Reflections

Views like this one, is my most favorite scenery. I have always loved when the sky is cloudy and then the sun peaks through creating light and shadow on the ocean. Here the breaks are in several places creating the effect of ripples continuing on out to sea. Other times there is this one glow on a spot far out to sea. It makes me want to jump in a boat and row, sail, kayak out to the light. In chase of the light I go. Drawn to it as the light beacons to me.. Come forth, come forth. My best friend's mom used to say that to her such views on either land or sea was God's way of peaking through shining his light and love to earth. And perhaps that is why I desire to go to the light so I can look up, smile, and say, "Hello, God. It is I sending love to you in return."

And so spent a blissful Memorial day on my favorite peninsula--Palo Verdes. It is the only "country" part of the entire city and I do not feel that I am in the city as the peninsula to the south hides the city. I am so fortunate it is only a 35-40 minute drive through stop and go lights (no freeways in this part of the city).

It was more of a quiet day for reflection and ponder the newest changes in my life thus far as wayfarer living in Los Angeles. It has truly taken time to adjust to the changes from Tempe. Not so much as the place but the people I have left behind. My fond, fun, laughing, dearest friends and roommates (one has moved back to Hawai'i). Sometimes I feel sad that the physical distances are so far apart but I do know that we continue to share in spirit, soul, and dream. And that is precious.

And in the present moment when I sat on the ledge over looking the Pacific (don't worry Mom, I was not dangling my feet and legs over the edge), everything seemed to come into focus. I am content by the ocean. Happy, connected. And it is here I wish to stay. Not so much as LA itself but close by the sea. And marvel the beauty of the ruggedness of cliff, mountain, hill tumbling down to meet the tides ever moving in rhythm, sharing in the rhythm of life.

Beachcomber's Meanderings

And thus was the image I started my day with past Saturday doing a beach hike down to Redondo Beach (several miles... exact mileage unknown but it is a hour and half one way from El Segundo Beach park to Redondo Beach Harbor at a steady pace). The beach was lined with surfers that morning.Just imagine what it will be like in a few weeks, come July summer time. I will not be able to see the sand as people tell me. So better enjoy it now with less crowds. It was a good day for a walk. Sunny but hazy with the smog visible on the horizon.Beach front on the land side. Everything is built up to the sands of the beaches. And a lone surfboard awaits a ride on the wave. :) I am still in the Manhattan Beach area.
There is wildlife to be seen. The Pelicans were out as well cruising the waves with the surfers. Actually, I think that would be neat out in the ocean with the pelicans gliding by hovering over the waves.

And what?! I arrive to Hermosa Beach, kind of a funky, hippy style kind of place to see a huge scene for volleyball. The Pro Championships were already full swing. I seem to be developing this knack of late of arriving to destinations full of some kind of event and championships... I am recalling the time I went to scout Long Beach and ill-timed it right when the huge National auto racing was occurring right in the city!). At least the volleyball tournament was relatively lower key. However, I like Hermosa Beach (at least what I have seen of it).

For the day I had some destinations already planned. Including an earlier bead shop in El Segundo. Hermosa Beach was the stop for the famous "The Spot." All vegetarian food selection. Very healthy, good looking meals. So Rachel, we have at least one very good place to go to eat if you come to visit. You or anyone for that matter who is food conscious of healthy eating will not be disappointed. I had a delicious dish of Santa Fe Enchiladas (organic corn tortilla with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, tempeh, salsa and red sauce with pinto beans and whole grain brown rice). Very good. I also checked out the beer/wine menu since it said organic... and yes, I found what I was looking for -- organic Fish tale ale! Go Oly!!! Of course I did not order alcholic beverages. But to my extreme delight saw that they offered Kombucha for part of the beverage selection. Loved that (and by the way, my destination for Redondo Beach... whole foods to buy Kombucha). The restaurant is very nice. Use the same menu for both lunch and dinner.
And so off I go filled with good food to Redondo Beach ... Whole Foods. There is a big harbor here and wharf. I have not actually been to the heart of Redondo Beach just yet. Save for another outing.

So was a good full day of walking and enjoying the beach and ocean front.

Story time

A story today that I read. I thought it was very good. And will share it with you.

