Mara Brock Akil has a love story with Los Angeles that runs deep. She was born in Compton, raised in such neighborhoods as Baldwin Hills, Windsor Hills and Ladera Heights, and now resides in Hancock Park. So when she set out on her latest creative project, a TV adaptation of…

p]:text-cms-story-body-color-text clearfix”> I’m at peace with the idea that I won’t be visiting space in my lifetime. The cost of space tourism is out of reach for me and the vast majority of Americans. Yet on a recent Saturday afternoon, thanks to a mix of virtual reality and old-fashioned theatrics,…

p]:text-cms-story-body-color-text clearfix”> How were you and your family affected by the Eaton fire? I was awake [on the day of the fire], making sure that it wasn’t getting close to us, and once the smoke started coming to our house, I was like, “We have to leave” because I have…

p]:text-cms-story-body-color-text clearfix”> While Cercle’s in-person shows over the years have required fans to get on an airplane and travel to historical and remote destinations such as the Sisteron Citadel in France, Barbolla wanted Cercle Odyssey to be more accessible to fans. “We wanted to bring nature to the city,” he…

p]:text-cms-story-body-color-text clearfix”> Across the six players on the tennis court at noon on a Friday in Beverly Hills, I clock two Cartier watches and one Rolex. There’s tennis skirts paired with chunky cable-knit sweaters and white sneakers and tote bags with collegiate embroidery. From behind sunglasses and baseball caps, members…

Each week, millions tune in to the podcast “We Can Do Hard Things,” on which writer Glennon Doyle, her wife, Olympic gold medalist soccer player Abby Wambach, and her sister, former lawyer Amanda Doyle, interview famous guests. The podcast’s title was inspired by a sign with that phrase that hung…

Nature enthusiasts walked among colorful native flowers growing wild at Elizabeth Lake and Munz Ranch roads. (Raul Roa / Los Angeles Times) For me, springtime means taking road trips to document the wildflower fields through Southern California. But this season has not been a good one. Due to the lack…

Before I met Tony, I had written off the idea of falling in love in Los Angeles. Dating in this city felt like an exhausting game I didn’t want to play anymore — one full of superficial encounters and people more interested in networking than connecting. It always felt like…

Beyoncé kicked off her highly anticipated “Cowboy Carter” tour this week in Los Angeles at the SoFi Stadium, where she’ll be gracing the stage five times through May 9. Share Share via Close extra sharing options As expected, the Beyhive (a.k.a. her most dedicated fans) showed out with their western-inspired…

“It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.” That’s one of Walt Disney’s most popular quotes, often used in the context of the theme park marvels imagined by the company he created. Over the decades Walt Disney Imagineering, the secretive arm of the Walt Disney Co. devoted to theme park…

Onscreen, multihyphenate screenwriter-director-producer Paul Feig is best known for fun and funny films such as “Bridesmaids,” “Last Christmas” and “A Simple Favor.” And offscreen, he’s known for his impeccable sense of style, enthusiastic embrace of cocktail culture (his Artingstall’s gin brand makes frequent cameos in his movies) and, it turns…

From Scent Fair L.A. to Jacquemus’ newest boutique, May’s offerings will give you the necessary refresh.

In the wake of the Eaton fire, there are ghosts in Altadena. Not literal ghosts — though that could depend on who you ask — but an army of figurative phantoms, like the lonely chimneys that mark the plots that century-old homes once filled or the shells of storefronts that…

As Savant Young carefully wipes down his charcoal gray 1973 Mazda RX-3 inside the Vintage Japanese Motor Union clubhouse, he pauses to apologize for being so focused on his car. “It gets so dusty in here,” he explains, gesturing around the space that’s situated in a mural-lined industrial pocket of…

On the tip of Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood, beyond the vape-scented sidewalks and partygoers waiting for their ride-shares, there’s a velvet-roped portal to another dimension. Every first Saturday of the month, those in the know gather at the historic Spotlight nightclub for Simon Says, the city’s most daring, avant-garde LGBTQ+…

Caitlin Villarreal felt giddy the first time she stepped inside the Whitley Heights rental, a storied 1926 Mediterranean-style penthouse with towering ceilings, hand-carved wooden beams and a pair of arched bookcases alongside an oversize fireplace. “It had good energy,” Villarreal said of the 1,500-square-foot apartment she rents for $5,300 a…

In L.A., there are two types of locals: those who have a Google Maps list filled with recommendations ready to go for every scenario. And those those who panic at the very thought of having to curate an itinerary, whether it be for an overzealous auntie who’s in town and…

I didn’t come to Southern California to find love. I came because I was tired. Tired of working too many hours with a chronic illness. Tired of my side gig running ultramarathons. Tired of dating men in New York who looked great on paper but left me feeling even more…

Bob Gurr has often joked that if it’s at Disneyland and it moves, he likely had a hand in its design. Gurr first started working for Disney in late 1954, just months before Disneyland would open in July 1955, and is one of the figures instrumental in the look, feel…

Taylor Tomlinson, the comedian and writer who has hosted the CBS talk and variety show “After Midnight” for two seasons, has lived in Los Angeles for nine years. But thanks to a robust stand-up schedule (her now-in-progress “The Save Me Tour” has 76 dates booked across North America and Europe…

Three years ago, on the 10th anniversary of Pope Francis’ papacy, I wrote a story describing the humble Jesuit-born Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the first pope to be “a bit of a Californian.” Yes, he was from Argentina, not the United States, and no, he never visited the “best coast”…

Angelenos are understandably worried about the toxins deposited by smoke and ash from the Eaton and Palisades urban wildfires in January, but after L.A. Times Plants tested soil around eight burn areas, we discovered some uncomfortable truths: — The results vary considerably. For instance, at two burned homes the lead…

• The Los Feliz Albertsons’ unofficial Instagram page has thousands of followers, including celebrities like Kristen Schaal and Karina Longworth.• Until now, the creators of the meme-based fan account have been a mystery. Here, they tell us why they made it and how it connects the neighborhood. Given its fame,…

In early April, 31-year-old social producer Kimberleigh Anderson joined a group of about 60 in the mirror-lined studio at the Pickle Factory dance studio at the Frogtown Creative compound, removing her shoes and stretching on the black-padded floor. She was there for an Intro to Popstar Dance class led by…

