Hardly anyone remembers that, in the 19th century, there were winters when hundreds of square miles of Los Angeles County were underwater at times. Before it was paved, the Los Angeles River was prone to radical changes of its course. Historically, it often flowed west into Santa Monica Bay, rather than south to San Pedro Bay as it now does. As recently as 1825, it flowed west from just south of what is now downtown all year round, and had done so for some time. And as recently as the early 20th century, Los Angeles was described as a place where the rivers flowed underground eleven months of the year, and through the streets the other month. It could be that the place is now going to have a hundred year flood. Maybe even a 500 year flood. If so, I'm sorry that I'm going to miss it. I always enjoyed the floods when I was a kid, especially when the older bridges across the San Gabriel River came apart and went floating down the raging stream. Ah, nostalgia. At least there's television now, so I'll get to see it in miniature.
My favorite part of the rain here has been when the earliest-rising neighbors who commute drive their cars down the still-dark street, and I watch the rain falling in their headlights. I love riding through rain at night, but seldom get to do it anymore. Watching somebody else do it is the next best thing.