Tehachapi Lifestyle

february 2013

Still the One: Loving Tehachapi couples at Rose Garden Estates

Birds of prey thrive at CSUB’s FACT

Inside the nostalgic world of

Harold Cox

volume 3 • issue 2

Retail Price $295

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

Read Up!

Get more info about Tehachapi’s Airport on page 13 .

{ from the editor }

A shared love for the Tehachapi Mountains Welcome to the February 2013 issue of Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine. Our theme this month is “Love that Lasts” and in honor of that, we are presenting a photo essay of five different Tehachapi couples whose love has indeed lasted. Not every article and photo in each issue connects directly to the theme, but some features will always pertain to our monthly topic.

One of the passions that unites those of us involved in this magazine and most of our fellow residents is a love for the Tehachapi Mountains and its communities.

I have had the good fortune to be raised here in Tehachapi, and then been able to research, photograph and write about the Tehachapi Mountains for more than

30 years. I’m proud to have known family members of mine and longtime friends who were born in the late 1800s and loved Tehachapi as much as I do. Those oldtimers have all passed on now, of course, but I still have friends in their 90s who continue to love Tehachapi and living here. Some of them remember this area before there was a single paved road and yet despite all the changes that have taken place in their lifetime, they still have an abiding love for their hometown and the surrounding mountains and valleys.

and yet many of these neighbors too already have a love for the Tehachapi Mountains that makes them glad that their mailing address ends in 93561 or 93581. Once you develop affection for our ever-changing weather, open spaces, friendly people, encircling mountains, common wildlife, interesting history and shared sense of community, you find that your feelings for Tehachapi do become a “Love That Lasts.” Thanks for your shared interest in our favorite place.

At the other end of the spectrum are new residents whose time here can be measured in months rather than years,

“Celebrating the people, places and culture of the Tehachapi Mountains”

Love that Lasts

A great gift idea!

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Did you know you can give the gift of Tehachapi? Well now you can! Buy your friends and family a gift subscription to Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine and they’ll enjoy getting all the stories, tips and insights delivered right to their homes.

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Go online at www.tehachapilifestyle.com or call (661) 822-0100

Raptors large and small are cared for at CSUB’s Facility for Animal Care and Treatment

The past lives on at the home of Harold and Addie Cox

{ culture & tradition }

{ features }

10 12

PEOPLE – Harold Cox A teacher, historian and collector, Harold Cox is a true Renaissance Man and a Tehachapi treasure BUSINESS – Tehachapi Collision - Mark Torres not only uses his extensive skills to repair the damage you may have to your car, but he also shares his knowledge with our local teens with handson practical education

Tehachapi Couples Photo Essay – 14 Love is in the air in Tehachapi. Join us in

{ community }

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EVENTS SECTION – What’s happening in the Tehachapi Mountains this February

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Yoga Love – Love comes in many forms, but this one will last forever

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FACT - A privately funded animal sanctuary, the Facility for Animal Care and Treatment at California State University Bakersfield has been saving Kern County’s wildlife for more than 35 years

Next Month: A Bright Future: 10 People to Watch in 2013 Opposite, top: This is a panorama that I took several years ago before the state put up the new bridge over Tehachapi Creek (on Tucker Road leading to Highway 58). The view is looking north and the cluster of Mediterranean Cypresses indicates the location of Tehachapi Westside Cemetery.

Opposite page, bottom (from left): Christy King and Mike Brooks and their daughter Ina and son Elijah; Tulips and Hyacinth start to bloom at Bouldin Oaks on Adelante Trail despite a Tehachapi snowfall; John Kamplain plays his standup bass during a benefit for the late musician Bob Parker.

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

{ family }

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The Color Pink – A surprise infusion of pink in a very blue household is an unexpected blessing

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Bare Root Plants – Planting bare root plants is beneficial to both the plant and your pocketbook. Now is the time to start the process for a healthy established plant in the spring

honoring these local couples who live that adage every day

Mountain Tales – Stories of life and 20 living in the Tehachapi Mountains in Wind - Jon Lantz came 22 toProfiles the wind industry by a meandering

path, but found his niche and has been contributing to this growing renewable energy industry ever since

{ food and wine }

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Valentine’s Day Menu – “Sugar and Spice” or “Meat and Potatoes”. Chocolate and wine are not the only way to celebrate the day

Our photo essay featuring 5 Tehachapi couples whose love abides

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3

Love that Lasts

{ other features }

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7 8 27

Bare root transplants are cheaper and establish quicker -- plant them now!

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{ gardening }

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Plant of the Month - This is the month to celebrate love in all its varied forms, and so what better plant to feature than the Daffodil, which symbolizes friendship Garden Design Elements The best landscapes develop over time. Here are the four design elements that can get you started on your own path to the perfect garden

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PUBLISHER’S PICK – This month, find out about the joys of bargain shopping and the new local Facebook group that is creating a big buzz here in Tehachapi DEDICATED TO… Join us this month in honoring Doug Pickard and Sheryl Bovi QUOTES WORTH SHARING Statements and sayings from beloved residents and some classics we just can’t resist THE OVERALL PICTURE – There is a worm in the best of apples TEHACHAPI MOUNTAINS FIELD JOURNAL Sightings and findings in our natural surroundings MOUNTAIN MUST HAVES – Need some ideas for that special Valentine gift? Here are some great gift ideas to choose from

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TEHACHAPI SEEN See who was out and about at the First Friday at The Treasure Trove and New Year’s Eve at Pacino’s

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PHOTO FINISH We end each issue with a memorable photo and image that deserves an unhurried look

Publisher Nikki Mead Cummings nikki@tehachapilifestyle.com Editor Jon E. Hammond editorial@tehachapilifestyle.com Operations Jan Hinote Sales Kris Thurman Cindy White This Month’s Contributors Susie Aranda Nikki Mead Cummings Melissa Davis Shanan Harrell Bill Mead Colleen Schaeffer Anna Smith Abigail Thorpe Amy Walker Distribution Debbie Weger Illustrations & Maps Josiah Ormsby We Are Located at 206 S. Mill Street Tehachapi, CA 93561 (661) 822-0100 info@tehachapilifestyle.com www.TehachapiLifestyle.com on Facebook www.facebook.com/TehachapiLifestyle copyright 2012 Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

february 2013

On the Cover

Still the One: Loving Tehachapi couples at Rose Garden Estates

Inside the nostalgic world of

Harold Cox

Tehachapi Police Chief Jeff Kermode and his wife Debbie are shown on a snowy afternoon at Paul and Lorie Weinroth’s Rose Garden Estate wedding venue in Bear Valley Springs. Lasting relationships are important in providing stability to families and communities, and this month we are profiling five Tehachapi couples in a photo essay entitled “Love that Lasts.”

Photo by Susie Aranda of Susie Aranda Photography

Birds of prey thrive at CSUB’s FACT

volume 3 • issue 2

Retail Price $295

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

{ publisher’s pick }

by Nikki Mead Cummings Vintage Pendleton Jacket, over $200 new, found for $42.50

You won’t believe how much I paid for it!

Have you ever complimented a friend on what she’s wearing, only to discover that she’s more excited to tell you about the deal she got than she is about the compliment? I don’t know what it is exactly, but it seems that there is some innate need in many of the women I know to “get the best deal”. My Aunt, Maggie Mead Stokes, and I will get into competitions trying to out story-tell one another about different great deals we finagled over the years.

While I love roaming antique and consignment stores, the Internet has made bargain hunting even easier, by giving us the ability to search for products all around the world. Just type an item into the search bar at the top of the page, and presto you have a list of websites to peruse. Sites like eBay and Craig’s List, have the sole purposes of buying and selling new and used items alike, including furniture, cars, home school curriculum, antiques, clothes and much more! Etsy is one of my favorite marketplace sites. This site leans more toward vintage and handmade items.

There are moms who and have started Etsy accounts selling handmade wedding invitations, or photographers who post and sell their photographs.

Smart phones and social media have taken online shopping to an unbelievably imaginative and fun new level. I have an application, also known as an ‘app’, on my iPhone, called Poshmark. This is a virtual consignment store, selling high-end women’s fashion apparel. You can wear something until you’re ready to get rid of it. Then, take a photo with your smart Authentic camel skin phone and upload it to Poshmark with a few details about the Moroccan Pouf, retails item. Interested shoppers can ask questions and purchase for $445, found for through a secure site. The money is deposited in your $18.50 account and you drop the item in the mail. Some girls will look at each other’s Online Closets and make trades, or ‘bundle’ items and give even better deals.

1970 Mid Century Modern Hanging Egg Chair, retails for up to $500, found for $100

The dynamic site that has more than 2,100 Tehachapi residents excited is Tehachapi Sells. This revolutionary Facebook Group is the free market at its very best. A Facebook Account and Groups are free for people to setup, so a few visionary Tehachapi locals put together a Private Group that is exclusive to Tehachapi residents. The purpose of Tehachapi Sells is to buy and sell items locally. I’ve seen anything from used baby clothes to airplanes, photography services and couches for sale on this site. People will post an item, and viewers can respond with their questions, or comment that they would like to buy. Most folks typically schedule a public place to meet and make the exchange. The amazing element is that there are no fees assessed by the group managers. The page is a forum for people to post their items, and facilitate introductions of prospective shoppers -- the rest is up to you. This local social media phenomenon has generated quite a response, even news stations in Bakersfield are reporting on the free market mountain story.

