Rinò Minetti of Milan, Italy and Photographer John Daly of Nevada City, CA. They met online and have worked together to create these images from their work, Daly’s Photography and Rinò’s Digital Art. Sometimes a final image is made of one image from each, combined into a new image. Sometimes there will be multiple images from each, combined into one new image. This collaboration has been very creative and great fun for us.
We hope you enjoy our work.
John Daly & Rinò Minetti
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I’ve lived in Nevada County since 1965. As a licensed land surveyor and civil engineer, I’ve walked many a mile through the woods, and never have encountered a bear, a few rattlesnakes but no bears. However, as we crowd into their neighborhood, their natural food supplies diminishes and human sources of food becomes attractive.
“Winner of the Ultimate Hitch Competition – Freeman Yoder of Young Living Percherons, based out of Mona, Utah – performs at the 2013 Draft Horse Classic.” Photo credit: ProSportsPix.com
Awards for the 27th annual Draft Horse Classic, held September 19 – 22 at the Nevada County Fairgrounds in Grass Valley, have been announced. Gord Ruzicka of Viking, Alberta, Canada, judged the Draft Horse competitions and halter show. Dwight Gilbert from Nevada was the judge of the pulling contest; and Don Davis from Redding was the horseshoe competition judge.
More than 50 Draft Horse exhibitors – traveling from California, British Columbia, Nevada, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming – competed for approximately $40,000 in premium awards. The competitions took place during five performances over the four-day event.
The winner of the Ultimate Hitch competition was Freeman Yoder of Young Living Percherons, from Mona, Utah.
Dakota Messenger of Mark Messenger Memorial Hitch, from Cheyenne, Wyoming; and Katie Cook of Young Living Percherons, were recognized as the outstanding lady drivers, both accumulating high points to win the Susan Parnell High Point Perpetual Award.
The Teamster of the Year Award was presented to David and Patsy Cunningham, an honor bestowed upon them by the voting of their fellow teamsters. The Cunninghams are from Meadowlake Belgians in Carlton, Oregon. The Andy Amsbaugh Teamster Award went to Rick Newborn of Top Hand Ranch, Elverta, California; and Cadee Miller of Young Living Percherons, won the Youth of the Show award.
The Overall Supreme Champion horse, Hugh; and the Grand Champion Stallion, Ogdensburg HC Variety, are owned by Castagnasso Clydesdales and shown by Tony Knecht of Sonoma, California.
The Grand Champion Mare, Jansens Farms Kayla, is owned by Young Living Percherons, and shown by Freeman Yoder.
The winner in the 2013 Edward Martin Perpetual Horseshoeing Competition was Robbie Mederos.
At the third annual Classic BBQ Cook-Off, the Grand Champion was Jeff Lenke, cooking for Ash Kickin’ Smokers of Lincoln; and the Reserve Grand Champion prize went to Brian Choate, cooking for Smokin’ The Bandit BBQ of Plumas Lake. The People’s Choice Champion was Jack Simmons of Big Shot BBQ of Discovery Bay.
At the Harvest Fair, the People’s Choice award for the Scarecrows, as well as the Best of Division in the Scarecrows, went to Nancy Brown of Grass Valley.
A complete list of 2013 Draft Horse Classic awards, as well as all the Harvest Fair winners, the Horse Shoeing Contest winners, and a complete list of Barbecue Cook-Off results, is on the Nevada County Fairgrounds’ website at www.NevadaCountyFair.com.
The 2014 Draft Horse Classic is scheduled for September 25 – 28. Tickets will go on sale on May 1, 2014. Visit www.NevadaCountyFair.com for more information.
Operation Chicken Airlift began with a phone call last month from a California egg farmer to the Animal Place sanctuary in Grass Valley.
Thousands of “laying hens” that had outlived their usefulness were about to meet their demise, the farmer said. Was the animal group interested in saving them from death by carbon monoxide?
Thus began a unique rescue effort that will send 1,200 white Leghorn chickens on a $50,000, cross-country cargo flight this evening from Northern California to upstate New York. On the East Coast, the chickens will be ferried to sanctuaries where they will live outside of cages and roam the land without the expectation of producing breakfast for the egg-loving public.
Equity home sales continue sharp upward trend as housing supply remains tight in distressed markets
LOS ANGELES (Aug. 22) – The share of equity home sales continued to grow in July, increasing on a monthly basis for 17 of the last 18 months, while distressed sales plunged by half compared to a year ago, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) reported today.
“The increase in the share of equity sales reflects a market that is fully transitioning from investor purchases of distressed homes to primary home purchases by households. The market continues to improve as more previously underwater homes gain equity due to recent upward movement in prices,” said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. “As a result, we’re seeing a significant decline in the supply of short sale and bank-owned properties.”
