The American economy is in the proverbial tank, possibly the worst financial situation since the Great Depression of the 1930's. Unemployment is running in the high single digits, double digits for some states. California is experiencing a fiscal crisis as the state struggles with high unemployment and a $47 billion dollar (and climbing) fiscal deficit.
Locally, unemployment is well into the double digits, probably 13%. An excellent option for high school graduates planning a career, the under-employed in search of a better job, or the recently unemployed desperately in need of a job is to enroll in a college or university. Unfortunately, California State University-Fresno is reducing student enrollment and considering personnel cuts due to California budget problems. Other private institutions may be financially out of reach for some would-be students.
The State Center Community College District (SCCCD)--Fresno City and Reedley Colleges and the Madera, Willow International and Oakhurst Centers--is bucking the prevailing thinking of reducing course offerings in the face of California budget problems. Neither general fund staff nor faculty has been laid off. Instead, faculty members have willingly gone the extra mile by accepting as many students as can be crammed into a classroom. Recent figures show a District-wide student headcount of 35,000. At Fresno City College alone 22,000 students are enrolled, an increase of 13%.
The risk, of course, for SCCCD is the lack of a State budget. Fresno City College might have to slash $2 to $4 million dollars from its current budget. The District is being prudent by taking a close look at expenditures and is continuing to make choices about where to reduce spending. SCCCD is first and foremost, however, protecting the services and programs that directly impact students, many who are unemployed.
As a faculty member of Fresno City College, I am very proud of the District Administration and Board that have made and will continue to make difficult decisions in these very challenge times. I am also proud of the staff and faculty that have willingly taken on additional responsibilities and have given their valuable time to accommodate the significant increase in students. Whatever it takes, serving students is our first priority.
I would like to personally thank the generous taxpayers of this District for their support, to include the local Measure E approval a few years ago for improved instructional facilities. Your support enables our students to meet the local unemployment challenges.
Coming attractions. . .
1) Fulton Mall; 2) Eaton Plaza
Your comments are always welcome. Just click on "comments" below.
Fresno County residents rely on their elected leaders to address the issues facing our county and region including sustainable growth, high unemployment, air and water quality, transportation, and public safety services. Fresno has changed dramatically over the past few decades. The County, now more than ever, is intertwined economically and environmentally with 15 expanding Fresno County cities and a multi-county Valley region. As municipal services expand, however, cities and the Fresno County Board of Supervisors often provide overlapping, inefficient services which burden taxpayers with higher costs for the duplicative services. Facing millions of dollars in expenses it cannot pay for, cutting services, and with no vision/direction for the future, the five-member elected Board of Supervisors operating with a powerless appointed county administrator is simply incapable of meeting the challenges of the 21st Century.
Fresno County needs a more effective governance structure. The Fresno City Council twice initiated legislation to establish a citizen commission to investigate improving City-County services in Fresno County. The Board of Supervisors rejected the legislation. We cannot afford to wait until the Board of Supervisors is ready to investigate solutions to the problems our County is facing. A thorough evaluation of County of Fresno governance and delivery of services is needed.
A Commission on Effectiveness and Efficiency in Local Government should be charged with conducting a comprehensive study of the services provided by the Fresno County Board of Supervisors with the goal of improving the delivery, quality, and efficiency of these services. The Commission would be responsible for ensuring the feasibility of recommendations and for producing a plan that has a reasonable prospect for adoption by Fresno County municipalities, the County Board of Supervisors, and ultimately, the citizens of Fresno County. The Commission should operate under as few constraints as possible, be broadly represented with strong, active leadership, and be linked to local government in Fresno County.
The task of the Commission would be to engage itself in a process of comparing the current Board of Supervisors governance system to relevant state and national models for enhancing local government. A recommended starting point for an excellent governance model is the elected county executive utilized by Kings County (Seattle area), Washington and numerous other progressive counties. Just as the elected City of Fresno Mayor provides checks and balances to the City Council, an elected county executive would be a counterbalance to the Board of Supervisors; would work closely with the 15 cities in Fresno County; and, finally, would provide much needed leadership at the regional, state and federal level.
A number of years ago Fresno citizens asked for and got (thanks in large part due to the efforts of the Fresno Chamber of Commerce) major changes to the City Charter to include a strong mayor form of government, term limits and other governance modifications that have significantly improved services to City residents. The nation just recently embraced change with the election of a new president. It is time for citizens of Fresno County to establish this Commission to bring about needed change to the governance methods of the Fresno County Board of Supervisors.
