July - August, 2004 - Volume 6 Issue 4

SHOOTING THE BREEZE . . . . . .Carolyn Carr
This was an interesting month. Following the forced remodel of my house (See Fiberglass in the House) and three weeks living off the island on various Marriott properties during that remodel; I spent two weeks with my son Rob and his two sons Hayden and Hunter. They come to visit from Kalamazoo, Michigan every summer and I enjoy every minute of their all too short visit. This year we spent our usual week in Palm Springs escaping Newport’s “June Gloom”. Today is the first day I feel I am back to the Island to a somewhat normal life. I have missed being here. This is a very special place.
I wanted to continue my walk down the “Street Of Services” - Agate Avenue, this month. We left off at Let’s Go Shopping (Still my favorite place to shop on the Island) and In Bloom. Right next door is the Island Wash. For those Islanders who don’t have laundry facilities this is a blessing. A full service laundromat right in our own back yard. I have my own washer and dryer, but I use their giant washers for my blankets and comforters. This is especially handy after a couple of weeks of having the grandchildren here.
Next to the laundromat is IEEE. Friend Dennis Bress owns this family operated export company. It is all about computer parts and things I barely understand--like degaussers, firefly digital virtual libraries, and disc drivers. If you are in the computer field and want to know exactly what he sells then your best bet is to go to IEEI.com and check it out. Oh, and Dennis’ lovely wife Summer designed my website http://www.balboa-island.com many years ago and sold it to me when twins Nigel and Matilda were born. We both won in that transaction.
Wander a bit farther down the street and you will come to Agate 108- the cottage plate store. Cottage Plates can be found everywhere on Balboa Island. I have one of my own and I often give them as a thank you gift to flooring clients who are new to the Island. Cottage Plates are wonderful, personal gifts that everyone loves. Stop on in and see all the terrific designs both old and new.
Also in Agate 108 is Mary Hardesty Realty. Mary has lived on the Island and sold real estate for many years. She is a warm, professional lady who I love and respect. Her bright smile starts my day when I see her eating breakfast each morning at the Park Avenue Cafe - a favorite restaurant at this end of the Island. One final recommendation from Baxter, (Kathy’s Dachshund, at Island Flooring) - try Kelly the dog trainer - she knows her stuff. Have a Happy, safe Fourth of July!!!

FIBERGLASS IN THE HOUSE
This winter I was suffering. Suffering from itching!! I went to the doctor. They did tests—they couldn’t figure it out. We thought it could be a medication. Or a lack of medication. Or my nerves. Everyone was baffled.
Then came our yearly inspection on the furnace. “You have fiberglass in some of your heating ducts,” we were told. “The furnace needs to be replaced and then you need to have the ducts cleaned.” We replaced the furnace. Then we called the duct cleaning service. They took one look at the ducts and said—”Replace them.”
Apparently heating ducts are made of three parts—the inner layer of plastic, the next insulating layer of fiberglass, and then a flexible aluminum ducting similar to that used in a dryer vent. The plastic in my ducts had disintegrated over 35 years and the heater was blowing fiberglass into our house.
That explained the itching! And my breaking out in my face, head and hands which stuck out of the covers at night. My heating vent was aimed at my bed. It also explained why when I put my nightgowns on (they hung on the back of the bedroom door under the vent) it felt like little needles were sticking into me—they were!!!
Now that the problem had been pinpointed—what were we to do. Obviously replace the vents. And of course most of them were in the ceiling in the hallway—inaccessible from the attic. That meant cutting holes in the ceiling, pulling the vents out and replacing the old ones. For that we hired Cool Solutions. Cool Solutions came highly recommended from Joe Lipnik, one of the Island builders, and our experience with them was wonderful. They were efficient, relatively inexpensive and clean—I would recommend them for any heating and cooling needs you have.
Next, I went on the internet—to FIN—Fiberglass Information Network. I learned that I needed to get rid of the carpet, paint the badly contaminated rooms, get rid of contaminated furniture, bedding and even clothes—all of which I did. And I needed to take cold showers to wash the fiberglass off my body—not nice hot ones which would open the pores and let the fiberglass in.
Thank goodness we are in the flooring business—none of this was covered by homeowners insurance. We tore up the carpet, HEPA vacuumed the walls and floors, and threw out the couch (over the second floor balcony—the neighbors watched in fascination as my carpet installers pulled their truck up on the sidewalk and hauled the couch out to the top of their van).
Every knick knack went into the dishwasher, china and silver came out of the armoires. And everything was packed in boxes on the patio—for a month! It was like moving without going anywhere.
We now have new paint, new hardwood in the living and dining room, new baseboards, and new carpet in the hall and the bedroom. Great products to show our customers—there is always a silver lining. As soon as I recover from this forced remodel I will have an open house at Island Flooring and invite everyone over to see our Extreme Makeover!!!

