Saturday, October 27, 2007

L.A.observation: advertising overkill

How come everytime the MTA gets an advertising contract, they execute it with such uncreative overkill?

Monday, October 15, 2007

L.Á.resource: New video clips from The Smoking Gun


The Smoking Gun's collection of video clips has expanded. This clip showcases the new 1952 swimsuits designs from Cole in Hollywood.

Friday, October 12, 2007

L.Á.propaganda: freeways

Is it totally horrifying that L.A.'s night time traffic can be made to look so peaceful and alluring...? I won't let this pro-car/freeway fetish propaganda piece transform me into one of those in the want of a car, or one who justifies the car for that matter.

I'm not one who shares in the belief that there is a collective unity that freeways somehow bind us Angelinos to. That's a romanticized view of the simpleton's limited perspective that overlooks how freeways and the car have consistently destroyed this city. (Hence why my being mesmerized by this video shall make me go home kneebound and self flogging).

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

L.Á.moment: Morrissey at the Hollywood Palladium

Morrissey gave us the chance to see the Hollywood Palladium one last time before it undergoes its overdue overhaul. I hope it doesn't lose its 1940's charm, much of which you have to look hard to actually see. Although the photos don't show it, Morrissey's lighting design was beautiful and his performance was truly memorable in that he represents the true songwriter's singer/songwriter, perhaps one of the last of his kind...



Opening, Kristeen Young could belt it out long and hard and I wish I could sing like her...




After Kristeen Young, there was a great collection of vintage films shown between sets. All were in the vintage mid-century international vein that the Smiths and Morrissey have played with graphically over the years. The true Morrissey believers, our friends from the Latino suburbs of L.A., even in all these films' air of cheekiness, were more mesmerized by the emotion of anticipation...




You can barely see Morrissey, in fact, you can't make him out at all, but can you see the child in front of me? She's sleeping on the shoulder of an audience member (and assumedly her Father)?!!! O.k., I have training in the care and feeding of cats, but doesn't it seem remotely cruel to bring a child to a concert?!!



(All photos taken via mobile phone)...

L.Á.fotos: making up for lost time Part Eww, No


What the world might look like if all the billboards were erased...
[Boyle Heights]





This MacCarthur Park/Koreatown adjacent development "Circa" has already been gang-graffiti'd...well at least, the "a" of "Circa" has.
[Koreatown/MacCarthur Park]













Once a temple to Art Deco era consumerism, this Bullocks Wilshire is now the Southwestern Law Library
[Koreatown]













The Men's Room at the Gay and Lesbian Center has a baby changing table that has been gang graffit'd...can the 21st Century get any more complicated?
[Hollywood]


(All photos taken via mobile phone)...

L.Á.fotos: making up for lost time...¿por qúe?

Ugh, I've been job hunting non-stop the passed few weeks and finally after almost 6 months I've gotten myself back in the contributing member of society club...it may not be exactly where I want to be, but for now it's a great job and a great opportunity. So, following are a number of photos I've taken but not have had the time to upload and share...please enjoy responsibly...

Jean-Luc Turbo

L.Á.fotos: making up for lost time Part Dose




It took me 18 months to get over my inner Orange County-ness so that I could finally partake in this fly by night taqueria that shows up most nights on Cesar E. Chavez and Gallardo. Powered by their own generator, it's tacos only at only a dollar a taco. People driving by and from nearby La Zona Rosa, a local dance place, come to this taco stand mirage. Even parking meter attendants working late night and this last time, a white bedecked guild of mariachis consumed enthusiastically as these are by far Boyle Heights' best tacos...and I don't normally speak in black and white absolutes...(Photos taken via mobile phone)...

L.Á.fotos: making up for lost time Part Trace



The Library Tower, now crowned the US Bank Building, (and not the "Liberty Tower" as our dear President referred to it when mentioning an Al Qaida plot to crash a plane into it/blow it up/create a controlled implosion of it)...in all its "green" glory.

