randomrocketship

[randomrocketship]

Point Dume / The End

LA Bucket list item is the westernmost point of Los Angeles, technically it's Malibu.  It's a famous location most notably from the movie Planet of the Apes.  You have to imagine this pic to include the top half of the Statue of Liberty.  Most recently I saw it on the new season of Grace and Frankie where Bud gets married they are out there for nearly the whole episode.  I chose a nice quiet late afternoon, it was a very nice spot.

I stayed and watched the sunset, a luxury I've not indulged in before.  I get bored at the beach but I forced myself.  Mostly because it was my last chance to do so.  Night time here is so dark and quiet, I mean except for the waves of course.  It's not dark anywhere in this city, but this place is dark with no passing cars or light poles it's very un-LA like. 

This is the sun setting on my life living in L.A.

I got a job in North Carolina, and while I don't want to move and leave this wonderful city, it's not practical to stay.  I gave it 5 years, I could continue for five more but with the exponential price increases it just doesn't make sense.  I've been making pretty good money, for any where else in the country.  My take home pay is the same as right before I left for Cali but I can not get ahead enough to even step up from the studio apartment. 

The trip to NC was exhausting but somewhat easier since I'd done it before but it took me longer to recover, I was kind of brain dead for a few weeks.  My new job is Plant Specialist at an online tree nursery.  I've been there since the new year started (the blog is a little behind).  I'm not loving it, I like the plant stuff but I miss doing graphics, but the job is financing me until I can find something else.  I miss LA.  A lot.  Charlotte is OK, there are some things I love like having a living room without a bed in it, my new sofa was delivered yesterday and I feel like I'm human again, especially with central air and a dishwasher!  I was really tired of living like a poor student.

Here is a final list of things good and bad about the move.

--NC--Parking spaces are roomy as are traffic lanes, I can use the passenger side of my car now that I don't have to park right against the wall at my apartment.

--NC--I don't have to smell pot smoke while sitting at traffic lights.

--NC-- People are legit nice and considerate, actually using turn signals! They say excuse me when they walk in front of you at the store.

--NC--The food is better. There was a catered lunch at my job and the drink choices were Mountain Dew, sweet tea and regular tea, because what else is there? 

--LA-- I will miss there aren't days where you don't want to go to lunch because it's too cold (temps don't get much lower than freezing here)

--LA--Saw 2 kids and their dad taking the Christmas tree into the house all wearing shorts.  Classic Cali

--LA--"Talk about picture perfect forecast..."  anchor from channel 2 news in the middle of December one week before I have to leave.

--NC-- Fast food everywhere, even a Culvers with Pork Tenderloins!

--NC-- No drought! There is so much water in the toilet, there is like 50 gallons in there!  I get plastic bags at the supermarket again, yay!  But now I feel guilty about using them, and they give you soooo many!

--NC--Cheaper everything! A Big Mac value meal in NC is almost $2 cheaper!

--NC-- Crazy long traffic lights are ridiculous here.  I clocked one at 3:30+.  If I just miss a light I put the car in park, no lie.

--LA-- "Hollywood Bowl Friday night, Big Bear for the weekend, Santa Monica on Monday" This was the wrap up of a friends long weekend and as I sat with her at a restaurant overlooking the ocean (sigh) I tried to explain to her that her somewhat average weekend would be a once in a lifetime vacation for some people.  Leaving feels like going back to school after summer vacation.

I won't continue the blog since there isn't anything that interesting in North Carolina for me to make lame by writing about it like LA.

Thanks for reading my nonsense, I hope you enjoyed it. 

[randomrocketship]

The Theatre

Each summer the Los Angeles Conservancy hosts movie showings in classic theatres on Broadway street downtown.  Most of these theatres do not operate as theatres any more and this once a year event is the only way to see inside many of them.  I went to two screenings last summer.  The first was in The State theatre which has been closed for many years after operating as a church after its days as a theatre.  I chose it because it hadn't been on the tour before and it may not be again.  It wasn't quite the cool and grand as I hoped but still neat. 

I usually don't like going to the movies when there is a crowd but this was a unique experience, it was sold out and it was an old movie in an old theatre, I had thought about not staying to see all of "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" but I'm glad I did, that movie at this time in history was appropriate and entertaining en masse.   

The other theatre I went to was the Los Angeles Theatre a much more grand classic. 

About a month after I went and saw "The Birds" at this gem I saw it in an episode of Mad Men.  This fountain is even more amazing with Don and Betty Draper in front of it. 

[randomrocketship]

Night Rider

I rarely venture out for night time excursions especially to downtown Los Angeles but I did head out a couple of evenings last summer.  Downtown Los Angeles is a fascinating area unlike anywhere else in the city.  Downtown in any large city can be a navigational challenge but it really doesn't feel that big.  There are a lot of historic buildings and there has been a revitalization and refurbishment from what used to be a very skeezy place from the eighties onward.  Sadly it's taken a very recent downturn with the bums, crazies and drugies increasing in numbers and psychotic behavior (randomly throwing people in the street, punching passing strangers etc).  Skid row is on the outer edge of downtown, it's a street whose sidewalks are filled with tents and cardboard boxes, it's overflowing.

