Happy 30th Birthday Janae!  Before revealing the rest of your 30 moments, today seemed liked the best time to show Janae pre 30…….

Happy Birthday Janae!

Inspiration: Keyshawn Johnson, “Hang with me for drinks. On Montana.”

Destination: R + D Restaurant

So the story goes….
Janae called me and said we are going to din with Keyshawn. It’ll be hilarious.
I knew Keyshawn was famous in the sports world but I wasn’t quite sure how…..oops.

My friend Carly texted me, “I love your life! Have fun with Keyshawn. He spoke to my class at USC once!”

This is what I found on wikipedia:

‘Joseph Keyshawn Johnson (born on July 22, 1972 in Los Angeles, California) is a former American football wide receiver, interior designer, business executive, author and current television broadcaster for sports channel ESPN.’

The mascot in me was doing backflips inside. I was excited to share this moment with Janae.

The thing about Miss Twisselman is that she brings out the best in everyone. When I said, “Janae we aren’t going to have to stay long, are we? (I was antsy to have some of my Sunday night for Angie time.) Janae just looked at me and laughed. “Don’t worry Ang. It wont be long. I’m with you.”

Little did I know what I was getting into.

Keyshawn was an entertaining dinner guest….to say the least . He obviously adores Janae and after they worked on a project together they have a great repoire. He made me work to get that kid like smile out though. Thank god his friend Skeet was there to ease the tension as I tried to break through Keyshawn’s Ironman layer.

With Janae though, Keyshawn pushes and teases her for being a publicist but you can tell he respects her. He doesn’t have his own publicist though. He likes to control all of that himself and although he’s quite the public persona,  he prefers to keep his personal life private.  I was surprised to hear some of the other business ventures that Keyshawn is involved in. “I don’t need other people knowing about that though. You girls already know too much.” He says with a big grin.

We laughed a lot and without even realizing it – closed down the restaurant!

Check! Check off another inspiration.

After those 4 hours, it made sense that Keyshawn inspired Janae. He’s got vision. He’s a businessman. He’s smart. And after meeting him, he’s no doubt a character.

Take this –

I found this Keyshawn quote that made me like him even more:

“This is what matters to me, Not all the big numbers, the fancy statistics. I want to make the plays that count.”

Janae makes the plays that count. She always makes the people around her enjoy and live in the moment. When life is tough, I’m going to remind myself to make the plays count like Keyshawn and Janae.

Destination: Hollywood Starline Tourbus

Inspiration: Keith Rivers from the Cincinnati Bengals, “Go on a hollywood star tour!”

When Janae called to say we were going on the star tour for her next 30 before 30 moment, we both knew we were in for some laughs and quite an experience….

For 2 hours we were going on Mission Sightsee LA!

For 2 hours we were going to ride on a bus and hear about the town we’d been living in for  years.

For 2 hours we were going to see where celebrities lived. ha.

You laugh.  That’s your inspiring moment?

Try it.  I dare you. Rewind the clocks and experience LA through newcomer’s eyes.

Janae brought along 5 cute boys who made Mission Sightsee LA 30 times more fun – Tom Tom, Tony, Geordie, Ben and Jesse, we’ll call them The Entertainers.

Here are some highlights of what we learned and why we laughed -

• David – our bus driver. David had a heavy Boston accent and was Mission Sightsee LA oozing of Cheeeese.  The Entertainers teased him but he was half the fun!
• We rode on a topless van and heard about the places where we lived and worked and visited – our hometown. The Entertainers provided the best commentary. There’s the Rock&Roll Ralphs –  it’s the meat market of singles grocery shopping in LA.
• Landord! Will Ferrell and Orlando Bloom are neighbors!  Do you think the landlord has ever paid Orlando a visit?
• “Anyone know Phil Collins? You might remember his song “take me home” – well I just took you to his home!” – Driver David
• In Beverly Hills, go to Roxbury Street above sunset!  ”A lot of famous people used to live here but they’re all dead now so we call this celebrity row.  Remember Elvis?…..dead.  the guy from BH Hillbillies….dead.  Diane Keaton….not dead.”
• Driver David got excited and told a british passenger, ” Did you see that the girl with the rack jogging was wearing a London T shirt?”
• In Bel Air David said very matter of factly “Guys, that person on the corner is going to wave to you now.”(lady waves)  ”That was not a woman – it was a man.”  Ok Boston. It was clearly a woman.
• There’s Tom Cruise’s home back there. You can’t really see.  He keeps it private……
• “This is David Beckham’s house.  One time I saw Posh walk down the driveway.”  Driver David stops on the street next to the Beckham driveway. We all look at DD then at the mailbox then at DD..all this for a good 15 seconds. Someone really likes the Beckhams.

