It's really hard to pick a favorite of all the old cars I've captured in South Pasadena over the years, but this one is definitely up in the top ten. Okay, in the top twenty. Oh, who am I kidding? I love them all.
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Schrödinger said it was the defining trait of quantum theory. What is it? It’s that quirky talent discovered by quantum physicists whereby a weird telepathic link allows teeny tiny subatomic particles to mysteriously influence each other’s properties even if they are very far away from one another. These particles are linked together -- or entangled -- so that one can't be sufficiently described without a full mention of its counterpart. In fact, you can instantly influence the properties of a particle on the opposite end of the universe by merely nudging its entangled twin. Some say the power travels at millions of times the speed of light. Even Einstein was baffled. He called it too spooky to be real.
Okay, so I can’t really get my head around it either.
It's time for another round of Let's Read Books by South Pasadena Authors! From children's books to political commentary, history to literary fiction (and even cookbooks!) the list of books written by South Pas writers is long and varied. Here are my reader picks for Fall 2017:
The Los Angeles region doesn't have the greatest track record when it comes to preserving landmarks. Despite the efforts of dedicated preservationists, many architectural wonders have been lost to the wrecking ball. The Richfield Tower, The Brown Derby, The Garden of Allah, and The Ambassador Hotel are just a few of the historic structures that have been demolished in the name of progress. (Many South Pasadena residents were worried that our very own Rialto Theater would meet the same fate. Luckily, for now, that disaster seems to be averted.)
You won't find points of interest once the last art deco tile or Spanish arch has been hauled off to a landfill -- a parking lot here, a nondescript office building there. What's left behind is a creeping blight of utilitarian sameness that has earned Los Angeles the title of "Strip Mall Capital of the World." We've gained a lot of dry cleaners and nail salons, but we've lost a lot of our history and perhaps more than a little of our soul.
Take a joyride with me through South Pas... and marvel at all the vintage cars.
South Pasadena was part of transportation history -- a destination for early rail as well as home to one of the first freeways. Oh, and then there are the countless vintage cars...
Spend enough time in South Pasadena and you'll notice that the Rialto, the historic buildings and the classic craftsman houses aren't the only remaining treasures of our past. This town has more than its fair share of vintage cars. Hang out on Mission Street on a weekend afternoon, and you'll see a promenade of enough old roadsters, coupes and muscle cars to satisfy even the most persnickety car buff. I'm not just talking about your standard issue American Graffiti-worthy hot rods, either. I've spotted a late 30s Peugot 402 and a 1949 Hudson Commodore -- even a mysterious black sedan that two confounded car aficionados argued about while standing nearby. (One insisted it was an unmarked 1939 Cadllac; the other swore it was a Citreon Traction Avant.)
Glimpses of South Pasadena finally has its own social media! No longer forced to share space with my personal photos, macro shots of food and endless political retweets, this little blog finally has its own Instagram and Twitter accounts:
Now, don't ask me to sign up Glimpses for Snapchat. I'd have a hard time putting a bee filter on the entire town.
Want to leave a message? Head over to the Glimpses of South Pasadena Community Forum to start a conversation! You can always access it in the Community tab at the top of the blog.
If you look closely at South Pasadena – and I mean really closely, sometimes with your nose right up to the surface -- you’ll find some historic little details. While much of Los Angeles (and much of the United States) has boomed with the philosophy of “New is Better” -- South Pasadena and much of the neighboring San Gabriel Valley have stuck to the idea that old is cool.
Next week will mark 9 years since Jon, Raine and I moved to South Pasadena. I will always remember our first Christmas in our new house. We managed to decorate a tree and wrap presents, but 2-year-old Raine was more interested in all the new sinks she could use to "wash the decorations." Needless to say, there were a lot of soggy bows. (In fact, we never did turn the faucet back on in the living room wet bar.)
Take a look at some of South Pasadena's Craftsman homes
If you move to South Pasadena, chances are you have an affinity (possibly bordering on obsession) for the Arts and Crafts movement. You’ll find hundreds of Craftsman homes in these few square miles, one after another, tucked humbly under generations-old shade trees like little zen mushrooms.
I think the one thing we can agree on about this election season is that we are all exhausted by it. So, regardless of your political views, let's stand on common ground together, look up, and reach for our better angels.
More than any other holiday, Halloween reminds me of life's brevity. How quickly kids grow up: last year's fairy costume doesn't fit, someone's too old to dress up like a pirate, this year the neighbor's giant blow-up monster no longer seems menacing...
The Arroyo Seco is much more than a weird concrete channel used by local skateboarders. Although the Spanish name roughly translates to “dry stream bed,” it usually flows with several cubic feet of water per second, and occasionally swells to near capacity with the runoff of an erosion-prone 46.7 square mile watershed. It starts near Mount Wilson in the Angeles National Forest of the San Gabriel Mountains and winds its way between La Canada Flintridge and Altadena through Pasadena, alongside the western boundary of South Pas and onward into the bigger concrete confines of the Los Angeles River north of Downtown LA. The Arroyo Seco stream assists in replenishing the Raymond Basin aquifer underlying Pasadena.
In December of 2007, after many years on the west side of Los Angeles (and at least a third of those years spent stuck in traffic on Pico Boulevard) my family settled into a happy little house in South Pasadena. This daily blog covered almost 5 years as I put down roots in my new home town -- and almost 5 more as I settled in and became a South Pas old-timer. Here it is...my time capsule of South Pasadena.
You can always find the blog at its original address:
Entanglement. Schrödinger said it was the defining trait of quantum theory. What is it? It’s that quirky talent discovered by quantum p...
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Thank you Charlie's Coffee House for hosting my photo exhibit, South Pas: Observed. From October 2011 through January 2012 my pictures graced the walls of the best place in town to get a cup of coffee!
Read the nifty story on photo bloggers Petrea Burchard, Ben Wideman, Kat Likkel and little old me featured in the September, 2011 issue of Pasadena Magazine.
It's really hard to pick a favorite of all the old cars I've captured in South Pasadena over the years, but this one is definitely up in the top ten. Okay, in the top twenty. Oh, who am I kidding? I love them all.
