I had a blast playing Bocce Ball over the weekend with family & friends.  Most of us were Bocce Ball virgins.  Turns out it's a simple game to learn, very relaxing to play, and is doable for kids and seniors alike.  Even my friends who "never play sports" joined in.

I love the wildlife here in North Park.  It's great to live in such an urban neighborhood and be able to enjoy nature at the same time.  San Diego has more biodiversity than any other county in North America.  We also have a vast number of threatened and endangered species residing here, many of which are native to our area and found nowhere else in the world.  We're in a special place.

Today I admired this pretty Mourning Cloak butterfly in our yard.  It was enjoying the orange nectar.  For a couple years now we've been trying to attract Hooded Orioles.  So far this is the only creature who has actually been interested in the oranges.  But eventually we'll have an Oriole follower; they're all over North Park and they love nectar.

Another common bird in North Park is the Cooper's Hawk.  Anyone who feeds finches and sparrows is also providing a feeding site for Cooper Hawks, as they often prey on smaller birds.  Here are a couple of the Coopers who have visited our finch feeders. 
       

One of our favorite birds to watch in the yard is the Scrub Jay.  They've got big personalities.  They typically forage in pairs.  They'll come grab large peanuts in the shell or as many meal worms as they can hold, and then fly off with their load.  A few days ago we watched as one Jay took a long and enthusiastic bath in our backyard.  He totally soaked himself.  I was surprised he wasn't too heavy to fly away.



Of course there's always the proverbial squirrel doing gymnastics to reach the birdfeeder filled with sunflower seeds.

There are lots of Mourning Doves with their distinctive and comforting coo-woo-woo-woo calls.  In flight, their wings make a fluttery whistling sound, especially when taking off.

We used to see an amazing little coyote every night around 10:00.  He liked to eat the dates underneath the Date Palm at the end of our block.   They're resourceful survivors.

There was a big fat raccoon that emerged from the city drain at the corner of Dwight & 33rd on a regular basis; we'd often see him between 9:00-10:00pm if we happened to be driving by.  Cars and people did not seem to faze him.

I hope you're enjoying the nature in North Park as much as we do.  It's a fun and therapeutic diversion from our otherwise busy and complicated lives.

Ever been curious about all those names & dates stamped into our concrete sidewalks in and around North Park? 

Here's a website with a little more information about this phenomenon.  As pictured & discussed on this website, some present day developers are making an attempt to preserve these little pieces of history.

http://www.efgh.com/np/sidewalks.htm

These photos are of two company names in the sidewalks of my bl0ck; Griffith Company (9-26) and DR Daley (11-24).  Apparently the sidewalk on the east side of our street was laid 2 years after the sidewalk on the west...at least in certain areas.

I look at these names nearly every day, yet don't know much about who they represent.  While I couldn't find much out about Griffith Company, I did find a website for the Daley Corporation, which says the following;
"Daley Corporation is a General Engineering Contractor based in San Diego California with company roots extending to the early 1900’s, including a significant contribution to the early building of San Diego’s roadway infrastructure."

Hmmm...if sidewalks could talk!

I recently met a real true North Park native.  It was fun hearing her memories of growing up here in the 50's.  Joyce Abram was born in a hospital which once existed in North Park; I believe she said Mercy Hospital on Illinois Street (??) and moved into her family home on Gregory Street street in 1949.  She was 3 years old.  Her family still owns the house, which was a mere 4 years old when they bought it and moved in! 
She talks about what a wonderful life and idyllic childhood she had in North Park.  It was, as she puts it, "...just like the Ozzie and Harriet kind of families we watched on TV".  The neighborhood was filled with young families.  It was an innocent era with children playing in the streets.  McKinley Elementary was a top-notch school.  She remembers attending school and community events in the ampitheatre that used to be on the campus.  She attended McKinley from 1951-1958 and is thrilled that it has once again become a school to be so proud of.  Though she now resides in La Jolla, she has remained active with McKinley over the past 50 years.  She's done a great deal of work on behalf of the students and faculty there, including starting a foundation with private donations which eventually became the McKinley Parent Committee.  She's looking forward to the McKinley alumni reunion on May 1st.


She remembers fondly how North Park was the place to be.  Everyone who was anyone in San Diego lived in North Park, like local politicians and other movers and shakers.  As she says, "It was truly the center of the city."  University Ave was a vibrant area.  As a child, she often went to movies at the now restored North Park Theatre, as well as at another theatre that was located across the street.  She skated at the Palisades Roller Rink.  (Now The Palisades mixed use condominium building.)  She bowled at Aztec Bowl on 30th.  (So did I before the tore it down and erected condos.)  One of her teachers from McKinley used to routinely take the students to "Thrift Day" at the B of A; it was located on 30th where Cafe Calabria is now.  (She told me you can still see the vaults in there.)  Another teacher rewarded students for good behavior by taking them over to Carnations Ice Cream Store for, of course, ice cream.  (I think she said that was on University Ave.)  She remembers when the library on 31st & North Park Way was built, and what a huge event it was when Longs went in on University & 32nd.  She shopped for her school clothes at Penny's (where Pic-n-Save used to be) and at Schlass (now A&B Sporting Goods - still in the same location on University.)

At the little commercial corner of 32nd & Thorn she recalls the Pigley Wiggly Grocery Store and Roy’s Groceries.  The neighborhood kids bought their candy at Chris' Market on Myrtle & Boundary, which as most of you know, is still there today.  When Joyce was a kid they called it "Amelia's".  She was Chris' daughter and worked the counter.  There was another small market over by McKinley called Sterrett's Market (or something like that) but I was unable to dig up any info about it.

Thank you, Joyce, for sharing your memories.  It's a good reminder that North Park has so much interesting history.  It's one of the things that draws so many of us to the area.

Dick & Alberta Wagoneer moved to North Park 21 years ago.  Since then, they have been creating and maintaining what I would call the most striking garden on my street.  (My photos are not doing it justice!)  I've been walking by and admiring it for 8 years and I finally had the pleasure of meeting them today.  It was another reminder of why I love living in North Park; it's the people.  Okay...maybe it's the flowers, too.



Dick and Alberta lived for many years in El Cajon where they both worked as Elementary School teachers.  When they retired, they wanted a smaller home and something closer to the kinds of activities they enjoy, like going downtown to the symphony and walking at the beach.  North Park offered just that.  (They nearly purchased a condo in Mission Hills, but Dick plays the organ and the HOA wasn't sure they wanted him sharing walls with others; this led them next to our neck of the woods.) 
When they bought their North Park home back in 1988, it needed a ton of work.  (It had been built in the 40's by the family that also owned the house next door.)  Dick and Alberta worked on it for a year before it was ready to move into.  They have completely transformed it and, I might add, did so before North Park became a "trendy" place to live.   They had vision.



Naturally they've seen things change around here.  They joke that they used to the youngest people in the 'hood.  Many of their neighbors were original owners from the 30's & 40's who were elderly and unable to maintain their properties.  (But they loved their neighors, who were all welcoming and neighborly.)  Gradually those original owners were replaced by new, younger ones who restored and improved the historic  homes.  They find it amusing that they've now become the "old" people on the block.

They call North Park the "10 minutes from everywhere" neighborhood.  I couldn't agree more.