Sam Burns Leads Genesis Invitational with a 64 at the Riviera; Two Players Shot 66

Posted on February 18, 2021 by Sue

Sam Burns  plays his shot from the 13th tee during the first round of The Genesis Invitational.               Photo: Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

By BILL BRUNS

Circling the News Advisor

The Genesis Invitational, featuring eight of the world’s top 10-ranked players, got underway in beautiful weather today at the Riviera Country Club.

Sam Burns, 24, took a two-stroke lead with a 7-under-par 64 on the historic course, opening with an eagle on the first hole and closing with birdies on 16, 17 and 18.

“This golf course at times doesn’t offer you a lot of opportunities, so I think just with that mindset going in we were just going to kind of take what we could get,” said Burns, who is seeking his first PGA Tour victory.

Max Homa, who grew up in Valencia and was a spectator at the tournament as a kid, and Matthew Fitzpatrick both shot 66. Homa also birdied the final three holes (going 2, 4 and 3) and Fitzpatrick eagled No. 1.

“It was a good day overall,” Fitzpatrick said. “I feel like I struggle a little bit on poa annua, so to see them [the greens] how they are this week, so firm, fast, they’re as true as I’ve ever seen.”

Max Homa lines up a putt on the eighth green.
Photo by Harry How/Getty Images

Homa said, “I know the golf course pretty well, I’ve been fortunate to play a few more times since college and it’s the grass I grew up on. Kikuyu, poa annua, it’s very very comfortable for me.”

Eight golfers were tied at 67, including Patrick Cantlay (who played at UCLA). He had a sizzling 4-under 31 on the front nine, but had to settle for a 36 on the back side. “I thought the golf course was incredible,” he said. “I think it’s the best on Tour.”

Tyler McCumber, one of the players bunched at 67, caught his fingernail on a nail in the hotel room Monday night. On Tuesday morning, “It was pretty torn up, but fortunately the surgeon on site, the emergency surgeon is a hand specialist. Dr. Modabber. So, he gave me the option, he said we can bandage it up, obviously you can’t play because it’s just too painful, or we can do a procedure where we just rip off the nail, but half of the nail is still intact. So, he numbed the finger and ripped off the nail.”

When McCumber was asked about his pain level he said, “It’s just gone numb. . .Riviera will take your mind off the pain.”

The PGA interviewer noted that McCumber’s hand looked swollen, and the golfer admitted: “I was surprised I could play, honestly. When I did  it, I pretty much booked a flight back home and changed it once he ripped it [the nail] off. Honestly, I was pretty fortunate to tee it up.”

Alex Noren (67) pointed out that “the rough is not very high, but it’s hard to stop the ball on the greens from the rough.

Dustin Johnson, the No. 1 player in the world, had a frustrating 68 (along with six other players). The long driver parred all three of the par-5 holes, which normally are birdie opportunities for him. “Tomorrow I need to hit a few more fairways and take care of the par 5’s,” he said, and added: “You can’t ask for a course in better shape. The greens are perfect, the fairways are firm and fast. But yeah, this golf course plays really difficult when it’s firm and fast. You have to be in the right position, or you’ve got no chance.”

Former world No. 1 Jordan Spieth also shot 68, helped by a birdie 3 on the famous 10th hole. On the tee, he said, “The idea was to hit a 3‑wood over the left bunker into those trees . . .but that angle’s the best angle to be chipping into the green from.” He said the wind “was blowing pretty hard so I knew I needed to kind of hook it in order to get it over that bunker. So I went a little left of where I wanted, ended up in one of those spots that was not ideal because the palm tree happened to be right in the line I wanted to go.”

He ended up going to the left side and cut it out of the rough from about 60 yards. “That shot was the shot of the day for me,” Spieth said. “That could have easily been a 5 and it turned out to be a 3.”

Defending champion Adam Scott, a 14-time Tour winner, finished 2-under. “I felt pretty good out there, but just didn’t hit as good off the tee as I was hoping.” He said the wind moved direction a little bit during the day, but “it’s a course I’m comfortable on, so even hitting poorly, I kind of feel like I know how to get it around.”

Korean Tae Hoon Kim eagled the par-5 11th hole (sinking a bunker shot from next to the green) and had a hole-in-one on the 16th hole as he also finished with a 69.

This is one of three tournaments on the PGA TOUR schedule with elevated status, along with the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide and the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard.

