The Common Rule

9:45pm El Tatasco

2012-01-25T22:22:00.001-08:00

9:45pm El Tatasco, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

9:45pm El Tatasco

I want to tell you about my slice of Americana today

2012-01-18T21:58:00.000-08:00

I arrived for the afternoon session at the West Los Angeles Courthouse today just before 1:30pm.
The bailiff had yet to let anyone in the court room so the waiting area was filled with people from all sorts of races, creeds and life forms.

I found myself among these people waiting for this circus experience to begin.

The intensely casual attire was astonishing. Was I in line for some defunct West Hollywood booty bass club? Surely the American judicial system demanded some more formal attire than an Antonio Gates Chargers jersey and a do-rag. Do not think for one second, my faithful reader, that I exaggerate. No. We will have none of that here today for the truth on its own will suffice to entertain or at the very least past time.

By now you, my keen reader, may have asked yourself, "How does my humble narrator find himself in this situation? I have known him to be far less reckless and far away from such disorders."

And normally such would be the case, my dear reader, so I will digress and explain.

State ordinance demands that one keep two working headlamps on all vehicles especially just past dusk.

On one particular evening, I was caught with less than a pair of properly working headlamps and a less than graceful officer saw it fit to not only remind me of my current missing head lamp but to also cite me and continue to use the incorrect address for said citation. Here en lies our predicament for your humble narrator failed to receive any correspondence to remind him that a small fine was demanded in order to be square again with our fair city. Since no correspondence was received, action was not immediately taken much to the disliking of the city who, in turn, proceeded to transform (through the administrative magic that only our fair government posses) a meager $25 fine into a $879 monstrosity! Mind you, had I better financial footing I could easily help to alleviate our city's financial woes but such is not my current situation so one of similar financial status can easily appreciate my emotional disturbance. Hence, we find ourselves the guests within the extremely comfortable confines of the halls belonging to our thankfully blind Lady Justice.

Our bailiff let us into the court room which I found to be in a less-than-Hollywood-movie state reminding me again of our city's financial misfortunes. It made it extremely difficult to imagine Tom Cruise thundering away at Kendrick. We were all seated in alphabetical order which found your then extremely nervous narrator seated 10th in line for arraignment.

Our bailiff was a blonde, middle-aged, handsome, motherly looking woman with extreme and obvious experience with just the right touch of being jaded from years of repetitive sessions. Once we were all seated, she reminded us of the difference between "guilty", "not guilty" and "no contest" which most of my current colleagues completely forgot once they were standing tall before the judge. She then informed us that we were not allowed to ask questions or argue until the very end of the session once the honorable judge Carol had arraigned all those waiting first. Again this information eluded a couple of my colleagues once front and center which made for a couple of interesting confrontations.

The session is run with the precision of a drunk baker's rusted cookie cutter with good intentions. The way the court is primed before the session eludes to the pending controlled chaos that will ensue. Two separate but equally emphatic speeches are given instructing us on procedure. One by the bailiff and one immediately afterwards by the judge herself. I found this funny.

Both speeches informed us that the judge did not have control of the amount of the fines given to us by the state but that she had power to control the entire fine itself using the correct wording before the judge. One can see how this may be confusing since lawyer speak is no one's native tongue. However, paying close attention to the emphasis on the wording in both speeches, a reasonable person could stand before the judge and get exactly what they needed. Both speeches also stated that the "I Never Got the Paperwork" excuse will not carry any sort of weight this day in court. My case was now in shambles and with no further evidence or witnesses my case felt like was on very thin ice with a drunk Coca-Cola polar bear playing hop scotch.

A young man wearing a pair of Dickie's painter's shorts, a white t-shirt, red back pack and black house shoes being arraigned on a speeding and tinted windows charge changed his plea three times before he understood what the fucking hell was going on for fuck's sake! The judge can't tell you what to plea, man.

A young lady in leggings that had jeans painted on them with black Uggs and a less-than-designer-brand sweater was almost forcefully escorted out of the court room because she not only forgot that questions were to be held at the end but also that she wasn't on the set of Jerry Springer and no really cared how much of a thug she thinks she was. The judge in a cool and respective manner asked the young lady if she liked handcuffs. Her emotion subsided gently like a cool receding wave hitting off a Malibu cliff. The painted leggings quickly found a spot in one of our grey plastic chairs in the audience and waited.

But there were bright spots in today's session as well.

