Blocked Driveways and Other Parking Dilemmas

I have a lot to say about parking in Los Angeles, but I won't say it all now. It will make my future posts on parking repetitive. Gotta think ahead.
This post is about driveway parking. Its messed up. You're blocking people in and preventing normal life from continuing smoothly. Anything that prevents smooth is anti-L.A. and Belle Pose is strongly against anything Anti-L.A.

I first saw one form of driveway parking in Westwood, where people parked their cars so far down the driveway they were blocking the sidewalk and sometimes even into the street. They started cracking down on that by issuing $58 citations, but only after the City of Los Angeles was sued for violating the American Disabilities Act.
Silver Lake also had the same cars-on-the-sidewalks problem, and they endeavored to go the Westwood way: tickets.

What I have witnessed twice in my neighborhood is a different form of driveway parking. I like to call it DPE, or Drunken Parking Euphoria: A drunken driver gets all happy because they think they found a parking spot, but its really a driveway and their too drunk to notice.
It isn't unheard of to block a a driveway in these here parts. But it usually has to do with a running-in-and-out less than 5 minutes kind of thing. There isn't a lot of parking around here and sometimes you've just got to do that, block a hydrant or double-park. Most people are quick, and they certainly don't make it an overnight thing.
But there are always outliers. I don't remember many details about the first time I saw DPE, but it didn't seem as serious as what I saw today: When I left this morning (a weekday during rush hour) to go to work I laughed at the sight of a terrible parking job blocking a driveway. I laughed, but I also thought about how messed up it would be for the people parked in the blocked lot. I didn't linger on it because I knew it would be towed. It already had a ticket.

Fast forward to 7:00 p.m.: After circling the block 4 times because my regular lot was being repaved and painted, I found a spot then walked a length to my apartment, only to pass the same DPE! Still there! Still blocking the driveway! SAY WHAT?! The city didn't tow? The building's owners didn't tow? What went wrong?There were some angry people. A couple of snarky notes were left on the car. A citation and some sort of letter from the city. The windshield was cracked and there was some sort of white crap smeared all over it.
I'd like to dedicate this post to those stranded folks: May you be released soon!

Singing Praised of Public Transit-Punk Style

I was just wondering why I'm still on my graduate school's email lists, when I came across a message that included a link to a particularly awesome song, "The Red Line" by It's Casual, an L.A. based, punk band.

What I really like about the song is that it is simple, and gets to the point using the least amount of words, plus not only does it point out one of L.A. biggest drawbacks, i.e. traffic, it focuses on a pretty reliable alternative to the traffic: The Red Line.
It seems that It's Casual loves L.A. like I do. Just check out the band's bio.

My best friend is also unlicensed and makes the most of public transportation. Everyone is always asking how he makes it without a car. I know how. He doesn't go to places he knows he can't get back home from in a decent amount of time. He isn't afraid to hoof it and, hopefully he knows it in the back of his head, that I'll come pick him up if all else fails.
L.A.'s transit systems is pretty good if you life by those rules. You can easily get to Hollywood, Downtown and the beach. With a tad more effort you can make it to the valley (but why?), EasLos, South L.A., the San Gabriel Valley or the South Bay. Everywhere else will take some effort, but that's what friends with cars and weekend trips are for.
If you haven't already done so, take a ride on the different rail systems. Find yourself on a rapid red bus speeding up or down Wilshire. Hop on the amazing 305 that takes your from the bowls of the 'hood to the glitz of Beverly Hills all in one trip. You'll learn a lot about this great town from that one bus line!