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CUYAMACA WOODS ONLY CHIPMUNK: Merriam’s ChipmunkBoard Bling

REPORT FROM THE 11/12/16 BOARD MEETING

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CW Business/Welcome 2Fire Safe Council Report 3Rain Water Collection 3Passings 4/5CW Clubs 6Hunting Regulations 7Fall Star Clusters 7

Did You Know?/Service 8

The November CWPOA board meeting, at the home of Susan Stevenson, was attended by six property owners. The board reviewed the minutes from the last meeting and then moved on to Carlene Timm’s treasurer report.

Joel Morrison reported on the roads. Some new material has been added to the roads and more work will be done in the months to come.

The Board is looking to hire someone to maintain the gates.

Please see our website cuyamaca-woods.org for our meeting schedule and location. For more information on attending, volunteering or joining the CWPOA send an email to: chair@cuyamaca-woods.org

WHEN WE BOUGHT OUR PROPERTY about a year after the Cedar Fire, I saw no chipmunks in the area. But now there seems to be a fairly healthy population of chipmunks in the neighborhood, with regular sightings on our walks…as well as from the house! In September, I saw a chipmunk each morning for several mornings in a row. On one morning it scuttled straight down our little stairway to the driveway, as if the stairs had been made for it, and then worked its way over to a bird bath. It then proceeded to jump effortlessly up to the rim of the bath and take a nice long drink!

The only chipmunk species in our area is Merriam’s Chipmunk (Neotamias merriami), so trying to figure out “which chipmunk” is never a problem for us here. It is one of thirteen species of chipmunk that can exist in the state, so we are somewhat chipmunk-poor here in southern California. As chipmunks go in the West, this species prefers somewhat lower elevations, and seems to particularly need under-story brushy vegetation for foraging in. Trees, stumps, logs, rocks and general natural debris are beneficial to it. This sounds quite a bit like many parts of Cuyamaca Woods, which may be why chipmunks are getting pretty thick hereabouts of late!

CHIPMUNKS ARE SMALL SQUIRRELS, but tend to be solitary, except during the breeding season, unlike our highly social California Ground Squirrels. Merriam’s Chipmunks only breed once per year, sometime between January and June, with peak activity in April. Females call to attract males, and then proceed to raise their young by themselves. Males are exhausted after the breeding season and spend a great deal of time in their burrows from around May until late summer.

Our chipmunks forage intensely in the morning, with almost non-stop searching for food for three to four hours. They especially prefer acorns, but will eat many other kinds of food, including “meat” in the form of insects or even lizards if they can catch them. Then they take a mid-day break, and resume foraging in the afternoon in a more relaxed manner until it is time for bed (usually in a pre-made burrow, such as those of gophers or in an unoccupied woodpecker hole). Apparently they prefer a night shelter that faces east! In fall, they will cache food by burying it and generally try to gain weight in order to increase their chances of surviving the trials of winter.

AS YOU WALK AROUND in Cuyamaca Woods, you may hear our little chipmunks calling from the thick vegetation. They will often make a “chip” sound near their night shelters. It is thought to be an invitation for other chipmunks to become vocal. A “chuck” sound achieves the opposite – it is meant to be a warning call, telling others to be quiet. Merriam’s chipmunks can live to about five years of age, and typically use the same foraging trails near their shelters, with their offspring, and offspring’s offspring using these same trails as well. If you detect a chipmunk or two near your house, watch them and

see if you see patterns in the “doings” of these little mini-squirrels. n n n ROBYN WAAYERS

CUYAMACA WOODSF A L L 2 0 1 6

© Greg Schechter through Flickr and Wikimedia Commons

CUYAMACA WOODS INCOME 7/1/16 - 9/30/16

Dues $500.00

Clothing 99.00

Calendars 60.00

Totes 4.00

Roads 100.00

Gates 125.00

CUYAMACA WOODS EXPENSES 7/1/16 - 9/30/16

Gates $761.80

Newsletters 143.64

Stationery 151.03

Roads 1,500.00

Annual Mtg. 202.14

Donation 250.00

CUYAMACA WOODS BALANCE 9/30/16

$17,692.65

C U YA M A C A W O O D S N E W S

Graphic Design: Victoria KeswickProofreading: Kim Robson

Our website has many great features including the ability to view and download our newsletters in COLOR!

