Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Eaton Wash February 2009
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Grandpa and His Solar Water Heater
The solar heater saved him money, which was something grandpa was all for. Saving money (or more accurately avoiding ever spending it) was a way of life for him. He was frugal, lived simply and hated waste. It’s not like he made any considered decision about it. It was just part and parcel of who he was.
He’s been gone for 20 years, but I still remember some of the things he did to save money. He had a metal tank welded on the back of his truck so he could load up when gas was cheap. He bought cases of canned goods and cereals when they went on sale. His house never had an air conditioner or heater – he used portable space heaters, if he used them at all. He saved and reused things like newspaper and tin foil. At his house you might find little sugars and jellies, like the ones they have at coffee shops. He kept records of everything. Every gas purchase was recorded in a little book he kept in his truck. Every household purchase was recorded. When he died my dad found receipts going back nearly 50 years.
For my grandfather, frugality was a virtue and he was always on the lookout for waste. In fact, he would get mad over displays of wastefulness. Like I remember him getting angry about street lights that blazed at night. Why waste electricity burning street lights all night?
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As with many of his generation, my grandfather was primed for the frugal, resourceful life. The first 45 years of his life were lived during hard times. He was born at the turn of the century into a hardscrabble rural Iowa existence. World War I raged during his teen years. He married as the Great Depression started and then supported his family through the depression years and World War II. Even after times got better, he kept on with the austere life. It was all he knew and it was right.
There was a resilient and scrappy quality to him. From what I know, he kind of pieced together a living and always had a couple of things going to make money. He worked in fruit packing plants, grocery stores and drove trucks. He also farmed. My dad recalls that when he was growing up, they had small family farm with chickens, cows, rabbits, pigs, fruit trees and vegetables. By the time I was around, grandpa was driving a school bus and tending a small grove of oranges and avocados.
An early widower, he was known to spend weeks on end in the High Sierras, often taking his grandchildren. He had a shell on his Ford pick-up and a favorite spot in Reds Meadow along the San Joaquin River. He was camping and fishing for trout well into his 70’s.
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It was fun to come across this old photo of grandpa in front of his house with his solar water heater. I vaguely recall the solar heater. But I very clearly recall how cheap grandpa was. More and more, I find myself thinking about how he lived. I dearly hope to avoid the kind of hardships his generation lived through. At the same time, I can’t help but think that many of the resourceful, frugal qualities of my grandfather’s generation would serve us well today.
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Related to this, check out Pasadena PIO’s story on home solar power in Pasadena and a Pasadena DailyPhoto's picture of a bungalow with solar panels on the roof. And, I liked this story about a grandmother over at Hatching a Patch.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Earthside Story
Above is a weathered plaque that hangs on the outside of a kiosk at the entrance to Earthside commemorating its beginning in 1971. The faded photos provide only a glimpse of the work that must have gone into creating Earthside.
A lot of people played a part in the Earthside story. Here's another weathered plaque that hangs outside the kiosk (donated by the Pasadena Rotary). The last honorees named on this plaque are Elna Bakker in 1994 and Virginia Connelly in 1995. Ms. Bakker was one of Eartshides' visionaries and her death in 1995 may have had something to do with the demise of the nature center.
A few memorials are placed around the Earthside grounds. This one honors "Pop Pop" Shirley W. Owen of Pasadena. Makes you want to know about Pop Pop.
The system of trails leads down to the edge of the wash, or more accurately, the fence along the wash.
This rock lined pool is part of an oasis at the north west corner of Earthside.
After the January rains, wildflowers are appearing. Life is evident in the dormant vines that line Earthside's north and west sides. I"ll return to see this garden grow over the coming months as the Earthside story continues.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Trip to Joshua Tree National Park
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Proposal to Develop St. Luke's Hospital Property
Above is a view of St. Luke's Hospital as seen from New York Drive. That's Eaton Wash Reservoir in the foreground. The hospital was built in 1933 by the Sisters of St. Joseph and served our area's medical needs until it closed in 2002. This magnificent seven story Art Deco building is one of the most impressive landmarks in East Pasadena. Only the Stuart Pharmaceutical building rivals it.
In 2003, St. Luke's was sold to Cal Tech. Many were relieved that the future of this property was in good hands. The St. Luke's property is (and has always been) zoned for Public Service uses. Though the hospital was closed, Cal Tech would continue the historic Public Service use of the property by using it for education and research.
