Rush Limbaugh, the well-known talk radio personality, recently received a letter that Harry Reid and 40 other Democratic senators (including Hillary!) sent to his boss asking that Rush be fired. Undaunted, Rush put it up for bid on eBay with plans to donate the proceeds to the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation. Check out the current bid for this historic document.
Culture
Art Deco Architecture
One of the first things visitors notice upon arriving in Avalon is the Casino Building, Catalina Island’s most recognizable landmark. The round, white building raises the equivalent of 12 stories, and is surrounded by the sea on three sides. Built in 1929, the Casino – which is actually not a gambling hall but “a place of entertainment” – played host to dozens of big bands through the 1930s and 1940s. Guests danced the night away to the music of Glen Miller, Harry James, and many others over the years.
The Casino Building is a stunning example of original Art Deco architecture. It has been well maintained over the years and has also undergone much restoration, both inside and out.
Read more about it at Catalina Island Journal. Click the image to enlarge.
Hyundai Names Car For Verna?
Well, maybe not. It would have been far better for her name to pop up on a Ford, GM or Chrysler product.
As of this writing, I can not recall seeing one of these on the road. But I’ll be looking . . .
The Casino’s Art Deco Mermaid
This beautiful tile mural is over the box office in the foyer of the famous Casino in the City of Avalon on Catalina Island. She has been restored form the dark days of the 60s to the 80’s when this gorgeous structure fell into disrepair. Luckily, the whole place is looking good, although some places around the building could use a power wash. Nonetheless, this is one of the several wonderful aquatic murals in the Casino’s foyer. Click on the thumbnail image to see a close up.
Island Patrol
When you are on an island, everything you consume has to be barged over from the mainland. In the case of groceries and gasoline, the entire delivery truck is loaded onto the barge and brought to the island and barged back empty. This causes the prices for such commodities to go way up.
While you can’t cut down on groceries and such, you can do something about fuel consumption. In order to cope with 5-dollar-per-gallon-plus gas prices, most Catalina Island residents drive small golf-cart sized vehicles since the town is rather small. You also see motor scooters and we saw a Segway while we were there.
One interesting vehicle we saw was this electric motorized stand-up three-wheeled solution which the Los Angeles County Sheriff Department uses to patrol the streets of Avalon. Click the image for a very big close-up.
Avalon 2007
We posed for this picture on the balcony of our hotel in Avalon when we were there for our anniversary last week.
