Calling all uppity women! If you’re looking for a role model on how to defy the rules and live the life you choose, look no further than Gertrude Bell. Born into a genteel English Victorian family, she carved out her own destiny as historian, traveler, mountain-climber, archeologist, map-maker, author, intelligence operator, and renowned expert on the peoples and politics of the area we now call the Middle East. In her day—the turn of the last century, through World War I and its aftermath—she was known as “the female Lawrence of Arabia.”
The story of Gertrude Lowthian Bell is told in fascinating terms in Letters From Baghdad. Co-directed by Sabine Krayenbuhl and Zeva Oelbaum, this documentary relies on a lifetime of letters and journal entries in which Bell tells her own story as she lived it, with her own words spoken by the film’s co-producer, Tilda Swinton. The filmmakers also present a treasure trove of Bell’s own photographs, snapped during her adventures to exotic locales like the Alps, Tehran, Babylon, Damascus, and Constantinople (among many other places).
In addition to Bell’s personal photographs, the filmmakers use lots of newsreel footage from the era, along with still photos of Bell and her circle. These were mostly British politicians and governors stationed in the area (many of them refer to Bell as their “right-hand man”), among whom Bell established a reputation for her vast experience with the peoples, cultures, and even the language of “Arabia”—and with whom she helped shape the political realities of the region after WWI and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.
Bell emerges as a strong-minded woman constantly tilting against convention and expectation. After taking a First in History in her class at Oxford, she’s shipped off to “the East” by her stepmother, in hopes that exposure to foreign society “might help to get rid of her Oxford-y manner.” (Actors portraying Bell’s various friends, family, and colleagues, filmed in black-and-white, are “interviewed” on screen, speaking words written about Bell by those who knew her.)
After a broken engagement and much more travel, Bell writes a book about Syria, expressing her opposition to the Ottoman Empire. Determined to “penetrate Arabia” by making maps and studying artifacts, Bell lands in Cairo in 1915, working in Intelligence with T. E. Lawrence and archeologist David Hogarth. She was “a wonderful person,” to quote Lawrence in one of the faux interviews. “Not very much like a woman,” he adds. Finding much more common ground with the men in the British diplomatic and political circles she moves in than with their wives, Bell writes to her father back home about how she would have liked the convenience of a wife to keep house for her.
Valued for her extensive knowledge of “inter-tribal relationships,” Bell’s influence reaches its zenith when she’s enlisted to help divide postwar “Arabia” between the British, the French, and the Turks. As explained in the film’s prologue, “The stage was set a century ago for the wars and sectarianism now tearing apart the Middle East.” It becomes Bell’s dubious task to go against four thousand years of history and tradition to try to draw Iraq on a map as a new “political state.”
Ultimately, Bell is disillusioned by the failure after the war to establish an autonomous Arabian state of Mesopotamia; instead, Britain chooses to continue its occupation of the region. (They don’t call themselves conquerors, but “liberators”—and, boy, does that sound familiar.) The Brits’ general cluelessness about governing the region, coupled with their relentless profiteering, is further complicated by the presence of Standard Oil, rearing its reptilian head in collusion with disgruntled Arab rebels in hopes of wresting away oil rights for the U.S.
The thorny issue of how to govern Iraq (and who has the right to do it) continues to play out on the world stage. Letters From Baghdad does not presume to offer any solutions. But it does offer an impressive portrait of a singular woman of her own—or any other—time.
LETTERS FROM BAGHDAD
*** (out of four)
Featuring the voice of Tilda Swinton. A documentary by Zeva Oelbaum and Sabine Krayenbuhl. A Vitagraph Films release. Not rated. 95 minutes.
If a Santa Cruz native and second-generation Italian tells me with absolute conviction that he knows where to get the best calamari in town, it’s in my best interest to at least check it out.
Which is how I find myself sitting at a plastic table at Aldo’s on the west side of the Santa Cruz Harbor, watching the July sun glint off of dozens of gleaming hulls, the marine layer hardly a whisper at the edge of a bluebird sky. My beer is cold, the server is charming, and I occasionally make eye contact with a sea lion shyly swimming between the boats.
While the iconic restaurant at the harbor mouth is being remodeled and the seawall underneath it repaired, Aldo’s continues to host guests just 500 meters north of the original location on an outdoor waterfront lawn between B and D docks. Just steps from the water, there really isn’t a bad seat on the patio. And after a thorough investigation, I can assure you that they definitely know their way around a plate of fried squid.
Calamari, like pizza, burgers and other comfort foods, is a dish that has a tendency to stoke passionate and unresolvable arguments about its ideal preparation. You may disagree, but I want plenty of tentacles. I want an ample amount of crunchy batter to coat tender, never-rubbery squid without sliding off. I will alternate between the cocktail and the tartar sauce, and if you don’t like lemon, then you might as well get your own plate.
And I have to say, my friend was right. The calamari at Aldo’s is some of the best I’ve had in Santa Cruz in the decade that I’ve lived here. Given this historic family’s reputation, I can’t say that I’m at all surprised. Knowing that these squid were caught in the bay, while most other seafood available by the water is shipped from other locales, makes the experience that much more satisfying. But honestly, although I may have been drawn to this feature by the main attraction—the “best calamari in Santa Cruz”—as I look out on the peaceful harbor, a sunburn beginning to pink the back of my neck as I fantasize what I would call the sailboat I’ll one day own, a lot has to be said for the supporting cast.
After a few attempts to meet up with Garrett Bowlus of Albatross Ridge, I finally got to his tasting room in Carmel. My old school friend from England, Una, was staying for a couple of weeks, and I always love to take house guests wine tasting to show off the exceptional wines of Santa Cruz and Monterey counties.
