Connie.

Wasteland Melrose is probably the most cutting-edge of the three Wastelands – there is also one in Santa Monica near the Third Street Promenade and one on Haight & Ashbury in San Francisco. I’ve been going to the Melrose location since I was in high school. Its mix of vintage fashion and denim has steadily increased over the years and it now carries more indie designer labels. While some may find it pricey, you can definitely score a deal on a designer piece that you can find here. I wouldn’t recommend selling at this location because the buyers are looking for the most current designs and can be less-than-subtle to judge the label you to present to them.

Short Shop is one of a few places in L.A. in which there is a proper space to dance without having to pay a ridiculous cover or stand in line with striped-shirt douchebags. This place has weathered the changing demographic of echo park for good or bad depending on who you ask. This place used to be a cop bar, sometimes sports bar and now a place where kids from all points of SoCal come to hang. It's still definitely a place to check out when you're on the Eastside.

For about a 4 year period, I spent a good chunk of my life at Amoeba Hollywood - I admit sometimes to people watch at cute band boys. But I have picked up everything from rare imports to DVD collectibles to records. New or used, forgo convenience shopping on Amazon.com to get your hands on real music and support an independent retailer. Many bands also come through here big and small - from Aqualung to Sir Paul McCartney.

Yummy and authentic ramen noodle bowls in Little Tokyo. Just a stones throw from sushi place East, this tiny spot offers up some delicious noodles. Best enjoyed with someone you love.

Considering how everything else in L.A. can be pretentious, East Japanese Restaurant is a sweet little sushi place. With specials like Salmon Mondays and Tuna Thursdays, East is place that hits the sushi spot.

An independent bookstore anywhere in Los Angeles is a great feat in itself. The new Stories bookstore parked conveniently next to the 826LA Travel Mart is a nice little book shop that has potential to be an amazing bookstore. It's still in its early stages with a decent selection of books and a small cafe patio. If it can only just up it's comfy, cozy factor, maybe more people will also find it a nice place to hang out in the neighborhood.

Don't expect to find stereos, ipods or any other type of electronic at the Earphone Shop. Their name says it all. This shop sells every type of headphone imaginable from expensive, studio-quality headphones to earbud types. Each type of headphone hangs on a large wall for you to plug in and test out with your own ipod or mp3 player. A fun little shop to visit.

The Verdugo bar is tucked away in a neighborhood street in Eagle Rock. It has an extensive menu and selection of international beers. It's a spacious joint with plenty of room to move and mingle. The outdoor patio is a great place to park, complete with benches. The back of the patio sometimes has a beer pong table or sometimes serves pizza.

I stumbled upon this place by accident and looked into a packed restaurant from its large bay windows. What I found inside was authentic, traditional Dutch food in a non-fussy setting at quite a bargain. This former soup kitchen offers a three-course menu for only €7.50. The food was tasty and you sit with other diners sharing tables cafeteria-style so it's a good way to soak in the atmosphere. The food was pretty tasty. I enjoyed a traditional Dutch dish called stumphpot (sic) that consisted of mostly sausages and potatoes but not at all heavy as it sounds, and it was topped off with a Vlah a traditional custard dessert. The only drawback was that it gets pretty crowded so there was a bit of a wait, but it was worth it.