Environmental groups attack hydraulic fracturing, but trying to prove a negative won't stand up in making public policy, and some bad form when two dogs are locked in a hot car

 * … FRACKING: I had to chuckle at the recent letter to the editor from an Oakland-based environmental group that insists on trying to link hydraulic fracturing to earthquakes. Never mind that

countless government studies have discounted this theory (as they used to say, 'never let the facts get in the way of a good story') the writer said earthquakes have occurred in areas where fracking is practiced. And? What he didn't say was that quakes have happened in areas free of fracking as well. That's called trying to prove a negative, and frankly the argument doesn't hold water. Hydraulic fracking needs legitimate oversight, not hysteria.

 * … SAFETY: The incident at the Wal-Mart on Gosford Road is a cautionary tale to everyone. Two young black men in a white van pulled up to a woman in front of the store and grabbed her purse while the van was moving, hurling the woman against the moving vehicle and throwing her to be ground. Bakersfield police said the woman was not seriously injured and she maintained hold on her purse. They are looking for suspects. Be safe out there.

 * … BAD FORM: Gordon Dowdy spotted this bit of bad form in front of the Panera Restaurant on Stockdale Highway: "At 12:30 p.m. today a car with all the windows rolled up and two poor little dogs locked inside. We consider this animal abuse."

* … GOOD DEED: Lupe Canon-Morales and her friend were taking their daily walk recently when her friend tripped and fell.  "As I was helping her up and retrieving her glasses, a young lady driving by (we walk in an industrial area) witnessed what had just happened. She made a U-turn, pulled alongside us and inquired if we needed help. She then drove us back home. We were so rattled we failed to get her name, we want to thank her for her thoughtfulness and taking the time to see us safely home.  God Bless her, we need more people like her in this world!"

 * … BAGEL SHOP:  A reader wrote that her husband was in Bagels and Blenderz recently and spotted a couple with their small gray chihuahua sitting on the table. "How unsanitary was that?" she asked. "You may think twice before you sit down to enjoy your next bagel and coffee at this location.  Let's hope they clean and disinfect their tables frequently!  Remember people, dogs are not human!"

 * … CEMETERY: My friend Ray Mish, owner of Mission Family Mortuary, dropped me a note about the old Chinese Cemetery between Terrace Way and Brundage Lane. After the cemetery was moved to clear way for a housing tract, Mish said a contractor putting in a swimming pool found the skeletons of two people. Mish was working for there now defunct Armstrong-Flickinger Mortuary and he asked the owner if he would donate baby caskets to bury those two in Union Cemetery, which had donated a plot of ground where the other Chinese had been buried. "I then contacted members of the Ming family, a prominent Chinese family. I was given permission to conduct these services with a minister and flowers and a large gather of people and it was a traditional Chinese funeral." Mish said he is now in his 75th year in the funeral business, starting when he was just 14 years old.

The United States is well on the road to not only energy independence but also to record high oil production, and more good deeds about town

* … OIL: More good news on the oil front. The Energy Department is now saying that the United States is fast approaching energy independence. Thanks to huge production surges in North Dakota and Texas, not to mention here in Kern County, U.S. oil production is reaching record high levels and could contribute to a decline in the world benchmark price. Daniel Yergin, an energy historian, told The New York Times that the "United States really is experiencing an energy revolution."

 * … HONOR: Hats off to Susan Soria, the director of brand marketing at the Walt Disney Co. who recently was honored as one of the most influential Latinos in the entertainment industry. Soria was born in Bakersfield, raised in Visalia and graduated from San Diego State. Her proud grandmother, Zelma Lopez, lives in Bakersfield.

* … THEFT: John Mixon had this advice if your cell phone is ever lost or stolen. "Each phone has a unique serial number. If you key in *#06#, a 15 digit code will appear on the screen. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. If your phone ever gets stolen, you can call your service provider and and give them this code number. They will then be able to block your handset, and your phone will be totally useless. You may never get your phone back, but at least you will know that the thief can't use it either. If everyone did this, there would be no point in stealing mobile phones."

  * … OVERHEARD: A patient at Mercy Hospital is telling a visitor: "My cat trained my pit bull how to use the litter box. Really."

