Page 326 | Good Times

Watsonville Strawberry Festival Returns to Three Days

Local News

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August 1, 2022

Watsonville Strawberry Festival Returns to Three Days

The Watsonville Strawberry Festival is returning to a three-day event for the first time since 2019.

The popular event runs this Friday through Sunday. It will include food booths, many featuring strawberry-themed treats, a beer garden, live entertainment, pie-eating contests, artisan and commercial vendors, nonprofit booths, a carnival and more.

“We are very excited to be able to bring this festival back to its full glory,” says Jessica Beebe, recreation supervisor for the city’s Parks & Community Services department. “Last year, it was wonderful to pull together a modified, scaled-down version of the event after the Covid hiatus. But it’s wonderful to bring it back to what the community has come to expect of it.”

The festival, which highlights the region’s most famous crop while raising money and awareness for local nonprofits, was first held in 1994. Initially called the Watsonville Strawberry Dessert Festival, it was meant to raise funds to help the city recover from the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake.

After two years of pandemic-related struggles, organizers hope the festival can once again act as a healing experience.

“We hope people will come together and feel that sense of really moving forward after what we’ve all been through,” Beebe says. “It’s great, just watching the people’s smiling faces, doing whatever they enjoy at the festival.”

The event kicks off on Friday, Aug. 5, with carnival rides 5-10pm and a performance by the Chicano All-Stars in Watsonville Plaza. The entire festival, with booths, pie eating contests and events, happens Saturday 11am-8pm and Sunday 11am-7pm.

Every year, the festival features a new event poster with strawberry-themed artwork. This year, local artist Priscilla Martinez was chosen to create the piece, which depicts a heart-shaped basket of strawberries with sunflowers and monarch butterflies, and a background showing an agriculture field in the Pajaro Valley.

“I was trying to go for ‘the heart of Watsonville,’” Martinez says. “I wanted to make that the main focus—our agriculture, the landscape. And with the sunflowers, I was going for a summer-like theme.”

It is the eighth year Martinez has been selected to create the Strawberry Festival poster. She says she loves how the event brings people together every year.

“It’s something I’ve gone to every year since I was a kid,” she says. “It’s a family-friendly event, where everyone can come and enjoy themselves.”

Though the event does tend to attract out-of-town visitors to Watsonville Plaza each year, it is also a time for locals to celebrate their hometown, Beebe says.

“Watsonville takes a lot of pride in their community,” she says. “With the festival, we highlight our history and culture.”

Martinez adds, “I hope it’s a good turnout, especially after Covid. I’m just glad things are once again starting to pick up.”

Watsonville Strawberry Festival, Friday, Aug. 5, 5-10pm, Saturday, Aug. 6, 11am-8pm and Sunday, Aug. 7, 11am-7pm. Watsonville Plaza, 358 Main St., Watsonville. cityofwatsonville.org/1117/Watsonville-Strawberry-Festival.

Watsonville Playwright’s New Work Explores Family, Culture

Stage

Johanna Miller

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July 29, 2022

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Watsonville Playwright’s New Work Explores Family, Culture

Writer, director and actor Steve “Spike” Wong remembers when he realized he wanted to tell stories.

He was about 5 years old and was riding the Jungle Cruise attraction at Disneyland with his parents. He managed, he says, to convince them that the animatronic hippopotamus on the ride was real.

“My parents never really shut down my imagination,” Wong says. “They just let me go with it.”

Wong was born in Watsonville in 1952 after his father’s parents had landed there as agricultural laborers and cannery workers. He graduated from Watsonville High School in 1970 before attending Cal State Chico as part of their honors English program. Eventually, he returned to his hometown to be a teacher at Watsonville High.

“When I was growing up in Watsonville, it was really small,” he says. “It was under 10,000 people. Pretty much every family was at least aware of other family groups. For me, that helped ground me into my community. Having those connections is why coming back to teach at Watsonville High made complete sense.”

Throughout his life, Wong has written, directed and acted in numerous plays, including one performed off-Broadway in New York. His latest work, White Sky, Falling Dragon, will open at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts in just a few weeks.

The story is inspired by Wong’s father, Captain Ernest Wong, following his struggles as he moves back to Watsonville after World War II. The young Cantonese man faces emotional challenges after a tragedy occurs during his last war mission. His cultural and familial obligations continually clash with his search to settle in America.

“The play takes factual reality from my father’s experience and then creates a sort of fictional storyline on top of that,” Wong explains. “The biggest surprise when I was writing this—I always thought, from the very beginning, that the hero of the story would be my grandfather. But it was my grandmother. When I was small, my mother was ill, and I spent time with my grandparents in a house on Lincoln Street. I think deep down, her strength has always been inside me. The way that has come out in this play—it’s powerful.”

Wong was a freshman at Chico when he wrote his first play. But it wasn’t until he was 55, when he visited China for the first time, he said, that things shifted.

“When I got to China, suddenly, everything that I’d kind of set aside in my life … all of that just sort of started speaking to me,” Wong says. “When I came back, I started writing more things about what I lost, growing up in a country that still today has racism against Asians.”

In 2016 Wong wrote Dragon Skin, which premiered at the 2018 Eight Tens @ 8 play festival in Santa Cruz. The one-person show covered 50 years of his life in just 10 minutes and subsequently played at the Marsh Theater in San Francisco.

At the premiere of Dragon Skin, Wong realized his work’s impact.

“On opening night during the reception, this strong, swarthy older guy walks up to me, puts his hand out to shake, and says, ‘Let me tell you something: I am Greek, and that play was my story,’” Wong says. “I realized you can write from your cultural background as truthfully as you can, and it becomes a universal, human story.”

