It makes a certain amount ofsense that one of the top itemson the Bay Area’s oldest mayor’sagenda is to involve more youngpeople in the city of Concord.

“I want to acquaint youngpeople with local government,”says Dan Helix, 83. “They learnabout the state and federal gov-ernments in schools, but so

More than 100 local resi-dents crowded into a meetingroom at the Clayton Library onJan. 23 for a heated discussionsurrounding the closure of FireStation 11, the city’s only sta-tion, expressing concern onhow their families will continueto be protected.

County Supervisor KarenMitchoff, Contra Costa CountyFire Protection District FireChief Daryl Louder, and PatFrost, the County Director ofEmergency Medical Services(EMS) all addressed the issue,

Between Olympic BronzeMedal-winning hometownheroes Kara Kohler and Krist-ian Ipsen, and Clayton ValleyCharter High School’s outstand-ing football season, Clayton hasenjoyed more than its share ofathletic success this year,

You can add two morenames to the championship list:in January, Clayton residentsCraig Johnson and wife JoanLundahl won second place inthe 2013 World Championshipsof Country Dance, held at theOpryland Hotel in Nashville,Tennessee.

Lundahl also won first placein the Advanced/All-StarsCountry Two-step Jack & Jilland is currently ranked numberone on the Country Two-stepTour.

Partners since 2004, the duohas earned a combined total offour World Championship titlesand is the 2012 United CountryWestern Dance Council WorldsPoints Champions for CouplesCrown.

The city of Clayton and theClayton Community Churchfinalized a deal last week that bothsides called a win/win. The citywill purchase the larger of the

church’s two downtown parcels –1.66 acres between Main Streetand Clayton Road – for $1 mil-lion. They also received a firstright of refusal to purchase theadjacent smaller parcel where theold Pioneer Inn houses churchoffices and meeting rooms.

The deal will assure the futurecommercial development of theTown Center and allow thechurch to complete the purchaseof a 4.5-acre building site on thehill next to Mt. Diablo Elemen-tary School – a site Robinson saysis less controversial and better

suited to the needs of the church.The $1 million purchase

price and $30,000 in closingcosts will come from the city’sDowntown Economic Develop-ment Project Account, frominterest earnings and from someother project savings.

The purchase will “severelylimit” the city’s budget forfuture improvements, said CityManager Gary Napper in hisstaff report, but it allows thecity to regain control of one ofthe last undeveloped parcels inthe Town Center.

In 2003, CCC bought thesmaller .64-acre parcel for$340,000, and renovated the oldPioneer Inn building to housetheir administrative offices. In2006, the church bought theadjoining 1.66 acres for $1.4 mil-lion and made plans to build afour-building, 42,000 square footworship center covering thewhole 2.3 acres.

But, the use was not in com-pliance with the Town Center

Around Town . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Club News . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Community Calendar . . . . .12

Design and Décor . . . . . . . .13

Directory of Advertisers . . . . .5

DVMS Reporter . . . . . . . . . .9

Fashion Over 50 . . . . . . . . .14

Fitness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Garden Girl . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Performing Arts . . . . . . . . . .13

Pets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Police Activity Report . . . . .15

Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Safety Zone . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Teen Speak . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Weather Words . . . . . . . . . . .9

What’s Inside

PRSRTSTD

US POSTAGE

PAID

CLAYTON, CA

PERMIT190

I am very pleased toannounce that followingmonths of negotiation, theClayton City Council has votedunanimously to purchase the1.66 acre parcel in the ClaytonTown Center from the ClaytonCommunity Church for a mutu-ally-acceptable price of $1 mil-lion. Escrow will close beforeMarch 15. The purchase andsale agreements were signed fol-lowing the special meeting ofthe council on Jan. 31 with

JULIE PIERCE

MAYOR’S CORNER

A win/win for city and church

See Mayor, page 8

See Two-step, page 3

See Helix page 7

See Land Sale page 4

CCC, city ink deal for Main St. parcel

DENISEN HARTLOVE

Clayton Pioneer

See Station 11, page 6

TAMARA STEINER

Clayton Pioneer

PEGGY SPEAR

Clayton PioneerPEGGY SPEAR

Clayton Pioneer

www.claytonpioneer.com February 8, 2013 925.672.0500

IT’S YOUR PAPER

Young at heart:Helix wantsConcord youth to step up

Tamara Steiner photo

CLAYTON COMMUNITY CHURCH HAS AGREED TO SELL the undeveloped 1.66-acre portion of their downtown property to the city ofClayton for $1 million, abandoning their controversial plans to build a worship center in the city’s commercial center. The churchhas acquired a non-commercial site on the hill next to Mt. Diablo Elementary School and will build there instead.

A JUBILANT MAYOR JULIE PIERCE

and CCC Pastor ShawnRobinson sign the sales agree-ment for the $1 million deal.

Clayton’s dancing royalty, husband andwife team two-step into the limelight

Fire stationclosure ishot topic forresidents

JOAN LUNDAHL AND CRAIG JOHNSON took second place in the world country dance competition inNashville in January. The Clayton couple have been dance partners since 2004.

CCFPD FIRE CHIEF DarylLouder details the district’splans for emergencyresponse at the communitymeeting Jan. 23

East Bay Regional in NatureActivity Guide

Inside this paper

CONCORD MAYORDAN HELIX

It was a beautiful winter Saturday afternoonlast month when Diamond Terrace RetirementCommunity celebrated 10 years in the Claytoncommunity with a reception. The first resident ofDiamond Terrace, Lora Ingalls, now 93-½ yearsyoung, announced to the crowd of over 150 resi-dents, family, friends and staff that “I have beenhere 10 years and one week!”

Administrator Ellen Diamond, who has beenat the Clayton facility for about three years, wasthe mistress of ceremonies for the brief ceremo-ny that honored eight ladies who are still at Dia-mond Terrace and have been residents for 10years. Besides Ingalls, Lu Brown, Marge Crawford,Vonna Rainbow, Winnie Reed, Wilma Stone andMarie Sutton were conspicuously wearing yellowrose corsages. Dottie Bornemann is the eighth “10year” but wasn’t on hand for the reception.

Clayton Mayor Julie Pierce and councilman JimDiaz circulated around to each table greeting the res-idents and their families.

Steve Swan brought his Frank Sinatra TributeShow to the festivities performing some Old BlueEyes favorites.

Around Town

Claire and Richard Mittoneof Clayton celebrated their 60thanniversary this month with afamily dinner at the Black AngusRestaurant.

The couple met at a teenageclub dance. They dated for fouryears before marrying on Jan.31, 1953 at St. Cyril’s Catholic

Church in Oakland.The Mittones have 7 chil-

dren: Linda, Leslie, Lorie,Lance, Larry, Anthony andBrett; 21 grandchildren; and fivegreat-grandchildren. Most livein the area. They will celebratefurther with family on a cruiseto Alaska in July.

Mittones celebrate their60th anniversary

MARSH CREEK KINDERCARE and the Contra Costa County SheriffSafety ID Program teamed up on Jan. 26 to fingerprint and pho-tograph local children for parents’ home safety records. ClaytonPolice Department cadets assisted with the 86 participants.

KinderCare kids fingerprinted

Diamond Terrace celebrates 10 years in Clayton and still going strong

PETE AND CAROL CHROBAK celebrated their 50th wedding anniver-sary at the Lafayette Park Hotel with family and friends. Pictured are the couple and their four children. From left, Lori,David, Carol and Pete, Michael and Deb Chrobak.

Chrobak Golden Anniversary

KimberlyCerruti ofC l a y t o nmade theDean’s Listat the Uni-versity ofPortland forthe fall semes-ter 2012. Kimberly is a junior,majoring in nursing and thedaughter of Tammy and RonCerruti of Clayton.

Another Claytonian, JamesMagas, a senior majoring inmechanical engineer also madethe list which requires a 3.5grade point average to be namedto the list.

Two Claytonscholarsnamed to

Dean’s List

Page 2 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com February 8, 2013

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Jay Bedecarré photo

LORA INGALLS (RIGHT), NOW 93-½ YEARS YOUNG,moved into the brand new Diamond TerraceRetirement Community in January 2003. Tenyears later Ingalls and seven other newcomersin 2003 are still living in the Clayton facility,which celebrated 10 years in operation lastmonth with a reception. Administrator EllenDiamond (left) was mistress of ceremonies.

Kimberly Cerruti

After a six-day trek climbingMt. Kilimanjaro with its eleva-tion of over 19,000 feet, stayingon her feet to dance for 26hours will be a walk in the park.

What brought Clayton resi-dent Mackenzie Ayers to Africalast summer is the same causethat she will be dancing for onFeb. 16 and 17 in DanceMarathon: educating peopleabout HIV and AIDS. Ayers isparticipating in this fundraiserheld by the Pediatric AIDSCoalition (PAC) at the Universi-ty of California, Los Angeles.

“It’s a really hard thing, butone day of your life affects kidsall over the world,” Ayers says.

Ayers is in her second year ofstudy at UCLA with a doublemajor in political science andpsychology. She is interested ingovernment and wants to be apsychologist.

“I love to hear people’sissues; I love to help people.”

Though she admits, initially,it was for selfish reasons, to gainworld experience, that she vol-unteered with Support for Inter-national Change. SIC educates

school and community groupsin Africa about HIV, tests resi-dents and provides care forthose who tested positive.

“It changed me forever. All

over the world, it’s (HIV andAIDS) a huge problem. It’s sad;it’s so preventable.”

Now, Ayers is the campuscoordinator for SIC and couldnot wait to sign up for DanceMarathon. The focus of PAC ispediatric HIV and AIDS. Forthe last 11 years, the marathonhas contributed more than $3million to its beneficiaries: Eliz-abeth Glaser Pediatric AIDSFoundation, Project Kindle andUCLA AIDS Institute. Themarathon brings together thou-sands of students, parents,alumni, community membersand celebrities. Dancers learnmore about the disease, meetyoung children affected and jointhe fight for a cure.

“I’m literally taking a stand,”Ayers says, against pediatricHIV and AIDS.

To donate on behalf of Macken-zie Ayers, go to payitsquare.com/collect-page/9941. For more informa-tion about the event and PAC, go towww.dancemarathon.ucla.edu.

It’s particularly impressivesince couples dance competi-tions have been steadily gainingin popularity, thanks to theexposure from such T.V. pro-grams as “Dancing With theStars” and “So You Think YouCan Dance.”

The two have traveled world-wide in competitions, oftenserving as judges or performingfor other dancers. It’s a wonder-ful way to “spend my retire-ment,” says Lundahl, who lefther administrative position atFoothill Middle School in Wal-nut Creek almost four years ago.

They also teach dance at LevityFitness in Clayton, and otherBay Area studios.

Country Western is just oneof the styles of dancing the duoperforms, as competitionsrequire a mastery of suchdances as the Triple Two-step,the Polka, the Cha-Cha, the EastCoast Swing, Night Club Two-step, and the West Coast Swing– the official dance for the stateof California.

Once viewed as an “artistic”pastime, couples dancing nowenjoy athletic status at anOlympic level, requiring keen

physical fitness and the ability todance in high heels.

“I’m in better shape thanI’ve ever been in, and I need itto do what we do,” Lundahlsays. She had just left Foothillwhen she suffered a recurrenceof breast cancer. Her dancecareer helped her through thetreatment and reconstructivesurgeries. “I kept telling myself Ihad to get healthy, because Ineeded to dance.”

The next step on their dancecard is the Calgary Dance Stam-pede in Canada in April. Thetwo were “white-hatted” andmade “honorary Calgarians”after winning the Dance Stam-pede in 2011. The iconic white

hat is bestowed on visiting dig-nitaries, and Johnson and Lun-dahl share the honor with U.S.presidents, the Dalai Lama andeven Will and Kate.

It’s not a cheap pastime, asLundahl’s costumes can cost asmuch as $3,000, and travelexpenses can escalate. Butbetween their work as coachesand judges – plus some prizemoney – Lundahl says they“happily break even.”

“I am passionate about danc-ing,” she says. “When I was beingtreated for cancer, I told myself‘this isn’t how my life is going toend. I have more to do.’”

And she and Craig are doingit, one two-step at a time.

Mackenzie Ayers will dance for AIDS education

February 8, 2013 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com Page 3

Two-step, from page 1

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Coming S

oon

Clayton resident Mackenzie Ayers taught HIV/AIDS awarenessin a rural village in Africa during the summer of 2012. OnFeb. 16 and 17, she will dance the night away to raise fundsfor the fight against pediatric HIV and AIDS.