Coming Attractions. . . .
1) Fulton Mall Options 2) Downtown Eaton Plaza
Your comments are always welcome. Please click on "comments" below.
I have had pets--primarily dogs--most of my life. As a child I had a typical SPCA mix (Cocker Spaniel and something, if my memory hasn't failed me) that somewhat tolerated me. Patches knew that my parents were the givers of food and treats; Patches probably saw me as a somewhat annoying little pest since I had so little to offer.
Then there was my Labrador Retriever, Spice. I was older and could spoil her like a good dog owner. Living at Lake Tahoe, we could hike anytime, anywhere. She particularly liked romping in the snow and chasing various creatures that would outrun her or at least get up a tree faster. The only animal she unfortunately "caught" was a porcupine. I will never forget the experience (emotional for me; painful for her) of having to use pliers to pull the numerous quills out of her nose and mouth.
And for 23 years my family has been the loving "parents" of Yorkshire Terriers. First was Pudd'n and, for the last 13 years, Jazz. These two pets have been loving members of the family that spoiled them to no end.
Over the years my experiences with both "pound puppies" and AKC Registered dogs has been a special experience: Who can fail to love and spoil a animal that waits for you at the door when you arrive home from a hectic day and whines when you have to leave for another hectic day? Who else but your dog will wait for those daily walks in order to sniff every blade of grass around the block even though it has been sniffed hundreds of times previously? Who breaks your heart when he or she dies after living an all-too-short life?
While I thought that I was the ultimate "spoiler" of dogs, I had the good fortune while on the Fresno City Council to meet the Champion Dog Spoiler, Karen. Karen, a much respected senior-level employee at the City of Fresno, falls into a special category of dog lovers. I suspected that she was a Champion Spoiler when we were chatting about our dogs, and she mentioned that she puts her dog in a stroller on hot days so as to not hurt the dog's feet, uses a dog car seat to keep her dog safe from sudden stops or an accident, and gives her dog bike rides while he proudly sits in a wicker basket. I felt like a criminal not doing these fine things with my dog, Jazz!
Karen is a life-long Poodle aficionado. She got her third Poodle 13 years ago at Christmas and appropriately named him Kristopher Kringle. She calls him Krissy--Kristopher when he is in trouble. She says that, "Krissy has been the sweetest and most loving dog. He gives so much more love than I can possibly give him. He is always happy to welcome me home."
Krissy does, according to Karen, have a temper. Sometimes when she is home on weekends or after hours working on City business and Krissy believes that he is being ignored, he will grab one of Karen's Mickey Mouse beanies gently in his mouth and bring it over to her as if to say, "Pay attention to me or the mouse dies!" He has also been known to throw the plastic liner to his water bowl down the stairs when it is empty, or when he has not been able to get her attention to fill it up.
Karen's dog is really smart (and cool). "He is bilingual: He knows that 'agua' is water, moo juice is milk, and I-C-E C-R-E-A-M (spelled out) is ice cream. He will only eat 'Nathan's Buns' (homemade dinner rolls made from an old family recipe) with Shed Spread as he does not like butter. He has various sweaters, polo shirts with a little fire hydrant where the alligator would normally go and, of course, a leather motorcycle jacket, raincoat and letterman's jacket complete with a football."
I egged Karen on as she further warmed up to my questions about Krissy's "care and feeding."
"He has his own wingback chair in the living room and will sit for hours looking out the window surveying his 'estate'. During the holidays I must remember to turn on the Christmas lights, particularly the lights to the tree in the front window. If I forget he will come and find me and bring me back to the living room and will not get up in his chair until I open the blinds and turn on the tree. He also loves when I burn the jiffy logs or place candles in the fireplace."
At my request, Karen recommends the following must-have doggie extras:
Dog car seat
http://www.i-love-dogs.com/dog-supplies/Dog-518098011-B001HBLPH8-KurgoSkyboxBoosterSeat.html
Dog stroller (Krissy has the "Happy Trails" in blue.)
http://www.pet-super-store.com/html/Happy-Trails-Pet-Stroller.html
Wicker dog bike basket
http://www.doolittlespetproducts.com/wiba.html
It shouldn't come as a surprise to any of our dear blog readers that Karen treats her City of Fresno staff with the same care and consideration that she gives her dog, Krissy.
