Lafayette Today, February 2014

[email protected] Lafayette Today ~ January 2014 - Page 25

February 2014 Serving the Lafayette Community

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Lafayette, CA

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alisa Corstorphine ~ PublisherThe opinions expressed herein belong to the writers, and do not necessarily reflect that of La-fayette Today. Lafayette Today is not responsible for the content of any of the advertising herein, nor does publication imply endorsement.

See Prevention continued on page 24

See Internships cont. on page 18

The Word is Out By Fran MillerThe word is out, the news is spreading, and criminals are taking notice: L a f a y e t t e is a less-than-inviting location to break the law. Just

recently, as if from an episode of CSI, a single drop of blood led Lafayette police investigators to a

perpetrator who claimed it was not “fair,” and that it was “crazy,” that DNA testing was used

by the Lafayette Police Department to solve property crimes. “Yes, we really are that

crazy,” says Lafayette Police Chief Eric Christensen.

The “Touch DNA” procedure - collecting DNA samples from surfaces touched by crime suspects - is just one of the state-of-the-art practices

being employed by Lafayette’s Finest. “And the word starts to spread amongst the bad guys,” says Lafayette Crime Prevention Commissioner Stephen Gelman. “Lafayette is earning a reputation for taking crime very seriously. We are willing to expend the resources necessary to keep our town safe. And we have a good rapport with the District Attorney’s office.”

Gelman is one of seven volunteer commissioners on the Lafayette Crime Prevention Commission whose vision is to deliver proactive crime prevention awareness and education, and advise the City Council on appropriate strategies with the objective of enabling a safe and secure community environment. The Commission studies safety issues in the City and works to educate the public through various activities such as neighborhood watch and business alert programs. They also provide crime prevention tips to the local newspapers, support the Child I.D. program in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce, and organize a community safety day with the Emergency Preparedness Commission. The Commission also recently completed a study of the use of cameras to capture license plates in order to assist the police in identifying vehicles used in crimes. The results of that study will soon be presented to the City Council.

Each commissioner has a strong interest, and/or background, in law enforcement and lends his or her time and expertise to strengthen the safety of Lafayette. There are former Oakland and San Francisco police officers, a US State Department security specialist, and a former assistant US attorney. Gelman’s employment history, for instance, makes him a rival for Liam Neeson’s role in Taken. Only Gelman would not be acting. He spent twenty years in federal law enforcement as an assistant special agent in charge/criminal investigator with the US Treasury Department, and twenty years as an intelligence officer with the Navy, mostly in the reserves, retiring as a commander. He was recalled to active duty in 1999 and served in Bosnia during the Kosovo campaign, and after 9/11/01, he was again recalled and served three years as an NCIS officer/agent assigned to the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Forces in Los Angeles and San Francisco. He did two deployments to the Iraq theatre of operations

Now Accepting Nominations for Lafayette Green Awards!

Do you know a resident, student, teacher, local business, community organization, or architect/builder that took impressive steps to become more environmentally friendly in 2013? If so, then make sure to nominate them for a Lafayette Green Award by February 28th.

The “Environmental Awards of Excellence,” as they are officially known, are jointly sponsored by Sustainable Lafayette and the City of Lafayette, and the program recognizes outstanding efforts that contribute to a more sustainable community. Forty-eight different individuals and organizations have been honored since 2007. Last year’s winners included Beth Ferree & John Eaton, Brad Crane, Quan Nguyen, Nanette Heffernan, Whole Foods, La Boulange, Mechanics Bank, and the Lafayette Community Garden.

One example from last year -- Quan Nguyen was nominated as the “Eco-Custodian of the Decade.” As the Lead Custodian at Springhill Elementary School, he eliminated the need for plastic trashcan liners by rinsing out the cans instead, and he facilitated the switch from disposable to reusable lunch trays. Quan also manages the school’s compost and food scrap recycling, and he has even helped Springhill’s sister schools with their programs.

Nominations are evaluated by the City’s Environmental Task Force, across five different categories, based on three primary criteria:

• How successfully did the candidate’s activities reduce their footprint?• How much have the candidate’s activities helped achieve the City’s

environmental goals?• How much have the candidate’s activities inspired others in the community? This year’s winners will be announced at the Earth Day Festival on Sunday,

April 27th. Mayor Tatzin will award certificates at a City Council meeting in April. To nominate a person or organization for a Green Award, please complete

the nomination form by February 28th on the City’s website at www.lovelafayette.org/GreenAwards.

Previous Green Award winners.

East Bay Regional Park District Offers Student Internships

The East Bay Regional Park District employs approximately 24 paid interns each year throughout nine District divisions, in addition to several annual field interns who work alongside staff in the parks.

“The economic downturn has especially been hard on youth, principally because they lack experience,” noted Human Resources Manager Susan Gonzales. “Our intern program addresses this issue by

www.yourmonthlypaper.com

Lafayette is a community that prides itself on its strong volunteer participation. For information about these vacancies and the responsibilities of each of these bodies please visit our website www.lovelafayette.org. Applications can be downloaded from our webpage or contact city offices (925-284-1968) and an application will be mailed to you.

Page 2 - February 2014 ~ Lafayette Today

Camp and School FairCome to a free event with booths showcasing camps, schools, preschool,

daycare, sports, martial arts, gymnastics, enrichment, performing arts, scouts and family vacations. There will be activities and exhibitions.

• Tri-Valley Camp & School Fair – Saturday, February 22, 11AM– 2PM

4575 Rosewood Dr. by Walmart & Sport Chalet in Pleasantonwww.TriValleyCampFair.com• Contra Costa Camp & School Fair – Sunday, February 23, 11AM – 2PM

Acalanes High School, 1200 Pleasant Hill Rd. in Lafayettewww.ContraCostaCampFair.com

Don’t Miss the LAUFF Film FestivalOnce again, the 8th annual Lamorinda district wide film festival will be held,

this year showcasing over 20 films on February 28th at 7PM at Campolindo High’s Performing Art Center located at 300 Moraga Rd in Moraga.

LAUFF (Lamorinda Acalanes Union Film Festival) showcases the best of student films from the community. Festival Coordinator Justin Seligman writes, “More than ever, young people have access to the tools and means to share their ideas with the world. Films are a powerful and unique medium to broadcast their voice for all to hear.”

The Lafayette City Council is soliciting applicants to fill the following volunteer vacancies:

• Downtown Street Improvement Implementation Committee (DSIMPIC)• Senior Services Commission • Environmental Task Force• Circulation Commission • Community Center Foundation• Parks, Trails & Recreation Commission •Public Art Committee• Design Review Commission • Planning Commission• Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee • Creeks Committee• Capital Projects Assessment Committee (CPAC) • Lafayette’s representative to the Contra Costa County Advisory Council on Aging

Positions open until filled.

Assistance League Way Side Inn Thrift Shop February 18th will launch the annual Classic Coach and Dooney & Bourke

Handbags event at the Assistance League Way Side Inn Thrift Shop, located at 3521 Golden Gate Way in Lafayette.

The event will include Dooney & Bourke’s all-weather leather bags, many of them discontinued, yet known for their durability and recognizable style. You will find this year’s selection of Coach handbags, finely crafted during the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s, to be better than ever. An assortment of briefcases, attaches, wallets, and other smaller items will also be available. You will breeze through February by enjoying authentic and high-end items, a tax receipt for your donations, and money left over for the March events at the Thrift Shop.

When you support Assistance League Way Side Inn Thrift Shop with your donations and purchases, you improve the lives of those in our community who are in need and at risk. To learn more about Assistance League of Diablo Valley and its eight philanthropic programs that are funded by the thrift shop, please visit www.diablovalley.assistanceleague.org. Members of the Speakers’ Bureau are also available, free of charge. For more information about scheduling a speaker to present to your group, please remain on our website, find the About Us column on the left side of the page, and select “Speakers’ Bureau.”

Lafayette Hiking GroupTo participate in hikes, meet in the parking lot out from Lafayette BART’s

main entrance at 8:30AM. We form carpools to the trailhead. Bring lunch or snacks, water, layered clothing, good walking shoes, sun protection, and money to contribute toward gas, bridge tolls and parking ($5).February 15 - Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge, Newark

Start at the visitor center, then climb a moderate hill to get a view of the area we will be hiking. Follow the 5 mile loop of the Newark Slough trail, seeing salt ponds, salt marshes, mud flats, and shore birds. The refuge provides habitat for nine species of Federally-listed threatened or endangered species and is home to 227 species of birds.

~Easy, mostly flat 6 miles. Leader: Alison HillMarch 1 - Lake Merritt, Oakland

Lake Merritt has undergone major improvements in recent years - come check them out. Take BART into Oakland, then walk to and around Lake Merritt, then go into Oakland for an interesting lunch. There should be some interesting birds at the lake, the nations’ first official wildlife refuge. Bring BART ticket and lunch money.

~Easy, flat, 4 - 5 miles. Leaders: Ardith Betts & Alison HillFor questions or information, email [email protected].

Reporting for TV: Challenges and Opportunities By Jan Cushman, OML AAUW Chapter

Debora Silva, a Brazilian producer and reporter living in California, recently won an award at the 2013 Bay Area Women in Film and Media (BAWIM) Festival for her short documentary Oakland Story and is a finalist at the 2014 CreaTV Awards for two television segments she produced. She will share her experiences about reporting for television, her reasons for becoming and experiences as a journalist, and how she ended up at UC Berkeley pursuing a graduate degree in Broadcast Journalism. As part of her presentation, she will also share two TV segments she produced:

• Oakland Story: A story about an Oakland resident whose first-hand experience with gun violence dramatically changed this woman’s life.

• Soccer Love: A story about São Paulo, Brazil, where residents (a group of more than 300 families from the slum Comunidade Favela da Paz), who initially expected to benefit from the World Cup, now live in fear that the government will evict them at any moment due to their proximity to an important World Cup venue.

Debora started her career in broadcast journalism at a television station in São Paulo, Brazil. She worked for four years as a reporter and producer for Extensao.Doc, a documentary program covering social and political issues, where she interviewed a wide range of people including then President, Lula da Silva. In 2009, Debora moved to California to pursue a career as an international correspondent and producer. In the United States, she worked as a freelancer associate producer for KQED Public Television in San Francisco (PBS) and is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism at the University of California Berkeley.

Debora’s event will take place on Tuesday, February 18 with a social beginning at 9:30AM followed by a meeting and presentation at10AM. The event will take place at Holy Trinity Serbian Cultural Center, 1700 School Street in Moraga and is sponsored by The Orinda-Moraga-Lafayette Chapter (OML) Chapter, American Association of University Women (AAUW).

Free Tax Preparation Free tax preparation for the 2014 tax season is available from AARP’s

Tax-Aide and United Way’s Earn It, Keep It, Save It (EKS) programs. All tax preparers are trained and certified by the IRS. While both programs serve taxpayers of any age, Tax-Aide does not have an income limit in whom they can serve, but EKS can only serve individuals whose incomes do not exceed $50,000.

For information or to make an appointment for the Tax-Aide sites serving the Walnut Creek area, please call (925) 943-5851 for the Walnut Creek Senior Club site, (925) 405-6278 for the Walnut Creek Grace Presbyterian Church site, or (925) 979-5013 for the Walnut Creek St. Paul’s Episcopal Church site. For general information and other site locations, call (925) 726-3199. For information on EKS sites, call 2-1-1 or visit www.earnitkeepitsaveit.org.

To complete your tax return, Tax-Aide will need you to bring to the appointment your: • Social Security Card or ITIN letter for all individuals to be listed on the return • Photo ID for yourself and spouse • Copies of all W-2s • 1098s and 1099s • Other income and deductions • Your 2012 Tax Return.

[email protected] Lafayette Today ~ February 2014 - Page 3

Boulevard ViewBy Alisa Corstorphine, Editor

“Happy Birthday Ken,” I posted on his Facebook wall along with a picture of Ken and his sixth grade elementary school class. After scanning and tagging faces of my 60,000+ photos, I have many old photos to share with my friends. While I am not a huge Facebook fan or contributor, I try and recognize friends birthdays with a message and often an old photo of themselves.

I had gone to several years of elementary school with Ken, and we also attended the same junior high and high school. The last few years of Ken’s elementary school education had been spent at the same school as my husband attended and hence the class picture I had saved, shared, and tagged him in.

The birthday wish to Ken received a few, “Like’s” and multiple mentions of the 70’s fashions -- paisley and plaid prints, preppy and Amish/Little House on the Prairie attire dotted the outfits. Ken, commenting on his own pair of pants, noted, “I think the pants came from a tablecloth or picnic blanket.” As other friends (and former classmates) joined in on the thread of conversation, someone recalled a crush they had on one of their classmates, and another wrote, “Remember ‘Squish’ and [also] ‘Bananas Burton’?” recalling childhood nicknames. Most of the classmates were remembered and “tagged,” and many joined in the conversation, memory reflection, and birthday wishes.

The young teacher was mentioned in comments like,“Did that teacher just step off the set of Dukes of Hazard?” Students in the class then started remem-bering more about the teacher and how he had taken a bronze medal in diving at one of the Olympic games.

Beth recalled, “Remember him [the teacher] bringing in the trampoline for us? Yes it was a great year.” A follow-up comment said, “I still remember bringing in the 45s (the vinyl kind) into the classroom, and the teacher would let us play them during recess. I still have Philadelphia Freedom [by Elton John] in my record collection. He’s still the all-time coolest teacher.” The former student went on to say,“Forget high school or college - this was the best year of school I ever had.”

The comment inspired me to do a little sleuthing. I think it is important to let

people know what they mean to others - especially teachers. And this teacher had obviously struck a chord with his students.

Within several minutes I had found the teacher on LinkedIn and told the group responding to my picture post that someone should contact him and share the thread of emails.

Later on in the evening, Ken and the teacher became Facebook friends. Ken posted, “Welcome to your class of ‘75,” and the teacher responded how fun it was to see all the kids again.

The teacher then posted the picture on his Facebook wall to share with his friends and family, some who didn’t know of his past role as a teacher. Some of the students also responded directly to him and let him personally know how much he meant to them. One told him, “Rick – you were part teacher/part big brother. You introduced yourself to me the day before the school year started with, ‘Hi, I’m Rick E.’ (Huh? Teachers have first names – and mustaches?)... I remember the record player in the classroom that you let us use during recess, a decision you probably regretted after too many hearings of ‘Convoy’ and ‘Kung Fu Fighting.’ But then one day you brought in one of your favorites from your vinyl collection and many of us heard John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ for the first time. Know we were a tough bunch, but even when you got mad, it was a cool mad. Thanks for making it the most fun and memorable year ever.”

Photographs and memories--take time to share them with those people who have been a part of your life.

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www.yourmonthlypaper.comPage 4 - February 2014 ~ Lafayette Today

Lamorinda Peace and JusticeThe Lamorinda Peace and Justice Group meets the fourth Tuesday of each

month from 7 – 9PM in the Fireside Room of Lafayette Methodist Church, 955 Moraga Road, Lafayette. We are committed to working to support a healthy planet, a thriving local community, and a safe, equitable world for all. For information, call (925) 946-0563.

Host Families Sought for Visiting French Students

For the ninth consecutive year, students from a large high school in the South of France are coming to the area. Host families are needed during their stay. The students will arrive on April 27th and depart May 9th .

