The Loop Newspaper - Tehachapi's Online Community News & Entertainment Guide

Just about now, Jim Pickerell and Cindy Johnson should be making their final move from Castaic, California, to their new ranch in Stallion Springs. They bought the property last March but expected the move to take several months since they will be moving from a ranch that had been in Cindy’s family for many years. Castaic was becoming too crowded so the open spaces of the Tehachapi area were the perfect solution.

I met Jim and Cindy at Tehachapi’s 4th of July celebration in Central Park. Rango, Cindy’s racing Dachshund had just won this year’s Weiner Dog Race and his compadre, Stetson, had just taken third. Cindy said that Stetson had never won a race before. On the other hand, Rango races often and has over 100 wins to his credit. He races for the Seal Beach Animal Care Center.

Jim and Cindy consider themselves country folk. Jim was raised In Olympic Fields, Illinois, a farmland area outside of Chicago. He has a brother and three sisters. While one sister lives in California, the rest of his family is spread out across the country. Jim has been involved in many disciplines of natural healing since the 1970’s and is a member of the Institute of Noetic Sciences. He received his ND (Doctor of Naturopathy) in 2000 and practices from his office in Santa Clarita. He said he would like to practice in Tehachapi if he can find a suitable office situation. Jim is also an artist, likes to write and practices Tai Chi and Qi Gong almost daily.

Cindy was born in Glendale, California. She said that her father was a cowboy from Laguna Beach and once owned a riding stable there. Her mother was born in Saugus in 1926 (when Saugus was basically in the middle of nowhere). Cindy has two sisters who now live in the Pacific Northwest. A real animal lover and a licensed veterinary technician, Cindy ran the petting zoo at Magic Mountain in Valencia for twenty-two years. Jim met Cindy at there in 1982 and they have been together since. All of the animals are now retired, live with Cindy and Jim, and will be moving to the new ranch. The Dachshunds are joined by two other family dogs, Cowboy, a 15 year old Fox Terrier mix, and Noni, a rescue Shiba Inu. When I asked Cindy how many animals she had, she said “lots” which includes horses, ponies, minis, goats etc.

Tehachapi welcomes ALL in the Pickerell/Johnson family and I’m betting Rango will be around to defend his title next 4th of July.

Tim and Chanel Ottieri just arrived in Tehachapi from Paso Robles. They told me that they were looking for more space, a pet friendly community and an area where Tim could continue his work as a wood flooring contractor. The answer - Tehachapi.

Tim was born in Goleta, near Santa Barbara, the middle child between two sisters. He studied drafting at Santa Barbara City College and has been a flooring contractor for 12 years. Tim started in Southern California, working from Moreno Valley to Hollywood and San Diego to Paso Robles. He does everything including leveling and sub-floor repairs but specializes in hardwood flooring. Tim said that he also does laminates and bamboo which he says is eco-friendly as well as being extremely strong.

His favorite off-time activities are hiking, camping and especially dirt biking. He also likes to fix up old vehicles.

Chanel was raised in San Diego County. She said that her grandparents are still in Temecula. She grew up in and around Murrieta and Lake Elsinore, the youngest of four children.

Chanel is studying to be a Registered Nurse and is currently working on her degree at Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo. She has to commute once a week until the end of this semester, then she will transfer to Bakersfield College. She is into hiking and camping with Tim and also likes walking the family dogs. Bailey is an eight year old Golden Retriever and Pepita is a Chihuahua they found running along the 101 Freeway in Oxnard.

The couple has a concession business that they operate on weekends. They have a regular schedule of shows and farmers’ markets that they attend, usually over near the coast, selling kettle corn, fruit smoothies and funnel cakes.

We welcome this very busy couple to Tehachapi and anyone interested in finding out more about Tim’s skills as a flooring contractor can find his contact information in the Business Directory section of this edition of The Loop.

If you have moved to the Greater Tehachapi Area within the last six months and would like to know more about your new community, call 661-822-8188. We will be happy to make an appointment for a hostess to come by and give you lots of helpful information, some valuable coupons, gifts and much more. Many families and individuals who come to the area are pleasantly surprised with the amount of knowledge they gather about their new home. Publishing your welcome article is completely voluntary and is not a requirement of being welcomed.