14-year old makes his city cuss-free

by Abha Malpani on

9-months ago, 14-year old McKay Hatch founded the No-Cussing Club in junior high-school. It started off with 50 members in South Pasadena, now the entire zone where approximately 25,000 people reside is cuss-free. South Pasadena has officially declared the 1st week of March as cuss-free week. (Umm…if the whole zone is anyway cuss-free I don’t see the need to have a “week” for it, but it’s all good).

South Pasadena has made illegal to cuss and you won’t get more than a few dirty looks as punishment, but it’s still a pretty cool initiative they are enforcing without the brunt of a law.

I think swearing has become part of our daily vocabulary (it is certainly part of mine); I would never swear in front of my parents or my little brother, but these days it’s so commonplace it seems acceptable — I’m not bothered too much by it now and often use bad language with both. Yes, inexcusable. Foul language is a pretty foul way to communicate, even if that is not your intention.

Little McKay’s endeavor seems to also have reached a national and international scale as he boasts members from all 50 states in the US and 10,000 members from overseas.

“Leave people better than you found them” is the motto of the club; talking without using foul language is a good place to begin.

Swedish Mansion: Scandinavian supermodels take over LA

by Anna Brones on

It’s not so hard to come up with a list of Swedish stereotypes. Everybody seems to have one; all Swedes eats meatballs, everyone loves ABBA and all the women are blond and gorgeous. I think I could beg to differ on all accounts, but the media is certainly planning on cashing in on the last one with the new reality series Swedish Mansion. The reality show kicks off March 1, 2008 with none other than six Swedish models (and one Norwegian) all living in a house in Los Angeles.

Nobody explains the situation better than Glamour of Sweden’s website: “What happens if a group of Swedish top models lives under the same roof in a mansion in Los Angeles?” To find out you will either have to watch the first phase which will broadcast online, or wait for the reality series to hit television.

Somehow I am pretty sure that this isn’t going to be a show revolving around learning the ins and outs of Scandinavian culture. But at least it will fulfill your dreams of Swedish stereotypes — if you can get past the fact that one of the models is a brunette.

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Disneyland, a place to see stars

by Jamie Rhein on

Last week, somewhere, I saw a picture of Harrison Ford with his daughter on a ride at Disneyland. Turns out, according to Marla Matzer Rose who details in an article where to see stars in Los Angeles, Disneyland is a place to keep your eyes open. Here’s a shot of Diane Keaton taken two years ago. Interestingly, the only celebrity I’ve seen in Los Angeles when I’ve gone there over the years is Diane Keaton.

From what Matzer Rose says, look closely at anyone with baggy sweats and sunglasses. I’d throw in a baseball hat as well. In order to see Disneyland like a star, she suggests the “A Walk in Walt’s Footsteps Tour.” This is a way to get the behind the scenes look at Disneyland’s beginnings which includes seeing Walt Disney’s apartment and a peek at Club 33, the members-only restaurant that Neil wrote about.

Even if you can’t afford the $400 a room price-tag for a night in the Grand Californian, the Disney resort hotel where stars frequent, you can go on a tour of it. Matzer Rose suggests calling ahead to find out when the tours are and to make a reservation.

My thinking is that if you don’t see a star, pretend that you are one. It might be kind of fun to wear dark sunglasses, baggy clothes and a baseball hat just to see if anyone might wonder who you are. My problem is, every time I go to Disneyland or Disney World it rains. Instead of looking mysterious, I end up in one of those plastic ponchos with Mickey Mouse on the back–not star material at all.

The other places Matzer Rose suggests for LA star sightings are: studio tours, coffee shops, upscale grocery stores, and independent movies. I saw Diane Keaton going to a movie. See? [via Columbus Dispatch] Here’s more about star spotting at Disneyland.

Who has best US tap water? Los Angeles

by Anna Brones on

Although Finland might have purer bottled water, believe it or not, Los Angeles has the tastiest tap water in the United States. Beating out 120 other cities at the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting, Los Angeles — part of the Metropolitan Water District of California — tied with Clearbrook, British Columbia for first place in the Best Municipal Water category. To me the Canadian city just might say “delicious water” a little better than LA, but you can’t contradict the judges.

Waters were judged based on taste, smell, texture, and above all, taste and clarity. Think judging water is a little strange? This was in fact the 18th competition to be held in Berkeley Springs, making it the world’s longest running water-tasting competition.

So what does all this tell us? While some hotels offer high end bottled water, you can assure yourself that you won’t have to invest a fortune in order to hydrate while in LA; just stick with the award winning tap water.

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The American Girls Revue shows to end after a decade run

by Jamie Rhein on

When my daughter was 3 1/2 she received her first American Girl doll— Bitty Baby, the Asian version. Then came outfits with their accessories. Then came the Just Like You American Girl doll version, the kind where you choose your hair color, eye color and skin tone–Asian. Then when she was nine, we folded and bought Josephina, the Hispanic version. My daughter never asked for anything. It was me. I was hooked. For a brief while, I was the kid who could afford (barely) a bit of the fantasy that American Girl sent my way with each new catalog and as long as my daughter liked her dolls. . .and there was a birthday or Santa Claus.

Alas, childhood is short. My daughter’s interest in her dolls stopped at about age 11. No point in spending the money on those ever so clever outfits with accessories to match even if Josephina’s led us through watered down Hispanic culture of yesteryear through the books that matched the outfits and accessories, and I never got around to buying the Chinese New Year outfit for Just Like You Asian girl. By the time I found out about an American Girl store had opened in Manhattan, my daughter was into the eye rolling phase.

Although Asian girl and Josephina are perched high on a shelf in her bedroom, darling Bitty Baby is in the basement in a box with all her clothes–carefully packed but moved over to make room for other phases in life. The American Girl company is also making room for other things.

The live shows, The American Girls Revue that started in the Chicago store and then was added to the Los Angeles and Manhattan locations are stopping. The L.A. version will close on April 1. The NYC and Chicago versions will close September 1. There’s still some time to see the characters the dolls represent sing, dance and act out aspects of the lives from history the dolls represent. The stores are staying open, and I’m sure out there there are mothers and grandmothers pouring through catalogs savoring those days of childhood. [via Chicago Tribune]