Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks will offer locals a hands-on chance to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake by leading a hike deep into the heart of the Forest of Nisene Marks State Park, to the epicenter of the Loma Prieta earthquake, on Oct. 18. The guided hike will take participants off the beaten-track to locations where evidence of the 1906 and 1989 earthquakes can be seen. The event is a fundraiser for Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks. Visit ThatsMyPark.org for more information. (Or see page 28.)
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Out of the Pages of Comics
With so many super-hero movies dominating the silver screen this past decade it can be easy to forget that comic books have a lot more to offer than just a bunch of shredded up, scantily clad men and women running around beating on each other. I'd even argue that the idea of comic books as a genre unto itself is more than misleading as a comic book can be ANY genre it chooses. Westerns, Horror, Romance, you name it. This also applies to cinematic adaptations with Whiteout and The Surrogates currently in theaters being two perfect examples.
With that in mind I thought it might be fun to compile a top five list (because come on, who doesn't love lists?) of movies that you may or may not know originally found their way into the world through the pages of a comic book.
The Ticker
Local Advocate Awarded
Kathleen Johnson, executive director of Santa Cruz's Advocacy, Inc., has been awarded the Howard Hinds Memorial Award by the National Citizen's Coalition for Nursing Home Reform (NCCNHR) for her advocacy for nursing home residents.
Johnson served as coordinator for the Long Term Care Ombudsman, one of Advocacy, Inc.'s programs, for over 11 years before becoming the non-profit agency's executive director. NCCNHR president Norma Harris said Johnson was honored for "Remarkable dedication to preserving the dignity and rights of residents needing long term care and leadership which has made Advocacy, Inc. one of California's most exceptional Ombudsman programs."
Gov. Swarzenegger recently cut all funds for local Ombudsmen from the state budget.
Johnson will be receiving the award at NCCNHR's national convention on Oct. 25, in Washington, D.C..
Johnson served as coordinator for the Long Term Care Ombudsman, one of Advocacy, Inc.'s programs, for over 11 years before becoming the non-profit agency's executive director. NCCNHR president Norma Harris said Johnson was honored for "Remarkable dedication to preserving the dignity and rights of residents needing long term care and leadership which has made Advocacy, Inc. one of California's most exceptional Ombudsman programs."
Gov. Swarzenegger recently cut all funds for local Ombudsmen from the state budget.
Johnson will be receiving the award at NCCNHR's national convention on Oct. 25, in Washington, D.C..
The Ticker
It’s Domestic Violence Awareness Month
October has long been the national month to focus on preventing domestic violence, but it takes on new meaning in California this year because of state budget cuts. In this summer’s budget revise, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger axed all funding for domestic violence support services (totaling $20.4 million). 823: The number of domestic violence calls to police in 2007 Santa Cruz County, according to the 2008 Community Assessment Project.
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More than Meets the Eye
The Partridge twins prove powerful role models
Despite the packed schedule that comes with being in demand, or perhaps in order to give thanks for the associated good fortune, Sierra and Hailey Partridge generously donate their time to numerous charities. To watch the twins execute exquisite carves off the lip of an overhead wave or see them smiling sweetly from their window ads at the O’Neill Surf Shop on 41st Avenue in Capitola, you wouldn’t know that these local surfers-turned-models were born with cataracts. Nonetheless, it quickly became apparent, in speaking with them, how very profoundly this condition has shaped the lives and philosophies of these young women.
The Ticker
A Wider Highway 1 in Santa Cruz
The plan to widen Highway 1 in Santa Cruz between Morrissey Boulevard and Soquel Avenue overcame one of its challenges recently when planners completed the necessary environmental analysis for the project.
The analysis, a 545 page review of the project, has been two years in the making and cites in depth the impact widening the highway would have on the citizens and environment of Santa Cruz. In the analysis, viable solutions have been proposed for all of the negative effects of the project.
By widening the highway transportation planners hope to alleviate some of the worst congestion in the county. The $22 million dollar project is currently scheduled to begin breaking ground in 2011 with a targeted completion time in 2013.
The Ticker
Pioneering Pest Control Method Turns 50
It has been 50 years since four University of California scientists revolutionized agriculture with a new approach to pest control known as “integrated pest management.” The UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources first published the groundbreaking research of Vernon Stern, Ray Smith, Robert van den Bosch, and Kenneth Hagen in Oct. 1959. Among the first to critique the rampant use of harsh pesticides such as DDT, these scientists advocated limited, targeted chemical controls to mitigate long-term ecosystem disruption and reduce dangers to farm workers.
Mind & Body
What am I doing? Is this job the one I want? Why do I do what I do? To be in control? For power and attention? Is my ego in the way?
