Our team is strong with so many accomplished, talented and brilliant women of real estate, and all of us are overjoyed to celebrate the International Women Day, a date that honors women’s achievements across fields, disciplines and social spheres. IWD was originally established in 1900 as part of the effort to promote equal rights and achieve universal suffrage, and is now observed by countries and nations across the globe.

Today, there are lots of ways to celebrate the IWD; here are a couple of suggestions (one contemplative and one celebratory) on how you could mark the occasion, from us at the Tracy Do Team:

REFLECT

Ida B. Wells, one of the nation’s most influential investigative reporters, in 1920. Chicago History Museum/Getty Images

Reflect on the women that have been conspicuously absent from history, and that are honored in this timely story published in the NY Times. Entitled “Overlooked”, this project commemorates remarkable women that were not given their due in their lifetimes.

CELEBRATE

Rice noodle salad at Botanica | photo by Alan Gastelum

Visit Silver Lake to stop by the delightful Botanica – home to a charming market and a great restaurant, to partake in their day long International Women’s Day soirée. A menu of special recipes from a few of their favorite female chefs and cookbook authors will be available — the likes of Gabrielle Hamilton, Ana Sortun, Alice Waters and Claudia Roden. There will also be a flower shop pop-up from Whit Hazen (11am-3pm), a pop-up ceramics shop from D Ceramics (11am-3pm), and a tasting of women-made wines and a glass of your favorite—at $25 for a flight of five or six (5:30-7pm), plus a free yoga classes from Love Yoga, with a portion of proceeds from the day benefiting a local women’s charity. Find the festivities at 1620 Silver Lake Blvd., more info here.

Echo Park Lake

Most of us long to live in the way that feels most authentic and harmonious with our surroundings. That desire drives the choices we make when we decide on the kind of home we buy and how we go about decorating, but our larger surroundings, such as the neighborhood we live in, matter just as much in creating a happy life, and should influence our decision of where to buy a home.

According to Dan Buettner, who spent the past 15 years reporting for the  National Geographic on the happiest and healthiest people on the planet, one’s environment is paramount in making sure that you’ll likely to be happy for the long term.We’ve rounded up some of Dan’s suggestions to share with you as we step into spring (always the busy home-buying season), as they might come in useful as you tour Open Houses and envision your life in a new place.

Buettner suggests that, in terms of choosing a place to live, people who live near water—whether it’s a lake or river or an ocean—are about 10 percent more likely to be happy than people who don’t. Buettner also says that people who live in medium-sized cities are more likely to be happy than the anonymity of a big city or perhaps the too in-your-face, limited-possibility environment of a tiny town. You’re more likely to be happy if your house has a sidewalk, and if you live in a bikeable place.

Where do these suggestions take you in Los Angeles? For those that love bodies of water, the coastal areas like Venice Beach and Santa Monica are the obvious answers, but we also love Silver Lake with its beautiful Reservoir, Echo Park with its stunning lake and quiant paddle boats, and Atwater Village and Highland Park with their proximity to LA River and Arroyo Seco streams. All these neighborhoods have plenty of sidewalks and are bike-friendly, and have scenic views – by the way, there are also studies which claim that merely observing a fine view is health-enhancing, so tack that on to the benefits of living in LA.

Once you are happy with your location, Buettner offers some advice on what one can do to add a bit more joy to your immediate surroundings. “One facet of happiness is sum of positive emotions. So I like the idea of a “pride shrine”—a place in your house that you pass a lot where you put pictures that trigger pleasant memories. Or diplomas or awards that remind you of accomplishments.” Research also points at flowers and plants as sources of daily happiness, so get those in your home ASAP, along with six to seven hours of socializing a day. — That’s right! According to Buettner’s research, the happiest people communicate with other people that many hours per diem. (This must be one reason that we love working as real estate agents!)

If you are curious about a particular Los Angeles neighborhood or find yourself in need of advice regarding buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to get in touch – we would love to hear from you. Contact us and we’d be glad to discuss your real estate goals. And, according to Buettner’s research, if you give us a call, you’re pretty much guaranteed to become happier – by putting in some time towards those six to seven hours of socializing!

