Family activities mean we're going to have a late start today.  Apologies — new stuff (including the weekend calendar) will be up later today.

The Altadena Senior Center is hosting its own haunted house, with raffles, snacks  and more at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr.  Included is a viewing of the movie “Drag Me to Hell” (rated PG-13, so not suitable for younger kids). 

• Occasional Altadenablog writer Laura Berthold Monteros profiles Rose Princess Sarah Christine Fredrickson in the Examiner.  Altadenan Fredrickson, a Maranatha High School student, is also an equestrian who volunteers at Danny’s Farm.
• The Sierra Madre Tattler (a very opinionated blog) puts in a few words of support for an Altadena School District and hammers PUSD (scroll down).  We have no opinion on their opinion,

Fri., Oct. 15

• The outrageous, high energy rock & soul band “Mercy & The Merkettes, “ 9 PM-1 AM at The Rancho Bar, 2485 N. Lake

Sat., Oct. 16

• Outward Bound Yard Sale Fundraiser, 9 AM-3 PM, 872 Alameda St.
• “We’ve Got the Beat,” auditions for next week’s talent show to celebrate Teen Read Week —

Each wine taste is between $1 and $4, and bottles usually range from $9 to about $20.

Featured wines include:

Champagne/Spanish Cava

Juve y Camps Cava Reserva Brut, Penedes 2006  (Macabeo, Xarel-lo, Parellada)

Juve y Camps Cava Rose (100% Pinot Noir)

Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve,

The Bob Lucas Branch Library, 2659 N. Lincoln Ave., will have a Halloween party Fri., Oct.29, starting at 3:30 PM.

Decorate a trick-or-treat bag, or indulge yourself with face-painting — time to get in the spirit of the season, and it’s free.

• We’ve been looking for an excuse to put Altadena and Oprah together, and now we’ve found it: The Oprah Book Club has named Michelle Huneven one of their favorite women writers, and her novel Blame a great read. (It’s not too late to take in Michelle’s workshop at the Altadena Library Tuesday night!)
• The OTHER Michele (Zack) and her designer Jeff Lapides are the subjects of this article in Mountain Views News about Southern California Story,

What're you looking forward to this weekend?  There's lots to do …

These signs sprang up recently on the vacant Altadena Nursery building, 1968 N. Lake.  One is an entreaty in Spanish for new rentals, and the other says it is the future home of the Grace Community Bible Church.  We’ve called the number on the first sign, which sent us to a voice mail box with no other identification, but we’ll keep on it.

Do you know anything?  Drop us a line!

Farnsworth Park will have a Halloween carnival starting at 3 PM Oct. 29.  Then, the lower Davies building turns into to a haunted house on  Sat., Oct. 30, between 6-8 PM.  Expect thrills, chills, and candy.

Loma Alta Park will hold a Halloween-theme teen dance on Thurs., Oct. 28, starting at 7 PM. 

This is on the heels of a burglary on Mendocino near Midlothian/Braeburn Wed. afternoon.  In that case, Jeff Sedlick reports in his Braewatch neighborhood blog: “The victim believes that the burglars were watching the home, as he was home all day and they did not strike until he left at 4 PM.

Crafts include decorating trick-or-treat bags, Mexican paper flowers, and sugar skull decorating.  It’s all at the Altadena Library Community Room, 600 E. Mariposa.

• Going through the free papers I: LA Weekly’s “LA Comment” section (which basically tells print-only readers what’s been happening in the online version) has a section called “Patching into Altadena” that might be worth your time.  It’s helping OUR self-esteem.  Also, transparently: the “intrepid Laura Monteros” cited in the article does write for us occasionally!
• Going through the free papers II: Pasadena Weekly’s “Best of Pasadena” issue came out this week,

Also thanks to several readers who hit the tip jar this week with words of support for the community news site that actually LIVES in the community.

If you have a business or organization that wants to get its message out to people living in Altadena,

Arroyos & Foothills Conservancy President Nancy Steele sent this announcement about guided hikes in Rubio Canyon — and oh, what guides!:

Join us for a guided hike in Rubio Canyon in late October or early November! Local historian and author Michele Zack and trails expert Paul Ayers will lead the hike,

Pasadenan Carvelles works in mixed media, collage, and assembly.  She has received “Special Recognition” for two pieces in 2007 from Upstream People Gallery’s “9th Annual Faces Online Art Exhibit”. “Will You Still Need Me” and Through the Looking Grass” both won awards of merit at the “53rd Bold Expressions International Art Exhibit” in Carmichael,

Foothill Municipal Water District is having a contest, and you're invited to participate:

Foothill Municipal Water District (FMWD) is sponsoring a California Friendly Garden Contest. Three sets of prizes will be given: one in the Crescenta Valley area, one in the La Canada area and one in the combined Altadena and Kinneloa areas. First place is $500,

Information supplied by the Altadena Sheriff’s Station.

