(me & dad; photo by indy)
A long time ago – a lifetime ago, basically – I graduated from college, bought a little white convertible from my aunt, packed all my possessions into the trunk, and drove across the country with my dad, finally landing at the one-bedroom apartment in West Hollywood where I’d kick off The Actress Years (yeeks). To this day, I consider those two weeks that we spent driving out two of the best of my life; the car is just where we get along. It hasn’t always been easy for us to talk, but in the car we can.
This weekend Dad moved out of the little Pasadena apartment he stayed in part-time, so Indy and I drove down to help him pack everything up. The plan was for the three of us to drive back up to my place together, but instead of going the fast (boring) way, we decided to take our time and do a little wandering.
Where we ended up: on highway 46, which crosses through hills and wineries and oil fields and pours you out at Paso Robles, near the coast. We stopped for a tasting at Tooth and Nail, a winery with a sort of Renaissance Faire-meets-Restoration Hardware vibe and some seriously delicious Albariño. We drove up to The Black Cat, in Cambria, to eat abalone – which I’ve wanted to try since I first saw one IRL last summer and which was simultaneously odd and good (and chewy) – and steak (yarrrr that steak). Somewhere in the mountains, we got out of the car to photograph a hell of a sunset, and then finished the drive up the 101 with a massive full moon for company.
Always worth taking the long way. Always.
