Stocks slightly higher after turbulent week – Stocks markets exhibited huge swings this week. Thursday markets plunged over one percent as investors feared that thespike in new COVID Delta variant cases would slow the progress of the world returning to normalcy after the pandemic. A decision by Japan not to allow fans at the summer Olympics was also announced Thursday.  Economic data released Thursday suggesting that shortages in supplies and labor could be slowing the international economy. Also on Thursday the U.S. new unemployment claims rose to 373,000  which was higher than expected. On Friday markets rose over one percent after early second quarter corporate earnings began to be released. Companies had record profits in the second quarter of 2021. By days end many companies and experts conceded that those earnings were compared to one year ago when sales were anemic due to the pandemic. Compared to the second quarter of 2019, 2021 figures were still strong but nowhere near the year-over-year gains when compared to profit levels at the worst time of the pandemic.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the week at 34,870.16, up 0.2% from 34,786.35 last week. It is up 13.7% year-to-date. The S&P 500 closed the week at 4,369.55, up 0.4% from 4,353.54 last week. It is up 16.2%  year-to-date. The NASDAQ closed the week at 14,701.92, up 0.4%, from 14,639.33 last week. It is up 14.0% year-to-date.

U.S. Treasury bond yields – The 10-year treasury bond closed the week yielding 1.37%, down from 1.44% last week. The 30-year treasury bond yield ended the week at 1.99%, down from 2.06% last week. We watch bond yields because mortgage rates often follow treasury bond yields.

Mortgage rates – The July 8, 2021, Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey reported mortgage rates for the most popular loan products as follows: The 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 2.90%, down from 2.98% last week. The 15-year fixed was 2.20%, down from 2.26% last week. The 5-year ARM was 2.52%, unchanged from 2.53% last week.

Housing data is released by the California Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors around the third week of the month for the previous month. Local market data for June is available on my website now. Search market reports. Those results again show rising sales, listings, and double digit price increases. Check my website to view your city, or zip code. If the state and national numbers are anywhere like our area I’d expect to see another month of record results when June sales are released. That will be the end of next week or the first of the following week. Hopefully we will have some of those numbers released before next weeks report.

Los Angeles and the Westside 

Whether it’s the curtain going down on Sting’s musical stint in LA or the spotlight rising on the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s ode to German Expressionism, there’s a jam for you this weekend (including, it turns out, Tyrese’s love jam at The Forum). And if you’re not in the mood for music? There’s something for you, too. Here’s our rundown of what’s happening in Los Angeles and the Westside.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2020

Hulu’s High Fidelity Record Store Takeover

LOCATION: Amoeba Music, 6400 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles

Before it moves to its new location, Hollywood’s Amoeba Music is being taken over by the new Hulu series High Fidelity, based on the 2000 John Cusack comedy about a record store owner and his top five breakups. Among the original cast: Lisa Bonet, the mother of Zoe Kravitz, who stars in the new series. Expect custom branding, interactive experiences and free giveaways. Mixtapes are optional. For more information, go HERE.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15,  2020

Pan African Film and Arts Festival

LOCATION: Baldwin Hills Crenshaw, 3650 W Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Los Angeles

The country’s largest black film festival throws the spotlight on more than 150 films from the U.S., Europe, the Caribbean, South America, the South Pacific and Canada. In addition to the movies, look for fashion, forums, panel discussions and poetry. For details, go HERE.

The Last Ship

LOCATION: Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N Grand Avenue, Los Angeles

Sting is shipping out. This weekend is the last chance to see the rock icon in his acclaimed musical about a man who returns home after 17 years at sea to the shipbuilding community he grew up in. The Grammy winner provided the original music and lyrics for the show, which also features his songs, Island of Souls, All This Time and When We Dance. For details, go HERE.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 16,  2020

Valentine’s Love Jam

LOCATION: The Forum, 3900 W Manchester Boulevard, Inglewood

Singer, songwriter and actor Tyrese takes a detour between Fast and Furious sequels, performing at The Forum alongside Joe, Ginuwine, Avant, Dru Hill and Brownstone. Tickets range from $59 to $129. For details, go HERE.

