Irrational at the Pump?

--Steve Proffitt

Are we generally over-reacting to increases in the price of gas?

There have been lots of stories lately about people losing thousands, or even tens of thousands of dollars dumping their big S-U-V's so they can buy a car that might save them five hundred dollars a year in gas. Good for the planet, yes. But not rational economics.

Other anecdotes: drivers who search for a gas station where they can save four cents a gallon on gas -- and use up five bucks of gas on their search. People (like me, I'll admit it) who roll through stop signs to save a little fuel, and risk a $128 fine for a moving violation.

More than a few economists seem to agree on a few reasons why we feel so much more pain at putting four dollar gas in our cars than we do, say, buying a four dollar latte.

Here's a video of one of them. Dan Ariely calls himself a behavioral economist. He's the author of Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces that Shape Our Decisions.

Do you agree that we are often irrational when it comes to gas prices? Would you like to share an example of your own skewed behavior when it comes to motor fuel? Or do you think we aren't reacting enough? Leave us your comments, please.

5:19 PM ET | 07-31-2008 | permalink

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See the Music

We're still looking for additions to our list of the most iconic songs about California. In the meantime, we sent NPR intern Sarah Whites-Koditschek to the intern's natural habitat (Youtube) in order to find us videos for some of your suggestions. Here is what she brought back.

Continue reading "See the Music" »

1:40 PM ET | 07-31-2008 | permalink

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My First Earthquake

Someone suggested I write about my "first earthquake," (I've only been in LA for 3 years) but, fortunately, I have nothing to report about the shaking that hit the Los Angeles area July 29. It was my day off, I was walking down Beverly in Los Angeles' Historic Filipinotown district, and I actually didn't feel a thing. The only signs that anything was up were the lack of a voice signal on my cell and the plate glass in the local storefronts, which were undulating and vibrating like speaker cones.

Now that I think about it, my lazy, good-for-nothing cat and dog were lying flat on their sides when I left the house, laid low not by spooky vibes and premonitions, but by their own indolence. No warning whatsoever, no weird barking or meowing - nada, zip, zilch. After the quake, I did receive three, rock-n-roll-ish text messages (SMS runs on a separate network, and didn't clog after the quake the way voice networks did) from friends along the lines of "WELCOME TO LA, SON!!! YEAH!!!", this as if I had just inadvertently completed some arcane rite of passage. "I GUESS..." is what I texted back.

I won't call earthquakes the new welcome wagon, but I got off easy, as did the rest the of area. But what about you? How was your earthquake?

--Gary Dauphin

12:35 PM ET | 07-31-2008 | permalink

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Not Just a Fan

Turns out iconic LA Lakers fan, actor, and man-about-town Jack Nicholson can add another notch to the lengthy, belt-like record of his achievements: Green Automotive Visionary. According to this snazzy, super-70s clip from Canada's national public broadcaster, the CBC, Jack was touting futuristic hydrogen-powered cars decades before the Governator retrofitted his Hummers. Check it out:

Too good to be true, heh? Although Jack's investment in that hydrogen-fuel company doesn't seem to have panned out, it is actually possible for Angelenos to fill up on the "H." As we recently reported, a West Los Angeles Shell station is now serving up hydrogen along with gasoline.

Special thanks to Day to Day listener Dirk Neely from Los Angeles for that YouTube link.

And Jack: if you're reading this blog (and we know you are!) tell us what happened to that '78 Chevy! Send us a comment, or come on the show. We're waiting patiently...

--Shereen Marisol Meraji

11:59 AM ET | 07-31-2008 | permalink

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What Does Your Grocery List Say About You?

Performance artist Hillary Carlip collects and interprets discarded shopping lists. She then studies them as if they were treasure maps, carefully dissecting each item, the hand-writing, type of paper and level of order. What type of person remembers they need to pick up Coors and Oreos on the inside of a matchbook cover? What kind of person writes Nair and Fresca in carefully looping magenta ink? Shopping lists are the new memoir, she tells Day to Day's Alex Cohen in an interview.

Below, you can scroll through a gallery of some of the characters she's created from actual lists:

What's on your shopping list? Hillary Carlip has agreed to take one list submitted by a user/listener and turn it into a whole new character. Then she's going to take Day to Day shopping in character. Want your list considered? Because she likes to examine the glorious documents in their original form, it's best if you mail your grocery list to us the old-fashioned way. Mail to:

Day to Day
ATTN: Shopping List
9909 Jefferson Avenue
Culver City, CA 90232

On a separate piece of paper, send us your name, phone number and e-mail.
If you are totally snail-mail phobic, however -- you can send us a scanned version of your shopping list at what@npr.org. Again, include your name, phone number and e-mail.

Thanks!
Day to Day

12:33 PM ET | 07-29-2008 | permalink

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Shereen Needs Music: PART TWO

Last week we put out a call for your favorite California songs and I have more than I know what to do with! Not only did music lovers send me their favorite tunes about the Golden State but I also received a number of original submissions from musicians. Thank you! We are going to compile a list of your favorite California songs -- and post it -- very soon.

