Where there's smoke...

Andrea and I went to a going-away dinner party last night hosted by Alex and her husband Chris, which was fun. But as we got closer to their house, about an hour away in "The O.C.," we could smell the smoke, see the haze and -- we think -- feel the heat of the Southern California fire.

This morning, that haze and smell had drifted all the way up to Los Angeles itself. Scary.

We visited the new Walt Disney Concert Hall, the fancy new architectural landmark by Frank Gehry. It was awesome and beautiful. We also visited the almost-as-new Los Angeles Cathedral. Andrea and I agreed that it looked a little bunker-ish for a church, which presumably aims to reach out into the broader community. But I thought the inside was really nice, an understaed, spartan arrangement.

It's unfortunate that it took my moving away to inspire us to see Los Angeles' cultural heritage.