Los Angeles Philharmonic and Esa-Pekka Salonen

LOCATION: Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, 90012

Conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen collaborates with director Simon McBurney and his brother composer/dramaturge Gerard McBurney for Weimar Nightfall: The Seven Deadly Sins, set during the heyday of German Expressionism. Expect something vibrant and cynical. For more information go HERE.

Not so long ago, the thinking was: Los Angeles and the Valley do barbeque like Texas does kale smoothies. But lately SoCal has smoked out praise from the unlikeliest places, including the Lone Star state, that spiritual home of the sauce-slathered, all-American cook-out. With that in mind, here are our local picks if you’re hankering for some brisket, pulled pork or short ribs.

Conejo Valley

Thousand Oaks Meat Locker

2684 Thousand Oaks Boulevard, Thousand Oaks

You can’t talk about barbeque in the Los Angeles area without mentioning the Thousand Oaks Meat Locker, established in 1957. Back then, it was a custom butcher shop. Nowadays, the menu has items with names that sound from a bygone era. The Manly Man Combination, for example, and the Manly Man a la Carte. If you’re coming with (a lot of) hungry friends, there is the Round-Up, as well, which feeds more than 20 and consists of five pounds of tri-top, 10 chicken breasts, 10 chicken hinds, plus your choice of two sides.

Tavern 101 Grill & Tap House

28434 Roadside Drive, Agoura Hills

Located in Agoura Hills, this bar and eatery prides itself on American food and smoked barbeque. Menu items include a variety of sandwiches (even a veggie), burgers (including a turkey and chili cheeseburger) and steaks. Still, the emphasis is on the smoked flavors of their signature pulled pork, prime rib, Angus tri-tip and barbeque pulled chicken.

Lucille’s Smokehouse Bar-B-Que

The Village at Westfield Topanga, 6220 North Topanga Canyon Blvd. Building E, Suite 1480, Woodland Hills

The baby back ribs are the specialty at this family restaurant and bar, but the menu also includes a build-your-own-combo. Choice of hickory-smoked meats includes half-rack of baby back ribs, half-rack of St. Louis ribs, beef ribs, brisket burnt ends, sliced brisket, smoked turkey, barbeque chicken, pulled pork, tri tip, rib tips, spicy sausage link, and bacon and cheddar.

San Fernando Valley

Dr. Hogly Wogly’s Tyler Texas BBQ

8136 Sepulveda Boulevard, Van Nuys

A longtime staple of the greater Valley barbeque scene dating back to 1969, Dr. Hogly Wogly offers a menu of ribs, links, chicken and brisket, with all the Texas-style trappings. The secret to the “fall off the bone” barbeque? According to the doctor, it’s the secret house-made marinade.

Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ

116 S San Fernando Boulevard, Burbank

Just because it’s barbeque doesn’t mean it has to be American. Or that it can’t come with sake. Gyu-Kaku specializes in authentic Japanese Yakiniku in which customers share meats over a flaming grill. Their menu includes harami skirt steak in miso marinade and certified Angus kalbi short rib in tare soy marinade. Gyu-Kaku, by the way, translates to “horn of the bull.”

Boneyard Bistro

13539 Ventura Boulevard, Sherman Oaks

The meats here are prepared Santa Maria-style, meaning grilled over coals of native coast live oak, also called red wood. While any of the barbeque options should satisfy the heartiest, hungriest BBQ lover, the Bistro also offers plenty of other food options, including some vegan dishes. And we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention their wide range of craft beer.

Santa Clarita

Smokehouse on Main

24255 Main Street, Santa Clarita

This Santa Clarita restaurant promises a “gourmet twist” on traditional barbeque offerings: Southern-style spices, southern sides, slow-smoked meats and 30 craft beer on tap. But if you’re in the mood for a burger, try the Wall (a single grind brisket patty, pepper jack cheese, sautéed mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, Ortega chili) or the Colossal (two single grind brisket patties, onion jam, spring mix lettuce, Applewood smoked bacon, avocado, sharp cheddar, five cheese blend sauce, all topped off with a fried egg).