 * … BAD FORM: A local grandmother was out at the Southwest Baseball park watching her grandson pitch when she had this encounter with the mother of an opposing player. "I said 'strike him out' when this mother from Taft told me to shut my mouth or she would shut it for me. I was so disappointed that she wanted to fight over a baseball game. Can't I just root for my grandson?"

  * … GOOD FORM: I am always happy to pass along some examples of good customer service. This one comes from Reba Mullen, who bought a $100 gift certificate from Dick's Sporting Goods but inadvertently left it at the store. "I checked my bags, the car and rechecked my purse but no card.  I called the store and the gentleman who listened to my story said, 'It's right here.' Needless to say how happy I was. I just want to give that gentleman some publicity for being so honest. He could have easily kept the card and I would have assumed I lost it.  His name is Justin Gonzales and I believe he is the store manager,

  * … MORE GOOD FORM:  And Etta Robin shared this experience at the local Albertson's on Stockdale Highway and Coffee Road. "I recently purchased two gift cards for my granddaughters from Albertson's. The cashier was kind enough to indicate the particular gift cards that would provide me with a personal benefit of a $20 coupon for groceries at Albertson’s, so those were the cards that I purchased. A week or so later I noticed that the expiration date on the $20 coupon had expired the previous day.  I went into Albertson’s the next morning and asked if I could still use the coupon even though it had expired the previous day.  I was told that it was up to the manager.  Well, the lovely manager by the name of Dave told me that it was fine for me to use the coupon even though it had expired the day before.  And so I did happily use the coupon.  I thanked Mike and went home and phoned the corporate headquarters of Albertsons and told them this story.  I suggested that they give Mike a pat on the back for such generous customer relations—I do hope that they do so.  At any rate this is just a simple kind gesture on the behalf of Albertsons that I wanted to share with you.  It certainly put a smile on my face."

Bakersfield High School Driller alum launch drive to support the football program, and lots of good deeds abound this holiday season

* … DRILLERS: There is a drive among alumni of Bakersfield High School to raise $25,000 to pay for Valley championship rings and to help the athletic program grow. I am told that almost $10,000 has

been raised already. If you are a Driller and want to contribute, make a check payable to BHS Athletic Booster Club and note "football" on the memo line. You can mail them to Bakersfield High School,
1241 G Street, 93301. The Drillers, 11-2, will face Mission Hills in San Diego in the first round of the state Division 1playoffs Friday.

 * … CRIME: Local plaintiff's lawyer Matt Clark was with his wife Molly, son Harry and their two standard poodles outside Baja Fresh at the Marketplace recently when "two young kids, in an older model, teal, Toyota pick-up stopped in front of the outdoor seating.  The passenger jumped out, ran up to a woman who had her purse sitting next to her on the ground, and took the purse. He jumped back in the truck and they fled. The truck had damage on the side, and numerous bumper stickers on the back. Harry remembers seeing the truck driving around on the opposite end of the shopping center, 30 minutes before the theft. Obviously, they were staking the place out looking for a target."

* … MEEK: Kudos to Harold Meek, the former Bakersfield car dealer who has been honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Greater Bakersfield New Car Dealers Association. Meek is the first recipient of this new award. Meek and his wife Kay sold their shares in the Three-Way Automotive Group in 2008 when he retired from the business. The Meeks have long been active in our community, in both charitable causes as well as Republican politics.

* … GUARDIAN ANGEL: Shirley Machado shared this uplifting story of a stranger coming to her aid. "After visiting the tax office, I returned to my car parked in the garage and promptly spilled the contents of my purse. As dark as it was I thought I had everything and drove home.  My surprise came when a young man came to my door and explained that he was returning my wallet which I had never missed. He told me his name but I'm afraid It didn't register (I was too stunned). All I know is that he had to be my guardian angel in a black sweatshirt with MORRO BAY on it.  If you see him, he just might be your angel, too." Thanks for sharing, Shirley.

* … MORE GOOD FORM: McKinley Elementary kindergarten teacher Jolie Brouttier was driving down Union Avenue when she spotted a young girl in front of a local motel, in the cold with no socks. What did she do? She pulled over and gave the youngster a pair of socks. "Thank goodness Ms. B always carries extras," she said.

