Oddest story of the week: New Jersey teen sues parents for weekly allowance, and more on plastic surgery run amok at the Oscars

 * … JERSEY: The oddest story of the week has to be the New Jersey teenager who is suing her parents for $650 in weekly child support plus tuition at a private high school. Really? The parents say
they cut her off because she refused to do chores and honor a curfew, which sounds reasonable to me. As the skeptical judge said: "Are we going to open the gates for 12-year-olds to sue for an Xbox? For 13-year-olds to sue for an iPhone? We should be mindful of a potentially slippery slope." No kidding. (photo courtesy of CBS News)

 * … NOVAK: My comment questioning Kim Novak's appearance on the Academy Awards drew this response from reader Anne Russell. "I was so disappointed to see that you have joined the bullying bandwagon with your remarks about Goldie Hawn and Kim Novak. Gossipy comments about an individual's appearance are something I would expect to find on Twitter and other social media that are mired in poor taste, cruelty and 'judgey' mentality. I am saddened to see such unkindness from you."

 * … TRASH: This note popped up in my mailbox: "Just returned from a trip and noted that Bakersfield has achieved the dubious honor of having more trash than New York City.  Congratulations, Bako!  Many people, organizations, etc. are working hard to reverse this trend; however, the Litterazzi seem to be several steps ahead. What's it going to take?"

 * … TREES: The big fund raiser for the Tree Foundation of Kern next week has been postponed. No word on when it will be rescheduled.

 * … SCOUTS: Who can say no to the Boy Scouts? Troop 147 will hold its 25th annual car wash this Saturday at Brookside Market on the corner of Coffee and Hageman roads. It will run from 8 a.m. until noon.

 * … SWENSEN'S: From reader Greg Laskowski: "I remember working at Swenson’s Ice Cream when it was located next to a hair salon and the Brocks department store at Valley Plaza. It was my first summer job after eighth grade.  Dr. Russ Karlen, former mayor of Bakersfield, was one of the owners along with his brother in law Dewey Langdon.  He hired me to show silent old time movies during the day.  People would come in and enjoy ice cream and some Laurel and Hardy, Charlie Chaplin, and Harold Lloyd flicks. Sometimes I would have to go in to the back kitchen area and splice film when it came off the sprockets. I think people got a kick out of watching the film melt when the 16 mm projector jammed on several occasions. Best part though was the free ice cream I got while working there."

 * … MEMORIES: Gene Bonas offered these thoughts of growing up in Bakersfield. "As a child of four or five during World War II, I remember walking with my mother from east Bakersfield to a building on the corner of 23rd and L streets to buy meat and sugar. If I'm not mistaken, this building was a small market and had its meat cooler right in front. One could only buy meat or sugar on certain days and you had to have coupons for each item purchased. In going through old family pictures and momentoes, I found a couple of 5 pound sugar coupons. They, along with three brothers' Navy uniforms and letters, are carefully stored for my grandchildren. A previous writer indicated a building at 21st and L Streets was a pool supply store. I believe the building at 2230 L Street was once a pool supply store, too. Maybe one of your readers can shed clarifying light on these buildings.  I would like to know if the building at 23rd and L was actually a market during WWII."

RIP Nadene Steinert, celebrating the new cul de sacs downtown and when is enough plastic surgery enough?

* … RIP: I was sad to hear of the passing of Adala "Nadene" Steinert, one of the truly gracious members of our community. Nadene was 92 when she died. She is survived by her husband of 71
years, Marvin Steinert, a local businessman who has been so generous to many worthy organizations in town.

* … CUL DE SACS: Not everyone may agree on the widening of 24th Street downtown, but Westchester residents could not be happier with the new cul de sacs being installed on the "tree streets" (Pine, Spruce etc). This weekend, I spotted no fewer than 10 small children playing in the middle of Pine Street near 24th Street now that the street has become a dead-end.

 * … TREES: A reader, who asked not to be named, had a terrific suggestion for the Tree Foundation of Kern to encourage "tree literacy." Said the reader: "I have long thought an interesting series of articles could be written about the trees in Bakersfield. Perhaps a contest of sorts. Each month, you or the Foundation could pick a kind of tree (Redwood, Sycamore, Beech, etc.) and ask people to nominate outstanding examples of that tree. Size, conformity, beauty in location, etc. could be judged and you could do a photo essay, pick outstanding examples, give a plaque to mount by 'the best example,' etc. It would encourage people to plant and admire trees and be a positive story about something nice in Bakersfield."

