A few years back, my family and I started a vegetable garden project.  We have just a wee bit of space in our backyard where we plant vegetables and herbs.  The kids get a kick out of it, and my wife loves to use the “fruit” of our labors in her cooking.  We’ve come to realize that our tiny garden (and our novice gardening skills) really delivers in a few varieties, but is not so stellar at more.  We can do tomatoes, peppers and herbs successfully, and unfortunately not much else.  So, in preparation for this year’s crop, I thought it might be smart to look for a few classes that would help us be more successful backyard gardeners. 

Here’s a sampling of gardening classes coming up this spring in the Tri-Valley, including Danville, Livermore, Pleasanton and San Ramon:

Navlet’s in Danville: http://www.navletsgardens.com/2010-classes.html
Soil Preparation Basics (mini-class): Saturday 3/6 at 11 AM
Berries, Berries, Berries with Buzz Bertolero, The Dirt Gardener: Saturday 3/13 at 2 PM
Edible Gardens (mini-class): Saturday 4/3 at 11 AM and 3 PM
Just Tomatoes with Buzz Bertolero, The Dirt Gardener: Saturday 4/10 at 2 PM

Alden Lane in Livermore: http://aldenlane.com/alnsclass.html
Get Ready to Vegetable Garden, Saturday 3/27 at 10AM
Herb & Vegetable Pot Planting, Saturday 4/17 at 10 AM

Western Garden Nursery in Pleasanton: http://westerngardennursery.com/
Vegetable Gardening/Soil Preparation, Saturday 3/6 at 10AM
Vegetable Gardening/Soil Preparation, Sunday 3/7 at 1 PM

San Ramon Library in San Ramon:
Glorious Gardens in San Ramon - Starting a Spring Garden,
with Janet Miller, Contra Costa Master Gardener
Saturday, March 13, 2-4 PM

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We all spend a lot of time indoors, whether it is in our own Tri-Valley homes or at our place of business.  Most people don’t realize that often the air inside our home could be more of a problem that the air we are breathing outdoors.  This is especially true during the winter time when opening your windows becomes more of an infrequent event.

An article by Consumer Reports magazine, goes on to list a variety of sources that cause indoor air pollution and ways to reduce their negative impact. I have listed some of those below from the article.

Problem Sources:

• The fireplace
• Air fresheners
• A shedding cat or dog
• Dusty furniture
• Aerosol spray
• Dust mites in bedding
• A poorly ventilated kitchen range

Solutions:

• To discourage dust mites, encase your pillows, mattresses, and box springs in dust-mite-proof covers. Wash very dirty or dusty laundry in the hottest water.
• Ventilate - Cooking, cleaning, using hair spray, and polishing your nails can release volatile organic compounds that are linked to a variety of health problems. Use exhaust hoods or fans in the kitchen and bathroom to reduce your exposure and minimize humidity that can cause mold and mildew. Before you use your fireplace, make sure the flue damper is wide open. Poor ventilation can allow pollutants to stay in the air.
• Eliminate Odors - Find the source of bad smells and clean it up. Using a box of baking soda in the area instead of air fresheners makes more sense.  Air fresheners cost more and can contain VOCs and phthalates.
• Clean Effectively - Because dust can harbor pollen, pet dander, bacteria, mites, mold, and mildew, dust furnishings regularly with a damp rag or an electrostatically charged duster. Vacuum often.
• Control Pets and Critters - Seal cracks and crevices and put food away. You’ll be less apt to attract pests and need to use pesticides. To minimize your exposure to pet dander, don’t allow pets to hang around slleping areas and on furniture.

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• Bake a cake together for Washington’s Birthday. She was thinking of a box cake mix with an American flag in frosting and just possibly berries or sprinkles, but check out this blog’s intense listing of presidentially-inspired desserts.
• Visit the Whitehouse’s site for kids. This is an informative site with loads of information. Her best bets for kid appeal are the following: the White House/Presidents, the White House/First Ladies, Photos & Videos (especially Photo Galleries (there’s a real cute one of Bo in the snow!), and the White House/Air Force One.
• Peruse the website for George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate & Gardens, especially under the Learn tab. There are some very cool facts and photos for the kids to view, as well as just plain fun games and puzzles under Washington’s World for Kids.