THE LEGEND OF THE IRISH HARP

One misty day, a young woman with black hair and the bluest of eyes was walking along the beach. She was idly collecting pretty pebbles and shells. The mists moved in and out from the water as she strolled, softly singing romantic songs to herself. She thought of her handsome husband as she sang.
She had just walked up to a patch of reeds when she heard music sweeter than anything she had ever heard in her life. She pushed past the reeds and there found the skeleton of a whale. The sweet music she was hearing was coming from the skeleton.
As she came along the side of the whale, she discovered that the music was caused by the wind singing ever so sweetly through the bones of the whale. The music was hypnotizing, and before the girl knew it she slumped to the ground and was lulled to sleep.
Her husband came home from his work in the fields expecting to find his young wife in their cozy kitchen brewing him a pot of tea. They enjoyed sharing a quiet cup of tea together at this time of day and telling each other the events of the day.
Time passed and his wife didn't appear, so the man went out to search for her. He started along the beach, because he knew she enjoyed walking there. She must have had such a pleasing walk that she had forgotten how late it was.
He saw her prints in the sand leading out toward the bay and followed them. He heard some unearthly music as he came near a patch of reeds. On the other side of the reeds, he found his dear wife peacefully sleeping besides the skeleton of a whale. He too saw that the enchanting music came from the wind on the whale bones.
The husband gently woke his wife up and together they reveled in the music. When the wind stopped blowing, the music stopped, but not before the husband had observed the principle behind the music.
Back at home he secretly made a harp to imitate those sounds they had heard. When it was finished, he presented it to his wife with a flourish and a love song he sang and played for her. And that is how the first Irish harp came to be.


Is not this so sweet? All I can imagine is the sound of the wind blowing through the whale bones. What music! When I had read the story the first time I was at work and Junnel started talking to me. I did not hear him even when he was about two feet away calling my name repeatedly. I was so mesmerized by the story, all I could envision were the calls and voices of whales in my head. I pluck the strings of my own harp to see if I can picture whale voices through the vibrating strings. And perhaps I should bring the harp to the ocean to see if I can call the whales in! But I have heard the wind go through the harp causing vibrations of the strings. It is a beautiful sound and a bit unearthly.

**Source of story: Livo, Norma J. 1996. Troubadour's Storybag: Musical Folktales of the World. Fulcrum Publishing: Golden, Colorado.

Project for Readers

I thought of a project idea about LA. I was thinking on this during my latest excursion Saturday. Will not post the adventures just yet as it is late and I have my internet up and running again after all weekend.

This project will include the ideas from you!
What are the images, ideas, words that come to mind when you hear LA, Los Angeles, California?

Now disregard all of the previous posts of LA and think of what LA is to you. Like before I got here and was telling you I was coming here.

I will write up on this but before that want to hear from the viewers or readers.

Garden Life

On many afternoons, I work in the garden we have at the house I am living in. It stays in good shape and I actually do not have to do as much gardening as one would think for such a small garden. This picture above is in the back corner. I actually purposely have not done any upkeep in this part as it is all palm or bamboo around this fountain statue. It has definitely grown a bit wild and the plants need to be repotted but then again, this is actually not my garden. It is my landlord's. When he returns, I will ask him about how he envisions the garden. A sample of the flowers grown in the garden. There are a lot of yellow daisies, which I do not like actually. For a garden that is. I do not know why but the flower/plant does not appeal to me. There are also geraniums too. Again not too partial to this plant but the colors are perfect and the ones that climb enhances the colors of the area too. I am amazed how well the roses grow around here. They are so brilliant in colors and smells! Everyone seems to grow roses around here. As one can see there is a lot of green in the garden. The plants seem to thrive as well. Some are still in pots (such as the daisies).
But the main treasure of the garden is the lizards. This is in a pond (below the fountain statue). One thing I had originally planned on was to clean the pond out. But after several weeks I noticed that a lizard was residing here and my plans were continually postponed for the cleaning.

Here is the view of the entire pond. Besides the aesthetic qualities with fallen leaves decomposing and rocks, there are the blue rocks in the bottom, some trash on one side and that black tarp plastic thing in the pond. Also there are mosquito larvae, which brings to mind west nile virus.
If one looks closely, there are lizard(s) in the black plastic tarp. This is their home!! So my cleaning is totally put aside because of my little garden friends. I think there is a baby in the tarp as well. I was seeing a tiny little tail. Very cute. They do not mind me. Probably have gotten used to me and I do not do anything to provoke them but just to sit back and admire them. I think they got a pretty good home actually.