The idea for White Sky, Falling Dragon came to Wong in 2017, when he was abroad in Barcelona, Spain.

“I suddenly heard my dad’s voice, walking into a home and greeting my grandmother,” he says. “I got my phone out and typed a line of dialogue. Suddenly, all this stuff started coming up.”

Wong strived to answer the question: What was it like for his father when he came home from the war?

“He’d been a target of racism,” he says. “The Chinese Exclusion Act was still in place when the war was going on. 20,000 Chinese signed up to fight for a country that would not let even their relatives in. He was torn: ‘I’m Chinese, but I need to be American if I want to stay here.’”

Wong funded White Sky, Falling Dragon himself and set out to find the right set designers, producer and an all-Asian cast. The play features live music with Chinese instruments and visual effects.

*Captain Ernest Wong, USAAF, at 19 years old. —contributed photo*

“It’s so specific to Cantonese Chinese Americans, in a small town, I couldn’t turn it over to someone else,” he says. “I had no board [of directors]. I had to take a leap of faith and say, ‘OK, I can do this.’ Early on, people came to me wanting to work on this project. The play was attracting people. But it wasn’t me they were looking at; it was the story, the humanity, the power behind it.”

Wong has “never been more motivated” on a project.

“It’s not just me,” he says. “It’s all my ancestors who helped get one person to this country. That person started everything. I am the result of what they dreamed about and worked for. In some essence, this play is all their doing. I’m just the vehicle.”

‘White Sky, Falling Dragon’ runs Aug. 26-27 and Sept. 1-4 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. A complimentary reception will be held on the opening night following the performance. Tickets are available at mvcpa.com. More info at soaringdragon.net.

Things to Do: July 27-Aug. 2

GT Staff

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July 27, 2022

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ARTS AND MUSIC

4TO PRESTIGIO Self-described as an “alternative regional Mexican band from Salinas and Watsonville,” 4to Prestigio delivers an array of corridos, cumbias, zapateados, rancheros and more. All boardwalk shows are on the Colonnade Stage, located on the beachside of Neptune’s Kingdom—the dance area is in front of the stage. Free. Thursday, July 28, 8:30pm. The Colonnade at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, 400 Beach St., Santa Cruz. (Free Movie at the Beach presents Iron Man on Friday, July 29, 9pm). beachboardwalk.com.

RISING APPALACHIA WITH TWO RUNNER Rising Appalachia’s folk interpretation of James Blake’s “I Need a Forest Fire” glows with restrained harmonies and subtle fingerpicking. The tune represents the heart and soul of the folk duo, led by sisters Leah Song and Chloe Smith. It also showcases their versatility: The hard-traveling twosome’s foundation is Appalachian roots but expands to include worldwide musical influences. The multi-instrumentalists continue to grow their international fanbase through music and outspoken activism. $35 plus fees. Friday, July 29, 8pm. Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. riotheatre.com.

BRAHMS AND DOHNÁNYI CHAMBER MUSIC CONCERT An international group of musicians will perform a chamber program featuring the work of two master composers. Netherlands Radio Philharmonic concertmaster violinist Lis Perry will be joined by Netherlands Chamber Orchestra Richard Wolfe, principal violist and cellist Adelle-Akiko Kearns on Dohnányi’s “Serenade.” Additionally, Santa Cruz native, pianist Nicholas Harris, will join the string trio on Brahms’ “Piano Quartet No. 3.” $25. Friday, July 29, 8pm. Peace United Church, 900 High St., Santa Cruz. tinyurl.com/brahmssc.

‘CANDIDE!’ With a score from the unrivaled Leonard Bernstein and lyrical contributions from the legendary Stephen Sondheim, Hugh Wheeler’s book is transformed into a fast-paced emotional roller-coaster of a musical. Things can’t get worse for Candide (the bastard cousin of Baron Thunder-Ten-Tonck): He’s expelled from his home, forced into the Bulgarian army, brought before the Spanish Inquisition, swindled out of his fortune, shipwrecked on a desert island—and separated from his true love, Cunegonde. (Read story). $25-60. Friday, July 29 and Saturday, July 30, 7:30pm; Sunday, July 31, 2pm (runs through Sunday, Aug. 14). Cabrillo College’s Crocker Theater, 6500 Soquel Drive, Aptos. cabrillostage.universitytickets.com.

THE ALTONS WITH FLACO EL JANDRO AND DJ ARCHIVE 65 What the hell is Southeast L.A. retro indie-soul music? It’s the Altons. It’s also the sound that made an instant fan of Daptone Records co-founder Gabe Roth, who was turned on to the quartet just as he was starting Penrose Records, a Daptone subsidiary focused on the SoCal soul scene. The Altons’ Penrose debut “When You Go (That’s When You’ll Know)” was KCRW’s “Today’s Top Tune.” Meanwhile, the outfit’s recent single “Tangled Up in You” was featured on the esteemed Soulection Radio. $20/$25 plus fees. Saturday, July 30, 9pm. Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. moesalley.com.

RUTHIE FOSTER WITH GARY BLACKBURN It’s not difficult to understand how Texas native Ruthie Foster has racked up so many accolades—the 2019 U.S. Artist Fellowship Award, seven Blues Music Awards and three Austin Music Awards—throughout her career. The musician’s roots-soaked fusion of folk, blues, gospel and rock has evolved into a unique style she can call her own. Foster’s most “big band” recent record, Live at the Paramount, scored a Grammy nod for “Best Contemporary Blues Album”—it was her fourth overall nomination. A Grammy win is definitely in her future. $24 plus fees. Saturday, July 30, 8pm. Felton Music Hall, 6275 Hwy. 9, Felton. feltonmusichall.com.

