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The hottest days I can remember seemed to always happen in August. In the San Diego neighborhood where I grew up, late summer afternoons seemed to always digress into water fights. They would start with squirt guns, move on to water balloons and, invariably, end with the biggest weapon of all: the garden hose. Also invariably, the kid who started the war would complain, once cornered, that “My mom says I can’t get wet.” You can imagine how often this type of protest worked.

There was an article in Monday?s Pasadena Star-News about a Jet Propulsion Laboratory employee who alleges that he is the victim of religious discrimination and retaliation, all because he shared DVDs promoting ?his views on evolution,? according to the article. David Coppedge, according to the article, is an IT employee at JPL, who writes a blog about the theory of intelligent design ? that is, the theory that Darwin?s theory of evolution is bogus, and that we and the universe as we know it were all created by one intelligent being (see the 20th episode of ?

A retailer in Athens, Ga., recently held a donation drive for the Salvation Army. But it wasn?t your typical ho-hum, run-of-the-mill canned food drive. No, this CVS store posted a sign making it clear that its customers were encouraged to drop off not cans but ?cans.? Around the same time, visitors to an unidentified theater were greeted with a sign inviting them to attend a meet-and-greet, not with donuts, but with ?donuts.? Elsewhere, a seafood retailer posted a sign telling customers, ?

JUNE CASAGRANDE It's a dark day for democracy, ladies and gentlemen. A dark day, indeed. It seems that a key power-holder has been caught tampering with the results of a crucial election. No, I'm not talking about presidential balloting in Ohio or Florida. I'm talking about Merriam Webster's recently released list of the top 10 most-looked-up words. I'll let the Reuters story speak for itself. "Merriam-Webster compiles the list each year by taking the most researched words on its websites and then excluding perennials such as affect/effect and profanity."

Tracking one’s ancestry has become high-tech, drawing devotees to the 40th annual Genealogy Jamboree this weekend at the Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel and Convention Center. Presenting the event is the Southern California Genealogical Society, which makes its home at its Family Research Library, also in Burbank. Society members have organized a weekend of workshops, lectures and a how-to on using computers to access census and other family records like birth, death and marriage certificates.

Police officials and other employees at Bob Hope Airport on Tuesday donated a combined $2,125 to a 6-year-old girl who -- having been diagnosed with a form of pediatric kidney cancer -- has been raising funds for cancer research. It all started with a goal to raise $300 at her lemonade stand. But as word of Aleyna Doche's campaign spread, the money poured in. On the first day, she raised more than $1,500 alone. Since then, Aleyna's little lemonade stand has grown into quite the fundraising operation.

Crime on Metro trains and buses has been dropping over the last five years and is lower than in many of the communities they serve, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's news blog. The Source , addressing the issue after a fatal stabbing last month on the Red Line in Hollywood, reported 2.77 “part one” crimes committed for every million boardings in 2010 on Metro trains and buses. Part one crimes are murder, rape, assault, robbery, burglary and theft.

Your prayers have been answered: Finally, Angelenos can drop hundreds of dollars at vending machines in local malls for a single ounce of caviar. Admit it, Black Friday isn't even over and you've already broken down the door at Urban Outfitters and spent your mortgage payment on door-buster deals. So what's another few bucks or 400 for an ounce of Royal River Beluga caviar? Beverly Hills Caviar is stocking the vending machines at Burbank Town Center, Topanga Westfield Mall and Century City Mall with fish eggs as well as truffles, escargot, oils, gourmet salts and gift boxes ( hat tip to the Eater blog )

Life is a fashion show for Tiffany Tse. The 25-year-old writer for Glendale-based tween magazines BOP and Tiger Beat has long been a fan of colorful accessories and quirky apparel, putting together unique ensembles on a daily basis. But she recently burst into the spotlight for her personal blog, Style Sophisticate, where she regularly posts images of her fashion creations, sometimes calling them ?geek chic? or ?sporty and sophisticated.? Tse, a Glendale resident, was the only Los Angeles-area writer to be chosen as one of eight finalists on America?

Audrey Robles doesn’t panic about the economic slowdown or the dwindling foot traffic outside her Kenneth Village store. Instead, she fires up her Twitter account. She also posts to her blog, monitors her Facebook page and adds to her biweekly e-mail newsletter. The media blitz may seem aggressive to those unfamiliar with the social networking tools, but Robles credits her efforts for not only keeping audrey k boutique in the black, but pushing it to new heights as well.

There was an article in Monday?s Pasadena Star-News about a Jet Propulsion Laboratory employee who alleges that he is the victim of religious discrimination and retaliation, all because he shared DVDs promoting ?his views on evolution,? according to the article. David Coppedge, according to the article, is an IT employee at JPL, who writes a blog about the theory of intelligent design ? that is, the theory that Darwin?s theory of evolution is bogus, and that we and the universe as we know it were all created by one intelligent being (see the 20th episode of ?

The hottest days I can remember seemed to always happen in August. In the San Diego neighborhood where I grew up, late summer afternoons seemed to always digress into water fights. They would start with squirt guns, move on to water balloons and, invariably, end with the biggest weapon of all: the garden hose. Also invariably, the kid who started the war would complain, once cornered, that “My mom says I can’t get wet.” You can imagine how often this type of protest worked.

A retailer in Athens, Ga., recently held a donation drive for the Salvation Army. But it wasn?t your typical ho-hum, run-of-the-mill canned food drive. No, this CVS store posted a sign making it clear that its customers were encouraged to drop off not cans but ?cans.? Around the same time, visitors to an unidentified theater were greeted with a sign inviting them to attend a meet-and-greet, not with donuts, but with ?donuts.? Elsewhere, a seafood retailer posted a sign telling customers, ?

Tracking one’s ancestry has become high-tech, drawing devotees to the 40th annual Genealogy Jamboree this weekend at the Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel and Convention Center. Presenting the event is the Southern California Genealogical Society, which makes its home at its Family Research Library, also in Burbank. Society members have organized a weekend of workshops, lectures and a how-to on using computers to access census and other family records like birth, death and marriage certificates.

JUNE CASAGRANDE It's a dark day for democracy, ladies and gentlemen. A dark day, indeed. It seems that a key power-holder has been caught tampering with the results of a crucial election. No, I'm not talking about presidential balloting in Ohio or Florida. I'm talking about Merriam Webster's recently released list of the top 10 most-looked-up words. I'll let the Reuters story speak for itself. "Merriam-Webster compiles the list each year by taking the most researched words on its websites and then excluding perennials such as affect/effect and profanity."