What a world!
We don’t have to remember to set our clocks, cause mostly, they do it themselves.
People all over have set up their own free libraries, sharing books with whomever walks by.
And we are so concerned with helping wildlife that we are willing to spend money building bridges for endangered cougars.
Our cover story by Richard Stockton is a tribute to the good things in the world at a time when confusion and transactionalism seem to be the major traits of a late capitalist economy.
But, yes, there is good.
Our Santa Cruz Gives issue, which we are working on and some have been working on all year, will raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for those in need. It comes out later this month.
And our cover story shows how compassionate we can still be in a world with too much violence, greed and fear.
Here’s Ahíga Snyder of Pathways for Wildlife talking about why we need to protect deer, bobcats, foxes and mountain lions from one of the most dangerous and well-traveled roads in the state:
“If you don’t move, you don’t survive,” he says of animals whose habitat is split by the road to Santa Cruz. “It’s true for people and it’s true for animals. They are driven to mate, to find food and water, and to find territory.”
Basically, animals must cross the highway to survive and it has cost $12 million for a tunnel that will save their lives. The movement to do so is so popular here that a conference about it at the Rio Theatre on Nov. 9 has sold out. That says a lot about the open hearts of our county and should provide some hope for all of us.
On other fronts, Bigfoot might use the tunnel too, if there really is a Bigfoot. Regardless, for two decades there has been a Bigfoot Museum outside Felton that is so wonderfully tacky, it’s a great symbol of our county, along with the Mystery Spot and the Grateful Dead museum.
Sadly, it’s shutting down, as you will read in Kristen McLaughlin’s article.
Speaking of wildlife, SpongeBob now sings in performances at Cabrillo Stage’s winter offering, SpongeBob: the Musical. Mathew Chipman tells us this is a can’t-miss family performance.
Dealing with stress doesn’t have to be all bad, says columnist Elizabeth Borelli, who offers important tips on one of the biggest challenges in modern life, dealing with post-election haze.
Music is a great way to relieve stress and new music challenges the brain, as well as offering comfort. Christina Waters highlights this week’s upcoming new music festival “Three’s Company,” which sounds like an antidote to what may be troubling times.
Thanks for reading.
Brad Kava | Editor
PHOTO CONTEST
EGRET BALLET Taken from the cliff that runs along Pleasure Point a few days ago. The egret had just taken flight a moment before this shot. Photograph by Paul Titangos
GOOD IDEA
Join Monterey Bay Economic Partnership (MBEP) for its annual State of the Region on Friday, Nov. 8 to explore key issues, trends, and innovations shaping our local economy. Monterey Bay Economic Partnership’s State of the Region will be at CSU Monterey Bay University Center, 4312 6th Ave., Seaside from 8am. to 5pm.
Speakers include Rachel Barker, Kate Gordon; Dilawar Syed, Patricia K. Poppe, Tahra Goraya, Zach Friend, Kristin Olsen-Cate, Tom White and Steven Packer, MD. Info: MBEP.biz.
GOOD WORK
A team including several UC Santa Cruz scientists has measured the behavioral responses of some of the most common marine mammals to military sonar. The most surprising finding was that these animals were sensitive to the sounds at much lower levels than previously predicted.
In a new study published on October 23 in the journal Royal Society Open Science, the international team sampled 34 dolphin groups, amounting to thousands of individuals, in experiments where simulated as well as operational military sonars were activated in carefully controlled conditions.
“These animals are clearly much more sensitive to noise exposure than we thought,” says UCSC researcher Brandon Southall.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“It’s strange how time can make a place shrink, make its strangeness ordinary.” –Veronica Roth.
