Mobile Dent Repair in Arcata.

Robin and I went to the Uniontown Safeway today after walking Smokey at the Arcata Marsh. We were driving our 98' Tracer with over 210,000 miles and two pretty big dents from past children. A truck pulled up behind us and this young guy with family in his truck asked me if I wanted my dents fixed. The car has already been totaled, so I carry a salvage title, but I was curious on what he was proposing. He said he could fix the dent I had in the front and back for $60 while I shopped at Safeway. I took him up on his offer and within 45 minutes he had done a respectable job. He said he was from Arizona and was looking for a place here in Humboldt. His name is Kevin and his Number is 358-1212 if you have any dents you want fixed. If that number does not work, just drive to the Uniontown shopping center and look for a white truck with advertisement to fix dents. Tell him Richard sent you.

The weather in Eureka and Samoa.

It seems that every time I am working Graveyard Shift, my bedroom on the second floor gets way warm here in Samoa in the early evening. From 5-6pm is the best time to visit the Peninsula for decent weather, so it seems. In Eureka lately I have noticed the Umpqua weather temperature gauge at 5th and Hst is most times over 10 degrees warmer than what it actually is. I wonder how many people just driving through town on 101 check that out and think we are in the high 70's and 80's? In reality we have had less days in the 70's than Nome, Alaska this July.

Vick is Sick! Dog fighting to the death is just wrong.

Mike Vick is one sick puppy. ESPN - Source: Vick a 'heavyweight' in dogfighting - NFL Killing dogs for sport is just unforgivable. Nfl: Michael Vick Likes To Watch Dogs Kill Each Other - Deadspin The hopefully ex-Quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons is lying low nowadays and rightfully so. There is no justification for his behavior, and it seems many knew of his actions for years. Listening to sports talk radio, there have been some apologists believe it or not. One of the excuses being used is the excuse that the black community do not look at dogs in the same way as whites. What?

Check out this big shout out in support for Vick that came out from none other than Deion Sanders in the form of an article. The News-Press, news-press.com, Sports, Deion column: Don't be too quick to judge Vick

Wow, this time and era just sometimes amazes me with it's warped priorities and decadence. And I grew up in the 60's!

The Marina Center and the Local Rental Market.

Last week a fancy door hanger was left on my property in Henderson Center concerning the Marina Center. It said that Brian Morrissey was sorry to have missed us. The front said "Introducing the Marina Center. For our Environment, Community and Economy."

The leaflet claims the project will transform the "Eyesore that had become a magnet for drugs, vagrancy and crime." Nothing to argue with so far. The Balloon Tract/Track needs something done.

"More than 1,000 jobs will be created." Sustained jobs, replacement jobs or temporary jobs? Living wage jobs? I have heard the Home Depot Workers will average $12 an hour with benefits. What about the Pierson workers? Shafer's? Myrtletown Lumber? Are we just trading jobs? I do like the idea of construction jobs and the light industrial element.

"Up to 1.8 million generated annually to Benefit Eureka Schools public safety and affordable housing." Again, if we are talking new moneys created, who can argue with that? Are the figures accurate or just pie in the sky?

"The project will include Recreational amenities such as the Discovery Museum and bike and walking paths connecting Marina Center to Eureka's Historic Downtown." Wouldn't that be great? I am sure no one would argue with this element.

"It (the Marina Center Project) will restore natural wetlands in Clark Slough, restore and permanently protect 10 acres as a coastal wetlands preserve and meet or exceed all local, state and federal clean up standards." Wow! what a terrific wonderful project. If all the information I have ever heard was this leaf, why would I argue this project?

But let me tell you the facts, this is a hot potato issue. People in Eureka are either violently for this project or against this project. I can confidently say after knocking on thousands of doors in the Eureka area the last two election campaigns that people are for the Marina Center project. Personally I am not passionate for or against this project. I have been vocal in opposition to the Home Depot element. Take out this equation and this thing is a slam dunk. As far as environmental concerns, I am waiting more data.

By the way, our house at 3222 D st is for rent at $950 a month. It is 2 Bedroom 1 and 1/2 Bath with a family room/ car port/yard with fruit (apple and plums) trees/ 200sq ft basement with carpet for storage. We have had a ridiculous amount of calls of inquiry. Many people have offered more in deposit and rent. And nearly 30% from out of town wanting to relocate. I can testify we have a housing problem.

Gerry Radford RIP.

Times-Standard Online - Obituaries It was a touching Memorial today. You ever know one of those guys that nobody says anything bad about? Gerry was that guy. A lot of people may not know who he was, but if you were at any sporting event in Humboldt County, most likely you had seen him. He played on my basketball team years back with his brother Scott. He grew up in Myrtletown and hung around Garrett Anderson and Chris Ambrosini. He leaves behind a wife and 2 kids. Way too young to be passing on.