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I thought it might be helpful to research some of the restaurants in the Tri-Valley that offer Kids Eat Free deals.  To do this, I went online and found that there are whole websites devoted to Kids Eat Free finding.  You can just plug in your zip code or choose a city near you and the website displays Kids Eat Free deals based on your search. A lot of these deals are marketed via word of mouth, so it can be a hunt of sorts to discover them.

At the time of writing this article, the restaurants that I discovered offering Kids Eat Free deals around the Tri-Valley are: Carrows in Dublin (Wednesday & Thursday (4PM-Close)), Chevy’s  in San Ramon, Pleasanton and Livermore (Tuesday), Denny’s in Danville and Pleasanton (Tuesday and Saturday (5PM-10PM)), IHOP in Dublin (Tuesday & Thursday (4PM-9PM)), Marie Callendar’s in San Ramon (Tuesday & Saturday), Izzy’s Steaks and Chops in San Ramon (Sunday & Monday) and Pasta Pomodoro in San Ramon (Tuesday). For all of these restaurants, you must pay for an adult entrée to get a kid’s meal off of the Kids’ Menu for free (at Denny’s you can have up to two kids’ meals free per paid adult entrée). The Kids Eat Free deal age limit is usually based on the age of the restaurants’ Kids’ Menu and some restaurants have time frames etc., so, be sure to call ahead to confirm their Kids Eat Free deal is still on and to understand of all of its requirements and “fine print.”

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Lucky thing is you’ve got some great choices for adventure near and far.  Staying in the Tri-Valley - you could do Super Franks in Pleasanton, Campo di Bocce in Livermore, or Earl Anthony’s Dublin Bowl in Dublin. (All are open tomorrow)  Wandering a little further out, there’s always a trip to a museum - Lawrence Hall of Science or Chabot Space & Science Center are only thirty minutes or so away.  Looking for more of a drive, you could venture for a day to Sausalito and include the Bay Area Discovery Museum.

Here’s a list of some Bay Area museums that are open on Monday’s holiday:

• Lawrence Hall of Science, Open Daily 10AM-5PM (510) 642-5132
• Chabot Space & Science Center, Open 10AM-5PM on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (510) 336-7300
• Habitot, Open 9:30-4:30PM, BONUS! - Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration (510) 647-1111
• Bay Area Discovery Museum, Open 9AM-4PM, BONUS! - Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration (415) 339-3900
• Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose, Open 10AM-4PM, BONUS! - Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration (408) 298-5437

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What’s acceptable in your Green Waste cart (according to the recent flyer from Waste Management):

• Anything edible
• Coffee grounds, filters, and tea bags
• Fruit and vegetable peels and pits
• Food-soiled paper products: cups, plates, napkins, paper towels, pizza boxes, waxed ice cream, milk and juice cartons, grocery bags and newspaper used as pail liners
• Green waste: plant clippings, leaves and grass, branches and twigs
• Uncoated wood: no paint, stain or varnish

There should be NO plastic or styrofoam placed in your Green Waste cart!

If you are a Valley Waste Management customer, you can recycle your food scraps and food-soiled paper in 3 steps:

1. Collect acceptable items in a re-usable kitchen container or in a compostable container, like a brown paper bag or ice cream carton.
2. Place acceptable items in your Green Waste cart with your yard trimmings.  Make sure your cart lid closes completely.
3. Set out your Green Waste cart for your weekly pick-up. 

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Livermore:

Rockin’ In The New Year

Doo-wop performances, comedy and a complimentary wine, champagne and dessert reception immediately following really cover your bases at this New Year’s Eve festive event at the beautiful Bankhead Theater. Showtime is at 8PM. Tickets are $98, $88, or $78.  For more details, visit Livermore Performing Arts or call 925.373.6800.