...and, speaking of "green", I now believe my camera phone is taking these crazy colorized photos due to the camera phone's white balance being tweaked, of which, as of this moment, I have been unable to de-tweak...not that I'm itching to, come to think of it. The colors remind me of that process of developing slide film as picture photos...where colors become surrealized and saturated...Could anyone share how I could fix this color issue, if, if ever I decided to have a more established reality in photo color depictions? (Photos taken via mobile phone)...

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

L.Á.inthenews: L.A.-based American Apparel in The Onion

14 American Apparel Models Freed In Daring Midnight Raid

The Onion

14 American Apparel Models Freed In Daring Midnight Raid

LOS ANGELES—"There were girls everywhere," FBI agent Curtis Froman said. "Draped over furniture, sprawled spread-eagled in the corner, and huddled close like animals."

Monday, September 10, 2007

L.A.moment: Allen Ave. Goldline Station, Pasadena

Another beautiful view of the mountains...(Photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

Sunday, September 09, 2007

L.Á.television: MV3



New Wave alternative to MTV, Richard Blade of the original KROQ brought videos and live performances from local L.Á. new wave bands as well as ones that were in town. Lo-budget yet compelling to this at the time junior high school kid...

Saturday, September 08, 2007

L.A.moment: Drinx at Banquette

Casual drinks at this small cafe downtown...oh how great life is in the big city...(Photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

L.Á.resource: The CSUN Oviatt Library's San Fernando Valley History Digital Library



Covering the region's Natural Resources, Social Life and Customs, Transportation, Industries, Politics and Labor...perhaps the Valley is different from the rest of us. What a diff'rence a chain of mountains makes...

For the main page of Cal State University, at Northridge's Oviatt Library San Fernando Valley History Digital Library (whew...), CLICK HERE

L.A.architecture: Wells Fargo Tower downtown





Bunker Hill's Wells Fargo Tower at the Wells Fargo Center (330 S. Grand Avenue) faces Grand Avenue with all the stereotypes one would apply to a symbolic L.A. building: anorexic, thin on substance, seemingly artificial facade... It stands tall on Grand but appears paper thin as if there were no offices behind its tall exterior...

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

L.Á.event: 'When The Saints' screening at Fais Do Do

2 years to the day when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, Robert Greenwald's documentary was screened to a non-typically FRIENDLY L.A. crowd--but then we were at Fais Do Do and not The Viper Room.

L.A.moment: Singing on the Red Line

Sunday, August 26, 2007

L.A.moment: Dead Elmo in Boyle Heights


An after midnight roadside taco stand stop leads to the grisly vacant lot discovery of a dead Elmo. (Photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

L.A.location: Charlie O's


Remodeling is not gonna' stop Charlie O's from servin' liquor or stop DJ Mirko from spinnin' at this up and coming Alexandria Hotel hotspot (photo taken and sent via mobile phone).

Friday, August 24, 2007

L.A.history: The Flag of the City of Los Ángeles


Almost rastafarian in appearance, L.A.'s flag (a.k.a. the "Fiesta Flag"), was designed for the city's 1931 Sesqui-Centenial (150th Anniversary). Designed by Roy E. Silent and E.S. Jones, the red represents the city's vineyards of the time, the yellow representing the orange groves (again, of the time) and the green represents the olive trees (unbeknownst to this rider that there were olive trees)...allegedly these colors are also purposefully meant to resemble the flag colors of both Spain and Mexíco.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

L.A.event: V's Treintañera at the Alexandria Hotel's Ballroom


"She missed her Quinceañera and her prom..."; so what better way to resurrect the past than to complete this trinity of celebration with a 30th Birthday at the Alexandria Hotel's Ballroom. V (of Bar 107 fame) lived any closeted princesses' dream fantasy: her big frilly dress that seemed potentially hazardous for dancing, accompaniment by 6 gents in white tuxes, all of whom adored and showcased her and her feminine prowess in a choregraphed dance. ¡Felíz Cumplaños V! (Photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

L.A.event: V's Treintañera


(photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

L.A.roadtrip: Wilshire Blvd.: 10 steps a photo, downtown to Santa Monica

I love obsessive approaches to simple ideas: "tobiaswac" walked all the way from Wilshire Blvd.'s beginning in downtown Los Angeles to its end at the Pacifc Ocean, a mere 16 miles away...and took a photo every 10 steps...

