If you're from the Northeast, like I am, your memory of leaving home for the brighter shores of Los Angeles may be saturated with people mocking you, and asking you things like "why the hell would you want to live there?" Ah, family. Anyway, if you've bottled up the answer to that last question for fear of bringing on more ridicule, you don't need to be scared anymore -- The Huffington Post is asking readers to share their personal relocation tales more ›

Don't panic if you hear the word "tsunami" interrupting your radio listening, internet surfing, or television watching tomorrow morning. Barring the real deal taking place, there is a planned test exercise scheduled for September 21st by the National Weather Service to see if all systems are go when it comes to warning the West Coast. more ›

A new report from the National Academies of Science has concluded that the West Coast, particularly Northern California through Washington, is not prepared for tsunami activity. One main cause of concern is the Cascadia subduction zone, which is not located near Los Angeles. more ›

The massive early-morning quake off the coast of Chile has dozens of Pacific-bordering nations on alert as the shifting of plates are causing tsunami conditions in the water. The West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center issued an advisory for the North American West Coast, though it is important to note that while the effects can be dangerous, they are not expected to be devastating here:

Tsunami Advisory means that a tsunami capable of producing strong currents or waves dangerous to persons in or very near the water is imminent or expected. Significant, widespread inundation is not expected for areas under an advisory. Currents may be hazardous to swimmers, boats, and coastal structures and may continue for several hours after the initial wave arrival.

Tonight at 6 pm, the Santa Monica Museum of Art hosts "Not Your Typical Political Animal Book Launch, Signing, & Holiday Party" to celebrate the launch of Robbie Conal's new book Not Your Typical Political Animal. The book includes a combination of paintings and drawings that illustrate Conal's sharp, satirical takes on past and current events with subtle and often acutely personal portraits of his own pet cats, dogs, exotic frogs, fish and birds. Conal will be on-site and available for signing. Enjoy a shopping with themed refreshments and music by DJ BBRAVE - hosted by GRACIE, SMMoA's retail shop. more ›

An 8.0 earthquake off the Vanatu Islands today prompted various tsunami watches and warnings in the South Pacific and a tsunami advisory for Hawaii. However, California and the rest of the West Coast, including Alaska, have not been put under any notifications from government officials, as of 4:27 p.m. PST. more ›

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En route to performances in New York, the highly acclaimed Irish company CoisCeim Dance Theatre, will make a stop at the Irvine BarclayTheater this Tuesday, February 26 -- its premiere West Coast engagement. Pronounced "kush came," the company will present their award winning evening length work, Knots, based on psychologist R.D. Laing 's book by the same title. Both the book and the stage work explore the twists and turns in couples' relationships. The live production is choreographed and directed by Liam Steel of Stan Won't Dance and DV8 Physical Theatre. more ›

The first rule of Monday Night Fight Klub: Leave the dancing to the stars and the singing to wannabe idols. The MTV2 show is auditioning rap stars to be on the show’s second season. more ›

It sounds really boring: California Health and Safety Code Sections 43845. However, within that state code is a something pretty neat: if your place of work has 50 persons or more employed for them and subsidizes leased parking for your and your fellow employees, then they must participate in the Parking Cash-Out program offering you a cash allowance in lieu of a parking space. more ›

Release Date: 02/05/2008 more ›

Nothing says Hebrew like some good old (testament) Hip-Hop. more ›

Before MC Hammer's "Too Legit To Quit," there was a rap called "Legit" by Caldwell's Most Wanted - a little known group from a small town in Texas. Rather than emulating Hammer's mainstream, soft rap approach, CMW took inspiration from West Coast artists like N.W.A and Ice-T. Comprised of six high school students, the group longed to emulate the hard, thug lifestyle of South Central glamourized on Yo! MTV Raps despite their rural backgrounds. more ›

A quick Dodger note for everyone. On Saturday at 10:00am, tickets to the Dodgers exhibition game on Saturday, March 29 against the Boston Red Sox at the LA Memorial Coliseum will go on sale. more ›

Two weeks ago, local band Rocket (MySpace), recently profiled by The LA Times' Kevin Bronson, performed at The Viper Room in West Hollywood. more ›