Boomers! New Year’s Event

From 9PM - 1AM on New Year’s Eve at Boomers!, $17 will get you unlimited Go-Karts, Lazer Tag, Miniature Golf, Bumper Boats, and Video Games (excludes tickets games).  A prize balloon drop at midnight for all guests!  And… for the fist 50 people there will be complimentary tiaras, hats, noisemakers and sparkling apple cider.  For more details, visit boomersparks.com or call 925.447.7275.

Pleasanton:

New Year’s Eve Celebration at the Hilton Pleasanton at the Club

See a live performance of Ryze the Band and enjoy DJ Jammin J spinning tunes to make you “move & groove.”  Individual tickets and room packages available. For more information, visit the Hilton Pleasanton  or call 925.737.5623.

Start Planning for the follwing Year - New Year’s Eve Ball at the Mall - 12/31/10

A gala event at the Stoneridge Mall benefiting Axis Community Health, Tri Valley Haven, School of Imagination, and Valley Humane Society. From 9PM-1AM, featuring two live bands, a variety of games, hors d’oeuvres, party favors and a glass of champagne at midnight (in a souvenir glass). Three ticket packages available, starting at $75. For more information, visit Ball at the Mall or call 925.292.8058.

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As I was driving, I thought about the reliability of these homes and their owners.  Year after year, they put in what must be countless hours building their displays, hanging their lights, setting out their inflatables - for the enjoyment of their fellow Tri-Valley residents.  What kindness! What holiday spirit!  I am amazed at the dedication.  It is because of you homeowners that we are able to enjoy our Christmas light viewing tradition, and we thank you.

A Few Light Looking tips:

• You can always go to lightsofthevalley.com to plan your route first.  We now have our family’s favorites down pat and pay visit to them year after year, but if you haven’t gone light looking much or are on the hunt for a new favorite, give this website a try.  One of our favorite homes is on the website for San Ramon on Ascot Drive.  Gotta love the light show and radio combo!
• Try letting your kids plan your route.  You may not travel in a concise geographical order, but they’ll feel great about getting to plan a holiday tradition.
• It’s not really necessary what with car heaters these days, but you could encourage your kids to bring blankets to snuggle with on the drive. My wife suggested this one year, and, every year after, the kids remember the blankets for these trips.  Proven to add to your Light Looking excitement!
• Make sure to play that Christmas music!  It’s easy to forget to turn on the radio or bring the CD, but it will add the extra sparkle to your evening of fun.

Happy Holidays to you and yours!!!

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In the Tri-Valley area, default and distress properties have been waning. The last few months have seen less foreclosure and short sale properties come on to the market.  Six months to over a year ago, these default and distressed homes where primarily found in the lower to middle price ranges. Many of the homeowners in this price range had secured subprime mortgages which later resulted in big problems and consequently led to foreclosures and short sales. Now, things are beginning to shift away from the lower to middle priced homes.  More homes at the middle to upper price ranges are expected to become default and distress sales according to a recent New York Times article.  “Plenty of pain yet to come,” said Joseph Shapiro, chief United States economist for MFR.

In talking to homeowners, I have identified that some homeowners at the higher price points have been more equipped financially to survive the downturn in the market.  Despite job losses or reduction in income, they have been able to live off savings or the liquidation of stock for a longer period of time.  Some have been able to adjust their lifestyle while others have found jobs to replace lost income. However, for those who have not been able to overcome their hardship, they are faced with the grim reality that their life savings is being wiped out.  They may be left with no choice but to consider giving up their home to short sale or foreclosure.

On top of the potential for more default and distressed sales, another factor that could weigh in on home sales is a rise in interest rates.  Rates have been maintained at an artificial level for some time due to the Federal Reserves purchase of mortgage-backed securities.  Once this halts, interest rates could float higher which could limit a buyer’s purchase power and in some cases remove them as a candidate to purchase a home.  Less demand results in fewer transactions.  Less transactions results in home sellers’ inability to move their product.  And, if you can’t sell your home, then lowering your price may be the only option.