Saturday, August 18, 2007

L.A.moment: Downtown

Downtown, bright and hot, with my camera phone barely able to handle the light and heat...(photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

Friday, August 10, 2007

L.A.roadtrip: Train to San Bernardino Mountains













Train trip from Union Station to San Bernardino's old train station for a visit to Lake Arrowhead and Crestline. For some reason, lately, my mobile phone's camera is freaking out when there is bright light present. That's why the train station looks all Resident Evil and Lake Gregory looks post-nuclear...(photos taken and sent via mobile phone)

Thursday, August 09, 2007

L.A.news: Beckham's contribution to American Soccer via The Onion

The Onion

Beckham An Inspiration To Children Who Never Get Put In Game

LOS ANGELES—Whether intently watching the on-field action or waving to his family in the stands, David Beckham's impressive display of...



Posh's contribution to American Motherhood's identity to be studied and explained in next week's issue...

Wednesday, August 08, 2007

L.A.trivia: Sister City Spotlight: Tehran


One of Los Ángeles' Sister Cities is Iran's Tehran. In the photo above, a young woman in the north of Tehran wears a nose bandage after plastic surgery. The bandages are a status symbol for the city's young elite. (Photo: Aslon Arfa)

Sunday, August 05, 2007

L.A.event: Thai Food at the North Hollywood Thai Buddhist Temple

Saturdays and Sundays with everything you'd want and more...our group's faves: mango and sticky rice and Kanom Krok! (Photo taken and sent via mobile phone).

Thursday, July 26, 2007

L.A.moment: Wild cats in Weller Court, Little Tokyo

L.A.moment: Hawt cholo cars

Toy District: You can get me out of Anaheim but you can't get the Anaheim out of me...(photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

L.A.passing: Sherman Torgan of the New Beverly Cinema




Sherman Torgan, the owner of the last remaining L.A. revival movie theatre, the New Beverly, made his transition from this world July 18th. Cause of passing was due to a heart attack. As you can see from the memorial photos (credit: C. Hunt), the New Beverly's marquee says it in the bittersweetest way possible...

For more, read the L.A. Weekly's coverage HERE

The Los Angeles Times obituary for Sherman Torgan is HERE

Monday, July 23, 2007

L.A.culture: Hookah smoking @ Stars Cafe, Little Armenia/Silver Lake

New owners and now outdoor seating so that we had a great view of the Griffith Observatory, Wendy's and the Union 76 station while drinking great tea! (Photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

L.A.chain: Famima!

This Japanese-based chain of convenience stores is perfect for us Pacific Rim-centric Southern Californians...(photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

L.A.experience: Disney's Soda Fountain and Studio Store, Hollywood

A surprisingly choiceless menu in terms of "real" food, every employee is super happy in that way that is super off-putting...(photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...

Sunday, July 22, 2007

L.A.resource: What's the walkability score of your neighborhood?


Out of a 100 points, my section of Boyle Heights scored a 64. Which isn't so great in my opinion.

In my neighborhood, there aren't a lot of businesses like stores or restaurants but REGARDLESS, see how your neighborhood scores at Walkscore.com calculates the walkability of an address by locating nearby stores, restaurants, schools, parks, etc.

Friday, July 20, 2007

L.A.changes: Metro Goldline extension

Is it late 2009 yet? (taken and sent via mobile phone).

L.A.culture: ¡Ask A Chola!

¡Lookit! "Ask A Chola" has all the answers you not thought you needed...check it:



¡y oye! Hay mas respuestas aquí, buey...

L.A.event: Jalisco's Thursday Nite Show

Women singing who are not women but more of a woman than I am a apparently a man...(taken and sent via mobile phone)...

Thursday, July 19, 2007

L.A.moment: The Moon over Los Ángeles...


Did anyone catch the crescent moon last night?

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

L.A.moment: King Eddy's

This is what 'Saturday at 12' looks like to my Navajo friend...(Photo taken and sent via mobile phone)...