Health scare. Denial is not good prevention.

I played softball last weekend in Weaverville and felt kind of weak. Usually I perk up in the heat but I was tired. I had some business to do in Redding and still did not feel right. My left arm was tingly like it was falling asleep. Robin was shopping in a store with one of those blood pressure machines so I checked mine. 172/110 with a pulse of 95! My resting pulse is usually around 60. I made the mistake of telling Robin, and off we were to Mercy Medical Center. When I checked into emergency my Blood Pressure was 192/112 or there abouts. Kind of making me nervous. They put me on a EKG machine and did blood work. My heart was fine. It turns out my blood sugar was at 260. (I am diabetic.) They gave me drugs and sent me on my way. I drove home just in time for my game in Arcata. I played rotten and we lost. Just a bad day. Guess I will have to find a regular physician.

I do not like to go to the doctor. In 1990 I went in for chest cold at Eureka Family Practice and came out of the doctor's office with a diagnosis of needing a heart transplant! I had to have a battery of tests done and scared the daylights out me. In my 30's playing basketball all the time with 2 young children. Of course I did not have to have a new heart. I have an enlarged heart and a leaking heart valve. Some day they may have to cut me open, but yesterday was not the day. Tra-la-la-la live for today!

My real blog life through Pastis

This comic strip pretty much touches what has been happening to my blog as of late: Pearls Before Swine Just saying.

I am now over a half a century old.

Today was my 50th birthday. Robin and I celebrated by taking our PT to Harper's for brake maintenance. (We went to lunch at Angelo's buffet.) We then worked on our house in Henderson Center. It is a rental that is 2 bedroom 1 and a half bath with a family room. I have been re-doing all the plumbing and basic clean up from the last renter. It started to rain, so we could not do basic outdoor touch up paint or the roofing maintenance I wanted to do.

We ended up late for the Communication and Education Committee (CEC) for the HCDCC but were forgiven. We had great discussion on many issues. I will touch on some in the next few days.

Last weekend my sister Michelle and niece Victoria hosted a theme BBQ birthday party for me in Fair Oaks. They had all sorts of baseball themed decorations all over the place. I was so blessed to have all my nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews, sisters and brothers there to have a good time. I did not deserve all the attention, but it was awesome. I have the greatest family support. (The party broke down into a huge pool party!)

HCDCC Chicken by the Sea, Crabs Baseball, Steelhead Baseball and weekend stuff.

The HCDCC hosted Chicken by the Sea was a great success. Hundreds of people and a great Trinidad atmosphere. Assembly person Patty Berg and State Senator Patricia Wiggins were there. Other local politicos past and present were introduced. Wes Chesbro was announced and took the opportunity to grandstand his potential run at Berg's seat if legislation is not changed to allow term limits to be lifted. If she can not run, Wes was asking for people to sign pledge cards asking for early endorsement and pledges. The "Friends of Wes Chesbro" endorsements can be sent to PO Box 11613 SANTA ROSA, Ca. 95406. (No, I did not sign one. Early in the game ya know.)

Evergreen Pulp sponsored a day with the Humboldt Crabs last weekend. I worked to cover June Sullivan so she could watch her son "Hop" Sullivan play. Many Evergreen workers were there and the Crabs won. But they did not play Hop. Why? Got me. He was leading the team in On Base Percentage and had the 4th highest batting average on the team. It seems that local players get lost in the shuffle for out of town players who are not that much better. Seen it play out since the 70's. That is why I do not frequent their games now.

Why did Brad Botkin go off on the Humboldt Steelheads? Times-Standard Online - Where's the drama? They have beat the Crabs 3 times in the last two years. Why rain on their parade? The Steelhead team is playing in Weaverville this weekend against the Redding Tigers and will hopefully pull in a big crowd for the Trinity County baseball fans.

We have a serious void for players 20 years and up who want to play competitive hardball. The Steelhead had to cut many players to get down to 30! And the Eel River Hardball team that I have played for has more players than they can handle. Maybe a few more teams can form over the winter.

Lots of people out this weekend at the Farmers Market in Arcata and many ATV people were camping and enjoying the Samoa Dunes. Oh yes, the surfers are out in force.

Democrats host Chicken by the Sea in Trinidad.

The Humboldt County Democratic Central Committee will be hosting the annual Chicken by the Sea Event this Sunday from 4pm to 6pm at the Trinidad Town Hall. $15 dollars is dirt cheap for this event. HCDCC - Welcome to the Humboldt County Democratic Central Committee

This event has be ongoing for 19 years now. It was held for years out here in Samoa at the Women's Club, but changed venue after I left the HCDCC to organize for the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers (AWPPW) in the late 90's. In 2000 the town of Samoa was bought by Dan Johnson and Lane DeVries. Maybe that is why the change of place. Maybe someone out there knows?

