LETTERS
I made a promise to myself that I would not write any letters to SMDP after I moved out of Santa Monica even though I would still avail myself of SMDP to keep current with the goings on in the “little city by the sea.” However, having just returned from the holiday trip I took there, I just couldn’t help but notice how things never change.
Day 1: I decided to take a walk to the Promenade to see how it was looking. In less than six minutes from the time I crossed Wilshire Boulevard, I was hit up by one of Charles Springer’s “brothers” and he wasn’t asking for just “a smile.” As I progressed south, I was overcome by the spirit of the season as I passed the enchanting artificial, blue/green, Siegfried-and-Roy-esq stage props — better know as “Winterlit.” Ah, the sites and sounds of the holidays as I journeyed passed the young, pierced, tattooed, lovers as they told each other to “bleep” off. I only wish I had my 2-year-old son with me to experience the wonderful ambiance offered by Santa Monica during this festive time of year.
Day 2: I went for an early run at the beach, passing south of the pier — the ocean air, the precious silence, the smell of urine. Oh well, two out of three ain’t bad, I guess.
Day 3: I grabbed a cup of Joe around 10 a.m. at the Montana Starbucks (15th not 7th), watched all the beautiful people walking by on their way to, on their way to, on their way to... well, on their way to something very important, I’m sure. As I sipped my mocha and picked up the SMDP, I noticed that Charles “Homeless-and-living-in- Santa-Monica-artist-student-activist-blah-blah-blah” Springer had once again claimed that absolutely no personal responsibility whatsoever played a hand in his buddy’s death. It was “the man,” “society,” and of course George Bush that had killed his fellow bum (can we please stop using the PC word “homeless” now? It’s so ’80s).
Day 4: Got a great laugh at the news that a judge ruled against the Rent Control Board on 3304 based on a suit filed by a wealthy lawyer who lives in Beverly Hills but keeps two rent-controlled, beachfront apartments on the side. If this isn’t poetic, I don’t know what is. Imagine the faces of the RCB and SMRR when the truth was exposed, namely that the majority of rent-controlled apartments are actually rented by people with high incomes! I guess that explains all the new SUVs and sports cars that populate the carports of rundown, ’70s-era apartments. But, I’m not telling you anything we didn’t already know.
Day 5: Found out that Fisher Lumber is going to close so that the city can continue to boost the number of SMRR voters to offset the naturally occurring gentri-fication that’s taking place in Santa Monica. In other words, they’re building “low income housing.” Oh well, what’s one more longtime business getting the boot? It didn’t matter to the city with the Boathouse, so why change?
Day 6: Had enough. Decided to return to my new home and that Marilyn Brennan, Ron Scott Smith, Ed Silverstein, and every other aging hippy with a pony-tail and a comb-over, should take Charles Springer into their homes and once and for all — get him off the streets!
Happy holidays.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 9, 2003. Read the original PDF.