Middletown News

At approximately 11:50 p.m. Friday, June 27, Robert Gescheider was killed in a traffic accident outside of Middletown.

Quagga and zebra mussel decontamination stations have arrived, but officials are still deciding where to put them in the face of limited money and resources.

Bond-funded construction is slated to begin during the first half of 2010 at Yuba Community College District 's Clear Lake Campus.

Upper Putah Creek Stewardship is seeking participation in compiling a current watershed assessment.

Hidden Valley Lake - A few months ago Charlie McFarling, owner of Ting's Thai Kitchen, decided to do something very clever - become a FREE Wi-Fi hot spot. The idea was that customers would come into the restaurant, order their meal and then get online with their mobile device while their meal was being prepared. They could check email, surf the Web and make free VOIP phone calls anywhere in the world to their Skype or Google Talk contacts. To maintain control of the FREE Wi-Fi, McFarling would need to be the one imputting the restaurant's password into each mobile device. That would entitle each user to an hour's worth of free Wi-Fi.

Music , Americana Okay, here it is. My premise: I've got a thousand bucks to spend,and that's it.

Many of the events coming up locally in June this year may be getting a helping hand in promotion from folks around the world. Believe it or not, all these folks have something in common. They love to microblog. That is to say, they enjoy sending out short messages - just 140 characters long or less - to both special friends and the world in general. This is done in response to a very simple question, "What are you doing right now?"

Ting's Thai Kitchen may be providing Lake County's web designers with a new venue for their services thanks to its offering of FREE Wi-Fi to the public with splash page advertising.

Middletown - There is a lot to be said for having your own domain name and web site online. If you do not have the time to learn how to build a web site yourself, it is a good idea to hook up with a web designer and have that person build the web site for you. But, can you spread your business message online without always having to purchase a domain name? The answer is "yes." One service which not only allows you to build a web page for free - which their service prefers to call "a lens" - is the company Squidoo.com. You can find out all about Squidoo.com by going to the web site at www.squidoo.com.

It is no secret that with the decline in the mortgage market and the ever-increasing cost of gasoline, we are living in tough economic times. But, when caring people successfully connect with other caring people, wonderful things can happen - even in tough times like these. You have read about a lot of that sort of thing right here in this Topix publication.

Winning pitcher Eric Schenck struck out seven and walked one as Middletown beat the Lower Lake 7-1 in a North Central League I North junior varsity baseball game on Tuesday in Lower Lake. via Observer American

Blue Water Seafood Market & Grill 3667 India St. Middletown 619-497-0914 Blue Water Grill has been part of my regular restaurant rotation since it opened a few years back. via San Diego CityBEAT

“When he (Self) is more medically ready, he will have a day in court. Technically, he's out of custody, but he will have to appear. The date was not set because of his medical injuries”

A motorcycle rider allegedly under the influence of drugs ended up in the hospital after he led authorities on a high-speed chase Thursday night. via Observer American

“I imagine everyone will be following us. We didn't want to do it. We have no choice”

Gas prices surged past the $4 mark over the weekend in Lake County, with a gallon of regular selling for $4.03 in Middletown. via The Press Democrat

"Youth Writes" auditions for young poets take place this week at * Noon Saturday, April 19, at Tuscan Village in Lower Lake. via Observer American

Hidden Valley Lake - Ting's Thai Kitchen plans to add something very special to its restaurant for the benefit of its patrons in addition to wonderful Thai cuisine. Before the month of April comes to a close, Ting's Thai Kitchen should be a Wi-Fi hot spot. There are already coffee shops and restaurants offering Wi-Fi in some fashion - either free or fee-based - in Lake County. But, Ting's is going to offer something truly remarkable. It is going to offer splash page advertising in addition to FREE Internet access.

This is actually a win/win scenario for both the restaurant and its advertisers. Both benefit from this promotional innovation. Ting's will likely get a significant boost in customer traffic. Why? Because the public really does need and want free Wi-Fi. They need it to check email, surf the Web and make VOIP phone and video calls. Meanwhile, Ting's advertisers benefit because Wi-Fi splash page advertising "never sleeps." It is ongoing 24/7. Keep in mind that the standard Wi-Fi signal range is 300 linear feet and walls do not stop the signal. Therefore, the Wi-Fi signal may be picked up outside in the parking lot and in the the tenant offices adjacent to the restaurant. People who have Internet access at home around the world will also be able to view the content of Ting's splash page as it will be duplicated online for their benefit. However, only those within 300 linear feet of Ting's wireless router will be able to benefit from the actuall Wi-Fi.

Kelseyville - In a special effort to entice participation by all Lake County nonprofit organizations in the "Gear Up for Business Success" Small Business Workshop, coming up on Saturday, April 12th at Konocti Harbor Resort and Spa, the Lake County Business Services Network is offering a 40% discount ticket price of only $30 available for all nonprofit organization representatives.

