The Tools That Created Beauty

Photo: Larry Underhill, Los Angeles Magazine

Los Angeles Magazine is currently profiling objects that define LA for the city's 232nd anniversary.  Above is a set of drafting tools owned by Charles and Henry Green, pioneers of the Craftsman style movement.  Click the link below for a (very) brief history on the brothers and the iconic style they created.

• DispL.A. Case #35: Green and Greene Architectural Drafting Tools [LA Magazine]

Home Of The Week - 1230 Brookmere Rd.

photo: MLS

Per broker listing: "Sophisticated Resort Style living in the prestigious South Orange Grove area of Pasadena, this residence boasts an open floor plan, an abundance of natural light, and the finest quality materials."  This home has pretty much everything I'm looking for.

• 1230 Brookmere Rd. 91105 [Redfin]
• Price: $1,589,000
• 3 Beds/2.5 Baths
• 3516 Sq. Ft.
• Pasadena area: South Orange Grove

Pasadena: Foodie Mecca?

Trattoria Neapolis restaurant on Lake Ave

Pasadena is finally getting some recognition from the rest of Southern California for it's burgeoning restaurant scene.  And there's one underlying theme for this renaissance: good food.  That's it.  As some of you remember there was buzz before regarding Pasadena's restaurant scene, highlighted by Jennifer Lopez's Madres and Kevin Costner's Twin Palms.  Both have since been shuttered.  I guess diners finally realized that celebrities and a "scene" don't make a restaurant - great chefs and great food does. 

Pasadena's geography also makes the city an opportune locale.  As the gateway for the San Gabriel Valley and it's heavy Asian cuisine influence, proximity to downtown LA and it's growing residential population and hipster-yuppie-fication of neighboring Highland Park and Eagle Rock can only make Pasadena's dining scene lively and exciting for years to come.

• Pasadena Heats Up As Culinary Hub [LA Times]

How To Solve Traffic Jams (including the 210)...Maybe

Congestion Pricing: we all have heard of it, some of us have been paying it if you've recently driven down the former HOV lanes on the 110 south of downtown.  When I saw this TED video I, of course, could not help but think about the rush-hour traffic on the 210-east on a normal weekday.  If any of you have the pleasure of driving this maddening stretch you'll notice the jam tends to start around the Fair Oaks or Lake Ave.  What if Caltrans instituted something similar to the 110 onto the 210, stretching all the way to Rancho Cucamongo or Fontana?  Would you be open to the idea?  Would you pay for that?