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Clayton Pioneer

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Specific Plan (TCSP) which callsfor commercial development inthe town center, and resistance tothe project reached the boilingpoint when the EnvironmentalImpact Report detailed the park-ing and traffic issues that the proj-ect would create.

“It was a public relationsnightmare,” said one source closeto the church, who asked not tobe named. “The last thing achurch wants is that kind ofcontroversy.”

By moving their plans to thehillside property, Robinson hopesto quiet the controversy andbecome the “blessing to the com-munity” that he has said he alwayswanted to be.

The hillside property will pres-ent both opportunities and hur-dles, said Robinson. By building

outside the Town Center, theywon’t be required to construct themore expensive two-story build-ings nor provide the retail spacerequired by the TCSP

And the hillside parcel is bigenough to keep all parking onsite. This was a huge hot buttonwith the previous plans whichrelied on public parking to meettheir parking requirements.

He expects to work with theschool district to plan a sharedagreement which would increaseparking at MDES. He believesaccess from Oak Street will helprelieve before- and after-schoolcongestion. However, engineeringthe hillside and constructing abridge to give the property OakStreet access will be a challengeand expensive.

Robinson says he has met

with little resistance from theneighbors at the new site.Charmetta Mann and Janet East-on who live directly across PineHollow Court from the newchurch site were initially opposedto the idea. But, they feared theproperty would be sold to a devel-oper for high density housing andsay the church is a better choice.

“It’s a one story building andwon’t block our view of themountains,” said Easton. “Andit’s better than a 30-unit condoproject.”

The church expects to closeescrow on the 4.5-acre hill prop-erty by June 15, but they still needto raise another $350,000 to coverthe closing costs.

“For everyone that didn’t wantthe church downtown, this is yourchance,” quipped Robinson.“You can help us raise the$350,000 we need to close on thenew property.”

On Jan. 24, Lindsay WildlifeMuseum hospital staffreleased an adult femalesharp-shinned hawk back tothe wild. Her liftoff near theClayton Library was a mar-velous sight, says wildliferehabilitation director SusanHeckly, as the bird took offstrongly and flushed a flockof songbirds out of the treesas she rose through the air.The hawk had been found inClayton at the end ofDecember, unable to standand with an injured wing. X-rays showed she had frac-tured her clavicle (a bonethat helps create the shoulderjoint). Injuries like these areespecially serious in birdsthat need to fly well enoughto maneuver around trees,but rest and immobilizationallowed this hawk to healcompletely. If you find aninjured bird or animal, con-tact Lindsay Wildlife Museumat 925-935-1978.

Land sale, from page 1

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Visit us at ClaytonValleyShell.com for more promotions Think orange, the happier, heart-healthy colorFebruary is American Heart

Month according to the Ameri-can Heart Association. Pleasehelp Anna Chan, The LemonLady, celebrate by sharing sea-sonal fruit with a nearby foodpantry.

THINK HEALTHY.THINK ORANGE.

Oranges, lemons, mandarinsand kiwi are in season and bow-ing the boughs of trees acrossthe city. Share the fruit or volun-teer time to collect it.

February is also The LemonLady’s 5th anniversary of herlemon project. She has collectedover 10,000 boxes of produce

equaling $1 million worth offruits and vegetables that shedonated to local charities to feedthe hungry.

It takes a simple act of kind-ness to bring fresh fruit to afood pantry. One person. Onetree. It all begins somewhere.The Lemon Lady asks, “HaveYOU picked a tree today?”

Here are her five simple tipsto a happier, healthier heart:

1. Walking is healthy exercise foryour heart. Go for a walk aroundthe neighborhood today. Youwill find many fruit trees burst-ing with ripe oranges, lemonsand other citrus.

2. Making friends is healthy foryour heart. I have met thousandsof fruit tree owners in the BayArea. They are kind and gener-ous souls who love to share.Make new friends today.

3. Picking fruit is healthy exercisefor your heart.

4. Eating fresh oranges is healthynutrition for your heart.

5. The joy of giving and sharingis a healthy emotion for your heart.

What are you waiting for...?

For more information or to contactAnna Chan, The Lemon Lady, go tothelemonlady.blogspot.com.

Clayton hawk returns home to soar again

Lindsay Wildlife Museum

SERVICES

Flower Gardening by

Nicole Hackett

Perennial, ornamental, rose

and container care. Keep

your garden in flowers this

year with monthly fertilizing

and pruning visits. Email for

consultation or details.

Gardengirl94517@yahoo.com.

WANTED

Come join Mazzei Realty!

Currently interviewing and hir-

ing new and experienced real

estate agents. Call 693-0757

for details.

Real Estate Agents

Be Successful! Lynne French

is expanding and interviewing

for a few agents. Call her

today 672-8787.

VOLUNTEERS

NEEDEDHelp Fight Hunger

Anna Chan – AKA: The

Lemon Lady needs your help!

Weekly commitment appreci-

ated. For more info and con-

tact numbers, go to thelemon-

lady.blogspot.com.

Hospice of the East Bay

Help needed at Hospice of the

East Bay Concord Thrift

Shoppe located at 5350

Clayton Road, Concord. 674-

9072. For information contact

Carmen Siems, volunteer coor-

dinator at 887-5678 or car-

mens@hospiceeastbay.org.

Clayton Historical Society

Museum

The Clayton Historical Society

Museum needs a greeter for

two hours per month from 2-4

p.m. Wednesdays or Sundays.

Call the museum at 672-0240

and leave your name.

Clayton Community Library

Needs volunteers. Minimum

age 13. Minimum commitment

is 6 months. Some training

provided. Contact: Arlene at

673-9777 or

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P.O. Box 1246

6200 Center Street, Suite H, Clayton, CA 94517

TAMARA AND ROBERT STEINER, PublishersTAMARA STEINER, EditorPETE CRUZ, Graphic DesignPEGGY SPEAR, Copy Editor JAY BEDECARRÉ, Sports PAMELA WIESENDANGER, Administration

STAFF WRITERS: Denisen Hartlove, Nicci Shipstead, PamWiesendanger, Peggy Spear

We remember Jill Bedecarré - Her spirit is our muse

Auto

Clayton Auto Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .686-1000

Clayton Valley Shell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-3900

Beauty and Pampering

Bella Mia Spa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .680-7792

Business Services

Rising Moon Marketing & Public Relations . . . . .672-8717

Chiropractor

Coflin Chiropractic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-0500

Construction and Trades

Appliance Repairs by Bruce, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-2700

Belfast Plumbing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .457-5423

Burkin Electric . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-1519

Diablo View Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .822-5144

Iron Horse Concrete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .595-3951

RS Painting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .408-2818

Steffan Smith Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .914-0497

Tipperary Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .216-2679

Dentistry

Perfect Smiles Family Dentistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . .889-9212

Dining and Entertainment

Clayton Club Saloon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .673-0440

Cup O’Jo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-5105

Memo's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .914-0395

Oakhurst Country Club . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-9737, ext. 205

Financial and Insurance Services

Held, Chris – Morgan Stanley Smith Barney . . . .930-3815

Leraul, Luciann – CPA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .518-9076

Littorno, Richard – Attorney at Law . . . . . . . . . . .432-4211

Miller, Tom – CPA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .354-1385

Prosperitas Wealth Management . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-7700

Van Wyck, Doug – State Farm Insurance . . . . . .672-2300

Funerals

Ouimet Funeral Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .682-4242

Home and Garden

Abbey Carpet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .686-9901

Clear Splash Pool Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .216-6245

Diablo Lawnscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .381-3757

Diablo View Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-8300

Flooring City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .680-8220

Interiors Panache . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-7920

Just Floors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .681-4747

Navlet’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .681-0550

Nichols Landscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-9955

The Maids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .798-6243

Utopic Gardens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .524-0055

Waraner Bros. Tree Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .831-2323

Waraner Tree Experts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .250-0334

Mailing Services

The UPS Store . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .689-6245

Optometry

Foresight Optometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-4100

Pet Services

Monte Vista Veterinary Hospital . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-1100

Pittsburg Pet Resort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .432-7387

Rodie's Feed and Pet Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-4600

Real Estate and Mortgage Services

French, Lynne – Windermere Real Estate . . . . . .672-8787

Howard, Don – Better Homes Realty . . . . . . . . . .408-3184

Klock, Leigh – Coldwell Banker . . . . . . . . . . . . . .212-5593

Laurence, Pete – RE/MAX Realty . . . . . . . . . . . .890-6004

Lopez, Stephanie – Coldwell Banker . . . . . . . . . .932-7329

Mazzei, Matt – Mazzei Realty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .693-0757

Stojanovich, Jennifer – Better Homes Realty . . .567-6170

Vujnovich, George - Better Homes Realty . . . . . .672-4433

Recreation and Fitness

Clayton Valley Bowl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .689-4631

Earthquake Arabians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .360-7454

East Bay Regional Park District . . . . . . . . . .888-327-2757

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saries, births and deaths all weavetogether as part of the fabric of ourcommunity. Please let us know ofthese important events. We ask onlythat the announcement be for a Clay-ton resident. You will find the appro-priate form for your announcementon our Website. Attach your photo tothe form. Make sure the image sizeyou are about to send is at least 3 MBbut not bigger than 6MB. The onlyformat we accept is JPG. You can alsomail or bring your print to the officeand we can scan it for you.

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LETTERS TO THE EDITORThe Clayton Pioneer welcomes

letters from our readers. As a generalrule, letters should be 250 words orless and submitted at least one weekprior to publication date. Letters con-cerning current issues will have prior-ity. We may edit letters for length andclarity. All letters will be published atthe editor’s discretion.

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E-mail your letter in a Worddocument to tamara@clayton-pioneer.com. Letters MUST be sub-mitted via E-mail.

Jerry Johnston of Claytondied on January 23.

Jerry was born in Darling-ton, Wis. on May 20, 1959. Hegraduated from Mineral PointHigh School in Mineral Point,Wis. After high school, Jerryattended the University of Wis-consin, Platteville, where heearned a degree in mechanicalengineering.

Outside of his career withClorox, Jerry was very involvedin the community as a youthsoccer and CYO Track andField coach. With his love of

sports came his devotion to theGreen Bay Packers and Wiscon-sin Badgers.

The Johnstons have beenresidents of Clayton for 11years.

Jerry is survived by his wifeof 29 years, Gwen Johnston;his two children Bryan andAmanda; his parents Brackenand Patricia Johnston (of Wis-consin) and his sister MarciaGratz (of Wisconsin). He ispreceded in death by his broth-ers Bruce, Scott and DavidJohnston.

February 8, 2013 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com Page 5

Obituary

Jerry Alan JohnstonMay 20, 1959 – January 23, 2013

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Why do you read the Pioneer?

“Hi Tamara: We want to let you know how much we enjoy the Clayton Pioneer.It really makes us feel connected to the community. When we takethe mail out of our mailbox and the Clayton Pioneer is there, it'sthe first thing we read. Thanks for a great publication.”

BARBARA AND RON JACOBS

detailing their plans for keepinglocal residents covered whenemergencies occur.

The Contra Costa CountyFire Protection District –known as ConFire – closed fourfire stations in central ContraCosta County, including Num-ber 11, on Jan. 15, leaving 24stations in operation to cover its300 square miles. ConFireemploys about 250 personnel,from fire inspectors to para-medics.

According to Louder, nowthat Station 11 has been“destaffed,” the team from Sta-tion 22 near the Crystyl Ranchhousing development will workout of the Clayton station dur-ing part of the district’s peak callhours of 2 p.m. until 8 p.m.,Monday through Saturday. TheClayton station will stand emptyon Sundays.

He hopes this rotation ofstaff will be able to keep callresponse time for the area asclose to the previous six min-utes, 34-second average time aspossible.

But already, the averageresponse time to calls in the areahas lengthened almost a minuteand a half to what Louder esti-mates to be eight minutes, 18seconds.

That extra 104 seconds maynot seem like a long time. Butaccording to the National FireProtection Association, in casesof cardiac arrest, stretchingresponse time to eight minutesfor basic life support to beadministered can mean the dif-ference between a healthyrecovery and permanent braindamage.

Frost said that time waitingfor emergency personnel to

arrive time can be bridged byanyone willing and able to per-form CPR.

“[CPR] can be provided by abystander, a law enforcementperson with an automated exter-nal defibrillator device, a fire-fighter, or just the public, likesomeone in the home,” she said.

AMR TO RELOCATE

AMBULANCES

In response to the closures,American Medical Response isadjusting the locations where itsambulances are stationed tomake them more rapidly avail-able in case of a medical emer-gency when local firefighters areout of the area at other calls.

