Yep, we did — a minor shimmy here in Glendale (the Blogger Preschooler missed it, but Maria and I definitely felt it). It was a magnitude 4.5 earthquake (downgraded from what was initially reported as a 5.0) at 7:49 p.m. located about a mile south of San Bernardino.
http://p.castfire.com/fcieq/video/26078/26078_2008-09-25-215549.flv
New KCET series “SoCal Connected” travels to the Inland Empire — or as the show has redubbed it, “Foreclosure Alley” — to document the impact of the current housing mess. It ain’t pretty. Correspondent Lisa Ling writes:
SoCal Connected tracked down some surreal sights associated with the crisis – a company that specializes in removing whatever people leave behind in their foreclosed homes. The process is called a “trashout” – a term the company came up with because it perfectly describes what happens. Everything that’s left is dumped in a trailer and taken to the landfill.
Then there’s the guy who started a business to spray-paint dead lawns. That’s right. He paints brown lawns green. We also tag along with a couple of code enforcement officers who are spending more and more of their time having to drain slimy, abandoned pools.
Have we hit bottom yet? What will “bottom” feel like?
The Mission Inn
It’s not often that the Franklin Avenue crew makes it to the Inland Empire — er, the 909. But our pals Denise and Geoff were finally making things legal, so it was off to San Bernardino county on Saturday.
The couple — who met at Variety, by the way (it’s a Hollywood trade paper romance!) — got hitched at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church (across the street from Boys Republic) in Chino Hills, then held the reception at Riverside’s famous Mission Inn.
We’ve always wanted to check out the Mission Inn, particularly during the holidays, but never had the urge to drive all the way to Riverside. Turns out it’s not that bad a haul, as long as you take the 210 east. And Riverside’s downtown is a pleasant surprise, although we didn’t get much of an opportunity to explore it (we’ll be back). It’s nice to see the historic Fox Theatre being restored, and quite a selection of shops and restaurants surrounding Mission Inn.
But clearly, Mission Inn is the heart of Riverside’s downtown. And rightfully so. It’s such a fascinating oddity, with nooks and crannies on the inside and outside that command exploration.
According to Wikipedia (which is always right, right?!), Mission Inn began as the two-story, 12-room adobe boarding house “Glenwood Cottage” in 1876, pre-Riverside. Christopher Columbis Miller began the project; his son Frank continued building onto it until he died in 1935.
Says Wikipedia:
Miller built in reinforced concrete and developed an accomplished, expressive vernacular style drawn from random historical styles. Accumulating one section over another, addition upon addition, the result is an enormously complicated and intricate built environment, comparable to.. a self-contained medieval European city.
Funny, that’s exactly what Maria remarked when we bumped into the St. Francis chapel, as seen below.
St. Francis chapel, on the second floor.
More from Wikipedia:
The Mission contains narrow passageways like a Tuscan village, exterior arcades, a prominent medieval-style clock overlooking the Spanish patio, a deep but sun-drenched five-story rotunda, innumerable patios and windows, towers, minarets, a Cloister Wing (with Catacombs), a high pedestrian bridge, and a five-story spiral staircase, among many other features. The 1914 Spanish Wing in itself contains a castle courtyard, open arcades, Mexican tiled roofs, flying buttresses and Mediterranean domes.
Some pics from our Saturday visit:
Inside the Mission Inn lobby
Mission Inn’s courtyard
Random flourishes are everywhere.
Outside archways
Image of the Mission Inn, painted on an enlarged apple orange.
Riverside!
Meanwhile, 2008 is shaping up to be our year of the Daytrip. Check out our other recent excursions here.
The Mission Inn
It’s not often that the Franklin Avenue crew makes it to the Inland Empire — er, the 909. But our pals Denise and Geoff were finally making things legal, so it was off to San Bernardino county on Saturday.
The couple — who met at Variety, by the way (it’s a Hollywood trade paper romance!) — got hitched at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church (across the street from Boys Republic) in Chino Hills, then held the reception at Riverside’s famous Mission Inn.
We’ve always wanted to check out the Mission Inn, particularly during the holidays, but never had the urge to drive all the way to Riverside. Turns out it’s not that bad a haul, as long as you take the 210 east. And Riverside’s downtown is a pleasant surprise, although we didn’t get much of an opportunity to explore it (we’ll be back). It’s nice to see the historic Fox Theatre being restored, and quite a selection of shops and restaurants surrounding Mission Inn.
But clearly, Mission Inn is the heart of Riverside’s downtown. And rightfully so. It’s such a fascinating oddity, with nooks and crannies on the inside and outside that command exploration.
According to Wikipedia (which is always right, right?!), Mission Inn began as the two-story, 12-room adobe boarding house “Glenwood Cottage” in 1876, pre-Riverside. Christopher Columbis Miller began the project; his son Frank continued building onto it until he died in 1935.
Says Wikipedia:
Miller built in reinforced concrete and developed an accomplished, expressive vernacular style drawn from random historical styles. Accumulating one section over another, addition upon addition, the result is an enormously complicated and intricate built environment, comparable to.. a self-contained medieval European city.
Funny, that’s exactly what Maria remarked when we bumped into the St. Francis chapel, as seen below.
St. Francis chapel, on the second floor.
More from Wikipedia:
The Mission contains narrow passageways like a Tuscan village, exterior arcades, a prominent medieval-style clock overlooking the Spanish patio, a deep but sun-drenched five-story rotunda, innumerable patios and windows, towers, minarets, a Cloister Wing (with Catacombs), a high pedestrian bridge, and a five-story spiral staircase, among many other features. The 1914 Spanish Wing in itself contains a castle courtyard, open arcades, Mexican tiled roofs, flying buttresses and Mediterranean domes.
Some pics from our Saturday visit:
Inside the Mission Inn lobby
Mission Inn’s courtyard
Random flourishes are everywhere.
Outside archways
Image of the Mission Inn, painted on an enlarged apple orange.
Riverside!
Meanwhile, 2008 is shaping up to be our year of the Daytrip. Check out our other recent excursions here.
