Titley Ave. -- RIP

The Day of Reckoning for Titley Avenue is here. Tonight, without any fanfare, Pasasdena City Council will hold a public hearing to change the name of Titley Avenue to Kinneloa Avenue.

We rarely give street names their due. That's understandable. Most are named for a developer's distant cousin, or letters of the alphabet, or any number of things not related to the community or place.

But, sometimes street names are repositories of local history; markers of people or places that are important parts of a community's story. That's the case with Titley Avenue. In fact, there's a whole lot of East Pasadena history all rolled into that little soon-to-be no more street sign.

Last Fall, I ran a post about Titleyville (also commonly called "Chihuahuita"). I also ran posts on J.F.T. Titley, who built a small town of low cost cottages as a "benefactor" to the poor and called the place "Titleyville," and the drama that ensued when Mr. Titley seemingly bilked the families who bought his homes.

The renaming is part of the extension of Kinneloa Avenue under the 210 freeway, which is a positive thing. But, I didn't want the moment to go by without at least some nod to Mr. Titley and Titleyville.

Scout Jamboree at Bonelli Park

This weekend a swarm of San Gabriel Valley boy scouts (the SGV Trib story said it would be thousands) converged on Frank G. Bonelli Park. The park is home to Puddingstone Reservoir and is in San Dimas, which is East of Allen.

First, a little history about the park and that funny name "puddingstone."

In 1928, Puddingstone Dam was built and a reservoir was created from water from a stream that flows through San Dimas Canyon. According to the San Dimas Community News site, the dam and reservoir were named "Puddingstone" after rocks in the area that looked like raisins in pudding. In the 1950's the reservoir was stocked with fish and Los Angeles County began adding purchased water to the reservoir to keep the water at a consistent level. Somewhere along the way the park was named for Frank Bonelli, who was a county supervisor.

Back to the jamboree, which is why we were at Puddingstone. My son had a great time. I did too.

The jamboree's main event was the Plywood Regatta -- with dozens of homemade plywood and canvas kayaks. This picture was taken early Saturday morning as kayaks started arriving at Puddingstone Reservoir. A couple of scouts are already in their kayaks ready to get out on the water.

Making the kayak was a memorable experience. Fortunately our troop has some folks who know their way around a shop and helped the rest of us put these together. Basically, the kayaks are four sheets of shaped plywood held together by strips of canvas and lots of contact cement. Our kayak worked well and weathered more than a few collisions.

The park has some beautiful scenery. I had a chance to walk around late Friday and caught some hillside color as the sun set.

Anticipation-- May Garden News

Wild Grapes on their way. Started from cuttings from Earthside Nature Center.

Either raspberries or blackberries. Second season.

Peaches. Second season.

Parrot Lost

Walked out early this morning to find this parrot sitting on our fence. He's a big bird with red tail feathers. This is not the kind of green parrots we see filying all over town. I think this may be someone's pet that got away.

More Alligators

Last weekend we saw another alligator lizard. This one decided to show up in the middle of a birthday party for our now 7 year old daughter. There were a bunch of kids gathered 'round watching this reptile as it froze on some green siding. Hadn't planned to do Animal Planet for the party, but with this willing subject, and armed with lizard research from earlier posts, I couldn't resist. We could easily see the regenerated tail. We talked about how these lizards can detach their tails when threatened, and how the tail then wiggles around distracting the threat while the lizard gets away. Good stuff.

It is egg laying season for alligator lizards. According to California Herps, these lizards lay eggs sometime from May to July with babies hatching in late summer.

I'm not the only one doing lizard posts. There's a nice one up over at Ramshackle Solid.

Goslings on Washington Blvd.

The Goose family (mom, dad and their five little goslings) out for a walk this afternoon along Washington Blvd near Sierra Madre Blvd. (aross from Pasadena High School). The Eaton Wash and a settling pond are on the other side of the chain link fence behind the geese.

I posted earlier this year and in February 2009 about Canada Geese in the Eaton Wash Reservoir. Seems there is a nest somewhere in the vicinity.

From the Squirrel Files: Fox Squirrels

Hi. How are ya?

I enjoy watching the squirrels in our yard. They chase each other up and down trees, jump from limb to limb and have a quirky manner about them that's just funny.

But, did you know these industrious little rodents are not native to California? From my Internet research, it looks like our squirrels are Fox Squirrels and were introduced here from the east.

Actually, studies trace the Fox Squirrel's migration to southern California to 1904. Civil War veterans living at the Sawtelle VA facility in West Los Angeles brought Fox Squirrels from their homes in the Mississippi Valley. I don't know whether the veterans considered the squirrels pets or snacks. But, somehow the rodents got loose and the rest is history.

Fox Squirrels liked it in southern California -- nice weather, year 'round food, lots of neighborhood trees, no natural enemies. Kind of squirrel heaven.

So they expanded outward from Sawtelle -- north, south, east and west -- travelling tree to tree, over utility lines and along open space corridors. Squirrel experts have studied and mapped expansion of the Fox Squirrel from their introduction at Sawtelle. According to the study, Fox Squirrels arrived in Pasadena in the 1970's.

These squirrels seem to much a natural part of the environment in Pasadena, it is strange to think they're really an introduced species and that there was a time, not so far away, when they didn't live here at all.