Sightsee tour Moment- check. Mission completed- check. Inspired – check.

We laughed.
We were reminded of some of the greatest talents who lived.
We were reminded of our first experiences in LA and how far we’ve come…how much we’ve achieve and what we plan to achieve.

Sharing moments……

My friend Janae turns 30 next month – below is the letter we sent to the influential people in her life.

Janae wanted to be rejuvenated so we have set out to re-janaevize with help from her friends.

Perhaps it will inspire you to send out an email to the people in your life who inspire you!  Or maybe you have a moment to send us to experience-comment below!

Hi everyone,

My 30th birthday is right around the corner and I want to turn 30 rejuvenated, inspired, and ready for my 30’s! My amazing friend and super LA publicist Angie Banicki – following in her 30 before 30 tradition – is helping me do my own 30 before 30 and we plan to blog some of it on www.angies30before30blog.com

How it works:

I need 30 inspiring moments in LA county (and anywhere that is a close drive away  - Palm Springs, Santa Barbara, Big Bear even) before I blow out my candles on May 6th! Think of your favorite memories, favorite places, wackiest experiences, most inspiring moments . . . Be as simple or as creative as you want,  and then Angie and I will hit the road to do and document them!

You might have seen our escapades and moments in Australia.  (I even got my own moment when we landed back in the U.S.A.!). We did everything from  bat hunting in Sydney thanks to Dax Shepard, to the Mechad Brooks mission of eating Morton Bay Bugs in Melbourne, to Lil Jon making us drink till we dropped in Lorne, to watching the rove show for Jay Leno.

One of my favorite moments was when Robin Williams sent us to Palm Beach.  We had an amazing dinner beachside with a fantastic crew of newfound Aussie friends that ended with me zooming through the streets of Palm beach on a super charged motor scooter in a dress and sneakers!

Each moment I was on with her brought new experiences, new fun, new friends, a new found fondness of life that I cant wait to do all over in LA. Being that 30 is such a pinnacle year, and since you have positively effected the course of my career and life, I want you to be a part of this mission with us . . .

I HAVE TO GATHER MY MOMENTS QUICKLY SO I AM HOPING TO HEAR FROM YOU THIS WEEK!

Here are a few questions to get you started and thanks so much in advance . .

*What is one of your favorite memories in LA? Where’d you go and why
*Where did you meet someone new and unexpectedly?
*If you could tell a traveler where to go in their first trip to LA where would you send them? Could be a restaurant, museum, hotel, landmark, street corner
*Do you know someone we should go see? i.e. When people ask me about Australia I always send them to see our Aussie mom Lynn at Byron bay who completely took care of us girls and has the most caring soul and positive outlook on life. She spent hours with us talking about life and love and showed us what a true quality of life should be!
*Is there an event in April/May or specific event or tradition that we should take part in?
*Are you going to be in town during the next month and if so could we bring you on our journey

Stay tuned to www.angies30before30.com to see our adventures

Janae

Destination: Banksy’s ‘Exit Through The Gift Shop’ US Film Premiere at the Los Angeles Theatre Downtown

Inspiration: Revok, graffiti artist, tells Janae she should go see Banky’s Premiere.

Janae, “Revok is one of the most prolific graffiti artists in the world (will send you a graff image) and someone I have worked with/inspired me for years. Super passionate about his craft.”

Actualization: We walked up to a line of hundreds of people waiting around the block.

We thought - What kind of premiere is this?

As Janae and I made our way to the graffiti-ed red carpet, we saw this wasn’t going to be like anything we’d done in LA….especially at the movies.  I mean people kept saying we’d never even see Banksy. Noone did.

Banksy???

He keeps himself unknown.

Guests were invited to graffiti cars out front and the massive theatre was filled to the rim. Now I know absolutely nothing about graffiti, while Janae knows more than any girl I’ve ever met – But I can honestly say whether you know, love, or hate graffiti – you will be FASCINATED by this documentary.
Who really is Thierry AKA Mr Brainwash?

