Casa Bass: Sofabed and Breakfast in So Cool SoCal

Casa Bass is located in a countrified SoCal township only an hour's drive from the beach, the mountains, the desert, Hollywood, and only 30 minutes from Disneyland.

Guests at Casa Bass enjoy views of Mt. Baldy over the housetops across the street, while planes descending into nearby Ontario Airport glide overhead.

In addition to the private sofabedroom without ensuite facilities, guests have full access to the refrigerator that is always stocked with foodstuffs of dubious expiration dates.

Happy hour is served each evening beside the pool, with complimentary pomegranite/cranberry martinis and salt-rimmed, lemoned-up beers a house favorite.

A gourmet dinner prepared by our celebrity chef in residence may include such gastronomic delights as salmon florentine with garlic-empowered couscous; beer-can chicken with lemon peppering and garlic-smashed potatoes; shrimp amedea with olive-garlic sauteed vegetables over radiatorre pasta over-dente.

Stimulating conversation is guaranteed from Casa Bass locals. Patriarch of the casa is BassMan, a former Marine officer with a shrine of artifacts brought back from his visit to the private island of Iwo Jima. Carolyn holds the distinctions of writer in residence, celebrity chef, clutter-keeper and chauffeur. UCR student Ellebelle (21), when not chasing or being chased by her boyfriend, provides musical entertainment on the piano and is conversant in English, Spanish and Farsi. Jondude (19) will keep you in stitches with his Stephen Colbert opinions, while also recruiting you to join his Wii Rock Band, Sun Fun Warriors.

Snuggle up in the evening before the big-screen TV with house canines Tank, an Irish Jack Russell who barks in a brogue, and Buck, a velvet-faced beagador who snores. Both dogs are available to guests for snuggling, ball-chasing, and toe-licking.

Summer is nearly over, so book your stay at Casa Bass today.

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Loves Speed; Drives Like a Demon

I love driving fast. In fact, I love doing most everything fast. My mind is like an indy car fueled with ideas. I type faster than I can write, so I type everything. My handwriting, once studied to cursive perfection, now scrawls across the page in my drive to get it--whatever it is--out.

Maybe it's because I'm turning 50 this year, but I've noticed my foot pressing harder on the accelerator of my life. It's not that I'm in a hurry to get there--wherever there is--but there is so much I want to see, do, hear, tell before the years of my life are over.

This week LitPark is featuring Larry Smith and Rachel Fershleiser, editors of Smith magazine, whose book NOT QUITE WHAT I WAS PLANNING releases today. Subtitled as Six Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure, the book is the result submissions to Smith magazine for, you guessed it, six-word memoirs.

NOT QUITE WHAT I WAS PLANNING borrows from the legend of Ernest Hemingway's challenge to write a complete story in six words. His result was brilliant.

For sale: baby shoes, never worn.

Check out the video trailer for NOT QUITE WHAT I WAS PLANNING, then try your hand at your own six-word memoir. Post your memoir here and then hop over to LitPark and copy it there, too.