The Strawberry Fields Whatever Diet, Pt. II: Exciting Things Consumed in the Month of July

BY LIZ

1. My amazing friend Cathy De La Cruz is moving to Tucson from L.A. today to get her MFA in creative writing, which is so exciting. Sunday was her going-away party and this was my gift to her: a Big Gulp cup filled with Skittles and a package of Arbor Mist STRAWBERRY WHITE ZIN 'FROZEN WINE COCKTAIL'. I didn't try any frozen wine, but I did eat lots of the Skittles.

2. At Cathy's going-away party, at the Senor Fish in Little Tokyo, I had some rad fish tacos and a jalapeno margarita. "Just make me something spicy," I told the bartender when ordering. I was feeling spicy. The margarita bit my mouth.

3. Sunday I also had an iced coconut coffee and pineapple empanadas at Cuscatleca, which is this great Salvadorean bakery in Silver Lake. I went to Cuscatleca for iced coconut coffee on Saturday too, and Patty Schemel was in front of me in line. She has crazy-jacked arms -- probably cuz she's one of the greatest drummers in the history of the world.

4. Speaking of coconuts, lately one of my favorite things is to go to Sib Song (Thai restaurant in Echo Park, in the same strip mall as the aforementioned 7-Eleven) and get the Coconut Paradise. It's shrimp and vegetables in coconut curry and they serve it to you in an actual coconut. Coconuts-as-dishware should be a thing that happens all the time, I think.

5. A couple Fridays ago I went to a wonderful place called Monrovia to get my car fixed and bought two cookies at a Cuban bakery: a coconut macaroon, and a lavender macaroon. Later in the day I went to the Monrovia Friday-night farmers market and bought a box of strawberries and walked back to my mechanic's, eating the strawberries. And then that night I had more strawberries, off the frosting of my friend's chocolate-chocolate birthday cake, plus whiskey.

6. Also on the macaroon tip: last Wednesday I went to Figaro Cafe in Los Feliz with lovely Danielle Petrosa, who made my beautiful John & Yoko necklace, and she bought me a lemon macaroon and a rose macaroon and they were creme-filled and transcendent. At Figaro I had rose and Danielle had iced tea, which came in a cute carafe. Outside we took this picture, which Danielle then made "Beatley" in tribute to her son Lukas, who knows everything in the world about the Beatles:

7. Last Saturday I went to a birthday potluck and brought rose and figs and salt water taffy and cheese with peaches inside. Some dude brought this giganto bowl of angel-hair pasta that had so much goddamn cilantro and oh my god it was soooooo good. Cilantro on everything. Cilantro all the time. I also had a paper cup of vanilla gelato all smushed up with hot apple pie, and champagne.

8. I go to Farmers Market (Fairfax & 3rd) sometimes to write and last Friday afternoon I was there doing that and I had iced coffee from the nice people at the coffee stand near the doughnut place and a plate of fried plantains from Loteria. I wrote about David Bowie, a lot.

9. At some point last month there was a day when I got lost driving around early in the a.m. and ended up by the "Hey Ladies" oil rigs, which looked so majestic in the golden morning sunshine. Eventually I found my way and headed to Einstein Bros Bagels on Larchmont and got an untoasted whole-grain bagel with cream cheese and tomato and brought it home and made a fried egg in my cast-iron skillet and put that on the bagel, plus some red onion. I never toast my bagels. Why muck up that doughy goodness, is basically how I feel.

10. I take a writing class at UCLA, every Tuesday from 11 to 2, and after class I go to Native Foods and eat some gorgeous vegan food. Lately I've been on a Sesame Kale Macro Bowl kick, but yesterday I had the Bangkok Curry Bowl, pictured here. It's brown rice and tofu and ginger-infused coconut curry and kale and cauliflower and broccoli and cilantro:

11. I have a new thing where I'm just going to Patra in Echo Park all the time. It's a hamburger stand down the street from my house and simply breathing its French-fry-y air makes me so happy. Last Wednesday I was in need of cheering and got myself an egg sandwich (with lettuce, tomato, and mayo, on grilled bread) and the other day I got a big cup of jamaica, for walking-around purposes. For the longest time I reserved going to Patra for "special occasions," which was total bullshit. If you love something and it's good for your heart and your soul, just do it all the time forever and ever.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: berry cobbler at Barbrix; Meyer lemon creme brulee at Chic Bar; the "Irish tea sandwiches" my friend Rachel made for our Fourth of July croquet picnic at the La Brea Tar Pits; the Magic String Beans at Leela Thai; dried chili mango slices from the bulk bins at Super Kings; and this peach I got at Super Kings that was almost big as my head, I swear: