Free Will astrology for the week of October 11, 2017.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): In his book The Logic of Failure, Dietrich Dorner discusses the visionaries who built the Aswan Dam in Egypt. Their efforts brought an abundance of cheap electricity to millions of people. But the planners didn’t take into account some of the important effects of their innovation. For example, the Nile River below the dam no longer flooded its banks or fertilized the surrounding land every year. As a result, farmers had to resort to chemical fertilizers at great expense. Water pollution increased. Marine life suffered because of the river’s diminished nutrients. I hope this thought will motivate you to carefully think through the possible consequences of decisions you’re contemplating. I guarantee that you can avoid the logic of failure and instead implement the logic of success. But to do so, you’ll have to temporarily resist the momentum that has been carrying you along. You’ll have to override the impatient longing for resolution.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Are you primed to seek out new colleagues and strengthen your existing alliances? Are you curious about what it would take to infuse your best partnerships with maximum emotional intelligence? From an astrological perspective, the next nine weeks will be a favorable time to do these things. You will have opportunities to deepen your engagement with collaborators who cultivate integrity and communicate effectively. It’s possible you may feel shy about pursuing at least one of the potential new connections. But I urge you to press ahead anyway. Though you may be less ripe than they are, their influence will have a catalytic effect on you, sparking you to develop at an accelerated rate.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): “I was satisfied with haiku until I met you,” Dean Young tells a new lover in his poem “Changing Genres.” But Young goes on to say that he’s no longer content with that terse genre. “Now I want a Russian novel,” he proclaims, “a 50-page description of you sleeping, another 75 of what you think staring out a window.” He yearns for a story line about “a fallen nest, speckled eggs somehow uncrushed, the sled outracing the wolves on the steppes, the huge glittering ball where all that matters is a kiss at the end of a dark hall.” I bring Young’s meditations to your attention, Gemini, because I suspect that you, too, are primed to move into a more expansive genre with a more sumptuous plot.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Statistical evidence suggests that Fridays falling on the 13th of the month are safer than other Fridays. The numbers of fires and traffic accidents are lower then, for example. I find this interesting in light of your current situation. According to my analysis, this October’s Friday the 13th marks a turning point in your ongoing efforts to cultivate stability and security. On this day, as well as the seven days before and seven days after, you should receive especially helpful clues about the future work you can do to feel even safer and more protected than you already do.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Too much propaganda and not enough real information are circulating through your personal sphere. You’re tempted to traffic in stories that are rooted more in fear than insight. Gossip and hype and delusion are crowding out useful facts. No wonder it’s a challenge for you to sort out the truths from the half-truths! But I predict that you will thrive anyway. You’ll discover helpful clues lodged in the barrage of bunkum. You’ll pluck pithy revelations from amidst the distracting ramblings. Somehow you will manage to be both extra sensitive and super-discriminating.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): A journalist named Jenkin Lloyd Jones coined the term “Afghanistanism,” which he defined as “concentrating on problems in distant parts of the world while ignoring controversial local issues.” I want to urge you Virgos to avoid engaging in a personal version of Afghanistanism. In other words, focus on issues that are close at hand, even if they seem sticky or prickly. Don’t you dare let your attention get consumed by the dreamy distractions of faraway places and times. For the foreseeable future, the best use of your energy is HERE and NOW.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): “I am more interested in human beings than in writing,” said author Anais Nin, “more interested in lovemaking than in writing, more interested in living than in writing. More interested in becoming a work of art than in creating one.” I invite you to adopt that perspective as your own for the next twelve months, Libra. During this upcoming chapter of your story, you can generate long-lasting upgrades if you regard your life as a gorgeous masterpiece worthy of your highest craftsmanship.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Scorpio actress Tara Reid told the magazine *Us Weekly* about how her cosmetic surgeries had made her look worse than she had been in her natural state. “I’ll never be perfect again,” she mourned. I bring this up in the hope that it will inspire you. In my astrological opinion, you’re at a tuning point when it’s crucial to appreciate and foster everything about yourself that’s natural and innate and soulfully authentic. Don’t fall sway to artificial notions about how you could be more perfect than you already are.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): I didn’t go to work today. I woke up late, lingered over a leisurely breakfast, and enjoyed a long walk in the autumn woods. When I found a spot that filled me with a wild sense of peace, I asked my gut wisdom what I should advise you Sagittarians to attend to. And my gut wisdom told me that you should temporarily escape at least one of your duties for at least three days. (Escaping two duties for four days would be even better.) My gut wisdom also suggested that you get extra sleep, enjoy leisurely meals, and go on long walks to spots that fill you with a wild sense of peace. There you should consult your gut wisdom about your top dilemmas.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): A snail climbed to the top of a big turtle’s shell as it was sleeping under a bush. When the turtle awoke and began to lumber away in search of food, the snail was at first alarmed but eventually thrilled by how fast they were going and how far they were able to travel. “Wheeee!”, the snail thought to itself. I suspect, Capricorn, that this little tale is a useful metaphor for what you can look forward to in the coming weeks.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): “If these years have taught me anything, it is this,” wrote novelist Junot Díaz. “You can never run away. Not ever. The only way out is in.” That’s your plucky wisdom for the coming weeks, Aquarius. You have arrived at a pivotal phase in your life cycle when you can’t achieve liberation by fleeing, avoiding, or ignoring. To commune with the only kind of freedom that matters, you must head directly into the heart of the commotion. You’ve got to feel all the feelings stirred up by the truths that rile you up.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): J. Allan Hobson is a scientist of sleep who does research at Harvard. He says we dream all the time, not just at night. Our subconscious minds never stop churning out streams of images. During the waking hours, though, our conscious minds operate at such intensity that the lower-level flow mostly stays subliminal. At least that’s the normal state of affairs. But I suspect your dream-generator is running so hot right now that its stories may leak into your waking awareness. This could be disconcerting. Without the tips I’m giving you here, you might worry you were going daft. Now that you know, I hope you’ll tap into the undercurrent to glean some useful intuitions. A word to the wise: The information that pops up won’t be logical or rational. It will be lyrical and symbolic, like dreams.
Homework: How could you change yourself in order to get more of the love you want? Testify by going to RealAstrology.com and clicking on “Email Rob.”
