Benicia Magazine October 2023 Issue

Caring, Compassionate Service

Serving the Benicia/Vallejo area for over 76 years

Only on-site crematory in the area Funerals, Celebrations of Life, VA Burials

John “Sherm” Passalacqua Passalacqua Funeral Chapel

901 West Second St., Benicia • 707-745-3130

www.passalacquafuneralchapel.com

Greg Silva Twin Chapels Mortuary

1100 Tennessee St., Vallejo • 707-552-6696 www.twinchapelsmortuary.com

Voted Best Funeral Home In Solano County 9 Years In A Row

Providing dental services for families in Benicia since 2000

Dr. Hutchens utilizes the latest techniques and technology to achieve optimal oral health and aesthetic results. We love to meet new patients and learn about their needs. Schedule an appointment with us today; we can’t wait to help you achieve the smile of your dreams!

WHY CHOOSE A-1 GUARANTEED?

• Better Business Bureau,

• Voted best heating/cooling company,

• Voted best of the Bay for 5 years, Kron 4 TV

•

• Energy Upgrade participating contractor

• Factory-trained installers & techs

• Drug-free environment enforced & maintained

• Better Business Honor Roll, 21 years

• Diamond Certified

• North American Technician Excellence certified

• Bay Area certified green business

NOW

Air

Mary Hand Editor in Chief

Art Director

Cooper Mickelson

Website Specialist

Genevieve Hand

Contributors

Mary Hand

Linda Hastings

Darrell Mcelvane

Caitlin McCulloch

Cooper Mickelson

Kevin Nelson

Jean Purnell

Social Media Specialist

Dalia Nino

Administrative Support

Karina Escalante

Alexa Manning

Cover Photo

Advertising Sales

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Penny Stell

Susan Gandy

Melissa Mickelson

Leslie Hall

David Lindsay

Bruehol Benicia

Brewing

Sara Sullivan

Randal Mendoza and Debbie Weiss

JoAnn Boccolini

Terry Baldwin

Lesley and David Fong

Juliet Farnsworth

Dennis Dellarocca

Marta Krista

Kinney

Cover Photo: TBT

n From the Editor

Those who have read my previous letters about the spooky month of October should know by now what an easy scare I am, particularly during “spooky season.” There’s just something about the otherworldliness of autumn and the distinct seasonal turn that October takes that makes it truly feel as though the veil between realms is thinner.

Now, I don’t scare quite as easily these days as in my younger years – perhaps because in adulthood we lose a little of our wild imagination, years of experience teaches us not to be afraid of the dark, or perhaps adulthood has a way of regularly thrusting into sharp relief scarier scenarios than the boogie man.

In fact, last year I let my friends talk me into watching Hereditary, the 2018 horror film, and somehow I survived that night sleeping in a room directly adjacent to a creepy attic without much fuss at all. However, it wasn’t but a week ago that, as I lay awake at night thinking about deadlines and such, the signature tongue-clicking sound from that movie crept into my mind to haunt me anew…

I think I’ll stick to lighter fare this year – pumpkin decorations, candy, and nothing spookier than Hocus Pocus, or maybe Benicia Theater Group’s take on DEATHTRAP (read about it in this issue), and, of course, celebrating my mom’s near-Halloween birthday!

Direct from this scaredy cat to you, Happy Halloween!

n From the Publisher

I just got back from a few days in Tahoe. It was gorgeous with hardly any people. Late September and October are really a perfect time for the Sierras. The days are crisp, and the trees are turning gold; the best time for hiking, biking or simply sitting next to the river while contemplating life. Which is what I was doing, sipping an after-bike-ride brew, thinking about fall in our little city of Benicia and how much we embrace the season. From the scarecrow contest to the falling leaves, the costume contest, trick-or-treat on First Street, and let’s not forget our resident ghosts, all flavored with pumpkin spice, October is truly wonderful.

I really hope you enjoyed the first edition of Benicia Quarterly, Fall, with the theme Gather. Within there are odes to Fall in Benicia, including many of the events and ideas for the season. Don’t our ghostly Halloween feature spread, I suggest reading it on Halloween accompanied by your favorite scary beverage, take a look at Bar None on page 35 of Benicia Quarterly for a festive fall libation, or perhaps a nice chianti?

