Author: DoverDetailer

Statewide Need For Marijuana Business Security Rises

DoverDetailer

If there’s one thing we’ve been warning people about for going on a decade now, it’s the inevitability of another crime wave the likes of which we haven’t seen here in America since the 1980’s. What caused it then is the same thing that’s causing it now: a general queasiness on the part of the state in enforcing its monopoly on violence, emboldening the criminal element in its war against average law-abiding citizens.

Whatever you may think may be the root cause of the rising criminal tide, it’s undeniable that it’s happening, and it’s beginning to take a major toll on businesses of all sizes and sectors. Target, a major retail outlet, has reported that it’s already lost more than $400 million this year thanks to theft and estimates that a further $200 million will be lost by the year’s end.

One of the more disturbing elements of this most recent rise in crime is that it isn’t limited to just property crime – in most cities, violent crime rates have also begun spiking. The U.S. murder rate has risen precipitously over the past three years, reaching rates the country hasn’t seen in well over thirty years.

One industry that has been hit especially hard by both property and violent crime is the sale of legal cannabis, a fact that’s been a major contributor to its relatively sluggish growth since its initial decriminalization back in the mid-2010s. Heavy taxes being paid to local governments that show no interest in protecting them has taken a major toll on the budding industry, and crimes are quickly shifting from simple theft to more extreme and deadly iterations as criminals have caught on that police steer well clear of dispensaries.

What all this amounts to is that bud shops need to start picking up on the lessons that we’ve been preaching for years: it’s up to you to defend yourself because the government sure as heck won’t! The rules for defending a business in, say, California are of course going to be a little bit different than our usual recourse, but there are still steps you can take to protect your property.

The obvious first step is insurance since even the best security system can be bested by an especially determined enemy. We have to pause on this note before we get any further, however, because your security system must follow your policy to the letter, because any tiny detail you might have missed can and will be used by the claims adjuster to deny you restitution.

Insurance policies are difficult to decipher even in the best of times, so we heavily recommend contracting the work out to firms who specialize in marijuana security and compliance with both insurance policies and the law. For California-based businesses, this means working with Cannabis Compliant Security Solutions, or CCSS for short.

CCSS has an experience borne from decades of experience working in the Bay Area police forces, including undercover operations in which they gained deep insight into the methodology of criminals. The team can identify what options work to deter and stop crime before it can cause disruptions to your operations and ensure your security system is ironclad in its adherence to local ordinances and your insurance policy.

Don’t let yourself become just another statistic in the rising tide of criminality in this country. Take steps to protect yourself by contacting CCSS today:

Cannabis Compliant Security Solutions

(925) 922-1067

http://ccsecuritysolutions.com/

To Sleep, Perchance To Dream (Of A New Outdoor Kitchen Design)

DoverDetailer

Dear readers, I have finally had enough. Every morning…every morning before the crack of dawn, I awake to the sounds of scraping, whirring, and roaring.

I cannot BELIEVE the gardeners are back, AGAIN. Apparently, my neighbors have found it necessary to ensure that every single day of the week, they need a posse of men armed with diesel-fueled machinery to come and trim the FRACTION of an inch of grass that had grown over the past 24 hours.

I hear it in my dreams, now. The tuk…tuk followed by the roar of planet-killing equipment, reaching alternating crescendos and denouements that ensure that any plans of sleeping past six in the morning are now well and truly dead. First, the mower, then the weed wacker, culminating finally in the blower that whines mechanically a mere few feet from my bedroom window. They walk back and forth along the wall, whirring their machines, taunting me.

I can’t tell you the number of violent fantasies this has stirred within my heart for the past few days. It’s made all the worse by the fact that the neighbor’s homes have horrendous landscaping! Patchy lawns, poorly thought out plant combinations, and sick, feeble trees dot their yards haphazardly.

My own home’s landscaping was cultivated after months of careful planning. It came to me like a seer’s vision one morning after a long night of carousing: a Roman-style courtyard complete with a beautiful outdoor kitchen. Thinking back on it, I must have been quite hungry.

After meticulous planning, I made sure to go with only the best landscape company here in southern California to implement my masterpiece: Torrey Pines Landscaping. I had seen some of their work before, and their ability to craft the kind of high-quality hardscape my outdoor kitchen demanded made them the natural choice.