I don’t know about you, but it just feels better knowing I didn’t pay full price for something. Of course, there’s certain things I’ll always buy new -- toothbrushes and undergarments come to mind -- but I love looking around my house at all the deals and steals I’ve found over the years. Most are used, “vintage” as I like to call them. I like knowing that they had a life before they came into our home. I like to image the type of woman who wore my 1970s Bolivian Suede and Angora Fur Jacket like the one Jenny wore in Forrest Gump, that I discovered right here in Tehachapi, at Norma Jeans for just $49! Or the family who drank juice from my sunflower yellow Fiesta Pottery Disc Pitcher I picked up in Savannah, Georgia for $40. And, the 6-foot-tall Western Movie Poster with Gene Autry that Aunty Ems gave me a great deal on. What movie theatre did it hang in?. . .These pieces have life and a colorful story that I get to be a part of.

So the next time you pass a thrift store or yard sale, or hear someone talking about Tehachapi Sells, pull over or get online and enjoy the search. There’s a great deal out there with your name on it!

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

This February issue is dedicated to

{ dedication }

Doug Pickard and Sheryl Bovi The February issue of Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine is dedicated to Doug Pickard and Sheryl Bovi, a pair of Tehachapi residents who have contributed to this area both as entrepreneurs and as community volunteers. Together they founded the distinctive Tehachapi store Trains Etc. and Doug was also the founder of Friends of the Depot, shepherding the group through its early days and completing the onerous paperwork required to obtain 501c(3) non-profit status. The two of them hosted the very first meeting of Friends of the Depot at their home on Old Town Road and Doug served as the first president, spending countless hours helping to restore the original depot and Bill Stokoe’s railroad signal collection. Sheryl is a bright and beautiful spirit who manages the gift shop at the Tehachapi Depot and is a board member of Friends of the Depot.

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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Quotes Worth Sharing

“

“In 1997 we were able to purchase an additional 65 acres for Tehachapi Eastside Cemetery. We were down to fewer than 200 burial plots available, so we approached the property owner about buying the land but it was far more than the district could afford. The land eventually went into foreclosure, and though it was appraised at $120,000 we bought it from the bank for $55,000.

There’s room for at least another 1,000 plots and maybe more on the new ground -- it might meet our needs for

”

the next 50 to 100 years.”

Dennis Lutge

“Back when I was a correctional officer at CCI in the mid 1960s, we used to have snowball fights with the inmates when it snowed. It was light-hearted and things never got out of hand.

It was strictly a minimum security facility then, and it was totally different from what it’s like now.”

Kirk Stewart

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

“Once in a while you get shown the light, In the strangest of places if you look at it right.”

“Missouri Foxtrotters are among the world’s best gaited horses.

They’ve got a unique ‘fox trot’ gait, which is sometimes described as the horse walking with its front feet and trotting with its hind feet. They are very comfortable to ride -- it’s like being in a rocking chair.”

John Johnson

Robert Hunter

“I can explain it to you, but I can’t understand it for you.”

Unknown

“It’s a shame that liars’ pants don’t actually catch fire.”

John “Curley” Mills

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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The Nostalgic World of

Harold Cox

by Jon Hammond

Time machines that will literally transport you back in time may still be a thing of fiction, but vintage objects from earlier eras have a way of conjuring up the past in moments and fragments, while recreating the feeling and sensibilities of the age in which they were made and used. Harold Cox of Tehachapi has a special appreciation for antiques and collectibles, and he has done his part to capture some of America’s past, creating a small but thoroughly-stocked gasoline filling station from the 1920s and a soda fountain in the Tehachapi home he shares with his wife Addie.

As a member of the Tehachapi Heritage League almost from its inception in 1976, Harold might be expected to have grown up with a specialized interest in antiques, but that actually came later in life -- he had a fairly Norman Rockwellian, typical boyhood of his era. Born in 1935 to Harold and Iva Cox, young Harold was raised in the small Illinois town of Marceilles (pronounced Midwestern style as Mar-cells). His father was a carpenter and also helped build a massive lock for raising and lowering ships on the Illinois River, so Harold got to see how the lock worked firsthand. As a boy Harold used to help load passengers’ baggage on the train at a nearby depot, and he also worked as a pin setter at a local bowling alley, manually setting up the pins after each ball was rolled for the grand sum of five cents per game.

In 1950 his life changed and he became a California boy, moving to Bakersfield when he was 14. He arrived at his new Kern County home by a passenger train that rolled through Tehachapi, back when there were three regularly-scheduled passenger trains a day that came through town. Harold attended East High with his future wife, Addie Neufeld, and worked at Green Frog Market on Alta Vista in Bakersfield. After graduating from East High in 1953, Harold went to Bakersfield College, he and Addie married in 1954, and then it was onto a degree and 10

teaching credential at San Jose State. The newly minted Industrial Tech teacher, with experience in photography, drafting, technical math and related subjects, accepted the first and only job of his teaching career with the Antelope Valley Union High School District -- where he would work for the next 45 years.

When Harold was hired at AVUHSD, it was the largest school district in the U.S. by geographical size -- students came from as far away as Gorman, Rosamond, Edwards Air Force Base, Randsburg, and nearly to Victorville. After Harold was interviewed for a shop teacher position at the brand new Palmdale High School in 1957, he asked if he could see where he might be teaching. “They told me no, because the shops hadn’t even been built yet,” Harold remembers. Harold eventually taught all of the disciplines that made up the shop department, including machine, wood and electric shops, but photography was a special favorite. Over the course of his teaching career, his students went from using single sheet film to rolls of multi-frame film, and twin lens reflex cameras to single lens reflex cameras all the way to digital cameras at the end of his teaching days.

Harold’s interest in restorations and vintage collectibles was sparked one day in 1959 at a barbecue when a fellow teacher had an old restored car. Harold was inspired to buy a dilapidated 1936 Packard for $90 and his passion for restoration had begun. He started repairing and refinishing antique furniture and began collecting a variety of Americana, which today includes Coca-Cola memorabilia, soda fountain items, time clocks, ink wells, and much more.

Harold and Addie became acquainted with Tehachapi when they brought their children Randall and Gail up to play in the snow. In the 1960s, a former college classmate of Harold’s told him that he was a land buyer for Dart Resorts with money to spend and was looking for large parcels of land. Harold

Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

Harold and Addie Cox sit in the soda fountain portion of their home, which houses a host of vintage Americana.

brought his former classmate to Tehachapi and showed him the Fickert Ranch, and got a phone call about six months later telling him that Dart had in fact bought the Fickert Ranch and would be launching the Bear Valley Springs development.

Harold and Addie liked the Mother Lode area on the western slopes of California’s Sierra Nevada range and thought about maybe retiring there someday, but with family members in this part of the state, they decided to stay closer and in the 1970s they bought land in the Tehachapi area and planted fruit trees.

They built a house on their property in 1995, including a special room dedicated to Addie’s crafts, for she is a talented and well-respected quilt maker.

With two vintage gasoline pumps and a host of petroliana -- items associated with gas, oil and the early automotive era -- the multi-skilled collector Harold decided that what they needed was their own vintage 1920s style gas station, so he built one. Named the “Halco Station” after the first letters of his name, the little filling station is stocked with all manner of items used by long ago motorists and travelers, including vintage cigarette and candy bar machines. Step inside and for a moment you do enter a time warp, where everything you see is from an earlier era.

As Tehachapi property owners for close to 40 years and fulltime residents for nearly 20 years, Harold and Addie are happy with their life in the Tehachapi Mountains. “We love it here,” says Harold, “Our son Randall and his wife Sue also live in Tehachapi, and our daughter Gail Bitetti and her husband Len live in Bakersfield. We have wonderful views of the mountains, a nice home and good friends here.” Both through his contributions to the Tehachapi Heritage League and his own private collections, Harold is ensuring America’s history is both preserved and enjoyed.

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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Mark Torres of Tehachapi Collision Center has more than 20 years of experience in the collision industry, both as a technician and instructor.

Tehachapi Collision Center Making cars like-new and customers happy When Mark Torres was growing up in Tehachapi, he was interested in cars and worked alongside his father and brother in body shops. He was the kind of kid who knew his way around a metal shop at school better than the shop teacher, and while his classmates might be fooling around, Mark would actually be making repairs and fixing things.

Today this Tehachapi High School alumnus is the owner of Tehachapi Collision Center, a full-service body shop located on Santa Lucia Street in the Old Towne Shopping district. After getting his teaching credential in Auto Body and Refinishing in 1996, Mark traveled the country for ten years as an instructor for I-Car (Inter industry Conference on Collision Repair). He returned home to Tehachapi to open his own business, which does everything from total restoration, frame realignment and major repair to fixing scratches, replacing windows and windshields and minor dent removal.

