I was transferred to Los Angeles in 1999 from Washington, D.C. to work at the 2000 Democratic National Convention. I had never set foot in L.A. before. I lived here almost a year before the convention started and rarely ventured out of my Arco Tower/Staples Center office.

When the convention started, one of my jobs was to drive (ride with) [Vice President Al] Gore VIPs from their hotel (Beverly Hilton) to Staples. I drove up and down Wilshire more times than I can say over those four days. The different neighborhoods, architecture, and history really made an impression on me as to what L.A. could be.

I ALWAYS pointed out the Ambassador [Hotel], mainly for its history with the Democratic Party. Of the whole of Wilshire, the Ambassador always made the biggest impression. So, I may have only lived here six years and never saw it in its glory, but it has very distinct and memorable impressions for me of the four days of the convention that made me an Angeleno.