Saturday, July 05, 2014
Shaken awake
I had just gotten down for a late morning nap and things started to shake.
Earthquakes shake Southern California
It shook, then shook again and finally kept shaking. A 4.something.
When we came out here, we were very very earthquake sensitive.
I remember being at a motel for some work. The place shook one night and I went out of my room. Quickly. There was one other guy doing the same.
He was an easterner too.
Not one of the other people in the motel came out of their room. Welcome to California.
It is a little exciting but no big deal. There is no question that there is a quake happening. It is quite identifiable. It could be nothing else.
No truck out in the street next to the condo, no thunder, no nothing. An earthquake.
I am a veteran now. I just stay where I am, preferably lying down and wait. They used to say you should stay under a doorjamb but I have since been told this is not true.
Besides, there isn't a lot of time to do anything other than what you are already doing.
The epicenter was a bit north of Big Bear Lake where we were last week. Rats. We missed it.
But there was enough here to enjoy it.
The first one we witnessed was while we were at a store in Palm Desert. Shaky enough to be scary. But once one is in a series of them, they become normally abnormal.
Labels: earthquake, nature, SoCal
Friday, July 15, 2011
CARMAGEDDON
This is an old gag. Writing a new script for this segment of the film Downfall with Bruno Ganz as Der Feurher. A cliche by now.
But this one is so good that it has to be shared.
They will be closing the 405 around LA this weekend. Two days.
You would think that they were giving a 9.0 quake. An attack by aliens. A tea party demonstration.
But no. It is the 405 on a weekend and people are asked not to use it.
This reaction is not an overstatement. You have no idea.
Only in Southern California.
When they rebuilt the Southeast Expressway in Boston it took two years and it all worked. Well, pretty well. And people went along with it. Here, it is a personal insult.
Monday, January 24, 2011
SAD BUT TRUE
Today in the NYTimes, a fair, non-gloating rundown of the problems at the LA Times.
Los Angeles Times Has Lost Its Standing at Home
For sure.
When we moved here, we became delighted subscribers to the LAT. It was much better than we were used to with the Boston Globe. It had depth, interest, personalties (star writers and columnists), a great weekly magazine and first class coverage.
Then, trouble came.
It got smaller, the magazine became a monthly, the writers we liked took off (Dan Neil to the Wall Street Journal with the same automotive column) and so on.
Finally, when it was so thin that I could get through it in ten minutes, we gave up.
Mournfully.
Economy, lost readers, a downward spiral of pissing its readers off, losing readers, having to cut more.
There is no California section, one of the best. Folded into the front fold.
Cut, cut, cut. It is all here in this article.
I usually brace myself for any NYTimes article about LA or Southern California because they are often snooty and superior acting. But, in this case, they are mournful too.
The quality of the paper is not in dispute. They have the bureaus and the writers but no muscle.
Then there is the on line version of the paper. It was terrible before the print version came down and so they were behind from the get go on their email summary and the web site. Now, it is improving but it is a shade of the other papers I look at on line.
Like I said, sad.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
TWO STRIKING WRITERS WALKED INTO A BAR
Today the LAT op-ed has a series of small pieces by some now back-to-work writers.
Most of them are hilarious and all of them are interesting to read.
Just a bit of SoCal culture here.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
CARWASH
When I was first living in PS, I loved going to the carwash.
I took the Jeep (my vehicle) almost weekly.
I even bought the discount coupon/gift certificates during the holidays to 'save money'.
Hard to figure how washing the car so often would save money even at a discount.
Perhaps I was fulfilling some illusion about SoCal living.
Well, it is true that people love their cars here and wash them frequently. I have seen far more clean vehicles enter the washing tunnel than just mine.
Maybe I had a compulsion like the people who have to wash their hands three times.
Maybe an 'out damn spot' sort of deal; guilt about having three cars?
In any case, I am over it.
I have not taken the Jeep for a cleanup for months. I still have the gift coupons from the purchase I made two seasons ago.
But, today, I went and did the deed.
I am surprised that they did not charge me extra for all the dog snot on the windows.
Ohhhhhhh!
That's it!
We got a dog!
The satisfaction of a good wash is undone in minutes when you have an Airedale nosing and tonguing the glass.
Of course, I cannot blame Franklin for the outside's dirt. But it is the glass that we see most of all.
It was fun to go and see the old gang. They are still there.
I put it in the lineup, went to the back waiting area (they fixed the water fountain while I was gone), and watched the 'boys' do the final wipe and cleaning of the windows.
No one said anything about the dog snot.
I did add a bit to the normal tip.
On the way home I had that SoCal glow on.
Franklin will not take a ride until tomorrow morning.
The bump will last 24 hours.
Then we will go back into the 'dirty car' mode for as long as I can stand it.
Labels: culture, Franklin, SoCal