If you enjoy downloading and reading the newsletter on your computer and would like to stop receiving your hard copy through the mail, please let us know by sending us a note on the “COMMENTS” page of our new website, or let us know by emailing to: newsletter@cuyamaca-woods.org

C U YA M A C A W O O D S W E B S I T E

Check It Out!WWW.CUYAMACA-WOODS.ORG

CWPOA BOARD MEMBERS

Chair Susan Stevenson chair@cuyamaca-woods.org

Secretary Mary Hart secretary@cuyamaca-woods.org

Treasurer Carlene Timm treasurer@cuyamaca-woods.org

Roads Joel Morrison roads@cuyamaca-woods.org

Newsletter Terri Groth (Editor) newsletter@cuyamaca-woods.org

Website Susan Stevenson Terri Groth webmaster@cuyamaca-woods.org

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CUYAMACA WOODS POA Business

Engineers Road - Elizabeth & Edward Jen who purchased Connie Jordan’s home.

NEW PROPERTY OWNERS Welcome

Holiday Gift Idea! Share photos of life in the Woods with our 2017 Calendar. Copies are $15 each. To order contact Terri Groth at terrigroth@gmail.com

To have your ad placed here in the next issue of CW News, please email to: newsletter@cuyamaca-woods.orgADVERTISING

CUYAMACA WOODS GATES

The CWPOA needs help to repair and maintain our community gates. We would like to hire an individual (preferably from the Greater Julian area) who is knowledgeable and willing to look after our gates, doing maintenance and repair work as needed. This is a PAID position!

Please contact Lary at 619-600-8780 or email to gates@cuyamaca-woods.org

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Cuyamaca Woods is a great place to live. It’s also one of the few communities within San Diego County that is off-grid and totally dependent on the water pumped up from under our own properties with the power generated in our community. Some of us are provided water from North Peak Mutual Water Company (NPMWC), others have their own wells; however, that water is all coming from the same basic source, the ground below Cuyamaca Woods.

The NPMWC wells can only pump so many gallons a day and high daily use creates stress on our wells to try and keep up. High use is averaging close to 200 gallons a day. We ask all users to keep your use of water closer to 100 gallons a day. So, what if you want to garden or have landscape that requires watering frequently? Consider using rainwater.

To give you an idea about how much rainwater you can collect, a roof of 1,000 square feet will provide 600 gallons of water with one inch of rain. I have been keeping records for the past 11 years and the lowest rain year was 2005/6 with 11.5 inches. That amount of rain would give you close to 7,000 gallons of water for your garden/landscape. We have had 8 years, within that 11-year span, with over 20 inches of rain; those years would allow you to collect at least 12,000 gallons of water.

Water storage tanks aren’t free, but they do get cheaper as you increase their volume. It’s about $0.90 a gallon for a 500 gallon tank and $0.42 a gallon for a 5,000 gallon tank. If you hunt around you could likely find an even cheaper price. There are folks with extensive gardens in Cuyamaca Woods that pay in the three figure range every other month for water because our tiered system for water cost is fairly steep when you get over 12,000 gallons a billing period.

So if you want an extensive garden and have a good roof to collect rainwater, going with rainwater collection may be a great idea. Here is a web site to help you along: http://www.h2o-me.comn n n GARY WAAYERS

You probably buy a lot of things from

Amazon, especially when you live out here. Have you heard of the

smile.amazon.com program? Whenever you are shopping on

Amazon, please remem-ber to start by going to smile.amazon.com and select Cuyamaca Woods Fire Safe Council as your

default charity. When you do, 0.5% of the

amount of your purchases will go to

CWFSC. That won’t be much at first, but if we all

do it whenever we are shopping on Amazon,

it will add up!

Fire Safe Council Elects New Officers & Directors Rainwater

CollectionThanks to everyone for sending in your Volunteer Match forms. We know you all do a lot of work on your property, but we need to document it for our State Grant. So thanks for taking the time to keep a record and mail it (or email it in). Please continue to do so until the grant match period ends in September 2017.