* … OSCARS: Apropos of nothing, but how surreal did Kim Novak and Goldie Hawn look at the Academy Awards? When is enough plastic surgery enough? (photo by the Associated Press)

* … CEMETERY: Lillie Rose wrote to recall the old Chinese cemetery off Terrace way. "My parent's friends, Bob and Molly Hawthorne, lived in a house that sat rather far back on a lot near where Baldwin Road meets Terrace Way. The Chinese cemetery was almost in their backyard. I was born in Bakersfield in 1943, and as soon as I could walk I was in their yard and fascinated by the cemetery.  It was a lovely place back then. Both the Hawthornes and my parents impressed upon me that it was a place to be treated with the utmost respect. I was sad when the graves were relocated and houses on what had once been holy ground."

 * … TUNNELS: And yet another reader, Kevin Schmidt, suggested making our underground tunnels a tourist attraction. "As an amateur historian, it is with fascination that I read your stories about the underground tunnels in downtown Bakersfield.  It reminded me of my visit to Seattle.  My favorite part of the city was the 'underground city tour' that took you literally underground in old Seattle to visit some of the business and speakeasy's that existed in those times. The city went 'up' while the existing businesses stayed put, with the streets above them. It is one of Seattle's most popular tourist attractions.
Perhaps some enterprising individual can reopen and explore the tunnels under Bakersfield, bring it back to its old mysteries, culture and history to become a unique Bakersfield attraction."

How about turning the tunnels under the streets of old Bakersfield into a tourist attraction? Some readers like the idea

 * … TUNNELS: All the chatter about the labyrinth of tunnels and passageways underneath our downtown streets has led many to wonder how we might exploit it in some way. Can you imagine the Bakersfield tunnels as a tourist attraction? As Greg Gordon wrote: "I recently returned to Bako after completing a PhD out of state. I've really enjoyed reading your blog in the Californian, and I love the bits on Bakersfield history, especially the tunnel system downtown. Please keeping 'digging' into the tunnels; I'd love to learn more about them!  (Has someone mapped them out? What are the access points? Why were they originally built?). Here's an idea: how about a guided history tour through them?  (Or even a ghost-themed Halloween version, similar to what other cities have?)" Now that is a grand idea.

* … MORE TUNNELS: A reader named James Taylor shared his story of the tunnels. "In the early 1950s, my father had a friend that owned a building near the California theater on Chester Avenue. One time they took my father, brother and myself down a stairwell inside the building down to a tunnel. The tunnel had a large metal door. We went in and proceeded towards the street. There were many metal doors along the tunnel. We went into their vault and they had art works stored there. They gave my father a huge oil painting. It was all cemented walls and floors."

 * … VILLAGE GRILL: Shame on me, but I had never been to the Village Grill on F Street before Sunday when I stopped by for breakfast. The food was fabulous, the service speedy and I spotted a lot of old friends there, including former Bakersfield College football coach Dallas Grider and his retired banker wife Mary, local banker Bart Hill and his interior decorator wife Napier, and former supervisor Pete Parra dining with his family.

 * … CEMETERY: Remember the old Chinese Cemetery that once existed on Terrace Way? Lois Sabaloni does. In her words: "My husband, Joe Sabolini, remembered his dad telling the story of delivering whole roasted pigs with apples in their snouts in his Model T delivery truck. Instead of feeding the spirits as planned the food didn't go to waste as the hobos were waiting for the services to be over before enjoying the feast!"

 * … TREES: There are few more worthy local non-profits than the Tree Foundation of Kern. Over the years the Foundation has funded the planting of hundreds of trees around town and I have had the pleasure of watching some of them grow and flourish. On Friday, March 13, the Foundation will hold a "Trees in Art" fund raiser at Renegade Park at Bakersfield College. It is being billed as an evening of California's finest wines complete with dinner and a silent auction.The donation to get in is $50 or $90 for a couple. Call (661) 323-TREE (8733) for details.

 * … MEMORIES: This memory from back in the 1920s comes courtesy of reader Jack M. Rademacher. "North of China Grade loop was a forrest of wooden oil derricks. The area around North High School was occupied with a 10 foot deep, 30 feet in diameter oil sumps that Standard Oil Co. stored crude oil that fed their 'batch still' refinery located further east and south of China Grade Loop. Note: this batch refinery was replaced with a modern distillation-thermal cracking treating refinery around 1950 following World War II. I was the refinery engineer until 1955."

The downtown arts district gets trees thanks to the generosity of The Bakersfield Californian (family) Foundation and building owner Tim Smale

 * ... IMMIGRATION: It looks like the crisis over Syria may derail the effort to address serious immigration reform before the end of the year. Pro reform activists have been pushing for a vote in the

House of Representatives this year, but the lingering Middle East crisis has diverted attention and could possibly push immigration off until 2014. And with congressional elections set for next year, House Republicans may not want to vote on immigration in an election year, meaning immigration reform may not be dealt with until late next year, if that. Stay tuned.