In celebration of the release of Benicia Quarterly, Fall, our cover stylists Holly and Salina of Le Sparkly Chateau and Sparkly Ragz, hosted a release party. The event was held at Le Sparkly Chateau and included champagne, appetizers and many sparkly things. Our wonderful cover girl, Donna Koontz was on hand to sign autographs! We hope you will come to the release of Benicia Quarterly, Winter in December.

You won’t want to miss the Bike the Bridges and Brewfest on October 7. This is a fundraiser for the Special Olympics and includes hundreds of riders that start out in stages at the foot of First Street and will end at the same place later in the day. There will be craft beers available, live music, and many other festivities.

Born on Halloween eve, I do relish all things spooky and have been known to spin a scary story or two. Hope you enjoyed my little ghost story in Benicia Quarterly based on our Benicia Ghosts, most are well known, and those who are not are happy to be introduced. Be careful out there!

Happy Halloween

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beniciamagazine

Steve Deutsch Woodwinds

&

Willow Jewelry

A shop of mystery, magic and music

n Mary Hand

Deep in a forest, behind a shallow pond, there is a shop of Magic and Music. There are many signs to guide you to the small shop, because it’s not that easy to find. Also, there’s not actually a forest, but the shop does indeed seem magical. It is nestled amongst other businesses, behind a concrete pool and surrounded by plants right on First Street, downtown Benicia. The shop contains two businesses, Steve Deutsch Woodwind Repair, Etc. and Willow Jewelry. Steve and Willow are both spiritual beings, married in life and in business.

Steve

Steve Deutsch has a fascinating and diverse background in music. He began as a musician after being inspired by the alt rock band Traffic, a band that featured the flute in many of their songs. He bought a flute, taught himself how to read music and to play the flute. Thus began his love affair with all things music. He sang Beethoven’s 9th, played with a punk rock band, Latin bands, played big band, led his own group, and has been playing with Johnny Tolbert and de Thangs for the last 12 years. Diverse indeed.

Having been a musician for a while, Steve wanted to learn how to repair his own flute. He got a set of flute pads as well as advice from George Koregelos at the House of Woodwinds, in Oakland. He took three days to repair his flute and he was happy to find that the flute played. He decided to get into repair seriously for two reasons; to really know how to fix a sax or flute properly, and to be in the music business, playing the music he wanted to without compromising his sense of musical integrity. He apprenticed at Marin Woodwinds with Mike Irwin, worked for himself for 10 years, spent 15 years at Best Instrument Repair in Oakland with Dick Akright, and now has his own shop here in Benicia. Steve has a love of older instruments, at least 50 years old, particularly the saxophones and clarinets. He says that the feel and touch of the instrument is completely different than today's modern horns. The metal on a new instrument is different, and ultimately the sound is different, more generic. He believes that the pursuit of creating perfect sound through science has cost newer instruments a certain amount of richness and soul.

Steve works for schools all over the Bay Area, including Benicia, repairing instruments. He and Willow both believe passionately that music and art education must be a priority for schools.

In addition to playing music and repairing instruments, Steve is an artist. His medium is acrylics, and his subject matter is musicians. His style is energetic and colorful and as he says, moves as if to music. He has a new recording to be released at the end of 2023; a mix of original compositions and one piece by Beethoven, which can be purchased inshop and downloaded from his website, stevedeutschmusic.com. Talented and prolific, Steve is a true renaissance man.

Willow

There is no question that Willow is magical. Just looking at her you can see it, with her warm, calm and patient eyes set in an old-world face. She is a very old soul. Willow and Steve met about 8 years ago and discovered a mutual love of the arts. They traveled all over Europe and the States, visiting the great museums and studying the masters of many countries. She plays the trumpet, makes jewelry and is a healer.

Willow has been a jewelry maker for over 45 years. She was inspired by the richness and variety of all the old Celtic, Chinese, Russian, Middle Eastern, and African designs that she saw at various

lives, she began to work on her designs. Over the years Willow studied shamanism, world religions and healing methods, which became represented in her art as well. As she worked with the stones and crystals, they began to work with and for her. She learned how to use them and determine how they interact with and influence the health and well-being of the stone’s wearers.

Born and raised in Detroit Michigan, Willow learned how to make waxcast jewelry in the seventh grade. She thought she would be a veterinarian but due to dyslexia, struggled with the required math courses. She credits her dyslexia with directing her path to jewelry-making.

