Appreciating locally owned businesses and getting ready for more parolees to walk the streets of Bakersfield

 * ... STINSON'S: Dropped by Stinson's Stationers this week and joined a couple hundred other people for a tri tip sandwich lunch. The occasion was a table top show featuring more than 30 vendors displaying the latest in office supplies. Ben Stinson III wielded a bullhorn and worked the Sonoma Street warehouse like a showman, giving away prizes and introducing folks as they walked in the door. Locally owned since 1947, Stinson's is one of those reminders why Bakersfield is such a special place to live. There is nothing like walking into a Stinson's showroom, or a locally owned restaurant like Uricchio's or Luigi's or Casa Munoz, and being greeted by name by the owner.

* ... INMATE RELEASE: It was disheartening, not to mention alarming, to read that the Supreme Court has ordered the California prison system to release 30,000 inmates because of crowding. Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood called it "shocking" and "dangerous" and noted state inmates are more of the hard core criminal types. "These are real prisoners, real felons," he warned, not just some pot smoking offender. It's  yet another consequence of this long recession that has left California broke and with a swollen prison population, many of whom will be dumped on the streets of Bakersfield. (Photo courtesy of the California Department of Corrections)

 * ... SPOTTED: Mick Fleetwood, founder and co-namesake of the legendary rock band Fleetwood Mac, was spotted at the downtown Padre Hotel this weekend.  The British-born Fleetwood was seen talking to friends and fans on the Prairie Fire lounge but it was not immediately known why he was in town.

 * ... GARCES CIRCLE: Nice to see the Garces Circle all spruced up and landscaped after the long Cal-Trans project to improve the overpass. If you haven't been down to the circle, it's worth a drive by. 


 * ... YOUNG DOC: Michele Newell wrote to sing the praises of her nephew, Jon Witcher, former valedictorian at Centennial High School. The son of Bob and Caryl Witcher, he will be graduating in June with a Ph.D. in Engineering and Applied Science from UC Davis. He attended the University of Arizona where he received his bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering and  then transferred to UC Davis where he earned his master’s.  "Not only will he become Dr. Witcher in 2011, he will also gain a wife! In October, he will marry Jasmyn Pangilinan, a graduate of BHS and daughter to Florencio and Nenette. Florencio is a local physician here in Bakersfield. Our family could not be more proud!" she said.

 * ... UCLA BOUND: Another local high school senior, Daniel Kinder, is headed to UCLA to study neuroscience. What makes this particularly appealing is that Daniel, who attends Liberty High, will be able to part of research for a cancer that has struck his own father. "On May 18, 2010 my father was diagnosed with a brain tumor that was eventually deemed cancerous. My major will allow me to be part of the research for cancer at the UCLA Medical School campus." Congratulations, Daniel.

 * .. BAKERSFIELDISM: You know  you may be from "old Oildale" if you remember Art 'D Que's Drive-in on the corner of North Chester and Justine Street, where Winchell's now stands. Thanks to Clete Harper for this little nugget.

Jay Leno takes a shot at Bakersfield (no surprise there) and spring gifts us a splendid weekend

 * ... JAY LENO: The "Tonight Show" host, remarking on how former Gov. Arnold  Schwarzenegger's mistress was discovered  in Bakersfield, takes this shot at our town: "Neighbors got suspicious when they learned it was the only house on the block not manufacturing meth." This is the kind of publicity we don't need.

 * ... WEEKEND: Outside of barbs from late-night talk show hosts, the real Bakersfield could be experienced anywhere about town this weekend when our community enjoyed mild days in what has turned out to be a splendid spring. Perfect weather for eating outside, grilling, waking or running on the bike trail or enjoying our parks. I ended up in Glennville Saturday and the creeks were swollen bank to bank and the wildlife was out in abundance, along with the snakes. One friend spotted five snakes on his daily run out towards Enos Lane. Spring forward a couple months and we will miss these days.

* ... MEMORY: Perry Whealy wrote to share a memory of his family, who lived on Rosedale Highway in Greenacres when it was a two-lane country road. "During the summer, my mother would take us to swim in the Kern River. We parked on the northwest side of the 24th Street bridge. On the north side of the bridge, a cement company operated a dredge that extended on a cable across the river from the northeast side. The dredge would scoop up sand from the river bottom leaving about an eight-foot hole where we would swim until the dredge slid down the cable again. It was cold, fun and it was free. Then on Friday evenings for one dollar, we would watch a movie at the 99 Drive In Theater located on Pierce Road. This is where I saw the movies High Noon and The African Queen."

