Just about six years to the day since I produced my last Oscars red carpet, the city of Los Angeles welcomed me back... not as an intrepid news manager trying to figure out why Will Smith slapped Chris Rock on what should have been the pinnacle of his career, but as a union organizer knocking on doors trying to drum up attendees for a march on City Hall to force them to come to the table with a fair contract for L.A. county's 95,000 public sector employees. Traveled in Monday in support of their campaign. Spent all of Tuesday knocking on doors in Long Beach, Calif., a lower middle-class community about a dozen miles from downtown. Happy to report that we hit 37 doors and talked to someone at 23 of them, which felt like success. It was sort of shocking how few of the people even knew they were in the middle of contract negotiations, but most were receptive to the "rap sheet" they had us read from, touting all the great things their union is pushing for in their next contract. On Wednesday, we spent a few hours getting trained how to be marshals at tomorrow's march. They are hoping about 5,000 people show up and it'll be my job -- and the job of about 150 other people -- to keep them marching in 8 person rows for 2 miles to and from Grand Park. Don't worry, I'll take plenty of photos. In the meantime, here are a few of the fun so far, including last night's L.A. Clippers game with an old AP friend. Got to see Paul George's triumphant return from an injury that kept him off the team for months. He poured in 35 points like he hadn't missed a day.
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The street level view from our hotel
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March rehearsal on the parking garage rooftop of the union headquarters.
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Making signs .. that's Andrew, one of PEF's regional coordinators, representing western New York.
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