Albatross Ridge is named after winemaker Garrett’s great-grandfather William Hawley Bowlus’ Albatross gliders, which he used to fly off the ridgetops of Monterey’s coast back in the 1930s. Albatross Ridge’s impressive labels depict a glider and a figure touching a wing—in a tribute, I’m sure, to famed engineer William Hawley Bowlus, whose pioneering sailplanes are now in the Smithsonian.
I took a bottle of Albatross Ridge Rosé Pinot Noir ($40) to one of my favorite places to dine, Imura Japanese Restaurant in Watsonville, as I felt it would pair well with their delicious sushi and sashimi. We had young family guests staying with us from Omaha, Nebraska, and they were drawn to the meat dishes offered by Imura.
After a round of Japanese sake, served in delightful little cups, our attentive server Shanice cracked open the sparkling Rosé, which comes with delightful tart fruit flavors and lots of fizz—a splendid pairing with all of the mouthwatering sushi we ordered. The bottle comes with an easy-off beer-cap top.
“Produced in limited quantities using the méthode ancestrale, our sparkling Pétillant Naturel Rosé is sourced from just seven distinct rows of Pinot Noir at our estate,” says winemaker Garrett Bowlus. And this estate just happens to be in an ideal spot—on a steep and rocky Carmel Valley ridge overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Carmel Bay.
The Albatross Ridge tasting room is on Mission Street between Ocean and 7th avenues, Carmel-by-the-Sea. Open daily from 1 p.m. Visit albatrossridge.com for more info.
Passport Day
The next Passport day, when many wineries are open to the public for a complimentary tasting—providing you have a Passport from the Santa Cruz Mountains Winegrowers Association—is Saturday, July 15. Check the website at scmwa.com for more information on Passport events. Passports can also be purchased at wineries.
“When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading.” — Henny Youngman
Summertime and reading is a classic combination, and Santa Cruz is one of the best spots on the planet to stake out a bit of sand and dig into a good book. But there’s another literary pairing that’s just as timeless. Anyone in a book club knows what I’m talking about: booze. While I won’t go as far as William Faulkner, who famously said, “Pouring out liquor is like burning books,” I believe a page-turner and a good stiff drink is what summer is all about. Ask Ernest Hemingway, who put the daiquiri on the literary map and gave drinkers a great piece of advice he probably never followed: “Always do sober what you said you’d do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut.”
The list of famous and accomplished authors who liked a drink or two or 10 is long. Chalk it up to inner demons or inner muses—most likely both—but the tipple is such a well established part of literary history that it’s become a trope. When asked if he drank, Stephen King replied, “Of course—I just said I was a writer.” Dorothy Parker still has namesake cocktails served in bars from Soho to São Paulo. Visit Faulkner’s grave in Oxford, Mississippi, and you’ll probably find a bottle of his favorite whiskey, Jack Daniels, left in tribute. If you’ve read Kurt Vonnegut’s Breakfast of Champions, you know it isn’t Wheaties, it’s martinis. Ian Fleming was an ardent fan of the martini; in fact, he placed one into 007’s hands so often that a tongue-in-cheek study by the British Medical Journal found that the spy drank 65-92 units of vodka a week. It gives a whole new meaning to “shaken, not stirred.”
Like all faithful, bickering partners, books and booze have a checkered past. For a powerful look at the corrosive price of this sometimes terrible marriage, read Olivia Laing’s insightful, sympathetic book, The Trip to Echo Springs, On Writers and Drinking. The title refers to an obscure line from a Tennessee Williams play that means a trip to the liquor cabinet. Through the troubled careers of luminaries like F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Cheever, and Raymond Carver, she dispels any romantic notions about drunken reverie and creative genius.
But when the marriage is good, it’s a beautiful thing. Within reason, alcohol can enhance a good story, especially for readers, who are essentially guests at the literary salon. What guest doesn’t appreciate a good cocktail? Just as beer livens up the barbecue and wine turns us into critics at the art opening (preference for wine has been scientifically correlated to a higher IQ, which in turn may be correlated to a higher sense of self-importance), they also open our minds to insight. And snacks!
If you’re inclined to bend the elbow while you turn the pages, Bookshop Santa Cruz is ready to meet you halfway with their Books and Brews Summer Series. It’s designed to lure literary-minded locals to some of the best breweries and taprooms in town, with the promise of books, games, discussions, and the golden nectar that brings them all together—craft beer. For our summer reading guide, we’ve taken that idea and run with it, imagining a book/drink pairing for some of this summer’s top lit events. As for me, time to hit the hammock and crack open War and Peace. This year I’m going to finish it. No, really. But first, I feel thirsty …
Pale Ales and Deep Insights
Jaimal Yogis, July 14
The clean, malty finish of Corralitos Blonde Ale flows well with the ocean sense of Jaimal Yogis’ All Our Waves Are Water: Stumbling Toward Enlightenment and the Perfect Ride, which follows him from the Himalayas to Jerusalem to San Francisco’s Ocean Beach, where he finds “that the perfect ride may well be the one we are on right now” (see sidebar, page 22). You can grab a copy of his book when he appears at Bookshop Santa Cruz on Friday. 7 p.m., Bookshop Santa Cruz, 1520 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. Free.
