A beautiful, well-researched testimony to the magic and entrapments,of life in this part of the world. Definitely worth a peek. illustrations via the Huntington Library
It used to be the nefarious part of town -- but also the cradle of skate and surf culture in Southern California. Now it's a mix of bums; long-time tenants enjoying rent control; long-time liberals who bought craftsman cottages for a pittance in the 1970s, and are now enjoying their multi-million dollar homes and the post-hippie bourgeois life they bring; and young yuppies from the local high-tech hub, who are content to pay several thousands dollars a month for semi-buried studios in pastiche "multifamily" developments.
The credit card industry (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, etc.) and the 10 banks that dominate the industry as the primary card issuers spend an estimated $2 billion a year in endless marketing worldwide. We are all bombarded with their solicitations and sales tie-ins and gimmicks...whether we're credit-worthy or not.Maybe this country should turn this whole nonsense on its head -- and value customers who have more savings than debt. Is it too much to ask? Too early maybe, but definitely not too much. Wake up America: the days of living beyond your means are long gone.
"It's yellow, it's ugly, it doesn't go with anything else, but it can save your life," says Der Kaiser in this new ad campaign for Sécurité Routière. Starting July, all French drivers will have to carry these mochetés in their car. Faithful to his anarchic apparatchnik persona, Lagerfeld jumped into this new campaign with his signature, self-deprecating humor. All kudos to him.
Introducing Cardio Cinema -- or going to the movies while working those muscles of ours. Via LAist.
A Curbed LA reader snapped this photo of a bobcat near Sunset Plaza. That's the unique characteristic of L.A.: how urban life encroaches on the wild -- and the wild encroaches on urban life.
David Markland of Blogging LA came up with those spooky stats via CNN: there are at least 9 billion barrels up for grabs under the streets of Los Angeles. Currently, California's oil reserve is the equivalent of 60% of the oil used in the Golden State. So, with oil prices at the level they're at these days, what are we waiting for? More on rediscovering our local black gold here.
We in the desert Los Angeles basin are water-doomed. Think otherwise? Read this: "L.A.’s resources are drying up," says Kevin Rodderick in this month's LA Magazine. "Energy costs are soaring. The DWP’s new chief says it’s the perfect time for us to go green." Whether we will be able to rely on (local) government for our water requirements in these upcoming "troubled times" is cause enough that we should take our faith in our own hands. Bottom line is: it's going to be tough ahead.
photo C. de Souza/AFP
As floods ravage the Midwest and other parts of the world, one cannot help thinking about the increased, global torments brought by climate change. French architect Vincent Callebaut also did, and came up with the Lilypads -- floating cities for climate change refugees. Though intended primarily for populations threatened by the rise of ocean levels, this new type of ecopolis is much needed food for thought -- and solace -- for those who live right in the path of strength-gathering déluges. More via Inhabitat.
8 people for 2500 pounds, that's a whopper 312.5 pounds per person = a big American 142 kilos. What a difference with the average Haussmannian ascenseur in Paris, which carries a maximum of 4 people or 300 kilos = a tiny froggy 75 kilos or 165 pounds per person.
photos LA Frog
Keeping up with the Joneses and showing off your "bling" is a must in L.A. Deviate from it, and people will think you're a loser. Are you? Not necessarily, says The Atlantic -- referring to a recent University of Chicago study. The study started out as an analysis of the wealth gap between black and white Americans, but revealed a wealth-bling gap that transcends race: "Conspicuous consumption is not an unambiguous signal of personal affluence. It’s a sign of belonging to a relatively poor group. Visible luxury thus serves less to establish the owner’s positive status as affluent than to fend off the negative perception that the owner is poor."
Dubbya is on a farewell trip in Europe this week. The thing is, nobody cares, as all eyes are set on the November election, with the hope that America will revert back to sanity in doctrine and policy. Monsieur Bush's speech at the OECD in Paris yesterday included signature delusional lines such as, "Instead of dwelling on our differences, we are increasingly united in our interests and ideals;" or better still, "When the time comes to welcome a new American president next January, I will be pleased to report to him that the relationship between the United States and Europe is the broadest and most vibrant it has ever been." W's fall into irrelevance was illustrated in the IHT, which published Bush urges Europe to unite with U.S. ideals and Bush's exit helps U.S. image abroad, survey shows almost side by side. So farewell, W. Du balai.
People grab their bikes, get on the bus, exchange their SUVs for smaller or hybrid cars, siphon gas from unlocked tanks, switch to local jobs, ... Yet noone beats George Calvarescu, who kayaks the 52 miles from his San Fernando Valley home to his Long Beach workplace down the L.A. River -- in his business suit. Video here.
Polar Inertia takes a photographic look at the mobile home trailers of Palm Springs. Tacky living? Trendy, actually, with multi-million price tags in Malibu. And much smarter than those humongous-obnoxious McMansions. Via Curbed LA.
Spotted by one of our neighbors on a moonlit night; brought to everyone's attention by another neighbor's cats; fostered by yet another neighbor who could not keep her because her owner would not allow it in L.A.'s pet-adverse rental market; finally adopted by us -- or did she adopt us? Brilliant neighborhood conspiracy, anyway.
"In the industrialized world, most people find the idea of eating insects repugnant," writes Science News in an article about the benefits of a bug-based diet. In these days of food price hikes, and shortages in certain parts of the world, people may be willing to listen to the argument. Yet, worms? roaches? crickets? ants?
To those who dismiss the Boardwalk as a hub of bums, misfits and tacky tourists, look twice: how about Hammam, Adja, Jean Joseph, the Venice graffiti walls anonymous, and so many talented locals? The Boardwalk is not just about goofy T-shirts, cheesy burgers or beggars. It's a bastion of free-for-all creativity that should be preserved, in spite of the inevitable gentrification of the area. Trendies come to Venice for it; pay a premium for it; complain about it -- yet get rid of it and you turn Venice into another scripted, bland Grove or Americana. Developers beware not to kill the golden goose. illustration photosbyalexandria.com
photos LA Frog
French journalist and former editor of Le Monde Jean-Marie Colombani is doing the national TV shows to promote his new book Un Américain à Paris, a portrait of French president Nicolas Sarkozy. When asked about the title of his book, Colombani alludes to the belief in Franco-French elite circles that Sarkozy is nothing more than a Hungarian emigrant on this way to America, who happens to have stopped in France for a while.
CNN is currently running an Eye on France series, probing what it means to be French in today's France, and world. The series profiles a cross-selection of French people including artists and designers, entrepreneurs, corporate execs, a sociologist, an economist, political figures, journalists, and, bien sûr, a camembert maker and a champagne producer. Run by CNN journalist Hala Gorani, a smarter than usual reporter on France, the series provides an interesting analysis of a country struggling with change, yet definitely on the move.
Obama is the democratic nominee in the popular vote and number of delegates -- and barring any dirty maneuver Hillary and her clan may try to engineer. Now he's off fighting McCain. More dirty maneuvers are to be expected from Republicans, the low blow champs. Gosh, these campaigns really stink -- and are so unworthy of this once in a generation type of leader. Extra: Telegraph poll reveals Obama's win over McCain in European vote. Also: Un destin américain in Le Monde.
[update 06/08/08: more guerrilla gardening in NYT]
