Jackie, Shadow welcome 3rd baby eagle chick to Big Bear nest

• March 8, 2025

And Saturday’s baby makes three.

The bald eagle chick seen on the Friends of Big Bear Valley live camera pecking away at its egg shell emerged Saturday morning, March 8, giving celebrity parents Jackie and Shadow a trio of new chicks. The first two of the current clutch arrived Monday and Tuesday.

“All day yesterday the progress continued as Chick #3 worked to get out of its shell,” the Friends of Big Bear Valley Facebook post reads. “As everyone excitedly waited, the pip hole kept growing until by 2:11 a.m. this morning, the chick was visible with much of the shell gone. It was already drying but not quite out of the shell.

“Jackie kept the progress to herself through the night, keeping the chicks tucked tightly underneath her and getting some well-deserved sleep for herself. And at today’s early morning feeding at 6:13 am, Chick #3 was presented to the world!”

More than 61,000 people were watching the live camera Saturday morning. The bird of prey is the national symbol of the United States.

There was plenty of food to go around with two fish visible in the background.

“All three beautiful bundles of fluff were fully visible, sitting up and ready for breakfast,” the Facebook post says. “They all look dry, healthy and full of energy. As they jostle around for positioning, the newest one will have plenty of food still from its yolk for a few days.”

It’s been three years since one of Jackie’s offspring, Spirit, survived and soared away from the nest that overlooks Big Bear Lake. Neither of Jackie’s clutches in 2023 or 2024 hatched.

​ Orange County Register 

Galaxy seek solutions for hapless 0-3 start

• March 8, 2025

Injuries and departures have left the Galaxy searching for answers through the first three games.

Heading into Sunday’s return to MLS play, the Galaxy have mustered only one goal, leaving the club winless (0-2) and on the brink of elimination from the CONCACAF Champions Cup.

“We need to be getting better as a group,” Galaxy coach Greg Vanney sad. “We have some really important players that are going to be coming back into our team, hopefully over the next few weeks. Each guy right now, in my opinion, without those guys, it’s about within what we’re trying to do is understand how to take the appropriate amount of responsibility in each of the situations.

“Part of the reason our attack is not creating as many good chances is because we’re not advancing numbers in the way we should be advancing numbers. So when we get into attack, we’re always numerically deficient in the final action, because we’re not advancing the ball from the back line when we should be carrying the ball to drive and attack somebody. So now, when we give the ball to Gabe (Gabriel Pec), he has to beat three guys. We’ve got to be better at advancing the ball, to bring pressure to us, so that Gabe can play more one-on-one or we can play three versus two or we can create superiority.

“We’re used to giving the ball to someone like Riqui (Puig) who can then make a play and (now) that’s not going to happen. We have to, each individual, take a high level of responsibility to make things function on the field and doing it faster, recognizing the solution faster. This is the process that we’re going through.”

Answers will be needed if the Galaxy want to snap their slow start to the season. St. Louis City SC visits Dignity Health Sports Park Sunday (4 p.m.). St. Louis has yet to score or allow a goal through two games.

The concern will then shift to Wednesday, when the Galaxy will need at least two goals to advance out of their Round of 16 Champions Cup series against Herediano.

“Our margins are thin right now,” Vanney said. “We don’t have the speed of Joe (Joseph Paintsil), we don’t have the speed we normally have on the attacking side with Riqui and others, we don’t have that same dynamic level, so we have to be precise. The timing has to be perfect or else we lose those advantages and it becomes more difficult to score the goal.

“In order to create chances in a possession style, you’ve got to end up in the right places at the right times and be moving at the right speeds, and it all has to fit together and right now, we’re just a little bit … at times a little bit, at times a lot, off on these details. The margins are thin right now.”

Goalkeeper update

Novak Micovic started the first two games. Last year’s starter John McCarthy was in goal in Costa Rica for the first leg against Herediano.

“We’ll probably find ways to use them both here while it’s really busy,” Vanney said. “But at some point here in the not too distant future, I’ll be more precise about who is going to lead us as we continue to move forward.

“With all young players, we have to give Novak the opportunity and a little bit of a run of games to see how he can adapt and grow into the role. I also think that it’s hard to grow into a role when things in front of you aren’t as smooth as you would like them to be and you’re a young goalkeeper. So, I think we’ve got to give him some space to grow and not just dump him on the bench and leave him there, but at the same time, we know we have a great goalkeeper in John, who because of experience can step in and do the job.”