 * ... OVERHEARD: That new construction out near P.F. Chang's China Bistro on Stockdale Highway is apparently getting ready for a Eureka Burger and a new Chipotle, all good news for those folks in the Southwest.

 * ... COLLEGE BOUND: North High School held a special ceremony to honor a group of California Scholarship Federation "Gold Seal" students headed to colleges across the country. They include Joseph Adams, Corban University; Yazmin Abasolo, CSUB; Sarah Billington, UC Santa Cruz; Eli Carroll, UC Davis; Brianna Cazares, BYU Hawaii; Kathryn Chapin, Sonoma State; Ariel Clark, CSUB; William Collins, CSUB; Dana Denesha, Sonoma State; Joshua Diebel, Sonoma State; Daniel Gross, Cal Poly; Oliver Guzman, UC Davis; Katie Hoffman, University of Hawaii Hilo; Leanne Jett, UC Davis; Robert Keene, UC Davis; Zachary Lenander, UC Santa Barbara; Jessica Lopez, UC Santa Barbara; Tobias Lopez, UC Santa Barbara; Veronica Martinez, San Diego Christian College; Jame Nguyen, Cornell; Maricruz Ortega, CSUB; Maribella Ortiz, CSUB; Andres Robles, CSUB; Jacob Rogers, Cal Poly; Delanie Schrader, CSUB; Jacqueline Swartz, UC Davis; and Elizabeth Underwood, UC Santa Barbara.

 * ... BAKERSFIELDISM: From reader Craig Holland: You may be a Bakersfield old-timer "if you remember bowling at Paola's on Mount Vernon and ordering a vanilla cream Coke."

McCarthy: bill would bring much needed water to our region while cutting federal overregulation

Rep. Kevin McCarthy, (R-Bakersfield and House Majority Whip), submits his weekly view from Capitol Hill. In his own words:

 "This week, I was home in the district spending time with many of you in our community. On Tuesday, I traveled to Lancaster to present Merit Awards to students from East Kern and Los Angeles Counties. This year, I’ve presented these awards to a total of 38 high-school students in California’s 22nd Congressional District to honor their hard work, dedication to academics and commitment to their communities.

  "These students, as well as those who were recently awarded admission into U.S. Service Academies, continue to prove that our communities produce some of the best and brightest young people in the nation. For example, sixteen-year-old Heidi Yi is graduating with honors from Burroughs High School and is a recent graduate of Cerro Coso Community College. She maintained a 4.0 GPA and received a nearly perfect score on her SATs while still finding time to be a tutor and volunteer at the library. Another stand-out student is Mathew Prasser from Highland High School, who not only was a merit award recipient but also
organized and developed the now-annual ‘Turkey Trot’ to benefit the Bakersfield Homeless Shelter. I’m proud to have these students in our communities.

  "On Wednesday, I had the chance to participate in an assembly at Centennial Elementary School in Bakersfield where I talked with students in the 3rd-6th grades about government, the importance of
civic participation and how they can help shape our community, nation and world. Each time I visit a school, I’m reminded of how important it is to reinvigorate our economy so these kids can have more opportunities than we did.

  "That’s why I am co-sponsoring legislation with Congressmen Devin Nunes and Jeff Denham to get water flowing in our communities again. Our region has suffered for too long from California’s man-made drought. The lack of water due to government overregulation has contributed to the double-digit unemployment and lackluster economic recovery in our region. This legislation would bring tens of thousands of acre-feet of water to Kern County, has the potential to create up to 30,000 jobs in our region and could save taxpayers close to $1 billion. This is common sense action that we need now.

  "Another barrier to job creation is government overspending, and that’s something my colleagues and I are continuing to tackle back in Washington. The United States hit its debt ceiling this week, meaning
we’ve essentially maxed out our credit card. Now, the President is asking us to raise the debt limit without spending reforms, and I’ll tell you right now that won’t happen. We borrow 40 cents of every dollar, predominately from China, and it is simply unsustainable. We have to change the way Washington does business. We must take serious action to address our spending addiction and put real caps and reforms
in place that will put us on the path to fiscal prosperity.

