Mountain Views News, Pasadena Edition [Sierra Madre] Saturday, October 27, 2018

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

BUSINESS NEWS & TRENDS

Mountain Views-News Saturday, October 27, 2018 

Jeff’s Book Pics By Jeff Brown

FAMILY MATTERS By Marc Garlett


In the House in the Dark of the Woods 
by Laird Hunt

The eerie, disturbing story of one of our 
perennial fascinations--witchcraft in colonial 
America--wrapped up in a lyrical novel of 
psychological suspense.” Once upon a time 
there was and there wasn’t a woman who 
went to the woods.” In this horror story set in 
colonial New England, a law-abiding Puritan 
woman goes missing. Or perhaps she has fled 
or abandoned her family. Or perhaps she’s been 
kidnapped, and set loose to wander in the dense 
woods of the north. Alone and possibly lost, 
she meets another woman in the forest. Then 
everything changes. On a journey that will 
take her through dark woods full of almost-
human wolves, through a deep well wet with 
the screams of men, and on a living ship made 
of human bones, our heroine may find that the 
evil she flees has been inside her all along. In the 
House in the Dark of the Woods is a novel of 
psychological horror and suspense told in Laird 
Hunt’s characteristically lyrical prose style. It is 
the story of a bewitching, a betrayal, a master 
huntress and her quarry. It is a story of anger, of 
evil, of hatred and of redemption. It is the story 
of a haunting, a story that makes up the bedrock 
of American mythology, but told in a vivid way 
you will never forget. 

Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand

“Reader, hang on for dear life. Sawkill Girls 
is a wild, gorgeous, and rich coming-of-age 
story about complicity, female camaraderie, 
and power.” —Sarah Gailey, author of River 
of Teeth.“ The bestselling author of Furyborn 
comes a breathtaking and spine-tingling novel 
about three teenage girls who face off against 
an insidious monster that preys upon young 
women. Perfect for fans of Victoria Schwab and 
Stranger Things. Who are the Sawkill Girls? 
Marion: The newbie. Awkward and plain, steady 
and dependable. Weighed down by tragedy and 
hungry for love she’s sure she’ll never find.Zoey: 
The pariah. Luckless and lonely, hurting but 
hiding it. Aching with grief and dreaming of 
vanished girls. Maybe she’s broken—or maybe 
everyone else is. Val: The queen bee. Gorgeous 
and privileged, ruthless and regal. Words like 
silk and eyes like knives; a heart made of secrets 
and a mouth full of lies. Their stories come 
together on the island of Sawkill Rock, where 
gleaming horses graze in rolling pastures and 
cold waves crash against black cliffs. Where kids whisper 
the legend of an insidious monster at parties and around 
campfires. Where girls have been disappearing 
for decades, stolen away by a ravenous evil no 
one has dared to fight…until now.

The Book of Hidden Things by 
Francesco Dimitri

From “one of the most significant figures of the 
last generation of fantasy”, comes Francesco 
Dimitri’s debut novel in English, an enthralling 
and seductive fantasy following four old friends 
and the secrets they keep. Four old school 
friends have a pact: to meet up every year in 
the small town in Puglia they grew up in. Art, 
the charismatic leader of the group and creator 
of the pact, insists that the agreement must 
remain unshakable and enduring. But this 
year, he never shows up. A visit to his house 
increases the friends’ worry; Art is farming 
marijuana. In Southern Italy doing that kind 
of thing can be very dangerous. They can’t go 
to the Carabinieri so must make enquiries of 
their own. This is how they come across the 
rumours about Art; bizarre and unbelievable 
rumours that he miraculously cured the local 
mafia boss’s daughter of terminal leukemia. 
And among the chaos of his house, they find a 
document written by Art, The Book of Hidden 
Things, that promises to reveal dark secrets and 
wonders beyond anything previously known. 
Set in the beguiling and seductive landscape of 
Southern Italy, this story is about friendship and 
landscape, love and betrayal; above all it is about 
the nature of mystery itself.

The Cabin at the End of the World. By 
Paul Tremblay

A young girl and her two dads may be the key 
to humanity’s survival in this thriller that uses 
unreliable narrators and a nonlinear time line 
to capture the emotional intensity and terror of 
the family’s dilemma.

The Forgotten Child (A Riley Thomas 
Mystery Book 1) by Melissa Erin Jackson

Ever since Riley Thomas, reluctant medium 
extraordinaire, accidentally released a 
malevolent spirit from a Ouija board when 
she was thirteen, she’s taken a hard pass on 
scary movies, haunted houses, and cemeteries. 
So when her best friend pressures her into 
spending a paranormal investigation weekend 
at the infamous Jordanville Ranch—former 
home of deceased serial killer Orin Jacobs—
Riley is one-hundred-percent not ready.All the reviews 
are from Amazon.com.