We're still taking song submissions from artists and we only have one requirement: YOUR SONG HAS TO BE ABOUT CALIFORNIA. That's it. So send an mp3 of your music here We're going to broadcast our favorite(s) when California Dreaming ends on Labor Day.

And for those of you who wrote in to say your favorite song is Randy Newman's, "I love L.A." Enjoy this video:

--Shereen Meraji

12:49 PM ET | 07-28-2008 | permalink

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Surf or Die! ...Or Move!

Becker Surfboards CEO Dave Hollander tests out one of his boards.
Photo courtesy Becker Surfboards

--Alex Cohen

I've always thought that you can't truly call yourself a Californian unless you try surfin--at least once.

That said, I put it off for most of my life. I didn't know what I feared more: getting sucked into the undertow or what I would look like in a wetsuit.

Then, in the summer of 2005, my husband and I decided to move to Texas and I decided I couldn't leave the golden state without giving it a go. So, one Saturday morning, I woke up very early and headed to Malibu with my friends Kara and Danny.

I was lucky enough to borrow a friend's wetsuit and another friend's board. I headed out the ocean... and made a complete idiot of myself. Despite Kara and Danny's excellent tutelage, I think I might have been able to stand up on the board for a whopping two seconds. I spent most of the day letting myself get pounded by the waves over and over and over again.

Continue reading "Surf or Die! ...Or Move!" »

11:37 AM ET | 07-28-2008 | permalink

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Link Think: One Greece Per Day...

... is about how much oil the US military consumes ever 24 hours. Earlier in the week, we ran an item about how California uses more gasoline than China. This set us on a hunt for comparative oil consumption figures, which led us to this tidbit on Politico.com:

The Biggest Oil Guzzler? The Pentagon
With wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and troops spread around the world, the Department of Defense is the nation's biggest oil consumer, burning 395,000 barrels per day -- about as much as Greece.

The Air Force is the SUV of the military. Its thirsty planes burn more than half the fuel supply for the entire U.S. military. It's received $1.5 billion in new relief from Congress for fuel -- and last week still had $400 million left on its credit card.

[...]

Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.), who formed a Defense Energy Working Group, seized on the issue in 2004 after learning that the Army's Stryker combat vehicles got only 5 miles per gallon of gas.

He cited national security as another reason to conserve fuel.

"Here is our current defense posture," Israel said. "We are borrowing money from China to fund our defense budgets to buy oil from the Persian Gulf to fund our military to protect us from China and the Persian Gulf. It is an insidious vulnerability." [full item]

What's that line from Oliver Stone's JFK, again? Right: "It's a mystery wrapped in a riddle inside an enigma! The *bleepin* shooters don't even know!"

Got any good tips for Daydreaming's Link Think? Share them with us here.

--Gary Dauphin

3:10 PM ET | 07-26-2008 | permalink

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Midnight Requistion

--by Steve Proffitt

Along with the steep increase in the price of gasoline have come many, many reports of theft and fraud, large and small, involving fuel.

LARGE: Police in Prineville, Oregon have charged the city's former public works director with stealing $14,000 work of fuel. They allege James Howard Mole, Sr. left the city work force eighteen months ago, but continued to fill vehicles from city-owned pumps.

SMALL: Concord, New Hampshire police arrested a woman who pumped 12 gallons of gas into her car and drove away without paying. Koallie Rowe, 21 was charged with theft.

SMALL: According to the Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune, a thief recently siphoned about 22 gallons of gas from a vehicle parked in the driveway of Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher's home.

Continue reading "Midnight Requistion" »

11:00 AM ET | 07-25-2008 | permalink

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'Sex Without Condoms' Prompts Heated Debate

Note: Comments for this post are now closed.

For decades, Hollywood has been helping create fantasies about love, relationships and sex. Ironically, as a young woman notes in this L.A. Weekly article, Los Angeles can be one of the hardest places in the world to find any of these. Following a failed relationship and herbal abortion gone awry, Dani Katz writes that her quest for connection proves confusing. The dream of truly casual sex is a myth, she concludes.

Thursday, as part of Day to Day's series "What's the New What," Pendarvis Harshaw, a teen who grew up in Oakland offers his own provocative take on the California relationship dream. "Sex without condoms is the new engagement ring," he suggested in an on-air essay. Among his friends and acquaintances, ditching the condoms for other forms of birth control like the pill, signifies taking monogamy to a new level; partners are required to trust each other completely at the risk of getting an STD. Given that few of his friends in their late teens are thinking much about marriage, this transforms a prophylactic into a relationship sign-post along the lines of an engagement ring.

The piece provoked quite a bit of response.

Some of the comments:

"Jesus, what a pile of useless crap your "what" report is. I listen to NPR for intelligent information not mindless hip-hop MTV sound bites, all puked out with an uneducated speech impediment. The notion that some kid humping without a condom is a grand sign of commitment, love, and responsibility, is laughable. But I'm actually encouraged by the ignorance of the youth described in the "story." It means a bright future for my kids, nephews, and nieces who will have no problem dominating such half-witted masses."

