What I Saw in Inner Space
“What was I destined to do?” I thought at the top of the pyramid. Who hasn’t asked this question?
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The Wilderness Workshop of Janice Cooney
Hiking and backpacking require gear – boots, sleeping bags, tents, tarps, packs of all sizes – which all eventually require repair. Wilderness Workshop, in Eagle Rock can fix it all.
Continue ReadingA Music Samurai Plays in Highland Park
Goh Kurosawa, a singer-musician-artist born in Maebashi, Japan and now residing in Highland Park, is known for one-man shows he performs with his guitar, nicknamed “Honey Beast.” He’ll be back playing at the Highland Park Farmers Market. For more at Goh, read on.
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Muralist John Zender Seeks “Triunity” in His Current Work
Highland Park muralist John Zender studied fine arts at Otis Art Institute and produced many works over decades. Here he is with one of his murals. Check out one of his fine oil paintings here too.
Continue ReadingNuts and Berries of California
A Voice in the NELA Wilderness by Christopher Nyerges NELA’s landscape has an amazing mix of native and non-native vegetation. Both types have had important roles in our rich horticultural and agricultural history. For example, native nuts and berries – black walnuts, pine nuts, blackberries, wild strawberries, to name a few – have long histories […]
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The Longest Straw: A Film by Samantha Bode
When filmmaker Samantha Bode learned that a 338-mile aqueduct brings water into Los Angeles, she decided impulsively to see it for herself by walking its entire length – from the Cascades in Sylmar at the southern terminus of the aqueduct to Mono Lake, 338 miles to the north. The result is a documentary film, The Longest Straw – a close-up look at the environmental impacts of what it takes to keep L.A. alive.
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Low Cost Ways to Prepare for the Big One
There have been no major earthquakes in Los Angeles in quite a while. But the danger is ever present. The way to cope is to be prepared.At WTI, a local nonprofit that teaches survival skills, earthquake preparedness has been in the curriculum for nearly 40 years.
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Water in NELA – Where Water Once Flowed
Much of our recent rainfall has flowed out to the ocean, uncaptured and unused. But it was not always this way. Up until the 1930s, water flowed throughout the area we now know as Northeast Los Angeles.
Continue ReadingRecycling the Rain
by Christopher Nyerges During the recent rains, my neighbor, Carol Kampe, collected enough water to irrigate her fruit trees and other plants clear through August. She estimates the savings on her water bill to be about $300 a month. “But I don’t do this for economic reasons,” says Kampe. “I do it because we live […]
Continue ReadingThe Allure of Wild Mushrooms
A Voice in the NELA Wildernessby Christopher Nyerges With the recent rains, I have gone in search of mushrooms in wild and not-so-wild spots in NELA and the Arroyo Seco.My study of mycology began in the ’70’s. I wanted to try every wild mushroom I could find until I learned the meaning of the phrase […]
Continue ReadingZero Waste: An Idea Whose Time is Now
A Voice in the NELA Wilderness by Christopher Nyerges It is sad but true that only a small fraction of discarded materials is recycled, while the rest goes to landfills or incinerators or winds up as immense floating plastic islands in the ocean. Leslie VanKeuren Campbell, a regular at the Old L.A. Farmers Market in […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness: Flamenco-Fusion Out of Highland Park
I’ve observed what happens when David Holguin, 27, starts to play his guitar. People stop and listen – and then they stay, waiting for another song. “That’s the kind of music we need more of,” said one man who recently stopped to listen to Holguin at the Old L.A. Farmers Market in Highland Park. Holguin, […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness: One Man’s Quest to Revive the Dying Art of Basketmaking
Some 20 years ago, I saw a photograph of Justin Farmer in the Southwest Museum in Highland Park. In the photo, Farmer is holding a traditional long bow. I have never forgotten it. Farmer is not primarily known for his bow-making, though that is one of his many skills. Farmer is best known for his […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness: Local Pioneer of Self-Reliance Practices What She Teaches – and Teaches What She Practices
Recently, Prudence Boczarski was at the Highland Park Farmers’ Market, showcasing her natural bakery business and representing WTI, the local nonprofit founded in 1971 to teach urban dwellers how to live better with less. And since there is no better way to teach than to give a hands-on demonstration, Ms. Boczarski was also using her […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness: Soil from Coffee Grounds, Water from the Air Conditioner
I recently noticed a new flower bed behind Antigua Bread, the coffeehouse/bakery at 5703 N. Figueroa St. Where there once had been weeds and trash was a beautiful wood-framed garden bed, approximately 6-by-6 feet, with colorful flowers, some vegetables – and a five-gallon plastic bucket strapped to a tall wooden pole and connected by a […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness: The Art and Craft of Sharpening a Knife
I met Julio Toruno recently at the Old L.A. (Highland Park) Farmers Market, where he works on Tuesdays from the back of his truck, sharpening knives on a whetstone. Just by watching him, I could tell he epitomizes “old school” craftsmanship. I approached him as he was sharpening a large kitchen knife and I could […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness:Grow Your Own Oyster Mushrooms
Matt Heidrich of Highland Park loves oyster mushrooms – so much, in fact, that he has mastered the intricate art and science of home cultivation. I visited him recently and learned a lot. Oyster mushrooms grow on the sides of old and dying trees; in the Arroyo Seco, they commonly grow on willows and cottonwoods. […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness: The Delicious Nettle
This spring, I have collected a lot of chickweed, mallow, hedge mustard and nettle. Most of it I dry. I use the powdered chickweed in an insect repellent, the mallow for a mild cough remedy and hedge mustard to make a spicy powder to add to dishes. But nettle is the plant I can never […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness: Thinking About Public Space
Many years ago, a developer wanted to build a tall apartment at the base of the Eagle Rock that would have blocked the view of that local landmark. The town said “no,” and instead, the land was purchased by the City of Los Angeles and turned into a park. It was a dramatic example of […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness: How Does Your Drought-Resistant Garden Grow?
State water officials recently toyed with the idea of reinstating drought-era water rules and making them permanent. In the end, they didn’t act. But rules or no rules, it behooves all of us to find and practice a lifestyle of water conservation. Northeast Los Angeles is part of a coastal desert plain, with enough local […]
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A Voice in the NELA Wilderness: Camping on Zero Dollars a Day
Camping in the hills of NELA was a big deal when I was a boy and looking back, I realize it was a no-budget activity. Today, I don’t mind spending money on an item if I know it’s the best and if my life may depend on it. But I still like to go as […]
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