By Mary Genser

March 13, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – Want some spring decorations that really rock? These ornamental rock pots are ideal garden accessories to brighten up your home’s interiors. Use them to display artificial ivy, plants, flowers, or handy household items. They also make great gifts. Your only limit is your imagination!

Saturday, March 13, 2010 (San Diego's East County)- Be sure to set your clocks ahead one hour, since Daylight Savings Time starts at midnight.

March 12, 2010 (La Mesa) – La Mesa Police have arrested Gustavo Lugo, 54, a transient living along Highway 125. He was booked Friday for one count of annoying/molesting a child, a misdemeanor, and has not yet been charged by the District Attorney’s office, Lt. David Bond told East County Magazine.
The suspect was walking in the same location where a female student was accosted one day earlier while walking on Fletcher Parkway to Parkway Middle School.

TWINS, PREEMIES, YOUNG BABIES & INFANTS WITH COLDS MOST AT RISK

WASHINGTON, D.C.- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is advising parents and caregivers to be cautious when using infant slings for babies younger than four months of age. In researching incident reports from the past 20 years, CPSC identified and is investigating at least 14 deaths associated with sling-style infant carriers, including three in 2009. Twelve of the deaths involved babies younger than four months of age.

 
 
March 12, 2010 (Lakeside) -  Travel around the world and learn about other cultures, watch traditional country dances, play carnival games and taste exotic foods without leaving San Diego County.  It's all part of the Lakeside Union School District and Riverview Elementary School's second annual International Fair on Saturday, March 20 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

March 12, 2010 (Fallbrook) – Todd Norton, 43, of Fallbrook has been arrested for threatening to harm his wife and shoot up her house after she reported him to authorities for possession of child pornography, according to the San Diego Sheriff’s office.

March 12, 2010 (Bonsall) -- Residents are being asked to report any sightings of the Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM), which was discovered in a trap located in a lemon grove in Bonsall.

The find prompted California Department of Food and Agriculture and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to place additional traps in the area. A quarantine will be triggered if a second LBAM is found.

March 11, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) - One of East County’s treasures is The Water Conservation Garden. Sunset Magazine calls it one of the “Top 10 Gardens of the West.” This is a beautiful and relaxing place to spend a leisurely afternoon. However, it’s also a learning experience!

March 12, 2010 (Washington D.C.) -- Yesterday the U.S. Food & Drug administration listed 153 food items subject to  recall for hydrolyzed vegetable protein believed contaminated with salmonella.   The list includes boullion, dressing and dressing mixes, flavoring base and seasoning products, frozen foods, gravy mixes, prepared salads, ready-to-eat products,sauce and marinade mixes, snack foods, soups and soup mixes, dips and dip mixes.

Bates Nut Farm in Valley Center hosts full day of merry-making

March 12, 2010 (Valley Center) – Highland games, archery, medieval music and cooking demonstrations are all part of the fun this Saturday, March 13th . Historical re-enactors from the Society for Creative Anachronism Inc. Renaissance Group will host a Renaissance Faire at Bates Nut Farm in Escondido from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Tickets still available for La Mesa Chamber’s James Bond bash at Town & Country Resort

March 11, 2010 (La Mesa) – Try your luck at Monte Carlo-style gaming tables amid a night of glitz, glamour and prizes galore at La Mesa Chamber of Commerce’s Casino Royale Night on Thursday, March 18th . The event takes place in the Golden Ballroom at the Town & Country Hotel, where a silent auction, raffle, and elegant food stations will all be part of the fun.

by Christopher Mohr

(San Diego) March 11 - If you like to watch basketball played above the rim, you would have enjoyed the matchup between the Hornets of Lincoln High School and the Cardinals of Hoover High School for the Division II section championship at Jenny Craig Pavilion Friday night. This battle between schools named after past U.S. presidents was a game that local high school hoops fans could not afford to miss.

Both teams' lineups featured athletic players that did not know the meaning of the term, 'vertically challenged'. Lincoln's starting lineup had an average height of 6'5", including 6'10" center Nathan Maxey. Hoover's lineup although not as tall, included 6'9" Angelo Chol.