On the morning that surfers paddled out to honor Jack O’Neill, it quickly became obvious that the turnout would match the outsize legacy of the legendary wetsuit innovator, who had passed away at age 94. A huge crowd of a couple thousand surfers gathered, forming a circle in the waters off 38th Avenue on Sunday, July 9.
O’Neill’s former trainer Rocky Snyder looked on from the Team O’Neill catamaran nearby, and, during his quick remarks, proudly yelled into a microphone that attendees had “shattered” the world record for the biggest paddle out ever, a record set by surf enthusiasts from none other than Huntington Beach—Santa Cruz’s arch-rival in the surfing world—just a few weeks prior. Huntington Beach’s number for its paddle was 511 surfers. Huntington Beach’s attempt, sure enough, was good enough for Guinness World Records. But it was still only one fourth, at most, of what Santa Cruz would draw a few weeks later.
Someone at O’Neill Wetsuits did officially submit the Santa Cruz event for the Guinness record too, says Brian Kilpatrick, the vice president of marketing, although he can’t remember who sent it off. Regardless, the amusing chain of events surrounding the effort might just push this old rivalry between two cities that both proudly claim to be “Surf City” to new heights.
Down in Huntington Beach in June, the executive director of the local surfing museum there had organized a paddle out to celebrate the sport’s induction into the 2020 Summer Olympics. (Organizers also hoped that the stunt might help the city secure the honor of hosting the event when the summer games eventually come to Los Angeles.) Committed paddlers had floated around for hours in the water, trying to join hands in one full circle. Holding hands, after all, is a customary part of paddle-out protocol.
But hand-holding is more difficult for a larger swarm, like the one of 3,000 or so that gathered in Santa Cruz a month later. Some Team O’Neill organizers, riding surfboards and personal watercrafts, tried to get paddlers to all join together, but it quickly became obvious that such efforts were futile.
In the days after the Santa Cruz paddle, Guinness World Records spokesperson Sofia Rocher told GT that it could take up to 12 weeks to respond. As of Sunday, Oct. 8, though, it’s been 13 weeks. So we followed up with Rocher and asked: What gives? Were the Guinness bosses in the middle of a drunken argument about Californians and hand-holding? Were judges scouring the Encyclopedia of Surfing and pondering the true definition of the term “paddle out?”
Demurring, Rocher responded that she was “unable to confirm whether or not there have been issues with the evidence received.”
Hmmm, we didn’t ask about evidence. But since Rocher brought it up, we had to wonder if there was a problem with the evidence submitted by someone at O’Neill.
Kilpatrick tells GT that originally the team had been excited to go for the record while planning the paddle. But then it became clear that Guinness would want each surfer tagged with a number and even have organizers keep track of every surfer who went in or out the water that day—all things that Huntington Beach organizers did at their event. “At a certain point, it was like ‘Let’s forget it,’” Kilpatrick remembers. “We’re not trying to break a record, we’re trying to honor Jack.”
Fair enough. Still, one would think there’s plenty of proof that Santa Cruz demolished the record, given that there are dozens of high-res photos of the Pleasure Point paddle, but apparently, photographic evidence is no longer an accurate way to measure crowd size. (Seriously, though, who the heck is in charge of record-keeping over at Guinness—Sean freakin’ Spicer?)
Kilpatrick grew up in Santa Cruz, often known to locals as “Surf City.” He admits that it was tempting to hunt down a surf record set by Huntington Beach, where the visitors bureau officially trademarked the term “Surf City, USA” and eventually went so far as to famously sue a shop on the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf over the store’s “Surf City” T-shirts.
“But that’s neither here nor there,” Kilpatrick says.
More to the point, we can’t blame So Cal wannabes for their obvious superiority—at least when it comes to shamelessly seeking validation. Heck, if Santa Cruz had crappy waves, we would probably be indoors chasing records and trademarks, too.
I have mentioned often circadian rhythms often in my columns, website and Facebook. These are the rhythms of light and dark, sun and moon, the seasonal rhythms, new and full moon rhythms, etc. Last week three scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in medicine for their work in circadian biology, the field of science dedicated to the 24-hour internal clock on which our bodies run. This 24-hour cycle determines and controls everything in our lives, internally and externally. It’s about biological rhythms, synchronized to Earth’s revolutions around the Sun and light from the heavens—from Sun, moon and stars.
Following each season’s rhythms is part of circadian rhythm, foundation for year-round health. Each season calls for different types of food for our body’s balance and well-being. Foods for the Autumn season, under the Ayurvedic dosha (energy) of Vata (air, wind, sky, clouds) are to be substantial and nourishing, high in protein and ghee (clarified butter), hot (not cool) foods made with stimulating spices. These keep our inner organs moist (Vata is air) and our minds and emotions anchored in the practical. We reduce summery cool, cold raw foods.
Autumn (Vata) calls us to begin consistent daily rhythms and routines, following the changes in light (circadian rhythms). To have silence, stillness and peace in the early hours of the day. Using specific fragrances—vetiver, geranium and citrus essential oils. We wear autumn colors of red, golden yellow and orange. Asleep by 10 p.m. we rise at dawn, listen to bird calls while standing in the rising morning light of the sun.
ARIES: The season has changed and so must our health regimes, our diets, the ways we exercise and how we plan our day. As Autumn begins it’s good to think along new lines, preparing for the coming changes in light, color, sun and shadows. All of these are reflected in our fall and winter festivals. The seasonal changes are reflected within ourselves, too. Relationships need extra tending so everyone doesn’t feel isolated, cold, alone, withdrawn, and left out.
TAURUS: It’s good to be out and about, learning new things, attending lectures, classes, gathering information. Or, perhaps creating and teaching a class yourself. Always in your life your task has been to illumine the minds of humanity, a serious and disciplined task. It would be good to consider what would be playful, bring enjoyment, fun and a calling forth your lightness and spontaneity? Perhaps you need to swim in a warm natural pool.
GEMINI: What constitutes family to you, whether biological, friend, group (esoteric?), colleagues, etc.? Family matters more and more even if you tend to reject that thought. Something’s not complete with someone. What would that be? With whom? Listening to others until you understand the essential message is an important Gemini goal. All of this brings love forth—your spiritual task.
