Lester Estate’s Celebration-Worthy Chardonnay

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Lester Estate’s Celebration-Worthy Chardonnay

Want to kick off 2020 with a bang? Then a drop or two of Lester’s Chardonnay should do the trick! This is fabulous wine—and it’s available at Deer Park Wine & Spirits in Aptos for $49.

It was a dream of the late Dan Lester and his wife Pat to grow the finest grapes possible, and with the help of expert viticulturist Prudy Foxx, they did just that. Those in the know give thanks that the Lester family is now making its own wine, and still growing premium grapes for other wineries. With five-star winemaker John Benedetti at the helm, this 2017 Lester Estate Chardonnay is a mouthful of lusciousness.

“Subtle aromas of star jasmine and mandarin oranges lead to an abundance of tropical fruit,” say the folks at Lester. And a touch of Meyer lemon adds a gorgeous palate to this beautiful wine.

Deer Park Ranch is home to Lester Estate Wines, a wondrous place to go wine tasting. Don’t miss their new Safari Wine Adventures around the property, which will start up again in the spring and are just delightful.

Lester Estate Wines, 2010 Pleasant Valley Rd., Aptos. 728-3793, lesterestatewines.com.

Opulence Indian Food

Walking around downtown Santa Cruz recently, I stopped in my tracks when I saw Indian food being served from the kiosk that used to house Penny Ice Creamery. I love Indian food. And as a Brit, I can attest to the fact that chicken tikka masala is now more popular in England than roast beef and Yorkshire pudding! 

Opulence owner Sunny Kavil was offering tastes of his mango lassi, and I got a samosa to go with it—both delicious! Kavil tells me that all his food is vegetarian, and he doesn’t use onions or garlic. All eight items on the menu are reasonably priced, the most expensive being the combo plate with three curries for $15. Mango lassis cost $2, and so do the samosas.

Opulence Indian Food, 1520 K2 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. 669-800-7428, opulenceindianfood.com.

The Birds and the Bees of Santa Cruz

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The Birds and the Bees of Santa Cruz

A few months ago, readers sent a second round of Santa Cruz-related science questions for students from UCSC’s Science Communication Program to investigate—here are their answers

Where will sea-level rise from climate change hit the hardest in Santa Cruz County, and how soon will we see the impacts?

It may be decades or centuries before tourists will be able to snorkel the Boardwalk. But long before then, we’ll see the effects of rising sea levels, when low-lying coastal areas temporarily flood during major storms. 

Locally, Capitola is “ground zero for climate impacts,” says coastal geologist Patrick Barnard of the U.S. Geological Survey. The city has endured significant storm flooding three times since 1978, but rising tides will make it even more vulnerable. Other at-risk areas include downtown Santa Cruz and Twin Lakes. Some of these stretches may face permanent inundation if climate change worsens.

The cliffs and bluffs that line much of our coastline are slowly wearing away, too. “The higher the sea level is, the more waves will hit those cliffs, and the more rapidly they’ll erode,” says geologist Gary Griggs of UCSC. Riprap armoring on the bases of coastal cliffs cannot stave off the Pacific’s relentless pounding. Already, Santa Cruz officials are considering a plan to relocate portions of West Cliff Drive and its pedestrian path further inland.  

When will the ocean invade? “No one’s going to be threatened tomorrow,” says Griggs. “But it could be 10, 20, 30 years before the water is in your living room, or the cliff edge is 5 feet away.” By 2050 or so, 7-13 inches of sea level rise—the current likeliest forecast—may double the frequency of flooding along California’s coast.

Such forecasts are imperfect, and perhaps we’ll reduce or even reverse carbon emissions. But there’s little chance the dangers of sea-level rise are being overstated, says Bernard. In fact, he says, “I think we’re going to find it’ll be quite a bit worse.”

 — Jesse Kathan

 

Are there species of birds in Santa Cruz County specially adapted to live only in redwood forests?

Our redwoods host a variety of birds, from little Oregon juncos to great horned owls. But one species in particular—the marbled murrelet—seeks out the upper canopy of old-growth forests to raise its young.

Marbled murrelets, robin-sized seabirds, live along the Pacific Coast from here to Alaska. They spend most days feeding on small fish close to shore. But in the summer, when their plumage changes from black and white to a speckled, “marbled” brown, they venture inland to mate and lay a single jade-green egg.

No one knew where these murrelets nested until 1974, when a tree trimmer in Big Basin Redwoods State Park found a single chick atop a wide branch 150 feet above the ground. The parents take turns watching the nest and flying back to sea for food. Their elusive habits pose a challenge to ecologists. “It’s a bird that’s really hard to know much about,” says Portia Halbert, senior environmental scientist for California State Parks.

By some estimates, only about 600 secretive individuals now live in the Santa Cruz area—earning the bird endangered status in 1992. Logging has destroyed much of the old forests they need for their nests, and their fishy meals could be harder to find at sea.

But park visitors create one of the greatest threats to marbled murrelets. Sloppy tourists leave food waste that attracts aggressive crows and Steller’s jays. Too often, these hungry scavengers turn their hunting eyes to murrelet eggs and chicks. In response, state park officials started a “Crumb Clean” campaign to educate visitors about storing food in lockers and disposing waste in secure bins.

To see our local marbled murrelets, says Halbert, go to Big Basin’s Redwood Meadow for spring and summer sunrises, especially in July. You might spot them circling high above for their morning “social hour,” or hear their piercing, keer-like call.

— Ariana Remmel

 

With bees in decline, how much impact would there be if 100 Santa Cruz households installed new hive boxes with honeybee colonies in them?

If homeowners managed all of their hives properly, this could be a good move. But planting flowers in your yard is a simpler, more surefire way to support local bees.

Honeybees and other pollinators help produce one-third of our food. Busy bees can’t perform this feat on an empty stomach. They feed on pollen and nectar from flowers, trees and crops to get the protein and carbohydrates they need. 

Urbanization in Santa Cruz County—and nationwide—has replaced flowery meadows with acres of pavement, while single-crop farms laced with pesticides can stress bees. Hungry, stressed bees are susceptible to parasites, such as the blood-sucking Varroa mite. As a result, U.S. beekeepers lost two out of every five hives last year, according to a startling survey by the Bee Informed Partnership.

Given this decline, starting your own honeybee hive may seem a noble hobby. Another sweet perk: A single hive can produce up to 100 pounds of honey a year.

But bee conservation researcher Hamutahl Cohen thinks the buzz around honeybees misses the larger point. “We actually have dozens of species of bees in Santa Cruz,” says Cohen, who earned her doctorate in environmental studies at UCSC and is now a postdoctoral scholar at UC Riverside. Beekeepers can always make more honeybees by inseminating the queen, Cohen says, but wild bees are key pollinators that can’t be replaced. Common wild bee species on the Central Coast include the yellow-faced bee, green sweat bee and valley carpenter bee.

Cohen’s research shows that, without proper cleaning, beehives can spread infections to wild species. Instead of starting a hive, she recommends planting clumps of flowers—including sunflowers, cosmos and daisies—to ensure that bees are well fed year-round. UC Berkeley’s Urban Bee Lab (helpabee.org) has online resources if you’re eager to get started.

— Jonathan Wosen

 

Why does Santa Cruz have such good air quality? Is it luck and geography, or does it result from smart environmental policy and our culture of environmental awareness? 

Let’s clear the air: Santa Cruz does boast some of the best air quality in the state. “We’re lucky that way,” says William Chevalier, supervising air monitoring specialist at the Monterey Bay Air Resources District. Ocean winds and a lack of heavy industry provide a breath of fresh air along our shores.

So why does the American Lung Association frequently give Santa Cruz County a failing grade for air quality? Chevalier calls it “a patchy situation.” While the coast enjoys the sea breeze effect, the San Lorenzo Valley is, as the district’s air pollution control officer Richard Stedman puts it, “cursed by geography.” Surrounding hills trap tiny particles from vehicle emissions and wood-burning stoves at ground level. 

The district offers an incentive program to encourage the valley’s residents to change out their old stoves for cleaner options. Locals also support other clean initiatives, like forest conservation and recycling, but they tend to resist proposals that could reduce pollution from cars and trucks, says Adam Millard-Ball, an urban planning expert at UCSC. 

“Where our environmental awareness falls apart is housing and transportation,” he says.

Replacing some parking spaces with protected bicycle lanes and bus lanes would cut down on emissions. Increasing affordable housing options downtown would also help, notes Millard-Ball. Opposition to new housing construction forces people to live farther out and spend more time driving.

