January 2014 Culture Challenge

Posted on January 3, 2014 by Patricia Zanuck

Every month on behalf of our school’s Diversity Committee, I compile a list of diverse cultural events (I focus on international cultures and diverse ethnicities) that might be of interest to our school community. It’s really amazing all the unique activities and events that happen every weekend in the Los Angeles area. I challenge you and your family to attend one of the many events listed below!

WEEKEND OF JANUARY 4 & 5

Silk Road Story Time: New Year, USC Pacific Asia Museum, Pasadena, Saturday, 10:30am. Gather in the travelers’ tent for fabulous tales from along the Silk Road, plus a fun hands-on craft, Asian snack, and balloon.

Oshogatsu Family Festival, Japanese American National Museum, Sunday, 11am – 5pm. Ring in the New Year and the Year of the Horse with exciting cultural performances, special foods, and fun crafts. Performances and featured activities include Onigiri (rice balls) Design Contest, Horse Candy Sculptures (candy horses will be raffled off at the start of every hour), and Mochitsuki (a traditional rice cake pounding ceremony with Mochi samples to be passed out at the end of the performance). There will also be a horse jumper and live ponies and the chance to make a stick horse, a horse wall hanging, and prancing horse origami. See website for schedule of activities and performances.

WEEKEND OF JANUARY 11 & 12

The Peking Acrobats, Carpenter Performing Arts Center at California State University, Long Beach, Saturday at 2pm and 8pm. Experience the spell-binding feats of The Peking Acrobats. Rooted in more than 2,000 years of history and tradition, acrobatics is a rich and esteemed art form in China—delicate and masterful as well as athletic and entertaining—influenced by myth and religion.

Kids in the Courtyard: Weave a Giant Spider Web, Fowler Museum, UCLA, Sunday, 1pm-4pm. After you admire the woven textiles in The Peruvian Four-Selvaged Cloth: Ancient Threads/New Directions and twined works in Māori Cloaks, Māori Voices, you can add to a giant web of string and tape. Then sit among the strings and learn creation stories about weavers around the world and explore weaving yourself by building your own take-home cardboard loom.

WEEKEND OF JANUARY 18 & 19

Lunar New Year Festival, USC Pacific Asia Museum, Pasadena, Saturday, 11am-5pm. Come to Pacific Asia Museum’s fourth annual Lunar New Year Festival celebrating the Year of the Horse. Enjoy song, dance, drumming, and martial arts performances. Participate in craft projects, learn about flower arranging, and tour the museum.

World City Series: Black Violin, W.M. Keck Children’s Amphitheatre at Walt Disney Concert Hall, Saturday, 11am and 12:30pm. The musicians behind Black Violin “set out to merge their classical music training with their love of hip-hop, bringing the two genres together with a backbeat and four strings apiece.” Along with the musical performance, a visual art workshop is offered to give children the opportunity to explore the featured culture through unique art-making projects. See website for ticket information.

Scandinavian Film Festival, Writers Guild Theater, Beverly Hills, Saturday & Sunday (also next weekend). This yearly showcase of Nordic films and filmmakers screens the year’s Scandinavian films submitted to the Academy as nominees for Best Foreign-Language Film as well as other current feature, documentary, and short films. I go every year to see a Norwegian film. Last year I attended the opening gala and saw Kon-Tiki. Read about that here.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. & Nelson Mandela: Celebrating Pillars of Peace, from Jail to Justice; California African American Museum, Exposition Park, Sunday, 1pm-5pm. Celebrate the legacies of Dr. King and Nelson Mandela. View film screenings of Dr. King’s speeches and the speech Nelson Mandela made during his appearance at the LA Coliseum in 1990. Experience music, theatre, and dance performances that represent our diverse communities.

16th Annual Los Angeles Times Travel Show, L.A. Convention Center, Saturday & Sunday, 10am-5pm. Explore ideas, inspiration, and insights on where to travel next. Discover tips, tricks, and techniques every traveler should know. Go there with special saving and sales you’ll only find here.

WEEKEND OF JANUARY 25 & 26

Chinese Cultural Arts Celebration, The Huntington, Pasadena, Saturday & Sunday, 10:30am – 4:30pm. Artisans and performers from China’s Zhejiang Province will highlight the cultural arts of China during a weekend of special activities including traditional music, dance, and folk crafts. Experience cup-rolling acrobatics, a tea-gatherers’ dance, and songs of dragon boats. Watch folk artists demonstrate dragon lantern making, bamboo root carving, stone and clay sculpting, and embroidery. Sample authentic Chinese cuisine and enjoy special exhibits of stunning photography and beautiful penjing.

