Friday, July 31, 2009

Morning Memo for July 22, 2009

Happy HOT morning! Whew! I hope you are getting through this latest heat wave okay. Here's my favorite easy herbal iced tea recipe, which I've adapted over the years trying to duplicate the fantastic tea served at Native Foods in Palm Desert:




Pour boiling water over 4 Celestial Seasonings Red Zinger and 4 Lemon Zinger tea bags; steep 10 minutes and add 2 c apple juice. Chill & serve over ice garnished with fresh mint.




My neighbor had a scary night with her young son in the emergency room recently after he spent a long afternoon in the sun without drinking enough. He was in a swimming pool but still became dangerously dehydrated and over-exposed to the sun. Remember to keep drinking even if you feel cool and avoid direct sun during the hottest part of the day.




Meet me at a tweet-up and happy hour tomorrow, Thursday, July 23, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Miramonte Winery (33410 Rancho California Road), hosted by KKsWebs.




Daily Temecula will be at San Diego Comic-Con! I'm sure I'll have some fun pictures to share. Have a fantastic day!



Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Morning Memo for July 14, 2009

Wednesday, July 14, 2009





THE READING LIST
Who is talking about Temecula today?



* Press-Enterprise

* Californian

* Valley News

* Under the Sun

* Neighbors Newspaper

* Full Value Review

* Temecula Insider

* Temecula Eats

* Thanksgiving Feast: Temecula Blog-a-rama

* Q 103.3 Radio

* KMYT Smooth Jazz

* Only 2 Degrees



Does your newspaper, magazine, radio station, or blog cover Temecula? Email editor@dailytemecula to be listed on The Reading List.



MORNING MEMO FROM JULIET for Wednesday, July 14, 2009:



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Good morning!



Help us grow - steal my code: Click here to find code to add to your website or blog. Just cut and paste the code in the box to the right of the logo. Spread the word!



Our list of Twitter followers continues to grow daily. If you tweet in Temecula I promise I'll read your tweets too. I love keeping up to date on what's going on...especially when I read great tweets like the Twitter buzz yesterday about the shirtless guys (cute guys, I am assured) manning a car wash near Chick-Fil-A. Now that's news!



Not on Twitter yet? It's fun (and a little addictive.) Creating an account is easy and you'll catch on fast. If I can do it, anyone can! Follow me: @dailytemecula.



It's shaping up to be a busy week here in Temecula. Check out where Daily Temecula has been lately (we have pictures!)




Don't miss pictures from Great Harvest Bread Co. on the "Focus On..." page. Great Harvest is a cute little shop and their bread is great. I cannot stop eating their cinnamon raisin bread, which I love to eat toasted with cold unsalted butter or as a sandwich with crunchy peanut butter. Yum!



Are YOU having a busy summer? Send me your pics and I'll put 'em up!



If you're like me, rocketing through your day, don't forget to take a minute to stop and smell the roses.



Juliet


Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Morning Memo for July 13, 2009

I was up before the birds this morning brewing a thermos of Paris tea from Old Town Spice Merchants and warming a generous slice of Great Harvest Bread Co's cinnamon raisin toast with butter for my drive to downtown LA to pick up our daughters, who spent a week in Santa Cruz with their grandparents.



They trekked home on Amtrak's Coast Starlight and enjoyed a day in what my LA-bred parents call "the new LA." Pershing Square, the Downtown branch of the Los Angeles Public Library, Disney Concert Hall: everything was beautiful, gleaming, polished, and clean. If you haven't been to downtown LA lately (and I know we Temeculans sometimes don't go there often since it's a big drive especially with traffic), make plans to check it out.



At breakfast at downtown LA's Checkers Hotel I very fortuitously met up with Vaughan Lazar, president and co-founder of Pizza Fusion. He is based in Florida but is in town to check out their Santa Monica outpost. I raved about our Temecula store (even the kids had raves, especially for the wiki stix.) If you haven't been to Pizza Fusion yet, definitely check them out (they are on Winchester across from the Promenade Mall near Trader Joe's.)



Now it's onward and upward to a busy week. Whatever you choose to do, make it fabulous!

Seen/Scene for July 13, 2009

WHO DID I SEE TODAY?



Watch this space for pictures of the wekend around town, including Fitwize 4 Kids' great Guitar Hero contest and giveaway!



SEEN/SCENE



SHUTTERED...locally-owned businesses Tamarindo and All About Paper closed their doors this month. Sorry to see you go...



UPCOMING...Fallbrook's Wine & a Bite Art Walk series continues on the evening of July 18 from 5-7 p.m. in Fallbrook's historic downtown. More info is at www.findfallbrook.com. Future 2009 art walks are planned for August 15 and Sept 19.



