Columns

For some time now it has seemed more and more dangerous to fall into any discussion about politics. We stopped talking politics around the Thanksgiving table and it’s risky in most other places, too. Even some marriages have suffered and long friendships have been broken off.

Parklets vs. Parking Why are the parklets still taking up 49 public parking spaces in downtown Healdsburg? The Covid Emergency is over. I drove through the Plaza today. The parklets look like hammered dung. And there was no parking for me. Has the City...

"Following the informal community meeting with Vertice Hospitality (SingleThread) at the film center on Feb. 7. concerning the group’s proposed uses for the former Raven Film Center and 150 North St., I wanted to express a few thoughts...."

After a rain, outdoor settings smell fresher, better. The word for that smell is “petrichor.” Scents are more easily detected on cool, moist days because water molecules capture scents and “hold” them for all to smell.  Morning dew aggregates scent molecules. That’s one reason why tracking...

Dear Editor: To exploit every single aspect of a small town is not to appreciate—it is to dishonor.  After fully participating in the Vertice LLC a.k.a. Single Thread “Farm” community input meeting (2/7/24) held in Healdsburg’s former movie theater, I remain committed to asking questions about...

Dang. What in the barnyard-livin’, truck-drivin’, T-shirt-wearin’, country-croonin’, cuzzin-cussin’, doggone tarnation is this? Photo of the week? Could be photo of the year, don’t you think? Maybe photo of a lifetime?  Seriously! Has anyone seen a Porsche like this? Porsches are strutted out polished to...

This past weekend included the pleasure of kayaking Tomales Bay with a youth group. It’s fun to be out with tween-agers. Their energy seems boundless. Their enjoyment rising from the moment. Their wonderment a reminder of life approached with curiosity and fully explored.  Will creatures...

Dear Editor: I am deeply concerned about the continued high turnover rate of the Healdsburg High School administration. From 2016 until now, only one principal has lasted longer than two years. What seems to be the problem? If they are being terminated, why do unqualified candidates...

Think that Veuve Clicquot is co-branding port-a-potties? Who in the world thinks up a promotion scheme like that? Seriously, what is the messaging? A prankster relabeled a porta-potty on Healdsburg streets.

Last week’s column mistakenly identified California Spanish moss as Spanish moss. Oops—apologies.  What commonly hangs from trees in Sonoma is lace lichen (Ramalina menziesii), officially designated the state lichen by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2016. Lace lichen, also called fishnet lichen, is mistaken for Spanish...