Most of the time, though, poor air-quality days in Santa Cruz result from winds that carry smoke and smog from hundreds of miles away. For instance, the Camp Fire that destroyed Paradise in November 2018 shrouded all of northern California in smoke, including the Monterey Bay area.

In general, Santa Cruz residents can breathe easier knowing that our beautiful geography also protects our air quality.

—Erin Malsbury

 

How does the county handle scheduled burns, and is there a better way to reduce wildfire risk?

Our landscape craves regular fires. Without them, pent-up combustible materials threaten to burst into catastrophic wildfires with a single spark. Prescribed burning is an attempt to negotiate with nature. They consume fuels, but only when it’s safe.

“The majority of California is probably pretty outside of its natural fire regime,” says Andy Hubbs, a forester for Cal Fire’s San Mateo-Santa Cruz unit. To counter this, fire crews try to reduce fuels with chainsaws, wood chippers and heavy machinery to grind up undergrowth. But these labor-intensive methods only mimic what a prescribed burn often does better.

In Santa Cruz County, either Cal Fire or California State Parks manage a handful of burns each year. The agencies require specific conditions: some humidity, low winds and fuels that are damp but still combustible. Controlled burns also require a perimeter: a road, trail or strip of land devoid of fuels to separate it from grasses or trees. Burn crews monitor changes in wind that could cause flare ups, and are ready to mobilize if fire threatens to escape.

These closely watched burns are “highly unlikely” to turn into wildfires, Hubbs says. But even the safest ones produce smoke, another hazard of burning that ignites debate.

David Frisbey, the monitoring manager at Monterey Bay Air Resources District, says smoke gets residents “pretty unglued.” The county’s cities and towns are close to areas that agencies might wish to burn. That means smaller prescribed fires.

“The largest burn we’ll see in Santa Cruz County is about 300 acres up in Big Basin [Redwoods State Park],” Frisbey says. For comparison, a recent burn in a remote part of San Benito County spanned 6,000 acres.

The biggest challenge to prescribed burning, says Hubbs, is getting people used to smoke being “part of life again” in our flammable state.

— Jerimiah Oetting

 

Are there any negative environmental consequences from flying drones in Santa Cruz’s natural spaces?

Drones are rapidly rising in popularity. But birds and other animals may be less than wild about their artificial associates.

“Most people aren’t necessarily aware of what wildlife is doing when they fly a drone,” says Lisa Sheridan, president of the Santa Cruz Bird Club. Several years ago, club members were monitoring a nest at Anna Jean Cummings Park in Soquel with three baby white-tailed kites when a drone whirred onto the scene. The parents darted away to attack it, abandoning their young. “We were afraid a collision with a bladed helicopter would kill one of them,” she says. “We did our best to inform people, since they weren’t aware of the birth being there.”

Sheridan has also seen terns, willets, plovers, and other migratory birds scatter when drones appear. The birds waste energy fleeing instead of resting and feeding, she says.

Rules written to prevent such clashes mean you can’t fly a drone wherever you wish. Within the California State Parks system, each district sets its own guidelines for drone operation. In Santa Cruz County, for example, only one state park permits visitors to fly drones near its parking lot. County parks forbid them. You also can’t pilot your drone over specific coastlines that are part of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Violators can be fined.

Drones aren’t necessarily all bad, though. This past summer, UCSC researchers flew drones—with permission—to capture aerial photographs of Año Nuevo Island. Citizen scientists counted animals in these photos to tally elephant seals, sea lions and birds, providing a valuable census for ecologists.

“Some of these drones, in the right hands, can be very helpful for research,” Sheridan says. As long as their operators respect the environment, drones and wildlife may be able to coexist after all. 

— Jack J. Lee

 

Why do rip tides happen, and are they dangerous in the Monterey Bay?

Daily tidal ebbs and flows at the narrow mouth of a bay like San Francisco’s can create strong surges called “rip tides,” which funnel out to sea. But in less restricted waters, like those of the Monterey Bay, the hazards actually come from “rip currents”—narrow channels of water in the surf zone that can sweep beach-goers far offshore.

As waves break against an uneven shoreline, seawater flows back out at different speeds. Energetic waves can scour away enough sand to focus outgoing water into rapid rip currents often hidden from plain sight.

There are always rip currents at local beaches, says Eddie Rhee-Pizano, lifeguard supervisor for state parks in Santa Cruz County. Surfers even ride the rips like conveyor belts to get beyond wave breaks.

Many such currents are small and pose no threat to a perfectly planned beach day. But when the currents intensify, these flows can tow swimmers into perilously deep waters.

The main danger stems from panic. Instinctively, most people try to swim straight back to the beach when suddenly dragged out. “But that’s the last thing you want to do,” says Rhee-Pizano. “It’s basically swimming up-river.”

Instead, it’s best to stay calm and ride the rip until it weakens. Moving parallel to shore also allows swimmers to escape the strongest pull and swim back farther down the beach. This is especially important for those without a wetsuit, as the frigid Pacific quickly saps a body’s strength.

Every year, county lifeguards stop hundreds of swimmers teetering close to rip currents. Though the numbers vary, California Sea Grant estimates rip currents lead to about 80% of all beach rescues in the state. To stay safe, pick a beach with lifeguards, ask them about the conditions, and swim alongside a buddy. 

— Lara Streiff

  

Local levels of recycling organic material (i.e. composting) are terrible. How big of a difference would it make if we improved?

If everyone in Santa Cruz County composted their food and organic waste, our landfills would have roughly 40% more space overall. We’d also reduce the county’s greenhouse gas emissions—and get fantastic fertilizer in return. All of this is easy to do.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that more food gets dumped or burned every day than any other kind of trash. Each person who composts diverts more than three pounds of waste from the dump each week.

That impact really adds up, says J. Elliott Campbell, an expert in food sustainability at UCSC. “By composting, you can help to extend the life of the landfills, so we don’t have to build another one,” Campbell says. Indeed, at our current rate of dumping, Santa Cruz County has about 10 years to find a new landfill site.

Composting at home also cuts down the harmful greenhouse gases we release. When food ends up in a landfill, trash is piled on top—just like putting food inside a plastic bag and letting it rot. With no oxygen, the decay produces methane, a gas that traps heat in our atmosphere 25 times more powerfully than carbon dioxide. In a composting bin, oxygen infiltrates the breakdown process and eliminates methane, along with that awful rotten trash smell. Statewide, California residents could release 20% less methane gas if everyone composted.

You can do all of this as a comfortable family project at home. As a bonus, you’ll create soil so rich in nutrients that composters call it “black gold”—good for you and your garden, and great for the planet. To get started, visit dpw.co.santa-cruz.ca.us.

 — Ashleigh Papp

  

What will global warming do to our summer fog bank? And if there’s less fog, would that change our coastal ecosystems?

 About one-third of the fog along California’s coast has disappeared over the past century as the planet has heated up, scientists estimate. Losing this cool, moist blanket may put some plant species at risk, but solutions to this clearing of the air are not so clear.

Fog spreads moisture through coastal ecosystems, especially redwood forests, while helping to rinse pollution from the air. Without the higher humidity, water and nutrients carried in fog droplets, like nitrogen and phosphorus, plants may suffer from more heat stress. When it’s cool, plants create sugars they need from photosynthesis more easily than in a blazing-hot sun.

“In the Santa Cruz and Monterey Bay area, the fog provides moisture for a lot of species that are dependent on that moisture when there isn’t any rain,” says Daniel Fernandez, an environmental scientist at California State University, Monterey Bay.

Fog forms when water vapor changes to water droplets at high levels of humidity. When the air is cooled, the water vapor contained in it can condenses into particles, creating the calming mist of fog.

But if climate change erodes more of our fog banks, “it can have an adverse effect on ecosystems during the otherwise-dry summer season,” Fernandez says. Most research he has seen predicts that fog levels will continue to decrease as seawater in the Monterey Bay warms up, creating less of a contrast with the air temperature above the water. That contrast is what makes fog droplets condense, Fernandez says.

Researchers have struggled to make models and projections for coastal fog because its presence depends on so many factors, both local and global. “There will be variability, and not all locations will respond in the same fashion within the same time period,” says Fernandez.

— S. Hussain Ather

 

Why are male elephant seals so much larger than females?

 Among elephant seals, massive males top the breeding hierarchy. The more they mate, the more their genes get passed on to ensure the next generation of giants.

When one sex is larger or flashier than the other, scientists call it sexual dimorphism. We see it in many animals, including gorillas, peacocks and—oddly enough—stick insects. Often, the dimorphism reflects mating style.

