TOM SCRIBNER October 28 1964, Davenport CA. Here’s a photo of Tom doing what he loved the most, editing and creating the Redwood Ripsaw Review. The Review was a hard hitting opinion generated “newspaper” . Known mostly as the subject of the Musical Saw player in front of the Bookshop Santa Cruz which was placed there in 1978. Tom was a staunch member of the Industrial Workers of the World (The Wobblies). He fought for labor and labor unions all his life. The Musical Saw was barely a hobby for him. He did play on Pacific Avenue when he lived in the St. George Hotel…but he never “busked” (played for money). He died in 1982. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE August 3, 2015
DATELINE August 10, 2015

RACIST SANTA CRUZ. Preparing for and Interviewing Ann Lopez, Executive Director of The Center For Farmworker Families last week (July 28) on Universal Grapevine taught me a lot about the problems our neighbors, the Farmworkers in South County have to live with. I learned that California is the deadliest state in the USA for Mexican workers. 2 billion pounds of LICENSED pesticides are used in the USA every year . The average life expectancy of farmowrkers is only 49 years. Mexicans are 80% more likely to die on the job than any native workers. With all those dangers Farmworking is still the SECOND most dangerous job….construction is number one!!! More than that, researchers have found that farmworkers would e be healthier over the long run if they stayed in Mexico. There are an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 cases of physician-diagnosed pestcide poinioning among USA farmworkers. Anyone trying to help our Santa Cruz farmowrkers gets a more positive and frequent response from outside our county. These helpers, organizations, agencies, usually blame local racism for our lack of caring!! They wonder how and why so many Santa Cruzans will work for assistance to starving and suffering populations in Cuba, India, Iraq and around the world and turn a blind eye to Watsonville and South County, what is that other than RACISM?? The Center for Farmworkers is offering Farmworker Reality Tours of local farmworker farms, “homes” this Sunday (8/08) and Sunday 8/16 at 3 p.m. Go to their website http://www.farmworkerfamily.org and enroll.

MARIN ALSOP GOING TO CUBA. In addition to conducting the annual Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music that’s closing this week (August 12-16) was the announcemnet that Marin Alsop is going to conduct Cuba’s Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional for Havana’s 500th Anniversary. One of her websites I went to said…”Perhaps this is one more piece of evidence to support the mended relationship between the United States and Cuba. Marin Alsop, music director of both the Baltimore and São Paulo Symphony Orchestras, will conduct the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Cuba in celebration of Havana’s quincentenary”.That’s a real big deal. Better get your tickets quickly, even at the Civic Aud. box office!!

“12” AN UNIQUE RUSSIAN MOVIE. Remember that 1997 film “12 Angry Men” starring Henry Fonda, and Lee’J. Cobb?? Russian film director Mikhalkov created a new version in 2007 (available at Westside Video next to Omei Rstaurant). It’s still 12 men trying to agree on how to sentence a teenager who commited a murder. It’s got ethnic hatred, great insight into human reasoning, even humor. Rent it, think about where a teenage boy’s real reasons and problems lead him. Then give a moment to think what you’d do and decide if you were on that jury.

THE TANNERY MURDER, A THOUGHT. Now that we know that 15 year old teenager will be tried and sentenced as a adult doesn’t it seem “strange” that at 15 we don’t believe he’s mature enough to drink, he’s too young to know how to vote, and he certainly can’t think fast enough to drive a car…but he is definitely qualified to face life imprisonment for that one decision???

McPHERSON EVENT CENTER. Oddly enough some readers (also writers) have come up with what sounds like a great idea. Why not simply re-name it The McPherson Event Center? The center has had many proven successful events, and it looks likely it’ll continue that way. Then folks who expect to see or visit a genuine Art and History location won’t be so disapointed.

CRUZIO’S POWER PLANS. As you know by now Windows 10 is out and has been getting good reviews. What this means is obvious… we’ll all need more computer power. Cruzio has been working with the City Of Santa Cruz on a partnership to bring in optical fiber cable that will carry an almost infinite power load. Go to Cruzio.com and take their GIGABIT FIBER survey to illustrate where the power lines (buried) should go. And don’t worry, the list of subscription choices at the survey’s end isn’t binding.

A reader writes… Imagine if Santa Cruz motel owners restored some of the funky beach hotels to a chic “retro” look instead of having them modernized in a nondescript way. (I’m not talking about LaBahia, however) Check this out…http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/07/23/mark-havens-photos-new-jersey-motels

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary speaks about Mobile Home park resident rights, “If you happen to be a mobile home park resident, worried that you may be ousted from your mobilehome by the conversion of the park from a rental park to an ownership park, a recent decision of the Second District Court of Appeal is good news. In Carson Harbor Village v. City of Carson the court held that the General Plan policies of the City of Carson trumped the desire of the mobilehome park owners to convert their park, which would probably have displaced many lower income tenants. This decision strongly affirms what I have often said about the local community General Plan. Here’s the court speaking: Cities must have general plans governing development, including the protection of open space, and must also deny proposed subdivisions that are inconsistent with their general plans. Then he talks about the WSAC (Water Supply Advisory Committee) and their presentation to the City Council on 8/11.

The Water Supply Advisory Committee is going to hold two sessions this week. The first session is scheduled for Thursday August 13^th, at 5:00 p.m. A second session will be held on Friday, August 14^th, at 2:00 p.m. Both sessions will be held at the City’s Police Community Room, located at 155 Center Street. All members of the public are invited and encouraged to attend.

The Water Supply Advisory Committee is due to present their recommendations to the City Council in October. Currently, WSAC members are working as individuals and in groups to put together portfolios of solutions to address the City’s water supply challenges. These proposals will be presented and discussed at the two meetings I just mentioned. These meetings, in other words, are quite likely going to be both interesting and lively, as WSAC works on strategies for decision-making around implementation of the final proposal. He closes with local territory lesson…. There are four cities in Santa Cruz County, and the City of Capitola is one of them, though everyone should note that at least half the population of Santa Cruz County doesn’t live in any city at all. Sometimes, people get confused, and think that the various “place names” we know, and use, mean that the designated locations are cities, but that’s not true. Aptos, Soquel, Boulder Creek, Live Oak, Freedom, Bonny Doon, and Davenport (to name a few) are not cities at all. Those unincorporated areas are under the jurisdiction of the Board of Supervisors. There are only four cities, with their own city councils, and Capitola is the smallest. Size, however, does not equate to importance! Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmenatl issues. The opions expressed are Mr. Patton’s \. Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365” – www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. Those pesky South County students…see below.

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. Tim Eagan shows us the Circus Circuit…scroll down.

More than that, Tim’s website has two new cartoons posted at TimEagan.com: http://www.timeagan.com/?deepcover http://www.timeagan.com/?subconscious_comics And the latest EaganBlog, Prime Suspects: http://www.timeagan.com/?eagabnlog LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “Put down that hand-held device! High summer is high time to dive into a real book, and this week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com), I share some of my all-time favorite summer reads!” Then she reviews Macbeth. Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

“THE LIAR” BY SANTA CRUZ SHAKESPEARE. I sent out a Facebook alert Sunday (8/9) saying, “Any Santa Cruzans who need a laugh should go see Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s The Liar…now playing. I’ve seen every production in their history and never have I heard such audience applause and such laughs from any of their plays. It is clever, bawdy, easy to follow…bring your friends.. ” I meant exactly that!!! It reminded me of the early San Francisco Mime Troupe’s Commedia Del Arte days. Fast, raucous, well timed, nicely acted. Go for it, especially if you’ve never seen/heard a play in the UCSC Stanley-Sinshimer Glen.

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE.(August 15 & 16) San Lorenzo Park.

“Are the police out of control? What happened to “innocent until proven guilty”? IsMalcolm’s neighbor Luis (an undocumented immigrant,) actually a SNORF-lord? And canMalcolm convince his grandson that it is safer to re-up and fight overseas than totry to survive here at home, in Freedomland?” That’s the plot…it continues…”A door is blown off its hinges! Into a blasted room of scarred walls and shattered windows, armed with M-16’s, America’s bravest duck and dodge for cover, finally training their deadly gunsights on… an old black man watching TV on his couch?”. SPECIAL ADDED SANTA CRUZ ATTRACTIONS…Post Show discussions associated with SF Mime Troupe’s production of FREEDOMLANDAfter several shows, the Mime Troupe has invited guest speakers to participate in a post-show talkback about the militarization of police and police targeting of people of color. Our invited guests will join Freedomland’s playwright Michael Gene Sullivan for a 30 minute post-show talkback for each of the performances: Pietro Calogero, Lecturer in Planning and Policy, University of California, Berkeley and Willow Katz from Sin Barras and Keith McHenry, SCRAM! (Santa Cruz Resistance Against Militarization). Don’t miss the wild, wooly, bizarre and incredible Mime Troupe 2:30 for the music and 3 p.m. for the show.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. Patrice Vecchione talks about her new book, “Step Into Nature” on August 11^th followed by Food Not Bombs member Abbi Samuels talking about their Sleep-in happening that same night. Mireya Gomez-Contreras program director of The Day Worker Center on 7^th Avenue tells about the newest accomplishments at the Center, then Willy Elliott McCrea discusses The Second Harvest Food Bank. August 25 has the Highway 6 and a fund raiser as hot topic. After that Sharon D. Payne and Kosher Assault tell us inside secrets about the Santa Cruz Derby Girls. September 1^st has Tom Karwin talking about The UCSC Friends of the Arboretum after which environmentalist Grey Hayes discusses new nature issues that need attention. Joseph Sekon guests on September 15 to talk about an upcoming concert. Jewel Theatre’s Julie James returns after Sekon to reveal their 2015-16 season. Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in, and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com

NEW UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVE FEATURE. Stuff changes at KZSC a lot. Right now you can listen to the last two weeks of Grapevines if you …missed either of the last two weeks of Universal Grapevine broadcasts go here… http://www.radiofreeamerica.com/dj/bruce-bratton You have to listen to about 4 minutes of last week’s KPFA news first, then Grapevine happens.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 9 years here’s a chronological list of some past broadcasts. Such a wide range of folks such as Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011.

QUOTES. “Divorce is the sacrament of adultery”, Jean Guichard. “Niagara Falls is the bride’s second great disappointment”, Oscar Wilde. “My love life is terrible. The last time I was inside a woman was when I visited the Statue of Liberty”, Woody Allen.

THE FABLED SEA BEACH HOTEL circa 1898. This lovely hotel was yet a another attempt to compete with Monterey and Carmel for the overnight tourist trade. It stood over near where our municipal wharf is today. It burned down on June 12, 1912. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DOUBLE COLUMN AGAIN. This week contains both July 20, 2015 column material and stuff from July 27, 2015

DEPUTY POLICE CHIEF STEVE CLARK. If you didn’t read John Malkin’s June 24 th Good Times article about the misadventures of Santa Cruz Deputy Chief of police Steve Clark then go here to read “Blurred Blue Lines”.

It’s important that all Santa Cruzans know as much as possible about Steve Clark. John Malkin was a guest on my July 14^th Universal Grapevine and he talked about his research and personal experiences in writing this article. When you know just how many times officer Clark had bad experiences with City Officials, office seekers, murder investigations, it makes you wonder just how this city is run…and who’s responsible. Clark was the Police department’s PR spokesman and he was also the Police Manager’s union representative. That’s been changed for obvious reasons. John Malkin and I talked about the fact that Steve Clark was making $167,268 per year in 2011 and we don’t know what he makes now. What is equally interesting (after you read the Good Times Article) is that there has been no reaction to it. None from the Police Department, none from the City Council. It’s probably the only “safe” way to react to something as important as his misconduct. As Malkin said, it’s also vacation time and city employees are taking time off. John Malkin also said that some of the people he interviewed want to ask questions of the Mayor and the police…and that “it’s definitely not over”.

I think we should take bets on how gutsy or relevant a statement we can ever expect from Mayor Don Lane.

MIKE ROTKIN NOT RUNNING AGAIN. Being a man of his word, many of us were thrilled when he told a questioner that “NO WAY” was he running again for City Council. Just as he’s kept his devotion to the City investing in a de-sal plant, we can be sure he’ll not be back. Some may wonder why he’s making all those televised speeches at the City Council meetings acting like a former Mayor etc., so ask him when you see him.

