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    Town Council Agenda- October 1, 2012 

    by
    kir
    Published on 10-01-2012 09:09 AM

    The following can be found on the town's website:


    TOWN OF LOS GATOS
    TOWN COUNCIL/PARKING AUTHORITY/SUCCESSOR AGENCY MEETING
    MONDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2012 -- 7:00 P.M. -


    MEETING CALLED TO ORDER

    ROLL CALL

    PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
    Youth Park Citizens of the Year
     ...
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    Best of Banned Books Week: Forever, by Judy Blume 

    by
    kir
    Published on 10-01-2012 09:02 AM
    Article Preview

    Every Monday and Friday, InsideLG features StorySnoops, a Los Gatos based Company. To find out more information, please click HERE. This week, we'll be featuring StorySnoops everyday as they interview Banned Book authors.


    In the spirit of Banned Books Week, StorySnoops is hosting a retrospective of some of our favorite “frequently-challenged” author interviews and book reviews. BBW is the American Library Association’s annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. It highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States. Check out this ALA timeline, showing significant banned and challenged books over the past 30 years. These are some of our all-time favorites—can you imagine someone denying you access to these books?

     I don’t know about you, but when I was in middle school, I thought I was getting away with murder when I read Forever, by Judy ...
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    LGUSD Board Workshop 

    by
    Pepper Potts
    Published on 09-28-2012 07:30 PM

    The following can be found on the LGUSD website:

    BOARD WORKSHOP
    October 2 - 6:00 p.m.

    Thomas P. O’Donnell District Office Board Room

    Click here to view previous board meetings!

    Superintendent
    Dr. Diana G. Abbati

    Board Members
    Kathleen Bays
    Scott Broomfield
    Doug Halbert
    Chris Miller
    Tina Orsi-Hartigan
    ...
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    LGSUHSD Board Meeting 

    by
    Pepper Potts
    Published on 09-28-2012 07:15 PM

    The following agenda can be found on the LGSUHSD website.

    Please note this meeting is being held in the Los Gatos Town Council Chambers, at 110 E. Main Street in Los Gatos.

    Click Read More to see the agenda...
    ...
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    Los Gatos Art Bridge II - Submitted by Ed Bellezza 

    Published on 09-28-2012 06:05 AM
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    The Los Gatos Art Bridge attempts to connect newer residents of Los Gatos to the earlier artists and craftsmen who participated in making the town the attractive and comfortable place we all love. Many newcomers to town (residents for less than perhaps 20 years) are not aware that so much of the unique town culture was created by a substantial number of artists and craftsmen and women who are still living here, still producing their wares and have fans and active customers throughout the world. This being said, many of these local artists and crafts people may be world class professionals but they are often unknown here, in their hometown which they helped build and promote.

    A perfect and timely demonstration of this lack of knowledge regarding local talent is when the town officials solicited an artful treatment of the glass panels to be used in the new library, a building which is nearly all glass. The architects for the library were from Berkeley and the Los Gatos officials had them solicit proposals for the art treatment of the glass panels. Ultimately, the town paid one artist from Chico approximate     ...
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    16 Books Celebrating Smart Girls 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-28-2012 06:00 AM
    Article Preview



    Every Monday and Friday, InsideLG features StorySnoops, a Los Gatos based Company. To find out more information, please click HERE.







    As I sit and watch my teenaged daughter working hard at doing her homework every night, it occurs to me that she is a smart girl. I’m proud of her, as I’m sure you are of the smart girls you have in your house, or elsewhere in your life. The way the social culture works these days, it’s unfortunately not the first quality that most girls will say they want to have though. One not-so-subtle way that I know of to show my daughter how much I value this quality (because God forbid, if I just come right out and say it, I’m SO uncool) is to suggest books to her that feature smart girls. I love a main character who wins by using her brain. I hope you do too!
    ...
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    The Parenting Continuum Event - Fostering Empathy in Action at LGUSD 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-27-2012 06:26 PM
    Article Preview

    A message from the Parenting Continuum:




    Fostering Empathy in Action –

    A Response to Bullying in Our Schools

    With Lisa Fraser, Principal, Fisher Middle School


    Wednesday, October 3rd

    7:00pm – 9:00pm

    Fisher Middle School Multi-purpose Room

    For parents of grades K-8

    ~ Admission is Free ~

    There are few who would argue that bullying behavior in our schools is incompatible with our mission of providing a safe and nurturing environment for our youth, and that the consequences of bullying can be serious. Much has been said about the prevalence of bullying, and many can describe what they believe to be bullying behaviors.

    That being said, developing a true caring majority requires much more…namely, empathy in action. This evening will include information and candid discussion regarding the steps we have taken, and those we can take in the future, to promote respectful behavior in our schools and at home.