“It’s like playing chess . . . I don’t know how to play chess but life is a chess game for me” Thierry

Realization: Janae took from the film -
“The thing that worked about thierry was the unlikeliness of him” -banksy
I love when banksy said this because it hit a chord with me – he was talking about how Thiery was able to just get in there and people let him hang around because he was so outside their typical world – like me dorky country girl from a ranch hangin with all these top prolific artists in street art.  Photoed above Saber (also one of THE biggest graffiti artists) last night told shepard fairey that they loved me because I could hang and put up with them. Not that I want to be compared to thierry either necessarily)

Your moment: Go see the gorgeous Los Angeles Theatre Downtown! It’s gorgeous! http://www.losangelestheatre.com/

Uh Angie -you’re 31? Why are you still doing 30 Before 30?

30 Before 30 is the story of how I, Angie Banicki, put my career on the line and headed out on an adventure around Europe for 30 days before my 30th birthday. Me – small-town dorkypants gone Hollywood publicist – gave in to gut instinct and risked all that I had worked so hard to achieve in search of inspiration and purpose. I started by creating a list of the most inspiring and influential people in my life and then gathered their favorite moments to construct my journey. I went to Europe with a peek – a snapshot – into the most precious memories of others.

And who wants to stop getting inspiration, right? So I continued with the moments and started the blog so that I could keep going while I finished writing the story of my European journey that had started it all….

I’ve decided to graduate from my 30 Before 30 and become professor like Dad Banicki. I will make it my assignment to help create these special moments for others…..by reaching out to the inspiring people in their lives and tracking down the people who they want to inspire them.

I want to show how you can create a 30 Before 30 or even an 80 Before 80 – like Grandpa T. A passion project to help you get through troubled times, gain knowledge about yourself by experiencing someone else’s meaningful moment, or just make some fun out of life….and show it doesn’t have to be in Europe:)

30B30 Victim/Recipient #1 = 29 yr old Janae Twisselman starts this week – with moments from Keyshawn Johnson, Grandma Rose and Papa, and skater, Stevie Williams.

Here’s how it works and our Day 1 – My Mission Moment

Destination of the moment – Santa Monica and Muscle Beach

Inspiration of who and what got us there – Grandma Rose and Papa T, who are a big part of Janae’s life, send us to the place they met and fell in love

Actualization of what happened – Jj Banicki provided the BeBackstage CD of inspiring songs for the drive down to the Westside. We visited grandma and grandpa’s first home in Santa Monica. Rose and Papa T are two peas in a pod. From Papa’s room full of books of photographs he’s taken over the years to Rose’s stories of their grandkids – they inspire you to find true love! Janae and I then headed to Venice to watch the muscle men like they liked to do! We had a lot of laughs along the way.

Realization describing what lesson came from the moment – I pulled this quote out of Mom’s Inspiring Quotes Bowl the morning we began – When people show you who they are, believe them. Maya Angelou

Janae has been a constant cheertweeter of 30b30! She made me believe in myself and when she emailed me that she was in a funk, I knew it was time to pay it forward and remind her why I believed in her….and so did that muscle man on the boardwalk:)

Your moment completes the DIARY – Visit the Venice boardwalk and observe some muscles. Or ask your grandparents for something that inspires them and go do it:)

In one month, I will start on another 30b30…..if you want to be my

next passion project, tell me why YOU need inspiration or how I could

help create your 30 Before 30!

Destination: Temblor Ranch, California

Inspiration: “Come to the Twisselman Ranch and live a day in the life of Papa Ken and Grandma Rose Twisselman.  You’ll love my Dad- he’s the ultimate cowboy!”

Actualization: While we bonded in Australia, Janae’s family anecdotes and the conversations I overheard made me insist I meet her relative cast of characters immediately upon our return to the states. I brought JJ Banicki along for the adventure.  Old people and families always immediately fall in love with my brother and it makes me more at ease when he’s around.

Janae, JJ and I got to the ranch and crashed after our 3 hour drive straight from LAX.

In the morning, we woke up to fog and a little rain but nothing to deter us from chores. Cowboy Steve, Janae’s Dad, was quiet yet diligent in his pancake-making the morning our adventure began. It wasn’t until we rolled up our sleeves, hit the dirt road and started daily farm chores that Steve then opened up. I think it was the eyepatch he put on. He was definitely less shy although still a Cowboy afterall.