What is the lesson to be learned from Karen, Krissy and the rest of us that allow our dogs to take us for a walk? "Do unto others as you would do unto your dog!"
Yes, yes, Jazz, I am just finishing up here and will then have you take me for a walk....
Coming attractions...
Tuesday - Community colleges to be commended for meeting area education/training needs.
Saturday - Let's take a good look at the Fresno County Board of Supervisors.
Your comments are welcome. Simply click the "Comments" button below.
Reflections on Barak Obama's Presidency: What a Difference a Generation Makes.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 |Growing up in California, I periodically visited my relatives in Baton Rouge, Lousiana. Even though I was quite young, I remember being uncomfortable with the then-existing practice of separate bathrooms, drinking fountains and eating establishments for "whites" and "colored." My relatives had "negro" domestic and garden servants. The South, as I quickly learned, was quite different from my California.
I first learned of the 1954 United States Supreme Court decision, Brown vs Board of Education, from my junior high school civics teacher. The unanamous decision, written by Chief Justice Earl Warren in 1954, effectively striking down the long-held "separate but equal" practice in many areas of the Country of having separate schools for the races (and, by extension, separate facilities and services in many other aspects of life), didn't mean much to me at the time. I did, however, clearly remember my experience with racial segregation while visiting relatives in Louisiana.
It was not until I entered the University of California in 1961, coincidentally the year Barak Obama was born, that the full reality of racial segregation started playing out in the newspapers and on the evening news stories. The 1960's and 1970's were years of tremendous racial conflict, both physical violence and cultural clashes. The memory of it: the sit-downs, the marches, the fire hoses. I remember flying into Chicago in 1968 on my way to Fort Benning, Georgia to enter the military and seeing a pall of black smoke rising from the Chicago race riots. It was awful, yet it was probably necessary. The cleansing process had begun.
Today, January 20, 2009, we are inaugurating the first African American President of the United States of America. If I had been asked in junior high school, in college, or even on 9/11/2001 if we would soon have a black man as our president, I would have been extremely skeptical.
While we know what the American people want since they demonstrated it by their votes in November, what about the rest of the world? My wife and I recently returned from a dive and tourism trip to Australia where everyone we conversed with wanted to know about this American, Barak Obama. The questions went hand-in-hand with genuine excitement and hopefullness about his presidency. It was as if we--Aussies and Americans--saw this man, a black man no less, as symbolizing a possible new world order. Australia has long had a very difficult, complicated relationship with its indiginous people, the Aborigines. As was done by President Clinton for America's black population, Australia's Prime Minister recently apologized to their native peoples for the wrongs that have been visited upon them by white settlers from England. The international media interest in President Obama also mirrors our experience with speaking with Australians.
I share with all Americans our hopes and prayers that President Obama and our elected leaders can lift us from our present economic malaise and uncertainty about our place in the world. I am fortunate to have lived to see many of the racial ills and shibboleths becoming a relic of the past as Americans now challenge the future. I would, in honor of our new 44th President, like to share the meaningful words of the late U.S. Congressman, Paul Tsongas, in his passage, Journey of Purpose:
"In the end, there must be purpose to our journey. Human endeavor cannot consist simply of random acts and happenstance. There needs to be meaning beyond self that gives our limited days definition and direction. And only within that meaning can the judgement rendered upon our lives have worth."
"Beyond individual achievement and failure, there is common purpose, shared and inescapable. It is not purpose derived from legislative mandates. It is genetic. It resides in every being because it is the continuance of that being. It is the sacredness of generational responsibility. To be given life and to ensure that life passes on, enhanced, cherished, protected."
Coming events. . .
Saturday - If you love dogs and other animals, you have to read this!
Tuesday - Local community colleges going the extra mile in educating students for gainful employment.
Your comments are welcome. Simply click on the "Comments" button below.
An open letter (in briansfresyes.com blog) to Senator Diane Feinstein:
January 15, 2009
Senator Diane Feinstein
United States Senate
331 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Feinstein:
California, as you know only too well, is facing a massive financial deficit. Governor Schwarzenegger and the California Legislature, both Republicans and Democrats, have poorly managed our State finances and continue to bicker and posture without accomplishing their fundamental job of providing California with a balanced budget. As a former Fresno City councilmember, I know that budgets can be balanced. Sacramento suffers from a leadership vacuum. Excuses are unacceptable. Californians are angry.