    Lisa Fraser, Principal of Fisher Middle School, has dedicated her educational career to enhancing     ...
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    NATIONAL TAKE BACK DAY: Saturday, September 29! 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-27-2012 05:40 PM
    Article Preview

    A press release from CASA:





    NATIONAL TAKE BACK DAY: Saturday, September 29!

    Event Co-Sponsored by CASA-Community Against Substance Abuse, Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Sereno Police Department, and West Valley Clean Water Program.

    Los Gatos’ long standing non-profit CASA-Community Against Substance Abuse and Los Gatos Monte Sereno Police Department will host their fifth event to educate our community about the proper way to dispose of unused prescription drugs, this time partnering with the DEA’s National Take Back Day. Saturday’s Take Back day will allow the community the opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused or unwanted prescription drugs. The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

    Americans participating in the Drug Enforcement Administration’s previous Take Back Days turned in nearly 1.6 million pounds--almost 774 tons--of prescription drugs at over 5,500 sites nationwide. Last spring, Los Gatos-Monte Sereno disposed of 143 pounds, helping to combat the misuse of prescription drugs within our community.

     ...
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    A Tale of the Town (Our Town) - Submitted by Ed Bellezza 

    Published on 09-26-2012 01:00 PM
    Article Preview

    The mission of the Art Bridge is to develop a greater awareness of the heritage

    of the Town of Los Gatos.

    It is not simply an effort to recite the history of Town but to

    track and further illuminate the ongoing, living legacy of those

    who brought new life and vigor to Town

    in later half of the 20th Century


    In the wake of the massive Loma Prieta Earthquake of 1989, many buildings in Los Gatos, private and public, were cracked and broken and shaken from their foundations. A lot of rebuilding was going to take place.

    A generation earlier, in the 1960s, for economic reasons, the Town of Los Gatos was facing another, less dramatic, rebuilding. The agricultural economy, upon which the entire Santa Clara Valley made its living, was being phased out. A research and manufacturing economy was moving in, and it was moving in fast and furious. This industrialization was festering most substantially around the Naval Air Station at Moffet Field in the north end of the county. It was obvious that this area would surely develop into the center for this emerging technology based industry. Just as obvious, the far flung communities, at the foot of the mountains defining Santa Clara Valley, ...
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    Throwing a Little Love to the LGS High School District 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-25-2012 11:55 AM

    With all the back and forth between parents and LGUSD, I feel like we are leaving LGSJUHSD out of the loop. My kids are young and I readily admit that I don't pay much attention to the high school. We attend Football games and such but when it comes to the board meetings, I have no clue what's going on.

    Well, we've decided to turn over a new leaf on InsideLG. In the future, we're going to post information about     LGSJUHSD issues and board meetings. Did you know that they video all of their meetings? This is such an accomplishment. With LGUSD, I thank my lucky stars that we have Joe Friday (a volunteer parent) to supply us with recordings. Why is LGUSD so behind LGSJUHSD -- maybe it's because they don't have as many letters in name! Writing LGSJUHSD over and over again is extremely tedious!

    The following is the September 11th board meeting from the     LGSJUHSD website:
    ...
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    Planning Commission Meeting - September 26, 2012 

    by
    Pepper Potts
    Published on 09-25-2012 11:05 AM

    The following agenda can be found on the Town of Los Gatos website.

    Due to the length of our agenda and in fairness to later items on the agenda, the audience is requested to make their comments as brief and precise as possible, and limit them to 3 minutes or less.

    AGENDA

    TOWN OF LOS GATOS
    PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
    TOWN COUNCIL CHAMBERS
    110 E. MAIN STREET
    WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2012
    7:00 P.M.

    ROLL CALL

    PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

    APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 12, 2012     ...
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    11 books to remind kids that "different" can be a good thing 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-24-2012 06:00 AM
    Article Preview

    Every Monday and Friday, InsideLG features StorySnoops, a Los Gatos based Company. To find out more information, please click HERE.

    We’ve said it before and we will say it again: at StorySnoops, one of the things we love about books is that they teach empathy. And one thing that every kid feels at one time or another is that he or she doesn’t fit in.

    In our book selection below, the characters in these books REALLY don’t fit in. It is not always easy to be different, especially when you are a child. However, the super characters in these books come to learn that it is their own distinctive qualities that eventually make them special – and eventually maybe even cool with the “in” crowd.
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    Traffic, Traffic, Everywhere 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-23-2012 04:55 PM
    Article Preview


    Within the past few weeks, I've had numerous residents contact me to complain about the traffic and roadwork around Los Gatos. I have to admit, I ride my bike most of the time and I don't pay attention to traffic; however, the other day I had a hair appointment at 2:30pm in downtown LG. It took me over 20 minutes to drive from Uptown to downtown. Ridiculous!
    ...
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    Drum Roll Please... The Official Ballot Statements are out 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-23-2012 02:53 PM
    Article Preview

    It's almost election time and Marcia Jensen and Barbara Spector have published their official ballot statements! No word yet on if a write-in candidate will step up; however, rumors are flying around town. Who knows, maybe Mickey Mouse will make an appearance?

