Cleaning Up My Act

by Alex Kent

Real Estate and spring cleaning… what do they have in common? Answer: Space.

There is only so much space on the planet, in your country, your town, your home...

I was through college and working in Toronto, Canada before I owned enough possessions to consider my first spring cleaning. Being sufficiently successful to move into ever larger living spaces as my pay increased, it was years before I noticed that things were taking over my home. I guess those around me thought that if I was so grown-up, come February/March, I must surely already know what to get rid of and what to keep.

But, no! I was under the naïve impression that spring cleaning was about cleaning – dusting, sweeping and scrubbing under the stuff that was to be returned to its rightful spot, once the suds were rinsed and dried. While the cleaning part is important, the items I didn’t use were secretly causing me stress, not unlike buyer remorse. I did some research and found it has a name: clutter.

Clutter is a disordered, confused state of being. If it were noise, it would be clatter, and living with a constant clatter would make many of us easily irritated, frustrated and unable to function comfortably - it takes effort to ignore irritating sounds. Visual clatter – clutter – can have the same effect on our psyche. I have a friend who disdainfully calls it ‘minutia’ – the small, hateful bits of inconsequential stuff that surrounds us at every turn.

We all experience it, in varying degrees, throughout our lives, from our toy-box to what we Will our descendants. We live, after all, in a material world and act on our feelings of desire to acquire. Don’t get me wrong – I love most of the items I choose to display. Things are good; but too much of anything can be overwhelming, and it can sneak up on you. I know I am not alone in this dilemma, because friends bring over items from their homes to see if I want them… they can’t bear to throw or give them away, and a visit to see me is a visit to their stored treasure – stored in my house. Here, however, there are no worries; I do the same to them : )

So, what is a homeowner to do? Throw away a tool because it’s worn, or keep it because it’s an antique? Hold onto a child’s Lego’s for the grandchildren? (Lord knows, they were pricey!) Keep the shoes that remind you of fabulous memories but are too small to get into anymore? [Unknown artist]

Now is the time to learn how to use eBay (http://pages.ebay.com/education ), or have a garage sale. Sell that antique tool and those shoes; sell the books you will never read; sell the rug that never went with the sofa; sell the stuff that was expensive, but you have no more use for… replace your things with something of equal value – money.

Another trick I have learned is to take photographs of the things that ‘keepsake’ memories. Pictures can do just as good a job of ‘holding onto the visual’, and they take up less space; turning the photos into digital images and posting them in cyber space will free you up even more! Another friend even takes pictures of her shoes before she gets rid of them. This one was hard for me, as I still try on heels from my glory days, thinking “maybe this time they’ll fit”. Take a snapshot - Genius!

A word of warning about the Lego’s: first ask your kids if they want to keep them. If they do, storage is their responsibility. Attachments to things are attachments to emotions; don’t ruin a relationship just to clean out a closet.

Spring is a time for newness; and eliminating the old is a rewarding way to achieve personal freedom. Besides, once I have created more space with all my cleaning and selling, I can start collecting cool stuff again!

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Photo credits: Spring Cleaning Supplies – Nowsourcing; Hand wrench – the-funny-place.blogspot.com; Fin-heels – Global Warming Collection

LiveJournal Tags: Niki Chanel,spring cleaning,memories,creative solutions

Resolutions, Resolutions, Resolutions!

by Alex Kent

How are you doing with your New Year’s resolutions?

Every year, millions of people vow to accomplish something to improve themselves… something new that has been on their mind for a while – maybe years. We all know the favourites: lose weight, stop smoking, exercise more, get better grades, make more money… and every year, millions fail to keep their promise to themselves… right about this time of year – February.

I know; I’ve been one of them.

But this year, I think I have a better chance of achieving a New Year’s goal; instead of changing my entire lifestyle, which is what it would take to lose weight, I have been eating less of one food additive – sugar. I don’t intend to abandon it entirely, just cut back. I’m going to wean myself off of the offending substance slowly, and eventually I may be able to reset my palette.

My other plan is to set forward a singular goal – something more project oriented, like writing a letter to Congress or planting a tree. That way, I will have an entire year to figure out what its going to be, and twelve months to accomplish this thing. I will likely succeed because it’s more of an occasion rather than a new habit. The big pay-off will be having more confidence in myself because I was able to keep my New Year’s resolution where others failed.

