Inside pocket jan 2015 by Inside Publications

INSIDE

I N S I D E P U B L I C A T I O N S . C O M

S T R E E T

2015

S A C R A M E N T O

C A

9 5 8 1 6

POSTAL CUSTOMER ******ECRWSS******

PRSRT STD US Postage PA I D Permit # 1826 Sacramento CA

G E T

3 1 0 4

JAN

POCKET GREENHAVEN SOUTH POCKET

I N T O

T H E

N E I G H B O R H O O D

pending

PRETIGIOUS RIVERLAKE High quality Parker–built halfplex with a spectacular Àoor plan! 4 bedrooms 3 full baths with downstairs bedroom and bath. Fantastic courtyard for extra living space. Spacious loft/den. Gorgeous formal dining room; and a large nook in charming kitchen. Rare 3-car garage. $550,000 MONA GERGEN 247-9555

MOVE-IN READY Enjoy this well maintained home! Highly sought after single story 4 bedroom 3 bath home with roomy master suite. The family room adjoins the kitchen and is perfect for the chef to chat while making dinner! Located on a quiet street just steps from the Sacramento River. Pretty backyard. Welcome home! $425,000 PAULA SWAYNE 425-9715

pending

SOUTH LAND PARK TERRACE Mid-century ranch in the hills of South Land Park Terrace. Living area opens to beautiful backyard and pool. 3 bedroom, 1½ bath family home; bright and light and oh so charming. Perfect for entertaining. Convenient location. New roof! $449,500 SHEILA VAN NOY 505-5395

pending

AMAZING REMODEL Recently remodeled 3 bedroom 2 bath home in the Didion School boundaries. New kitchen, electrical, baths, Àoors, windows, doors, paint in and out, baseboards, lighting, (includes LED lights), ceiling fans, landscaping, quartz counter top, farm house sink, designer tile Àoors and much more. $395,000 MONA GERGEN 247-9555

sold

RIVER OAKS IN THE POCKET Amazing remodeled kitchen and home, mahogany Àoors throughout, stainless steel appliances, double oven, built-in fridge, granite counters, high quality custom cabinets, butler’s pantry. 4 bedrooms 3½ baths, Custom bar with cabinets, sink and wine fridge. Master suite with ¿replace, close to river. $400,000 MONA GERGEN 247-9555

SHERMAN ISLAND RETREAT Amazing opportunity! A special property across the road from the River on Sherman Island. Custom built … it’s the perfect home-awayfrom-home! Currently 1 bedroom, 1 bath; easily be converted back to a 2 bedroom home. Owner had plans to build up and create a river view. A windsurfers dream! $205,900 JAMIE RICH 612-4000

DUNNIGANREALTORS.COM 916.484.2030 916.454.5753 Dunnigan is a different kind of Realtor.

POC JAN n 15

sold

GREAT GREENBELT ACCESS 3 bedrooms, 2½ baths, an oversized pool/spa combo for summer fun AND RV access and storage. Lower level has a great circular Àoor plan that includes the living and dining rooms, kitchen and adjoining family room. Upper level has 3 good sized bedrooms. A deep garage with work area. $385,000 CHRIS BRIGGS 834-6483

sold

for current home listings, please visit:

SOUTH LAND PARK HILLS Wonderfully spacious ranch style home in desirable South Land Park. Double doors open to a beautiful entry and inviting family room with plantation shutters and view of backyard. 3 or 4 bedrooms 2½ baths, kitchen pantry living room w/ wood burning ¿replace insert. $459,000 BETH SHERMAN 800-4343

WONDERFUL S LAND PARK Sharp 3 bedroom features new roof, Àoors, granite counters and master bath remodel. Nice location close-in, with easy access to both 99 and I-5. Screened-in Florida room for relaxing with those Delta breezes. Family room / kitchen / dining area, and generous sized living room with ¿replace. $345,000 MIKE PUENTE 395-4727

At Brookfield School… Where smart kids get a smart start! TO DISCOVER IF BROOKFIELD IS THE RIGHT SCHOOL FOR YOUR CHILD CALL TODAY TO SCHEDULE A TOUR OF OUR NEW CAMPUS 916.442.1255

BRAND NEW FACILITIES, WITH A COMPLETE PRESCHOOL Q

Convenient new preschool, ages 2-5

High-tech classrooms, computer labs, and science labs

JgXZ`flj gcXp Xi\Xj Xe[ i\^lcXk`fe jfZZ\i Ô\c[

NEW ADDRESS, SAME OUTS TANDING EDUCATION Q

6115 Riverside Blvd (at 43rd Avenue, right off Highway 5) Call today to schedule a sneak-peek tour of our beautiful new campus.

Questions? We’d love to answer them. 9iffbÔ\c[JZ_ffc%fi^ s 0(-%++)%(),,

BROOKFIELD S

SINCE 1962

PRESCHOOL — 8TH GRADE

Limited financial assistance is available to outstanding applicants. Brookfield School is not religiously affiliated.

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

COVER ARTIST Aurora Dominguez "Enthusiasm emerges whenever I begin a pet portrait. However, with each impending portrait, this also brings the slight terror and fear of not quite capturing the personality and spirit of the beloved pet. Those fears are allayed, however, when wide grins or tears of joy are received in response to the final rendition. Those are the rewards that I enjoy receiving over and over again."

auroradominguez@sbcglobal.net • (916) 454-4812

EAST SACRAMENTO

L A N D PA R K

ARDEN

POCKET

LOCAL PUBLISHER Cecily Hastings publisher@insidepublications.com 3104 O St. #120, Sac. CA 95816 (Mail Only) 916-441-7026 (Information Line) EDITOR PRODUCTION DESIGN PHOTOGRAPHY AD COORDINATOR ACCOUNTING EDITORIAL POLICY

JANUARY 2015 VOL. 1 • ISSUE 12 5 6 8 12 18 20 24 26 31 32 36 38 40 41 42 44 45

Marybeth Bizjak mbbizjak@aol.com M.J. McFarland Cindy Fuller, Daniel Nardinelli Linda Smolek, Aniko Kiezel Michele Mazzera Jim Hastings, Daniel Nardinelli 916-443-5087 Commentary reflects the views of the writers and does not necessarily reflect those of Inside Publications. Inside Publications is delivered for free to more than 65,000 households in Sacramento. Printing and distribution costs are paid entirely by advertising revenue. We spotlight selected advertisers, but all other stories are determined solely by our editorial staff and are not influenced by advertising. No portion may be reproduced mechanically or electronically without written permission of the publisher. All ad designs & editorial—©

SUBMISSIONS Submit cover art to publisher@insidepublications.com. Submit editorial contributions to mbbizjak@aol.com. SUBSCRIPTIONS Subscriptions at $25 per year guarantees 3rd class mailing.

Publisher's Desk Pocket Beat Pocket Life Inside City Hall Local Heroes Shoptalk Building Our Future River City Previews Inside Out Home Insight Sports Authority Garden Jabber Spirit Matters Science In The Neighborhood Artist Spotlight Restaurant Insider Have Inside, Will Travel

Pay online at insidepublications.com or send check with name & address of recipient and specify publication edition.

VISIT INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM CONTACT OUR ADVERTISING TEAM

Ann Tracy

Duffy Kelly

East Sacramento

Arden - Pocket - Native Advertising

Central City - Land Park

798-2136

224-1604

341-9755

POC JAN n 15

Michael Boyd

Cecily Hastings Publisher - Select Accounts

Old Friends, New Friends REACH OUT TO AN ELDERLY NEIGHBOR—THE REWARDS ARE GREAT

BY CECILY HASTINGS PUBLISHER’S DESK

ast month, my 97-year-old neighbor Hazel died peacefully in her home. Amazingly, she had lived on our street for about 80 years. Her folks originally built the house, and she stayed after they passed on. Her fondest wish was to die in her home. She was able to make that happen thanks to the exceptional care of her best friend, Helen, who is 10 years younger than Hazel. They had worked together and been friends for 60 years. I first met both ladies a few years after we moved to the street in 1989. But it wasn’t until seven years ago that I really got to know them. They had come to my backyard block barbecue the summer before, and Hazel told everyone she was going to be 90 two days after Christmas. Sue, my neighbor at the time, marked her calendar and arranged a little birthday party for Hazel. A few of us neighbors took a cake and visited with her that evening. The house was filled to the brim with travel mementoes, magazines and books. It turned out that she had

traveled the world, visiting every continent and almost every country, including 16 trips to Africa. The next week, I visited again to learn more about her travels. I love to travel and learned the joys from my own mother, who traveled the world later in her life. My mother, who was Hazel’s exact age, had died the year before, and I was left with a hole that I can only guess needed filling. At 90, Hazel was still able to fill me in on some of her trips, but she had trouble remembering the years, which was understandable. I discovered we were both members of Fremont Presbyterian Church, even though she hadn’t been able to attend for a long time.

Hazel and my mother were completely different personalities, but their interests were so similar, it comforted me to be around her. We soon found out she loved The Wall Street Journal but didn’t know you could get home delivery. We had just started getting it at home, so my husband took it down to her house every day and placed it on her doorstep after we finished reading. She called Jim the world’s best paperboy. At Christmas, she’d take us to dinner at The Waterboy, her favorite restaurant, as a thank-you.

During our visits, I learned other things about her. She loved literature, history, foreign affairs and politics, all interests of my mother’s. Hazel and my mother were completely different personalities, but their interests were so similar, it comforted me to be around her. I once shared this with her and she said, “I am so happy to be able to do something meaningful for you!” When Hazel's friend Helen needed a hip replacement surgery two years ago we found a short-term assisted living facility for Hazel. We visited, brought mail and watched the home front until Hazel could move back. After that we arranged for home care assistants to help her out. I kept up our weekly chats until the past year, when she began spending more and more time in her den and talking took too much energy. A year ago, we got a puppy named McKinley, and I started taking him to see Hazel, who loved dogs. It was perfect. She’d hold him on her lap, petting him and feeding him treats. He’d lick her face with joy, and she’d giggle like a little girl. She’d recall how much she’d loved her cocker spaniel, Jerry. Hazel had been widowed twice and never had any children, nor did Helen. Hazel had no siblings, and her relatives lived a considerable distance away. Hazel’s and Helen’s friendship served them both very well. Helen dutifully cared for her friend, doing shopping and meal prep and, most importantly, providing companionship. I know no better friend than Helen. Our friendship with Helen will most certainly continue.

While we were friends with them in recent years, their immediate neighbor family provided help for more than 25 years. Kay used to take her boys—now grown—to visit and help with chores. Kay’s family dutifully watched Hazel’s house when she went on all those trips abroad.

