So the local economy is supposedly tanking, companies are downsizing … and yet, life is GOOD when you can spend an afternoon sipping wine and tasting great cheeses of all shapes, textures, flavors and colors.

On Sunday, I checked out the final day of the first annual American Cheesemaker Awards gathering, a literal nirvana for foodies at the Fairmont Hotel in Newport Beach.

Thursday through Sunday, Nov. 15-18, the epicurean event brought together top local and national chefs, taste experts and purveyors, and 25 cheesemakers from California, Idaho, Indiana, New York, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin showing off their excellent artisanal cheeses.

Read the rest of this entry »

So what if it’s only the first week of October? Target and Kohl’s have had Halloween decor up for weeks by now. I’ll be the first to decorate my work space as well as throw a bash with a Halloween ghost piñata, make an unsuspecting dog wear a giraffe costume, and make Halloween themed baked goods and I have the photos here to prove it…

Share your Halloween photos with us by uploading them at squeezeoc.com/photos.

– KELLI SKYE

With song lyrics like that, how can you not love Los Abandoned?!

This bilingual pop-punk band is a KICK to see live, a quintessential Southern California band with goofy-clever lyrics, and tunes that range from cheeky-sweet melodies (like “Pantalon” quoted above) to driving punk beats (”Stalk U,” “Van Nuys (es very nice)”).

We saw the energetic-yet-graceful Lady P and her hombres Thursday night at the Galaxy Theater in Santa Ana, and it was probably the best live music deal in the O.C. that night: for $10 we got a great dose of infectious music, plus the always lively visual show…

Read the rest of this entry »

My friend and I have been exchanging odd gifts for the past couple of months. Our little gifts have ranged from My Little Ponies, parachute men, and Play-doh to sashes and tiaras. My mom and I recently visited the thriving Mecca that is Laughlin, Nevada and I found this little bedazzled frog in one of the Premium Outlet Shops. It was simply too amazing of a gift to leave behind, and far too awesome to not share in this public forum. This little froggy even has a name - he was dubbed “Oswaldo.” Enjoy.

- Kelli Skye

Started catching up with art shows this weekend. (Been busy with planning for vacation, being on vacation, and recovering from vacation). Alex Gross has a great show at Grand Central Art Center. If you look at the painting below carefully, you can see that the faces of the women represent different Asian art styles from various decades.
Irvine Fine Arts Center has invited artists to install interesting site-specific works at the center. Show is called, duh, “Site Specific.” I especially loved the small room filled with drawings, paintings, and a moving assembly line of harbor/ocean-inspired work by Kiel Johnson of Wilmington. (Extreme right photo.)

– Jit Fong

Last night at the Irvine Improv funny man Ralphie May hosted an all-female comedy night featuring some of Southern California’s funniest females. The show was taped for a DVD that the “Funny Ladies” troupe plans on releasing with some behind the scenes footage late this year.

In his intro for the evening, May said that the reason he wanted to put together the show was to show that the stereotype that only male comics are funny was ridiculous and that these female comedians were “really fuckin’ funny.”

Last night’s line up included May’s better half Lahna Turner (who is also seven-months pregnant with the couple’s first child), Lisa Alvarado, Gayla Johnson, Bernadette Balagtas, Jennifer Murphy and Alysia Wood.

If I had to pick a favorite for the night, it would be a toss up between Turner and Johnson. Turner’s music/comedy act and “Mayonnaise” song had me absolutely rolling and Johnson’s bit using those fake “Billy Bob” teeth almost made me pee myself. Bernadette Balagtas impersonation of her Pilipino mother and how she could get a family of eight Philipino’s into a theme park on one annual pass, was another highlight of the night.

This group of ladies are all very different - some are married, some are single (very single, and they let you know it), and they vary in age and ethnicity.

Definitely check these ladies out, they perform locally quite a bit, either at the Improvs or some of the local venues that have regular comedy nights (like Martini Blues in Huntington Beach or Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa).

