Knoxville, Beaverdale host bear hunts, but it's not what you think

Updated: 8:00 PM CDT Mar 21, 2020

Knoxville and Beaverdale neighborhoods are taking a page out of the book "We're Going on a Bear Hunt."Homes are putting stuffed animals in windows and on porches so families can go on bear hunts, whether in their cars or on walks. While some people didn't have bears to show, the Cookie Monster made an appearance, and so did some unicorns. To find where bears are in your community, click here.

Knoxville and Beaverdale neighborhoods are taking a page out of the book "We're Going on a Bear Hunt."

Homes are putting stuffed animals in windows and on porches so families can go on bear hunts, whether in their cars or on walks.

While some people didn't have bears to show, the Cookie Monster made an appearance, and so did some unicorns.

To find where bears are in your community, click here.

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Knoxville, Beaverdale host bear hunts, but it's not what you think - KCCI Des Moines

As we adjust to life amid the COVID-19 pandemic, well likely turn to the artsa favorite poem, a beloved album, a treasured paintingover and over in search of comfort and relief. Art, in all its forms, is a vital part not just of our personal lives but of our community. Social distancing measures and the resulting venue closures have turned the local creative world upside down, both for individual artists and the organizations that support them. Heres what some of those folks are saying about the state of the arts in Charlottesville, and what might come next.

St. Patricks Day was supposed to be Matthew ODonnells busiest day of the entire year. A multi-instrumentalist who specializes in Irish music, he was booked for 15 hours of serenading audiences, from senior center residents to late-night beer-swigging revelers.

But this year, his St. Paddys calendar was wide open. As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads throughout the United States, Virginia governor Ralph Northam has banned all nonessential gatherings of more than 10 people. In response, local venues that support the artsconcert halls, theaters, galleries, bookshops, libraries, restaurant-bars, you name ithave shuttered their doors for an undetermined amount of time.

This leaves ODonnell and many other artists in Charlottesville without physical places to share their worknot just for arts sake, but for a living. Its also worth noting that many local artists participate in the service industry and gig economythey tend bar, wait tables, work retail, drive ride-shares, and more. And most of those jobs are gone, or paused until, well, who knows when.

ODonnell makes his entire living from performances, and he looks forward to the month of Marchin large part because of St. Patricks Daywhen he can bring in twice what he makes in an average month, to make up for the lean ones (namely January and February).

I began to get concerned in late February, as the senior communities closed their doors to visitors, says ODonnell, and that concern grew as gigs canceled one by one during the first couple weeks of March. I thought the worst-case scenario would be that everything would shut down, but I honestly didnt think the worst-case scenario would come.

At first, it was a professional worry of realizing that all of my business is gone, says ODonnell, who hopes he can make some money by playing donation-based virtual concerts. But the worry, the sadness, has turned personal: These people are my friends, he says of his audiences, particularly those folks at the senior centers. When he sings with them, he says he feels something profound. And [now] I cant go see my friends. I do want to be looking forward to the next thingbut all I know is that the next thing I do is going to be very different from what Ive been doing.

Graphic novelist Laura Lee Gulledge knows that, too. Im friends with change and constant reinvention, she says. As a full-time artist Gulledge relies not just on book sales and illustration commissions but art teaching residencies. She says she often feels like shell get by on the skin of my teeth, but [I] make it work. Artists are always having to come up with new business models, she says. Its implode or evolve.

Her new book, The Dark Matter of Mona Starr, is scheduled to be released on April 7, and she planned to launch it at last weeks Virginia Festival of the Book. But the festival was canceled due to the threat of COVID-19, as was the rest of her North American book tour.

In a way, the book is more relevant than Gulledge could have predicted, or ever wanted to imagine. The protagonist, Mona, is a sensitive and creative teen learning to live with anxiety and depression. In the back of the book, Gulledge includes a guide for creating a self-care plan for particularly dark and stressful times, and she shares her own.

Its like my masterpiece, she says of The Dark Matter of Mona Starr. I was finally mentally prepared to own it and step into it, and start conversations about mental health and not feel like a fraud.

Rather than consider the whole thing a wash, Gulledge will do a virtual book tour via Facebook Live, where shell be talking about topics such as drawing through depression and cultivating healthy artistic practices.

