You are from Santa Cruz if you know that summer starts at noon. So, we know the overcast morning will lead to a golden afternoon when we hike up from Gazos Creek to check in on the iconic redwood, the scorched but thriving Candelabra Tree. For the past fifteen years, every three or four weeks I’ve hiked with three guys. In five mile increments, we have walked the beaches and cliffs from Santa Cruz to the Golden Gate Bridge and back, three times.

As I look back over the years, I realize I’ve followed in the footsteps of my paternal grandfather, Edwin, a longtime newspaper columnist. Perhaps, it makes sense, as I was born under the Gemini zodiac sign in Mercury, the planet associated with strong communication skills. It started in grade school when I entertained my class with a made-up-as-I-went written saga.

“Oh sweetie, you don’t have to call yourself that!” says the woman in the long grocery line as we converse casually. She tells me she’s a local, having grown up in Salinas. My first job in TV news was in Salinas at the then NBC affiliate, KSBW, 50 years ago. She used to watch me on the news when she was a toddler.

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