Can’t See the Trees for the Ornaments

Just to prove I’m getting into the holiday spirit, I’m relaying a couple of bargains noticed by Lyle and Barb Johnson of Hawthorne for those who want to have themselves a merry little Christmas (see accompanying).

Make that a merry, very little Christmas.

Chew on this: I spotted a West Los Angeles dentist who sagely located his office next to an ice cream company named after a bird with no sweet tooth -- or tooth of any kind (see photo).

I was reminded of the Santa Monica dental clinic that took over the beloved Penguin Cafe -- after agreeing to retain the eatery’s symbol (see photo). I guess Santa Monica’s preservation efforts have some teeth.

Name game: I guess this is as good a time as any to mention that Jeffrey Ballam came across a dentist in Granada Hills named Dr. Wallace Lipp.

Will Placentia be next? Dave Fisher of La Canada Flintridge saw a headline in a Little League publication that seemed to indicate that Angel owner Arte Moreno had acquired the city of Anaheim (see accompanying). If it’s so, Fisher wonders if Moreno will want to rename the Orange County city Los Angeles, pointing out, “That would certainly make it easier for him to rename the Angels as well.”

Mangled Sentences Dept.: Michael Burkhart of San Diego heard a tobacco company’s “public service ad” assuring listeners that it was doing everything to keep juveniles “from cigarettes, including putting them behind counters.” Asked Burkhart: “Won’t kids be able to steal them easier if they go behind counters?”

Running a slow break on the freeways: Don’t know if you’ve heard, but Laker center Vlade Divac has had problems making it from his home in Pacific Palisades to Staples Center the required 90 minutes before game time. And so has Coach Rudy Tomjanovich, who also lives in the Palisades.

The other day, Tomjanovich arrived 20 minutes late for a pre-game media session.

“Make sure you guys put I was here before Rudy,” Divac quipped to reporters.

I was going to chide Divac and Tomjanovich for not carpooling, but then I realized that if they commute separately there’s a chance that at least one of them will be on time.

miscelLAny: Sure, a lot of John Kerry supporters feel as though they’re in exile, but still it seemed surprising to Charlotte Fournier of Laguna Woods that the Leisure World Democrats Club would send out invites to a “desert” holiday party.

Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LATimes, Ext. 77083; by fax at (213) 237-4712; by mail at Metro, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A. 90012; and by e-mail at [email protected].