Make a Wish

by Laurie Allee

I didn't notice the shooting star when I took this long-exposure shot on St. Albans Drive (aka: Christmas Tree Lane!) in neighboring San Marino a few years ago. I guess it's just another Christmas miracle...

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Home Alley

If the South Pasadena Downtown Revitalization Project had not gotten hung up in litigation and a bad economy, our little town might have had a bowling alley to ride out summer's hottest days. Oh well, East Pasadena is an easy drive and that's where you can find 300 Pasadena. It's cool not only in terms of air conditioning but also because of the high-styling decor and dance-y tunes.

The sense of accomplishment I felt after bowling a strike was a good indication I should probably aim higher with my goals. Then again... nah. Set up another frame!

Caption This Photo (#93)

Hmmm...

NSFW (if you're a robot!)

No, that's not quite right.

Anyone?

The Langham Huntington Pasadena

Sure, the Langham Huntington Pasadena is technically next door to South Pas, but it's close enough to feel like part of the neighborhood. Plus, exploring the grandeur of this early 20th Century hotel feels a little bit like going back in time to when South Pasadena's own Raymond Hotel was in its heyday. When you walk along the grounds of this gorgeous place, you can imagine what it was like back when Henry Huntington was his generation's big mover and shaker...

Then, you can come back to the 21st Century and take a digital photo of the cute baby ducks.

Cruising

I've seen this car cruising in South Pas before, but never had a camera handy to get a shot of it. I got lucky the other day and noticed it on Huntington when I was headed toward the Santa Anita Mall in Arcadia. Who me? Obsessed with vintage cars? Nah. I like to think of it like birdwatching. (Only cooler.)

Happy to Oblige

This whimsical convertible van was parked here for almost 7 hours yesterday. (And yes, that umbrella was attached to it.) Given its choice of parking spot, I think it wanted its picture taken...

Rebel Artist (#2)

"Mommy, how come we almost never go to the Huntington anymore?"

I wasn't sure how to answer that question.

Little Bit and I used to treat nearby San Marino's Huntington Art Gallery like our own personal hideaway. That membership fee was the best money I could have ever spent on early childhood education. Instead of preschool, my daughter spent hours with me learning about art and architecture. (Plus, she spent a lot of after-gallery time looking for fairies in the clover and splashing her hands in the fountains of the Children's Garden.) Her dad and I didn't go in for the Teach Your Baby to Read movement. We didn't know then that with the new educational model, preparation for rigorous academic standards starts around age 2. We were more into a philosophy along the lines of Let Our Baby Think, Feel and Explore.

Although we regularly made our rounds through all of the Huntington buildings, studying the soft blur of Mary Cassatt as well as the sharp form of Arts and Crafts furniture, Little Bit always liked the 18th Century figurative works best of all. Pinkie, by Thomas Laurence, is still one of her favorite portraits.

"So," Little Bit repeated. "Why can't we ever go anymore?"

"We don't have time during the week since you started first grade," I said. "We have to do your homework, and with the sight words, the spelling words, the spelling word sentence drill practice, the timed math test practice, the math worksheets, the spelling worksheets and then the work you couldn't finish during school hours, that means we can't..."

"I know, I know," Little Bit interrupted. "But some of my homework was about art the other day and I think the school needs to come back to the Huntington to learn something about it."

"Learn what?" I said.

"They need to learn that silver is a cool color. We were doing a worksheet on warm and cool colors and they were talking about Monet's haystack paintings. I got mine marked wrong because the sheet said that blue, green and purple were cool colors and I colored silver too. I just thought they knew that Monet actually used silver in those haystacks, too. Of course it's a cool color. Cool like moonlight and shadows. But I think they didn't even know that."

"Why didn't you say something?" I said.

"I didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings," she said.

(Try registering that on a standardized test.)

Field Trip: Pasadena's Macys on South Lake

Wait a minute. This picture isn't from South Pasadena!

You're right, I crossed the border into Pasadena for this one. I was so charmed by the multi-textured planes of this walkway, I just couldn't resist snapping and sharing. Besides, generations of South Pasadena shoppers have ventured over to this department store on South Lake Street. It's part of our shared history.

Originally a Bullocks and now a Macys, it was designed in 1947 by the divine Welton Becket. Becket's design house created several other iconic Los Angeles structures. Here's one of my favorites. And here's another one.

Back in 2008 the South Lake store was closed for renovations. I was afraid it was going to be stripped of all charm, but instead it was thoughtfully restored and revitalized with beautiful attention to the store's historic period details. (I'm particularly fond of the Men's Department mural and the etched brass elevators.)

For more on Welton Becket, click here.

South Pas Adjacent

I chased a beautiful late 60s Corvair all the way down Fremont into Alhambra, where I promptly lost it at the Main Street light.

Oh well. Just look what I stumbled across as a consolation.

Neighboring Rival

Okay, full disclosure: I snuck just across the border into Pasadena to take this photo. (I couldn't resist.)

Neighbors

Full disclosure: I crept over the border and into San Marino for this shot. These trees are part of the glorious Lacy Park. (But if you'll notice, they're leaning toward South Pas...)

Wild Thing

The silence of late summer nights in South Pas is often broken by coyote song from the nearby hills and Arroyo. Usually the sound is disembodied. Yesterday, next to Brookside Golf Course at the Rose Bowl, one of those late night singers materialized for an afternoon jog...

South Pasadena's Neighbors, Part 1: The Rose Bowl

If you take a ten minute drive from South Pas down Arroyo, you'll reach neighboring Pasadena's famous Rose Bowl. Tonight, many South Pas residents will join more than 96,000 other people gathering here to see U2 in concert -- possibly the biggest concert in Rose Bowl history. (I'll bet Pasadena daily photoblogger Ben Wideman will be in attendance. It's just a hunch...) See that big, futuristic spire jutting out of the arena? It's part of the band's enormous, 13-stories-high set.

This is one local concert where the entire world is invited: it's streaming in a live, global webcast on YouTube for free tonight at 8:30 PM, Pacific Time.