Clouds over Kern County.... by local photographer John Harte ... enjoy

Nothing like a cup of coffee and The Bakersfield Californian to start off your day ...

 My thanks to reader Carl Nacita who shared this picture of his dog reading The Californian ....

Two Bakersfield college kids spend their Thanksgiving break helping storm victims on Statin Island, and Gene Voiland will discuss his plans to revive minor league baseball in Bako

* ... BASEBALL: The plans are well under way to bring Bakersfield a new minor league baseball stadium at the corner of Brimhall and Coffee roads. The two men behind the plan are oil company executive Chad Hathaway and Gene Voiland, the retired chief executive of Aera Energy who has been at the center of civic life for many years. Gene will be my guest on California Radio KERN 1180 Monday beginning at 9 a.m. Tune in to hear his plans to revive minor league baseball here and call (661) 842-5376 with your question. (file photo of new Blaze owners Chad Hathaway and Gene Voiland)

* ... HOUSING: You have heard it before, but if you are thinking of jumping back into the housing market, you probably should do so sooner, not later. According to the Wall Street Journal, the average rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage "hit a record low 3.46 percent for the week ended Nov. 16." The Journal also noted that when people flocked to the rental market, rental prices started to increase and it is now cheaper in many markets to own rather than rent. All this is good news for home buyers and home sellers, not to mention our overall economy.

* ... GIVING BACK: Two Bakersfield High school graduates - Ali Schroeter and Silas Nacita - spent Thanksgiving on Staten Island helping with the Hurricane Sandy relief efforts. Schroeter is now starting libero with the Rutgers volleyball team and Nacita is on a football scholarship to Cornell University. When neither could come home for Thanksgiving, they joined a group from the Liquid Church in New Brunswick, N.J., to help in the clean up and were later treated to Thanksgiving dinner. Said Ali's father Tom Schroeter:  "It was heartwarming for me as Ali's father to see how two Bakersfield students who were filling the void of no family Thanksgiving by helping others had their efforts recognized by a family committed to the same selfless cause sharing its family dinner with them."

 * ... TRASH: It was distressing to see how littered our local parks were this weekend following the Thanksgiving Holiday. Beach Park downtown was a particular mess, begging the question: is it really that difficult to pick up after yourself?

* ... ZOCALO: If you live in Bakersfield, you’re more likely than most Californians to be obese, have diabetes or suffer from cardiac disease. And you’re less likely than most Californians to be able to see a doctor any time soon. These issues and others will be the subjects of a Zocalo Public Square panel discussion in Bakersfield Tuesday night. The discussion is 7 p.m. at the Bakersfield Museum of Art, 1930 R Street. Kern Medical Center CEO Paul Hensler, University of California San Francisco Center for the Health Professions Associate Director Catherine Dower, and San Joaquin Community Hospital Vice President Jarrod McNaughton will discuss what’s keeping doctors out of Bakersfield, and how to bring in better health care.

Bakersfield welcomes home the children we all sent out into the world. Get ready Woolgrowers and Narducci's because here they come

* ... FAMILY: One of the wonderful aspects of a Bakersfield Thanksgiving is reconnecting with all the kids who grew up here but have moved on because of college or work. And it is no secret where you will find them; to track down a young adult just follow your stomach. Narducci's, Woolgrowers, Luigi's, Chalet Basque, Dewar's, Uricchio's, all the favorite haunts will be crowded with kids who were once small but are now adults out in the world, some with children of their own. They could not have picked a nicer weekend to once again drive the streets of Bakersfield.

* ... PIE RUN: Speaking of family, the annual Bakersfield Pie Run out at Hart Park is as close to family as one can get. It's the annual gathering of more than 300 people (and their dogs) for a brisk run or walk in the hills to return to a roaring fire and pies, cakes, donuts, cookies and even try-tip and hot dogs. Organized John Rous, the event brings together generations of families and friends. Among those I spotted this year were Karen Gleiter, Julie Moss, Lisette Stinson, Rob and Sally Baker and their girls Sarah, Maggie and Katie, Eydie Gibson, Tracy Walker-Kiser and husband Brian, Matt and Molly Clark and son Harry, Andy Noise, Lydia Rowles, Joe Peterson, Tori Allendorf-Mills, Karen Poteete and daughter Jamie, Olivia Garcia, Steven Wilkinson, Pete Elieff, Don Martin, Esther Brandon, Dave and Debbie Cohn and her daughters Kari and Lauren, and so many more.

