SCVNews.com | Opinion/Commentary: My Favorite Things

[Sign Up Now] to Receive Our FREE Daily SCVTV-SCVNews Digest by E-Mail

Inside

Weather

Calendar

Today in
S.C.V. History

February 4

1822 - Surveyor Edward F. Beale born in Washington, D.C.; cut through Newhall Pass 40 years later, assembled 270,000-acre Tejon Ranch [story]

My Favorite Things

The Good Long Road | Commentary by Jennifer Fischer

Jennifer Fischer | Saturday, Sep 6, 2014

Click Here to Get Our 'SCV This Morning' Newsletter

Tweet This

Facebook

Digg This

Bookmark

Stumble

RSS

Keeping it simple this week with a gratitude list. My 37th birthday is coming up, so I decided to focus on all things positive and make a list of 37 things I’m grateful for in or near the Santa Clarita Valley. Enjoy, and then share your favorite things, too.

1. So many wonderful parks for my kids to play at, specifically:

2. Hasley Park in Castaic

3. Valencia Heritage Park

4. West Creek Park

5. The new Castaic Aquatic Center

6. Great hiking spots and nature experiences, specifically:

7. Towsley Canyon

8. Placerita Canyon (and Nature Center)

9. Vasquez Rocks

10. Hart Park

11. Quality schools

12. Wonderful city events and an awesome Arts & Events staff

13. The SCV Food Pantry and Help the Children – two agencies that help feed the hungry in the Santa Clarita Valley

14. Castaic Lake

15. Wonderful libraries, especially the SCV Bookmobile and the Newhall Public Library

17. It’s A Grind in Castaic – my favorite coffee shop

18. Undergrounds Coffee – our runner-up favorite coffee shop – and the duck pond near it

19. The friendly employees at my local Ralphs in Castaic

22. The Egg Plantation

23. La Cocina

24. Grand Panda

25. That I was able to run the SCV Film Festival for seven years and received so much community support for the event.

26. The SCV Film Office, which was wonderful to work with when I ran the film festival and has been wonderful to work with as an independent filmmaker.

27. Leon Worden – I have never met someone more committed to his community in my life. I’m grateful for all he does for the Santa Clarita Valley.

28. My awesome neighbors in Val Verde.

29. The koi fish pond and Menchie’s at the mall – a simple outing my boys always enjoy.

30. Proximity to my favorite beaches – Mother’s Beach in Ventura and Carpinteria State Beach.

31. Proximity to the trains in Filmore, which my boys absolutely love.

32. Local organic honey just up the road in Piru.

33. Bike trails

34. Lombardi Ranch

35. Abundant Harvest Organics

36. Proximity to the Lancaster Jethawks

37. Our Friends.

Your turn. Spread some simple happiness by sharing what you are grateful for and thanking the people in your life that make your life better.

Jennifer Fischer is co-founder of the SCV Film Festival, a mom of two, an independent filmmaker and owner of Think Ten Media Group, whose Generation Arts division offers programs for SCV youth. She writes about her parenting journey on her blog, The Good Long Road. Her commentary is published Saturdays on SCVNews.com.

Comment On This Story

COMMENT POLICY: We welcome comments from individuals and businesses. All comments are moderated. Comments are subject to rejection if they are vulgar, combative, or in poor taste.
REAL NAMES ONLY: All posters must use their real individual or business name. This applies equally to Twitter account holders who use a nickname.

0 Comments

You can be the first one to leave a comment.

Click here to cancel reply.

Opinion Section Policy

All opinions and ideas are welcome. Factually inaccurate, libelous, defamatory, profane or hateful statements are not. Your words must be your own. All commentary is subject to editing for legibility. There is no length limit, but the shorter, the better the odds of people reading it. "Local" SCV-related topics are preferred. Send commentary to: LETTERS (at) SCVNEWS.COM. Author's full name, community name, phone number and e-mail address are required. Phone numbers and e-mail addresses are not published except at author's request. Acknowledgment of submission does not guarantee publication.

Ken Striplin | The Dangers, Consequences of Red-Light Running

Tuesday, Feb 3, 2026

You have likely seen it happen and you may have even experienced it firsthand.

Laurene Weste | Looking Ahead

Monday, Feb 2, 2026

As we step into 2026, I am honored to serve as your Mayor and am excited for what lies ahead for Santa Clarita.

Bill Miranda | Creativity on Display in Santa Clarita

Thursday, Jan 29, 2026

Santa Clarita is home to a vibrant and diverse arts scene that continues to inspire connection, creativity and discovery.

Ken Striplin | A New Year, A Shared Purpose

Monday, Jan 26, 2026

The strength of a thriving community is measured not only by where we live, but by how we show up for one another.

Kathryn Barger | Launch of County Homeless Services, Housing Department

Friday, Jan 23, 2026

This week, we officially launched the new Los Angeles County Homeless Services and Housing Department, whose work will have tangible, visible impacts.

Patsy Ayala | New Doors, New Energy in Santa Clarita

Friday, Jan 23, 2026

One of my favorite things to do in Santa Clarita is discovering new local spots to enjoy with my family.