--Kristopher H

"I am absolutely disgusted by your program. As a 23-year-old, recently married college graduate and current master's student I was excited when I heard about a program that was going to talk about some of the trends in my generation .... How sick that your producers would highlight topics such as sex without a condom as being equated to engagement. Not only is that the most ridiculous claim I've ever heard, it's also a complete overgeneralization of the fact ... I will not be donating to NPR at any time in the future and you have lost my listenership and respect for your programming."

--Anne Tatlock

"Pendarvis Harshaw's essay should be on the WTF program."

--Barbara Plichta

Just one listener in Virginia wrote in to tell us he liked the essay:

Thank you for your comments today. It was rich, cool, funky and hip! Keep reporting the WHAT!

--Paul Economy

In defense of the piece, 'Youth Radio' clarified that Harshaw's point was not that couples solidify their bond by ditching all forms of birth control -- just condoms.

Is it possible that people beyond Harshaw's circle look at condoms as an indicator of intimacy? Is it possible that if Harshaw had a different accent, people would have reacted differently to his observations?

Or are you also infuriated by this essay? Is Harshaw simply glorifying a dangerous lifestyle? Tell us below.

COMMENTING ON THIS STORY IS NOW CLOSED

--Heather Murphy

9:45 AM ET | 07-25-2008 | permalink

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Not So Dreamy

A heads-up to people thinking of moving to the Golden State: don't pack your bags yet. This just in from The Field Poll:

"RECORD NUMBER OF CALIFORNIANS REPORT BEING FINANCIALLY WORSE OFF. MOST DO NOT EXPECT IMPROVEMENT NEXT YEAR."

According to the poll, 63% of Californians say they're financially worse off this year than last. That percentage is higher for low income (73%) and middle class (66%) Californians. The poll surveyed 422 registered California voters in both English and Spanish between July 8th and 14th of this year.

Here's the central question from the survey:

Would you say that you and your family are financially better off or worse off today than you were a year ago?

Daydreaming reader, WHEREVER YOU LIVE, how would YOU answer that question? Please submit those answers in the comment selection below and don't forget to tell us where you're writing in from. Your stories may be featured in our California Dreaming radio series

--Shereen Marisol Meraji

9:30 AM ET | 07-25-2008 | permalink

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Shereen Needs Music

Hey, beloved Day to Day listener/Daydreaming reader,

Last week, we put a call out for songs to include in our comprehensive list of the best songs ever recorded about California. We've gotten some responses, but need more. It can be anything, from the obvious to the obscure, so please post your suggestion in the comment section below.

Also, we'd also like to hear from musicians out there working hard to make your California Dreams come true. If you have an original song you've written about California, you can either post a link to the song below or us an email here and we'll respond by telling you where to drop the mp3. If it's awesome, we'll air it.

--Shereen Meraji

5:29 PM ET | 07-23-2008 | permalink

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Julie Lim's Captive Dream

In this installment of "What's Your CA Dream?", Julie Lim explains that the dream is holding her captive.

Continue reading "Julie Lim's Captive Dream" »

5:19 PM ET | 07-23-2008 | permalink

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Elizabeth Wahl's CA Reclamation

In this installment of "What's Your CA Dream?", Elizabeth Wahl tells of bucking the trend of the California exodus and moving back this summer to to reclaim my California dream.

Continue reading "Elizabeth Wahl's CA Reclamation" »

5:13 PM ET | 07-23-2008 | permalink

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Alaina Boys' California Dream

Over the last several weeks, we've asked Day to Day listeners to share their vision of the California Dream. Fame, health, satisfaction, blue sky or innovation--what defines your California Dream? Is the economy forcing that dream to change?

We'll be sharing your responses both on-air and here on Daydreaming. In this installment, Alaina Boys tells of being a California Girl, like the Beach Boys said.

Continue reading "Alaina Boys' California Dream" »

4:59 PM ET | 07-23-2008 | permalink

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Link Think: LA (End) Times

A tip of the hat to LA Observed, which was crowded this morning with downbeat vignettes from the Los Angeles media landscape, including the move of iconic LA music mag Arthur to Brooklyn, poetic goodbye emails from laid-off LA Times staffers, and this "Editor's Note" from Los Angeles Magazine's Kit Rachlis on the prospect of a Los Angeles with no Times:

Paper Rout

Nobody disagrees that newspapers face a frightening set of challenges: a generation of 20- to 35-year-olds who get their news for free from the Web; the migration of advertising to the Web but not to newspaper sites; advertising rates on the Web that are 1/10th to 1/20th what newspapers charge; and now an economy that is in near recession. Any one of those factors would be daunting, but together they represent the most radical disruption the industry has ever faced. Even papers with committed ownerships, like The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal, are struggling. What's required is something not usually found in American corporations: the strength to weather at least four or five more years of uncertainty; a willingness to experiment like crazy; and a belief that what's being provided is more than just a business. The Times, on the other hand, has chosen to slash the paper and invest too little too late in the Web. It is hard to imagine a worse course. I will miss the Times, but the truth is that when I pick up the paper every morning, I miss it already. [full item]

Got any good tips for Daydreaming's Link Think? Share them with us here.

