Future uncertain

Many, many years ago I was at work and my Mom called to inform me that a movie was being filmed at night at the Puente Hills Mall. A huge chunk of my teen and early adult years were spent at that mall. It's in the City of Industry, adjacent to Hacienda Heights, where we'd moved to just before I started high school. Back then, the mall was the hangout.

 

The area never really had the cache or excitement of some other Southern California neighborhoods, so I assumed and opined that it was probably some crappy B-movie. A real movie could command a more popular mall in a more desirable location, or so I assumed.

I couldn't have been more wrong. What was being filmed were scenes from a movie that would become a classic: Back to the Future. The humble Puente Hills Mall had been tapped to portray Hill Valley's Twin Pines/Lone Pine Mall and it's been beloved by BTTF fans ever since.

In recent years Puente Hills had become a ghost mall. Many tenants left, although there was no explanation of why the mall was being abandoned or what plans were for its future. That is, until now, as Los Angeles Magazine reports: The 'Back to the Future' Mall Sells for Redevelopment.

 

It seems what the future holds for Puente Hills is still a mystery, but with this sale the mall is one step closer to its next phase, whatever that turns out to be.

 

Also, I had no idea people did this. So cool. Wonder if this year will be their final get together.

An awful day in the world of hockey

Johnny Gaudreau of the Columbus Blue Jackets and his brother Matthew were killed while cycling yesterday. Gaudreau, 31, leaves behind a wife and two young children. I read somewhere that Matthew, 29, leaves behind a pregnant wife.

As if all that wasn't enough, today - the day after their deaths - was supposed to be the wedding of their sister. Apparently the wedding was cancelled, understandably.

Oh, and it gets worse. Reports are that the vehicle that struck them as they biked was driven by a drunk driver. So this could have all been avoided.

 

Like many others horrified by the news, I can't help thinking of the utter devastation that has hit this family. It's Shakespearean in scope. Today and this weekend should have been a joyous family celebration, but instead they're planning the funerals of two young men senselessly lost. This family has lost two sons/brothers, two wives have been widowed, at least three children have been deprived of their fathers, and a young couple's marriage will always have the shadow of her brothers' deaths attached to it. I don't know how, as a family, you survive something like this.

Full report on NHL.com.

And this story got even more brutal: Johnny Gaudreau's wife is nine weeks pregnant.

Here we go again

Remember this shit show? Guess what's happening AGAIN next week? THAT'S RIGHT.

 

I really miss when my writer's conferences were WRITER'S CONFERENCES and not the family vacation discount plan.

Changes need to be made, and they will be made. You can't let people treat you and things that are important to you like shit and keep going back for more. 

 

Updated 8/27/24: I should be there right now.

 

 

Rough week for celebs

Rest in peace to some talented individuals who left us recently.

Oscar-nominated actress Gena Rowlands (June 19, 1930 - August 14, 2024) due to complications from dementia.

 

French star Alain Delon (November 8, 1935 - August 18, 2024) from natural causes.

Peter Marshall, host of The Hollywood Squares (March 30, 1926 - August 15, 2024) due to kidney failure.

 

Singer-songwriter Greg Kihn ("The Breakup Song") (July 10, 1949 - August 13, 2024) due to Alzheimer's complications.

 

Famous Amos (Wally Amos), successful talent agent turned cookie mogul (July 1, 1936 - August 13, 2024) due to complications from dementia.

 

How scary is it that three of those five were afflicted with Alzheimer's/dementia? Has that devastating condition always been so common?

And sadly, it looks like Matthew Perry's drug overdose death last year could have been avoided, at least at the time: arrests have been made in connection with his death. 

Oh, and speaking of unnecessary deaths, I hope these guys fry. Unfortunately, Los Angeles has a "DA" (cough *George Gascon* cough) who loves felons and will probably let them off with a slap on the wrist.

Updated 8/19/24: Adding one more...

Daytime TV talk show icon Phil Donahue (December 21, 1935 - August 18, 2024) following a long illness (undisclosed at the time of the announcement).

The Portland "Pie Guy". And the more I think about it, the more (evil) genius it is.