The Front Porch roots music school is also pivoting to an online lessons model, to keep instructors paid and to keep students in practice. Songwriter Devon Sproule (who had to cancel her upcoming U.K. tour) usually teaches somewhere around 80 students a week between group classes and private lessons, and, so far, a handful of them have made the leap to live virtual lessons. Keeping the routine and personal connection of a lesson could be particularly important right now, says Sproule. She had to teach one young pupil how to tune a ukulele, a task Sproule had taken on in their in-person lessons. I had no idea this kid could tune their own ukulele, and I dont think they did either, says Sproule. I think it was empowering.

The Charlottesville Players Guild, the citys only black theater troupe, has postponed its run of August Wilsons Radio Golf, originally scheduled to premiere at the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center April 16. The paid cast and crew were in the middle of rehearsals, and while they hope to be able to open the show on April 30, things are still very uncertain, says CPG artistic director Leslie Scott-Jones. When you hear medical professionals say this might go through July or longer, its like, Whatll we do?

The JSAAHC has also had to cancel two benefit concerts for Eko Ise, a music conservatory program for local black children, that the center hoped to launch later this year. Now, theyll be months behind in that fundraising effort, says Scott-Jones.

The Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative, which provides not only a physical gallery space for visual and performance art, but funding for public art and after-school programs, has canceled all in-person events (though it is finding creative ways for people to participate from a distance, such as its virtual Quarantine Haiku video series). The Bridge has also postponed its annual Revel fundraiser, originally scheduled for May 2. Revel brings in between 20 and 30 percent of the organizations operating budget for the year, says director Alan Goffinski,

Gulledge makes an excellent case for continued support of the arts as we face uncertainty: This is the sort of moment where people will look to the creative thinkers to generate hope, and to generate positivity and be beacons of light in this moment of darkness. This is part of our purpose.

The Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative and New City Arts announced Friday, March 20, that it has established the Charlottesville Emergency Relief Fund for Artists. We will have more information on that soon.

The Front Porch and WTJU 91.1 FM are also teaming up to broadcast live concertsFriday and Wednesday evenings. Follow us at @cville_culture on Twitter for regular updates about virtual arts eventsthat will take place over the coming weeks.

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State of the art: How COVID-19 is affecting Charlottesvilles arts community - C-VILLE Weekly

The partial but increasingly growing, self-imposed isolation has begun.

I am writing these words on Sunday, and it will be a couple of days before they are out in print and online. Who knows what will happen between now and then, what with how fast this coronavirus is moving and affecting society?

Like many of us, I am voraciously consuming news about the COVID-19 pandemic. No need to panic, but definitely time to respond, to take steps and to not be stupid as in overreacting and moving into the old Cold War bunker out in the backyard or ignore everything and go about life as usual with a false sense of invincibility.

And even though it appears most people who get this darn thing will come through it OK, I do think a bit of alarm is understandable and maybe even helpful. But please, keep perspective.

I went to Costco on Saturday. I needed a few things and had been waiting until my list was long enough to merit a trip there (toilet paper was not on the list). I had tried the day before, but there were cars parked everywhere, including in spots Im sure were not actual parking places, and I saw maybe just a dozen shopping carts available outside the store. Yikes. I came back Saturday morning about 20 minutes before the store opened, so I could park within sight of the store.

By the time I shopped and fled, the place was jammed. The butcher told me the day before they sold out all the products they made from scratch (meatloaf and mashed potatoes, chicken enchiladas, mac n cheese, etc.), and were working feverishly to catch up and restock. The checker told me they had just experienced their highest volume sales days two days in a row.

I kept looking at the overloaded carts that went by me. Every one had in it at least one giant size or multiple packages of the following: toilet paper, paper towels, cleaning products, liquid hand soap and the like. I saw one of the big flat carts that had stacked on it about half a pallet of ramen meals.

Theres preparedness and then theres whatever this was.

When I was growing up in Florida, there was a regular drill when a hurricane was approaching. It was fairly simple, and it made sense. And it was adapted based on specific circumstance. For example, we had a neighbor with a swimming pool who was often out of town. If he wasnt there when a storm approached, wed go over to remove and stash the cushions from his outdoor furniture and throw the furniture into the pool. In a hurricane, everything becomes a potentially lethal projectile.