LES CLAYPOOL’S BASTARD JAZZ The tireless Primus frontman—one of the greatest electric bassists in the world—is a perpetual fountain of creativity. When Les Claypool appears to be sitting still, his mind works at a high velocity, spewing out idea after idea. One of those ideas that came to fruition is Bastard Jazz, featuring Claypool, Galactic drummer Stanton Moore and longtime Claypool collaborators multi-instrumentalist Mike Dillon and saxophonist Skerik. No rules, no concepts, no constraints—just a mountain of top-notch musical talent unfolding live before the audience’s eyes. (Read story). $40/$50 plus fees. Sunday, July 31, 8pm. Masks required. Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. folkyeah.com.

NRBQ WITH THE MINUS 5 For more than five decades, the New Rhythm and Blues Quartet—known as NRBQ—have been flying just below the mainstream radar as several bands, including Widespread Panic, Yo La Tengo and Los Lobos, have covered their songs. Meanwhile, their fanbase has included everyone from Jimi Hendrix to Steve Earle. Additionally, the group served as the “unofficial house band” for The Simpsons (seasons 10-12) and NRBQ band members played zombies in George Romero’s cult classic Day of the Dead. Most recently, their 2021 release Dragnet has garnered significant critical acclaim. $25/$30. Sunday, July 31, 7pm. Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. moesalley.com.

‘THE CZU FIRE IN THEIR OWN WORDS: FIGHTING FIRES, LOSING HOMES AND REBUILDING COMMUNITY’ Director Peter Gelblum uses actors to relay the words of the people who fought the August 2020 fires and those who lost their homes and possessions, illuminating the shared experiences—the evacuations, battling with insurance companies and getting local support. The film also uses family photographs donated by several local photographers, including Shmuel Thaler and Steve Kuehl. Mountain Community Theater produced the movie as a gift to the community. Free (all donations will be split between local volunteer fire departments and the Fire Recovery Fund of the Community Foundation). Monday, Aug. 1, 7:30pm. CineLux, 226 Mount Hermon Road, Scotts Valley. pb*******@***il.com.

COMMUNITY

UCSC FARMSTAND You will find many delicious organic vegetables, fruit and herbs—there are beautiful flowers, too. Everything is grown at the UCSC Farm & Garden. Open twice weekly through November 2022. Free. Wednesday, July 27, noon-5pm and Friday, July 29, 11am-3pm. Cowell Ranch Hay Barn, 94 Ranch View Road, Santa Cruz. calendar.ucsc.edu.

SECOND ANNUAL TRUE LOVE CHRISTIAN MUSIC AND ART FESTIVAL Christian music, art and local nonprofits will come together for a free all-day event where “the church goes to the people, rather than expecting [people] to come to us.” Participants include pastors, elders, lay leaders and musicians from Santa Cruz Bible Church, the Point-A Jesus Community, Coastlands, Green Valley Christian, Vintage Faith, Calvary Chapel Capitola, St. Joseph, Calvary Chapel Aptos, Regeneration, Twin Lakes and Watsonville Nazarene. Free. Saturday, July 30, 10am-7pm. Aptos Village Park, 100 Aptos Creek Road, Aptos. truelovechristian.com.

GROUPS

TODDLER STORYTIME The weekly bilingual program—in-person—includes sing-alongs, nursery rhymes and books that foster early literacy. Free. Wednesday, July 27, 11:30am-12:30pm. Freedom Branch Library (Meeting Room), 2021 Freedom Blvd., Watsonville. cityofwatsonville.org.

OUTDOORS

LICK OBSERVATORY PUBLIC EVENING TOUR The “behind-the-scenes” walking tour—attendees should prepare to walk a mile (also, the tour lasts 4-6 hours)—culminates in a special up-close visit to the dome of the immense three-meter Shane Telescope, the largest telescope on the mountain. Also, learn about the history of the world’s first permanently occupied mountain top observatory, the eccentric California innovator James Lick and the current science conducted at the observatory. $75. Thursday, July 28 and Sunday, July 31, 6:30pm. Lick Observatory, 7281 Mount Hamilton Road, Santa Cruz. lickobservatory.org.

Email upcoming events to Adam Joseph at least two weeks beforehand.

Or, submit events HERE.

Scott Ordway’s ‘The End of Rain’ Makes World Premiere at Cabrillo Festival

Christina Waters

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July 27, 2022

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Scott Ordway’s ‘The End of Rain’ Makes World Premiere at Cabrillo Festival

Composer Scott Ordway is a 21st-century auteur. His eclectic creations involve music, video, performative installations, poetry and photography. All of this handmade rigor dissolves boundaries while lifting symphonic music into a realm that has no name, other than perhaps “exquisite.”

Growing up in Santa Cruz, Ordway recalls wanting to be a rock critic after years of exploring the indie music scene on the porch of Cafe Pergolesi and at the Catalyst. Hearing an orchestra for the first time in Seattle, he realized it had the power to echo the punk intensity he’d grown up with.

“It blew me away. I was a guitarist, and had played in any number of interesting basements in Santa Cruz,” he says with a chuckle in a phone interview last month. “After hearing the orchestra, all of a sudden I became a music major. Learned piano, bought a cello, I threw myself into it.”

Next he studied composition at the University of Oregon, and discovered the grand symphonic works of Gustav Mahler. “I was inspired by Mahler’s 19th-century model of composing, where you had to be able to play the instruments, conduct and perform, as well as compose. It was not the intellectual or technical model of the 20th-century composition.” Growing up with mountains, oceans and natural splendor within a “secular California context,” Ordway was drawn to Mahler’s combining of natural forces with spirituality. “I was drawn to the way that Mahler answered the big questions,” he says.

