Walking on Shmullholland Drive above Mummy P's house yesterday, Plot and Duck passed a woman with a lap top in a bucolic little grassy dell, who if she had looked up from her screen would have seen the entire San Shmernando Valley spread out in front of her. When Plottie walks around these hills, the smells of dry native plants and woodsy gulches reminds him of the things he still loves about Stilletto. He can't help it.

Dinner at Shamshiri last night is another of those things. Thanks to Fefnik and Nefnik for turning the Plotniks onto this place a few years ago, around the corner from USSC (that's University of Shmalifornia at Stilleto City). Even Mummy P. loved it, cleaned every last bit of shirin polo, lamb shishlik and beef koobideh off her plate and started searching for more. Did we mention that hot bread?

Obviously, one of the recipes for success in this city is to avoid driving (impossible), walk a lot in the hills (impossible without driving, unless you somehow manage to live in the hills) and eat lots of lamb shishlik (not impossible, but probably not all that great for you in the long run).