Larissa Y.'s Profile

These guys are legit.  I have a couple friends with boats who had been asking me for referrals - sent them over to the guys at Downtime and they came back to me with a solid thumbs up.  I then got to take a look at the before & after - they shoot underwater video - and it was really impressive.  I know Andrey and how hard he works, and it definitely shows in the results.  Good job!

First time visiting Luxe yesterday.  It's not too bad.  It's cozy, has potential to be really cute, and it's in a good artsy North Park location, but damn - why the florescent lighting?  :((  That is the one thing a shop should always shell out for, otherwise just forget about having wall mirrors because NOBODY wants to look at themselves under florescent lights (least of all when your hair is all crazied up during the wash/style process).

So that's why the -1 star.  It's not a bad place, that's just my only complaint, if it could really be even called a complaint.  

Anyway - like somebody else said: It's about the stylist, not the location.  

I came to this location because that's where Janean is.  She does online booking (http://www.vagaro.com/...) and it actually works (yes, I was a little skeptical at first).

You guys, she is a magician.  That's right, A MAGICIAN.  She should wear a top hat and pull rabbits out of it, she is that effing good.  She could set up shop in the freaking forest and I'd go there, because that's just how much she rocks.  She's the Ferran Adrià of hair.  Somebody sponsor her and get her her own salon!

Okay.  After being a patron for about three years, you guys do indeed get the final fifth star (and that's not alcoholism talking, but thanks for asking).

The Sod is my home away from home.

Yes, there is a weird smell.  It's there because all you drunks keep coming back, because you know just as well as I do that this bar is AWESOME.

Yes, it is a very narrow bar.  If you don't like that, don't show up at prime bar time.  Come in before 9.  Here's the thing with the Sod:  you'll go for a beer.  *A* beer.  One.  

You'll shut the place down.

You'll have been there for four hours and run into eight people you know, sung a random song, had five drinks (with a $20 tab), the best evening you can remember in quite some time, AND you don't have to worry about finding a place to sit/stand because you will have already been there early.  For just one beer.  ;)

It's really nice to come back somewhere after not going for half a year, and the bartender calls you by name and says "Hey, where've you been? We've missed you!"  Solid. Win.

If you want some upscale, "grown-and-sexy", twelve-dollar-beer-style, look-down-your-nose, flyer-passing-out, cover-charge-giving, theme-night-having, hipster-at-every-corner-staring-you-down bar, this is not the bar for you.

If you ever wanted Cheers to be real, this is the bar you go to.

Oh Yogurtland, where have you been all my life?  

I've been going to Fiji in Point Loma because I didn't realize this was so close.  I also didn't realize Yogurtland was like.......... 50% cheaper.  It also seemed quite delicious.

Sorry, Fiji - Yogurtland is most likely going to be my new work week go-to for cold treats, because A) I don't want to pay double and B) I only get 30 minutes for lunch.

Anyway, hello Yogurtland, I love you!  :))

I ..........haven't had a PCP in ...a very long time. Let's put it that way.  Which compounded my inherent fear of medical/dental visits.  

The very short version is that she is the most awesome person ever.  Front desk person was super nice, the office is like a cottage.  Very good vibe.  The whole thing reminded me of visiting an aunt - an aunt that happened to be a medical professional.  

I had to go in for a semi-emergency reason so I did a walk-in early on a Friday.  The doctor happened to be out of town so the very-helpful front desk person (a blonde whose name escapes me) set me up for an appointment a few days later and promptly sent me over to PB Urgent Care.  That wasn't fun, but when is Urgent Care *ever* fun?

Showed up for my appointment on Monday.  The receptionist, assistant and doctor were all wonderful.  Dr. Green listened to my concerns and didn't pressure me or make me feel bad.  Have to go back this Monday for a followup because I'm still not feeling well, but overall? This is the place to go.  So awesome.  :)  Thumbs up!

I agree with Deniz T's review from 2010 - "A clean place where you can get fast and painless service if the money is not an issue. "

The very short version: I'd been getting really really REALLY sick from toxins that my mouth was producing. Let's just say the periodontal issues finally caught up with me.

The staff has been friendly, but here's why I'm giving it 1 star.  Money for me is an issue - and they don't write down what the breakdown of charges are.

The first time I went (Oct 2010) was for an emergency issue where some tartar cracked off the back of my tooth-thought it *was* my tooth & freaked. They got me in for a deep cleaning + sedation, but only the lower arch because $580 out of pocket was just too expensive for me to pay more than once in a few weeks time.  

