Oscars Road

We are here in Los Angeles coping already with the Academy Awards preparations, though the show is not to happen until Sunday. They shut down a stretch of Hollywood Boulevard a week in advance, which is naturally an inconvenience to people who live, work and recreate in that area. it's not a horrible problem for me, though the buses must detour just as the private cars do. Still, it's not a big deal for me except for if I should have an audition at one of the casting facilities south of there.

A problem on the day of the ceremony for me is that they shut down the subway station that falls within the security perimeter. Trains pass through in both directions without stopping. That is, I should say, only a problem if I actually need to be somewhere around that station. The odds are that I won't. I could need to be in Hollywood, but it would be to visit iO West nearer to the Hollywood and Vine station.That shouldn't be a problem.

I would be practically guaranteed of no trouble if I were going to stay home and watch the Oscars on TV, but that's not incredibly likely. I don't find a lot of appeal in such awards shows. That's not to say that I would never watch. I would go to an Oscars party, and actually have a lot of fun watching. I'd even love filling out a ballot of my own to ascertain prognosticating prowess. The reason I'd enjoy myself is that I would be socializing.

I'm aware of no party however, and so I may find myself braving the streets. I don't expect that much bravery will be necessary, though. It's my experience that Angelenos are very skittish about unusually challenging traffic conditions, and resort to a "shelter in place" strategy to avoid getting stuck in a jam. The consequence is that the traffic conditions are ideal in the absence of all the people who are scared of bad traffic. That's probably what will happen during much of the Oscar time period.