Bakersfield Observed

Sunday, March 21, 2021

Medical experts discuss the cause of "brain fog" from the coronavirus, the Panorama Vista Preserve is a jewel in our crown and Dr. Steve Ratty recovers from his own bout with the virus

Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this community such a special place. The views expressed here are strictly my own and do not represent any other company or publication.

* ... GREEN SPACE: One of our community's hidden treasures is the Panorama Vista Preserve, a

wildlife area of more than 900 acres below the Panorama Bluffs that is undergoing a restoration. The Preserve is operated by the Kern River Corridor Endowment and Holding and provides a vast network of dirt trails for hikers, cyclist and horses. Thanks to a pair of grants volunteers have been busy planting native shrubs, grasses and cacti to return the area to its original state. Next time you are looking for a place to hike or run to enjoy nature, take in this is little piece of heaven.

* ... COVID ILLNESS: One of the going mysteries of having contracted the coronavirus is the question of developing long-term residual effects that could compromise your heath. We hear a lot about "brain fog," how long it may last and the prognosis for recovery. Last week Dr. Brij Bhambi and Dr. Bill Baker discussed these issues on The Richard Beene Show, and some of what they said may surprise you. Dr. Baker for example said some cases of "brain fog" actually show the victim may have suffered a series of small strokes, which to me was a surprise. Young patients, some under the age of 10, have developed "brain fog" after suffering from Covid-19 and researchers are just beginning to understand how it works. Check out my discussion with Drs. Baker and Bhambi on KERNRADIO.COM.

* ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "You know what has zero calories and zero carbs? A nap."

* ... STEVE RATTY: Speaking of Covid-19 it was good to see that Dr. Steve Ratty, the local optometrist, has recovered from a long bout with the coronavirus. Ratty and his wife Mary came down with Covid-19 in March 2020 and while she recovered, he remained hospitalized with a severe case. Ratty told KGET he is still battling the effects of the virus. “I am in still in stage four kidney failure…the bottom of my feet are always numb," he said.

* ... MEMORIES: Here are a couple of terrific shows from back in the day of the old Post Office in Bodfish, compliments of Kern County History Fans.

Thursday, March 18, 2021

The District Attorney says Brookdale's skilled nursing facility is putting patients at risk, the Mission of Kern County administers Covid vaccines to the homeless and will Measure N money be diverted to rebuild neighborhoods?

* ... SENIOR LIVING LAWSUIT: The biggest story of the week came out of the Kern County District Attorney's office where DA Cynthia Zimmer announced a civil lawsuit against the owners of the

Brookdale Senior Living facility on Calloway Drive. The lawsuit target's Brookdale's skilled nursing facility which is alleged to have put profits over patient safety by prematurely discharging patients without notifying relatives and discharging people without proper medical protocol all while putting patients at great risk. "Brookdale took advantage of our most vulnerable population," she said, "and the families that were trying their best to take care of them, in order to increase their profits." The Tennessee-based corporate parent of Brookdale strongly denied the charges. The lawsuit is joined by three other counties, the city of Los Angeles and the state of California, alleging the company put patients at risk at 10 different facilities, including the Bakersfield facility on Calloway Drive.

* ... MEASURE N MONEY: The Kern Taxpayer's Association is asking the City Council to allocate part of the $10 million a year in Measure N revenue to help revitalize depressed neighborhoods around town. Kevin Burton, head of the KTA board, spoke to the issue in an opinion piece in The Bakersfield Californian: "For years, Union Avenue has become one of the city's most dangerous streets for pedestrians and cyclists. Bakersfield should work with Caltrans to decommission Union Avenue and turn it into a local road so that the city can make investments in streetscapes, bus-rapid transit and active transportation. As we look east of Union Avenue, the city will face more complex projects. How will the city mitigate challenges presented by high-speed rail to Old Town Kern? How will the city address the formidable challenges facing the Martin Luther King and Cottonwood Road communities?" While all of that is beyond dispute, I disagree with KTA and Burton's stand on this. Measure N was narrowly approved by the voters who had been promised its primary role was to provide money to fight crime and hire more police officers while also supporting programs to reduce homelessness. At least where I live, those two issues - crime and homelessness - are still major problems. Let's address those two things before we divert money into other programs.

