Some Things About LA

The tall buildings have setbacks and plazas, and the streets and the sidewalks are far wider than those in New York, and somehow that makes me feel far more dwarfed than the narrow canyons of home.

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The crosswalks are brick-red. No, not red brick. At first you think they're red brick, but then you look again and you realize the red is painted on. And then you realize that under the red paint is regular old asphalt, with brick shapes carved into the surface. Somehow that makes me think about early medieval manuscripts, with the lines etched rather then penciled on, and the ink written over them.

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There are a lot more small cars and a lot fewer big old SUVs than there are on the streets of New York. Do you think that has anything to do with California's strict emissions laws?

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The Marriott Hotel has beer advertising several stories high up the glass sides. More important than "How do they do that?" is "Why is this necessary?"

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I didn't realize Bi Bim Bop was comfort food, for me, until I was eating it in absolute bliss yesterday.

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The Westin Bonaventure hotel seems designed so that a person could live in it for weeks, maybe months, possibly even years, without ever venturing outside. There's a whole raft of restaurants and retail opportunities plus a health club, and these really cool glass elevators that crawl up the outsides of the buildings so you can get a view of the neighborhood. But I thought one of the reasons people moved here was... for the weather?