With more than 20 years of experience in the industry, Mark and his team emphasize customer service and focus their 12

attention on the car owner, not the insurance company. Mark understands that satisfied customers and word-of-mouth recommendations are the strongest form of endorsement, so all efforts are geared to returning damaged cars to the manufacturer’s standards and making the customer happy. This attention to customer satisfaction led Tehachapi Collision Center to become a Hertz rental car outlet, so that customers can drop off their damaged car and pick up a rental to use until repairs are completed on their own car. Tehachapi residents whose vehicles are not in need of service can also rent a Hertz vehicle from Tehachapi Collision Center as well.

As a hometown boy who believes in giving back to his community and as a certified instructor, Mark also works with local teens through their schools to allow them to work on their own car repair projects, to provide them with hands-on, real world industry experience. Mark is a patient and thorough teacher who has earned the respect of those students who are lucky enough to have him as an instructor.

Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

Whether your collision repair needs are major or minor, the result of a recent accident or some long-standing damage you’re tired of looking at, and whether it’s an insurance issue or a repair you’re paying for out of pocket, Tehachapi Collision Center is dedicated to fixing your car to the highest standards and making you happy.

Visit their shop at 20601 Santa Lucia Street for an estimate or call 822-5997 for more information.

Mark Torres works with Tehachapi students to teach them how to complete their own projects.

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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Love

That Lasts

Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine is pleased to present our profiles of five Tehachapi couples whose relationships exemplify the theme of our February issue -- “Love That Lasts.” Celebrating local couples has become a popular annual feature of our February issue, and we offer this special photo essay in recognition of Valentine’s Day and the importance that lasting partnerships have on the vitality and stability of our community.

This year’s photo shoot took place in Bear Valley Springs at Paul and Lorie Weinroth’s Rose Garden Estate, an elegant private home that is also the Tehachapi Mountains’ newest venue for weddings. Wielding a camera for us was once again the talented and delightful Susie Aranda, a portrait photographer who specializes in sweet and candid photos of Tehachapi families, babies, couples and weddings. We hope you enjoy getting to know these couples a little better as much as we did.

You’re Still the One

You’re still the one That makes me laugh Still the one That’s my better half We’re still having fun And you’re still the one John and Johanna Hall

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

Jeff and Debbie Kermode

Jeff and Debbie have known each other for 20 years, having met when they both worked for the City of Irvine -- Debbie as an animal control supervisor and Jeff as a police officer. Jeff is now the Tehachapi Police Chief, and Debbie has retired after 33 years in animal control. They recently had a second wedding ceremony in three feet of snow at the Tamarack Lodge in Mammoth.

They both are dedicated equestrians (“She got me into horses,� Jeff says) and members of Mounted Assistance Units, and together they enjoy their shared interests in horseback riding, travelling and wine tasting. www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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{ love that lasts }

Chris and Stacey Podratz

These two ignored the warnings about the dangers of marrying young: Chris and Stacey were high school sweethearts at THS who married as teenagers and started their family early -- by the time they were 21 years old, they were already married and had two children. They now have three kids, Austin, Chloe and Chase, and they recently attended Austin’s wedding and are looking forward to one day becoming grandparents, despite being so young still.

Their relationship is based on shared love and respect, and they have defied the odds against young marriages and built a relationship and a family that lasts.

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

{ love that lasts }

Rubien and Dayle Brandon

This Tehachapi couple has been married for 33 years, but it wasn’t quite mutual love at first sight. At the time, Rubien was the deputy chief of Tehachapi’s Police Department and Dayle worked in real estate for Dan Ingram. “She walked past my window one day and that was it,” Rubien recalls. “I went in and asked about renting an apartment, which I didn’t need, but she refused any association with me to begin with.” Rubien was persistent, however, and Dayle warmed to him and they became a devoted couple. Today they are together nearly 24/7, since they successfully work together as owners of Country Real Estate.

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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{ love that lasts }

George and Anne Marie Novinger

George and Anne Marie met in a fraternity bedroom when both were students at Occidental College. It was an innocent encounter, though -- George had just injured his leg in a football game, and Anne Marie was putting her jacket in the room designated for coats when she found George resting on a bed. They have now been married for 58 years, and Anne Marie has created scrapbooks for every one of the many years of their remarkable partnership. George was a longtime Tehachapi High School principal and Anne Marie was director of the Glendale Community College Health Center for 30 years -- it is now named for her.

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

Steve and Judy Denman

{ love that lasts }

When THS graduate Steve Denman went to Bakersfield College, one of his football teammates and the teammate’s girlfriend “set up” Steve and another BC student, a pretty former Foothill High School cheerleader named Judy Elms.

Now 34 years later, the Denmans are still together, as is the couple who originally introduced them. Steve is the veteran Warrior football coach (and the winningest football coach in Kern County history) and Judy teaches aerobics and body mechanics at THS. Despite the fact that they have positions of great responsibility and are about to become grandparents for the second time, at heart they are still college students in love.

You’re Still the One

You’re still the one That makes me strong Still the one I want to take along We’re still having fun And you’re still the one www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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The Case of the Missing Earring When my daughter Teagan, 11, was born, her father gave me a pair of 1-carat diamond earrings to commemorate her birth.

They are the most meaningful pieces of jewelry I have because they represent Teagan to me, and all the wonderful things she’s brought to my life. Her father and I are no longer married but those are my “Teagan earrings” and I wear them all the time.

Recently I was cleaning out the rental unit where we had been living after most of our things had already been moved into the new house. I had been using a vacuum and then happened to notice that one of my earrings was missing! I knew that it had just

gotten lost within minutes because my ear still had the little red circular indentation where the earring had been. We looked EVERYWHERE for it -- I opened the vacuum and sifted like an archeologist through every bit of dirt it had picked up, but no earring. I enlisted the help of Teagan and her friends and taught them a police “grid search.” We searched and searched but the earring was gone.

About a week later, I took Teagan to LAX so she could fly to Florida to spend some time with her father. We were sitting and people-watching, typical airport behavior. Next to us, a lady was engrossed in her “to-go” meal. We glanced at each other a few times without anybody speaking and then after awhile she nonchalantly said “You gotta diamond on your foot.” Teagan and I thought she might be slightly kooky, like some random person you might encounter at LAX, and I looked at her a little puzzled and said “What?” And she gestured towards my foot and said “You gotta earring in yo shoe.” And I looked down and saw my missing earring wedged in the tread of my shoe! I was ecstatic! I had been wearing the same pair of shoes around town for a week, and somehow the earring hadn’t fallen out. I was so delighted and gushing that I’m sure that woman quickly wished that I would just move away and go back to leaving her in peace. And after all that, the earring itself wasn’t damaged, marked up or bent in any way -- it was just missing the threaded back, which I have replaced. It was definitely a happy and unlikely ending to the case of the missing earring.

Kris Thurman 20

Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

Life on Old Town Road at the White Feather Ranch “Our family moved to Tehachapi in 1930 when my parents, Julius and Jeanne Fritz, swapped their home in Willowbrook for 47 acres of land and a farmhouse on Old Town Road, which had been there about ten years at that time and was known as “the Burton place.” The property was dominated by an enormous Gray Pine (Pinus sabiniana) and my Dad wanted to name the place “Lone Tree Ranch” but someone else was already using that name so he settled on the “White Feather Ranch,” because he immediately started raising some of the first white turkeys to reach the market in California.

Dad would buy 500 of those day-old turkey chicks at a time from Sears or Montgomery Ward and they’d arrive in Tehachapi by train.

We go down at 2 o’clock in the morning and meet the Night Flyer at the Tehachapi Depot and pick up those crates of chicks.

They’d always throw in a few extras in case any died, but we hardly lost any and we’d end up with 500 or more turkeys.

The White Feather Ranch was the perfect place for us to weather the storm of hardship that was the Great Depression. We had 10 acres of apples, five acres of pears, turkeys, rabbits, hogs, a milk cow or two, and also hunted deer and quail and raised vegetables. Despite not having much money, we always had plenty to eat and often shared with others as well.

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

There was no electricity on Old Town Road in those days.

Firewood provided the fuel for heating and cooking at the White Feather Ranch.

We’d go out with our team of two white horses and a sled and cut fallen oak wood with a handsaw all over what is now Golden Hills. One night Mom was driving the team in with a load of firewood and a steam train was coming up the canyon from Keene. One of the old Malley engines blew its whistle and the team bolted.

We were all running behind them hollering and then they came to a tree and forked it, with one horse on one side and the other horse on the other, which stopped ‘em. We only lost part of the load.

Me and my brother Eddie would herd 500 turkeys back up in Rattlesnake Canyon behind the White Feather Ranch, where the turkeys would forage, eating grasshoppers, seeds and other treats. We’d have them back up in there for a few hours and then at feeding time we’d yell ‘prrrrrrt!’ real loud and all those turkeys would take off flying and gliding back down to the ranch where we could shut them in for the night.”

Dottie Fritz Marble Newton

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{ culture & tradition }

Profiles in Wind

part 2

Jon Lantz: A wind industry pioneer who stayed in Cameron Canyon

by Jon Hammond

Jon Lantz on the 170-acre Cameron Canyon cattle ranch that his family started in the 1940s.

