San Francisco Belt Railroad

The San Francisco Belt Railroad’s five-stall roundhouse in its namesake city has been preserved. David Lustig

For those of us lucky enough to chase trains on the San Francisco peninsula when it was served by many railroads, life was good.

Besides being able to see Southern Pacific, Santa Fe, and Western Pacific, there was the San Francisco Belt Railroad, a local switching operation that vigorously served the many waterfront docks alongside the eastern side of the city and as far west as the Presidio in the west. Nobody had heard of Union Pacific.

Today it is UP all the way except for a few truncated miles of right-of-way subsequently renamed the San Francisco Bay Railroad. The Belt railroad is history, too.

But thanks to a little creative architectural planning, traces of the city’s own were saved for future use, exemplified by the Belt’s five-stall concrete roundhouse at the intersection of Sansome and Lombard on the Embarcadero across from Pier 29. Converted to private offices, the building, erected in the 1910s, and the adjacent sandhouse, have even been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Most of the line in downtown San Franciso was paved over after the railroad quit the area in the 1990s and today light rail, in the form of San Francisco’s Municipal Railway runs on the former right of way.

Now an office building, the preserved roundhouse is located at the intersection of Sansome and Lombard on San Francisco’s Embarcadero, across from Pier 29. David Lustig

Today

While the sights and sounds of freight railroading no longer are an integral part of the area, if you look carefully at what was the roundhouse, details of its heritage have been carefully woven into the repurposed building.

The stall doors have been replaced with non-moving facsimiles, with the center door now the entrance. While rails have been embedded into what is now a courtyard just outside the entrance, the switches, and switch points are absent, and there is no room for the flanged wheels that will never tread them again. Even the appearance of smokestacks has been preserved.

The purists among us may be aghast, but for the rest of us, to still be able to see an image of a railroading past is most welcome.

Most of the Belt Line in downtown San Franciso was paved over after the railroad quit the area in the 1990s and today light rail, in the form of San Francisco’s Municipal Railway runs on the former right of way. David Lustig

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At the age of 13, Fanny Ben-Ami – himself a refugee from the Nazis – saved 15 children during the Holocaust. Her epic survival story has touched audiences through a children’s book, a feature film, sketches, paintings and countless testimonies. More recently, however, a contractor’s passion project thrust a chapter of Ben-Ami’s saga from literal ruins into the social media spotlight.

Ben-Ami, now 93, is one of the few living beneficiaries of the World War II-era efforts of the Oeuvre de Secours aux Enfants – the Children’s Aid Society. During the Shoah, this Franco-Jewish humanitarian organization, commonly known as the OSE, rescued Ben-Ami in the French countryside. For several years, the OSE has raised more than 200 refugee children in the towering Château de Chaumont, a grand, seven-story mansion – including Ben-Ami’s younger sisters Erika, now 91, and Georgette, who died in 2015. They never saw her parents again.

The property fell into disrepair after a fire devastated the building in the mid-1980s. It lay in ruins until 2022 when it was sold to a British expatriate named Daniel Preston, a trained chef. Preston filmed a visit to Chaumont in 2021 for his Escape to Rural France YouTube channel, where he also renovates a stone farmhouse. The self-taught builder has since posted more than 100 videos showing the careful removal of Chaumont’s rubble. Trees, bees and bathroom fixtures are perched at dangerous heights.

“I really appreciate what he’s doing,” Ben-Ami said after watching clips of Preston’s videos. “The castle was part of my life. And not just me – 72 children,” she lived there at the time. (During the war, the number of children fluctuated until a newly appointed village chaplain betrayed them to Nazi officials.)

As of 2021, Preston’s channel has racked up more than 34 million views. Replacing floors, laying bricks, and solving structural issues drew more than 850 Patreon subscribers who searched for additional content. Arborists and friends from another channel, The Château Diaries, where Preston starred as a gardener, make cameo appearances. With YouTube ad revenue and “cups of coffee” tips, total monthly income exceeds $8,000.

“I really didn’t expect it to come to this,” said Preston, 33, who also posts on Instagram.

Chaumont is one of 14 castles that the OSE operates as children’s homes. “Most war homes are still in a more or less run-down state, most of them privately owned,” said Dominique Rotermund, archivist at OSE in Paris. “After these homes had to be closed in 1943, the association provided many different hiding places for the children. The number of children saved is around 2,000.”

During the war, Chaumont provided his young transplants with a surrogate family. “We forgot about the war,” said Ben-Ami, now a widowed grandmother of six and great-grandmother of two. “And what we always say: During the day we laughed. And at night we cried.”