Favorite Books vs. Favorite Beers
Books and Brews’ Lit-Hops, July 27
The cool concept for this 21st century beer hall is a wall of 70 self-pour taps filled with beers, wines and ciders from all over the world. In keeping with the mood of abundance, more than a dozen favorite reads from booksellers will be paired with beers to match their mood. A couple of personal suggestions: pair Discretion Brewery’s strong Good Faith ale with George Saunders’ Lincoln in the Bardo, a novel about love, loss, the afterlife and the human condition. And try Lúpulo’s English Bitter, Little Lies, with Maile Meloy’s novel, Do Not Become Alarmed. The possibilities are endless, but keep in mind that you could drive your friends and family crazy. I speak from experience. 7 p.m., Pour Taproom, 110 Cooper St., Suite 100B, Santa Cruz. $16 ticket includes one free book and 20 percent off your food and drinks. Non-ticketed attendees still welcome.
‘Here I Am’ for IPA
Jonathan Safran Foer, July 12
Author Jonathan Safran
Humble Sea Brewery’s Mankini IPA—bold, brave, and all up front—goes perfectly with Jonathan Safran Foer’s Here I Am, an inventive, hard-hitting story of a fragile family in a moment of personal and global crisis, who must confront and become who they really are. Foer is appearing in Santa Cruz at an offsite, ticketed Bookshop Santa Cruz event. 7 p.m., Santa Cruz High School, 415 Walnut Ave., Santa Cruz. Ticket packages are $19.98 and include two tickets to the event and one copy of ‘Here I Am’ in paperback.
Stout Revolutionaries
Race To Revolution: Hamilton Edition, Aug. 7
Lúpulo Beer House cultivates relationships with small brewers and specializes in beers that are hard to come by. The workshop feel here harkens back to alehouses of old, where you ducked in to drink a pint and wrestle with ideas. As a nod to history buffs, lovers of the musical Hamilton, and our proud national heritage of beer-soaked political debate, this Books and Brews event at Lúpulo will feature literature about the fantastic and sometimes forgotten founders of our imperfect union. It will also test your founding American trivia skills in the hotly competitive yet highly good-natured Race to Revolution game. Did you know that George Washington kept a beer recipe in his notebook? That random fact may or may not help you, but know this: when swag bags, bragging rights, and liberty are at stake, Americans have shown that we can rise, stumble, and hold forth to the occasion. Doing it all in the company of fellow revolutionaries with a beer in hand just makes it more fun. 7 p.m., Lúpulo Beer House, 223 Cathcart St., Santa Cruz. $5 ticket includes entry to play the Race to Revolution game, $5 off coupon for Bookshop purchases at the event, and 50 percent off your founding drink.
Pilsner-Stained Love Letters
Community Read: ‘Everyone Brave is Forgiven’ by Chris Cleave, at New Bohemia Brewing Company, Aug. 21
Named after the old kingdom of Bohemia in central Europe, New Bohemia Brewing Company is a great place to drink a Vienna Lager like Velvet Revolution and discuss a book about WWII. You didn’t think you’d coast through this series without actually reading a book, did you? That’s why we’re here, people. Oh yeah, and the beer. Luckily, Chris Cleave’s brilliant novel, Everyone Brave is Forgiven, is well worth your time. His grandparents’ love letters serve as inspiration for historical fiction that drops you into the heart of WWII. From London to France to Malta, the stories of characters who serve, falter, fall in love, and challenge injustice is smart, witty, and chilling. It reminds us how far and wide punishment spread beyond the Jews during WWII. Anyone “different” was marginalized and targeted. Those lessons still resonate today. Fire up your literary insights and dip into the meaty (not to mention thirsty) conversation. 7 p.m., New Bohemia Brewing Company, 1030 41st Ave., Santa Cruz. 50 percent off your first beer with a copy of ‘Everyone Brave is Forgiven.’
Jonathan Franzen’s Feminist Literary Cocktails
Read & Rights Literary Fundraiser for Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, Aug. 27
For those of you more inclined toward cocktails, this fundraiser is your event. It has something for everyone: a great cause, a vintage feminist literature collection, a performance from The Handmaid’s Tale by Jewel Theatre Company, and much more. But beyond the satisfaction of giving to an extremely important at-risk health care provider, your reward for donating is admission to the Literary Refreshment Lounge, where Jonathan Franzen will be available to mix you a feminist literary cocktail of his own creation. Will it taste good? Hopefully. Will it be wickedly clever? Undoubtedly. Or maybe you’d rather Laurie King serve you a glass of red wine. Sherlock Holmes would approve. Authors Lisa MacKenzie and Karen Joy Fowler round out the bartending staff, ready to put their own spin on your literary libations. Your job is to show Planned Parenthood some love and belly up to the bar. 4-6 p.m., Bookshop Santa Cruz, 1520 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. Tickets are available on a $15–$50 sliding scale. Note: All are welcome to attend this event—only the Literary Refreshment Lounge requires a ticket. George and Gail Michaelis-Ow will match donations up to $10,000.
Separating the Wheat from the Chaff
Book Swap at Beer Thirty, Sept. 5
Wish a fond farewell to summer crowds by raising a Hell or High Watermelon Wheat Ale and sharing your literary passions with other readers. Beer Thirty is a return to abundance, with 30 rotating taps, 300-plus bottles, and a beer garden. There’s nothing better than to wax on about your favorite books, right? Or is that just me? In any case, this old-fashioned book swap gives my fellow enthusiasts permission, along with 90 seconds each (they know us well, they have a timer) to gush about our best and brightest discoveries. Even better, it gives organized book geeks a chance to take notes. Bring your dog if you like, a book that you love, and give it away (the book, not the dog). In return, you get to leave with a new gem. 7 p.m., Beer Thirty Bottle Shop & Pour House, 2504 S. Main St., Soquel. You must bring a book to participate in this event.
Non-Alcoholic (You Know, For Kids!)
