Labor Day

A break from extreme heat is expected to last through Thursday, but a warming trend could return in time for the Labor Day holiday weekend. A trough of low pressure should keep temperatures down into the high-80s, according to the National Weather Service, but on Friday, the heat is expected to rebound, pushing the daytime highs into the 90s by the time the weekend rolls around. It's expected to be in the mid-90s in the Greater Glendale area by Labor Day on Monday. RELATED: Fewer Southern Californians will travel for Labor Day

Low clouds and an active marine layer should keep temperatures in check through the Labor Day weekend, with daytime highs ranging from the upper-80s to low-90s, according to the National Weather Service. Still, U.S. Forest Service recently raised the threat of fire in Angeles National Forest from "high" to "very high. " And starting Monday, a warming trend could push temperatures back into triple-digit territory, the weather service said.

?To me, it?s just a day you have time to spend with your parents. To me, it?s a day people don?t want to work. It?s a nice way of saying, ?Don?t work.?? Los Angeles ? ?I think Labor Day for me is a time to relax and reflect and regenerate for the fall. We are revving up for school. It?s the last hurrah.? San Gabriel ? ?I guess, at least for us, it?s a day to rest ? where we get to break the routine ? rest and hang out with family.? Glendale ? ?

Some 31.5 million Americans are expected to travel more than 50 miles from home over Labor Day weekend, a 2.4 percent decline from 2010, according to AAA .  Due to steep gasoline prices, inflated hotel room rates and high unemployment more people are opting for a 'staycation.' Expect to see a lot folks at local beaches, parks and their own backyard. In San Diego, 200,000 visitors are expected to descend on beaches despite recent shark sightings.  Officials vow more lifeguards will be on duty to watch for sharks and patrol the extra crowds.

For Burbank resident Reynaldo Ramirez, Labor Day weekend is usually an excuse to get away. “Usually we go to the beach or the movies and spend the night somewhere else,” he said. But not this year. “We had no idea the economy would be so bad,” he said. Ramirez, a warehouse manager, instead opted for a low-key weekend, he said as he shopped for his wife’s birthday at Barnes and Noble in downtown Burbank on Monday. Later that night, his family would gather with family at his house for a small birthday celebration.

GLENDALE— Kathy Allen and Lupe Bourden picked up their pasta and salad and left in a flash. The Glendale police dispatchers had to return to the phones and were unable to linger around police and firefighters who were treated to a catered lunch by the Olive Garden in Glendale on Labor Day. “We’ve got to get back to dispatch,” Allen said. The Italian restaurant chain donated and catered lunches to local fire and police offices throughout the nation Monday. It’s one way the company can thank public servants, service assistant Deborah Sanford said.

E. Manchester Boddy, owner and publisher of the Los Angeles Daily News, was a legend not only for his sharp editorials and shrewd business skills, but for the fantastic parties he threw in his backyard. Of course, it wasn't just any backyard. In 1937, Boddy purchased 125 acres of land in La Cañada and commissioned famed “architect to the stars” James Dolena to build a home for his family, which included his wife Berenice and the couple's two sons, Bob and Calvin. Dolena constructed a 12,000-square-foot, 22-room home on hillside with sweeping views of the valley.

VERA SVOBODA    It was fitting that Vera passed away on Labor Day, September 5th, since she labored her whole life to make her family and community a better place.  She passed peacefully with her family at her bedside reminiscing and celebrating her life.  Vera was born on December 20, 1920 in Prague, Czechoslovakia.  She settled in California and raised her two daughters Eva and Ann with her husband Milo, only after they had to escape her homeland when the communists took over.

As the Labor Day weekend approaches, the smell of barbecue is in the air. Picnics and beach days are being planned. Families are packing up their tents, bikes and fishing gear and heading out of town. All over Orange County, events are being arranged for one last celebration before the kids go back to school, the weather cools down and the summer season officially ends. While the way in which the Labor Day holiday is observed has changed over the last 100 years, the reason for its existence has remained the same.