CANCER: Make contact. These two words have a depth most don’t understand. Making contact releases Love. But it must be true, authentic and intentional contact. It must be from the heart, connecting heart to heart, Soul-to-Soul. The results are that Love being released creates liberation for everyone. You are the one to begin this process. Do this ceaselessly, quietly, with heartfelt intention of contact with all kingdoms.
LEO: There’s a sense that you must create a new plan concerning finances and resources. When this is accomplished, a new state of values will come forth. You may want to communicate more deeply with those close to you, sharing with them your values, asking what values they hold. Seek to know the values held in common. The questions about values have to do with what your desires and aspirations are for the future. Do you know?
VIRGO: You will want to come out of the shadows and into a greater light. Standing in shadows, perhaps in the shadow of another, is comfortable for you. However, there comes a time when we each must define ourselves, become a sovereign individual, recognize our own self-identity, understand what we initiate, realize that we’re responsible, summon our confidence, and seek a new support system. Am I speaking to Virgo or Pisces? Both. For each is the shadow of the other.
LIBRA: As I prepared the garden for autumn I gathered together a sheaf of wheat. The Virgo symbol of nourishment for humanity. I thought of Libra, and what nourishes them—relationships, beauty, friends, equilibrium, balance, love, sacrifice, art. It’s the art of the wheat sheaf that caught my eye and I thought Librans must get back to their art in whatever form interests them. Some paint, some have galleries, some are collectors. What is your art form? It’s calling you.
SCORPIO: Do you sense with restlessness that there’s a group that belongs to you, and yet somehow you can’t find it? As you search for those like-minded who belong to you, assess what gifts you would offer them, and in turn, to the world. Your gifts and talents continue to develop. Summon patience. Speak with love to those close to you. Ask for their visions and goals. Synthesize everyone’s.
SAGITTARIUS: Saturn has been in Sag for several years now. He has called for a perfect execution of your work. With Saturn’s direction, new structures and new dimensions have been given, resulting in new thoughts flowing through your mind. You’re being impressed with ideas that become ideals for humanity. Share your ideas with others who will assist you. Diplomacy is paramount.
CAPRICORN: What will you do this autumn? How will you reflect the autumn season in your home? Is the world calling to you with new ideas, new creativity? You are being prepared within for something new to emerge in the near future. Perhaps it’s a course of study, something you want (or need) to learn, somewhere to visit, travel to, discover? Is there something you want to say to someone far away? Many things professional come your way.
AQUARIUS: Take extra care with and tend carefully to your money, valuables and resources. Create a place of safety for your money. Know what is coming in and going out. Use this time to discover what is needed and what is not. Give away what is not and then give more away. Giving provides you with meaning, a true sense of service and a liberation that allows you to move forward in your life. Will you be travelling?
PISCES: We are to do our best in every place we find ourselves in. Many of us are indecisive these days, sitting on the fence (uncomfortable), unable to decide where we’re going, what to do when we don’t know what to do, how to provide our gifts when opportunities don’t seem to exist. Again, we (especially Pisces at this time) are to work at our best wherever we find ourselves. Relationships need compromise, patience and acceptance. Adaptation liberates us.
“Americans cherish immigration in hindsight, not so much in the present day,” immigration advocate Ali Noorani tells me. Actually, he’s relaying something that Doris Meissner, President Bill Clinton’s Immigration and Naturalized Service commissioner, told him once, but the point is clear: as much as the United States is a nation of immigrants, it is also a nation of people trying to prevent immigration.
That tension is as old as the country itself, Noorani says, but anti-immigration sentiment seemed to reach a fever pitch this past year, culminating in a wave of fear that helped carry President Donald Trump to the White House last fall.
However, Noorani, who was born in Santa Cruz and raised in Salinas, says that anti-immigration rhetoric isn’t the only problem.
The left has gotten more extreme in its positions too, he says, and any concern that many ordinary Americans might express about immigration gets immediately labeled as bigotry. Noorani doesn’t think these two polarized positions represent most Americans’ day-to-day views, which is why he traveled the country and interviewed 60 people, mostly conservatives in positions of power—business owners, farmers, law enforcement officers, church leaders—who are grappling with this issue.
“I think that the majority of Americans live between two poles on this issue,” says Noorani, executive director of the National Immigration Forum and author of There Goes the Neighborhood: How Communities Overcome Prejudice and Meet the Challenge of American Immigration. “One pole is they believe we’re a nation of laws. We need to have secure borders and a strong sense of security. The other pole is to be part of a more compassionate nation.”
Noorani still believes that Americans can make positive changes in how they treat immigrants and integrate them into the fabric of society. It will take an entirely new approach to the ongoing debate, a topic he’ll address at a discussion about his 2017 book at Allterra Solar at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 19.
“As seemingly ugly as things are right now,” says Noorani, who’s based in Washington D.C., “there are a lot of folks of good will who want to find a different way forward. I can’t help but to be optimistic about that.”
Noorani says that while politicians usually never get past their basic talking points, most Americans simply care about how immigration is affecting their communities directly. Some have made compromises, and others are coping with the changing face of their neighborhoods. Noorani never vilifies his subjects, but instead tries to understand their struggle and tend to their concerns.
“There’s one big thing that I learned in the process—that for the majority of Americans, the immigration debate isn’t about politics and policy, it’s about culture and values,” Noorani says. “I think underneath the economic anxieties that people feel come with immigration, is a cultural anxiety, and a fear that the country is changing. What does that mean for them and their children?”
Conversations with police officers revealed that most of them want to develop trust with undocumented immigrants so that all people will feel comfortable reporting crimes. The whole point, Noorani says, is to encourage more civil debates and find areas where all Americans can find common ground.
“I wanted to bring out some of those anxieties and try to understand them a little better,” Noorani says, of his book, “but also try to understand how those anxieties can be addressed. I worked really hard to develop a level of trust with folks.”
Noorani’s optimism isn’t blind, and he says that sometimes it’s “hard to get out of bed every morning and go to work” knowing the challenges he faces every day advocating for immigrants. But looking around at the rest of the world and seeing this as an issue everywhere, he sees aspects of American culture that make for a more positive debate.
“We have institutions to help people integrate in the U.S., to help Americans to understand how things are changing,” Noorani says. “Those institutions are churches, the media, schools. And our institutions have had years of practice doing this. It doesn’t mean it’s perfect or it’s easy. But we’re certainly not starting from scratch.”