Rattler’s Bar B Que

26495 Golden Valley Road, Santa Clarita

For casual diners and families in Santa Clarita, Rattler’s Bar B Que mesquite barbeque is part of the local dining lexicon. They cook their meats for as much as 24 hours before introducing their signature sauce over a live mesquite fire. For those looking for more than barbeque, Rattler’s offers salads as well as such non-BBQ sandwiches as the Santa Fe chicken and the French dip.

Stonefire Grill

23300 Cinema Drive, Santa Clarita

With a focus on freshly and simply prepared meals, the grilled menu at this casual dining restaurant includes boneless chicken, baby back ribs and tri tip, all served with your choice of mesquite barbeque, lemon garlic or pepper garlic, and all topped with Gorgonzola butter.

Not so long ago, the thinking was: Los Angeles and the Valley do barbeque like Texas does kale smoothies. But lately SoCal has smoked out praise from the unlikeliest places, including the Lone Star state, that spiritual home of the sauce-slathered, all-American cook-out. With that in mind, here are our local picks if you’re hankering for some brisket, pulled pork or short ribs.

Los Angeles and Westside

Maple Block Meat Company

3973 Sepulveda Boulevard, Los Angeles

Located in Culver City, Maple Block is a breakout among barbeque fans in Los Angeles and abroad – most notably, Texas Monthly magazine. The obvious care they put into their meats shouldn’t come as a surprise then – and it’s apparent from their mouth-watering brisket and smoked sausage to their pork spare ribs and free-range chicken. The menu doesn’t distract from the meats either, offering the basics: two sides, pickles and either regular or spicy sauce.

Max City BBQ

4729 N Eagle Rock Boulevard, Los Angeles

This Eagle Rock eatery specializes in barbeque, Southern-style, with meats like ribs and pork smoked as slow as a drawl. Along with such barbeque-friendly side dishes as baked beans and cornbread, they also draw from local ingredients for their coleslaw and collard greens.

Slab BBQ

8136 W 3rd Street, Los Angeles

Burt Bakman became an Instagram sensation from his backyard as the man running the L.A.-based smoked-meat sensation, Trudy’s Underground. Now he’s at Slab, cooking up brisket, pulled pork, ribs and smoked chicken. For sides, choose from collard greens, mac n’ cheese and corn on the cob, among others.

Ugly Drum

Smorgasburg LA, 777 S Alameda Street, Los Angeles

Don’t discount deli food when prepared under the watchful eye of a master smoker. Located in downtown’s open-air Smorgasburg market, Ugly Drum dishes up some of the most delicious, mouth-watering pastrami you will ever encounter. Get a tall stack of it or in a sandwich, with coleslaw on the side. And while there’s the requisite mustard, you don’t really need it.

Morfia’s

4077 Lincoln Boulevard, Marina Del Rey

From this cozy Marina Del Rey location, the folks at Morfia’s dish up pit-smoked meats, including what they describe as the only true genuine Texas-style dry-rub mesquite pit-smoked barbeque around. But even though you’ll obviously be pre-occupied with what’s for dinner, including the authentic southern sides, be sure to leave room for dessert, whether it’s the Baklava cheesecake or the homemade pie.

Baby Blue’s BBQ – Venice

444 Lincoln Blvd, Venice

Memphis ribs, Texas-style beef brisket and pulled pork simmered in Guinness beer – and a down-home atmosphere. Before you get to the mains, though, start out with the “Suicide King” (two slices of cornbread topped with your choice of meat, cotija cheese, remoulade and sauce) or smoked, dry-rubbed wings. And after dinner, while they offer both a key lime pie and a chocolate pie, seek out their specialty, the banana pudding.