--Gary Dauphin

11:52 AM ET | 07-23-2008 | permalink

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Link Think: All Your Gas Guzzling Are Belong To Us

Daydreaming is introducing a new feature where members of the Day to Day team will be periodically posting some of the thought-provoking, relevant or plain strange links we come across on the web. We're calling it "Link Think," and we have to confess to borrowing the name from blogger and ethnomusicologist Wayne Marshall, who organizes links under the moniker "Linkthink" on his most amazing music blog wayneandwax.

Today's installment of Daydreaming "Link Think" is from Wired (with a tip of the hat to Boing Boing):

Amazing Stat: California Uses More Gas than China

Given all the news coverage about the rise of the Chinese economy, you could be forgiven for thinking that the world's most populous country is hogging all the world's resources, while the developed nations are fighting for scraps.

But, at least with transportation fuel, you'd be wrong. California alone uses more gasoline than any country in the world (except the US as a whole, of course). That means California's 20 billion gallon gasoline and diesel habit is greater than China's! (Or Russia's. Or India's. Or Brazil's. Or Germany's.)

[...]

One more choice statistic: gasoline usage in California has increased 50 percent, that's 6.7 billion gallons, since 1988. [full item]

Can you imagine a worst statistical feat for Cali? Most ashtrays? Most non-recyclable plastic used? As the Wired item goes on to explain, the gas factoid was buried in the California Energy Commission's State Alternative Fuels Plan, which came out last Christmas. The plan has yet to be updated, but even accounting for a drop in gasoline consumption as a result of recent spikes in prices, don't expect California to give up the title of global gas guzzling king any time soon.

(Also, those of you wondering about this post's title should refer to this handy Wikipedia entry, which explains an internet meme that some of us fondly remember as the ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US Craze of 2001. Usually linking to Wikipedia is a journalistic no-no, but the best place to research a web meme is, of course, the web.)

Got any good tips for Daydreaming's Link Think? Share them with us here.

--Gary Dauphin

10:11 AM ET | 07-22-2008 | permalink

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Down and Out in Fresno

--Phillip WD Martin

As we learned during Phillip Martin's segment today on the California Dream, the least developed region in the U.S. isn't in Appalachia or the Mississippi Delta, it's in California's Central Valley. Phillip went to Fresno, County in the heart of the Central Valley, and to Manhattan's Upper East Side -- the nation's most developed area -- to compare and contrast.

It was 115 degrees when the United Airlines jet landed in Fresno under a brilliant mid-day sun. Once outside the terminal I was greeted by a blast of desert air and a Punjabi taxi driver who explained why he moved to this city of 500,000. Farming. That one word explains why communities representing eighty different ethnic groups have come to call Fresno home. This is America's bread-basket, and it requires all levels of work to get fresh fruits and vegetables from the ground to the marketplace. Farming also helps explain why Fresno County ranks dead last on the American Human Development Index, which measures aggregate health, education, income, longevity and other indicators on a congressional district by district basis.

Continue reading "Down and Out in Fresno" »

11:25 AM ET | 07-21-2008 | permalink

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Metro Lover

photo by Steve Proffitt, NPR

--Steve Proffitt

I live in LA. But I haven't bought a gallon of gasoline in the last five weeks.

It's not because I walk, or ride my bike to work. I'm not taking the bus -- like there really was one that could take me from home to work. I'm certainly not riding the nascent LA subway.

I'm not in LA anyway. I'm riding the rails in DC.

Continue reading "Metro Lover" »

11:49 AM ET | 07-18-2008 | permalink

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Marge and Vern's 9000 Foot CA Dream

photo courtesy Marge Biehl

Marge Biehl, a concerned NPR listener, called to comment on NPRs coverage of Barbaro's injury and what she felt was the challenging state of horse racing back in February 2007. I walked her through the commentary process and two years later our conversation continues.

When I heard that Day to Day was doing a series on the "California dream," I immediately thought of Marge and her husband Vern. The couple have lived in Northern LA County's Antelope Valley, off the grid for 29 years. Solar power, hand laundry, no car, and the last time they bought propane for their stove was in 2003. They cut their wood with hand saws and transport it via pack horse.

Before she and her husband Verne headed up to their summer abode Tunnel Meadows for ten weeks she sent me some snapshots, a small window into their life at 9,000 feet. They volunteer clearing fallen trees from trails, fix fences and re-open abandoned trails. No phones, email or power tools; drinking water from a found spring and sleeping in a meadow with their 6 horses. Letters and food are dropped off at trailhead every two weeks. They manage their reality well and I admire their choices; far enough off the grid but not so far that they won't stand up and speak out for the values they honor.

Here is what Marge had to say:

That first picture is Vern and me, Mitzi our dog and two of our horses at the top of Kern Peak, 11,500ft. It took us two seasons to clear the trail to the top. There used to be a fire lookout station at the top that finally blew over.