The man wearing the Antonio Gates jersey turned out to be homeless and was cited twice for sleeping on the Santa Monica beach. The judge asked if he had anywhere else he could sleep and he assured her that he found a spot where he wouldn't be bothered or bother anyone else. The judge was really grateful that he took the time to actually make it into court, thanked him and dismissed both cases.

The judge displayed both her comedic and compassionate dispositions when dropping a hefty fine for a man wearing an over-sized grey Chicago Bears sweatshirt, plaid shorts, flip flops and aviator sunglasses on his blond bed-head from $500 to $50. When asked if he could pay that today, he asked to get an extension because he was $2 short.
"Really? Two dollars?"
"I'm sorry your honor. I thought I had it all."
"Jesus! Are you serious? OK. Hold on."
The judge got up, briskly walked to her chambers and came back with the balance of the man's fine to which he replied, "Thank you very much your honor but it looks like I'm actually short $5."
"Ah, jeez!"
At which point, a couple of black-haired pretty ladies wearing high heels, form fitting jeans and even tighter blouses properly exposing a cleavage even Selma Hayek would admire took up a small collection and the man was able to pay his complete fine today. Our bailiff chuckled that this was the first time she'd ever been a part of something like this. This made me feel fortunate to witness this little quirk of LA. As for the two well endowed young ladies, I suspect they were preferring a male judge but our judge was compassionate when their case came up for having an unsettled 1-1/2 year-old case of a dog off its leash. $50 fine.

At one point the bailiff quiets the rowdy audience down by reminding them that there is no talking in the court room. Two minutes later she walks up to a well dressed young man in a blue collared shirt and tells him to say hi to his mom. "I'm Gavin's mom," she reminded him.

And what of your fair narrator you may be asking. How did he manage out of all this?

Ah, well the fair judge did make a fair ruling on this young lad even though I tried to use my original case. And while she did not completely dismiss all the fines, she did bring my fine down to a reasonable $150. Not exactly a case of Law & Order but with a sigh of relief I felt that Justice prevailed today. DUN-DUN

All in all, if I take what happened today as a learning experience with some comedic relief, I find it very difficult to call it a complete waste of LA time. Don't get me wrong though. Fuck if I ever have to go through this horse shit infested circus again.

American Standard

2012-01-16T12:01:00.001-08:00

model: Cassandra Fox
©Danny De La Cruz
www.restless-souls.com

100 Blues tracks for $12? Hell Yes. Sign me up!

2012-01-13T23:13:00.000-08:00

Various Artists | Underground Blues Essentials Download and Tracklist | eMusic:

'via Blog this'

10.17.2010

2012-01-06T22:27:00.000-08:00

Danny De La Cruz Photography :: Restless-Souls.com :: Los Angeles, CA:

'via Blog this'

And may be all you need

2012-01-06T17:25:00.001-08:00

And may be all you need, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

And may be all you need

Probably the best tacos in town

2011-12-30T14:03:00.001-08:00

Probably the best tacos in town, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Probably the best tacos in town

3:15 AM

2011-12-29T04:20:00.000-08:00

It was 3:15 AM and I was thinking of you...

Original music by Danny De La Cruz
Photo by Danny De La Cruz
www.restless-souls.com

12.28.2011

2011-12-28T13:14:00.001-08:00

12.28.2011, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

12.28.2011

A Christmas Nap

2011-12-25T17:49:00.001-08:00

A Christmas Nap, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

A Christmas Nap

Christmas Day 2011 Los Angeles, Ca

2011-12-25T16:02:00.001-08:00

Christmas Day 2011 Los Angeles, Ca, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Christmas Day 2011 Los Angeles, Ca

All them birds on the wire, Gonna say I'm a liar...

2011-12-25T16:01:00.001-08:00

All them birds on the wire, Gonna say I'm a liar..., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

All them birds on the wire, Gonna say I'm a liar...

Los Angeles 12.24.2011 10:20AM

2011-12-24T10:28:00.001-08:00

Los Angeles 12.24.2011 10:20AM, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Los Angeles 12.24.2011 10:20AM

Farmers

2011-12-21T15:27:00.001-08:00

Farmers, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Farmers

Just Us Tree

2011-12-16T13:54:00.001-08:00

Just Us Tree, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Just Us Tree

I Wonder What He Thinks About Sometimes

2011-12-14T21:06:00.001-08:00

I Wonder What He Thinks About Sometimes, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