On a positive note, two factors that might limit the deep freeze on home sales are the housing tax credit and supply and demand of available homes. The tax credit was extended for first-time homebuyers and also expanded for existing homeowners who are looking to purchase. This should only drive more buyers to take advantage of the tax credit and actually make a home purchase. In addition, supply remains relatively low in Dublin, Pleasanton and San Ramon.  Homes have been coming on the market and getting gobbled up within a few days or weeks.  In some cases, sellers are experiencing multiple offers.  If these two factors continue, it may be just what the doctor ordered to counteract the items mentioned above and prevent a downward slide for home sales in the future.

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You and your family can visit downtown Pleasanton to see many scarecrows that are on display at local businesses and vote for your favorite.  You will receive a raffle ticket to bring back on Halloween to possibly win your favorite scarecrow! 

During the Farmer’s Market on Halloween, all scarecrows are on display at The Museum on Main from 10AM-2PM.  You can also purchase additional raffle tickets to win a scarecrow.  There’s more!  You can enter the Carved Pumpkin Contest from 9-10AM or just judge your favorite from 10-2PM.  Also, there’s a Fall Dessert Contest, for $5 per ballot you can taste and vote on your favorite dessert from downtown locations.  And at 12PM, there will be a scavenger hunt where kids (costumes encouraged) draw a starting point card to figure out clues through downtown locations. 

Check online at pleasantondowntown.net or call 925.484.2199 for all the event details.

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In a recent article by Strategic Equity, Dave Muti, author of “Mortgages:  What You Need to Know,” was asked how a credit score is calculated and tips for increasing it. The Fair Isaac Corporation created the most common credit score used today - the FICO score.  It ranges between 350 and 850.  The higher the score, the better the interest rate you can secure.  720 is the credit score threshold that you don’t want to drop below in order to secure the best rates.  If you drop below 500, you may not even be able to secure a mortgage.

The following are five critical credit criteria reported in the article:

1. Payment History - This pertains to your track record for paying your bills. It makes up 35% of your score. Essentially, this means paying your bills on time. A mortgage “late” is much more serious than a credit card “late”
2. Credit Ratio - How much you owe is 30% of your score. Just because you owe less does not translate to having a better score.  This score is determined between the various types of credit you have opened (see #3 below). There needs to be a balance between how much you owe and how much you have available to you.  Having too many credit cards can be a negative and having only one could be as well. The goal is to have a lot of credit available to you, and to then use that credit, while at the same time not maintaining a high balance.
3. Credit Type - The type of accounts you have makes up 10%. These are mortgage, car loans and credit cards.
4. Credit Maturity - The length of time you have maintained your individual credit accounts is 15% of your score.  This does not mean how long you have been involved with credit.  It is specific to each individual account and the length of time that you have maintained each particular account is the key.
5. New Credit - recent history makes up 10% of your score. 

The bottom line is to be proactive in maintaining your credit.  Plan ahead and check your scores at least two times a year.  Although the guy in the credit report commercial keeps winding up in seemingly outlandish circumstances due to his poor credit score, scenarios like those can happen in life (maybe not all to the same person consecutively, but they do happen).  It is important to think carefully about all of your financial moves in order to maintain and build your credit score.  That score can be a gateway to many things we all would like to obtain in life. 

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Mark your calendars!  There are two events associated with CityRead 2009:

Lincoln at 200 - In Fact Rather than Fiction

Thursday, September 24^th, 7PM

Valley Oak Room, Danville Community Center

Fact is separate from fiction in this presentation by Dr. Gerald S. Henig, author and Professor Emeritus at Cal State - East Bay.  Find out about the national Lincoln traveling exhibit coming to Danville in 2010 and events that occurred in the San Ramon Valley during this era to celebrate the Lincoln Bicentennial.  This presentation is co-sponsored by the Museum of the San Ramon Valley.

