A River Runs Through Los Angeles

The Atwater Village Newbie took this shot of the Los Angeles River on Jan. 18, between storms.

Look how high up the water reaches -- it's a reminder why the river was encased in concrete in the first place. It was an unfortunate solution to an unfortunate problem: The occasional flooding that would take place when the river banks filled up.

It was the 1938 Los Angeles Flood that led to the concrete encasement. Now, it's little more than a flood control channel.