Did you notice the clues in my earlier blogs? Did you see the announcement on (5-27-06), Our Cyberplace #35, that this blogger will be cutting back on posting daily Web logs? It's true, just as the Argus-Courier stopped producing a daily printed edition, and went to twice a week, and then once a week; this Cybernaut plans to do the same. It's been a struggle, however; what do in the future? How to best express one's thoughts on so many different topics and themes? How to organize them so that viewers can navigate the blog easily? It's a puzzlement, for sure.

Making this transition won't be easy. After averaging a blog a day for almost three months, the number of visitors has grown steadily. This past week, for example, the daily average is 30 times the average number of hits for the last seven days of blogging in March, and 10 times the average for the last week in April. The important thing is what to write about? I initiated a trial balloon using the title, The Sage of Petaluma. I was going to reincarnate "Dr. J. Abner Peddiwell, Ph.D., Professor, Petaluma State College," and communicate through his persona. (Just as I have been doing on my historical walking tours as "Mr. William Howard Pepper." What is a "sage?" OK, let's check our trusty dictionary: sage (n) "someone who is regarded as knowledgeable, wise, and experienced, especially a man of advanced years revered for his wisdom and good judgment." (That's too egotistical; also unbelievable. Scratch that idea.)

Looking back over my list of blog categories, there are nine, and I just created a new one yesterday - Hammerhead. (Someone needs to have his "head" examined, or at least hit with a hammer to knock some sense into him.) How about this approach - let's keep it simple - let's make it easy - and not slight any of my areas of interest. How about calling it Bill's Blog? We'll put in a hyphen - and then identify the category and #. For example; Friday's blog will be titled, Bill's Blog - Remembering Bill Soberanes (#3).

Then, as time permits and if the creative juices continue to flow, additional posts will be made using category headings such as:

Our Cyberplace - Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in our daily lives.

Our Petaluma -Observations and comments related to "our sense of community."

Our Web-of-Life - Connecting the dots between man and his natural environment.

Then and Now - Looking back at Petaluma's history and related it to the present.

The Saber-Tooth Curriculum - Observations and comments about education.

Remembering Bill Soberanes - The world's foremost "peopleologist."

Personal Reflections - Miscellaneous "stuff" that does not fit elsewhere.

On Our Radar Screen - Looking ahead to what's coming down the pike.

Of course, all this is subject to change. Who knows; maybe we'll bring back The Sage of Petaluma some day. Stay tuned.

Although I've announced that it's time to begin a slow withdrawal from talking so much, in order to spend more time out in the community walking the walk - guess what? We've created another category under which to post blogs-. Hammerhead. (That's a nickname from my elementary school days.)

As a Hammer-man, I believe there are many other columnists and bloggers that really "hit the nail on the head" with their comments and opinions; consequently a new topical theme has been created to capture these quotes and then add my own personal comments. This move on my part is simply putting into action the slogan that I've been preaching for years: The greatest resource of any community is the collective wisdom, intellect and creativity of its citizens.

As a Cybernaut, I not only travel in Cyberspace seeking the latest advancements in ICT (Information and Communication Technology); but to select "words of wisdom" from others to share with my fellow Petalumans in Our Cyberplace. Please remember that no one individual is as smart as all us working together and sharing our knowledge. We will attempt to "hit the nail on the head" with quotes from other sources. After all, isn't that what a Hammer-man is supposed to do. (Tap, tap, bang, bang!)

Let's begin with a selection from a recent column (5-28-05) by Pete Golis, editorial director for The Press Democrat, titled "When local politics was still fun." The sentences that really caught my "eagle-eyes" are last two in a most interesting analysis of how the management of political campaigns have shifted from being guided by community volunteers to paid consultants - "When government was more about people than interest groups, life was better. And so was government." That says it all.

IMHO (In my humble opinion), Pete has really hit the nail on the head. Let's see what happens on Tuesday, June 6^th. I'll be working at our local Precinct Polling Place. Be sure to vote! Stay tuned. (I'll try and hit the head of the nails and not the nails of my fingers. Ouch!)

