A few weeks ago, I attended a wonderful luncheon for Narrative Magazine, an online literary magazine, organized by Los Altos resident Katie Dickson. From the opening comments on how the world of books came alive for Katie when she read “Harriet the Spy” and identified with “the intrepid, curious, young detective” to Narrative’s high school award-winner explaining how her grandmother wove stories while cooking for the family with her “gnarled hands” and Executive Director Carol Edgarian interviewing author Susan Orleans, who wrote “The Orchid Thief” and “The Library Book,” I sat on the edge of my seat.

For I have had my nose in a book from the time I could remember. Listening to Orleans describe her love affair with her local library growing up and everything it embodied for her resonated with me so strongly that I knew I had to write this column before I even read her book.

We are pleading with the Bullis Charter School and Los Altos School District boards: Whatever you do, do not go back down the road of litigation. If you do, we all will lose.

We understand that communication between the two sides has been rocky lately, as Bullis Charter School still lacks an acceptable facilities solution. We also realize that both sides think they’re in the right. But pursuing legal action (which Bullis Charter School can do after a five-year agreement not to sue expires next spring) is just going to stir up more animosity and more division.

Following is an open letter to the Bullis Charter School Board of Directors.

Congratulations to the selfless volunteers who make the downtown Los Altos Festival of Lights Parade happen every year. This year’s wonderful event benefited from great weather, with performers and spectators alike clearly enjoying themselves.

The parade is arguably the most popular community event of the year, so there’s competition for choice viewing spots. For years, people have reserved spaces many hours in advance, some even the day before the parade. They’ve done so by setting out blankets and chairs, and marking spaces on the sidewalk with tape or chalk.

Virtually any time I’m driving the IdiutMobile around the Village these days, it feels like every street in the city has some form of construction – either of the road itself or a new building or a new home.

It’s a good sign of prosperity in our little bubble, to be sure, but you know what absolutely makes me want to drive rivets into my toenails and then stick my feet in a bucket of ice water? Flag men.

Inaccurate coverage doomed Measure C

I was very surprised to see the Los Altos Town Crier call the race for the citizens’ initiative Measure C before the Registrar of Voters office had even counted half the ballots. Making that call weeks before all the votes were in seemed contrary to the best journalistic practices. The less-than-balanced front-page story seemed to serve the paper’s editorial position opposing Measure C.

The Nov. 14 front-page article was full of errors. Measure C would not have required every land-use change to go before voters. In fact, voter approval would only have been required if the city planned to change access on city-owned land from public use to private.