Through underground networks, the OSE brought spirited children to Spain, Switzerland and the United States. Many of them, like Ben-Ami, link their survival to the Château de Chaumont. Among them were Ralph Moratz and Wolfgang Grajonca, the last to be placed in foster care after a harrowing trip to New York. The friends eventually lost contact. Moratz was unaware that Grajonca had Americanized his name: he picked a name from a Bronx phone book and became Bill Graham, the renowned promoter of shows for Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, Jimi Hendrix and other rock legends. Graham’s milestones include the 1985 LiveAid concert in Philadelphia and several Amnesty International tours, which raised millions in charitable donations and raised awareness of political injustice.

After Graham died in a helicopter crash in Vallejo, California in 1991 at the age of 60, the media reported on his origins. Moratz, a Hollywood actor-turned-loan officer-turned-computer programmer, rediscovered his lost friend and documented their connection in a blog and subsequent videos for a multicity exhibition entitled Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution. Although Moratz died soon after, his blog is still accessible, as are his archives at the Leo Baeck Institute in New York City.

“Ralph’s enthusiasm to connect with Bill was inspiring because Bill didn’t remember the first ten years of his life, but Ralph did,” said Graham’s son David, 54, from his home near New Hope, Pennsylvania .

He was posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and his father’s legacy continues through the Bill Graham Memorial Foundation and an autobiography.

“We look forward to telling his story because there are so many remarkable events that no one knows about,” said David Graham, who is considering making a documentary and other projects with his brother Alex. “He was a master of mass gathering. Peter Coyote called him a cross between Mother Theresa and Al Capone. If you add up all the tickets to his shows, he touched more people with music than died in the Holocaust.”

In 1975, Graham sparked a global phenomenon by sponsoring the first public menorah lighting outside of Israel. “When Chabad asked Bill Graham to build a 22-foot ‘Mama Menorah’ and light it each year in the heart of San Francisco, he supported the whole thing and never looked for credit,” said SF Chabad Rabbi Yosef Langer. “It was only after his death that we gave him the name Bill Graham Menorah. That one menorah spread its light far and inspired thousands more, from Buckingham Palace to the shores of Oahu.”

Like Moratz, who appeared in the blockbuster Independence Day and many other projects, Graham also earned Hollywood roles in Bugsy, The Doors, and Apocalypse Now. Her love of theater can be traced back to Chaumont. Led by resistance fighter Lotte Schwarz, whose room was on the fourth floor, the caregivers asked the children to hide their Jewish identities outside the castle. But at Chaumont, they occupied themselves with everything from sports, foraging for herbs, and other survival techniques to music, literature, and Purim mirrors.

“We thought we were going to stay there forever,” said Ben-Ami, whose room with the older kids was on the third floor.

English television is currently reporting on Preston’s refurbishment for future broadcast. With a building this large, his goal is to remain off-grid to reduce costs. An on-site well provides water and a sponsor provided solar panels, but 40 windows, stairs, wiring and plumbing need to be reinstalled, not to mention a roof and turret. Preston estimates that it could take five years to complete 90% of the work. “I don’t think it will ever happen,” he added.

This isn’t the first time Chaumont has needed reinforcements. The OSE also repaired windows and plumbing, as quoted in “Rescuing Jewish Children While the Nazi Occupation in OSE Children’s Homes 1938-1945.”

A 2022 process photo documenting Preston’s restoration Courtesy of Daniel Preston

At the entrance to Rue de Chaumont, a plaque commemorates its importance. “Preserving authentic sites, structures and artifacts from the Holocaust underscores their historical relevance and is a way of connecting the past with the present,” said Yad Vashem spokesman Simmy Allen.

Years ago, OSE vice director Eric Ghozlan, then director of the Department of Childhood, visited Chaumont to review the purchase for a summer camp “in keeping with the château’s heritage,” said OSE historian Katy Hazan. “The project was not feasible due to the extensive renovation work and the high financial outlay. If the place welcomes children again and brings them benefits, that would indeed mean a lot to us.”

Preston hopes to bring children back, too. Chaumont hosted a summer camp for underprivileged children in the 1950s and 1960s. “With all the support we have online, we could support some kind of academy — for kids to come over the summer and learn skills,” Preston said.

87-year-old French comedian Popeck was four years old when the OSE accompanied him and other young refugees to Chaumont. “I am pleased to learn that the castle is being renovated by a developer who wants to turn it into a summer retreat for children in need,” said Popeck, aka Judka Herpstu, who is remembered by Ben-Ami from Chaumont. He returned to Paris, as did noted psychologist Claire Meljac, 89. (She could not be reached for comment due to health complications.)

Fanny Ben-Ami at home in Holon, Israel earlier this yearWith kind permission of the author

While he’s renovating by day and editing at a nearby Airbnb by night, Preston’s departure is a signature YouTube action, a cheeky high-five with the lens. As the father of two young boys, he recently split from their mother, his partner of 14, which makes the project “deeply personal,” Preston said. “I save the building, but the building saves me too. If one day I don’t make a video, I feel so lost. It’s like keeping a journal, but instead of writing down what you do each day, you go back and see the day in its best light.”

