November 2006 Archives

I'm here at the Daily News, but Ilene just informed me that the one and only Delores Nascar, running for the Zone 4 seat of the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council, knocked on the door and presented herself to ask for our vote.

And Ilene was right -- it's the same Delores -- very fashionable big-brimmed hat and more -- who was working the table on Election Day.

Delores is 53, she tells Ilene, and relentlessly spunky. And she wants to get our pothole-strewn street fixed. Bless her for that.

Candidates going door-to-door? (Both Ms. Nascar and Ted C. Wood have come a-knockin') I could get used to this.

As I've said, the election is Saturday, and if you're in the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council district, get over to Van Nuys Elementary and cast your vote.

My thermometer (I have three) registered a morning low of 34.6 degrees. That's pretty much freezing, ladies and gentlemen. I still have three living tomato plants, two of which continue to produce fruit, albeit slowly. If this continues, it could be the end -- but who expects tomatoes in December?

Our own U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Van Nuys, and Lisa Nicola Kaplan are getting married Sunday at Calamigos Ranch. A nice story on the couple appears in today's Daily News, with the above photo. There's a bit of how-we-met info, but the lede is striking (bold emphasis added):

Rep. Brad Sherman won't reveal what he said to Lisa Kaplan two years ago when he spied her picking up take-out Chinese food on Capitol Hill.

But whatever it was, it must have worked. The couple is to be wed Sunday at Calamigos Ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains.

"Let's try to keep some things private," the six-term Sherman Oaks congressman pleaded when asked to describe the couple's first exchange. "Which pickup line Sherman used will be forever held secret."

I give him props for not using the Al Gorish "lockbox" terminology.

We've poked fun at the congressman before, but in all seriousness, I offer my congratulations to Brad and Lisa (notice how we're on a first-name basis).

I first met Brad back in the 1990s when I was at the Glendale News-Press, and he was either running for or already on the state
Board of Equalization, and his big issue was repealing the "snack tax," which levied sales taxes on foods deemed "snacks," while other kinds of food were not taxed at all. I could feel, even then, that the whole snack-tax thing was just a stepping stone for him, and I don't remember if we editorialized on the issue, but I give him credit for hauling it over to a small newspaper's editorial board. Even then he was making CPA jokes.

Besides being an accountant, he's also an attorney (specializing in tax issues) with a degree from Harvard Law. Maybe now, with a Democratic majority, he'll get a few cans of whoop-ass to open up on the other side of the aisle.

Enough meandering. He's got to honeymoon swiftly and be back for the new Congress next year.

Defamer via AP delves into the question of Michael Richards' religion:

"Technically, not having been born by blood as Jewish and not formally going into a conversion, it was purely his interpretation of having adopted Judaism as his religion," Rubenstein told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "He told me, `I'm Jewish,' when I asked him.

"He said there were two mentors who raised him and who had a big influence on his life, and they were Jewish. He said, `I agree with the concepts and the religious beliefs of Judaism and I've adopted Judaism as my religion,'" Rubenstein said. "He really thinks of himself as Jewish."

So that means he ain't Jewish, and he's certainly not black, so his recent onstage tirades against those two groups are looking worse and worse. And I won't even go into Mel Gibson's comment ... well, you know why.

According to the information I have, it's a three-way race for the seemingly coveted post of Van Nuys Neighborhood Council member, Zone 4. While there are, at my count, 21 seats on the VNNC, a scant four of them (for the district's four residential zones) are elected by those living in their respective neighborhoods. The other 17 seats are held by industrial, commercial, nonprofit, religious, school, youth and renter representatives and are, I suspect, somewhat less competitive.

So in this race, the candidates are the incumbent, Penny Meyer (who chairs the NC's Building and Safety Committee), sometimes actress Delores Nascar, whose fliers I've seen posted in the neighborhood, and Ted C. Wood, whose flier -- with e-mail address (Ted_C_Wood_for_VNNC@yahoo.com) -- ended up in my mailbox.

Mr. Wood was kind enough to answer my e-mail asking about his background and the reason he's running for neighborhood council, and the Van Nuys resident of 18 years has quite a list of issues he would like to tackle. He says he learned about the election through a flier he received in October, and he's been off and running ever since.

Among his bullet points:

· Public Restrooms
· Shelter for the Homeless
· Pedestrian Walkways over the Metro Orange Line
· Oversight over Business Licenses
· Assistance with City Services
· Removal of Trash on the Streets

"My goal is to make Van Nuys a better place to live and work in, for all of the stakeholders," he writes.

He's already got the lingo down, what with his use of the word "stakeholders," meaning all the residents, businesspeople, workers, students, churchgoers, even homeless people who have some stake, as it were, in Van Nuys.

Mr. Wood goes into his educational background: "I was born in Santa Monica and went Saint Monica's Elementary. Then I moved out to the Ventura County side of Westlake Village. I went to Chaminade College Preparatory, then called Chaminade Prep, in West Hills (then known as Canoga Park). Afterward I went to college at Santa Monica College, formerly SMCC, and California State University, Northridge, formerly San Fernando Valley State College. After graduating with an AA and BS, I went to work. In 1988, I went to USC and got a PMP (that is a mini MBA). At Pepperdine I earned an MBA in 1994. In 1996, I took a few classes at UCLA extension, in MIS."

Among his concerns is the DWP power distribution station at Van Nuys Boulevard and Oxnard Street, where he wants to replace the chain-link fence at the back of the facility, as well the fence around the Van Nuys Division station of the LAPD with "more aesthetic" fencing.