I Wonder What He Thinks About Sometimes

Newest Additions to the Music Library

2011-12-13T01:54:00.000-08:00

This is what I got from eMusic this past week:
The Black Keys - El Camino
The Clash - The Singles
Hall & Oats - a couple tunes including Kiss on My List & Maneater
Emmanuel - a few tunes includeing Toda la Vida y Quiero Dormir Cansado
Le Butcherettes - Kiss & Kill
Ray Charles - Modern Sounds in Country & Western Music vols 1 & 2
The Rolling Stones - Out of Our Heads
And a few artists doing Buddy Holly covers including:
Paul McCartney, The Black Keys, My Morning Jacket and Modest Mouse from the album Rave on Buddy Holly
Oh yeah and Pearl Jam - Backspacer

Feeling good :)

Enjoy Your Youth

Pony Ride

2011-12-10T15:35:00.001-08:00

Pony Ride, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Pony Ride

Cosmo

2011-12-10T15:29:00.001-08:00

Cosmo, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Cosmo

Ginny #9

2011-12-02T18:24:00.000-08:00

California Winter

2011-11-26T13:26:00.001-08:00

California Winter, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

California Winter

Rebel...

2011-11-17T22:38:00.001-08:00

Rebel..., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Rebel...

The Paperplanes!

2011-11-14T18:32:00.001-08:00

The Paperplanes

Ashley's

Long Beach, CA

11.4.2011

I love the Paperplanes. Everyone needs to check them out and get some of that honky tonk stank on ya.

I always have a great time in Long Beach with Micah and Pete. We usually go into the wee hours of the morn and I wake hung over but happy around noon.

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised

2011-11-11T18:20:00.001-08:00

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised

Petro

2011-11-06T13:31:00.001-08:00

Petro, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Petro

Love

2011-10-31T02:42:00.000-07:00

Model: Caryln Marie

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

This was such an amazing shoot.

We just decided to try a bunch of different things and most of them seemed to work.

More pics to come. :)

Funny crimes from last night

2011-10-25T14:59:00.001-07:00

These are true.

COMMENTS: The victim arrived home to discover the suspect inside his residence. The suspect covered his face with a T-shirt and punched the victim several times. The suspect then left location taking two i-phones and a Blackberry phone. Although the victim did not see the suspect’s face, he believed the suspect was his cousin.

COMMENTS: Victim stated that she met suspect 1 while drinking in a club in Hollywood. Suspect-1 took her to his apartment. Victim was going to have consensual sex with suspect 1 when several males walked into the bedroom and had sex with her. Victim fell asleep with suspect 1 and had consensual sex with him in the morning before leaving. Victim talked to her roommate about the incident and made a rape report.

Mmm...mmm...mmmm z Chocolate Caliente :)

2011-10-20T02:04:00.001-07:00

Mmm...mmm...mmmm z Chocolate Caliente :), originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Mmm...mmm...mmmm z Chocolate Caliente :)

Black Box Sessions: K

2011-10-18T23:18:00.000-07:00

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

Santa Monica, CA

2011-10-16T18:00:00.000-07:00

10.15.2011

7:05 PM

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

Part 2

2011-10-15T01:08:00.001-07:00

So checked into the Liquid Kitty.
Nice place and definitely a big contrast to the bowling alley, complete with free spirited young ladies.
Ordered up a Pabst. Yes I did.
The older gentleman at the end of the bar caught me looking in his general direction and raised his limed Corona at me and cheersed.
I think I made up a couple of words there.
I was completely shit faced the last time I was in here. It's super dark and the conversations here are at full volume...on 11.
Turns out the guy who cheersed is Mexican. He totally looks like an old Irish man.
Their thing here is martinis. The place is named after the specialty.
I can see how this place may get me in trouble some night.

Friday Night

2011-10-15T00:15:00.001-07:00

I'm at the Mar Vista bowling alley.
This bar is always clean but tonight it's fucking freezing.
The man two red bar stools down from me put his napkin over his drink and started playing pool by himself. He has been sketching Mexican skulls on a few napkins.
I ordered a Pabst from the bartender. They always dress in black and white stripped referee's jerseys.
The three Indian fellas next to me are really deep into a fantasy football conversation and nursing their Bud Lights.
The occasional bowler comes in for a drink but besides that it's a slow night.
I'll probably have another and bail.

This is one of those times I'm really happy I take pictures

2011-10-11T22:33:00.000-07:00

Boyscout

Soda Bar

San Diego, CA

RIP JJ

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

Transfer: Faded Signal Sessions

2011-10-04T12:00:00.000-07:00

I took these a while back when Transfer was making their first album, Faded Signal.
Such a great time.
There are a ton more from this session to come. :)

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

www.transferband.com

Palenque

2011-10-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

MJ

2011-10-01T02:54:00.000-07:00

A mural on Venice by downtown LA.
This is actually a graffiti school called the Graff Lab.
Working on my HDR.

