This is one of those weeks when the horror of January in Los Angeles came roaring back to life.
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We learned about the Uber driver who federal authorities allege ended a New Year’s Eve of driving people around by intentionally starting what would become the Palisades fire all while listening to dark French rap music.
L.A. City Hall released a report highlighting systemic breakdowns that hampered the Palisades firefight.
It came on the heels of a similar L.A. County report on the Eaton fire that officials initially hailed as a major step forward but then declared woefully inadequate after Altadena residents railed about its lack of basic accountability.
But lately, my mind has been captivated by a different kind of L.A. firestorm writing: A crop of first-person accounts that offered new ways of understanding both what was lost and how we move forward. Here are a few I’d recommend:
Losing your adolescence
Joshuah Bearman grew up in Altadena in the 1980s. His piece, entitled “Mark’s House Is Gone. Heather’s House Is Gone. Eddie’s House Is Gone,” is less about Jan. 7 and its aftermath but what it was like to grow up in Altadena in that era. The parental conflicts. Proximity to some of the best and weirdest minds in science. Love. Loss. The San Gabriels. When KROQ was cool. The zenith of the Southern California middle class. He ends with this obituary:
The symbolic loss of Altadena feels even more acute now, as we see the failed promise of America being channeled into a cynical, populist nightmare. Because Altadena was a place where that promise had been fulfilled. What we lost in the fire wasn’t just a town; it was a historical arrangement — living evidence of the postwar American compact, that brief window between the Great Depression and Reagan, when there was a shared national project, and the story behind it felt true because there was the sense that, someday, that story could include anyone.
We’re back to 1925
Dana Goodyear lived in the modest part of the Palisades — the Alphabet streets — and loved it so much she thought she might never leave.
“We lived three blocks from a firehouse. The Alphabets would never burn. These were mantras I had repeated to the kids and to myself throughout the years.” She recounted the hell of Jan. 7: chaotic evacuation, hours of not knowing and endless second-guessing about what she frantically collected from her home and what she left behind.
But the New Yorker writer also provides a moving urban excavation of what Pacific Palisades was before the fire and imagines what it could be like in the future. The most haunting passage comes in the form of a conversation with local historian Randy Young:
“I can tell you the exact date the Palisades is right now. It’s 1925.” He showed me an old picture of the Alphabets, looking toward Chautauqua. It was a plain — unpeopled, with only a few structures and wide-open spaces in between. To a student of the past, it was thrilling, and also unnerving. Time had turned abruptly back.
Mourning ‘Afro-dena’
Lynell George lives just outside Altadena in northwest Pasadena, but “Afro-dena” has always been her special place. In a sprawling essay in Sierra magazine, she writes about discovering the deep Black historical and cultural roots of Lake Avenue and the difficulty of processing how it all burned to the ground.
Post-fire, she finds ghosts everywhere: In the prescient words of Octavia Butler, in the struggles of her friend who introduced her to Altadena and lost his home in the fire, in bearing witness to the terror of climate change. A Facebook friend is stunned by the destruction because she assumed you were safe if you didn’t live on a hill or have a view. Not anymore. George concludes:
The guideposts we once lived by are being rewritten as fire blazes through one tract and then the next. We take precautions and then the precautions fail us. Then there are the surprises we confront — unfathomable, life-changing ones, that leave us reaching for words. I am thinking about the elders in Altadena who already so long ago cut ties with the past, left so much behind to start anew — here.
Our ash-filled RAV4
I’ve come across the writings of Altadena poet Jessica Abughattas in several publications this year. Her work offers beautiful snapshots of what life in the diverse community was like and, in my view, how hard it is going to be to bring it back.
She also wrote a harrowing account of her experience as the Eaton fire roared through Altadena. Her work is less about grand sweep and historic meaning and more about ground-level observation that lets the real Altadena come alive. From her poem “West Altadena:”
Neighbors pass, two lines of smoke
in hooded sweatshirts,
from the sober living house
next door, as I stand in the front yard
watering dirt.
I ask little of the garden —
mere inspiration — working
my shovel into bare earth.
Today’s top stories
Unanswered questions abound over the Palisades fire
Fire crews thought they had extinguished a fire on Jan. 1 but, in fact, it was still smoldering.
Los Angeles firefighters didn’t use thermal imaging to confirm that a Jan. 1 fire was extinguished.
Many in the Palisades blame L.A. City Hall for fire failures. But can they win in court?
There are many unanswered questions including the alleged arson’s motive and how the son of missionaries actually started the fire.
Shoppers in California plan to splurge this holiday season — out of fear
Shoppers are expected to boost holiday spending 4.6% this year, but not from confidence — they’re buying now to beat expected tariff-driven inflation.
The Pacific region shows the nation’s highest inflation concerns, with 72% of West Coast consumers citing tariff-related price increases as their top worry.
The top gifts people want to receive this holiday season? Cold hard cash — followed by gift cards and apparel.
With Trump threats on back pay, another blow to public servants
President Trump’s latest threat to withhold back pay due to workers furloughed by the government shutdown is adding fresh uncertainty to the beleaguered workforce.
Whether federal workers will ultimately receive retroactive paychecks after the government reopens, Trump told reporters on Tuesday, “really depends on who you’re talking about.”
The law requires federal employees receive their expected compensation in the event of a shutdown.
What else is going on
The LAPD spokesperson resigned after the U.S. attorney complained about an alleged leak, sources say
A Disneyland visitor has died after riding the Haunted Mansion. An expert says theme park deaths are rare.
Older men across L.A. County thought they found a date. Police believe their supposed companion had darker plans.
Billionaire Tom Steyer dropped $12 million to support the November redistricting ballot measure.
Jimmy Kimmel says his Charlie Kirk remarks were “maliciously mischaracterized.”
California test scores improve amid lingering pandemic setbacks.
The Gaza ceasefire puts both Netanyahu and Hamas at political risk
This former bracero told columnist Gustavo Arellano he doesn’t want the program to return. ‘People will be treated like slaves’
Mass firings, unpaid furloughs? Guest columnist Doyle McManus writes about the Trump loyalist who picked up where Musk left off.
This morning’s must read
California
How a brutal Grindr date helped LAPD link a man to two unsolved killings
A Los Angeles man faces murder and robbery charges after prosecutors say he lured men to meet for sex using the app Grindr, then brutally attacked them.
Other must reads
The myths and realities of gentrification in Mexico City. Should you still visit?
Say farewell to the TiVo box, the device that revolutionized how we watch television.
This L.A. landmark was hailed as a ‘ribbon of light.’ Scrap metal thieves have made it dark and invisible
For your downtime
Going out
Eating out: This “The Bear”-esque dining experience puts you in the center of the kitchen chaos.
Celebrations: Diwali becomes an official California state holiday. Here’s where to celebrate the festivities.
Art: At LACMA, a rambling theme show of recent contemporary art acquisitions jumps the rails.
Staying in
Music: The album that almost wasn’t: No Doubt’s ‘Tragic Kingdom’ at 30 defies industry doubts.
Television: How Frankie Quiñones went from “CholoFit” fame to working out his demons in a new Hulu special.
Cooking: Here’s a recipe for blueberry cornmeal pancakes.
Games: Get our free daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and jigsaw games.
A question for you: A question for you: What frustrates you the most about parking in L.A.?
Email us at essentialcalifornia@latimes.com, and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.
And finally … your photo of the day
Today’s great photo is from Times photographer Juliana Yamada at an L.A. home that transforms into a stunning art gallery and studio.
Have a great day, from the Essential California team
Jim Rainey, staff reporter
Hugo Martín, assistant editor, fast break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew Campa, Sunday writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters
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