SIPPING & CHATTING....Several groups of ladies of various ages heading into Old Town's Truffles & Lace Tea Parlor. Temecula's newest workout sensation Sweat Cardio & Yoga informs Daily Temecula via Twitter that Truffles & Lace is a lot of fun. Can't wait to check it out!

Image and video hosting by TinyPic



Here's what their menu looked like a few days ago. There's lots of tea too, of course.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic



ROLLING, ROLLING, ROLLING...Have you ridden the Temecula Trolley yet?! Free rides started this weekend. The story is that this trolley service, which links up Harveston to the Promenade Mall and Old Town, was part of a deal the Harveston developers made with the city to help alleviate traffic.



The trolley is free at least through the end of this year. It sounds like a lot of fun so check it out! Trolley signs are up on Ynez near the car dealerships. Next time your car is being serviced at DCH or Paradise you can trolley on over to Old Town. Check out the complete schedule and route map here.



SO MANY SPAS, SO LITTLE TIME...Walking through Old Town we were intrigued by the lovely remodeled exterior of the Old Town Temecula Salon & Day Spa (41925 Third Street, in Old Town just east of Front Street.) This is near the new location of Old Town favorite Sweet Lumpy's BBQ (now at 41915 Third Street.)



STOCKING THE SHELVES...Jordan Stone, proprietor of newly opened Delaney's Market, gets a little (lot?!) of help from her daughter, plus a friend who stopped by to check out the market's first few days and say hi:

Image and video hosting by TinyPic



GET OUT THE VOTE!...Visitors to Parents Connect can vote once each day until July 15 in the national survey of Best Local Places. Cruise on over to their San Diego category and cast your daily vote for Old Town's own Temecula Children's Museum, whose name was offiically changed to Pennypickles. Everyone always calls it that so news of the name change was anti-climactic.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Morning Memo for July 11, 2009

Daily Temecula's intrepid crew of scienticians has been hard at work analyzing raw data to bring you....The Yogurt Index, our arguably statistically-relevant measure of a city's quality of life.



Manhattan has a population approaching two million yet their YI pales in comparison to Temecula's. How? Our 100,000(ish) population enjoys 15 (at last count) frozen yogurt shops. Factor in Murrieta's 100,000(ish) population as well and the two-city region is a veritable yogurt powerhouse, weighing in stronger than such traditional yogurt strongholds as Orange County's Irvine (population over 200,000 with a measly nine shops.)



And, we have Pinkberry.



Yup, Pinkberry, which created a sensation by backing up traffic as celebrities double parked to run in for their fix of original tart with fresh fruit topping, has a Temecula outpost on Winchester Avenue near Trader Joe's.



Irvine has a Pinkberry now, too (at the Spectrum.) See? Yogurt everywhere!



We are also the home of local franchise sensation White Lime, whose adorable shops and tasty yogurt are causing a frosty stir.



Yogurt Point. Another Yogurt Point. Mangoz. Wild Mango. Yogurt Island. And the list goes on...



So do you miss ice cream? Or are you happier with self-serve by the ounce with fresh toppings and clean rocks, pebbles, tile, and hip mod furniture?



Send me your yogurt stories. Love it? Hate it? Eat it daily? Eat it for breakfast? Eat it on a date? Did your kids get a White Lime gift certificate as their prize from the summer reading program at the Temecula Library?



FULL YOGURT INDEX REPORT COMING SOON!<

...and speaking of yogurt, I had a chance to hang out with Fabian on the job at family-owned Wild Mango Yogurt. He'd just invented a new flavor (Jolly Rancher green apple) and the shop was jumping. Wild Mango is in the former Baskin-Robbins store on Margarita and Rancho California, in the Baron's shopping center.



Wild Mango is one of several shops joining in Eye Appeal Optometry's open house TODAY, featuring raffles, prizes, freebies, and a live broadcast by local smooth jazz station 94.5 (KMYT.) Other merchants participating include: Joie de Vie Scents & Decor; Starbucks; Barons; Great Harvest Bread Co; and Fitwize 4 Kids.



The main event in town this weekend is the Temecula Valley International Jazz Festival. There's not a hotel room to be found in town this weekend. Going to hear some jazz? Enjoy!



Daily Temecula reader Freida Hall advised me to grab a glass of sangria and settle in for a terrific sounding event tomorrow (Sunday, July 12) at Keyways Winery: Jacqui Foreman performing in an open-air concert from 2-6 p.m. Check out Foreman's website and the Keyways site for more info.

Whatever you end up doing with your weekend, make it fun & relaxing!



Juliet


Friday, July 10, 2009

Seen/Scene from July 4th Weekend, 2009

CHECK IT OUT!



Daily Temecula pays a visit to California Tea & Coffee Brewery, where we spot regular customer Alisha Roberts cooling down with a custom mint-chocolate creation. Check out "FOCUS ON..." for more pictures!



