If you're feeling flush enough this Fourth of July weekend to grill steaks instead of more budget-friendly hot dogs, Port Hueneme resident Douglas Johnson has three words for you: Save the bones.

A musician and former dental technician turned self-taught artist, Johnson strips, bleaches and then carves prime rib and other bones into everything from musical-note pins to hearts dangling off of earring wires. Trouble is, other members of Johnson's household have called for a moratorium on steak dinners.

"So, yes, I need help," said Johnson, who is in search of "rib bones of any kind, or anything larger" to carve. But no poultry or T-bones, please: The former are too small and the latter "have too much cartilage."

If you find yourself with a few bones to pick after the holiday weekend, send an e-mail to the address at the end of this column and I'll put you in touch with the artist.

SIGNS OF LIFE: There are signs — not just temporary banners — that Watermark and its rooftop lounge, W2O, are nearing completion after almost three years of painstaking renovations to the historic Groene Building in downtown Ventura.

Last week, workers attached two gleaming, 350-pound bronze signs to the sides of the brick structure at Main and Chestnut streets. Patterned after the plaster medallions that flank Norman Kennedy's murals inside the 1920-something building, each of the ornate signs features a blue "W" that will light up from inside.

Owner Mark Hartley said the restaurant is on schedule to serve appetizers during a gala marking the Ventura premiere of the Kevin Costner film "Swing Vote" on July 26. An open-to-the-public date will follow sometime in August.

Two doors away, Jimmy's Slice is serving what it calls "Ventura Style Pizza" in the made-over spot that once was home to a salon called The Head Shop (586 E. Main St.; 648-6133). Named for owner James Wright, who also has been linked to Sans Souci Cocktails around the corner, the pizzeria serves "Jimmy's Homemade Meatball Sandwich," Italian cherry cream sodas and a retro Wedge salad in addition to whole and by-the-slice pies. Hours are noon to midnight Mondays through Thursdays, noon to 3 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays and noon to 10 p.m. Sundays.

At Landmark 78 (211 E. Santa Clara St.; 643-3264), the "closed" sign sitting in the window is scheduled to flip to "open" at 5 p.m. Friday. That's when the pasta, steak and seafood restaurant will unveil what is described on an outgoing phone message as its "new menu" and "new decor."

Both may be inspired by the apparent joining of forces of Landmark 78 owners Jorge and Darleen Ramirez with the movers and shakers of CandleLight Kitchen and Bar in Simi Valley. Located in the hilltop once occupied by Dakota's, CandleLight puts the emphasis firmly on "Emotions" (aka drinks with names like Clarity and Euphoric) and the youthful nightclub scene (aided by such VIP spaces as The Pillow Room). Check the Web site at http://www.candlelightsimivalley.com.

Also in Ventura, a flurry of liquor license application signs tell us it's time to say "goodbye" to Yasmeen's Indian Cuisine and "hello" to Maharaja Cuisine of India (2437 E. Main St.; 64644), that Tailgate Bar & Grill is changing hands (4722 Telephone Road; 642-1803) and that the Pierpont neighborhood space once occupied by Juro-Cho Sushi has been earmarked for something called Spasso.

DOWN BY THE SEABRIDGE: The drywall hasn't gone up yet and already several spaces in Oxnard's new Seabridge Marina Center have liquor license notices taped to their doors. Suite 160, for example, appears destined to become a Me-n-Ed's Pizzeria. At the nearby Seabridge Marketplace at Victoria Avenue and Wooley Road, usual suspects Round Table Pizza and Blenders in the Grass have taken up residence along with Camino Real Fresh Mexican Grill and the newly opened Anaba Sushi. But the space that last July was trumpeted as the future home of the first Bear Rock Café in Southern California now has a Smokey's BBQ "coming soon" sign taped to a window that looks in on unfinished walls and concrete floors.

Also on the waterfront is the Channel Islands Harbor, where Moqueca Brazilian Cuisine is scheduled to move into the as-yet unfinished building at 3550 S. Harbor Blvd. And at Harbor Landing, a banner announces that The Lookout Bar & Grill will bring "a little British" to the area. But the old Port Royal space will be a restaurant no more: Menu display boxes next to the front door now contain signs announcing that it is the future "new home" of the VCMM, or Ventura County Maritime Museum.

FOR A GOOD CAUSE: For the Girls, a team of Ventura County moms and other women led by Jennifer Stehle, will raise money for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer by collecting tips during dinner service from 4 p.m. Sunday at La Dolce Vita in Oxnard. For reservations and information, call 486-6878. ... Tickets are now on sale for the 26th annual American Wine & Food Festival, presented by celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck and former wife Barbara Lazaroff as a benefit for the Los Angeles branches of Meals on Wheels. The festival will open with a Sept. 26 dinner at Red Seven at the Pacific Design Center ($150) and continue with a Sept. 27 gala on the Universal Studios backlot ($300). Call 310-574-3663 or click on http://www.awff.org.

IN REVIEW: For Rita Moran's thoughts on Shamsi's Deli and Breakfast House in Ventura, see Time Out in today's Star.

— E-mail Lisa McKinnon at lmckinnon@VenturaCountyStar.com.