If, like me, you are addicted to 90’s Britpop, then you’ll be very excited to hear that one of the icons of the Britpop movement, Supergrass, is coming to the Avalon Theater on July 12. I tried to get you some free tickets for a contest giveaway, but alas, the Avalon promotion folks dropped the ball, or, more accurately, they never took the handoff. Too bad, we all have to pay.
I’m sure you’ve heard by now that effective today, California drivers can no longer hold their cell phones while driving. But did you know:
 Not sure if this is legal. pic by dfb, used under Creative Commons. |
*UPDATE: Proceed with caution - the Better Business Bureau gives FreeHeadset.org an unsatisfactory rating after numerous complaints that were only resolved after the BBB became involved. Thanks Julia!
…sources: San Jose Mercury News and LA Times…
If “Name: Ronald or Rhonda Donellson, Game Host; Prop: 3 (or more) Potatoes; and Line of Dialogue:’Leave it to me, I’m a professional’” mean anything to you, then you’re familiar with The 48 Hour Film Project. If not, it’s a contest held in cities around the world each year, in which teams of filmmakers must write, shoot, edit, and present a film within 48 hours. This year’s contest recently took place in Los Angeles. The judges have spoken, and the films judged the best of Los Angeles will be shown at a special screening and awards ceremony next Wednesday, July 2, at the Fairfax Theater at 8 p.m. And you’re invited!
This weekend, people in Downey and the surrounding areas should come visit the Farmer’s Market. Since it’s debut a month ago, the market has doubled in size. More fruit vendors have set up shop, some prepared food vendors have shown up, more flower growers have arrived and there is now a band playing for the crowd.
The band was playing marimbas two weeks ago, and one week ago it consisted of a man singing with guitar accompaniment. It lends a friendly, welcoming air to the street scene.
As a teenager growing up in Downey, I believed it to be a stuffy, conservative city full of old people. I was glad to get out of it and go into LA proper, and I was thrilled when I left for college. Now that I’m approaching 30 (!), I appreciate the view of Downey that the farmers market is giving me: a diverse group of people who are not nearly as stuffy as they once seemed.
Downey Farmer’s Market
8200 2nd St.
Downey, CA 90241
Link to Google Maps
Didn’t get to the Hollywood Forever screenings this weekend? Feeling like you need to get away but can’t escape your desk? Metblogs has just the thing: the Spoon River Metblog. LA’s own Jay Bushman brings you this serial adaptation of the 1915 classic Spoon River Anthology. You can read more about Spoon River at the Loose-Fish site or just log on and get some culture while you pretend to work. And if you’re into puzzles or Alternate Reality Games, there seems to be some kind of hidden puzzle there too. But I won’t spoil it for you.
Updated: Yep, it was the money. See below.
What the …? If you’re an L.A. media geek, this might come as something of a shock:
Apparently USC has decided to shut down the generally excellent Online Journalism Review indefinitely after 10 years of operation.
OJR editor Robert Niles gives the news in a farewell post.
Unfortunately, Niles is short on explanation as to why USC would kill such a well-respected, broadly read, and - arguably - vital publication about the rapidly-mutating face of online newsgathering. (Full disclosure - I’ve written a thing or two for OJR).
I’ll try to find out a bit more about what happened, but in the meantime, here’s Niles’ final post:
(more…)
Quick update: Lami Powlesland was found safe earlier today, KCAL9 reported this evening. Her family was attending church services in Los Angeles with friend Pauley Perrette, star of NCIS, when they received the news.
According to Entertainment Tonight, Powlesland “was found in her vehicle at 1 p.m. today in a Ralph’s parking lot in Hollywood.”
There was only one thing on my mind as this past week began: “Will I be getting laid off?” My question was answered this past Tuesday, when the LAUSD Board sat down and released their budget.
It appears that I will not be getting laid off this year; 500 clerical jobs will be cut instead. My disdain for the LAUSD bureaucracy is well-known. While I feel bad that any person must lose their job (especially in this economic climate), I know that the silver lining is that LAUSD might start hacking off bits of its bureaucracy. I joke with my friends and family that LAUSD can finally lay off positions like, “Stamp Licker”, “Phone Dialer”, “Pencil Sharpener,” and (my personal favorite) “Everyone on this list.”
UPDATE (6/15/08): Lami Powlesland was found safe Sunday morning.
Photos of Lami Powlesland from her MySpace page.
Los Angeles Police searched Runyon Canyon park in Hollywood Saturday night for Lami Nicole Powlesland, 24, of Nashville, TN, who was last seen Wednesday in either Santa Monica or Hollywood. The 6 foot tall Powlesland had driven to the Los Angeles area a few days earlier for a break, according to Sgt. Barela with LAPD Media Relations.
The search began after a hiker found Powlesland’s purse in the park and contacted police. The contents of the purse were discovered laid out nicely, including her cell phone, drivers license, and jewelry.
The search was called off around 10pm, and will resume in Sunday with dayight.
Her black Jeep Liberty is also missing. It has Tennessee license plate #569HSF. If you have any information the could help police locate Powlesland, please call 213-485-4328. (more…)
If you’re like me and somehow still don’t have a hands-free arrangement for your phone, you may be caught doing last minute headset shopping this week. If you’re not ready to take the full plunge to becoming another of the growing population of bluetools and walk around with a little 3rd of 5 do-jigger in your ear and just want something to use when you’re driving, you might want to check out this site which offers free headsets for many phone models. (If you do want to go the Borg route, the site also has cheap earpieces, by the way.)