* ... SPOTTED ON FACEBOOK: "They say we can have gatherings of eight people without issues. I don't know eight people without issues."

* ... LAST MAN STANDING: The county-run vaccination program at the Kern County Fairgrounds will remain in operation "until the end," or until almost all eligible residents receive their inoculations. That's according to Kern County Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Ryan Alsop who said the Fairgrounds operation is now administering 1,900 vaccines a day and that could go up if the supplies increase. Alsop said the county has avoided dipping into its emergency fund thanks to federal funding under both the Trump and Biden administrations.

* ... MISSION VACCINES: And speaking of vaccines, the Mission of Kern County vaccinated 97 homeless clients with the new Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Mission director Carlos Baldovinos said the J&J vaccine was used so the homeless recipients would not have to return for a followup shot in three or four weeks. If more vaccine can be ordered, Baldovinos said the Mission would conduct a second round of vaccinations.

* ... MEMORIES: The Facebook group Kern County History Fans offered these old pictures, the first of Bodfish back in the day and the second of the old Western Hotel. Check out the guys on the donkey, one seated backwards.

Sunday, March 14, 2021

The newly vaccinated wake up and head out to dine after a year of hunkering down, a coalition vaccinates farmworkers in Delano and Greyhound wants to move to the Amtrak station

* ... OUT AND ABOUT: Were you among those who go out this weekend, perhaps taking in dinner at a local restaurant, after a year of hunkering down? It was the thing to do: gather up friends who have been vaccinated and hit the town, or at the very least head to an intimate dinner party. One thing is for sure: our local

eateries are on fire: big crowds were spotted at Mexicali and the Starlite Lounge and other popular local restaurants throughout the city. To be sure Covid is not behind us, but the level of confidence has grown where newly vaccinated couples are braving the elements to dine out.

* ... WHAT WE WILL MISS: For sure there will be things we will miss about hunkering down at home: endless days working in T-shirts and pajamas, family time that found a new rhythm during the lockdown, home cooking and a reluctant relaxation that came with the knowledge that you had no where to go but home. In his Sunday piece in The Bakersfield Californian, columnist Bob Price put it this way: "Some things we'll hang on to," he noted. "Home gyms, hiking, garage ping pong, cooking, board games. Appreciation for local small businesses. The willingness to sacrifice."

* ... GOOD NEWS: The Greyhound bus station downtown has always been an eyesore: dirty, neglected and a gathering spot for newly released prisoners. But now, after years of effort, it looks like Greyhound is finally packing up its bags and leaving for greener pastures. This week, the City Council at its Wednesday will consider a deal that would allow Greyhound to lease space at the Amtrak Station. "Due to an evolving business climate, Greyhound staff determined they no longer have a need for a facility of that size. City staff determined the relocation of Greyhound bus services to the existing city-owned Amtrak Station site achieves various major objectives of the City Council," according to a city memo. The property, located at G and 18th streets, is ideal for a multi purpose facility to compliment the Padre Hotel and the Bitwise building.

* ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "I keep changing the wifi password to make sure that my wife always needs me."

* ... KATIE BARTON: Katie Barton has been named general manager for American General Media's group of radio stations after serving as director of sales and marketing. The appointment of Barton was part of AGM's move to shuffle leadership responsibilities for its stations in California and New Mexico. In addition Rich Watson, currently general manager of AGM's properties in the Santa Maria area, has been appointed regional manager of AGM California, overseeing the station groups in Bakersfield, San Louis Obispo and Santa Maria.

* ... COVID VACCINATIONS: Hats off to local defense attorney David Torres and other volunteers who spent their Saturday coordinating Covid vaccines for farmworkers. In all, five groups came together to organize a mass vaccination site in Delano: the United Farm Workers, the UFW Foundation, the Cesar Chavez Foundation, the Latino COVID Task Force and the County of Kern. Torres was among the volunteers who spent their day making sure vaccinations reached those who work in the fields.

