altadenablog

Yard sale-a-rama Sat.

This message is hitting the local message boards and blogs:

Multiple Yard Sales!
Saturday May 24, 2008 8:00 a.m.
North of Mariposa between Marengo and Fair Oaks

My neighbors are organizing a giant, multi-family yard sale in our neighborhood. There are at least 10 families planning to participate on Saturday, May 24, starting at 8:00a.m. The general area includes streets just north of Mariposa between Marengo and Fair Oaks. Several neighbors on Highview Avenue and Scripps Place/Highlawn Avenue will have sales set up in their yards. There may be some neighbors just south of Mariposa between Marengo and Fair Oaks participating as well. Look for the signs!!!

Organic gardeners organize!

A new Yahoo newsgroup has formed:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/COFEAltadena/

We are a group of organic fruit and vegetable gardeners from Altadena, CA who wish to trade, sell, barter or give our produce away to local neighbors.

We started as neighbors (3 miles above Pasadena, in the foothills) who had too much fruit all at one time. We set up a Fruit Stand and sold Black Berries to passer byers, we traded Plums, Apricots, Lemons, Guavas, Figs, and then later Tomatoes, other Garden Produce, and organic free range chicken eggs with each other.

We started talking to other neighbors and decided that it would be a good idea to share our abundance.

We got together and decided to promote the growing and sharing of local, seasonal, organic food by trading, selling, or giving away our crops. Opportunities for buying in bulk may also happen if this idea appeals to group members, along with canning get togethers.

By sharing our abundance and resources, we strengthen community ties, to create a sustainable, cooperative future. Do you have fruit or vegetables that grow in your yard and you hate to see it all go to waste every year? Join our group and post what you have, and see what we have to offer you!

Sheriff's Forum June 12: ID theft & elder abuse

The Altadena Sheriff's Station will hold a presentation on identity theft and elder abuse: learn not to become a victim, and what to do if you are.  A question and answer session will follow.

The presentation will be held twice: 3:30-5:30 PM and 7-9 PM at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr.  For more information, call 296-2103 or 296-2104.

Meadows clearing brush now

The Meadows weblog updates the neighborhood on their brush-clearing efforts, which start this week.

Meeting on St. Luke's property May 22

Here's the notice of a community meeting regarding the St. Luke's property development:

An important
COMMUNITY MEETING
will take place
Thursday, May 22, 2008
6:30 pm
Pasadena High School Cafeteria
2925 E. Sierra Madre Blvd.
Pasadena, CA

The Victory Rose Neighborhood Association is holding a community-wide 
meeting to hear your views about the development of the St. Luke 
Hospital site.

Tea at the McNally House June 8

Sounds like fun, from the Altadena Historical Society:

On Sun., June 8, from 4-7 PM, you will have an opportunity to raise money for the Altadena Historical Society and raise a toast to Altadena's newest Nationally Registered Historic Place, the Andrew McNally House at 654 East Mariposa Street. Please join us for a tour of the beautifully restored, exquisite interior of the house and enjoy refreshments on the lawn.

Building historian Tim Gregory, who prepared the national registration application said, "The significance of the site is based on the importance of its original owner, the founder of the Rand-McNally Map Company; its eye-catching architechure by famed pioneer designer Fredrick Roehrig; and the role it played in attracting many of Altadena's early 'movers and shakers' to settle in the community."

National recognition for this wonderful house was long overdue. And so are we in acknowledging all the work of our hosts, Frank and Jo Dupuy, who have owned the McNally house for over 50 years.

For information call Jane Brackman at (626) 794-0700

Tickets are $10 each for AHS members, $12 for members of the public.  For more information, here's the website.

Oscarsons in the swim this weekend

Berklie & Oscarson are competitive swimmers at the Rose Bowl Aquatics Center, and they're looking for sponsors for their swim-a-thon this weekend.  It's a great cause.  Get the details after the jump.

