Columns

Intersection of sense and statistics

Every year as December dawns we sit down in the newsroom and make our plans for the last issue of the old year and first issue of the new year. We always make these two issues our year in review issues, and we do this for a couple of reasons, some practical and some more esoteric.

Just five days after Jeff Weaver, the former Sebastopol Chief of Police, became the Interim Director of Public Safety in Rohnert Park, a gruesome death took place in the “Friendly City,” as Rohnert Park calls itself.

Hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes — our human doings can seem piddling by comparison. So, once again, preachers and other more or less religious types proclaim signs of the end and portents of divine disfavor.

Regarding the Healdsburg Future Farmers Country Fair and Twilight Parade

Feb. 1901: "The window casing did not prove efficient in keeping out the water, so two copper beakers and a glass dish were placed upon the sill to catch the frequent streams. From the ceiling, in about the center of the room, a quantity of water fell. A pan was placed upon a chair to catch the drops, while two pails and a pan upon the floor served the same purpose. ..."

Ahhhhh. The sweet smell of petrichor last week was a welcome joy. Petrichor? Yes, petrichor: the pleasant, earthy odor that follows gentle rain after a dry spell. Cool word, isn’t it? Pictured above are a few drops highlighting the Crocosmia crocosmilflora, or Coppertips Montbretia....