Author Archives: EL CHAVO!

About EL CHAVO!

I like poetry, romantic candlelit dinners, and quiet walks on the beach.

Freeway Cats

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If you’ve driven up the Pasadena Freeway lately you may have noticed these cats hanging around the asphalt, smiling stupidly as you speed by. And before you know it, yer smiling stupidly as well when you spot the next one, peeking out behind that bush or on the other side of the bridge. Cheap thrills. A tiny visual break from the regular dose of mundane. It’s similar to  Leo Limon’s River Catz, though I guess these would be Arroyo Gatos. I was able to snap a few pics from a moving vehicle, click ahead to check out a few of the others.

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This Is Why I Don’t Talk To “Reporters”

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcbzuQM0RIg

Every once in awhile I get a personal email by some reporter or “film maker” that wants me to go in front of their cameras for a soundbite. Or a punchline as the case may be. Neh pollos, not interested. I don’t want your camera to steal what’s left of my soul. Besides, I’ve got less important things to do.

And then sometimes we get requests sent to LA Eastside regarding questions, comments, or to participate in this or that. You wouldn’t believe how many requests of these sorts this lil’ site gets, to cover some event, to mention some product. I usually send it to the intended author or forward it to our internal email list, see if anyone is interested in helping out. But this video up above is the reason I tend to NOT want to help reporters in their search for content.

Check out this documentary by Kyle Wegner, a short video clip that aims to deal with the false “debate” regarding the location of the Eastside. Its not very enlightening but I don’t think I’m the intended consumer for this sort of stuff. Nevermind the content, here’s why this video sucks:

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Kraft Cheez Tamal

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cheeztamal

For those that were breathlessly waiting for a follow-up, here it is. Birth of a new tradition? Another hint at the end times? Pre-post-post-Chicano food? Whatever this means, yours truly, despite the yucks and boos from the gathered crowd, went ahead with the making of a Kraft Cheez tamal. You know, that food-like orangey product in individual slices. The verdict: hey, that’s not so bad! I did add some rajas and papas to the mix, so that made it worthwhile. But it kinda failed cuz I thought it would be all melty but instead it just globbed up, maybe singles aren’t meant for a 2 hour steam bath. Hmm, on second thought, maybe I should have added 2 slices.

No te hagas, you know you want some.

Gathering the Ingredients

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The Tamalada is on! Over at my local Big Saver the after work/pre-tamalada crowds were doing the rounds: picking through the tomatillos, looking for the biggest bag of hojas with nicely shaped husks, contemplating investing in one of those large steamers with the false bottom (at $15 they are worth every penny), making the tough decision of going with the cheaper and milder California chiles or going for broke with the Guajillos. And if you make the queso con rajas tamales then you also have to think about the price range of your cheese, be it the classy and expensive Tillamook or the cheapo but affordable no name blocks. (Is it Henry’s? Dave’s?)  Right by the entrance turnstile was a huge display of masa preparada, but I’ll pass on that and the lard within. I’m sticking to maseca. One of these years I’m going to find a place that sells masa preparada without the lard, because we really need to know. And I bet the place that starts this novel concept is going to get lots of business. I was hoping to do a post on that topic this year but I guess it will have to wait. If you missed it, or if you’re just a pocho that refuses to make your own, check out my post from last year where I covered a few of the tamales available on the Eastside. Maybe by next year I will once again be unemployed and finally have the time to finish some of these post ideas. One can dream.

Above you see some of my basics, and yes, I do use tofu in my red sauce tamales. Plus I add papas. And green olives. It’s better than it sounds. I also make a standard tamal of pasilla rajas/queso/tomatillo salsa that is basic but satisfying. But this year I’m going to invent something new, something for the Chicano kitchen. The kraft cheeze tamal? Yup, that’s going to be created by me. Hay les digo que tal.

So how do you make yours?  May your pot gather steam and your masa set properly. Those are my sincerest wishes to you.

Juan Diegos

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And from his Gap sweater came tumbling a cascade of poly-blend silk roses, which left an iconic piece imprinted on his cotton finery. Spotted near the Tepeyac of City Terrace, aka Hazard Ave.

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At the center of this city of ours, El Centro de Los Angeles, the flowers bloom for reals.

Eastside 101: Basic Restaurants

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Even though I’m going to review this restaurant you see above, this post is about all the little family owned restaurants, just like this one, that make up the bulk of eateries on the Eastside. They’re not necessarily spectacular. They might take a long time to get on yelp. The signage on the place is usually improvised, or if they’re lucky, ALZAized. Nobody visits for the decor nor for that bullshit “ambience” that makes foodies feel special. These simple restaurants are just places that provide food. Stuff to eat when yer hungry. They give us our nourishment and I think that qualifies as worthy of mention.

