October 2009 Archives
You Got A Problem With That?
By Erin Aubry Kaplan
October 29, 2009
I don't know the man's name, like I don't know the name of so many other people at the El Segundo dog park. My icebreaker question a month ago was what was the name and breed of his dogs; I didn't get around to asking his (name, not breed). That isn't considered rude in the tiny social bubble of the dog park, where canines are the real news and objects of interest and humans aren't that important. Still, this man stood out for me. I'd know his mussed white hair, ruddy face and hearty, gravelly voice anywhere. I figure he's Irish; he lit up when I told him my first name, calling it a fit one for an Irish girl.,
Yes, I told him. My mother had a thing for Irish names. Lucky me.
Permalink Discuss (2 Comments)The Wrong Stuff
By Erin Aubry Kaplan
October 19, 2009
I haven't gone yet, but I plan to. Soon. For now I'm satisfied with catching a glimpse it as I drive past the Slauson exit in Culver City on the northbound side of the 405. Actually, I've been glimpsing it for a couple of years, as construction crews erased the mall's west parking and erected more anchor stores and shops that promised to take the old Fox Hills Mall upscale (I never liked the corporate chain name, Westfield) and a food court that promised the same.
Permalink DiscussShots Fired
By Erin Aubry Kaplan
October 11, 2009
I was on the phone when I heard them, about five rapid-fire shots not a mile off. Or maybe, I thought hopefully, a string of firecrackers.
At 8 ' o 'clock, the darkness and habitual quiet of my street made it easy to believe the sound was benign, one of many mysterious but ultimately innocuous sounds particular to the night. Violence or some other hard reality wasn't possible; in my mind, all that had retired for the day.
Permalink Discuss (2 Comments)Copping Out
By Erin Aubry Kaplan
October 2, 2009
It was all too predictable. After months of local speculation about why the city of Inglewood wasn't releasing a report on the practices of its police department, a department that became infamous last year for fatally shooting four black and Latino men in four months, the city announced last week that we're all going to have to wait some more. A city spokesperson said that the report, which Inglewood hired an outside body to do well over a year ago, could violate attorney-client privilege and therefore had to stay under wraps for the time being. What sort of attorney-client privilege? No details. When would the report be released? "Eventually," said the city spokesperson.
Permalink Discuss (1 Comments)More KCET Local Blogs
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I see in your post, what I saw the beginnings of when I decided to make the...
I always enjoy Erin Kaplan's commentaries--they are well-written and inform...
It's great to hear about the rebirth (or continued vitality!) of an area th...
Erin, once again you make me think about things that I wouldn't ordinarily....
Regarding Carleton Lee's comment above: "Big-G was a unique place where all...
Hey, I'm eating "El Pollo" as I'm reading this...yes as a Grad ('74), I can...
Very well said. Funny how we romanticize and "novel-ize" certain kinds of v...
I am weary of retreating into numbness every time I hear of senseless murde...
Transparency is a joke if those being audited have the right to withhold th...
Ginger: thanks for filling me in Jerry and David, and on the fact that Manc...