Musings from a Los Gatos Girl

Some Los Gatos History

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Fri, 17 Jan 2020 15:36:00 +0000

Hal Burks posted this on Facebook and I wanted to capture it. I think it's pretty cool all the names that are on street signs and buildings were taken from these pioneers. I would definitely add in about the founder of the Pet Rock and how he used his profits to open the bar Carrie Nations. And how Woz built his castle and has lived in Los Gatos since forever.

Los Gatos Timeline
This story published on May 21, 2006)
The Juan Bautista de Anza expedition, traveling from Mexico to  establish a mission in San Francisco, camps on Los Gatos Creek in the  vicinity of Lark Avenue.
1791
 Father Fermn Francisco de Lasun  establishes Mission Santa Cruz. The neophyte Mission Santa Clara  Indians clear a path over the Santa Cruz Mountains to link the two  missions together.
1839
 Brothers-in-law Jose Maria Hernandez  and Sebastian Fabian Peralta receive the 6,631 acre El Rancho Rinconada  de Los Gatos land grant from Mexico. The adobe homestead, built near Los  Gatos Creek, is in what is now Vasona Park. The town of Los Gatos is  located within the original boundaries of the rancho.
1846
  John C. Fremont’s expedition to map California camps on Wildcat Ridge  (Cuesta de Los Gatos), a site above Los Gatos, before crossing the  mountains to Santa Cruz.
1847
 Julian Hanks and Isaac Branham  build the first sawmill on Los Gatos Creek in the Lexington area for the  booming Santa Cruz mountain lumber business. Logging will be a major  business from 1850 to mid-1860s.
1852
 Scottish entrepreneur  James A. Forbes, intending to build a flour mill, acquires 2,000 acres  of the original Rancho Rinconada de Los Gatos from Jose Hernandez.  Forbes Mill, the first commercial building in Los Gatos, is completed  two years later. The mill begins operating in 1855, but Forbes loses the  business in bankruptcy in 1857. The mill then passes through several  owners and operates until 1887, when fruit orchards begin to replace  wheat fields in the area. The building is damaged in the 1906  earthquake, and everything except the storage annex is demolished in  1916. In 1950, the mill is designated a State Historical Landmark. In  1981 Eureka Federal Savings supports the restoration of the Forbes Mill  annex as a museum.
1857
 The Santa Cruz Gap Turnpike Joint Stock Co. is chartered to build a toll road to the summit.
1857
 Once called Jones Mill after Zachariah “Buffalo” Jones, the town became  Lexington about 1860. Eight sawmills thrived as long as trees could be  felled in the Santa Cruz Mountains. When the lumber supply ran out, the  town went into a decline. In the late 1890s, Alma and Lexington were  linked by a notorious “mile of saloons” – drawing a crowd from teetotal  Los Gatos. The two towns are now covered by Lexington Reservoir, built  in 1952.
1858
 Stagecoach travel from San Jose is made  possible when two privately owned toll roads are joined. Horse-drawn  coaches begin transporting passengers from Los Gatos to Santa Cruz.
1861
 Oil is discovered in Moody Gulch in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Four  miles south of Los Gatos, the oil field is one of the first on the West  Coast. The endeavor is not profitable and drilling ends in 1912. The  operation is suspended in 1921.
1868
 John W. Lyndon purchases  100 acres in what will be the heart of town and develops downtown Los  Gatos. He starts the town’s first bank, cannery and gas company.
1877
 The town of Alma, originally called Forest House, is founded about a  mile south of Lexington. The town becomes a bustling stagecoach stop.
1878
 The arrival of the first South Pacific Coast Railroad, on a narrow-gauge track, connects Alameda and San Jose to Santa Cruz.
 1882
The Los Gatos Canning Co. is established on North Santa Cruz Avenue to  handle the profusion of produce from local orchards. The company is  bought by George Hooke in 1894 and then by the Hunt Brothers in 1906. In  1907, Hunt Brothers move the cannery to the corner of North Santa Cruz  and Saratoga avenues, where it remains until the business closes in  1955.
1883
 Vigilante justice is exacted on young Incarnacion  Garcia, who is accused of stabbing to death Rafael Miraville. Within a  half-hour of the murder, Garcia is hanged from the Main Street bridge.  Later, witnesses at the inquest are unable to identify any of the more  than 200 people who viewed the hanging.
1883
 Inventor John  Bean moves to Los Gatos for health reasons. Upon discovering that his  trees have scale, he invents a continuous-action insecticide spray pump.  His inventions expand from spray pumps to clothes washers, and by 1928  the highly successful John Bean Manufacturing Co. merges with the  Anderson-Barngrover Manufacturing Co. to become Food Machinery Corp., or  FMC.
1886
 The Southern Pacific Railroad acquires the  mountain rail line from the South Pacific Coast Railroad. The  difficult-to-maintain line is discontinued in 1940 because of storm  damage and increasing competition for passenger traffic from auto and  bus transportation using Highway 17.
