China restaurant syndrome: When last we heard...

China restaurant syndrome: When last we heard from the Mendelsohn & Zien ad agency, its billboard for a Chinese food delivery service had drawn the wrath of Police Chief Daryl F. Gates. “When You Can’t Leave the Office. Or Won’t,� the ad said, parodying Gates’ reluctance to resign.

Now, the agency has attracted attention with its latest pitch for the Chinese eatery, a quip that Mexican food contributes to the ozone.

The Spanish-language newspaper, La Opinion, ran critical comments about the billboard from a nutritionist specializing in Mexican food and from a proprietor of a Mexican restaurant.

“The thing’s been up for three months and we’ve received one angry letter,� agency co-owner Jordin Mendelsohn responded. “We didn’t feel the board was offensive to anyone. People make jokes about bagels and lox.�

He added: “Besides, what I think is, at a time like this, L.A.’s gotta lighten up.�

Oscar no-show: Veena Bidasha was rehearsing her belly-dance number for the Academy Awards ceremonies when she noticed that her partner, Saapa, was missing. The python apparently slithered away after someone opened its cage at the Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood.

Fortunately, Bidasha was able to use Saapa’s understudy, Aladdin, during the dance number, “A Whole New World,� at the Oscars show. In the best traditions of Hollywood, Aladdin stepped into the role like an old pro.

But Bidasha still hasn’t found Saapa. The snake has been spotted by others at the studios. Bidasha was even permitted to spend the night there in an unsuccessful effort to find Saapa. Bidasha’s agent, Nancy Douglas, described Saapa as “not dangerous or poisonous, probably just scared to death.�

Especially after Aladdin’s strong performance.

We wouldn’t touch this one with a 10-foot ice pick: The new “Mondo Barbie� fiction anthology, as we mentioned, contains such sardonic titles as “Hell’s Angel Barbie,� “Twelve-Step Barbie,� and “Van Nuys Barbie.�

Somehow, the editors forgot to include the work of Manhattan Beach cartoonist Keith Robinson, whose works are published in several newspapers. In his “Parents’ Guide to the Worst Toys for 1992,� Robinson listed: “Basic Instinct Barbie.�

Going nowhere isn’t cheap: Greg and Suzanne Griswold inquired about renting a truck to move from Lakewood to San Pedro but didn’t like the rates quoted by one company--for a 0-mile trip, yet (see excerpt). By the way, the company’s letter, which was dated March 23, also offered them a free basketball jacket if they moved between Jan. 17 and March 14.

They’re jarring in any language: Regarding the terminology for curb-to-curb traffic barriers, such as speed bumps and speed humps, Dwight Palmer of La Mirada writes: “I like the term they use in New Zealand

--’Judder Bars.’ It has a kind of built-in shake and shimmy.� By the way, you drivers out there, please don’t mistake Saapa for a speed bump.

miscelLAny:

The Theodore Payne Foundation in Sun Valley has a wildflower hot line (818) 768-3533 that gives area sightings as well as wildflower forecasts.