She is inspired by ancient Scythian (Russian) jewelry, which she saw in an exhibit of lost wax casting jewelry. Not many jewelers use lost wax casting anymore because it’s so much work. Willow enjoys the work and the time it takes. She creates from history and imagination. Her work is fanciful and delicate, elaborate and simple, powerful and beautiful. She picks her stones according to their healing properties, and helps guide her customers to the jewelry that will work best for them, both in design and emotion. Willow has presented her work at science fiction and fantasy conventions, as well as Comic-Con for over 20 years. She still does the Scottish Highland Games in Pleasanton, but now enjoys working out of the shop. Willow's style incorporates art nouveau, some art deco, Renaissance and Victorian styles. She favors design that is based in nature. She connects people with creation through her art and her spiritual practice.

Willow and Steve want the next generations to be taught to create with their minds and their hands. Dream something and create it. Take something broken and make it new. Learn to see and appreciate art and to create their own. B

When Nina Krebs attended Benicia Arsenal Artists Open Studios in May 2022, she already knew about the Benicia art scene. A visit to Benicia artist Connie Millholland’s studio that day led to the two artists moving into a studio later that summer. “I’d heard about Benicia forever,” she admits, having lived in Sacramento, and now in Walnut Creek. The two artists are planning a joint exhibition called Stories in Paint at Art@Archer, located at 431 13th Street in Oakland. The show runs from October 6 through November 25, with receptions planned for Friday October 6, 6-9 pm, and Friday, November 3, 6-9 pm.

“Each of my artworks has a story behind it, maybe based on a dream, maybe an experience. I’m painting my story and offering it to the viewer to create their own experience.” Inspired by Betty Friedan, Krebs considers herself a second-wave Feminist and incorporates the theme of female empowerment into both her artwork and writings. “My series Soaring Woman, which represents the dreams and abilities of women, is a feminine equivalent to Burning Man that I came up with. As I understand it, by building a monumental “man” temple in the desert and ultimately burning it, Burning Man creates opportunity to release the past and move on. That feels constructive to me. I'm thinking of the feminine version as more transcendent — moving through or rising above life's struggles and blocks. It's a self-motivating force where creative energy ascends and transforms.”

Krebs’ upcoming show contains acrylic and mixed media paintings. Some contain collage effects created with torn strips of discarded painted paper or fragments of musical scores. The paintings incorporate representational images, symbols or motifs that convey meaning, painted over layers of abstracted backgrounds.

Nina Krebs Painting Her Story

Born in Arizona, Krebs earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Arizona State University and a doctoral degree in counseling psychology at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. In 1971, she moved to Sacramento, where she was a psychologist in the counseling center at California State University, Sacramento. She was one of few females in the field at that time. After five years, she went into private practice with her husband and other colleagues in midtown Sacramento.

Retirement in 1998 provided an opportunity to indulge in creative passions including art and music. She signed up for a composition class that she hoped would improve her photography, only to find out that all her fellow students were painters. It was her first experience drawing and painting. She later took classes in various studio media and graphic design at Sacramento City College. “I studied with Chris Redding and took 130 semester hours of classes over a ten-year period. I just went through the curriculum. It was a very supportive community.”

Krebs’ diverse work includes prints, paintings, sculpture, and large-scale installations. Her most recent installation was a series of intricately woven and braided spider webs, each 30 feet across, prepared in-studio then installed in various natural locations. “What I created had a lot to do with opportunity. I did quite a bit of printmaking, but that involves equipment. So now I gravitate toward painting because it’s easier. I really loved doing installation, but that requires other people and an environment and all kinds of stuff.”

Krebs took up music again after not performing for 40 years.

“My 70th birthday present was a vibraphone,” she says proudly. “I had played piano before but had a lot of arthritis

in my fingers. I’d played percussion in high school and always loved the vibraphone.” In addition to weekly vibraphone lessons, she plays “auxiliary percussion” with the Diablo Symphony; instruments such as suspended cymbals, triangle, bells, whatever is needed for each performance. “I’m searching for ways to connect music and art, to combine those practices in some meaningful or nourishing way.”

When Krebs retired, her husband was showing signs of Alzheimers, and her caretaker duties were a significant part of her life for many years. She has recently published her fifth book, an inspirational memoir of this period of her life titled Shades of Love and Loss: Caring for a Partner with Dementia. Her partner passed away in 2020. She is grateful that her daughters, Erica Schafer and Karen Fleming, live nearby.