San Fernando Valley 

One of the youngest headliners in the country brings her comedy to Burbank, the Bard rocks out and organizers of LAWineFest branch out. Whether you’re up for an epic musical production or an intimate one-woman show, there’s plenty going on this weekend in the San Fernando Valley.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2020

Taylor Tomlinson

LOCATION: Flappers Comedy Club Burbank – Main Room – 102 East Magnolia, Burbank

One of the youngest touring headliners in the U.S. right now, Taylor Tomlinson started performing stand-up when she was 16. A decade later, she has appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and Conan as well as being recently named a Top 10 Comic to Watch at Montreal’s Just for Laughs festival. For more details about her club show, go HERE.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2020

LAWineFest Celebrates 15 Years

LOCATION: Glendale Civic Auditorium, 1401 N Verdugo Road, Glendale

After more than 20 events, LAWineFest organizers are staging the inaugural LAWineFest at East Valley. In addition to the chance to taste award-winning wines and beers from around the world, this event promises opportunities for ticket holders to mingle with winemakers, sommeliers and craft brew-masters. For more information, go HERE.

Hamlet the Rock Musical

LOCATION: El Portal Theatre, Lankershim Boulevard, North Hollywood

Opening this weekend, this musical re-imagines the 1976 Broadway production for the 2020s. Directed by Bill Castellino, whose award-winning credits include Tommy, this sung-through story based on Shakespeare’s classic, boasts 35 original songs and self-described “rock-and-roll swagger.” Composer and lyricist Cliff Jones delivers the original score while Craig Fair provides additional music, lyrics and orchestrations. For details, go HERE. 

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2020

Intro to Stand-Up Comedy

LOCATION: Glendale Arts, 116 W California Avenue, Glendale

So you think you’re funny, huh? This class aims to teach aspiring comics the basics of stand-up comedy as well help professionals hone their skillset. The class includes lessons on joke structure, joke writing and basic performance techniques as well as the do’s and don’ts of the craft. Registration is required and seating is limited. For details, go HERE.

Wake Up Little Susy

LOCATION: Whitefire Theatre,13500 Ventura Boulevard, Sherman Oaks

This one-woman show, which follows a bubbly woman named Susy over the course of more than 50 years, features 28 characters, music and even a puppet. Porter writes and performs while Jessica Lynn Johnson directs this hour-long comedy. For details, go HERE.

Conejo Valley

A music legend feels the Earth move (without the earthquake), bird-spotters flock to Malibu State Park and Isabella Rossellini takes the stage alongside her dog. Expect all this and more as we run down what’s happening this weekend in the Conejo Valley.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2020

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical

LOCATION: Civic Arts Plaza Theatres, 2100 Thousand Oaks Boulevard, Thousand Oaks

This Tony-and-Grammy-winning musical charts the rise and creative rebirth of Carole King, the music legend whose personal and professional life was marked with heartache and glory. Expect all of King’s classic songs – from I Feel the Earth Move and (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman to You’ve Got A Friend and the title song, Beautiful. For more details go HERE.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2020

Malibu Film Festival

 LOCATION: 23825 Stuart Ranch Road, Malibu

This showcase of independent U.S. and international films bows this year with Johnny Strange: Born to Fly, a documentary about the Malibu-born extreme adventurer and wingsuit BASE jumper, who gained notoriety as a teenager by ascending the tallest mountain in each continent. A Q&A will follow the screening. For information all the films on tap at the festival, go HERE.

Link Link Circus by Isabella Rossellini

LOCATION: Malibu Playhouse, 29243 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu

Isabella Rossellini transforms herself into various historical figures including Aristotle for this “theatricalized lecture” about the connections between humans and animals. Her own dog Pan plays a role, assisted by puppeteer and handler Schuyler Beeman. For details, go HERE.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2020

San Fernando Valley Audubon Bird Walk at Malibu Creek State Park

LOCATION: Malibu Creek State Park, 1925 Las Virgenes Road, Calabasas

Break out the binoculars. Hopeful bird spotters can expect to glimpse as many as 50 bird species during this walk along Malibu Creek, the most common being the Oak Titmouse, the California Quail and the Acorn Woodpecker. The walk kicks off at 8 a.m. on the third Sunday of every month. For details about where to connect with the group, go HERE.