FLOURIDE IN OUR DRINKING WATER…UPDATE. This is an update from the Center For Disease Control …”The number of communities and people who benefit from water fluoridation is continuing to grow. This effective public health intervention was initiated in the United States in 1945. In 2012, 74.6% of the U.S. population on public water systems, or a total of 210,655,401 people, had access to fluoridated water”. Community water fluoridation is recommended by nearly all public health, medical, and dental organizations including the American Dental Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, US Public Health Service, and World Health Organization. Because of its contribution to the dramatic decline in tooth decay in the United States since the 1960s, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) named community water fluoridation one of 10 great public health achievements of the 20th century. Still, many poorly informed Santa Cruzans can’t see the future…or can’t understand statistics.

LOCAL VIDEO STORE SITUATION. I just got news that Video 9 in Boulder Creek is closing….and they are having a big and final sale of all their DVD’s right now. That’s a shame, I like browsing through stacks of videos and being surprised by ones I never knew existed. Ashlyn Adams, owner of Westside Video (out by Omei Restaurant) the last Video Store in Santa Cruz says that Capitola Video, Video USA in Aptos, and Beacon Video in Felton are still in existence.

COAST DAIRIES NATIONAL MONUMENTAL PROBLEMS. Ted Benhari of The Rural Bonny Doon Association writes… We learned last week that there is strong evidence of a Native American settlement on the Coast Dairies land. Almost certainly Cotoni (CHUH-ton-ee), which were the sub-group of Ohlone that lived on the north end of Monterey Bay for thousands of years. And who will be commemorated with the renaming of Coast Dairies to “Cotoni-Coast Dairies”. The need to protect and study this possible settlement site is another big reason National Monument status, which certainly brings many additional visitors, needs to be put off.

National Monument status could result in monumental overuse, impacting the fauna and flora of Coast Dairies, and the surrounding communities, because of the worldwide promotion that such status will surely bring, while additional funding for facilities and management is uncertain. Animals may no longer find suitable habitat, and creeks, lagoons, wetlands and special status plants could be seriously harmed. The existing strong and irrevocable protections are all we need because the Deed Restrictions governing the federal Bureau of Land Management and the California Coastal Development Permit require maximized coastal resource protection, limit use of Coast Dairies to open space, agriculture, and public recreation, and preclude motorized off-road vehicles, commercial logging, mining, and resource extraction, including fracking. After a regional management plan is developed and the detailed environmental study certified it may be reasonable to seek National Monument status for the Cotoni-Coast Dairies public lands.

The area will be opened to public use whether designated as a National Monument or not. Funding for infrastructure and management is not guaranteed for National Monuments, other than an extra $3 per acre, or only about $18,000 a year, about enough for a quarter-time ranger. Current protections give us the luxury to take the time for a proper review of all the ways that the National Monument designation will affect the Coast Dairies property and our communities. The current plan is to do this review after the site is designated a National Monument. Consequently there would be no review of the wisdom of the designation itself, and no review of locally controlled alternatives for opening up the area for public use. There are very high downside risks of inviting the world to visit: fragile soils, multiple salmonid streams, and steep cliffs will make public access very tricky. The size of this property supports mammals such as puma, gray fox, and badger. These species will not remain in areas with high public use. If trails are not sited well, or if too many are opened up, we could lose these species. If hundreds of thousands of additional visitors descend upon the area, choke Mission Street and Highways 1, 92 and 17, and overwhelm the small town of Davenport, we could lose much more.

To learn more about this issue and follow developments, go to http://www.friendsofthenorthcoast.org and join the Facebook group, Friends of the North Coast https://www.facebook.com/groups/846372308752865/.

Ted added this week: Over 400 signatures now on the petition, but we’d like a lot more. Please keep pumping your friends and contacts to consider signing. http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/coast-dairies-national-monument-not-so-fast

COLLATERAL DAMAGE TRIBUTE. Mathilde Rand announces…Please Join Us at the Collateral Damage Statue for “A Coming Together”. 70 years ago, the United States dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan. Today, in a time of increasing tensions between the U.S., its NATO allies, and Russia, there are nearly 16,000 nuclear weapons, 94% held by the U.S. and Russia.

The two sides are brandishing nuclear weapons on the borders of the Ukraine, posingan intolerable threat to humanity and the global environment. On Sunday, August 2nd, starting at 6 pm, we will hold a Coming Together next to the Statue at the Town Clock Park in downtown Santa Cruz to say: No to Nuclear Weapons, No to War! We will begin the evening with a brushing, waxing and buffing of the Collateral Damage Statue. Starting at 6:30, Aileen Vance, Gail Swain, Louis LaFortune, Russell Brutsche, Victor Aguiar, the Raging Grannies and others will share their music with us. The music will be followed by a quiet candlelight circle during which all participants are invited to offer short personal reflections, songs and poems. Let us recommit ourselves to a world without nuclear weapons and without war. Please bring symbols for peace, flowers, candles in containers, and chairs.

SAVE L.A.’S ANGEL’S FLIGHT. Pat Matecjek informs us that L.A’s famed Angel’s Flight is in danger. There’s a petition out there to save it. The online newspaper “LAist” said…”Downtown’s historic Angel’s Flight railway has been gathering dust for two years, but a new petition from fans of the funicular might help get the vintage trolley moving again. Richard Schave and Kim Cooper, local historians and operators of the unique Esotouric tour-company, launched a petition earlier this week, asking the city to reopen the railway at S. Hill St. between Third and Fourth streets. A bright orange vestige of the city’s past, the block-long, two-car railway was shut down two years ago for safety reasons. The petition asks Mayor Garcetti to “help cut the red tape in Sacramento and San Francisco” so that the nearly 115-year-old railway, also known as a funicular, can operate once again. The railway has closed and reopened a number of times in its long history, but the petitioners claim the safety issues have been resolved”.

ROBERT KRAFT TRIBUTE. Paul Elerick emailed to say…Robert Kraft’s family and friends met Saturday July 18 in memory of this great man. I met Bob and Rosalie Kraft at the beginning of the campaign to keep the Wingspread Development from being built on one of the last open spaces on our mid-county coast I was lucky to be able to know these two great people. One of the highlights of the memorial was a rendition of that Lennon/-McCartney classic “She’s Leaving Home” by Bob’s two son’s, Kevin and Ken Kraft, both talented musicians. Bob Kraft’s long time friend John Faulkner described him best as “Warm Friend, Great Astronomer and Modest Human Being”. You can read lots more about Bob Kraft here.

TIM EAGAN BLOG. Artist, cartoonist (“Deep Cover” & “Subconscious Comics”)Tim Eagan guested on my Universal Grapevine last Tuesday. After a thirty + year friendship I still learned that night he was a member of and lived in the original Dartmouth “Animal House”. More than that I learned that he has a weekly blog. Go here about Animal House and go here about “A Freakin’ Genius” to read his weekly musings and meanderings.

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary says this week on his KUSP Land Use Report…

Santa Cruz County residents may remember that there has been a lively discussion before the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on medical marijuana cultivation, with an initiative measure having been circulated to overturn the regulatory system adopted in Santa Cruz County. When the Santa Cruz County Board returns from its summer break, we will probably hear more about this issue in Santa Cruz County. Last Monday, the City of Santa Cruz opened up its Resource Recovery Facility for a public tour. I missed it, and I bet you did, too! However, you will have a couple more chances to see how the City of Santa Cruz handles its recycling operations if you make a reservation for tours being offered on Friday, August 21^st, from 10:00 to 11:30 in the morning, and from 1:00 to 2:30 in the afternoon. The City’s Resource Recovery Facility is located at 605 Dimeo Lane, on the County’s North Coast, and it’s a pretty impressive facility. If you are interested, you can make a reservation in advance. Naturally, I have provided you with the information you need in today’s Land Use Report blog.

Santa Cruz residents (City residents, I am talking about) generate about thirty to fifty tons of recyclable materials each day. These are the materials that go into the “blue bins” that residents push to the curb on their assigned pick up day. If you take the tour, you’ll see how the City’s recycling workers, in just one week, can bale as much as forty-nine tons of mixed paper, twenty-one tons of plastic, and about seventy-one tons of cardboard. Those on the tour will visit the scrap metal facility, too, and even the so-called “Second Chance Store,” where recycled materials are offered to the public free of charge. Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmenatl issues. The opions expressed are Mr. Patton’s \. Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365” – www.gapatton.net

HIGHWAY SIX PARTY AND FUN RAISER. Bruce Van Allen informs us…I’m working with the student activists known as the UCSC Highway 6 after they temporarily blocked the freeway as part of a statewide “96 Hours of Action” last March to express outrage against police brutality and excessive student fee increases. The 6 have been the target of severe repression by the University and the courts, as well as vicious attacks by our own “Take Back Santa Cruz” right-wing extremists. We are having a benefit dinner to help them raise funds to pay restitution stemming from their civil disobedience and to fight for the rights of student activists in the future.

Concretely, please SAVE THE DATE for an evening of delicious food, music, an auction, and opportunities to connect campus and community activists: UCSC Highway 6 Benefit Dinner Saturday, August 29, 5:30 – 8:30 PM London Nelson Community Center Requested Donation: $25 (sliding scale – no one turned away). You can RSVP to <ucscHWY6@gmail.com>. You can also make a direct contribution at: <http://www.gofundme.com/oee2do>. Please include a note if you plan to attend the dinner on August 29.

SANDY LYDON’S SANTA CRUZ COUNTY HISTORY CLASS. Sandy tells us… we’re doing the second semester — History 25B — from 1880 to the present — this coming fall semester at Carbilho — Crabilho? — The schedule is in the Cabrillo class schedule and will be on my website. We’re working very hard to make the registration process easier — particularly for those who have taken it before –it was first taught in 1974 — we’ve made 41 more years of history since then…Also, of course, registrants can take the vaunted Certified Local exam at the end of it all, and become CERTIFIED LOCALS! (Don’t have to have taken History 25A, but the test will cover the pre 1880 period…) Check out His website at http://sandylydon.com/index.html

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. Hatred in Santa Cruz??? DeCinzo has a point…scroll down.

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. There are puns and there are classic puns. Check out a classic Subconscious Comic from August 1988 see below….

LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “Behold Beast”, the hero of my next novel, ready for his first close-up, this week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com). Also, take a new look at a venerable old detective in the often lyrical Mr. Holmes.“ Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. Ann Lopez talks about the Center for Farmworker Families on July 28 then Chris Neklason of Cruzio relates their latest projects. On Tuesday August 4 Kristal Caballero Exec. dir. Of Pajaro Valley Loaves and Fishes talks about their events. Then area attorney Bob Taren discusses his ideas on what’s happening in our county. Patrice Vecchione talks about her new book, “Step Into Nature” on August 11^th. Mireya Gomez-Contreras program director of The Day Worker Center on 7^th Avenue tells about the newest accomplishments at the Center. Environmentalist Grey Hayes returns on September 1^st discussing new nature issues that need attention. Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in, and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com

NEW GRAPEVINE ARCHIVE FEATURE. Stuff changes at KZSC a lot. Right now you can listen to the last two weeks of Grapevines if you …go to KZSC.org, click on the “TWO WEEK ARCHIVE” box on the right hand side. Scroll down the station DJ’s circles past “Bruce” and click on the circle that says “Bruce Bratton” then you have your choice of the last two week’s programs. You have to listen to about 4 minutes of KPFA news first, then Grapevine happens.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 5 years here’s a chronological list of some past broadcasts. The update includes Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011.

QUOTES.

“My life, I realize suddenly, is July. Childhood is June, and old age is August, but here it is, July, and my life, this year, is July inside of July”, Rick Bass. “August in sub-Saharan Los Angeles is one of the great and awful tests of one’s endurance, sanity and stamina”, Henry Rollins. “Sunset Boulevard opened in August 1950, and it was pronounced the best movie ever made about Hollywood”, Gloria Swanson.

DOWNTOWN BOULDER CREEK, circa 1890’s. That’s of course Central Avenue with The Alpine House on the right. Do note how very wide the Avenue is, and with all the flags flying we can assume it must be a Fourth Of July Parade. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE July 6, 2015
and
DATELINE July 13, 2015

HALTING THE COAST DAIRIES NATIONAL MONUMENT. As the petition says, “National Monument status will not add any legal protections that do not already exist, and the resulting overuse could seriously harm the land’s unique and fragile eco-system, its resources, and public safety. We and the property need Development of a regional approach to manage the many preserved properties in northern Santa Cruz County and southern San Mateo County, which must include the various public agencies and private organizations that own and manage them, as well as the surrounding communities; and Completion and approval of a detailed environmental study conforming to National Environmental Protection Act specifications to determine the level and locations of public access that can be accommodated at Coast Dairies while minimizing impacts to the environment and neighboring communities. Some of the most important reasons for “halting” the Monument designation and Fred Keeley’s maneuvers are;

National Monument status could result in monumental overuse, impacting the fauna and flora of Coast Dairies, and the surrounding communities, because of the worldwide promotion that such status will surely bring, while additional funding for facilities and management is uncertain. Animals may no longer find suitable habitat, and creeks, lagoons, wetlands and special status plants could be seriously harmed.