The teens stay with local families but have a full itinerary of activities with their class during the days and only require your attention in the evenings and on one weekend.

The visit is an ideal opportunity to experience another culture and hope-fully consider visiting France in return. Anyone interested in hosting a student (or students!) is welcome to participate.

For more information or to find out about past year’s programs, please contact Martine Causse (teacher in charge of the group) at [email protected] or [email protected].

There are many happy local host families ready to discuss any questions with you (including the editor of this paper!). The local contact is Kevin Dimler, who can be reached at [email protected] or 925-718-5052.

Meals on WheelsSeniors in our community need your support! Meals on Wheels and

Senior Outreach Services have been supporting seniors in YOUR neigh-borhood since 1968. Two of the programs, Meals on Wheels and Friendly Visitors, rely on the support of volunteers, and we need your help now more than ever.

Meals on Wheels volunteer drivers deliver meals to local homebound seniors through regular two hour shifts once per week or as substitute drivers. Friendly Visitors volunteers provide weekly one-hour compan-ionship visits to isolated seniors. To volunteer for either program, please call (925)937-8311.

A World of Possibilities ... The Choice is Yours!An unforgettable experience awaits! Qualified high school students

are offered the opportunity to spend four or six weeks during the summer holiday in Europe, Asia, South America, or Australia. Strengthen a language you have been studying or begin learning a new one. Language knowledge is helpful but not required to qualify. Programs are for students ages 15-18 years old. Apply with ASSE Student Exchange Programs at asse.com to experience an opportunity of a lifetime! If you are unable to go abroad, please consider hosting a foreign exchange student. To find out more about being a host, go to www.assehosts.com.

For more information about foreign student exchange, call (800) 733-2773 or email [email protected].

If you find him and your name is drawn!$50 REWARD

Lost Dog!

Send a letter telling us where you found him, along with your name and address to:

Lost Dog! Lafayette Today, 3000F Danville Blvd #117, Alamo, CA 94507

He is very small, so you will have to look hard if you want to find him.

Laurie Van Allen is our winner!Luther was hiding on page 6 last month.

Lafayette Luther is MissingHe has become lost in this paper.

Scottish Country Dancing is Back in Town!Come dance every Thursday evening, year-round (with the single exception of

Thanksgiving)! No partner is required and no Scottish ancestry is required. Adult beginner classes for Scottish Country Dancing take place each week with free lessons at 7PM followed by more experienced dancers dancing at 8PM. Once a month Ceilidh dancing will take place as well. Dancing will be held at the Lamorinda Theatre Academy, located at 83 Lafayette Circle in Lafayette. All dance nights are drop-in. Three weeks of free beginner lessons are offered. Afterwards, the cost is $8/night or $6/night if attending a 10-week session paid in advance.

Call Witsie at (925) 676-3637 or Kathleen at (925) 934-6148 for more information. For children’s classes ages 7 and up, please contact Cathy at (925) 284-9068 for dates and fees.

Cars • Trucks • Vans • Boats • Real EstateLive Operators on hand 7 days a week

Tax deduction • All transfer documents handledFree pick-up • Running or not in most cases

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Lamorinda Republican Women Lamorinda Republican Women Federated welcomes Lance Izumi of the

Pacific Research Institute, author of numerous publications on education policy, at noon, February 20th, at the Orinda Country Club.

For luncheon information and reservations, contact Elsie Euing at (925) 254-8617 by February 14th. Cost is $25. Men are welcome!

The Republican Women Federated works to inform the public through political education and activity and to increase the effectiveness of women in the cause of good government.

First Annual AAUW Shred-Fest Plan ahead to shred your boxes of papers and documents at the 1st an-

nual American Association of University Women, Orinda-Moraga-Lafayette Branch (AAUW-OML) Tech Trek Shred-Fest!

The event will take place on March 29 from 9AM - 1PM at AAAAA Rent-A-Space, located at 455 Moraga Road in Moraga. State-of-the-Art, Cross-Cut Shredding starts at just $5 per file box. Save your boxes of papers to be shredded for March!

All proceeds fund AAUW-OML Tech Trek Scholarships for Lamorinda girls. Help support Tech Trek by telling your friends, neighbors, organizations, and business contacts about the event. Financial advisors, attorneys, medical offices, and other businesses can meet their legal obligation to dispose of clients’ information responsibly, while helping to send Lamorinda middle school girls to AAUW’s Tech Trek Science & Math Camp. Certificates of Destruction and Donation Receipts will be provided.

Weekly Dance SocialDance for joy at the weekly Social, or just come to chat; all are welcome.

Twirl, chat, and tap your feet to the beat. The Social is for all-level and all-style dancers, music lovers, and observers. The Social is held Wednesdays from 12:30 to 2:50PM at the Lafayette Community Center located at 500 St. Mary’s Road. The longtime event, with continuous, professionally recorded music, is held in the big, bright Live Oak Room. The Social specializes in ballroom, but any style dance adds to the charm.

For more information, visit sites.google.com/site/lafayetteteadance. Fees for the event are $2 for members of the Senior Center and $4 for non-members.


[email protected] Lafayette Tip of the MonthDoing Our Part to Conserve WaterBy Linda Riebel, Sustainable Lafayette

Water is essential to life, yet we sometimes take it for granted. Now that Gov. Jerry Brown has announced a drought emergency in California, we’re reminded of how important water is to our lives. The state is struggling with the least rainfall in its 163-year history, with low reservoir levels and Sierra snowpack at an all-time low (17% of normal). The Governor declared, “We are in an unprecedented, very serious situation.” How serious? Here’s one indicator: Folsom Lake is so dry that gold-rush era towns, long submerged, have been exposed.

Unfortunately, The Climate Prediction Center (part of the National Weather Service) anticipates that the dry spell could persist through April. This is largely due to a vast zone of high pressure off the West Coast, nearly four miles high and 2,000 miles long, that has been in place for 13 months and counting, and is deflecting winter storms up into British Columbia and Alaska.

Governor Brown has asked California residents and businesses to voluntarily reduce their water consumption by 20 percent. He said, “Hopefully it will rain eventually, but in the meantime, we have to do our part.” Here in Lafayette, we can save water in many ways.

“The easiest way to save water is to save water outdoors,” said Chris Brown, former executive director of the California Urban Water Conservation Council. More than 50% of residential water use occurs outdoors. Even though it’s dry outside, plants and lawns don’t need as much water in the winter since it’s cooler.”

Leaks are another problem to focus on. Because we don’t even get to use the water -- it’s totally wasted. A toilet that runs can waste as much as 7,000 gallons of water a month! East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) offers free dye tablets you can use to check for leaks.Simple repair kits found at the hardware store can fix many of these leaks.

Many other little things make a difference around the house, like taking shorter showers and not letting the water run while you are brushing your teeth, shaving, or doing dishes. Try using a broom instead of a hose to clean driveways, sidewalks, and patios.

Each one of us can take actions that will help get us through this dry spell. Here’s just one more: Capture that water! Keep a bucket or jug handy and catch the cold water that emerges when you first turn on the hot water for a shower. Then you can use that water for your houseplants.

In fact, there are so many ways to save water that we can’t put them all in one column, and we will be sharing water-saving tips throughout the year.

In the meantime, here are links to some of the best resources for learning how to conserve water:

East Bay Municipal Utility District: www.ebmud.com Contra Costa Water District: www.ccwater.com/conserve State Department of Water Resources: http://saveourH20.orgSanta Clara Valley Water District: www.save20gallons.org If you have water-saving suggestions you

haven’t seen in one of these columns, please send them to [email protected].

Lafayette Today ~ February 2014 - Page 5


The Bookworm By Joan Stevenson

I am grateful to Sharon Lingane, the tireless manager of the Friends Corner Bookshop, for sharing a wonderful letter she received from Pam Young, a library volunteer at Ford Elementary School in Richmond. Out of the abundance of books contributed to the Bookshop, it is possible

to share with our neighbors in a very special way. Dear Sharon,I want to thank Lafayette Friends of the Library for all the books that you

gave me this year. So many classes, teachers, tutors, and jails benefitted from receiving your books. The dictionaries are not only helping the adult English Learning Classes, but they are helping elementary grade classes that need dictionaries. The students are able to take them home and use them for their studies. One teacher reported that a student came up and gave her a big hug because she gave him a dictionary. This year you helped two new teachers have a small classroom library. These teachers walked into classrooms where there were just basic textbooks. The books I gave them were ones that would meet their students’ reading levels. One teacher sent a photo of his new classroom library. Thank you! The Hercules and Pinole libraries were able to add some of the books to their collections. Thank you so much for your generosity. Sincerely, Pam Young

The dire warnings of drought are all around us as we bask in beautiful spring- like days. Contra Costa Master Gardeners are coming to the rescue with their presentation, Conserving Water in the Landscape on Thursday, February 20 from 6:30 – 8PM. Experts will guide us through a variety of practices that will help homeowners conserve water in their landscape. Learn about irrigation methods, plant selection and placement, water gardening, and rainwater harvesting. Participants will receive hands-on practice using irrigation components.

Friends of Lafayette Library will welcome a local author, Dina Colman, to Sweet Thursday on February 20 at 7:30PM. She will discuss her new book, Four Quadrant Living: Making Healthy Living Your New Way of Life. So what

are the four quadrants? They are Mind, Body, Relationships, and Environment. Ms. Colman will share her thoughts on ways to reduce stress, live mindfully, eat well, exercise more, sleep better, engage in healthy relationships, and detoxify environments.

Now here is a subject that fascinates me – 3D Printing. On Tuesday, February 25 at 7PM, Science Cafe with Brian Palacios, co-founder of Fabricastl, will introduce us to The Art & Science of 3D Printing. Attendees will walk away with a broad-spectrum understanding of this science-fiction-like technology and a greater sense of the positive impacts this new era of printing will bring. The cost is $5. To reserve email [email protected] or call (925) 283-6513 x103.

The Bay Area Storytellers will pay us a visit on Tuesday, March 4th

at 6:30PM. Take a break. Bring the kids for an evening of stories told in the oral tradition. Stories, fun and fanciful, of heroes and heroines, will be spun by storytellers, Wayne Harris and Jean Ellisen. If you have never heard a professional storyteller, you and your family are in for a real treat.

The deYoung Museum anticipates an enthusiastic response to their major spring exhibit, “Modern Nature: Georgia O’Keeffe and Lake George.” From 1918 until the early 1930s, Georgia O’Keeffe retreated annually to Alfred Stieglitz’s family estate on Lake George in upstate New York, where she reveled in the discovery of new subject matter. O’Keeffe’s experiences there inspired one of the most transformative and productive periods of her career, energizing the development of her signature modernist style. Since this is expected to be a popular exhibit, the Library has booked the lecture twice: Wednesday, March 5th at 6:30PM sponsored by the Foundation and Tuesday, and March 11th at 2PM

sponsored by the Friends.Announcing the Second Annual Literary Feast March 22, 6PM – 11PM, in the

Community Hall. Spend an intimate evening talking and listening to acclaimed authors from across the country. Taste and enjoy a sumptuous multi-course dinner prepared by local caterers, served within the library’s magical walls. Feel inspired by the opportunity to participate in a unique event that helps fuel our library’s creative programs each year. This hallmark event raises the funds needed to provide one-of-a-kind art, science, and literary events to over 20,000 local residents of all ages. Last year’s event was the talk of the town, so mark your calendar. You will not want to miss the Second Annual Literary Feast!

[email protected] Marks Lafayette Historical Society’s First Speaker Series Event of 2014!By Ruth Bailey – for the Lafayette Historical Society

This month’s column must begin with an apology. We anticipated being able to trace the evolution…and de-evolution…of gambling in Lafayette throughout the Twentieth Century. But the clues in our bound volumes of The Sun ran into quicksand…in other words, the story ends with a whimper, not a bang. The much maligned Sheriff Long, against whom the paper had campaigned, was reelected, and life continued at its normal pace--until the El Nido Strip faded away. Sincere apologies to the individual who contacted the Historical Society recently asking when the gambling story would continue. We would have loved to have been able to give a definitive conclusion.

Come listen to Steve Minniear speak about sailors, Seabees, and the stories behind all those old buildings you used to see in and around the Interstate 580/680 intersection.

The presentation will be made in the Lafayette Library & Learning Center’s Community Hall on Wednesday, February 26th at 2:30pm. A $10 donation is requested for LHS member and $15 for non-members. Kids under 14 are free when accompanied by an adult.

Between 1942 and 1946 over 300,000 sailors lived, worked, trained, and transited through what is now Dublin, California. Camp Parks, Camp Shoemaker, and Shoemaker Naval Hospital played an important, but largely lost, role in the US victory in the Pacific during World War II.

Steve Minniear is a resident of Dublin. Soon after he moved to the area, over twenty years ago, he began to hear vague stories about how there once were Navy bases all along the route he drove to work in Livermore. Meeting a local volunteer who ran a small museum at Camp Parks, he became fascinated with learning more. When the small museum closed down in 2010, he dedicated his free time to collecting, saving, and promoting the history that was becoming lost. His book, Dublin and the Tri-Valley: The World War II Years, issued by Arcadia Publishing, is coming out in February 2014.

A recent retiree, Mr. Minniear worked in national security. He graduated from Georgetown University and the University of California, Berkeley, where he first learned his passion for history.

Steve is Vice President of the Dublin Historical Preservation Association and acts as a docent at the Dublin Heritage Park & Museums. He also presents history lectures for local audiences and assists in the care of Dublin’s Camp Parks collection. He is a member of the City of Dublin Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission.

He hopes that this presentation will bring back to life a forgotten part of the Tri-Valley’s history and act as homage to the many men and women of the Greatest Generation that lived, worked, and sometimes died in the bases near Dublin, Pleasanton, Livermore, and San Ramon. He also hopes to spark additional interest in Dublin and the area’s history. He expects to dispel the sometimes heard remark that nothing interesting ever happened in Dublin.

For more information or reservations, please contact the Lafayette Historical Society at (925) 283-1848 or by email [email protected].



Lafayette - According to industry ex-perts, there are over 33 physical prob-lems that will come under scrutiny during a home inspection when your home is for sale. A new report has been prepared which identifies the 11 most common of these problems, and what you should know about them before you list your home for sale.

Whether you own an old home or a brand new one, there are a number of things that can fall short of requirements during a home inspection. If not identified and dealt with, any of these 11 items could cost you dearly in terms of repair. That's why it's critical that you read this report before you list your home. If you wait until the building inspector flags these issues for you, you will almost certainly experience costly delays in the close of your home

sale or, worse, turn prospective buyers away altogether. In most cases, you can make a reasonable pre-inspection yourself if you know what you're looking for, and knowing what you're looking for can help you prevent little problems from growing into costly and unmanageable ones.

To help home sellers deal with this issue before their homes are listed, a free report entitled "11 Things You Need to Know to Pass Your Home Inspection" has been compiled which explains the issues involved.

To hear a brief recorded message about how to order your FREE copy of this report, call toll-free 1-866-265-1682 and enter 2003. You can call any time, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

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This report is courtesy of J. Rockcliff Realtors #01763819. Not intended to solicit buyers or sellers currently under contract. Copyright © 2013

Genealogical MeetingsThe San Ramon Valley Genealogical Society meets at 10am the third Tuesday

of every month, except August and December, at the Danville Family His-tory Center, 2949 Stone Valley Road, Alamo. A speaker is at every meeting. Everyone is welcome.

