Rodriguez and Associates drop off $200,000 at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital to support the Grossman Burn Unit, get ready for The Iguanas at Temblor Brewing Co. and the ongoing debate over climate change

 * ... RODRIGUEZ: Hats off to local plaintiff's attorney Daniel Rodriguez and his team over at Rodriguez and Associates for donating $200,000 to Bakersfield Memorial Hospital and its expanding services. The gift will support the opening of the Neuro ICU and the establishment of the S.A. Camp Companies Burn Unit at the Grossman Burn Center, both of which will bring advanced technology and outstanding patient care to the people of Kern County.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "I’ve enjoyed giving presentations at work a lot more since I started communicating exclusively through interpretive dance."

 * ... IGUANAS: One of the hottest musical venues in town these days is the Temblor Brewing Co. off Merle Haggard Drive. The popular brew pub has been blowing up since opening its doors to musical acts, and Monday night the brassy New Orleans sound of the Iguanas will be appearing on the Temblor stage with its big sound. If you see just one concert this summer, this should be your top pick. Doors open at 6 p.m. and tickets are just $25.

 * ... BIKE RACKS: Have you noticed the appearance of colorful new bicycle racks popping up around town? Manufactured out of sturdy steel and in the shape of a road bike, the racks are the work of the city of Bakersfield and Bike Bakersfield to promote active transportation and active lifestyles. Bike Bakersfield director Adam Kahler said 29 racks have been placed around town, all funded via the Bakersfield Californian Foundation and public grants and funding.

* ... FEEDBACK: My piece on an anti fossil fuel activist drew this note from reader Harry Love: "In today's column you placed the words global warming in quotes. That is an indication that you find it to be questionable at to being true. Ninety-eight percent of scientists who study the
climate find that climate change caused by human activity is true. First, the correct term is climate change. Second, using your logic, if you had to use the word evolution in a column, you would have to place quotes around it. Some people believe it to be a hoax." Thanks for your note, Harry, and you might be surprised to learn that I do indeed believe in global warming, or climate change as you call it. What we might disagree on is its cause, and how societies respond to it.

 * ... TRAVEL TIP: Sharing this travel tip from Michael Horne and Ann Marie Duquette: "We just got back from a three week whirlwind road trip that took us to Yellowstone, Little Big Horn, Mount Rushmore and Mesa Verde to name a few of the 15 sites visited. We took a day of rest in Pueblo, Colorado, and discovered a must see site: The Center for American Values which is along the River Walk.  This Center honors and has pictures of those veterans that have received the Medal of Honor from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and Iraq/Afghanistan. It was a moving, awesome and very inspiring visit. If anyone ever stops  or drives through Pueblo, Colorado, we urge them to stop there for a short visit."

 

Teenage hip hop artist calls for an end to the use of fossil fuels, and the candidates for Ward 2 City Council will square off Wednesday on the Ralph Bailey Show

 * ... FOSSIL FUELS: Idealism is a terrific concept, except when it runs headlong into reality. So consider for a moment Xiuhtezcatl Martinez, a 16-year-old Colorado hip hop and "global warming" activist who is leading a nationwide effort to ban the use of all fossil fuels by the year 2026. The problem with snappy sloganeering is that it often ignores the harsh light of reality. As noted the Heritage Foundaiton's DailySignal: "It’s fairly common knowledge that Americans use coal and natural gas to power homes,  vehicles, businesses, schools, and hospitals. In fact, the United States gets 81 percent of all its energy from oil, coal, and natural gas. What’s less known is that conventional fuels go beyond providing energy for Americans. Petroleum and natural gas are used to make thousands of everyday items—aspirin, toothpaste, sunglasses, shoes, tires, shag rugs, and tennis balls, to name a few... Americans not only would face significant lifestyle changes, many would lose their entire livelihoods. It’s not just the American way of life that would be lost, either—fossil fuels have raised people around the world out of poverty and into healthier, richer lives."

 * ... HOME: What do you do when you have family in town for a long, hot, Bakersfield weekend? First I nestled them into our iconic old Padre Hotel, the restored grand dame of downtown Bakersfield where the service is crisp and food is excellent. Then dinner at Uricchio's Trattoria, where it seems literally everyone knows your name, a long relaxed Saturday lunch at Luigi's Delicatessen, where the hustle of the staff turns chaos into order, a quick run by the Bakersfield Racquet Club to show off that even humble towns have world-class sports facilities, and a finally a casual Sunday breakfast at 24th Street Cafe. That is a lineup that not even 110 degrees can put a damper on.

 * ... CAFE MED: And speaking of local eateries, my friend Juan tells me I simply must try Cafe Med's house hamburger served on a pita roll at lunch. In deference to Juan, it's on my bucket list.

 * ... MAYA: Word on the street is the construction in the parking lot of the Maya Theaters will house a food court, including a China Bistro, a yogurt shop and other eateries yet to be named.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "The breast exam was going well until I realized I was there for a job interview."

 * ... RADIO: There are few more important local races this election year than the fight for the Ward 2 City Council seat, where incumbent Terry Maxwell faces a stiff challengs from Andrae Gonzales. This is sure to be one of the hottest races in town, and on Wednesday I will talk to both candidates when I fill in as host on the Ralph Bailey Show on KERN NewsTalk 96.1 FM. Maxwell will come on at 3 p.m. and Gonzales at 4 p.m. I will also be chatting with Monsignor Craig Harrison to get his take on the virulent state of the American political conversation, and also with assistant CSUB professor Jeanine DiCesaris Kraybill to get her take on the presidential sweepstakes. The show runs from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

 

 * ... GOOD FORM: Lowana Towes submitted this simple act of kindness. "While listening to the Fruitvale Junior High kids singing Christmas carols at Glenwood Gardens an elderly resident began crying. One of the students left the group and walked to the back of the room and gave the lady a big hug. The lady stopped crying and said 'I really needed that.' The girl walked back to the group and continued singing. What a wonderful thing for her to do."