Carmine II Caffe

Perched on Santa Monica Blvd just West of Beverly Glen and a 3 minute drive from Century City is a jewel of a restaurant called Carmine II Caffe.

Originally known as Carmine’s, it opened in 1975 and was a celebrity haunt for Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Tony Bennett and others of notoriety during the days that Hollywood was ruled by the Rat Pack crowd.

Carmine Sr, passed away in 1989 and the restaurant closed until the son, Carmine Jr reopened what was previously a Maitre’D style restaurant with booths and red velvet and turned it into a more upscale relaxed atmosphere while preserving the feel of the Fine Dining Italian family-owned supper restaurant.

The bar is excellent. My Cosmopolitan had 2 gummy lifesavers which made a nice finish. I also ate my date’s vodka-soaked olives from his martini and all I could say was “Bring more vodka-soaked olives!”

This night I had the Rigatoni with a meat sauce while my date had the Baked Ziti; both were excellent. Prior to my main course I had "The Wedge" which was so delicious with a homemade blue cheese dressing. My date ordered a bottle of a 2005 Mt Veeder cabernet sauvignon, which for being so young, was surprisingly smooth and not tannic at all. We savored very drop of this delicious wine which so perfectly complemented our meal.

The wall is filled with photos taken by a particular photographer whose name escapes me. Photos of the Rat Pack, along with that one famous shot of a young Sophia Loren glancing sideways at the exposed cleavage of Jayne Mansfield.

Carmine II’s is a real treat for anyone who misses the glorious days of the Rat Pack. As a child, I visited this restaurant and actually saw Dean Martin there in the bar, in person. For this reason, Carmine II’s holds a very dear place in my heart. Owners Carmine Jr and his wife Kim are wonderful hosts and make the effort to make each and every guest feel welcome, as if part of one big exclusive family.

Neighborhoods: Westwood, West Los Angeles
10463 Santa Monica Blvd
West Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 441-4706

• Price Range: $$$
• Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
• Parking: Valet
• Attire: Dressy
• Good for Groups: Yes
• Good for Kids: No
• Takes Reservations: Yes
• Waiter Service: Yes
• Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
• Outdoor Seating: No
• Alcohol: Full Bar

Meet & Greet VIP Cabana at Playboy Mansion

 

 

I'm hosting a Meet&Greet at the Playboy Mansion in a VIP Cabana on Super Bowl Sunday, February 1st, 2PM till 10:30PM

Revel with Playmates, professional athletes, and other sports aficionados.

Hosted by model & actress Brande Roderick, featuring over 20 Playmates, live musical performances, performance art, great food & so much more.

Come and be a part of the wildest Super Bowl Party ever! It's hosted by sexy and beautiful former Playmate of the Year Brande Roderick at the Playboy Mansion, with live performances by Bret Michaels of Poison.

There will be in abundance Playmates and models, a charity auction, massages, open bar, game day style food, painted models, swimming in the grotto, tours of the grounds and so much more!

Attire: Game Day Best
Menu: A Delicious assortment of Game Day favorites
Massages: Professional Massages throughout the day
Special Treat: Cuban Cigar Roller
Entertainment: Bret Michaels of Poison and Rock of Love,
Strawberry Blonde, Girlicious, DJ Colleen Shannon, David Garibaldil (performance artist)

Meet&Greet VIP Cabana Admission:

$2,500 per person

Includes live performances by Bret Michaels, Girlicious, Strawberry Blonde,etc) tours of the mansion, zoo, game room and grotto,etc) by Playmates, open bar and game day style food, 20 painted models wearing your favorite football team jerseys, photo opps with Playboy Bunnies, silent auction and much more!

The VIP Cabana also includes all of preceding plus our own Playboy Hostess of choice, VIP drive-on pass, our own private cabana masseuse, private cabana waitress, full bottle service, and many extras.

If you are interested in attending, please call me direct to reserve your spot in advance. There is a limited number of seats, so please reserve early.

Hope to see you there!!!

Veronica Franco

Call 1.866.440.4949 to Attend

 

Fundraiser

I attended a star-studded fundraiser on Friday night. Great food, great company, Las Vegas entertainment and we raised money for a great cause.

Come to the Super Bowl Party at the Playboy Mansion

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Welcome To Inauguration Island, A Prostitution-Free Zone

By Marc Fisher

You invite a couple of million of your closest friends to the biggest bash your town has ever thrown. You extend bar hours nearly till dawn. You import thousands of cops to keep the streets safe. You commandeer every bit of paved surface you can think of to accommodate innumerable buses packed with visitors.

And then you plaster the street lamp poles in a central part of the city with big red signs "WARNING" all that "This area has been declared a PROSTITUTION FREE ZONE."

