tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15698739977335802162024-03-14T02:35:36.367-07:00Under the AlexandriaLihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.comBlogger229125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-74839873907115553462012-10-05T09:33:00.000-07:002012-10-05T09:33:11.818-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5KR_pgKeffo/UG8KyzfPzmI/AAAAAAAAAr4/yIqnF3stvfE/s1600/dlta%2Bfamilies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="248" width="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5KR_pgKeffo/UG8KyzfPzmI/AAAAAAAAAr4/yIqnF3stvfE/s400/dlta%2Bfamilies.jpg" /></a></div>
For those of you still checking in on Under the Alexandria, we have a new blog: <a href="http://www.dtlafamilies.com">DTLA Families</a>. We're sharing the tools, tips and resources you need to raise a kid in downtown LA. Things like where do I buy wipies at 5 pm on a Sunday when I don’t want to get in my car? What restaurants can I bring my kid to without getting the stink-eye from skinny hipsters? Will we ever have a park with a playground in the Historic Core? And what the hell do I do about getting my kid into a decent school?
See you at the new blog!Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-82656116071286821812011-04-02T12:47:00.000-07:002011-04-02T12:47:56.951-07:00Eye of Sauron Coffee.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ba5z8TLkspQ/TZSjEZrVb9I/AAAAAAAAAvw/ftNstVhM26w/s1600/DSCF0333.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ba5z8TLkspQ/TZSjEZrVb9I/AAAAAAAAAvw/ftNstVhM26w/s320/DSCF0333.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>The Eye of Sauron in a coffee bean. Now available at Big Lots for something like $3.50 Too bad it's not very good.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2KiW9yh72p8/TZdjcfb5esI/AAAAAAAAAv4/nFKkpeZDJcQ/s1600/DSCF0358+%2528Modified%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2KiW9yh72p8/TZdjcfb5esI/AAAAAAAAAv4/nFKkpeZDJcQ/s320/DSCF0358+%2528Modified%2529.JPG" width="313" /></a></div><br />
This stuff is also at Big Lots, for not as cheap as the Evil stuff above. It claims to be "Made in Germany", and I imagine thousand-hectare coffee plantations along the Rhine. This coffee is entirely inoffensive. You will find no nuttiness, no hints of black current and leather. It is quite yummy. It's a Kraft product, so you can feel bad about supporting an engulf-and-devour multinational corporation while you enjoy the yumminess.<br />
It is also, although the package gives no hint of this, an Espresso grind. So break out the Moka Pot!MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-2222493738999719032011-03-28T15:24:00.000-07:002012-07-16T09:13:59.681-07:00Why is this shit still here?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2xoQCnwH6_k/TZD_OCh55jI/AAAAAAAAAvY/NHLFLqP7DQc/s1600/dscf6476.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2xoQCnwH6_k/TZD_OCh55jI/AAAAAAAAAvY/NHLFLqP7DQc/s400/dscf6476.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">meh.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Waaaay back on November 17, 2010, I spotted this bit of graffiti painted in the crosswalk at 6th and Spring.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uIp5ipTAwCA/TZD_AY6Qu-I/AAAAAAAAAvU/CVE9H2WHv9A/s1600/dscf6474.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uIp5ipTAwCA/TZD_AY6Qu-I/AAAAAAAAAvU/CVE9H2WHv9A/s400/dscf6474.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
What is it? Who are the Destroyers, a new gang of stencil artists? Or just low-rent taggers, bound for juvenile hall?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OEoObb7R3ac/TZD_Pn5esAI/AAAAAAAAAvg/X5e-NHB9tjQ/s1600/nike2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OEoObb7R3ac/TZD_Pn5esAI/AAAAAAAAAvg/X5e-NHB9tjQ/s400/nike2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
A raging band of <a href="http://www.nike.com/nikeos/p/sportswear/en_US/view_post?post=en_US/2010/11/28/more-than-a-gamechanger-mowii-madonna">Nike advertising execs</a>, it seems.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-90YqGpHd1_8/TZD_O9YHY0I/AAAAAAAAAvc/NH88Kphf-Bk/s1600/nike1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-90YqGpHd1_8/TZD_O9YHY0I/AAAAAAAAAvc/NH88Kphf-Bk/s400/nike1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Hmm, I see there was one on <a href="http://inside.nike.com/blogs/sportswear-en_US/2010/11/24/la-destroyers">Fifth and spring</a>, too.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ULjqwRsjqrA/TZD_P4oGHYI/AAAAAAAAAvk/wNWOkUrDz58/s1600/nike3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ULjqwRsjqrA/TZD_P4oGHYI/AAAAAAAAAvk/wNWOkUrDz58/s400/nike3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
So Nike spray painted "LA DESTROYERS" on our beloved streets, and then photographed it for an ad campaign. How edgy. It's delightful when multinational corporations earn the "Street creds".<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qQGQZdKv1gE/TZD_lerjWhI/AAAAAAAAAvo/LUjkFE6pevQ/s1600/DSCF0390.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qQGQZdKv1gE/TZD_lerjWhI/AAAAAAAAAvo/LUjkFE6pevQ/s400/DSCF0390.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
So here it is, four months later, and this crap is still on the street. Faded, sure, but not due to any efforts of Nike Corp.<br />
<br />
So, let me get this straight.<br />
<br />