For information, call Ed at (925) 299-0881, or visit http://srvgensoc.org.

Junior Achievement Needs YouJunior Achievement, a non-profit funded by foundations and businesses, offers

an exciting opportunity for you and your office to partner with local schools to educate students about business and financial literacy. By volunteering in the schools or hosting a Job Shadow, companies can increase outreach. Programs are offered to the schools at no cost. For more information, please contact Shaun Rundle at 465-1082, email [email protected], or visit www.janorcal.org.

www.yourmonthlypaper.comFrancis Ford Coppola Winery, Geyserville By Linda Summers Pirkle

Francis Ford Coppola Winery; located in Geyserville, an hour and a half from the Bay Area; is home to movie memorabilia, a great store, bocce courts, a pool, and a fine restaurant. “Disneyland for adults” is how Ernie Zabalijauregui, guest services assistant, describes the winery. “People explore the place with big smiles on their faces. There is so much to see, and it’s a fun place.”

My husband, no big fan of Disneyland, did, however, really enjoy our afternoon at Francis Ford Coppola Winery. Like many wineries, it is beautiful. The working winery is home to a rare collection of movie memorabilia including the Tucker car,

used in the movie Tucker, The Man and his Dream,1988, two small ships used as props in Sofia Coppola’s 2006 film Marie Antoinette, award winning costumes from Bram Stoker’s Dracula, as well as the actual Oscars won by the director and producer Francis Ford Coppola. Photos and facts from behind the scenes of the filming of Apocalypse Now are especially interesting.

The extensive gift shop on site is full of unique items from all over the world. Mr. Coppola says he’s always searching for something “unusual and desirable.” According to Erin, visual merchandiser, the Cop-polas hand-select many of the merchandise items available at the winery. They frequently send the merchandising team pictures and examples of unique products they find compelling and intrigu-ing while on their travels. Among the items you will find are Francis’s favorite films, kid-friendly toys such as “Tim,” the famous flying mechanical bird, hand crafted jewelry, dinnerware, and Elea-nor Coppola’s family recipe chocolate sauces and

marmalades. The Sofia Coppola designed t-shirt was selling fast. My husband spent most of his time looking at the extensive movie memorabilia, which includes Don

Corleone’s desk in The Godfather (1972). Francis Ford Coppola says the winery is meant to be “a wine wonderland, a park of pleasure where people of all ages can enjoy all the best things life- food, wine, music, dancing, games, swimming, and performances of all types. A place to celebrate the love of life.”

Just up the road from the winery is a nice little cafe, Geyserville Mud. The owner, Valerie, has a wealth of information about the history of the town. Local author Joe Pelanconi says, “This piece of Geyserville real estate is the soul of the town, a local hangout that begs one to gossip, laugh, and remi-nisce. Every small town needs a place like Geyserville Mud.” And their cranberry scones are so tasty!

Francis Ford Coppola winery is located at 300 Via Archimedes, Geyserville. Their website is www.FrancisCoppolaWinery.com, and the phone is (707) 857-1471.

• Walk out near the pool to see the “Pavilion.” It was inspired by the band shell featured in The Godfather: Part II. It’s a presentation plat-form for a variety of events including Dancing Under the Stars, which starts up in April 2014.

• The winery hosts some family friendly events such as the popular an-nual Easter egg hunt. A fun winter event is a hot chocolate tasting offered on select Saturdays and Sundays in February. Reservations are required.

Linda Summers Pirkle has been arranging and leading tours for several years. Inspired by the many wonderful places to visit in the Bay Area. To share your “Quick Trips” ideas email [email protected].


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3328 Mt Diablo Blvd, Lafayette(925) 283-5212 | Monday - Friday 7:30AM-5PM

The New Mortgage Lending Regulations By Art Lehman, Village Associates Realtors

In response to the financial crisis of 2007, The Dodd Frank Act of 2010, also known as The Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, was passed. In 2014 the next series of rules within this law will be implemented that will bring about a new era in mortgage lending oversight across the nation. Dodd Frank requires a new, single regulator to oversee all

consumer finance activity. Mortgage finance is covered within these new regulations and by the new regulator, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (better known as the CFPB).

As a requirement of the Dodd Frank Act, the next phase of mortgage lending rules was implemented in January 2014. These rules include the newly defined Qualified Mortgage (QM) and Ability to Repay (ATR) standards. While the burden to adhere to these new rules is placed upon the mortgage industry specifically, there are some practical points that real estate professionals are now aware of.

Lenders will generally want the loans that they write to be QMs. If the loan is originated and closed as a QM (that is not considered a Higher Priced Mortgage Loan, or HPML) there is a legal Safe Harbor achieved for lenders that protects them from a future claim by the homeowner that the loan offered was unaffordable. If a loan is not closed as a non-HPML QM, there is only a Rebuttable Presumption established, which means there is a risk of litigation by the consumer who could claim that the loan they purchased was not appropriate for their ability to repay. This future claim represents an unknown liability for the lender. Consequently, non QM loans may be hard to find, and more expensive and HPML QM loans will be more scrutinized in underwriting.

The bottom line is that most loans offered today will still be able to be offered within the QM and ATR standards. Many of the newly mandated QM requirements just add concrete to the standard guidelines that banks have already been underwriting against. This means that moving forward lenders will not bend on guidelines with the same flexibility as in the past. Before, some banks could make executive decisions in “grey” areas based on their opinion of the borrower or loan file’s strengths without inheriting large amounts of risk. The risk of making a loan outside the QM and ATR standards is defined by the consumer’s right to legal action.

There are a few aspects of this regulation which will be impossible to measure until there is more experience underwriting under these new standards. However, for the most part, I would like to believe that for the MAJORITY of people, this will have little negative impact. Don’t hold your breath!

Note that there is a new 43% Debt-to-Income Standard! Before you get too excited, this only applies to a small portion of loans in today’s marketplace, namely the larger, or jumbo loans, and some other niche, portfolio loans. Loans slated for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, VA, and USDA do not currently have the 43% debt-to-income (DTI) maximum cap. These lending institutions, collectively labeled as “Agencies,” have up to seven years to comply with this new requirement, or as late as 2021.

Risky Features: No more QM loans will be required to have a lack of risky features. Risky is defined as loans with terms over 30 years, pre-payment penalties (some exceptions apply), interest-only payments, negatively amortizing balances, balloon payments, deferred principal reduction, and introductory interest rate fixed for less than five years.

In the short period of time of this roll-out, my experience leads me to note that a challenging time for buyers is getting more challenging. Plan ahead by getting pre-approved, because during escrow there will be plenty of bumps in the road.

If you have any questions on selling or buying a home in the area, please contact me at 925 200-2591 or by email at [email protected]. Please feel free to email a topic for the next article too. If you’d like a free automatic email update of current listings and sales visit my website to sign up www. artlehman.com or call! Advertorial

Cinema Classics and Musical NotesMy Man Godfrey and KleingeldBy Peggy Horn

This month’s first Cinema Classic recommendation is, My Man Godfrey, (1936) starring William Powell, Carole Lombard, and Gail Patrick.

Although this movie is described as a screwball comedy, it has as its plot a valuable social commentary: the treatment of the “forgotten man.” The forgotten man refers rather indelicately to members of the

homeless, unemployed population, many of whom are living at the local city dump. The homeless population was a genuine problem since the 1929 stock market crash predated the filming of this movie by only a few years. The movie begins with a scathingly inappropriate scavenger hunt in which a “forgotten man” was to be furnished to the scavenger hunt headquarters. Sisters Cornelia Bullock, played by Gail Patrick, and Irene Bullock, played by Carole Lombard, are each vying to be the first to find a forgotten man. Cornelia goes to the dump in her evening gown, finds Godfrey, and offers him five dollars to make an appearance. Finding Cornelia’s behavior insulting, Godfrey turns her down flat, but he offers to help Irene whose approach is more tactful, even endearing. Irene ends up hiring Godfrey to be the family butler, providing him with much needed employment and an opportunity to think things through. Through his job as butler, Godfrey is able to improve his own state of affairs and that of the Bullock family, as well.

My Man Godfrey, is a delightful film and was deemed “culturally significant” by the United States Library of Congress in 1999. It is available for purchase or rental online.

Another more recent look at poverty is presented in a short film (approximately 12 minutes) from Germany, entitled, Kleingeld. This short film, the second Cinema Classic recommendation, was directed by Jesus Witherpoon and was nominated for an Academy Award in 2000. The action begins with a wealthy businessman making his way to his office on the crowded city sidewalk. Daily he passes by a man begging, and apparently he gives the beggar a coin regularly. Evidently, the gift recipient wishes to reciprocate and has found a way to show his appreciation for the donation. Unfortunately, this leads to a disastrous outcome. This film short can be viewed on Youtube under “Kleingeld.” Musical Notes

To complement this month’s movie, why not download the soundtrack from the Broadway play, Annie? In the Broadway production, Andrea McArdle plays the starring role which was nominated for a Tony award.


Lic# 1100014354; Bay Area Entertainment

A Passion for ProseccoBy Monica ChappellProsecco Stars in Romantic Valentine Cocktail

When it comes to the best Valentine’s Day cocktails, Prosecco wins every time in my book. Prosecco’s soft flavors of citrus and green apple complement other mixers, while its bubbles add tingly texture to any cocktail; after all, isn’t a

romantic cocktail about pleasing all the senses? The refreshing Italian sparkling wine from the region northeast of Venice

is the most sociable of mixers. Italy’s Prosecco is affordable and popular for its engaging foaminess and hint of sweetness on the finish. Produced from a late-ripening white grape of the same name, Prosecco is light, crisp, and totally without pretension. It’s one sparkling wine that doesn’t require a special occasion. One of my favorites that is easy to find is Zardetto Prosecco Brut. Zardetto would work perfectly in the recipe below.

What will you be sipping this Valentine's day? Share with us and read on for a great cocktail recipe that you can share with that special someone this Valentine's Day!Blood Orange Cocktail

Makes 1 drink 1.5 teaspoons crème de cassis3 tablespoons blood orange juice 3 – 4 ounces Zardetto Prosecco 1 slice blood orange, for garnish Add the crème de cassis and blood orange juice to a champagne flute.

Top with the Zardetto Prosecco. Garnish with the blood orange slice.Monica Chappell is a wine writer and educator. Visit www.

wineappreciation101.blogspot.com for a class list.

Your Smartphone Brings Local Government Services to You By County Supervisor Candace Andersen

One of the benefits of smartphone technology is that it keeps us safe, informed, and even on time. Below are some of my favorite apps and technology that I use to stay better connected to the services available to us here in Contra Costa County, District 2.

See health inspection results for local restaurants on your iPhone or Android using the California Food Inspector app from Contra Costa Health Services (CCHS). The County Health Department developed this free app which allows

users to search inspection results for the past five years for 4,200 food facilities in Contra Costa County. It includes everything from restaurants to coffee shops to ice cream vendors.

The inspection histories show what, if any, violations these food facilities have been required to correct. With this app, routine inspections are being uploaded weekly. Any closure information will be updated each evening.

Register your cell phone with the Contra Costa County CWS Community Warning System so you can be informed about emergencies and disasters that could impact your neighborhood, such as wildfires, gas line ruptures, earthquakes, or floods. The Contra Costa County Community Warn-

ing System (CWS) is operated by the office of the Sheriff and issues alerts about situations in the County that pose an imminent threat to life or health. Visit their website at www.cococws.us, and enroll your cell phone number in the service. If you are social media savvy, you can receive alerts in your Twitter feed and get text messages on your phone. Go to Twitter and follow @CoCoCWS, and set your cell phone to receive a text alert.

The PulsePoint mobile app, first introduced to communities by San Ramon Valley Fire, allows CPR-trained individuals to be notified if someone nearby is potentially in need of CPR. The app also pinpoints the location of all publicly available AEDs in the area. The notifications are made simulta-

neously with the dispatch of local paramedics so that citizens can begin CPR and deploy an AED while the professional rescuers are traveling to the scene. If you’re not yet trained in CPR or need a refresher, now is the perfect time to take a class. With Hands-Only CPR the technique is easier than ever to learn and perform. To locate a class near you, visit www.cchealth.org/ems/cpr.php, or in San Ramon Valley, visit www.firedepart-ment.org, and click on Community Outreach. To download or learn more about the PulsePoint app, visit www.pulsepoint.org/app. Please join your friends and neighbors in increasing the cardiac arrest survival rate in Contra Costa County.

County Connection (officially known as the Central Contra Costa Transit Authority, [CCCTA]) offers Bus Tracker, a system that pro-vides real time information about where the bus is and when it will arrive at the bus stop. Riders can view the upcoming bus arrival times by selecting any bus stop in the system. Visit www.cccta.org, and then click the Bus Tracker button to get started or to set up a personalized

account for arrival alerts. Also download the Transit Stop: CCCTA App for your smartphone. This free app gives you quick and easy access to bus arrival time estimates for your favorite County Connection stops utilizing the Bus Tracker information. For assistance with Bus Tracker or to get information on bus routes from Customer Service staff, call (925) 676-7500.

Several local public safety agencies, including Lafayette, use Nixle to connect via text, web, and email to effectively reach their citizens for ev-erything from community outreach to public relations to emergency mitigation. Simply send a text message with your zip code to 888777,

and you will be instantly registered to receive text messages from local public safety agencies in your area. If you want more control, you can create a Nixle account at www.nixle.com and tailor exactly what information you receive and how you want to receive it – via text message, email, mobile application, or web browser.

I hope you find this technology useful. If my office can be of assistance to you on any County issues, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re here to serve you and can be reached at [email protected] or 925-957-8860.

Your Smartphone brings Local Government Services to YouBy County Supervisor Candace Andersen


See health inspection results for local restaurants on your iPhone or Android using the California Food Inspector app from Contra Costa Health Services (CCHS). The County Health Department developed this free app which allows users to search inspection results for the past five

years for 4,200 food facilities in Contra Costa County. It includes everything from restaurants to coffee shops to ice cream vendors. The inspection histories show what,if any, violations these food facilities have been required to correct. With this app, routine inspections are being uploaded weekly. Any closure information will be updated each evening.

Register your cell phone with the Contra Costa County CWS Community Warning System so you can be informed about emergencies and disasters that could impact your neighborhood such as wildfires, gas line ruptures, earthquakes or floods. The Contra Costa County Community Warning System (CWS) is operated by the office of the Sheriff and issues alerts

about situations in the County that pose an imminent threat to life or health. Visit their website at www.cococws.us and enroll your cell phone number in the service. If you are social media savvy, you can receive alerts in your Twitter feed and get text messages on your phone. Go to Twitter and follow @CoCoCWS, and set your cell phone to receive a text alert.

The PulsePoint mobile app, first introduced to communities by San Ramon Valley Fire, allows CPR-trained individuals to be notified if someone nearby is potentially in need of CPR. The app also pinpoints the location of all publicly available AEDs in the area. The notifications are

made simultaneously with the dispatch of local paramedics so that citizens can begin CPR and deploy an AED while the professional rescuers are traveling to the scene. If you're not yet trained in CPR, or need a refresher, now is the perfect time to take a class. With Hands-Only CPR the technique is easier than ever to learn and perform. To locate a class near you, visit www.cchealth.org/ems/cpr.php; or in San Ramon Valley, visit www.firedepartment.org, community outreach. To download or learn more about the PulsePoint app visit www.pulsepoint.org/app. Please join your friends and neighbors in increasing the cardiac arrest survival rate in Contra Costa County.

