Health Food?

by Emmie Dark

Hi Lovecatters! As you might remember from my last post, I've recently been lucky enough to have spent several weeks in the USA. In fact I'm only just back, still struggling with the jetlag -- I'm bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 4am, but at 4pm I want nothing more than to crawl under the doona...

I mentioned in my last post that I enjoyed some fantastic food while I was in Texas. I actually had amazing food everywhere in the States. But when you're travelling it can't be beer and ribs every night, so occasionally you do need to seek out healthier options. Luckily that's pretty easy to do in California, where places like Cafe Gratitude not only cook vegan, organic food, but name all their dishes as "affirmations" so every time you place an order, you're putting out good vibes into the universe.

I was (still am!) in love with the "I Am Grace" smoothie. I'm not a dairy person, so smoothies have never been my thing. But this smoothie (made with coconut milk) was so amazing -- like drinking cake!! I've bought all the ingredients to see if I can replicate it at home -- although I doubt I'll be able to get that true LA vibe right in my kitchen.

(I have an idea to set up a Cafe Gratitude for Authors. The dishes would be called things like "I Am Published" and "I Have An Amazing Agent" and "My Book Is On Shelves Now".)

In LA, I had no problems finding cafes and restaurants cooking vegan, vegetarian, organic -- and, most importantly, making it absolutely delicious.

On the flip side, you can't always be so righteous. And sometimes, deliciousness must rule. Like arguably the best brunch spot in Palm Springs: Cheeky's. (Unfortunately the website doesn't provide you with the logo that appears on the waiting staff's uniforms. It features two monkeys and it's, well, very cheeky.) Check out the totally awesome offer from Cheeky's:

You've heard of a wine flight, right? Well, how about a BACON flight from the BACON BAR to keep your breakfast not only delicious but educational as well?

Hmm, maybe that's what I need this morning to get my jet lag under control. Some bacon. Mmm. And a smoothie. Yes, that's what I need. And it'll be healthy, won't it? The healthy smoothie and the less-healthy bacon cancel each other out, don't they?? ;)

G'day Y'all

by Emmie Dark

Hello lovecatters! As you might have guessed from my posts on LoveCats, I tend to travel quite a bit and I'm often posting from different places in the world. Well, it's the same deal this month and that's why my post is a little delayed -- after all, it is still Wednesday (morning!) here in Los Angeles!!

And I have to say, winter here in LA beats the stinkin' summer weather at home in Melbourne right now. We've got blue sky, sunshine, about 25 during the day. Chilly enough at night to need a jacket, but that also means snuggling into bed with the doona. Quite frankly, it's no wonder the rich and famous choose to base themselves here.

Venice Beach. Yes, it is winter.

Spotted my first celeb yesterday -- Jason Segel from "How I Met Your Mother". He was just walking down the street with his arm around his girlfriend, all casual-like. (I imagine his girlfriend is probably someone famous too, but I don't pay enough attention to the right kind of magazines to know that. In fact, I have probably walked passed dozens of celebrities but I just don't know who they are!)

Last weekend I went to Texas to visit with a friend. I got to see Dallas and the gorgeous city of Austin. The slogan for Austin is "Keep Austin Weird", and it's definitely my kind of weird. The city is full of food, music and quirky peeps. It's also the home of the Texas Longhorns (college football team) of whom I have become a serious and loyal supporter (at least, I own a lot of merchandise now). One of these days I'll actually get to see a game, but at least this time I got to meet Bevo, the team mascot -- not surprisingly, a longhorn steer.

G'day, y'all.

Texas is definitely a place for good food and lots of it, if you're so inclined. My friend (a native Austonian) took me to the secret, best barbecue place in the whole of Austin. Do you remember the opening credits of The Flintstones? Where Fred pedals his car into the diner and gets served a rack of ribs that are so huge they tip the car over? Yes, that.

Just a small dinner for me, thanks.

I had the "junior plate" which consisted of two ribs. TWO. I managed to eat one. It was delicious and I kept eating way beyond "full" because it was so yummy. (Oh, and FYI, the beer I drank is a local brew called Shiner Bock, a brewery that's been around for decades which was formed by European immigrants who definitely knew how to made a decent lager.)

The only thing I missed out on in Texas? I did not once see any sexy cowboys. I didn't even see any non-sexy cowboys. Still.... that's just a reason to go back!!

PS -- My good news is that while I'm over here I'm working on the copy edits for my brand new erotica novella, "Spellbound", due out with Destiny Romance in March! I'll keep you posted.