Continue reading "Marge and Vern's 9000 Foot CA Dream" »

3:00 PM ET | 07-16-2008 | permalink

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IndyMac Attack

As we heard on today's show, people were waiting in line early in the morning to withdraw their money at the Santa Monica branch of failed bank IndyMac. One man arrived at 4:30 in the morning.

Last Friday, IndyMac was taken over by federal regulators with no advance notice to its customers. That's the standard operating procedure according to the FDIC. This is from their website:

Typically, a bank that has failed will be closed on a Friday. The FDIC will then work the weekend to complete deposit insurance determinations for most deposits and be prepared on Monday to either transfer the insured portion of a deposit to another FDIC insured institution or provide deposit insurance payment checks.

It appears, though, that the process is taking longer for IndyMac customers. Hundreds of them have waited in line for hours to withdraw their money or get some information. Many complained that they don't have access to all their money. Here are some answers to commonly asked questions:

Should you be afraid your bank will go under?

Banks go under with no notice, as we see from the FDIC's explanation above. The good news is that relatively few banks fail, about 4-5 a year. The bad news: 5 have failed so far this year, and it's only July.

What can you do to protect yourself?

First, don't have more than $100,000 in one bank account. The FDIC won't insure a penny more than that, and that includes the original deposit, plus any interest that's accrued.

If you have more than $100,000, split it up, either under different names (your husband's or wife's or children's) or in different banks. The FDIC will insure all $1 million if it's in 10 $100,000 accounts.

What's insured and what's not?

Check out this handy FAQ from the FDIC.

If you have more questions, post them in the comments section. We're going to interview a financial analyst on Day to Day, and I'll ask him/her some of your questions.

--Madeleine Brand

2:36 PM ET | 07-16-2008 | permalink

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Is California Getting Gay Marriage Competition?

Adrian Genesi and James Davis traveled from Arizona to marry in California last month. Adaptations to the marriage laws in Mass., may soon cause a marketing war to gain the business of couples from the middle states. Photo by Jeremy and Claire Weiss for NPR. CLICK ON PHOTO TO SEE MORE.

California's economy benefited from the wave in gay marriages last month, due in part to out-of-state couples who flew in to tie the knot. Massachusetts was the first state to legalize same-sex marriage, but those marriages don't count unless you're a resident. That means if you're gay and from New York, don't elope in Massachusetts! Wait...hold on, that law might change sooner than you think, according to today's NY Times, Massachusetts' state officials want some of that wedding cha-ching.

--Shereen Meraji

2:15 PM ET | 07-16-2008 | permalink

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Maryjane Tanquary and Kristin Taylor's CA Dream$

Over the last several weeks, we've asked Day to Day listeners to share their vision of the California Dream. Fame, health, satisfaction, blue sky or innovation--what defines your California Dream? Is the economy forcing that dream to change?

We'll be sharing your responses both on-air and here on Daydreaming. In this installment, Maryjane Tanquary and Kristin Taylor share two variations on a theme: The high cost of California Dream. There price is still right, but buying is not without sacrifice.

Continue reading "Maryjane Tanquary and Kristin Taylor's CA Dream$" »

10:35 AM ET | 07-16-2008 | permalink

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Doug Crane's Dream of Weather

photo by Doug Crane

Over the last several weeks, we've asked Day to Day listeners to share their vision of the California Dream. Fame, health, satisfaction, blue sky or innovation--what defines your California Dream? Is the economy forcing that dream to change?

We'll be sharing your responses both on-air and here on Daydreaming. In this installment, Doug Crane explains that the magic word is "weather:" beautiful blue sky and warm sun that existed to dispel any doubts about the day, your life, or the world outlook.

Continue reading "Doug Crane's Dream of Weather" »

10:25 AM ET | 07-16-2008 | permalink

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Where the Blankers Are

Let me share a secret with you about social networks: They're all about dating.

Or more accurately, they're all about meeting people... that you might consider dating under the right circumstances. Don't get me wrong, that spouse/significant other/LTR of yours did not join the local astronomy meetup because they're planning to stray with a comely stargazer. But the communities of affinity people seek out and join often provide that exact mix of commonality, newness and distraction that makes for a good first date. I used to manage a website with a heavy dating component, so I know of what I speak. (Want a piece of free dating advice culled from my years of electronic match-making? Don't ever go on a first date with anyone that involves being stuck across a table with them for two hours. It's a date, not a Cold War-era summit meeting with Communist Russia. Go to a gallery or take a walk or something, already.)

But the ease with which connections of affinity become the levers of love is why online communities and soft-focus adult education programs often refer to their subscribers and students as "stealth daters." It's why Whole Foods is a pickup joint. After all, what's the first thing you suggest to a friend having a hard time on the dating scene? "Why don't you go to the Learning Annex and take a class in blank? You love blank! And there will be lots of other blankers there!"

Morning Edition's Ben Bergman just found a highly Californian example of this phenomenon: Green speed dating.

For people who are extremely passionate about the environment, finding low-impact love can be tough.

A Los Angeles Web site recently tried to help find a solution, organizing what it billed as the first "green" speed-dating event.