But, St. Luke's is located near the base of the San Gabriels, five miles from Cal Tech's campus. The location proved too remote from Cal Tech's main campus near downtown Pasadena. The venerable institution decided to sell and the property went on the market.
Developers salivated over the possibilities. Built-out Pasadena rarely sees a 13-acre parcel go on the market. And this was about 2006-2007. Developers were making bundles cranking out condominiums. As reported by Pasadena Now, Cal Tech's real estate broker called St. Luke's "an extraordinary assemblage of property" and said the property "generated interest from investors around the world."
Others were interested in the property too. Schools, churches, a cancer research center and other nonprofit users were interested. After all, the St. Luke's property was zoned for Public Service use and one might think it would be sold to another institutional user.
It may have been the irrational exuberance of the times or the mesmerizing image of acres of condos or just arrogance, but developers ignored the city's General Plan and zoning laws and lined up to bid on the property. Institutional users were priced out of the game. According to an October 2007, Los Angeles Business Journal article, in 2003 Cal Tech paid less than $20 million for the St. Luke's property. Four years later, it sold the property to Beverly Hills developer DS Ventures for more than $40 million.
To develop the property, DS Ventures will need the city to change the Public Service designation for the property. But, DS Ventures faces an even bigger challenge than that.
Pasadena's General Plan requires the city's growth to be limited to the city's downtown and along major transportation lines, such as the metro. This is the centerpiece to the city's growth plan -- a plan the city is fulfilling with dense development downtown and at metro stops. By aligning growth with public transportation and focusing it downtown, the city will hopefully reduce the need for cars, reduce pollution and make more efficient use of dwindling resources.
Based largely on our General Plan, our city is nationally known for progressive planning. The basics of the city's current General Plan were adopted back in 1994 as part of a campaign to "Imagine a Great City." Citizens turned out by the thousands to do just that. Guided by this guy and others, the city adopted a forward thinking General Plan that limits growth to targeted areas. It was cutting edge stuff at the time and put Pasadena planning at the forefront of the move away from auto-dependence and toward smarter growth.
So, in addition to doing away with the property's Public Service zoning, to carry out its plan to intensify use on the site, adding condos, parking structures and office uses, DS Ventures will need to convince the city to back away from the key to its General Plan. That may be tough to do.
The fact is the St. Luke's property is on the edge of the city, miles from downtown and miles from a metro stop. DS's plans to develop the property are out of touch with Pasadena's plan to target and limit growth and a hindrence to state and local efforts to reduce auto trips and emissions. With every day's news, it becomes more and more evident that we need to stop building for auto dependence and need to exercise greater care about how we affect our environment. The wisdom of Pasadena's plan to limit growth to targeted areas is proving more and more sound.
How will this all play out? Well, as I said at the start, in 2009, I think we're going to hear a lot about the St. Luke's property. Hopefully we'll also hear a lot about the City's General Plan, the need to reduce auto use and emissions and ways to better conserve our environment. In the process, we will learn much about Pasadena's commitment to remain an environmental and planning leader.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Six Eggs In A Day
Since New Year Day, we've averaged four eggs a day! We're having quiche tonight.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Rose Parade 2009
On our way down Sierra Madre Blvd. we said hello to friends already in place for the parade or wandering around the street. Some school friends had slept overnight. We got hit up by scouts for Krispe Kremes. Then, further down Sierra Madre Blvd. we met up with another Pasadena family to watch the parade. Most of the people around us were locals (or relatives from out of town) -- people who year after year watch the parade at the same spot. One of the many Trojan fans was next to us. Oh, nice mountain views too.
The Penn State band was fantastic. Five miles into the parade and the band still had great energy dancing their way to the finish line. Their baton twirler was juggling batons! Here she is waiting for one of her batons to come back to earth. Penn State got huge cheers from the crowd around us. And their band was so good I almost switched my football team allegiance from the Trojans to the Nittany Lions.
It's the Emerald City! But, the poppies, the poppies will put our heroes to sleep. Good thing Glenda the Good Witch is there to save the day.
Sometimes you can get flowers when the parade and post parade are done and the floats are bing towed back to storage. But, I'd never seen anyone run out during the parade and pick a flower off of a passing float. Actually this was for a good cause. The flower filcher presented the rose to a lady celebrating her 50th birthday on the curb watching the Rose Parade.
My favorite float by the way. Surf City USA -- the real one in the OC.
The City of Hope and Duarte float. We like City of Hope. It's an inspiring and world class place much befitting its name. My mom is there now, but soon to be released. She was watching the parade on TV when I called her from the parade route.