Spring

There are several Nike-sponsored billboards popping up around town featuring Long Beach Poly freshman 800-meter runner Laila Kirk, who is a two-time national AAU champion.

It’s setting the stage for her high school debut this spring for the Jackrabbits.

She certainly has lots of ties to track and field.

Her mother, Angelita, ran track at Poly and Washington State. Her father, Lamarr, ran track at Dorsey and Washington State. Her grandmother, Margaret Hemmans-Green, ran track at Manual Arts and El Camino College. Her grandfather, Ted Green, was a long jumper at Manual Arts.

Laila had a best 800 time of 2:07 last spring. She also ran the 400 in 54.72.

Long Beach Poly has a long history of producing outstanding track and field athletes, but few 14-year-olds have appeared on billboards before their first race in high school.

This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email [email protected].

The allure of sea cucumber, Addison on Cafe 2001 and its elusive watermelon cake, plus L.A.’s king of super chuggers and more. I’m Laurie Ochoa, general manager of L.A. Times Food, with this week’s Tasting Notes.

Crackle pop

The sea cucumber spring roll at Wing in Hong Kong before it is sliced and plated. Behind the roll is a display of dried sea cucumber before its undergoes a multi-day cooking process.

(Laurie Ochoa / Los Angeles Times)

The crackle of paper-thin pastry under a razor-sharp cleaver as the chef beside your table slices a golden fried spring roll in half is just one sign that you are about to eat something extraordinary.

There is also the sight of the otherworldly creature — a sea cucumber — displayed on a platter in its dried state before it has undergone a multi-day blooming and braising process and formed the filling of the spring roll before you.

You bite into the delicate wrapper and find that the sea cucumber has been transformed into something that on one level resembles braised pork belly but also has its own kind of lusciousness.

This is the sea cucumber spring roll by chef Vicky Cheng, one of the not-to-miss dishes he created at his restaurant Wing in Hong Kong.

Cheng, who was born in Hong Kong, grew up in Canada and came of age as a chef in North America, learning the intricacies of French cuisine at Toronto and New York restaurants, including Daniel with chef Daniel Boulud.

That French training shows in the lightness of the pastry wrapper of Cheng’s fried spring roll. Not to mention the showmanship of its presentation, which provides ASMR thrills when the cleaver cuts through the cylinder. But Cheng’s true purpose is to recontextualize a traditional Chinese ingredient that has been seen as old-fashioned, a luxury texture food often eaten more for medicinal purposes and status rather than deliciousness.

Chef Vicky Cheng in the dining room of his Hong Kong restaurant Wing.

(Laurie Ochoa / Los Angeles Times)

At his first Hong Kong restaurant, the Michelin-starred restaurant VEA, one floor above Wing in the same office building that houses a collection of Michelin-starred restaurants, including the Chairman, Feuille, Hansik Goo and Whey, sea cucumber quickly became one of Cheng’s signature dishes.

In the VEA preparation, a smaller, spikier type of sea cucumber surrounds a shellfish filling — in January, when I tried the dish, it was tiger prawn. But for the spring roll at Wing, Cheng uses a much larger and smoother species from New Zealand and Australia, which has the first sea cucumber fishery certified as sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council.

The sea cucumber spring roll is one of the dishes Cheng is planning to serve at Kato here in Los Angeles when he collaborates with chef Jon Yao for a two-night dinner series on Oct. 14 and 15. Reservations quickly disappeared when they were made available this week, but I’ll be talking with Cheng onstage Sunday, Oct. 12 at UCLA’s Fowler Museum about his restaurants and the different ways he’s trying to shift the conversation about Chinese cuisine for a younger generation. Joining us will be chef Curtis Stone, who featured Cheng and many others in the Hong Kong episode of his PBS series “Field Trip With Curtis Stone,” which will be screened at the free event.

The appearances will cap off our L.A. Times Food Bowl Night Market at City Market Social House Oct. 10 and 11. VIP tickets are sold out, but limited general admission tickets remain for the Friday and Saturday night event presented by Square. The more than 40 participating restaurants include Holbox, Baroo, the Brothers Sushi, OyBar, Heritage Barbecue, Crudo e Nudo, Hummingbird Ceviche House, Rossoblu, Perilla L.A., Evil Cooks, Villa’s Tacos, Holy Basil, Heavy Handed, AttaGirl, Heng Heng Chicken Rice, the Win-Dow, Agnes Restaurant & Cheesery and Luv2Eat Thai Bistro. Check lafoodbowl.com for tickets and info.

Chasing watermelon

Chef Giles Clark and some of his breakfast, lunch and pastry specials at Cafe 2001 in downtown Los Angeles.

(Emil Ravelo / For The Times)

My habit at the Arts District’s Cafe 2001 has been to arrive just after 11 a.m. when chef Giles Clark‘s menu, restricted to breakfast items before that point, opens up with lunch choices. It’s the best way to experience the full array of inventive dishes Clark has cooked up for the day … with one big exception. The cafe’s gorgeous watermelon cake, taught to Clark by Tokyo chef Toshio Tanabe, doesn’t come out of the kitchen until 1 p.m., even if it’s sometimes visible earlier than that, tempting diners. All summer long I haven’t managed to get a slice of that cake. But our restaurant critic Bill Addison is a pro; he got the cake and so much more, which he elegantly describes in his new review of Cafe 2001 — “a peculiar and quietly serious little place, with a narrow yet soaring space reclaimed from urban decay, and casual, sophisticated daytime meals,” he writes. “Its eccentricities feel like welcome refuge.”

For more on Cafe 2001, read Food’s deputy editor Betty Hallock on Clark’s spring-green potato salad (with his recipe), plus my contribution to our brunch guide on the appeal of Clark’s morning offerings and my newsletter earlier this summer on how the chef’s corn fritter was a welcome sign of summer in a city recovering from downtown L.A. restaurant closures after immigration enforcement actions prompted a curfew.