- KELLI SKYE

(Pictured from left to right: Billie Jean King, John McEnroe and Maria Sharapova)

Professional tennis usually is a shhh sport. Whispers are all that’s allowed. Not so at Newport Beach’s World Team Tennis match Wednesday between Maria Sharapova’s Newport Beach Breakers and John McEnroe’s New York Sportstimes.

The fans were boisterous, the 1970s music loud, and the players loved it.
I’ve been to many pro tennis matches, and this is the first time I’ve seen Sharapova’s personality on the court. She had fun, laughed, talked, smiled … and oh yeah, still grunted on every serve.

Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Flash video.

She looked like a runway model in a tennis skirt, a 6-foot-1 blonde beauty who towered over her female counterparts and looked eye to eye to most of the men. Living in Manhattan Beach, she made the easy drive to Newport on Wednesday to play WTT. She teased McEnroe about his ‘two shades of blue’ pregame outfit, and McEnroe amazingly took it quite well.

McEnroe, now 48 years old, showed a bit of humbleness before the match, saying for the first time in his life he feels like Father Time has a two-set lead on him. He still posseses those magic hands at the net, and his sweet backhand volley in men’s doubles secured the match that gave the Sportstimes an easy victory over the Breakers in the final match of the season.

McEnroe, once known as The Brat for boorish attitude on court, was as sweet as could be Wednesday. After hitting a 116-mile serve for an ace, he rolled up his sleeve and flexed his muscle for the sellout crowd. A fan yelled ‘Johnny Mac!’ and McEnroe turned and said ‘(Rafael) Nadal is jealous.’

There were six other players on the court on Wednesday, four on each team, including Laguna Beach’s Rick Leach who played for the Breakers, but no doubt the fans bought tickets to see Sharapova and McEnroe. And they didn’t disappoint.

Every fan 16 years and younger received a free tennis racket and ball. After the game they were invited to get autographs.

The line lasted 25 minutes. The players didn’t seem to mind.

The three week WTT season will resume around this time next year. Sharapova plans to return but McEnroe wasn’t as sure.

- SCOTT ALBERT and LAILA D.

Which is the worst tan on a SqueezeOC staffer?

I braved to take my two boys, ages 2 and 4, by myself to the OC Fair yesterday.

It was Kids Day at the fair, and children ages 12 and under were admitted free, a promotion running Tuesdays through July. (In my excitement about the freebie offer, I overlooked that kids ages 5 and under are always free. But I’m still glad we went).

I was excited but nervous about our venture. Kids, hot weather, and crowds/long lines can prove a disastrous combination. But the day was easy, and we had a blast!

We spent the day at Kidland and the animal pavilion. And there are lots of free activities for the little ones, many based on this year’s “Cowabunga!” theme.

Here are the highlights:

Read the rest of this entry »

We’re a group of ice cream hungry journalists with one mission on our minds: to win a fully stocked Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream freezer with various delish ice cream products for the rest of the year!

Five brave SqueezeOC staffers will be embarking on a journey to downtown Fullerton this Friday from noon-1:30 p.m. for the Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream’s Rocky Road Lunch Break Challenge. We’re not quite sure what to expect but were told that it involved teamwork, fun, and a scavenger hunt on the streets of downtown Fullerton.

All we needed to be told was that there was FREE ice cream involved and SqueezeOC was all in. This event coincides with the celebration of national ice cream month and is also an event created to bring about a sense of community and teamwork amongst co-workers and local businesses. Participants will have to complete wacky stunts and a mad-dash search for clues and a race to find the scavenger objects.

Two runners-up will receive an ice cream party from Dreyer’s and all participants will receive a $20 Dreyer’s gift certificate.

Come on down to Villa Del Sol (305 N. Harbor Blvd.) in Fullerton to help cheer us on and enjoy some free ice cream treats from Dreyer’s!

-Kelli