photo by Stephen Coleman

As an alternative to the “Black Friday” frenetic activity Monrovia Association of Fine Art and the Monrovia Old Town Merchants paired up and are putting together a festive party atmosphere in Old Town Saturday 11/28.  Two of the art galleries in town will be featuring artists receptions with free nibbles and wine to lighten up their events.  Numerous merchants and restaurants will be hosting “open house” receptions as well.  Expect carolers to out and about in Old Town Monrovia as well.

Segil Fine Art (110 W Lime Avenue, Monrovia 91016) will host a reception from 6-10PM.  The reception will celebrate the current show “Peace and Light” with the works of Laura Wambsgans.

Paint n Play Art Studio and Gallery (418 S Myrtle Ave, Monrovia) will be hosting a reception for featured artist Dino Rassmussen and his nostalgic, kitschy “Mostly Christmas” series.  Also present will be nearly a dozen of other artists represented by the gallery (me included) to share in the holiday cheer and their particular art.  There will be ample nibbles and wine to add to the festive atmosphere created by the music of “Rat Pack” musician Tony Millot. Read the rest of this entry →

#1:  Super easy choice..THE WEATHER!  I mean, come on!  Look at this glorious day… November 26 and it’s crystal clear, 80 degrees, sun shining, blue skies, rolling waves.  Yep.  I’m super thankful for living on this earth and in this city where I can stroll down to my local cafe, sit outside soaking up the rays and enjoy an espresso before tucking the turkey in.  The quality of gold light that rains down on us is awesome!  Thank you universe!  I really appreciate landing on this particular piece of real estate!

#2:  The General Population:  By and large a good part of the population is cool, friendly and really work at making a difference.  Maybe it’s in catching the perfect wave, maybe it’s trying to make medical marijuana accessible, maybe it’s creating and sharing the coolest movie on earth, maybe it’s brewing the best espresso.  But we have hardworking people here who are groovy.  Thanks everyone.  I appreciate how wide the variety of opinions, options, colors and types of all the people who live here embody.

#3:  The Biz:  Face it.  We live in the Entertainment capitol of the universe and we get major benefits from it.  From glitzy openings, to industry gossip, we’re on it first and get the glitter.  It’s practically a Renaissance city.  So many highly creative creatures roam around that between the writers, the dancers, the musicians, the DJ’s, the artists, the actors… somethings is always entertaining.  Just walking down the street is a treat.

#4 The Men.  They are simply more fun in LA.   I met my fiancee, Dan Mapes here, and he’s the quintessential LA Guy.  Hi-tech, low-maintenance, fun, intellectual, artistic, open-minded, good looking, sensitive, spiritual.  He embodies all the cool daddy qualities of the classic “LA MALE”.  Yes, he also embodies many of the not so cool qualities…. massive flirt, uber sensitive…. but those are also what makes him and all LA men, so great! Go figure.  The things we like the most about LA men, drive us mad!

Read the rest of this entry →

Oh Los Angeles. I’ve missed you so much! Finally last Saturday I got to return home to you for a moment. This was the first sight I saw on our final approach and nothing made me happier after two months away. Smog, who cares? I’m home.

Of course I’m gone again and won’t be back until December 4th, but this little glimpse of heaven has kept me going.

Can’t wait to be home for good, LA.

Walterrrrr spoted this gem at the Figueroa Metro crossing:
He writes about what is going on:

Metro has these manually operated gates at the Figueroa Street crossing. Just around the corner on Avenue 61 they have an automatic crossing guard. To their credit, Metro did install one here for a while, but because this is a route used by schoolchildren from Luther Burbank, and the human crossing guard that there wasn’t enough, they re-installed these cumbersome pedestrian gates.

So what happens is pedestrians, including myself, will instead of bothering with opening the gates, simply step into car traffic and walk around them.

This is a perfect example of someone trying to cover their ass by putting all these precautions into place so they can say they did everything they could to protect people, but in reality they made the situation more unsafe because it’s too much of a pain in the ass so as Walterrrrr notes people will just walk around it. Of course when those people walk out in traffic and get hit someone behind a desk somewhere will be able to hold up their hands and say it’s not their fault because they did everything they could to make things safe by putting in all those gate. So stupid.

Hi! Do you think you have something important to write?

Um, don’t answer that. How about this instead: Do you think you have something important to write about LA, AND can you write that stuff consistently, on a weekly basis?

