Getting one’s car washed in drought-time L.A....

Getting one’s car washed in drought-time L.A. is the latest source of guilt for an Angeleno, ranking up there with refusing to ride-share or exercising less than three times a week.

Carwash owners, naturally, want to help motorists overcome this new crisis. The strategy of Fasching’s Car Wash in Arcadia is to hand each customer a free brick, which can be placed in the toilet to reduce the amount of water used per flush.

Owner George Fasching, who’s also an Arcadia City Council member, proudly posts the number of bricks given away--871, by late Monday.

We see a problem for repeat business, though. How many of Fasching’s bricks can--or should--the average customer place in one toilet? Of course, the extras could also be used to build a new bathroom.

For our part, we’re going to start a Water Waster of the Week award. Our first joint winners are the gardeners for a home overlooking the 13th green at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades. Journalists covering thA. Open golf tournament over the weekend reported that the gardeners spent about an hour hosing down the 150 steps leading to the owner’s patio.

Meanwhile, in our Dueling Signs competition--now in its second year, thanks to city workers--Alan Richman of Woodland Hills nominates his community’s guidepost at the corner of San Feliciano Drive and Avenue San Luis. In this case, one sign seems to have taken its message to another level.

Kathy Price of Santa Barbara wonders if one weight-loss center was trying to impart a double meaning in its ad when it proclaimed: “California’s Largest Clientele.”

Speaking of reducing, it’s getting vicious along York Boulevard in Highland Park. Resident Hank Friezer reports that no sooner did a new “99-cents store” open there, than a competitor converted his discount store to a 98 - cents format. And another owner undercut both of them by unveiling a 97 - cents outlet.

Walter Fluent feels we omitted one good example from a recent list of city names that have strange or unusual meanings.

“How about Glen-dale, “ he suggests. “ Valley Valley .”

Good day, good day.

miscelLAny:

Among the items on display at Iceland, a skating rink in Paramount, is the 43-year-old Model A Ice Resurfacer No. 1. The Model A, developed by the late Frank Zamboni, a Paramount resident, was the grandfather of the machines used in ice rinks and hockey arenas.