Family Jam: Drum Up the Sun—Taiko, Fowler Museum, UCLA, Sunday, 2pm-4pm. According to a story written in Nihon Shoki, one of Japan’s oldest books, Taiko drumming was created to lure the goddess of sunlight from her cave hiding place. Visit the Japanese textiles and samurai armor in Fowler in Focus: Fiftieth Anniversary Gifts, then welcome the winter sun and experience Taiko drumming by UCLA’s Kyodo Taiko. Make your own drum out of recycled materials!

What I find most fascinating is that every month that I’ve compiled this list, just about every continent is represented. This month I was unable to find an event for the continent of Australia. Did any of the events catch your attention? Or do you know of others that I didn’t include? I’d love to hear your feedback if you attend any. Thanks for reading!

Our first block party – food, fun, and community!

Posted on November 8, 2013 by Patricia Zanuck

We attended our first neighborhood block party not long ago. In all my years of living in the US, in various neighborhoods on both the east and west coasts, I’d never attended a block party such as this one. Our former street has an annual pizza dinner get-together every Halloween before trick-or-treating, but this block party was a much bigger event for a whole neighborhood.

When we first saw the signs posted around the neighborhood, we marked our calendars. We’d heard from friends, who have a block party every year, how fun they are so we were curious to see for ourselves. The fact that it was just at the end of our street was certainly enticing, too. Then the day before the event we received a flyer on our door letting us know that a local real estate firm was sponsoring an In-N-Out Burger truck at the event, and that’s what sealed the deal. We were going to check it out. Worst case scenario, we would just eat a burger and head back home.

The In-N-Out truck was extremely popular. As we arrived, we ran into Kristian, our realtor and one of the agents from the firm that sponsored the truck. He urged us to get in line sooner rather than later because, based on past experience, the line would get long fast. The kids quickly gave me their orders and scampered off to jump in one of the bouncies until the burgers were ready. Continue reading →

Reconnecting with my roots

Posted on October 12, 2013 by Patricia Zanuck

Every summer we return to Norway to see my family. Each trip tends to be very similar to the last one — we spend time at the same places, we do the same activities, we see the same people, we eat the same foods — but that’s what we’ve come to expect and look forward to.

We try to plan our visit so that our time overlaps with my sister and her kids’ visit. Both my sister and I want to have some time for all of us to reconnect and make new memories together, but we also want each of our families to have some quality time alone with our parents as well. When all the cousins are together, we love seeing them enjoy each other’s company. When each set is by themselves, we value the special time they have alone with their grandparents.

We usually spend about half our visit at our parents’ summer home on an island in the Kragerø area (3 1/2 hours by car south of Oslo). I can’t imagine a summer without spending time there. It’s how I grew up, every summer spending weeks at a summer home on the coast, and I want my kids to experience the same. Continue reading →

Storytelling… Had never heard of it, but now I’m a fan!

Posted on September 27, 2013 by Patricia Zanuck

One of the perks of living in Los Angeles, or in any large metropolitan area I guess, is the endless array of entertainment possibilities. I was recently introduced to a new one, one that I had never had any exposure to before—storytelling! I was actually surprised that I had never even heard or read any discussion about storytelling before. I guess you sometimes get used to what you know and become oblivious to other stuff.

But it only takes one person to open your mind to something new, and for me that was my friend Susanna. It all started when she announced she was performing in Expressing Motherhood, a stage show that offers moms with no acting, writing, or speaking background an opportunity to share their motherhood experiences. Susanna writes a blog called Not June chronicling her mothering and other life experiences and has a very unique voice so she had the writing part down, but the speaking/acting aspect was a new pursuit for her.

At first I was skeptical, certainly not about her ability to do it, but about my desire to go. I knew I wanted to support her in this new endeavour of hers, but I wasn’t sure this was the kind of entertainment I would enjoy. I knew I enjoyed shows with multiple characters showcasing one story, but Expressing Motherhood was just regular people, moms, sharing their own independent, true stories. How interesting could that really be? And it was at a theater in Burbank, so this was definitely a multiple hour commitment to boot. Continue reading →

A Bird’s Eye View at Parker Mesa Overlook

Posted on September 14, 2013 by Patricia Zanuck

After our first visit to Parker Mesa Overlook five months ago, my friend and I vowed to return. Though we certainly enjoyed our hike, we knew we were missing out on something big. The guidebook promised stunning 360 degree views, but we saw absolutely nothing due to the extreme fog. We didn’t know if we were looking towards the ocean, mountains, or at houses. We had no idea which direction was where. It was actually an odd, surreal feeling to be so enveloped in fog (you can see a picture here)—an unusual and intriguing experience in and of itself, but we wanted the whole package, which included the views.