BALBOA ISLAND HISTORY. . .Jim Jennings LARRY CAPUNE
This story is in memory of a special person who lived on Balboa Island since 1962. Larry Capune passed on May 25th, 2004 of cancer.
Larry is the person who showed the movies several nights a week on Onyx and S. Bayfront and had been doing so since the 1960s.
Larry was also a long range surfboarder. Three of his surfboard trips were from Portland, Maine to Corpus Christy, Texas; from Vancouver to San Diego; and From San Francisco to Newport Beach.
Larry will be missed by many of us Balboa Islanders.

TIPS OF THE MONTH
Put your cell phone number on forms and applications to prevent unwanted phone calls. At this point, solicitors cannot call cell phone numbers because you would be the one paying for their solicitations.
Recently there have been many articles relating the taking of estrogen to cancer and heart disease. Many women have stopped taking hormones as a result and are suffering from hot flashes and other symptoms.
What the studies don’t tell you is that the research has been done by drug companies on their synthetic hor- mones (Premarin and the like). There are alternative na-
tural compounded hormones available from holistic doc- tors. Several of my friends go to Palm Springs to one. I have taken these natural hormones, compounded by Ste- vens Pharmacy, for 12 years. The pharmaceutical compa- nies don’t want you to know about them because they are natural—cannot be patented—and they work without the problems of the synthetic drugs. After all my body has never had a deficiency of horse urine (Premarin).!!

BALBOA ISLAND BULLETIN BOARD
FOR SALE—Couch and love seat Like new. Sold separately or as a matching set. Traditional style with Jacquard print in rich fall colors. Shaped tight back with flared shape and pleated skirt bottom. Couch comes with 5-year fiber guard protection plan. Very elegant and very comfy. Will deliver to local area. Call 949.673.3724.
FOR RENT—BOAT MOORINGS—LITTLE
ISLAND— East Bayfront.
One side of Dock for up to 50’ boat. Other
side for up to 15’ boat. Also Mooring for Canoes or Kay-
aks. Call 323.876.2723
ELIMINATE YOUR CREDIT CARD DEBT FOREVER! NEVER MAKE ANOTHER PAYMENT. DEBT TOTALLY ABSOLVED—GONE FOREVER! NOT DEBIT CONSOLIDATION OR SETTLEMENT. NEVER GO TO COURT—NO COLLECTIONS—NO ARBITRATION. CLEANS UP CREDIT AND ENCHANCES YOUR CREDIT SCORE WITH PAID AS AGREED AND PAID IN FULL ON YOUR CREDIT REPORT. ECONOMIC FREEDOM IS A PHONE CALL AWWAY! 949.633.5903
http://www.ritewaycredit.com STUDENT LOANS QUALIFY.

