Friday, January 8, 2010

I am now Desert Deb.....



Well, I moved from Los Feliz, in L.A, out to the desert, a place called Pioneertown. It's a small community, nestled at an elevation of 4300ft. I know most people have not even heard of Pioneertown, it's about 40 miles north of Palm Springs, over towards Joshua Tree National Park.
The town has a very fascinating past, and was built as a setting for movies, westerns, and the town still retains its Old West image. It's so incredible up here, I am already thinking I might never leave this place. I have a house on 20 acres, surrounded by mountains, views from every window, and I feel truly blessed to be here. There is a down side though, and sadly, its a foodie one. There are very few decent restaurants out here, even less decent food stores, so I am going through a period of real adjustment. I make most of my food from scratch, and living in LA, I was able to zip over to Koreatown, or to one of the many fantastic Armenian or Hispanic markets, they were literally on my door step. Those days are OVER. The nearest store is a 16 mile round trip, to get a coffee, that's about an 18 mile round trip, and the nearest Trader Joes or Fresh n Easy, that's about a 70 mile trip. 70 miles!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hard to believe but true. So, I am having to re-think how I eat and shop. It's taking a while but I am getting there. More on that later.

Now, as I said, I live in a remarkable place now, and just to prove it, take a look at these pics. I get up each morning and step outside to a breathtaking vista, I can't stop looking at it. And the sunsets, they are truly amazing, so beautiful. I remember one time, the sky was literally changing color by the minute, I ran to get my camera, and then behaved somewhat like a headless chicken. If you are familiar with the movie 'The Holiday' the scene where Kate Winslet races around the house in Beverly Hills, the one she had 'house swapped' from Cameron Diaz, she goes nuts, laughing hysterically as she runs from one gorgeous room to the next, well, you get the picture. The scenery here does that to you sometimes. As I was typing this, I noticed yet another amazing sunset, and yes, I took tons more photos...I need to stop! But not yet.

So, the blog is going to take a new direction from now on, due to my move. I want to make it very food centric, with an emphasis on semi healthy food, but throw in some elements of desert life, too. I think it will be fabulous! Oh, and I will also be talking movies and tennis, particularly as awards season is looming, and so is the Australian Open, in just over a week, go Rafa!