 * ... TREES: The downtown arts district is getting a new layer of greenery thanks to the generosity of two local business owners. Twelve huge clay pots that will hold magnolias and crepe myrtles have been placed along 19th and Eye streets, providing some welcome shade and further sprucing up the downtown area. This is all the work of Melissa Iger of the Tree Foundation of Kern thanks to a $9,000 grant from The Bakersfield Californian (family) Foundation. Don Martin, owner of The Metro Galleries on 19th Street, has worked with Iger to place and plant the trees. Farther down Eye Street, two mature trees were planted in front of a renovated building next to the Mama Roomba restaurant thanks to building owner Tim Smale, a local oil executive.

 * ... BAD FORM: It seems people will steal about anything. The folks over at Advance Beverage Co. are asking for the public's help in finding a 30-foot-tall inflatable green plastic Dos Equis bottle that was stolen during Village Fest. If you have information, call (661) 833-3783.

 * ... OVERHEARD: A woman is telling a friend about a seat mate on her flight on US Airways from Bakersfield to Phoenix. "So she sits down next to me and immediately takes off her shoes and props her filthy feet up in my space. The flight attendants need cultural instructions along with safety instructions. I took a picture of it but it didn't seem to phase her."

 * ... SPOTTED: Seen on a friend's Facebook post: "Just had to go to the DMV to renew my driver's license... Pull up, line is out the door, thank god that was the non-appointment line. I was in and out in 20 minutes, but I really feel like I need a shower, some hand sanitizer, a round of antibiotics and some brain bleach. OMG!"

 * ... BC BARBECUE: Remember to put the annual Bakersfield College barbecue on your calendar for Thursday, September 19. Sponsored by the Bakersfield College Alumni Association, it will be held at Stramler park from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Mento Buru will be providing the music and proceeds will help the alumni association offer more scholarships to deserving students. Tickets are $25 for adults, $15 for students and $5 for children. Call the BC ticket office at (661) 395-4326 or buy them at the event.

Bako Bits: rudeness is in the eye of the beholder and Randy Martin will appear on Californian Radio to discuss Convenant Community Services

 * ... BAD FORM: On Friday I passed along a reader's complaint about a middle aged woman who interrupted a speech at the opening of the Southwest Baseball season because her car was blocked. The woman in question came forward, asked for anonymity and submitted this retort: "I'm the woman who interrupted the speeches at the Southwest Little League opening ceremonies March 5 to ask that the person who had blocked me in kindly move his/her vehicle. I had already called the number listed on the back window of the Chevy Silverado, left messages and waited to no avail. I knew I'd have no hope of getting an announcement to the crowd once the ball games started. I apologized and asked the emcee for help. I did not interrupt multiple times. I thanked him, apologized again and left. The entire episode lasted less than one minute — tops.  My patience, or lack thereof, isn't the issue here. The true discourtesy and bad form was on the part of the many, many parents who chose to park blocking other cars without even leaving a note including their cell number. What if someone had had an emergency? And whatever happened to 'do unto others?' Rude!"

 * ... TREES: Had a chance to stop by the Friday night fund raiser for the Tree Foundation of Kern and it proved to be a huge success. Among those I spotted at the gala, held at The Metro Galleries, were supervisor candidate Harley Pinson and wife Cindy, artist Art Sherwyn and wife Cheryl, John and Ginger Moorhouse, Melissa Iger, Rick Peace and West Rotary president Ricki Foster, Ward 2 city council candidate Ron Fraze and wife Shelly, Clinica Sierra Vista CEO Steve Schilling, former Kern School superintendent Larry Reider and wife  Sandy, water district manager and former Tree Foundation president Harry Starkey and many others.

 * ... HELMETS: It was a wonderful weekend to get outside and the bike trails and parks were full of families and recreational cyclists. That said, I am always amazed by the number of families - and their children - who ride bikes without a helmet. As a paramedic once told me: "You know what we call people who ride without helmets? Organ donors."

* ... COVENANT: Randy Martin is the chief "inspiration officer" for Covenant Community Services, a local nonprofit that is devoted to helping former and current foster children transition to adulthood. The organization fills an important void in our community by counseling and providing training and jobs for these youth. Martin will be my guest Monday on Californian Radio KERN 1180 starting at 9 a.m. Tune in to hear about this important work.

* ... PETROLEUM WIVES: The Association of Petroleum Wives is an active group in our community, and each year they raise thousands of dollars for a local charity. This year, according to Kacie Hathaway, the group is raising money for the Brain Injury Association of America with its annual charity bunco night at Stockdale Country Club on March 22. Any woman whose husband works in the petroleum industry who wants to join should email the group's membership char, Deb Carrieri, at dcarrieri@att.net.

