I’m guilty of more than a few.  You?  I particularly like the dig about moving to the West Side…a place I barely know as there is simply no easy way to get there from where I live and there is never any parking.  There, I said it.

I was unsuccessful in an attempt to leave a comment of support or of use on his blog. I was swinging too severely between outrage and sadness. Still am. So I came here. To tell you a little something about Ed — which isn’t much, but it’s better than me cursing or crying.

Probably about five or six or so years ago we first met online here at Blogging.la. In January 2007  I posted an open invite for any and all fellow lunatics to join me in making good on a long-time resolution to walk the entire 24-mile length of Sunset Boulevard from Union Station to the sea. Ed commented that he was interested but had other plans. When the fateful day came in February I was joined by another B.la reader Don Hosek and USC grad student Lisl Walsh and off we went.

After the jump, Ed magically appears around Mile No. 23.

From my February 11, 2007 write-up of the trek:

A few more miles to the 405 Freeway at mile 17 or so is where Don opted to retire and await a ride home from his wife rather than continue on and get blisters on his blisters. So after a sentimental group hug photo Lisl and I trundled onward alongside the long and winding and rising and falling road until somewhere approaching the final mile a white Mercedes convertible came to a stop beside us and its kindly pilot asked me “Are you Will?” to which I said “Who the hell wants to know!?” “Why yes, I believe I am but a far more exhausted version of him” wherein he wanted to know where all the other walkers were and Lisl said “We’re it!” and then he introduced himself as regular B.la reader Edward Padgett and compimented us on our perseverence before saying he’d meet us at Gladstones and we said cool. After he pulled away I only half (OK, two-thirds) jokingly asked after him if he’d give us a ride, but deisel-powered Lisl who had her eyes on the prize had already gotten back into step and onward we soldiered until we kicked ass in acheiving our PCH destination at 4:13 p.m. wherein we proudly retired to Ed’s congratulations and his table inside Gladstones and he bought us a round of drinks and we talked until it was time to get back up Sunset to catch the No. 2 MTA bus that would bring us back from whence we’d come. And it did.

My point with all this is to demonstrate what an absolutely awesome guy Ed was to go out of his way to be there to celebrate us when Lisl and I put an exclamation point at the end of that 24-mile sentence. From that very moment when he drove up to us from out of nowhere I’ve been a card-carrying member of his fan club.

Looking back over the last almost-40 years of the Los Angeles Times there have been parent companies, publishers, editors, writers, and photographers who have come and gone. But in that span of ever-increasing disposability Ed Padgett has been there helping make every single paper that I’ve picked up and read. It was something I proudly acknowledged any number of mornings standing there with the day’s edition fresh in my hands.

With such a pro-Padgett bias I just can’t rationalize continuing my subscription to the product of a company so decidedly and dastardly anti-Ed. I expect when I call to cancel today, I’ll do so via representatives in Bangalore or Manila who’ll be obligated to ask the reason why I’m terminating. I’ll tell them, “They fired a friend of mine.”

Cadillac ELR formerly known as the Converj coming to us soon.

Wednesday I got to meet up with GM exec Jim Federico, Executive Director of Engineering, Electric Vehicles at the L.A. Auto Show. I got to ask some of my own questions as well as those you readers posed as part of the ticket contest I was able to run. It was an interesting visit, certainly a lot of information with some answers as well. Where to start with the questions and answers is my big dilemma.

Al Pavangkanan posed the question regarding new battery technology. Jim couldn’t give specifics of what they have in store but did say that they are working with the battery suppliers to develop new technologies that will give us more power for the size compared to what we have now. The problem all the manufacturers have run into is that there isn’t a rush to develop batteries as there isn’t really a market demand for them yet in quantities to offset their costs. Those costs affect what we pay for an EV now, but as demand increases, production increases there will be more incentive to develop new battery technology and help lower costs. 

GM has several Electric vehicles coming our way. In answer to reader Gzank6 I got multiple answers regarding the sticker shock of an EV. Short term, yes we will see more affordable EV’s as well as more expensive luxurious ones coming our way from GM. Short term we will be seeing the Spark EV due this spring in Los Angeles that will be priced “much less” than the Volt. The Spark EV will be an all electric auto. It will be followed by a much more luxurious Cadillac ELR in a couple of years. The ELR will be based on the Volt plug-in gas electrification strategy and designed to fit a premium automobile.  Pricing is really affected by the cost of the battery, as demand increases and production increases there will be savings in terms of volume that will enable manufacturers to price the cars lower than we see right now. He couldn’t give me the specifics on other cars coming our way in the near future but could tell me we will see several electrified vehicles in the future.