Our Mayor Villaraigosa, Councilmember Huizar, City Attorney Trutanich, LAPD et. al. have announced a <a href="http://mayor.lacity.org/PressRoom/PressReleases/LACITYP_013809">graffiti tracking program aimed at eliminating graffiti and apprehending vandals</a>. Graffiti artists are routinely arrested and prosecuted. Guys like "Buket" get <a href="http://senseslost.com/2009/09/12/buket-tko-sentenced-to-3-years-8-months/">three years in prison</a>, "Trigz" <a href="http://senseslost.com/2009/05/17/trigz-graffiti-interview/">gets six years</a>. And four months after pooping on the streets of downtown, <a href="http://www.zacks.com/stock/news/50019/Earnings+Scorecard%3A+Nike">Nike reports strong fiscal 2011 third-quarter earnings</a> of $1.08 per share, up 7% from the year-ago earnings of $1.01 per share. See kids? Break the law and suffer the consequences!<br />
<br />
Because I like banging my head on hard objects, I'm going to ask Nike about this. I'll let you know what they say.<br />
<br />
UPDATE: Not a damn thing is what Nike had to say. No answer to my inquiry.MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-85940756539221220602011-03-24T19:41:00.000-07:002011-03-24T19:45:12.432-07:00Oh never a dull moment. (liveblogging the crime) So, I guess somebody shot someone? In the Jewelry Center building at 610 S. Broadway?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-WLcERfG-exA/TYv-lgR7k4I/AAAAAAAAAvM/3MTSiUh8l5U/s1600/DSCF0414.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-WLcERfG-exA/TYv-lgR7k4I/AAAAAAAAAvM/3MTSiUh8l5U/s320/DSCF0414.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-a6vL5roGMgg/TYv-WW9rbRI/AAAAAAAAAvI/lPRWs-qIWi0/s1600/DSCF0412.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-a6vL5roGMgg/TYv-WW9rbRI/AAAAAAAAAvI/lPRWs-qIWi0/s320/DSCF0412.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I overheard the radio of the undercover dude standing next to me say that the guard at the Hayward said the guy may have run in there...<br />
<br />
Then some guy who looked like Gary Oldman yelled "Bring me EVERYBODY!", and more cops showed up and expanded the perimeter another block out.<br />
<br />
The swat team was lining up to run into the Hayward, but I needed to get the milk in the fridge, so I went upstairs at that point.<br />
<br />
-- MBMBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-81653925969186882252010-12-01T13:24:00.000-08:002010-12-01T13:24:01.722-08:00Drugs for sale inside!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TPa8m1FbYCI/AAAAAAAAAuk/tIIJIH4JUQA/s1600/DSCF0116+%2528Modified+%25283%2529%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TPa8m1FbYCI/AAAAAAAAAuk/tIIJIH4JUQA/s320/DSCF0116+%2528Modified+%25283%2529%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Really? At Spring For Coffee? I had no idea 'til now.MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-49471527472383531332010-11-29T06:09:00.000-08:002010-11-29T06:09:48.644-08:00A holiday tradition of incompetence.A year ago I wrote this: <a href="http://underthealexandria.blogspot.com/2009/11/beep-beep-beep.html">Beep beep BEEP</a>, the upshot being that one year ago during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, loud and obnoxious fire alarms went off at the Mercantile Arcade building and stayed on 'til after midnight, presumably due to the alarm contractor having gone home for the Holidays and no one at the management company knowing how to operate the alarms.<br />
<br />
A year has gone by, and a lot has changed. There are large banners proclaiming "Now LEASING!", and presumably construction is done, systems have been approved by the City, and people are actually living in the building. <i> </i>I feel sorry for those people, as sometime mid-yesterday, the fire alarms went off, and as of this writing, 6:00 AM the next day, they are still running. The noisemaker part of the alarm did stop but the strobes are still going, bright enough to illuminate my loft right through the curtains.<br />
<br />
It's my understanding that the City requires alarms to have a timer that automatically shuts them down within half an hour. Although the noise alarm did shut off, the strobes are obviously still out of compliance a year later. Made me wonder, as I watched the weird shadows the strobes made on my ceiling last night, how stupid could the folks at Fifth Street Funding be? Hell, I've known for <i>over a year</i> that Thanksgiving would be celebrated again in 2010. They had a whole year to plan to have someone available during the holiday weekend trained to push a goddamned button. Question is, was that task too difficult for their little minds, or do they just not care? Don't look at me, I don't know. Like Glenn Beck, I'm not <i>saying</i> that Fifth Street Funding are all a lot of incompetent douchebags, I'm just <i>raising the question</i>.MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-8016879017741890782010-06-15T15:49:00.000-07:002010-06-15T16:23:20.090-07:00Overheard at 6th and Lindley Place...Overheard at 6th and Lindley Place...<div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">"Back, back, Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" *CLUNK*</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgEkAf8nKI/AAAAAAAAAsc/IwhNwQ2JvLQ/s1600/dscf3532.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 480px; height: 360px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgEkAf8nKI/AAAAAAAAAsc/IwhNwQ2JvLQ/s400/dscf3532.