Cinematic footage features stunning aerial and close-up views of the majestic landscape, the ruin itself and the machines that revive it. Dense forests surround the castle in a green cloak, fitting the metaphor of a storybook legend brought back to life. “It struck me as soon as I saw it,” said Preston, who dates the castle to 1886. “It was just magical.”

Ben-Ami felt something similar when she visited the neglected property with other survivors in 1995. “We walked through the gate and it was like a slumber,” she recalls.

In 2019, Yad Vashem recognized Ben-Ami’s war heroism. Escaping German troops in 1943, she led children across the Swiss border on foot, identifying an informant who saved the lives of 150 members of the French underground.

Next, Ben-Ami writes her memoirs. Of course she said, “The lock is in.”

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“I noticed him yelling in the background. That’s when he ran after me,” says Wendy, who requested we only use her first name. The 28-year-old was soft-spoken and nervous speaking about what happened to her Friday afternoon in Visitacion Valley, not far from Bayshore. That man who was yelling at her, suddenly attacked.

Surveillance video used in the police investigation shows Wendy on her back. You can hear her blood-curdling scream for help.

“He grabbed me, started choking me down. I couldn’t yell after that since he was choking me and he had me on the ground,” said Wendy.

VIDEO: Disturbing attack on Daly City grandfather caught on camera; family offers $10,000 reward

Wendy, who is the mother of a 6-year-old, thought she was going to die and blacked out.

“I was just thinking of my family, my son, praying to God, that someone would come out a see me,” said Wendy.

Video shows a man, not necessarily seeing her, but definitely hearing her cry for help, running in her direction. That, according to police, scared the suspect away, saying his quick actions “made a world of difference.”

Wendy agrees.

RELATED: SF DA defends his policies as city makes national headlines with highest property crime rate

“They’re lifesavers. I really appreciate it, I don’t know how to thank them for what they did,” said Wendy.

I spoke to the man who heard Wendy scream and rushed over to help with his neighbor. He didn’t want to go on camera, out of fear for his safety. But says he was put on this earth to help others.

Supervisor Shamann Walton, who developed a public safety plan for his district to address crimes like this, also commended the neighbors for jumping into action.

A statement sent to ABC7 News reads in part, “We commend our Visitacion Valley neighbors, who jumped into action to save and assist the victim in a timely manner. Our office is committed to helping the victim and all victims of crime to connect to any services that they may need following these types of senseless ordeals.”

RELATED: 71-year-old SF woman considers moving after being strangled during attempted robbery

San Francisco’s Ingleside Station shared images of the suspect on social media this week and SFPD confirmed they’re looking at a possible suspect who is in custody for an unrelated incident but could not confirm his involvement in Wendy’s case.

Wendy, who miraculously wasn’t seriously hurt, says until she saves up enough to buy a car – she’ll continue to walk. But with precautions. She plans to purchase pepper spray to protect herself from now on and recommends all women be aware of their surroundings while walking alone.

If you’re on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live

Copyright © 2022 KGO-TV. All rights reserved.

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A young British woman named PL Travers, who wrote about the film “Snow White” in 1937, described Walt Disney as a shameless supplier of cheese ball crap as a film critic: “There is a deep cynicism,” she wrote, “at the root of especially its sentimentality . “

Travers would experience it in person: She is the author of the series “Mary Poppins” and the subject of the upcoming Disney film “Saving Mr. Banks” about the efforts of the studio – and Walts – to wrest the magical story from the gripping claws of the pesky maid who wrote it.

Or that’s the story Disney is selling, with the ultra-likable Tom Hanks in the roles of Walt and Emma Thompson, who play Travers, a woman the actress described in an interview as “so terrible and so irritating”. Another recent story in Variety called it “a pill no spoonful of sugar could sweeten”.

Can’t a resolute literary legend take a break?

Travers is one of the few writers to ever stand against the Disney juggernaut and demand a level of commitment and approval that most in their position have been denied. She did it at a time and in an industry where women were few and far between and had an uphill battle just to be heard. Above all, she invented the beloved character, a mysterious nanny who is blown into the life of the Banks family by the east wind, holding the iconic umbrella in the air. Without Travers’ wild imagination, there would be no Mary, no movie.

“I don’t think Disney had the slightest idea what to expect when she showed up [on the ‘Poppins’ set]Says Brian Sibley, a British writer who worked with Travers on an unrealized sequel to the film in the 1980s. “She was an immensely complex person. Amazingly independent and strong, very determined, very strong-willed. “

It turned out to be as strong-willed as Disney – a man who was used to getting his own way. “Disney took her to Hollywood and decided to get her to make this movie,” says Marc Eliot, writer of Walt Disney: Hollywood’s Dark Prince.

