🌱 SDG&E Bills Up📈+ Buzzed Babies? + Warning: Fentanyl +'Sniffspot'🐕

Hey, everybody! It's Bettyann Pernice, your host of the San Diego Daily — back in your inbox with what's happening in town today:

• SDG&E is raising your rates, again — when will it end?
• Babies buzzed on coffee? Physicians are warning parents.
• Former DEA agent educates kids on the dangers of fentanyl.
• Want to rent a dog park by the hour? Now, you can.

But first, today's weather:

Mostly sunny. 🌞 High: 87, Low: 64.

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Here are four of the top stories in San Diego today:

1. Get ready for a rate hike from SDG&E. The company plans to raise your rates about $23 per month on Jan. 1. They are predicting higher gas prices and higher power prices in 2023. SDG&E’s current prediction conflicts with the forecast they made back in May. Earlier this year, publicly-owned power companies said that SDG&E was artificially lowering energy prices. Barbara Boswell, CEO of Clean Energy Alliance, noted in August that energy costs were on the rise, not the opposite. Boswell stated: “This situation is temporary. We know SDG&E’s rates will be going up in 2023.” The price increases will show up on the bills of customers who still buy their energy from SDG&E. Right now, 65 percent of customers have moved to public power companies like Clean Energy Alliance or San Diego Community Power. (Voice of San Diego)
2. Babies buzzed on caffeine? Is it a new trend? Some San Diego parents are giving their kids, as young as 1 and 2 years old, coffee and other caffeinated drinks. Local doctors are alarmed. “I see more children coming in with more difficulty with sleeping, difficulty with anxiety, different with irritability with these caffeinated products,” said Willough Jenkins, M.D. Rady Children’s Hospital Behavioral Psychiatrist. “My colleagues in the emergency room, they see kids coming in with what we call tachycardia, rapid heart rate. Where their heart is going really fast and coming in not knowing what is going on, it's a caffeine overdose.” Jenkins wants parents to be aware of the risks. “Children are not little adults. The way that their body metabolizes and uses caffeine is different than for us,” said Jenkins. (CBS News 8)
3. Fentanyl has been declared a public health crisis here in San Diego County. According to county records, 12 students under 18 years old died from a fentanyl overdose last year. The San Marcos Unified School District wanted to get ahead of this tragedy. They invited former DEA special agent Rocky Herron to speak to more than 1,200 students Monday. “Rainbow fentanyl is a very scary development,” Herron said. “I try to make the kids aware of how scary it is to experiment with drugs today, and parents aware of it, and hopefully that causes the continuation of the conversation at home.” Fentanyl education and Narcan distribution in county schools is now mandatory. Although there have not been cases in the San Marcos Unified School District, Narcan is available, and staff have been trained on how to use it. (FOX 5 San Diego)
4. Not happy with the condition of your local dog park? Why not rent your own private dog park by the hour? Patterned like an Airbnb, a company called Sniffspot lets you rent your own private dog park by the hour. One is located in a three-acre setting in Ramona, where the company will rent you the private dog park for $17 an hour. The rental is transacted through Sniffspot. "Sometimes we just come out here, and it's more for me and not so much for the dog, because I will just sit under the shade there and read a book, or bring a lunch, and they will just roam and have fun, yeah, it's priceless," said Leslie Roos, who brings her dogs, Yogi and Nica, all the way from San Diego to run free... and there are other Sniffspot parks in the San Diego metro area. (CBS News 8)

Today in San Diego:

• Qi Gong: Recharging Body & Mind — Riford/La Jolla Branch Library. (9:30 a.m.)
• Preschool Storytime — Carmel Mountain Ranch Library. (10 a.m.)
• Mind/Body Fitness for Older Adults — San Carlos Branch Library. (10 a.m.)
• Grief Support — San Diego OASIS. (10:30 a.m.)
• Bilingual Storytime: Farsi (قصه گویی به دو زبان: فارسی) — Riford/La Jolla Branch Library. (10:30 a.m.)
• LEGO Preschool Storytime with Mr. Victor — Malcolm X Library and Performing Arts Center. (11 a.m.)

From my notebook:

• Donate your gently used items to help animals:🐾 "Do you have designer clothes, shoes, furniture or home goods that you no longer need? Well, we have the perfect solution for you to clear space at home AND support vulnerable animals in our community! Consign your items with My Sister's Closet." (San Diego Humane Society via Facebook)
• Explore the history of the Padres: ⚾ "This look back in time of the San Diego Padres is from 1936. What do you think this Padres squad would think of the Manny Machado led Padres of 2022? The photo is from our own photo archive and was taken in front of the bleachers at Lane Field in Downtown San Diego. This was the first year the Padres played in the Pacific Coast Minor League, which they played in from 1936 to 1968." (San Diego History Center via Facebook)
• Apply for a job with the school district: 🏫 "Our custodial services professionals make a difference every day! Join our team of custodians and start a meaningful career with great pay and benefits. Learn more and see all job openings: https://www.schooljobs.com/careers/sandi" (San Diego Unified School District via Facebook)
• 🧘 Yoga in a rain forest: "Join us inside the Dickinson Family Education Conservatory for a truly unique yoga experience. Surrounded by lush greenery, melt away your day with the calming atmosphere of a rainforest and a gentle yoga flow on Wednesday, October 19, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m." (San Diego Botanic Garden via Facebook)
• 🗳️ Vote early! "Now that mail ballots are starting to arrive, the Registrar of Voters office is encouraging voters to vote early." (San Diego County Library via Facebook)
• Have you seen those great murals around the city? "On to our next mural with @groundfloormurals! Any guesses where this one is located? 🤗" (Downtown San Diego Partnership via Facebook)

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You're all caught up for today. I'll be back in your inbox tomorrow with your next update!

— Bettyann Pernice

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming San Diego Daily? Contact me at sandiego@patch.com