Image and video hosting by TinyPic


Image and video hosting by TinyPic
SEEN/SCENE



SIPPING & CHATTING....Several groups of ladies of various ages heading into Old Town's Truffles & Lace Tea Parlor. Temecula's newest workout sensation Sweat Cardio & Yoga informs Daily Temecula via Twitter that Truffles & Lace is a lot of fun. Can't wait to check it out!

Image and video hosting by TinyPic



Here's what their menu looked like a few days ago. There's lots of tea too, of course.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic



ROLLING, ROLLING, ROLLING...Have you ridden the Temecula Trolley yet?! Free rides started this weekend. The story is that this trolley service, which links up Harveston to the Promenade Mall and Old Town, was part of a deal the Harveston developers made with the city to help alleviate traffic.



The trolley is free at least through the end of this year. It sounds like a lot of fun so check it out! Trolley signs are up on Ynez near the car dealerships. Next time your car is being serviced at DCH or Paradise you can trolley on over to Old Town. Check out the complete schedule and route map here.



SO MANY SPAS, SO LITTLE TIME...Walking through Old Town we were intrigued by the lovely remodeled exterior of the Old Town Temecula Salon & Day Spa (41925 Third Street, in Old Town just east of Front Street.) This is near the new location of Old Town favorite Sweet Lumpy's BBQ (now at 41915 Third Street.)



STOCKING THE SHELVES...Jordan Stone, proprietor of newly opened Delaney's Market, gets a little (lot?!) of help from her daughter, plus a friend who stopped by to check out the market's first few days and say hi:

Image and video hosting by TinyPic



GET OUT THE VOTE!...Visitors to Parents Connect can vote once each day until July 15 in the national survey of Best Local Places. Cruise on over to their San Diego category and cast your daily vote for Old Town's own Temecula Children's Museum, whose name was offiically changed to Pennypickles. Everyone always calls it that so news of the name change was anti-climactic.

Morning Memo for July 4th Weekend, 2009

Daily Temecula's intrepid crew of scienticians has been hard at work analyzing raw data to bring you....The Yogurt Index, our arguably statistically-relevant measure of a city's quality of life.



Manhattan has a population approaching two million yet their YI pales in comparison to Temecula's. How? Our 100,000(ish) population enjoys 15 (at last count) frozen yogurt shops. Factor in Murrieta's 100,000(ish) population as well and the two-city region is a veritable yogurt powerhouse, weighing in stronger than such traditional yogurt strongholds as Orange County's Irvine (population over 200,000 with a measly nine shops.)



And, we have Pinkberry.



Yup, Pinkberry, which created a sensation by backing up traffic as celebrities double parked to run in for their fix of original tart with fresh fruit topping, has a Temecula outpost on Winchester Avenue near Trader Joe's.



Irvine has a Pinkberry now, too (at the Spectrum.) See? Yogurt everywhere!



We are also the home of local franchise sensation White Lime, whose adorable shops and tasty yogurt are causing a frosty stir.



Yogurt Point. Another Yogurt Point. Mangoz. Wild Mango. Yogurt Island. And the list goes on...



So do you miss ice cream? Or are you happier with self-serve by the ounce with fresh toppings and clean rocks, pebbles, tile, and hip mod furniture?



Send me your yogurt stories. Love it? Hate it? Eat it daily? Eat it for breakfast? Eat it on a date? Did your kids get a White Lime gift certificate as their prize from the summer reading program at the Temecula Library?



FULL YOGURT INDEX REPORT COMING SOON!


Good morning!



Help us grow - steal my code: Click here to find code to add to your website or blog. Just cut and paste the code in the box to the right of the logo. Spread the word!



Feeling tipsy? I want your pictures, ideas & info about what's going on in the Temecula Valley. Email me at editor@dailytemecula.com.



Follow Daily Temecula on Twitter (@dailytemecula)

. The Twitter feed on this page is broken. Did I break Twitter, or did Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, the Orange Glo guy, and the people of Iran? There's plenty of blame to go around.



Locals were burning up Twitter with reports of TEMECULA ON FIRE!!! but luckily our amazing, awesome firefighters did a fantastic job and as of now (Friday morning, July 2, 2009) the fire is reported over 75% contained. See "BREAKING NEWS" above for the latest.



We are road-tripping this weekend up to the Santa Cruz area to spend the Fourth of July weekend with friends and family. Please stay safe & especially play safe this weekend (fire danger is clearly HIGH now) and remember to designate a driver if you're somewhere alcohol is being served.



(Cautionary note: Growing Pains' Tracy Gold got her infamous bad-mug-shot DUI after a Labor Day family BBQ. Let her be a warning to us all. No bad mascara-streaked mug shots, please. In all seriousness she flipped her car with young children in it. Please be safe! I don't want to come back to town to read about YOUR DUI.



