Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Taking a look at what's buried under paperwork at your desk.
The desk in my home office isn’t much of a desk; but then, my home office isn’t really much of an office. Two years ago, when I took a leap of faith into the goofy, madcap world of self-employment, I needed, first and foremost, a bit of space in which to self employ. I interviewed the various rooms in my very small house, and only one seemed up to the challenge. Kitchen, living room, bathroom, closet .. hello! Guest room. I had never stuffed my worst enemy in there, let alone a living, breathing guest. According to bits and pieces of evidence, this room began life as a service porch of the outdoor variety, back in the 1920s. And somewhere in the inglorious 90 year history of this house, one owner with a good sense of humor decided to …
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
A Q&A with one of Saturday's panel moderators, Altadena author Michele Zack
Writing a book is like building a house, except you’re not just the architect, but also the carpenter, plumber, electrician; you’re the neighbor from across the street who criticizes every plank and shingle, and the county inspector who agrees with the neighbor. To soldier on takes talent, time, and guts. This Saturday, writers and readers will gather at Pasadena's Central Park for the first-ever LitFest Pasadena. There will be panel discussions with well-known authors, and a chance to network, talk books, plots, characters, and enjoy some sunshine and gourmet food. The question I’m going to carry from one panel to another will be, “What are some secrets of good writing hygiene -- how the heck do you finish what you’ve started?” For a …
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Part of being a parent is sacrifice, and even if something that invades your home pleases all of you...it's your job to extinguish it for the health of your child
Something has entered my household and is spreading like a disease wreaking havoc through our family. It arrived slowly, sweetly, innocently with a big smile on its face, spreading happiness and cheer. But it slowly evolved, its true intentions developing with more clarity daily, and but by the time it had us in its grip, it was too late. No, it’s not my mother-in-law. Sadly, she died before I met my husband, and yes, it’s sadly according to the rest of the family. Apparently she was a good woman. No, it is something far more insidious and influential. I am talking about computer games. When my daughter was born I told my husband that we would never have any Playstations, Xboxes, Junkboxes or whatever you want to call them—no video…
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
One-time Altadena resident Rodney King never expected to become a household name. But when he did, it changed Southern California.
Of course I remember 1992. If for no other reason (and there are many other reasons) than I saw two men, the same two men, beaten day after day on the small screen. Television loves the news because it’s the cheapest form of programming. All they have to do is wait for something really bad to happen, then show the same footage over and over, for decades even, if it’s compelling enough. The stars of the film receive no residuals. I didn’t know much about South Central L.A. back in 1992. Just a little bit more than some folks who were still referring to it as “The Inner City.” But by the first day of the riots, South Central’s geography was no longer a secret. In the wake of the 1992 riot/uprising/explosion–call it what you will–the media …
Sunday, April 29, 2012
It's that time again, parents begin their search for summer entertainment...here's your guide to local summer camps.
Shhh…can you hear it? Shhhh…you hear that? It’s the sound of hundreds of heads exploding. Do you hear it? Oh, maybe not quite yet, but you will—trust me, you will. In a few months you will hear heads exploding all over town. You do not want to be one of those heads—it will hurt, I promise. If you have school-aged children and you don’t plan on being their source of entertainment the entire summer, it’s time to start looking for summer camps. And if you wait until it’s too late and all the good camps are all filled up, that will be you—an exploding head. Take my advice and start sifting now, there is a nice variety of local camps available to choose from and something that is sure to appeal to your child’s personality and interests…
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Super volcanoes, nuclear war, economic collapse and polar shifts—many Americans believe the end of the world is coming.
Whether sparked by the recession, the end of the Mayan calendar, natural catastrophes or turmoil in the Middle East, many Americans are preparing for the ultimate worst case scenario—doomsday. All over this grand country of ours, people are getting ready for the day when all of society breaks down, civility loses the battle with man’s savage nature and humanity reverts to a new dark age. If fact, this growing movement has gained so much traction that there are even television shows and dating sites dedicated to the idea of doomsday preparation. One particular show called Doomsday Preppers, which I admit I’m a fan of, takes a peek into this growing American subculture. Many of the so called “preppers” profiled on the television program …
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Good for the garden and, perhaps, good for you
Lizards don’t have big brown eyes, perky ears, or a button nose. They lack the fur and facial hair necessary to hide a multitude of pimply and scaly sins. To call them homely would be a compliment. Their appearance is wizened, scarred, and Jurassic from the moment they’re hatched. But lizards may be doing something rather beautiful these days -- no, I know it’s spring, but I’m not thinking what you’re thinking. I mean beautiful in regards to mankind – but more on that later. Lizards first crawled upon this earth about 300 million years ago, which puts their arrival somewhere between primordial ooze and the first dinosaur. In other words, they’re among our planet’s ultimate survivors. Not only have they been around the block, they’ve …
Saturday, April 21, 2012
A look at marijuana's impact on natural areas and the greed of those that cultivate the plant.
- OPINION
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Saturday, April 21
By: The author chooses anonymity, but wrote this for Patch. Whether one believes in the medicinal use of marijuana or is against it is not the point of the following column. In fact, many people from various walks of life advocate for the legalization of marijuana, including doctors, businessmen, lawyers, police officers and so on. They each have their own reasons, whether based on medicine, economics or spirituality. No one can argue the tremendous amount of tax dollars that are wasted fighting this otherwise benign drug and unwinnable war against pot. Most law enforcement agents will tell you, even members of the Drug Enforcement Agency --off the record-- that compared to harder narcotics and alcohol, pot is relatively harmless. …
Friday, April 20, 2012
Several new planned restaurants, a supermarket, and a farmers market seem to be pointing at change in Altadena's future. Is it the right kind of change?
Maybe it is a coincidence but it sure seems like a lot is going in the right direction lately in Altadena for people who want a more robust local business community. The evidence: It is these types of changes that has the new market manager for the farmers market calling Altadena the "next Brooklyn" and talking about it becoming the "epicenter" of a new food movement. Of course, some people have said either in the county's visioning workshops or on this site, or elsewhere, that they prefer a quieter community, so there may be some not eager to see all of these changes. We're curious to know what you think: are these positive developments for Altadena? Is this enough change or just a good start for more changes down the road? Or would you…
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Ask not for whom the helicopter whirls ...
Murder is easy--fictionally speaking, and a pretty nifty dramatic device. When a writer or movie director adds a corpse and a detective to a roomful of pretty people, we’ll get suspense for sure, romance perhaps, and certainly an hour or two of entertainment Which is ironic. Because in real life, there’s no entertainment value in murder, though local TV news remains unconvinced of that fact. Murder is nothing but misery and waste. The boy or man found dead and lighted on fire in Altadena Sunday morning didn’t find fame in his lifetime. But he’s famous now, for a few days, anyway. It’s a pity he’ll never know that television news vans gathered on Windsor in his honor, and reporters went door-to-door, hoping to mike up something of prurient …
Karin Bugge
5:30 pm on Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Hey D -- Trial by Toast -- I like it. more ›