Extra Helping of Squid 1.20.13

Squid Snuggles in Seaside…Squid might have a sharp beak and a sac of ink to squirt at Squid’s enemies, but the truth is, Squid is a creature of love. Squid loves sunshine and rainbows and fresh chocolate croissants. Squid’s spirit animal, it has been speculated, might be a Care Bear.  

And two things Squid has a special affection for, even more than Jazzercise, are drama, and secrets.

Which is why Squid stayed up past bedtime last Thursday to attend the Seaside City Council meeting, a five-hour, three-act marathon play with an intermission and all. After a few softball scenes—giving out awards for best holiday lights and such—things got juicy in Act 2, when the subject of waste hauling contracts came to the floor.

The two competing companies—the upstart GreenWaste Recovery v. incumbent Waste Management—stated their cases in front of the city council, with GreenWaste claiming the high ground on diversion rates and low cost, and Waste Management emphasizing their longstanding relationship with the community, many of whom were present, packing the rotunda. Seaside resident Carlos Ramos was one of many who spoke in favor of Waste Management, saying, “Sometimes best is not always right…You can’t change horses in the middle of the stream, that’s true. But consider this one: That horse already knows the trail.”

But Squid saw that act the night before in Pacific Grove, and the Seaside City Council wasn't even planning to vote on the issue until a later date. Squid was there for Act 3: surveillance cameras and secret money. $100,000 of secret money.

At 11pm, Seaside Police Chief Vicky Myers addressed the council about installing eight to ten hi-tech surveillance cameras around Seaside, cameras the city could fund using an “anonymous” donation of 1,000 Ben Franklin’s.

Who would give Seaside $100,000? In the public comments, a few theories were bandied about: Could it be Google, trying to amass even more information about our habits? Or perhaps, it’s ol’ Big Brother the NSA? Ramos, who spoke in favor of the cameras, mentioned a rumor circulating that it’s from a nonprofit. But why, Squid wonders, would a nonprofit want to stay anonymous?

Seaside City Councilman Alvin Edwards, who spoke appreciatively of the donation, speculated that the anonymity might be to avoid getting a bearhug from him: “If it’s an individual, I can understand not wanting to tell me who he is because you don’t want me coming and knocking at your door.”

But Squid thinks getting a Care Bear hug from Alvin Edwards and other council members might be exactly what this donor wants, particularly if that hug also includes some special treatment for say, building a horse track in Fort Ord? Because the council accepted the donation that night, the city—by law—will have to reveal the identify of the donor if pressed.

Squid loves pressing!