As I read Eckhart Tolle’s, A New Earth, again, I find it a lot more interesting than the first time around. I’m paying a little more attention. He talks about recognizing who you are and not just reacting to culture and expectations. This takes a lot of work – work to separate these expectations and illusions from innate knowledge.
The physical aspect of yoga has helped me to feel the spot of that strength. Whenever I feel this, I find life to be smooth and even. Reactions seem less dramatic.
This morning, I needed a challenge. I yearned to feel the sweet spot, so I drove over the hill to Los Gatos to try Angie’s Power Flow. I’d heard about this class from another yogi. It did the trick: dripping sweat and long holds. Swooping over route 17, I am back at my computer doing what I do …or am I trying to impress you? This is my point! Help me to get closer to me.
yogasourcelosgatos.com/classes eckharttolle.com
WHAT TO DO
What am I doing? Is this job the one I want? Why do I do what I do? To be in control? For power and attention? Is my ego in the way? As I read Eckhart Tolle’s, A New Earth, again, I find it a lot more interesting than the first time around. I’m paying a little more attention. He talks about recognizing who you are and not just reacting to culture and expectations. This takes a lot of work – work to separate these expectations and illusions from innate knowledge.
The physical aspect of yoga has helped me to feel the spot of that strength. Whenever I feel this, I find life to be smooth and even. Reactions seem less dramatic.
This morning, I needed a challenge. I yearned to feel the sweet spot, so I drove over the hill to Los Gatos to try Angie’s Power Flow. I’d heard about this class from another yogi. It did the trick: dripping sweat and long holds. Swooping over route 17, I am back at my computer doing what I do …or am I trying to impress you? This is my point! Help me to get closer to me.
yogasourcelosgatos.com/classes eckharttolle.com
CultureBeat
On October 2nd, Fox Searchlight will release WHIP IT, featuring Ellen Page, Marcia Gay Harden, Kristin Wiig and Juliette Lewis. (Daniel Stern, utterer of a favorite movie line, “If hate were people, I’d be China,” makes the crossover to father figure, making me feel both old and comfortable somehow.) Although not a Mark Mothersbaugh bio-pic, as the title might imply, it is the much-anticipated directorial debut of Drew Barrymore. However, despite all of the glitter and fuss, the real star of the movie is…roller derby.
WHIP IT, based on the 2007 novel “Derby Girl” by Shauna Cross (aka Maggie Mayhem) formerly of the L.A. Derby Dolls, is a fictionalized account of experiences skating with the Texas Rollergirls, nicely wrapped in teen-vs-parent-angst-plus-rock-‘n-roll-love story. Got that?
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Roller Derby meets Hollywood
On October 2nd, Fox Searchlight will release WHIP IT, featuring Ellen Page, Marcia Gay Harden, Kristin Wiig and Juliette Lewis. (Daniel Stern, utterer of a favorite movie line, “If hate were people, I’d be China,” makes the crossover to father figure, making me feel both old and comfortable somehow.) Although not a Mark Mothersbaugh bio-pic, as the title might imply, it is the much-anticipated directorial debut of Drew Barrymore. However, despite all of the glitter and fuss, the real star of the movie is…roller derby. WHIP IT, based on the 2007 novel “Derby Girl” by Shauna Cross (aka Maggie Mayhem) formerly of the L.A. Derby Dolls, is a fictionalized account of experiences skating with the Texas Rollergirls, nicely wrapped in teen-vs-parent-angst-plus-rock-‘n-roll-love story. Got that?
CultureBeat
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The Art of Recycling Waves
Resin takes new shape in one local glasser’s hands
In surfing lexicon, the phrase “give a wave” is used on a rare occasion by nostalgic and well-intentioned old-timers who have reached a point of Zen-like surf satisfaction in their lives. Cynics may scoff: that just translates into “give me a wave.” But the more enlightened among us recognize the karmic value in letting the odd peak slide under their longboard to a stoked grom on the inside with an encouraging “Go!”
And while the act of giving a wave is ephemeral, one local surfboard glasser has found a unique way of making a more lasting statement.
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- From The Editor
- Free Angela
- Poetic Cellars
- The Pleasure of Süda
- What do you know about Monsanto?
- Santa Cruz Movie Times
- No Big Surprises
- The Gypsy
- Transoceana
- Cruzin’ for Inspiration
- Growing Berries Without Bromide
- Town Hall with Assemblymember Mark Stone
Free Angela
Political activist and UC Santa Cruz Professor Emerita Angela Davis commands the spotlight in a riveting new documentary. PLUS: UCSC’s Bettina Aptheker opens up about the political upheavals of the ’60s and ’70s—and today. Angela Davis is not a human being who can be easily summed up in several sentences or paragraphs—books maybe, but, even then, capturing the political activist, scholar and author in the most comprehensive light is downright complex. That’s because Davis is an undeniably unique political creature, one who should be seen and heard to be fully absorbed and downloaded. Which is what makes Free Angela and All Political Prisoners, the new documentary about Davis and the turbulent political upheavals she faced during the late-1960s and ’70s, so inviting. In it, filmmaker Shola Lynch marks the 40th anniversary of Davis’ acquittal on charges of murder, kidnapping and conspiracy with a historical vérité style of filmmaking to illuminate a side of Davis few may have seen (or can recall), and captures the events that thrust the woman into one of the most fascinating orbits of notoriety and political intrigue of the 20th century.
