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Jul 30th
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FreshDirt

It's All Connected, Redux

It's All Connected, Redux

A common question asked of scientists is how the oil spill will affect life in the Gulf.
My sense is that it will effect directly or indirectly, severely or slightly every single form of life in the Gulf, for many years to come.  The air, the water, the sand, the mud, the microbes, the plankton, the marshgrass, the mangroves, the jellyfish, the oysters, the shrimp, the shorebirds, the turtles, the sharks, the redfish, the children, the fishermen, the chefs, the taxi drivers, the artists, the oil industry workers, the politicians. Every single bit and blob of life will be impacted.  Save a few oil-eating microbes, no life will change for the better.

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XrayVision

Comic Con 2010 Wrap Up!

Comic Con 2010 Wrap Up!

Or at least here are the top five things that I read about since I wasn't actually there:

5. Dexter: Season 5 Trailer - (Heads up, do NOT click on that link until you've seen the unbelievable finale to season 4 from last year) Michael C. Hall has already earned his status as one of the finest actors of this generation for his performance as David Fisher on HBO's masterful series Six Feet Under - but man, if he isn't close to outdoing himself on Dexter: Showtime's profoundly addictive series about a serial killer with a moral code who only pursues those who deserve to be murdered (aka other killers).The new season kicks off this September and the trailer unveiled offers a glimpse at yet another year full of the kind of high caliber storytelling the show's become known for.

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Staycation

Get Immobile at RiverPointe

Get Immobile at RiverPointe

How one Napa stay is giving mobile homes a good name
A visit to a region of world-class wine and indulgence doesn’t have to mean stuffy hotels with cramped elevators and fancy rooms packed as tightly as a patron’s overly chic set of Versace luggage. Enter the RiverPointe Napa Valley. Transforming small mobile homes into quaint cottage-style getaways with private wooden decks nestled along the Napa River, RiverPointe has taken a unique approach to pampered living. And it works.

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Obsessive Beauty

Cashmere Craving

Cashmere CravingYou know that saying, “You can never be too rich or too thin?” I would like to take this opportunity to tack on the addendum, “or have too many cashmere sweaters.” My personal obsession with cashmere began six years ago. In preparation for my first trip to dank and dreary London, I purchased a pair of cashmere-lined gloves to protect my digits from the elements. Little did I know how the spun-soft, wooly feeling against my skin would prove to be my hidden, secret addiction for years to come.
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KarmaStyle

Howling to Hunt

Howling to Hunt

Karma (this blog’s namesake), is starting to lose it with this moving thing.  She’s howling and meowing to get out … to see this wild-like animal go through these stages of struggle has been an alerting glimpse into behavior.

It began with the collar.  After living in the country for ten years, she roamed, howled, and hunted with a familiar freedom and nothing around her neck.  In town now, she need protection from the racing traffic, and I must protect her very life. When her collar was fastened, her gait changed to a low slink, like a weight upon her back.  Adjustment is coming, I know, but I can only imagine what it must be like to feel shackled, trapped.  What happens to people when they lose their freedom to roam, to travel, and to do what we want to do?  It must change the psyche and strip one of a certain creativity.  As an innately creative person, when a “block” exists, I can feel the collar and the helplessness creep in.  My mind goes in circles and the creativity cannot unfold.  It becomes stale and boring.  This collar as metaphor is coming off, I can feel it.  The block is lifting and the adjustment is turning to a blast of original ideas.  I’m ready to soar.  I hope Karma will soon feel the same way.

Obsessive Beauty

AHAVA, Baby

AHAVA, Baby

If you’re an avid reader of Obsessive Beauty, you’ve already heard about the make up and skin care godsend in Santa Cruz called Beauty 360—a sensational emporium packed with lotions and potions galore. My fellow blogger Christa Martin and I have been testing out the sumptuous products. In fact, our only complaint may well be that there are so many choices that it is difficult to know where to begin. That’s why we’ve decided to road test a smattering of brands and products, virtual test rats as you will, to save you the wrinkles you may have gotten had you raised your eyebrows trying to make such decisions.

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Inspired CA

Sacramento’s 2nd Saturday Art Walk

Sacramento’s 2nd Saturday Art Walk

This past weekend I arrived in Sacramento just in time to enjoy Sacramento’s 2nd Saturday Art Walk.  The event was started by artist Michael Himovitz over 20 years ago as a way to bring art lovers together once a month.  Michael passed away 15 years ago, but his legacy lives on in a monthly event that now draws several thousand people each month.  The streets were lined with musicians, artists and vendors everywhere I went.  By nightfall there were thousands of people in the streets (which the city closes off) all with that celebratory air about them.

I met with Lucas Himovitz, Michael’s son, to get a tour of the various activities that take place each month.  We went to four or five galleries, all of which were packed with people and ironically, by 2nd Saturday standards gallery owners thought it was a slow night.  As the organizer of Santa Cruz’ s First Friday Art Tour I was amazed at how many people were out enjoying both the local art and the street party atmosphere.  I met several local bands that had set up in parking lots and allies who have been playing the same spot for years and making a livelihood. Art sales were brisk and everyone was well behaved, even with a minor police presence.  Makes you wonder. This week I will be heading to Napa, Sonoma and Mendicino.  See you on the road.