 * ... GIVING THANKS: It's easy to overlook the many blessings in our busy lives, but this is the time of year to truly give thanks. My own list of blessings may be short, but it's enough to make for a good life. I am thankful to live in a community that  is full of people who care about others. I am grateful for my health, for having a job that puts food on my table, for two remarkable daughters and for having friends who are so willing to share in my joy and grief. And of course, I am thankful for my roommate, the ever-loyal lap cat Latte.

 * ... MCKEE: I am constantly humbled by how so many people in our community open their hearts and wallets to help the needy this time of year, and even more so when it involves young people. For the past eight years, students over at McKee Middle School have been collecting food for the needy. The first year, teacher Matt Ornelaz told me almost 500 cans were collected. This year, with a student body of just 900 students, 3,742 cans were collected. Now that is something to feel good about. (photos submitted by Matt Ornelaz)

 * ... MORE THANKS: And then there is this bit of gratitude from reader Gaylia Miller-Harris: "I just want to thank the Kern Humane Society for giving out the vouchers to have your pets spayed or neutered, and also to the Critters Without Litters. I had my Daisey spayed there Monday and the cost was $60, including pain medication. You can't beat the staff at Critters Without litters. They were quick, organized and friendly.  My local veterinarian wanted over $200. Kudos to both organizations."

  * ... TURKEYS: And hats off to the kids over at Independence High School who partnered with Living Grace Church to assemble 120 complete turkey dinners to the needy in our community.

Remembering 15-year-old Caleb Hannink and The Bakersfield Californian Foundation awards $145,000 in grants

 * ... CALEB: When you count your blessings this week, keep the family of Brad and Maren Hannink in your thoughts. It was their 15-year-old son, Caleb, who died of a heart ailment at Centennial High School last week. Brad Hannink is a financial adviser, an accomplished singer and a former president of the (downtown) Rotary Club of Bakersfield.

 * ... GO BEARS: Three 2012 graduates of Stockdale High School - Chelsea Sanford, Rio Gosling and Julia Johnson - are now freshmen at Baylor University and were in the stadium for Baylor's upset victory over then No. 1 Kansas State. As proud father Guy Sanford said: "The girls had an amazing experience in the stands and will cherish it forever. Having the opportunity to charge the field after the game with the entire student section was a memory of a lifetime. Go Bears!"

* ... AIR TRAVEL: In an earlier post I posed the question: what do you think of people bringing pizzas, hamburgers and French fries on airplanes? Jeff Travis wrote that it could be worse. "My beautiful, dear, and sensitive-nosed wife was on a long flight where we are all joyfully passing the time away, along with all our six kids, watching the televisions attached to the back of the seats when she smelled what she thought was smoke. After clearing the area around the seat it turned out to be a guy's stinking feet. But, to be safe, the pilot turned off all electronics for the rest of the flight. I still feel the glares. Awfully funny in hindsight."

 * ... CALIFORNIAN: The Bakersfield Californian (family) Foundation has awarded $145,000 in grants, the latest in the family's long legacy of giving back to the community; The recipients include the American Lung Association, $15,000;  BARC $10,000; Boys and Girls club of Kern County $7,500; California Living Museum , $16,800;  Community Action Partnership of Kern, $8,276;  Desert Area Resources and Training, $3,000; Flood Bakersfield Ministries, $5,000; Greater Bakersfield Green Expo, $2,500; Henrietta Weill Memorial Child Guidance Clinic $10,676.45; Independent Living Center of Kern County, $3,702; Keep Bakersfield Beautiful, $4,000; Kern Economic Development Foundation, $25,000;  Laze Foundation, $3,500; Legacy Behavioral Services, Inc., $10,000.

 * ... CHARITY: Dress for Success is a national charity that helps women get on their feet by outfitting them with gently used shoes and clothes. The organization has now returned to Bakersfield, and it has a big event coming up on Tuesday, November 27 with a women's shoe drive. Its goal: helping women attain and retain employment. You can help by dropping off shoes at the Haberfelde Building, 1530 17th Street, between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. next Tuesday.