On Our Radar Screen

Yesterday was a day for reflection and remembrances. Today, we will start to look forward, once again, toward how best to invest our time, effort and energy in order that we "leave our campsite better than we found it." (That's a quote from my Boy Scout days.) Stay tuned as we enter the summer season. Changes are in the wind.

I want to add a few comments as a follow-up to my earlier post for today. (Then & Now #14) In comparison to last night's PBS TV coverage of the National Memorial Day Concert on the mall in Washington, D.C., our local veterans program was up close and personal. The national event featured bands, choruses, country music stars, and very dramatic video clips and heroic personal stories. It was powerful, but IMHO, something was missing. Perhaps I just have a preference for face-to-face gatherings with people that you know. Although the national concert produced a very patriotic message that stressed national pride, it lacked that sense of community that is generated by mingling with friends and neighbors. (My hunch is that the folks who participated in the Capitol Mall event experienced a deep sense of national pride.)

The Veterans Section of the Cypress Hill Memorial Cemetery was lined with American flags, both large and small. Each site had a small flag and there were four rows of large flags that had draped the coffins of veterans who had died or were killed in action. The ceremony, itself, was traditional, in that the program included: the color guard, singing of the National Anthem, Pledge of Allegiance, Invocations, comments by local elected officials, special prayers, placement of flowers by various veterans groups, a 21-gun salute, "Taps," and the singing of "God Bless America."

This year's ceremony was sad for me because one of the veterans with whom I had attended past Memorial Day ceremonies - William King - a Navy veteran from WWII and the Korean War had died recently. I had to stop by his grave site and pay my respects.

Following the formalities, a small-town touch was added by the cemetery owners - a hot dog picnic - plus more time for mingling. Later that afternoon, 3 p.m., to be precise, I paused for a minute of silence as degreed by President Clinton in 2000. Our American flag was gently blowing in the wind on a beautiful sunny afternoon. A perfect day for remembering, in a community that cares.

On Our Radar Screen

These veterans are honored because they fought for and defended our democratic rights. Please remember that June 6^th is not only the anniversary of D-Day, but E-Day. Don't forget to vote. That privilege is worth fighting and dying for.

Today is Memorial Day 2006. There are many stories about its origin and several cities and towns that claim that they initiated this most famous and sacred national holiday. One account describes how women in the South organized groups and decorated graves of Confederate dead before the Civil War was over. President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, N.Y. as the official birthplace of Memorial Day in May 1966; something that is difficult to substantiate conclusively.

General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, on May 5, 1868, officially declared May 30^th as Memorial Day. At this first observance, the graves of both Union and Confederate soldiers had flowers placed on them. New York was the first state to recognize this holiday in 1873. By 1890, all Northern states were recognizing this date. (The South refused to acknowledge the day.) It was only after the holiday changed from honoring those killed in the Civil War to Americans killed in any war, that every state joined in together.

What is important, however, is not who was first back then; but, why we celebrate it now- today. Originally, Memorial Day was called Decoration Day and it was celebrated as a day to remember those who had died in the service of our nation. Even though citizens in Santa Rosa and Petaluma were on opposite sides of the Civil War, Memorial Day is not about division or differences; but about coming together to honor those who made the supreme sacrifice with their lives.

In order to have a three-day weekend, the Congress passed the National Holiday Act in 1971 that declared Memorial Day as the last Monday in May (instead of May 30^th.) The tradition of wearing a red poppy on Memorial Day was conceived by Moina Michael who was inspired by the poem, In Flanders Field - "We cherish too, the Poppy red -That grows on fields where valor led -It seems to signal to the skies -That blood of heroes never dies."