Out of the woods and online

We welcome to the blogosphere the Chaney Trail & Millard Canyon website, now up in draft form.  It's still under development, but it looks like it will be a great addition to Altadena cyberspace!

Victor Wright update

PSN's Melissa Pamer has a good story on the efforts of Rebuilding Pasadena Together to update Victor Wright's home, and telling Wright's story in particular.

New! Emergency/Fire Preparedness Page

Thanks to Alice Sarkisian Wessen, we have added a new page of emergency and fire preparedness weblinks among the permanent pages (right column).  As with all the pages, it's a dynamic work in progress, so if there are any links you think we should add, mail us at:

altadenablog (at) gmail.com

Staying Strong

SF Gate has the inspiring story of Greg McLain.  Originally from Altadena, McLain, who lives in the Bay Area, is a model of the dedicated African American single dad.

Do the Wright thing May 3

The P-Weekly is making a plea for Rebuilding Together Pasadena, which is planning to make a series of repairs at the Altadena home of Victor Wright.  Wright, a JV fullback for Muir High School, was left a quaraplegic after making a tackle in 1976.  Following that, he still accomplished some amazing things, all detailed in the article.

The nonprofit Rebuilding Together Pasadena has planned a series of repairs to his home, not least of which is replacing the wheelchair ramp, which will take place May 3.  For more information, call (626) 798-6176

or visit:

www.rtpasadena.org.

County approves new rules for Altadena dwellings

PSN reports that the County Board of Supervisors has approved new rules for construction of multifamily dwellings in order to preserve mountain views:

The new regulations, which were approved unanimously, limit apartment or condominium buildings on lots of less than 20,000 square feet to no more than 30 feet in height; require landscaping in front, rear and side yards to shield neighboring single-family homes; and require second stories to be 20 percent smaller than first floors and to be set back from the side or rear of the structure.

The new rules were instigated by complaints from residents, including several in neighboring Pasadena, that some multi-family dwellings were impacting the community's mountain views, said Gino Sund of the Altadena Town Council.

Get all the specifics here.

Larry Wilson asks:"Do you really want to hurt me?"

PSN's Larry Wilson batted .500 today. The good: he compliments Susanna Dadd and James Griffith for their Folly Bowl amphitheater here in the high 'Dena today. 

But then he sticks his foot in it.  The bad:  First, he rewrites history a bit, saying he "reflected community concerns" in his recent column urging that the Altadena Library retain its Modernist sensibility (children in wheelchairs and old people in walkers can be soooo tacky!).  That's funny: it reads like he was talking for himself, not the community.  Larry is a big fan of the work of architect Boyd Georgi (left), who also designed the old Noyes School to insure that the handicapped kids stay far, far away.

Now, the ugly.  Here's our money quote: "Will the famous sunken reading area be banned out of ADA concerns?"

No, Larry, I think it's a GREAT idea that there are parts of the library my kid can't go to.  I like paying my taxes for it, too.  I know what'll make the kid feel better -- feed him some cake. 

But you know, people like us cling to things like library books and accessibility -- because we're bitter ...

"There's No Place Like Homewood" May 4

The Altadena Guild is holding their annual Home Tour, visiting three homes on Homewood Drive. Tickets are $25 in advance, or $30 the day of the tour.  PSN has a good writeup, or call 626-304-4678 or visit the Guild website for details.

Altadena fire safety groups get federal grants

The U.S. Forest Service has awarded two grants to Altadena-based neighborhood fire safety associations.

The Altadena Foothills: Chaney Trail/Millard Canyon Fire Safe Council received a $133,100 grant for fuel reduction.  The Meadows Fire Safe Councll was awarded a $158,900 grant for an expanded fire protection project.

