Friday's misadventures with a lost pooch, and a humble plea to dog owners

I'm not a dog person. This doesn't mean I dislike dogs. I'm rather fond of some of my friends' dogs. I would just never choose to have a dog myself. I don't have a "dog" personality. Yes, I'm a cat person. Also, I wouldn't want to take on the very big responsibility and commitment it takes to have a dog.

Despite not being a dog person, I still find myself in the odd position of occasionally coming across lost doggies wandering in some neighborhood, and jumping in to help that dog find its way home. If I don't care about dogs, why do I do this? Well, I know how devastated I'd be if our cat disappeared. I also know my dog owner friends would feel likewise if they felt they the canine member of their family had run off.

I also understand that even the most conscientious dog owners can wind up dealing with a runaway Fido, even after installing all the reasonable safeguards in their homes and properties. Some dogs just have big cases of wanderlust, right, and they manage to find their way over, under, or around fences.

Bad, bad dogs, huh?

I've generally had a good, easy time getting lost dogs back to owner. The only time I actually spent a day or so babysitting a lost dog was back when my son was 2, I was a stay at home mom, and we lived in a small town up north. A very pretty black lab wandered through the forest into our back yard. Unfortunately, he had lost his tags along the way. I was in the situation, being at home, and we had the space in our house to let the dog stay, while waiting for the owners to check in with the town police department and come across my found dog report.

My son and I briefly got attached the the lab he named "Bobby," and my husband, who has fond memories of the black lab his grandparents had when he was a kid, contemplated that we might end up having to adopt him.

In most of my other found dog situations, the dogs had tags, and I was able to call the owners' numbers and connect with them almost immediately. I didn't have to deal with reporting the dog lost or taking it to the county's animal services shelter.

Well, yesterday, I had the frustrating experience of picking up a sweet lost beagle (not the one pictured here), and not being able to reach his owners for hours. It was actually one of those days where I was feeling a bit frazzled, from not sleeping much all week with my Moon Mania. Then I had been up much of the night trying to finish a work project, and I was looking forward to putting the finishing touches on said project yesterday afternoon.

But at around 1 p.m., while driving back to work after dropping my son off from school, I came across the poor wandering beagle.

I stopped my car, called the dog to me, and he came. He was friendly, sweet, obviously well cared for. His tag said his name was "Cody." I called the number and reached what sounded like the voicemail for a home number.

Great.

People, a home phone number in this situation, and in this day, is rather useless. That's because most people aren't at home during the day; they are out shopping, picking up the kids from school, at work, or out of town. Or they aren't picking up their phones if they are at home, because they don't want to deal with telemarketers.

There was an address on the dog's tags, but the street did not sound familiar to me. I noticed, just up the street, a U.S. postal truck. The dog happily hopped into my car, and I drove up to the truck. I asked the nice female postal worker if she knew the address. After all, this was her "beat." It didn't ring a bell to her, and, it turned out, she lived in the neighborhood. She called back to her office, and someone there tried, but failed, to find the street name in their database. She admitted that she had seen the beagle out in the neighborhood a couple hours earler.

Okay, I had to get back to work... I couldn't take Cody home, and I couldn't keep him for a few days. I was going out of town first thing Saturday for a work trip. ... I put Cody in my car, drove to my office, left the windows cracked open, left him in the car, and ran in to do my own search of his address, and to call around to see what my options were. Of course, he started to wail as soon as I left him alone in the car.

Still no answer at his owners' house. Like me, some co-workers were worried that if I called Contra Costa County Animal Services to come get him, he'd wind up at risk of being euthanized in a few days if his owners didn't claim him. As it happens, the worker I reached at Animals Services said they were so understaffed and so overwhelmed with service calls that they couldn't come out to get him anyway; I'd have to bring him to their office, unless I could keep him myself?

Not an option. I called the Animal Rescue Foundation, but someone there said they only take animals already at shelters. I called back to the Animal Services department, and a volunteer there convinced me that, in the absence of keeping him myself until the owners contacted me, my best bet would be to bring him to their shelter. He assured me that I had done the right thing in picking up up in the first place. "Better he come here than end up being hit by a car."

