The Brief

Three years ago, a Reddit user asked the internet this question: "What is it that makes you stay In Los Angeles? I used to live in L.A., and for me, it was the beautiful scenery and the great people I met. The food was great and the weather was always awesome. What's your reason?"

Down in the comments section, replies ranged from family and friends to bars and beaches — and while many people had overlapping answers for what keeps them in L.A., just below the surface was something personal.

One user, PlantinumElement, writes, "Both my wife and I have jobs that allow us to live comfortably in L.A., and we are thankful for that because we know how rare it is. So we try to make the most of it and enjoy the things L.A. has to offer. My wife enjoys the access to great food, and the large Korean community, and I also like the food and the fact that L.A. is one of the best places in the world for car enthusiast culture."

L.A. can be a difficult place to live.

In the decade since I moved here for graduate school I've considered leaving several times. "And go where?" I ask myself. In the absence of an answer, I usually resort to making a list of things I love about this city. In fact, I made one a few months ago with my friend Michelle, who moved to L.A. two years ago to pursue comedy. Like so many others, she has struggled to find affordable housing, consistent community and steady work. We plopped down on my couch and began as follows:

"I love L.A. because ..."

During AirTalk, LAist 89.3's live daily news program, we asked listeners to share their answers. Here's what they said.

The cultural and culinary richness

“I love that I can get a Korean body scrub and then go to Compton for barbecue," said Danica in Baldwin Vista, who was brought to SoCal for the entertainment industry but has stayed for the cultural diversity.

From Vietnamese to Ethiopian, Japanese to Armenian, people immigrate to L.A. from around the world and create their own ethnic enclaves that keep their rich cultural heritage alive. One in three Angelenos is an immigrant.

Keena in Sherman Oaks echoes Danica, saying "I love SoCal because of the variety of food, diversity in people and that literally whatever you can think up, you can find in L.A.! There’s a community for everything.”

One of the reasons community might be hard to find here is because there are so many of them. People immigrate here for opportunity, but they also come here with the hope of just being able to express themselves authentically.

For Shawn in Hermosa Beach, L.A.'s embrace of individuality is one of the reasons he stays.

“I just feel like L.A. celebrates individuality and encourages it. I grew up with a lot of pressure to conform. Individuality was frowned upon," he said.

Venice Beach: Shuttered shops at Venice's Boardwalk.

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Chava Sanchez

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Diane in Gardena said, "One of the best things about Southern California is the rich Latino culture and history. This keeps me here in L.A. because, as a Mexican American who grew up in the South, I was amazed and empowered by the passion and pride of Chicanos. I learned to be proud of my background and to be grateful for my community."

Cathy in South Central found her Oaxacan community here.

“My parents are from Oaxaca and there’s a huge Oaxacan community here, specifically from my own town. Friends and family all reside here," she said.

Nature, wilderness and unbeatable weather

There are tradeoffs to living in SoCal. Great weather for bad traffic or access to nature for a high cost of living. One of the most resounding answers people gave when we asked them "what keeps you in L.A.?" was nature, wilderness and unbeatable weather.

You can find the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium on the lower level of the popular tourist destination

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Sarah in Los Feliz said what keeps her in L.A. is "the ability to ski at Big Bear in the morning and go to dinner in Santa Monica in the afternoon.”

“I love the adaptive ski program at Big Bear, the beaches, and the smell of the ocean," said Catherine in Westchester, who moved here from England.

Brian in Torrance stays for “the coast and natural beauty of it all. Plus Death Valley, Big Sur and the Eastern Sierras.”

Lisa in Santa Monica grew up here but moved away for graduate school. One of the things that drew her back? The weather.

“I like to visit the snow, not live in it,” she said.

The personal

While the people and weather seem to be prevailing reasons keeping people around, it certainly doesn't cover everything.

For example, Annie in Los Feliz works as an art consultant and said, "the culture in Los Angeles is a wonderful place to work in the field of art.”

Others like Giovanna, a college student from from Santa Monica, stays for the in-state tuition and the many choices of great colleges.

Bennett in San Pedro moved here from the east coast and said, “There’s such an entrepreneurial spirit here. So much talent in this one area. It creates more opportunities.”

And then there is my friend Michelle, who has decided to stay in L.A. for the foreseeable future. When the going gets tough and she needs a reminder of why she's here, she can refer to this list.

Listen here:

Angelenos looking up Saturday may have noticed a particularly striking sight — a vibrant sunset framed by clouds.

Tropical moisture coming in from far off the coast could explain it.

“One thing that might have played a role in making it look awfully nice yesterday was those high clouds that were moving in,” Robert Munroe, meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said. “The way the sun was hitting the high clouds made some bright yellows and oranges in the sky. That moisture is actually related to probably mostly Odalys.”

An early sunset at yesterday's "Be The Light" 5K event in Valencia last night.

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Jenn Baughman

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Jenn Baughman

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Odalys is the hurricane (since downgraded to a tropical storm) churning off the coast of Mexico, along with Hurricane Polo.

Neither is expected to make landfall here, but they're forecast to bring high surf, dangerous rip tides and potential flooding to coastlines already battered this month by Hurricane Marie.

The bright side is Munroe said those high clouds from yesterday will be sticking around through at least today, which could make for another pretty sunset this evening.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 3.6 struck off the South Bay at about 8:40 a.m. and was reported as being felt as far as Oxnard.

The U.S. Geological Survey says it was centered about four miles west-southwest of Hermosa Beach. More than 1,500 people reported feeling it within the first hour after it struck. [You can report what you felt to the USGS.]

No significant damage has been reported, which is typical at this low of a magnitude.

The quake was below the threshold of 4.0 magnitude that triggers an alert on the ShakeAlert app.

