LA INTERACTIONS

This is a blog for my Los Angeles Interactions for UHP401. Justine Gonzales

[southoftehachapi-blog]

Last Post!

Saturday night my friends and I headed out to Pasadena to watch Grease in the park. If you haven't seen Grease, I don't know where you've been all your life. It's basically boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love but are separated, boy and girl are reunited but boy is determined to uphold his image as a late 1950s teenage bad boy and ruins everything. It all comes together in an ending that is sweet on the surface but kind of terrible if you spend more then 30 seconds thinking about it. Also, there's singing and dancing and extremely questionable lyrics. Funnily enough, while watching I was reminded of the documentary we watched in class and how Thom Andersen said that Los Angeles can be anywhere. Although it was filmed at various places in LA, including a beach in Malibu, a high school in Venice, and the Paramount Pictures backlot, there is never anyway to clearly identify LA in the movie. The one part that is probably the most recognizable to Angelenos is the race at 'Thunder Road,' which shows off a section of the LA River between the First and Seventh street bridges.

The movie screening was a part of Street Food Cinema's annual summer movie series. Every weekend from May 2nd to October 31st, Street Food Cinema will be screening one or two movies at various parks in Los Angeles. General admission tickets cost $12 and can/should be purchased online. For seats at the very front of the crowd it's $17. If you plan on going, I would suggest getting general admission and showing up early. There are a ton of food trucks but the organizers have nothing against people bringing in their own food and snacks. Doors open at 5:30, but because it was our first time going and because it was cold out, we didn't expect a crowd. We were wrong. We got there around 7 and had to park pretty far. We took a sleeping bag to sit on and several blankets and snacks. I'd thought we overpacked until I saw that the people sitting next to us had an entire tea party set up, complete with porcelain plates and a tiered cupcake stand. Others around us brought low beach chairs. We grabbed a little bit more food from the trucks and enjoyed the live band. At our event, two of the actors from the movie came out and did a brief question and answer session. They weren't extremely famous people but it was still fun to listen to them talk about working on the Broadway production and filming the movie. The movie started just after that at 8:30. We ended up near the back of the crowd but we still had a good view of the screen and I was able to lay down and still see everything. It was a ton of fun and I will definitely be attending more screenings over the summer.

To see the complete schedule or purchase tickets click here. Upcoming showings include Forrest Gump, Almost Famous, Stand By Me, and 500 Days of Summer, and more. 

[engelkesarah-blog-blog]

Lunch at The Chart Room

On Wednesday, May 6th my friends and I went to lunch at our usual spot on Wednesdays at the Chart Room (after class, of course). However, since we got out early we went around 11:30 or so. 

What was bittersweet about it was that it would be the last Chart Room lunch for us :( because we are all graduating. But I thought it would be cool to write about this experience in particular because Long Beach State has a very special place in my heart. 

For any of you that haven’t been to The Chart Room it is an “upper-scale” buffet style restaurant with incredibly delicious themed meals every week. This week in particular was my favorite: Southern. I ate chicken, macaroni & cheese, and biscuits (with butter, of course). Have to warn you this food is not healthy but it is delicious and worth the calories! The service there is always great and we always sit at the same table in the same places- traditions. 

What this experience in particular though reminded me of was the class trip we took a few weeks ago to LA and especially Grand Central Market. I am such a foodie and the food in Grand Central Market made me think of how much I correlate my experiences with food- which is very “LA-esque” to me. To me, great food= good memories and experiences. 

I would not have any other personal connection (outside of my family) to Los Angeles had it not been for my time spent these last four years at CSULB. And lunch at The Chart Room has been a huge contributing factor to it. 

[southoftehachapi-blog]

I’ve always been super curious about what it’s like in these. One of my professors used to hold office hours at The Chart Room and I thought it was a little weird but everyone who went to his office hours said it was fun. You have definitely convinced me to go and try it one of these days. 

[jonslablog]

On a bright Sunday afternoon, I decided to get lost in some part of Los Angeles yet again.

This time I stumbled onto an excursion towards Sunset boulevard. I’ve heard of this particular stretch of road for all my life–about the shops and food places amidst the shadows of tall palm trees that...

