Chris - I (& spouse) lived there '80-'83, on the east edge of Playa del Rey, with a direct, unencumbered westward view of what was then perhaps the only ~5K acres of undeveloped land amidst a huge city on the planet. I'd speculate that the enviro. litigation pleadings (re. preemption, right? - i.e., fed. or state turf to save / regulate?) would include interesting stats., enviro. testing results, forecasts, and photos. (Perhaps fodder for a research assistant, if you future-burrow deeper into this topic / locale? Or for some sight-selection team for a future film?) best, hank
OK, so I already said much of this in an email to you, Christopher, but I was at Ballona myself last Monday, only my second time there, and I thought of you a whole lot for the obvious reasons. Good place to see birds and also get the feeling you might be on the set of a dystopian film. You've gotta love the solid wall of ghost RVs and campers on Jefferson, taking up every last parking spot, contrasted with the sight hanging just above, on the cliffs, the solid line of upscale homes. If I could post a photo or two here, I'd include the street sign on Lincoln in that shot, marking this as a "Tsunami Evacuation Route." The day I was there I ran into two different guys who were quite chatty & friendly & interesting, one of them being a photographer and after exchanging a bit of info on bird sightings there, we parted but then he caught up with me again and asked if he could take my picture--he liked my outfit with the fedora and scarf and pencil thin mustache, binocs & car coat--and they were supposedly clearing out the camper population that day though I didn't see a lot of action. Birdwise, I kept glimpsing small, very busy yellow & black birds. I'm pretty sure one of them was a yellow rumped warbler, but the others, orioles? plus willets, great egrets, mallards, coots... and best of all, I guess, a Northern Harrier riding the air currents above the scrubby plain. It was windy that day and he was just sitting up there, almost motionless, as if pasted there, waiting for lunch to arrive. But I totally identify with your drop-off confusion. My map app did the same thing to me first time I drove there, but I didn't have the option to stop and abandon my car, of course. Drove around for a good 45 minutes trying to figure out where to park, where to access the reserve, and getting caught up in the Playa del Rey frantic traffic buzz. I was familiar with the area back in the late 80s-90s because I used to freelance edit at the Getty Conservation Institute in the Marina. I'd take long lunch breaks prowling used bookstores and stuff. But I wasn't yet into birds and wet places and in fact the Ballona reserve didn't exist yet. Anyway, I'm really glad it exists. I'll try going back there again before our LA sabbatical ends in February. If you're coming out again before Valentine's Day, give me a shout. I'd love to see it with the help of your eyes.
Chris - I (& spouse) lived there '80-'83, on the east edge of Playa del Rey, with a direct, unencumbered westward view of what was then perhaps the only ~5K acres of undeveloped land amidst a huge city on the planet. I'd speculate that the enviro. litigation pleadings (re. preemption, right? - i.e., fed. or state turf to save / regulate?) would include interesting stats., enviro. testing results, forecasts, and photos. (Perhaps fodder for a research assistant, if you future-burrow deeper into this topic / locale? Or for some sight-selection team for a future film?) best, hank
SRD and VanderMeer in one entry. Bonus! If you had mentioned ley lines, it would have been a nerdpocalypse for me.
Good to hear you are on Mastodon. I have been posting these there (and on LinkedIn), both.
Well, now I’m just going to have to read “Dhalgren” again! Thanks, Chris! Pfft!… 😉
OK, so I already said much of this in an email to you, Christopher, but I was at Ballona myself last Monday, only my second time there, and I thought of you a whole lot for the obvious reasons. Good place to see birds and also get the feeling you might be on the set of a dystopian film. You've gotta love the solid wall of ghost RVs and campers on Jefferson, taking up every last parking spot, contrasted with the sight hanging just above, on the cliffs, the solid line of upscale homes. If I could post a photo or two here, I'd include the street sign on Lincoln in that shot, marking this as a "Tsunami Evacuation Route." The day I was there I ran into two different guys who were quite chatty & friendly & interesting, one of them being a photographer and after exchanging a bit of info on bird sightings there, we parted but then he caught up with me again and asked if he could take my picture--he liked my outfit with the fedora and scarf and pencil thin mustache, binocs & car coat--and they were supposedly clearing out the camper population that day though I didn't see a lot of action. Birdwise, I kept glimpsing small, very busy yellow & black birds. I'm pretty sure one of them was a yellow rumped warbler, but the others, orioles? plus willets, great egrets, mallards, coots... and best of all, I guess, a Northern Harrier riding the air currents above the scrubby plain. It was windy that day and he was just sitting up there, almost motionless, as if pasted there, waiting for lunch to arrive. But I totally identify with your drop-off confusion. My map app did the same thing to me first time I drove there, but I didn't have the option to stop and abandon my car, of course. Drove around for a good 45 minutes trying to figure out where to park, where to access the reserve, and getting caught up in the Playa del Rey frantic traffic buzz. I was familiar with the area back in the late 80s-90s because I used to freelance edit at the Getty Conservation Institute in the Marina. I'd take long lunch breaks prowling used bookstores and stuff. But I wasn't yet into birds and wet places and in fact the Ballona reserve didn't exist yet. Anyway, I'm really glad it exists. I'll try going back there again before our LA sabbatical ends in February. If you're coming out again before Valentine's Day, give me a shout. I'd love to see it with the help of your eyes.