Krebs has some ideas about women’s issues to explore in new books, but writing isn’t at the top of her list at the moment. “I love painting, and I love playing music, and I don’t have enough time to do either!” You can learn more about Krebs at https://ninabkrebs.com. B

n Jean Purnell

“Each of my artworks has a story behind it, maybe based on a dream, maybe an experience. I’m painting my story and offering it to the viewer to create their own experience.”

n Caitlin McCulloch

Brian Hough, the Board President of Benicia Theatre Group (formerly Benicia Old Town Theatre Group), has quite the resume.

“For me, I’ve been an actor for many years,” he says. “My career started in Hawaii, and I was involved in community theatre there. I continued professionally acting in Tony and Tina’s Wedding on Norwegian Cruise Lines. I’ve also helped to build sets.”

Most recently, Hough’s been involved in our local theatre group for seven years. Though he continues to wear many hats on the board (which is fitting as I interrupted him for our interview while he was installing a new water heater), seeing the final result of a show is his absolute favorite thing.

“What gets me going is the finished product … for us to show our craft and to have people say, ‘wow we really enjoyed that, it was a fabulous show.’ It means I did something right,” Hough says.

Before you can reach a finished product, you have to start with the basics — such as choosing a play. I was interested to hear what that process looks like for the Benicia Theatre Group.

“We have a committee that reads a number of plays, keeping in mind the format of a one intermission, two act play,” says Hough. “It also needs to be something that’s not too large of a cast since we’re limited to the B.D.E.S Hall size. Then the play selection committee gives a report on what they read and we choose, as a board, what will be the next production. We try to do a comedy in the spring and a drama in the fall. We’ve done it for many years in this pattern, which works very well for us.”

Up next for Brian Hough and the Benicia Theatre Group is their production of DEATHTRAP, which is a thriller-meetscomedy that was written in the late 1970s. It’s been nominated for multiple tony awards and touts itself as the longest-running Braowday comedy/thriller.

“It’s basically about a washed up playwright,” Hough shares. “He‘s having a hard time being successful in his writings when he finds somebody that his wife suggests he get together with. They put their heads together to possibly come up with a play. He ends up coming up with the crazy idea of killing him. It takes place with a young writer who’s got some really good material, who’s a former student of his … the whole play is about how he’s conspiring. I don’t want to give anything else away!” he says with a laugh.

Another interesting thing about DEATHTRAP? There are only five cast members in total.

Joe Fitzgerald will be playing Sidney Bruhl, the washed-up playwright, while Charlie Hodes is set to be Clifford Anderson, Sidney’s student and fellow playwright. Annie Larson is bringing us Helga ten Dorp, the mysterious psychic (“She’s going to be a character,” says Hough); Mark Shepard takes on Porter Milgrim, Sidney’s Lawyer, and Shauna Shoptaw rounds out the small but mighty cast as Myra Bruhl, Sidney’s encouraging wife.

A dive into Benicia Theatre Group and their new play, DEATHTRAP

“There’s a LOT of dialogue for most people in the show,” says Hough. “We had a really great turnout from auditions. It was not a problem; we could have cast the first night, so we got really lucky that way.”

I couldn’t help but see a comparison between a small but mighty cast, and our small but mighty town. It’s fitting, as the community connection and appreciation that Hough expressed runs strong.

“I think it’s important that the city obviously supports local community theatre and all the arts, which is wonderful,” says Hough. “I’m forever grateful for all they do for live theatre. The city’s important to us, and doing productions is our way of giving back. We always try to be active in the community in other ways, too … for example, we won best decorated commercial vehicle in the Torchlight Parade this summer. We got my Toyota 4-Runner and gussied it up with lace and banners. That was fun.”

Benicia Theatre Group would be thrilled to see a great turnout for the show, and they also welcome additional help from residents looking to get involved in the future.

“We’re always looking for volunteers,” he says. “Nobody’s paid on the board and we all do this for the love of theatre. Many of us put in hundreds of hours every year. I’ll be there [at the board meeting] tonight — we’re a working board — then we’re starting pre-production.”