Since then the state has created an incredible preparedness and response network, including staging areas of material, which can be relocated quickly depending on where the storm will hit. Its a model for the nation.

Anticipate, prepare and do what makes sense.

Our son was supposed to fly into Spokane this week. My husband wisely nixed the trip. Sam agreed. He texted: Although Im not in a high-risk group, should I catch something on the plane and visit my, ahem, elderly parents, well

And hes right. Bruce and are I are in our 70s, which is the hardest-hit population, with the highest death rate. And while we dont have the kinds of respiratory or immuno-suppressed ailments that appear to be exacerbating factors, by virtue of our age and the fact that we do have some health things were dealing with, we reside in COVID-19s target demographic.

The good news, if its even appropriate to think in those terms yet, is that this pandemic seems largely to be skipping the children. A silver lining to be sure.

I remember when I first began writing about historic landmarks, Id spend time tromping through cemeteries in Spokane and in rural areas of the region. I saw so many grave markers with the date of 1918 on them and often a simple Baby Jones or Infant girl Smith. Those, of course, were the result of the infamous Spanish flu pandemic that infected fully one-third of the worlds population at the time and killed 20-50 million people (675,000 of whom were Americans), mostly between the ages 20 to 40.

And for those of us with the target on our backs now, we love the little ones in our lives, but they could quite likely carry the disease to us when we grab them up in the hugs that we love to give them. A lot of things need to change, at least until were on the downside of the coronavirus bell curve we are climbing. And yet, we dont want to scare the children.

Washing hands, social distancing, limiting large-group exposure, staying home more, covering a cough with the crook of our elbows, not shaking hands and not touching our faces easy(ish) to do. Not hugging a grandchild is a whole lot tougher.

And then theres the issue of trying to work at home. I do that already. But my husband goes to peoples homes and businesses to do his work. If you are a server in a restaurant, for example, you cant work from home. Kids are out of school. How do you manage child care and still work?

I dont need to itemize all the hurdles and problems were in the midst of, or are coming. Or to jump into the discussion of how and why were not farther along in dealing with this. Conversation for another time.

Were here now, so for now, lets just proceed with an abundance of caution, do what the virologists and health care professionals tell us.

But lets begin the process of thinking long term, getting set up, preparing for next time, too. Like with hurricanes, its not if, but rather when one will hit. Lets get smart about these viruses. They may well be the hurricanes of the future.

Voices correspondent Stefanie Pettit can be reached by email at upwindsailor@comcast.net.

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Front Porch: Follow health experts advice, and lets also think long term - The Spokesman-Review

Todays kids just dont have the same experiences.

My siblings and I grew up in a small town in western Pennsylvania. My sister Jean and I owned the town. We would leave the house in the morning heading we didn't know where until we got there. Sometimes we played in the woods down the street from our house and sometimes we just played in the street. We didn't have a lot of fancy toys but we did have roller skates, the kind you used a key to clamp them on your shoes.

We had two paved streets in our little town with some connecting secondary streets between them that were also paved. They had names but we just called them the upper new street and the lower new street. This was our own personal skating rink and ball court and bicycle path.

There were very few cars during the day, so in spite of our mother's warnings we roller skated them and bicycled them and played ball on them with little interruption.

Our town was located on a hill between larger hills running down to a river. I would start at the top of the upper new street on my scooter, give a push and literally fly down that street to the bottom and turn and continue down to the lower new street without slowing down.

Our mother gave us the same warnings every morning when we left the house. Be careful of cars, stay off people's lawns, don't get too far away that you can't hear me call you in for lunch. I can hear her now, Jeanie, Ninie, lunch time.

We liked to play in the woods and make pretend houses by pulling up brush and making a roof over our heads. We played Bunker Hill on a vacant lot with a perfect hill on it. The big boys had made a little fort of sorts on top of the hill, so when they weren't around we took over, with pretend guns blazing.

My friend Derose and I liked to play house. We would borrow our mothers old dresses and shoes and hats and dress up, put our dollies in our buggies and walk around the yard, pretending to be movie stars. I was Joan Blondel and Dee was Claudette Colbert.

When it rained and didn't thunder and lightening Jean and I loved to put on our bathing suits and play outside in it. The street in front of our house was an unpaved hill. The borough always put ashes on it in the winter time to keep cars from slipping so when we fell in the street we would mark the spot with a small bit of that black ash embedded in our knees.