The 24th summer of movies under the stars at Hollywood Forever Cemetery will begin Memorial Day weekend when Cinespia screens “The Big Lebowski” on May 24. The next night comes a 30th anniversary presentation of “Clueless,” followed by a May 31 screening of “Blue Velvet” and tribute to director David…

Charlie Sampson competes in the National Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City in December 1982. (Denver Post / Getty Images) Bull rides, rope tricks and a crowd just as focused on history as the thrill — the inaugural Charlie Sampson Rodeo is set for June 28 in Norco, Calif., and it’s…

It’s 8 a.m. on a Saturday and cars are starting to roll into the parking lot next to Unincorporated Coffee in Altadena. There’s a green 1979 Mercedes 300SD Turbo Diesel in the corner, sitting next to a rust-orange vintage Mustang. Across from it, a shiny blue Volkswagen Mk4 R32 takes…

Sebastien Lagree would like to make one thing clear: “This. Is. Not. Pilates.” Signage at the West Hollywood location of the Megaformer Studio. (Stella Kalinina / For The Times) The global fitness entrepreneur is talking about the Lagree Method, his patented workout. You may be familiar with it: About 50…

Los Angeles has a reputation for being exercise-obsessed for a reason. Our city is home to studios and gyms fit for Hollywood actors, models and influencers. (The trainer at your CrossFit class might just be the next shredded lead in the latest action franchise.) And there’s never a shortage of…

On a Saturday night in Beverly Hills, nearly 150 stylish people filter into a grandiose ballroom for an exclusive event. Martinis are flowing and skinny French fries are arriving on small plates. Upbeat music booms over the speakers, and laughter fills the lively space, which is adorned with marble walls,…

Making a comedy-music album based on secrets shared by internet strangers might not seem like an obvious step for Jordan Firstman, who stars in FX’s “English Teacher” and Rachel Sennott’s new HBO show that’s being called the “It” pilot of the season. But there is nothing about Firstman’s career that…

With the wind whipping my hair in every direction, I blasted out of Los Angeles International Airport. On my way northward and speeding in my white Mustang convertible, I careened wildly through the city and then the canyons. My heart pounded; my thoughts raced. I could only think about Nick’s…

After four of the 30 designers lost their homes and Showcase furnishings in the Eaton Fire, the committee supporting the Pasadena Showcase House of Design wasn’t sure it could stage this year’s 60th annual event. Yet, in a testament to the power of community, the designers persevered, managing to source…

The Disneyland Resort is turning 70 in July, and it has never missed an opportunity to throw a party — especially one rooted in nostalgia. For the year-long event, a number of fan favorites are making their return, in addition to some new shows and tweaks to favorite attractions. The…

“Star Trek” is a franchise that’s always seemed ripe for exploration in a theme park. Space travel, aliens, magic-like technology and, perhaps most importantly, an underlying belief in human-centered optimism. Encounter someone who saw “Star Trek: The Experience” in Las Vegas, which opened in the late ’90s and ran for…

Esty wears ASHISH set and King of Sneakers rollerskates. It’s a Thursday night and West Coast rap anthems are thumping over the sound system. A group of O.G.s are playing spades at a nearby table. Skaters are lacing up their customized Stacy Adams boots, which are fully equipped with fiberglass…

The spacious kitchen of a rented house just off Melrose Avenue in Beverly Grove is in full 420 mode. The stovetop is dotted with Le Creuset cookware. A peppercorn-studded prime rib rests on the counter next to an apothecary jar full of weed. And two videographers and a boom mic…

A funny thing happened almost a decade ago when I told my girlfriends that I was embarking on a two-week anniversary trip with my husband. Eyebrows were raised. One friend shook her head and said, “That would quickly become problematic.” Another said she never goes on vacation solely with her…

Susan Ware spends each morning, from around 8:30 to 11:30 a.m., crafting jokes. “I’ve got notebooks. I’ve got sides of the newspaper where I’ve written in the margins. I’ve got jokes written everywhere,” the 80-year-old said. As she thumbs through legal sheets, throwing out old stuff that’s not funny anymore,…

Want to learn more about California native plants? Take a deep dive with experts from the Theodore Payne Foundation and California Native Plant Society April 26-27 at the L.A. Times Plants’ Native Plant Booth at the Festival of Books, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on April 26 and 10…

The first thrift store I remember going to as a child was called Amvets. It was a warehouse-like space that sat between the alley of an apartment complex, a trailer park and a gas station. I’d spend hours under the rows of industrial fluorescent lights playing with the plastic toys…

After telling me to close my eyes, the voice instructs me to notice the sounds around me. I hear the drone of Tibetan bowls mixing with an insect chorus, scattered yawns and what sounds like a flowing brook. Upon opening my eyes, I discover the ‘brook’ is, in actuality, a…

We met on Facebook Marketplace. After a brief FaceTime call, we were locked in. The night she moved in was a disaster. She arrived an hour early, so I was surprised to see her in the driveway. She’s beautiful, I thought. Whoops. “I’m Jack,” I choked out nervously to my…

Growing up in Westchester, Amanda Gorman’s Sundays were dedicated to one thing: church. “I went to a historically Black church and I feel like it’s always an occasion to go to church as an African American,” says 27-year-old Gorman, who became the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history in 2021.…

Some people see trash and weeds and walk on by. Others rail against the slobs of the world, or agencies that don’t do their jobs. And some, like environmental scientist Marie Massa, roll up their sleeves and get to work. In Massa’s case, that’s meant spending six to nine hours…

On a recent Saturday afternoon in the Arts District, a group of seven friends — plus a tiny dog — contorted and twisted their bodies to fit inside a light brown, 8-foot-tall box that had a mirrored door inscribed with the words “Memory Archive.” Once they were all mostly inside,…

Orlando, Fla. — There is no theme park land quite like Dark Universe. Tucked inside Universal Studios’ showstopping new Florida park Epic Universe, don’t expect warm reassurance as you enter the space. Coffins, a crypt and a creepy statue of a young girl are what greets us. Round the bend, and the…

Here’s the dilemma: Fruits and vegetables are among the neediest of flora because they require lots of nutrients and water to produce the delicious, healthful foods we love to eat. California native plants, on the other hand, prefer leaner and much dryer soils. Given that most SoCal gardeners are working…

Judith Joseph has spent most of her life building an impressive résumé. She is a board-certified psychiatrist, chair of the Women in Medicine Initiative for Columbia University’s Vagelos College of Physicians & Surgeons, a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at NYU Langone Medical Center, the principal investigator of her own…

The stalactites and stalagmites of Sequoia National Park’s Crystal Cave, a sprawling subterranean wonder that’s been closed for four years, will be accessible again this summer. But to get in during the open season of May 23 through Sept. 7, you’ll need tickets, which are available now. The guided tours…

In our Between a Rock series, we share thrilling tales from local adventurers about close encounters in California nature, whether it’s a story of being stalked by a mountain lion or getting snowed in on a simple day hike.

