The Brief

When the L.A. Dodgers announced their first-ever season opener in Tokyo, Christian Arana knew he would be there for the historic milestone.

Months later, he has manifested his wish. The Encino man is in Tokyo this weekend, counting down to Tuesday for the first in a two-game series between the Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs.

The series at the Tokyo Dome will be the regular-season opener for all of Major League Baseball. Arana says Dodger fever has gripped baseball fans across Japan, where two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani’s mug adorns ads for everything from sunscreen to 7-11.

A crowd of Japanese fans followed a gleeful Kike Hernandez around Tokyo, as captured on video. Banners and posters celebrating the Dodgers are plastered across the city.

Christian Arana knew he would make it to the MLB season opener in Tokyo after hearing about it last summer.

(

Courtesy Christian Arana

)

And wherever there are baseball fans, Arana sees a sea of azure.

“Every single person is wearing a Dodgers hat, Dodgers jersey, a T-shirt, whether they're coming from America or they're from here locally,” Arana said.

The lineup

Yoshinobu Yamamoto will pitch the first of two games against the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday. Rookie hurler Roki Sasaki, who will showcase his famous splitter for game two. With global superstar Ohtani, Sasaki makes up the third in a powerhouse trifecta from Japan. Not to mention other superstars like Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman.

Arana will be joined at the game by a college friend who’s part of a contingent of Cubs fans in Tokyo – just as excited by their own Japanese superstars, ace pitcher Shota Imanaga and outfielder Seiya Suzuki.

But Arana says Dodger Nation has a much larger presence.

“Every single time I see a person wearing Dodgers hat, it turns out they're either from the San Fernando Valley or East Los Angeles — like literally all over Southern California,” Arana said.

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani (C), Teoscar Hernandez (L) and Roki Sasaki (R) watch during the exhibition baseball game Sunday between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Hanshin Tigers.

(

Yuichi Yamazaki

/

AFP via Getty Images

)

Players pose after the exhibition baseball game Sunday between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Hanshin Tigers. The Dodgers take on the Chicago Cubs in the stadium on Tuesday.

(

Yuichi Yamazaki

/

AFP via Getty Images

)

Arana, who works on policy issues that affect Latinos, says many of the other fans in Tokyo don’t have tickets — including his own brother — but just want to be a part of the experience.

“It's just been heartwarming to see so many of our fans travel to foreign places to root for the team,” Arana said.

Tickets through-the-roof

On StubHub as of Sunday morning, tickets for the game at the Tokyo Dome were in the range of $4,000 to more than $9,000.

So how much did Arana pay for his ticket?

Fifty dollars — which he noted cost less than parking and a hot dog and beer at Dodger Stadium.

Dodger fan Christian Arana is in Tokyo with his brother, Kevin in the Roppongi neighborhood of Tokyo.

(

Courtesy Christian Arana

)

“When they went on sale, I had literally four different screens up,” Arana said. “The first one that came through with the option to buy tickets, I just went straight to that one.”

A life-long fan — he was born in 1988, the year the Dodgers beat the Oakland A’s to win the World Championship — Arana said the skill and talent of the current roster is exhilarating.

With the L.A. fires and other news, Arana said:

“Honestly, this is what the world needs right now. We need a lot of optimism and hope and the Dodgers have been that one source of hope for so many people in our city for generations.”

In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena and Pasadena’s music community have really shown up to support fire survivors, especially fellow musicians who lost instruments and record collections.

That effort continues this weekend with a special donation concert at a Pasadena record store, with the aim of getting vinyl records back in the hands of survivors who lost their collections.

“You know, our name is Healing Force of the Universe, and I think that gives me a pretty clear direction… especially after the fires,” said Austin Manuel, founder of Pasadena record store, where Sunday’s show will be held.

The record donation effort is the brainchild of musician Brandon Jay, who founded the nonprofit Altadena Musicians after losing his home and almost all of his family’s instruments in the Eaton Fire. Through Altadena Musicians’s donation and registry platform, Jay said he and his partners have helped some 1,200 fire survivors get their music instruments back.

Brandon Jay.

(

Robert Garrova

/

LAist

)

Now, that effort has fanned out to restoring vinyl record collections.

“All of that stuff evaporated for thousands of people,” Jay said. “Look at your own record collection and be like, ‘Wow, what if that whole thing disappeared?’”

You might know Jay from several bands over the years, including Lutefisk, a 1990s alt-rock band based in Los Angeles. He and his wife, Gwendolyn Sanford, composed music for TV shows, including Orange is the New Black and Weeds.

Jay plans to play some holiday tunes at Sunday's record donation show (which LAist is the media sponsor), along with fellow musician Daniel Brummel of Sanglorians. Brummel, who was also a founding member of Pasadena’s indie-rock sensation Ozma, said he was grateful to Jay for his fire recovery work and to Manuel for making Healing Force available for shows like this.