Author Amy Ettinger
Put Your Trust in Ice Cream
Amy Ettinger, July 17
When liquor won’t do, the Penny Ice Creamery’s Blueberry Black Licorice ice cream is a very good substitute. Amy Ettinger’s book Sweet Spot: An Ice Cream Binge Across America explores the history, characters, turf wars, and intriguing flavor combinations behind America’s favorite sweet treat. She’ll be at Bookshop Santa Cruz to discuss the delectable details, and Mission Hill Creamery will be providing the ice cream. What’s not to love? 7 p.m., Bookshop Santa Cruz, 1520 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. Free.
Shirley Temples at the Park
Outdoor Storytime with Billie Harris, July 19 and Aug. 20
For those of you whose kids did not go to robotics, dinosaur, or spy camp (yes, non-parents, these exist), bring the next generation out to the park, where the inimitable actress, bon vivant, and superior storyteller Billie Harris will be at Bookshop’s reading benches to continue her long love affair with reading stories to children. Drink-wise, Shirley Temples go perfectly with Green Eggs and Ham. For grownups, cold brew coffee, fruit smoothies, green tea, and the ever popular H20 go with all manner of the written word. 10 a.m., Garfield Park, 634 Almar Ave., Santa Cruz. Also 4 p.m. on Aug. 20at San Lorenzo Park, 137 Dakota Ave., Santa Cruz.
There is a quote from the book Labors of Hercules that explains the task given to Hercules (humanity) during the month of Cancer. Hercules represents humanity (the World Disciple), living on Earth, encountering life experiences, given tasks and being (often severely) tested. For the Cancer task, the Fourth Labor, Hercules must make a choice. He must develop discernment and wisdom that leads to Right Choice. And then he must demonstrate and follow the “obedience of the heart.” This particular task is important to understand. The present world situation is demanding that we, too, have discernment and wisdom to make a Right Choice. It determines our future.
From the Fourth Labor of Hercules (Cancer), “The Great One, within Shamballa, spoke to the Teacher: ‘Where is the son of man (Sanskrit for the “thinkers,” all of humanity)?, who is the Son of God? How fares he, how is he being tested and with what service is he engaged?’ The Teacher said, ‘The third great test (Gemini) provided much teaching. He ponders and reflects upon it.’
“The Great One said to the Teacher, ‘Provide him now with a test that evokes his wisest choice. Send him to labor in a field where he must decide which voice, of all the many voices, will arouse the obedience of his heart. Provide a test of great simplicity on the outer plane, yet a test, which awakens, interiorly, the fullness of his wisdom and the rightness of his power to choose. Let him now proceed with the fourth test.’”
Saturday, July 22, as Sun enters Leo, we (Hercules) begin the Fifth Labor (test).
ARIES: Throughout the year, great changes will occur. Your outlook on life will be concerned with freedom, especially how you express and conduct yourself. Breaking from the past will also occur. You will be like Snow White, “awakened” from a deep sleep. The awakening will happen through unexpected and interesting events. Break this gently to people who care about you so, as you change, they are not surprised. Cherish each surprising moment.
TAURUS: Unusual events happen particularly with your health. You might find unexpected difficulties almost every day affecting your well-being. How to handle these is to adapt to the realization that all patterns in your life are altering, including health. Perform daily tasks with deep awareness lest a spider or snake bite you. These are symbols for change. Have homeopaths and essential oils nearby.
GEMINI: Your friendships and social life begin to shift. You meet new and unusual people, encounter new ideas, consider group life more seriously. You study uncommon lifestyles and listen to alternative news. The idea of being free and free-spirited is long overdue. Vesta, the asteroid of “self as found object” is in Gemini. You must make a Vesta box. Find a box; fill it with treasures that represent your true self. You discover you are a lamp unto yourself.
CANCER: Talents and gifts you didn’t know existed within you are emerging and this will be a discovery both exciting and unexpected. You embark upon several new studies, directions and adventures. People consider you as someone who knows a lot about lots of things. You surprise everyone. They think of you as unconventional and studious. This is good. A new life story begins.
LEO: It’s possible you’ll be traveling soon, if you’re not already. Travel will be curious, unexpected, out of the ordinary. The journey will not be what you planned. You will meet unusual people who help you see life in completely different ways. Nothing traditional seems available, even though you long for this. Everything unconventional seems to know your name. Adapt. Your heart is stirred.
VIRGO: Unexpected events or happenings occur with shared resources of finances and money investments, taxes or loans. At first this doesn’t make sense. Then as time goes by it does. Allow yourself to realize that the pleasures you pursue and things you like do cost money. For some reason, you’ll feel you cannot depend anymore on your usual sources. Uncertainty results. You will find new paths and new resources and new people.
LIBRA: Some things in your relations with others, with close associates and intimates become surprising. Should you feel limitations, loss of freedom or resistance from others, you will shake it off immediately. It may be difficult to rely on anyone. If this occurs, be the ‘reliable one’ for others. Breaking free from things doesn’t mean you need to be cruel. Be gentle and kind—always, everywhere, with everyone. Isn’t kindness the Dalai Lama’s religion?
SCORPIO: Create new routines that include all things healthy. Each day you may find yourself disrupted. Everything becomes non-traditional and unconventional. This includes your health and vitality, which you need to pay attention to. Restlessness means a new rhythm is needed. You may work non-stop at times, then work not at all other times. Alternative healing benefits your health. Slow down. Prana breathe.
SAGITTARIUS: Know that more and more you will begin to express yourself in unconventionally creative ways. You will become even more so the “out of the ordinary” friend. Children (especially), non-conformists and oddballs will love you. There will be sudden occurrences in your love life. Previous inhibitions fall away. You become freer, spontaneous, even eccentric (more so). Everything you didn’t like falls away. You become light-hearted and playful. You’re happy.