 * ...  CLINICA: Did you know that Clinica Sierra Vista, the agency that provides primary and preventative health care to the underserved residents of Kern, Fresno and Inyo counties, now has almost 1,000 employees? Forty years ago it had two staff members today is operating out of 70 offices.

Bakersfield's housing market starts the long climb back and it's time for the annual Thanksgiving Day "Pie Run" out at Hart Park

 * ... BUILDING PERMITS: The five-year cloud hanging over the local housing market seems to be lifting, and Realtors are finally able to breathe a sigh of relief. Home prices are rising, inventory is tight, mortgage rates are low and homes are selling. New homebuilders also are showing clear signs of confidence with more than 100 permits pulled in October alone. That's the word from Baynes Bank of Mission Bank. Some of the top builders, according to Banks, are DR Horton, Lennar, McMillin, Balfanz, Castle and Cooke, S and S Homes, Towery Homes and Froehlich.

 * ... PIE RUN: If it's Thanksgiving week it must be time for another Pie Run, that iconic Bakersfield tradition that starts at dawn on Thanksgiving Day out at Hart Park.  John Rous, one of the fathers of the annual event, says it will all start around 6 a.m. Bring a pie, cookies or other eats and then hit the hills for an invigorating run or walk with your favorite friend or dog. Rous will have a bonfire where he will make hot dogs and tri-tip, along with enough coffee for some 300 people. This is one of Bakersfield's signature seasonal events and it's well worth setting the alarm clock for an early start.

 * ... SMALL WORLD: City councilwoman Sue Benham and husband (Californian columnist) Herb were in a small bar in Paris on election night when they met two young American college students. "When we told them we were from Bakersfield they said, 'Our friend is from Bakersfield! Here she comes.'" Sue told me. And who walks up? Stockdale High graduate and now Stanford student Melissa Hamilton, daughter of local orthopedist Dr. Chris Hamilton and wife Susan. Small world, indeed.

 * ... GOOD DEED: Sheila Vogel sends a shout-out to an unidentified man "at the corner of Coffee and Stockdale Tuesday morning who exited his work vehicle to assist a disabled pick-up with a trailer through the intersection. The man who appeared to be in the bakery business with white pants and an apron helped the truck’s occupants push the truck out of traffic's way and to clear the intersection. Thank you! "                                                    

 * ... WREATHS: The Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary Club is renewing its annual drive to place wreaths at the National Cemetery on Dec. 15. You can help by buying a wreath for just $15 to honor our veterans. Check out the webside at www.bakersfieldwreathproject.org.

 * .. THANKSGIVING: Jolie Brouttier is a kindergarten teacher at McKinley Elementary who is part of a group that gets together to feed the needy on Thanksgiving.  "I sent out fliers to inform families about this event and got a tremendous amount of families (some households of 10 living in tiny apartments) who can't provide a meal on Thanksgiving day. These families, my students, are the light of my life. I have food on my table every day, I have a fridge full every day. These kids, they don't. Two hundred families returned the form desperately requesting food to be delivered Thanksgiving day, and 'Love for Thanksgiving' does that.

Marvin and Nadene Steinert are honored by the Kern Community Foundation with the Spirit of Philanthrophy award, and what is the etiquette about bringing pizza on a small airplane

 * ... LITTER: Carol Knapp is so fed up with litter that she tried to track down the person who dumped a pile of papers in the Big Lots parking lot. Among the trash was a student's paper from Longfellow School, so Carol tried - unsuccessfully - to contact Principal Mario Castro to reach the offending parent.  "I feel if parents are slobs then their children will be the same. Schools need to teach the children as early as the first grade that littering is wrong."

* ... STEINERTS: Hats off to the Kern Community Foundation which recently recognized Marvin and Nadene Steinert with the group's "Spirit of Philanthropy" Award. The Steinerts are among our community's most generous benefactors, and they recently celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary. The event was held at the Bakersfield Museum of Art. (file photo of the Steinerts)

 * ... PADRE: One of the social events of the year was held last weekend at The Padre Hotel, where Imbide Wine and Spirits partnered with the Bakersfield North Rotary Foundation to raise money for charities. There were more than 20 winemakers present and I am told it was a "who's who" of Bakersfield who showed up to support the event. Hats off to Tami and David Dobbs over at Imbibe for helping make this event a success.