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5483137562979376290" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">At least he parked the truck before it got all wet.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgFaog6vNI/AAAAAAAAAsk/K70QJJ-qGqU/s1600/dscf3546.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 480px; height: 360px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgFaog6vNI/AAAAAAAAAsk/K70QJJ-qGqU/s400/dscf3546.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5483138501433801938" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">As Kidlo said, "<span class="Apple-style-span" style=" -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 1px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 1px; font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:medium;">¡</span><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Agua!"</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 18px; font-family:arial, sans-serif;font-size:small;"></span></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgHZM-WpNI/AAAAAAAAAs4/crHVkRjAjy8/s1600/dscf3557+(Modified+(2)).jpg"></a><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgHZM-WpNI/AAAAAAAAAs4/crHVkRjAjy8/s1600/dscf3557+(Modified+(2)).jpg"><img style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 480px; height: 429px; " src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgHZM-WpNI/AAAAAAAAAs4/crHVkRjAjy8/s400/dscf3557+(Modified+(2)).jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5483140675884459218" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">LAFD, always their efficient selves. By the time I had returned from the Market, they had the hydrant bolted back into place, with nothing other than a brand new cap to show that anything had happened to it.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgHYWU-UOI/AAAAAAAAAsw/ijHK0SOGtPM/s1600/dscf3551+(Modified).jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 480px; height: 274px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgHYWU-UOI/AAAAAAAAAsw/ijHK0SOGtPM/s400/dscf3551+(Modified).jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5483140661215383778" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">A pleasant noontime diversion for all...</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgJRZK3F3I/AAAAAAAAAtE/qRosvxWrMXw/s1600/dscf3536+(Modified).jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 480px; height: 332px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/TBgJRZK3F3I/AAAAAAAAAtE/qRosvxWrMXw/s400/dscf3536+(Modified).jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5483142740742444914" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Or almost all. "Dude, why you don't listen to me when I say 'Whoa?'"</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">-- MB</div>MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-46236366553733234712010-02-05T14:16:00.000-08:002010-02-05T14:18:12.266-08:00Rain, rain, go away...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/S2yY4854t-I/AAAAAAAAArg/QFWnjGDSLF0/s1600-h/rain2_small.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 293px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/S2yY4854t-I/AAAAAAAAArg/QFWnjGDSLF0/s400/rain2_small.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434886954518362082" /></a><br /><div>Rain, rain, go away, come again as snow on the Eastern Sierras, please.</div><div><br /></div>MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-32567021348578121912010-01-20T11:45:00.001-08:002010-01-20T11:49:41.478-08:00Wednesday rain update<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/S1ddpRgx1gI/AAAAAAAAArQ/4VZao2ZGWUM/s1600-h/DSCF5252.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/S1ddpRgx1gI/AAAAAAAAArQ/4VZao2ZGWUM/s400/DSCF5252.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428910839475328514" /></a><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Storm rain total, noon-ish update: 2-13/16 inches (with more expected, of course.)</div>MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-41408074048517753572010-01-18T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-18T08:03:32.082-08:00What happens when your mail carrier goes on vacation<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/S1O_CbMRHYI/AAAAAAAAAq4/cKPjPHLKxfM/s1600-h/mailroom_sm.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 167px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/S1O_CbMRHYI/AAAAAAAAAq4/cKPjPHLKxfM/s400/mailroom_sm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427892024291433858" /></a><div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Just some of the mis-delivered mail</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">hand-sorted by my neighbors last weekend.</span></b></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/S1O_CbMRHYI/AAAAAAAAAq4/cKPjPHLKxfM/s1600-h/mailroom_sm.jpg"></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><u><br /></u></span><div style="text-align: left;">MB here...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Last Monday I was pleased and surprised to find the daily "Food 4 Less" circular missing from my mailbox. Unfortunately, I soon discovered that pretty much all my mail was missing from my mailbox. A few days later a client called to ask for my new address, as the check they had sent me had been returned bearing a yellow "NIXIE" sticker reading "Return to sender - attempted - not known - unable to forward". Yes, somehow, my little mailbox which had happily accepted mail for me for close to two years suddenly is refusing to accept checks. To protect me from the corrupting influence of teh filthy lucre, no doubt.