Pasadena Daily Photo

Theme Day: Animals

2012-02-01T00:01:00.000-08:00

Well, I think it's very weird that a month of 2012 has already passed and it's February 1st, but it is, so it's time for another City Daily Photo theme day. This month's theme is animals.

How do you like my flare? I like it. If you enlarge the picture you might see a couple of contrails in the sky, too.

I'd love to give you exotic animals but Pasadena doesn't have a zoo and I'll be damned if I'm going up into the hills to chase mountain lions. However, if you click on the other participants in today's theme, I bet you'll find some fantastic animals! After all, City Daily Photo is now 1444 blogs strong, worldwide. Our newest member is Jersey Photos from the Channel Islands. And as far as theme day and Jersey Photos goes, let me just say great minds think alike.

Tea and a Madeleine

2012-01-31T00:01:00.000-08:00

My friend and I went to Vroman's Bookstore last night for a signing of Why we Broke Up by Daniel Handler and Maira Kalman. You're sorry you missed it. If these two artists are half as delightful together on the page as they are in person, the book is going to be a treasure.

I did take pictures of Handler and Kalman, but the shots I got are not complimentary and I have a personal rule: I don't do that to nice people. I assume they're nice. They're certainly entertaining.

They sparked a great conversation between me and my friend that continued down the stairs and through the store as we browsed, selected more books and made our purchases. (Have you ever waited in line to buy books at Vroman's? You don't have to. There's never a line at my favorite check-out counter by the Zeli entrance.)

Which brought us to Zeli Coffee Bar, a there-when-you-need-it spot for a coffee or, if it's almost closing time, a cup of chamomile and a madeleine. And a conversation that ran the gamut from Lemony Snicket to Michael Pollan to Las Vegas to financial planning to controlling parents to world travel to Hurricane Rose.

What subjects did you cover in your last heart-to-heart?

Zen Monday: #181

2012-01-30T00:01:00.000-08:00

For today's Zen Monday we turn to Hollywood. Because I work there this isn't the first time and it probably won't be the last. Hollywood is...well, it's not Zen, but it has Zen pockets.

Rather than me telling you what the photo's about, please give us your explanation in the comments.

Chimed, I'm Sure

2012-01-29T00:01:00.000-08:00

I've been reading about the Church of the Angels in Within the Vale of Annandale, a book by Donald W. Crocker that's becoming increasingly rare, judging from the price of a used copy on Amazon. (I didn't link you to the one on Alibris because they didn't have a picture.) This book is a detailed, homespun history of what is now the southwest Pasadena/Garvanza area. Construction on the Church of the Angels, 1100 N. Avenue 64, was completed in 1889. It was about the only thing out there at the time, but people came from miles around to attend.

So because it's Sunday, and because I have this photo looking south from the roof of the church, I thought I'd post it. It wasn't until I began editing the picture yesterday, three and a half years after I took it in July of 2008, that I noticed the raised printing on the side of the bell. "Meneel..." something.

That rang a bell. So to speak.

I don't publish every photo I take because they're (obviously) not all good enough. But I keep most of them, and I still had these photos I'd taken in December, 2010 at Fire Station 31 on South Fair Oaks in Pasadena. I did a post on Overdog about my visit there with Bellis and the Altadena Hiker. Here's FF/PM Captain Myron Cooper with the station's original bell. I don't remember much of what he told us about it, except that it was made in New York in 1888. That information is forged right on the bell.

Meneely & Co.

..st Troy, NY 1888. Which, if you read the Wikipedia article linked above, you will surmise is East Troy, now known as Watervliet.

Meneely even has an online Museum.

Station 31 has a more modern bell now, but they keep the old one as part of their museum, which you can visit at 135 S. Fair Oaks.

I guess Meneely was the place to have a bell forged, back in 1888-89. Either that or somebody knew somebody. There's a connection somewhere, if only in the synapses of my mental pictures.

Hastings Branch Library

2012-01-28T00:01:00.000-08:00

A while back during Banned Books Week, I posted a series about local library branches. But Pasadena has more library branches (and libraries not part of the city system) than days in the week. So I still get to pop one in here once in a while.

The Hastings Branch is part of Pasadena's city system and today's a good time to visit. It's open from 10-6 on Saturdays.

From the website:

Hastings has strong popular fiction, picture book, folk and fairytale, home arts, travel, and biography collections.

The meeting room accommodates up to 35 people. Use of the meeting room is free to groups who do not charge an admission fee or restrict admission on the basis of membership.

Hastings Branch has a large on-going book sale, where both hardbound and paperback books are sold.

Those are three of my favorite things about this branch. Go ahead and click the Hastings Branch link because they might have some of your favorite things, too.

My fourth favorite thing about this branch is the butterfly sculpture outside the north side of the building. I couldn't find out anything about it, so if you've got any info, let us hear it.

Three Cameras

2012-01-27T00:01:00.000-08:00

On my way to the ATM yesterday I caught a glimpse of the Green Street side of the First Church of Christ, Scientist at Green and Oakland. The building is grand from all angles, especially on a sunny day, but Green Street not being its best side I decided to double back on my way home and park in front, on the Oakland side, to take its picture.

Kinda sparkly on a sunny day. If this building had a speaking voice it would be a big bass with a Mid-Atlantic accent.

I got lucky. A bride and groom were having their picture taken by three photographers, two of whom they were aware of.

ltdLive 2012

2012-01-26T00:01:00.000-08:00

Pasadena Convention Center

Is it just me or is your calendar suddenly full, too? Yesterday morning I went to a seminar. In the evening I attended a meeting. Today I'm working and I have a meeting, and tomorrow there's more to come. Many events want my attention and some of them I'm even interested in. I think it's partly exuberance in the new year, partly a need to get something going in a tough economy.

Worth checking out at the Pasadena Convention Center on February 1st and 2nd: ltdLive 2012, a Conference for Entrepreneurial Women. ltdLive was created by Pasadena author and entrepreneur Nada Jones for "women who live at the intersection where business and life converge." Meaning, perhaps you're stuck at home with three kids and perhaps you'd like to occupy your brain with something else and make some money in the process. Or perhaps you're already an entrepreneur, and you're ready to take your business to the next level. Dance atop the glass ceiling in your glass slippers, as it were.

We used Nada's book, Sixteen Weeks to Your Dream Business, as a jumping off point for the Business Builders' Boot Camp in which I participated--goodness--two years ago. Nada came to our final session and helped critique business plan presentations. She's friendly and approachable, not to mention a smart business person who knows how to motivate others to stop sitting around dreaming and start doing the thing they've been dreaming about doing.

I was going to call her a sharp cookie but then I thought, that doesn't sound appetizing at all.

Visit ltdlive.com for details and to sign up. This might be your year.

Coffee Gallery on a Steep Hill

2012-01-25T00:01:00.000-08:00

I was at the Coffee Gallery Backstage earlier this month to hear Will Ryan and the Cactus County Cowboys and write an article about them for Altadena Patch. (It was a really fun assignment.) I get to the Coffee Gallery pretty often.

The Coffee Gallery and Coffee Gallery Backstage are two separate but, shall we say, conjoined entities operating out of basically the same space. Both entities are institutions around here.

When John and I first moved to the San Gabriel Valley we rented a house in Altadena. We got married in the back yard there. We called the Coffee Gallery "Awake and Open" because of the sign hanging outside. It's always been part of our lives here.

Right now, both Coffee Gallery entities need to raise $20,000 by February 15th for their Conditional Use Pemit (CUP) and parking variance in order to keep their entertainment license.

They're having a fundraising concert on February 8th. Tickets are $18 and the artists, bless them, are donating 100% of the proceeds to the Coffee Gallery. Timothy Rutt wrote a good article about it on Altadenablog. If you can't make it to the show you can still make a donation.

$20,000. My god, that's steep. I think the Coffee Gallery will do it, but jeez louise, how's a small business supposed to survive in LA County with fees like that?

Boz (Not Boz)

2012-01-24T00:01:00.000-08:00

Oooh, the face.

How many times have you said, "I wish I could have a dog like Boz, but there's only one Boz in the whole, wide world!"? I know! You're like a broken record! How many times have you wished you, too, could have a mild-mannered, easy-to-handle, calm-as-can-be Boxer like Boz?

Well, now you can! Yes, you, too, can meet Vinnie the Boxer at Boxer Rescue! He's available for adoption today!

Here's what Karin the Altadenahiker had to say when she walked Vinnie: "He was happy to mosey on the leash, but every so often would break into a sweet but tame happy dance. He wouldn’t lunge at other dogs who said rude things behind fences, but he wasn’t afraid of them, either. Was curious about everything, but not insistent about it."

Wow. "...all a boxer has to offer without the exuberance," as Karin says. Sounds like Boz to me. And Vinnie comes with a bonus even Boz can't match: he's an actual Boxer (Boz is actually a Mixer).
Here's another shot Karin took of our guy:**

I love that far-away look in his eyes, don't you? Soulful. So Clark Gable.

Vinnie (you can name him Boz once you take him home) is 7 or 8 years old. I highly recommend a mature dog, especially if you yourself are not a spring chicken. Puppies are great if you have furniture to spare and if you are free 24/7 to train your young piddler and walk him/her several times a day so he/she will please god sleep for chrissakes. But Karin and I picture Vinnie with someone who appreciates the finer things in life--at a slower pace.

"In all the [dog] walks I’ve taken," says Karin, "I've never met a dog so well behaved and affectionate." And Ms. Hiker has walked more than her fair share of dogs as a volunteer at Boxer Rescue.

To learn more about Vinnie, read Karin's piece on Altadena Patch. Then call or visit Boxer Rescue and take Vinnie home with you. Then you, too, can have your very own Boz!**

Boz the Mixer, photographed by John Sandel

I guarantee it--you'll be so glad you did.

**Leash and tags sold separately. Available in colors shown. Boz not included.

Zen Monday: #180

2012-01-23T00:01:00.000-08:00

Here at the old Pasadena Daily Photo blog, we celebrate Mondays with a bit of Zen.

Zen learning comes from experience, I'm told, rather than lectures or books. So please experience the photo and, in the comments, tell us what you've learned.

There's no right or wrong. We're here to have fun.

Rainy Day Mood

2012-01-22T00:01:00.000-08:00

The Richard H. Chambers Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Building, seen from the Lower Arroyo

It didn't rain all day yesterday, just all morning. Still, I was in a rainy day mood. I craved the cozy feeling of running the heater and drinking hot tea, and I indulged.

One cloudy day some time ago, PDP's resident geologist Becca and I took our dogs to the Lower Arroyo thinking it wasn't going to rain. It did, of course, as soon as we were as far from our cars as we could possibly get. We were the only non-wild creatures in the Arroyo between the Colorado Street Bridge and South Pasadena. Everyone else, wild or not, knew enough to find shelter.

It began to pour, rattling the leaves and forming puddles on the path. The stream ran full from north to south. Becca and I were soaking wet. We let the dogs run free and they were out of their minds with the joy of it.

Yesterday, Boz curled himself into the shape of a Lima bean and spent most of the day by the heater, with the exception of our neighborhood walk. Now that he's older he craves being cozy, too. Because I know the feeling I run the heater for him, but he turns up his nose at tea.

Here's another view of the Courthouse from the Arroyo, with Boz posing in the foreground.

Ars Brevis

2012-01-21T00:01:00.000-08:00

Bright colors haven't been the norm on this scraggle-spit of ground, where Foothill splits from Walnut to begin its eastern trek. I like this area, especially along Walnut: it's where small industries and artist studios set up shop, and you can find old train tracks along the north side of the road.

Now you can also find art. This work is called Planting a Garden. It's by Margaret Lazzari and Lauren Evans, and it's part of Pasadena's Rotating Public Art program. Medians and scraggle-spits like this one are just the spots for works such as this one. Watch for them at your favorite (or least favorite) median around town. Each piece is displayed for 18 months before it's rotated out and replaced with a new one.

This piece looked to be in fine condition when I stopped so I'm not sure what the caution tape was for. But this brings me to the fact that I stopped--stopped the car, got out, and looked up close. I recommend it. I like the piece as a whole, but I like the details even more. Click on the photos to enlarge them.

Plus, when you look closely, you can see the materials. I like knowing how this piece was put together and with what.

I also liked seeing how the location interacted, however tentatively, with the piece.

One of my favorite things about art is its subjectivity. No single work will please everyone. That's one of the many appealing things about this rotating program. Don't like the art? Don't worry. Just give it a little time.

Best Things

2012-01-20T00:01:00.000-08:00

One of those warm Saturday evenings a week or two ago:

Boz and I are having our walk. He sniffs his usual spots, as dogs do. We turn the corner and dusk has ditched us. Dark moseys down the sidewalk. A mom calls her kid to come in. End of day, end of day.

A gaggle of children still plays in a yard. One of them spots us when the street lights come on. "A customer!" she shouts. "Hi! Do you want to buy a free flower ring? Free flower rings for sale!"

"Just one more," calls a mom to whatever kids in the batch are hers, "then you're coming inside." She stands in the doorway, warm light spilling out from behind her onto the porch. I wave to her. She says "hi." She can't wave back because she's holding a baby in her arms.

Five or six children, of varying sizes but all smaller than I am, gather to meet me, discuss Boz and hawk their free flower rings. I ask to see the merchandise.

The children have a tiny table set on the lawn. (It might actually be a footstool.) On it are displayed in orderly fashion about twenty of the loveliest, most aromatic flowers. The kids have coiled the stems into rings.

"Take this one. And this--this is a good one. One for each hand."

"No, two for each hand."

"Do you think Boz wants one?"

"If the lady gets four then Boz gets four."

"Wait," I say, "how much?"

"They're free!" the children squeal. They are so pleased with themselves.

"Free?" I say. "But they're so beautiful." They truly are.

The kids could not be more thrilled that I'm thrilled. I lavish praise on their works and thank them profusely. Mom calls again. "That was the last one," she says, and calls "have a good evening" to me.

Boz and I walk on. I have a dog leash and a full bag of poo in one hand, and eight pretty flowers in the other. I can't believe my good fortune.

Oxymora

2012-01-19T00:01:00.000-08:00

The last bit of sunlight bleeds off the treetops even as the moon rises. Opposites uniting in the natural world to make a thing of beauty.

You can find online lists of oxymora (nice word, that). "Military intelligence" is a popular one but it's sarcastic, which means it's only an oxymoron if you believe the military is not intelligent. A better example is the ever popular "jumbo shrimp," or my new favorite, "butt head." These are oxymora in fact, not opinion. (I also like "Congressional action," but there we go again with the sarcasm.)

Let's hear yours today, sarcastic or not. Oxymorons unite!

Everybody Needs a Break

2012-01-18T00:01:00.000-08:00

Coworkers can be lifesavers, no matter where you work.

The Whole Staircase

2012-01-17T00:01:00.000-08:00

Of yesterday's photo Dive asked, "So what was around that corner, Petrea? Did you sneak a look?"

I did. Speedway was prescient when she quoted Dr. King, "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase."

I took both photos a couple of years ago. I was pretty mad at myself when I forgot to use yesterday's picture for Martin Luther King Day last year.

I did climb the stairs. They led to private property, which I did not invade.

But I remember where they are.

Zen Monday: #179

2012-01-16T00:01:00.000-08:00

Even holiday Mondays are Zen Mondays. That's the day you tell me what the photo's about instead of the other way around.

The man whose life we celebrate today wasn't famous for his sense of humor, but he's said to have had one.

Tree Story House

2012-01-15T00:01:00.000-08:00

We complained about losing thousands of trees when hurricane-force winds hit Pasadena November 30th, but we didn't lose every tree in town. In fact, most of them are still here. It's not that we exaggerated the loss. It's just that Pasadena had so many trees to begin with that although losing so many was painful, we still live in a blessed urban forest.

Boz and I passed this giant on our dog walk yesterday evening. The tree dwarfs its yard partner, making it look like a tiny tree house.

Sometimes when I'm walking--okay, always when I'm walking--I glance through gates into back yards and, if the curtains are open, I peer into windows. It's part nosiness, absolutely. But mostly it's like looking at the pictures while reading a fanciful storybook. I peek at a world I don't know. I imagine what it's like to live inside that story.

Boz doesn't fantasize. He's strictly a non-fiction dog. But I'm sure I'm not the only one who does this.

I couldn't see into this house. Like a treehouse, it's raised over the sidewalk on a yard of ferns, heightened above the everyday like fiction itself. But the golden light from the windows was enough.

Home Studio

2012-01-14T00:01:00.000-08:00

Lately my multi-talented husband's been doing some drawing work (animation, logo design) and yesterday he had an on-camera job. No, he's not launching an acting career. John's arm and hand were filmed at high speed while he drew, to be pixilated in a web video for a new website.

For one day, John's home office became both animation studio and filming location. This would have been claustrophobic for a big crew, but there was enough room for both set and crew because the cinematographer, lighting designer and post-production supervisor are all one person named Denny Kukahiko.

I took this shot of John and Denny before they started shooting. You can see the camera suspended above the drawing table. The lamps are called China Balls. I know they resemble what my parents had in their dining room when I was in high school but these are slightly different and they give a sugary, diffuse light.

There wasn't quite enough room on the set for producer Kendall Kanoa Hawley, who set up her laptop in the dining room. Kendall, Denny and Denny's brother Chad Kukahiko make up Superfreako Productions (rhymes with Kukahiko, see?). You met them here when I told you about their short film, Carefully Descending. John met them through his participation in the Hollywood film collective, We Make Movies. John's got more projects coming up with WMM, so I'll have more to tell you soon.

