Corriendo, Los Angeles

La lluvia

Sometime in December or January when most of the participants of the PostBourgie Running Challenge were complaining about snowstorms, sub-zero temperatures and icy sidewalks, I was bragging about running in a t-shirt and shorts.

I really shouldn’t have bragged.

I feel like Sunday’s storm was Mother Nature’s cruel joke on Angelenos, especially the runners, who enjoyed (and maybe bragged) about our typical mild winter.

It rained this afternoon. As I left work, I kicked myself for not bringing my umbrella. I ran to catch the bus and had flashbacks to Sunday. ‘This is nothing compared to Sunday,’ I told myself.

It was just a little rain.

Fotos, Los Angeles

Mil palabras: Disney Hall (or, mile 4)

One of the things I read in the reviews of the 2010 LA Marathon was praise of the “stadium to the sea” course highlighting a landmark every mile. This year’s course differs slightly, but still begins at Dodger Stadium and ends a few blocks from the Santa Monica pier.

I like the “stadium to the sea” theme, mainly because it makes me think of LA having a subway or light rail that would traverse a similar route. I’m less excited about the landmarks, probably because I live here. I don’t think of places like the Troubador or the House of Blues as landmarks. They’re just places I go to see shows, like The Dears last week.

Now, Disney Hall? I consider it a landmark, probably because it’s designed by Frank Gehry, it’s cool to look at and it’s at the top of Bunker Hill with a few other cultural institutions. I don’t look forward to running up Bunker Hill, at all (but I’ve done hills, I’m prepared!).

Some of my favorite landmarks (Hollywood Bowl, UCLA, Griffith Observatory, LACMA and Museum Row) aren’t on the course, but I don’t mind since most of those are in the hills. It also bums me out that the course no longer crosses over the LA River in to the Eastside.

If you want to see where I’ll be spending Sunday morning, check out this neat video by the LA Times stitching together Google Maps street view images for most of the course. I’ve been through the VA Center near UCLA and the Dodger Stadium parking lot plenty of times. No surprises there.

What’s your favorite landmark on the course? What would you add?

Los Angeles, Música

Julieta Venegas & Ximena Sariñana at Club Nokia

I love Julieta Venegas, but my codo kept me from buying tickets to her show at Club Nokia. I hope that one of the music blogs would have a ticket give away. I entered a couple through La Banda Elástica and The Scenestar, but didn’t win. But my friend, Jake, did (and only because I posted a link about the Scenestar contest on Facebook). Unfortunately, his wife had a conflict with a graduation. That meant he needed to find another fan. That’s where I gladly step in.

I was excited for the show all day. Not only was I going to see Julieta, but Ximena Sariñana would be opening for her. I’d been following Ximena for a few years and really enjoyed her debut, Mediocre as well as her guest vocals with Volovan (“La Luna”) and Plastilina Mosh (“Pervert Pop Song”).

Ximena seemed genuinely excited to open up for Julieta and called herself a fan. She sang some of her new songs in English as well as “Monitor” over a loop. She closed off with the haunting “Mediocre”.

Half an hour later, Julieta came on stage accompanied by an 8-piece band. She wore a black tunic with some weird gathering that hid her baby bump and navy blue leggings. She looked a little eccentric but cute. She played guitar and keyboard — not accordion — for some of the songs. Most of the time she was singing and dancing, which the adoring crowd loved. She spoke in between the songs about some of the meaning behind them. She dedicated “Un Lugar” to all the migrants and those fighting against SB 1070. She told Mexicans to keep their heads up, “los Mexicanos tenemos mucho de ser orgulloso… Frida Kahlo, Pedro Infante, José Alfredo Jiménez. Vamos a salir adelante.” She dedicated “Revolución” to Soda Stereo frontman Gustavo Cerati, who underwent brain surgery on Wednesday to remove a blood clot. I was happy to see another Tijuanense, Ceci Bastida, reprise her role as part of Julieta’s band, albeit as a guest on a couple of songs.

Julieta Venegas’ setlist below.

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Los Angeles

StoryCorps Historias comes to East LA

StoryCorps Historias is in East LA. I’m excited. Not only because I’ve heard some of the recently recorded stories on Latino USA, but also because my fellow blogger Alex is in town.

The MobileBooth will be open and ready for your cuentos and historias starting today, February 11th at the East LA Public Library (4837 E. Third St., Los Angeles, CA 90022). The final day in East LA is March 20th.

Some background:

StoryCorps Historias is an initiative to record the diverse stories and life experiences of Latinos in the United States. Sharing these stories celebrates our history, honors our heritage, and captures the true spirit of our community. It will also ensure that the voices of Latinos will be preserved and remembered for generations to come.

Sounds great, right?

To sign up, visit the reservations page. I’ve heard that all slots are currently full, but you can add yourself to the waitlist.

If you can’t get to the MobileBooth, I encourage you to check out the user-friendly DIY Guide to recording someone’s stories.

Cuentos, Los Angeles

Sunny California

My mom didn’t watch much TV when I was growing up. In fact, I rarely saw her just sitting around doing nothing.

“No real work is done when you’re sitting,” she’d remind me as I’d take a seat while folding laundry.

Still, she did turn on the TV for background noise when she ironed. Most of the times it was the afternoon newscast. That was practical. She could get an update on rush hour traffic and know when to expect my dad and get the weather forecast.

In listening to these newscasts, I mistook the anchors’ “Southern California” for “sunny California.” This made much more sense to a kid growing up in the drought years as Tony! Toni! Tone! sang “It Never Rains (In Southern California)”.

I write all this to give you an idea of why I’d complain after four straight days of rain during dinner with my advisor and fellow grad students.

While my fellow advisees — tired of sloshing around campus, traffic and taking the bus in the rain — felt my pain, my advisor did not.

“You need to leave California, Cindy.”

She had just returned from a work trip to Michigan and surely some rain and lows in the 40s were little to complain about.

I pouted.