Columns

Do black lives matter? Of course they do. But the more relevant question to those of you reading this and for everyone else who lives in Sonoma County is, “Do brown lives matter?” That’s because less than 2% of our county’s 500,000 population is...

With newly confirmed Amy Coney Barrett now the sixth conservative on the bench, the next several months should be fascinating if not terrifying for those concerned about health care, the environment and the concentration of wealth. As expected, little was revealed during her confirmation hearing with all votes determined long before it started (although Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski took a few days to say so). Now we wait to see if Biden can win the presidency and the Democrats can take the Senate. If both of those things happen, we’ll see how long it takes them to add justices to the court to reduce the conservative super majority to a minority. Adding, say, four liberal justices to the court would send Republicans howling, and probably increasing the number yet again if they ever retake the White House and the Senate. 

Kudos to the City of Healdsburg! The City of Healdsburg sure knows how to appreciate its seniors! We felt so very honored to participate in the glorious Christmas Dinner you so generously gave us at the Villa. Thank you, thank you! It was wonderful!  Being...

Last weekend, I went to the hair salon to get some highlights. The guy that colors my hair is fabulous, in his early 30s, really sweet. We were gabbing about life, how my teens are liking their new school and our gossip drifted to the topic of social media. He uses it for his business, a necessity we all know in order compete and thrive professionally. And then the conversation turned personal. We joked around about how old we are and feel when it comes to comparing the world now and the world 20 years ago. And then he asked me a very interesting question.

My neighbor is learning to ride her bike with no hands. She’s 9, and we live at opposite ends of a 300-foot lane off a busy residential street. Her family lives at the busy entrance and our family lives at the quiet end, but we see her often, riding her bike or scooter up and down, patient and determined, while her younger brother zooms around in circles, crashing here and there and always getting up.

We’re ready to celebrate another Fourth of July. Some years the fireworks displays seem to evoke extra patriotic stirrings, sometimes they just make extra noise. Which is it this year? Are we celebrating a United States of America or, are we agonizing over a Divided States of America?

Dear editor,