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

My favorite band is better than your favorite band...

2011-09-30T20:42:00.000-07:00

Pearl Jam

back

Front

Members of the Ten Club get a gift every year.
These are the front and back covers of this year's single.

Black Box Sessions Project

2011-09-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

I wanted to shoot a series of nudes in a music recording studio. The Black Box Recording Studio in San Diego, CA is where most of the shots were taken.

I shot the project mostly on black and white film and while I did shoot a lot of digital, these are all on film with very minimal photo shop editing/manipulation.

This is Ginny.

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

Contact: Chelsea Hunter

2011-09-29T12:00:00.000-07:00

Model: Chelsea Hunter

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

2011-09-28T12:00:00.000-07:00

These are from a walk around Veracruz, Veracruz, Mexico

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

Contact: Xalapa, Veracruz Mexico

2011-09-26T12:00:00.000-07:00

All photos ©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

Fashion Shoot: Danny De La Cruz Behind the Scenes

2011-09-25T01:13:00.000-07:00

©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

Contact: A Scribe Amidst the Lions

2011-09-24T16:38:00.000-07:00

Right click on the contact sheet and open in another window for a detailed view.

Click here for band info

All photos ©Danny De La Cruz
www.restless-souls.com

Yup.

2011-09-24T14:27:00.001-07:00

Yup., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Yup.

Contact: Tabasco, Mexico and Palenque

2011-09-23T12:01:00.000-07:00

These are from my father's old house. My grandmother still lives there just outside of Cardenas, Tabasco, Mexico. Right click on the contact sheet and open in a different window for a detailed view.

The bathroom in my father's old house in Tabasco, Mexico.

The back yard is a huge parcel of land full of cacao trees.

This is the front yard full of bananas and coconuts

All photos ©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

2011-09-22T23:36:00.001-07:00

data, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

My new project: Contact. Up first: Hialeah

2011-09-21T23:38:00.000-07:00

I'm going to start my new project today.
I've taken a lot of photos on film and haven't really shown them to anyone so I decided to start my little project where I try to go over at least one roll every two days and post the contact sheet and a few of my favorite shots from the roll.
I'm starting with Hialeah. A band from San Diego.
We did a little promo shoot for the band and ended up at the phone booths by the studio.
If you right click on the contact sheet and open in another window/tab, you should be able to get a bigger view for a little more detail.

All photos ©Danny De La Cruz

www.restless-souls.com

Looking good so far...

2011-09-17T17:05:00.001-07:00

Looking good so far..., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Looking good so far...

The always deadly Sasquatch

2011-09-16T23:50:00.001-07:00

The always deadly Sasquatch, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

The always deadly Sasquatch

Zombie beware. The weredoodle is on the prowl...

2011-09-13T22:49:00.001-07:00

Zombie beware. The weredoodle is on the prowl..., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Zombie beware. The weredoodle is on the prowl...

Smells like sangria

2011-09-10T17:30:00.001-07:00

Smells like sangria, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Smells like sangria

Is it really raining where you're at?

2011-09-05T16:10:00.001-07:00

Is it really raining where you're at?, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Is it really raining where you're at?

Happy Labor Day

2011-09-05T16:06:00.001-07:00

Happy Labor Day, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Happy Labor Day

You!

2011-09-05T00:08:00.001-07:00

You!, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

You!

Enjoying myself on a summer's day. Hahaha

2011-09-03T16:52:00.001-07:00

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

Why not? It's a beautiful day out.

2011-09-03T15:41:00.001-07:00

Why not? It's a beautiful day out., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Why not? It's a beautiful day out.

National Burrito Day

2011-09-03T14:50:00.001-07:00

National Burrito Day, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

National Burrito Day

Man, it looks beautiful outside...

2011-09-03T13:33:00.001-07:00

Man, it looks beautiful outside..., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Man, it looks beautiful outside...

