Fantasy football keeps Montclair marriage strong

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MONTCLARION: Sept 27, 2012

If football is a religion, then my husband has racked up more church time than the Pope.

So what do you give a man like this on your 24th wedding anniversary? You acquiesce to a new endeavor and become co-owner of an ESPN Fantasy Football team.

Our marriage has never been stronger. Instead of long walks with girlfriends, I spend Sunday afternoons on the couch with my husband, screaming for our team — Teebow Steaks. We have a common goal, now — to squash our opponents and take home the cash prize at the end of the season. Continue reading →

Happy Wanderer: Northern California’s off-path wine crush hot spots

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CONTRACOSTATIMES.COM: September 27, 2012

Robert Louis Stevenson once described wine as “poetry in a bottle.” But the real music is made during crush, when the grape skins are broken to prepare them for wine production. Early autumn sees a steady flow of visitors to the vineyard-laced valleys of Napa and Sonoma. The tasting rooms are abuzz with the talk of tannins as wine lovers rush to find pairings for dishes such as braised short ribs and pumpkin soup.

Yet, not everyone loves a parade. If you’re looking for a more intimate experience, here are three off-the-grid wine regions that will help you avoid the rush to the crush.

Santa Cruz: Fourteen wineries make up a consortium called Surf City Vintners near Swift Street and Ingalls in Santa Cruz. The area has a funky warehouse feel, which just lends to the fun of going door-to-door to taste wine. The most recognized label is Bonny Doon Vineyard, a soulful operation that was nearly lost when disease decimated its vineyards in the mid-1990s. Today, Bonny Doon wines are a Santa Cruz favorite, coupled with a popular on-site café called Le Cigare Volant. Each table has its own private nook, where locally-grown foods are paired with the winery’s organic offerings.

Nearby, Marin Artukovich is having more fun than a vintner should have. The coffee-grower-turned-winemaker owns MJA Vineyards, where soft Hawaiian music plays as he pours tastings of several of his “girls” —

Rush to a Crush: Off-the-Radar Regions Alive With Great Wine at Harvest Time

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Courtesy of the Yolo County Visitors Bureau

OAKLAND/ALAMEDA MAGAZINES: Sept/Oct 2012

The wine blush becomes you. Yet everyone, it seems, is “crushing” on wine country this time of year. Luckily, there are plenty of off-the-radar regions where you can get away from the crowds during harvest. The lure, here, is wineries where you can talk tannins with vintners, taste for a nominal fee and — in some cases — even help crush the grapes by breaking their skins to prepare them for wine production.
Here are three emerging California destinations to explore: Continue reading →

Happy Wanderer: Big Sky Country big on its beers

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HILLS NEWSPAPERS: September 14, 2012

Autumn. Just the word gives me goose bumps. Autumn is chili and beer with a big square of cornbread. It’s pumpkin-braised short ribs and a peppery Zin. It’s oompah bands and Octoberfests and — did I mention the beer?

Few places are more serious about beer than Montana. Where we have our wine trails, they have a Brewery Trail — no small feat when you consider the state is 700 miles wide. Montana is also the No. 1 producer of barley, and more folks than ever are harvesting hops there — the flowery cones that grow on leafy green vines up to 20 feet tall.

 

Continue reading →

‘Cats’ a must-see at Oakland hills’ Woodminster

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MONTCLARION: Sept 14, 2012

My cat is a night owl. She slips out at dusk on our mild, moonlit eves and doesn’t return until dawn. Where she goes, nobody knows — until now.

Seeing the performance of “Cats” at the Woodminster Theater opened my eyes to her escapades. Cats of all stripes took the stage Sept. 7 for a marvelous moondance and prance. The performance was perfect for a summer musical under the stars at one of Oakland’s real treasures — the little theater in the redwoods. Continue reading →

Town Crier: ‘Adopt’ a planter, spruce up Montclair Village

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MONTCLARION: August 31, 2012

The stained glass caught my eye as I strolled by. It was throwing shards of light across the landscape. My family and I stopped to admire the work.

Not since the days when shopkeepers swept their sidewalks have I seen this kind of community pride. Gina Dominguez was gently embedding the colorful glass into a motif on the cement planter near Starbucks. The owner of Snapshot Mosaic (6202 La Salle Ave.) was on her knees, eyes darting back and forth between an artist’s rendering and her emerging masterpiece. Continue reading →

Community of Canyon trying to save post office

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MONTCLARION: August 17, 2012

Canyon — the whole town revolves around two buildings, the school and the post office, and the post office is slated for dramatic cuts in service and the elimination of its longtime postmaster (or in this case, postmistress).

You’d half-expect there to be a protest. After all, Canyon is known for its countercultural roots. Many of the folks moved to the nearby unincorporated community from Berkeley and had ties to the Vietnam War protests. But instead, the town is taking a different tack. They’re working within the system by pointing out the post office’s assets and historical importance. Continue reading →

Happy Wanderer: September in Santa Cruz

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HILLS NEWSPAPERS: August 17, 2012

I call it the $5 face-lift; but it’s really gravity and saltwater working to make you feel 10 years younger.

Since 1924, more than 59 million people have ridden the Giant Dipper at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.

It’s a classic wooden coaster that plasters a smile on your face at top speeds of 55 mph. Legendary columnist Herb Caen called it a “tooth-loosener” for its jarring twists and turns, but my favorite part of the ride is the view. As you climb the crest before the first drop, you see miles of scenic coastline dotted with palm trees and sailing ships. There’s nowhere like it on Earth. Continue reading →

Homeowner discovers “time capsule” in garage

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MONTCLARION: August 10, 2012

It was like finding a time capsule. When the Beaumont family started their remodel, last month, they discovered an old Montclair Village business directory on the wall of their Estates Drive garage. With the recent changes in town, including the retirements of the Sarber and Sullivan families, Bob Beaumont thought it would be fun to look back to 1978. Continue reading →