I've been downtown in the daytime many times and always felt safe but night time is a little different.  I took the Metro train as always but at night even the brave Random Rocketship was nervous.  After 10pm on the train platform there is a real cross section of society as opposed to the daytime when it's mostly commuters.  

There can be a 10-15 minute wait on the platform before a train comes, people treat it mostly like an elevator, not looking at anyone else, just quietly waiting.  At night I can't describe these folks but they aren't following the unwritten elevator protocal.  Singing loudly, skipping, yelling at nothing, or just looking menacing.  I moved to stand near the one non scary person on the platform, an older white male, who some might argue is the scariest person on the platform.  I sat next to him on the train which was crowded enough to share the twin seats so it wasn't too obvious I was doing it to avoid getting stuck sitting next to "a transient"  this is what the news calls homeless people who commit crimes or just do crazy shit in general.  98% of the homeless people in this city are "transients".    

However I dislike people who insult public transportation saying it's the dregs of society on there when in reality they are just too chicken shit to try something besides their car.  Maybe the best time to try it for the first time isn't at night however.

I did feel nervous walking on the street too, I think the urine smell is even stronger at night.  Luckily I was just going a few blocks from the station to my destination.  The white guy got off one stop before me and his parting words weren't: goodbye, be safe, or any other standard generic farewell, but instead he said "arrive safely" and we shared a knowing look of "this place be crazy yo"

[randomrocketship]

Corrections

For the 5 years I've been doing this blog I have made a few errors I want to correct.

The arrow signs are not pointing out potholes, they are pointing out where the road is narrowing, the curb abruptly juts out.  This is annoying on it's own.  I don't understand why this happens randomly where one or a few properties gets an extra 2-3 feet into the street. (The Classy Lady is still funny)

This sign is pointing out the number of spaces available in that direction.  It's still a confusing sign.

Fast Times was filmed at Van Nuys High not Canoga Park, I don't know where I got that.  Van Nuys High School is also Young Sheldon's high school.  It's just a couple of blocks away from my job.

When I got my new car they gave me plates that were just the dealer logo.  The temporary registration is taped on the inside of the windshield. Plates come in like a month but I have seen people with these dealer plates on for months and the logo is all discolored, with no date on the tag it's a free for all.

[randomrocketship]

Random Lame Locations

Some random sites of dubious celebrity.

First off this is "the pit" from Parks and Recreation, filled in of course.

This is the Natural History Museum.  This location has been in a ton of stuff most recently Mad Men where Sally meets up with Glen and Young Sheldon where Sheldon and Paige hide out.

This is Marie Calendars original location.  You may know them as the frozen dinner people but out here they have actual restaurants.  I went here when I went to the Tar Pits, it was next door and convenient and I was shocked when I went inside and it was so elaborate, most of them are just a step up from the interiors of Dennys.  It went out of business a few months later, I almost had the place to myself but why?  It was so cool to eat in there.  A victim of trendiness.  I'm positive they  had to have filmed stuff here but I was too lazy to look it up.

Finally a sign post from Hidden Hills, a exclusive neighborhood in Calabasas where many celbs live/lived like, the Kardashians, Britney Spears, Drake etc.  I did a design at a house there and thought it would be great, never again, the lady was a crazy nightmare.  I really just wanted to see the neighborhood.  It's gated so you have to be on the list.  It's not that great really, the houses are nice but not as grand as you would think, pretty normal but large houses.

Sound City Studios hides away on a side street in the most unhip section of Van Nuys (there is no hip section of Van Nuys or anywhere within 10 miles of it) I passed this place on the way to a wholesale flower market.  I didn't know it's real significance until I saw a documentary on it on the TBD channel. It was THE recording studio back in the day recording bands like Rick Springfield, Tom Petty, Pat Benatar etc and then later made a comeback after the dark days of eighties electronica, recording Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine and pretty much every real rock band ever.

[randomrocketship]

California Science Center

LA bucket list item.  Space Shuttle Endeavour.  Very cool.

[randomrocketship]

LA bucket list item: Universal Studios. I had been there when I was 16 when it was just the backlot tour.  I have to say I miss that backlot tour, they have now turned that into a ride or 2.  The rides are good for what they are but I miss seeing the actual backlot and getting to walk around the town square from Back to the Future among other sites. The tree is Hooville from the Grinch.  Hogwarts was cool even though we got stuck on the ride but then they gave us VIP passes and headed to the front of the rest of the lines.  Simpsons land was cool too, that should be a real town you can live in.

[randomrocketship]

It's back! Thank God, the new recipe was awful.  Be on the lookout though they have redone Honey Smacks and the golden crisp outside is virtually gone, it's just puffed rice now.

[randomrocketship]

[randomrocketship]

West Coast weather phrases I still don't understand

With as many transplants as Los Angeles gets you think the forecasters should explain what these weather terms mean when they use them, but they suck.