Jon Lantz was born in 1960 at Tehachapi Hospital, when it was still a fairly new building, constructed to replace the old one that was heavily damaged in the 1952 earthquake. When he was growing up in Tehachapi, spending most of his time on his family’s Cameron Canyon ranch, Jon figured that one day he would probably seek employment where a lot of local boys without college degrees went to work: at a local cement plant.

“I always thought that I would have a job right around the hill from the ranch, but I thought it would be at Monolith,” says Jon, referring to the historic cement plant that later became known as Calaveras and now is Lehigh Southwest Cement. “It never occurred to me that I would make a career in a new business known as the wind industry.”

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Jon and his parents, Dae and Jean Lantz, and Jon’s siblings were among a handful of families that lived in Cameron Canyon.

The Lantzes first arrived back in 1949 when there was no electricity, telephone service or even a completely paved road in Cameron Canyon. The family usually kept a milk cow for their own use as well as chickens, turkeys, goats, beef cattle and occasionally other animals, and Jon roamed the Cameron area on horseback and dirt bike. When he graduated from Tehachapi High in 1978, he went to welding school, and then worked with his father and his brother Dae Jr. at Pan American Resources Inc. in Upland, a company that was based around a process developed by Jon’s grandfather.

“I grew up involved with unconventional energy because my grandfather invented the Lantz Converter, which used biomass

like sawdust waste from sawmills to create methane gas and carbon,” Jon explained. “The main yield was methane gas and the carbon was a byproduct, which was actually used to make briquettes for a while -- we used to have a bag of Lantz Briquettes at the ranch.”

In 1982, after a year and a half of working at Pan American Resources, Jon returned to Tehachapi and put in applications at both Monolith and at the Cal Portland Cement plant. Neither was hiring. He also interviewed at the California Correctional Institution in Cummings Valley to become a correctional officer and was called back for another interview, but declined. “After growing up with a lot of freedom and open spaces, I just couldn’t see myself working there every day,” Jon admits. “I knew I wouldn’t be happy.”

Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

Jon started dating a fellow hometown kid in May of 1982: Helen Owens, the youngest daughter of Kelcy and Margie Owens of Kelcy’s Restaurant. Helen and her sister Kathy told Jon about a new company called Zond Systems that had recently moved into the Talmarc Building on Curry Street (now home to the Family Life Pregnancy Center). Since the company was located just down the alley from Kelcy’s, Zond employees came in to eat almost every day and had mentioned that they were hiring. Jon went into the Zond building, applied and got hired as a laborer in September of 1982. At the time, he knew virtually nothing about the nacent wind industry.

“I got paid $6 an hour, and was around the 12th or 13th person hired by Zond,” Jon recalls. “They called us ‘The Dirty Dozen’ and there was no job description, job title or job division -- you just worked for Zond and did whatever needed to be done. You’d dig ditches, pull wire, operate equipment if you knew how, weld, pour concrete, whatever. If you knew how to run a backhoe, you jumped on it. Growing up on the ranch, my Dad had taught me a lot of practical things and I knew how to weld, so my skill set worked well.”

Zond’s entire fleet of turbines in 1982 consisted of 13 Storm Master machines. “They were small, three-bladed turbines with latticetype towers,” Jon explains. “They had flexible blades that would turn very fast -- the tip speed would reach 118-120 miles per hour.

In high winds blades would bend back and hit the tower. It was a disastrous combination. They simply couldn’t take the wind and winter conditions we have here -- it can get brutal. So Zond was experimenting with different turbines. In 1982 we had a push to install 10 Windmatic machines, which were 14s (rotor diameter), 65-kilowatt turbines that had wooden spars with a fiberglass shell around them. In my first year we also put up 10 Polenko turbines from Holland, which were 100kw machines with tube towers, and two 65kw Vestas turbines from Denmark.”

Working conditions in the early days were informal, to say the least. “We took our own trucks to the job site and worked out of them and used our own tools,” Jon remembers. “Guys would bring their dogs to work with them, and of course your lunch, water and anything else you might need, because there was nothing up on those ridges. On a lot of days you wouldn’t even see your boss on the job site, you just did what needed to be done. One time Kenny Williams looked up to see his 1956 Chevy truck starting to roll, and before he could get to it, the truck picked up speed, went over the edge and then rolled over and over down a slope into the canyon at the bottom. We had to get a bulldozer to pull it out of there, and of course that was the end of that truck.”

Safety procedures were rudimentary then too, and for an industry with an exemplary safety record, it’s surprising that there weren’t more injuries or fatalities in first years of wind energy development. “When I first started climbing, you wore a single belt around your waist with some D-rings that you used to attach some tools,” Jon notes. “You then free-climbed up the lattice tower with no climbing protection, and when you reached the top, you hooked a lanyard around the tower. That www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

was it. Later that advanced to a belt that included two loops that you’d put your legs through, but it still wasn’t a proper harness like they use today. We’d also climb towers that had a runaway turbine whose blades were freewheeling -- we’d climb to the top to throw a lever that activated a braking system to stop them. We’d climb in high winds, and do a lot of things that are strictly against safety codes today.”

Jon Lantz inspecting a Vestas rotor in the early days at Zond Systems.

In 1983, Zond ramped up turbine installation, adding 20 more Windmatics, 5 more Polenkos, and 65 Vestas turbines. There were lean times financially for the company, when “The Dirty Dozen” were reduced to 20-hour work weeks, with only Jon working full 40-hour weeks as he supervised the others who came in on alternate days. 1984 and 1985 were years of exponential growth for both Zond and the wind industry in general, in what is referred to as the “California Wind Rush” of the 1980s. “By the end of 1985, we had put up 300 turbines in Palm Springs, 240 at nearby Painted Hills, 200 in Altamont Pass, 400 at what we call 33 East, commonly known as the ‘Windwall’ on the ridge at the east end of the Tehachapi Valley. We went from having a dozen guys to having crews of 200 people working at three different sites simultaneously. From 1982 to the end of 1985, we put up approximately 1,500 turbines.”

Jon went through multiple promotions at Zond, with job titles that included Operations Maintenance Superintendant and Safety Supervisor and Wind Facility Operations Manager. He spent 16 and 1/2 years with the company before leaving to work for other wind companies. Today he owns Eight Bar Brand wind energy consulting, drawing off his 30+ years in the wind industry. He and Helen live on their 170-acre ranch in Cameron Canyon, raising cattle and enjoying life in the Tehachapi Mountains, and both their sons, Scoutt and Levi, are involved in wind energy.

“The wind industry has allowed me to stay here in Tehachapi and work on our ranch, and live out my dream,” Jon says. “I’m one of a number of Tehachapi guys who’ve been able to be successful and accomplish some goals in life without a college degree and without having to move to a big city somewhere. There’s now more than a billion kilowatts of power generation in the Tehachapi area, and I’m proud to have been part of that.”

This article is sponsored by the Tehachapi Wind Museum, courtesy of a grant made possible by Southern California Edison

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The Color Pink

by Colleen Schaeffer

I’ve never been much of a pink person. Ok, I’m REALLY not a pink person. When I was invited to a pink-themed birthday party a few years back and asked to dress in pink, I had to dig really, really deep into my wardrobe to find a single pink item. I’m just not a pink sort of a girl. And, being the mother of three boys, the no pink thing has worked out just fine. For whatever reason, my boys aren’t so into pink either. In fact, I’m pretty sure you’d have to sedate any one of them first if you wanted to get them into something pink. And just as we were getting very comfortable in the routine of our pink-less little world, a very small, very pink little someone has descended and changed everything.

In November, we welcomed baby number four into our family. And because we didn’t find out the baby’s gender beforehand, and because in three consecutive births the outcome had been the same --”It’s a boy!”

I felt that I could reliably assume we would continue our safe and predictable little routine of green and blue boys. I could see myself as the mother of four boys, I know how this whole boy thing works. Two boys in each bedroom, nice and tidy. The simple and organized toy system -- a bucket each for the cars, trains, airplanes, swords and pistols, would continue.

I know how to dress boys, we have a uniform more or less that gets passed down from brother to brother.

I can do wrestle mania, bloody noses, chipped teeth, 24

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knotted up heads and frogs loose in the car. I always tell people that I make a better referee than a counselor, that’s why I have boys --I’m more suited to deal with broken bones than broken hearts.

And it’s not to say that I didn’t hope for a girl, I was heartbroken at the thought of never having a girl. The thought of always being the only one crying at the end of a movie (as four bewildered males looked on), of not having anyone to pal around with when the boys had all gone off to shoot at each other (with some sort of guns that only leave welts), of never planning a wedding, never watching my own daughter become a mother just about killed me. I’ve been saving up vintage pillowcases to turn into sundresses, I’ve crocheted flowers onto tiny winter hats, and have stashed away countless patterns and ideas for my “someday” girl.

But when, pregnancy after pregnancy she didn’t come, I began to lose hope and settle into my wild world of boys.

