West Los Angeles could be a cool place to live. It wasn’t far from the Southern California coast or from the attractions of the city. Most of the time I really enjoyed it. The only tough part was my neighbors; it’s LA and most of the houses were built on top of each other. I eventually got used to being able to see into my neighbor’s kitchen and having them be able to see into mine but there were still times when I really wished we both had a little more privacy.

Tonight just happened to be one of those times. I was getting over a cold so instead of going out with my friends for the weekend, I’d just kind of hung around the house watching bad T.V. My sleeping schedule was off so there I was at one o’clock in the morning, wide awake and watching re-runs of Bewitched. During one of the commercials I decided I was hungry and got up to go scrounge in the kitchen for a snack.

That’s when the trouble started. I knew the guy next door had a new girlfriend and from a couple encounters I’d witnessed on his front porch I suspected they fought a lot. Tonight it seemed that suspicion was being confirmed. It was a summer evening and the windows were all open a crack. That made it really easy to hear the yelling from the kitchen next door. Though I couldn’t always hear what the guy said, I could certainly hear his girlfriend who was shouting at the top of her lungs. It seemed that she was accusing him of cheating on her and he seemed to be denying it.

Since the conversation next door was far more entertaining that anything I’d been watching on television, I sat down at the kitchen table with my carton of ice cream to listen. The more he denied her accusations, the angrier she would get and soon she was also blaming him for not making enough money and for wearing ugly clothes. It was getting a bit ridiculous. I was just getting a good chuckle out of her long-winded description of what really were a very ugly pair of shorts, (I’d seen him wearing them), when the argument suddenly turned violent. I could hear something shatter in their kitchen and alarmed, I jumped to my feet to look out the window. By the time I got there I could see that she’d gone outside into the very narrow side yard between our houses. She had something in her h ands but I couldn’t really tell what.

As it suddenly shattered the glass of the window beside me though, I was soon able to see it had been a DVD player.

“What the heck?” I shouted as I launched myself out the back door.

The girl had already stormed back inside but my neighbor was still st anding there by the fence.

“I may need to break up with her,” he stated bl andly as he stared at me.

“You think?” I replied sarcastically. “She just put your DVD player through my window.”

He shrugged. “Hope you have insurance,” he responded then turned and went back inside.

Like I said, most of the time West LA is a great place to live.

Living in California with its elevated cost of living and the constant coping with natural disasters is a constant reminder to Californians of the need to protect their assets through properly and adequately insuring them. Everything from life to property must be adequately secured. No one wants to face the situations of catastrophe and loss, but it is a reality in the life of every human being. Failing to prepare for these inevitable moments in our lives leaves us in an even more vulnerable position.

Although the majority of my posts look to find humor in discussing the subject matter at h and, the bottom line is quite serious. Whether you are in the affluent areas of California, such as Malibu, Beverly Hills, and Bellaire, or you live in the more impecunious areas, such as Compton, South Central, etc., the fact remains that tragedy happens and no one is exempt. It is always best to be prepared.

With that being said, I have learned quite a bit about the state of California over the course of my many visits and short stays. For instance, are you aware that there are more turkeys raised in the state of California than any other state in the United States? Somehow, California is just not registering in mind as the turkey capital of America. I guess my first question would be, “What are you guys planning on doing with all those turkeys? Don’t answer that.

There is a county in California, Alpine Country, which literally has no ATM’s, high schools, banks, dentists, or traffic lights. How in the world is this place considered to be a county? What supports the economy around there? No ATM’s and no traffic lights, I know what that means. It means that we don’t like strangers; we don’t even want your money, just keep right on moving.

What in the world is a riparian brush rabbit? That actually sounds kind of scary, almost pre-historic. This particular species of rabbit is said to reside in Caswell State Park. If I am correct, that is a total of about 255 acres. I often wonder how animals tend to remain within sightless boundaries. One thing I can say is that I don’t think that I will be visiting Caswell State Park anytime soon; not until I learn a little bit more about this riparian brush rabbit.

Okay, how many of you know where this is leading. That’s right; I am concerned that this poor animal may become extinct. Not because it is confined to such a small area, relatively speaking, but because with a name like brush rabbit, they are bound to become victims of the notorious brush fire b andit. For those of you who are reading my posts for the first time, you are not aware of my personal theory concerning the annual brush fires in California. It is a theory of mine that one person could be behind all of the fires. Admittedly, this is the result of the combination of too much time on my h ands and an overactive imagination.

Maybe we will talk more about this next time around; or maybe not. No telling what will be on my mind by then.