Of pitbulls, charlatans and fields of dreams

What is it they say about the more things change the more they stay the same? That's what it seemed like when today's Bakersfield Californian hit on three recurring themes: a pitbull that attacked a 12-year-old girl is saved (should we be proud that pitbull attack stories are the staple of our news on any given day?), the disgraced real estate broker Carl Cole wants his license back, and once again the city is considering building a multi-million-dollar baseball stadium to save a minor league team that struggles to draw more than a few hundred paid fans a night, and all at a time when we have no money to pave roads or build new ones, improve infrastructure or put more cops on the street. It seems like we all deserve better than this.

Boxee: Freedom from the tyranny of cable?

If you haven't heard of Boxee yet, chances are you will soon. Boxee is a startup company funded by some high powered venture capitalists that promises to strike at the heart of the cable business model. (See the video on Fred Wilson's blog) How? It would allow consumers to bypass the cable company by using the broadband to turn the TV into a true social media center, meaning all of your music on your home network, anything off the internet (Comedy Central, Netflix etc) can be accessed and shown on your TV using the cable broadband. I spent a long (and I mean LONG) morning recently at the Bright House office off Buck Owens Blvd. exchanging faulty equipment. A morning like that makes Boxee seem very attractive.

The publisher's long road to donating a kidney

Ginger Moorhouse, publisher of The Californian, is blogging about her decision to donate a kidney to her husband, John Moorhouse. Up to this point Ginger's decision has been a private one, but she decided to go public in the hope it would inspire others to do the same. It's an inspiring and compelling story and it will lead to the procedure at UCLA Medical Center some time in the near future. Ginger's blog is hosted on bakersfield.com and it is titled the "Kidney Chronicles." UCLA is perhaps the top facility in the country for kidney transplants and they are thorough beyond belief. (Ginger is my boss at The Californian)

Lisa Green: our next District Attorney?

Saw Jeff Green at the gym today. Jeff, general counsel at Grimmway Farms and husband of deputy district attorney Lisa Green, is hard not to love. He moves from one obsession to the other with such enthusiasm that it's infectious. So here he was toiling away on the stairmaster, carrying a 30-pound rucksack and sweating like a roofer in South Georgia preparing for a June hike up Mount Shasta. And he made it clear - once again - that wife Lisa is definitely running for District Attorney despite DA Ed Jagels' hints that he just might stay on past 2010. She's making the calls, preparing to raise money, speaking and doing everything to line up support, Jeff says. I have no reason not to believe him.

Father (now Monsignor) Craig gets a new robe

Good news for Father Craig Harrison, the popular pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Church downtown. The Californian reports today that Craig and Perry Kavookjian, pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, were conferred the title monsignor this week by the pope. Outside of the church, this is only news because of the wide popularity of Father Craig, who seems to transcend doctrine and is the most popular religious figure in town. He's glib, witty, down to earth and can bring laughter to the most somber funeral. If he ever wants to leave the church, he could have any political office in town. I even had a close friend (not sure if he's agnostic, probably more likely a Deist) remark that if Father Craig were anything but Catholic, he'd attend his church. Aside from a new robe with some purple trim, we assume Monsignor Craig will retain his sense of humor.

Wendy watch: a good day for Ms. Wayne

I spotted Wendy Wayne on the way to work today. She was bundled up in a stocking cap and chatting with a friend (with dogs in tow) at the corner of Oak and 21st Street, headed to Beach Park for brisk walk. She's back from Cedar's Sinai and another round of chemotherapy and is thankful for every good day. She shot me an email:

"I've been trying to walk at least an hour each day. Working up to a 1/2 marathon on 1/25/09 in Carlsbad with a large group of Dominic Ambriz supporters. Next week is the big one ... in LA for at least six days" for more chemotherapy.

Seeing Wendy out and about brightened my day. Life often deals us bad hands, but few handle them as well as Ms. Wayne.

Enough thumb sucking: time to reinvent newspapers

Mark Potts posts some intriguing questions on his blog the Recovering Journalist about how some folks in the newspaper industry are still resisting the inevitable change. Mark is right: the thumb suckers among us have to get over it and move on. We're going to survive, but the newspaper as we know it will go away. He writes:

"In other words, there's no natural law that says the traditional newspaper business model - hire large staff, report news, sell ads, crush trees, smear ink on them, throw on doorsteps, collect some circulation revenue, reap 20 percent-plus profit margins - is inviolate. Unfortunately the reality may be that it's not the Web news business model that is broken-it's the print business model that's screwy."

Potts is right but I'd add there remains a good future for a blended print-digital product, albeit on a different economic scale. The print product of the future will be smaller and cater to a finite but influential group of "loyal" readers, no longer a one-size-fits-all product. That might mean no more TV grids, comics and fluff but a more serious and indepth magazine-style product that speaks to a more affluent and engaged audience. And that could be fun even if it's a smaller version of its former self.

Ecstacy, cocaine and the local doctor

The story of the arrest of Dr. Jeff Freesemann and his wife Shelly on multiple drug charges has to remain one of the weird stories of the day. He's the (now former) chief of staff at San Joaquin Community Hospital and she's the attractive yoga instructor who - at least to their neighbors in Haggin Oaks - lived the typical quiet suburban life: two kids, a dog and a nice home. That was before they were busted Sept. 17 in connection with an investigation of Ecstacy, meth and cocaine in local night clubs. They've been charged with two felony counts of conspiring to commit a crime, three felony counts of transporting a controlled substance and one felony count of transporting/selling a narcotic. Others were nabbed in the case but this one's a head scratcher right out of "Desperate Housewives." Stay tuned to bakersfield.com for what's up next.