meladiction

This is taking place about a hundred or so feet from my building:

http://blogdowntown.com/2009/08/46…

Now, I do consider myself a fan of Jack's and all his band incarnations. I would LOVE to see this. But I would feel like a total slacker if I called in sick or asked to take the day off to do this. Fuck me. Plus I still don't have a camera, and I would kick myself senseless if I couldn't capture images of it.

I'm just too damn mainstream sometimes.

Oh well. At least I will have company at the bus stop tomorrow morning at 4:30am... I mean besides the junkies, dealers, hookers and pimps.

BTW, I could make bank if I turned tricks on the side, with all the offers I get. All I'd need to do is offset my work shift by an hour or two. Completely doable. I got solicited again last week while waiting for the bus by an athletic black dude driving a black Dodge Magnum. Of course, there is an equal chance I could just end up hacked to bits.

Decisions, decisions .... :::sigh:::

p.s. Check out the planters in the pic. See the metal teeth? Those are same ones the sidewalk squatters removed on the opposite side of the street. As you can see, they don't squat on this side of the street. Silly black people!!!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture…

I don't normally put stock in horoscopes; because they seem based in fantasy most of the time.
But Free Will Astrology tends to gobsmack me with timely accuracy a lot of the time.
And given the current events and activities at work, this week's is especially serendipitous:




"Libra Horoscope for week of July 23, 2009

Verticle Oracle card Libra (September 23-October 22)



I usually applaud your inclination to remain above the fray and churn out astute observations. I normally honor your instinct to distance yourself from petty partisan squabbles. But this week's different. For the foreseeable future, I'd like it very much if you dive into the pit with the other diehards and fight with hardnosed audacity for what you believe is the beautiful truth. At least temporarily, Libra, forget about your graceful talent for tactful compromise. I think it's time for you to be a warrior who's ferociously devoted to a just cause."



Well alrighty then ... what more convincing do I need?
Not that I had any self-doubts.




...

Yes, as a true Jurassic Technology afficionado, of course my set is a classic GE 19" color model circa 1980?something. I bought it used at a Salvation Army thrift store ten years ago. Now it's just a device to watch DVDs on, which actually it's always been since I moved here. But I've always preferred high-quality and longevity to new technology. There are so many appliances and gadgets I would STILL be using if it wasn't for these reasons; A) someone stole it from me, B) I used it until it completely wore out, C) the supporting technology rendered my gadget obsolete, even though it still worked.


But what a news week; it would have been nice to see the reports on TV. On Wednesday, UCLA had its Campus Town Hall meeting to discuss the potential furloughs and wage cuts. Our labor union also held a protest rally outside the Pauley Pavilion, and I marched, chanted, and waved two protest signs. Later when I was leaving work, I was approached by a Channel 7 news reporter (Leo Stalworth) who asked me about the meeting and my feelings about it. I just rattled off a diatribe of my honest opinions, even giving him my name and the department I work for. Then I had to ask him to strike my department from the record, because it has its own separate controversy. He said the report would air on the 4pm news, but there was no way I would be home in time to see it. So I hoped maybe it would reappear on the 6pm news ... then I remembered I now have no signal. Woe is me.


Then Thursday happened.


I was headed down Westwood toward the bus stop to go home, when I saw a group of people huddled around what looked like the makings of a news conference, with reporters milling about and their news vans parked on the street. I was sure it would be about the potential wage cuts, so I found a place to stand in wait. More and more people were arriving, along with more and more news reporters. There were also several copters directly above, floating in stationary positions. Directly around me, people were chatting on their cell phones, and I heard reference to Farah Fawcett... and then to Michael Jackson; but about what I couldn't tell. As more people crowded into this small circle, I heard more conversations and people saying he'd had a heart-attack, and was in our hospital. Then I heard others say he was already dead. I was in disbelief. So I decided to stay until hospital officials made an announcement.


An hour and a half later, still no announcements, someone decided to move their camera and equipment to directly in front of the Ronald Reagan center, and soon the whole crowd followed, as well as me. But the group in front of the RR were louder, rowdier, and I was afraid to get caught in a riot as some of them were trying to rush the hospital doors. I left; not knowing for sure what was really happening. When I got to downtown, I stopped at Bar 107 to see news reports on their TV (since I have no signal). I was expecting to find the typical movie bar scene whenever something big happens... you know; bar patrons huddled around the TV dumbstruck with concern. Instead, I found the typical post-work bar crowd and three TVs... one tuned to a skateboarding competition, one to a basketball game, and one to CNN on MJ, with the sound turned off. The music in the bar was punk rock. It was a sad scene... only one black dude was seated at the end of the bar where the TV with CNN was... and he was really blasé about the whole thing. This was not the sort of atmosphere I was looking for, but I didn't have a TV so I would have to settle for it.


