Los Angeles November 2024

Thursday, November 7, 2024 Day 1

We woke up early and got out of the house about 9 as our daughter drove us to the train station at St. Pierre de Corps. It was fortunate that we left so early since for most of the drive we were stuck behind a slow moving truck. Our TGV train arrived on time about 10:55. Maybe it was different track or a different train, but the ride was not as smooth as our earlier trip to Amboise. In any event these TGV trains are very expensive. To my surprise we had to change trains at a large station outside of Paris and there was a bit of confusion about the proper track to get our connecting train, but we successfully made the connection for the 11 minute ride to the airport. The airport lounge we had a pass to (the web site said it was "air side") was outside security, but we didn't know that and so after going through Security, we opted to eat a meal at an airport restaurant. Alternatively we declined to pay 75 euro for entrance to the Air France lounge. Probably just as well as I did not overeat. The flight was long, but uneventful. We were served two meals that were below the standards of my prior flights on Air France. I watched the end of the Count of Monte Crisco and read some. I was unable to sleep during the flight.

Our 10 hour Air France flight from Paris arrived in Los Angeles about 25 minutes early, but it took over an hour to walk through the tunnels, go through Immigration and pick up luggage. Then there was a long wait for our daughter to pick us up due to traffic gridlock at the airport. 

She drove us to her apartment and we missed the boyfriend who had gone to sleepdue to an early morning court appearance. We stayed up talking until about 12:30 am.

They have two cats.

Friday, November 8, 2024 Day 2

We got up late and our daughter made us smoothies for breakfast. Good stuff, but heavy on the peanut butter. We missed the boyfriend again since he had an early court appearance. We temporarily reclaimed our car and drove down to Hermosa Beach looking for an electric car charging station. When I left CA. in 2018 there were 18 free charging stations in Hermosa Beach, almost alwys in good working order, most of them ChargePoint. Now many of the stations do not work or are paid stations with companies I am not registered with. Perhaps the increase in EVs on the road has taxed the chargers. I finally found a working ChargePoint station on Valley Drive and we walked on the Greenbelt for an hour while charging.

We had lunch with the Hasses at the Blue Water Grill in Redondo Beach. I had eaten there several times during my Manhattan and Hermosa Beach tenures and it has been a consistently good restaurant. The weather was mild and we ate outdoors. The impact of time and extended separation I fear is beginning to have an impact on former relationships. We had a nice meal and pleasent conversation,  but although I have known and socialized with them for many years, we sememd to be less connected.  I guess some relationships don't do well with separation.

After lunch we drove up Sepulvada Highway, CA Route 1, and checked into the Best Western hotel in Manhattan Beach. Traffic on that street was worse than I recalled and reminded me why moving out of LA has benefits. The hotel was very nice. We were given a spacous suite and the room overlooked an interior courtyard. There was a level 2 charging station in the garage. I plugged in even though the charge was .50 per KwH. We then got back in the car headed to our son's apartment and into the teeth of rush hour LA traffic. It took us more than an hour to get to his Baldwin Valley neighborhood. He has a nice, basic apartment in an older complex in a majority minority neighborhood. Lots of double parked cars.

We drove to the Elysian Theatre on Riverside Drive for a comedy show. It is a small venue pushed up against the hillside. John C Reilly was the MC for the program which was celebrating the anniversary of the club. I felt it was a mixed bag of performers. We ate a late dinner at a Thai restaurant, Thai Taste Restaurant,  Good food and reasonable prices. After dropping our son off we arrived back to our hotel after 11.

Saturday, November 9, 2024 Day 3

The hotel offered a nice, hot breakfast, but we had to leave by 7:30 am to get my spouse to the airport for her flight back to SLC. We arrived at the airport before 8 am and I was surpried to find that it was crowded, although not gridlocked early on a Saturday morning. After the drop off I retured to the hotel to pack up and check out. $20 for parking. The underground garage had a charging station, but it charged .50 per KwH. Maybe reasonable in CA, but too expensive. Instead I drove to the Hermosa Beach library and parked and plugged in at the annex parking lot, which is only available to the public on weekends and in the evening. 

I then walked down Pier Ave out on the pier and then on the strand along the beach. I very much enjoyed the stroll. Lots of volleyball, the weather was very pleasant and this was one of the things that I missed in Utah. 

I was only able to spend an hour at the beach as I had a luncheon appointment at the Marmalde Cafe in El Segundo with three former female HR Directors I worked with at TRW/Northrop. Even thought we have had limited contact during the past few years we had a wonderful luncheon conversation. I guess work connections built over many years creates a strong relationship. We stayed and talked for 4 hours. 

I then drove back into the South Bay to check into the Ramada Inn. I figured less need for luxary since ny spouse was gone and I would essentially just be sleeping in the room. I thought that I had booked into a hotel at the south end of Redondo Beach in the shadow of Palas Verdes which we had previously stayed at and found acceptable. That turned out to be a Best Western now and it took me a while to discover that the Ramada Inn I had booked was further north in Redondo Beach on Sepulveda Blv'd. It was an older facility with small rooms, a parking area that was being resurfaced and underground parking. I checked in and unloaded my luggage and then took off to pick up my son and daughter. There was lots of late afternoon traffic  

Dinner with son, daughter and boyfriend at the Dirdawa Ethopian restaurant on West Manchester Ave. We were the first ones in the restaurant. Lots of spongy bread. Leaving one car in the restaurant parking lot we then headed out for a jazz show, but first we went the wrong way and traveled into Inglewood. Retracting our steps we found the intimate Sam First Bar, a small establishment on West Century Blv'd near LAX. Remarkably we found free on street parking. The venue was very good and the jazz was soothing. A one drink cover.

