Free – But Not for Me

It’s my pleasure, as owner of the Crescenta Valley Weekly, to be able to offer complimentary (i.e., free) issues of the paper to our friends and neighbors in the Crescenta Valley, Glendale, Burbank and surrounding areas. Of course, having hundreds of folks pony up the $52 a year (just a dollar a week!) for at-home delivery is especially sweet. It proves that there is a value to the paper, that people consider it worthy of their investment. And, as most everyone understands, the paper is far from free for me. It costs me thousands of dollars every week to produce it, from meeting printing and distributing costs to paying writers and photographers. If we ever had leftover papers, we turned them over to a Boy Scout who was raising money for a project by collecting papers to recycle. We found it odd that for months we hadn’t had any extra papers for him.

That’s why it was maddening to learn that some knucklehead was cruising down Honolulu Avenue in the Montrose Shopping Park early Thursday mornings and taking the newly delivered papers from the doorsteps of our merchants and from the green boxes that we share with the Quarterly Mailer. I imagine that it was for recycling purposes, but taking freshly minted copies of the paper was out-and-out stealing by my definition and once we got wind of this thief, we took action.

Or I should say, Mary O’Keefe took action.

Mary parked herself at City Hall Café last Thursday morning and patiently waited. Around 8 a.m. a white vehicle like the one described to us came creeping along Honolulu Avenue. Out popped the driver who nonchalantly made his way to a green box where he helped himself to over half of the papers that were put in there just hours earlier.

Never a shrinking violet, Mary went over to the man and accused him of stealing from her Crescenta Valley Weekly family. The man was surprised (to say the least) to see this woman with an obvious Irish temper chastising him – loudly. He mumbled an apology, gave the papers to Mary and left in his white car.

And the folks at Montrose Café & Bakery? They applauded the efforts of one Mary O’Keefe.

Unbelievably the bozo returned the next day to try the same stunt. But an astute community member recognized the guy and yelled at him to “put those papers back!” – which he did.

Let’s see if this bozo returns to try and steal from us again. I think next time he’ll be facing an army of supporters.

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Though disco is my first love, I will give a listen to other types of music. Each summer I can be found often at the Cal Phil listening to maestro Victor Vener as he wields his baton or at the Starlight Bowl to get a dose of tunes from days gone by. Last Saturday, I ventured outside my comfort zone and headed to the Silverlake Bar & Lounge to hear Splntrd Wood, a trio of cellos.

My friend Marilyn accompanied me to this little bar on Sunset Boulevard that was packed, wall-to-wall, with fellow cello enthusiasts. Splntrd Wood is composed of three young musicians – Ian Gottlieb, Matthew Park and Pierre Derycz – who perform original compositions as well as classical works. From Mozart and Ravel to Weezer and the Foo Fighters, the trio offered something for everyone.

The performance was part of Classical Revolution: LA. The first Saturday of every month Classical Revolution and the Silverlake Lounge open the doors for classical musicians. All they ask is a donation of $5-$10 … a bargain to be sure.

If Saturday’s performance was an indication of what you can typically find there, I’ll be back.

  robin goldsworthy