CANDY

A banner hangs in the window of Boule on La Cienega, proudly announcing that the patisserie's signature handmade caramels have made O Magazine's October, 2007 hot list. It's further confirmation of our delicious suspicion that candy is set to overturn the cupcake regime and become Los Angeles' favorite guilty pleasure. From Little Flower--which just opened a Pasadena store to augment its booming online/retail marshmallow and caramel trade--to K Chocolatier--which tempts LAX staffers every day with luscious milk mousses and European-style dark chocolates--boutique sweet shoppes tempt us away from the calorie-counting path at every turn. And thus far, no one seems to be complaining.

THE AIRBORNE TOXIC EVENT

No, it's not the 1,999th reason you should have gotten a flu shot this season. It's the buzz band that has tout LA head over heels. At a recent live show in Silverlake, 50-year-old men and 22-year-old Hollywood scene queens crowded the dance floor and sang along to "Sometime Around Midnight," the track now in rotation on Indie 103.1 and 106.7 KROQ. Even across the pond, music cognoscenti have the album on 'repeat', while here, we're waiting to see which label will snap it up. Skye Mayring reports in the May, 2007 issue of LAX Magazine. Till then, check this talented act out at: www.myspace.com/theairbornetoxicevent

PEOPLEJAM

Even in Hollywood, no one stays young and carefree forever. Hence PeopleJam.com, the social networking site geared toward helping 25-49 year olds negotiate all of life's significant landmarks, from career-hunting to surviving a breakup to becoming the caretaker of one's parents.

""My partner and I had been in the pop culture space, creating products for 14-34 year olds, for 15 years apiece... As we started getting past that age group and thinking what was really important to us, it was clear there was a great opportunity to entertain people while having a positive impact on their lives," says Matt Edelman, who launched PeopleJam.com in October, 2007 after successful multi-year stints at mForma, Marvel Studios and Cusp, LLC (which he founded).

Edelman describes PeopleJam as a "how to site for life"--and it definitely resembles the self-help section at Barnes & Noble. But with interactive features and strong social networking elements to augment original content from 150 pre-screened "lifestyle experts," it's more than that. It's the self-help section come to life, with back-and-forth discussions and the ability to call out those aggravating "experts" whose advice just makes no sense to you. For this alone, PeopleJam is worth visiting. Plus, ah, well... sometimes it's nice to know you're not the only one growing up.