HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES, CA - PRIORITY SEATING

The color version of this shot, cropped for size, served as the cover for singer/songwriter Brian Stoner's 2012 album Lap of Luxury.

Shot in Hollywood behind a nightclub, I've always liked the B&W version of this for a sense of the bare basics omitting any kind of comfort. Obviously used by the staff for smoke breaks, this...to me...tells a story.

THE (LATE) SUNDAY QUOTE

I feel so very much like the White Rabbit today. I'm late, I'm late...for a very important date.

So, a very funny Quote for this Sunday, turning our attention from 

Travel advice to very sage "party" advice.

“I like to have a martini,

Two at the very most.

After three I'm under the table,

after four I'm under my host.”

-Dorothy Parker

Drink wisely.

And in honor of the White Rabbit reference above, a martini from London. The OXO Brasserie. 

Belvedere vodka.

MONTEPULCIANO, ITALY - CONTUCCI WINE CELLAR BARRELS

Among my very favorite wines are reds from the Tuscan region of Montepulciano.

The town is perched on a hilltop, dating to Roman times.  It has been a commercial and culinary center for centuries, and is justifiably famous worldwide for its wines.

The Contucci winery tasting room sits just adjacent to the town's main square, amidst the history and grandeur of buildings which are hundreds of years old and can be traced back as far as the 13th century. The wine isn't aged quite that long. 

If you're a wine lover, Montepulciano is a name you should certainly have in your database.

CHASING MARTINIS - PORTLAND

Read an excerpt from my new book CHASING MARTINIS here.

From the WESTIN Portland hotel bar.

Stoli

MOJAVE DESERT - LONESOME ROAD

The desert affords the loner a true getaway, a true escape from the workaday world. If your cellphone doesn't work, you have to just sit back and accept it. Railing unhappily against a lack of dial tone does little more than echo off the granite walls, or dissipate amongst the desert sage. 

There is a quiet serenity there. A lack of sound, even wind through the brush at times. How often are we in a wide open area with virtual silence as a companion.

Not often, and not often enough.