Now an assistant professor of music at Rutgers University, Ordway finds endless opportunities for creative work. In one of his classes, students investigate the acoustics of natural landscapes. These foraged sounds inspired his latest compositions; In the Kingdom of Bells began with a single sound.

“I’m intrigued by the change of scale, seeing what might happen,” he says. “[From] one bell, at what point of multiplying the number of bells does the sound become miraculous? Ten bells? One hundred bells? All the bells in the world?”

He favors exploring orchestral depth, rather than theme and variation. Citing the example of the ocean, he says, “It’s water all the way down, but the material can have different meaning, at different depths. Even though it’s all still water.”

Ordway’s The End of Rain, receiving its world premiere this weekend at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, is part anthropology, part documentary, with installation, projected images and docu-poetic text sung by festival artists Roomful of Teeth. The effect will come close to 21st century opera, in the Wagnerian sense of the complete work of art.

“The summer of 2020, two days before the lightning storm [that sparked the CZU Fire], my parents were driving across the country to come see their newest grandchild,” says Ordway. “They continued east, but were glued to the images we were seeing of where the fire was, how it moved. My parents felt helpless, having left without being prepared to possibly lose their home. It really hit home emotionally for me. I had wanted to create during the pandemic, but everything was closed down. So I started making films, video and soundtracks, working back and forth from images, to then creating sound, and then back again to the images. It was fascinating to do both simultaneously. The two media wrapped themselves around each other. I came back to Santa Cruz in the winter of 2020, and drove all over taking pictures to see the impact of the fire in those places so familiar to me.”

Ordway invited people in the area to respond to his prompts about their experience during the wildfires. The composer took the accumulated 80,000 words and looked for themes. He extracted words as a structure for symphony, and to help illuminate the images he’d collected. The photographs were chosen as responses to words.

“I’d known about Roomful of Teeth for years—they’re a phenomenon in contemporary music—and at this point I pitched the piece to Cabrillo,” he says.

Once he had the go-ahead for a commissioned piece, he began working on the music. “The text grounded the piece,” says Ordway. “First and foremost, it was about the voices of the people who responded.”

He also put together a fine-art photography book for The End of Rain that collects 97 photographs, as well as the complete crowdsourced texts from those who talked about the impact of fire on their lives.

Ordway predicts that multi-media will continue to be part of his musical work going forward. “Images offer so much possibility to go deeper. In the last 10 years, the sense I have is more people are doing that. But that means that the bar’s going to get higher,” he says. “It’s not enough to simply have a position. You have to ask and answer a worthwhile question.”

“The End of Rain,” by Scott Ordway, a 40-minute multimedia work created for the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra and vocal ensemble Roomful of Teeth, has its world premiere Friday, July 29 at 8pm. cabrillomusic.org. The accompanying book is available at Bad Animal in Santa Cruz, and at scottordway.com.

Cabrillo Takes on Leonard Bernstein’s Challenging ‘Candide’

Johanna Miller

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July 27, 2022

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Cabrillo Takes on Leonard Bernstein’s Challenging ‘Candide’

Cabrillo Stage has returned in full-force this summer for a season of theatrical musicals.

After Covid canceled the 2020 season, the company moved to Cabrillo College’s outdoor amphitheater in 2021. But this summer, the company is once again holding shows inside the Crocker Theater.

A production of Grease ran from late June to July. Leonard Bernstein’s Candide opened July 22 and will run through Aug. 14, on weekends and select Thursdays.

Artistic Director John Nordgren said that Candide had been planned for 2020. They had already cast the production when things shut down.

“We had such a fine cast,” he says. “Amazing singers, lots of professionals involved. So we thought, let’s try it again. We offered everyone the same contract and invited them back.”

Based on the satirical, fast-paced 1759 novella by Voltaire about a sheltered title character who has his eyes opened to the realities of life on a series of misadventures around the world, Candide features music by Bernstein, with lyrics by Richard Wilbur and book by Hugh Wheeler.

This Voltaire adaptation was conceived in the 1950s by Lillian Hellman, one of the 20th century’s greatest playwrights (The Children’s Hour, The Little Foxes, etc.)—but it was Bernstein who convinced her to make it a musical. Hellman was reeling at the time, having been blacklisted in the McCarthy era after standing up to the House Committee on Unamerican Activities. Candide’s debut on Broadway in 1956 surely didn’t do much to raise her spirits—it was a critical and commercial flop. But as the “comic operetta” underwent a number of innovative revivals and revisions over the years, it came to be appreciated for its wit, and for Bernstein’s incredible music—some of the best of his entire career. Candide as performed now is far more faithful to Voltaire’s work than Hellman’s version was, and produced the Broadway standards “Glitter and Be Gay” and “The Best of All Possible Worlds.” Cabrillo’s production is directed by Gary John La Rosa, with musical director Cheryl Anderson.

Lavish sets, complex staging and operatic vocals make this show an ambitious one for Cabrillo Stage.

“Candide is one of the most difficult shows you could possibly do,” Nordgren says. “It’s also my favorite, my ‘bucket list’ show. It’s Cheryl’s favorite, too.”

Nordgren said the 2022 summer season is crucial for Cabrillo Stage’s future.

“Honestly, if we don’t do well this summer it’ll be difficult,” Nordgren says. “After our huge loss in 2020 … the college got us a grant, but we lost some after making a slight profit last year. So we’re a bit desperate again. We need about $300,000 just to go on.”

But everyone is remaining cautiously optimistic, he says.