Wed., Sept. 22
7:45 PM: A locker at 24 Hour Fitness (2180 N. Lincoln Ave.) was broken into.  Suspect(s) removed the lock and retrieved the contents.  Loss: personal documents, wallet, and lock used to secure the locker.

Sat., Sept. 25
Between 10 PM and 12 PM Sun.: Approximately four vandalisms were reported in the area west of Lake Avenue and east of Marengo Avenue. 

Weizmann Day School (www.weizmann.net), New Horizon School (www.NewHorizonSchool.org), and St. Mark’s School (www.Saint-Marks.org) invite the community to attend their 7th annual interfaith Daniel Pearl “Harmony for Humanity” Concert on Tue., Oct. 12, at 11 AM.  

The concert will take place on the Weizmann Day School campus located at 1434 N. Altadena Drive in Pasadena.

This special concert brings together Jewish,

Keep checking back, as new stuff is being added!

Fri., Oct. 1

• KUMI: Ten Years, a retrospective on the works of Ngene Mwaura 2000-2010 will be the one-man show opening at the Gallery at the End of the World. The exhibition will feature a body of work that has taken ten years to complete with many new, never-before seen pieces of art.  Opening reception is  5-10 PM. 

T-Mobile’s proposal is to remove an existing 35 ft. high wooden light pole and replace it with a similar-height concrete light standard with concealed panel antennas.  Plans also call for installing an adjoining equipment cabinet on a concrete slab.

THANK YOU!

For the past 14 years the Sheriff’s Support Group of Altadena has produced a free summer concert series in Farnsworth Park in Altadena in cooperation with our Partners, the Altadena Sheriff’s Station, and the County of Los Angeles Department of Parks and Recreation.

These summer concerts would not be possible without the support of our sponsors.

Pictured: flanked on either side by unnamed officers of  the American Association of State and Local History, is “Southern California Story” designer Jeff Lapides, author Michele Zack, and Glen and Amy Putnam from the Sierra Madre Historical Preservation Society, who were all honored at the AASLH’s annual gathering in Oklahoma City.

Altadena author Michele Zack went to Oklahoma City last week to receive an award at the annual meeting of the American Association of State and Local History (AASLH).

Per the scanner (and the chopper overflight), deputies are looking for a buglary suspect on Boulder Road right now (1:30 PM).

UPDATE:  Lt. Joe Dempsey of Altadena Station sent the following update:

On 09-30-10, at 12:55 pm, deputies responded to a home in the 2600 block of Boulder Road,

The Altadena Sheriff Station reminds us that there’s still a problem with residents who leave their vehicles unlocked and/or windows open, frequently leaving valuables in plain sight.

As a way to remind people who leave their vehicles open and/or valuables exposed, the Sheriff’s Department and its Volunteers on Patrol will be leaving behind a message —

• Arthur Balthazar, 47, of Altadena, was issued a misdemeanor citation for child annoyance by the Pasadena police, says PSN.  Balthazar was a former Pasadena High School softball coach and the citation involved alleged “inappropriate communication” with a girl he coached.
• Well, our little diatribe about Patch in LA Weekly this week went viral yesterday, being referenced by both LA Observed and LAist .

Each beer taste is $2, and owners Judah and Gail Casburn tell us, “We will be serving hand-drawn real ale served on a traditional beer engine by Craftsman Brewing Company.”

(We’re not sure what a beer engine is, but we want one.)

Among the selections:
English Ales:
Scarecrow Organic Golden Pale Ale 4.7% abv
Wychcraft Blonde Ale 4.5% abv
Fiddler’s Elbow 5% abv
St Peter’s Organic English Ale 4.6 abv
St Peter’s India Pale Ale 4.9% abv
St Peter’s Sorgham Beer (Gluten-free Ale) 4.2% abv   
Brazil:
Xingu Black Beer 4.7% abv (light-bodied black lager with a smooth light finish and mild bitterness)
French:
Trois Monts Golden Ale 8.5% abv (Brewed by infusion with strong and hearty Flemish Hops)
Gavroche French Red Ale 8.5% abv

Photo: vintage print of the Woodbury House.

Getting some preliminary reports about a mountain biker who narrowly avoided getting winged by a lightning bolt while on the trails — we checked the Cobb Estate, where three (count 'em) three TV trucks were in evidence.  More as we get it.

UPDATE: PSN's Brian Charles is first with this story : lighting got close enough to a group of hikers at the Cobb Estate to injure one,

The keynote speakers will be internationally acclaimed teachers John and Sonja Decker, the founders of Christ’s Ambassadors International, a worldwide ministry training teachers how to best convey the practical aspects of living the Spirit-filled life for Jesus Christ.

This 10-10-10 Eco-Fest is part of a worldwide campaign organized by 350.org to call attention to the climate crisis and to offer environmental solutions. All those who come to the festival will be uniting with individuals and organizations from around the world who are taking environmental action on this same day.

This is to ask you to please join your neighbors and friends beginning Oct. 9 from 9 AM to 12 PM for “Lights Up”. In the last email we sent we said we would start on the 16th but permits had us move it up one weekend.

As long as the weather permits,