Air is getting close to normal

They said on the radio today that the air quality today was moderate, so that's a step in the right direction. I think it will be another week at least before it doesn't look smoggy, but today we had some fog and a little bit of precipitation and I'm sure that helps clean things up a little. Fires are still burning not far away, so things could change, but it seems safe to resume outdoor activities. I've seen more people walking the past few days and even though the schools have not resumed PE, I think it's time to get back outside. There may even be some good sunsets with all the particulate in the air.

Particulates in the air -- how much is too much?

If the most polluted city in the world has an average particulate matter measurement of 169 micrograms per cubic meter (Cairo, Egypt), we are in bad shape here in Temecula. We have a reading of 180 today and some of the nearby cities are even as high as 220 or more. I wrote to the City of Temecula to ask what standard is used to determine whether people should stay inside -- is there one? What standard is used to close schools or cancel outdoor activities? I know the air is bad -- I can feel the burning in my throat even though I've been inside all day. I wonder what the long term effects of extended exposure to this are going to be? I wrote more about the measurements on my other blog. I'd like more information but I don't know where to get it.

109 degrees

The high today in Temecula was 109, which is probably as hot as it's been during the eight years I've lived here, although there may have been a few 110 degree days at one point. Either way, it was very hot and it's still 94 degrees about 90 minutes after the sun went down. It feels like Palm Springs, but it must have been even hotter there today. Looks like it's going to be a long, hot Labor Day weekend with most of the daylight hours spent inside.

I went for a walk today at around 9 AM and it was almost unbearable. Not sure I'll be trying that tomorrow.

White supremacists have to pay up (maybe)

Eight years ago I was on hold on the telephone waiting to talk with a real estate agent in Temecula when the local news came on. It mentioned that a number of local men were arrested in a white supremacist attack on a black man. Hearing that made me wonder if I really wanted to move to Temecula. Today, eight years later, that case was in the news again as the convicted attackers and their families have been ordered to pay the victim restitution. Who knows if he'll ever get the $5.6 million, but I hope he does. Fortunately, there have not been too many more cases like this around here recently, although there have been some.

Temecula getting smoggy

I looked on the Best Places to Live site and was surprised at how low Temecula was ranked. The one thing that stood out was air quality. Now, I chose Temecula over Riverside because the air quality is quite a bit better there. I can visually see the difference most days and let's face it, Riverside has some of the worst air in the U.S. and that's not going to change anytime soon. The brown layer I see as I drive to work is not appealing at all. But maybe Temecula's air is getting worse. I have noticed more smog lately and I didn't see it before. More cars and people might make a difference, but there is usually a nice ocean breeze around 3 PM to cool things down and clear it out. What happened?

Pechanga Comedy Club

The local casino here in Temecula -- Pechanga -- is opening up a branch of the Improv comedy club in March. Shows will cost $20 and it might be fun. I am not familiar with any of the names on the list of performers, but they are up and coming talents, not stars. If they were already stars, they would be perfoming in the theater, along with the Moody Blues and the Fab Four. Actually, not all of the performers are on the county fair circuit. The Chinese Acrobats and David Copperfield are showing up next month. Not on the same day.

Sign Spinners

I see people standing on corners spinning signs just about any time I drive around Temecula on a weekend when it's not dark. They are usually promoting a real estate development and sometimes they get pretty excited and put on a show. It looks like a boring job, although if you have an iPod and enough to eat, I guess it could be bearable. This morning I saw something I never imagined I'd see -- a woman with one of those signs with the name of a church on it. Now, I don't think it was for any purpose other than locating the church because I don't think too many people out driving around are going to spontaneously decide to go to church. I guess they might consider it for the future if it's in their neighborhood, so maybe that was what she was doing. She didn't have an iPod although she was wearing sunglasses.

What happened to the weather?

All the weather forecasts around here said heavy rain on Thursday and Friday with snow as low as 1500 feet. It never even rained! There were some very dark clouds this morning and it was cold, but no precipitation. I'd like to see it warm up a little bit but otherwise it has been pretty nice for January.

Student Awards

One of my sons got an academic award at school today. He's been working pretty hard and does well in school, so that's great for him. I thought it was ironic that the two students who got the citizenship awards were the only two in his class who he'd had trouble with over the past couple of months. He had come home complaining about what each of them had done on different days. Both were incidents which had to do with honesty. Hmmm...