As one of a growing number of independent California voters (officially Decline to State), I believe that your proven political skills are needed as our next governor. You have represented your constituents as former mayor of San Francisco and as current United States Senator. I am sure that I speak for many Californians in asking you to run for governor of the Golden State.
I know that you have a very important role to play in Washington. Your new position as Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee places you in a position to provide necessary oversight for America's intelligence community. As a former Army intelligence officer during the Vietnam War and recognizing the intelligence fiasco that partially led to our war with Iraq, I can fully appreciate the importance of your Committee. Also, soon-to-be-President Barak Obama will depend on elected leaders such as you to help him with the serious challenges and opportunities facing America.
Having said that, however, I would like to convince you that California is in dire need of effective leadership. You, Senator Feinstein, can provide that leadership. We in the Central Valley have been particularly appreciative of your ideas and practices. Democrats, Independents and many Republicans would like to see you as their governor.
I grew up in California during its "golden years," left the state for a few years as part of my military and professional career, and then returned. While things currently look pretty bleak, I believe that California can again be the state that sets America's agenda. We need you leading California.
Sincerely,
Brian Calhoun, Ph.D.
289 W. Audubon
Fresno, CA 93711
(559) 432-2779
calhoun_e@sbcglobal.net
www.briansfresyes.com (blog)
Coming attractions: Tuesday: Welcome President Barak Obama (Hear what our Aussie friends think of him); Saturday: If you love animals, you will want to hear this!
Your comments are always welcome. Simply click on the "Comments" button below.
As a college instructor for most of my professional career involved with preparing teachers , I find myself agreeing with Louis V. Gerstner's recommendations on what needs to be done to improve America's schools. Mr. Gerstner, a former CEO of IBM, was chairman of the Teaching Commission (2003-2006) which reported on ways to improve the quality of public school teaching.
Mr. Gerstner's premise for his recommendations is based on his belief that we must start with the recognition that, despite 40 years of education "reform" efforts, our public K-12 schools have not improved.
"We can point to individual schools and some entire districts that have advanced, but the system as a whole is still failing. High school and college graduation rates, test scores, the number of graduates majoring in science and engineering are all flat or down over the past two decades. Disappointingly, the relative performance of our students has suffered compared to those of other nations," says Mr. Gerstner.
Worried about what this will mean for our future workforce, Mr. Gerstner (and the Teaching Commission he chaired) states that countless experiments and analyses have clearly indicated we need to do four straighforward things to bring fundamental changes to K-12 education:
1) Set high academic standards for all of our kids, supported by a rigorous curriculum.
2) Greatly improve the quality of teaching in our classrooms, supported by substantially higher compensation for our best teachers.
3) Measure student and teacher performance on a systematic basis, supported by tests and assessments.
4) Increase "time on task" for all students; this means more time in school each day, and a longer school year.
He goes on to say that, "...the problem lies with the structure and corporate governance of our public schools. We have over 15,000 school districts in America; each of them, it its own way, is involved in standards, curriculum, teacher selection, classroom rules and so on. This unbelievably unwieldy structure is incapable of executing a program of fundamental change. While we have islands of excellence as a result of great reform programs, we continually fail to scale up systemic change."
Finally, he recommends that President Barack Obama convene a meeting of our nation's governors and seek agreement on the following:
- Abolish all local school districts, save 70 (50 states; 20 largest cities). Some states may choose to leave some of the rest as community service organizations, but they would have no direct involvement in the critical task of establishing standards, selecting teachers, and developing curricula.
- Establish a national Skills Day on which every third, sixth, ninth and 12th grader would be tested against the national standards. Results would be published nationwide for every school in America.
- Establish national standards for teacher certification and require regular re-evaluation of teacher skills. Increase teacher compenesation to permit the best teachers (as measured by advances in student learning) to earn well in excess of $100,000 per year, and allow school leaders to remove underperforming teachers.
- Extend the school day and the school year to effectively add 20 more days of schooling for all K-12 students.
Can this happen? Sure. Poll after poll shows Americans support national standards. While it would be ideal to have all 50 states participate, we can get started with less. It could be paid for by the savings of consolidating the operations of 15,000 school districts. Politicians need to understand that education is not an expense. It is, rather the most important investment we can make as a country.
Locally, the advantage of this approach is to strengthen our local school districts by establishing the same academic standards for everyone. No excuses. Also eliminated would be the huge amount of money spent on local school board races (particularly Fresno Unified), and the deep division created by unions squaring off against anyone else which often results in polarized and disfunctional school boards.