“But she wasn’t very charming. She was a tough woman – not quirky or cute. She didn’t like American films and she hated animation more than anything. “

Travers demanded that the film contain no cartoon elements (a battle she ultimately lost). She thought songs like “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” were stupid. And she resented the romantic relationship that had developed between Mary (Julie Andrews) and chimney sweep Bert (Dick Van Dyke).

The confident Travers, who was born Helen Lyndon Goff in 1899, had an anti-tide history that Disney almost certainly wasn’t aware of. She never married at a time when an unmarried woman was deeply stigmatized. She dated both men and women, ran with a host of British A-list poets, and had a deep and formative interest in mysticism, myths and fairy tales. She was an adventurer who grew up in the Australian outback; As an adult she changed her name, moved to London and worked as an actress, dancer, adult writer and journalist. She spent two summers on an Indian reservation studying culture.

She didn’t like to suffer from fools, and she was never happy with the cheerful and clean movie Disney ultimately made of her book.

Unlike the clean ending of “Saving Mr. Banks” – a happy ending, since this is also a Disney film – Travers was never convinced of the man, his studio staff or the film. She cried at the premiere of “Mary Poppins” in 1964, to which she was initially not even invited. In contrast to “Mr. Banks, ”it wasn’t tears of joy, but deep frustration. She spent the rest of her life slandering what she saw as the maudlin mess her Mary Poppins had become on the big screen.

Travers died in 1996 at the age of 96, irascible to the last. She once said she looked forward to hearing all the answers when she was old, but when asked about it at 94, she barked at a reporter, “Here I am in my chair and I don’t think I … I do will know all the answers. I am human! “

Now Disney is coming back to temper and romanticize the sharp-tongued, endlessly creative woman herself – as well as her shabby treatment of her opinions.

“Disney had no creative respect for this woman,” says Eliot. “He wanted a property, and when he got it, he completely ignored her submissions and any restrictions she’d agreed to. And that’s how the film came about.

“This revisionist story – that’s part of the Walt Disney myth.”

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SANTA ROSA (KPIX 5) – When two North Bay veterinarians volunteer, they save two lives: the person’s life and the life of their pet.

The veterinarians Dr. Kate Kuzminski and Dr. Sarah Reidenbach converted an ambulance into a free veterinary clinic on wheels.

Recently, it offered services outside of The Living Room, a domestic violence sanctuary in Santa Rosa. Kuzminski says the mission is to break the cycle of abuse.

“We know that in households with domestic violence and child abuse, 80 percent also have animal abuse,” she said.

But Reidenbach adds that getting out is not easy.

“Domestic violence survivors – up to 50 percent – are not left at risk if they cannot bring their pets,” she said.

NOMINATE A JEFFERSON AWARD HERO

Pet-friendly shelters require pets to be fully vaccinated and healthy before they are admitted. That’s why the two founded Ruthless Kindness in 2017. The non-profit organization works with around a dozen animal shelters for victims of abuse and the homeless.

Reidenbach and Kuzminski will receive calls around the clock to help with veterinary care and vaccines so a pet can accompany its owner in an animal shelter in search of safety.

“A woman who leaves or tries an abusive situation shouldn’t depend on her dog to be vaccinated,” said Kuzminski.

To date, Ruthless Kindness has helped about 300 pets in Sonoma County, in part through free monthly medical clinics like Dogwood Animal Rescue, which have volunteers who do everything from cutting nails to distributing donations like pet food and beds.

Dogwood volunteer Beth Jackson is amazed at what Kuzminski and Reidenbach have created.

“Not only do you save lives, but you also help people in need they cannot afford,” said Jackson.

One recipient just adopted two kittens and they received free vaccinations and pet food at the mobile clinic before they were all returned to the shelter where she lives.

“I’m just overwhelmed that there are people who are kind enough to give them time,” said Jen, not wanting to use her last name. “It’s a relief because I didn’t know how to get their shots.”

LEARN MORE: Jefferson Awards for Public Service

The co-founders of Ruthless Kindness both have full-time jobs outside of the nonprofit. Reidenbach is the managing director of Sonoma CART, an animal disaster team. Kuzminski is the medical director of guide dogs for the blind.

Your charitable work is entirely voluntary and is supported by donations and a generous helping of compassion.

“I’m a domestic violence survivor too, so I was able to need help,” Reidenbach said. “Serving the community I belong to is beautiful. I love to be able to do that. “

“It feels rewarding, but it feels like we should,” added Kuzminski.

That’s why this week’s Jefferson Award in the Bay Area goes to Dr. Kate Kuzminski and Dr. Sarah Reidenbach for spreading “Ruthless Friendliness” to people at risk and their pets.

The post North Bay Veterinarians Saving Animal, Human Lives With Volunteer Cell Pet Clinic – CBS San Francisco appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

This article exists as part of HuffPost Canada’s online archive, which has been closed in 2021.

A horse-drawn carriage rolls down the street, a chimney sweep makes his way to work, and a chamber pot is emptied from a window on the second floor. This is the image we have of the Victorian era that got its name from the woman we celebrate every May, Queen Victoria.