I saw the footage of the ambulance leaving his driveway for the hospital, and of his body being put on a helicopter en route to the coroner. Then a lot of old performance footage, including the dance production number from Thriller at the Barker Bros. factory. Eerie.
But I really really wish they would have had the courtesy to turn all the TVs to MJ coverage and turn up the sound. Since the majority of the patrons were maybe too young to know of Jackson in his heyday, I think they weren't really fazed. But even the blasé black dude next to me would occasionally get up to go watch the basketball game. Sad.



Then today on Craigslist (my favorite tabloidish, trash-talking, homespun free-for-all), someone made a post directing readers to this post in Vancouver:

---------------------------------->

vancouver, BC craigslist > rants & raves



Michael Jackson will die thursday

Reply to: pers-jpnju-1236192204@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]
Date: 2009-06-23, 1:55PM PDT


@ 1 pm PST.

It's about time, dirty fucker.


* it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests


PostingID: 1236192204

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/…


It is now looking like the doctor caring for him at the time gave him an overdose of Demerol at 11:30 am. The theory is that British backers of his upcoming concerts were worried that they would not get their money back, since Jackson was plagued with injuries that would cause him to cancel some of his shows. And he was considered "worth more dead". The doctor was actually contracted by the British investors, which paints a clearer picture. They could then sue his estate to repay their investment.

And I don't know who this Canadian poster is, but obviously he knew something.
The plot will thicken.



This is how I will remember him.




***

I swear I had no prediction of it, had nothing to do with it... and the fact that I work at UCLA is just an unfortunate coincidence.
And my previous "walking dead" comment was sheer coincidence too. (OMG.)


WOW.

p.s. I just wanted to say that not even 3 days ago, I had decided that "The Love You Save" by the Jackson Five is the most perfect pop song ever written. I listen to it EVERY DAY on my Shuffle along with "I Want You Back" and the immortal "Dancing Machine"... his dad may have been a horror, but he created a genius.

OMG. Under the category of "Hal Bastian's Downtown Tidbits", I completely forgot to mention...

When we were at the Barker Block surveying the grounds, he told us to look down a particular pathway. He said it used to be an alley, and not just an alley; but the seediest, most dangerous and drug infested alley in all of downtown LA. Then he said, "And this is exactly what they were looking for when they made the video for Michael Jackson's Thriller here." Everyone ooohed and awwwed. It was great. Now we have more insight on those PRICES.




"The old Barker Brothers furniture factory.
A mecca for both the young urban professional, and the walking dead."

Last night I returned home from my five days in Frisco (fuck the locals who scoff at that ... the proper name is too long for my purposes). I cannot remember the last time I had a more educational and productive vacation that did not involve doing housework. The lowdown is as follows:

Day 1:

Did a bunch of errands that day and did not skip town till nearly 2pm. Drove forever. FINALLY checked into the Good Nite Inn @ SFO at around 8:30pm. The place was not as divey as I expected, since my room was only $50 per night. BUT... the first room they gave me was never cleaned from the last occupant, and it was an eery feeling to open a locked door to a room with the bedding pulled back, the TV on, and a bag of food sitting on the bed. The second room they gave me was also still a mess. For the third room, the keys did not work on the lock. FINALLY, I got a room upgrade to one of the handicapped rooms, which are far more spacious and genuinely cleaner. SCORE.

Day 2:

Went to the conference at 8am. What a bunch of geeks and freaks the lab animal community is. Not saying they don't have their redeeming qualities, but the only attendees that even came close to being eye-candy were the vendors presenting their wares (aka SALESMEN). Good thing I didn't make plans for a guest to visit my hotel room... which was conveniently located just a short walk across the parking lot from the conference center. Yes, ultra convenient, in the event of ... ANYWAY, sufficeth to say I listened to many lectures, took many notes, and came home with a shitload of free vendor crap. I even won a fleece vest with the AALAS National Conference 2009 logo embroidered on it in a raffle, which is ironic because DLAM isn't sponsoring anybody's travel to the conference for the first time ever this year. It's being held in Denver, CO in November which would be an awesome trip, but whatever. They can shove their budget crisis.

Day 3:

Got in touch with Tim and made plans. It was really cloudy and raining. I got to his place around noon. He lives in the Tenderloin District near the skid row area of SF, just like I do here, and also lives in a residential hotel surrounded by bums and crack addicts on the street (our situations are very similar and parallel each other). He took me to a trendy italian eatery called Rose Pistola and treated me to many appetizer type dishes and cocktails. He has been a waiter and bartender (among other things) off and on over many years, so I let him take the reins. We drank a bit, ate a lot, and talked a lot. Then we went to Fisherman's Wharf which is the nor-cal version of Hollywood Blvd., with all the souvenir crap and stupid people who don't live there. We ate crab legs and calamari from a less-than-sanitary looking outdoor crab shack and talked and drank more.

