Water (and its absence) looms large in the California mind. Here are 6 ways to make the most of it

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Saturday, July 27. I’m Alyssa Bereznak, the wellness editor at The Times. Here’s what you need to know to start your weekend:

• We’re smack dab in the middle of L.A.’s most sizzling season. Our big, wet guide to water will help you hydrate and recreate your way through it.
• The massive Park fire near Chico is growing fast.
• Save money and buy a parking permit at these L.A. and O.C. beaches.
• And here’s today’s e-newspaper

Water rules everything around us

There are three go-to topics of conversation for Angelenos: weather, traffic and water. Our city is perpetually trying to rid itself of H20 or thirsting for it. Those opposing needs shaped L.A.’s topography and made a mythic king out of a self-taught engineer from Belfast. And recent drought has forced us to confront the reality of climate change, rethink our water sources and dig up our lawns.

Given how large water supply looms in the minds of Californians, our access to it in L.A. feels especially miraculous, and — during the relentless radiating heat of summer — uniquely enlivening.

I would not trade the cool relief that comes with a sip of water on a sweltering sidewalk for an entire summer’s worth of air-conditioned movie theaters. The hum of complaints I tab through in my mind on a weekly basis all seem to quiet when I watch or weave under a powerful ocean wave. And even the strongest of iced Americanos is no match for the frigid shock of a good flash-dunking, whether it’s on a lake front or in the presence of a plastic T. Rex at Universal Studios.

If there were ever a summer mantra, it’d be: just add water.

(Photography by Henry Hargreaves; prop styling by Victoria Granof.)

Here are 6 ways you can make the most of this essential resource in L.A.

• Up your filtering game. I’ve always run my water through a Brita filter and then gulped it down without another thought. But Times reporter Deborah Vankin showed me that where water comes from and what contaminates it can differ by ZIP Code. As self-proclaimed Water Filter Guru Brian Campbell says, “there’s no such thing as a one-size-fits-all water treatment solution.” (Even so, that may not be true for the Angelenos who shell out $384 for this cult-favorite water filter.)
  
• Choose the right water supplement. Many of the colorfully packaged hydration powders lined up along your grocery store’s checkout counter can contain so much sugar that UCLA professor Dr. Vijaya Surampudi likens consuming them to “drinking a soda.” Not to worry, Vankin consulted a dietitian to evaluate the top 8 water supplement brands, and separate the winners from the losers.
  
• Drink nutrient-rich bottled water. In Germany, there are waters that contain more calcium than a glass of milk. That’s according to local water sommelier (yes, that’s a thing) Martin Riese, who gave Times contributor Alana Hope Levinson a tour of what he says is the best under-the-radar grocery store to buy bottled water in L.A..
  
• Walk up a staircase with an ocean view. One of the best ways to traverse L.A.’s peaks and valleys is through its many secret staircases. Those treks are that much more rewarding when they lead you to an ocean view. Our intrepid outdoors reporter Jaclyn Cosgrove mapped out directions to the 10 best in L.A. County.
  
• Get splashed at a theme park. Southern California is home to four world-class theme or amusement parks, all of which offer inventive ways to get soaked. Our aficionado Todd Martens ranked the best water rides by splash factor, so you can choose based on how high the temperature is on any given day.
  
• Build a DIY water feature for your yard. Creating a burbling water fountain for butterflies to sip from and birds to bathe in may seem intimidating, but our garden reporter Jeanette Marantos managed to pull it off with help from local experts, YouTube and a half-inch titanium drill bit. Learn the step-by-step instructions for how to create one here.

I will end my ode to water with an appreciation of its lesser-known utility: as a sleeping surface. Many Californians still haven’t given up their waterbeds. “I tell people I have a waterbed, and everyone laughs,” financial planner Nancy Gerrish, 78, told Times reporter Deborah Netburn. “But it’s a very comfortable bed to sleep in.” (For those that don’t know, waterbeds were a competitive, sex-fueled industry in the 1970s).

Be sure to drink plenty of H20, folks! It’s hot out there.