The existing strong and irrevocable protections are all we need because the Deed Restrictions governing the federal Bureau of Land Management and the California Coastal Development Permit require The petition to delay the monument campaign is now available for signing, here. Spread the word! Ask everyone you know to sign it, too!

JADE HELM HAPPENING? THOSE PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED TANKS IN TEHACHAPI. Jeannine Bonstelle was kind enough to send us a link and what looks like an explanation for all the brand new tanks I saw being trucked east on the Tehacapis on June 17. My sister and her daughter also saw hundreds of brand new tanks being railroaded toward Las Vegas a few days before that. From all reports there is a huge military “exercise” happening right now July 15- September 15. Conspiracy theorys are going and growing like crazy. There are maps showing the seven western states that are involved. There are supposedly hostile states, friendly states….all sorts of plots like using closed down Wal Marts and their secret tunnels!!!!

The Washington Post says Jade Helm isn’t aimed at starting “martial Law” check here… I could link 20 sites like Wikipedia to give you more data and rumors…just Google “Jade Helm” and see for yourselves.

WAMM FEATURED IN/ON HUFFINGTON POST. Valerie Corral and WAMM

( Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana) have an excellent article in Huffington Post.It’s about their history, their battles, and the amazing amount of courage and patience its taken even to maintain the benefits and status they now have. Most importantly, it says why they are doing a very critical and timely Indie GoGo crowdfunding fund raiser. We should all chip in…as the article states WAMM is the heart of the medical marijuana movement. (p.s. Yes I know, when you see
the Huffington article, the photo says Santa Cruz City Hall, we all know it’s really the county building).

SACRED MAUNA KEA AND THE EIGHT ACRE, 18 STORIES HIGH TELESCOPE.

It’s great that The Santa Cruz Sentinel picked up on this Hawaiian protest(July 6). What their story didn’t tell you is that the proposed 30 meter telescope (TMT)is 18 stories high and will occupy eight (8) acres of land. Dan Ahuna the Vice Chair and trustee from Ni’ihau and Kaua’i makes it very clear in the May 2015 issue of Ka Wa Ola the official newspaper of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs that Hawaiians are not against science. They protest the process the telescope has been pushed through, and he also announced that Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) has rescinded their 2009 support of this 30 meter telescope. He goes on to say that it’s the management and decommissioning processes of the 13 telescope site has been terrible and adds that the many nations operating telescopes there pay only $1 per year lease-rent to the University of Hawaii. Then Rowena Akana OHA Trustee says that the University subleases the lands for millions, perhaps billions of dollars. She then asks where does that money go? Is it going to science? She says there is no accountability for that money. Ahuna closes by saying that even the resulting jobs which have not been promised to Hawaiians would only be a few hundred temporary construction jobs and less than 150 permanent jobs.

NEW LEAF MARKETS NOT LOCALLY OWNED. The oft – mentioneds Jesse Nickell and Supervisor Zach Friend have both boasted and claimed that the reason New Leaf Markets are supposed to open in the APTOS VILLAGE PROJECT is because New Leaf is locally owned. It certainly is not locally owned. Even The Sentinel reported on Nov. 12 2013…

SANTA CRUZ — New Leaf Community Markets, a local leader in organic and natural foods, announced Tuesday its acquisition by New Seasons Market, a growing grocery chain based in Portland, Ore. The price was not disclosed. New Seasons, founded in 2000, has 13 stores and is one of the largest private employers in the Portland area with nearly 2,700 workers.

New Leaf, founded in 1985, has eight stores, including five in Santa Cruz County, and 600 employees. New Leaf’s founders will have an ownership share in New Seasons Market and Scott Roseman, founder and co-owner of New Leaf Community Markets, will join the New Seasons Market board of directors. The combined company will be based in Portland, Ore., with New Seasons operating from Portland and New Leaf operating from Santa Cruz as a wholly owned subsidiary with the current management team running New Leaf’s stores”.

GOODBYE CHARLIE PHILLIPS. Charlie Phillips of “Voices From The Village” and numerous good community battles died and all of us will miss his eternal energy and good spirits. Paul Elerick forwarded Tim Fitzmaurice’s statement about Charlie. “Charlie Phillips passed away. He was an unrelenting peaceful progressive and the host of Voices From The Village on Community TV, a good friend to me and to our community. He was very brave in his final struggle with illness but undaunted and continued to be present in our town, His devoted partner Betsy is in my thoughts and in our hearts”.

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary talks more about his favorite topic Land Use…

I often use three different “P” words when I talk about land use. Land use “policy” is at the top of the list. Using the powers granted to local government, we have the ability to set “policies” in place that will govern future land use. Zoning ordinances, for instance, set policies that govern the details of future developments. “Project” is a second “P” word. “Projects” are proposals by individuals to use the land, and approval or rejection of these proposed ” projects” is supposed to conform to those “policies” established by the community. A community has “plenary” authority to make decisions about land use projects and policies. There is my third “P” word. “Plenary” means “full.” Local communities have full authority to make decisions about land use, and the decisions that the community makes can have a very significant impact on three “E” words I also frequently mention: the “Environment,” our “Economy,” and social “Equity.”

He says there are many cases in which a property owners with a project in mind don’t want to follow the policies that the County has set for a proposed development. Will “policy” or “politics” prevail? That “politics” “P” word has a lot to do with land use decision making. He talks about development of tall buildings in lower Pacific Avenue.Then he discusses Cal Am and the Monterey de-sal proposal. Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmenatl issues. The opions expressed are Mr. Patton’s \. Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365” – www.gapatton.net

SANTA CRUZ SHAKESPEARE AND OUR CITY COUNCIL. Mike Ryan talked about Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s possible move to De La Veaga Park for their next season on last week’s Universal Grapevine. He said it would be close to the former Stroke Center on a long rolling meadow. And he said it would be much closer to where we park!!! The main point is that the move isn’t a done deal yet. Our Santa Cruz City Council has to approve the move. So if you know anyone on the council tell them to support and approve Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s big move. Some wags who have noted the sex-changes and script changes in this year’s season have emailed to ask if in the future we’ll be seeing such plays as “Romeo and George”, “King Laura”, “Julia Caesar”, or “Hamletina” ??

LISA JENSEN LINKS…Lisa writes: “Break out the bubbly, this week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com), as I finally sign the contract for my next book! Also, Wallace Baine fools around with history in his entertaining new collection of stories, and I bid a heartfelt farewell to one of my favorite actors, the wonderful Roger Rees.“ (Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975).

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. De Cinzo creates a subtle view of station KSCO. Scroll below.

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. Tim Eagan clowns around with the G.O.P.see downwards a few pages.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG July 14 Gillian Greensite talks about Vacation rentals and some water issues. Then activist, commentator John Malkin discusses his recent Good Times article about SC Policeman Steve Clark. Cartoonist, artist, and philosopher Tim Eagan talks about The Bonny Doon Art Tour on July 21. Ellen Primack executive director of the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music follows Tim on July 21^st. Ann Lopez talks about the Center for Farmworker Families on July 28 then Chris Neklason of Cruzio relates their latest projects. Patrice Vecchione talks about her new book, “Step Into Nature” on August 11^th. Environmentalist Grey Hayes returns on September 1^st discussing new nature issues that need attention. . Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in, and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 5 years here’s a chronological list of just this year’s podcasts. Click herehttp://kzsc.org/blog/tag/universal-grapevine then tap on “listen here” to hear any or all of them… all over again. The update includes Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011. Hear them all!!!

QUOTES. “My life, I realize suddenly, is July. Childhood is June, and old age is August, but here it is, July, and my life, this year, is July inside of July”.Rick Bass.

“The Summer looks out from her brazen tower,
Through the flashing bars of July.” Francis Thompson, A Corymbus for Autumn

“Many public-school children seem to know only two dates: 1492 and 4th of July; and as a rule they don’t know what happened on either occasion.” Mark Twain

“An onion can make people cry but there’s never been a vegetable that can make people laugh.”Will Rogers.

ROMANCE OF ROSY RIDGE, part 2. Same young women as pictured last week (scroll down) only with Guy Kibbee who co-starred with Van Johnson and Janet Leigh while they filmed here in Santa Cruz in 1947. That would be an unknown seated left of Guy Kibbee and Joanne Neilsen seated on his right. Standing (Lto R) is Jolene Brogdan, Bunty Braun Pettibone, and somebody else. Guy Kibbee was mostly famous for his film role as Scattergood Baines Watch this tribute to him. Guy died in 1956. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE June 29, 2015

ON THE ROAD or CALIFORNIA GOING TO WAR??? I saw some interesting stuff on my vacation…. driving down highway 101, taking the good old 99 over to Bakersfield, and then over the Tehachapi mountains. Traffic was going nicely through the Tehachapis…then whammo!! it stopped and we crawled, stopped and crawled for more miles. What stopped us was surprising. Dozens, probably 50 or more brand new, sand colored, army tanks being trucked eastward somewhere. No camouflage on them, and I’m guessing plain sand color is better and more invisible than moving camouflaged weapons. That was nothing!!! My sister in Victorville reported that she and her daughter were driving on their way to Utah via Las Vegas in May when they saw 100’s (hundreds) of the new sand colored tanks being hauled by train northward toward Barstow or Fort Irwin or Nevada. You have to wonder about this. What’s going on? When was the last time we ever heard about who’s manufacturing these tanks, who’s making the war profit? Who makes all the guns and armaments? On the way back home from daughter Jennifer’s home in Mar Vista (Santa Monica) I passed lots of new sand colored desert-looking buildings on the US. Army’s Camp Roberts property along Highway 101. What a war and military oriented nation we are. And not to be funny, but that has to include putting Santa Cruz mayor Don Lane in the history books as the first Santa Cruz mayor to bring in and buy tanks.

HIGHWAY 101 IS ALL DOWNHILL. Drought is busting out all over and driving back up highway 101 the only green to be seen for dozens of miles is the 1000’s of acres of grape vineyards on one side of the highway and total tans, browns, dirt and sand as far as your eye can see on the other side. Before all those green lush watered grape crops I drove past Refugio Beach where the oilspill happened and there was at least a mile of volunteer cars parked alonside the highway trying to clean up that horrendous spill. Give them all a BRAVO!!!

KUSP HASSLE. Messages are certainly mixed but as we know KUSP was (and is) in the red. The Board of Directors wanted to sell it to CPRN. Then a bunch of listeners/ supporters formed KUSP Forward to see what else could be done….and that group is still moving forward. But now the game has changed. The CPRN Classical Public Radio Network offer to buy KUSP has been rescinded as of June 24^th. Then some anonymous donor offered to donate $100,000, but other than that plans are very much up in the air. Meanwhile KUSP continues to pay over $6000 per month rent. But late news says the station is giving up some of their rental space to cut rent costs. Stay tuned…if possible.

KUSP’S FUTURE SURVEY. Former Santa Cruz City Councilman Ed Porter has been very active in KUSP Forward. He created a survey to gauge the potential support from the community for keeping KUSP alive…and well. Ed adds, “The ideas expressed here are solely those of the author and do not reflect any policy or statement of KUSP, its Board of Directors, or its management..Go here https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/3N9W7NJ to check it out AND fill it out. There’s a lot riding on these decisions.

MIKE ROTKIN’S TV SHOW!!! One way of telling about Mike Rotkin’s political plans is to watch the Santa Cruz City Council’s televised meetings. Right there center screen sits Mike looking all attentive and relevant. That takes planning, he could have sat off screen or watched at home but nope, he’s running again. You can also tell by the number of recent times he attends meetings and speaks. Cynthia Mathews does the same thing when she’s going to run. Not the TV audience show but the amount of organizations and speeches she gives.

ZACH FRIEND’S RE-CALL!!! The folks in Aptos are totally serious about the recall of Zach Friend as supervisor. Anyone who follows politics at all knows that this is, and will be, a large “blemish” on his political career. And if you follow Zach’s manuevers you know he’s dreaming at least of a Sacramento and beyond future. The re-call people have contacted Zach and the County Elections department and are getting all the legal requirements worked through. They needed 20 signatures just to file the first document and got 40 in no time at all. They need 6000 signatures and will be holding “Town Hall” type meetings to alert the rest of the Aptosians about Zach’s nearly total ignoring of the people he represents. See DeCinzo’s cartoon in last Sunday’s (6/28) Santa Cruz Sentinel, to your left.