Brummel, who came close to losing his own home in the Eaton Fire, recalled a show he played at Healing Force back in March.

Ryen Slegr (left) and Daniel Brummel perform with their band, Ozma, on the 2014 Weezer Cruise.

(

Even Keel Imagery

)

“The trauma of the fires was still really fresh,” Brummel said. After playing a cover of Rufus Wainwright’s “Going to a Town,” that night — which includes the lyrics “I’m going to a town that has already been burnt down” — Brummel said his neighbors in the audience told him the rendition hit them hard. “It felt really powerful. And without that space, it just wouldn’t have occurred.”

Details

Healing Force of the Universe Record Donation Show
Featuring: Quasar (aka Brandon Jay), Sanglorians (Daniel Brummel) and The Acrylic.
Sunday, Dec. 14; 2 to 5 p.m.
1200 E. Walnut St., Pasadena
Tickets are $15 or you can donate 5 or more records at the door. More info here.

Topline:

The case: In September, the city settled a lawsuit brought forward by two brothers in their 70s who said they suffered serious injuries after an LAPD officer crashed into their car. Days before the $18 million settlement was reached, lawyers for the brothers said Feldstein Soto called an expert witness testifying for the plaintiffs and “attempted to ingratiate herself with him and asked him to make a contribution to her political campaign,” according to a sworn declaration to the court by the plaintiffs’ attorney, Robert Glassman.

The response: Feldstein Soto did not respond to an interview request. Her spokesperson said the settlement “had nothing to do” with the expert witness. Her campaign manager told LAist the city attorney had been making a routine fundraising call and did not know the person had a role in the case, nor that there were pending requests for her office to pay him fees.

What Jurado says: In a statement to LAist, Jurado said she wants to “make sure that the city’s legal leadership is guided by integrity and accountability, especially when their choices affect public trust, civic rights and the city’s limited resources."

What’s next: The motion needs to go through a few committees before reaching the full City Council. If it passes, the motion calls for the city attorney to “report to council in closed session within 45 days regarding the ethics breach violation and give updates to the City Council."

Every year in Santa Ana, Luis Cantabrana turns the front of his home into an elaborate altar in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe that draws hundreds of visitors.

Along the front of the house, the multi-colored altar is filled with lights, flowers and a stained-glass tapestry behind a sculpture of the Lady of Guadalupe. Cantabrana’s roof also is lit up with the green, white and red lights that spell out “Virgen de Guadalupe” and a cross.

Visitors are welcomed with music and the smell of roses as they celebrate the saint, but this year’s gathering comes after a dark year for immigrant communities.

Luis Cantabrana stands in front of the stunning altar he built in front of his home in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe. Every year, his display draws hundreds of visitors.

(

Destiny Torres

/

LAist

)

Why do they celebrate? 

In 1513, the Virgin Mary appeared before St. Juan Diego between Dec. 9 and Dec. 12, asking him to build a church in her honor. Her image — a brown-skinned woman wearing a green veil with her hands together in prayer and an angel at her feet — miraculously appeared on his cloak.

To celebrate in Santa Ana, worshippers gathered late-night Wednesday and in the very early hours Dec. 12 to pray the rosary, sing hymns and celebrate the saint.

Cantabrana has hosted worshippers at his home for 27 years — 17 in Santa Ana.

The altar started out small, he said, and over the years, he added a fabric background, more lights and flowers (lots and lots of flowers).

“It started with me making a promise to la Virgen de Guadalupe that while I had life and a home to build an altar, that I would do it,” Cantabrana said. “Everything you see in photos and videos is pretty, but when you come and see it live, it's more than pretty. It's beautiful.”

The Santa Ana home's elaborate altar in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe draws hundreds of visitors each year.

(

Destiny Torres

/

LAist

)

Gathering in a time of turmoil 

Many also look to the Lady of Guadalupe for protection, especially at a time when federal enforcement has rattled immigrant communities.

“People don’t want to go to work, they don’t want to take their kids to school, but the love we have for our Virgen de Guadalupe,” Cantabrana said. “We see that la Virgen de Guadalupe has a lot of power, and so we know immigration [enforcement] won’t come here.”

Margarita Lopez of Garden Grove has been visiting the altar for three years with her husband. She’s been celebrating the Virgencita since she was a young girl. Honoring the saint is as important now as ever, she said.

“We ask, and she performs miracles,” Lopez said.

Claudia Tapia, a lifelong Santa Ana resident, said the Virgin Mary represents strength.

“Right now, with everything going on, a lot of our families [have] turned and prayed to the Virgen for strength during these times,” Tapia said. “She's a very strong symbol of Mexican culture, of unity, of faith and of resilience.”

See it for yourself

The shrine will stay up into the new year on the corner of Broadway and Camile Street.