U2-charist

Even a long time U2 fan like me felt a strong compulsion to roll my eyes at the U2-charist. But you know what? Good for them. If it helps, I'm all for it. I'd go as long as we pick Yahweh and not Mysterious Ways. I never did get that song.

Churchy Update

I was going to attend the WCC conference but it looks like I'll be home now. The silver lining is that I won't have to miss assorted social gatherings and visiting friends.

At church, we are two weeks into a big series on the sermon on the mount. Sermons are available online.

Tonight

I didn't realize this was coming, but I had a minor meltdown tonight. I held it together all day but apparently by the time I came home I was looking rather distraught. Thankfully all three of my housemates noticed and took good care of me. Once they got me to open up and vent, it all came vomiting out. And it is hardly because things are going poorly. There are simply just a lot of things period. The increased driving during the past two weeks also makes me feel a little extra crazy too. I'm glad to get this chance to regroup. I mean, it's only Monday, for goodness sake.

Suburbia and Cars

Found an interesting Washington Post article challenging the conventional wisdom on "Suburbia and Our Car-Happy Culture" (via Instapundit):

Myth 1 - Americans are addicted to driving.
Myth 2 - Public transit can reduce traffic congestion.
Myth 3 - We can cut air pollution only if we stop driving.
Myth 4 - We're paving over America.
Myth 5 - We can't deal with global warming unless we stop driving.

The article isn't an advocate for suburbs and cars as much as it takes a look at some overreaches by the crowd worried about sprawl. The interesting part isn't the myths but the ways he explains his rationale. I highly recommend reading the entire thing!

Plug

Casa de Rattay. Check it out! Yeah, he is the brother of a NLF quarterback but he is more importantly the guy starting a church in Lincoln Heights.

Waterfront Project

Curbed LA on some waterfront project. Don't feel sorry for the urban planners who work on this. They are doing ok. Not that I know any of them. And read the comments! It ain't so bad.

Pinkberry

Of course, nothing can live up to the hype surrounding Pinkberry. But I haven't heard anyone not like the stuff. See the take from the folks at LAist.

Not Sick

No sir, I am not getting sick.

I pride myself in nipping potential colds in the bud. And this morning feels rather more vulnerable than I have in a while. I can't stop sniffling and still feel like I haven't defrosted. But I'm going out tonight, have breakfast plans tomorrow, babysitting during the day and then going out at night. Hm. Of my social plans, tonight will probably have to be cut short if I'm to keep from getting sick. It's nothing some liquids, a book, and lots of sleep can't fix.

Yesterday

We met with a friend diagnosed with hyperthyroid last night. I'm glad the group got together. We hung out, got an update, and prayed over the situation. It was quite moving.

Trashies - background music

Whew!

I'm exhausted. Yesterday was the the last of a series of night meetings on the waterfront project. I'd say it was a good two weeks of consistent night meetings. Suffice to say that we've got the message loud and clear and our work is cut out for us!

Kal Penn

Could Kal Penn be the next Keanu Reeves? Well, only in the sense that one hilarious role has made it tough for me to take him seriously. I say Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle equals Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. So whether he is playing a tough guy in Superman Returns or Islamic terrorist in 24, I still wait for a hilarious dream sequence.

Market Update

"Right now there is just a standoff between buyers and sellers." Bleh.

Millions

Mayor Villaraigosa has challenged the city family to plant a million trees in LA. The Port is certainly working hard to do its part. Unfortunately, they probably won't be palms.

Whitey

To my chagrin, I discovered the shiny glimmer of my first and second white hairs this morning. From wikipedia:

The change in hair color is caused by the gradual decrease of pigmentation that occurs when melanin ceases to be produced in the hair root, and new hairs grow in without pigment. Two genes appear to be responsible for the process of greying, Bcl2 and Mitf. The stem cells at the base of hair follicles are responsible for producing melanocytes, the cells that produce and store pigment in hair and skin. The death of the melanocyte stem cells causes hair to begin going grey.[1]

There are no special diets, nutritional supplements, vitamins, nor proteins that have been proven to slow, stop, or in any way affect the greying process, although many have been marketed over the years. [Emph. added]

Ah well. What's a guy to do. Maybe this means I'm getting wiser.

Surprise

Tonight ebbed and flowed just right. Attended the UCLA Extension Planning Land Use Law conference at the beautiful Millennium Biltmore Hotel - which really is run quite well. Went to visit friends who live downtown and then ended up tagging along to a SWA Group office party. Impressive work. Maybe the Port will hire them someday...

January: Shadow Family

Good news on my 2007 new year's resolution. I wanted to get a chapter or two in tonight but ended up finishing the whole thing. Picking a mystery set in Tokyo was perfect - I couldn't put it down! Next month is another mystery, this time set in my favorite US city, LA.

Rave

OOhhh, I'll be following this site closely. Andyeye is about "Fashion and style on the streets of LA." It has the potential to join my morning must read blogs: LA Observed (where it was linked), LAist, and Curbed LA.

This short NY Times piece on the percentage of women living without a spouse caught my eye. Did you know that:

Only about 30 percent of black women are living with a spouse, according to the Census Bureau, compared with about 49 percent of Hispanic women, 55 percent of non-Hispanic white women and more than 60 percent of Asian women. [Emph. added]

I wouldn't have guessed Asians to have the highest percentage, but it makes sense. And what does "more than" mean?

Urban Planning

Curbed LA likes Urban Planners and we like them right back - I've just joined their promising flickr group. Now Curbed LA posted that Fast Company has included urban planning in their 10 Hot Jobs for 2007.