CAPRICORN: Home is in a state of change and fluctuations. Things feel disruptive and erratic. There is movement in, out, here, there. This is good. It means no crystallizations or rigidity can occur. Life is speeding up. Sometimes you feel if you move too fast you’ll make a wrong turn. You feel tested, needing to approach the home situation in new ways. Sometimes you feel free. Sometimes you miss someone far away. Boredom isn’t in your vocabulary.
AQUARIUS: There’s a need for exposure to new worlds, new people, new lands and geographic areas. New opportunities come forth to express yourself and your gifts. You like to be with the people in the marketplace. Here you feel alive, in contact, love is released, people know and rely upon your expertise. You try to make contact with family, siblings, relatives. Your personal appearance changes. Your shell cracks.
PISCES: Over the next weeks and months, notice your values changing. All previous thoughts and desires disappear like cumulus clouds. New values and new endeavors emerge. A surrender to the present reality comes forth. There may be a sense of limitation, or a profound transformation that takes place concerning friends and/or associates. Unusual circumstances will bring about a different use of resources. All resources are to be used to build community. Study herbs and holy oils.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): It’s not your birthday, but I feel like you need to get presents. The astrological omens agree with me. In fact, they suggest you should show people this horoscope to motivate them to do the right thing and shower you with practical blessings. And why exactly do you need these rewards? Here’s one reason: Now is a pivotal moment in the development of your own ability to give the unique gifts you have to give. If you receive tangible demonstrations that your contributions are appreciated, you’ll be better able to rise to the next level of your generosity.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Other astrologers and fortune-tellers may enjoy scaring the hell out of you, but not me. My job is to keep you apprised of the ways that life aims to help you, educate you, and lead you out of your suffering. The truth is, Taurus, that if you look hard enough, there are always seemingly legitimate reasons to be afraid of pretty much everything. But that’s a stupid way to live, especially since there are also always legitimate reasons to be excited about pretty much everything. The coming weeks will be a favorable time to work on retraining yourself to make the latter approach your default tendency. I have rarely seen a better phase than now to replace chronic anxiety with shrewd hope.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): At least for the short-range future, benign neglect can be an effective game plan for you. In other words, Gemini, allow inaction to do the job that can’t be accomplished through strenuous action. Stay put. Be patient and cagey and observant. Seek strength in silence and restraint. Let problems heal through the passage of time. Give yourself permission to watch and wait, to reserve judgment and withhold criticism. Why do I suggest this approach? Here’s a secret: Forces that are currently working in the dark and behind the scenes will generate the best possible outcome.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): “Do not be too timid and squeamish about your actions,” wrote Ralph Waldo Emerson. “All life is an experiment.” I’d love to see you make that your operative strategy in the coming weeks, Cancerian. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, now is a favorable time to overthrow your habits, rebel against your certainties, and cruise through a series of freewheeling escapades that will change your mind in a hundred different ways. Do you love life enough to ask more questions than you’ve ever asked before?
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Thank you for contacting the Center for Epicurean Education. If you need advice on how to help your imagination lose its inhibitions, please press 1. If you’d like guidance on how to run wild in the woods or in the streets without losing your friends or your job, press 2. If you want to learn more about spiritual sex or sensual wisdom, press 3. If you’d like assistance in initiating a rowdy yet focused search for fresh inspiration, press 4. For information about dancing lessons or flying lessons or dancing-while-flying lessons, press 5. For advice on how to stop making so much sense, press 6.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): The cereus cactus grows in the deserts of the southwestern U.S. Most of the time it’s scraggly and brittle-looking. But one night of the year, in June or July, it blooms with a fragrant, trumpet-shaped flower. By dawn the creamy white petals close and start to wither. During that brief celebration, the plant’s main pollinator, the sphinx moth, has to discover the marvelous event and come to gather the cactus flower’s pollen. I suspect this scenario has metaphorical resemblances to a task you could benefit from carrying out in the days ahead. Be alert for a sudden, spectacular, and rare eruption of beauty that you can feed from and propagate.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): If I had more room here, I would offer an inspirational Powerpoint presentation designed just for you. In the beginning, I would seize your attention with an evocative image that my marketing department had determined would give you a visceral thrill. (Like maybe a photoshopped image of you wearing a crown and holding a scepter.) In the next part, I would describe various wonderful and beautiful things about you. Then I’d tactfully describe an aspect of your life that’s underdeveloped and could use some work. I’d say, “I’d love for you to be more strategic in promoting your good ideas. I’d love for you to have a well-crafted master plan that will attract the contacts and resources necessary to lift your dream to the next level.”