 * ... REBUTTAL: Frank Hamon wrote to respond to my earlier post about a woman at a Christian school being rude after a fifth grade girls basketball game. "My wife teaches at a Christian school and also happens to coach our daughters fifth grade basketball team.  I also have taught at this Christian school and want your readers to know that not all families that attend Christian schools are Christians themselves.  I know that we have a great basketball team and I hope that none of our parents would do such a thing.  This includes me."

 * ... SPOTTED: Two young men in an older model pickup truck, headed west on Stockdale Highway near Chipotle and Cafe Med,  sharing a bong at a traffic light.

* ... BAKERSFIELDISM: John Strand from Lake Isabella says you may be a Bakersfield old timer if you remember "the monkeys in the large cage at Canady's Nursery in Pumpkin Center. One monkey in particular, Bruce, had a powerful pitching arm." Unfortunately, sometimes he was pitching fecal matter at innocent bystanders.

Tree Foundation of Kern holds a fund raiser and remembering when Sam the Hippo graced old Bakersfield

 * ... TREES: One of the more lower profile but highly effective non profits in town is the Tree Foundation of Kern, which is devoted to bringing more shade to our community.  I have purchased trees through the Foundation to honor friends, watched them planted and then grow, and I will tell you this group does a lot of good for our community. This Friday, it's holding a fund raiser called "An Evening of Wine and Cheese" at The Metro Galleries on 19th Street. The cost is $50 per ticket or $85 for a couple, and it includes hors d'oeuvres and wine from Croad Vineyards. There will be a silent auction and artists showing "trees in art." Email Melissa Iger at tree info@urbanforest.org or call (661) 325-6650.

* .... SAM: Frank Echenique is in the livestock transportation business, and he clearly remembers when Sam the Hippo lived in town. "We transported Sam from the Old Kern County Fairgrounds on North Chester to Larsen's Dairy on Wible Road. Sam was in the horse stalls. It took us all day... Sam did not want to go into ther cattle trailers... it was a fireman squirting water around the stalls that got Sam to go into the trailer. The news media left the fair grounds and then they were tired of waiting at Larsen's Dairy so Sam didn't make the news that day.  Also we had another encounter with Sam. We were asked to hide Sam as part of a scavenger hunt put on by Teen Challenge. He was hidden in our trailer at a church on Ming Avenue by where the Golden Corral resturaunt is now. We do remember Sam the Hippo."

 * ... RILEY'S JOURNEY: Riley Parker is a private investigator and friend, and occasionally I spotlight him in this space because I admire what he has done to whip himself into shape. At one time he weighted 232 pounds and was told by his doctor he was headed for a life as a diabetic. He changed his lifestyle, bought a  bicycle and committed himself to healthy eating and exercise. Where is he today? "After spending two months hovering in the 205-207 range, I met with my doctor at Kaiser-Permanente.  While that was a significant change from my all-time high of 232; my doctor suggested that I do an even more aggressive change to my lifestyle. What that really meant was going virtually Vegan in my eating habits. We did so with the help of a book entitled 'Eat to Live.' It took one week from the onset of those changes to attain, and then pass, my goal weight of 200. This morning, for the first time in two decades, I saw a '1' as the first number on my digital scale. Today, I set a new goal weight of 190.  I can’t describe how much better I feel…how many things no longer hurt, and how much energy I have. You must convince people my age, those original baby-boomers, to get off their butts, get some serious exercise, and to eat like paupers. It is the only way to overcome the affects of what our over-indulgence and wealth has done to us. The alternative is a really crappy fourth quarter of life. I’m going out on Saturday for a celebratory 50 mile bike ride." Well done, Riley. (photo of Riley and Jane Parker)

 * ... GOOD SERVICE: Sometimes it's the little things that count. For William and Pamela Goldman, it's the friendly Walmart greeter that they have come to appreciate. "I don't have his name, sadly, but he does his job in a professional manner. My wife and I require mobil carts to do our shopping, and this gentleman always finds one for each of us. Good deeds should be recognized."

 * ... MORE SERVICE: And speaking of service, Jeff Pickering wrote to praise the folks over at Action Sports who provided gold star customer service after he purchased a bicycle. Pickering is CEO of the Kern Community Foundation and is now cycling to work several days a week.

 * ... BAKERSFIELDISM: From Marlene Morales: "Geez, you know you’re from Bakersfield if you had your high school senior pictures or family photos  taken at Olin Mills back in the 1970s and 1980s."