The thing that interests me about these annual challenges is that they don’t really involve anyone else. Friends and family already put up with our bad habits, nobody actually pays attention to how many calories I eat – they hardly pay attention to what they’re eating! Eating is really between you and yourself, er, me and myself. It really is a ‘me’ thing, if you think about it.

Or I could do something fun, like figure out how to get my GPS to speak in a voice I actually enjoy; ride in a hot air balloon; go to the MOMA and paint a copy of a famous painting; participate with the Catalina scuba clean-up or go on a midnight hike through the wilderness near PV Dr East. You’ve probably done all these things already, but they are all still on my list.

Following one’s passion is another good way to keep your word with yourself. Since the things no one wants to do are the very things chosen to be the new resolution, the goal is doomed before it starts. Who is going to do something they don’t want to do, just for a lark?

So, wish me luck in my quest to improve myself in new and unusual ways, and if you need it, good luck to you, too! Oh, and I hope you’re still having a happy new year!

 

 

 

43 Things Tags: New Years resolutions,MoMA,Niki Chanel,Valmonte Living Magazine

ZAP Swim Team

by Niki Chanel

DeAnne Preyer has lived in Palos Verdes long enough to have attending all the school grades, and has been swimming the entire time!

When DeAnne’s parents were on their honeymoon in Hawaii, they saw babies swimming and had the ‘aha’ to have their children learn early, as well. They lived on the Esplanade in their early married years, and the water safety factor this might afford them a safer childhood for their kids. DeAnne started at the Riviera swim school (long gone) as an infant and was (competitive) swimming like a fish at seven and teaching at twelve. Every house they have had since has had a pool in the backyard.

When they moved to Portuguese Bend they invited a swim teacher to the house to teach DeAnne’s little sister. The teacher saw DeAnne’s talent and suggested she become involved with the San Pedro YMCA’s swim team, and that, says DeAnne, is how it all started.

Swimming was her life. She was on the girls swim team in high school and in 1986 became the first female swimmer awarded the athlete of the year (!), and went on to the University of Minnesota on a swimming scholarship. I asked her about the cold. Her immediate reply was “It was awesome! I loved it!” Her major reflected her desire to share her insights to children and she came back to California with a master’s in Elementary Education. Her dream was to be a pre-school teacher that included swimming.

To that end, she became involved with a rehab program for troubled kids. Being a shy youngster and thereby understanding them better than most, she tried to help build these kids’ confidence through swimming, rather than be part of the state processing system. She wanted to help them reach their best, in and out of the water.

This way of thinking and teaching evolved into ZAP – the Zenith Aquatic Program; “Taking Swimming to a Higher Level”, being ZAP’s motto. ZAP started out with six students and now has over 150 members on the team. The Zapper’s, as they like to call themselves, recently celebrated their tenth year of graduations.

We got to talking about the need for a community pool on the Hill;, and she confessed, “I want to bring something to the table that enriches our community – not just a plus for PV, but beyond.” She is not alone; key swim coaches in the United States that have been running the American Swim Coaches Association (ASCA)see a great need for the next generation to take the reigns in order to preserve what has been built over the last several decades. ‘We can’t do this forever!’ is their outcry. To facilitate this reaching out effort, they are including interested swim club to their collegiate model. Seeking coaches, DeAnne has recently, become an ASCA fellow for the class of 2010.

Everything DeAnne does impressed me and I told her I thought she was a powerhouse. “Working on it.” she humbly replies.

Their main pool is at Miraleste Intermediate on the east side and at the ‘zenith’ of the hill. Miraleste Pool is at 29323 Palos Verdes Drive East, though at the time of this printing is undergoing repairs. Other pools like at Peninsula High and Torrance, but it would be better to contact DeAnne directly if you are interested in her program at 424.901.3703 or email her at zapcoach@yahoo.com .

 

 

 

Technorati Tags: Zap Swim Team,Miraleste,DeAnne Preyer,Zenith Aquatic Program,Niki Chanel,Valmonte Living Magazine

Peninsula People Person

by Niki Chanel

Everyone in Palos Verdes receives the “Peninsula People” magazine for free, every month but not everyone knows the dynamo behind it; that would be Mary Jane Schoenheider.