Elevated events each offer a larger purse ($9.3 million), a three-year PGA TOUR exemption for the winner, and (new in 2021), 550 FedExCup points to the winner.

Matthew Fitzpatrick of England stands on the ninth green during the first round of The Genesis Invitational. Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images

 

Posted in Sports | Leave a comment

Katie O’Neill Shares Paintings with Rotary

Posted on February 18, 2021 by Sue

‘Winter Afternoon Santa Monica Bay’

“Pacific Palisades has to be one of the most beautiful places to live,” artist Katie O’Neill told Rotary Club members during a Zoom meeting on February 9. She noted how the Pacific Ocean frames one side of the town, while the Santa Monica Mountains frame the other, including hiking trails and two state parks: Los Leones and Will Rogers.

“I’ve found my niche here,” said the painter, who has a studio on Via de la Paz where she will resume giving lessons once the Covid restrictions ease.

O’Neill, the daughter of Thomas (now deceased) and Virginia, grew up in the Palisades and attended Marquez Elementary, Paul Revere and PaliHi.

She was one of five kids and her mom taught her how to paint. “I took it for granted growing up here,” she said. “I had an idyllic Palisades childhood in the 1970s and 1980s.”

‘Temescal Oak’

As a youth, “I did a lot of commercials and a short-lived sitcom,” she said, noting that her acting “paid for USC film school.”

The sitcom was called “Together We Stand,” until they killed off O’Neill’s TV father, Elliot Gould, and retitled the show “Nothing Is Easy” with Dee Wallace Stone as a single mom.

After graduating college, O’Neill worked as an assistant editor and in development in Los Angeles. She then moved to New York, where she “dog-walked by day” and was the house manager for Classic Stage Company, an off-Broadway theater.

After a year, her mom called and asked, “Do you want to open an art studio with me?” She returned home and the two opened their studio in Malibu.

“I taught,” O’Neill said. “I learned [a lot] by teaching my students.”

Eventually, O’Neill had two young sons and had to decide whether to keep the Malibu studio and move the family there or relocate the studio to Pacific Palisades. “I wanted to raise my kids here,” she said. One son is now a freshman at PaliHi and the other is a senior.

At her studio at 835 Via de la Paz, she taught adult and children’s art lessons until the pandemic forced her to close up last March.

“I still have rents to pay and kids to feed,” said O’Neill, who switched her focus from teaching to her art. “I’ve been painting seven days a week and selling enough [to cover the rents]. So far I’ve been able to survive with my paintings.”

She has created some of the most exquisite paintings of Will Rogers State Historic Park—one features the “tunnel” of eucalyptus trees that leads to the horse barns. “They are not replanting these trees because they are non-native,” O’Neill said, so she has preserved some important visual history.

“I am eternally grateful for Will Rogers and his heirs for donating this land,” she said, noting that much of her art has Will Rogers in the title.

She also captured the former St. Matthew’s Church sanctuary, prior to 1978, when it burned down during the fire that swept from Brentwood along the edge of Pacific Palisades.

O’Neill has also painted numerous lifeguard towers at Will Rogers State Beach. “The lifeguard towers have sustained me during the pandemic,” she said. “My second most popular print is the lifeguard tower.”

“After it rains, I will run down to the bluffs,” O’Neill said, noting she takes numerous photographs of the area and brings them back to help her create the painting. “I get all the pieces — it’s like problem solving — and I put them together.”

“It brings joys to look at all the vistas and views,” O’Neill said.

Many may remember that O’Neill’s paintings graced the cover of the Palisades Fourth of July Parade program the past two years.

She will paint on commission and hopes that she will be able to resume outdoor classes in March. One can view the current paintings that are on sale on her website (oneillsfineart.com) or stop by the store.

Lately, “I’ve been experimenting with diptychs,” O’Neill said. (A diptych is an artwork consisting of two painted panels.) Below is a piece of art entitled “Clearing Storm.”

Call (310) 459-1030 or email katieoneillart@yahoo.com.

Posted in Arts | 1 Comment

Parents in L.A. Public Schools Are Urged to Join a ZOOM Walkout Monday

Posted on February 18, 2021 by Sue

Parents at LAUSD Schools, such as Palisades Elementary, are urged to participate in a Zoom walkout starting on Monday.

LAUSD school parents are urged to protest by not attending Zoom classes, starting next Monday.

