Thursday, March 20, 2014

How To Be A Better Man

Mens Group


Date: Friday, March 23, 2014 and ongoing
Time: 6 – 8:30 PM


Location: Miracle Springs Resort and Spa

10625 Palm Drive, Desert Hot Springs, CA


Facilitator: Dean M Gray

760-880-7356 or Contact Me


Mens GroupDiscovering and exploring what it means to be a man with a self-improvement support group.


Issues under consideration include: How to be an honest man. The ring commitment of a man. Fixing the broken man. Going solo. Being a father. Living life as a husband. Effective partnership with a woman. What love means. Understanding the work of a man. How to win and lose a woman. Investing in your self. Contributing to the art of a relationship. Feeding yourself with good. Having guts to heal the inner hurt. Friends and lovers. Dealing with gambling, drugs, alcohol, and pornography. Winning the war of the violence of life. Doing what is best for the child. Loving yourself and loving your woman. Understanding the kid in the man. Buddies, conspirators, co-dependents and pals in your posse. Living the true life versus living the crazy life. Knowing the heart and soul of men and woman. How to fail and still go on. Successful parenting skills.
men under construction


Facilitated by Dean M Gray – father, husband, partner, son, student, teacher, friend, warrior, writer, artist and community activist.


Dean has been involved with the fatherhood and parenting movement for many years and started participating in men’s groups in 1974. His imperfect life is an example for learning.


APPLY NOW! Confidential 10-week self-help program providing tools for every participant. Ages 18 and up. Aiming to be the best Sunday night event ever participated in. Only $10.00 a week.


Call 760-880-7356 to apply.



How To Be A Better Man

Western Storefront - Russian River

In 1978 I accepted the commission to design and build a western storefront on front of a metal building on River Road, Guerneville, California. This false front features board-and-bat- construction with my hand-carved korbels.


Korbel - Russian River


Back in the day it was an automotive garage; today antique and junk storage.


Western Storefront - Russian River



Western Storefront - Russian River

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Residence - Russian River

Guerneville, California


Neeley Road Guerneville Home shelf 2


My first home was purchased at a price of $20,000 in 1975 with Susan Joice on Neeley Road in Guerneville.We complete remodeled the 1948 cabin plus added a 20 x 20 garage. Interior walls were all knotty pine, exterior 1″ redwood board and bat construction on 2 x 4 frame measuring a full 2″ x 4.”


Neeley Road Guerneville California Home wood stove


Much of the remodeling was done with recycled, found materials and left-overs from other projects. Rafters for the garage were recycled from an abandoned and dilapidated canoe rental building further down Neeley Road. All windows and doors were locally recycled. Adding skylights let the light in. Hand carving shelf brackets was my specialty.


Both the house and garage are on a 30 degree grade; the elevation at front is at road level, at the back of the home – facing the Russian River at Big Bend – it is elevated 20 feet high on post and pier.


The house as purchased was whacked out of level from flooding. This project required leveling of the home which was accomplished a simple water level plus a combination of antique railroad screw jacks and hydraulic jacks on cribbing. That dangerous work was done during the rainy season. Inexperience, wet soil and a small miscalculation nearly sent me to an early grave.


Neeley Road Guerneville California Home Skylight


Neeley Road Guerneville California Home office


Neeley Road Guerneville California Home window


Neeley Road Guerneville California Home Garage


Shelf


Neeley Road Guerneville California Home bathroom



Residence - Russian River

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Yvonne Parks and Alex Bias Rejected Again

School Board Passes on Two Former Mayors


Yvonne Parks 3 336x415


DESERT HOT SPRINGS, CA – Applicants aspiring to be appointed to the school board to represent the city included two highly controversial former mayors – one who brought the city to the edge of bankruptcy and another who brought the city bad publicity when his wife robbed a bank.


At last night’s Tuesday meeting of the school board for the Palm Springs Unified School District a decision was reached selecting Donald Aikins to fill the empty seat of Justin Blake who resigned last month. Aikins, a former member of the school board who lives in Palm Springs, will not be running in the November 2014 election as he is ineligible.