 * … AND THIS: Can you stand one more uplifting story from our week? Al Garcia was with a group of about 15 Vietnam veterans having lunch at the Roadhouse Grill when, to his surprise, a young man insisted on picking up the check. "Can you image how this made 15 to 18 of us feel?" Garcia said. "He wasn't a veteran and just wanted to do something nice." The good Samaritan identified himself as Chris Russell, who runs an oilfield construction business.

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."

Bako Bits: a local connection to the Jackie Robinson movie and East Rotary puts on a fund raiser to find a cure for Valley Fever

 * ... JACKIE ROBINSON: It turns out that the movie on the life of Jackie Robinson has a local connection. Joy Cook Tolladay told me that her brother, Dick Cook, is executive producer of the film and she recently attended a special screening.  "It's a story about courage, it's a love story and it's the best history lesson we can teach our children. Even though I didn't grow up in that era, I always
knew Jackie Robinson was a hero. I just didn't respect how big of a hero he was until I saw the movie."

 * ... LUIGIS: Is there a better way to spend a lazy Saturday brunch than at Luigi's Restaurant and Delicatessen over on East 19th Street? The long-time favorite lunch haunt features a can't miss menu, outside seating and new courtyard bar and a chance to reconnect with folks you haven't seen for months.

* ... MOVING UP: Debbie Allen is an understandably proud mother who brought us up to date on her surgeon son, Clint Tanner Allen, a 1997 graduate of Shafter High School. He went on to graduate from Bakersfield College and later Texas A and M University. From there it was medical school, internships and residency and now he is on the faculty at Johns Hopkins as an assistant professor of otolaryngology.

 * ... GOOD DEED: Hats off to the anonymous person who picked up the tab for a group of seniors from an assisted living facility who had lunch at Woolgrower's last week. Irving Falk was one of those who was treated to lunch and called me to "thank this person for a wonderful, wonderful thing."

 * ... MEMORIES: Reader Pat Donnallan remembers the old Brundage Variety store. "If you were one of the kids living West of Roosevelt School, Brundage Variety was a usual stop on your way home from Emerson Junior High. In the 1950s we walked from Myrtle and Bank atreets to Emerson. Parents did not drive you to school, you walked that two miles. On our walks home in the hot afternoon sun, we would hit Brundage Variety for the candy bar then walk up Chester to Warrens Drive-in for a Coke for that energy to help get us home. Brundage Variety was located on the southwest corner of Chester Avenue and 1st Street . I believe the store was owned by the Toggnini’s and I vaguely remember Mr. Toggnini was the pharmacist there  Their daughter Sandra went on to be on TV with an afternoon show here in town and she was always fondly remembered as the ‘lady with the glass eye.'  She used to have pound puppies on her show and mom took my sis and I to get one of the dogs we saw on her show.  Yep, brings back a lot of memories."

 * ... VALLEY FEVER: The East Rotary Club is holding a wine lovers dinner this Saturday over at Monsignor Leddy Hall at Garces Memorial High School. It's called Vino Amore and will feature a five course gourmet meal catered by T.L. Maxwell's Restaurant and Bar, followed by live and silent auctions. Proceeds will benefit Valley Fever Americas, the Bakersfield Ronald McDonald House and the East Bakersfield Rotary Foundation. Tickets are $75. Call Sandi Schwartz at (661) 706-6663.

 * ... BAKERSFIELDISM: Gil Pedersen says you are definitely a Bakersfield old time pilot if you remember "when you could  take  or land from Meadows Field without radio contact. You got clearance from the tower by light signals."

New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman cites Muslim hypocrisy in insulting other religions, and another successful young man returns to Bakersfield to live and work

 * ... FRIEDMAN: The ongoing protests and violence in the Middle East that led to the death of the U.S. ambassador to Libya drew a strong response from New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman. Friedman is one of our nation's foremost Middle East experts and he spared no words in calling out Muslim protesters on their own hypocrisy when it comes to insulting other religions. "They might want to look at the chauvinistic bile that is pumped out by some of their own media — on satellite television stations and Web sites or sold in sidewalk bookstores outside of mosques — insulting Shiites, Jews, Christians, Sufis and anyone else who is not a Sunni, or fundamentalist, Muslim. There are people in their countries for whom hating 'the other' has become a source of identity and a collective excuse for failing to realize their own potential." More reasons why all of us should practice tolerance.

