You could say that my Thursday was just like any other day on my Northwest OC beat. I swing by First Street beach, check out the action at the pier, cruise Main Street and Seal Beach Boulevard. The twist? I leave my usual ride at home and make my rounds in the $18 million Zeppelin Eureka.

On a blue-sky morning, the enormous — and remarkably agile — ship descends to the airfield at Long Beach Airport and is tethered to its mast vehicle. It is just returning from a first-ever Zeppelin-to-earth parachute jump at the Queen Mary. “There’s my baby,” says Airship Ventures CEO Alexandra Hall, whose personal passion for her ship and the joy-ride business bubbles through her talk about regulatory intricacies and technical specs.

“We’re in the joy business, for passengers and even for people on the ground. You can’t be grumpy when this amazing thing flies over you,” she says. Everyone in the press lounge smiles out at the white whale-shaped ship. Already, grumpiness is slipping away.

Soon we are climbing aboard the world’s largest airship for a ride down the OC coast to Huntington Beach and a loop over the Long Beach Port. The huge ship floats above the airport runway, held by its rope-men as we riders step up and off terra firma.

In the sleek cabin, lined with oversized windows, we find our seats, buckle up and are lifted with surprising speed into the air. It is a comfortable, nearly vertical, ride — with less G-force that an express elevator in a high-rise.

In two minutes, the pilot gives the signal and we are allowed to remove our seatbelts and move around the cabin. For a moment, everyone stays put, in a sort of stunned delight. The ride is so quiet and the view is so all-enveloping that we don’t know which way to look first. But then, everyone is up and out of their seats, pointing at familiar objects on the ground, asking questions about the landscape and the ship, chatting with the pilots, snapping photos and checking out the most scenic bathroom we’ve ever seen (it has a giant picture window.)

Soon we are traveling south over kite surfers at Belmont Shore, passing Alamitos Bay and coming up on Seal Beach. My first thought is how precious the town looks, small and lucky, surrounded by water, with its beautiful wide wedge of beach, the stately pier, the trees along Main Street and Electric Avenue. This is one of the nice things about the Zeppelin perspective: You are high above, but still intimately connected to the world. It’s not Google Earth; it is alive below you. The engines hum gently and at an open window, not even glass comes between you and all that’s going on below. As we glide by, I see families on the beach, homes of people I know, the white wakes of sail boats.

[To see a full screen slideshow, click the "expand button in the bottom right of the slideshow window]

Read more of this entry »

My Life in Ruins opens tonight at the Bay Theatre on Main Street and runs through Thursday, July 9. Nia Vardalos, Richard Dreyfuss, Maria Adanez and Sheila Bernette star in this 2009 romantic comedy about a travel guide (Vardalos) who leads a rag-tag group of tourists as she tries to show them the beauty of her native Greece while waiting to land her dream job.

This week’s classic film is Taxi Driver (1976) starring Robert De Niro, Cybill Shepherd, Jodie Foster and Peter Boyle. “For psychotic, pistol-packing Vietnam vet Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro), New York City seems like a circle of hell,” says Rotten Tomatoes. “Driving his cab each night through the bleak Manhattan streets, Bickle observes with fanatical loathing the sleazy lowlifes who comprise most of his fares.”

Check show times by calling the theater at 562-431-9988 or visit the Bay online.

For more local movies, browse Seal Beach Daily’s Diversions section.

From the College Park East Homeowners Association: “Our paper drive will be the weekend of July 4th & 5th. The bin will be open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., on Saturday and Sunday by Bluebell Park … We especially thank those residents who either tie or bag their newspapers.”

Heads up if you’re planning to travel south along the coast Saturday: Pacific Coast Highway will be closed between Goldenwest Street and Beach Boulevard from 5 a.m. until about 2 p.m. PCH will reopen once Huntington Beach’s 4th of July parade ends.

The Huntington Beach Pier will be partially closed to the public all day Saturday and completely closed at 5 p.m. Fireworks start at the pier at 9 p.m.

PCH will close again, between Goldenwest and Beach Boulevard, from 7 p.m. until traffic has dispersed, estimated to be around 11 p.m., according to the city’s website.

