Autopia

The temptation to saunter through the vast network of alleys in South Los Angeles is sometimes great. Many alleys though are gated, some shuttered permanently, repatriated by property owners (like in the West Adams Avenues), others returned almost entirely to nature, kitty corridors, unpaved (as in Vermont Square), with rampaging bamboo and vine.


Typically my longing to venture off street scares the bejesus out of frequent stroll mate Josh Berman, but it also allows a glimpse into yards where old and not so old cars, squeezed into the smallest of rinconcitos, languish, tires deflated, wheel wells filled with cobwebs and high growth.

Sometimes the vehicles function as outdoor storage lockers, hosting charcoal briquettes, clothes, or boxes of snail bait. Items are piled atop the bonnet and roof, 2 X 4's, an hibachi, sporting goods.

Others are keepsakes, reminders of youth, or aged fathers, or a time before persistent economic pressure, a last linkage, not easily abandoned.

Some owners talk about restoration, about selling for scrap or on e-bay.

It might be written this is a admirably (there's nothing peculiar about it) L.A. phenomenon. Without the ravages of harsh winter weather, these vehicles may survive long enough to be refurbished.

I'll be open today from 11 - 2 pm at 4943 Genevieve Avenue in Eagle Rock.