* ... MEMORIES: Check out this shot of the coffee shop of the old Royal Palms Motel around 1965. Compliments of the Kern County of Old Facebook page.

* ... MORE MEMORIES: The Kern County of Old page also served up this nugget, date uncertain, of police officers parading with their canines.

Thursday, March 11, 2021

Bakersfield high on the list of cities with the most pedestrian deaths, Jolie Brouttier nominated for Teacher of the Year and are we finally nearing the end of the pandemic?

* ... PEDESTRIAN DEATHS: Were you surprised by the recent survey that shows Bakersfield ranking second in the nation for pedestrian deaths? The study cited wide streets that encourage speeding (true) and crosswalks that are spaced far apart (also true.) And the study when on to report (in a story carried in The Bakersfield Californian) that people of color, older adults and walkers in low income neighborhoods

suffered higher fatality rates. While that may be true, it also comes as no surprise. Why? Because across the country people in low income neighborhoods suffered higher fatality rate for all the obvious reasons, including lack of street lighting, the presence of more pedestrians, drug use and homelessness. What the study should have noted is that Kern County and Bakersfield are home to all the factors that lead to pedestrian deaths: a huge underclass of often illiterate people living in run-down neighborhoods, rampant drug use and addiction that leads people to make bad decisions, homelessness that is virtually out of control and wide, flat roads that lead to speeding. Until our demographics improve, you can expect to find Bakersfield on this list for years.

* ... MUSIC TO MY EARS: On the one-year anniversary of the pandemic that has taken more than 500,000 American lives, it was encouraging to read the opinion piece in Thursday's Bakersfield Californian by Centric Health owner Dr. Brij Bhambi. "Science saved us," wrote Bhambi. "There is decency and divinity is saving human life. The vaccinated are less likely to spread the virus to the vulnerable and more likely to protect by literally being a human shield between the virus and the vulnerable... Now is not the time to sit on the fence and allow the virus to morph. The vaccinated are protected and protect. Vaccine hesitancy is counter to civic responsibility."

* ... SPOTTED ON FACEBOOK: When is Oprah going to interview people who lost their pipeline jobs?

* ... TEACHER OF THE YEAR: A big congratulations to Jolie Brouttier, who has been nominated as Kern County Teacher of the Year representing the Bakersfield City School District. The award will be given out later this year. Brouttier taught for seven years at McKinley Elementary and is now at the Downtown School. During the pandemic, Brouttier "visited" her students at their homes, leaving yard sign greetings while spending her other spare tine raising money for backpacks and other supplies for the neediest of students.

* ... PROSECUTORS: And speaking of high achieving women, Gina Pearl has been named Prosecutor of the Year by District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer. Others in the District Attorney's office being honored were Andrea Kohler and Arthur Norris who won the Justice Award and Amy French was honored with the Support Staff Person of the Year honors.

* ... MEMORIES: Check out this classic shot of cars on the old Ridge Route encountering Dead Man's Curve, a slice of the road that took many lives, and shots of the curve today. Photos courtesy of Kern County of Old Facebook page.

* ... MORE MEMORIES: And can you stand one more picture of the old Wayne's Dairies? Not sure of the date but the employees pose here in their crisp white shirts before the dairy entrance.