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): I advise you against snorting cocaine, MDMA, heroin, or bath salts. But if you do, don’t lay out your lines of powder on a kitchen table or a baby’s diaper-changing counter in a public restroom. Places like those are not exactly sparkly clean, and you could end up propelling contaminants close to your brain. Please observe similar care with any other activity that involves altering your consciousness or changing the way you see the world. Do it in a nurturing location that ensures healthy results. P.S. The coming weeks will be a great time to expand your mind if you do it in all-natural ways such as through conversations with interesting people, travel to places that excite your awe, and encounters with provocative teachings.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In late 1811 and early 1812, parts of the mighty Mississippi River flowed backwards several times. Earthquakes were the cause. Now, more than two centuries later, you Sagittarians have a chance—maybe even a mandate—to accomplish a more modest rendition of what nature did way back then. Do you dare to shift the course of a great, flowing, vital force? I think you should at least consider it. In my opinion, that great, flowing, vital force could benefit from an adjustment that you have the wisdom and luck to understand and accomplish.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You’re entering into the Uncanny Zone, Capricorn. During your brief journey through this alternate reality, the wind and the dew will be your teachers. Animals will provide special favors. You may experience true fantasies, like being able to sense people’s thoughts and hear the sound of leaves converting sunlight into nourishment. It’s possible you’ll feel the moon tugging at the waters of your body and glimpse visions of the best possible future. Will any of this be of practical use? Yes! More than you can imagine. And not in ways you can imagine yet.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): This is one of those rare grace periods when you can slip into a smooth groove without worrying that it will degenerate into a repetitive rut. You’ll feel natural and comfortable as you attend to your duties, not blank or numb. You’ll be entertained and educated by exacting details, not bored by them. I conclude, therefore, that this will be an excellent time to lay the gritty foundation for expansive and productive adventures later this year. If you’ve been hoping to get an advantage over your competitors and diminish the negative influences of people who don’t empathize with you, now is the time.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): “There is a direct correlation between playfulness and intelligence, since the most intelligent animals engage in the greatest amount of playful activities.” So reports the National Geographic. “The reason is simple: Intelligence is the capacity for learning, and to play is to learn.” I suggest you make these thoughts the centerpiece of your life in the coming weeks. You’re in a phase when you have an enhanced capacity to master new tricks. That’s fortunate, because you’re also in a phase when it’s especially crucial for you to learn new tricks. The best way to ensure it all unfolds with maximum grace is to play as much as possible.
Homework: Do you let your imagination indulge in fantasies that are wasteful, damaging, or dumb? Stop it! Testify at Freewillastrology.com.
When deputies arrest an individual, the county jail often processes the suspect and takes fingerprints. If the suspect is undocumented, he or she may already have fingerprints in a database maintained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The federal agency would receive a notification that the person is in custody.
What happens next varies, depending on the law enforcement and jurisdiction.
Places like San Francisco and San Jose are at one end of the spectrum, with “sanctuary city” ordinances preventing law enforcement agencies from using funds to participate with ICE. They’ll usually only cooperate with the agency when a suspect has committed a violent felony.
At the other end of the spectrum, agencies such as theMonterey County Sheriff’s Office fully cooperate with ICE, honoring the agency’s request to hold undocumented individuals, and even allowing agents to establish an office in the jail.
Local immigration attorney Michael Mehr says Santa Cruz County, which reinforced a version of sanctuary status earlier this year, falls somewhere in the middle of that spectrum. Sheriff Jim Hart hasn’t gone as far as some leaders who refuse to work with ICE. Instead, he limits the degree to which his officers and department coordinate with the agency.
A growing chorus of Santa Cruz-based defense attorneys worry Hart’s policies don’t protect the immigrant community and that, even worse, they betray public statements Hart has made regarding the issue.
Hart, meanwhile, says he’s baffled by the criticism, given the public position he has taken in support of the immigrant community. A well-known supporter of statewide criminal justice reform, Hart is the only Sheriff in California who’s publicly supported Senate Bill 54, a piece of legislation that would prevent the law enforcement agencies from using resources to assist federal immigration agencies.
“The fear of detention, deportation and family separation is very real and is having negative impacts for public safety and law enforcement,” Hart wrote in a letter to State Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon dated May 10. “Public safety is not enhanced when local law enforcement officers enforce immigration laws or act in a manner that causes suspicion within the diverse communities they serve.”
While many law enforcement officials have vehemently opposed the bill, Hart insists cooperation with ICE agents is bad for public safety. Hart has also publiclyshut down any notion that the jail should hold undocumented immigrants for a couple days longer, after their release date, as some counties do, in order for ICE to more easily apprehend them.
Jonathan Gettleman, a civil rights lawyer based in Santa Cruz, appreciates the sentiment.
But he says that, if the sheriff believes that coordinating with ICE makes for bad policy, he should not let ICE agents into the jail for them to interview individuals. And even though the sheriff won’t do so-called “ICE holds” as the federal agency would prefer, Hart’s office will still supply the release dates of people detained in jail—at the feds’ request—allowing suspects to be apprehended just before they leave.
“I have misdemeanor clients who are terrified,” Gettleman says. “A lot of them feel it’s a better option to be out on a warrant rather than come to court. It’s a legitimate concern.”
Hart says closing off the jail to ICE would amount to discrimination against one federal agency, given that the department does cooperate with other state and federal agencies, including the FBI and California Highway Patrol.
He points out that the sheriff’s office recently returned a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grant worth $75,000 that Hart could have used to purchase coastal protection boats. Hart says his department wants to avoid any entanglement with DHS, the federal department that oversees ICE.
Even so, Kathy Licker, an attorney with the Santa Cruz County Public Defender’s Office, says she remembers an undocumented client who was arrested for misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia and was processed and released on his own recognizance—meaning that he promised to appear for all future hearings. ICE agents picked him up in the community soon after, she says. Licker says she hasn’t heard from him since.
“People are being deported for having a marijuana joint,” Mehr says. “People don’t understand that because state law says it’s okay, but it’s a federal deportable offense. It’s a trap for the unwary.”
All three attorneys say there’s nothing preventing Hart from implementing provisions of SB 54 in his own department right now, to make the department stop providing release dates to ICE upon request and also stop letting agents into the jail.
Hart says he would rather wait for the legislature to specifically stipulate policy for law enforcement’s cooperation with ICE, rather than arbitrarily insert and enforce his own rules. “I have gone as far as I can to both follow the law and be supportive of our immigrant community,” he says.
Licker says the sheriff acknowledged that these policies are detrimental to the community in his letter, making his continued tolerance of them all the more baffling.
“The sheriff has written a letter saying such policies run counter to public safety, yet he continues to implement these policies while waiting on SB 54,” Licker says. “I don’t understand the acknowledgement this is not good policy on the one hand, while he continues to enforce it on the other.”
