Olompali, translated from the Miwok as “southern people” or “southern village,” lies just north of Novato, directly off Highway 101. It’s a state park these days but goes way back as the site of a…
Posts published in “Essays”
Boonville’s first-wave hippies called a meeting one Sunday afternoon to discuss what to do about a loose knit, perhaps mythical, Boonville vigilante crew calling itself Cold Steel, whose stated purpose, if you could find it,…
It was referred to as the cellar, never called a “basement,” though I’m not sure yet I understand what distinguishes them. You could get down there either by the steep stairs leading from the pantry,…
If you’ve got the urge to helicopter out of your rural life for a day, head to Berkeley for a good dose of urban interest. Twenty years ago I lived in Berkeley for 20 years…
When we saw polar bears skateboarding down the big hill on North Dora Street we knew we were back in time for another glorious spring in Ukiah. So nice to see the snow and holiday…
What’s the difference between an American movie producer and an American secretary of state? The one dreams of winning an Oscar; the other makes sure the awards go to the right global players. American foreign…
In a city that honors the new and newness, islands of the past disappear almost every day. In spanking new neighborhoods like Dogpatch, where glass and steel buildings tower over the streets, the past hardly…
It’s early on Sunday morning at the Brushless Car Wash and I’m surprised at how many people are already here sitting in those horrible plastic chairs all facing the same way (backs to the sun).…
This first musical nickname tagged him to the city of his birth: the Newark Flash. To a club called Lloyd’s Manor in Wayne Shorter’s hometown came Sonny Stitt in 1951. Stitt hailed from across the…