As I drove through the desert, smoke from the San Bernardino forest fire was so thick it covered the sky for about 50 miles. I also stopped to see the Amboy Crater. I believe it is the youngest volcanic site in North America.

I started my trip across the country from Los Angeles to Washington, DC on July 11, 2006. I planned to take Route 66 and portions of the Santa Fe Trail. My first day I started on I-10, I-15 and I-40. Somewhere in the high Mojave Desert I got on Route 66 and took the Mother Road into Arizona. It took forever but it was very scenic. I passed through a town called Daggett. Funny enough, the only spot in town with any signs of life is the cemetary.

Missouri

Missouri at the Webb Schools in Claremont, CA

Los Alamos Saloon

J and I got off the 101 Freeway to take a break on our way back from the Bay Area on June 11. We were both entertained by this dog sitting at the door of the saloon.

J and I fought like we have never fought before. I didn't get much sleep. I wish we can stop fighting all the time.

Angeles Crest Highway

I took a ride on the Angeles Crest Highway last Saturday. I proceeded from the foot of the hill at Flintridge to Mt. Wilson (5715 feet). It's one of the most scenic mountain rides in Southern California. The day was crystal clear and I could see downtown LA from about 3,000 feet up. However, after 4,000 ft, cloud covers took over and I was riding in a mixture of fog and really bright sunlight. After visiting the Mt. Wilson Observatory I was too cold to go any higher and headed home for lunch.

El Pueblo de Los Angeles

Jennifer and I visited a old slice of Los Angeles at the El Pueblo de Los Angeles. This is the location where a group of Spaniards from the San Gabriel Mission founded Los Angeles in 1781.

Now the Pueblo is a state park that is commonly known as Olvera Street. The area is composed of a open plaza that houses the Chinese Historical Museum and the Pico House, a former hotel founded by Alta California's last Mexican governor.

On the day we visited, we found a group of dancers doing some kind of Mexican hat dance. We walked the narrow Olvera Street and had a late lunch.

Bimbo bread is like any other sliced white bread. But I think the name is funny.

Jennifer and I visited the Santee Alley, an open air market just a few blocks from our apartment in the Fashion District in downtown LA. Although I wasn't interested in buying anything on the offering there, the neighborhood was interesting. The place was packed with people. It was so crowded that one can only move at a slow pace and try not to bump into the person in front. This isn't the kind of shopping environment I like. But it was worth visiting.

 

Jennifer and I went to the Yucaipa apple country today. We originally were going to the orchard to pick some apples ourselves. But we ended up at the Parrish Apple Shed and really enjoyed their selection of apples, apple products like apple turnovers and apple wines and ciders. It was a pleasant day at 72 degrees and we spent a nice day out of the city.

The Parrish Apple Shed in Yucaipa 

Southern Californians used to get all their apples from San Bernardino County, about 80 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Now Washington State apples dominate the markets. But Southern Cal apple orchards still exist out in Yucaipa.

 

Yucaipa's apple country 

The Apple Dumplins House in Yucaipa's apple country 

Happy Jack

 

Morning @ Silverlake Dog Park

 

I took Jack to play at the Silverlake Dog Park a couple Saturdays ago. We had a lot of fun meeting new dogs from the neighborhood and just relaxing next to the Silverlake Resevoir.

Here we have the dogs greet Jack upon our entry into the park.

 

 

 

Downtown LA buildings are into rooftop neon signs. Many of them simply announce the building's name. Some signs are essentially advertising.

It's ironic to find this sign in a city associated with entertainment and indulgence.

The building in the back is the old United Artist Theater, one of the grand theaters built in downtown during the 1920's. Other grand theaters also line Broaway, including the Orpheum (listed in the photo below), the Los Angeles, the Mayan, the Rialto, etc. Most of them sit empty now In the United Artist's case, it is now used as Universal Cathedral Sunday service location. An outline of the downtown LA Theater District could be found at http://www.gmrnet.com/theaters.html

I finally got a chance to walk around at night in my neighborhood. It's a little lonely and I find myself looking back to make sure no one is following me. It is downtown LA. But my first night walk around the neighborhood went well.

The Broadway Bar is a newish bar that just came to the neighborhood. It is the closest watering hole to my apartment. A couple blocks down I found the Golden Gopher. It's suppose to be a good neighborhood place and the bar actually delivers liquor to your door. But my favorite downtown bar now is the Mountain Bar in Chinatown. I'll have photos of that place when I go there next time.

Next to the Broadway Bar is the old Orpheum Theater. It was unoccupied and rundown for decades. The theater recently got renovated and is now again a concert and event venue. The building on top of the theater also got a facelift adn became the Orpheum Lofts.

A look down to the courtyard from my buildings rooftop deck 

Views from my window and neighborhood

First week in Los Angeles

This is a view of my empty loft

I feel like the past week went by both really quickly. Since I arrived in Los Angeles on September 3, I had to check Jack and Missouri into a kennel, find an apartment, and start a new job. While I was "homeless," I stayed at the Orbit, a hostel in West Hollywood. While I don't mind doing the hostel thing, it is completely different when I have to get up early in the morning for work while rest of my roommates are partying late into the night. It was not an ideal situation for me for the long term.

I lucked out my fourth day in LA and found a loft in downtown LA's Fashion District. My loft is between the Fashion District and Toytown.

My neighborhood is a very busy place during the day. One could see garment workers pushing their carts of fabric, buttons, and merchandising through the streets. A couple blocks north of my building, one could see a great number of Chinese toy importers working out of their shops, loading and unloading their goods and at the same time working in their rudimentary English and Spanish to attrack customers. What I find the most interesting, however, is the Portuguese-speaking Brazilian Koreans. They look like Koreans, eat a mix of Korean and Brazilian food, but speak in Portuguese. I guess only in LA could one find such a mix of people.

The job is completely different than Capitol Hill. I found myself heading to San Diego for my first day on the job. I arrived at the office to find that the Asian Business Association of San Diego is hosting a debate between the Proposition 78 and 79 forces and hiked my way 2 hours down south for the event. I drove two hours south and two hours back to attend a 30 minute debate. But at least they were all billable.

I am still getting used to the whole billable hours. The entire industry is based on this concept of generating billable hours to justify its pay and budget. I'm still learning but I have a long way to go before I master this new concept.

Before I leave, I took some photos of my neighborhood. It is not a pretty district. But it is the engine room of Los Angeles and I look forward to exploring it block-by-block.

We rescued Pepe on Saturday. He was the sweetest boy. He was really scared and a little shy at first, but he was such a bright and cheerful boy. He quickly warmed up to me and Jennifer. We kept him overnight and he slept right by our bed.

We took him to the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria thinking that they could help place him with a good family. Now, having learned of some of their policies, which weren't initally disclosed to us, we wish we had just kept him. Jennifer put in a formal application today to adopt Pepe today. We miss him and want him to be with us. I'm not religious at all, but I hope St. Francis keeps an eye out for Pepe and brings him back to us soon. We're keeping our fingers crossed.

Jack underestimates his size.

Jack got sick last night. Something got into his eyes and it's irritating him. I took him to the emergency room and the doctor said that unless treated properly, he could turn blind. Poor Jack.

I'm leaving for a work trip tonight and I'm terribly worried about him. I hope the eye drops do the job.

Jack is in this picture with his new space dog collar. The doctor put it on him to discourage him from pawing his irritated eye.

I took a Motorcycle Safety Foundation biker course today. I need to return again tomorrow to get my certificate.

Although it rained all day today, it was a fun day. I got to ride a Honda Nighthawk and it beats being in the office any day.