Day 4:

The conference arranged for attendees to visit The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito. This is a non-profit hospital/rehab facility for rescued harbor seals, elephant seals, and sea lions. I told Tim about it and he expressed interest in going. Also, the directions to the place were complicated and Tim had travelled that route before, so he came with. We got to see these creatures all up close and personal, and they are so *CUTE* and personable... they are like dogs with flippers. They crave human attention and interaction, but they are prone to imprinting/bonding when they are young, so the staff is discouraged from playing with them for fear of separation anxiety once they are released. After the tour, we headed down to the very cloudy, rainy and ominous looking shoreline which resembled what one might find on the northeast coast. It was nice.

After we returned to Tim's place, he then took me out to a local all-you-can-eat sushi place called HANA and we ate TONS of various sushi rolls plus two bottles of hot sake. It was the best meal in a long time. After sushi, we returned to his place and he invited me to crash on his couch, which I did reluctantly since we just met the day before. We watched a couple of old Tennessee Williams movies on one of his computer monitors (he doesn't own a TV), since he is an old movie fanatic. It was nice and relaxing.

Day 5:

Got up early, Tim made us boiled eggs and black coffee, and then I was on the road back. We had argued a bit before I left about my harassment situation by staff at my building. He thinks I should be a total bitch (like he is) and report everything to the property management company, and I told him I didn't want to make more waves than necessary, for fear of what more trouble I might invite. Then he popped off with this comment; "You're my big sister and I shouldn't have to tell you this!" ... Now, THAT was bizarre, and a little off-putting. I am sure I would have had to kick his ass many times as a kid.


Someday, pictures... and more thoughts on this new development in my life.

Meantime, this site features images that are seen every frikken day, both in the Tenderloin District and the Historic Core of downtown LA. Homes sweet homes.

So I went to see Primal Scream/BJM and it was stellar. But there were a few things I must remember if I do this again:

- If the show time states 7pm, the first band won't go on till about 8:30. Arrive accordingly, to avoid the monotony.

- Sneak some booze in somehow. $12 per drink is highway robbery, and will force you to remain sober most of the evening.

-Being a pedestrian is a noble pursuit, but not advisable at 1am in the desolate center of downtown. Especially when the no-account hispanic bus drivers pass you at your stop at 1:17 and the next bus isn't due till 1:47am.

-Don't attempt to set parameters on a new digital camera in the dark. Or else you may inadvertently erase all your pics.

Seriously; it was great. I didn't expect the original, classic BJM of Anton, Joel, and Matt Hollywood. A great surprise, and no on-stage tantrums from Anton, which was only mildly disappointing.

Primal Scream was MASSIVE. SPOT ON. BRILLIANT. Exceeded expectations. They played for about three hours.
BUT I WISH I WOULD HAVE BEEN DRUNK or ON ECSTACY. It would have been an even sweeter, deeper trip.

Yeah, I borrowed a friends camera for the night, and took some great pics of my experience. It (LA Live) is like Universal Citywalk but still clean and not overrun with people. I took a lot of touristy shots of the HUGE motion billboards everywhere (think Times Square) and Anderson Cooper was there doing his show... got shots. Ate at Rock N'Fish, tooks shots of my pretty meal. Got various shots inside and outside the restaurant and Club Nokia. Nice little club; AWFULLY overpriced drinks.

Then I fiddled with the adjustments and lost all my pics .... oh well.


And I took today off since I would be up late, and forgot it was St. Patrick's Day. There was a parade down Main St., so I was actually able to get a few pics before the battery ran out. I was just happy there was a celebration for Anglos that shut down the streets around here, instead of the usual hispanic stuff. But then again, theirs shut the streets down for a whole weekend, and this was only a couple of hours. But I was happily surprised to see the Grand Marshall of the parade was my favorite evil cyborg, Robert Patrick.



Maybe I will post the pics someday. Right now I need to go to bed.



ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.

Saturday

This unseasonably warm weather is having the effect of springtime on local animals. And for me personally, this means I am suffering the season of EVEN MORE unwanted attention from undesirable male humanoids. Friday morning as I bolted from my building to the bus stop across the street, I heard some random street person behind me yelling, "Good morning!". I never respond to such, because the last thing I want to do is engage any of these people.

I stopped and stood to wait for the bus. Then I hear, "Excuse me!" ... and this old black man in an electric wheelchair/motorized cart pulls up to the curb and stops in front of me. He proceeds to reach into his pocket and pull out a wad of 20s and spreads it out like a fan. Then he tells me, "I'm looking for some company and I've got more where this came from." Normally, I would yell expletives and then walk away from such shit, but since he was disabled I tolerated it. I told him, "Sorry, but I'm not selling company." Then he told me, "Well, I had to ask since I can't read your mind." PPFfft. Please. As he drove off I said, "Good luck." and he replied, "Keep me in your prayers." Right.