[southoftehachapi-blog]

Sunset is so long! A few years back I was at some little gelato shop in SIlverlake and when I realized I was on Sunset Blvd, I was so confused. It definitely changes as you travel along. It goes from trendy little hipster restaurants and stores to a slightly run down, neighborhood main street really quickly. The Sunset Blvd that most people think of is either the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, which is a bunch of clubs and restaurants and venues, or Sunset as it runs through Beverley Hills and Bel-Air, where it is mostly super expensive houses that I would love to live in. I always think it is a little funny when people want to go see the grand Sunset Blvd and end up seeing a random little dinky part of the street. The same sentiment applies to Melrose and Hollywood Blvd. Some people (tourist) have this image of the streets in their minds and are shocked when they drive along the real thing. 

[southoftehachapi-blog]

On Saturday, before dropping me off at Union Station for the class field trip, my sister and I decided to stop for breakfast. We ended up at Homegirl Cafe, two blocks from the train station down Alameda. Homegirl Cafe is one part of Homeboy Industries. I'd heard of it before because my uncle frequents the cafe in LAX and because one of my high school teacher volunteered as a GED tutor for the organization. For those of you who have never heard of Homeboy Industries, it is a nonprofit organization meant to give former gang members and the previously incarcerated a second chance.  It was started in 1988 by Father Greg Boyle as part of the Dolores Mission Parish in Boyle Heights. Fr. Greg wanted to create something as an alternative to the cycle of poverty and jail time gang members and convicts from the area usually go through. It's gone through some ups and downs but today the organization is flourishing and is used as a model across the country. Those that go through the program can receive legal aid, educational services, mental health services, and tattoo removal. They can also get job training and experience at one of the organizations businesses. 

We accidentally walked into the Homeboy headquarters and a man waiting to start tattoo removal redirected us through the merchandise shop and into the actual cafe. Inside, it looked like a trendy brunch place that could be found on second street or in some other upscale beach community. The menu was predominately hispanic dishes but they also had traditional brunch items and baked goods. Art from the homeboys was up on the walls for sale. It wasn't what I was expecting but it was an interesting experience. As we ordered, Rihanna's "Bitch Better Have My Money" played quietly over the speakers. The family of five behind us in line were all blonde with blue eyes and looked like people from the stock photos they put in frames. They fit in well with the rest of the patrons. In a sharp contrast, our cashier was a Mexican man with a huge, blue, LA tattoo standing out from his heavily tattooed neck. He also had tattoos all over his forearms and across his eyebrow. My sister and I ordered scones and a plate of machaca to go.  The machaca was good but definitely not the best i've ever had and the scones were delicious. I plan on heading back to actually eat there soon.

For more information on Homeboy Industries click here.

[southoftehachapi-blog]

I spent last Saturday, April 11th, at El Dorado Regional Park with my sorority sisters. The park is not exactly the city of gold promised by Spanish legend, but it is a nice place to get lost in and relax. The park and adjacent nature center cover about 400 acres of land. In 1774 the land was part of a grant to Don Manuel Nieto. It was later bought and divided into ranchos by Governor Figueroa. Eventually the land went to the Bixby family and then, in the late 60s, to the city of Long Beach to become the gigantic park it is today. To me it feels like a small forrest in between a busy street and a freeway. There's disc golf field, tennis courts, archery ranges, two fully stocked lakes for fishing, paddle boats, areas for model boats and aircrafts, grills, physical fitness stations, a youth campground, and numerous bike and walking paths. It's basically an amusement park.

I went to the park to watch Tri Delta's Ultimate Frisbee tournament. Teams from different fraternities donate funds and form a team to compete. The funds from the tournament go towards our philanthropy, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Since 1999, all Tri Delta chapter across the country have raised money for St. Jude. We are one of the hospital’s biggest contributors and have met several goals. Our current national goal is to raise $60 million in 10 years. The tournament is one of many events we host to work towards this goal. I don't know much about Ultimate Frisbee but it looked like a lot of fun. The tournament started around 10 and ended late in the afternoon. I spent most of my day sitting in the sun and playing with all the different puppies the teams brought. Overall, we had 11 teams and raised around $1,500 for St. Jude.

[southoftehachapi-blog]

So this isn’t really an LA Interaction of mine, but it is fairly interesting and relates to some of the stuff we’ve discussed in class. 