Coming Events:
Saturday - California dreaming - A new governor. Tuesday - If you are an animal lover, you will love this!
You can share your comments by clicking on the "comments" button at the end of this article.
Improve Downtown Development: Restructure the Fresno Redevelopment Agency
Saturday, January 10, 2009 |While many improvements have been made to downtown Fresno over the past few years (Community Medical Centers, Fifth District Court of Appeals, additional office and commercial buildings, additional housing), it is no secret that more work needs to be done before downtown becomes an increased mix of business, housing, commercial and just plain fun that we want it to be. A city is not a city without a vibrant downtown core. One means of moving more rapidly to this goal is to have Mayor Swearengin and the City Council rethink how the Fresno Redevelopment Agency (RDA) and the Fresno Economic Development Department (EDD) can work more closely together. Currently the RDA reports to the Council, and the EDD reports to the City Manager who in turns reports to the Mayor.
Some background on the RDA (see their web site at www.fresnorda.com) is helpful in understanding its role in downtown Fresno development.
Redevelopment is one of Fresno's most effective ways to breathe new life into deteriorated and blighted areas plagued by a variety of social, physical, environmental, and economic conditions which act as a barrier to new investment by private enterprise. Redevelopment under the California Community Redevelopment law has the authority, scope and financial means to provide the necessary stimulus to reverse deteriorating trends, remedy blight, and create a new image for downtown and some other areas of Fresno. The RDA does this by using taxes within the redevelopment area which normally go into the City's General Fund and, instead, spending them exclusively within that limited area for economic development purposes.
The RDA in 1997 entered into a cooperative agreement with the City of Fresno to establish a new agency with a focused mission for urban renewal. The RDA, under the control of the Fresno City Council, carries out the day-to-day operations of its redevelopment plan. While the RDA has 19 project areas, the largest expenditures are the approximately 20 concurrent projects with over one-half billion dollars currently being spent on or planned for downtown Fresno. These downtown plans are primarily being driven by Vision 2010 Destination Downtown adopted a few years ago by the City Council.
Under Fresno's City Charter, Mayor Swearengin, working through the City Manager, is responsible for developing the City's (to include the EDD's) annual budget. The budget is then reviewed and approved by the Council. The RDA's $2, 243,017 2009 Administrative/Management budget and $40,307,876 projects budget, however, is controlled entirely by the Council--not Mayor Swearengin or the City Manager. This unusual arrangement of having the RDA report to the Council and the EDD report to the City Manager (with Mayor policy oversight) is, I believe, a less-than-optimum way to effectively coordinate downtown development. An example of the problems this creates is the divergent views held by the Mayor and Council on the proposed Forest City master plan for downtown.
Make no mistake--in Fresno City politics, it is all about who has the power. The Council is very adamant about retaining control of the RDA. It is one of the very few areas that the Council directly controls, and it has no interest in sharing this responsibility with the "strong" Mayor. The Council can direct projects--and funding--that it wants without worrying about the Mayor or City Manager, even if this may be at cross-purposes with the EDD. This is not always good policy-making, particularly as it applies to downtown development.
While on the Council, I twice recommended that an outside consultant be retained to provide the City with a "best practices" recommendation on how to coordinate EDD with the RDA. This would provide the Mayor and Council the opportunity to make an informed decision as to whether the current bifurcated RDA and EDD reporting process is an effective and efficient means to meet the needs of a vibrant downtown. While I was not successful with my recommendation, I would encourage Mayor Swearengin to discuss with Council the value of reassessing the reporting relationship of the RDA. A more coordinated, common vision for downtown will, I believe, be the result.
Coming attractions:
Tuesday: A plan for improving our schools. Saturday: California dreaming: A new governor.
Your comments are always welcome. Simply click on "comments" below.
Issues for Consideration by the Incoming Mayor, Council and City Administration
Tuesday, January 6, 2009 |During my eight years on the City Council, a great deal has been accomplished by the Council working together with the Mayor and City Manager/staff. As I leave office today, I take pride in the progress the City has made and the policies that have been put in place to help guide the City's future. The following areas that could, I believe, use additional consideration and oversight by Mayor Swearengin, Council, and staff.
City Budget and Forecasting:
- Presentation of Budget Material - The Budget and Finance Department do an outstanding job. It would be helpful, however, if the Mayor and staff would provide more detail and summary in the Mayor's Proposed Budget when presented to the Council and to the citizen's of Fresno for consideration of adoption. There has been a shortage of future forecasting information and unfunded needs analysis during the past few years.