Genius or rip-off artist? Given what the economy is like these days, I'm gonna add survivor to the list of possibilities.

 

 The full thread is here.

Buying in bulk.

Spray painted sign = artisan street cred, apparently.

Another satisfied customer?

So yeah, this guy goes to his local store, buys a bunch of mass-produced pies, labels them as "artisan", then sells them at his local farmer's market for $10 per slice. And apparently, people buy into it, no pun intended.

Let's do the math:

At my local Ralphs, their "bakery fresh" pies go for $5-$6 each. We're talking the usual, apple, peach, pumpkin. Some of the fancier ones are in the $10 range. Say you get six slices from each pie and sell them for $10 each, you've made a profit of roughly $55 per cheap pie, $50 per fancier pie. For argument's sake let's say he takes ten pies and sells all 60 slices. That means (not factoring in the cost of the space, plates, and plastic forks) he would make about $600 in one day. If he only does one market per week that's $2,400 per month, more if he does additional markets. Not too shabby.

Not to mention, it's probably all cash. I wonder if he has a business license or needs one to rent a space at the market. I don't know how these things work, but there seems to be a lot of untraceable, tax-free potential there.

Not gonna lie there's a certain genius to this, although in a way it's a bit unfair to the actual small bakeries at the market. Also, I live in L.A. and I think $10 per slice is a lot, but like one of the commenters said, the pie is worth what people are willing to pay. But even if you sold the pies for $5 per slice, if nothing else that's a nice supplemental income with no actual work/baking involved. 

There's a small-biz bakery where I live and they sell their actual artisan pies for $62 for a full-sized pie, $13.25 for a mini-pie, and $9.25 per individual slice, and I think those prices are astronomical. And they have the cost of a physical location, employees, and a baking facility. Mr. Portland Pie Guy seems like he would have little overhead. Probably a one-man operation.

If the economy and job market were booming, I would say this guy is a slick con artist, but given how expensive and tough everything is these days, I have to laud him for finding a way to make a living. So, I personally am going to give him a pass. Plus, I have to admit that I kind of wish I'd thought of it first.

 

Speaking of houses on the market...

While we wait and see what my Dad's house goes for, guess who's house has just hit the market? If you guessed the Freeling house from Poltergeist, give yourself a pat on the back and enjoy a dip in the pool! Yes, it comes with a pool. 

Enjoy a dip in the pool...IF YOU DARE!!!

I like how they joke about the house's place in pop culture:

For the first time in 45 years, the legendary house from the movie *Poltergeist* is back on the market! Yes this is the home where much of the first movie of the series was filmed but “This house is clean” Seriously, it is!  Well-loved by its original owners, this charming 4 bedroom, 2 1/2-bathroom home is ready to welcome a new family, without the ghostly antics, we promise! 

 

And there's THAT kitchen and THAT dining area. We all know what happened there, don't we?

And all this can be yours for a cool $1,174,999. For that price, you'd think they would throw in the ghosts.

 

Words of Wisdom: Homebody Edition

For the homebodies out there:

Collect things you love, that are authentic to you and your house. --Erin Flett

There's just a connection you have with your home. For me, it's a soul connection. --Brownie Evans

I live by the ocean. I find that whenever I need something more than what I have inside, that the ocean gives it to me. I walk to the stairs that lead down to the beach. I don’t even have to put my toes in the sand…I can just stand on the cliff….watch the waves lapping at the shore…the sunlight hitting the top of the crests…and there is something very energizing about it, something very calming….It renews my sense of wonder and renews my sense of spirit, and my sense of myself. (Jill Alman-Bernstein)

 

The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned. (Maya Angelou)

 

Someday I want to live by the ocean in an old cottage with a person I love. We can wake to the sound of waves and drift off to the sound of our laughter. (Thomas Ardavany)

 

Home is the kingdom in which we have the daily choice and power to make our tiny domain one of light or darkness. (Sally Clarkson)

 

This is how I feel about my home: A place you don’t ever want to leave. It’s something forever, a home for keeps. (Nancy Zoleta)