I managed to get out of town for a short road trip last weekend, a nice run up into the Gold Country of Sonora, Columbia and Angels Camp. But from start to finish, I was reminded of the men and women fighting the fire in Santa Cruz County.

My home is encircled by fairy rings. But before you envision my dog, Bucky, and me hiding out at night to see if the wee little ones will appear, let me explain that these are rings of redwoods.

Dominic Grillo of Whitehouse Station, N.J., set the pace in the 41st running of the Race Thru the Redwoods on Sunday, Aug. 16, capturing the title of the annual 10-kilometer race in 39 minutes, 1 second. The 34-year-old averaged six minutes, 17 seconds per mile on the hilly course that hosted a total of 459 10K racers.

I want to spend the next few weeks trying to bring you up to date on the most current information concerning swine flu, which is now being referred to by the experts as the H1N1 virus.

Scotts Valley resident Donny McNair built a series of retaining walls to house the Vine Hill Elementary School life lab using broken concrete and landscaping materials.

Two hurricanes located west of the Baja California coast sent a south swell into Monterey Bay this past week. The swell brought warm water with it and turned off the rockfish and halibut bites. But the warm water push did liven up the albacore action.

Earlier this year, I had so many deer browsing in my garden, I thought the term “deer-resistant” was a cruel joke. Don’t they read those lists anymore?

I’ve recently had a personal experience that punctuated the importance of background checks and that I thought worthy enough to share. The event occurred in June — the same month the now-infamous Bernie Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison. The timing is fitting.

EDITOR,