Their other clients agree, as attested to in their many glowing testimonials. Check them out:

“Torry Pines Landscape Company was highly recommended to us. If you want the best this is the company to use. When we met the owner Harry, we immediately felt very comfortable working with him and his team. He is extremely knowledgeable, has many years of experience, is passionate, and has a great personality. We had a lot of fun working with him. His team is top-notch. Lei, his Architectural designer, and John, his Supervisor were excellent. Always available, very professional, and dedicated. It was impressive to watch how hard and efficient his crews worked. They were always accommodating and helpful.

Harry and his team have high standards and want the customer to be happy. We at all times were welcome to share in choices and decisions. So ultimately, we now love our new courtyard, hardscape, landscape and driveway. We enjoyed the journey and are thrilled with the results. It filled our expectations and more.” – Melane L., Yelp review

Best of all, Torrey Pines also provides maintenance services that will not involve waking your neighbors up at ungodly hours to trim a couple of blades of grass. If you’re like me and will not settle for anything less than the best for your outdoor spaces, get in contact with Torrey Pines today:

Torrey Pines Landscape Company

(858) 454-1433

5560 Eastgate Mall, San Diego, CA 92121

In Hot Water

DoverDetailer

As we’ve anxiously watched Western civilization shudder from the successive blows of Covid and the restarting of major global geopolitical conflicts, it has given us cause to reflect on possible historical analogs that may help us better understand what it is that we’re standing on the precipice of. There are a few favorites that we keep coming back to – the fall of the Soviet Union, the black death, and the fall of the western Roman empire.

This last one is especially compelling. Not because it is especially applicable to our situation, though there are certainly many echoes that may sound familiar. It’s compelling because of the level of societal degeneration that is possible, to the point that the ancestors of the architects could look up in wonder and ask what gods might have made such amazing things.

One account I find particularly interesting is the shock that many Saxons found when visiting the Roman baths in London in the centuries directly proceeding the retreat of the empire from the islands. The visitors were delighted at the novel feeling of having their entire bodies immersed in hot water at once.

As I watch the economy beginning to collapse under a combination of extremely poor (or purposefully destructive) decision-making and its own untenable weight, this image of future barbarians blissfully enjoying the fruits of our civilization with no recollection of how to recreate it weighs heavy on my mind. Also, my water heater recently broke down, and I had to spend the better part of a month taking cold or lukewarm showers while waiting for a replacement.

I was stuck waiting that long because my area is lacking in quality plumbing companies. Luckily for the majority of our readers, San Diego doesn’t have that problem thanks to California Plumbing.

California Plumbing’s sterling reputation for professionalism and excellent customer service is a breath of fresh air in a business environment where standards are bottoming out. Just take a look at the reviews their customers have left:

I will not go through any other company other than California Plumbing. I had a clogged shower that needed to be snaked and and baked up dishwasher line. Aaron who is the owner came in and he was in and out in less than 2 hours all while remaining clean and respectful! Very reasonable with pricing! Not only was it a great service you can tell the company is under great leadership to ensure that there are no loose ends. After receiving an experience from them, I won’t waste my time with a plumbing issue! Reliability, responsive, and Respectful!

Phillip M., Yelp Review

California Plumbing was professional, helpful, and very quick to respond. We asked for a camera waste line inspection prior to moving in to our new home, and Rachel gave me detailed information I didn’t receive from any other company. They sent Nestor out the next day and he was fantastic. Very professional and really walked me through the process and what to look for. The entire process was very easy and smooth. I’ll be calling California Plumbing for all of my future plumbing needs.

Mike R., Yelp Review

If your shopping around for a reliable, responsive and reasonable plumber, stop shopping and pick up the phone! We had a pipe break under the slab about 6 months ago. California Plumbing showed up 4 other plumber companies by providing tier 1 service at the best value. What others quoted us for 7 days to complete servuce, Aaron and his team got it done in 3 days. To this day, pipes are still working great and re-inspection by an independent pipe camera company confirms the work is solid. Thank you California Plumbing!

Franco S., Yelp Review

If you’re like me and find yourself shivering in your shower, do yourself and get a quick water heater replacement in Chula Vista and greater San Diego area by giving California Plumbing a call. They’ll get you back to basking in the steamy results of 1000 years of civilizational advancement.

