Columns

The Irish believe the Celtic cross represents the human desire to discover and experience the mystery of life. This cross symbolizes it as a compass, guiding us through our spiritual journey. My window looks out onto my garden where a 3-foot-tall concrete Celtic Cross is...

Last year challenged us, not just globally and nationally, but, especially, locally. We know what happened here with the businesses shutting down and stay-at-home demands. Compounded by our local fires, we witnessed firsthand how small local towns band together and support their own. I...

I was talking to someone recently who said she lived in Bonny Doon. When I told her I used to live on Robles Drive but lost the house in the CZU fire, she asked, “Did you live in the house with that huge Tasmanian...

Warm days, short days, cold days and hopefully rainy days—all in the fall of the year here in the Santa Cruz Mountains. It’s part of what makes our area so special to us. We are inspired by Mother Nature and our mountains. We feel...

Now that you’ve treated yourself to a few new unthirsty perennials that bloom late in the season it’s time to start working on that list of early fall gardens chores. Here are some that might apply to your own garden. Spider mites are especially prolific...

Homeowners may gloat at long-term home price growth, but others struggle to enjoy the blessings of mountain home ownership. Redfin states: “In November 2023, Santa Cruz home prices were down 20.8% compared to last year, selling for a median price of $1.2M.” With interest rates...

Resilience, gratitude, and patience.  So much has happened since my last column in June, I don’t even know where to begin. This time last year, we were dealing with PSPS power outages that we thought were very disruptive and challenging. Little did we know… A...

In today’s fast-paced world, the term AI is buzzing everywhere. Curiosity about AI and its various tools has led me to explore how AI, ChatGPT and other AI technologies might benefit our Valley’s business owners and industries (myself included). I would like to share some...

Last week I was hosting a “thank you” luncheon for six of my wonderful friends—friends who support me in all my “crazy” endeavors that I get myself into and could not complete successfully without these women. I decided on a Caesar salad with grilled shrimp...

It’s beginning to look like Halloween in my neighborhood with chrysanthemums and pumpkins on porches, skeletons and ghouls decorating front doors and posts on Facebook about tarantula sightings as the spiders go about their fall mating ritual. It’s the plants that get my attention...