New Zealand-born actor Antony Starr, best known to American audiences as arch-villain Homelander from the Prime Video superhero parody “The Boys,” says that although he’s lived in Los Angeles for the better part of a decade, his busy shooting schedules have kept him far afield for long stretches. In Sunday…

There were no vacancies beneath the old neon Farm House Motel sign last Saturday — no guest rooms at all, in fact. But the 1950s Riverside property, now known as the Farm House Collective, was busier than it has been for decades. By 10 a.m., when a ribbon-cutting marked the…

After a few years of navigating widowhood, the women in my grief group encouraged me to get back “out there.” I decided to give Match.com a try. In my mind’s eye, I envisioned a financially and emotionally secure, 60-something professional with interests in the arts, fitness and travel. My profile…

A sense of fun permeates the rooms of Cecilia and Abraham Beltran’s colorful one-bedroom apartment in Long Beach. The adventurous couple enjoys crisscrossing Los Angeles to explore its treasures, from the peaceful gardens of the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens where they are members, to the delicious dim…

Tucked away on a quiet part of La Cienega Avenue in the Culver City Arts District, Black Image Center feels reminiscent of a collegiate Black student center. On a recent Tuesday, five people were gathered for the center’s daily community co-working series. Laughter and casual conversation swam above the sound…

In the hours, weeks and months since the Eaton fire, pictures of Altadena’s destruction have been almost unavoidable. Tens of thousands of photos and videos of burned homes have found their way online, a relentless stream of devastation for weary eyes. And yet, the scale of what happened in Altadena…

It was clear while ascending to the Pacific Design Center that Design.Space — the inaugural retail experience blending rare design, art and fashion — was for the heads. In the parking lot, I spotted a woman wearing a coat from the Row, another in a pair of Miu Miu thong-boots.…

It was May of 2020, in the thick of the pandemic. There was nobody around, literally no one anywhere on any of the trails. I worked as a full-time trauma nurse. People couldn’t even imagine the things we saw every day, all day long. I lived and breathed running. If…

Monday was momentous for the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing although it still looked like a bridge to nowhere from the 101 Freeway, where more than 300,000 vehicles stream endlessly every day. Nearly three years after the project began, the critical milestone was visible only to the government officials, scientists and…

The genius knows all. It knows my height, my weight, my hydration, my cardio stamina — even, regrettably, my body’s visceral fat percentage. I’m standing on a bioelectrical impedance device — which looks a lot like a scale but with metal handles and metal foot pads — and it’s sending…

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Growing up, Huang Wen-chun remembers listening to friends and family complain about life in Taiwan. So when she saw news reports declaring Taiwan the happiest place in Asia, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride. “When I was young, everyone believed that the moon was rounder abroad,”…

To television viewers, Kat Dennings is probably best known for playing down-on-her-luck characters — first in a six-season run as Max Black on the CBS sitcom “Two Broke Girls,” and, more recently, as Tim Allen’s estranged-but-reunited daughter on ABC’s “Shifting Gears,” which aired its first-season finale earlier this month (all…

In the early 1990s, Kelvin Anderson Sr. built a makeshift recording studio in the back of his Long Beach record store, a vinyl-filled paradise called the World Famous VIP Records on the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. He wanted to give youth a creative…

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about a quote widely attributed to Tennessee Williams: “We live in a perpetually burning building, and what we must save from it, all the time, is love.” When the Palisades fire broke out in January, forcing my teenage daughter and me to evacuate from…

The ball pops up in the air and soars into an arc, drifting against the blue sky, then comes down with a plunk on the glass wall behind Jon Guerra. Out. “Your swing is too hard,” Guerra says to me. For the record: 2:26 p.m. March 27, 2025An earlier version…

The all-things-puppetry extravaganza that is the yearly Bob Baker Day at Chinatown’s Los Angeles State Historic Park has landed on its themes and parade-leading grand marshal for its 2025 edition, set for April 13. Animated characters SpongeBob SquarePants and Patrick Star will launch the festivities at 10 a.m. with a…

Here’s a primer for newbies who complain that Southern California has no seasons: You know it’s spring when our orange California poppies start to bloom and the garden tours begin. And this year, 16 tours are opening the gates to dozens of private gardens usually closed to the public. The…

In a sea of people, you might catch a glimpse of one. A tiny head barely peeking out of the top of a carrier. Or a small, scrunched face slumbering in a stroller. Sometimes, the magnificent creature will declare itself with a distinct cry and you know a fresh human…

• A new pink rose was discovered in the Malibu garden of singer-actor-director Barbra Streisand. • Streisand and her gardener, master rosarian Dan Bifano, spotted the bubble-gum-pink “sport” blooming on a branch of a fragrant, deep-red rose known as Lasting Love. • As the owner, Streisand got naming rights for…

Tamsen Fadal had been a news anchor at WPIX for over a decade when one night in 2019, she was unable to pronounce basic words on the teleprompter. During a commercial break, heart racing and brain foggy, Fadal went to lie down on the women’s bathroom floor and didn’t return…

This story is part of Image’s March Devotion issue, exploring various forms of reverence, love and worship. For the issue, the artist Fox Maxy directed an editorial on grief, shot by Devyn Galindo, and made an accompanying video. In this as-told-to interview, Maxy gives the backstory. Grief is the biggest…

Can hotels legally ban children? With spring breaks starting momentarily and summer vacations not far away, the question is puzzling a wide scope of California travelers — parents booking their next family vacation as well as adults looking for a child-free escape. And the answer is complicated. The issue flared…

Mark Duplass offers a warning before he starts talking about his ideal Sunday. “Be prepared,” he says. “There’s not gonna be a lot of leaving the house today.” In Sunday Funday, L.A. people give us a play-by-play of their ideal Sunday around town. Find ideas and inspiration on where to…