California Plumbing

+16197873443

455 Willowcrest Way, Chula Vista, CA 91910

Terror

DoverDetailer

We’re taking a break from our normally scheduled programming to give you folks a RED ALERT. EMERGENCY.

What is the emergency this time, you may ask? Well, my smart mouthed friend, let me tell you: it’s spiders.

No, not government spiders that are radioactive or 20 feet tall or anything, just normal spiders – but those are more than terrifying enough. I’ve been terrified of spiders since I was a small boy and was forced to walk through an enormous web that covered a small alley that went through my neighborhood, connecting the street to the local park.

I still remember looking down at my clothes and seeing spiders nearly the size of my thumb, scurrying up and down my body as I tramped through the webs. I was smacking myself for hours afterwards, every small itch or patch of skin unexpectedly exposed to the breeze now covered with poisonous arachnids in my mind.

Well, they have recently come from my nightmares to haunt my waking life as well, as we are currently experiencing something of a spider infestation (a worse phrase I can’t even imagine) in the studio. I am typing this from a café across the street, after being barely restrained from burning down the building after making the discovery.

My partners gave Grand Oaks Termite Control a call after they had successfully sedated me. They’d heard of them over the past few years from various sources, and after having looked them up myself, I feel somewhat heartened that we’re in good hands.

Here’s a small sample of the testimonials I found:

I highly recommended Grand Oaks Termite Control.  I had an unusual situation where there were many areas of my wood paneling and roof that were affected by termites and wood rot. I have a decorative tree growing through the front part of my home which makes it very difficult to treat without damaging the tree. When Jason came for the preliminary inspection, he knew exactly how to effectively treat my home without harming my favorite tree. His estimate was very reasonable and his communication was top notch. He kept me appraised of all the curve balls and never stuck me with any unexpected cost. I was very impressed with the workmanship of his teammate Gary who took care of all the woodwork, a true craftsman.

I can wholeheartedly recommend Grand Oaks without any hesitation. (John B., Yelp Review)

We needed our house inspected and treated. Justin and Gary did an amazing job. They are professional, prompt, thorough, and experienced. We received our report and estimate in a timely manner. They came out and did their work diligently and expertly.  We were informed of each step, and they finished the job as they had expected. We are so pleased with our experience with them; they do great work and are good-quality people. Thank you Justin and Gary! (Linda W., Yelp Review)

Justin was super professional, informative, and patient during our fumigation process.  I had to delay the job a couple of times due to our remodel being pushed back and Justin was very understanding each time.  There were also some setbacks which we were supposed to take care of, but Justin took care of it for us and everything went smoothly!

Highly recommend Justin and his team and would definitely use them again in the future.  Price was very reasonable and the service is top notch.  All emails, calls, and texts were responded to quickly and effectively.  Thanks Justin!! (Gearge C., Yelp Review)

If you find yourself in a similar situation to us, and pray, PRAY that you never do because it is truly terrifying, give the guys over at Grand Oaks a call. Your spider problem will be history in no time, and we can all just move on and never think of it again.

Grand Oaks Termite Control

+16265384156

110 S Worthy Dr, Glendora, CA 91741

Dreams Of Summer

DoverDetailer

The solstice is behind us, which means the days will soon be getting longer and the nights will once again retreat to the dark hours of the morning. Unfortunately, winter’s reach here in southern California only intensifies in the months following December, meaning we’re in for more dreary, cloudy days and frigid nights ahead.

As we trudge through winter, many of us dream of the days ahead, where spring and summer shine bright like a beacon on an otherwise dark horizon. Gone are the days we Californians wish for ‘real weather’, here are the days we wish for a return to weeks on end of perfect sunny afternoons.

While we’re here wishing, we could be getting to work on projects that can enhance our outdoor environments and allow for us to better enjoy the long summer days. Landscaping projects can be lengthy endeavors, so all the better we take advantage of the cool cloudy days of winter to build a better yard for summer.

One major landscaping project we’ve been looking at recently is the installation of a backyard water feature installation. The sound of running water has always had a calming effect on me, so a little waterfall in my backyard has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember.

There are a multitude of different water features you can add to your yard, from the simplest fountain to a massive, multi-level koi pond. The only limiting factor is your imagination, your budget, and, of course, the help you hire on to implement your vision.