 * ... COMING HOME: Another successful youngster has returned to Bakersfield to work and live. Neil K. Gehlawat, a graduate of Stockdale High and later UC Berkeley, has joined the law firm of Chain, Cohn and Stiles as an associate attorney in its personal injury department. He graduated from Stockdale in 2005 and later earned a degree from Cal. He went on to attend The University of Texas School of Law, where he served as a Notes Editor for the Texas Law Review and was a regional champion in the National Appellate Advocacy Competition. He obtained his juris doctorate in
2012.

 * .... OVERHEARD: A young woman who just returned from Boston is overheard talking about coming home. "I am always amazing how friendly people are here," she said. "At the airport, at the car wash and even at Starbucks people are just so nice. Yesterday in the drive-through at Starbucks and woman two cars in front of me paid for the entire line. It's just great coming home."

 * ... SEXTING: If your teenager is using his or her cell phone for something other than emergencies - like sending suggestive flirty messages to others - chances are that she may be engaged in sex. That's the result of a survey as reported in The Los Angeles Times, which said teenagers who engage in "sexting" are seven times more like to be engaged in sex. (photo courtesy of The Los Angeles Times)

 * ... HISTORY: Several readers wrote with questions about the 1945 incident in which a B-25 Mitchell ran into the Empire State Building, killing 14 people including three crewmen. It happened on a Saturday morning when the B-25, headed from Boston to LaGuardia, was cleared to land in heavy fog and mistakenly veered right into the building. The plane hit the north side of the building between the 78th and 80th floor.

 * ... SNYDER: Congratulations to Toni Snyder who came home with a prestigious honor from the Radio Show convention in Dallas. Snyder was named "general manager of the year" in the 2012 National Association of Broadcasters and Radio Advertising Bureau competition. Snyder runs the seven American General Media radio stations in Bakersfield. Californian Radio, which runs weekdays from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., appears on KERN 1180, one of the AGM stations.

 * ... ASHBURN: Former state Sen. Roy Ashburn has picked up more endorsements in his bid to return to the Kern County Board of Supervisors in the First District. Among those endorsing Ashburn were Delano Mayor Grace Vallejo, Ridgecrest Mayor Ron Carter and McFarland Mayor Manuel Cantu Jr. Ashburn faces former China Lake Naval Weapons Station commander Mick Gleason in November.

Kern County almond producers expect a near record crop, and State Sen. Michael Rubio comes on Californian Radio to talk politics and reforming our state environmental laws

* ... ALMONDS: Good news for Kern County's almond growers: it looks like prices are going up and we are headed to another solid harvest. The almond harvest is now under way, and producers expect a harvest of some two billion pounds, just slightly under last year. Prices and demand have been steadily climbing every year, thanks to some degree to a strong demand from overseas but also to a growing national appetite for fresh nuts.

 * ... RUBIO: State Sen. Michael Rubio, recently appointed chairman of the Senate Environmental Quality Committee, will be my guest on Californian Radio KERN 1180 Monday to talk about his plans to revise the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). We will be talking about state pension reform and other issues facing the Golden State. Rubio will be on at 9 a.m.

* ... GOOD DEED: Janada Shepard was dining at Uricchio's Trattoria last week, complements of two friends who were treating her for her birthday. "A server approached me and said a gentleman would like to know if he could buy me a glass of wine. Of course I agreed and asked who the gentleman was so I could thank him.  He chose to remain anonymous. So hopefully I can thank him through your column, that I read and enjoy every day. He made my day even better... how thoughtful!"

 * ... SINGLE: Did you know that a third of all Americans ages 45 to 63 are single, a 50 percent increase since 1980? That's according to the Wall Street Journal, which reported that one in four adults over the age of 50 is divorced, a huge increase over the past decade.


 * ... CORRECTION: Mark Romero wrote to correct an earlier blog post that misidentified the type of military aircraft that hit the Empire State Building in 1945.  "It was a B-25 Mitchell that hit the building in 1945.... a B-24 Liberator is a much bigger bomber with four engines. A B-25 has two engines."

 * ... ENIGMAS: Good luck to Adam Vinson and Jason Gutierrez, partners in a new multi-media agency called ENIGMA specializing in public relations, social media, multimedia production, web site design, hosting and maintenance, graphic design and marketing strategy.

