Gentrification, USC, & Me

Back in 2008, I had the following email exchange:

May 17, 2008:

Hello! I was reading your online blog and was curious - do you still live at 1821-1839 S. Main Street? I was looking at those apartments some time ago and thought they were wonderful,but was weary of the area. How has your experience been? Also, I remember parking was tight -- do you park at the lot across the street, and how safe has your car been? I also noticed there was a lot for LA Mart down the street - do you know if this is at all available for tenants? Thanks for all your advice!

I replied the next day:

Hi there, 

Thanks for visiting my blog! I do still live there (though I haven't been posting nearly enough lately).  

I've been here since November and the people I've encountered in and near my building have generally been either friendly or at least non-threatening. I think it depends a lot on your own comfort level. I am careful about going out at night and last night was the first time I walked farther than the market downstairs alone (I usually bike everywhere at night). I walked to my apartment from the train station on Grand at about 10PM, and there were people around. Of course I'm always cautious but I try not to let that keep me from doing things. There is a restaurant downstairs that serves beer and has somewhat odd hours, and I see a few intoxicated people around once in a while-- nothing terribly alarming though. 

Dayshots: From J-Town to Gardena // Biking

It's only about 13 miles from Little Tokyo to Gardena, so a few weeks ago, I decided to bike home from East West Players. 

Once upon a time, I saw a cool building and thought that something cool was going to come of it. I was wrong. Three years later, the building is gone. Completely gone.

 A few blocks down, I saw Ghandi.

 Los Angeles needs more pocket parks. This one on South Broadway is not as nice as the little park on Venice & Hope, but it reminded me of the park in Paris where I sat to eat a delicious falafel pita.

I stopped here to drank some water. It was a hot, hot day. Chatted for a minute with a woman about what tough times these are, then got on my way again. 

There is still so much to see and learn of Los Angeles, even after four years.

Fierce Females at USC's Ground Zero Performance Cafe November 9th

The same group of women who put on imMEDIAte Justice are still at it. Women's Creative Collective is presenting spoken word and activist duo climbing poeTree at Ground Zero Performance Cafe on November 9, 7pm-9:30pm, completely free of charge and open to the public.

Ground Zero is a spacious and simultaneously intimate space on USC's campus. I saw Staceyann Chin, anot there in 2008 when she appeared as a part of USC GLBT Assembly's programming. She performed and also read from her then-forthcoming memoir, The Other Side of Paradise.

What's a "Griot"? Is it verb? Is it noun? Is it animal? Is it vegetable? Wikipedia says:

The griot delivers history as a poet, praise singer, and wandering musician. The griot is a repository of oral tradition. As such, they are sometimes also called bards. According to Paul Oliver in his book Savannah Syncopators, "Though [the griot] has to know many traditional songs without error, he must also have the ability to extemporize on current events, chance incidents and the passing scene. His wit can be devastating and his knowledge of local history formidable." Although they are popularly known as 'praise singers', griots may also use their vocal expertise for gossip, satire, or political comment.

Sounds good to me.

Women's Creative Collective presents
Griot and Riot: Poetry, Storytelling, and Writing Workshop for Radical Change with climbing poeTree
November 9, 7-9:30pm
Ground Zero Performance Cafe

615 Child's Way (on USC's Campus)
Open to the public & Free of Charge

Developments on South Main Street

The last time visited the Da Capo buildings where I lived in 2008 (and when I began this blog), I was heartbroken to see that the dear Felipe's One Stop Mini Market was gone when I drove past it recently.

I remember Felipe as such a sweet man: always telling me to be careful on my bicycle, offering me coffee in the morning, always with a smile even when I could tell by the bags under his eyes that he was exhausted. I visited him maybe once last year, and he remembered me, to my delight. I hope that he's moved on to something nice even with this recession, and that his family gets to spend more time with him (one of his daughters would hang around the shop on weekends).

I'm happy to report, though, that not all that I saw on my old block was discouraging; in fact, I saw something quite exciting-- an art gallery in a space that had been mostly vacant the entire time I lived there!

The current exhibit has been up since July 15th and closes on Sunday, August 15th. Will have to make sure I check it out. It's called

Indeed.

My time at the Da Capo buildings was one of the most fruitful, exhilarating times of my (admittedly short) life. From carrying my heavy 1970s Schwinn up three flights of stairs (voluntarily) to taking in the Downtown skyline from the rooftop (which was, technically, prohibited) to the sound of the Blue Line through my windows to the sweet Dorian who shared my home. I wonder who lives there now. And I wonder what it would be like to make my home there again.

23rd Street Cafe Has A New Look

When I was working at ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, 23rd Street Cafe was one of my go-to spots for a quick lunch. The cafe offers Mexican, Indian, and American food, all more than serviceable. Maybe good value make things taste better? I'm not sure, but you can take a look at 23rd's Yelp page for more opinions.

It has been nearly a year after I left SoDo and the Cafe is now under new ownership, but it seems to be the same great cafe with a slight, bright, cosmetic makeover.

The once-white walls have been replaced by a deep saffron and burgundy (?):


The sign above the door looks the same, perhaps slightly better-tended:

The fragrant, hardy rosemary bushes still line the outer patio area. (I used to pick off a sprig or two for cooking...shhh.)

As always, the mango lassi was fresh and tangy, and I was only able to finish one of the two large samosas I ordered ($1.99!).

It's good to see that some of the good things never change. West Adams may not be the fashionable district it was when LA was younger, but there are still many humble little jewels to be found there.

Bike Summit at LA Trade Tech!