The Cuyamaca Woods Fire Safe Council has elected new officers and directors. Incoming President is John Groth, the vice-president position is vacant, Secretary will be Matt Arsena, and Terri Groth will remain as Treasurer. Remaining Board of Directors are Susan Carter, Steve Nankervis, Jon Driscoll, and Bill and Eva Stowers. Colleen Manzer is Member-at-Large.

One of the projects that CWFSC is exploring for the coming year is to put a street map at each gate that shows street addresses and where houses are located. This would help first responders reach a specific house in an emergency with less time spent backtracking and searching. It would also help firefighters in a fire emergency to know where the structures needing protection are located.

Lastly, don’t forget to use smile.amazon.com when you make a purchase from Amazon, and choose Cuyamaca Woods Fire Safe Council (or some other worthy 501c3!) as your charity of choice. The Cuyamaca Woods Fire Safe Council website is www.cuyamacawoodsfsc.org

SUSAN CARTER

A GREAT IDEA IN CUYAMACA WOODS

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Mary Ann lived life to its fullest, always seeking adventure, making new friends, lending a hand or learning a new skill. She was born and raised in New York, where she met and married Jerry. The Millers lived in Okinawa, Japan; Athens, Greece; and Boulder, Colorado before moving to Cuyamaca Woods. After raising three young men, Mary Ann returned to college and earned a degree in biology. She worked at the Grand Canyon of the Gunnison in Colorado and later for the Army Corps of Engineers. Loving travel, Mary Ann and Jerry camped in Alaska, kayaked in Chile and hiked Machu Picchu in Peru. When the Millers moved to CW, Mary Ann jumped in to help make our neighborhood a nicer place to live. A list of her many contributions includes Vice-President of the CW Fire Safe Council and Member of the CWPOA and editor of this newsletter. Mary Ann also joined the CW Book Club, the Garden Club, the Quilt Club and was the driving force behind the Walking Club. She made many friends and enriched the lives of all around her. Mary Ann’s greatest pride was her family. Our condolences to all.

My fondest memory of Mary Ann will always be walking with her. I calculated that we walked hundreds of miles together. I’d meet her at her gate and I can still see her rushing out with a cup in her hand. I can also still hear her voice and two things she said often were: “Let’s do it!” and “This is frickin’ crazy!” I’ll miss the wonderful conversations we had while walking in The Woods.

n n n TERRI GROTH

Jimmie Mastro was born Jiaccinto George Mastrogiocomo on August 6, 1927, the fifth and final child of Italian immigrants Ralph and Carmen Mastrogiocomo. He simplified his last name, used the Americanized version of his first name and enlisted in the US Navy in 1948. After an honorable discharge in 1950 he worked as a machinist, a job he held for 37 years. For the last 22 of those years, he worked for Rohr Industries machining aircraft parts. He retired in 1987 at age 60.

He and his wife Marjorie dreamed of living in the mountains. Two years before their retirement, they began building their iconic home in Cuyamaca Woods where they lived for the next 30-plus years. Jimmie was a jack-of-all-trades who used his skills in carpentry, plumbing, and electrical wiring to finish the house, turning it into a model of style and efficiency. They lived happily off the grid, with a wood stove, solar and wind power, and diesel generators for those rare cloudy days. Their house was one of the few to survive the devastating 2003 Cedar Fire, largely because Jimmie had the foresight to put sprinklers on his roof, helped by a suggestion from son “Big Jim.”

He and Marj helped establish Cuyamaca Woods, a tight-knit community, at that time mainly on Engineers Road, whose members communicated via an old-fashioned phone system. They called themselves the Cuyamaca Woods Ding-a-Lings and the original phone with ring codes is still in the house today.

Mary Ann was a dear friend. I have so many fond memories, and one that comes to mind describes her loving nature. We were walking the Grandview loop the day after a heavy rainfall and came across hundreds of worms stranded in the middle of the road. Mary Ann, ever the caretaker of nature, immediately stooped down and began picking the worms up and placing them gently on the bank where they would have a good chance of surviving. I must admit I was a bit squeamish but joined in because of her good example. We ended up spending at least an hour saving these little creatures, and when done, we walked the rest of the loop feeling like, indeed, we’d done good. I miss her terribly each and every day.

n n n SUSAN STEVENSON

Mary Ann and I had a wonderful penchant for running into each other at the Trader Joe’s in La Mesa. We were always mutually delighted to see each other and had some wonderful, casual conversations. These were the happy conversations of two women who had CW as a common thread but easily branched into other lines of discussion. I would get to hear about the goings on of the children, grandchildren, and travel plans with Jerry, and Mary Ann would hear about my work in mentoring young women who are former foster youth. We would frequently discuss the various avenues of how to best support young women as they find their way through life. The conversations were so natural and spontaneous that I always entered TJ’s hoping that I might be lucky and have a “meet up” with her.