SANTA CRUZ DOWNTOWN COMMISSION CORRECTION. Ron Slack emailed to inform me (and us) that Barry Swenson’s main plot point man Jesse Nickell is no longer the chair, as I said he was in the last column. As you can see from the stupid Santa Cruz City website as of today (June 29) Jesse is still listed as chair. Ron told me the new chair’s name but I lost his email and as I mentioned, you can’t find out from the City website.

CABRILLO FESTIVAL OF CONTEMPORARY MUSIC. Wonderful relationships have formed over the decades of residents housing the musicians from the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music. New insights into the music, live music in the homes, it’s worked beautifully over the many years and returning musicians and their hosts look forward to the arrangement every year. It’s time again, and especially if you live in or know a suitable room that’s available for this year festival that happens August 2-16 get in touch with the fectival by calling 831 426-6966 or going to the website.

SANDY LYDON’S SANTA CRUZ COUNTY HISTORY CLASSES. Sandy Lydon’s Santa Cruz County History Classes are really history themselves. Over many, many years thousands of people (me included) have not just taken the class but have gained a deep and meaningful connection with our county. He’s teaching it again September 11-December 4. It’s History 25B and Sandy and Cabrillo figured out easy ways to enroll. There are 8 Friday evening classes and 3 Saturday Field Trips. As he says and guarantees “you can become a certified local” with a genuine certificate. Go here to check up on his History Dude website and get details on his other near-legendary offerings.

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary says about the Brown Act…. “The Brown Act is intended to guarantee the right of the public to know what’s happening. There are very definite rules that government agencies must follow. Normally, they must meet on a regular schedule, but if there is a need for a meeting outside that normal schedule, special notices have to be provided”. Then he talks about a campaign sponsored by Global Population Speakout. Go here to read his plugging for their book . Then he talks about cock-fights in Monterey County and chicken rules!! After that he speaks about the difference between Same Sex marriage laws and environmental-land use legislation. He closes the week with a quick view of what’s happening to the development of Fort Ord. Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents individuals and community groups on land use and environmental issues. The opinions expressed are Mr. Patton’s . Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365” – www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. Sharks off Pleasure Point? Impossible. DeCinzo gives us the sharks point of view…see downwards a few pages.

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. Tim Eagan creates another high caliber comment on what’s happening….scroll below.

LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “If you think historical fiction is just asmuch fun as historical fact, go see “A Little Chaos”. Read all about it, andfind out why it takes a village for some writers (me) to edit a book, thisweek at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com).” Lisahas been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. Frank Perry unveils The Capitola Museum’s summer attractions on June 30 followed by Becky Steinbruner who’ll bring news about The Aptos Village problems. Actor, director Mike Ryan talks about Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s season on July 7, then author, reporter, editor Wallace Baine talks about his new book, ” The Last Temptation of Lincoln“. July 14 has activist, commentator John Malkin discussing his Good Times article about SC Policeman Steve Clark. Cartoonist, artist, and philosopher Tim Eagan talks about The Bonny Doon Art Tour on July 21. Environmentalist Grey Hayes returns on September 1^st discussing new nature issues that need attention. . Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in, and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 5 years here’s a chronological list of just this year’s podcasts. Click herehttp://kzsc.org/blog/tag/universal-grapevine then tap on “listen here” to hear any or all of them… all over again. The update includes Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011. Hear them all!!!

QUOTES. “My life, I realize suddenly, is July. Childhood is June, and old age is August, but here it is, July, and my life, this year, is July inside of July”. Rick Bass. “The Summer looks out from her brazen tower, Through the flashing bars of July.” Francis Thompson, A Corymbus for Autumn. “Many public-school children seem to know only two dates: 1492 and 4th of July; and as a rule they don’t know what happened on either occasion.” Mark Twain. “An onion can make people cry but there’s never been a vegetable that can make people laugh.”Will Rogers.

MGM Star Van Johnson on the Graham Hill Road set for the film “The Romance Of Rosy Ridge”. The young women are Santa Cruz High School winners in the ticket selling contest for Miss Santa Cruz County of 1947. They are (L to R) Bunty Braun Pettibone, Joanne Nielsen, “unknown” and Julene Brogden. This film also starred Janet Leigh in her very first screen role, Marshall Thompson and comedian Guy Kibbee. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE JUNE 8, 2015
DATELINE JUNE 15, 2015

VACATION TIME IN VICTORVILLE. Just about every six months I need to get away….and go visit my sister Jerrie in Victorville and daughter Jennifer in Mar Vista which is near Santa Monica, and Victorville isn’t near anything. I have no way of knowing just when BrattonOnline will hit the internet again but I’ll be doing a new column June 29. Thank you so very much for your patience with the erractic online dates.

MAH. Mostly Attendance and Hot Dogs. I’ve messaged (as in don’t shoot the messenger) before a few times about the changes Nina Simon has made to our former Museum of Art and History. In addition to my own opinions of this severe downgrading of our traditional museum that featured famed art with traveling and local art exhibits, I’ve been the messenger for an untold number of artists and historians who weep at the cheap looking Side Show that goes on and on. There’s no doubt that Nina has been doing the job she was hired for and that she has raised attendance and a few grants, it’s just a shame that so far no-one has been serious about dropping the Art and History words from the title. It’s become a community center, way out doing London Nelson Community Center, at least in attendance, if not in appeal or purpose. As we predicted, Nina has succeeded in scaring almost everyone who has to “keep living here” from speaking out and now with all the press coverage…she’s even creating more supporters and creating still more dejected, rejected artists and historians. It’s all part of a much larger “Dumbing Down” of Santa Cruz, as well as the rest of the country.

We’ve seen it in the Warriors Kaiser Permanente inflatable arena. We see it in library attendance, in fewer foreign & art films, and even closer in AnnieGlass and Vinocruz leaving the MAH area. The new Mirrors and Red buoys décor went out with 1950s artistic taste, but we’ll have to live with it. We’ve seen how the temporary decorations to the Red Ball logo next to the M statue at Front and Cooper have been very successful and have kept 100’s of children from playing on it. The proposed food court and Nina’s festivals will attract folks for awhile but many friends and I predict it won’t be enough to make it the community space she’s calling it. I’ve also mentioned before that noticeably missing in all those words painted on the Trader Joe’s Front Street side is the simple word “ART”. That’s important, lets drop the words “ART” and “HISTORY” and admit that it’s now just our community center.

ABSOLUTELY VICIOUS RUMOR. It’s been said before, “I hate repeating rumors, but what else can you do with them?” We won’t have to wait long for this one but inside sources say that Santa Cruz City Manager Martin Bernal isn’t strong enough for his job and he’s on his way out. No word on his replacement…yet. As per usual I’ll save space next week for any retractions.

LUIS ALEJO AND HIS FRACKING BILL COPOUT. Once again sourcing Gary Patton’s Facebook page I found… AB 356 failed last week 6/4 in the State Assembly. Had it passed, the bill would have provided some additional tools to prevent the contamination of groundwater from fracking operations. Residents in the Monterey Bay Region should be happy to know that Assembly Member Mark Stone co-authored the bill and voted “AYE,” in favor of the bill. Assembly Member Luis Alejo was “not voting,” equivalent to a “NO” vote, against the bill. Click here to read the bill. AB 356 – “A Bill To Protect Groundwater From Fracking Contamination”. Now we get to wonder just how much agriculture farming money Alejo has in his camp. We also get to wonder if Luis Alejo’s wife Karina who is now running for Luis’ Assembly seat in 2016 has any-all of that farming money in her campaign?? Ask her at one of her kick-offs this month!!! We can safely assume that the farmer organizations are in favor of making vast fortunes by ALLOWING Fracking on their acreage.

SWENSON’S DOWNTOWN COMMISSION. Somehow the fact that Jesse Nickell is the chair of the Santa Cruz Downtown Commission completely slipped my attention, or I’d forgotten completely. Jesse Nickell is the Senior Vice President of Barry Swenson Builder. As such he’s mostly in command of Santa Cruz County projects like the Aptos Village Steamroller. Swenson’s headquarters are in San Jose but they have made millions building such Santa Cruz Downtown structures as the Galleria, The St. George Hotel, the Taqueria Vallarta building (partnering with Charlie Canfield and the Seaside Corp.), and on and on. Doesn’t the “conflict of interest” principle bother anybody else? I was a member of the Downtown Commission back in 2001 when Tim Fitzmaurice was mayor, we had no such money making members back then. Commission’s like these can only recommend stuff to the City Council, but all the same..Barry Swenson Builders advising the City Council?

ALL ABOUT TOM LEHRER. Here’s a link to all you’ll ever need to know about Tom Lehrer. His history with Cambridge, his decades with UCSC and lots more.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/bensmith/tom-lehrer#.tcjDA82O8P

APTOS VILLAGE SUBDIVISION STATUS REPORT. In addition to Paul Elerick’s up to date report on the last meeting of the Aptos Neighbors who are very concerned over the Barry Swenson / Zach Friend developments taking place in the expanding Aptos Village, Becky Steinbruner sent out a great status report on where the Aptos Plan was before the meeting. Becky stated… We, as citizens, need to organize and become involved in what is being proposed to the Board of Supervisors. If passed, it will drastically change the nature of our County and virtually eliminate our ability to have a voice in developments and their environmental effects.

On May 19, County Planning Director Ms. Kathy Previsich proposed a number of sweeping changes to the Board of Supervisors that will virtually eliminate public hearings on developments and seeks to change zoning codes for agricultural, residential and commercial uses. Many critical decisions, such as determining land use charts, definition of “agricultural use”, and “sensitive habitat”, will all be at the discretion of the planner. It will allow “agricultural use” to include 12 events/year with 100 people to occur, with no public hearing. It will violate the 1979 voter-approved Measure J that set County growth at .5%/year, protects agricultural lands for agricultural use, and protects the County’s natural resources while specifying that any changes to these ordinances must be approved by the voters. When land use attorney Mr. Bill Parkin pointed out to the Board that the proposed changes violate the language of Measure J, Ms. Previsich said, “We will comply but we will re-define what ‘ag use’ is.” As Mr. Parkin stated at the Sierra Club Conservation Committee meeting “This is the greatest and worst change for the County in 20 years”. The problem is, the general public is not aware of what is about to potentially take place: large developments within the unincorporated area will be even easier to accomplish, and the public will have no say. It is very alarming that, with the exception of Supervisor Leopold, none of the Supervisors questioned the implications of the proposals. In fact, Supervisor Friend stated that Measure J is old and that zoning changes need to be updated. “We are moving in the correct direction,” he said”. Becky also added that she is “contemplating a recall effort against Supervisor Friend”.

LOUIS CAVIGLIA & CLOUDS. I ran into Louis Caviglia of Clouds, Louie’s Cajun Kitchen and Seacloud fame and notoriety last week. He said there were more than one reason, besides the rent for closing Louie’s Cajun Kitchen it was that there was a requirement that he sign a ten year lease and ” I’m getting too old” he explained. Louie added that a Monterey restaurant owner is opening a bar/restaurant in the same space and if all goes well Louis will be the bartender!! Being an authority on old age (by default) I asked him if he remembers John Tuck and I buying the very first drinks at the original Clouds when it opened about 20 years ago…he remembered!!

BEARCAT AND PROPER HONORS. Our ever-tearful, apologizing, do gooder mayor Don Lane has written so many pages of heart rendering explanation about why we need THE BEARCAT in the City of Santa Cruz that I propose when that damned military killer of a vehicle does get here that the least we can do for our ever watchful, loving, peaceful Santa Cruz City Council is paint all their names on both sides of the tank as a tribute. And their names should be painted in a sort of Hells Angels type font to further prevent any violence hereabouts!!!

A VERY FINE BIRTHDAY WISH. Long time friend, political ally, former County
Supervisor Gary Patton said some very kind things about me in his daily “Two Worlds” blog.
http://www.gapatton.net/2015/06/159-salute-to-bruce.html . Subscribe to his blog with Google Friend Connect if you want to keep up with the land use battles in the Monterey Bay Area.

SANTA CRUZ COMMUNITY TELEVISION MOVING. Becca King Reed just happened to mention on Universal Grapevine Tuesday (June 2) that finally after years of trying…the Santa Cruz Community Television station is moving in a few weeks. Somewhere on Soquel Avenue, but that’s all I know.