We went straight into ranch action.  We fed the cattle, checked the grounds, drove through the vast oil fields and headed over to his parent’s house.

Papa Ken and Grandma Rose surpassed any and every expectation I ever had.  They welcomed us into their home filled with family photos and memories.  There was even a room stocked with photo albums that Papa added to every week.  He documented everything which was a lot since he and Grandma were quite the social duo. They visited friends in the area, attended political events, and traveled with other older ranchers on a regular basis. Papa opened the album just before we were about to leave and he could have relived moments all afternoon.  Papa made me laugh and he was still quick despite his old age.

We sat in their kitchen at the table covered with a giant blown up map tablecloth which Grandma told us was actually a shower curtain.  She and Papa used the map to help them geographically place all the countries they’d read about every day.  As one who had aced every Geography quiz but now couldn’t name half the countries, I was taking mental notes on how I could incorporate such a map at my house.

Grandma shared family stories. She was engaged at age 15 and a mom of 4 before the age of 21. She still had young eyes and her husband still had eyes for her.  She read us the script from this Christmas’s family talent show, a talent show I’d like to replicate into Banicki tradition.  It was inspiring to hear the creativity that each grandchild added to the Twisselman holidays.   This was just one of many traditions including their seasonal sporting events, the bandwagon breakfasts, and the camping out under the stars. It became apparent fast that the Twisselmans are nothing like what one might assume a cowboy ranch family might be like.

We left Papa Ken and Grandma Rose to go see the rocks, caves and Indian hideouts over yonder.  We headed past the home of Uncle Tom who had moved his bed onto the porch. I guess when you become a bachelor again you make change.  This cowboy bachelor decided he’d sleep under the stars but still in his bed. We kept driving and came upon an area where the caves and rocks and cherry trees surrounded a wooden shack and small stage and theater type area.

I felt like I was Angie in Wonderland – beds out of place, animals appearing out of nowhere, and in the middle of a vast open area surrounded by mountains.  It was Tim Burtonesque with the stage area gray and dark with it’s prickley old cherry trees.

The finale to our day on the ranch was my favorite part.  THE PENNY BAR.  Not because it was a bar but because it was a bar with a story.  Over one million pennies covered everything in the bar from the walls to the pool table to the jukebox to the bathroom.  JJ Banicki bonded with Steve and the cowboys over a pool match.  JJ of course doesn’t play but as I said he works magic on families and old people, so somehow he shot a perfect pool match and then went on to sing Neil Young at karaoke and got the whole clan up and singing including Steve who was belting away! I spent time chatting with the rest of the crew and meeting the owners and staff of the Penny Bar.

Realization: 1 – LOL Take more time to meet and listen to grandparents – you’re guaranteed a Lesson Or Laughs..usually both. 2 – You don’t need a plane, a hotel or time off for a travel adventure!  The ranch was my 36 hours of fun without even a shower….but it did have a shower curtain that inspired my next trip.

Temblor Ranch Fun Facts –

Over 100,000 Acres!

The movie There Will Be Blood is based on the story of Temblor.

Jesse James signature can be found in one of the caves where he slept on one of his missions.

Destination: Streets of Brisbane, Australia

Inspiration: James Franco: “Brisbane. The beach or the hippy place where you can see whales. Forget the name”

Actualization: It’s not whale season, you say? Who cares? Tell me to see whales and I’ll show you whales. James Franco moment turns Mission Pineapple Express in Brisbane. As you read the below, note some fav quotes from the movie and how they paralleled our trip. Except we don’t have pot to use as an excuse.

Janae and I realize we aren’t finding real whale watching as James suggested. Instead, we are going to have to have to get creative. I say let’s go on a scavenger hunt in Brisbane and find hippies and whales!

Janae says yes, but that we’re going to do it Pineapple Express style. Of course this saves our day. I pulled my favorite quotes from the movie as they corresponded with our adventure.

Dale Denton: I’m here to save my best friend… I’ve got an idea! Rub your wrists against my belt buckle!
[Saul does. It looks like humping]
Dale Denton: I’m gonna save you, man!
Saul: [Grinds against Dale] Yeah! Yeah!
Dale Denton: Let me save you!

Janae is a true friend and photographs the search. She’s been my Aussie BFFF:

Saul: BFFF?
Dale Denton: Best F**kin’ Friends Forever, man!
Saul: Holy cock!
Red: Thug life!