The drive to mate creates spectacular displays at Año Nuevo, the nearest breeding ground for northern elephant seals. In early January, females arrive en masse to give birth to their pups. After nursing them for only 28 days, the females mate again before returning to sea.

This tight window creates intense competition among males. Larger seals can weigh more than 4,000 pounds, so fighting is risky. A bellow from their inflated nose sack—think gravel in a garbage disposal—sends smaller males scuttling, but evenly matched pairs come to blows. Colliding violently, they rake each other’s chest, neck and head. The winner gains control of a harem of females, which top out at a slimmer 1,500 pounds. Losers may miss out on mating altogether.

During breeding season, adult seals stop eating and drinking. Their thick layers of fat sustain the males. Still, it’s an amazing physiological feat for such a large mammal, says Patrick Robinson, director of the Año Nuevo Reserve. “They stick it out to the bitter end,” Robinson says. “If there’s one female that it’s possible to mate with, they will be there.”

Hunted down to about 100 seals in 1900, the species has rebounded. However, Robinson says, the animals now suffer from a “genetic bottleneck,” a lack of diversity that occurs when a population expands from just a few sets of parents. This leaves them at risk in a changing ocean. But don’t worry: these seals are fighters.

— Amanda Heidt

Silicon Valley Construction Boom Threatens Local Tribal Land

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Silicon Valley Construction Boom Threatens Local Tribal Land

Just past noon one weekend in September, hundreds of people gather in prayer. This isn’t a typical Sunday church service.

The congregation has come to the end of a 5-mile march, a pilgrimage that began at Mission San Juan Bautista in San Benito County and ended at a place now known as Sargent Ranch, 6400 acres of land that straddle Santa Cruz County’s easternmost border with Santa Clara County.

Here, at the foot of the lowland slopes and iconic golden hills east of Aromas, Mt. Madonna and the Pescadero Creek and just a few miles south of urbanizing Gilroy, they begin to pray.

Ceremonies such as these were once common. Thousands of years ago, long before European settlers arrived in California, the Amah Mutsun—a local indigenous tribe—held sacred gatherings on the site they call “Juristac,” meaning “place of the big head.”

At their peak, the Amah Mutsun lived in small villages from the San Francisco Bay Area down to  Monterey. Juristac is considered a particularly special place—home of their spiritual leader, Kuksui, and a place where the tribal band hosted prayer ceremonies and healing rituals for more than 10,000 years. It is also currently the proposed site of a 320-acre, open-pit sand and gravel mine about 3000 feet over the Santa Cruz County line. The excavation will create a potential new local source for the grit coveted by the cheerleaders of Silicon Valley’s construction boom.

It was this prospect that compelled more than 100 tribal members—along with hundreds of their supporters from community and environmental organizations—to attend the early September prayer walk.

“This is a major issue for our tribe,” says Valentin Lopez, chairman of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band. “These developers plan on tearing down and monetizing our most sacred site, and so we’re fighting to stop that.”

Approval of the Sargent Quarry Project is contingent on a number of pending factors. There’s an ethnographic study taking place, along with a draft environmental impact report underway and expected out early this year. 

Environmental groups have come out against the proposed mine because of the adverse impact it would likely have on iconic species, such as the American badger, puma and California red-legged frog.

After the draft environmental review is issued, opposition groups will likely have somewhere between 45 to 75 days to submit questions or objections to the Santa Clara County Planning Commission, which will vote on the mine.

Lopez knows that this is merely the latest skirmish in a battle that he and his contemporaries have fought for decades—and the latest chapter in a war that his ancestors waged for centuries.

CLAIM JUMPING

For nearly 20 years, Irenne Zwierlein—considered an outsider by the tribal majority—has nonetheless played an outsized role in the Amah Mutsun’s ongoing campaign for federal recognition and in the tribe’s claim to the Sargent Ranch property.

The 74-year-old Woodside resident, who didn’t respond to requests for comment, has made no public effort to take part in any of the tribe’s events and activities, and has yet to conclusively prove her Native American heritage. Even after the Bureau of Indian Affairs affirmed in 2007 that Zwierlein forged documents in an attempt to position herself as the Amah Mutsun’s rightful leader, she managed to convince the agency to prioritize her petition over that of popularly recognized tribal Chairman Lopez, a fellow septuagenarian who for the past 16 years has served as the face of the tribe.

Under Lopez’s leadership, the tribe has emphasized restoring a sense of community among the 500-plus Amah Mutsun members after generations of forced assimilation and trauma. For his part, Lopez says he hopes to see Sargent Ranch returned to the Amah Mutsun, or placed in the stewardship of an organization that shares his vision of maintaining a green, open space on this land. 

Without a legal right to their ancestral turf, Lopez says the Amah Mutsun won’t be able to unilaterally say what can be done here. However, in the course of his time fighting for Juristac and other significant Amah Mutsun sites, Lopez has forged partnerships with open space districts, conservationists and private property owners who have helped him and his tribe uphold their mission of protecting land they hold sacred.

Zwierlein’s priorities, by contrast, seemingly depend almost entirely on the federal government’s affirmation of the tribe’s sovereignty to secure the rights to Sargent Ranch.

Fifteen years ago, La Jolla developer Wayne Pierce inked a development contract with Zwierlein, who promised to allow development on the land in exchange for a $21 million cultural center and homes for tribal members. The pact gave Pierce a way to bypass state and county anti-sprawl zoning and brought Zwierlein some powerful allies.

Though Pierce’s blueprints for a “luxury gaming resort” surfaced online years after signing his covenant with Zwierlein, she has consistently denied advocating for a casino. But the potential profit windfall from Indian gaming cast doubt on Zwierlein’s motives.

The economy took a nosedive and set Pierce on a course that ended in bankruptcy and foreclosure on the La Jollan’s 85% stake in Sargent Ranch.

The proposed quarry has now overtaken the sidelined casino plans as the immediate threat to Juristac.

SACRED LAND

While Lopez has been dealt many defeats and setbacks in his decades-long fight, he comes into the battle for Juristac on the heels of a partial win.

With the help of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District—a special district managing 26 open space preserves around the Bay Area—Lopez managed to reclaim a small piece of one of his people’s most sacred sites, the summit of Mount Umunhum, which had been cordoned off to the public for decades. 

In 2009, efforts to clean the space up received $3.2 million, and Midpen got to work, removing 3,000 cubic yards of hazardous material from the mountain and the summit’s Cold War-era military facility, which still includes a 50-foot tower that was recently granted protection and historical status, much to Lopez’s dismay. 

The group re-contoured the the site and constructed a trail between Mount Umunhum and its neighbor, Bald Mountain. After almost 60 years, it opened to visitors once again.

The 3,489-foot peak, one of the highest surrounding the valley, is now the home of a permanent Amah Mutsun prayer circle, which was completed two years ago.

Umunhum can be loosely translated as “the place where hummingbird rests.” Today, the space, which is central to the tribe’s creation story, overlooks Silicon Valley and is marked with an informational plaque,m explaining the historical significance of Mount Umunhum for the Amah Mutsun tribe.

HISTORY OF VIOLENCE

Over the past 250 years, Amah Mutsun history has been one marked by violence, destruction and genocide. The troubles began during the Mission period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, when native populations were moved to compounds and lived in harsh conditions. During this time, 19,421 Indians died at Mission San Juan Bautista alone, and it’s estimated that the population of Californian Indians as a whole was reduced from 350,000 to 200,000.

The Mexican period, from 1822 to 1846, saw huge tracts of land granted to settlers, while the native population was maneuvered into debt-peonage, working lands that were taken from them. European diseases and poor living conditions contributed to the death of another 100,000 California Indians. 

The American period, which began around 1850, was perhaps the worst. During this time, the already devastated population of native Californians experienced what might have been the worst slaughter of Indians in U.S. history. It’s estimated that the Indian population of California went from 150,000 before 1849 to fewer than 30,000 in 1870—an 80% loss in just 21 years.

Today, one of the most intractable challenges facing the Amah Mutsun is the reality that the United States government hasn’t officially recognized them as a tribe. This leaves them without the rights, benefits and legal status that come with federal recognition—protections which could have played a significant role in determining Juristac’s fate. Recognition gives a tribe and its members special rights, including sovereignty over their lands, self-governance and federal benefits, services and protections.

Through Zwierlein’s efforts to control the Sargent Ranch property, she’s played a role in thwarting official federal recognition.

“I tell you, if we were Catholic or Muslim or Jewish or a Buddhist—if we were any other religion and this was known as a sacred site, they wouldn’t dare think of proposing a sand and gravel mine,” Lopez says. “But because we’re Native American, because we’re not federally recognized, it doesn’t matter.”

