LA Life is Flying High in March
Hello, March! Lorraine Devon Wilke, LA Life Photographer, brilliantly captures the stunning light and spirit of LA in our cover photo “High Flyers”. LA Life Poetess, Lady Penelope, has the “news” on her mind. LA Life Fashion Stylist, Felicia Arlin, shares genius looks you’ll love. Molly Cheek, our LA Life Tasting Tomato, has the skinny on the Ireland 32 & Saint Coffee Shop. Theatre Maven, Laura Foti Cohen, shares her review of “These Shining Lives”. And I’m here with a ton of exciting suggestions for thoroughly enjoying our beautiful City of Angeles throughout March. Wow! Spring is almost here Tomatoes!
High Flyers: Cover Photo and Story
One of LA’s most spectacular attributes is our natural and diverse landscape with it’s breathingtaking views. LA Life Photographer Lorraine Devon Wilke reflects that in this month’s cover photo and story. Makes me proud to be an Angeleno. Lorraine also has some terrific news and we’ll update you on that huge accomplishment in the April LA Life Newsletter. Be sure to check out Lorraine Devon Wilke’s marvelous photos on her webpage and browse her entire website as it reveals the vast tapestry of Lorraine’s amazing talents.
High Flyers
Beyond our spirited diversity, amazing food culture, arts, sports, entertainment, and everything else that makes up this vibrant place, one of the most cherished aspects of Southern California, Los Angeles specifically, is our many and varied natural landscapes. I’ve talked about this before, but it never becomes rote or routine to look around and be thrilled by the view. You just have to gaze out your window, drive down a street; take a day trip outside the city, or fly over on the way to or from somewhere and you’ll be regaled with a stunning variety of gorgeous terrain. Mountains, bluffs, lakes, rivers, deserts, farmland, prairies, and, of course, the Pacific Ocean and its south to north coastal wonders. Given that wealth and variety of outdoor spaces to enjoy here, it’s never surprising to be out and about and find your eye caught by someone taking full advantage: whizzing by on roller blades, skimboarding the surf line, enjoying yoga in the park, or traversing a path up to the Hollywood Cross. Or, if you’re near a bluff over any one of the many beaches framed by such higher places, you might look up to see a paraglider or two soaring by, swept by the wind and warmed by the sun, creating an iconic image of our city and its never-ending love of our beautiful outdoors. This photo is appropriately called “High Flyers.”
LA Style Stories
It’s okay to break a fashion tradition if you do it right, Tomatoes. And, of course, LA Life Fashion Stylist, Felicia Arlin, shares the best way to wear white jeans before Memorial Day in “The Genius of White Jeans”. Yay! And in “My Ever-Changing Moods”, Felicia advises that when you are in doubt about your ensemble, let one obscure item be your guide. Remember I only highlight a snippet of Felicia’s amazing cur8edme posts so be sure to follow her on Instagram. And she is the most amazingly insightful guide for helping you to find the right and most flattering style for you. Just sayin’, Tomatoes. GET THE DETAILS.
Sonnets from Suburbia
Yep! Lady Penelope, our LA Life Poetess, is avoiding news headlines in “My Newspaper’s Still Folded”. I can certainly relate. Penny Peyser (Lady Penelope) has outdone herself with “Sonnets from Suburbia: Romance Dance”. It’s masterful, brilliant and an easy and deliciously entertaining ride. If you haven’t already, don’t forget to order a copy of Penny Peyser’s first brilliant book, “Sonnets from Suburbia: More Candles Than Cake” to add to your collection, Tomatoes. READ TODAY’S SONNET.
Tastes of LA: Ireland’s 32 & Saint Coffee
Our LA Life Tasting Tomato, Molly Cheek, is bestowing 2 wonderful restaurant reviews upon us. Aren’t we lucky? And both are in the valley! Ireland’s 32 is a fab Irish pub and perfect if you have St Patrick’s Day on your mind. And I love nothing more than a great coffee shop so I will be to putting Saint Coffee on my fav “must try” list. READ ON.
Theatre Buzz: These Shining Lives
Laura Foti Cohen, our Theatre Maven, has the scoop on “These Shining Lives” at the Actors Co-op’s Crossley Theatre running through March 30th. Her complimentary review uses words like “engrossing”, “chilling”, “excellence”, “loving and moving” so you might want to book your tickets ASAP. Thanks, Laura, for the tip! Laura Foti Cohen is an experienced and talented playwright herself and serves on the creative team as playwright/producer with the NEO Ensemble Theatre as well as working as a freelance writer, editor and consultant. She’s also a playwright affiliated with Theatre West. READ MORE.