He also would like to place speed bumps (known in city-speak these days as "speed humps") on Tyrone Avenue near the police station to deter street racing. (I believe that VNNC member Lisa Martellaro-Palmer is also an employee with the city's Department of Transportation, has a hand in placing speed humps, and would be amenable to any Van Nuys resident who wanted them in their neighborhood.)

And concerning the same area, Wood is concerned with abandoned couches on parkways.

Whatever happens, I give Mr. Wood and Ms. Nascar kudos for actually campaigning for their post. Making as many stakeholders in Van Nuys aware of the neighborhood council and its doings, and getting them involved, is what it's all about at this point.

For those in the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council district (and if you're not sure, check your address at the DONE site), the election runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2, at Van Nuys Elementary School, 6464 Sylmar Ave., one block east of Van Nuys Boulevard, one block north of Victory Boulevard. You'll need one of the following to vote: driver license, student ID, AARP card, any photo ID,
Postmarked Mail, a bulletin or newsletter from the house of worship to which one belongs, or a letter with signature from the director of a community organization in the area in which you're involved.

And remember, the next VNNC meeting is 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 13, at the Marvin Braude Constituent Service Center, Room 1B, 6262 Van Nuys Blvd., Van Nuys, 91401.

On Hollywood Babble-on:

I love Roy Orbison as much as the next guy, but sheesh -- they trot out this thing every pledge drive. I am sick of it, just as I am sick of Suze Orman, Wayne Dyer, the legends of doo-wop, Irish tenors, Celtic women, Italian tenors, and all the other self-help gurus and marketing-rich musical acts that clog pledge breaks.

KCET and public television in general, listen to what I am saying (in BOLD type because I'm an angry man):

If you want me to support your programming, SHOW ME THAT PROGRAMMING -- not a bunch of canned crap that is NOT part of your regular schedule and pretty much serves as an hourlong commercial for the artist/guru/shill singing/haranguing us to please, please subscribe and get their DVD (or, more probably, forget about subscribing and get their latest gem on Amazon).

While I found the headline in today's story, Neighborhood Council chaos, to be a little over the top, there is something to the potential for shady dealings, abusive treatment and mismanagement of funds among the dozens of neighborhood councils across Los Angeles.

As Kerry Cavanaugh reports:

Neighborhood councils receive $50,000 a year for community outreach, projects and operating expenses. But there are no guidelines or goals for spending the money, so councils have used less than half of the $10.9 million allocated through this year.

One council spent more than $80,000 over the last three years on accounting and office support, according to the audit. By comparison, 74 councils spent less than $5,000 on such services over the same period.

"Neighborhood councils across the city are getting over $4 million a year in public money, taxpayer money, and we need to put better controls in place to make sure that money is really well spent," (City Controller Laura) Chick said.

Now from my very limited experience with the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council, I was pleasently surprised at how well the meeting was run, with an ad hoc nature at times that was somewhat refreshing. But there were moments, especially when the topic had to do with illegal street vendors and those who patronize them, where anti-Latino sentiment began to bubble up, from both the NC members and the audience. But it was very quickly tamped down. It didn't hurt that there are a few Latino members of the council.

As far as spending money, the VNNC is very careful -- they're not blowing a bundle on administration (and could probably stand to spend more on it). For this and other things, I think clear, detailed guidelines from the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment could only help the situation. It's kind of Wild-Westish out there, and the people on these councils are seemingly left to fend for themselves without the close-at-hand "staff" help from which regular city councils benefit.

One thing that I have noticed, and blogged about, is that money is being spent by the VNNC on its Web presence, which is piss poor at this point. The NC could easiily put up all the information it needs to with a free service such as Blogger, and there would be no waiting, no consultants who needed to be paid, etc. Alternatively, this is one of the things that DONE could get ... done: giving the NCs the tools, technology and support needed to get their Web presence up and running. Not that the City of L.A. is in any way a leader (or even competent) when it comes to its own Web site (sorry if I offend anyone, but the thing's a clunky mess).

As far as Web sites alone go, the Sherman Oaks NC is further along. Again, if the city and DONE are there for anything, it's to provide some uniformity and support to what, in this day and age, is a vitally important part of any governmental body.

Sgt. David Jimenez Almazan of Van Nuys, a combat medic, was killed Aug. 27 in the Iraqi city of Hit, northeast of Ramadi in the so-called Sunni Triangle. He was 27 years old.

Here's the official Department of Defense press release:

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Sgt. David J. Almazan, 27, of Van Nuys, Calif., died on Aug 27, in Hit, Iraq, of injuries suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his HMMWV during combat operations. Almazan was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 36th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, Friedberg, Germany.

But there's more to the story. The military newspaper Stars and Stripes reported on Nov. 16 that Almazan was given posthumous citizenship for his sacrifice (picture above right also from S&S) (another link to same story here):

FRANKFURT, Germany — Clutching a framed photograph of her smiling husband and choking back tears, Salina Jimenez accepted a naturalization certificate Tuesday.

But the certificate wasn’t hers.

It belonged to her husband, Sgt. David Jimenez Almazan, a 27-year-old combat medic, who died Aug. 27 in a roadside blast in Iraq’s Anbar province.

“This is something we were both looking forward to,� said the 26-year-old Jimenez as she held the certificate after a naturalization ceremony Tuesday at the U.S. Consulate in Frankfurt.

“His American dream was to give back to the country that gave him so much freedom.�

It goes without saying that he gave all he could.

...

Almazan had deeper U.S. roots. He moved to California from Mexico when he was 11, and spent most of his life in the San Fernando Valley. But it wasn’t until about the time he enlisted that he began to look into how to become a U.S. citizen, Jimenez said. “In his heart, he always was one.�

Almazan turned in the paperwork for his citizenship months ago, but his death left the process in limbo. It was up to his wife to push it to its end. Doing so was a no-brainer.