Earlier this week, L.A. County public health officials said that Covid-19 cases had dropped enough to allow elementary schools to reopen—the California requirement to allow in-person classes for students in grade K-6 had to have an adjusted case rate of less than 25 new cases per 400,000 people.

The CDC has said that schools can reopen and that teacher vaccination for those under 65 is not a necessary requirement. The Centers recommend masks, hand cleaning and disinfection, proper ventilation, and spacing of desks.

The CDC has based this advice on information from public schools that have been opened since last fall in states such as Missouri, Wyoming, Texas and even New York. High school sports are being played across the country.

“On Wednesday, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health put in writing that schools are allowed to hold athletic competitions in cross-country, golf, tennis and swimming in the state’s most restrictive purple tier. And yet, nothing from LAUSD,” L.A. Times prep columnist Eric Sondheimer wrote on February 17 (“It’s Time for Sports Parents to Leave LAUSD in Droves”).

Private elementary schools in Los Angeles County have already opened. Schools have stayed open in foreign countries.

Although much lip service is given to providing education to brown and black pupils, LAUSD is continuing to stay closed. The total projected enrollment for 2020-2021 is 652,648, with the Latino population at 74 percent, white 10 percent, Black 8 percent, Asian 4 percent and Filipino, Native American and “not reported” the remainder of the population.

Now some parents have had enough and are spreading the message: “LAUSD ZOOM BLACKOUT–Starting Monday, February 22 for as many days as it takes! Enough is enough! We can no longer sit by and wait for UTLA to come up with more excuses to keep our schools closed.”

The notice, being spread from parent to parent, by email and texts, tells parents that instead of signing on to ZOOM, they should walk with their kids in front of their school. A parent sent a copy of the text to Circling the News on February 18.

 

Posted in Kids/Parenting, Schools | 2 Comments

Traffic Improvements Are Coming for the Notorious Intersection at Chautauqua and PCH

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Sue

The Chautauqua intersection may have new vertical delineator to make last minute switches to the right lane and onto Pacific Coast Highway more difficult.

Raise your hand if you have been in the right-hand lane on the downhill side of Chautauqua waiting to turn south onto Pacific Coast Highway and someone zooms by you in the adjacent lane and pulls in front of you at the last minute, causing you to miss the green light? You’ve waited sometimes as long as 10 minutes and now you have another 3-4 minute wait.

At the Pacific Palisades Community Council meeting last Thursday night, President David Card said he had met with Councilman Mike Bonin’s transportation director, Eric Bruins, and small changes have been proposed that should alleviate those drivers who “cut the line.”

Circling the News contacted Bruins and he responded today (Wednesday) by email: “This intersection has been the source of many complaints over the years, so we’re happy to be able to take some steps to simplify it.”

In the coming months, motorists going downhill on Chautauqua will only be able to access north- or south-bound PCH from the far right lane. The left lane will be designated only for turning sharply left onto West Channel Road, which is the current scenario.

To help enforce this change, there will be a vertical delineator and a buffer between the two lanes. “It will make it harder for drivers in the [West Channel] lane to cut back into the PCH-bound traffic from the other lane,” Bruins said.

Meanwhile, drivers heading northbound on PCH who want to make a right-hand turn onto West Channel or Chautauqua will only be able to do so from the far right-hand lane. The other three lanes on PCH will be through-bound only. Currently cars can turn right from two lanes.

“The turn volume is such that there should be ample capacity in one lane,” Bruins said. “LADOT also believes there will be safety benefits for having a single right-turn lane instead of the current double right-turn across a crosswalk. The existing condition would not meet current safety standards.”

He added that LADOT is preparing the final designs before they are submitted to Caltrans for approval. Once that happens, implementation could happen within a few months, and will include new signage and striping.

“I won’t have an exact schedule until the work order is executed,” said Bruins, who noted that the traffic improvement ideas had come from a PPCC public meeting several months ago.

 

Posted in City/Councilman Mike Bonin, Community | 3 Comments

Draycott Owner Shares Cocktail Recipes at Virtual Chamber of Commerce Event

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Sue

Merissa Hermer, co-owner of The Draycott, delivered a meal for Valentine’s Day to Lee Calvert, 96, as a way of connecting to the community.

 

Marissa Hermer, co-owner of The Draycott, located in the center of Caruso’s Palisades Village, was the guest speaker at a Palisades Chamber of Commerce virtual event on February 9.

