Hat tip to my friend Ann Erdman the Pasadena PIO for this alert.

“In case you or someone you know plans on flying today, Southwest Airlines is canceling 17 arrivals and 17 departures at Bob Hope Airport (Burbank) between 1 and 6 p.m. this afternoon due to widespread inclement weather. It is also shutting down its operations at John Wayne Airport, San Diego, Ontario, and Phoenix. LAX flights remain on advisory status. “

Its all weather related.  To check things out prior to departures at the other airports check with Southwest’s web.

So one of my favorite walking-distance restaurants is No Place Like Home – the food is good-not-great, but it’s cheaper than The Alcove (which I won’t link to because of its horrid auto-play music), and with its courtyard fountain filled with plastic toy dinosaurs, it’s got a great ambiance. The only problem? Smokers.

Now, I know, all the smokers out there are going to hate me for this.”If you don’t like it, don’t go there! It’s that simple!” they’ll shout, probably in all caps. “Reason magazine agrees with me! So do Penn and Teller!” But there’s nothing worse that eating club sandwich through a haze of nicotine smoke. And if all the restaurants in LA wanted to go ahead and ban smoking from their outdoor patios, that would be just fine with me.

And it looks like the city council agrees with me. As of next year, smoking will no longer be allowed in places like No Place Like Home’s courtyard, Fred 62′s sidewalk tables, or the House of Pies’s patio. And in a coup for non-smokers, another safe zone: A 40-foot radius around any food truck.

I have a feeling that last one will see about as much enforcement as the no-cell-phones-while driving rule does, but hey, it’s the thought that counts. And it’ll be a hell of a lot nicer to walk through Los Feliz village without having to pass through cloying wisps of Camel-stank. Thank you, city council.

Ah, to be a bird in a Katherine Chiu piece.

Apparently, the time to have an existentialist dilemma about which non-profit group will best use donations in a time of crisis is during the time of crisis.  Prime example: the devastation crippling Haiti, in which my Facebook page, Twitter, and inbox all have been flooded with half-debates over which group would best utilize funds.  Wyclef’s Yele Haiti Foundation?  Partners in Health?  George Clooney’s Haiti-o-thon?  The Southern California Mobile Food Vendors Association, however, has its mind made up: the Red Cross.  The Association has organized a food truck fundraiser on Saturday from 11am to 4pm, with nearly two dozen food trucks committed to donating a portion of their proceeds to the Red Cross.  The Dosa Truck, Buttermilk Truck, and South Philly Experience Truck are among the donees that will congregate  in front of T-Lofts on Olympic and Butler.

A few hours later, Tinlark Gallery, which aims to cultivate both young artists and the art collector in all of us by making design within economical reach, will have its Third Anniversary Show, “Three x Ten.”  From 6 to 9, the 6″ x 6″ works of 30 pretty sweet artists – i.e., Katherine Chiu, APAK, and Brooks Salzwedel - will be featured and for sale.  You can even bring the kiddies to this one, as artist Wesely Younie promises a secret “special craft” session to entertain them.  It’ll be like dropping the kids off at the swimming pool of balls at Ikea, except you’ll come home with something that actually will last more than a year.

The Food Trucks for Haiti event is on Saturday, 11am to 4pm, at T-Lofts (11500 Tennesee Blvd.)

Tinlark’s “Three x Ten” is from 6pm – 9pm and is located at 6671 Sunset Boulevard #1512 in Hollywood.