My sister sent me this article on gentrification in Los Angeles a few weeks ago. If you don’t know what gentrification is, it’s basically just renovating and modernizing older areas and it is a controversial topic. I am by no means an expert and that definition would probably make one cringe. All I know is that my sister and her best friend like to argue about this all the time. This LA Weekly article does a pretty good job of laying out both sides of the argument. The article linked to the picture up top is more in favor of gentrification. The writer talks about his wife experiencing white flight in Highland Park. Whites moved out, took their tax money, and the neighborhood became the hood. But now things are changing and the ‘hipsters’ are moving in. The article goes into more detail about culture, statistics, and the de facto segregation that has taken place since. If you have a few minutes and want to know more about gentrification, I highly suggest giving it a read. 

Click the picture to read the article. 

[southoftehachapi-blog]

Over spring break, my best friend forced me convinced me to have a hike/beach day. We decided on Solstice Canyon, hoping to see some cool ruins my sister had told me about. We started our hike on the Rising Sun Trail, which basically a bunch of switchbacks to the top of a mountain with absolutely no shade. Eventually this trail leads to a steep path into the canyon. As it was around 9 in the morning, I thought we would be okay. I was wrong. Despite seeing a handful of happy people on the trail, I swore we were on a path to hell. Meanwhile, my friend was running back and forth acting like she was John Muir out to discover something. Eventually, the sun got to be a little too much and she took mercy upon me and we turned around (we later found out that we were almost near the top). We headed for the infinitely kinder Solstice Canyon Trail. Most of this trail is flat and it goes through the canyon so not only is there tons of shade, but there is also a small creek. We didn’t know exactly what the ruins we were looking for were so when we eventually saw a tub off the side of the path we thought we had made it. It was a little disappointing but it’s not everyday you see a huge stone tub in the middle of the woods so it was cool enough. Out of curiosity we kept following the path and ended up finding the actual ruins.

About half way down the trail, the former home of Don Mateo Keller is gated off. It was destroyed in a canyon fire in 2007 but it was thought to be the oldest house in Malibu. Keller was an Irish immigrant (his real name is Matthew) who came to California in the mid-1800s. He was a prominent winegrower and agriculturist. He bought most of the land around the canyon for less than $1/acre. This house was constructed in 1857.

We kept going and eventually got to the end of the trail. In the heart of the canyon rest the remains of the Robert’s Ranch House. In 1952, renowned architect Paul Williams designed this house for the Roberts family. He created an elaborate pump system to protect the house from fires but lack of upkeep lead to the destruction of the house in a 1982 canyon fire. A lot of the foundations remain and are open for exploration. Additionally, near the back of the house a small trail leads to a tiny pool and waterfall. There wasn’t much water but it was still cool and refreshing.

Across a small bridge, the hiking path leads to the Rising Sun Trail. My friend was tempted to make the full round trip, but, through hard work and promises of CPK, I convinced her to take the flat path back. We raced each other to the car, skipped the beach, headed to CPK, and then lost all feeling in our legs.  

 For more information on or directions to Solstice Canyon click here.

[drew-mirk-blog]

On Friday April 3rd, 2015 I went and saw the movie Furious 7.  The Fast and The Furious franchise is based in Los Angeles. The main characters Dominic Toretto and Brian O'Connor live in Los Angeles which I thought was something that I could talk about since it is a literary representation of this great city. Furious 7 was supposed to come out last year but a fatal car accident involving Paul Walker who plays Brian O'Connor delayed the film. Paul Walker’s two brothers filled in for the late actor in the movie because they had already filmed half of it. This franchise is primarily about driving fast cars in street races in the city of Los Angeles. The last few films however have drifted away from this idea and the group has started to take on big heists and stop bad guys in different countries all over the world. This last movie that was made was for the late Paul Walker. It was a very moving tribute to say the least. The last movie was brought back home to Los Angeles where the group had to stop a military man from killing them after the group killed his brother in the sixth film. It was hard to watch the film knowing that Paul Walker was not able to finish the movie. I was really curious though on what would happen to Paul Walker in the movie and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised on how they chose to edge him out of the film. Like I said earlier, Paul Walker was not able to complete the movie so his brothers stood in and completed it for him. They used the brothers bodies and used CGI to put Paul Walker’s face on the brother’s bodies. The ending was my favorite part. That is why I put this song on my blog. It was played at the very end in memoriam to Paul Walker. The lyrics are great and very moving and is one of my favorite songs now. It has a good message like “How can we not talk about family when family is all we got.” Paul Walker and Vin Diesel were like brothers so the ending really got to me. I will be perfectly honest, the last fifteen minutes of the movie had me crying my eyes out. Rest in Peace Paul Walker. Until we “See You Again.”

