Welcome Blogdowntown Readers!

Thanks to Eric and everyone over at Blogdowntown for the recent mention in this post - it’s really appreciated!

Our posts here tend to revolve around our daily experiences and thoughts in our new home, here in the heart of downtown Los Angeles. There’s usually plenty of questions, the occasional whining and you can count on us belly-aching about missing Chicago.

If the mood strikes you please leave a comment on any of the topics covered, we love hearing what others have to say and how you feel. Be sure to bookmark us and check back to see what is new, what’s on our minds and of course the odd funny photo of Carter himself. There’s an RSS feed available for you technically inclined people (aren’t they great!).

Once again, welcome new readers - we’re glad you’re here!

And now the obligatory picture of our namesake.

Will The Real Claire Kincade Please E-mail Me

I was checking my SPAM folder today and saw an e-mail from Claire Kincaid. I got excited because I always thought she was one of the two best ADAs on Law and Order (the other being Abbey Carmichael).
Unfortunately, the e-mail was not from Claire Kincade or Jill Hennessy but rather someone wanting to sell me discount prescription drugs.

That’s too bad.

The Dark Knight Lets Chicago Shine

On Saturday afternoon H and I purchased our tickets online and made our way to The Grove to check out the new batman movie, The Dark Knight.

You’ve probably read all the reviews and heard about the box office records that fell this weekend, so let me tell you one thing: it’s all true and it’s all worth it. The two and a half hour run time was a factor when drinking my soda, causing me to pace myself so I didn’t have to leave during the movie but I didn’t miss a second. The story was well laid out, the characters were amazing, and Chicago looked great.

The Dark Knight crew spent 13 weeks filming in the Chicago area and I was lucky enough to catch some of the production during that time. The bank heist at the beginning of the movie was filmed at the old post office just off of 290 and I drove by the setup numerous times on my way to work. On more than one occasion I caught the crew on Lower Wacker, and I vividly remember the day they blew up the old chocolate factory on the west side as part of the movie.

But you can see movie production any time out here in Los Angeles so it wasn’t about seeing the magic come to life on the big screen. To be honest it was about seeing some place familiar.

H and I both left the movie thinking the same thing - the film looked great. I’m not exactly sure what a cinematographer does but I know they are in charge of how the film looks through choices of lighting, lenses, and things like that. Whoever was in charge of all this stuff on The Dark Knight should win some kind of award.

And then there was Chicago. We’ve seen the city in various flicks before, including Ocean’s Eleven and Twelve but never to the degree we saw this weekend. It seemed as though every exterior, and some interior shots were familiar to us.

We recognized Navy Pier … Bruce Wayne’s penthouse was in Hotel 71 and you could check out Marina Towers in the background … You could see the Chicago river from the IBM building which was supposed to be a city office … Upper and Lower Wacker were prominent, so was La Salle street and the Chicago Theater … We caught signs for Harris Bank and the Jamba Juice on State street … the El tracks were scattered throughout … it was fun and interesting to see our former home play such a role in the film.

Visually speaking, Chicago is a unique city. Downtown has some great streets and the architecture is second to none with the mix of classic American buildings and new, exciting designs. Throw in the river, Lake Michigan and a great skyline and it’s no wonder why Chicago is chosen more and more for movies.

Notes from the South Park Neighborhood

Thought I would drop a few random notes for you all regarding our neighborhood and what’s going on here these days.

• Robeks finally opened today. They are no Jamba Juice but I might give them a chance.
• We’ve been to Panini Cafe twice and both times the food was decent enough. Here’s the thing I don’t get though … Say you order pasta, and it comes with a salad. Well call me crazy but I’d like to eat my salad before my entree. Not at Panini though — when we requested that H’s Cesar come out first we were told it was not possible. Why?
• The temperature has been in the mid 80s the last few days, but you can always count on seeing someone dressed inapproriately for the weather. Case in point, the dude I saw on his bike yesterday wearing a hoodie and a winter jacket. I’m sure there is something of a breeze when he is whizzing through downtown on his bike but not enough to justify his fashion choices.
• Speaking of fasion … A new term has begun at FIDM and everyone is wearing their new clothes. This includes gigantic shoes - the kind where your heel is at least 3-5 inches from touching the ground in any way.
• Continuing with fashion … So it’s hot outside but you want to be fashionable. A scarf around your neck? Every day for the last three days I have seen someone wearing this.
• Urine stained sidewalks smell worse the hotter it gets.
• Quiznos and Pastagina still not open. Go figure.
• I love walking outside at night and seeing The Orpheum sign lit up.
• My body doesn’t like the heat. How do I know? As soon as I get out of the shower I take Carter for a walk - not a long walk, maybe 10 minutes. By the time I get home I need to change shirts because I have sweat through the brand new clean one I just put on to start the day.

Scenes From our Window Last Night

Two of our unit’s big windows face out into the courtyard/pool area of our building. It’s a great area really featuring a pool (can you call it a pool if it’s only four feet deep?), bar-b-que, hot tub, lounge chairs, tables and a community room.

Residents are able to reserve the room for parties or functions so you can imagine that weekends are the busiest times for get-togethers.

Well, there was a party yesterday that began during the day and went into the evening. Please allow me to give you the highlights:

• Party begins with 10-12 people hanging out by the large table and eating
• Someone shows up with a grocery cart of food
• More arrivals, now 15-18 party people
• Music begins to play from the community room including Buffalo Stance by Nena Cherry
• A party guest arrives wearing a prom-type dress with a gigantic bow in her hair
• Party is at least 25 strong
• The smell of good food is slowly making its way up to our seventh floor window. I am eating M&Ms.
• While walking Carter I get a peek inside the party room from 9th Street. Flashing lights and music can be seen and heard from at least one block away
• Party goers file into the community room, all seems quiet
• A rolling cake appears, you know the one people jump out of. Two guys wearing pink Speedos help a girl into the cake. The girl is the one who showed up wearing the prom-dress but now he is wearing a bikini with lights on it. Another girl is wearing a pink outfit with a tastefully well-lit parasol
• The cake is rolled into the room, music plays, people clap and cheer
• Party spills back out onto the pool deck where the prom-lightup-girl is now in her third outfit of the night.
• Confetti everywhere - I mean everywhere
• Party ends around 9:30 p.m.

Still not sure what took place, how everyone was related or what the celebration was about. I do know there is glitter and confetti it all three elevators this morning and the daytime janitor wasn’t impressed when I saw him.

Electric Daisy Carnival?

H had some family it town this weekend and they were staying over at the Kyoto Hotel in Little Tokyo. Yesterday we went over there to meet them and saw some ‘interesting people’.

Standing in the lobby we see a girl go by in latex thigh highs and some other un-describable latex garments making up her outfit. From there it was guys with makeup and girls with big shoes, neon stockings and tiny skirts everywhere. I know the Eye Candy Expo has been and gone, as had Erotica LA. So this morning I set out to figure what was going on and found it on the Interweb.

Electric Daisy Carnival

Apparently it is an electric music/rave event held once a year in Southern California. Wikipedia has a brief article about it here.

I could have stood in the lobby for hours on end and watched the people come and go. I suppose if I cared enough I would have come home and looked up the event and then made my way over to the Coliseum to check things out further.

Which brings me to my Sunday morning realization: L.A. will always surprise you. It doesn’t matter what, who, or the event that is taking place. All you really need to do is wander around for 20 minutes or so and you will see something you wouldn’t normally see.

Keep it real L.A.!