Ticket winner Buzz posed two questions. First was whether EV’s were just temporary followed by what “green technology” will GM use in the future for market sustainability. Federico stated quite clearly that GM sees Electrification as the future of the automobile. It will come in many forms. From pure EV’s to plug-in to fuel cells. Electric automobiles will be the future regardless of where the electricity comes from whether it be plugging into the power grid, fuel cells or a “1 cylinder diesel” powering an on-board generator. All of those are in GM’s current research plans and we will see it in our cars here in L.A. in the not too distant future.

Reader Doni elle raised several questions. From their being “curiosities” to the issue of infrastructure and lack of support for apartment dwellers in particular. Infrastructure is a problem for the roll out of Electric Vehicles and plug ins. Federico said that GM and the other manufacturers are working with state and local officials to address these concerns. The better the infrastructure to support an EV the better it will be for all of the manufacturers. Right now we are in the infancy of the Electric car and as the market grows we will see many more varieties of cars to suit different drivers needs. This growth is dependant on infrastructure development not just in L.A but across the country, at least here we are eager to get our hands on them.

For reader Genie, the question of carbon foot print was raised. GM addresses in how the car is made where possible and is improving on that. How the car is charged is an infrastructure issue. (My two cents on that topic is that as long as we are generating our power from the burning of fossil fuels instead of clean sources the EV’s will always have a CO2 component to them. I won’t plug another manufacturer here but at least one will offer up a solar option through the dealership selling you the EV that will give you a carbon offset enough to cover the juice needed to charge the car).

He has several posts, the one I found most fascinating was the map of Tongva Villages overlaid onto a map of the L.A. area.  Militant Angeleno went as far as to take that map and list the villages by name and the modern city built over them.  I just wish I lived in one of those cities that had a Tongva name, I’d go as far as using it as my official city of residence instead of the current name…mail would still get to me using the zip code but how fun would that be to pay homage the natives that were here first and confusing stalkers at the same time.

I asked him if there was any hope of restoring the Ed Ruscha mural that had been despicably painted out in 2006 (and for which he ultimately settled a lawsuit in 2008 for a reported $1.1 million). He said he hoped for its return but that it would be put up in a different location.

The one mural of his also unceremoniously destroyed whose return I’ve long hoped for is his two-story cool-as-ice-blue Steve McQueen Monument, painted the same year as the one above.

I first found it during the inaugural LA Marathon Bike Tour in 1995 when I looked up while pedaling hard south on Union Avenue approaching 12th Street and did a double-take at something so awesome and unexpected. Sometime around 2001, it was accidentally painted out and I’ve mourned its loss since.

So when I asked if it might ever be revived you can perhaps understand how ecstatic I became when he matter-of-factly told me that it was already back and only needed a “day or two more” until it was complete.

So of course, after enjoying the thrilltastic rollercoasticiousness that is “Super 8″ at the Regal Cinemas this morning, Susan and I drove over to Union and 12th and boy was Steve’s brand new piercing gaze (as seen at right) a site for sore eyes (click to enlargify).

I’m just a bit melancholy this morning. My youngest is finishing up middle school where it seems like I’ve spent an eternity already. Both of my boys were in Drama as their elective. Their fall and spring plays were always punctuated with some corny jokes by their teacher Randy Medina during the intermission.  Last night was my final “Spring Performance” by the Clifton Middle School Drama class and am going to miss those corny, punny jokes of his.

Meet Evan Cook, the Monrovia Association of Fine Art’s Student Artist of the Year.  I have to admit the funnest part of being in MAFA is to find young talent and help recognize them and foster their interest in creating art.  Watching Evan grow into his art the last few years has been fun and certainly he has grown tremendously under the mentoring of his teacher at MHS, Sal Perez, and his employer Lisa Barrios of the Paint n Play Art Studio and Gallery.  At Paint n Play Evan both shows his work and gives lessons on the potters wheel and ceramics.

More about him in the Fine Art Trekkin’ Monrovia blog post by Ginger Van Hook.  (She also made this interview video with Evan).