 1887
 T
 he Town of Los Gatos incorporates.
 1888
 The Sacred Heart Novitiate opens on ranch land that the Jesuit order  bought from Harvey Wilcox in 1886. In addition to Jesuit studies, the  Novitiate operates a winery from 1888 to 1985. The Novitiate was renamed  the Jesuit Center in 1968 and now serves as housing for retired  priests.
1891
 In July, fire destroys buildings on both sides of East Main Street from the bridge to College Avenue.
1891
 The Queen Anne-style Coggeshall House is built by J.J. Hill at 115 N.  Santa Cruz Ave. For 60 years the house serves as a funeral home and  later a restaurant.
1896
 The first electric street lights are  turned on using power generated and transmitted from the Hume Ranch, an  orchard property located between Los Gatos and Saratoga.
1901
 A fire destroys much of the business district along West Main Street,  from the bridge to the railroad tracks. Nearly 60 buildings burn to the  ground.
1904
 The San Jose and Los Gatos Interurban Railroad  makes its inaugural trip on March 19. The railroad is mainly used for  passenger service but it also hauls fruit during the canning season. The  train ceases operating in Los Gatos in 1933. The narrow-gauge electric  trolley operates until 1938 when all the lines in San Jose are  abandoned.
1906
 The April 18 earthquake damages Los Gatos  buildings, the railroad tracks and the mile-long tunnel at Wrights  Station. It will take three years to complete repairs and change to a  broad-gauge track. Rail traffic over the Santa Cruz Mountains resumes  May 29, 1909.
1910
 The Los Gatos Telephone Co., the first  local phone service, incorporates. In 1931 the city council votes to  remove the “unsightly” telephone poles from the downtown in favor of  underground wires.
1910
 Highway 17, from Santa Cruz along the  old Santa Cruz Highway to Los Gatos, opens to automobile traffic. It  will be 10 years before the road is paved. The 16-foot wide, curved  highway opens to traffic in 1921, funded by a state bond measure passed  in 1911.
1913
 Los Gatos Town Hall located on East Main Street  is built and will house city government until demolished in 1965 to  make room for the new Civic Center complex.
1918
 William  Riker buys land 10 miles south of Los Gatos on the old Los Gatos-Santa  Cruz Highway to build his utopian Holy City. Riker and his followers  living in Holy City are members of the Perfect Christian Divine Way. The  area is a tourist stop until the construction of the new highway in  1940. Riker sells Holy City in 1957, and most of the buildings are later  destroyed by arson.
1922
 A bond measure passes to form the  Los Gatos Union High School District. Three years later, the Los Gatos  High School on Main Street is constructed with money from a $250,000  bond measure passed in 1923.
1923
 The Los Gatos Grammar  School, later called University Avenue School, is dedicated. It closes  in 1960 and the buildings become the Old Town shopping center.
 1925
 The Cats Estate, home of writer Charles Erskine Scott Wood and his second wife, poet Sara Bard Field, is completed. In 
 1922, renowned artist Robert Trent Paine creates the concrete cat  statues (named Leo and Leona) that mark the entrance to the estate off  Highway 17.
 1935
 Vasona Reservoir is constructed with federal  funds made available by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during  the Depression.
 1935
 Ming Quong Children’s Center in Los Gatos,  an orphanage for Chinese girls, opens. The home’s origins are from  Presbyterian missionaries rescuing Chinese girls from slavery in the  1870s. The Los Gatos Strawberry Festival is started as a fundraising  endeavor for the orphanage.
1940
 Highway 17 as we know it  today opens after nine years of construction and $9 million in expenses.  It replaced 100 years of logging trails, stagecoach routes and rail  lines. The highway opens to traffic near what is now Lexington  Reservoir, 1.8 miles south of Los Gatos.
 1952
 The Lexington Dam  and reservoir are completed. The reservoir covers the historic towns of  Alma and Lexington. The initial bond election for $2.5 million passed  Oct. 7, 1947.
1963
 Hotel Lyndon is demolished. The once-elegant hotel located on Main Street and Santa Cruz Avenue opened in 1899.
 1967
 Old Town shopping center, purchased from the school district in 1963, opens as an upscale shopping complex and arts center.
1970
 The miniature Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad is relocated to Vasona Park.
1978
 Barricades are installed on North Santa Cruz and University avenues to  prevent weekend cruising. An emergency ordinance to outlaw cruising is  rejected by the Town Council in April 1979.
1985
 The Lexington Reservoir wildfire burns 14,000 acres and two dozen homes in its five-day rampage.
 1989
 Loma Prieta earthquake damages 850 structures with more than $250  million in damage, shuts down a third of the downtown business district  and forces hundreds of people from their homes.
1999
 Netflix, a DVD rental-by-mail business with headquarters in Los Gatos, launches its subscription service.

