I ain't afraida no ghosts

Spotted this Chrysler 300 with license plates “ECTO 300″ and ghost-catching gear attached heading down Ventura Boulevard Sunday afternoon, but this was the only decent pic I was able to snap. I saw another Ghostbusters logo on the side of the vehicle as I passed, but no phone number to call when there’s somethin strange in your neighborhood. No indication as to whether this might be part of a rumored third installment in the Ghostbusters series, but I doubt it.

For old time’s sake:

Electric Santa, 4th Street Bridge. Weeeell after midnight. All is calm. All is quiet.

It’s not every Friday night of the year I dress up in an electric santa suit and go biking around Los Angeles  — just this one upcoming Friday night for the Midnight Ridazz 6th-Annual All-City Toy Ride.

This yearly convergence of multiple rides starting at various points around the greater Los Angeles area will bring hundreds  of toy-bearing cyclists together December 9 at 10 p.m. at the historic Plaza de Los Angeles gazebo to donate their gifts to The Alliance for Children’s Rights a worthy organization serving children in need.

All participants are asked to bring an unwrapped toy valued at $5-$25. The celebration will then continue after the toy collection with a ride through downtown that will end up at what I’m feeling will be the most kick ass after-party in the history of All-City Toy Rides, where there will be delicious foods, drinks, musics and funs.

The satellite rides to Olvera Street that are presently organized are as follows, so find the one nearest you and get yourself some of the most unique holiday spirit to be found in town (with or without an electric santa suit):

• Downtown
• East Hollywood
• East Los Angeles
• Echo Park
• Griffith Observatory
• Huntington Park
• Koreatown
• Long Beach
• North Hollywood
• Northeast Los Angeles
• Pasadena
• San Gabriel Valley
• West Los Angeles
• West San Fernando Valley

IMPORTANT: The post-ride party will have a guest list and you won’t be able to get in if you don’t RSVP, so if you’re coming do so either through the All-City Toy Ride’s Facebook page or via email at allcitytoyride@gmail.com.

By way of backstory, our previously existing birdbath proved to be low enough for our cats to nab the occasional sipping or splashing birdy — the most recent victim being a yellow-rumped warbler on Friday. So with a step ladder found discarded on the street last week I raised the water’s level to an elevation more than double its previous height and thus far more advantageous to our feathered friends rather than my beloved feline fiends. Then of course, I set up a camera up yesterday to timelapse the popular new set-up, and set the ensuing clip to a techno dance track that occasionally syncs with the birds’ movements so that it seems they’re boogeying more than bathing. Enjoy.

Heater Meal heating

The power going out in some ways turned out to be a nice little lesson on survival after the “Big One”.  In my corner of the SGV trees didn’t just break apart they were uprooted with giant rootballs leaving craters behind.  All that flying and falling trees made for numerous power lines down and power out for me for two-and-a-half days.  The clean up was all outside instead of inside, but still took plenty of man power to get things back in order, not unlike the aftermath of Northridge.

Once it became apparent that it would be days instead of hours before power was restored my neighbors and I got the brilliant idea to cook up all the perisables in our fridges and have a giant “candlelight potluck” party on the first night.  Chilly as it was in the house it was fun just talking with the neighbors, commiserating on the lack of power and just feasting and enjoying all the wine. Read the rest of this entry →

No, it’s not talk like a pirate day—it’s just windy as all get-out! And it doesn’t have anything to do with Blogging.LA blowing out candles.

In case you haven’t been able to load twitter or step outside today, you very well know that the wind is blowing hard here in LA. As I made my way East on the 101 toward my Studio City home last night, all sorts of debris blew past, including some old woman on a bicycle saying something about my little dog. A brief scan of twitter let me know that people from various parts of the city have been without power, such as a few friends in the Eagle Rock/ Glendale area.

What’s your experience of the wind been? Let us know in the comments—what part of town are you in and what effects have you witnessed?

8 years ago today the very first post went up here at blogging.la.  I for one have had a ton of fun and some interesting adventures courtesy this blog.  We’ve done a lot from the inane parking tard posts, to series to contests to Classic Eats and the Donut Summit.  We’ve blogged from the heart  covering everything from Downtown to the fringes of the suburbs and everything in between.   A lot of L.A. has been documented on this blog.  What has been your favorite post here?