Sunday, March 7, 2021

Volunteers pick up a thousand pounds of trash left by the homeless in the Kern River and ask: Where is our city? Meanwhile restaurants open up to crowds and Disneyland looks to April 1 to open

* ... KERN RIVER CLEANUP: Volunteers were out in force this Saturday to help pick up mountains of debris in the littered Kern River, and they were quick to show their frustration with city and state policies that have created the mess we have today. Dozens of tents and encampments, some seemingly permanent, have shot up along the riverbank in the last few months, leaving tons of trash, igniting the occasional fire

and endangering the safety of runners, walkers and cyclists who often are attacked by pit bulls and other breeds owned by the homeless. Said Bill Cooper, whose work years ago led to the creation of the bike path: "BringBackTheKern! and KRPF volunteers took about 1,000 pounds of really disgusting trash and debris from the river at Beach Park. Homeless were hauling more trash to their camps on dirt bikes as we worked. One guy was flashing women volunteers. No control by the city." As an aside, it's interesting to note that while the city does occasionally "sweep" the riverbed area of homeless and debris, the hard work is left to those who actually use the bike path and trails: the taxpayers.

* .. MISSING BOYS: There are few who expect the search for two California City boys who disappeared at the end of last year -Orrin West and Orson West - to end well. This weekend Bakersfield police joined the search forcing on a rural area by East Pacheco and Cottonwood roads, but came up empty. It is an odd and frightening story, made stranger by the fact that neither the boys' biological parents nor his foster parents have been part of the search or have spoken to the public about what happened to Orrin and Orson.

* ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "I don’t want a one-time stimulus check. I want you to stop stealing so much of my paycheck every week."

* ... OPENING FOR BUSINESS: We already are getting a glimpse of the post-Covid world. On Sunday, the usual lines of customers waited for seats at the 24th Street Cafe, and restaurants are starting to fill as the nation eagerly waits the end of the pandemic. And in another sign things are improving, state has announced that some fans will be allowed to attend major league baseball games, and Disneyland will be opening with some restrictions on April 1.

* .... MEMORIES: A classic old picture of the budding of the Kern River power plant around 1905 and another shot of old Bakersfield sign. Both classics.

Thursday, March 4, 2021

The Catholic faithful turn their backs on the new Johnson and Johnson Covid-19 vaccine, pressure builds for a "third gender" on US passports and the homeless take over our bike path through town

* ... ABORTIONS AND THE VACCINE: Roman Catholics are rejecting the new Johnson & Johnson vaccine for Covid-19 because it is produced using a cell line derived from an aborted fetus. That is what Catholic leaders across the country are telling the faithful, and it has put a spotlight on the Pfizer and

Moderna vaccines that have been in the field. It's a tricky question and it pits a moral question against science that can save lives, and Friday Centric Health's Dr. Brij Bhambi will discuss the issue on The Richard Beene Show at 2 p.m. on KERN NewsTalk 96.1 FM/1180 AM. The Archdiocese of St. Louis has advised parishioners to seek out the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines as alternatives.

* ... GENDER FREE PASSPORTS: The Biden Administration is under pressure to allow U.S. Passports to be issued with a third "gender," a simple "X" to denote neither male nor female. The X gender designation has already been adopted by at least a dozen states and Washington, D.C., and the ACLU and other groups are pressing the Biden administration to all the designation on all passports.

* ... RESTAURANT OPENINGS: Restaurants across Kern County are starting to reopen, some with no restrictions and others - like Mexicali downtown - with limited seating. The truth: some restaurants hardly closed at all, allowing pre-pandemic seating in a county that pledged not to enforce the state policy. But with the rush toward herd immunity making progress, many local restaurants are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel and opening up.

* ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "We are living in a generation that would unplug you from life support just to charge their cell phones."

* ... HOMELESS: Runners, cyclists and hikers are having to avoid a large part of the Kern River bike path due to a surge in homeless encampments. The area along the river between Beech Park headed west to Gosford Road had largely been free of homeless camps, but in the last few months dozens have cropped up, leaving trash and debris, abandoned fires and unleashed dogs to harass runners and bikers. The bike path going east from Beech Park to Manor has always been difficult due to the homeless, but they have now migrated much farther west.

* ... MEMORIES: Yet another close up picture of Wayne's Dairy compliments of the Facebook page Kern County History Fans.

* ... MORE MEMORIES: Bakersfield, looking south on Union Ave (US 99) coming up on California Avenue and the Bakersfield sign. The Historic 99 Facebook page carried this photo.

