Dia de los Muertos 09 at Self Help Graphics & Art

~click on flier for bigger version ~ Image: Deadly Stylish by Diane Gamboa, 2009

I remember last years Dia de los Muertos. I got my face painted, got a kiss from Leo Limon, ate tamales, rocked out to the bands on stage and hung out with Viki D. and P-3000 through-out the night. I can’t wait to see what this years celebration will bring. That’s why I’m excited about the workshops because it’s like a count down to the big night on Nov. 1 and 2. These workshops are kick ass because you spend an afternoon creating art, something I suck at because the calavera I painted looked like crap. Any who, the workshops are on Saturdays from 1 to 3 p.m. and they’re always a lot of fun. So check self helps site for UP TO DATE INFO and what’s going on and mark your calender. No one does Dia de los Muertos like SHG. I wonder how many M.J. altars I’ll see ?? Continue reading

Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios

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~ Pics from last year ~

It’s that time of the year again where everything that is evil is fun again. That also means that Universal Studios Hollywood is ready to scare the crap outta you with their horror nights. There’s nothing like some pig faced, seven foot goliath scaring the crap out of you with a chain saw buzzing over his head. Yes, Halloween is the most wonderful time of the year. I know this has nothing to do with the Eastside, but stay with me on this one.

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Last year the scaremazes based on the Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm St and Texas Chain Saw Massacre movies gave everyone a good scare. We can all use a good scare or a good laugh from watching people get scare. For this year, the movies Saw, Halloween, My Bloody Valentine, Shaun of the Dead and Child’s Play. They’re also including some lives shows based on the Rocky Horror Picture Show and Bill and Ted’s Excellent Halloween Adventure. Not only that but you’ll be able to go on all the regular rides at night with special twist to them and walk around the Halloween’ed out back lot while riding the terror tram. This will all be ongoing every weekend starting this Friday until Halloween. Event dates are: October 2-3, 9-11, 15-18, 23-25, 28-31. It starts off at 7:00 p.m.; closing hours vary by night throughout the event. You can also get discounted tickets by going to goldstar. Man I love that site :-) If anything else, it’s a great date night because chances are your date will get freaked out and run into your arms. Strangers will also be running into your arms too. trust me on this.

Make up your mind people!

I find it funny whenever I see a converted Wienerschnitzel location because no matter what they do to it it will always look like a Wienerschnitzel.

This old Wienerschnitzel location in Long Beach has been a couple different businesses.  I guess the last one was  a Mexican resturant which did not last long  either I wonder why?

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More after the jizump…

Continue reading

¡Sounds Like Burning: Play From Your Fucking Heart!

¡Sounds Like Burning is about psychos, angels and psychotic angels. Who else deserves mention?

Mister Bill Hicks introduces the series because he is… Bill Hicks. He condensed the first law of all the Arts: Play From Your Fucking Heart!

The performances to be aired here are rigodamnediculous. The biblical scholar Bon Scott once commanded: Let There Be Light. And There Was Light.

Bask in it.

Can one make the unknown known? Tune in and Trip out.

Bill Hicks “Burning Issues”
[audio:https://laeastside.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/flag.mp3]

Ron Shock remembers:

Other than the drunken orgies… we (Bill Hicks and I and the rest of the Comedy Outlaws) were pretty wild, we did a tremendous amount of drugs and we drank a tremendous amount of whiskey, and usually we did the drugs and the whiskey together. But there was one show we did… Hicks is on stage doing his impression of Elvis where he uses toilet paper instead of handkerchiefs and he would wipe his forehead with toilet paper and throw the toilet paper into the crowd. Jimmy Pineapple who was just drunk as a skunk comes running from side stage and tackles Bill, for no reason, just to do it, right in the middle of a show, in front of 900 people and tackles him and as Bill is laying on the ground without missing a beat, keeps on with his act, he’s still Elvis…

Juanita’s Foods says it all

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There is nothing like bowl of homemade menudo, but even though Juanita’s Menudo is in a can, it still is one of the best and oldest canned menudo companies around.

