Posted on 07/18/2011 8:15:32 PM PDT by doug from upland
Downtown Los Angeles boasts some big-city perks like spacious lofts and trendy restaurants, but living there is a different kind of beast.
By Mike Armstrong
July 17, 2011 "Look, Daddy, that man's going to the bathroom!"
No, not the words any daddy wants to hear from his 10-year-old daughter, especially during a stroll through their brand-new neighborhood.
Moving my wife and kids into a downtown Los Angeles loft may not win me "Dumbest Dad of the Year" honors, but it should at least get me into the quarterfinals. The loft itself was great. More like a movie set than an apartment. High ceilings, new appliances, breathtaking views and a deck with a Jacuzzi that was used at least once every six months during our year there. It wasn't what was inside the building that broke the deal; it was what was out there on the mean and strange streets of downtown Los Angeles.
Why we moved there is academic. More space for less money, a new environment, cool restaurants and various other meaningless enticements. I got sucked in; I was wrong, and I admit it. I've apologized to everybody involved, and I will continue to do so until I am either dead or forgiven. In the meantime, let me tell you about my downtown L.A.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
In August, 1971, a friend and I drove from Santa Cruz (then a nice quiet place) down the coast and wanted to visit L.A. Once on the the freeway, at about 75 miles an hour, we couldn’t see the off-ramp sign to LA due to the smog.
We said, “Screw it” and headed for Nevada, where the air was clean and Harry Reid hadn’t raped it yet.
Yes. I know. Liberalism seems to cause brain deadness with their brainwashing solution of BS. After jury duty I was happy to say, “goodbye.”
Yep. Jack Webb and his on-screen persona Joe Friday didn’t support the 2nd Amendment. Multiple episodes of Dragnet were devoted to characterizing anyone who owned a gun as being a nutcase and a danger to himself and his neighbors. “Let the police handle it.” LOL. I still liked the show however.
Is the Pantry still open on 10th and Broadway? Great place
to eat when you’re a hungry USC student.
Oh, the 1970s. The golden age of music. If only we had a Shaft today! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2cHkMwzOiM
I was born in Inglewood, CA, but I’m embarrassed to claim CA as my State of birth. With Senators like Boxer and Feinstein, and Reps. like Maxine Waters, this once great State has become America’s SHITHOLE!!
Yep...still open. Pretty sure it's on 9th and Fig. Used to go there after school dances/proms/games. There's no way I'd go downtown now...and I was born & raised there.
####
Complete with wholly gratuitous and abjectly ignorant slam on Christianity.
My Dad took my brother and I to ride on the streetcars in L.A. on the last day that they were scheduled to run. It was 1963 and we were just kids, I was 13 and my brother was 11. After parking our car, I remember watching two cops throw a guy to the ground on the sidewalk in front of us and point a gun to his head before handcuffing him. Never wanted to go back to downtown L.A. after that.
Ever been to Philippe's on Alameda? Best French Dip ever.
What a pit. Streets there would have to be lined with gold to get me back.
Philippe's invented the French Dip sandwich. All the cops and newspaper reporters used to hang out there.
He was a bad mother...("shut yo mouth").
True, but I would feel better if he put on one of these on his car:
And paraded up and down the streets of LA in this tee:
Get used to it - LA is a Third World Spanish-speaking sewer taken over by the illegal alien hordes. It is where the rest of America will soon be as Obama and his RINO buddies get their amnesty and Dream Acts passed and chain migration creates millions and millions of foreign invaders.
But Obama and the RINOs won’t care. Just like in THird World countries, they will live in opulent splendor in their gated communities while the rest of us live the life of this buffoon who wanted to enjoy the inner city pleasures of a collapsed society.
Philippe’s? Nope, never made it there. The Pantry was great
in the early 60’s, great food at great prices. All the waiters knew most of us from USC and always piled the food on.
A lot of us working our way through only had one really good
meal a day and they knew it. Rumor had it that the place was
started as a way to give ex-cons a job when they got out of the joint.
I wouldn't have guessed there was another person on this board who was familiar with that town. I used to live right outside there, in Kemp. Wonderful area -- and yes, the locals will blow your head clean off, if you push 'em.
Friend of mine is a cop there. Seemed an appropriate place for Joe Friday to move to. :D
At least in the case of Joe Friday, that was pretty accurate in terms of depicting the average LAPD officer of the era.
Of course, back then, the police most often *would* be able to handle it, so there was less need for civilians to carry in self defense.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.