Distressed housing market data:
• The share of equity sales – or non-distressed property sales – has risen on a month-to- month basis for 17 of the last 18 months and now makes up more than four in five sales, the highest share since December 2007. The share of equity sales in July increased to 82.9 percent, up from 79.9 percent in June. Equity sales made up three of five (59.2 percent) sales in July 2012.
• The combined share of all distressed property sales continued to decline in July, dropping to 17.1 percent in July, down from 20.1 percent in June and down from 40.8 percent in July 2012. Twenty-five of the 38 reported counties showed a month-to-month decrease in the share of distressed sales, with San Mateo and Santa Clara each recording the smallest share at 4 percent for each county in July.
• Of the distressed properties, the share of short sales fell to the lowest point since April 2009 at 11.6 percent. July’s figure was down from 12.9 percent in June and was about half of what it was a year ago, when short sales made up 22.7 percent of all sales. The continuing decline in short sales indicates more previously underwater homes are moving into positive equity as home prices remain on an upward trend.
• The share of REO sales also continued to fall, dropping to single-digits for the fourth straight month. REOs made up only 5 percent of all sales in July, down from 6.6 percent in June and from 17.7 percent in July 2012. The July 2013 figure was the lowest since September 2007.
• The available supply of homes was essentially flat from June but remained tight. The July Unsold Inventory Index for equity sales edged down from 3.1 months in June to 3 months in July. The supply of REOs inched up from 1.8 months in June to 2.1 months in July, and the supply of short sales ticked upward from 2.4 months in June to 2.5 months in July.
Pending home sales data:
• California pending home sales were essentially flat in July, with the Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI)* dipping 0.2 percent in July to 114, down from 114.3 in June, based on signed contracts. Pending sales were down 1.5 percent from the 115.8 index recorded in July 2012. Pending home sales are forward-looking indicators of future home sales activity, providing information on the future direction of the market.
Debby Biddinger, director of Tall Pines Nursery School at the Nevada County Fairgrounds. Photo Credit: Nevada County Fairgrounds
Debby Biddinger was recently named the 2013 Blue Ribbon Award recipient by the Nevada County Fairgrounds Board of Directors. The award was created by the Fair’s industry association, the Western Fairs Association (WFA), to recognize dedicated individuals who support their local Fair and continuously contribute to the quality of the Fair. Debby was recognized for her ongoing support of the Fairgrounds and its many activities, and for all her work at Tall Pines Nursery School at the Fairgrounds.
Debby has been the director of Tall Pines Nursery, a parent co-op preschool located at the Nevada County Fairgrounds, since 1985. She has also served as a teacher during this time and has become affectionately known as “Teacher Debby.” During her 28 years at Tall Pines, Debby has seen almost 3,000 children pass through the preschool, and now has some families with three generations who have attended the school.
During the Fair, the preschool is closed; however, Debby can be found at the Fairgrounds getting the Tall Pines Nursery booth ready for the Fair, where they serve Round Table Pizza to Fair-goers as a fundraiser for the school.
Raised in Nevada County, Debby has been married to her husband, Tim, for 36 years, and they have a daughter, Amy. Throughout her years at the preschool, Debby has recruited both her husband and her daughter to help out at the preschool. To them, it’s “definitely a family event.” Their daughter, Amy, has followed in her Mom’s footsteps and is now a math teacher at Forest Charter.
“I truly love everything about the Fairgrounds – and I love that Tall Pines is such a part of the Fairgrounds,” said Debby. “I’m surprised and overwhelmed to receive this award, and I feel very fortunate to be able to work in such a beautiful location, with the families and children I serve, and among the Fair team.”
“Debby is truly one of the Fair’s best friends,” said Sandy Woods, CEO of the Fairgrounds. “She has a deep love for the Fairgrounds and she passes that passion on to her little students. She is one of the guardians of California’s Most Beautiful Fairgrounds and is very protective of the facility. She is held in very high esteem by the entire Fair staff and we consider her part of the Fair family. We are thrilled to be able to honor her with this industry award.”
Debby was recognized in a surprise presentation at the Fair’s Opening Ceremonies on Wednesday, August 7.
The bidding wars are back. Seemingly overnight, many of the nation’s major housing markets have gone from stagnant to sizzling, with for-sale listings drawing offers from a large number of house hunters.
The competition has been most intense in California, where 9 out of 10 homes sold in San Francisco, Sacramento and cities in Southern California drew competing bids during the month. And at least two-third of listings in Boston, Washington D.C., Seattle and New York generated bidding wars.
Skyrocketing home prices in a few markets have some analysts concerned that prices are on the rise too fast and could ultimately hamper the housing recovery.
“In many markets, fundamentals are improving as unemployment rates continue declining, while low prices and low interest rates have affordability high,” according to analysts for Fitch Ratings, a credit rating agency. “However, especially in cities that never fully unwound the mid-2000s bubble, rapidly increasing price levels are a potential cause for concern.”