The staff did a good job of pacifying my UltraFear of dentists.  Lame: the receptionist comes in while I'm in the chair, sedated and waiting, and then has me sign some paperwork.  Did I mention I was sedated?  I could barely move my hand let alone follow what she was telling me.  They never gave me a written breakdown of what the charges would be.  Finally got that paid off ($580), and wanted to go back soon after to get the upper arch cleaned out but with my wedding coming up in April, let's just say I was strapped for cash.  

Fast forward to about a month ago. Started feeling sick, sicker, horrible.  Go see the dentist. He says my gums are super inflamed & yes, the drainage from my gums was basically pumping toxins into me.  Got some antibiotics.  Felt human.  Discussed next appointment - time to get the whole mouth deep-cleaning plus irrigation.  Plus conscious sedation.  Okay.  To save me money, they said "We'll just do your whole mouth all in one go, give you 1.5 pills for the sedation, and it will be cheaper."  

I left thinking it would be about $550 out of pocket, but had a bad feeling my co-pay was $50 .  He said something about $167 per quadrant plus sedation.  Maybe sedation is $150?  i don't know.  He should really start writing that stuff down for patients, because I was too sick to think of anything but NOT VOMITING ON THE FLOOR.

Today I get to the office, excited to FINALLY get the crap cleaned out of my gums, and the bill the receptionist hands me was for $818.00: four quadrants plus non-IV sedation.

Well shit. Waiting another 2+ weeks wasn't a possibility, so I pay (FROM MY DEBIT CARD), get the procedure done. We get done (about an hour and a half of trying to meditate and just breathe while they dig around in my mouth, omg), and things feel clean. Except for the bleeding, which is probably going to last another day.  

He says: No sugar. No alcohol. No carbs.  The bacteria will cause the infection to come back.  Okay.... I can handle that for a little bit.  I think he meant for the next five weeks, which is going to be a challenge, but I'll try my best. If anybody has suggestions on what the f//k to eat besides eggs & sugarfree Jello, please speak up.

The he says: A) my gums were growing kind of over my teeth, and trapping bacteria and that's why the buildup was trapped in there. Two weeks, come back for a followup cleaning/polishing. Three weeks after that, come back for a followup perio checkup. They'll assess what's up with my gums.  IF THE GROWTH OF MY GUMS HASN'T RECEDED, THEY'LL NEED TO CUT THEM BACK.   Ohhhh. Okay then.  So now there are cavities (which is probably true, because I don't brush as well as I should and eat a lot of sugar), so they need filled.  And the wisdom teeth that came in years ago? The ones that aren't hurting?  Yeah, those need to come out.  He says, "They're in there just basically doing nothing but trapping bacteria (not hurting), but they need to come out."  Oh, and the crowding a?  Invisalign. I have to get that, apparently.  All the crowding (from the wisdom teeth and the teeth that need Invisalign) is also trapping bacteria and the perio issues will haunt me if I don't get all that done.

So... I get the logic behind the explanation, but I don't get where I'm magically going to get all this money.  Time to look for someone else - that shows you A) an actual price breakdown and who doesn't just hand you a quickly-typed receipt saying "Patient understands and acknowledges that the cost for the procedure is $____", sign and date, ok open your mouth.

I know I should've asked for a better breakdown of charges, but some dental issues can't wait. At least they didn't make me sign while sedated this time. Bonus: my mouth hurts like a %&#*( from the eight novocaine shots, but at least my teeth don't have buildup now.

My bank account is now overdrawn. They don't discuss any "payment plans" except "Sign up for CareCredit."

This week's goals: research EXACTLY what my insurance covers, if Dreamsmile has contacted them, and check out other dentists. That maybe won't cut my gums off or try to sell Invisalign like I magically have $$$ in my bank account. "Just put it on a credit card."

This is a bit of an early review, but I'm gonna agree with Greg's review from 2009 - don't go.  Don't!  It's just awful, terrible, cramped, horrid, bad parking ................   ah crap, who am I kidding?  

This place is amazing.

The short version of how I found it is that a mutual colleague is friends with the owner.  The three of us ended up chatting and my colleague asked him if he still owned a yoga studio.  My ears perked up when he said yes, so I inquired as to where, and it turns out A) it's close to my house and B) it's across the street from one of my favorite places - Alchemy.  :)  

The night prior to this conversation I'd gone to yet another yoga session at 24Hour... and while I don't mind the workout those sessions give, they were definitely starting to give me that whole vibe of "just another workout".  I didn't like the style, the feeling of boring routine, the people walking in and out, the floor shaking because people are dropping weights or jumping rope right outside the door.  It was beginning to wear on me and I was losing focus but wasn't sure what to do - so this seemed like one of those opportunities it would be a mistake to pass up.

