On what was shaping up to be a bad day, I decided to put off my trip to LACMA until tomorrow, and head up to the Hollyhock house which is just down the street from me. After five years of renovation, the house is open to the public again. For five dollars you get a guided tour that lasts just over an hour.

It was pretty amazing. The most impressive room, by far, was the living room. Fabulous recreations of the original Wright-designed sectional sofas curve around the fireplace, flanked by ornately worked oak columns, writing desks, and ottomans--all upholstered in an emerald green velvet. And it is all perfectly symmetrical. Here is one view. This pic appears to be from before the recent restoration, there are no oak columns. Please note the fireplace has a MOAT.

The interiors are filled with Frank Lloyd Wright (just look at that smug bastard) and Lloyd Wright (his son, who handled the restoration in the 40's...not the one who invented Lincoln Logs) furnishings, and have been recreated as genuinely as possible.

Sadly, the environment does not even resemble what Wright and Barnsdall must have drawn inspiration from to create this artist's colony. The hospital is building a huge parking structure to the South side, cutting off the view and hemming in the park. The smog almost completely obstructs the far-off buildings and landmarks; the Hollywood sign and the Griffith Observatory are faint ghosts in the distance. Progress!

Read here for a scathing take on the mismanagement of LA's Wright landmarks.

My pictures of the Hollyhock House. Everyone's pictures.

On a personal note, when I left the Hollyhock House, I returned a call to the recruiter at MTV who informed me I got the job at Nickelodeon.

And when I was at Hollywood Forever the other day, my doctor called to say that everything looked normal on my tests.

Things are looking pretty good.

And I'm going to the museum tomorrow! Who knows what good news I will be phoned with while I'm there! I'm hoping for rich, dead, long-lost relative.

I'll miss these field trips when I start my job. But paychecks will be nice...