Daddy was really good at making toys better than the bought ones. We had mason jar ring guns, sling shots and stilts and barrel stave skies. When the front porch swing broke in two, Daddy took the good parts and made Jean and I a swing just big enough for the two of us and hung it from the rafters in the basement for rainy days.

Our house was built on the side of a hill on a lot that Grandpa had deeded to Daddy. The lower side of the house was two stories up with a small kitchen porch with a railing. Our old mamma cat liked to sleep on the railing in the sun. The railing was only about two to three inches wide, so mamma cat occasionally went to sleep and fell off the railing onto the sidewalk below. She would simply dust herself off and climb back up and go back to sleep.

She had kittens almost every spring. We could tell when she had them because she would be so skinny. She always had her kittens away from home so we would go searching for them and bring them home. She sometimes put them in the dog's house and she and our old hound took turns looking after them. It was funny to see that old hound dog washing those tiny kittens.

If you don't remember the WPA back in the 1930s, we were very familiar with them. The alley behind our house had a ditch in it that was usually full of water. The government in its infinite wisdom decided that it should cover the ditch and build the gully up with large quarry stones and build a road on it.

The WPA took it on as a project, so we had workmen in our back yard for several seasons. The men were friendly family men who liked to watch us play in the dirt and on the cherry trees in our yard. They would sometimes ask us for fruit since we had not only cherry trees but peach and plum trees full of fruit.

If I told you all the fun things we did as children this column would become book length. We had a freedom today's children will never know because the world has become such a scary place. The whole wide world was not available to us as it is to today's children on the Internet, but we learned different lessons, lessons of cooperation and hard work.

Yes, we worked hard helping Mom with her spring and fall house cleaning, scrubbing the coal dust grime off the walls and windows and porches of our house. We helped Daddy pluck chickens for Sunday dinner, hung clothes on lines in the yard and pinned lace curtains to the stretchers for Mom's spring and fall cleaning and pulled weeds out of Mom's vegetable garden.

I could fill the whole newspaper with stories about 10-mile bicycle trips to a swimming hole and to neighboring towns to visit relatives. Obese children were very rare then. We can't go back but we can try to preserve some of the good of those years by giving today's children some room to play freely.

Nina Gilfert is a columnist for the Daily Commercial. Email her at ngporch@gmail.com.

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From the Porch Steps: Back in the Day - Daily Commercial

Redlands | $1.199 MillionA four-bedroom Victorian house built in 1900, with one full and two half bathrooms, on a 0.9-acre lot

In the early 1880s, this lot was the home of the First Congregational Church of Redlands, a city in San Bernardino County about 65 miles east of Los Angeles. In 1899, the church building was sold to Harry Gregory, a local businessman who stripped it down to the foundation and rebuilt it as the house that stands today. Wood and finishes from the church were salvaged and used in the construction of the home, one of a number of Victorian-era houses in Redlands.

The property is a 10-minute walk from the University of Redlands, a private liberal arts school with about 5,000 students. Downtown San Bernardino is 15 minutes away by car.

Size: 3,200 square feet

Price per square foot: $375

Indoors: A winding driveway leads from the street to the front entrance of this house, which is surrounded on three sides by a wraparound porch.

Just inside the front door is a vestibule with three large windows that look out onto the front porch. To the right is a formal living room, with a fireplace and another big window.

Beyond the entry is a hallway that leads to a larger family room, with its own fireplace and decorative wainscoting, and a door that connects to the kitchen. A formal dining room with access to the rear porch is connected to the kitchen and the family room. To the left of the kitchen is a sunny office nook with access to a half bathroom.

Hardwood flooring runs throughout the main level, and several of the doors have their original crystal knobs.

From the back of the house, stairs lead to the second level, which has four bedrooms. At the far end of the hallway is a master bedroom with an en suite bathroom that includes a French soaking tub. Two other bedrooms are big enough to hold a queen-size bed, while a third is cozier, with sloped ceilings.

Outdoor space: The propertys grounds are extensive. In front of the house is an wide lawn; the paved driveway continues along the left side of the home and offers as a place to park. The backyard has a patio that is partially paved in brick and partially in concrete. A patch of lawn separates the main patio area from a small fountain. The property is planted with a number of fruit trees, including avocado, persimmon, blood orange, tangerine, nectarine and Meyer lemon.

