4th Annual Torrance Cherry Blossom Cultural Festival

These photos were taken Sunday, March 15 at the 4th Annual Torrance Cherry Blossom Cultural Festival, which was held in the southeast corner of Columbia Park in Torrance. The free, family friendly event was sponsored in part by the City of Torrance, the North Torrance Homeowners Association, the Torrance Sister City Association, Torrance Craftsmens Guild, and Soka Gakkai International-Buddhist Association for Peace, Culture and Education. Entertainment was provided by Susan Manns Wahine Ilikea Dancers performing Polynesian dances, O-Edo Ichi-Za performing traditional Japanese fan dances, and Myoon Taiko drumming. There were also several food trucks available and one of them even …

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The Stanley Cup returns to the South Bay

Sorry, for the delay; it has been a busy week. These photos were taken Wednesday on Pier Avenue where it meets The Strand as the Los Angeles Kings brought the Stanley Cup back to Hermosa Beach for the second time in as many years. Unlike last year when the parade basically went down Pier Avenue from the fire department to the plaza, this year’s parade began at the Redondo Beach Police Department and ended in Manhattan Beach.

Photos of the 55th Annual Armed Forces Day Parade

Saturday afternoon, the City of Torrance hosted their 55th Annual Armed Forces Day Parade, the longest running military parade sponsored by any city in the United States. Each year a different branch of the military is honored with this year being the Navy. The Grand Marshal was United States Navy Rear Admiral Patrick J Lorge. In addition to the dignitaries, high school and military marching bands, and military equipment there were several aerial flyovers and a mass swearing in of about 600 young men and women to various branches of the armed forces. While it was a pretty hot day, …

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The 55th Annual Armed Forces Day Celebration in Torrance

It is that time of year again, the Torrance Armed Forces Day celebration is this weekend with the highlight being the 2014 Armed Forces Day Parade, the nation’s longest running military parade sponsored by any city which will be held Saturday from 1:30-3:30 PM. Every year a different branch of the military is honored and this year it is the US Navy. The parade runs down Torrance Boulevard from Crenshaw to Madronna. If we are lucky and the weather forecast is correct, it should be a lot cooler than it has been. These photos are of the military exhibits which …

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Easyriders Bike Show 2014 Anaheim

It is January and for custom bike builders and those that enjoy looking at custom bikes that means that the 2014 Easyriders Bike Show Tour is now underway. The first stop for the tour was Saturday, January 4 at the Anaheim Convention Center. I have been attending various Easyriders events as a participant or spectator since the mid-80’s and while there are definitely bikes that show up in the show year after year, it is interesting to watch the evolution of motorcycle building. Huge front wheels, etched chrome and amazing paint jobs seemed to be the theme in recent years …

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Floats readied for the 125th Tournament of Roses Parade

If you will recall, last week I headed out to Fiesta Parade Floats to take photos of the floats they were building for the upcoming 125th Tournament of Roses Parade. It was December 23 and at that point the floats were virtual skeletons; waiting for December 26 when the actual decorating could begin. The parade rules state that all surfaces of the float framework must be covered in natural materials; usually flowers and seeds. Since these natural materials have a tendency to decay after they are plucked from the ground, the decorating does not begin until December 26. The decorating …

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Preparing for the 125th Annual Tournament of Roses Parade

This afternoon I headed out to Fiesta Parade Floats in Irwindale, CA to check out the progress on the float building for the upcoming 125th Annual Tournament of Roses Parade which will be held Wednesday, January 1, 2014. As I have been donating time towards helping the Torrance Rose Float Association (TRFA) raise the funds needed for building the float, I figured I would go out to where the float is being built so people can get an idea of what goes into a project like this. Fiesta Parade Floats builds award winning floats and has for several years; as …

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Sleepy Hollow brings back the Christmas lights

With a tradition that has gone on since 1985, the Christmas lights in the Sleepy Hollow section of Torrance have been put back up in its transformation to Candy Cane Lane. While it is still a couple of weeks until Christmas, our visit to Sleepy Hollow last night revealed that most of the Christmas decorations seem to be up and those in the know about the Christmas Light Extravaganza have already started showing up to view the lively decorations. While it was a little chilly last night, at least it was not wet or windy, so walking up and down …

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One last Champagne Brunch at the Proud Bird

Last week my Facebook feed lit up with the news that the Proud Bird Restaurant, an aviation-themed restaurant by Los Angeles International Airport for 48 years, will be closing effective November 21, 2013. Apparently they are closing because the landlords, Los Angeles World Airports, want to increase the rent to such an extent that the restaurant cannot afford to stay open. As the Proud Bird and I go back about 35 years and Tanya and I had been talking about going to a champagne brunch anyway, we decided that we would go for one last brunch at the Proud Bird …

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Get to the Choppers at Ed’s Stumble Inn

These photos are from Saturday afternoon at Ed’s Stumble Inn where they hosted TJ Brutal Customs’ First Annual Get to the Choppers Inaugural Bike Show and Charity Raffle. The fundraiser benefited Vision2Victory, a 501(c)(3) charity that gives back to the military community. The centerpiece of the event was the raffle for a custom Honda motorcycle built by TJ Stiles; with paint by Department of Customz, handlebars by Noise Cycles, leather work by Lower Class Leather, a gas tank by Paughco, grips and pegs by Hippy Killer and a fender by Lowbrow Customs, with the velocity stack and custom exhaust by …

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