So, I took him out to the shelter out by the Interstate 680/Highway 4 intersection. It's actually a nice, newer building, and the staff there were really friendly and welcoming to Cody. They looked more carefully at his tags and found that they were old, from 2005. Their records showed a different address for the owners than the one on his tag. And on a street that, Google maps showed, was way the hell on the other side of Walnut Creek. Several miles. Could Cody have wandered that far to the place I found him? How long had he been missing?

The county's records also showed two different phone numbers. One was disconnected. But the other got me through to a voicemail that presumably belonged to the owner. Maybe a work number. Maybe a cell phone. I called and left yet another message.

I said good-bye to Cody and hoped for the best.

I got back to the office, but was too frazzled by the misadventures with Cody and concern about his well-being to get much more work done. I had spent nearly three hours dealing with poor Cody. I was also thinking how I had to get home, pack, and get ready to leave on a trip first thing Saturday morning.

My husband, son, and I were enjoying at dinner at Le Cheval when my cell phone rang. It was about 7 p.m. It was Cody's "mom." "You called several times?" she said. I explained I had found Cody wandering in this particular neighborhood, tried to reach her, and ended up having to take him to the shelter.

"He's such an escape artist!" she said, with a nervous laugh.

Ha ha.

"Well, thanks for your trouble," she said before hanging up.

I didn't really care about getting her thanks. Frankly, I was annoyed. Sure, I had lost some valuable work time dealing with her dog, but I would have done it anyway. What annoyed me is that, for her "escape artist," she had outdated tags and old or not very useful contact information on his licensing information

I mean, six hours went by before she finally got back to me!

I thought that, for some dog owners, their dogs are like members of their family. Isn't that right? I couldn't stand finding out that a valued member of my family had been missing for six hours, and I didn't know about it. With my son, there is all sorts of contact information on file at his school, or when he goes on a field trip. Yes, his home number is included in that contact information, but that would be mostly useless. That file has work numbers and cell phone numbers for me and his father, as well as phone numbers for other relatives.

I'm not saying Cody's tag needed to carry all his owners various contact numbers. But it would have been nice if it had contained that one phone number where his owner could be reached immediately--not six hours later.

So, dog owners, here is my humble plea. Check your pet's tags, and make sure the address is current, and that the phone number is the one where you will be most easily reached. There are lots of people in the community who would be happy to pick up your lost pet and help him or her find his way home to you. But try to make it as easy as possible, okay?

Your jump on holiday shopping Sunday can benefit a great local cause

As we did last year, my family is once again downsizing our Christmas gift giving this year. Actually, this could turn into a permanent arrangement, especially with this one great shopping opportunity Sunday.

Creek Kids Care is once again holding its annual crafts and arts boutique Sunday. Creek Kids Care raises money to benefit Walnut Creek's Fresh Start, the respite and service center in downtown for the working poor, homeless, or those at the risk of becoming homeless.

I'm very sorry, I didn't post this notice sooner. Life, work, and so forth got a bit hectic this week, and not just because of the election.

Anyway, it was at Creek Kids Care's boutique that my husband, son, and I did our Christmas shopping last year for our siblings and nieces and nephews. Creek Kids Care is made up of local elementary, middle and high school kids who spend the year making beautiful, original greeting cards, stationery, knitted items, and other crafts and works of art that they sell, both on their website and at this annual boutique.

That boutique takes place tomorrow, Sunday, from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 1924 Trinity Avenue.

Not only are the items beautiful, the prices are excellent, and the proceeds benefit two great causes. Creek Kids Care donates what it earns to help care for our homeless community members of the nonprofit Fresh Start. Last year, Creek Kids Care raised enough from its online sales and other events, like the boutique, to pledge $300 a month to Fresh Start in 2009.

Creek Kids care also fully funds a preschool in Zimbabwe that serves kids who have been orphaned by HIV and AIDS.

If you can't make it to the boutique, you can still order their greeting cards online.

And, perhaps (hint, hint), whatever Creek Kids Care doesn't sell tomorrow it can bring to the Walnut Creek Farmers Market and sell there before the holidays--as it did last year.

Police looking for two who robbed Rossmoor area bank

Two men, wearing hoods and masks, held up the Pacific National Bank located in the Rossmoor shopping center Thursday morning.

Sgt. Tom Cashion says that at around 10:14 a.m., police received a call about the robbery at the bank at 1910 Tice Valley Blvd.

Officers arrived and learned that two robbers entered the bank. The taller robber, who was wearing a Golden Bears logo on his dark hooded sweatshirt and a black handkerchief covering his face, displayed a handgun.