Next week, an Orange County panel will consider a proposal that would name Huntington Beach as the most logical provider of public services to Sunset Beach, the city’s tiny and happily independent neighbor along the coast. Some Sunset Beach residents worry that the move could pave the way for the 85-acre community to be annexed into Surf City. “We would prefer to just be left alone,” Pat Thies, a Sunset Beach resident of about 25 years, tells the Orange County Register. “We fought for it an awfully long time.”

Read the entire story here.

Mary Raffety shares a holiday weekend cycling guide to the San Gabriel River Trail, which winds its way from Azusa to the sand in Seal Beach. “This is pretty much a perfect weekend ride, ” she says. Examiner.com.

The College Park East Neighborhood Association hosts a July 4 barbecue at Heather Park Saturday featuring a chili cook off, bike-decorating contest and parade. 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Your handy guide to July 4 fireworks and more in Los Alamitos, Huntington Beach and Long Beach is here at SBD.

For holiday barbecues, here are twenty fast-grill recipes. Cooking Light.

Check out LocalHipster, a new online guide to O.C. happy hours. via Food Frenzy.

Mark your calendar for the Seal Beach Chamber of Commerce’s summer concert series, which kicks off Wednesday July 8 with Danny Dean and the Homewreckers. 6 to 8 p.m. at the Seal Beach Pier. Free.

The Fast Food Maven compiles a round up of summer cooking camps for kids. “The most intriguing classes are offered by PREP in Seal Beach,” she says.

Huntington Beach’s Adventure Playground opens for a summer of muddy fun. OC Register.

More surfing dogs. San Diego Union-Tribune.

Step inside author Dean Koontz’s dream home overlooking the Newport Coast. USA Today.

Can you get fit in six minutes a week? The New York Times.

All summer long… browse upcoming events in the SBD community calendar.

Seal Beach’s summertime Beach Buggy starts rolling on Monday, July 6. The new service is free, but children 8 to 17 need bus passes to ride.

The Beach Buggy will make seven stops around town — including College Park West, College Park East, the Hill and the Seal Beach Pier. The bus runs Monday to Friday through August 28. The buggy schedule is below.

“It’s to provide kids an opportunity to enjoy recreation and enjoy the beach down here,” says Tim Kelsey, the city’s Recreation Community Services Supervisor. “We’re excited to go forward with it.”

A city staffer will be on board the bus, provided by the Los Alamitos Unified School District, to supervise the program. Bus passes are now available at the Rec Department at Seal Beach City Hall,  211 8th St. You can download an application online and find out here more information here.

Previously at SBD: Beach Buggy debuts this summer

Following last weekend’s fatal boating accident at the Gilbert Drive bridge in Huntington Harbour, the Register interviews Harbor Patrol officials about the safety of the low-slung bridges in the area: “Most types of accidents are more along the lines of a boat colliding into another or caught on fire,” Sgt. John Hollenbeck of the county’s Harbor Patrol told the Register. “Accidents like what happened the other day are extremely rare.”

Officials are still investigating alcohol’s roll in the accident, the Register said.

Read more, see a map and a slideshow with pictures from the accident area at ocregister.com.

Above: A boater passes under the Gilbert Drive bridge. Photo by Jebb Harris, used with permission from The Orange County Register.

Previously at SBD: Operation Dry Water: increased Coast Guard presence, crackdown on drinking boaters

Update, July 1 3:24 p.m., another change of plans: Airship Ventures has reinstated its plans for a first-of-its-kind parachute jump tomorrow at the Queen Mary Event Park. Schedules were tossed-about this morning as the company arranged to ferry media covering a reported Michael Jackson memorial to Neverland Ranch. This afternoon, when word came Jackson’s body would not be moved to the ranch, Airship Adventures “un-cancelled” its parachute event. More details on the event here.

The first-of-its-kind parachute jump from Zeppelin Eureka — scheduled for Thursday, July 2 above the Queen Mary Event Park — has been canceled. Instead, the airship will ferry media to cover the fan frenzy at Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch in Los Olivos, according company spokesperson Christine Eastman. Read more of this entry »

OC Weekly chats with Elliott Almond about his new book, Surfing: Mastering Waves From Basic to Intermediate (Mountaineers Outdoor Experts Series). “While that title screams `surf instruction book,’” says Matt Coker, “its 200 pages are packed with more than tips, as the author explains the sport’s history, personalities and lingo—with a very heavy emphasis on the major role Orange County played in creating it.”

