How sweet is this? On Monday, LA DOT started a public beta for receiving live tracking information of your friendly neighborhood DASH service. If you go to http://dtdash.com on your computer or phone, LADOT has provided four equally convenient ways for you to get your bus information: 1) you can live track your downtown DASH using Google Maps; 2) for the minimalists, you can simply use drop down menus to plug in your route and stop to get expected arrival times; 3) for those of us without Internet-equipped phones, call (213) 785-3858 and navigate the phone menu to hear arrival information; and 4) for those of us who don’t like talking to machines, but don’t mind texting one, figure out your stop number, and send a text to dtdash[stop number] to 414111.
Now, if we can get this set up for the MTA, that would be awesome.
As the prosecution began its case in the War Crimes Trials at Nuremberg, 3000 G.I.s were back home, waiting in line for Thanksgiving Dinner at Castle Steak House. They were guests of the Los Angeles Herald-Express.
Tucked away in the nether regions between the two Valley’s lies the Black Box Theatre in the city of Montrose. Black Box Theatre is the result of the talented efforts of the La Canada Theatre organization headed up by Al Pugliese. They hold performances every third Thursday in a church in Montrose and I made last nights event. It was most enjoyable!
There were a total of 4 short one act plays in the 1 1/2 hours. They dealt with contemporary issues in a humorous sort of way. The plays were all original material written by either Benjamin Epstein or Gary Kluger. They write entirely new plays for each performance night. They weren’t always perfect, at times a little contrived or trite, but they kept me smiling throughout the performances.
The actors come out of the La Canada workshops. Some of the actors were really good at what they did and their performances were what really held the entire play together. In particular I enjoyed the performances of Lanell Scott as the crusty PE instructor in “Teachers” and Deb Snyder as “Inga” in “Mad Scientist”. Read the rest of this entry →
The LAAA is having its annual Aurora Holiday Art Sale Saturday only 11/21. There is a preview sale that includes complimentary champagne starting at 6pm that will cost you 25 bones. Its free after 7PM but no free booze. (Their flier does get bigger with a click for all the details you could ever want).
The best part of this show is that it is all about affordable art for collectors and exposing them to up-and-coming artists. Artists like my friend Ginger Van Hook who was picked up after the jurists viewed her work at last weekends Inglewood Art Walk.
Are you a narcissitic drama queen? Do you want free rent? Then read on!
A CraigsList ad is asking for potential “new roommates” to apply for “The Real World’s” 24th season.
If you are between the ages of 18 and 24 then email us at rwcasting@bunim-murray.com with the following information: Name, Age, Phone number, A brief bio, Two recent photos
In the subject line write: “[your city] Recruiting”
Think you have what it takes? Feel free to include a copy of your cover letter in the comments below. For shits n giggles.
I’ve just learned from Griffith Park Wayist that two ranger-led hikes to the Hollywood Sign are planned for Thanksgiving weekend, and if I wasn’t going to be in Death Valley climbing sand dunes and biking some bad roads between craters and playas then I most certainly wouldn’t miss such a rare opportunity to do something I did tons of times as a punk growing up in the shadow of the landmark.
Seriously, the last time was maybe 25 years ago, long before they fenced everything in and made it a felony to do so. I’d scramble up from Mulholland Highway with some snacks and perhaps Pink Floyd or some Dvorak on my walkman, and I’d just chill beneath a 50-foot letter of my choosing, marveling at the spectacular views and working out all sorts of bullshit up there on Mt. Lee.
Led by Park Ranger Ernie Ybarra, the four- to six-mile intermediate hikes are scheduled for November 27 and 28, from 8 – 11 a.m. Meet at the Griffith Park Visitor Center next to the Ranger Station at 4730 Crystal Springs Drive (map).