I am still traveling so I cannot attend, but you should go! 

http://bikesummitla.wetpaint.com

Seen: LAPD and Teens

As I biked down 30th tonight, I came across six teenage boys being detained by four police officers between Broadway and Main. The officers had them against the chain-link fence, some of them cuffed. One of the officers noticed me lingering and observing and asked me if I needed something in a less-than friendly tone, and asked "do you know them?" I guess it is natural for LAPD to be on the defensive, especially when approached by a small young woman on bicycle at 8PM.

I told her that I didn't know the kids and I was just curious as to what was going on, why they were being detained, and she seemed reluctant to tell me. The other officers came up to us and one of them asked "What, are you a reporter?" To which I honestly replied "No, I've lived in this area for a while and I'm just wondering what was happening." Finally, an officer told me that they had been caught drinking on the school campus, two of them didn't have identification, and one might have a warrant out, and the rest were okay. And he told me with a smile.

I know that underage drinking is a serious offense, and that it is probably procedure, but I can't help feeling like it was a bit excessive to have them up against the fence like that. In a different neighborhood, underage drinkers may have just been escorted home instead of being treated as criminals already.

It's a much more complicated issue than that, with many other circumstances and facts to consider. This is a part of living in an urban area in this era, I suppose: procedure and code preclude common sense and independent judgment, and this can work both ways. Maybe even with my preference for city life, I still have some small-town sensibilities.

Main Street Gets Tree'd

Early on a Saturday morning about two weeks ago, I caught a glimpse of folks planting trees along the eastern side of Main Street. There were even more workers out on Monday morning, in hard hats, doing some serious digging and planting.

Hooray, green!

Shots from MAPS / LOCATIONS

I only made it to the very beginning of Zero-Point Space's last show on July 19, and I somehow managed to forget my camera at home. These images were taken with my phone.

Stage:

Sound control:

First act:

She's playing that guitar with a bow.

Art:

City for sale

"Opposite of War" art pieces

I would have purchased this piece if I'd had the cash. Alas.
---

The event started a bit late and I had to leave early, but I'm glad that I got to see Zero-Point Space one more time before Christine and Stayne leave. July 31st marks the end of their occupation of 1049 32nd Street.

If there any comparable or even vaguely art/music spaces in SoDo, please let me know. (To me, South Downtown is the area east of the 110, south of Olympic, and north of King-- I've not yet decided upon eastern border.)

Zero-Point Space's Last Show This Saturday

Zero-Point Space, which has been hosting art and events in SoDo since January, will be having its final show tomorrow evening. (I'll be performing spoken word at the event.) After eight months at their 32nd Street location, Christie Scott and Stane Hubert will be closing Zero-Point Space's brick-and-mortar venue and have plans to continue cultivating "love & ruckus" as a nonprofit.

(Note: the space is in the upstairs portion of a barn-like building on 32nd and Central.)


View Larger Map

MAPS / LOCATIONS
Saturday, July 19
6PM - Midnight

Zero-Point Space
1049 E. 32nd St.
90011

Jean P's 99-cent Soul Food Express

[Update: Jean P's was closed, sadly, sometime in early 2009. Alas.]

After seeing Big City Poz's photo of the blue-plate special he whipped up for himself, I was inspired to share this fabulous meal that has a similar combination of protein, starch, and green:


The meal is from Jean P's Soul Food Express, which is on the corner of Adams and Figueroa, tucked into a plaza that is dominated by 7-Eleven and Popeye's Chicken. I had ridden my bike past it numerous times, and was always intrigued by the rusting barbecue grill that they keep in the parking lot. I was skeptical, though, of a place that advertised 99-cent food, so I assuaged my fears first by reading reviews of the place on Yelp.com (oh Yelp, where would we be without ye?).

I walked in at about one in the afternoon and the place was nearly empty. The place is very small, with room for approximately 10 people in the dining area. The buffet was piled with southern food: collard greens, macaroni and cheese, hot links, and many other things that I can't recall at the moment. There was one other person ahead of me, and when I went to order, the woman behind the counter said "Wait a minute, baby." Something about Southern women allows them to get away with calling anyone "baby," I love it.

The meal came to about $8.00 and was actually enough for both a satisfying lunch and dinner for me. The collard greens were some of the best I've had 'round these parts, and the macaroni and cheese was fantastic, creamy and cheesy but still not overwhelmingly rich. The fried chicken was not the most spectacular I've had (which was at Babe's & Ricky's Inn on a Monday night), but it was good, especially with the Louisiana-style hot sauce.

Next time I go, I'll have to actually try some of that barbecue that comes from their parking lot grill!

Jean P's Soul Food Express
2540 S. Figueroa St.
90007

Announcement: Zero-Point Space

Posted on behalf of friends at Zero-Point Space.

Now accepting submissions:
The Zero-Point Art Collective
Working studio space now available in common room
3000 sq. ft./ high ceilings / east-facing windows / wood floors / second story

You choose your weekly schedule

Month-to-month agreements / workshop / salon environment

Also available for photography & filming, one day art gallery showcases.

Gallery hours forthcoming.

We are open to hosting workshops / classes / social / art-based meetings and groups

We also have a professional sound engineer & can record your work live or in a studio environment, and do vegan treats catering as well

For submissions / inquiries / volunteering / internships:

zeropointspace@gmail.com

Zeropoint.org
1049 E. 32nd St.
90011

Zero-Point on Myspace

I found out about Zero-Point from Mark Ferem, whom I met when I was haunting Lost Souls Cafe on a near-daily basis. In March, Zero-Point an event called the Dream Time which included an exhibit from Mark's book, Bathroom Graffiti.

At the moment Zero-Point will not be able to host any music or extremely loud events due to noise complaints, but I hope that the space can stay open and eventually get soundproofing.

Art is alive in So(uth)Do(owntown).