Columns

Looking Back   When I was in my 20s I thought I understood the saying, “Youth is wasted on the young.” I vowed to enjoy my...

  A Drop in the Bucket Your Grandfather doesn’t believe in Christmas.   What do you know about it?   He doesn’t have a tree or any decorations.   That’s it, huh?   That’s...

Of John Steinbeck, Tide Pools, and Stars There’s so much to do at this time of year.  Holiday cards are coming in to our house...

I approached my next restaurant review with a sense of apprehension. How could the amalgamation of cooking school, deli and retail wine store be a place for great food? Twice before I patronized Laguna Culinary Arts, buying cheese and eating a student created lunch. It was during the latter experience I concluded I would not dine at LCA again. Why patronize a cooking school where upcoming chefs learn to hone culinary skills? As dining establishments go, the ambience in LCA failed to stimulate any excitement for my upcoming meal. A deli counter filled with prepared foods, a selection of cheeses and meats and retail wine store dominate the dining area. My enthusiasm was further dampened after a trip to the restroom, which is in need of a serious overhaul. What happened next is a textbook lesson in expectations gone happily wrong.

Laguna. Another perfect day in Paradise, but then there is the “December to Remember Sales Event” commercial jingle. Oh, no! Unless you’re clinically dead or Ted Williams, there is no way you could avoid seeing these Lexus TV commercials. In case you are Ted Williams and you don’t get around much, let me describe them. Cut to a homey Christmas living room where the wife opens a beautiful music box that plays the Lexus jingle. Several bars into the music, she thinks what a crappy gift and I should have left him in June. Suddenly it dawns on her that the tune signals there’s a brand new Lexus in the driveway.

Diabetes falls into the ranks of a dangerous terrorist arriving in strength and numbers on our shores. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates one in 10 of us currently suffer from type two diabetes and a quarter of us don’t know we have it. The CDC goes on to predict one in only three of us could have diabetes by 2050. Diabetes is where glucose builds up in the bloodstream due to its inability to enter into the cells where it belongs. How does this happen? Insulin is a hormonal key unlocking the cell wall allowing the glucose to pass through and become fuel. Insulin in diabetics no longer opens that door, leaving high levels of glucose flowing through the blood where it can damage blood vessels of organs.

My father was one of seven kids from Kansas. During the Great Depression, he got married and the next day took the freights West. There he eventually joined the Coast Guard and at the end of WW II ended up in Newport Beach. He did well in real estate and luckier yet, did not lose it back during one of the many down cycles. He and Mom lived full and good lives, and their kids, we four plus one foster brother, still are going strong. Our foster brother, Gary, came from a broken family and joined us at the age of 16. At Christmas, I no longer am sure who my whole family is. Yes, I know it includes my brothers and sisters and their offspring and their offspring too. But it is more than that. My former wife lives near me in Laguna and our children navigate between us in a manner that works for all concerned. During holidays it can be tricky, but we all accommodate one another and go to the same music recitals together.

Reading is a pleasure that I’ve enjoyed since I was a child. My mother was unable to say no to door-to-door salespeople and as a result we had an entire series of encyclopedia’s that came with a bonus set of fairy tales from many different lands. I devoured them. I would close the door to my room; lay out 25 cents worth of candy that I bought from the local candy store with part of my allowance, and dive into the stories. Hours were spent with characters that faced dangerous challenges that required tapping into their instinctual wisdom and finding the courage to make the right choices. There were gross punishments for greed, hatred, meanness, stupidity and laziness. True love and happily-ever-after came in surprising and gratifying ways for the heroes and terrible consequences for the wicked, the cruel, the selfish and those that lacked kindness and compassion for the downtrodden.

The House that’s not a Home Across the street from us is a vacant house.  The couple that lived there with their little boy has...

Strong Opinion Eric, you’ve been here half a day. I’ve learned: Teachers are jerks; School Administrators are worse; Parents understand nothing; Sisters are stupid; Friends are fools; Soldiers are idiots; College admissions officers...

A World of Uncertainties Unemployment finally moved down a notch from 9% to 8.6%, mixed progress is taking place with Europe’s financial problems and stocks...

Caring for a Legacy   “Suburbia is where the developer bulldozes out the trees, then names the streets after them.” –Bill Vaughan   Somewhere walking between Eagle Rock and...

To Bee or Not To Bee By Molly Morse One could dedicate their entire life to the history, mythology and science surrounding bees.  Not only are...

Gifts that Keep on Giving   ‘Tis the season of giving … you can feel it in the air. Storefronts are festooned with glittering lights and enticing...

Can Gentrification and Preservation Co-exist?   I spent a recent afternoon in Venice Beach. Haven’t been there in years and much seems to have changed. Muscle...