This Saturday is the 10-year-anniversary of the formation of the Swedish band known as Peter Bjorn & John–named after the band members, bless their little Swede souls–and they’re celebrating with surprise guests, rare songs, even a whistling contest. We’ve got your tickets! To win, you’ll have to humor me and leave a comment below containing something you hate most about The Kids. Because every time I hear the words “Young Folks,” all I think is “Get off my lawn!” For example [clears throat]: “I hate your f***ing acid-washed skinny jeans.” See? You know you can do this. Everybody can do this. Show info is here.
We’ve got another couple pairs of tickets to give to you lucky people to see Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas in his residency at the Downtown Palace Theatre tomorrow night. Wanna go? Leave a comment below telling me why you deserve, more than anyone else, to see this show. Be ruthless.
Show info is here, if you’d like to read a bit more about it.
Since I began my adventures in public transportation earlier this year, I have seen a lot of rude, inappropriate and often strange behavior from my fellow carbon-based life forms. I have seen people carelessly put their shoes on bus seats. I have seen someone leave a half-eaten sandwich on the floor of the train. I have seen a perfectly nice looking middle-aged woman forcibly push her way to the front of a line of people boarding a bus, just to be the first one on. I have shared personal space with people emitting body odors that would make a mortician gag. Yes my friends, I have been to hell and back and all I got was this lousy t-shirt.
While annoying, I have grown to accept many of these acts of humanness as part of the deal when taking public transportation. Still, when I see something like today’s featured Metro rider, I can’t help but make a public mockery of it.
Today, while making my connection to the Metro Red Line, I sat across from this girl who was plucking her eyebrows. Maybe some of you think this is OK, but let me tell you, YOU ARE WRONG. Some personal grooming is acceptable on public transportation I would say. Like powdering your nose or putting on lipstick. However, anything involving body hair is an absolute disgusting DON’T. You wouldn’t shave your armpits on the bus, would you? Would she? I don’t know. Fortunately, I made my connection before I had to find out.
The fine folks behind the wheel and grill of Buttermilk Truck tweeted their arrival to Melrose Avenue near Orlando just as I was about to hop on my bike and head in to work. And while their location this morning would require a decent deviation from my normal Silver Lake-to-Westchester route, it was an offer me and my hunger pangs couldn’t refuse. So I tweeted back for them to keep an eye out for a drooling cyclist and away I went West Hollywood-ward, crossing my fingers that I wouldn’t roll up on the recently launched vehicle to find the kind of crazy appetite-killing crowds these portable eateries are prone to attract.
Hallelujah! Rounding the corner from Kings Road onto Melrose I found the truck open for business at the curb and was relieved to take my place in a short queue that tripled in size within mintues of my arrival. Within a few more minutes of ordering and confirming to owner Gigi Pascual that I was indeed the drool-prone cyclist who tweeted (I hope my helmet gave it away and not any excessive salivations), my tastebuds were transported to Awesometown, taken there by their decadent Red Velvet & Chocolate Chips Pancake Bites ($5), and savory Buttermilk Biscuit Breakfast Sammich with applewood smoked bacon and a side patty of rosemary & garlic hashbrowns ($4), pictured at right.
Needless to say, I’ll be back and I highly recommend you check them out.
I think as a student, you always expect your fees to go up. But 32%? Oof. Students and those with supportive parents are going to face a mid-year increase of 15 percent to student fees and tuition, then (ouch) another 15 percent increase effective summer 2010. A panel of UC Regents meeting today – in front of hundreds of students protesting on campus – just agreed to the fee hikes. This comes at a time when the same Regents are asking $913 million from the state to cover budget shortfalls and, um, in the middle of a recession that is so bad that student lenders are playing hardball when it comes to renegotiating student loans. The full UC Regents Board will meet tomorrow to approve the approval, at which time more protests are planned.
What should the Regents do instead of barricading public access to education? Some helpful suggestions here at the Remaking the University blog.
Ok, Metbloggers and Metblogs readers, get off your bikes and get ready for the Great Los Angeles Walk 2009 this Saturday, November 21. This annual walk to celebrate Los Angeles has been taking place since 2006. Here’s Will Campbell’s preview of last year’s walk. This year, over 300 feet are expected to join in.
