Michael Heizer's calling is set in stone

The creator of the 'Levitated Mass' sculpture at LACMA, whose centerpiece is a 340-ton boulder, Michael Heizer is no stranger to exploring the complexities of giant stone.

Caught in the cycle of poverty

Choices, challenges and chaos keep undermining a woman's attempt to escape the struggles her mother and grandmother faced. She wants to provide a better life for her children but seems not to know how.

A totally Californian poet laureate

Juan Felipe Herrera, 63, is the son of migrant farmworkers and plugged in to modern culture. He'd like to make the entire state a democratic, virtual poetry workshop.

China's Bo Xilai scandal revs up news media run by exiles

The scandal involving fallen politician Bo Xilai and his wife gives news outlets run by Chinese exiles a lot of ammunition against the Communist Party.

Mississippi antiabortion activist's zeal born on church doorstep

Abandoned as a baby, C. Roy McMillan now devotes his life to fighting abortion at the state's last remaining clinic.

Assisted suicide or a show of love?

Alan Purdy, 88, sat by while his beloved Margaret, 84 and in unrelieved pain, killed herself. San Diego County authorities arrested him, but the issue is tough for everyone involved.

A novel idea in Egypt: Presidential candidates

The public, which for decades had only one real choice, is fascinated by the carnival-like spectacle of a contender's arrival, speeches and mishaps.

Bringing back San Juan Capistrano's swallows is one tough mission

The tiny bird that put San Juan Capistrano on the map has snubbed the mission in recent years. A recording of a mating call is a last-ditch effort to lure them back.

With her child's birth, an adoptee discovers a priceless bond

Abandoned in Korea and arriving in the U.S. at 2 not knowing how to hug, a mother who had feared that detachment was part of her nature takes joy in her infant son.

Ariel Hsing's Olympic dream is a DIY effort

Ariel Hsing, 16, is an elite athlete in a low-profile sport, so she and her family are largely on their own.

Pittsburgh cafe offers cuisine from the U.S. conflict du jour

The Conflict Kitchen specializes in dishes and discourse from countries involved in scraps with America. Cuban food is next in line.

Nepal's fierce Gurkha soldiers find themselves under siege

Some in Nepal's communist-led government object to the fighters' connection to the British military and want to cut ties. The relationship dates to 1815.

The intertwining lives of a man and his San Francisco neighborhood

San Francisco's Tenderloin is a work in progress, much like photographer Mark Ellinger, who had success, lost it to drugs, and is piecing his life back together by finding beauty amid decay.

Nigeria state seeks husbands for 1,000 brides-to-be

In Nigeria's Kano state, where the number of divorcees is cause for concern, the government is acting as matchmaker to help ex-wives and widows find Mr. Right.

A proving ground for Las Vegas entertainers

In a little roadhouse off the Strip in Las Vegas, performers take the stage and mingle, making music and connections with dreams of the big time.

At home in a piece of history

Beth Howard stumbled onto the Iowa farmhouse depicted in Grant Wood's 1930 painting 'American Gothic' on a road trip after her husband died three years ago. It's now her home and a place of peace — despite the gawkers who flock to it.

Separated by years and oceans, pen pals reconnect

A Southland woman and the Zambian boy she sponsored kept in touch for eight years. When the charity group that matched them moved on, their communication was severed — but their bond was not.

Supper surfing's goal: Bring strangers together over food

Marissa Engel came up with the idea as a way for people in a large, diverse city like L.A. to meet. She launched her plan last December; friendships have resulted.

Nigerian billionaire leaves his imprint in cement

Aliko Dangote made his fortune by betting on African growth. Some call him ruthless, but many Nigerians feel he's brought respect to a nation known more for email scams than manufacturing.

L.A. time-lapse photographer takes the long view

Colin Rich has spent many nights capturing the city's rhythms from out-of-the-way spots, including sneaking behind the Hollywood sign and climbing perilously close to rush-hour traffic.

In search of the 'lost ladybug'

Thousands of citizen scientists send in photos to help Cornell University researchers determine why some species of the colorful beetles are becoming so rare.

Hindus in Pakistan accuse Muslims of kidnapping teens as wives

The girls are forced to convert to Islam, rights groups say. In court, a few wives have chosen to stay with their husbands, but families say they were coerced.

In retirees' Man Cave, a return to the hobbies of youth

Outnumbered by the women at an Irvine senior living center, men rediscover the joy of model making that has been dormant since they were young. Along with trains and planes, they build fellowship.

India woman is an 'untouchable,' with a Midas touch

Dalits still face discrimination in India's caste system, but Kalpana Saroj has worked her way up from poverty, becoming a manufacturing tycoon.

Typewriter fan Steve Soboroff loves the click-clack of carriages

Steve Soboroff, an L.A. civic leader, has acquired typewriters once owned by the famous and infamous. In an era of iPads and text-spouting phones, the ancient, clunky machines have become unlikely objects of desire.

English gardener puts his touch on Monet's garden

James Priest, an Englishman, is the new head gardener of the painter's paradise in Giverny, France. It's a heady responsibility.

Suicide flourishes in the Nevada desert

The state's suicide rate has long been high, but when the recession hit, the despair skyrocketed. Sociologists say the cultural profile of Las Vegas is just one of the reasons.

Heady aroma of Hollywood ambitions fills small coffeehouse

Kaldi Coffee & Tea is a ways from Tinseltown but draws a regular crowd of screenwriters, producers, directors and the like -- some successful, others still striving. 'It's very much a workplace,' says one.

'Crusader' against illegal immigration brings his message to the mat

'RJ Brewer' — real name, John Stagikas — has wrestled his way across the Southwest on the 'Masked Warriors' tour, to almost entirely hostile crowds. His shaved-headed, in-your-face character was created two years ago by the Mexican American wrestling promotion company Lucha Libre USA.

A storied yacht saves its restorer's life

The once-magnificent Shawnee is a 72-foot wooden sailboat built in 1916. Its skeleton sits in the yard of a Newport Beach home, where a master shipwright who's restoring it is being sued by the city.

In Egypt's Tahrir Square, die-hard revolutionaries linger

Those left from the uprising that brought down Hosni Mubarak last year live in tents in Cairo's iconic plaza, harassed and cursed, but mostly forgotten.

Ready for post-bimbo era in Italy

Critics blame Berlusconi for bombarding Italy with degrading images of women. Since his fall from power, many women are hoping that the damage can be undone.

Prosthetics get the personal touch

Synthetic legs have become a medium for self-expression, thanks to customization made possible by sophisticated technology. It's a bold melding of modern science and fashion statement.

To Britain's metal thieves, nothing is sacred

Metal theft is up in Britain as prices soar. Crooks are willing to haul away rails, war memorials, even church roofs.

For California fishermen, squid means big money

Long before calamari reaches the table, crews set out from San Pedro and elsewhere to round up California's most valuable catch. But environmentalists question whether the haul is too large.