The Hill North of Highway 101 in Newbury Park

There's a prominent hill north of the 101 in Newbury Park as you make your way towards the top of the Conejo Grade. Grande Vista Drive parallels the 101 and the hill is directly behind it. 

What is the name of this hill that we see every day here in the Conejo Valley? It is referred to as "Adventist Hill" as it is on property owned by the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Newbury Park.

Adventist Hill is located in the Conejo Canyons Open Space a 1,628 acre open space area of the Conejo Valley. The Conejo Canyons Open Space also includes the Western Plateau, northern Arroyo Conejo, Western Canyon and Calleguas Ridgeline. Most of this area is owned by the City of Thousand Oaks and Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency (COSCA)., although 380 privately owned acres are subject to a Specific Plan condition requiring an offer of dedication to the City.

Seen in the Fall of 2014

"Girl From Conejo Valley" by M. Ward

Matthew Stephen Ward (known as M. Ward) is a singer-songwriter and guitarist from Portland, Oregon. He records "Indie Folk" and blues type music as a solo artist and with other artists. Ward has released a number of albums over the years, including his latest, More Rain, in March 2016.

I came upon M. Ward at random on eBay, of all things, when I noticed someone selling a copy of the single, "Girl From Conejo Valley." After the initial amusement, I listened to the song several times and started really enjoying it. So, but of course we must share this song here on Conejo Valley Guide.

This is a fun, catchy song. I found it a bit bizarre, but entertaining, both the lyrics and the video. What I didn't see in the video is footage of Conejo Valley. While I tried to convince myself that some of the aerial footage could be from the Western Plateau section of the Conejo Open Space, I don't think it is. But do take a look and add a comment as to what you think.

Learn more about M. Ward at mwardmusic.com.

Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Followers Dish Out Their Favorite Pizza Toppings

Brick oven pizza from Barone's Pizzeria in Westlake Village

In a 2014 report, "Consumption of Pizza - What We Eat in America," the USDA highlighted the fact that 13% of the U.S. population aged 2 and older consumed pizza on any given day. And over 1 in 4 males ages 6 to 19 partake in a slice or two, or three, in a given day. According to PMQ Pizza Magazine, pizza restaurant sales in the U.S. for the 12 months ended September 30, 2015 were $38.5 billion. That's over $120 in pizza per capita.

So in a recent CVG Facebook Page drawing, locals were asked to comment on their favorite pizza toppings. Here's how the toppings stacked up in order of popularity based on over 150 responses:

• Pepperoni - with 18% of the total vote, pepperoni was the clear winner
• Sausage - however, sausage gave pepperoni a run for its money, with 14% of the vote
• Mushrooms - while I'm not opposed to mushrooms on my pizza, I still don't quite get why they are so popular, as indicated with their 3rd place showing at 12%
• Pineapple - at 8% of votes cast, this sweet, tangy fruit on pizza placed 4th, perhaps driven by the combination of pineapple and ham, Canadian bacon, etc.
• Olives, bacon - olives are also technically a fruit and tied for 5th place on this list with the combo of bacon/Canadian bacon, each garnering 5% of the vote
• Jalapenos, artichokes and "cheese only" tied at 4% of the vote

Honorable mentions go to green pepper, chicken, onions and garlic. Mentioned just once or twice were arugula, tomato, prosciutto, ricotta, steak, basil, meatballs, shrimp, spinach and eggplant.

Hungry now? So am I! Here's a compilation of local area newly opened and soon to be opened eateries of all types in and around Ventura County.

There are 542.84 Miles of Roadway in Ventura County as of April 2016

In May of each year, California counties are required to report any changes in roadway mileage to the State Department of Finance. This report is required per Section 2121 of the State Streets and Highways Code in order to apportion gas tax funds.

In a report to present to the County of Ventura Board of Supervisors next week, the County of Ventura reports that road mileage in the county covering the period May 2015 to April 2016 is 542.84 miles. This is 1.23 miles greater than last year's total (taking into account several adjustments).

That said, in its letter to the Board, the County indicates roadway mileage actually has no bearing on the amount of gas tax funds received under the Code because funds received are actually based on the number of vehicles registered in the County.

Go figure. www.ventura.org

Los Angeles Rams to Rebrand as Los Angeles Rabbits Upon Move to Conejo Valley

Breaking News: After several months of speculation, the Los Angeles Rams and California Lutheran University announced yesterday that the team will be establishing training operations at the Thousand Oaks campus for a period of at least two, and as many as five, years.

Founded as the Cleveland Rams in 1936, the team became the Los Angeles Rams in 1946, then the St. Louis Rams in 1995 and of course back home as the Los Angeles Rams in 2016.

After 80 years, the Rams have one of the oldest team names in the National Football League. Out of 32 teams only six - the Cardinals, Packers, Bears, Giants, Eagles and Lions - have been around longer. 

