It’s that time again: the ‘Best of Year’ lists are upon us. Given that such compendiums can only ever be entirely subjective (it’s all relative, as Bobby points out) I thought I’d share some of my personal highlights from 2013. Here’s to a self-indulgent, selfie-filled 2014!
The Best Meal I Ate off A Paper Plate
$4 blue corn squash blossom quesadilla from the Oaxacan Quesadilla Cart in Echo Park. Street food gets no better.
The Best Helicopter Ride Across the Grand Canyon*
*The only Helicopter Ride Across the Grand Canyon.
The Best Trippy Art Experience
The immersive installation at the end of the James Turrell retrospective at LACMA was a fittingly surreal end to one of the most mind-bending exhibits of the year.
The Best Live Show
Ok, Kanye. You win.
The Best Celebrity Encounter
Yes, that IS Danny Devito. And yes he IS standing up.
The Best Meal I Ate from a Paper Cup
Grits, poached egg, tomatoes and salsa verde from SCRATCHBread in Brooklyn. The best, hangover-busting breakfast of the year, without doubt.
The Best Scene-Stealing Performance
I found American Hustle to be nonsensical in parts (although I think that might have been the point) but I’d watch it five more times just to see Jennifer Lawrence in all her bouffant-haired, eye-rolling, nail polish-sniffing glory. What a woman.
The Best Zeitgeisty Pop Culture Moment
I get anxious when the whole world seems to be watching and tweeting about the same show – and usually end up avoiding said program like the plague – but Breaking Bad was a cultural ‘moment’ that I was glad to play a part of.
The Best Song for Blasting at an Obnoxious Volumes / Driving to at an Ill-Advised speed
WORST!
The Best Private Malibu Beach Discovery
If I told you I’d have to kill you.
The Best Accidental Appearance on a Podcast
That time I ended up on David Choe and Asa Akira’s DVDASA. Whoops.
The Best Purchase of a Ludicrous Fake Fur Garment
Who do I think I am, Cam’ron? (On occasion; yes)
The Best Ludicrous Fake Fur Almost-Purchase
I found this in a thrift store in Utah but was deterred by the $80 pricetag/general scale of the thing. I will regret not buying it forever.
The Best Read of the Year
I’m about fifty years late to the party, but Joan Didion’s Slouching Towards Bethlehem is just magnificent.
The Best Private Theme Park Party
Thank you, The Hundreds, for making all my childhood dreams come true.