Ali Noorani will discuss his new book, ‘There Goes the Neighborhood: How Communities Overcome Prejudice and Meet the Challenge of American Immigration’ at Allterra Solar, at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 19, at 207 McPherson St., Santa Cruz. The event is free. For more information, visit allterrasolar.com or call 425-2608.
Standard nutrition recommendations for a healthier diet usually start with the advice to eat more vegetables and whole grains, and less junk food. But what if the vegetables and whole grains that we are supposed to be eating are actually becoming junk food? The problem sits at the intersection of nutrition and climate change: rising atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) levels are depleting our produce of nutrients, and it could have severe consequences worldwide.
While climate change may occasionally be a controversial topic despite all the scientific evidence, one fact that is undisputed is that atmospheric CO2 levels are historically high and continuing to rise. According to the scientifically renowned Scripps Institute’s Keeling Curve, which measures atmospheric CO2, the latest reading, taken on Oct. 6 at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii, showed that levels are slightly over 400 ppm (parts per million). According to Scripps data, from at least 10,000 years ago up until the mid-1800s, the atmosphere had a pretty stable CO2 level of around 280 ppm. But then the Industrial Revolution really started cooking and about 150 years later, here we sit at 400 ppm—many scientists believe that in the next 50 years levels will reach 550 ppm or more.
Not only a major cause of ocean acidification, which is itself catastrophic to marine ecology, rising CO2 levels may also have drastic effects on land. According to an emerging body of scientific evidence, growing CO2 levels is not only increasing the amount of carbohydrates and sugars in many of our staple crops, but also decreasing their protein and mineral content.
Perhaps the first and still one of the most internationally prominent researchers to look at the problem, mathematical biologist Irakli Loladze, Ph.D., published a paper in 2014 that was a landmark study in the field and examined the link between rising CO2 levels and nutrient levels in plants. His meta-analysis included more than 7,500 observations across 130 species of plants. Results showed that an increase in atmospheric CO2 resulted in not only lower mineral and protein levels in the plants, but also more carbohydrates in the form of starches and sugars.
In 2015, another meta-analysis published in Nature by Dietterich et. al, also demonstrated that elevated CO2 levels resulted in decreased amounts of minerals like zinc, iron, calcium, and potassium in many of our staple crops such as wheat, rice, barley, legumes and potatoes. These studies also found that protein levels dropped significantly in many crops as well. Much of the data gathered in these analyses comes from FACE (free-air carbon dioxide experiment) studies, which compare crops grown under normal and current conditions against a similar nearby crop grown under elevated CO2 levels.
And while the curtain is only now being pulled back on this global phenomenon, when its ripple effects into other already problematic areas are considered, the situation becomes even more concerning. Many people, especially those living in developing nations, consume much of their protein from plants. Rising CO2 levels causing a drop in plant protein levels worldwide would mean hundreds of millions more people at risk for protein malnutrition. The same goes for minerals like iron and zinc, for which worldwide deficiency is already a major problem.
Even in people who often consume enough calories, a type of malnutrition known as “hidden hunger” can still be common because people aren’t getting enough nutrients from plant-based diets lacking in variety. That plants are becoming less nutritive only compounds this problem. That many staple crops are also becoming higher in carbohydrates is worrisome as well, given the fact that scientific evidence links their over-consumption with obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.
While a 2014 meta-analysis published in The British Journal of Nutrition found that organic food was more nutritious than conventionally grown food, both types of crops are “breathing in” the same air, so while buying organic could help get more nutrients into the diet, perhaps it can only go so far.
Perhaps the glimmer of hope in all of this news is that the scientific community is becoming more aware of the problem, and starting to research it thoroughly and look for solutions—such as breeding more nutritional crops that may mitigate the effects of being grown in a CO2-rich environment. Hopefully, a more complete picture of how rising CO2 levels affects the levels of protein, minerals, vitamins and other nutrients in plants will emerge. But at this point, the field of research is in its infancy, and there are far more questions than answers.
There’s good news about Blade Runner 2049. You don’t have to have an encyclopedic knowledge (or memory) of the original Blade Runner to appreciate this 30-years-later sequel to Ridley Scott’s groundbreaking sci-fi epic. The new movie tells its own story, with a (mostly) new cast of characters, although the main plot thrust here was launched in the original. Enough context is provided to make sense to latecomers, while longtime fans will have lots of new fodder for speculation about how it all plays out.
Incoming director Denis Villeneuve (in close collaboration with executive producer Scott), sticks to the original theme of the first film and (more loosely) the Philip K. Dick novel that inspired it: an existential question of the meaning of life when a breed of super-strong, machine-made androids called “replicants” have been created to serve the master race of humans. The movie’s two hours and 43 minutes allow plenty of time to brood, and the issue of what constitutes “real” life is worth pondering. Yet, respect for the miracle of life itself, expressed with such aching eloquence in the original film, never feels quite as profound here.
Still, the movie resonates in its own way as its central mystery evolves. Scripted by Michael Green, from a treatment by original screenwriter Hampton Fancher, 2049 begins with an explanation that the original replicant manufactory has been purchased by a rich industrialist; the newer models are more obedient, less likely to rebel than the earlier renegades. Apparently, they no longer have a four-year expiration date, either. It’s the job of a replicant LAPD cop identified only by the first letter of his serial number, K (Ryan Gosling), to track down older models and “retire” them.
On one such mission, he unearths the bones of a woman who died in childbirth—with a replicant ID. This is a big deal to his tough-cookie boss, Lt. Joshi (Robin Wright), who assigns him to track down the offspring, before the possibility of replicant reproduction “changes everything.” Meanwhile, mad-scientist industrialist Wallace (Jared Leto), searching for the secret of replicant procreation, assigns his ruthless replicant minion, ironically named Luv (a chilling Sylvia Hoeks) to track the tracker.
K is a little daunted. “I’ve never retired something that was born before,” he tells his hologrammatic girlfriend Joi (a very appealing Ana de Armas). Haunted by some troubling “memory implants” of his own, K follows the trail to a community of junkyard scavengers, a scientist in a sterile bubble harvesting human memories for replicant implants, and finally to the secret lair of loner ex-cop Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), holed up in a plush, empty Las Vegas casino since the events of the first film.