She’d hold McKinley on her lap, petting him and feeding him treats. He’d lick her face with joy, and she’d giggle like a little girl. When I was growing up, my mom took me along on her visits to elderly relatives. It wasn’t always my favorite thing to do, especially visiting Uncle Harry, who was extremely grumpy. I remember my mom saying in the car on the way home, “The lesson here is that as you get older, you have to work hard to be especially nice to others and show an interest in them. Otherwise, you’ll spend a lot of time alone.” I’m grateful my mom took her own advice. In her later years, she was always upbeat and interested in others. My friends wanted to visit her—sometimes, they said, more than they wanted to visit their own parents! Hazel certainly shared that philosophy. She and Helen loved PUBLISHER page 7

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Swinging for the Fences INCOMING COUNCILMEMBER INJECTS HIMSELF INTO ALREADY-RESOLVED CONTROVERSY

BY R.E. GRASWICH POCKET BEAT

ven a novice politician knows better than to run around measuring the drapes before his predecessor leaves office. Rick Jennings, the new city councilmember for the Pocket and Greenhaven, isn’t exactly a novice. He served 12 years on the local school board. But that didn’t stop him from behaving with the frothy eagerness of a puppy before he took office. Jennings didn’t just measure the drapes in Councilmember Darrell Fong’s city hall office. He began to install new curtains while Fong was still sitting there—metaphorically speaking, that is. Three weeks before he was sworn in, Jennings dropped himself into the hottest controversy to hit the Pocket in years: the removal of illegal fences that block access to the Sacramento River Parkway levee. First, the incoming councilmember convened a private meeting with the special-interest group of 22 neighbors from Chicory Bend and Rivershore— the same group that installed the fences and private gates on city property without permits and blocked public access to the river.

POC JAN n 15

The issue of illegal fencing is a hot topic in the Pocket

After hearing from the special interests, whose self-serving arguments had been dismissed by city and state authorities, Jennings asked city parks director Jim Combs to delay an order to remove the fences. Thus, Jennings interfered with a resolution that had been reached after months of study and discussion. Then Jennings began to consider alternatives to keep the Chicory Bend and Rivershore interests happy. Various options were kicked around, including the possibility of a new fence on city property, a few feet away from the public land controlled by state levee authorities. Jennings even posted a note on the social media site Nextdoor Pocket, announcing his decision to delay the

fence removal festivities “to give me time to discuss this decision with all parties involved.” He was still 12 days from taking office. The imperious tone of Jennings’ post sent residents scurrying to laptops to blast the councilmemberelect for presumptuousness and poor judgment, among other things. The online outrage was soon cut off by nannies watching over Nextdoor. I’ve had two lengthy conversations with Jennings since he became ensnarled in the fence controversy. At first, he seemed surprised by the uproar. He said he simply wanted to hear “the other side of the story” from the Chicory Bend and Rivershore interests and to be

a “councilman who listens to his constituents.” And here is where Jennings’ political inexperience hurt him. By trying to be a responsive councilmember, he unintentionally became an advocate for a specialinterest group. He may not have meant it that way, but that’s the reality. The Chicory Bend and Rivershore neighbors perfectly fit the definition of special interest. Their goals are privacy and exclusive access to the levee. This contradicts the interests of the general public. Like other specialinterest groups, they fight hard to protect their advantages. And by helping a small collection of people who decided to buy homes next

door to the levee parkway, Jennings favored a group whose goal is to keep the general public away. “Public access is nonnegotiable,” Jennings told me. “So is righting the wrongs from the past and doing it without any cost to the city. And the safety of our levees is the No. 1 nonnegotiable. Our levees must be safe from illegal encroachments. And there must be public access to the parkway.” Those are encouraging words, but they won’t stop the special-interest homeowners with private access to the levee parkway. Jennings told me he was concerned about several other levee parkway fences in the Pocket. He wondered why the Chicory Bend and Rivershore barricades had been singled out. I told him the battle for public access to our levees—from the Freeport water intake plant to Old Sacramento—had to start somewhere. He agreed. So get ready for another year of levee parkway fence controversy. With the help of readers, I’ve been studying fences that blockade the

levee at the 6200 block of Surfside Way and the 6500 block of Benham Way. They are worse than the Chicory Bend and Rivershore barricades: They go up and over the levee, leaving deep concrete footings in their wake. The Surfside and Benham barricades create a private paradise for 34 homes. That’s bad enough from a public-access perspective, but the sandcastle sanctuary includes at least 11 in-ground swimming pools and 13 walkways dug into the levee base, raising questions about potential damage to our city’s levee. I’ve asked our public authorities for reports on the legality and possible dangers posed by those fences, pools and pathways. Jennings has agreed to tour the levee with me and inspect the illegal encroachments.

If it’s creative ...it’s here! art supplies custom framing decorative papers greeting cards designer gifts stationery journals kidstuff photo frames classes workshops demos ...and more!

I will have my walking shoes on and will describe the fences we ultimately climb. R.E. Graswich can be reached at reg@graswich.com n

UArt Sacramento 2601 J Street 916-443-5721 Redwood City

San Jose

Sacramento UniversityArt.com

PUBLISHER FROM page 5 nothing more than to hear me share news of our business, the political scene, our family and our volunteer work in the McKinley Park across the street—which she generously supported, along with numerous other local charities. And, of course, she enjoyed hearing about my own travels and looking at my photos.

Make this the year of the smile! • Children & Adults • Cosmetic Dentistry

My goal for each visit was to get them to laugh as much as possible, which was fairly easy.

• Dental Implants Always accepting new patients.

44-SMILE or visit us at

www.sutterterracedental.com

3001 P St. Sacramento, CA

My goal for each visit was to get them to laugh as much as possible, which was fairly easy as they both had a fun sense of humor. Just about every street in our neighborhoods has elderly folks who

could use some companionship. It’s easy to think that someone else is providing it, but oftentimes there is no one. Even those with family members nearby may have unfulfilled needs. I don’t believe we were put in this world to be alone. Some adapt to being alone better than others, but most of us are healthier, physically and emotionally, when we have regular positive interaction with others. The New Year brings us new opportunities to reach out to others and strengthen the sense of friendship in our communities.

NEW COLUMN This month, writer Gwen Schoen stops writing her column on local clubs and begins covering topics related to the local farm-to-fork movement. Look for great new stories from Gwen in the New Year. Cecily Hastings can be reached at publisher@insidepublications.com n

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Young Runners LOCAL STUDENTS HAVE RACKED UP ALMOST 3,000 MILES

first,” she says. “Around the same time, Joan Benoit won the women’s marathon in the L.A. Olympics, which really made me think that someday I would have to try one of those great challenges. I fell in love with triathlon, but I have found that I am actually better at running—although I still think my biggest goal is to cross the Kona finish line just like Julie Moss did all those years ago.”

BY SHANE SINGH POCKET LIFE

Since the running program began, Martin Luther King students have run almost 3,000 miles.

t’s not very often an Olympian pays our community a visit. On Dec. 3, Kim Conley, who represented the United States in the 2012 London Summer Olympics, asked students at Martin Luther King Jr. K-8 School to guess how many miles she had run the previous week.

So far, the students collectively have run from Sacramento to Seattle and are now heading toward Flagstaff, Ariz. Hands shot up. “Nine?” one student guessed. “Ten?” offered another. When Conley told them the answer—105 miles—gasps could be

POC JAN n 15

Runner Kim Conley, who represented the United States in the 2012 London Summer Olympics, visited Martin Luther King Jr. K-8 School

heard throughout the room. Then applause broke out. Conley, who made it to the semifinals in the women’s 5,000-meter event in London, was one of several speakers who addressed the students as part of a Sacramento Running Association assembly. The association sponsors an afterschool running club at Martin Luther King. The school holds weekly “all school” runs on certain mornings. Both activities are organized by teacher Kirsten Van Tuyl.

Van Tuyl records the number of miles run by students on a map in the cafeteria. So far, the students collectively have run from Sacramento to Seattle and are now heading toward Flagstaff, Ariz. Van Tuyl has taught at Martin Luther King for five years. Before that, she was at Lisbon Elementary School for nine years. She became interested in running when she was still in school. “When I was 12 or 13 years old, I saw Julie Moss crawl across the Ironman Hawaii finish line and come in second place instead of

Van Tuyl enrolled Martin Luther King with the Sacramento Running Association so students could participate in the association’s maraFUNrun and its schoolyear running program. Students earn ribbons for their cumulative distances. The school’s running club has 30 students on its roster. On most days, 25 show up to run. Since the running program began, Martin Luther King students have run almost 3,000 miles. Van Tuyl keeps an Excel spreadsheet to document the students’ mileage, and graphs go up in the cafeteria periodically to update kids on their

POCKET LIFE page 10

look& feel

How do you want to

in 2015?

Read what others are saying about us:

“I

’ve been on every weight loss program known to man in 50 years and this is the only program that I was not hungry and had no cravings. It’s just transformed my life. I lost 29.2 lbs. in just 39 days which I never thought I would. I’m off HBP medication, I’m off nexium for GERD, taking no prescriptions and I feel great. I have good energy and I think I’ve kicked my sugar and carb cravings. This is the only program I saw losing fat and losing in all the right places. Also, I was on the road to pre-diabetes and now my blood is perfectly normal.” - Emily Giles

“I

hate weight loss programs and devoting countless hours to a gym but wanted to lose 40-50 pounds and feel better about myself. I weighed over 250 lbs. and felt sluggish and constantly tired and wanted a better life. Using technology, the program actually listens to the individual bio-markers in the body! Once I started the program, I began feeling better about myself. I had more energy. I ate real food, organic vegetables, fruits and either meat or fish. I lost a total of 43.5 lbs., dropped a total of 18 inches from my chest, stomach, arm and thigh areas and weigh a much more healthy 210 lbs. So if you’re looking to lose weight and feel better about yourself, this is a must program!” - Fred Edwards

“I Sacramento The Ultimate Fat Loss System • • • •

No pre-packaged chemical foods No hunger, no cravings No exercise necessary Fat melts away where you want it to • Resets metabolism so you don’t gain it back • Safe, EASY, doctor supervised • Naturally balances hormones Our state-of-the-art NRF bio-scanning system can assess 2800 different bio-markers for FAT BURNING. If you want to lose weight and be healthier, this program is for you. When the organs of metabolism breakdown on a cellular level through stress, toxicity, poor diet and deficiencies you can’t lose weight. Be a part of the Nutrimost family by losing weight and healing your body from within!

