Chillin' in Santa Monica and Venice Beach

I wasn't expected to be heading up to Santa Monica yesterday.

My oldest son comes into my room a little after Noon and asks, "Dad, will you take me up to Santa Monica so I can hang out with my friends?" I'm like, "Hey, you think that's a little far?" (We live close to an hour's drive South, in Irvine.) So I had my boy check with my wife to see if she thought that wasn't too much, and she was cool, so off we went.

Here's the Third Street Promenade. My boys are at left:

My oldest boy took off to have lunch with his friends (at Hooters, it turns out). So I took my little guy to Johnny Rockets. It was packed. We sat at the lunch counter stools at the back side. That's my son's reflection behind our vanilla shakes:

I love the Apple Store at the Third Street Promenade! It's freakin' huge, like a gymnasium. And you're not bugged by the sales associates every two minutes. Products everywhere:

American Power!

Heading over to Venice  Beach after lunch, greeted by Jim Morrison:

Here's the skatepark:

This dude had some skills:

And this lady skater was freakin' hot. Great style, reminiscent of the surf-skaters of the '70s:

Here's the awesome bookstore and sidewalk cafe. That's where I'd be chillin' most of the time:

After hanging out at the bookstore, as well as the skateboard shop next door, we run into the Sperminator on the way back to the van:

Folks were getting stoned up and down the boardwalk, and a bong shop was located right next to the bookstore. So as we were leaving, my son says, "That guy's sign says 'No meth! No crack! No homo!" You gotta love it. No Deranged Left Wing Bakers either!

Here we are back at the Apple Store waiting for my oldest son to meet up so we can head back to the O.C.

I have some photos from the Tesla showroom at the Promenade as well, and will post some of those later...