Reporters' Notebook

During the unveiling of plans for three new hotels on the site of the current Clarion Hotel, Millbrae Planning Commissioner Lorrie Kalos-Gunn conceded having a special affinity for the W hotel chain — her husband proposed to her at the XYZ restaurant in the San Francisco W.

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Movie goers in Daly City, San Mateo and Redwood City will be urged to "fight the bug” with a West Nile Virus public awareness campaign at theaters. The push, sponsored by the county health department and the San Mateo County Mosquito Abatement District, will also hand out brochures and mosquito repellent wipes at the county fair Aug. 15 to coincide with Seniors Day.

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Speaking of health issues, the county health department is also advising people to avoid eating raw oysters after three recent cases of gastrointestinal illness linked to the consumption. The bacterium responsible is more prevalent in summer because of the temperature. "In general, it’s safer to not eat raw shellfish harvested in the months without an ‘r’ in the name,” stated Dr. Alvara Garza, San Mateo County assistant health officer.

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South San Francisco-based Napo Pharmaceuticals Inc. was admitted to trading on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange.

This is the first time a U.S. company has gone public by listing on the LSE, and not one of the U.S. exchanges.

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Apparently there was a bet about whether Midcoast Community Council Chairman Geoffrey Davis would wear a tie to the press conference celebrating the opening of Devil’s Slide. Davis settled the bet by stripping off a sweatshirt to expose the "Caltrans orange” he decided to sport in support of the swift project.

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Former congressional candidate Robert Barrows just secured a patent for his talking tombstone idea. Barrows thought of the idea several years ago while looking for a book about Wyatt Earp at the library. He couldn’t find the book he was looking for, but he found another called "Tombstone.” He then found out Wyatt Earp is buried in Colma and thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be interesting to be able to go to the grave of Wyatt Earp and hear what Earp might have had to say about his own life in his own words, from a video tombstone?”

Barrows ran against U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos, D-San Mateo, in the March Democratic primary for 12th Congressional District. He lost.

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Mike Johanns, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture has proclaimed Aug. 6 through Aug. 12 as "National Farmers Market Week.” Following the lead of the secretary of agriculture, Belmont Mayor Phil Mathewson issued a similar proclamation urging the residents of Belmont to "celebrate the benefits of farmers markets.” And on Monday, Aug. 7, the Redwood City Council will issue its own proclamation as the cities of San Mateo County recognize the importance of farmers markets in their communities.

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San Mateo County peace activists held a "fasting for peace” between noon and 6 p.m. at 400 S. El Camino Real, a popular place for protests as it is below the offices of U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos, D-San Mateo. The group plans on continuing the Thursday protest through Sept. 21.

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Three student nurses in the Sequoia Hospital/San Francisco State University Bachelor of Science Nursing Program at Cañada College will receive a $12,500 award toward tuition and expenses from the Sequoia Hospital Foundation. The three, Annie Araujo, Veronica Landfried and Amy Poullos, were named recipients of the 2006 Dr. William Kennett Memorial Nursing Scholarship.

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Some custom license plates seen at Cars in the Park car show in Burlingame last Saturday: 6T9 Z11 on a 1969 Z11 Chevrolet Camaro pace car, owner Mike Rabeck; POPS 29 on a 1929 Ford Model A sedan, owned by John Lethcer of Millbrae; S RAY 64 on a 1964 Corvette, owned by Michael Strauss of San Mateo; BST YETT 1941 Willys owned by Verne Yett of Millbrae; 1ST ONR on a 1964 Falcon Ranchero owned by Bob Cossins of Burlingame; RKOOL37 1937 Chevrolet 2 door sedan owned by Dan Giusti of Millbrae; SS4ALAN 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle owned by Alan Schwartz of Foster City; and C4CHICK 1991 Corvette owned by Nancy Russo of Redwood City.

The reporters’ notebook is a weekly collection of facts culled from the notebooks of the Daily Journal staff. It appears in the Friday edition.<