10. PugThe AKC notes that we here in the City of Angels love our bulldogs more than anywhere else in the US: "The breed has made the Los Angeles Top 10 for three consecutive years and now ranks the Bulldog highest of any city in the nation." The Bulldog's close relative, the French Bulldog, also holds a bit of a West Coast distinction, because "San Francisco and Los Angeles were the only cities in the nation to include the French Bulldog in their Top 10 lists." Bulldogs in LA are somewhat legendary, like Tyson the "amazing bulldog" who does all sorts of cool stunts in his hometown of Huntington Beach. And because we take beauty so seriously here in the shadows of Hollywoodland, the prettiest and most charming of our bulldogs might want to take part in the annual Bulldog Beauty Contest, which is coming up on February 9th down in Long Beach and is put on by the Haute Dogs folks. more ›

On Monday night, local artist and Downtown resident Elizabeth McGrath (formerly of Tongue) and her gothic country band Miss Derringer (MySpace) performed as the headliners of Indie 103.1 (MySpace)'s Check One Two Mondays at The Viper Room in West Hollywood. more ›

Sometimes going to a Dodger game gets to be more than a spectator sport, especially when team rivalries are enacted in the stands. more ›

Rainy days and Mondays may get you down, so check out these events tonight to make the first night of the workweek no so ho-hum. more ›

Joseph Cosina was shot in the heart after bar-close early Friday morning at Crash Mansion nightclub on Grand Ave. (it was an 18-and-over event). The 19-year-old Downey High School graduate was pronounced dead at the hospital and two others were wounded. The gunman remains at large.

About closing time, a fight broke out inside the club, police said. Cosina and his friends had no connection to the fight, said his father, Hector. more ›

So we heard that at 12:00 a.m. EST, 9:00 p.m. PST (or LA time for those of us who could give a crap about the rest of the West Coast) tonight, those sexy boys at Current TV, Max Lugavere and Jason Silva, will be hosting the exclusive (yes, exclusive) US broadcast of Radiohead playing In Rainbows. In its entirety. Sexy, exclusive, entirety. After the broadcast, M and J will be hosting a very special Best of Current TV hour. more ›

If good things come in threes, it seems bad things come in twos, at least today in LA: more ›

If you like songs that are fast, heavy and noisy, then LA trio Icebird may just be up your ear-splitting alley. Comprised of Barry Monahan (guitar and lead vocals), Kate Wise (drums and vocals) and Mike Monahan (bass and vocals), Icebird brings an energy and exuberance to rock that shines with each pounding performance. The band recently released a follow up EP titled "Championship Bloodline." more ›

A mysterious email appeared in our inbox this morning, notifying us of a Dunkin' Donuts Shopping Cart Derby being held at the Santa Monica Pier tomorrow morning (check-in begins at 9am, you can register here through the Thrillist website). The event is being hosted by Maria Menounos, and the lucky winning team will receive a two-year supply of Dunkin' Donuts coffee, revered by many as the morning brew of choice. But wait just a... more ›

The 4th annual international food bloggers holiday fundraiser, Menu For Hope, kicks off its twelve day run Monday. The virtual event is hosted by Pim Techamuanvivit, who runs the food blog Chez Pim and whose desire to help out those devastated by the tsunami five years ago in Southeast Asia led her to devise Menu For Hope. Last year US$62,925.12 was raised through the event, and was donated to the UN World Food Programme. Here's... more ›

While the rains yesterday helped alleviate some of the dryness under which southern California has been hampered, it did little to lessen the worries of those in fire-stricken areas. Streaming rivers of rain created mudslides and prompted officials to call for mass evacuations. Flash flood warnings remain in effect. But, hey, it's LA, and today was clear and beautiful. A woman who poisoned her Marine husband to buy a boob job with the insurance... more ›

This week five fresh&easy grocery stores er, "neighborhood markets," opened in metro Los Angeles. We visited the Glassell Park store located in a gutted Albertson's on Eagle Rock Blvd (map) for our first impression of UK-based Tesco's (the world's third-largest grocer) attempt to hook finicky West Coast consumers. more ›

Artist: Foreign Born Album: On The Wing Now Label: Dim Mak Release Date: 8/21/07 Listen to the track "Letter of Inclusion" While all of Foreign Born's members may not be native sons of LA, they are emissaries of a Silver Lake music scene with their own, almost classic, West Coast flavor. "Almost classic" because the era of the Beach Boys, and the Mamas and the Poppas (and to a lesser extent the Eagles) is now... more ›

Two really good bands (that taste great together) have announced today that they are heading East. more ›

On the last night of a short west coast tour to promote his ridiculously great new record Bluefinger, (review here) Charles Thompson the Third aka Frank Black aka Black Francis hit Safari Sam’s last night with a blistering hour-plus set comprised of the entire Bluefinger “rock opera”, and just a very few extra songs thrown in for good measure. The set was loose and blissfully raw. Like any good maestro, Black was talkative, and... more ›