I purchased gasoline at an Arco, $3.95/gal and after dropping off my son I headed back to the hotel, first charging the car the the Hermosa Beach Library and then purchasing some Hershey bars at Smart and Final. They were all eaten before I left LA.

Sunday November 10, 2024 Day 4

The hotel had a very small breakfast area but a reasonably filling menu of foods. After breakfast I parked at the library annex charging lot and walked on beach while charging.

In the early afternoon I picked up my son and daughter while her boyfriend met us at the Acadamy Museum of Motion Pictures. It is located in a former May Company building adjacent to LACMA. We parked in the LACMA underground garage. It was $21, but it had multiple charging stations so I was able to fill the car's battery. The Museum opened in 2021 so I had never been there, although my daughter had. The Museum is dedicated to the history, science and cultural impact of the film industry. It had lots of items from movies and lots of snippets from movies. It left me wanting more movies and less exhibits, although the exhibit of Dorethy's shoes from the Wizard of Oz and its history was very interesting. I later learned that the shoes, which were on loan to the museum, were sold to an anaymous buyer for $28,000,000. Some people have too much money and this points to the gross wealth inequality in the US. Shades of the French Revolution. coming It also had a section on Jewish founders of the movie industry, of whom there were many.

We ate dinner at Versailles Restaurant, a cuban restaurant on Venice Blv'd. It is a chain restaurant which used to have an establishment in Manhattan Beach. I had eaten there but it subsequently closed. The servings were large and the food good. 

Again I did a late night car charge, at City Hall.

Monday November 11, 2024 Day 5

This was going to be a big eating day. so I skipped breakfast at the hotel.  I charged the car at the Hermosa Beach Library and then walked down to the Good Stuff restaurant in Hermosa Beach to have breakfast with three Indian princesses dads. Very nice getting together with them. I had been in intermittent contact with them over the years, but a lot of the conversation was catch up and about the daughters. All are about 10 years younger than me so they are still working and two had to leave before 11 to get to work, although today is a holiday. 

I retrieved the car from the charging station and drove up to Paul Martin in El Segundo for lunch with three former TRW/Northrop HR managers whom I had worked with extensively. They are all retired now and are occupying their time constructively. One has even married for the first time. It was a very nice lunch. The food was OK and the prices high.

I retreated to the hotel for a brief rest and then drove to Manhattan Beach to meet a long time friend  Burt at his house, which he said was undergoing its thrid renovation during his 30 year tenure there. We drove to the Wood Ranch in Manhattan Beach, a relatively new barbeque restaurant. He has fully retired and is full time into traveling and socializimg mornings in town. I ate way too much. After dinner we drove over to the Del Aire neighborhood in Hawthorne where two of his sons and others from the elementary school group of friends of which my youngest son was an active member, had purchased homes. They are launched in a traditional manner. My son had drifted away from that group in high school and further separated during and after college as he had gone to NYU, the rest of the group remaned in CA, and Burt wanted to know why my son no longer had meaningful contact with them. Completely different interests and lifestyle.at the Von's in Hermosa Beach

Charged the car at the Von's in Hermosa Beach 

Tuesday November 12, 2024 Day 6

Not much on the calendar today. Ate breakfast at the hotel and then found an empty charger in Valley Park near the Rotary club where we charged the first day in LA. I then walked through the park and past the Hermosa Vista School to the beach. After a few hours on the strand I returned to the hotel and worked for a few hours on my ski school registration since I needed to attend the in-person registration session in two days. I finally completed that, but I don't know if the difficulty was my inepitude or the system's problems.    

About 5:45 I began a  drive to Santa Monica's El Forno restaurant on Ocean park Blv'd. I had been there years ago for an Indian Princess Bat Mitzva. I had dinner with Gary and Ed, two long time basketball players in the games we played for 20 years on Sunday mornings. They are doing well and we had an enjoyable dinner which lasted until we closed the restaurant.

On the way home I charged the car at the Vons in Hermosa Beach. I didn't stay there too long. After I got to the hotel and packed, I took a late night walk along the starnd in Hermosa Beach. It was very quiet.

Wednesday November 13 Day Last day of the trip. Travel back to SLC Day 7

Checked out of hotel by 6:30. I had hoped to charge the car before driving to my daughter's for the car exchange, but I was unsuccessful since the Hermosa Beach charging stations were occupied and the Manhattan Beach station was not working.

It turned out that it was better that I didn't charge since by 7 am the 405 was very crowded and it took over an hour drive to daughter's apartment. She made me a smoothie and then drove me to the airport and then took the car back.

I had to pay $35 for one checked bag due to my $39 economy ticket, but the second checked bag was free since it was a full flight. Breezed through security with Clear and TSA. The 11:38 flight left on time and arrived in SLC about 2:30. I was picked up at the airport by spouse.