We start with the police station.. This policewoman prints out maps for me and then these police guys point me towards tourism.

Dale Denton: [after explaining everything that's happened] Do you believe me?
Police Liaison Officer: I don’t know. Give me a minute. It was a woman or a man cop?
Dale Denton: It was a policewoman. It was a woman.
Police Liaison Officer: Oh, I think I know who that bitch was.
Dale Denton: Yes, I will identify that bi*ch!

I’m a little embarrassed by my tennies and dress attire at the tourism spot:

Budlofsky: [Matheson is smoking weed] No, I can’t. My wife can always tell. She can smell it on my sweater.
Matheson: [laughs] You want my vest? It smell good.
Budlofsky: It’s not my style.
Matheson: You ain’t got no style, muthaf**ka.

We get hungry and get smoothies midsearch.

Saul: Enjoy your last meal.
[throws bills at Dale]
Saul: Here, super size it, bitch.
[throws change]

We find the whales as directed by the museum worker, AKA Seth Rogen as shown below! He tries to talk to me about where I can find more hippies. I don’t understand where and how I’ll get to the hippies because again Aussies don’t know how to describe walking or driving directions.

Saul: Let’s roll, man! I’m done with the woods! Let’s go! C’mon, man, let’s get the f**k outta here!
Dale Denton: [sarcastically] Okay… Uhh let’s go… No… It’s not working… the battery’s dead.
Saul: Wait…! What do you mean, it’s dead?
Dale Denton: [laughing] What do I mean? I mean the battery’s dead. The battery’s dead!
Saul: No, no! What do you mean, the battery’s dead?
Dale Denton: How can I explain this to you differently? The battery is dead. It ceased to live. It’s deceased now. The car needs a battery to start, Saul.
Saul: [frustrated sigh] How did this happen?
Dale Denton: Well we clearly fell asleep with the battery on and-…
Saul: Aw, man… Talk radio?
Dale Denton: Yes, talk radio.
Saul: So boring, man! The car just committed suicide.

We find SAUL!!!! (aka. James Franco lookalike in a café in hippy town!) He has no clue what we are talking about when we mention Pineapple Express.

Saul: How about in the park, when I said you were my friend… you didn’t say anything back.
Dale Denton: Well, that’s easy. It’s because we’re not friends. You are my drug dealer. The only reason I know you is because I like the drugs you sell. If you didn’t sell drugs, I would have no idea who you are, and I wouldn’t be here right now. I would be fantastic!
Saul: Oh.
Dale Denton: I’m sorry, that sounded really mean… just to hear that, that sounded really mean.
Saul: No, I see. The monkey’s out of the bottle now!
Dale Denton: What? That’s not even… a figure of speech.
Saul: Pandora can’t go back into the box – he only comes out.

I get us lost as we go back to get the photo with the whales. We eventually find it though:

Saul: Man, why’d we have to go to the woods?
Dale Denton: Well you didn’t come up with any ideas!
Saul: Yeah, I came up with two! Nowhere and Quizno’s

Time for dinner. Let’s find a good spot to eat. Our feet hurt and we think about hitchhiking.

Saul: Hey, look: it’s like my thumb is my cock.
Dale Denton: That’s not gonna get us a ride, man..

When I get hungry and premenstrual, I lose focus on the moment and want to punch Janae. She wants to punch me too. We both hold it in:

Red: Why don’t you follow his lead and just chill out, man?
Dale Denton: I’m chill. I’m chill as a cucumber, man.
Red: You don’t seem chill.
Dale Denton: I’m more chill than you.
Red: You’re more chill than me?
Dale Denton: Yeah.
Red: Look what I’m wearing. Kimono, dog. What’re you wearing?
Dale Denton: A suit.
Red: Yeah, exactly. I don’t know what’s up with you, but I don’t know if I like you.
Dale Denton: Well, I don’t know if I like you either, man.
Red: Well, that’s your loss ’cause I’m a great friend.