The jacarandas are abloom and the last week of February is nearly upon us. Let’s make the most of what remains of the shortest month of the year, here are some ideas for things to do and see this weekend:

GRAND OPENING OF COLLINE IN ECHO PARK
February 24th and 25th, 10A-5P

Colline

We are delighted to unveil and celebrate Colline, an intimate community of nine new single-family residences right in the heart of the hip and hilly neighborhood of Echo Park. Discreetly situated along the gentle rise and descent of a street-to-street lot, Colline takes its name from the French word for “hill” and enjoys a prime location in one of Echo Park’s best pockets. Our team’s excitement about these beautiful homes is aptly expressed in Tracy Do’s words, “Colline brings a new level of affordable luxury to the neighborhood, and the views from the rooftop decks and terraces are among the best that I have ever seen.” Come take a look! 1511 Lake Shore Ave., Los Angeles, 90026, we’ll be Open Sat. and Sun. from 10A-5P. Learn more at www.collineechopark.com

MILK BAR X REFORMATION POP-UP
Saturday, Feb. 24. 11A -7P

Feast on delectable desserts while perusing the latest collection from sustainable apparel company Reformation. Chef Christina Tosi is bringing her renown NYC-based Milk Bar out West, so be sure to stop by and taste the famous cookies, truffles and the new Crack Pie Latte, debuting for the first time this weekend. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Reformation, 8000 Melrose Ave., L.A. Cost: $3-$10

WALT’S, A NEW ARCADE BAR IN EAGLE ROCK

Take all your change and dollar bills and head over to Walt’s in Eagle Rock’s – the retro-styled new pinball and arcade neighborhood bar is now open. Located inside the wonderful Art Deco style Connors Plumbing building, which now sports an additional sign with multi-colored letters spelling “PINBALL!”, this throwback establishment takes you back to 20th century in the most pleasing of ways. Find Walt’s at 4680 Eagle Rock Boulevard, open from 11am to 2am daily.

DISSOLVING SIGHTS: AN EXHIBITION OF PROJECTION ART IN CHINATOWN
Saturday, February 24th, 6-10pm at Automata

Miwa Matreyek | This World Made Itself

A show that brings together several artists that work in the medium of projection and shadow while engaging themes of place, resistance and dreams – a poetic premise that promises to enchant. The exhibition, organized by Janie Geiser, Bora Kyung Min Lee, Miwa Matreyek, Laurie O’Brien, Mat Rappaport and Susan Simpson is generously hosted by Automata, a non-profit dedicated to the creation, incubation, and presentation of experimental puppet theater, experimental film, and other contemporary art practices and v1b3, an artist-led project that explores the impact of media in the built environment through curated site-specific interventions, presentations and published documentation. More information here.

TEA MIXOLOGY WORKSHOP IN DESCANSO GARDENS
Saturday, Feb. 24. 1-3 p.m. $35 members, $45 non-members.

It seems that coffee gets a lot of attention these days, but if you are a dedicated tea lover, this event is tailor-made just for you. This Saturday, a noted herbalist, author and educator Emily Han will lead a workshop that explores the fine art of tea-infused beverages. You’ll learn about flavor profiles and infusion techniques, craft and taste mocktails and will also create your own tea syrup – which you’ll get to to take home. Advance registration required. Descanso Gardens, 1418 Descanso Dr., La Cañada Flintridge, 818.949.4200. www.descansogardens.org

LUCQUES’ 15TH ANNUAL CASSOULET NIGHT IN WEST HOLLYWOOD
Sunday, Feb. 25

Cassoulet | Serious Eats | photo by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt

It’s been rather chilly these last few days, the sort of weather that makes a bowl of heartly Cassoulet a welcome treat.  We are in luck, because the 15th annual Cassoulet Night at Lucques is this Sunday! The evening will feature a three-course menu that features a salad of young greens with local walnuts and orange blossom honey, and a gâteau Basque with prune ice cream and almonds, and of course be the Cassoulet de Maison, prepared with duck and pork confit, garlic sausage and white beans. Come for dinner or get a single serving to-go. Call 323-655-6277 to reserve your space or place an order. Visit www.lucques.com for more information.

AN EXHIBITION BY THE 45TH GROUP OF MAK CENTER ARTISTS AND ARCHITECTS-IN-RESIDENCE.
Sunday, Feb. 25, 3–6 PM, through Sunday, March 4, 2018, Mackey Apartments

One can always rely on MAK center to provide interesting and smart programming, and this show is no exception. Head over to the Mackey apartments to see HOME, HOOD, HILL, an exhibition of work by Paris-based artist Baptist Penetticobra, Vienna-based artist Flora Hauser, and Mexico City-based architectural collective WASA (Guillermo Acosta, Alejandra Avalos and Alan Rios) that have been in residency at Mackey Apartments. WASA, in particular, addresses a topic close to home (pun intended) for us as real estate professionals, by “reflecting on new ways of understanding and creating private space: specifically, home.” Visit MAK Center for more information: www.makcenter.org/programming/home-hood-hill-final-projects-group-xlv/