“I think it’s important for thecommunity to understand thatthe EMS agency is working withthe fire and the ambulanceproviders to ensure that fire isgoing to the most critical 911calls,” said Frost. “The vastmajority of 911 calls are notcritical.”

AMR’s current area responsetime averages seven-to-eightminutes.

Frost said there were noplans to increase the number ofambulances to make up for thestretching of ConFire resources.“There is no ability for thecounty to add ambulances,because there is no funding forthat. What we’re doing is we’remaximizing the efficiency of theambulances we have.”

Clayton resident DeannaJakel isn’t impressed by the newmeasures being put in place. Sheremembers when Station 11 wasfirst built in order to ensurelocals in both old and new areasof Clayton were protected.

“I’ll just make sure to have

my heart attack between thehours of 2 and 8 p.m.,” she saidat the Jan. 23 meeting.

Officials cast blame for thefire station closures on the $32million decrease in revenues tothe district from recession-fueled property tax decreases, aswell as the failure to pass Mea-sure Q last November.

Measure Q proposed adding$16.8 million annually to districtcoffers via a $75 increase inproperty taxes. Although Clay-ton was one of the few townsthat failed to pass the measure –52 percent of city voters said“nay” – the total countywide yesvotes were in the majority, butfell short of the 66 percentsupermajority vote necessary topass tax increases in California.

ARE PENSIONS THE

PROBLEM?Debate blazed as to the rea-

son for the District’s moneytroubles.

“You guys are saying it’s arevenue issue, but it’s not. It’s aspending issue,” said one localat the meeting. Instead, pensionspending was raised by many asthe real basis of the problem.

New ConFire employees areoffered a 2.7/57 pension pack-age. This means that at retire-ment at age 57, they can take apension in a percentage equalto 2.7 times the number ofyears they worked as a firefight-er of their highest salary. Thatwould equate to a firefighterwho was paid $100,000 per yearfor his last of 30 years ofemployment being entitled to apension of $81,000 per year,funded by a combination ofinvestments made with theirown salary contributions overthe years, as well as moneyfrom the district.

Currently, more than $31million of the district’s $99.8million budget goes to pensionand retirement healthcare costs.Records show well over 100retired ConFire employees takepensions each year in excess of$100,000, with a few reachingover $200,000.

But County SupervisorKaren Mitchoff says public dis-gust at the pension figures –which led in large part to thedefeat of Measure Q – is mis-placed.

“I understand the public’sfrustration and irritation thatthey’re being asked to pay moreto get less,” she said. “We allfeel that way. But … that’s oneof the fallacies that was put for-

ward, that if we just reformpensions, we don’t have thisproblem. Because pensionreform can only affect newhires.

“Pension reform would nothave kept the Clayton stationopen,” she said.

Jim Derickson lives with hisfamily in the Clayton ValleyHighlands, and works as anAlameda County firefighter. Hesympathizes with both sides inthe debate. “I can’t really tellyou [whose fault it is],” he saidof the closures. “One thing Inoticed when I voted, rightthere it said it’s going to cost$75 a year. It sounded prettyexpensive if you really hadn’tthought it through, if you’renot someone who used 911 alot.

“If you no longer havethese services, you won’t realizethere’s a problem until youneed it,” he said. “Then yourealize what the problem is, andat that point it’s too late.”

DISTRICT CUTTING COSTS

Mitchoff cited as examplesof the District’s cutting ofcosts the two salary cuts agreedto by firefighters in the pasttwo years totaling 10 percent,and a lowering in overtimeexpenses as the firefightersfrom the now-closed stationsare sent to other stations wherethe existing staff had to workovertime hours to meet theircommunities’ needs. Based onovertime reduction alone, clos-ing the four stations equates to$3 million in savings for thedistrict.

“Measure Q was meant toget us through the hard timeswith enough financial resourcesuntil we climbed out of therecession and the property taxrevenue started climbingagain,” she said.

Although more station clo-sures loom on the horizon –Pittsburg’s station 87 may benext – Mitchoff said she seesgrowth on the horizon viaincreased property tax revenuesas the market recovers, and thepossibility of future parcel taxmeasures.

“We need to look at [chang-ing California’s constitutionalrequirement that budget adop-tions and tax increases must beapproved by a two-thirds]supermajority,” she said. “If welower the threshold, I thinkpeople will say they’re willing topay for public safety.”

Q. I recently made an offeron a property. I competedwith another buyer. The sell-ers said they would acceptmy offer when I agreed toraise my offer to over the ask-ing price. After we agreed onthe price we proceeded tonegotiate other terms likeoccupancy, limits on repaircosts, etc. Before all paperswere signed, the sellersreceived another higher offerand accepted that one. Theyhad promised my realtor overthe phone that they wouldonly work with ours. Do Ihave any recourse?

A. I am sorry this happenedto you. I would say it was rudeof the realtor and the seller butnot illegal. Verbal agreements tosell real estate are not binding.To be legally enforceable, a con-tract to buy real estate must beagreed to in writing by bothbuyer and seller.

Sometimes buyers and sell-ers engage in several rounds ofcounter-offers back and forthbefore they arrive at a contractthat is mutually acceptable. Itcould take days. It is tempting tonegotiate verbally until every-thing is agreed upon, then put it

in writing and all parties sign it.But it is critical to rememberthat every counter offer is legal-ly considered a new offer.

There is an expression in realestate that “time is of theessence.” This is true in allaspects of buying and sellingproperty. When trying to puttogether an offer, stay on courseand get everything in writing assoon as possible, even if it isinconvenient. Then make sureacceptance has been deliveredand initialed by the party ofthe previous counter offer.

Q. Our friend recom-mended a realtor to help ussell our house. It is a cousinof theirs who works a differ-

ent market in the East Bay.This agent has only sold onehouse in Clayton, a year ago.She is very nice and said herlocation doesn’t matterbecause all the realtors havethe same MLS system. Whatdo you think?

A. I hope I don’t appear selfserving but I truly believe oneshould use a local realtor. Alocal specialist can educate youabout local property values andthis can help a seller to select thecorrect list price. Correct pricingknowledge is critical if you arebuying, too, so you don’t pay toomuch. The statistical informa-tion that an agent can accessfrom a computer is often insuf-ficient and can be misleading.An agent should have seen thecomparable sales in personrather than just on the computer.

Another issue to consider isthat local agents know oneanother personally. This cama-raderie can work in a buyer’s orsellers’ best interest. The localreal estate buzz can work foryou. When you are buying in acompetitive market, most of thegood homes that are listed sellquickly and with multiple offers.If you are working with an out-

of-area agent, he or she mightnot hear of the latest listingsimmediately. Even when thesellers wait several days beforelistening to offers, it’s in thebuyer’s best interest to have asmuch lead time as possible toprepare to compete with otherbuyers. Agents are oftennervous about working with anunknown agent. If you’re mak-ing an offer in competitionagainst other buyers, the seller’sagent could favor buyers whoare working with a local agent.Realtors are like many people,they like to work with peoplethey know.

A trustworthy agent willrefer his or her clients to a localspecialist if he or she has anyconcerns about being able torepresent the client’s interests.They can receive a referral feefrom the agent they referred.And that is a win-win.

Lynne French is theBroker/Owner of WindermereLynne French & Associates and aClayton resident. For any real estateneeds or questions contact her at 925-672-8787, email Lynne@Lyn-neFrench.com, or stop in at 6200Center Street in Clayton.

Don’t rely on verbal agreements

LYNNE FRENCH

REAL ANSWERS

Station 11, from page 1

Page 6 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com February 8, 2013

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much of what affects theirdaily lives happens at a locallevel.”

Helix should know: thisisn’t his first rodeo, so tospeak. He served as mayor anda council member for Concordfrom 1968 to 1976, and aDirector of the Bay AreaRapid Transit District. He wasre-appointed to the ConcordCity Council in 2010, to servethe remainder of DistrictAttorney Mark Peterson'sterm, and was just sworn in asmayor in December.

This time around, he is per-haps learning to say “no,”more, and to keep councilbusiness from becoming a24/7 occupation for he and hiswife, Mary Lou. But other thanthat, the decorated Army gen-eral is in command of histroops.

Besides developing a strongyouth voice in the city, Helix’sother objective is to guide thecity as it develops the ConcordNaval Weapons Station.Besides his experience in localgovernment, Helix served on aU.S. Congressional Commis-sion considering structuralchanges in the Department ofthe Army, was on GovernorSchwarzenegger’s MilitaryBase Retention Commission;and co-chaired the ConcordReuse Committee for theCNWS. He has seen what thestation was, and has grandplans for its future.

“I want to make sure thiscity is good shape not only forthe next generation, but forthe 22nd Century,” he says.

To that end, using the baseto develop revenue-generating

projects is a priority. His ownvision is to see the siteanchored by a state-of-the-artsports training facility, mostspecifically for soccer, andattract businesses and projectsthat appeal to Concord’s quali-ty of life.

There are other projectsbrewing that he isn’t quiteready to talk about publically,but if he has his way, the oldbase will usher in a dynamicperiod of economic growthfor the city.

That is important to him,he says, as he has seen first-hand how hard a financial hitthe city has taken in the lastfew years, leading to layoffs invital city services and the elim-ination of some programs.

“We are now coming backfrom that,” he told a packedChamber of Commerce “Stateof the City” luncheon lastmonth. “And I’m happy to say,our future looks bright.”

To keep it that way, Helixneeds to enlist the help of thenext generation of young lead-ers. He plans to reinvent thecity’s Youth Commission, tonot only educate them but toeducate him and his colleaguesat city hall.

He will hold a meeting withcity department heads, localyouth leaders and as manyyoung people as possible laterthis month, to help him andhis fellow council membersgauge the areas of concern foryoung people, and map outprojects that will both revital-ize the community and engageyouth.

He may even get busy withthe texting he so dreads. “Weare a wired bunch” he says ofthe city council. “People canreach us at any time – byphone, email and texting – andwe will listen.”

The city of Concord isseeking residents to serve on acouple of local committees.

The city will be acceptingapplications for the newlyestablished Downtown Specif-ic Plan Ad Hoc Steering Com-mittee. Preference will begiven to people who live orwork in the downtown target

area when selecting the threeat-large members.

The role of this advisorycommittee is to help the citydirect the long-term and short-term development andimprovement of the down-town area, specifically near theBART station.

In addition to the three at-large members, the committeewill also include two city coun-cil members, two planningcommissioners, one designreview board member, oneTodos Santos Business Associ-ation member and one GreaterConcord Chamber of Com-merce member. The commit-tee is expected to meet month-

ly for approximately one year.Meanwhile the recruitment

period for applicants to theCommunity Services Commis-sion has been extended for anadditional period, until Friday,Feb. 22 at 5 p.m.

The commission is com-prised of nine members, and isseeking to fill four openingsand two alternates. This com-mission reviews fundingrequests, and advises the citycouncil on the allocation ofFederal Community Develop-ment Block Grant (CDBG)funds for programs and proj-ects, monitors the perform-ance of funded programs, andidentifies housing, neighbor-

hood, and social service needswithin the community.

Meetings are held the thirdWednesday of the month at6:30 p.m. at the Civic Center,1950 Parkside Dr., in the CityManager’s Conference Room.Members may be required tomeet more often in the spring.

Application forms are post-ed on the home page of theCity’s website at www.cityof-concord.org. Applications mayalso be obtained from the CityClerk’s office, 1950 ParksideDrive, or requested by calling925-671-3495.

Concord seeking volunteers to help with downtown planning

Helix, from page 1

The Clayton Historical Soci-ety is celebrating Joel Clayton’s200th birthday featuring his lifein a special exhibit on Feb. 10from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Joel Clay-ton House Museum. This is alsothe 36th Annual Camellia SilverTea honoring Clayton’s pioneer-ing families. Founder Joel Clay-ton’s descendants are specialguests and tea pourers. Cometo meet his great grandson,Charles Calhan, and wife, Kath-leen Calhan; their daughters,Ellen Magnie and Diane Hoff-man; and granddaughter EllenCulp, all from Sunnyvale. Alsopouring is Debora Groves, thegreat granddaughter of the for-mer owner of the Clayton Club,Carl Berendsen.

Fresh Camellias will be ondisplay to view while you enjoydelicious cookies, coffee, tea andpunch. There is no admissioncharge, but donations are grate-fully accepted. Children are wel-come with an adult.

The museum is at 6101 MainSt., Clayton. For more information,go to claytonhistory.org.