For those deemed by society to be “outside the norm,” it can be hard to find art that speaks to one’s own life, says dancer and choreographer Che Che.
“It’s amazing that it’s still so radical to be yourself in the world right now,” says Che over the phone from Portland, where she lives with her partner, singer Frankie Simone.
Che and Simone are making song and dance for the queer community; it’s powerful and glittery, strong and sensual. With Simone on vocals, debuting singles from her upcoming album, and Che bringing powerful contemporary choreography to Simone’s songs with her body, they’re performing as part of Motion Pacific dance studio’s upcoming Cabagay queer cabaret show on July 14 and 15.
Simone is releasing singles every month until her album comes out in September. For Pride month, she debuted “Queer,” written by Che as a gift to celebrate their relationship.
“I wanted to make a song that is very clearly talking about being queer, using that word very purposefully and intentionally,” says Simone. “It’s pretty literal, it’s about celebrating being your most authentic self and loving yourself.”
“This is why we’re doing this work: we are your community, we see you and we are perfect—being different than the ‘norm’ is fucking cool!” says Che with a laugh.
Among the few artists who are producing music about the queer experience, much of the language is vague, says Simone, and a lot of it takes a more sombre tone.
“I was excited to shift that perspective and be like, ‘Wait, we’re as happy as can be and so in love,” says Che, who doesn’t usually dabble in the music production side, but wrote “Queer” in a stroke of inspiration.
After the success of Motion Pacific’s winter cabaret show, director Abra Allan was looking for new ways to engage people and maintain that excitement. When resident choreographer Melissa Wiley came up with the name “Cabagay,” the next steps just seemed obvious, says Allan.
In partnership with the Museum of Art and History’s Subjects to Change teen program and the Diversity Center, the variety show will feature local crowd pleasers the Wily Minxes, Micha, and Kim Luke as well as returning out-of-towners Claire Melbourne, Pearl Marrill, and Jeff Dinnell. Motion will preface the 21 and over cabaret show on July 14 with a free teen-led open mic at 5:30 p.m. for all ages and all art forms.
Motion Pacific and Santa Cruz hold a special place in Che and Simone’s hearts.
“Neither of us are from Santa Cruz, but I feel like every time we’re back it feels like we’re home, because that’s where we found ourselves and where we found each other. It’s where we started, it’s the place that we fell in love,” says Simone.
For Che, it’s also the place where she found her queer identity, with the help of Leslie Johnson’s local dance company, Flex, which was active until 2014.
“It’s something that I was always aware of, but really terrified of, so I did everything I thought would keep me safe,” says Che. “Once I found Santa Cruz and Flex—they were so empowered in their sensuality and their sexuality as strong, amazing queer people—it just opened a whole new world for me. I felt really supported and loved through a community, which is what helped me come out.”
Queer performance is all about disrupting heteronormative worlds, according to José Esteban Muñoz, says Claire Melbourne. For her performance in Cabagay, she’s taking on Muñoz’s theory that nothingness is assigned to people who don’t fit the norm and that performance can work as a gesture towards something that doesn’t fully exist yet—queerness in its complexity, as Muñoz wrote.
“Art has the potential to hold nuance and contradiction in a way that I think we’re not generally encouraged to do—we’re encouraged to choose one or the other,” says Melbourne, who is doing her MFA in dance at Ohio State University. “Our whole lives are nuance and contradiction. Learning to embrace that is the most important thing to me about performance art.”
Art is meant to challenge convention, says Melbourne, and in that way is a powerful conduit to the public consciousness.
That’s why Simone and Che do what they do, ever so loudly and proudly.
“As a queer woman, I’ve recently been feeling like I can speak through movement—it’s been my most confident language since I can remember,” says Che. “I think in a time where politics are chaos and where we can be public figures in being positive queer people in the world, this feels so important.”
Info: Open Mic 5:30 p.m. July 14, Cabagay 8 p.m., July 14 & 15, 131 Front St., Santa Cruz. $20-$50 sliding scale. motionpacific.com.
There’s a reason the Dirty Bourbon River Show is not called the Dirty Bourbon River Band. This combination of high-energy traditional New Orleans jazz, Gogol Bordello-level punk rock and circus is all about the live experience, and there’s no way that recordings can really do it justice.
Yet somehow DBRS has cranked out 10 studio albums—and they only started in 2009. It was in 2011 that the members quit their jobs and hit the road for seven months of the year, making the project their full-time gig. It’s been a prolific project ever since.
Remarkably, it’s only now that the group has considered what should have been the most obvious decision from day one: a live album.
“Not sure if it’s going to happen yet, but we’ve been talking about it. Our live show is really our pride,” says bassist Matt Thomas. “Trying to capture that energy is something we’re going to try to do.”
In the meantime, DBRS has made the exact opposite: a slickly produced concept album. The new record, The Flying Musical Circus, was released in April, the group’s first release since 2015’s Important Things Humans Should Know. Previously, they had released nine albums in a shade under seven years. This one took a bit longer.
It’s an entirely different album for the New Orleans five-piece. Still drawing from the same influences—funk, jazz, punk, circus music, blues, big band brass—and utilizing primarily horns, drums and an accordion, the members, for the first time, slowed down and focused on each and every part.
“The producer we worked with, he really pushed us, he pushed our boundaries a bit. We put everything under the microscope,” Thomas says.
The songs bounce around from genre to genre, which has been DBRS’ thing since the beginning. They made the decision to embrace the music of their city, while simultaneously subverting it with a manic energy and irreverence to tradition. Not to mention being the craziest act in town. “You just throw everything into it,” says Thomas. “It was like a raucous crazy party.”
