QUEEN MARY — C-17 manager Jean Chamberlain speaks to the Rotary Club Wednesday, September 30, 2009, aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach, Calif. She talked about the Senate debate on funding of the C-17 program, which supports some 5,000 workers at the plant in Long Beach and another 25,000 at supplier companies across the globe.

A hole in the street where a water main broke at the corner of Stevely Ave. and Bacarro St, in Long Beach, Calif. on September 30, 2009. he pipe broke at 3:55 in the morning flooding the street. No property was damaged. According to Matt Vehh, acting director of Govt. Affairs at the Water Department, Twenty-one homes are currently without water service, but it should be restored later today.

The pipe was 8 inch cast iron and installed in 1954.

Veeh said, “The water department has a very aggressive cast iron pipe replacement program.” They have replaced 2400 linear feet of cast iron pipe his year. Also, they have had a record low number of water main breaks this year – only 26. Their year for keeping track of breaks ends today. Last year there were 29 breaks.

Fala Toailoa outside his Long Beach, Calif. home on Tuesday, September 29, 2009. Toailoa has several relatives were killed and others who are missing after a magnitude 8.0 earthquake near American Samoa caused a tsunami. see more photos>>

Ron Sok puts pins a map showing where certian demographics are in a ‘hard to count’ area during the Cambodian Complete Count committee’s regular meeting in Long Beach, Calif. on Tuesday, September 29, 2009. The committee’s is trying to come up with a slogan, among other things. Poverty numbers were revealed showing Long Beach has a poverty rate of 21.3 percent among Asian residents. See more pictures>>

Just thought I’d share the massacre in my backyard – hope PETA isn’t made at me… actually, I hope they are!

The inaugural Latin American Parade headed south on Pine Avenue today, but for me, the focus was where the parade started – the former home of the Press-Telegram. The building, at the corner of Sixth and Pine, was a real newspaper building. It was dirty, there were presses and the only toilet in the newsroom was for men. The PT’s parent company sold it, and almost the entire block, in 2006. The plan was to turn the unofficially historic building in to lofts. That plan stalled, but not before workers had time to destroy the interior of the building. If you want to see pictures of the parade, click here>>

The picture above is now history, it is a postmark from the last day that parcels sent from Long Beach were stamped “Long Beach”. As of September 8, 2009 letters sent from the city no longer bear its name. All mail from zips starting with 906, 907 or 908 are being sent to Orange County and will be stamped “Santa Ana”. Postal customers can request a special hand stamp if they must have the LBC on their letters.

Sometimes its better to be lucky than good. Today was one of those days. I was driving south on Cherry Ave. when I saw thick, black smoke. Thinking it was coming from the oil wells west of Cherry Ave in Signal Hill I parked my car on Burnett Street and looked down the hill. I saw the smoke was two-block below me. I ran down the hill, jump a small stucco fence, scraped my arm, and arrived at the fully-engulfed building before the fire department. See the pictures>>