Update 1/17/12: Cinematographer Denny Kukahiko posted about the shoot on Superfreako's blog.

Update 1/20/12: Hey! Here's the final product.

A Light Touch

2012-01-13T00:01:00.000-08:00

the Westin Hotel in Pasadena

Sometimes another person can rub off on you. Spend half an hour with the guy who's always freaked out and you come away needing a cigarette, whether you smoke or not. By contrast, a brief exchange with a store clerk who's got a sense of humor can loosen the clench of your jaw and keep you smiling for the rest of the day.

I don't know about you but I never think of myself as that person--the one who's rubbing something of my own off onto other people. How dare I rub people, how rude! Especially strangers, especially the wrong way.

But I am that person. We all are, every time we come within rubbing distance of each other.

It's something to keep in mind, this unconscious rubbing we do. (I suppose if we keep it in mind it's conscious then, isn't it?) Perhaps a nice pat-pat now and then instead, eh?

Guest Author: Douglas Kearney

2012-01-12T00:01:00.000-08:00

My sole contact with poet, librettist, performer and teacher Douglas Kearney has been online, and it's all been a pleasure. Read his post, click his links and definitely watch a video or two. This is one poet who doesn't just stand there and read.

Many thanks to William Goldstein of Pasadena's Red Hen Press for putting me in touch with smart, funny and thoughtful Douglas Kearney.

Horses mill before liquor stores that scowled with St. Ides posters.

Jump cut to a mile of deodar decked with light as pistols and champagne corks drum New Years’ Eve.

Turn to a tuning dial teetering between stations, song to hiss to talk to bzzzzz.

Altadena, right?

Sometimes—ok, a lot of times—I wonder what it means to be a poet of place. Home, block, town, city, state, region and on. How does one write of a place? “Of”, of course, as “about” AND as “composed from.” Like some of those dudes around those liquor stores would ask, “What you claiming?” which, for them, was a question of geography, allegiance and too often, life. For me, it’s a question of how to see and how to be seen seeing.

I set myself to write about Altadena. I cull my memories and I do the external research. I exaggerate, I lie, I shift a street, say Calaveras, back into its Spanish mouth and a skull leers back. And in that skull’s teeth are photographs of times I can’t remember in the house behind the house, next to the babysitters’ and ivy ivy ivy and daddy long legs. I write Altadena this way sometimes, about it. I’ve got poems that show it off like a forearm tattoo or a customized t-shirt. I boosterize like those license plate holders trilling “Beautiful Altadena” to everyone who lives anywhere else.

But more often, I write of Altadena. Composed from. The clash of coyotes and cockapoos; of the Tudor on my street and the ranch home a few doors down. Of mispronounced boulevards and illegible graffiti tags. The horses, Christmas trees and what the foothills used to do to my radio. Tension, juxtaposition, coexistence in the face of contradiction. I find that more and more, my work is of Altadena; my poetry, libretti, performance style, all seem to locate their syntax in this land.

I moved back about a year ago and I’m leaving again in a week. It costs too much, I wrote in a poem. But then I was writing about keeping the Christmas Tree Lane lit in war time. And I was writing about the darkness in my father’s house after my mother died.

She’s in Altadena’s earth.

Like some of those dudes who claimed some of its concrete and dust.

Like my poetry.

Altadena. Write.

Douglas Kearney’s SkinMag, a new chapbook from A5/Deadly Chaps will be out in January. Come to the release reading at Machine Project January 28 at 8. His second book, The Black Automaton (Fence Books), was a National Poetry Series selection in 2009. He has also written a chapbook as broadsides as an lp called Quantum Spit (Corollary Press, 2010) and his first collection, Fear, Some (Red Hen Press) was published in 2006. He’s performing around town. Visit www.douglaskearney.com for details.

Photographic History

2012-01-11T00:01:00.000-08:00

the Curtin House at Pasadena Museum of History

In conjunction with the exhibition Southern California’s Evolving Landscape: The Photography of Helen Lukens Gaut (1872-1955) at the Pasadena Museum of History through Feburary 26, the Museum is offering some pretty cool photography workshops next month. Three different teachers, three different workshops, three different perspectives.

Saturday, February 4: Working the Angles with James Staub,
Photo Services Specialist, California Institute of Technology
Staub will focus on what he calls "Moving the furniture around" -- framing the scene, dealing with lighting to your advantage, color balance and other methods to enliven a photo through simple changes to your camera and yourself.
Participants will meet at the Information Kiosk in the East entrance of Pasadena City Hall.

Saturday, February 18: The Basics of Composition with Ibarionex Perello,
Adjunct professor at Art Center College of Design and author of the bestselling book, Chasing the Light: Improving Your Photography with Available Light
Perello's workshop will teach students to improve their compositions. You will learn how to carefully consider what to include and exclude from the frame as well as how brightness, contrast, sharpness, patterns, and color saturation shape how we create and see photographs.
This workshop will take place in Curtin House at Pasadena Museum of History.

Saturday, February 25: Phoneshots with Eliot Crowley, Santa Barbara-based commercial photographer
The best camera is the one you have with you. As Eliot says, “It’s not the camera, it is the photographer.” In just a couple of hours you'll learn some of the capabilities of your phone camera. Be ready at a moment’s notice to make the image, set up the composition and lighting to flatter your subject just by pulling your phone out of your pocket. Equipment needed: Cellular phone with camera.
This workshop will take place on the Colorado Street Bridge. Participants should park on Grand Avenue and meet at the East entrance to the Bridge.

Museum Members, $25 per session; Non-Members, $30 per session; Museum Members, $60 for all three workshops; Non-Members, $75 for all three workshops.
Reservations are required. Call 626.577.1660, ext. 10.

I've never gone wrong at the PMH. They're cool people who care about offering quality programs.

Stinky in a Good Way

2012-01-10T00:01:00.000-08:00

If you follow the Saga of Boz (and why wouldn't you?) you know he had eye surgery about two and a half weeks ago. He had to wear a (shameful) cone for two whole weeks, during which time there were no none zero zip trips to Hahamongna Watershed Park (for his sake we call it JPL because it has fewer syllables, though I doubt he'd find the real JPL nearly as interesting).

First we inspected the Devil's Gate Dam. The County has dug out a good deal of silt in what might end up as an ongoing project. If you enlarge the picture you can see, left of center, a bunch of ducks ("bunch" being the scientific term), swimming as far away from Boz as they can get, even though all he ever says to them is "murph."

We usually walk all the way from one end of Hahamongna to the other, or at least from the dam to Johnson Field and back, but it was our first trip out in a while and the Pooper was easily pooped. You would be, too, if you had to stop and smell every damn thing in the whole watershed.

********

Now, this is totally off the subject but if you like cowboy music, the Coffee Gallery and Rocky the Flying Squirrel, I hope you'll read my latest article on Patch.

Zen Monday: #178

2012-01-09T00:01:00.000-08:00

Zen Monday's the day you experience the photo and give us your thoughts rather than me telling you what I think the picture's about. There's no competition, no right or wrong. We're here to have fun.

Sorry about the quality. My iPhone is very, very old.

- - - - - - - - - -

(p.s. I have a new piece on Patch that has nothing to do with Zen Monday.)

Pique Cadillac

2012-01-08T00:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was different.

I usually work at my desk. I didn't.

Lately it's been sunny and hot. It was foggy and cool.

My dog, no longer forced to wear a cone, was happier.

We received a spontaneous dinner invitation and accepted it.

Routines serve a purpose, but sometimes you have to break them.

Boz Humbug

2012-01-07T00:01:00.000-08:00

Notice the pretty eyes, no longer hidden by a horrible old cone.

Boz and I have found a lot of Christmas trees lying, drying at the curb. We wondered what the deal is so we did a bit of research. It wasn't easy to find but by searching the city's website for "christmas tree" (quotes included) I found this information at the bottom of the Pay as You Throw Program page:

"What should I do with my Christmas Tree?
There is a separate, free, Christmas tree recycling program. Notices will be sent to residents to inform them of their tree pickup date. For your tree to be collected and recycled, you:

1. Must place your tree at the curb by your specified time

2. Must remove all tinsel, ornaments and decorations

3. Must remove all metal and plastic bowls/stands

4. Must place tree on the curb, not in the alley"

There are two kinds of people in this world: those who are so anal that when they received their notice umpteen moons ago they put it in a safe place where they would remember it and they now know exactly what their Christmas tree collection date is, and those who think they never received their notice.

Guess which kind of person I am.

Boz is an expert at disseminating information and he wants me to spread the word. Drop-off dates have already passed but you can still put your tree by the curb on your normal curbside pick-up day through January 13th. After that, I imagine you'll have to call the city to arrange for a large item pick-up.

Boz (aka Teddy Butt) suggests you get it done while the do do doing is good.

Unseasonable Charming

2012-01-06T00:01:00.000-08:00

It's been unseasonably warm, even for Pasadena. You step outside to take a break. The neighbor girls are having tea on the lawn. You are in Wonderland.

The artwork in the driveway is evidence of their artistic labors.

Pac Man? you think, who's youth are we living here, anyway?

Attitude Sickness

2012-01-05T00:01:00.000-08:00

I haven't been getting out with the camera much lately. Two main reasons: crowd avoidance (Tournament of Roses) and canine coverage (Boz gets his stitch out Friday, the cone will come off and all hell will break loose).

I have a wealth of photos in my archives, and I've used a few. But I still like to shoot. In fact, sometimes I just have to grab the camera and go for it. The photo safaris I've been on have been simpler (no sherpas). The trekking is less rigorous. I don't have to climb very high and I don't even have to carry little packets of dried food.

It gives the phrase "inner landscape" new meaning.

Heaven

2012-01-04T00:01:00.000-08:00

Just a quick snapshot I took while walking in Bungalow Heaven yesterday. I mean it--just a quick shot--in case you were wondering why they call it heaven.

There are restrictions when you own a home in a Landmark District. You can't just slap on aluminum siding whenever you want to. (Hallelujah, I say.) In Bungalow Heaven, you cannot "change any exterior feature (except painting)" without a permit and perhaps a Certificate of Appropriateness from the city, whatever that is.

Living in a neighborhood like Bungalow Heaven isn't for everyone. I think those who do take pride in it, and I don't blame them. It's a beautiful part of Pasadena, a pleasure to stroll its tree-lined streets.

Resolve

2012-01-03T00:01:00.000-08:00

I sort of make new year's resolutions, but not exactly. (Maybe this year I'll begin to consider using slightly more definitive language.)

I'm not going to resolve to do anything I don't want to do, even if it would make me a better person. I wouldn't, for example, resolve to learn how to cook (why would I do that? I don't enjoy cooking) or run a marathon (tried that last year and ended up in physical therapy).

Better for me to lose a bad habit, or do more of something I've been wanting to do.

So:

quit worrying

garden more (the condition of the yard is getting to me)

exercise more

You?

Zen Monday: #177

2012-01-02T00:01:00.000-08:00

Because this is a very special Monday, at least for Pasadena, we have two kinds of Zen today. First, we have Zen Zen.

Then we have Zen Monday Zen.

Please share your opinions, wisdom and wisecracks in the comments.

Theme Day: Photo of the Year 2011

2012-01-01T00:01:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! It's a big day here on Pasadena Daily Photo, because not only is it a theme day, it's also PDP's birthday. As of today, I've been doing this for four years.

I am insane.

I choose this photo as my Picture of the Year because it was popular, not just with commenters but with me, too. I like the happy, nostalgic world it shows. Funny--that world actually exists on my block. I called the post The Treasures on Your Block based on a series of books by Ann Scheid about Pasadena's residential architecture.

In my mind, there were other contenders for photo of the year, among them:
Hahamongna Upset Overturned
Unruly Posse
A Stubbornly Persistent Illusion
Bulgarini
A Pattern to Follow

If you have other favorites I don't mind if you mention them.

City Daily Photo has a theme day the first of every month. We're now 1436 blogs strong! The newest member is My 365 Manhattan.
Many CDP blogs participate in theme day. Click here to check out those that do.

And thank you for your visits. You're the reason I do this, which sounds like I'm saying "you make me insane." But of course that's not what I mean. I only mean you justify my insanity, and for that I'm grateful.

Happy New Year

2011-12-31T00:01:00.000-08:00

Here's wishing you a 2012 filled with good things: love, light and beauty--or whatever you think is good, maybe you don't like those things, maybe you want dissonance, piglets and toe shoes. I hope you get them. Maybe you want an arrogant boyfriend, a new haircut, guitar lessons, a trip to Australia.

I don't care what you want, I hope you get it in 2012, as long as it doesn't take advantage of anyone else, hurt anyone else or look down its nose at anyone else (which may preclude the arrogant boyfriend).

Thank you for your visits to Pasadena Daily Photo this year. And happy new year to you! Have fun (if that's what you want).

An America Thing

2011-12-30T00:01:00.000-08:00

I took this photo last year in one of the Tournament of Roses float decorating tents in the Arroyo Seco. I never posted it because of its glaring imperfection--the large white barrier front and center. But while looking through last year's photos I came across it and found these girls so compelling I decided to go ahead and show it to you.

The girl's hand touches a fire hydrant that looks like it's seen better days, and that it has. The hydrant, called "the Heroes' Hydrant," was displayed near where the LA County Firemens Benefit and Welfare float was being decorated. The nearby sign said, "This is an actual hydrant removed from the World Trade Center rubble (near building 7) donated to the County of Los Angeles Fire Museum Association by our friends from FDNY" (Fire Department of New York).

The moment moved me and put me in mind of many things then, as it does now: how thoughtful these girls seemed to be, despite how young; how much I have to be grateful for; and how the Tournament of Roses Parade is not just a Pasadena thing but an America thing.

You can visit the Heroes' Hydrant and other artifacts of firefighter bravery at the Los Angeles County Fire Museum.

Entropy, 4

2011-12-29T00:01:00.000-08:00

I haven't been able to get out much with my camera over the last couple of weeks, what with the holidays and Boz's surgery. So I hope you don't mind me digging into my (vast and growing) archives for this pair of pictures from the photo safari John and I took on Thanksgiving day.

If you pay for tickets to the Tournament of Roses Parade, and if your seats are along North Orange Grove Blvd., and if you're sitting near the top of the bleachers, you might be able to look behind you and see this curious view. In the foreground is a shallow and (at Thanksgiving it was, so I'm going to say it's still) empty pool, leading your eye to the empty Hulett C. Merritt mansion which is flanked by a pair of unfortunate (and hopefully empty) buildings that were added during the Ambassador College years.

It's hard to notice all this from the street because it's set back, but it's just south of where Orange Grove intersects with Colorado Blvd., right near the center of parade action in which, just FYI, our Pasadena PIO Ann Erdman will be sitting on a float this year!

In the picture you see John, doing pretty much what I was doing when I took the top picture.

11am:
Speaking of Ann Erdman, who is going to be IN THE PARADE, her office just sent out this press release.

TRAFFIC SIGNALS TO BE ALTERED FOR 2012 ROSE PARADE

As an annual prelude to the Tournament of Roses Parade, 15 traffic signals will be altered so that tall floats needing clearance can make their way safely through Pasadena intersections. Alterations will begin this week.

Each year at this time signal mast arms extending over travel lanes are removed or replaced with shorter signal mast arms or with poles that have no mast arms.

Signals with left turn arrows will be removed at
·        Colorado Boulevard at Arroyo Parkway, eastbound and westbound approaches
·        Colorado Boulevard at Marengo Avenue, eastbound and westbound
·        Colorado Boulevard at Garfield Avenue, eastbound
·        Colorado Boulevard at Euclid Avenue, westbound
·        Colorado Boulevard at Lake Avenue, eastbound and westbound
·        Colorado Boulevard at Hill Avenue, eastbound and westbound
·        Colorado Boulevard at Sierra Madre Boulevard, eastbound

Long signal mast arms will be removed at
·        Orange Grove Boulevard at Green Street, northbound and southbound
·        Colorado and Orange Grove boulevards, eastbound
·        Sierra Madre Boulevard at Walnut Street, southbound
·        Sierra Madre Boulevard at Orange Grove Boulevard, southbound
·        Sierra Madre Boulevard at Pasadena High School student parking lot, westbound
·        Sierra Madre Boulevard at Washington Boulevard, westbound and northbound
·        Washington Boulevard at PHS, administration parking lot, northbound
·        Orange Grove and Del Mar boulevards, northbound and southbound

The Pasadena Transportation Department urges motorists to drive safely during this period of traffic signal changes and increased pedestrian activity.

For more information call (626) 744-6900.

You might also find useful these safety tips sent out the other day by the Public Information Office.

PASADENA FIRE AND POLICE DEPARTMENTS ISSUE TIPS FOR STAYING SAFE ALONG ROSE PARADE ROUTE

As the 123nd Rose Parade approaches on Jan. 2, the Pasadena Fire Department and Pasadena Police Department are issuing safety tips for the thousands of overnight campers who will line the route on Jan. 1.

The parade route will be a safer place if everyone follows the rules and regulations intended for the safety of all parade-goers.

What You Can Do:

·        Overnight camping is permitted only on the night of Sunday, Jan. 1.

·        A permanent position on the sidewalk may be maintained along the parade route beginning at noon on Jan. 1. The “Blue Line” is the honor line. All persons and property such as blankets, chairs, etc., must remain on the curb until 11 p.m. on Jan 1. At that time spectators may move out to the honor line.

·        Small, professionally manufactured barbeques elevated at least one foot off the ground are allowed on the parade route, 25 feet from buildings and other combustibles. A fire extinguisher must be readily available.

·        Minors under the age of 18 may be on the parade route from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. only if they are under the supervision of adults.

