Earth

Two very glamorous Orange County women, Pat Rypinski and Patricia Ann Marshall, both of Newport Beach, greeted the arriving crush Thursday evening on the patio fronting the new Bridge of Gardens at South Coast Plaza. Some 150 guests converged on the terrace in support of the Candlelight Concert, a major holiday fund-raiser benefiting the Orange County Performing Arts Center and presented by the Center's board of directors. The terrace was transformed from its stark contemporary landscape into a magical European topiary garden replete with living statues.

SANTA ANA — Jurors heard the first part of closing arguments Wednesday in the case against a woman accused of plotting the death of her boyfriend, a wealthy Newport Beach businessman. Nanette Packard-McNeal, 46, is accused of conspiring with her lover, Eric Naposki, a former NFL linebacker, to kill Bill McLaughlin, 55, in December 1994. She was dating McLaughlin while also seeing Naposki. She has pleaded not guilty. Naposki was found guilty of McLaughlin's murder in a separate trial over the summer.

Alex Coolman COSTA MESA -- The boa constrictor was writhing and the crocodile was grumbling, but 9-year-old Clara Ritger was fascinated by a parrot. That's because the snake and the crocodile were mechanical beasts -- part of the elaborate, theme-park decor at the Rainforest Cafe in South Coast Plaza. But the parrot was the genuine article. The bird was brought in for an "Earth Month 2000" event that the restaurant, a worldwide chain, had put together for children such as Clara.

Writer Cynthia Walker said she never forgot the reason she took on a difficult project in 1971. "I wanted to start something that I could pass on to my children and to my grandchildren," Cynthia Walker said as she looked at a couple dozen copies of the Barnacle, the former newspaper of Orange Coast College. From 1971 to 1972, Walker was the editor-in-chief of the weekly paper. Each Wednesday, the Barnacle reported on student government and campus life, but on April 21, 1971, she decided to dedicate an entire issue to a new holiday dedicated to celebrating the planet.

Visitors to Descanso Gardens can take a break from the heat and still enjoy nature's serene beauty. Boddy House's "World of Color," is a group exhibition of oil paintings, watercolor and ceramics on display through Sept. 22, that offers natures' splendor in a more visitor friendly environment. "As a therapist, I like to infuse my paintings with peace and harmony," said Trish Kertes, a marriage and family therapist whose oil paintings of open landscapes and water scenes help fill the gallery.

COSTA MESA — It wasn't until the artist Bigfoot described the mural he's making for Hurley's )( Space Gallery that his pieces revealed new meaning. "There are seven main guys, and they're all emerging from behind trees and stuff," he said. "The tallest character is blocking the road where a truck and a bulldozer are trying to get in. " Is he making an environmental statement? "Maybe," Bigfoot said, laughing it off. The mural, which he was working on during the interview, will debut at the )

Danette Goulet NEWPORT BEACH - A is not for Apple. A is for Acid rain. B is for not Boy, but rather Bioremediation. And C is for conservation, according to fifth-grade students at Harbor View Elementary School. The lesson came as three classes in three grade levels taught their peers at Harbor View about Earth Day on Friday morning. Earth Day, celebrated on April 22 in the United States, was first held in 1970. The concept for creating a special day dedicated to teaching people to take care of the earth was developed by former Sen. Gaylord Nelson.

Deirdre Newman Eric Halverson found two socks. Rokyt Dulac came across some beer bottles. Others from their Cub Scout troop discovered discarded records and rugs. The enthusiastic Cub Scouts picked up these sundry items at Fairview Park and plopped them into trash bags Saturday morning as part of the first Earth Day in the Park. Earth Day is celebrated around the world as a day to pay tribute to the environment. Fairview Park, more than 100 people showed up to lend helping hands to the clean-up effort and enjoy typical attractions like free train rides from the Orange County Model Engineers.

When Orange Coast College lifts the curtain on "A Patch of Earth" Wednesday, the West Coast premiere will spotlight an incident of genocide that may have been unnoticed by most local audiences. Playwright Kitty Felde's harrowing drama recounts the Srebrenica massacre, where up to 8,000 Muslim Bosnian males were executed by elements of the Serbian army. The play focuses on a young Bosnian Croat soldier who stands before the International Criminal Tribunal charged with "crimes against humanity."

Marisa O'Neil When it comes to the rainforest, don't be a grump. California Elementary School second- and third-graders turned Forrest Grump, not to be confused with Forrest Gump, from a mean-spirited litterbug into an environmental activist during a Thursday assembly. The students performed the musical "Forrest Grump" to highlight an appropriate message for Earth Day. "This [performance] was special because it's about saving the environment," writer and director Kathleen Chapman said.