My mother, Donna, died unexpectedly earlier this month. On a recent Tuesday morning, she got up as normal, and even went to the salon. That evening, she was in the hospital. Thirty-six hours later, she was gone. These have been among the most difficult weeks of my life. I spent…

“I’m just an American guy in a pickup truck,” said Stephen Beech at the end of one of our early dates. It was Valentine’s Day 1993, and he was dropping me off at my Santa Monica apartment. His comment was supposed to act as a deterrent as he explained why…

The emails arrive in people’s inboxes a few times each year with subject lines like: “Want more positivity in your life?” “We all need this right now!” or “Do something for YOU.” Recipients might be inclined to immediately trash these messages, mistaking them for spam promoting the latest weight–loss drug…

Park rangers fired from the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and Channel Islands National Park heard Thursday that their jobs will soon be reinstated. The nonpartisan National Parks Conservation Assn. said in a news release Thursday that as a result of recent court orders, “the National Park Service is…

Four weeks after the Eaton fire claimed his home, bladesmith Nicholas Berkofsky was back at work in his East Los Angeles studio. His first project? A hand-forged pizza cutter to benefit his neighborhood pizzeria, Pizza of Venice, which was destroyed in the fire that swept through Altadena. As he walked…

Here in auto-saturated Los Angeles, the bumper sticker has always been a healthy form of self-expression. But in recent years, they’ve become far weirder than your average tourist-trap souvenir or presidential endorsement. “This new wave of stickers,” writes Times contributor Renée Reizman, “is more concerned with cracking self-deprecating jokes or…

Before the January fires came, Brian Gardner had 300 Polaroids on the wall of his basement saloon, the Hye West Saloon of Santa Poco. He had bottles of booze too — well over 1,000, to be exact — but the Polaroids he hung around the perimeter of the 300-square-foot bar…

The team of masons, covered in dust and sweat, had been working in the ruins of the Altadena house for hours when a shout echoed across the wreckage. Volunteer Devon Douglas emerged from a pit of rubble that had once been the living room, staggering under the weight of a…

At Soho Warehouse, two lovers wear their hearts on their sleeves.

How do you express your devotion? This spring, craft meaning with new styles from Tory Burch to Prada.

New imaging from NASA provides a better understanding of the slow, mysterious Palos Verdes landslide. It shows the direction of the earthy movement — west, toward the coast — as well as the velocity, as much as 4 inches per week. The analysis confirms what those of us who grew…

Long before Leslie David Baker took on the role of Stanley Hudson — the grumpy pretzel- and crossword-loving salesman on the long-running comedy “The Office” — he was working as an administrator for the health department in his Chicago hometown, while doing commercials and community theater on the side. It…

Louis Vuitton x Murakami Side Trunk MM, Superflat Monogram Set of Chouchous, Monogram Multicolor Chouchous. In January, I was in a taxi driving through London’s Soho neighborhood when I looked out the window and saw a line of people stretched down an entire city block. It was after dark, but…

It was a beautiful February day in Los Angeles after the fires. The sun burned hot overhead. I pulled my Ducati motorcycle into a spot outside his restaurant in the Arts District. I was hot, thirsty, hungry — three simple needs that instantly faded when I saw him. Michael. Even…

On any given weekend, Degnan Boulevard, bookmarked by West 43rd Street, vibrates with activity. As you walk down the street, the sound of African drums blends into Snoop Dogg’s “Drop It Like It’s Hot.” The music comes from massive speakers propped beside various street vendors: people selling clothes, books, cannabis,…

It’s 10 a.m. on a Friday at SURFCORE Fitness, a boutique gym in Mid-City, and a 52-year-old woman is following an exercise circuit as her trainer watches on. The fashion consultant, who is squeezing in a session before work, lifts relatively light weights while doing simple movements to build strength:…

In case you didn’t get the memo, March is Tomatozania-mania-party time in Southern California, when specialty growers offer pop-up sales of hard-to-find tomato varieties, rain or shine. We’re talking serious exotics with a range of flavors from smoky to sweet and evocative names like Thorburn’s Terra Cotta, Cherokee Purple, Evil…

“I am technically a princess,” says Paz de la Huerta over lunch at the Chateau Marmont — her castle, if you recall her appearance in Lana Del Rey’s “Video Games.” Born in New York City to Judith Bruce and Spanish aristocrat Ricardo Ignacio de la Huerta, Duke of Mandas y…

We were a small but mighty group for our third Los Angeles Times subscriber hike on Saturday. The third L.A. Times subscriber hike took place at Elysian Park. (Deborah Vankin / Los Angeles Times) Eight attendees and several Times staffers gathered at the Elysian Park West Loop trailhead on a…

The Hollywood Premiere Motel hasn’t won any prizes lately. It has a 1.5 star rating on Trip Advisor, which ranks it 112th of 118 motels in Los Angeles. “Never again,” writes one reviewer. “I prefer to sleep in my car,” writes another. But the motel’s chances of being named a…

Adam Devine (“Workaholics,” “Pitch Perfect”), who reprises his role as youth pastor Kelvin Gemstone on the HBO televangelist comedy “The Righteous Gemstones” for a fourth and final season that begins airing (and streaming on Max) Sunday, won’t share many details about how the Danny McBride–created series ends, besides that it…

Hello again! Maybe you remember my L.A. Affairs essay from 2022 that described my relationship with Ruben. We married in Mexico in 2019 when I was 74 — my first marriage. But COVID-19 and pneumonia brought him down in November 2021, and I was widowed at 76. I’m truly at…

Is this the moment for a spring break in Mexico or Canada? The idea might seem iffy as the Trump administration confounds its neighbors by toggling tariffs on and off and throwing countless jobs into doubt. Yet for travelers, industry veterans say, this seesaw experience won’t make an immediate difference…

Walking barefoot across the cool tile floor, her silver face gems twinkling in the sunlight, sound bath practitioner and energy healer Maya Andreeva distributed paper cups filled with brown liquid to the 20 mostly youngish adults seated on yoga mats and blankets on the ground. They had gathered this Saturday…

“The single best thing” Mel Robbins has ever done began with a stressful moment on her son’s prom night. The bestselling author, former attorney and host of one of the world’s most popular podcasts is talking about her latest book, “The Let Them Theory: A Life-Changing Tool That Millions of…

