Koi

RE "In a Watery Landscape, Flowers That Swim" [Jan. 4]: Part of this story represented what I've heard referred to as "koi snobs": unnecessary glorification of the presentation of fish. After seeing beautiful and huge koi swimming wild in lakes and rivers in Japan, I just don't take koi snobs seriously. Please, it's a hobby! And like any hobby, one may spend a modest or an incredible amount of money to satisfy one's wants, but I think this article went far overboard on the top end. Our koi began in a galvanized stock tank, 7 feet wide and nearly 3 feet deep, with a simple biological and mechanical filtration system to keep the water chemistry balanced.

THIS garden could be a study in tranquillity. Slender reeds emerging from the pond's surface form an elegant kimono pattern with the reflection of a pastel sky. An 18-inch koi streaks into view, its red and white blotches as gaudy as a clown suit. More fish soon follow. Their Japanese name, nishikigoi, translates as "brocaded carp," and its aptness is apparent. There are fish whose scales glitter as though they have been embroidered with gold thread.

ON a Monday night, 16 black-clad valets stand at attention in front of Bridge, the new Italian restaurant on La Cienega from the owners of Koi, just across the boulevard. Passing drivers wonder, what's going on? Must be an A-list party, a Britney appearance, or the hottest thing in town. If you want to pique the interest of everybody driving up or down La Cienega, the valet chorus line is a brilliant move. And it probably doesn't even cost all that much.

EMMA ROBERTS is a name to remember, and not just because she's the 15-year-old niece of Julia Roberts and daughter of Eric. Emma's been doing nicely in her own right, starring on Nickelodeon's "Unfabulous" and in the movie "Aquamarine." She's wrapping up work as "Nancy Drew," in theaters next summer. Oh, and she sings! But at home in L.A., Emma comes across as a regular teen with ideas for her own decidedly fabulous weekend.

IT'S kind of fun to walk into a new restaurant in a space you know well and figure out what the new owners have changed and how and why. I was curious about the long-delayed Bridge restaurant, which has just opened in the old Alto Palato space -- and a little sad too.

Koi, a trendy Pan-Asian restaurant on La Cienega Boulevard, has emerged as the place Hollywood stars go to be seen. In a testament to Koi's star power, the paparazzi -- sometimes as many as 12 -- line up at the entrance and rarely go home empty-handed. But on Friday -- with Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, Venus Williams and other big names inside -- the restaurant management finally had enough and called Los Angeles police to control the photographers.

The bright splash of yellow marigolds and blue lobelia is almost blinding. Those aren't antlers coming out of the wall, but rather an Australian moosehorn fern. And over there, baskets of pink, purple and red fuchsias hang above the impatiens. The Sherman Library & Gardens provides a singular refuge from the congested traffic, cranky motorists and glaring asphalt of Pacific Coast Highway just outside its gates. Located on 2.

Two former fraternity brothers avoided jail time for stealing a beloved jumbo goldfish that belonged to UC Santa Cruz. The men were drunk when they stole Goldie -- an 18-inch koi carp that lived in a pond owned by the university -- fried it and fed it to fraternity pledges last summer. Casey Loop, 23, of San Jose and Matthew Cox, 22, of Santa Cruz pleaded no contest to misdemeanor grand theft and vandalism charges last month.

UC Santa Cruz has revoked its recognition of a fraternity whose members were accused of kidnapping and killing a pet koi from a college fish pond in May. On Friday, the Student Judicial Affairs Office determined that the entire fraternity, Delta Omega Chi, was at fault. Delta Omega Chi did not appeal the university's decision. The fraternity can no longer book campus facilities, use the college's advisory staff or mention UC Santa Cruz in official correspondence.

Two members of a UC Santa Cruz fraternity currently being filmed for an MTV reality series were charged with misdemeanors Friday after a prank that has left many on the campus reeling. Matthew Cox, 24, and Casey Loop, 22, were charged with misdemeanor grand theft for abducting a golden-ruby koi from a college fishpond. The men also each face a misdemeanor charge of vandalism for slashing other fish in the process.