I go in Thursday after work and immediately liked the place.  First impression was that it felt a little small, but then I realized that was just the lobby area.  I peeked through the door to the main studio area (class was finishing up) and it reminded me of what I wanted my home to be.  :)  VERY clean, bright, great lighting, high ceilings, beautiful flooring.  There was another class exiting and I realized they had two studios.  Once I figured out the layout, it was all gravy from there.  So I talked to Brad for awhile and decided to check out a free class the next evening.  WHICH. WAS. AWESOME.

You know what's great after a very long, irritating work week?  Pigeon pose and legs-up-the-wall and stretching and breathing and did I mention yoga nidra?  Yum!  The instructor, whose name I can't remember (Arati, maybe?) had an interesting accent that reminded me of a friend who had passed away.  She (the instructor) had a great demeanor and attitude, and totally sealed the deal - after one of the most relaxing yoga sessions I've ever had - I signed up for classes.  

I've also noticed instructors talking with students to make sure they're not hurting themselves - even the owner will get involved and it's all a very friendly conversation, making sure (for example) if you've got a back injury, not to push for that next level.  To make sure you're doing modified poses, aligning yourself properly, all the things that are putting up signs that these people Actually Know What They're Doing.

I signed up for the ten day thing right now (due to $$ constraints), but fully anticipate continuing here.  There's a lovely vibe and a feeling that everyone knows each other, like a little yoga family.  

Five stars and four thumbs up!!   :)

Have been here many, many times and can't believe I haven't reviewed this place online, because I sure as Hades have tried to convince all my friends that it's the end-all be-all if they just want to sit down and have a good drink or a PHENOMENAL SUNDAY BRUNCH.

I love this place.  The art, the decor, the brunch, the beer, the staff, it's always like coming home.  

I've had a couple "meh" experiences - every place has them - but brush them off because there are enough good times to balance it out.  The thing about Alchemy is that you should not go there expecting to be in and out in under 30 minutes.  Or under an hour.  Or maybe even under two, depending on who you're with and how chatty you are.  

This is a place to go, to sip, to experience, to just relax with some tasty goodness.  It's not Denny's, and that's just fine by me.  If I want to sit at the bar and read a book and have some of their A+++ coffee, that's what I'm going to do, and it's one of the few places I don't feel weird doing it.

It's a small place.  Maybe 50 people can fit in here, possibly 70 if you count the bar.  I've gotten to know the staff and they're great people.  My standby faves are the ruby trout, the french toast, the bread pudding.  They got me to love brussel sprouts, but only the carmelized kind.  They've got absinthe (if that's your thing), and they do a lot of random small plates; very tasty but I sometimes wish the portions were a bit larger.  They do "nights": silent movie night, vegetarian tasting night, etc.

Overall?  Nice spot.  Alchemy is my favorite restaurant in SD, and I'll stand by that for a long time.

4 stars for the drive-thru functionality only, though sometimes it feels like the drive-thru takes approximately a year, but that could be because of how the line goes out into the alley.  Generally it's not too bad though.  The inside is a Starbucks much like every other Starbucks you've been to.

The times I've been, it's been a typical experience. You order, you wait, you get your stuff.  It has an okay feel to it.  It's always been fairly clean and the people fairly nice.  

Overall: nothing stands out (as I've never been at this one for any real length of time), but it's not bad.

Look.

We know you've got your friends who are photographically inclined, your uncle's friend with the good camera, and some artsy family members.  

It doesn't matter.  They're probably do have great skills, an eye for artsy stuff, and they probably DO have good cameras.

But here's the thing...

You call these ladies. Call them now.  You don't know me and I don't know you, other than from this review, but I want you to take a deep breath and trust me.  You will not regret it.

They work hard. They run around. They know how to stage shots without everyone having those crappy fake smiles.  They're affordable, fun, funny, sweet, and actually take GOOD PHOTOS.  Who woulda thunk?  

I see a lot ....A. LOT. .... of actual photographers and people who are trying to pass as photographers.  What I *don't* see a lot of is photographers who will work with your budget or just do the per-hour thing if that's For Real For Serious all you can afford.  And I cross my fingers for all of you that you *can* afford more than that, but if you can't, hey.  Not a big deal.  If your friend is all pressuring you to just not pay for a photographer, let them run some backup shots, but after you get done with that conversation go pop open an email and contact Stephina Photography.

Here's the contact page!  Promise me you'll call them!
http://www.stephinapho...

You can't say you've never heard of them either - because you just did. :)

All snarkiness aside, these gals are great and I would highly recommend them to any of my friends or clients.  They did *my* wedding and you know what? Every day I look at my photos and am just thrilled.  It's been more than two months and they're still effing amazing.  I had my proofs within a week and my DVD probably a week after that.  AWESOME!

Four thumbs up!!!!