If the answer is yes, then Metblogs is in the market for new bloggers to add to our roster. You must be conversant with blogging at least a little bit, and I’d like to see proof that you can, and ideally have, contributed stories, blog posts or columns on a weekly basis to publications (print or online).  We expect our bloggers to write about two blog posts a week (preferably more), and this isn’t a place to flog your own personal cause or activities (although if you have insight into a particular element of LA, that’s great); all posts must be about LA, not about you.

I used to look for passion about LA as they key deciding factor, but now y’all should know I look for consistency first, passion second. You must be reliable AND full of energy about the city.

If you’re still interested after all those caveats, send a few links to your work or writing samples–plus a bit about yourself & why you’d like to be a Metblogs author–to me at lucindamichele (at) metblogs (daht) com.  Happy Turkeycide Weekend, Los Angeles.

Anyone who follows graffiti art in Los Angeles knows the name REVOK. He’s one of my personal favorites and I’m always psyched when I see a new piece of his around town, and point it out to friends when I see his work up big in other cities while I’m traveling. That might not be happening too much in the near future since he was arrested this weekend by the Sheriffs Dept while attending an event at the 33rd Graffiti Art Store. He’s still tweeting to some extent so I’m not sure how locked up or down he his at this point.

Now before everyone gets all up in arms and is like “it’s illegal anyway” and “about time they arrested these vandals” and whatever other tired crap will get posted in the comments I should point out that YES WE ALL KNOW IT’S ILLEGAL. And yes, this is a risk anyone who decides to be a graffiti artist takes. It doesn’t matter who agrees with it or what merits anyone thinks graffiti has, it is in fact illegal and that’s the game some have chosen to play. What is interesting to me at least, is that while at one time graffiti artists were shadowy figures whose names and faces no one knew, thanks to the internet and twitter and online communities like 55mm Los Angeles as well as a whole host of galleries helping these artists take their work from one medium to another, graffiti artists are much easier to find for anyone looking. And while it’s a safe assumption a lot of the time that law enforcement has no idea how these things work, they are starting to learn and the more out there and available people are the easier it is for a bust like this to happen.

I’m not trying to bash anyone who is high profile, I’m just saying that I think that we like to think we know who is reading and following us, but the truth is we have no idea and I think we’re going to see more of these arrests as artists continue to gain popularity and it becomes easier to predict where they will be at some point in the future. And at the same time, I don’t think we’re going to see folks like REVS behind bars anytime soon.

For the eleventh straight year, Gobble Gobble Give will be packaging and delivering meals to those in need in and around The Echo on Thanksgiving Day.  Yeah, The Echo, that snazzy little joint in Echo Park where a bunch of creepy old white guys recently stared just a little too hard at the three tiny Japanese girls known as Shonen Knife.  (Besides that yuck factor, what a great show that was!!).

In a bit of twist to the traditional Thanksgiving slop-and-serve, Gobble Gobble Give takes a lesson from the economies of scale chapter of the Ford playbook: volunteers bring the parts (i.e., food, toiletry kits, and clothes), assemble everything in boxes, conveyer belt style, and deliver the packages to those in need around Echo Park and Downtown.  Last year, volunteers from all stripes delivered these packages to over 1,500 people.  So, if you’re orphaned and in need of friends and valuable bonding time (even if it’s with strangers) (this might be me, so you’re not going to be the only one); if you’re looking for a way for the family to do something together other than text in the same room while the turkey roasts; or if you have no ulterior motive and simply want to donate the time, hit up The Echo at 10am Thanksgiving Day and claim your spot.  As of this posting, Gobble Gobble Give’s Facebook page lists 238 confirmed attendees, but don’t let that fool you into thinking that they’re adequately staffed.  You know us Angelenos: we confirm before we commit.  Sign up to deliver, and, whatever you end up doing, happy turkey/non-turkey day everyone!

Woot! Celebrate Turkey Day with Crowes. These guys have more cred than they know what to do with and a sound informed by classic American rock’n'roll in the purest sense: a healthy dose of blues, a helping of soul and a dusting of roots music. They’ll be at Club Nokia this Saturday.

Wanna go? Tell me your favorite band with an intentionally mis-spelled name. We’ll pick a few lucky winners to get pairs of tickets to the performance.

Show info is here.

I saw these guys last time they were in town. A co-worker, who’s a DJ, demanded I go. I was tired. I was whiny. I wanted to go home. The show blew me away. I danced until I was sweating.

So you should probably go to this show. Electronic acts at the Mayan art particularly fun, especially with the light show that accompanies SMD shows inside the cavernous, ornately decorated theatre.