County Connection (officially known as the Central Contra Costa Transit Authority, “CCCTA”) offers Bus Tracker, a system that provides real time information about where the bus is and when it will arrive at the bus stop. Riders can view the upcoming bus arrival times by selecting any bus

stop in the system. Visit www.cccta.org, and then click the Bus Tracker button to get started or to set up a personalized account for arrival alerts. Also download the TransitStop: CCCTA App for your smartphone. This free app gives you quick and easy access to bus arrival time estimates for your favorite County Connection stops utilizing the Bus Tracker information. For assistance with Bus Tracker or to get information on bus routes from Customer Service staff, call (925) 676-7500.

Several local public safety agencies, including Lafayette, use Nixle to connect via text, web, and email to effectively reach their citizens for everything from community outreach to public relations to emergency mitigation. Simply send a text message with your zip code to 888777, and you will be instantly registered to receive text messages from local

public safety agencies in your area. If you want more control, you can create a Nixle account at www.nixle.com and tailor exactly what information you receive and how you want to receive it – via text message, email, mobile application, or web browser.

Danville Connect is a fast and convenient way of getting in touch with the Town of Danville. Request information or report a concern, all at the touch of a button from your mobile device. Danville Connect allows users to report an area of concern, add photos to the report, and even use their smartphone’s internal GPS to pinpoint the exact location. Inquiries

received through the app are automatically directed to a specific individual for resolution. There is also a Track Issue button to get an update on your submission. Danville Connect also provides fast and easy access to not only the Town's official website, but also to the Danville Today online newsletter and the Town Council. The mobile app can be found in the Apple App Store and Android Market by searching for “Danville Connect.”

I hope you find this technology useful. If my office can be of assistance to you on any County issues, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re here to serve you and can be reached at [email protected] or 925.957.8860.

















County Connection (officially known as the Central Contra Costa Transit Authority, “CCCTA”) offers Bus Tracker, a system that provides real time information about where the bus is and when it will arrive at the bus stop. Riders can view the upcoming bus arrival times by selecting any bus

stop in the system. Visit www.cccta.org, and then click the Bus Tracker button to get started or to set up a personalized account for arrival alerts. Also download the TransitStop: CCCTA App for your smartphone. This free app gives you quick and easy access to bus arrival time estimates for your favorite County Connection stops utilizing the Bus Tracker information. For assistance with Bus Tracker or to get information on bus routes from Customer Service staff, call (925) 676-7500.

Several local public safety agencies, including Lafayette, use Nixle to connect via text, web, and email to effectively reach their citizens for everything from community outreach to public relations to emergency mitigation. Simply send a text message with your zip code to 888777, and you will be instantly registered to receive text messages from local

public safety agencies in your area. If you want more control, you can create a Nixle account at www.nixle.com and tailor exactly what information you receive and how you want to receive it – via text message, email, mobile application, or web browser.

Danville Connect is a fast and convenient way of getting in touch with the Town of Danville. Request information or report a concern, all at the touch of a button from your mobile device. Danville Connect allows users to report an area of concern, add photos to the report, and even use their smartphone’s internal GPS to pinpoint the exact location. Inquiries

received through the app are automatically directed to a specific individual for resolution. There is also a Track Issue button to get an update on your submission. Danville Connect also provides fast and easy access to not only the Town's official website, but also to the Danville Today online newsletter and the Town Council. The mobile app can be found in the Apple App Store and Android Market by searching for “Danville Connect.”

I hope you find this technology useful. If my office can be of assistance to you on any County issues, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re here to serve you and can be reached at [email protected] or 925.957.8860.

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[email protected] the ReservoirBy Jim Scala

Saturday, January 3, 1953 was a clear, crisp, glorious day to walk the reservoir. A single-engine plane flew about 2,000 feet above the west hills over Moraga. Walkers looked up when the low-winged Beechcraft Debonaire’s engine sputtered, stopped, then revved up twice more with a roar, and finally quit. It banked left toward the reservoir and shortly after made a whooshing

sound as it came in over the shallow west end, pulled up and landed in the water not far from the dam. Its tail flipped up and it sank immediately. Nobody got out and in an instant it was gone. A light morning breeze rippled the water as if nothing had happened.

Our quiet reservoir was soon filled with policemen and political officials while an Air Force rescue helicopter hovered overhead with its characteristic thwack-thwack. By mid-afternoon a Coast Guard “Duck” arrived and entered the water. Think back to WWII movies. A “Duck” is an amphibious vehicle that carries soldiers over the water and drives inland on its wheels. The sailors couldn’t spot the plane nor find any bodies.

Turned out that Thomas Pritchard, a UC Berkeley art student and pilot, along with William Harrison, an Oakland postman, had taken off from Buchannan field to enjoy a leisurely flight over the Bay Area. They couldn’t have picked a better day to observe the Bay Area’s beauty. Unfortunately, tragedy can hit even on a nice day.

Whitney Rand, an Alameda navy diver, went down on Sunday and searched the cold, dark, 100-feet deep water and found nothing. He dived the next day and found the plane. On his third dive, Petty Office Rand attached a cable from the plane’s tail to a buoy. Several days later a large crane hoisted the wreckage onto a flatbed truck for transport to Buchannan and the FAA investigation.

Bill Harrison’s body was recovered within the week. However, I couldn’t find any records of Tom Prichard’s remains being found.

People asked why Prichard chose to crash-land in the reservoir. Looking over maps, I concluded that there were simply no flat areas free of trees close enough to his glide radius. Lafayette reservoir was his best option. He probably didn’t have enough experience to go wheels-up into one of the shallow coves. With wheels down, in deep water, it nosed over and sank so fast that they didn’t have a chance to make the surface.

Close encounter with a Vampire - A recent lower-trail Meetup was hosted by a vivacious lady with bright, penetrating eyes. Most walkers weren’t from Lafayette, so while waiting to start, I discussed a few interesting stories about the reservoir’s rich history. Our hostess seemed very interested, and later that day an e-mail from her asked more about my past stories of the alligators and details of the dam collapse. In my reply I asked, “How long have you lived in the Lafayette area?” Imagine my surprise seeing her reply, “I’ve been here 252 years.”

My mind raced with one thought: She’s a vampire. How else could someone live here 252 years? It explains those penetrating eyes. I got out an original copy of Bram Stoker’s Dracula in its 19th century stilted English and read that vampires cannot take the sunlight, and it was a very sunny day. Then it came to me – our modern, powerful sun-blocks didn’t exist in Stoker’s time. That changed everything; my mind raced as I boldly typed, “Are you a vampire?” Her reply said, “I had a typo in my e-mail. I’ve lived here 25 years.” Myriad, interesting possibilities instantly disappeared.

More about cataracts - I wrote about how vitamin-C and exercise work together in preventing cataracts. A recent medical journal and several newspaper editorials said that supplements are a waste of money in preventing cancer and heart disease, among other devastating life-shortening illnesses. But buried in the original medical report were the words, “They do prevent cataracts.” Daily orange juice and three weekly Rez circuits can go a long way in promoting eye health.

A Rez-walker’s success - Jay-Jay, a fit 40-something executive, lost 65 pounds since April first and looked great. I asked him how he did it. “Simple--I went lacto-ovo vegetarian, had a glass of V-8 juice for lunch, fruit for dessert, and walked the reservoir daily.” He added that on business trips he’d take a 45 to 60 minute walk, even if he was in an airport. That’s what discipline and success is all about.

Let me hear from you at [email protected].


Discovering a Sense of PlaceThe Gardens at Heather Farm and City of Walnut Creek Clean Water

Program presents an exciting speaker series called “Discovering a Sense of Place.” A line-up of local naturalists will be sharing their expertise to guide participants in discovering the breathtaking area we live in, known as the Diablo Range. This unique series promises to be a transformational experience for anyone interested in delving deeper into local natural his-tory- from the foothills of Mt. Diablo to one’s own backyard! Travel back in time and find out about local Native American Culture on Mt. Diablo and the importance of the Delta and the farming industry in California. Observe nature’s nuances with the introduction of phenology, and learn how creating healing spaces for yourself is also good for the environment. All programs are FREE but require registration by phone at (925)947-1678.

See Place continued on page 21



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Traveling AccessoriesBy Evan Corstorphine, Portable CIO

What could be better than visiting somewhere warm in the middle of winter? That’s the question I was ask-ing myself as I purchased tickets to Baja, where I was fortunate enough to spend last week. I want to share with you some of the things I learned along the way. My wife and I have several packing lists which help us get ready to travel. With all the new electronics and accessories in our lives, we’ve had to build a new packing list for

staying connected and charged up while we’re on the road.The first thing to decide is which device/s you’re going to take with you. I

wanted to travel light and only needed WiFi since I wouldn’t be ‘Roaming’ (too expensive). Thus the iPad became the central device for my trip. My laptop would be too clunky.

Every computer has its share of cables, and the iPad is no different. For charging I use high-current power adapters to give my iPad (and iPhone) as rapid of a charge as possible. Search for ‘Anker USB Charger’ on Amazon, and you’ll see the kind of chargers I’m talking about. You want to get one with a high current and wattage rating, such as 3.6a and 25w. This indicates how much juice it can provide your device while charging.

When you’re away from wall power, it’s great to have a portable power-pack like the one from “Jackery.” I use the ‘Giant’ which will give my iPad three full charges before having to be recharged itself. It’s a life-saver when you’ve had a busy day and your battery is dying.

The next cables I needed were for transferring photos. Since I’m in the computer business, everyone expects me to take care of consolidating the trip photos. I needed a USB mini cable for my wife’s camera, a USB to SD Card adapter for my friend’s camera, a USB to Lightning connector to get photos from the newer iPhones in the group, and a USB to old-style iPhone connector to get photos from the old ones. In all, four cables and adapters did the trick, and I gathered photos from everyone’s devices and put them on my iPad before we parted ways.

Now that all the photos were on my iPad, you would think things would get easier. Not true. If it were a perfect world and I only used iTunes, and I only took photos with my iPhone and iPad, it would probably be easy. I would use iTunes to manage the process, and all would work out. But that was not the case. I don’t want iTunes to manage my photos. In fact, there is no way it could, and I find the whole application annoying. It’s easier for me to get my photos out of iTunes so they’re accessible with other programs.

My work-around is to have Dropbox and SkyDrive loaded on my iPad. I’ve written about these before. They are both internet-based hardisk storage services, and they let you store your data in a secure ‘cloud’ based environment. The iPhone and iPad versions of the App have a feature which automatically backs up your photos to their service in the background, which is an easy and effective way to get the photos out of the closed Apple world and into the real world where photos can be easily managed, manipulated, copied, and otherwise enjoyed.

Let me take a moment to express that I’m not bashing Apple, and I really don’t want a bunch of emails telling me how much superior it is to the PC, blah, blah, blah. iTunes a great system if you’re willing and able to live completely inside of it. But if you need to straddle several systems and don’t have a perfect environment, the ‘Apple Way’ of syncing photos through iTunes is a pain, and services like Dropbox, SkyDrive, and Google Drive are indeed a blessing.

Now that I’m home, my iPad is busy uploading the 1,100 photos from our group up into my Dropbox account. From there, I’ll send a simple ‘sharing’ link to my friends, and they’ll be able to view, download, and enjoy the trip photographs at their leisure. Alternatively, I could upload them from there into Shutterfly or use a similar service which puts more of a ‘wrapper’ around the photos. I could annotate the photos, put them in small album groups, etc. However, I need to get back to work, so I’ll leave the photos in Dropbox, and someone else can take it from there!

What we do with systems is often just a case of connecting and integrating. The methods I described here are simply my way, this time, of working with, and around, our technology. Your situation is probably a little different, but not so much so that these suggestions won’t work. If you need help putting it all together, you should call the friendly staff at Portable CIO at 925-552-7953, or email us at [email protected] with your questions. There’s always a way! Advertorial

Montelindo Garden Club The Montelindo Garden Club Meeting (third Friday of the month,

September through May) will be held on Friday, February 21st at 9AM at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, located at 66 St. Stephens Drive in Orinda. Visitors are welcome.

The topic for February’s meeting is Garden Photography. The speaker will be Marion Brenner, a professional art and architectural photographer for The Examiner in the 1990’s. She will show her garden photos and preview her book on Paris gardens.

For more information, go to www.montelindogarden.com.

Lafayette Garden ClubA plant and crafts sale supporting the Lafayette Garden Club will be held

on Thursday, March 13th at 10am at Lafayette Christian Church, located at 584 Glenside Dr. in Lafayette.

Don’t miss this wonderful annual plant sale. This year the sale will feature ceramic collage stepping stones and other crafts for sale. Items are very reasonably priced!

For more information, e-mail [email protected].

Walnut Creek Garden Club The Walnut Creek Garden Club will hold its meeting on Monday, Febru-

ary 10 at 9:30AM at The Gardens at Heather Farm, located at 1540 March-banks Road in Walnut Creek.

It will include a business meeting, social time, and a talk entitled “Learn the Art of Container Gardening” by Laura Hogan, owner of Arid Accents and prior Ruth Bancroft Garden Nursery Manager. Guests and prospective members are welcome. For more information, contact [email protected].

[email protected] Lafayette Today ~ February 2014 - Page 13Solar Currents, Safe and Secure Financial Return By Mark Becker, GoSimpleSolar

Industry News:In a recent acquisition, Google has purchased Nest

Labs, well known for their internet based thermostats. For those in the energy efficiency industry, this came as no surprise. A couple of years ago, Google became a third party financier of residential solar PV (electric) systems by supplying $75 million in loans to homeowners through a

company called Clean Power Finance. Now, Google will profit not only as an energy financier but by helping home and business owners manage their energy usage.

Their future product line is going to change the way we manage our energy use at home. An investor like Google, with deep pockets, has the money to spend on research and development. A “smart home” will result, and Google will make billions of dollars in the process. Google became a power supplier through their investments, and now they are pining to be your energy manager.

Most thermostats can be programmed to pre-cool the house during the summer before the daily “peak” period costs kick in, and Nest Labs has taken this technology one step further. Managing energy at a home from a distance allows greater efficiency gains (read savings). Electric cars are “smart” and are able to be programmed to charge during periods of low cost “off peak” electricity rates. This is only the tip of the iceberg. Combined with a solar PV system, this type of smart energy management allows solar systems to generate maximum credits during peak and part-peak electric hours, reduc-ing annual bills even further (read making money). Why should my son or daughter’s lava lamp run continuously when their room or the home is unoccupied? Someone at Google put two and two together.

If you are the owner of a swimming pool, you’re the owner of a piece of equip-ment that must have its energy use managed properly. If your pool pump is old, or programmed improperly, or both, you’re throwing money away every day by buying more than twice the amount of electricity you need to manage your pool’s cleanliness and circulation.

Today’s technology allows you to send me photos of your pool pumps and their data plates via text or email almost instantaneously. A virtual assessment results and a determination can be quickly made whether you’re spending your retirement savings on unnecessary electric use.

