Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, December 28, 2019

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Mountain Views-News Saturday, December 28, 2019 

KATIE Tse....This and That

WALKING SIERRA MADRE - The Social Side 

 by Deanne Davis

MEMORY ISSUES

Wish I could say the title is about my computer, but unfortunately it’s all 
about me. So my mom and I were running some Christmas Eve errands. 
She had a list of things to do, and I was trying to kill the maximum birds with 
the minimum stones. (“Hey, you need to go to Home Depot? Awesome! I’ll 
pick up a last minute item for so-and-so there. etc.).

By late afternoon we were almost finished and feeling quite accomplished. 
I’ve recently discovered McDonald’s cappuccinos, and since it was cold 
and we still had a final stop to make, I suggested we get one. The caffeine 
should’ve perked up my mental functioning, but apparently it didn’t.

Our last stop was my mom’s friend’s place in Altadena. We’ll call her Joanie. 
One word about Joanie and Christmas. Joanie makes the world’s most 
amazing fruitcake. 

I know, I know, fruitcake gets a bad rap. And most often it’s well-deserved. 
Usually that stuff is nasty. But Joanie’s is different. It’s not fruitcake in the regular sense of the word. 
Hers is more like pound cake with walnuts, a touch of citron, and a pleasant hint of lemon. Divine. 

She delivers them a few days before Christmas, and my dad reverently slices off a thin piece for himself 
each day. He’s the only one of us with will power. That, and he exercises religiously, so he can afford 
the literal pound of butter packed into each of her cakes.

So we were on our way to Joanie’s with her gift. They’re doing road work in Altadena, and we spent 
much of the drive merging into narrowed lanes and avoiding open ditches. And it was getting darker.

“Oh, look! There’s that pretty Eiffle Tower those people on New York Drive always put out,” I noted. As 
if the whole thing was just a jolly joy ride instead 
of a mission.

“Yes, it’s lovely. Wish they’d leave it up all year,” 
Mom replied.

“True. But would we appreciate it then?”

That’s the kind of thing we discussed as we drove 
right by Joanie’s street, completely oblivious.

But what’s worse is that I doubt it would’ve even 
dawned on me that we neglected to take Joanie 
her gift unless my mom mentioned it later that 
night. I bet even if the thing was resting on my 
lap in the car I wouldn’t have noticed.

We got all the way to my parents’ place, unloaded 
the car, and were visiting for a bit when my mom 
recounted our day to my dad.

“And last we went to Joanie’s... Oh wait. We 
didn’t.” Turning to me, “How’d that happen?”

I would say I’m upset with myself for forgetting. 
But it’s more like embarrassment and creeping 
dread that it’ll only get worse from here. I can’t 
get over the fact that I’m closer to 40 now than 30. 
Just one big slip on the proverbial banana peel at 
this point.

At least Joanie got her present in the end. My 
parents drove over that night and brought it to 
her. At least I think I remember them telling me that.


“One of the most glorious messes 
in the world is the mess created in 
the living room on Christmas Day. 
Don’t clean it up too quickly.” Andy 
Rooney

“What is Christmas? It is the 
tenderness of the past, courage for 
the present, 

and hope for the future.” Agnes M. 
Pahro

“Love came down at Christmas; love 
all lovely, love divine.

Love was born at Christmas, stars 
and angels gave the sign.” Christina 
Rosetti

Our annual snowman has appeared 
in Kersting Court and my son-in-
law, Chuck Seitz, took a really great 
photo of him in his jaunty red scarf. 
Hoping all the rain doesn’t wash him 
away too quickly. Dave Forrester is 
usually involved in the snowman and 
I wouldn’t be surprised if he had a 
hand in his construction again this 
year.

Christmas is behind us. We can all 
sit down, take a breath and give 
ourselves a minute to recuperate 
before we start planning for the New 
Year. 2019 passed with what felt like 
the speed of light and now 2020 is just around the corner. I’m planning on leaving Christmas up just 
a little longer; let my head-turning lighted reindeer stay out in front just a little longer, and not be too 
quick to de-Christmas-ify.

I came across a beautiful piece I had hidden away at the bottom of the Christmas card basket, 
“Directions For Planting,” taken from the writings of Margaret Hooper Ineson, a precious saint of 
God and beloved member of our family. Born on November 22, 1904, she entered the gates of heaven 
on November 11, 2000...just a few days short of her 96th birthday. She lived her life according to her 
“Directions For Planting” and I thought this was a perfect way to end a year, which has had its ups 
and downs for all of us, and look forward to a New Year bright with promise and hope.

Directions For Planting

 1. Plant 5 Rows of Peas

 Preparedness

 Promptness

 Perseverance 

 Politeness

 Prayer

 2. Plant 3 Rows of Squash

 Squash Gossip

 Squash Criticism

 Squash Indifference

 3. Plant 4 Rows of Lettuce

 Let Us Be Faithful

 Let Us Be Unselfish

 Let Us Be Truthful

 Let Us Love One Another

 

 4. Plant 4 Rows of Turnips

 Turn Up For Where We’re Needed

 Turn Up With A Smile

 Turn Up With New Ideas

 Turn Up With Determination

With just a little care and attention, what a wonderful harvest we shall reap from this Garden of 
love and caring.

“What a wonderful story it is, The Christmas Story. 

Only God could have thought of it!” Norman Vincent Peale

Happy New Year, dear friends! 

May God bless you and keep you and make his face to shine upon you

And give you peace...and joy!

My book page: Amazon.com: Deanne Davis

Blog: www.authordeanne.com

Christmas is just a few days past and my book:

“Sunrises and Sunflowers Speak Hope” 

Would be a really nice gift for anyone you’ve suddenly remembered.

You can find it on Amazon.com

“Star of Wonder” a delightful Christmas Kindle story is there, too.

If you’d like a little preview, take a look at: https://youtu.be/Ka1KYrONrd0


SIERRA MADRE HOLIDAY TRASH 
SCHEDULE AND CHRISTMAS TREE 
RECYCLING

There will be a one-day delay in collection of residential and commercial refuse, 
green waste, and recyclables after both Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. 

Also, please note that Christmas trees are 100% recyclable! Athens Services will 
collect Christmas trees at the curb from 12/30/2019 to 1/10/2020 this on your normal 
pickup day. Trees are delivered to various landfills to be used as mulch or cover 
material, or to Athens’ American Organics compost facility in Victorville.

Tips to ensure your tree is properly collected:

• Remove stands, ornaments, lights and tinsel.

• Place holiday trees next to your regular trash containers.

• Trees over 6 feet in length must be cut in half.

• Trees with flocking or fire retardants ARE acceptable.

• If you miss the date for recycling, please cut up your tree and place it in your 
yard waste container(s).

Please help keep our parks clean and safe during the holidays. If you see anyone illegally 
dumping holiday trees, please call Sierra Madre Police Department at (626) 
355 - 1414.


SIERRA MADRE HOLIDAY PARKING

Christmas and New Year's Holiday parking exemptions are as follows:

Beginning at 2:00AM on Saturday, 12-14-2019, there will be a city wide exemption for parking 
viola-tions relating to Permit Parking and Overnight Parking. This exemption will extend until 
5:00AM on Thursday, 01-02-2020 in observance of the holidays. Please note, there will be officers 
staffing the SMPD, 24/7 to handle enforceable parking issues and safety violations during these 
times.


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com