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D r. Jim Wood doesn’t seem like a person who would pursue higher office, because he’s not. When asked when he first wanted to go after a second career in politics, he replied that he never did and that it’s just one of those things in a person’s life that happens – that it just evolved organically. As he takes his seat, he is one of the state’s 28 new members of California’s Assembly.

A little over a week ago, I was driving with my father from Phoenix to San Diego. We were in the hills above San Diego when traffic on Interstate 8 came to an abrupt stop. Soon we saw signs telling us we were approaching a Border Patrol checkpoint. We noticed that the Border Patrol officer was having a long conversation with the driver of the car in front of us, finally motioning him over to the side where there were a number of well-armed officers. When I drove up, he motioned me on through with a wave and a simple, “Have a nice day.”

It’s a lofty goal to say you are striving for 100 percent of anything. So, when on Jan. 15, 2014, the Sonoma County Winegrowers committed to making Sonoma County the nation’s first 100 percent sustainable wine region by 2019, some may have questioned setting the bar so high.

Two months shy of my 10-year anniversary at the Healdsburg Tribune, I will say goodbye to the job that has transformed me into the person I am today.

Our editorial last week about saving for a rainy day must have had an impact on Gov. Jerry Brown when he proposed his $164.7 billion budget calling for “restraint” and warning against “exuberant overkill on our budget spending.’’

I was born and raised in Healdsburg, and still spend most of my time here when I’m not attending college. In the past several months or so, I’ve become directly aware of a disturbing trend towards aggressive policing in this town.

As a new year opens for us, we see lots of evidence about how two major events — our economy and the weather — keep avoiding our best predictions. We know they both run in cycles, but we can never get the timing just right.

As we continue our mission to ensure every animal receives protection, compassion, love and care, the Sonoma Humane Society is proud to announce the final transfer of the unfinished shelter building on Bacchus Landing Way in Healdsburg from the Healdsburg Animal Shelter to the Sonoma Humane Society. With the final paperwork completed to transfer the building and remaining assets, our next steps include ensuring the safety and integrity of the building and developing plans to finish the facility in a manner which pays tribute to the generosity of Rodney and Charlotte Strong, and the generous and caring community who supported the project since its inception.