As a solar, roofing and energy efficiency company, our goals are to ensure that a properly sized solar system is designed and installed on a leak free roof. Leveraging energy efficiency management at home has an impact on solar system design and instal-lation. During the design phase of a solar PV system, it is absolutely necessary to find the items in the home or business that consume excess electricity. Ignoring these culprits will increase the likelihood of a sale of a larger solar PV system, but it is an approach, in my opinion, that is contrary to what should be encouraged: all around efficiency which benefits the customer, and integrity in the business process which ultimately benefits the business. Adherence to this approach ensures that the potential customer is informed about the efficiency measures that will result in a solar PV system of smaller size and thereby lesser initial cost. This approach will create best value and lowest long term cost of ownership. When coupled with an installation approach which utilizes appropriately trained install teams and products which have historically performed reliably in the field, the result will be a no or low maintenance solar PV system with maximized financial returns: profits, not just savings.

Saving money with energy efficiency improvements and solar PV is a bit of a misnomer; making money is really what results. An 11-13% return on investment is about average. The average residential solar system will pay for itself eight to ten times over and save hundreds of thousands of dollars in monies not paid to PGE. With above average energy management efforts, the returns will be even higher. Many of the finance professionals that make up our clientele ask about how ROI is calculated. Historic electric usage, a discount rate of 3.5%, the average annualized historical PGE rate increase of 6.7% per year and a solar PV system design based ONLY on the Na-tional Renewable Energy Labs calculators determine annual solar kWh production.

The old adage “You have to spend money to make money” is particularly true with an investment in a solar energy system and energy efficiency. Someone is going to make money as your energy provider, be it PGE, Google, or yourself. Like Google, you’ll make the greatest profit if you produce and manage your own energy.

Mark Becker is the President of GoSimpleSolar, by Semper Fidelis Con-struction Inc, a Danville based Solar Installation Firm (License 948715). Mark can be reached at 925.915.9252. Visit GoSimpleSolar’s NEW and larger showroom at 100 Railroad Avenue, Suite B, Danville (behind Pete’s Brass Rail) or www.GoSimpleSolar.com, or email [email protected]. Advertorial

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Topping Trees?By Blaine Brende & Joe Lamb

At Brende & Lamb we get the occa-sional request to remove some or all of a tree’s crown, a process called topping. There are many reasons why people ask to have a tree topped: increased light, bet-

ter view, safer tree, or reduced leaf litter. Though it seems counter-intuitive, topping almost always produces the opposite of the desired effect. Topping can decrease available light, mar the view, make a safe tree unsafe, and even increase leaf litter. Take, for example, topping to decrease the shadow cast by a tree. This may work in the very short term, but topping stimulates rapid growth, causing the tree’s crown to thicken, thereby cutting out light after just a few growing seasons. Over time, you get more light for your pruning dollar if instead of topping you give the crown a judicious thinning. When done correctly, thinning doesn’t over stimulate the tree, and it enhances the tree’s aesthetics instead of seriously, sometimes irredeemably, damaging it.

Another common misperception is that topping will make the tree safer; it almost always does just the opposite. Most topped trees decay at the point at which they were topped. Topping also stimulates production of long lanky shoots. Given that these shoots grow out of decaying wood, topping often turns a safe tree into a hazard that increases over time. Some of the more dangerous trees we’ve seen were topped years ago with no follow-up prun-ing. If you have a previously topped tree growing close to your home, it is a good idea to have a competent arborist give it a safety evaluation. Previ-ously topped trees can be made safer by pruning to reduce wind-sail and by reducing weight on leggy branches.

People sometimes top trees to reduce leaf litter, but most trees respond to topping by putting out a profusion of leaves to help repair the damage. In short order, the owner of a topped maple will spend more time with rake in hand than before the topping.

Topping to increase view is often done without realizing that the new view will include an ugly tree. If the tree in the view is a bay, a eucalyptus, or any number of other fast-growing species, the topping will fail to provide view for long because the topped tree will soon produce sprouts that shoot up into the view. Well-planned pruning can often capture view, and it is often possible to enhance the beauty of the tree in the process. A beautiful view framed by a beautiful tree is far lovelier than a view over the top of an ugly and scarred tree.

Another frequent request for topping comes from people about to sell their homes who think that topping their trees will increase the sale price. Real estate professionals know that beautiful trees can raise property values by as much as 20%, whereas a topped tree can be a liability . . . something the bidder on your house might ask you to deduct from the sales price so that they can have the tree removed.

For further information about the perils of tree topping, go to the website of the International Society of Arboriculture, and read the article at www.treesaregood.org/treecare/topping.aspx. If you are thinking about topping, please reconsider. It is possible to enhance view, increase light, and make trees safer without topping. Doing so does, however, require competent pruning by tree professionals.

If your trees need a little TLC please call 510-486-TREE (8733) or email us at [email protected] for a free estimate. Additionally, go to our website www.brendelamb.com to see before and after pictures, client testimonials, and work in your neighborhood. Advertorial

Gardening with KateBy Kate Guillaume

Well, it is now official--a State of Emergency drought has been declared. This is going to be a rough summer on gardeners and farmers throughout the state. Eventually, we will probably be on rationing as several counties and water districts are already. It is definitely time for some action and a commitment to water-wise use.

The first thing to do is to make some decisions. Decide which trees and which plants have disappointed you the most. If something in your garden is a pain, then get rid of it. I have already decided that I am going to take out a crab apple tree that is about 20’ high which grows in front of my house. It is not as spectacular a bloomer as its sister crab apple; it is more susceptible to scale, and the lack of rain last winter is already forcing its roots to the surface and starting to lift my front walk. So, it is going, going gone. The same goes for a pittosporem I have in the corner of my backyard and a raggedy lemon tree that rarely produces anything and needs more pruning than I am willing to give. Also, two less-than-fragrant and less-than-bountiful producing roses will be gone. That should save me hundreds and hundreds of gallons of water this summer. Also, one of my pears that is more susceptible to fire blight so it is being removed as well. They will be all gone by March, and I will be none too sad.

The next decision for me to make if rationing gets worse is to figure out what is so glorious in my garden that I will do anything to insure its survival. I have a few of those--rhododendrons, my glorious winter Daphnes, and my peach trees. By the way, my winter Daphnes must have really liked the cold snap we had because they are loaded for bear with blossoms, and by the second week of February my garden will be so fragrant that I will be beside myself.

Remember, roses will survive just about anything, so while they are the most beautiful when the soil around them is damp, and they might look ugly and stressed if you don’t give them the normal allotment of water, they will live for another and better year.

I am just finishing up my pruning and cleaning up every last leaf drop around my roses before I spray them with horticultural oil. Remember to

spray the soil around the rose out several feet from the base. After this process lay down mulch and spray again. Water-starved roses will be more susceptible to diseases like rust and black spot, so if this appears remove the infected leaves and spray again.

Check all of your trees. As I drive around I can already see stress in a large amount of trees. With last year’s dry winter, deep down the soil is much dryer than normal. A stressed tree gets diseased easily, and unlike smaller shrubs, when it gets diseased limbs die back and can become more likely to come down or crack off in windy weather. Monterey Pines are the most likely to get damaged and come down in the first heavy wind storms. They were never designed for our weather, and most have been constantly stressed since the day they were planted. They are a coastal tree used to being shrouded in fog and damp conditions. If you have any still in your garden you might, for safety, have them taken out. California native oaks DO NOT want to be watered or have any irrigation near their base, they were designed for our conditions. Specimen trees need a good soak around their drip line. I do this by placing a hose toward the edge of the canopy and with the water on very low let it run half a day per side. If you are irrigating trees along your lawns in this type of drought, the deep soil will dry out and the first feet will be damp from irrigation which will make the tree push roots toward the surface to get the water they need, pushing up through lawns, lifting walks and patios, and moving fence posts and foundations if the tree is too close to your home.

Your water district is likely to provide credits or rebates for actions you might take to lower your water use. Take advantage of this as soon as it is available. Go to www.ebmud.com, then click on “Water and Energy Conservation,” then click “Water Smart Center.” Currently you can get credits for lawn replacement, free on-site landscape water use consultation, process information for allowable gray water (used household water) use, permits, and many other tips. Also they have a discount on their beautifully illustrated Landscape for Summer Dry Gardens book. The time to get some of this planning done is now, especially regarding the use of gray water. This is what I saved my prized specimen plants with in the late 1970s drought. Conversions should be done soon, not in the heat of summer, when everything is on its last leg.

Happy dry gardening.


Life in the Lafayette Garden By John Montgomery, ASLA, Landscape ArchitectCalifornia Casual!

Over the past 20 years, the introduction of drought tolerant, Mediterranean-based plant material has in-filtrated the mainstream landscape design styles. The days of junipers, oleanders, Monterrey pines, ivy, and oh yes, agapanthus are long gone. When I interview my clients, one of the questions I ask is, “What plants do you absolutely hate?” The above list always con-

tains the unmentionable plants of the 60’s drought genre. With this winter’s lack of rain and the word “drought” being discussed, Califor-

nia’s sensitive water issues are forever present in our minds. Our firm has always integrated water conserving measures into our design styles as a general practice. As a result of this approach, our landscapes are being planted with a much more diverse plant palette. Nursery growers are cultivating a broader spectrum of plant species as

well as sub-species and cultivars. What that means in common terms is that we have a better selection of plants to be creative with that have lower water requirements. These new selections are not only showing up in boutique nurseries like Orchard Nursery in Lafayette, but they are also showing up at warehouse stores.

The result is a landscape style that I call “California Casual” which enhances the home environment with color, texture, and fragrance. The overall look is a mix of mildly manicured plants and structure in the background, an open sprawling look in the foreground and interesting focal points for directed interest.

Background planting is so important because it is what shows off the color, texture, and focal interest. Some good water conserving examples of background plantings are Abelia x grandiflora ‘Sherwoodii’, Choisya ternata ‘Aztec Beauty’ – Mexican Orange, and Rhamnus californica ‘Mound San Bruno’- Coffeeberry, to name a few.

Creating a focal point of interest is very important to creating landscape style. You’ve seen those landscapes that you can’t quite put your finger on it why you don’t like it. Well, it’s because what you are seeing is a mix of one of these, and one of those, and two of these, and three of those. Everything is homogeneous! Boring! Create a focal point by bringing your attention to a beautiful multi-trunk tree like Olea europa ‘Swan Hill’ – fruitless olive, Vitex agnus-castus – Chaste Tree, Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Di-abolo’ – Ninebark, a gloriously blooming shrub, or a change of texture. And you don’t need just one focal point. Turn a corner and there is another surprise! Make it fun!

Now, for what really brings the “California Casual” style together is color, texture, and fragrance. Use lots of perennials for color, grasses for texture, and shrubs and vines for smelly stuff. Lavender, catmint, germander, hardy geraniums, hellebores, and day lilies add vivid color in an open-sprawling manner when set off by that struc-tured background. Ornamental grasses can add the dramatic texture that will set any landscape apart from the homogeneous one. With a wide selection of phormiums – New Zealand flax, Carex - sedge, Festuca - fescues, iris and sub-tropical grasses like Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum Dwarf’ – red fountain grass, a planting design can have drama from spring to late winter with arching blades in various color schemes to whimsical movement of the seed heads.

Bring on the fragrance! Daphne, lilac, gardenia, Mexican orange, citrus, lavender, and jasmine can delight your senses from winter to fall. Fragrance adds pleasure to your landscape experience.

“California Casual” is a much more relaxed landscape style in comparison to the landscapes of the East Coast, Europe, and landscapes of the 50’s and 60’s. While looking beautiful, they conserve our precious water resources.

A hot tip from your local Landscape Architect: Deadhead (clip off the dying flowers) as the blooms begin to fade to encourage plants to produce more flowers. Also, tell your gardener to leave the power hedge trimmers at home. A “California Casual” landscape requires less watering, pruning, fertilizing, and spraying, thus lowering operating costs and use of resources.

Gardening Quote of the Month: “If a person cannot love a plant after he has pruned it, then he has either done a poor job or is devoid of emotion.” - Liberty Hyde Bailey

If you would like me to write on any particu-lar subject, email your ideas to [email protected] or for design ideas, visit www.jm-la.com. Advertorial

Date: March 22, 2014

Time: 6:00 PM—10:00 PM

Location: Round Hill Country Club, Alamo

Tickets: $100.00 per person, reservation required.

Attire: Dress in your Derby best, and don your finest hat. Prize will be given for best hat!

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Why is the Market...?By Deborah Mitchell, CFA, MSW

French author Andre Gide said it well when he observed that “Everything that needs to be said has already been said. But, since nobody was listening everything must be said again.” That really sums up the state of affairs of the economy at the moment. Currently, we are in the throes of the fourth quarter earnings season. All in all the quality of reports has been quite mixed. Guidance has been dominated by

lowered expectations by corporations. The data has not provided a clear indication of when strong growth will resume. That is not the news that bulls have been clamoring for.

Evidence of modest improvement in the economy persists. Consumer confidence for the month of January was higher, and existing home sales surprised to the upside. The first estimate of the fourth quarter 2013 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose at the fastest pace in three years at 3.2%, indicating that the U.S. economy seems to be strengthening. This follows a GDP result of 4.1% in the third quarter. Consumer spending was the main driver of the growth, but there was some disappointment in government spending and residential investment.

The data also pinpointed some areas of weakness. The change in non-farm payrolls for the month of December 2013 came in at just 74,000 jobs versus the projected 197,000. The unemployment rate did drop to 6.7%. The softness in part was due to old man winter - unseasonably harsh weather conditions nationwide. Also, the Durable Goods Orders (DGO) for December fell by -4.3% when estimated to be slightly positive, due to sluggish auto and aircraft orders. Recall that DGO represents large ticket items expected to last at least three years. This metric will be watched closely for developing trends.

Importantly, Federal Reserve (FED) officials believe that economic activity is stable enough to warrant gradual reduction in stimulus levels. As widely expected, FED officials recently agreed via unanimous vote to “make a further measured reduction in the pace of its asset purchases.” Bond purchases were cut an additional $10 million per month to $65 million starting in February. Expectations are for “measured” asset purchase reductions to continue at upcoming meetings. The most recent meeting also represents the last time Ben Bernanke will preside as Chairman. Janet Yellen was sworn in as the first woman FED Chairperson and took the reins officially February 1st.

On the international front, investors have been digesting discouraging news out of China. Although it is the year of the horse, it is unclear if China’s economy will continue to gallop along. Economic growth slowed in 2013 to 7.7%. Although lofty by U.S. standards, the data marks a decrease in comparison to China’s recent readings.

The markets have spent the better part of January in the red and have been growing vulnerable for quite some time. In fact, the S&P 500 has not dipped in the double digit range (10%) since August 2011. The stock performance for the month of January is closely watched in order to estimate the direction for the year. “As goes the S&P 500 in January, so goes the year” is a well known barometer created by the Stock Traders Almanac. Whether or not this measure is an accurate gauge for 2014 is anyone’s guess. Stock performance year to date for the S&P 500 was -3.3%. Interestingly, when the S&P 500 was down -3.7% the first month of 2010, it closed up over 12% for the year.

The question is whether the current correction is merely to work off the excesses accumulated over the last several months or something larger. Concerns over earnings reports and global currency concerns come to mind. Whatever the case may be, in the short term, increased uncertainty has reared its ugly head, and additional volatility is the result.

If you have any comments or questions, please contact Deborah at 925-299-2000 or [email protected].