Last weekend, two of my most fashionable ladyfriends and I got all dolled up in our Sunday best, and headed downtown to the Biltmore for Practically Perfect Tea. Yes, that would be Mary Poppins-themed tea, which the Biltmore is hosting Wednesdays through Sundays until February 7th, in conjunction with the current production of Mary Poppins that’s on stage at the Ahmanson. While there wasn’t anything particularly Mary Poppins-y about the tea itself, beyond cutsey Poppins-themed menu items (Supercalifragilistic Scones, anyone?) it was still pretty great. (Although I will confess that I was sad that tea wasn’t served by dancing chimney sweeps.)

courtesy of digiyesica

I love going to tea. I love the ceremony of it. I love the tiny, stupid-looking sandwiches, I love the three-tiered trays of goodies, I love the fancy china, I love pretending that I’m fancy enough to sip tea with my pinky up (I’m totally not). I also love the Biltmore – I’d never been before – because it is so gorgeous and over the top and ridiculous, although the entire time I was there I couldn’t shake this weird paranoid feeling that someone would notice how not-fancy-enough-for-the-Biltmore I am and kick me out. But I managed to fool them for long enough to drink so much tea that I couldn’t sleep all night. (And now I am secretly on the lookout for a wealthy patron to put me up in a suite at there so I can spend my days drinking tea in the Rendezvous Court whilst writing my memoirs.)

Some teatime tips: We tried a few different teas, and the Blue Peacock Darjeeling was my favorite (in no small part because it has the silliest name). And if you go, you should for sure dress up – we all wore our Totally Cutest dresses, but I was Totally Jealous of the ladies at the next table who all had matching hats and gloves. High tea is like a wonderful, anachronistic game of let’s pretend, so you might as well push the costuming as far as you can. And don’t be fooled: even though all of the food is excessively dainty and bite-sized, there is a lot of it (sandwiches, scones, tarts, tiny cakes, chocolate-covered strawberries!) and I was so full of scone that I seriously had to go home and lie down when it was all over. But it’s lovely and fun and Mary Poppins-approved, and when are British nannies ever wrong?

In 1995, one of the most shocking cases of modern day slavery unfolded in Los Angeles’ backyard. 72 garment workers were discovered in an El Monte compound living in captivity and under squalid conditions, producing clothing for such major labels as Anchor Blue, Clio, and B.U.M. A majority of these garment workers were of Thai descent.

Modern day slavery and trafficking fuels an underground economy that goes unnoticed to many. Victims generally labor in the garment, toy manufacturing, agricultural, and sex industries as well as serve in households cleaning homes or providing childcare to the families of their slaveholders. Every year, at least 17,000 people are trafficked in the U.S., with the majority of victims consisting of women and children. Los Angeles serves as one of three main points of entry.

As part of an effort to utilize the arts to raise awareness about this seldom discussed issue in the Asian Pacific Islander American community, East West Players (EWP) and the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking (CAST) are presenting a special event this Thursday evening that is free and open to the public:

Excerpts from: THE GIRLS FROM AFAR by Libby Emmons, a staged reading directed by Jeff Liu

Featuring:
Dante Basco (Hook, Take the Lead)
Fran de Leon (Dogeaters at the Kirk Douglas Theatre)
James Kyson Lee (NBC’s Heroes)
Camille Mana (UPN’s One on One)
Tamlyn Tomita (The Karate Kid II, The Joy Luck Club).

Thursday, January 21, 2010
7:30 PM – show
Panel Discussion & Reception to follow
Tateuchi Democracy Forum in the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy
(Across the parking lot at East West Players next to the Japanese American National Museum)
111 N. Central Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90012
RSVP to (213) 625-7000 or on Facebook

This is just one of several events for CAST’s monthlong “From Slavery to Freedom” campaign.

Stinking up the joint for the last time.

The owner of Stinker’s Truck Stop, the 70′s truck stop-themed bar in Silver Lake, has decided he’s bored with that concept and wants to do something new. Toward that end, Stinker’s is holding their First And Last Annual Auction on Tuesday, February 9.

Items to be sold include everything from a late-70′s Trans Am hood, actual CB radios and more Burt Reynolds items than is healthy, to the bathroom condom vending machine. Of course, the famed skunk butts are on the block, as well. The auction will also feature DJs, plenty of Colt 45 and giveaways such as Stinker’s air fresheners, t-shirts and trucker hats.

