Community

According to a recent public health alert, California is experiencing an epidemic of pertussis. Santa Cruz County has had 20 known cases and probably many more that have not been reported or have yet to be diagnosed.

This column is the second of several in which I’ll describe my wine districts of Santa Cruz County. Last time, I discussed the Soquel foothills. This week’s focus, the Corralitos district of Santa Cruz County, is the most easily defined in our region.

There are a variety of ways to lump wineries into districts. Proximity, terroir (growing conditions) and varietals are some of the factors, perhaps even the most important, that go into the districting process. Over the next several weeks, I will define how I think Santa Cruz County’s districts should be defined.

Back on March 23, President Obama signed the much-debated law that mandates universal health insurance coverage. Aspects of the new law continue to emerge, but what we know is that while the 10 percent tax on tanning salons might take a significant bite out of the ever-bronzed George Hamilton’s wallet (ditto for our friends at Scotts Valley’s Tanners Cove), it doesn’t exactly cover all the new costs of this bill. A slew of tax modifications and penalties will follow.

I was riding one evening with four buddies just out of high school when the car went “bump” in the night. We all yelled, “What was that?” Jake, the driver, screamed, “It was a body.”

Layla Nevaeh Nichole Rodrigues was born at 9:47 p.m. May 25, 2010, to Chantel A. Bex and Anthony M. Rodrigues of Scotts Valley. She weighed 6 pounds, 12 ounces, at Sutter Maternity and Surgery Center in Santa Cruz.