Lopez has successfully advocated for the Catholic Diocese of Monterey to issue a formal apology, which it gave in a 2013 ceremony of mass reconciliation for enslaving and killing the Amah Mutsun hundreds of years prior. He also helped forge a tribal land trust partnership with the Sempervirens Fund and a program through UCSC for the Amah Mutsun to reclaim ancient knowledge of environmental stewardship and native plants. 

For the past decade, the tribe has held bimonthly meetings led by a psychiatrist and two psychologists, in which members delve into the trauma from a history of dislocation. All the while, he’s consistently convened members for holiday gatherings, basket-weaving seminars and other events to preserve cultural identity and meet one of the tests for tribal recognition.

Though Zwierlein has all but disappeared from public life, her contested claim remains the BIA’s primary reason for declining to grant Amah Mutsun federal tribal status. On Sept. 3, the BIA gave both factions a chance to submit more paperwork to prove who has the rightful claim to leadership. Lopez says he’ll go through the motions by giving the feds what they ask for, but he long ago lost faith in the process.

“To be honest, we’re not even sure we want that,” Lopez says. “Even though you do get certain benefits and sovereignty, when you’re federally recognized you also become a ward of the government—and the government has never had our best interests at heart.”

Meanwhile, the newest fight for Juristac is just getting started, and it’s likely to be a long and contentious one wrapped up in a complex history. “The destruction and domination of Native Americans never ended, it just evolved,” Lopez says. 

Despite everything, Lopez remains hopeful.

“We’ve been told that the most effective way to stop this mine is by public opinion,” he says. “Because if the county supervisors want to get re-elected, they have to do what the people want. And so we’re hoping we can get the people to stand with us and tell the supervisors that they must not approve that mine.”

Jennifer Wadsworth and Grace Hase contributed to this report.

New Santa Cruz Mayor Justin Cummings on Making History, Solving Problems

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New Santa Cruz Mayor Justin Cummings on Making History, Solving Problems

Justin Cummings has made history as Santa Cruz’s first African-American male mayor. At 36 years old, he’s also the city’s first millennial mayor. He may even be the first punk-rock-loving mayor.

GT spoke with Cummings about the library project, what the recall is doing to Santa Cruz, his first year on City Council, and the year ahead. 

Last year was your first on the council, and you were named vice mayor, which is uncommon, especially for a newcomer. What did you learn?  

JUSTIN CUMMINGS: What I learned more than anything was really a better understanding of the process for getting things accomplished. There was this notion going around when I was running that you just need four votes to get anything done. And while that might be sometimes true for getting something passed, you really have to think about implementation and community engagement. 

Depending on the issue, if you bring it forward too quickly without engaging the public, it can backfire. Or, at the very least, you won’t get as much support. One example is when it was proposed to take down the “No Parking” signs on Delaware Avenue. There was no engagement with the residents, the state parks or the university. So when that came out, although it was clear it could be implemented safely, a lot of community members were caught off-guard and were upset. They didn’t know what was going on. Having that engagement is incredibly important, especially with issues that could be controversial. 

You’re the first African-American male mayor in Santa Cruz. What does that mean to you? 

We live in a community that demonstrates it cares about inclusivity. We had two African-American men and one lesbian elected at the same time in 2018, and those were all firsts. I think it’s telling that our community looks past race, age, gender, and sexual orientation and really focuses on who the person is and what their values are. 

There’s an effort underway to recall two councilmembers. What effect is that having on Santa Cruz? 

It’s further dividing our community, which is unfortunate. When the signature campaign was happening, I was informed by many people about the misinformation being circulated around Drew [Glover] and Chris [Krohn]. There were also physical altercations between canvassers and the general public. 

You made the motion to certify the signature results to recall Councilmembers Glover and Krohn—who’ve often been allies to you—and put it on the ballot. When Councilmember Cynthia Mathews seconded your motion, she remarked that it must have been a difficult decision for you. How did you feel in that moment, and how did you decide what to do? 

I really thought about our responsibility as councilmembers. For example, I worked on the rent control campaign and got signatures for it. If we had presented that to the city with enough signatures to put on the ballot and they hadn’t done that, it would’ve been troubling and disrespectful towards the community. If that would’ve happened, I think many in town would’ve been outraged. 

The conduct of City Council was a major headline last year. How should council members treat each other and city staff? 

I continue to try to conduct myself in a way that treats our staff, community and my other council members with respect. I don’t have to agree with them, and we can respectfully disagree. We all represent different people within our community. 

We’re still waiting on more information about the library and the possible parking structure project. Generally speaking, how should the city should proceed? 

We’re now sending out a request for proposals to figure out what it would cost for a mixed-use project. I think we really need to figure out what that would look like. I hear arguments on both sides. A lot of people who voted for the measure expressed they were under the impression the funds would go towards renovating the library—although there is language in the ballot about potentially building another site. 

People are really upset about the idea of [building] a parking garage and library, but we’re also exploring the idea of affordable housing and trying to combine them, right? So it could be a library with housing and parking, but it really depends on what this option looks like. We’re getting information on what this second option would cost, its feasibility, and comparing the two. 

Jayson Architecture gave their final presentation on Dec. 13 on what it would cost to renovate. The conclusion is that most of what would be done wouldn’t be adequate. There would need to be more funding if we were to fully renovate to where it would be a well-designed civic institution. That’s part of the reason why we want to explore more options. 

In 2019, the council greatly restricted the requirements for affordable housing in new developments without doing an economic analysis over concerns from the Planning Commission. How do we know this won’t slow development in the midst of a serious housing shortage, making the housing crisis worse? 

One of those things [that I want to focus on at the start of the year] is to form an Affordable Housing Subcommittee, which will be more or less like a task force. It will identify people in the community who are stakeholders in development circles and part of the task force will explore “How do we make 20% work?” When we increased our inclusionary rate to 20%, people argued that raising it from 15% could stop housing from being developed. What I’m saying is that 20% has worked in other communities, so let’s form this committee and see what we have to do to increase the incentive for developers. Is there anything else we can do? When we go out to do an economic feasibility study, it should focus on how we make 20% inclusionary work. 

One other thing I want to add is that it’s very important to note we need low- and very- low-income housing. However, we also need moderately affordable housing. We don’t want to turn Santa Cruz into a community of just the very rich and the very poor with nothing in between. Many of us fall into that middle-class category, and there’s really not a whole lot in Santa Cruz for us.

I think it’s great we’re building low-income and affordable housing for people. However, to be able to access that housing, you have to be making under a certain amount to qualify. We need housing for people right above that line as well. Many middle class people—teachers, medical staff, university staff, people in the service industry—we don’t want to train them not to excel and be constrained by caps that we place on housing. 

How do you plan to approach homeless issues this year? 

We are working on trying to get a new shelter and navigation center. That’s currently a work in progress. It’s going to take time. I’m interested in exploring a couple options: one is a group called Recovery Cafe, who work out of San Jose. I received a presentation on the work they do, and I’m hoping to have them come and present to the community. They work with people who are facing addiction and have a really good day program that has shown to be successful. 

Last Friday, Ryan Coonerty and some of his staff, along with [Bruce] McPherson, myself and the city manager—we went to San Mateo to see a program out there called Life Works. They’ve been really successful with getting people housed and having a safe, clean program. We’re gonna see if they can give a presentation and see if we can work with them, learn their approaches and implement them here … The biggest thing we need is for the community to be open to new ideas. Even if we have the money, we have to find somewhere to put it—whether it’s day services, long-term shelter, etc. 

I also want to stress that we have to work with the county, and we need them to be open to new ideas, too. Even though we’re the county seat and getting a large proportion of the services, we have to spread them throughout the county as well. Homelessness falls under public health. Public health falls under the responsibility of the county. A lot of people yell at the City Council to do something about homelessness, when it primarily falls under the county. We need to have a good working relationship with them, and people also need to bring their message to them. 

I hear a lot of talk when I’m bartending about how, “Now that Justin’s mayor, things are going to be different.” Is that true?

The biggest thing I want people to know is that we are trying to do the best with the resources we have. We’re not going to be able to do everything we want, because everything comes with a cost, or we might not have the technical resources we need. And for some things, we don’t have the technology to do it. But we try to do what we can with what we have to keep moving in a progressive direction. 

When I was a kid growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, I really wanted to play the guitar, and even though I couldn’t afford to buy the nicest guitar with the nicest amp and the nicest setup, I got what I could. I utilized that tool, practiced and worked hard on saving so when the time came to upgrade, I could. But the ultimate goal was to play guitar. As a community, when trying to accomplish things, we need to ask what we can get done with what we already have. Let’s do that for now, while keeping our eyes set on how we can improve for the future.