The people of the Victorian era, including the Queen herself, lived lives of remarkable thrift and ingenuity. They were satisfied with what they had and worked hard to get it. Consolidated Credit looked at the way the people of England lived 150-200 years ago and found some things that we could learn.

• Public transportation – Victorian England and public transport go together like tea and flatbread. That period marked the rise of such transportation options as horse trams, steam trains, and even the creation of a real subway – which was to become the subway. In modern times, however, we have a love affair with our vehicles. Most people avoid public transport for their own car. This not only harms the environment, it also costs more. A quick way to eliminate a huge expense in your budget is to give up the car and travel with the crowds.

• Hobbies – The 19th century English didn’t need a plane ticket to the Caribbean to enjoy their lives. Rather, they used their free time to pursue hobbies that benefited both their mind and body, but cost little. Things like riding a bike, playing cricket, and reading books became popular during this period.

Can you live without a smartphone, plasma TV and computer? People in the Victorian era got none of it and could still enjoy themselves. So how about going to a park to play soccer with friends? It will make your body healthier, cost nothing, and even save you money since you don’t need a gym membership! If this doesn’t suit you, try a hobby like woodworking so you can make your own furniture instead of buying it. Save money now!

• Grow it yourself – Many Victorians took advantage of the space they had to grow vegetables. This was an easy, inexpensive way to get nutritious food and save money. That helped to keep the stomach full and certainly to avoid having to embarrassingly ask the neighbors for a few potatoes because they forgot to go to the supermarket before cooking a stew.

Who spends more time in your garden – you or your dog? We have all that extra space that basically just became nothing more than Fido’s bathroom. Little did they know he was fertilizing the soil all the time so you can grow your own vegetable garden. Carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, and more can be grown with just a few seeds. Give it a try and watch your grocery bills go down. And there is nothing like a salad made with home-grown ingredients.

Top tips for saving money

See galleryThis article exists as part of the HuffPost Canada online archive. Certain site features have been disabled. If you have any questions or concerns, please read our FAQ or contact support@huffpost.com.

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In San Franciscos wilder Herde könnten heute bis zu 400 Papageien leben; hocken auf den Fensterbänken der Innenstadt, knabbern an Wacholderbeeren und machen ihre ikonische Präsenz mit einer Kakophonie hektischer Schreie bekannt.

Acht der berühmten Vögel leben jetzt im Haus von Sarah Lemarié in San Mateo.

Sobald sie aufwacht, verbringt der Chief Operations Officer von Mickaboo (einer gemeinnützigen Vogelrettungs- und Adoptionsorganisation) zwei Stunden damit, jeden der kirschköpfigen Conures zu überprüfen, von denen die meisten nach den Straßen von San Francisco benannt sind, in denen sie gefunden wurden:

April und Lyon. Beale und Ton. Julian und Mooshi. Capp und Guerrero.

Verletzt oder krank und daher als unentsetzbar in ihren urbanen Lebensraum erachtet, verweilen die von Lemarié gepflegten Papageien vorerst in ihrem Wohnzimmer, bis sie ein dauerhaftes neues Zuhause finden.

Sie füttert sie mit einer Mischung aus Pellets und frischem Gemüse mit etwas Obst, die normalerweise am mit Handtüchern ausgekleideten Käfig von Clay verweilen. Die Hälfte der wilden Papageien in Lemariés Haus zeigt Anzeichen einer Bromelia-Vergiftung – ein häufig verwendetes Rodentizid – aber Clays Symptome sind vielleicht die offensichtlichsten: Sein Kopf hängt zur Seite. Er kann nicht gut sitzen oder fliegen. Die Handtücher, erklärte sie, sollen ihm eine weiche Landung ermöglichen, falls er noch einmal hinfällt.

„Es ist ein deprimierendes Szenario, weil sie alleine nie überleben würden“, sagt mir Lemarié am Telefon. “Es ist definitiv viel Arbeit, aber sie sind auch unglaublich liebenswert.”

Lemarié wurde vor etwa acht Jahren in einer Reihe von Online-Videos zum ersten Mal Zeuge der waghalsigen Possen der kreischenden, rothaarigen Kreaturen, kurz nachdem sie in die Bay Area gezogen war. Sie hatte keine Ahnung, dass sie ihr Leben verändern würden.

Als Vollzeit-Projektmanagerin bei Sony begann Lemarié, sich ehrenamtlich für Mickaboo zu engagieren und in ihrer Freizeit Dutzende der geretteten Vögel zu pflegen. Im Sommer 2019 beschloss sie, ihren Job zu kündigen und das „Unternehmens-Hamsterrad“ für eine Weile hinter sich zu lassen. Was sie jedoch nicht erwartet hatte, war, dass sich gleich um die Ecke eine Pandemie abzeichnete, die die Bemühungen der Vogelrettungsorganisation stark beeinträchtigen würde.

