Let's Play Ball!

There's been a lot of arguing lately about the proposed new sports complex at LB High. Last week, a fellow football parent asked us to sign a petition expressing support for the project, which we did and which was presented at a school board meeting overflowing with both opponents and advocates.

The project has polarized at least two camps: families of children who play sports (most of whom presumably do not live adjacent to the school) and channel-side Lido Beach homeowners. At a stop sign one morning after dropping my son off at Middle School for practice, I overheard two neighbors on the sidewalk complaining to each other about the traffic they expect  the complex to bring to the neighborhood. To which I say, true, but only on game days. And isn't that a small sacrifice for the betterment of the community as a whole? Why should LB kids be prevented from utilizing and enjoying the HS field that is presently so sub-standard that it can be used only for practice? Why should all of the district's students be permanently penalized (even on non-game days) to satiate the selfish motives of the handful of homeowners whose properties border the school grounds? And what did you expect when you bought your home on the periphery of the school field anyway? 

All I know is, last night we attended our first home football game at the new Middle School field and it was blissful sitting there in the sparkling stands, cheering on our boys (who BTW massacred the other team) and taking in the waterscape of the Lido Beach golf club behind the visitors' stand. It was fabulous to see the kids play on a clean, well marked, well lit field under a scoreboard that actually kept score!  I can only look forward to more of the same when my middle schooler starts playing for the HS team.  Let's hope the field gets built before he graduates in 2015.

Incidentally, the football parent circulating the petition in support of the field is that rare exception to the rule: a Lido homeowner willing to put the best interest of the kids ahead of his own.  We need more like him.

The Bad Old Days

Now that summer is over, my antennae seem to be taking a break. I'm not feeling as tuned in as usual to the detritus that detracts from our LB experience. With one notable exception that's been on my mind since I started walking the boardwalk again after my knee surgery... the Hoffman Manor. 

Has anyone else noticed the cluster of men who began congregating on the boardwalk in front of the Hoffman Manor last summer? It doesn't bode well for a city that has spent 30 years pulling itself out of the depression that characterized our metropolis in the 60s and 70s.  SROs, section 8 housing, nursing homes... does that sound familiar?

Most people will agree that the Hoffman Manor is a far cry from a "seashore resort" or a "luxury retirement community," which is how it bills itself. But until now, it has not been any of the antisocial iterations that once populated our boardwalk. In my observation, the new residents of Hoffman Manor so far appear to be well mannered. But something doesn't feel right. There's been a change, and I'm not sure it's for the better. I'll say this much...it better not signal a return to the bad old days in good old LB.

Singin' in the Rain

Could any true LBer possibly ask for a better weather pattern?  Hot, sunny and gaw-geous all summer, then M-F rain in the fall with dry weekends.  Who could ask for anything more?

Wrong Way Street

We live on a one-way, east-west corridor. Theoretically, that should make traffic a little less treacherous than on a two-way thoroughfare. But the theory goes out the window every time a north-south driver turns onto  our block the wrong way, which happens more frequently than you might think... and not only after the West End lets out for the evening (or should I say, morning?) on Fridays and Saturdays. I can't even tell you how many times my husband has chased a wrong-way driver literally up the middle of the road to set him/her straight. 

When the kids on the block were little, we all chipped in for those neon plastic figurines that you put out on the curb to warn drivers about children playing. These little guys became something of a theme for our block, and one neighbor family even came dressed as the neons one year at a Halloween party (hint: spray paint your disposable hazmat suit). Unfortunately, our neons had a short lifespan, as they were soon stolen.

If these temporary warning posts didn't do the trick, a more permanent solution might. Our standard-issue "one way" intersection signs should have a "wrong way" plaque posted underneath, like the more fortunate corner Cupcake and I routinely pass during our neighborhood constitutional. Dollars to donuts that the people on that street have far fewer wrong-wayers barreling down their block than we do.

For another thing, drivers should simply slow down, look both ways and read the subtle signals, even if they can't read the signs. If the parked cars are all pointed in the same direction on both sides of the street, IT IS A CLUE that traffic only goes one way. If you can't figure that much out, you should be sleeping it off safely at home, not operating a motor vehicle.

And, for the record, if you suddenly discover that you're headed the wrong way down a one way street, do us all a favor: stop, pull into the next driveway, and turn around!

Dog Days of LB

I love my dog. She is an itchy, allergy-ridden, balding mutt; she barks at strangers and sometimes has accidents in the house. But I love her love her love her and she loves me back. I also love other people's dogs. My across-the-street neighbor has a Brittany Spaniel that hugs (awww). My next door neighbor has a magnificent German Shepherd that could represent the species.The people on the corner have a gi-normous Great Dane that makes me go ga-ga (she's white and pink like my Cupcake.Yes, pink). But you know who doesn't love dogs?  The City of Long Beach.



Yep. Long Beach is an anti-dog town. No dog runs. No dog parks. No dogs on the beach. No place to let your canine off the leash and just let loose, like dogs are meant to do. Fortunately, we have a backyard just big enough for Cupcake to exercise herself chasing airplanes and squirrels, but not everyone is that lucky.

A few years ago I got together with a bunch of other people to petition the city to establish a dog run. At this point I don't remember who they were or how we connected, but we shared a noble goal. We drew up a proposal for establishing, maintaining and policing a dog run in Long Beach, and we presented it at a City Council meeting. We even included a recommendation for charging a user registration fee to fund the run, but to no avail. I have no memory of what happened after that, because in fact nothing happened. When our 3 minutes of fame were up, the Council went back to its regularly scheduled agenda without further ado. And that was that.

Wouldn't it be great if we had a place to call our own, where dogs could frolic and owners could socialize and the friendly, lovin'-life culture of Long Beach could percolate? Sigh. I don't know if it will ever happen, but a girl can dream, can't she?

BTW, if all the dog owners out there who don't respect other people's property and don't clean up after their dogs would start respecting other people's property and cleaning up after their dogs, we might have a better shot at getting a public dog run one day.  You know who you are.