There’s a narrative story on The Flying Musical Circus, which lead singer Noah Adams wrote, and it taps into the sadness of life. He sings from the perspective of a party animal, “a challenging human being,” Thomas says. He searches for meaning and redemption. It gets pretty dark at times. (“All my friends are dead/Or lost their mind from shooting smack/And every woman that I’ve loved/Now hates my guts, won’t call me back.”)
For an ensemble that sees itself as a show, releasing a concept album is an interesting decision. Thomas sees the vibe of the album as a commentary on the progress of the group itself. In the early days, everyone went in so deep that they all moved into a house together and basically only played music, toured and recorded. And in those early sets, they exerted every ounce of themselves every night.
“This is more of an introspective, more reflective kind of album. A lot of our other recordings are about silliness and parties and this big circus-y theatrical aspect to it. This album is taking a step back to reflect on the whole thing,” Thomas says.
The members found the experience of slowing down in the studio and dissecting the music to be refreshing. With all of the touring they’d done, and albums they’d cranked out together, the music had been about chemistry between members. Rarely did anyone get the luxury of isolating their parts, and improving the minutiae of what they were doing.
The process has altered the live show a little bit. Or maybe just getting older and having done this for a little while has changed the live show. But it’s still a show.
“We still have that party aspect to it, but we try to engage the audience a little bit more,” Thomas says. “We’re all getting a little older. We’re trying to find a balance in life. We’re real proud of this album just because of everything it’s taken to get where we are.”
INFO: 9 p.m., July 17, Crepe Place, 1134 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. $10. 429-6994.
In the end, it didn’t really matter what Jake and I had decided after our deep contemplation of Malabar’s menu of original, wholesome-yet-exotic vegetarian dishes, salads and appetizers. With each selection, Raj Weerasekare squinted his eyes, appearing to study our very appetites, and steered us toward something he thought we would enjoy more. By the time Weerasekare whisked himself away to the kitchen, we had figured out thathe is also the chef and founder at Malabar, and we sat back with excitement and growling bellies for what was to come.
As it turns out, Malabar is not only the place to come for vegan, vegetarian, plant-filled dinners of Sri Lankan and Asian persuasions, but also the place to come if you’re in the mood to follow the chef’s lead. We were happy we did. On this early summer night, the knife- and alcohol-free dining room was peaceful, and the notes of a live singer traveled through the expansive dining room flecked with hand-painted lotus flowers. The summer season always picks up after July 4, says Weerasekare, especially with international tourists who read about the place on Yelp.
The Roti Paratha ($7) arrived first, steaming-hot and scrunched, Singapore style, into a flaky pastry-like blossom. “Eat it with your hands,” our waiter/chef instructed, and we dug in, tearing off pieces of the fried bread—crispy on the outside and tender inside—and dipping it into the aromatic galangal curry sauce.
We found ourselves unable to resist repeating the action again and again, so it was with great relief that the next to-die-for appetizer arrived when it did. Also the chef’s recommendation, the Catalan croquettes ($6), were fried ever-so-lightly, resulting in a thin, golden brown skin around the hearty potato filling, which included spinach, the sweet pop of black raisins, and just enough Gorgonzola to render the filling creamy, without overpowering its flavor. All of this was offset by the refreshing relish of pickled green papaya and mustard. Score.
“I used to make this one with pine nuts,” says Weerasekare, who changes the menu often, but this version has been on the menu ever since a a visiting couple from Spain shared the family-restaurant recipe with him.
Two entrees followed: the Lotus Root Kofta ($11.50), with a sauce of cashew, coconut, and white poppy seed curry that was both delicate and rich, inflected with cardamom and just a tiny bit of cream—the perfect match for the small round lotus root, apricot and potato dumplings it hugged. This is one of those dishes that appears small, but packs a filling punch.
And finally, the Brinjal Basil ($11.50, vegan), a colorful celebration of the nightshade family. This mound of wok’d eggplant, seitan, mixed peppers, basil, and red and orange cherry tomatoes, warm in their own ripe juices, is tossed with a sweet, Chinese-leaning sauce and topped with crunchy cashews, fried red onions, and a sprinkling of sesame seeds. It was as delicious as it was beautiful, and as Jake said, it’s a dish that tastes like summer. A bowl of steaming brown rice played a wonderful supportive role. Needless to say, we left satiated—and with leftovers—and promised to come back for the dosas, which come with a rainbow of different sauces, in several variations—a decision we’ll absolutely leave up to the chef. Malabar is open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday, 5-9 p.m. 514 Front St., Santa Cruz. 458-3023.
On Going Nuts
The journey to find Earth-friendly alternatives to meat and dairy is littered with sometimes repelling experiences of flavor and texture, which is why I was thrilled to find the vegan coconut cheese Chao, from the Seattle-based company Field Roast, as delicious as the real deal. The slices, which are seasoned with a traditionally fermented soybean curd called Chao by the Vietnamese, melt to perfection in quesadillas and are equally delicious in grilled cheese with heirloom tomatoes. $6.49 for 10 slices at local stores, including Staff of Life, Aptos Natural Foods and New Leaf.
Cashews can also work miracles: have you tried soaking them overnight and blending them into a ricotta-cheese reminiscent ecstasy? Add herbs of your choice—basil and dill are tried-and-true favorites—a lemon zest hint, and a bit of nutritional yeast for a cheesy kick, and you’ll be well on your way to vegan pasta dishes. It’s also delicious as a spread on flat breads or as a healthy dip for raw veggies.
If a Santa Cruz native and second-generation Italian tells me with absolute conviction that he knows where to get the best calamari in town, it’s in my best interest to at least check it out.
Which is how I find myself sitting at a plastic table at Aldo’s on the west side of the Santa Cruz Harbor, watching the...
