Short Takes Short Takes (April 13, 2005)

Train work's tough on the ticker

It's a safe bet that whenever people take time off of work to go to a public hearing about a plan to radically change local train service, most of them aren't there because they're happy about it.

So it's no wonder that Chuck Harvey, Caltrain's chief operating officer, prefaced his remarks with a plea for sympathy at last week's public hearing before Caltrain's Joint Powers Board.

"This is the four-month anniversary of my heart attack and quadruple bypass," he said. "I beg the public to be gentle with me."

The large crowd behaved itself quite nicely and limited its response to a restrained smattering of derisive laughter after Mr. Harvey said, "Under the new train schedule, virtually no one is denied train service."
Bride's watershed revisited

Perambulating wedding parties pursuing a perfect backdrop for a portrait pose can put the Pulgas Water Temple on Canada Road back on the list of popular Peninsula places.

After being closed to the public for almost three years, the beaux arts-style temple is back in the wedding business. Happy couples can rent the temple on Saturdays for $150 for two hours, ceremonies only.

Since the Pulgas Water Temple is open to the public, cheaper still is the common practice of loading the wedding party up in a limousine and staging impromptu post-ceremony photographic raids on picturesque public venues.

The 5-acre temple site borders the Crystal Springs Reservoir and watershed, marking the terminus of the Hetch-Hetchy aqueduct. It's a popular spot for picnickers, exhausted bicyclists and wedding photographers. To book it, call Kathe Zaloz at 652-3212.
Quote of the week

"At least the food doesn't move." -- An Almanac staffer on the benefits of shooting photos for the Food & Drink section.

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