St. Louis City SC at Galaxy

When: 4 p.m. Sunday

Where: Dignity Health Sports Park

How to watch: Apple TV (MLS Season Pass)

​ Orange County Register 

Chiweenie Jax is glad to be off the streets

• March 8, 2025

Breed: Chiweenie (Chihuahua-dachshund mix)

Age: 2 years

Sex: Neutered male

Size: Almost 20 pounds

Jax’s story: This handsome brindle boy was found on the streets and is very happy to be off of them. He’s a little shy at first meeting, but warms up quickly. He is full of love for his friends, his toys and walks. He settles nicely into a warm lap at the end of the day and would do well with another, well-adjusted fur friend. He’s good with cats and is potty trained, microchipped and up-to-date on vaccines. He’s darn near perfect, his rescuers think.

Adoption cost: $250

Adoption procedure: Fill out Friends of Orange County’s Homeless Pets’ online application or email fochp@yahoo.com. The website has other pets in need of homes, too.

​ Orange County Register 

Dobie-shepherd mix Jewelee is beautiful, inside and out

• March 8, 2025

Breed: Doberman pinscher-German shepherd mix

Age: 5-6 years

Sex: Spayed female

Size: 75 pounds

Jewelee’s story: Jewelee is a beautiful girl with a beautiful, shiny black and gold coat and the sweetest disposition. She is a very good girl who is eager to please and likes to stay close to her human. This total sweetheart is pure joy to play with! She is socialized, great on a leash and loves all people and dogs. Jewelee is ready to find her perfect forever home and deserves a lifetime of love and attention. She would love to have another well-adjusted fur sibling to romp and play with, but she would also do just fine as an only pup. Jewelee is potty trained, dewormed and up to date on her vaccinations

Adoption cost: $375

Adoption procedure: If you’re interested in meeting or adopting Jewelee, fill out the adoption application on Leashes of Love’s website. A phone interview, meet and greet and home check are required.

​ Orange County Register 

No. 3 UCLA gymnastics team’s chemistry is a blast from the past

• March 8, 2025

Four upperclassmen on the UCLA gymnastics team had gathered before the season started for an important dinner.

Graduate student Brooklyn Moors and seniors Mia Erdoes, Emily Lee and Emma Malabuyo had been through a lot in their years as Bruins, from competing through the COVID-19 pandemic to a coaching change and inconsistent lineups.

“And then we actually had dinner with some of the alumni,” Malabuyo told reporters Thursday. “And we were, like, ‘You guys have won national championships. What is some advice you can give to us? How can we create that connection with the whole entire team?’”

Alumni like Peng Peng Lee, Sharon Shapiro, Felicia Hano and Lesley Goldberg doled out tips for maximizing team chemistry. A big takeaway, Malabuyo said, was that every team is different and everyone within that team communicates differently.

The seniors and upperclassmen used this advice to formulate a system of encouragement that has led the Bruins (12-2 overall, 9-0 Big Ten) to become the third-ranked team in the country.

Multiple gymnasts have said this is the closest team they’ve been a part of at UCLA, solidifying the legacy of this year’s group who will be honored at Sunday night’s Senior Meet against No. 12 Stanford (10-2 overall, 4-1 ACC).

Graduate students Chae Campbell, Carissa Clay, Frida Esparza and Moors will be recognized in a post-meet celebration in addition to seniors Erdoes, Lee and Malabuyo and junior Clara Wren, who is graduating early.

“All season there’s been moments that it hits me a little bit,” head coach Janelle McDonald said. “They are just incredible, amazing human beings that I feel like I’ve grown in my role with them. I’ve just seen so much growth from them over the past three seasons. I definitely think when the season wraps up, it’s going to hit me pretty hard.”

The upperclassmen have built an environment that has allowed the underclassmen to grow. Injury prevention measures have also helped the Bruins maintain consistent lineups from week to week, which has helped team progress.

“Consistency is such a big part of riding the wave and making improvements every single week,” Malabuyo said. “Just knowing that the same people are in lineups, I know who to go to after (competing). I know who to talk to, and we kind of had a system and having that consistency gives me more confidence.”

Few freshmen have taken advantage of this season as much as Mika Webster-Longin, who is likely a future all-around competitor for UCLA.

She’s reached scores of 9.900 or above in three events and recorded a 9.800 exhibition score on balance beam and has appeared competitively in the vault, uneven bars and floor exercise twice this year.

“I always have a little moment after the meet where I’m like, ‘Oh, I was able to contribute to our score and contribute to our win,’” Webster-Longin said. “Knowing that I’m part of the team and able to show up in those lineups and do my best in those routines that I get to put forth for the team is definitely something I can be very proud of.”