 
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Page 1 of 16

More Good Times

 

Santa Cruz Area Events

BLUE Ocean Film Festival      

 

Music Calendar

GT Weekly Club Grid PDF >

 

Memory Matters

Twenty years after the fact, a geologist and a historian say we must not forget “Loma Prieta was a humbling experience for most of us. a reminder of our diminutive stature in the grand scheme of things. I think that remembering events like that is a perfect antidote for our collective hubris; it keeps us honest.” —Sandy Lydon, ‘History Dude’  

 

Ocean Advocacy Goes Federal

You don’t need to tell a Santa Cruzan how important the ocean is. From our economy to our natural beauty to our hard-fought-formoniker as “Surf City,” Santa Cruz is defined by its relationship to the ocean as much as Colorado is to its Rockies. So when President Barack Obama signed an Executive Order on July 19 creating a national ocean policy for the first time in history, it was like hearing about a big break for an old friend who’s been going through a tough time lately.

 

Rearranging Rape

“As of next school year, Rape Prevention Education as you know it will no longer exist.” This is what UC Santa Cruz administrators told Rape Prevention educator Gillian Greensite last month, explaining a decision to “reorganize” the program. Greensite was told that, starting in the 2010/2011 school year, Rape Prevention Education would no longer be a separate effort, but would be absorbed into the Student Health Outreach and Promotion program (SHOP), and that she would no longer be a rape educator, but a sexual health educator through SHOP. She promptly retired.

 

Overall, how would you rank the local club scene? What could be improved?

I'd say it's average. I like a lot of dub step and electronic music. Most of the hip-hop and K-DON and stuff—I really get over those kind of songs. More DJ's and what not would be nice. Nesta LoniSanta Cruz | Prep Chef

 

Perfect Palm

The Glaum family is adored for their locally fresh cage-free eggs. For the past year, these eggs have been served in breakfast burritos and sandwiches at the Glaums’ new deli where Piggie Market has nurtured Redwood Village neighbors for 25 years. The central, thatched-roof, hexagonal open kitchen mimics the unusual shape of the extensively renovated building. Textured stone flooring winds around the kitchen, leading to an extensive wine selection. From the wall of refrigerators you can still pick up your milk and eggs, as well as beer, numerous brands of beverages, and locally made Massimo gelato.

 

From the Editor

Club much? Sometimes, it’s a good thing, and if you’ve moseyed to any of the local nightclubs in Santa Cruz County over the years, you more than likely have been greeted by a powerful presence—a bouncer. This week, writer J.D. Ramey takes readers behind the scenes and uncovers, well, let’s say the more embraceable side of some of our area’s favorite greeters and, at times, protectors. These guys are an enigmatic bunch.

 

Nordic Forge

“Man is wolf to man.” Not only is this a quote from the Roman playwright Plautus, one of the earliest known Latin authors, but it is also the title of the earliest known demo recording from local metal slayers Nordic Forge. “[The title track] is a song Jimi wrote almost all at once,” explains the vocalist, Rueben. “Then, I wrote the lyrics after listening to the hymn ‘O Rubor Sanguinis’ by Saint Hildegard Von Bingen.” Determined not to be just another scrawled name in the metal world, the guys in Nordic Forge draw their creativity from classics such as Shakespeare (“Throne of Blood”) and saintly hymns, to an array of bands from the early days of thrash metal and the extremes in Scandinavia. Mario, the act’s guitarist, cites atmospheric and melodic groups like Dissection, At the Gates, and Darkthrone as influences. “Always Darkthrone,” he emphasizes. Only known by their first names, the band of intellectual malcontents consists of Reuben on flesh-curling vocals, brothers Mario and Jimi decimating the guitar scales, Ben on thunderous bass, and Andrew manning the rapid-firing drums.

 

Place Your Vote

Author, musician, sometime-politician and all-around American raconteur, Kinky Friedman doesn’t mince words when it comes to pontificating on just about any subject near and dear to his heart. His takes on life are often delivered in a humorous, satirical manner, but the 65-year-old tackles a lot of serious issues and themes, much like the manner in which Mark Twain presented his opinions and views to readers. Still, Friedman is clearly on a level all his own today.

 

Storrs Winery Chardonnay 2008

One of the most popular wines round these parts is Storrs Chardonnay. It’s probably one of the most-requested wines at any given restaurant. And the reason is simple – it’s an excellent wine. It turns out that many judges at this year’s California State Fair think so, too. They named the Storrs 2008 Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay as the Best Wine of the Region. As the top wine of the greater Bay Area, this wine also garnered a Best Chardonnay of Region distinction, and a gold medal. When you think of all the wines submitted in this competition, this is truly an impressive achievement.

 

Meet the Bouncers

Wherever there’s a crowd of people drinking, there’s bound to be a jackass or two. Much as we might wish we could just hit the “Eject” button and send the rabble-rousers flying, it takes a living, breathing human to get rid of that unwanted guest who’s had one too many. Which, of course, is where bouncers come in. The doorman is a figure who appears throughout history and throughout nature: The Old Testament makes mention of “gatekeepers” whose duty was to keep things copasetic at the Levitical Temple, and even certain species of ants have their own peacekeepers whose duty is to chuck out unwelcome parties. Clearly, this is an essential service, but few people have the stones for it, let alone the physical power.

 

Bad Faith

Searing tragedy of intolerance reduced to melodrama in 'Agora' | There's a fascinating, heartbreaking, infuriating true story at the center of Agora, a sumptuous drama of ancient Alexandria from Spanish filmmaker Alejandro Amenábar. But even as the female scholar protagonist lectures her students that every system in the universe must revolve around a center or it will collapse, Amenábar clutters up his narrative with so much bombast and portent, it's own center finally cannot hold.
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