·        Dress for cold weather. Children and seniors may need extra layers of clothing to avoid hypothermia.

·        Drink healthy fluids and consume nourishing meals to avoid dehydration.

·        Report any suspicious activities and packages to emergency authorities along the parade route.

·        In case of emergency call (626) 744-4241 from a cellular phone or 9-1-1 from a landline phone and know the cross streets from which you are calling.

What You Can’t Do

·        Appearance in the parade is prohibited for any entries/marchers that have not been approved by the Pasadena Tournament of Roses.

·        Tents, sofas and boxes of any type that can be used as stools or seats are prohibited along the route.

·        Unoccupied chairs are not allowed.

·        Bonfires are strictly prohibited and considered illegal burns.

·        Fireworks are prohibited except as part of scheduled official events.

·        No items may be sold along the parade route without a permit.

·        No public areas – sidewalks, curbs, gutters, streets, ramps – may be cordoned or roped off.

·        No ladders or scaffolding may be used as elevation for viewing the activities.

·        It is illegal to buy, sell or give away horns on the parade route.

·        Pets are not recommended along the parade route because they are easily frightened with sudden, loud noises.

·        Selling space along the parade route, other than grandstand seating, is illegal.

·        Throwing any projectile into the parade, including seemingly harmless items such as tortillas, marshmallows, flowers, etc., is prohibited. Silly String and similar products are prohibited as well.

·        Vehicles obstructing emergency lanes will be towed.

·        Walking in the street is not permitted during the parade.

·        Open containers of alcohol are illegal on public streets, sidewalks and all other public areas.

·        Sale, possession and use of illegal drugs will not be tolerated.

Enhanced security measures will be in effect on the parade route and very evident. Because of large crowds, Pasadena police officers will resolve problems quickly and remove from the scene anyone who violates the law or disturbs the peace.

The Pasadena Fire Department responds to more than twice the number of calls on parade day than on average days. These calls include reports of hypothermia, illegal burning, miscellaneous medical issues, assaults and alcohol-related incidents.

For more information about safety along the Rose Parade route visit www.visitpasadena.com and click on Visitor Hotline, visit www.cityofpasadena.net/police or call the Pasadena Fire Department at (626) 744-7276.

Weirdly Good

2011-12-28T00:01:00.000-08:00

That place in the Arroyo where we walk the dogs, go running, play soccer and ride our bikes is once again about to be out of commission for a few days. The time between Christmas and New Year's is prep time in Pasadena. Cafe Pasadena called it a "weird" period and I'm glad he did, because now I know I'm not the only one who feels that way.

It's not a bad thing, it's just a--well, a weird thing. It's actually nice, in a weird way, to know that all these folks are coming to town for the parade and the big game, and that places so familiar to us are places they've seen only on TV. I once knew them from TV as well, long ago.

If you're coming from out of town, don't get any weird ideas. I took the photo in September. It's colder now. Not Wisconsin cold. Oh god, no. Not even Oregon cold. We'll all be bundled up in our parkas but don't mind us. You guys might want a sweater.

Treasures

2011-12-27T00:01:00.000-08:00

my friend's collection of beach finds

Do you collect stuff?

Our kitchen windowsill is lined with things we've found on our property: shapely sticks, pretty rocks, old pennies and other interesting artifacts of what and who used to be here.

My mother collected teapots of all sorts, and pretty china cups and saucers. She kept the cups and saucers in a cabinet but the teapots showed up in all sorts of surprising spots in her house.

My friend Paula collects Fiestaware pitchers. They have their own shelf, where they're lined up and ready for precision pouring. My sister-in-law Rebecca collects dishes, too, of all vintages. She mixes and matches for an artful table. Yesterday, Virginia posted a wonderful photo of her friend's collection of bells, beautifully posed in a glass-front cabinet.

When I was a kid I collected plastic horses. Later it was green glass. Now it's antique bottles. At the moment they're in a storage box, but I'll find a spot for them eventually. Or I'll collect something else.

John says he wants to collect vintage Hot Wheels, but I like to think he's kidding.

Zen Monday: #176

2011-12-26T00:01:00.000-08:00

Merriment

2011-12-25T00:01:00.000-08:00

That's me in the foyer of Pasadena City Hall, reflected in an ornament on the city's official Christmas tree.

John and I have each other, our home, work we love and a host of friends and neighbors we're grateful for. Boz is healing. All is well.

Happy holidays to you from the entire staff at Pasadena Daily Photo (me)!

Look Up

2011-12-24T00:01:00.000-08:00

The Christmas tree in the foyer of Pasadena City Hall is a big one. We're looking up up up toward the ceiling. City Hall has an open plan; anyone can visit the tree any time. If you do, be sure to visit the inner courtyard, too. It's a nice place to sit and enjoy the fountain while you eat a sandwich or read your book or give someone a present.

Seeing Red

2011-12-23T00:01:00.000-08:00

I don't know what this plant is. It's not toyon, a red-berried plant with evergreen leaves of a rounder shape. I've spent a fair amount of time searching on the web with no luck. I don't know what words to use in my search string: "red berries," "pointy red leaves," "red stems," etc.; these are getting me nowhere. Any clues?

I'd fill my house with these berries if they weren't so much prettier outside where they belong.

Boz is having eye surgery today. He has a corneal ulcer--a sore cornea that won't heal on its own and has to be treated surgically. I wasn't going to post about it but damn it, I feel bad and I want to say so. I don't feel nearly as bad as Boz is going to feel when the anaesthetic wears off. He's an innocent creature and I can't explain to him why I'm leaving him alone at that scary place where he was fine when he went in and in pain when he came out.

Boz doesn't care as much for colors as I do. He doesn't see the berries as red. I don't think he cares about berries at all.

Not the Moon

2011-12-22T00:01:00.000-08:00

You could bray at it, but you'd be barking up the wrong Christmas tree.

Three guesses.

Never mind. You can have all the guesses you want. You'll probably get it on the first try anyway.

Twinkle

2011-12-21T00:01:00.000-08:00

The lights might just be the best part of December. I also like the food. I do not, however, enjoy the tightening of my pants.

What part of the holidays do you revel in the most?

I don't have to buy them anything.

2011-12-20T00:01:00.000-08:00

Large, hairless dog has an idea.

Small, brown dog has a thought.

Yikes!

Hairless dog is a genius!

Big dog enjoys himself as much as small dog does.

Zen Monday: #175

2011-12-19T00:01:00.000-08:00

photo by John Sandel

Bring It

2011-12-18T00:01:00.000-08:00

Well yay, we did not have another big horrible storm this weekend. Fingers crossed, I post at midnight and you never know what'll happen while I'm sleeping. But it looks like we can stop talking about "Hurricane Pasadena" as my neighbor called it, and move on to what's really important: the Tournament of Roses.

The giant logs on my street can wait. This is solely my opinion, of course. I don't know how the Hurricane Pasadena neighbor feels about it, or the California Cyclone neighbor, or the San Gabriel Gale neighbor (have at it, you have a thesaurus) or any other neighbor for that matter, I'm just talkin'.

The bleachers are up and they're not coming down 'til January. We are getting ~~spruced up~~ (spruce, okay, bad word choice)--we're (shut up! I'm not going to say that!)--my inner devil wants me to say "pining for yew to visit" but I'm not going to say it--we're going to be ready! Yes, Pasadena will be ready on time for the Tournament of Roses, both parade and game, and our fair city will look better than ever because this year every single tree has been trimmed for the occasion.

Free Mulch 'til Eternity

2011-12-17T00:01:00.000-08:00

Our street is still lined on both sides with piles of tree branches, although we can see the clean-up approach and it looks like the crews will get to us this weekend if the weather holds. It's been fun, but I guess it'll be nice to have street parking again.

Few members of the relevant Pasadena city staff have had much sleep these last two weeks. I've spoken with sanitation workers on garbage pick-up rounds, streets workers repairing damaged street lights and electrical workers doing that stuff they do with the wires. Everybody's been working long shifts, trying to put the city back together again. They're tired but still going, still keeping their spirits up as far as I can tell. At least nobody's snapped at me. Honestly, I'd be so nasty by now if I'd been working 12 hour shifts for 16 days straight. They are amazing and they're not finished yet.

Because, you know, GAME. PARADE.

If you're a regular here at PDP you know of at least one tireless city staff member who's been keeping us informed since the early morning hours of December 1st: Ann Erdman, Pasadena's Public Information Officer. Thank you, Ann. You're the best.

I've received more information from Ann's office--four more press releases over the last few days. I'm going to edit them down here to the most pertinent stuff.

The first one is in the "better late than never" category. Ann was on time, just--I wasn't. Fortunately the weather wasn't too bad yesterday. Today we may not be so lucky.

Topics of the press releases include, in this order:
more storm warnings
a fund to replace our lost trees
debris pick-up and dumping
free mulch! dude!

Questions answered. Contact information. Scroll through and find what you need.

#######

CITY OF PASADENA PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE
NEWS FOR RELEASE:
December 15, 2011
5:34 PM
MEDIA CONTACT: Ann Erdman, (626) 744-4755

COMMUNITY ADVISED TO PREPARE FOR SECOND WINDSTORM

Following a ferocious thunderstorm that swept through Pasadena this afternoon, a second windstorm with predicted gusts of up to 60 miles an hour is expected to hit Dec. 16 and 17.

Pasadena Public Works Department crews will be working all weekend to continue the process of debris removal.

“The city of Pasadena has extra crews on call to respond to emergencies should that be necessary,” said Pasadena City Manager Michael J. Beck. “This is a good time for residents to make sure they are prepared in case of an emergency.”

A page on the city website – www.cityofpasadena.net/windstorm_2011 – includes comprehensive information about windstorms, including instructions for emergency preparedness, important phone numbers, answers to frequently asked questions and more.

To report power-related issues, call (626) 744-4673;
to report fallen or compromised trees in the public right of way, call (626) 744-4321;
to report fallen or compromised trees on private property, call (626) 744-4009;
to report building damage, call (626) 744-4200.

To report a life-threatening emergency, call 9-1-1.

###

December 15, 2011
5:03 PM

LOCAL FOUNDATIONS WORKING TOGETHER TO HELP RENEW PASADENA’S URBAN FOREST FOLLOWING WINDSTORM

The city of Pasadena lost close to 1,100 trees of all sizes and species during the recent hurricane-force windstorm and at least 70 more park trees have been damaged and are being assessed for their chances of survival.

Now two local foundations are working together to help renew the public portion of Pasadena’s urban forest by replacing those lost trees.

The Pasadena Community Foundation has teamed up with Pasadena Beautiful Foundation to establish the Windstorm Tree Fund for Pasadena to raise money for the purchase and planting of replacement trees on city property.

Pasadena Community Foundation, a non-profit, tax-exempt public charity created by and for the people of Pasadena, will match up to $10,000 in donations to the fund. All donations to the Windstorm Tree Fund for Pasadena are tax deductible and organizers stress that every penny donated will be used for the sole purpose of planting new trees.

“Without us having to ask, these two organizations saw the need, came to the city and offered their help," said City Manager Michael J. Beck. "In a time of very tight budgets, this kind of support from our residents is especially welcome and we’re very grateful.”

“Our urban forest is what makes our community livable,” said Emina Darakjy, past president of Pasadena Beautiful Foundation, a non-profit community organization that has worked with the city of Pasadena for 50 years to plant and protect trees. “Besides adding a natural beauty, trees provide quantifiable economic, ecosystem and health benefits.”

Donations to the fund may be made at www.pasadenabeautiful.org (click on Make a Donation) or mailed to Pasadena Beautiful Foundation, 140 S. Lake Ave., Suite 268, Pasadena CA 91101.

For more information about the Windstorm Tree Fund for Pasadena and to follow its progress, visit www.pasadenabeautiful.org and www.pasadenacf.org. Facebook users can “Like” the Windstorm Tree Fund for Pasadena page.

# # #

December 13, 2011
5:11 pm

CREWS COLLECT YEAR’S WORTH OF GREEN DEBRIS IN ONE WEEK

The enormity of the windstorm recovery effort is becoming clearer every day.

Pasadena Public Works Department crews have been working tirelessly to clear the city’s 325 miles of roadways of storm debris and so far have collected a year’s worth – 18,000 tons – in just one week.

“It’s an incredible amount of material,” said Public Works Director Siobhan Foster. “We’re going to be devoting the next several weeks to picking up all the green windstorm debris that residents have put out at the curb.”

A small contingent from L.A. County Department of Public Works continues to assist Pasadena Public Works with the massive project. Primary and secondary arterial roads have been cleared and now crews are concentrating on residential streets, moving east to west across the community while responding to day-to-day issues.

Foster reiterated that the Dec. 12 deadline for putting green storm debris at the curb for pickup has now passed and urged residents not to keep adding more, especially if crews have already cleared their streets.

“Once we finish a street, we’re finished,” she added. “We won’t be making a second pass to pick up more debris put out at the curb after the deadline. Our crews have to get to every part of the city.”

Residents with additional storm debris not placed at the street are advised to break it up to fit in yard-waste bins or take it to drop-off sites at the parking lots of Robinson Park, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Avenue, or Eaton Blanche Park, 3100 E. Del Mar Boulevard, by Friday, Dec. 16. All green debris, whether already at the curb or taken to a site, should be unbagged.

For more information call (626) 744-4087.

# # #

December 13, 2011
5:30 pm

WINDSTORM DEBRIS RETURNED TO COMMUNITY AS FREE MULCH

The recent hurricane-force windstorm that rocked Pasadena has finally yielded one benefit: free mulch for gardens.

Green debris taken by residents to two drop-off points has been ground up and will be returned to those locations starting this week as free mulch available to any Pasadenan with a shovel and something with which to carry the mulch.

Mulch will be available daily from Dec. 16 to 29, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Eaton Blanche Park, 3100 E. Del Mar Blvd., in the parking lot on Millicent Way; and Robinson Park, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., in the parking lot on Morton Street.

Mulch is an important organic protective cover placed over soil to help retain moisture, return nutrients, discourage weed growth and encourage seed germination and healthy plant growth.

To prevent contamination of mulch, residents are reminded that yard waste must never contain any non-green items such as mattresses, fence material, roof shingles or other debris.

In addition to a great deal of free mulch, the unprecedented amount of storm debris has led to an increase in illegal dumping on streets, in parks and public rights of way. Pasadena Police are on the lookout for illegal dumping and will issue citations.

For more information about green debris collection and free mulch, contact Environmental Programs Manager Gabriel Silva at (626) 744-4721.

# # #

Ann Erdman
Public Information Officer
City of Pasadena
Public Affairs Office
100 N. Garfield Ave., Room S228
Pasadena CA 91109
(626) 744-4755
Cell: (626) 375-2742
www.cityofpasadena.net/publicaffairs
Facebook: Pasadena PIO
Twitter: pasadenapio

Guest Author: Gail Herndon and Brenda Goldstein, and the Spa Less Traveled

2011-12-16T00:01:00.000-08:00

We're doubling up on guest authors this week! It's like it's Christmas or something! Which is convenient, because this book is a good idea for a holiday gift and next week you'll already have your shopping done, right?

Two friends, Brenda Goldstein and Gail Herndon, take us along on their journey to The Spa Less Traveled, published by Pasadena's own Prospect Park Media.

We didn’t intend to write anything – it was just about getting together, hanging out, exploring the city and seeing where that took us. Our first outing in 2007 was Chinatown. We went to a lecture at the LA Library on the history of Chinese food in Los Angeles. There was a small panel of diverse perspectives, including author Lisa See and former LA politician Michael Woo. We did a fascinating walking tour which, in hindsight, really set the stage for our book. We ate, we shopped (found some amazing deals on beaded shoes!) and we knew we’d be back. There was much left to see and discover.

Our second trip was to Thai Town. The boundaries for Thai Town are much smaller than Chinatown, and as such one could actually “do the town” in one day. It was here that the idea for a massage appeared. It was at the end of our visit, and though we’re not ones to wear heels on a field trip, our feet were duly tired from all the walking. The only knowledge we had about Thai massage was that it was “different.” Hmmmm. Sure, why not try it?

We were first given a loose top and large pair of pants with a long, attached fabric tie. Later we learned these are called “Fisherman” pants, and there are specific instructions about getting them on correctly. I don’t know if either of us did it correctly that first time. One difference of Thai massage is that the massage is performed on the floor, on a padded mat. The massage starts with you face down. There is a cushion for your face and a bolster for your feet. Another difference is that the massage both starts and ends at your feet. Traditional Thai massage is also performed dry – that is, without oil. If there is an area, typically on your back or neck, that has more knots to be worked out, they may ask if they might use Tiger Balm, a salve made with a unique blend of essential oils. This helps facilitate the massage, and allows the therapist to more easily manipulate the sen lines, similar to meridians used in Chinese massage.

And so it began. We’d go to a new city and have another new massage experience. After a while, we realized we’d gathered some pretty good information – the parking tips alone are valuable, for those challenged to find parking in population-dense Los Angeles. We loved learning about Korean, Russian, Japanese, Thai and Chinese massage modalities. Chapters are dedicated to each in The Spa Less Traveled, and we provide a review for the over 200 places listed. It’s one of the great things about living in Pasadena – we’re close to so many interesting places worthy of exploration. And getting a massage is a great way to get to know a neighborhood!

Honor, At Last

2011-12-15T00:01:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow, Friday evening at 6pm, there's going to be a ceremony at All Saints Church to honor the homeless dead. This piece by yesterday's guest author Kat Ward gives more details (ignore the typo, the ceremony will indeed be held Friday night).

Los Angeles County holds an annual ritual to bury the unnamed and unclaimed. Just the thought of it is eerie and sad, over-full of stories not told.

