Just some thoughts.

On Nov. 4, we are going to be asked to select a new representative to Congress from our 25th District. To me it boils down to this: We vote for the person Washington, D.C., has picked for us, or we vote for the person picked by us. Steve Knight doesn’t have the big-name endorsements. He does have a huge list of folks locally who want him to win. So do I pick the guy provided by Washington who doesn’t even live in our district, or do I pick Steve Knight? I’m going with Steve Knight. He’s a veteran. He has a lot of legislative experience. He listens and votes for the people. Oh, did I mention that he lives in the 25th District?

The more I think about it, the more I come to the conclusion that the town councils established by Los Angeles County are someplace between useless and inane. Like the Acton Town Council that voted to tell the county that additional fast-food restaurants with drive-thru lanes are good for the community. Only one problem with that. I’ve talked to a lot of people in Acton, and I’ve yet to find anyone in favor of the idea except for four members of the Acton Town Council.

Now I just can’t wait to be driving through Acton on the 14 and see more signs for more fast-food places. We can have more large electronic signs and bright lights along the freeway. Just what is needed in the high desert hills of the SCV and AV. And the folks in Santa Clarita are concerned about three electronic billboards? Knowing Los Angeles County, those types of signs will soon appear all over the county roads and freeways.

I see that Supervisor Antonovich is against the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument. I’ll bet he would go for it if it were named the Michael D. Antonovich San Gabriel Mountains National Monument. It would be the largest block of land named in his honor. The interpretative center for that national monument could be another building with his name adorning the façade.

What with Santa Clarita Master Chorale rehearsals every Monday at the Methodist Church across from Henry Mayo Hospital, I’ve discovered that driving from Canyon Country to the hospital area is quite the challenge. From the 14 to Golden Valley to Soledad which becomes Valencia Boulevard and left on McBean. Taking Golden Valley is faster, but it takes me nearly two miles back in the general direction of where I just traveled. We need more east-west crossings in the SCV.

And not just the Dockweiler route already on the books. It heads too far south, just like Goldeen Valley goes too far north. How about something that is nearly straight from the 14 to Wiley Canyon Road?

I shall not mention baseball again until next season. My season ended in the seventh inning of the last game the Dodgers played this year. I may – and that is a very weak “may” – watch the series if the San Francisco Giants make it there. Yes, Carol Rock, you did read that right.

I wonder when the next round of “selling high-speed rail” will grace our little valley. “Hey, folks, step right up and let your homes, businesses and environment be destroyed as we build the high-speed rail through your valley.” “Just think: This railway will create 3 million jobs in our California economy.” “You can travel to San Francisco in just three hours.” (Of course it will take an hour or more on each end of the trip, plus getting local transportation in S.F. or L.A.). Oh, I left out this gem: “It will not be subsidized.”

Yes, folks, Jerry said our venture into the railroad business will not have any government subsidies. Even though every other high-speed train system in the world gets massive assistance from the government, our train, “California High Speed Rail,” won’t require any public money for operations. That should get it enough money to run from downtown San Francisco to the San Francisco International Airport – at slow speed.

We’ve come a long way since kids could ride a bike with the wind blowing through their hair. Looks like we’re raising a generation of kids with “helmet hair.” Folks spend thousands on a modern bike so it is as light as possible, then load it up with all kinds of equipment. We don’t know what is carried in some of those bags. (Paper, not plastic, of course.)

Soon most cities in America will have something called a Westfield Mall. Westfield might soon surpass Walmart in brand recognition. I hope not.

Days are getting cooler again. For all our problems, this is still the best place to live that I know about. Sunshine with a chance of joy is in the forecast again. I don’t find that boring. I like not having to wear 14 layers of stuff to stay warm. Don’t you? Sorry, you folks in Val Verde will be issued new protective suits to counteract the waste being generated at the dump if it expands.

Now back to my regularly scheduled thoughts. All of you inside my head right now, turn down the volume. Time for a nap.

Darryl Manzer grew up in the Pico Canyon oil town of Mentryville in the 1960s and attended Hart High School. After a career in the U.S. Navy he returned to live in the Santa Clarita Valley. He can be reached at dmanzer@scvhistory.com. His older commentaries are archived at DManzer.com; his newer commentaries can be accessed [here]. Watch his walking tour of Mentryville [here].