SAD NEWS FROM SCOTLAND’S LOCH LOMOND. Way back in 1963 when they were damming Newell Creek and building our local Loch Lomond reservoir someone had the brilliant idea of getting some water from Scotland’s real Loch Lomond. Bill Findlay lived near that source and he sent a dram or two. His daughter Elaine Docherty sent this to me last week. ” I wanted to let you know that my dad died on the 26th April peacefully at home. The funeral was 10 days later on the 6th of May. He was very ill with cardiac failure near the end and a hospital bed was brought into the living room for him to remain at home for his last few days. I know the two of you were in close contact and as a family we wanted you to know. Kind regards, Elaine Docherty. Bill Findlay and I emailed and “lettered” each other for at least 15 years. We never met, although I came close when I went to England in 2003. He had a grand sense of humor, and even sent me a photo of himself in kilts alongside his wife. I’ll miss his happy exchanges, and his history.

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary talks about Monterey’s Deep Watter De-Sal and says, “A good description of the proposed project can be found in a recent article in the Monterey County Weekly. The proposal is to build a reverse-osmosis desal facility, drawing 55,000 acre feet of seawater per year from the Monterey Submarine Canyon, to produce up to 25,000 acre-feet per year of drinkable water. This is enough water to allow the construction of up to 50,000 new homes, which could be growth inducing! The project is being proposed by a for-profit business partnership, and the idea is to co locate the desal plant with a major “server farm.” He then tells us ….” If you are a City of Santa Cruz resident, and have thoughts about what sort of park and recreation facilities the City should be providing, I think it’s probably worth a few minutes of your time to go through the survey questions, and I recommend that you do that! As you do that, and take the survey, it’s probably worthwhile to keep in mind that the survey seems mostly aimed at finding out what sort of new, physical amenities people might like. Do you think we need more ball fields, or skate parks, or tot lots?

All these are most important questions, but what about open space? One of the great things about the City of Santa Cruz is its open space Greenbelt. Unless you are thinking about open space as you take the survey, you may not think to mention it. If you value the open space resources of the City of Santa Cruz, and would like to make sure that our open space areas remain natural, keep that objective in mind as you go through the online questionnaire. You can sign up to get further information, too!” Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmenatl issues. The opions expressed are Mr. Patton’s. Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365″ – www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. DeCinzo is spot on, as always. Scroll down and see for yourself!

EAGAN’S “SUBCONSCIOUS COMICS”. Another rare re-print of the Classic series Tim created years ago. See below.

LISA JENSEN writes: “Going through Game of Thrones withdrawal? This week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com), check out a very funny video of Game of Thrones: The Musical!, and explore the show’s notorious history of fan abuse.” Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. On June 16 the annual Bookshop Santa Cruz three “Short Story Winners” read their winning entries. I’m on a Victorville vacation June 23 so you can hear a re-play of Art marketing expert Aletta DeWal giving great advice to amateur artists. Then Golden Fleece owner and BrattonOnline partner Gunilla Leavitt talks all about yarn and knitting. Frank Perry unveils The Capitola Museum’s summer attractions on June 30 followed by Becky Steinbruner who’ll bring news about The Aptos Village problems, Actor, director Mike Ryan talks about Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s season on July 7. Cartoonist, artist, and philosopher Tim Eagan talks about The Bonny Doon Art Tour on July 21. Environmentalist Grey Hayes returns on September 1st discussing new nature issues that need attention. Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome, so tune in and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com .

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 5 years here’s a chronological list of just this year’s podcasts. Click here http://kzsc.org/blog/tag/universal-grapevine then tap on “listen here” to hear any or all of them… all over again. The update includes Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn,David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011. Hear them all!!!

QUOTES. “God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches, and a thousand tempests and floods. But he cannot save them from fools”, John Muir. “Any party which takes credit for the rain must not be surprised if its opponents blame it for the drought”, Dwight Morrow. “The Athenians regularly maintained a number of degraded and useless beings at the public expense; and when any calamity, such as plague, drought, or famine, befell the city, they sacrificed two of these outcast scapegoats”, James Frazer .

SANTA CRUZ POST OFFICE. July 1, 1911. As the writing on the photo says, “looking Southwest”. You can see many of the still standing structures along Front Street and over on Pacific Avenue. It was the Plaza Land Office there where Jamba Juice is now located. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE May 4, 2015
DATELINE May 11, 2015
DATELINE May 18, 2015

IS KUSP BURNING??? I was part of a weekly Seniors Program on KUSP in the 1990’s, and part of a comedy troupe along with Tim Eagan, Michael Gant, Patty Free and John Tuck before that. John Laird talked me into being on KAZU’s board of directors a couple of years before they sold out to CSUMB. Way earlier than that, my KUSP attachment goes back to October of 1972 when I was running/managing a California State Assembly campaign and my candidate Henry Faitz and I did an appearance on KUSP. It was located in a large closet in the Babbling Brook Inn on Laurel Street and David Freedman ran the whole thing. Great days!!! Now there’s a complex money and ownership battle going on with all sorts of plots and possible plans. Some well informed sources say that if a large enough percentage of the membership get it together the possible sale could be stopped…and a very long overdue re-organizing could take place. The fear amongst many is that the blah, bland MUZAC type middle of the road classical format that CNPR foists upon all the stations it buys out/conquers will succeed. Meetings are being held, a growing number of folks are getting involved…it’s entirely possible that our community could go back to the days when we had a genuine locally owned and locally themed radio station.

KUSP OPINION. I asked Dr. Mark Bernhard, a long time friend and chiropracter to give us his opinion. He was president of the KUSP board when KAZU “merged” with CSUMB. He wrote…

“As president of the KUSP board at the time, my opinion is that it began to go wrong when KAZU was going under 15 years ago and the KAZU board chose to be taken over by CSUMB, despite repeated, loud warnings from us and others that CSUMB’s assurances that they “wouldn’t change anything” was a pack of lies. KUSP brought out a “merger specialist” from public radio to warn KAZU about CSUMB, outlining the history of what happens when a college acquires a station. It’s never pretty for the one being taken over. Then station manager, Peter Troxell, made an eloquent and strong presentation, to no avail. The KAZU board didn’t like KUSP—they thought WE were too corporate and slick! They wanted to keep their little radio station the way it was and CSUMB lied and told them they could. The KAZU board thought KUSP was the big fish that would swallow them but it was the wolf in sheep’s clothing that devoured them. Our plan was to create a single entity with two frequencies, one overhead/staff/underwriting department, etc. and provide one eclectic all-music station and one all-news/info/talk station offering local, national, and international content. It would have been a fabulous, sustainable, financially strong, aesthetically great arts organization for the entire Monterey Bay and would have prevented these 15years of inane, repetitive, overlapping programming and competition between an entirely publicly-funded, largely volunteer entity (KUSP) and one that receives funding from CSUMB’s (nearly bottomless) coffers plus public fundraising to present what is a mindless, unoriginal pipeline,with minimal local content, directly from NPR to the Central Coast (whoopee!). But they are able to undercut the cost of on-air underwriting vs. KUSP because of the subsidy from CSUMB, assuring that much of the underwriting money that could go to KUSP goes to KAZU because it’s cheaper and a lot of people love NPR and equate that with “public radio.” I often shake my head in dismay at what could have been vs what has been. The original KAZU board was suffering mightily from myopic provincialism. That’s what I called it at the time and I stand by that description to this day.

The imminent “sale” of KUSP is, so far, rumor. I don’t see that happening, at least not how it’s currently being portrayed by many. But KUSP is deeply in debt despite having already sold several repeater frequencies and much connected equipment. It is not the fault of management. I have the utmost respect for the insight, intelligence,eloquence, foresight,and dedication of Terry Green as Station Manager, and KellyO’Brien as Board President and John Morrison, Treasurer (both with superhuman, unbelievable volunteer dedication) as well as all the other unpaid board and under-paid staff. The whole media landscape is changing, as we all know. KAZU will probably have to change or go down as well in the next 5 years because they have their head in the sand regarding that landscape. We’ve been trying to convince them of the benefits of a merger for the last several years but they don’t get it. Most people, especially the young (i.e. current/futuremedia consumers) don’t listen to the radio anymore.They listen to their “device.” And they stream that content from the internet. Who needs a radio station that relies on an antenna anymore? Things will definitely change at KUSP, but the direction and ultimate organization remains to be seen. I was out of town for the big meeting on May 6 but I’m confident that everyone involved is dedicated to preserving the original mission of the station. As Terry Green said in a recent email: “As a group, we hold the public trust here, and we need to work from what is true, not what we are afraid might be true. We have a collective responsibility to work this out… and to do that in a way that will inspire, and not diminish, the confidence of the many thousands of people who support us now, and thousands more that may support what we do in the future.” Mark also sent two websites with further historical details. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KAZU and http://www.metroactive.com/papers/cruz/12.15.99/kusp-9950.html

HAWAII—MAUNA KEA & THE 14 TELESCOPES. Hawaii – the big Island – is home to Mauna Kea the dormant volcano that stands 13,796 feet above sea level. There’s an even bigger issue going on there than KUSP!!! Mauna Kea is a sacred place and Universities and observatories from around the world are developing telescope sites there against the native Hawaiians protests. Go here to read the developers side. I’m trying to connect with some Office of Hawaiian Affairs officials to get their side. It’s a very sad and disrespectful saga…much like our treatment of the “American” Indians. More later.

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary alerts us to our county supes re-writing our Land-Use Policies on 5/19. He says, “In essence, the County’s Planning Director and County Administrative Officer are asking the Board to change the rules for developers in Santa Cruz County, with a significant possibility that the protection of agricultural land, the protection of neighborhoods, and the protection of the natural environment will all be diminished”. Then he states about the KUSP confusion, “The KUSP Board and station management have signed a “Letter of Intent” to sell KUSP’s frequency and transmitters to the Classical Public Radio Network. If that deal goes through, you will have to start doing your own investigation on upcoming land use related items, since I’ll be off the air. And frankly, doing research on your own would be a good idea no matter what! At any rate, there are some upcoming meetings about the proposed sale of KUSP. The first meeting is May 21^st, in Monterey” About our water issue Gary reports, “In the next few months, the City of Santa Cruz will be adopting a new Water Conservation Plan, and the event this evening is intended to stimulate some public input into that process. As the event organizers say, “among Santa Cruz residents, water conservation comes right after Mom and apple pie, or maybe ahead of apple pie, but there is [still] work to do to ensure that the new plan matches the community’s sentiment.” Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmenatl issues. The opinions expressed are Mr. Patton’s. Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365” – www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. Very early “DeCinzo guide to Santa Cruz”….see downward just a bit.

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. Once again, we are gifted with a classic “Subconscious Comic”…see how Eagan sheds light on our darkest thoughts…scroll below.

LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “How romantic is the new film version of Far From the Madding Crowd? Find out this week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com.” Also, please note my blog will be on hiatus until May 25, so talk among yourselves until I get back!” Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE RADIO PROGRAM
KZSC 88.1 FM or live online at
www.KZSC.ORG TUESDAYS 7-8 P.M.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. May 19 Elizabeth Romanini and Attny. Bill Parkin talk about the success of NOPOC (Neighbors Organized to Protect our Community) and then Tash Nguyen and Courtney Hanson discuss UCSC’s Sin Barras.. . . May 26 Rachel Goodman and Ed Porter bring us up to date on the KUSP confusion. They are followed by UCSC Prof. Mathew Lasar talking about the future of radio and online “radio” type stuff. Veterans advocate Dean Kaufman talks about benefits and programs for vets on June 2. Becca Reed King discusses our Community Television station news after Dean. On June 16 the annual Bookshop Santa Cruz “Short Story Winners” read their winning entries. Frank Perry unveils The Capitola Museum’s summer attractions on June 30. Actor, director Mike Ryan talks about Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s season on July 7. Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome, so tune in and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com .

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 9 years, here’s a partial list of some of the 900 broadcasts. Click herehttp://kzsc.org/blog/tag/universal-grapevine then tap on “`listen here” to hear what’s still available. The list includes Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Ted Benhari, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since June 2006.

QUOTES.