Urban Planners: From the Hong Kong International Airport Residential Tower to suburban "McMansion" sprawl, individuals in residential planning and development can expect a lot of work in the coming year. Urban Planners must meet the demand for real estate that's both decadent and practical. Prefab one-level homes engineered for the aging baby boomer population are changing the face of suburban America, and boosting the demand for urban planners.
Further Reading: "Rise of the Aerotropolis," Greg Lindsay, July/August 2006 and "House in a Box," John Rosenthal, November 2006.

I'm still convinced that I should pick up the guitar again.

Weekend and Reflections

Went snowboarding and got my body beat up by snow and wind. It was quite beautiful up there in the mountains. Pics here.

I've also had a chance to reflect on Saturday. I don't know of any wedding that I've had more time, work, effort and expectation invested. I'm the coordinator. I live with them. I love them. And indeed it was a wonderful night. The marriage is the confirmation of something new. Oddly enough, the evening also pretty much confirmed the end of a nothing there.

Seeing old UCSD friends was fun. Catching up with my old roomie was particularly special.

I was too busy to take pictures of the wedding but here are more photos taken once my duties were over.

The Radio Dept. - Pet Grief

New Music

Got my new The Radio Dept. cd in the mail. Good stuff. Melancholy reading music for a cold day hits the spot.

I'll shut my mouth for you
Anything you want me to

Big Day

Wedding coordination is in full force!!!

Stress Spots

If I go awhile without adequate rest, I have three particular stress spots that inform me that I am far overdue for some beauty sleepy good time. The first clue is that I start to eat a lot faster and a bit more than I usually do. The second clue is that if I place my finger on my left temple, I can feel a rushed pulse. The third, and by far biggest wake up call, is that if I look closely enough, that same pulse can be actually seen moving the skin under my left eye. Gross! If that doesn't cause bags, I don't know what will.

Clue three was confirmed yesterday at work. I subsequently slept early and just work up. We'll see how long it takes until I'm back to normal again. Today's going to be a busy day too.

We're #1! We're #1!

LA is the place to be, at least according to 2007 Hub Zeitgeist List(via Curbed LA).

1. Los Angeles

A controversial choice? Sure it's big, but LA is finally hitting on all cylinders: fashion, tech, entertainment, and overall groove. American Apparel is changing fashion with vertically integrated manufacturing. LA's skull and bones indie rock fashion dominates globally. Myspace culture is taken for granted, everywhere. New walking areas and urban regeneration projects, from downtown to Malibu to Hollywood, make the city much more palatable than before, despite the endless crush of traffic. Entourage and other shows, from the OC to Laguna Beach, have moved the collective consciousness west. All in this and more help make LA the city of the moment: the energy is positive, its power is on the rise, and people everywhere have LA on their mind.

Rounding out the remaining top 10 are, Berlin, Mumbai, Istanbul, London, Buenos Aires, Beijing, Dubai, New York, and Geneva.

Picture of Me

Mr. Cubicle.

Office Intrigue

Work is filled with rumors. The office has been turned upside down, at least for the senior level managers. Up is down and down is up. While I love a little juicy office gossip, I had best not get overly distracted as I have in the past. The scenarios and implications (opportunities?) for me are interesting to think about but history has shown that office politics is not a good game for me to play. Once again, expectation management and objective perspective will be important.

High School Hair

What started out as a lazy reluctance to go out and get a haircut has resulted in the return of Agent Cooper hair (at work at least). People are noticing. Last night at a neighborhood council meeting, the Council deputy pulls me aside and says, "New hair. They ask you to tone it down, did they?"

The Sky Will Fall in 07?

The guy who predicted the stock crash in 1987 thinks we are in for a rough year (from Drudge):

``In the next few months, we could get a severe correction in all asset markets,'' Faber said in an interview with Bloomberg Television in New York.

Then again, Ben Stein takes the long view on stock markets.

Dec or Jan?

The last visiting brother has flown off, which likely spells the end to the holiday season. I don't know about you but it still feels like December somehow. It should be over but the weekends are still packed and everyone refuses to slow down. Maybe it's already over for me. The To Do list is getting long again - there is a wedding to coordinate, resolution to keep, and "other items" to finish off. Work is certainly back at full speed too, as I'll be making the community rounds as the Port's project manager on the San Pedro Waterfront Project the next few weeks.

My Union

I'm disappointed to read that two engineers in my union messed with LA traffic lights. Thankfully no one was hurt. A past statement from the union boss infers that the action was coordinated. LA Observed has the story.

GH

Celebrated with Brian all day long. We'll have more fun next week when he marries Allison. Ended the night with some of my improved Halo 2 play but had even more fun partnering with various band members for over two hours of nonstop Guitar Hero 1 and 2.

Hockey

Went to the Gehry designed Honda Center last night. Had a great time watching the Ducks play, despite the blown lead.

Snowboarding

After one trip during break, I've got the bug.

Wifi

Downtown spots that will soon have wifi: Pershing Square, Bunker Hill, the financial district, the historic core and Little Tokyo. (thanks to Curbed LA)

2007 Resolution

My goal is to read a fiction book every month for the year of 2007. Comics, planning magazines, and christian commentary do not count.

I'd like to start with something compelling and short to get me rolling. Maybe by August I'll tackle a Russian novel. For now, January will be Shadow Family. This is my second Miyuki Miyabe mystery novel. The first was a gift from from my sister-in-law - and if this new one is half as good as All She Was Worth, I'll be starting the year in fine fashion.

I ordered the book, along with a cd and magazine, with an amazon.com gift certificate. Did you know that around 6% of gift cards will go unused? I've been guilty of that myself but hopefully will remember to go to Starbucks and Sports Chalet.

2007

Happy new year. This year should prove to be an excellent time for blogging, as there are a lot of exciting things going on and my mind is already racing with thoughts to be typed out. Expect changes as blogger.com has some new features that I'm figuring out. For one thing, I'm trying to bring back comments.