The ever delightful Hermer, who is the mother of three young children, hosted a cocktail master class. She taught people how to make The Crisp (recipe below), which is the latest cocktail on the menu.

“But new for me is that I’ve stopped drinking for the time being,” Hermer told Circling the News. “With all the curve balls that this pandemic has thrown at us all and managing two restaurants in the worst crisis the hospitality industry has ever seen, and homeschooling three young children, I wanted to be as clear-headed as possible.”

This is an interesting predicament for Hermer, whose passion and profession is food and drink.

Fortunately, she discovered Ghia, a non-alcoholic aperitif. “It is sold at Erewhon and is the perfect social tonic to drink when my friends are having cocktails or I want something to pair with my meal,” Hermer said, noting that she has added it to the cocktail menu at The Draycott: Ghia Fix – a mocktail (recipe below).

During the last shutdown, the restaurant worked on the menu, adding West Coast Oysters, Venison Scotch Egg (which Hermer says is her favorite British snack), French onion soup and roasted beet salad with goat cheese. The restaurant continues to carry patron favorites, such as Mediterranean branzino, fish and chips, ribeye steak and lamb Bolognese, which is simmered all day.

The restaurant also continues its “YOU GIVE. WE COOK. THEY EAT.” donation meal delivery program to hospitals and first responders.

Hermer said that in March, when the first shutdown went into effect, The Draycott delivered meals to people in the community who were alone or who had compromised health. Hermer also started a social media giveaway that delivered weekly winners a meal to their doorstop.

“With Valentine’s Day weekend here, we are feeling the love, and we wanted to continue to share love with our community,” Hermer said. “The end is in sight — but we also don’t know exactly when this end will come. The final stretch to the finish line feels overwhelming as we don’t know how long this final sprint will last.

“And so, we thought it would be a good time to pick up where we left off — and start the social media giveaway again. Because, just like 11 months ago, we all can use a little smile shared from afar,” Hermer said.

The first delivery went to Bobbie Farberow, who Hermer calls “an inspiration to me as a female restaurateur in the Palisades.” The second delivery of a roasted chicken and a Gun Ranch Salad went to Lee Calvert, 96, an Optimist, a member of the Badminton Hall of Fame and the inaugural Arnie Wishnick Award winner on behalf of her volunteer efforts during the Palisades Fourth of July celebration.

“I’ve never felt more energetic and optimistic,” Hermer said. “During a seemingly never-ending pandemic, optimism is valuable and with three young kidlets, nonstop energy is priceless!”

 

THE CRISP 

Ingredients:

2 Crushed Cucumber Slices

4 Dashes Yuzu

1.5oz Jalapeno-infused Tequila

.5oz Vida Mezcal

.75 Lime Juice

.75 Red Pepper Agave Syrup

Ice: Premium Kold Draft

Glassware: Rocks

Garnish: Peppered Aleppo Salt rim + Fire Stix wrapped in Basil

 

GHIA FIX (mocktail)

Ingredients: 

1.5oz Ghia

.75oz Lemon

.5oz Demerara

2oz Mineral Water

Ice: Regular

Glassware: Collins

Garnish: Mint Bouquet 

Posted in Restaurants | Leave a comment

Donate Blood for the American Red Cross

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Sue

 

A blood drive will be held at the American Legion Ronald Reagan-Palisades Post 283, 15247 La Cruz, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, February 23.

Healthy donors are needed, and appointments are required so that social distancing can be accomplished. Log onto www.redcrossblood.org and when prompted for the sponsor name, enter “Post283” or contact a Red Cross Representative at (800) 733-2767.

To thank you for donating, a $5 Amazon gift card will be sent by email. Visit: rcblood.org/together. To make a blood donation, you must be 16 years old and weigh at least 110 pounds. All types of blood — A, B and O — are sought.

According to Advancing Transfusion and Cellular Therapies, “In one hour’s time, a person can donate one unit of blood that can be separated into four individual components that could help save multiple lives.

“From one unit of blood, red blood cells can be extracted for use in trauma or surgical patients. Plasma, the liquid part of blood, is administered to patients with clotting problems. The third component of blood, platelets, clot the blood when cuts or other open wounds occur, and are often used in cancer and transplant patients. Cryoprecipitated anti-hemophilic factor (AHF) is also used for clotting factors.”