“I had to do it,� she said.

She smiled as she clasped her husband’s photograph and naturalization certificate in front of her.

“We had a long life ahead of us, which I’m looking forward to spending in his name and his honor.�

The L.A. Times' Jeffrey Rabin reported Oct. 15 on Almazan's death:

Almazan joined the Army in 2002 because "he wanted to make a difference for himself and for other people," his wife said.

The Van Nuys resident re-enlisted last spring for another four years with the goal of becoming a physician's assistant.

When he was sent to Iraq, Almazan, an immigrant born in Guadalajara, was working on his application to become an American citizen. "He is now officially one as of the day of his death," his wife said.

Almazan came to the U.S. with his mother and two sisters when he was 11, joining his father, who was already in this country.

Growing up in the San Fernando Valley, he was known as David Jimenez, reflecting his father's last name. In Mexico, his mother's maiden name, Almazan, was listed last on his birth certificate, a common practice there.

Jose Martinez, a childhood friend, said they would spend their summers together in the Valley. "We made a lot with a little. We had a lot of fun with the little money we had," he said. "He kept me out of a lot of trouble…. He kept me grounded."

Almazan graduated from Van Nuys High School in 1997. He attended Los Angeles Valley College and worked at Costco in Van Nuys.

Almazan, who also served in Afghanistan, was a big soccer fan and loved salsa dancing.

The Marine Corps News reported on Almazan Aug. 31:

As one of the unit’s medics, Almazan frequently took time to ensure the men who were “fighting the fight� were healthy, and taken care of. His presence added comfort to fellow soldiers while they conducted counterinsurgency operations throughout the city, according to fellow soldiers, where roadside bombs, as well as small-arms fire and indirect fire attacks against U.S. and Iraqi military forces are frequent.

“He made the soldiers feel that much more at ease,� said 1st Lt. Joshua Zeldin, Almazan’s medical platoon leader. “I’m not just talking about the soldiers he served with on the ground, but also the medics he took the time to train.

He is survived by his wife Salina, father David, mother Olivia, and sisters Mayra and Mariana, the Times reported.

David Almazan on Washington Post's Faces of the Fallen (where I found the picture at top left).

Gov. Schwarzenegger on David Almazan.

While the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council member in charge of elections has been ignoring my e-mail, and the VNNC and Department of Neighborhood Empoowerment Web sites don't acknowledge that it's even happening, I learned about the imminent NC election from ... two of the candidates themselves.

In my mailbox (my U.S. Mail box ... the one attached to my front door) last night I found a flier from Ted C. Wood, running for Van Nuys Neighborhood Council, Zone 4. He lists his e-mail address: Ted_C_Wood_for_VNNC@yahoo.com.

His platform is simple: To Continually Improve Van Nuys.

Yeah, doesn't say or mean much, but what the hey?

At least he gives the particulars of the VNNC election:

Saturday, Dec. 2, 2006, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Van Nuys Elementary School, 6464 Sylmar Ave. (one block east of Van Nuys Boulevard, one block north of Victory Boulevard).

And according to Mr. Wood's flier, you need one of the following to be considered a "stakeholder," and therefore be eligible to vote: driver's license, student ID, AARP card, any photo ID, postmarked mail, church bulletin/newsletter to which one belongs, or a letter with signature from the director of a community organization.

But there's a race afoot. Also seen in my neighborhood are fliers from another candidate, Delores Nascar. And they come complete with a glamour shot of said Ms. Nascar. She has a few points on which she is running, though I can't remember them at this very moment. Ilene things Delores Nascar is the same Delores (or Deloris) we met at our polling place during this month's election. She had on a very large hat and seemed to defy her age (unless she was 40 ... but I suspect she was more 70, less 40). I don't think it's the same person, but in any case, this Delores Nascar has an IMDB page, meaning she's involved in film or TV, her last credit being a 2002 movie called "Woman on Fire."

So who do you trust?

Maybe I'll shoot an e-mail over to Mr. Wood and see what he has to say.

I'm so confused -- can't we just take Thanksgiving off? No. Laist, via Gothamist, reports that Michael Richards' new publicist says his client, the former Kramer, is indeed a Jew. And he's a Mason. Not a Marsha Mason, but the mysterious society that wears funny hats and is the font of many a conspiracy theory.

The Michael-Richards-is-Jewish "revelation" comes from the N.Y. Post:

Richards, in frantic damage-control mode, hired New York p.r. maestro Howard Rubenstein yesterday. And the famed mouthpiece confirmed his client used anti-Semitic words that night in California.

"He is Jewish and he said, 'I'm absolutely not anti-Semitic,' " Rubenstein said. "He acknowledged that he said those things. He said that he was role-playing and playing a character. He said, 'There is no way I'm anti-Jewish.' "

Jewish leaders, however, are reluctant to accept Richards' I'm-Jewish-too defense.

"It doesn't make the slightest difference. He should know the history of how much we have suffered throughout history," said Rabbi Marvin Hier, founder and dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center and Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles.

Happy Thanksgiving from the entire staff of Come on Feel the Nuys (Marcia, Greg, Jan, Peter, Cindy, Bobby and Alice).

Van Nuys was quiet today, slightly windy -- enough to make 68 degrees enjoyable. Starbucks opened at 4:30 a.m. I was not there. At 11, it was packed. I give thanks for Christmas Blend. Should've had a triple espresso opener and a grande, but settled for just a venti. I'm sure you're all enriched just knowing that.

I'll be back in the chair tomorrow at Daily News headquarters. Have a glass or 10 of hard cider and enjoy it, you Pilgrims, you.