It was October of 1996, and my boyfriend Gary and I were on a backpacking weekend date. We planned to hike the Pine Ridge Trail up to the Sykes Hot Springs near Big Sur. It is approximately 20 miles round trip. Gary and I had been dating a few months.…

As an avid collector of vintage decor, Catie Brown feels lucky she doesn’t have to cope with one of Los Angeles’ most common rental dilemmas: limited space. “I wanted a two-bedroom apartment but didn’t think it was financially feasible,” Brown says of moving out on her own for the first…

Weekend Max Mara X Sebago A penny loafer with subtle studs and detachable tassels? Weekend Max Mara and Sebago have our attention with their new, three-year co-branded collaboration, launching with a reimagining of Sebago’s iconic Dan penny loafer, a cult shoe that gained popularity among East Coast Ivy Leaguers in…

Catalina Island, which has plenty of horses in its history but stopped offering rides to visitors in 2008, is bringing trail rides back. The fledgling, Avalon-based Catalina Horseback Adventures offered its first guided rides Feb. 22. Most rides take 45-90 minutes and include hills, valleys, clifftops with ocean views and…

On the golf course just outside the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, thousands of people stride across the grass, phones in their hands and eyes on their screens. “Who has a shiny Oshawott they can trade? What about a Blitzle? Any Pansages?” one person asks. “I’ve got a Snivy!” someone shouts…

Melissa Fumero’s sons, at 5 and 8 years old, are almost at the age that they can prep breakfast for themselves. When the time comes, it will be a help for the busy mom, who also doubles as the queen of network television. The actor is perhaps best known for…

I had just slipped back into bed after our infant daughter’s 4 a.m. feeding when my partner, Sean, turned over and said, “We should go now. I smell smoke.” Our air-quality monitor leaped from green to yellow. My breath dried my throat. We hadn’t gotten an evacuation notice yet. “Let’s…

First came the “wows,” followed by waves of emotion. “I thought we were done with the tears,” said Seth Fonti, a 44-year-old father of two, his eyes glassy. “Apparently not.” As Fonti and his wife, Rachael Klein, 44, gazed at the 8-by-10-inch oil painting of the Pacific Palisades home they…

To set foot inside the Gallery, a new restaurant and bar in downtown, is to be whisked into a world fit for a theme park. Walk in via its bar, and gone are views of Olympic Boulevard. In the place of windows, you’ll find a fantastical, idealized take on a…

When Dylan Anderson was eight years old, he discovered an old telescope of his grandfather’s. The pirate-esque rig was dusty from years in the garage, but Anderson was instantly intrigued. “I was like, ‘Hey, what’s this?’ ” the now-18-year-old member of the Los Angeles Astronomical Society said. “I saw Jupiter…

There’s a big bloom coming to the Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch, along with many tiny flutters. On March 1, the property alongside I-5 opens for its annual springtime seasonal celebration, with color and scent supplied by 55 acres of ranunculus flowers that typically bloom for six to eight weeks.…

Hi — I’m Deborah Vankin, a wellness writer for the L.A. Times. I’m not sure about you, but 2025 has been a whopper of a year so far. Especially since the fires in January forced us indoors, robbing us of the opportunity to enjoy the great Los Angeles outdoors during…

Shaadee Ighanian didn’t lose her home in the Eaton fire, but when her close friends with a baby did, the former children’s apparel designer wanted to help by making a quilt for 7-month-old Luna. In this series, we highlight independent makers and artists, from glassblowers to fiber artists, who are…

With a toddler, a Shih Tzu and several chickens, actor Poppy Liu has a full house. “I’m raising so many beings,” said the “Hacks” star, who recently appeared in the Netflix drama series “No Good Deed” and will star alongside Tessa Thompson in the streamer’s upcoming series “His and Hers.”…

When Mark told me on our first date that he co-owned a mortgage bank with his father, Wes, who had been to federal prison for fraud, I should have run away. After all, I’m a career prosecutor. I read rap sheets to dissect a person’s past and predict future behavior.…

At the southern edge of the Mojave Desert on an unusually warm Saturday in February, dozens of people mill throughout the living space of a 2,300-square-foot three-bed, two-bath house with a connected two-car garage. A couple gliding past the open kitchen marvel at the room’s “good natural lighting.” In the…

At any given moment, you’re likely to find Snoop Dog wherever eyeballs (bloodshot or otherwise) wander, from T-Mobile ads and bottles of 19 Crimes wine to Radio City Music Hall for last week’s “Saturday Night Live” 50th anniversary concert. In late January, he performed at a cryptocurrency-themed inauguration party celebrating…

The coffin, a life-size wood-and-iron box, sits in the middle of Kate Mueller’s living room as if in preparation for a wake, but its intricate details — drawers, windows, an elaborate hand-carved bronze clasp and decorative bracing along the top — hint at something more. “I can see that it…

Prolonged desk work can lead to musculoskeletal problems ranging from annoying aches and pains to injuries. This month, we launched a six-part series showing you how to stretch and strengthen your body parts to prepare them for marathon sitting sessions at your desk. We’ll roll out a new exercise routine…

Hit the road in L.A., and you’re likely to spot a cheeky bumper sticker … or 17. As Times contributor Renée Reizman reports, the medium that was once popularized by Dwight D. Eisenhower’s presidential campaign has recently is undergoing a creative renaissance. Rather than simply endorsing a candidate or memorializing…

Jeanne Vaccaro, a scholar and curator from Kansas, always wanted to become a bumper sticker person. For years, she collected stickers from artists, musicians and bookstores, but she kept them away from her vehicle, afraid that they’d damage the paint. “It’s like a tattoo,” Vaccaro told me in Echo Park…

Los Angeles is a city built on optimism. “I guess I could be a TikTok influencer/actor/future senator if I really try.” We can imagine a better day, because imagination is in the air and the soil of this place, no matter how cold the winter gets. Actually, believe it or…

At a Los Angeles comedy club recently, Jenny Yang was working through some new material, including calling out some surprising trends among Gen Z. Her humor was in full swing as she engaged the audience. “Why aren’t you having sex?” she asked an unsuspecting 22-year-old woman, prompting howls of laughter.…

A debilitating divorce that netted me half a condo and little self-esteem had landed me here: standing in line waiting for the doors to open to L.A.’s Hollywood Men, the kind of neon-sign male strip club made famous in the “Magic Mike” movies. I was not alone, having begged my…