Good landscapers are hard to come by, as seems to be the case with most of the construction world. Luckily for our southern California readers, they don’t have to look far, as we are home to one of the best landscaping firms in the industry: Torrey Pines Landscaping.

Torrey Pines has won a ton of awards for their landscape designs in San Diego, most of which have transformed the landscape from tacky to extraordinary in the hills and beachfronts all over the city. Many of their projects have included the installation of water features both big and small, from spas to a yard-spanning river.

Whether you are looking for a water feature that you can swim around in or just enjoy the sound of a babbling brook in the midst of the arid hills of southern California, Torrey Pines can help you realize your vision of the perfect outdoor getaway for hot summer days. With a level of perfectionism and artfulness not commonly found in contracting companies today, you don’t want to miss out on getting help from a major up-and-coming force in the landscaping world.

While in winter’s icy grasp, its perfectly natural to think of brighter days in a not-so-distant future. If you’re looking to make those days shine even more starkly, give Torrey Pines Landscaping a call to make your landscape dreams a reality:

Torrey Pines Landscaping

+18584541433

5560 Eastgate Mall, San Diego, CA 92121

Hidden Danger

DoverDetailer

All of my life, I’ve loved motorcycles and the idea of riding. Years upon years of constant nagging and lecturing from my family on the dangers of accidents and crashing never dampened my fascination with the freedom and connectedness afforded by riding a bike on the open road.

So, when I was in my 20’s and was finally able to afford my own bike without the need to get a loan or have my parents sign off on some government-mandated note saying I could ride without supervision, I happily purchased an old cruiser. I was soon roaring down highways and backroads, bursting with pride at the acknowledgement given to me by my riding peers as they passed by.

Motorcycles and their riders thrive in much of our glorious country, and nowadays as I ride my bike through the highways connecting my compound in an UNDISCLOSED LOCATION to the larger interstate, I find it to be one of life’s simple pleasures. When you ride in the REAL America, there is nothing but you, the road, and the wind whistling past your ears.

Unfortunately for me, I was born in the overcrowded rat nest that is southern California. I soon realized that most rides would be filled with anxiety over the morons in wheeled cages around me that didn’t notice anything on the road except the chance to hop over into the next lane to get an extra 30 feet ahead in traffic.

The blissful rides in empty highways were reserved for early morning weekend rides into the hinterlands, bookended by terrifying forays into freeways and city streets packed with aggressive mongoloids with eyes glued to the sandwiches they were stuffing into their faces rather than the lane they were unknowingly invading.

This finally culminated into the first and only crash I would ever get into, and the last time I would ever ride in the state. As I passed an intersection, the car ahead of me pulled into my lane and screeched to a stop as it rushed to get into the entrance of a shopping center. Bracing myself, I hit both the front and rear brakes, and unfortunately the speed and force I put into hitting the rear brakes caused the bike to immediately fishtail and throw me off, skidding to a stop right before both myself and the bike hit the now slowly turning car.

I was lucky that day, as I got off with some ruined safety equipment, a few scrapes and a severely sprained wrist. I could have easily been going just a little bit faster or not been able to stop at all before hitting the stopped car, and that might have cost me a whole lot more than just a couple of scratches.

For those of us who have not been so lucky, the costs of medical attention and the subsequent loss of work or employment might have a much worse and long-lasting effect on our lives. For them, a good attorney might mean the difference between the crash being an inconvenience or a life-ruining event.

That’s why we’re spotlighting a local southern Californian attorney that can assist you in getting the appropriate recompense after a motorcycle accident caused by one of the many dopes driving around the state: Villasenor Law Offices. The firm has decades of experience navigating the complex landscape of personal injury law and the insurance system, and has secured a significant number of clients the compensation they deserve after such an accident, as attested to by a number of reviews on Yelp and Google:

Read Christina T.‘s review of Villasenor Law Offices on Yelp

While I may be lucky to have not only survived my accident without much in the way of injury, many in southern California can’t say the same. If you or someone you know has gotten in a crash and are having difficulties with their or the responsible party’s insurance company, get them over to Villasenor.