Read the Weekly’s Q&A here.

ScienceDude Gary Robbins points us to the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s latest project — the “most detailed topographic map ever made of Earth.” The map includes a computer-animated flyover of the Greater Los Angeles basin. “This bird’s eye view begins offshore, west of Seal Beach and Long Beach, then angles across the Palos Verdes Peninsula before going inland and taking viewers on a big semi-circle that ends by looking out toward the coast of Orange and Los Angeles counties.” Check out Gary’s story and handy links here.

The Los Alamitos/Rossmoor Library continues its One-Book, One-Community reading program with a Three Cups of Tea party this afternoon.

Greg Mortenson’s bestseller is the true story of an indomitable American mountain climber who builds schools and hope in the poorest regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. The book discussion starts at 3:30 p.m. at the library, 12700 Montecito Rd. in Seal Beach.

You can find more information here.

Previously at SBD: Join community read around the clock of Three Cups of Tea and To-do list: Enjoy Three Cups of Tea

Sunset Beach resident Mark Montgomery was fatally injured Friday night when his motorcycle collided with a four-door sedan in Huntington Beach, the Orange County Register reports.

Montgomery, 58, enjoyed volunteering at community events and worked as a computer drafter designer; one of his projects was creating the waterworks design for the Bellagio Hotel fountain in Las Vegas. “He just loved life,” his wife, Diane Montgomery, tells the Register. “He was always happy, always funny. He treated strangers like they were his best friends.”

OC Metro notes that Seal Beach-based Clean Energy continues to make headlines: The company has opened what it’s calling the “world’s largest” liquefied natural gas and compressed natural gas truck fueling station. “Located on a 2.9-acre site adjacent to the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, the public access station was developed to fuel trucks 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” Kristen Schott reports.

Fireworks are banned in Seal Beach and Los Alamitos, but that doesn’t mean our Independence Day is without a bang. We’ve got the 22nd Annual 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular — a whole day of red, white and blue doings at the Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training Base — ending in an hour-long pyrotechnic crescendo.

This year’s fun includes: Live music from rock and military bands, flag presentations, a WWII reenactment, military aircraft flyovers and a special retirement ceremony to honor the retirement of Brigadier General James P. Combs. And for the browsing: a food court, the “JFTB Liberty Village” Vendor Fair, an expanded Kids Fun Zone. [Click here for a complete printable schedule.pdf]

Scheduled highlights:

• 2 p.m. – Gates open
• 3 p.m. – Music starts on the Main Stage
• 4 p.m. – B.G. Combs retirement ceremony
• 5:30 p.m. – WWII Reenactment
• 7 p.m. – 4th of July ceremony starts on the Main Stage
• 9 p.m. – Fireworks Spectacular

Logistics: Admission and parking are free. Entry at Gate 4, 11200 Lexington Drive (south of Katella). No bleachers this year, so bring your own lawn chairs or blankets. Event-goers over 16 must show photo I.D. Children under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult. No motor homes, dogs, personal fireworks or alcohol.

The annual spectacular is hosted by cities of Seal Beach, Los Alamitos, Cypress and The Rossmoor Community Services District and the Joint Forces Training Base.

Update, July 1: The Orange County Register reports that 20,000 are expected to attend. See some pictures from previous years at ocregister.com.

In the neighborhood: Long Beach has two 9 p.m. shows: One at the Queen Mary, which can be viewed from Queensway Bay and the beach areas, and the 52nd Annual Long Beach Firemen’s Memorial Association show at Veterans Stadium. Read more at the Press- Telegram. Huntington Beach will celebrate its own centennial and the Fourth of July by shooting fireworks from the end of the Huntington Pier. Read more at ocregister.com.

On the OC beach beat today:

Hawaiian surfer Keanu Asing takes home the win – and a $3,500 check – as some of the world’s top 20 and under Junior Pro surfers battle at the 2009 Nike 6.0 Pier Pressure on the south side of the Huntington Beach Pier. Beach Blog and Surfing Magazine.

An Orange County appeals court says no more nude sunbathing at San Onofre State Beach’s Trail six, one of the last clothing-optional beaches in California. OC Register.

