RIP to the old mainstream media, and get ready for a new "gold rush" by podcasts and streaming video platforms to fill the void. .. and hey how about a cool old photo?

 * ... LOCAL MEDIA: The graveside services for what was known as "the mainstream media" - your local newspaper, network TV and its local affiliate news stations - were held long ago. Media is splintering, newspapers are struggling to keep the lights on and TV ratings are shrinking. In its place,

blogs, podcasts and new video streaming platforms are flourishing, if for no other reason than they don't need truckloads of cash and advertising to stay in business. This is particularly true on the local level, where new "media channels" position themselves to capture the audiences that have abandoned newspapers and other "mainstream" platforms. Locally, look no further than KERNCAST.COM, a new venture catering to the political right and run by former mayoral candidate and pro cannabis activist T.J. Esposito. So far, he has signed up former KNZR radio personalities Chad Garcia and Inga K. Barks, as well as Denise Gary, to do weekly video streaming episodes, and more are in the works. (KERNCAST also hosts a lively "Bored in Bakersfield" channel that is worth checking out). Esposito can be a polarizing figure about town, but it would be wrong to prematurely dismiss him or KERNCAST. The gatekeepers of old media are dead, and there is a new gold rush to see who will fill the void.

 * ... CANNABIS DRAMA: Speaking of old media, it took our local newspaper more than a month but it finally got around to covering the dramatic charges and counter charges involving Supervisors Mike Maggard and Leticia Perez in the local cannabis debate. It's another example of how shrinking staffs in "old media" simply can't keep up with more nimble news sources, and how new alternative news outlets are now leading the way. By the way, if you want a real, unfiltered view of this cannabis mess, go to the KERNRADIO.COM archives to hear interviews with all the players in the local pot debate: Heather Epps, David Abbasi, T.J. Esposito, Kim Schaefer, Ben Eilenberg, Fernando Jara, Maggard and Perez.

* ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: Pat Sajak, host of "Wheel of Fortune," posted this: "It must be exhausting to spend your days monitoring everyone’s speech searching for something to turn into a hashtag hate campaign. #Getalife"

 * ... DISNEYLAND: There is some bad news at the happiest place on earth. That's right Disneyland is raising its prices again and those on the annual season passes are getting slammed. For annual passes, the least expensive pass now costs $729, up from $619, and the Signature Pass (includes parking) is now going for a princely $999 a year. A family of four can easily spend near $4,000 a year for the passes, and that doesn't include gas, hotels or food.

* ... VETERANS: Comrades and Canopies, a group of local veterans dedicated to improving the lives of those who have served, is taking eight Honor Flight vets out to Skydive Taft this weekend. Event organizer Chad Garcia said some of the War World II and Korean War vets had not jumped out of a plane in decades. Garcia and other veterans will be raising money this week at BJ's Brewhouse on Stockdale Highway and Salty's BBQ on White Lane.

 * ... MEMORIES: Tell me you are not transfixed by this photo shared by Mark McGown on the Facebook page "Kern County of Old." In McGowan's words: "L to R: May Stark, Adalaine Nicholson, and Ella Faye in 1894. They were teachers at Kern County High School."

RIP Pete Cattani and Bill Lee, our homeless population and former Mayor Mary K. Shell shows some resourcefulness at the Holy Smoke barbecue

 * ... RIP: Bakersfield lost a pair of local businessmen this past week. Sherman Lee, owner of Bill Lee's Bamboo Chopsticks and a major landowner downtown, died of pancreatic cancer and Pete Cattani,

owner of the Ammo Dump gun store, also passed away. Lee was 76 years old while Cattani was 84. Cattani was active in shooting competitions and his Easton Drive gun store was a must-stop among shooting enthusiasts. In June, we lost Gene Thome, owner of Bear Mountain Sports off Weedpatch Highway.

 * ... HOMELESSNESS: I moderated a panel on homelessness at CSUB recently and some of the statistics were just stunning. Some of what I heard: the homeless population is getting younger, particularly among women and their children. In addition fully 65 to 70 percent of the homeless veterans without combat experience have substance absue issues, and there is a clear distinction between panhandlers (many of whom have places to live) and the true homeless. Another worrying sign: their numbers are steadily increasing not only in Bakersfield but across the country.

 * ... DISNEYLAND: The oddest, and most stunning, photographs that appeared on Facebook this week were the pictures taken at Disneyland while the Anaheim Hills fires turned the skies an eerie blood orange. The amusement park remained open while just a few miles away the wind-whipped fire consumed a dozen expensive homes.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "The problem with drinking with people from work is they’re the ones I bitch about when I’m drunk."

 * ... PAT SAJAK: This tweet from Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak spoke volumes: "OK, let me explain this again: We're celebs. We're wiser and more empathetic than you. We are famous. Please take our opinions more seriously."

 * ... MARY K. SHELL: Former mayor Mary K. Shell has always been known for her resourcefulness and it was on display last week when she attended the Holy Smoke barbecue at Garces Memorial High School. Navy veteran Gene Bonas shared a table with the former mayor and reported this: "My wife noticed she was eating her steak with a plastic fork, so Robbie offered her one of the steak knives she always brings to BBQs for everyone to use. With a sly smile, Mary K. held up a Swiss Army knife and stated she was doing quite well. Mary K. was a totally delightful person to have dinner with."

 * ... BAD FORM: An odd sight along the bike path near North Chester this weekend when a group of riders headed west turned the corner to come upon two homeless men laughing hysterically as a muscular black pit bull was hanging from a rope tied to a tree, his sturdy jaw clenched tight to the end of the rope in an apparent show of strength.

 * ...REUNIONS: I was out and about this weekend and caught friends going to a couple of notable class reunions. The West High School class of 1987 were enjoying their 30th reunion at The Padre Hotel while Highland High class of 1977 was celebrating its 40th reunion.