Dave Marotta and Friends

LOCATION: Bogie’s, 32001 Agoura Road, Westlake Village

Longtime LA studio bassist Dave Marotta – who has toured with such artists as Gino Vanelli and Kenny Loggins, among others – brings along Rick Cowling and vocalist Mollie Weaver for this show. Cowling currently works with Loggins while Weaver, who has collaborated with the Dave Matthews Band, is a back-up singer on The Voice. For details, go HERE.

Santa Clarita

The silent film era is celebrated with a showcase of screenings and memorabilia, the English Beat just can’t stop touring and a classic myth gets a modern update. And if you’re feeling like spending your Sunday on a hike, how about joining some four-legged rescues as they go exploring? It’s all happening this weekend in Santa Clarita.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2020

Newhallywood Silent Film Festival

LOCATION: 24151 Newhall Avenue, Santa Clarita

The inaugural Newhallywood Silent Film Festival will be screening more than a dozen silent films, including The Mark of Zorro starring Douglas Fairbanks, Little Annie Rooney with Mary Pickford and the horror classic The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. In addition to the films, the festival has gathered a rare collection of props, costumes and other memorabilia. For details, go HERE.

 SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2020

The English Beat

LOCATION: The Canyon – Santa Clarita, 24201 Valencia Boulevard, No. 1351, Santa Clarita

Dave Wakeling is making sure the beat goes on. The leader of The English Beat, recognized as founding members of the British two-tone ska movement alongside The Specials and The Selecter, continues to tour four decades after the group’s 1980 debut album, Just Can’t Stop It. For ticket information and details, go HERE.

Eurydice

LOCATION: The MAIN, 24266 Main Street, Santa Clarita

This new production from playwright Sarah Ruhl aims to modernize the classical myth by presenting the events from the heroine’s point-of-view. When a young woman is killed on her wedding day, she discovers her father in the underworld and ultimately must choose to either stay with him or return to the world of the living and her grieving groom. For details, go HERE.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 16,^, 2020

A Dustland Fairytale: The Killers tribute

LOCATION: The Canyon – Santa Clarita, 24201 Valencia Boulevard, No. 1351, Santa Clarita

Like the name suggests, A Dustland Fairytale is a tribute to Las Vegas’s The Killers. Expect all the hits, ranging from Mr. Brightside to When You Were Young. For details, go HERE.

Wagging Tails on the Trails

LOCATION: Central Park, 27150 Bouquet Canyon Road, Santa Clarita

Join the volunteers of The Brittany Foundation as they take their adoptables on their monthly hike away from the rescue. The foundation is a non-profit focused on the care and placement of dogs who are otherwise deemed hard-to-adopt. The February hike gets underway at Central Park in Santa Clarita. To volunteer and meet some new four-legged friends, go HERE.

An AI-controlled hand has been created, which purely uses your brainpower and muscle signals to move. All that awaits its dispatch into the world is for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to grant its approval.

How does this prosthetic hand learn to move?

With over two million amputees in the U.S. alone, the need for prosthetics is there. Up until now, amputees relied on metal hooks for hands or robotic prosthetics that rely on physical buttons. All of which have limited mobility. BrainCo’s prosthetic arm and hand is much more mobile and does not require a heavy kit with buttons galore.

BrainCo uses a software platform where the user trains its future prosthetic using electrical signals. These allow the prosthetic to perform a range of motions and movements, enabling the user to do particular gestures such as playing the piano and writing detailed calligraphy.

Newlon explained that this allows amputees to no longer have to rely on a limited number of preprogrammed movements, they can customize the prosthetic to their own body.

If all of the above information wasn’t enough to impress you, then perhaps the cost will.

It only takes about 5 to 10 minutes to program six gestures, Newlon said. The more you use the hand, the better and more lifelike it becomes, he added.

Typically, prosthetics cost anywhere between $40,000 to $60,000. BrainCo’s, on the other hand, will cost between $10,000 and $15,000. That’s a huge amount of money saved and for a better product.

The company plans on launching their prosthetic later this year in the U.S. and will also be creating smaller prosthetics for children.