Mountain Views News          Saturday, August 25, 2012

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Mountain Views-News Saturday, August 25, 2012 


Annual Wiggle Waggle 
Walk Set For September

Portantino 
Calls for 
Halt to 710 
Expansion

 The Pasadena Humane 
Society & SPCA announced 
Thrusday that animal lovers, 
will again, put their best feet 
forward, September 30 during 
the shelter’s 14th annual Wiggle 
Waggle Walk – A Fundraiser 
for the Animals at Brookside 
Park adjacent to the Rose 
Bowl. Organizers say they 
hope to raise $300,000 through 
the event, which will provide 
food, shelter and medical care 
to homeless animals; nearly 
12,000 of which are taken in by 
the humane society every year.

 Some 2,000 people and their 
dogs are expected to take part 
in the walk, which begins at 9 
a.m. Walkers and their dogs 
can choose either a one-mile 
or three-mile route around 
the outside of the park before 
enjoying a free Fair & Pet Expo. 
Participants do not need a dog 
to join the fun—just a desire 
to help animals—and they 
can walk individually or form 
teams.

 “It’s great to see so many people 
in our community rally together 
and support our cause,” says 
Nicole Ring, Event Coordinator 
for the Pasadena Humane 
Society & SPCA. “Each and 
every animal at the shelter is 
supported by their generosity. 
We’re looking forward to a great 
event this year.”

 Registration is free, but 
participants are encouraged to 
fundraise for the animals by 
creating personal web pages 
through the Wiggle Waggle 
Walk website and asking family, 
friends and co-workers for 
donations. Non-walkers, and 
those unable to attend the event, 
can also create fundraising 
web pages through this site. 
Entrants who raise $50 receive 
an official Wiggle Waggle Walk 
T-shirt.

 Check-in starts at 8 a.m. at 
the entrance to Brookside Park 
in Parking Lot I. The walk will 
begin at 9:00am and the Fair 
& Pet Expo will take place 
immediately after the walk until 
1 p.m. The Fair will feature 
Muttley Crew’s dog agility 
show, K9 demonstrations by the 
Pasadena and Glendale Police 
Departments, a variety of pet 
product booths, paw-tapping 
music, and fun dog contests. 
This year’s sponsors include 
Wells Fargo, VCA Animals 
Hospitals, Community Bank, 
Stumbaugh & Associates, 
Guess, Eye Care for Animals, 
TLC Pet Medical Center and 
Three Dog Bakery. For more 
information call (626) 792-
7151 ext. 167 or visit www.
wigglewagglewalk.org.

 In a strongly worded letter 
to the California Department 
of Transportation and the 
California Transportation 
Commission, Assembly 
Member Anthony Portantino 
demanded that transportation 
leaders “put the brakes” on the 
710 freeway extension.

 “I strongly urge you to 
cease all activity relating 
to the advancement of the 
SR 710 extension. The SR 
710 Study process has been 
mired in controversy since 
its inception.” he said “I have 
personally witnessed actions 
and activities by proponents 
of a tunnel option, which have 
been questionable at best, 
but more accurately, would 
be portrayed as biased and 
tainted,” 

 Portantino claims in a media 
statement that representatives 
of the California Department 
of Transportation (Caltrans) 
and the Metropolitan 
Transportation Authority 
(Metro) have routinely 
misrepresented important 
information while hiding the 
true cost and benefit of this 
project from the public. 

 Portantino said he 
has testified before the 
California Transportation 
Commission and the 
Metropolitan Transportation 
Administration expressing 
concerns over the process, 
cost and impact that a 710 
extension would have on 
California. He currently 
represents the 44th Assembly 
District which encompasses 
the majority of the 710 study 
area.

 “The recent state audit 
highlighted the complete lack 
of trust that I have for the folks 
shepherding the 710 corridor 
and this historically massive 
project. If these folks can’t 
be trusted to fix a roof, how 
can we trust them to build 
a $15 billion dollar tunnel,” 
commented Portantino.

 At the heart of Portantino’s 
criticism is the refusal of tunnel 
proponents to come clean with 
the true cost and true benefit 
of the project before moving 
forward. 