Holy Cow

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 20 Apr 2015 03:06:00 +0000

I never knew anyone read what I wrote and then I was mentioned on a Facebook page today.

Ok, Ok, I'll brush off the dust and get posting again.

There is a lot happening with North 40 right near me, the new Netflix buildings, the new stuff where Swanson Ford was, and the tearing down of the Sisters of the Holy Name off of ...ok, it's not College there...is it?

Anyway, OK, I'll start blogging again.

Fall Fashion Palooza

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 14:17:00 +0000

Hi, all! Just a quick post.

My friend Hasti Kashfia, The Bay Area Fashionista, is hosting a fundraiser for the Los Gatos Education Foundation this Sunday September 19, 2010 from 12:30-3:30 in the Opera House downtown.

You can buy tickets for the Fall Fashion Palooza online at LGEF.org

Had to adjust the settings for comments

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Thu, 27 May 2010 12:43:00 +0000

Hi, fans, I set the comment setting to require a google id, sorry to have to clamp down but I keep waking up to 20 spammy comments and it's taking me too much time to remove them. Hopefully we can go back to normal later when they go away.

I've been busy again

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Wed, 26 May 2010 12:52:00 +0000

I'm not sure where the time flies. The kid is going to be 12.

The garden is in again, 22 tomato plants, 12 pepper plants and oodles of squash and cucumbers. I'm going to move my gardening talk to Suburban Vegetable Gardener.

And for Los Gatos. Ok, I'm supporting Mike Wasserman for County Supervisor. Why? Because he's a great guy, a fiscal conservative, and in these odd times of money getting swiped by the state and feds, I want someone smart steering the county.

Great Pic of the new Mayor & Vice Mayor

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 16:20:00 +0000

Here's the swearing in of Diane McNutt and Joe Pirzynski which was on November 16th.

Happy Thanksgiving

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 16:20:00 +0000

Wishing all of my readers (yes, all 2 of you, hi, mom & dad) a Happy Thanksgiving :-)

Congraulations to Diane McNutt

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:44:00 +0000

Congratulations to Diane McNutt for being elected Mayor. She brings a level head and strong leadership. It's amazing how much she does, and I am grateful.
She still runs her own business, McNutt & Company doing PR and marketing.
And I hope she starts up her blog again.

Squirrel in the Attic

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 16:24:00 +0000

So we got our roof replaced, thankfully right before the first rain in October (and that was a doozy)

Actually I had this post written and then it didn't get saved. Lesson learned. When blogging, save regularly.

So, a squirrel got caught up there somehow. We could hear something running around on top of the ceiling. I couldn't bear the thought of a critter hurting. And I called all around different agencies.

Bottom line, if you have a squirrel in the attic, it's your responsiblity.

I started researching online to find a Haveaheart trap. I was shocked that neither Ace nor Home Depot keep them in stock! Thankfully, OSH does, and I zipped down to the one off of Branham, and they had a good selection of humane traps.

I then stopped at the Wild Bird Store to find out what will tempt the little squirrel. Answer is the same as for rats: peanut butter. I did pick up some bird seed as well.