Both robbers demanded cash. The second one was shorter and wearing a camouflage hooded sweatshirt and a black handkerchief. Tellers handed over an undisclosed amount of cash to the taller robber with the gun.

The robbers both ran out on foot into a residential area along Rolling Hills Drive. Police and a K-9 unit searched the area but couldn't find anyone.

Again, the suspects are described as:

Suspect 1: Black male in his mid to late 20s, 6 feet tall, 165 pounds, wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt with a California Golden Bear on the front, dark pants and a black handkerchief covering his face. He was armed with a black handgun.

Suspect 2: Black male in his mid- to late 20s, 5 feet 5 inches tall, 150 pounds, wearing a dark camouflage hooded sweatshirt and a black handkerchief over his nose and mouth.

Anyone with information should contact the Walnut Creek Police Department at (925) 943-5844.

Walnut Creek voters say "yes" to Neiman Marcus

Well, officially, Walnut Creek voters said "yes" to a new 92,000-square-foot department store in Broadway Plaza at the corner of South Main Street and Mt. Diablo Boulevard. Luxury retailer Neiman Marcus has said it fully intends to occupy that spot.

With all precincts reporting, 71 percent of the 21,398 Walnut Creek voters casting ballots, said "yes" to Measure I--the Broadway extension measure. Nearly 29 percent said "no."

It's been a costly battle for the two developers on either side of Measure I--to the tune of around $2 million combined. Broadway Mall owner Macerich spent around $1.3 million on the Yes on I campaign, while Taubman Centers, which owns Concord's Sunvalley Mall and had hoped to develop a Neiman Marcus in San Ramon, spent $700,000.

So, it looks like Neiman Marcus will be coming to town.

Really? Truly? Could this whole brouhaha finally be over? Will slow-growth advocates who opposed the new Broadway Plaza department store, as well as Taubman, challenge the results of the election in court? One city official I talked to wondered if the election would truly settle this battle, especially if the No on I side loses. Taubman has been known, in other communities, to dig in for a long time and spend lots of money to assert its will.

Well, one No on I leader seemed resigned to accept the results of Tuesday's election. Selma King told the Contra Costa Times that she was ready for election day and for the campaign to be over. "I have lost more elections then I have won," King said. "I am able to say that we did the best we could."

School parcel tax extensions win voter approval

Measures G & H, the initiatives to permanently extend parcel taxes in the Acalanes Union and Walnut Creek school districts, both passed with more than 2/3 of the votes needed to win.


With all precincts reporting, voters approved Measure G, Acalanes' $189 per parcel tax extension, by 73 percent. Voters likewise approved Measure H, Walnut Creek's $82 per parcel tax by 73 percent.

Garamendi is CD-10's new rep in DC

The Associated Press and other news organizations have declared John Garamendi the winner in California's 10th congressional race. He will take Ellen Tauscher's place as our local representative for the U.S. House of Representatives.

According to KCBS: California Lt. Gov. John Garamendi, a Democrat, has defeated his Republican opponent in a Contra Costa congressional race to replace Ellen Tauscher.

With about a third of the votes counted in the East Bay, the Democrat and longtime player on California's political stage was ahead by nearly 16 points over David Harmer.

Walnut Creek's pro-Neiman Marcus Measure I leading so far

In early results, the Contra Costa County elections division shows that Measure I, which would allow Broadway Plaza to bring a new 92,000-square-foot department store into downtown Walnut Creek, is receiving a 70 percent favorable approval. With three of 26 precincts reporting, 70 percent of Walnut Creek voters have said "yes" to Measure I; nearly 30 percent have said no.

These results cover around 14,000 votes cast so far.

Measures G & H: Early results show they are passing the 2/3 "yes" vote necessary

In very early results, the two measures to extend parcel taxes in school districts covering Walnut Creek elementary and middle schools and Walnut Creek and Lamorinda high schools are receiving a very positive response from voters. Both measures, so far, have received more than than the 2/3 of voter approval needed to pass.

With seven of 49 precincts reporting, Measure G, which would allow the Acalanes Union High School District to permanently extend its $189 per-parcel tax, has received a "yes" vote from nearly 74 percent of voters so far. Twenty-six percent of the total 24,576 have said "no."