What: Stinker’s Truck Stop First and Last Annual Auction
When: Tuesday, February 9
Auction preview at 8:00pm, live auction at 9:00pm
Where: Stinker’s Truck Stop
2939 West Sunset Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90026

(The link above goes to Stinker’s Yelp page. Stinker’s own website still has a simple splash page stating “Coming Soon.” So…maybe not.)

Thanks to the newly launched LA Gangtours you have a better option then just aimlessly driving around in neighborhoods you really have no business being in. This past weekend they held their first tour, and for $65 a person participants were given front row seats to the location of historic gang related events, and LA’s many lock ups. City Councilman Dennis Zine told ABC News “It’s a terrible idea. Is it worth that thrill for 65 bucks? You can go to a (gang) movie for a lot less and not put yourself at risk.” But I think it’s a brilliant idea for just that very reason.

There are a large group of people, LA residents and not, who have no idea what gang culture is other than what is shown to them in hollywood movies, and we all know how completely accurate those are. And like it or not, gang culture is a huge part of what makes LA what it is. It surrounds all of us all the time, yet a lot of people have no idea. This isn’t simply a spectator sport, it’s an education. Founded by Alfred Lomas, an ex F13 member himself, “The objective is to create jobs for the residents of South Central, Los Angeles; to give profits from the tours back to these areas for economic growth and development, provide job/entrepreneur training, micro-financing opportunities and to specialize in educating people from around the world about the Los Angeles inner city lifestyle, gang involvement and solutions.”

I totally want to take this tour.

Hey Angelenos, you think this rain sucks? Just wait until General Zod unleashes his justly wrath upon those who fail to worship his Zodliness!

How best to pledge your allegiance, you ask?

First, forget all about the son of Jor-El! “Superman,” as you call him, wasn’t there to stop Prop 8, he didn’t do a damn thing about Haiti and he sure as hell wasn’t there yesterday in Massachusetts.

Second, make your way to the Egyptian Theatre this weekend, where the American Cinematheque is presenting a digital restoration retrospective that features classic films that have undergone digital facelifts. Why? Because among the films being screened are a double feature of Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980) on Sunday. I don’t think I have to tell you who to root for in the latter.

And finally, go out and buy a dozen of these suckers.

That is all, humans.

Image: Zod, by Earth-based artist P5YCHIC.

Crosby, Mason and Harold in Orpheus Descending

When celebrities start doing theater in Los Angeles, you can bet it’s a labor of love.  And that’s absolutely true of the rarely produced Tennessee Williams play Orpheus Descending taking place at Theater/Theater until February 21^st.  Starring Gale Harold (Queer as Folk), Denise Crosby (Star Trek TNG), and cover girl-turned-actress Claudia Mason (Vogue, Elle, W, Cosmopolitan), the play is Tennessee Williams’ take on Orpheus and Eurydice as set in the South, the perfect American equivalent for emotional repression and alienation.  It was his ultimate ode to his youth and took him a laborious 17 years to complete to his satisfaction.

The production itself was also a carefully constructed labor, born out of a collective of artists with director Lou Pepe leading the way.  I had the opportunity to speak with Claudia Mason, who takes on the role of the Greek Chorus as the outsider Carol Cutrere, about the process of bringing this play to life.  There was a great deal of artistic luxury with role playing to fill in the subtexts and events that directly affect what takes place on stage.  It was that intense commitment to exploration that Claudia shared as her favorite part of the rehearsal process.

Orpheus Descending opened last week to mixed reviews.  The play is a snapshot in time and very weighty in theme. In a time when so many people are still struggling in the hard hit Los Angeles economy, it’s not the kind of escapism many are seeking.  But, from what I can gather, watching Denise Crosby run the gamut of emotional range from one end of the spectrum to the other with a dizzying ease is worth the price of admission.  It’s the value of any celebrity driven theater – getting to see these people who are at the top of their game work just a few feet away from you.  Even if it isn’t award winning, it’s still incredible to witness.  If you go with that perspective, you won’t leave disappointed.