It’s great to see Ford revisiting one of his signature roles. His testy, cynical Deckard plays well against Gosling’s smooth aplomb as they become unexpected allies in pursuit of the truth. The visuals are often amazing, with cinematographer Roger Deakins recapturing the perpetually grey, choked, drizzly post-millennial Los Angeles from the original, although there seems to be less neon glitz and even more grunge this time around.
But a few too many replicant vs. replicant slugfests—brutal, but rarely conclusive—slow things down. (In particular the climax, involving a grounded car and a rising tide, goes on forever.) And with so few humans on view (we never experience the master-slave dynamic in the offworld colonies), the sense of humanity as a goal to be striven for feels diluted. In this world, one’s humanity is the silver ticket that distinguishes the classes, but we never feel that profound sense of loss the renegade replicants felt in the first film, battling for their sense of human identity in the face of extinction.
Still, the question of whether organic humanity, born of a life actually lived, is more valid than genuinely human responses provoked by artificial means, remains fascinating. It keeps the Blade Runner franchise among the most literate of anti-superhero sci-fi dramas.
BLADE RUNNER 2049
(***)
With Ryan Gosling, Sylvia Hoeks, Ana de Armas, and Harrison Ford. Written by Hampton Fancher and Michael Green. Directed by Denis Villeneuve. A Warner Bros. release. Rated R. 163 minutes.
Marianne’s Ice Cream is about as Santa Cruz as you can get; they’ve been scooping ice cream for locals since the ’40s. But have you ever wanted to grab a juicy burger with your two scoops? If you’re in Capitola, you can head over to Beach Break by Marianne’s and do just that. Located in the former Village Grill and Creamery building, Marianne’s has rebranded and reimagined everything inside since March of this year. It’s an ongoing process. Charlie Wilcox, who co-owns the Marianne’s brand with Kelly Dillon, told us what locals can expect from this classic diner-style establishment.
Is this is the first Marianne’s to have a grill?
CHARLIE WILCOX: Yes. That location has been serving either Polar Bear or both Polar Bear and Marianne’s since about 1975 or 1977, somewhere around there. The last owner wanted to get out, and we knew the history of the business. It seemed like a good location for us. We felt like there was a good opportunity for quality, easy take-out beach food there in Capitola. It seemed like there was a demand for a quick take-out kind of operation that wasn’t pizza. We greatly simplified the menu from what it had been previously and concentrated on increasing the quality of the ingredients. This is still 50 percent Polar Bear and 50 percent Marianne’s. We actually own Polar Bear as well; the owner of Polar Bear retired, so we bought her out. It’s two different recipes, two different styles of making ice cream. We respect the history of Polar Bear. It’s not just a brand name. They’re actually different ice creams.
How much did you change Village Grill’s menu?
We narrowed it down a little bit. We added a few things. We kept the burgers, but we added our turkey pesto sandwich. We’ve had fun with a couple different types of grilled cheese sandwiches, like comfort take-out food. We’re going to be introducing homemade potato chips. We’re just experimenting with what kind of flavorings we want to do on the chips. That’s something we’re going to be rolling out soon. We basically got our first summer under our belts. We figured out a little bit about what we’re doing. Now we’re going to be having a little more fun with it. We’re working on a program of chef specials over the winter. The ones that are well received we will keep throughout the summer.
Raking around New Leaf for an interesting wine to write about, I came across a Ridge Vineyards red, the Geyserville 2014 ($38).
One of the better-known wineries in California, Ridge’s wines are shipped far and wide, and founder Paul Draper (who announced his retirement last year at the age of 80) is a rock star in the wine industry. An event we attended recently in Washington D.C. included a reception at the St. Regis Hotel, where Ridge Vineyards’ wine was on prominent display.
The 2014 Geyserville was hand-harvested from sustainably grown grapes in Sonoma County’s Alexander Valley, aged in oak barrels, and bottled in January 2016. A blend of Zinfandel, Carignane, Petite Sirah, and Mataro (Mourvedre), the wine’s sensuous flavors support a rich tannin structure. Ridge advises that this “superb vintage” will be enjoyable over the next seven to eight years.
Ridge Vineyards, 17100 Monte Bello Road, Cupertino, 408-867-3233. ridgewine.com. Another winery location is: Ridge Vineyards/Lytton Springs, 650 Lytton Springs Road, Healdsburg, where vineyard tours can be arranged.
Farm-to-Table at the Chaminade
Alfaro Family Vineyards is the featured winery at the last in the series of farm-to-table dinners at Chaminade, with delicious food prepared by Executive Chef Nick Church. The event starts at 6 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 20, and tickets are $110 all-inclusive. Chaminade Resort & Spa, One Chaminade Lane, Santa Cruz, 475-5600. chaminade.com.
California Grill Cancer Fundraiser
Every dollar spent on Saturday, Oct. 14 at the California Grill will go to Jacob’s Heart Children’s Cancer Support Services in Freedom and the Katz Cancer Resource Center at Dominican Hospital in Santa Cruz. By having breakfast, lunch, dinner and drinks you will help fight the battle against cancer. California Grill, 40 Penny Lane, Watsonville. Call 722-8052 to reserve a table. Reservations recommended.
Goose’s Goodies
Marci Prolo, owner and confectioner of Goose’s Goodies, continues to produce her marvelous handmade toffee with exciting new flavors such as White Chocolate, Peanut, and Coconut Curry. I tasted a few samples at the Capitola Art & Wine Festival last month—a totally delicious and decadent treat.
The first time I went out during a Santa Cruz Restaurant Week, I was dead broke. I had just started my second year at UCSC and was surviving on free sandwiches, coffee, and bagels from the coffeehouse on campus that I worked at part-time.
When a friend discovered that for one week a bunch of nice restaurants in town would offer three-course dinners for $25, I scraped together enough cash to go, eager to take a break from my mundane diet and enjoy a nice meal for once.
Although I had been lured out to dinner by a good deal, the experience ended up meaning so much more. For one thing, I had my first gnocchi, which was life-changing in itself. But everything—the excitement of going to a new restaurant for the first time, the thoughtful curation of the menu, the careful attention of the waitstaff, indulging in three courses, and, most importantly, taking the time to share a special meal with friends—left me with a great memory.