DEATHTRAP will run from October 20th through November 12th, with showings on Friday and Saturday nights along with Sunday matinees. Tickets are $26 each; a $2 discount is offered for both students and seniors. Attendees can expect the show to take roughly two hours at the B.D.E.S Hall on West J Street. To purchase DEATHTRAP show tickets in advance, or for more information on how to get involved with Benicia Theatre Group, including volunteer and future audition information, please visit Beniciatheatregroup.org. B

Photo by Michael Van Auken

“It’s basically about a washed up playwright...He’s having a hard time being successful in his writings when he finds somebody that his wife suggests he get together with. They put their heads together to possibly come up with a play. He ends up coming up with the crazy idea of killing him. It takes place with a young writer who’s got some really good material, who’s a former student of his … the whole play is about how he’s conspiring.”

Benicia

From left to right: Shauna Shoptaw, Joe Fitzgerald, Charlie Hodes, Annie Larson, and Mark Shepard

for a Good Cause Biking t h e Bridges

Longtime Benicia resident Craig Snider holds a unique niche in the annals of city life: He owns the record for the fastest “pole to pole” bicycle sprint across the Benicia Bridge. His time: 3 minutes, 42 seconds for an average speed of more than 33 miles per hour.

Snider, who is president of the Benicia Bicycle Club, attributes his quickness that day to a “really strong tailwind” that helped to push him across to the Martinez side. Tailwind or no, another record he holds is for the fastest bike crossing of the Zampa Bridge from Vallejo to Crockett.

This October 7, Snider and many of his club mates, plus hundreds of other bicycle riders and

spectators, will be on hand for the 14th annual Bike the Bridges and Brewfest at the First Street Green in Benicia. The event is a fundraiser for the Special Olympics, the well-known nonprofit that provides sports training and athletic competition for children and adults with disabilities. Last year, the first year it was hosted by Benicia, it raised a record $150,000 for the organization.

The bicycle riders, attired in their eye-catching colorful garb, will gather Saturday morning at the foot of First and begin their rides in stages so as to minimize congestion. B Street will be blocked off, but not First Street as cyclists push off on distances of 25 miles, 50k, 100k or the Century Ride. Teams of riders as well as individuals on their own participate.

n Kevin Nelson Photos courtesy of the Special Olympics

Each route begins by crossing the Benicia Bridge, but after that there are variations. The 25-miler hugs the Martinez shoreline, journeys over the Zampa (or Carquinez) Bridge, passes through Vallejo and then along Southampton Bay before ending up back at First Street Green. The 50k (about 24 miles) follows a similar path until it reaches Vallejo where it heads out to Lake Herman Road and returns via East 2nd. The 100k (59 mi.) turns south at Crockett, winds over the East Bay hills to the San Pablo Bay shoreline and back up to the Zampa.

For those hardy souls who choose to do the Century Ride (103 mi.), the roads take them down to Berkeley and Oakland before they bend back to the Zampa and finally to First Street Green where there’s a party going on: craft brews being poured, live music, and beaucoup other festivities.

Lots of volunteers are required to pull off an event of this scope, and this is where the Benicia Bicycle Club enters the picture. Some members ride, some volunteer. Bob Hyde did both last year, pedaling the 25-mile course before stepping off

his bike to work as a course marshal. Greg Andrada, owner of the Wheels in Motion bike and skate shop on First Street, and his son Chase, will likely be on-site helping riders with any quick mechanical fixes they might need at the start. Craig Snider also served as a course marshal last year and may do it again. This is a crucial job because even with signs and volunteers pointing the right way, cyclists still sometimes veer off where they’re not supposed to go.

“It happens,” said Snider, who was pushing so hard in a race in Fresno one year that he sped off course without realizing it. A guy in a car pulled up next to him and said, “Hey man, I think you missed your turn back there.”

His post at the 2022 Bike the Bridges was at an intersection at Magazine Street in Vallejo, where riders pour off the Zampa Bridge and emerge onto city streets with vehicle traffic. In their zeal to get back to Benicia, some riders were tempted to run the red light there — a temptation Snyder strongly warned them to resist.

One sight he saw at Magazine Street was of a more inspirational nature, reminding him why he likes to get involved in Bike the Bridges and, heck, why others may wish to get involved too. It was of a boy, maybe 12 or 13 years old, who was riding a tricycle. The boy had Down Syndrome and was going very slow. Nevertheless he was very intent, very purposeful, about his mission. Not only was he potentially a beneficiary of all the money that was being raised by Bike the Bridges, he was participating in it too. B

Lots of volunteers are required to pull off an event of this scope, and this is where the Benicia Bicycle Club enters the picture.