It's too little, too late, of course. But it's something.

5:42PM this just in:

COMMUNITY ADVISED TO PREPARE FOR SECOND WINDSTORM

CITY OF PASADENA PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE
NEWS FOR RELEASE: December 15, 2011
MEDIA CONTACT: Ann Erdman, (626) 744-4755

Following a ferocious thunderstorm that swept through Pasadena this afternoon, a second windstorm with predicted gusts of up to 60 miles an hour is expected to hit Dec. 16 and 17.

Pasadena Public Works Department crews will be working all weekend to continue the process of debris removal.

“The city of Pasadena has extra crews on call to respond to emergencies should that be necessary,” said Pasadena City Manager Michael J. Beck. “This is a good time for residents to make sure they are prepared in case of an emergency.”

A page on the city website – www.cityofpasadena.net/windstorm_2011 – includes comprehensive information about windstorms, including instructions for emergency preparedness, important phone numbers, answers to frequently asked questions and more.

To report power-related issues, call (626) 744-4673; to report fallen or compromised trees in the public right of way, call (626) 744-4321; to report fallen or compromised trees on private property, call (626) 744-4009; to report building damage, call (626) 744-4200. To report a life-threatening emergency, call 9-1-1.

# # #

Ann Erdman
Public Information Officer
City of Pasadena
Public Affairs Office
100 N. Garfield Ave., Room S228
Pasadena CA 91109
(626) 744-4755
Cell: (626) 375-2742
www.cityofpasadena.net/publicaffairs
Facebook: Pasadena PIO
Twitter: pasadenapio

Guest Author: Kat Ward

2011-12-14T00:01:00.001-08:00

When I first read Kat Ward's articles on Hometown Pasadena I recognized her enthusiasm for discovering the treasures of her new hometown. I know the feeling! No wonder the Dena embraces her; Kat is easy to like. Please welcome today's guest author, Kat Ward.

Saugatuck River, Westport, CT by Kat Ward

What a difference 24 minutes make (and 15.46 miles). From procrastination to proliferation; from unfocused to driven; from stuck to inspired—thank you, South Pasadena.

After eleven years of living in the Hollywood flats, I felt claustrophobic in the mishmash of my neighborhood. Initially, this world spurred my writing. Late at night as I looked out my window, the city lights reflecting yellow-green off the low clouds, I wrote diligently. But years of sirens, car horns, loud drunks and party-goers wrung out my last nerve—my hand constantly held the t.v. clicker so I could raise or lower the volume depending on how expressive the neighborhood was feeling. I began to feel uncreative. I ached for something else.

Artist Jennifer Frank introduced me to a woman who had raised her kids in South Pas. The very day I met her while walking in the Arroyo, she called and told me of an apartment for rent across from her house. I wheedled and charmed the landlords and got what I needed—a bigger apartment that doesn't share a single wall—finally a quiet night's sleep—versus neighbors washing dishes at midnight, dumpster divers outside my window or helicopters with search lights. Best of all, a tub-length shower versus an upright, coffin-sized stall shower and a 10 minute drive to my daughter's school! I suddenly had an extra two hours on my hands five days a week. Divine.

With my time, I have edited my friend Lori Bertazzon's self-help workbook Where Are You Stuck?; have a local professional copyediting my novel Amy's Own and have started a blog loosely based on my current novel Keeping Sane, and Other Aspirations.

The biggest boost was meeting (again through Jennifer Frank) and being hired by Colleen Bates of Prospect Park Media, a small publishing company in Pasadena. Colleen authored the outstanding guidebook Hometown Pasadena and created a website of the same name. After doing a few freebie posts, I was hired to write about local events, kid-focused fun, new shops and charity fundraisers, and to do monthly interviews. I get to go to businesses, use my photography skills and write stories. I am having the time of my life.

Dubrovnik, Croatia (formerly Yugoslavia) 1988, by Kat Ward

I stay up until two in the morning and awaken with the alarm to get my girl ready for school and I don't miss a beat. One day when she was off on a Sequoyah School camping trip, I stayed up all night, not going to bed until 1 p.m. the next day—I was so amped with ideas, I couldn't wait to put them all down on paper. I was walking on air. Well actually, I was walking on Oxley Street. My new street lined with California Craftsman bungalows and endless trees—where I can walk and walk in the quiet (even at midnight), letting ideas germinate, words gush and adrenaline pump.

Thank you, Hollywood; you did me well, but I have to let you go.

Now my spirit is excited, my mind humming, my writing hand aching, and my composition books filling up. Hello, San Gabriel Valley.

Accolades

2011-12-13T00:01:00.000-08:00

Just ten short months ago, Des Zamorano pioneered the Guest Author post here on the old blog with her novel, Human Cargo. Here's the book cover, to spark your memory:

In this mystery, Des' smart heroine, Inez Leon, is the private eye who tracks down some dangerous types and foils a heinous crime right here on San Gabriel Valley turf. It's an exciting read and now it's official: Human Cargo made the Latinidad List, Best Books of 2011. The list was created by Marcela Landres, former editor at Simon & Schuster and author of How Editors Think: The Real Reason They Rejected You.

In Landres' words, Human Cargo is: "A page-turner featuring a protagonist who could be your BFF—one who happens to be a PI with a black belt in Krav Maga."

You can download the ebook here and read it on just about any device, including a plain old laptop or desktop computer. You'll find more about Des and her work here.

It's exciting when our friends achieve. It's a thrill when they hit the heights. Congratulations, Desiree!

So, why the picture of the contemplative guy hanging out on the Caltech campus? Well, Inez has a boyfriend...

Zen Monday: #174

2011-12-12T00:01:00.000-08:00

Zen Monday's the day you experience the photo and give us your thoughts rather than me telling you what I think the picture's about. There's no competition, no right or wrong. We're here to have fun. (Some Zen Mondays are more fun than others.)

I look for something worth contemplating or, failing that, something odd or silly. All of the above, if I'm lucky.

From the PIO:

A compilation of all information about last week’s windstorm and subsequent recovery can be found at this new page on the city of Pasadena website:

www.cityofpasadena.net/Windstorm_2011

Ann Erdman
Public Information Officer
City of Pasadena
Public Affairs Office
100 N. Garfield Ave., Room S228
Pasadena CA 91109
(626) 744-4755
Cell: (626) 375-2742
www.cityofpasadena.net/publicaffairs
Facebook: Pasadena PIO
Twitter: pasadenapio

Christmas Charisma

2011-12-11T00:01:00.000-08:00

Your local Christmas curmudgeon got her veneer cracked the other day. Donna Chaney invited me to a Women's City Club luncheon, and I don't like to miss a chance to spend time with a good friend like Donna. Nor do I like to miss a chance to visit the historic Blinn House, the Club's home at the edge of the Fuller Theological Seminary campus.

So I expect and receive a nice meal, a cup of coffee and the company of smart, entrepreneurial women. We're munching away and having a proper chat when in come these adorable kids in their charming costumes and I think, "Ah, well, there goes the conversation."

Pitch pipe gives a quiet note and BAM! These junior musical geniuses sing out Christmas carols old and new in such glorious, four-part harmonies that I actually put down my fork and shut up to listen.

I agreed with the woman next to me that they had to be college kids because they were too good to be any younger. Wrong. They're the Crescenta Valley High School Charismatics Chamber Choir, and they are super.

Of course even talented high school kids are not going to sing with that kind of precision without a lot (a lot!) of rehearsal. Wrangling that is their conductor, Mr. Shannon W. Mack. If you want to talk to him about having these charismatic cherubs serenade your Christmas soiree, contact him at smack@gusd.net.

Entropy, 3

2011-12-10T00:01:00.000-08:00

I promised to reveal the location of our mystery mansion today. As I said in comments (somewhere in the last two days) it's smack dab in Pasadena. Smack dab. The address is 386 W. Green Street.

You don't notice it from Green because a plain wall faces the street. There's a parking lot behind the house. When we were there a guy had parked there to walk his dog on the Ambassador Campus, of which this is the northernmost building. If you haven't explored the area all I can say is, you should. You can't see anything interesting from Orange Grove or Del Mar or Green or St. John. But park the car and walk in the park-like area bordered by those streets and you'll walk in Pasadena history.

I can't begin to know why other buildings on the Campus have been kept up and this one hasn't. The property is in transition--it's been sold to a developer whose plans are undergoing the city's review process. I don't know which owner let this building go, the previous one or the current one.

Stand on the back porch, where I took the photos from yesterday and the day before, and you can see the bleachers where the TV cameras will be perched in a couple of weeks for the Tournament of Roses Parade.

Entropy, 2

2011-12-09T00:01:00.000-08:00

Here's the flip side of yesterday's photo. Those small black spots are bees, swarming around their hive.

Feel free to name this place in the comments if you know it. If it doesn't come up today I'll do the big reveal tomorrow.

Oh! I also want to mention that the Fork in the Road guys are doing a holiday toy drive this weekend, all weekend. Info is here.

A couple of storm updates from Ann Erdman, Pasadena PIO:

RESIDENTS ASKED TO KEEP STORM DRAINS CLEAR DURING GREEN DEBRIS PICKUP

With a chance of rain in the weather forecast beginning Sunday and city crews busy collecting green windstorm debris placed at curbside by residents, city officials are concerned that blocked storm drains could lead to standing water or flooding in some areas.

To avoid this additional complication, residents are asked to check whether water in their street could reach storm drains and, if not, to clear a path for it by moving storm debris as needed. Also, as previously requested, green debris should be unbagged.

The city has also established green-debris drop-off locations at Eaton Blanche Park, 3100 E. Del Mar Blvd., and Robinson Park, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., which are reserved for Pasadena residents only. The sites, originally intended to be open Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. until Dec. 16, will also be open Sunday, Dec. 11, as well. Green debris cannot be dumped on the ground and must be placed inside the large bins on site.

Proof of residency, such as a utility bill or identification card, is required to drop off material. No private contractors are allowed to dispose of green materials at the park locations.

Private contractors removing windstorm-generated green debris for Pasadena residents may dispose of it at the Eaton Wash spreading disposal site at the northeast corner of Washington and Sierra Madre Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Only green material originating from Pasadena will be accepted at this site. To dispose at the Eaton Wash spreading site, contractors will be required to provide company name, address and client information. Contractors may also take green waste to the Scholl Canyon landfill at 7721 N. Figueroa St. in Los Angeles, where it will be used as alternative daily cover.

# # #

Ann Erdman
Public Information Officer
City of Pasadena
Public Affairs Office
100 N. Garfield Ave., Room S228
Pasadena CA 91109
(626) 744-4755
Cell: (626) 375-2742
www.cityofpasadena.net/publicaffairs
Facebook: Pasadena PIO
Twitter: pasadenapio

PASADENA WATER AND POWER CREWS REPAIR LAST OF DOWNED POWER LINES

After working a week of emergency 32-hour shifts to restore electricity to its customers, Pasadena Water and Power crews have now repaired overhead power lines and placed them back into service. Crews are still focused on a few customers who have private-property damage.

Homeowners with electrical damage on private property should contact electrical contractors for repair and make sure the electricians are properly licensed and bonded. More information is available on the Contractors State License Board website at www.cslb.ca.gov.

PWP urges any homeowner still without power to report the outage at (626) 564-0199 or (626) 564-0299 so the situation can be properly and safely assessed and repaired.

City Manager Michael Beck praised PWP crews for their expertise and tireless efforts on behalf of customers.

“The men and women of our publicly owned PWP deserve the many thanks they’ve received from customers in the field,” said Beck. “Our power is so rarely disrupted that we too often take for granted that our lights and heat come on at the flip of a switch. Our power stays on for years at a time because these same crews are out there every day keeping electricity flowing to our homes and businesses. They do outstanding work.”

Beck also thanked the many other city employees, including police and fire personnel and public works crews, who put in exceptionally long hours to protect residents and property from dangerous situations caused by tree- and debris-related damage. In addition, he thanked the county of Los Angeles and the cities of Burbank, Glendale, Anaheim and Los Angeles for sending power teams and public works crews to supplement Pasadena’s response.

“Mutual aid works,” he added.

Beck reiterated that the city’s coordinated emergency response to the windstorm worked exceptionally well, with city departments working seamlessly with each other.

To further secure the reliability of the community’s electric grid, PWP crews will be working in coming months to make permanent the quick and temporary repairs they made to restore power.

In the meantime, everyone involved with directing and implementing the disaster response will debrief, revisit events, highlight successes and look for areas for improvement.

Three public meetings will be scheduled in January when residents will be invited to share their experiences. Beginning Monday, Dec. 12, a page on the city website at www.cityofpasadena.net will also be available to take public input.

Entropy, 1

2011-12-08T00:01:00.000-08:00

Whenever we have a free day, John and I like to explore. You start out with a vague plan and it always, always changes. That's the beauty of it.

On Thanksgiving day we discovered a place I had never noticed before. You may have seen it, but in my six years in Pasadena I had probably driven by it a thousand times without knowing it was there.

A bit of a mystery for today. More to come.

Pasadena Proud

2011-12-07T00:01:00.000-08:00

Last week's wind storm was the kind of thing you can't prepare for--at least not in a specific way. The people who run a city's infrastructure can't sit down and say, "What are we going to do in the case of gale force winds that knock down hundreds of giant trees, downing power lines, blocking roads and damaging property?"

But they can plan for generalities--mass injuries, loss of power, or loss of communication, for example.

We've just seen how Pasadena responds to a major loss of power that could have been a disaster. Downed power lines were ready to ignite vulnerable homes and emergency vehicles couldn't get through roads blocked by toppled trees. Our city responded and kept responding and continues to respond.

Stories we hear from neighboring towns aren't as positive.

John and I called various Pasadena city services last Friday about tree removal, live wires and broken street lights. With the exception of one guy, who obviously didn't grok the magnitude of the situation ("Well, it's Friday, so you know, probly not 'til Monday...") we talked to knowledgeable, responsive people who either answered our questions or sought out the person who could.

Those persons haven't had much sleep since last Wednesday night. Now it's time for us to do our part.

First, we can bring our broken branches and tree debris to the curb per the instructions in this article from the San Gabriel Valley Tribune.

Then we can be patient. Pasadena's got a Tournament of Roses to put on in just over three weeks. It's a big deal for our city. It's our annual triumph, our "hello" to the world, and this year it's as important as ever, if not more. Pasadena has done a fantastic job of cleaning up after a historic storm. I've still got a few items on my list of things for the city to do, but I can wait.

Update from Pasadena's Public Information Officer, Ann Erdman:
(this one came in at 6:30 pm)

CITY OF PASADENA PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE
NEWS FOR RELEASE: December 7, 2011
MEDIA CONTACT: Ann Erdman, (626) 744-4755

PASADENA WINDSTORM UPDATE, DEC. 7 6:25 P.M.

Here is the latest update on recovery from the hurricane-force winds that devastated many parts of this community last Wednesday and Thursday.

Power

Pasadena Water and Power crews made significant progress over the past 24 hours, replacing damaged power poles and transformers and coordinating with Public Works Department crews and some private tree services to remove downed trees from power lines and restring the lines.

An ongoing canvass of neighborhoods has identified many properties that need replacement of wires from nearby power poles.

As of this afternoon, approximately 75 customers are without electricity. Crews will work again through the night, handling calls already logged in and any additional calls as soon as possible.

“It’s important to keep this in perspective. We’re dealing with the equivalent of a hurricane-force event that impacted most of Pasadena’s 23 square miles with 325 miles of streets,” said City Manager Michael J. Beck. “The dramatic increase in restoration of power services over the past 48 hours is a further example of the unwavering commitment by city crews that have been working in 32-hour shifts with six-hour rest periods since this disaster began.”

The crews, assisted by workers on loan from Anaheim Public Utilities and Burbank Water and Power, continue to work around the clock, and in some cases are installing temporary fixes to get electricity restored to more homes more quickly. They will return to those properties to make permanent repairs once all service is restored.

Some customers who have power may experience intermittent outages while repairs are made to nearby properties. Please report outages to (626) 744-4673.

Green Debris Removal

A systematic east-to-west green debris removal process is now underway in Pasadena and is following existing solid waste collection routes the day after normal refuse collection dates. Residents are asked to place their green debris out as soon as possible. The deadline for getting rid of green recyclable waste by taking it to the curb will be on residents’ normal trash pickup day the week of Dec. 12.

To recycle all the green material and avoid contamination of the resulting mulch, please place only unbagged green material out for pickup. Other non-green debris resulting from the windstorm will be collected separately by scheduling a bulky-item pickup.

Private contractors providing green material removal service for residents may dispose of material at the Eaton Wash spreading disposal site at the northeast corner of Washington Boulevard and Sierra Madre Boulevard from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Only green material originating from Pasadena will be accepted at this site. Contractors will be required to provide company name, address and client information. Contractors may also take green waste to the Scholl Canyon landfill at 7721 N. Figueroa St. in Los Angeles, where it will be used as alternative daily cover.

Absolutely no dumping is allowed at Rose Bowl Stadium and other parking lots.

Green storm debris drop-off locations are available to residents at Eaton Blanche Park, 3100 E. Del Mar Blvd., Robinson Park, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave. Only Pasadena residents may use these drop-off locations. The sites will be open Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., from Dec. 7 through 16. Green debris cannot be dumped on the ground and must be placed inside the large bins on site.

Proof of residency (i.e., utility bill or identification card) will be required to drop off material. No private contractors will be allowed to dispose of green materials at the park locations.

