altadenablog

Haussler receives realtor's award

The Cultural Heritage Committee of the Pasadena-Foothills Association of Realtors recognized local Realtor (and Altadena Heritage guy) Steve Haussler for his contributions to the preservation of Pasadena’s architectural heritage. Haussler was honored with the 2008 Restoration and Preservation Award for his twenty-six year commitment to restore and preserve historically-significant homes and neighborhoods.  Details on his blog.

Education Spectrum offers autism workshops

Education Spectrum, which offers services for special needs children (especially those with autism), is offering three workshops for teachers, paraprofessionals, and others in January and Februrary, 2009 (click the flyer for details).  For more information call 626-797-1500.

2009 Resolution: get healthy!

 It's still two weeks to Christmas, and already the goodies are piling up.  If you're expecting the usual swearing-off after New Year's (and we are), the Altadena Library has already lined up a program to help us:

The Altadena Library District presents “Get Healthy Altadena!!!” A Health, Nutrition and Fitness Informational Program facilitated by Huntington Hospital’s Healthy Eating Lifestyle Program

Join us @ to the Altadena Library and discover how to have a healthier you in 2009 and for years to come. Representatives from Huntington Hospital’s Healthy Eating Lifestyle Program will share  simple ideas to improve basic nutrition, fitness and your overall health in 2009 and for years to come!

Please join us Monday night, January 12, 2009 at 7PM in the Community Room of the Altadena Library District. 600 E Mariposa Street, Altadena, CA 91001. More information at www.altadenalibrary.org

County duns Sahag Mesrob for noncompliance fees

When we drove by Wednesday morning, the Sahag Mesrob school on Palm was still operating, despite LA County Planning's affirmation that the school is violating county zoning ordinances.  We have called the school asking for comment, and are still awaiting a response, but we thought we should share this email that went out several days ago from county zoning enforcement to one of the neighbors:

1.       We are sending the Notice of Noncompliance Fee requiring payment of the noncompliance fee (564.00). Should they elect not to pay it, we will forward  it for collection (through treasurer tax collector). At that time the noncompliance fee increases to 2,289.00.

2.       Concurrently with the above process, we are finalizing our referral to County Counsel.  County Counsel will review our referral and if it is complete, they will file a motion with the criminal courts for an injunction to order the school to stop operations.

Given how the courts operate, at best, a court hearing may be scheduled within the first half of January. 

Oscar A. Gomez
Supervising Regional Planner
Zoning Enforcement, Section III

Young writers

Young writers envision a perfect world in this PWeekly story, including Samaria Diaz, 10, of Altadena Elementary (and we have to tip our hat to Cory Atwater, also 10, of Marengo Elementary School in South Pas, 'cause we knew him when he was brand new!).

Inaugural to LA county: give us 347 deputies for free!

This KABC7 report, shot largely at the Altadena Sheriff's Station, is about a request for LA County to provide 347 deputies to assist in the Presidential inauguration in Washington, D.C.  It also sounds like they're asking for them for free, but at an expense of a couple mill for local taxpayers.  The situation is still fluid, tho', but KABC gets a great standup at our Art Deco station.

Altadena Town Council meeting, 7 PM Tues., Dec. 16

... the regular monthly meeting at the Community Center,  730 E. Altadena Drive.

Main topic this month is expected to be a new trash hauling contract.

UPDATE 12/12: The preliminary agenda after the jump (format's a little funny, but we're still working on it!)

Santa's coming to the libraries Dec. 17!

Santa Claus will be putting in an appearance at Altadena's libraries at Wed., Dec. 17, starting at 11 AM at the main library and 12 AM at the Bob Lucas branch. (How does he do it?  He's Santa!)  Grab your kids and a camera for a chance to meet Santa!

Altadena Crest Trails meeting 7 PM tonight

Just received:

Trail-interested Folks --

The next meeting of the Altadena Crest Trail Restoration Working
Group (ACTRWG) will take place this Tuesday, 7 PM, at the Altadena
Community Center, 730 E Altadena Drive (just W. of Lake Ave, adjacent
to the Altadena Sheriffs Station, and across the street from Rite
Aid). All are welcome!

Robert Ettleman, County Parks & Rec. rep. to the ACTRWG, has let us
know that Manny Moreno (also from County Parks & Rec.) will attend
tonight to discuss volunteer training and opportunities. Please come
to learn how you can help maintain our local trails, benefit from
learning new skills, and enjoy outdoor exercise.

For those who asked, we are unsure if other County representatives or
anyone from Sapphos Environmental will be present. We hope so, but
they have not been at recent meetings. If we hear from them, we will
let you all know.

With any luck, an agenda will follow by email or at the meeting.

