Any recommendations? I'm curious. I like the idea of it, and a friendly moose cartoon doesn't hurt either! :)

Pic by Doran

Monrovia High School

A nice shot of Monrovia High School from a K-Gem photographer.

Garden Hero

I've been working in the garden again lately, planting tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, roses and calla lily bulbs. I'm also starting to harvest my first compost, which I have been feeding with kitchen scraps for a year or so. I hope that my plants like it! I've also purchased a praying mantis egg case, which should release about 200 young ones in about 3 weeks. They prey on whiteflies, aphids, and other garden pests. I'm hoping they take care of some of the whiteflies that persist on one of my hibiscus plants. I've tried the systemic stuff to no avail, so now I'm going the natural route. I love this pic, by "howlinhill" on Flickr.

House Hunting in Monrovia

I've been helping a friend look for a place. He is looking for a small guest house or bungalow to rent, and he's also looking for a 3-bedroom house for his company to invest in. It's interesting for me to see how home prices have risen in just the last couple of years. My home has risen in value even more than I would have expected. Not so long ago Monrovia was a cheaper alternative to Pasadena, but it seems that prices here have risen to a similar range. There are still some good deals to be found, with much hunting, I suppose.

One thing that has stuck me about this area is how people tend to stay here, or come back. Those I know who have grown up here have fond memories of it. We looked at a little bungalow today that was recently renovated and renting for $1200/mo. The man who was telling us about the property said that his mother-in-law purchased the group of bungalows more than 10 years ago. What a shrewd move! They are quite close to old town, and I wish that more of these types of dwellings were available. So much nicer than an apartment building, but I guess small bungalows aren't being built anymore because they are not as lucrative for landlords (I can't imagine them ever being vacant, however)!

One of the things I love about Monrovia is that there are quite a few small bungalows to be found, though they don't come up for rent very often. We just happened to be driving by and I spotted a sign in the window. He said he had just put it up today, and expected to have enough applications to make a decision in the next two days.

Waffles @ the Peach Café

A great shot by "imtrendywendy" on Flickr. The Peach Café on Colorado is a great place to have a casual, yummy breakfast (or lunch)! It's just off of Myrtle, and has a small outdoor seating area and a friendly staff. It's a local favorite!

police station

Our friendly police station, taken by one of the staff at K-Gem studios. In other news, we've had a cop car parked in front of our house for a week now. I've heard they do that to deter speeders, but geez, I think we all know they are there by now. Time to move it, fellas!

Great Vegetarian Restaurant in Arcadia

Just outside the city limits in Arcadia is a great little Chinese Vegetarian restaurant called Bean Sprouts. It's on Huntington Drive near 1st Street. I had dinner there on Saturday night and it's terrific. The staff is very friendly and want to tell you all about the food. Each dish we ordered was flavorful and fresh. I'd recommend the daikon radish cakes, the Hawaiian fried rice, the Udon curry noodles and the spring rolls (with potatoes inside).

After dinner we strolled across the street to the Cabin, and had drinks while listening to Pat O'Brien and the Priests of Love. They played in a style best described as bluesy rock, and the trio looked as if they had been around the block and back. Old style rockers, fer shur.

Playing in the avocado tree

I was taking a series of photos of Maji in the avocado tree but he was playing coy and didn't want to look at the camera, so I enlisted a friend to engage him.

Smoola

Here's yet another way to see things over the web. I just discovered Smoola when searching for a small dress shop in Montrose. Lo' and behold they have a page for Monrovia also. check it out.

Falling out of bed

Was walking by her this morning and stopped in my tracks when I saw this. I couldn't believe the juxtoposition! Reminds me of the Little Nemo comics of old (he was always falling out of bed and had many cute and funny characters joining him on his sonambulent adventures).

Snapdragons make me happy.