The wine auteur

Winemaker Scott Sampler gets chuggy at Anajak Thai in Sherman Oaks.

(G L Askew II / For The Times)

Chances are good you’ve seen Scott Sampler‘s Scotty-Boy! wines in restaurants and local wine shops. And you may have sipped from bottlings of some of his other labels without realizing they came from the same mind.

“Sampler’s wines,” writes Food contributor Patrick Comiskey, “have managed to channel L.A.’s boundless culinary enthusiasms for the past decade.” Of course, Comiskey adds that Sampler’s wines — “pungent, savory, defiantly unfruity” — “can be polarizing even in the era of natural wine, when wine’s very range of flavors is in flux.”

Sampler and Comiskey met in a booth at Musso & Frank’s in Hollywood to talk wine, food, Serge Gainsbourg and how the king of the super chuggers got serious about what he puts in a bottle. A terrific read.

3 out of 50

Gilberto Cetina, chef and owner of Holbox, pictured outside his restaurant.

(Mariah Tauger/Los Angeles Times)

On Thursday night, three Los Angeles restaurants were named to the inaugural North America’s 50 Best Restaurants list from the World’s 50 Best franchise, as Food’s Stephanie Breijo reports. They are Kato at No. 26, Holbox at No. 42 and at No. 47 Providence, which also received its third Michelin star this year.

“Everybody’s really proud,” Holbox chef Gilberto Cetina told Breijo, “especially right now with these times when our people don’t feel as welcome as we have before, with the way politics are. Being able to be here at a national forum representing Mexican culture through our food is really cool.”

Diner talk

Chef Nancy Silverton and Phil Rosenthal share a milkshake at the counter of Fair Oaks Pharmacy and Soda Fountain in Pasadena.

(Ron De Angelis / For The Times)

Food’s columnist Jenn Harris took chef Nancy Silverton and TV’s Phil Rosenthal to Pie ‘n Burger and the soda fountain at Fair Oaks Pharmacy in Pasadena to discuss the many debates the two have during the making of their soon-to-open diner Max and Helen’s in L.A.’s Larchmont Village. Patty melt or hamburger? Both was the compromise. And the secret of a great milkshake? The answer might surprise you.

Reeling

PCH seafood stalwart The Reel Inn before the Palisades fire.

(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)

Will the Reel Inn rise again? That’s the question Food’s Stephanie Breijo asked in her story about the challenges the iconic restaurant is facing as it tries to rebuild after the Palisades fire.

And in her Quick Bites report on new restaurants, Breijo has details about Bub and Grandma’s Pizza in Highland Park; Michelin-starred Kali‘s pivot away from tasting menus to steakhouse favorites; the appearance of Pino’s Sandwiches in Los Feliz from the owner of Salumeria Verdi in Florence and the expansion of Tacos Villa Corona to Eagle Rock.

Also …

We’ve made it to September. It’s a transitional time in SoCal gardens as well as in our daily lives. It’s the end of summer! The beginning of school! The triumphant return of pumpkin spice! 🤮

In this year of seemingly ceaseless transitions, let’s just take a minute to catch our breath.

Below, you will find, as always, a list of plant-related workshops and events, but I’d first like to consider this lightning-fast year, where titanic changes keep coming with bewildering speed, from devastating and deadly wildfires to ICE raids, tariffs and gut-wrenching international conflicts, to name several.

If you pitched this stuff for a movie (even turmoil with Canada?), it would seem too preposterous to be made. Except we’ve been living this preposterous movie, and it’s been a lot.

A volunteer tomato plant — variety unknown — grows like a champion against a fence, sans any kind of tending, yet it’s outproducing all the other vines planted in carefully prepared beds full of compost and other amendments. To the left is a huge colander of tomatoes picked off the plant with many more left to ripen.

(Jeanette Marantos / Los Angeles Times)

But here’s the thing: Our gardens don’t care, and there’s a certain beauty and reassurance that comes with that. Take the volunteer tomato plant that appeared in a corner of my yard last winter. It grew up and over my fence, while I was preoccupied with everything else going on in the world. Since July, it has been happily producing tons of tomatoes, which are particularly delicious when they’re roasted with garlic and olive oil.

Or consider how at the fire sites in L.A. County, many oaks and other venerable trees survived next to houses destroyed in the flames. I’ve visited burned properties where tall tangles of native sunflowers literally emerged from the ashes to delight native bees, and even roses, supposedly the fussiest of flowers, are blooming on scorched properties sans water, tending or expectation.

Our gardens can’t change the turmoil in our world, but they can help us cope. Even if all you have is a balcony with room for a couple of pots, find a way to plant something this September that can sustain you with fragrance or food or just plain beauty.

Winter veggies

Yvonne Savio ran Los Angeles County’s UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardener program for 25 years before she retired. She’s been gardening for nearly 60 years, so I’d put her in the expert category. For many years, she’s been sharing her wit and wisdom on her website GardningInLA.net, and just recently she started writing for L.A. County’s Master Gardeners’ online newsletter, offering timely tips for plant lovers.

Savio has a huge, envy-inspiring garden in Pasadena. She considers September a transitional time to plant the last of her fast-growing warm-season crops such as green beans and summer squash, and the first of her cool-season crops such as lettuces, kale, peppery greens like mustard and arugula, beets, broccoli and peas (edible) and sweet peas (not edible but beautifully, deliciously fragrant).

For those with smaller gardens, she recommends focusing on cool-weather crops. Even a wide container can grow a thick crop of loose-leaf lettuce — just trim a few leaves from each plant to fill your salad bowl.