See you there,
Robert Staehle, Meetings Chair
Altadena Crest Trail Restoration Working Group (ACTRWG)
Steering Committee

Holiday blegging: festivities and Top Ten

Please remember: if your church, synagogue, or other organization is planning their holiday festivities (special services, concerts, etc.), we have plenty of room on our Holidays page!  Just send an email to us, and we'll gladly put it in.

Also: we're putting together a list of the Top Ten Altadena Stories of 2008 to start the new year, and we're open to your nominations!

Webster's holiday open house and Five Acres benefit Fri., Dec. 12

The Webster's Center (which includes Altadenablog sponsor Webster's Fine Stationers),  invites you to their Center-wide holiday open house this Fri., Dec. 12, which is also a benefit for Five Acres.  Bring an unwrapped gift for a child age 5 to 13 and receive a 10% savings certificate, good on home and holiday decor.  Webster's Fine Stationers will give Five Acres that 10% and match it....giving a total of 20% of every qualified purchase to Five Acres.  You may drop off your unwrapped gift at the Pharmacy or at WFS.

Enjoy holiday spirit in all the stores, starting with Santa and his Elves in Karen's Hallmark at 3 PM.  Savor holiday goodies at WFS and warm your hands arounds a steaming cup of hot apple cider. Let your spirit be lifted by knowing that your holiday shopping is helping a child in need.

Scott and Lori Webster write us, "Listen to the carols of the season while you greet your neighbors and enjoy delicious holiday cookies.  This is Christmas as it should be.....what it once was....a community gathering to share its many blessings. We'd love for you to join us and give the gift of giving. ."

Festivities go on until closing at 7PM. Find out more about it at http://www.webstersfs.blogspot.com.

Space station ... Hubble ... shuttle ... toolbag ...

Looking ahead, one of our favorite websites says there will be a very bright flyover of the International Space Station on Dec. 17 at about 6:30 AM.  We also note that, besides the Hubble and the Lacrosse spy satellite (wave as it goes by),  it tracks the latest object in the sky -- the missing International Space Station Toolbag!

Photo courtesy NASA

Stealth bomber flyover this afternoon

Did any of you see the B2 bomber flyover awhile ago (of course you did!).  Isaac Garcia is on top of things, and has fresh new pictures.  Check 'em out.

BTW, our inside sources say it wasn't a Rose Parade rehearsal, but a former Defense Dept. bigwig who was having his funeral at Pasadena First United Methodist Church today and earned the flyover.

UPDATE 9 PM: Just got the obit: there was a 1 PM funeral for Verne Orr, President Reagan's secretary of the Air Force and a champion of the B1 and B2 programs, at Pasadena FUMC, and the flyover was for that -- of course, if the B2 is flying over Colorado Boulevard anyway it could also have taken in a little practice run over the Rose Parade route as well.  (We have our suspicions that last month's U2 flyover was not just about the Hollywood air show, either).

Sheriff's spokesmen (and -women!)

The Altadena Sheriff's Station Cycle-Thon got off to a bang-up start this morning, and is still going on even as we write.  About 20 riders (and one runner) started the event, which commenced around 9:30.  The cycle-thon will be followed by a dedication of the station flagpole and "historic hallway" at 11, and a barbecue at 11:30 (cost: $5.00).  Come on down, if you haven't already!

The cyclists line up to start.

Altadena town councilman Okorie Ezieme said he was going to try to run the event.

And they're off!

RIP Forrest J Ackerman

Many of our readers know that our level of geekiness is pretty high.  With that in mind -- altho' not Altadena related -- we have to pause to acknowledge the passing of Forrest J (no period) Ackerman, who died Thursday at age 92.  Forrey was a major influence in our misspent youth (we read "Famous Monsters of Filmland passionately when we were about 10), and we actually credit him with starting our love of movies.  He was also at one time the world's largest collector of science fiction memorabilia, and as a literary agent discovered young Ray Bradbury, and even acted as agent for L. Ron Hubbard, but we never held THAT against him.

We were privileged to meet him twice (once in Denver with WSB Business Development, where we conversed in Esperanto and he showed us the Dracula crest ring he received from Bela Lugosi -- and once in an Irish bar in LA with Bikinginla, where FJA was a special guest along with Korla Pandit).  He will be missed.

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas ...

... just like the ones I used to know -- with artificial snow.

Westminster Presbyterian Church is hosting an HBO filming crew for "The Pacific," a companion piece to "Band of Brothers" of a few years ago.  Here, Westminster is flocked up to play the role of a New Jersey Catholic church.

As you can see, the Nativity scene is very convincing

Even from across the street, the illusion is maintained -- just ignore the crew in shorts and T-shirts!

