Every day on my drive to work I see this cool old Mid-Century that is looking like it needs some serious love. Today the gate was open so I popped of a few shots. It’s on an awesome chunk of land at the very top of Mulholland and has some great views of the valley. This thing is so crazy 60′s. I mean it almost looks like and old museum or something. I’ll take a Spanish over a Mid-Century any day but there’s something about the house that I think is so cool. The is in shambles but the old thing is they are building something next to it. I wish I knew what was going on.
The house.
The view.
The thing they are building just down the hill but on the same land.
I drove up to my house today and I saw a car with black smoke seeping out the window. It wasn’t totally on fire, it was more of a smolder. I remember the car from last weekend when I did those outdoor lights—it was parked in front of my door. I had to hose it off because I had gotten some mud on the door. I noticed the window on the passenger side was cracked so I was trying not to soak this guys interior.
Well it looks like a pyromaniac decided it would be interesting to light something on fire, slip it in the window, and walk away. I’m not really sure how else it could start. I’m pretty bummed for the guy. Having to buy a new car is kinda rough.
Here’s an incredibly boring and low quality video of the fire department breaking his windows out. Ouch…
The drama starts.
The fire fighters show up and look totally bored.
Me and this kid are front and center right in the middle of the action.
But the fire is so small that they start to put it out with a spary bottle.
What’s the red stuff in the squirter. I bet it’s some super secret fire fighting spray.
Am I wrong or is this figher man/woman like 9 years old.
I look into this sofa and I see 1996. Above it hangs a poster of 2 angels in an Aaron Brothers black metal frame. Beside it, a matching $18 halogen floor lamp points to the ceiling. There are no pets in this home but there is one child. There was a plan with the burgundy and hunter green stripes. It was all part of a vision. There was a theme. “I saw this thing at Pier One,” she said “it’s all going to come together.” It never came together and has now come to an end—on my corner.
I’d like to thank the Druids of Van Nuys for assembeling “Sofahenge” on my corner. It’s truly the best instalation I’ve seen so far. In the last few months the sofas have come and gone. There was even an old Lazyboy out there for a while.
But nothing really spoke to me until I saw this thing. I was temped when I saw a combo sofa and old-school big screen tv. That, was pretty good (not the November posting, this is ANOTHER TV/sofa combo). It had a 2001 monolith feel. I didn’t pull it together in time before it was picked up but it was good for at least an honerable mention.
My Dad chimed in a while back to show me how it’s done in Houston. Feast your eyes on this.
This photo was emailed to me with this caption.
“SOMEWHERE IN THIS PILE OF SHIT THERE ARE ACTUALLY 3 COMPLETE SOFAS.”
I love me some white trash.
My Mother also jumped in and with her own Santa Monica addition. However she took the photo with her digital camera, went to the drug store and printed it out, and then mailed me the print. This kind of defeats the whole convenience of email. I’ll scan and post one day.
Lastly I see this.
Now I’m not saying that my intellectual property has been stolen but I do feel like my intellectual property has been stolen—and they added music. It’s not easy being a trend setter.
UPDATE:
OK wait a fucking minute. Now I see this on the la.curbed.com comments: couches.wordpress.com. If you are a lawyer and would like to join me in a lawsuit that could reap punitive damages into the hundreds of dollars please contact me. Next thing you know there will be blogs posting photos of celebrities. This is such bullshit.
Back in the spot that started it all. Right on my corner this little duet popped up one morning only to dissapear the very next day. Sea foam green is soooo early 90′s. I can see why they let this one go. What I don’t understand is why they kept the cushions. Really that goes for all these lost souls sofas. Do people keep them for dog beds or to prop themselves up in bed to read a book?
Also what the hell happend to the TV screen. I really wonder about the chain of events. Like, do they try to dump the whole thing in the trash and as they lift it up the screen falls out. So then they throw that away but now are faced with lifting the huge TV cabinet and just say fuck it let’s drag it to the corner. There’s so many unanswered questions. Like, how long did this TV not work before they finally abandoned it on my corner? Shit like this just drives me crazy.
This month I have a triple play. The first is this lovely tuck and roll number. There’s something very “Married to the Mob” about this one. I really get a Miami vibe from it. Hmmm, someone has cats.
This one, which can be found just 30 feet from the last, gets an A for effort. Here the former owner is saying, “Look, I have throw to this piece of shit away but it won’t fit in the public trash can so I’m just gonna set it here and maybe the trash guys will pick it up.” Dude, you tried and we all appreciate it. Is that real quilting?
If you walk North another 50 feet on Sepulveda you’ll run into the this purple people eater. The choice of color is bold. It definitely caters to the pimp in us all. But what really seals it off for me is the free toys! This one looks as though it starting to biodegrade so you better hurry and pick it up before it’s gone.
Unlike the westside the Valley has space. The Van Nuys Dog Park is a huge facility broken into 3 sections: little dogs, big dogs, and even a section for nerotic biting dogs. It’s on the corner of White Oak and Victory. This has to be the best dog park I’ve ever been to—and I’m telling you I’ve been to at least two others. Click here for a map.
Goldfinger turned 7 this month so we decided to check out the local scene and say hello to our neighbours.
Apparently this park was once sponsored by Alpo. I guess they bailed and were painted out which is just as well as the food is pure crap. My dogs eat Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance. Good stuff.
Is this a joke or is this really needed?
All the tools of the trade can be found every 100 feet or so. No bags needed. Handy!
Also included are water spigots with a complimentary bowl. Having a bowl there is a nice touch. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to get a dog to drink out of a bottle of water but it’s totally impossible.
I was tempted to pee on this tree as well but decided to wait till I got home.
Here’s a sweet little number. I caught this one on the morning drive to work. I snapped the picture while driving so you can only see one half but I’m here to tell you that the other half is just as awesome. I’m a sucker for tuck-and-roll with gold trim—but who isn’t. Also, I thought the house is supposed to be brown and the grass is supposed to be green?
So last week I shot out to CVS to pick up some cat food at around 10pm. When I pulled back up to my house I see there’s this sofa just quitetly sitting on my corner, on fire. So I run into my house and grab a fire extinguisher, run back outside, and put the thing out. The flames were getting up to about 8 feet! The fire department came a few minutes later, drenched it and drove away.
The burnt sofa hung out on the corner for a few more days until one day it disappeared.
I’d like to introduce you to it’s replacement.
It looks like this corner is the best place in Van Nuys to dump your piece of shit sofa. I guess I should call someone…
