NEIGHBORS : Picture This : Marc Alan Langsam’s photographs focus on the design, color and texture of peeling paint.

Peeling paint is the subject of much of Thousand Oaks photographer Marc Alan Langsam’s work--that is, when he’s not shooting graffiti or ripped posters at construction sites. Langsam uses all of these common images to produce what he calls “environmental impressionistic photographs.” His work will be on exhibit at the L.A. Nicola Martini Lounge beginning Wednesday.

So how does one decide to turn one’s attention, and camera, to such eyesores? “When we would go on vacation, I’d do that instead of taking pictures of my family,” Langsam said.

His family’s reaction? “They laughed at me,” he said.

But Langsam sees the beauty in paint scraps, focusing on their color, design and texture. “In a couple of my pieces it’s almost like looking at clouds. You see different animals, different shapes.”

Update on the recent county beach cleanup organized by the Ventura Regional Sanitation District:

For various reasons the amount of garbage collected, by pounds, was down about 67% from last year. But that didn’t mean there was a corresponding drop in odd findings. Here are the top three most unusual items found, as judged by the sponsors of the event:

First place: False teeth, bottom half of a set. They were found, ironically, at what is known as the Kiddie’s Beach at Channel Islands Harbor.

Second place: Washing machine parts, probably pieces of the machine’s engine. They were found at Deer Creek Canyon Beach, south of Mugu Rock. Observers said the pieces were so eroded that when clumped together they resembled a modern sculpture.

Third place: A pregnancy testing kit, pretty much intact. It was discovered at Silver Strand Beach by 13-year-old Marcy Parco, a member of Girl Scout Troop 186 from Newbury Park.

It’s the weekend of “The Days” in Ventura County.

There’s Moorpark Country Days at one end of the county and Port Hueneme Harbor Days at another.

The highlights? In Port Hueneme it may very well be the fishing contests, where it’s not always the quantity that counts, but rather the quality--or lack of it. Awards, of course, will be given to the lucky anglers who reel in the biggest fish. No surprise there. But those who catch the prettiest fish and ugliest fish will also be honored.

What constitutes an ugly fish, you ask. Well, I put that question to Bill Morrison, manager of the bait and tackle shop on the Port Hueneme Pier and one of the judges of the contest. “Bullheads are good candidates to get the ugliest fish (award). Oh, they are ugly! Similar to a catfish, only uglier,” he said. “Disgustingly so.”

There won’t be any fishing at the Moorpark celebration, but who needs it, when you have other sports--such as bed racing.

You may laugh, but the contestants don’t take this thing lying down. At least not the folks at Blue Star Ready Mix or those at CalMat. The two concrete companies have repeatedly sponsored teams in this annual contest and one or the other usually wins.

* FYI

If you’re not familiar with the rules, each bed-racing team has five members, four of whom move the homemade bed while the other lies on it for the duration of the race.