Motherthing Motherthing by

Motherthing

Ainslie Hogarth

n Cooper Mickelson

Fall is in full swing, meaning it’s time to curl up in a cozy nook with a spiced beverage and the most stomach-churning, grimace-inducing, brain-breaking horror novels I can get my hands on. The first of many for this year’s spooky season read-athon was Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth.

Right off the bat, I’m going to throw out some trigger warnings for this novel because…yikes is it full of them. I suggest looking at a complete list online, but here are a few that jump out at me immediately upon reflecting on this story: sexual assault discussion, suicide, self-harm, murder, emotional abuse, and parental neglect.

Motherthing is a strangely feminist and darkly funny domestic horror novel about a woman desperately trying to save her husband and herself from the vengeful ghost of her manipulative mother-in-law. Bold, provocative, and extremely disturbing even for horror-loving readers, this novel is the definition of “not for everyone.” Draped in graphic grief from page one, Motherthing starts with a suicide before quickly transitioning into a slow-building, anxietyfilled spiral toward madness.

Abby and Ralph Lamb are an average, happy couple preparing to start their own

family until Ralph’s mother, Laura, turns their whole world upside down by insisting they move in with her, then dying by suicide in the basement. Abby has tried desperately to please her mother-in-law, but Laura is as cruel in death as she was in life, choosing to haunt the young couple still living in her home. Now Ralph, the usually adoring husband, is withdrawing into a depression filled with hallucinatory despair.

With Ralph skipping work to spend his days napping and conversing with his dead mother’s ghost, Abby quickly finds herself isolated from the support system she’s come to rely on. This isolation only deepens when her one source of comfort, Mrs. Bondy, a non-verbal patient at Abby's nursing home, is set to be moved to a different facility by her horrible, neglectful daughter.

Abby is thrust into a world of discomfort and paranoia as she struggles to find a way to heal her husband, banish the ghost of her mother-in-law, and keep her favorite client within reach.

At the start of Motherthing, Abby appears to be our sane, reliable narrator, but it quickly becomes evident that Abby is being haunted by more than one ghost. Raised by a nasty, self-absorbed mom who cared more for her long string of short-term boyfriends than her own daughter, Abby

Book and Cocktail Club

“Eating, love’s natural, bloody conclusion that can never, ever be indulged, because then the thing you love is destroyed. And maybe not destroying the thing you love, resisting that impulse, is the highest expression of love.”

had to mother herself from a very young age. Playing mother to herself throughout her childhood has led to an obsession with being the perfect “Motherthing” to her husband, her clients, and the imaginary clump of cells that she believes is growing inside her. The pressure builds as we witness Abby’s slow spiral into a pit of madness.

Reading Motherthing, it never feels like you can fully commit to a single reality as this book continually shifts and moves the narrative, leaving the reader in a disorienting fog. Very The Shining-esque, this story felt like being slowly boiled alive, building up to an exhilaratingly gruesome breaking point. The end is remarkable, leaving me with almost nothing negative to say about Motherthing beyond the stilted and strange writing style that won’t be a fit for every reader.

Copies of Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth are available to purchase at Bookshop Benicia or to check out as an audiobook with the local library. Enjoy the spooky season, and be sure to tag me (@beniciabooktails) in your Instagram posts so I can see what else you’re adding to your October TBRs! B

Loved Motherthing?

You might also like...

Booktail's Cocktail of the Month

Maeve Fly by CJ Leede

Ripe

by Sarah Rose Etter

Sweet Apple Crisp

Sweet Apple Crisp

Ingredients

1 oz Tequila (Ritual Zero Proof for NA)

4 oz Apple cider

1/2 Lime, juiced

1 tsp Maple syrup

Dash Orange bitters (All the Bitter for NA)

Cinnamon sugar rim (optional)

Preparation

1. Add apple cider, maple syrup, orange bitters, lime juice, and tequila to a shaker with ice and shake it up.

2. Add cinnamon sugar to the rim of a glass using lime juice.

3. Add ice to your favorite glass or cozy mug, and then pour.

Gracie's Old Time Recipes

We've all got those recipes that have been passed down for generations. In preparation for the upcoming holidays, I'm sharing one of my Aunt Evelyn's treasured dishes. My mom and her three sisters made this every winter holiday, for decades. They argued over whether Lorna Doone's or Walker's were the best shortbread cookies. My Aunt Eilene put them all to shame and made her own shortbread!

n

Gourmet Gracie

Fancy Hot Fruit Salad

Serves: 10 Cook time: 50 minutes

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Drain and mix the following fruit together and arrange in the bottom of a large casserole dish.