Read more: Californians’ water usage is down 9% and other takeaways from The Times’ updated water tracker

The week’s biggest stories

Clouds of smoke glow orange from the Park fire burning along Highway 32 in Butte County on Thursday.

(Noah Berger / Associated Press)

Wildfire season

• California’s largest wildfire doubles in size and destroys scores of buildings.
• ‘Firenado’ swirls up from explosive Park fire north of Chico.
• How much has your State Farm premium changed because of wildfire risk?
• Is this the solution to California’s soaring insurance prices due to wildfire risk?
• California home insurance program accused of selling policies with subpar fire coverage.

Latest on the 2024 presidential election

• Inside Kamala Harris’ bumpy ride from near political death to a rebound that has Dems hopeful.
• Kamala Harris spent her political career supporting immigrants. As vice president, it got more complicated.
• From Let’s Go Brandon to Let’s Go Brenda. Trump merch sellers say they’ll be just fine after Biden exit.

Goodbye, NBA on TNT

• Benched by the NBA, Warner Bros. Discovery boss David Zaslav faces tough questions.
• Warner Bros. Discovery vows to ‘take appropriate action’ after NBA rejects offer.
• Charles Barkley sounds off on new NBA TV deal: ‘I’m not sure TNT ever had a chance.’

Kershaw is back, and more on the Dodgers

• Clayton Kershaw returns to the Dodgers. What can they realistically expect from him?
• Kershaw debut strikes new hope into Dodgers season.
• How trade deadline dynamics have complicated the Dodgers’ pursuit of Garrett Crochet.
• Dodgers trade James Paxton to Red Sox days after designating him for assignment.

More big stories

• Father of Monterey Park teen who was missing for a week is arrested.
• Luxury bags and a mini-fridge stuffed with cash: Orange County schools embezzler is going to prison.
• How did the U.S. catch ‘El Mayo,’ the Sinaloa Cartel’s top boss?
• Pair of TikTok videos reignite debate over access to California beaches.
• Newsom calls on Oakland to allow more police chases and stop suspects from ‘fleeing with impunity.’
• California will host a billion-dollar ‘hydrogen hub.’ What it means for our energy future.
• Live updates from the Paris Olympics.
• After 57 years of open seating, is Southwest changing its brand?

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Column One

Column One is The Times’ home for narrative and longform journalism. Here’s a great piece from this week:

A surveillance image shows Gina Russell at a Bank of America ATM.

(U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia)

The psychic, the sex workers and the scam that reportedly spread from coast to coast. While waiting to be sentenced for a crime across the country, authorities say, Gina Russell convinced a Los Angeles woman that she had psychic powers, helped defraud the woman’s father out of money and persuaded her to raise funds through sex work.

More great reads

• As alpine glaciers melt, the corpses of long-lost climbers keep popping out of the ice.
• Elon Musk’s messy divorce with California leaves ugly grievances all around

How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.

For your weekend

Guests at Midsummer Scream

(Scott Feinblatt)

Going out

• 🏖️ Don’t feed the meter, save money and buy a parking permit at these L.A. and O.C. beaches.
• 😱 Midsummer Scream, a three-day horror fest at the Long Beach Convention Center, will feature numerous panels, presentations and performances.
• 🌮 These are the 101 best tacos in Los Angeles
• 🤓 The 22 best spots to nerd out in L.A.
• 🚆 You can now ride a train through a lovely oak grove at Descanso Gardens

Staying in

• 📖 Star-crossed lovers torn apart by a cult: How a new novel humanizes the Waco siege.
• 📺 How Peacock turned ‘Love Island USA’ into the summer’s must-see reality show.
• 🧑‍🍳 Here’s a recipe for Shrimp Piri Piri with Quick-Preserved Meyer Lemons
• ✏️ Get our free daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and arcade games.

How well did you follow the news this week? Take our quiz.

(Times staff and wire photos)

Which NBA player was selected to be one of the two Team USA flag bearers at the Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony? Plus nine other questions from our weekly news quiz.

Have a great weekend, from the Essential California team

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