Bonehead drivers

I live on a small street that has an even smaller (1 lot length) entry street perpendicular to it which has a stop sign. Anytime I'm outside I can watch as people blow right through the stop sign where you have to go left or right. So typically they don't look at all and hardly slow down. This evening we were driving over to the library when some clown came right through the stop sign and turned left right in front of me as I was turning left. He stopped when I blew the horn and waved as if he was thanking me.

History of Temecula at library

I didn't take pictures because of bad weather but one thing I like at the new library is the history of Temecula told as you walk along the path from the parking lot to the library. It looks good and should expose some people to things they probably didn't know. They even have one of those stationary binocular set ups at the end. I will take pictures and post them on the next sunny day.

Temecula library

We made our first visit to the Temecula library. It's really nice inside and outside. Much nicer than I expected. There are lots of computers, including a very large homework room with about 30 computers in the teen area. There are lots of places to sit and enjoy a great view of the Sports Park while you read or do some work. The library has free wireless although I didn't try that out. Lots of books and videos and magazines and other things you would expect from a library. I think I will work at the library some of the time when I'm working at home. It even has a meditation garden. Overall, it's very impressive.

Temecula Library to offer food service

I thought you couldn't eat or drink inside most libraries, but I also thought using a cell phone in the library was a bad idea and that doesn't seem to be true either. The new Temecula library will have food and beverage service provided by local merchant, the European Cafe. Regular library hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Fridays, and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Concessions will be available 10-5 every day except Sunday.

Temecula Library opens

The new Temecula library opened yesterday. It looked good from the outside as I drove by in the morning, and workers were still doing more landscaping. It's amazing how they can make a place look like it's been there for some time with the right landscaping. PE.com says 250 people showed up for the opening last night. The library should have a nice view of the Sports Park below it. I hope to take a walk over on Saturday.

Temecula library opens Dec. 15th

The new Temecula library is very high tech, according to the NC Times. It's got close to 100 computers and will be the largest library in the county, at 34,000 square feet, which is impressive. Because it's so large, there are going to be lots of new books -- 80,000 books total. Apparently those books are arriving each day and are being cataloged and put on the shelves. They better hurry -- opening day is in 11 days! I'm looking forward to it and hope to get over there on the second or third day it's open.

Temecula library opening soon?

Progress on the new library in Temecula seems to be coming along. I noticed today that the sign is up and most of the exterior looks done. I don't know if they have any books in there, or where the books will come from, or how long it will take to organize all the books, but maybe it will actually open this year. That's what the city's web page about the library says. It also points out that the library will have close to 100 computers. It's a short walk from my house, so I hope to use the new library -- I have never used the existing library although I went inside once.

Palomar Observatory and light pollution

Light pollution is not a type of pollution I've ever heard about before. Apparently it's a big deal when you are trying to use a telescope to see stars and other objects in the sky. At the Palomar Observatory, light pollution is making it difficult for astronomers to do their work.

Nicholson said he worries that Palomar Observatory might suffer the same fate as the Mount Wilson Observatory in Los Angeles. In the mid-1980s, the observatory stopped studying faraway galaxies in favor of closer, brighter stars because light pollution had become so bad.

It sounds like Denny's is one of the worst offenders and they don't care too much about it.

As part of a presentation he gave to Riverside County planning officials earlier this year, Garrett showed pictures of some businesses he thought used excessive lighting.

One of them was the Denny's restaurant in Temecula, which, Garrett said, uses 14 high-intensity, wide-angle floodlights to illuminate its roof.

There's no reason to light up the roof "unless you expect customers to land on the roof," he said.

Debbie Atkins, a Denny's spokeswoman, said the lights help draw attention to the business, which is open 24 hours. It also enhances safety and security, she said.

How about some better food as a way to draw attention to the business?

Soccer photos

Over the course of the ten game soccer season, I took around 6,000 pictures. Deciding what makes a good one is easy when I'm the only one who will be looking at the photo. In that case, I am pretty picky. If it's not sharp, if you can't see a face and the ball and if the image wasn't taken at the right moment when there is some action or conflict, then it's probably not one that I want to keep. However, since I post my images online for parents to see, I'm much less picky with those. If anyone might find it interesting, I'll put it online.

School Board changes

Maybe people just don't think educators are the right people for a school board. None of the educators in the race won. The winners were a fire captain, the owner of a business which sells fire fighting equipment, and an accountant. Each is a parent, which may be the motivation for most people to be on the school board. I think I need to start attending the meetings and getting involved at more than my local school level.

PE.com has a wrap up on the victory by fire captain Vince O'Neal.