And then, just when I was sure she’d never arrive, in she came with a great big flourish of pink. In the same way I was heartbroken at the thought of not having a girl, there’s a part of me that’s terrified to have a daughter. Classic, right? There are those things in life, usually the big things, that we want so badly that it’s killing us not to have them. And then when we finally get them, it scares us to death. What if she thinks I’m crazy? (My boys probably already think I am, but I think they’re crazy too so that doesn’t count.) What if she’s nothing like me? Or more frightening still, what if she’s a lot like me? What if I get what I deserve with all that I put my sweet mother through?

I don’t know. And I think that’s just it. I don’t know. Before I had children, I was such a great parent. After my first son was born, I had it all figured out and I was ready to write a book. After my second son was born, I was ready to completely rewrite the book and revoke every bit of parenting advice I’d issued. Boy number three came along and I was ready to burn the book, and never advise anyone on anything short of basic survival skills (like how to make it look like you’ve just showered when you’ve actually lost track of the last time you bathed). Once again, with the arrival of our sweet girl, I’m sure there’s a whole lot I’ll have to rethink and rewrite. Life really was getting into a bit of a tidy routine before she arrived, albeit a rowdy routine. But now, I find myself thrust into the beautiful unknown once again. I am convinced that change is the essence of life itself. Growth is in fact change, and if we are not growing, are we truly alive? So, just when you’ve finally got it all figured out and life throws you a curve ball, rest assured that to be amidst the unknown is to be truly alive. And how sweet it is that sometimes the unknown happens to be pink! www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

{ dedication }

Doug and Sheryl love to travel, here they are shown on a vacation to watch glaciers calving.

We stop to appreciate

Doug Pickard and Sheryl Bovi In the early 1990s, Doug Pickard was an aeronautical engineer and he and Sheryl Bovi were living in Palmdale when they came up to Tehachapi one weekend to see the Tehachapi Loop. They liked the area and the community that they discovered and decided that they would be happier living in Tehachapi, so they moved up here in 1994. Doug had owned a Lionel train set as a boy, but lost interest as he got older and after he got out of college, he sold the set to a guy he knew. After 18 years had passed, Doug ended up buying the same train set back with a renewed interest in both model railroading and actual railroads, and he and Sheryl developed their love for railroading together.

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February

Tehachapi Mountains Activities Calendar

2/1 – First Friday Around Town- 5 pm to 8 pm on Green Street in Historic Downtown Tehachapi.

Enjoy shopping and mingling in our delightful downtown stores

2/2 – Groundhog Day 2/3 – The Day the Music Died – On this day, in 1959 a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa took the lives of singers Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper and pilot Roger Peterson 2/6 - Greater Tehachapi Economic Development Council Meeting – 7:30 am at The Apple Shed

2/9 - 6 pm to 9 pm - Main Street Tehachapi Valentine Wine & Chocolate Tasting - 8 tasting tickets $25 in advance $30 on the day of the event. Tickets available after January 2, 2013. Call 661-822-6519 or go to www.mainstreettehachapi.org/events for more information

2/14 – Valentine’s Day

2/19 – Monthly Chamber Networking Luncheon – 12 pm – 1:30 pm at Pacino’s Spaghetti Factory. Cost, which includes lunch, is $15 for Chamber members and $20 for non-members. RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED. Please make reservations by calling the Chamber at 661-822-4180. Reservation deadline is Friday, February 15, 2013.

2/16 – 6 pm to 8 pm - At the Souza Family Vineyards - The Magic of Love dinner and show presented

by Tehachapi Culinary Studio and Souza Family Vineyards. Tickets are $65.00 per person. Call Tehachapi Culinary Studio at 661-822-1122 for tickets and additional details.

2/26 – On this day in 1932 American singer-songwriter, Johnny Cash was born. The Man in Black has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th Century.

Open Mic every Wednesday at 7 pm at Fiddler’s Crossing. Admission $5.00. Go to www.fiddlerscrossing. org for complete February concert schedule.

Kiwanis Club meets Wednesdays 12 pm to 1 pm at Pacino’s Spaghetti Factory

Rotary Club meets Thursdays 12 pm at Don Juan’s Grill

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

{ the overall picture}

There’s a worm in the best of apples My wife and I have been married just short of 36 years. When I thought deeply about that the other day I was astonished to realize how few big league arguments we have had. Even more amazing – according to what I read about our violent society – is the fact we have never engaged in what you could call a real knockdown-drag-out. Her only black eye came when one of the babies reared up on her lap.

Bill Mead, Columnist Emeritus

(I won’t dwell on the time she lobbed a shoe in my direction. She insists it slipped out of her hand while she was putting it in the closet. It’s her word against mine and most people think hers is better.)

Those who know us well no doubt will attribute this serenity to my wife alone. It’s true she seems to have been born without a hint of hostility in her soul. But let’s don’t overlook the fact that I’m not a natural fighter, either. I prefer to talk things out. Not everybody sees that as a plus. Considering the tediousness of my conversation at times, I’m sure there have been occasions when my wife would have preferred a punch in the snoot simply to get the agony over with.

I will be the first to admit that despite our rejection of fisticuffs as a lifestyle, my wife and I

My wife and I have never been confused with Ozzie and Harriet, either.

have never been confused with Ozzie and Harriet, either. We both have grinding little habits that irk the other, although I think I’m doing much better than she is in rising above them.

According to my wife, my worst one is acting like I’m not paying attention to her. She gets testy every time I slip into a thousand yard stare as she tries to improve my awareness. I don’t know why she fails to see that I have not ignored her comments in more than 20 years, not since she proposed buying a diamondencrusted washer/dryer set and I mumbled approval without knowing what she said.

I listen raptly to everything she says now, even though she often makes it difficult. Her most maddening quirk is to turn her head slightly when she speaks. I can tell she said something but not always what. I suspect she knows how thoroughly this annoys me, particularly in the car. She never fails to apologize for it. Then she does it again.

It always puts me in a bad light. If I holler at her to speak up, I come off looking like a beast. If I don’t yell, I never can be sure she didn’t announce the forthcoming expenditure of big bucks and was taking my lack of response for approval.

It may be she’s getting back at me for forgotten sins but I can’t understand why. I quit eating crackers in bed years ago.

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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Brrr…. It’s Bare Root Season!

by Amy Walker

Growing your own fruit is an achievable goal for almost every homesteader, urban or rural. As long as you have a little bit of earth, you can plant fruit bushes or even a tree that will give back more than just shade. And thankfully, Tehachapi is blessed with an excellent climate for all but the citrus varieties.

Our mountain community is well known for its apple and cherry orchards, but raspberries, blackberries, and ollalieberries have fast become favorites, and many gardeners have successfully grown stone fruits and blueberries. I recently planted two fig trees, which should do fine as long as temps don’t drop to the single digits, but I’m willing to cover and protect them on occasion if it means having my own fig harvest! (Is there anything better than eating fruit right off the tree?)

Like most people, when visiting a local nursery I’ve succumbed to the beauty and temptation of a gorgeous potted plant, blossoming and extending its promise of future fruit. But I’ve also learned that the real secret to fruit success lies in the bare twigs that come in mass during the bleak months of winter; bare root offerings that appear to be void of life, but secretly await an opportunity to establish early roots and prove themselves more advanced than their alluring counterparts. Like ugly ducklings that turn into stunning swans, bare root plants will surprise the patient gardener with their sudden transformation once warmer weather arrives.

What Does “Bare Root” Mean?

Bare root plants are in their dormant state and therefore only available during the colder months of winter. Having a small root ball and no leaves, they appear as sticks with a few remaining roots.

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Why Buy Bare Root Plants?

Seasoned gardeners are well aware of the benefits of buying bare root plants. During the summer months, when fruit trees and bushes appear enticing, they fly out the door at premium prices. But in the winter, fewer shoppers are willing to brave the outdoor elements and those in the know will find that the selection is best this time of year and prices are very reasonable.

Because winter rains and snowfall makes the ground moist and therefore, easier to dig, getting the bare root plant in the ground is a lot less work (and easier on the back). And there’s the added benefit of not having extra leaves, branches, and a heavy root ball to deal with. For those living in areas with hard clay soil, this may be just the ticket! (Just know you will need to amend the soil in the hole you dig.)

While I’m keen on the lower prices, the main reason I like to plant bare root trees is because I know they’ll get a nice jump on the growing season, establishing a good root system before producing fruit. Long term, this will be for the plant’s benefit as well as the gardener who will enjoy a healthier tree a bit sooner.

What To Look For When Buying Bare Root?

Typically bare root trees arrive at local nurseries in large crates or containers filled with potting soil and lots of sticks protruding from the top. They don’t come in individual pots, so don’t be alarmed when the nurseryman grabs a stick and pulls it out, exposing roots and all to the cold air. The plant is dormant and as long as it’s not left like this, it will be fine. He will usually place it in a bag for you to transport home.

Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

When selecting your plant of choice, look for healthy tissue (as opposed to damaged or diseased) and a well-developed root zone. You don’t need to be overly concerned about the shape because this is often heavily pruned to encourage good root development, but I do recommend looking for a fairly straight central trunk if purchasing a tree.

