jimmy

It’s been a busy couple of weeks with the Kings playing 500 games over the span. But they’re on the road to give me a little reprieve as I get ready to celebrate my 34th birthday. But just as that happens, well it’s TIME FOR DODGER BASEBALL. Friday they play a preseason game at the Ravine against the Angels, play one at Angel Stadium, take Sunday off and the season opens on Monday against the reigning World Series champs San Francisco Giants.

And I’ll totally admit it. I have no idea what’s going on with either the Dodgers or the Angels. Good thing I have a week to do a crash course before it all begins.

So anyhow, the above picture is that of the Staples Center crew putting in the Clippers court and seats after the Kings finished playing. They can finish the transition and clean all of the seats in the arena in about two hours.

So in Orange County, it looks like the police are allowed to shoot non white people in the back. In one of two shootings in Anaheim last summer that sparked protests and outrage from the community, the officer who shot the 25-year old Manuel Diaz in the back as he was fleeing will not have charges filed against him. The OC District Attorney said Nick Bennallack was justified in shooting Diaz in the back.

Bennallack said that he saw Diaz reaching for a gun. No gun was ever found.

It makes me wonder, during a protest a month before the second invasion of Iraq in 2003 I did turn my back and walk away from the police. I was leaving the rally at Sunset/La Brea and making the one-mile trek back to my car. I inadvertently walked into a side-protest by an anarchist collective. I wanted no part of it since it was 4 p.m. and I hadn’t eaten at all, so I just walked away.

It was at that point I heard an officer yell, “Hey you in the red shirt! Get back here.” I was really hungry, mind you, so I kept walking away. No one came after me, I haven’t been detained or anything. But now I wonder if I were in OC if that cop would have shot me in the back. Okay, it’s a stretch.

But anyhow. Fuck Orange County and fuck the police.

Fuck Wall Street, the World Bank, and all of the greedy criminal bankers and speculators out there while we’re at it. The tiny island nation of Cyprus has come on hard times much like the rest of the world and needed a bailout from the European Union. The EU were willing to loan the county 10 billion Euro. But, as with most things, there were some conditions.

One of the conditions: tax people’s saving accounts. Basically the EU wants to steal money directly from the people to pay these rich fucks.

I say let’s send to prison all of the greedy runaway-capitalism fucks who are responsible for all of these meltdowns and let all of the banks fail. Let’s just purge all of this and start over.

Can you be homesick for a place you don’t live in? I know I don’t live in Louisiana and haven’t since I was eight-years old. I know I said I was done talking about the road trip. But when I woke up this morning I had the hankering of traveling down to Grand Isle.

This started a whole line of questions. If my mom didn’t leave my dad and move us out to Los Angeles, would I know how to fish, hunt and do all of those outdoor activities? I know it wouldn’t be my dad to teach me these things, but I did have my best friend down the way who I have come to find out hosts a reality show on Outdoor Channel and is the voice of PBR, the Professional Bull Riders circuit.

Then again, would I be more miserable as a gay man? Would I be as much of a pinko liberal as I am now?

But look at the road above. Water water everywhere on the way down to Grand Isle. You could pull off the side of the road and fish. I know I’m being stupid, but…

When one thinks of a beach city, one thinks of a flat strip of land that ends with a strip of sand and water. A nice ocean breeze cools everything, and everyone is laid back and happy.

San Pedro is a strange place. It’s very hilly and ends in cliffs on the south side and the harbor on the east side. As you see in the picture to the left, it’s foggy. This is at White Point Nature Preserve right where Paseo Del Mar fell into the Pacific Ocean over a year ago. As you can see crews are working on trying to rebuild Paseo Del Mar it seems.

I live a mere 4 miles away, yet I don’t get any fog. As the fog comes in from the west, I’m blocked out thanks to San Pedro Hill aka Palos Verdes. To the south there are several hills between me and the ocean. Instant, presto, no fog! Also when it gets warm in Southern California, thanks to all the shielding we get temperatures similar to the Valley.

There is a good side to this. Being so close to a tsunami evacuation zone, on the ever so slight chance one comes around our way, being about 300 feet in elevation means not having to worry about being flooded. Then again, it also means living on an island for a bit. Hmph. Maybe I haven’t thought this out as thoroughly as I need to.

After not being able to walk at Christmas that left parts of my left leg and left foot numb, after a two-week roadie where I ate a lot of fried foods and after getting hit with a slight chest cold, I decided today was the day to get out into nature and take a hike at one of my favorite hiking places: Portuguese Bend Nature Preserve.

I don’t know why I like it so much. Perhaps it’s because it’s an active landslide area. But there’s no doubt it has some gorgeous vistas. I mean look at the picture above, the little mountains of Catalina Island peeking over the fog bank.