Mary Jane grew up in Cheviot Hills in West Los Angeles. Nestled between MGM Studios and 20^th Century Fox in the Beverly Hills / Westwood area, she saw her share of movie people. As a teen she went to junior high and high school at Marlborough School for girls in LA. “It was hard, but fabulous!” She moved on to Pine Manor, a small all-girl’s college in Massachusetts. It was strong in liberal arts, and she found that her interest lay in Art History, which she later majored in after transferring to UCLA. Mary Jane illuminates: “In those days women only expected to become nurses, secretaries, or teachers.” In her sophomore year she was asked to be the editor of the yearbook and thought, “this might be fun”. Interested in making the yearbook a bit different, she was told her ideas would make it cost more money, but was given the freedom to sell advertising to raise the necessary funds. She found she loved the excitement of the sale. “They said yes!”

She married and came to Palos Verdes in 1966, later moving to the Valmonte area. I asked her how she felt about PV. “I think we live in paradise. Where else can you find a more beautiful place to live? We have everything: horses, the ocean… and peacocks.”

Initially, Mary Jane worked part-time for the PV News while her children (Frank and Elizabeth – both now grown with their own families), were in elementary and intermediate schools. After three years in advertising sales Mary Jane became the sales manager for the next ten years. “It was the only game in town.”

As communication technology evolved, cable television became a new industry, and Mary Jane went to work for Dimension Cable, now called Cox Cable. She covered local cable sales for the peninsula and half of San Pedro. It was a completely different experience selling CNN, ESPN, MTV, USA and TNT, but the basic process was the same; a cable ‘spot’ was sold, the ad campaign was sent to filmmakers, and the ad aired a month later. Mary Jane was now attending meetings with big corporations as far away as San Diego. She became the first woman to join the Rotary Club of Palos Verdes Peninsula, after the Supreme Court ruled that women could be members because of their growing presence in business.

Even so, television technology was not yet digital - one of her jobs was to change the video tape of ads every Sunday for the NFL game. This meant getting the right tape into the right tape player, then rushing home to see if it was playing properly on her TV. Six years of dedication, and success of the cable business, made it possible to eventually hand that job over to the ‘techies’.

By now, Mary Jane knew many people in the communications industry and one in particular knew her – Kevin Cody of the Easy Reader weekly newspaper. He had always liked that she encouraged her advertisers, who wanted to reach the beach cities, to contact the Easy Reader. He wanted her on his team as sales manager, and said so. Mary Jane had always preferred the independent entrepreneurial approach, and realized that the corporate life wasn’t really for her. “I was ready for a change.”

Immediately, they set to work on an experimental publication, extending the Easy Reader format into Palos Verdes. It was called the Peninsula Easy Reader. Even though Mary Jane was having success as the ad director, she noticed that most of the copies went right into the trash – it wasn’t working. What she thought PV needed was a monthly lifestyle publication. “Let’s focus on the people of the Hill.”

The magazine was redesigned; a new name – “Peninsula People”, a glossy cover in colour, black and white interior, free lance writers for the profiles, and they added a calendar of events. But nothing really got the magazine going until Mary Jane took her camera to some of the PV events and printed the photos. It took off! Mary Jane is now totally in change of the Peninsula People publication, from content to cover design, and will occasionally write an article for it.

When her husband died, Mary Jane came to the conclusion that she could either sit at home and mourn, or get on with her life. These days she has little free time. Very involved with the local world of art and music, she belongs to “The Circle” at the PV Art Center, and holds season tickets for the LA Philharmonic, Chamber Orchestra and the Peninsula Symphony. She has been a member of the Peninsula Committee for the LA Philharmonic for over 40 years. Mary Jane has also been very active with the annual Palos Verdes Concours d'Elegance - she was co-chair of the event for five years and still serves on their board of directors. In 2004 she was selected by the Palos Verdes Chamber of Commerce as their Citizen of the Year. She plays poker and bridge each month, goes to regular Rotary meetings, and travels - recently returning from trips to Germany and Washington D.C. for pleasure… and there’s more.

But something is bothering her; “I have a real worry that the younger people of Palos Verdes are not stepping up into the community positions and taking on the necessary responsibilities.” She explains that if the next generation does not take up the causes and care of the community, there is not going to be a community for their children. “If parents see the importance of being involved with the schools, they must also understand that they need to look further into the future and get involved with the greater community. We need infusion, now.”

A great pillar in our midst, Mary Jane Schoenheider is not just a community person; she is also very much a people person.

If you have a question or an idea and would like to get in touch with either Easy Reader or Peninsula People, both can be found on the internet at easyreadernews.com .

PHOTO CREDIT ~ David Fairchild

 

 

 

43 Things Tags: Peninsula People,Mary Jane Schoenheider,Schoenheider,Easy Reader,Niki Chanel,Valmonte Living Magazine

Happy New Year, 2011!