With four of 23 precincts reporting, Measure H, which would allow the Walnut Creek school district to permanently extend its $82 per parcel tax, has received a "yes" vote from 75 percent of voters so for. Nearly 25 percent of the total 10,790 have said "no."

Associated Press calls Garamendi winner in California's 10th congressional race; so far, early results show Garamendi in the lead

UPDATE 9:20 p.m. CBS5 says the Associated Press is calling the 10th congressional race, to replace former U.S. Representative Ellen Tauscher, for her fellow Democrat, state Lt. Governor John Garamendi.

As of 8:30 p.m.: Garamendi had been leading his main opponent, David Harmer, in the race for U.S. representative in California's 10th congressional district.

Garamendi was leading Harmer, a Republican and San Ramon attorney, with 56 percent of the vote. That is, with 78 of 273 precincts reporting. Harmer has nearly 40 percent of the vote.

Contra Costa Times' Lisa Vorderbrueggen's Political Blotter column reports that vote-by-mail results posted in Contra Costa County show Garamendi leading with 57percent compared with 38 percent for Republican David Harmer.

Willows Theatre in Concord will close for good

After 34 years of award-winning plays and musicals, the Willows Theatre Company will shut its doors at its venue at the Willows shopping center. Ongoing financial problems, coupled with the recession, forced managers to decide to lower the curtain for good on November 30.

However, the Willows Cabaret in Martinez will be improved and remain open.

Here is the rest of the press release from the company:

The company had warned on Sept. 2 that unless it raised $350,000 by Nov.1, closure of one or both venues was likely.

“It is with enormous regret, reluctance and emotion that we have been forced to make this painful decision,” said Richard Elliott, the Willows’ artistic director. “Although we received donations from generous patrons and supporters as well as through fundraising events, the money collected was insufficient to allow us to continue our current or future seasons at the Willows.

“Our precious resources will now be dedicated to the Cabaret, where for starters we will improve seating and offer a great lineup of shows, including one that had been scheduled at the Willows.”

Barefoot in the Park, the comedy now running at the 210-seat Willows, will complete its engagement on November 8 as planned, after which the theater will close for good.

Shows scheduled at the Cabaret include 37 performances of Hats, opening November 23, and a productions of “Brimstone” that had been planned for the Willows. The Cabaret’s 2010 season will be announced soon.

Subscriptions and tickets held by patrons for the 2009-10 season shows at the Willows will be honored at the 150-seat Cabaret, Elliott said.

“We and the majority of our patrons already feel that the Cabaret is a great showplace and it’s going to get even better,” he said.

Working with City of Martinez officials, the Willows staff and board of directors are exploring improvements, including more outdoor lighting and convenient parking around the Cabaret and new, comfortable seats. Other physical enhancements will be made as funding becomes available, Elliott said.

He said patrons will be offered complimentary wine and hors d’oeuvres, courtesy of local food establishments, prior to every performance of “Hats,” opening November 23. Opening night champagne receptions, a patron amenity for years at the Willows, will now take place at the Cabaret, Elliott said.

“Our goal is to make Martinez a destination by providing the best entertainment value and experience for current and new patrons that our resources will allow,” Elliott said.

Charles Lewis, the company’s board president, said directors and staff have struggled for more than a year to cope with higher costs, increasing debt, and a decline in patronage, due in large part to the downturn in the economy.

“These factors left us no choice but to sharply reduce our expenses,” Lewis said. “We did so by reducing full-time staff from ten to five and reluctantly eliminating costly marketing activities that are essential to attracting audiences to our shows, most of which have been critically and publicly acclaimed and a number of which have received awards. In the end, the reality is that we could no longer operate two theaters and conduct business as usual.”

Lewis said maintaining the Cabaret, which opened at 636 Ward Street three years ago, will not be without “formidable challenges.”

“We are developing a business plan that should get us through our crisis, but clearly our future success will depend heavily on continued financial support from all sources,” he said.

Since the Willows Theatre opened in the shopping center in 1977, the company has presented over 200 productions, including premieres of new works like Brimstone, Grover, and The Night of the Hunter. The company also produced large-scale shows at the John Muir Amphitheater and other venues in Martinez, including John Muir’s Mountain Days, and Sacagawea, both new works, and a July Fourth concert.

Many performers got their start and enhanced their careers at the Willows, and the Willows Conservatory has taught thousands of young performers the craft of theatre, both onstage and backstage. The conservatory program will remain an essential component of the theatre company.

