Sherman Oaks is littered with cars

By: Tim McLaughlin

The last two days have been lousy with traffic. I mean, really bad. If I were to theorize why the roads have been so packed I would assume it has something to do with the holiday season. It seems like every year around this time the city starts to grow to an extreme bustle and by Thanksgiving day, the traffic is close to nil. However, my theory could be far from the truth so don’t go off my word.

In the midst of all the activity I stumbled upon a free app called Inrix Traffic which provides real-time traffic maps, traffic forecast, accident and incident reports for every interstate, highway and major arterial and city street. It’s much better than the standard traffic report on the latest iOS so give it a try. It might save you from another headache this season.

Tim Mclaughlin

Protect yourself this Halloween

By: Tim McLaughlin

Tim Mclaughlin

Because your candy should be as scary as your costume

By: Tim McLaughlin

Dracula Drool: This vile vial gets bonus gross-out points for its graphic name. It’s not just blood, it’s hemoglobin-stained saliva that dripped off the Count’s slobbering fangs.

Vampire Hair: Candy hair would have made this list on its own; so would candy vampires. The combination in a flossy candy that explodes on your tongue puts it at No. 2. Also noteworthy is the revelation that Marge Simpson is indeed a vampire.

Toxic Waste: There’s a classic trope of hazardous waste turning people into heinous mutants. This version turns kids into people who enjoy sucking on unpleasant, intensely sour candy. According to the barrel’s chart, keeping one of these in your mouth for a minute makes you a full toxie head. If you last only 45 seconds you’re just a toxie wannabe.

Blood Energy Potion: This sugary maroon liquid claims to have “similar nutritional content to natural blood.” A serving does provide 55% of recommended daily iron value and 880mg of amino acids. It even tastes like blood, but only Franken Berry’s blood. An impressive Web tie-in poses it as a synthetic blood substitute for vampires, an alternative to feasting on humans. With its microwave instructions to heat to 98.6°F and transfusion bag packaging, we give this an A(Rh)+ for commitment.

Body Parts Sushi: There’s something about eyeballs, fingers, and ears topping seaweed-wrapped rice that gives us an extra kick of queasiness. Associating hacked body parts with customary fare legitimizes cannibalism in a way that puts us ill at ease. Also, the list of ingredients includes the word “pork.” Wretch. Comes with chopsticks.

Tim Mclaughlin

Chisholm Estates is a group of approximately 200 homes…

By: Tim McLaughlin

In Van Nuys situated in the heart of the San Fernando valley. It’s located north of Van Owen, south of Sherman Way, and west of Sepulveda to the 405 freeway.  A large number of the homes in the neighborhood were built between 1948-1950, by James Chisholm who originally named his development Chisholm Woods. Chisholm homes have been known for their oversized lots, good craftsmanship and are perfect examples of California ranch homes. The neighborhood was a walnut grove during the turn of the 20^th century and some of the walnut trees are still there today. When they were originally built the homes sold for between $22,000-$25,000 and today they sell for between $500,000 and $600,000.

EwingSIR does not guarantee information contained in this blog, readers are encouraged not to rely solely on this information and to do their own independent research of facts contained herein. Blog information was obtained from independent sources that we do not endorse, and we do not investigate this information for accuracy.

Tim Mclaughlin

The average annual tax bill for affected homeowners will fall between $1,500 and $1,800

By: Tim McLaughlin

After reviewing, 405,000 homes, LA County Assessor Rober Quon said the average tax bill should drop this year.

For single-family homes, the average value reduction was $162,000, amounting to an average property tax savings of $1,800, Quon said. For condos, the average reduction was $133,000, or an average savings of $1,500. The lower assessed values will be reflected on the property tax bills sent out in October.

William Roberts, director of the San Fernando Valley Economic Research Center at California State University, Northridge, said the reduction in property taxes is going to help many homeowners.

“It’s been a real struggle and a lot of people have lost their homes,” Roberts said. “This may give some people the ability to stay in homes where they have had difficulty making the payments.”

But in this case, what’s good for homeowners is definitely not good for a county government struggling for new revenue.The assessed value of properties in the county is expected to drop 2.3 percent this year – compared to just a .05 percent dip last year, Quon said. The drop, the largest in recent history, will further reduce the county’s property tax revenues, which have already fallen by $132 million in the last two years.

Go here for more info

EwingSIR does not guarantee information contained in this blog, readers are encouraged not to rely solely on this information and to do their own independent research of facts contained herein. Blog information was obtained from independent sources that we do not endorse, and we do not investigate this information for accuracy.

Tim Mclaughlin

The reason for cloudy tap water…

By: Tim Maclaughlin

Ok, we’ve all had that bashful, unsure moment before we take the first sip of super cloudy water. Is the water dirty? Should I really be drinking this? Well, I recently learned that cloudy tap water, which I’ve been experiencing in Studio City as of late, is actually a natural phenomenon. Turns out, the cold water within DWP’s underground pipe holds undissolved air. Usually, the colder the water, the more air within the water. And, when the water is under pressure, it holds even more air.

Due to the recent run off from the Sierra’s, the water this time of year is all snow melt, making the water exceedingly cold. When that water finally makes it into your warm home, the air begins to escape in the form of those bubbles, which causes the cloudiness in the liquid.

You may see the cloudiness fluctuate depending on weather – unusually warm days may increase the bubbles. I always see this phenomenon in places like Mammoth during the summer.

The main thing to remember is that the bubbles are natural and are not an indicator of unhealthy drinking water.

Stay thirsty my friends.

EwingSIR does not guarantee information contained in this blog, readers are encouraged not to rely solely on this information and to do their own independent research of facts contained herein. Blog information was obtained from independent sources that we do not endorse, and we do not investigate this information for accuracy.

Tim Mclaughlin

By: Tim McLauhglin

The Valley Fair will return this year to the San Fernando Valley.  For 6 years, the Valley Fair was annual tradition until 2003 when NIMBYism and political infighting drove the fair to the valley of Santa Clarita. Because the celebration was being held outside of the Valley, organizers brought the event back to Hansen Dam Recreation Area in Lake View Terrace the following year. Just two years later, however, it was forced back into exile after a fight over where it should be located in its original Valley. After moving the fair back and forth many more times, it seems we’ve finally come to a stable location.  Let’s keep it here in Birmingham Community Charter School in Lake Balboa.

Go here to check out the event.

EwingSIR does not guarantee information contained in this blog, readers are encouraged not to rely solely on this information and to do their own independent research of facts contained herein. Blog information was obtained from independent sources that we do not endorse, and we do not investigate this information for accuracy.

Tim Mclaughlin