And the fat mexican security guard/front desk clerk is pushing my boundaries. I've been keeping a safely distant, friendly rapport only because he could fuck with my life in so many ways. When my Netflix arrives, he's the one at the desk at 4:30 in the morning who hands it to me from my mail slot behind the desk. The only reason I pick them up from him is I am avoiding picking them up from the Old Black desk clerk in the afternoon. He's the one who kept pushing me to "see his portfolio" YUCK. Now this mexican fool is bringing his own DVDs with him to work and tries pushing them on me in a lame attempt to make a connection. So Friday he brought some movies and I wasn't interested in any of them, but I borrowed The Last Samurai just to humor him. He said I could return it next time I see him at the desk.

Well, after returning home today from being out running errands, I change into loungewear and just want to relax. Then I get a knock on my door. DAMN. (Motherfucker.) I just ignore it at first, and then the fool yells out "MELANIE!" Goddamn %&*#@$!! So I open the door just a sliver, and it's fatso, dressed in his best sweatpants and crocs, and a tight fitting shirt that accentuates his manboobs. He proceeds to utter... "Hey, uhh... can I get that movie cuz my friend who loaned it to me is crying for it cuz she wants to have friends over for a Tom Cruise movie night." I gave him the movie (which I didn't watch) and he proceeds to tell me how he has a bunch of his own movies in storage I can borrow and blahblahblahblahblah... and then he tops it off with "...And let's go out and have lunch sometime!" .... uhhhh ..... NO!

There is nothing more unsettling than watching some hapless, completely repulsive male make futile attempts to make an impression on a woman. Well, ... actually there is something more unsettling. Being the female recipient of those attempts. And lucky me; I always get targeted. More evidence that I have to plan to get out of this place.

Oh, and an update on the sidewalk squatter sitch. You know how the city had installed metal trim on all the cement planters to keep them from sitting on them? Well, this past week, a section of five of them that runs along a parking lot fence was being systematically vandalized. Every day on the way home from work, I would note one planter each day had the metal trim removed. You could see where someone had literally chipped away at the cement to remove the screws that hold the trim on. By Thursday, four of five had the trim removed. But then on Friday, all but one had the trim replaced again. Now, these fuckers are too lazy/old/tired to do anything productive, but they sure as hell find enough energy to destroy property. Each day, I grow to despise these people more and more. I am believing that social work and community activism is a bunch of bullshit when I see the kind of people they defend and support. Can they seriously believe that these contrary deadbeats are worth all the money and programs just to keep them loitering and being public nuisances? I just DO NOT GET IT, NOR DO I SYMPATHIZE IN THE LEAST.

Sunday

Went and did some things I've been putting off. Took some plastic bottles for recycling and FINALLY took some CDs and DVDs to sell at Amoeba. Nothing sacrificed; they were all gifts from a former client who worked at Lion's Gate. Once, I told him how when I first moved to L.A. my car was broken into and all my CDs were stolen and I couldn't afford to replace them all. So he responded by telling me to give him a list and he would replace them for me over time. Well, I gave him my list,and he did get me a few that I requested. But he also gave me a whole lot of stuff that was HIS choice in music. So for the past three years, I've been holding on to brand new CDs by The Clash, The Ramones, Black Flag, The Replacements, The Tindersticks, Modern Lovers, Iggy and teh Stooges, Johnny Thunders, Love, The Smiths and others. Not saying that those are bad bands, just not my taste. But he did score some winners with The Velvet Underground set, Kruder & Dorfmeister, This Mortal Coil, William Orbit, Patti Smith and White Stripes. Any way, I was expecting about $25 in return, and ended up with $53 store credit, and I was actually able to find used copies of items from my list, so three years later he came through on the offer without even being there.

Then I went to Los Feliz and saw The Wrestler. It was alright. Not much more than a typical hard-luck human interest story, but the perspective from which it was shot was interesting ... following this sad shell of a has-been around like a fly on his shoulder; witnessing his darkest, saddest, most intimate and humiliating moments. This is what I imagine it must REALLY be like to be a spirit lingering in the material world ... seeing everyone at their lowest, when they think no one is looking. THIS is reality "entertainment". It's crass to use that term, but I think everyone desires to experience the lives of others; without the commitment of actually suffering their fates.

Oh, and the planter trim is down to one remaining on Sunday.
Dear Lord, please show these pathetic humans the way to manifest peace, harmony,
and productivity, instead of destruction, bitterness, and gratuitous sloth. Amen.



~~~~~~