Well, bottom line, I hope the critter found a way out because after 2 weeks, I didn't catch anything. It's now below the house trying to capture a rat. I want to release the poor thing, but I'm outvoted.

Here's a link to the Haveaheart website dealing with trapping squirrels.

Missing McWhorter's

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 01:54:00 +0000

I know I sound like an old fuddy sitting on the porch, but I really really miss McWhorter's. When I rented in Mountain View, I would go to the one in Sunnyvale to get notecards. When I was active in ABATE, I would go to the one off of Saratoga and Moorpark to get tickets for the 50/50 raffle. And I have so many memories of the one in Los Gatos where Trader Joe's now is located. I love TJ's and am very happy they're there, don't get me wrong. But I miss a store like McWhorter's.

When you needed a graduation gift of a really nice pen, or a fountain pen, you would go to McWhorter's. When my daughter was born, and I would walk down to the Live Oak Manor park, I stopped into McWhorter's and bought a scrapbooking kit. My daughter loves her baby book. I would never have done scrapbooking had it not been for McWhorter's.

And I think back to a time and a place that was so very long ago. I had completed my sophomore year at CalPoly SLO, and was so busy that I hadn't lined up a job "in my major." I worked 2 weeks at Radio Shack in Saratoga, and just could not hack the "hard sales" job, and walked into Wherehouse Records and Tapes and asked if they were hiring. They were. I was hired on the spot. I was also taking 3 classes at night over at De Anza to try to get some of my general ed taken care of. I'd take a break, and walk down to Di Martini's Orchard (now Carl's Jr) and get some fruit, and love walking around McWhorter's during my break. And a friend of a guy I was sorta dating worked there, and we three would meet & flirt. It was a fun time.

And I have a confession. I have long had an odd love of office supplies. A new pen and a notebook would send me over the moon. Even when Office Depot moved in, my loyalty was for McWhorter's.

And for good reason. I swiped this from the website:
In 1996 McWhorter's was purchased by U.S. Office Products (USOP) of Washington D.C. This ended the local ownership and our long affiliation with Hallmark Cards. USOP purchased over 200 small companies, attempting to form a powerful nationwide commercial office products company.

We bought our house in LG in 1995. And I would always get my cards at McWhorter's, sign them, and then run a few doors down to Mailboxes Etc. (now The UPS Store. I love Elroy & promise to devote a whole post to my love of the man) to get it out so hopefully it would arrive not TOO late after the person's birthday. And, let's face it, we all knew Hallmark. We were slaves to the brand.

I wrote a letter to the president (yes, I used the internet to research who he was and where to send it), and within 2 weeks, got a personal letter back from him explaining the situation. It went into more depth than this blurb up there, and I won't mention it since, you know, it was a personal letter, personally signed. He made me feel special. And he had my loyalty until the end of time.

So I lift a glass of Testarossa Pinot Noir to you, McWhorter's. Well done. I miss you.

Not the sound of silence

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 23:30:00 +0000

We're getting our roof replaced. They pulled it off last Wednesday, and the Los Gatos inspector took two days to show up. So the roofers are back today to finish putting down the felt, and then the steel shake. We went with Cal-Pac Roofing, and can also highly recommend Woods Roofing. It was a tough choice as they're both amazing companies.

So Wednesday, it was a funny sound of things getting pried off. Thursday, they fixed some dry rot, and the materials got delivered. Holy cow. Listening to them drop the stuff on the rafters. I mean, removing the roof sounded like elephants dancing. The delivery sounded like meteors hitting the house. And it would shake the whole building structure.

So, they're here today. The meteors are hitting a bit as they move materials around, and I'll know the sound of the hammers really really well by the time this is done. Wish me luck. And no, I can't blare music or put in earplugs. I'm waiting for a UPS delivery :-) After that, though....

It was time for a facelift

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 13:25:00 +0000

When I first started this blog, I wanted Orange & Black (go Los Gatos High!). And it was fun. However, it's time for a facelift, so I hope you like the new theme.

My garden is nearing it's end for the summer. I did buy some cauliflower and broccoli and cabbage and Brussels sprouts but I haven't planted them yet. I still need to do some more cleaning out of the old before putting in the new.

