Lala's Style of the Weekend and my Weekend FUN!

TODAY:

In honor of my fabulous adventure to the Murakami exhibit today....

• Swirly turtleneck long sleeve top: gift from my aunt
• Libertine for Target shorts: $6
• Tightsandleggings underneath: 99cent store
• Brown jacket: wetseal $18
• Leg warmers: 1.50 st. vinnies
• boots: $6 local thrift
• coat: $10

So today my friend, who I shall call Z, and I headed off towards the beacon of happiness that is downtown LA. We went to the Takashi Murakami exhibit at the MOCA Geffen Contemporary museum near Little Tokyo. I had read about the exhibit months ago in the LA Weekly and had wanted to go ever since reading the interview about him. I highly recommend going there if any of you are in the area. The exhibit lasts for only one more week and if you are really cool you can go next sunday when the artist himself will be there for the closing of the exhibit. It only costs $5 for a ticket if you have your student ID, so it's a great frugal fun!

Half the trip time was spent waiting and riding the bus. The bus is the best. I love the smell and the way it shakes when we go on the freeway. It's awesome.

Random, not so exciting picture of little tokyo.

Please excuse the hideous-ness that is my face. The wind caused it to be like that. I swear!

Upon arriving to the museum, it's actually not that big, there was a line outside. We were like, "Okay" we'll get in soon, thinking that it was just a straight line in. But nope, it looped around. It reminded me of waiting for a Disneyland ride.

The line. I stood there observing all the artsy/indie folks. That's the best thing about going to a museum, you find a lot of cooly dressed people.

My bubble of happiness was shattered when I saw the sign saying "PICTURES AND VIDEO RECORDINGS ARE NOT ALLOWED." My heart broke into a million pieces. So here are the few pictures I took while standing in line. They are definitely not a good representation of the exhibit itself.

Haha. So true. I don't know what some parents were thinking bringing their kids to this.

A balloon! Takashi's iconic DOB gone psycho.

I took this through the rails. It's a sculpture called Mission Project ko2, "transforms from a cyborg to a jet plane". It's a really "interesting" jet plane with boobs on it.

Walking around the museum make me feel like I was in lalaland. Literally. The colors, the way he paints everything so flat and crisp was just so magnificient. If I could sum up his art in one word (two words) I would say it's very Happy Psychotic. It's like myself but in art. I wish my artgeek friends came along, I knew they would have enjoyed it. We are happy weird people. I've never been to an exhibit quite like this. Usually the museums I visit are of oil paintings and classical stuff, but it was a nice change to see contemporary Japanese neo-pop art.

After our rounds through each room we visited the Louis Vouitton store. Yes, there was a LV store on the second level. Reading the brochure made more sense as to why there was such a ritzy store within a warehouse-esque setting:

"The stores presence in the museum makes literal the artist's career-long
interweaving of high art, mass culture, and commerce - a gesture that has become essential to his artistic philosophy and practice."

We then visited the highly overpriced gift shop. I was so tempted to buy something to prove that I saw his work since I couldn't take no stickin pictures but alas, buying a $9 smiling cosmo flower stuffed pin would not be tolerated by my thrifty heart. We left and strolled around little tokyo but eventually headed back. I bought conditioner, ate my leftover chinese food while watching Celebrity Apprentice. I realized just at this moment, that you cannot microwave plastic. I microwaved my plate of food and then when I took it out the plate and it had changed shape. I still ate it. And then just a moment ago I told Bacne about it. She looked at me with that look that she always gives me except this time it was added with an OMG. Cross your fingers that I don't get poisoned. Afterwards I danced and catwalked it while all my roommates were gone. It was the best. I walked back and forth from my door to the window. I'm so vain.

I have now wasted so much time doing I have no idea what. I started this post at 8:30 and now it's already 11. But wait! I must tell you about yesterday.

YESTERDAY, SATURDAY!:

In honor of Chinese New Year.....

• Qi-pao top: $6? From CHINA! It's authentic man.
• Ruffle skirt: $10 the limited
• Red tights: 3.50 buffalo exchange. red for good luck!
• Flats: $15
• Swing Coat!: $0.50 local thrift!

So last night I went to the FCC banquet held in a resturant in China Town. It was super fun seeing my little buddy again. My past uncertainties dealing with children have been cleared up. She thinks I'm cool. Or at least I think that she thinks I'm cool.

Awww, she's so cute!

Her family was super nice. They gave me raffle tickets and I actually won a basket with a Build a Bear in a Chinese Outfit. Build-a-Bear's are frickin expensive! And on top of that her family gave me a red envelope. I opened it up later and saw a 20 shining back at me. Wow. So generous. We got a little lost driving back to school. I never realized how funny it is to ride in car full of immature guys. Okay, maybe immature is not the right word. But case in point: We were turning onto the freeway after getting lost and there were these two girls on the corner and the guy driver pulled down the window. At first I thought he was going to ask for directions, but then realizing the type of person this guy is I was like, nah. Because right after pulling down the window he goes "Hey Baby" and the we drive off. He later told us "I had to say that. I'm sorry girls. I just had to. People who dress like that and look like that, I just have to say that to them." Inside I was thinking...Okay. I wasn't really thinking because I just waned to sleep.

Time to work! Mwang's already ahead of me! Must catch up.

OMG. I just bought Juno Hamburger Phone. I spent 21 bucks. Everything just happened so fast that before I knew it I saw the paypal receipt. But it's so awesome. I know it might turn out to be some cheapy phone from China (it probably is), but I just had to have it. Bacne guilt tripped me when I told her. She said, "Arent' you suppose to be saving your money for like Italy and your fashion stuff?" Umm..yeah.... But still, it will be worth it. I mean, we all need a hamburger phone. THANK you so much Lynn for telling me about it. You rock my socks.