Solaire
It’s easy to see why locals flock to participating restaurants during this event each year, but what sometimes goes unnoticed is how much the restaurants look forward to Restaurant Week, too. Not only because their dining rooms are full, but because they can proudly showcase their menu and their place in the dining scene to a legion of new diners. Many in the industry, I found out when I spoke with them, take the opportunity to visit other restaurants to enjoy their special menus as well.
Its timing at the beginning of fall, after most of the tourists have gone home, gives us all an opportunity to get back in touch with our restaurant community by going out, sharing a meal, and celebrating one of the reasons why living here is so special.
I asked each restaurant how they prepared for Santa Cruz Restaurant Week and why it is an important community event. It’s apparent when you read their answers how excited they are to welcome new guests, show returning customers how appreciative they are of their patronage and take part in a countywide celebration of our cuisine.
Why should guests choose your restaurant to visit during Restaurant Week?
“Aquarius is undoubtedly one of the premier dining venues in Santa Cruz for a couple of reasons. The most obvious one being that it is right on Cowell Beach and affords some of the best beach and surf views in Santa Cruz. Secondly, and more importantly, Chef Ken [Drew] is new to the restaurant (since April of this year) and is doing some great food. He is truly
Cafe Mare
passionate about using products from local farms and purveyors. You can often find him at the Farmers Market on Wednesday afternoons. His style of cuisine is truly modern Californian, while he maintains the classical tried and tested culinary arts. The Restaurant Week menu has been designed to showcase his true culinary talents.” — Mark Oza, Director of Food & Beverage at Aquarius at the Dream Inn
“[Back Nine Bar & Grill] is Santa Cruz’s best kept secret, [with] easy access, ample parking and generous portions.” — Michele Costa, General Manager at Back Nine Bar & Grill
“We are a fine dining restaurant and 100 percent Italian. Our chef is from Naples, I’m from Milan and our owner is from Calabria. We love to use local, organic food and serve it in Italian ways, some traditional and some more modern.” — Andrea Gampelli, Manager at Cafe Mare
“At Chocolate, we see Restaurant Week as a time to welcome new customers with the option of a simplified and affordable menu that is inspired by the harvest season. In this way we strive to make the experience more approachable and ultimately more memorable. We put wines by the bottle on special at low prices to make the whole evening as affordable and gratifying as possible. At the same time, we view Restaurant Week as an opportunity to show gratitude toward our regular customers by offering them a fun and special three-course menu at a very affordable price.” — David Jackman, Owner and Chef at Chocolate
“Guests should choose Hindquarter because we don’t come up with cheaper entrée choices just to serve for the Restaurant Week menu. We offer three items that you will find on our everyday menu. You’ll get a choice of salmon, steak or ribs—all prepared with the best ingredients and high standards.” — Laurie Stephens, Manager at Hindquarter Bar & Grill
“We are a great place to visit during Restaurant Week for a number of different reasons. We have a spacious, comfortable
Lillian’s
dining room with beautiful views of our Koi pond and cascading waterfall. We have an awesome Restaurant Week menu, with many delicious items. The best value in town! For example, we will be offering filet mignon and prawns as one of the items. We provide excellent service and a friendly, fun-filled environment. We have a full bar, quality wine and a tasty cocktail selection.” — Jason Iwatsuru, Marketing Director at Severino’s Bar & Grill at Best Western Seacliff Inn
“Guests should choose to visit Solaire for many reasons! In July, we were excited to welcome our brand new executive chef, Aaron Kiefer, who came to us from such showstopping places as the Hard Rock in Palm Springs, the Waldorf Astoria, and the Viceroy Hotel. If you haven’t yet tried his delicious, locally sourced, and beautifully presented food, you must! Also, Hotel Paradox is like an urban oasis—our design and ambience are unique and make the restaurant and hotel property feel like a true in-town destination. Dining poolside in the evening is always a treat, and our cocktail offerings are some of the best in town.” — Elana Solon, Food & Beverage Manager at Solaire Bar & Grill at Hotel Paradox
“The Water Street Grill will provide outstanding service of an exceptional three-course meal at a fixed price. Our restaurant will aim to create an enjoyable, memorable experience and surpass each guest’s expectations. Our staff is looking forward to the opportunity to show Santa Cruz why The Water Street Grill should be added to their list of regularly visited restaurants.” — Jonathan Degeneres, Manager at The Water Street Grill
“Restaurant Week has always been a way for [me] to say “thank you” to our incredible, supportive Santa Cruz community.
Splash!
[I] always go out of [my] way to have the best deal and use the freshest local ingredients. Restaurant Week is our way of telling Santa Cruz how much we love you. It’s a delicious present. Come eat it!” — Arthur Russell, Owner and Chef at Your Place
“October is a beautiful time in Capitola … the skies are clear, the weather is warm and there is plenty of parking. Restaurant Week is a great opportunity for locals to visit the restaurant and experience the peaceful side of Capitola. We have chosen to offer dishes that we have become well known for. Our Wild Alaskan Halibut Baja Tacos and our chile verde are the top-selling items in our restaurant.” — Sarah Orr, Manager at Margaritaville
“Our restaurant has been part of our local community forever. Because it’s a neighborhood place, customers know our staff and staff know our customers. When a new customer comes in, I always encourage the staff to get to know them so they immediately feel at ease and that they’re a part of our community. The next time they come in, we’ll remember who they are and welcome them back.” — Josh Parmelee, Owner at The Point Chophouse & Lounge
“Rosie’s has a great sense of community. It’s a place where you feel welcome. We make all of our food from scratch mostly using ingredients found within 100 miles of our restaurant. I don’t think many people know that. Guests can feel good about where you’re eating and what you’re eating.” — Rico Contreras, General Manager at Rosie McCann’s Irish Pub & Restaurant
What is your approach to your Restaurant Week menu?