“There’s too much nudity on TV, and not enough on the radio,” Jarod Kintz. “Television, radio, and all the sources of amusement and information that surround us in our daily lives are also artificial props. They can give us the impression that our minds are active, because we are required to react to stimuli from the outside. But the power of those external stimuli to keep us going is limited. They are like drugs. We grow used to them, and we continuously need more and more of them. Eventually, they have little or no effect. Then, if we lack resources within ourselves, we cease to grow intellectually, morally, and spiritually. And we we cease to grow, we begin to die.” Mortimer J. Adler, How to Read a Book “As early as 1930 Schoenberg wrote: “Radio is an enemy, a ruthless enemy marching irresistibly forward, and any resistance is hopeless”; it “force-feeds us music . . . regardless of whether we want to hear it, or whether we can grasp it,” with the result that music becomes just noise, a noise among other noises. Radio was the tiny stream it all began with. Milan Kundera, Ignorance

PACIFIC AVENUE December 22, 1955. Remember rain and floods? This was one of our biggest. The photo shows just about where that stupid looking Rittenhouse Building with the empty store front windows sits and sits and sits. That’s where the Rittenhouse murder took place upstairs a few decades ago. Near the corner of Church and Pacific. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE May 4, 2015

WHY A NATIONAL MONUMENT IN DAVENPORT? Here’s an article from the front page of the May/June 2015 Bonny Doon Highlander newsletter…

On April 21 the Board of Supervisors unanimously passed a resolution supporting the designation of Coast Dairies as a national monument. Apparently they think it will bring added protection for the 5,800 acre property, and more money for stewardship, management and construction of trails and visitor facilities. We do not share that opinion. We are strongly concerned that monument status might attract so many more hikers, cyclists and equestrians that it could actually harm the plants and the animals living in and moving through the area. And it will certainly negatively impact the North Coast beaches, roads and neighboring communities. And what is the point?

Coast Dairies is already strongly protected from adverse activities like mining, logging, development and off-road recreational vehicle use by deed restrictions on the property, made even stiffer by the terms of a Coastal Development Permit (CDP). The monument campaign backers have raised the red herring of a recent Congressional vote by Republicans to sell off federal lands that are not national monuments or parks. The terms of the deed restrictions and the CDP are valid in perpetuity, regardless of future ownership of the land. Would anyone pay many millions of dollars for something they can’t build anything on?”. The article has many, many more concerns that we should all be informed on. Example…how can Sempervirens claim that the number of visitors won’t be as high as Fort Ord? What will the impacts be on the surrounding communities like Davenport and Bonny Doon? How much volunteer work will be needed to maintain the park…and will it materialize? How about law enforcement in “the Monument” . This is truly a monumental decision. Check out many more questions that need to be asked here.

COAST DAIRIES MONUMENT PLANNING TO USE WILDER RANCH??? Ted Benhari from The Rural Bonny Doon Association entered this on The “FRIENDS OF THE NORTH COAST” page on Facebook.

“I Had a little debate tonight with Steve Reed, head of the Santa Cruz Redwoods National Monument campaign, at the Conservation Committee of the Santa Cruz Chapter of the Sierra Club, who are considering whether to recommend support for the monument designation. The most interesting thing to come out of it was Reed’s remark that the power players behind the campaign are now thinking that a visitor center should be at Wilder Ranch State Park! What are the implications of THAT? Wilder is separated from Coast Dairies by about a mile of private properties surrounding Laguna Creek canyon. A visitor center at Wilder presumably would be at the ranch house area, which is 2+ miles from Coast Dairies. Wilder, of course, is a State Park. What are the legal roadblocks to using it as a visitor center for a federal national monument? What would be the effect on Wilder? What legal process would be required? CEQA ramifications? What would that mean for the old cement plant property in Davenport, which many assumed would eventually become the visitor center? Lots of questions…and again, as with so much about this monument campaign, decisions being made or at least considered out of the public eye”. Then Ted Benhari added, “Sempervirens Executive Director Shelley Ratay says she doesn’t know what Steve Reed is talking about, but she’ll ask him and get back to me. Interesting…” As of press time she hadn’t gotten back to Mr. Benhari. What kind of internal Sempervirens communications is that? Are we (and the North Coast) going to be subject to more of their internal problems?? Be sure to keep up on issues and topics involved with this gigantic change to our precious North Coast, go to Friends of The North Coast page on Facebook.

THE WARRIORS PARADE DOWN PACIFIC. A reader writes, “I know I’m totally out of touch, bit I really miss the Santa Cruz I’ve loved over the past close to 40 years. As I walked from the Farmer’s Market today towards New Leaf, Pacific Avenue was suddenly closed to traffic for the Warriors Parade. Jeeze, I didn’t even know I was watching James Durbin sing 15′ away (and I actually like him on American Idol), but I found myself totally pissed at watching my town go down the sports tube. Of course, Santa Cruz council woman Cynthia Mathews was there with a big grin, which didn’t help. We won! We won! What I want to know is, how come stopping traffic with loud, amplified music for a basketball team gets full support from the cops (and the City), but that black guy Curtis Relliford who parks his truck down there with a boom box playing to raise money for the poor gets busted by the cops?”.

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary says that the Board of Supes may allow the developer to build either 63 or 69 residential units, and up to 75,000 square feet of commercial space in the new Aptos Village. He then talks about the Monterey County General Plan and how their Board of Supervisors sided with the abricultural industry over a better land use proposal. Gary then “details” a Santa Cruz City Planning Commission session happening Thursday May 7. First, the Commission is going to hold a public hearing, and then decide whether the City’s Capital Improvements Program is consistent with the City General Plan and the City’s Climate Action Plan. The General Plan is the community’s “constitution for land use.” All project level decisions must be “consistent” with the General Plan. That “consistency” requirement is the way that the community can hold its elected officials accountable, and can ensure that the City’s long terms goals, adopted in the General Plan, are in fact followed. If you live in a residential area, for instance, and the General Plan says it is supposed to remain residential, a developer cannot get approval for a used car lot. The “consistency” requirement applies to the City’s own projects, too, and whether the City’s proposed road, bike lane, and other projects are consistent with the General Plan is what is up for discussion this evening. The second item on the Commission’s agenda is about legalizing multi-family residential units, to address the City’s housing crisis. The recommendation is to change the rules to allow more units to be recognized. As you can see, this will be an important meeting. Get more information at kusp.org/landuse”. Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmenatl issues. The opions expressed are Mr. Patton’s \. Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365” – www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. DeCinzo and our wonderful marine wild life and our rangers!!!Look below a few pages.

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. Tim Eagan’s “Subconscious Comics” were an enormous hit a few years ago. Tim has loaned us the use of a few of the classics. Scroll down and gaze in awe!!!

LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “Take a peek inside the publishing biz as an author receives her first (dreaded) editorial letter from a new editor, this week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com). And don’t forget, folks: my novel, Alias Hook comes out in paperback this week!” Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. May 12 has Ted Benhari telling us of some of the problems and issues that the proposed National Monument will bring. After Ted, Anita Monga visits from the San Francisco Silent Film Festival to tell about this years full schedule. May 19 Elizabeth Romanini and Attny. Bill Parkin talk about the success of NOPOC (Neighbors Organized to Protect our Community) and Tash Nguyen discusses UCSC’s Sin Barras.. . . On June 16 the annual Bookshop Santa Cruz “Short Story Winners” read their winning entries. Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome, so tune in and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 5 years here’s a chronological list of just this year’s podcasts. Click herehttp://kzsc.org/blog/tag/universal-grapevine then tap on “listen here” to hear any or all of them… all over again. The update includes Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011. Hear them all!!!

QUOTES. “Congress (and the public which elects it) can always be expected to hesitate longer over an appropriation to acquire or protect a national park than over one to build a highway into it. Yet there is nothing which so rapidly turns a wilderness into a reserve and a reserve into a resort.” — Joseph Wood Krutch, 1957. “In Yellowstone National Park, there are more ‘do not feed the animals’ signs than there are animals you might wish to feed”, Natalie Jeremijenko. “In fact, at Olympic National Park in my district, they 3 years ago had 130 summer employees they brought in for temporary work. This summer they have 25 because they cannot afford more”, Norm Dicks.

PACIFIC AND COOPER STREETS 1892 at 11:40 am. This is before the Cooperhouse was built and shows the Santa Cruz County Courthouse before the big quake took it down. The Town Clock is in its’ original position atop the Odd Fellows building. Note how extra wide the streets were then. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE APRIL 27, 2015

GROCERY OUTLET OPENS ON LUCKY’S OLD SITE. Big crowds on Saturday (4/25)at the site of the old Lucky’s Store on Morrisey. New labels amongst old familiar ones , and prices seemed lower for sure Safeway/Albertsons. Grocery Outlet stores are mostly independently owned not like trader Joes and their owner ALDI International in Germany, the world’s largest grocery chain owner. They get their egges and milk and meat the same places the big chains do so not a big svaings there, but I got a great buy on imported Olive Oil at $3.99. It’s from Bellucci and is 100% Italian extra virgin, non-GMO…but then again, who isn’t? It’s probably made by ESSO or Sunoco or some other off brand. Then again, I’ll bet you’ll see more old friends at Trader Joe’s.

COAST DAIRIES NTL. MONUMENT. Supervisor Ryan Coonerty’s pledge to withdraw his support of The Coast Dairies National Monument IF all the issues aren’t dealt with is certainly a good one. WE may have to remind him from time to time so he doesn’t duck out like he did in his long pitches for a DE-SAL plant, but let’s hope.

APTOS VILLAGE…WHY? A bit further down Paul Elerick deals in details on the Aptos Village or SWENSONVILLE or ZACHARAVIA but I defy anyone anytime to show or prove that city growth has brought any kind of success anywhere in the world. These developers and Chambers of Commerce’s keep pushing for growth, development and can they possibly deny that as cities grow bigger they actually have more tax money to spend on improvements? Never happen!

SUICIDE WARNING. Exit International just sent this warning… in case you were planning to use “Balloon Time Helium” on your way out.

The largest manufacturer of disposable helium cylinders, Worthingtons in Columbus, Ohio, who make Balloon Time kits have announced on its website that from April 2015 their cylinders will guarantee only 80% helium, with up to 20% air. While an 80:20 helium:air mixture is suitable for floating party balloons, its use to provide a peaceful death is lost. It went on to state… Exit recommends that those with recently-acquired Balloon Time cylinders either test the gas to ensure that there is no oxygen contamination. Alternatively, the cylinders should be discarded and replaced with a reliable alternative like Max Dog nitrogen, where the purity of the gas (& absence of any oxygen) is guaranteed by the distributors. Read all of it here….

HISTORICAL PHOTO ADDITIONS. If you scroll down to last week’s issue (April 9-22) of BrattonOnline you’ll see a photo I quickly assumed was taken from the County Building as it was being constructed…nope, I got it wrong. Several readers sent in the “news” that the photo was taken from the roof of the San Lorenzo Park Apartments overlooking Dakota Avenue. Thanks readers.

L.A.TIMES ABOUT DESALINATION. Paul Gratz sent this timely piece…
Times (April 24, 2105)
DESALINATION PLANTS AREN’T A GOOD SOLUTION

FOR CALIFORNIA DROUGHT.

By Michael Hiltzik

* Enthusiasm for desalination tends to overlook its enormous energy demand and environmental footprint. As surely as the hot, dry Santa Ana winds bring blue skies to the coast and wildfires to the hills, severe California droughts bring calls to build desalination plants up and down the seashore. All that ocean water, begging to be converted to fresh and pumped into our pipelines, would solve our water supply problems instantly and permanently, boosters say. In the coming months, the drumbeat will only get louder. That’s not only because the current drought is the longest and most severe in memory, but because a $1-billion desalination project scheduled to start operating in Carlsbad this fall will be attracting lots of attention”. Brattonote read the rest of this article it mentions Santa Cruz!!! And a seaside beach photo caption in the LA Times article says, “As big industrial facilities, desalination plants can’t be plunked down just anywhere on the coast without destroying the qualities that attract people to the shoreline. (John Antczak, Associated Press) [MORE]

DE-SAL POETRY. Patricia Matecjek forwarded this timely ode

LETS DISCUSS DESALINATION

by joey racano

Let’s discuss Desalination
Could it be right for our nation
Let’s explore both pro and con
Before you turn those sprinklers on

First let’s see how Desal works
How it’s owned by greedy jerks
Who built a plant and ran away
Leaving Tampa Bay to pay

Two faced liars call it salt
What they dump like it was malt
But brine is so bad for the sea
Concentrated impurity

Then the issue of intake
Suck fish in and set on bake
Plankton are our baby fish
Want dead ocean? Got your wish!

Should we drink desalted water
Knowing sea life it will slaughter?
What would Desal set in motion?
It would sterilize the ocean!

Now it’s time to speak of cost
How much San Diego lost
Built a plant and spent a billion
To serve seven percent of over three million!

With 40 million in our state
Do the math, extrapolate
California needs 200 plants!
That’s half a trillion- with no grants!