What's wrong with this picture?

Now, maybe I'm not reading this the way your average tourist or Obama supporter would, but to me, this sign--one of a whole bunch D.C. police have posted between 4th and 5th streets NW from Eye to L streets--means that everywhere the signs aren't, prostitution is just fine and dandy.

The thing about the Prostitution Free Zone--the District's decision not to use hyphens on that baby raises the question whether the red-signed area is a kind of Vegas East y'all-have-fun-now invitation--is that it is a rather arcane legal ploy, being used without even a nod to how the general public might read the signs. (There's a photo of the sign over at DCist, which first reported on this latest bit of inauguration insanity yesterday.)

Ex-Mayor Tony Williams' administration came up with the idea three years ago as part of a crime bill that criminalized prostitution. The law was written so that the police chief could designate a special zone of town where prostitution would not be tolerated. That declaration would make it legal for cops to take away johns' cars. Prior to the zones policy, only the act of solicitation--offering to buy or sell sex--was criminal. Under the zone law, the act itself was now illegal. More to the point, the new law made it possible for police to tow and impound any car found outside a brothel, and it allowed the police to disperse people who gather for the purpose of engaging in sex for pay.

The city tried a similar tactic in the early 1990s, but a court tossed the D.C. law as unconstitutional.

Well, that's a battle for another day. This week, I'm thinking at least some of our million-plus houseguests might want to get themselves a souvenir of their visit to Washington, like a nice big red sign declaring the neighborhood free for prostitution, or something like that.

The Madoff family: Fraud from the boardroom to the kitchen

Bruce Watson

Jan 16th 2009

Filed under: Extracurriculars, Food, Rip-offs and Scams, Fraud

 

Over the past few weeks, I've been able to squeeze a lot of fun out of the Madoff scandal. From his clubby sales techniques to the expensive jewelry that he's sent out to the outrageous leniency that the courts have shown him, Bernie has been an almost bottomless font of disturbing details.

Through it all, Ruth Madoff has silently stood by her man, presenting a stoic, supportive façade to the media. Although Madoff's tendency to hire family members to run his company is well documented, Ruth has managed to avoid the spotlight and has stayed above the fray. The media, in return, has soft-pedaled the fact that she was the company's original bookkeeper and one of its directors.

Recently, another side of Ruth Madoff, has emerged. In the mid 1990's, she became involved with a cookbook. Titled The Great Chefs of America Cook Kosher, the tome offered Kosher haute cuisine recipes to the masses. Listed as executive editors, neither Madoff nor her friend Idee Schoenheimer were actually involved in writing the book. According to the "editor," Karen MacNeil, a food and wine expert, the book was something of a vanity project for Madoff, who "was interested in having her name on something that would allow for some sort of fun."

The greatest irony of all of this is that, 12 years after its release, the book is currently selling for more than its cover price. If only Bernie's funds had done so well!

When one door closes, another one opens

The current state of the economy, people losing their homes, their jobs, have been an opportunity for many to wipe the slate clean and start over.

When you work at a company and lose your job during this financial crisis, you suddenly realize that you are disposable and that is truly crushing to have to accept. If you change your way of viewing such a loss, you may find a lot of blessing in the situation.

For one, you can reevaluate your life, where its heading and now have a second chance to really seek your passion. I believe everyone should love their work yet many don’t get an opportunity to seek a career in a field they possess such a passion for – I for one was forced by my family into a career in Nursing. While its a great job from the perspective of remaining employed – nurses are always in demand – there is a REASON they are always in demand – its a high-burnout career. The depression I would suffer from the feelings I had while watching a little 4 year-old girl whose father had beaten her until her brained swelled and also had infected her with gonorrhea in every orifice, die, was taking a toll. No wonder my colleague crashed her car on her way home from work that night. If you are human, you can’t just discard what you see and experience when dealing with life and death situations not to mention dysfunctional family relationships of the patient which DO impede upon the medical care environment.

So to those of you who may be facing a layoff, please watch this following news video. Its an extremely inspiring as well as empowering story of 3 people who have been laid-off and how its opened doors for them to pursue their true passions in life.

GMA Laid Off: A Blessing in Disguise

Drugs of the Past

What are now considered serious hard drugs and frowned upon by society were once an integral medical treatment - over-the-counter. Such drugs as Cocaine, Morphine and Heroin were looked at to treat a wide variety of illnesses and disorders, ranging from physical, to the emotional to the psychiatric.

Enjoy this look back actual labels from medicines enjoyed up through the late 1800's. Don't forget that Coca-Cola once contained cocaine. (and I suppose it was far less addicting than all the sugar they load in with now) Makes me wonder what people in 100 years from now will be looking back that we used - Trans Fats, for instance.

