Lauren Haas will never again misunderstand the meaning of “water resistant.”
Haas, 28, owns Haas Holistic in Beverly Hills. She provides health and wellness advice to clients in Los Angeles and around the country who might need to rework their diet due to a health issue or lifestyle change.
Haas is also a longtime road cyclist, but with a Southern California caveat: “I only ride when it’s nice outside.”
But when she had an opportunity to go on a bike trip through Sweden and Denmark, she jumped at it. Knowing the weather wouldn’t be as agreeable as it is in Beverly Hills, she bought a water-resistant jacket before she went.
However, the first day of the trip proved that she underestimated the Scandinavian climate. Haas and her group rode 15 miles through a classic Swedish downpour and she got soaked. Still, it was an invigorating accomplishment.
“You know when you feel like you conquered something,” she said. “That’s how I felt.”
She wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. She will, however, know next time to get a waterproof, not water resistant, jacket.
Rich Memorabilia Field
Richard Giller started collecting autographed sports memorabilia roughly eight years ago. Today, his collection includes everything from game-used basketball shoes signed by Kobe Bryant to old seats from Dodger Stadium.
But in the past year, Giller has been looking to expand his collection to encompass not only his love of sports but also politics. His plan got a big boost on Father’s Day last month when his wife gave him six baseballs signed by former presidents.
Giller had previously received a baseball autographed by former President Richard Nixon and a second signed by George H.W. Bush. Now, Giller has a signed baseball from each of the last eight presidents, from Nixon to Barack Obama.
“As you can imagine, the Ronald Reagan ball was the most expensive,” said Giller, principal in the Century City office of law firm Polsinelli.
The baseball collection, which is being framed with corresponding photos of each president throwing out the first pitch at a baseball game, is likely worth more than $15,000, he said.
The price for autographed memorabilia increases dramatically when a former president dies, so Giller, 56, said he’ll probably not be able to get any more older baseballs.
“I’ve kind of priced myself out of anything before Nixon,” said Giller.
Instead, he’ll wait until next year’s election to grow his collection.
“I’ve already started looking at how much various candidates’ balls are going for,” he said. “It’s better to buy it now than it would be to buy it five or 10 years from now because the prices are just going to go through the roof.”
Staff reporters Matt Pressberg and Cale Ottens contributed to this column. Page 3 is compiled by Editor Charles Crumpley. He can be reached at
[email protected].