Latest Additions to SCVNews.com

Update: LASD Make Arrest in Connection to a Double Homicide Last Halloween in Newhall In continuing their investigation into the shooting deaths of 30-year-old Elijah Harts and 27-year-old Anthony Mora, Homicide Investigators identified 19-year-old Alejandro Trujillo of Newhall, as a suspect in the murders.	L.A. County Parks Celebrates Black History Month 2026 with Free Events The County of Los Angeles Department of Parks and Recreation will celebrate Black History Month from Feb. 5 to 28, 2026, with free programs and events at 59 parks throughout Los Angeles County.	Feb.6 -8: The Cube Hosts 2026 West Coast Hockey Conference Playoffs The Cube - Ice and Entertainment Center, powered by Valencia by FivePoint, is excited to welcome back the 2026 West Coast Hockey Conference Playoffs.	April 18: Getting Married at Cowboy Festival This Spring is as Easy as Saying “YEE-HAW” Love is in the air, and now couples can rope in forever on Saturday, April 18, during a one-of-a-kind Cowboy Festival Wedding	Feb. 14: ARTree Community Arts Center Hold Open Studio Event for Kids ARTree Community Arts Center is branching out with its new Open Studio monthly event.	Regional Human Trafficking Task Force Announces Arrests, Rescues Sheriff Robert G. Luna announced details and results from the twelfth annual Operation Reclaim and Rebuild enforcement operation.
Feb. 7: Fall in Love Fur-Ever At Paws For Love Adoption Event at SCV Public Library The city of Santa Clarita, in partnership with the Castaic Animal Care Center, will host the PAWS for Love Adoption Event on Saturday, Feb. 7.	CSUN Students Research Sleep to Improve Student Athletes’ Performance How can California State University, Northridge student athletes enhance their performances? Learning how to get a good night’s sleep may be the answer. A team of CSUN students is conducting research to find out.	Today in SCV History (Feb. 4) <strong>1822</strong> - Surveyor Edward F. Beale born in Washington, D.C.; cut through Newhall Pass 40 years later, assembled 270,000-acre Tejon Ranch [<a href="https://scvhistory.com/scvhistory/bealeafb.htm" target="_blank">story</a>]<br> <a href="https://scvhistory.com/scvhistory/bealeafb.htm" target="_blank"> <img src="https://scvhistory.com/gif/lw2205t.jpg" alt="Edward Beale" style="margin-top:6px;width:110px;border:0;"> </a>	Feb. 23: New Water Main Installation on Calgrove in Santa Clarita to Begin To further its mission of providing reliable supplies of high-quality water to the Santa Clarita Valley, the Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency is installing a new water main to serve customers in the area of Calgrove Boulevard and Ebelden Avenue in Santa Clarita.	Feb. 23: SCAA Features Pastel Demo by Artist Leslie Hamilton The Santa Clarita Artists Association monthly meeting will be held Monday, Feb. 23, 6-7:30 p.m. at the Newhall Library Community Room.	CTG’s ‘South Pacific’ Opens to Sold Out House Canyon Theatre Guild opened Friday, Jan. 24 evening to a nearly sold out house and a standing ovation, the classic Broadway musical, "Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific."
April 11: Santa Clarita To Host Tree-Mendous Arbor Day The city of Santa Clarita invites you to grow with the city this Arbor Day at the first-ever Tree-mendous celebration on Saturday, April 11, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Valencia Heritage Park.	SCV 2026 Man, Woman Year Nominees Announced The Santa Clarita Valley Man and Woman of the Year organization has announced the 2026 list of SCV volunteers nominated for for the honor.	Ken Striplin \| The Dangers, Consequences of Red-Light Running You have likely seen it happen and you may have even experienced it firsthand.	Registration for LA28 Olympic Event Tickets Now Open Los Angeles County will be showing off unparalleled venues and views as a backdrop for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2028.	Feb. 5: SUSD Measure EE Citizens Oversight Committee Meeting The Saugus Union School District Measure EE Citizens Oversight Committee meeting will be held 6 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 5, at the West Creek Academy Library, 28767 N. West Hills Drive, Santa Clarita, CA 91354.	March 7: Fourth Annual WeWil Collaborative International Women’s Day Join WeWil Collaborative Inc. on Saturday, March 7 for the Fourth Annual International Women’s Day Live event, a powerful celebration of women’s achievements and a collective call to action to forge gender equality through abundant giving.
Solo Art Exhibit, ‘I’m a Part of Nature’ by Keiji Ichikawa at Valencia Library The city of Santa Clarita presents "I’m a Part of Nature," a solo exhibition by Keiji Ichikawa, on display at the Santa Clarita Public Library Valencia Branch now through Wednesday, April 15.	Lady Mustangs Make it Seven in a Row with Road Win Chloe Auble scored 19 points to lead The Master's University women's basketball team to a 76-63 win over Life Pacific Saturday night, Jan. 31 in San Dimas.	Mustangs Drop Final Two to Crusaders The Master's University baseball team closed out its series against the William Carey (MS) Crusaders with a pair of losses Saturday, Jan. 31 at Lou Herwaldt Stadium.	Mustang Swim Squads Dominate at GSAC Championships The Master's University men's and women's swimming teams dominated the GSAC Championships Jan. 30-31 in Aliso Viejo, winning both titles by more than 100 points.	Feb. 5: Parks, Recreation, Community Services Commission Regular Meeting The Santa Clarita Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission will hold its regular meeting on Thursday, Feb. 5 at 6 p.m., in Council Chambers at City Hall.	Today in SCV History (Feb. 3) <strong>1998</strong> - As disbelief about El Niño was starting to set in, the first of a month-long succession of devastating storms hits [<a href="https://scvhistory.com/scvhistory/fema030398.htm" target="_blank">story</a>]<br> <a href="https://scvhistory.com/scvhistory/fema030398.htm" target="_blank"> <img src="https://scvhistory.com/gif/gt9805t.jpg" alt="winter storm" style="margin-top:6px;width:110px;border:0;"> </a>