Damage Reporting

The City of Pasadena’s storm-related costs are expected to be in the tens of millions of dollars. State and federal emergency management agencies could help mitigate storm-related costs to local governments, homeowners, and businesses, but only if they have accurate damage totals.

City and county officials are asking that homeowners and business owners report all their storm-related costs to the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) so local governments can more accurately demonstrate the need for state and federal disaster aid.

OEM is tallying estimates countywide and will forward the information to the state.

To report storm-related damage by phone dial 2-1-1. Damage can also be reported online at www.211la.org.

For more information about the city’s emergency declaration and storm-related cost estimates, contact Pasadena Emergency Management Coordinator Lisa Derderian at (626) 744-7276.

# # #

Ann Erdman
Public Information Officer
City of Pasadena
Public Affairs Office
100 N. Garfield Ave., Room S228
Pasadena CA 91109
(626) 744-4755
Cell: (626) 375-2742
www.cityofpasadena.net/publicaffairs
Facebook: Pasadena PIO
Twitter: pasadenapio

(this one came in at 2:29 pm when I was out, sorry I didn't post it sooner)

PASADENANS URGED TO REPORT PRIVATE STORM DAMAGE IN EFFORT TO GAIN STATE AND FEDERAL EMERGENCY FINANCIAL HELP

While city and private crews work to reconnect the remaining customers still without electricity and clear thousands of tons of debris from streets and parks, local governments, including the city of Pasadena, are tallying the public costs of last week’s hurricane-force windstorm. Pasadena’s costs will certainly run into the tens of millions of dollars.

State and federal emergency agencies could help mitigate those costs but only if they have accurate damage totals. City and county officials are asking that homeowners and business owners report their storm-related costs as well so local governments can more accurately demonstrate the need for state and federal disaster aid.

“We need any damage and costs that residents and businesses incurred to be reported to the county, which will forward them to the state,” said Pasadena City Manager Michael J. Beck. “It’s crucial that the state and federal governments have an accurate sense of the true costs of this emergency to local governments and private property owners and businesses to follow up with disaster-relief funding.”

Beck urged residents to report their storm-related costs to the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management, which is tallying estimates countywide.

The office may be reached by dialing 2-1-1. Damage can also be reported online at www.211la.org.

For more information about the city’s emergency declaration and storm-related cost estimates, contact Pasadena Emergency Management Coordinator Lisa Derderian at (626) 744-7276.

Learning to See

2011-12-06T00:01:00.000-08:00

I want to show you a couple more pictures I took during Ibarionex Perello's workshop. (I'm proud of this one.)

When you arrive at the workshop, which begins at Memorial Park and takes you trekking through Old Town, you'll be greeted by Ibarionex, his wife Cynthia, and probably a few of their friends. With smiles. And hot coffee. It sets the tone.

Then, like ducklings following your leader, you head out into Old Town in search of challenge, texture and, most of all, light. Ibarionex will give you some basics about using your digital SLR camera, then you're going to start chasing the light and learning to see in new ways.

For my first couple of years of blogging I worked with an Olympus SP350, a nice, purse-sized point-and-shoot that had some manual settings I never used. I still shoot with it sometimes (with the automatic settings) but not as much. I learned a lot and I was ready to move on to a better instrument.

I met Ibarionex at a local blogger event about two and a half years ago. We had already met online. Some time after that first meeting I bought a Canon 20D from him. It might have some of his mojo, but I'll never know unless I learn how to use it. I've been trying to teach myself and I've made progress, but I'm lazy about reading manuals. So when the chance came along to take a workshop with the man himself, I jumped at it. I'm going to jump again this Saturday. It's his last workshop of the year that isn't full yet.

(I'm proud of this one, too.)

I can recommend the class because I've taken it and I already see results. If you want to make the leap, go to the Candid Frame Workshops sign-up page, ignore the other discount codes and get the workshop for $50 by entering this code: perellovip.

I was out shooting today and got a few good pictures, although I admit several were overexposed. It's not like this stuff comes easy. With practice, though, it comes. I could set everything on automatic and let the camera make all the decisions, but in that case I might as well use a point-and-shoot.

Dorothea Lange said "A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera." I love wrapping my mind around the meaning of that statement.

Zen Monday: #173

2011-12-05T00:01:00.000-08:00

Happy Zen Monday. Please give us your Zen in the comments.

FYI, East of Allen did a better job with this photographic concept. There's more than one way to make this point, skin this cat, beat this dead horse.

Here's the PIO's update on wind storm clean-up as of 5:45 pm today:
(Before I post it I just want to mention that in other cities, one city in particular which shall not be named but with the initials T.C., my friends tell me they still have ZERO information about what's going on with their power, street clean-up, etc. Ann Erdman and her team have been on the job since very early morning December 1st, and that's not to mention all the Pasadena crews: streets, Water & Power, etc. We've had no trouble getting answers when we call City Hall. Bravo!)

CITY OF PASADENA PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE
NEWS FOR RELEASE: December 5, 2011
MEDIA CONTACT: Ann Erdman, Office: (626) 744-4755; Cell: (626) 375-2742

PASADENA WINDSTORM UPDATE – Monday, Dec. 5, 5:45 p.m.

Recovery efforts are in full swing as Pasadena works to restore remaining electric customers who without power and clean up debris left in the wake of last week’s ferocious windstorms.

The Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) announced today the activation of the 2-1-1 county disaster hotline – (800) 980-4990 – for residents to report damages caused by the winds. As recovery efforts continue, in the Los Angeles County area, OEM continues to collect initial estimates from county departments, cities and unincorporated areas to determine public and private sector damages. OEM will continue to coordinate with the California Emergency Management Agency to secure state and federal assistance as warranted. The city of Pasadena is fully cooperating in this important effort.

The following is an update on services and infrastructure as of 5 p.m. Monday, December 5, 2011. Statistical information begins on page 4.

Green Debris Removal

As city crews continue to remove fallen trees and other green storm debris from Pasadena streets and parks, residents are asked to help by moving their green debris out to the gutter as soon as possible for easy pickup. To recycle all green material and avoid contamination of the resulting mulch, please place only non-bagged green material out for pickup. The city plans to recycle 100 percent of the green material into mulch that will be used in parks and open space citywide.

A systematic east-to-west green debris removal process is now underway and will follow existing trash pickup routes the day after normal refuse collection dates. The deadline for getting rid of green recyclable waste by taking it to the curb will be on residents’ normal trash pickup day the week of Dec. 12.

Green waste drop-off locations will also be established at Eaton Blanche Park, 3100 E. Del Mar Blvd., and Robinson Park, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., from Wednesday, Dec. 7, through Friday, Dec. 16, from 7 a.m. Green material must be placed inside the large bins on site, which will not be available Sunday.

Free mulch from the green recycling effort will be available to the public beginning Dec. 15 at both drop-off locations.

For more information call (626) 744-4721.

Shelter

Regular recreation programming is scheduled for Robinson Park Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., until 8 p.m. this evening. City staff will remain on site to reopen the center in the event the few remaining residents without power need a warm place for the evening.

Streets, Parks and Trees

All primary and secondary arterial roadways were passable as of Saturday afternoon. As of Monday morning 98 percent of all residential streets are passable.

An assessment of city parks has been completed: Approximately 150 trees have fallen and approximately 30 have sustained structural damage and may need to be removed for safety reasons. A number of park improvements at various sites, including play equipment, backstops, pathway lighting and playground surfaces, have been damaged as well as the scoreboard at the historic Jackie Robinson Stadium in Brookside Park.

The removal and clearing of trees that are not in the public right of way is the responsibility of private property owners. Those who suffered damage to vehicles, homes or other property caused by fallen city trees or tree limbs should contact their private insurers for proper handling of claims.

Refuse Service

Regular refuse service resumed on Friday. However, there are a total of 88 residences where refuse service has yet to be restored due to downed power lines and trees.

In response to illegal dumping, the Police Department has increased patrols. Residents are urged to report any such activities they may witness by calling (626) 744-4241.

Electricity
Some customers may experience intermittent interruptions as Pasadena Water and Power (PWP) disconnects service momentarily to allow crews to reconnect portions of circuits they have repaired or rebuilt. In some cases, customers are expected to have major repairs performed to their electrical panels before PWP can reconnect permanent power.
Utility Crews, including those from Anaheim Water and Power and Burbank Water and Power as well as private contractors, continue to work around the clock to restore service to roughly 300 or so customers. Most primary circuits have been repaired, allowing more crews to focus on secondary services. Efforts are being made to contact remaining customers without power to advise of the status of repairs. In some cases it may take days to restore service, as most remaining issues involve connections to homes with damaged connections. Priority has been given to customers with
life-safety concerns and where further structural or electric-system damage is a risk.

Some properties in a small section of Northwest Pasadena are served by Southern California Edison and should call (800) 661-1191 to report outages.

Water
All water customers have service. Southern California Edison has completed repairs to the pump stations in Northwest Pasadena to correct the low water pressure some customers were experiencing.

Safety

Everyone should stay clear of compromised, overhead electric, cable and telephone lines. Do not attempt to remove trees that are touching any utility line. A list of tree-care professionals with expertise in electrical safety and tree health is available under the FYI section at www.cityofpasadena.net.

Athletic Fields

All City athletic fields, with the exception of Diamond 3 at Brookside Park have been returned to normal usage and programming.

Parking Restrictions

Enforcement of all normal parking restrictions is back in effect. Those needing to park on street due to the presence of storm debris should purchase a temporary overnight parking exemption at www.cityofpasadena.net/Transportation/Temporary_Overnight_Parking_Exemptions or contact the Pasadena Police at (626) 744-4241 for a temporary permit.
Scams

Verify all credentials of anyone offering to perform inspection or repair work. Call the Pasadena Police Department at (626) 744-4241 if you suspect a scam.

Declaration of Local Disaster

In response to the disaster, the city declared a local emergency. This declaration is a proactive and protective measure consistent with other neighboring cities that have sustained significant damage. It occurs when a disaster has progressed or is anticipated to extend beyond the capability of regular municipal personnel and resources, assisted by neighboring communities, to maintain order and control and confine the incident.

More Information

To report fallen public trees and hazardous tree conditions, call (626) 744-4321.

To report downed power lines, call (626) 564-0199 or (626) 564-0299.

Customer service representatives are on duty around the clock, documenting all call details and forwarding to appropriate staff for resolution. Reports can also be made at the online Citizens Service Center at www.cityofpasadena.net/csc.

Pasadena residents and others who want to sign up for local alerts can go to www.cityofpasadena.net/fire/PLEAS or www.nixle.com.

PASADENA WINDSTORM UPDATE – BY THE NUMBERS
Updated Monday, Dec. 5, 2011
• 1,382 incidents have been logged in by the Public Works Department since Wednesday.

• 3 of 5 public art pieces at Walnut Street and Foothill Boulevard were damaged. 2 have been stabilized and 1 remains down.

• 3 areas of the San Pasqual pedestrian bridge in the Arroyo Seco were damaged by a fallen tree. The damage will be assessed fully after the tree has been removed.

• A 12-inch diameter concrete drainage pipe that outlets to the street through 4 curb drains was exposed due to a fallen tree at 1824-1826 El Sereno Ave. Public Works engineers will conduct an evaluation next week.

• 325 miles of streets were impacted by storm debris – falling trees, tree limbs, utility poles and/or wires. The primary goal has been to move debris to the side of the road so at least one lane in each direction is open. Debris will be removed over the coming weeks.
   * 100 percent of arterial streets are accessible
   * 100 percent of secondary streets are accessible
   * Only two residential streets remain inaccessible

• 23 traffic signals have been repaired; the 3 final repairs are expected today at Orange Grove Boulevard at Allen Avenue, Greenhill at Michillinda Street and Washington Boulevard near Pasadena High School.

• 23 street lights have been repaired.

• 99 percent of power customers are operational and all water customers have service. Crews continue to work on restoring service to remaining power customers.

• A total of 39 people have used the shelter at Robinson Park, 37 of which were transported by Pasadena ARTS buses following an incident at a single apartment complex.

• Only 4 known injuries

• Trees
   * More than 1,000 street trees fell and an unknown number of street trees were severely damaged
   * Approximately 150 trees fell in city parks and 30 are several damaged
   *67 trees fell at Brookside Golf Course and 120 more were severely damaged

• 5 building inspectors have inspected approximately 200 homes with varying levels of damage
   * 46 housing units have been red-tagged, 40 in the same apartment building
   * 13 structures have been yellow-tagged.

• Street clearing
   * 160 Public Works Department field employees were on duty Thursday and Friday. 93 were on staff Saturday and 65 were on duty Sunday. 177 were on duty Monday morning.
   * 29 workers from Los Angeles County Department of Public Works were on duty Thursday, 32 on Friday and 15 on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
   * 122 field employees from contractors were on duty Thursday and Friday and 51 Saturday and Sunday. On Monday there were 43 on duty.

• Fire service has returned to normal activity level
     * From 8 p.m. on Nov. 20 to 9 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Fire Department was dispatched to the following:
          - 57 fire calls
          - 42 medical calls
          - 109 service calls
          - 163 wires or other electrical system-related calls
          - 15 natural gas-related calls
          - Total = 386 (roughly 8 times the normal call volume)
     * 11 other agencies assisted us on 94 calls. At our peak, we had 27 units from other agencies handling calls in our city.
     * Pasadena Fire Department regularly has 7 engines, 2 trucks and 5 ambulances available in the city and added 4 engines and 1 patrol to supplement capacity on Thursday.

• Police service has returned to normal activity level
     * From 10 p.m. on Nov. 30 to 1 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Pasadena Police Department Communication Center processed 4,650 calls for service including 9-1-1 and non-emergency requests.
     * During the same operational period the Police Department called back or extended the shift of on-duty personnel, including:
          - 13 police officers
          - 11 Police Volunteers
     * 248 pending incidents to be investigated were reported on Dec. 1

# # #

Ann Erdman
Public Information Officer
City of Pasadena
Public Affairs Office
100 N. Garfield Ave., Room S228
Pasadena CA 91109
(626) 744-4755
Cell: (626) 375-2742
www.cityofpasadena.net/publicaffairs
Facebook: Pasadena PIO
Twitter: pasadenapio

Chasing the Light

2011-12-04T00:01:00.000-08:00

As I write I'm very sleepy, so just this:

Saturday I took the Digital Camera Bootcamp I told you about with Ibarionex Perello, pro photographer and gifted teacher.

I'll tell you more Tuesday but I couldn't wait to say at least this much: there's one more workshop this year that isn't already full and it's next Saturday. To sign up and pay only $50 for the class, which is worth three times as much, will make you as tired as I am now and will also make you a better photographer in a single day, go here, ignore the other codes and enter this code: perellovip.

Chasing the Light is Ibarionex's most recent book about photography. Boz managed to get his picture in it.

6:58 pm, An Electricity Update and Warning from Ann Erdman, Pasadena's Public Information Officer:

CAUTION STRONGLY URGED REGARDING HIGH-VOLTAGE ELECTRICITY

There are been reports of some residents opening pole boxes at the base of street lights and stringing wire from the boxes to their homes.

The voltage in most boxes is much too high for individual homes. This practice is illegal as well as extremely hazardous to people and structures.

Pasadena Water and Power officials have been contacting households without electricity with updates on restoration of services. Power was restored to several homes today and PWP crews will continue working throughout the night and for as long as it takes to ensure power to all homes is restored as quickly as possible.

Robinson Park Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., will open at 7 p.m. tonight to provide a warm place for residents without power.

We have a WINDSTORM UPDATE from Ann Erdman, Pasadena's Public Information Officer Extraordinaire:

today, 5:30pm

The City of Pasadena has been working around the clock on recovery efforts in the wake of the fierce windstorms that struck overnight Nov. 30 to Dec. 1. In response to the disaster, the city declared a local emergency, a proactive protective measure consistent with other neighboring cities that have sustained significant damage. It occurs when a disaster has progressed or is anticipated to extend beyond the capability of regular municipal personnel and resources, assisted by personnel and resources from contiguous municipalities, to maintain order and control and confine the incident.

The following is an update on services and infrastructure as of 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011.

Shelter

Robinson Park Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., returned to regular recreation programming yesterday.
The center will open at 7 p.m. tonight to provide a warm place for residents without power.

Streets, Trees and Parks

All primary and secondary arterial roadways were passable as of Saturday afternoon. As of Sunday afternoon 85 percent of all residential streets are passable.

Removal of debris still along the side of roads will be trucked to two county facilities near Eaton Canyon – the L.A. County Public Works Eaton Yard and the Hastings Spreading Basin. There it will be chipped and used for mulch citywide. The removal is expected to take two to four weeks and the chipping could take four to six months depending on the volume of material.

The removal and clearing of trees that are not in the public right of way is the responsibility of private property owners. Those who suffered damage to vehicles, homes or other property caused by fallen city trees or tree limbs should contact their private insurers for proper handling of claims.

An assessment of city parks has been completed. Approximately 100 trees have fallen and approximately 30 have sustained structural damage and may need to be removed for safety reasons. A number of park improvements at various sites, including play equipment, backstops, pathway lighting and playground surfaces, have been damaged as well as the scoreboard at the historic Jackie Robinson Stadium at Brookside Park.

Refuse (trash, yard waste and recycling) Service

Regular refuse service resumed on Friday, with weekend service provided to those whose regular service was missed on Thursday. The city’s bulky and abandoned item collection crew has been combing the city to remove large items ahead of the workweek.

