All photos courtesy of Liz Goldwyn.
Liz Goldwyn‘s heartstrings have always been tuned to the Pacific, whether she’s sussing out the perfect rock for seaside lounging, uncovering a blooming tropical flower, or hunting for the next big wave to surf. A Californian from birth, the author, filmmaker, and sex educator always returns to the “magical beach sanctuary” that is La Jolla, San Diego when she’s in search of inspiration. When not writing STARF⭐️CKER, her newsletter pulling back the curtain on Hollywood, the self-proclaimed showbiz kid is procrastinating writing her next book while laid out on a beach towel, taking a dip between laptop seshes every chance she gets. So who better to give us a tell-all ride around this sleepy beach town? For this week’s installment of SHARE LOCATION, Goldwyn let us take a peek inside the surf shops, secret beach spots, and overcrowded fro-yo stores shaping her daily life in San Diego.
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D.G. WILLS BOOKS
“D.G. Wills Books is one of the all-time greats, featuring long, narrow corridors of bookshelves with sections dedicated to Hollywood, Native American history, music biographies, occultism, Beat poetry, and more. Dennis, the owner, used to keep dirty books behind the counter for me. I did readings here for my first two books, Pretty Things: The Last Generation of American Burlesque Queens and Sporting Guide. Dennis is friends with everyone. I once spent an afternoon with the artist Françoise Gilot here. She lived in La Jolla with her husband Jonas Salk, when they weren’t at their other homes in Paris and New York. Serious power couple goals. I took a photo of Françoise at D.G. Wills holding an image of a portrait her baby daddy, Pablo Picasso, made of her during their relationship.”
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A LOCAL ROCK
“I love a rock. I have relationships with rocks all over the world, but my main bae is in La Jolla. Friends know where to find me as I’m usually posted up here. My friend Dessa Kirk, a local artist, took this photo recently of me grounding back onto my rock after a long research trip. Barefoot and near the sea is my natural state.”
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NEIGHBORHOOD VINES
“Passionfruit is in bloom everywhere. The flowers make great tea, helpful for sleep. I’ve been picking them off of vines in the neighborhood and making home brews. It makes me homesick for Hawaii where passionfruit, known as lilikoi, grows wild.”
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MITCH’S SURF SHOP
“Mitch’s Surf Shop has been around since 1967 and is a local institution. Their hoodies are classics—I get requests from friends around the world for merch from here when I travel. They do limited runs, which I try to scoop up before they run out. My latest find is a leopard print baseball hat with a bright orange Mitch’s logo. Matuse, who works here, makes amazing wetsuits. He is known throughout the surf world. Bret Howard, who also works here (at right in the photo), has a funny lG account, @b.h.university, where he trolls kooks, groms, and legends alike. Also, they have great stickers, which I can never resist to decorate my composition notebooks with as I prefer to write longhand.”
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EL PESCADOR FISH MARKET
“El Pescador, a fish market/restaurant, is another local institution. I’ve known some of the guys who work here for a couple decades. Every summer, new groms join the crew. One of my closest friends, ceramist & surfer Joe Skoby, is one of the managers. That’s him behind the counter.”
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WINDANSEA BEACH
“Windansea surf shack is iconic. Windansea Beach is where part one of the surf doc Riding Giants takes place. Big wave rider Greg Noll famously surfed & filmed here back in the day, and Tom Wolfe’s 1968 collection of essays, The Pump House Gang, was written about the surf crew who ruled Windansea Beach in the 60s. The year my dad died, I did a big ‘Clean Up the Beach’ day on his birthday with Windansea Surf Club and H20 Trash Patrol. Real ones know that picking up your trash is chic.”
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SUNDAY FARMERS MARKET
“The Sunday farmers market is popping. My friend, big wave surfer Derek Dunfee, has a stand with his new clothing line, Dekka, which he also sells at Mitch’s Surf Shop. He just gave me this chic camo hat.”
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THE MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
“The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD) has a wonderful collection and a big Ed Ruscha mural on the backside facing the ocean that says ‘Brave Men Run in My Family.’ In 1968, Andy Warhol shot a 16mm film, San Diego Surf, in La Jolla, which premiered at the museum. Right now, they have a show called Giants from the collection of Alicia Keys & Swizz Beatz, who also live in the area. They are my new La Jolla power couple goals.”
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PTC BOXING GYM
“I’ve taken up boxing and am obsessed. Women need to be channeling our feminine rage and frustration, especially these days. I go to a gym run by ex-pro Eddie Loco. It’s filled with boxing memorabilia and he plays an exclusively old-school rap soundtrack. What could be better?”
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A PASSENGER SEAT
“Cruising is a tradition here. I am a terrible driver, but a great passenger princess. Luckily, a number of my friends drive cool cars so I can be barefoot and fancy free while we check the scene.”
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MYKA
“Speaking of cruising, the line outside this new frozen yogurt shop, Myka, cracks me up. There’s even a rope and ‘bouncer.’ Why are people obsessed with standing in line just to make a TikTok of their viral yogurt? It’s so corny. The other day a friend texted me a photo with no line and said, ‘Go quick to see what the fuss is all about.’ The guys behind the counter told me a woman had driven from Sacramento (which is 7 1/2 hours away) just to wait in line for another 2 hours for frozen yogurt. My verdict: mid. Kids, get off your phones and jump in the water.”
