Columnists

Old-timer is a noun used informally to refer to (a) an elderly person, and (b) a person with considerable tenure or experience in a given place or activity. Recently I met with two senior citizens who have retired from positions of leadership and responsibility at City and County levels. Suzanne Ryan, former Director of the North Berkeley Senior Center (NBSC), retired early at age 60 in 2007. Louis Labat, Program Financial Specialist of the Alameda County Area Agency on Aging (AAA), retired at age 62 in 2003. -more-

The US is stuck in an economic quagmire featuring near ten percent unemployment. As politicians argue about the solution – massive tax cuts or increases in Federal spending – what’s missing is a succinct analysis of the problem. Why has America lost 8 million jobs? -more-

Today’s theme: The latest on Prop. 8 and pointers to sources to help you keep up on the legal proceedings. -more-

The bat should not have come as a surprise, given that the old house in Sonoma County had been uninhabited for a couple of decades. Some bats like to hang out in old houses. Still, we were startled when it bolted from its roost on the upper landing and flew a couple of circuits of the ceiling. It was a good-sized specimen of bathood, larger in the body than a mouse, with overall grayish fur, paler on the belly, and enormous ears. Eventually it took cover, but we found it tucked behind a beam with just its head and ears showing. We decided not to startle it again with the camera flash. -more-