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October-November, Volume 7, Issue 7

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BALBOA ISLAND CALENDAR

NOV 19-20 CHRISTMAS DECORATING ON THE ISLAND - WE NEED VOLUNTEERS -
Call Eileen Haub—949.673.1426
DEC 3 CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING—Fire Station
DEC 11 BALBOA ISLAND HOME TOUR 11 am—4 pm
Tickets available for Sale the First Week in November at :
Even Sisters, Island Home, Let’s Go Shopping, Martha’s Bookstore,
Persimmon Tree, The Sandpiper
DEC 14—18 NEWPORT HARBOR CHRISTMAS BOAT PARADE
Starts at 6:30 off Collins Island http://www.christmasboatparade.com



SHOOTING THE BREEZE . . .Carolyn Carr

Excitement is in the air.  Christmas is coming and the excitement level on the Island is rising.  And so goes it at The Island Breeze as well.  We are getting a color copier and are going to have a color edition of the newsletter coming in the November—December issue.
This will allow us to show the faces, the products, and the graphics in living color.  Since I started Island Style and added new door mats and other products that look much better in color I decided to add color to my newsletter.  Doing it myself was the most cost effective. So we will have a quarterly edition of The Island Breeze in color.

We will also have the ability to print flyers for our customers.  Often there isn’t time for our advertisers to get to Kinko’s or Staples and then drop of the flyers here at Island Flooring/Style.  So now we can take a disk and print a flyer, collate it and put it in the newsletter—all at one price. 
and include it in the newsletter—one stop shopping!!

Check the Balboa Island Calendar above for all the Holiday Island Events coming soon.  I can’t believe it is that time of year already.  It seems like we just celebrated New Year’s 2005.

I am also excited that for the first time we will be selling tickets for the Balboa Island Holiday Home Tour on Agate Avenue—At Let’s Go Shopping.  Of course the regular Marine Avenue locations will also have tickets—Even Sisters, Island Home, Persimmon Tree, Martha’s Bookstore and The Sandpiper.  We appreciate being included in the festivities and supporting Balboa Island in any way we can.

Have a Happy Halloween Everyone—and don’t eat too much candy!!



PEOPLE WE SHARED OUR ISLAND WITH . . Helen Wick
I first met Helen Wick at the Balboa Island Improvement Association meetings where she helped and then led the Beautification Committee.  She was a shy person who didn’t really want to be in the spotlight, but she knew how to get things done.  And she did it without antagonizing anyone.  She had a way of pushing you without you knowing what had happened.  She made you feel good for helping.  She made you feel good, period.
I worked with Helen as Secretary of the Balboa Island Improvement Association during her two terms as President. She didn’t want that job either, but she took it and was great.
It was a time of transition on the Island.  More and more people were coming to the Island who didn’t necessarily understand the “small town” we had here.  Where neighbors and family were important.  Where many residents had lived here most of their life—either in the summer or year around—and were resistant to change.  But at the same time there was a need for change.  More participation in the Christmas decorating (Helen’s house on Ruby was always gorgeous), rewarding those who did decorate, more communication with the residents, new events like the Parade and the Home Tour and the beginning of capital improvements like underground lighting. She helped bring us all into the 21st century.
When Helen died of cancer this spring it was a great loss to all of us.  She worked for the Island, she worked for the City of Newport Beach (as secretary to the Mayor).  Helen was a quiet force in our neighborhood and we will miss her very much.
In June, the Balboa Island Parade was dedicated to Helen, but that certainly wasn’t enough of a thank you to this wonderful person from Balboa Island.  Thank you Helen. I am sure you are organizing the “Beautification Committee” in heaven.



TIPS OF THE MONTH . . . OVERDRAFT FEES
Using your overdraft account?  This first tip couldn’t possibly affect anyone on Balboa Island, but I will let you in on a secret that the banks won’t normally tell you. 
If you think you might overdraw your account you can go to the bank and take an advance from your overdraft account to cover all your checks which will cost you a lot less than the cost of fees for individual checks that cause the overdraft.  When I went to do this at the bank to fund the starting of Island Style, the teller had never heard of it (she asked a supervisor who gave her the correct form)!! That’s when I realized that the bank doesn’t usually tell you about this—I just have a great banker who did.


PROTECTING YOUR FINANCIAL PAPERS IN A NATURAL DISASTER
With all the evacuations along the Gulf Coast recently it is a good time to think about what would happen if we had to evacuate—for an earthquake, a flood or whatever.
The Red Cross recommends preparing a personal disaster and evacuation plan.  Along with supplies of food, water and medications you should also pack important financial documents.  If a natural disaster leaves you homeless, these documents and records will make it easier to apply for benefits, relocate or rebuild. 
These Items are recommended:
Photographs of every member of your family for identification in location of missing relatives.
Copies of Passports, Birth Certificates, etc.
Medical Records
Marriage License and Divorce Certificates
Copies of your Wills, Power of Attorneys and Medical Directives.
The front page of insurance documents.
A recent Property Tax Bill.
Recent Statements from your Checking Accounts.
Put as much of this on a CD as possible and make sure it is light so you can carry it when you leave.