Scripps Home site topic of April 17 meeting

This note has been circulating about the plans for the new retirement community planned for the site of the old Scripps home:

Dear Neighbors:

The Episcopal Home Communities would like to update you on our plans for creating MonteCedro, a new nonprofit retirement community on the site of the former Scripps Home. We invite you to a meeting at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Drive, at 7 p.m. on April 17th to hear the progress on the project. This meeting will be a continuation of the dialogue with our neighbors that started over a year ago.  We have made diligent efforts to respond to all of the input we received from neighbors in our first meetings.   This meeting will set the stage for a series of additional community meetings to be held in the future.

The Episcopal Home Communities and The Scripps Home now have completed their merger, and all the residents of The Scripps Home are settled in their new home at Scripps Kensington in Alhambra, which is the original retirement community where The Episcopal Home Communities began its operation in 1923.  The Scripps residents have responded beautifully to their new surroundings.

You are aware that the process of demolition, removal and recycling of the buildings on the site has begun. This process is expected to be completed by the end of May.  All of us associated with Episcopal Home Communities have the highest expectations that this construction will provide Altadena with a new, state of the art retirement community on the site where The Scripps Home has been located since 1913.  We are committed to creating a new facility that will be an attractive and harmonious addition to Altadena and will add value to our town in many ways, while promoting the traditions of care and service for which both The Scripps Home and The Episcopal Home Communities have been known.

We hope that you will attend, so that you can hear first-hand about this project.  If you cannot attend, you may feel free to call me with questions at 626-300-6453.  You may also feel free to use our information line to ask a question at 626-432-4048.

Cordially and sincerely,

James Graunke
Vice President for Community Relations
The Episcopal Home Communities

Altadena Town Council Meeting

... always a scene -- Tues., April 15, 7-10 PM at the Altadena Community Center.

Genetics pioneer Attardi dies in Altadena

A little late with this one, we know (been out of town on spring break!), but Giuseppe Attardi, a pioneering geneticist from Caltech, died in his Altadena home on April 5.  He was 84.   PSN says:

He identified all the genes of the DNA in human mitochondria - often called the powerhouses of biological cells. He then developed techniques for investigating genetic diseases, including Alzheimer's, and aging in general, which he discovered is associated with changes in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA).

PSN's obit is here.

Altadena gets animal control officer

This message from Lori Paul has been making the rounds of newsgroups:

Dear Neighbors & Trail Users,

Most of you are aware of the dismal service Altadena has long
experienced from L. A. County Animal Care & Control's distant Baldwin
Park Animal Shelter. For years our calls have been routed to a
general Distpatch number that often disconnects callers or fails to
reach the proper authorities, even in an emergency. Baldwin Park
Animal Shelter seldom responds to calls in less than a few hours or
fails to show up at all. Many animals have suffered and died
needlessly as a result.

While many chronic policy and enforcement problems remain, Altadena
now has a dedicated Animal Control officer, Sgt. Villegas. The Sgt
was assigned to Altadena in response to numerous, vociferous
complaints made at one of Supervisor Antonovich's town hall meetings.
We have the Supervisor to thank for funding and ordering Animal Care
& Control to provide a dedicated animal regulation officer and truck
for our community. Sgt. Villegas is now located in Altadena during
day time hours several days a week.

Pas Museum to feature Mt. Lowe Railway

An exhibition at the Pasadena Museum of History, opening April 12, will feature items from the Mt. Lowe Railway:

Mount Lowe Exhibition

Mount Lowe: Souvenirs from the Incline Railway illustrates how “Earth’s Grandest Mountain Ride” captivated the imagination of visitors from near and far during its 43-years in operation, and how latter-day adventurers continue to treasure remnants of the legendary incline railway.  The displays feature souvenirs created during the life of the Railway, from photographs taken by Pacific Electric Railway photographer Charles Lawrence to pieces purchased at the gift store at Alpine Tavern --souvenir cups, spoons, post cards, cabinet photos, china, paper weights and match safes. The exhibition also spotlights some of the souvenirs that people have gathered in the years following the destruction of the railway. These treasures, found in the ruins of the buildings, include railroad spikes, pieces of pottery, and other objects people saw fit to drag down the mountain to remember their trip to the once famed railway in the clouds.