No Big Surprises
The highly anticipated draft Environmental Impact Report for desal is finally out. Will it change anything? When scwd2, the group pursuing the proposed joint desalination plant for the Santa Cruz Water Department and Soquel Creek Water District, set up a booth at the Santa Cruz Earth Day festival in 2012, its reception was less than warm. Signature gathering for Measure P, the “right to vote” on desal ballot measure, was in full swing, as were tensions over the controversial project, which would produce up to 2.5 million gallons per day of desalinated water and cost an estimated $100 million. What were representatives of an energy-intensive desal plant doing among the recycling and conservation booths? That was the attitude Melanie Mow Schumacher, public outreach coordinator for scwd2 (pronounced “squid squared”), remembers sensing.
The Maya-Ixil Move Forward
Local nonprofit works to educate and create opportunity for indigenous communities in Guatemala In an isolated region of the Guatemala mountains called Ixil, the indigenous Maya population was devastated by a civil war between the government and leftist guerrilla factions that spanned 1960 to 1996. During that 36-year war, the Guatemalan military eradicated entire Mayan communities. In what amounted to genocide, soldiers burned Mayan farmlands and homes, raped and tortured the people, and scattered families. By the end of the war, 200,000 Mayans had been killed, 7,000 of whom were Maya-Ixil.
Public Thinking
Watsonville teens host TEDx event Santa Cruz County is no stranger to the TED brand. TED—which stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design—talks have come to the area through independently organized events 10 times since 2011. This month, the gathering returns to the county with a new twist, thanks to the Watsonville Youth City Council. TEDxYouth@Watsonville, which will take place Sunday, May 19 at the Henry J. Mello Center for the Performing Arts in Watsonville, will feature only speakers younger than 19 years old and will traverse topics from racial stereotypes and renewable energy to traditional Mexican dance.
Transoceana
Danny Moriarty’s musical influences have been known to impact his life beyond his local rock band, Transoceana. “I went through two periods,” confesses the singer, guitarist and songwriter. “I borrowed Bono’s mullet look from the ’80s for a while, and then I dressed like I was from the ’70s and had big hair like Jimmy Page.” Bono and Page are also symbolic of Transoceana’s evolution as a band during their three years together.
Cruzin’ for Inspiration
Former resident pays homage to Santa Cruz with locally shot thesis film When he left Santa Cruz for the University of Southern California’s graduate film program in 2010, Christopher Guerrero had completed the film major at UC Santa Cruz in 2008 and worked on campus in the film and digital media department. It wasn’t until he headed south, that Guerrero began to reminisce about the coastal town. “It was really really hard when I moved to L.A., to acclimate and find friends,” he says, adding that—counter to the philosophical, conversational culture of Santa Cruz—he found nowhere in his new town where he could simply sit and talk about life with someone. “I didn’t really realize why I love [Santa Cruz] so much until it was gone.”
Beck to the Future
In celebration of Beck’s solo acoustic show at The Rio, GT explores Song Reader, the alternative rock icon’s most ambitious interactive art piece yet. Here’s an odd little paradox of the digital revolution: The more sophisticated our technology gets, the more our musical milieu begins to resemble that of a bygone era, when song ideas were passed around from musician to musician, perpetually taking on new twists. Dozens of different YouTube users might try their hand at setting somebody’s rant about cats or double rainbows to music, or you might hear the Belgian musician Gotye turning the many and varied covers of his song “Somebody That I Used to Know” into a virtual orchestra (see below).
Growing Berries Without Bromide
Researchers test a new alternative to a controversial chemical The scarecrows perched in Santa Cruz strawberry fields do little to scare away the birds, much less the insects and fungi harbored in the soil. Everything likes to eat strawberries, which makes growing them a risky business. This predicament led UC Santa Cruz professor Carol Shennan to take an unconventional approach to pest management. Nine years ago, the fatal plant disease Verticillium wilt was wiping out strawberry plants at the university farm. Chemicals hardly phase the pathogen, and Shennan saw little improvement with crop rotation, which is typically used to treat infested fields. A visiting plant pathologist from the Netherlands recommended a little-known organic technique called anaerobic soil disinfestation, and, with so few other options, Shennan decided to give it a try.
