Overheard At Starbucks (1/6/12 1030am)

At the Starbucks on Day Creek Blvd and Highland Ave today, it took me long enough to put 2 packets of sugar and cream in my decaf iced Americano to take note of this male in his early 20s recounting his New Year's Eve to another male and a female.

"I was mixing all sorts a drinks, you know.  I was kinda hangin' out cause all the old people went home early.  Then I was singing that song, you know, that lang syne, the one like Star Spangled Banner, you know...so yeah, I kinda started the new year right, you know."

A few things came to mind besides wishing I had a tape recorder to capture his monologue.  First, I wonder if I am the "old people" who goes home early.  Not sure what early is these days anyway.  Second, I never thought Auld Lang Syne even remotely resembles our national anthem.  Either he is tone-deaf or just haven't heard either song enough to tell any melodic or harmonic distinction.  And speaking of starting the year right, I rode 1500 miles last year on my bike without a single flat.  And today, my first ride of 2012, I flatted on my way out, thankfully, less than a mile away from home.

Overheard At BCAM

I've had this in my journal since July 2008 when BCAM opened at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA):

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A month after BCAM's grand opening, I overhead this at the gallery housing Damien Hirst's "Away From The Flock" piece.

Guard: "You know, these exhibits ain't for everybody."

Couple of gray-haired museum visitors, seniors, continue to observe sheep encased in formaldehyde. No response.

Guard walks closer, "You know, these exhibits ain't for everybody."

Older gentleman: "Excuse me?"

Guard: "They aint' for everybody."

Older gentleman: "They ain't for me either."

Guard smiles, obviously proud of the affirmation. They all walked away to look at Hirst's more colorful but equally dead butterflies instead.
I walked toward the sheep thinking, would they have liked it better if I had some red ink with me?  Hmm.

Overheard at the Staples Center, Clippers vs Warriors (1/9/11, 1230pm)

(Originally posted on Facebook 1/9/11)


Woman: "You know I have this secret power?"
Man: "Yeah, what is it?"
Woman: "At work, I can just tell when certain people are coming around the corner or to my cubicle. For some reason, I can tell who the person is just by their smell. You know, I can tell different people by their unique smell. Yeah, for some reason, I can just tell."
Man: "Did you see Blake Griffin block that guy's shot?"
Woman: "No. But anyway, someone around here smells like my friend at work."
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I overheard this conversation very clearly in the Staples Center filled with thousands of people because she is sitting in the seat behind me. Section 117, Row 13, Seat 19. I'm on Row 12 just in front of her. Two things. First, I showered and shampoo'd last nite so if it was me, it was probably not too bad an odor - I hope. Second, I've known this about women and their powerful sense of smell. I read that this higher sense of smell (compared to males) has an evolutionary basis where females needed it in order to protect themselves and fetus when pregnant - from things that may cause harm, near or long term. I'm also aware that some male body scents trigger hormone release in certain women that results in sexual arousal.


So given what I have read, I disagree that she has special powers. In fact, I would argue she is in the middle of the distribution curve for women in child-bearing age. Nonetheless, I was very curious if I sat next to a cat in heat.

Overheard At The Comics Factory (1298 E. Colorado Blvd, Pasadena), Friday 8/29/08 7:30pm

Cashier (behind the counter): Dude, which is a better Venom symbiote, Spider-man or Eddie Brock?
Store Manager (arranging products on rack): Eddie Brock.
Cashier: Yeah, but would Spidey have influenced the way the symbiote evolved into not such a dark force.
Store Manager: Maybe. Venom did some vigilante work on the side but still hated Spider-man. Although given the symbiote's appetite for adrenaline, only Eddie Brock would have been able to sustain the demand.
Cashier: Yeah, dude.
Store Manager: Did you get a copy of Ryan Kelly's sketchbook at Comic-Con for a buck? I brought some in but we're down to our last copy in the store.
P.S. After the store manager moved on, I searched for Ryan Kelly's sketchbook, still a dollar and I bought the last copy. Ryan Kelly is a very good artist and if it weren't for me listening in on what seems like two adults employees talking geek stuff, I would not have been exposed to Kelly's art. His blog is at...
http://funrama.blogspot.com/
I'm new to this whole comic book scene and I am slowly picking up who the key players are. Every time someone asks me what I'm doing at the comic book store, I tell them I'm with my kids who like reading the stuff. Yeah, right. Seriously, they were both with me :)