HaPPY HANUKKAH, MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY KWANZAA 

from your Mountain Views News Family! Best Decorated Houses....Page 2

 
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2023 

VOLUME 17 NO. 51VOLUME 17 NO. 51

webbmartingroup.com
Take Advantage of Our Combined 95 
YEARS in the Business!
Our Experience and Expertise 
= Your GAIN. 
Jan Greteman 626.975.4033lic #01943630Judy Webb-Martin 626.688.2273lic #00541631Katie Orth 626.688.0418lic #00942500Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal 
Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01991628. All material presented herein 
is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed 
reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may 
be made without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All 
measurements and square footage are approximate. If your property is currently listed 
for sale this is not a solicitation.
Thank you for allowing 
us to help you with your 
real estate goals for 
2023. 
It was a privilege to be 
part of our clients’ real 
estate journeys this year.
Happy 
Holidays!
Imagine Snow In Sierra Madre For Christmas!


Artist Sonny Salsbury created this painting depicting snow in Sierra Madre at Christmas. His caption, “Wouldn’t It Be 
Nice?” reflects the sentiments of many a child and adult alike. Salsbury is also a Grammy nominated musician who was 
born in Pasadena. He is the brother of local businesswoman Judith Brandley, owner of Leonora Moss in Sierra Madre.

‘The Spirit of The Season‘The Spirit of The Season

THE CHRISTMAS GIFT by Craig Hakola

Mr. Green stepped out from the office elevator and walked to the door where he encountered the ominous sign, “Shuttle - Out of Order for the 
Evening.” “It figures. On the coldest night of the year the shuttle isn’t running,” he angrily mumbled. “I work in the only office of the city with no 
parking, and now I am forced to enter a battlefield of urban ugliness to gain access to my own vehicle.”

Mr. Green was not the sort of man who thought much 
about the surrounding neighborhood of his workplace. 
All it had ever been to him was a contemptible stretch 
of the world where the deplorable transients encamped. 
“The homeless of this area has destroyed themselves and 
brought the city to its knees,” he indignantly thought as he 
imagined the march ahead to his car. 

“Every one of them has harmed themselves by a lifetime 
of poor decisions, and if an ignorant man strolls through 
life without a canteen, and then discovers himself trapped 
in the desert, why should I offer this fool a drink of my 
precious resources?” 

It might be said that Mr. Green existed in the world of an 
utterly rational man. These intuitions of thought made 
his mind susceptible to one set of arguments, but cravenly 
ignorant to the greater importance of another. 

As he started to step from the building, he was met by the 
penetrating sting of the wind. This caused Mr. Green to 
button his jacket all the way up to his neck. Maybe the 
only object of the city colder than the temperature of this 
winter’s night, was the heart beneath the man’s jacket. 

He halted at the street corner with an ever-increasing 
anger, as the light ignored any sense of time. “Why do they 
force people such as myself to stand here for a minute or 
more in these deplorable temperatures?” He mulled this 
injustice in his mind, as a more forceful issuance of wind 
announced its existence. The light finally changed to 
green, and at the next block, the dirty and broken sidewalk 
beneath his feet seemed to mirror the city around him. 

In a vacant lot adjacent to where Mr. Green was now 
walking, the weeds of the world forced their way upward. 
He paused in the manner a vehicle does at an accident, to 
inspect this mysterious world of torment. 

Then, seemingly out of the nowhere, a glint of a fire caught 
his eye. 

In the empty lot beside where he stood, a group had 
encircled a discarded trashcan where the flames weaved 
and danced over the rim of the can. His sight lingered 
upon the flames as it painted the people in a wonderful 
shade of gold and red. But the power of this spell was 
quickly broken, as he angrily exclaimed, “Even these bums 
of the night are warmer than I am.” 

“Mr. Green,” came the unexpected voice of a man. Mr. 
Green refused to answer, as the first commandment of 
his beliefs was never to look upon a person of the street, 
but temptation being what it is, he was compelled to half-
peek from the corner of his eye. This limited glimpse was 
enough to discard the value of the voice, and deem it best 
to continue past this wandering drifter of the world.

(continued on page 13)

Eileen Benson626.278.0187CalRE# 01880650Barbara Rogers626.484.8135CalRE# 01169115Not intended as a solicitation if your property is already listed by another broker. Affi liated real estate agents are independent contractor sales associates, not employees. ©2023 Coldwell Banker. All 
Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker logos are trademarks of Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. The Coldwell Banker® System is comprised of company owned offi ces which are 
owned by a subsidiary of Anywhere Advisors LLC and franchised offi ces which are independently owned and operated. The Coldwell Banker System fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing 
Act and the Equal Opportunity Act.
Our Homes are only as important 
as the people inside them.
May yours be fi lled with Love, 
Laughter, Shared Memories,
Favorite Recipes, Lots of Treatsand Good Health.
We look forward to meeting you 
all in the New Year and Helping 
to Make Your Real Estate Dreams 
Come True !!!
Warmly, Barbara and EileenHAPPY HOLIDAYSWe Wish you all a Magical Holiday Seasonwith your Family and Friends
ARCADIA $2,500,0004 Unit 4,076 sf Apt BuildingAZUSA $750,000 
4 Bed 2 Bath 1,444 sf HomeLONG BEACH $260,000 
1 Bed 1 Bath 600 sf Coop626.355.1451c21village.comLIC# 02119245Serving the Community since 1980FOR SALEFOR SALEFOR SALE