Opening Day At Santa Anita Race Track

Today is opening day of the 75th winter/spring meeting at Santa Anita Race Track.  If traffic is any indication, they should have a big crowd on hand today.

Photo taken from the Ben Overturff trail above Monrovia Canyon Park.

Merry Christmas 2011!

Candy Cane

Something's Up

An additional fence has been set up around the Monrovia train depot.  This new fence keeps you further away and blocks the view of the depot.

Monrovia High School - Arch And Murals

Home of the Wildcats.

Monrovia Travel With Christmas Light

Monrovia Travel Service: 401 S Myrtle Avenue, Monrovia.

Noir Theatre

A very different look for the Krikorian Theatre in Old Town Monrovia.

Rudy's Mexican Food Restaurant At Sunrise

Rudy's Mexican Food: 602 S. Myrtle Avenue, Monrovia.  Corner of Myrtle Ave. and Colorado Blvd. in Old Town Monrovia.

Planet Cookies - Tree Display

The Christmas Tree set up inside Planet Cookies at 342 S. Myrtle Avenue, Monrovia.

Christmas Bench

Make a day (and evening) of it in Old Town Monrovia.

You can check out the holiday window displays, do your Christmas shopping, see a movie, check out the library, enjoy a meal at one of the many restaurants, listen to musicians and carolers or just relax on a bench and enjoy the lights and people watch.

All in one place.

First Tech Challenge LA Championship Robotics Tournament

37 teams took part in the championship tournament held in the new Monrovia High School gym.

This is from one of the semi-final rounds.  Monrovia High School's robot is on the far left, next to the blue ramp.  Monrovia's alliance did a great job making it all the way to the end, losing in the final match for a 2nd place finish.

Working The 2011 Monrovia Holiday Parade

Not everyone got to just hang out with friends and family and watch the parade.  Some were out there working hard Wednesday night.

I showed you KGEM from a distance yesterday.  Here's a closer look as they record the festivities.

It wouldn't be the same without the announcers, in silhouette against the neon and lights of the Krikorian Theatre.

A couple of bonus photos can be found on my Google+ page.

2011 Monrovia Holiday Parade

The wind can slow us down but it can't stop us.  The parade goes on, and it looks like people were more than ready.  A big crowd last night.

Pre-parade.

This is just before the start of the parade.  On the right is KGEM, Monrovia's local community television station, set up with extra lighting to record the parade.  The crowd was like this the entire length of the parade.

Sid Garcia.

The 2011 Holiday Parade Grand Marshall was Sid Garcia from ABC7 Eyewitness News.

MHS Band.

Extra lighting effects mixed in among the Monrovia High School Band.

Restored Life Fellowship.

A band of a different type.  A live rock band played their way through Old Town.

Monroe Unicycle Club.

Always a favorite, the Monroe Unicycle Club rode up Myrtle Avenue.

Santa Candy

Love the window displays around town this time of year.  This one is at the Candy Connection candy shop at 521 S. Myrtle Ave. in Old Town Monrovia.

The Monrovian Restaurant At Sunrise

The Monrovian - 534 S. Myrtle Ave. Monrovia (Corner of Myrtle Ave. and Colorado Blvd.) in the heart of Old Town.

Old Town Gateway At Night With Holiday Lights

Recovery from the windstorm is moving right along.  Power is not completely back on around town but it's close.  They continue to work on it.  The major street obstructions have been cleared.  The last time I was out, most of the traffic lights were working again.  City offices are open again today.  The Holiday parade will go on this Wednesday, December 7th at 7pm.

Individuals hit hard by the windstorm will take longer to recover.  Find a friend and take them to lunch today.

Windstorm

I meant to post this yesterday, but technical difficulties prevented that from happening.  Let's take a look around at a very small part of the damage from Wednesday night's windstorm.

This first photo was the city's 50-foot Christmas tree in Library Park.  It was knocked down...

...bringing the star on top crashing to the ground.  This cancelled the tree lighting ceremony that was to have taken place last night.  The holiday parade was postponed to a date yet to be determined.

This scene could be found at many intersections.  This is Foothill and Shamrock.

Double whammy here.  A downed tree blocking the street and downed wires.  Dangerous situation.

This tree fell across Wildrose, just east of Mountain.

Here's another situation that happened far too many times.  Tree crushes car.

A few of the trees down at Recreation Park.  That's the YMCA building in the background.

And finally, try as the wind might, this Christmas tree held tough and refused to fall completely over.

Cleanup continues and many homes and businesses are still without power.

Check this post from MonroviaNow.com for some stats on the damage.