School has been in session for a month now, and the routine is finally settling in.

Until next time, leave in the comments your favorite thing about Autumn. Mine is the smell in the air. It's subtle, but definitely hinting of fall.

Plumber Picking

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:16:00 +0000

So, we had a bad plumbing problem this summer. Our wall was squishy. Walls shouldn't be squishy. We got the three bids and threw out the high and low. The high seemed like he was looking for more things to tack on even though it was already a pretty high bid. The low seemed to be really "lego mentality." He was going to come in, and just deal with it, but I didn't get the confidence that he would be able to handle the problems that I knew would come up. And they did. Plus, I asked him to come in and do a face to face meeting with dear husband to explain about the written bid (which took a lot to get out of him. Another big warning sign, no?).
We chose Nelson Plumbing. I Yelp'd about them. They're wonderful, and I'd call on them again. And did. But Mercury is Retrograde and so mis-communications are abounding. :-)
We found another leak, so it was nice to get that all repaired. The walls are repaired and re-textured.
We repainted the living room the same Navajo white (or whatever we chose). We still have to get some BRIGHT white for the bathroom. And dear daughter managed to convince us to paint the family room with a color. Woah. That was kind of hard for two nerds. We do like things to be simple. And she chose a lovely color that looks like very rich vanilla ice cream. Dear Husband has been good about taping and painting in the evenings. Now it's my turn to get the clutter cleaned, and getting some new drapes.

My next big thing - more coaching to stay working at my home office

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:53:00 +0000

My next big thing is going to be Success in Sweatpants coaching. I have already taken Trish Lambert's Winning with Elance coaching, and through it was able to land 3 more clients. It's not paying the mortgage yet, but I've got a good momentum. This way, I work out of the house and keep blogging about life in Los Gatos.

Success in Sweatpants is based on the book Book Yourself Solid: The Fastest, Easiest, and Most Reliable System for Getting More Clients Than You Can Handle Even if You Hate Marketing and Selling. Trish, a certified coach, is focusing on home based entrepreneurs. So if you've lost your job and want to start working out of your house, this is a great investment in yourself since it's not expensive, and you'll get a great understanding of who you are, what you want to do, and how you'll get there.

A common mistake when you start out consulting is to say "I'll work with anyone who will pay me." But then you end up with a lot of duds or people who don't pay. (been there, done that). And it really does help to have a focused niche. Like I enjoy copywriting. But no one really looks for a "copywriter." They'll look for an article writer, sales copy writer, or professional blogger. Then, word of mouse works in your favor.

"Say, Joe, do you know of any professional bloggers?"

"Why, yes, yes, I do."

rather than

"No, I only know someone who says she's a copywriter, but I'm not sure what that is."

Anyway, I get pretty muddled since there's so much I enjoy doing that I'll be going through Success in Sweatpants to get clarity, and to book myself solid :-)

Don't Miss Out on Leadership Los Gatos

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 20:35:00 +0000

Hey, you. Yeah, you. You can sign up for the Leadership Los Gatos and learn more bout how the town functions. It will make you a better citizen and a more informed voter. Maybe, you'll even learn how to become more involved in your community, and that's GOOD for everyone.

So check it out, fill it out, and get involved :-)

Oh, and Second Saturdays were so successful that it's being continued! Yeah! On the second Saturday of the month, go to the downtown where there are lots of specials, and helpful people who can show you all the cool shops that you didn't know existed.

Picnic in the Park

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 22:35:00 +0000

Dear daughter keeps wanting a picnic lunch, and why not? Well it’s 92 out. But we could picnic under some nice trees if we went to Oak Meadow park. Or if we walked down by the lake at Vasona.

When we were in Girl Scouts, we had a nice picnic lunch at Belgatos Park, and I used a picnic basket that was more like an insulated backpack. It kept everything in its place and the drinks stayed cool. It was nice having the utensils, not like you really need it for peanut butter sandwiches and chips, but, some day.

I should look into getting dear daughter a real picnic basket. You know, the kind made out of wicker that has the sides that flip up. It’s all delightfully mysterious. I remember a passage out of either The Five Children and It or it’s sequel The Phoenix and the Carpet by E. Nesbit which talked about the delight and the mystery of what hides in a picnic basket. You wonder if there will be exotic things like duck eggs, and yet you’re so happy to get a simple sandwich wrapped in waxed paper.

