Crazy walk: 8th Street/Gregory Way

With EzraPounded on her way to Dixie, I decided to take a journey of my own...a walk west from Downtown Los Angeles to Century City. I may be sunburned and my feet tired after the 11-mile excursion down 8th Street, Gregory Way, and a few turnouts, but I enjoyed the day and I'm looking forward to my next cross-town amble. Some highlights...

A production crew filming an urban beach scene...

Another civil defense siren...

Proof that the Los Angeles Dept. of Water and Power is "A Good Neighbor"...

A Nuclear Free Zone...I'll head straight there if I ever hear that civil defense siren...

Some cool Churrigueresque architecture...

If the seller would only make an educated sign, some educated offers might come in...

A tricked out bench at Los Angeles High Memorial Park...

A garage door leading to a driveway leading to a garage with no garage door...

Live turtles (really) at Wilshire Green Park...

A sculpture from 1925 of Daniel McCarthy, who "helped preserve California to the Union," according to the plaque...

A Kenny G CD on the sidewalk in Beverly Hills...I feel bad now for not trying to track down the owner, surely distraught...

I was laughing too hard to get a picture, but the funniest thing I saw on this walk was in Beverly Hills just short of Century City. A group of loudmouth teenagers on bikes rode past me at a decent speed, and tailing them on foot was their buddy yelling, "Guys, wait up! Wait up, guys!" What happened to his bike? Does he always run after the rest of the clowns? Maybe I sound like a jerk for laughing, but seriously, it was a funny sight.

Century City's got everything covered

I found this 1960s sign advertising a Century City construction project. It's still sitting in the most run-down, godforsaken vacant industrial lot in the city I work in. If you look carefully at the upper right corner of the sign, you'll see the faded words, "An Alcoa development."

I'm amazed that I've been at my current job for almost five years. My previous employment was a three-year, whacked-out tour of duty with the State of California, and ahead of that was scattershot work with titles including words like...substitute, contract, part-time, temporary, assistant, or student.

One gem was retail work hawking souvenirs at the since-demolished Schubert Theater in Century City. I tended a little kiosk before and after plays and musicals, and occasionally I'd recognize a face from film and television. This one co-worker (I forget his name, but he looked exactly like the Chief from BSG) was always on the active lookout for celebrities to harass.

Michelle Pfeiffer wandered over by herself one evening, and sure enough, the Chief came running over from across the way. "Has anyone ever told you you look like Michelle Pfeiffer?" he panted. He always used that line.

"Yes, because I am Michelle Pfeiffer."

"I knew it! I knew it! Can I get an autograph?"

He never succeeded in getting an autograph.