  "My colleagues and I in the House are committed to this and we’ll continue to fight for common sense Washington spending policies.

UC, CSU systems threatening huge tuition hikes as they grapple with budget cuts

 * ... TUITION: Chilling news out of the office of the University of California president Mark Yudoff. Calling it a "nasty scenario," Yudoff is warning that UC students may face a 32 percent mid year hike in tuition if Gov. Jerry Brown's plan for tax extensions is not approved. And that would come on top of the 8 percent tuition hike set for this fall. UC tuition is expected to go to about $11,000 in the fall and if the 32 percent hike goes into effect, it will rise to $14,800. The CSU system is facing similar challenges and is warning of waiting lists, cuts in course offerings and even enrollment caps. None of this is good news in the midst of high unemployment, tight credit and a struggling economy.

 * ... SHERWYN RETIRING: It looks like this is the final year of teaching for Art Sherwyn, the long-time educator, artist and tennis coach. Sherwyn is one of the staples on the local art scene and his work has been shown across town, from the Bakersfield Museum of Art to Metro Galleries on 19th Street. But he is also well known for his long career in the classroom, most recently at Stockdale High School where he taught art as well as coached the successful Stockdale girls tennis team. He may be out of the classroom, but he will be around town. If you haven't checked out his website, you can do so here.

 * ... SPORTS MONDAY: You'll see some changes in the daily Bakersfield Californian starting Monday with the debut of "Sports Monday." We will be featuring expanded sports coverage and on most days the front page will be devoted to sports as well. We will continue to offer all our regular news and features but with an expanded emphasis on sports. Let us know what you think.

 * ... NEW EATERY: It looks like there is a another new restaurant opening downtown, yet another positive sign in the resurgence of our arts district. I am told that two local doctors - Mark Hamilton and Lee Marek - are renovating the 19th Street space once occupied by Goose Loonie's and the ill fated Victor  Victoria's. Called "The Mark," the new restaurant will open in the fall and the style will be in the tradition of the old Maison Jassaud's.

 * ... EAST ROTARY: The East Rotary Club has left the old Veteran's Hall building on the east side for a new venue, the Star's Theater downtown. The East Club had met on the east side for 52 years but apparently a more central location was more attractive to some of the club members.

 * ... MEMORY: Reader Jean Burdette to wrote to recall when her family would cross town "to get an ice cold Reed and Bell root beer - the best! - a little mug free for the children. I still have one of the mugs somewhere."

 * ... CAL RADIO: Join me Friday at 10 a.m. on SmartTalk 1230 Californian radio when I will be chatting with Gene Thome about gun rights and what is hot in the shooting sports. Gene owns Bear Mountain Sports and is active in the sporting community. If you can't get to a radio, Google "Radio Time" and listen to the program via your computer.

 * ... BAKERSFIELDISM: And loyal reader Linda Welch added this one: You might be a Bakersfield old-timer if you remember "when Zody's Department Store opened and Buck Owens was there along with the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders."

How the LA Times broke the Arnold love child story

 Here's a nice background on how The Los Angeles Times broke the story on former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's love child. Interestingly, the paper has yet to identity the mother out of deference to their son.

Media frenzy descends on quiet Bakersfield cul-de-sac, home of Schwarzenegger's former mistress

 It's been a media frenzy on Native Dancer street in Northwest Bakersfield where the woman believed to be the mistress of former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger resides. The governor's son by that liaison, who has not been  identified but apparently goes to a local middle school, also lives at the home. Scores of reporters have camped out outside the house. This report comes from The New York Times. (photo courtesy of The New York Times)

Patty Baena's Myspace pages titled "my sexy self"

 Mildred Patricia "Patty" Baena, identified as the mistress of former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, posted these pictures on her MySpace pages under the title "my sexy self." You can visit her MySpace page by clicking on this link.

Schwarzenegger's mistress and love child believed to live in northwest Bakersfield

 Reporters are swarming over a house in northwest Bakersfield where Mildred Patricia Baena, the mistress of former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, is believed to live. The former governor's love child, now believed to be about 14, apparently lives there as well. (Click on the above link for one version of this story)
 The story that stunned the nation broke this week and just today it was revealed that Baena apparently lives in a quiet northwest Bakersfield neighborhood. More as this story develops.