Lisa Brenner

A young man celebrates outside of the White House following Osama bin Laden's death. (Photo Credit: Jeff Martin) DCist started its week, as the rest of the country did, with news that Osama bin Laden had been killed in Pakistan. A spontaneous celebration broke out at the White House, though we wondered if the hundreds of people who borrowed one of the city's shared bicycles to get to the celebration would be able to...

Photo by Loren Javier via Flickr Hats For Bats: Nocturnal? Not today. Born in 1999 of the goth/deathrock/industrial scene, Bats Day In The Park is an outing of and for the highly costumed kind. Picture Mickey ears clipped into bat wings, and so forth. "The annual spooky trip to Disneyland is just a park meet during a normal operating day at Disneyland. Please use discretion regarding the length of shirts and skirts and language...

Photo by Bert Kaufmann via Flickr The exact location in the brain that influences a gambler's belief that payoff is headed their way has been discovered by Caltech researchers, it was announced on Saturday, reports the Daily News. For example, despite perhaps intellectually knowing that mathematical odds don't change at a slot machine, say, people may sit at the same machine for hours because they think they're "due" for a jackpot. The study, done...

Photo by Peggy Archer via LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr Two shootings took place this morning leaving one man dead and another injured. The first victim is reportedly in critical condition after being shot in the back in Echo Park while "being chased down Sunset Boulevard by a group of attackers," notes The Eastsider LA. According to Rampart Division police, the man collapsed near the intersection of Sunset and Logan Street around 12:...

Photo by depescemode via Twitpic A familiar looking black and white rodent painter has appeared with a giant yellow flower at the corner of Melrose and La Cienega. Banksy? Banksyesque? Dangeresque II? Perhaps it's an elaborate Mother's Day offering for one lucky mum. Photo by LeilaMarsh via Twitpic...

Photo by NatalieMaynor via Flickr It was just last week a visiting friend remarked that the penalty gas rate at $4 per gallon was, for the first time in his experience, cheaper than the cost to fill up on his own here in Los Angeles. WHY MUST YOU SPEAK SO LOUDLY?? THEY HEARD YOU!! The L.A. Times is reporting that some agencies are now charging upward of $9 per gallon to refill the rental...

Photo by Neil Armstrong2 via Flickr SoCal officers are are cracking down on Venice Beach in an effort to set a tone of "public order" following a recent series of violent incidents including a boardwalk shooting during a flash mob and a stabbing at a drum circle, reports the Associated Press. Fearing crime could spiral, the authorities have started cracking down on the unruliness that typifies the boardwalk - a 1.5-mile ribbon of asphalt...

Photo by Michael Zampelli via LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr So.. a giant bee swarm was spotted Friday afternoon near North Parks Road and Mariposa Lane in Fullerton, reports KTLA, and residents were warned by police to stay indoors. It was unclear whether the buzzing, stinging, cloud was made up of Africanized bees. Police were first notified around 3:15pm after "several people were reportedly stung, and one was taken to a local hospital,"...

Photo by RLHyde via Flickr Free Comic Book Day is exactly what it sounds like. On the first Saturday in May, participating comic book shops across country and around planet Earth will "give away comic books absolutely FREE to anyone who comes into their stores," notes the official site. Enter your zip code here and find the closest participating shops. In LA today, special events abound from the Secret Headquarters in Silver Lake to...

David Beckham was involved in a car accident on the 405 Freeway near Torrance on Friday morning when his black Cadillac rear-ended a stalled Mitsubishi that had reportedly broken down in the carpool lane, according to authorities, reports TMZ. According to the California Highway Patrol, "Beckham did...

Photo by i_hate_my_screen_name via LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr Coming Up Roses: Elliot Smith Documentary will be screening two nights as part of the Los Angeles New Wave International Film Festival (formally the Los Angeles International Film Festival), each followed by a guest panel. Saturday at 2:00 p.m, Sunday at 8:00 p.m. at the Hayworth Theater, 2511 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90057. Tickets. For the Birds: Head to the Audubon Center at...

Grape tomatoes supplied to Tracy, CA-based company Taylor Farms Pacific, Inc. have been recalled by grower Six L's after it was discovered they may be contaminated with Salmonella, reports the Food and Drug Administration. The recalled tomatoes were used in a variety of Taylor Farms prepared/packaged salad products with sell-by dates between April 27 and May 9.