Janae, like Red, is even more upset because Max isn’t around. At least I have a moment…

Red: [before saving Saul] I can’t do this. I’m sorry, man. I can’t do this. I’m infected. My shit’s all f**ked up. I need medical attention.
Dale Denton: What do you mean you can’t – I thought we just got all pumped up! What was that all about?
Red: Dude, Ted is a f**king murderer! I can’t f**k with him! I got a wife, man! She’s gonna be out of jail soon. I wanna f**k her! I wanna have sex with her! I am not gonna wake up murdered tomorrow.
Dale Denton: Oh, no! Come on, this could be your moment of redemption!
Red: F**k that. This’ll be your moment.

We find the perfect restaurant. The dude at the counter sucks in a deep breath while crinkling his eyes and opening his mouth with teeth together. BIG PET PEEVE OF MINE and says, “Sorry. We don’t serve food for another hour.”

Ken: [to Ted and Dale] You, suck my balls. Two times!

We find our dinner spot, fill our tummy’s and review the day of finding Saul, Dale, whales and FOOD. Thank god! We bond again.

Dale Denton: [talking about his girlfriend] I go visit her in high school and all the guys she goes to school with are, like, strong and handsome and really, like, funny and do good impressions of Jeff Goldblum and shit like that. And, like, I just feel like a fat, dumb f**kin’ stinky-ass turd when I’m there.
Saul: What?
Dale Denton: It sucks for my ego.
Saul: F**k Jeff Goldblum, man!

Realization: We all have our moments!

Saul: You lied to me.
Red: I did. I lied big time to you.
Saul: Dale said that that you didn’t even have herpes, and I said that you did.
Red: Honestly, like, from now on, just, like, from everything that we’ve gone through, from, like, seeing this f**kin’ asshole’s nuts smashed with my Daewoo, I want to be a better friend to you. I really do.
Saul: I f**kin’ love you, dog. I f**kin’ love you.
Red: I wanna be inside you, homes.
Saul: No more lies, Red.
Red: This is my moment.
Saul: This is your moment.

Your moment:
Pineapple Express
James Franco
Brisbane
Brisbane Whale Watching
Brisbane Whale Museum

Other fun quotes:

Mr. Edwards: Clark’s a great guy, man. He’s totally gonna take care of Angie, man. He’s great; he’s a wonderful lab partner, so… It’s gonna be cool, he’ll keep one eye on her.
Dale Denton: Why don’t you go f**k yourself, you weird little prick?
Mr. Edwards: I’m a teacher, okay? You can’t talk to me like that, guy.
Dale Denton: I’m not a student, so I can say whatever the f**k I want, you chimp-f**king little bastard.

Angie Anderson: F**k you, Dale. I lost my virginity when I was fourteen, okay? How many women have you even slept with?
Dale Denton: Like two and a half.
Angie Anderson: Two and a half? What is a half, your hand? That doesn’t count!
Robert: Angie, you’re a fucking idiot. I say that with love

Saul: This is like if that Blue Oyster shit met that Afghan Kush I had, and they had a baby. And then, meanwhile, that crazy Northern Light stuff I had and the Super Red Espresso Snowflake met and had a baby. And by some miracle, those two babies met and f**ked, this would the shit that they birthed.
Dale Denton: [smells the marijuana] Wow. This is the product of baby f**king.

Matheson: [Saul has smashed a coffee pot in Matheson's face, leaving huge scars] I look like the Hamburglar.

Destination: ICEBERG Restaurant, Bondi Beach

Inspiration: Naomi Watts says, “ICEBERGS bondi beach is the best”

Actualization: Iceberg’s is famous and not an easy reservation!  Thanks Nicole Perna for hooking it up! Janae and I had a yummy dinner watching the sunset Sunday evening.  I’m going to pretend to be a foodie for a second….here’s what we ordered:

To start: A bottle of Cettadon Pinot Noir. Red wine has become a staple for me in Australia.  Always Pinot or Shiraz.
Butter lettuce and mini prawns fried with aoili.  The prawns sounded better than they tasted.
Main course: STING RAY!  A first for me.  The sting ray was good and prepared with mushrooms and spinach. Side of white aspargus was my favorite…the veggie in me:)
Dessert: Another staple. Espresso Martinis.
Now I’m not sure if it was the bug I caught the night before or just after effects of the sting ray but I dreamt, rather hallucinated some crazy stuff. Here’s my stream of consciousness. Post dream. It’s 5am.

