Twitter leads way to ice cream, I follow

Thanks to the magic of Twitter and its instant (micro) message technology, I learned from @LA_LIVE today that one of its shops, New Zealand Natural, was giving away free ice cream.

So what did I do? What any temperature-challenged Angeleno would do -- I packed up the toddler and made a beeline for Olympic and Fig.

For those who aren't familiar with L.A. Live, it's a downtown entertainment complex that's home to restaurants as well as the Nokia Theatre and Grammy Museum.

In this tightly packed area across from the Staples Center, construction is still under way for what will presumably be a downtown rival to Universal CityWalk. And, with watering holes like Trader Vic's and the Conga Room, it's probably much more fun at night -- and possibly after a few Tiki-tinis or Mai Tais.

As daytime dwellers, however, CC and I still managed to find the fun in ice cream. NZN, right on Figueroa, is a cozy ice cream and dessert shop. A buff and friendly guy took our order and happily scooped up a cookies-and-cream cone for CC.

When I dropped some cash in a jug for charity, a woman handed me an autographed photo and said to CC, "Would you like a signed picture of the nice hockey player who just scooped your ice cream?"

Talk about embarrassed. I hadn't really paid attention, but it was Derek Armstrong of the L.A. Kings.

Got a pic of him as we were walking out, and what was he wearing? An OU T-shirt from my home state of Oklahoma. (Don't get all excited, Okie peeps. He's from north of the border, natch.)

So, from @la_story, here's to Derek and @LA_LIVE! It might have surpassed the Twitter-friendly 140 characters, but this post is a big thank you for the hot tip and the super-cool treat.