Seated at a folding table in a large sun-filled room, Melody Sherwood adjusted the portable microphone stand and started to read. “One of Cary Grant’s favorite things to do was to tell stories,” she began in a voice like an old-fashioned schoolteacher. “He had an abundant supply. One of my…

On a recent weekday evening, I found myself in a romantic position for which I have had zero training: a dating coach. Yet there I was, at an East Hollywood bar, listening to and analyzing a conversation between two prospective partners. The pair had already debated local hiking spots, yet…

Last July, San Diego resident Trisha Malone applied for a disability exemption at a booth just outside the Disneyland and California Adventure theme parks. The Disability Access Service, or DAS, pass she wanted would have allowed her to avoid waiting in time-consuming lines for popular Disney rides. Malone met with…

Once upon a time, Southern California was full of homes with yards full of gardens. Growing food was a given for many families, especially during the lean times such as the Great Depression and World War II. These days, however, the need for affordable homes has moved many SoCal residents…

I’ve always been a nervous flier. The second I take my assigned seat in a plane, I pull my headphones over my ears and glue my eyes shut in an attempt to drown out the sound of a plane taking off. The tactic usually works, but with the recent fatal…

Prolonged desk work can lead to musculoskeletal problems ranging from annoying aches and pains to injuries. This month, we launched a six-part series showing you how to stretch and strengthen your body parts to prepare them for marathon sitting sessions at your desk. We’ll roll out a new exercise routine…

For years, Los Angeles has been building up its accessory dwelling unit (or ADU) housing stock, and now these small homes are proving to be more than just a solution to the housing crisis. ADUs are unexpectedly becoming a lifeline, housing people displaced by the recent L.A. wildfires. As California…

• Yoga adds flexibility and strengthens lower body joints, which makes it a great addition to your hiking routine. • Try these structured events in L.A. and Orange counties that combine the activities. • We’ve also found trail-adjacent yoga classes, including in Runyon Canyon and Griffith Park, so you can…

Artist David Hockney was a driver: after visiting and then moving to Los Angeles in 1964, he zipped around the Hollywood Hills in his red 450 SL Mercedes, perhaps to Chateau Marmont, his spot in Malibu or the studio at multimedia workshop Gemini G.E.L. on Santa Monica Boulevard. “For David…

We met at the car wash. Seated in the shade, we struck up a conversation about our Thanksgivings. He asked to meet the next day at Lifeguard Tower 17 to surf. When I showed up, Jon, already in the water, waved and smiled at me. We surfed together, fulfilling a…

About five years ago, when Meredith Hagner (whose characters range from clueless to maniacal in “Search Party,” “Vacation Friends” and “Bad Monkey,” to name just a few) fully committed to giving up her rent-controlled Williamsburg apartment in Brooklyn, N.Y., to make a home on the West Coast, she thought she…

When Debbie Henry evacuated her Altadena home in early January, she packed about enough clothing for a weekend getaway. It’s what she’d done the last three times she evacuated due to wildfire threats; on each occasion, she returned home within a few hours. But this time was different. Overnight, the…

Of our five senses, smell might be the most ignored. And yet the role it plays in our lives is inescapable. Smell activates many parts of our brain, including our limbic system, which plays a key role in memory recall. That’s why the aroma of baking bread might bring you…

Eleanor Norman, 11, and her father Nick attend “Somebody I Love Lives in L.A.” (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) On a recent Saturday afternoon, at an art therapy event at Pasadena City Church, 11-year-old Eleanor Norman sat at a table and dipped her brush into the watercolors in front…

Summer online reservations for Yosemite National Park have been postponed indefinitely. After the park announced several months ago that a new system was in the works, the online reservation page now reads, “Yosemite National Park anticipates sharing details about this year’s reservation system early in 2025.” The implementation of a…

Prolonged desk work can lead to musculoskeletal problems ranging from annoying aches and pains to injuries. This month, we launched a six-part series showing you how to stretch and strengthen your body parts to prepare them for marathon sitting sessions at your desk. We’ll roll out a new exercise routine…

While it’s true that who you know can matter just as much as talent, for Topher Grace, the connection that ultimately launched his career was formed in New Hampshire, not L.A. In Sunday Funday, L.A. people give us a play-by-play of their ideal Sunday around town. Find ideas and inspiration…

Much of Angeles National Forest reopened Thursday after a weeks-long closure because of wildfires and red flag warnings, but some beloved trails and campgrounds will remain inaccessible while the land recovers from the blazes. The areas that burned in the Eaton fire in January and Bridge fire in September will…

We shared our first kiss while studying poetry in the foothills of the Rockies. “I’ll move anywhere with you,” I declared one year later. “Anywhere except L.A.” After a childhood on the suburban edges of a Midwestern prairie, I wanted big sky and mountains almost as much as I wanted…

Medical marijuana patients and other 21-and-older weed consumers who left behind their pipes, bongs, rolling trays and other pot paraphernalia in the recent wildfires in L.A. County can get new gear — free of charge — at six West Hollywood dispensaries through an accessories drive organized by the local cannabis…

Prolonged desk work can lead to musculoskeletal problems ranging from annoying aches and pains to injuries. This month, we launched a six-part series showing you how to stretch and strengthen your body parts to prepare them for marathon sitting sessions at your desk. We’ll roll out a new exercise routine…

Prolonged desk work can lead to musculoskeletal problems ranging from continual pain to injuries. This month, we launched a six-part series showing you how to stretch and strengthen your body to prepare them for marathon sitting sessions at your desk. We’ll roll out a new exercise routine that focuses on…

The world inside a downtown L.A. warehouse seemed to come to a halt, and all I saw was a blur of colors, where pinkish-red hues bled into shades of yellow and purple. And I was surprised at what I felt: rested but not tired. This was a deep, calming state,…

It’s now been a year since the luxury streetwear brand 424 opened its cave-like home and store on Melrose Place, and what the store offers on the block is decidedly different. In the words of founder Guillermo Andrade, “There’s a place for you here.” Andrade, who previously ran his store…

Angie Martin was the first client to arrive on Sunday morning at Pasadena City College, where a group of hairstylists and barbers were providing free hair services for people affected by the Eaton fire. After fleeing her Altadena home on the evening of Jan. 7, getting her hair done wasn’t…

