Even in an Encounter at Sea, Lawyers Have a Special Advantage
I recently poked fun at the newly formed Surfing Lawyers Assn., but I have to admit that founder David Olan has a sense of humor. Sure, he wrote back to point out the group is supporting serious causes such as the Santa Monica Beach Restoration project. But he also said that the wave-riding barristers know that if they’re “in the water during a big winter swell and a great white shark approaches us, he will leave us alone--professional courtesy, of course!”
So that’s why this library’s so quiet: Matthew Hetz of L.A. noticed a sign in Westchester that no doubt stopped a lot of people from trying to go inside (see photo).
Hey! Like the hair today! I always figured that established male TV anchors needed a lot of compliments, so I wasn’t surprised when I read the job posting that Dick Block of Santa Monica sent along (see accompanying).
Unclear on the concept: Not that he’s in a hurry to find out, but Simon Wilder of Cambria wonders if there is such a thing as partial cremation (see accompanying).
This column will be delayed 30 seconds for this item: Two of the questions that local traffic reporters are asked most frequently concern SigAlerts. Mainly, what the heck are they? And what does SigAlert stand for? Well, a SigAlert is an unplanned lane closure of 30 minutes or more.
As for its meaning, the myth-busters at snopes.com say that one urban folk tale holds that the term Sig is an acronym for “Stay in Garage” (false, but not bad advice). The more common myth is that it’s short for “signal.” Actually, the term was coined in 1955 to honor Loyd Sigmon, a radio executive who helped create a radio link with police dispatchers to alert motorists of traffic jams.
Now it can be told: Some end-of-the-semester reflections from Jean Huston’s third-graders at McGaugh Elementary School in Seal Beach, as recorded in the Los Alamitos News-Enterprise:
* Travis Soares: “In third grade, I never lost a tooth until May.”
* Brandon Sargent: “Some of my third-grade memories are when we took apart an owl pellet, when we passed out valentines and when we wore our Halloween costumes for a parade.”
* Laura Fast: “One of the really funny things I will always remember is when Jessica yelled, ‘I love Bobby Woyjeck!’ ”
* Michele Zarate: “I will always remember recess.”
*
miscelLAny: You can imagine the panic Friday morning among Westside sophisticates at one Starbuck’s, which was having equipment problems. “Sorry,” the clerk said, as though it were the saddest news he’d ever delivered, “but all we have is coffee right now.”