Who
Great Los Angeles Walk is the brainchild of Mike and Maria, purveyors of the Franklin Avenue blog, and no doubt passionate readers of Los Angeles Metblogs.
What
A 13.5 mile walk from the Shrine Auditorium to Venice Beach, taking in the sights along Figueroa, Adams, Washington, the Mid-City, and Culver City on the way. Read the rest of this entry →
LA is just awash in great rock shows. Tomorrow night’s offerings include electronic duo Royksopp at Club Nokia (show info), and Big Pink with locals Crystal Antlers at the El Rey (show info).
So many shows, so little time! If you don’t know about The Big Pink, you can hear them pretty regularly on KCRW now; I have to admit I was utterly annoyed by the lyrics of “Dominoes,” but that’s just my petulant feminism and bitterness about dating too many boys in bands. When I stop to listen to the layers of sound behind the words, it’s a crazy big sonic-scape that combines the best of shoegaze, deep house and Stone Roses/Oasis/Radiohead’s “Kid A.”
And Royksopp, our somber, crunky disco pals from Norway–well, how could anyone choose between these shows?
Too bad! You’re going to have to choose. To win tix to either show, you have to explain why you love either The Big Pink or Royksopp THAT much–or for a dark-horse kind of entry, you can profess your love for Crystal Antlers. I have a handful of ticket pairs for each show, so go crazy & good luck.
The 8.5-minute short (the last 2-plus minutes of which are the credits) centers around a Midnight Ridazz-esque group night ride featuring Jared Leto and his band pedaling along with a purported group of actual Ridazz — I say “purported” because individual close-ups reveal them all to be far too sullenly sans FUN as they journey glumly in the dark across and under the requisite downtown locations such as the 6th Street Bridge, the Second Street tunnel, and Grand Street. Seriously: Why so serious?
But everything’s great eye candy and otherwise going mostly awesome and only threatening to be hugely overwrought and ultra-serious like the song until the video’s director, Bartholomew Cubbins, decides to have a paid-actor/stuntperson get fatally creamed on his bike by a motorist near Pershing Square. Then, while everyone stands dumbly around by the body like powered-down replicants, poor Cubbins couldn’t help but trot out a hornless unicorn galloping in slo-mo up a dark street. Of course, with a visual like that the dead ridah can’t help but awaken refreshed from his unplanned road nap, and just get up on his undamaged bike to ride away.
After that there’s more of Leto singing, then a critical mass-style “circle of death” at an ironically traffic-less intersection. Then all the still way-too-bummed cyclists start wailing like a giant gruff chorus along with Leto until they magically arrive at the Santa Monica Pier where they disappear. Fade to black.
Your mileage may vary from my curmudgeonly take.
PS. If the embed’s dead up there, here’s the video’s URL:
VerdElf at SantaCon 2008 (Photo courtesy of Colin Young-Wolff and the LA Times)
Details about the annual Santa Conference (SantaCon) is usually unavailable this early in the year and the veracity of any information that does become available is often in question due to Santa’s propensity for pranking. What we do know is this, the annual conference is coordinated by a shadowy figure known only as “Santa” and while he sometimes tolerates elves at his annual gathering, he will do anything it takes to keep those damn clowns from ruining his jolly good time.
While specific details about SantaCon are never revealed until it is actually happening, I just received some intel regarding this year’s event that may be helpful for those of you who are looking to either participate or avoid it altogether. My sources have informed me that this year’s event will take place on Saturday, December 12.
I am also told that Santa is likely to be traveling on foot instead of bus this year, which means a $5 Metro Day Pass is all you’re going to need to hurl your cheer onto every street corner.
Last year, Santa merged at Echo Park Lake to begin the conference. So far, no one has revealed the exact starting location of this year’s event, but to me downtown seems like an obvious choice. Then, you never really know with Santa.
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