In my quest to map out the current state of Huevos Rancheros I end up eating at lots of these places. Very rarely do I hate the food. Usually, at the very least, I get a decent meal for around $5, give or take a few bucks. I might not review it, but still, I appreciate the fact that they cooked something for me to eat. When we focus only on the consumption aspect of food, we forget that cooking for others is serious work. It’s labor intensive and tiring. Yet the eater just wants to plop down some cash and expects a fabulous meal. I guess if you have cash to burn then that’s arguably a reasonable expectation. But for the working poor of the Eastside a plate of food is a plate of food, its just a bonus if its delicious! To some places I’ll not be rushing back, but if I’m no longer hungry and can continue with my daily pendejadas, then that’s good enough. And sometimes, these chance encounters with a new hot plate can be very pleasurable.

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NELA Xmas Parades This Sunday (and Next)

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lh09star
(From last year at LH, when a girl tried to do a citizen’s arrest on a promoter of unhealthy food.)

(Edit: Damn am I stupid. Thanks to Crisis for pointing out the obvious. LH parade is on the 13th. HLP is the 6th. Argh!)

What you doing tomorrow morning? Nothing? Well then, might I suggest you consider attending one of NELA’s Xmas parades. This year, you’ll have to make the grueling decision of which one to attend as both the Lincoln Heights and the Highland Park parades are happening this Sunday Dec 6, even though they are usually spaced a week apart. What happened? Is La Crisis so bad that local parades have to battle for attendees and their few crumpled dollars? Oh wait, they’re both free. Nevermind.

lhparade2009_small

LH starts at 11:00 am, at least on paper. 😉 Best spot is around N. Broadway and Griffin. Plus they are having a Tree Lighting event today Saturday at 5pm at Mirabal Mortuary.

To tell you the truth, I feel sorry for the HLP parade cuz everyone knows that the Lincoln Heights one is always better, so your decision should be easy. Ha ha, I said it! But here’s that info, just in case a few people want to go just so they don’t feel bad.

65th Annual
Northeast Los Angeles
HOLIDAY PARADE
” Unity in the Community ”

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2009 ~ 1 PM
Traveling down Figueroa from Ave. 60 to Sycamore Grove Park followed by
WINTERFEST CONCERT & ENTRY AWARDS CEREMONY 4 PM

http://northeastlaholidayparade.com/

I guess you can go to LH first and then hurry to HLP. Hmm, that’s not a bad idea.

Gentrifier Irony

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What annoys gentrifying hipsters the most? When other, slightly different gentrifiers show up and ruin their exclusive party.  Check out this post from that fairly new music store in Echo Park called Origami, they need your support to take back some bar:

OK, I have lived in Echo Park for about 9 years. I use to frequent the Shortstop about every other day back when they allowed dancing…The place was fucking amazing then. Lot’s of cool art kids, punks, and dub heads…Once the dancefloor got shut down, we started to frequent the bar less and less. We found ourselves hitting the Gold Room for free tacos and a shot with all the old Latinos, which was kinda sketchy at times- I’m pretty sure few white kids dared venture in back then…Once the Shorty got it’s dancefloor reopened we started to go back. But it just wasn’t the same. It had this bridge and tunnel feel to it… it just seemed to take on this USC college crowd thing.

Now how funny is that? And they even managed to throw in a “bridge and tunnel” reference, which I hear is a New York thing (nah, really?) but I wouldn’t doubt if they start using it with some more local connotations, what with all our bridges and new tunnel. I wonder if they’ll also get called out for bringing up race issues, just as Chimatli was for her story of how Echo Park had changed since before the gentrification started? Besides this brief mention, I suspect not. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t particularly care about any of those bars and if they manage to Take it BACK, well good for them. Vanquish the B&Ts! But I think I’m just going to sit on the sidelines while they “make it cool” again, crack open a beer, and watch this comedic battle unfold. Ja. Ja.

If this wasn’t so hilarious, it’d be pretty fucking sad. Or is it the other way around?

County Razors

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Its always the little things. Those seemingly trivial daily indignities take on a whole different layer of importance once its framed within a context. For example, behind bars. The fact that someone would take the time after being let out to make us aware that the razors in county really suck, then you know it must be a unique shaving experience. Yet another reason to hold off on that unscheduled large withdrawal from the bank. Well, for a little while at least. Still, an effective public warning to the pelones.

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