• Unlike ash from vegetation fires, ash from burning buildings usually contains many toxins from melted plastics, electronics and other common household items. • Multiple federal, state and local agencies are working to clean up more than 16,000 homes and other structures damaged or destroyed in Pacific Palisades and Altadena;…

The first home Bozoma Saint John bought in L.A. was a condo in Marina del Rey. “It was the first time I bought anything on my own, and it was such a boost to my confidence,” said the entrepreneur, marketing executive and star of “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.” “L.A.…

My first news of the Palisades fire came from a message in my neighborhood WhatsApp group. I learned from my neighbors in Del Rey that a blaze had broken out in the hills — above the neighborhood I grew up in, where my parents still live in our family home…

We used to drive up the coast on a motorcycle. Me, with my arms tightly wrapped around him and my earbuds in, listening to Puccini and singing “O mio babbino caro” on the back of the bike, as I watched the glitter on the Pacific, the palm trees, the surfers…

Togetherness can be a mixed blessing. As the Palisades fire raged, every member of the Cullen family — deeply rooted in Pacific Palisades since the 1960s — found themselves displaced. 10 family members from multiple households there were forced to flee the homes they owned as the inferno swallowed up…

In Fiona Simpson’s Sherman Oaks bedroom, a warm and art-filled space teeming with baskets of yarn and colorful weavings, a Leclerc floor loom from the 1980s occupies nearly as much area as her queen-size bed. On a recent Saturday in January, with binaural beats playing softly in the background, Simpson…

• Eight water districts have issued water advisories in L.A. County because of the Palisades and Eaton fires. There are concerns that the water might be contaminated by toxins from the fires. • If water systems lose pressure during urban wildfires, it allows bacteria and contaminants such as volatile organic…

As historic fires continue to burn across Southern California, a number of Los Angeles brands have started selling limited edition merchandise to raise crucial funds for relief efforts. Pulling from themes of unity and strength, brick-and-mortar stores, as well as online shops and a few celebrities, have designed items for…

An accounting of the damage of the Eaton fire is still ongoing. Since starting in early January, it has burned more than 14,000 acres, destroyed thousands of homes and businesses in Altadena and, as of Friday, killed 16 people. Now that the fire is 65% contained, we can begin to…

Sitting for long periods can cause pain and injuries. Try these stretches to alleviate problem areas like your neck, lower back, wrists and shoulders.

Los Angeles is a place that feels physically and emotionally fractured these days. For tens of thousands who are displaced, routine is a near impossibility. Others carry on with little visible change to their daily life. Yet that doesn’t mean there isn’t a heavy inner struggle. How do you grasp…

With containment of the Palisades and Eaton fires improving, some residents are now returning to their neighborhoods to sift through the rubble. But the thousands of victims whose homes or businesses have burned down or been damaged are now facing a thicket of post-fire paperwork. That may include navigating confusing…

Tales of the miraculous have always encircled the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine. The story of its 1950 founding goes that the spiritual guru Paramahansa Yogananda purchased the 10-acre Pacific Palisades property from an oil company president, after the oilman had a vivid dream in which his land became a “church…

When Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion reopens Saturday in its classic, non-holiday form it will essentially mark the completion of a nearly yearlong refurbishment project, one that added significant backstory and lore to one of the resort’s most famed and mysterious attractions. A fixture at the park since its 1969 opening, the…

A week after the devastating Eaton fire tore through Altadena, killing 17, with 24 people missing as of this writing, and destroying more than 7,000 structures, cars were double-parked outside Knowhow Shop in Highland Park. People from all over Los Angeles, their faces obscured by masks due to raining ash,…

On July 1, 2020, my life changed forever. What should have been a regular Wednesday, hunkering down with my family just four months into the COVID-19 pandemic, was the day my husband died. He had two sudden massive heart attacks, and after trying to save him for 45 minutes, the…

Since the fires started last week, a Zuma Beach parking lot has been a Los Angeles Fire Department Incident Command Center. It has become a 24-7 hub of activity, filled with fire trucks and off-duty first responders recovering from grueling 12- to 24-hour shifts fighting the nearby flames. But there’s…

For years rumors swirled about a cult living on the secluded property at the end of Fair Oaks Avenue in the San Gabriel Mountain foothills bordering Altadena. There were stories of wild bacchanals involving nudists, and grand parties attended by the likes of artist Andy Warhol, jazz musician Charlie Parker…

• Altadena’s 104-year holiday lighting tradition known as Christmas Tree Lane escaped damage from the fire despite a torrent of embers coming down on its historic deodar cedars. • Fierce Santa Ana winds did break branches from some of the trees, but most on Santa Rosa Avenue — the real…

After 90 years of breeding and selling rare camellias and azaleas to customers all over the world, Nuccio’s Nurseries in Altadena is expected to close by the end of 2025. But the ongoing Eaton fire and its ashy aftermath don’t appear to be offering the ending the nursery’s owners had…

When our city went up in flames last week, everyone I know in Los Angeles was in emergency mode. Now, as a new week begins, it’s hard to know how to feel. For those of us living in neighborhoods not decimated by fire, the acute threat seems to have passed,…

To live in Los Angeles right now is to know someone who is suffering. If you’re lucky, your home is intact and your evacuation bag is still waiting by the door. Maybe you even have electricity. But chances are there is someone in your life — a family member, a…

Thousands of structures have been damaged in the fires that have besieged Los Angeles. Which means you likely know someone (or several people) who has experienced the loss of their home and beloved possessions. Your instinct is to reach out — and you should. But too often, we hear phrases…

January is usually an easy month to book a Southern California hotel room. Not this year. Driven by the fires that have uprooted hundreds of thousands of L.A. County residents, legions of displaced families and individuals are grabbing rooms in surrounding counties, especially along the coast and in the desert.…

It was my senior year at Van Nuys High. I had noticed her, especially because two of my buddies were drooling over her best friend who cruised the quad of the San Fernando Valley high school with the air of a temptress. Head over heels, my friends did everything they…

After five days of an unrelenting firestorm in Los Angeles County, medical experts are warning that the area’s smoke levels pose unique risks to expectant pregnant people and their unborn children. So what should pregnant L.A. residents do? First and foremost, doctors say they should follow local emergency guidance around…