Native Plant Garden Tour & Wild Flower Hotline
My son and I have attended the Theodore Payne Foundation’s Annual Native Plant Garden Tour for many years. It is a two-day, self-guided tour across Greater Los Angeles on April 5th & 6th that is without a doubt a most spectacular and inspiring way to spend a weekend. Get your tickets ASAP! And Ring, ring…who’s there? It’s the Wild Flower Hotline, your free weekly report on where to find pretty blooms from SoCal to Central CA, is back today March 7th.
The Theodore Payne Foundation’s mission and their Native Plant Garden Tour had a huge influence on my decision to transition my garden to CA native plants. Since 2003, more than 700 public and private landscapes have participated in the Native Plant Garden Tour that explores the beauty and biodiversity of California native plants. The superb gardens participating in the tour are teeming with sustainability, productivity, security, creativity, and an abundance of life. Ranging from coastal container gardens to experimental urban homestead, each unique design offers a critical habitat for wildlife. LA is indeed one of the most unique and biodiverse places on the planet and the Angelenos behind these gorgeous ardens help to protect and improve our special environment here in the City of Angels. This tour is a wonder, Tomatoes.
Extended Wildfire Support Guide
As Los Angeles begins the long process of recovering from the fires, I’m sharing a new terrific guide from LA 2050 that offers extended support and resources to all those affected. Check out LA 2050’s Wildfire Extended Support Guide.
Women’s History at The Ebell
There are a plethora of events celebrating Women’s History Month at The Ebell of Los Angeles. And when I say a plethora I mean a whole slew, a ton, …and an incredible array of events. Something for everyone, so start celebrating women and our history, Tomatoes.
I especially love that at the end of the month, March 29th, there is a walking tour celebrating the great women who shaped LA. The Ebell of Los Angeles was inspired by scholar Dr. Adrian Ebell and founded by women for women in 1894. The Ebell’s mission is to inspire women and build community through arts, culture, education, service and stewardship of their historic campus and collections. It was originally created to bring education and arts to women at a time when education was not accessible to most women. It is a truly wonderful nonprofit that you should check out, Ladies.
Women’s History Month at The Library
Also, on the Women’s History front, The Los Angeles Public Library is celebrating Women’s History Month big time. There is a roster chock full of marvelous LAPL Women’s History Celebrations all across the city and I’ve no doubt there is one in your neighborhood, Tomatoes.
These celebrations caught my attention. Mobile Making Inspired by Women Artists at The Central Library in DTLA on March 8th. Iron Jawed Angels at Alma Reaves Woods Watts Branch on March 10. Virtual Film Discussion: Totem on March 12th at the Downtown Central Library. On March 22nd World Cinema Series: Send Me to the Clouds at Central Library. Pioneering Women of Early Hollywood on March 26th at The Central Library Downtown. Women’s History Month with Mallory O’Meara at West Valley Library Branch on March 15th, When We Write We Win at The North Hollywood Amelia Earhart Region Branch on March 16th and on April 5th Secret Women of the CIA at the Los Feliz Library Branch.
Through March 31. Regarding HER
You can experience women-owned food and beverage businesses all across Los Angeles during the annual Regarding HER Women’s History Month Festival/LA. I’m telling you the number of dynamic choices is stupendous!
Regarding HER. is a national non-profit on a mission to advance women-identifying and nonbinary food and beverage entrepreneurs and leaders by way of innovative platforms. Regarding HER aims to use their groundswell movement to advance women and non-binary people, the hospitality industry, and society at large. They work to facilitate more equity, inclusion, well-being, and resource accessibility by leveraging our common need for food, connection, and uplifting experiences.
March Films at The Alamo Draft House Cinema
The Alamo Draft House Cinema kicks off March with a fantastic lineup of films celebrating the life and legacy of David Lynch with In Dreams: Films of David Lynch. And Alamo leans into Women’s History Month as it explores trailblazing women with a selection of diverse films.
The four-week-long retrospective will have multiple screenings of nine classic Lynch movies, including Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart, and The Elephant Man. And for Women’s History Month you have Charlie’s Angeles, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane. The Lady Eve, Girls Town. An exciting month at Alamo Draft House Cinema.
First Fridays in March, April, May & June
Yay! The annual monthly seasonal series, First Fridays is returning to The Natural History Museum (NHM) with First Fridays: Amplified starting tonight March 7th. It’s always a fab evening, Ladies, with live performances, food trucks, signature cocktails, topical discussions and much more.
They will be examining our relationship with the aural world and how it affects our bodies and our lives. It will amplify unique voices, enrich perspectives with dynamic music in NHM after-hours setting, Ladies. Dr. Yewande Pearse will be the expert moderator. She is a neuroscientist, public speaker, and science communicator with twenty years of research experience in various facets of Neuroscience at leading institutions and a diverse array of organizations. She definitely knows her stuff. And if you are an NHM member, it’s FREE, Tomatoes!