Shane Brinton on front page of TS and ER!

Times-Standard Online - Effort afoot to bring John Edwards to Eureka & The Eureka Reporter - Home



Hey out there! It would be great to have a actual contesting presidential candidate visit Humboldt County in the heat of an election! Copy and paste this address and help make it happen! http://www.humboldtforedwards.org

Humboldt County now $5.57 an hour behind the National Average.

The average hourly pay in Humboldt County now stands at around $11.81 an hour. The average hourly worker in the US now is at $17.38 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Home Page.

But we pay more for gas. We pay more for goods and services. Our crime index is almost twice the national average. Our cost of living index is over 20 points higher than the national average. http://realestate.yahoo.com/Neighborhoods/detail.html?csz=Eureka,CA

Things are not getting better for our young adults....they are getting worse. I sure hope this is taken into account during the next elections. When do we hold our representatives accountable? Who is to blame? Things need to change drastically here in Humboldt County and Northern California or we will be exporting more of our decent potential young workers.

We are seeing a drastic change in our demographics. Our schools are consolidating and are declining in enrollment for the first time in decades. This is not happening overall around the state. Why is this happening to Humboldt County? Are we becoming a retirement community? Do we need to change county planning strategies to account for the future? We are nearing a crucial time of decision making. Any other observations?

Tammy Falor revisited. $300,000 of Humboldt County tax payer dollars gone!

Ex-Humboldt County Counsel Tammy Falor was given nearly $300,000 dollars as a "gift" from Humboldt County tax payers through the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors (BOS). The payment was basically a "payoff." We will never know why our tax dollars were given away. It would take the average wage earner in Humboldt County nearly 15 years to make that same "gift" amount. And the BOS still has no accountability? Times-Standard Online - Suit on payout to ex-counsel dismissed

Bonnie Neely, chair of the county Board of Supervisors, expressed pleasure at the court's decision. But why should she be happy with the general public being left out of the Humboldt County spending process? I am surprised there has not been more public outcry over the way our tax dollars are spent.

The sad fact is that in a few days this will be a forgotten rant.

Richard Mostranski teaching US Troops.

The other Richard is travelling the Mediterranean on US ships teaching our troops Political Science. Richard was Campaign Manager for Nancy Flemming's close election loss to Bonnie Neely in last years 4th District Supervisor race. He led an underdog candidate to within a few hundred votes of a huge upset. Richard also helped my campaign and I count him as a good friend and confidant. The Bulldog is currently in Marmaris, Turkey. Marmaris Marmaris Turkey

Mike Thompson pissing me off!

I do not want to be labeled as a hypocrite in this issue. Campaign Unavailable Yes, I have hunted in the past, and do partake of the meat of game kills. But, I do not support the idea of killing for just sport or trophy bagging. Especially for game on the verge of being labeled as endangered as the Polar Bear are. Polar Bear I do not know if the NRA or the Safari Club are yanking Mike's chain or how he is justifying his position, but his vote leans way to the right on this issue.

Weaverville softball. By Marks!

Ray Wolfe Construction Wins Tournament

Weaverville, Ca-Tournament most Valuable Player Matt Socha hit 2 home runs and scored 4 runs in leading Ray Wolfe Construction of Arcata to a 18-6 victory over R-CO Builders of Eureka in the championship game of the July 4th Celebration Weaverville Invitational Tournament on July 1st 2007. Line Drive from Fortuna garnered 3rd place and Trinity Softball finished 4th.

Clint Crane of Mt. Thunder from Redding won the Home Run contest, hitting 6 out of 10 pitches out of the park.

HSU alumni quarterback Jacob Kadle was named Most Valuable Pitcher. Other Tournament selections were, Bobby John Davis and Wes Winn from Trinity Softball, Mike Johnson and Ira Martin of Line Drive, Eric Younger, Byron Gardner and Steve Fusi of R-CO Builders and Dan Nord, Jared Harpe and Dan Sutherlamd of Ray Wolfe Construction.

I sent these results to both local newspapers. It was a great fun for everyone. Weaverville does all it can to make it all entertaining. Street Dance, Rodeo, Demolition Derby, Fair, Arm Wrestling, Horseshoe Pitching on and on.........fun in the sun.

I want to personally thank Kelly Jackson, the Director of the Weaverville Douglas City Parks and Recreation for her help in coordinating the Memorial and 4th of July Softball tournaments. I would not be able to direct these tournaments without her help.