Because fruit trees are grafted, each trunk will have a knob at its base. Be sure you look at the label on the plant to ensure the root stock that it has been grafted into is suitable for your climate, watering requirements, and that it is resistant to common diseases.

Planting

When you bring home your selection, you’ll need to plant it right away or keep it in a moist planting medium until you’re ready (not letting it dry out), but be sure to get it in the ground within the week. Soaking the roots in water for 12-24 hours is often recommended to insure that it’s well hydrated before planting.

For Tehachapi’s zone 7 climate, the window of time for bare root varieties begins in late January and runs through March.

Besides fruiting plants, other good bare root choices include lilacs, roses, flowering ornamental trees (like Redbuds) and specialty trees (such as Maples).

The homesteader who has a vision of the future, faith in the cycles of life, and the patience to invest in humble bare root plants during the bleak of winter, will be well rewarded in harvests to come.

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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Yoga is My Valentine

by Shanan Harrell

I first caught a glimpse of my Best Beloved in my Beginning Acting Class at Texas Tech University in 1972. From the moment the instructor introduced us, I somehow knew we would be lifelong companions. I remember the thrill of our first few encounters; the raw, undeniable physical attraction was palpable. We spent many an hour tangled together; sweat pouring, muscles straining, breath pulsating in the recesses of the lobby of the University Theatre. Ultimately we always fell into an exhausted pool of bliss.

I can honestly say it was love at first Downward Facing Dog. I had met Yoga.

But, alas, I was young and as with many college romances, ours faded after winter break. In the spring semester, Yoga went on as it had for 2,000 years and I went on to Theatre History Appreciation….but the seed had been planted to ripen another day.

I didn’t see or even think about Yoga for the next 25 years. I moved from Texas to California, had a successful career in “the industry,” got married, had kids, lost my father, got divorced, lost the father of my children, burned a house down, lost my mind. You know, Life. I was slowly climbing my way out of the rabbit hole of 1997 when I happened across my old college flame. A yoga studio opened in my neighborhood and with tender memories swirling in my depressed head, I reunited with my former sweetheart to see if we could rekindle the spark. Sure enough, with each hour spent in Yoga’s company, with each Triangle and Warrior and Upward Wheel, I discovered a beautiful awareness that I had not experienced for some time, as if I’d come home. And with the addition of Yoga’s wingmen Breath, Philosophy and Meditation, our blossoming romance burst into fullness. My Beloved had extended an open hand down the rabbit hole and drawn me back to the surface of our spinning blue dot in the universe. No longer needing to hold my breath to keep it all together, I exhaled deeply into the arms of Yoga. We were in the hot, messy thick of it now. I’d found the Big Love.

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

With escalating passion, Yoga and I became inseparable. Our relationship grew from an occasional random meeting into a committed practice. I obsessed about my cherished companion on and off the mat. I dreamt of visiting my Sweetheart’s ancestors in India.

Everything about Yoga fascinated and entranced me. But, then, as with any relationship, the honeymoon phase waned and I found myself becoming vaguely annoyed with Yoga’s insistence on non-violence and conscious awareness. The relentless compassion that I once thought was so charming had become an irritation. Our evenings, formerly spent in quiet reflection by glowing candlelight, had grown tiresome. Some days I didn’t want to deal with the relationship; I refused to step on my mat. To hell with all this equanimity drivel! My patient Partner would remain silent, allowing me to wind myself up in my own nonsense. When I returned from my sporadic visits to Crazyland, Yoga would be there waiting, softly smiling, whispering in my ear, It’s okay, Precious Heart. Let’s take a breath and do a Headstand, hmm? Look at things from a different perspective. There now.

Isn’t that better?

My Best Beloved continually shines my heart. Through the years we have learned much about each other; we know each other’s faults and innermost secrets. After traveling the country together for almost two decades, we have joyfully retired here in Tehachapi, rooting ourselves deeply in this rich community. …so here’s a little Valentine surprise for my Partner: A Love Salutation! A rekindling of vows! (Imagine the sweet aroma of Nag Champa floating through the air and a lush romantic tune with plenty of sitar to make it style-appropriate…..)

Beloved Yoga, 17 years ago I promised my commitment to you, but it seems like only yesterday that I was standing on my mat for the first time. I vowed to love you, honor you and practice with you. I pledged to be by your side in sickness and in health, in times of want, and times of plenty, for better or worse, for the rest of our lives. Today, at the beginning of our 18th year as Life Partners, in the presence of our family and friends, and the readership of TLM, I renew my vows to you, pledging my eternal love and eagerly awaiting what life may bring us. I promise to be there in middle and old age, in good and bad hair days, in twists, inversions and backbends. I have been blessed for the past 17 years and am thrilled that I get to spend the rest of my life with you. And so it is. Om. Shalom. Amen. Hallelujah. Namaste.

Happy Love Month, Everybody!

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

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A Stronger Real Estate Market

A Stronger First AmericAn 675 Tucker Rd. Suite E, Tehachapi, CA 93561 661.823.1630 www.firstam.com | www.MyFirstAm.com

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

{ dedication }

We stop to appreciate

Doug Pickard and Sheryl Bovi

www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

After moving to Tehachapi and buying property here, Doug came up with the idea of opening a store that would sell model railroad supplies as well as train memorabilia of all kinds. Sheryl, who had once entertained the notion of starting a bed and breakfast catering to rail buffs, was less than enthused, but as a birthday present to Doug she relented and agreed to be part of the project. In June of 1999 they opened Trains Etc. on Tehachapi Boulevard next to Kelcy’s Cafe, and in 2000 Doug retired from aeronautics and worked fulltime at the shop. After seven fun years, in 2006 they sold Trains Etc. to Ed and Linda Gordon. “We’re very glad we opened Trains Etc.,” Doug says, “There isn’t another store like it, and the Gordons have been good successors, Ed is a nice guy and very knowledgeable about railroading.” For their tremendous contributions both in getting the Tehachapi Depot project completed and in establishing a unique Tehachapi store, we salute the popular Tehachapi couple of Doug and Sheryl -- thanks guys!

F A C T

Saving Kern County’s wildlife for more than 35 years

by Jon Hammond

FACT Program Coordinator Marlene Benton holds an injured Cooper’s Hawk that is missing most of its upper beak.

Despite the injury, its prognosis for eventual rehabilitation and release is good.

The Tehachapi Mountains, like most of Kern County, are home to an abundance of birds of prey, including eagles, hawks, falcons, owls and more. If these birds suffer from an injury or are found orphaned or abandoned when still too young to care for themselves, they still have a chance for recovery at the Facility for Animal Care and Treatment at California State University, Bakersfield.

Friends of FACT, and donated medical services provided originally by Dr. Tom Banks of the Bakersfield Veterinary Hospital and later by a succession of vets associated with BVH. Biology professor Dr. David Germano succeeded Dr. Murphy in 2000 and Dr. Germano’s biology students assist with the feeding, maintenance and rehabilitation of the birds.

Known by its acronym, FACT was started in 1975 by a Cal State Bakersfield biology professor named Dr. Ted Murphy, who was given an injured Red-tailed Hawk by a California Department of Fish and Game warden. At the time, Dr. Murphy had no idea what to do with the bird, so it was placed in a 20-acre fenced portion of the campus known as the Environmental Studies Area, and pieces of chicken from the grocery store were left out for it.

The Environmental Studies Area where FACT is located is tucked away in the southeastern portion of the campus, closer to Ming Avenue than Stockdale Highway and just a short raptor glide from the Edwards Cinema at the Bakersfield Marketplace. Over the years, this parcel of former farmland has been converted to a shady green oasis with giant California fan palms and other assorted trees, as well as a small pond and an impressive cactus and succulent garden created and tended by the Bakersfield Cactus and Succulent Society.

From those humble beginnings, FACT has become a nationally known wildlife rehabilitation center specializing in birds of prey.

A wide variety of animals ranging from endangered San Joaquin Kit Foxes to Great Egrets have been successfully treated at FACT and later released, but most of the emphasis has been on raptors, and FACT has handled thousands and thousands of them in the nearly 40 years since the project was established.

Although FACT is administered through Cal State Bakersfield, it is supported by community contributions, not tax dollars, and has only been possible through countless hours of donated time by Dr. Murphy, a legion of volunteers and a group called 36

While caring for wildlife in distress is one of the main reasons for FACT’s existence, educating Kern County’s children and adults about the importance of raptors and other native fauna is integral to the program’s mission. Program Coordinator Marlene Benton, a CSUB biology graduate who has run the day-to-day operations at FACT since 1999, is kept busy trying to meet the demand for educational outreach, sending Cal State students and “ambassador birds” out to area schools, as well as hosting FACT tours and periodic open houses.

Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

All these educational efforts are probably of greater benefit to raptor species in the long run than the rehabilitation component of FACT. Ted Murphy explained it to me years ago like this: “Look, we can take a Red-tailed Hawk that some guy has shot off a power pole and if we’re lucky, we can treat it and release it and we’re still going to have a negligible impact on the wild population of Redtails. But if we can go to schools or have them come to us, and educate that same guy’s kid and his classmates to appreciate raptors and not shoot them or harm them in any way, then that’s the biggest long term benefit of FACT. Education is the key.”

