Trump's public trail

Mr. Donald Trump owns a nice golf course on the edge of Rancho Palos Verdes.  By law, a public trail is required and so I was invited to explore (not by Trump, though).  I ventured down with my son and two friends and their mother.  The walk down is steep so good shoes are recommended.  A less able soul might have trouble and slip.  We hoped to spot some interesting creatures in the tide pools and there were some.  They were very shy, though, so we didn't see much.  However, the day was beautiful, so just walking along the coast was enjoyable.



Then we found this:

It smelled horrible.  A few other hikers were there, too, and a teenage girl in another group described this poor creature as beautiful.  I found it sad and somewhat repulsive.  Later, I read some news articles about a naturally occurring algae that was poisoning sea lions, so, undoubtedly, that's what happened here.  I called animal services to report this sighting.  I have no idea whether they carted this animal away, not seeing any news articles about this specific sea lion.  I did read later about a gray whale that washed ashore in Redondo Beach.  The whale was pulled back into the ocean to decompose back in its environs.

Other parts of our hike were quite pleasant, however.  There were the pelicans that circled back and forth.

And many detours off the path:

We created some rock structures:

The hike back up required every muscle in my body, and I was forced to pause every 20 steps or so.  The kids bounded up as though they were running across a playground.  All in all, it was a good workout that I should undertake more frequently.

This view from the top shows how much seaweed was present.  I would think it would deter surfers, but, interestingly, there were two surfers out there that day. 

I neglected to take a picture of the flagpole.  Fans of the Colbert Report are familiar with it by now.  Next time....

Polar Bears of Cabrillo Beach

For the third year in a row, I've gone to Cabrillo Beach in San Pedro to watch and photograph the Polar Bears.  What are Polar Bears you ask?  Well, they are the brave (crazy) souls who participate in the first swim of the new year.  It's been a tradition for 59 years and very popular, judging by the crowd who showed up this year, January 1, 2011.  San Pedro's representative on the Los Angeles City Council, Janice Hahn, has shown up every year since taking office.  The Polar Bears founder, John Olguin, told Janice that no other councilperson had participated until she started. 

The crowd slowly gathered until the appointed time of noon when the King and Queen would start their procession to water with all swimmers following them.  Because of beach erosion, there was a steep drop from the spot where you see people standing to where my son and his friend are digging.  It was a little tough for some folks (me included) to climb back up that slope.

The 2011 King and Queen are crowned and given due honor.

Councilwoman Hahn led the crowd with God Bless America.  We were instructed to sing it loud enough to be heard at Catalina Island.

The King and Queen make their way.

My son and friend after their swim.  

And posing with Janice Hahn who made them promise to do it again next year.

It was announced that John Olguin passed away that very morning.  Not only was he a founder of the Cabrillo Beach Polar Bears, he was at every swim.  His contributions to San Pedro are too numerous to mention, but this article summarizes them well:  http://www.dailybreeze.com/ci_16990977?source=rss_viewed

Here's to 2011 and all the good things we hope it brings!

Fall comes to the South Bay

Who says New England has the edge on us when it comes to the color of fall leaves?  There are some beautiful sights around the South Bay these days. 

These two trees are at the Peninsula Center in Rolling Hills Estates.

Drive along Del Amo Blvd. between Hawthorne and Prairie/Madrona in Torrance and you'll see this beautiful sight:



I wish I were more knowledgeable about trees.  I can't identify any of these species.

Here is a picture from a wall that divides an apartment building from one of Little Company of Mary's parking lots:

Update on some previous posts:  I saw some construction workers on the site of the partly built assisted living center.  Might we see some progress?  Or were they just doing some cleanup?  I saw one guy high on a cliff cutting down brush.

The Jack-in-the-Box is now shuttered with wood.  Not sure what this means.  Maybe they were worried about the windows getting broken.  Still no sign that a new buyer will come in and do something.