Villasenor Law Offices

+18587077771

12396 World Trade Dr Suite 211, San Diego, CA 92128

Modern American Enemy: The Lawn (Part 2)

DoverDetailer

Last time, we covered the basics on how the advertising agencies created the modern suburban ideal of the lawn. This week, we will go more in depth on a subject we touched on the last post: the unimaginably harmful effects of modern pesticides and herbicides used to keep cultivated plants (grass included) as productive as possible.

Pesticides have been around almost as long as cultivated agriculture has, and they have taken many forms over the millennia: plant extracts, minerals, and heavy metals that interacted with the nervous and respiratory systems of insects were the primary method of crop protection over that time period. With the coming of the Enlightenment and the resulting industrial revolution, the advances in chemical sciences afforded new types of plant treatments that seemed to be, on the whole, more effective at keeping away pests and weeds and allow for optimally productive crops.

The effects of these treatments on pests and weeds, however, also soon proved harmful for the people consuming the fruits, cereals and vegetables produced. Arsenic-based pesticides, commonly used until the 1900s, would leech into the soil and water tables, causing wide-spread pollution in small water tables that would be consumed by locals and over time cause cancer, chronic arsenic poisoning, and skin lesions.

In the 1900s, a number of synthetic chemicals were found to be as or more effective than arsenic at killing pests and weeds, including DDT, glyphosate, and atrazine. The issues with arsenic poisoning quickly fell away, but new and even more disturbing effects began to show themselves as a result of switching to synthetic chemicals.

Many of the chemicals, developed through scientific funding by the military, were not well understood outside of the immediately positive effects they had on pest and weed populations. This lack of understanding of (or, perhaps, willful disregard of) the deleterious effects of synthetic pesticides on both the environment and people, lead to some insane projects in the vain hope of destroying pest populations, including spraying entire neighborhoods and towns with pesticides. The immediate effects of this were respiratory issues and skin rashes and lesions, but the more horrific effect was the birth defects and hormonal disruptions in the offspring of the populations being sprayed.

DDT, glyphosates, and atrazine, are some of the most widely used synthetic chemical pesticides in the world, used in both domestic and commercial plant cultivation, and all three have been found to cause both acute poisoning and have long-lasting chronic effects on populations of both humans and animals. The chemicals, most troublingly, cause birth defects, hormonal disruption, and multi-generational sexual reproductive issues, and may be one of the leading causes in the reduction of spermatogenesis in males throughout the western world.

These chemicals are all available for household use, and glyphosate (commonly known under the brand name Round Up) is commonly used in yards and lawns across the country. Natural grass turf is particularly notorious for how easy it is to be destroyed by common weeds, and cheap landscapers all over the country use Round Up as an herbicide to keep lawns looking healthy and uniform.

Lawns, then, are a major vector of the pesticides that are so harmful for us entering domestic water supplies, and it’s our belief that they should be eliminated. Substitutes for lawns, such as synthetic grass, may not be perfect, but in the long run they will be far better for our health than the turf they will be supplanting.

Once again, for southern Californian readers, we will recommend NoMow Turf, a local company who provides artificial turf installations for these purposes. They are extremely well regarded by their customers and provide a service that may end up saving both us and the environment.

NoMow Turf

+18559688873

26674 Vista Terrace, Lake Forest, CA 92630

Modern American Enemy: The Lawn

DoverDetailer

Over the years, this publication has covered and extensive number of subjects that raise our ire or deserve public notice. One item that we have long held both distaste for and felt the need to alert people to is the insidious manufactured cultural phenomenon that is the suburban lawn.

Lawns and lawn care, widely depicted in popular culture as a staple of suburban home life and the subject of pride in many a homeowner, in reality is a construct of modern advertising (much like the rest of suburbanism). Most homes did not include a lawn until the advertising apparatus was up and running, depicting wealthy homeowners happily mowing large lawns on palatial estates.

This was, of course, kicked into overdrive in the aftermath of World War I, which saw the development of many large-scale methods of manufacturing public opinion and perspective stemming from psychological warfare experiments used on European populations to maintain morale on the home front. Advertising firms, staffed with returning members of the intelligence divisions of the various militaries, quickly jumped on many of the new techniques, and lawn care companies were among many various industries who saw the benefits of shaping a new society that was primed to purchase their wares.

From these advertisements came the image of the ideal suburban home, suspended like an island in a sea of perfectly manicured and hardy native grasses. That ideal image fell short of reality in many respects, the lawn first among them.

