Orange County – Page 2 – Geoff Fox: My Permanent Record

Holy crap, it’s a real newspaper!

During my tenure at FoxCT I got to work closely with the reporters, managers and staff at the Hartford Courant. It was sad to see them feel they were on a sinking ship. In aggregate, these were the smartest people I’d ever worked with.

It’s not specifically the Courant that’s going down, but newspapers and print media in general. Times have been tough. Profit margins in print have vanished and turned to losses.

When I came to New Haven we subscribed to the New Haven Register and Journal-Courier. Two daily papers in little New Haven. Those days are gone.

With all respect to my friends on Sargent Drive, the Register is a pale shadow of what it was. What a shame. It suffered under horrible mismanagement long before print soured.

I came to California with low expectations for print journalism. We subscribed to the Orange County Register at Helaine’s insistence. She wanted local news.

Holy crap, it’s a real newspaper! If it’s possible to judge by a week’s worth of reading, it’s a pretty good newspaper.

A fat paper has arrived at our back door every day. Multiple sections. Big sections. Real local advertising–which is valuable information.

There is lots of local content from staff reporters and columnists. There is plenty of national news too, including syndicated stories from the New York Times, Bloomberg and AP.

The editorial page makes no qualms about its conservative, libertarian bent. We will disagree.

My cousins tell me the OC Register hit bottom before its current rebound. The reporting staff has been boosted. Its local footprint expanded. You have to pay to read, as its website has been cordoned off behind a paywall.

The economic climate is different here. SoCal is rebounding from the recession faster than Connecticut. There are no Orange County TV stations to compete against, even though the county has over three million residents. The Register is the only game in town.

No one knows if the OC Register’s current incarnation will save it or if its just digging a deeper hole. Spending to put out a better product is a concept seldom seen. Only time will tell.

I’d like to see their investment pay off. We all benefit if print gets healthy again.

The World’s Greatest (Non) Job Interview

People were feeding the squirrels with impunity. The squirrels were so docile some people were actually petting them. Yuck!

As soon as I found out my contract wasn’t being renewed I began to reach out to TV stations in-and-out of Connecticut. I knew I’d be in Florida and California (two places I’d enjoy living in) so I ‘carpet bombed’ news directors in those spots hoping for a nibble. Sure enough I soon got this:

Geoff:

What day works for you?

It was from a news director at a station in San Diego. I was excited… very excited until he added in a later email

Monday Jan 17th at 1pm is good – what is your cell?
FYI I do not have a position for you but would love to meet you.

I did the math. This would be five hours of driving from L.A. with no upside. I started to think of excuses to pass on the invite.

I mentioned this to a few friends and they all said the same thing, “Go!”

I did. They were right. It was one of the most uplifting TV days I’ve had in a long time!

Helaine and I decided we could shorten my drive by spending last night with relatives in Orange County. She’d never been to their home (which she now considers perfect for us… can we move in there now… there’s a vacant unit down the block) and, as it would turn out, it gave her a day to spend with my Cousins Melissa, Michael and Max.

Google Maps said my trip would take a little over an hour. Nicely done Googleboys.

Unfortunately, I didn’t trust California traffic and left myself 2&#189 hours. I spent a l-o-n-g time parked up the block and out-of-sight from the TV station.

I would have been even earlier, but there was a scenic overlook on I-5 north of San Onofrio inside Camp Pendleton.

Of all the scenic places I’v seen in the last week this was the least! The stretch of Pacific Coast was pedestrian. The view to the east was worse. The most interesting feature was something that should not have been! Just beyond the “Do Not Feed The Squirrels Or Birds” signs was the largest scurry&#185 of squirrels I’ve ever seen!

People were feeding the squirrels with impunity. The squirrels were so docile some people were actually petting them. Yuck! The whole thing was weird.

I got back in the car and headed south.

I’m not going to name the station nor the news director I saw, but at this moment I would crawl over broken glass to work for him. I am assuming he does not read the blog, so this is not a suck-up… though I am not above that if I thought it would help.

He was supportive of his people, embraced technology and never once cried “woe is me” over the sorry state of TV in general or TV news in particular. He was genuinely proud of what they were accomplishing on a daily basis.

The news facility was recently built from the ground up. It looked comfortable. Being in San Diego some of what went on-air was actually being done outside. There was even a chromakey wall out there large enough park a convertible in front of. It looked like a drive-in theater!

He pointed to an area where the reporters worked in close proximity and talked about collegiality. Be still my heart.

Do I wish there was a job? Yes, of course. Even without one my visit restored some of my boyish enthusiasm which has been partially ground away over time.

To my friends who suggested I go–thanks.

Postscript: Not one cloud all day. Not one.

&#185 – There is some dispute whether there is or should be a name for a group of squirrels. Experts say they are solitary animals. It didn’t seem that way to me. Scurry is the accepted word by those who are willing to look past the solitary nature of most squirrels.