BALBOA ISLAND WILL MISS LARRY LIFEGUARD . . . . . .DIANE BOCK
Larry Capune, better known to Island residents as Larry Lifeguard, lost his battle with cancer on May 25, 2004. He died at home with his twin brother, Marty, at his side.
Larry served as lifeguard for the BICY from the mid-sixties through the early seventies. He helped hundreds of kids with their paddle boarding skills, as well as swimming, sailing and rowing. All the while he kept an eye on the beach, directed the sweeping of the Beeks’ pier and helped kids lift their boats over the sea wall. Residing for years in his extremely neat and tidy house on Topaz, he could be seen washing his car nearly every morning and then eating a bowl of oatmeal at the Jolly Roger counter. His daily paddling workout was four miles, which he continued until a few months ago.
Far beyond our local area, Larry was well known for his paddleboarding feats. He has paddled the entirety of both coasts of the United states, having covered over 16,000 miles through the years (that’s more than two and a half times around the world). His longest trip took 319 days—from July 1975 to May 1976—when he paddled from Portland, Maine to Corpus Christi, Texas—4,255 miles.
Larry continued life guarding at Dover Shores Beach and also gave talks to school children about his adventures and about living a good, clean simple life.
He was an avid collector of reel-to-reel films and enjoyed sharing his hobby with one and all. His Thursday night movies have been an extra special part of summers on Balboa Island for decades. The location has changed occasionally—for the past ten years or so Onyx and the South Bayfront has been the site where enthusiastic kids and their families have gathered to sit in beach chairs and enjoy Larry’s film selection for the week.
When Larry learned at Christmastime that his cancer had returned, he knew that he wanted to show at least one more movie. A dinner and celebration was held a few weeks later, combining the many friends he has made over the years from Balboa Island and Dover Shores, The culmination of the evening was his final screening. The movie he chose for the occasion: So Dear to My Heart. That is how many people feel about him. He will be dearly missed.
Memorial contributions in his honor can be made to:
Surfing Heritage Foundation
305 North Coast Highway Suite P
Laguna Beach, CA 92651

AZ TAFT—Another Old Friend Has Left Us
AZ TAFT was a long time friend and client of Island Flooring. I first knew of him when I took over as secretary of the BIIA and noticed his name in the minutes as a Past President. Then I met the man. .
What a warm and friendly guy he was.
AZ was often traveled and occasionally I would watch his birds and take care of his house. When we worked for him he was a kind and appreciative client. He loved the carpet we installed and told us many times. AZ passed away on April 26. We will miss his friendly smile.

GOLF CART RIP OFF
I ran into Steve Bromberg, our City Councilman, at the Balboa Island Barbeque on June 27 at the Beek Center. Steve told me that there have been several golf carts stolen from the Island lately. He indicated that while some were taken for joy rides and recovered later; that others may have been loaded on trucks and transported out of the area to be sold.
Gale Hammerschmidt, owner of the Sandpiper, was the victim of just such a robbery. One morning she came out and her three day old E-Z-Go golf cart was gone. Gale had been to the DMV with the cart, gotten the paperwork filled out and was in the process of obtaining plates for her new cart . But the plates hadn’t arrived yet and the golf cart would be hard to trace.
She pointed out Mary Hardesty’s golf cart sat untouched next door—but Mary’s had her logo on it and license plates and would not have been as easy to get rid of as Gale’s.
The police have been stopping us for unlicensed golf carts again this year—and this is one of the reasons. Without a plate, a golf cart becomes an easy target for thieves. There is no way to track the registration to the legal owners. Many of the older carts do not even have VIN numbers, This makes them even easier targets.
You can obtain a VIN number from the DMV by taking the cart there and having them fill out the paperwork or by obtaining the paperwork from the DMV and stopping one of our local policemen and having him/her fill out the paperwork if you cannot get your cart to the DMV.
A lock on the steering wheel—decorative stickers or decals—a new key for the ignition (ALL club cars ignitions use the same key—have it rekeyed!) Make your cart distinctive—lock it up!!

LETTERS TO THE ISLAND BREEZE
You are to be given the highest award for all of the communication you put together for Balboa Island. We live on the Island and really enjoy reading your newsletter and now finding this site (http://www.balboa-island.com), I should not have been surprised that it was you. Thank you. I was wondering how to get a bleep in the newsletter? I certainly don’t’ want to sound totally negative, but we don’t seem to be able to communicate another way with some of the neighbors regarding the trash cans in the alleys. People constantly leave unsightly trash, items that they want to give away (old furniture, etc.), and messy trash cans behind their houses. We try hard to keep ours put away so that we aren’t unsightly and would appreciate others doing the same. Any feedback you can give me would be much appreciated. Thanks.
A Neighbor on Balboa Island (via the Internet.)
Dear Neighbor:
As stated in the Balboa Island Information Sheet published yearly by Island Flooring (It will be out in August) -”Please remember all refuse must be in sealed trash bags or covered trash cans. Uncovered cans may be cited and/or not picked up. “ And part of being a good neighbor is keeping our alleys neat and clean.

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Island Breeze Newsletters

July - August, 2004 - Volume 6 Issue 4