A visit to FACT is well worth the trip to Bakersfield -- exploring the ESA during a FACT open house is a unique experience. The resident Golden Eagle, Holly, has a beautiful new flight enclosure so that this remarkable bird can spread her six-foot wings and fly. There are also a number of other permanent residents whose circumstances prevent them from being released, including Great Horned, Burrowing and Barn Owls, Swainson’s, Red-tailed and Red-shouldered Hawks, a Prairie Falcon and more. Birds whose treatment is ongoing and who will hopefully be released are housed new rehabilitation cages that Benton designed, and these new cages have improved an older, more hodge-podge appearance in the rehab area of the ESA. One of the birds currently being treated is a Cooper’s Hawk that is missing much of its upper beak. Like a fingnail, the beak can grow back providing it isn’t too damaged at the base. In the meantime, Marlene and a FACT volunteer who is an acrylic nail specialist have developed a method of creating an artificial beak that is attached but can then be shed as the real beak grows back. Other bird rehab programs have shown interest in learning how to use this method themselves.

And now Dr. Germano has proposed an elegant and functional upgrade to the lab area of FACT that would include an interpretive center and new classroom and office space. The hope is that this multimillion dollar expansion could be completed in the next five years.

Red-tailed Hawks like these are the most common large raptors in Kern County and are typical patients at FACT.

Over nearly four decades of serving Kern County and its wildlife, FACT has been an inspiring and reliable asset for CSUB, both helping individual birds and also educating residents about raptors and other wild animal species. FACT remains a source of pride to both the university and the county as a whole. I have taken dozens of birds from the Tehachapi Mountains down to FACT or to the Bakersfield Veterinary Hospital, and some of them have been able to be re-released into our mountains. FACT hosts a monthly open house on the first Saturday of each month during the school year, from 1-4 pm, October through May. I highly recommend that you visit, and take your children or grandchildren with you for a memorable experience. Upcoming dates for FACT open houses are on February 2, March 6, April 6 and May 4. Visit the FACT website at www.csub.edu/fact for more information.

Contractor’s Directory

Great Horned Owls are among the birds on display at FACT

Above: A resident Golden Eagle named Holly is an outstanding specimen of a raptor.

Below: Prairie Falcons like this one at FACT are residents of the Tehachapi Mountains.

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Daffodils Friendship for February

Daffodil Botanical Name: Narcissus Perennial Starting: Bulb Size: Up to 2 ft Exposure: Full to partial sun Watering: Rainfall, occasional watering if drought

by Abigail Thorpe This is the month to celebrate love in all its varied forms, so what better plant to feature than the Daffodil, which symbolizes friendship? They are indeed true friends of the garden and the gardener in every sense of the word. Not only do they require very little care, but also deer and gophers won’t go near them, and they come back every year in even greater numbers than the year before.

Most varieties start to bloom in time for Valentine’s Day, and who couldn’t use a little sunshine in February?

Originating in the Mediterranean and Middle East, these friendly flowers have been prized for their beauty since the times of ancient Greece. The Romans were the first to introduce the Daffodil into Britain, valuing the flower for the supposed healing abilities of its sap, though in fact the sap irritates the skin.

Daffodils were relatively forgotten until the early to mid 1600s, when a group of Englishmen brought the flower out of oblivion and introduced it into the English garden. The Daffodil has remained a prized and much-loved member of the garden, even inspiring poets such as William Wordsworth to write prose praising its brightness and beauty.

Daffodils are started through bulbs, best planted in the early Autumn. They will 38

grow almost anywhere, but do not do well under evergreen trees and shrubs that do not let the sun in, or around trees with a shallow root system. After the first planting, Daffodils will come up again and through seed and bulb division they will multiply year after year. After the bulbs are done blooming and the leaves have turned yellow, it is best to cut the leaves off to the ground, leaving the bulb healthy for reproduction the following year. Occasionally if flower production decreases due to an excess of Daffodils in one area, some bulbs can be dug up and divided once the foliage has all died back, and can then be stored and used for planting in the fall. There are many different Daffodil varieties available, but some of the most loved are the large Trumpet Daffodil, the Double Daffodil that produces a flower with petals similar to a peony, and the small, fragrant Jonquilla Hybrids. No matter the variety or color, the Daffodil is sure to bring some lasting love and joy to your garden this year.

{ food & wine }

{ culture & tradition }

A Valentine’s Day Menu:

“Sugar and Spice” or “Meat and Potatoes” Does it ever seem like February gets a rather short shrift when it comes to food? The usual mode is “February = Valentine’s Day = wine and chocolate.” I enjoy both of those things, but what about the rest of the month? What about the Superbowl? Or Mardi Gras? I’d be in trouble if I didn’t at least mention them, with Tehachapi’s love for hometown football and my partLouisianan roots. However, I’ll save my recipes for crawfish etoufee with hush puppies for another time, once I have this one squared away: The Token Valentine’s Day Menu. Pretend it’s

by Melissa Davis

Valentine’s Day and you’d like to dazzle your sweetheart with a homemade meal. Here are two great menus to choose from, both easy, special and delicious. First is “Sugar and Spice”: vegetarian pumpkin curry soup followed by snappy chai cookies.

Second is “Meat and Potatoes”: savory bratwurst simmered in beer and whole-grain mustard paired with tangy red potato and bacon salad. Throw in a snazzy handmade card or a simple “Be Mine” scribbled on a pink sticky note, light some candles, put on Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire”, and you’ll be good to go.

Sweet Potato Salad The first time a buddy asked me to make this, he casually called it “sweet potato salad.” I thought he meant “sweet potato” salad, rather than “sweet” potato salad, and since it was being paired with beer brats, I immediately thought “Gross. That’s not going to work.” After I was straightened out and got the feel for the flavors that were supposed to be there, I was happily surprised. It’s slightly sweet, sour, tangy, bitter and savory all at once. Serve it hot, cold, or room temperature. It’s even good as leftovers. And yes, it’s good friends with beer brats. Serves 6 10-12 red potatoes, skin-on, cut in 1 1/2 inch cubes 2/3 cup cooked bacon, chopped 1/2 cup dill pickle, shopped 2 Tablespoons each: ~ whole grain mustard ~ white wine vinegar

Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, and boil until fork-tender but still firm. Drain potatoes and allow to cool slightly in a large bowl. Meanwhile, make dressing. Pour dressing over potatoes, add bacon and mix well to combine. Serve warm or at room temperature.

~ pickle juice ~ sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1/2 teaspoon dill 2 pinches crushed red pepper

Beer Brats This is such a great, crowd-pleasing, almost hands-off recipe. The reaction is always the same: “We have to do these again.” There are two ways to serve these beer brats: straight from the broth or you can “finish” the brats on a hot grill for a few minutes to give the skin a nice crispy “pop” before smothering them in toppings. I love them both ways, but my biggest request is that you find fresh sauerkraut to do them justice. Go to the refrigerated section to find it, or better yet, pop into your local deli and ask for some. The brats need to be uncooked (available at Trader Joe’s, or possibly The Butcher Shop). The beer can be cheap or spendy, dark or light. Total matter of preference. Serves 10 10 uncooked beer bratwurst 5 cans or bottles of beer 6 Tablespoons whole-grain mustard 2 white, yellow or sweet onions, sliced into rings Plenty of fresh sauerkraut www.TehachapiLifestyle.com

Place everything in a 6 quart pot. Bring to a boil and reduce heat.

Simmer at least 1 hour or up to 2. Broth can be kept on low and reduced to make a great topping for the brats or mashed potatoes. If desired, finish brats on a hot grill, 3-5 minutes.

Serve on whole-grain buns with fresh sauerkraut, more wholegrain mustard and the onions and drippings from the pot.

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Curried Pumpkin Soup I love this soup. I had a ball making it, tweaking and tasting and thinking as I went along. I am by no means an Indian food expert or even super familiar with all of the amazing flavors Indian cuisine offers. I do, however, love a simple curry with a bit of a kick. This soup could easily be ramped up protein-wise with the addition of shrimp or chicken, something I plan to try on my next go. Maybe I’ll toss in a handful of toasted cashews as well. Serves 6 1 can pumpkin 1 1/2 cups cream 1 1/2 cups milk 5 Yukon Gold potatoes cut in 1/2-inch cubes 1 sweet onion, chopped 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds (optional) 3 teaspoons curry powder 3 teaspoons garam masala 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander 2 cloves minced garlic 1 cup vegetable broth dash nutmeg dash cayenne salt to taste 1 1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas

Saute onion and potatoes for 10 minutes in a large pot in a bit of oil or butter. Add in remaining ingredients excluding the peas, and simmer 20-25 minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste. Before serving, stir in fresh or frozen peas and continue simmering and stirring until peas are heated through. Serve immediately, sprinkle with crushed red pepper if desired.

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

Chai Cookies These cookies are sort of a mystery to me. I was expecting little puffs. What I got was gorgeous lacy things. The flavor is spot on: pure chai, sweet and spicy. But the visual aspect made me the most happy. It was sort of exciting pulling cookies from the oven that you could hold up to the sunlight and think, “Hey, that’s pretty”. Straight from the oven, they’ll be delicate and crisp. After they cool, they develop a nice chewy texture.