* ... ROAD TRIP: Notes from a road trip I took recently. The Phoenix to Bakersfield U.S. Airways flight is always a spectacle (you almost always run into someone you know), but these days it is full of oil field contractors headed to Kern County for work. As one Canadian contractor told me this week: "I feel like Bakersfield is my second home I am here so much."

 * ... PIZZA, REALLY? And speaking of airline travel, is it really necessary to bring an entire, freshly cooked pizza on the plane with you? What is the etiquette about sitting down in a cramped plane and gobbling down an entire pizza while the aroma fills the plane?

 * ... PRESS: Expect to see a major story on Bakersfield and our economy soon in the The Wall Street Journal. The paper is sending one of its veteran San Francisco-based reporters to Bakersfield to report on our oil boom and local economy.  Be looking for this piece in the weeks to come.

 * ... SERVICE: You can add the Kleenerz laundry to the list of local companies that go out of their way to provide terrific customer service. Hard to beat the smiles and efficiency at the company's Brundage Lane office.

 * ... TURKEYS: Hats off to the students and staff at Independence High School who are joining forces with Living Grace Church to provide turkeys and non-perishable food items for the needy this Saturday. Donations will be accepted from 10 a.m. to noon in the high school parking lot to benefit a local ministry, the Flood, and Independence families. Call (661) 428-7265 for details.

Veteran's Day and remembering those who are needy among us... and of course another lament about our trash

 * ... VETERANS: Joseph Covington, a Navy veteran, dropped this heartfelt note to mark the passage of Veteran's Day. While at California Pizza Kitchen with a friend, he was "surprised to discover that they had a special offer of a free pizza to veterans that visited them on Veterans Day. Unlike the many of us Vietnam veterans that were spat on, and cursed at when we returned home, the little thank you and acknowledgement was delightful. To add to this surprise, there were two ladies next to us that helped contribute to our bill. I didn’t know about it until after they left, and thought this would be a way to communicate my gratitude if this gets printed... As an American, I would like to thank the great people who acknowledge the efforts of those who have served to give the freedoms we enjoy. Personally, I do not feel like a hero, or anyone special. The truly great sacrifices were the service men and women that paid the ultimate price of giving their life, and those who have been wounded defending the honor they fight for."

 * ... MORE VETS: One more feel good story for the morning. Gary Schneider wrote to tell me about his son, Lt. Lincoln Schneider, who has been named Officer Recruiter of the Year for the East coast of the U.S. Navy. He graduated from Stockdale High School in 1999 and earned a full scholarship to Tulane University. He later earned his law degree and is working on his master's in hospital administration at the University of Florida. He is based in Jacksonville. Here's to the Stockdale kid to headed to Tulane, then Florida and then to the U.S. Navy.

 * ... SENIORS: I had the chance the other day to hear a presentation by Sandy Morris, the Bakersfield Police Department employee who runs the Christmas for Seniors program. This is a highly worthwhile program, and her stories about the humility of our elderly struck a chord with the audience. If you'd like to help, or donate items as simple as two-ply toilet paper, blank note cards or soap and deodorant, call Sandy at (661) 703-8893.


 * .... RELIGION: From reader Moe Adame, reacting to an earlier post about Christian bumper sitckers: "So let me get this straight.... all it takes to get into heaven is some bumper stickers?  Wow! No need for churches. Heyooohh!!

 * ... SPOTTED: Two architects from a Kansas City design firm are seen having dinner at the Padre Hotel along with Barry Hibbard. The architects are in charge of the design of the new minor league baseball stadium that will be built off Brimhall and Coffee roads and were in town doing research. One thing is for certain: with former Aera Energy CEO Gene Voiland and oilman Chad Hathaway behind this project, you can bet it will be a first class operation.

 * ... TRASH: How do we tackle our problem with litter? Listen to T.A. Hoffman: "As a native Californian who was living in Austin, Texas, in the 1980s and 199's, I can help  with the question of why Texas roads are so litter-free.  It is because the Texas Department of Transportation got
tired of spending $20 million a year to collect litter and therefore hired the Austin advertising company of GSDM to create an advertising campaign to change the culture... it came up with the slogan 'Don't Mess with Texas' superimposed over the Texas flag, which became an actual rallying-cry
for everyone from bikers to downtown bankers. "