Sixteen or so singles from across Los Angeles descended on a bar near the beach last month in search of a carbon-neutral connection.

Green might not be your style, what about a wine tasting? Do the people in Ben's segment remind you of friends and relatives who are always on the hunt for new ways to cull the herd of potential mates? (Or drum more mates up, as the case may be.) Have you ever re-purposed a social network into a dating tool? Let us know!

--Gary Dauphin

4:53 PM ET | 07-15-2008 | permalink

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Singing the California Dream

In Los Angeles, it's not enough to make it as an actor; "I'm working on my album," is the requisite LA hobby. Filtered through starlets' medically plumped lips it sounds more like, "um workin' on my ahbum." (It's hard to enunciate after excessive collagen injections -- you know, scar tissue buildup.)

"Making it" as a musician is undeniably one of the most cliche of the California Dreams. But that's not to say we haven't gotten a lot of great songs about the Golden State out of it. We've used Rufus Wainwright's California quite a bit to promote our series. But we need help compiling a comprehensive list of the best songs ever recorded about California, from the obvious to the obscure. Please post your ideas in the comment section below.

And to those musicians out there working hard to make your California Dreams come true, sans lip plumping, send us your musical version of the California Dream. You can either post a link to the song below or send us an email here and we'll respond by telling you where to drop the mp3. If it's awesome, we'll air it.

--Shereen Meraji

2:36 PM ET | 07-15-2008 | permalink

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California's Maker Age

In Neal Stephenson's 1995 science-fiction novel The Diamond Age, or, A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer, a working-class teenager named Nell navigates a world of limitless material bounty produced by nanotechnology -- tiny, molecular factories that can build a car, phone, or pile of diamonds out of thin air. Instead of ushering in an era of universal prosperity, though, Stephenson's Diamond Age is a time of nightmarish inequality where haves and have-nots are more stratified by their access to information than the residents of any medieval village. When anything can be made, knowing how to make things is the only real currency, and, in The Diamond Age, all aspects of that knowledge -- from simple literacy to copyright to engineering concepts -- are tightly regulated to keep society's Nells on the bottom rungs.

California is not quite living the Diamond Age (yet), but, as Celeste Headlee's report today points out, the state is home to plenty of dreamers trying to pull the more positive aspects of Stephenson's extreme DIY off the page and into reality.

Continue reading "California's Maker Age" »

1:05 PM ET | 07-14-2008 | permalink

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Tales of the Nerd, Stink-Bug, Ho and Other Vehicles

Last week, we asked listeners to tell us what their cars meant to them. Whether it's the ride Mr. Jalopy calls "Sister Golden Hair Surprise," or what one listener has dubbed "Leopard Bernstein," Americans don't just love their cars, they love personalizing them. Take a look:

Judging from the admittedly unscientific survey above, the right to customize is one of the privileges of ownership. As Celeste Headlee's segment about "makers" points out, though, Americans are increasingly "buying" products that they can't customize or modify. What if Detroit sold cars that came with fine print saying the owner (so-called) couldn't change the color, or build a giant, terrifying waterfall on the trunk the way Extermo the Clown did? A basic piece of Americana would disappear.

Fortunately, that's not the case -- yet -- so enjoy the gallery. Many thanks to everyone who sent us photos and stories! We got quite a few submissions, more than we could feature today, and we'll be sharing additional images and stories on the blog in upcoming weeks. In the meantime, tell us what you think about this first batch.

--Gary Dauphin

10:32 AM ET | 07-14-2008 | permalink

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Water for Gas? And a Bridge to Sell You...

The First Law of Thermodynamics

How stupid do they think we are, anyway?

Go ahead, try it. Google "gas mileage" and you'll almost certainly see a sponsored link on in the left hand column touting a way to run your car on water. Water.

Now this scam - and yes, I am so, so sorry to bust a hole in your gas tank, but it is a scam -- has been around almost since the invention of the internal combustion engine. Like many confidence plays, it relies on a shred of truth, the promise of an evil conspiracy and the endless gullibility of those who want to try and save a buck or two.

Continue reading "Water for Gas? And a Bridge to Sell You..." »

2:52 PM ET | 07-11-2008 | permalink

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Two Jettas, Two Nerds

The Jettas; photo courtesy Steve Boser

Yesterday we put a call out to Californians asking for pictures of their beloved cars. We got lots of great entries like this one from Steve Boser:

Included is me and my two 1982 VW diesel Jetta's. The gold one has been converted to run on vegetable oil and is no longer in the family. My custom plate on the green Jetta really paid for itself when it was stolen a couple of years back. It was spotted by a tow truck driver suspicious of three guys that didn't much look like the type that would being driving around in a car with a license plate that said "NERD". He called it in to the local sheriff's office, and, sure enough it was stolen. The tow truck driver and the sheriff not only recovered my car but caught all three "Non-Nerd" types.

Thanks, Steve! We've gotten great responses from around the country and plan to use many of them. If you have a car story to share, send a photo of you with your vehicle and tell us where you're from.