Deborah Mitchell holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation, a Bachelors degree in Psychology, and a Masters in Social Work degree. She is a Vice President for Noroian Capital Management, an independent investment advisory firm located in Lafayette, California for individuals and businesses. Advertorial

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Ask Dr. Happy By Bob Nozik, MD Dear Dr. Happy,

I’m a 40 year old married man with two young children. If it weren’t for mornings, I think I’d be a pretty happy guy. But I have to get up before 7AM, and it’s rush, rush, rush to make it to the office by 8:30AM, my work start-time. I’m crabby with my wife and the kids, and breakfast is just coffee on the run out the door. Evenings are fine, but I dread mornings and know my sour mood bothers my

wife and kids, too. Dr. H, do you have any tips for how I can improve my morning routine? ~CrabbyDear Crabby,

In fact, I do have several suggestions for you. First of all, I’d like you to get up at least a half hour earlier than you do now. Rushing around the way you are would make anyone crabby. And, one minute before you get up, put a big grin on your face and hold it for 30-40 seconds; force it even if you have to fake it. Smiling has been shown to release neurochemicals that can significantly elevate your mood. Also, have a real, sit-down breakfast with the family, if possible. Breakfast is not called the most important meal of the day for nothing. Finally, make it a point to smile broadly at every person you pass at work. This will keep those good neurochemicals flowing. Do all this and mornings won’t pull you down anymore. Happiness Tip

Most of us don’t smile enough. Smiling is one of the simplest, easiest ways for elevating our mood. I begin each day walking my dog Maggie, smiling and waving at every car that goes by. It is a habit that jet-starts my morning yet takes almost no effort. Smile at everyone you meet during your day and I think you’ll be amazed at how much better it makes you feel. Not only that, but smiling at others will boost their day as well. Sometimes, the simplest, easiest things affect us the most.

Send questions/comments for Dr. Happy to [email protected].


Lic# 1100014354; Bay Area Entertainment

Giving to Children - Is Equal Always Fair?By Robert J. Silverman

Parents usually try their best to treat their children equally, and children tend to expect that. But is equal always fair? And how does this work in the context of estate planning?

While giving to children equally is a common parental goal, it is impossible. Children have different needs, intellects, hobbies, educational goals, aspirations, etc. Accordingly, I have never encountered a parent with multiple children who keeps a ledger for each from birth and insists upon strict equality in giving.

If one child plays baseball and another lacrosse, and the cost to participate differs, should the parents make an equalizing distribution to the child whose

sport costs less? Most parents would answer, “Of course not.” Is the answer tougher if the parent pays tuition for one child who chooses to go to an expensive private college and pays tuition for another child who chooses to go to a community college? What if one child has extensive medical expenses or disabilities or needs more support in launching into adulthood?

In the estate planning realm, these kinds of questions, and even more difficult ones, are frequently raised. The interesting and challenging part is that there are no universally right and wrong answers – just right and wrong ones (or better and worse ones) in the judgment of any given parent.

Below, I describe a few common situations that raise questions of equality and fairness, and I identify some of the associated estate planning implications.

Loans to children - Suppose you make a loan to one but not all of your children or make loans to multiple children but in different amounts. How should such loans be treated upon the death of the parent? Again, no set answer, but in all cases such loans should be documented.

First, a promissory note should be prepared by an attorney and signed by the child borrower. Second, good records should be kept so that if the parent dies, the parent’s successor trustee or executor can easily identify the loan balance. Third, the parent’s Living Trust or Will should state what is to happen with that loan receivable upon the parent’s death. Without adequate documentation, ambiguities arise and frequently lead to conflict, if not seriously damaged relation-ships, between the children.

A Living Trust or Will should specify whether such loans are to be repaid in full or whether they are to be fully or partially forgiven. Moreover, it’s critical to clarify whether or not the amount of such loan forgiveness is to be charged against the borrower child’s share of the trust/estate.

Child Caretaker - Not infrequently, a child becomes a part-time or full-time caretaker for aging parents. In doing so, the child may make substantial personal and/or financial (e.g. employment/career) sacrifices. An estate planning attorney can help parents evaluate the circumstances and navigate reasonable solutions. Again, documentation is critical.

Parents should consider working with their estate planning attorney (and accountant) to draft an appropriate contract under which the child is paid a reasonable wage for the caretaking. If a parent has insufficient liquid assets to pay the child or if the child refuses to take any pay, the parent may wish to include in his or her Living Trust or Will a cash gift to be made (and/or a slightly higher percentage of the assets) to such child upon the parent’s death. Such parent would also be well advised to articulate in the document the reason the children are being provided for unequally. The other children may not like or agree with the stated reason, but they will understand why the parent believed the unequal treatment to be appropriate and fair.

Other critical estate planning decisions that could be perceived as “unequal” may be necessary or desirable. These may include: i) holding funds in trust after a parent dies until an older age for some children than others; ii) choosing one or several children, but not all, to serve as successor trustee of the parent’s Living Trust or executor of the parent’s Will; iii) designating one particular child rather than another as agent under the parent’s Power of Attorney and/or Advance Health Care Directive.

Attorneys don’t have all the answers, but one of their most valuable functions is to know what questions to ask and how to guide their clients to answers that work best for the clients and their loved ones.

Mr. Silverman is an attorney with R. Silverman Law Group, 1855 Olympic Blvd., Suite 240, Walnut Creek, CA 94596; (925) 705-4474, [email protected], www.silvermanlaw.com. * Estate Planning * Trust Administration & Probate * Real Estate * Business

This article is intended to provide information of a general nature, and is not intended nor should it be relied upon as legal, tax and/ or business advice. Readers should obtain and rely upon specific advice only from their own qualified professional advisors. This communication is not intended or written to be used, for the purpose of: i) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code; or ii) promoting, marketing, or recommending to another party any matters addressed herein. Advertorial

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Assistance League Seeks Corporate PartnersAssistance League® of Diablo Valley (ALDV) is a nonprofit, member

volunteer organization dedicated to improving lives in our community through hands-on programs. Established in 1967, with eight philanthropic programs and two auxiliaries today, the organization continually puts “Caring and Commitment in Action” by reaching out to people of all age groups in the Contra Costa community who are at risk or in need. The chapter’s primary fundraiser, Assistance League Way Side Inn Thrift Shop, is located in Lafayette. Other funding sources come from its Corporate Partners Program (CPP) which enlists hands-on and financial help from the business and corporate communities.

CPP Committee Chairman Lesley Salo reports that since 2006, more than 20 companies, as well as various community and elected officials, have participated in giving, with many repeating each year. Consequently, the CPP has benefited from the efforts of 400 employee volunteers who have amassed 1,200 service hours and have donated $95,500 in grants and donations.

Due to a challenging economy and a growing client base, ALDV is seeking additional businesses and corporations to add to the list of corporate partners. To learn more about the CPP, visit diablovalley.assistanceleague.org or call 925-934-0901 and ask for Lesley Salo.

www.yourmonthlypaper.comsonal and professional advice. I’m often surprised at how many people ask if surgery is right for them.

2. Botox or Dysport injection - Most commonly used around the eyes and forehead, it can be used both to prevent and treat wrinkles.

3. Volumizing filler injection - This is an excellent way to refresh your appearance, address moderate to severe facial wrinkles, and give youthful contour to the skin.

4. Fraxel laser treatment - This is certainly not what King Henry V had in mind when he hired a writer to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois-we’ve come a long way since then. For Valentine’s Day preparation, I recommend a first treatment one week before the big day. A series of treat-ments (generally 3-4) address texture problems, fine lines and wrinkles, and pigmentation issues such as brown spots, but results are noticeable after just one treatment.

5. Laser genesis is a great no-downtime, painless procedure for acne prone skin. While there’s never a simple cure-all for problem skin issues, laser genesis is a good place to start as the laser has enough heat to kill the bacteria in the active breakouts.

6. While not exactly the vestige of Christian and ancient Roman Valentine’s tradition, laser hair removal is a real windfall of living in the 21st century. Several treatments are generally needed, and it works best for darker hair types.

7. Longer lashes! - Latisse is a treatment used to grow lashes, making them lon-ger, thicker, and darker. More voluptuous lashes in just six weeks, are “romantique”!

8. Skin care products - There’s a pleasure in taking time to care for your own skin, and a cream or lotion can also make a nice gift - something to be wrapped up and enjoyed.

Sometimes just the process of sharing wisdom (and taking away some of the mystery of youth and beauty) is the most rewarding part of my day. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Dr. Barbara Persons is a Plastic Surgeon and owns Persons Plastic Surgery, Inc. located at 911 Moraga Rd, Suite 205 in Lafayette. She may be reached at 925.283.4012 or [email protected]. Advertorial


Internships continued from front page

Brainwaves by Betsy Streeter

A Day to do Something SpecialBy Barbara Persons, MD, Persons Plastic Surgery, Inc.

Saint Valentine was a third century Roman saint who has long been associated with the tradition of courtly love. Every February 14th gifts and letters (an estimated one billion Valentine’s Day cards each year) are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of Saint Valentine. The oldest known valentine was a poem written in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans (Go forth,

my heart, with my lady…with grace and mercy.) By the middle of the 18th century, it was common for both friends and lovers to exchange small tokens of affection.

I like to think of Valentine’s Day as a day to do something special. Some of my fondest memories are of writing cards for elementary school classmates. In some years, however, it was the preparation for Valentine’s Day that was special.

Valentine’s Day is a time to feel and look your best. Whether you are pre-paring for a romantic evening, warming up the winter blues, or want to give a gift to someone, here are eight ideas that might help you on your way.

1. A consultation - I find this to be one of the most important interactions I have with my patients. I enjoy answering questions and offering both per-Hospice Volunteers Needed

Hospice of the East Bay is seeking volunteers to assist Hospice patients and their caregivers. Opportunities include:

• Licensed Hair Stylists to offer hair cuts and styling• Certified Massage Therapists to provide massage therapy • Mobile Notaries to witness the signing of important documents• Bereavement Support Volunteers to provide support to family members

after their loved one has died • Patient Support Volunteers to provide companionship and practical assistance To apply for free training, call Hospice of the East Bay at (925) 887-5678,

and ask for the Volunteer Department, or email [email protected]. Established in 1977, Hospice of the East Bay is a not-for-profit agency

that helps people cope with end of life by providing medical, emotional, spiritual, and practical support for patients and families, regardless of their ability to pay.

To learn more or to make a donation of time or money, please contact (925) 887-5678 or visit www.hospiceeastbay.org.

providing real work experience and compensation for the student’s efforts.” Interns work on a wide variety of projects. Past interns have participated

in wildlife studies, put their mapping skills to work with the District’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) team, or conducted park user surveys. Other topics include forestry management, fisheries project, finance, creating videos for educational projects, and many more! “There’s a place for students from every background to pursue a career here,” noted former intern Philip Coffin, now a Recreation Coordinator with the Park District.

Former intern Cara Pollard’s project will be seen by thousands of outdoors enthusiasts when they sign up for this year’s Trails Challenge – last spring she researched and wrote the trail descriptions for the annual hiking program. “Getting paid to hike in the largest and most beautiful regional park system in the world has been a great experience professionally and has given me great insight into the land that I live in and love,” said Pollard.

Applications are open now for field interns, who may attend any community college or vocational school. Applications open in March for summer interns, who may be students from any high school, trade school, college, or university. For more information, visit the Park District website at www.ebparks.org/jobs/internships or call the Human Resources Department at (510) 544-2154.

The East Bay Regional Park District is a system of beautiful public parks and trails in Alameda and Contra Costa counties east of San Francisco Bay, established in 1934. The system comprises 114,000+ acres in 65 parks including over 1,200 miles of trails for hiking, biking, horseback riding and nature study. Find out more at www.ebparks.org.

[email protected] MED Urgent Care: Your Alternative to the ERBy Dr. Armando Samaniego, MD, MBA

I am often asked, “How does one decide whether to go to an urgent care facility as opposed to the ER?” The suitable gauge is if you require a 911 call and/or an

ambulance ride, you should visit the ER. If your condition allows you or a friend or a family member to drive a car, then an urgent care facility can likely take care of you. A recent medical journal study revealed that 40% to 60% of all ER visits are not for life-and-death emergencies, and of this percentage, most cases would best be treated in an urgent care facility with expert medical attention. Lafayette is now home to such a facility - STAT MED Urgent Care.

STAT MED’s highly qualified team delivers essentially the same caliber of service you would find in a local ER but with a more personal and responsive approach. Our dedicated doctors, each with 20+ years experience in busy hospital emergency rooms, are likely familiar faces. My wife Lissett and I are raising our three sons in Lafayette, Dr. Stuart Shikora lives in Orinda where he raised his family, and Dr. Allan Drabinsky is an active member of the Walnut Creek community, where he raised his son.

In our many years of living in this area, we have fielded countless medical questions from friends and neighbors, and tended to various injuries experienced by do-it-yourselfers, aspiring Eagle Scouts, and weekend athletic warriors. And we listened to your frustrations when you could not easily obtain a doctor appointment or had to wait for hours in the ER. This is how STAT MED Urgent Care was born.

With our combined ER experience, we have literally seen and treated it all, from the humorous home accidents that become family lore to life-threatening trauma. And we understand that a trip to the ER can be

Lafayette Today ~ February 2014 - Page 19traumatic in and of itself – regardless of the severity of the injury. Our goal at STAT MED is for the quality of your experience to be equal to the quality of your care. At STAT MED, wait times are minimal, registration is prompt, and the waiting room is welcoming. When you come to us for care, you’ll receive one-on-one time with a trained ER physician who will evaluate you, treat you, and prescribe medication or follow-up care if needed. And, since STAT MED has laboratory and imaging services onsite if needed, you won’t need to move to – or wait in – another floor, wing, or facility to complete those tests. In fact, our X-ray, ultrasound, and MRI are performed by longtime Lamorinda radiologist and resident Dr. Brad Piatt of Inview Imaging. Sharing our location with Dr. Piatt ensures expedited answers.

STAT MED is equipped to treat urgent and routine needs, from dehydration, to broken bones, to minor burns. We also provide today’s much needed flu shot. If you can’t get in to see your primary care physician when needed, or just need a camp or sports physical, or are looking into travel medicine for an upcoming vacation, come in.

If our staff determines that you need to be treated in a hospital ER, we will get you started, initiate the transfer, and let them know you are on your way.

Our entire staff-from reception to clinical team members-has a passion for taking care of people. We are excited to provide this service to our community, especially in a time when managing your health care feels so complicated. Try us, and we think you will agree that STAT MED provides an excellent and streamlined alternative to the ER. Call us (925-297-6396) with questions or learn more at our website www.statmed.com. Better yet, stop by.

STAT MED is located two blocks from BART behind the Lafayette Mercantile Building at 970 Dewing, Suite 100B. We are open every day, Monday-Friday from 8AM to 8PM, and weekends and holidays from 9AM to 5PM. Referrals or appointments are never required. We are a participating provider for most insurance plans. Advertorial

Your Personal Nutritionist How Much Protein do I Really Need Each Day?By Linda Michaelis RD,MS

Already this new year I have evaluated many food diaries that clients bring in, and often I see they are not consuming enough protein. As I tell them, this easily explains why they are feeling hungry all the time and having endless cravings for sweets.

The question I often get is, “How much protein do I really need to reach my weight loss goal, as well as build muscle and feel my best.”

