USC vs. Nebraska: it's about much more than football.

Last Saturday afternoon I visited L.A.'s historic Memorial Coliseum. It marked The Huskers' most recent close-game loss––to USC no less. But there was still plenty to celebrate beyond the gridiron.

I co-wrote The Mad Monks’ Guide to California for Frommers/Macmillan to give authentic travelers––as opposed to tourists––inside tips on navigating America’s most defiantly indefinable state. A large portion of the book focused on Los Angeles, a previously underappreciated vortex of apocalyptic chic and disaster porn. From my ambitious peregrinations …