“Our Restaurant Week menu celebrates the bounty of the Central Coast, starting with local produce, meat and seafood, then building each dish around the ingredients that are at their peak this time of year. The offerings reflect disparate international influences which come together to form a cohesive vision with each course flowing seamlessly into the next. In addition, Chef Paul Queen and [I] have collaborated to develop a beverage pairing menu with an aperitif cocktail for each appetizer, a beer or wine with each entrée, and a selected sipping spirit to complement each dessert.” — Ethan Samuels, Bar Manager at 515 Kitchen & Cocktails
“Right now we’re going through a fascinating seasonal transition. Our Restaurant Week menu is a celebration of the end of
Chocolate
summer and the beginning of fall. Cherry tomatoes and cannellini beans collide with delicata squash, cider reductions and bourbon pecan jam. It’s a great time to be in the kitchen and to be dining!” — Jessica Yarr, Chef at Assembly
“This year we changed our approach from last year. We decided to do the $25 menu and really increase the value. We have a couple of what I call “lost leaders” on our main menu, really great dishes that sometimes get lost among the favorites, and we decided to feature those on our Restaurant Week menu. It’s a good way for us to showcase what we do here.” — Mike Goss, Manager at Cremer House
“As we do with all of our menus, our Restaurant Week menu is value-priced, still only $25 for three generous-sized courses. Our long-time Executive Chef Jeff Westbrook has so much fun stepping outside the box to create this menu, and his enthusiasm is shared by the servers as they serve these beautiful meals.” — Blaine Neagley, Restaurant Manager at The Crow’s Nest
“We were thinking of bringing back some old favorites for people to try in case they forgot about them. We decided to bring back the trout, and to include slow-cooked baby back ribs because I feel like over the last few years we’ve really perfected the recipe and I want to get the word out about that. We want to remind people that we still make great desserts, with the addition of a warm apple pie with the world’s flakiest, butteriest crust ever.” — Ed Hoffman, Founder at Hoffman’s
The Cremer House
“The approach we took to our Restaurant Week menu was to offer a little something for everyone; we want anyone who dines with us to feel like they have options. We’ve incorporated old favorites and special items for this menu. Having a menu that is inclusive to everyone’s dining preferences is important to us. We have created a menu that will definitely cater to any flavor you are looking for, so come on in and indulge yourself.” — Aileen Garcia, General Manager, and Casey Garcia, Server and Manager at Ristorante Italiano
“We want to offer some of the classics on our menu and some seasonal dishes. It’s a balance of what is always available, what is seasonal and what is more creative and attractive, some dishes that are classic in Italy, but are different. If people are already our customers it’s a good opportunity to come try new items we have on our menu that will be available starting during Restaurant Week.” — Luca Viara, Owner at Tramonti
“We’re lucky enough to work with Swank Farms [in Hollister]—they’re my in-laws. We sat down with Dick and Bonnie Swank to talk about what they would have available. We’ve been using that model through the changing seasons for the last year and a half. We’re talking with our farmers and being inspired about what they have to offer and what they’re proud of. That’s the concept here, that we’re putting together dishes that are seasonally correct, because we believe things taste better in the season that they’re ready.” — Dan Agostinis, Managing Partner at Johnny’s Harborside
Why is Santa Cruz Restaurant Week an important event for the community?
“Restaurant Week is an important event in the community because it gives people the opportunity to experience new and different restaurants and meals that might be out of their comfort zone without creating a financial strain on their pocketbook. This week is the perfect time to create special memories with friends and loved ones while stimulating your taste buds.” — Casey Dakessian, Food & Beverage Coordinator at Chaminade Resort & Spa
Margaritaville
“What we like about this event is that it puts Santa Cruz in the eyes of a lot of people in the Bay Area. It also brings together local people to get to know our local cuisine. I think that’s very important. It makes [the event] not just local, but regional. Restaurant Week gives us a strong connection between our neighbors who live here and the Bay Area.” — Manuel Rangel, Manager at El Jardín
“It works! There’s been an amazing response in the last few years. We do two or three times the normal amount of business on those nights. It’s a nice festive atmosphere. It gets people downtown that don’t normally come out here. A lot of people don’t eat out as much as they should. There’s too many people cooking in Santa Cruz. It’s really a phenomenon how busy it is.” — Paul Cocking, owner at Gabriella Café
“Restaurant Week is a great time to expand your circle of “go-to places.” Everyone has their handful of places that they dine at regularly and sometimes it’s hard to try new things. Restaurant Week is a great time to get out and try somewhere new.” — Hollis Ferguson, General Manager at Hula’s Island Grill
The Water Street Grill
“There are a lot of things going on in the country and people are struggling to find their peace again. There are tough times to get through every day, but food brings people together. There’s so much happiness and joy when they go out and experience a good meal and have fun again. Santa Cruz is like a small community, people come and go. During this week, we come back together again. It’s truly important for us to go out and have fun. This is the most beautiful, tastiest time for tourists, for everyone, even for me. It feels special again, and the customer feels like a star, like they’re very special. It’s a beautiful moment to go out and experience everyone’s creativity.” — Ayoma Wilen, Owner and Chef at Pearl of the Ocean
“People get stuck in the restaurants that they go to. They go to the same places and eat the same dishes, because that’s what they know. Santa Cruz Restaurant Week is an opportunity to get out there and try new things without breaking the bank. You could try two or three restaurants for the amount you’d pay to the one you go to every week. It gets people out of their comfort zone and into new things. If you don’t like it, at least you tried it, and if you do like it now you have a new option. You can get a feel for restaurants at a discount price, but still have a full meal and have a full experience.” — Dustin Miller, Asst. Manager at Splash
“Being in such a seasonal and tourist-based area, Restaurant Week allows restaurants to cater to our own community. As students or parents, eating out can be expensive and Restaurant Week affords individuals who maybe otherwise couldn’t afford the opportunity to enjoy a three-course meal for a reasonable price. At the same time it allows the restaurants an opportunity to remind locals what makes each of us unique and special.” — Jill Ealy, Co-Owner at Zelda’s On The Beach
Hindquarter Bar & Grill
“It refreshes people’s memory about what’s out there, the variety of restaurants available for the locals. We participate because we want the exposure, we want to remind people that we’re here and we’re a great option that’s been added to Santa Cruz.” — Jay Dib, Owner of Mozaic
“The $25 or $35 price point creates an equal playing field to all of the restaurants. It gives all of us as a community an opportunity to go out, know what our budget is and sample the wares of all of the many fine restaurants in the Santa Cruz County area. It’s a great time for us restaurateurs to go out and see what everyone else is doing, too. It’s an exciting time.” — Michael Harrison, owner at Michael’s On Main
“Santa Cruz Restaurant Week allows the chefs of all participating restaurants to take the stage and engage in a bit of lighthearted competition. Plus, a week dedicated to a special menu at a reasonable set price is fantastic for drawing in new clientele who might not normally go into Red! This event also prompts members of the community who would not normally leave the house to get together with friends and reintegrate some positive memories into their lives. We all get wrapped up in the stresses of life, and passing time with loved ones is so crucial. It is medicine for the soul!” — Gannon Akin, Manager at The Red Restaurant & Bar
Where To Go
515 Kitchen & Cocktails
515 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. 425-5051, 515santacruz.com.
