The Perfect Couple. The Perfect Job.

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When I was 25 I got divorced. The reasons for the divorce included lots of factors, but one of the factors that really helped the down fall of the marriage was my ex-husband’s misfortune of being involved in the dotbomb.

One by one his friends lost their very highly paid jobs and over priced houses. When it was his turn, he did not take it very well.

The computer industry while prior to the dotbomb was well paid, it was extremely grueling. Eighteen hour work days, seven days a week wasn’t unusual. It was standard. To lose your job when you worked so hard and had taken so many tests, was a harsh slap and a realization that this new industry was not one about community, but about money. Continue reading →

Whose streets?

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This is one of the last apartment buildings left on the North Broadway commercial corridor. I love the front facade, it reminds me of another time and place.

Like a ghostly movie loop, there is one memory I have of this building that replays itself every time I walk by. “This is our neighborhood, these are our streets!” yells a woman to the LAPD as they attempt to push her off the stairs with threats and batons. It was during the now forgotten 1993 Lincoln Heights Riot.

The “Help El Random Hero pay for school and buy a laptop” fund

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cream

As of late I’ve been hunting down scholarships that I qualify for and have a chance of getting. Paying for school and the cost of living adds up rather quick when your in school. So I’ve been asking people for letters of recommendations left and right and so far people are willing to help me out, thanks Victoria. But I realized that scholarships can only go so far for me and I’m extremely limited in the scholarships available to me because I’m special. At the same time there are other students applying to those same limited scholarships and well they blow me outta the water in terms of academics. Sure I have a 3.0 gpa, I’m an active community member, blogger and journalist at two news papers blah, blah, blah. Point is the pipe line gets thinner and thinner especially now with La Crisis and everyone trying to get as much financial aid as they can. That’s another thing too I DON’T QUALIFY FOR FINANCIAL AID. Everything comes outta my pocket, which at the jr. college level isn’t too hard. I have a job, but I’m a full time student. I work weekends and when I’m not in school I work as much as I can to save up for the following semester. Continue reading →

Best Chocolate de Leche in Los Angeles

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It was so good, I forgot to take a picture of the full cup!

The best chocolate in Los Angeles can be found across the river at one of my favorite Oaxacan restaurants in the city, Antequera de Oaxaca.

On days like this, when there is a slight crispness in the air and your body craves a earthy, sweet beverage to make it happy, there’s nothing like this chocolate de leche to warm you up inside. Forget overpriced coffee from dull places like Intelligentsia, a cup of Oaxacan hot chocolate with it’s aroma of cinnamon and nuez is the perfect elixir for the rare chilly Southern California day.

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mmm, little bits of chocolate

Antequera de Oaxaca
5200 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90038
(323) 466-1101
Mid-Wilshire neighborhood (Central Los Angeles)

Westside 10A: Mulched Hydrants

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I spend a lot of time on that other side of town nowadays, way west of the river. It’s a living.

As a result of working over there, I increasingly tend to explore nearby neighborhoods, seek out places to eat, check out some sights. And I’m learning quite a bit about life there, for better or worse. I figured I’d post some of those observations every once in awhile here at LA Eastside, since our current but temporary motto is still “life beyond the river”, which means we go pa’ los dos lados. And if I take my cue from most recent transplants to Los Angeles, that means I’m also fully qualified to know-understand-explain everything about how things are. Still, I haven’t decided what to name that part of town, it’s all so “fluid” and I’m waiting to see which way opinions (and my mood) flow. I’m sure that soon I’ll get that special feeling that tells me what is what, irregardlessly of that whole yawn inducing controversy of “sense of place”, history, and all those boring debates with people that think they have a say just because they’ve lived here for most of their lives, that’s all so Feb 2009. The future is now! I mean now! Wait, Now!

Now?

Irregardlessly, I present you with this first installment and the pic above, which is sure to shock many an Eastsider: over there, they mulch their fire hydrants.  Crazy. Is there a reason for this? Irregardlessly, it doesn’t matter. Que Locuras.

It’s an interesting place, but I sure wouldn’t want to live there.

Los Lakers

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I love when the brown folks get their daps, in any way possible. Because of my busy schedule and lack of proximity to the Pico Indoor/ Del Amo/ Broadway shirt vendors (my preferred bootleg stomping grounds), I have been FEANING to grab a “Los Leikers” and/or “Los Doyers” jerseys, but have been fantasizing about them since I saw them in all their eastside prestige-glory. Mofos just be gloating in them, I had this one cat cold hold down a corner for me while I painted over gang tags (on my mural) sporting a new los doyers jersey, and he got mad props. I still have to get my son the thugbob shirt he’s begged for, maybe a family trip to the callejones is in order before a stroller is needed for baby #3.
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Anyways, these jerseys were being used for beaner appreciation hour or whatnot (pardon my cynicism), and it was great to see Los Lakers in action, abuelo would have been proud. If only chick and stu had been casting and gramps’ keggerator was working (not that fratboy BS, a real keg mini-fridge), I wouldve been in heaven.

I saw a part of the game they had those jerseys on at a dive bar near my crib and it was hilarious (especially in terms of the demographics of the west SGV). there all these “americans of mexican descent” older brown folks there, perplexed at what angle they should talk shit from (pride muted by happiness is hard), and a group of young proffessional upwardly mobile asians giggling. The asian crew began a debate as to whether it should be pronounce “loss” or “lose”, which made totally made everyone uncomfortable. these are the times I live to be a part of, my humor being indulged with mass uncomfortablility stemming from cross cultural polination. Ahhh nirvana….

BTW, Im a big fan of brown hyperconsumption imposing itself on white Americana, when I dont have to think about its effects on brown communities.

Sidewalk History

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Lincoln Heights

When I walk around my neighborhood, tiny details abound – things I would never see driving in a car. Strange concrete figurines hiding in gardens, small shrines to saints, interesting vegetables growing in unlikely places, variations in litter and refuse, charms protecting doorways, tools put down and forgotten and fifty year old advertising plaques clinging to old chain link fences with names of companies long gone. Stamps in the pavement, which I’ve only recently noticed, firmly document the history of the streets.

Proyecto Jardin

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Located in the center of an urban wilderness, Proyecto Jardin is a community garden that has been helping residents in Boyle Heights get in touch with Mother Nature. Located behind White Memorial Hospital, Proyecto Jardin is operated by community residents who donate their time and unique skills to the garden.
Dr. Robert Krochmal, a doctor at White Memorial, came up with the idea to use the plot of land behind the hospital that was a community eye sore full of decrepit houses. After the hospital reviewed and approved the plans the land was cleared out and prepared so that construction for the garden could take place.
Volunteers and community members helped build the garden, preparing the land for a future of bustling community activity that promotes healthy eating, exercise and self-sustainability.

Continue reading →

Validation required

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I once made a list of the pros and cons of living on the Westside. Parking was definitely one of the negatives along with several other complaints. I had one or two items on the pros column. Since then, I’ve added a few more:

  • I have a short commute to school/work on the Big Blue Bus. It would be shorter if the area was less congested. Oops. I was trying to stay positive.
  • It’s cooler in the summer. I don’t need a fan or air conditioner to get through July, August and September.
  • I can find restaurants and shops in my area reviewed in magazines, newspapers and mainstream blogs.
  • I don’t have to challenge perceptions about my neighborhood being unsafe or dirty.
  • The city won’t dare run an at-grade light rail line through this side of town, unlike in poorer, blacker, browner areas
  • Transplants with no respect for history are not trying to rename other areas as the new Westside.

It’s not so bad. Just don’t forget to validate your parking. Or better, spend a few minutes looking for a spot on the street.