The marine layer thickened up overnight and this afternoon more moisture is flowing into our area from the south east, sending high clouds streaming across the region and making for another cool and partly cloudy day for a thin coastal strip of OC. At this writing, it is 84 degrees in Santa Ana and only 71 degrees at Seal Beach, according to wunderground.com. The National Weather Service current forecast predicts similar conditions Tuesday and Wednesday. So while the inland areas swelter under high pressure, we’ll have cooler beach days. You can watch the clouds roll in from the south in this National Weather Service satellite image loop. Image above: clouds head into the area from he south in a satellite image taken at 2:15 p.m.

A first look at the Independence Day forecast from the NWS: Patchy fog before 11 a.m. Otherwise, cloudy through mid morning, then gradual clearing, with a high near 77.

Update July 3: See Kate’s Zeppelin-ride slideshow. Click here.

Eureka, the world’s largest airship, is returning to the Seal Beach area for a Fourth of July holiday of “flightseeing” tours — including a two-hour fireworks flight that promises a spectacular — if pricey — view of SoCal’s Independence Day shows.

Passengers on the $1200-a-seat flight will soar 1000 feet above the Pacific Coast to take in 360 degree views of a variety of fireworks displays, including — if conditions permit — the one at the Los Alamitos Joint Training Base, according to Beth Pursley, a spokesperson for Airship Ventures.

There are also less expensive ways to enjoy the Zeppelin’s visit to the area. On Thursday, the public is invited to Long Beach to see an the first ever parachute jump from the Zeppelin. Eureka will climb to 3000 feet above to Queen Mary Event Park [map] and a team lead by former Navy Seal Geoff Reeves will drop from the cabin to the park below. The airship is scheduled to be over the park from 10:45 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.; the jump is scheduled for 11 a.m.

The Zepplin’s visit in May saw a sell out of its one- and two-hour tours, in which the airship takes passengers on aerial sightseeing flights, floating above Southern California landmarks, such as the Queen Mary, Long Beach Harbor, the Sunset Strip, the Hollywood sign, and taking in the sweeping vistas of the Pacific Coast from Huntington Beach to Santa Monica.

This weekend, the Zeppelin will be flying out of the AirFlite Aviation Services Facility at the Long Beach airport. One hour tours start at $495 per person.

Have to soar for yourself? If you book your ticket before June 30, you’ll get the company’s “buy one flightseeing ticket, save 50% on the second,” promotional pricing (excludes the Fireworks Flight). Eureka will be offering tours July 3-7. Learn more or book a flight at airshipventures.com.

The Zepplin will return to our area for the Labor Day holiday, September 4-8.

Want to know what it’s like to ride in a Zepplin? It’s an unusual adventure as there are only three Zeppelins operating in the world today. I’ll be taking a flight on Thursday and will be posting a story and pictures here at SBD! Also, check these accounts from Eureka’s may Visit: World’s largest airship flies over Seal Beach and Zeppelin Rides Come To Southern California.

Photo above: I caught this photo of Eureka as she headed for a flight over Seal Beach in May.

A Sierra Club survey has found that many Southern California cities are charging high fees for solar panel permits and ignoring a state mandate designed to promote the energy system, the Press-Telegram reports today.

The group’s Angeles chapter has ranked local communities has on “solar friendliness” and is asking cities with permit fees exceeding $750 to review their fees. Reporter Joe Segura explains:

The Sierra Club said the purpose of its ratings is to persuade cities to reduce PV permit fee levels to $324 or less and reduce waiting time for PV permits.

Long Beach, Seal Beach, Signal Hill, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Bell Gardens and Gardena are lower than the $750 fee range, but higher than the $324 mark sought by the Sierra Club.

The P-T story includes a list of fees, by city, for a permit to install a residential solar power system. Seal Beach, for example, charges $359, while Los Alamitos charges $942. Keep reading here.

The LA Times checks out the new Shorebreak Hotel on PCH and finds a stylish surf-themed boutique hotel that caters to families, too.

Locals who braved the holiday traffic jam on Pacific Coast Highway to take Fido and Junior on a little weekend jaunt found a hotel trying hard to deliver top service and style for moderate prices. On style, the Shorebreak scored. On service, it stumbled but recovered.

Read more of Valli Herman’s story.

Blackhawk helicopters over Seal Beach “The night flights are part of joint military training exercises currently underway across the greater Los Angeles area.” Read more at here at SBD.