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Calling the USPS 800 number yielded nothing but a promise that someone "who can handle this" would return my call within two business days.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So I lurked around the mailroom at the appointed time to harangue the mail carrier. "I don't know, I'm just a sub. You have to talk to your regular carrier. She's on vacation." I told her about the "NIXIE" sticker on my envelope. "Oh, you have a sticker? That's because you moved away and gave a forwarding address." No, no, I still live here. See? It's me, standing before you, and I'm still here. Is there someone I should talk to at the Post Office, other than just the 800 number? "No, the supervisor won't know, none of the carriers will know, no one will know anything. Your regular carrier will be back Monday. You will have to ask her." Got that? Your letter carrier goes on vacation, she takes all knowledge and accountability with her.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Now, I would think that magically disappearing and reappearing mailboxes would raise alarms in the computerized systems rather than print yellow stickers, but that is just me. I would think reliability is paramount in a mail system. Hell, I would even go so far as to think that a system as large and experienced as the USPS would have some backup systems to catch and work around the fuckwittery of a substitute mail carrier who can't find a mailbox that's only clearly marked and numbered and placed in order among all the other clearly numbered mailboxes.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Email has stolen a lot of business from the USPS, but the Post Office still plays a critical role in delivering physical things such as checks, legal papers, etc. There has been talk of dropping Saturday delivery as a way to make up for sagging sales, and I'm all for it -- if the savings are applied to increasing the reliability of the system and removing opportunities for one person to fuck up the chain of delivery all by themselves.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I would ask my regular carrier about this Monday, as the sub carrier had suggested, but their is no delivery on MLK day.</div></div>MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-13289706309049608792010-01-01T17:17:00.000-08:002010-01-01T17:22:02.484-08:00Happy new year!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/Sz6e1p0-2WI/AAAAAAAAAqU/wwCc8WEWz7s/s1600-h/DSCF5104.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/Sz6e1p0-2WI/AAAAAAAAAqU/wwCc8WEWz7s/s400/DSCF5104.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421945645998987618" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Although us mommy-and-daddy types were in bed soon after the ball fell in Times Square, the younger set in our building were partying 'till oh-five-hundred, god bless 'em.</div><div><br /></div><div>So from our little family to you and yours, here's wishing for a joy filled 2010!</div>MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-59073957128755795492009-12-31T11:21:00.000-08:002009-12-31T11:23:55.577-08:00Spotted on Spring Street<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/Szz6FOvidOI/AAAAAAAAAqE/txCcO7B0u2U/s1600-h/DSCF5064+(Modified).JPG"><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 330px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/Szz6FOvidOI/AAAAAAAAAqE/txCcO7B0u2U/s400/DSCF5064+(Modified).JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421483019211011298" /></a><br /><div>I don't know why. But there it is.</div>MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-73124800358327848132009-12-05T22:18:00.000-08:002009-12-07T10:12:52.828-08:00Downtown grows up!MB here,<br /><br />Those of you who regularly read our little blog (and we thank you for your attention!) have probably noticed by now that we just haven't been posting that much. Sure, there's the occasional rant about noise or street corner comedians or whatnot, but we aren't writing as much about our life downtown as we used to.<br /><br />I wondered why, myself. We aren't tired of writing, or bored of the blog, or blogging in general. It is, I think, that this was conceived as a blog about our adventures of moving downtown with a child, and that part of our life is no longer interesting, and I mean interesting in the sense of that old Chinese curse, "May you live in interesting times!"<br /><br />When we started this blog, it was an exciting event to hear of a new shop or eatery opening, and trying to minimize our car trips outside the 'hood was something of a puzzle. Now, we have burgers and groceries across the street, ice cream and waffles around the corner, several choices for Breakfast and I either walk to Ralphs and complain about the prices or bite the bullet and drive to the newley remodled Vons on glendale (or better yet, Gold Line to Trader Joes!) The Downtown Parents Group is going great, the play dates and get togethers are crowded and I spot pregnant hipsters scooting in and out of the loft buildings most every weekend. Hell, H'wood is even setting rom-coms down here in dreamy dreamy DTLA (still waiting for the "300 days of summer" mash-up.)