Every day when I arrive home from work, I visit the lizards if only for a minute or so to see what they are up to.

Hollywood!!

Here it is! Due to small picture size and the ah so condition of air (perhaps some due to the recent fires in Griffth Park), the main theme did not come out so well. But there it is: HOLLYWOOD. The famous sign. I was thinking, "Wow, I have lived to see this sign live in person!" A symbol that everyone seems to attribute to LA themes. For some reason, since this is Griffth Park or at least part of the 3000 some acres of the park, I was picturing a different sort of terrain....it is more "desert" than I had imagined it to be. I was picturing green grass, bigger trees, more foliage. Not so. And perhaps why there are fires going on and why citizens probably should be concerned about such terrain risky for fire hazards.

As part of my metro adventure, I realized I needed to get out and explore at least one scene along the metro route I took. I got off at Hollywood and Highland. The photo above is what I immediately see but of course is a small snapshot of what the rest of the scene looks like. My immediate feelings were being overwhelmed and whoa! Being down in the subway I did not realize what I had been passing under. The place was glittering with lights, tall, big buildings, people, and cars. Remember what Dorothy said in the Wizard of OZ when she opened the door: "Toto, I don't think we are in Kansas anymore." Well, here I was thinking as I stumbled out of the Metro, "Well, I am definitely not in Hawthorne anymore." So very, very different from the scenes of the South Bay area.
Another scene just to the right of the metro underground entrance/exit. One thing about LA is the gap between the "haves and the haves not." I thought I was seeing a good portion of it in Hawthorne and the South Bay but not so. Here is where the haves and have nots live side by side. Beside the mass of tourists (the first time I really have seen a mass of tourists in LA), the homeless frequent the streets just as much. People selling candy from their wheelchairs, folks asking endless requests for handouts, a few playing guitars with cans for handouts, and one even had their shopping cart full of their material possessions, a blanket covering a side and the individual sleeping under it. And then there are the folks (besides the tourists who all seem to walk around dazed, taking pictures) who live there. The style of clothing something else. LA unique. I did not see any movie stars per se. But who knows perhaps I passed a so called famous star but was unrecognizable to me because they are not famous in my eyes. Like who is Mike Myers? Beats me but apparently he is a big name.
As I start to get my bearings a bit and explore this busy scene, things come into focus more and I start "seeing" what I am to see. Shops line the streets. And the shops? Whew! I must have seen about 20 some tattoo places (and no, I did not get a tattoo), cafes, bars, one night club that features the apparently famous strippers of Hollywood (believe me this was the real macoy but fortunately the girls were not actually outside, but their pictures were plastered on the big advertisement just above "come here to have a good time" message), shoe shops (oh so shoes of every kind but did not serve any practical use except for looks), wig shops with neon colors of pink, yellow, red, blue, etc. (I really should have taken a picture of these), clothing, several vintage thrift shops which I did browse...clothes way back to the 40's era. Pretty cool. And so on and so on. Mostly a lot of tourist trap places. Many theaters and tourist buses galore. I learned that day that the movie stars live in Beverly Hills. I was not actually aware they congregated in one particular area.

And so what everyone has been waiting to see....

Ah, look Chewy approaches. This theater (Grauman's Chinese Theatre) has the stars' hands and footprints on display. Hopefully the stars did not actually cut off these parts for the display but I did not go in. Tourist trap, big price to pay and who really cares about seeing images of hands and feet. Sorry Tom Hanks.

But wait! Is it? No, it could not be but it is.

Am I seeing Johnny Depp? And some of the other colorful characters? Interesting, interesting. No actually there were two Johnny Depp characters walking around. This guy here was the better one. The other one was sort of a jerk grabbing girls and making some scenes with them.

And so here they are. Some of the stars. Unfortunately the first one did not come out too well. But it is Ingrid Bergman. Dear Ingrid. My namesake. And of course dear Mister Rogers. I was delighted to come across him. What a guy! And thanks to him, I do not eat donuts. But of course there are so many stars...many I do not even have any idea of their achievements. No Tom Hanks though. Do not know if he is actually there or I just did not come across his star.