With the move to Thousand Oaks, management decided to reassess the name of the team.

Thousand Oaks is situated in the beautiful Conejo Valley. The Conejo Valley was originally named in reference to los conejos (rabbits) by Spaniards who journeyed up the coast in the late 1700s. 

Rabbits are known for their speed, agility and strong awareness of their surroundings. Rabbits' hind legs are strong and they have the ability to adapt to a variety of environments. Rams, on the other hand, are basically male sheep.

In fact, what better name can there be for this team other than the Los Angeles Rabbits!? Ravens? Redskins? Raiders? Nah, already taken. 

Los Angeles Rabbits, welcome to the Conejo Valley!

Branding Expert Bunny Hopalot indicates this to be a natural fit. "Rabbits have a natural ability to multiply quickly," she said, "which is so critical in those 3rd down and long situations where the offense can feel burrowed in the proverbial 'rabbit hole.'"

Not everyone agrees with the decision, however.

Local resident L. Merjay Phud said "I weally, weally don't like the pwospect of the Los Angeles Wabbits inhabiting Thousand Oaks. With all this commotion it will not be vewy, vewy peaceful and quiet any more."

Happy April Fools' Day!

April Fools' fun in prior years

The Golden Anniversary Oak in Front of Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza

The Golden Anniversary Oak monument is located directly in front of the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza and City Hall at 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Boulevard.

The monument, presented by Thousand Oaks City Council on June 17, 2014, is dedicated to the residents of Thousand Oaks as part of the city's 50th anniversary.

The Valley Oak (Quercus lobata) is symbolic of the community's vision to preserve and protect these majestic, indigenous trees.

NEARLY 50 THINGS TO DO IN THE CITY OF THOUSAND OAKS

A Look at Websites Owned...and Not Owned...by the 2016 U.S. Presidential Candidates

Back in the early days of the Internet when folks were using dial up connections and AOL, some said that if you were smart, you would buy website domain names associated with your name. I never did, but I'm thinking some folks running for the office of President of the United States wish they had. Let's take a look at the shenanigans.

Jeb, you blew it! JebBush.com redirects to Donald Trump's Presidential candidacy website DonaldJTrump.com. Sneaky, sneaky, Mr. Trump. Bush's election website is Jeb2016.com. JebBush.org and JebBush.net both are just ads.

So DonaldJTrump.com works fine and DonaldTrump.com and Trump2016.com redirect to it. DonaldTrump.net is not currently functioning. DonaldJTrump.org is owned by someone that espouses immigration reform.

Navigate to TedCruz.com and you'll see a large black box with the statement "Support President Obama. Immigration Reform Now!" Ted, ya blew it! Cruz's actual election website is www.tedcruz.org. TedCruz.net is just ads.

ChrisChristie.com is Christie's candidacy page; he ended his campaign on February 10th. ChrisChristie.net belongs to Chris L. Christie, a Certified Mortgage Planning Specialist from what appears to be New York. ChrisChristie.org redirects to ChrisChristie.com.

CarlyFiorina.com redirects to CarlyforPresident.com, which is, or I should now say was, indeed Fiorina's candidacy website (she also withdrew on February 10th). But someone else grabbed CarlyFiorina.org, which indicates: "Carly Fiorina failed to register this domain. So I'm using it to tell you how many people she laid off at Hewlett-Packard. It was this many:" Then proceeds to display 30,000 :( frowny faces, ending with "That's 30,000 people she laid off. People with families." CarlyFiorina.net is under construction.

Former candidate (he withdrew February 3rd) RandPaul.com is indeed Paul's candidacy page, with both RandPaul2016.com and Paul2016 redirecting to it.  RandPaul.org redirects to the website of the "American Solidarity Party," the "only active Christian Democratic party in the United States."  His name is not mentioned on the site. RandPaul.net just has ads.

MarcoRubio.com is Rubio's site and he is the only candidate who owns and redirects both the .net and .org domains to his .com site. Nicely played, Marco! Someone named Amber Butler owns Rubio2016.com as a speculative play.

BenCarson.com, MikeHuckabee.com, JohnKasich.com and BernieSanders.com are the candidates' sites, whereas the .net and .org domains are not connected to them. Carson2016.com, Huckabee2016.com, Kasich2016.com and Sanders2016.com are all owned by domain squatters.

HillaryClinton.com is indeed Clinton's campaign website. In December 2015, HillaryClinton.net brought up a full screen image of Trump, Hillary, Bill and Melania, all smiles, with a text overlay of "$ Special Interest Group." As of February 2016, however, HillaryClinton.net redirects to donaldjtrump.com. HillaryClinton.org is a bunch of ads...don't click it. Hillary2016.com is a commentary website not associated with Clinton.