Beat butter and sugars until fluffy. Stir in remaining ingredients and mix well. Chill dough at least 2 hours. Preheat oven to 350. Roll into balls using 1 1/2 teaspoons per cookie.

Spacing 2-3 inches apart on parchment-lined cookie sheet (cookies will spread out), bake 15 minutes.

4 dozen (at least. I’m not always consistent with my cookie sizes) 1 cup butter 1 cup powdered sugar 1 2/3 cup sugar 1/2 cup cornstarch 1 1/2 cups flour 3 Tablespoons vanilla 3 teaspoons allspice 3 1/4 teaspoons ground cardamom 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 1/2 teaspoons ginger 1 teaspoon nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon salt

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Four simple design elements for your

Tehachapi garden One day in late fall my granddaughter came to visit me. We took a walk through the garden and picked the last of the very double, perfectly formed, pink Leonardo de Vinci roses and Michaelmas Daisy (Aster novibelgii). We brought them in the house and made a sweet smelling bouquet. I suggested to her that we take a walk up the street and visit her Great-Grandma, (who was having a particularly unpleasant treatment for cancer that day) and leave the flowers on her front porch as a little surprise to cheer her up. She was elated!

We had to make another stop first, however, a visit to Grandma Smith, (my mother-in-law) who has an apartment connected to our house, to show her our creation. Grandma Smith was so tickled she praised her lavishly. My granddaughter’s little face

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by Anna Smith

was full of delight! As we took our walk we talked about the flowers, and how happy they were going to make her GreatGrandma, who wasn’t feeling too good that day. Her little mind was putting together that having a garden is fun, because you have enough flowers for yourself and you get to share some with others, and make them happy too. One of the big reasons I designed my garden to have plants in flower for most of the year is to have some to share, as well as some to cut for myself.

Here in Tehachapi that takes a bit of planning, but it can be done. The landscape of my dreams has a balance of evergreens for structure, blooming perennials and roses, and of course other flowering shrubs, as well as trees that flower and some that have fall color. The garden needs to be manageable and deer resistant as well. A pretty tall order!

Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

So how does one begin to realize a garden with all those elements? One step at a time, of course. The best landscapes develop over time. That wish list is what motivated me to begin my own study of gardening, and eventually led me to taking the Master Gardener classes at Bakersfield College, and then four years of employment as a horticulturist at Mourning Cloak Ranch, when it was owned by Ed Sampson. Then, after he prompted me long enough, it led me to become a Landscape Designer.

The starting point for a wonderful garden begins with the four design elements that all properties need to develop, from the smallest, most modest home, to the grandest palace.

1) As visitors arrive at your home there needs to be a well thought out Approach.

Does the UPS man as well as your guests know where your front door is? Many homes in Tehachapi have a long driveway that leads to a garage, and then visitors must guess which side of the house will take them to the front door. That is a very uncomfortable situation for your friends to be put in. There also needs to be adequate parking and easy access to the entryway. If steps are involved there should be an adequate landing periodically, and at the door, so that guest are not out of breath when you open the door to greet them.

2) The House is the pivotal point of all landscape design. Everything revolves around the views from the house and towards the home. What materials would bring out it’s style and give it charm? How is it situated? How can its assets be best complemented, and shortcomings compensated for?

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3) What is unique about your home’s Perimeter? What functions do you want your garden spaces to serve? What slopes need to be tamed? Which area would be best for the barbecue? Where would you enjoy having a cup of coffee in the morning, or sitting with a good book on the weekend?

What types of enclosures will suit you and your property? What type of fence and gate do you need to enclose a space?

4) Passages to Destinations. Each site should have at least one destination, and maybe many. Think through the various amenities that would interest you and/or meet your needs. How about a friend’s entrance? A pergola, pond, pool or a bench under a grand oak tree? Passages to destinations can be as simple as a grass path, or more elaborate pavers, or low-maintenance gravel. The mystery of following a path around a corner to a final destination adds so much charm to a space! As you think through these four important design elements take some pictures of the existing landscape and begin your “before” and “after” scrapbook. You can print these out and put tracing paper over them to sketch out your ideas. This is a very useful exercise, helping you visualize what is in your head. Most of all, don’t rush, enjoy the process of discovering what you love about your site. The most rewarding outdoor spaces meet your needs and desires while tapping into the strengths and beauty of your location.

If you need help discovering the potential of your landscape you can contact Anna Smith through her website terrevertelandscape.com or call her at 661-972-5820. She has been a landscape designer in Tehachapi for the last ten years and is also a licensed landscape contractor. Contractor license #979025.

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Mountain

Must Haves Blowout Bar

Stop in for a quick wash and style for your big night out.

Studio J now offers their Blowout Bar daily. Appointments aren’t necessary, but encouraged. It’s only $20, and if you buy 4, you get the 5th free.

114 E. F St 822-3669

Flowers

For the traditionalist, you can’t beat a dozen long stem red roses, and a box of See’s Candy. Tehachapi Flowers has packages available for pick up, or delivery. 119 East F St. 822-3117

Couple’s Photography Session

Do you keep saying that you need to get photos taken, but just haven’t found the time to do it? This is a great gift opportunity! Contact Susie Aranda Photography, Tehachapi’s premiere lifestyle photographer for scheduling and pricing. 823-1322 www. susiearandaphotography.com/

Dinner for 2

On February 16, Tehachapi Culinary Studio and Souza Family Vineyards are hosting The Magic of Love dinner and show. Dinner will be served, along with a bottle of wine per couple, and a magic show, from The Magic Castle. Tickets are $65 per person. Contact TCS for more details 822-1122

Wine Gift Basket

Build a beautiful gift basket for the wine enthusiast in your life. Include a gift certificate to The Wine & Cheese Cellar, a nice bottle of wine (or two), some truffles and choose from an assortment of items in their boutique. 695 Tucker Rd. 822-8590

Spa Package

Treat your lady to a day of luxury and pampering at Skinsation Medical Spa. Skination offers a variety of spa and medical spa treatments that she is sure to enjoy.

Located at 1500 Haggin Oaks, Ste 100, Bakersfield 617-6101 www.skinsationmedispa.com/

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend

Jewelry is a classic gift that is sure to light up any girl’s day. Hodgkins Jewelers in Lancaster has an incredible selection and pricing to suit anyone’s budget. Create a treasure, you are only limited by your imagination, all custom designs are done on premises. 1072 West Avenue K, Lancaster 942-1042

The Ultimate ‘Man Day’

Treat him to a day of bird hunting, in Cummings Valley. There are several packages available, including guide dogs options if needed. Choose from Pheasants, Chukar, and Quail, or a combination of both. Packages starting as low as $96.

Contact High River Hunting Preserve at 822-8900 or www.highriverhunting.com

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First Friday at Tehachapi Treasure Trove

The First Friday art event held in multiple locations in Downtown Tehachapi on the first Friday of every month has become a warmly-anticipated celebration of art, complete with assorted complimentary snacks and wine and champagne. If you haven’t made this a monthly tradition yet, it’s time to consider it -- it’s a great time to enjoy Tehachapi after dark and savor the many artistic talents who call the Tehachapi area home. These photos were taken during the January First Friday event at the Tehachapi Treasure Trove on Tehachapi Boulevard.

1. Rona Samuels 2. Janet Meabon, Nancy Waldron, Susanna Monette and Mel White 3. Jay and Flo Sussell 4. Trish Guterez 5. Jim Walsh 6. Caryle Springer and Karen Marks

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine

{ tehachapi seen }

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New Year’s Eve at Pacino’s

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Among the Tehachapi merry makers on New Year’s Eve was the crowd that was at Pacino’s Spaghetti Factory at the corner of Tehachapi Boulevard and Tucker Road to enjoy a prime rib dinner and a tribute band that played hits from the group Journey, as well as other 70s, 80s and 90s rock music. Like all of the acts booked by owner Frank Spacarelli, the group was made up of top-notch musicians and included a threepiece horn section at times.

1. Jami Fassbender, David Parker and Hannah Griffin 2. Ron and Doris Depew 3. Anya Zeng and Ed Hansen 4. Lance Buck and Sharon Fulton 5. David and

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(former Tehachapi mayor) Marianne Teel 6. Melissa and Daryl Christensen 7. Cher and Sonny, aka Alicia and Frank Spacarelli

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photo finish

Back Door of the Farmhouse -- Both of these photographs were taken in 1928 outside the back door of a little farmhouse on Cherry Lane. One of the defining characteristics that distinguishes between a country house (especially an old one) and a home in a housing tract: the occupants and their friends and family members tend to use the back door of a country house, while in town it’s usually the front door. Both the little girl taking a pull off a Pepsi-Cola bottle (“Refreshing, Healthful” says the label) and the kittens playing in an old canned salmon box are outside the back door of the farmhouse -- strangers are usually the only ones that use the front door in the country. 85 years after these photos were taken, the back door of the same old farmhouse is still the one that gets used. JEH

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Tehachapi Lifestyle Magazine