Bob writes, The mystery billboard

It was late at night and I wasn’t sure I’d seen the billboard correctly as I whizzed past it on I-35 in Wyoming last week on the way back from Wrenshall. But an e-mailer confirms I saw what I thought I saw.

It’s beginning to sweep along the Internet, accompanied by various claims that it’s a Photoshop fake. But it’s not. It’s real.

There’s no billboard ownership plate on this particular billboard, making tracing the person who had the cash to post it difficult to find. It’s time to crowdsource this puppy.

*Update: Those responsible are revealed (sort of)

I’m pretty sure Dick Cheney is responsible.

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Certainly our fair city is having a hard time.  And it seems that one of the answers the people who run this place have is raising the fine on just about everything having to do with driving.  Forget about the impact on the populace.  There’s a new attitude and it seems to be…  let’s make new laws to take as much money as we can from the people of this city.

Now I’m not an advocate of scofflaws who drive like maniacs and endanger peoples lives by their bad driving.  Those losers should be off the road… but I can’t help but wonder what kind of message politicians are sending to us folks when they raise the parking rates to outrageous sums, slap $50 parking fines on expired meters, boot and tow cars after three unpaid parking tickets … it used to be 5 (lots of money in getting a car out of hock) and now are suggesting that putting more cameras at intersections can raise millions for the city.

Wow.

Recently Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s has been proposing a series of stiffer laws and amongst those laws affected would be DWI/DUI.

The editors at the Strib have put together this little gem Editorial: Toughen DWI laws and save lives.

What I wonder is where is the point of diminishing returns, I think it’s clear that making tougher laws does not always result in less crime.

There are actually a few decent comments on the Strib story, but this one stands out

Let’s stop kidding ourselves
When I started in law enforcement 25 years ago it took me about 20 minutes to read the implied consent, obtain a test and write a ticket for DUI. When I ended my career I needed a flow chart to figure out what degree of DUI that was to be charged and 3 hours to fill out the required paperwork. We engage in this on going debate because enough citizens in our state refuse to acknowledge that it is not OK to drive when you have a snootful and a whole industry that has grown up to enable or punish this small group. Interlock’s will not stop the chronic offender. The chronic drunks desire to drive drunk will be readily served by a new industry who’s sole efforts will be to defeat the purpose of the interlock.
posted by montaguezx

Are the current laws sufficient? Too strict? I don’t know, but I get the feeling making tougher laws won’t do much to make the streets safer.

Thoughts?

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Jenette Bras is here for you.

This Thursday, Friday and Saturday Jenette Bras is hosting Men-Only evening events from 6pm to 8pm. From their invite:

We’ll pour you a drink, then get to work helping you select the perfect gift: beautiful brassiere and pantie sets, slips, corsets and gift certificates for a custom bra fitting. And if your honey is already a Jennette Bras gal, then we’ve got her stats and you’ve got it made. Painless.

If your special someone a gorgeous, curvy gal, this is the shop for her. And you.

At Jenette Bras, the Alphabet Starts at D — ask your woman, she’ll know what that means.

(Full disclosure, I’m a very satisfied customer of Jenette Bras so I know what I’m talking about.)

Jenette Bras
4308 Melrose Ave.
323-665-7490
Right around the corner from Scoops!

1. MARTA is an art gallery for graffiti. East, west, north or south, you’ll see a collection of Atlanta’s finest taggings. It’s all on display for you. Enjoy.

2. MARTA time is faster than normal time. Today my commute took about an hour and it went by quickly. It didn’t feel like an hour. 20 minutes in my car can feel like an hour. An hour of MARTA time feels like 20 minutes in a car.

3. MARTA is good for you. Most, if not all, of the escalators are out of service forcing you to take the stairs. That is good for you. It’s good for your heart and body. Taking the stairs gets your blood pumping and energized as you start the day. Not only that, you have to walk to get where you’re going. MARTA is a good health alternative to driving.

4. MARTA gives perspective. You will see beautiful views of Atlanta you will never ever see driving.

5. MARTA saves money. Sure driving is way more convenient but it’s way more expensive. You can make a tank of gas last many days longer.

Try it out and see for yourself.

Disruption of traffic is expected on Dr. Zia Uddin Ahmed Road, Club Road and near PIDC house between 1600 to 1800 hrs. Everyone are advised to avoid the above mentioned areas during the stated timing.

I’ve attended music events at Horniman Circle before, most of them Kala Ghoda Art Festival events. It is an unconventional setting, a stage in the center of a park. But it works really well, more so for a play than a music concert given the intimate interaction that is possible between audience and performer.

A bench-painting event had been conducted earlier in the evening owing to which all the seating en route to the stage bore ‘Wet Paint’ signboards. It was too dark for photography and I was eager to get to the stage before the play started but I passed some interesting art on the way. (I hope one of us will be able to post photographs soon).

Just as well, I suppose, since we got there just about five minutes before the play began. All the seats were taken so we sat down on the grass and that’s how we watched the entire play. Normally, I would not consider squatting on the ground for a play but like I said, this was an unconventional setting. The stage and seating area were edged on one side by ‘Lotuses of the Floating World’, an art installation by Sabrina Mascarehas. As I approached the area, I first thought they were diyas floating in a pool. But I soon realized that there is no water body inside the park and the temperature was the uncharacteristic cool of February rather than the heat of a hundred lamps. The installation is actually…(Click here to read the whole post)

So without busting out the slide rule and coming at it from an intensely scientific and/or parlimentary perspective, suffice it to say that upon the conclusion of the 8 Presidents Ride (estimated to be around 2 – 2:30 p.m.), some of us cyclist types will then be pedaling down 7th Street to Bixel to end up where the food peddlers (and free bike valet!) are. Join us, won’t you? Or see you there!