At Urban Homestead, a family farm in residential Pasadena, salad mix seeds are planted thickly in narrow trenches, so when the plants emerge they can be easily harvested just a few leaves at a time.

(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

Remove spent warm-season plants first. Bag any diseased plants and put them in the landfill trash so you don’t taint compost piles. Then, she said, enrich your soil with a few inches of compost and mix in some slow-release organic fertilizer such as earthworm castings or Dr. Earth.

Now comes the fun part — choosing your plants. Browse your local nursery for starter packs of greens, lettuces or brassicas like broccoli. But be sure to pick up some packets of seeds as well, especially for beets, which are a double treat with delicious leaves — a bounty in soups! — and colorful roots. They are so good roasted.

You can also order excellent seeds online from California companies such as Renee’s Garden seed in Felton or the Ojai-based Plant Good Seed Co.

Sweet peas such as Renee’s Garden varietal ‘Fire and Ice’ come in a huge mix of colors, but almost all offer a similar prize: an unforgettable sweet fragrance that fills a room with happiness.

(ReneesGarden.com)

Spring blooms

Bulbs are a miraculous boon of color in snow country, when early spring is otherwise grim and gray. They’re easy to plant, and once established, they spread and return year after year, making that initial sometimes pricey investment seem very worthwhile.

Sweet peas such as Renee’s Garden varietal ‘Fire and Ice’ come in a huge mix of colors but almost all offer a similar prize: an unforgettable sweet fragrance that fills a room with happiness.

(ReneesGarden.com)

But here’s the scoop about bulbs: Although most will grow in SoCal, many require freezing temperatures to spread and thrive, Savio said.

If you have the cash and patience to treat bulbs like annuals and replant them every year, that’s great. But for the rest of us, Savio recommends focusing on bulbs purchased from Southern California nurseries that do well in our climate. Find out your hardiness zone on the USDA Hardiness Zone Map (most of the Greater Los Angeles Area has a zone around 10, meaning our low temperatures generally stay above freezing) and be sure to choose bulbs that will thrive in your zone.

Some of Savio’s tips for choosing bulbs: Buy the biggest, firmest, driest bulbs you can, without any mold, early in the season. Avoid end-of-season sales because those are usually smaller bulbs that didn’t sell from the previous year.

Savio said she’s found that frilly double-type varieties or late-season bloomers don’t do as well in warmer climates. Try a few by all means, she said, but invest most of your budget in simpler varieties that bloom early in the spring and will likely spread and flourish to give you years of repeat blooms with just one planting.

She said daffodils, paperwhites and fragrant colorful freesias do particularly well.

Her favorite bulb sellers include EasyToGrowBulbs.com, based in Oceanside, and Telos Rare Bulbs in Felton. Most native plant nurseries offer native bulbs, and you can find native Pacific Coast irises and (nonnative) tall bearded irises at Matilija Nursery in Moorpark (which does not do mail order) and Greenwood Daylily Nursery in Somis (which does).

And finally, don’t forget to order some sweet peas! Renee’s Garden and Enchanting Sweet Peas in Sebastapol, Calif., have an inspiring selection. Get some now and be sure to plant them before Thanksgiving as a little happiness insurance for next spring.

Need gardening help?

The UC Master Gardeners of Los Angeles County are once again offering their modestly priced Grow LA Gardens classes, a series of four basic gardening classes in September and October in Boyle Heights, Van Nuys, Hollywood, San Marino, West Adams, Long Beach and South Pasadena. The classes are on Saturdays or Sundays. Times and prices vary, but most cost $70 for all four classes (the highest rate), or $30 for those who need financial assistance.

Upcoming events

Sept. 6 and ongoing
The new Little Tokyo Farmers’ Market from Food Access Los Angeles and the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center opened Aug. 30, and will continue to operate every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the JACCC’s Isamu Noguchi Plaza in downtown Los Angeles. Admission is free. foodaccessla.org

Sept. 6, 7 and 13
Santa Monica Mountains Fund’s free milkweed giveaways provide four to six narrow-leaf milkweed plants per household that were grown and distributed by the Los Angeles Parks Foundation. Milkweed is the host plant for endangered monarch butterflies whose caterpillars dine exclusively on their leaves. Plants will be given away, with instructions on how to put them in the ground, at the Tarzana Community & Cultural Center from 9 a.m. to noon Sept. 6; at the Encino Farmers Market in Encino from 9 a.m. to noon Sept. 7; and at the Pacoima Back-to-School Resource Fair at Vaughn Global Green Generation Elementary from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 13. Admission is free, but registration is required. eventbrite.com

Sept. 7
Gardening 101: The Whys of Gardening in San Diego is a free class at City Farmers Nursery in San Diego from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. that will offer growing advice and plant tips for gardeners. Admission is free, and no RSVP required. cityfarmernursery.com

Sept. 11
Intro to California Native Plant Garden Design with Theodore Payne Foundation Horticulture Director Tim Becker. It’s from 9 a.m. to noon at the foundation in Sun Valley. Register online, $103.22 ($81.88 members). eventbrite.com

Sept. 12, 19 and 26
3-Part California Native Garden Design with landscape designer Carol Armour Aronson of Seco Verde. It’s from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. each day at the Theodore Payne Foundation in Sun Valley. The prerequisite course, Right Plant, Right Place, is available online on Sept. 10 from 6 to 8 p.m. for $37.66. The design course is in person. Register online, $396.11 for one; $471.96 for couples working on one design. events.humantix.com

Sept. 13-14
Southern California Begonia Society’s Begonia Show & Sale is from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days at Sherman Library & Gardens in Corona del Mar. The show includes free talks and demonstrations about growing begonias in terrariums at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 13, basic begonia culture at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 14 and a tour of the garden’s begonia collection at 1:30 p.m. Sept. 14. The show is free with a $5 admission to the garden (members and children 3 and younger enter free). thesherman.org

