GOOD TASTE

It's the food event of the year: Taste Of The Nation

For paying with your Citi card, you get a bamboo cutting board and free drinks at the Citi lounge.

Some of the drinks in the lounge were orbs. This was a vodka glob.

¡Paella from José!

A crab tostada or something

A delicious slice of steak

There were a lot of gourmet tacos.

The portions were bite-sized, and the utensils were adorable.

Some beers from Duvel. Which means "devil"!

We all of us got very full.

CAT'S CRADLE: THE SANTA MONICA CAT SHOW (IN COSTA MESA)

No line for the Men's Room at the Cat Show.

The stakes are high.

COWBOY FESTIVAL

Cowboy S+M gear?

Western ladies. You can't see it, but the one on the left is holding a Samsung Galaxy.

Fighting on arrival, fighting for survival

WE'LL HAVE A GAELIC OLD TIME

The Irish cuisine at the Irish fest:

And there were many Irish items for sale...

...like this Irish Pride flag (on a German Iron Cross).

Plus -- all-you-can-eat sheep!

Mutton, Honey

A Ruminant of My Own

Because the DeLorean DMC-12 was manufactured in Northern Ireland,
there were about seven or eight on display.

Brightly-colored-yet-unhappy young step dancers

One clogs; the others wait angrily.

Those Irish step dancing skirts are so starched, they require a special carrying case (on the right).

Martin Luther King, Jr's Dream, Irish-style