Sitting on the concrete steps of 418 Cedar St., John Glenn lights up a cigarette.
Glenn—no relation to the famous astronaut—is spending a Sunday repairing a well-known yellow Victorian that he owns. Black letters, painted high on the wall, read “Dr. Miller’s,” a sign harking back to the structure’s days as a dental office. Glenn and his friend Vic Brooks, a contractor, are working on the building, which was formerly Caffe Pergolesi, the popular downtown café, known for its cheap organic coffee and laid-back vibes, that closed in late August.
Recent months have seen the closures of other high-profile Santa Cruz businesses, as well—Goodwill’s Bargain Barn, Mr. Goodie’s Antiques, Logos Books & Records, Jedzebel, and Seven Bridges Organic Homebrew Supply. When Pergolesi owner Karl Heiman announced that, after 44 years, his café would close for good, it seemed to fit right into the trend—but that didn’t make it any less depressing.
Activist Wes Modes told journalist Bradley Allen—who broke the news about Pergolesi via Facebook—that everyone knew the reason for the closure, saying, “You can no longer afford to live here. You’ve been priced out and so have all your favorite places.”
But Glenn, who owns the property, says he didn’t raise the rent or evict anyone. Glenn claims Heiman wasn’t doing his share of maintenance, and so he offered his tenant a month-to-month rental agreement, which Heiman declined. “It was all in the lease. I don’t want to throw darts, you understand? That’s what I want to put on the record. He wasn’t asked to leave by me,” Glenn says.
Heiman, for his part, says there is no asset value in a business that doesn’t have an annual lease. An 1886 Victorian like the old Pergolesi building requires a lot of upkeep, Heiman says, and he claims that Glenn had been slow to make repairs that the lease required him to make on his end. Both men declined to send GT a copy of their agreement.
Glenn has no timeline for filling the building, which he cannot tear down because it’s listed as historic, and he says he has no idea what kind of business will open there next.
The minutiae is relevant because the demise of this beloved café has come to epitomize, for some locals, an unwelcome shift toward a Santa Cruz that is not even affordable for its longtime businesses and residents.
So if the reality of Pergolesi’s closure is somehow more complicated, what does that say about the narrative surrounding it and the other shuttered businesses? Are the closures really all connected? And if we learn the causes, will anyone be able to do anything about it?
Glenn and Heiman both point to an isolated problem that plagued the old café: the homeless, who would loiter at the corner of Elm and Cedar streets by Pergolesi. Heiman says he was never able to get city councilmembers or the police to do anything about the issue.
Of course, one could still argue that the transient issue is, in fact, connected to increased costs, in a county with both a well-documented housing crisis and a growing homeless population. Heiman says the factors are complex.
“I hate to say the word ‘homeless,’ because there are about 10 different demographics that go into homelessness,” Heiman says. “There’s the family that lost their home. There’s the vet that’s homeless. There are the mentally ill that are homeless. Our problem was just the people who were drunk and would hang out all the time by the café.”
Heiman, who serves on the Think Local First board and still owns Mr. Toots Coffee House in Capitola, says people have been telling him that Santa Cruz will never be the same after the attrition this summer.
“I heard it from another person today,” he says. “A business owner said that everything is changing and going away. I’m sure there are lots of reasons for all of it. I’m just not sure everyone has the same reasons.”
At least on the surface, the reasons for the closures don’t appear to be connected.
The Bargain Barn moved to Salinas, where it tripled its floor space. The owners of Mr. Goodie’s Antiques retired, as did Logos owner John Livingston, reluctantly leaving behind an operation that he says had not been profitable for years. The owner of clothing store Jedzebel did not agree to an interview, nor did the management of Seven Bridges, although it’s been no secret in the brewing community that the cooperative had always been difficult to run, in part because of its commitment to certified organic products.
Another business, the sushi restaurant Mei Garden, closed after selling its Ocean Street property. Next door, its tenant Coffeeville, which had developed a fervent following in less than two years of business, had to move out as well. Coffeeville, Pergolesi and Jedzebel all closed the same day—Sunday, Aug. 27.
It’s possible that if the recent summer seemed bleak for local businesses, that’s because it really was, at least according to Teresa Thomae, the director of the county’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC)—and she doesn’t see things getting better. Thomae says the recent shift in the Santa Cruz economy is more than just a matter of perception, and the threats facing the local economy are real. The underlying trends right now, she says, are increasing rents, mixed with the growing threat that online sales pose to local retail.
“I still think that locally owned small businesses are going to have a place here,” she says. “They always will. But with the reality of what square footage costs, it’s getting harder and harder for anyone with a small business to survive.”
Thomae says that many business-owning baby boomers are looking to retire, and she hopes employees are ready to step up and try to buy local institutions when the time comes, something she wants to facilitate through the SBDC.
Thomae is currently developing a retail outreach program with the Downtown Association and Santa Cruz economic development director Bonnie Lipscomb that will launch in November. Also, retail expert Robert Gibbs will be returning to Santa Cruz at the end of October for a few days, Lipscomb says, to update his 2010 business analysis, on a contract of about $10,000, aiming to provide some guidance.
Meanwhile, more chains have found their way to Santa Cruz. A few blocks north from the old Coffeeville location, a Starbucks opened in July. A few blocks further, a Habit Burger Grill and a Dunkin’ Donuts are on the way.
Coffeeville owner Kendra Mcqueen is currently working with the Watsonville Planning Division to open a new Coffeeville location in the East Lake Village. She looks forward to hopefully opening soon down in Watsonville with Mike Goble, her life and business partner, although she hopes the South County town doesn’t change much.
“It really has a lot of potential. It’s a neat little town,” she says. “Everyone I know from when I grew up who has purchased a house has purchased in the South County. We’re getting priced out—not to diminish what’s already there in Watsonville, because I really value the history and what’s there.”