Normally $99

Body Composition Analysis and Health Consultation

(includes body fat%, body mass index, body water%, visceral fat rating, metabolic age and consultation with the doctor)

’ve lost 15 inches off my mid-section which is what I wanted to lose. Even more beneficial are all the amazing, amazing things I’ve gained physically with my health. My acid reflux is gone for my digestive health, my insomnia is gone and I’m sleeping. My hot flashes are almost gone. I’m just so thrilled that I did the program and it was so easy and the staff is amazing. Challenges were always faced head on. It was more about feeling good and healthy again because I had lost that vitality.” - Marie Bartczak

“H

aving blood work done and seeing bad cholesterol was up, blood pressure was starting to creep up, and weighing 208.4 lbs., I knew something had to be done. As I started to shed the pounds, my joints started to feel better, less pain in the knees and back. At the end of this program and losing 40 lbs., I feel and look better. Friends say I look younger. At 56 I certainly feel I’ve found the strength and energy I had in my late 40’s when I considered myself at my strongest. I was very surprised to find I didn’t lose my energy level at all during the program, which was really my biggest concern before starting. Losing weight this rapidly and not losing my ability to cope with a hard physical day spoke volumes to me about the science behind this.” - Ian Brooks

“I

chose the Nutrimost program because it is the healthiest weight loss/ detox program I’ve been able to find, covering a multitude of benefits. I was feeling easily tired and slowed down before the program. Now I’m doing the lean, wriggly-with-energy dance! The weight I lost is staying lost, I notice better focus throughout the day, and better sleep throughout the night. My sinuses and sneezing have cleared up. The inflammation in my finger joints has disappeared. Losing weight means I can fit into my favorite clothes again.” - Martha Meyer

The only Northern California location offering the NutriMost System! Kit Langstroth D.C.

916-925-2007 SacramentoFatLoss.com IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

POCKET LIFE FROM page 8

store for me today. I have a few more weeks and I should be ready to go and test out so that I can be out on my own.” He has had the opportunity to work in every part of the city except downtown. “I think my favorite place to work is either Del Paso Heights or Oak Park,” he said.

progress. A map shows a little guy running across the United States. “However, he can’t just run straight across because I would have to draw another map,” says Van Tuyl.

NEW FACE AT CITY HALL

GRILLIN’ SAUCE

On Nov. 25, Rick Jennings was sworn in as District 7’s new city councilmember. During the city hall ceremony, he spoke eloquently about his sense of duty to the community.

John F. Kennedy High School alum Jill Alves has been in the gourmet barbecue sauce business since 2011. Grillin’ Bill’s, the sauce she developed with her husband Bill, hit the market in 2012. “Our sauces can be found in Corti Brothers and 14 Whole Foods Markets, including Sacramento, Folsom, Davis, Roseville, Reno and multiple Bay Area stores,” Alves says. The sauces are manufactured in Auburn. Alves plans to market the sauces to Nugget Market and New Leaf Community Markets. For more information, go to grillinbills.com

We have the opportunity to work with Jennings to help revitalize our parks, trails and other local amenities with Measure U funds. The city and the neighborhood are poised for a period of growth as we come out of the Great Recession. We have the opportunity to work with Jennings to help revitalize our parks, trails and other local amenities with Measure U funds. Jennings’ staff members are district director Dennis Rogers and executive assistant Kim Blackwell. You can reach them at 808-7007.

Shane Singh can be reached at shane@shanesingh.com n

Couch potato no more. Bill Alves of Grillin’ Bill’s. The sauces, develped by Bill and his wife Jill, can be found in Corti Brothers and 14 Whole Foods Markets, including Sacramento, Folsom, Davis, Roseville, Reno and multiple Bay Area stores.

THAI FOOD In June, Sai Varee Thai Cuisine opened in the space formerly occupied by El Faro in The Promenade shopping center on Rush River Drive. The restaurant, owned by Pam Instarakul, employs 13. Instarakul has lived in the neighborhood since 2005. She says it has been her lifelong dream to open a Thai restaurant in the United States. For more information, go to saivaree.com

POC JAN n 15

Sai Varee Thai Cuisine opened in the space formerly occupied by El Faro in The Promenade shopping center on Rush River Drive.

COP IN TRAINING We recently caught up with Vinnie Catricala, a former professional baseball player who is now in training to be a Sacramento police officer.

“Field training is going really well,” Catricala said. “I am learning a lot, and each day is something different and exciting. I look forward to coming into work wondering what will be in

sacpetsearch.com sspca.org happytails.org saccountyshelter.net Brought to you by the animal lovers at

INSIDE PUBLICATIONS

Presenting the best in music, dance and speakers

“America’s greatest contemporary ballerina.” —The New York Times

Wendy Whelan

SAT, JAN 24 • 8PM

Former New York City Ballet principal Wendy Whelan will dance in a contemporary suite of duets with four rising choreographers. Set to music ranging from Max Richter and Philip Glass to Hauschka and Hilder Guðnadóttir, Whelan dances with contemporary artists Kyle Abraham, Josh Beamish, Brian Brooks and Alejandro Cerrudo. The New York Times writes, “It’s hard to think of another woman who could dance these pieces, by four different choreographers, half so strikingly. Everything about her is riveting, interesting, unusual, intelligent.”

Not All Home Care is Alike

Gregory Porter

Our mission is to Change the Way the World Ages

MON, JAN 19 • 7PM

At Home Care Assistance of Sacramento we are “raising the bar” in the care we provide AND the respect we extend to our staff.

A natural storyteller, Gregory Porter redefines the emotional tenor of what jazz singing can be, weaving elements of folk, R&B and soul into melodies that seem fresh and timeless at the same time.

• We refer to our caregivers as Care Partners because they are truly valued partners in this business. • We are the only senior care company with a Home Care University to continue to develop the skills of our staff. We also offer culinary training with an emphasis on nutrition to improve our care partners’ skills and ultimately our clients’ meals.

Nada Bakos WED, JAN 21 • 8PM Former CIA Analyst and Targeting Officer

family @fun MC

Meet Kathy. Kathy Herrfeldt is the owner of Home Care Assistance of Sacramento and works directly with clients and their families. She is passionate about promoting options that lead to living healthily and independently wherever that may be. Call Home Care Assistance today to schedule a free assessment!

916-706-0169

5363 H Street, Suite A, Sacramento, CA 95819 www.HomeCareAssistanceSacramento.com

Tomáš Kubínek SUN, JAN 25 • 3PM Certified Lunatic and Master of the Impossible

The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain WED, JAN 28 • 8PM

LIMITED AVAILABLITY

So Percussion FRI-SAT, JAN 30-31 A full list of the 2014–15 season is available at mondaviarts.org

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

After Measure L CITY ETHICS AND TRANSPARENCY REFORM GAINS MOMENTUM

BY CRAIG POWELL INSIDE CITY HALL

ne of the ironies of voters’ sound rejection of Measure L (the strongmayor measure) in November is that its defeat has proven to be a powerful catalyst for adoption of the ethics and transparency reforms that were part of Measure L. Why is there strong support for components of a failed ballot measure? Because in the course of the Measure L campaign, proponents including Mayor Kevin Johnson and opponents each invariably expressed strong support for such reforms. In fact, no one, to my knowledge, expressed any opposition to them. The only critique came from those who felt that Measure L was not specific enough in its treatment of reforms, providing only a bare-bones mandate that the city council flush out the reforms with implementing legislation following passage of Measure L. What reforms are finding new life after Measure L’s demise? First is a proposal to create an independent redistricting commission to draw the lines of city council districts, stripping the city council of such authority.

POC JAN n 15

Second is the creation of a city ethics code defining acceptable (and unacceptable) standards of behavior by city officials. Third is the creation of an ethics committee or commission, presumably to enforce the city’s ethics code and other standards of conduct. Fourth is the adoption of a sunshine or transparency ordinance that would set in law specific requirements to ensure that city government operates in an open and accessible manner. Measure L also called for a city budget analyst answerable to the city council. Provision for such a position already exists in the city code, although the position has never been funded by the city council.

The creation of a city ethics code defining acceptable (and unacceptable) standards of behavior by city officials. Some of the critics of Measure L characterized its reform provisions as “sweeteners” to attract voter support for the measure, pointing to the almost complete lack of specificity as evidence of a lack of serious mayoral commitment to such reforms. Given the mountain of money spent to pass the measure, it is almost certainly true that the mayor’s Measure L campaign poll-tested the appeal of the reforms to voters. But the fact that it may have been smart

political strategy to include them in Measure L doesn’t mean that the mayor lacks commitment to follow through with adoption of robust ethics and transparency reform. He has supported the creation of an independent redistricting commission ever since the city council’s gerrymander of council district lines in 2011, to which he greatly objected. The idea for a city budget analyst answerable to the city council came from the mayor. In fact, the mayor has been the most consistent voice on the council calling for audits and reform of city departments, at least in his first term. (In his second term, he’s been pretty preoccupied with keeping the Kings in Sacramento and developing the downtown arena project.) In fact, within a week of Measure L’s loss at the polls, the mayor appointed a four-member ad hoc council committee, made up of his closest allies on the council, to flush out a timeline for consideration of the reforms and to presumably bring them back to council for future adoption. But, as I mentioned in last month’s column, ad hoc committees of the council are not an open and transparent way to develop policy or legislation. Meetings of ad hoc committees are not open to the public or media as they are not subject to the Brown Act, the state’s iconic open-meeting law. They don’t publish agendas or minutes according to city clerk Shirley Concolino. It’s not hard to spot the irony of charging a committee closed to public view with the responsibility for developing proposals for improving ethics and transparency

in city government. The best way to develop ethics and transparency reforms, clearly, is to do so with the involvement of the public. It’s their government, after all. To that end, Eye on Sacramento and the League of Women Voters of Sacramento County jointly announced last month that they are launching an initiative to develop city ethics and transparency reforms with the greatest possible public input and involvement. They announced a schedule of three public forums over the next few months: Feb. 19 at Clunie Community Center in McKinley Park; March 12 at South Natomas Library; and March 25 at Robbie Waters Pocket-Greenhaven Library. (The forums start at 6:30 p.m.) Additional forums in other Sacramento neighborhoods are anticipated. In the interim, EOS and the league are conducting a joint study of similar reforms adopted in other California cities and around the country and will be releasing a report on their findings. Their report will also indentify possible options for discussion at the upcoming forums. The public will be provided an almost unlimited opportunity to weigh in with their ideas and viewpoints Following the forums, EOS and the league will prepare legislative proposals reflective of the public’s wishes. These proposals will then be vetted by another round of public forums before being finalized for formal presentation to the city council for action. Some components of the reform package can be adopted as city ordinances by a simple vote of CITY HALL page 14

Visit our boutique showroom today!