WHY NAMING LEGAL 
GUARDIANS FOR 
CHILDREN IN A WILL 
ISN’T GOOD ENOUGH

Template wills and other cheap legal documents are 
among the most dangerous choices you can make for 
the people you love. These plans can fail to keep your 
family out of court and out of conflict, and can leave 
the people you love most of all—your children—at 
risk.


The people you love most

It’s probably distressing to think that by using a cut-
rate estate plan you could force your loved ones 
into court or conflict in the event of your incapacity 
or death. And if you’re like most parents, it’s 
probably downright unimaginable to contemplate 
your children’s care falling into the wrong hands. 
Yet that’s exactly what could happen if you rely on 
free or low-cost fill-in-the-blank wills found online, 
or even if you hire a lawyer who isn’t equipped or 
trained to plan for the needs of parents with minor 
children. 

 Naming and legally documenting guardians entails 
a number of complexities that most people aren’t 
aware of. Even lawyers with decades of experience 
frequently make at least one of six common errors 
when naming long-term legal guardians.

 If wills drafted with the help of a professional are 
likely to leave your children at risk, the chances that 
you’ll get things right on your own are much worse. 
What could go wrong?

 If your DIY will names legal guardians for your 
kids in the event of your death, that’s great. But does 
it include back-ups? And if you named a couple to 
serve, how is that handled? Do you still want one of 
them if the other is unavailable due to illness, injury, 
death, or divorce?

 And what happens if you become incapacitated 
and are unable to care for your children? You 
might assume the guardians named in the DIY 
will would automatically get custody, but your will 
isn’t even operative in the event of your incapacity. 
Or perhaps the guardians you named in the will 
live far from your home, so it would take them a few 
days to get there. If you haven’t made legally-binding 
arrangements for the immediate care of your children, 
it’s possible they will be placed with child protective 
services until those guardians arrive.

 Even if you name family who live nearby as 
guardians, your kids are still at risk if those guardians 
are not immediately available if and when needed. 

 And do they even know where your will is or how 
to access it? There are simply far too many potential 
pitfalls when you go it alone.


Kids Legal Planning

To ensure your children are never raised by 
someone you don’t trust or taken into the custody 
of strangers (even temporarily), consider creating a 
comprehensive Kids Protection Plan®.

 Protecting your family and assets in the event of 
your death or incapacity is such a monumentally 
important task you should never consider winging 
it with a DIY plan. No matter how busy you are or 
how little wealth you own, the potentially disastrous 
consequences are simply too great—and often they’re 
not even worth the paper they’re printed on.

 Plus, proper estate planning doesn’t have to be a 
depressing, stressful, or morbid event. In fact, we 
work hard to ensure our planning process is as stress-
free as possible.

 What’s more, many of our clients actually find the 
process highly rewarding. Our proprietary systems 
provide the type of peace of mind that comes from 
knowing that you’ve not only checked estate planning 
off your to-do list, but you’ve done it using the most 
forethought, experience, and knowledge available. 
Act now

 If you’ve yet to do any planning, contact us to 
schedule a Family Estate Planning Session. This 
evaluation will allow us to determine your best option. 
If you’ve already created a plan—whether it’s 
a DIY job or one created with another lawyer’s 
help—contact us to schedule an Estate Plan 
Review and Check-Up. We’ll ensure your plan is 
not only properly drafted and updated, but that it 
has all of the protections in place to prevent your 
children from ever being placed in the care of 
strangers or anyone you’d never want to raise them. 
Dedicated to empowering your family, building 
your wealth and defining your legacy,

A local attorney and father, Marc Garlett is on a mission 
to help parents protect what they love most. His office 
is located at 55 Auburn Avenue, Sierra Madre, CA 
91024. Schedule an appointment to sit down and talk 
about ensuring a legacy of love and financial security 
for your family by calling 626.355.4000 or visit www.
GarlettLaw.com for more information.


