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# Portable Oxygen Concentrator Lets Patients Get Out and About
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/s-t-r-a-y-talk-20080809/
- Published: 2008-08-09T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T20:39:02.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Opinion, Santa Monica, #archive-import, Homeless

*A center-cut, no-fat review of what was said this past week by folks the world over and right at home*

“Our objective is to show people that with a portable oxygen concentrator, you can go out and do things, whether it’s a bridge party, going out and meeting friends and the grandkids, or what I’m doing, which is a long-distance bike ride.” — Mark Junge, who is currently riding from San Francisco to Mexico. “Wouldn’t Dorothy have slept better at night if she hadn’t found out that the Wizard, the guy rumored to be the only one bright enough to figure out how to get her home, was actually an average Joe not quite bright enough to cower behind a floor-length curtain that at least hid his legs? Imagine how many Prozac prescriptions the pharmacist in Oz had to fill once word spread that the city’s mighty and powerful deity was a fraud.” — SMDP columnist Meredith C. Carroll writing in “Meredith Pro Tem.” “This indicates good faith on the Veterans Administration to address the significant constraints with moving the project forward and a very quick response to address that constraint.” — Barbara Collins, the housing manager for City Hall, regarding a project to house homeless veterans at the Veterans Administration campus in West Los Angeles. “Nobody can predict the economy a decade and a half from now. If so, I’ll hire them to manage my stock portfolio. But, for the sake of debate — even if RIFT were to result in reduced projected development fees and other property revenue, the impacts on the current, flush $524.7-million city budget are a fraction of a percentage.” — SMDP columnist Bill Bauer writing in “My Write.” “I’ve never had such an amazing opportunity to have a first-hand experience of history where I’ll be able to witness change.” — Adriana Wong, a junior at Santa Monica High School, regarding her upcoming trip to the Democratic National Convention in Denver. “Last year it was your typical zoo in August with a million classes. This year it’s a lot less.” — Surfer Terry Dunn regarding the recent reduction in the amount of surf instruction taking place on local beaches. “While \[Barack\[ Obama has co-opted the faux-fur accouterments of a president, he has neglected to notice that he has not yet been elected to the position despite the turgidly tumescent ululations of the French and German people.” — SMDP columnist Steve Breen writing in “Going Postal.”

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 9, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/080908.pdf?ref=smdp.com)