Perhaps the greatest threat of all
Fukushima comes to call
Tritium can’t be removed
Ice cubes glow when thirst is soothed

Get yours at the Geiger counter
Desal water large amounter
Hate to throw you such a curve
Maybe we should just conserve

Joey Racano the poet adds this is from a ‘Weapon of mass discussion” and remember that “Capitalism is the first stage of cannibalism” -joey racano

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary talks about developing Fort Ord, and about an Open Space future at the Fort. Neighbors Organized to Protect Our Community (NOPOC) celebrates their victory over P.G.& E. and their unnecessary power line project. He says, “As I said yesterday, with reference to the work of NOPOC, Neighbors Organized to Protect Our Community, community participation in land use related matters can actually make a big difference in what governmental agencies do. To be successful, with respect to any community-based effort, concerned members of the community do have to “get organized,” and they have to be willing to go to meetings, and to educate and inform themselves about the various governmental processes that can so profoundly affect our future. But if they do that, the results are often quite striking. Your participation can, in fact, make a difference. Self-government actually does work, but as the term so clearly states, we don’t get self-government as a gift from someone else. If we care about self-government, we do need to get involved ourselves.

He ends the week talking about The Carmel Valley Association and their guide on how to comment on an EIR which is available.Check it out at his wensite. Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmenatl issues. The opions expressed are Mr. Patton’s \. Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365” – www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. DeCinzo takes a look at the roaming Catholics. Scroll downwards.

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. Eagan looks at surfing, voting, and DARK MONEY!!! See below.

LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “This week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com), Jewel Theatre Company debuts a witty new play by Kate Hawley, and sci-fi gets smart with Ex Machina.” Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. . Miriam Ellis guests on May 5 to talk about this years International Playhouse at UCSC. Miriam is followed by Dr. Jason Luksich talking all about his field of Ophthalmology. May 12 has Ted Benhari telling us of some of the problems and issues that the proposed National Monument will bring. After Ted Anita Monga visits from the San Francisco Silent Film Festival to tell about this years full schedule. May 19 Elizabeth Romanini and Attny. Bill Parkin talk about the success of NOPOC (Neighbors Organized to Protect our Community) and Tash Nguyen discusses UCSC’s Sin Barras after that. . Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in, and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 5 years, here’s a chronological list of just this year’s podcasts. Click herehttp://kzsc.org/blog/tag/universal-grapevine then tap on “listen here” to hear any or all of them… all over again. The update includes Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011. Hear them all!!!

QUOTES. “If I had to choose a religion, the sun as the universal giver of life would be my god”, Napoléon Bonaparte . “It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade”, Charles Dickens. “The Sun is such a lonely star. Whenever he comes out to see his friends, they all disappear”,Joseph Gordon-Levitt, “He stepped down, avoiding any long look at her as one avoids long looks at the sun, but seeing her as one sees the sun, without looking”, Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina.

This great and imposing Hotel Metropole stood about where Eye Q optometrists and Logos Book Store are now at 1111 Pacific Avenue. It was a National Dollar store and also Hal Morris moved Plaza Books there before the 1989 earthquake. This is from the National Register of Places…”The Hotel Metropole was constructed in 1908 for Duncan McPherson by contractor Charles Kay. McPherson was the editor and publisher of the newspaper, the Santa Cruz Sentinel, and owner and developer of several parcels of significant real estate on Pacific Avenue. In addition to the hotel, which offered forty-eight “furnished rooms for transient and permanent guests” at fifty cents per day, the building also housed a millinery, the offices of C. W. Waldron, a partner of McPherson’s, and the C.O.D. Grocery. The hotel changed names twice, to the Hotel Al Rose in 1935 and to the Hotel Drake in 1946, and was occupied continuously until 1961. The ground floor commercial space was consolidated in the thirties for the use of the National Dollar department store, which operated until 1976. When the property was added to the National Register in 1979, it housed Plaza Books. The Hotel Metropole was a unique Santa Cruz example of turn-of-the-century commercial architecture in the late Italianate style in which pressed-metal ornamentation replaced the more costly and fancy Victorian plaster work it often copied. The four pediments atop the third-story windows, and the acanthus design cornices were particularly handsome”. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE April 20, 2015

CAN WE HANDLE A ” NATIONAL MONUMENT”?? By now our Board Of Supervisors plus John Laird and most of our officials have continued to endorse the so called Santa Cruz Redwoods. Locally it’s been mostly the Bonny Dood residents who have brought important issues up for consideration. They talk of the enormous impact that the new traffic will have on little old (really OLD) Mission Street, there’s the increased traffic leading in and our of our county Highway 17 and Highway One. Has any “official” mention been made on just the traffic problems? The concerns involve all of us not just Bonny Doon….consider the developer pressure there will be on our precious North Coast agriculture land. Then consider Supervisor Ryan “de-sal” Coonerty’s constant support of growth? Go here to read Bonny Doon’s Newsletter The Highlander from last month. Check out the many, many more problems that have never been considered. http://www.bonnydoon.got.net/03-15_hlndr.html . One special question is why has there been no community meetings on this “national issue”??

Ed Abbey author of “Desert Solitaire” and lifelong defender of wilderness wrote many deeply relevant statements about saving such land as The Coast Dairies territory. He and I talked about them on a long walk we took near Swanton Road not too long before he died. Here’s some of the hundreds of great Ed Abbey quotes, think about them before you go waving flags.

“A man on foot, on horseback or on a bicycle will see more, feel more, enjoy more in one mile than the motorized tourists can in a hundred miles.”

“I understand and sympathize with the reasonable needs of a reasonable number of people on a finite continent. All life depends upon other life. But what is happening today, in North America, is not rational use but irrational massacre. Man the Pest, multiplied to the swarming stage, is attacking the remaining forests like a plague of locusts on a field of grain”.

“Water, water, water….There is no shortage of water in the desert but exactly the right amount , a perfect ratio of water to rock, water to sand, insuring that wide free open, generous spacing among plants and animals, homes and towns and cities, which makes the arid West so different from any other part of the nation. There is no lack of water here unless you try to establish a city where no city should be”.

“Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell”.

“The idea of wilderness needs no defense, it only needs defenders.”

“A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government”.

“Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit, and as vital to our lives as water and good bread. A civilization which destroys what little remains of the wild, the spare, the original, is cutting itself off from its origins and betraying the principle of civilization itself.”

“The love of wilderness is more than a hunger for what is always beyong reach; it is also an expression of loyalty to the earth, the earth which bore us and sustains us, the only paradise we shall ever know, the only paradise we ever need, if only we had the eyes to see.” As an aside IF anyone really wanted to name it after the most prominent growth on the land it would be the HEMLOCK National Monument. Closing note; if you do Facebook go to it and join the new “Friends of the North Coast” page.

40 YEARS OF GOOD TIMES. Be sure to check out the 40^th Anniversary issue of Good Times. I think I have a small piece on the little remembered two years that they operated in Capitola in an office just behind the AAA Center. It was 40 years ago that I started this very column in Good Times, Volume One # 1. The very first item in my first column created some reaction. I merely stated that it was a good thing Mr. & Mrs. Chuck Abbott’s son died from surfing and not from an upset stomach. Otherwise they would have built a giant brick hamburger instead of the lighthouse on Lighthouse Point in his memory.

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary brings up many of the problems with the North Coast National Monument. He announces two “Water Meetings” and says, “think about how we can use less, and live within the constraints of the water we’ve got. There is, of course, the other alternative, which is to find a way to increase our water supply. Historically, Americans have always been fond of the “supply side” approach. Facing natural resource constraints, our inclination is to build a dam, extend a pipeline, or drill a well. Most recently, the “let’s increase our water supply” approach has focused on building a factory to “manufacture” fresh water, using that big ocean out there as our supply source”. It would be hard to overstate how important it is that we be aggressive and proactive in dealing with our water supply situation”. He talks about how Monterey locals want more open space at Fort Ord and public officials want development. He closes Thursday by saying, “remember that the officials we elect are supposed to work for the public, not vice versa”. That statement should be a mandatory tattoo and required on every elected public officials right hand!!! Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmenatl issues. The opions expressed are Mr. Patton’s \. Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365” – www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. There will never be another Steven DeCinzo or just maybe…check out his classic cartoon just below.

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. Eagan predicts trouble ahead especially for Iran see downwards.

SANTA CRUZ CHAMBER PLAYERS. The Players end their season with The Clarinet Ascending” featuring music by two favorites, Mozart and Brahms. The performing cast is

Jeff Gallagher, artistic director and clarinet, Sue Brown, violin and viola, Shannon Delaney, violin and viola, Eri Borcea-Ishigaki, violin, and Judy Roberts, cello. It’s at Christ Lutheran Church, in Aptos off Freedom Blvd. near the CHP office. Saturday, Apr. 25, 8 pm and Sunday, Apr. 26, 3 pm. Maybe tickets at the door, but the Sunday performances usually sell out!!!

SHAKESPEARE’S KING JOHN. The Stratford Festival presents a “live” telecast of King John. Wikipedia sez, “King John, a history play by William Shakespeare, dramatises the reign of John, King of England (ruled 1199–1216), son of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine and father of Henry III of England. It is believed to have been written in the mid-1590s but was not published until it appeared in the First Folio in 1623. King John is one of only two plays by Shakespeare that are entirely written in verse, the other being Richard II. It’s at The Del Mar, Downtown Santa Cruz. Two Shows Only!!Thurs 4/23 @ 7:30pm. and Sun 4/26 @ 11:00am.

JEWEL THEATRE’S “COMPLICATIONS FROM A FALL”. Santa Cruz’s own Kate Hawley wrote it and it is directed by Paul Whitworth of Shakespeare Santa Cruz fame. The notes say, “In this touching and funny new play, an adult son reluctantly comes home to care for his aging mother for a few days and finds out a great deal more about her past — and his own — than he had bargained for. While his long suffering care-taker sister spreads her wings out of town, Teddy comes to grips with adult diapers, irrational demands, souvenirs from the past, and his engaging and infuriatingly mysterious mother”. It runs April 23 through May 17.The Jewel Theatre is in the Center Stage Building 1001 Center Street. Tickets at this link.

LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “Drop in and help me celebrate 40 years on the movie beat in Santa Cruz, this week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com.” Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. County Supervisor John Leopold co-hosts our KZSC #1 Pledge Drive night on April 21. Historian, author Sandy Lydon co-hosts KZSC #2 Pledge Drive night on April 28. Miriam Ellis guests on May 5 to talk about this years International Playhouse at UCSC. Miriam is followed by Dr. Jason Luksich talking all about his field of Ophthalmology. May 12 has Ted Benhari telling us of some of the problems and issues that the proposed National Monument will bring. May 19 Elizabeth Romanini and Attny. Bill Parkin talk about the success of NOPOC (Neighbors Organized to Protect our Community) and Tash Nguyen discusses UCSC’s Sin Barras after that. Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in, and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 5 years here’s a chronological list of just this year’s podcasts. Click herehttp://kzsc.org/blog/tag/universal-grapevine then tap on “listen here” to hear any or all of them… all over again. The update includes Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011. Hear them all!!!

QUOTES. “It’s so dry the trees are bribing the dogs”, Charles Martin. “Drought is the best thing that ever happened to my lawn. And my beard,“, Jarod Kintz, “The exhausted earth groaned and quivered under the monotonous glare of the sun. Spirals of heat rose from the ground as if from molten lava. A panting lizard crawled painfully over the fevered rock in search of a shady crevice. Cattle and dogs cringed under the scanty shade of the trees and waited for the rain to deliver them from the heat and thirst. Instead the heat grew more intense and oppressive each day, singeing and stifling all living things with an invisible sheet of fire, which only the rain could put out. The drought had persisted for over a month.” S. Rajaratnam

Early San Lorenzo Park. This is dated 1967 and looks out from the County Building, and looking over Dakota Avenue. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email bratton@cruzio.com

DATELINE April 6, 2015
DATELINE April 13, 2015

STARBUCKS ON OUR BEST CORNER. Another brilliant move from our so called leaders…allowing Starbucks to take over our most prominent, visible corner. Think about it. We have Jamba Juice on our Pacific Avenue entrance, a Taco Bell drive in at our southern Laurel Street entrance, Safeway/Albertsons on the Western entrance, and there’s Ross, Office Max, Cost Plus at the Highway 17 entrance. Each of them built and cheered on by the promise of jobs and tax revenue. Let’s hear it again….why would people come to Santa Cruz…to see what exactly??? Maybe the Bearcat???