Workshops

The Most Anticipated Show of the Year

ł Educational ł Informative ł Entertaining

( )L[[LY 4H[[YLZZ

Naturally Educate yourself at The New California Landscape exhibit.

The Big Sh ow at Cal Exp o!

Deeper Sleep By Design

Chip & Jill

• Authentic European style mattress systems • Natural and organic mattresses, bedding and pillows - Free of harmful chemicals • European components offer incomparable comfort, ergonomic support and longevity

Landscape Showcase and

Design Competition

Featured Designers ł ł ł ł

EUROPEAN E URO O PEA A N SLEEP S LE E E P DESIGN D E S IGN N 6606 Folsom Auburn Rd. Folsom, CA. 95630 916-989-8909 Personally ﬁt for each individual

www.sleepdesign.com

Cheryl Wiegand Landscape Design Earthscapes Roberta Walker Landscape Design Creative Scapes

Landscape Competition Sponsored by:

Passport Promotion

Two $10,000 Prize Giveaways

port at the Show Pick up your pass ions ped in two locat and have it stam e. m ga a to ticket to receive a free

The

Sponsored by:

January 23-25, 2015 • Cal Expo, Sacramento Friday 12 pm – 7pm • Saturday 10 am – 6 pm • Sunday 10 am – 6 pm

www.HomeandLandscapeExpo.com Visit our website for full Show Details!

THE BIG SHOW AT CAL EXPO

810 Alhambra Blvd 444-2011 McKinleySquareHome.com

Two for One Admission Coupon! Bring this Inside the City coupon to the Northern California Home & Landscape Expo, Jan. 23-25 to receive two admissions for the price of one full paid adult admission. This is a $7 savings. Offer can not be combined with any other promotions. January 23-25, 2015 • Cal Expo, Sacramento • www.HomeandLandscapeExpo.com

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

New Year, New You! Let us help you reach your beauty goals for 2015! LASER TREATMENTS Wrinkles | Brown Spots Facial Vessels | Birthmarks Scars | Hair Removal Tattoo Removal

COSMETIC SERVICES Botox® & Dysport® Dermal Fillers | Fraxel ® Thermage® | Ultherapy® Coolsculpting ® | Cellfina ™

DERMATOLOGY Acne | Mole Removal Sclerotherapy | Skin Care Mohs Skin Cancer Surgery

PLASTIC SURGERY Facial & Eyelid Rejuvenation Breast Enhancement Body Contouring

MEDISPA

3835 J STREET, SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA | 916-456-0400 | SKINLASERS.COM CITY HALL FROM page 12 the city council this year, while other parts will require the council to place charter amendments before the voters in 2016. If you or your organization would like to participate in the effort to bring effective ethics and transparency reforms to city government, please contact either me or the league’s president, Paula Lee, at paula.lee@comcast.net

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS FOR CITY COUNCIL I thought I would be a bit presumptuous this year and suggest some excellent New Year’s resolutions that members of the city council should make for the coming year. First, try real hard not to repeat the past mistake of splitting into council factions, which leads invariably to reflex voting based on who on the council is supporting or opposing a measure, rather than the merits of the proposal itself. If

POC JAN n 15

you’re already identified as part of a faction, declare your independence from time to time. Remember, you’re there to represent your constituents, not a faction. Just because we are in the state capitol doesn’t mean you have to emulate the conflict-ridden, factionalized State Legislature or behave like a cast member of “Survivor.” Place a Post-it above your bathroom mirror that reads “I will collaborate today.” Second, you will hear incessant pleading from special interests, ranging from unions seeking higher pay to developers seeking taxpayer subsidies to city staff seeking expanded powers over, well, darn near everything. What you will not hear nearly as much are the voices of average residents in your district who haven’t the time or the energy to trudge down to city hall on Tuesday nights to tell you their concerns in the two minutes they’re allotted. You are their lobbyist. You are there in their place. Resolve that in every vote you cast and every decision you make, you will place their interests ahead of all others. Add a second Post-it note to

your mirror: “I will put the public’s interest first.” Third, you owe nothing to the individuals, businesses, labor unions and parties that may have contributed to your campaign, other than the same open door and open mind you ought to extend to all of your constituents, no matter how high or humble they may be. Analyses show that the candidates who raise the most money in city council races rarely win. Instead, it is the hardestworking candidates who effectively connect with average voters at their front doors who prevail. Your debt is to them and only them. Most contributors who supported you did so because they thought you’d make a fine councilmember and they liked your stands on issues. As to those contributors who expect special favors for their contributions or other support, resolve to show them the door. Fourth, check your political ambitions at the door of the council chambers. The city council has long

Microdermabrasion Hydro Wand ® Infusion System Facials | Facial Peels Velashape ™ | Venus Freeze ™ St. Tropez Sunless Tan Laser & Skin Surgery Medical Group, Inc.

been exploited as a steppingstone for ambitious Capitol staffers looking for their first chance to run for higher office. In this town, that traditionally means competing in a Democratic primary where base voters are very liberal and government unions hold the whip hand. But if you genuflect to left-wing voters and government unions while on the council, you’ll miss out on opportunities to enact smart solutions and implement needed reforms that require independence, political courage, pragmatism, compromise and a nonideological, open-minded approach to legislating. Instead, resolve to seek higher office with a record of collaborative, centrist accomplishment under your belt, which may become the new pathway to higher office by appealing to the growing ranks of independent voters and heretofore disenfranchised Republicans under California’s open primary system. Resolve to be nonideological, pragmatic and

CITY HALL page 17

Welcome to Eskaton Monroe Lodge Life should not only be lived, it should be celebrated. – Osho

At Eskaton Monroe Lodge, we celebrate you! Our focus is on wellness of body, mind and spirit. Here you’ll ﬁnd unique Signature Programs like Smart Sensor technology for enhanced peace of mind, Kids Connection for intergenerational experiences, and powerful Life Enrichment — like Thrill of a Lifetime, music and pet therapies. All this with the practicality of month-to-month rental that includes housekeeping, dining and other convenient services. Come visit us soon!

Eskaton Monroe Lodge Independent Living with Services A California Nonproﬁt Corporation

3225 Freeport Boulevard | Sacramento, CA 95818 916-264-9001

eskaton.org

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Get in your garage Every Time. Opens and closes your door...even when the power is out! U The Battery Backup System ensures your garage door opener continues to work.

WORKS EVEN WHEN THE POWER IS OUT.

Model 8550 Includes:Smart Control Panel 3-Button Premium Remote Control

U Powerful DC motor belt drive system is durable, ultra-quiet and maintenance-free. MyQÂŽ technology enables you to close your garage door or turn the lights on or off using a smart phone or computer from anywhere U Lifetime motor and belt warranty

916-387-8664

Eudy Door Co. Garage Doors & Openers Ë&#x153;

6929 Power Inn Road Sacramento, CA 95828 eudydoor.com Mention this ad & receive a free remote w/installation of a garage door opener.

Your Carriage House Door Professionals

POC JAN n 15

CITY HALL FROM page 14 solution-oriented in your approach to issues. Fifth, stay connected with your constituents and your district by hiring highly effective staffers who can competently and respectfully handle constituent requests for help (Steve Cohn’s office was the gold standard in constituent service) while keeping an open door to voters, neighborhood groups, business folks and others, including those who opposed your election. The end of your campaign was not the end of spending great gobs of face time with voters. It was just the beginning. Spend much more time listening to your constituents than speaking to them. They’ll give you honest feedback on how you’re doing in office, while the tassel-loafered lobbyists of special interests and fawning city staffers will mostly tell you what you want to hear. Resolve to humbly listen to your constituents. Sixth, give your hard-pressed constituents and businesses a break this year from three straight years

of double-digit hikes in water and sewer rates by funding further utility system improvements from major savings in the water meter installation project (i.e., by ending the uber-expensive policy of abandoning fully functional backyard water mains and installing water meters in people’s yards instead of in city sidewalks). Resolve not to raise water and sewer rates this year. Seventh, acknowledge that the greatest problem facing Sacramento today is lagging economic growth resulting in stagnant income growth and continuing high levels of unemployment and underemployment. If we don’t solve our economic problem, we’ll have little success in solving other problems. Resolve to take the issue of improving our business climate very seriously by seeking ways to reduce excessive regulatory burdens and permitting delays while moderating mandates, exactions and utility rates. Eighth and finally, put on your green eyeshade and sharpen up your CITY HALL page 19

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Spreading Joy THIS ‘CHIEF HAPPINESS OFFICER’ BELIEVES WE ALL HAVE BLESSINGS

high. When asked to write down the reasons they were happy, both wrote the same reasons, in the same order. “Everybody in Starbucks was clapping,” he recalls. “I went out to my car and just started processing.” He began asking everyone he met to rate their happiness level and identify what made them happy. Then he approached a stranger in Oakland’s Jack London Square. “I said, ‘Can I ask you a question?’ and he said, ‘No.’ I persisted, and he saw that I wasn’t going to give up, so he let me. On a scale of 1 to 10, he gave me the lowest number I had ever gotten. I asked if I could share a quick story, and he said, ‘No.’ He realized I wasn’t going to let him go, so he nodded. I started talking fast, but toward the end, I saw that he was calming down. I asked if I could share another story. I ended up sharing nine stories with him over the course of 30 minutes.

BY TERRY KAUFMAN LOCAL HEROES

dwin Edebiri has played many roles over the course of his career: pilot, business owner, radio show host. But the title he’s most proud of is his current one: chief happiness Officer. Edebiri is the CHO of the I Am Happy project and its sister organization, the Happy Neighborhood project. As a child growing up in Nigeria, Edebiri competed with his siblings to see who could leave the most food on their plate; their mother rewarded the child who contributed the most toward their next meal. When he came to the United States, Edebiri had accumulated enough college credits from his travels through Europe to earn a degree quickly. He then completed an aeronautical MBA program while piloting planes on the side. He proceeded to build and run a string of businesses, culminating with an Internet business that was sold in 2009, just before the economic bubble popped. Not yet ready to start another business, he hosted a call-in radio show in the Sacramento area. It was an eye-opener. “I realized that a lot of people were struggling with low energy,” he says. “I was in a good place, so I didn’t

POC JAN n 15

“People can be empowered to make decisions about their own happiness.” Edwin Edebiri is the chief happiness officer of the I Am Happy project

understand what they were going through. I saw that people were being affected by the economic meltdown, and through daily meditation I came to the realization that I couldn’t do anything about the big picture, but I could do something on an individual level.”