Sept. 13
Re-wild: Site Design and Establishing New Plants, led by Tree of Life Nursery co-founder Mike Evans, is from 10 a.m. to noon at the nursery in San Juan Capistrano. Learn how to design a native plant landscape. The class is free, but registration is required. eventbrite.com

Avocado 101 Seminar, a free class about avocado varieties and best practices for growing the trees in your garden, is 10 to 11 a.m. at Otto & Sons Nursery in Fillmore. Reservations are not required. ottoandsonsnursery.com

California Native Plant Container Gardening, taught by Theodore Payne Foundation nursery technician Terrence Williams, is at the nursery in Sun Valley. Register online, $55.20 ($44.52 members). eventbrite.com

Monrovia Community Garden’s Green Care Day is from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the garden in Monrovia. Help weed, mulch and otherwise improve the garden with raised bed maintenance and soil topping. Participation is free. monroviacommunitygarden.org

Your Backyard Orchard, a free class about planning and caring for fruit trees taught by the UC Master Gardeners of Orange County, is from 9 to 10:15 a.m. at the Santa Margarita Water District in Rancho Santa Margarita. ucanr.edu

Rose Care Basics, a free class at City Farmers Nursery in San Diego, is from 9 to 10 a.m. and will offer tips about growing roses in San Diego. Admission is free, and no RSVP required. cityfarmernursery.com

Native Plant Summer Maintenance Basics with Theodore Payne Foundation horticulture educator Erik Blank is from 9 to 11 a.m. at the foundation’s demonstration garden in Sun Valley. Register online, $55.20 ($44.52 members). eventbrite.com

Sept. 14
California Biodiversity Day Free Day is from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. at California Botanic Garden in Claremont. The event includes bilingual tours of the garden’s production nursery at 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.; a native plant loteria game with help from the Chino Basin Water Conservation District from noon to 1 p.m.; and activities provided by exhibitors from various community organizations between 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tickets are free but must be reserved in advance. calbg.org

Horticulturist Andrew Hankey discusses four new ledebouris species from the Steenkampsberg, Mpumalanga in east South Africa, at the September meeting of the South Coast Cactus & Succulent Society at Fred Hesse Jr. Community Park’s McTaggart Hall in Rancho Palos Verdes. The meeting starts at 11 a.m. and ends at 2 p.m. Admission is free. southcoastcss.org

Gardening for Wildlife, a free class at City Farmer’s Nursery in San Diego, is from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. and covers how to create a wildlife-friendly sanctuary garden for birds, pollinators and small mammals in San Diego. Admission is free, and no RSVP required. cityfarmernursery.com

Sept. 19
Propagating California Native Plants From Cuttings, a Theodore Payne Foundation class led by Horticulture Director Tim Becker, is from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the foundation’s new Los Angeles satellite Los Nogales Nursery at the Audubon Center at Debs Park in Montecito Heights. Each participant will leave with a flat of a few starts for their own garden. All materials provided. Register online, $108.55 ($81.88 members). eventbrite.com

Sept. 20
Southern California Horticultural Society’s 2025 Annual Awards Banquet is from 5 to 9 p.m. at the La Cañada Flintridge Country Club and honors native plant horticulturist Katherine Pakradouni with the society’s first-ever Pathmaker Award, created to recognize forward-thinking individuals breaking new ground in horticulture. Pakradouni developed the native plant nursery for the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing project, collecting about 1 million native seeds from the surrounding region, and has developed several micro forests and other ecological landscapes through her business Seed to Landscape. The society’s Horticulturists of the Year award will go to native plant horticulturist Melanie Baer Keeley, who is developing Alta Vista Natives Nursery in Three Rivers, and her husband, botanist and fire management scientist Jon E. Keeley. Banquet tickets, which include dinner, are available online, $80 ($70 members). socalhort.org

Sept. 20-21
Carbon Culture Workshop: Hands-On Hugelkultur is from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Granada Hills and led by Studio Petrichor’s regenerative garden designers Leigh Adams and Shawn Maestretti. Learn how to build hugelkultur berms out of logs and layers of wood chips and soil; and lasagna mulching to tamp down weeds. Bring gloves and a water bottle; lunch provided. Register online $44.52. eventbrite.com

Sept. 26 and 27
California Botanic Garden’s Seeds Walking Tour involves guided tours through the state’s largest botanic garden dedicated to California native plants to learn about what seeds can tell us about their native plants. Tours available from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. and 10 to 11 a.m. both days at the garden in Claremont. Register online, $20 ($10 members). calbg.org

Sept. 26-28
44th Edition of the Fascination of Orchids International Festival of Orchids & Exotic Plants is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. all three days at the Santa Ana Zoo in Santa Ana. The event includes thousands of orchids and exotic plants on display as well as classes about growing orchids and vendors selling supplies. Purchase tickets online, $5.49 per person, valid for all three days. ticketleap.events

Sept. 27
Love Your Lands: National Public Lands Day Event with Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy is from 9 a.m. to noon at the conservancy’s White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro. It will be a day of helping to remove nonnative plant species, watering new native plantings, seed preparation, garden walks and activities for children. Participation is free, but registration is required. pvplc.volunteerhub.com

Re-wild: Planting Design and Installation, led by Tree of Life Nursery co-founder Mike Evans, is from 10 a.m. to noon at the nursery in San Juan Capistrano. Learn how to implement your native plant landscape design. The class is free, but registration is required. eventbrite.com

What we’re reading

After two winters of next-to-no rain, SoCal is heading back into drought conditions. Is this the year you finally remove your lawn? If you need inspiration, here are two of our latest stories about Angelenos who pulled out their turf to create native plant landscapes, with the help of an ocean-conscious designer in Long Beach and a creative DIY couple in Harvard Park determined to transform their dead lawn into a vibrant habitat.