- Pension Obligations - The City's share of the Pension Fund payments will be more than expected in the near future due to the poor performance of the stock market. Public Safety alone is estimated at an additional $4 million. The General Fund will be the source of the funding resulting in shortfalls to the City. This fact, combined with what is expected to come from the State budget shortfalls, could amount to enormous challenges to the City. It's important to keep the public and staff informed of these challenges and the impact to City services.
- Funding City Services - Don't necessarily assume that people don't want to pay for the government or the services they want. Targeted assessment districts or targeted fees or even taxes can be successful if what is being funded is important to the constituency. Although the current difficult economic times may mean these options might have to be deferred, it is important not to abandon the discussion.
- Developer Impact Fees - Continuing to allow the deferral of developer impact fees will have a negative impact on the City's ability to fund basic infrastructure. Be sensitive to the long-term infrastructure and service impacts of such requests to include our public safety, quality of life and legal obligations.
- Eight years ago I began my first term, the City had a budget deficit; but I leave office with the City having a $17 million dollar budget reserve. Few cities in California or the nation can say that. Maintain a balanced budget with a prudent budget reserve
Public Safety Needs and Financing:
- The 2004 Public Safety Needs Assessment reports for police and fire were very helpful in building a first-rate public safety system. The issue of the true needs of public safety versus the City's ability to pay for it, however, needs to be continually examined.
- Long-term funding of public safety can only reasonably come from a new funding source. Economic growth will not keep pace with public safety needs and this should be addressed quickly.
- The Fire Department is finally being funded at respectable levels. It is important not to return to the Patterson administration's practice of starving the Fire Department as a means to fund the Police Department or other City services.
- The Joint Public Safety JPA with Fresno County appears to be stalled. The Public Safety JPA should be a priority to meet the safety needs of both City and County citizens.
Downtown Revitalization:
- Several individual projects have come to fruition in the downtown: the Federal Court House, Fifth District Court of Appeals, IRS, Fresno Community Medical Centers, improvements at the Convention Center, housing projects, and Fresh N' Easy supermarket, just to name a few. There needs, however, to be a comprehensive plan and structure to implement revitalization as a whole in the downtown. Be wary of focusing on projects in isolation. It's tempting to run with the best offer, but resist the temptation to focus on one project or project areas to the exclusion of the rest.
- Complete the 1960's promise for downtown Eaton Plaza Park. Eaton Plaza currently has a community-approved and paid-for master plan, a completed Phase One, (beautiful amphitheatre), and funds for a portion of Phases Two through Five.
Cooperate, Cooperate and Cooperate:
- Improve communication between the Mayor/City Manager and the Council
- Redefine the relationship between the Redevelopment Agency from one that reports only to the Council to one that reports to both the Council and the Mayor.
- Establish a Little Hoover Commission made up of citizens to examine how the City of Fresno and County of Fresno can work closer together to reduce inefficiencies and duplication of services, and thereby improving services to both City and County residents.
In the democratic American tradition of transitioning from one administration to another, may I suggest that the incoming Mayor and Councilmembers keep in mind the Citizen oath of Ancient Athens that called on leaders to, "Strive to quicken the public's sense of civic duty; and thus in all the ways strive to transmit the City not less but greater, better and more beautiful than it was transmitted to us." Best wishes and Godspeed.
Coming attractions:
Saturday: How downtown development can be improved.
Tuesday: A plan for improving our schools.
Your comments are always welcome. Simply click on "comment" below.
Your blogger's back after a wonderful diving trip to Australia. A lot of politics going on "down under," too; but let's begin the New Year with something a little lighter.
By a strange coincidence, your blogger's 65th birthday began in Fresno on December 20th -- the shortest day of the year (Winter Solstice). Traveling to Australia that day, we arrived in time to celebrate the longest day of the year (Summer Solstice). It's not often we have an experience such as this. It reminds us again how the world is so different yet so similar.
Your blogger was in Cairns, Australia, a jumping-off point for what all scuba divers long for -- The Great Barrier Reef. How strange it was to have 91 degree weather and high humidity while Bing Crosby sang"White Christmas." The celebration of Christmas didn't need snow and cold.
I have more to share on my Australian adventure, but for now, I am glad to be back in FresYes celebrating 2009 at home. "Toto, there's no place like home."