Far from being hardy, the grass itself is a lifeform that does not much care for living, especially in the tightly controlled confines presented by the boundary lines designated by local civil authorities. The plant needs near constant maintenance to sustain its luscious green and uniform coloration, and much of that maintenance comes at the expense of both the homeowner and nature.

Lawns can take up hours of an owner’s time and a great deal of their wealth, trying its best to die a dignified death while they try futilely to force it to keep on living. Weed killers, pesticides, fungicides, and all manner of artificial and chemical fertilizers are poured into the ground before the hundreds of gallons of water needed to keep the stuff alive washes it into local water tables to be slurped up by the various animals we eat.

We’ve talked extensively about these chemical fertilizers and pesticides before, so we won’t go further into the obvious effects this is having on our collective health. The bottom line is, lawns are terrible for us, terrible for the animals, and terrible for our natural environment. They are trash!

For a suitable replacement that still gives that dopamine rush provided by a lush green lawn without the nasty side effects of keeping it alive and tidy, we recommend looking into artificial turf. The fake stuff is beginning to look just as good as the real stuff, and you don’t have to worry about its effects on local amphibians after a rainstorm.

There are thousands of artificial turf installers around the country, but the ones nearest and dearest to our hearts here in California are NoMow Turf, a local company that’s been servicing communities here get rid of their chemical nightmares and replace it with quality synthetic turf for the better part of 15 years. Their installations are pitch-perfect, as evidenced by the numerous glowing testimonials on their Yelp page:

Read Kolt K.‘s review of NoMow Turf on Yelp

As with many things in modern life, lawns are a form of psychological warfare perpetrated by large advertising companies designed to turn you into a SLAVE. If you are tired of playing their games, get yourself an artificial lawn; your wallet and the water table will thank you

NoMow Turf

(866) 679-4863

26674 Vista Terrace, Lake Forest, CA 92630

Reclamation

DoverDetailer

Consider this a public service announcement. It is about time the people of this country RECLAIM the label of environmentalism from the corrupt and EVIL hegemon that holds sway over the movement.

This force (which shall remain UNNAMED) who ‘protects’ the environment wants to convince you that it’s YOU who is causing untold environmental destruction, it’s YOU who are killing the creatures of the wilds, it’s YOU who is polluting the earth around us. All the while they use their power to enable the international conglomerates to ship their production centers off to countries with lax or no environmental protections and dump their toxic sludge into our beautiful oceans and spew their vile humors into the air we breathe!

Every day they develop new methods of poisoning us and our lands, making new chemicals designed to artificially increase food yields that make it as unfit to eat as rotten garbage and runs off into rivers, making them barren and unsuitable for life. They do this, and then turn around and tell you that your habits are the real problem, your habits are what is doing harm to our beautiful planet.

They are killing our forests, our oceans, our grasslands. THEY ARE KILLING OUR BEES!

Yes, it is time we took steps to reclaim the environmentalist movement. What is the first step, you may ask?

Why, buying used office furniture for your business, of course! Recycling furniture may not sound like it would do much, but hear me out while I make this pitch to you.

The massive cargo freighters that these items are shipped on are unimaginably terrible for the environment: just one of the enormous crafts emits as much cancer- and asthma- causing sulfuric agents as 50 MILLION cars, and there are 90,000 of the things in the ocean. If you can reduce the impact of that just a smidge, think of how much better off we could be.

With all that being said, if you’re looking for used office furniture in Los Angeles, we are spotlighting a company that provides high quality recycled pieces for a reasonable cost: Creative Office Design. Not only can they give you the means to help save our beautiful planet by giving you access to used furniture, they also provide a number of services to help maximize your office space: office planners, installation crews, the works.

Buying used may not be as glamorous as buying a shiny new office furniture set, but it can help offset some of the worst effects the modern global economy has on our environment. Plus, most of the time the furniture is sold due to a business going under or moving to a different location, meaning the furniture is in pristine condition at a far reduced price with no waiting time.

With the world churning in self-imposed chaos, now is a time for RECLAMATION. LA readers, visit one of Creative Office Design’s cubicle show rooms and start the process of taking BACK environmentalism from the phonies and crooks that run the movement!

Creative Office Design

17143287627

5230 Pacific Concourse Dr #105, Los Angeles, CA 90045