Orpheus Descending runs Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 2 pm, January 15 through February 21.  General admission is $25.  Theatre/Theater is located at 5041 W Pico Blvd., Los Angeles CA 90019 (two blocks west of La Brea, ample street parking available),  For reservations and information, call (800) 838-3006 or go to  www.BrownPaperTickets.com/event/92508 .

Yesterday, I was out on the roads during some periods of heavy rainfall in the late morning, and was surprised to see that a lot of drivers — probably one out of every dozen, on average — were not using their headlights.  People, please.  That’s irrational and dangerous.  It’s also illegal where you’re driving in “[a] condition requiring the windshield wipers to be in continuous use due to rain, mist, snow, fog, or other precipitation or atmospheric moisture.”  So please use some common sense, follow the law, and turn those headlights on in the rain.

Screw Christmas. This is the most wonderful time of the year: Girl Scout cookie season! On a whim and inspired by Erin Broadley’s @LAWeekly tweet re. cookies that can increase your bustline (don’t they all do that, if you eat the whole box?), I went & checked on the due date for our local Peanut Butter Patty purveyors here, and their “find a cookie” widget tells me we have three days, six hours, 39 minutes and a rapidly decreasing number of seconds until Samoas get slung in the city of Angels.

LA, grab your snuggies and settle in, cuz those pencil pants ain’t gonna fit in a few weeks.

Will you be selling Girl Scout cookies (I’m talking to you, Overzealous Parent)? I want your cookies. I bet a lot of other people do, too. If you want to leave info in the comments to help me find you when it’s time to buy, go right ahead! Los Angeles–and an entire secondary ecosystem of Curves, Bally’s gyms, personal trainers and lipo clinics–thanks you.

According to the good folks at Takeover LA there are some new tactics being deployed in the war against bike thieves. In days of old when someone was caught stealing a bike, especially the bike of a bike messenger the would be thief was usually beat to a pulp and sent home bleeding. Perhaps out of boredom with the same old routine, there are reports that the beatings have stopped and stripping has begun. That’s right, there are a few recent documented cases of people catching bike thieves in the act but instead of violence, they are simple taking everything from the thieves, EVERYTHING, and making them walk home in their underwear. Vigilante justice? Sure, but at least it’s amusing.

If you’ve been on Facebook in the last couple of months, then you might have been inundated with requests to vote in Chase’s Community Giving Facebook Campaign. With financial resources drying up for many organizations, this campaign has been a rare opportunity for non-profit orgs to come by cold, hard cash by simply leveraging their social media muscles. Out of more than a half million eligible organizations, the Top 100 vote getters in Round 1 have moved on to the final round of voting, which is happening now. Top 100 orgs are already the recepients of a $25,000 grant, but the top organization gets $1 million.

Six Los Angeles area organizations are in the running for the $1M: [links go to Facebook pages]

In the spirit of full disclosure, I have been supporting the Center for the Pacific Asian Family (CPAF) in this campaign, since I feel that their “big idea” has the greatest potential for immediate impact on those who are living in Los Angeles, right now. CPAF was founded to help address domestic violence and sexual assault in the Asian and Pacific Islander communities. Up to 60% of Asian and Pacific American women experience domestic or sexual abuse in their lifetime, and are the least likely to report the abuse. Since the economic downturn in 2008, domestic violence has been on the rise. With cutbacks in state funding, non-profits like CPAF are forced to turn away more callers trying to flee a violent home.
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Seen on Fairfax Avenue in Little Ethiopia.

Yes. That is 3 (THREE) signs ensuring you get that they do Fluff & Fold. I love this.

After most of the rain had fallen from today’s storm, I was enamored enough with the dramatic cloud movement inland to point my camera out through the rain spatterings on my 10th-floor Westchester office window looking south/southwest in the direction of LAX and timelapse the dense blanket of gray as it blew through, eventually giving way to bluer skies.

It’s about 90 minutes condensed down to 6.5 minutes of potential zen. Hope you enjoy.