One day, Edebiri overheard a couple having an argument at a Starbucks. He injected himself into the altercation, asking each to tell him, on a scale of 1 to 10, how happy they were. Surprisingly, their numbers were both relatively

“He reached for my hand and wouldn’t let go. He asked for my name. I said as a rule I don’t give my name, but he said, ‘You had me here for 30 minutes. The least you could do is give me your name.’ I wanted my hand back, so I gave it to him. The next day, he called me to say thank you. I told him that I should be the

How to Choose the Best Preschool for Your Child The Ultimate Guide for Picky Parents Choosing the best preschool for your child can be difficult. It’s normal to have a lot of questions. Will your child be safe? Will she be happy? What will she learn? How do you determine the right program for your child? Download your free toolkit to learn: •

The different types of preschools available in our area – and how to determine which one is right for your child

•

A checklist of questions to ask that help you select the best program

•

3 things to look for when touring a preschool

Download your FREE Toolkit

BergamoSchools.com/Toolkit B E RG A M O M O N T E S S O R I S C H O O L S Celebrating 40 Years - 1975 to 2015 one to thank him, but he stopped me. He said, ‘When you saw me yesterday, I was on my way to commit suicide. I was in so much pain that I wanted to get it over with. After we talked, I went back home and flipped over my suicide note.’ He went from zero reasons to be happy to 29 reasons. They had been suppressed, but after our talk they came back to him. He now had a reason to live.” That chance encounter led to the I Am Happy project, now in 64 cities in 19 countries. Individuals sign up to be “happiness ambassadors” in their communities, spreading happiness through volunteerism and special projects. In Chicago, ambassadors have adopted a convent of retired nuns for the past three years. In India, they’ve adopted orphanages. “Each chapter does something different,” says Edebiri. His goal is to have the I Am Happy project in more than 100 cities and 30 countries by the end of 2015. Edebiri spends a lot of his time talking with middle and high school students about happiness. He has

seen significant declines in gang membership and delinquency as a result. “They see that they have control,” he says. “People can be empowered to make decisions about their own happiness.” An annual scholarship will go to high school seniors chosen by their peers as the happiest at their schools. This year, he launched the Happy Neighborhood project, which brings businesses into the happiness equation. The “Happy Button App” identifies local businesses that have invested in promoting happiness, rewarding them in both financial and intangible ways. The next stage will embrace nonprofits, providing revenue to organizations that often struggle to make ends meet. “The more we share with others, the more we are blessed,” says Edebiri. “We all have blessings.” Go to iamhappyproject.org or happyneighborhoodproject.com to learn more. Download the free Happy Button App at happybuttonapp.com n

Sac / Elk Grove / Davis / Woodland

(916) 865-5380 CITY HALL FROM page 17 No. 9 pencils, as the city budget is approaching a fiscal cliff in the next few years that will cause major disruptions of city services (and cries for more taxes) if the city council fails to rein in rapidly escalating pension costs and retiree health care costs. Today, the city has only a fraction of the $110 million in reserves it had when it dealt with the Great Recession, providing it with almost no cushion to deal with its coming fiscal problems. Eye on Sacramento will be preparing a comprehensive report this year on the city’s exploding costs for retiree health care costs, which will include ways the city can get them under control. Resolve to read it. Twice. As a matter of fact, you might want to post it on your bathroom mirror. Happy New Year to one and all! Craig Powell is a local attorney, businessman, community activist and president of Eye on Sacramento, a civic watchdog and policy group. He can be reached at craig@ eyeonsacramento.org or 718-3030. n

BergamoSchools.com

Beautiful Spring Gardens Begin Now Design | Installation | Maintenance

As a father-daughter team with backgrounds in the nursery business and in garden design, we design gardens that last for years. “We solve problems, renew gardens or create a garden oasis just for you.”

Call 606-6029

or visit TheGardenTutors.com Lic #998295

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Skin Deep DESTINATION AESTHETICS HELPS CLIENTS ACHIEVE A ‘NEW NATURAL’ LOOK

BY JESSICA LASKEY SHOPTALK

hawna Chrisman has been in the business of making patients feel like people for almost two decades, first as an intensive care nurse practitioner and now as the owner of Destination Aesthetics, a medical spa that specializes in noninvasive rejuvenation inside Studio 55 at Pavilions shopping center. “I’m so fulfilled making other people feel beautiful and happy,” Chrisman says. “We take such pride in what we do.” Chrisman and her team specialize in the use of noninvasive procedures such as injectables (dermal fillers or Botox), cosmetic lasers, CoolSculpting (“It literally freezes your fat away,” Chrisman says), chemical peels, Ultherapy (an ultrasound skintightening technique), lash lifts and more to give clients a look that Chrisman calls “the new natural.” “People who come to see us are looking for little to no downtime and a natural outcome,” Chrisman explains. “We’re more conservative with our treatments because we want our patients to look exactly the same as they did before, only more rejuvenated.” Patient satisfaction has always been an important aspect of Chrisman’s career. After attending the nursing program at Sacramento State University, she married her high school sweetheart, Josh, whom she met as a sophomore at El Camino High School. She went on to graduate school at UC San Francisco, where she earned her master’s degree in

POC JAN n 15

Shawna Chrisman, owner of Destination Aesthetics, has been in the business of making patients feel like people for almost two decades

nursing and her nurse practitioner license. During the next 17 years, she worked for Kaiser Permanente, Pulmonary Medicine Associates and Sutter General Hospital, assisting

with the management of intensive care patients—not exactly a stressfree work life. “I decided that I needed something more flexible for family reasons and something that provided

a nonhospital, positive, happy environment,” Chrisman says. The Korea native was adopted from her home country at 8 months old and lived in Minnesota until the age of 7, when her parents moved the family to Carmichael to pursue sunshine and swimming pools. For her career, she decided she needed a different way to be fulfilled as both a medical professional and mom to her two kids, Josiah and Elyse. A medical spa seemed like the way to go. So over the next year, Chrisman traveled all over the country, while still working long hours at the hospital, to earn the myriad certifications that would give her the necessary knowledge to open the practice of her dreams. When it came time to select a location and officially open, however, fate intervened. “In the fall of 2011, my previous medical director had a change of heart while I was looking for a location to start the spa,” Chrisman recalls. “One of my son’s friends happens to be the granddaughter of Dr. David Ferrera, who had a suite in his building that he was looking to fill. “I stopped by the space to check it out, and Dr. Ferrera popped out of his office to ask who I was and what I was looking for. When I explained, he said he might be able to help. Without knowing me, he offered to partner with me and start Destination Aesthetics Inc., and fulfill the role as medical director. He is one very generous and humble man.” Thus, Chrisman’s vision came to fast fruition, first in a suite on American River Drive and now, since 2013, in the Studio 55 Salon Suites in

Pavilions. For the past three years, Chrisman has made it her mission to offer the newest and most innovative med spa procedures on the market, including medical weight loss, and to educate her patients in the process. “I’m constantly traveling, attending seminars and certification programs,” Chrisman says. “Just like medicine, the field is always evolving. Noninvasive techniques especially have gained ground over the past few years, and I’m always looking for new technology to add to our menus to complement our patients and keep us on the cutting edge. “We do a lot of educational seminars because people are often afraid to tread into this area, so we offer live demos where people can see how easy some of the treatments are. We do a side-by-side comparison where we treat one side of the face and not the other so people can see the difference. “The evidence is very impactful. We want them to see the outcomes they’re looking for. Our goal is 100 percent satisfaction.” With the competent and compassionate Chrisman in charge, we wouldn’t expect anything less. Interested in learning more about Destination Aesthetics’ one-stop shop of noninvasive beauty boosters? Check out destinationaesthetics.com or call 844-4913. Destination Aesthetics is at 530 Pavilions Lane.

THE MUSIC MAN “There are few things in life more fulfilling than setting your sights on a distant star, blazing your own trail and making people smile with the quality of your work,” says Dave Lynch, the owner of Guitar Workshop Enterprises since 1996 and all-around cool cat since, well, his birth. (He turned 58 last month.) Lynch has spent the better part of four decades working as a guitar repair technician, professional guitarist and music educator in Sacramento, though he’s been blazing his own trail since long before that. The Texas native studied woodcraft, electrics and welding in high school (“I wanted to work with power

Guitar Workshop owner Dave Lynch

tools”), then brought that hands-on experience to Sacramento in 1976, where he trained with guitar building and repair expert Gary Cooper. Lynch also spent stints at Sacramento City College and the prestigious Berklee College of Music, managed Andy Penn’s Drum & Guitar City for many years, and was two years into being the road rep for St. Louis Music when he decided to try his luck at entrepreneurship. “I was sick of being on the road, so I opened Guitar Workshop,” Lynch recalls. “I put every penny I had into it and was just starting to break even at the three-year mark, when new people bought the building I was in and doubled my rent.” A setback like that could deter even the most determined of businessmen, but not Lynch. “I was sitting on the curb in front of the shop, gazing off into space in anguish, when I noticed that a unit right across the way had opened up,” Lynch says. “I walked over to the Raven Club next door and asked if anyone knew who owned the building.

The owner of the club said he did. I asked him how much he wanted for it and I ended up getting the space. We’ve been here since 1999.” Guitar Workshop is a mecca for all things guitar-related, which is no coincidence considering its owner has been in love with the instrument for much of his life. “I’m a classic obsessive-compulsive about guitar playing,” Lynch says. “I had a plastic guitar in my hands starting at age 6. Now, as a guitar technician, you’re doing major surgery on something you love, and not a lot of people do the level of work we do. “Where do you go to get an instrument repaired and have it come out playing better than ever and looking like nothing ever happened? At Guitar Workshop, we bring an extremely high level of instrument repair, customization, knowledge and education to the community.” Lynch’s passion extends well beyond fixing frets, however. He has invented several tools of his trade that are now patented and mass-produced

as well as the Guitdoorbell, a clever contraption that features a tiny, real guitar affixed over a doorway that strums a chord when the door opens, thanks to a strategically placed pick. “I originally put one up in the shop to know if people came in when I was back in the bathroom or something,” Lynch says. “So many people asked about it that I thought I should get a patent and see what happens. “Well, 10 years and a king’s ransom later, we’ve been featured in the SkyMall magazine, the Hammacher Schlemmer catalogue and on a TV show in Australia. You never know until you try.” That can-do attitude is something Lynch passes on to his students, who flock to the J Street space for lessons from Lynch and his staff of accomplish, talented teachers. “All of us at the shop love to play and teach music,” Lynch says. “I love when I’m teaching a kid and I see that light go on in their eyes. It’s amazing to see them accomplish something

SHOPTALK page 22

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

SHOPTALK FROM page 21

ild u B / ign s e D es c i v Ser For All of Your Kitchen, Bath and Whole-House Remodeling Needs .com

s chen djkit

ork sign W All De ouse. d In-H te le p Com terior ed In ﬁ ti r e C Staff er on n ig s De

nto’s rame ds c a S o ng Ser vi eighborho n t oldes 81 19 since e in-hom e e r f or a D&J Call f tion with lta consu

ense

rs lic acto 4 4 5 9 8 2

contr

they thought they couldn’t. To show them that if you’re patient with yourself, there’s nothing you can’t do. “Being a kid is such a special time in life, and I believe that music and creativity are the keys to education. There’s no better way to learn the art of listening than to play music.” Between repairing beloved instruments, coming up with ingenious inventions, playing gigs as often as he can, teaching aspiring musicians, and continuing to improve his workshop facilities, Lynch certainly has his hands full. But he prefers it that way. “At the end of the day, I hope I’ve made the world a better place because of what I do,” Lynch says, then

chuckles to himself. “So I guess that’s the mission of Guitar Workshop: to save the world.” One guitar at a time. Are you a guitar aficionado? Head to Guitar Workshop Enterprises at 3248 J St. Questions? Call Lynch at 441-6555 or go to guitarworkshoponline.com

CHEERS! When you’re a fourth-generation Sacramentan, it seems only fitting that you name your brewery after the city’s original moniker created by John Sutter in 1839. Dave Gull did just that when he founded New Helvetia Brewing Company two years ago, but the company’s historical roots go even deeper than that.

