Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Followers are Thankful for Many Things

As part of a drawing for tickets to the Reagan Library yesterday, we asked Conejo Valley Guide Facebook page followers to comment on something they are thankful for this holiday season. Over 300 folks commented in the span of eight hours. The word cloud below sums up what this great local crowd is thankful for as we approach Thanksgiving.

Word cloud courtesy of tool at www.jasondavies.com/wordcloud

For a compilation of community holiday season events and activities through the end of the year, visit THIS LINK.

How Long Do We Have Before Halloween Candy Goes Bad?

On Halloween day, my youngest son asked me what he should do with his old Halloween candy. I said, what do you mean? You haven't gone trick-or-treating yet. He tells me he still has candy left over from last year in his closet.

After my initial surprise, I told him to show me the candy. He opened the closet door and pulled out last year's Halloween trick-or-treat bag, which was full of individual plastic sandwich bags full of Snickers, Twix, Butterfingers, M&Ms, Whoppers and so on.

I have to admit, my initial inclination was to consume them (no, I didn't), then I had a passing thought to re-give them out to trick-or-treaters (of course I would not do that).

My son told me we should throw them away because they were old. But I hate throwing stuff away that's still good, so I decided to keep the candy and take a closer look at their "best before" dates.

So what exactly is a "best before" date? There is no mention of it on the Snickers or Mars websites, but the Hershey website indicates this is the last date a product can be expected to be at its "peak freshness." Hershey goes on to indicate that most candy products maintain their best flavor for up to 12 months after they are made and that there may be flavor loss or texture changes past the "best before" date.

But there is no mention of "thou shall not eat candy past the best before date." So it begged the question, are these dates required by law?

The USDA confirms that "Best if Used By (or Before)" dates are not required by federal law (with the exception of infant formula) and indeed relate to best flavor or quality, not safety. So...yes, it's generally OK to eat candy (and other foods), past that date.

My son, who is not a Snickers fan, thankfully (for me, indeed a Snickers fan) scored a full sized Snickers bar last Halloween as well as this Halloween. I devoured last year's Snickers bar, with a "best before" date of May 2015, a full 5 months after said date. It was not bad. Not quite as good as this year's Snickers bar, but quite edible. 

Full size Snickers bars received by son this Halloween and last halloween display "Best Before" Dates

He also gave me numerous Snickers "fun size" bars from last year's Halloween stash. These ones for some reason have no dates on them. The quality was slightly lower. I might not eat them now, but perhaps would save them as a pick-me-up in the event of a zombie apocalypse.

On to Nestle Crunch bars. According to nestlecrunch.com, the recommended shelf life of a Nestle Crunch 1.55 oz bar is 15 months. I see no such date on the mini size bars.

The Reese's Peanut Butter Cup made by Hershey does show a date, though given their popularity in this household is usually a moot point as they are usually consumed within hours, if not minutes.

According to StillTasty.com "Your Ultimate Shelf Life Guide," you can generally keep chocolate covered candy bars in the pantry, refrigerator or freezer for 10 to 12 months. And the site reiterates that such storage times are for best quality only - in most cases, it will still be safe to consume your candy if it has been stored properly.

On that note, I better run off and eat a salad or something to counteract all the candy I just ate.

Boney Mountain Ridge Fifty Years Ago and Today as Seen From Newbury Park

Walt Dibblee began providing high quality photography for Ventura County in 1949 when he opened his commercial studio in Ventura. As Ventura County grew, the demand for aerial photography expanded. Walt bought a plane, learned to fly and for the next three decades photographed the cities of Ventura County from above.

His son Steve continues the tradition today with over 30 years of professional experience. Steve has shared some of Walt's work from the mid 1950s to the late 1960s at VenturaViews.com.

West Hills Hunt Club on the way to Sycamore Canyon in Newbury Park in 1955 (Photo Credit: Steve Diblee, VenturaViews.com)

Steve has provided this amazing shot members of the West Hills Hunt Club nearly 60 years ago, headed in the direction of Sycamore Canyon/Rancho Sierra Vista, with Boney Mountain in the background. The shot was taken from somewhere in the vicinity of Highway 101 at Wendy Drive, looking south.

And here is a more recent photo of Boney, without horses, in more recent times, taken from "Rabbit Hill" in Newbury Park. I guess it pretty much looks the same, eh?

The Historic Crowley House is Home to Conejo Valley Neighborhood for Learning

Ventura County Historical Landmark No. 109 is the Crowley House, located at 2522 Pleasant Way, Thousand Oaks. This five bedroom house was built in 1910 for newlyweds Frank and Mae Casey Crowley on the Newbury Ranch. The Crowley house was nicknamed "Mother of Thousand Oaks" as in the 1920s it was converted into a real estate office for the first Conejo Valley housing development.

Subsequently the house became a convalescent home and later was the home of Louis and Kathleen Goebel of Jungleland fame. It is now owned by the Conejo Recreation and Park District and is used by Conejo Valley Neighborhood for Learning to promote school readiness and services for children 0-5 years.  Crowley House is used for pre-natal classes, early parenting groups and serves as CVNfL's administrative office. Learn more about CVNfL at www.conejovalleynfl.org or by calling (805) 496-9035.

Children Eating Lunch at British School Surprised by Opera Performance

Sacla Italia, an Italian pesto and pasta sauce brand, served up a great surprise at a Buckinghamshire, England elementary school were served up lunch and an operetic surprise when four opera singers broke into a selection of works from Verdi, Puccini and Rossini. Fun to see the reactions on the kids' faces! 

You Never Know What May Slither By You in the Trails of the Conejo Valley

This morning around 7:30am I came across what looked to be a long stick lying on the trail in the Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa area.

But upon closer inspection it looked a bit too curvy to be a stick.

Yes, on my morning run I came across what looked to be a beautiful, three foot long gopher snake slithering across the trail. Of course, one could become anxious upon coming across such a snake out on the trails, but as I kept my distance, I noticed no signs of a rattle. It appeared to be a gopher snake, on the lookout for a morning snack.

Here's a link to some key distinguishing features between a rattlesnake and a harmless gopher snake.

As we finished our mutual admiration, Jake the Snake slithered off into the wild, dry, brown, drought-ridden yonder.

For over 50 area trails and hikes in and around Ventura County, click this link.