Comments on: Photographic proof that my neighbors are insane

By: Johnny Cat

Johnny Cat — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 04:07:38 +0000

Deja vu, repeat.

But that ad looks like something I grew up seeing in comix called GRIT, where kids sell newspapers or something to earn cash and prizes.

By: Richard

Richard — Tue, 25 Dec 2007 02:05:05 +0000

How did you get your job writing about inanities? Any openings? Any special qualifications? Or do you just “know somebody”? Just wondering…

By: Allyson

Allyson — Mon, 24 Dec 2007 21:46:57 +0000

I miss Venice… you make me want to drive over there (maybe even live there?)

By: Ransom

Ransom — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 00:21:37 +0000

Hey Dan,

Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty I love about my neighborhood, and by extension my neighbors. But pretty flowers and friendly smiles don’t make very interesting blogs!

By: Dan

Dan — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 23:38:51 +0000

I think you deliberately go looking for other things that cause you grief about your neighbours. You shouldn’t focus only on the bad stuff, focus on the good things about your neighbours!! When you walk outside in the morning, say to them, “Good morning!” and see what kind of reaction you get. If you get a rifle pointed at you, duck (or move)! If you get a wave and a smile back, you’re likely doing a good thing.

If I can use an analogy about this situation, it’s like going to Disneyland and focusing only on the way some guests treat their kids (far too often you see parents yelling at their kids on Main Street – years from then the kid is going to remember how badly his parents treated him at Disneyland, or the paint on the buildings is chipping, etc.), not on how wonderful the parks and attractions are.

So instead of complaining, enjoy life, and having your neighbours around. It’s too short to dwell on other people’s shortcomings! If anything, they make living there more interesting!

By: Ransom

Ransom — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 14:36:33 +0000

Thanks for your concern everybody, but yes, my neighborhood is safe! I live(d) on a nice walking-only street where most of the people on the block had lived there for 20 years or more, only to see their once-humble little houses become insanely valuable …

The “gang-infested” part of Venice you refer to, Barbara, has a fascinating, if troubled, history all its own — the Oakwood neighborhood, as it’s known, used to be a segregated part of Venice; back when founder Abbot Kinney was implementing his grand utopian vision of Venice as a “Coney Island of the West,” Oakwood was where the “servants” lived, about a mile from the beach. No surprise to anyone, it’s stayed pretty segregated in the interceding 100 years, and was one of the most violent spots in LA through the 90s. That’s changing — law enforcement stepped up their activity, and house prices went through the roof, such that now the neighborhood is, if not quite gentrifying, at least becoming mixed. A local writer once described it as “a hive of evil” surrounded by some of the most expensive real estate in the nation. Yikes.

By: Barbara

Barbara — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 03:51:32 +0000

That “Hey Kids” sign is probably for selling magazines or newspaper subscriptions.

You didn’t mention–do you live near the gang-infested part of Venice?

By: Kara

Kara — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 02:07:37 +0000

On the other hand, it’s not like his grandma needs her undergarments anymore….

By: Maggie

Maggie — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 23:41:32 +0000

At least your neighbors have a sense of humor. I live between the eternally clueless, who have a toy poodle that NEVER stops yapping. Of course, he is also not housebroken, despite being several years old. It’s like, they’ve tried nothing, and it hasn’t worked. On the other side is the white-trash/ perv, who when he isn’t stockpiling junk car parts and household trash in his garage, likes to walk around the house in nothing but his dead grandmother’s bra and panties.

By: Michael

Michael — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 22:10:50 +0000

I too live and grew up near Venice, and I can attest that most people there are different/insane. One of the stranger things I’ve come to notice is the use of surfboards as building material. I also personally thing the crazies are starting to feel threatened by the skyrocketing land value, and thus influx of celebrities into the area, so they’re getting extra nuts. Just my thought.