Maybe that’s what dear daughter wants is the fun of the picnic. I keep asking her what we should pack and she said she didn’t know. So perhaps I’ll get a real picnic basket and stuff it full of a mixture of the exotic and the every day (hey, chips and pretzels are always fun and exciting), and then sneak her off to a magical place where we can eat and talk. School will be starting soon, and my young daughter is going to blossom into a young lady very soon.

I hope she has a good time in sixth grade. When I was her age, Sixth was still at the elementary school, and we didn’t get to switch classes or have lockers until junior high. I know she’ll do well.

And now for your public service announcement. Don’t put cut up melon into the picnic basket without an ice pack. I had no idea but you can get food poisoning from melon. Eek. Be safe. Have happy memories of the picnic.

Compost Tea

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 13:56:00 +0000

Compost tea is pretty much what it sounds like. You take well-composted compost, put it into a cotton bag, and then dunk it in a load of water letting it steep for 24-48 hours.

Then it’s ready to use!

What I can’t figure out is, what do you do with the stuff left in the “tea bag?” Maybe put it back on the composter or use it as mulch, perhaps.

In books, they talk about mixing tea with water in a watering can, and then watering the plant. I am wondering if I can put it into my old miracle-gro container that I haven’t used in years, and if that would create the right mix, or if it would just shoot out most of the tea at the start. It’s worth playing around with.

I buy the J. S Stone Organic treatments at the Ace down the street. So I’ve got blood meal, cottonseed meal, etc. etc. around the house. In theory, this compost tea supplements everything but the calcium, if I’m reading things correctly. I’m sure there’s some calcium due to the eggshells, but I suspect it’s trace amounts.

The tomatoes definitely need their calcium. Just today, I was out there picking off some small green potatoes that had the tell-tale signs of blossom end rot on the bottom. It looks pretty gross.

I’ve read that you can dissolve Tums or any other generic antacid in water, and pour that on to give a quick shot of calcium. But is it organic? I haven’t finished wrestling with that one yet. And do I want to be pure organic anyway?

The compost is a good start. I’ve almost got dear husband trained to put leftover veg into the bag. Some day, I hope, he’ll buy me one of those composters for the kitchen counter where I can put the scraps in and let them do their work until I feel like taking them outside to the big composter.

When it’s cold or rainy, I do get a bit lazy.

What I Did with Compost

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 13:38:00 +0000

I was so happy when I was given a composter Winter of ’08. I did my duty of only putting in the right compostable materials and no fat or meat. My gardener put in grass clippings. Ok, honestly, I wished he’d just let them sit out & dry out a bit & then I would have put them in, but it’s OK. The smell wasn’t great. I did turn it somewhat regularly. When I’d remember. And then this Spring, by some miracle of nature, I had black gold.

Ok, by then, I’d already planted up my garden. Whoops. So for fun, I spread it around next to the side fence, and planted The Three Sisters in it.

For those wondering, The Three Sisters is corn, beans, and squash. In this case, I used Renee’s Garden seeds, which are Indian corn, red runner beans, and sugar pumpkins. And they grew. Here’s how they looked in the beginning.

Here’s how it looks now!

I got all excited & planted some Delicato squash as well. I’m not sure if it survived or if the stellar jay family ate the seeds.

What really surprised me was this:

I swear these are tomato plants or something. They just kind of burst out. They’re not really growing quickly like the other tomato plants that I started from seed, but maybe it’s because they started later then my seeds.

So yes, I’ve started another pile in the composter. The gardener isn’t putting clippings into the composter, so I’m not sure what’s going to happen or how much I’ll have. I may buy some straw to add in. And some well aged manure. Next growing season, I’ll put the manure on the asparagus patch.

And I’ll make compost tea for the rest of the plants. What’s compost tea? Find out next time right here on losgatosgirl.com

Cool Story About Growing Up in Los Gatos

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 15:00:00 +0000

This is the Los Gatos that I know and remember. The author Amy Graff writes about how we kids were free to strip down to our nothings and just play in puddles or sprinklers. No one worried too much about offending.

She wrote this article on summer in the 70s for young kids for The Mommy Files on sfgate. And she's right. We weren't a hippy commune. We may have had a few artists around, but overall, Los Gatos in the 70s were just families.

