Culture

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger

buck-capnbob.gifI saw a cleverly-worded post on one of the blogs I read the other day. This deals with our state’s current financial woes. Personally, I think the writer is on to something the state really needs to consider before closing state parks and laying off fire and police services.

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger:

When I read that you plan to shut police and fire stations and release tens of thousands of criminals onto the streets to balance the state’s budget, I realized that you may be out of touch with how middle class folks manage when their expenses exceed their income. To mitigate the effects of this recession which has hit my family hard, we have reduced or eliminated all non-essential items from our budget – even worthy items. Eliminating non-essential items like cable TV and prime rib has allowed us to have money for essential items like electricity (for broadcast TV) and chicken.

Now, to save the state the cost of a budget expert, I have made a list of all non-essential state offices, departments, commissions and boards whose budgets can be reduced or entirely eliminated without harming essential state services like police, fire fighters, and prison guards. There’s no need to pay me yet for this work, since I am sending you a list of only the 106 departments from the letters “A” through “I”. When I complete my work, you can pay me. But in the meantime, you can terminate these non-essential offices, departments, commissions, and boards.

The list is below.

State Departments, Commissions, and Departments That Can Be Closed Before Fire and Police Departments Letters A through I (because they’re useless, trendy, or duplicate federal services).

Access for Infants and Mothers
Acupuncture Board
African American Museum
California Commission on Aging
Department of Aging
Agriculture and Environmental Stewardship, Office of
Agriculture, Department of Food and
AIDS, Office of
Alcoholism and Drug Programs, Department of
Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority
Analytical Chemistry, Center for
Apprenticeship Council
Apprenticeship Standards, Division of
Arbitration Certification Program
Arts Council
Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus
Assembly Democratic Caucus
Assembly Republican Caucus
Athletic Commission Continue reading…

The Statue of St. Monica

santa-monica.jpgOur dentist has his practice in Santa Monica, California. Today, I went there to get my semi-annual dental maintenance. I left in plenty of time, and I arrived in the area early. So I took a walk up to Palisades Park which is not far from the dentist.

I took a lot of pictures of the buildings and scenery there, including this shot of the statue of Santa Monica. I couldn’t find out a lot about her on the net, but she was sculpted by Eugene Morahan in 1934. She stands in Palisades Park with her back to the bay named after her.

Click image to enlarge.

California Poppy

It was overcast most of the day today, but there was a little sunlight this afternoon – just enough to get this shot of one of the poppies growing in the garden. Click the image for the 1024×768 pixel close-up.

California Poppy

Some information on the California poppy from WikiPedia:

The California poppy is the California state flower. It was selected as the state flower by the California State Floral Society in December 1890, winning out over the Mariposa lily (genus Calochortus) and the Matilija poppy (Romneya coulteri) by a landslide, but the state legislature did not make the selection official until 1903. Its golden blooms were deemed a fitting symbol for the Golden State. April 6 of each year is designated “California Poppy Day.”

California poppy leaves were used medicinally by Native Americans, and the pollen was used cosmetically. The seeds are used in cooking.

The Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve is located in northern Los Angeles County, California. At the peak of the blooming season, orange petals seem to cover all 1,745 acres (7 km²) of the reserve.

Vincent Thomas Bridge

Vincent Thomas BridgeSunday, we took a scenic drive down to San Pedro. It was a blustery day and we wanted to see the ocean and the waves. Entering the area, you can see the Vincent Thomas Bridge. I took this photo (click to enlarge) just before we exited to Harbor Drive.

We didn’t drive over the bridge this time, but we have many times in the past on our way to Long Beach and beyond.

For most of my life, I remember the bridge being there. Bob, on the other hand, remembers taking the Terminal Island Ferry from the Long Beach side with his folks before the bridge was built.