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many community members inattendance. The negotiatingteams celebrated the resolutionof their mutual agreement overice cream sundaes late last week.

The acquisition of thisvacant parcel improves the eco-nomic development potential ofour downtown as the city pro-motes commercial and retaildevelopment consistent withour Town Center Specific Plan.The city council authorized theuse of Downtown EconomicDevelopment Project Accountfunds, other project savings andinterest earnings to pay for theproperty. No general fund orreserve funds were used to pay

for the property. The ClaytonCommunity Church is continu-ing to market their office prop-erty formerly known as ThePioneer Inn.

DOWNTOWN PLANS

Speaking of commercialdevelopment, the market seemsto be waking up. In the past fewweeks, there have been severalvisitors to our community withactive interest in our downtown.City staff and our economicdevelopment subcommittee(Councilmember Dave Shueyand me) are meeting with themto encourage their investment inour community.

FIRE DISTRICT MEETINGS

The Contra Costa Fire Dis-trict hosted a community meetingon Jan. 23 to review their plans toserve Clayton’s fire and emer-gency services needs followingthe closure of our Station 11.The council ad-hoc committeewill host another meeting onMonday, Feb. 4. If you would liketo be notified of future meetings,please send me an email and I’llput you on the notice list. We arealso posting all the committeemeetings and informationalmaterials on the city’s website:www.ci.clayton.ca.us.

CAMELLIA TEA

The Clayton Historical Soci-ety’s Camellia Tea is Sunday Feb.10, from 1 to 4 p.m. Come ondown and see the current exhib-it, “The Life and Times of aTrue Pioneer of the West,” cele-brating the bi-centennial of thebirth of Joel Clayton. TheMuseum is also open (freeadmission) Sundays andWednesdays from 2 p.m. to 4p.m. A visit to the museummakes a great family outing –kids of all ages love it.

CELEBRATION AT

DIAMOND TERRACE

Congratulations to DiamondTerrace as they celebrate the10th anniversary of their open-ing. This wonderful facilityincludes more than 80 apart-ments affordable to limited-income seniors in our commu-nity. Over 100 residents, familymembers and guests attendedthe event. I was pleased to sharein the festivities with 10-yearresidents Dorothy Bornemann,Lucille Brown, Margery Craw-ford, Lora Ingalls, Vonna Rain-bow, Winnifred Reed, WilmaStone and Marie Sutton. Theywore yellow rose corsages andwere all radiant for the celebra-tion.

As always, you can contact me byemail at Julie_Pierce@comcast.net.Let me know what you think!

February is Pet DentalHealth Month so it is a goodtime to discuss a commonlyseen feline dental disease. Catsdo have their own form of cav-ities, medically called FelineOdontoclastic ResorptionLesions (FORLs) or ToothResorption (TR). Studies showthat 60 percent of cats olderthan six years will lose at leastone tooth due to this process.Unlike humans, this decayprocess is not caused by sugarwithin the diet and cannot becured with a filling. The actualcause is unknown but there aretheories depending on the typeof lesion.

There are two types ofresorptive lesions in cats. Type Iinvolves decay at and above thegum line with healthy roots.Inflammation caused by stom-atitis, severe periodontal disease,calici and FIV virus, autoim-mune disease, genetics, or evenfood allergies can stimulatedestructive cells called odonto-clasts. They slowly eat acrosstooth enamel, dentin and intothe root pulp. Eventually thecrown fractures across the gumline, painfully exposing nervetissue. Your kitty may lose herappetite, drool, have bloodtinged saliva as well as halitosisand weight loss.

Type II starts below the gumline. One theory suggests thatcats’ teeth were not made to eathard food. As they bite into ahard substance, lateral forces onthe crown cause cracks in theroots allowing the odontoclaststo enter. As the roots aredestroyed, bone producing cells,osteoblasts, move in to replacethe root with bone. This iscalled root resorption. Thecrown fractures off and gumcloses over the resorbing roots.Thus there is little to no pain.The other theory proposes highdietary levels of Vitamin Denhances this root resorptionprocess.

On oral exam you and your

veterinarian may note swolleninflamed gums. The appearanceof red gum extending up theoutside of a tooth indicates aType I lesion. When touchedwith a probe or finger nail yourcat will exhibit pain with a jawspasm and pulling away. Theselesions may be hidden by tarterand not seen until tooth clean-ing. Type II lesions are onlydiagnosed with oral x-rays. Agum covered bump indicateswhere roots have been resorbed.

Appropriate treatment

includes general anesthetic sothat a thorough dental cleaning,probing of tooth surfaces,measurement of gum pocketsand taking of full mouth x-rayscan be done to fully assess thelevel of disease present and theappropriate treatment.

Extraction with rootremoval is the treatment ofchoice for Type I, althoughsome teeth may possibly berestored by a Veterinary DentalSpecialist. For Type II, crownamputation, burring the tooth

off at the gum line, is appropri-ate if X-rays show that the rootshave been resorbed. At homefluoride gel treatment can slowthe resorptive process.

Prevention includes routinebrushing, treatment to reduceinflammation, and perhaps wetfood instead of dry.

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8-year-old Amigo is a sweet,older boy who is the ultimate lapdog. He may be a little nervousat first, but with the help of pos-itive, gentle encouragement andtasty treats, he should comearound in no time!

The adoption fee for adultdogs is $225 and includes 60%off one 7-week dog training ses-sion.

1 1/2-year-old RainbowSherbet is full of life. She seeseverything as something to

explore and play with, and is agreat huntress of toys. She seeksa cat savvy household where shecan have lots of interactive play-time and things to do. RainbowSherbet’s adoption fee has beenprepaid by a generous donor.

Meet your forever friend atTony La Russa’s Animal RescueFoundation, 2890 MitchellDrive, Walnut Creek, duringadoption hours: Noon to 5 p.m.Wednesday, 3 to 7 p.m. Thurs-day and Friday, Noon to 5 p.m.

Saturday and Sunday. The pri-mary caretaker must be presentto adopt. ARF also encourageskids 16 and younger and caninefamily members (dog adoptionsonly) to be present during theadoption process.

Would you like to be part of theheroic team that saves the lives of res-cued dogs and cats? Can you shareyour talents to connect people and ani-mals? ARF volunteers are making adifference! For more information seeour website, www.arf.net, or call925.256.1ARF.

Amigo and Rainbow Sherbetare ARF’s Adoption Stars

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Mayor, from page 1

Join this unique workshopthat blends retirement planningand effective communicationskills. Couples will learn com-munication skills and tools toensure peaceful discussionsabout money. This free, three-week series is led by an experi-enced financial planner and askilled family psychologist. Theprogram is designed for coupleswithin 10 years of retirement orwho are currently in retirement.Workshops will cover both thefinancial aspects of retirementplanning and how to speakeffectively with your spouseabout retirement concerns.

Workshops will be held atClayton Valley PresbyterianChurch, 1578 Kirker Pass Road,Clayton, on March 3, 10 and 17from 12 to 2:00 p.m. The leadersare Michael Ginsberg, JD, a certi-fied financial planner and retire-ment income specialist, and Dr.Marc D. Komori Stager who hasbeen helping couples communi-cate effectively for 20 years.

Space is limited. For informationor to register, call 287-8400 or go tomichaelginsberg.com.

Clayton ValleyPresbyterian sponsorsa Retirement andCommunicationWorkshop for Couples

Club News

Ever year at Diablo Viewparent volunteers present theSmart Start program for sixth

graders. Over the course ofseven weeks, Smart Start cov-ers cyber safety, tobacco andmarijuana, prescription drugs,inhalants, alcohol, conflict res-olution/ bullying, and peerpressure.

Kathy Verderame, the coor-dinator of the Smart Start pro-gram at the middle school, wasgenerous enough to let me talkwith her about this program that

she feels so strongly about.“I feel passionate about the

program,” she said. “The pro-gram works, because parent vol-unteers can sometimes havemore credibility than peoplewho are paid to be there. Theparents are there, because theycare.”

She is very grateful that theteachers and principal are willingto give up seven hours of class

time and that the PFC is willingto pay for the parents’ training.Usually parents who volunteercontinue to volunteer for a longtime, partly because they have togo through 21 hours of training,but mostly because they want toeducate children.

At a recent training event,Mrs. Verderame learned that 90cents out of every dollar spenton drug and alcohol abuse is

spent on rehabilitation and only10 cents is spent on prevention.This to her seems completelybackwards.

This is a great program forthe kids and parent volunteers.Kids gain the knowledge tomake smart choices when facedwith difficult situations, and par-ents can take away the satisfac-tion of knowing that they havehelped at least one kid to havethe tools that they need to makea better choice than they mighthave made otherwise.

Parents are learning alongwith the kids, especially in thearea of cyber-bullying, becausetechnology is always changing.

Now there are 10 SmartStart volunteers. If you areinterested in volunteering forPEP or Smart Start or to learnmore about either program con-tact Kathy Verderame at 925-628-2892.

Senioritis: something thatmany begin to complain aboutas early as freshman year, butdo not truly know until theyare staring graduation in theface. As the senior classreturns to school after winterbreak, we have reached thehome stretch of our highschool career. We are now sec-ond-semester seniors.

If I thought my “senioritis”was bad during the first semes-ter, it has gotten even worsenow that I know that as long as

I pass my classes, the grades Iget have no effect on whether ornot I get into college.

Don’t get me wrong: it’s notthat I don’t want to learn. Butafter going through the collegeapplication process, I’ve becomeeven more focused on my futurecareer options, as well as lookingforward to attending college andtaking classes specifically tai-lored to my interests. Therefore,I am perfectly motivated to putall of my efforts into my Eng-lish and journalism classes, and

even into government. It’s whenit comes to math and sciencethat I find myself at midnight,staring at a blank piece ofbinder paper where my home-work should be.

It can be argued that Ibrought this on myself: I didchoose to take AP classes insubjects that I have never foundto be particularly interesting.But the truth of the matter isthat in order to be competitiveon a college application, stu-dents must take difficult courses

in all subject areas to prove thatthey are a well-rounded student.Although I agree that everyoneshould be capable in all subjectareas, I can’t help but findmyself sitting in AP calculusthinking, “when am I ever goingto use this?” Unless, while incollege, I completely change mymind about something I’veplanned for since elementaryschool, I am not looking at afuture as an engineering career.Which probably means theanswer is never.

It wouldn’t be all that bad ifI found the subject matter to beinteresting. However, since I ammost definitely not the only stu-dent who feels this way, myclasses are filled with restlessteenagers whispering conversa-tions while a teacher lecturesobliviously. And even after atwo-hour block, nothing hasbeen accomplished. I realizethat this is a catch-22, because inorder for a teacher to teach aninteresting class with real worldapplications, they need studentswho are excited to learn. Andonce we’ve filled out the cap andgown forms for graduation,those are just not abundantwithin the senior class.

This is probably not the bestway to prepare for college. Ide-ally, we should be more motivat-ed than ever; we’ve worked hardto go on to bigger and betterthings in our education. But Iam just as guilty as anyone, andwonder what it says about ourgeneration, as we tend to getlazy right before the big finish.It often slips my mind that grad-uation is not necessarily an end-ing, but the beginning of ouradulthood.

Here’s an interesting weathertrivia question for you: What dothe United States, Myanmar(Burma), Belize and Liberiahave in common?

The answer is that they areamong the few countries in theworld that use the Fahrenheitscale to report temperature. Therest of the countries on ourplanet have adopted the Celsiustemperature scale. The historyof temperature measurementprovides some clues as to whythat is.

The first thermometer wasinvented in the mid 17th centu-ry, but it was nothing but anunmarked tube filled with awater/alcohol mixture that roseand fell as the temperaturechanged. About 50 years later ascientist named Gabriel Fahren-heit developed a mercury-basedinstrument.

Fahrenheit’s device meas-ured temperatures over a muchlarger range than the waterbased tube. His temperaturescale included a zero pointwhere a brine water substancefroze, and 212, the boiling pointof water. Using this scale, thefreezing point of pure water was32. The numbers on the scale

were called “degrees Fahren-heit” or degrees F.

Almost a century laterSwedish scientist Anders Celsiusproposed a temperature scalethat separated the freezing andboiling points of water into 100increments. This scale was calledCentigrade. Although he origi-nally proposed zero for the boil-ing point and 100 for freezing,fellow scientists convinced Cel-sius to reverse the scale so thathigher numbers indicatedwarmer temperatures.