<br /><br />So what does this mean? We are more comfortable here. And as our comfort grows, the prod of discomfort that pushes us to post dulls somewhat and becomes, how can I say it? Less Pokey.<br /><br />This is not a "sorry I havn't updated my blog" post, or a good-bye of any sort. It's a recognition that Downtown, or more correctly our relationship to Downtown, has turned a corner. I'm posting to recognise that, to mark the moment, as it were.<br /><br />And now it's time to get on with it. My next post may or may not be directly Downtown related. Perhaps I'll expand the area of interest of this blog beyond just navel-gazing in the City. Oh, who am I kidding? It will be about Awesome Coffee available right around the corner.<br /><br />--MBMBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-82313834805903418402009-11-25T16:16:00.000-08:002009-11-25T18:06:51.112-08:00Beep beep BEEPMB here...<br /><br />It's noisy downtown. The general noise and hubub of the city doesn't bother me. Our loft doesn't face the street, we face a "light court". The building is U-shaped, and we have a nice little patio on one leg of the U, high enough to overlook the open air above the "arcade" portion of the Mercantile Arcade building. I have a nice view of the California Plaza buildings, and overall, it's pretty quiet back there. What noise there is is of the background variety. Traffic, laughing neighbors, etc.<br /><br />The Arcade building consists of two 12-story towers, one facing Broadway just north of 6th street, and one fracing Spring street. Connecting the two towers is a walkable arcade filled with shops, so you can walk from Spring st. straight through the building to Broadway. It's been sitting empty above the ground floor ever since we moved in, but recently there has been an explosion of activity. Apparently the owners have overcome whatever obstacle has been in the road, and the conversion of the building to lofts is back on track.<br /><br />The construction hasn't been loud or annoying at all. What has been annoying is the alarms. Occasionally, an alarm would go off in the building. Either a whoop-whoop alternating with a prerecorded voice instructing all within earshot to stop work and make for the exits, or an exceptionally annoying electronic beep. Beep beep beep. Three loud electronic tones emitting from the upper floors or roof of the broadway-side tower. Oddly enough, you really can't here the alarm from the floor of the arcade, but you can hear it from the parking lot north of the building on Spring, and you sure as hell can hear it in my loft.<br /><br />For a while the alarm had been going off at odd times and running for anywhere from half an hour to a few hours before shutting off. But a week ago monday the alarm started beeping at noon and didn't quit until 10:00 PM. Really annoying.<br /><br />Beep beep beep.<br /><br />The following Wednesday, it went off again around Noon. Beep beep beep. I went next door and wandered around until I spotted some guys with "fire control" on their shirts. They really couldn't say anything about it, but they went and fetched a well-dressed young-ish dark haired guy they identified as their "big boss". "We are doing occasional tests, but it shouldnt' be going off on weekends" he told me. "It's going off now" I replied. "Now?" "Yes, Now." "Um, ok..." He got on the phone, and got the alarm shut off, but it was clear he had no idea it was running at all.<br /><br />Beep beep beep.<br /><br />Of course the beeps where back the very next day, at 10:00 AM. I had no idea how to contact anyone over there... I had neglected to get a number for the Fire Control guy, and there is no "In case of emergency" or "Managed by..." numbers on the building itself. There's probably some easy and simple way to get emergency contact info for any building downtown, but I don't know it. The building permits I retrieved from the Dept. of Building and Safety's web site gave the contractor as "Santa Fe Construction Co Inc; Lic. No.: 871003", with an address that Google showed to be a single family home in Winnetka. The contractor's phone #, (818) 326-3533, was a cell phone the no one picked up. The listed "Responsible Managing Officer (RMO)" for Santa Fe is Gregory Martin, and some googling of that name found that Greg Martin is the owner of the Arcade building, or a VP of the developer, "Fifth Street Funding", or perhaps the elusive avatar of a trio of front companies holding real estate on behalf of a wealthy and mysterious Australian family. Whatever. Calling Fifth Street Funding led me to Lucia Parisi, the manager of the Arcade Building.<br /><br />Beep beep beep.<br /><br />Lucia was able to get the alarm shut off in short order, once I convinced her that this wasn't just "testing", and that it was in fact running continuously. And the alarm pretty much stayed off, 'till today.<br /><br />Beep beep beep.<br /><br />The alarm is running when I get home today at 1:30PM.<br /><br />Beep beep beep.<br /><br />I call Lucia at 2, she's not in.<br /><br />Beep beep beep.<br /><br />I call Lucia an hour later, she's in but in a meeting.<br /><br />Beep beep beep.<br /><br />I convince the receptionist to break into the meeting, but Lucia "is aware of the situation and will take care of it ASAP"<br /><br />Beep beep beep.<br /><br />I call again at 4:30, everyone is gone for the day.<br /><br />BEEP BEEP BEEP!