A surfer in Capitola says that he saw a large shark swimming in a zigzag pattern just a few feet away from him. Paul Johnson said it happened after 10am Wednesday morning, about 200 yards offshore. The predator, which he described as “a gray torpedo silhouette in the water,” came within just a few feet of him. Upon returning safely to shore, he reported the incident to local authorities, who posted shark warning signs along the beach. Not everyone saw them, though, and the beach was still crowded with swimmers and surfers, many of them unaware of the danger.
Lifeguards Back on the Job
Santa Cruz lifeguards rescued as many as six people this past weekend along Santa Cruz beaches. The survivors have more than just the lifeguards to be thankful for. Most of these lifeguards faced layoffs because of budget cuts to state parks. A local group, Friends of State Parks, decided that this was unconscionable and decided to raise the money themselves to pay the lifeguards’ salaries for the last two months of the season.
blackbird Singing at Cabrillo Music Fest
Of the many things violinist Matt Albert is looking forward to when he returns for his eighth year in the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra—seeing his host family, running on West Cliff, tomato season at the farmers market—one of the most thrilling is the chance to play again with festival musical director Marin Alsop.
Cabrillo Stage’s ‘Cabaret’: Shadows And Light
Trevor Little wants you to know this: anyone who thinks the Cabrillo Stage production of Cabaret is going to consist of a talented local hottie in fishnets impersonating Liza Minnelli has another thing coming.
Well, OK. The talented local hottie in fishnets part is right. Briana Michaud, who plays Sally Bowles, is a veteran of six Cabrillo Stage shows, always as a dancer in the ensemble. Now that she’s stepped into the limelight, director Little says she’s blowing even him away—and he’s the one who cast her.
Carmel BachFest’s Populist Streak
David Gordon has the ultimate highfalutin’ job title. So highfalutin’ is his job title that it defies ordinary comprehension: Dramaturge for the Carmel Bach Festival. And yet Gordon has no patience for snobbery in the classical music concerts he helps organize. In fact, after talking to him for a few minutes you get the idea that he would be secretly thrilled if festival audiences cut loose, stomped their feet, maybe held up a lighter. Because Bach, Beethoven and the festival’s 20 other featured composers are, after all, the pop stars of their time.
Santa Cruz Summer Festival Season Revs Up
It’s common wisdom around these parts that the best time of year is September, after the fog and the tourists have left town and the ocean has become marginally less icy, making swimming an actual possibility. But thousands of arts lovers in town know otherwise. For them, the real fun starts in late July.
Council Debates Rental Inspections
City Council discussed a new measure that would require the owners of rental properties in the city to register their properties and eventually submit them for inspection.
Shark Sighting off Capitola Wharf Worries Authorities
Anyone who has seen Finding Nemo will remember the sharks chanting their pledge: “I am a nice shark, not a mindless eating machine. If I am to change this image, I must first change myself. Fish are friends, not food.” Unfortunately, not all sharks have taken that pledge.
Six County Schools Make Underachievers List
There’s undoubtedly a problem in six county schools. The California Board of Education has rated Pajaro Valley High School, E.A. Hall Middle School, and Landmark, Hall District, Live Oak and Gault elementary schools as “low-performing schools” that could cause students serious harm. This means that each of these schools scored poorly on standardized tests administered by the state.
UCSC Grad Uncovers “Top Secret America”
UCSC grad Dana Priest and co-author William M. Arkin uncover the huge world of intelligence gathering in WaPo’s “Top Secret America.” The three part series took two years of research and is another feather for the cap of this celebrated journalist with local roots.