[southoftehachapi-blog]

This song made me cry so much but I bought this song right after I saw the movie and have been listening to it every night. I loved the way they memorialized Paul Walker. Throughout the film they made so many references to the beginning of the series and they spent so much of the movie talking about how they didn’t want to go to another funeral, I was scared it was some strange foreshadowing. I spent most of the movie just waiting for them to kill him off. I was so relieved when I saw the ending. As cheesy as some of these movies can be, that ending was really beautiful. Plus there are some pretty sweet shots of Downtown LA around the climax of the movie.

[southoftehachapi-blog]

So I typed this out, logged on, and saw that someone else had blogged about it already, but it never hurts to have more pictures of cooked and ice cream so here it is...

A few Fridays ago my best friend/neighbor and I found ourselves craving dessert late at night. We were fairly bored at home and decided to make an adventure of it, heading out to our not so local favorite. Diddy Riese is a well-known bakery in Westwood Village. It opened in 1983 and is known for its delicious cookies, ice cream sandwiches, and low prices. My sister works in Westwood and brings home cookies every so often. During the day the line is pretty short and she can walk right in. However, on the weekends and late at night UCLA students and the occasional tourist group flood the Village and the line goes out the door. Fortunately, the menu is pretty basic so the line goes by fast. They offer 10 different cookies, 12 flavors of Dryers ice cream, brownies, sundaes, Hawaiian shaved ice, and of course coffee and milk. That night we were after ice cream sandwiches. For $1.75 you get to pick two cookies and a scoop of ice cream to go in between. As shown in the picture, I went with two chocolate chip walnut cookies with espresso chip ice cream. It was delicious, as always. Diddy Riese stays open until 12 most nights and until 1 on Friday and Saturday. On rare occasion, if you go right when they are about to close and you are a particularly pleasant customer, you can score some free cookies. If you feel like going for a drive or are in the area, I definitely recommend stopping by. We left my house around 11 and made it there in 20 minutes. After getting the sandwiches we jumped back into the car and drove another twelve minutes to the beach to enjoy it. Of course, if you really wanted to, you could make this stuff at home and it would probably taste similar. But at $.35 a cookie and $4 for a delicious dozen, very few bakeries can match Diddy Riese.

For a look at Diddy Riese’s menu click here. 

[engelkesarah-blog-blog]

Just curious...

what is your favorite city in LA?

Mine is Redondo Beach!

[southoftehachapi-blog]

Manhattan Beach :)

[urbanspace401-blog-blog]

March 21, 2015 | 7:00AM | LA Regional Food Bank , Los Angeles, CA

This weekend I volunteered at to one of the warehouses for the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. The volunteers and I made food packages for thousands of families. I have been participating in this service for the past two...

[southoftehachapi-blog]

I volunteered here a ton during high school. For some reason I usually ended up sorting carrots. It’s a great way to do service and if you go with a friend it’s usually pretty fun. The jobs I was assigned were pretty repetitive so it was easy to chat and work at the same time. It’s great that you shared the statistics. I did a service project on the Food Bank so that was something I actually had to learn all about but most people just let the details go in one ear and out the other. 

[geriweckstein-blog-blog]

[southoftehachapi-blog]

THIS SOUNDS LIKE SO MUCH FUN!! I definitely want to give this a try! This would make on hell of an ice breaker or a team building activity if someone could replicate it. 

[drew-mirk-blog]

On Thursday March 12, 2015 I had the opportunity to go to The Ellen DeGeneres show. This was my first time going to a talk show and I was pretty excited. I got out of school around 12:00 and made my way down to Burbank with my friends. The filming of the show was at the Warner Brothers studio...

[southoftehachapi-blog]

I’ve always wanted to go to the Ellen Show. Everyone I know has had a super fun time and most people end up getting stuff in the end. I know 4 different people who got mattresses. Hopefully when I ever I end up going there’s a guest as cool as the first lady. That sounds amazing!

[la-inasemester]

March 15, 2015. 11:23 P.M.

“Raise Your Voice” Movie

When we were talking about our favorite L.A. movies in class a few weeks ago, I was reminded of a movie I have not seen in years. I mentioned it briefly in class,  and the more I thought about it afterwards, the more I realized how truly cheesy this film really was.

