It's Raining Pink Slips and Soccer Goals

1. Capistrano Unified School District has its back to the wall as it faces budget cuts, and in preparation of possible real job losses, it may send out 346 pink slips to teachers, counselors and nurses, though only 12 are in the latter group—not that it's any less distressing. Check out .

2. Local basketball teams didn't last long in the Southern Section playoffs, but the soccer teams definitely have some legs to stretch. Santa Margarita Catholic got another big game from Lauren Bohaboy—is there any game she doesn't have a big game?—to advance to the second round. Before the senior graduates, you ought to check her out in . Tesoro also , 1-0, over JSerra.

3. It's going to rain today. That's what everyone says. Take an umbrella, and be careful on the road. There could me more kids on the road because it's the Presidents Day weekend and school is out.

4. On this date in history, Feb. 18, several leaders in their field died: Michelangelo in 1564, J. Robert Oppenheimer in 1967, and Dale Earnhardt in 2001 in the last lap of the Daytona 500. In 1979, Richard Petty won that race after a last lap crash between the leaders that led to an infield brawl among drivers Donnie Allison and Cale Yarborough in the first live telecast of the race. In 1885, Mark Twain publshed The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In 1930, Pluto was discovered. Celebrate with a small party.

5. Celebrating a birthdays today are Cybill Shepherd (61), John Travolta (57), Vanna White (54), Matt Dillon (47) and Molly Ringwald (43), star of Sixteen Candles, which was directed by John Hughes (61). Others are Helen Gurley Brown (89), George Kennedy (86), Yoko Ono (78) and the late Jack Palance (1919).

For What it's Worth: It's National Cherry Month, and it's almost the end of National PTA Take Your Family to School Week (not that anyone will be there today). It's Perigean Spring Tides, when the moon is closest to the earth during the spring tide, and if that's too complicated, it's also Battery Day (the noun, not the verb).