The Centigrade scale mimicsthe metric measurement systemwhere length units are definedby multiples of ten. In the late19th century the Centigradetemperature scale was adoptedas a standard by the Internation-al Commission on Weights andMeasures.

In 1948 the General Confer-ence on Weights and Measuresstandardized several units ofmeasurement, including thetemperature scale. Conferencemembers chose to rename theCentigrade temperature scaleafter the man who devised it,Celsius.

Over the next severaldecades the scientific communi-ty and most of the nations ofthe world adopted the metricsystem of measurements,including the Celsius tempera-ture scale. The United Statesattempted a congressionally

approved voluntary metric con-version plan in the 1970s. It waspoorly received by the Americanpublic and considered tooexpensive by the business com-munity and federal government.This effort was officially dis-banded in 1982. We remained aFahrenheit country.

There is a formula to con-vert degrees F to degrees C;subtract 32 from the Fahrenheitvalue then multiply by 5/9. Con-versely, to convert from degreesC to degrees F, multiply the Cel-sius value by 9/5 then add 32.

I find these formulas prettycumbersome, and think it a loteasier to know a few basic con-versions in the realm of temper-atures we normally experience.For example 50°F equals 10°C,68°F equals 20°C, and 86°Fequals 30°C. In a nutshell, forme it’s cold below 10°C and hotabove 30°C.

It is highly unlikely that theU.S. will ever change the waytemperatures are reported.However, when Americans trav-el to countries besides Burma,Belize and Liberia, a basicunderstanding of the Celsiustemperature scale is useful.

U.S. is still warm tothe Fahrenheit scale

Tax Time . . .One last opportunity for

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This is my favorite part: Onaverage every dollar you putaway for yourself is 25 centsless you have to give to the IRS.

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Fighting the Senioritis bug

Helping kids get a Smart Start

SARA CHAVEZ

TEEN SPEAK

Sara Chavez is a senior at ClaytonValley High School. She hopes to pur-sue her passions of writing and dancingin college, as well as working toward acareer as a school psychologist. Emailher at sarachavez@claytonpioneer.com

Samantha Tuohey is in the sev-enth grade at Diablo View MiddleSchool and plans to be a writer some-day. Email your story ideas, com-ments and questions toSamantha@claytonpioneer.com.

SAMANTHA TUOHEY

DVMS REPORTER

Berths in the North CoastSection playoffs for soccer andbasketball will be doled out thisweekend and next and a coupleClayton Valley Charter HighSchool teams will have theirpost-season fates in the handsof the selection committee.

Both boys basketball andgirls soccer have had winningrecords in Diablo Valley Athlet-ic League play but losing marksin the pre-season leave theirentry into the section playoffs indoubt. On the other hand, theEagle girls basketball team isrolling towards an unbeatenleague championship with anautomatic NCS appointmentalready secured.

The wrestling team of coachKyle Behmlander has pointed tothe DVAL tournament, whichthey host next Wednesday, asthe time the squad will all behealthy and ready to qualify forthe NCS meet Feb. 22-23.

Girls basketball squad forcoach Bernard Barnes has yet tohave a close game in league playand has taken the DVAL titletwo of the past three seasons.The team’s goal all year was tonot only qualify for NCS but besuccessful at section and earn areturn trip to the Northern Cal-ifornia Championships as theydid two years ago after losing aheartbreaker in the NCS cham-pionship game.

Troy Sullivan’s boys basket-ball team lost a narrow 56-55decision to Concord High lastmonth. Reversing that gamewould have left the two teamstied for second place behindundefeated College Park enter-ing the last two weeks and witha better shot for the Eagles ofmaking NCS. Clayton ValleyCharter won only two of 14non-league games to make it dif-ficult to earn an at large sectionberth. Last year, none of theDivision II teams in NCS had alosing overall record. TheEagles were 17-8 before beingdefeated in the opening roundof the playoffs. A loss last Fri-day to Northgate further dentedCVCHS hopes of garnering aplayoff bid.

For girls soccer it has been aseason with wins, losses anddraws almost balancing oneanother out. The Eagles havebeen to the NCS playoffs inDivision I (previously 3A) forseven successive years and theirfate at Sunday’s seeding meet-ing was probably going to bedetermined by the final roundof games this week. CollegePark and Ygnacio Valley placedahead of Scott Booth’s team inDVAL play and also had muchmore impressive overallrecords, even though both arecategorized by attendance inDivision II.

The only CVCHS wintersports team totally out of con-sideration for NCS is the young,inexperienced soccer team ofJesus Martinez. The boys man-aged only a pair of draws thisseason although their most

recent three league games wereall one-goal losses.

Springs sports practice offi-cially began this week with a

large number of athletes turningout, according to athletic direc-tor Greg Fister. Track and Field,lacrosse, swimming, baseball,

softball, boys golf, tennis andgolf are all reading for play thatbegins late this month or in earlyMarch.

The San Jose Earthquakesannounced this week the cre-ation of a landmark partnershipwith Diablo Futbol Club ofConcord, establishing theEarthquakes’ first Youth Devel-opment Alliance and allowingfor collaboration at both thecompetitive and recreation lev-els of play.

Through the partnership,Diablo FC – the club where cur-rent Earthquakes star and reign-ing Volkswagen Major LeagueSoccer Most Valuable PlayerChris Wondolowski played hisfinal years of youth soccer – willwork closely with the Earth-quakes’ Youth DevelopmentAcademy while implementingrecreation leagues and develop-ment schools for girls and boysin the U5-U10 age groups. TheEarthquakes will provide finan-cial and curricular support aswell as additional resources toassist Diablo FC in its overalldevelopment of competitiveyouth players while also offeringrecreation-level players anopportunity to participate intheir own setting.

On the competitive side,Diablo FC will field U12, U14,

U16 and U18 teams donning anofficial San Jose EarthquakesYouth Development Alliancepatch. Coaches in the programwill report to EarthquakesYouth Academy technical direc-tor Chris Leitch and head coachMarquis White, who hascoached for over a dozen yearswith Diablo FC and is the club’sTechnical Director. Each rosterwill serve as a player pool for theclub’s Academy, giving everyathlete an added level of expo-sure.

Diablo FC director ofcoaching Brian Voltattorni says,“This Alliance is a great oppor-tunity for Diablo FC to workwith such a respected organiza-tion as the San Jose Earth-quakes. This gives our coaches aunique opportunity to workwith the Earthquakes TechnicalStaff to share curricular ideasand training habits to helpstrengthen our player develop-ment program.

“We are honored to be rec-ognized with this partnershipsince our club has a history ofover 20 years developing elitesoccer athletes. We have helpedplace six Diablo FC alumni inMLS and have also had two ofour Technical Directors and onealumni player selected for theSan Jose Earthquakes USSDA

Academy Staff.”The Diablo FC connections

to the Earthquakes Develop-ment Academy run deep. Assist-ing White on the U16 and U18

coaching level is Stephen Won-dolowski, another Diablo FCalumnus who played in MLS forthe Houston Dynamo with hisbrother Chris.

The goalkeeper coach forthe Earthquakes Academy isHenry Foulk, perhaps thelongest tenured coach in DiabloFC who coached the older Won-dolowski in Diablo FC and hasbeen keeper coach at his almamater, Cal Berkeley, for 13 years.Foulk has spent the last two Jan-uarys working with UnitedStates Men’s National Teamcoach Jurgen Klinsmannpreparing the American Nation-al team for World Cup qualify-ing that began this week in Hon-duras.

Several Diablo FC playershave already made their markwith Earthquakes Academyteams including former ClaytonValley High standout Eli Padilla.As a sophomore Padilla shat-tered the scoring records for theEagles before joining the Acad-emy team on a full-time basis.

Kids in the Diablo FC recre-ation league will have the oppor-tunity to play in a fun environ-ment while wearing Earth-quakes team gear. Structurally,the Earthquakes will also pro-vide a registration platform thatDiablo FC can utilize toimprove their digital experience.

In addition to competitiveteams and recreation leagues,

Page 10 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com February 8, 2013

Sports

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Clayton Pioneer

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Clayton Pioneer

CV teams on bubble for NCS playoff bids

See Alliance, page 11

Jason Rogers photos

SOPHOMORE SARAH WILLIAMS (10) is one of the shorter players on her team but reaches over herYgnacio Valley High opponent for a rebound in one of the Eagles league victories. Clayton Val-ley Charter has three more league games before starting play in the North Coast Section playoffs.

ALEX ZAVALA (5) SPLIT TWO NORTHGATE HIGH DEFENDERS as hedrove to the basket for Clayton Valley Charter Friday in a loss tothe Broncos 46-37. The junior guard ended with six points forthe Eagles who have a winning record in league play but aresuffering from a tough pre-season in trying to qualify for NorthCoast Section play. John Moore (24) led CVCHS with 13 points.

Photo courtesy Diablo FC

DIABLO FC DIRECTOR OF COACHING BRIAN VOLTATTORNI (LEFT) AND

SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES YOUTH DEVELOPMENT ACADEMY MANAGER

FRED WILSON put pen to paper on the agreement making thelocal competitive soccer club the Earthquakes first YouthDevelopment Alliance partner, allowing for collaboration atboth the competitive and recreation levels of play for areayouth soccer players.

San Jose Earthquakes unveil landmark youth soccerdevelopment alliance with Diablo Futbol Club

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SPRING YOUTH, ADULT

PROGRAM SIGNUPS NOW

AT CLAYTON GYMSpring youth basketball

academy for boys and girls of allskill levels in first through ninthgrades is returning to ClaytonCommunity Gym for seven Fri-days starting Mar. 15. Signupsare also being taken for springyouth volleyball league, whichwill run on Saturdays from Mar.2-April 20 for ages 8-16. Adultvolleyball league begins a seven-week Thursday night seasonMar. 21 and runs through May2. Youth Tee-ball league for ages3-5 is Mar. 16-Apr. 27. Registra-tion deadline for these programsis Feb. 25. For more informa-tion or to register for any pro-gram offered by All Out Sportsat the gym, visit alloutsport-sleague-clayton.com.

10TH ANNUAL DIABLO FCCRAB FEED & AUCTION

THIS FRIDAYThe 10th annual Crab Feed

and Auction to support DiabloFC youth soccer programs isthis Friday, Feb. 8, at CentreConcord. Besides the crab feeddinner and fund-raising live andsilent auctions, there will bedancing. Tickets are $50. To getmore info or to buy tickets visitdiablofc.org.

TEAM REGISTRATION

OPEN FOR CONCORD

KICKBALL LEAGUEConcord Parks and Recre-

ation is taking team registrationsfor one of the fastest growingadult sports in the country –adult coed kickball. The game isplayed following the rules forsoftball, except there is no batinvolved. Teams can choose toplay Sunday, Tuesday or Fridayevenings for the seven-gameseason beginning in March withsingle-elimination playoffs forqualifying teams. Rosters are 12to 20 players with games playedunder the lights at Willow PassPark. “Our leagues are all coedand are perfect for family andcompany teams. Our goal is toprovide a fun, relaxing, recre-ational opportunity for adults ofall ages,” says coordinatorKathie Leavitt. Registrationdeadline is next Friday, Feb. 15.For more information, visitteamsideline.com/concord orcall (925) 671-3423.

WAITLIST SPRING SIGNUPS

FOR MT. DIABLO SOCCER

TAKEN ONLINEMt. Diablo Soccer is still

accepting applications for itsspring program which begins inMarch. Players who participatedin the fall season are chargedonly $50 for spring. Boys andgirls 4 to 18 years of age cantake part. Under 12 and olderdivisions in spring league are co-ed. Spring league ends in mid-May and is generally less formalthan fall with players getting theopportunity to play soccer with-out any post-season playoffpressure. Email any questions tospring@mdsoccer.org. Playersregistering now will be placedon wait list at mdsoccer.org.

MEET DANA HILLS SWIM

TEAM COACH FEB. 20City Meet champion Dana

Hills Swim Team will hold aMeet the Coach Night onWednesday, Feb. 20, at the DanaHills Cabana Club on MountaireParkway from 6-7:30 p.m. Newcoach John Tsubota will be onhand and there will be refresh-ments and door prize for atten-dees. Early registration for the2013 DHST season opensonline beginning Saturday, Feb.23. For complete informationvisit danahillsotters.com.

19TH CVCHS CRAB FEED

& AUCTION MAR. 16Clayton Valley Charter High

School Athletic Boosters willhold their 19th annual CrabFeed and Auction on Saturday,Mar. 16, at Centre Concord.Tickets are sold on a first come,first served basis and the popu-lar event always sells out. Mustbe 21 or older to attend. Formore info email cvabcrabfeed-@gmail.com or go to cvhs-boosters.org to order tickets.