„Ich habe versucht, ein persönliches Sabbatical zu nehmen“, gab sie zu. „Mein Plan war, ein Jahr Pause zu machen, etwas zu schlafen, zu lesen und Sport zu treiben. Aber da COVID den Kontext von Mickaboos Operationen so stark verändert hat, war es ein Glück, dass ich die Kapazitäten hatte, zu helfen.“

Jetzt ist der Großteil ihrer Tage den Vögeln gewidmet: Sie besucht ein- oder zweimal pro Woche eine Vogelklinik, beantwortet E-Mails von Freiwilligen und potentiellen Pflegekindern, koordiniert Rettungsaktionen und stellt Mickaboos Vogelpflegekurse und Spendenaktionen auf ein Online-Format um. Da Mickaboo eine abgelegene Organisation ist, die weder einen Unterschlupf noch ein Hauptquartier hat, ist sie stark auf ihre Freiwilligen angewiesen, die bereit sind, die wilden Papageien und andere Vögel in ihren eigenen Häusern zu pflegen.

„Morgen kommen 17 Finken an“, sagt Lemarié und fügt hinzu, dass die größte Anzahl von Vögeln, die sie gleichzeitig betreut hat, 27 beträgt. „Es ist eine lohnende Sache, sich zu engagieren, aber man weiß auch irgendwie nicht, was als nächstes kommt. Manchmal macht das Spaß, manchmal ist es ein bisschen beängstigend, aber wir haben ein großartiges Team von Freiwilligen, um das wir uns versammeln und wir arbeiten zusammen. Die Leute sind nur einen Anruf entfernt.“

Drummond und Starr posieren für ein Foto im Haus von Julie Buckner in Glen Park.

Julie Buckner

Julie Buckner, eine Freiwillige im Stadtteil Glen Park in San Francisco, sagt, dass sie seit etwa sieben Jahren mit den wilden Papageien arbeitet und sich um fünf der nicht freisetzbaren Vögel aus der ursprünglichen Herde von Telegraph Hill kümmert. Wie Lemarié glaubt sie, dass alle von ihnen Rattengift konsumiert haben, was zu ihrer Unfähigkeit zu fliegen und zu Schwierigkeiten bei der Kontrolle ihrer Bewegungen führt.

Seit 2003 dokumentiert Mickaboo unzählige gefallene Papageien aus der wilden Herde, die diese neurologischen Probleme aufweisen, aber sie konnten die Ursache nicht finden. Manchmal waren die Symptome so stark, dass die Vögel sich nicht einmal selbst ernähren konnten.

Eine Studie aus dem Jahr 2019, die vom Labor für Infektionskrankheiten der University of Georgia in Verbindung mit der gemeinnützigen Vogelrettung durchgeführt wurde, bestätigte jedoch, dass das Vorhandensein dieser Krankheiten mit dem Vorhandensein von Bromethalin übereinstimmt. Das gewöhnliche Rattengift ist oft tödlich, aber einige Papageien, die es aufnehmen, überleben. Es gibt jedoch einige Maßnahmen, die San Franziskaner ergreifen können, um zu verhindern, dass Vögel und andere Wildtiere es versehentlich verzehren. Lemarié rät den Bewohnern, sich für natürliche Alternativen wie Trockeneis und Cayennepfeffer zu entscheiden. Wenn Sie unbedingt Bromethalin verwenden müssen, empfiehlt sie, Köderbehälter aufzustellen, anstatt das Gift lose zu verstreuen.

Obwohl diese kranken Papageien in freier Wildbahn nicht sicher gedeihen können, arbeiten die Freiwilligen von Mickaboo daran, sicherzustellen, dass sie ein ziemlich angenehmes Leben unter menschlichen Gefährten und anderen Sittichen führen können.

„Um diese Tageszeit sind sie ziemlich ruhig und schlafen und chillen“, sagt Buckner eines Nachmittags am Telefon und bezieht sich auf ihre eigenen Vögel: Drummond, Starr, Octavia, Prescott und Valencia. „Aber sie haben ihren eigenen Verstand, und sie sind wilde Tiere, also können sie laut und widerwärtig werden. Gegen 15 Uhr fangen sie an, mich anzuschreien, ich solle den Käfig öffnen und sie herauslassen. Sie haben ihre eigenen Routinen und Ansprüche – sie entscheiden, wann sie zu Abend essen oder ins Bett gehen.“

Manchmal werden Papageien, die offensichtlich verletzt oder krank sind, zu Animal Care and Control gebracht, aber in vielen Fällen bringen die Leute die Vögel direkt zu den Häusern von Mickaboo-Freiwilligen. Wie eine Art Papageienwache fordert die Organisation Freiwillige auf, sich um sie zu kümmern, bis sie in eine Tierklinik transportiert werden können. Danach werden sie entweder freigelassen oder auf eine Pflegestelle gebracht. Buckner schätzt, dass Mickaboo im Laufe der Jahre 188 Papageien gerettet hat, und die Tierarztrechnungen für die ins Krankenhaus eingelieferten wilden Papageien haben die gemeinnützige Organisation allein im Jahr 2019 fast 200.000 US-Dollar gekostet.

