Hate Los Angeles

[BrandonJXN]

I'm going to do something a bit different. A 2 paragraph essay by me. 300. *ahem*

Hate Los Angeles. Hate it with a passion of 1,000 hells. Hate the fact that our skies are brown with smog. Hate that there are more cars in the county of Los Angeles than in all of Russia. Hate our legendary freeway system (fear the 405). Hate our crime. Hate the plastic people who scurry about in Beverly Hills. Hate Britney Spears for shaving her hair off in a hair salon in Sherman Oaks. Hate LAX (but love the club). Hate the poverty. Hate Paris Hilton for being Paris Hilton. Hate that we have a Starbucks on every corner. Hate that everyone has a cell phone plastered to their face. Hate the burning hot sand and the freezing cold water at our beaches. Hate our (lack of a decent) public transportation system. Hate our small downtown. Hate the Lakers. Hate Kobe Bryant. Hate the blocked streets resulting from a movie/TV commerical shoot. Hate the Bloods, Crips, and MS-13. Hate that it's impossible to make a left turn. Hate the earthquakes, floods, mudslides, brushfires, Santa Ana winds, and stray mountain lions and black bears.

Hate Los Angeles. She doesn't care. She'll just smile and say, 'You don't have to love me. You don't even have to like me. Alot of people hate me. But you know what? I've been doing things my own way since before your great grandparents were born. You've seen me in more movies, TV shows, and music videos than any other city. You've probably seen me and didn't realize it. I've had my moments where I've been stressed out....forgive me LA for the Watts and LA riots, as well as the Northridge earthquake.... but I've got to wake the people up some kind of way. But know that I am responsible for a whole sub-culture. Know that I am NOT going anywhere. And you know what? The more you hate me, the more you fall in love with me. You love to hate me and you hate to love me. You want to see me in person and soak it all in. You love me and you hate to admit it. But it's ok. I love being hated. I love me. Me me me me me me me. It's all about me.'

I hope you enjoyed....I guess you can call it a tiny essay. Now onto some pics (from flikr):

[pottebaum]

I don't hate it. I like it.

A lot.

[Buckeye Native 001]

Originally Posted by ThreeHundred

Man, that pic is olllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllld

Good stuff

[Jeeper]

I have never had any desire to visit there. I'll tell you though, for someone who hates it so much, you sure do one hell of a job of making it look good. Nice photos.

[Quixote]

Why do you hate it so much if you've never even been here?

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

Why do you hate it so much if you've never even been here?

Are you talking to me?

[Quixote]

Uh...no. I was referring to Jeeper's post. I'm well aware that you are one of the LA forumers here.

[soleri]

Really fantastic pictures! For a city we love to hate, or hate to love, it's always fascinating, often frustrating, and sometimes just enchanting.

[Quixote]

There's a lot to hate but there's also a lot to love.

[Buckeye Native 001]

Originally Posted by soleri

Really fantastic pictures! For a city we love to hate, or hate to love, it's always fascinating, often frustrating, and sometimes just enchanting.

The more I try to figure this city out, the more it confuses me. Call me crazy, but I take comfort in that.

[Patrick]

LA's the best. No question.

[hauntedheadnc]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

There's a lot to hate but there's also a lot to love.

My mother visited LA in the 70's when there was nothing to love about any big American city, and even she found a few things to like about LA. She was especially entranced by the snails that lived on the plants at the hotel -- they had iridescent shells.

It wasn't enough to move there though, for her stuntman boyfriend. If there had been, I'd be just one more respectable LA forummer today.

[john3eblover]

if those are your pictures, they are very nice

[BrandonJXN]

See people? Even our snails are cooler than yours.

[peacefu603]

cool photos

[fflint]

ThreeHundred, did you take these excellent photographs yourself?

[John R]

I have relatives in L.A. and I never had the chance to visit them until right after graduate school. After receiving my Masters in Architecture, I was not working, so I went out to visit. I spent about one month in the city and I really loved it. My relatives were also kind enough to show me all of Southern California, so I had a chance to experience everything. To make a long story short, I have returned a few times and still enjoy visiting.

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by fflint

ThreeHundred, did you take these excellent photographs yourself?

I wish I was that skilled. But no. All of them are from Flickr. Something catches my eye and I'll post it. In a strange way, the 'Metro is for everyone' is my favorite pic. It's a strange irony seeing as how there is a man with no arms and legs on the subway.

[mSeattle]

Real nice finds you've put together!

[bryson662001]

No wonder you hate LA......you missed all the best parts IMO.