Famous author comes to Torrance

Because I have a Borders card, I get e-mails from them with announcements about book signings at a store near me.  But, more often than not, the store is not near me.  So, I was pleasantly surprised to get an e-mail announcing that Jamie Lee Curtis would be at the Torrance store.  I put this on my calendar so as not to forget.  The start time was 3 p.m. and I arrived there with my son at about 2:45.  We had to buy her book first and then get a wrist band.  The wrist band color would determine when we could get in line to get the book signed.  I was disappointed to learn that our color group was the third group.  We made our way over to the area where Jamie would speak and there were no more chairs.  Jamie made her appearance right on schedule.  She spoke for about 30 minutes, so I got a little uncomfortable standing for that long.  But, she made it interesting.  Then it was time to line up.  Of course, our group, the third color group, had to gather way at the back.  A woman in front of me used a step stool to sit on as we moved our way along and she asked her daughter to get me one, too.  That helped considerably.

Of course, I brought my camera and captured a few memorable shots.

The notice we received about the signing when we bought the book said that Jamie would only pose for pictures with children.  I did notice a couple of exceptions, though.  But, I didn't really want a picture of me with her.  I just wanted one with A.J.

I had A.J. bring this picture to school the next day to show his teacher.  Here is the book and how she signed it:

One additonal note of interest: A.J. and I met Jamie two years ago in the elevator at Santa Monica Hospital.  We were going to visit my sister Maggie and Jamie was there to visit someone else.  I deduced that because she was holding a small gift bag.  We exchanged a few pleasantries and then I got off.  When I met her again at the book store, I didn't mention this encounter, doubting she would even remember.  But, I did make a point of telling her that A.J., I and herself share a birthday.  She thought that was cool.

Lastly, I thought I would mention that this appearance was about a week before her father, Tony Curtis, passed away.  When she was talking about her career, she described a TV show she had been in many years ago.  The show was Operation Petticoat, based on the film that her father had starred in.  Mention of his name brought a lot of applause.  I am embarrassed to say that I did not remember whether or not he was alive at the time.  The news of his death a week later made me very aware.

The underbelly of a pier

There are many piers in the South Bay, but this one is the coolest. 

This is the Manhattan Beach pier.  It's a wondrous thing watching the waves hit the pilings while surfers take a chance on navigating them.

What happened to this guy?

Further up a bit, on the sand part, people took advantage of the pier's cooling powers.

Wouldn't you know it, but there is an article on Wikipedia about this pier.  It was built in 1901.  You can learn more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattan_Beach_pier

What happened to this project?

This property, at the corner of Hawthorne Blvd. and Rolling Hills Rd., used to be home to a liquor store, a dance studio and a gas station.  It was all torn down a few years ago to make way for a senior assisted living center.  I had been watching its progress each day as I passed it going to and from work.  Suddenly, there was no one working there at all.  Months have passed, so I started getting curious.  I found this on the Daily Breeze web site:

http://www.dailybreeze.com/ci_13514454?IADID=Search-www.dailybreeze.com-www.dailybreeze.com

Apparently, the company had financial problems so stopped work on the project.  Now we've got an eyesore. 

I called the number on the sign.  The recording stated that I had reached Sunrise Senior Living in McLean, Virginia.  I could have stayed on the line or pressed 0 for the operator, but the Daily Breeze post told me what I needed to know anyway. 

Goodbye, Jack-in-the-Box

This was a Jack-in-the-Box, until recently, located at the corner of PCH and Hawthorne in south Torrance.  A few months ago there was a sign in the window saying they were closed for construction, but I never saw anyone working on the place.  Next thing I know, the sign was gone and the logo was off the roof.  I assume it's for sale, but I have yet to see a For Sale sign.

Two of my friends worked there in the early 70's.  Their hourly rate was the minimum wage at the time, $1.65.  I, on the other hand, was working at Hughes Market and making a whopping $2.02 per hour.  I thought I had it made.  However, they got to take damaged food home.  For example, my friend Kathleen would "accidentally" poke a hole in the apple turnover and then have to eat it.  I never got to take any damaged food home from Hughes.

The other interesting thing about this Jack-in-the-Box is that there used to be a Shell Station next to it, but it's been gone for many years.  I noted that only women seemed to work there.  This was during the time when gas station attendants pumped your gas, so I saw the female employees servicing the cars whenever I drove by.   After the Shell Station closed, the building was torn down and the lot remained vacant, as it is today.   The car wash next to it is closed also.  This corner is now blighted.  Sad, because it's across the street from some thriving businesses.