„Die wilde Herde ist anders“, fügt sie hinzu und weist darauf hin, dass ihre spezielle Pflege möglicherweise nicht für jeden geeignet ist. „Sie wurden nicht in Gefangenschaft gezüchtet, also passen sie nicht in die Form. Normalerweise nehmen Sie bei einer Rettung viele traurige Fälle auf, in denen Tiere missbraucht oder vernachlässigt oder ausgesetzt wurden. Bei einer wilden Herde sind diejenigen, die wir aufnehmen, verletzt oder krank, aber sie wurden nicht um Menschen herum aufgezogen. Sie haben noch nie in Häusern gelebt.“

Wilde Papageien fliegen in San Francisco.

Jorge Figueiredo/Getty Images

Seit sie vor Jahrzehnten zum ersten Mal in San Francisco zu schlafen begannen, haben sich die Kirschkopfsittiche in Unterschwärme aufgeteilt, die in der Nähe des Embarcadero, im Dolores Park sowie im unteren Haight, Noe Valley, Lafayette Park, Crissy Field und sogar so weit gesichtet werden Süden als Sunnyvale und Brisbane. Aber interessanterweise sind die wilden Papageien, die wir kennen, nicht die ersten, die San Francisco bevölkern.

Sie waren eine ganz andere Spezies.

Mark Bittner ist das Thema von “The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill”, dem Dokumentarfilm aus dem Jahr 2004, der seine ungewöhnliche Freundschaft mit der Herde aufzeichnet und die Vögel zu lokalem Ruhm katapultiert. In seinem gleichnamigen Buch weist Bittner schnell darauf hin, dass die wilden Papageien, über die Armistead Maupin in seiner Romanserie „Tales of the City“ in San Francisco schrieb, tatsächlich Kanarienvogelsittiche waren, die der Kirsche vorausgingen. leitete Conures in den frühen 1970er Jahren.

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“Ich glaube nicht, dass sie mehr bei uns sind, aber sie haben früher in der Dolores Street geschlafen”, sagte Bittner gegenüber SFGATE. Und wie kamen die kirschköpfigen Sittiche fast ein Jahrzehnt später hierher? „Meine Vermutung ist, dass es einen lokalen Händler gab, der Zugang hatte und sie an die Zoohandlungen hier verkaufte. Aber weil sie so laut und aggressiv waren, hatten die Leute wahrscheinlich genug davon, sich mit wilden, schreienden, [and] beißende Vögel, also wurden sie freigelassen.“

Er lebt immer noch mit der Filmemacherin Judy Irving auf dem Telegraph Hill, direkt neben dem Cottage, in dem er jeden Tag die Papageien fütterte. Er hat auch das Tagebuch geführt, mit dem er vor Jahren das Verhalten und die sozialen Muster der Papageien dokumentiert hat, und schätzt es auf 800 bis 1.000 Seiten. Es war ein erheblicher Aufwand, da zu dieser Zeit wenig bis gar keine Forschung an der wilden Herde betrieben wurde.

„Ich hatte keine Erfahrung mit Vögeln. Ich war wie jeder andere und fragte mich: ‚Was passiert hier?’“, sagte er. “Durch eine seltsame Kette von Ereignissen bin ich ihnen immer näher gekommen und sie haben mich fasziniert.”

Aus der Sicht eines Regisseurs fand Irving seine Faszination für die Vögel ebenso verlockend.

„Es gibt alle möglichen mysteriösen Dinge an seinem Lebensstil, über die ich mich gewundert habe, und sie haben mich gefilmt“, sagte sie SFGATE.

Als sie Bittner kennenlernte, war er unbewohnt und hatte wenig Berufsaussichten. Dennoch bemühte er sich, weiterhin eine Bindung zu den Vögeln aufzubauen, die er liebte, was keine leichte Aufgabe war.

“Wie hat er alle Zeit der Welt gehabt, um dies ohne Geld zu tun, während er in einer teuren Stadt lebte?” Irving sagte, sie habe sich damals gefragt. „Es entpuppte sich immer wieder als einzigartige Geschichte und Ecke der Geschichte von San Francisco. In vielerlei Hinsicht war es der tollste Film, den ich je gemacht habe, und ich mache sie seit über 40 Jahren. Es lag an seinem Charakter, denke ich. Er ist so charismatisch und die Vögel sind so bunt. Das hat geholfen.“

Bittner drückt es deutlicher aus.

