Bill Brandt

The LA Fires and the CA Coastal Commission

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January 10, 2025

 

Over 20 years ago, my family rented a house in Bodega Bay, about 70 miles north of San Francisco. It is most famous for those outside No CA for Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 classic, The Birds. I strolled through the burg and went by a realtor’s office, with the various homes and properties displayed in the window.

There were 2 hilltop adjacent lots, both with the same view of Bodega Bay and both the same size.

One was priced at $50,000 (this was over 20 years ago), while the other was $450,000.

And over the years I have occasionally asked people “why the discrepancy?”  They are both the same size, next to each other and both with the same view.

Nobody could answer, even Californians.

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Christmas on the Northern CA Coast

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December 31, 2024

This year I didn’t want to make any plans for joining what family I have left (transplants from CA to MN), and decided to spend Christmas Day alone. Not that I consider myself to be a hermit, but I suppose an odd thing about me is that I feel as comfortable in solitude as with others. Nothing against humanity, but I can go either way.

Besides, I already have enough “stuff.” In fact, I think I have too much stuff. There is something to be said for a simple existence. The “stuff” can end up owning you.

Anyway, the thought popped into my head of driving up to the North Coast and staying at my usual haunt at Ft Bragg, The Beachcomber.

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Unintended Consequences

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I have enjoyed history for much of my life. Particularly when such profound consequences occur on the actions of one individual or act.  From watching the Netflix miniseries The Crown and knowing that Edward VIII was a Nazi sympathizer, I have suggested that Wallis Simpson, the woman who he chose over being King, was just as important as Winston Churchill in saving Britain during those dark days.

After Dunkirk, Churchill was under tremendous pressure to seek an accommodation with Hitler. Could he have persevered with a King also urging him to seek that accommodation?

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Around America in 27 Days and 8,396 Miles

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Way back in the 50s and as Lex would say, “when I was a wee nubbit”, we had a Beagle named Sam. And like most Beagles, he loved to roam whenever the chance presented itself, such as a front door not closed fast enough. When that happened, the task to retrieve him fell upon me. I would chase him down the street of our Studio City neighborhood and at that young age learned there was only one thing that he liked even more than roaming – food.

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It’s In the Small Details

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A few years ago, I wouldn’t have believed that I’d spend 1-3 hours a night watching YouTube videos. But this has evolved quite a bit from the early days of shaky cams, airplane noise in the background, and questionable advice. The questionable advice is still out there but is swamped by so much good advice and programming.

Although I haven’t flown as a pilot in command of my mighty 100 hp Beechcraft since the late 80s, flying and aviation safety videos have held my interest. Specifically, aviation accidents and their causes.

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