Experiencing L.A. - "Upper Deck" View from Santa Monica

Two years ago this month I had a doctor's appointment at the Santa Monica Medical Plaza, at 15th & Arizona. I expected a routine visit.

What I didn't expect was the view.

Wow, nice. Glad I had my camera.

This is looking northeast towards the Los Angeles communities of Brentwood and Westwood. 


A close up of the same location (click on any of these photos for a larger view). 

On the left is Brentwood, and on the right, Westwood. The hills in the distance are part of Beverly Hills and Hollywood - and in the far distance are the much larger San Gabriel Mountains.


Barely visible in the distance are the snow capped mountains, to the right. 

As an aside, later that same month (April) my wife and kids and I were at a conference in the local mountains, which had just received six inches of snow. We stopped at the beach on the way up and were in the snow about two hours later. Our kids were able to play in the surf and two hours later play in the snow.


From the same office tower, this is looking south toward the Pacific Ocean, with the western edge of Catalina Island - about 40 miles away - visible in the distance.


Turned out the doctor wasn't in that day - I had to reschedule. I had a few minutes, so I took the elevator up to the top floor for (in my opinion) an even better view. This is looking up Arizona Avenue, which runs between Wilshire and Santa Monica Blvds through Santa Monica into West Los Angeles.


Another close up looking the same direction. On the right side of the photo, just above the last tall building, you can see the Hollywood sign. 

As I've blogged previously, I was constantly reminded how fortunate we were to live in this area. It also was a reminder of the responsibility that comes with that. As the pastor at my church said many years ago, "if God has blessed us economically or materially, we shouldn't feel guilty - we should feel responsible."

I think it's easier just to feel guilty. Responsibility implies actually doing something.

Jesus said on multiple occasions "to whom much is given, much is expected."

I - and others on the westside of L.A. - honestly have been given much. And it was (and is) challenging thinking what that means in terms of investing my time, my abilities, and my resources in the lives of others. There were certainly lots of needs and opportunities. We hope that in a small way our lives made Los Angeles a better place for others.


A few more shots: this was looking north towards Brentwood is the massive Getty Center.


Looking northwest towards the community of Pacific Palisades with the Santa Monica Mountains and Topanga State Park in the distance.

Here's a final wide angle shot. Towards the right are the office towers of downtown Los Angeles, about 15 miles away.

The Santa Monica Medical Plaza is only about 10 or 12 stories tall - but it's a great location if you'd like a view of Santa Monica, the Pacific Ocean, and metro Los Angeles. 

Here's a final link to a previous post with a map of metro Los Angeles. 


View Arizona & 15th Street, Santa Monica in a larger map

© 2012 www.experiencingla.com - originally posted 7/4/2010


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Garibaldi

Several years ago a friend and I went snorkeling in La Jolla, south of Los Angeles in San Diego. La Jolla has some of the best snorkeling and diving conditions in California. It was - well - amazing.


These bright orange fish are called Garibaldi. They are the official marine fish of California (meaning they are protected) and were there in abundance. Of course, it helped that we brought a bag of frozen peas, which Garibaldi love. The photo above was taken with a cheap-o underwater film camera 15+ years ago.


If there are Garibaldi off the coast of Los Angeles, I've never seen any. That's not to say they aren't there - I've just never seen them. 

As an aside, I really tried to get my kids to embrace a Garibaldi as the mascot for their school. We homeschooled when we were in Los Angeles - so why not? Let's just say the idea got shot down. Oh well, I tried. Above: "Deepo" mascot of the Georgia Aquarium (2100 miles from Los Angeles). 

Driving along the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu last year, I noticed some large kelp beds about five miles from the city limits of Los Angeles. You can see the skyline of Santa Monica to the left, and the kelp beds to the right.

Here's a close-up. I'm no expert on the Santa Monica Bay, but I as a kid I don't remember seeing kelp beds this close into the city. 


When we lived in Los Angeles, I had a chance to hear a professor at Cal State Northridge speak on Christian stewardship of the environment, including the idea that the ability to see and enjoy the creation helps point individuals to the Creator. 


I'm wondering if kelp forests - and the abundance of sea life they allow - will eventually get re-established off the coast of Los Angeles. With a mask and snorkel, it'd give certainly give new meaning to the concept of experiencing Los Angeles. And enjoying the Creator's handiwork. Including the Garibaldi. 

image: www.inkart.net

© 2011 www.experiencingla.com 

At the Edge of the Bay

Earlier this month, we had a wonderful combination of unusually warm weather - 85 degrees here in Los Angeles - and very low tides. So both Saturday and Sunday (January 10th & 11th) we spent some time enjoying the local tide pools. They did not disappoint.

We were amazed at the abundance of sea life: sea anemones, sea stars, a small sea turtle (stuck in the rocks, which fortunately everyone left alone), a colorful sea slug, and even a small octopus.


My son pointing out a tide pool to a younger boy on Saturday.

Several of the tide pools were simply chocked full of sea anemones. Especially impressive is that this is within the city limits of Los Angeles. Click on any of these photos for a larger image.

There were several other families there Saturday - which helped in finding things like this small and very colorful "Spanish Shawl" sea slug. I've never seen one of these before.


On Sunday we were back - and my daughter found this trove of star fish (technically, of course, they aren't "fish", just like technically the sun doesn't really "set").

Here's a close-up view. Wow, amazing variety - and abundance.

Sunday was also unusually crowded. Chalk it up to a weekend afternoon with some of the lowest tides of the year, and summer-like conditions in the middle of January. Unfortunately, a few individuals decided to take a "souvenirs" - including one family who filled a plastic grocery bag with half a dozen star fish. When I asked them to put them back, they looked at me like I was from another planet.

I made some follow up phone calls about this later that week. Someone finally got back to me from the California Department of Fish and Game. Yes, it is illegal to take star fish. I e-mailed the women I spoke to and, thanks to Google earth, gave her the exact location of the tide pools. I suggested a posted notice there at the beach, but didn't get any sort of response, so I have no idea if my e-mail just ended up in the electronic version of the "circular file."

Apparently, it is legal to harvest the mussels growing on the rocks, at least during winter months. They're plentiful (they grow everywhere, including the pilings of piers) and are edible. It was a little weird have some people carefully walking around the tide pools, while these guys were knocking mussels off the rocks with a shovel.
Of course, there is a balance. Almost anywhere can be picked over or over fished, especially in a large city like Los Angeles. On the other hand, care of the oceans has been entrusted to mankind. 3000 years ago, King David of Israel wrote "You [the LORD] made man ruler over the works of your hands; You put everything under his feet ... the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas." (Psalm 8:6,8). Sadly, the concept of "dominion over the earth" has been misunderstood or abused. The seas are not simply dumping grounds.

I appreciate the work of Heal the Bay http://www.healthebay.org/ here in Los Angeles and the Surfrider Foundation http://www.surfrider.org/ in terms of long term stewardship (although they might not use that word) of our oceans. Much needs to be done, and it's depressing knowing how much trash - especially plastic - ends up in the oceans every year. Stupid, really.


It's my hope that 200 years from now, my great-great grandchildren can stand at this same spot and enjoy an even cleaner and healthier Santa Monica Bay.