2:17 PM ET | 07-11-2008 | permalink

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Send Us A Photo Of Your Car

BugMan50, Flickr

In L.A., it's not uncommon to come across "Car Rich, House Poor" individuals; they drive shiny new BMWs or Audis, but live in a tiny little apartment with college-dorm-quality furniture. (My neighbor a few doors down qualifies--I've seen through her screen door.) At the same time, millionaire movie people insist on the simple, box-like Prius, even when they could have a vintage Porsche gutted and filled with a bio-diesel engine.

On Monday, Day to Day will be running a piece on "California Car Culture." Today, we want you to send us a photo of you with your car, along with a few sentences about what your car means to you. We will select the best images and stories to include in a photo gallery. If you AND your car are clearly visible in the photo, you have a much better chance of making it in, but remember: this is a family show. No Bikini Car Wash homages, please.

Send those photos to what@npr.org, and thanks in advance!

10:37 AM ET | 07-10-2008 | permalink

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Gas is the New Curfew

AP and Corbis Photos Reworked

Youth Radio's King Anyi Howell observes that gas prices have turned into the "fun police." [Those of you looking for comments about the "Unprotected Sex is the New Engagment Ring" segment should go here.]

"Since gas prices shot past $4 a gallon, my tank is the restricting factor whenever I want to kick it, and bust out of the house," he says.

Cruising is no longer the cheap pastime it once was. Long distance relationships are looking less seductive. And even a simple request to pick up a friend across town has become a more serious matter, Howell has found.

Do you agree? Has the price of gas become the "fun police" in your life? If gas isn't your new curfew, what is? Tell us in the comments below.

You can learn more about Day to Day's weekly series, What's The New What, here.

--Heather Murphy

9:19 AM ET | 07-10-2008 | permalink

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Sustainable Dave

In typical teenager fashion, I used to roll my eyes when my mom washed the tin foil... or re-used sandwich bags... or hung our laundry on the line instead of using the clothes dryer. She isn't American, or at least she wasn't born here. She grew up in World War II-era England. So she conserved because, well, that's what she always did.

How quaint, I thought, how... Old Europe.

Everything old is new again. And now, guilty about being an over-consuming, wasteful American, I've adopted most of her ideas. Even this.

(I drew the line at knitting a sweater out of dog hair.)

Dave Chameides, though, has gone even further than my mom.

Continue reading "Sustainable Dave" »

12:14 PM ET | 07- 9-2008 | permalink

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998 Square Feet of California Dream

Home Sweet Home; photo by Rich Dean

The three segments today on the increasingly volatile global housing market got me thinking about my own personal role in the American housing market. People who bought early, cheap, and at sane interest rates are looking like financial geniuses now, but sometimes there is an awful lot of luck and chance involved in getting that piece of real estate. Most people don't wind up buying a house by accident, especially not in Southern California, but that's kind of what happened to me...

Continue reading "998 Square Feet of California Dream" »

7:03 PM ET | 07- 7-2008 | permalink

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California Tried to Get Rid of Me - Jill Hocking

In this week's look at What's Your California Dream?, we've been sharing the stories of listeners who have left California behind. In this installment, Jill Hocking explains that California tried to get rid of her.

Continue reading "California Tried to Get Rid of Me - Jill Hocking" »

12:10 PM ET | 07- 7-2008 | permalink

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Kyle Gibson's Dream, Short and Not So Sweet

On today's show we talked to some people who have given up on the California dream, and we'll be sharing some of their stories here on the blog. In this installment, Kyle Gibson breaks down his California disappointment down in under 150 words:

When I was a kid I used to think of Cali as a fantasy-like place of sunshine and happy faces. I wanted to go and see movies stars eating, walking , whatever. To become a surfing bum ,living on the water a part of a hippie, artistic, sunburned community. I finally made it to California at 30, and I stayed for 6 years, what a sad disappointment. I am very grateful to have come from the East Coast and even more grateful to be back.

If you'd like to share your story of finding (or abandoning) the California Dream, use the contact page provided here.

--Gary Dauphin

12:04 PM ET | 07- 7-2008 | permalink

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Tessa Rodriguez Dreams of California... in NC

Tessa Rodriguez pursues her CA dream in NC; photo courtesy Tessa Rodriguez

Over the last several weeks, we've asked Day to Day listeners to share their vision of the California Dream. Fame, health, satisfaction, blue sky or innovation--what defines your California Dream? Is the economy forcing that dream to change?

We've been sharing listener responses both on-air and here on Daydreaming. But then we noticed a curious thing: Some of you were writing in to tell about leaving California behind. On today's show we talked to some people who have given up on the dream, and we'll be sharing some of their stories here on the blog. In this installment, Tessa Rodriguez explains how she had to leave the Bay Area for Greensboro to find the peace of mind and quality of life that she'd always been promised by California.

Continue reading "Tessa Rodriguez Dreams of California... in NC" »

11:56 AM ET | 07- 7-2008 | permalink

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Matthew Howe's California Dream

Over the last several weeks, we've asked Day to Day listeners to share their vision of the California Dream. Fame, health, satisfaction, blue sky or innovation--what defines your California Dream? Is the economy forcing that dream to change?

