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My mother is my biggest customer. She helps promote and manage my jewelry sales in my hometown. My father is able to make anything and has helped me by modifying and making my displays.
It was so wonderful having my parents visit in such a troubling time, its been so long since I have seen them.
Exterior of the AIR-CONDITIONED mausoleum my parents will be laid to rest in some day. Dad took me to see.
It was so wonderful having my parents visit in such a troubling time, its been so long since I have seen them.
It was so wonderful having my parents visit in such a troubling time, its been so long since I have seen them.
It was so wonderful having my parents visit in such a troubling time, its been so long since I have seen them.
Mellow day in the beginning. A break off work, a chance to join fellow parents and celebrate my son and his friends finish their school year.
After all was set and done, plan was to hop on the train to go visit my friends' photo lab to drop off film to develop. Lab's in Downtown.
Heard of the protest developing down there too - not unexpected, City Hall's there after all, courthouses, Federal Building.
Was packing my camera anyways already, figured could document as well.
By the time train got to Union Station, I learned that the southbound subway line (to Little Tokyo and into the Downtown proper) was stopped. No big deal - can walk.
Exited the station and started hoofing it down Alameda southbound. Got to the freeway overpass - some folks leaving north, towards Union Station; others hanging out on the overpass, looking on the freeway below. Heard sound of stun grenades coming from the south side of the freeway, at Aliso Street. Some smoke there. Heavy husk of federal Blackhawk helicopter whopping air with it's blades, circling above.
Camera out. People, signs. Cops blocking off Alameda south of Aliso. Walking along Federal Building. Tagged up KTLA5 News van. More people, more signs. Cops on freeway below, blocking southbound lanes, shooting occasional stun grenades up towards Aliso from down there. Arresting folks who came out on the freeway earlier.
Turn down to Los Angeles, walking south, along same Federal Building (familiar spot. Place brings back memories). Building's all tagged up, police skirmish line blocks Los Angeles at Temple. Few folks protesting on Los Angeles at the time are mostly mellow. One guy walking, yelling at cops, but he's an exception. There is more action happening toward the bridge over Temple, by City Hall. Fireworks go off, then stun grenades. Cavalry rides there with sticks - mounted police. A cop comes up to the middle of the intersection dropping off a box of those 40mm foam baton "non-lethal" rounds.
In skirmish line some cops look uncomfortable, overwhelmed - drafted desk jockeys perhaps? Got maybe some basic riot control training a while back. Twitching now. Not ready.
Person sits down to the right of me - legs crossed, on the ground. Lifts their sign up. Suddenly, heard a flute behind me. Turn around - a protester walking toward me, beatboxing on the flute. Now, I had seen it all. Focus, take the shot.
Almost immediately hear a 40mm launcher go off, yelp. Turn around - person sitting next to me got hit by a "non-lethal" in the hand. Pinkie finger looks gnarly. Sign down on the sidewalk, blood dripping. Folks rushing in to help. Look towards the police line - fairly certain I see the shooter: new round loaded up, launcher towards myself and folks helping wounded person. Protesters yell and curse at him. I lock in focus and hit shutter.
Yeah, twitching. Not ready. His superior shows up with some backup in tow, and a guy with a whole bundle more of fresh foam batons. Pulls that cowboy back. Don't see him anymore.
Suddenly, cops' attention is focused by something way behind me. Turn around - clouds of dark smoke are rising from the old Pueblo side to the north of the freeway. Get my last shots of the Temple St skirmish line, move north.
Waymo robot taxis are burning. Four of them. Smoke is thick, suffocating and feels toxic. Somehow "heavier" than what I had smelled in Altadena with Eaton Canyon fire. Mask up. Trying to move in a way where wind won't blanket me with that filth. Electric cars burn so hot and fast, practically melting down completely. Feels much different as opposed to "usual" gas cars during Eaton Fire.
Spent rest of the time moving back and forth between different sides of the freeway. More signs, more people. North side of the freeway peaceful. Some families with kids. South side is a bit rougher. Tear gas and stun grenades are met with fireworks and those silly rideshare scooters. A sudden memory from the Soviet-era school curriculum flashes in my mind, about "a boulder being a weapon of proletariat" - made me wonder if those scooters are stand-ins for boulders in 21st century. But only briefly - boulders make an appearance too. Turns out that those decorative "cemented boulders" by the freeway ramps, a product of some hostile architecture genius, are an arsenal within themselves.
More photos. Stun grenade hits the tree branches above, goes off. I get showered with a bunch of leaves, small branches and lost hearing in my right ear for probably solid half an hour. Try to be more careful. Move around some more. Different sides of the freeway.
Cops decide to get more active on clearing up south side of the freeway. Cavalry moves out once again. I get kettled up between two skirmish lines, along with some reporters, an older homeless guy with his treasure throve of cardboard boxes, a confused older couple, some random working folks. They all were given confusing directions, trying to make their way out. Couple of hours of milling about, older couple asking me for information and directions, trying to make their way to a hotel - tourists. Young lady asked if I knew whether Alameda was open (she wanted to make her way to Arts District). Told her that Alameda most likely would be closed (it was).
Eventually, authorities lost interest in our ragtag group milling around their area figured it was a good time to get us out of there in a prompt fashion.
It was so wonderful having my parents visit in such a troubling time, its been so long since I have seen them.