No body to play with me. :(

2011-09-02T23:34:00.001-07:00

No body to play with me. :(, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

No body to play with me. :(

Milanesa con papas

2011-08-31T22:42:00.001-07:00

Milanesa con papas, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Milanesa con papas

Just living the High Life in Santa Monica

2011-08-30T00:00:00.001-07:00

Just living the High Life in Santa Monica, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Just living the High Life in Santa Monica

Electric Palm

2011-08-27T16:40:00.001-07:00

Electric Palm, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Electric Palm

Mom on a Saturday

2011-08-27T13:59:00.001-07:00

Mom on a Saturday, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Mom on a Saturday

Keeper of the Laundry Room

2011-08-27T13:46:00.001-07:00

Keeper of the Laundry Room, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Keeper of the Laundry Room

Old Glory

2011-08-27T13:37:00.001-07:00

Old Glory, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Old Glory

MagicBass!

2011-08-27T01:06:00.001-07:00

MagicBass!, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

MagicBass!

I really don't see anything wrong with eating these every day.

2011-08-24T15:02:00.001-07:00

I really don't see anything wrong with eating these every day., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

I really don't see anything wrong with eating these every day.

Just thinking...

2011-08-22T20:29:00.001-07:00

Just thinking..., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Just thinking...

I get drawings as I dine.

2011-08-21T20:24:00.001-07:00

I get drawings as I dine., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

I get drawings as I dine.

Roy's last day in LA

2011-08-21T20:10:00.001-07:00

Roy's last day in LA, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

Roy's last day in LA

These are very addicting.

2011-08-21T19:29:00.001-07:00

These are very addicting., originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

These are very addicting.

D'Amores West Hollywood

2011-08-21T17:02:00.001-07:00

D'Amores West Hollywood, originally uploaded by ddelacruz.

D'Amores West Hollywood

Do it!

2011-08-18T21:43:00.001-07:00

Roller Derby in the OC

2011-08-14T16:57:00.000-07:00

Crash Test Bunnies VS The Slice Girls

8.13.11

OC Roller Girls

Feliz Cumpleaños, papá

2011-07-26T02:38:00.000-07:00

I missed the one where Warren is dragging Kobe out the door but you get the idea with this one. :)

2011-07-22T23:05:00.001-07:00

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

I think Kobe met his match.

2011-07-21T23:34:00.001-07:00

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

The Hallway

2011-07-18T11:55:00.000-07:00

This one goes back quite a bit.

Model - NeQuisha

Garage Lighting

2011-07-17T11:55:00.001-07:00

Model: Christine

First Friday

2011-07-16T11:55:00.000-07:00

East Hollywood

2011-07-15T11:55:00.000-07:00

Boiler Room

2011-07-14T11:55:00.000-07:00

Model: Jasmine

Make Up: Jessica

Hair: Toi

Sunflower Afternoon

2011-07-13T11:55:00.000-07:00

Model: Kareline

Make Up: Joanna

Hair: Kaye

The Mechanic

2011-07-12T20:06:00.000-07:00

Model: Jasmine

Make Up: Jessica

Hair: Toi

4th of July part III

2011-07-09T21:49:00.001-07:00

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.2

4th of July part II

2011-07-09T21:48:00.003-07:00

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.2

4th of July part I

2011-07-09T21:48:00.001-07:00

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.2

Behind the Orange Curtain...

2011-07-09T21:45:00.001-07:00

Mariners lost

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.2

Kobe

2011-07-06T13:42:00.000-07:00

Backyard BBQ

2011-07-04T11:55:00.000-07:00

Model: Shante

Make Up: Melissa

Hair: Kaye

Behind the Curtain

2011-07-03T11:55:00.000-07:00

Model: Mai

I guess I'm on the fence on this one... :)

2011-07-02T13:16:00.001-07:00

Game, Sex and Match: The Perils of Female Sports Advertising - TIME

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.2

Interrogation Room

2011-07-02T11:55:00.000-07:00

The High Life

2011-07-02T00:57:00.001-07:00

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.2

Van Nuys Pool Side

2011-07-01T11:55:00.000-07:00

Model is Mihalea

Enjoy Your Youth

Ah, those damn Brits...‬‏

2011-07-01T02:37:00.000-07:00

This guy is pretty funny. Not sure if he's the funniest ever but pretty damn funny.

YouTube - ‪Funniest stand up comedy sketch ever‬‏

A Sunday Walk Part II

2011-06-30T11:55:00.000-07:00

Models:

Yasmine

Kacie

Enjoy Your Youth

Kobe on a Wednesday

2011-06-30T01:28:00.000-07:00

Transfer 5.31.11 at The Troubador Los Angeles, CA

2011-06-30T01:13:00.000-07:00

Just a couple from the show.

The Great Taco Hunt

2011-06-30T00:41:00.000-07:00

The Great Taco Hunt

For the latest and greatest on taco trucks you need to follow this!