We’re In Orange County Now

It was really just a good excuse to come and visit. Michael and I have always been close. Melissa is the sister Helaine never had.

I have to make a quick run to San Diego tomorrow morning. Rather than risk the traffic from Los Angeles Helaine and I headed down to my cousins in Lake Forest in Orange County. It was really just a good excuse to come and visit. Michael and I have always been close. Melissa is the sister Helaine never had.

We stopped for some pizza before heading back to the house. This was ranch land before houses were built. There were certainly no lakes in what is now Lake Forest.

While we sat around their firepit I snapped this shot of the backyard.

The View From Stef’s Balcony

In other words, they can’t handle rain!

Now that Stef has moved to SoCal the bad weather has followed. Coincidence? I think not!

It’s been pouring like crazy. Tornado watches and warnings have flown over the gray of what’s normally the Golden State. Even my Cousin Michael saw some very rare California hail down in Orange County.

Stef says without storm sewers the curbisde lanes quickly flood pushing everyone toward the middle and bogging down the fabled traffic flow even more than usual.

In other words, they can’t handle rain!

This afternoon between lines of showers Stef took a step onto the balcony. The attached photo is what she saw featuring Loretta and Samuel, the pigeons.

The Storm’s Over — The Numbers Are In

The dry air was the wild card. Radar showed moderate snow over all of Connecticut for hours-and-hours before anything hit the ground.

The snow has come and gone. There’s never a bullseye, but the forecast was reasonably close. If success is judged by number of complaints, or lack thereof, I’m doing fine. Here are the final DOT numbers. I have also added the Boston and New York NWS snow totals, which include Connecticut, for the Dec 20-21, 2009 storm at the end of this entry.

Not everyone was as lucky. A friend who forecasts in Springfield sent a text message saying he’d received nothing! “Bust of the decade,” he said. Ouch. Been there. I know exactly what he’s going through.

I was right about Southeastern Connecticut getting the most snow followed by the shoreline in general. The snow was fluffy and windblown as predicted. Accumulations were generally in line with my numbers. My call for the Northwest Hills and most of the area directly adjacent to the Massachusetts line was a few inches higher than the actual totals.

I wrote about this last night, but it bears repeating the most unusual and interesting part of this storm was the exceptionally dry air. During the summer we sometimes see 30 grams of water content per square meter. Last night it was around 1 gram per cubic meter!

The dry air was the wild card. Radar showed moderate snow over all of Connecticut for hours-and-hours before anything hit the ground. Once the atmospheric column over any location became saturated light snow turned to heavy snow. I’d never seen a situation quite like this before. It cut inches off all the accumulations.

It’s a shame this storm will impact Christmas shopping. Otherwise we’re lucky it came on a Saturday night when travel is usually light.

And now the dig out begins.

(NWS totals after the jump)

Continue reading “The Storm’s Over — The Numbers Are In”

The Last Of The Southern California Photos

Instead of just moving on, I thought I’d post a few of the more interesting ones. This is not artistry it’s curiosity!

I end nearly every trip with at least a few photos that didn’t fit with a blog entry. Instead of just moving on, I thought I’d post a few of the more interesting ones. This is not artistry it’s curiosity!

Mullholland Drive is the elevated spine that separates the coastal regions from the San Fernando Valley. It is twisty and steep. There are often overlooks into the void. All of L.A. is a backlot so you’ve definitely seen a car chase or two from Mullholland on the screen.

Southern California originated the mall culture. Many towns are so recently settled there is no downtown. The mall is the town’s center. Of course with the weather some malls are mainly open air. Such is the Irvine Spectrum near my cousins in Orange County.

This mall has a substantial Ferris Wheel.

My secretive friend in the San Fernando Valley has grapefruit trees in his driveway. My suspicion is he’s never done anything to them except occasionally take some fruit. I am incredibly jealous.

Yup, it’s the Young Dong Restaurant on Wilshire Boulevard. I have nothing to add

What Is Orange County?

I’m in Lake Forest, a small suburb within the uber suburb that is Orange County. It is all that’s good and bad with America. It is instant gratification. It is financial meltdown. It is mall shopping and freeway driving. It is green. It is flowering. It is desert. It is filled with water.

While shooting my Cousin Melissa I took some time to pick up a little sense of the scenery.

Two Days Of Shooting In The O.C.

I’m cautiously optimistic by what I see, but I am by no means a portrait photographer.

Welcome to California. I am 536 photos into my trip! Long day.

Cousin Melissa and her son Cousin Max met me at the Orange County Airport. With a larger than life bronze statue of John Wayne as a sixshooter wearing cowboy in front of a larger than life American flag there was no forgetting the conservative rep The OC has claimed through my lifetime.