We've been sharing listener responses both on-air and here on Daydreaming. But then we noticed a curious thing: Some of you were writing in to tell about leaving California behind. On today's show we talked to some people who have given up on the dream, and we'll be sharing some of their stories here on the blog. In this installment, Matthew Howe tells of finding his home in California-only to leave it behind.

Continue reading "Matthew Howe's California Dream" »

11:42 AM ET | 07- 7-2008 | permalink

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Youtubing Watts

Earlier this week, Richard Gonzales took a look at the enduring legacy of 60s-era upheavals like the Watts Riots. Daydreaming sent NPR intern Sarah Whites-Koditschek to the intern's natural habitat (Youtube) in order to find us images of that iconic Watts landmark, the Watts Towers.

Continue reading "Youtubing Watts" »

2:46 PM ET | 07- 3-2008 | permalink

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Raiders of the Not-So-Lost Recycling Bin

You know the economy is getting bad when there are fights over trash.

This story caught my eye.

On Sunday evening near Glen Park's busy main drag, Diamond Street, several groups trolled the streets collecting bottles and cans. In one instance, a man drove a red, graffiti-covered truck while two men walked on opposite sidewalks, gathering bottles and cans from blue bins set out for the next morning's official pickup, and dumped them into the truck.

Though the men didn't knock over the bins or leave other trash in their wake, some San Francisco residents say they know when the recycling bandits are on the march when they see tipped-over cans and litter strewn on the ground and hear clanks of bottles and cans at 3 a.m. One waste company says it has received 20,000 complaints of curbside recycling theft in San Francisco.

Jo Cangelosi's home office sits at the front of her Potrero Hill house with a view of Mississippi Street. The recycling squads have gotten so bad that she puts her recycling out at the very last minute - when she can hear the regular truck rumbling down the road. [full story]

Continue reading "Raiders of the Not-So-Lost Recycling Bin" »

2:25 PM ET | 07- 3-2008 | permalink

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Cin Martino's California Dream

a self-portrait by Cin Martino

Over the last several weeks, we've asked Day to Day listeners to share their vision of the California Dream. Fame, health, satisfaction, blue sky or innovation--what defines your California Dream? Is the economy forcing that dream to change?

We'll be sharing your responses both on-air and here on Daydreaming. In this installment, Cin Martino remembers heading west in 1972 along Route 80 in a 1964 blue Ford Galaxy, a 13 foot Shasta travel trailer towed behind us with two cats sleeping in our pull-out bed..

Continue reading "Cin Martino's California Dream" »

5:13 PM ET | 07- 2-2008 | permalink

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Lorraine DeLuca Placido's California Dream

photo by Lorraine DeLuca Placido

Over the last several weeks, we've asked Day to Day listeners to share their vision of the California Dream. Fame, health, satisfaction, blue sky or innovation--what defines your California Dream? Is the economy forcing that dream to change?

We'll be sharing your responses both on-air and here on Daydreaming. In this installment, Lorraine DeLuca Placido remembers a dream of California that started with a floral peasant dress. I dreamt of wearing it on the balcony of a home that overlooked a beach where surfers sat around lazily swapping stories, waiting for waves. I was ten when I had the dream, it was 1970 and California was the place to be.

Continue reading "Lorraine DeLuca Placido's California Dream" »

5:03 PM ET | 07- 2-2008 | permalink

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Susan Lindau's California Dream

photo provided by Susan Lindau

Over the last several weeks, we've asked Day to Day listeners to share their vision of the California Dream. Fame, health, satisfaction, blue sky or innovation--what defines your California Dream? Is the economy forcing that dream to change?

We'll be sharing your responses both on-air and here on Daydreaming. In this installment, Susan Lindau recalls working towards a California dream that involved being a chef for people (Hollywood types) with special dietary needs. Cooking for people is just another form of social work/therapy!

Continue reading "Susan Lindau's California Dream" »

4:37 PM ET | 07- 2-2008 | permalink

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Old is the New Young

The California dream of show business stardom is built around this idea of perpetual youth. Cosmetically, this means plastic surgery, personal trainers, etc. When Evelyn Waugh came out to Los Angeles and wrote the novel The Loved One, he took this idea to its absurd end. Even funerals were an opportunity to prolong one's youth. (Not to mention an opportunity for Hollywood to adapt a LaLaLand-satirizing novel.)

Youth is also a state of mind. A friend of my recently interviewed for a job with a famous Hollywood producer. The position was officially titled "cultural attaché." The producer needed someone young to keep him on top of the next new thing. Youth as a commodity, a skill-set.

In real life, though, away from the dream factory, people still get older every year. According to a recent survey, the average age of the nation's television audience just passed 50. That will mean a lot of things for the TV business. One of them, I imagine, is that somewhere, some 27-year old executive is trying to keep up with the latest trend - being old. I wonder what that Blackberry message looks like?

Continue reading "Old is the New Young" »

11:59 AM ET | 07- 2-2008 | permalink

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