CONDOR-PROOFING: A California condor’s fatal brush with...

CONDOR-PROOFING: A California condor’s fatal brush with a power line (B1) came despite efforts by Southern California Edison and two oil companies to bury their wires in the condor sanctuary north of Fillmore. About 1.6 miles of power lines considered most threatening to the endangered birds have been placed underground, at a cost of $400,000, said Robert Mesta of the condor recovery program. . . . Under way: “raptor-proofing” power poles so condors can’t land, and combining several wires into a thick, easier-to-see line.

SWEET ATTRACTION: Supervisor John K. Flynn got an earful last week at a computer trade show in Atlanta, where he tried to lure employers to Ventura County. “Time after time, they complained about the high cost of housing here,” Flynn said. “That, and regulations on business.” Even so, about 20 companies expressed interest in relocating here. . . . And hundreds of people got a taste of Ventura County: Flynn gave away nine cases of locally grown oranges.

ART WHIRLED: Growing up in Thousand Oaks, Alan Scott Craig was interested in two things: art and boomerangs. Now 28, Craig has combined his passions by becoming a boomerang artist. Hanging in his Fillmore studio are boomerangs that look like birds, cats, fish, and snakes--and yes, they all return when thrown (at $65 to $235 apiece, they’d better come back). The aborigines who invented boomerangs threw them for amusement, Craig says, although a non-returning type was used to hunt.

POST-MORTEM: Here’s a way to save on funeral expenses: Donate your body to science. “We have about 18,000 people on file here,” said Bennie Dudley, curator of the UCLA Medical School’s Willed Body Program. Many are from Ventura County, he said. . . . The bodies are used for studies like the biology classes at Oak Park High School (Section B). Donors’ most frequent question: “Young people ask how much they get paid,” Dudley said. “They don’t get paid.”