.257

925 916.

Dave Gull founded New Helvetia Brewing Company two years ago

POC JAN n 15

Our America

The Latino Presence in American Art O N V I E W T H RO U G H J A N 11 Don’t miss your last chance to view works that celebrate Latino communities and their blended cultural traditions. The Crocker is proud to be the only West Coast venue for Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art, featuring nearly 100 works drawn from the collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Emilio Sanchez, Untitled, Bronx Storefront, “La Rumba Supermarket,” late 1980s. Watercolor on paper, 40 x 59 1/2 in. Smithsonian American Art Museum Gift of the Emilio Sanchez Foundation. Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art is organized by the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Generous support for the exhibition has been provided by Altria Group, the Honorable Aida M. Alvarez; Judah Best, The James F. Dicke Family Endowment, Sheila Duignan and Mike Wilkins, Tania and Tom Evans, Friends of the National Museum of the American Latino, The Michael A. and the Honorable Marilyn Logsdon Mennello Endowment, Henry R. Muñoz III, Wells Fargo and Zions Bank. Additional signiﬁcant support was provided by The Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center. Support for Treasures to Go, the museum’s traveling exhibition program, comes from The C.F. Foundation, Atlanta.

216 O Street • Downtown Sacramento 916.808.7000 • crockerartmuseum.org

“I wanted to relaunch the historic Buffalo Brewing Company (under a new name) because it reminded me of a time when Sacramento accomplished big things with far fewer resources,” Gull says. “We seemed to have lost that. For a very long time, Sacramento didn’t seem to be getting much done. There wasn’t a lot of risk-taking or entrepreneurial spirit. But I’ve seen a shift in the attitude lately.” One of the most significant shifts in the Sacramento food and culture landscape has been the rapid expansion of the city’s craft brewery scene, with Gull and others like him leading the charge. “Founding New Helvetia was a way of reclaiming something from our history for Sacramento,” the former commercial real estate developer says. “Our name, our beers, our tasting room décor with its historic maps and images, even our building is historic.” Gull’s inspiration, Buffalo Brewing Company, was established in 1890— Gull’s great-grandfather was friends with the original owners—and it quickly became one of the largest beer

operations west of the Mississippi, with distribution throughout California, Nevada and Hawaii as well as parts of Asia and Central America.

So whether you’re looking to learn about Sacramento’s bygone beers, taste an awardwinning ale or pull on a pint after a long jog, New Helvetia is the place to be. The company managed to survive Prohibition but ceased operations in 1945 when national breweries made it impossible for small, local brands to get the distribution they needed, a problem Gull himself knows all too well.

“Beer is still mostly pretty regional,” Gull explains. “Craft breweries don’t usually push their products far away from home. The logistics are too difficult. So that’s why we’ve started bottling our beer. You can ship bottles farther away than you can move a keg, which means we now have the ability to reach more people in stores and restaurants.” With an eye toward a fruitful future, Gull hopes to not only increase production but to also add a kitchen to his brew house, with his cousin, chef Steve McKay, at the helm. Gull intends to capitalize on what he calls the Broadway “food corridor.” While the plans have been complete for a while, nailing down construction finances and moving the project along have taken longer than Gull anticipated. But the lack of a cooking space hasn’t stopped New Helvetia from becoming a nexus for beer lovers on a neighborhood and even national scale: It recently won a coveted gold medal at the 2014 Great American Beer Festival in the Historical Beer

category, the only Sacramento-area brewery to do so. Also, New Helvetia draws a special kind of foot traffic. “We’re the home of the Sloppy Moose Running Club,” Gull says proudly, “which has turned out to be the greatest thing about our Thursday nights. “When we first started the brewery, we thought about forming a running team so people could meet here and train for races around town wearing gear with our name on it. Along the way, we were approached by a customer who’d been part of a running club like that in Spokane, so we teamed up … and now we sponsor them and promote them. We’re their home.” So whether you’re looking to learn about Sacramento’s bygone beers, taste an award-winning ale or pull on a pint after a long jog, New Helvetia is the place to be. Thirsty? New Helvetia Brewing Company is at 1730 Broadway. For more information, call 469-9889 or go to newhelvetiabrew.com n

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Preserving the Past LOCAL GROUP MEETS QUARTERLY TO DISCUSS URBAN DEVELOPMENT ISSUES

BY STEVE SWINDEL BUILDING OUR FUTURE

n its day, the historic home at 2131 H St. in Midtown was undoubtedly a thing of beauty.

Today, however, the front and

rear doors and a rear window are boarded up with plywood. A balcony is sagging. The lawn is brown, dead long before drought made that fashionable. According to Margaret Buss of Boulevard Park Neighborhood Association, the house has been unoccupied since the mid1980s. The house has history: It was built in 1907 for Aden C. Hart, a Sacramento physician and a founder of Sutter Hospital. It’s one of the largest houses in a neighborhood filled with large houses. The lot on which it sits is easily twice the size of its neighbors’. Lion heads guard the front of the

The Hart house in Midtown

house. Recently, the leonine security was added to with a wrought-iron

In June 2014, the city’s housing and

“The purpose of the group is to

repurposing an old warehouse

fence, surveillance camera and

dangerous buildings staff tagged the

provide a public event where public

building on the R Street corridor into

security system. Someone is spending

home as unsafe. A permit for minor

history and historic preservation

housing and retail space.

money on the house, but not to

repairs was issued in September, but

organizations, neighborhood

maintain it.

the $800 value of the work covered

groups, developers and builders,

Street between 11th and 12th

by the permit is surely inadequate to

and Sacramento city staff can share

streets, will feature parking at the

repair all the problems.

information and updates about

basement level, retail stores on

what they are doing and upcoming

the first floor and 10 to 12 housing

You can only guess at the exterior’s original color scheme. The paint (where there is paint) is so worn and

In August, Buss gave a talk

The six-story building, on R

faded that the color is unrecognizable.

about the house, along with a slide

projects,” says Burg. The group

units on floors 2 through 6. The old

In places, the siding is missing

show, at Sacramento Preservation

focuses on historic preservation issues

warehouse’s concrete framing has

altogether.

Roundtable, a quarterly gathering of

and urban planning and development.

been reinforced with steel for seismic

According to William Burg,

local history and historic preservation

Not all of the roundtable

safety. Additional units will be

president of Sacramento Old

organizations. Meetings are open to

presentations are devoted to

constructed on an empty lot next to

City Association, there used to be

the public and are generally held on

preserving old homes. At one meeting,

the warehouse.

numerous historic houses in similar

the second Saturday of February,

Ali Youssefi with CFY Development

condition. Today, only a few remain.

May, August and November.

described his company’s Warehouse

offer 116 residential units, most

Artist Lofts project. Youssefi is

of them designated as affordable

POC JAN n 15

When completed, the project will

Placement Exam The 3/$&( 72 %(« %(«

CalBRE# 00692245

Christian Brothers High School 4315 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. Sacramento, CA 95820

INSIDE PUBLICATIONS

Saturday, January 17, 2015 8:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.

housing. Qualified artists will be allowed to rent the units for between units will be offered at market rates. CFY expects to complete the project by the end of the year. The project is a partnership of CFY, Holliday Development and Capital Area Development Authority. Another item presented at the August roundtable meeting is a smartphone app that helps you take a walking tour of Sacramento’s historic areas. The Tour Buddy app, called Sac Heritage Walking Tours, is available for Android and iPhone. The app features tours of the Capitol area, the J and K Street corridors and the City Hall area. The app is a digital version of walking tours developed by Sacramento Heritage, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting and preserving Sacramento’s architectural heritage. For more information about Sacramento Preservation Roundtable, go to sacoldcity.org n

Neighborhood Real Estate Sales

$370 and $570 per month. Other

95831 Sales Closed November 2014 737 RIVERCREST DR 6811 WILLOWWOOD WAY 402 ROUNDTREE CT 7716 ROBERTS RIVER WAY 581 LEEWARD WAY 7543 DELTAWIND DR 75 CACHE RIVER CIR 6733 BREAKWATER WAY 423 NASCA WAY 618 RIVERCREST DR 781 HARVEY WAY 371 RIVERTREE WAY 6730 RIVERSIDE BLVD 7664 HOWERTON DR 38 STARLIT CIR 8000 LINDA ISLE LANE LN 7312 IDLE WILD WAY 7503 S LAND PARK DR 7679 EL RITO WAY 19 SAND RIVER CT 1204 SPRUCE TREE CIR 23 SEASIDE CT 6312 OAKRIDGE WAY 7600 DELTAWIND DR 6647 SWENSON WAY 7461 SPICEWOOD DR 45 FARALLON CIR 570 DE MAR DR 6667 WESTMORELAND WAY 85 STARLIT CIR 1408 SAN CLEMENTE WAY

$365,000 $420,000 $100,000 $352,500 $154,000 $249,900 $270,000 $340,000 $360,000 $366,888 $263,000 $385,000 $387,500 $415,000 $385,000 $399,000 $343,000 $375,000 $400,000 $484,000 $251,500 $241,000 $537,000 $224,000 $432,000 $250,000 $300,000 $212,000 $289,000 $420,000 $501,000

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

America The Tutu-ful SACRAMENTO BALLET PLANS A PATRIOTIC PROGRAM FOR MID-JANUARY

By Jessica Laskey RIVER CITY PREVIEWS

hen you think stars and stripes, you might think July, but Sacramento Ballet is bringing some sizzling patriotism to the stage with Inside the Director’s Studio “Made in America” at 6 p.m. on Jan. 16 at the dance troupe’s Midtown studio. Listen in as John Clifford, a protégé of the great George Balanchine, explains the magic behind “Stars and Stripes,” the choreographer’s dazzling love letter to America with music by John Phillip Sousa. The evening will include dance excerpts and rare insider stories that you won’t want to miss. For tickets and more information, call 552-5800 or visit sacballet.org. Sacramento Ballet is located at 1631 K Street.