Do you think your background in punk and metal affects your willingness to work with new ideas?

Yes! For me, the punk-rock scene was always about questioning authority and trying to do your own thing. Question for change. One of the things about punk rock that always resonated with me the most is it’s about community and respect within that community. If someone goes down, we help them back up. We don’t care about gender, color of your skin or what you look like. We care about if you’re a good, solid person—and if so, let’s mosh! 

Dave Holodiloff Band Goes Way Beyond Bluegrass

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Dave Holodiloff Band Goes Way Beyond Bluegrass

One look at the Monterey-based Dave Holodiloff Band, and you’d likely assume they play strictly bluegrass.

For a show at Michael’s On Main this week, the lineup includes mandolin (Holodiloff), violin/banjo (Elijjah McCullar), percussion (William Bates Minou), upright bass (Bill Sullivan), and guitar (Lex Olsen). But bluegrass is only one style of music that Holodiloff plays. You’ll hear his group playing Celtic, Latin, Brazilian choro, traditional Balkan songs, Americana, and more.

“I love all types of music. We play all types of events, whether it’s a dance thing or a sit-down listening thing,” Holodiloff says. “In this area, I feel like we have listeners that are into a variety of things.”

For Holodiloff’s most recent album, Balkan String Projekt—his ninth album under the Dave Holodiloff Band moniker—he explores the traditional music of Bulgaria and Romania (a little bit Turkish, Serbian and Moldovan), while giving it a California twist. He plays the music on what would be more traditionally considered bluegrass instruments, and with his easy-going vibe. Traditional Balkan music is very old, and played on instruments like bagpipes that can slide into eerie quarter-notes, unlike the 12-note fretted mandolin.

“I didn’t grow up playing this music. It challenges me as a player, learning this Balkan music,” Holodiloff says. “Now I’m putting it back into Celtic and my original music. When you learn one style, that helps you grow and come back fresh in different areas.”

Before going solo, Holodiloff played in a variety of bands, like a bluegrass band and a gypsy jazz band. He enjoyed playing in these bands, but found that something was missing for him creatively; they were mostly preserving the traditions of these styles of music, as opposed to building on them and incorporating other genres.

“I think just out of necessity I wanted to grow and expand and include all styles,” Holodiloff says. “I feel like my calling is to take the mandolin and the genres and push them into a new direction. You play with different musicians, and you all bring something different and unique to the table, and you put it together like a mish-mosh.”  

Holodiloff’s life as a solo artist began approximately seven years ago. He kicked it off with the album Traditional Duets. He released seven more diverse albums over the course of the next 2.5 years. He played solo, but he was always on the lookout for people that he could play with. It’s led to some interesting tours, like in Peru with his friend Peter Mellinger, Italy with Ciosi, and Israel with Isaac Misri.  

Balkan String Projekt was mostly possible because he met Misri three-and-a-half years ago, when Misri’s Hungarian band Het Hat Club played Monterey. Misri ended up staying in Monterey with Holodiloff for six months. They listened to a lot of Balkan music and did plenty of jamming. Together they worked on the album with Bill Sullivan (upright bass), Peter Mellinger (violin) and Michael Martinez (piano). Holodiloff is planning a new album tentatively scheduled for the spring of 2020, which will have more old gypsy vocal songs and traditional Balkan instrumental dance tunes, with his own twist.  

“I’m super blessed to play with the best musicians around,” Holodiloff says. “What we play is maybe not as important as the energy we bring, because it might depend on the night. Whatever vibe is there, whatever particular ensemble of musicians I have that night, it’s a blessing every time we get to play music for people”

There are so many styles that Holodiloff is interested in that he holds several annual themed shows, like a St. Patrick’s Day Celtic concert and a Jerry Garcia birthday bash. But there’s also the Dave Holodiloff Band, which plays all the styles—and that is precisely the version of the band that will be playing at Michael’s on Jan 2.

“Music is a language, and there’s all these dialects,” Holodiloff says. “We tend to improvise and play off the crowd. It’s not just one thing. We do specific [genre] shows throughout the year, but not this time. A day-after-New-Year’s celebration. Start the new year off right.”

The Dave Holodiloff Band performs at 7:30pm on Thursday, Jan. 2, at Michael’s on Main, 2591 Main St., Soquel. $12 adv/$15 door. 479-9777. 

A Toast to Santa Cruz Dining Standbys

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A Toast to Santa Cruz Dining Standbys

The new year invites us to look ahead. But it also suggests a time to remember and revisit great moments past.

It’s easy to get caught up in the new restaurants, new cocktails, new flavors, but it’s

important—and deeply satisfying—to make visits to places we have known and loved year in and year out. Whenever I want to pamper myself, I turn to stalwart palaces of comfort. 

A monumental and still-charming legend, Shadowbrook exudes atmosphere any establishment would envy. A warm greeting, one of the liveliest lounges on the Central Coast, the rock and redwood-lined labyrinth of little twinkling lights, white tablecloths and stairways to countless dining nooks. Shadowbrook is the stuff of dining memories.

Over wine and some tasty seafood entrées, I joined two of my close friends—one I’ve known for decades, the other a new acquaintance—for a dinner filled with laughter, confessions, cross-plate grazing, and a luscious shared dessert of holiday bread pudding. The full moon shone down on the landmark cable car as it climbed the hillside and brought us back to street level. Great end to the old year. A salute to Ted Burke and company.

Oswald remains a consistent purveyor of flawless new American cuisine. Kudos to Damani Thomas and team for a brilliant track record and innumerable flavor memories. Not least of Oswald’s reliable skills is its vibrant bar, which always provides a perfect cocktail with bar snacks to match. Here’s where we can run into ex-husbands, former girlfriends, jaded attorneys, and city arts honchos all having as much fun as we are.

Gayle’s Bakery and Rosticceria has been doing things right for so long that it’s too easy to take this Capitola institution for granted. Don’t do that. Just consider the Blue Plate specials that provide fresh-cooked, affordable meals, on-site or take-out.

How many times have I popped in for one of those life-saving meatloaf dinners, all packed and ready to heat up at home. Or joined my film buddy Lisa for outstanding lattés and one of those consistently irresistible cheese danish? And that divine almond croissant? Because Gayle’s has been with us for so long, and not because it’s the very newest kid on the block—that’s why we toast this popular old acquaintance. Salut! And welcome to the New Year.

The Doon Abides

This year, we toast the Bonny Doon Vineyard Tasting Room, which closed its doors last week, departing its charming headquarters in Davenport. For six years, it graced the North Coast with prankster promotions and playful oeno-decor. 

But the original Rhône Ranger, winemaker Randall Grahm, has read the tea leaves. In a bittersweet e-mail to me, Grahm admitted that “operating a tasting room profitably is a much more complicated proposition now than it once was. Customers have a much broader range of possibilities to choose from, and I’m told they’re often looking for a more immersive experience before opening their hearts and wallets.” 

After 40 years of tasting room innovation, Grahm has seen changes that have moved the needle from intriguing California wines to craft beers to rococo cannabis-infused cocktails. “Yes, I know,” he added, “eclecticism has long been a trademark of BDV … but the experimentation and visionary thinking will, at least for the moment, be mostly confined to the ongoing vineyard adventure that is Popelouchum.”

One can imagine Randall Grahm, vine whisperer, roaming his San Juan Bautista grapes, tinkering with ever-more-colorful flavor possibilities at the Popelouchum estate. I’ll miss being able to pop into the tasting room to try them. Here’s wishing this local legend a pastoral New Year. 

Film Review: ‘Cats’

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Film Review: ‘Cats’

If you’re going to have any fun at Cats, you’ll have to take it for what it is: a movie based on a bit of musical theatre fluff with people dressed up like cats. If that sounds too precious, then by all means, go watch something serious. But there is fun to be had at this adaptation of the blockbuster stage production, and it’s the holidays, so you might as well have it.

First produced onstage in London in 1981 (and on Broadway the following year), Cats was an innovation for its time. In setting music to T. S. Eliot’s fanciful poetry collection Old Possum’s Book Of Practical Cats, composer Andrew Lloyd Webber created a song-cycle told entirely in music and dance instead of dialogue and conventional narrative. His risky experiment paid off—the original West End production ran for 21 years, the sixth-longest-running show in London history, and the Broadway show played for 18 years to become the fourth-longest-running show ever on the Great White Way.