This is a trip all about photography. Melissa is running for office and I’m her shooter. All I can think about are the stories I heard about the friend who shot my parent’s wedding and never produced the photos! My folks have no wedding photos. Please–don’t let that be me.

The idea was to find a bunch of setups where Melissa would interact with her potential electorate. I had been schooled by my Cousin Michael who sent links to some political websites featuring candidate photos. Without naming names I can safely say some of them used a friend with a point-and-shoot or got horribly ripped off.

We took dozens of pics yesterday afternoon and then restarted the process this morning. With friends and relatives in tow we went to parks and schools and other picturesque and/or identifiable spots.

I’m not posting any of those photos. Not yet at least. We need to go through a photo culling process and some minor post processing. I’m cautiously optimistic by what I see, but I am by no means a portrait photographer.

My biggest concern and constant shot-by-shot problem is controlling the Speedlight. I’ve been using my friend Steve’s “pope hat” made of Ikea plastic shelf liner to soften the light. I’ve probably taken more flash augmented outdoor shots in full sun today than in all my previous uses of the flash!

I can tell you this. Orange County is beautiful. Though this area was desert a few decades ago it is lush, green, full of people… and vacant office space. Orange County is ground zero for America’s financial meltdown.

Did You Win?

This being Las Vegas’ airport you constantly see people running into people they know at the gate. “Did you win?” is asked about 99% of the time.

I am at McCarran Airport in Las Vegas. My inbound flight was fine. My outbound flight, originating in Reno/Lake Tahoe is about an hour late! As Helaine reminds me, it’s better for this flight to be late and my earlier flight on-time than vice versa.

This being Las Vegas’ airport you constantly see people running into people they know at the gate. “Did you win?” is asked about 99% of the time.

My flight… when it leaves… will take under an hour to get to Orange County.

West Coast Bound

It survived the jaywalking ticket I got within my first few hours there (I don’t think I ever paid that ticket). Jaywalking? Seriously, I was from New York City. Jaywalking is a competitive sport in New York City.

From the South Bay to the Valley

From the West Side to the East Side

Everybody’s very happy

‘Cause the sun is shining all the time

Looks like another perfect day

I love L.A. (We love it)

I love L.A. (We love it)

We love it

Oh Randy Newman. How right you are! I head out Saturday morning for Orange County and then Los Angeles.

I have a forty year love affair with Los Angeles. It survived the jaywalking ticket I got within my first few hours there (I don’t think I ever paid that ticket).

Jaywalking? Seriously, I was from New York City. Jaywalking is a competitive sport in New York City.

Once I was up for a job at a TV station in Los Angeles. I was very excited. The TV station itself was located in a seedy neighborhood, but on a movie lot! Helaine and I had already decided where we would live as we counted our chickens before they hatched.

The last I heard from the guy with the job was, “We’ll call you back in a half hour.” Isn’t it always that way?

It’s a long trip from CT to CA. Saturday’s flights out includes two hours of thumb twiddling in Las Vegas (not long enough to leave the airport). It will be nearly nine hours before I deplane at Santa Ana’s John Wayne International.

This time of year Southern California suffers under the marine layer, a cool wedge of oceanic air which brings low clouds, fog and drizzle overnight through late morning. I don’t care.

Even when I’ve been in rainy Los Angeles I think of it as sunny. That internal lie seems easier there.

The purpose of my trip is to photograph my Cousin Melissa and her family as she begins her political career. I’m bringing most of my photo gear including two camera bodies. She will, if nothing else, be well documented.

After the weekend in Orange County I head to the San Fernando Valley and the “secret location” I’ve written about in the past. I’ve got dinner with two long time friends scheduled for Tuesday.

Making The Most Of The Last Day In Vegas

For the next two weeks the rodeo is in town and Las Vegas is full of boots, hats and oversized belt buckles

Things are winding down. We said goodbye by Michael, Melissa and Max who then set out to drive back to Orange County, CA. We will miss them. Melissa has become Helaine’s sister.

We were stared at on our way down in the elevator. Then, somewhere between 18 and the lobby the man asked if I “was the newsman?” They were visiting from Wolcott and will be on our return flight. This is why I can only vacation with my wife.

A little poker–with good luck–then dinner with Helaine at California Pizza Kitchen. We’ve had the same guy as our waiter for at least five years and he was back with us today. As usual, I had a Jamaican Jerk Chicken Pizza.

Just across the way at the sports book they’re setting up for some country acts. For the next two weeks the rodeo is in town and Las Vegas is full of boots, hats and oversized belt buckles. Anybody gotta Bud?

It’s quite the eclectic group. The Mirage closes Cirque’s Love for two weeks of vacation while the rodeo’s in. This is not a French/Beatles crowd!