I’ve done the hike here two different ways. The way I did it today was parking at the top of the hill right where Crenshaw Blvd. ends and started the descent. Since I really haven’t done anything too strenuous in months and I’ve turned into a Fatty Fat McFat Fatty, I decided to do this easier route. Of course the big downfall is you end the hike going up.

I was a little too eager and went down a little too far, so coming back up what with my partially numb left foot and pounds of fat it was a bit of a strain to make it back to my car.

The other way I’ve done it is park at the adjacent Forrestal Reserve off of Palos Verdes Drive South and hiked into the Portuguese Bend Reserve. It’s a bit more strenuous, but it’s tons of fun.

With the mercury breaking the 80-degree mark, a lot of people decided to make it out there. There was a group of six shirtless dudes who brought out their own club mix for all to enjoy. I couldn’t tell whether they were European, gay or both.

Then there was this hulk of a guy in his 20s who was hiking down as I was walking back up near the trail head. Let’s name him Brock.

Brock has the build of either an outside linebacker or an offensive left guard. He was wearing black runner’s shorts and a backpack. As he walked by I got a whiff of him, and damned if I didn’t want to get on my knees right there and eat out his asshole as I moaned his name, “Brock,” deep into the crevasse of his ass.

Did I ever mention that day hikes get me horny?

Okay, I admit it. I do like going up to people when I pick out a nice pear to eat and go, “Look! An Oh Pear!” It makes me giggle to no end.

It’s almost like another joke I love to tell. What is the sound of a water truck colliding with a vinegar truck? DOUCHE! Well, you have to see me tell it.

When I was little I read this joke from a stupid joke book: an American, a Brit and a Russian are on a plane that’s on fire. There are no parachutes. In a moment of desperation the American decides to jump out of the plane. He screams out, “God save me,” jumps out and lands on a haystack. The Brit sees this and decides to the same thing. He too lands on a haystack.

The Russian is giddy with excitement knowing he will also be saved. Unfortunately there was the matter of his accent. He screamed out, “God shave me!” The Russian landed on a barber’s chair.

See? Stupid. But it tickles me to no end.

I park my car blocks away from STAPLES Center and schlep my bloated bag of bones and fat and water over to the arena on foot. As I walk down 11th Street towards to the arena, I come upon this interesting place. For years it was nothing, just a vacant storefront. But as the hockey season started up again, I noticed this.

It’s not open all the time, but when it is it’s a coffeehouse complete with the new pretentious drip drop bullshit a la Intelligentsia. Come to find out it’s a pop-up shop for Cafe Dulce although I’m still unconvinced.

I’ll walk by and the people running the store are speaking in hushed tones in Korean while smoking a cigarette. When I walked by Saturday night, it sounded like a party was going on inside although the gates were closed. So I’m 100% convinced this is a Korean drug front. For what, exactly, I don’t know.

Here’s a photo of the other side of the store front.

Regardless what it really is, I think it’s pretty cool.

Am I the only person who’s addicted to this game? It’s perfect for me. I only have to play it for 2 or 3 minutes chunks of time, it’s really kind of pointless and it requires no skill. If that ain’t perfection, I don’t know what is.

The junior Senator from Kentucky Rand Paul, Republican, is filibustering the nomination of John Brennan as director of the CIA. His bone of contention is the Obama administration’s legal justification of using drone strikes against American citizens both overseas and domestically.

I never EVER thought I would ever agree with Senator Paul about anything, especially since he was elected as part of the dreaded Tea Party Express. But I applaud him for his stance.

“I am here to filibuster John Brennan’s nomination to be director of the CIA,” Sen. Paul proclaimed. “I will speak for as long as it takes.”

I am 100% against the use of drone strikes against American citizens. But something about this filibuster makes me feel a little dirty.

The reason is clear. He called upon some of the biggest dickheads in the Senate, Sens. Ted Cruz (TX), Marco Rubio (FL), Saxby Chambliss (GA). Sen. Rubio, trying to show that he isn’t as stiff as an oversized dildo, joked with Sen. Paul telling him to be sure he has plenty of water on hand during his filibuster.

I believe that Sen. Paul would have done this had Bush 43 been president, but what about Rubio, Chambliss, Cruz? Some of the republicans are leeches doing anything to obstruct government just because Obama is the president. After all, a lot of republicans sure loved Bush and gave him over-reaching powers.

My question is where are the democrats? Democrat Senator from Oregon Ron Wyden joined in, but where is Senator Boxer? Senator Durbin? Senator Franken? Senator Landrieu? I know they were opposed to Bush’s use of torture. Where are they now on killing American citizens without due process?

It makes me sick that our government is ruled by the parties and not by ideals. The government shouldn’t murder people. We should help out our fellow man (isn’t that written in the Bible or something?)

Yes I’m glad this filibuster is happening. But boy do I feel dirty watching some of the biggest dickheads in the Senate doing my bidding so to speak.