PS. Our own Queequeg had the fest’s details here first.

Our three options:

Hot Hollywood Night: Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles and Boardner’s

Burbank Bonanza: The Smokehouse

Westside Alka-Seltzer Fest: Tito’s Tacos and Johnnie’s Pastrami

As ever, we’ll start around 5pm so you can stop in then move on to the rest of your Saturday evening events. Or stay all night!

Click here to vote!

Looking forward to seeing you all soon!

An LAPD “community alert” sent to me moments ago reads:

On February 11, 2010 the Hollywood sign will be covered up for an international campaign. The sign will be covered until further notice.

Do not be alarmed, the sign will remain in place and there will be no changes done to the sign. This is just an informational e-mail so we do not receive phone calls from worried citizens.

Carolyn Ramsay with Councilman Tom LaBonge’s office would provide me with no additional information besides that they were participating in the secretive event. “You’ll have to wait til Thursday,” Carolyn repeated to me when I pressed for information.

*UPDATE 4:59pm: The media point person with the Hollywood sign itself, Betsy Isroelit, told me that the sign cover up would have nothing to do with an Amnesty International announced day of support for human rights Iran also scheduled for the 11th, or the Winter Olympics, beginning the following day. Zach at LAist is also digging into this.

**UPDATE 7:54p: The LA Weekly reveals that the alteration is planned to coincide with an announcement by the non-profit “Trust for Public Land,” which, based on the group’s purpose, could theoretically be purchasing the land around the Hollywood sign, which has been at risk of being used for private development over the past few years. Details will be announced at a Thursday 10am press conference at the Hollywood W Hotel.

Worth nothing: Carolyn insisted this has nothing to do with the fake Hollywood sign vandalism that pop star Ke$ha hoaxed her fans with a few days ago.

click to embiggen

Everytime I drive past this little house in Duarte I have to double take the 6 foot tall headless angel.  Next to the flag pole, framed by a partial fence.

Pic by me and does get bigger with a click.  I love these home-owners that decorate with a zeal an HOA would never approve of.

Now, it’s one thing to recognize local landmarks being used in a film, but I find it especially fun seeing my own neighborhood represented on the big screen (or TV. or laptop screen.). Eagle Rock is used all the time for exteriors, as many blocks are easily disguised as Small Town, Anywhere, USA. But interiors are harder to spot on TV – I knew it was Cindy’s Diner (which quite possibly gets more business as a shooting location than a restaurant) in those AT&T ads with Luke Wilson, but only because I saw Wilson standing outside in the parking lot while the commercial was being shot.

But this weekend while catching up on The Office, I spotted another local business (Can you guess it? Identity revealed after the jump):

“Siyasiyaat with Ejaz Haider is a news discussion, debate and analysis show.

Past shows will be posted on the fanpage regularly.”

Siyasiyaat Page on Facebook

Ejaz Haider is a veteran journalist and is also a consulting editor for:-

The Friday Times

There are serious elevator issues and during past 4 weeks 12 incidents of elevator malfunctions have happened.

It is highly dangerous….at xxx number of feet above ground STUCK

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNglewl6mQw[/youtube]

color me pretty excited that the tony award winning spring awakening is going to be coming to the fox theater this spring.

not only am i a fan of edgy musical theater of the avenue q and urinetown variety, but this particular musical happens to be based on the banned frank wedekind novel frülings erwachen which i read back in the day when i was a german major. it’s an aggressive piece to turn into musical theater; a great story and from all i can tell done with great music in this incarnation.

it’s playing march 9-14 at the fox so check it out. also, keep your eyes peeled here as we’re going to work on getting some tickets as part of a giveaway.

click to embiggen, image courtesy of Stephen Coleman.

Photographer Stephen Coleman got up into the neighborhoods below the Mullaly Flood Basin that over flowed in the early morning hours on Saturday.  His images of the devastation is pretty amazing.  I feel for those home owners and their recovery that lies ahead.  I hope that the storms set for this week aren’t as strong and don’t add to their misery.

Photographs can be seen in two sets Mudflow A and Mudflow B.

Photograph “Paradise Valley” used with permission of Stephen Coleman.

Download the Schedule here.

http://www.kalaghodaassociation.com/kgaf10.pdf

What you can expect : Kids playing with Colour, Bench & Umbrella Painting, Gallery and pavement shows,exhibitions, literary events, music concerts, dance performances, a food fiesta, and a buzzing street festival bring in audiences and participants from all over the city & world.

After seeing all this you should drink at Gokul,Cafe Royal, Mondegar or Leopold and eat at Bade Miya’s :)

Sharing some colors and images shot at the 1st day of the Kalaghoda Festival.

The missing Kala Ghoda is back, though minus the jockey :)

Save water!!

Wish our Khallipeeli’s were as colorful as this.

The Bombay Dabbawalah Cycle

Save Water

Don’t mess with Nature

Heal the World

Bench Painting @ Horniman Circle

The Great Indian Mango Trick

Nice paintings for Sale

No its not Iron Man.

Ragpicker admiring Photos.

Banian Art!!
For Larger size images click on the Pic and Also do feel free check out & comment on  The Flickr Set for more pics