With its payroll, hiring of actors and promotion of its location, the Willows Theater also contributed to the economic vitality of Concord and the shopping center.

“With patron support and ongoing fundraising efforts, we expect to have a similar impact at our Cabaret in downtown Martinez,” Elliott said. “We already have seen an upswing in restaurant business in the area.”

The company’s administrative offices, rehearsal studios and scene shop are also in Martinez.

Vote Tuesday!

Yeah, 2009 is an off-year for an election, and the ballot list isn't long, but try as much as you can to vote.

We've got some vitally important local races.

There's the election to decide our next local representative in the 10th U.S. Congressional District. The main contenders are Lt. Governor John Garamendi (Democrat) and San Ramon attorney David Harmer (Republican).

For those who live in Walnut Creek, you get to decide on the future of Broadway Plaza by voting "yes" or "no" on Measure I. A "yes" vote would allow Broadway Plaza to build a new department store--effectively, a Neiman Marcus--in downtown Walnut Creek.

Then there are the measures to extend parcel taxes for our local school districts: Measure G for the Acalanes Union High School District and Measure H for the Walnut Creek School District.

Good for you if you got your mail-in ballots in. And good for you if you've marked in time in whatever calendar you use to stop by your neighborhood polling place to vote.

Don't make the poor choice I made in last May's special election, when I didn't vote. Don't pull a Meg Whitman.

Come on, there's something very cool about getting to vote tomorrow. Those of us in the 10th congressional district get to decide on whom we want to send to Washington to represent us. Walnut Creek-ans get to decide on the enormously fateful question of whether they want a new luxury department store in town, and, we hope, put this whole Neiman Marcus controversy behind us. And property owners who live within two school district boundaries get to decide whether they think the schools need their financial help, via permanent parcel tax extensions.

Look, there is not a lot we can control in what's going on in the world, in this country, or even in this state. But we can make these local decisions that, especially with the school measures, affect us in an almost day-to-day way.

Full moon tonight: Will you sleep?

I'm not sure I will. I predict I'll fall asleep reasonably well tonight then awake at 1, 2, or 3 a.m. and not be able to go back to sleep. And, it won't just be because the light of the full moon is briefly shining in my window.

It's something more. A sort of alertness and excitement that comes over me during the full moon. Sometimes, I'd even describe it as a low level of mania--if you want to get all DSM-IV about my symptoms.

Scientists seem to scoff at the idea that humans' moods or sleep patterns are affected by the lunar cycles. Scientists also seem dismissive of the idea that women's monthly menstrual/fertility/hormonal cycles are influenced by the phases of the moon.

Whatever.

I can't say I've been all that in touch with my monthly hormonal cycles--and certainly not as they pertain to the moon. The thing is, I never experienced big highs or lows depending on the time of the month, and I've always enjoyed relatively fuss-free periods and low-level PMS.

Until the past few years...

Oh, gee, am I making the male readers out there cringe?

Anyway, I've just noticed that I've become a tad more sensitive to mood changes during certain times of the month. Am I getting old? Or just become more in touch with my inner goddess?

This heightened sensitivity is not so awful. In fact, I have this amazing influx of energy around the time of the full moon, which, yes, does happen to coincide with the start of my period. This energy burst certainly counteracts any SAD (seasonal affective disorder) that was descending upon me.

Gentleman! Avert your eyes! Because I need to say that I have just stocked a special compartment in my purse with tampons, just in case--you know--Aunt Flo comes to visit tomorrow.

This hormonal burst of energy: It can be wonderful. It makes me feel naturally confident. My brain just seems to work better. I'm more organized, more focused on getting stuff done. And, in writing, the words feel like they flow out of me so much more easily. (Whether they are coherent to anyone else is another matter, of course.)

I wish I could have this energy pumping through me every day...

The downside is that this energy keeps me awake, or awakens me too early, on certain nights every month. This morning, I woke at 3 a.m. (4 a.m. pre-Daylight Savings Time), and I couldn't get back to sleep. My brain was on fire with all sorts of thoughts: mundane, anxiety-provoking, happy, exciting. I just lay in bed, for several hours actually, cosy under my quilt with the chilly autumn night outside me, and let those ideas explode through my head. At some point, the big bright moon hovered in view of our bedroom window, through the branches of an oak tree. It was there for about 10 or more minutes, then descended behind another tree toward the horizon.