Blake resigned 10 months prior to the end of his term concurrent with the school board choosing district elections insuring that the November 2014 election for the five member school board has dedicated one seat to be filled with someone from the district of Desert Hot Springs.


The Baggage of Yvonne Parks


Matas and Parks 336x271


Getting appointed to the school board would have anointed Yvonne Parks to a position of power without the risk of losing another election. Parks was rejected by the voters just two months ago in her bid for reelection.


Parks carried considerable political baggage going into the school board appointment application process that caused even long time political friend and school board member Gary Jeandron to pass her over in favor of a stable candidate to fill out the remainder of the Blake’s term.


It was Parks who championed several money losing gambles with city funds and city employee pay raises, all of which ended up bring the city to the edge of insolvency. A new mayor and city council were forced to cut salaries by 22.5% and take other drastic emergency action to reverse a financial course Parks had plotted for the city.


Parks was also know for extensive travel to social events and banquets at city expense and for volunteering away millions of dollars that otherwise were slated for investment in the city.


It was Parks that voted to provide $17 million in mitigation funds to be used by other Coachella Valley cities to build a golf cart path instead of making acting as the champion for funds rightfully belonging in Desert Hot Springs. The $17 was part of mitigation for a power plant located just outside the city’s border and Parks’ promotion of spending the money for other valley cities made her very popular outside Desert Hot Springs.


Parks bid for appointment was also rejected by Board Member Sherri Stewart, who did not have qualms about appointing someone that would be running for a full term in the upcoming election. Stewart rejected Parks overtures that her political connections were of value to the school board. Instead, Stewart made a pitch for Desert Hot Springs resident John Gerardi, a stalwart member of the city’s Planning Commission.


Parks was not the only former mayor to get passed over.


Bias Rejected Again


Alex Bias


The two years the city suffered Alex Bias as mayor (2005-07) were marked with unparalleled rancor. Unable to make peace with fellow council members and too often on the loss end of a 4-1 vote, the tenure of Mayor Bias saw him stripped of his commission and committee assignments as punishment for his political intractability. The council actions of isolating Bias were enjoyed by then councilwoman Yvonne Parks who won points with her posse by attacking Bias.


Bias retaliated against Parks saying to her at a council meeting to “Go play with yourself,” creating another brouhaha  when broadcast by The Desert Sun to illustrate the city council’s continuing dysfunction.


As mayor, Alex Bias appeared forever weakened by a disappointing lack of public support and his being assailed by the media identifying him as incompetently out of touch due to lack of public relations know how. Bias wasted his political capital languishing in office accomplishing little of notable significance except his painting his office bright pink and baby blue then losing his seat to Parks.


old lady bank robber 300x225


A few years later the former mayor’s wife was caught robbing the Bank of America in Palm Springs, creating a public relations nightmare for the school district were it to appoint Bias as board member. Over the intervening years since Bias held office he has been twice more rejected by the voters of the city, blocking his attempts at regaining public office with a paltry vote that does not seem to register the message with him.


Alex Bias currently works for the school district as a substitute teacher, a job that he would have had to abandon were he to have been appointed. As a perennial candidate in Desert Hot Springs elections Bias will face a dilemma come November. Will he get rejected a fourth time in the city election or gamble with rejection a second time for the school board election.


As for Yvonne Parks, it is not known where her future lies.



Yvonne Parks and Alex Bias Rejected Again

Monday, December 9, 2013

Mayor Candidate John-Paul Valdez Admits He is Sex Porn Star Hank Cruz

Secret X-rated Past of Economist John-Paul Valdez Exposed


DESERT HOT SPRINGS, CA – With a city suffering worldwide headlines that compare it to Detroit because of a financial mess, it is uncertain how it would have also endured news that it had just elected a retired porn star as mayor.


John-Paul Valdez as Hank Cruz on right


The campaign leading up to the November election did not reveal the professional history of one Hank Cruz, otherwise known as candidate John-Paul Valdez.


