Downtown - prelude, aftermath, and gametime

Yesterday, I almost joined Lance Ito's jury. The case was too long for me to hang, though, so I asked to be let go. When he asked what I do, I said that I helped edit a small magazine, and that as one of two editors that the case would cripple our schedule. He asked how it would affect me, not the magazine, and I said if the mag doesn't get made, I lose a job. Then I added that the magazine was started in a garage. He said, "HP started in a garage," and I countered that we're still in one. He cut me loose and I was relieved. What if he asked for the name and recognized it from being on the wall of JANM? That show makes us look really big--larger than life in every way.

After that I was called to another case. There were 35 of us, and I was sitting in the 34th spot. I was confident that they'd find their 12 (plus alternates) before getting to me. Nope. At the end of the day, I was sitting in seat 12. I go back tomorrow.

What is interesting is that perhaps a third of the prospective jurors who are being dismissed are Asians who can't speak or understand English very well. Now every time one of us gets in line, I worry about him or her having an accent. That's totally lame, but it's true. Is there a way to screen them out before they get to this stage and are put in the spotlight? Besides slowing the process, it can't be fun for them. I am definitely not a race traitor; I just want this jury selection process to go faster so the case can get going.

One nice thing about serving jury duty in L.A. is that we are assigned parking at REDCAT. So I've been visiting friends at the gallery who are in the process of taking down the Barry McGee show. I was there for some of the installation, so this is nice closure.





I left too early to see the van get rolled over and towed away. Oh well.

I don't want to sound like a realtor trying to sell lofts, but for a day or two everything has indeed been happening downtown. Last night, my sister hooked me up with Lakers tickets. They played Seattle, who have some talent but came and left with only two wins in the fairly young season. While there wasn't much drama, Kobe still makes some ridiculous plays, and is worth the price of admission any evening. Bynum had some huge ups and a few embarrassing down moments, while Turiaf is nonstop effort and Farmar made some nice plays, too. I hope the young guys keep progressing, and (1) keep the team intact and (2) inspire PJ to keep coaching.


One more thing. It's nice to see Fisher back in a Lakers jersey. He's not the missing piece, but he is a solidifying agent. A smart guy with heart that the team needs.