Pictures on the Road...

So it's a well-known fact that people in LA love their cars. And here's proof:

One of These Things is Not Like the Other

Notice the fine company our white Infiniti G35 is keeping here in Malibu? The valet apparently deemed it worthy of hanging out with the Ferraris. The picture was just so funny that we had to take a shot of it.

Wedding Gift

We were driving in Pasadena, when we happened upon this new Land Rover with the license place "WEDD GFT." (Sorry I couldn't get a better shot...we were moving, I was using my cameraphone...) How's that for a wedding gift?

Chutney or Salsa?

Can anyone tell me the difference between chutney and salsa? They seem to be the same, and I'm kind of confused. Like, we got mango chutney at an Indian restaurant, but it looked, smelled, and tasted like the mango salsa we got at another restaurant.

No Loitering

no loitering
Originally uploaded by Tina Pham.

Crazy downtown Los Angeles. I noticed this sign in the parking structure as I was waiting for the elevator. Does this mean I should only loiter around the trashcans downstairs? Or perhaps, did they really mean "No Littering"? You decide.

Abandon all hope, ye who enter here

abandon all hope
Originally uploaded by Tina Pham.

Walking into the Ernst & Young building in downtown today, I was struck by this statue of a headless businessman slumped dejectedly underneath the building's address. Now, I'm all for public art and everything, but this made me feel like working here was not a good idea at all. I mean, you could lose your head over it. Or your identity. Or your will to live.

Someone should rethink this one.

Only in LA...

Tonight Joel and I went to the movies at our very favorite movie theater, the Arclight. On the way there, we were discussing the merits of living in Vancouver (yes, as in CANADA) versus Los Angeles. Now, I don't actually know much about Vancouver besides hearing that it's a beautiful coastal city and it's in Canada. But I have lived in LA for a number of years so I do know a lot about Los Angeles. Plus in one of my jobs I'm working on promoting Los Angeles culture. While LA has its downsides (smog, miserably hot summers, et al), there are things that can happen only in LA.

This is all based on personal experience. In the number of years I have lived here, only in LA could these following things happen:

• My friend almost ran over Brad Pitt while leaving a parking lot.
• One of our favorite bartenders is now in national television commercials.
• I had to push Matthew McCanaughey out of the way to use the bathroom at Tom Bergin's (I swear he was blocking the ladies' room on purpose).
• I exclaim, loud enough for Kiefer Sutherland to hear, that he couldn't possibly be Kiefer at a bar.
• My dog was "discovered" while hiking at Runyon Canyon for a national television commercial.
• We now regularly look for friends' names in end credits of major (and some minor) movies.

Tonight was no exception to the rule. I swear, only in LA could this happen. We arrived at the Arclight to watch Cars, dismayed to find that there was a film premiere there at the Arclight's Dome. Yup, a premiere. For Clerks 2. In Hollywood. Yeah, like lots of people taking pictures of stars, probably there was a red carpet. Go figure. It didn't affect us too much, except for the parking situation. While we were finishing dinner at the Arclight, who should be seated at the next table over to us but Kevin Smith and his wife. Joel dared me to ask how writing Aquaman 2 was going, but I didn't want to interrupt the man while he was dining with such a random question (anybody get the reference?). But I was very interested to know what his reaction would have been. I don't know if I'll see Clerks 2, I've seen every other Kevin Smith movie like a good Gen-X, slacker generation person should.

So Mr. Smith, I didn't interrupt you over dinner, but if you somehow made it on to my blog, how's Aquaman 2 working out?