Two Green Girls on the Road

Day 11, L.A. and Heading Up the Coast

Use the handy map here to follow Mary Logan's path and view her favorite snapshots.

We'd heard about a place on Sunset Boulevard that converts regular diesel cars into biodiesel and biofuel-powered automobiles. What we didn't know was that the place was called Lovecraft, with a big, funky tattoo of a logo. Trish pulled the wheel over this morning and we checked it out.

Running the joint today were a couple of laidback, Wayfarer-wearing guys who gave us a quick tour underneath the hood of a newly converted turquoise vintage Mercedes (for sale, but a bit out of our daily budget). The whole lot, empty while we were there, felt a little like a set for a greaser movie.

Our L.A. cousin told us the place didn't seem very busy these days--something about a big stink about people using biofuels and getting out of the gas tax. Turns out that having a converted car in California doesn't get you out of it. But in the two years that our newfound friend, Jason, had been working there, Lovecraft has converted almost 2000 cars… including one of Arnold Schwarzenegger's. Jason jokes that after the big boom, maybe business has been slowing down because all of L.A.'s interested (and diesel-owning) have already converted. But for a thousand bucks, you can walk out the very same day with a converted Mercedes and a home fueling station. Unfortunately, they rejected our Volvo as a conversion candidate and it's still full of gasoline.

After meeting friends for an über macrobiotic vegan tofu patty of a lunch, we started up the coast and stopped at the Patagonia headquarters in Ventura to meet with Tim Rhone, in public relations, who gave us a thorough tour of the Patagonia campus. These employees surf during lunchtime and store their boards in the designated hallway. They compost everything possible right under a lemon tree in the parking lot. Ninety to ninety-five percent of the food in their cafeteria is organic. And their childcare center takes up so much space that when you pull up you assume there is an elementary school next door. Creative juices are flowing. We call it the Patagonia Passion. And…we kind of caught it today.

We met Michelle Rozo, the creative force behind Patagonia's T-shirts, who showed us upcoming designs (top secret) and told us about how she selects the artists. Then we went out to the shop where surfboards are made and met Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard's son Fletcher and his shirtless crew working on boards, listening to music, basking in the sun, just in from the ocean. "Wow, shirtless at work," I said, and Tim said a lot of the time people don't even wear shoes.

We hung around for a little while in the flagship retail store after the tour (not wanting to leave) and told some of the staff about the trip, and they gave us advice on where to camp up the PCH for the night. "Man. You guys are crazy," said one of the younger employees, slowly and beachily. Coming from a guy who just told us about "trippy" rocks on the coast and the best campsites to find a party, we took this as a huge compliment.

Money spent: $50 (eek! Uber veggie delight restaurant, campsite fees)
Money spent on gas: Only 40-something; we were half full
Highlight: Pretending to be a part of the Patagonia family
Lowlight: Remembering that we have to wear shoes to work (but not these three weeks!)
Trash tally: Running high. Finished some car food--crackers, nuts, cookies--and have a new pile
Mood: "Let my people surf"

© The Green Guide, 2008

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