I wish we could be more relaxed and let kids be kids. Being a mom, though, I do have fears. And yet, I don't want to transfer those fears to her. I want her to learn to soar, make mistakes, and soar again.

And because I'm prejudiced, I have her here in Los Gatos where I think she'll have a safe environment to explore. Now I just need to get her her own bicycle. She outgrew hers and keeps stealing mine. Grr.

Remembrance of New Years

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 15:00:00 +0000

For years, our court would hold a New Years party. Well, if it didn't rain.
We own the long fold out tables and would put them out. Everyone would
pitch in food. And another neighbor would bring out their patio heaters.
Some years, this was essential! We would be out there in our heavy ski
jackets shivering until the heater would warm us up.

But we only got together twice a year (4th of July was the other court
party). (And we didn't need patio heaters for that). So this was a time to
catch up on the gossip and trade stories, brag about kids, share sorrows
about losses.

Then the kids got older. Some went off to college. Others wanted to go to
New Years Eve parties with their friends. Another neighbor started going to
Hawaii for the holidays.

Actually, there was someone who showed up at the house in the middle of the
party & set off the alarm. At first we were shocked & thought "how rude to
rob a house right under our nose!" And the police showed up promptly.
Which wasn't necessarily good since we had been setting off some fireworks.
Shh. Don't tell anyone.

It turned out the son was going to have a party at his parents' house while
they were away and this guy got the date wrong. And they forgot to lock the
side door. But the alarm was on.

And we huddled under the outdoor heaters snickering, and went back to
toasting in the New Year.

I do miss the get togethers, but it's a part of the process with the kids
growing up and moving on. Parents reclaiming their lives again. Some day,
the older residents may sell, and young families may move in. Then we'll be
huddled under the outdoor patio heaters again trading stories and wisdom.

Happy Happy Joy Joy

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 15:00:00 +0000

I have two announcements.

First, Musics from a Los Gatos Girl now has it's own domain. Please update all references to www.losgatosgirl.com

Second, I got my laptop back. (macbook pro) The Apple Store in Los Gatos is so great to deal with. And it really paid off to get the Apple Care. I don't abuse my laptop, but you know, it goes with me to a lot of places, and I use it, a lot.

Local Restaurants Where You Can Dine Al Fresco

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 22:01:00 +0000

I was trying to think of places in Los Gatos where I can eat al fresco. It's one of my favorite things during the early spring or mid autumn where it's chilly enough to keep the bugs away, but not so freezing that patio heaters can't keep me comfortable.

So let's list them, shall we? And put in the comments any that I missed.

1. Viva. Viva has a nice enclosed patio that is covered. You can get a
nice breeze going through, and you can eat out there if it's raining. I was
taken to dinner there by the representatives of the company that bought the
company I was working for. They were trying to get me to relocate to North
Carolina, and so I decided to take them to my hometown and let them eat al
fresco in February. And point out where Peggy Flemming lived in the hills
(Ok, not sure exactly which one is hers). Etc. Etc. The outdoor patio
heaters kept us very happy.

2. Crimson. Crimson has a nice space next to it that they enclose with
fabric and you can look up into the sky and kind of count stars on a clear
night. That patio is quite nice for resting your heels when you've been out
walking, which this Los Gatos Girl has been doing quite a bit. The food is
amazing. And the outdoor heaters are divine. You have to be careful with
the placement of them. When I went to Pearl's in Palo Alto once upon a time
over 15 years ago, the tables were too close to the heaters and it was
uncomfortable.

3. Trevese. Have they opened up their patio yet? I know that they were
trying to set up a lovely outdoor area, but it got shot down by the planning
commission. But I do believe they have outdoor dining.

4. California Cafe. I haven't been there when they've had outdoor patio
heaters. I think they don't use the outdoor seating area if the weather
isn't perfect. What's really fun is when the chef sets up some barbecue
grills and has special dinners. That is so worth going for.

5. The Cellar. Right next door :-) They have a marvelous outdoor area with
waiter stations set up for quick refilling of water glasses. And coffee.
Which is important. The tables have umbrellas, and I'm pretty sure I've
seen the patio heaters outdoors, but I've not eaten there when they were set
up.

Ok, so who am I missing????