Atmospheric River

Pineapple Express

On shore flow, off shore flow

Red Flag Warning

Sig alert

[randomrocketship]

Quaint

One of the prominent home styles built in the post war boom here is the cottage style, sometimes refered to as swiss miss or fairy tale style.   I love these, from the low budget to the high.

In low budget neighborhoods with this style the homes are smaller but have the same cute details. This one has an amazing corner turret.

Look at the curve of that roofline, can you imagine them doing that on a comparably priced middle class home built today? 

Shingled roof on this one

 Here is the high end version of this style.  These are difficult to photograph do to how LONG the houses are.  This one wraps around the corner.

 These have been renovated, which is great since so often they just completely redo them into bland crap.

[randomrocketship]

Just some random roadside corner roses that look amazing.  Only in LA

[randomrocketship]

Finally

Decent ice cream comes to LA.  Life affirming taste.  Typical as I'm probably on my way out.

[randomrocketship]

Auto

Did I want to sell my car?  Not really.  My beloved Eclipse was 10 years old and I figured it was time for something major to go wrong and the repair bill might be more than it was worth so I sold it on Ebay, the idea that they would only give me 1-2K for it as a trade in is ludacris. Being as I'm poor my choice for a new car was limited.  Why new?  Because if you buy a new car at the right time it can be a better deal than used, if you add in the big rebate and the discount for them wanting to get rid of the old model year plus bonus you get a warranty.

Buying the new car was one of the worst experiences of my life, no exaggeration.  Not sure if it's all LA related.   Like all retail experiences here there are not enough stores.  There are no less than 4 BMW dealerships closer to me than the nearest Kia dealership, Jeep isn't much better.  It took me 4 dealers to get a deal.  I've bought a new car 3 times and never had this much trouble, only partially related to my strict budget.  The last 2 dealers I had to get to using a combination of train/bus/uber, each taking 2 hours to get to since I had already sold my car. I love the metro but honestly it's going to be a very long time before I can get back on there.  When you are rolling through Compton at 10pm on the blue line with you valuables in your pockets and not in your purse in case you get mugged it's a real low point and you really miss your car.  Your beautiful blue baby.

Due to the high cost of real estate all car lots here are small, selection and supply is limited.  More than half the cars are on a storage lot miles away so you have to call before you go so they can have the car you want on the lot.

I couldn't get a deal on a Renegade so I ended up with a Kia Soul which is fine I wanted a crossover so I could have more storage space if I move again.  I love being up high, how easy it is to get in and out of,  it's easy to parallel park and the backup camera.  But I hate the dashboard and having it all on a video screen. No CD player blows, I had a 6 disc one, why would anyone want to go through a computer menu of folders to find the music they want?  I'm driving for fuck sake! Android auto is cool.  I've just never had a car that wasn't cool and that I wasn't in love with, it's just MEH.  The worst part...it's white...ARGH!  I hate white, it's boring and looks just like every other car, I used to see my car maybe once every 6 months now I see this thing drive by at least once a day.

[randomrocketship]

The Palms

Who doesn't love a palm tree?  A lot of people here who have lived with them a long time apparently.  I still think they are cool when used correctly.

Litter is a big problem.  They grow a beard of old fronds that need to be trimmed.  That is a canary palm on the left, it's massive.

If they aren't trimmed they come off in the high winds and litter the roadways.

But nothing looks as good as they do in front of a sunset.

[randomrocketship]

Delightful

"Delightful" isn't a word I use often unless as a joke but I say it now as the perfect word for my afternoon outing to the Hollywood Bowl to watch rehearsals.

While I wouldn't go to an actual concert here because I dislike crowds and the traffic to get in here for a concert is insane.  I heard you can go to rehearsals for free.  This is not an easy process.  They don't always have rehearsals and they aren't always open.  You have to call every week. Took me over a month to get a time.  I played hooky on a gorgeous September day, it's hot here in September but the bowl is in Hollywood which is out of the valley and not as hot and there was the best cool breeze, a perfect day.  The orchestra's music was relaxing and well, the whole experience was just delightful. 

They only let you sit in one little section off to the side, you can see the heads in the lower right.  Only a couple dozen people were there.  Weirdly you could only take photos from the mezzanine behind us and I wasn't allowed to use my good camera, which made me laugh since cell phones have such good resolution.  Guess they were afraid of piracy.  Laughable unless there is some orchestra bootleg network trading photos and video that I am unaware of.  It sucks because I accidently deleted my photos on my cell phone of this but luckily I had sent one in a text and was able to recover it.

[randomrocketship]

Overheard in LA

"Must love to dress up and look pretty daily"

  --This was a job ad, I'm not qualified at all, but maybe they were looking for a man? LA is more sexist than Indiana.  I think it's because of the superficiality importance of appearance here that tends to downgrade women even more than most places.

 "I'm not really a dessert person"  

  --Fuck You.

 "Not just in line for pies, the holiday rush for marijuana, tonight at 11"

  --Maybe they need it to deal with relatives

 Phrase I miss from Indiana ---"by God"  as in "by God that better not be a foreigner moving in next door."