Advertisement
Lifestyle

Comic: How the Los Angeles hills keep me sane

Illustration of a woman walking with a mask on.
(Illustrations by Laura Mishkin / for The Times)
By Laura Mishkin
Share
1
These days I have a harder time getting myself to go on walks. From my window looking out on Echo Park Avenue, I can see a steady flow of people walking or running or biking. Eventually I leave my desk and join the stream.

Things feel different: Eyes are downcast; masks are pulled up tight. I feel weird taking up space and being in other people’s space.

Once I get higher in the hills, people become more sparse. I venture off the main avenue to explore a side street. On an empty street, I can think about what I’m seeing. I’ve come to love this part of the walk: I can breathe deeply, explore slowly and not worry about getting too close to anyone.

Advertisement

Lifestyle

70 things you can still do this summer, despite the pandemic

What to do this summer locally and at home

May 28, 2020

I can look out for interesting houses, gardens, moments. I stop for the big moments and the small. I slow for the impressive Postmodern mansion perched atop Elysian Heights 2and for the tree with wild green parrots nesting in it.

Up on Carroll Avenue I walk past the Victorian houses, completely convincing aside from the Priuses in the driveways.

I like looking out into the valleys, where houses nest in the landscape and palm trees and power lines punctuate the sky.

I realize how many local gems exist once I look for them. I think about how different my quarantine universe would look if I lived on another street or in another neighborhood.

The best houseplant for your zodiac sign.

Lifestyle

The best houseplant for your zodiac sign

Black Raven ZZ plants for Aquarius. Fiddle-leaf figs for Taurus. How to pair houseplants with your sun sign.

June 6, 2020

I’m used to crisscrossing L.A., but during quarantine I’m limited to where my feet can take me: My universe is now scaled to a mile radius around my house. I think about all other little walking universes that exist, the ones I do not know — small circles that move and grow but never touch.

Advertisement
LifestyleCOVID-19 PandemicThings to Do

More From the Los Angeles Times

Advertisement