So one morning recently we headed out to see if we’d have more luck with the views. It was a gorgeous day and no fog whatsoever, only a little haze in the distance. What was immediately noticeable about this hike, as opposed to the first one, was that we could see exactly where the trail was going and what was ahead and around us. At one point, we could actually see where the overlook was and got an idea of what the views might be, and they looked promising.

There’s the overlook ahead, the hilltop with the lone tree!

And when we reached the overlook, we were not disappointed. There were amazing views in every direction. We saw the ocean, the coastline north and south, inland to the tall buildings of Century City (or maybe Westwood?), and into Topanga State Park and the Santa Monica Mountains. It was breathtaking and peaceful. We were above all the busyness of the world down below. We sat for quite a while just taking it all in. Continue reading →

What I’ve Read: Jo Nesbø’s Flaggermusmannen (The Bat)

Posted on September 6, 2013 by Patricia Zanuck

I make it a point to read a Norwegian book or two every year (and it has to be a book by a Norwegian author, not any book translated into Norwegian, except maybe a Danish or Swedish book). It helps me maintain the language. I speak, read, and write Norwegian fluently, but over time words escape me. Reading a book in Norwegian brings back lost words and adds new ones. Reading a Norwegian book during spring is always good timing in preparation for our upcoming annual trip to Norway.

Flaggermusmannen

This spring, I read Jo Nesbø’s Flaggermusmannen (The Bat), the first in the popular Harry Hole detective series. A fellow Norwegian here in LA had spoken highly about the series, and I had read an article about tours given in Oslo featuring Harry Hole locales. I was intrigued.

I easily found a digital version in Norwegian at a Norwegian online bookstore. Yeah for modern technology! But I had to pay more than twice as much as I would have had to pay for a digital Harry Hole book in English, $18 vs $8. Boo expensive Norway! Since reading it in Norwegian was important to me, I splurged. Continue reading →

My Traveling “Sweet Spot”

Posted on August 31, 2013 by Patricia Zanuck

The blog post “The Sweet Spot” by Julianna W. Miner made the rounds on the Internet early this summer. It was about suddenly finding oneself in a “sweet spot” as a family. You discover you’re finally in that period of child-raising where all is generally good and you’re enjoying all the hard work that came earlier. There still might be chaos at times, or a “goat rodeo” as Julianna Miner wrote, but you have moments of sanity and enjoyment.

I had that same a-ha moment on this year’s annual trip to Norway. Every summer I head across the globe on my own with the kids. My husband joins us later. I’ve traveled alone since our first child was a baby. We only skipped one year when Doobie was 1 ½ years old and Sonny was four years old. The thought of me flying alone with our two young active boys even made my mom stressed and anxious for me. She had lots of experience traveling alone with my sister and me throughout our childhood and totally understood us taking that year off.

I’ve never dreaded these long journeys with the kids. But it has been stressful getting ready for them—thinking of everything I might possibly need and then how to pack it so I could handle the carry-on and the kids. And the flights were never relaxing because I was always handling and/or entertaining one child or another or both. What has made me be able to do it is knowing that at the end of the trip my parents would be waiting at the airport with open arms and big smiles and a welcome eagerness to entertain and help with the kids.

on board After nine years of international travel, occasionally twice a year, my kids now know what to expect and don’t complain. Same with me. Continue reading →

My first voting experience ever

Posted on June 8, 2013 by Patricia Zanuck

As many of you know, I recently became a United States citizen. It was long overdue and a day of very mixed emotions for me, about which I wrote here. One thing I knew for sure, however, was that I was looking forward to exercising my right to vote and, probably surprising to many Americans, serving on a jury. My chance to vote came not long ago, and it was actually a somewhat important vote. Angelenos were voting for their next mayor.

I received my Official Sample Ballot and Voter Information Pamphlet many weeks in advance. It was a lot to read (88 pages!) and make sense of. I noted the date and place to vote, and then as the weeks went by, paid more attention to campaigning than I usually did.

Election Day came quickly. The day before my husband had suggested we go and vote together, but the day of we had a busy morning with commitments and lunch and then we headed back home totally forgetting about it being Election Day. It wasn’t until I was making dinner that I suddenly realized that we hadn’t voted yet. I was determined not to miss my first opportunity to vote. Luckily, the polls were open until 8pm and only a couple of minutes away from our house. After dinner, I quickly collected my sample ballot and made sure I knew how I was voting and headed to the polls. Hubby stayed home with the kids who were already in pjs. I wasn’t able to convince them to join me for an after-dinner family outing.