Altadena was lush with plants before the Eaton fire, and resident Laurie Scott is intent on replacing that green — and lifting her community’s spirit — with her Regrow Altadena project, which gives free plants to residents to plant around their fire-damaged properties.

Finally, in The Times’ series Imagining a Future L.A., my colleague Patt Morrison predicts a “frond farewell” to L.A.’s iconic fan palms.

There’s another Catholic school sports scandal under way, and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles apparently was the only one who didn’t see it coming.

On Saturday, Bishop Montgomery in Torrance announced football coach and co-athletic director Ed Hodgkiss was no longer employed by the school.

In other words, he was fired.

He’s apparently going to be the fall guy for five Bishop Montgomery transfer students being declared ineligible by the Southern Section, multiple Bishop Montgomery suspensions imposed after players left the bench with 24 seconds left in a loss in Hawaii and Bishop Montgomery having to forfeit to No. 1 Mater Dei on Friday because of lack of players.

People in the Southern California football community have been talking about Bishop Montgomery for months as they saw one transfer after another welcomed to the school. Southern Section officials waited for weeks to receive the transfers’ paperwork. Five players were declared in violation of CIF bylaw 202, which includes providing false information.

If a school trying to rapidly improve its football program with short cuts sounds familiar, it is.

In 2020, St. Bernard turned to former Narbonne coach Manuel Douglas, who won eight City titles. Douglas was forced out at Narbonne and didn’t coach in 2019 after a nine-month Los Angeles Unified School District investigation. Narbonne was banned from the 2019 playoffs and forced to forfeit its 2018 City title for use of an ineligible player.

Douglas later resigned in the spring of 2020 when he came under an FBI and IRS investigation over money received from a Narbonne booster to pay for a trip to Hawaii while coaching at Narbonne.

St. Bernard proceeded to drop its football program in 2021, 2022 and 2023.

This past week, a spokeswoman for the archdiocese wrote in an email in response to a request for an update about Bishop Montgomery, “The investigation is ongoing and there are no developments to share at this time. The school and the Department of Catholic Schools are in communication with the CIF Southern Section office as the investigation continues.”

Last spring, Bishop Montgomery’s new principal, Michele Starkey, was asked by The Times in a phone call, whose participants included new school president Patrick Lee, if she was aware of any involvement by the same Narbonne booster tied to Douglas’ resignation in Bishop Montgomery’s program. She said no.

The archdiocese should start its investigation right there. Players don’t start suddenly showing up from all over Southern California with no reason.

Lessons were not learned. Players from last year’s Bishop Montgomery team saw what was happening and transferred out. Maybe the Archdiocese should ask them what was happening.

A Bishop Montgomery parent wrote in a letter to The Times, “Returning players were demoted, excluded from trips or quit; Archdiocesan Catholic values appear secondary to short-term athletic exposure; despite my June outreach to the school, no reply ever came.”

Messages left for Hodgkiss and Lee on Saturday were not returned.

It’s another big mess for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles to clean up, and it was very much preventable if lessons from the past had been learned.

IF your bins are kicking up a nasty smell, fear not, you’ve come to the right place.

With summer right around the corner, the warm weather can cause your bins to emit ghastly, unwanted odours.

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But to stop your dirty recycling from marinating in the heat and causing your neighbours to squirm, experts have revealed a variety of simple tips and tricks to keep your bins fresh all summer long.

According to Michael Bogoyavlenskiy, CEO of Cleaning Express, keeping your bins out of direct sunlight can help prevent foul smells.

And while it’s important to empty your bin every couple of days and make sure to dispose of anything “particularly pungent”, there’s also a variety of cleaning hacks that can banish grim smells.

On a mission to ensure my recycling bin smells fresh this season, I, Abby Wilson, tested three simple hacks. 

You probably already have at least two of these buys in your cupboards already, but don’t worry if your purse is feeling tighter than ever before, as all three are super affordable.

While the cheapest hack will cost you just 49p, your bin will be so clean you’ll be able to see your reflection thanks to a 55p trick. 

Wash this 

According to those at Busy Bins, a simple mixture of washing-up liquid and warm water will do the trick to banish seriously bad stenches from your bin.

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So, I got my Marigolds on and dived headfirst into the bin – and yes, it was as grim as you could imagine.

In between holding back gags and wiping my watering eyes, I scrubbed the interior of the recycling bin with the purse-friendly two-ingredient solution. 

I then gave the bin a quick rinse with a hose and I have to say, it looked pretty good.

Whilst it wasn’t great at getting rid of the tough stains and did require quite a bit of elbow grease (far more than I’d have hoped), it definitely cut through the strong smells.

It looked pretty good too and thanks to this cheap trick, your bins are sure to shine in no time.

While I used proper Fairy Liquid, if you’re on a budget and are looking to pocket pennies where possible, you’ll be thrilled to know that you can nab cheaper dish soap from just 49p from Savers.

Rating: 3/5 

Powerful paste 

After a couple of weeks, it appeared that my bin had gone back to its old ways and was still looking a bit grim.

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So I searched for something a bit stronger and bought myself a tub of The Pink Stuff, which you’ll find for only £1.50 from Poundland, Sainsbury’s and Dunelm. 

While this isn’t something I’ve heard many experts talk about when it comes to bin cleaning, I figured the multi-purpose paste which has been hailed as a “miracle” product that is said to be “tough on stains”, could do the trick.

But after literally five seconds of scrubbing, I was already starting to regret my decision.

Yes, this thick paste is super versatile, but it made a total mess on my bin.

The household items you’re not cleaning often enough

IF you want to ensure your home is squeaky clean, you’ll need to listen up. Below are the household items you’re forgetting to clean, and how to get them sparkling…

Remote Controls: Wipe with a disinfectant cloth. Use a cotton bud for crevices.