Mary Ann was one of those wonderful people whose warmth and genuine affection come across with natural grace and sincerity. In the relatively short time that she and Jerry were in our CW community, she quickly became a “go to” person because of her ease of manner and her generosity of heart. She had boundless goodwill and wonderful energy. It still sets me back, and gives me a little start when I go into TJ’s and realize that Mary Ann and I can’t have another impromptu catch up, but the memories of those lovely conversations have a large place in my heart and I’ll always see us standing and kibitzing in the fruits and veggies corner of Trader Joe’s.

n n n MARY HART

2/18/49 – 8/11/16 8/6/27 – 9/8/16

Marj designed, and Jimmie built the beautiful signs that welcomed people to the community, as well as signs identifying side streets. Jimmie and Marj were leaders of the community and served it in many ways, most importantly by raising money for the Cuyamaca/Julian Volunteer Fire Department. Jimmie was also instrumental in bringing phone lines into Cuyamaca Woods, earning him the nick name “Dial Tone.” They were always willing to help others who needed it, and their house was open to friends and strangers alike. I remember my first knock on the kitchen door and could see Jimmie inside. He didn’t even look up but called out, “Come on in and if you have a gun, great! If you don’t, why not?” That was my first introduction to someone who always had time for a story or to lend a helping hand.

Jimmie was a motorcycle racer, prize-winning jitterbug dancer, accomplished gardener, woodsman, and craftsman. He loved life and was full of it to the end. Although Jimmie is no longer with us, and Marjie lives with daughter Connie in Arizona, their positive influence on Cuyamaca Woods will be long remembered. And they are, truly, Two of the Nicest People You’ll Ever Meet.

n n n MARY HART

Mary Ann Miller Jimmie MastroPassingsA U G U S T A N D S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 6

CU

LB

WALKING CLUBOur informal group meets each weekday morning for a 2+ mile walk along Engineers Road. Our walks are great for the mind and the body and we never seem to run out of topics to chat about.

Please join us any morning you’re free or make it a regular part of your daily schedule.

Contact Terri Groth: terrigroth@gmail.com 760-765-2734

BOOK CLUBThe Cuyamaca Woods Book Club will be discussing several books this coming winter: “Long Man” by Amy Greene and “The Lathe of Heaven” by Ursula K. Le Guin. The requirements for joining the club are that you read the book and show up to discuss it with our lively bunch of readers! The club meets at 9:45 am at member’s homes in Cuyamaca Woods.

Contact Terri Groth: terrigroth@gmail.com 760-764-2734

CW LENDING LIBRARYLocated just outside the Grandview Mountain Lion gate, feel free to TAKE A BOOK AND LEAVE A BOOK at any time.

This beautiful library box was suggested by Kim Robson, constructed by Jerry Miller (above right) and installed by Scott Stevenson (above left). Our library has beautiful new paint thanks to Kim Robson. Thanks to one and all.

QUILT CLUBThe quilt club meets occasionally to explore a fabric store, see a quilt show or just get together at a quilt lover’s home to enjoy the most recent quilting done by

members. Our next meeting will be hosted by Colleen Manzer on Friday, December 2nd. (Photo: Log Cabin by Mary Ann Miller)

Contact Colleen Manzer: cmanzer@gmail.com

GARDEN CLUBThe October meeting was a canning party hosted by Matt Arsena and Brian Barnes. All those who attended were put to work cutting and chopping vegetables to make salsa. Matt and Brian demonstrated the proper way to safely can using either a boiling bath or a high pressure cooker. As usual the gathering was a blast and the information was inspiring.

Now that the summer harvest is coming to a close, winter gardening is here.

