February Potluck- Janice Smith Ramseier will be hosting this month’s potluck on Friday, February 16th at 7:00 PM. Bring some food to share, enjoy your meal, and listen to the speaker from California Department of Forestry. There will be an update on new fire regulations. Burn permits will also be issued.
President’s Messageby Carla Martinez-
Happy 2007! This year has started off with some record breaking low temperatures. I hope you are all keeping warm and enjoying our sunny days while they last. I'm sure any day we'll see lots of rain. As your new Hall president it is my desire to inform our community of the needs brought to the Board's attention. Currently, we are seeking a community member who would be willing to head our maintenance committee. We have lots of helpers available for the actual work, but we need someone who will take the lead and orchestrate the projects. If you are willing or need more information, please contact Ed Buntz at 472-2070. Finally please take a few minutes to browse the Hesperia Hall web site at The site continues to grow. We've just added a link to the Wayne Harris 75th Birthday tribute, created by Wayne's son. This link includes lots of interesting past and present photos of our area. Looking forward to seeing everyone at the February 16th potluck!
Scholarship Reportby Ed Buntz-
The Scholarship Committee thanks everyone who supported the fund in 2006 especially the end of year donors who helped us surpass our goal of $10,000. Lloyd and Mary Ellen sent us their third donation for the year. Janet (Buntz) Hardcastle sent us her second donation. Stan and Barbara Clark sent a nice December donation again this year. Tom and Barbara Walters not only submitted a substantial donation, but Tom also volunteered to become a member of the scholarship committee. We are well positioned to award deserving local college or trade school students at our selection night in April!
Student recipients always mention the extended Hall family standing behind their academic pursuits being as important to them as the actual scholarship funds. So let’s keep our fund raising momentum rolling. The Home Bureau has already chosen the 2007 Hall raffle quilt design. They are toiling away to complete another beautiful quilt to raise money for scholarships. It will go home in October with one lucky ticket holder!
To make a tax deductible donation in any amount to the scholarship fund, simply make out a check to Hesperia Hall, put Scholarship Fund on the memo line and send it to: Hesperia Hall, 51602 Bryson-Hesperia Road, Bradley, CA 93426. If you have any questions about the Hesperia Hall scholarship program or how to establish a 529-college savings account, please contact Ed Buntz at 472-2070 or Lois Lindley at 472-9556, or go to hesperiahall.org and click on scholarship.
Pen Pals Neededby Cherie Landon-
Thirty-three letters have been received from Korean students wanting California pen pals. Letters have been distributed to interested students at the potlucks. If you are interested in being a pen pal, please contact Cherie Landon at 472-2650. Here is a letter from a Korean student looking for a pen pal:
Dear Pen pals,
Hello! Nice to meet you. My name is (name withheld). I am a girl. I'm a second grade student at middle school. What is the weather like in California? It is almost winter here. But not snowing yet. What do you think of Korea? South Korea? I think Korea is very beautiful. Will you tell me about California? I am looking forward to seeing your letter. Best wishes. P.S. I want to be your friend. Have a nice day.
Report from Yeongdongby Silas Denny-
On December 22 I had a one week holiday in Japan. On Christmas day I met a friend of mine who lives in Nara. She showed me around a bit, and then we went to a karaoke where we sang Christmas carols. We finished the day with dinner having Okonomi-yaki. Okonomi-yaki is a Japanese fried food rather like a pancake filled with cabbage and any of the following: seafood, pork, beef, Japanese noodles, chicken, cheese, rice cake, mushrooms, or eggs. It is topped with either Mayonnaise or Okonomi-yaki sauce.
On my return to Yeongdong I started teaching English camp. Held at an elementary or middle school, English camp runs 3 ½ hours a day for ten days, and I will be at three camps during winter break. English camp is more challenging because I teach three hours of class every day. I find it easier and a lot more fun to tutor and am currently working with two sisters, Hye-Jin and Hye-Ri. Hye-Ri who will be going on to high school in March is very bright and would like to be an English teacher. It would be nice if she could spend a year in school overseas, but she doesn’t qualify for the standard exchange student program. I would like to help her but I just don’t know how to go about doing it.
As for Korean customs, every meal in Korea has kim-chi. A traditional breakfast or lunch is a bowl of rice and a bowl of soup, usually a tofu fish fermented soybean paste soup. It could also be a kim-chi ham and tuna fish soup. School lunch is usually rice, fish or meat cooked in a sauce and fish bean sprout soup. Sometimes spaghetti is served. Dinner can be a soup made from pork and potatoes, barbecue beef, or pork wrapped in a lettuce leaf and eaten with a special sauce. Koreans tell me what they miss most when traveling abroad is rice and soup with every meal. The kids of the family I live with think that corn flakes and milk is a good snack but not to be eaten for breakfast.