“People are turning out to the theater again,” he says. “Everyone is over the moon excited, giving their all. They can’t wait to get back onstage.”

‘Candide’ runs through Aug. 14 at the Crocker Theater at Cabrillo College, 6500 Soquel Drive, Aptos. cabrillostage.com; 831-479-6154.

Letter to the Editor: The Real Story of Climate Change

Adam Joseph

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July 27, 2022

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Letter to the Editor: The Real Story of Climate Change

As someone who follows local and national news reports, I must tell you I am worried about the recent extreme heat and wildfires raging across the country. I feel for people who lose their lives and livelihoods to extreme weather, and I’m scared that it’s only a matter of time until it directly hits me and my community.

Seeing headlines in local news outlets covering these climate disasters made me realize that most news stories show no connection between them and their main cause: fossil fuels. This is dangerous, because many people will continue to refuse to see that longer, hotter and deadlier summers are caused and perpetuated by the disastrous coal, oil and gas projects—and the fossil fuel industry.

The science is clear—the longer we allow coal, oil and gas companies to dig and burn, the worse the impacts of the climate crisis will be. With every fraction of a degree of warming, we’ll see and suffer more extreme heat, droughts, floods, wildfires and hurricanes. But the fossil fuel industry continues to ignore these alerts and undermine our chances for a safer future, and CO2 emissions keep rising. We all know this is causing global heating, and resulting in extreme weather events, yet they keep digging, burning and profiting, with zero accountability.

Climate impacts—like the recent heatwaves and wildfires—disproportionately affect people and communities who are already marginalized and disadvantaged. People who did the least to cause the climate crisis suffer the worst from its impacts—they lose livelihoods, hope and worse: their lives—while oil companies continue to hit record profits. This is wrong on so many levels.

Local, regional and national media have an important role to play—and a moral obligation to tell the whole truth. It’s time to make one thing about extreme weather very clear: It’s not a “crisis” that just happens to us—it’s a crime, and the fossil fuel industry is to blame. And saying it once isn’t enough. Media has an important job to do to turn the tide of public opinion, and help the world avoid the worst of the climate impacts.

Please tell the real story about the climate crisis.

Virginia Anderson

Santa Cruz

RESPONSE: Virginia, our effort to cover climate change effectively is ongoing. I’d encourage you—and all our readers—to search the phrase “climate change” at goodtimes.sc to read the dozens of stories we’ve done on the subject, addressing everything from the county’s Climate Action Plan and youth activism to how climate change is affecting various aspects of our ecosystem. Many if not most of these stories address the issues you are talking about; for a recent examination, I’d recommend Erin Malsbury’s 2021 article “Has Covid-19 Changed Climate Activism for Good?” — Editor

These letters do not necessarily reflect the views of Good Times.To submit a letter to the editor of Good Times: Letters should be originals—not copies of letters sent to other publications. Please include your name and email address to help us verify your submission (email address will not be published). Please be brief. Letters may be edited for length, clarity and to correct factual inaccuracies known to us. Send letters to le*****@*******es.sc

Opinion: Tracking a Revived Restaurant and Bar Scene

Adam Joseph

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July 27, 2022

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Opinion: Tracking a Revived Restaurant and Bar Scene

EDITOR’S NOTE

Steve Palopoli editor good times santa cruz california

Though I’m thankful we were able to keep Santa Cruz Restaurant Week going through the first two years of the pandemic (Oct. 19-25 this year, mark your calendar!), it’s been a long time since we had a Food and Drink Issue covering the foodie and bar scene. Hopefully, our stories in this issue will not only whet your appetite, but also give you some hope for the dining and imbibing scene around here. One thing about the trends in that scene is they are sometimes circular in nature, which Christina Waters covers in her article about the revival of classic cocktails, and the interesting takes on retro drinks that can be found locally. She also writes about the opening of the new Vamonos, as Abbott Square continues to draw locals back (and sometimes gets pre-pandemic packed on weekend nights). Meanwhile, Liza Monroy reports on the push for plant-based meals at California schools, and what it means for us and our kids here in Santa Cruz County. Andrew Steingrube seeks out the flavors of Southeast Asia in Capitola, and—after a look at the biggest food, wine and beer events yet to come in 2022—offers something sweet for this issue’s dessert. Dig in!

STEVE PALOPOLI | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

ONLINE COMMENTS

Re: Empty Home Tax

The vacancy numbers of 9.5% stated by the Empty Home Tax are greatly exaggerated. There is no way one in 10 homes in the city is vacant. Local, more reliable data indicates maybe 1.2-2% vacancy at most. The EHT does not tax vacation homes or parcels of land. It won’t improve the housing situation one bit, but will likely cost the city taxpayers money every year. Ridiculous!

— Steve

Re: Measure F

The City has its head in the sand. Resident taxpayers sent a message and the city manager rather spectacularly misses it, and is nearly Orwellian in the process. (The defeat is really a win?) How sad for all of us.

— Jane Becker

PHOTO CONTEST WINNER

**BOATS AND BLOOM** A freshly opened sunflower next to the sidewalk at the north end of the harbor. Photograph by Mele Tukia.

Submit to ph****@*******es.sc. Include information (location, etc.) and your name. Photos may be cropped. Preferably, photos should be 4 inches by 4 inches and minimum 250dpi.

GOOD IDEA

E-BIKE TO WORK

Downtown Santa Cruz employees can now apply for up to $800 worth of e-bike rebates.The City of Santa Cruz is hoping to encourage more people to use bikes for transportation by offering two rebates for locals who enroll in the GO Santa Cruz program. There will be a $400 base rebate and an $800 income-qualified rebate for residents who commute on bikes downtown. Rebates are limited, so apply soon by filling out an application at: ec oact.org/ebike-rebate-application.