View Full Album

Prostitution in a recession: Is the economy ruining morality?

Bruce Watson
Jan 15th 2009 at 5:00PM

Filed under: Sex Sells, Entrepreneurship, Extracurriculars, Career, Health, Wealth, Relationships, Recession

It seems like 2008 was the year when America started to rethink its stand on prostitution.

Traditionally, the world's oldest profession has been a definite no-no in the U.S., constrained to shady streets, dark alleys, and the occasional legal brothel in Nevada. In 2008, however, it seemed to wander into the open and, in many ways, stopped being the dividing line between "good" girls and "bad" girls.

While Ashley Dupree's interview with Diane Sawyer was hardly surprising (after all, turning tricks for a politician has always been a short route to 15 minutes of fame), it's interesting that so many people rushed to blame Spitzer while letting Dupree off relatively Scott-free. Similarly, responses to Natalie Dylan's decision to auction off her virginity were almost equally divided between horror and admiration: some presented her as a victim of societal pressures, while others hailed her as a feminist hero.

Meanwhile, HBO presented Cathouse, an exploration of a legal brothel in Carson City Nevada. The program made a media hero out of Brooke Taylor, a young college graduate who chose prostitution over graduate school. A subsequent article in women's magazine Marie Claire presented Taylor as an intelligent, self-actualized young woman who made an informed decision to enter a highly lucrative profession. In its exploration of Taylor's choices, the article not only humanized her, but also lent an air of legitimacy to her career choice. It is particularly telling that Marie Claire's target audience is, basically, women who are very similar to the pre-prostitution Brooke Taylor.

Admittedly, there have been a few attacks on prostitution. For example, Craig'sList began cracking down on posts offering illicit sex. However, even that token attack has come into question, and women at all levels of society have seemed to erase boundaries when it comes to selling their bodies. From A-listers seeking sugar daddies to rednecks looking for a tank of gas to young women looking for cheap rents, the line between civilians and professionals is getting razor thin. In an interesting expose, Radar magazine showed just how easily it could be erased.

A few months ago, I suggested the possibility that, just as recession-plagued Weimar Berlin became a haven for the sex trade, our own recessed economy might spark a serious reconsideration of our sexual morality. For example, a recent New York Times article about Sephora referred to cosmetics as "war paint," and quoted one salesperson as stating that she carried trial sizes of certain products in her purse, "because you never know where you might wake up." While this hardly translates into an endorsement of the commodification of sex, it seems to suggest a grim acceptance of sexuality as a tool to be employed. Similarly, MSNBC's recent documentary on prostitution offered a humanizing, semi-legitimizing perspective on the profession.

Given America's eternal battle over "family values," it is interesting to see the extent to which many of those values can be mitigated by painful economic realities. While the recession won't completely overturn the prostitution stigma, the level of public curiosity about this mysterious profession seems to be reaching a major upswell. With the economy dangling between recovery and continued misery, it will be interesting to see if 2009 will be the year when prostitution becomes the crime that nobody talks about, but everyone commits.

Bruce Watson is a freelance writer, blogger, and all-around cheapskate. Despite repeated attempts, he's never been able to get people to pay him for sex.

Tina Fey Trashes the Snarks

During Tina Fey's Golden Globes acceptance speech she referenced a few posters who have trashed her on The Envelope forum. I loved it!

"I want to say thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press. I'll always love the Hollywood Foreign Press and have all the Hollywood Foreign Press action figures. Thank you, Will Arnett, for that joke. But I want you to really know how lucky I am to have the year I've had this year and, if you ever start to feel too good about yourself, they have this thing called the Internet! You can find a lot of people there who don't like you! I'd like to address some of them now! BabsonLacrosse, you can suck it. DianeFan, you can suck it. Cougar Letter, you can really suck it 'cause you've been after me all year. And to my husband, Jeff, I love you. Thank you very much! "

From The Gawker:

Those anonymous internet critics Tina Fey told to "suck it" in her Golden Globe acceptance speech tonight are actual posters on the LA Times' Envelope awards site. And mean!

Some points of clarification, though. Two of the three commenters Fey called out in her speech are the same person — "dianefan" used to be "cougar-letter." And the third, "BabsonLacrosse," totally got caught in the crossfire.

Dianefan has been kind of a d-bag, as Fey would put it. Since at least September, when she was slamming the choice of Fey to play Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live:

"I think there are lots of choices other than Tina... Megan Mullally, Sarah Silverman, Teri Hatcher, Shannon Doherty... Not everyone has to think that Tina Fey is the be all and end all... I simply think all of those actresses have some spunk in them that could work. "

Dianefan was more vicious Oct. 23 2008, as cougar-letter (see quotes in later posts), on the idea of Fey hosting the Oscars:

"Tina Fey would be a dreadful host. That Sarah Palin bit is getting very old. "

Gotta love the animated puking graphic! Dianefan has been big on those.