UCLA has the third-highest National Qualifying Score and is the top-ranked Big Ten Conference team in the national rankings with regular-season meets against Stanford and No. 5 Utah left.

The NCAA Regionals are slated to begin on April 2 – and they’re on the Bruins’ minds – but McDonald said the primary focus is to be locked in every week. This weekend, that includes appreciating the Senior Meet.

“I was laughing with some of the girls this morning just saying like, ‘OK, we have to take the mentality of like, this is a celebration of our seniors,’” she said. “We still have lots of competitions left and lots of memories to make, so it doesn’t have to be sad right now.”

No. 12 STANFORD (10-2, 4-1) at No. 3 UCLA (12-2, 9-0)

When: 5:30 p.m. Sunday

Where: Pauley Pavilion

TV: Big Ten Network

​ Orange County Register 

Book Review: ‘Air-borne’ transforms scientific history into detective story

• March 8, 2025

By ANDREW DeMILLO

A history of aerobiology would normally be a book that would have little interest beyond the science community. But in “Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breath,” Carl Zimmer transforms the topic into something that reads like a combination of detective and horror stories.

Zimmer creates a highly relevant and gripping history of the study of the air that spans from Louis Pasteur holding a glass globe on a glacier to scientists racing to fight COVID-19 during the pandemic.

The book shows what a vital role the science of airborne life has played in the fight against COVID, influenza and other diseases. Zimmer also introduces readers to figures little known to the mass public who have played a role in the field’s evolution.

They include William Firth Wells, a pioneer in aerobiology whose work was crucial in understanding how airborne diseases spread, especially during the pandemic.

Zimmer’s book also shows how the work of Wells and other scientists was distorted into something that was used as the basis of biological weapons.

Using the outbreak among a Washington state choir, Zimmer chillingly describes how COVID-19 spread through the air and the frustrating rifts among health officials during the pandemic about addressing to the public that the virus was airborne.

As Zimmer puts it, the pandemic “made the ocean of gases surrounding us visible.” His book is a key guide for understanding that ocean.

AP book reviews: https://apnews.com/hub/book-reviews

​ Orange County Register 

How one US organization reunites military personnel with the animals they rescued overseas

• March 8, 2025

By Mallory Carra, Ollie

While deployed in Kosovo in May 2024, U.S. Army Reserve physical therapy assistant Elvia Azuara saw many stray cats running around one of the bases — including a sweet little black and white female kitty, known mostly as Fent.

Azuara noticed her one day during lunch and she fed fries to Fent. Soon, this became a regular bonding activity for them. “I guess she knew my routine,” Azuara said in an interview with Stacker. “Whenever I was there, she would just pop up out of nowhere and she would wait for her fries.”

But four months later, in October, Azuara got word that her deployment was ending — and she was devastated to leave the kitty, especially as winter approached. And that’s where Paws of War’s “War Torn Pups & Cats” program stepped in.

Ollie profiled the work of the U.S. nonprofit, which reunites military personnel with the animals they bonded with while serving overseas. Founded by Robert Misseri in 2014, Paws of War has helped rescue over 5,000 dogs and cats for nearly 1,000 veterans. The organization filled an increasing need for officers in the Air Force, Marines, Army, Coast Guard, and Army Reserves who served overseas, bonded with a dog or a cat, and didn’t want to leave them behind in an uncertain situation.

The organization serves a dual purpose by reuniting service members grappling with the aftermath of war with animals needing care. And for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, their furry companions not only bring joy but also help them heal.

“We have troops all over the world and the sacrifices that those people make is pretty great,” said Paws of War volunteer Gary Baumann, who volunteers with the “War Torn Pups & Cats” program. “We feel like asking them to leave these animals behind is a sacrifice they shouldn’t have to make,” he told Stacker.

High costs but high rewards

Azuara heard about the program from service members who had previously been deployed at the base. After she bonded with Fent, she submitted her application to bring the kitty home to the U.S.

“I was a little skeptical at the beginning, to be honest, because I was like, ‘Oh, I don’t know why would they do it for free,’” she said, “but I don’t lose anything by just checking it out.”

The “War Torn Pups & Cats” program costs nothing for service members—donors primarily fund it. In 2023, Paws of War raised over $4 million from contributions and grants.

After a soldier like Azuara applies, Paws of War volunteers and staff members all around the world team up to work on the logistics, exploring how possible it is to bring the pet to the United States. Dogs and cats need to see a qualified veterinarian for documentation and rabies vaccines before traveling internationally, but sometimes that vet is located hours away. The care can also vary in cost, depending on local currency and pricing.