Local housing market is in a squeeze with bidding wars breaking out on homes and a man literally gives "the shirt off his back" to a homeless man in Oildale

* ... HOUSING: Last week I cited a Realtor.com report on the local housing market, indicating as many as 1,815 homes were on the market locally. That triggered responses from local experts saying the real number was actually much lower. Here's appraiser Gary Crabtree, one of the leading experts on our local market: "In June, there were only 545 homes on the market, not 1,815 and it’s down 32 percent from the same period last year. There is an extreme undersupply of active listings on the market when you consider that the number of active listings comprise 0.4 percent of the total single family homes in Bakersfield. The main reason for the discrepancy is that they count homes with accepted contingent offers on them as active listings. There are bidding wars on homes with 2 to 4 offers not uncommon, but prices are being held in check by the restrictive appraisal practices mandated by Fannie and the continued use of 'distressed' sales as comparable."

  * ... SPOTTED: This heart warming encounter was related to me by reader Darlene Stewart: "On a recent trip to the Oildale Post Office I observed a man with no shirt (possibly homeless) asking directions to the morgue, because his brother had just died. He asked a couple driving out of the post office parking lot about directions to the morgue. They in turn asked me and I directed them next door to Mish Funeral Home. The gentleman in the car, not wanting him to have to go into the funeral home without a shirt, took his shirt off and offered it to him but he did not want to accept it. The gentleman wouldn’t take no for an answer and just slipped it over his head. This is the only time I have ever witnessed someone literally 'giving the shirt off his back.'"

* ... SPAY-NEUTER: Good news for all you out there who care about our pets. Bakersfield will soon have its own high-volume, low-cost spay-neuter clinic, called Critters Without Litters. The non-profit group was founded by Joann and Larry Keller, the couple behind the successful “Fix Your Pit” voucher program, which subsidized the cost for over 1,800 pit bulls and pit mixes since 2010. The equipment is on order and staffing is under way for the clinic, which is scheduled to open this fall. The clinic expects to perform 35 to 40 spay and neuter surgeries a day. For more details or to support this program call Larry Keller at (661) 831-6000.

 * ... RADIO: Join me tomorrow at 9 a.m. on Californian Radio KERN 1180 when I will be chatting with Ryan Beckwith, the athletic director at Bakersfield College. We'll be talking about his priorities and the upcoming Gades football season. (file photo of Beckwith)

* ... SUBMARINE: Gene M. Bonas is a Navy veteran and former submariner who is part of a group trying to save the USS Clamagore (SS343), which he called the last Guppy III submarine now destined for the scrap heap. "The Clamagore, commissioned in 1945, has served as a museum since 1981. It played a critical role as a prototype sub and Cold War warrior in helping to develop the technology that truly won the Cold War. Now, the Clamagore needs a $3 million overhaul.  If we, as past and present submariners and Navy veterans, don't save the Clamagore, she will be sold to the highest bidder for scrap or sunk to make an artificial reef." If you want to donate, send a check payable to "Save the Clamagore" to George Bass, 110 River Birch Drive,  Salisbury, N.C. 28146. (file photo of the USS Clamagore)

 * .... BAKERSFIELDISM: From John Strand in Lake Isabella: "You might be a Bakersfield old-timer if you remember the 210-foot 'Eiffel Tower' which stood on the Pacific Telephone building at 20th and Eye streets for many years. It was part of the YJ radiotelephone system which preceded our current cell-phones. Back in the day it was the highest structure in Bakersfield.

Bakersfield ranks high on a list of cities with high poverty rates, but good deeds abound

 * ... POVERTY: The U.S. Census says Bakersfield ranks No. 4 on the list of metropolitan areas with the highest rates of poverty in the country. Ranking first was the McAllen, Texas, area with 33.4 percent of residents living below the poverty line, followed by Fresno at 26.8 percent, El Paso at 24.3 percent and then Bakersfield at 21.2 percent.