Just a few short entries ago, we learned that Michael Richards, now-famed n-word-using comedian, isn't Jewish. Now we learn from TMZ.com that he went into an anti-Semitic tirade at an April comedy gig:

Carol Oschin and J.P. Fillet say they were at The Improv on April 22 when Richards took the stage. They say that in the middle of Richards' skit, a man in the audience said something to the comedian, when Richards allegedly launched into an anti-Semitic rant. According to Oschin, Richards screamed at the audience member, "You f***ing Jew. You people are the cause of Jesus dying."

Richards' publicist (and with a name like Howard Rubenstein, is there any doubt that he's a member of the tribe?) claims it's all part of the act. Guess it's time to get a new publicist.

Note about the picture above: I guess Michael Richards has broken free of the character he played on "Seinfeld."

Read me in full political jacket at the Daily News' Sausage Factory blog:

Invading foreign countries is freakin' messy, and it looks like we've turned a nation with one despotic nutcase (by that I mean Saddam) into a terrorist/insurgent free-for-all that won't stop until we get the f*** out of there. Seriously, you could have been "for" the war at the outset (though I question your judgment even for that), but "staying the course" at this point is sheer death-inducing folly. It's definitely time to talk "exit strategy."

The Jewish Journal reports that while the character Cosmo Kramer on "Seinfeld" is indeed Jewish, Michael Richards -- he who unleased a flurry of n-words on black patrons at the Laugh Factory recently -- was, in fact, "raised Catholic."

Why did the Jewish Journal feel so compelled? Here they sort of explain:

Fellow comedians and fans have been quick to criticize Richards -- and misrepresent his religious background. Comedian Paul Rodriquez held a press conference at the Laugh Factory, saying that Richards should know better, because the Hollywood community defended Jews against actor Mel Gibson's anti-Semitic tirades.

The implication was that Richards, a Jew, should not be launching racist attacks. He shouldn't, but he also isn't Jewish.

"Someone needs to tell Rodriquez that Michael isn't a Jew," said a television director who has known Richards for years. The two worked together in 1980 on ABC's "Fridays" television show and have remained in touch ever since.

Another interesting tidbit: Michael Richards graduated from Evergreen State College (noted hippie hangout) in 1975, and then entered the Army, where he did some things eerily relevant to his recent "incident":

He was drafted during the Vietnam War and stationed in Germany, as one of the co-directors of the V Corps Training Road Show. He produced and directed shows dealing with race relations and drug abuse. He then spent two years in the Army developing educational skits and a couple more years ‘finding himself’ at a commune in the Santa Clara Mountains. He drove a bus and developed a stand-up comedy act in 1979,� according to the Web site.

And the guy who Cosmo Kramer is based on -- the real Kenny Kramer (friend of "Seinfeld" co-creator Larry David), who is Jewish (and pictured at right) -- probably thinks Richards has some 'splainin' to do.

One thing I do know ... or at least I think I know: Michael Richards is, if not a vegan, at least a vegetarian. I've seen him dining in Santa Monica at Real Food Daily -- the L.A. area's best vegan restaurant -- on more than one occasion.

Another thing: I had no idea that Michael Richards even did standup ... or has even done much since "Seinfeld." Gotta be hard to star in one of the best shows of all time and have to follow that.

Tangentially related: "The New Adventures of Old Christine," with fellow "Seinfeld" alum Julia Louis-Dreyfus? Love her. Hate the show. Even though they temper the sweetness with irony, it's still sickly sweet. Nowhere near as good as the now-dead "Watching Ellie."

Really, I just wanted to use the word "shizzle" in a blog title. But go over to the Daily News' Red Carpet blog, where Fred and Greg chronicle the American Music Awards in all its finery and pagentry. From Josh Groban to Meat Loaf, the stars did what they do best: sing their current hits, answer pesky questions and, well just be.

Fred and Greg should really be doing this on TV. Click on over and laugh your badizzle off. (I have no idea what that means. I'm very, very white.)

Highlights: Fred ponders, who is Jesse McCartney? ... and Who is Akon? ... and Greg asks Isiah Washington about "the incident." Fred wonders, Why does Gwen Stefani yodel? And Greg, who must've never seen a mullet, figures out who Billy Ray Cyrus is.

For better or worse, I grew up reading the L.A. Times editorial page, and that meant the cartoons of Paul Conrad.

As far as the current L.A. Times-Tribune battle, he hits the nail again (click to the same place for the cartoon).
In a not-so-unrelated matter, I can never understand why he didn't remain on staff at the Times. The man set a high standard for editorial cartooning, one which is seldom reached by others, in my opinion.

From his Web site:

His favorite distinction: His 1973 inclusion on Richard Nixon's Enemies List. His favorite irony: Holding the Richard M. Nixon Chair at Whittier (Calif.) College (1977-78).

Thanks to Kevin of L.A. Observed for the info.

We painted Saturday and Sunday, and on the latter day, little Miss went over to her grandma's house for a whole long time, so we managed to get a lot of yellow on the front of the house.

That's the first coat. It takes two (baby).

And I broke out the roller and tray to start slapping primer on the stucco. The rest has been little shingles, which we've done with brushes. It's refreshing to go through a gallon of primer in about 20 minutes of unabashed rolling, rather than over the course of hours of brushing.

Next: The second coat of yellow on the shingles, first (and hopefully only) on the stucco ... then ... trim ... or start prepping another side of the house (it's one side at a time, however long it takes).

Previously: They call it Mellow Yellow

In the run-up to Thanksgiving, the Daily News Features copy desk is getting hammered big time, so blogging has pretty much ceased for that reason.