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Courtesy ShakeAlert

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We have earthquake resources

We don't want to scare you, but the Big One is coming. We don't know when, but we know it'll be at least 44 times stronger than Northridge and 11 times stronger than the Ridgecrest quakes in 2019. To help you get prepared, we've compiled a handy reading list:

• Your guide to surviving the Big One
• For earthquakes, forget the 'go-bag.' Here's how to prepare
• How to not get life-threatening diarrhea after a major earthquake
• 10 earthquake-related questions to ask your landlord immediately
• How to prepare for an earthquake if you have a disability

Listen to our podcast

On a Sunday night at the Mexican restaurant La Popular in Claremont, diners are eating to a soundtrack that starts with cumbia and jumps to J Balvin and Bad Bunny before landing on Luther Vandross.

That’s the aim of DJ collective Compás Discoteca — to bring connection and community through live vinyl mixing at La Popular and El Balcon in Ontario.

How Compás Discoteca was born 

Ricardo Carlos, Elias Ruiz, Albert Piña and Adrian Silva have been friends for about two decades. They all DJ as a hobby and often share music. On a night out in 2024, they saw a sign: a parking space for a “compact car,” minus two letters.

“The C and T are missing — compá. Like, ‘We're compás,’” Carlos said, recounting that night.

A "Compás Discoteca" turntable mat.

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Dañiel Martinez

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Their DJ collective, Compás Discoteca, was born. “Compás” means “buddies” in Spanish and “Discoteca” means “nightclub."

Seasoning the scene

When Compás Discoteca first formed, the members said Southern California’s vinyl-listening scene was more focused on track selection, letting songs play out in full. The collective wanted to bring more life to the experience by mixing music live.

“It just seemed a little stale,” Silva said. “I feel like we helped to bring some seasoning to that.”

They also wanted to play genres people wouldn’t normally hear together.

“You might hear us jump from funk to cumbia to hip-hop to disco, soul to house. We're just trying to take people on a journey with us,” Silva said.

Each compá takes their turn at the turntables for two 30-minute sets. And each brings their own sound.

Three of the "compás" pose for a picture in between their sets.

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Dañiel Martinez

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Silva is the “party-starter.” He gets people dancing.

Carlos has a Latin bent, taking influence from his Puerto Rican, Salvadoran and Creole roots.

Ruiz lives for “jaw-drop moments” and brings records he thinks will surprise his fellow DJs.

Piña spins rare world grooves in the funk and boogie vein.

“He probably gets the most Shazams from us and from the audience,” Ruiz said of Piña. “But most importantly, you feel like you're hanging out and with some good music.”

Albert Piña prepares looks through a box of vinyl records during his DJ set at "La Popular" in Claremont.

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Dañiel Martinez

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LAist

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Feeding off the energy

Compás Discoteca DJs at El Balcon in Ontario on the first Friday of each month and at La Popular in Claremont on the third Sunday.

The vibes for Sundays are chill, they said, and Fridays are for letting it all loose.

“There's like an energy there, like, ‘Oh, man, we made it through the week.’ We try to feed off of that,” Piña said.

Along Highway 62 in Joshua Tree, a stack of high school lockers holds something the High Desert was missing: a real New York-style bagel.

For that, you have DIY baker Richard Lee to thank.

“I want a bagel. What do I do?” Lee remembered thinking after moving to Twentynine Palms in 2023 from Los Angeles, where he had lived for more than a decade.

The Bagel Portal off Highway 62 in Joshua Tree.

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It wasn’t just any bagel the born-and-raised New Yorker was craving, but the kind from back home that gives “a little crunch” when you bite into its crust — with a “chewy, softer” inside and a taste Lee calls “ineffable.”

“Like maybe a sourdough or an Italian bread,” he said.

Taught by YouTube, tested by family in New York

Richard Lee converted his garage in 29 Palms to make bagels.

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A tinkerer by nature, Lee launched 29 Loaves in early 2024, bringing bagels he handcrafts in his licensed home operation to Twentynine Palms, Joshua Tree and surrounding communities.

“I went to the culinary school of YouTube,” he said, having watched more than 100 videos on how to make a bagel. At first, he relied on his own taste buds as a guide, before sending his creations to his family in New York to taste.

After months of overnight shipping, Lee said, “Even a UPS store is asking me, ‘Why are you doing that?’”

“I know it makes no sense,” he told them. “That's how I operate.”

29 Loaves serves up New York-style bagels to Joshua Tree and other desert communities.

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Eventually, his sister gave the thumbs-up. To be extra, extra, extra sure, Lee went to folks living in the desert with New York ties to get their blessing.

“Attention is an ingredient,” Lee said of his bagels. It’s a philosophy he’s honed while running his other business providing IT services, which he now operates remotely.

“Garbage in, garbage out,” he said. “If you make a mistake or something falls on the bagel and marks it, it’ll end up that way as a finished product.”

Why bagels mean so much to him

Lee, whose father is Korean and mother is Brazilian, said his bakery is ultimately about food memories — and draws inspiration from what he ate growing up. The only other baked good 29 Loaves sells is pão de queijo, a gluten-free Brazilian cheese puff he makes.

Richard Lee handmakes New York-style bagels at his home operation.

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Courtesy 29 Loaves

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But nothing rivals bagels. Sundays were often bagel days in his childhood home in the Long Island suburbs. As a teenager working for his father, Lee remembered they would make detours off the Long Island Expressway to grab fresh bagels.

“They were nice and plump, and they were so hot,” he said.

Father and son would eat them straight out of the bag — no cream cheese, no nothing.

“Those were the types of memories that I wanna bring here,” Lee said.