Sunny Skies, Lakers Win and Beach Permits

Today is April 27. It is the 117th day of the year. We are under a waning crescent moon. Sunset will occur about 7:35 p.m. Here are five things to know:

1. The National Weather Service forecast for today calls for sunny skies with a high near 78 degrees with mostly clear skies tonight and an overnight low around 54 degrees. It should be sunny Thursday, too, with a high near 68 degrees.

2. Playa del Rey resident Phil Jackson and the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers beat the New Orleans Hornets last night, 106-90, to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. Game 6 is in New Orleans on Thursday with tipoff scheduled for 5 p.m.

3. The Los Angeles County's Beach Commission is holding a public hearing this morning regarding changes to it permit policy for beach camps, surf camps and other recreational activities on county beaches. Check back here later for an update.

4. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously yesterday to approve a group of redevelopment projects in Marina del Rey despite the objection of governmental representatives and residents concerned about over development. You can read more about that right here.

5. Patch is looking for bloggers. Free. No editing of your blog allowed by Patch and you can blog whenever and about whatever you want. Whether it's food, family, schools, government, entertainment, advertising, social issues, sailing, fishing or your tips for juggling chainsaws  – if you're into it, we'd like you to consider blogging with Patch. It's a chance to share your expertise and your voice with a wider audience. Patch bloggers are not paid and will own their own blogs, so if you already are blogging and want to share with Patch users, too – get aboard! You can email me at Paul.Chavez@patch.com, if you want to join the conversation.

For those of you who are wondering, I'll state the obvious. Patch's parent company is AOL and they recently bought the Huffington Post. With the acquisition comes this new approach to engage bloggers a la the Huffington Post. Our mission to provide local news and information about our communities doesn't change, we're just seeking to add more of your voices. So if you can write and have something to say, please get in touch.