GOOD WORK

FEELING SCRAPPY

Santa Cruz residents will soon be separating food scraps from trash as the city rolls out its new Curbside Food Scrap Collection Program in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Starting in August, the city will distribute pails for residents to toss food scraps into, which the city will collect on the same day as trash/recycling pickups. The city will turn the food scraps into animal feed and, one day, into energy at the Wastewater Treatment Facility. Learn more at: cityofsantacruz.com/foodwaste.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“No amount of physical contact could match the healing powers of a well-made cocktail.”
— David Sedaris

Food and Drink: The Biggest Food and Drink Events Yet to Come in 2022

GT Staff

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July 26, 2022

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Food and Drink: The Biggest Food and Drink Events Yet to Come in 2022

Recurring

Midtown Fridays Santa Cruz

Come celebrate all the vibrancy of Midtown Santa Cruz at the Summer Block Party, happening every Friday through September. Free event with food, artists, live music and vendors. The Off the Lip Radio Show will be hosting a new band every week.

INFO: 1111 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. Free. bit.ly/3Ow4Gd8.

Sunday Funday

Visit the Chaminade Resort and Spa to enjoy some mimosas and a delicious brunch. Stay until sunset for wine and live music overlooking Santa Cruz. Regularly occurring every Sunday through early September. Brunch is available 7am-1:30pm. Live Music 5-8pm.

INFO: 1 Chaminade Lane, Santa Cruz. Free. chaminade.com.

West Cliff Food Truck Summer Series 2022

Just in time for summer, the Food Truck Summer Series is back for the fourth season. Come get some great food to take home. Join us at the West Cliff Lighthouse Parking Lot to enjoy a fabulous view and great food. There are lots of places to picnic close to the event itself.

INFO: In front of the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum, 701 West Cliff Dr., 4-8pm. Free. bit.ly/3b2OJ0A.

Sip, Savor and Sway

Come by Stockwell Cellars for a glass or bottle of wine on the patio while enjoying live music. In addition, food trucks will be on hand serving up everything from Scrumptious Fish and Chips to smoked meat sandwiches and salads. Live music from various local musicians, rotating every week.

INFO: 5:30-8:30pm. 1100 Fair Ave., Santa Cruz. Free. stockwellcellers.com/events.

Friday 8/5-Sunday 8/7

Watsonville Strawberry Festival

Watsonville’s premier festival features delicious treats made with locally grown strawberries, while supporting important local causes. Live entertainment and vendors will also be on hand. Organized in partnership with the Watsonville Farmers Market, this year’s festival will be held on Sunday, Aug. 8 from 11am-5pm at the City Plaza in Watsonville. Come for delicious treats made with locally grown strawberries. Live entertainment and vendors will also be on hand.

INFO: Friday 5pm-9pm, Saturday 11am-8pm, Sunday 11am-7pm. 350 Main St., Watsonville. Free. cityofwatsonville.org.

Saturday 8/13

Maine Lobster Drive-Thru Fundraiser

The Watsonville Rotary Foundation is supporting vulnerable Pajaro Valley youth with its Maine Lobster Feast. Reserved and ready to cook dinners are prepared by the New England Lobster Company. Dinner includes a 1 ¼ lb. lobster, shrimp, corn on the cob, sausage, artichoke, potatoes, garlic, sourdough baguette and, of course, your lobster bib, lobster cracker and placemat. Watsonville Rotary uses 100% of proceeds to support local nonprofits.

INFO: 2-4pm. 121 Martinelli St., Watsonville. $85. watsonvillerotary.com/events.

Saturday 8/20

Watsonville Wine, Beer & Art Walk

Stroll through historical downtown Watsonville while sampling local wine and craft beer. The walk features 22 wineries and breweries along with food and local artwork.

INFO: 1-5pm. 275 Main St., Watsonville. $40. bit.ly/3ouuU57.

Saturday 8/20-Sunday 8/21

Scotts Valley Art, Wine and Beer Festival

Scotts Valley Art, Wine and Beer Festival is back in a new venue for 2021 in Siltanen Community Park in Scotts Valley. The premier summer festival in the Santa Cruz Mountains, there is something fun for everyone—with food, over 100 local artists and award-winning wineries. The Cops ‘N Rodders Car Show will be on Saturday, and the popular Bring your Dog Day is Sunday with pet tricks, costume and look-alike contests.

INFO: Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday 10am-5pm. Siltanen Community Park, Scotts Valley. Free. svartfestival.com.

Saturday, 8/27

13th Annual Testicle Festival

Organized by the Agri-Culture organization, and in support of the Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers, the annual event returns for the 14th year. Serving up USDA-inspected bull testicles (aka Rocky Mountain Oysters, Cowboy Caviar, Prairie Oysters and so on), these are truly a delicacy of the American West. Dinner also includes chicken, salads, bread and dessert. Beer and wine. Silent auction, horseshoe contest and kids games.

INFO: 3-7pm. Estrada Deer Camp, 196 Hazel Dell Road, Watsonville. $60/Adults; $30/Children 5-12; Free/under 5. agri-culture.us.

Saturday 9/10-Sunday 9/11

38th Annual Capitola Art and Wine Festival

The Capitola Art and Wine Festival combines all of the best things—art, wine, music and food—in Capitola Village overlooking the stunning Monterey Bay. This year’s festival includes more than 150 fine artists and 22 Santa Cruz wineries.

INFO: Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday 10am-5pm. Capitola Village. Free. capitolaartandwine.com.