It is only now – after the election – that his extensive film and magazine sex career that was kept from the voters comes to light. Valdez admits he is proud of his sex work and unconcerned about this information being released.


“I’m glad you asked me about this,” said John-Paul Valdez. “It was during a time when I wanted myself to be an example for how to be beautiful.”


The candidate John-Paul Valdez frequently chastised his opponents for their lack of transparency while at the same time hiding his x-rated past as Hank Cruz that lasted from 1997 to 2006 (according to Wikiporn.org.), a period coinciding with the same period Valdez identifies on his LinkedIn profile with his working as an independent contractor.


As John-Paul Valdez, he identified himself as an economist leading up to Election Day. On screen as Hank Cruz, he filmed extensive and explicitly hard-core unprotected sex with multiple on-screen sex partners. Valdez states on his Facebook page that he has known he was HIV positive for thirty years.


Two Ways of Looking At It


Yvonne Parks and John Paul Valdez at DHS Chamber of Commerce Breakfast


John-Paul Valdez said he did not feel the need to let the voters know about his past. He looks at it two contradictory ways.


“I do not believe the information about Hank Cruz was meaningful to anyone voting,” said Valdez, who also referenced former Mayor Yvonne Parks knowing of his x-rated past.


“I think if I had released the information about me actually being Hank Cruz that I would probably have received even more votes,” said Valdez speaking with all seriousness. “People would not have wanted to look at Yvonne having sex on film but I’m so beautiful that I’m sure it would have helped my campaign.”


Other citizens of the city, including at least one candidate for city council, also knew of this past chapter of the life of candidate John-Paul Valdez but they all kept this information secret in an apparent attempt to help the con of Valdez’s campaign.


After all, John-Paul Valdez admitted that his election goal was only to get enough votes to makes sure former Mayor Yvonne Parks would win and even bragged to The Desert Sun newspaper that he was satisfied holding up the rear, coming within just 12 votes of his goal.


Well Hung the Election


John-Paul Valdez collected 340 votes in the November election for mayor, nearly causing a spoiler’s upset as Adam Sanchez won the race against Yvonne Parks by only 12 votes with his 1,040 votes. Valdez sucked up votes that otherwise


It is uncertain what the effect on the election would have been had the professional life of John-Paul Valdez revealed the secret of Hank Cruz on DVD ’s selling in adult stores. Were Valdez to have suffered a few less votes it is most likely those votes would have gone to Sanchez.


“That is just conjecture that those votes would have gone to Sanchez,” replied Hank Cruz or John-Paul Valdez.


Without going into detail describing the positions he assumed in his sex industry film career, John-Paul Valdez frequently mentioned the positions he held working as an financial adviser in high-profile positions around the world.


“My experience working in films and magazines did not matter to Wells Fargo, A. G. Edwards, the SEC or Univision,” said John-Paul Valdez. “I’ve held the highest level of security clearance and licensing for my work with multi-million dollar investment portfolios around the world.”


The sexually explicit world of Hank Cruz was filmed in New York City during a period John-Paul Valdez lived there just prior to his moving to California.


Questions About Credentials Leave Election Future Unclear


John-Paul Valdez as Hank Cruz on right.


Now knowing that John-Paul Valdez was deceptive in revealing his past raises questions about what Valdez has described as legitimate education and work experience credentials validating extensive world wide work as an economist. If voters were kept in the dark about who really is John-Paul Valdez then do his financial investment clients really know who he is.


Still, Valdez is OK with the information about Hank Cruz coming out.


Asked whether he thought these revelations would harm his political career, Valdez made it clear during the interview that he did not feel his political career was over.


“You can run it now and everyone will forget about it by the time the next election rolls around,” Valdez said, “Or, you can run my story later for my next election when the story will pack more punch.”


Warning to Readers – graphic language follows…



The filmography of Hank Cruz includes… Hot Desert Knights; Sperm Deposits; Corporate Merger; Backroom Muscle Daddies; Bareback Harddrive; Fulfillment; Real Men Have Hair; Smoking Hunks; They Like ‘Em Big; Truck Stop On I-95; White Collar Bareback; Dungeon Gang-Bang; Backroom Muscle Daddies; Hardhat 3-Way; and My First Gay Daddy to name a few.