Light Switches: Wipe with a disinfectant wipe. Use a mild soap solution for tough stains.

Door Handles: Clean with an antibacterial spray. Wipe down regularly.

Underneath and Behind Appliances: Vacuum or sweep regularly. Mop with a suitable cleaner.

Shower Curtains and Liners: Wash in the washing machine. Use a bleach solution for stubborn mildew.

Kitchen Sponges and Dishcloths: Microwave damp sponges for one minute. Wash dishcloths in the washing machine.

Computer Keyboards and Mice: Use compressed air to remove debris. Wipe with a disinfectant wipe.

It was much more hassle than it was worth and there was far too much faff involved with getting rid of the white residue from my bin.

While I love using this product throughout my home, on my grubby oven and kitchen sink, I’m definitely not sold on using it to clean my bin.

Also, the scent is very faint, so it didn’t work as well as I’d hoped to keep my bin smelling fresh. 

Rating: 2/5 

Seriously strong 

Disappointed with the mess The Pink Stuff made, not only on my bin but all over me too, I reached for a household hero I knew wouldn’t let me down.

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Not only do I use bleach on my loos, but I imagined it would work well on my bin too.

According to the Wheelie Bin Cleaning Service, using bleach, which you can buy for just 55p from Tesco, is a great way to effectively disinfect a bin.

By bin was left so clean I could even see my reflection in it

Abby Wilson

The pros explained that bleach is a “strong cleaner” that “kills many bacteria, viruses, and fungi”, whilst working to “keep bins clean and fresh.”

Not only this, but the experts also recognised that it will “break down tough stains, grease and grime in bins”, whilst also “making bins look new and clean again.”

Eager to let the powerful product do its work, I diluted some bleach with water and threw the solution over the inside and outside of my recycling bin.

I then grabbed a long brush to spread the solution and left it to work for a few minutes.

Moments later, I thoroughly rinsed the bin to get rid of any residue, which is highly important when using bleach as it can be harmful to the environment and wildlife. 

As someone who would buy a bleach scented candle if it was available, I was overjoyed with the squeaky clean scent it left behind. 

Not only was it a cheap cleaning solution, but it definitely smelt the best out of the bunch too. 

But that wasn’t all – my bin was left so clean (definitely the cleanest it has EVER looked), I could even see my reflection in it – yes, you heard that correctly.

I highly doubt I’ll be popping outside and peering at my bin to check that my make-up and hair look decent, but if you really want your bins to shine, bleach may just be the thing for you. 

Although it left me very impressed, the experts recommend that bleach should not be used for routine cleaning of bins due to environmental concerns and the damage it can do to plastic over time. 

I’ll definitely do this trick again, but for those eager to give it a try, make sure you switch up your cleaning methods, dilute it properly before us and always wear gloves. 

Rating: 4/5 

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FASHION fans have been left totally divided after spotting an iconic noughties trend that has made its way back to the high-street.

After going into fashion Room 101, the frock that defined the noughties has successfully fought its way back – but many are fuming and are describing it as “cheap and tacky”. 

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The bandage dress first hit the catwalk back in 1989 as the grand finale of Hervé Léger’s runway show, but it wasn’t until the likes of Victoria Beckham and other celebrities went crazy for the dresses in the 00s that they became mainstream.

Women were scrambling to get their hands on the high-street versions of the designer gowns, made with thick strips of fabric which work to “bandage” your shape and flatten out problem areas.

And now, shoppers will again be able to get their hands on the iconic bandage dresses, as they are now back in House of CB.

The much-loved chain took to Instagram to share the exciting news, leaving many totally stunned.

Alongside the social media post showing off the new frocks, the chain penned: “She’s baaaaaack. Shop the birthday bandage collection now and be ready to serve some cake.” 

According to those at House of CB, one of the “most iconic party dresses is back for another dance”.

The heavyweight stretch fabric of these £169 Sculpt Midi Bandage Dresses, which are available in a number of different colours and styles, features unique tension properties that contour your body and create curves to envy. 

The dresses are now elevated with even more definition around the bust and waistline, as well as flattering halter neck straps and a low scooped back that shows just the right amount of skin. 

A fashionista from London named Christie, was gobsmacked to see the figure hugging frocks back in stores and took to social media to share the news with others.

Posting online, the content creator gave her followers a close-up look at the House of CB dresses and gasped: “Bandage dresses are BACK??!!” 

She then questioned: “I fear I want one?”

The TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @christievian, has clearly left many open-mouthed, as it has quickly amassed 227,900 views, 23,000 likes and 215 comments. 

I can’t shake the tacky vibes I get from them

TikTok user

But social media users were left divided by the return of bandage dresses – while some were overjoyed at the news, others slammed the frocks as “cheap.” 

One person said: “Love it! I remember I bought my first bandage dress at 20 back in 2007.” 

Another added: “I can live my early 2000 dreams.” 

A third commented: “YEEEEESSSS SORRY BUT I LOVE IT.” 

However, at the same time, someone else sighed: “I can’t get behind it, I’m sorry.” 

Love it! I remember I bought my first bandage dress at 20 back in 2007

TikTok user

A second disappointed shopper slammed: “They’re trying to make 2016 happen but it’s too early. Give it 10 years at least!! This isn’t how vintage and nostalgia works…” 

Not only this, but another expressed: “They went away for a reason!”

Meanwhile, one woman penned: “I can’t shake the tacky vibes I get from them.” 

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A BEAUTY enthusiast has revealed “the best hot girl holiday hack” that will ensure you never feel floated in a bikini again.

So if you’re lucky enough to be jetting aboard any time soon and want to feel confident in your swimwear this summer, you’ve come to the right place and will need to take notes.