In his letter, Portantino 
details how the project itself 
contradicts Caltrans very 
own traffic protocols and fails 
to comply with the direction 
of the Federal Highway 
Administration.

 “When you have a project 
of this magnitude, with this 
many unanswered questions, 
manipulations and false 
information, one has to 
wonder why decision makers 
aren’t immediately putting a 
halt to this insanity,” he said. 

Doo Dah Exhibition Opens to the Public

 From the crowns the royal 
queens wear to the official early 
event programs to even video 
footage of the first 1978 parade, 
it’s all part of the Pasadena 
Museum of History exhibition, 
“What A Long Strange Trip It’s 
Been: 35 Years of the Pasadena 
Doo Dah Parade,” 

 The retrospective opened 
Saturday and runs through 
January 13. 

 The showing also includes a 
photo wall of parade and crowd 
shots; vignettes of entries – 
including the Synchronized 
Precision Marching Briefcase 
Drill Team; costumes and 
memorabilia of various Queens 
and music groups. Organizers 
said there was more; but, to 
quote Ann Erdman, the Grand 
Marshal of the 2012 parade, “…
this is Doo Dah after all, and 
one never knows…”

 The exhibition was curated 
by a consortium of individuals 
including Tom Coston, Patricia 
Hurley, and Rosalind Schoen, all 
of Light Bringer Project, which 
sponsors the Parade; as well as 
Sue Behrens and Steve Vargas.

 Beginning in 1978, the 
“occasional” Doo Dah parade 
took place sporadically: 
changing dates, season, and 
location in its characteristically 
casual – and some might say – 
disorganized way. The parade 
has always been controversial. 
Its detractors dismiss it as 
derivative, decry its in-your-face 
sexual and political humor, and 
are embarrassed to have it take 
place in a city such as Pasadena. 
Its supporters, who include 
former President Bill Clinton, 
Secretary of State Hillary 
Clinton, comedian Jay Leno, and 
actor Tom Hanks, say, yes…, 
that’s the point. No theme, no 
rules. Just glorious creativity 
and raucous eccentricity.

 Named after an obscure 1960s 
British rock band, Doo Dah 
is a people’s parade. Anyone 
can apply to be an entrant, and 
homemade conveyances and 
walking entries are encouraged. 
Tips for entrants include: arrive 
early. There is no marching 
order; you choose your place 
on a first come, first serve basis. 
Another tip: no throwing of 
marshmallows; they clog bicycle 
spokes. 

 The parade has garnered 
national and international 
attention, and spawned copycat 
parades elsewhere, including 
in Columbus, Ohio, and Ocean 
City, New Jersey.

For more information visit; 
pasadenahistory.org or call 626-
577-1660.

Health 
Department 
to Hold 
Blood Drive 

 
The Pasadena Public Health 
Department is partnering with 
U.S. Representatives Adam 
Schiff and Judy Chu along with 
the American Red Cross, the 
Muslims for Life Campaign 
and the City’s Public Works 
and Police Departments to 
participate in a nationwide 
blood drive campaign 
encouraging the public to 
donate blood to help save lives.

 Currently, there is a national 
need for donated blood of all 
types. As of June 2012, blood 
donations were down by 
more than 10 percent across 
the country, with 50,000 
fewer pints of blood available 
than expected. The public’s 
participation is critical in 
meeting the need for blood 
transfusions. In fact, your 
donation can even save more 
than one life through just one 
blood donation.!

 The public is encouraged to 
participate in the Blood Drive 
at the following dates and 
locations:

 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., 
Tuesday, August 28, Public 
Works-City Yards, 233 West 
Mountain Avenue, Second 
Floor Conference Room

 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., 
Wednesday, August 29, 
Pasadena Police Department, 
207 North Garfield Avenue, 
Second Floor Assembly Room

 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., 
Thursday, August 30, Pasadena 
Public Health Department, 
1845 North Fair Oaks Avenue, 
Second Room 2407

 The Pasadena Public Health 
Department has been serving 
the public in the greater 
Pasadena area for more 
than 120 years. For more 
information about the City of 
Pasadena, go online to www.
cityofpasadena.net.

