Columns

A visit to any of our local nurseries at this time of year is like a visit to the candy store for a gardener. There are so many exciting edibles available now and this is the time to get yours. How lucky am I...

As we step into 2025, we must acknowledge the unprecedented events that recently tested our community's resilience. Our long-held scientific belief that tornadoes do not happen in the Santa Cruz Mountains was dispelled. A week later, we saw historic storms destroy a county landmark...

“Be careful what you wish for, it might be more than you can handle.” That thought immediately came to mind, that late afternoon while staring down the hallway of my apartment building many years ago. Women and children were at each end of that hallway, some...

January is almost over with nary a raindrop. Our days have been lovely and many of my plants have started growing earlier than usual. Guess I can’t put off pruning my Compassion rose any longer. I see some outstanding new rose varieties available for...

Bummer Bob gripes over dinner, where most financial decisions get solved: “We just can’t afford a gorgeous river house in Brookdale now. Thirty-year mortgages are over 7%, and payments over three grand on $500,000 30-year loans daunt us buyers.” Pretty Penny, serving salmon, answers: “But...

I look out my sliding glass doors and see tall redwoods and stately oaks, but on the inside I enjoy the green and sometimes flowers of houseplants. I learned long ago to group them where they get enough light to do well. Recently I...

“Mae West has been on more laps than a napkin.” —Walter Winchel Yesterday, while ironing my umpteenth holiday napkin, I was remembering our “napkin box” that hung on the wall in the refectory at our convent in Tacoma, Wash. Such a simple box with 50 or...

Just before the holiday season, there was an opinion piece in the Press Banner about San Lorenzo Valley Water District (“Measure U’s Decisive Defeat: What It Means for SLVWD,” Dec. 13, 2024). The author, Jim Mosher, is a citizen who represents a special interest...

In the spirit of my annual New Year’s resolution to learn something new every day, I did some research on Calscape about adding butterfly friendly natives to my partly shady garden and did some reading on garden design trends for 2025. Turns out the...

Jennifer Young is a force of nature. She has an infectious wit and undeniable intelligence. Her love of working with details and structure and her visionary organizational skills are why she succeeds at customizing retreats for small business owners. Several years ago, I met Jennifer...