And so this is Hollywood. One of the biggest scenes in Los Angeles. Quite the place really and kind of amazing that such a place does actually exists. It did some how feel that it was borderline reality and borderline something else... out of this world, unreal, fake. The media really do glamorize the movie stars in America. So many people come for fame and fortune to this area. And like it is: either you strike big or you strike out. Just ask those folks looking for an extra dollar.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

Happy Mother's day to you, Mom. :) I hope you are enjoying your day to the fullest.

If you dare say aghh to the picture. I will say I only have one picture of you on my picture file. And who can beat having a picture from the glorious celebration of Rabbie Burn's birthday with Guiness (Fishtale Ale) and Haggis (pork sausages roled in a delicious homemade roll from scratch)!

I love you, Mom. A love that will never grow old or weary. But a love that is steadfast and enduring through all time

Metro Day

Metro day! I spent the day Saturday documenting a portion of Metro (train-rail) but it is rather a large line with different lines. I was only really getting bits and pieces here and there. Hard to take pictures on the go too. But here it is! The ticket machine found at each depot. $3.00 for the day and/or transfering to different lines. Pretty good I say as it really saves when comparing to commutes by car.

The starting point for the Green line, which I get on is Redondo Beach. I actually do not know why they would call it Redondo Beach because we are not even in Redondo. If anything, the station should be called Manhattan Beach. I am on the platform waiting for the train to arrive.

And here it is! Count on McDonalds to campagian their burgers. Ick! I actually do not see too many McDonalds but perhaps because I have erased such eyesores from my eyes I do not even see them anymore. The Green line, which I hop on first is about five cars long. The Blue line (Long Beach -LA downtown) is about eight cars long and I think the longest one.
Here is the transfer point at Imperial Station for the Blue line to take me North to 7th Street and the transfer to the red line. We are under an over pass of I- 105 freeway/Greenline. Greenline runs down the center of I-105 freeway. So I get to watch traffic piling up and the carpool lane with one or two cars every minute or so. Most cars just have one person- the driver. On the outside of the fence is another track for regular freighter trains (probably coming to/from Long Beach port where huge barges come in). It is quite the scene in Long Beach in that particular area.
All of the stations have art work. This one is at Pico just before heading under LA downtown. The rest of the metro around downtown LA is under ground.... the redline is underground. Basically a subway but rather clean. Probably the cleanest I have ever seen in a subway! A plus for metro!! So of course the rest of my ride is underground so could not see the sights I was passing. Kind of a shame but oh well. For future use.... find a sight or destination to go to and then get off.

On the way back the Blue line was just packed with folks. We had a few homeless people coming on asking for hand outs. A busy day for the homeless folks I think. I saw them and passed them everywhere on my excusion. A first because prior to this I was rather surprised not to see too many homeless folks around. So a plenty that day.

Metro is pretty cool. I like it. I was actually a bit envious of Brad, my program director, for taking the metro to work. He lives right on Broadway in Long Beach. I may just have to relocate to a different place, like Long Beach and joy! Commute everyday to work by metro. But I walk for the time being and that is just as good too. And probably more scenic by walking as well.