Anyway, I don't know if I'll sleep well tonight. And, I wonder if any of you ladies experience the same full-moon phenomenon. Or, if any of you gentlemen?

By the way, Moonconnection.com defines a full moon as when "the earth, moon, and sun are in approximate alignment, just as the new moon, but the moon is on the opposite side of the earth, so the entire sunlit part of the moon is facing us. The shadowed portion is entirely hidden from view. "

Cool, mind-bending stuff, huh? Especially if this regular lunar cycle is affecting us down on earth.

From Superintendent John Stockton: Final request for voters to say yes to Measure G

This is from John Stockton, superintendent of the Acalanes Union High School District, which covers Las Lomas High School in Walnut Creek, three other high schools in Lamorinda, one continuation high school, and a well-regarded adult education program. He explains why he believes that permanently extending the $189 per parcel tax is essential to maintaining the schools' high level of quality. Yes, as many of us know, the Acalanes district high schools consistently rank among the top high schools in the Bay Area.

Measure G - What a "Yes" Vote Provides

With Election Day upon us, it is important to reflect upon the value of the Acalanes Union High School District parcel tax in regards to the educational excellence it provides to all students. The current $189 parcel tax generates approximately $6.7 million primarily to core and elective curricular student course offerings.

The AUHSD parcel tax pays for over 70 full-time teaching positions. This equates to in excess of 350 class sections of student course offerings. The average AUHSD high school has 69 full-time teaching positions. In essence, the current parcel tax pays for the teaching staff at one of the four comprehensive high schools.

Over the last several years, many districts have greatly increased class sizes and consolidated programs. The AUHSD parcel tax has buffered our students from extreme alternatives, which have been faced by other districts and will be faced by all districts next year. Sacramento has offered no signs of relief for California public schools. Local support is the best protection for any district's desire for quality education.

Many parent, civic, and K-8 school district organizations have provided great support and encouragement for Measure G during the last several months. Such sincere interest by concerned citizens promoting educational excellence has helped make the Acalanes Union High School District a nationally recognized learning community. If you have not already voted, please remember to cast your ballot tomorrow.

555YVR's press release for its affordable housing units

A representative for the 555YVR residential complex at 555 Ygnacio Valley Road contacted me today to say that the developer was not trying to "hide" its Below Market units. She sent along a press release that had been issued to media organizations. It is dated October 12, and advises that an open house to view these five units will take place on November 5.

Providing below market rate homes is a requirement by the city of Walnut Creek, therefore, it is the city's job to promote the offer of these five units and they are," writes Sarah Fiske. "BMR units are part of almost every development these days. The developer either has them onsite amidst the market rate units or puts them offsite (often the way it’s done in SF) in a stand-alone project. "

I told her I didn't know that 555YVR had made any kind of announcement, and that I'm sorry for implying that the developer was hiding anything. Sorry to readers, too.

Fiske adds that 25 percent of the units are sold, and residents have begun moving in.

And here is the press release:

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. (Oct. 12, 2009) – 555YVR, downtown Walnut Creek’s new boutique condominium residences, are now accepting applications for five below market rate (BMR) homes.

555YVR is a four-story development at 555 Ygnacio Valley Road, a block away from BART.

The available condos include:
One-bedroom live/work, $135,000
One-bedroom, $133,000 (Two available)
One-bedroom plus den, $133,000
Two-bedroom, $148,000

Applicants first time homebuyers within the past three years and have qualifying income. Household incomes can not exceed $46,350 for one person, $53,000 for two, $59,600 for three and $66,250 for four people.

Interested buyers can access an application by contacting the 555YVR sales team by phone: (925) 280-8888, by e-mail:bmr@555yvr.com, in person at the 555YVR sales center (555 Ygnacio Valley Road Walnut Creek, CA 94596), or can download a copy from www.555yvr.com. Applications are due on Tues., Nov. 10, 2009 by 5 p.m. to 555YVR sales center.

An open house to view the BMR units will be held on Tues., Oct. 27 and Thurs., Nov. 5, 2009.

For more information, call (925) 290-8888; or, visit online at www.555yvr.com

Sports dads behaving badly

During my son's time playing soccer, basketball, and softball with Walnut Creek house leagues, he's been coached by some really amazing dads, volunteering their time, sharing their love of these sports, and doing what they can to make the experience as positive as possible.