" ... and you say to yourself, How did I get here?"

It isn't often you can pinpoint exactly where you were at a point in time.  In our case, we had just slogged through several blocks of thick Boulder, Colorado snow to campus to see this little-known punk band on the recommendation of our friend Bill Sharp.

We don't know what's more shocking -- that this was 30 years ago, or what the tickets cost.

And if a time traveler stopped in in 1978 and whispered in my ear, he'd say, "Thirty years from now, on this day, at this exact hour, you're taking your six-year-old to a stargazing party in Altadena."

This ain't no party, this ain't no disco, this ain't no foolin' around ...

Christmas Tree Lane lighting ceremony Dec. 13

Join us for the 88th Annual Christmas Tree Lane Lighting Ceremony Sat., Dec. 13, 2008.

Festivities begins at 5 PM.  Lighting ceremony begins at 6 PM, at the Altadena Public Library, corner of Mariposa and Santa Rosa in Altadena

Santa Claus arrives at 5 PM to hear children's wishes and take pictures. Hot chocolate and cider are served compliments of Christmas Tree Lane Association, and Christmas Tree Lane boutique offers souvenirs, t-shirts, gifts, and memorabilia (including the ever-popular "reindeer poop").

This year we will enjoy music of the season by the Altadena Baptist Church Choir, the Altadena Boys and Girls Academy Children's Chorus, the John Muir High School Alumni Drum Corp, as well as the grand finale with children and our very own "Mrs. Altadena", Rosa Johnson.

Thanks to all visitors for your support, and we hope you will enjoy the Lane during the holidays.

(Image: a vintage postcard of Christmas Tree Lane)

St. Elizabeth cell tower approved

Just got word from some folks involved in the above issue that Los Angeles county planners have approved the cell tower following yesterday's hearing.  Developing ...

Working for the weekend

Busy weekend in Altadena and vicinity:

• Art Bender weekend at Gallery at the End of the World:  Described by Altadena Heritage as "the current epicenter of the art scene in Altadena, this eclectic and splendiferously funky gallery/garden" will feature over thirty established and up-and-coming artists in diverse media, plus live music, and delicious food & drinks all weekend long. Unique gift ideas? We got 'em. Please stop by and find out what the neighborhood has been enjoying for years!
  
  Thursday, December 4th from 6-10pm.  Meet the artists and enjoy gourmet snacks and drinks at the Collector's Preview. Musical performance by Artichoke.
  Friday, December 5th from 7pm-1am is the First Friday Art Club - an evening of art, food, fun, and live performances, including Wreck n' Sow and Almase Arabesque with drummer Rick Sarabia! Buy a raffle ticket for a chance to win original artwork by gallery artists.
  Saturday, December 6th - Open from noon to 10pm with afternoon barbecue and live performance by HolloH.
  Sunday, December 7th - Bloody Mary and Mimosa brunch, noon to 6pm.
  
  
• Stargazing party at Farnsworth Park, 7-10 PM Fri: LA County Parks & Recreation will host a stargazing party with Jane Jones of JPL, astronomer on Cassini Outreach.
  
  
• Tour of Altadena cycle-thon, Sat: The Altadena Sheriff's Station with the Los Angeles Sheriff's Athletic Association (LASAA) will be holding the 2008 Tour of Altadena.The Cycle-Thon is a 12.5 mile fun ride through Altadena. Start and finish will be at the Altadena Community Center, 730 East Altadena Drive. Registration starts at 8, ride starts at 9.  Dedication of the new station flagpole and Sheriff's HIstorica Hall is at 11 AM.  Barbecue starts at 11:30, and is $5.
  
  
• Caltech Glee Club, 7 PM Fri-Sat @ Westminster Presbyterian Church in a holiday program featuring John Rutter's "Gloria" for choir and orchestra.

More 90210 in 91001

Lindsay, Lindsay, Lindsay!  Lindsay Blake is out stalking Altadena houses/film sets again, and comes across the house at 1690 Altadena Dr., which was featured on her apparent favorite 1990's show and several other films and television series.

(Again, the Google street view vehicle was around when Altadena Dr. was torn up, so it didn't get a shot of the house that we could embed!)

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

If you drive by Westminster Presbyterian today, you'll see a snowy holiday scene -- entirely artificial, of course.  A spokesman for Westminster Pres tells us that they're filming an HBO movie, and the church is supposed to be a Catholic church in New Jersey in the winter.  It's very festive!  We'll try to get some pictures up later.

Former Altadena deputy put to rest

LA Sheriff Sgt. Archibald "Archie" E. Henderson Jr. was buried in Santa Clarita yesterday in a ceremony with about 200 deputies attending.  Henderson worked at the Altadena station from 1977 to 1989. Santa Clarita Signal has the story.