Fight at The Pike puts Seal Beach man in the hospital “Long Beach Police are investigating a fight at The Pike entertainment zone that left a 23-year-old Seal Beach man hospitalized after he was knocked unconscious early Friday.” Read more at the Contra Costa Times.

Los Alamitos High gets a new principal The Los Alamitos Unified School District has named an educator from Torrance, Dr. Grant Litfin, to replace retiring Los Al High Principal Kelly Godfrey. Read more here at SBD.

Alcohol likely involved in fatal boat accident. “Investigators have found evidence that alcohol was involved in [Saturday's] double fatal boat crash in Huntington Harbour, a Sheriff’s Department spokesman said.” Read more at ocregister.com.

Also: 117 Ocean for Sale, Quicksilver lays off 168, At 15, O.C. teen is No. 1 scholastic surfer in U.S., and UCI needs volunteers for study on vitamin’s impact on Alzheimer’s.

Keep up with all the area headlines throughout the week. Bookmark Seal Beach Daily’s “In the News” page. It’s news hand-picked for the Seal Beach, Los Alamitos, Rossmoor, Sunset Beach and Surfside area.

Naturalist Hugh Ryono posts this cool video (with soundtrack) today…

via Twitter @HugeRhino

It is with delight and pride that I welcome The Wonder years: Portraits of Athletes Who Never Slow Down to the Seal Beach Daily Local Talent bookstore page.

With delight, because I love to recommend a good book. And, this one is beautiful: filled with stunning photos and life-affirming stories of remarkable athletes — all over the age of 60. Masters of life in motion, they surprise me, inspire me, give me hope, make me want to strive.

And I’m proud to have The Wonder Years at Seal Beach Daily, because it is the work of my partner and SBD editor Donna Wares and my friend and former colleague, Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Rick Rickman. It’s been great be on the sidelines and see such a powerful and beautifully executed project come together.

For more than 20 years, Rick traveled the country meeting and creating intriguing photographs of “aging adventurers and amateur athletes.” Seeing them, you are guaranteed a shift in your ideas about aging, power and beauty. Donna brings us their stories in crisp, colorful and personal profiles. Reading The Wonder Years is a pleasant education in determination, grace, talent and style.

We meet Eve Fletcher, 81, (above) who’s been riding the waves at San Onofre since 1957. “I don’t think you can be too old to be stoked,” she says. And there are the stories of Dr. Granville Coggs, a Tuskeegee Airman who will be 84 in July, who became a track star in his seventies, and Sister Madonna Buder, a 78-year-old triathlete who people call the Iron Nun. And, along with the stories of other athletes, we get a taste of the action and intensity of the National Senior Games through a gallery of unexpected, poignant, sometimes astonishing and even funny athlete photos.

Olympic gold medalist Peggy Fleming writes in the foreword to The Wonder Years:

When we get older, does that mean we have to give up on that euphoric feeling of empowerment we find through sports and exercise? Are we expected to lose the passion for what we’ve alsways loved? The answer is most obviously: No Way. Not on your life! We’ll never stop because it is part of our identity, our mind, and our spirit.

And, it’s the spirit that you’re left with when you close this big book with its 100 color photographs. And, it’s the athlete’s indomitable spirit that will bring you back again.

Read an excerpt from The Wonder Years at CaliforniaAuthors.com, the West Coast literary website produced by Donna and me. (Another reason to be proud! CaliforniaAuthors celebrates its seventh anniversary this week!)

Click here to buy The Wonder Years.

From the L.A. Now Blog: Two Huntington Beach men men were killed and another seriously injured at about 1 a.m. Saturday when their inflatable boat hit the Gilbert Drive Bridge over Shelter Channel at high speed. Read more at latimes.com.

More coverage: Investigators suspect alcohol was involved in Saturday’s accident. Orange County Register.

Monday update: Register follow up story.

It is amazing: In the last few months, Kim and Steve Masoner’s Save Our Beach has brought thousands of volunteers to clean First Street beach, still, the beach is always in need of cleaning. There is a never-ending stream of trash flowing down the San Gabriel River and, sadly, from beach visitors who leave their garbage behind when they head home.