According to the American Red Cross site regarding eligibility, if you have received the Covid-19 vaccine, it is acceptable to give blood if you were vaccinated with a non-replicating, inactivated or RNA-based Covid-19 manufactured by Moderna or Pfizer, providing you are symptom- and fever-free.

The Red Cross asks residents to wait two weeks if they were vaccinated with a live attenuated Covid-19 vaccine (visit: https://www.redcrossblood.org/faq.html#eligibility-medications).

Posted in General | Leave a comment

CRIME: PACIFIC PALISADES through February 14

Posted on February 16, 2021 by Sue

 

In the latest revolving door of Pacific Palisades Senior Lead Officers, LAPD Officer III Jae Lee will step into the position for a month. His email is 40824@lapd.online.

Michael Moore, who retired in January after being the Palisades SLO since 2006, filed his last report on January 11.

Officer James Allen

Officer James Allen served for a month, but at the Pacific Palisades Community Council meeting on February 11, he said that the community would have a new temporary SLO the next day. “I will ensure that there won’t be a service interruption.”

Allen also had high praise for the Pacific Palisades Task Force on Homelessness. “I haven’t seen a group like this anywhere else in the City,” he said. “They’re amazing.”

Regarding a permanent SLO, West L.A. Commanding Officer Jonathon Tom told Circling the News on January 10: “The selection for the SLO position is a competitive process. We will not be able to make any selections until the City lifts the moratorium on hiring and promotions.”

BURGLARY:

February 11, 11:45 a.m. to 10:45 p.m., in the 600 block of Radcliffe. Unknown suspect entered residence, removed property, and fled in an unknown direction.

February 13, 7:55 p.m., in the 600 block of Muskingum. The unknown suspect attempted to enter victim’s second floor bathroom window and was confronted by the victim.  The suspect then fled the location on foot.

February 14, 10:10 a.m., in the 15200 block of Earlham. Suspect entered fenced-in construction site, then used bolt cutters to cut padlocks of shipping containers, removed property and fled in unknown direction.

BURGLARY/THEFT from VEHICLE:

February 11, 11:45 a.m. to 2 p.m., in the 500 block of Los Liones Drive. Unknown suspect entered victim’s vehicle, removed property and fled in an unknown direction.

February 11 to 12, 11 p.m. to 10:30 a.m., in the 600 block of Hightree Road. Unknown suspect entered victim’s vehicle, removed property and fled in an unknown direction.

STOLEN VEHICLE:

February 12, 2 p.m., in the 500 block of Radcliffe Avenue. No further information.

THEFT:

February 12, 11:45 a.m. in the 15400 block of Sunset Boulevard. The victim’s wallet and credit cards were taken.

To report a crime in progress, call 9-1-1. To report any non-emergency crime, call (877) 275-5273. A crime that has occurred may be reported in person at the West L.A. police station, 1663 Butler Ave. (Call 310-444-0702, or some crimes may be reported online.)

Posted in Crime/Police | Leave a comment

Genesis Invitational Returns to the Riviera This Week

Posted on February 16, 2021 by Sue

The Genesis Open will be held this week without spectators.

The weather in Pacific Palisades should be ideal for the Tiger Woods Genesis Invitational at the Riviera Country Club this week. Unfortunately, the event, which is often interrupted by rainy weather, will be played without spectators, on the course designed by George Thomas in 1927.

On January 12, tournament director Mike Antolini announced, “The health and well-being of the community, our players and everyone at The Genesis Invitational remains our top priority. It became clear that due to the pandemic the best way to ensure the safety for all involved is to hold the tournament without spectators. We are certainly going to miss the roars of the crowds, but we look forward to welcoming everyone back to Riviera next year.”

Yesterday, the tournament once again showcased the top collegiate golfers in the country with an 18-hole showdown. Golf fans may remember Pepperdine player Sahith Theegala, who won this event in 2017, and is now playing professionally. (He will not be at the Genesis.)

Other past collegiate showcase champions who will be in the field this year will include Will Zalatoris (2015) and Scottie Scheffler (2018).

Angus Flanagan

The top collegiate golfer this year was Angus Flanagan from University of Minnesota, who beat Tim Winding from the University of San Francisco in a three-hole playoff on Monday. Flanagan was granted an exemption to join the pros in the Genesis.

On Tuesday, Winding found out, he was also granted an exemption and the right to tee off with the pros on Thursday.