Nov. 20 2008, in the official 30 Rock Season 3 thread:

"Tina Fey was simply like the pimple on my face - just there .... I think that the key issue here is the fact that when Tina is at her best, she's just not that great. "

Dec. 14 2008, after the Golden Globe nominations were announced:

"I just hope they give the win to anyone but Tina Fey. Boy I can't wait until Edie Falco comes back on the scene just to wipe that smug look off Tina's face. "

Dec. 16, after Fey failed to garner a nod from the vaunted "Golden Satellite Awards:"

"These wins are sooooo inspiring. I'm so stoked that Tina Fey didn't win."

Jan. 10, day before the awards:

"This Tina Fey love fest is a bloody joke at this point. I am rooting for anyone else in that category."

Well, that didn't work. But at least she got a shout-out! Maybe that will make Dianefan a bit less of b? Hahahaha no.

From tonight:

"I'm famous. She mentioned BabsonLacrosse too. Sorry Tina Fey but I still don't think you deserved to win. "

BabsonLacrosse (now "KateWinsGG") has not posted much on Fey. She seems to kind of adore her, though:

Dec. 14 , in reaction to the Golden Globe nominations:

"Tina Fey and Christina Applegate are the 2 best comedic actresses on TV right now. To suggest they got in due to the Palin impersonation or breast cancer is absurd. "

What got Fey was probably this slightly bitchy comment, in agreement with the dreaded dianefan, Jan. 10:

"Fey if she wins might as well start thanking Sarah Palin because while I like Fey on 30 Rock, she's certainly won enough for it as of now. "

And now, BabsonLacrosse, YA BURNT.

In the most flattering way, of course. It's a long way up from anonymous Web board haunt to televised-awards-speech diss fodder. And that may have been the idea. In addition to being clever and funny, Fey's faux-rant had the effect of bringing Fey and her show down to Earth, closer to its intended audience. Jack Donaghy would never endorse such a move, but then Jack Donaghy and his real-life ilk have never seen first-hand the free publicity that comes from being a YouTube darling. Fey has.

Funny Church Signs

Funny Church Signs Part 2

Funny Church Signs Part 3

WiFi Names You Wish Didn't Exist

You turn on your laptop, try to connect to WIFI and find...





http://nevver.tumblr.com/post/34983410/welcome-to-los-angeles




Found at a Coffee Shop

http://directdaily.blogspot.com/2008/12/coffeecompany-wifi-2.html





http://blog.matthewgast.com/2008/05/19/funny-wireless-network-names/





http://flickr.com/photos/dbarefoot/2927707888/






http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19710771

More WiFi Names You Wish Didn't Exist

Shouldn't this one be "Secured"?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7901094@N06/2090134327/





http://www.flickr.com/photos/jefframone/3050029737/





http://willj.net/blog/2008/04/29/funny-wireless-network-names/





http://www.flickr.com/photos/roboticbrain/635010287/





http://www.flickr.com/photos/roboticbrain/635010287/

The "No Asshole" Rule

Finally a book that talks about a subject near and dear to my heart, living life with a "No Asshole Rule", a rule I consider to be the 11th Commandment.

Written by Dr Robert I. Sutton, this book gives the consequences of having to work with a nasty person aka "asshole". The only way, according to Dr. Sutton to maintain civility in the workplace is to enforce the "No Asshole Rule" and he offers tips for avoiding such people and even for exacting a little healthy revenge, sometimes with hilarious consequences.


Personally I feel revenge can be very healthy and you are teaching someone to act right and putting order back into the Universe.


First you need to be able to identify the workplace "asshole" and then realize the damage that these people wreak on everyone with whom they come in contact. Dr. Sutton warns of the inherent dangers of these types and what he refers to as "asshole poisoning."


What is an asshole? Dr. Sutton states that an asshole oppresses, humiliates, de-energerizes and belittles their target causing the target to feel worse about themselves due to the interaction. Tactics used include personal insults, sarcastic remarks, shaming and treating others as if they were persona non-grata. (sounds like several escort boards and their owners) Dr. Sutton does differentiate from temporary assholes, as each of us has the potential to be under the right circumstances and certified assholes, who routinely show themselves to be nasty people. The latter, he argues, must go.


His recommendations on how to enforce the "no asshole rule" are included along with ways in which said asshole can reform their ways.


Wonder if you are a Certified Asshole? Take this self test at

http://electricpulp.com/guykawasaki/arse/

and if you are one, lose my number!



Veronica
"Livin' La Vida Sin Assholes"