First of all, I tell my client the food label is upside down. Protein is the last item listed on the label, when in fact it should be the first. It is the most important food group and is thus very easily overlooked. Protein is expressed in grams, as if we are on the metric system, rather than in ounces or pounds which typically is how we purchase protein in our markets. So we need to know how many grams of protein is equal to an ounce. Let me use my favorite example which I use with clients: the gold standard cereal Kashi Go Lean. Kashi Go Lean has 13 grams of protein for a 1 cup serving. If you learn that 1 oz. of protein is equal to 7 grams, then you will see that you are getting almost 2 oz. of protein from the cereal.

The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for protein is established by The Food and Nutrition Board of the National Academy of Sciences. It is based on your body weight.

It is suggested that individuals consume 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight for a healthy adult, or roughly 54 grams daily for a 150 pound female or 71 grams daily for a 195 pound male. This calculation does not factor in exercise, and I find it overestimates protein needs for overweight or obese people. For my active clients and those who workout often, this amount of protein is far too low.

Then the board has also presented a distribution range for protein based on actual calorie intake, saying that protein should make up 10-35% of daily calories for the healthy adult. That comes to about 38-131 grams of protein daily for someone eating 1,500 calories or 45-158 grams daily when eating 1,800 calories per day. I will always suggest that my client veer on the higher side of protein intake.

I create personalized protein recommendations for my clients based on their

lifestyle, age, exercise, and health concerns. I suggest that protein should be distrib-uted mostly during the day as opposed to eating the large traditional protein meal for dinner. This eating style keeps you more satisfied, and prevents blood sugar fluctuations and cravings for sweets.

I educate my clients about the fact that protein takes several hours to digest and creates a fullness that you will not get from a carbohydrate based meal.

When I work with a new client, I first set up a meal plan for them with specific amounts of protein at each meal and snack. I teach them how to make sure they are getting at least 2 ounces of protein at breakfast, such as by eating the favorite Kashi Go Lean, 1 whole egg and egg whites with veggies, and 100% whole wheat toast or even oatmeal and Greek yogurt.

I make it a point to create a list of 2oz. protein snacks that are portable and tasty such as beef jerky, portion sized almonds, 1 cup of cottage cheese, bean soup, or peanut butter with celery or apple.

We talk about making sure that lunch contains at least 4-6 oz. of protein along with a healthy grain and a cup of veggies. I take a lot of time to put together a yummy list of lunches that can be taken to work or eaten at clients’ favorite lunch spots. I encour-age parents to make sure that their kids are eating protein based lunches that prevent them from coming home from school famished and wanting to snack all afternoon.

Clients are always surprised that I tell them for dinner we do not need protein if we have had the amounts that I suggest in prior meals and snacks. The feedback I get is that when dinner comes around they are not as hungry as they use to be, and they are good with having less protein at night.

I do want to mention that many of my clients say that trainers tell them that they need more protein and recommend protein shakes galore. I think protein shakes are great for pre or post workouts but often are not filling enough to last for several hours. Contrary to popular belief, studies have shown that consuming more protein than recommended does not lead to increase in muscle size or strength. There is a limit to the rate at which protein can be synthesized into muscle, and muscle size is deter-mined by genetic makeup and training program- not by how much protein one eats.

I am glad to inform you that insurance companies will cover nutritional coun-seling. Please visit LindaRD.com for the list of companies that cover counseling, past articles, and more information about nutritional concerns. Call me at (925) 855-0150 or e-mail me at [email protected]. Advertorial

www.yourmonthlypaper.comPage 20 - February 2014 ~ Lafayette Todayagain, so trying to get back to where you once were is a fleeting and losing game. 2. Do you give yourself permission to go deeper?

Even goals that sound straightforward, like “getting more sleep,” are often tied to other behaviors and needs that aren’t always obvious.

What does getting more rest represent to you? While this is a great goal for many of us, what is your motivation?

“I just want to” isn’t a powerful answer. If you want to change the direction of your life, uncover your deeper needs. Be willing to ask hard questions about what’s kept you stuck, and if you’re stuck around this, seek professional help. 3. How do you handle disappointment?

It’s understandable to feel discouraged if you aren’t getting where you want in the time that you want. But do you use this experience to blame yourself, other people, or even events that have happened?

In my office, I encourage clients to be scientists in their own laboratories. You are in charge of your experiment, and you are the experiment as well. Hold this attitude and you’ll discover new possibilities!Here’s some news:

• Join me February 22 for an exciting Women’s Empowerment event in Walnut Creek, where I’ll be talking more about “The Inner Game of Habit Change.” See the sidebar for how to register.

• Check out my new ebook, Do YOU HAVE a habit ~ or does your habit HAVE YOU: 5 warning signs that you’re stuck and what to do about it. For a free copy, go to www.habitsintohealth.com.

Michael Anne Conley is a habit change expert and holistic therapist who practices in Lafayette, where she founded and directs Stillpoint Center for Health, Well-Being & Renewal. Reach her at [email protected] or 925-262-4848. Advertorial

The Inner Game of Habit ChangeBy Michael Anne Conley, LMFT

Are you ready to add some juice to those New Year’s Resolutions you made?

Would you like to stop feeling discouraged and start being excited about new ways to approach your desire to change?

As I wrote last month, starting from what you really want for yourself, rather than being driven by what you believe you “should” do, is the way to go.

When it works, you feel successful and satisfied. No problem!But what if it works for a while, and then things start to falter and you slip

back into old ways? Or what if you thought you knew what you wanted, but now that you’ve

gotten there, you still don’t feel complete? What’s that about? What part of you is really driving the bus?

What if you discover that you don’t really know what you want?When our goals and the reality of how to get there don’t match up, it is

perplexing! It’s one thing to give lip service to the maxim that “it’s not the destination,

it’s the journey that counts,” and another to really experience the journey with a loving commitment to growth, even when there are ups and downs. This calls for a different frame. 1. Do you understand the change process?

It’s not a straight line. It’s an exploration, and very often you’re entering new territory. For instance, even if you previously had no problem losing weight, today you’re a different age with a new metabolism and life circumstances.

The same thing goes with any other goal. “Back then” isn’t going to happen

Ready to get unstuck?

New Skills for the New You

Tuesday • Feb 18, 2014 7-8 pm

Lafayette

Do you promise yourself that you’ll stop doing this or start doing that – and break your promise?

Are you stuck because someone you care about engages in an unhealthy behavior?

The new you starts here! (1st visit free, space limited)

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Keep your forward momentum going!

‘Spring Forward 2014!’

Saturday • Feb 22, 2014 9:30 am-4:30 pm

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Join a room full of amazing women in a fun, supportive, empowering environment

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The Inner Game of Habit Change

By Michael Anne Conley, LMFT

Are you ready to add some juice to those New Year’s Resolutions you made?

Would you like to stop feeling discouraged and start being excited about new ways to approach your desire to change?

City of Lafayette ContactsBelow are key Lafayette city departments and their contact information.Administration: Responsible for overall city operations such as human

resources, finance and office operations. Key staff members include the City Manager, Administrative Services Director, City Clerk, and Financial Services Manager. The City Offices are located at 3675 Mt. Diablo Blvd., #210, Lafayette. Hours are 8am – 5pm Monday-Friday. For information call (925) 284-1968 or email [email protected].

Planning: Responsible for current and long-term planning for the physical development of the community that is consistent with the General Plan, Zoning Ordinance and the direction of the City Council. Planning Department hours are 12pm – 5pm Monday-Friday. For information call (925) 284-1976 or email [email protected].

Police: Responsible for public safety, law enforcement, emergency operations, and parking control. The Police Department is located at 3675 Mt. Diablo Blvd, #130, Lafayette. Hours are 8am-12pm & 1am-5pm Monday-Friday. For general questions call (925) 299-3220. For police dispatch call (925) 284-5010 or 911.

Public Works: Responsible for maintaining the infrastructure of the City including road repair, storm drains, and landscaping of public property. The Public Works Corp Yard is located at 3001 Camino Diablo, Lafayette. Hours are 7am – 3pm Monday-Friday. For questions call (925) 934-3908. To report potholes, streetlight outages, traffic signal problems and other issues call the Hotline at (925) 299-3259.

Parks & Recreation: Responsible for the management and operation of a variety of recreation programs, special events and facilities including the Lafayette Community Center, the Community Park and a system of city trails. The Parks & Recreation (Community Center) is located 500 St. Mary’s Road, Lafayette. Hours are 9am – 5pm Monday-Saturday. For questions call (925) 284-2232.

Code Enforcement: Responsible for enforcing the Lafayette Municipal Code. The Code Enforcement Officer concentrates on the investigation and abatement of complaints involving land use (zoning), housing conditions, abandoned vehicles, signs, animals and vermin, weeds/fire hazards, fences and general public nuisances. Contact Mark Robbins at 925-299-3207.

For more information, visit www.ci.lafayette.ca.us.

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Quality Cancer Care: Recognizing Excellence By Sarah Buenviaje, NP

Diablo Valley Oncology and Hematology Medical Group has received reaccreditation by the Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI®) Certi-fication Program, an affiliate of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). The QOPI® Certification Program provides a three-year certifica-tion for outpatient hematology-oncology practices that meet the highest standards for quality cancer care.

Our goal is to provide the highest level of care to every patient, every day - this recertification from ASCO and QOPI recognizes our commitment to

delivering excellent cancer care. Our practice was the first practice in Contra Costa County to achieved QOPI certification in February 2011, recertifying for another three years is very gratifying.

“Practices that choose to apply for recertification through QOPI demon-strate their continued commitment to the pursuit of clinical care excellence,” said ASCO President Clifford A. Hudis, MD, FACP. “The QOPI Certifica-tion Program helps such practices assess the level of care they provide to their patients and demonstrates their commitment to maintaining quality and lifelong learning.”

QOPI is a voluntary, self-assessment and improvement program launched by ASCO in 2006 to help hematology-oncology and medical oncology practices assess the quality of the care they provide to patients. The QOPI Certification Program (QCP) was launched in January 2010, with more than 190 practices already certified nationwide. This certification for outpatient oncology practices is the first program of its kind for oncology in the United States. Oncologists can achieve certification by demonstrating practice consistent with the highest standards of care. The QCP seal designates those practices that not only scored high on the key QOPI quality measures, but meet rigorous safety measures established by ASCO and the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS).

Diablo Valley Oncology / Hematology Medical Group, located at the Cali-fornia Cancer and Research Institute in Pleasant Hill, provides comprehensive cancer care to patients by bringing together medical oncology, hematology, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, diagnostic imaging, clinical trials, oncology rehabilitation and supportive care all in one convenient location. For more information call 925-677-5041. Advertorial

Vasectomy is Forever By Judson Brandeis, MD

Why worry? If you want to take the worry out of what should be a fully pleasant experience, consider vasectomy as a method of permanent birth control. I can remember more than a few couples with children in college who walked into my office pushing a stroller requesting a va-sectomy. It really does happen. The cost of raising a child these days is over a half a million dollars, not to mention the sleepless nights and countless hours of worrying. If

you feel like your family is complete, it may be time to consider a vasectomy. I am often asked “How it is performed?” The procedure is done in the office

under local anesthesia. There is no incision, only two small skin punctures, and no stitches. The whole procedure takes only about 15 to 20 minutes to perform. Most of my patients who have it done on Friday are back to work on Monday.

You might be wondering how it feels to have vasectomy. After I apply a local anesthetic to maximize comfort and it takes effect, you will not feel much except some pulling. After the procedure, you will be sore for a few days and back to normal activity within 2-3 days.

You might be wondering if anything will be different after a vasectomy. Nothing should be different. Vasectomy is not castration; it only interrupts the tubes that carry sperm from the testes to the semen making a man sterile. All hormonal and sexual functions are unaffected. Ejaculation occurs normally, except that the ejaculate no longer contains sperm. Vasectomy does not pose any long term health risks.

What about those billboards in Las Vegas advertising Vasectomy Reversal. Vasectomy can potentially be reversed, but reversing a vasectomy is expensive and does not guarantee returned fertility. Vasectomy should therefore be considered a permanent procedure, it is not recommended as short-term form of birth control.

So, if you feel like your family is complete and you want to be able to retire at an age where you can still enjoy life, consider a no scalpel vasectomy. It is quick, easy, and effective.

Dr. Brandeis is a Board Certified Urologist with Pacific Urology, with offices in Walnut Creek, Concord, San Ramon, Livermore, Brentwood and Antioch. To con-tact Pacific Urology, call 925-609-7220 or visit www.PacificUrology.com. Advertorial

Valentine’s Word Search

Is Food a Problem for You? Overeaters Anonymous offers a fellowship of individuals who, through

shared experience and mutual support, are recovering from compulsive overeating. This is a 12-step program. The free meetings are for anyone suffering from a food addiction including overeating, under-eating, and bulimia. The group meets Wednesdays at 6PM at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Lafayette. Visit www.how-oa.org for more information.

All lectures begin at 7pm. Doors open at 6:30pm. Field trip details are available upon reservation.

• February 19- Thinking Like a Naturalist: Re-claiming the Art of Natural History

• 26 February 26 - The Cultural and Natural His-tory of CC County

• March 1 - Field Trip to Morgan Territory• March 26 - The Delta: Its History, Beauty, and

Its Future• March 29 - Field Trip to Big Break Regional

Shoreline• April 30 - Creating Landscapes That Sustain Us

and the Planet• June 4 - An Introduction to Citizen Science

(Phenology)• June 7- Field Trip to City Creek WalkThe lectures take place at The Gardens at Heather

Farm, located at 1540 Marchbanks Drive in Walnut Creek. For information or to register, call (925)947-1678 or visit www.gardenshf.org.

Place continued from page 11


Heartfelt & Supportive

At All Times...

www.excellentcareathome.com

Our mission is to provide personalized care, help maintain independence and enhance our client’s quality of life on a daily basis.

• Free in-home assessments ensure the right care plan for you• Fully bonded and insured• Elder referral and placement

3645 Mt. Diablo Blvd., Suite DLafayette, CA 94549(beside Trader Joe’s) 925-284-1213

• Regular home visits• Hourly care• Live-in care• Geriatric care mgmt.

Events for Lafayette SeniorsAll classes are held at the Lafayette Senior

Center (LSC) located at 500 Saint Mary’s Rd in Lafayette unless otherwise noted. Space is limited. Please call 925-284-5050 to reserve a spot. Annual Membership fee: $10 per person. General Event fee: Members $1; Non-Member $3. Special Concerts fee: Members $3; Non-Members $5.Ongoing Caregiver Support Group: Members: no charge; Non-members $1.Discovering Opera: Puccini’s Madama Butterfly Thursday, 2/6 • 10:30AM – 12:00PM • Lafayette Library, Arts & Science Room - Madama Butterfly tells the story of a young Japanese woman who gives her heart to a visiting American sailor, maintains her devotion to him throughout his three-year absence, and is devastated when he returns with his “real” American wife. Puccini sets this heart-breaking story to some of the most ravishingly beautiful music ever written. Lecturer Bradford Wade will give a guided tour of the opera, with a description of the plot interspersed with musical examples, and discuss some of the opera’s literary background. This lecture is given in conjunction with Opera San Jose’s production of Madama Butterfly, February 15-March 2. Saving Endangered Species Thursday 2/20 • 10:30AM – noon • Cedar Room, LCC - Have you met a golden lion tamarin? Ever heard of a pangolin? What about a snow leopard? These are just a few of Earth’s wonderful creatures that are now endangered. Conservationists work worldwide to preserve them and their habitats. Discover some fascinating, beautiful animals, the ingenious ways they are being protected, and how you can help save them. Presented by Linda Riebel, author of Endangered Species: Saving Them and Ourselves, Board Member of SaveNature.Org, and Volunteer at Lindsay Wildlife Museum.‘Almost Like Being in Love’ Piano Jazz Concert at the Library Friday 2/21 • 1:30PM– 2:30PM • Lafayette Library, Community Hall - We are extending Valentine’s Day another week! Come fall in love with our jazz tunes and discover why we love Bill Evans, Chet Baker, Sonny Rollins and more! Refreshments generously provided by The Kensington Independent, Assisted Living and Memory Care; and Senior Helpers Home Care. Please call Lafayette Senior Services to reserve your spot at (925) 284-5050.Lunch n’ Learn: Digital Cameras 1st - The Cities of Lafayette and Orinda and the Town of Moraga present a two-part digital camera series fa-cilitated by Fred Winslow, digital photography enthusiast. Attend one or both classes. Lecture/Q&A: 10:30 – noon. Lunch: noon – 1:00pm. Call Lafay-ette Senior Services to reserve your spot at least three days prior to each class.