IN LIVING ‘COLOUR’ You might not remember how to spell Polish artist Zbigniew Kozikowski’s name, but you’ll certainly remember his vibrant art pieces on display from Jan. 8 through Feb. 10 at Arthouse on R Street. The solo exhibition, entitled Colour, will feature Kozikowski’s

POC JAN n 15

Polish artist Zbigniew Kozikowski’s colorful artwork will be on display from Jan. 8 through Feb. 10 at Arthouse on R Stree

brilliant cityscapes and other eyepopping paintings inspired by his love of light and color. “I believe that what we perceive as a visual world is only a phenomenon, repeatedly created by light,” he says. “In light, we find the deepest meaning of existence. Its immateriality is the source of materiality for our senses. My aim is to change it into colored spots so harmonized that they become the materialization of light, called color.” Kozikowski came to the United States in 1993 after earning his

master of fine arts degree from the distinguished Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow; he was one of only 13 students admitted. He and his wife, Barbara, arrived here seeking freedom and artistic success, which Kozikowski has most certainly achieved. The artist’s work will be on display in the Arthouse main gallery, which occupies the former Fuller building next to the Fox & Goose pub, as well as in his open studio during the opening reception from 6 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 10. For more

information, call 212-4988. To see more of Kozikowski’s work, go to kozart.com Arthouse is at 1021 R St.

IN WITH THE NEW If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to take in more art, why not make Crocker Art Museum your first stop in 2015? From Jan. 8 through Feb. 22, the Crocker will present Peace and Hope, LIFE IN THE CITY page 28

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

PREVIEWS FROM page 26 a joint exhibition with A Community for Peace that features the work of children, teens, women and men affected by violence, abuse and trauma. See the healing effects of art for yourself in this inspiring show. To continue your quest for a new year and a new you, check out Art Mix Renewal from 5 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 8. The party will start with an exclusive record release from Be Calm Honcho presented by Crossbill Records, as well as guest DJs, art-making stations, $10 New Look consultations with local fashion gurus and talks by Crossfit experts and healthful cooking demonstrations to help you keep those resolutions. Drinks are under $5 all night—which should ease your interactions during the “mix and mingle” games—and college students receive a $2 discount. The event is free for museum members, $10 for nonmembers. Are you or is someone you love suffering from chronic pain? Perhaps a painting a day will keep the pain away. At least that’s what the Crocker hopes to do with Art Rx from 11 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Jan. 10. Individuals with chronic pain and their families or caregivers are invited to enjoy a special tour of the museum with facilitated discussion to provide a positive experience that could reduce the burden of chronic pain. Advance registration is required, so call 808-1182 or email education@ crockerartmuseum.org Hoping to just chill out to some classic tunes? The Crocker’s Classical Concert has you covered at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 11 with a performance by the Saturday Club, the oldest musical organization in Sacramento. You’re probably already a member of the Crocker, but if you’re also a member of Capital Public Radio, you can get the special reduced tickets price of $6. Interested in the offerings at the Sacramento Japanese Film Festival but don’t know where to start? The festival and the Crocker have joined forces for a special screening of “The Burmese Harp” at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 22. The film responds to the aftermath of World

POC JAN n 15

To see something truly inspiring, be sure to stop by Artists’ Collaborative Gallery in Old Sacramento between Jan. 6 and Feb. 10 to catch its Children’s Art Show in collaboration with the nonprofit organization I Can Do That!

War II much like the ongoing Crocker photography exhibit Provoke Era: It explores the chaos and wreckage left behind in the wake of the war through the eyes of a Japanese army officer who remained in Burma after the surrender. “The Burmese Harp” won the 1956 Academy Award for Best Foreign Film and the 1956 Venice Film Festival San Giorgio Prize. Space is limited, so reserve your tickets early by calling 808-1182. Are you craving an evening of spirit-stirring music? Then make sure you don’t miss Iván Nájera’s Tribute to Los Panchos concert at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 29. As one of the region’s best-loved Latin Jazz artists, Nájera and his award-winning band will pay tribute to Mexico’s famed Los Panchos, an internationally acclaimed Latin “trío romántico” famed for its romantic ballads and boleros, as well as perform some of his own work. If you’re looking for further inspiration, check out the Crocker’s ongoing exhibition Arte Mexicano: Legacy of the Masters before the concert. For tickets and more information on all events and exhibitions, call 8081182 or go to crockerartmuseum.org Crocker Art Museum is at 216 O St.

CAN-DO SPIRIT To see something truly inspiring, be sure to stop by Artists’ Collaborative Gallery in Old Sacramento between Jan. 6 and Feb. 10 to catch its Children’s Art Show in collaboration with the nonprofit organization I Can Do That! I Can Do That! provides arts programming throughout the community to children of all abilities as a member of the international Very Special Arts network. In fact, it’s the local role-model site for VSA California. See the stunning art and meet some of the amazing artists themselves at the Second Saturday reception from 2 to 5 p.m. on Jan. 10. For more information about I Can Do That!, go to icandothat-arts4all. org For more information on Artists’ Collaborative Gallery, go to artcollab. com Artists’ Collaborative Gallery is at 129 K St.

SISTERS OF JERSEY This is a show that’ll have you shouting “Hallelujah!” from your seats: “Nunsense” comes to Sacramento Theatre Company’s Pollock Stage from Jan. 7 through Feb. 14.

The zany musical comedy by Dan Goggin is based on a line of greeting cards that Goggin created in the 1980s featuring nuns offering tart, clerical quips that proved to be wildly popular. Encouraged by the cards’ success, Goggin created a cabaret called “The Nunsense Story,” which opened for a four-day run in Manhattan and instead ran for 38 weeks. Goggin expanded the show into a full, five-woman musical, which opened Off-Broadway in 1985 and has since become the second-longestrunning Off-Broadway musical in history. The plot involves the five kooky Little Sisters of Hoboken, an accidental murder, nuns in the freezer and a variety show to raise funds for funeral costs—you’re probably laughing already! For tickets and more information, call 443-6722 or go to sactheatre.org Sacramento Theatre Company is at 1419 H St.

GOING ONCE … GOING TWICE … Looking for something to spruce up your interior for 2015? Brian Witherell might have what you’re looking for at Witherell’s live estate auction, the first of its kind for the

local auction house, on Saturday, Jan. 10. “We are excited to finally be able to make furniture—including midcentury modern—silver, jewelry, Asian art, paintings and décor from estates in the region available to local residents at very reasonable prices,” Witherell says, whom you might recognize from his appearances as an appraiser on PBS’s “Antiques Roadshow.” The auction starts at 10 a.m. in the warehouse across from Witherell’s showroom and will continue until all items are sold. Get a sneak peek at the merchandise at the same-day preview from 8 to 10 a.m.

For more information, go to witherells.com Witherell’s showroom is at 300 20th St.

ELEMENTARY, MY DEAR WATSON Who is Watson? Trusty sidekick to Sherlock Holmes? Engineer who built Bell’s first telephone? The supercomputer that became the reigning “Jeopardy!” champion? Amiable techno-dweeb looking for love? All of these Watsons come together in the time-bending comedy “The (Curious Case of the) Watson

Ever wondered what artwork created by African adzes, Japanese saws, Native American crook knives and high-powered sandblasters looks like? Check out the solo exhibition by artist Sam Hernández entitled “Sculptures/Paintings,” on display at Alex Bult Gallery from Jan. 8 through Feb. 7, and see for yourself. Hernández and his innovative, free-standing work have been the recipients of numerous honors, including a National Endowment for the Arts Visual Artist Fellowship and a Senior Fulbright Scholar Award. His pieces have been featured in numerous books, exhibition catalogues, museums and galleries around the world. His totemic pieces, primarily sculpted out of wood, are also included in numerous distinguished public collections, including Yale University Art Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Contemporary Museum in Honolulu, Museum of Contemporary Art in Macedonia and New Orleans Museum of Art. Meet the man behind the tools of his trade at the preview reception from 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 8, or at the opening reception from 6 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 10. For more information, call 4765540 or go to alexbultgallery.com Alex Bult Gallery is at 1114 21st St., Suite B.

GO TOWARD THE LIGHT If you’ve always been curious about Tibetan Buddhism, you’ll have a rare opportunity to hear one of the rising

insidepublications.com

POWER TOOLS

VISIT

Intelligence,” playing Jan. 6 through Feb. 7 at B Street Theatre. Part of the company’s cutting-edge B3 series, the show earned playwright Madeleine George a Pulitzer Prize nomination following its world premiere at Playwrights Horizon in 2013. The cautionary tale of love and machines is sure to make you laugh and think. For tickets and more information, call 443-5300 or go to bstreettheatre. org B Street Theatre is at 2711 B St.

stars of its international practice, Jhado Rinpoche, speak about the steps to happiness and enlightenment at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 9 at Kim Quang Temple in the Arden area. Born in 1954 to a nomadic family in Tibet, Jhado Rinpoche was recognized as the incarnation of the abbot of the Jhado Monastery at age 3. After fleeing Tibet in 1959, Rinpoche spent several years studying in India, and in 1964 he took vows as a monk from the Dalai Lama to become fully ordained in 1973. For more than a decade, Rinpoche served as a teacher and abbot of the Dalai Lama’s private monastery, Namgyal, and he’s currently working with the Dalai Lama’s International Kalachakra Network. This fascinating guru will be speaking on Lam Rim, the stages of the path to happiness and enlightenment. Couldn’t we all use a little schooling in how to be happy? The event is free (though donations are welcome) and is presented in partnership by the local Buddhist PREVIEWS page 30

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Another reason to have the right living trust: Your daughter-in-law, Olivia • Your son works two jobs just to keep pace with her spending. • She has earned enough “frequent flyer” miles to circle the globe 18 times. • Grateful department store clerks buy her lunch when she shops. • She somehow turns every family gathering into a discussion of your estate plan. • She has actually measured your house for redecorating when you’re gone. What if your estate ended up in her control? Call me for a free consultation and learn how you can plan for the “Olivia” in your life. Or visit www.wyattlegal.com.

law office of brian d.wyatt ,PC

trusts & estates probate special needs planning

3406 American River Drive Suite B Sacramento, CA 95864 273-9040

PREVIEWS FROM page 29 nonprofit Lion’s Road Dharma Center and the local Mongolian Buddhist temple Zanabazar Dharma Center. For more information, go to lionsroaddharmacenter.org Kim Quang Temple is at 3119 Alta Arden Expressway.