Chinatown

Ah, the fiery dragons! During my wanderings of the El Pueblo plaza of Cinco de Mayo. I saw from across the streets that Chinatown was just there. Of course, could not let this opportunity pass. Chinatown in Los Angeles. It is amazing to see the differences in just the two ethnic communities I visited. They are neighbors, next to each other, side by side. The true American way.... a mixing salad of distinct cultures thrown in together. Mixing but also having their own distinct flavors, texture, and colors. Broadway Street is the main street through Chinatown. So most of the vendors, touristy stuff is on this main street. Here we are looking into the heart (background of picture) of LA --civic center plaza from Chinatown. Definitely more city feel with the speeding cars racing by. I did not exactly feel like I would be in a foreign country (like I did in the plaza of El Pueblo and down Olvera Street).But behold!! There are ethnic discoveries to be found. This shop, selling Buddhist merchandise, is located in one of the mall areas. Beautiful colored buildings with intricate designs.As one can see in this East Gate of the Central Plaza, not too many people walking about. (Probably all over celebrating Cinco de Mayo). It appeared that the folks who were out and about were the locals. As I noticed for El Pueblo with the majority of folks of Hispanic background, the majority of the folks I passed in Chinatown were from the "Far East" countries. And I noticed that I was "observed" more than the folks in El Pueblo.This is Ten Ho Temple. I did not spend too much time in Chinatown (about an hour and half) because one, it was later in the day and I was starting to feel spent from the fiesta of El Pueblo. But the primary reason, the aromas were intoxicating. People who know me well, know that I have an acute sense of smell. Incense was everywhere. I started sneezing and then got a headache and nausea especially coming from such overwhelming smells. This I thought was amazing because I was outside in a "well ventilated" space but yet I was experiencing the strong symptoms. Another reason why I did not go into many shops (just the grocery stores). But I feel Ten Ho Temple was the source of all intoxicating aromas. To be this close and that I did not faint to take the picture was rather unbelievable feat. But what a beautiful building! I wish I could have been able to go inside. It was open. But since my olfactory is so acute, aromas are very distinct to me. I smelled a lot of "new" things I have never smelled before in my life. I know I smelled marijuana from a few passerbys and some other nasty tobacco products. Major ick. My mom, hopefully half serious, said I probably smelled the opium dens as well. Goodness gracious! Maybe I should be hired by the police to smell out these nasty drugs. Oddly that night just when I got into bed some more aromas from the day came awashed over me. Very truly amazing. I had taken a shower and did not think that I would smell my clothes in the dirty hamper in the closet... but who knows.Is not this a beautiful mural? Aesthetics could be found here and there. Beauty in the simplicity of mundane, every day existence. Wabi Sabi. But yet so full of beauty and intricate character. Another noticeable thing about Chinatown. The amount of Ginseng roots. All the groceries sold them and the ginseng was in barrels and crates with varieties to select from. Food is very cheap. I got a bag full of tomatoes for a dollar (eight of them good sized romas). And then I got about five huge kiwis also for a dollar.

I would have liked to have gone to Japantown but that was on the other side of Civic Center of LA and it was already about 16oo hours. An adventure to be continued for another day. Japantown has a plaza like El Pueblo where it is only accessible by foot. My list of outings is starting to get larger and larger by the weekends. And only two days of the week to take advantage of such adventures. With the longer days, I may have to start doing some adventures after work during the evenings. We'll see.

Cinco de Mayo

Happy Cinco de Mayo! I traveled to El Pueblo Los Angeles. It's just off downtown area of LA in a park area that holds the oldest buildings in LA... the original Los Angeles when it was just a small town in the west. Olvera Street (above picture) is the most famous little side street with all of the shops and cafes. Even though I have never been to Mexico...I kind of felt like I was not in the United States. Spanish was the language of the streets.

Music was everywhere.

What do you know? A harpist! The Mexican and South American harps are different. Different kind of strings and the harpist stands instead of sitting. I listened to a few songs. He was very good with the intricate melodies and baseline.








I love the buildings. So very pretty, quaint, and charming.



And so I had a very leisurely day spent looking at the shops. Most shops were the touristy kind but there were the authentic shops to be found.... handmade candles. Special designed clothing and outfits for festivals and dances. So I went exploring every thing that was offered to be explored. It was a day full of lively people milling around, dancing, music, food. I did not eat at any of the cafes or restaurants. Too many people (lines and lines waiting for a seat) but it was nice as tables were out in patios with good food. My mouth was watering to see and smell the aromas. (I had brought along my sandwich and snacks made from home).






I would like to come back and see El Pueblo during a somewhat calmer day. It was fiesta day so extra booths and carnival were all set up in the main park area.

Despite the bustle of folks there were places for rest and a quiet area away from everything.

This is Avila Adobe, the oldest building in LA. Of course it has been renovated and restored...some damages due to earthquakes awhile back. A beautiful place and free tours through the house.

This city is truly alive with the different nationalities being celebrated.

The Way to Happiness

On Monday, I had to travel to Glendale (in LA). I was up there primarily to take the certification exam, which unfortunately I did not pass... Was disheartened by this since I was just shy of two questions of passing. It is a very hard exam for certification. However, even though my day was shadowed by this unfortunate turn of events, Glendale proved to be more of an extraordinary find than I originally even imagined. So of course, like any good story, start from the beginning.