Contact Matt Arsena: mattarsena@cox.net 858-688-5842

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THE NIGHTS WILL BE LONGER and the days will be shorter in November and December. One of the binocular highlights of the Fall skies are the two star clusters known as the Double Cluster (designated NGC 869 and NGC 884 in star catalogs). The Double Cluster is located halfway between the W-shaped constellation Cassiopeia (located just north of the zenith in the early evenings of November) and the two strings of the necklace-shaped constellation Perseus (located just east of Cassiopeia). Both young star clusters are about 7000 light years from Earth and both contain several thousand stars but you may see 200 stars in NGC 869 and 150 stars in NGC 884 in your binoculars.

Next, if you follow the north string of stars that forms one of the two strings in the constellation Perseus all the way to its end and a little further in the east, you will come to the Pleiades star cluster. The Pleiades cluster (known as the Seven Sisters from Greek mythology) is considered by many observers to be the finest open cluster in the Northern skies. Some people claim to be able to see fourteen stars naked-eye in this cluster, but the cluster contains about eight hundred stars. If the sky is especially dark and stable, you may see these giant stars as brilliant blue-white and you may be able to see some nebulosity around the southernmost bright star, Merope.

If you draw a line across the northernmost two stars of the W-shaped Cassiopeia and extend that line northeast for a distance equal to the width of the W, you will come to a string of stars known as Kemble’s Cascade. Kemble’s Cascade, an asterism and not a true cluster, is actually in the constellation Camelopardalis, contains about twenty-five stars in a typical binocular field of view and is best observed with binoculars.

FOUR PLANETS are easily visible in November. Venus can be seen about 15-20 degrees (the width of two fists at arm’s length) above the Southwest horizon at dusk and it will set about three hours after the Sun in late November and early December. Also in the

Southwest, Mercury is bright but less than 10 degrees above the horizon a half-hour after sunset. Unfortunately, Saturn sets only half-hour after the Sun by the end of November. Mars is also visible at dusk in the Southwest past the meridian (going from South to Southwest), but it is dimmer than it was in October. Jupiter is the sole morning planet in December as it can be seen rising in the East-Southeast just after 2am in the final week of November. Neptune and Uranus are also visible but you may need to consult detailed star finder charts to locate them.

THE GEMINIDS METEOR SHOWER peaks the nights of December 13th and 14th, but this is the same night as a Full Moon.

If you are interested in learning more about what you can see in the night sky right now, visit the www.astronomy.com website and click on “The Sky This Week.” If you want more information about astronomy events in the Julian area you can go to www.juliandarkskynetwork.com. You may email the Julian Dark Sky Network at juliandarkskynetwork@gmail.com.

Y Y Y BILL CARTERFall Nights – Special Star Clusters

Hunting Regulations in Cuyamaca WoodsCUYAMACA WOODS PROPERTY OWNERS can try to deter hunters from our area by posting no hunting signs at various points, especially at the entrances and along the roads bordering our properties. The board has posted signs at the two entrances to CW, along Engineers Road, and at the gates. Property owners may hunt on their own properties. With written permission, a person may hunt on a property belonging to one of our property owners. The only regulation Fish & Game can enforce is that no shooting may occur within 150 yards of any habitable structure (house, barn, garage).

If you see any vehicle or persons violating this regulation, be sure to note the vehicle license number, make and model of the car, number of persons in the car and call the Sheriff at 765-4718 and/or Fish & Game at 858-467-4201. If the offender is on foot, perhaps take a photo and make the calls.

WWW.CUYAMACA-WOODS.ORG

Address Service Requested

CUYAMACA WOODS

Hunters Spotted in The Woods

CW Service Directory

IT ALWAYS SEEMS THAT THE DEER AND TURKEY know that when hunting season is open they are safe from bows and guns in our neighborhood. However, the mountain lions don’t pay attention to the NO HUNTING signs, instead they follow a meal. Be aware of our hunters for our safety and theirs.

ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A QUALIFIED PERSON to help with a home improvement project? Check out the Cuyamaca Woods Service Directory and find those individuals recommended by your neighbors. If you have had a positive experience with a service provider, please let us know and we’ll add them to the directory.

Contact Carlene Timm: treasurer@cuyamaca-woods.org

TERRI GROTH’S

D I D Y O U K N O W

CUYAMACA WOODS POA P.O. BOX 1993

JULIAN, CA 92036-1993