Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Kids today need to earn what they desire, not expect to get it.
Where and when did it seem that everyone felt entitled? Entitled to an education, happiness, college, a home, every new tech toy, a new car now and then, etc. I know the answer, as it was an evolution and change in attitude that began in the sixties, in my opinion. Some might say it began with Lyndon Johnson and his “Great Society” and that may also have been a starting point. But, the sad fact is that Americans have a higher quality of life than any generation, anywhere, any time, in world history. Yet, I would assert that the happiness and satisfaction scales are not near as high as the quality of life now available to the vast majority of us, especially our children. Don’t we all know extremely spoiled children? Don’t many of us indulge…
Thursday, April 19, 2012
It wouldn't have been a Sock Hop without Dick Clark.
—Saul Daniels is the editor of Chatsworth Patch. It was the early 1980s. It might have been the gym at the Buckley School in Sherman Oaks, or some other sort of dark all-purpose school room with a stage, curtain and lights. But it was shadowy and seemingly vast and the mood was electric with expectation as Dick Clark swept in. There he was, "America's Oldest Teenager," looking the part, with beautiful wife Kari on his arm. Hair in a Pompadour, teeth like Chiclets -- yes a cliché, but apropos. Already decades an entertainment mogul, worth millions, but this evening he was standing off to the side, buzzing with old showbiz friends, new friends, admirers, gawkers. They danced in and out, buffing his ego, extending a hand, expressing thanks. …
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Since the dissolution of the Agoura's RDA, the City takes over its affairs.
Following Wednesday evening's regularly scheduled City Council meeting was a brief special meeting about the successor agency to the Agoura Hills Redevelopment Agency (RDA). As of February 1, 2012, all RDAs in California were dissolved with the passage of Assembly Bill 26 (ABX 26). All redevelopment and affordable housing activities under Agoura’s RDA have since ceased. The City of Agoura Hills has been designated to serve as the RDA’a successor agency while the Housing Authority of the County of LA has taken over affordable housing duties. “We’re just winding down right now and liquidating assets,” said Nathan Hamburger, assistant city manager. “The successor agency will be around and will be meeting for as long as there are affairs to …
34.143955
-118.775328
City Council
30001 Ladyface Ct, Agoura Hills, CA
/articles/city-becomes-successor-to-redevelopment-agency
195842
/locations/6789900
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Bruce reflects on an old friendship and its impact in his life.
What is the first thing that comes to mind when you see or hear the word, “Friends?” For my younger son it would undoubtedly be the TV-series that aired for a decade on NBC, because he loves it so. For others, it might be that Bette Midler song. Maybe it would be something from Sesame Street? Friends enrich our lives. And, like that famous saying, “We don’t choose our family, but we do choose our friends,” we actually have some control over who is our friend. That is where the rub is, in my experience. I’ve had many friends over the course of my life. I still have one friend from nursery school, which is what pre-school was called in the fifties. We are in regular contact, though he lives across the country. Other friends have come and …
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Bruce discusses the wisdom of opposite sex "friendships."
Do you have opposite sex platonic friends? Are you married? Does your spouse have opposite sex friends, too? What about opposite sex friends that used to be boyfriends or girlfriends? Is that cool? Interesting questions, don’t you think? Many people believe that their spouse should be their best friend. I am sort of agnostic on that issue since I believe that for the sanctity of marriage it isn’t always wise to bring every thing on one’s mind to one’s spouse. That is the value of same-sex friends. For instance, if your spouse has gained weight, is it smart to express that observation? If you’re feeling unhappy at home for somewhat trivial reasons, is that something you should share with your spouse? I say, “No.” I say that is the province …
Saturday, February 11, 2012
The Los Angeles Times and TMZ is reporting that the singer, who famously battled drug addiction, died at the Beverly Hilton.
Pop star Whitney Houston died today at the age of 48, the Associated Press is reporting. Houston's publicist, Kristen Foster, confirmed the death of the singer Saturday, but did not reveal how or where the singer had died. According to the Los Angeles Times and the website TMZ, Houston died at the Beverly Hilton hotel. TMZ published a photograph taken Saturday of a Beverly Hills police crime lab vehicle outside the hotel. The Hilton is hosting a pre-Grammy party Saturday evening. Houston's death comes one day before the 54th annual Grammy Awards, which are being held at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles. A six-time Grammy winner herself, Houston reigned over the pop charts in the 1980s and 1990s with hits like How Will I Know, …
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Bruce shares the importance of creating family rituals.
What are you fondest memories from your childhood? I suspect they are things that your family did that were ritualistic in nature. They may also have been the better family vacations. Family rituals are touchstones in your life and the lives of your children. Just as habits and routines become comforting, so do the rituals you establish in your family. There are numerous examples of these sorts of rituals, often centered on holidays and religion, depending on whether your family is observant. During the just passed Christmas and New Year’s period, there are so many rituals we have all participated in and/or watched in movies and on television. The dropping of the ball in Times Square is one of them. Watching It’s a Wonderful Life or …
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Bruce offers tips and tricks on how to stay current.
You want your kids to relate to you, right? You want to be cool, don't you? Maybe you should try to relate to them? Novel idea. Do you remember all the DUMB things your parents liked and did? Do you really think you’re any different? Every kid swears he or she will be a better parent than his or her own parents. And, as a kid, we know exactly what we’ll do better plus: we’ll be cool! We’ll like the same music as our kids. We’ll not get crazy about a tattoo or little ol’ piercing like our parents did! BUT most of us turn into our own parents, whether we like it or not. These are some tips that might bring back that cool kid you used to be. Warning: Follow these tips at your own peril! Text I have a good friend who has two boys. He said he …
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Funeral services for Griffen Kramer, 18, will be held on Saturday, according to the Ventura County Star.
- OBITUARIES
-
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Funeral services for Griffen Kramer, 18, will be conducted Saturday at 10 a.m. and will be held at Calvary Community Church, 5495 Via Rocas, in Westlake Village, according to the Ventura County Star. Griffen Kramer, a backup quarterback for the Thousand Oaks High School football team and the son of former NFL quarterback Erik Kramer, had died in his sleep at a friend's home in Agoura Hills on Sunday, the apparent victim of alcohol poisoning, according to a statement issued by his school. Interment will be at Pierce Brothers Valley Oaks Memorial Cemetery in Westlake Village and visitation will he held Friday at Pierce Brothers from 6 to 8 p.m., said the VC Star. Kramer lived in Agoura Hills with his family and is survived by his father, …
Friday, July 15, 2011
Family and friends remember the historian’s love of the San Fernando Valley.
Catherine Mulholland, a granddaughter of William Mulholland and a vocal protector of his legacy, was memorialized Thursday morning prior to a private family interment at Oakwood Memorial Park in Chatsworth. Mulholland died in Camarillo on July 6, aged 88. In 2000, Mulholland published William Mulholland and the Rise of Los Angeles, in which she painted a softer image of the engineer who rose to become chief of the Department of Water and Power and in the 1910s oversaw the construction of the 230-mile aqueduct that carries water from the Owens Valley to Los Angeles. The elder Mulholland was viewed by some as having expropriated water from farmers in order to feed a burgeoning metropolis. He left the DWP in disgrace in 1928 after another of …
Mary Ahern
4:30 pm on Wednesday, May 9, 2012
I believe it's not about entitlement as much as it is about setting expectations appropriately for your kids. If a family doesn't have a Harvard budget, why have the kids apply there? Or make sure when they do apply that you have "the talk" with them prior to sending in that application . . . "hey, we would be proud to see you accepted but it is not in the cards for us to be able to send you" … more ›