Abigail Washburn never dreamed that she would become a professional banjo player. Her plan was to become a lawyer. Ironically, it was her love for China—she lived there, visits regularly and has a deep connection to the Chinese people—that inspired her to pick up the banjo.
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Brooklyn Band Endures And Tours
A shambling, unwieldy beast borne of country, punk, metal and anything else readily available, Brooklyn’s O’Death attracted plenty of attention with its first two albums. Fans of fractured folk music loved them, purists hated them, but the band’s divisive approach was admirable in an era of profitably risk-adverse indie rock.
Santa Cruz Poets, Santa Cruz Inspiration: Robert Sward
From the Guggenheim fellow, Fulbright scholar, Pushcart Prize nominee and editor of ‘Local Poets, Local Inspiration,’ a dog poem.
PLATED: A Pinot Party
With Pinot Paradise upon us, oenophiles will want to make educated choices about where to go and what to taste. For heft, muscular beauty and minty complexity, the Burrell School Vineyards 2007 Estate Reserve Pinot Noir will deliver and then some. This full-figured creation was among the 45 local pinot noirs, vintage 2007 and 2008, ranked last week by a team of tasters and wine writers.
Desalination Survey In
Just over half of Santa Cruz city residents support the much talked-about desalination plant proposal, according to a phone survey sponsored by the desal task force. A reported 54 percent of respondents called the plan to build a desalination plant a “good” or “excellent idea,” while 30 percent called it a “poor” or “not too good idea.”
In Praise of The Phonetain
There is a place in Santa Cruz that embodies, for me, the perfect synthesis between the city’s motto, “Keep Santa Cruz weird,” and a devotion to the world of creative imagination that is both lighthearted and heavy with sense, even though its sense is often nonsensical.
A Tsunami of Haiku
I tried to digest my feelings on the Japanese earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear accident, and found that the only way I could express myself without ranting was a haiku cycle. So here it is:
In Watsonville, Banks Draw Ire
Ever since their four children were young, Lauro Navarro and his wife, Yolanda, dreamed of building a house for their family and grandchildren. In 2000 they bought a three-acre plot of land in Royal Oaks, near Aromas, and in 2007 they finished building their house. Now they are one of 299 families in Santa Cruz County who have lost their home to foreclosures this year.
Santa Cruz City Council Supports Durbin
Steve Tyler love James Durbin. So do J Lo and Santa Cruz Mayor Ryan Coonerty. In fact, City Council will be passing a resolution tonight in support of Durbin as he battles off all the other contenders on his way to stardom. Attending the session will be some of the people who helped James along the road to success, including Mary Lundberg of Kids on Broadway and Lindsay Chester from All About Theatre.
Rock Slide In Scotts Valley
Officially it may be spring, but Scotts Valley is still reeling from the latest effects of a stormy winter. A 200-foot rock slide that occurred at 2pm on Monday afternoon blocked Nelson Road and left dozens of homes inaccessible to rescue vehicles.