Taxes: $15,227 (estimated)

Contact: Perrie Mundy, Berkshire Hathaway, 909-809-8644; perriemundy.com

In the postwar San Fernando Valley, William Mellenthin, a designer and contractor, was known for building high-quality ranch houses accented with birdhouses and cupolas, diamond-paned windows and two-sided brick fireplaces, in a style referred to as storybook ranch. This home built by Mr. Mellenthin has retained those details, despite extensive upgrades. It is in a part of the Sherman Oaks neighborhood of Los Angeles known as Hidden Woods, developed by Mr. Mellenthin in the late 1940s; the area includes a number of dead-end streets and cul-de-sacs as a bonus for families with young children.

An entrance to the 101 freeway is a five-minute drive; downtown Los Angeles is about half an hour away. The house is 10 minutes away from the shopping and dining on Ventura Boulevard, and about 25 minutes from Beverly Hills and the Westside of Los Angeles.

Size: 1,978 square feet

Price per square foot: $606

Indoors: The owner did considerable work to modernize the property, including upgrading the HVAC, electrical and plumbing systems. Most of the windows except for Mr. Mellenthins signature diamond-paned ones have been replaced, and the interior and exterior were recently painted.

Beyond the small entry are two formal spaces: to the right, a living room with one side of the homes double-sided fireplace; to the left, a dining room that is open to the kitchen and family room.

In the kitchen, the owner installed new cabinets, quartz counters and a skylight. An island with additional space for dining divides the kitchen from the family room, where the other half of the double-sided fireplace is set in a wall of white-painted brick. Sliding-glass doors lead from this space into the backyard.

Beyond the family room is the renovated master suite, where the owner added a walk-in closet and reconfigured the en suite bathroom. The master bedroom has its own access to the backyard through sliding-glass doors, and the master bathroom has a large walk-in shower lined with slate tile.

A hallway along the right side of the house connects the living room to two guest rooms, one of which overlooks the street and is large enough for a king-size bed. These bedrooms share a bathroom with a combination bathtub and shower.

Outdoor space: A paved patio outside the family room is large enough for a barbecue; the grassy backyard beyond has several original trees. A detached garage holds two cars and could be converted into additional living space.

Taxes: $15,228 (estimated)

Contact: Claudia Flores, Keller Williams Beverly Hills, 424-334-9291; claudiafloresproperties.com

Bankers Hill, a San Diego neighborhood named for the professionals who called it home during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, is a mix of Victorian houses many converted into hotel or commercial spaces and new construction like this townhouse.

The home is a five-minute walk from the west side of Balboa Park, the citys main green space and the site of cultural institutions like the San Diego Museum of Art and the Natural History Museum. San Diego International Airport is a 10-minute drive; the campuses of the University of California San Diego and San Diego State University are about 20 minutes away by car.

Size: 1,700 square feet

Price per square foot: $697

Indoors: From the street, a short flight of stairs leads to the main living floor, which is laid out in an open-plan style.

Just inside the front door is a seating area that faces floor-to-ceiling sliding-glass doors out to a small balcony. Gray-tiled floors extend to the dining area, which flows into an open kitchen. An island with quartz counters provides an additional work space in the kitchen and another seating area. Stainless steel Bosch appliances and custom-designed cabinets line the far wall.

To the right of the great room is a set of stairs up to the master-suite level. On one wall of the master bedroom, floor-to-ceiling glass doors slide open to a private balcony. The large master bathroom includes a double vanity, a glass-walled walk-in shower and a free-standing soaking tub.

A garage on the ground level offers direct entry to the home. A guest room and a full bathroom are also on this level.

Outdoor space: Both the main level and the master-suite level have balconies with room for seating. A 500-square-foot roof deck is carpeted in artificial grass and looks toward the downtown San Diego skyline. The attached garage holds two cars.

Taxes: $12,443 (estimated), plus a $203 monthly homeowner association fee

Contact: Janet Douglas, Windermere Homes & Estates, 619-540-5891; windermere.com

For weekly email updates on residential real estate news, sign up here. Follow us on Twitter: @nytrealestate.