Supes post reward for 2004 killing

The LA County board of supervisors has posted at $10,000 reward for information on the murder of 24-year-old Anthony Lofton, who was shot at Jim's Burgers on Lincoln Avenue near Woodbury Drive on Jan. 13, 2004. SGV Tribune has the deets.

Sikh conflict at UCR has Altadena angle

Riverside Press-Enterprise reports on a conflict at UC-Riverside over the work of a Sikh scholar Dr. Pashaura Singh.  Our local angle is that the opposition is led by Altadena veterinarian Dr. Baljeet Sahi.

Chamber mixer and grand opening at Curves today

Don't forget: there will be an Altadena Chamber of Commerce mixer and ribbon-cutting opening ceremony for Rose West's new Curves gym from 5:30-7 p.m. on  at 2525 N. Lake Ave. this afternoon.

Bright Futures Scholars Christmas celebration Dec. 6

Got this no-nonsense message from the Quality of Life Center for the Bright Futures Scholars, after the jump:

County says Sahag Mesrob must shut down

This morning was the hearing on Sahag Mesrob Armenian Christian School's appeal of their notice of violation, and Coleen Sterritt,  one of the organizers of the opposition, has sent out this email:

Here's the news:

Today the Hearing officer denied the school's appeal of their Final Notice of Violation.
Basically, he said the law is the law, rules and regulations are established for good
reasons and the school must follow the process outlined in the County code.
His decision is final and cannot be appealed.

I will send more info. when I know what the next step will be in the process. I believe it
now goes to County Counsel for litigation.  The longer they stay illegally, the worse it
is for them overall with regards to the process.

More on this as it develops ...

A "treatise on trash," or where we're at now

Altadena town council chair Gino Sund has submitted the following to explain the trash contracting situation in Altadena, and what the town council will be looking at at the next meeting.  It's rather lengthy, but it's important for informed discourse, and starts right after the jump:

'Tis the season -- for the Balian mansion

Celeb real estate blogger Lindsay Blake continues her scouring of Altadena with a feature on the Balian mansion, home of the best Christmas lighting display anywhere (it's even featured in AOL's top festive decorated houses!)  When we first encountered it c. 1986 -- by accident -- we thought it looked like the Close Encounters mothership come to life!

Who's hot and who's not? Altadena -- not

Money Magazine and CNN have an annual feature on best places to live (No. 2 nationally this year is Ft. Collins, Colorado, our place of birth and raising).  In the local breakdown, i.e. San Gabriel Valley, Walnut gets the No. 1 nod out of 25 cities.  Anchoring the lower three are Altadena, Whittier, and Covina, with Altadena cited as worst in crime (and yes, we know the Crime Log is quite skimpy). 

Millard Canyon: the basics

LA Times has a short and shweet blurb about camping in Millard Canyon (you can get an Adventure Pass at Webster's Pharmacy?  Who know?)

Mystery sign

Our old hiking buddy Petrea Burchard is scratching her head over a mystery sign on the wall at Steve's Altadena Hardware, from back in the old days (hit the link to see the picture).  Maybe you can figure it out.

Art Aids Art opens Cape Town community center

PSN's Janette Williams front-pages Altadena-based Art Aids Art's work in setting up eKhaya eKasi, a community center in South Africa that, among other things, establishes micro-businessesand offers places to sell African art in this country. 

Venus and Mars are all right tonight

We just had to quote from the old "Wings" song, even tho' Mars isn't involved.

But several eye-on-the-sky readers have told us about a beautiful conjunction of Venus, Jupiter, and the crescent moon tonight. Just look at the southwest after sunset.

We're back ...

... from our undisclosed holiday location, and there's a pile of things to do!  Sorry we missed the Space Shuttle double sonic boom!

For those of you playing Pasadena Star News circulation roulette, here's the latest: the first time we left town, we trusted them to save our papers in a vac pac as the phone robot said.  That didn't happen, and the human on the end of the line when we called to complain said we needed to ignore their phone message and set it up with a real human.  So we did that -- and for the past two times, they still didn't hold it in a vac pac.  So this weekend, we called a real human, told 'em our tale of woe, and asked for a vac pac.  They said fine.

But we don't need one, because when we came home, we found they didn't bother to even stop the paper -- there was a nice pile of PSNs on our doorstep, advertising our out-of-town status to those who needed to know. 

But PSN is in a competance race with the post office, becaused we wanted our mail held, and signed up for it several days before we actually left.  They started holding that day, so we haven't had our mail for over a week.  We can hardly wait to look through the pile.

To review: PSN gives you stuff when you don't want it.   Post Office doesn't give you stuff when you want it.  Compare and contrast.