I may not know you personally, but I want you to have a good year.

Why?

If everybody is having a good time, it’s easier for the rest of us to get by - to have a good life. A good first day is a good start, but most of us that celebrate ushering in the new year in with alcohol might want to wait until the second day… at any rate, the best part is having others look you in the eye and wish you well. Really. What could be better? That’s the best. Who wouldn’t want to be accepted by everyone in their world?

Many of us spend our lives trying to get someone… anyone, to pay attention to us. Each of us has something to offer, but not all of us get the results we want.

But maybe I am projecting and it’s just me. I love people; love to talk to them, learn about them, participate with them, do things for them. Maybe you’d call me a ‘party person’ but I think of myself as a ‘people person’, and I think the people that I am with now would agree; We have eaten, sung, danced and talked to each other for hours. We’re down to cards and drinks and custom requests for favourite music. Sometime the conversations move into the esoteric of aliens and ancient taboos or rush into the political arenas of the day. I love it all, and I find myself wishing this for everybody. I get a bit choked up… a bit tearful. Suddenly I realize it feels too much like a broken heart. What is this love for mankind that makes me feel painful joy?

Well, I’m not going to labour too long over the question - not on the first day of the rest of our lives.

Happy 2011!

Take Heart… there’s Art!

by Niki Chanel

Contrary to popular belief, not everyone heads to California first chance they get. Jim Walker, who was born in New Jersey and raised in Oklahoma City, grabbed his Bachelor of Science, and went to Africa first. Crowded buses rumbling through vast, open territory in 130º heat, trumps a good wave and a piece of pizza.

But in 1970, Jim arrived in Corona del Mar and, using his degree, went into hotel and restaurant management. Moving up the coast, he made it to South Bay, where long-time locals may remember “The Lobster House” in King Harbor, one of the many restaurants that Jim managed. It is said that the restaurant business is one of the hardest, but Jim’s point of view is positive; ever the optimist, he gives me one of his self-talk sayings: “Never listen to the counsel of defeat.”

A resident art enthusiast of Palos Verdes for thirty-five years, Jim had raised a family of two boys. For relaxation he sometimes drew portraits of his kids, Jeff and Cory. As a young man with an interest in paintings and sculpture, Jim had already studied pen and ink, charcoal, and pencil drawing when a friend from high school introduced him to the book “Drawing on the Right Brain of the Brain”, by Betty Edwards. It helped him find photographic realism in his own drawings, making a deep impression on Jim and cemented his interest in the arts. He would later go on to teach the method to others.

There were family influences, too; his dad was a bit of an artist, trying his hand at oils and one of his younger brothers is an artist with the Realist Representation of the Student’s Art League in New York. Following in the family tradition, Jim took up life drawing classes at Angel’s Gate, in San Pedro and dreamed of ‘repping’ artists like Florence Strauss, Bob Doughty, Kay Bonano and Pat Dispenziere, perennial Palos Verdes favorites that he had been a fan of for so many years.

But it was dealing with the restaurant business that made him realize the value of bringing art to the fore - by hanging paintings of area artist’s on the walls of his own businesses, he could introduce the public to fine art and share his love of creativity and colour. Initially, the idea was to enhance the dinning experience, though to Jim it was more personal; his mantra of the day? “Dwell on your desires, not on your fears.”

Today Jim represents twelve prominent, award-winning South Bay and Los Angeles artists, and two of them, his hero’s: Florence Strauss and Bob Doughty. The current group uses oils, acrylics, watercolour, mixed media, several drawing mediums and some are digital illustrators. Subjects range from flowers to seascapes and after thirty-plus years of looking at the classics, like Albrecht Dürer and Ingres, Jim Walker is a “good eye”, though his test of true talent is whether of not “it knocks his socks off”. This is the Walker Artist Group!

As a representative he introduces these artists to dealers, buyers, businesses, individuals and galleries; galleries like the Zask, that used to be on PV Dr. West, below The Admiral Risty. Recently the  gallery moved up to the shopping plaza level, across form the Risty, opening with a show of “Assemblage” art - a form of sculpture comprised of "found" objects. The show, “Lost and Profound” was very well attended.