Then again, he's had a couple of these volunteer dad coaches who took things a bit too seriously and made the kids, and, especially their own sons, miserable.

In each season of each sport, there also was usually one father, or maybe two, who, on the sidelines at practices or at games, likewise took things too seriously.

When I say they took things too seriously, I mean that it was clear that the father was not all that interested in encouraging his son to improve for the boy's own sense of pride, accomplishment, and pleasure in the sport. The father's own ego was wrapped up in how his son was playing, or in how his son's team was playing. Despite etiquette laid down by the Walnut Creek Soccer Club on parent behavior on the sidelines, these dads would still yell at the kids, and not just their own. They would use a very aggrieved tone as they shouted be "aggressive," "pay attention," "move there," or even "kill 'em." And if a kid missed a shot or lost the ball, these dads would be the first to yell something negative, like "come on!" "why did you do that?"

This happened on teams, starting when the kids were 7, 8, and these teams were not designed to be hyper-competitive. These leagues were designed to get kids out and let them play a sport.

Today I read that things got really bad in a Pleasanton junior football league, on a team of 10, 11 year old boys. This team, the Cowboys, is being coached by a former Oakland Raiders tight end, Jeremy Brigham. Pleasanton police are investigating Brigham's alleged attack on the assistant coach he recently fired. This coach happens to be Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty.

According to the Matier and Ross report in the San Francisco Chronicle, Brigham believed that Haggerty had leaked plays to an opposing team, whom, inexplicably, Brigham's team just whipped. So, when Haggerty showed up to pick his son up from a practice, Brigham confronted Haggerty, "screaming." According to Haggerty, Brigham knocked his BlackBerry from his hand, pulled him over a 4-foot-fence and punched him in the back of the head.

Haggerty wound up in a neck brace, police are investigating, and the Pleasanton Junior Football League is conducting its own internal investigation. My view: if guilty, Brigham should get his own ass fired from coaching, and should not be allowed to coach a kids' sports team again.

The philosophy of the Pleasanton Junior Football League, after all, "is to teach the fundamentals of football in a safe and positive environment. All participants in our league play, regardless of talent level or ability. We strive to instill the ideals of good sportsmanship and respect for authority in all of our players."

Before firing Haggerty, Brigham would tell Haggerty to "shut up and sit down" after Haggerty complained about the team's exercise regimen. I wouldn't be surprised if Brigham had his ego wrapped up in the boys' performance and was training these boys too hard for what is safe for kids at that age.

What is it about some of these former pro players thinking they have the adult-like patience to coach kids' sports teams? Remember the big dustup involving former Raiders and 49ers playing Bill Romanowski in 2006? While coaching a Piedmont middle school team, he charged onto a field during a game in Lafayette to confront--not another adult--but a middle schooler from the opposing team, whom he thought was playing dirty.

Oh, and speaking of those Raiders and their off-field conduct, head coach Tom Cable is facing more allegations of violent, bullying behavior, this time against his former wife and girlfriend. Soon after being told he wouldn't have to face criminal charges of assaulting an assistant coach, Cable now faces accusations, made by the women on ESPN, that he hit them.

Is there too much homework and academic pressure on our kids?

Especially at younger ages? And what is the cost to their psychological and emotional well being?

You can hear one local psychiatrist’s viewpoint on these issues at a talk Wednesday evening at Murwood Elementary. David Ritvo, a Yale-trained psychiatrist in private practice in Walnut Creek, works with parents and kids in our community, and sees these issues unfold in his office every day. He’ll hold a question and answer session with parents at the event, hosted by Murwood Elementary’s PTA.

These questions become especially pressing when you’re talking about kids in elementary and middle schools. If you really start looking at the literature on this topic, you’ll find that, contrary to what you’re often told, education experts do not agree on whether regular homework at these grade levels enhances learning.

Homework is definitely a “hot-button topic,” as another suburban blogger, Kerry Dickinson writes, in her latest post on her East Bay Homework Blog. This Danville mom is a parent activist on the homework issue, and her lobbying San Ramon Valley school leaders several years ago prompted that district to look at its policy. You can read about her Dickinson’s attempt, with other parents, to transform thinking around the topic in this 2008 Diablo magazine article.