As pages, story packages and other responsibilities clog up the pipes of the Internets and elsewhere, I will post shortly and sweetly, if at all.

Good stuff upcoming in the actual Daily News:

She's not even 40 ... and she needed a triple bypass. Holy crap. Diana Charkalis reveals all on Monday, Nov. 20.

Thanksgiving 101: How to flip the bird, and cook it, too, with the expertise of Natalie Haughton, Tuesday, Nov. 21.

The Gift Guide to End all Gift Guides and our Holiday CD roundup, both on Sunday, Nov. 26.

Are you tough enough for Parcour? It's the extreme fitness regimin that has its devotees leaping tall buildings ... not in a single bound, but leaping them nonetheless, by Sandra Barrera, on Sunday, Nov. 26.

I stayed home yesterday. So did our little girl. We both have a cold, caught from some snot-drenched preschooler, no doubt. Though hazy from the cold medicines, I'm a lot better today, so I dragged it in here ... to find out that about half the news copy desk called in sick.

On Sunday night, I could barely sleep -- too hot, too cold, couldn't breathe -- hence calling in sick Monday, during which I actually slept during the day.

Did I mention that Nyquil is the world's most disgusting beverage? Shuddering at the thought of it, wouldn't two Sudafed, two Advil and a two shots of whisky be just as good?

As I read in this morning's paper, there's supposedly a delay in the shipment of flu vaccine to doctors.

Luckily, Westfield Shoppingtown is there for you. At the Fashion Square location, shots are available from noon to 4 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays on the first level near Pottery Barn. Cost: $25.

While I got my shot a few weeks ago at Rite Aid, I did witness my mother-in-law getting one at the mall, and I can vouch for the nurse wielding the needle -- it was quick, and pretty much painless. Did I mention there's no line?

So get over there, pay your $25, get it done -- and reward yourself with a double espresso from Coffee Bean. Wait ... that's what I did.

Now that our daughter is 3 (and not sitting in my lap drinking from a bottle), I haven't been watching as much "Sesame Street" as in the past. But yesterday was different. We were both home sick -- she from preschool, me from ... here ... with the same toddler-delivered cold, and who did we see making an appearance in the world of Big Bird and Elmo? Yes, "Grey's Anatomy" fans, it was T.R. Knight.

For those living under a rock, Knight recently announced that he was gay, prompted to do so after being the subject of an on-set fight between "Grey's" co-stars Patrick Dempsey and Isiah Washington in which the latter hurled a gay slur.

Enough of that drama. Back to "Sesame Streeet." As you can see in the picture above, Knight played a private "I" in the episode (bet you can guess the letter of the day). In the noirish skit, Knight searched for the missing letter in such words as -guana, -nsect and -ce cream. Being dressed in a giant foam letter "I," of course, is the clue he needs to determine the missing letter. Glad I explained it, aren't you?

Since it is a noir fantasy, and Knight is a detective, there's a mysterious blonde moll involved. And yes, their eyes meet and ... get your mind out of the gutter -- this is a show for 3- to 5-year-olds!

Well, if you missed the episode, remember this: "Sesame Street" films about 26 episodes per season (covering, at the minimum, all the letters in the alphabet, although in decades past the number of yearly episodes was much higher). It airs twice a day on weekdays, once on Saturdays. So in the next 30 or so weeks, that gives 450 chances to see it ... over and over again.

What happens to a leader of the evangelical Christian movement when it's revealed that he bought and most likely used methamphetamine and had some kind of unspecified relations with a male prostitute?

Why, I'm glad you asked. According to this AP article, the Rev. Ted Haggard, now ex-pastor of the 14,000-member New Life Church in Colorado Springs, is set to undergo "spriritual restoration," and a leader from Van Nuys' biggest church is part of the team:

"I'm sure there will be those who lay their hands on Pastor Haggard as an act of faith, calling on the act of God to restore and heal," said H.B. London, vice president for church and clergy at Focus on the Family, the conservative Christian ministry in Colorado Springs. "The prayer can be therapeutic, the laying on of hands can be ceremonial."

One of the men who agreed to oversee the restoration, Focus on the Family founder James Dobson, has already withdrawn, citing a lack of time. The other two — Pastors Jack Hayford (pictured at right) of The Church on the Way in Van Nuys, Calif., and Tommy Barnett of First Assembly of God in Phoenix — declined to comment on the specifics of Haggard's program.

But does it work?

"I see success approximately 50 percent of the time," said London. "Guys just wear out and they can no longer subject themselves to the process."

Those who fail "end up selling cars or shoes or something, and being miserable and angry the rest of their lives," London said.

No jokes from me here, especially because I'm not an evangelical Christian. Just an observation: Being either a gay or bisexual person in a religion that demonizes you is a recipe for ... what's happening to Ted Haggard.

Since we're no longer stoning people to death, cutting off their limbs, or ritually sacrificing animals, maybe this is one of the things that Christians can look into, shall we say, accepting and embracing? As far as the drug use, infidelity and lying, well, that's still fair game for religious rebuke, I suppose.

For those who want to know, Van Nuys Neighborhood Council treasurer Israel Ortiz said at the body's October meeting that the VNNC has $61,580 to spend by June 3, 2007.

Ortiz is very, very strict on how that money is disbursed. Expenses must be pre-approved, forms must be completed, receipts must be provided.

"I'm your treasurer, not your leg boy," Ortiz told his fellow VNNC members. "It's your responsibility."

On the other hand, he also said, "That is your money. So if you have an idea for a project, come in with a proposal. Do not be afraid."

Among the items coming out of that budget: Web site maintenance (not that there's much to show for it).