Many of the areas of concern are in California, where home prices have posted gains of 13 percent in the past year alone, according to analysts.
Limited housing inventories of for-sale homes mixed with rising buyer demand are mostly behind the rising home prices.
“We believe this level of housing demand is likely to abate once the pent-up demand is satisfied,” Fitch analysts said. “The supply is also artificially low, as recent regulations have limited the pace of foreclosure sales and the large percentage of underwater borrowers continues to hope for future price increases to be able to sell their homes at a profit.”
Having just got back from San Francisco, it’s amazing how time has changed the city and the way we live. I thought this film would really illustrate the major changes that’s happened in slightly over a hundred years.
This film was “lost” for many years. It was the first 35mm film ever that has come to light. It was taken by camera mounted on the front of a cable car as it`s traveling down the street. You feel as if your re al ly there, standing at the front looking down the street, amazing piece of historic film.
The number of automobiles is staggering for 1906. Absolutely amazing! The clock tower at the end of Market Street at the Embarcadero wharf is still there. … How many “street cleaning” people were employed to pick up after the horses? Talk about going green!
This film, originally thought to be from 1905 until David Kiehn with the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum figured out exactly when it was shot. From New York trade papers announcing the film showing to the wet streets from recent heavy rainfall & shadows indicating time of year & actual weather and conditions on historical record, even when the cars were registered (he even knows who owned them and when the plates were issued!).. It was filmed only four days before the Great California Earthquake of April 18th 1906 and shipped by train to NY for processing. Amazing, but true!
No wonder there had to be laws created to regulate driving habits. This is insane. Good thing they couldn’t go very fast. Cross walks had ‘nt been invented yet !
This is a fascinating movie. A camera on the front of a street car 104 years ago. I watched it a couple of times. Look at the hats the ladies were wearing and the long dresses. Some of the cars had the steering wheels on the right side, I wonder when they standardized on the left? Sure was still a lot of horse drawn vehicles in use. Mass transit lookedlike the way to get around. Looks like everybody had the right of way.
Perhaps the oldest “home movie” that you will ever see!
The Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) event at the Sheraton last Friday was a signal to all the water agencies and their hangers-on that the PPIC wants to be a player in the California water war. If you will remember, the first PPIC report on the Delta a few years ago proposed an honest-to-goodness Peripheral Canal and a possible water barrier across the estuary at Chipps Island. Of course, we all know the Bechtal Corp., whose foundation funds PPIC, builds things like Peripheral Canals.
The event, in two words, was a “stacked deck.” Not one voice of opposition was seated on the stage. Only the usual cast of characters. The “environmental” voices were all party-liners, too. All did their thing and none bit the hand that pays them although Dr. Peter Goodwin, the head of the Delta Independent Science Board, speaking to the concept of Adaptive Management, did allow that, “There is so much uncertainty ahead of us that we have to have Adaptive Management.”
Almost every other word he used was “uncertainty.” I like this guy!
When he came off the stage, I met him with the statement, “Peter, if you want to stop uncertainty, just leave more water in the Delta and forget the tunnels.” He smiled and Jeff Kightlinger of the MWD, who was standing next to him, made a quick exit.
I got a chance to speak in a public comment period after the next group. I wanted to take issue with a couple of things Phil Isenberg, the Delta Stewardship Council chairman, said during his presentation. Phil began by philosophizing, saying, “The American People like to have a choice.” I told Phil, “That may be correct in the other 49 states, but not in California. We can’t vote on the twin tunnels of the BDCP plan. Jerry Brown is afraid he’ll lose. So we have no choice.”
I noticed that they did not give me the mic, but kept a firm grip on it while I spoke and took it away from me when I finished so I couldn’t reply to Phil’s answer. I did anyway. Shouted it out.
The other statement I took issue with was when Phil said, “Water problems make environmental problems.” I hit him with the same thing I told Dr. Goodwin privately, “Why not just leave the water in the Delta and don’t divert so much anymore and we can solve both our water and environmental problems.” Phil, as usual when he is cornered, retreated into a very long Shakespearian-like soliloquy that had all the characteristics of a fog moving under the bridge into SF Bay and swallowing up the city. It’s effect is that pretty soon people even forget the question. I think I even did.
The gamin-like Ellen Hanak, the PPIC chairperson for the event, was a strong facilitator and generally kept things moving but I didn’t hear one thing that I hadn’t heard before. The people sitting with me were curious about why she would give us a free continental breakfast and decent lunch to listen to 15 people telling us what we already know. You don’t spend that kind of money unless you want something back for it. What she got was the top water agency guys whose egos love the spotlight inherent in such functions.
Although the PPIC line differs here and there from the water agencies’ party line–but not so much as to make real waves–one came away with the impression that Hanak just wants to be a player with a seat at the water table. We’ll see.
A couple of more free lunches ought to do it, I thought.
On the other hand, doesn’t the Bechtal Corp. build water tunnels, too?