Still, it’s problematic for a movie adaptation, which may be why it took 38 years for someone to try. It’s easier to suspend disbelief over humans pretending to be cats from the second balcony of a live theater than up close on the movie screen. In the capable hands of director Tom Hooper (The Danish Girl and The King’s Speech, as well as the massive Les Miserables), the cat characters do rely on some motion-capture effects, but even more so on the performers’ chutzpah, which gives the movie random moments of weird, retro charm.

A tribe of felines gathers in the deserted streets one night in and around an abandoned theater to decide which among them will be chosen to ascend to “The Heaviside Layer” to be reborn into a new life. It’s basically a series of vignettes in which each individual cat does his or her shtick, but Hooper and co-screenwriter Lee Hall inject a little propulsion in the counterpoint campaign of the sinister Macavity (Idris Elba) to eliminate the competition and become the chosen one.

Other players not usually thought of as musical performers include Ian McKellan as Gus, the ancient Theater Cat—all coy eyes and shabby nobility—and a quite wonderful Judi Dench as the regal matriarch of the cat clan, Old Deuteronomy (in a gender switch from the stage original).

Taylor Swift plays sexy Bombalurina, and Rebel Wilson sings and does some corny slapstick clowning with a trio of mice and a chorus line of cockroaches (all humans shrunk to appropriate size) as Jennyanydots. James Corden pops up as the fat, fastidious Bustopher Jones (aka Puss in Spats), while veteran stage song-and-dance man Robbie Fairchild makes an excellent Munkustrap, the unofficial emcee and our tour guide into the feline world.

We see it all through the eyes of Victoria (Francesca Hayward, principal ballerina of the Royal Ballet), an innocent kitten dumped in an alley in a sack who is taken in by the cat colony. Her counterpart is the male ingénue, Mr. Mistoffeles (a shyly appealing Laurie Davidson), a young tuxedo cat in a top hat who attempts magic tricks. But most impressive is Jennifer Hudson, creating an emotional throughline around the elderly, outcast Grizabella, applying her big, powerful voice to the show’s one hit song, “Memory.”

The tireless corps of singers and dancers are always in motion, across the huge, sprawling oversize sets. (Although production designer Eve Stewart’s props can be disproportionately large, with glasses or bottles dwarfing the cats.) And the actors are great at miming cat mannerisms; especially fun is the way their tails and ears seem to have lives of their own.

Still, Cats is more spectacle than storyline, and there are times when the sheer, non-stop muchness of it all can be overwhelming. You may find yourself needing a catnap before the final curtain.

CATS

** 1/2  (out of four)

With Idris Elba, Taylor Swift, Jennifer Hudson, Judi Dench, and Ian McKellan. Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Written  by Lee Hall and Tom Hooper. From the book Old Possum’s Book Of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot. Directed by Tom Hooper. Rated PG. 110 minutes.

Rob Brezsny’s Astrology Dec. 26-31

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Rob Brezsny’s Astrology Dec. 26-31

Free will astrology for the week of Dec. 26

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Nazi Germany invaded and occupied Denmark during World War II. In 1943, Hitler ordered all Danish Jews to be arrested—a first step in his plan to send them to concentration camps. But the Danish resistance movement leapt into action and smuggled virtually all of them to safety via fishing boats bound for Sweden. As a result, 8,000-plus Danish Jews survived the Holocaust. You may not have the opportunity to do anything quite as heroic in 2020, Aries. But I expect you will have chances to express a high order of practical idealism that could be among your noblest and most valiant efforts ever. Draw inspiration from the Danish resistance.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): When she was 31, Taurus writer Charlotte Brontë finished writing her novel Jane Eyre. She guessed it would have a better chance of getting published if its author was thought to be a man. So she adopted the masculine pen name of Currer Bell and sent the manuscript unsolicited to a London publisher. Less than eight weeks later, her new book was in print. It quickly became a commercial success. I propose that we make Brontë one of your role models for 2020, Taurus. May she inspire you to be audacious in expressing yourself and confident in seeking the help you need to reach your goals. May she embolden you, too, to use ingenious stratagems to support your righteous cause.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): The new year can and should be a lyrically healing year for you. Here’s what I mean: Beauty and grace will be curative. The “medicine” you need will come to you via poetic and mellifluous experiences. With this in mind, I encourage you to seek out encounters with the following remedies. 1. Truth Whimsies 2. Curiosity Breakthroughs 3. Delight Gambles 4. Sacred Amusements 4. Redemptive Synchronicities 5. Surprise Ripenings 6. Gleeful Discoveries 7. Epiphany Adventures 8. Enchantment Games 9. Elegance Eruptions 10. Intimacy Angels 11. Playful Salvation 12. Luminosity Spells

CANCER (June 21-July 22): “There are years that ask questions and years that answer,” wrote author Zora Neale Hurston. According to my astrological analysis, Cancerian, 2020 is likely to be one of those years that asks questions, while 2021 will be a time when you’ll get rich and meaningful answers to the queries you’ll pose in 2020. To ensure that this plan works out for your maximum benefit, it’s essential that you formulate provocative questions in the coming months. At first, it’s fine if you generate too many. As the year progresses, you can whittle them down to the most ultimate and important questions. Get started!

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): The Roman Emperor Vespasian (9–79 A.D.) supervised the restoration of the Temple of Peace, the Temple of Claudius and the Theater of Marcellus. He also built a huge statue of Apollo and the amphitheater now known as the Colosseum, whose magnificent ruins are still a major tourist attraction. Vespasian also created a less majestic but quite practical wonder: Rome’s first public urinals. In accordance with astrological omens, I invite you Leos to be stimulated by his example in 2020. Be your usual magnificent self as you generate both inspiring beauty and earthy, pragmatic improvements.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): When Virgo author Mary Shelley was 18 years old, she had a disconcerting dream-like vision about a mad chemist who created a weird, human-like creature out of non-living matter. She set about to write a book based on her mirage. At age 20, she published Frankenstein, a novel that would ultimately wield a huge cultural influence and become a seminal work in the “science fiction” genre. I propose we make Shelley one of your role models for 2020. Why? Because I suspect that you, too, will have the power to transform a challenging event or influence into an important asset. You’ll be able to generate or attract a new source of energy by responding creatively to experiences that initially provoke anxiety.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Libra-born mystic poet Rumi (1207–1273) wrote that he searched for holy sustenance and divine inspiration in temples, churches and mosques—but couldn’t find them there. The good news? Because of his disappointment, he was motivated to go on an inner quest—and ultimately found holy sustenance and divine inspiration in his own heart. I’ve got a strong feeling that you’ll have similar experiences in 2020, Libra. Not on every occasion, but much of the time, you will discover the treasure you need and long for not in the outside world, but rather in your own depths.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Among his many accomplishments, Scorpio rapper Drake is an inventive rhymer. In his song “Diplomatic Immunity,” he rhymes “sacred temple” with “stencil.” Brilliant! Other rhymes: “statistics” with “ballistics”; “Treaty of Versailles” with “no cease and desist in I”; and—my favorite—“Al Jazeera” (the Qatar-based news source) with “Shakira” (the Colombian singer). According to my analysis of the astrological omens in 2020, many of you Scorpios will have Drake-style skill at mixing and blending seemingly disparate elements. I bet you’ll also be good at connecting influences that belong together but have never been able to combine before.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Sagittarian poet Rainer Maria Rilke (1875–1926) embodied a trait that many astrology textbooks suggest is common to the Sagittarian tribe: wanderlust. He was born in Prague but traveled widely throughout Europe and Russia. If there were a Guinness World Records’ category for “Time Spent as a Houseguest,” Rilke might hold it. There was a four-year period when he lived at 50 different addresses. I’m going to be bold here and hypothesize that 2020 will not be one of those years when you would benefit from being like Rilke. In fact, I hope you’ll seek out more stability and security than usual.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): The 15th-century Italian metalworker Lorenzo Ghiberti worked for 28 years to turn the Doors of the Florence Baptistry into a massive work of art. He used bronze to create numerous scenes from the Bible. His fellow artist Michelangelo was so impressed that he said Ghiberti’s doors could have served as “The Gates of Paradise.” I offer Ghiberti as inspiration for your life in 2020, Capricorn. I think you’ll be capable of beginning a masterwork that could take quite some time to complete and serve as your very own “gate to paradise”—in other words, an engaging project and delightful accomplishment that will make you feel your life is eminently meaningful and worthwhile.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): You’re wise to cultivate a degree of skepticism and even contrariness. Like all of us, your abilities to say no to detrimental influences and to criticize bad things are key to your mental health. On the other hand, it’s a smart idea to keep checking yourself for irrelevant, gratuitous skepticism and contrariness. You have a sacred duty to maintain just the amount you need, but no more—even as you foster a vigorous reservoir of receptivity, optimism and generosity. And guess what? Your 2020 will be an excellent time to make this a cornerstone habit.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Dante Alighieri (1265–1321) finished writing The Divine Comedy in 1320. Today it’s considered one of the supreme literary accomplishments in the Italian language and a classic of world literature. But no one ever read the entire work in the English language until 1802, when it was translated for the first time. Let’s invoke this as a metaphor for your life in the coming months, Pisces. According to my visions, a resource or influence that has previously been inaccessible to you will finally arrive in a form you can understand and use. Some wisdom that has been untranslatable or unreadable will at last be available.