 

By Bill Pogue

Snap your fingers, toss your head, and toe-tap to the rhythms of all kinds of jazz on KSDS 88.3 FM, a San Diego jewel. Mark DeBoskey, station manager and a Mt. Helix resident, has helped to make Jazz 88.3 one of the world’s premier jazz stations.
 
Now the radio station hopes to launch “The Speakeasy” -- an interactive, web-based jazz program. There will be content of all kinds and direct, internet communication with other jazz lovers. “The Speakeasy” will be available in 125 countries, just as is the current Jazz 88.3, streaming away on the internet.

Music Professor Pat Setzer to receive Hayward Award for Excellence in Education

EL CAJON – Cuyamaca College music instructor Pat Setzer, a key player in the planning and construction of a performing arts complex inside the campus’ sprawling $45 million communication arts center, is one of four community college faculty members statewide to win the 2010 Hayward Award for Excellence in Education.

March 10, 2010 (Lakeside) --On March 13th, the San Diego River Park Foundation and its partners will team up for a new event to raise awareness about the San Diego River. More than 100 volunteers will participate in five special projects in Lakeside, Ramona, and Julian areas. The public is invited to participate in the events, which include clean-up and park beautification efforts as well as an open house at a nature preserve.

March 10, 2010 (La Mesa) – La Mesa Police has arrested Anthony Long, 19, of El Cajon and two juvenile males from El Cajon and Santee for attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon. The assault occurred on March 6 at Northmont Park in LA Mesa.

The suspects were arrested after search warrants were obtained and searches conducted on three homes in East County. According to the police investigation, two groups of young men got into a phone argument over a girl following a party in El Cajon, then agreed to meet at Northmont Park for a fight.

By Miriam Raftery

March 10, 2010 (La Mesa) – Last week, we reported that Helix Charter High School’s board has filed a lawsuit against the Grossmont Union High School District after the GUHSD announcing its intent to consider revocation of the Helix charter.

Now GUHSD Superintendent Robert Collins has issued a public letter strongly defending the District’s actions and accusing Helix Charter Board of being “non-responsive” and engaging in “delaying tactics” regarding an administrator accused of contributing to delinquency of a minor.  In response, Helix Charter Board president Cathy Singer has fired back a blistering letter of her own, calling Collins “dead wrong” and accusing the District of mounting an “unjustified and expensive smear campaign of Helix.”

By Nancy and Dawn Clement

Share creative ideas to assist people of all ages with tips to save money and improve their lifestyle!

March 10, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) - Springtime is almost here; maybe this year you want to plant a garden or refresh your current garden. Are you thinking of planting a garden but don't know what to grow or where to start? Fortunately, there is plenty of help for you and the best news is that it is free!  all you need is a little bit of time to followup on information available at the websites listed below. 

by Christopher Mohr

(San Diego) March 10 - Harry Brazelton sank a free throw after time expired to give the Matadors of Mt. Miguel High School a thrilling 47-46 comeback victory over the Vikings of La Jolla High School. The game was one of several CIF San Diego Section championships played over the weekend at Jenny Craig Pavilion on the campus of USD.

Brazelton had the ball with just a few seconds left in regulation with the score tied at 46. While going up for a three point shot attempt, he drew a shooting foul a split second before the horn sounded, and was awarded three free throws. He would only need one. With the lanes emptied, Brazelton sank the first free throw attempt, making the other two superfluous.

by Christopher Mohr

(San Diego) March 5 - The Lady Wolfpack of West Hills High School captured their second straight girls Division II sectional basketball title Friday night with a 40-25 win over the Lady Wolverines from Westview High School (Rancho Penasquitos). The two teams faced off at the Jenny Craig Pavilion on the campus of USD, the site of all CIF San Diego Section championship basketball games throughout the weekend.

It became clear quickly that this was not going to be Westview's day when West Hills already had a double-digit lead before the Lady Wolverines could even get on the scoreboard. West Hills' stingy defense kept Westview in check as the Lady Wolverines were unable to generate much on offense or recover from the Lady Wolfpack's initial scoring surge. West Hills maintained their double-digit lead with a commanding 30-13 lead at halftime.