Electricity

Utility Crews, including those from Anaheim Water and Power and Burbank Water and Power as well as private contractors, continue to work around the clock to restore service. As of late Friday 99 percent of customers had service. Efforts are being made to contact remaining customers without power to advise of the status of repairs. In some cases it may take days to restore service, as most remaining issues involve problems on private property. Priority has been given to customers with life-safety concerns and where further structural or electric-system damage is a risk.
Customers may experience intermittent interruptions as Pasadena Water and Power (PWP) disconnects service momentarily to allow crews to reconnect portions of circuits they repaired or rebuilt.
Some properties in a small section of Northwest Pasadena are served by Southern California Edison and should call (800) 661-1191 to report outages.

Water
All water customers have water. There are about 150 customers with temporary connections where permanent repairs were not possible due to lack of access caused by fallen trees. Permanent repairs will be made over the next two weeks as access is made available.

Approximately 25 customers in Northwest Pasadena are experiencing low water pressure due to pumps that are offline at two pumping stations in Edison’s territory where power outages remain. Edison has restored power to one of the stations. In the meantime PWP has provided bottle water to residents.

Safety

Everyone should stay clear of compromised, overhead electric, cable and telephone lines. Do not attempt to remove trees that are touching any utility line. A list of tree-care professionals with expertise in electrical safety and tree health is available under the FYI section at www.cityofpasadena.net.

Athletic Fields

Athletic fields in city parks are currently being cleared of debris and assessed for playing conditions. It is anticipated that most, if not all, will reopen Monday, Dec. 5.

Parking Restrictions

Enforcement of all normal parking restrictions is back in effect. Those needing to park on the street due to the presence of storm debris should obtain a temporary overnight parking exemption (TOPEX) which may be purchased at www.cityofpasadena.net/Transportation/Temporary_Overnight_Parking_Exemptions.

Scams

Verify all credentials of anyone offering to perform inspection or repair work. Call the Pasadena Police Department at (626) 744-4241 if you suspect a scam.

More Information

To report fallen public trees and hazardous tree conditions, call (626) 744-4321.

To report downed power lines, call (626) 564-0199 or (626) 564-0299.

Customer service representatives are on duty around the clock, documenting all call details and forwarding to appropriate staff for resolution. Reports can also be made at the online Citizens Service Center at www.cityofpasadena.net/csc.

Pasadena residents and others who want to sign up for local alerts can go to www.cityofpasadena.net/fire/PLEAS or www.nixle.com.

Update by the Numbers Begins on the Next Page.

PASADENA WINDSTORM UPDATE – BY THE NUMBERS
Updated Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011
• 1,382 incidents have been logged in by the Public Works Department since Wednesday.

• 3 of 5 public art pieces at Walnut Street and Foothill Boulevard were damaged. 2 have been stabilized and 1 remains down.

• 3 areas of the San Pasqual pedestrian bridge in the Arroyo Seco were damaged by a fallen tree. The damage will be assessed fully after the tree has been removed.

• A 12-inch diameter concrete drainage pipe that outlets to the street through 4 curb drains was exposed due to a fallen tree at 1824-1826 El Sereno Ave. Public Works engineers will conduct an evaluation next week.

• 325 miles of streets were impacted by storm debris – falling trees, tree limbs, utility poles and/or wires. The primary goal has been to move debris to the side of the road so at least one lane in each direction is open. Debris will be removed over the coming weeks.
   * 100 percent of arterial streets are accessible
   * 100 percent of secondary streets are accessible
   * 85 percent of residential streets are accessible

• 34 traffic signals reported for repair
     * 8 were not Pasadena and were referred to Caltrans and the county of Los Angeles
     * Of the remaining 26, all will be back to normal operations by Monday morning.

• 25 street lights have been evaluated with 19 immediate repairs completed and 6 pending.

• 99 percent of power customers are operational and all water customers have service. Crews continue to work on restoring service to remaining power customers.

• 37 people were transported by Pasadena ARTs buses to a temporary shelter at Robinson Park Center and there was one walk-in. All have since been relocated.

• Only 4 known injuries

• Trees
   * More than 600 street trees fell and an unknown number of street trees were severely damaged
   * Approximately 100 trees fell in City parks and 30 are several damaged
   * 67 trees fell at Brookside Golf Course and 120 more were severely damaged

• 5 building inspectors have inspected approximately 200 homes with varying levels of damage
   * 46 housing units have been red-tagged, 40 in the same apartment building
   * 13 structures have been yellow-tagged.

• Street clearing
   * 160 Public Works Department field employees were on duty Thursday and Friday. 93 were on staff Saturday and 65 were on duty Sunday.
   * 29 workers from Los Angeles County Department of Public Works were on duty Thursday, 32 on Friday, 15 on Saturday and Sunday.
   * 122 field employees from contractors were on duty Thursday and Friday and 51 Saturday and Sunday.

• Fire Calls - Fire service has returned to normal activity level
     * From 8 p.m. on Nov. 20 to 9 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Fire Department was dispatched to the following:
          - 57 fire calls
          - 42 medical calls
          - 109 service calls
          - 163 wires or other electrical system-related calls
          - 15 natural gas-related calls
          - Total = 386 (roughly 8 times the normal call volume)
     * 11 other agencies assisted us on 94 calls. At our peak, we had 27 units from other agencies handling calls in our city.
     * Pasadena Fire Department regularly has 7 engines, 2 trucks and 5 ambulances available in the city and added 4 engines and 1 patrol to supplement capacity on Thursday.

• Police Calls – Police service has returned to normal activity level
     * From 10 p.m. on Nov. 30 to 1 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Pasadena Police Department Communication Center processed 4,650 calls for service including 9-1-1 and non-emergency requests.
     * During the same operational period the Police Department called back or extended the shift of on-duty personnel, including:
          - 13 police officers
          - 11 Police Volunteers
     * 248 pending incidents to be investigated were reported on Dec. 1

Chainsaw Gang

2011-12-03T00:01:00.000-08:00

They came

They sawed

They conquered.

We were released from captivity on the block yesterday when a team of CDCR Prisoners came with chainsaws. CDCR, for those who don't click the link, stands for California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. You've gotta know these guys are the ones for which Correction and Rehabilitation are working, because I don't think you give chainsaws to the hard cases.

It took the better part of the afternoon (they had three giants to slay) but they did it. Bravo. Thanks for releasing us, gentlemen. Don't think I don't see the irony.

Storm Updates from Pasadena PIO:

Today, 4:30 pm
The winds have died down, and the city of Pasadena continues its round-the-clock efforts as we transition from emergency response to disaster recovery.

Here is an update on services and infrastructure.
Shelter

The shelter at Robinson Park Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., closed this morning and has returned to recreation programming. Robinson Park Center will also be open Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for residents without Power. Residents can play basketball, table games, watch TV and stay warm.

All other City of Pasadena community centers are scheduled to be closed Sunday, Dec. 4. However, staff will continue to assess power outages and community need to determine if a center should remain open. In the event overnight care is needed, the shelter at Robinson Park will be reactivated and announced.

Trees and Streets

All primary and secondary arterial roadways are passable today, with cut-up trees and other debris moved to the side of the roads for pickup. Assessment of residential streets is continuing today to determine how many need tree and debris removal to become passable.

Removal of the debris still along the side of the roads will be trucked to two county facilities near Eaton Canyon – the L.A. County Public Works Eaton Yard and the Hastings Spreading Basin. There it will be chipped and used for mulch citywide. The removal is expected to take two to four weeks and the chipping could take four to six months depending on the volume of material.

All city parks are undergoing damage assessments today.

The overall urban forest is being assessed to identify trees that are leaning and in danger of falling.

The removal and clearing of trees that are not in the public right of way is the responsibility of private property owners. Those who suffered damage to vehicles, homes or other property caused by fallen city trees or tree limbs should contact their private insurers for proper handling of claims.

Trash Service

Residents who normally would have had trash, yard waste and recycling pickup on Thursday are receiving this service today. Routes are being cleared today for Monday trash pickup areas.

Electricity

Power has been restored to 95 percent of affected customers. The remaining 313 electric customers should be restored to service within 72 hours. Priority is given to customers with life-safety concerns and where further structural or electric-system damage is a risk.

Anaheim Water and Power as well as Burbank Water and Power have provided mutual aid assistance to Pasadena Water and Power as the unique challenges of isolated outages are being handled on a customer-by-customer basis. Collectively more than 80 power personnel are working in the field to restore power as quickly as possible.

Although the bulk of the electric grid has been restored and is stable, there are individual properties throughout Pasadena. Each of these isolated outages has its unique challenges and safety considerations.

Some properties in a small section of Northwest Pasadena are served by Southern California Edison and should call (800) 661-1191 to report outages.

Water

Water outages throughout Pasadena were largely due to uprooted trees that have ruptured service lines under sidewalks and streets. Water field crews are handling these isolated cases on a customer-by-customer basis, around the clock, and estimate that water service will be restored to all remaining 10 customers with 24 to 36 hours.

Temporary solutions for service restoration are being used in certain situations; permanent repairs will be made over the next few weeks.

Damages to portions of the roof at Sunset Reservoir have been repaired. One of the basins, which holds five million gallons, will be out of service until it can be cleaned and recertified by public health officials. Customers can rest assured that no contaminated water was pumped in Pasadena’s water distribution system and water is safe to drink throughout the community.

Pasadena has a total water storage capacity of 110 million gallons – an adequate supply for all customers while Sunset Reservoir is partially out of service. Pasadena Water and Power is providing assistance to South Pasadena while a portion of that city’s water distribution system is offline due to wind-related damage.

Neither the newly renovated Windsor Reservoir, with its 2,772 rooftop solar panels, nor the new Monk Hill Water Treatment Plant sustained any damages.

Approximately 25 customers in Northwest Pasadena are experiencing low water pressure due to pumps that are offline in in Edison’s territory where power outages remain. Edison officials have been asked to prioritize restoration of power in this area so normal water pressure can resume as soon as possible.

Safety

Everyone should stay clear of compromised, overhead electric, cable and telephone lines. Do not attempt to remove trees that are touching any utility line. A list of tree-care professionals with expertise in electrical safety and tree health is available under the FYI section at www.cityofpasadena.net.

Athletic Fields

All athletic fields in city parks are closed until Monday, Dec. 5, due to debris and unsafe playing conditions.

Parking Restrictions

Enforcement of all normal parking restrictions will go back into effect at 2 a.m. Sunday. Red Flag parking restrictions in hillside areas have been canceled.

Scams

Verify all credentials of anyone offering to perform inspection or repair work. Call the Pasadena Police Department at (626) 744-4241 if you suspect a scam.

More Information

To report fallen public trees and hazardous tree conditions, call (626) 744-4321.

To report downed power lines, call (626) 564-0199 or (626) 564-0299.

Customer service representatives are on duty around the clock, documenting all call details and forwarding to appropriate staff for resolution. Reports can also be made at the online Citizens Service Center at www.cityofpasadena.net/csc.

Pasadena residents and others who want to sign up for local alerts can go to www.cityofpasadena.net/fire/PLEAS or www.nixle.com.

PASADENA WINDSTORM UPDATE – BY THE NUMBERS
Saturday, Dec. 3, 2011

• 1,372 incidents have been logged in by the Public Works Department since Wednesday.

• 3 of 5 public art pieces at Walnut Street and Foothill Boulevard were damaged. 2 have been stabilized and 1 remains down.

• 3 areas of the San Pasqual pedestrian bridge in the Arroyo Seco were damaged by a fallen tree. The damage will be assessed fully after the tree has been removed.

• A 12-inch diameter concrete drainage pipe that outlets to the street through 4 curb drains was exposed due to a fallen tree at 1824-1826 El Sereno Ave. Public Works engineers will conduct an evaluation next week.

• 325 miles of streets were impacted by storm debris – falling trees, tree limbs, utility poles and/or wires. The primary goal has been to move debris to the side of the road so at least one lane in each direction is open. Debris will be removed over the coming weeks.
     * 100 percent of arterial streets are accessible
     * 100 percent of secondary streets are accessible
     * The percentage of accessible residential streets is unknown at this time

• 34 traffic signals reported for repair
     * 8 were not Pasadena and were referred to Caltrans and the county of Los Angeles
     * Of the remaining 26, immediate/temporary repairs were completed on 18 with remaining eight pending

• 23 street lights reported for repair
     * Immediate/temporary repairs were completed on 18, with the remaining 5 pending

• 99 percent of Pasadena Water and Power customers are operational. Crews still working on restoring service to 400 electric and 150 water customers

• 37 people were transported by Pasadena ARTs buses to a temporary shelter at Robinson Park Center. Twenty-five remained until late Friday afternoon when they were relocated. One senior citizen walk-in was later reported and remains at the shelter.

• Only 4 known injuries

• Trees
     * More than 600 street trees fell and an unknown number of street trees were severely damaged
     * 67 trees fell at Brookside Golf Course and 120 more were severely damaged
     * The number of trees that fell or were severely damaged in city parks is unknown at this time

• 5 building inspectors have inspected approximately 200 homes with varying levels of damage
     * 46 housing units have been red-tagged, 40 in the same apartment building
     * 13 structures have been yellow-tagged.

• Street clearing
     * 160 Public Works Department field employees were on duty Thursday and 160 on Friday
     * 29 workers from Los Angeles County Department of Public Works were on duty Thursday and 32 on Friday
     * 122 field employees from contractors were on duty Thursday and Friday

• Fire Calls
     * From 8 p.m. on Nov. 20 to 9 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Fire Department was dispatched to the following:
          - 57 fire calls
          - 42 medical calls
          - 109 service calls
          - 163 wires or other electrical system-related calls
          - 15 natural gas-related calls
          - Total = 386 (roughly 8 times the normal call volume)
     * 11 other agencies assisted us on 94 calls. At our peak, we had 27 units from other agencies handling calls in our city
     * Pasadena Fire Department regularly has 7 engines, 2 trucks and 5 ambulances available in the city and added 4 engines and 1 patrol to supplement capacity on Thursday

• Police Calls
     * From 10 p.m. on Nov. 30 to 1 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Pasadena Police Department Communication Center processed 4,650 calls for service including 9-1-1 and non-emergency requests.
     * During the same operational period the Police Department called back or extended the shift of on-duty personnel, including:
          - 13 police officers
          - 11 Police Volunteers
     * 248 pending incidents to be investigated were reported on Dec. 1

Last night, 9:14 pm

PASADENA WIND STORMS – BY THE NUMBERS

The following information is based on assessments through late afternoon Friday, Dec. 2, and should be considered preliminary and subject to change. Information will be updated as it becomes available.

325 miles of streets were impacted by storm debris – falling trees, tree limbs, utility poles and/or wires. The primary goal has been to move debris to the side of the road so at least one lane in each direction is open. Debris will be removed over the coming weeks.
100 percent of arterial streets are accessible
90 percent of secondary streets are accessible
The percentage of residential streets is unknown at this time

34 traffic signals reported for repair
8 were not Pasadena and were referred to Caltrans and the county of Los Angeles
Of the remaining 26, immediate/temporary repairs were completed on 18 with remaining eight pending

23 street lights reported for repair
Immediate/temporary repairs were completed on 18, with the remaining five pending

99 percent of Pasadena Water and Power customers are operational. Crews still working on restoring service to 400 electric and 150 water customers

37 people were transported by Pasadena ARTs buses to a temporary shelter at Robinson Park Center. Twenty-five remained until late Friday afternoon when they were relocated. One senior citizen walk-in was later reported and remains at the shelter.

Only 4 known injuries

The Sunset Reservoir roof was damaged, requiring the reservoir to be drained and disinfected and the roof repaired.

Trees
More than 600 street trees fell and an unknown number of street trees were severely damaged
67 trees fell at Brookside Golf Course and 120 more were severely damaged
The number of trees that fell or were severely damaged in city parks is unknown at this time

5 building inspectors have inspected approximately 200 homes with varying levels of damage
46 housing units have been red-tagged, 40 in the same apartment building
13 structures have been yellow-tagged.

Street clearing
160 Public Works Department field employees were on duty Thursday and 160 on Friday
29 workers from Los Angeles County Department of Public Works were on duty Thursday and 32 on Friday
122 field employees from contractors were on duty Thursday and Friday

Fire Calls
From 8 p.m. on Nov. 20 to 9 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Fire Department was dispatched to the following:
57 fire calls
42 medical calls
109 service calls
163 wires or other electrical system-related calls
15 natural gas-related calls
Total = 386 (roughly 8 times the normal call volume)
11 other agencies assisted us on 94 calls. At our peak, we had 27 units from other agencies handling calls in our city
Pasadena Fire Department regularly has 7 engines, 2 trucks and 5 ambulances available in the city and added 4 engines and 1 patrol to supplement capacity on Thursday

Police Calls
From 10 p.m. on Nov. 30 to 1 p.m. on Dec. 2, the Pasadena Police Department Communication Center processed 4,650 calls for service including 9-1-1 and non-emergency requests.
During the same operational period the Police Department called back or extended the shift of on-duty personnel, including:
13 police officers
11 Police Volunteers
o   248 pending incidents to be investigated were reported on Dec. 1

Winter Wonderland, Pasadena Style

2011-12-02T00:01:00.000-08:00

"You're not going to work today," I heard my neighbor say when Boz and I stepped out of the house early yesterday morning.

Usually Boz and I are alone for the a.m. perimeter check, not because we're the earliest risers but because our neighbors are up and and gone by the time we get out there. But yesterday we found them in the middle of the street in their jammies with dogs, kids and coffee cups.

In case you haven't heard, we had a wind storm Wednesday night. Sirens wailed. Power lines went down. City workers haven't stopped clearing debris, restoring power and evacuating people from nonfunctioning facilities to functioning ones since nature's tantrum began.

Many streets in Pasadena lost trees. I don't know how other trees landed, but as it happens our street was conveniently blocked at each end and unless you lived beyond the carnage you were not driving out.