Exhibition visitors will likely be surprised at the obvious ethnic diversity of the Incline passengers.  It was commonly thought that this early California tourist attraction was patronized only by rich, white visitors from the East who wintered here.  The official souvenir photographs belie this assumption and are evidence of the widespread appeal of the Mount Lowe Incline Railway.

Curator Michael A. Patris, a third-generation native of Los Angeles, is the founder of the Mount Lowe Preservation Society, Inc. and author of the illustrated book, Mount Lowe Railway, by Arcadia Publishing.

NAACP celebrates ten years of ACT-SO Sun.

The Altadena NAACP will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the ACT-SO competition from 2-5 PM Sunday at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr.

ACT=SO is a major youth initiative of the NAACP, a forum through which African-American youth can demonstrate academic, artistic, and scientific prowess and expertise, gaining the same recognition often only reserved for entertainers and athletes.

The public is welcome to the performance.  Donation is $20 for adults and $10 for youth 18 and under.  There will be a reception from 2-3 PM and an award ceremony from 3-5 PM.  For more information, call 626-794-3444.

Marsh mentors meeting at Mtn. View Mausoleum

LIndell Marsh, one of the writers of the Environmental Species Act, will facilitate "Common Visions, Common Goals: Joining Forces for a Greater City" from 9 AM to noon Sat. April 5.

The meeting will examine how Pasadena community groups can work together for greater transparency in government and broader citizen involvement in the city's planning.  The meeting was postponed from March 29. 

Best part: the meeting is at the Mountain View mausoleum art gallery, 2300 N. Marengo Ave.  For more information, call Open Space Now, 626-792-6463.

More cougar (and bear!) sightings

Wildlife seems rampant this weekend, with several animal sightings in recent days.

Fri., 3/28:  A resident  of Woodglen Lane above Loma Alta reports a brown bear eating her garbage in the early morning hours, seems to be impervious to any attempts to scare him off.

Sat. 3/29: a large, long-tailed cat is spotted crossing Lincoln Ave. and into the brush around Loma Alta Park and the debris basin.

Sun. 3/30: A Millard Canyon resident uses her clog to beat a cougar off her dog, and finds another one prowling on her roof (details below).

Mon., 3/31: A resident of the 3600 block of Leilani Way reports a heavy animal, probably a cougar, running across her roof.

Be careful in the foothill areas -- don't go walking alone, and make a lot of noise!

4/2 Update:  Bonny Schumaker, the aforementioned Millard Canyon resident, writes it wasn't a clog -- she used her fists and a Birkinstock to drive back the cougar.

Summer concerts at Farnsworth announced

The Altadena Sheriff's Support Group has announced its 12th annual Saturday free summer concert series at Farnsworth Park.

June 14; Elliot Caine, Jazz Trumpet
June 28: Downbeat Express big band
July 12: Make a Face (50's-70's rock 'n' roll)
July 16: Those Manning Boys (Irish music)
Aug. 8: To be announced
Aug. 16: To be announced
Aug. 30: To be announced
Sept. 13: Rick Alviti in a Tribute to Elvis

All concerts start at 7 p.m. in the amphitheater at Farnsworth Park, 568 E. Mt. Curve.

AKA to recognize community leaders

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority will honor the contributions of local community leaders at its regional conference on April 17-20 at the Pasadena Convention Center.  The community is invited to a public meeting and reception on April 17, honoring Sheldon Epps (artistic director of the Pasadena Playhouse), Joe and Ruthie Hopkins (founders and owners of The Pasadena Journal News), Versie Mae Richardson  (founder of Alkebu-lan Cultural Center) and Dr. Juanita Watts of Kaiser Permanente, among others.  For more information on conference activities, contact Ruthie Hopkins at (626) 798-3972, ruthhopkins@pacbell.net

Altadenan works to protest war

A short piece in the P-Weekly about Altadenan Stephen Gibson of the American Friends Service Committee, who has been organizing events to mark the 4,000th soldier killed in the Iraq war.

