Odds & Ends Around the Valley

Natural Birthday Parties

Young children’s birthday parties have turned into a booming business for entrepreneurs and a nightmare for some parents. Frequently the party becomes a full-scale production, with Mickey Mouse, Big Bird or a clown hired to entertain. Or perhaps the party is held at a local kids’ gym, where they can spill juice and cake on someone else’s floor.

An alternative to all this razzle-dazzle is possible. It’s called the “Nature Birthday Party” and it’s offered by Nursery Nature Walks, a nonprofit, volunteer organization sponsored by the Palisades-Malibu YMCA.

There are several different party ideas to choose from, and all are held in state parks or other natural settings around the county. “A lot of the parties feature nature walks and nature-oriented craft activities,” says Judy Burns, Nursery Nature Walk’s director. “We could take the kids on a bird walk or on a lagoon discovery, for example. They might make a bird feeder or a sand painting, and maybe we’ll give them bug boxes as a little gift to take home.

“It’s a way to bring kids into nature who wouldn’t otherwise get out. Obviously, the kid whose birthday it is has parents who enjoy nature, but perhaps the guests aren’t as involved in it, so it’s a nice opportunity for them,” Burns says.

The organization can handle only a limited number of parties each month, depending on the number of volunteers and the season, so parties should be scheduled in advance. To make a reservation, call (818) 344-2309.

Living Christmas Presents

If you’ve been thinking about adding a dog or cat to your family, here’s an incentive: From today until noon Saturday, all six Los Angeles City Animal Care and Control Centers will be giving away animals.

“The cost for impound, license, inoculations and spay or neuter fees will all be paid for by the Tailwagger Foundation of America and the Mercy Crusade,” says Dyer Huston, spokesman for the city’s Department of Animal Regulation. This will be the 40th annual Tailwagger Christmas Bailout Party, and Carnation Co. is donating pet food to each person who bails out a dog or cat.

According to Betty Cardoni, director of the Van Nuys-based Tailwaggers (a pet club) and Mercy Crusade (a group that lobbies for animal welfare legislation), 402 pets were placed during last year’s holiday event.

“We sponsor the event at Christmastime because a lot of people take vacations then, so they have time to stay at home with pets and settle in together. Some people ask us if we can hold the pet until Christmas Day because they want to give it as a present, but we can’t. We want the pet to get used to being in your home before the excitement of Christmas Day hits,” she says.

Tailwagger volunteers will be at the shelters to answer questions and to pass out brochures on the care and nurturing of animals. San Fernando Valley shelters are at 20655 Plummer St. in Chatsworth and 13131 Sherman Way in North Hollywood.

No News Cents

Recycling newspapers is the only contribution toward saving the planet that some people make. Yet in the last six months a number of grocery stores, churches, schools and environmentally aware groups around the Valley have removed their newspaper recycling bins. This proves rather frustrating for someone left with a trunk full of stuff and a single question: “What happened?”

It’s simple economics. “The present market value for newspapers has gone way down,” says Sara McEneaney, sanitary engineer assistant at the city’s Bureau of Sanitation. “The market wasn’t strong enough to support all these recycling programs. The paper mills would have to change considerably to use more recycled paper, and that’s going to require some laws.”

Putting it in even blunter terms is Bob Fagan, co-owner of Sun Valley Paper Stock, a recycling company. “Places that removed the bins were fair-weather recyclers. They weren’t willing to pay to have the newspapers hauled away once the hauling began costing more than the money they made on it,” he said. All the paper that his company buys is shipped to Korea.

As Fagan sees it, newspaper drives as a fund-raising technique are a thing of the past. “We’ve got a lot more newspaper than is required, so demand for it has to be stepped-up. We used to pay as much as 3 cents a pound for newspapers, and now we’re at a half-penny a pound.”

Until more newspapers are printed on recycled paper, the market will remain flat, Fagan believes. Instead, start saving aluminum cans--Fagan’s company pays 66 cents a pound for those.

Is It Still Art If It Makes You Laugh?

“Serious art that’s involved with humor is less visible than serious Angst- ridden art. Most gallery owners think art has to be 67% Angst, “ contends artist Walter Askin of Pasadena.

“People also have the idea now that art that is rejected in one decade becomes more loved the next decade, so it has to be bad now in order to be good later. But we forget that 95% or 99% of what’s rejected in one decade remains rejected.”

Askin is not complaining about personal rejection. His paintings, drawings and sculptures are included in the collections of the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, Los Angeles County Museum and the San Francisco Museum of Art, among many others. A showing of his recent work is on exhibit at Los Angeles Valley college in Van Nuys.

“My works are lyrical with narrative elements. I’m interested in art that’s serious but that also has humorous aspects,” he says.

The college’s art gallery director, Dennis Reed, notes that the show has been well received. “There’s enough going on in Askin’s work that it’s not off-putting to the general public. People seem to spend time looking at his work,” he says.

And they spend time digesting the show’s title: “Some Further Visual Dietary Supplements From the Aesthetic Kitchen, Being a Collection of Gregarious Divergences, Convergences, Preoccupations, and Fields of Attractions: The Recent Paintings, Drawings and Sculptures of Walter Askin.”

The show lasts until Jan. 18.

Overheard

“I’ve finally got the hang of living in L.A. I jog five miles every day, but I drive the two blocks to the grocery store.”

--Former New Yorker talking to a business associate at Stratton’s Grill in Encino