There was NO way I was going to drive in LA traffic on the freeways or the main roads to reach Glendale. The way to get there was driving through downtown LA area which is quite the scene for traffic horrors at times. I used mass transportation which I love. If I live in a city and am not getting somewhere by foot, I much rather be hoping the bus, train or metro. Planning the route by Internet was a bit of challenge since all of the information for schedules were not up. So I had to best estimate it all and decided to get there early, early just in case connections failed and I need a plan B route of transport.

It is rather sad to see that not a majority of the folks around here use transportation. At 8am in the morning, the metro line was rather empty (half full of people). In a place like NYC or London, it would be crammed with folks. I also noticed the "type" of people who were taking the metro. No folks in business suits or professional atire. I guess the image of transport users are those who cannot afford to be driving all the time in fancy cars. And since part of the metro line ran right down the center of the I-105 Freeway, I was observing the cars on the freeway. Freeway was just crammed with cars. Carpool lane was rather bare. And the majority of the people in the cars consisted of one individual... the driver. There really needs to be a change. Oh later on the way back I passed the bus when riding the metro and it was empty during rush hour but still they were doing their routes. Hmmmm..... A change is definitely in order but as folks say around here.... cars are the culture.

Also, since I was riding the metro, I got to relax and view the neighborhoods that I passed through. Before going underground for the downtown LA area, the neighborhood drastically changed. Hawthorne, where I live, is considered a low-income suburbia. I would not consider it unsafe neighborhood but of course use precaution. So, the neighborhood, close to Chinatown gave an entire different view of what habitation in the city looked like. One almost has to be there to experience it. But everything was behind bars, big fences, houses were run down with bars in windows, cracked windows. And yet here were the locals milling about on their daily activities. Ladies with shopping carts filled with clothes and other possessions. Some ladies looked to be quite in a discussion outside of this "Poultry Barn." Warehouses were everywhere. Everything was "dirty." Nothing had a clean look to it.

But this was all to disappear once the line went underground. I had a transfer at 7th Street, which is famed for interesting characters. Basically the street is a big No, no for people after dark. I made my transfers smoothly without any hitch. And soon alighted Glendale station. Scenery had changed dramatically again. Just from the downtown lower side neighborhood, I was now surrounded by big hills and "mountains" in the distance. Vegetation was everywhere and was different.... Hardly saw a palm tree. But eucalyptus trees. Griffith Park flanked the west side of Glendale. I had to walk two miles to get my destination. But it was a good walk. The "town" within the city had a very nice atmosphere. I arrived to the downtown area. Beautiful. I sat for a bit at a table in a plaza. Locals were sitting around drinking coffee and chatting. I almost felt like I was in Europe. Definitely did not feel I was in LA at all! The pace was different too.

Since I had time before my test (three hours). I explored the area. It was very interesting. The place was vibrating good Karma feel. The feeling was so very, very strong. Then I came across a building (pictured above at the beginning of the post). I was drawn to the phrase and the building but did not go in (as later I wished I had). I then found a cafe right next to this building on the same block.

La Belle Cafe! All of the food was made from fresh, natural ingredients that the cafe owner made sometimes from scratch. I had a delicious sandwich with hummus for dip and a garnish salad. Delicious!! While I sat out and ate. I pondered on the feelings of positive energy I was feeling. I truly feel that there is some reason behind it. So I just basked in the glory of such feelings.

Later when talking to my dad that evening, he told me that the all famous Syliva Woods (harp store) is right in this town! I could not believe it! I was soo close and did not even realize it!! In fact I was on that same street the harp store is located!!! Goodness. To have only passed it, what joy. I probably would have been beside myself with complete utter amazement. But I am actually feeling that amazement anyway. This information sealed it... Glendale was/is sending me a message. Even though, I did not pass the exam this time, perhaps it served another purpose. In some ways perhaps I was meant to go to Glendale.

And so I am going to ponder it some more. But of course, another expedition to Glendale is in the making. I now know where Sylvia Woods harp store is located. I shall return. And of course visit the The Way to Happiness.