BY MEGHAN MORONEY Community contributor tate Senator Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield) and Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood visited an after-school program at W.A. Kendrick Elementary School on December 15 to see how the program keeps students engaged in productive educa- tional activities and steers them away from crime. Sheriff Youngblood and Sena- tor Fuller met to discuss the many benefits of quality after- school programs and the need for continued public funding of such programs. Research shows that after-school programs fill the hours after school with safe, constructive activities that keep kids off the streets and out of trouble. Quality after-school programs can help prevent both juvenile crime and high school dropout by improving school attendance and building skills that lead to success in school and in life. don’t take many real vacations. You know, the kind where I’m out of the office for a full week, ready to rest up, relax and enjoy the joy and won- der of not being on a schedule for a few days. I’m only a few days into my time off and I’m slowly remembering why. Pets have no concept of vacations. There are days when they are fully staffed — and days when the staffing levels fall to tolerable, but not optimal standards. Beyond that, well, there is no “beyond that,” because as most pet owners are well aware, it’s all about them. Day one of vacation time began the same as practically every other day with one cat screaming to get outside so he can use the litter box he created in a patch of yard rather than use the two that are conveniently located in the house. His rumblings then set off Darby, who begins jingling his tags as he shakes his head, hoping for an invitation to bed. As I reach for the phone to see what time it is, the cat sleeping on the pillow above my head starts up, since motion is a sure sign that I’m awake and ready to serve. It’s 4:40 a.m. Yea, vacation. I stagger out of bed, giving up my warm, soft spot to the dog while I set about feeding the cats, cranking out some coffee so my eyes will fully open and letting Bad Kitty Bo outside so he can use the restroom and get his morning drink from the pool. Well, at least the newspaper is here. The world is divided by two types of peo- ple: those who read the paper every morning and those who do not. Being the former, I decide to get my morning dose of news in the peace and quiet of my first pre-dawn vacation day. I can easily digest everything that interests me in 20 minutes or so. Well, that was my plan, anyway. The cats had other things in mind, namely, using me as their personal door- man and treat procurer every four to six minutes for the next hour. In the door, out of the door, in singular or groups. Finally, their bellies, bladders and gener- al curiosity sated, the cats settle down for their post-breakfast snooze. Naturally, it’s now Darby’s turn to get up and repeat the same pattern, except for the 12 trips in and out the back door. He makes up for his lack of indoor/out- door indecisiveness by grabbing the nearest toy, pushing it into the paper I’m still trying to finish reading. We play the closest thing to fetch Darby knows for a bit and he settles down in “his” chair. At least he settles down until he sees “Brindle,” the neighborhood stray, mak- ing his way through the backyard. The sight of the cat sends him into spasms of barking, whining and turning in circles, imploring me to open the back door so he can give chase. And so it goes. Turns out they actually do nap — while I’m out running last- minute errands, leaving them refreshed and ready for more inside/outside, head rubs, belly rubs, butt rubs, treats, eats and play, the moment I get home. Finally, the sun sets and everyone is in for the night, dozing in their respective spaces as my husband and I settle in for a bit of television before turning in for the night. I’ve already warned him that tomorrow it’s his turn to be lead servant to the four-footed emperors we’ve culti- vated over the years. Six more days of this and I’ll be begging to go back to work. Here’s hoping you got a little rest and relaxation over the holidays, but if you’re reading this it’s highly probable that you are a pet owner, in which case I’m guess- ing you didn’t. Good thing they’re so adorable, isn’t it? Questions? Comments? Email Vicky at: Vicky@ pawprintcity.com or visit www.pawprintcitytimes.com. 2 The Bakersfield Voice Sunday, January 2, 2011 Share stories, photos, blogs www. bakersfieldvoice .com ■ Submitting your sto- ries for The Bakersfield Voice is simple and FREE! Just go to: bakersfield- voice.com and create a profile. ■ Choose what you’d like to contribute (an article, letter, picture or community event listing) and post it yourself. ■ For delivery issues, please e-mail: voicedelivery@bakersfield.com ■ Still need help getting your contributions onto our website? E-mail Sandra Molen at smolen@bakersfield.com YOUR PETS YOUR PETS I It’s just no vacation when I’m home with my pets Volunteers needed to bag donated dog, cat food to help feed needy pets S PHOTO PROVIDED State Senator Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield) and Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood