It’s a sad day here at the Hotel Careyfornia. This morning at 7:15 AM, 2 Los Angeles Sheriff’s deputies showed up to foreclose on my condo and forcibly evict me.  They were actually nicer about it than I thought they would be.  They allowed me to gather up some personal belongings and pack them in a suitcase, but they said I had to be out by 8 AM, as the county was sending a moving company in to remove my things.  Furniture and the like will be sold at auction.  I’ll be able to keep personal mementos like photos, but that’s about it.  Luckily, they did let me keep the sign!

As I write this from the coffee shop on the corner of what once used to be my street, I’m reminiscing about all the happy times and satisfied guests I’ve hosted over the past 6 years.  Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.  I’m not the first person impacted by the global economic meltdown and I won’t be the last.  Sadly though, the famous “Fornia” name has been sullied and I’m sorry to say that we must end our Platinum VIP Guest program.  All accrued points will be donated to the foreclosure fund.  We appreciate our guest’s patronage over the years.  Here’s a glimpse at some happier times:

I’ll be staying with friends for the next few days until I figure out what to do.  I must say, this is a bad way to begin April!  It’s even worse than last year!!

The Hotel Careyfornia welcomed an honored guest today.  Joelle arrived from Santiago, Chile.  She was actually the first person who ever visited The Hotel Careyfornia when I moved here in 2002.  The place has changed quite a bit since then!

My work week from hell is finally over and we had a big celebration with the team in the Pope room of Buca di Beppo.  We thanked everyone for a job well done and I drove home excited to sleep in my own bed for the first time in a long time.  (I give up my bedroom to guests of the Hotel Careyfornia.   It’s only fair, given the odd hours I keep!)

I actually checked my overflowing mailbox when I got home   (for the first time in months) and was surprised to find two post cards from two places that surprisingly I have never visited:  Mauritius and Latvia!  It’s rare for me to get a postcard from somewhere I haven’t been, so kudos to V and David!

So after I finally got home, I was sitting on the couch watching American Idol and I felt strangely alone.  I began lamenting the fact that there was no dog (or people) in the house for the first time since Christmas!  (I’ve been dog sitting Daisy and/or Chazz and/or Chanel and/or Garbo & Ruby and/or Roscoe since who knows when!)  Suddenly there was a knock on the door.  I opened it and my neighbor Jessica was standing there with tears in her eyes.  Her newborn baby had developed jaundice and had to stay in the hospital.  She was understandably upset and asked if I could watch her dog Sophie for a few days.  Needless to say, the Hotel Careyfornia and Pet Motel wasn’t empty for long.  Sophie’s a good dog.  She sits out on the patio all day sunning herself and occasionally comes in my office and jumps in my lap for a while.  I’m happy to report that baby Jaden should be coming home from the hospital tomorrow, so all is well. 

When Halloween is on a Friday, it makes for a very long weekend.  After surviving several assassination attempts on Friday night, I headed up to Oxnard to photograph Claudio, Ryan, Julia and Susan’s transformation into Abba!  Ryan made the boy’s outfits, and he really outdid himself.

Mike came home from his business trip on Sunday and we went to breakfast and celebrated his birthday.  I had a special gift for him as well.  His loft, has officially become the newest member of the “Fornia” family of luxury boutique hotels worldwide.  This honor, adds “The Hotel Mikeyfornia” to the pantheon of legendary resorts like The Hotel Careyfornia, in West Hollywood, CA. 

After Friday’s Sound of Music extravaganza, the Hotel Careyfornia prepared for its next wave of visitors.  Emmy weekend is always a busy one at the H.C. and this weekend was no exception.  Adam & Lorenzo flew in from Washington DC.  Sadly their luggage didn’t arrive until 3 AM this morning, but that didn’t stop them from painting the town pink. 

Before heading out for the evening, Claudio cooked up his famous Angel Hair Brasil, named appropriately enough after his own wispy, thin, angel like hair. 

Ryan’s sister Renea and her friends Laura and Kristen took a road trip from Missouri to California this week, getting their kicks on Route 66.  It’s the first time in the Golden State for all of these Midwestern beauties, and of course they made their way to the Hotel Careyfornia!

It was a busy afternoon at the Hotel Careyfornia.  Lisa ,Joel & the boys are going to Hawaii for 9 days and I’m watching their dogs, Shadow & Oreo (named after my Oreo!).  They’re parking their car here at my place (just like Claudio is), so now I have 3 cars.  That’s kind of ironic seeing that my own car was in the shop for four months up until recently.  So when Lisa & Joel got here, I took a late lunch and we went to Jerry’s Famous Deli.  After that we headed to the airport, where, coincidentally, Vivek had just flown in from Delhi, India, by way of Seoul, South Korea.  He’s here for an internship, and will hopefully get some good news about the Project Runway application he submitted.  (I’m really hoping for a ticket to the Oscars next year Vivek, especially since you didn’t bring me a souvenir from Korea!!)  Vivek was super tired after his whirlwind trip to Korea and flight to LA, so we did a quick drive down Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, and the sites of Hollywood (Grauman’s, the Kodak Theater, etc.) before he retired for the evening to get a good night’s rest and start the first day of the rest of his life tomorrow!

Here’s a quick photoblog.  We started the day with brunch on the Sunset Strip, and then headed to Book Soup.  The Getty Center was next on the agenda, and it couldn’t have been a more perfect day for that.  Deep blues skies, a nice breeze and 80°.  For dinner we headed to historic Chinatown for its 70th Anniversary party and had a great time.  Tomorrow we’re off to the beach.  Now, I’ll sleep. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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