<br /><br />Listen developer people. I am your neighbor. I live here. I get to watch the comings and goings of your little construction project. And I'm not going away. Do you really want me to be the pissed off neighbor who spends his time filing complaints and taking photos and raising "issues" with the city and county, the police and the BID? Organizing the community? Showing up at every hearing to voice my concerns? Filing complaints with the LAPD Noise Enforcement Team? LA Building and safety? Of course not. And I don't want to be that guy. So shut off your goddamned alarm and pick up the phone when it rings. ok?MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-34857470458218458352009-11-23T16:26:00.000-08:002009-11-23T16:38:27.564-08:00NY Magazine Profiles BrattonJust wanted to share: <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/62256/index.html">New York Magazine profiles former LA police chief William Bratton</a>.<br /><br /><blockquote>In the debate over whether policing is an art or a science, Bratton is a firm believer that it’s a science. His successes, he says, were attributable to two basic policing strategies: CompStat and “broken windows.” The former is the system Bratton and his NYPD deputy commissioner, the late Jack Maple, developed in 1994 that introduced computer analysis of crime patterns and strict accountability measures to modern policing. The latter is the theory first articulated by the academics George Kelling and James Q. Wilson in 1982, and later put into practice by Bratton with New York’s transit cops and then with the NYPD, that by cracking down on minor quality-of-life crimes—graffiti, fare-hopping, breaking windows—police can reduce serious crime as well. “There’s nothing going on in Los Angeles that’s different from what I did in New York,” Bratton says. “I have CompStat and I have very assertive cops making a lot of arrests.”<br /><br />And yet it was Bratton’s willingness to adapt these strategies to two very different environments that accounts for his successes. In other words, he was as much of an artist as he was a scientist. One crucial adjustment was patience. In New York City, Bratton had commanded 38,000 cops and was able to flood multiple high-crime areas simultaneously with hundreds of officers. In Los Angeles, he had only 9,000 cops. “Throwing 50 cops at a problem in Los Angeles was really difficult,” says Kelling, a consultant to the LAPD during Bratton’s tenure. “It meant he couldn’t do everything at once.” So, while Bratton cracked down immediately on prostitution in Hollywood, cleaning up the city’s notorious skid row had to wait. “This was much more of a patient, unfolding enterprise,” says John Linder, a consultant who worked with Bratton in New York and Los Angeles. “He was not as worried about the immediate impact as he was in New York.”<br /></blockquote><br /><br />More <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/62256/index.html">here</a>.Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-66075224520201330072009-11-12T11:08:00.000-08:002009-11-12T12:32:32.260-08:00Kidlo gets his Swine Flu Shot on Skid Row.MB here...<br /><br />I wanted to get Kidlo his Swine Flu shot while the season was still young enough for it to do him some good. But no one seems to have it... His pediatrician doesn't have any, my doctor doesn't have any, Walgreens is out of stock... Kaiser Permanente has some, due to a decision by the state that the <a href="http://mobile.latimes.com/inf/infomo?view=page7&feed:a=latimes_1min&feed:c=localnews&feed:i=50325679">LA times says was</a> "not previously discussed publicly" but the state says was not made in secret. "It was done openly with all our public health partners," said Mike Sicilia, spokesman for the Department of Public Health. I'm not sure who those partners are, but I expect these meetings could take place in a phone booth and still have room for coffee and snack service.<br /><br />Anyway, this pretty much leaves the county Flu POD (Point of Dispensing) clinics as the only place for Kidlo to get the H1N1 shot, and as luck would have it, today there was one on 6th and San Pedro, not half a mile from our loft, in the heart of Skid Row.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/Svxd_GrJWZI/AAAAAAAAApM/HL8gx4ts16o/s1600-h/DSCF4886.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/Svxd_GrJWZI/AAAAAAAAApM/HL8gx4ts16o/s400/DSCF4886.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403296991642474898" border="0" /></a><br />The flyer said 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and as I had <a href="http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-me-swine-flu-clinics4-2009nov04,0,3665600.story?track=rss">read about the mess that was the Glendale POD</a> last weekend, I decided to get there early and be prepared to stay the day. County Dept. of Public Health had blocked off 6th street between San Julian and San Pedro, and set up tents and tables. There was six or eight cops hanging out watching over a small crowd that had gathered.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/SvxlxuvRz6I/AAAAAAAAApY/0oQwLGs19iY/s1600-h/DSCF4868.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/SvxlxuvRz6I/AAAAAAAAApY/0oQwLGs19iY/s400/DSCF4868.