Everyone knows California is disaster-prone, but there’s a familiar logic to the calamitous geography in this high-maintenance beauty of a state. Wildfires are supposed to be in the hills — in the wild — not on the beach, and certainly not inside the borders of one of the biggest and…

Multiple wildfires continue to ravage Los Angeles County, destroying thousands of structures and forcing more than 130,000 residents to evacuate, with much of the area under a red flag warning through Friday night. Although the most pressing concern is protecting our lungs from smoke and ash, wildfires can also affect…

Leaders of the Pasadena Jewish Temple & Center, which has served the Pasadena area for more than 100 years, has confirmed that the home of the Conservative synagogue and Jewish pre-school, B’nai Simcha, is among the many structural casualties of the Eaton Fire, which had burned 10,000 acres in Pasadena…

Among the losses in the devastating Eaton fire was the Bunny Museum, husband-and-wife Candace Frazee and Steve Lubanski’s grand ode to the world’s hoppiest animal, the rabbit. The Altadena museum, located on Lake Avenue, was one of L.A.’s quintessentially quirky institutions, a place that transported guests to a strange and…

“I’m gay so I can’t do the guitar solo,” quips Sam Buck. A grin plays across his face as the unmistakable jangle of Tim McGraw’s “I Like It, I Love It” wafts through the room. Members of the audience chuckle knowingly — the tall, bearded musician could absolutely shred it…

I’ve never felt weird about paying strangers to touch me. Massages, facials, martial arts — it’s all just bodywork to me. That is, until I booked my first professional back scratch with Julie Luther, the founder of Soft Touch ASMR Spa in Pasadena. Something about being touched softly made me…

Bestselling author Martha Beck has tried many things over her 62 years of life to quell the anxiety that’s been her constant companion since childhood. The Harvard-trained sociologist experimented with therapy, medication, self-compassion practices and many, many hours of meditation. Then, as collective worry spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic, Beck…

It’s Monday morning, the start of your work week. You’ve put the finishing touches on that big report, prepared for that imminent presentation. But it’s likely that there’s one aspect of the job you’re not ready for: the marathon of sitting at your desk all day. Time to start training.…

Last summer I had a chance to strike a deal with the devil. I sat, contemplating my choice — what I could live without to acquire the one thing I most desired. This was no arbitrary crossroads. Over the past 40 or so minutes I had confessed long-held goals and…

As a student, like many of us, I liked to read Henry David Thoreau. Many of his ringing one-liners thrilled me and got copied down in my commonplace book, but there was one sentence I hardly registered: “Every man is tasked to make his life, even in its details, worthy…

I was three years post-divorce, with a 12-year-old son and a newly adopted puppy, living in Park La Brea, where a community of single moms had come together. We were all free from the burden of marriage and entertained the idea of “getting back out there.” None of us had…

Although actor and comedian Joel McHale has lived in Los Angeles for nearly a quarter-century, he’s quick to point out that Sunday downtime here is a rarity. “I don’t think I’ve had a leisurely Sunday in L.A. since February,” he said during a mid-December interview. “I was gone for probably…

Clearly, there’s no shortage of flowers in Southern California. As I write this near the end of 2024, roses, iris and California fuchsia are still blooming in my Ventura garden, and hummingbirds are darting among tall orange whorls of lion’s tail (Leonotis leonurus) and fat magenta stalks of hummingbird sage.…

Jaclyn Cosgrove covers the (great!) outdoors at the Los Angeles Times. They started at The Times in 2017 and have written about wildfires, culture, protests, crime and county government. In 2022, they managed For Your Mind, a yearlong mental health project. Cosgrove is originally from rural Oklahoma and is a…

Has it occurred to you that civilization might be overrated? Me too. So I’ve been thinking about the natural world — actually, the many natural worlds contained within California, and how whole they can make us feel. With that and the new year in mind, here are a dozen seasonally…

This stands to be an interesting year — if not a potentially stressful one — as we transition leadership in this country. Just remember to care for yourself. With that top of mind, here’s a calendar of wellness activities, each tied to the mood and cadence of the month. There’s…

The ads on podcasts and social media were tantalizing: over-the-counter probiotic supplements that could ward off the worst effects of a hangover if taken before drinking. As a bourbon reviewer who enjoys the flavor of spirits but has always been easily prone to hangovers, Eric Burke was intrigued. He ordered…

Advertisement Advertisement The author is an artist based in Altadena. She has a degree in illustration from ArtCenter College of Design. See more of her work on Instagram @lilitoddart and on her website lilitodd.com. L.A. Affairs chronicles the search for romantic love in all its glorious expressions in the L.A.…

For years, Justine Lupe bopped back and forth between Los Angeles and New York. It wasn’t until the pandemic that she decided it was time to stop living out of her suitcase in hotels and short-term sublet apartments. “The world was in upheaval,” the actor says. “My idea of what…

I covered my empty wine glass as the Italian waitress made her rounds, a bottle of Chianti in hand. “I’m not drinking right now,” I said, even though I was on my honeymoon in Tuscany. Earlier this year, I decided to take a break from alcohol, which also happened to…

In late October, a beloved L.A. duo, Valerie Akiko Campbell and Justin Romero of Freak City, met with another beloved duo in Tokyo, Nene and Ryugo Ishida of the Yurufuwa Gang. Freak City is a cult fashion brand and the Yurufuwa Gang is a rap duo, but in the words…

Los Angeles County is vast — and with a magnitude of yoga studios. We scoured the county, stretching to explore as diverse a variety of classes as possible, before narrowing them down to the 28 best independent studios based on atmosphere, accessibility and community-building. But our list is far from…

When David Brown moved from Chicago to Los Angeles this summer, one of the first things he did was download an app that aims to “fight big-city loneliness.” The 35-year-old sales director had seen an Instagram ad for Timeleft, which matches users with strangers for dinner via a personality algorithm.…

This summer an old high school friend of mine decided to quit drinking entirely. She didn’t want to, but she felt she had no choice. “All of a sudden my body decided that alcohol is poison,” she told me recently over a bitter grapefruit mocktail at an Italian restaurant. “I…

John-Jonne Smith enjoyed a flourishing head of hair for much of his life. The young millennial rocked different hairstyles and loved switching it up: a curly Afro one week, two-strand twists the next, micro plaited braids and a range of cornrow designs. But when Smith was 18, during his senior…