And the Burritos aren't bad either!

I don't know what the world is coming to, but in just one week I've discovered two things I love about Los Angeles. If I'm not careful, I might start to get the warm fuzzies for this place.

Then again, that might be a bad thing. Without quite realizing it, I may have moved here.

Friday morning at about 10am my phone rang, but thanks to caller ID and custom ring tones, I determined it safe to ignore. When I woke up for real about noon and checked my voicemail (as you may have guessed) there was a message from scheduling. I called back, apologizing profusely and explained my confusion because of the unknown number.

With patronizing articulation, the scheduler explained that they were at a different number because they were in a different place. Because of hurricane IKE, operations are in the emergency bunker (a real bunker some rich paranoid built during the cold war). He added magnanimously, as if he had converted my death sentence to 30 days in rehab, that he hadn't given me a UTC (unable to contact), but to check my schedule on the computer right away.

From the looks of my trip, the warning only was less a show of mercy than the result of mass confusion. Houston is completely closed, all flights in and out are cancelled and all the planes have been moved to out stations. I've been sent to LA for two nights to wait it out.

I was in the LAX area just a few days ago, but my spot amongst the sprawl this time is different, Culver City to be exact. I've stayed here often, the hotel is near a mall and a great hole-in -the-wall burrito place, so I could easily waste the day hanging out (I did bring all nine balls of yarn for Kimberly's wrap), but over coffee I browsed travel guides and opted to use my day off for adventure.

I don't care about celebrity houses or movie studios, but the Getty Center, a huge museum complex in the Santa Monica mountains, piqued my interest. Admission is free and it's open until 9pm on Saturdays so it seemed like the ideal outing. A few phone calls and some sketchy maps later I boarded the green Culver City bus and was underway.

LA is not known for it's public transit, but I've got to give those drivers credit. They were all the nicest, most helpful civil servants I've ever dealt with. I'm sure they found me a little quirky: I was clearly unfamiliar with the bus routes and knitted away while attempting to memorize the scenery, but they guided me to all my transfer spots and explained how to find my way back.

The whole trip took well over an hour, but it was so worth it!

I've never seen anything like this place. You take a little tram up to the mountain top, and in every direction there are breathtaking views of LA and the mountains. The museum's collection is housed in a series of building that are works of art in themselves. The architecture is modern, but so thoughtfully designed that it only enhances the beauty of the place. Among the structures are spectacular gardens.

Every time I turned around there was some fantastic new photo op and I happily clicked away with the abandon afforded by a fresh memory card. I just had to be careful not to stop in front of anyone elses' lens, as I was clearly not the only one moved by the surroundings.

The people watching was almost as good as the art: dozens of aspiring photographers and drawers, young lovers, families, visitors from all over the world. Even though the grounds were crowded, I was happy that people were taking advantage of it.

The ride back to the hotel seemed infinitely shorter, which is more than I can say for this layover. I was supposed to go to Houston today, then deadhead to Phoenix for another two nights, but everything is cancelled again today, so I'm on standby.

I've been checking the computer every few minutes for updates, and I spent over an hour on hold with crew cooridinations, but to no avail. I wonder how long before they start making me pay state income tax...someone has to pay for the "free" museums and friendly bus drivers.