All Things By Jeff Brown

SIERRA MADRE PIONEER CEMETERY

In February 1881, Nathaniel Carter purchased the 
original 1103 acres that comprised the new city of Sierra 
Madre. The land was acquired in three purchases: 845 
acres of Rancho Santa Anita from Lucky Baldwin, 108 
acres from the Southern Pacific Railroad Company and 
150 acres from John Richardson.The Cemetery sits on 2.3 
acres. The cemetery was established in 1881 by Nathaniel 
Carter, the founder of the city, and sits among coastal live 
oaks and Englemann oaks. Carter transferred 20 feet by 
20 feet family sized cemetery plots to city citizens in the 
early years. He died in 1904 and his widow, Anneta Carter, 
continued to sell family plots by request.The first person 
buried here was Carter’s servant, J. E. Richardson, on July 
3, 1882. Also, a Civil War veteran, John Richardson, who 
had recently moved to Sierra Madre became another 
person interred in the Cemetery . Members of twelve of 
the first seventeen families that lived in Sierra Madre when 
it was founded in 1881, are buried there. Also buried in the 
Cemetery are veterans of the Civil War, both Union and 
Confederate, the Spanish American War, World War One 
and Two ,the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. There 
are also some soldiers of the British Commonwealth..By 
1938, most of the plots had been sold and the Cemetery 
Association had essentially become defunct. The cemetery 
fell into neglect, except for the efforts of volunteers, family 
members of those interred, local members of the Veterans 
of Foreign Wars and American Legion, and the City of 
Sierra Madre. The cemetery is well cared for now, the only 
new spaces available are in the new Memorial Garden 
which is an area for cremains. 


HEALTHY LIFESTYLES


STEAM IN THE ENGINE

Isn’t life wonderful and 
crazy and awful and awe-
inspiring? It is a journey 
to stay balanced AND 
inspired. The trick I’ve found 
to staying balanced and 
inspired is to vary my routine 
when needed. Remember 
if you’re looking to change 
--YOU must change. If you 
are seeking inspiration as a yogi (and human in the world), 
you need to add-in a new practice or try something new. 
KEEP what’s working, CHANGE what’s stagnant. 

 Here are a few tips to ignite your own desire to keep 
steam in your engine:

 1) Change your exercise routine & yoga practice. If 
you feeling stagnant, you may need to more challenge 
and more activity. If you are feeling burnt out, you need 
more relaxation and rejuvenative practices. It can’t be hard 
driving all the time, right? 

 2) Re-commit to your meditation practice. It’s a unique, 
sacred time that balances the spiritual - and psychological 
and physiological bodies. It’s a time for listening, receiving 
and being. You may need a new pranayama (breath) 
technique, mantra or sitting position to help you stay 
focused. 

 3) Learn something new; read a new book, meet a new 
friend or take a class you’ve been thinking about. 

 4) Find places and people with whom you can be 
yourself. And I’m going to say your HIGHEST self. Safe 
environments which support your growth and your 
peace are essential to balance, inspiration and supporting 
personal expansion. 

 Ask yourself, is there contentment or stagnation? If it 
feels like stagnation, then it’s time to make a shift. I love 
helping people find balance —and become inspired. I have 
some wonderful opportunities available to all students. 
Please email if you are ready to learn more: keely@
keelytotten.com. 

Namaste, 

Keely Totten, Yoga & Meditation Teacher

Inspired Human


THE MISSING PAGE

Real Life Tips from LIfe's Instruction Manual

THE POWER OF ONE 

The Stuck is a frustrating feeling. Whether it is an actual impasse or a merely 
perceived one, the sense of being unable to move is awful. For many years I worked 
with people confined in the state prison and part of my job was to help them to 
prepare for release to the community. It was interesting because the emotions that 
my young, confined, clients expressed were similar people those not incarcerated, 
yet they felt just as stuck. 

The best way to alleviate the feeling is taking action. The steps are the same 
whether you are an incarcerated teen, a mom with an empty nest, or a mid-career, 
mid-life executive.

1. You need a clear vision, absolute clarity regarding the goal. DECIDE.

2. You need one person to hold the vision at times of discouragement. The Wright brothers had each 
other. My clients have me. Everyone needs a partner in believing. Choose someone that cares about 
you and your success to help you with reaching your goal solely by believing in you and your ideas. 

3. Finally, you must act. It is imperative that you take action toward your goals. You are never stuck, 
although often it may seem that way.

It can be tempting to think that you have good reasons for not taking action, such as confusion. I 
recommend that you check in with yourself. Is it true that you are unsure of what to do? I've found 
that most people have multiple ideas on what to do. They don't act because of fear of making a mistake. 
Failing to move is the biggest mistake you can make.

Do what you can where you are with what you have. You have more resources available to you than 
you realize. There's power in one decision, one support person, and repeated single actions. 

Lori A. Harris is a lawyer and coach helping her clients learn to live and love their lives. Learn more 
about her at www.loriaharris,


Lori A. Harris

 
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