St. Luke's property still in turmoil

P-Weekly's Andre Coleman reports a rather testy meeting of residents with the developers of the old St. Luke's Hospital property.  Pasadena city councilman Steve Haderlein rips DS Ventures a new one talking about their lack of public notice for last week's meeting.  A February public meeting was even worse, with notification restricted to those living 500 feet around the property.  And then there's the issue of the nearest emergency room being many miles away ... this issue is going to go on for a very long time.

Economic woes hit close to home

CNN features Patricia Guerrero of Altadena, who went from making $70,000 a year in the most vibrant economy in the world to going to a food bank to feed her family.  They seem to attach it to the housing crisis, and she was a loan processor, but middle class layoffs were happening long before the housing crunch. 

Next food co-op meeting April 17 @ Coffee Gallery

Patrick Reagan (one of the organizers of the proposed Altadena food co-op) sends us this:

The next meeting of the committee to investigate an Altadena food
co-operative is scheduled to meet Thursday April 17th at 8:00pm at the
Coffee Gallery.  Our core group is getting off to a good start but
others are welcome to attend if they are interested.

The original idea for a food co-op got started during an on-line
discussion. There's been frustration at the closing of the Pasadena Wild
Oats and an interest in a wider selection of products than offered by
existing stores in our area. Plus there are general issues, such as
rising prices, neighborhood access to organic food and the environment,
that don't seem to be addressed adequately by conventional grocery stores.

There are some wonderful co-ops in neighborhoods just like ours around
the country.  They're member owned so they're very responsive to local
needs and contribute back to the community in many ways.  They also play
a proactive role that normal businesses seem to have a hard time with -
helping communities develop demand for sustainable products. 

This next committee meeting is for people who are interested in, and
have the time to help research, what it will take to establish a food
co-op.  No prior co-op forming experience is necessary.  We'll be
addressing issues of financial management, fund raising, marketing, real
estate and grocery store management.  So if you have experience in any
of these it would be great to have you with us.  The goal of our efforts
will be to prepare for the next step - which is to hold a community
meeting to gauge general interest in our area.

If you are interested then please attend. An RSVP to would be
appreciated. Please send it to...
patricksavesworld@dslextreme.com

If you're interested but cannot make this meeting, respond with what
hours work for you and we'll factor this in to your meeting schedule
discussions.  In the last meeting we decided to try alternating between
daytime and evening meetings.

Feel free to pass this information on to others who might be interested
and to post this information to any discussion groups/blogs for our area.
Thanks,
Patrick Reagan

We are the eggmen ...

Welcome spring and Easter season!  Two egg hunts for the little ones today:

Farnsworth Park,3:45-5:30 PM today, egg hunt and spring festival.

Loma Alta Park, 5-7 ages 12 and under.  Egg hunt, coloring contest, and a "giant bunny."

Community Emergency Expo April 12

Various community and public safety groups (including LA County Fire Dept., which services Altadena) will hold a Community Emergency Expo on Sat., April 12, at Verdugo Hills Hospital, 1812 Verdugo Blvd., Glendale, from 10 AM-3 PM.

Visit with Smokey Bear and Sparky the firedog, shop for emergency supplies, get fire extinguisher training for kids and adults, see rescue dogs and the Jaws of Life demonstrated, etc.  (There's also a bounce house, but don't worry --  paramedics will be available!)  For more information, contact La Canada Flintridge Chamber of Commerce, 818-790-4289.

Altadena dominates local news!

