Panhandling shorthand:One street person who tends an...
Panhandling shorthand:
One street person who tends an intersection near the Beverly Center usually displays a sign that identifies himself and explains in detail why passing motorists should give him some money. But when it rained the other day, journalist Nikki Finke noticed that the panhandler evidently feared a wordy sign could have smearing problems. So, it said, instead:
“Donations--Poor--Destitute--Etc.”
COFFEE, TEA OR TANG? Rand Simberg of Redondo Beach wants to get onto the ground floor of a new industry: space tourism.
Simberg, a former Rockwell International project manager, is the president of Interglobal Space Lines Inc. For too long, he says, the space program has operated “in an atmosphere of national security,” rather than with an eye toward letting average folks blast into orbit.
He compares Interglobal Space Lines to the airlines, who “interface with the aircraft industry and people who want to fly.” What the space tourism biz needs is companies that will build cheaper reusable launch vehicles and customers willing to pay “between $10,000 and $200,000” in Simberg’s estimate.
OUT OF THIS WORLD: Interglobal, which is looking for investors, hasn’t really gotten its space line off the ground yet.
But the company does offer a bit of make-believe astronauting out of Mojave Airport--a one-hour flight in a small jet in which passengers can experience several 25-second intervals of weightlessness. Cost: $1,950. The plane flies parabolic loops--the same maneuver that generated weightlessness for the actors in “Apollo 13.”
Simberg points out that the flight could be an opportunity for a couple to achieve a first.
“I’ve heard of people getting married while underwater and while skydiving,” he said, “but I’ve never heard of anyone getting married while truly weightless.”
SAUCY! The tongue-in-cheek billboards for a salsa have a message that translates literally as “with eggs (con huevos)” (see photo). The slang translation is a bit different, though. Let’s just say this company claims it makes a macho salsa.
TRASHY FASHIONS: Eco Expo 96, which runs April 12-14 at the L.A. Convention Center, seeks to demonstrate “that one person’s garbage is another’s stylish outfit.” Some exhibitors who are into “creative recycling”:
* Deja Shoes makes its footwear out of more than 22 recycled products, “such as milk jugs, tires and paper bags.”
* Used Rubber sells belts “and many other accessories fashioned from used automobile tires.”
* Minerva Creations “utilizes scrap wallpaper, newspaper and magazines” for paper bead jewelry. It’s waterproof, too.
* Casey Co. uses fabrics “made from 100% recycled plastic bottles to produce fanny packs, backpacks, wallets--even pet products.”
* Gopherwood Designs offers “baseball caps of recycled cotton.”
And, finally:
* Garbage Collections “reuses textile industry waste to produce a full line of children’s clothing as well as a fleece line of winter wear.”
Garbage Collections--talk about your courageous company names. . .
miscelLAny
Speaking of preserving resources--Joyce Clark Shults of Chatsworth received a bill from Pacific Bell that said, “Two-sided form saves paper!” at the top. The other side of the bill was blank, except for these words: “Blank Page.”
