ORANGE CRUSH: It seems sake and sushi...

ORANGE CRUSH: It seems sake and sushi aren’t the only things that tickle the Japanese palate. Orders for Valencia oranges have been so heavy that workers at the Port of Hueneme recently packed 360,000 cartons of citrus for export to Japan--the largest quantity ever shipped by Sunkist Growers. . . . If laid out, the oranges would cover at least three football fields, growers said. . . . Oranges, considered a delicacy in Japan, sell for about $1 each.

LAZY DAZE: Hundreds of Ventura County teen-agers head to the Punch Bowl swimming hole in Santa Paula Canyon each summer for a day of swimming and thrill-seeking dives (B1). . . . But when Charlie Robinson wants to take a quiet dip, he heads for the serene pools found along Sespe Creek near the Lyon Camp trail head. . . . Robinson should know: He’s the recreation honcho for the Ojai Ranger District. “The trail is dappled with sunlight, and you can find shade there if it’s a real hot day.”

IT’S IN THE GENES: Cheryl Partin, the newest assistant principal at Buena High School, has an education pedigree that goes back two generations. Her father, Jack Partin, was a teacher and administrator in the Ventura Unified School District for 20 years before retiring in 1989. . . . Her uncle, Bill Partin, was a school principal in Kentucky, and her grandmother, Kate Partin, was a teacher in Georgia. Says Cheryl Partin: “It’s a genetic thing.”

UNPRINTABLE: Getting a set of fingerprints is no problem (B1) . . . unless the fingerprintee is a squalling newborn. Babies keep their tiny fists closed too tight to get a good print, said Barbara Stephens, nursery supervisor at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura. That’s why most hospitals preserve infant foot prints as a sweet memento of birth. . . . But even that chore has its risks: “Sometimes you get kicked and smeared with black ink.” Her strangest request? “One day a mother brought in 6-month-old identical twins and asked if I could tell them apart by their footprints. I had to say no.”