Cool property: Unable to sell his house...

Cool property: Unable to sell his house for $659,000, Manhattan Beach writer Paul Harris planted a sign on the front lawn that says:

“Dropping Our Price $1,000 a Day--69 Cents a Minute. . . . We’re Serious.”

The sign was only up a few hours Wednesday, Harris said, when he started receiving phone inquiries. What he doesn’t know, of course, is how many of the callers are procrastinators figuring they may finally be able cash in on their affliction.

Whatever, Harris figures this sales approach is preferable to his original idea. “I thought of sitting on a flagpole until it was sold,” he said. “I had even sketched out a perch.” But, he joked, “I was afraid I might die of old age up there.”

If it don’t move, paint it: Caltrans gave commuters something new to view on the Pasadena Freeway the other day--freshly painted, solid yellow lines on each side of the center medians that passed over everything in their path--plants, hubcaps, trash and, in at least one case, an upside-down shoe.

Can you tap this?The $205,667 bill that City Councilman Joel Wachs received from the Department of Water and Power is just so many drops in the bucket compared to the $1.5-million bill that the DWP sent to Sandy Paris of Encino several months ago.

Paris, like Wachs, is one of the lucky people. Instead of just mailing in a check for $1.5 million, he asked the DWP if maybe it could double-check its computations for his warehouse. As a result, Paris’ bill fell to $338.

Memories of Pop’s: Our inquiry to readers about Pop’s Willow Lake occasioned a flood of recollections about the park, which was founded by the late James (Pop) Gautier in 1931 and prospered for three decades.

Though the Lake View Terrace-area resort eventually gave way to the Hansen Dam Recreation Area, its memory endures for thousands of visitors, including former City Councilman Art Snyder. “I almost drowned there when I was 8 years old,” he said. “I was going down the third time when the lifeguard rescued me.”

Attn. inquiring minds: Which celebrities’ cars leave the worst grease spots? Who has the fanciest garage-door opener? Who has the scariest-looking chauffeur? These questions will no doubt be answered by the new public access TV series, “Driveways of the Rich and Famous,” by John Cunningham. “Driveways” airs on Channel 36 in West Hollywood tonight and on Century Cable Aug. 27.

Don’t forget: In the time it took you to read this far into the column, the price of Paul Harris’ house may have dropped as much as $1.38.

miscelLAny:

A commentary on the economy? Developer Goodard Bolt (played by Mel Brooks) had an office in the First Interstate World Tower in the movie “Life Stinks.”