VERA SVOBODA    It was fitting that Vera passed away on Labor Day, September 5th, since she labored her whole life to make her family and community a better place.  She passed peacefully with her family at her bedside reminiscing and celebrating her life.  Vera was born on December 20, 1920 in Prague, Czechoslovakia.  She settled in California and raised her two daughters Eva and Ann with her husband Milo, only after they had to escape her homeland when the communists took over.

Low clouds and an active marine layer should keep temperatures in check through the Labor Day weekend, with daytime highs ranging from the upper-80s to low-90s, according to the National Weather Service. Still, U.S. Forest Service recently raised the threat of fire in Angeles National Forest from "high" to "very high. " And starting Monday, a warming trend could push temperatures back into triple-digit territory, the weather service said.

Some 31.5 million Americans are expected to travel more than 50 miles from home over Labor Day weekend, a 2.4 percent decline from 2010, according to AAA .  Due to steep gasoline prices, inflated hotel room rates and high unemployment more people are opting for a 'staycation.' Expect to see a lot folks at local beaches, parks and their own backyard. In San Diego, 200,000 visitors are expected to descend on beaches despite recent shark sightings.  Officials vow more lifeguards will be on duty to watch for sharks and patrol the extra crowds.

E. Manchester Boddy, owner and publisher of the Los Angeles Daily News, was a legend not only for his sharp editorials and shrewd business skills, but for the fantastic parties he threw in his backyard. Of course, it wasn't just any backyard. In 1937, Boddy purchased 125 acres of land in La Cañada and commissioned famed “architect to the stars” James Dolena to build a home for his family, which included his wife Berenice and the couple's two sons, Bob and Calvin. Dolena constructed a 12,000-square-foot, 22-room home on hillside with sweeping views of the valley.

A break from extreme heat is expected to last through Thursday, but a warming trend could return in time for the Labor Day holiday weekend. A trough of low pressure should keep temperatures down into the high-80s, according to the National Weather Service, but on Friday, the heat is expected to rebound, pushing the daytime highs into the 90s by the time the weekend rolls around. It's expected to be in the mid-90s in the Greater Glendale area by Labor Day on Monday. RELATED: Fewer Southern Californians will travel for Labor Day

GLENDALE— Kathy Allen and Lupe Bourden picked up their pasta and salad and left in a flash. The Glendale police dispatchers had to return to the phones and were unable to linger around police and firefighters who were treated to a catered lunch by the Olive Garden in Glendale on Labor Day. "We've got to get back to dispatch," Allen said. The Italian restaurant chain donated and catered lunches to local fire and police offices throughout the nation Monday. It's one way the company can thank public servants, service assistant Deborah Sanford said.

For Burbank resident Reynaldo Ramirez, Labor Day weekend is usually an excuse to get away. “Usually we go to the beach or the movies and spend the night somewhere else,” he said. But not this year. “We had no idea the economy would be so bad,” he said. Ramirez, a warehouse manager, instead opted for a low-key weekend, he said as he shopped for his wife’s birthday at Barnes and Noble in downtown Burbank on Monday. Later that night, his family would gather with family at his house for a small birthday celebration.

Are they making summer shorter these days? I mean, with Labor Day having come and gone already, the only thing left to do last week was to send our kids back to school. In our house, at least, that means we’re down to a junior at CVHS and a freshman at PCC. Heh, heh, heh. Is that a light at the end of the tunnel I see? With each new school year, I’m reminded that the back to school routine is much different from when I attended Monte Vista, then Rosemont (a three-year junior high school way back then)

BURBANK — One of two men charged with a carjacking and robberies spanning from Glendale to Tujunga wept in court Thursday when he saw members of his family. Wearing a blue Los Angeles County jail jumpsuit and shackles, Nicolas Ventura Jr., 18, of Lakeview Terrace was comforted in a Burbank Municipal Court by codefendant Sergio Rodriguez, 20, of Sylmar, who handed him a tissue to wipe his tears. The pair are charged with five counts of robbery, one count of carjacking, one count of attempted carjacking and one count of evading a police officer, according to a criminal complaint.