Here's a panorama John took of one of our roadblock trees. This giant cedar was planted, I believe, in 1924. You can click on the photo to get the full effect. We're still in a bit of shock; I know our shady little street will be very different now.

Yesterday was a remarkable day. Like a snow day in the Midwest it felt different, wild, celebratory. People were out in the streets all day, people I haven't talked to in ages, people saying hello. We picked clementines--how did they hang onto the tree when a giant cedar couldn't stand?

John, Boz and I walked in the evening. On the smell of all those wounded trees there was a trace of the Wendigo's perfume.

WINDSTORM UPDATE 12/2, 6 p.m.
From Ann Erdman, Pasadena's Public Information Officer

The city of Pasadena has made tremendous progress toward restoring the infrastructure in the wake of the severe windstorms that occurred Wednesday through Thursday.

Since the winds began, an unprecedented number of city staff and contractors have been working around the clock on 12-hour shifts to ensure the safety of the community, clearance of streets and restoration of utilities.

City crews have been working diligently to clear fallen trees and debris out of travel lanes on major thoroughfares along Pasadena’s 325 miles of streets. It could take weeks to remove all the debris from the public right of way.

The removal and clearing of trees that are not in the public right of way is the responsibility of private property owners. Those who suffered damage to vehicles, homes or other property caused by fallen city trees or tree limbs should contact their private insurers for proper handling of claims.

City refuse service resumed today. Residents who would have had Thursday service will have their trash, yard waste and recycling picked up on Saturday.

Power has been restored to 95 percent of affected customers – all but 400 electric customers and 150 water customers who will be restored to service within 24 to 36 hours. The unique challenges of isolated outages are being handled on a customer-by-customer basis.

Everyone should stay clear of compromised, overhead electric, cable and telephone lines. Do not attempt to remove trees that are touching any utility line. A list of tree-care professionals with expertise in electrical safety and tree health is available under the FYI section at www.cityofpasadena.net.

To report fallen public trees, hazardous tree conditions and downed power lines, call (626) 564-0199 or (626) 564-0299.

Pasadena residents and others who want to sign up for local alerts can go to www.cityofpasadena.net/fire/PLEAS or www.nixle.com.

More comprehensive information on status and progress will be available at www.cityofpasadena.net.

Theme Day: Action Shot

2011-12-01T00:01:00.000-08:00

(see below for wind advisory press releases from the Pasadena Public Information Officer, including phone numbers and emergency instructions, as they come in)

Today's City Daily Photo theme is "action shot. This picture of a white crane coming in for a landing at Hahamongna Watershed Park was a lucky shot for me. I have countless action shots of my dog, Boz, running at Hahamongna. They're fun, but it's not the same.

City Daily Photo is now 1429 blogs strong. Sure, some people post more "daily" than others. But pick a city, almost any city, and there's bound to be a CDP blog in it or near it. Our newest addition is Sohar, Oman. Stop by and give a welcome.

Not all CDP bloggers take part in theme day. It's not a requirement. It's just fun. Click here to view thumbnails for today's participants.

WIND ADVISORY UPDATES

Outage Map

1:30 pm

The Pasadena Police Department has surveyed major streets for fallen trees, downed power lines and damaged facilities.

Of 200 buildings in Pasadena damaged by the wind storm, 42 units have been red-tagged – 40 units in one building alone – and six have been yellow-tagged. Residents of red-tagged units have been evacuated. Thirty-six residents are at a temporary shelter at Robinson Park Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave. California Assemblyman Anthony Portantino graciously provided lunch to the families today. The local Red Cross is assisting at the shelter.

Lamanda Park Branch Library and Hill Avenue Branch Library have sustained downed trees and minor damage. All Pasadena public libraries are closed today; it will be determined later today if libraries will open tomorrow.

Public schools, Maranatha High School, Pasadena City College, Fuller Theological Seminary and Northwest College are closed today; closures tomorrow will be announced.

The Pasadena Fire Department responded to wind-related fire incidents in the 100 block of Penn Street where a house fire resulted in four injuries; the 1200 block of Hudson Avenue where 40 residents were evacuated due a large tree falling into the structure; and the 900 block of Del Mar Boulevard where seven residents were evacuated due to a structure fire. The injured residents were transported to a local hospital.

Four hundred fifty public street trees are down or damaged. This figure does not include trees in parks and Brookside Golf Course, where assessments are not complete. The Pasadena Public Works Department is being assisted by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works to clear downed trees in the public right of way.

By 11 a.m. today 30 percent of major streets had been cleared of fallen trees and other debris. Crews expect to complete the work on major streets by the end of the day today. All but eight of 106 impact traffic signals have been restored to normal operations.

Power is being restored to customers throughout Pasadena. Currently about 3,791 customers – about six percent – are without power; at 9 a.m. more than 5,000 were without power.

Pasadena ARTS buses are not running today. Dial-A-Ride is available only for non-emergency medical appointments.

Animal control through the Pasadena Humane Society is taking care of animals that are loose as a result of downed fences.

On-street parking regulations are not being enforced today except in Red Flag restricted areas, red curbs, loading zones and disabled parking spaces. Enforcement of overnight parking restrictions will be suspended tonight except in Red Flag areas.

The Pasadena Public Health Department encourages anyone who has been clearing debris to make sure they have up-to-date Tetanus shots from the department at 1845 N. Fair Oaks Ave. or a private physician.

The Pasadena Fire Department encourages everyone to make sure their disaster preparedness kits are updated and to have fresh batteries in flashlights.

If power goes out, keep your refrigerator and freezer doors closed to preserve perishables.

A local state of emergency was declared early this morning and the Emergency Operations Center was activated overnight.

Pasadenans are advised to stay home if possible until the wind situation improves because some roads are impassable and many trees remain fragile throughout the community. Many streets are barricaded due to fallen trees and/or downed power lines.

The Zero Waste Strategic Plan workshops, the World AIDS Day event and the General Plan workshop in Spanish scheduled for today have been canceled.

City officials urge people not to call 9-1-1 or other emergency numbers unless you have a life-threatening emergency. Do not approach or attempt to move downed power lines. Pasadena Water and Power crews are responding as quickly as possible; they are not responding to downed cable TV lines.

Two information phone lines have been established for the public to report fallen trees and downed power lines – (626) 564-0199 and (626) 564-0299 – and the city website at www.cityofpasadena.net is being updated as necessary.

Additional updates will be provided throughout the day.

Pasadena residents and others who want to sign up for local alerts can go to www.cityofpasadena.net/fire/PLEAS or www.nixle.com.

********

Our dear PIO was up very early this morning, and possibly all night:

9:00 am
Now that daylight is upon us, city of Pasadena crews are thoroughly assessing damage throughout the community so responses can be more targeted with respect to fallen trees, downed power lines, damaged facilities, etc.

A local state of emergency was declared early this morning and the Emergency Operations Center was activated overnight.

Pasadenans are advised to stay home if possible until the wind situation improves because some roads are impassable and many trees remain fragile throughout the community. Many streets are barricaded due to fallen trees and/or downed power lines. We are in the process of clearing trees off major arterial streets and restoring power as quickly as possible.

Pasadena public libraries, public schools, Maranatha High School and Pasadena City College will be closed today.

Dial-A-Ride service will be operational for non-emergency medical appointments only. Pasadena ARTS buses are not in service and be restored to service by this afternoon.

A shelter for displaced families has been established at Robinson Park Center, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., where Red Cross workers are assisting as well.

The Zero Waste Strategic Plan workshops and the World AIDS Day event scheduled for today have been canceled.

Overnight there were several structure fires, with patients transported by paramedics to local hospitals.

City officials urge people not to call 9-1-1 or other emergency numbers unless you have a life-threatening emergency. Do not approach or attempt to move downed power lines. Pasadena Water and Power crews are responding as quickly as possible; they are not responding to downed cable TV lines.

Two information phone lines have been established for the public – (626) 564-0199 and (626) 564-0299 – and the city website at www.cityofpasadena.net is being updated as necessary.

Pasadena residents and others who want to sign up for local alerts can go to www.cityofpasadena.net/fire/PLEAS or www.nixle.com.

*******
5:45 am
Pasadena was hard-hit by winds overnight and the situation continues with power outages, fallen trees, downed power lines and structure fires.

Pasadenans are advised to stay home if possible until the wind situation improves because some roads are impassable. Pasadena ARTS buses are not running until further notice.

The top priorities for the city of Pasadena are life safety and clearing streets. City crews from the Pasadena Fire Department, Police Department, Public Works Department and Pasadena Water and Power have been responding all night throughout Pasadena and continue to do so.

Do not call 9-1-1 or other emergency numbers unless you have a life-threatening emergency. Do not approach or attempt to move downed power lines. Pasadena and Water crews are responding as quickly as possible; they are not responding to downed cable TV lines.

Two information phone lines have been established for the public: (626) 564-0199 and (626) 564-0299 and the city website at www.cityofpasadena.net is being updated as necessary.

Pasadena residents and others who want to sign up for local alerts can go to www.cityofpasadena.net/fire/PLEAS or www.nixle.com."

Guest Author: Vince Waldron and The Official Dick Van Dyke Show Book

2011-11-30T00:01:00.000-08:00

Vince Waldron and I go way back to our Chicago days, when we traveled the United States (well, some of them) as members of The Second City National Touring Company.

Vince's The Official Dick Van Dyke Show Book is so official its introduction is by Dick Van Dyke himself. The book even has a foreword by Dan Castellaneta. You know who Dan is, don't you? That's right. He was a member of The Second City Touring Company with me and Vince.

I'll be at Vroman's tomorrow at 7PM for Vince's book signing. Come say hello!

(and despite what Vince says, I say Eagle Rock counts!)

It was exactly four years ago this week that I chanced upon the most incongruous Christmas encounter I’ve ever experienced. Since it happened right here in Pasadena, I wanted to share the story with you, in the hope you might forgive me for guest blogging on San Gabriel Valley author Wednesday, even though I actually live across the Colorado Street Bridge in Eagle Rock.

I do live close enough to Pasadena to know my way around the hills that overlook the Rose Bowl from the west, where I often ride my bike on leafy wooded lanes with names like Patrician Way and Glen Oaks Boulevard, which at that altitude is so sparsely populated that you can sometimes spy entire families of deer walking across the untrafficked roads. In fact, this is the perfect time of year for spotting deer, as I discovered one fateful night not so long ago.

It was already dark on that early winter evening, and I relied on the beam of my bike light to guide me up that hilly stretch of Glen Oaks near the old Annandale power station, if you know where that is. There are no street lights up there, so the road was pitch black. Which is why I was surprised to come upon a man -- he must have been in his mid-60s -- standing in the middle of a large, wooded yard, presumably his own, where he was busy putting finishing touches on an elaborate collection of brightly lit Christmas yard decorations, the centerpiece of which was a life-size reindeer statue.

A string of white Christmas lights ran up the fake deer’s front leg and continued on up over its head, which rocked eerily back and forth in a smooth, mechanical motion that was a mockery of any real deer in nature, who are, if anything, known for their ability to hold their heads, and the rest of them, quite still for long periods of time.

As it happens, I nearly had the opportunity to make a head-to-head comparison when an actual live deer suddenly leapt out of a thicket across the road and started walking directly to the glowing effigy that vaguely resembled him.

Although I was looking forward to gawking at what promised to be a once-in-a-lifetime clash of man and nature, the owner of the artificial ruminant was having none of it. As soon as he saw the live deer, the man raised his arms and, in what looked to be a well-practiced gesture, shooed the buck right back into the bushes from which he emerged. I never did find out what Bambi made of his brightly-lit doppelganger that night, and it wasn’t until I’d ridden halfway back down the hill to Eagle Rock that the absurdity of what I’d just witnessed finally struck me.

I’ve seen three Christmases since then, and more mechanical reindeer statues than I’d care to count. But I don’t think I’ll ever forget that chilly night in Pasadena when I watched a man chase a real deer from his yard so a reindeer of plastic and wire could nod its head untroubled through the long holiday season.

Thanks for inviting me into your laptop, iPad or other device to share my holiday epiphany. Merry Christmas and the happiest holiday season to one and all!

Christo and Jeanne-Claude: Recession Fence

2011-11-29T00:01:00.000-08:00

Grants are hard to come by these days.

Just kidding. I like the works of Christo and Jeanne-Claude. I drove up to see their Umbrellas when they were in the Grapevine. It's hard to describe the impact of a work that's made not for language but for the senses. People stopped alongside the freeway to look, no one was talking and we were all smiling.

So as you can see, this photo does not depict a Christo/Jeanne-Claude work.

The Hahamongna Watershed Park Advisory Committee meets tonight at 6PM in the second floor training room of the public works building at the City Yards, 233 W. Mountain St. There's plenty of parking and the signs directing you to the room are easy to follow. Come listen, learn and help me decipher the politicspeak.

(Inspiration for the Christo/Jeanne-Claude idea: John Sandel)

Zen Monday: #172

2011-11-28T00:01:00.000-08:00

Lincoln Heights: Views

2011-11-27T00:01:00.000-08:00

I took this photo near a playground. I can just hear this kid at the end of the day: "I don't remember where I left them, Mom! I took them off to play in the sand, and..."

Today's our last day in Lincoln Heights. Tomorrow we'll return with Zen Monday and our regular PDP programming (and one blessed photo a day!). I've enjoyed this adventure. It's heated my wanderlust to a boil.

Lincoln Heights is my kind of place. It's got fun, food, art and architecture. Clearly, too, it's a neighborhood poised for change.

And that's exciting. (click this one to enlarge it)

Yet like anywhere people have lived for a long while, the past clings in traces like vines to a fence and not all of it is pretty. To me, though, the history and underbelly are part of the fascination of any urban place.

Many thanks to Karin Bugge, the Altadena Hiker, for getting me in on this tour. And especially to Manny Rodriguez, our host with the most, who shared his stories, his opinions and his lifelong home with three local tourists who couldn't get enough.

Lincoln Heights: Art

2011-11-26T00:01:00.000-08:00

There's art all over Lincoln Heights. Here's some of it.

We talked about Lincoln Park yesterday in the comments. I like this piece a lot, and not just because you can frame a tree with it. I like how the neighborhood rises beyond it, like its reason for being there.

If you turn around you see it's part of a larger artwork, The Wall las Memorias, the first publicly funded AIDS monument in the nation.

Roberta (Latino Heritage) mentioned this yesterday in the comments. You can see the horseshoe peeking out from behind it. It's actually not a horseshoe, but a design based on the AIDS awareness ribbon.

I don't know, do you call this art or architecture? Good architecture is art, after all. Maybe I should have put this in the architecture post from the other day. I like it a lot.

This mural has several panels. Karin posted another part, where the artists included pictures of themselves painting the mural. The whole thing is witty that way. I love how in this panel the artists incorporated the night deposit box as our hero's footrest.

I took a picture of the artist's signatures or I'd never remember that the mural was done in 1977 by Los Dos Streetscapers, David Botello and Wayne Healy, and renovated in 2006 by Paul Botello.

Lincoln Heights: Caballeros

2011-11-25T00:01:00.000-08:00

This statue of Emiliano Zapata Salazar, aka Zapata, was a gift from Mexico City to the City of Los Angeles in 1980. It stands at El Parque de Mexico. You'll find several sculptures of Mexican heroes there, though we noted some busts were missing and I'm not sure why.

This statue of Jose Maria Morelos y Pavon was donated to the City of Los Angeles by Mexican President Jose Lopez Portillo in 1981. (Sorry, there should be accents on Portillo's names but they freak Blogger out when I use them, which makes no sense to me because don't people all over the world use Blogger?)

My photo doesn't do justice to the statue (or to Manny, for that matter). The statue is detailed, powerful, impressive. You've got to see it in person.

Just for fun, a caballo without a caballero. Caballo Diablo, perhaps. This exuberant work prances at the Brewery Arts Complex in Lincoln Heights.

Tomorrow, more art.

Lincoln Heights: Blessings

2011-11-24T00:01:00.000-08:00

While in Lincoln Heights we stopped at Sacred Heart Church (est. 1897) for a few minutes and listened to the high school kids sing. The church was packed. It was noon-ish on a Wednesday. It was hard not to be charmed.

Sacred Heart School is across from the church. Karin tells the story of the mural here. It's about family and community, lives long and short and intertwined.

Manny estimates Lincoln Heights to be about 70% Hispanic (mostly of Mexican heritage), 20% Asian and 10% "everything else." Surely I'm generalizing, but 70% Hispanic/mostly Mexican is likely to mean a lot of Catholics.

Many of the markets in Lincoln Heights (except the Asian ones) have a representation of Our Lady of Guadalupe painted on the exterior. Always a lot of color; always Our Lady.

PLUS I CAN'T BELIEVE I FORGOT to include this in yesterday's post about Lincoln Heights architecture!

I haven't forgotten it's Thanksgiving, no indeed. I'm thankful every day for too many things to mention. Really, you don't want me to start. Once I get started I think of more and I can't stop.

So I'll just say here and in keeping with this post that I'm thankful for the diversity in our world and our nation, not to mention in Los Angeles and Pasadena and especially in my neighborhood of Northwest Pasadena. What a great place to live.

Happy Thanksgiving! May you have many blessings to count.

Lincoln Heights: Architecture

2011-11-23T00:01:00.000-08:00

Here's my shot of Manny. This little house is next door to a convenience store where we stopped for refreshments and a break.

I can't begin to show you all the architecture of Lincoln Heights in one post. It's vastly diverse and there's a lot of change going on according to Manny. A lot of gentrification. One really great project you might want to look at is the Brewery Arts Complex.