Silas’s Okonomi-yaki recipe:
1 egg
½ cup flour
½ cup milk
¾ to 1 cup thinly sliced cabbage
¼ cup each of two of the following chopped into small pieces: thinly sliced pork or beef, bacon, shrimp and or other seafood, chicken, cheese or mushrooms
soy sauce
mayonnaise
In a bowl mix together the egg, milk, and flour to make a batter. Add the cabbage and other ingredients; mix well and pour into a hot frying pan. Flip and continue cooking until cooked through. Cut into bite sized pieces and serve with sauce made of 2 teaspoons soy sauce mixed with 8 teaspoons mayonnaise.
A Fong Farewell-
Here's wishing "Tweetie", Calvin, and Tye every success and happiness in their new home on the big island of Hawaii. After reuniting with Kona and Kayla who had preceded them, they are busy moving into their brand new home. Visits to Lockwood Post Office and San Antonio Lake just aren't the same without them, but a lot of good memories remain. Good luck, guys, from all your friends in Bryson Hesperia.
P.S. Jackson is fine!
Helpful Hint-
Howfresh is that egg? To find out, fill a bowl with water and place the egg in it. If it sinks to the bottom and remains on its side, it is very fresh. If it remains on the bottom at a 45-degree angle, it is three to five days old. If it remains at a 90-degree angle, it's ten to twelve days old. If it floats to the top and stays there, don't use it!
When buying commercial eggs, according to one source, Grade AA are the freshest with Grade A a bit older and Grade B only sold to restaurants and bakeries. Some cartons have “sell by” dates. If not, they may have a three-digit code indicating the day the eggs were packaged (not the day they were laid). January 1st would be 001, February 1st would be 032, etc.
Seed Catalogue Cornucopia-
This is the time of year when local gardeners are placing their orders for seeds for the coming growing season. We asked several local, experienced gardeners which suppliers they preferred and why.
Daphne Denny orders from over ten different catalogues but her favorite one is Baker Creek Heirlooms because of their amazing diversity and large variety. Raintree Nursery, from whom she purchased a wonderful quince tree with super aromatic and sweet (when baked) fruit, also offers a large variety of mulberry trees including the Pakistan that bears big, long, great tasting fruit and is ideal for our area.
Charles Ewing orders from Territorial Seed Co., a northwestern company, which offers a good selection of winter vegetables; Seeds of Change, out of New Mexico, sells interesting varieties suited for hot, dry climates; Peaceful Valley Farm Supply; and Pine Tree.
John Plum orders from Twilley Seed and Johnny’s Seeds and has done so for many years even when he was dry farming. When ordering flower seeds, he uses Burpee’s.
Conrad and Carol Mahon order from Johnny’s Seeds commercial catalogue because it offers a good variety of bulk seeds with no Genetic Modification (GM) stuff.
Jim Brand orders from Willhite Seeds because of their large selection of melon seed.
Jane Miller orders from Gurney’s and Peaceful Valley for her vegetable garden.
Sue Fisher's favorite catalogues are Johnny’s Seeds and Nichols Garden Supply. Ron’s favorite catalogue is Victoria's Secret. No wonder they garden alone!
Essay Deadline Days Away!-
Hurry, hurry! February 10th is the deadline for all entries in the youth essay competition. Don't miss this chance to win a $100 bookstore gift certificate. Full details are in the January newsletter or call 472-0429. Good luck.
Got your Hall Calendar?There are only 5 copies left of the beautiful 2007 Bryson Hesperia Calendar. If you need one, call 472-0429 ASAP.
State of the Newsletter-
Phew, we made it! So what do you think? Do we get to keep the job? It's been an interesting learning experience for us both, and we hope you like the outcome of our endeavors. The changes made in the distribution department caused more than a few headaches. We hope they are ironed out now. If not, let us know. The earlier deadline for contributions (15th of the month) is essential to help us get the newsletter to you at the beginning of each month. It will make Jane's task a lot easier if articles are e-mailed to her as early as possible.
Jo started the newsletter over twenty years ago, and it has undergone many ups and downs. Some things never change though. Persuading readers to contribute articles remains the same time consuming chore! Come on, people. Help us out! Please let us know what type of articles you enjoy and would like to see. If you read a good book, discover a great recipe, write a poem, hear of an interesting, up-coming local event, or just have something you would like to share with your neighbors, please let us know about it. You can just give us the information if you prefer not to write the article yourself. Call Jo at 472-0429 or e-mail Jane at . Thank you all for your support of the Hall and don't forget to keep your dues and advertisement fees up to date. We look forward to hearing from you.
