PAPER THIN: The county bond crisis not...

PAPER THIN: The county bond crisis not only means cutbacks by local agencies, but in some cases a whack at their financial credibility. The Orange County Sanitation Districts headquarters in Fountain Valley lost its paper supplier--the paper company feared it wouldn’t get paid. . . . Even with a new supplier, sanitation officials say they’ll cut back paper use to “only essential projects.” They’re sharing thick reports: no more individual copies.

BLUE BLAHS: County government may have its financial problems, but at least it doesn’t have La Palma’s woes--clashing colors. . . . The city has completed a $500,000 renovation of its Central Park, but officials aren’t completely happy. . . . Reason: The huge blue rubber pad under the playground equipment faded to an unsightly greenish-blue in the sun. “It looks terrible,” says Councilman Duane F. Schuster. The city refuses to pay the $4,000 bill for the pad, but says it will have to live with the offbeat color.

BRINGING GLORY: The hot ticket this month at the Temple Bat Yahm in Newport Beach is for the Jan. 29 appearance of author Herman Wouk, whose latest book is “The Glory.” If you haven’t read any of his works, maybe you’ve seen one of the TV miniseries based on them (“Winds of War,” “War and Remembrance.”) . . . . Wouk, 79, rarely makes public appearances, preferring to spend his time in research--he moved to Washington just to be close to the Library of Congress. Tickets are $20, $10 for full-time students.

FREE THREES: If you’ve forgotten that the cost of regular first class mail delivery goes up to 32 cents at the first of the New Year, the Postal Service will remind you--by sending your mail back. . . . So what do you do with all those 29-cent stamps you haven’t used? In Rancho Santa Margarita, Mail Boxes Etc., which rents out postal boxes and runs a mail service, has come up with a promotional gimmick: It’s giving each customer 10 free 3-cent stamps. Any more, you pay for.