... or at least it does the PSN's local section today:

• A photo feature of Jeopardy champ Ken Jennings' visit to the Altadena Library yesterday by the departing Molly K. Okeon
• Robert S. Hong goes into more detail on the Town Council's support of Rhythms of the Village (yeah, Altadenablog thought trash collection was the big story, what ya gonna do?)

And in the Riverside Press-Telegram, Joe Olivarez of Altadena is found guilty of first degree murder for being the gunman in a murder-for-hire scheme.  Details here.

Busy day for Altadenablog today, and will be out of pocket for awhile.

Getting ready for Easter weekend

• Friday: Easter Egg hunt at the Loma Alta Park upper playground area, 3330 N. Lincoln Ave., 5-7 PM for ages 12 and under.  There's also a coloring contest and (the flier says) a "giant bunny."  This is sponsored by LA County Parks  and Recreation.
• Saturday: Grand re-opening of Webster's contract postal unit, 2450 N. Lake Ave.  Events start with a ribbon cutting at 10:30 AM, and go on until 2 PM. Refreshments provided, and giveaways throughout the day.  And while you're there, don't forget that 25% of sales at Webster's Fine Stationers on Sat. will go to the Bright Futures Scholars to benefit Antwan Hawyard. There will also be a coloring contest and other Easter activities there.

NAACP sponsors foreclosure workshop March 27

The Altadena and Pasadena NAACP is sponsoring a free "Foreclosure 911 Workshop" on Thurs. March 27, 6:30-9:30 PM at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr.  For more information, contact Debra Francis, 626-252-5943.

Lewis resumes seat, charges dropped

First droplet of news from tonight's Town Council meeting (liveblogging now):  CT 4612 rep George Lewis resumed his chairmanship of the council today.  Lewis announced that felony charges against him had been dropped.  Lewis stepped down two months ago when he was facing charges relating to spousal abuse.

Revised plan for St. Luke's on tap, Wed. 6 PM

DS Ventures, the developer of the old St. Luke's Medical Center property on Washington, is presenting their revised plan to the community tomorrow, March 19, at 6 PM.  The presentation will be at St. Luke's Medical Center Chapel - enter by the emergency entrance and walk to the very end of the hall.

Hat tip: Monica Hubbard

Easter Bunny headlines benefit at Webster's

Webster's is holding an Easter-themed coloring contest for kids on Sat., March 22, which will be judged by E. Bunny himself.  Easter baskets will also be raffled off for the kids.

But most important, 25% of sales that day will be donated to the Bright Future Scholars for the benefit of Antwan Havard.  Antwan was hoping to attend the Scholars' spring retreat in Washington, D.C., this April, but his grandmother passed away and the funds his family earmarked for the trip had to be used to handle those expenses.

(Bright Futures Scholars is a project of Dr. Sandra Thomas, an Altadena town councilmember and the current Citizen of the Year.  The Scholars program, for middle and high school students, helps expand their educational and life horizons).

Good for Webster's!  For more details, check Lori Webster's fine blog.

(Note to Lori:  paragraphs are your friend!)

Update: food co-op meeting

There was a meeting Wednesday morning at the Coffee Gallery to discuss forming a food co-op in the Altadena area.  Patrick Reagan, who got the ball rolling, writes Altadenablog:

My original hope was to have at least a two people attend the first meeting and expected that they would take some convincing to explore this idea.

Instead we had six very motivated attendees.  (Two others were interested but couldn't attend today.)  Wonderfully reflecting the character of Altadena, we have slightly [different] reasons for wanting a co-op but share a strong desire to pursue the idea.  The other thing I'm pleased about is the range of skills and experience that this group has.  We could still use some more help but are off to a good start.

The next step is for us to do research.  We have to become knowledgeable in what it takes to get such a business off the ground, how co-ops compare to normal grocery stores and to begin to get a handle on financially justifying such a business.  Along the way we need to clarify our goals and determine if it might be possible to accomplish them by some other means - working with existing businesses for instance.  We need to make sure there are no insurmountable obstacles to an Altadena area co-op and prepare ourselves to present our findings to a community meeting.  Yes this is a lot of work but I find it fun.  It would be great to establish such a valuable community asset.