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$1.2 Million Homes in California - The New York Times

For weeks, a 56-year-old Cudahy woman kept finding mysterious bags on her front porch in the 3600 block of East Hammond Avenue.

After the third instance Feb. 18, she decided to call the police.

The woman didnt go through the backpack but gave it to police and officers found a ripped piece of paper inside with a name, address, key and a message, according to a police report.

Please call mee (sic)! Andrew Steidl key inclosed (sic) #9 room, the notesaid.

The woman told police she didn't know Steidl who, according to police, has a history of stalking or following women.

According to the report:

The woman said an upstairs neighbor had seen a man walking the property. The man told the neighbor he was an old tenant and was looking for the woman. After the neighbor told the man the woman wasnt home, he dropped a bag on the property and left.

Police called the number and the man who answered identified himself as Steidl. He admitted the backpack was his and agreed to meet at his apartment.

Steidl told police he left the bag on the porch because he liked the girl that lived there and he wanted her to call him so they could meet.

Police returned the backpack and its contents to Steidl andissued him a citation for littering on private property. Police told Steidl his actions were not acceptable, and he was not welcome on the womans property.

Contact Erik S. Hanley at (262) 875-9467 or erik.hanley@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at@ES_Hanley.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

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A man with a history of stalking left mysterious bags on the porch of a Cudahy woman he never met, police say - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

The New Orleans Police Department has released photos of porch priracy throughout Uptown. Contact the Second District, 504-658-6020, with any information on the suspects below.

3200 block of Upperline (via NOPD)

NOPD officers are searching for a suspect a package theft in the 3200 block of Upperline Street.

On Feb. 21 around 2 p.m., the pictured man reportedly stole the victims package from the front porch of her residence.

He may be driving a 2007 silver Chrysler PT Cruiser, bearing Louisiana license plate 593CHV.

3600 block of Octavia Street (via NOPD)

The NOPD is also seeking assistance from the public to identify and locate the pictured subject who is wanted in connection with a package theft that occurred in the 3600 block of Octavia Street.

On Feb. 20 between 4:51 p.m. and 5:20 p.m., the pictured individual walked onto the victims front porch, stole two packages and fled the scene.

3200 block of Upperline Street (via NOPD)

Two subjects were involved in a theft incident that occurred on Feb. 20.

The pictured man and woman were captured on security cameras walking on the front porch of a home in the 3200 block of Upperline Street, and seen stealing packages.

2400 block of State Street (via NOPD)

Another package theft occurred on Feb. 19.

At about 6:30 p.m., the pictured man was seen on video surveillance walking onto the front porch of the victims residence in the 2400 block of State Street and stealing a package from the porch.

4500 block of South Tonti Street (via NOPD)

The NOPD also is seeking to locate and identify a suspect in the investigation of a package theft that occurred on Feb. 14.

At about 4:10 p.m., the above woman was seen walking onto the front porch of the victims residence in the 4500 block of South Tonti Street and taking a package containing two 810 picture frames and a pack of footie socks. The suspect then fled the scene on foot.

Anyone with information regarding identity and whereabouts of any of the above suspects is asked to contact Second District detectives at 504-658-6020. Citizens with information that can help solve a crime are asked to call Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111.

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Suspects sought in thefts from Uptown porches - UptownMessenger.com

Citing a shift to its brewing operations and ongoing construction on Market Street, Bills Front Porch has closed its doors. Its owners plan to convert the space into a taproom and event space. (Port City Daily photo/Mark Darrough)

WILMINGTON After a nearly four-year run on Market Street, Bills Front Porch has announced it will close and convert the building into a full-time taproom and event space for the companys growing brewing operations.

The brewpup part of a Bills campus that includes Captn Bills Backyard Grill, a large sand volleyball court complex, and a new brewing production facility announced the decision Tuesday morning on its Facebook page. A new taproom is expected to open inside the building on March 17.

Bills is a family-run business, owned by John Musser and his daughter Brookes Musser, whose husband Donnie Stone helps run the brewerys operations with head brewer Jim Deaton.

The decision was based on two years of construction on Market Street that hurt customers ability to reach the location, a shift towards beer production, and a desire to condense business operations.

