Ralph Gorgoglione

My name is Pickles.

I am four month young Maine Coon mix.

I am super sweet and absolutely LOVE to be petted. I will purr and purr when you love me and will sit in your lap. I am so very playful and will be your best friend.

I keep coming to adoptions every weekend but I never get picked. Other kitties get picked to go to new homes but not me. This makes me really sad. I really am a great kitty and will be your best friend if you let me!

Won’t you adopt me?? I have been de-flead, de-wormed, tested neg for FIV & FelV and am spayed.

I am also up to date on my shots and am litter box trained.

Please contact:

Jennifer (818) 422-0853 or jgreene@greene-house.com

Application Adoption Fee

Jennifer Parsignault

Heaven on Earth Society for Animals

Spay & Neuter Transport

www.heavenly.pets.org

spay@heavenlypets.org

(818) 474-2700 ext. 6

A large group of agents from my brokerage volunteered today to put together a colorful playground for inner-city youth today.

It was so cool. It was organized by a group called Kaboom.

There were also volunteers from Home Depot there also. They donated materials for the re-do.

I was part of the group who were painting. Suffice it to say I came home looking like an exotic parrot.

One of the agents in my office, Lori, sent me this email this morning. I am passing it on to see if anyone can help:

Could you please take a look at this adorable small Cocker Spaniel, she needs a very good home. She weighs about 24lbs, is 9yrs.old and very lovable. Loves other dogs, and good with cats.

My vet checked her out and ran blood work, she is healthy with no problems. I will be getting her teeth cleaned this week. She was rescued with my little 5lb maltese "Jack" She is in her later years and just wants to be loved.

I would prefer her to go to a home without kids under 8.

If you know anyone that wants a very mellow dog that will love you to death, please call or email.

Please pass this along to all your friends and family.

She needs to settle down in a home that she will stay in.

She has already been in 3 homes since the rescue.

We live in Southern California and are blessed with the perfect climate to fully take advantage of the outdoor living trend. Thinking of different ways to maximize this concept, I’ve become obsessed with the idea of creating side yard gardens. It all started by my desire to utilize every square inch of property to try to create a feeling of openness and privacy for my own modest home.

I started with making a list of everything I would like to achieve by using side yards. The list keeps growing, but here are the main points. I want ALL the rooms in my house to have an indoor/outdoor feel. I want interesting focal points that can be lit at night for dramatic views. I want to have more privacy. I want more useable outdoor spaces. I want to create a feeling of not being in LA while at home, etc., and I want to achieve it all in a very limited amount of space.

The house sits on an average-sized corner lot. Sure, I have a nice back yard and front garden, but…. On one side of my house I have a 6' high garden wall that is covered in ivy about 6' away from the house. I keep the shades down most of the time on that side of the house because of the sun and the wall isn’t quite high enough to feel completely private from the house next door. On the other side I have old plantings close to the house and about 9' sloped of grass, and it’s exposed.

The easy side will be the side that already has the wall. I need to add height and shade first, so I am planting a couple of tree-like shrubs close to the wall. I had many discussions with very patient staff at local nurseries to find a tree that could be planted in a confined space, be water-friendly, and would grow large enough, but not out of control. I decided on an African Sumac. It has a tall trunk that will still expose the view of the ivy wall and a full top of light filtering leaves that resemble a greener olive tree. Perfect - it will shade the house without making the rooms feel cave-like during the day. I am also going to add some low-growing filler plants, and up lighting. I may add some medallions to the wall or a wall fountain, but for now I’ll create interest and a more open feeling with the views of well-lit plantings.

The more difficult side has taken many revisions. 9' of exposed unused space down the length of the house and off of the dining room is just not right. My plan is to plant a hedge to outline an outdoor room, add a raised deck the same level as the interior floor and put sliding doors in place of the windows that exist now. A tall hedge creates the privacy I want and the addition of potted plants, lanterns, and a bench will give me an indoor/outdoor room.

Carving out little nooks and crannies of space from side yards to create secret gardens, capture useable outdoor space, or add visual interest can create a more open feeling to any room. What a difference it makes to walk into even the smallest of rooms and have a nice view.

And for those of us that can’t see the city lights or the ocean from every window, it’s time to create interesting views that can become added features to our homes.

Pegi Miller is a partner at Himes Miller Design in Los Angeles.

Ms. Miller's design projects and paintings have been featured at the New York Design Center and the Brunnier Gallery and Museum.

818/ 654-2737.

Earlier this year, Californians saw an increase in their state sales tax. On the average, most counties saw it increase to 8.75% or 9.25% on the average. Some cities are actually seeing a combined state and local sale tax of 10.25%!!

OK, I get it. The state is in financial crisis and needs to generate funds to get us out of this mess.

But the other day, as I was ordering something from Amazon.com, and something clearly came to mind: the item I ordered, with free expedited shipping by the way, was coming to me with NO SALES TAX.

Then it hit me: This item is coming from out of state.

Then it hit me again: With sales tax being almost 10%, I think I'm going to order whatever items I need online, and from out of state to save me money in this economy.

Then it hit me for the 3rd time: Uh-oh. I don't think our state legislators thought this one through very well.

I'm not the only person in the state who is going to take this approach. And most importantly, this will drive retail consumer purchases out of state quite a bit.

So coming full circle, tell me if I'm wrong, but it seems pushing sales tax to the 10% brink may in fact have been counter-productive to California's economic crisis.