The film sets out with a brother and sister living in a small town with their parents. The young girl, Terri (Hiliary Duff), has a wonderful singing voice that the brother, Paul, recognizes, but the father fears. The father, who is portrayed as overbearing and overprotective, used to be an amazing football player in high school. When him and his buddy got full rides to go play for a school in L.A., he turned them down, while his buddy when to L.A. to become a wild and crazy drunkard/drug addict. Due to this, when Teri tells her father she wants to apply for a summer music program in L.A., he ultimately says no. Paul, who is never seen getting along with his father, gets into a huge fight with his dad and gets grounded. Despite this though, Paul still ends up secretly sending in Teri’s application for the school anyway. Later that night, Teri and Paul sneak off to a concert for his birthday, where a drunk driver hits them on their way home. Paul dies, leaving Teri feeling guilty for his death.

The rest of the movie is pretty straightforward. Terri’s mom and aunt convince her to go behind the father’s back and accept the admission, even though she is still grieving over her brother’s death. She goes to L.A. and finds that the city is a scary, mean, and dangerous place. (Her purse gets stolen in her first few minutes of arriving in L.A.) The people at the school are initially all rude and unwelcoming, and she begins to doubt her ability to even fit in. Then, she falls for the troubled, British bad boy Jay (who is Hapa, I might add) and everything turns around. Her music gets better, there’s support when she goes through PTS from the car accident, she makes new friends, and even is able to build a breakthrough relationship with her African American roommate, who was initially harsh and cold towards her in their first encounter because she desperately needed the cash from the grand prize. Of course, things have to get worse, so the jealous ex girlfriend kisses Jay, Teri retreats back into her loathing self, her music suffers, and her father finds out that she’s been at the school all along. In the end, when the father comes to take her home, she convinces him that this school was the best thing that had ever happened to her, and he allows her to go perform with Jay. It’s an incredible, tear-jerking performance for her whole family, and though she doesn’t win, it still a happy, feel-good ending, because the ex girlfriend also loses, and the struggling roommate wins.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I did love this movie as a kid. There is still some sentiment when I re-watch this scene and remember my sister and I sitting together on the couch, hoping with all our might that Teri and Jay would win. Yet, even now as I review everything I typed, I realize just how stereotypical this movie was. My cousin, who was about my age and studying African American history and injustices at the time, absolutely hated watching this movie with us. I remember my sister and I getting mad at him when he would comment “Why do they have to make the black girl, the minority, the poor one?” or “Of course she gets over her PTS, the realization of the L.A. dream would obviously override any pain from the past.” At the time, I didn’t understand what he was saying; I was just irritated he kept talking during the movie. Now, though, I get it. What he was trying to explain to us was that this movie was nothing more than the L.A. fantasy. Here was a small town girl who, despite all odds being against her, was able to come out on top and realize who she truly was in L.A. It was in the tough city that she found the opportunity she was “destined” for, and the people who understood her best. This movie completely plays up the fantasy of the L.A. dream by also making sure the minority, who portrayed as lucky to even get accepted to the school, was able to make a name for herself. This movie emphasizes the dream that if you want to be famous, adored, and accepted, L.A. is the place to be. It highlights all the “opportunities” of L.A., and the possible success that awaits all hopeful musicians.

[southoftehachapi-blog]

I loved this movie! And you are completely right about it being cheesy and stereotypical. Looking back, I completely understand why your cousin would have been irritated. It sucks, but even today a lot of movies are like that. As far as getting famous goes, this movie pretty much suggests that if you are one of the good guys everything will work itself out in the end. 

[writing-la-blog-blog]

3/16/15

This past Saturday afternoon, I went stand up paddleboarding (SUP) in the canals at Sunset Beach. Although I’ve been there multiple times before and have noticed the Spanish tiles of the lavish houses that line the waterways, I’ve always just written them off as typical Southern California...

[southoftehachapi-blog]

I definitely want to try these canals! I always pass through the Sunset Beach area and have always wanted to try with some friends but just never found the time to look for a good place to rent from so thanks for the reference. If you (or anyone else in the class) is looking for kayaking closer to home, Kayaks On The Water is pretty reasonable and the people who run it are pretty cool. My entire sorority rented kayaks from there and got to go around Naples Canals and the Alamitos Bay, where you can sometimes find jellyfish. 

[la-inasemester]

February 28, 2015. 6:40 P.M.