UPCOMING IN DAILY TEMECULA:



I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself. I stopped in at Anela Apothecary's brand new, beautiful location near Tangerine Boutique in the Bel Villagio Center on Margarita Avenue on the outer ring of the Promenade Mall. What a makeover they have had! The previous shop was lovely but a little cramped and their new digs are fabulous.



Michael of Anela tells me their grand opening party was a blast, with a packed store full of locals and even some out-of-town fans drinking champagne and enjoying luxe treatment from a celebrity nail expert from NYC!



AND....local favorite jeweler Tina Steinberg, who is spotted EVERYWHERE these days (recently seen at Delaney's in Old Town where her jewelry is proudly sold, plus the Old Town Farmer's Market on Saturdays), has a location inside Anela. I ran in and found a perfect little locket necklace for my mom's birthday and will return for Tina to custom make charms to fit inside. Score!

Friday, July 3, 2009

Morning Memo from Juliet for Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Morning Memo for Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Daily Temecula's intrepid crew of scienticians has been hard at work analyzing raw data to bring you....The Yogurt Index, our arguably statistically-relevant measure of a city's quality of life.



Manhattan has a population approaching two million yet their YI pales in comparison to Temecula's. How? Our 100,000(ish) population enjoys 15 (at last count) frozen yogurt shops. Factor in Murrieta's 100,000(ish) population as well and the two-city region is a veritable yogurt powerhouse, weighing in stronger than such traditional yogurt strongholds as Orange County's Irvine (population over 200,000 with a measly nine shops.)



And, we have Pinkberry.



Yup, Pinkberry, which created a sensation by backing up traffic as celebrities double parked to run in for their fix of original tart with fresh fruit topping, has a Temecula outpost on Winchester Avenue near Trader Joe's.



Irvine has a Pinkberry now, too (at the Spectrum.) See? Yogurt everywhere!



We are also the home of local franchise sensation White Lime, whose adorable shops and tasty yogurt are causing a frosty stir.



Yogurt Point. Another Yogurt Point. Mangoz. Wild Mango. Yogurt Island. And the list goes on...



So do you miss ice cream? Or are you happier with self-serve by the ounce with fresh toppings and clean rocks, pebbles, tile, and hip mod furniture?



Send me your yogurt stories. Love it? Hate it? Eat it daily? Eat it for breakfast? Eat it on a date? Did your kids get a White Lime gift certificate as their prize from the summer reading program at the Temecula Library?



FULL YOGURT INDEX REPORT COMING SOON!



MORNING MEMO FROM JULIET for FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND, 2009:



Feeling tipsy? I want your pictures, ideas & info about what's going on in the Temecula Valley. Email me at editor@dailytemecula.com.



Follow Daily Temecula on Twitter (@dailytemecula)

. The Twitter feed on this page is broken. Did I break Twitter, or did Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, the Orange Glo guy, and the people of Iran? There's plenty of blame to go around.



It was HOT here in Temecula this weekend. My car registered 104 degrees as I cruised into the parking lot of CVS formerly (for about three seconds) Long's Drugs on Temecula Parkway. I was happy to be able to pick up a bottle of local wine (I chose merlot from Van Roekel to bring to an afternoon meeting.) I love how even our chain grocery and drugstores carry wine from our local Temecula wineries. (Stater Bros usually has a very good selection.) Of course local grocery store and small regional chain Baron's The Marketplace has a fantastic selection of beer, wine, and other spirits. (It got its start as a wine shop.)

went all over the place this weekend handing out Daily Temecula postcards. If you see one, check out the back. Some of them have special Sharpie messages from me.



In addition to swimming, hammocking, and generally hanging out trying to beat the heat, I was excited to see the Ralph Love Plein Air Festival in Old Town. Old Town's own Spice Merchants were handing out samples streetside since all the busiest chalk action was right in front of their door.

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Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Image and video hosting by TinyPic



While I was sweltering my way through Old Town I popped into the beautiful, peaceful Temecula Hills Winery at Villa di Calabro tasting room (on Main Street in the former Ville de Chene tea store.) Friendly proprietors Mike and Mindy Calabro were bustling around serving a full house of tasters, mostly from out of town since it was the weekend. I whipped out my Filofax right then and there and made a date with myself to come back for a tasting and learn more about their winery. (They make olive oil, too! Their bottles have really cute little corks on the front.)




Standing outside in their lovely garden, I thought how perfect a setting this would be for a milestone birthday, anniversary, shower, or girls' day out:

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Image and video hosting by TinyPic



Stay cool out there as you have a wonderful day here in the beautiful Temecula Valley!



Juliet