OAKHURST ORCAS SIGNUPS

FEB. 27, MAR. 24Head coach Jasmine Millan

announced that registration daysfor the Oakhurst Country Clubrecreation summer swim teamwill be held on Wed., Feb. 27,from 7-8 p.m. and Sunday, Mar.24, from 2-3 p.m. Parents willhave the opportunity to meetthe coaches and their coachingphilosophy and learn aboutpractice dates and times. Formore info email coach Millan atswimcoach@oakhurstcc.com.

SARAH NELSON NAMED TO

PACWEST FANTASTIC 15FOR 3RD TIME

Dominican University soph-omore center Sarah Nelson hasbeen named to the Pacific WestConference Fantastic 15 for thethird time this season. The 6-foot-4 Nelson averaged 11.7points, 8.7 rebounds, and 2.0blocks over three games for theLady Penguins during the Jan.21-27 week. The Clayton nativeis currently tied for third amongNCAA Division II women’sbasketball players in blockedshots (3.06). She leads Domini-can with 10.8 points and 8.0rebounds per game.

SUPPLEMENTAL

DIABLO FC U9-U14 COMPETITIVE SOCCER

TRYOUTS IN FEB.Diablo FC is now aligned

with the San Jose Earthquakesand will hold supplemental try-outs for the 2013 competitivesoccer season for under 9through under 14 girls and boyscompetitive teams. Those whomissed earlier tryouts can regis-ter today at diablofc.org and theappropriate age group coachwill contact the player about anevaluation. U15-U18 team try-outs will be held in April andcan register for free tryouts nowat diablofc.org.

CLAYTON PIONEER

WANTS TO HEAR YOUR

SPORTS STORYWe get plenty of informa-

tion from local high schools,sports leagues and clubs. Whatwe don’t hear about so often arefrom our neighbors who arecompeting below that radarscreen. There are Claytonianswho are participating in sportsand recreational endeavors thatwe don’t normally hear aboutbut we’d like to tell their storiestoo. If you know of someone –or even if you are that someone– let us know what you’re doingand perhaps we’ll find it some-thing our readers would love toread about!

If you’re running, jumping,hiking, biking, swimming, sky-diving, bowling, golfing or par-ticipating in any of dozens ofother sports and recreationalactivities let us know. Give us abrief rundown and your contactinformation and we might be intouch with you. It’s as simple assending an email tosports@claytonpioneer.com.

February 8, 2013 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com Page 11

Alliance, from page 10

New era for Clayton ValleyCharter track began this week

Jason Rogers photo

DARREN NEWELL (LEFT) HAS TAKEN OVER AS TRACK AND FIELD COACH at Clayton Valley Charter HighSchool. Newell is familiar with many of the 160 athletes signed up for the spring program aftercoaching them on the St. Bonaventure CYO track team in recent years. Among the standoutsgetting their first official workouts this week are senior triple jumper and sprinter Nicole Simms(center) and junior Sara Holt, who figures to challenge for State Meet in the triple jump as wellas running hurdles and sprints.

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The first time this spring thatthe umpire says “Play Ball”Clayton Valley Little League willbegin its 50th season of offeringyouth baseball to youngsters inthe community.

To mark this significantlandmark, CVLL is looking forinformation, souvenirs and pho-tos that former players, coachesand parents can provide, espe-cially about the early years ofthe league. Merrill “Mack”McCarty and a group of volun-teers were responsible for get-ting the league organized to playits first games in 1964. TheMcCarty family will be on handat this year’s opening cere-monies on Sunday, Mar. 24, at 9a.m. in the Clayton Valley Char-ter High School gymnasium.

Following the Mar. 24 open-ing ceremonies there will be theannual Hit-A-Thon fundraiserand team pictures at the CVLLfields on Academy Way adjacentto the high school campus.Nearly 600 players are registeredfor the local baseball and soft-ball program this year.

League president KevinChristiansen says, “We areproud of our league’s heritageand have heard so many storiesof how CVLL has been a sourceof fond memories for the youthof Clayton and Concord. Welook forward to sharing thestory of the beginnings of ourleague. CVLL would like toreach out to our current andpast players for any photos theywould like to share and whichmay be part of a video for theleague.”

Interested parties can sendemail photos, stories, docu-ments and any history toCVLLhistory@gmail.com.

The Pioneer will be running sto-ries about Clayton Valley LittleLeague and its 50th season thisspring.

Clayton ValleyLittle Leaguepreparing for50th season

the partnership will also allowfor a series of Regional Devel-opment Schools. These eight-week programs are offered atfour different levels: Elite,Hopefuls, Recreation U5-U10and Developmental U5-U10.The focus for RDS programs ison developing fundamentalskills in a fun, engaging environ-ment.

Finally, the partnership willinclude camps and clinicsoffered exclusively to Diablo FCmembers in conjunction withthe Earthquakes.

The Earthquakes are comingoff a 2012 season that saw themwin the Supporters Shield withthe top record during the regularseason among the 19 MLSteams. Wondolowski won hissecond Golden Boot in threeyears as the top scorer in theleague while tying the all-timeMLS record for goals in a sea-son with 27. The former De LaSalle High star started in theMLS all-star game against Euro-pean champion Chelsea.

Diablo FC is concluding try-outs this month for U9 throughU14 boys and girls teams andwill hold tryouts for the U15through U18 age groups inApril.

For more information, visitwww.diablofc.org andwww.sjearthquakes.com/academy.

IN CLAYTONFFeebb.. 1100CCaammeelllliiaa TTeeaaClayton Historical Society’s 36th annual Camellia Silver Tea andOpen House. Camellia display and special exhibit featuringClayton’s founder, Joel Clayton. 1 – 4 p.m. Clayton Museum,6101 Main Street. Free. Donations welcome. 672-0240.

FFeebb.. 1199AA PPaassssiioonn ffoorr AArrttClayton Valley Art Collaborative’s February coffee. Opportunityfor local artist’s to present projects and techniques. Art sales.Non-artists welcome. 7 – 8:30 p.m. Diamond Terrace, 6401Center St., Clayton. $5 donation. Prospective artists must contactJulie VanWyk at jvwcrr@comcast.net or Nancy Garrett at ngar-rett@astound.net by Feb. 11.

MMaarr.. 33CChhiillii CCooookk--OOffffMake great chili? Enter the Clayton Club’s annual Chili Cook-Off.Prizes for first, second and third place. Registration required forcontestants. 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Clayton Club Saloon, 6096 MainSt., Clayton. claytonclubsaloon.com. 673-0440.

FFiirrsstt TThhuurrssddaayyssOOaakkhhuurrsstt BBuussiinneessss NNeettwwoorrkkMeets first Thursday of the month for social hour. Hosted horsd’oeuvres, cash bar. 5 – 7 p.m. Oakhurst Country Club, 1001Peacock Drive, Clayton. oakhurstcc.com.

EVENTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

TThhrruu FFeebb.. 99““DDoowwnn aann AAlllleeyy FFiilllleedd wwiitthh CCaattss””Australian thriller set in a rare used book shop in Sydney. DiabloActors’ Ensemble Theatre, 1345 Locust St., Walnut Creek. $10-$25. diabloactors.com.

TThhrruu FFeebb.. 1100““TThhee SSppoottss ooff aa LLeeooppaarrdd””Onstage Theatre performs this comedy by John Baker. CueProductions Live, 1835 Colfax St., Concord. 518-3277.

TThhrruu MMaarr.. 22““OOlldd WWiicckkeedd SSoonnggss””Center REP performs this inspirational journey of two very differ-ent men, with music as a common bond, who must find a way tobreak through their pasts. Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 CivicDr., Walnut Creek. $33-$51. centerrep.org. 943-7469.

FFeebb.. 88 –– MMaarr.. 22““SSiinnggiinn’’ iinn tthhee RRaaiinn””Story of the first Hollywood movie musical. Lesher Center for theArts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $49-$53.lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.

FFeebb.. 99TThhee SSzzyymmaannoowwsskkii QQuuaarrtteettPresented by Chamber Music SF. 2:30 p.m. Lesher Center for theArts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. Tickets on sale Feb. 9 at 12a.m. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.

FFeebb.. 1100DDiiaabblloo SSyymmpphhoonnyyNatasha Paremski performing on the piano. 2 p.m. Lesher Centerfor the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $10-$25. lesherarts-center.org. 943-7469.

FFeebb.. 1111NNeeww SShhaanngghhaaii CCiirrccuussFearless performers with boundless energy bring you more than2000 years of Chinese circus traditions. 3 and 7 p.m. LesherCenter for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $15-$45.lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.

FFeebb.. 1122CCaalliiffoorrnniiaa SSyymmpphhoonnyyPerforms The Sounds of Love. 7:30 p.m. Lesher Center for theArts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $65. lesherartscenter.org.943-7469.

FFeebb.. 1155 –– 2244““DDiisseenncchhaanntteedd!! BBiittcchheess ooff tthhee KKiinnggddoomm””A brand new, fun-loving, hilarious musical revue proving thathappily-ever-after can be a royal pain in the ass! Lesher Centerfor the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $25-$30. lesherarts-center.org. 943-7469.

FFeebb.. 1177CCoonnttrraa CCoossttaa CChhaammbbeerr OOrrcchheessttrraaComposites. 7:30 p.m. Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr.,Walnut Creek. $10-$30. Veterans mention code word “CHIEF”for discount. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.

FFeebb.. 1177MMoouunntt DDiiaabbllooJoin naturalist Michael Marchiano as he presents a cross sectionof animal and plants encountered on Mt. Diablo. 11 a.m. – 2p.m. Summit Audio Visual Room, Mount Diablo. mdia.org.

FFeebb.. 2233PPaarreennttiinngg tthhee CChhiilldd wwiitthh SSppeecciiaall NNeeeeddssMini conference. 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Loma Vista AdultCenter Multi-use Room, 1266 San Carlos Ave., Concord. Registerat www.mdusd.k12.ca.us/adulted.

FFeebb.. 2288 –– MMaarr.. 2244““OOtthheelllloo””Shakespeare’s tragedy of falsehood, jealousy and revenge in thisgender-reversed casting. Cue Productions Live, 1835 Colfax St.,Concord. $12-$18. b8company.com.

FFeebb.. 2244CCoonnttrraa CCoossttaa CCaammpp FFaaiirrFind out about Summer Camps, daycare, preschool, sports andmore. Acalanes High School, Lafayette. 11 a.m.-3 p.m. contra-costacampfair.com.

MMaarr.. 11,, 22““TThhee WWeebb BBaalllleett””The first dance work developed from suggestions on the internet.Shadelands Arts Center, 111 Wiget Lane, Walnut Creek. $19-$37. diabloballet.org.

MMaarr.. 33CCaalliiffoorrnniiaa SSyymmpphhoonnyySan Francisco Symphony’s Donato Cabrera conducts Beethoven.4 p.m. Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek.$65. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.

MMaarr.. 2288,, AApprriill 44GGeettttiinngg oonn tthhee AAiirrTwo-part seminar to develop your amateur radio license getting-on-the-air skills. Held by Salvation Army and Mt. Diablo AmateurRadio Club. 7 – 9 p.m. Salvation Army, 3950 Clayton Road,Concord. Class is free. $5 materials fee. Registration required.hamradioclass@gmail.com.

CHURCHES AND RELIGION

FFeebb.. 88Baha’i, interaction, fellowship and discussion. Topic: Baha’i Faith:Its History and Beliefs. Speaker: Henry Miller: Educator with mas-ter’s degree in Transpersonal Counseling Psychology. 7:30 p.m.Free. For directions, call 672-6686.

FUNDRAISERSMMaarr.. 22CCrraabb FFeeeeddConcord High School Choir Crab Feed. 6 – 11 p.m. CentreConcord, 5298 Clayton Road, Concord. $45 per person; $400table of 10. Buy tickets by Feb. 22. Contact Rolynne Manalac atchschoirtickets@gmail.com or 788-9456.

AT THE LIBRARYThe Clayton Library is at 6125 Clayton Road. Programs are freeunless otherwise noted. claytonlibrary.org or 673-0659.

TTuueessddaayyss tthhrruu MMaarr.. 55PPaattttyy CCaakkeessStory time for babies to 3-year-olds. Child attends with caregiver.11 a.m.

WWeeddnneessddaayyssBBooookk BBuuddddiieessA volunteer will read stories for children 3 and older. 1 - 2 p.m.Call in advance.