We made this decision based on multiple factors, according to the Facebook announcement. One reason is due to the opening of our production facility and continuing to shift our focus to the beer side of the business. We also took a hit with the road construction that took place on Market Street. During the three-and-a-half years we were open, two of those years our customers had to work really hard to get into our parking lot to come eat with us, which over time took its toll.

The decision was also made to condense the companys operations to spend more time with a growing family, according to the post.

The building is now planned to be converted to a full-time taproom and event space called Bills Brewing Co. Taproom. Taproom customers will be able to order food from Captn Bills next door, which will now offer Bills famous fried chicken, tater tot skillets, the Pub-Fil-a and other favorites from the original Bills Front Porch menu, or they can bring their own food.

The new taproom will be open Tuesday-Thursday from 4 to 9 p.m., Friday from 4 to 10 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Mussers also plan to host special events in the taproom, including beer dinners with local vendors, pop-up food nights, and weekly specials and events.

They also announced that Bills Food Truck will continue to serve the Wilmington area.

We thank you all for the support youve shown us and continue to show us and we hope to see you on March 17th as we open the doors to Bills Brewing Co. Taproom, according to the post.

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Bill's Front Porch closes, will re-open as taproom to support growing brewery - Port City Daily

"Perfection is the killer of business," says the physical therapist coach.

March4, 20207 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

In this series called Member Showcase, we publish interviews with members of The Oracles. This interview is with Aaron LeBauer, PT, DPT, and owner and CEO of LeBauer Consulting, LLC, business education for physical therapists. It was condensed by The Oracles.

What was a defining moment early in your life?

Aaron LeBauer: I attended Duke University to go to medical school like my father, grandfather, and uncles. But when I sat down with my first night of chemistry homework, I was paralyzed. I stared at the first question, fighting the urge to quit for hours.

Finally, I broke down into tears, realizing that I didnt have the desire or commitment to become a physician. I didnt want to spend four hours on homework each night for the foreseeable future I wanted a life too. From that day forward, I knew that I was on a different path to help people. Theres more to life than studying in the library all day.

Share an interesting fact about yourself that not many people would know.

Aaron LeBauer:I lived in Israel for a year after college before moving across the country to San Francisco with my best friend. For six weeks, I slept on the porch couch that belonged to a friend of a friend until we found an apartment. It was during an El Nio, so it rained on me almost every night.

For about a year, I barely got by working as a temp and in restaurants, until I started dreaming about racing bicycles as I had in college. So, I became a bike messenger and loved every minute, even though I was making half of what my classmates earned in their management and banking jobs. I eventually focused on amateur racing full time and spent a summer racing in Europe alongside future Tour de France riders.

What was your biggest challenge starting in business? How did you overcome it?

Aaron LeBauer:I worked as a massage therapist for six years before earning my doctor of physical therapy degree. After seeing 43 patients in one day, I knew that I couldnt treat patients effectively with the insurance model. So, I opened my physical therapy clinic to treat patients as unique individuals, without influence from insurance companies, even though that meant we didnt accept insurance.

Other therapists said that this wouldnt work, and on top of that, we opened during the 2009 recession. But I believed that if people spent $85 on a massage, they would pay at least that much for physical therapy. I knew that patients needed my help, but they didnt realize that physical therapy was the solution. I learned to market directly to patients instead of physicians by adapting strategies from other industries.

How did your business get started?

Aaron LeBauer:I started my coaching and consulting business to help other physical therapists build clinics like mine. One day, I told my wife, Andra, I just gave so-and-so all the details about how I started my practice and they didnt even say thank you. She gave me the best advice: Dont give anything for free when you expect something in return.

The next day, another business owner insisted on paying me for my advice. That same day, I wrote down my consulting rates, created my blog, and started sharing answers to common questions I received. Within a month, I was invited to speak at a major physical therapy conference. Thats when I knew I had hit on something special.

Whats your favorite quote?

Aaron LeBauer:My favorite quote is by the great hockey player, Wayne Gretzky: You miss 100% of the shots you dont take. After I briefly consider my options, I just shoot. If you dont take a chance, youre never going to score.

I work with highly educated entrepreneurs who have been taught that if youre going to do something, it has to be perfect but perfection is the killer of business. If you listen to your fear of imperfection and failure, youll never even put the ball in play. You can only make an impact by taking the shot.

Whats the biggest common leadership mistake?