A Naturalist’s Notebookby Charles Ewing-
Bryson-Hesperia is blessed with a remarkable variety of birds. We can't help but notice them during the spring and summer months when their exuberant songs and energetic family life fill our senses reaffirming that our world is alive.
Few birds sing in the winter. Still, the avian world is abundant and very active during our cold season. Like human “snowbirds,” many of our summer birds fly south for the winter while other species from colder northern or high mountain climes come to stay with us. Here are some of my favorite Bryson-Hesperia “snowbirds.”
The arrival of the white-crowned sparrow means winter has come. It has a beautiful song of plaintive whistles ending in a buzzy trill that takes me back to my childhood home in then rural Palos Verdes, California. It seeks refuge in the chaparral, but can be seen intently feeding in the open when it gets cold. The three white stripes on its head make it one of the easiest sparrows to identify.
Celebrated in song, verse, and folklore, the American robin is one of our most loved and recognized birds. A few of these large thrushes live here year-round, but most come during the winter. Their pip-pip and whinny tell us instantly who is calling. The hermit thrush is smaller and less familiar. Like its name, it is almost always alone. Its beautiful flute-like song has dubbed it the “American nightingale.” Alas, it only sings in its summer breeding grounds. Look for its spotted breast and rusty tail. You could confuse it with a large sparrow except for its much longer legs and upright thrush-posture. It always looks startled, almost manic. Look for both the robin and the hermit thrush hopping about open areas in search of insects and worms.
I always celebrate the fall arrival of the ruby-crowned kinglet. This plump little bird is a drab, grayish-yellow, so it may be hard to identify. The name ruby-crown comes from the bright red teardrop on the male’s head. Much of the time this ruby is hidden, but then it flashes out to say, “Here I am.” It flits about the shrubs in search of insects. The ruby-crown has a beautiful and remarkably loud song for its size. If you’re lucky, you may hear it sing when it first arrives just before it migrates to its summer breeding-ground.
Cooperative Chicksby Daphne Denny-
I plan to order baby chicks in March. If I pool my order with others, we can all benefit. Those of you who want to get just a few chicks will get them at a lower price. To learn what breeds are available and the prices, call me at 472-9036.
Memories of Mum-
New Year’s Eve saw the passing of Jo Geary’s mother, Gladys Geary. From 1983 until 1999, Gladys was a frequent visitor from London. Spring would arrive and so would “Mum” as she became known to all of us. Since it was always around the time of Jess’s birthday, Jo would have a party for both of them. And so it would continue; when Mum was around there was always a party. She loved people and liked to laugh and have a good time. Ann Brown told Jo that what she remembered most about her mother was her great smile.
Gladys would often travel with Jo as she worked around the area, and she got to know most of the residents. She was a handsome woman who always seemed to attract gentlemen admirers. Ed Buntz and Kate Snell remarked about how well integrated into the community Gladys was. She attended all the Hall functions. At that time there were pedro parties at the Hall, and Mum gallantly learned how to play this local card game. She secretly didn’t enjoy it much finding that some players were more concerned about winning than having a good time.
Mum was a skilled knitter. Dustin had yarn spun from his sheep and gave it to Gladys. In return she knitted him two beautiful sweaters that were exhibited at one of the Hall’s Quilt Shows. Mike Fagg, a former resident, also received one of these beauties, and Jo often wondered when she was ever going to get one. When Mum finally stopped knitting, Jo picked up the needles herself.
Gladys always liked to return home with small gifts for her family and friends. It became a tradition that a week or two before her flight home we would go on a shopping expedition to Monterey or San Luis Obispo. We would walk arm-in-arm, laugh a lot, have a nice lunch, and shop for gifts and clothes.
Eventually the trip became too much for Mum, and you had to travel to London to see her. She entertained us twice in her home introducing us to many of her friends. She was a grand gal and will be truly missed.
Attention Advertisers!-
There is space available in the News from the Hall. With the newsletter reaching over 300 local residences, you will not find a better way to let people know about your product or service. The fee is $50 per year for a business card size ad or $10 for a single monthly one. Please submit payment and business card to Lois Lindley, 75313 Interlake Road, Bradley, CA 93426.
Members Wanted!-
Become a member of Hesperia Hall by filling out the application form in this issue. Your $10 per member fee will be supporting a local community organization. You will also be eligible to use the Hall once each year without charge. A great deal!
Outside 93426? Renew your membership to continue receiving News from the Hall.