IOBY (In Our Back Yard)
By Philip Mershon
From the first moment that it was explained to me, I’ve been a huge fan, and supporter, of The Hollywood Central Park. I mean, what’s not to love? Desperately needed green space in a park-deprived area that enables and supports active recreation for our youth and an entertainment stage, eating establishments and activities for all. No-brainer, slam-dunk, must-have and let’s-go were some of the phrases racing through my mind.
But there’s another, quieter, simpler benefit that I want to talk about here.
I (and a lot of other folks I know) work for myself. I work from my home. What this means is that I spend waaaay too much time alone. To break up that monotony I am engaged with social media. I have a Facebook business page. The words “like” and “share” involve metrics and mean something very different now than they did when I was a kid. I am virtually in touch with many. I am physically in touch with few. I have talked myself into believing that I live a well-rounded, balanced life. Not true. All too often my outings are involved with running errands to the grocery store, drug store, cleaners. There is a destination involved and the destination is to get back home!
So, for me, the chance to have a park where I can go and stroll, or just sit, and enjoy small talk with members of my community, in person, is very exciting idea. I can see going there several times a week. I already envision myself enjoying trees and flowers and birds and squirrels and people without a single electronic device involved!
About 25 years ago a TV program debuted called, “MTV Unplugged”. It featured popular music that had been stripped of its amplification and studio tricks down to the rich essence of song and performance. Well, for me, The Hollywood Central Park aside from all its other gifts will be “Hollywood Unplugged” and I can’t wait to meet you there.
Philip Mershon Bio
A life-long fan and 30 year resident of Hollywood, Mershon is the owner/operator of an historic walking tour that explores the first 100 years of the entertainment industry in Hollywood. The Felix In Hollywood Tour (www.felixinhollywoodtours.com) is like a 90 minute live action PBS documentary and has been named the best Hollywood tour by both LA Weekly and Time Out Los Angeles and is enjoyed by locals as well as visitors. Mershon is a stakeholder of the Hollywood Studio District Neighborhood Council.
