Advance Notice. Tom Waits' chapbook.

One of my favorite musicians, Tom Waits, is releasing a chapbook on his website to raise money for homeless services.

The book goes on sale Feb.28, and will only be sold in limited editions online, with 1,000 copies being sold in the U.S. and 1,000 in Europe. His website is taking pre-orders.

The book is selling for about $25.

-- Lauren Williams

Eat Out. Fern's [Sunday Brunch].

Spending your Sunday afternoons in a dumpy dive bar in Long Beach may seem kind of trashy, but Fern's is a bit different.

By no stretch of the imagination could one call this place classy, with a mural of a topless horned woman with a bifurcated tongue on one wall and the floor that looks more like the foundation, but Sundays here are $1 Busch day, happy hour all night, and at times, barbeque, grilled cheeses and PB&J nights, this place on Sunday is the place to be.

It's definitely more of a punk-style bar, but has probably one of the best jukeboxes I've ever seen (have you ever been able to find Elvis, Tom Waits, the Stones, the Clash, Siouxsie, Bauhaus, Dylan, Johnny Cash, Iggy Pop, and the Damned on one jukebox?)
And the beer selection is great, with at least three different kinds of Angel City brew, but you may have to wait a while. The sassy bartenders may give you the snub.

Note: This place is definitely not for the faint of heart. This place defines the phrase "dive bar".

-- Lauren Williams