"Most of the money goes to outreach," Ortiz said. That means the banners announcing meetings and the recent mailing inviting potential neighborhood-council candidates to an orientation meeting. Sure, it came to my mailbox a mere day before the meeting, but it's a start.

Also from the VNNC meeting: There's $1,500 in "petty cash" (for expenses under $300), and all those expenses must still be approved by the "executive board," which meets the first monday of the month at NC President Jamie Cordaro's business, All Phase Electrical Systems, 7738 Densmore Ave., Van Nuys.

And the treasurer has a neighborhood council credit card in his name, good for expenses up to $1,000. For other things, a "demand warrant" (a.k.a "a check") will be issued. That takes four to six weeks.

Among the things the VNNC is spending money on: $5,000 toward an LAPD "smart car" license plate scanner to detect stolen cars (the vote on this "action item" was 10 in favor, 4 opposed, 1 abstaining).

The next VNNC meeting: 7 p.m. Dec. 13 at the Marvin Braude Constituent Service Center, according to the Web site.

The November meeting of the VNNC was LAST NIGHT ... and I totally missed it. Ahhhh ... after all that buildup to the October meeting ... nothing.

I apologize.

But since the agenda is available online, I took a peek: There were updates on the upcoming NC election and a request for funding ($300) for that election, an update on the Web site and the Holiday Festival slated for Van Nuys Boulevard. More on all this later if/as I find out about it.

Zach Behrens, blogger at his own site and Laist, and Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council member answers my previous query on just what the neighborhood councils are doing with the $50,000 they get per year from the city.

Turns out the Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council really hasn't spent much, if any of what is now a $100,000 pile. As I learned at the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council meeting, there's an upper limit on how much cash a NC can accrue -- and according to what was said at the VNNC, that amount is $100,000.

Zach has an idea for his NC's cash:

With the new board slate, we haven't spent any money yet. Next week, I may bring a motion to the board to spend $20,000 on LAPD surveillance cameras for Ventura Blvd. and the Cedros Parking Lot (we would be purchasing 1 of 5 cameras in collaboration with a few other organizations). $20,000 is 40% of the annual budget, but SONC has a surplus of money, which I believe is over $100,000.

The overabundance of shopping carts on the streets of Van Nuys has prompted Sixth District City Councilman Tony Cardenas and the entire council to approve a six-month pilot program (via this item in Laist) by which anybody in the Sixth District can call 311 and have an offending cart removed within 48 hours.
Cost: $55,000. I'm not in the Sixth, so guess that makes any shopping-cart problem I find in the Second District moot for the moment.

p.s. Tony Cardenas' deputy, Frank Banos, came to the last Van Nuys Neighborhood Council meeting, and he pretty much listened to and pledged to help with whatever problems people have in the council district.

On Mr. Banos' (and presumably Mr. Cardenas') list: all the trash being illegally dumped by Wickes on Sepulveda Boulevard.

"I've been working with Wickes," Banos said at the NC meeting. "It's clean (now), but it's not going to stay clean. We're trying to get them to put up a fence."

p.p.s. A deputy for Second District Councilwoman Wendy Greuel came to the meeting but left before his/her turn to speak, which came late in the session (around 9 p.m. for a meeting that began at 7).

(also posted in the Daily News' Politics blog)

First you've got Iraq going into the shitter, then your members are either resigning and going to jail -- or just resigning and not going to jail -- over ethical violations, and then you've got a guy getting cozy with Congressional pages -- and then in the days before the election, one of the conservative movement's most visible preachers turns out to have a thing for meth and men. It's enough to sour your base, not to mention send swing voters in the other direction.

Did I mention Iraq?

So it's no secret why the Democrats were able to take the House and very likely the Senate.

And the irony? As a conservative ex-Democrat, Sen. Joe Liberman -- thrown under the bus by his own party -- gets to have a pivotal, king-making swing vote in the upper house.

Then Donald Rumsfeld steps down as secretary of defense. There's your fall guy.

Sure, the GOP contention that the Democrats have no plan to govern is true. But voters didn't care so much about what the Democrats would do as they do about what the Republicans are doing.

It's going be an interesting two-year run-up to the 2008 elections, with Bush turning into Mr. Veto ... and a whole lot of investigations into Republican doings over the past few years.

Clearly the GOP will have to rethink it's base-based strategy and appeal once again to the center. And Democrats will have to tread carefully and take care of that same center, or risk squandering what they've gained. That means things like "prescription drug reform," but not "national health insurance." Not yet, anyway.

And in another bit of irony, this Congress will likely give President Bush an immigration bill -- one with border security, a guest-worker program and probably some form of amnesty -- that he'll be willing to sign.

Bottom line: George W. needs to call up Gov. Arnold and ask for tips on how to really work across the aisle for a change.

Got my first e-mail about a Los Angeles neighborhood council meeting in the Valley. It's for the Woodland Hills-Warner Center Neighborhood Council -- and is there an area in the city with more residential development going on?
They meet 6:30 p.m. Nov. 8 in the Parkman Middle School auditorium (or, if you must, call it by its new name, Woodland Hills Academy), 20800 Burbank Blvd. Woodland Hills. ... OK so it's only 26 hours notice, but that's progress. This is the only Valley NC agenda I've received via e-mail in the past two months.

They're going to be talking about:

-- Revising the "color palette" of the Aku Aku Motor Inn on Ventura Boulevard (man ... that place is cool looking)

-- Voting on funds for a "neighborhood council liaison" to the Planning Department (a smart move, I think, given the literally thousands of new residential units going up in the neighborhood)

-- Recommending (or not) the placement of AT&T metal cabinets with fiber-optic equipment

-- Recommending (or not) the closure of two pedestrian tunnels under the 101 Freeway

-- Recommending (or not) the restructuring of the Planning Department

... and

-- Voting on a recommendation regarding the "day labor problem" on Fallbrook Avenue between Ventura Boulevard and Avenue San Luis.