To make an art presentation is, in itself, an art. Jim tells me that the first rule of thumb is to “know thy market”. He demonstrated to me that he does, indeed, know the market with a personally guided tour of the “San Pedro Art Walk” happening every first Thursday between 4^th and 10^th Street, Pacific and Mesa Avenue, in San Pedro. After 6:00pm parking on the  streets is free and an easy atmosphere of safe meandering permeates the area. Music, both live and recorded, fills the air, spilling out of open studio doors, and a feeling of festival is contagious. Many galleries serve the proverbial opening fare of wine and cheese, and the art is (mostly) fabulous. Gallery-goers mingle on the sidewalks and a fortunate few get to view tango lessons in a nearby dance studio.

Representing artists has its perks; occasionally, Jim will get an art lesson from one of his favourite artists who help with his portraits. He in turn helps out the artists through rentals and leasing of the pieces, as well as sales of their work. “In this economy, you’ve got to take heart, and buy art!” Services include fine art, portraiture, murals, landscapes, abstracts and ‘designer-ly’ pieces in a variety of mediums such as charcoal, oil, acrylic, watercolor, pen and ink, digital and photography.

The Jim Walker Artist Group can be perused on the internet at walkerartistgroup.com where you can see the work of Jim’s favourite artists, such as Florence Strauss, a floral painter who also lives in Palos Verdes, and Elizabeth Knox who paints portraits (links to their websites are on Jim’s site). But like a parent, all his artists are his favourite, and Stephen Eugene Mirich is no exception. Stephen is responsible for the final push that Jim needed to get into the business of dealing art. A realistic seascape artist in the “plein aire” discipline, Steve lives in Portuguese Bend and paints in whatever weather he finds; under an umbrella in the rain or using flash lights at night. He understands immersing oneself in their art and helped Jim to remember another one of his axioms: “Don’t let anybody rain on your parade.”

Being somewhat art deprived, I feel rejuvenated by the tour and excited that I have found a resource to experience more art. Jim tells me there are many other spots in the San Pedro area, including The Loft at 4^th and Mesa. The three story building is a story of War and Peace - it’s a renovated Army barracks that now houses only art. Another gallery that Jim loves is The National Watercolour Society, a non-profit organization for over ninety years, and is presenting a stellar exhibition now through the 10^th of December, located at 915 South Pacific Avenue, between 9^th and 10^th Street. Many more venues abound in the mind of Jim Walker, waiting to be explored. Visit him online at http://www.walkerartistgroup.com or give him a call at 310.947.4610 if you want to know more about the art world that surrounds us. “It’s a delight to be a part of the South Bay Art Community. There is a wonderful generosity of spirit that unites artists here.”

 

 

LiveJournal Tags: Jim Walker Artist Group,Niki Chanel,art,San Pedro Art Walk,Valmonte Living Magazine,Zask Gallery

Peacocks on the Roof

by Niki Chanel

There’s no argument - Palos Verdes is a beautiful place to live. Trees, ocean views, lush landscaping, and tastefully designed homes. Before I moved here I was told there were wild peacocks walking the neighbourhoods. I remember saying “Riiight. And are there pink elephants, too?” See… I was a disbeliever. How is that even possible!? I wondered. So, I did a little research and found out a few facts from Maureen Megowan’s realty page. Apparently, William Wrigley, Jr. who had plenty of his own on Catalina Island, gave 16 of the turkey-sized birds to Frank Vanderlip, the original mastermind behind the creation of Palos Verdes, in the mid 1920’s. Vanderlip kept his birds on his estate in Portuguese Bend. It is suspected that some of bird’s offspring may have been introduced deliberately to other areas of the hill at a later date.

I forgot about the issue in the moving effort and was awakened some days later by the screams of a woman in peril… or so I thought. No, I was told, that was the call of a peacock.

Not possible! I thought. No birds could sound like that! Birds tweet and sing or caw or cackle or cluck or …wait a minute; birds seem to make every sound under the sun! Some birds can even imitate human speech! Why couldn’t a large bird make a sound that will carry? Clearly, I was in denial.

Then the morning came when I was having coffee and looked out my kitchen window; about a half dozen of these creatures were on my neighbour’s roof. Suddenly awake in a way coffee could never achieve, I stared slack-jaw, as the fan of rainbow colours from the tail of a peacock - the male - shook in front of several plain brown birds – the peahens, displaying front, side and back in a dance of elegance until… he fell off the roof! I laughed so hard I spilled my coffee. I can only guess what the peahens were thinking.

So, the truth has been revealed: I do live in paradise and paradise has a sense of humour.

LiveJournal Tags: Peacocks,Palos Verdes,Valmonte Living Magazine,Valmonte,Niki Chanel,homeowner humour