John-Paul Valdez AKA Hank Cruz


An examination of  Hank Cruz films depicts quite a few big business and corporate themes. With a caution to our readers that the following italicized paragraph is very graphic, the following is from the promotional write up of Hank Cruz in Dungeon Gang Bang.


What do you get when you get 10 horny tops, 2 hungry bottoms, a dungeon, leather and specially designed sex tables? A DUNGEON GANG BANG of historic orgy proportions.


Everyone dreams of being gang-banged in a Dungeon by one hot top after the other and that is exactly what happens in DUNGEON GANG BANG. It’s a fantasy that most of us think about but few of us ever experience. Jarod Steele and Steve Tuck are f***** by 10 a** pounding studs until the c** is dripping and leaking out of their hot h****. And, of course, Director Wade Lincoln, makes sure that every drop is captured on film and even on the cameras and cameramen.


Alan Gregory returns to ravage Jarod Steele’s sweet a** in one of the hottest scenes HDK has ever filmed. Duke Savage and Ardon Masters, hot hairy tops, join in and f*** Jarod and Steve Tuck till they are squealing like the pigs they really are. And, Hank Cruz pounds Jarod’s b*** till it’s r** and r** and nearly knocks him off the table before shooting his h** l*** up Jarod’s a**.


[Hell, this is too much censorship. You get the idea]



Mayor Candidate John-Paul Valdez Admits He is Sex Porn Star Hank Cruz

Monday, November 18, 2013

Skyborne Developer Pays Council Members for Special Deal as City Falters

Skyborne Developer Pays Council Members for Special Deal as City Falters

With the city near bankrupt, developer Jim Kozak pays $6,000 to Yvonne Parks, Scott Matas and Jan Pye instead of paying the city of Desert Hot Springs the $200,000 as agreed. Kozak does not want to pay for the required public improvements. Already the city of Desert Hot Springs is rife with unfinished residential developments for his Skyborne project. Every time the city has been through this before the city always end up losing. The old council on its last legs will make the decision at Tuesday’s council meeting.

Borrego Health Clinic Property Purchased for Million Dollar Loss

Borrego Health Clinic Property Purchased for Million Dollar Loss

The need for a health clinic has never been disputed. The way the city managed public finance seems always in dispute.
Politics is key.
It is a messy history involving city management concerning the Jewish Temple property where the new health clinic is located. The public lost a million dollars after the city purchased the property for $1.4 million in public funds and sold the property for less than $300,000.

From Death Threats to Voter Recounter

From Death Threats to Voter Recounter

A man with a shady past has come forward to say he will pay for a recount of ballots in the election for Desert Hot Springs Mayor.
Adam Sanchez won by 12 votes. This does not sit well with Steve Grasha or Yvonne Parks, who Grasha supported in the election.
Importantly, who is Steve Grasha and why is he doing this?

Desert Hot Springs Fiscal Crisis No Surprise and No Emergency to Some

Desert Hot Springs Fiscal Crisis No Surprise and No Emergency to Some The city of Desert Hot Springs will decide about declaring a fiscal emergency to avoid being another California city to go bankrupt. How the city got in this mess is no mystery. Some city council members are unable to cut City hall pay and the police payroll. City deficit spending is out of control. Some members of the city council have a poor history of money management and so far have been unable to get along with those who are serious about solutions.  Read More...

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Police Officer Who Delivered Sex Pics Delivers Council Endorsement

Police Officer Who Delivered Sex Pics Delivers Council Endorsement

Last year Desert Hot Springs Police Officer Jason Hunter delivered sex pictures to a 14 year old girl and last night he delivered the Police Officer's Association endorsement of Yvonne Parks, Scott Matas and Jan Pye for the November election.
Its all about money. The POA wants an increase in wages from the city and the city is broke. Hunter earns more than $100,000 as an officer.
The city continues spending more than it receives from income.

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