SouthCoast Winery

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TEMECULA, CA – Temecula has become Southern California’s winery go-to and rightfully so. With a plenitude of land, vegetation and temperate climate, it’s no wonder there is an accelerated movement in both farm-to-table as well as wineries popping up all the time. Among them of course is the revered Winery, Resort, and Day Spa, South Coast Winery and the notable Chef Jason Rivas.

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Austin Food & Wine Fest 2014 Kickoff Luncheon!

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As the notice came in that the Austin Food & Wine Festival was kicking off, ATOD Magazine had the distinct privilege of being among those to get a preview at the Kickoff Luncheon for the 2014 line-up at Austin’s Contigo on Tuesday, January 21. With chefs, Tim Love, Mike Lata, Chris Shepherd and Andrew Wiseheart preparing and serving a collaborative, family-style meal, we felt it best fitting to send in our photographer to show you rather than tell you.

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LA Art Show 2014

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LOS ANGELES, CA – Art really is an expansive platform to which someone, anyone, is able to find a piece of themselves reflected in what they see. Sometimes it takes the darkest parts of who we are and turns it into something beautiful and once in a while, if we are lucky enough, we find a piece of art so exquisitely revealing, we can’t help but find ourselves lost in it. Art is unlike any other medium in that it is, outside of books, the most tangible form of visual inspiration

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James & Arthur Waugh: ORION IN THE TRADEWINDS

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Arthur Waugh is a poet and documentarian whose works were found in literary journals in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. He is also my father. On May 18th 1988, on the cusp of having his first book of poetry published, this book, Orion in the Tradewinds, he suffered two massive cerebral hemorrhages leaving him with extensive brain damage, short term memory loss, terrible aphasia, and an inability to do the thing he loved most — write poetry.

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1st Annual One Starry Night

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PASADENA, CA – There are events that happen in life that you never forget: Your first crush, your first concert, your first victory – and if you’re lucky, you get to add meeting a few childhood inspirations to that list. Last night, invited to attend Pasadena Playhouse’s 1st Annual One Starry Night Benefit Concert, I not only experienced one of the most incredible benefit events to date, I met inspirations that are among the reasons I create – and – the reason most of us still believe in a little magic.

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The Female Face of Poverty

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FROM THE EDITOR: I came across this article on LinkedIn written by Maria Shriver and felt it was something this Magazine had to share. It is no longer just a silly thought. Stress of economic hardship is genuinely weighing heavily on women in this country. With staggering rates of single mom’s out there, making ends meet in an unforgiving and unwilling job market is staggering. Now pair that with the cost of living in states like California or New York and what you have is catastrophic amounts of copious stress and burdensome anxiety. This article is not only frightening in its truth but essential to read. Thank you to journalist Maria Shriver for having the know-how and willingness to tell so many of our stories …

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Fashion Report TRANSFORM

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LOS ANGELES, CA – Fashion is a statement. It tells your story, your mood, your influences. Fashion should be something that enhances your personality – just one more modality to express yourself. That said, this week, the 1st Fashion Report of the year, we are going to mix it up. Fashion is more than just the #fabrics and #accessories you drape your flesh with. Fashion is #hair, and as every girl knows, fashion is also #makeup. Pulling all four together can do unspeakable things in making you feel transformed.

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Holiday Recipe No. 3 by Christopher Hill

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Christopher Hill is known for creating easy-to-make incredibly tasty, impress-any-girl kind of meals. So this year, I asked him to throw his hat into the ring and offer readers some more holiday recipes. For those haven’t noticed, all of the #Recipes we’ve posted this season are totally non-traditional. First, Recipe No. 1 by Chef Jason Hook was a gourmet take on sweet potatoes that looks and tastes like art. Second, Recipe No. 2 by Ally’s Kitchen Alice D’Antoni Phillips offering us a scrumptious course taking the concept of bluchetta to an all new high. And now, well, Recipe No. 3 is ALL about Southern Comfort and rich flavors.

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Melanie Newcombe

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2013 has been one of the most creative years I’ve ever encountered and it seems fitting to close off the year by telling you the story of a truly gifted sculptor. Melanie Newcombe. The very essence of art is its ability to move you. The details, the unspoken emotion, the movement, the material tend to all be secondary. Until you come upon Melanie’s work. Made of cold, seemingly emotionally vacant materials of aluminum and metal, you are warmed by the very sight of her sculptures and find, that without pause, you are becoming entangled in the swell of feelings it provokes.

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My Fare Story + Eat Your Words No. 5

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Being in this unspoiled landscape taught me so much about food and culture. This was the first time I understood what fresh fish meant as the local tribe speared it daily and to our pleasure, it was prepared for us. I tasted REAL molé … not chalky or grainy but rich and exciting and spicy and it nestled itself in my mouth in a way that lingered like good sex. I tasted wines and rums and tequilas and libations I had never had.

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Supporting Journalists in the Field: RISC

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I am re-posting this Year-in-Review by a respected colleague, journalist, Award Winning Author, and Academy Winning Documentary Filmmaker, Sebastian Junger. I am doing so because as a journalist, the support available is limited in terms of those who risk their lives to be on the front lines in order to deliver a story to the masses. I want to take a moment to thank Sebastian for doing an interview in the Magazine earlier this year AND for spending an entire hour with me on my Radio Show. RISC is not only essential to the field of journalism but it’s purpose is infinite.

– Dawn Garcia, Editor-in-Chief

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Herringbone by Brian Malarkey

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The moment you pull in to the parking lot, raw ornate panels of wood adorn the entry, a branched fish hangs happily to the left of the main door and a patio with ease and warmth lines the sidewalk. As you enter inside, to your right are two Moroccan style chairs designed in bright colors directly across from the tiled fireplace emitting just the right amount of heat. With glass orbs listlessly leaning to light the way, a subtle and secret disco ball looms above it all. Soon you find your legs walking through the restaurant, the wooden floors cushioning your steps, your eyes bewildered and overcome with a tranquility that doesn’t in any way obstruct the anticipation of a hearty prospect of fare.

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