15 oz can dark cherries

15 oz can apricots

29 oz can sliced peaches

3. Mix together:

1 1/2 c. sour cream

3 tbsp brown sugar

1 tbsp flour

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs, slightly beaten

4. Spread on top of the mixed fruit.

5. Bake for 30 minutes.

6. Meanwhile, mix together:

1/2 c. brown sugar

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

10 crumbled shortbread cookies (your choice!)

7. Remove fruit casserole from oven and sprinkle micture over top.

8. Bake another 20 minutes until brown and bubbling.

october

Month of October

Scarecrow Contest

First Street

Take a walk down First Street because it’s the witching month and shops and restaurants on First Street participate with a Scarecrow Contest. Look for fun, scary, and extravagant displays outside shops and restaurants. Pick up a ballot at Benicia Main Street to vote for your favorite.

October 6

Kyle Hyland Foundation

7th Annual Golf Tournament

Blue Rock Golf Course, Vallejo

7am-2:30pm

The Kyle Hyland Foundation for Teen Support is hosting the 7th Annual KHF Golf Tournament at Blue Rock Golf Course. Event will feature an 8AM shotgun start (registration and breakfast at 7AM). All proceeds will benefit KHF teen programs. Lunch and appetizers at 19th hole will be provided as well as various prizes.

October 7

Bike the Bridges and Brewfest

First Street Green

6:30am-4pm

Riders can select one of four distances, each boasting scenic views along the routes. Enjoy live music and sample the best from local breweries. Benefits Special Olympics NorCal. More information at sonc.org/bike-the-bridges-brewfest.

October 14

Benicia Art Walk

First Street

12-4pm

Enjoy live entertainment and demonstrations while exploring eight exceptional art galleries (all within easy walking distance of each other).

Show your Art Walk pass at Mare Island Brewing Co. or Cullen's Tannery Pub for exclusive cocktails and discounts.

October 14

Fall Market

Benicia Senior Center 10am-3pm

Come join us!

EVENTS

October 14

Benicia Fire Department Open House

Benicia Fire Department - Station 11 11am-3pm

Fire station tours, fire extinguisher demonstrations, fire prevention information, Hands-Only CPR training, face painting, a jump house, food, and all kinds of emergency response vehicles and equipment for kids to tour.

October 14

Benicia Dog Festival

First Street Green

11am-4pm

This dog-and-family-friendly event. Admission is free and the event benefits non-profit rescues that help animals affected by natural disasters. Leashed dogs are invited to this fun "day for the dogs!" This event will feature a 'Dog&Me' obstacle course, a canine costume contest, pet adoptions, pet-related vendor booths and much more.

October 21

Witching Wine Walk

First Street

1-5pm

Ghouls descend upon downtown to sample wine and tasty bites at participating businesses — dare to join them? Costumes are welcome.

October 25

Jack-o'-Lantern Contest

Benicia Public Library

7-8:30pm

Bring your jack-o'-lantern to the library! Age groups for the contest are 0-5, 6-8, 7-9, 10 and up. There will be some stories for preschoolers back by the fireplace and one or two storytimes for older people as well. No live flames, please.

October 28

Halloween Costume Contest & Sidewalk Stroll

First Street 10am

Classes & Workshops

October 1

One-Day Wheel Throwing Class Happy Life Pottery

2-4:30pm

So you've always wanted to try a wheel throwing... Now is your chance! This class is only one day, for 2.5 hours, so that you can give it a try! Register at happylifepottery.com

October 5

Thursday Evening Pottery Project Pumpkins! (for Adults)

Happy Life Pottery

6-8pm

Don't have time to commit to a five or six week class? Come in and play with us for just a few hours instead! It's fun, easy, and you will love what you'll create. Register at happylifepottery.com

October 6

Glow Flow with The Elevate Company Benicia Clock Tower

6-9pm

Doors open at 6pm, arrive early to decorate your body in fluorescent glow paint and glow sticks to enhance the experience. We will practice yoga in a black lit room, to the tunes of DJ Stella Electra.