According to Sandra West, what Sonya Christian of the Development Consulting Network has to say about the funding of nonprofits is extremely important. West does not want the cost of admission to prevent any nonprofit from hearing what this successful fundraiser has to say. Christian's presentation will be an important follow-up to the March 3rd presentation by Scott Ullman of The Foundation Center at the Greenview Restaurant in Hidden Valley Lake. Ullman spoke on grantseeking basics.

For any non-profit that does not have a website another important breakout session offered at the workshop is the "Reach the World....create your web site today." West says that without a web site presence, major funding sources for nonprofit organizations will not even consider you a qualified candidate for funding.

"Gear Up for Business Success" is the third annual workshop put on by the Lake County Business Services Network. It's goal is to help county business owners, aspiring entrepreneurs as well as nonprofit organizations become more productive. Those attending can expect to learn tips and techniques for nonprofit fundraising, starting a business, hiring the right employees, applying for business loans, marketing to increase sales and how to "brand" a business in Lake County.

You can expect to hear from other successful Lake County business owners and entrepreneurs, as well as business service providers during the keynote session, breakout sessions and lunch panel. Come and find local business resources ready to help! Everyone will participate in the keynote lunch sessions, but with a selection of topics to choose from during the breakout sessions, you can actually customize this workshop to meet your specific needs.

The workshop begins at 8:30 a.m. and runs until 1:30 p.m. at the Konocti Harbor Resort and Spa, 8727 Soda Bay Road in Kelseyville. For more information, contact the Lake County Economic Development Program at 707-263-2580.

Hidden Valley Lake - At first, it might not make sense for profit-making businesses to give away rather than charge for, wireless Internet access. However, a growing number of hotels and restaurants have found that it pays to offer free Wi-Fi Internet access. This perk attracts customers and provides a real bottom-line payback for a relatively small capital investment, according to free Wi-Fi pioneers.

Cities and community development organizations across the country have embraced free Wi-Fi to boost economic development and attract visitors to downtown areas. A handful of small airports in the shadow of large hubs offer free Wi-Fi to attract travelers.

One free Wi-Fi pioneer is John Woolsey. He is the chairman, CEO and president of the restaurant chain, Schlotzsky’s Inc. in Austin, TX. Woolsey is not shy about sharing details of what he calls the "strong ROI" from the company’s free Wi-Fi service. According to him, the free Wi-Fi results in an additional 15,000 visits per restaurant per year by customers who spend an average of $7 per visit. Keep in mind this was data from back in 2003, back when Schlotsky’s had only 30 company-owned or franchised Schlotsky’s Delis Wi-Fi enabled. Nevertheless, back then Wi-Fi service brought in more than $100,000 per year per outlet in return for an investment of about $8,000 per restaurant. The wireless infrastructure also required T1 connectivity.

Middletown - Back in February at the scheduled MATH meeting a presentation was made where "Tools and Strategies to Move MATH Forward" were presented. In fact, three CD's were handed out to help better educate the audience. The idea was that those three CD's would be viewed, the information learned and each one of those CD's would be physically shared with three other people in the same manner.That means nine people would have more knowledge at the end of the month than they did at the beginning. Then, at the March meeting, those three people would return with the CD's and the process would be begin all over again with three new people. And, on and on. This is the "pay it forward" approach for spreading knowledge. The process does not require a lot of people to work. It does, however, require passionate people. In the business world, this process is often referred to as "netweaving."

The content of that CD has recently been transformed into an online lens to speed up the learning process and make the information more accessible to more of the community online 24/7. You can view this information yourself at Tools To Move Middletown Forward. However, it should be pointed out that this information is not simply good for Middletown. It can benefit any community that truly desires to move itself forward. Three things are crucial to get the process rolling effectively:

1) Care. If people do not "care" about the process, it is futile to try to implement it. Just look at how long it has taken to get a viable town hall going in Middletown. Caring matters.

When the Foundation Center's Scott Ullman was giving his Grantseeking Basics presentation at the Greenview Restaurant earlier this month, the audience wanted to know if the Clearlake Public Library had been chosen as a satellite location for a cooperating collection for doing research on grant funding. Ullman responded that The Foundation Center is still seeking a location in Lake County. The suggestion was then made that if the library was not adequate, perhaps the Calpine Visitor Center could meet the need. But, what exactly does The Foundation Center require of these cooperating collections? Is the Calpine Visitor Center even appropriate?

The good news is that The Foundation Center is in the process of accepting proposals from qualified institutions. These may include but are not limited to: public, academic, or special libraries, nonprofit resource centers, community or other foundations, state associations, and United Way agencies. The determining factors in designating a new Cooperating Collection are the commitment and readiness of the host organization to work with the Foundation Center to reach organizations and individuals whose needs are not already being met.

Guidelines

Eligible host institutions must:

Be open to the public, without restriction, a minimum of 25 hours per week

Be located in an area serving at least 100 nonprofit organizations

Provide access to a computer(s) connected to the Internet for public use

Have staff available to become expert in foundation funding resources and to assist the public in their use

Be prepared to offer training on the basics of grantseeking

Send a representative to regional and/or national meetings of Cooperating Collection supervisors held at various locations.