Homework: Your imagination is the single most important asset you possess. What can you do to ensure it serves you well and doesn’t drive you crazy?

Twelve Holy Days, Following the Star: Risa’s Stars Dec. 26-31

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Twelve Holy Days, Following the Star: Risa’s Stars Dec. 26-31

We are deep in the heart of Hanukkah, Christmas (solar eclipse; the old passes away) and the Festival of the New Group of World Servers (festivalweek.org). Powerful solstice radiations continue to sweep the Earth through the Twelfth Night (Jan. 6), when the Three Astrologer Kings, bearing (spiritual) gifts, discover the Holy Child (the soul of humanity). We too journey with the Three Magi Kings, walking from east to west, seeking the stable, the holy child, the new light for the world, and following a star. Each of the days after Christmas, 12 days, embrace the spiritual heart of the new year to come. 

These 12 days after Christmas are called the Twelve Holy Days, where 12 zodiacal forces are released to Earth. Each sign projects a cosmic pattern into the world, and a task to be completed in the coming year. Each of the signs is correlated to 12 spiritual centers and forces in our bodies. Contemplating one sign (Aries to Pisces) each day, we prepare for the new year and come close to Lords of each sign. They communicate with us. 

Contemplate the signs: Aries (26th) head, “Behold I make all things new”; Taurus (27th) constancy, illumined mind, throat, humility, “The creative word is sent forth”; Gemini (28th), hands (healing, benediction), duality; Mercury (messenger); Venus (intelligent love), “Be still”; Cancer (29th), cosmic mother, home, stomach/solar plexus cherubim, the moon (memory), “I build a lighted house;” Leo (30th), heart, creativity, power of love, the Royal Way. “Love fulfills the Law;” Virgo (31st), world mother, Mary holding a sheaf of wheat (star Spica), purity (a Soul power), life of service, “I am the Mother and Child, I God, I matter, Am;” (Libra – Pisces) continue on my Facebook page and website. Peace on Earth, goodwill to all. Love, Risa.

ARIES: During the holy days (Dec. 26-Jan. 6), after tending with joy and care to family, we begin to plan, create goals and agendas for our new work in the world. Jupiter, the beneficent, gives Aries the needed focus upon career, profession and work in the world. Whatever work and responsibilities you assume, prosperity and opportunity are significant. Remember also, in all that you do, to radiate Goodwill (to all).

TAURUS: It is a good thing to take up short and long-distance travel to areas and people you’ve never seen before. This is a vital time of learning and then teaching; a time of experiencing different people, places and cultures that allow for new thinking to occur. It would be good to take up archery or horseback riding. These create in one a flexibility fluidity. Beliefs will change. Adaptation becomes most important. 

GEMINI: The Christmas season presents us with great mysteries. Actually, the entire year is a mystery (school), which is why we’re here on Earth. When we study the Ageless Wisdom teachings, we learn how we arrived here, why, how to return to our original home, and who our teachers are. We have forgotten our history. You are the keeper of information. I suggest you once again take up the Mysteries and explore them to see if you are ready to follow the path they summon you to. 

CANCER: This week of holidays and holy days, you’ll reach out, seeking company, companionship and friendship. A deep closeness results, which you have been seeking. You will also understand what it means to have harmony with others, which you also seek. Promise yourself that you will not betray anyone emotionally. Think on this. Turning back into your crab shell can make others feel lost and abandoned. Blessings in disguise will begin to occur. 

LEO: As your daily work increases, include as a priority working on your health and well-being, diet, exercise, and the restriction of stress and worry. Your happiness depends upon this. Happiness is the daily life personality. But Leos seek joy, which is a Soul quality. Joy emerges from the heart of the sun. Joy is what the birth of the Holy Child brought to humanity and the Earth. This year, begin to take pride in all your endeavors. Bring joy to your work. It will respond in life.

VIRGO: You may not consider yourself creative or artistic, thinking your detail and need for perfection (there is none; there is only “good enough”) keeps you from more aesthetic arts. But actually, you are artistic and creative, and soon this will be so apparent you’ll have to choose among the many projects available. You will be like a happy child who knows their work is good (enough). And so it is. More play is what you need.

LIBRA: Be still and allow any changes to take place that are taking place. Allow them to pass. Remain poised. Focus on what you love and care for, and what/who loves you. Much may shift and change at home. You may buy or sell property, someone (a child, a mother, an elder, a friend) may begin to live with you, or you will choose to live alone. Living with parents provides the time needed to correct relationships before death, the next adventure, spirits them happily away.  

SCORPIO: You notice your community seems more vital, alive and inviting. You realize it contains interesting information, and you visit different areas and neighborhoods and realize how important where you live is. You give thanks for the services, amenities, facilities, and people that serve you. Yes, they serve you. And then you give back, tithing, working, creating new relationships, and your heart expands in proportion. It’s joy, and hark! The angels are singing about it!

SAGITTARIUS: Whereas you always wondered what you value and how to use money resourcefully, you’ll soon begin to just enjoy life consciously. Your appreciation for the Earth will at times feel like happiness enfolded in joy. You recognize you’re here on this beautiful planet along with everyone else, all doing their psychological karmic work. Money situations ease up, and opportunities you didn’t expect (but hoped for) materialize. Be grateful for everything. Be one of the Magi. Which one would you choose to be? With what gift?

CAPRICORN: You’ve actually become the king/queen of the zodiac as so many things come your way, all of which you deserve, like personal self-esteem and success, attainting goals, feeling loved. Most importantly, your feelings of not being enough are gradually vanishing. Know that decisions you make professionally are correct. Reach for the sky in all matters. You have many skills and opportunities. They are like stars hanging from the sky waiting to be gathered. Follow Polaris.

AQUARIUS: Optimism has begun to wrap itself around you like a cloak, shielding you from past challenges; healing you physically, emotionally and mentally; expanding your dreams to do what you know must do; and helping you know the truth about yourself—that you are insightful, a futurist, an excellent writer and thinker, a scientist (occult), a poet, a finder, an artist, and very lucky, because eventually all your needs are met. You are grateful. With all your gifts, you turn, recognize and serve those in need. 

PISCES: You’ve been thinking about how to expand your social circle, but you realize that to feel comfort and safety, others must understand and act within the new Aquarian Laws and Principles. Have you noticed that when children look at you, they smile? What is it they see? Is it your light, perplexedness, your humility, your grace, your pure spirit? Know that you are not alone. Know also that you must ask for what you want and need. Ask and ask and ask. Obstacles will be removed. The light of the holy season shines upon you.

Tammi Brown and All the Things We Are

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Tammi Brown and All the Things We Are

A 4-year-old girl sits in the dark of the walk-in closet, pressed tightly against her mother and her aunt. The two women and the child are trying to keep quiet, but that task is made all the more difficult by the portable radio they have with them, which is pouring out the bounty of post-Motown black pop music of the ’70s: soul, funk, R&B, jazz.

This little rendezvous in the closet carries a bit of an illicit thrill, and the girl can feel it. Her father, a devout man of god, would strongly disapprove of what was going on there. He loved music—40 years later, his daughter would say that he had a beautifully supple singing voice not unlike Nat King Cole’s. But in his mind, music was either in the service of heaven or of hell. Whatever was coming out of that radio was surely the devil’s work.

“My dad didn’t want secular music in the house,” says Tammi Brown, that wide-eyed girl in the closet. “But my mom and my aunt were like, ‘Aw, hell, no. She has to have this music.’ And I would just absorb it like a sponge.”

Brown’s stories about her childhood are much like this, her earliest memories shaped against the backdrop of a rich musical life. In fact, her mother and her aunt weren’t the only ones in the family undermining her father’s prohibition of godless music.

Around the same time, a great-uncle took an interest in the child’s obvious musical abilities. “He kind of stopped me one day when I was visiting my great grandmother, and said, ‘Let’s see if you can sing something like this.’” Then, he put on an Ella Fitzgerald recording of the old Jerome Kern song “All the Things You Are.”