„Ich hockte in diesem Cottage und fütterte die Vögel. Es klingt irgendwie verrückt“, sagte er. „Ich tendiere generell dazu zu sagen, dass ich dieses Ding nicht für Papageien oder Vögel hatte … Ich mochte die einzelnen Mitglieder der Herde und lernte sie als Freunde kennen. Ich liebe sie.”

Ein Foto von Mark Bittner, der wilde Papageien mit Sonnenblumenkernen verfüttert, die auf das Deck seines Cottages in Telegraph Hill in San Francisco herabgestiegen sind.

Acey Harper/Getty Images

In den letzten Jahren ist das Paar zu neuen Projekten übergegangen, obwohl sie immer wieder die Papageien beobachten. Bittner arbeitet an seinen Memoiren über sein vierzehnjähriges Leben auf den Straßen von San Francisco mit dem Titel „Street Song“, das ein ergänzendes Album mit Songs enthält, die er gerade aufnimmt. Währenddessen dreht Irving einen Dokumentarfilm namens „Cold Refuge“, der die ungewöhnlichen Gründe enthüllt, warum Menschen frühmorgens in der Bucht schwimmen gehen.

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Aber auch Jahre später ist ihre Faszination für die Vögel ungebrochen. Als stimmberechtigtes Mitglied der National Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences erhielt Irving eine Spende der Organisation, um eine 4K-Restaurierung der „Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill“ zu veröffentlichen, die voraussichtlich 2021 erscheinen wird.

In einem der letzten Schritte des Prozesses hat sie die Hilfe von Lemarié in Anspruch genommen: das 16-mm-Originalmaterial in einem mühsamen Verfahren, das als Staubzerkleinerung bekannt ist, sorgfältig zu untersuchen und zu restaurieren. Um den Film für eine HD-Veröffentlichung vorzubereiten, muss Lemarié das Filmmaterial Bild für Bild durchgehen und sorgfältig Staub- und Schmutzflecken entfernen, die sich im Laufe der Zeit darauf angesammelt haben.

“Es ist ein langsamer Prozess, das ist sicher”, sagte Lemarié. „Aber es lässt Sie das Filmmaterial in einem ganz neuen Licht sehen. Als ich die Dokumentation zum ersten Mal sah, hatte ich keinen wilden Papagei gepflegt. Ich dachte daran, wie viel Persönlichkeit jeder von ihnen hatte, obwohl sie eine Herde waren.“

Heute sieht sie den Film anders.

„Ich sehe all diese kleinen Verhaltensweisen und erkenne die Lautäußerungen meiner eigenen Papageien zu Hause und was sie bedeuten. Es ist eine erstaunliche Sache.“

Erfahren Sie hier mehr über Mickaboo und spenden Sie an die Organisation.

The post A few of San Francisco’s iconic wild parrots are sick. Meet the people who find themselves saving them. appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – By now, most people know that they need to keep their faucets running to prevent the pipes from freezing. But what if they do? Plumbers say there are a few things you can try to correct the problem, but even they find the freeze difficult to locate and fix.

“Brushed my teeth, turned off the tap, and didn’t even think about it,” said Christiaan Patterson.

It was a mistake the homeowner realized she had made too late.

“I’m like please, please, please,” she said, trying when she woke up, “and I turned the tap and nothing.”

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It is dismay that people face across the state.

I’ve got the most frozen pipe calls I’ve ever had and I’ve been in the plumbing business for 27 years,” said Jason Walmsley of Trinity Plumbing. “I’ve never seen it like this before.”

Depending on where your pipes are, Walmsley said you might be able to thaw them yourself.

“If it’s just the hot side, the water pipes in the water heater’s cabinet are usually frozen, especially in the garage,” he said. “If it’s the whole house, I’ve seen some underground water pipes that are frozen, and if that’s the case then unfortunately you have to wait for it to warm up.”

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He said as long as you don’t leave them unattended, you can try space heaters or even blow dryers, although the latter are less effective. Simply open the cabinets and turn on the faucet to allow water to flow through when thawing.

“Unfortunately, in my experience, the little electric heaters and the like mostly don’t work, especially when it’s cold now,” he said.

Even with his tools, the puzzle is difficult to solve.

“You look at an area, when it’s nothing, move around and just go on and on,” Walmsley said.

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And while insulation can work, even heavy-duty, construction-quality insulation is unlikely to be of much use at these temperatures. If your tubes are already frozen, wait for them to thaw before wrapping them.

The best prevention is to let your faucets run more than a drop.

“I would go way beyond dripping water,” said Walmsley. “I wouldn’t turn the tap on all the way, but almost halfway. I know it sounds crazy and wastes a lot of water, but in my eyes this is cheaper than freezing and popping your pipe, especially in a bad place like under the house or in a wall. I would run every tap in your house. “

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The post Your pipes are frozen…now what? Native consultants provide suggestions for saving your plumbing in winter climate appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.