Save Our Beach counters with a seemingly unending stream of volunteers. This morning, hundreds of vols fanned out across the beach to collect waste and there was lots to pick up — especially at the waterline near and on the jetty. The cleanup goes on until 2 p.m. and they can use all the help they can get.

Among the groups on the beach today: ADP of San Dimas, New Apostolic Church Youth Group from Anaheim, Los Alamitos/Rossmoor Boy Scouts Pack 657 and the Los Alamitos YMCA Adventure Guides. Above: Four of the hundreds of volunteers working on the beach today, comb the sand for pieces of Styrofoam.

Also this morning, the River Break was supplying waves, and surfers walked right past the Orange County Health Department bacteria warning signs for a chance to enjoy the long rides that can be had there. The health department has warned of elevated bacteria levels at the mouth of the San Gabriel River and 300 yards south. Get updates at ocbeachinfo.com. Below: Watermen at the River Break, a walk on the water, Health Department posting.

Volunteers from the Seal Beach Animal Care Center are at the Long Beach Marketplace today showing off some very sweet cats. Finola, a fluffy Maine Coon-mix, is seen above cuddling with volunteer Nancy Eugenio. Finola came to the shelter after being found in the parking lot outside Mahe restaurant.

Stop by the Marketplace near the courtyard fountain to meet Finola, Frisky (left) and friends. The adoption event continues until 2 p.m. The Marketplace is at PCH and Second Street.

As part of Long Beach’s bid to become more bike-friendly, the city has created “sharrow” bike-sharing lanes on Second Street in Belmont Shore.

The lanes include a 6-foot-wide green stripe that indicates cyclists have the right to ride in the middle of the lane — along with auto traffic.

Biking the green-striped sharrows is a unique cycling experience. Salt Lake City is only other American city to have the colored lanes, according to the city’s Mobility Coordinator Charles Gandy. See how sharrows work from a cyclist’s point of view in this cool video from Long Beach’s “Eco-Friendly Bicycling Photographer,” Russ Rocca:

Learn more about Long Beach’s ongoing cycling projects and celebrate the grand opening of the sharrows at an event today. Join BikeLongBeach.org and the Belmont Shore Business Association for a ceremony at 10 am at Polly’s Gourmet Coffee House, near 2nd Street and Livingston Drive. Read a FAQ about sharrows here [.pdf]

During the past few days, low-flying beige helicopters have been buzzing over Seal Beach’s Old Town and Hill neighborhoods. Have you seen them?

One SBD reader messaged that she never saw a helicopter, but felt it pass over her home: “The vibration was huge and almost knocked things off the wall.”

Turns out the night flights are part of joint military training exercises currently underway across the greater Los Angeles area.

“Yes this is a classified training being conducted for military intelligence and will be continuing for another week to two,” says Laura Herzog, spokeswoman for the Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos.

The Los Angeles Times says Blackhawk helicopters also have been cruising LA City Hall and other downtown landmarks as part of drills to familiarize military crews with urban settings and prepare them for assignments overseas.

You can read more about the exercises at the LAPD blog and at LAist.

The Los Alamitos Unified School District has named an educator from Torrance to replace retiring Los Al High Principal Kelly Godfrey. From the school’s website:

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Grant Litfin as the new Principal at Los Alamitos High School. Dr. Litfin is a proven educational leader who supports the four A’s – academics, athletics, the arts, and activities. Dr. Litfin has served in the Torrance Unified School District as a teacher, assistant principal and principal. During his tenure at Torrance Unified School District, Litfin completed a doctoral degree in educational leadership from the University of Southern California. Dr. Litfin will begin at Los Alamitos High School on July 1, 2009.

Visit Litfin’s profile at LinkedIn.

More school news: The district is accepting new inter-district permit requests for the 2009-2010 school year to fill a limited number of spaces with students from nearby communities. The open enrollment period is June 26 – July 10. Details.

In Jeff Collins’ report on the latest DataQuick real estate statistics: Seal Beach is one of 13 OC zip codes with home price gains in May — with a median selling price of $730,000, up 16.2 percent from May of 2008. Sales are also up: 17 homes sold in the 22 business days ending June 4; up 54.5 percent over last year.

In Los Alamitos, the median price is down 18.2 percent from May 2008 to $640,250. Fourteen homes were sold in May 2009, down 17.6 percent from 2008.

Read more on the OC stats at the Register’s Lansner on Real Estate blog.