Quality Of 
Life Index 
Unveiled 

 The public is invited to celebrate 
the Pasadena Public Health 
Department’s 120th anniversary 
of protecting the health and 
wellness of Pasadena-area 
residents when the Department 
releases its 2012 Quality of Life 
Index report during a special 
celebration beginning at 1:30 
p.m., Monday, Aug. 27, in the 
Pasadena Central Library’s 
Donald R. Wright Auditorium, 
285 E. Walnut Street.

 Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard 
will help open the festivities 
along with Dr. Eric Walsh, 
Public Health Department 
Director, who will also talk 
about the 2012 Pasadena/
Altadena Quality of Life Index.

 “As we celebrate 120 years 
of Pasadena’s Public Health 
Department, we are encouraged 
by the great strides for overall 
improved health that has been 
made by the City, yet we are 
looking forward with great 
excitement to what possibilities 
the future holds,” Dr. Walsh 
said.

 “The scientific literature around 
public health has increased 
our understanding as to the 
root causes of many chronic 
diseases and the environmental 
and behavioral factors that 
determine health. Our 
Quality of Life report outlines 
where Pasadena and Altadena 
stands on key indicators and 
helps to begin the discussion 
around how we can make 
improvements.”

 The report looks at income, 
employment, housing and 
education data as key social 
and economic factors that affect 
and influence the quality of 
life and the overall health of a 
community.

Images for courtesy of 
Marlyn Woo, (top) some of 
the memorabilia including the 
sign carried by longtime parade 
participant Howdy Krishna. 
(above) Uniform worn by 
members of the BBQ & Hibachi 
Marching Grill Team. 

New Insight on Mars 
Expected from Next Mission


Citizen 
Journalism 
Meet-up

Pet of 
the Week

 Learn not just how to 
blog but how to report 
the news

 NASA announced Monday 
the selection of InSight, a new 
Discovery-class mission that 
will probe Mars at new depths 
by looking into the deep interior 
of Mars. 

 “We are certainly excited, 
but our veterans on this team 
know the drill,” said Tom 
Hoffman, project manager 
for InSight from NASA’s Jet 
Propulsion Laboratory. “Which 
is fortunate, because one of the 
great things we’ll get to do on 
Mars is drill below the surface.” 

 Drilling underneath the 
red Martian topsoil will be 
courtesy of InSight’s HP3, 
or Heat Flow and Physical 
Properties Package - one of 
the four instruments the Mars 
lander will carry. Made by the 
German Aerospace Center, or 
DLR, HP3 will get below Mars’ 
skin by literally pounding it 
into submission with a 14-inch 
(35-centimeter), hollowed-out, 
electromechanically-festooned 
stake called the Tractor Mole. 

 “The Tractor Mole has an 
internal hammer that rises 
and falls, moving the stake 
down in the soil and dragging 
a tether along behind it,” said 
Sue Smrekar, deputy project 
scientist for InSight from JPL. 
“We’re essentially doing the 
same thing any Boy or Girl 
Scout would do on a campout, 
but we’re putting our stake 
down on Mars.” 

 The German-built mole will 
descend up to 16 feet (five 
meters) below the surface, 
where its temperature sensors 
will record how much heat is 
coming from Mars’ interior, 
which reveals the planet’s 
thermal history. 

 “Getting well below the 
surface gets us away from the 
sun’s influence and allows us to 
measure heat coming from the 
interior,” said Smrekar. “InSight 
is going take heartbeat and 
vital signs of the Red Planet 
for an entire Martian year, 
two Earth years. We are really 
going to have an opportunity 
to understand the processes 
that control the early planetary 
formation.” 

 InSight stands for Interior 
Exploration using Seismic 
Investigations, Geodesy and 
Heat Transport. 

 More information about the 
Discovery Program is at: http://
discovery.nasa.gov.

 The Pasadena Community 
Network and this newspaper 
are holding a workshop on 
Citizen Journalism. 

 This group is the place where 
aspiring journalists can learn 
from trained professionals 
and support their local 
community by covering 
what’s really happening in 
their neighborhoods.