MAUNA KEA, A CLEARER VIEW?? The UC system is working fast and putting out lots of publicity on the new telescope system that’s going up on Mauna Kea on Hawaii, the big island. If you go to whythemountain.blogspot.com you’ll read some of the many concerns native Hawaiians have about the destruction of their very holy and sacred mountain. You’ll read… “Mauna Kea is inundated with 13 telescopes, one of which is obsolete. The Thirty-Meter Telescope (TMT) would be larger than all the other telescopes combined. On March 26th, 2014 Hawaiians and our allies began peaceful protests in the very cold and rainy climate of Mauna Kea. So far 31 people have been arrested, and more arrests are expected to take place next week. Mauna Kea is sacred to Hawaiians, a vulnerable ecosystem that needs protection, and prized by the astronomy industry. Why do Hawaiians and environmentalists oppose a $1.4 billion project that promises a much-needed economic boost? Mauna Kea represents the origins of one culture, and is a place where other cultures go to seek their origins. Environmentalists argue that because the largest fresh water aquifer for Hawaii Island is on Mauna Kea, the potential for irreversible harm is too high a price to pay. They say to build a stadium sized structure and its 5,000-gallon hazardous chemical waste container above the aquifer is terrible risk to the entire watershed and the endangered and threatened species’ habitats. But for the Hawaiian people, what began as an agreement to allow one telescope on Mauna Kea over 40 years ago has turned into a generational struggle to protect the mountain from endless acts that amount to a form of cultural strip-mining. Because traditionally, Hawaiians have regarded the summit as sacred. Today, it’s also a symbol of cultural erasure and the ongoing assault on Hawaiian spiritual and religious practices and rights to self-determination. Read up on this, it’s yet another direction that the UC system has taken that so embarrassing, culturally offensive and non caring.

THE HUNTING GROUND. See this documentary at The Nick quickly. It’s about sexual crimes on American campii. You’ll wonder about UCSC, because it isn’t mentioned in the film. UC Berkeley, Stanford, UC Santa Barbara, Harvard, Yale, UC San Diego are all talked about but not UCSC. So we find in the papers… UCSC SEXUAL CRIME “REPORTS” ON THE RISE” was the headline by Kara Guzman in the Santa Cruz Sentinel, 02/23/2015. It stated, “SANTA CRUZ — Reports of sexual crimes at UC Santa Cruz have tripled since 2011 — a sign that administrators say shows their efforts to increase awareness and make victims less wary about stepping forward are paying off”. According to a 2013 collection of crime reports from both police and campus authorities, UCSC had 12 forcible sex offenses in 2013, up from 10 in 2012 and four in 2011. But those numbers don’t show the real picture, as sexual crimes are grossly underreported, said Caitlin Stinneford, sexual violence prevention educator and advocate. So far this school year, around 130 students have sought campus help for sexual or dating violence, That’s up from 97 students in the entire 2013-14 school year, she said. Weeks can pass before victims realize what happened, since most instances are not violent and involve alcohol, minimal force and an assailant the victim knows. Victims usually blame themselves, and don’t want to harm the assailant by reporting to the police, she said”. What’s almost funny is that UCSC’s Chancellor Blumenthal stated in the press last week something like “we are taking this very seriously”. If he’d seen The Hunting Ground he would have rephrased it. The film says, nearly 85 % of college officials always state, in the same words, “we are taking this very seriously”. But UCSC has stated that April is a big deal month and there are many “sexual awareness” meetings and presentations taking place. What’s even more interesting is that the film says (and proves) that most sex attacks on females (and males too) are committed by friends and acquaintances, not strangers.

TICKETING CURTIS RELIFORD AND NOT THE MOTORCYCLES? Does anyone else see the terrible crime our Santa Cruz City Council is allowing to happen when Curtis Reliford of the Follow Your Heart Network and his very humane colorful and decent trailer has been ticketed several times for being downtown and yet the damned noisy and offensive motorcycles are allowed to scorch and screech up Pacific Avenue with a knowing friendly nod from our smiling police? What’s with that?

KEITH SUGAR’S STIRRING MEMORIAL. Keith Sugar died of sudden heart failure On March 17, 2015. Keith is survived by his wife of nearly 25 years, Annrae Angel. He was a loving father to his son Ian 19, and his daughter Marlana 16. Keith Sugar was elected to the Santa Cruz city council in 1998 and also served on the Santa Cruz Local Agency Formation Commission, the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments, and the Monterey Bay Unified Air Pollution Control Board. He was mayor of Santa Cruz from 1999-2000. There was a fine and well attended celebration of Keith’s life on Sunday, April 12th, at Christopher Krohn’s house. Contributions in Keith’s name may be made to the Keith Sugar: Children’s College Fund, at the Santa Cruz Community Credit Union in lieu of flowers.

HISTORICAL PHOTO NEWS. Tony Russomanno poet, artist, reporter, TV cameraman found great photos of Governor Ronald Reagan on the UCSC Campus, and sent them. He also made great and important corrections to my notes on last week’s (April 6) historical photo caption. I welcome any/all corrections to stuff you read and see here. I got the UCSC Reagan Tuition protest notes from penciled notes on the back of the 8×10 photo. It was my guess that it was Vernon Berlin from KSCO with the microphone, Tony R. shows us none of above was correct. Tony reports….” Ronald Reagan was on the UCSC campus to take part in “Spring Thing,” an annual event that ran for a few years in the late 60’s to raise money for the UCSC Tutorial Project summer camp for underprivileged children. It would be nice to think that students on that day would have been far-sighted enough to hold a vigil against tuition, but they had other things on their minds, as shown in these photos from the UCSC McHenry Library Special Collections, Spring Thing, May 11-14, 1967. For more photos and corrections (be sure to not miss the early photo of cowboy Page Smith.),

click here (link expands, click to collapse)

ELECTRIC MAILBOX. Reed Searle sent this great idea…” I wonder, and I’ve tried but nobody seems to know the answer, how many homes in Santa Cruz are owned by non-residents and are vacant much/most of the time. Sure would be nice if it were possible, say, to double property tax for those homes or, better, to exempt them from the protection of prop. 13″. Any idea out there just how many non-resident homes there are in the county? We should check this out.

BLOCKHEAD ICED CREAM. Last Christmas daughter Jennifer treated me and her two boys to one of the most delicious taste treats ever. Blockhead Iced Cream. According to their website it’s a mix of “the fine texture of Hawaiian shave ice with the creamy goodness of ice cream”. There are only three Blockhead Shavery’s in the world so far, we need one up here much more than we need a damned Starbucks on Ocean Street. Check it out www.blockheadsshavery.com

ELLEN BASS IN THE NEW YORKER. Ellen Bass again makes the big time with The New Yorker publishing her “The Orange-And-White High-Heeled Shoes” poem in the March 30 issue with the Hillary Clinton emoticons on the cover. Be sure to read Seymour Hersh’s deeply researched My Lai story “The Scene Of The Crime” that surrounds Ellen’s poem. Did you know, and I’ve said this before, that there are more New Yorker subscribers in California than in New York….AND that there are more New Yorker subscribers in Northern California than in Southern California???

GUNILLA LEAVITT IS BETTER!!! Gunilla Leavitt my not-so-silent partner in getting this BrattonOnline..online, has gone through some hell and an operation and is doing just great. We should all stop in her Golden Fleece Yarn Shop on 317 Potrero Street over by the entrance to The Sashmill and tell her hello and give her a hug…she deserves it. Somehow she got last week’s “Bonline” out and continues to perform miracles!!! Or call her at 426-1425 and see what yarn specials she has going!!

[Gunilla here: Apologies for getting this out so very late sometimes, especially recently. The hell and the operation was breast cancer, and it’s kind of been a lot! I’ll try to pick up my pace; it’s never Bruce’s fault that the column doesn’t happen on Mondays every week… I’m doing fine, will start radiation within the month, provided that I don’t need chemo. Thanks for all your patience!]

PATTON’S PROGRAM. Gary talks about Ryan Coonerty and Bruce McPherson’s “Working Lands Resolution” that gives big breaks to loggers and agriculture corporations. He says, “The “Working Lands Resolution” is being proposed by Supervisors Ryan Coonerty (representing the North Coast) and Supervisor Bruce McPherson (representing the San Lorenzo Valley). Timber harvest issues are controversial in both districts, and this Resolution comes down strongly in favor of timber harvesting and agriculture. That’s what the phrase “working lands” means; these are lands that are being used for economic production, including cattle ranching and timber harvesting.

The proposed resolution says that the county’s “working lands” are [quote] “at risk of conversion to other uses.” In fact, thanks to a long legacy of protective legislation, including our Growth Management System, enacted by Measure J, the conversion of the county’s “working lands” to any kind of residential or commercial development is very small. The objection seems to be to the possibility, on the North Coast in particular, that timberlands and range lands might be included in future parks”. Then he brings up the Seacliff Village Plan Amendment which would allow “more high-end residential development”!!! He gives a link to the “Climate Speakers” program which provides speakers who will provide information on climate change and global warming to ordinary people, to help empower them to make a difference. Go to his website for more info. Read the complete scripts of the above at Gary Patton’s KUSP Land Use site http://blogs.kusp.org/landuse . Gary is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor (20 years) and an attorney who represents indivuduals and community groups on land use and environmenatl issues. The opions expressed are Mr. Patton’s . Gary has his own website, Two Worlds/365” – www.gapatton.net

CLASSICAL DeCINZO. DeCinzo takes on Starbucks and coffee prices, scroll down a bit…

EAGAN’S DEEP COVER. Eagan peeks at Uncle Sam’s role playing …and asks a question!

See below.

LISA JENSEN LINKS. Lisa writes: “Ahoy, me hearties, the paperback edition of Alias Hook is on the way! Also—stay tuned for big news about my next book. The film Effie Gray has everything: thwarted desire, confused sexuality, monstrous in-laws, cruelty, scandal, forbidden love, and Pre-Raphaelite art. Still, the handsome period drama Effie Gray just misses the mark. Find out why this week at Lisa Jensen Online Express (http://ljo-express.blogspot.com.” Lisa has been writing film reviews and columns for Good Times since 1975.

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:00-8:00 p.m. I host Universal Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer, (live only or sometimes old programs are archived… (See next paragraph) and go to WWW.KZSC.ORG. On April 14 actress and playwright Kate Hawley talks about “Complications From A Fall” her newest play opening at the Jewel on April 23. Then Jeffrey Smedberg reports on the Reel Work Labor Film Festival. County Supervisor John Leopold co-hosts our KZSC #1 Pledge Drive night on April 21. Historian, author Sandy Lydon co-hosts KZSC #2 Pledge Drive night on April 28. Miriam Ellis guests on May 5 to talk about this years International Playhouse at UCSC. Miriam is followed by Dr. Jason Luksich talking all about his field of Ophthalmology Do remember, any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in, and keep listening. Email me always at bratton@cruzio.com

UNIVERSAL GRAPEVINE ARCHIVES. In case you missed some of the great people I’ve interviewed in the last 5 years here’s a chronological list of just this year’s podcasts. Click herehttp://kzsc.org/blog/tag/universal-grapevine then tap on “listen here” to hear any or all of them… all over again. The update includes Nikki Silva, Michael Warren, Tom Noddy, Anita Monga, Mark Wainer, Judy Johnson-Darrow, Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld, Rachel Goodman, George Newell, Tubten Pende, Gina Marie Hayes, Rebecca Ronay-Hazleton, Miriam Ellis, Deb Mc Arthur, The Great Morgani on Street performing, and Paul Whitworth on Krapps Last Tape. Jodi McGraw on Sandhills, Bruce Daniels on area water problems. Mike Pappas on the Olive Connection, Sandy Lydon on County History. Paul Johnston on political organizing, Rick Longinotti on De-Sal. Dan Haifley on Monterey Bay Sanctuary, Dan Harder on Santa Cruz City Museum. Sara Wilbourne on Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre. Brian Spencer on SEE Theatre Co. Paula Kenyon and Karen Massaro on MAH and Big Creek Pottery. Carolyn Burke on Edith Piaf. Peggy Dolgenos on Cruzio. Julie James on Jewel Theatre Company. Then there’s Pat Matejcek on environment, Nancy Abrams and Joel Primack on the Universe plus Nina Simon from MAH, Rob Slawinski, Gary Bascou, Judge Paul Burdick, John Brown Childs, Ellen Kimmel, Don Williams, Kinan Valdez, Ellen Murtha, John Leopold, Karen Kefauver, Chip Lord, Judy Bouley, Rob Sean Wilson, Ann Simonton, Lori Rivera, Sayaka Yabuki, Chris Kinney, Celia and Peter Scott, Chris Krohn, David Swanger, Chelsea Juarez…and that’s just since January 2011. Hear them all!!!

QUOTES. “What would an ocean be without a monster lurking in the dark? It would be like sleep without dreams,” Werner Herzog. “Because there’s nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it’s sent away”, Sarah Kay “I really don’t know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it’s because in addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and ships change, it’s because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea – whether it is to sail or to watch it – we are going back from whence we came”, John F. Kennedy. “Ocean, n. A body of water occupying about two-thirds of a world made for man — who has no gills”, Ambrose Bierce.