The showcase also featured a pro-am event with teams comprised of a PGA TOUR pro and two amateurs representing their alma mater. The teams compete against each other in best-ball play, with the winning team earning a $50,000 donation to the school’s golf program.

The Genesis tournament, with 120 players in the field, will get underway on Thursday, featuring World No. 1 golfer Dustin Johnson, No. 2 Jon Rahm and major champions Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Collin Morikawa and Francesco Molinari.

Tournament host Tiger Woods presented the Genesis trophy to Adam Scott last year.
Photo: Courtesy Genesis

Tiger Woods, recovering from a surgery, will not be participating, but his TGR Foundation, which hosts fundraising events, continues to support youth. Since it was launched in 1996, the charity has worked to develop STEM coursework, college-access programs, digital platforms and educator professional development. To celebrate 25 years, it has started the Pathways Forward initiative to offer students 1) job readiness programs; 2) career certification; 3) college access; and 4) building new state-of -the-art learning labs. (Visit: tgrfoundation.org)

The Genesis is sponsored by Genesis Motor America, which is headquartered in Fountain Valley. All vehicles have a 10-year warranty, with enhanced roadside assistance and concierge services. This year the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety awarded the 2020 G70, G80 and G90 with their highest rating of Top Safety Pick+.

 

Posted in General | Leave a comment

Death of Molly Steinsapir: Letter from KI Clergy

Posted on February 16, 2021 by Sue

 

A reader sent the following letter to Circling the News that was sent by clergy from Kehillat Israel.

To Our Wonderful KI Community,

By now many of you have learned about the loss of Molly Steinsapir, a bright, thoughtful, and spirited 6th grader in our community.

Her mother, Kaye, writes: “Molly Olivia Steinsapir has been called home to G-d. While our hearts are broken in a way that feels like they can never be mended, we take comfort knowing that Molly’s twelve years were filled with love and joy.”

We know that death, particularly the death of a child, can bring up a lot of scary and complicated questions from children. All of the clergy are here to help you figure out the best way to talk about this with your particular child, so please do not hesitate to reach out to Rabbi Amy Bernstein, Cantor Chayim Frenkel,  Rabbi Daniel Sher, or Rabbi Carrie Vogel if you want help processing this experience for them or for yourself. Additionally, for younger children (3rd grade and under), we highly recommend the book “Lifetimes,” by Bryan Mallorie.

We know many of you are close with the Steinsapir family and will want to show your support for Kaye, Jonathan, Nate, and Eli in the coming days and weeks. We highly recommend acquainting yourselves with the “Ring Theory,” which is a beautiful philosophy that can help us both say the right thing and also find a space for our own feelings.

As we move forward, we will also be sharing other opportunities for our community to grieve and comfort each other.

This Friday evening, and each Friday over the next thirty days, we will be including Molly’s name at the end of Shabbat Services for Kaddish. Friday night services can be accessed using this link.

We feel tremendously grateful to be part of a community that so deeply cares about each other and we know all of you feel the same way as well.

(Editor’s note: The mother had initially shared Molly’s story on social media the day of the accident, January 31, which occurred while her daughter was riding downhill on a bicycle while wearing a helmet.)

RING THEORY:

In a May 2017 Psychology Today story (“Ring Theory Helps Us Bring Comfort In”), author Elana Premack Sandler offers guidance to give comfort. The theory was developed by psychologist Susan Silk and friend Barry Goldman.

“If the crisis is happening to you, you’re in the center of the ring. If the crisis is not happening to you, you’re in one of the outer circles.”

They suggest drawing a circle and in the center, putting the person who’s at the center of the crisis. Then drawing additional circles around that center circle and putting the names of the next closest people. “Parents and children before more distant relatives, intimate friends in smaller rings, less intimate in larger ones. . .When you are done you have a kvetching order,” according to Silk and Goodman.

Sandler writes, “The person in the center ring can say anything she wants to anyone, anywhere. She can kvetch and complain and whine and moan and curse the heavens and say, ‘Life is unfair,’ and, ‘Why me?’”

“When you are talking to a person in a ring smaller than yours, someone closer to the center of the crisis, the goal is to help. Listening is often more helpful than talking. . . .Don’t give advice.”

Ask, “Where I am in the circle? Given that position, what should I say, or what can I hope would be said to me? Who are people in the circle I could comfort?”