That's a pretty full agenda. If this is the neighborhood council that represents you, try to be there, and if not, the next meeting is at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 15, same place. And the body's election will be held 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 15, at the Pacific Lodge Boys Home (and no, I have no idea where that is).

If you want to get notifications about neighborhood council activity, sign up here.

Kudos to the Woodland Hills-Warner Center Neighborhood Council for posting its agenda online.

In case you're waiting until ... now ... to vote ... or if you just want to see how my ballot-casting mind works ... here's how I voted this morning:

Afternoon update: Before you get to how this political spit-up began, I forgot to mention Angelides vs. Schwarzengger for governor. This bad boy is statewide, but Angelides inspires nothing within me as a voter. I think all the Democrats in Sacramento are plenty happy with Arnold and his willingness to work across the aisle since his special-election setback. The Dems in Sacramento (and statewide) seem to be pretty much accepting that it's four more years of The Big A, and then an open field for Antonio Villaraigosa (we'll call him Little A) and whoever plans to run against him for the Democratic nomination.

Phil Angelides never had a chance. So if I'm going to cast a vote in the wilderness, it's going to the Green Party's Peter Camejo. And while on the subject, it's a good thing Antonio isn't running for governor this time around, because he's got lots of talk, not so much walk, at this stage in the L.A. mayoral game. We'll see what happens in the next four years. But Angelides? They've got to be kidding. I feel for the guy. Didn't he see "Pumping Iron"? The Dems needed Warren Beatty. Didn't get him.

-------------------------

And now back to the beginning:

Since my work has more to do with "Borat" and less with ballot measures, I pretty much looked over the people and propositions involved in today's elections for about 10 minutes before trotting over to the polling place, still in the same inconvenient apartment building rec room as last time -- not in the ultra-convenient and parking-rich neighbor's house down the street where we used to vote. This time, the new polling place housed not one but TWO voting precincts. It was a bit of a circus, having to be pre-checked and routed to one table or the other.

One cool thing about this year's election: After voting, our "Inka-Vote" ballots were fed through some kind of electronic scanning machine to "verify" them. I hope they were counted right then and there, because that will certainly speed things up when the returns start being tabulated tonight.

Back to my ballot. Now I don't watch all that many commercials. I fast-forward right through them (on a VCR, not TiVo, because I'm old school). But I do watch the news, and I actually read this very newspaper, not to mention others. I read a whole lot of blogs. I got so much campaign mail this election season that I threw out most of it unread ... because it's unreadable propagandist crap. Sorry, candidates and committees, you wasted your money, .

First of all, I should mention that some journalists think those in the profession (not the world's oldest, but not generally held in any higher regard) shouldn't vote at all. While I see their point, I do vote, but I have been registered as "nonpartisan" for as long as I can remember. That's more because I find being considered a member of one of the two major political parties a potential conflict of interest on the one hand, and extremely distasteful on the other.

My voting strategy for candidates: None of the races on our ballot are close. I have a soft spot for Democrat Jerry Brown, the man with an entourage of one, and was happy to vote for him for state attorney general. He's an iconoclast, and that I admire.

Lloyd Levine (State Assembly) and Brad Sherman (U.S. House) are not iconoclasts. They also have their jobs for as long as term limits (in Levine's case) or sheer longevity (for term-limit-free Sherman) allow. There's not even any non-major-party opposition, so these two knuckleheads did get my vote. Reluctantly.

That whole flap with Levine's father, the guy behind one of those "Democratic" voter guides, taking money from tobacco and oil interests to urge a "no" vote on props 86 and 87 (I can't find the Web link for where I heard about this) leaves a bad taste ... and I did pause, but still Inka'd for Lloyd, although I didn't feel good about it.

For the other races, since they aren't anywhere near close, and the candidates on both sides haven't said anything that has me cheering for them, I pretty much cast my vote for the Green Party candidates. I feel comfortable with the environmental message of the Green Party, and were things not pre-rigged to elect Democrats, my vote for candidates from that party might actually mean something. But as things stand, it really does not. (So if I leaned Republican, which I don't, I guess I'd vote for the Libertarian Party.)

None of the Democrats on the ballot (from Sen. Dianne Feinstein down to controller candidate John Chiang) either needs my vote to win, or made much of any attempt to secure it. So they didn't get it. Especially when it comes to Feinstein, how can you get excited about her work in the Senate? Maybe if the Democrats get the majority, we'll hear from her, but either she's done next to nothing in her many years in the U.S. Senate or is very quiet about it. She's no Ted Kennedy, or even Joe Biden ... i.e. someone who I'd actually recognize were I not from California.

The machine politics of the major parties just chug along, and safe seats breed apathetic voters.

I'm not a big fan of ballot propositions. They're almost always poorly written, and the case for their success is often poorly stated. Why vote for an imperfect measure? Why keep on taxing myself? I don't know. But I do know that ballot measures that are bond issues and which don't regressively hit property owners exclusively, are more palatable to me. If the money to pay off the bonds comes from the general fund, I'm happier about it.

So 1A -- keeping gas taxes for transportation -- sounded good. Doesn't cost anything.

1B, highway bonds. Yep, we need it.

1C, Housing bond. This one was tough. Ditto for L.A.'s Measure H. But I'm in favor of affordable housing for seniors and the homeless, and I had to support both.

