Our city of Pasadena PIO is resting, recuperating, and relaxing again. Deservedly. Therefore I’ll again keep the very important historical torch lighted until she’s ready to roll again. Take your best guess at this magazine photo.
Where are we? And what’s happening in this photo?
The first person to guess correctly will have the admiration of our local bloggers!
I’ll have the full scoop on Thursday.
Gotta Wake-Up. Stay Thirsty My Friends
The annual State of The City of Pasadena (SOC) presented by the Mayor took place last month. Similar but more substantive than the USA’s State of the Union, the SOC basically reviews the highlights & challenges of the prior year and the opportunities & challenges of the new year.
The audience is heavily filled with government employees. The next largest attendees appear to desire or have some indirect connection with the city’s business.
A theme is chosen – this year its “Spotlight on Performance.” Typically some form of entertainment is presented, the color guard marches in and the audience rises up to salute & recite the pledge of allegiance. A video is shown of the prior year, applause, then the Mayor comes to the podium to tell us what’s up in The City.
Each year the SOC is held at a different venue. The new A Noise Within Theatre was it for 2012. Mayor Bogaard thanked Geoff Elliot & Julia Rodriquez-Elliot of A Noise Within for hosting the SOC. Here are a few scenes of this annual drama…
The colors were presented
Julia Rodriquez-Elliot of A Noise Within welcome everybody to her new showplace.
The Mayor spoke while under the sharp canine ears of your trusty correspondent, and the watchful eye of law enforcement.
As I was checking out the new A Noise Within facilities I noticed Chief of Police Sanchez walking in. I met him, along with his family, a couple of times last year. But this was a new year. I tested him on the spot:
CP: Chief, Chief! Hi, Chief. Good to see you here! Do you remember me??
Chief: Oh, yeah. Sure! Sure I remember you. How are you?
I was getting restless just sitting there. Got up and stretched my limbs around.
The Mayor’s message this year was again about the fiscal problems brought on by the economic repression we’ve been in for four years now at least. Sales tax revenue is down again, money lost from Governor Brown’s decision to scrap city redevelopment agencies, in debt to high pension liabilities, unreimbursed costs from the federal/state government for The Great Windstorm of 2011. All this leads to making more difficult cuts to balance the city’s budget such as job layoffs. But!, alas, this is Pasadena & it’s great people will again live to survive and thrive for another year! We are a sacrificial people.
I’ve been to a couple of these SOC’s in the past. In case you missed this edition here are is a of link full of text: Text of Mayor’s State of The City Address. The Mayor, and now Cafe Pasadena, have looked back into the old year. With that, it’s time to move forward into the New Year.
So, there you have it: The State of The City – Pasadena, California.
Gotta Get Going. Stay Thirsty My Friends
I’m sure all our readers will be hysterically happy to hear we’ve reached the end.
The end of our year-end review here on Cafe Pasadena. The end of 2011 brought to its proper close.
These last two postings in December saw us visit the Hollywood Sign via my friend and author, Mary Mallory, through her new book – HOLLYWOODLAND – here at the Pasadena Museum of History.
Finally, we closed the old year with recognition of the last major holiday of 2011 with a visit to THE ATHENAEUM decorated for the Christmas season on the vintage campus of Cal Tech.
And that’s it. We’ve reached the end of the year! Our only friend, the end. It is finished! This is, The End.
Happy New Years! Stay Thirsty My Friends
We’re almost to the end of our year-end review of the recent passing of 2011.
Talking food/restaurants has always been a major theme here at the Cafe Pasadena. 2011 was no different. And this dog will follow tasty smells even if it means leaving the rosy royalty of Pasadena. A case in point: MO-CHICA Peruvian restaurant in Los Angeles near USC.
Pasadena is known for it’s wonderful weather. In yesteryears it was a prime factor for seducing outsiders from Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, New York, ANYWHERE, etc, to move and/or vacation here, and then become an official, formal city in 1886. Weather and its health benefits have been a part of our history. Even now Pasadena is known for it’s unbelievable, history-making weather as 2011 proved: WINDSTORM 2011!
Wonder how many readers have eaten Peruvian food, or even remember where they were when the winds hit??
Gotta Hit The Road! Stay Thirsty My Friends