TThhuurrssddaayyss tthhrruu MMaarr.. 77PPiiccttuurree BBooookk TTiimmeeStory time for 3- to 5-year-olds. Child may attend without caregiver. 11 a.m.

SSuunnddaayyss tthhrruu FFeebb.. 2244CCoommppuutteerr SScciieennccee CClluubbIntroduction to computer science for high school students. Led by Mike Fine, veteran in technology industry and member ofCurriculum and Instruction Committee at CVCHS. 1 – 2:30 p.m.Contact michaelcfine@gmail.com for more information.

TThhrruu MMaarr.. 22CChhiillll OOuutt aanndd RReeaaddFor K through 2nd graders. Pick up reading record, read 10books and return for a prize. Dr. Seuss read-in on Mar. 2 from11 a.m. – 12 p.m.

FFeebb.. 99SSoollaarr EEnneerrggyy BBaassiiccss ffoorr HHoommeess aanndd FFaarrmmssLearn about solar technologies and the key steps to going solar.10:30 a.m. Space is limited. Registration required. ccclib.org or673-0659.

FFeebb.. 1111CCllaayyttoonn LLiibbrraarryy BBooookk CClluubbSunny Solomon leads the discussion of “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” by Shermann Alexie. Group open to anyone who would like to join. 7 p.m.

FFeebb.. 2200EElleeccttrroonniicc BBooookk GGaaddggeettssProgram to get you acquainted with your new gadget and takeadvantage of the library’s e-books. 7 – 8:30 p.m. Registrationrequired. ccclib.org or 673-0659.

FFeebb.. 2277CCllaayyttoonn LLiibbrraarryy 110011:: AAnn IInnttrroodduuccttiioonnDoug Thomas, library assistant, gives a brief presentation andanswers questions about how to find the information you arelooking for at the library. 7 p.m. Registration required atccclib.org or 673-0659.

MMaarr.. 1133CCEERRTTEmergency preparedness seminar. Learn what to have on hand, develop an escape plan, know what goes in your Go Bag.7 – 9 p.m.

The Concord Library is at 2900 Salvio St. 646-5455.

FFeebb.. 1111SSttoorryytteelllleerrJoin us for this very special storytelling experience with KirkWaller. He is nationally recognized for his storytelling abilities. 7 – 7:45 p.m.

GOVERNMENT

11sstt aanndd 33rrdd TTuueessddaayyssCCllaayyttoonn CCiittyy CCoouunncciill7 p.m. Hoyer Hall, Clayton Library, 6125 Clayton Road. 673-7304 or ci.clayton.ca.us.

22nndd aanndd 44tthh TTuueessddaayyssCCllaayyttoonn PPllaannnniinngg CCoommmmiissssiioonn7 p.m., Hoyer Hall, Clayton Library, 6125 Clayton Road. 673-7304 or ci.clayton.ca.us.

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Community CalendarPLEASE SUBMIT YOUR CLAYTON COMMUNITY CALENDAR EVENTS BY 5 P.M. FEB. 13 FOR THE FEB. 22 ISSUE. ITEMS MUST BE SUBMITTED BY EMAIL TO calendar@claytonpioneer.com

Meeting dates and times for local clubs andorganizations are listed atclaytonpioneer.com. Click on ‘Events’

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Page 12 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com February 8, 2013

Diablo Actors’ Ensemble(DAE) is presenting Warwick

Moss’s “Down an Alley Filledwith Cats” through Feb. 9.

Directed by Scott Fryer, thisAustralian thriller is set in a rare

used book shop in Sydney.Simon comes to the shop atclosing time in pursuit of a par-ticular volume. It soon becomesobvious that the book containsan important code. Through thenight he and the book shopowner discover themselvesthrough each other.

The show features JeremyCole and Avi Jacobson.

Performances are Thursdaysthrough Saturdays at 8 p.m. andSundays at 2 p.m. at the DAEtheater, 1345 Locust St. inWalnut Creek. Tickets rangefrom $10-$25 and can bereserved at 866-811-4111 orwww.diabloactors.com.

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February 8, 2013 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com Page 13

Performing Arts

Photo: Jay Yamada

Jeremy Cole and Avi Jacobson star in ‘Down an Alley Filled with Cats’, playing at the DiabloActors Ensemble through Sunday.

A.C.T. will present the worldpremiere of George F. Walker’s“Dead Metaphor” – a hilariousdark comedy about thehypocrisies of postwar living,Feb. 28 through March 24, inSan Francisco.

When Dean returns homefrom the war in the Middle East,he discovers that his superiormilitary skills don’t get him veryfar in the working world. Hereadjusts to non-bunker life bymoving in with his parents andpregnant ex-wife, then takes theonly job he can get — as anassistant to a crusading politi-cian on her own mission for“truth and justice.”

The play is directed by IreneLewis, and features RenéAugesen, Tom Bloom, RebekahBrockman, Anthony Fusco,George Hampe and SharonLockwood.

The recipient of TheGovernor General’s PerformingArts Award for Lifetime ArtisticAchievement – Canada’s highesthonor for excellence in the per-forming arts – Walker is one ofCanada’s most acclaimed andwidely produced playwrights.

There will be severalInterACT events, at which theaudience can learn more aboutthe play and its production,throughout the run.

“Dead Metaphor” will be per-formed at A.C.T.’s Geary Theater,415 Geary St., San Francisco.Tickets start from $20 (current pric-ing $20–$95). For more information,call 415-749-2228 or visit www.act-sf.org.

Last weekend for DAE’s ‘Down an Alley’

‘Dead Metaphor’to liven upA.C.T’s season

You’ve just returned homeafter a visit to a local portrait stu-dio. Your prize, for a morningspent with your family in a cozy10-foot-by-10-foot studio, is alovely family portrait – all smiles,all looking at the camera, all tem-porarily clean and polished.Before this framed beauty startsto collect dust, you seize themoment by getting out the ham-mer and picture-hanging hard-ware and decide to find the per-fect spot on one of yourwalls…but where?

If you’ve lived in your homefor a few years, chances are mostof your walls are pretty wellfilled. But don’t settle for a so-sospace for your new addition.Look at this project as an oppor-tunity to take inventory of yourwall décor and rearrange somethings. Photography, fine art,decorative objects, like thought-fully placed accessories on a tabletop, should be hung with anorganized plan in mind.

I like to group family photostogether. Instead of hanging onefamily photo on every wall

throughout your house, considergrouping them on one or twowalls to create an “individuallyframed photo album.” Familyphotos are personal and verymeaningful, so by keeping themin a group, you’re telling a story.How you hang them – side-by-side, in rows, randomly, or incoordinating or contrastingframes – this is where the deco-rative element comes in to play.

FOCAL POINT VS. GALLERY

Reclaimed ceiling tins with adistressed finish, a series ofmounted game fish, a collectionof antique white dishes you’vegathered over the years, a woventapestry displaying an Italiancountryside, or vintage concaveand convex mirrors with golddistressed frames – whetheryou’re trying to create a focalpoint with one special item oradorn your walls with numerouspieces to create a gallery, if thewall décor and the furnishingswithin the room complimenteach other, you’re on the righttrack.

FRAMING

Old frames can be charming,especially if they contain photostaken in the 1940s or ‘50s. Thosevintage tones that we try toachieve with our computerstoday were just a matter of factback then. But there’s a fine linebetween charming and dated. Ifyour frames are coming apart atthe corners, if your artwork orphotos do not fit, if your artworkshould really have a matte, or ifyour frames don’t complementyour furnishings and décor,these are all clues that your art-work is ready for new frames.

A great choice for newframes is black. A simple,squared off edge in a flat finishcoordinates with just abouteverything. And if your artworkneeds a matte, select white orivory as the finishing touch.

Jennifer Leischer is the owner of J.Designs Interior Design based inClayton. Contact her with questions,comments and suggestions atjenna@j-designs.com

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Whether you bake them,“candy” them, or mash them,sweet potatoes are delicious.They are unsurpassed in beta-carotene and vitamin content,and surprisingly low in calories.They’re perfect as a side withpork, chicken, vegetables andmore. Anthocyanin and othercolor-related pigments in sweetpotato are equally valuable fortheir anti-inflammatory healthbenefits. And since February isHeart Health Month, it’s a per-fect way to treat your heart well.

California grows both “dryflesh” and “moist flesh” vari-eties. The “moist flesh” type issometimes referred to as a yam,and the “dry flesh” as a sweetpotato. They are both sweetpotatoes. Sweet potatoes arenative to Central America andPeru. The sweet potato is amember of the morning gloryfamily.

The true yam is native toAfrica. The term “yam” came tobe synonymous with sweetpotatoes because Louisianaused the term to market theirmoist, orange sweet potatoes.The true yam is the tuber of atropical vine (Dioscorea batatas)

and is not even distantly relatedto the sweet potato.

ROASTED SPICED SWEET

POTATOES

1 tsp. coriander seeds1/2 tsp. fennel seeds1/2 tsp. dried oregano1/2 tsp. dried hot red pepper

flakes1 tsp. kosher salt

2 lb. medium sweet potatoes3 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.Coarsely grind coriander, fen-nel, oregano and red pepperflakes in an electric coffee/spicegrinder or with a mortar andpestle. Stir together spices andsalt.

Cut potatoes lengthwise into

1-inch wedges.Toss wedges with oil and

spices in a large roasting panand roast in middle of oven for20 minutes. Turn wedges overwith a spatula and roast untiltender and slightly golden, 15 to20 minutes more. Makes 4 to 6servings.

My new glasses havechunky frames. Should Iadjust my makeup?

Too much eye makeup withglasses can look heavy and dis-tracting. Stick to a neutral shadeof eye shadow and a little mas-cara. Switch the focus to a boldlip instead.

What’s the one thing everywoman should splurge on?

A tailor. Whether you shopat Target or buy designerclothes, if the piece doesn’t fit,you won’t look your best. Getyour jackets nipped at the waistand your pants hemmed at theperfect length.

What’s the newest inex-pensive cosmetic line?

Drew Barrymore’s FlowerBeauty. Her crème eye shadows($7) won’t crease, stick or run,yet they come off easily withmakeup remover. Theadjustable wand in the UltimateMascara ($8) gives you both vol-ume and length. The line isavailable at Walmart.

How can I make my lipslook fuller without resortingto injectable fillers?

Try drawing a curved whiteline along the Cupid’s bow toemphasize the shape of yourlips. You can buff the liner witha clean sponge or just use anude-colored pencil (Cover Girllip pencil in Seduce, $7) for asubtler plumping effect. Also,when lining your lips, follow theouter structural ridge ratherthan the natural color line.

How can I give my cheeksa more natural flush?

Use lipstick instead of pow-der blush. This is a trick Ilearned in modeling school thatI still use. Put two dots on theapple of each cheek and useyour fingers to blend them intothe foundation already on yourface. It creates a kind of emul-sion that glows for a younger,more vibrant look.

What can I do to updatemy office wardrobe?

The workplace has becomeprogressively more casual. Suitsare out, separates are in. Mix,match and layer essential piecesand you’ll not only look chic,but you’ll save money. A crispwhite shirt, wool pants withsome stretch in black, navy orgray and a year-round leatherjacket will get you started. Add apop of color in a belt, scarf orbag. And please, don’t matchyour shoes to your bag. This isnot your mother’s office.

Lastly, remember size andage are just numbers.

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St. John’s Clayton presents

“Peacemaking & Healing in aBroken & Divided World.”featuring Speakers from Six Faith Traditions on Six Consecutive Sundays

Feb 17-Mar 24, 6:30 p.m.Feb 17 Father Spyridon, Greek OrthodoxFeb 24 Dr. Harmesh Kumar, SikhMar 3 Estelle Frankel, Jewish Mystical traditionMar 10 Kate Boisvert & Pascal Kaplan, SufiMar 17 Hugh Joswick, Ph.D., Tibetan BuddhistMar 24 Dr. Diane Hill, Baha’i (925) 672-8717St. John’s Episcopal Church � 5555 Clayton Road, Clayton

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Freewill donation suggested

Page 14 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com February 8, 2013

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Spice up your sweet potatoes

A potpourri of makeupand fashion tips

DEBRA J. MORRIS

Pacific Coast Farmers Market

MERYL STREEP

An unexpected event couldbe a sudden illness or injury toyourself or a loved one thatrequires a trip to the hospital orout of town. Maybe there hasbeen a hazardous substancerelease that will affect your area.Possibly your residence hasbecome unstable due to anearthquake or other natural phe-nomenon.

