The King Tut exhibit in L.A. Great stuff. Very nicely set up, at the start they put you in a dark room then light up a statue in the next room, gives you that "I discovered it" feeling. They went through a lot of stuff from people around and before Tut's time, including my favorite: Akhenaten. The meticulous care and attention to detail that the artisans had is really outstanding. I gotta say when you look at a silver trumpet with tiny inscriptions written all over the outside and on the inside, (and remember that this was made with the idea that it would never be seen by mortal eyes again) you gotta question the quality of artists now. We've fallen a long way if you can throw a bucket of paint on a canvas and dare call it a work of art.
One thing I learned about Tut and Egyptian art was that the rather reddish color that he and his wife have in a golden chair is probably their actual skin tone. I thought it was an unlikely color for ancient Egyptians to have, but after walking around in LA without sunblock on I realized if you're already tan and you're in the sun you will in fact turn that color.

I was sorely disappointed at the sights at the beach though. I know there is a certain glorified view of California beaches, but it shouldn't be competely untrue. Hit the gyms people! You have a stereotype to live up to!

Word of the day: anhedonic- The absence of pleasure or the ability to experience it.

And finally, my brother's recipe for seriously tasty hamburgers:
1 to 1 1/3 lbs high-quality, high-fat (no less than 10%) ground beef
1/4 cup Worcestershire plus a bit extra to taste (but if you add too much
the hamburgers will not stick together well)
1 Tbsp mustard powder
1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs of your choice (i used flat parsley, sage,
rosemary, and thyme in about equal portions)
1/4 cup finely chopped shallots (they sell these in a small bag at
albertson's; use most of the bag)
2 Tbsp finely chopped garlic
2 Tbsp butter

Mix ground beef, Worcestershire, and mustard powder; let marinate while you
chop everything else up. Fry shallots and garlic in butter over medium-high
heat, stirring frequently until just a bit brown. Reduce heat somewhat and
stir herbs into pan for a minute or so. Collect mixture and add to ground
beef (the meat should cool down the mixture pretty quickly). Mix thoroughly,
form into 4 burgers, and fry in same pan over medium-high heat. Burgers
should be flipped at least 4 times to cook well without serious charring.

That is a tasty burger!