This has been quite a month here in our little vortex. The new neighborhood council board has taken over and are finding that it isn’t as easy as they thought it would be. I’m looking forward to seeing how they pull it together.
Things have been pretty hectic. With four brush fires one after another, we’ve been able to test out our new communications gear. Some worked, some failed. But we found out now and not when we’re involved with a major fire. And that brings up a point. Is your home fire safe? One of the simplest things you can do is make sure that your roof is free from debris that could catch fire from flying embers. Sometimes the simplest things are those we forget first.
Last week’s Alpine Way fire has been reported as being set by two young men with illegal fireworks. The quick response of the LAFD, L.A. County Fire and ANF crews made sure that the houses were protected — even to the point of having water drops made on them. We sure are getting a lot of practice.
On the street scene, local businesses have been targeted by a “lone wolf” sign nazi. Great shades of the Cleghorn machine, an older woman who took offense to certain business signs, filed complaints with Building & Safety. Now that isn’t very businessfriendly. One of the problems we have here is that if people get upset, they call the authorities instead of talking to the people involved.
Over the years here, I’ve come to the conclusion that only 0.01% of the population are causing 99% of the business problems here. In going through our archives, I’ve seen how many small businesses have been destroyed by certain people. And someone is keeping a tally of that.
This year’s Rotary Club 4th of July parade is shaping up pretty good. More local businesses are telling me that they will be in it. NOW THAT’S THE SPIRIT! The parade is the largest event we have here and the most fun. And it’s all done by volunteers. This is a family event for everybody. (There is a parade application on page 5.) If you want to do something with your family that you have never done before – Sign up and come play on Foothill Boulevard. It’s something that your family will remember forever.
Oh, and don’t forget that at the end of it are the fire trucks spraying water so that everyone that was in the sun can cool off. And yes, boys and girls — then even you can smile and say, IT’S THE WATER!
And remember: we have the 4th of July coming up and with it, the wonderful parade that the Rotary Club runs — ALL WITH VOLUNTEERS! And this year’s slogan is “Celebrating Our Volunteers!”
Memorial Day was one of the largest tht we’ve had in years. Al Timons brought over a marble eagle that was mounted on the War Memorial.