Wednesday 9/14-Sunday 9/18

Santa Cruz County Fair

Visit the Santa Cruz County Fair for five days of family-friendly fun. From funnel cakes and roller coasters to all-Alaskan pig races and turkey stampedes, everyone loves a good county fair.

INFO: Wednesday-Friday, noon-11pm, Saturday and Sunday, 10am-10pm. Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds, 2601 E. Lake Ave., Watsonville. santacruzcountyfair.com.

Saturday 9/17-Sunday 9/18

Santa Cruz Mountain Sol Festival

Three-day music festival in the beautiful Santa Cruz Mountains at Roaring Camp Meadows. A weekend of great music, community, craft beer and wine, camping and art. Beach Train Shuttle will be available. Artists include The String Cheese Incident, The Devil Makes Three, Katchafire, Jackie Greene and more. One day tickets are $115, and weekend tickets are $225. Youth discounts at $60 and $115.

INFO: 11am-7pm. 5401 Graham Hill Road, Felton. santacruzmountainsol.com.

Capitola Beach Festival

Saturday 9/24-Sunday 9/25

Capitola’s Annual Beach Festival will have something for everyone to enjoy. The community event will include a 3-Miler Fun Run hosted by the Wharf to Wharf, a Horseshoe Tournament, the Lighted Nautical Parade, food and drink, a Fishing Derby, a Sand Sculpture Contest, the Chalk Art Event, a Concert in Esplanade Park, Rowboat Races and more.

INFO: Capitola Village, Esplanade Park. Free. capitolabeachfestival.com.

Bonny Doon Art, Wine + Brew Festival

Saturday 9/24

Head into the Santa Cruz Mountains to enjoy the Bonny Doon Art, Wine + Brew Festival. The 19th annual festival features tastings of local wine and beer along with food trucks and local artist and craft vendors. Enjoy live music by Cuarteto Leon and participate in a silent auction.

INFO: Noon-5pm. 3675 Bonny Doon Road, Bonny Doon. $65. bonnydoonartandwinefestival.com.

Food and Drink: Plant-Based Meals Get a Boost in Santa Cruz Schools

Adam Joseph

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July 26, 2022

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Food and Drink: Plant-Based Meals Get a Boost in Santa Cruz Schools

In Santa Cruz, veganism is far from a fringey lifestyle choice. Local restaurant menus and grocery stores abound with options that make plant-based lifestyles simple. Shortly before speaking with Beth Love, Executive Director of the nonprofit Eat for the Earth, I’d been at the Boardwalk with my family, and I gushed to her about the vegan option I found: a Korean-inspired rice bowl with sweet and spicy tofu, edamame and kimchi. Delicious—and indicative of the direction our dietary choices can take.

And yet.

When my seven-year-old started at Westlake last year, I perused the “vegetarian” menu for school lunch: cheese pizza, grilled cheese. A tofu stir fry on Friday. We would have wanted to take advantage of the school lunch program, but given our opt-out of consuming dairy, I packed lunch instead.

Eat for the Earth engages in community outreach projects surrounding plant-based nutrition, for health benefits and to address the global climate emergency. Selected for Santa Cruz Gives last year, it has raised over $12,000 to help fund programs such as Community Rx, a diet, health and education program in partnership with local healthcare providers at Salud Para La Gente in Watsonville. Love wants to reach those who are “most marginalized when it comes to healthy nutrition information,” she says. The pathway to healthful nutrition beginning in childhood makes the school meals issue high-stakes.

This month, California became the first state to support plant-based meals in schools with a $700 million investment toward expanding options. In the bill approved by Gov. Newsom, $100 million will go to plant-based foods for schools, and $600 million to upgrade the infrastructure of school kitchens, and train and pay food service workers in preparing these meals.

It’s not just about veganism.

“The emphasis is on plant-based,” says Love, “but also sustainably produced foods, food from California and for students with religious and other restrictive diets. For so many families in our community who are packing lunches, it might be more economical to take advantage of the school lunch program, but they can’t. I don’t want to imply there aren’t plant-based options, but it should be a right for any student who wants to eat plant-based to be able to have comprehensive choices to meet their needs.”

My daughter is one of them. When I interviewed her briefly as she sat in the bathtub post-Junior Guards, she told me she didn’t take school lunches because “there was stuff in them made from animals and I didn’t like that.” She’d prefer her school to offer “salad and vegan cheeseburgers.” (Hey, we love a good Beyond Burger with a cashew-based cheddar slice!)

Love, who is on the forefront of ensuring my daughter’s lunch dreams become reality, has seen support: “[Second District Supervisor] Zach Friend introduced a motion to endorse AB 558,” she says. AB 558 provides state grants to school districts to increase plant-based offerings. “The board of supervisors endorsed the bill,” Love says. “When Friend made his comments at the board meeting where the measure was on the consent agenda, he specifically talked about Santa Cruz County having a history of wanting schools to have healthier food.”

What local school districts need to do is apply for funds, but in order to do so they need to know about the initiative in the first place. Love and Eat for the Earth advocate for Santa Cruz County’s children to reap the benefits of this funding. The organization seeks volunteers interested in working with local schools and “building relationships with the school districts,” she says. “Finding out who decision makers are and talking with them, supporting them to apply for some of this funding.”

Love hopes to see results in a similar vein as what a report by climate justice organization Friends of the Earth found in an analysis of a shift in the Oakland Unified School District. In “Shrinking the Carbon and Water Footprint of School Food: A Recipe for Combating Climate Change,” Friends of the Earth found that OUSD’s food carbon footprint declined 14% over two years after reducing purchases of animal products by 30%, resulting in $42,000 saved and a reduction in water use equivalent to filling 840,000 bathtubs.