 We will put the news in your 
hands. Learn how to find 
the story, the tools needed 
to capture the story and the 
means to tell the story using 
the power of video, audio and 
print along with online social 
media The next meeting is 
Aug. 28 from 6 p.m. to 8p.m. 
at the Pasadena Community 
Network - Studio G, 2057 N. 
Los Robles Ave.

 For more info call 
626.794.8585.

 
Bean is an eight-year-old 
tan and salt and pepper Cairn 
terrier mix. He loves to go for 
walks and is very friendly. He’s 
become a favorite among staff 
and volunteers. 

 Bean’s regular adoption fee is 
$120, which includes his neuter 
surgery, a microchip, the first 
set of vaccinations, as well as a 
free follow-up health check at a 
participating vet. New adopters 
will receive complimentary 
health and wellness exam from 
VCA Animal Hospitals. He 
also qualifies for our Seniors 
for Seniors program in which 
the adoption fee is waived for 
eligible adopters 60 years old 
or older. Ask an adoptions 
counselor for more information 
during your visit 

 Call the Pasadena Humane 
Society & SPCA at 626.792.7151 
to ask about A311904, or visit 
at 361 S. Raymond Ave. in 
Pasadena. Adoption hours are 
11-4 Sunday, 9-5 Tuesday –
Friday, 9-4 Saturday. Pets may 
not be available for adoption 
and cannot be held for potential 
adopters from phone calls or 
email. Directions and photos of 
all pets can be found at www.
pasadenahumane.org.

City Labor 
Day Closures

College Awarded Grant to 
Promote Mental Health

 Pasadena residents and 
businesses are reminded 
that City Hall and many 
City services will be closed 
on Monday, September 3, in 
observance of Labor Day. 

The City Council not meet 
on either Monday, Aug. 27 
or Sept. 3, but will resume its 
regular meeting schedule on 
Monday, Sept. 10. 

 Pasadena Fire and Police 
Departments will continue 
to be staffed during the 
holiday for all patrol, jail, 
fire, paramedic and other 
emergency services. 

The Central Pasadena Public 
Library and all library branches 
will be closed on both Sunday, 
Sept. 2 and Monday, Sept. 3 in 
observance of the holiday.

 Pasadena residents and 
businesses with any power 
emergencies should call 
Pasadena Water and Power 
(PWP) Department at (626) 
744-4673. For water-related 
emergencies, please call (626) 
744-4138. 

 Pasadena City College has 
been awarded a $244,541 
grant from the California 
Community Colleges 
Student Mental Health 
Program (CCC SMHP) to 
create a campus culture of 
wellness to promote student 
achievement.

 The project will include a 
Wellness Center, designed 
to allow students, faculty 
and staff greater access to 
information supporting their 
own well-being, as well as 
increase their knowledge of 
stigmas and discrimination 
against under-served and 
underrepresented student 
groups.

 According to the CCC 
SMHP, the long term goal 
of the project is to increase 
student success and retention 
through the development 
and enhancement of quality 
student and student veteran 
mental health support 
services at all of California’s 
community colleges.

 This grant will help build 
awareness of the connection 
between academic success 
and wellbeing, and address 
the wellness needs of the 
community. This will 
include faculty and staff 
training through wellness 
fairs, Student Health 101, 
and software simulations; 
peer to peer resources, such 
as mentorships, and suicide 
prevention using interactive 
training simulations 
designed for faculty/staff and 
students.

For more information, call 
(626) 585-7123.


Parent Education Class Offered

 Pasadena City College will be 
offering free parenting classes 
beginning Aug. 27. Parents of 
children up to four years old 
can attend classes that include 
crafts, music and movement, 
and snacks. Discussion topics 
will cover discipline, nutrition, 
and developmental stages.

 “This is a real service to the 
community,” Coordinator Gia 
Blount said. “This changes 
parents’ lives.”

 Credentialed instructors will 
provide information about child 
development and parenting 
skills in order to support the 
valuable role families play in 
establishing the basic principles 
for children’s lives.

 For more information call 
(626) 585-3038.