In 2019, a lifetime later, Brown found herself in a recording studio, again singing “All the Things You Are,” a song that is as deeply in her bones as any other. The Santa Cruz-based singer is part of an ambitious jazz collaboration with Oakland lyricist Albert Greenberg and composer Dan Zemelman titled The Lost American Jazzbook. The theme of the album is the creation of new, original songs to revive the canon of American jazz standards, to shake off the nostalgia inherent in the term “jazz standards” and make new songs for new circumstances.

And yet, in a project laser-focused on new material, Brown is recording a song she first learned at 4 years old.

“It’s on the album because Albert heard me sing it,” says Brown.

“Every 4-year-old in the country should be singing that song,” says Greenberg.

A NEW STANDARD

Taxonomy of Pleasure: The Lost American Jazzbook II was released last August with a memorable performance at Yoshi’s in Oakland. Of the album’s nine tracks, seven are new originals, the exceptions being the Kern song and a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues.”

Jazz standards, often defined as “The Great American Songbook,” make up a beloved legacy of American music. But they are almost always associated with the past. 

Greenberg is a veteran of music and theater, as well as the co-director of the Oakland nonprofit Black Swan, which produces experimental and socially conscious performance art. He rebels against the idea that all the great jazz standards have already been written. He took it upon himself to add to the canon.

“I did it because I just got tired of hearing ‘My Funny Valentine,’” he says.

The Jazzbook concept predates Greenberg’s first encounter with Brown. The first album in the series was released in 2014 with a different singer. And though it was met with some acclaim (including Jazz Vocal Album of the Year at the Independent Music Awards), the project stalled because the collaboration wasn’t quite what the composers expected.

Greenberg and Zemelman spent two years looking for a vocalist to continue the Jazzbook series. Greenberg called up Bay Area musical legend Linda Tillery to measure her interest in taking on the project. Tillery declined, but pointed to her friend Tammi Brown, a member of Tillery’s Cultural Heritage Choir, who was hiding in plain sight down in Santa Cruz.

“I just felt tapped out of names at the time,” says pianist Zemelman. “I know almost all of the musicians in the Bay Area, but Santa Cruz, honestly, is kind of like another world. It doesn’t always cross-pollinate.”

For 20 years, Brown has been one of the most prominent faces on the Santa Cruz music scene. She has performed in a variety of venues in everything from formal concerts to fundraisers. She was nominated for a Grammy for her work with jazz guitarist Stanley Jordan (who guests on Taxonomy of Pleasure), and she has performed alongside such giants as Maya Angelou, Joan Baez and Quincy Jones.

Still, to Greenberg and Zemelman, she was a revelation.

“We just couldn’t move forward until Tammi came along,” says Zemelman. “And then, all of a sudden, she was the missing component that we needed, which was a phenomenal front person. Tammi did so many things. She’s super charismatic and an amazing singer. She knows how to woo an audience, plus she has business savvy and lots of connections. All of her talents put together felt like a superpower.”

As a vocalist, Brown finds the wistful soul behind such songs as “Without You” and “Free Fall,” the latter a graceful piano ballad in which she pronounces at the beginning the definition of the melancholic, uniquely Brazilian concept of saudade as “the presence of absence.”

Elsewhere, though, she makes a bold step in adventure. The cover of the Dylan song—known for its timeless line, “You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows”—was combined with a melody cribbed from another inscrutable genius, pianist Thelonious Monk.

“There are so many words,” says Brown of the Dylan song. “You have to really watch your breathing. I had to get to the gym so I’d have the stamina for that one.”

CROSSING THE LINE

“Swank in the Night” is the most provocative song on the record, a cheeky testament to the African-American’s experience that opens with the hot-button line, “I want to make white people happy/ I want to make white people gay/ Not in some LGBTQ kind of way/ More in a James Baldwin sort of way.”

“At first, I was uncomfortable when I read the lyrics,” Brown admits. “I was like, ‘You guys understand I am black, right? You want me to sing this in a roomful of people?’”

As the song’s writer, Greenberg says the lyrics reflect a cultural void.“We live in such crude times,” he says. “I wanted to talk about the endless crudeness of our culture. It’s now gotten to the White House, so it’s as if it’s lost its potency. It’s not that it’s always wrong. It’s that it’s empty.”

Brown took on the song by researching the work of mid-century black writer Baldwin in order to find a voice of black resistance that all people could understand.

Race consciousness is an ongoing journey for Brown, who grew up in the predominantly white Peninsula community of Los Altos Hills, where she was often one of maybe two or three black students in her entire school. At the same time, she had a strong connection through her family with predominantly black churches in the East Bay.

But her parents never instructed her on the civil rights struggle. “I didn’t even know about slavery until junior high school,” she says. She had to confront race as a young girl through music. She grew up with the upbeat and buoyant black gospel of Kirk Franklin and Walter Hawkins.

“My immediate family, they weren’t telling us anything about slavery,” she says. “So as a little kid (in church), I didn’t really understand all the moaning and travailing up on the altar. All that stuff seemed crazy and ridiculous, and it wasn’t my favorite part of the service. I didn’t understand it because I didn’t know where it came from.”

What she did understand was the clear demarcation line her father had drawn between the godly and the secular. Brown’s aunt, the one who shared her love of music in the walk-in closet, was an accomplished singer who even opened once for Sammy Davis Jr. “She grew up in the church,” says Brown, “but she sang secular music. So in the eyes of the church, she was going to hell, and she was never asked to sing at the church.”

Still, the girl was entranced by secular music. She remained deeply tied to her gospel. But she was also a kid, and like many others, fell in love with pop music.

“My whole life and ambition was to be Chaka Khan,” Brown says of the charismatic front woman of 1970s funk band Rufus. “I loved the power of Chaka Khan. That’s who I wanted to be.” At the same time, through her church, she got to see some of the big names of the era—Peabo Bryson, Cissy Houston—up close singing at church conventions.

Her father’s efforts to fight against secular music backfired. “My dad would turn on Mahalia Jackson to chase away the demons,” she says. “So when I heard Mahalia Jackson, I knew that that’s not good. She’s trying to chase away demons in us.”

Brown’s mother, herself a fine singer and piano player, was Brown’s link to the greater world outside the church. But when Tammi was 14, her mother died. “Everything fell apart,” she says. “My dad remarried someone else. None of us ever really recovered from that.”

Brown discovered Santa Cruz in the 1990s, when she began to sing with the late Sista Monica Parker’s band the Essentials. Parker, who died of cancer in 2014, had a similar orientation to African-American music, embracing both Saturday night secular music and Sunday morning gospel (Parker’s love always followed the blues, while Brown is more comfortable with jazz).

Since then, Brown has made Santa Cruz home, and she’s become a touchstone of the local music community, rarely saying no to a local performance, while at the same time trying to reach beyond Santa Cruz to make a living as a musician. (The old family dynamic persists; a few years ago, when Brown was performing with Stanley Jordan at Yoshi’s, her father, now in his 80s, made a rare appearance at the show. According to Tammi, after the show, her father said to her, “All these people are going to hell, and you’re leading the way.”)

DELIVERANCE

Taxonomy of Pleasure represents a new triumph in Brown’s career. She’s found two collaborators in Greenberg and Zemelman who see her versatility and appreciate her chops. She’s engaged in creative, even risky material. The three collaborators said that 2020 will mark another go at a recording of original material in the jazz standards idiom, with probably another performance at Yoshi’s.

“We think we can get this stuff into the concert world,” says Greenberg. Wherever it takes him, Greenberg says he wants to do it alongside Brown. “We were rehearsing a tune not too long ago,” he says. “I’m in Oakland. She had come from two hours away. She had a session the night before, a rehearsal before she came, and she had another rehearsal to go to later. She was just exhausted. But she comes in, and right when the music started, she just goes there. She really is an artist.”

For Brown, the ability to engage with music comes from the seeds planted in church pews, as well as in her mother’s walk-in closet.

“Anything I sing is going to come from inside my heart,” she says. “Even when I was a little kid, music was a source of healing, a source of deliverance, a source of power. When I was little, a woman named Tramaine Hawkins came to our church. It was the most beautiful and powerful thing I had ever heard, and I told my mom, ‘I want to sing like that.’ And she said to me, ‘All you have to do is open your mouth and let God.’ And days on end, I was walking around the house with my mouth open, saying to my mom, ‘When’s God going to send it out?’ And I learned then, that when you create sounds, he’ll take over.”

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