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And don’t worry if your purse is feeling tighter than ever and you’ve already splashed the cash on a new beach bag and a posh pair of sandals, as this trick is incredibly purse-friendly.

In fact, it will work out at just 44p a time – yes, you heard that correctly. 

Posting on social media, Julia, who is on a mission to “glow up” her life, revealed the key to staying slender whilst abroad. 

The trainee nutritionist said: “Let me give you the best holiday bloating hot girl tip – I used to be that girl who’d go on holiday and be scared to eat all the food that I want, enjoy my time, because I’d constantly feel bloated.

“I just wouldn’t want to be in my bikini – the bloating would get so bad and uncomfortable because I was eating foods my body wasn’t used to.

“And I discovered the best hot girl holiday hack ever that means I can go away, feel comfortable in my bikini, not bloat, enjoy all the food and just have a great time.”

Julia explained that in order to put bloating at bay, she swears by the Pure Encapsulations Digestive Enzymes – supplements containing enzymes involved in the digestion of protein, carbohydrate, fat, fibre, and lactose.

Julia’s favourite Digestive Enzymes contain a high-strength, broad-spectrum mixture of vegetarian digestive enzymes that facilitate the normal breakdown of proteins and tripeptides. 

According to the product description, these supplements contain alpha-galactosidase that promotes the breakdown of certain complex carbohydrates, such as raffinose and stachyose, found in some legumes, vegetables, and grains.

In turn, this helps “to relieve occasional bloating or gas.”

A pack of 30 capsules will cost you £13.49, working out at just 44p per tablet. 

Clearly a huge fan of the supplements, the content creator continued: “I cannot tell you how much I love Digestive Enzymes – magic pill, take them 15 minutes before you eat any meal and these help you break down food your body’s not used to eating.

Omg been looking for a solution for this for years

TikTok user

“I can have a pizza and not bloat when I take Digestive Enzymes – trust me, this is worth your investment.” 

The TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @juliaglowguide, has clearly left many open-mouthed, as in just three days, it has quickly racked up 235,700 views. 

One person said: “I’ve never heard of these! Thank you.” 

Another added: “Omg been looking for a solution for this for years.” 

Meanwhile, one woman beamed: “They’re amazing, only thing that’s worked for me.” 

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IF your child’s birthday is coming up and the thought of splashing the cash on a lavish cake sends shivers down your spine, fear not, you’ve come to the right place.

Many parents will know that ordering a personalised birthday cake can often end up costing hundreds of pounds.

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But in a bid to save cash, one savvy mum took matters into her own hands and was able to cut costs by DIY-ing her little darling’s birthday dessert.

Posting on social media, a mother named Amy shared a step-by-step tutorial of how she DIY-ed her daughter Myla’s pink birthday cake – and it cost her less than £20.

So if you’re on a budget and your purse is feeling tighter than ever before, then you’ll need to listen up. 

The UGC content creator explained that to celebrate her daughter turning one, she decorated the Pretty in Pink Lambeth Cake, which she bought from Waitrose.

The pink coloured golden sponge cake, which is filled with raspberry jam and topped and decorated with pale pink and dark pink buttercream, cost Amy just £18.

Then, using some pink icing and ribbons she already had, she was able to personalise the cake – and we think it looks incredibly professional.

Alongside a short clip shared online, the influencer penned: “Making my daughter’s first birthday cake, saving £100s!”

Showing off the box-fresh vintage-style cake, which is decorated with whirls and swirls of piping, Amy beamed: “Come with me to DIY my daughter’s first birthday cake for only £18!” 

Amy confirmed that she used letter cutters to cut out “Myla is one” in pink icing, which she placed on top of the cake.

Following this, she attached pretty pink bows, which she already had from Shein, and was able to stick these to the cake with cocktail sticks. 

We think Amy’s DIY cake looks brilliant and is a great way for those strapped for cash to save money, without having to scrimp on the celebrations. 

The TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @mummyandmylaa, has clearly left many open-mouthed, as it has quickly racked up 178,600 views.

Not only this, but it’s also amassed 2,782 likes, 31 comments and 780 saves. 

Social media users were impressed with the jaw-dropping cake and many eagerly raced to the comments to express this. 

One person said: “Love that. Wish I hadn’t already ordered a cake almost the exact same.”

Another added: “This is genius!” 

A third commented: “Super cute!”

Not only this, but another parent beamed: “Omg that cake is adorable, I wish I knew about it before!” 

This is genius!

TikTok user

At the same time, one user wondered: “What it nice? I worry that supermarket cakes can be dry inside as they are sat on the aisle for a while.”

To this, the content creator replied and confirmed: “Not dry at all!!! 

“Honestly, it tasted AMAZING, no regrets!!!” 

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RAIN is set to fall in just hours in parts of the UK, marking the end of the remarkably dry start to spring, the Met Office has forecast.

Some areas could even see thunder as the skies open up amid the driest start to the season in nearly six decades.

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The Environment Agency has also warned there could be a risk of a drought this summer without sustained rainfall, with millions of households told they may face water restrictions in the coming months.

As of Friday, just 80.6mm of rain has been recorded for the UK this spring – that’s almost 20mm less than the record low of 100.7mm, set in 1852 for the full season.

However, this could change imminently, as the Met Office has warned of showers landing in the north of the UK throughout Monday.

Met Office meteorologist Kathryn Chalk explained showers hit across southern Scotland and northern England overnight on Sunday, with some reaching as far south as Wales.

Heading into Monday morning, there are expected to be “much-welcome” showers across the central belt of Scotland, northern England, and Northern Ireland.

Cities such as Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland could be washed out by the rainfall, as could Manchester in the north of England.

