I spent the weekend in Los Angeles where it was 70 degrees with calm winds and sunshine. Here are some disconnected impressions…
- stuck in traffic on I-10 out of Santa Monica; turned out that a Ford SUV had rolled over
- cousin left work at 2 pm in an attempt to find his way home without using the 405; a construction crane had fallen at 1 pm and blocked all five northbound lanes; traffic was snarled city-wide until after midnight. All of the cars on the highway managed to swerve and avoid the crane, but a jet fuel tanker and an SUV were not so nimble and collided.
- leafed through the Sunday Los Angeles Times; the book review section was the thinnest part of the paper and the Op-Ed page carried an article in favoring of opening up the U.S. Presidency to immigrants, citing Arnold Schwarzenegger as the sort of presidential candidate we were being deprived of by the stipulations in our current Constitution
- having breakfast with a former student and asking him whether he thought it would be nice to live in Santa Monica: “Santa Monica is where the police from all over Los Angeles dump their homeless people. It is legal to sleep in parks in Santa Monica, which means that hundreds of homeless people live here. I live in Manhattan Beach, surrounded by rich 32-year-old divorcees. Their ex-husbands are directors who’ve moved on to the next trophy wives.”
- constant helicopter traffic up and down the beach
- alternating of self-storage facilities and sex shops for five miles along Santa Monica Boulevard
- a mid-air collision of two vintage biplanes on Saturday; the more heavily damaged plane landed in shallow water and the 82-year-old pilot waded to shore unharmed
- “I don’t have to work all that hard; my wife was one of the creators of a reasonably popular TV series.”
- flew in a DA40/G1000 around the most crowded skies in the world, but never had to adjust for another airplane until landing
- drove down the 405 to the Long Beach airport (JetBlue) at 5:35 am on a Monday morning; traffic was moving but heavy across all five lanes
- had to get up a few times during the 5-hour flight home and stretch; realized that long airplane flights are easiest for young flexible folks (i.e., don’t put off that round-the-world trip until you’re 65 unless you’re planning to go First Class with flat beds)
The 82yr old pilot did THREE passes back and forth along the beach before making his emergency landing, so that he cleared the way. If I was making an emergency landing minus some tail feathers I am not sure I would manage to do that.
Also: if you are going to do formation work, don’t glance at the instruments when you are behind your 82yr old friend and CLOSE to him. Oops.
(The homeless problem in Santa Monica is old news, maybe a decade or so old. They’ve cleaned it up more recently and built a few shelters. Unlike most of LA, they sometimes feed the homeless, which draws them like pigeons.)
The beach communities are not Los Angeles proper. So, if you spent your time
within a couple of miles of the ocean, then with the exception of Venice, you were not in Los Angeles. That said,
– Traffic… Yeah, we have it bad. And horrific planning and neighborhood
activism has prevented logical solutions. The subway down Wilshire was
canned because of Beverly Hills/Miracle Mile/West LA opposition. The
same reason BART does not venture into Marin. An irrational fear that
public transit will bring “undesirables” into your neighborhood.
– LA Times… What can you expect it’s owned by a company with it’s
headquarters in Chicago (Tribune). It was a far, far better paper when
the Chandlers owned it. And I’m hoping that it gets sold to a local
owner. (google LA Times Tribune sale).
– Santa Monica is where the police from all over Los Angeles dump
their homeless people…. Completely and utterly _false_. Homeless
people gravitate to Santa Monica because of it’s generous benefits
and mild climate. The same reason that homeless people gravitate
to San Francisco instead of San Bruno.
– I don’t have to work all that hard; my wife was one of the creators
of a reasonably popular TV series… Complete and utterly believable.
The entertainment industry is massive and pays extremely well for those
fortunate enough to get work in certain creative fields.
– Alternating of self-storage facilities and sex shops… Really Philip, you need
a better tour guide. Melrose, La Brea, Larchmont. The Getty (completely
free if you bicycle, take public transit or walk (one of the nations great
bargains)), Wishire in midtown, Disney Concert Hall (yeah it has Disney’s
name, but it’s a stunning Gehry building especially approaching from the
west on 2nd as the sun is setting). Gorgeous craftsmans in Hancock Park,
old hollywood spanish above Franklin in Hollywod, victorians in angeles
heights, art deco along Wilshire. Los Angeles is so large that you
can find whatever you are looking for.
Next time look for something besides storage facilities. 🙂
Craig