Friday, Dec. 14:
Tarmo Hannula: I stopped by Gayle’s Bakery & Rosticceria in Capitola on my way to work Thursday. The popular eatery was an ant heap of activity. Though I find the place a little pricey, now and again I can’t resist their schnecken morning roll. I noticed a pretty big selection of Christmas cookies and other goodies in their display case.
Since the line was so long I drove a short distance to The Bagelry in Soquel. Since I worked there years ago I know their menu inside out. Established in 1977 the business has three locations, the Soquel spot, one in the Seabright area of Santa Cruz and one on Cedar Street in downtown Santa Cruz. I’ve always admired how the business strives to serve fresh, healthy stuff and keeps a friendly crew on board to take your order. One of my many jobs there was baking. My shift would typically start around 3:30 a.m. Though it took some adjusting to get used to that odd hour, I ended up loving being a baker. The pay was pretty good and I worked with a lot of great folks. There was something very pleasing about getting in the building and being the only one there for several hours. I’d get the water boiler going and heat up the oven and several hours later customers would start lining up for the breakfast. It truly made me feel like an integral part of the community. To this day I can easily tell if the baker was late for his or her shift based on the quality of the bagels.
Throughout the morning I’ve watched the sky getting darker and darker. The weather folks said rain is on the way.
I went into the Super Cuts in the Overlook Center (Target, Starbucks) for a hair trim today. I don’t know why but I find it very easy to put this chore off. I like the folks in there. Today Liz cut my hair. She said she was a graduate of Watsonville High. I asked her if she had a favorite teacher and she immediately responded with the name Gary Garcia. Liz said she liked him because he was firm and direct and didn’t fall for excuses. An example she mentioned was being late; if you were late, she said, he’d address it right then and there, no smoke and mirrors, or indirect talk; you got the hard facts.
“That way you learned — it was that simple — and I liked that,” Liz said.
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Thursday, Dec. 13:
Tarmo Hannula: If you happen to drive along Highway 129 (Riverside Road) toward Aromas and Highway 101, watch for a massive delay. As posted, there is a major reconfiguration of the intersection of Carlton Road at Highway 129.
This morning the eastbound traffic was stopped for about 20 minutes to allow for some kind of paving in the westbound lane. I spoke with one motorist who said she was from London and was slightly panicked because she was trying to make a doctor’s appointment in Lake Tahoe. One man, at the front of the line, said he had been there, with his engine switched off, for about 20 minutes. According to a press release from Caltrans, the job is expected to wrap up in the summer.
At Pinto Lake City Park I spoke with an angler who was heading out onto the water in his small boat. He kindly pointed out a falcon, probably a kestrel, that was perched in a stand of redwood trees near the boat launch. He also mentioned seeing a bald eagle about a week ago soaring above the lake.
On that same note, I ran into two advanced birders, Larry and Valerie, at the head of the slough trail that threads along Struve Slough over by West Marine. Valerie said she is part of a group of birders that had just spotted a bald eagle off of Harkins Slough Road near Pajaro Valley High School. Naturally, I stormed over there the next second but did not see the eagle. Larry, meanwhile, said he was part of the Santa Cruz Bird Club and went on to mention their monthly meetings that are free to the public. He said there is information on their web page, www.santacruzbirdclub.org.
On Blackburn Street a crew from the City of Watsonville Public Works was busy installing a new eight-inch water main by the high school parking lot. They had the southbound lane closed off so do be patient.
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Wednesday, Dec. 12:
Tarmo Hannula: On Wednesday morning I drove through Capitola Village and noticed the city had placed wreaths on the lights posts about town. There are also a number of wreaths, red ribbons and decorative bells placed on streetlights along Brewington Avenue and some surrounding streets.
I stopped on Sunset Beach Road to watch a crew of about 15 field workers harvesting Brussels sprouts at the Bontadelli farm. Six men lead the way in front of a slowing rolling harvesting station, their machetes slicing the cold morning air.
I noticed several police officers stopping a man along Harkins Slough Road this morning. One officer told me it involved some form of warrant. They had a man sitting on the curb in handcuffs. At the same time I heard on my police scanner that WPD officers were recovering a Mercedes Benz that was reported stolen. It was parked on Quiet Meadow.
A few nights ago I watched a TV special about the rounding up and imprisonment of thousands of Japanese Americans during World War II. It was a crushing documentary. One of the hard lessons I came away with was how the language was used to not call things what they were. For example, “internment camps,” as opposed to prisons. I’m lucky to get a monthly newsletter from the Watsonville-Santa Cruz JACL, or Japanese American Citizen League. It’s usually crammed full of interesting things. The November issue delves into the value of voting, among other things. One topic I found shocking was that, in 1924, the Indian Citizenship Act came about which granted full citizenship to “indigenous peoples of the United States” who were labeled as “Indians” in the Act.
I noticed a statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe placed in the front of St. Patrick’s Church this morning. It’s surrounded by a display of beautiful flowers.
Todd Guild: Looking for a place for lunch last Friday, I went in to La Fondita Restaurante at 30 East Fifth St., and I was extremely happy I did.
The tiny, bustling hole-in-the-wall place was packed with people at its handful of tables, and so I squeezed into a seat at the counter. Immediately, the gentleman behind the counter brought me a menu. The food was outstanding, but what made the experience for me was the ambience; everyone there seemed happy, like I had wandered into a much-loved neighborhood joint.
Several people were watching a soccer game on a television mounted to the wall, and a steady stream of customers quickly filled the seats as they were vacated.
My order came with a basket of house-made corn tortillas, which were the best I’ve ever eaten.
