Dog Days bright and clear Indicate a happy year; But when accompanied by rain, For better times, our hopes are vain. Topangans love their dogs! They also love their donkeys, parrots, and potbelly pigs! None of us enjoy, however, the extreme heat of August’s Dog Days that began in July with record-breaking global heatwaves. But we can enjoy the critters who walk into our lives and deeply into our hearts. No potbelly pig this time but try again! We have one more issue, August 18, to invite pet owners (or guardians, if you will) to share their special critters’ stories. Send a high-resolution photo (Select “Large� if sending from a phone) and 100-150 words telling readers about their pet, in their own words or by pets who prefer to tell their own story. Send to: editor@thecanyonchronicle.com by August 7. (Pages 8-9) Elsewhere in our pages you’ll find coverage of the Owen Fire that was knocked down in two hours thanks to the helitankers that filled up at 69Bravo and the fixed-wing air tanker that dropped the PhosChek to stop the fire in its tracks. There is also a heartwarming story (and photos) from two residents who wanted to feed the firefighters staged at Viewridge after the mop-up, as well as information about zone changes and a call to memorize your zone number in case of an emergency evacuation. (Pages 4-5) Rabbi Mendy Piekarski’s “Coffee & Soul� focuses on “Unexpected Opportunities,� and, as a reminder, we reprinted the article from June 7 about a series of five classes, “Read it in Hebrew,� that begins on Tuesday, August 8, both virtually and in-person at Chabad of Topanga. (Page 7) Our other columnists have been busy, too, with Sarah Spitz’s report on Bergamot Art Station’s Galerie XII exhibit of three photographers, Lee Jackson, Carole Azuar and Scarlett Hoft Graafland (Page 10); Joel Bellman’s insights on J. Robert Oppenheimer’s eventual vindication (Page 11); and Paula LaBrot keeping us apprised of the onrushing flood of ever-changing technology we might never know about without her passion to inform, share and warn us about what is coming down the digital pike that will change our lives. (Page 12) Ever heard of hyperlocal microfarming? Kait Leonard looks at food price inflation, food insecurity and a man with a solution: converting unused spaces into community gardens. We at the production end of The Canyon Chronicle are extremely proud of and grateful to our writers who do so much for so little.