    Back to being serious. I found the following information on the Smart Voter website after an informed reader told me to check it out. Again, a big thanks to our readers.

    Drum roll please...
    ...
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    A Quick Plug... 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-23-2012 02:40 PM
    Article Preview

    ...And, no, I am not getting paid for this.

    Because I've had so much success with FitCamp, I thought I'd let everyone know that Laurel will start a new 6 week session tomorrow. The classes meet in Los Gatos in the wee hours of the morning. We have an amazing group of men and women who are constantly challenging each other; however, it's the laughter that keeps me going. I have attended FitCamp for over a year (5 days a week) and I still love it.     Because we have so much fun, I look forward to seeing our group every morning. Yes - I have found that working out and having fun can go hand in hand.

    All ages and abilities are welcome - Laurel will customize any workout.

    If you're interested in joining FitCamp, the first week is free! Also, you can join anytime.

    Previous articles about my personal journey with FitCamp:

    FitCamp and Me

    FitCamp: Week Six -- I did it!
    FitCamp: Week Five
    FitCamp: Week Four
    FitCamp: Week Three
    FitCamp: Week Two
    FitCamp: Week One
    Kir's off to FitCamp with TotalFit Soultions
    TotalFit Solutions: An Answer

    ...
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    TeenForce is in the news! 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-23-2012 02:25 PM
    Article Preview

    TeenForce is in the news! I received the following newsletter and I wanted to share it with you. Unfortunately, it won't fit into InsideLG's format. Please feel free to scroll left and right with the scroll bar at the bottom of the page.

    Congrats, TeenForce!


    ...
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    Take Two: What do you think? 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-23-2012 08:19 AM

    The following comments are from the "What do you think?" article:

    Quote Originally Posted by Unregistered View Post
    If kir really did intend on neutrality, 11:48 AM would have been promoted to a top layer post, as it clearly identifies the problem with the anti-Lex efforts.
    I can see why townies would be jealous, even just the Lex site appeals to a sense of nature and wonder. Stuff our kids into the downtown tombs of other schools? No way.

    Conflating problems with facilities, performance, and district management is just an attempt ata confusing the issue of the rebuild.

    Note also that the original responder claims new growth is coming and *still* advocates moving Lex students downtown. I guess they'll go to the new school the original poster is hoping will be built.... in Fairyland.
    So, here you go:

    Quote Originally Posted by Unregistered View Post
    Dear 8:45, a note of thanks. I'm the Unregistered poster who gave the examples of hyperbole in the original article. I stand by my description of those statements as hyperbole, and that's why I appreciate your comment providing substantiation. This 8:45 comment is more
     ...
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    If I Only Had Money... 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-22-2012 03:45 PM
    Article Preview

    ...I would buy the Cats Estate. No joke. It's an awesome property and has amazing history to boot. We all have dreams.

    Because I couldn't fit the advertisement into InsideLG's format, please feel free to scroll left and right by using the scroll bar at the bottom of the page.
    ...
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    Endeavour and Los Gatos 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-21-2012 09:50 PM
    Article Preview

    I know most of InsideLG's readers are aware that I grew up in Los Gatos. As a teenager and young adult, I spent most of my time at the Bartlett household -- probably more than I spent in my own home.

    Mary Bartlett captured the following photo of the Endeavour from her porch and I thought I'd share it with you:
    ...
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    The ultimate list for your animal lover! 

    by
    kir
    Published on 09-21-2012 03:43 PM
    Article Preview

    Every Monday and Friday, InsideLG features StorySnoops, a Los Gatos based Company. To find out more information, please click HERE.

    Boy do we love our animals at my house. It is such a rewarding part of growing up to have a special relationship with a pet–an experience I certainly had, and one that I hope my children will treasure as well.

    If you have an animal-lover in your house, you might want to take a look at the books on this list, which features animals portrayed in three ways. First, there are the obligatory books with the animals as adventure characters (they talk, experience the action, are the heroes etc.), then there are the books where the adventures involve animals or are motivated by them (think: must rescue dog from bad situation, adventure ensues…), and then my personal favorites are the books where there is a special relationship between human and animal (these are a tad more serious–no talking critters here!). Bottom line, whatever kind of animal story your young reader prefers, we’ve got a book for that. And never fear, we know that animal-lovers can be among our most sensitive readers, so we always try to indicate in our Scoop if there is something that might bring tears, just in case you want to be ready with a box of tissues, or a shoulder to cry on.
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