By Arnold Silverman As we head into the Christmas season, I am reminded of an event that occurred in December of 1952, one of the “buried” stories that the old memory seems to be churning up recently (is the old bod telling me something?). It confirmed for me, in spite of any secular leanings [...]
By Malcolm Warner Christmas in my wife’s family in Chicago really looks like Christmas. Everyone’s happy to see the snow. There are big Christmas trees with an abundance of presents underneath, stockings hanging from the mantelpiece, feasts, carols, candlelight church services, readings by family members of “The Night Before Christmas.” The traditions are, well, [...]
By Susan Jacob, Ph.D. Forest Park is still beautiful, 30 years after the St. Louis World’s Fair, especially when covered in snow. The air was fresh with the scent of pines, clear, cold and exhilarating. Red and his twin cousins were as playful as three large puppies, mixing football with a snowball fight. Unexpectedly, [...]
By Marni Magda We moved to California after my father was killed in action in Korea in 1951. From then until 1963 Christmas vacation was a 2,200-mile drive across the United States to Louisville, Ky., to share the holidays with my grandparents. I could almost smell grandma’s fried chicken and milk gravy as we [...]
When I was a kid, my family lived in old Corona del Mar and opened presents on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas morning. It was a tradition from Kansas, where my folks came of age in the Great Depression. We never got elaborate presents. They were small and inexpensive. Anything else would have been deemed [...]
By Justin Swanson | LB INDY Families of 25 disadvantaged pre-school children gathered at the Boys and Girls Club last Friday, Dec. 21, to participate in the joy of opening presents presented by the Laguna Beach Police Department . A part of the 15-year tradition shared by the club and police department, the children [...]
Local resident and sports retailer Mark Christy is believed to lead in investor group buying Laguna Beach’s Aliso Creek Inn and Golf Course from its current owner, private investors that deep-sixed an ambitious plan to remake the flood-prone property into a high-end conference center and spa fringed by tee-close homes amid the recession in 2009. [...]
By Justin Swanson | LB Indy Candidate Barack Obama’s exhortations worked a compact crowd into a frenzy at New York City’s Washington Square Park in September 2007. He smiled and acknowledged his newfound supporters and stood most presidentially, offering those within earshot a reason to hope, to experience something eminently special. His words profoundly [...]
Bite-sized chunks of writing to whet your brain’s appetite. Edited by Christine Fugate & Sally Eastwood On the Menu: Appetizers: “Canaries for Christmas” by Adele Kopecky “Lost In Translation: Christmas” by Sally Eastwood “Career Change” by Angela Breslow Entrees: “Butterfly Kisses at Christmas” by Amy Bazuin-Yoder, Ph.D. “Christmas in Paradise” by Katrin [...]
By Susan Dodge Kuiper There is another life, one of utter happiness and joy, of valuing the simple, yet meaningful. After many seasons of semi-elaborate Christmases, much planning, a bit of stress and big relief afterwards, I had a turning point. It all started at Norm’s. All six of us were hungry. Getting six [...]
By Jonathan Yanez “Where did you say she was?” “Taking a day off from the workshop. She’s shopping in Laguna.” “Hmmm, her naughty-to-nice ratio is surprising; are you sure this is accurate?” “Yes, sir.” I studied the reports and spreadsheets in my hands again but I knew I wasn’t going to find anything different. [...]
It Was a Good Year Heading toward 2013, stocks can look back to a decent performance in 2012. Despite still unresolved issues on how to rein in scheduled tax increases and spending cuts, the stock market is ahead 13% this year on the S&P 500 index. The market was flat for 2011 although it accelerated [...]
By Liz Zuercher It starts with my husband, Gary, asking me to make Springerles, the German anise cookies his childhood neighbor, Mrs. Schlobaum, used to make. Innocently, I agree. Year One Two days before Christmas I realize the cookies must mellow in an airtight container for two weeks. I abandon the project. Year Two [...]
By Adele Kopecky The hot water gushing into the dishpan prevented Marie from hearing Gino enter the apartment. She started when he kissed her on the back of the neck, but recovered to turn and throw her arms around him. “I didn’t expect you home so soon—no waiting at the barbershop?” “I didn’t get my [...]
By Sally Eastwood It’s December and the holiday season is upon us. Ah, the holidays: time of year that the U.S. and my home country, Britain, share common themes with different traditions. Thanksgiving and the Fourth of July obviously have no counterparts across the pond. Likewise, Guy Fawkes Day doesn’t mean anything here. (Don’t [...]
Ill Prepared Hiker Rescued from Hillside
A sheriff’s helicopter was used to extract a hiker who suffered an anxiety attack and was unable to move from a steep trail in Laguna Beach’s open space about 6 p.m. Sunday, June 9, police said. Lifeguards in an all-terrain vehicle coordinated the extraction from thick brush and a steep slope between Alta Laguna Park [...]
