MONTCLARION: July 22, 2010
I have no idea what’s coming out of my speakers, but I think it was recorded in Oakland.
We’re on the road home from Eugene, Ore., and my son has commandeered my car stereo with one of those plugs you put into your iPod. As luck would have it, his iPod has every rap song ever recorded.
There’s an unwritten rule in our house that the one who drives gets to pick out the music. I’m beginning to question that rule. Continue reading
Author Ron Arons
OAKLAND TRIBUNE: JULY 14, 2011
Ron Arons has no problem airing his family’s dirty laundry. In fact, he’s making a living at it. The Oakland hills author has just released his second genealogy book called “WANTED! U.S. Criminal Records,” a guide to help readers find family members who’ve run afoul of the law.
Most of us have a black sheep in our family, according to Arons, who unearthed his own family secret about 15 years ago. Continue reading
MONTCLARION: JULY 14, 2011
If you were a car, what kind would you be? That question came up on my Facebook page the other day, and it got me thinking. Ten years ago, I would have been a Mustang convertible. Today, I’m a sedan on the side of the road with steam coming out of my engine.
It’s not easy being a middle-aged woman — especially with a hot body like mine. No matter how much fluid I put in the radiator, my temperature gauge spikes and I overheat like a ’72 Pinto. Continue reading
MONTCLARION: July 8, 2011
It’s hard to imagine a better friend than a pet, one who loves unconditionally and asks little in return. But for Valerie Comstock, her two cats have been more than companions — they’ve been a comfort in her struggle to overcome a serious illness.
Sadly, the time has come for her to give up her pets to someone who can offer them a quiet, loving home. These are no ordinary cats — they are pedigreed Pixi Bobs. Continue reading
CONTRACOSTATIMES.COM: July 8, 2011
The sign at the bar reads “Recession Special — A beer, dog and moon-pie for 5 bucks.”
I put in my order and grab a stool near a neon sign next to a wall of old cowboy boots.
It’s lunchtime at Robert’s Western World honkytonk, and the band is just warming up — a duo with a cowboy on steel guitar and a petite, red-haired gal on vocals. I’ve traveled 2,300 miles to see this. Continue reading
MONTCLARION: July 1, 2011
In late 2004, I asked readers to consider what Montclair might be like if it lost its soul. I was referring to the ongoing temptation for landlords to fill vacancies with deep-pocket tenants (Realtors, restaurants, banks), changing the fabric of our small town.
At the time, Cold Stone Creamery was reportedly considering a store here and was seen as a threat to the family-owned Montclair Malt Shop.
Today, the reaction to Cold Stone might be different, given the state of the economy and the 18 vacancies I wrote about last week. Continue reading
OAKLAND TRIBUNE: June 24, 2011
Alice Ly lives to make people happy. In fact, it’s been her life’s dream since coming to America from Vietnam at the age of 19. Last month, it all came together when she opened Natural Nails Plus on Grand Avenue in Oakland.
What makes this shop different from the dozens of other nail salons in Oakland is Ly’s story. She was 9 when her father left Vietnam on a small, crowded boat for America. He would carve out a new life on Oahu, then send for his wife and three daughters. Ly thought the day would never come, but her family was finally reunited a decade later. Continue reading
HILLS NEWSPAPERS: July 24, 2011
The sky was a palate of lilac and gray when we started our road trip last week from Minneapolis to Atlanta — the Tour d’Heartland as I like to call it.
My daughter and I were taking my mom’s 98 Contour down to her nursing school in Georgia — with thunderstorm warnings along much of the route.
I like a good storm when I’m driving, especially in Iowa, where the landscape is a monotonous monoculture of corn, corporate farms and large ethanol plants. Gone is the patchwork of small family homesteads and neatly kept barns that used to make driving in this state a pleasure. Continue reading
MONTCLARION: June 24, 2011
It’s shaping up to be the summer of discontent in Montclair. There are now 18 vacancies in the Village and no sign of a turnaround anytime soon.
It’s a source of frustration for many merchants, who feel landlords are demanding unreasonable rents in a tough business climate.
“I can no longer stand by and watch the destruction of fire around me,” says Teresa Bozikis, who owns Touch Salon & Gallery in Montclair. She’s submitted a list of Village vacancies to the city and has been instrumental in helping the Montclair Village Association craft a letter for merchants to use in negotiating “fair market rate” from landlords. Continue reading
MONTCLARION: JUNE 17, 2011
It’s 4 p.m. and the kitchen phone is ringing. The phone rarely rings at our house anymore, unless it’s a telemarketer or my husband or kids.
“Mom,” says my son in a state of semi-panic. “MOM. I need my tassel and hat. I couldn’t find it this morning and now we’re lining up and I NEED my tassel and hat!” Yes, it’s graduation day, and you’ll have to excuse me for getting sentimental. My son is 18, and, despite all the signs of adulthood, there are still times when he needs me. Continue reading
Ginny Prior 