I went up to the room for a little while and on my way down got into the elevator with a guy holding a professional Canon HD camcorder. I asked a few questions and he told me he was shooting construction at the Mirage volcano. It’s currently under construction and officially closed. But, he said, it was going to be tested at 5:00 PM.

I did go back to Venetian for the 7:00 PM tournament. Early on I had 3-Kings, only to find someone with “7s full.” I think I was first out!

If nothing else, Vegas is visually over-the-top. And, whatever was splashy last year has been trumped by something splashier this year… and brighter… and larger.

Dodging The Earthquake Bullet

There was little damage. Why not?

Another full day in Connecticut with my parents in town.

I’m a little late getting this posted, but I did want to speak briefly about today’s Southern California earthquake. It was originally posted as a 5.8 and then ‘downgraded’ to a 5.4.

It was felt over a large area with plenty of people. There was little damage. Why not? I suppose California is now well built. New construction takes earthquakes into account.

It was also reasonably far from Los Angeles, 27 miles–out in the boonies of Orange County. If my map reading is any good, the epicenter is in a rural park. It was also pretty deep and right now, not assignable to a known fault line.

From the Orange County Register: The quake also cracked plaster and loosened ceiling tiles at the Nixon Presidential Library & Museum in Yorba Linda.

You take the good with the bad.

The USGS says “Most likely, the recent mainshock will be the largest in the sequence. However, there is a small chance (APPROXIMATELY 5 TO 10 PERCENT) of an earthquake equal to or larger than this mainshock in the next 7 days.” I sent a note to friend a moment ago, “You tell me, is there any utility to it?” In other words, it’s a provocative sentence, but useless in real life.

There will be another quake near Los Angeles… a worse quake… a tragic quake. It’s just a matter of when. But so is the next Hurricane Katrina and Barneveld tornado. Life is full of chances we all take.

Live From The OC

The party has moved. Greetings from Orange County. I drove this afternoon from the San Fernando Valley down past Los Angeles, Anaheim and Irvine to Lake Forest.

I am learning to really lean on the GPS. What I’ve found is advance planning is a necessity. The downside is, the GPS demands attention. You can’t look at the road when you’re looking at the GPS.

Use the power wisely, Luke.

As soon as I-5 broke into Orange County, the entire feel of the landscape changed. It was as if a switch had been thrown. This is a land where nothing is old!

This town, Lake Forest, was virtual nothingness 30 years ago. Nothing here is ugly or ramshackle or unplanned.

My cousins live on a man made lake in community of single homes not far from where the El Toro Marine Air Station was. Looking out their back door reminds me more of Disney than a conventional neighborhood.

We to a quick stop for coffee at a gigantic mall. There is both a skating rink and Ferris wheel along with the stores. The mall is mainly uncovered with wide walkways

Everyone is stylishly dressed. Stef would love it here.

Hello I Must Be Going

Sunny Los Angeles. It looks like it’s about to spend an extended period getting drenched. That can mean only one thing. I’m heading to L.A. I leave Saturday.

Why am I going? No real clue. It’s just away. It’s a place I enjoy.

I have some friends I want to see. Probably some photos to take too, if the weather cooperates.

One friend, who I’ll be staying with for a few days, has grown a beard and then removed it since the last time I saw him. He has asked for anonymity on the blog – which will be respected.

I’ll also be spending some time with my cousins in Orange County. I’ve never seen their house, near the retired El Toro Air Station, just inland from Laguna Beach.

Two more stops are planned, both with people I haven’t seen in decades.

Joel lives and works in Malibu. I knew him when we were both disk jockeys in Charlotte and Philadelphia. I have known him under three different names!

Dave, who I first met as I turned 18, is from Marin County, near San Francisco. He runs a business designing, installing and repairing recording studios. He has lived an interesting and exotic life, including lots of time exploring Asia. He and I were ticketed for jaywalking across from the Roosevelt Hotel.

Today, I was trying to think of how many times I’ve been to Los Angeles. Certainly a dozen. Probably closer to twenty. Though I once got lost and ended up driving Helaine and myself through some pretty sketchy neighborhoods, I know my ‘home turf’ of the Valley and West Side reasonably well.

I will be taking Clicky and enough electronic accouterments to choke a TSA agent.

No changing planes, but we are stopping in Chicago (MDW). January and Chicago. Wish me luck!

More From The California Foxes

Just got this from my Cousin Melissa from Lake Forest in Orange County:

Fire has shifted back toward our house as we could see from increased smoke and ash – containment actually going down – we are back in Newport.

No wind, more support in the air and on the ground, yet the fire is still getting away from them. San Diego remains ferocious. New fire next to the nuclear power plant at San Onofre. They say it is “not threatened” but there are acres of power lines in and out.

With the wind dying and the humidity scheduled to rise, things should improve. However, fires already burning aren’t as impressed with improving conditions as the ones that haven’t yet ignited are.

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