• Digital Camera 101- Wednesday, 2/12 • Orinda Parks & Recreation, 28 Orinda Way

You’ve got your digital camera. You’ve taken some photographs. Now what? Learn the basics of how to take photos efficiently, download them to your computer, organize, view and print them.

• Digital Camera 102 - Wednesday, 3/26 • Elderberry Room, LCCDon’t lose those precious photos you’ve taken with your digital camera!

This class will teach you how to back up your photos for safekeeping.Members: $10/class Non-members $11/class. Fee includes lunch.

Lafayette Oral History Project Do you have stories about Lafayette in the days of yore? Allow Ryan to document that history which will then be included in the Lafayette Historical Societies’ archives, preserved for generations to come. All you have to do is tell those stories to Ryan; he’ll do the writing. You’ll receive a copy of the final document at the time of completion. Call Lafayette Senior Services for details and to be a part of this project. No charge.Document Your Life Story 2/13, 2/27, 3/13, 3/27 • 10:30 – noon • Elderberry Room, LCC - If you have wanted to write the stories, memories, and experiences of your life but haven’t known where to start, wait no longer. Yuska Lutfi, MFA Candidate in Creative Writing at St. Mary’s College, will guide you through the process of leaving a living history for future generations –what a gift! Included will be optional outings to St. Mary’s for their creative writing reading series, “Afternoon Craft Conversations.”Anne Randolph Physical Therapy Presentation: Perfecting Posture 2/28 • 11:30AM – 12:30PM • Elderberry Room, LCC - Not only does poor posture not look good, but it can lead to discomfort, pain, and

other problems. Discussion, demonstration, and exercises will be offered to improve your posture, decrease your pain, and help in the never-ending fight against gravity. Anne Randolph, RPT, has been practicing physical therapy for 35 years. She provides outpatient therapy in Lafayette and specializes in the care of those 55 and over. St. Mary’s College Afternoon Craft Conversations Wednesdays, 2/19, 3/12, 4/9 • 2:00PM – 3:35PM • Hagerty Lounge, St. Mary’s College, 1928 St. Mary’s Rd, Moraga Lamorinda Dance Social Wednesdays • 12:30 – 3:00PM • Live Oak Room, LCC - Enjoy afternoon dancing every Wednesday, and learn some great new dance moves. On the first Wednesday monthly, professional dancers Karen and Michael will provide a dance lesson and live DJ services, playing your favorites and taking requests. $2 Members/ $4 non-members.Lafayette Senior Services Commission 4th Thursday of the month from 3:30 – 5:30PM at the LSC - View agendas at the City of Lafayette of-fice or at www.ci.lafayette.ca.us. Lamorinda Nature Walk and Bird-Watching Every Wednesday • 9AM - noon • Call LSC to find out weekly meeting locations - Experience nature at its finest along our local trails. Delight in the beauty that unfolds around each bend, all the while learning to identify a variety of birds. Bring a water bottle; binoculars will be helpful if you have them. Join us every Wednesday or whenever you are able.Come Play Mahjong! Every Tuesday • 12:30PM–3:00PM • Cedar Room, LSC - Come join us on Tuesdays for a drop-in game of mahjong. Mahjong is a game of skill, strategy, and certain degree of chance. All levels welcome. Bring your card, a mahjong set, and a snack to share (optional). RSVP not required.Creative Writing Workshop 2nd and 4th Thursday monthly • 10:30AM - noon • Cedar Room, LSC - Join creative writing and English instructor Judith Rathbone, and examine the possibilities of self-expression through writing. This friendly group, with an ever-changing membership but lots of returning participants, will welcome you and any of your writing efforts. Find encouragement and feedback and bring out the writer in you. If you can speak, you can write, and we will show you how! Beginners to established writers welcome. Positive Living Forum (“Happiness Club”) 2/13 • 10:30AM – noon • Sequoia Room, LSC - Brighten your day with Dr. Bob Nozik, MD, Prof. Emeritus UCSF and author of Happy 4 Life: Here’s How to Do It. Take part in this interactive gathering which features speakers on a wide range of topics that encourage and guide participants towards a more ideal and positive life experience. Bi-Monthly Caregiver Support Group Mondays 2/10 & 2/24 • 1:30–2:30PM • Elderberry Room LSC - If you are a family member helping to care for an older adult, join our support group to find balance and joy as you manage your responsibilities. Drop-ins are welcome. Words of Wisdom…From the Philosophical to the Lighthearted 2/18 • 10:30 –Noon • Elderberry Room, LSC - Join discussion group leader Craig Janke, and take part in this free-wheeling exchange of inspiration, information, and humor. Topics – from soup to nuts - will be explored, examined, and discussed by participants. Stories and photographs will stimulate humorous discoveries regarding the benefits of becoming the ‘elders of our tribe.’Free Peer Counseling 2nd Tuesday monthly 2/11 • 10AM - noon • Alder Room, LCC - Contra Costa Health Services offers free one-on-one counseling with senior (55+) counselors who use their life experiences to help other older adults cope with life changes, problems, crises, and challenges. Confidentiality is strictly observed. Appointment required. Please call Lafayette Senior Services at 284-5050 to sign up for one of the 60-minute appointments.

[email protected]


Hearing Loss Association Come to meetings of the Diablo Valley Chapter of Hearing Loss Association

of America at 7pm on the first Wednesday of the month at the Walnut Creek United Methodist Church located at 1543 Sunnyvale Ave., Walnut Creek Education Bldg., Wesley Room. Meeting room and parking are at the back of the church. All are welcome. Donations are accepted. Assistive listening system are available for T-coils, and most meetings are captioned. Contact [email protected] or (925) 264.1199 or www.hearinglossdv.org.

Coping with the Death of a Pet When you lose your pet, you often feel like a part of you is lost. The

death of your beloved animal companion is one of the most difficult losses you may ever feel. This loss is sometimes made more painful by society’s seeming lack of support for pet grief.

Hospice of the East Bay and the Tony La Russa Animal Rescue Founda-tion is offering a support group where participants can share memories and feelings and talk to others who truly understand and care. Meetings will be held the first Tuesday of each month from noon - 1:30PM at the Tony La Russa Animal Rescue Foundation, 2890 Mitchell Drive, Walnut Creek.

For further information and/or to register, please call Bereavement Ser-vices at Hospice of the East Bay (925) 887-5681. Pre-registration is required.

Hospice of the East Bay Bereavement Services are provided free of charge to all community members in need. However, donations are greatly appreciated.

C L A S S I F I E D S

Lafayette Today ClassifiedsReach over 12,000 homes and businesses in Lafay-ette - Help Wanted, For Sale, Services, Lessons, Pets, Rentals, Wanted, Freebies... $35 for up to 45 words. $5 for each additional 15 words. Send or email submissions to: 3000F Danville Blvd #117, Alamo, CA 94507 or [email protected]. Run the same classified ad in our sister papers “Alamo Today” or “Danville Today News” and pay half off for your second and/or third ad! Payment by check made out to “The Editors” must be received before ad will print. Your cancelled check is your receipt. We reserve the right to reject any ad.

ARCHITECTJOHN ROLF HATTAM - ARCHITECT Specializes in modest budget, new and renovated residences. Over 200 completed projects. Brochures available for all of our professional services •RESIDENTIAL RENOVATION •NEW RESIDENCES •CHURCHES •COMMERCIAL •MULTI-FAMILY. For the brochure meeting your need call 510-841-5933. 737 Dwight Way, Berkeley.

Lamorinda Senior Transportation An Alliance of Transportation Providers

Lamorinda Spirit Van 283-3534Takes Lamorinda Seniors to errands and appointments, grocery shopping,

and to lunch at C.C. Cafe. $10 round trip; rides to the C.C. Cafe are free. Reserve your ride two days in advance by 1:00 p.m. or when you make your appointment. We love to say: “Yes!” Rides are now available to Sunday church services.Contra Costa Yellow Cab and DeSoto Company 284-1234

20% discount for Lamorinda seniors. Orinda Seniors Around Town 402-4506 Volunteer drivers serving Orinda seniors with free rides to appointments and errands. Senior Helpline Services Rides for Seniors 284-6161

Volunteer drivers serving Contra Costa seniors with free rides to doctors’ appointments during the week. Grocery shopping on Saturdays.

What’s Next: Taking on our PatternsBy Mary BrunsLamorinda Senior Transportation

When people attend my meditation class, I generally ask, “What brought you here?” Sometimes they mention an illness, or having trouble sleeping, or wanting to learn more about meditation, or wanting to establish a more regular habit of meditating; but most often they mention stress and wanting to quiet their mind. They may have a demanding job or a difficult family situation that causes the stress. For older adults, the stress is often brought on by the unique challenges of aging – loss of some abilities, health challenges, reduced income, isolation, and the loss of loved ones.

The challenges we experience and the stress that accompanies those challenges often represent the cutting edge of our growth potential. There is an internal evolutionary push that is driving us to expand and to become a higher, more expansive version of self than we were before. Looking at challenges as the opportunity to grow a new facet of self and viewing the stress as simply a temporary by-product helps to create a new perspective on the situation. The challenge is now seen as an opportunity to expand, and the stress is viewed as short-term discomfort.

David Robinson writes in his new book, The Seer – the mind of the entrepreneur, artist, visionary, innovator, seeker, learner, leader, creator…you,“Pattern recognition is most often the epicenter of change management for organizations. The same might be said of people. We are generally blind to our patterns, so, instead of seeing our patterns of action, patterns of choice, or patterns of thinking, we believe we have a problem. The eyes that can see a pattern are much different than the eyes that see problems. The eyes that see patterns are eyes that see choices. The eyes that see choices also see opportunities. The eyes that see problems can only seek fixes to the problem. The eyes that see patterns will ultimately seek to create new patterns. Problem-seers fix. Pattern-seers create. What do you see?”

Becoming more self-aware, identifying our patterns, choosing to change our response to situations – these are the keys to personal transformation. The “new you” that results helps you to be more successful as an “entrepreneur, artist, visionary, innovator, seeker, learner, leader, or creator” or to simply be more successful in your roles as parent, grandparent, son, daughter, employer, employee, spouse, partner, and friend.

Patterns often have become ingrained habits, sometimes very resistant to change. It takes repeated effort over time before the old pattern is fully released and a new, higher functioning pattern emerges and becomes the “new normal.” Because this is the case, we often won’t choose to make change until the old pattern causes increasing discomfort, illness, or “failure.”

Meditation is the act of quieting the repetitive thoughts that sometimes run rampant in the outer mind and tuning into the higher or inner mind, the

Lunch group at Yan’s.

wisdom self, the intuition. Once there, we can ask a question and listen for an answer. We can ask, “What pattern is holding me back from what I want most in my life?” If we are persistent in asking the question, over time, the answer will present itself as a thought, a dream, an “ah-ha” moment, or as something you read or hear that just “clicks” as true for you.

Last month we looked at committing to doing a few exercises that would help us maintain and build our physical strength so we will be able to sit down, get up, and walk as we age. This month, we are looking at improving our self-awareness in order to release old patterns that no longer serve us - to become the new, higher version of self. It’s much like creating the next “newer and better” computer program or smartphone. Life presents us with continuous opportunities to reinvent self, to take self to the next level. This is transformation and the path of human evolution.


Prevention continued from front pagebased out of Bahrain, supporting counter-terrorism operations throughout the Middle East. Law enforcement is in his blood, and he is pleased to be utilizing his experience to help make Lafayette safe. He admits to a natural suspicion and to always being on the lookout. He sees things - even during a one-hour stop at the coffee shop - which others do not.

Despite an overall impression amongst citizens that crime is on the rise in Lafayette, the truth is that the City has seen a decrease in home robberies in the past year. The false perception could be attributed to an increased level of law enforcement awareness, due in part to Chief Christensen’s community presence and to his department’s success in finding perpetrators. “He is a very hands-on police chief,” says Gelman. “He is a very available leader and is always willing to attend civic and community functions where he shares tips on crime deterrence.”

Christensen is known for his full-disclosure approach, and he is fervent in his desire to share crime information with the community. Believing that information is power, Christensen publishes a monthly crime bulletin, detailing both unsolved crimes and those with a successful outcome. He is quick to share recognition and kudos with community members who step-up to help solve crimes. His motto is, “If you see something, say something.” This includes alerting a neighbor to an open garage door or alerting police to suspicious activity.

“Most of the criminal activity in the Lafayette area is due to opportunity,” says Gelman. He says most crimes take place between 9am and 1pm, when people leave for work or take children to school. And most of the time, the burglars are in and out in two minutes, bee-lining for the master bedroom and the jewelry box. (The proliferation of tracking devices within electronic items is making these objects less attractive.) Gelman offers these general and effective tips for deterring crime: Always lock house and car doors and windows, even if just stepping away for a minute. Never leave anything in clear view; put your wallet or iPad in your trunk or glove compartment. Always keep important personal documents in a secure place; preferably a safe that cannot be picked-up and carried. Create a jewelry box decoy: hide the good stuff and keep the cheap costume jewelry in a place of prominence. And perhaps the best tip of all? Know your neighbors and know their schedules. Be aware of any suspicious activity, and don’t be afraid to take photos of dubious-looking cars. If you have suspicions about what you see, call the police immediately at (925-284-5010) or email them at [email protected].

“Our citizens are the eyes, ears, and conscience of our police department,” says Gelman. “If they can take preventative precautions and share a bit of the crime-busting burden with our officers, it raises our officers’ success rate.”

For more information on the Lafayette Crime Prevention Commission, visit www.ci.lafayette.ca.us. To sign-up for the Lafayette Police Department’s alerts and crime report, please call the number above.

Third Grader Wins Elementary Geography Bee

Burton Valley held its National Geographic Geography Bee final on January 17. Eight students qualified for the Bee finals, mostly from the fourth and fifth grades, with Lucas Oppenheimer as the only third grade competitor. After three rounds of competition, Lucas won the Burton Valley Geography Bee. He has a chance to represent Burton Valley and Lafayette in the State Bee, if he qualifies.

Pictured at left is Mischelle Doll, Burton Valley Elementary Third Grade Teacher,

Documents

Lafayette Today, February 2014