To win tickets, tell me about your favorite place to eat hot dogs in LA. Why? Because every time I leave the Mayan there are people there on the sidewalk selling Danger Dogs, and hot damn are those things tasty.

Show info is here.

TMZ has a sad example of irresponsible reporting up in the form of this post showing what they allege is Governor Schwarzenegger parking in a red zone in Beverly Hills. But take a close look at that pic – it certainly doesn’t look like a street at all. Instead, this appears to be some sort of parking lot.

However, while TMZ negligently cites the wrong parking violation, they totally overlook the fact that the Porsche Schwarzenegger is driving lacks a front license plate, as required by the California Vehicle Code. I know, the sleek front of that $100,000 beauty would be marred by an unsightly license plate, and that Arnold can afford any ticket that will probably never come his way, but heck, even his wife can’t follow the hands free cell phone laws he passed, so blame it on her bad influence.

Or, maybe he reads LA Metblogs, and remembers this post about how removing your front license plate might actually save you money.

Photo by Ramey from TMZ, text and arrow added by me.

This years LA auto show is different than all others before it. This year will be the first year with the official sanctioning by the OICA “Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs d’Automoblies”. Yes, LA is officially one of the biggies on the international circuit which is appropriate for our importance in the world market place.

The first 4 winners will receive a nifty $50 value gift pack containing the following goodies:

• 1 general admission passes to the Show
• 1 LA Auto Show T-shirts
• LA Auto Show Messenger Bag
• other goodies from the Show!
• final 4 win tickets only (my bad on the clarification)

To win all you have to do is tell me why you want to attend and include a legit email address so I can contact you for mailing information on your prize package.

As we get closer to the auto show I’ll decipher and condense down the press releases, but Green Car of the Year is going to be celebrating its 5th anniversary and will be among the many events and premiers at this years show.

Details: LA Convention Center, LA Auto Show is open to the public Dec. 4-13. Hours are:
Weekdays: 11:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Saturdays: 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Sundays: 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Creativity103's photograph used through Creative Commons

The holidays can be a tough time for anyone, but they’re particularly tough for those of us who do not soften the sharp edges of family with alcohol or any other drugs. If you think you might need help getting through Thanksgiving without picking up or if, at some point during the holiday you decide you’re ready to try life without the monkey on your back, it might help to know that Narcotics Anonymous has two round-the-clock marathon meetings in the San Fernando Valley as well as one in Palmdale and another Pasadena. You can find information about all of them on the Southern California NA regional website. They each have meetings on the hour every hour and a potluck dinner. So put down the spoon and pick up a fork and check it out.

I am a firm believer in random acts of silliness to brighten an otherwise dreary moment.  I’ve done a few myself just to be different in a crowd.   Hat tip to friend and metblog commenter West Coast Grrly Blather for posting this on Facebook earlier today.  GuerilLA Improv has been at this for a while and you can see more silliness committed in LA on their Youtube channel.  Enjoy the smile on your Monday.

It's a Wrap! 2nd Annual Accessories Extravaganza Begins Friday

One of my favorite places to shop in Burbank is It’s a Wrap! They acquire mostly unworn or gently used wardrobe leftovers from movie studios at serious bargain prices. Imagine a thrift store that carries couture! They always have tons of designer labels for both men and women in a variety of sizes (not just size 2). They also have jewelry and accessories. I recently picked up a Prada dress with the tags still intact for under $200, six pairs of luxury tights (unopened) for $3 each, a silk scarf for $5 and a Theory trench coat for $10.

With all of this in mind, I seriously had second thoughts about publicizing this sale so that I could keep all of the bargains to myself, but what the hell. Starting this Friday, November 27, It’s a Wrap! will be hosting their Second Annual Accessories Extravaganza. Also, the first 25 customers to spend $50 or more in the store that day will receive a gift certificate (contact store for specifics).

Recent arrivals include wardrobe from “Monk,” “Deal or No Deal,” “House,” “Law Abiding Citizens,” “Dexter”, Read the rest of this entry →

As previously mentioned here at MetBlogs, French/German Action Hero Klaus Pierre has made his triumphant return to Los Angeles. Recently, producer/director Russ Gooberman caught up with Pierre to film this exclusive* interview with the soon-to-be icon.

In this interview Pierre discusses what he’s been up to for the past 18 months, experiences with eastern healing, and of course, his new movie, “Little Klaus, Big World.” (Fair warning: while Klaus’ accent may make it sound cool, depending on your work environment, some language may be NSFW.)

*exclusive to MetBlogs (and anyone else who can access YouTube.)