CityRead 2009 concludes with a special presentation featuring Sara Vowell at the Dougherty Valley Performing Arts Center on Saturday October 17^th, at 7PM.  Tickets are free, but must be reserved prior to the event.  You can call 973-ARTS or www.sanramonperformingarts.com to reserve your seats (two ticket max. per person).  You must arrive at least 10 minutes before to ensure seating.  I have heard that seats are going pretty fast for this presentation, so if you’d like to go, reserve quickly!

Just another reason why the Tri-Valley is such a nice community and place to call home, CityRead 2009 looks to be an educational and fun program. Sponsored by the Danville and San Ramon Library Foundations, CityRead 2009, “Two Cities, One Tale” will be the catalyst for many discussions amongst San Ramon and Danville residents this fall.

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With its ultra-cool, modern décor and the way they’ve decided to que up their line in the store, I felt like I just walked into Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory and am waiting for the Umpa Lumpas to start singing.  They’ve got a great concept that I guess is pretty popular (I’ll admit, I am not a frequent purchaser of frozen yogurt - although I may be now after my visit to Yogurtland!) - pay by the ounce.  You just get in line, grab your rather large container and yank down on the machine’s handles to create your own fro yo mix.  There are so many flavors to choose from. Most of them tended to be on the more exotic side - Green Apple Tart, Tiramisu, etc,  They also had some the classical favorites - Cookies ‘n Cream and Dutch Chocolate.  I was sold on the Tiramisu.  The topping bar is extravagant with everything from Cap ‘n Crunch to cheesecake bits and brownie bites to fresh fruit of all sorts plus various types of syrups.  The great thing is that you are in control of your yogurt’s destiny.  Then, when you’re all done whipping up your masterpiece, it gets weighed and paid.  I was surprised by the total - at .30 cents an ounce, we felt like we got a lot of yogurt and topping bang for our bucks.

We sat outside where there are plenty of tables and benches and enjoyed the lovely San Ramon evening.  Kids and parents abounded at Yogurtland in San Ramon that night - looks like a new hangout might be underway.   

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The current market conditions for the Tri-Valley appear to be leading us toward a classic case of supply and demand. Inventory numbers continue to drop across the board in the Tri-Valley area and buyers are actively pursuing homes through open houses and showings. Logic would lead us down a path that as more buyers purchase homes and the inventory numbers continue to wane, we should see a stabilization of home prices. I deeply believe that we are headed in the right direction, however I still want to see how the fall and winter months turn out before I become a true believer. There are a few factors that are impacting my decision. First, I am still interacting with a number of homeowners who are in financial trouble. Second, there is speculation that banks may end their moratorium on pursuing foreclosures. Third, we are currently in the traditionally busiest time of year for real estate activity in the Tri-Valley.

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When we reached the inside, we received a wine glass and a neat tasting plate that could curve snug to the glass.  There were many stations set up around the room where you would wait in line to sample a wine from the local winery and then try the food pairing presented by the teamed-up restaurant.  A taste adventure!  The cherry on top of our Top Chef-like night was that attendees were able to vote for a People’s Choice Award by ballot.  For my wife and most of our friends, we just couldn’t get enough of the duck sausage in a bun.  Credentialed judges decided on the winners for various categories including “Best Expression of Local Ingredients”, “Most Innovative Pairing”, and “Judges Best”.  Check out last year’s winners and the pairings that earned them the title.  

Taking a break from all that tasting, we made our way out onto the patio for… more tasting!  There were champagne tastes on the patio, for those that were interested (we were!).  If I remember correctly, there were desserts to be had, too.

It may not be too late to get in on the action for this year.  Taste of Terroir - Livermore Valley’s Food & Wine Experience is Thursday, July 23^rd from 6-9PM.  Check online if there are still tickets available. From there you can look into all the exciting details, including this year’s participating wineries and restaurants.

In case you’re wondering, “terroir” is French, meaning “soil” and is pronounced “ter-wah.”  Contrary to my original pronunciation, it in no way means terror, especially as this evening was quite the opposite of that word.  If you do decide to go this summer, let me know which pairing earned your People’s Choice Award vote.  

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