Aaron LeBauer:There is no better way to make someone feel small and unimportant than micromanaging their every move and decision. I hated being told what to do and when, which kept me from excelling as an employee.

Ive found that the best way to lead is by empowering employees to make decisions and show up with solutions. If you micromanage, theyre only going to come to you with problems, which takes away your time and energy from growing your business.

How do you evaluate a good business deal?

Aaron LeBauer:By watching the market and researching. I need to truly understand the product, as well as the value and day-to-day results it delivers. I also must be willing to walk away, because as soon as I turn to walk away, the deal gets better. But if I approach it thinking, I must have this, Im a passenger on the emotional roller coaster and not in the drivers seat.

How do you prevent burnout?

Aaron LeBauer:By focusing on what I do best and enjoy most. I try to spend my days focused on what I would do for free. If something irritates me, gets tedious or boring, or creates anxiety, I delegate it to someone who enjoys it. If I can focus 70% to 80% of my time on what fills me up and lights my fire, burnout doesnt have a chance.

What are you working on right now?

Aaron LeBauer:Im growing my clinic and coaching business to help 25,000 people locally and 100 million worldwide to avoid unnecessary surgery. I can only treat so many patients myself, so Im helping other physical therapists build successful businesses.

Im also redefining retirement by doing what I love from anywhere I want and creating more time for my family and kids, who are 8 and 10 years old. Last year, I spent 81 days out of the office with them. This year, I hope to at least match that.

What do you want to be known for, or what do you want your legacy to be?

Aaron LeBauer:I want to be known as an amazing, present husband and father who worked relentlessly to save people from unnecessary surgery. I want to change the culture of the health and wellness industry in the U.S. and help people understand that they need to see their physical therapist first when they are injured or in pain to help them see their bodies as strong, competent, and capable, not harmful, threatening, or broken down.

Follow Aaron LeBauer on Instagram or visit his website.

The words and opinions expressed in this interview are those of the interviewee alone. What worked for them may not work for everyone. Any claims in this article have not been independently verified.

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How Aaron LeBauer Went From Sleeping on a Porch in the Rain to Changing the Healthcare Industry - Entrepreneur

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NEPTUNE CITY - Animal control officers rescued eight dogs, some of them puppies, who were left outside infilthy conditions in the freezing coldearly Saturday morning, officials said.

After midnight on Saturday the law enforcement division of the Monmouth County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals responded to a call originally made to the Neptune City Police Department about excessive barking in an apartment complex, the Monmouth County SPCA said in a statement.

One of the dogs rescued from freezing and deplorable conditions outside a Neptune City apartment Feb. 29.(Photo: From Monmouth County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals)

Officers found eight dogs"stuffed together in small crates, and living outside on a freezing cold porch with only a plastic tarp to protect them fromthe elements," according to the statement.

The dogs were living in their own urine and feces and didn't have access to food, water or any source of heat, the SPCA said. Temperatures fell below freezing early Saturday and the dogs were trembling from the cold at the time they were rescued, officials said.

Animal control officers gave the dogs water and food at the scene, which they "drank and ate ravenously," according to the statement. The pooches were brought to the SPCA shelter in Eatontown and were given blankets and a warm place to sleep.

A medical assessment found that the dogs all had intestinal parasites, overgrown nails, skin sores and some had ear and skin infections.One adult dog was covered in scars and wounds, the SPCA said.

SPCA: Adoptions, vet clinic open again after flu quarantine

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The statement did not say whether anyone had been charged in connection with the rescue, although officials did say the matter will be resolved "in court." The SPCA did not immediately return a request for more information.

The rescued dogs will remain in the Eatontown shelter until the case is resolved, but may eventually be eligible for adoption, officials said. The Monmouth SPCA launched a fundraising campaignMonday to care for the dogs.

New Jersey 101.5 shared news about a recent bill introduced into the NJ State Assembly that would allow abused dogs and cats the right to an attorney. Asbury Park Press

Looking for the trusted place to find the best home service providers? Find local pros.

Andrew Goudsward covers crime and breaking news. Contact him at agoudsward@gannettnj.com; 732-897-4555 or@AGoudsward on Twitter.

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Eight dogs some of them puppies rescued from freezing porch in Neptune City - Asbury Park Press