The menudo factory has been located in Wilmington Ca for over 60 years.  Founder George De La Torre Jr who  recently passed away this year managed to keep the company a family business. You got to love the company logo as well ” Life without Mexican Food is No Life At All”.

History of Juanita’s Menudo

The company also makes  other products  I did not know they had here is a list of Juanita’s other products.

List of recipes

They did have a bit of controversy in 1987 when someone claimed they found something unwanted in the menudo which at the end was false read story here

Stock up on the menudo now because we always hear about that big earthquake we are expecting you can’t be left hungry!

Peace

Doña Junta

P.S

Sorry to my vegetarian friends =)

Happy Birthday Los Angeles!

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Hand-tinted photograph of the Plaza and the Plaza Church, as seen in 1869 photo courtesy of Los Angeles Public Library. The Eastside can be seen in the distance.

The City of Los Angeles was founded September 4, 1781 which makes our little pueblo 227 years old today.
The indigenous residents of this area, of Hokan and Uto-Aztecan ancestry have a history stretching back between 6,000-10,000 years ago.

Lane Lights on the Pasadena Fwy

Sorry for the crappy video, but I figured I’d share this short clip of some new “lane lights” that are now, uh, lighted on the Northbound Pasadena Fwy that’s supposed to help with that long line to transfer on to the 5. I guess that’s what the signs about lane lights have been about. I noticed these last night and they seemed a bit bright and almost distracting. Not sure if others think that as well but I also noticed there was way more traffic around this time than usual (8:30 pm-ish) yesterday and today. You ‘ll notice that it’s one line of lights and then turns into two lines (don’t cross) near the 5 ramp. Plus they also put up physical barriers to see if they can stop the usual assholes that try to cut in line way up front, though I bet they’ll just be jerks a bit sooner. I usually stay out of this lane precisely to avoid said jerks, but I wanted to get close to safely get this clip. Yes, very safe.

Just an FYI, so you don’t get all freaked out in the middle of the night. If you’ve seen them, do you think they are useful or just a tad distracting/dangerous?

Artists Not Paid by Villaraigosa’s Summer Night Lights Gang Reduction Program

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I was copied on the following email by east-side artists who have been working on Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s Summer Night Lights project, now in its 2nd year.  A week ago the Mayor visited the Jordan Downs housing Project (pictured above) for a press tour.  Artists have worked diligently to provide what they could with their own resources to children who have no other summer alternative.  I took this picture above and witnessed how crucial art is to inner city youth who are starving to learn and desperately need patient mentorship.  –Victoria Delgadillo

FROM: Community Artist, Apprentices, and Master Artist/SNL 2009

RE: Summer Night Lights (SNL) Contract

DATE: September 2, 2009

To Whom May It Concern,

We the artists of the SNL Gang Reduction Program demand immediate payment for our services.  Many of us turned down other work to be a part of this important effort. The SNL programs success is majorly due to the arts component that is present at all 16 parks.  We all depend on this – this is our work, we have committed ourselves not only to our craft but to our community to provide the services they all deserve. Likewise we deserve to be treated as professionals in our field of expertise.  The Arts community is one of the most effected groups from the current economic downturn and continue to be disregarded by this neglect on the part of the City of Los Angeles.

The experience working hands on with the community has been remarkable. Many of us artist have gone through various lengths and have over exceeded in order to sustain the art, music and dance workshops for Summer Night Lights. For example, asking our colleagues, friends and organizations to donate materials, paying directly from our pockets, swiping our credit cards, borrowed money for equipment and materials. Although we have been partially reimbersed for materials, we have not been paid for our time and professional experience.  There has been a significant amount of preparation, time, planning and effort to make SNL a success. Our efforts have over exceeded our expectations and requirements. Continue reading