Five Guys cheeseburger is tasty but expensive, some history on the Big Indian in town, valley fever explodes after the wet winter and CSUB serves the first generation college student

 * ... FIVE GUYS: I stopped by the new Five Guys burger joint over on Calloway and Rosedale

Highway the other day. The verdict: a solid, good burger served by a friendly staff in a lively environment. The French fries were delicious, if a tad thick for my taste, and I enjoyed the free peanuts, a nice touch borrowed from the trend in the Deep South where free peanuts are a staple in many restaurants. The downside: my bacon cheeseburger, fries and a small drink cost $14 and change. That seems a tad pricey no matter how good the burger was. By my calculation, the best casual dining burger in town remains at In-N-Out while the Hudson burger at Muertos Kitchen  and Lounge eclipses the field as the best restaurant burger in Bakersfield.

 * ... BIG INDIAN: Marty Butt is the former superintendent of Standard School District (1990-1998) and she sheds this light on the "Big Indian" statue that now stands next to Ethel's Corral out off Alfred Harrell Highway. Said Butt: "The Indian mentioned by Ken Barnes spent some years as a mascot for the Standard Middle School before the school's mascot name was changed from Indians to Warriors. While I served the community, the Indian that is now at Ethel's was transferred to its current location. A plaque at the Indian's base mentions it's time in SSD."

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "It's a good thing our bodies age slowly. It's so much easier to be horrified just a little bit each day."

 * ... CSUB: Did you know that between 60 and 70 percent of the students enrolled at Cal State Bakersfield are the first in their families to attend college? In an area with an alarmingly low percentage of adults with undergraduate degrees, that is good news.

 * ... VALLEY FEVER: Another (perhaps) unexpected outcome of our wet winter: a spike in valley fever cases. That is the word from Dr. Raj Patel of Preferred Family Care who said 2017 is on the verge of becoming the worst case for valley fever cases since 1992.

 * ... KERN RIVER: Ed Cadena has this to say about the drownings in our local Kern River: "I was in Morro Bay Saturday for the Morro Rock to Cayucas Beach Run. Saw this sign by the Rock 'Death from drowning happens once in a life time.' "Post signs like this along the river."

  * ... TRIBUTE: Ronal Reynier dropped me a note so he could congratulate, and "embarrass" his grand daughter Kristen Reynier. She graduated this June from Cal-Poly San Louis Obispo in
biomedical engineering with a minor in mathematics magna cum laude. She will soon be leaving for the University of Virginia to start her six year scholarship in biomedical engineering advance studies. Her goal is to have physically handicapped children walk again. Said Reynier: "Everyday I thank God her and her two siblings, Michelle and Patrick get their intelligence from their parents, Kevin and Pamela Reynier and not their grandfather."

 * ... MEMORIES: A letter to the editor in Saturday's Californian triggered this response from retired police officer Joe Moesta. "Wearing your hat was part of the required uniform of the day (in the 1970s). It didn't make any difference if you were out of your vehicle on a call or inside your vehicle on routine patrol. You were required to wear your hat. It might be 3:30 in the morning and you were the only car on the street, but if Sgt. Benfield saw you bare headed, you could expect to hear on your police radio, 'Able 1-4, put your hat on!' Those were also the days when the only difference in the winter and summer uniform shirt was 'wearing a tie.' The winter uniform shirt was the long sleeve navy blue wool shirt with a tie, and the summer uniform shirt was the long sleeve navy blue shirt without a tie. The temperature of the day made no difference. And those were the 'good old days.'"

Remembering the fiberglass Big Indian who once stood on the Garces Circle, and recalling when Buck Owens and the boys would play at the old Blackboard honky tonk

 * ... BIG INDIAN: How many of you know the history behind the fiberglass "Big Indian" that now stands in front of Ethel's Old Corral on Alfred Harrell Highway? On Tuesday, at 9 a.m., local Realtor Ken Barnes will join me on First Look with Scott Cox (KERN 1180 or video streamed on bakersfield.com) to talk about the history of the statue. It turns out Barnes' family brought the Indian to town in 1965 to promote their tire store that was located on the Garces Circle. The original price: just $1,400. On some weekends, teenagers would drive by and fill it with arrows as a kind of adolescent rite of passage. Call in at (661) 842-5376 to share your memories.

 * .... BLACKBOARD: There has been a lot of talk on this blog speculating if there were two locations for the old Blackboard bar, birthplace of the Bakersfield Sound. Charlie Duran says back in 1953 he worked at Wayne's Dairy up the street and as far as he knows, there was only one location for the honky tonk. "On the south across the street from the cafe side of the building was the Hammaroph Hotel," he told me. "Farther south near the train overpass was the Tower Motel that had weekly rates. I and my milkmen pals used to enjoy going to the Blackboard to down a few cool beers while playing poker dice... Little did we know we were listening to the invention of the Bakersfield Sound."

 * ... GOOD DEED:  Al Caetano and his pals always have lunch on the first Monday of the month as a way to network and stay in touch. What happened last week at La Mina at the corner of Brimhall and Coffee roads was a pleasant surprise. "The five of us were sitting at a table near the buffet and across from us, in a booth, was a 'young' fellow with two ladies. Since they were in front of me, I glanced at them but didn't recognize any of them. After they had left, a La Mina employee came to our table and said that the gentleman had picked up our check, treating us to lunch. I've heard about this happening but this had never happened to any of us. The man was gone before we had a chance to thank him and I'm guessing that was on purpose. When we asked the waiter, he said that the gentleman was a regular customer and that he just wanted to do something nice. It was certainly a nice gesture and I'm sure that sometime in the future each of us will do the same."

 * ... ACHIEVER: Hats off to Anthony Wonderly, a graduate of Garces Memorial High School, who was honored this week in Fort Worth, TX., as one of the 'Forty under Forty.' Wonderly has emerged as a leader and principal of Olympus Property along with his brother, Chandler Wonderly. Anthony was recognized as one of the Elite 40 at an awards ceremony held by the Fort Worth Business Press as well as featured in their May magazine.  He is currently serving as the president of the Tarrant County Apartment Association.  He graduated from UT Arlington with a communication and business double major, and along with his wife and children, calls Texas his home. His parents Bill and Avon Wonderly of Bakersfield couldn't be prouder.

* ... BAKERSFIELDISM: From Dixie Crane: "You might be a Bakersfield old timer if you remember the Green Grasshopper Teenage Night Club (no one over 20 allowed). It was located on 18th Street right in front of the canal. Before that it was a cola bottling plant."