 UPDATE March 11:  Lucero is now in custody.

March 10, 2010 (Valley Center) - The San Diego Sheriff’s Department seeks David Leroy Lucero for questioning regarding the murder of his mother yesterday in Valley Center. Though not yet named as a suspect, a Sheriff department special bulletin states that he "may be armed and possibly violent."

March 9, 2010 (San Diego) -- The County's Health and Human Services Agency Strategic Planning & Operations Support Division will hold public hearings in central and east regions of San Diego County to give interested community members an opportunity to provide input on refugee employment services in San Diego County.

March 14 program to explore link between water use and demand
 
By Anne Tolch
 
March 9, 2010 (San Diego) -- When we turn on our faucets we use not only water, but all the electricity and natural gas needed to transport, heat, and treat both water and the wastewater. With local supplies insufficient to meet demand, most of this water and energy comes from outside our region. During a normal year, as much as 90% of San Diego’s water is imported from the Colorado River and northern California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
 
That’s right: that water coming out of your faucet travels up to 1,000 miles before it reaches you.

March 9, 2010 (Poway) – Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher (R-San Diego) is working with the parents of slain teen Chelsea King to enact legal reforms aimed at protecting children from violent sexual predators. Fletcher’s district includes Poway and Escondido, homes of Chelsea King and Amber Dubois, murdered teens whose bodies were both found in the past week.

 
 
March 8, 2010 (Warner Springs)--Warner Springs and the San Diego County region are safer after the County used approximately $475,000 in federal stimulus money to buy a new Type 1 fire engine to improve backcountry protection.

In an exclusive interview with East County Magazine, driver says Toyota advised him 2 weeks ago that his 2008 Prius was not on the recall list

March 8, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – James Sikes, 61, considers himself lucky to be alive following a harrowing high-speed ordeal on a highway in San Diego's East County.

“I am still shaken up,” the local real estate agent told East County Magazine this evening, just hours after surviving a chilling 94-mph race against time after the accelerator on his car became jammed on I-8 east this afternoon. It took over half an hour to bring the runaway vehicle under control with help from California Highway Patrol, including a patrolman who bravely placed his car in front of Sikes to assure that the vehicle could be stopped before entering a perilous downhill stretch of freeway.

Backcountry residents burned up over latest tactic to grab land before court cases on Powerlink are heard

March 8, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – Aiming to begin construction on Sunrise Powerlink this summer, San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E) is going to court to seek eminent domain powers to force landowners to turn over as many as 80 properties to the utility for construction of the controversial high-voltage power line. The tactic has sparked outrage among many East County residents.

 

March 8, 2010 (Ramona) -- The Ramona Music Fest benefit concert is March 20, from 2 to 6 p.m., at Dos Picos Park, 17953 Dos Picos Park Rd. in Ramona. The third annual event hosted by Ramona Kiwanis and Ramona Rotary clubs will feature two stages and wandering musicians.
 
A variety of music is promised, from mellow rock to jazz, from ’50s rock to country, headlined by Cactus Twang & Whyte, whose music is reminiscent of Crosby, Stills & Nash.

VIEW THE ONLINE REGISTRY AT THE MEGAN'S LAW WEBSITE

March 8, 2010 (San Diego's East County) - The tragic murders of Amber Dubois and Chelsea King highlight the need to protect ourselves and our children from known predators in our communities.  Many people are not aware that you can you view photos of sex offenders in your neighborhood, learn their addresses, and read descriptions of past crimes on the  Megan's Law website (http://www.meganslaw.ca.gov/), named after slain child Megan Kanka.

March 7, 2010 (Escondido) – The county medical examiner’s office has used dental records to positively identify remains found Saturday as those of Amber Dubois, the 14-year-old teenage girl who went missing while walking to Escondido High School on February 13, 2009.   Her disappearance resulted in a massive search over more than a year and made headlines nationally.