We're planning on having our next meeting in about a month. If you know anyone interested in helping, especially if they have experience in small business startups, please send them my way before then.  I'll have to confer with the rest of the committee but at some point we'll stop announcing the steering committee meetings and just work with our existing group.

If you're interested in helping out, send a note to Patrick.

Altadena Trails meeting ...

at the Community Center, 7 p.m. Tuesday March 11.

Food co-op discussion, Coffee Gallery 3/12 @ 11:30 a.m.

After the fire at the old Washington Mutual bank, several of the local newsgroups have been discussing possible new uses (including an expansion of the Ralphs next door, which may or may not happen).  Some of the discussion has involved establishing a local food co-op. 

Finally, someone has taken the bull by the horns, and sent this message. (Nut graf: meeting at Coffee Gallery, 11:30 a.m. Wednesday March 12):

"Who are the people in your neighborhood? ..."

A tipster just told Altadenablog that tonight someone is moving into what was until Monday the Pederast Hilton hotspot for high-risk sexual criminals on Risinghill Road. It could be entirely above board, legitimate, and innocent, of course -- the new neighbors could be absolutely delightful -- but our tipster is concerned that the last perv moved out on Monday and tonight -- some five days later -- a moving truck pulled up at 8 p.m. and is unloading in the darkness.  Meadows residents will no doubt be very interested in their new neighbors.

Friday feature (pharma)

Petrea Burchard's lovely Pasadena Daily Photo looks inside Webster's today.

WaMu snafu now up the flue -- boo-hoo

The relatively-new WaMu Bank on Lake is located next to Quiznos, whose slogan used to be "It's toasty." 

Now we can say that about the old, abandoned WaMu a block south.  It's toasty -- as in "caught on fire this morning."

As of 11 a.m. today, firefighters were still hosing down the fenced-in hulk that in recent years has been a parking lot for film crews, a refuge for homeless people, and an eyesore to the neighborhood.  This isn't the first fire -- there was one a couple of weeks ago that Altadenablog witnessed -- but by the look of the damage, this'll probably be the last.  PSN has sketchy details.

Meadows residents protest perv palace

State law says that sex offenders must live at least 2,000 feet from parks and half a mile from schools.  That pretty much puts them ... in The Meadows.  At the 4400 block of Risinghill Road, to be exact.

Elise Kleeman of PSN tells us that at least 150 residents met at Loma Alta Park last night to protest the almost-overnight creation of a sex offender sober living house in their neighborhood. The nut  graf:

The six men living in a single-family home on Risinghill Road range in age from 28 to 56. Four of them were convicted of lewd or lascivious acts with a child younger than 14, including one man who used force and another who sodomized his victim. The others were found guilty of rape by force or fear, with one also convicted of sexual battery.

The Crime Scene Blog calls it a "sex offender clown house," probably a reference to those little circus cars that disgorge tons of clowns.  (Altadenablog thinks the proper metaphor is probably something about "a good place for fishing," with all the children in the neighborhood and a national forest nearby.)  Parents have removed children's drawings from their windows.  Officials say their hands are tied. Best venomous quotes are from Pasadena Now's coverage  (a local report -- apparently the Mumbai staff was busy).

The Meadows neighborhood blog it a little upset, too, needless to say. 

Stay tuned for this one.

ADDENDUM: Crime Scene blog has a list of the cast of characters who are living in the Pederast Hilton. 

Breakfast at Nuccio's rescheduled

Altadena Heritage's "Breakfast at Nuccio's," which was rained out last Sunday, has been rescheduled for this Sunday, March 1, at Nuccio's Nursery, 3555 Chaney Trail.  Breakfast and tea tasting begins at 9 a.m., and lectures at 10  a.m.(the history of Nuccio's by Julius Nuccio, and a talk on the nurseries of Altadena by Michele Zack). Cost is free to Altadena Heritage members, and $10 for the general public (memberships will be available).  For more info: (626) 798-8682.
 