“Recently we had a dog in Africa and we’ve done a few from bases there,” Baumann said. “It literally takes a donkey cart, a boat, couple cars and then, usually a motorcycle, something that can go through a little bit of brush to get these the dogs or cats to the city where we can get them to a vet and start processing them.”

The most expensive part of the process is transporting animals to the U.S. It often involves flying them in a plane as cargo, which can cost around $4,000 or more. The pet also must enter the country at a government-authorized airport.

For instance, cats from other countries can enter the U.S. through several airports, but the CDC only allows dogs from high-risk rabies countries to enter through six, including John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City and Los Angeles International Airport.

Helping heroes

Paws of War accepts direct donations on its website to help support its programs, which include providing PTSD service dogs and a mobile veterinary clinic in Long Island, New York.

For the “War Torn” program, the expense is worth it for the organization, its soldiers, and the animals. Dogs and cats are believed to be capable of more complex emotions than most people realize and their reunions with the officers they bonded with may mean just as much to them as it does to the human.

For Azuara, the bond was as strong as ever. Three weeks after she put in her application, the program contacted her in November 2024 with good news: Fent was ready to travel to the U.S. and live with her.

The cat flew from Kosovo and entered the U.S. through JFK airport, eventually making it to Azuara’s home in Austin, Texas. Their reunion at the airport meant a lot to Azuara, who worried the kitty might forget her or not get along with her two dogs. But Fent — who Azuara renamed Frenzy — adjusted to her new home right away. Frenzy doesn’t get to eat fries anymore, but enjoys her proper cat food.

Now, Azuara is training to join the Travis County EMS. Having Frenzy, a major part of her overseas experience, in Texas has helped her readjust to the U.S.

“She’s definitely one of my huge grounding tools, when I was over there,” Azuara said. “When the situations were really stressful, she was something that would brighten up my day. And when I came back it’s really hard to transition and acclimate back into civilian life, but having her, it was kind of like having a little piece of where I was and a little reminder that, hey, it’s going to be okay.”

Story editing by Alizah Salario. Additional editing by Elisa Huang. Copy editing by Kristen Wegrzyn. Photo selection by Lacy Kerrick.

This story originally appeared on Ollie and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.

​ Orange County Register 

Costs of child care now outpace college tuition in 38 states, analysis finds

• March 8, 2025

By Kevin Hardy, Stateline.org

The cost of child care now exceeds the price of college tuition in 38 states and the District of Columbia, according to a new analysis conducted by the Economic Policy Institute.

The left-leaning think tank, based in Washington, D.C., used 2023 federal and nonprofit data to compare the monthly cost of infant child care to that of tuition at public colleges.

The tally increased five states since the pandemic began. EPI’s last analysis relied on 2020 data, which showed child care costs outstripped college costs in 33 states and Washington, D.C., said EPI spokesperson Nick Kauzlarich.

The organization released a state-by-state guide on Wednesday showing the escalating cost of child care. Average costs range from $521 per month in Mississippi to as much as $1,893 per month in Washington, D.C., for households with one 4-year-old child, EPI found.

The analysis also found child care costs have exceeded rent prices in 17 states and the District of Columbia.

EPI leaders said child care is unaffordable for working families across the country, but especially for low-wage workers, including those who provide child care.

“This isn’t inevitable — it is a policy choice,” Katherine deCourcy, EPI research assistant, said in a news release. “Federal and state policymakers can and should act to make child care more affordable, and ensure that child care workers can afford the same quality of care for their own children.”

The organization highlighted New Mexico as a case study on the growing challenge facing families.

There, the average annual cost of infant care exceeds $14,000 — or nearly $1,200 a month, the group said. Care for a four-year-old costs nearly $10,000 per year — or over $800 a month.

While experts often consider housing as a family’s single largest expense, EPI found New Mexico’s annual infant care costs outpace rent by over 10%. Child care is out of reach for about 90% of New Mexico residents, according to the federal government’s definition of affordability, which is no more than 7% of a family’s income.

Advocates often call for universal preschool programs as a way to provide quality, free child care. EPI noted a 2022 constitutional amendment approved by New Mexico voters guaranteeing a right to early childhood education. That created an annual fund of about $150 million to help subsidize early childhood programs.

“New Mexico’s investments mark an important step toward affordable child care, but investments like this are needed across the country,” EPI argued in a Wednesday blog post.

©2025 States Newsroom. Visit at stateline.org. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

​ Orange County Register