March 12. LA Conservancy “People + Places- Altadena: After Fire and Moving Forward”
The LA Conservancy invites you to a virtual event Altadena: After the Fire and Moving Forward. Join them for a conversation on how preservation and heritage can support Altadena’s recovery and rebuilding efforts after the devasting Eaton Fire. The LA Conservancy is stepping up to help in so many ways, Gals. Bravo!
March 15 – April 10 . Hold Me Heal Me
There is bound to be a location that is convenient to you for The Braid’s “Hold Me Heal Me” Salon Show Event. Zoom is certainly convenient. Hold Me Heal is an absolute gem, Tomatoes, especially because it is presented by The Braid which is one of my fav organizations that tell incredible and inspiring stories.
Hold Me, Heal Me features a cast of actors performing stories in the Salon Theatre style pioneered by The Braid, which for 17 years has become the world’s center of Jewish storytelling. Broadway World calls the show “a bolt of hope and inspiration.” It features stories by famed Holocaust survivor and author Dr. Edith Eger, award-winning playwright Faye Sholiton, poet/art therapist Anna Belle Kaufman, and numerous others. Hold Me, Heal Me offers an antidote to a news feed filled with daily shocks of cruelty with surprising moments of kindness. I highly recommend seeing it.
March 14. ArtNight Pasadena
ArtNight Pasadena Spring 2025 is a big, free city-wide event evening of music, dance, visual art, theater, artmaking, storytelling from Pasadena’s most prominent and popular arts and cultural institutions. They will be swinging their door open for amazing cultural experiences, Gals!
ArtNight offers an amazing journey through Pasadena’s signature celebratory art and cultural event. ArtNight is an ongoing partnership among many cultural institutions and the Cultural Affairs Division of the City of Pasadena. The event is sponsored by the Pasadena Arts & Culture Commission with support from the following: Pasadena Department of Transportation Transit Division; Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority; and Pasadena Center Operating Company.
March 15. Plant Trees in Alta Dena
City Plants will be celebrating climate & community action to honor Arbor Day by planting trees in fire ravaged Alta Dena. In my book, there’s no better way than this City Plants Tree Planting Event to celebrate trees and help this community recover.
They will be planting over 40 trees in the Central Alameda Neighborhood surrounding Ross Snyder Recreation Center with volunteers from throughout the LA region in honor of National Arbor Day. RSVP to volunteer today.
St Patrick’s Day Celebrations
On the day when every Tomato and bloke is Irish, you won’t be able to turn a corner where there isn’t a celebration, parade or a pub crawl. But 3 cool celebrations caught my eye that will be spreading green cheer.
Angel City Brewery has got it going on in the DTLA Arts District and will be serving food and drink specials all weekend starting March 14th with live music to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. The Hermosa Beach St. Patrick’s Day Parade is back on March 15TH. The Tam O’Shanter Legendary St. Paddy Day Bash starts at noon in Los Feliz on March 17th . All great ways to mark the Irish occasion, Ladies.
March 16. Annual Museum Free For All
Over 30 museums from the desert to the sea participate in the SoCal Annual Museum Free For All for this great cultural event. Museums presenting art, cultural heritage, film, natural history, and science will offer free general admission. Woo Hoo!
It’s a once-a-year opportunity that awaits you. There is so much to see and explore it boggles the mind. Many of the museums require reservations so be sure to book those soon because it will to be super busy. Enjoy!
March 22-23. LA Zoo Spring Fling
Spring into fun with this jubilant celebration of nature’s renewal. Enjoy live musical performances and story readings, fascinating education stations, special animal feedings, and more. What fun for you and the kiddoes in your life at the LA Zoo Spring Fling, Tomatoes.
Learn about pollinators, their role in the ecosystem, and what you can do to help them thrive with special activities, demonstrations, and crafts that will inspire as well as entertain and it’s all free with paid admission.
The Three Tomatoes LA Life editor, Debbie Zipp is your friendly guide to the best of everything in LA with a tomato style perspective. Debbie is an actor, producer, and writer. She is best known for her recurring role as Donna on the CBS series "Murder She Wrote" starring Angela Lansbury. She has had many other TV and stage roles and has starred in over 300 national TV commercials. As head of In The Trenches Productions, Debbie produced, directed, acted in many short films for her company. Her book, The Aspiring Actor's Handbook: What Seasoned Actors Wish They Had Known was recently published.
Buy her book: The Aspiring Actor's Handbook: What Seasoned Actors Wish They Had Known