Dickinson, trained as an elementary and middle school teacher herself, began to worry about how so much evening and weekend family time was taken up by homework, and saw that it made her sons, then in elementary and middle school, anxious and miserable. She had her homework epiphany when she read The Homework Myth by Alfie Kohn.

In this tome, Kohn argues that there are no definitive studies proving homework's overall learning benefits, especially at younger ages. Indeed, he says, homework can be detrimental to children 's development by robbing families of quality time together and not allowing a kid time simply to be a kid. He points out that America’s current get-tough approach about homework, as a way of building character, actually nurtures a culture of drudgery, and not just for kids, but for parents and teachers. Homework, especially in the form of “busywork,” kills intellectual and creative curiosity, he asserts.

What do you think? What is your experience with your kids’ homework? Or, if you’re a student yourself, do you find homework helpful and challenging in a good way? Do you get too much of it—or too little?

By the way, the Walnut Creek school district is currently reviewing its homework policy.

And, if you’re worried that homework and academic pressure is stressing your kids out, you’re welcome to attend David Ritvo’s Question and Answer session. “If a healthy balance of work, love, and play is the goal for your children, the time to create that balance is now,” says the invitation to this event.

This event, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in Murwood’s library, is free, and childcare will be provided for school-age children. An RSVP is requested, but not required. Contact SMuhlenkort@aol.com

Tuesday election endorsements

No, not from me but from a more "reputable" sources, the Contra Costa Times and the San Francisco Chronicle:

Congressional District 10: Both newspapers give a thumbs up to Lt. John Garamendi. The Times says: "Garamendi's long record of service in public office makes him the best choice to represent residents in the district stretching from Fairfield through much of Contra Costa and into Livermore."

Walnut Creek's Measure I (what I'm calling the Neiman Marcus measure, even though, yes, I know, the intiative officially doesn't guarantee Neiman Marcus coming to Broadway Plaza, just a new department store): The Times says Yes.

Acalanes Union High School District's Measure G: The Times says Yes, because the district would be devastated if its $189 per parcel tax is not extended.

Walnut Creek School District's Measure H: The Times says Yes, because this extension of the $82 per parcel tax "is more critical than ever for operations."

Walnut Creek’s new affordable housing: At 555YVR

The November/December issue of Walnut Creek's newsletter, In a Nutshell, reports that five below-market-rate condominiums are available at 555YVR, the boutique residential development at 555 Ygnacio Valley Road.

But is there a backstory to this? Another blogger, WC Varones, who has been following the trials and tribulations of Walnut Creek’s luxury Mercer complex and now of 555YVR points out that whe 555YVR first opened, it was asking $700,000 for two-bedroom units and around $500,000 for 1-bedroom units. At the time it opened back in the spring, I myself asked whether, in this economic climate, a luxury condo development would sell well. By November, the Mercer, for example, had begun leasing out units to fill those that had been left unsold.

Now, according to the Nutshell, and SFGate's On the Block blog, 555 YVR is offering three 1-bedroom units for $133,000; one 2-bedroom unit for $148,000; and one live/work unit $135,000. The units are made possible through the City’s Below Market Rate program. Prospective buyers must be income-qualified, first-time home buyers within the past three years, and they will be selected through an application process. According to SFGate, household incomes of applicants cannot exceed $46,350 for one person, $53,000 for two, $59,600 for three and $66,250 for four people. But if you want to take advantage of this deal, you need to move fast. Applications must be turned in to 555 YVR by no later than 5 p.m. November 10.

This sounds like good news for people who, like Yours Truly, have jobs in low-paying professions. I’m not the sole breadwinner, but if I were, our family would most definitely qualify.
At the city-sponsored Community Conversation I attended, I expressed the view that the city needs housing that a fair number of people who work here can afford. By the way, according to the 2007 US Census, Walnut Creek’s median household income was $73,000. That’s not too far above the median household income that would qualify a family of four for one of these units in 555YVR.

The WC Varones blog, which initially tipped me off to this new affordable housing opportunity in Walnut Creek, raises the questions of what prompted this move. The blog notes that, based on this report on SFGate, that developments in other affluent communities in the Bay Area, such as in Marin County, are suddenly making affordable housing available to first-time homebuyers.

First Marin County, now Walnut Creek. Both communities -- neither of whose populaces are usually seen to be lacking in the greenbacks department -- have recently announced plans to accommodate lower income residents.