Hallucination #1:
I go to a party. I am having fun but feel too tipsy and friends are angry when I say I need to go home and cannot get us into Paris Hilton’s party. Guy driving car takes us to party anyway.  We go in the Paris party and I eat cookies (chocolate chip oatmeal) and people are sleeping on every floor of the mansion.  When I say sleeping, I mean sprawled out, questionably alive. About 12 to a room.

Hallucination #2:
Heading back to the car, we jump in and as we are about to pull out there are 4 dogs and a dude with a shotgun out and he’s pissed we parked at his garage. The girls….transformed to Angela and Janae, are outside the car and Jeff (that’s what we’ll call the guy driving the car. He is a familiar face to me as a professional going-outer in LA) drives off without them and the girls are chasing car. I keep asking Jeff what he is doing? “Go back. Get them now.” He says he will when he can get far enough from the guy (shotgun shots in background). But then when we are far enough he just picks up speed. I’m freaking out about the girls and then all of a sudden the road ahead starts breaking and these transformer things are digging up the road and then from the depths of the earth rises a large blue all-earthly superhero. He has his arms crossed and he’s staring down and says. “You won’t go further into these soils. Turn around. Go. Go.”  Jeff freaks and reverses and I think, well we are getting the girls but I’m scared for my life and close my eyes thinking holy shit, holy shit, superhero and then I wake up (fake wake up). I start to tell Janae the story but as I get to superhero part I start to fall asleep as I keep saying,  “you are going to think I’m crazy you think I’m crazy” (PS Janae says I was really saying this aloud).

Hallucination #3:
Then I half wake up realizing I am talking in my sleep (still in the dream) and there were cockroaches in my bed biting me and making me crazy and I am having some sort of panic attack..can’t remember this one, but fake wake up again and my roommates are now Blake Lively and Jean Kwolek. I explain to Blake why I was crying and panting in my dream and halfway through the story she is like you are crazy and runs out of the room. I start to go back to sleep..

Hallucination #4:
Cut to Penn Badgley almost crying (trying to) but it was really bad acting and he was saying I can’t believe I let it happen. I just cannot. I’ve lost her. Blake really gave her virginity to Chace but I really wanted her back…yes Gossip Girl style but with their real names.

I wake up to Janae for real about to throw up again and I used her inability to move or speak to recite everything I just wrote.

The END

Realization:

Jessica continued: “The owners name is lyn and tell her u r a friend of mine. It is where all the celebs stay when they go-really private bungalows.”

Destination: Byron at Byron, Balcony, and Cheeky Monkeys

Inspiration: Jessica Meisels, engaged to kiwi racedriver Matt Halliday (who recently won the New Zealand for Porsche), provided us with our Byron Bay moment to stay at the Byron at Byron Bay and meet its owner, Lynn. Every Aussie has told me that Byron Bay is not to miss. Based on the last 24 hours, it’s pretty easy to see why!

Actualization: The 3 blondes of B52….yes the Aussies have labeled us. Jen, Janae and Angie in room B52 had quite the night out. After tapas and wine at Balcony, our waiter said, “you definitely aren’t ready for Cheeky Monkeys” as he brought us 3 Esspresso Martinis.

We downed the drinks and followed the drunkest girls on the street to the bar.

We proceeded to carry out our moment and climbed up on the tables with all the drunk travelers and danced like we were 21. Bobblehead Holland,who was actually 21 and convinced I was 22, unleashed the kissing bandit….I think it was his smiley innocent face and protests that I couldn’t be 31 that provoked the makeout on the street…or maybe just his nodding at my every word.

Blonds of B52 spent breakfast recapping our night, we were joined for coffee and macaroons by an incredible woman.

Lynn, the manager of The Byron at Byron Bay, is the kind of woman you want to meet when you travel. She told us the stories and the history of the small town and the incredible energy that has brought so many to visit here. First, there was Seasick Steve who Lynn almost kicked out of the hotel when she thought he was a bumb in the lobby the day Nicole Kidman came. He’s actually former hobo turned famous folk singer and a now a close friend of hers. Then there was Rusty Miller, a famous 68 year old ex-prosurfer who now teaches surf lessons to tourists. Lynn explained the culture and the people with such a way that you just knew she had found true happiness in her life here. We later came home from the kayak trip she arranged for us starving and it was like momma byron knew…she had macadamias and wine waiting for us along with a note from her and our new Byron family.

Realization:  Always act young- 21 is best – and find a mom in every country!

www.thebyronatbyron.com.au
www.seasicksteve.com