Plus Letters to Good Times

Last weekend, I attended the annual benefit for Life Lab’s Science Program and was impressed with everything that actually goes on at The Farm at UC Santa Cruz. Now celebrating 31 years, this lush garden is really an Eden for the community. Many things stand out, but you can’t help but be impressed with what Life Lab does for youth in this county. There’s something about working in the Earth, with the Earth and for the Earth that feeds the soul, and I suspect that the kids who’ve experienced some part of this program have gone on to appreciate life, people, living in a new way. Catch my on-the-scene interviews at GTv on our website, goodtimessantacruz.com. In the meantime, kudos to chef Jon Dickinson and his mighty crew for serving up some of the freshest, most delicious foods I’ve tasted all year. Dickinson, who impresses at Cafe Cruz, donates all of his time for the event.

Plus Letters to Good Times
Controversy ... Or Not?
Rearranging Rape
Labor Day is over, but for some reason I have this wild urge to go on maternity leave. Do you realize how much one can give birth to in a year’s time? I actually meant to write that as “how much I give birth to” but I didn’t. But actually, I just did, so here we are. Do we realize how much we create during the course of a year’s time—really? It’s something that has been on my mind recently as we move through our ever-hectic lives. And  I happily reflected on that idea with greater detail as I read this week’s cover story on a curious local dubbed Master Umi. Some of you may know of Umi, especially if you caught the film Pirate Radio. Umi, an enlightened master who lives right here in the Santa Cruz Mountains, once went by the name Tom Lodge, the renegade DJ who, decades ago, caused a stir, mostly from the British government who weren’t too pleased with the man’s broadcasts on Radio Caroline, among other things. What’s interesting to note is the evolution of this unique soul—he’s now a Zen master and has just released a book called “The Shipped That Rocked the World.” GT writer Damon Orion captures Master Umi’s tale. Read on and learn more about how Umi’s past events led him to explore the fascinating nature of Zen.

Plus Letters to Good Times

When you grow up in a Polish household, food—God, sometimes a lot of it—is a major part of your upbringing. Stuffed cabbage, peirogis, Polish sausage, sauerkraut, beet soup, and special, fat, fluffy donuts you can’t find anywhere else but in your mother’s hot, steamy kitchen—all filled with tasty berry jam. Needless to say, my wonderful Polish  mother and I had to purchase my clothes in the “husky” section of the boy’s department at Sears. Still, being a foodie gave me keen senses—and adventurous taste buds—so it seemed absolutely fitting for me to attend  a rather unconventional local food festival last week, one I never would have imagined ever attending: The Young Farmers and Ranchers Annual Testicle Festival.