Thursday, February 25, 2021

Kern County will receive a huge increase in Covid-19 vaccines, the Sheriff's Department seeks to hire dozens of deputies and Alta Sierra will have its ski lifts open this weekend

* ... COVID VACCINE: There is some good news locally about the number of Covid vaccines that will be available in Kern County. Brynn Carrigan, head of Kern County Public Health, said the state's weekly allotment has been increased to 14,850 doses, almost twice the previous weekly allotment of 8,800.

Carrigan said the county hopes to vaccinate as many as 3,000 people a week at the Kern County Fairgrounds alone. And that doesn't count any new doses Kern may receive when the Johnson & Johnson vaccine wins approval and hits the market. The new J&J vaccine promises that anyone who receives it will not be hospitalized and not die from COVID-19.

* ... SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood attended a meeting of the leadership of the state sheriff's association and was surprised to learn that at some departments, fully half of the deputies are taking the coronavirus vaccines. The acceptance rates "range from 10 percent to 50 percent," he said. At home, meanwhile, Youngblood's department is seeking to fill dozens of jobs for deputies, a hard reality when other departments pouch our own fully trained deputies with the lure of higher salaries.

* ... DROUGHT: While it may be true that the mountains have received some much needed snow, make no mistake that here in the valley we remain in a drought. That's the word from ABC23's Elaina Rusk who said the valley "remains in moderate drought with severe drought status in the mountains from the Kern River Valley to the Tehachapi area. the Mojave Desert, including the Ridgecrest area, are classified as extreme drought."

* ... ALTA SIERRA: But there is still enough snow at Alta Sierra to keep the chair lifts open, and the resort says it will be open this weekend. Meanwhile over on the coast the state has announced that Oceano Dune in Pismo Beach is opening to a limited number of cars this weekend.

* ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "When you tell someone you are praying for them, are you really?"

* ... RONDA NEWPORT: Ronda Newport, president of the Bakersfield Association of Realtors, was honored with the 2020 Warren G. Carter that “epitomizes the integrity, professionalism and traditional values of Watson Realty.”.

* ... MEMORIES: My thanks to the Kern County History Fans Facebook page for this picture of the old Kern County Jail, built in 1894 at the northeast corner of Eye and 16th streets.

Sunday, February 21, 2021

Amazon to build a second fulfillment center here, spring breaks out in Bakersfield as the rest of the nation freezes, and is Coca-Cola telling employees they may be acting "too white?"

* ... AMAZON: There was more good news on the job front locally as Amazon announced it will open its second fulfillment center in Kern County, this one in Shafter. Amazon is expected to hire some 1,000 workers for full and part-time job at a base of $15 an hour plus benefits. Planned for 4500 Express

Avenue, the new facility will cover one million square feet to pick and ship items to customers on the west coast.

* ... BLESSINGS: Consider for a moment what the rest of the country is going through: thousands without power and running water in Texas, record snow across the east coast and sub freezing temperatures across a huge swath of the country. And then there is Bakersfield, our much aligned home that is sunny and blooming like spring is around the corner. Pear trees are blooming, the camellias are out and shorts are replacing hoodies and jeans. This is a time to count our blessings for those of us who call Kern County home.

* ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "It was like Lord of the Flies on the vaccine websites today."

* ... COCA-COLA: Has Atlanta-based Coca-Cola included training for its employees on how to be "less white?" That's word from the Coke employees who said in an effort to promote diversity, the company has included training materials that caution white employees to beware of being "too white." A spokesperson for Coca-Cola responded to the images on the social networking platform Twitter. “The video circulating on social media is from a publicly available LinkedIn Learning series and is not a focus of our company’s curriculum,” the spokesperson said, but added that the course is “part of a learning plan to help build an inclusive workplace.” Isn't being "too white" like being "too right handed," and if that is the case, what are we supposed to do about it?

* ... MEMORIES: This 1916 photograph shows what was called Legislative Route 4, which would later become Highway 99, just north of Bakersfield.