Kern High School District to comply with federal policy on transgender access to restrooms, the crowded Bakersfield mayor's race and more memories of old Bako

 * ... KHSD: No matter how you feel about the issue of transgender rights, the Kern High School District board of trustees did the right thing in voting to comply with the new - albeit controversial -

law regarding open access to restrooms. Now, with that said, I do believe President Obama erred in not allowing a full national debate on the issue before handing down the guidelines, but that's the way it rolled out and we have to deal with it or potentially forfeit millions of dollars in funding. As for trustee Chad Vegas' decision not to seek reelection because federal law conflicts with this religion, that was the right move for a pastor who believes his personal religious views trump civil policy. Jesse Aguilar spoke to it eloquently: "The board has no authority in deciding which laws the district
will follow and which they will not. If the latter is what some board members want to do, I suggest a run for the state legislature or congress. Please do not use our Kern High students as political hostages for personal, ideological agendas."

 * ... MAYORAL FEE: Did you know it only costs a $25 filing fee to run for mayor? So is it any wonder we had 25 candidates, some well meaning, some a bit odd, some resembling Manchurian candidates and all vying for our attention? Is it time to raise the cost of entry, if for nothing else to attract those who are truly serious about serving our community?

* ... KERO: I ran into KERO TV anchor Tim Callahan the other day, and he introduced me to Jacki Ochoa, his new evening co-anchor replacing Jackie Parks, who left to join her husband in Maryland after 27 years in the local market. Ochoa is a native of California who most recently was a reporter in Seattle. She also worked in Phoenix, Omaha and Redding and is a graduate of the University of Denver.

* ... SPOTTED: "Cardigans. Because you don't want to be murdered while pulling a sweater over your head."

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "I live for those really small but special moments in life, like when I see the waiter bringing my food to the table."

 * ... GOOD FORM: Susan Reep wrote to brag about the white-glove customer service she received from Lupe Sanchez, assistant service manager at Jim Burke Ford.  "He told me that he loved reading about the old days and he remembered Krauter’s Nursery on Kentucky Street where he grew up. He said they had lots of animals around there and once they found a big snake in their yard and called Mr. Krauter who came with his forked stick and got it and took it back to his place. "

 * ... ICE CREAM: Earle Murie is among the readers who remembers when ice cream came packaged in paper cubes. Said Murie: "I distinctly remember cubed ice cream because my father worked for the Arden Farms Milk Company from the early 1930s to the 1960s when he retired. In 1948 my mother opened a restaurant in Pomona, where we lived and where my dad was assistant manager for Arden. He was excited about the new product his company was promoting: cubed ice cream. So he convinced my mother to include the product in the menu. I was working for my mother at that time, having graduated from Pomona High School in 1947, and experienced the frustration of trying to make a milkshake or iced cream soda from a cube that had to be unwrapped before it could be placed in a container. Needless to say, cubed ice cream did not last long, at least with Arden!"

 * ... MEMORIES: Marjorie Poor Payne wrote that her farther was a dairyman who shipped milk to the Carnation plan on Union Avenue years ago. "My other and I plus four to five siblings would drive into Bakersfield to shop and one sibling took piano lessons at Toons Music Studio on Chester Avenue. I remember driving by the big Carnation plan and stopping for a milk shake - always a special treat - and they served food also."