A successful program in Santa Monica, California is simply helping folks who need help.

LAist: Read the rest

On Monday evenings some of the best magicians in the world perform intimate sets at the Santa Monica Playhouse.

The Santa Monica Playhouse is a long running, classic, beautiful small theatre just off the 3rd St. Promenade in Santa Monica, CA. I was thrilled, last year, when I had the chance to catch a few performances at Albie Selznick's Magic Monday. Albie is an accomplished actor and magician who brings together phenomenal acts for a very playful and in-your-lap kind of night. Frequently, you'll see the most sought after magicians and variety performers from the Magic Castle here, in a far less formal but no less charming setting.

This week, Monday May 8th, two of my favourites are in the cast: puppeteer Scott Land, and (if memorry hasn't failed me) Troop 2 Santa Monica Eagle Scout, and world renowned magician Matt Marcy.

The most fun you'll have on a Monday west of Sepulveda!

Magic Monday at the Santa Monica Playhouse Read the rest

Suppose you wanted to design a home away from home. What would you put in? What would you leave out? What kind of seating would you have? (Soft? Hard? Low? High?) What kind of tables — big working slabs or intimate little two-tops?

A good “third place” may seem casually homey, but its design is the end result of a million tiny decisions. This week on HOME: Stories From L.A., it’s a conversation with Kambiz Hemati, who oversaw store design at Starbucks for two years and now owns Love Coffee Bar in Santa Monica, where he gets to think hard — and think small — about what makes a place feel like home.

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Check out all the great podcasts that Boing Boing has to offer! Read the rest

Across the US, 31 communities have joined forces to make the dream of fast, affordable, and reliable gigabit-speed broadband a local reality. The Next Century Cities program, launched this week, hopes to defeat the forces holding broadband back. The 31 inaugural signatories are: Read the rest