1D, school bond. Normally I'd balk. Seems that for construction, the LAUSD has plenty of money. But this is also for state colleges, and they could sure use some upgraded facilities. So yes on that.

But ... Proposition 88, the parcel tax for K-12 education? I even have a child who will be in LAUSD eventually. But this is a statewide measure, and I've heard almost nothing about it. LAUSD is in major turmoil, given the Villaraigosa/Brewer transition. And a flat $50 parcel tax? That means I will pay $50. Madonna pays $50. Warren Buffet pays $50. Forget about it. I voted no. Come back with a compelling campaign as to why there's not already enough money in the hopper for education, make the tax progressive (or even make it a sales tax) and I'll reconsider. But $50 for every homeowner, on top of every other special assessment, is just too much.

1E -- Flood control. Gotta deal with that levee situation, or we could be in real trouble. Yes.

83, "Jessica's Law." I've been on the Megan's Law database, and it seems like there are thousands of sex offenders living in Van Nuys, hundreds in my neighborhood alone. That's an easy yes on the measure for GPS monitoring and the 2,000-foot-limit on living near a school or park.

84, water quality. Water, it's what L.A. is all about. Yes.

85, the abortion waiting period and parental notification for minors. Big no. Even though I'd want to be involved, were I in such a situation, but it's still the pregnant woman -- minor or otherwise -- who should have ultimate control. I imagine that most girls in this situation would involve their parents, but I don't think the law needs to mandate it. If a girl wants an abortion, and the parents are opposed, I still think it should be her choice -- and her choice whether to involve them.

86, cigarette tax. I don't smoke, and I am uncomfortable legislating morality, but hospitals could really use the money. I realize it's kind of hypocritical to talk about "regressive" taxes and then be whacking smokers in the knees, but the effects of smoking on society -- those people get sick and die quicker -- are too much to ignore. Sorry, smokers.

87, oil-production tax. Did I mention my affinity for the Green Party and environmentalism in general? This kind of thing is right up my alley. The recent lowering of gas prices has me plenty suspicious. So I'm enjoying the low gas prices while they last, but California needs to be a leader on this issue.

89, public campaign financing. Honestly, if the League of Women voters is for it, and the California Republican Party and the California Federation of Teachers are against it, it's gotta be good. Public financing could really level the playing field in California politics. A "yes" vote.

90, to restrict government's use of eminent domain. I voted no only because I just couldn't make up my mind. I had that proposition glaze that one gets when there are over 10 of these on the ballot. It's an issue I'm willing to revisit in the future.

Getting back to the nameless and faceless, I made a major change in my voting habits this election and voted for Superior Court judge.

Why? I actually saw a judicial candidate in the flesh: Janice Barquist, running for Superior Court Judge Seat No. 144, who made an appearance and spoke at the recent Van Nuys Neighborhood Council meeting.

Many in attendance were surprised that a judicial candidate actually did some campaigning, and they were ready to vote for her right then and there because she was suddenly more than an anonymous name on the ballot. And she has a lot of experience, the latest being more than seven years as a deputy city attorney.

Well, I had to fall in with all the "stakeholders" of Van Nuys and cast my first judicial vote in a very long time for Ms. Barquist (I usually skip the judicial offices because I have no basis on which to cast my vote).

So can anybody be a judge? Do you even need to be a lawyer? Seems that you can do a little campaigning and win, even if you haven't the slightest idea of how to be a judge. All I know is that anonymous people running in actual elections is not what democracy is all about. Kudos to Ms. Barquist for putting herself out there.

I've been reading slowly. Back to Anthony Trollope, one of the most underrated authors in the English language, to be sure (and overshadowed by fellow Victorians Thackery and Dickens). One of the big knocks against Trollope was that he probably wrote three books a year for 20 years. I'm now about 1/16th of the way into "The Way We Live Now," Trollope's examination of both the seamy underbelly of Victorian-era publishing and a morally bankrupt society made only more so by the emergence of speculators, so far in the book concering one mysteriously wealthy man who made a suspect fortune in Europe, and another who's a reluctant investor in a Salt Lake-to-Mexico railroad that nobody thinks will (or should) ever be built. Add in the usual ruined aristocracy spending money it doesn't have, getting more through gambling, losing said, aiming to marry for money ... and you've got Trollope.

It's not so easy to search for Trollope on Amazon, since too much crap comes up, so use this search, which narrows it down considerably.

What the !@#%$ is going on out there, people? Too hot. Hotter then yesterday, when it was still hot and we spent the day painting the house (actually the priming before the painting, which occurs after the scraping but that's inside baseball). So some time in the next few weeks, we'll have 1/4 of the house painted ... but it will be the 1/4 that faces the street.

The day before, we had a run-in with Hello Kitty at the Fashion Square Mall. Everybody at the Hello Kitty store (real name Sanrio Surprises ... but who calls it that?) knows who we are. Do you really want to go where everybody knows your name? Only if beverages are involved.

As if winning the Tour de France bicycle race seven times wasn't enough, 35-year-old Lance Armstrong is trying his hand (his feet?) at marathon running. He made his 26.2-mile debut Sunday in the New York City Marathon, finishing in 2 hours, 59 minutes, 36 seconds. His goal was to finish in less than three hours. Looks like he made that one, if only by 24 seconds.

From the AP report:

"I think I bit off more than I could chew, I thought the marathon would be easier. "(My shins) started to hurt in the second half, especially the right one. I could barely walk up here, because the calves are completely knotted up."

He called the race "the hardest physical thing I have ever done" — even more grueling than his worst days on the Tour.

Will he do it again? Maybe if "bromance" partner Matthew McConaughey runs alongside him.