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403305557972078498" border="0" /></a><br />And by small crowd I mean small. They put us in two lines, one "Family" line (kids, pregnant mothers, caretakers of babies under 6 months, etc.) and another line for "everyone else". The "everyone else" line was in the hundreds, stretching around the corner and down San Pedro for a block or so, and seemed to be mostly Skid Row people, homeless or sheltered. Our line, the "Family line" as the staff called it, was maybe forty people. Maybe.<br /><br />We waited. Volunteers came around with forms to fill out. I talked to the other families on line. The family crowd was pretty diverse. The family behind me had driven an hour to come here from the 'Burbs. He had actually driven around here last night to see if the neighborhood was safe enough to bring his wife and kid to. I guess it was, or at least his fear of Flu won over his fear of Skid Row. I lent my cell phone to the family in front of me so they could call their relatives and give them directions. No one in the family had used a cell phone before, so I had to dial it for them.<br /><br />A KNBC news guy and cameraman came around talked to some of the families at the head of the line. They didn't seem interested in Kidlo or the Suburbanites behind me.<br /><br />Soon enough, the line was moving. There was a short delay as they rearranged the tables -- all us parental units were blocking the way with our strollers -- but we were in and out in under an hour. Sweet!<br /><br />So if you are hankerin' for a Flu Shot (they have seasonal flu shots as well as N1H1) and are in the neighborhood (and in the target group), drop on by.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/SvxnR8ZITII/AAAAAAAAApg/O5wpuxC4kG8/s1600-h/DSCF4883.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/SvxnR8ZITII/AAAAAAAAApg/O5wpuxC4kG8/s400/DSCF4883.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403307210904718466" border="0" /></a>It's a great day to be a Newsman!<br /></div>MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-21485026577735088732009-10-21T12:25:00.000-07:002009-10-21T12:30:59.414-07:00Citizen journalismReader Chad passed on this news:<br /><br /><blockquote>I live at Santa Fe and I enjoy your blog. Last week there was a guy who climbed up on our buildings AC pipes about 15 feet up off of the ground. This was during one of those rainy cold days that we had.<br /><br />After a big the police showed up, then the firetrucks. He got down via a ladder the firemen placed.</blockquote><br /><br />With bonus cool pics!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hDNb6iaI/AAAAAAAAAlM/w6DIsA-isM0/s1600-h/DSCF0001.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hDNb6iaI/AAAAAAAAAlM/w6DIsA-isM0/s400/DSCF0001.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395137586387388834" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hCOb-bMI/AAAAAAAAAlE/pk8vIcAPb4Y/s1600-h/DSCF0003.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hCOb-bMI/AAAAAAAAAlE/pk8vIcAPb4Y/s400/DSCF0003.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395137569476209858" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hBp58oKI/AAAAAAAAAk8/BadzKDMFAVg/s1600-h/DSCF0005.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hBp58oKI/AAAAAAAAAk8/BadzKDMFAVg/s400/DSCF0005.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395137559669809314" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hBE5foxI/AAAAAAAAAk0/TwevaB8QKhg/s1600-h/DSCF0007.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hBE5foxI/AAAAAAAAAk0/TwevaB8QKhg/s400/DSCF0007.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395137549735797522" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hAVsmVvI/AAAAAAAAAks/Ifgr_zVYuS0/s1600-h/DSCF0013.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/St9hAVsmVvI/AAAAAAAAAks/Ifgr_zVYuS0/s400/DSCF0013.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395137537065244402" /></a>Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-71172482203609365252009-10-16T09:31:00.000-07:002009-10-16T09:59:34.812-07:00Channeling Carter's BlogIt's 74 degrees, going up to 83, and I just saw a woman in Starbucks wearing a wool coat with a fur collar, tights and boots. WTF, Angelenos.Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-49548198644664146752009-10-11T07:46:00.000-07:002009-10-11T14:31:36.930-07:00Inventing LA (and downtown)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.pbs.org/kcet/inventing-la/images/gallery_01_bigthumb.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 409px; height: 268px;" src="http://www.pbs.org/kcet/inventing-la/images/gallery_01_bigthumb.png" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />MB and I watched a great documentary last night: <a href="http://www.pbs.org/kcet/inventing-la/">Inventing LA: The Chandlers and Their Lives</a>. It's about the family who founded the LA Times and owned it until it was sold to the Tribune Company in 2000. The Chandlers didn't just run a newspaper--they also played a huge role in the land acquisitions and water rights shenanigans that shaped modern LA. (John Huston's character in Chinatown was based on Harry Chandler). As a downtowner, it was very cool to see photos and footage of downtown from the late 19th Century to today. Downtown LA was amazingly crowded and vital all the way into the 50s. It's kind of sad to see the old photos and films and compare it to downtown today. Even though the neighborhood is taking off, the streets are really empty in comparison.