Uniting All That Has Been Separated
Legal Battles Drag On
More than a year after the 75 River St. occupation, four defendants remain embroiled in ongoing case More than a year and a half since a group occupied the former Wells Fargo building on River Street in an act of protest, felony charges linger on for four of the original defendants and a trial may be imminent. Gabriella Ripley-Phipps, Brent Adams, Cameron Laurendeau and Franklin Alcantara were scheduled to begin trial May 13 in connection with the late 2011 protest. That trial now has been pushed back to September due to scheduling conflicts. The four face a felony charge of vandalism and a misdemeanor for trespassing.
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The Pleasure of Süda
Süda is a happening place. As my friend Jan and I were enjoying dinner, every table in the restaurant filled up and nearly all the outdoor seating was occupied as well. Located in the Pleasure Point area, Süda is a magnet for just about everybody hanging out in that neck of the woods.
The Power of Conversation
Local author Cecile Andrews emphasizes importance of community engagement in newest book Cecile Andrews, author of the new book “Living Room Revolution: A Handbook for Conversation, Community and the Common Good,” probably wouldn’t get along too well with Larry David’s character from HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, known for hiding his face and avoiding communication with anyone he runs into on the street. Andrews is a longstanding part-time Santa Cruz (part-time Seattle) resident who says something that’s struck her about this town over the years is people's willingness to participate in a practice she’s dubbed the “Stop and Chat”—which is exactly what it sounds like.
What do you know about Monsanto?
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Best of Santa Cruz County
The 2013 Santa Cruz County Readers' Poll and Critics’ Picks It’s our biggest issue of the year, and in it, your votes—more than 6,500 of them—determined the winners of The Best of Santa Cruz County Readers’ Poll. New to the long list of local restaurants, shops and other notables that captured your interest: Best Beer Selection, Best Locally Owned Business, Best Customer Service and Best Marijuana Dispensary. In the meantime, many readers were ever so chatty online about potential new categories. Some of the suggestions that stood out: Best Teen Program and Best Web Design/Designer. But what about: Dog Park, Church, Hotel, Local Farm, Therapist (I second that!) or Sports Bar—not to be confused with Bra. Our favorite suggestion: Best Act of Kindness—one reader noted Café Gratitude and the free meals it offered to the Santa Cruz Police Department in the aftermath of recent crimes. Perhaps some of these can be woven into next year’s ballot, so stay tuned. In the meantime, enjoy the following pages and take note of our Critics’ Picks, too, beginning on page 91. A big thanks for voting—and for reading—and an even bigger congratulations to all of the winners. Enjoy. -Greg Archer, EditorBest of Santa Cruz County Readers’ Poll INDEX | Shops | Food & Drink | Arts & Entertainment | Health & Fitness | Professionals | The Rest |
Poetic Cellars
Poetic Cellars makes the most romantic wines. With a verse or two of beautiful poetry on every label, mostly poems of love and romance, this is the perfect wine to open up over dinner with your sweetheart. I particularly love winemaker Katy Lovell’s Syrah ($28) with its voluptuous velvety textures and dark fruit flavors.
The Gypsy
French-born jazz vocalist Cyrille Aimée lives for musical freedom and improvisation Cyrille Aimée is a musical gypsy. Her sound incorporates elements of Latin American, American, Brazilian and other styles of jazz, she has recorded albums as a duet with Diego Figueiredo, she currently performs with the Surreal (same pronunciation as her first name) Band, and she is working on a new album with yet another band. As it happens, Aimée can actually blame gypsies for her love of jazz. “I grew up in Samois-sur-Seine, which is a little town in France where Django Reinhardt used to live,” she says. “Every year they have the Django Festival in his honor, and so gypsies from all parts of Europe come and honor him and play guitar. I started hanging out with the gypsies and became obsessed with their music, their way of living, their freedom. What drew me to jazz music was the freedom of it, all the improvisation, and the fact that it’s a style of music that is constantly changing.”
May Day in the Alps
When my daughter returns to Santa Cruz from her new home in Los Angeles, she comments on how quiet it is here. It was even more so during a trip to Ben Lomond, when we set out for a sample of her second favorite macaroni and cheese. Sitting at the front of the Tyrolean Inn restaurant, the green tarp with plastic windows kept out the chill as well as the noise of an occasional passing car. A new draft beer celebrating the German spring, Maibok ($6) was refreshing, served in a hefty glass stein, but specialty cocktails are unique as well.
Exposed
David Cay Johnston’s new book explains how big companies rob us blind In his late teens David Cay Johnston started to ask questions. “Why do we have these guys in uniforms with guns driving around in cars all day?” “Why is the Santa Cruz County Courthouse being built in such an unusual shape?” He wrote an article, while still living in his hometown of Santa Cruz, proving that the off-kilter courthouse building, which officials had promised would save money, actually cost more than a conventional building.