July  1997

YOUR CASTLE?

Homeowners, your home is your castle. However, in a Planned Unit Development, (PUD) -- and that's what we are -- your Association assumes responsibility for the exterior of the unit in which you live. Accordingly, you should not be surprised when Mike, or another workman, replaces rotted wood or patches cracked cement. He is only doing what the Board has directed. Please do not find fault with him. Rather, call Marysia Leu at Curtis Management.

LOOKING GREAT

The Weststar Landscape crew, headed by our own Vince, has made a real effort to clean up the canyon walk. Dog walkers, and others, please help us keep it looking as good as it does now.

WHEN THERE'S A PROBLEM

Most homeowners know that then they "hurt," a call to Curtis can clarify the lines of responsibility. As well, the management company can be very helpful in recommending service-type individuals when the problem appears to be a homeowner responsibility. But homeowners need to keep in mind that Curtis Management acts in response to the direction of your elected Board of Directors. Thus, when frustration mounts, your most effective course of action will be to approach the Board directly, during the homeowner input time. The latter is a feature of every scheduled monthly meeting.

CHURCH MOUSE

Actual announcements taken from church bulletins:
·Don't let worry kill you. Let the Church help.
·Thursday night -- potluck supper. Prayer and medication to follow.

CLASSIC VIDEOS

In the mid-1930's, Paul Muni, an actor all but forgotten today -- despite his collecting an Oscar for THE STORY OF LOUIS PASTEUR (35) -popularized the biographical film with his portrayal not only of Pasteur but of Emile Zola (37) and Juarez (39). And so the "biopic" was born, a film genre soon discovered by makers of musical films. Witness YANKEE DOODLE DANDY (George M. Cohan), TILL THE CLOUDS ROLL BY (Jerome Kern), RHAPSODY IN BLUE (George Gershwin), DEEP IN MY HEART (Sigmund Romberg) -- all available on video cassette.

Viewers need to realize that such efforts often take real liberties with historical fact, the movies concerned being little more that "approximations" of an individual's life and career. But then it's the music -- not the life -that matters. A biopic that may not be familiar to many is THREE LITTLE WORDS (1950) devoted to the musical partnership of Bert Kalmar (lyricist) and Harry Ruby (composer). The script makes the point that song writing is a business that involves give and take on the parts of the creators even as it obliges them to take the market of the moment into consideration: i.e., there hasn't been a good Japanese song lately.

Fred Astaire plays Kalmar; Red Skelton is Ruby. Skelton, in particular, is a refreshing surprise in a performance devoid of broad humor and the pratfalls with which he is usually associated. His presence goes a long way to making THREE LITTLE WORDS an amusing and endearing musical film that showcases such Kalmar-Ruby songs as "Who's Sorry Now," "Thinking of you," and "Nevertheless."

SKATEBOARDERS

have been observed on our walkways carrying lumber that they can place across a sidewalk and then jump over. Not only is this practice dangerous but when the wooden barriers are abandoned on the grass, it scarcely contributes to our "curbside appeal."

POOL MONITOR

This summer's monitor moved to San Diego from the St. Louis area this past December with her husband, a petty officer serving aboard the USS MCKEE. An employee of Calitec Security Agency, she hopes to go back to school, majoring in special education. Please sign in when asked. It helps in case of an accident.

PAINTING PROJECT

The homes fronting on the greenbelt between Outlook and Oakleaf have now been painted by Gold Coast Painting. The HOA Director responsible wants to extend a SPECIAL THANKS to two homeowners -- John and Louise -- who were most cooperative and helpful. In particular, John cleared a neighbor's patio so that the crew could get to the walls. As the painters went about their work, they spotted and reported a number of broken tiles that Barta Roofing will replace. Please, if you do note tiles that are broken, report their location to the management company.