October 7, 14, 21, 29

Classical Approach to Portrait Painting Arts Benicia Annex, 991 Tyler Street, Suite 116 10am-2pm

In this Portrait Painting series, students will learn how to note the proportions of the head, use techniques to locate and define the features, and work out all the

October 8

Sunday Afternoon Pottery Project Pumpkins! (for Adults)

Happy Life Pottery

11am-2pm

Don't have time to commit to a five or six week class? Come in and play with us for just a few hours instead! It's fun, easy, and you will love what you'll create. Register at happylifepottery.com

October 8

Encaustic Painting

Arts Benicia Annex, 991 Tyler Street, Suite 116

1-5pm

Join Angela for this fun workshop for some who have little familiarity and some who have experienced working with the encaustic medium, but seek to refine their skills. Register at artsbenicia.org

October 20

Should I Make Art?

Arts Benicia, 1 Commandant's Lane

10am-2:30pm

Should you make art? Of course! Here you’ll visit the various approaches to tackling the challenges of art making regardless of medium. Register at artsbenicia.org

October 22

Exploring Botanical Monotypes

Arts Benicia, 1 Commandant's Lane 11am-3pm

Join Kelly in this popular, one-day experimental monotype printmaking workshop where you will learn to make stunning, one-of-a-kind botanical prints inspired by the natural world. Register at artsbenicia.org

Music & Entertainment

October 6

First Fridays at the Museum — Deep Cover Band Museum of History Benicia

6:30-9:30pm

Museum of History, Benicia hosts a great music every First Friday of the month right at the museum! Bring the kids and enjoy rock, blues and even a little country. Adults $15 cover, kids

Lucca's Beer Garden Stage

439 First Street, Benicia

October 1, 2:30-5:30pm

Lucca Biergarten Oktoberfest

October 5, 6:30-9pm

MoMoney

October 6, 6:30-9pm

New Frantics

October 7

Johnny Rawls (1-4pm)

Camp Jeff (6:30-9pm)

October 8, 2:30-5:30pm

GarageLand Rodeo

October 10, 6:30-9pm

Salsa Night with Mio Flores and his group 6PEACE, feat. Juan Escovedo

October 12, 6:30-9pm

Five Minute Miracles

October 13, 6:30-9pm

Strange Brew

October 14

Jim Funk (1-3:30pm)

Crossman Connection (6:30-9pm)

October 15, 2:30-5:30pm

The Dans of Steel

October 19, 6:30-9pm

Jeff Tamelier & Tony Lindsay

October 20, 6:30-9pm

Todd Morgan & The Emblems

October 21

Vintage Spirits (1-4pm)

The Tuneriders (6:30-9pm)

October 22, 2:30-5:30

Tender Mercies

October 26, 6:30-9pm

Groovy Judy

October 27, 6:30-9pm

Don Bassey & Friends

October 28

Idlewild West (1-4pm)

Halloween/thriller

feat Wasted Rangers (6:30-9pm)

October 29, 2:30-5:30pm

Jinx Jones

The Rellik Tavern

726 First Street, Benicia

October 27, 9pm-1:30am

Goth Night

Tuesdays, 7-10pm

Open Mic for Musicians

Wednesdays, 7-10pm

Karaoke

Sundays, 6-10pm

Poker Night

Thursdays, 9pm-1am

DJ

Live music Friday and Saturday. Visit therelliktavern.com for the full lineup.

Empress Theatre

330 Virginia St, Vallejo

October 4, 6:30-8:30pm

Quique Gomez

October 6, 6:30-9:30pm

Candlelight Concerts

October 7, 8-10:30pm

Flo-Funky Latin Orchestra

October 8, 3-5:30pm

LaRussell

October 11, 6:30-7:30pm

Jonny Rawls Band

October 12, 7-8:30pm

Uncensored Comedy

October 14, 8-10:30pm

FOREJOUR

October 18, 6:30-8:30pm

Carmen Ratti Band

October 25, 6:30-8:30pm

Takezo Takeda

October 28, 7:30-9:30pm

Three Tenors! - The Next Generation

Tuesdays

Trivia with King Trivia

Mare Island Brewing Co. First Street

Taphouse 6:30pm

Grab your friends for craft brews, food, and a few brain ticklers from the quizmasters at King Trivia every Tuesday upstairs, in the Benicia Room. B

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