When the unexpected hap-pens, we are often thrown intoemotional turmoil. The triggerevent can vary. The way to reactappropriately under these condi-tions is to be organized ahead of

time and update this organiza-tion on a regular basis. Let’sidentify some simple no-cost,pre-planned measures you canaccomplish in a few minutesthat may save you hours of anx-iety later.

COMMUNICATION

During an unexpected eventthe most important thing tohave is not water, food or any ofthe other things you mightexpect would top the list. It ishaving a preplanned method tocommunicate. If you cannotcommunicate your needs orinform others of your status,your situation can deterioratequickly. Give some thought tothe consequences of an inability

to ask for assistance or informothers of your state of affairs.

Let’s consider two basictypes of communication, activeand passive. The active methodis one in which communicationis initiated and a reply or confir-mation of understanding isreceived. This can be accom-plished many ways. Face to face,land-line phone, cell phone(have you programmed impor-tant contacts into your phoneincluding an agreed-upon out ofarea contact person?), text mes-sage, walkie talkie radios andamateur radio are just a fewexamples.

PPOOLLIICCEE AACCTTIIVVIITTYY FFOORR TTWWOO WWEEEEKKSS

EENNDDIINNGG JJAANN.. 3311,, 22001133

AACCCCIIDDEENNTTSSJan. 26, 8:19 p.m.

Oakhurst Dr./Yolanda Cr.

AARRRREESSTTSSJan. 18, 11:23 p.m.

Clayton Rd./El Camino Dr. A23-year-old Martinez man wasarrested for driving whilelicense suspended after beingstopped for a Vehicle Code vio-lation.

Jan. 19, 1:01 a.m. ClaytonRd./Marsh Creek Rd. A 21-year-old Concord man wasarrested for carrying a con-cealed weapon in vehicle; car-rying a loaded firearm on/inperson/vehicle: public place;suspended driver’s license;possession of hydrocodone,codeine; possession of hashoil/concentrated cannabis;possession of codeine withoutprescription after being stoppedfor a Vehicle Code violation.Two 20-year old male passen-gers from Concord were alsoarrested.

Jan. 20, 1:17 a.m. MainSt./Morris St. A 42-year-old

Concord man was arrested forDUI; driving while license sus-pended for DUI after beingstopped for a Vehicle Code vio-lation.

Jan. 21, 12:16 a.m.Mountaire Cir./Mountaire Pkwy.A 25-year-old Clayton manwas arrested for DUI; posses-sion of marijuana 28.5 gramsor less with priors after officersresponded to a call for service.

Jan. 24, 2:09 a.m. CenterSt./Easley Dr. A 31-year-oldPittsburg man was arrested forDUI after being stopped for aVehicle Code violation.

Jan. 24. Center St./MorrisSt. Four juveniles from Concordwere arrested in downtownClayton after fleeing from astolen vehicle around 9 a.m.Concord police issued a be-on-the-lookout notification shortlybefore that for the compact car.When a Clayton officer spottedand attempted to stop the car,the suspects fled. The youthswere captured and booked in ajoint effort between Claytonand Concord police. The sus-pects were released to theirparents/guardians and werereferred to the juvenile proba-

tion system.Jan. 26, 7:15 p.m. Clayton

Rd./Kirker Pass Rd. A 30-year-old Concord woman wasarrested on a warrant afterbeing contacted by officers on atraffic stop.

Jan. 28, 2:38 a.m. ClaytonRd./Washington St. A 26-year-old Clayton man was arrestedfor driving while license sus-pended for DUI after beingstopped for Vehicle Code viola-tions.

Jan. 29, 10:02 p.m.Clayton Rd./Kirker Pass Rd. A24-year-old Concord man wasarrested for driving whilelicense suspended for DUI afterbeing stopped for Vehicle Codeviolations.

Jan. 29, 11 p.m. AlbertaWay/Ygnacio Rd. A 30-year-old Concord man was arrestedfor driving while license sus-pended for DUI after beingstopped for Vehicle Code viola-tions.

BBUURRGGLLAARRIIEESS//TTHHEEFFTTSSJan. 24, Alef Ct. Petty Theft.Jan. 25, Mt. Palomar Pl.

Burglary – Residential. Jan. 31, Peacock Creek

Rd./Clayton Rd. Burglary –Vehicle.

VVAANNDDAALLIISSMMJan. 25, Center St. Jan. 28, High St. Jan. 31, Gamay Dr.

Are your tiring of your NewYear’s exercise regimen already?If so, it’s never too early tochange. Here are some tips forkeeping up the motivation tostay fit:

Change the type of exerciseyou usually do. The possibilitiesof aerobic exercise are endless.If you walk, try cycling. If youtake kickboxing, try the ellipti-cal. Consider adding some ofthese possibilities to your rou-tine: running, jogging, walking,elliptical machine, swimming,cycling, indoor exercise, out-door exercise, hiking, fitnessvideos/DVDS, group fitnessclasses like kickboxing, aerobics,spinning, stair steppers, etc.There are many options — justchange it up.

Change themode of exer-cise. Ifyou’re usingmachines,move tof r e eweights.If you’reu s i n gb o d yweight, try resistancebands. If you aredoing free weights,add a stability ele-ment like a BOSUball or stability ball.Try doing exerciseswhile balancingon one foot orswitch between

any and all of these. Change the exercises you actu-

ally do. If you’ve been doingchest presses, change to a chestfly or use the pec-deck machine.Think of an alternative exercisefor each muscle group and you’llhave an entirely new workout.

Change your resistance leveland/or number of repetitions. Besure to increase your weight reg-ularly. Make sure you are liftingto failure with each set. If youtypically lift 12-15 reps, trydoing 8-10 with a higher weight,or vice versa. Play with yourweight and reps in each set. Forexample, try lifting 25 poundsfor 15 reps, then 30 pounds for12, then 35 pounds for 10 repson your third set. You can also

do it backwards,starting with highweight/low reps

and working theweight down.

There aremany waysto add vari-ety to your

workouts, andit’s important that you do

to continue losing weight andimproving your fitness level.

By always challenging yourself,you will avoid hitting a plateauin the first place, and overcomethe one you’re stuck in now.

BLAST 130 CALORIES

IN 12 MINUTES

Do you want to burn 130calories in 12 minutes? This

challenging circuit was designedto sculpt all your major muscleswhile improving balance andcoordination.

What you need: A jump rope(that’s it!)

THE WORKOUT:

0:00-1:00 Warm up withjumping jacks.

1:00-2:00 Quick feet push-ups: Run in place as fast asyou can for 5 seconds, thendrop to the floor and com-plete one full push-up;repeat.

2:00-4:00 Cardio drill: jumprope.

4:00-5:00 Skater lunge:Standing with feet hip-widthapart, bend right knee 90degrees and place it behindleft foot. Return to start andrepeat with opposite leg.

5:00-6:00 Reverse crunch: Lieon back with knees bent, feetlifted and arms at sides.Using your abs, lift your hipsoff floor; lower and repeat.

6:00-8:00 Repeat cardio drill.

8:00-9:00 Mountain climber:Get into a full push-up posi-tion and bring one kneetoward chest. Switch feetback and forth as quickly asyou can, keeping palms onfloor.

9:00-10:00 Squat jump: Standwith feet shoulder-widthapart, arms at sides. Squatdown, then jump up explo-sively. Land softly into squatposition; repeat.

10:00-12:00 Repeat cardio drill.

February 8, 2013 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com Page 15

See Prepare, page 16

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Switch things up in your work out

Ilima Heuerman holds multiple fit-ness certifications. She trains at LevityFitness studio in Clayton. Email Ilimaat IlimaHeuerman@levityfitness.com

ILIMA HEUERMAN

FIT WITH LEVITY

Safety Zone

Prepare for the unexpectedRICH VEAL

Clayton PIoneer

Police ActivityReport

Each January and earlyFebruary we focus on the winterpruning of roses for our ClaytonValley landscapes and gardens.Many residents already have afirm understanding of how toprune a rose. The principles aresimple: Cut back last year’sgrowth. Remove any crossingbranches and stems. Cut or sawaway old, thick canes, leaving therose resembling a basket. Theinstructions are always the same,and pruning can be done by any-one. An annually pruned roseshould take only five minutes toprune.

What takes some time is fer-tilizing the roses. Our winter-feeding of hybrid tea, floribunda,and grandiflora roses is a five-ingredient recipe that invigoratesthe roses in your landscape. Youwill have surging growth, gor-geous green leaves, bountifulbuds, exceptional flowers andnew cane growth.

A customer introduced thisfive-ingredient recipe to ournursery many years ago, havingused it with great success. A galnamed Bonnie at OrchardNursery and Florist in Lafayettehad shared it with her. This

recipe is for one mature groundgrown rose and tree rose:

FIVE-INGREDIENT

ROSE FERTILIZER RECIPE

½ cup 16-16-16 Multi-pur-pose Fertilizer

½ cup Alfalfa Meal½ cup Bone Meal½ cup Granular Iron (F.S.T,

Dr. Iron, or Iron Plus)½ cup Epsom Salts

Cultivate fertilizer throughoutdrip line, top dress with chickenmanure and water in.

If you are fertilizing contain-er-grown roses, cut the recipe inhalf. Do not feed new, bare rootinstallations with this recipe.Water your roses and landscapeevery five days during dry spellsin the winter months. If it’s beenwindy, add another day.

Why do we need so manyingredients? Why not just useone of those national-brand jugsof rose food from the hardwarestore?

Roses have more needs thanone container of product can sat-isfy. Each ingredient serves a pur-pose in this recipe. The 16-16-16multi-purpose fertilizer is a gar-den shed staple. It is a perfect,balanced feeding of nitrogen,phosphorus and potassium.Almost all plants need these ele-ments. The alfalfa meal is anorganic form of nitrogen that,when mixed in the soil, remainsavailable for long periods. Alfalfameal has also been proven tohelp roses develop new canegrowth, and new canes are themost flower-productive. Bonemeal is an organic form of phos-phorus, and phosphorus createsmore opportunity for flowers.

Granular iron breaks down slow-ly to fight chlorosis, and givesyour rose gorgeous green leaves.Epsom salts intensify the color.Spreading chicken manure on topof the fertilizers and watering ingives a rose an instant surge ofnitrogen, while holding theapplied fertilizers in place.

Almost all of these ingredi-ents have other uses in your gar-den and landscape besides roses.You can use the multi-purposefertilizer almost everywhere,from containers to fruit trees orevergreens. The alfalfa meal canbe used to prepare your vegetablebeds and to feed clematis. Bonemeal can also be used as a starterfor your vegetable installationsand when you plant bulbs.Granular iron has several uses;apply to citrus, acid-loving plantsand your lawn to keep it green.

And the epsom salts can beused in the tub to soak yourbody after all your gardening.

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Page 16 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com February 8, 2013

Nicole is the Garden Girl at R&MPool, Patio, Gifts and Garden. Contacther with questions or comments at gardengirl@claytonpioneer.com

NICOLE HACKETT

GARDEN GIRL

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Fertilize and prune this month for healthy roses

TO CORRECTLY PRUNE A ROSE, LOCATE THE FIRST FIVE-LEAF BRANCH and make your cut about ahalf-inch above the bud that is nestled at the base of the five-leaf branch as shown in the dia-gram above. The ideal angle is 45 degrees, slanted parallel to the direction of bud growth. Donot cut too close to the bud or at too sharp of an angle. Source: erthturf.com

The passive method is gen-erally one way and may includemonitoring the radio or televi-sion for information, posting anotice on a bulletin board, post-ing to social media, or sendingan pre-formatted text or emailto inform others of your situa-

tion and state of being. Do you have a GO Bag?

This is just what it sounds like,a small quantity of things youneed, consolidated in one bagfor you to grab if you have toleave your residence rapidly forany reason.

Some items to includewould be any medication yourequire, a bottle of water and afood bar, flashlight, first aid kit,cash in small denominations, a

change of clothes, and anEmergency MedicalInformation Sheet, (a docu-ment that has your emergencycontact information, healthinsurance information, medica-tion list, pertinent medical his-tory, allergies, etc.)

Generally less that 10 per-cent percent of respondents to“are you prepared” surveysstate that they feel that they aresufficiently organized to handle

an all-hazards type of event.Given that 90 percent are notready, it would be wise toremember, when the unexpect-ed happens and we need ahand, the first place to look is atthe end of your own arm.

Rich Veal has 39 years in publicsafety and teaches CERT(Community Emergency ResponseTeam) classes in Clayton andConcord.

Prepare, from page 15