“Part of our vision is that Santa Cruz County is a model of sustainable eating,” Love says. “Having sustainable plant-based foods in our schools fits that vision. Santa Cruz County is progressive, a wonderful place to live, with lots of access to natural beauty and good will. There’s no reason we can’t be a model of eating sustainably. We will take advantage of it locally.”

Love also emphasizes that nothing is being taken away, only more options given. “I have never heard any policy suggestion to legislate that people can’t have what they want,” she says.

The new legislation is about incentivizing choices that are healthier for human beings and more environmentally sustainable.

“I want to see policy makers and corporate leaders really see and acknowledge the dire need for human diets to change so we can continue to have a habitable world,” she says. “When measures like this are passed it gives me hope we are moving in that direction. What we need is for all leaders to make these policy changes to support this dietary shift.”

Food and Drink: A Vietnamese Take on Soup-and-Sandwich

Andrew Steingrube

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July 26, 2022

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Food and Drink: A Vietnamese Take on Soup-and-Sandwich

There’s just something about a good soup and sandwich combination that’s kind of … perfect. Maybe it’s all the wonderful flavors and ingredients that can be packed into both a bowl of liquid goodness and between two slices of bread, or perhaps it’s the perfectly contrasted textures of the two. Either way, the combo is hard to beat and can come in countless forms, from tomato soup with grilled cheese to clam chowder and a lobster roll to gumbo and a po’ boy.

But I was inspired to go the Vietnamese route with the idea at Asian Express, a somewhat hole-in-the-wall counter-service spot nestled between chain stores offering coffee, sandwiches, burritos and frozen yogurt on 41st Avenue in Capitola. Having been a customer for years, this time I decided to pair their Vietnamese chicken noodle soup (which I’ve had plenty of times) with a chicken banh mi sandwich and shrimp spring rolls (both of which I had never tried).

I walked in recently for a mid-afternoon late lunch and ordered before being directed to sit at a comfy and plush booth. The food was served with a friendly disposition and within about five minutes, which was impressive given that the place was bumping even though it was 3:30 on a Wednesday afternoon. All of the sudden, my table was full, and my empty stomach was ready.

The profuse amount of steam coming off the soup told me not to start there, so the spring rolls were the obvious first choice. They were large by spring roll standards, and rolled just right—neither too tight nor too loose. The wrap was just enough to hold everything together; had it been any more delicate, it wouldn’t have been there at all. The fresh veggies added a great crunch, with a note of mint singing through, and the cold noodles in the middle added another layer of texture and delicate flavor. The shrimp had a nice bit of seafood brininess and yet another textural pop. The peanut dipping sauce damn near stole the show, though—I could have drunk the stuff straight (ok, I did). It had a robust peanut flavor, with just a bit of that grainy texture for authenticity, along with a seductive undertone of sweetness that had notes of caramel and almost reminded me of liquified Reese’s Pieces.

With my soup still steaming, I decided to crush the sandwich next. When I bit into it, the long white hoagie roll’s crust crumbled perfectly before giving way to a really light and bready interior. The chicken had good char and was very savory, fitting perfectly into the sandwich both physically and flavor-wise. The veggies added freshness and crunch, including shredded and slightly pickled jicama and carrot, cucumber, cilantro and the perfect amount of jalapeño so as to be assertive but not aggressive. The sauce was just enough, an enjoyable kind of sweet and savory combination that reminded me of hoisin.

More than happy with the sandwich, and with my nose now enjoyably running from the jalapeño, I had a minor freak-out when the napkin dispenser at my table ran empty. But I weathered the emotional storm, composed myself and garnished my soup. The side accouterments all go perfectly as fresh elements to add: bean sprouts, jalapeño, cilantro, fresh lime and especially the Thai basil with delightful undertones of licorice. Using chopsticks and a spoon to mix everything together and sink all the garnishes, the aromas rose from the bowl and invited me to dive in.

The first taste was everything the smell had promised, and more. It was rich and loaded with chicken flavor, salty and savory yet simultaneously light and delicate. The chicken itself was all white meat, thin-sliced, tender and flavorful. The broth-cooked rice noodles were a great starch component for the soup, and were a pleasure to eat, as always, adding an oh-so delicate flavor. And yes, as is the true test of any good soup, at the end I tilted the bowl and drank every last drop. The whole meal was fantastic—prominently flavored, yet restrained and subtle in a way that is so signature of this cuisine. It’s easy to see why the flavors of Southeast Asia have long seduced both chefs and food lovers alike, and Asian Express does them right.

1955 41st Ave. #A2, Capitola, 831-476-9999; asianexpresscapitola.com.

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Recurring

Midtown Fridays Santa Cruz

Sunday Funday

West Cliff Food Truck Summer Series 2022

Sip, Savor and Sway

Friday 8/5-Sunday 8/7

Watsonville Strawberry Festival

Saturday 8/13

Maine Lobster Drive-Thru Fundraiser

Saturday 8/20

Watsonville Wine, Beer & Art Walk

Saturday 8/20-Sunday 8/21

Scotts Valley Art, Wine and Beer Festival

Saturday, 8/27

13th Annual Testicle Festival

Saturday 9/10-Sunday 9/11

38th Annual Capitola Art and Wine Festival

Wednesday 9/14-Sunday 9/18

Santa Cruz County Fair

Saturday 9/17-Sunday 9/18

Santa Cruz Mountain Sol Festival

Capitola Beach Festival

Saturday 9/24-Sunday 9/25

Bonny Doon Art, Wine + Brew Festival

Saturday 9/24