Jeopardy champ Jennings hosts trivia at the library

Record-breaking Jeopardy $2.52 million winner Ken Jennings will MC and host a free program of Lunchtime Trivia and talk about his new best selling book, Ken Jennings Trivia Almanac: 8,888 Questions in 365 Days at the Altadena Library, 600 E. Mariposa St., on Wed., March 19 at 1 p.m.  The program will include a trivia competition with questions taken from his new book with prizes awarded to the winners. For more
information please call 626-798-0833 or check the library’s website.

His bio says:

Ken Jennings was born in Seattle but spent much of his childhood in Seoul, South   Korea. A graduate of Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, he worked as a computer programmer until becoming an unlikely celebrity due to his unprecedented record-breaking streak on the television quiz show Jeopardy!

Much to his surprise, Ken's Jeopardy! appearance extended beyond a single game in June: He took advantage of a recent rule change allowing Jeopardy! champs to appear on the show indefinitely, and spent the next six months hogging America's TV screens. Before losing on the November 30 show because he didn't know enough trivia about H&R Block, Ken won 74 games and $2.52 million---both American game show records.

The streak made Ken Jennings a TV folk hero, and he appeared as a guest on shows including The Tonight Show, The Late Show with David Letterman, Good Morning America, Live with Regis and Kelly and Sesame Street.< Barbara Walters named him one of the ten most fascinating people of the year. The Christian Science Monitor called him "the king of Trivia Nation" and Slate magazine dubbed him "the Michael Jordan of trivia, the Seabiscuit of geekdom." ESPN: The Magazine called him "smarmy (and) punchable," with "personality of a hall monitor," thus continuing America's long national struggle between jocks and nerds.

Altadena Katrina survivor is senior volunteer of the year

The LA Daily News has a feature today celebrating people who volunteer their time, everything from mentoring to fundraising to helping out the sheriff's office or county coroner.  Altadenan Ernestine Sala, 78, was named county senior volunteer of the year.  Sala, formerly of New Orleans, lost everything in Hurricane Katrina and was determined to do her part when she resettled here.  It's one of several inspiring stories in the article. 

A divine story ...

... from the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin on Altadena's Divine Diamondettes drill team.  The Diamondettes boast 45 girls on drill team and 11 boys on drum squad, ranging in age from four to 21.  And they (and coach LaToya Carr) are keepin' busy.  Check it out.

Skeeter season approaches: dump and sump!

Altadena's weather eye Bill Westphal reports:

We’ve had 21.81” of rain so far this season at my Weather Station.  And hopefully we’ll get a little more before the end of the season (June 30).  Not a bad year as far as rain goes.

I was in my back yard this past weekend and went to change the water in the little Kiddy Pool that we use for our dog’s water dish (Big Dog).  It was filled to the brim with rain water. But it was also filled with Mosquito Larvae.   I don’t recall ever seeing that many appear in such a short time.

The weather is going to start warming up as spring approaches. It’s time to start worrying about mosquitoes.  Check your yards for any standing water.  Buckets, wheelbarrows, watering cans, even plant saucers can become a breeding ground for Mosquito Larvae.

If you find some, simply dump the water out.  Without the water, the Mosquito Larvae cannot complete their Life Cycle.

To learn more about Mosquitoes, what steps you can take to eliminate Mosquitoes or to report a problem, visit the Los Angeles County Vector Control at:

http://www.glacvcd.org/

Mrs. Altadenablog (who is also DOCTOR Mrs. Altadenablog) reminds us of the continuing possibility of West Nile disease as the weather gets warmer.  So we guess we better dump out that wheelbarrow in the back yard!