 * ... FAMILY AFFAIR: You may have read about the exciting end to the Garces-Highland football game last Friday, where Highland’s last minute drive for the winning touchdown was halted by an intercepted pass by Garces to end the game. The back story is that Highland was led by their quarterback, Ryan O’Leary, who had a terrific game but threw the doomed interception to Garces’ Mark Stinson. As can only happen in small town America under Friday night lights, O’Leary’s dad is John O’Leary, owner of O’Leary’s Office Products. Young Stinson is the son of Ben Stinson, owner of Stinson’s Office Products. What are the odds? The younger lads are class acts, and their dads are friendly competitors.

* ... SALLY SHOPPER: My recent post on the old "Sally the Shopper" program at Brock's department store caught the attention of reader Warren Pechin. "My mother, Marguerite Pechin, was one of the two original Sally the Shoppers along with a woman named Rose Nathan. They worked for Marie Smith who started the program and went on to run the Golden Empire Gleaners." This was around 1967, he said, and his mother is still going strong at 92.

 * ... LENDING HAND: Linda Sheffield was in front of the Target store on Rosedale Highway when she witnessed a good deed that she wanted to share. "I saw an elderly, bent lady with a cane stopped by those pesky yellow, bumpy things recently installed in front of the entrance, not sure how to navigate them. She looked as if she would surely fall. I was thinking I would go park and come back to help her, when a young man emerged from the passenger side of a small black car in front of me and offer his arm in assistance. What a blessing it was to observe kindness in action! I checked to see who was driving the car as I went by and it was another young man - not someone's mother who told him to help. I wanted to share this because I was so blessed by it, but also to help counteract all of those tacky things (and I see plenty of those, too) that show up in your column. Thanks for the interesting tidbits that you share with us."

* ... MEMORY: Reader Nancy Schilly says you have been around Bakersfield for a while if you "remember Wayne's Dairy on North Chester Avenue. It was across the street from the original Kern County Fairgrounds. Wayne's had a very good restaurant in front of the dairy. Growing up we drove in from Shafter and ate there a lot. They made their own donuts and you could watch them being made. They made them all by hand. They made all their own ice cream too. We also ate at Tiny's restaurant on the corning of 18th and Chester. You could get a chubby steak dinner for $5. Those were the times."

 * ... BAKERSFIELDISM: Even young people have memories of "old" Bakersfield. From 23-year old Jolie Brouttier: You may be from Bakersfield if you "remember driving down Ming (Between Gosford and Old River) smelling only dust from the dirt field rather than Tahoe Joe's steak dinner."

A northern California city comes out of bankruptcy with steep cuts in union pensions, and more defense of the NRA

 * ...PENSION REFORM: With all the talk about rising pensions costs, experts say the city of Vallejo in the Bay Area may provide a road map for reform. The city has the dubious distinction of being home to the largest municipal bankruptcy in years, and it is now submitting reforms to a federal judge. According to the Wall Street Journal, union salaries and benefits rose to make up 80 percent of the city's budget, untenable by any standards. The city has now reached new contracts with the police, fire and management unions that - among other things - will shrink health care benefits for retires to $300 a month, down from $1,500 a month. The former city manager of another Bay Area city said Vallejo was "an example of how compensation and benefits had been part of the politics of the city and it ultimately got the city in trouble." Sound familiar?

 * ... GLEANERS: One of the great benefits of living in California is the abundance of fruit trees that grace our yards. Many of us have an orange, lemon, lime or grapefruit tree somewhere on our property. And this is the time of year when so much of our back yard fruit goes unused. The folks over at the Golden Empire Gleaners would love to redirect some of that fruit to the needy. Pam Fiorini, Gleaners executive director, is looking for community groups that would be willing to pick fruit at homes of folks who want to donate it. It could be a Scout troop, church group or an individual. Or, if you can do it yourself, ,you can drop off the fruit at the Gleaner warehouse at 1326 30th Street, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to noon. Or call and arrange for it to be picked up, (661) 324-2767. 

 * ... LEMONADE LOCKS: Touched base the other day with Kelly Giblin, administrator over at the LeBeau Thelen law firm. Turns out she has a new side business trying to help those who are losing their hair because of cancer or other ailments. The idea: in-home consultations with a full line of wigs. "Having been diagnosed with alopecia several years ago and going through the trauma of losing my hair, I realized that there is a huge need in this community for this type of service. I also realized how embarrassing, intimidating and impersonal it can be to try on wig in the middle of a store if you are suffering from hair loss." The business is called Lemonade Locks: when life hands you lemons, call Lemonade Locks. Interested? Call (661) 900-6672.