In the area of Marina del Rey known as Grand Canal Lagoon stands a foot bridge that locals use to get from this sleepy part of the neighborhood to the relatively empty beach south of the Venice Pier. However, observant strollers will notice that, on the south wall of the bridge, a pensive Joe Strummer stares off into the distance, towards the beach.
Read the rest of this entry →

After the press conference this afternoon to celebrate the completion and opening of Los Angeles’ first-ever buffered and bright green Class II bike lane running on Spring Street between Cesar Chavez Avenue and 9th Street, the cyclists in attendance then inaugurated the wonderful thing with a bike ride upon it. During my second lap my timelapsing handlebar-mounted bike cam snapped the above shot as I passed great Los Angeles photographer Gary Leonard crouched as he snapped me. Of course I yelled “Take my picture, Gary Leonard!” while rolling by.

Oinkster Pastrami with Fries and Garlic Aioli

The Oinkster in Eagle Rock was our stop for dinner last night after the Auto Show. I learned about this place from my neighbor who gets around the city even more than I do. I was impressed.

Not being shy about hurling superlatives let me tell you that the “Oinkster Pastrami” was just about the best, scratch that, The Best pastrami sandwich I have ever had.  It is your classic corned beef that is hand pickled and roasted there.  It is the perfect blend of spice to slow cooked beef flavor without being too salty to enjoy.  It is on a french roll with sauteed onions, melty Gruyere cheese and red cabbage slaw.

Even the fries aren’t standard fast food fries. They are billed as Belgian Fries” and are double dipped for a nice crunch.  They are served with a nice garlic aioli…nice because yes you taste the garlic but its not so strong that it kills your taste buds for anything else. Read the rest of this entry →

Hope to see you at The Red Lion Tavern tomorrow evening!

Click here for the details!

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.  Read the rest of this entry →

MINI Coupe: all fun, no mess

Like many Los Angeles area folks, I’m crazy about cars. Fortunately, I’m able to incorporate my love into my work, and covered the L.A. Auto Show on Press Day 1 yesterday. Unfortunately, my day was ruled as much by the cars on the roads outside than by the shiny new models inside the Convention Center.

Read the rest of this entry →

Before the first time I ever visited Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles, I had a bit of a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of eating fried chicken alongside breakfast food. Well, aside from buttermilk biscuits, I suppose, which are a fine addition to any meal, any time of day.

That being said, I tried Roscoe’s, and I was immediately won over by it. So when I joined some friends for a meal at Green Leaves (an establishment that has previously been challenged about being truthful regarding its menu) and discovered that they had “Chicken” and Pancakes on the menu, I had to give it a shot.

The verdict on this menu choice is in: I have ordered nothing else during all of my subsequent visits to Green Leaves, and so it seemed worthy of a Menu Mining post here at Blogging.LA. It purports to be vegan, and even gluten-free, but I make no claims about its value in either of those respects. The “chicken” has a nice crispy breading and tastes simply wonderful, especially when dipped twice the way I was first taught at Roscoe’s: once in the spicy and once in the sweet. Sure this isn’t Louisiana Red Rooster hot sauce, but it does the trick.

If you happen to be in Los Feliz or West Hollywood and looking for something different, don’t hesitate to check out the “chicken” and pancakes. The pancakes are also available in tropical version, if you’re into the fruity stuff.

As seen last Sunday afternoon in Glassell Park. If you click for biggification you’ll better see the silhouette of a lone Nuttall’s woodpecker hanging inverted on the pole opposite the crosspiece.

Okay, here we go again. My plan is to revive Classic Eats this coming Saturday, November 19th. Please join me, and hopefully others, at The Red Lion Tavern in Silver Lake.

The Red Lion Tavern in Silver Lake is a German Gasthaus and Beer Garden that was established in 1959 as an English pub. When the ownership changed in 1963, it took on its German theme. There’s food, lots of beer, and atmosphere at the Red Lion. Come out this Saturday, November 19th at 6:30pm to have a bite to eat, a drink, and hang out with writers and readers of Blogging.la. If you missed a chance to celebrate Oktoberfest, now you can!

Classic Eats #15
Saturday, November 19th at 6:30pm

Red Lion Tavern
2366 Glendale Blvd 
Los Angeles, CA 90039-3209

The Red Lion Tavern is about 5 miles north of downtown L.A. It’s located just south of Silver Lake Boulevard. Limited parking is available in lots on either side of the building. There is also plenty of street parking in the vicinity. Leave a comment or drop me a line if you plan to attend so I know how many seats to snag.