I was a little nervous. I didn’t even know how the voting machines worked. My kids, having accompanied their dad to vote in the presidential elections last year, knew more about the logistics of voting than I did. But I didn’t let that deter me. I entered the room where the booths were set up and was greeted warmly. I proudly told them this was my first time voting since I was a new citizen, and they were happy and eager to show me how to proceed. And they were curious to hear my story of becoming a citizen. I ran into a neighborhood friend there as well and shared my voting news with her, too. Everyone was very congratulatory and friendly. It was a very pleasant affair! And I felt a great sense of pride knowing that I had a say in who was going to be our next mayor.

As I headed back to the car, I called my husband to tell him about my experience. He asked if I had received my “I voted” sticker, and of course I had proudly put it on. It seemed like my husband was going to skip voting this time around so I did my best to convince him otherwise. I told him his name was there just waiting for him to sign next to it, and there was no worry about having to wait in line to vote. There was always somebody there while I was there but never a line, though it did seem to be picking up a little that last half hour before the polls closed. It didn’t seem like I had convinced him, but to my surprise, he was ready to leave for the polls as soon as I pulled up in front of our house. I felt good knowing that we both had cast our votes and been good role models for our kids who one day hopefully will be as diligent about casting their votes as well.

Celebrating Norway’s Constitution Day in Los Angeles

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Patricia Zanuck

For me, celebrating Norway’s 17th of May in Los Angeles began by vicariously experiencing it through pictures posted on Facebook by Norwegian friends. I woke up to a newsfeed filled with bold and bright Norwegian flags, happy families dressed in beautiful bunads, and smiling kids in parades. It was a lovely start to the day and I much appreciated them sharing their celebrations!

(Photos courtesy of M. Eriksen, E. Strøm-Gundersen, and S. Mjeldheim)

Ideally, I would have attended the festivities at the Norwegian Seamen’s Church in San Pedro that day. It’s a simple celebration with traditional foods (hot dogs, waffles, and Solo are our favorites), a parade around the block waving flags and singing, speeches, and fun and games for the kids. And let’s not forget the ice cream! But this year, “17. mai” fell on a Friday and the kids had after-school commitments until 5 o’clock. The idea of driving in Friday afternoon traffic to San Pedro was unfathomable.

So I had to find an alternate way to mark the day. I had seen that the store Moods of Norway was having a celebration. I was intrigued. Continue reading →

CicLAvia: To the Sea (2013)

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Patricia Zanuck

Our Ambitious Plans to Ride to the Sea

When we first heard about the event CicLAvia: To the Sea, we had great ambitions. We were going to take public transportation to Downtown LA and then cycle the whole 15 miles to the sea. An opportunity like this, with so many miles of road closed to car traffic, does not happen often and we wanted to take advantage of it.

We had participated in another bicycle event last June. Sonny and Daddy rode 15 miles along the Los Angeles River in the Family Ride portion of the 12th Annual LA River Ride. I stayed back with Doobie for the kiddie ride and activities because he wasn’t old enough for the other one. (You can read about it here.) This year we felt Doobie was old enough for us all to ride together.

As the big day approached, we reconsidered our plans. The thought of riding to the nearest metro stop in Culver City and then somehow getting our four bikes on the train, along with everyone else and their bikes, was too daunting. Instead we decided just to join the ride where it passed by our neighborhood, which wasn’t too far down the street. It did cut off many miles (about 10) but we still had many left until the sea, and then we might make it back again too without too much anguish. Also, there was a bike festival along the route at that point that we could explore.

Then when the big day actually arrived, it ended up just being Doobie and me who participated! Unfortunately, Sonny’s bike had a punctured tire and we had no way to repair it. I was disappointed that we had to leave Sonny and Daddy at home and it wouldn’t be a family affair, but Doobie and I ventured out eagerly anyway.

Continue reading →

A Viking in LA

All things Scandinavian through books, films, and events in the Los Angeles area and virtually

January 2014 Culture Challenge

WEEKEND OF JANUARY 25 & 26

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Our first block party – food, fun, and community!

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Reconnecting with my roots

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Storytelling… Had never heard of it, but now I’m a fan!

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A Bird’s Eye View at Parker Mesa Overlook

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What I’ve Read: Jo Nesbø’s Flaggermusmannen (The Bat)

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My Traveling “Sweet Spot”

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My first voting experience ever

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Celebrating Norway’s Constitution Day in Los Angeles

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CicLAvia: To the Sea (2013)

Our Ambitious Plans to Ride to the Sea

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WEEKEND OF JANUARY 25 & 26

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Our Ambitious Plans to Ride to the Sea

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