Sandler offers a list of practical things that can be done for someone in a crisis:

  1. Bring a meal.
  2. Bring a cup of coffee, tea, or a chocolate bar.
  3. Offer to go for a walk.
  4. Offer to watch/spend time with kids, older parents, or pets.
  5. Come over just to wash dishes or do a load of laundry.
  6. Bring by a favorite CD or movie.
  7. If going in person seems like too much, send a note by mail.

The article can be found at Click here.

Posted in Kids/Parenting, Obituaries | Leave a comment

UPDATES: Homeless-Related Issues – Camping in Fire Zones, Receiving Medical Aid and Tapping Electricity 

Posted on February 15, 2021 by Sue

The gate closing this service road that runs parallel to Pacific Coast Highway, off Temescal Canyon Road, has been destroyed and needs to be replaced.

Illegal Activities in Fire Zones

Transients in high fire severity zones started two homeless-related fires, one a “warming” and the second an act of revenge that threatened the hillsides and homes above Pacific Coast Highway.

The Pacific Palisades Task Force on Homelessness has been working for years with City officials and law enforcement to try and keep individuals and fires out of very high fire severity zones.

Circling the News learned that for the past six months, the Caltrans service road gate at Temescal and PCH had been damaged and the road was easily accessible to transients, who had moved back into the brush below the bluffs.

Durrah Wagner (Councilman Mike Bonin’s field representative) and Josh Kurpies (Assemblymember Richard Bloom’s District Director) were contacted today by the PPTFH asking if the gate could be replaced.

“This is a posted restricted area fire zone,” PPTFH members wrote. “LAPD found a chop shop up on the service road where the suspects were taking stolen car parts and using the area to take cars apart.

“We also have found car dwellers and homeless camps with fire materials.”

Camping is not allowed in the brush area because of fire concerns.

LAPD requested that the gate be fixed about a month ago, but nothing has happened, yet. “We really need Caltrans to repair the gate and secure the area to protect the community from fire in the dry brushy hillsides above,” PPTFH wrote.

Homeless individuals have been receiving medical services.

The homeless received medical attention.

On February 9, PPTFH Co-President Sharon Kilbride alerted CTN that the nonprofit’s first responder team was able to get the Venice Family Clinic’s Meyer Medical Van to come to PCH and Temescal Canyon Road. “Today, we had about 10 of our Pacific Palisades homeless come and take advantage of flu vaccines, pneumonia and tetanus shots,” Kilbride said. “Chris from Common Ground was on hand to work with folks with addiction.”

In December, about 21 homeless were tested for Covid and every test came back negative. Four nurses from the Department of Health Service and nurse Nancy from the Venice Family Clinic also administered flu shots on that date.

Kilbride said that the goal is to “keep individuals and our community healthy and safe,” by meeting clients “where they are” and supplying healthcare services.

“The outreach team loved the idea of being part of the solution,” Kilbride said, noting that they are frontline staff who come into daily contact with high-risk homeless individuals. Keeping these individuals healthy helps keep us all healthier.”

Nurse Nancy rides along with People Concern outreach workers, Glanda and Jessi, every Tuesday and Thursday, when homeless outreach is done here in town.

The homeless are trying to tap electricity.

When Circling the News ran a February 9 piece (“Spotty Wireless Communication Is an Issue in Pacific Palisades”) and reported that it appeared that a AT&T box on PCH had been tampered with, a resident did follow up research and wrote to CTN:

“I was heading down PCH this afternoon and was curious to stop and take a look at that AT&T Wireless equipment next to Mastro’s [the restaurant north of Sunset Mesa].

“That person who had the ongoing saga trying to get the cell service fixed had better keep that AT&T contact information handy! AT&T has not replaced the missing security enclosure, has not secured the cellular wiring (but they did tie it up with string) or even replaced the cover on the electrical box. They could have picked up that last item at Palisades Hardware! See one attached pic. A second pic is coming in another email.

“I guess you could call it vandalism, but really this appears to be someone trying to get at electrical power. Aside from this instance, it is amazing how the cellular companies leave most of their wiring so exposed as to be easily vandalized.”

Additionally, CTN has observed a homeless person tap into the electrical light poles at the Field of Dreams. It was reported to Recreation Center officials, not because we don’t feel homeless should have electricity, but out of concern for the person’s safety.

(To support the PPTFH efforts with a donation and to learn of upcoming events, visit: pptfh.org.)

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