 * ... NRA: Another email from a reader defending the National Rifle Association. Said Karla Jadwin: "I am the widow of Tom Jadwin, lifetime member of the NRA and two time chair of the annual Friends of the NRA dinner here in Bakersfield. The group fund raiser about which your reader complained, raises money to educate the youth in our area about firearm safety. Period. It's not much of a stretch of understand the purpose there: saving lives! It saddens me to see the uniformed public decry all firearms. Perhaps legislation should eliminate automobiles since so many senseless deaths are caused on the nation's roads by those enormous hunks of metal?" 

 * ... DID YOU KNOW? Did you know the Kern Valley Bank opened for business on the southeast corner of 18th Street and  Chester Avenue on July 6, 1889. The next day, July 7, was the great fire that leveled downtown, including the bank. The Goodwill is now located in that spot.

 * ... BAKERSFIELDISM: From reader Bill Black: "You know you're a Bakersfield old-timer if you remember the good root bear at the "Q-ne-Q drive-in on Chester Avenue in the late 1940s." Bill was a student at Bakersfield Junior College at the time.

We're drinking more wine and eating less meat and a big wedding planned at St. Francis

 * ... FACTOIDS: Read an interesting piece in The New York Times about our changing society. The data comes from the 130th edition of the Statistical Abstract of the United States, the annual profile of the nation published by the Census Bureau. Some facts:
  - As a nation we ate less red meat and also ate fewer veggies, but drank more wine.
  - The marriage rate is the lowest since 1970 but divorces have held about the same.
  - A record 41 percent of all live births were to unmarried women. That is up 22 percentage points since 1980.
  - In 2008, there were 7.3 million adults in jail or on parole or probation, a record high.
  - In 2007, airport screeners confiscated 1.1 million knives, almost 12,000 box cutters and 1,416 guns.
  - And finally, four states - Minnesota, Iowa, North Carolina and South Dakota - have more pigs than people.

 * ... GOOD VIBES: Mimi Audelo, an executive at San Joaquin Hospital, had a nice surprise the other day at the downtown Starbucks on 24th Street. "When I got to the window, the young lady, who was very happy and having a very good time, told me my coffee was paid by the car in front of me. What a surprise. I know I didn't know the person in front of me. The young lady told me I was about the sixth or seventh car that had been paid by the car ahead. I had to keep the surprise going and the fun! What a great way to start the new year."

 * ... WEDDING: Big wedding planned for Saturday over at St. Francis Church when Nicole Thurman and long-time boyfriend Jack Campbell Jr. tie the knot. Monsignor Craig Harrison will preside over the ceremony and a reception will follow for several hundred folks at Bakersfield Country Club, which has been spruced up for the event. Proud parents are Jack and Bonnie Campbell,  Steve and Terri Haupt and Van Thurman, the bride's father. The couple graduated from Garces Memorial High School and Jack currently plays defensive tackle for Cornell University. (photo courtesy of Cornell University)

 * ... SPOTTED: A Twitter post by Lisa Plank. who works over at the Bakersfield Association of Retarded Citizens:  "A hooker waved at me as I drove by. I may have to find another way to and from work as I am apparently on Union Ave entirely too much."

 * ... RUMBLE: This is a big weekend for local cycling fans. On Saturday is the Rio Bravo Rumble, which features mountain bike races and a 5k and 10k walk and run. Kids race for free so this is always a popular venue for families. Registration is at 7:30 a.m. and the race begins at 9 a.m. All proceeds go to Bike Bakersfield.

* ... CYCLOCROSS: And don't forget the state Cyclocross Championships which will be held this Sunday at Hart Park, running from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. If you haven't taken in this cycling sport, this is a good chance to see some of the best riders in the west tackle an off-road course full of obstacles. Sam Ames, manager over at Action Sports, always puts on a good show and predicts some 300 riders will participate.

 * ... BAKERSFIELDISM: From reader Robert Mergler: You might be from Bakersfield if  "you were one of us shaking Ronald Reagan's hand at the Harvey Auditorium for the Lincoln Day celebration in 1962.