In May of 2000, President Clinton issued a Memorandum on the White House Program for the National Moment of Remembrance. He asked Americans to "pause for one minute at 3 p.m. (local time) on Memorial Day, to remember and reflect on the sacrifices made by so many to provide freedom for all." Some people, today, believe that the traditional observance of Memorial Day has diminished over recent years. Not in Petaluma, however. At 11 a.m., today, at Cypress Hill Memorial Park, 430 Magnolia Avenue, Petaluma veteran groups will co-sponsor our community's annual observance ceremony. In addition to a color guard from the Veterans of Foreign Wars and remarks by local officials, there will be the traditional playing of taps, a 21-gun salute, and the laying of a wreath at the cemetery's veteran's memorial.

Once, again, Petaluma will have demonstrated its spirit and sense of community.

Regular readers of my blog know how I've been struggling with devoting time, effort and energy (TE2) talking about building a sense of community vs. stepping up to the plate (SU2TP) and doing something about it (DSAI).

Although the Close to Home column by Barbara Fisher, coordinator of the Literacy Connection Program at the Volunteer Center of Sonoma County, describes a program designed to help students pass the Exit Exam required for high school graduation; it also represents a community building project that could very easily be nurtured in any city anywhere. One clause that jumped out for me was "with the huge response of volunteers, we were able to reach out to ..." This program reminded me of our Mentor Me Petaluma project that was initiated at McNear Elementary School and expanded to other sites. It is just one of many examples of citizens being the greatest resource of any community and how it all adds up to strengthening the spirit and sense of community. http://www.mentormepetaluma.org

I hope my focus on certain themes isn't too repetitious for our regular viewers. There is so much information about local activities that can be shared. I guess this addiction to blogging is my own personal catharsis about Our Petaluma. A recent "Mutts" cartoon strip (5-27-06) by Patrick McDonnell says it all - (1^st frame) "BARK, BARK, BARK, BARK, BARK, BARK." (Frame #2) "You're right, Earl." (Last frame) "That does feel good." More is needed than just talking the talk, however, as I stated in the lead paragraph. Walking the walk is important to me; so come next week this time, I'll be talking the talk less, and walking the walk more. Please continue to tune in from time to time to see how the walks are going. Better yet, discover your own area of community interest and SU2TP. There's plenty of room for anyone who wants to walk the walk.

On Our Radar Screen

Remembering Bill Soberanes at the Petaluma Press Club meeting on June 2^nd.

Serving as an Election Poll worker at our local precinct on June 6^th.

Starting a second Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training course on June 15^th.

Initiating NERT, ALERT, and STAR information meetings on June 19^th.

Facilitating the Senior Computer Special Interest Group on June 27^th.

Earlier this morning, I posted #35 - Th Impact of Blogs. As I was reading an item in an "old fashion printed newspaper later," I couldn't resist entering a second blog for today. It is another Cyberplace issue that I had to react to ASAP. Perhaps my earlier Web log title, Our Cyberspace, is more suitable since the State Court of Appeals reverse ruling of the Santa Clara County Supreme Court has implications for more than just Petaluma's Cyberplace. In case your "eagle-eyes" missed this headline, it stated - "Bloggers can shield sources, court rules."

Yesterday, a three judge California appeals court ruled that "bloggers, like traditional reporters, have the right to keep their sources confidential." To date, I haven't found myself in this type of situation, but this decision is a victory for eJournalists as well as traditional journalists. It's good to know that our First Amendment rights and the California Shield Law have not been altered.

As we reported in #35, the number of bloggers is huge (although we do not have a fool-proof way of counting them), and getting larger by the day. Just like reporters for newspapers, television and radio broadcasts, online news sites and bloggers should have similar rights. After all, we are also communicating information - but using computer technology and telecommunications. The S.F. Chronicle article by staff writer, Ellen Lee, reported that their ruling "upheld strong protections for the free flow of information to the press and from the press to the public." In addition, the judges ruled that bloggers' e-mails should also be protected, just like a telephone or a written document. The bottom line; in the eyes of the judges, there is little difference between traditional journalists and online journalists. And that is what we bloggers are - eJournalists. (I wonder what Bill Soberanes would have thought about all this?) Stay tuned. There might be an appeal Who knows?