Met Office meteorologist Dan Stroud added that Monday would see sunny spells in the west develop widely with a “few scattered showers developing across the north during the course of Monday afternoon”.

He added: “One or two of those could be heavy, potentially thundery, but most places are going to be warm and dry.”

However, from Tuesday onwards there could be “an increasing chance of showers across southern areas of the country,” Dan said.

“Then beyond that, Thursday and Friday are likely to become dry, fine and sunny again, with good deals of sunshine for much of the country.”

Conditions in the UK this spring had been “remarkably dry up until now”, Dan explained.

However, as we approach the final week of May, which is also when schools break for half-term, the weather is “looking increasingly changeable, with areas of cloud and rain arriving from the west”.

The Met Office explained the prolonged warm and very dry spell, which has seen Brits enjoy temperatures as high as 29C, was primarily caused by high pressure.

However, by Tuesday, changing conditions could see “occasional heavy and potentially thundery showers developing across parts of Wales and the Midlands, with one or two of those breaching into London“.

Discussing Wednesday’s forecast, Dan said: “It will be a bit of a chilly start across England and Wales with plenty of sunshine to kick the day off.

“But showers will develop across England and Wales, with some of those showers potentially heavy and thundery and breaching into the London area.”

Howdy! I’m Jaclyn Cosgrove, an outdoors reporter at the L.A. Times. My job is to explore the mountains surrounding Los Angeles to find the best hikes, campgrounds and other adventures for you to tackle. I also write Between a Rock, where we feature outdoors survival stories every month, and The Wild, our (free!) weekly outdoors newsletter where I feature the absolute best things to do around L.A. and Southern California. In short, I’m outside a lot!

Would you like to join me sometime? How about later this month? The Times will host its fourth subscriber hike at 9 a.m. May 24 on a 3.5-mile hike to Sycamore Canyon Falls.

Tucked away in Point Mugu State Park, Sycamore Canyon Falls is a multi-tier 55-foot waterfall near Newbury Park. And hopefully with recent rainfall, it’ll still be flowing for us to enjoy.

There are multiple ways to reach the falls, but we will take the shortest and more direct way, starting in Rancho Sierra Vista/ Satwiwa in the Santa Monica Mountains. We’ll start at the Wendy Trail and wind our way through the park before entering Point Mugu State Park. Because we’re hiking through a state park, dogs aren’t allowed on this hike. (Trust me, I’m bummed too!)

I’ll lead a group of 30 subscribers to the falls, where we’ll hang out, snap images and maybe even share a snack or two. This hike is moderate and requires good footwear. I will probably bring along my poles for traction and welcome you to do the same.

Parking is free and easy. Please park at the Wendy Trail Head. We’ll meet at the start of the trail there.

We will have water bottles for attendees, but you’re also welcome to bring your own. You must be 18 or older and will be required to sign a waiver prior to attending. Grab a spot at Tixr.com.

HYDRANGEAS are beautiful when they bloom, but are yours looking rather brown and crispy?

Well, if yours could do with some TLC and you aren’t sure where to start, you’ve come to the right place as we’ve got all the handy tips and tricks you’ll need. 

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Hydrangeas are known for their big, beautiful cluster flower heads, but it appears that many gardeners often do not know how to care for them properly, which can prevent them from flowering. 

With May in full swing, hydrangeas are just beginning to grow again, and gardeners often fertilise or prune them now to help encourage bigger blooms in the future. 

However, a gardening pro has revealed the big mistake people must avoid if they want their hydrangeas to bloom this month.

Not only this, but Heather Stoven from Oregon State University, also shared the real reason why hydrangeas can sometimes look a bit worse for wear. 

Heather revealed the two gardening jobs that must be avoided, as she recommended: “Avoid pruning; the resulting lush new growth will be sensitive to further damage from heat waves later in the summer.

“Also avoid fertilising as excess fertiliser can attract pests to the plant.”

It may seem obvious to fertilise plants to get more flowers, but according to Heather, now that we’re in May, it is far too early to feed hydrangeas. 

Fertilising hydrangeas now will result in weak growth that is unlikely to survive in the heat.

Not only this, but it will also attract insects who look for softener foliage that is easier for them to eat. 

Many hydrangeas have already formed their flower buds and pruning them now will risk cutting off the blooms, meaning you will not get any flowers at all. 

Doing so will stress out the plant when it is actually growing, further causing damage. 

However, according to the pro, hydrangeas are thirsty plants due to their big leaves which can quickly lose water.

As a result, the biggest mistake many gardeners make is not watering them enough in May.

Gardening tips and hacks

It is crucial to water hydrangeas properly to help establish strong roots so they can retain more water once summer arrives. 

If hydrangeas do not get enough water while they are growing new roots, then the plant will not be strong enough to grow flowers and can even die if under too much stress. 

Heather acknowledged: “If not enough water is available in the soil, or it is lost to the atmosphere faster than it can be replaced, then the plant tissue where the water can’t reach will die. 

Water plants deeply prior to the heat event so that the root zone is well hydrated

Heather

“This is why we see so many brown, crispy leaf edges. It is also possible for high heat itself to cause tissue death.”

According to Heather, the best way to help hydrangeas at the moment is to water them deeply and keep the soil hydrated.

Having said that, you will need to make sure you are watering at the right time. 

It is better to water hydrangeas in the morning as the hotter weather later on in the day will cause water evaporation, meaning a large proportion of moisture will not make it to the soil. 

Watering hydrangeas in the morning allows them to absorb water more efficiently and ensures roots are hydrated throughout the day, which in turn will help them grow stronger and healthier. 

Heather advised: “Water plants deeply prior to the heat event so that the root zone is well hydrated.”

If you choose the right time to water hydrangeas and do it consistently, this will ensure you help these beautiful plants grow to their full potential so you get lots of lovely big blooms once summer arrives.

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