How Balboa Island Has Touched Our Lives . . . Faith Bowlus
Don (Bowlus) face was dimpled and baby fresh when his parents and aunt and uncle purchased for $300 the property here on Balboa Island that now is ours.  Don spent his childhood summers in the little family duplex that damaged the original bridge to the Island as it was being transported across on a trailer.  With the consequent construction of a new bridge came a new law:  no more houses were to be brought across.
Don’t boyhood summers meant hours on end of play on unpeopled expanses of clean sand and of swimming and boating in uncluttered, unpolluted water.  There were small barren island to row to and explore; islands now boasting homes in the $2,000,000 and upward range.
All was still slow-paced and uncongested in our city of Newport Beach when Don an I began the purchase of the Balboa Island beach cottage following our 1948 marriage.  The serene waterway backed by open, rolling halls we looked out to consists now of a still scenic foreground.  However condos, homes, and as much as I hate to admit it, skyscrapers now comprise the backdrop.  This once slow-paced beach town has become a fast-pulsed city of cosmopolitan opulence.
Nonetheless, the original charm and ambience of Balboa Island remain pretty much intact if one can look beyond the replacing of most of the quaint cottages for modern, two-story homes and can listen beyond the stepped-up pace of weekend parties.  Very apparent, still, is that small town atmosphere.  Though dampened temporarily by the influx of summer tourists; that wonderfully comfortable atmosphere of residents almost living outdoors, waiting to exchange warm greetings, prevails.  Perhaps the hub of this small town flavor is to be found at the Sandpiper, the one time “dime store” that retains much of its original function.  The cheery, outgoing owner of the business keep everyone up-to-date on goings on.



Dee’s Balboa Island Talk . . . . Dee Dawson
Autumn is definitely in the air, and what more idyllic a time to enjoy our wonderful Balboa Island!  As a teenager and for many Halloween thereafter, I can remember the magical nights of strolling the Bayfronts with my family or friends.  Many of the homes were decorated to rival the animation of Disneyland– easily.  After enjoying the spectacle we would go to late dinner at Shanghai Pine Garden on Marine Avenue. 
The years have come and gone, but our Island still remains a destination point to many non-local Trick-or Treaters.  A must stop for your candy supplies is Balboa Candy (301-A Marine Avenue) appropriately dubbed as “the sweetest place on Balboa Island”.  I got to speak with owner Stephen Bodenhoefer’s wife Janeen and had a review of the many new items they have added.  The traditional Halloween pre-wrapped candies are plentiful as always—either purchased by the pound, or in decorative sand pails filled with goodie—$15.99.  NEW!  For grown up festivities there were the most elegant party hostess favors—tiny boxed Peanut Butter-filled chocolate Pumpkins!!  At only $3.99 ea.—a definite Bargain!  Also watching your sweet tooth or on a restricted diet of some type?  Then you will definitely appreciate the “healthier choices” now offered in a candy store—fresh Nut Rolls or bagged Trail Mix.  But don’t forget the delectable hand-made fudge at the main counter. For special orders call 949.723.6099.
Annual Holiday decorating favorite The Sandpiper.  So many fabulous NEW novelties brought in this year!  Be sure to check out the “home corner” of the store where all such adorable ceramic items beckon you to buy them.  My favorite, the little Dracula figurine garlic holder!  Had to purchase the really red “Handsome Devil coffee mug for my favorite guy.  Many other ghoulish gag-gifts, spooky wind-sock and Halloween greeting cards in the store as well.  Coming soon—items for Thanksgiving and Christmas too.
This year I really liked the window at Just Basics—it has a warm, yet festive appeal.  Very nicely done ladies.
And just in case you overdue it on too many sticky treats, don’t forget the two Dentist, Dr. Steven Ballback is available at 949.673.7820.



Island Flooring is Gearing Up for The Holidays and 2006

New Products, New Products. 

We are adding new lines at Island Flooring Daily.  Nova Cork Flooring is a ecologically friendly flooring that comes in 12 distinctive patterns and colors. It is also great for sound deadening.  We use cork in a lot of our second floor wood installations to protect the people below. Cork really is beautiful and is a renewable resource. Forbo Linoleum is an another old product with a new market because it too is renewable and beautiful. Both Nova and Forbo are non-toxic so they are great for people with allergies as well. I am trying to add products that are kind to our environment so stayed tuned for updates.

Wood is always popular—and we just added a line of distressed wood flooring for $10.99 a square foot.  Distressed usually sells for $14.00 and up, so this is a substantial savings for the younger homeowner with an active family.  And there are many other distressed wood flooring options as well as all types of woods from Anderson, Garrison, Old Masters, Mirage,

Mannington, Mirage, Chateau, Patina and FloorScapes and more. We really have a wonderful selection of all types of wood.

For those who would like the look of natural wood and stone without the maintenance, we have Kardean Vinyl Flooring.  The line comes in Renoir, Van Gogh, Michelangelo and Da Vinci.  You can only imagine how beautiful the products are.  You can choose from distressed wood, barn wood, ceramic, sandstone, slate and limestone, travertine—to name just a few.