This was the original LA jail. *(update: I'm incorrect on that. See dbdubya's comments; he's a LAPD veteran and has a lifetime of knowledge of all things LAPD.) Manny says there are plans in the works to use it as some kind of housing. I don't know about you but I love this type of industrial architecture. There's something so Brazil about it, don't ask me why.

Kitty corner from jail we found confection.

That's Bellis in the door at right (and me in the middle). The street was too busy for me to step out and get you the whole building...

...but here's some detail.

And then, just around the corner, this little place. I got the impression there were once several like it along here but businesses have swallowed them up. There's a lot of manufacturing in the area. This was down near San Fernando Road and Barranca Street.

Now, this is up on Broadway (I'm tellin' you, we covered some ground!). I like this building. Brick buildings aren't the norm in Los Angeles. We have a few in Pasadena, but not many. I'm told it's because of earthquakes and I'll bet it's also because we have mild winters. Bricks are apparently winter material. This building reminds me of Chicago.

In a way, this photo exemplifies Lincoln Heights. Talk about juxtapositions: a glamorous old Victorian, plunked down in the middle of all these commercial buildings. Manny says a lot of gentrification happens in the neighborhood when folks with money buy these homes to live in them and fix them up. It can be a good thing: the neighborhood gets new people (with means) who care what happens there.

We saw this jewel as we hightailed it toward the train station. I was tired by then and I don't know what direction we were going or what street we were on. But damn. I mean--damn. Who's going to make a building like this today?

Tomorrow I'm not going to show you turkey. I like turkey, but I have this nagging feeling that tomorrow you can see turkey just about anywhere. So tomorrow I'm going to show you more of Lincoln Heights.

Lincoln Heights: Story

2011-11-22T00:01:00.000-08:00

We knew by the view from the train platform that we were in for something interesting.

Not to mention the view underneath the tracks.

You'll forgive me, I hope, for taking us on a detour a mere 15 minutes southwest of South Pasadena on the Gold Line.

As I mentioned Sunday, Karin, Bellis and I had the good fortune to be squired around Lincoln Heights by neighborhood booster, family man, professional, host and fine storyteller Manny Rodriguez. Read Karin's tale of our trek here. Karin's another fine storyteller and I don't need to tell it too, at least not in so many words.What I'd like to do for the rest of the week is tell the Lincoln Heights story the way I saw it in pictures, through its architecture, art, views and juxtapositions. There are many juxtapositions.

Los Angeles is made up of countless worlds and as long as they have history and people, I'll bet they're all as interesting as Lincoln Heights. It helps, though, to have a guide like Manny.

Zen Monday: #171

2011-11-21T00:01:00.000-08:00

Lincoln Heights Week

2011-11-20T00:01:00.000-08:00

reflections in a store window across from Abraham Lincoln High School

I said I needed a vacation and I got one. Last week I toured Lincoln Heights with Manny Rodriguez, who's lived there since his family came here from Mexico when he was six years old. Manny knows the neighborhood almost as well as the neighborhood knows him.

Karin Bugge, the Altadena Hiker, had posted about her explorations of this historic Los Angeles area and Manny emailed her and offered to show her around. Bellis and I got to tag along.

Tomorrow here on the blog we'll celebrate Zen Monday as per usual. Then, for the rest of the week, I'll share my favorite Lincoln Heights photos. In the meantime, I think you'll enjoy Karin's post about Manny and our visit.

Lemonade

2011-11-19T00:01:00.000-08:00

This was a welcome sight on a gloomy day.

These people sure like yellow.

It was too chilly to eat outside but it looked like people were taking advantage of the Lemonade menu indoors.

Lemonade is on Lake between Green and Cordova, part of The Commons. Should be a good spot. I haven't eaten there yet. Have you? What's your verdict?

Itchy

2011-11-18T00:01:00.000-08:00

I don't know why I like to travel in the fall, but I do. All year long I'm fine right where I am, then November comes around and bam! I've just gotta get out of town. And stay out! You'd think the cops were after me or something.

Put me on a plane and send me someplace. I'm ready for an adventure.

It Doesn't Take Much

2011-11-17T00:01:00.000-08:00

Boz doesn't care about petty politics. He doesn't know about choices, good or bad. He likes to run in open spaces and Johnson Field is fine with him just as it is.

"Boz," I said, "the field is a dumping ground for silt!"

Boz likes silt.

Guest Author: E. Max Hengst, and LAFD FF/PM

2011-11-16T00:01:00.000-08:00

Each day, Max Hengst sees things most of us will never see. He felt he had to write about them. He told me he's a little concerned some people might be uncomfortable with the profanity he uses in the book. But to write about his work without using profanity might just be dishonest, and Max is a straight talker.
Please welcome today's guest author, E. Max Hengst.

I wrote this book because you can’t make this stuff up. I am still serving on the Los Angeles Fire Department as a Captain and have seen it all. Every firefighter and paramedic (FF/PM) says they are going to write a book. I decided to do it about four years ago. It took approximately three years to write.

What you will read will make you laugh at the insanity as well as cry at the horror people are exposed to. In the beginning the book starts out profane. That was done to show how we really are. It is amazing to see what people do to each other. It’s a good thing there are those who will drop what they are doing at the sound of the bell to help others, strangers, to clean up the mess. Unfortunately some of my brothers and sisters on the department don’t come back.

The politics on the department can be appalling. I guarantee the majority of us didn’t sign up for the politics. After the shock and excitement of responding to calls in high incident areas wear off, the politics of saving those in need becomes more apparent.

Many of the incidents that we respond to stay with us and there are not enough chemicals or therapy that can erase them from memory. Calls or runs, as we call them, are the worst when children are involved.

Many people decide to write a book of this nature once they retire. Even though I am currently on the department I decided to go forth with this project because as a writer there is that need to write and I didn’t want this book to sit in manuscript form collecting dust. Let the chips fall where they may. After writing I tested it with my colleagues and fortunately it came back positive.

I have been living in the San Gabriel Valley most of my life. I came to Pasadena after an ugly divorce. I like Pasadena because it is close to work and I don’t have to travel far for any of my wants, needs or interests. I notice the Pasadena area also encourages the arts and that is a good thing for any writer.

I will be signing LAFD FF/PM; Memoirs of an "Outside Dog" at Vroman’s bookstore on Colorado Blvd. on December 15th at 7:00 PM. I hope to see you all there. I hope to pique your interest.

Fantasy Day

2011-11-15T00:01:00.000-08:00

I was raised on library books and outdoor play. Sometimes the family watched Bonanza together and, when the Beatles were on, The Ed Sullivan Show. We weren't allowed to watch TV as long as the sun was up.

But some people grew up watching TV. A subset of those people, who were weaned on TV in the mid to late 1990's, got hooked on animé. And a subset of those people fell in love with an animé called Tenchi Muyo!.

Animé is big business now, with conventions all over the country where fans dress up as their favorite characters, join in fashion shows, learn martial arts, buy products and meet the actors who bring the characters to life.

Tenchi Muyo! was one of the first Japanese animés dubbed into English. People remember it fondly as their "gateway animé," literally the one that got them addicted. I was fortunate enough to voice a character in it, the space pirate Ryoko. When I started I had no idea what would happen with the show or with animé in general. None of us did.

Here's a picture of the audience who came to the reunion of the "Ladies of Tenchi Muyo" at the Pacific Media Expo this past weekend at the LAX Hilton. I joined Rebecca Forstadt, Sherry Lynn and Ellen Gerstell for a Q and A. The room filled up more before we finished, and we got to meet many of these people and chat with them afterward at the autograph signing. They were delightful. Everyone--everyone--was nice. Some voice actors regularly visit these "cons" but as I've only voiced the one show, I hadn't been to one since the early days. It was awesome.

Rebecca and I joked in the green room about how after it was over we'd have to go back to our real lives. Yesterday I did some bookkeeping, uploaded a bunch of photos and tried to clean off my desk (ha!). I answered a question from my husband and autographed a couple of checks. It was awesome.

Not once, ever, have I dressed up like Ed Sullivan.

Zen Monday: #170

2011-11-14T00:01:00.000-08:00

Zen Monday's the day you experience the photo and give us your thoughts rather than me telling you what I think the photo's about. There's no competition, no right or wrong. Just have fun.

I look for a photo worth contemplating or, failing that, something odd or silly. Or all of those things, if I'm lucky.

And, plus, in addition, also: I have a new piece on Patch today.

Apropos

2011-11-13T00:01:00.000-08:00

This picture is apropos of nothing, a shot I took on Pasadena's east side maybe two years ago on a blustery day a lot like yesterday. At the time, this was at the back of a furniture store. It may still be at the back of a furniture store, but a lot can change in two years. It's just off of Rosemead Blvd., about a half mile south of the 210 freeway.

All you have to do to find good photographic subjects is get out of the car and walk. Anywhere. Try it.

Here's an exclusive offer for readers of Pasadena Daily Photo: you may remember that on October 28th I announced Ibarionex Perello's Digital Camera Bootcamp. Pro photographer and teacher at the revered (and expensive) Art Center College of Design, Ibarionex is someone I not only admire and recommend, but also someone I really like. For the November 19th workshop only, PDP readers can take his workshop for $50 by entering the Promo Code "perellovip" when checking out. I don't do a lot of advertising here but jeez, that's a super discount and it's just for us.

Still Life with Dog Paw

2011-11-12T00:01:00.000-08:00

I've been wanting to post more pictures of Boz, but I know myself. I'm like people who show photo after photo of their kids--it's okay for the first couple of shots but very soon the pictures are cute only to the parents.

I am not Boz's parent. I'm more like his artistic partner. He's always got ideas for different shots to do.

Dogs have the need for artistic expression. Sure they do. Ask any expert.

111111

2011-11-11T00:01:00.000-08:00

We should commemorate today because it's Veteran's day. We should commemorate the date if only because it happens just once a century.

If you head up to Memorial Park at Walnut and Raymond today at 10:30 you can be part of the Veteran's Day commemoration. I predict music, a flyover and no rain. But don't try getting anything done at the library or City Hall. All city offices will be closed.

As for the date, I suggest you Google 11/11/11 and find all the fun stuff. There's history, numerology and predictions.

I like to think those sets of ones are auspicious. But I'll leave the details to the numerologists, the predictions to the soothsayers and the Nigel Tufnel jokes to you.

Movie Star Home

2011-11-10T00:01:00.000-08:00

Hell of a back yard, isn't it?

I'm not sure why I find this house compelling except it looks like something from a movie. A scary movie, maybe. Can't you picture it all lit up at night? Or maybe we'll keep the sun and have some naked hipsters dancing on the deck, like in a Blake Edwards film set in the swingin' seventies (wasn't there such a scene in "10"?).

That big window faces east. Could get pretty warm in there in the morning, which is perfect if you're a naked hipster. Not too scary for the neighbors, either, because it's isolated enough that nobody can see in unless they want to make the effort to climb the hill and peek. In that case, if they see anything scary, they asked for it.

Librarians Rule

2011-11-09T00:01:00.000-08:00

looking out over the north entrance of Pasadena's Central Library

It's no secret I'm a fan of libraries and, by extension, librarians. You can imagine my glee when I received the press release with the following headline:

CALIFORNIA’S LIBRARIANS TO GATHER IN PASADENA TO DISCUSS THE CHANGING WORLD OF LIBRARY SERVICES

It's not like I'm going to the California Library Association Conference, or that I expect to meet any of these librarians while they're here this weekend (the 11th to 13th). It's just nice to know they're coming to town.

I hear they're a raucous bunch. In fact I know they are, my sister's a librarian. She's not a California librarian, but I know what I'm talking about. Don't let all that shushing fool you. These Dewey-eyed fans of Melvil and Melville are into space-age information distribution and wild, late-night author signings. They support literature of all kinds even if they don't agree with it. They read banned books.

From the press release:
“We’re very pleased to host the conference and showcase our community and our library system for librarians from across our state,” said Pasadena Library and Information Services Director Jan Sanders. “It’s a chance for us to learn to better meet the needs of library users. We also look forward to having conference attendees visit our libraries while they are here.”

They'll be in the libraries! Look out!

More information about the conference is available at www.cla-net.org.

2012 Pasadena Daily Photo Calendar

2011-11-08T00:01:00.000-08:00

I've been looking back through old posts and picking out photos to put up on RedBubble. RedBubble's one of those sites where you post your artwork (doesn't have to be photography) and people can buy it in the form of cards, posters, etc. You can click on my little ad in the sidebar.

So I put up some stuff and some of it sold. I was the buyer so it was no surprise. But then shocker! Someone else bought cards! My siblings are not owning up, nor are my in-laws. RB does a nice job of printing. I'm happy with them.

Over the weekend I made a 2012 PDP calendar (this picture isn't on it--just, you know, caveat emptor). I also added a couple of photos with a Christmas or winter feel if anybody wants to order Pasadena-oriented holiday cards. One card has the Colorado Street Bridge on it, one has City Hall and one was taken at the Huntington Gardens. I was thinking of doing a calendar of the Last Day Project with the photos of Johnson Field from September, 2009 to August, 2010. They'd be arranged so as to stick with the January-December calendar structure we use here on the planet. If you're interested, let me know and I'll put that together. Also let me know if you don't see the photo you want and I'll put it up there so you can buy cards or whatever.

I'm doing my Tom Bodett here, my soft-sell. I don't expect to get rich this way. But, you know, a few people asked. Do I sound lackadaisical enough?

Zen Monday: #169

2011-11-07T00:01:00.000-08:00

Zen Monday's the day you experience the photo and give us your thoughts rather than me telling you what I think the photo's about. There's no competition, no right or wrong. Let your imagination dictate. We're here to have fun.

I look for a photo worth contemplating or, failing that, something odd or silly. Unless I absolutely must say something I stay out of the comments box to avoid influencing the discussion. However, I'm feeling more and more relaxed about that self-imposed rule.

Grand Mosaic

2011-11-06T00:01:00.000-07:00

This is one of those things where if you know it's there it's no surprise, but if you don't, when you come upon it it's somehow incongruous.

I was of the latter persuasion, coming upon this and thinking, well, a modern tile mosaic is the last thing I expected above the entrance to underground parking.

I should make you guess where this is.

Maybe you already know?

It's at the north end of South Grand Avenue--the last building before the Colorado Street Bridge. It's nice to park there (on the street) and walk out onto the bridge for spectacular views and, right about now, some bracing wind. You can stop in the driveway for a bit of erudition on the way back to your car.

Mount Hillyer

2011-11-05T00:01:00.000-07:00

I want to show you a little window onto some of the scenery we saw on our Thursday hike at Mount Hillyer. What you're looking at is a little window between giant boulders. The window looks out across a canyon to the western mountains beyond.

But what I most want to show you is that spot of blue sky in the upper left. This photo is untouched. I didn't do anything to it. No sharpening, no nothing.

That spot of blue looks fake. Maybe because in town we're not used to seeing what color the sky really is, or maybe we just don't look, or maybe my camera doesn't work!

Links:
Dan's hiking pages
LocalHikes

Ryoko's Fans

2011-11-04T00:01:00.000-07:00

in the sound booth at Bell Sound Studios, Hollywood

In the late 1990's I had a great voice acting gig playing a sexy space pirate. Ryoko was a serious warrior and a desperate lover. She could walk through walls and fly. She was silly, funny, romantic and fierce. One doesn't get a role like that every day. (If one did, one might wear out much too young.)

When I first accepted the part I had no idea the English dub of the anime series Tenchi Muyo!, of which Ryoko was a part, would become a cult classic, or that I'd still be getting fan mail 15 years later. "Tenchi" has a devoted fan base (many of whom hail from Ohio and/or the UK--why is that?) and the fans have been gracious and friendly over the years. They're my Facebook friends, my Twitter followers, my pen pals. And they know a lot more about Tenchi and Ryoko than I do.

On November 13th, I'll be appearing on a panel called The Ladies of Tenchi Muyo at Pacific Media Expo at the LAX Hilton. It's a reunion of sorts, although we "ladies" never actually recorded together in the sound booth. We voiced our parts separately and the engineers mixed us in post-production, like producers do with music tracks. But we acted together nonetheless. I always hoped the voices of the other actors would be recorded before I came to record mine. I considered myself lucky when I had their tracks to act with.

I could be wrong but it seems lately there's been a resurgence of interest in Tenchi Muyo. Just last week I recorded an interview for the online radio station 91.8TheFan. (The interview's not online yet. I'll let you know.)

If I were Brad Pitt or Lady Gaga I might get tired of fans, but mine don't count up into the millions and they're mostly not nuts or intrusive or rude. They're nice people who, in their youths, loved an anime cartoon and the character I played. Some of them tell me they chose careers in anime or voice-over because of it. What an honor it is to hear from them, and to know something I did was meaningful in their lives.

I wish I could send them all round trip plane tickets from Ohio and/or the UK.

Ten

2011-11-03T00:01:00.001-07:00

John and I like to take road trips together. We like discoveries, seeing things we haven't seen before, getting onto the backroads. There's something about the road itself--movement, quiet, scenery (beautiful or boring)--that cocoons us in the car, encourages conversation and takes us out of our everyday. The road, for us, is togetherness.

We've taken trips that last several weeks or a single day. Some of them blend together in memory. That's because they've all been so good.

There's a reason the word "milestone" is used to mark an important moment in time. A ten year anniversary is far, yet not such a long way yet. It's all been so good.

Zen Wednesday: #2

2011-11-02T00:01:00.000-07:00

It's only happened once before. Zen Wednesday. Today we make history.

I think today I won't explain. I'll let you explain.