Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, July 18, 2020

10 

Mountain View News Saturday, July 18, 2020 


Pet of the Week 

 Four-year-old Stoney was a little bit of a wallflower 
when she came into the shelter as a stray, and also 
had painful bladder stones. But with surgery and 
healing, and now lots of treats and play time, she’s 
really warmed up to our staff and shown her puppylike 
demeanor. She has lots of fun romping in the 
yard during Small Dog Play Group with all her other 
little dog friends, so she would probably do well with 
other dogs in the home. She loves play so much, she’s 
always the one trying to get the other dogs to join her 
fun and games! Stoney had some trust to build and 
some healing to do when we first met her, but now 
she’s ready for her forever home! 

 The adoption fee for dogs is $140. All dog adoptions 
include spay or neuter, microchip, and ageappropriate 
vaccines. 

 New adopters will receive a complimentary health-and-wellness exam from VCA 
Animal Hospitals, as well as a goody bag filled with information about how to care 
for your pet. 

 View photos of adoptable pets at pasadenahumane.org and fill out an online 
adoption application. Adoptions are by appointment only. 

 Pets may not be available for adoption and cannot be held for potential adopters by 
phone calls or email. 

LOOKING FOR A BEST FRIEND? 


Dandelion is a two-year-old Domestic Short Hair mix 
with beautiful black fur. She an owner surrender that 
came in with three other cats. Dandelion is a little on the 
shy side at first but does well with staff and other people. 
She had her first "Meet and Greet" and seemed very affectionate 
with that person despite only meeting her that 
day. She is very mellow and gets along with other cats. 
This sweet girl would do well in a single or multiple cat 
family home. 10 pounds. Her adoption fee is $99, which 
includes spay surgery, microchip, first vaccinations and 
a free wellness check-up at a participating veterinarian. 
Call the San Gabriel Valley Humane Society 626-286- 
1159 to schedule a "Meet and Greet" appointment with 
Dandelion. Website: www.sgvhumane.org. 

CHRISTOPHER Nyerges 


EXCERPT FROM “SQUATTER IN LOS 
ANGELES.” 

[Nyerges is the author of several books, including “Squatter in Los Angeles” which is only 
available as a book on Kindle. More of his books are available from Amazon, or www. 
SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com.] 

 

Shortly after I moved in to the house where I was a squatter for a year and a half, I 
asked a tree pruner to dump his load of wood chips in my yard. He did so gladly, since it saved him a trip to 
the local dump and it saved him money. I took a rake and spread the chips throughout the southern end of 
the house, what I considered my garden area. This was soil that was hardpacked and probably had cars parked 
on it at one time. I would water these chips and the ground soon became a productive garden. I planted yellow 
and blue corn, amaranth, beans, tomatoes, chard, fennel and other vegetables. I also saved soup cans and 
milk containers and used them to plant my potted plants which I then tried to sell for income but more often 
gave away. 

 

 Eventually, I was given some ducks which I kept in the inner yard that was fenced. Animals are a responsibility, 
and they tie you to your place. That can be a good thing, or not. But they were a gift, and I said yes. 
I needed to purchase some bags of duck food for them, and eventually I discovered an amazing thing about 
ducks. 

 

My postage stamp-sized garden grew out of my wood chip patch where I grew corn and other foods. To 
water, I would simply place the hose down, turn it on, and let the water soak in to the wood chip-mulched 
garden. Once, after I turned on the water, the ducks rushed over and began to feast on something in the chips. 
Apparently, the water brought out the bugs from the soil and the ducks would methodically work the wet soil 
with great relish, making a low quacking sound as they went which seemed to say that they were very happy. 
After that, I learned that I could feed them less, and let them feed themselves from the garden after I turned 
on the hose. 

 

My garden never seemed highly productive but I had a few of the tall red amaranth plants, some squash, a 
corn patch, some greens, and wild foods. I had wanted to try the so-called Three Sisters of the native Southwest, 
of corn, beans, and squash. In the arid soil of the Southwest, the corn was planted first, and once it arose, 
beans were planted at the base of the each corn. The beans’ roots fix nitrogen and this acts as a fertilizer to the 
corn. Squash was then planted as a sprawling ground cover to retain the valuable scant moisture of the desert. 

 

I planted my corn in my wood chip patch, three seeds per hole about two feet apart. Corn came up, and 
then I planted bean seeds. Not many beans came up -- maybe the ducks ate them. I planted squash too. Not 
a desert squash but ordinary zucchini which did a good job as a ground cover and food producer. I loved the 
little garden. During the day, little birds would flock to the corn patch and eat bugs. I enjoyed the fact that this 
little garden that I created with my simple efforts was now teeming with wildlife. It felt good just to look at it. 
It provided food for my body, food for wildlife, and food for my soul. 

 

Not long after I started this patch – it was near Thanksgiving – David Ashley came by for a visit. David had 
already moved into the neighborhood from wherever else he’d been living. He came up to the top of the hill 
where I was an illegal squatter. My housing status didn’t cause David to lower his regard for me. 

 

I took David out into my garden, and we stood there talking about life. I pulled off a ripe ear of corn and 
handed it to him and picked one for myself. 

 

“What’s this?” asked David. 

 

“To eat,” I responded as I began to peel off the leaves and hairs on my average size ear of corn. It took a bite 
of the sweet kernels. 

 

“I didn’t know you could eat corn raw,” said David in a surprised voice. 

 

“Yep, you can,” I told him as I chewed on my sweet cob. David began to peel his and take some bites. 

 

“Wow, that’s really good!” said David, chewing on more kernels. We stood there for a few moments, eating 
our corn, looking at the outside world through the stalks of corn that were taller than us. It was a quiet, special 
moment. 

 

Eventually, David left, and over the ensuing months, I would occasionally hear David telling someone about 
his surreal experience eating raw corn. 


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