talk with students at W.A. Kendrick Elementary School. CASEY CHRISTIE / CALIFORNIAN FILE A cat takes a rest in a grassy field. ABOVE: OLLI art students create Mo- saic art pieces. LEFT: Students at CSUB’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute learn about wine with Im- bibe. PHOTOS PROVIDED Senator, sheriff visit local school to talk about benefits of after-school programs COURTESY OF BAKERSFIELD PET FOOD PANTRY akersfield Pet Food Pantry is a non-profit, all volunteer organization in Bakersfield dedicat- ed to assisting disabled/home bound seniors and low income community members by pro- viding them with dog and cat food. We started in April 2009 by donating dog and cat food to folks who received food from Church Without Walls, a local church and soup kitchen. We are happy to say that we’ve expanded BPFP to also help the elderly in need who are home bound and on a fixed income by partnering with North of the River’s Meals on Wheels program. Recently, we held our last pet food bagging for 2010. We thank our brave volunteers who were not afraid to get a “little” wet and helped us sort and bag a record 1450 pounds of pet food! We are always in need of pet food and will accept any brand of dog or cat food — whether it’s bagged or canned. You can also help BPFP through volunteering or by giving monetary contributions through Paypal or, by sending a check to: Bakersfield Pet Food Pantry, P.O. Box 82153, Bakersfield, CA 93380. If you would like to sign up as a volunteer, please send us an email at info@bakersfieldpetfoodpantry.org. and we will send updates about what we are doing and information about volunteer opportunities. How you can help us keep our pantry stocked? 1. Donate cat and dog food, either canned or dry. Please call 619-2029 to schedule a pick-up. 2. Hold a pet food drive in your community, or at your school, church or business. 3. Become a volunteer “barrel buddy” and let us put a collection barrel for pet food in your business. We’ll stop in and collect the donations regularly. We also welcome monetary donations! You can always drop us a line at: info@bakersfield- petfoodpantry.org. B PHOTO PROVIDED Volunteers brave the rain to help package donated dog and cat food to be distributed to needy pets. New year, lots of new courses at OLLI BY JENNIFER PATINO Community contributor inter is here! Get out of the house and into some- thing fun — like California State University, Bakersfield’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) program. Some of OLLI’s winter class- es include: • Women & the Criminal Justice System • Tai Chi • Contemporary Moral Prob- lems • History of Africa • Native American Religion • Digital Photography • Archaeology in Middle Egypt • DIY for Women • A Journey into the Blues • Food & wine pairings • Learn to play Bridge • Create Mosaic Art • Field trip to the Nethercutt Museum These and many more classes are offered — all with NO tests, homework, or stress — just learning for the fun of it! Contact OLLI at CSUB at 654- 2441; go to our Web site at: www.csub.edu/OLLI; or email us at: [email protected]. There’s something for “OLLI” of YOU! W CSUB hosts electronic waste recycling event Jan. 7-8 COURTESY OF CAL STATE BAKERSFIELD alifornia State University, Bakersfield will host its Sixth annual Electronic Waste (E- Waste) Recycling event from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Jan. 7-8. The event is open to all residents and busi- nesses in Kern County. To drop off items, enter cam- pus from Camino Media at the western entrance (Southwest Drive) and turn into the dirt lot on the right. The recycling event is in response to state regula- tions that make it unlawful to dispose of “universal waste,” including all electronic devices, in common trash receptacles. Electrical items that will be accepted include, but are not limited to, answering machines, camcorders, CD players, copiers, DVD/VCR players, electric type- writers, electronic games, fax machines, laptops, mainframe computers, cell phones, modems, pagers, PDA's, personal computers (CPU, monitors key- boards, mice, and peripherals), printers, radios, remote controls, scanners, stereos, tape players, tele- phones and telephone equipment, televisions, test- ing equipment, and two-way radios. “Residents must provide their name, address and phone number for reporting to the California Depart- ment of Resources, Recycling and Recovery. E-waste will be segregated and properly disposed of,” said Juli Smith, CSUB’s Interim Director of Safety and Risk Management. Please remove batteries from devices prior to drop off. Furthermore, CSUB cannot accept batteries, light tubes or bulbs, mercury waste or used oil. Please con- tact the Kern County Waste Management Depart- ment for proper recycling of these items. Complete information can be found at: http://www.co.kern.ca.us/wmd/Pdfs/KernCoun- tyRecyclingGuide.pdf. For recorded information regarding the E-Waste Recycling event, please call CSUB’s Safety and Risk Management Office at 654-2581 or 654-6320 for busi- ness E-Waste assistance. C PHOTO PROVIDED Old televisions and computer monitors can be dropped off for recycling at CSUB Jan. 7 and 8. VICKY THRASHER Pet columnist EXTRA EXTRA EXTRA EXTRA YOUR EDUCATION