I am so missing my laptop

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 16:46:00 +0000

I had to bring my MacBook Pro into Apple Store on N. Santa Cruz to get it repaired last Friday. It had the blue line on the left side for a few weeks. And I hadn't been able to burn a disk since March, so I had to have that looked at.
But, the real problem is that the computer would overheat. When dear daughter had it on her lap, I confess, I blamed her. And insisted that the laptop only be on a hard surface. Not much of a lap top now is it.
It overheated on a hard surface about twice a week. Then once a day. Then twice a day, but we were in the middle of the replumbing, and I said "I can't deal with this right now!" But then it shut itself down again. And I made myself bring it in.
The withdrawl is fierce. Dear husband is laughing saying that I really need to look into my addiction to the internet. Maybe I should go outside and putter in the garden.

Farewell to Smith & Hawken

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 13:08:00 +0000

I remember when they opened. I think it was the site of the old market. My buddies and I would go there for sandwiches or soda during lunchtime when we were in high school.

Then they boarded it all up, and what a remodel. There’s the fish pond in the front with the now huge Koi. I swear one time when I looked in, one was pregnant. That or too many people fed it. If I can pun a bit, there was nothing coy about those Koi. They’d mug you for any food they could.

I went there to get organic garden sprays that worked really well keeping the mites off of my brassicas.

We loved all of their furniture and tools. I think we got our wrought iron fireplace set there. We never set aside the money for really good outdoor furniture. Dear Hubby thinks it would disintegrate over the years if we didn’t have A Plan for storing them during the winter.

And he’s probably right. He usually is much to my consternation. I should mention today’s our 15th wedding anniversary. My gift to him is letting the world know he’s right more often then not.

When Dear Daughter phoned me last week to say Smith & Hawken was closing, I thought it was just our store since times are hard, and unfortunately, more then a few things are closing down there on N. Santa Cruz. Imagine my surprise when I got the email saying the whole company was shutting down.

I did some research. Scott Turf/Miracle Grow bought the company in 2004 and never figured out how to make it profitable, and were unable to sell it. So the company gets shut down and about 700 people were let go. That is a darn shame.

But Los Gatos Girl, you say, you’re a capitalist. It’s true, I am. I’m sorry to see a company go since competition is a good thing. But, there are good alternatives out there. Outdora has a huge selection of patio furniture, gardening tools, composters, and outdoor decorations. Because they’re online, they can have a wider variety and greater selection. They also have a showroom opening up in Sonoma. I’m so going to take my Harley up there when they do and check it out. I want to check out the hanging chair stand.

Delusions of Grandeur

noreply@blogger.com (Los Gatos Girl) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:43:00 +0000

So while I was poking around for a new way of displaying our house numbers and street on an address plaque, I found some really gorgeous ones made out of stone. You put it out on the lawn. Wouldn’t it be fun to have an estate large enough to where I could have a lovely and stately stone address plaque like the ones made by QualArc.

Thankfully they do have a good selection of lovely address plaques that would suit my house. What I like about them is that they have plaques made out of granite with brass numbers.

I think my favorite is the QualArc Edgewood Large Lighted Wall Address Plaque. It has five wood types and I’m in love with the Antique Copper. The numbers are vinyl so they won’t rust or fall off.

I wonder how it would look against the house. It’s tan with worn & faded brick facing. Still, at some point, we’re going to need to repair some of the outside panels. And then we’ll repaint it. I know dear daughter has one idea of the color of the house. When she was really young, she wanted a pink house. She’s been watching Extreme Home Makeover, and has a LOT of ideas on how to repaint both inside and out.

We had to go to OSH this past weekend to get a new sink fixture (you know, plumbers are replacing the pipe, so we might as well have them replace the kitchen sink fixture. I wanted to replace the bathroom sink fixtures, but dear husband said he wasn’t going to let that horse’s nose out of the barn.

It’s just as well since we need to have some carpentry repair work where a leak damaged some wall and floor studs beyond repair.

Oh, but anyway, we were at OSH and dear daughter said, “I’ll be in paints. See you later.” She eventually found me with a handful of paint chips. They were very classy and they went well together. Anyway, we’re in negotiations right now as to how many rooms we’ll paint.

But go check out those QualArc address plaques and let me know which ones you like best.