Definitely recommend this place.
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Tuesday, Dec. 11:
Tarmo Hannula: I stopped by Rio Del Mar State Beach this morning. It always surprises me how many folks are out there with their dogs. I got into a chat with several bicyclists from the Santa Cruz Cyclists Club that were on a ride from Santa Cruz and on their way to Watsonville. They told me they meet each week and about a dozen of them hit the streets for a vigorous ride around the county.
At La Selva Beach I saw several people checking out the surf and walking their dogs.
On Saturday I drove out to West Cliff Drive and watched the surfers at Steamer Lane. I’ve been going to that spot since the late ’70s and I would guess my family brought me there way back in the ’50s.
My mom told me our family used to drive to Capitola from Sonora, up in the Sierra foothills, during the summer to escape the awful heat. She said we’d stay in a cabin atop the cliffs around the 4200 block in Capitola. I think she said the rent was around $25 a night.
Our family would hang out at the place and in the evening we’d wander along the cliffs and watch the sunset. This would have been around 1955 or so.
I happened to be around the corner today of a huge structure fire on Ford Street. With my job all these things come down to this: proximity. If I’m in Aptos and the flames come on in some house fire in Watsonville, I’m late.
Once the firefighter’s hoses get going it’s usually over, as far as photos go. But in this case, on Tuesday, I was right around the corner. I was there so early that I was able to call 911 to help describe the situation to emergency dispatchers. I rushed around back to get to the burning garage and got some crushing photos of flames boiling out the windows way before the firefighters got there. As arriving firefighters arrived I gave them info that the residents were all out of the building and safe. Fire Capt. Matt McCollum and crew were among the first emergency workers there to attack the fire. I was so close to the flames, at one point, that it felt like my shirt was going to catch fire. Being that I am dealing with a cough and cold, I was particularly sensitive to anything smoky, so I gave the fire a lot of extra room.
One woman I spoke with said everyone got out safe. A bunch of neighbors rushed to her aid and helped comfort her. The American Red Cross Santa Cruz Chapter was dispatched to the scene to help with those that were displaced by the fire.
Traffic was shut down on Ford Street thanks to the efforts of Marilyn Lopez of Watsonville Police.
Back at the newsroom I was surrounded by fellow workers that were curious about the towering column of black smoke that was visible from the newsroom.
Sometimes it baffles me what I do for a living.
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Monday, Dec. 10:
Tarmo Hannula: I was lucky to see the lighted display at Alladin Nursery on Freedom Boulevard in Corralitos. The front is aglow with festive lights and décor.
My wife Sarah and I were busy Saturday attending three parties; the first was at the Miller home on Orchard Street. I work with Johanna Miller.
The Miller family has been at that house since 1956. They bought the two-story home from the Fisher family. Among the interesting crowd there, we were lucky to chat with Bruce and Maria Burnett. Sarah taught alongside Bruce at Watsonville/Aptos Adult Education years ago. Both Sarah and I came away from the party feeling lucky to be able to tap into a mix of folks from around Watsonville and different walks of life. I also got to chat a bit with Bill Sunderland, who taught auto shop at Watsonville High for ages. Bill is an advanced photographer so he and I regularly exchange bits of info about our cameras, things we’ve learned, or should have learned, about the huge digital world.
An hour after the Miller party we drove to the Corralitos Grange for the celebration of our former managing news editor, Jon Chown’s wife, Darci, at her 50th birthday party. Chuck Allen and his wife, Ramona, were there sharing a table with John Kegebein and others. If you’ve never been to the Corralitos Grange Hall, 165 Little Corral Way, it’s certainly worth a visit. We found it to be a snapshot of history, with its redwood trimmed doorways, ancient Venetian blinds and hardwood floors.
We see here in the newsroom that a man named Daniell (no last name) took the time to kindly write us to inform us that he feels this new column, About Town, is “gibberish.” The positive part of his friendly comments is that he is reading our stuff. On the other side of his remark, I’ve been snowed with compliments about the new column. We always welcome responses from the community.
I spoke with Dave Peterson at Corralitos Market & Sausage Co. early Monday. He said he had been swamped with business. His biggest seller this time of year, he said, are his smoked hams and prime ribs. He said his gift packages are a big seller this time of year.
I noticed a crew erecting a new utility pole on Airport Boulevard at Ranport Road. They had traffic control people out there. Speaking of that, if you happen to be on Aviation Way and are attempting to merge onto westbound Airport Boulevard, where a crew from Granite Construction is working on new sidewalks, the merge there is nearly impossible. There is a line of road cones that funnel the two westbound lanes into one right where Aviation connects with Airport Boulevard. Watch out! I was nearly sideswiped by a man in a silver pickup who hadn’t the foggiest notion of “share the road,” despite the road cone pattern and ample signage.
As I rolled through Capitola Village Monday morning I saw that they have waived parking fees for the holiday season. As a holiday tradition, they’ve wrapped their parking pay stations in gift paper to prove it. City workers have also placed wreaths on a number of light posts throughout the village.
The weather folks say there is a slight chance of rain today. I hope so. It seems to be clouding up.
I just got off the phone with author Nancy Jarvis who mentioned that her group, Santa Cruz Weird, will take part in a book signing and reading Saturday at Kelly’s Books, 1838 Main St., in Watsonville Square (Nob Hill). A group of 17 area writers put together their latest book, “Santa Cruz Weird” and some of them will be on hand at the event. For information, visit www.santacruzweird.net.
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For last week’s installment, visit pajaronian.com/article/about-town-week-of-dec-2
