LA is celebrating our beloved celebrity mountain lion, P-22 in a fab way. Back this week are our LA Life Stylist and Poetess.  Celebrate the fall harvest with the “Fall Festival”. “Fishy Fest”, “Boonion Station” and “Cemetery Lane” all provide frightful Halloween fun. Gamble House has two interesting events. The “Gee’s Bend” exhibit is tailor made for quilt loving Tomatoes. There’s a “Mushroom Walk” and I’ll let you scroll down to get the scoop.  “Captain of Her Soul: The Life of Marion Davies” promises to be a fascinating talk and book signing. So much to do this fall! Ain’t that glorious, Tomatoes?!

 Oct 22.  P-22 Festival

Why did the Mountain Lion cross the road? So, he wouldn’t go extinct. The magnificent world-famous P-22 traveled from the Santa Monica Mountains crossing two of the busiest freeways in America to his current home in Griffith Park. Quite astonishing I’d say and worth celebrating at the 7^th Annual “P-22 Festival Day & Urban Wildlife Week” for FREE, Tomatoes.

P-22 is a powerful reminder and symbol that “L.A. is willing to live with a dangerous predator in its midst.” says Beth Pratt-Bergstrom, the California Director of the National Wildlife Federation.  That is another reason to celebrate.  It might be too late for the many others we have tragically lost but it’s not too late for P-22 and the other Mountain Lions making LA their home. In other areas of the country, P-22 might have been removed immediately but here in LA, our community respects and appreciates the immense value and importance of our urban wildlife to our environment and the community.  We want our Mountain Lions and wildlife to endure, thrive and get across the road safely.  As Wallis Annenberg, President of the Annenberg Foundation, says, “It’s easy to think of Los Angeles as a concrete jungle. The truth is, we’re home to one of the most richly diverse ecosystems in the entire world. If you care about conservation, as I do—if you believe this Earth is a precious and an interconnected resource for all of us to share—then you ought to care about urban wildlife here in L.A. and around the world. We need to establish more and better wildlife crossings. And we need to use the extraordinary story of P-22 to help all the people of L.A. realize that this community is not ours alone. I’m proud we’re helping to present this celebration of P-22 and of urban wildlife as a whole—for the good of every living creature who calls L.A. home.” This Tomato heartily agrees.  I couldn’t have said it better myself!

^{LA Style Stories}

It’s all about illusion creating the hourglass shape and our LA Fashion Stylist, Felicia Arlin’s insight will make you yell “Hip Hooray”! What is the new trend this season? Well, Felicia will give you the scoop in “Disco Ball Alternative”.  Remember, I only highlight a snippet of Felicia’s amazing and inspirational cur8edme posts so be sure to follow her on Instagram, Ladies. GET THE DETAILS.

Sonnets from Suburbia

In Sonnets from Suburbia, Lady Penelope, AKA actress Penny Peyser, admits a love of talking to herself! Hmmm…Sound familiar, Ladies? READ ON.

^{October 22 & 23. Fall Festival}

Celebrate the fall harvest in the heart of Los Angeles, Tomatoes, with the family friendly “Fall Festival” at LA’s Original Farmers Market this weekend. It’s got everything that will remind you it’s Fall in LA. Don’t miss the fun!

There are pie-eating contests, pickin’ & fiddling’, scarecrows, a pumpkin patch, pumpkin carving, a petting zoo, strolling performers, arts & crafts and lots of live music and there’s even pig racing. Yeah, you heard me correctly…there will be pig racing.

^{October 29-30. Fishy Fest}

Get in the spirit of the season with “Fishy Fest” at Heal the Bay Aquarium for a lively and family-friendly event including activities that honor the unique holidays of Halloween and Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). If you dare, tip-toe through the Ocean Ends Cemetery…if you dare.

Ghosts and Goblins are invited to join the costume parade on October 30 with trick-or-treating along the Pier, Tomatoes. For Halloween, visit our Dorothy Green Room for a deep-sea experience and learn about ocean pollution in our Mad Scientist Laboratory.  For Día de los Muertos, add a memento of your loved ones to our Día de los Muertos Ofrenda, create colorful Día de los Muertos crafts, and much more!

Oct 29-30. Boonion Station

Union Station is back with its Halloween Hoopla, “Boonion Station.” That’s a mouthful, Gals. Union Station will transform its already beautiful self and the South Patio grounds into a an eerily festive party haven for ghosts, goblins, kids, pets, families and Tomatoes to have a smashing Halloween!

The freaky festivities will feature enchanting activities for families including an interactive haunted hay maze, spooky slime sessions, fabulously fun face painting, creepy crafting and pumpkin decorating, Halloween characters and…stilt walkers. Wow!

^{till Oct 30th Cemetery Lane}

^“Cemetery Lane” is a one-of a kind spooktacular Halloween event that brings 13 themed trick-r-treat stops in the homes from the 1800’s to Heritage Museum. It is delightful and very popular so book your reservations ASAP. May the spirits be with you, Tomatoes.

^{Gamble House}

On October 23 The Gamble House is hosting “Family Day” which offers a wonderful free day of architecture, art and exploration for all ages with a focus on the kiddoes.  On October 30, you’ve got the “Audubon Book Signing and Bird Walk.” Two great choice events, Tomatoes.

The Pasadena Audubon Society will be presenting their newly released “Birding Guide to the Greater Pasadena Area” and then leading a bird walk around Brookside Park. Great stuff is always happening at The gorgeous Gamble House, Tomatoes.   

^{Till September 2023. Gees Bend Exhibit}

I LOVE quilts! My handmade handstitched quilts sewn by my Grandma Geysel in the sewing circle at her church are extraordinary works of art.  “Gee’s Bend: Shared Legacy” is a new whimsical, soulful, and uplifting exhibit at The Huntington that celebrates the art of quilt making and rightly so, Tomatoes.

This exhibition and it’s two-part installation celebrates the artistry and cultural significance of work by members of the renowned Gee’s Bend Quiltmakers’ Collective from Alabama. Created through an innovative process of wax pressing, the prints capture the texture, seams, and stitching of the original in a new way. If you love quilts as an artistic expression then you don’t want to miss this, Tomatoes.

October 30 Mushroom Walk

Fungi are everywhere, Ladies, and as our neighbors, fungi can offer us hope and insight on how life works. We can always use an extra dose of hope and insight can’t we. This mushroom walk and talk, “Finding Our Way Home with Fungi with Aaron Thompson”, will do just that and you can get some steps in while you are at it.

Without fungi, we wouldn’t have the plants that sustain us today, and we wouldn’t have the food and medicines we use every day. Through the view of ecology, the scientific study of the interconnected relationships of living things, perhaps we can learn how to work with fungi and how to live responsibly on a damaged planet.

Oct 23. Captain of Her Soul: The Life of Marion Davies

Who was the real Marion Davies? A chorus girl from Brooklyn, Marion rose to fame, under the wing of William Randolph Hearst, becoming one of the most beloved silent stars of the 1920s. It was like a modern fairy tale. Author Lara Gabrielle will share from her new book “Captain of Her Soul” – reading, signing and reception this Sunday, Tomatoes.

While navigating disability and social stigma. Davies took charge of her career, negotiating with studio heads dominated by powerful men and establishing herself as a top-tier comedienne, but her proudest achievement was her philanthropy and advocacy for children.