Now might be a really great time to ask our California advice columnists anything. When Alta Journal set out to name the many wonders of California for our 30th issue, we knew that some reader favorites would inevitably be left off our list. So convinced were we that folks would take issue with Golden State icons that didn’t make the cut, we enlisted our advice experts, Gustavo Arellano and Stacey Grenrock Woods, to review the final selections and call out our omissions. The pair found an array of California wonders that weren’t included in our magazine, from Levi’s jeans to Cher. Arellano and Woods sit down with Alta Live (and you) to offer some constructive criticism of our all-too-exclusive compilation and to answer your questions about California living during this very difficult week. Both of these writers are located in areas affected by the SoCal fires, and they’re willing to reveal their perspectives and recent experiences. As Arellano assures us, nothing is off the table. So pull up a virtual chair and join us.

About the guests:

Gustavo Arellano is the author of Orange County: A Personal History and Taco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America. He is a columnist for the Los Angeles Times and has been an essayist and reporter for various publications as well as a frequent commentator on radio and television. He was formerly editor of OC Weekly, an alternative newspaper in Orange County, California, and penned the award-winning ¡Ask a Mexican!, a nationally syndicated column in which he answered any and all questions about America’s spiciest and largest minority. Arellano is the recipient of awards ranging from the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies Best Columnist to the Los Angeles Press Club President’s Award to an Impacto Award from the National Hispanic Media Coalition, and he was recognized by the California Latino Legislative Caucus with a 2008 Spirit Award for his “exceptional vision, creativity, and work ethic.” Arellano is a lifelong resident of Orange County and is the proud son of two Mexican immigrants, one of whom came to this country in the trunk of a Chevy.

Stacey Grenrock Woods is a regular contributor to Esquire and a former correspondent for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. She writes and consults on various TV shows and had a recurring role as Tricia Thoon on Fox’s Arrested Development. Her first book is I, California.

Here are some notable quotes from today’s event:

  • On living with wildfires: “For the first five days, there was so much smoke that you couldn’t go outside. I could smell smoke in my house. It was terrifying, and you couldn’t see. Everything was covered in ash. Ash was falling from the sky.” —Woods
  • On what Los Angeles needs right now: “There’s going to be a lot of finger-pointing, but right now, we need to focus on what we can do to help out other people. That’s the most important thing right now. Later on, there’s going to be full reports—and there should be full reports. No one should be excused if they did not do their job, but right now, let’s help. Let’s write. And us as writers, the best way to help is by telling those uplifting stories, those sad stories, those utility stories, all of those stories.” —Arellano
  • On the California dream: “For me, the California dream will never die. To tie it back into what we were supposed to talk about, the Seven Wonders of California, one of the wonders that is always there is the resilience of the Californians.… That’s what makes a Californian in the worst of times. That’s when the great, the true Californian comes up and shows what California is about and why they fight so much for it—because it’s California. It’s our California.” —Arellano
  • On Angelenos helping Angelenos: “I’ve seen so many people drop everything they were doing to spend days and days running around town picking up supplies, dropping them off, and helping pets. The reaction is heartwarming to see.” —Woods

Check out these links to some of the topics brought up this week.