Palos Verdes Proposal

On Saturday, Keegan and I helped our good friend Danny propose to his girlfriend, Carissa. He proposed in Rancho Palos Verdes, on a cliffside along the street Paseo Del Mar. The history behind Rancho PV dates all the way back to when it was first inhabited by the Gabrielino Indians, before it was “discovered” by Portuguese explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo. The area was later given in as 1846 as a Mexican land grant by Governor Pio Pico to Jose Loreto and Juan Capistrano. It is now known best as an upperclass, affluent neighborhood in Los Angeles, surrounded by large, beautiful views of the Pacific Ocean.

 This exact location was the place where Danny first asked Carissa to be his girlfriend, so he thought it was only appropriate to return to that same location to ask her to be his wife.

We visited the spot the night before, and ran into some major technical issues. The city of PV by itself is not very well lit, so the cliffside we were on was pitch black. We anticipated Carissa to get out of class around 5, so we knew by the time I picked her up, lighting was going to be difficult. In hopes to solve this, we had bought many candles (COVERED candles; didn’t want to be responsible for burning down PV), but even with that, it was still too dark. Danny and Keegan both had work the next morning, so if anyone was going to pick something else up, it had to be me. We struggled to think of something bright, affordable, battery powered, and available at this time of year. All night I scoured the internet for battery powered christmas lights that I could pick up in store, with no luck whatsoever. Finally, around 3:45 a.m., I found a listing for stone LED battery lights at Bed Bath and Beyond, and went to sleep happy, knowing I had to be up in roughly 4 hours.

The morning of the proposal was complete chaos. I picked up the lights and lanterns in Torrance, drove to Carson to go visit relatives, drove to San Pedro to pick up the cameras, then met the boys at the spot in PV. The plan was that as the boys were setting up, I would drive back to Torrance to pick up Carissa. At the time, she believed we were going to PV to film for a project I had in my “Southern California Class.” I even made up a fake syllabus for the supposed project to make sure this story sounded believable. She bought it.

Finally came time for me to drive back to Torrance once more to pick her up. On my way down the hill, she offered to drive us around for the night, but I said no, INSISTING I hadn’t even been able to drive much that day. Once we were in the car together, I rambled more than I’ve ever rambled before in my life. I asked her how dinner with Danny and her parents went, if they were engaged yet, and told her of how I thought he would propose in the next few months. I needed her to believe that there was no possible way I knew about any proposal plans, and lucky for me, she thought I was clueless.

When we arrived to the spot, she immediately stopped and turned around to tell me, “Michelle, there’s lights.” At this point, I figured she knew what was going on and quickly encouraged her to go down there. She must’ve thought I was being so rude because she responded almost immediately with a “No, we can’t! It looks like someone is doing something really romantic and we’re gonna ruin it.” We had convinced her so well, it didn’t even cross her mind that this setup would be for her! So, for a few minutes we stood there as I tried to convince her why it would be a good idea to go see why there were candles everywhere.

Finally after much pushing, she began to slowly crawl down the cliffside repeatedly saying, “Hello…? Is anyone there?” When Danny came out to say hello, she didn’t recognize him and instantly began retreating saying, “I am so sorry we invaded! We’ll leave right now!” He then told her she should come down, and after a few moments it finally registered what was going on. He then proceeded to sing and play a song he wrote just for her, get down on one knee, and pop the question. There were a few other mishaps that occurred… including dropping the ring off the cliffside… but we found it! Overall, it was a perfect proposal for these two because it was definitely one they will never forget. Congrats Danny & Carissa, I love you both!

[southoftehachapi-blog]

This is the cutest thing ever!! You win class blog posts. I love how much attention to detail went into this, especially your made up assignment. Even your made up assignment sounds awesome. I would be totally down. 

[writing-la-blog-blog]

3/8/15

This past Saturday I had a mandatory field trip for my Historical Geology class. We went to the La Brea Tar Pits and the Natural History Museum. I hadn’t been to either previously, so I was pretty excited, and I can’t say that I was disappointed.

Oddly enough, my geology professor drove us...

[southoftehachapi-blog]

I haven’t been to the Tar Pits in a very, very long time. I remember them being interesting and my brothers getting yelled at for climbing some of the animal statues. However, I do venture out to LACMA, which is right next door, frequently. It’s free for Los Angeles residents on certain afternoons and if you time it just right, you can get there in half an hour. It’s crazy how there is so much in Los Angeles but traffic dejects a lot of people!