Evan will receive his award at tonight’s Acknowledge the Arts event.  This event is MAFA’s fund raiser for the year.  Also receiving awards tonight is Clarence Shaw – Renaissance Award, Doug Gordon – Heart in the Arts Award.  Clarence is a City Council Member that supports programs that help bring art to the community and schools.  Doug Gordon receives his award for all he does to keep MAFA up and running during the course of the year, especially his long hours in keeping our web site up and running.

If you have any interest in attending you can save yourself a few bucks by purchasing your tickets in advance at the MAFA web site.  They cost $35 in advance or $50 at the door.  That includes munchies, beer, wine and “artinis”.

Details: Acknowledge the Arts, 7-10PM Krikorian Theater, 410 S Myrtle Avenue, Monrovia CA 91016

Disclosure…if you have forgotten I serve as Veep and am on the board of the Monrovia Association of Fine Arts.

This particular bear is “Samson the Tourist Bear” and is done by local Artist Rick Kess. Rick is an artist that works at Disney making the floats for the parade. His bear took nearly 2 weeks to complete. Like all of the artists Rick started with a basic fiberglass bear which he embellished, a lot, before applying paint. The complete embellishment process can be found in my flickr set. All these images get bigger with a click.

So, in the midst of my running around today, I opted to stop at Trader Joe’s. I swung into the one on 3rd and LaBrea on my way back across town.

On a Side Note – Had I not needed a few items, I’d have avoided the area entirely, and I’d advise you do the same; there is crazy construction going on near there that will tie up traffic for the next month or so. Through May 23rd, I believe.

Anyway, I circle my way through the store, gather my few things, drink a dixie cup of coffee, try out a Latka with applesauce, and I come across that rare and beautiful thing: an open checker with no line. Awesome. (It always makes me a little suspicious, like ample free parking – I always think there must be some mistake.)

The checker and I are having a nice banter, trading ideas on making quick dinners out of the things in my basket, and he rings me up for a total of about 18 bucks. I reach for my wallet and … I don’t have my debit card on me. Oh, Crap. I have all of about two bucks in cash.

“OK, I’m sorry, but we have a problem,” I say, “I’m embarrassed, really. I don’t have my card on me for some reason. I so sorry, man. I must have taken it out at home, or something.” The clerk’s totally cool about it, I check my other pockets, kinda shrug sheepishly, apologize again, and make to leave, when I hear a voice.

“You don’t have any dough?” I hadn’t even seen the guy get in line behind me. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll cover you.”

What?

The thought went through my mind in the kind of stunned silence before I found the wherewithal to speak. “What? No. That’s ridiculous, thank you, but I just forgot my card, I can come back. That’s very nice, but … Thank You, I’m okay…”

He would not be dissuaded, “No, it’s fine, it’ll come back around to me, it’s Good Friday, it’s no problem, I insist. Pay it back down the road, it’s all good…”

He walked over to grab some paper products, past the clerk, told him to add it to his stuff and then started giving him his things to ring up. I protested again, but he would not relent.

The clerk and I were stunned. Should I have protested a bit more and ultimately refused? Possibly. Frankly, and I mean this, it really kind of dazed me. So, still stunned, I thanked him profusely, shook both their hands and walked out the door. Outside was a woman collecting for a Homeless Charity, I stuffed that last two bucks of mine into the collection box and asked her to have a nice weekend. I drove home slack jawed, and started writing this post.

So, Hey Man, where ever you are, Thank You. I hope to not only pay your kindness forward, at some point, or whatever the phrase is, but I hope in so doing I can truly brighten and astound someone’s day in the way you did mine. I’m not even sure entirely what Good Friday is, or is meant to be about, but you’ve certainly made an impression on me about it. Lord knows my history with it is slightly checkered.

Here’s to keeping that Spirit of Kindness alive no matter the date, time or reason. (or denomination.)

Thanks Again, Man.

What I wrote on the one-year anniversary still covers how I feel:

Every time I’ve since passed the corners of Golden Gate and Sunset Boulevard where I most often saw him living his life out loud and leading his one-man parades, I still look for him and I still can’t believe he and his colorful extravagance now live only in the hearts and memories of those who miss him so, like me.

Viva El Circo Loco! Viva Antonio Ruiz!