<br /><br />You can watch the documentary online <a href=http://www.pbs.org/kcet/inventing-la/watch_online.html>here</a>. Also check out the great <a href="http://www.pbs.org/kcet/inventing-la/galleries.html">photo galleries</a> with pics of downtown and Hollywood.<br /><br />ETA: The segment covering the 1910 bombing of the LA Times building on 1st and Broadway.<br /><br /><object width="301" height="185"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/eTrDg1GUUX8&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/eTrDg1GUUX8&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object>Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-25633805970766066492009-10-05T12:06:00.000-07:002009-10-05T12:11:40.309-07:00Anyone want an old TV?We just bought a new TV and are looking to get rid of our old one. It's old and bulky and has a non-working VCR attached, but the TV part works and comes with a digital converter box. We can cart it down to Goodwill but I figured I'd ask if anyone is interested taking it off our hands--maybe one of the residential hotels or shelters could use it? Let me know. If I don't hear from anyone, it's going to Goodwill this weekend.Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-78699534155935056282009-10-02T11:13:00.000-07:002009-10-02T11:14:34.187-07:00Seen at La Parrilla<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/SsZC-1d-RFI/AAAAAAAAAkk/z5s6K-W84mE/s1600-h/0909091221.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/SsZC-1d-RFI/AAAAAAAAAkk/z5s6K-W84mE/s400/0909091221.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388067651467494482" /></a>Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-47269943958025394252009-10-01T09:42:00.001-07:002009-10-01T09:42:55.659-07:00Offer I refused on 6th Street"I'll tell you funny stories about black people if you give me a dollar."Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-43862577531867420132009-09-25T16:40:00.000-07:002009-09-25T16:42:42.822-07:00Space for Yoga ClassesToday I got this request from a friend of mine:<br /><br /><blockquote>I am emailing you because you live and/or work in or near downtown. I'm looking into possibly renting out my own space for a couple hours every other week to teach some classes. I am trying to gauge if you, anyone you know or your company might be interested in something like this? Also, let me know if you know of any places renting out by the hour for this kind of thing...they might be nicer and cheaper than the ones I am looking into.</blockquote><br /><br />Does anyone know of a space that would work? Maybe a loft space that's used as a studio?Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-90372544061412447802009-09-21T16:11:00.000-07:002009-09-21T17:57:24.447-07:00Throwdown at Ralphs Fresh Fare!'Sup G, MB here.<br /><br />So I needed to buy a few thangs, so I go to the Ralphs Fresh Fare in Southpark. Not my hood, ya know, but whatever. So I'm at the checkout, and there's some noise over by the door...<br /><br />A security guard is all up in the face of a big bearded guy in a white t-shirt with an armload of groceries. They're bumping chests, next thing I know, the guard grabs a double-handfull of t-shirt and shoves the guy four feet accross the lobby and on to his ass!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/SrgNnW0RE4I/AAAAAAAAAos/JNXlTMIbhfU/s1600-h/its_on_chaps.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 310px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H0xSR430Ko0/SrgNnW0RE4I/AAAAAAAAAos/JNXlTMIbhfU/s400/its_on_chaps.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5384068324312290178" border="0" /></a>You bet it's on now! The big guy comes up swinging. The guard lowers his head and takes the fight down to the mat, UFC style. They roll around trading punches while the <strike>fans</strike> customers run around excitedly. I grab my camera, but by the time it's powered up the fight is almost over:<br /><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-EBxFlDcbIQ&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-EBxFlDcbIQ&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />That slight woman in the blue? That's my checker. Yah, she ran over and stopped the fight, while everyone else was standing around with their hands in their pockets, picken' their noses and taking bets on the outcome.<br /><br />After the fight, and after Daniel wimped out and didn't bring the guard over, my checker brought the guard back to where the dry cleaning is. The manager steamed over, no doubt annoyed that the guard made like Royce Gracie and went straight to the mat instead of boxing a little and making it interesting. I think I saw smoke coming out of his ears.<br /><br />SO that was it. I gathered my groceries and took the elevator down with a very nice Grandmama who'd bought a silver balloon for her g'daughter. Sweet!MBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07117435048295574746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1569873997733580216.post-54331998726580416592009-09-20T19:52:00.000-07:002009-09-20T19:58:37.643-07:00Loco (motive) on Spring Street<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/SrbrCIJKeeI/AAAAAAAAAkc/M_xpfQLQfPk/s1600-h/img_0362.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_BUh4LP31LVw/SrbrCIJKeeI/AAAAAAAAAkc/M_xpfQLQfPk/s400/img_0362.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5383748826346191330" /></a>Lihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16362712838754074396noreply@blogger.com1