COUCH SURFING Have you ever been wandering through an art gallery and wished there was somewhere to sit? Couchbleachers, a new exhibition at Verge Center for the Arts from Jan. 10 through March 22, is your wish fulfilled. The interactive exhibit by Los Angeles-based visual and performing artist Nate Page is a clever artistic examination of seating as both art and functional object. Visitors will be able to not only view the various seating arrangements as sculpture, but, Page hopes, “they’ll also be able

to touch it, move through it and climb on it.” Throughout the run of the exhibition, Verge will also facilitate a series of community dialogues, events and activities with the goal of generating a crowd-sourced history of contemporary art in the Sacramento region—a result of their recent merger with the Center for Contemporary Art Sacramento. Don’t miss the opening reception from 6 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 10. For more information and a complete list of events, go to vergeart. com or call 448-2985. Verge Center for the Arts is at 625 S Street. Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Please email items for consideration by the first of the month, at least one month in advance of the event. n

You’ll have a rare opportunity to hear one of the rising stars of its international practice, Jhado Rinpoche, speak about the steps to happiness and enlightenment

POC JAN n 15

INSIDE

OUT CONTRIBUTED BY STEVE HARRIMAN

City of Sacramento Veteran’s Day Parade Monday, Nov. 10

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Rehab Addicts THIS LAND PARK COUPLE EMBARKED ON A MULTIPHASE REMODELING PLAN BY JULIE FOSTER HOME INSIGHT

im and Kim Dobrinski are selfproclaimed rehab addicts. But when they bought their 1930s Land Park home in 2011, they took their time before launching into a remodel of the 2,800-square-foot house. “We lived in it for a little while beginning with cosmetic work

POC JAN n 15

“It’s an old-fashioned neighborhood where we can walk, visit local eateries and enjoy the park. We know our neighbors and never hesitate to borrow a cup of sugar. What’s not to love about Land Park!”

in the basement so we would have a sanctuary to go to during construction,” Jim says. While the couple spruced up the basement’s existing bathroom and laundry room, they waited for approval of their remodeling plans. Today, a large new window floods the basement with natural light, making the yellow walls even sunnier. “You

can come down here during the day and you don’t even need to turn on any lights,” Jim says. Next, they rebuilt the garage. Says Jim, “We spent a lot of time deciding on the look since it is visible from the living room.” A sleek commercial aluminum roll-up garage door set the tone. Since the home’s exterior doors were in bad shape, the couple used the same commercial style for the replacement doors, visually tying the two structures together. Once the garage was complete, Jim, an electrical contractor for 20 years and a licensed contractor since 2002, had the staging area he needed for the house remodel. A stunning welded stainless steel and cable staircase inside the front door replaced the very traditional “Father Knows Best” stair railing. The Dobrinskis used Brazilian cherry for the handrails, treads and HOME page 34

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

HOME FROM page 33 risers. Though the staircase took a lot of time to construct, it was well worth

fireplace surround, made of ribbed

the effort.

wood, was painted a soft gray. A new

“The railings proved to be challenging to the metal fabricator (Eduardo Lopez of Quality Steel

and crushed fire glass. The Dobrinskis kept the pedestal sink in the downstairs powder room

involved and since it was a one-piece

but replaced the green-and-white

assembly,” Jim says.

checkered tiles with more neutral tile

Rather than replace the original

and stonework. The home’s new decorative accents

the house, the pair refreshed them.

and furniture are colorful and eye-

“There were a gazillion coats of

catching. After locating a railroad-

paint on them, which we had to strip

mining cart in Reno, Kim cut it down

off. It took a lot of time,” Jim says.

and topped it with a sheet of glass to

The couple salvaged three similar

create a one-of-a-kind coffee table for

windows from a neighborhood home

the living room.

undergoing a redo and installed them as well.

POC JAN n 15

gas fireplace sparkles with tempered

Fabricators) because of all the angles

divided-light windows throughout

In the living room, the original

“I am the Craigslist queen,” she explains. “I love to find old things and

He installed artificial turf

“You will open up spaces and find

interspersed with large concrete

something you didn’t plan on at all,”

steppingstones. The backyard is

she says.

divided into three distinct outdoor

Jim always checks the

rooms that delight the senses.

dependability of the electrical and

Just off the living room, a covered

plumbing systems.

porch with a TV, barbecue grill,

“I just feel more comfortable

ceiling fan and seating is the

knowing that the electrical and

perfect place for friends and

plumbing will hold up,” he says.

family to gather. A conversation pit offers comfy seating around a gas fireplace. Nearby is a gurgling

They love their new home and praise its location. “It’s an old-fashioned neighborhood

fountain made from a grinding

where we can walk, visit local eateries

stone that once belonged to Kim’s

and enjoy the park,” Jim says. “We

repurpose them, but the hunt is the

added two new balconies, one at the

uncle. Beyond that is the outdoor

know our neighbors and never

most fun.”

home’s front, the other off the master

dining room.

hesitate to borrow a cup of sugar.

Upstairs, the couple converted

bedroom overlooking the magazine-

Kim advises those considering

two existing balconies into bedrooms

cover-worthy backyard, which needed

remodeling an older home to

and turned the original master

a total overhaul.

double the time they think it will

bedroom into a walk-in closet. The

“Once the inside of the house was

resulting reconfiguration netted

livable, we started putting together

them an additional bedroom, giving

the backyard, which took about a year

the house four bedrooms. The couple

to complete,” Jim says.

take as well as the amount of money it might cost.

What’s not to love about Land Park!” If you know of a home you think should be featured in Inside Publications, contact Julie Foster at foster.julie91@yahoo.com n

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Let It Snow LAND PARK SKI SHOP THRIVES DESPITE THE FICKLE WEATHER

manufacturer in the industry and explained things. They understood what was happening. We usually plan inventories a year in advance. No longer. Now we have to be ready to receive FedEx inventory on a 48-hour basis, once the storms start coming.” Proffit, a former schoolteacher, has been skiing for 60 years, going back to the days when an alpine skier

BY R.E. GRASWICH

could expect to hang onto rope tows to

SPORTS AUTHORITY

reach the highest peaks. As a retailer, he has enjoyed fine winters—a few

or concrete evidence that

years ago, he had two seasons in one,

Land Park Ski & Sports

thanks to a late batch of storms—and

knows how to adapt and

he has endured droughts, but none

endure, consider the building

like the parched winter of 2013-14.

that contains the alpine ski shop

The fickle weather that hovers like

on Freeport Boulevard and 16th

a constant shadow over his business

Avenue, just down the street from

has left Proffit with an impressively

City College.

relaxed persona. As he sits in one

Framed by a steeply pitched

of the movie-theater chairs where

wooden A-frame roof and tall,

customers try on boots, he succinctly

triangular windows, the place looks

explains why the typical complaints of

like a cozy Squaw Valley chalet.

a small-business owner—encroaching

Inside, open rafters present display

power centers, big-box stores and

space for various old alpine skis, long

cutthroat pricing—hardly cause a

and skinny ones, made from hickory

ripple at Land Park Ski & Sports.

and Bakelite, the sort of equipment

“Our business is all about niches,”

that would terrify a modern skier.

he says. “We create niches. And we

Yet the building’s true provenance

give service. We provide the kind of

has zero connection with alpine

service that chains simply can’t or

skiing. It was a Woody’s hamburger

won’t provide. We bring the entire

joint, more George Foreman than

family together by selling skis for

Jean-Claude Killy.

beginners with a junior trade-in

Where burgers and fries once sizzled, skis and snowboards are now

program, and we sell snowboards Land Park Ski owner Bill Proffit

tuned and waxed. Somehow, Land

so families can ski and snowboard together. We have people coming into

Park Ski & Sports manages to make

attempts to sell similar merchandise.

the space work like a purpose-built

Land Park Ski & Sports doesn’t worry

seen in 35 years in this business,”

those are the same people who first

showroom in Zermatt, Switzerland.

much about the competition. The real

says Bill Proffit, the shop’s owner.

came in when they were children with

source of worry is far more eternal:

“With California in a drought, people

their parents.”

the whim and fury of nature.

weren’t buying ski equipment. I went

Adaptation and endurance are essential in the alpine ski equipment business, and not just because a few chain stores make half-hearted

POC JAN n 15

“Last winter was the worst I’d ever

to the credit departments of every

the store with their children, and

SPORTS page 39

Who Loves Their Garage Door Guy?

Our clients do.

Try us! You’ll like us! Garage Door Center Sacramento is owned and operated by local expert Russ Fuller. Why go to a big box store when you can receive superior service from someone with 31 years experience? Russ will not only walk you through your options, he is also the one that puts on the tool belt to get the job done right. He treats his customers like family.

New Year Special:

GARAGE

DOOR CENTER Sacramento

FREE Key Pad with installation of any Garage Door Opener (expires 1/31/15)

“A

mazing service!!! Russ came to our rescue on a Saturday night to Àx our stuck open garage door. He had it Àxed within 5 minutes (Amazing!) and then did a tune up on all the chains, springs, latches, and motor guide all within an hour. Never had our garage door work so well! He was very nice and explained the whole thing in process. Would deÀnitely recommend and will use again (although hopefully I’m smart enough to not accidently put stuff in the way of the track door next time). Thank you!” - Will S. Sacramento

Call 452-5802 Lic #764789

Sales | Service | Install

31 yrs experience IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Get Fit EXTRA POUNDS MAKE GARDEN CHORES MORE WORK, LESS FUN

BY ANITA CLEVENGER

GARDEN JABBER

re you making any New Year’s resolutions this year? How about deciding to get in better shape so that you can garden more easily? Many of us resolve, year after year, to lose weight for health or to improve our appearance. But we may not be aware just how much the extra pounds limit our ability to do the things that we love. Can you readily bend over to pull a weed or plant a seed? Can you carry a bag of mulch or dig a hole? If you get down on the ground, can you get back up without a struggle? If you can’t do these things or other activities as well as you like, you may be able to improve. You can’t get younger, but it’s possible to feel better and become fitter, stronger and healthier.

Gardening can help you get or stay fit. Gardening can help you get or stay fit. Spreading mulch, digging, lifting and raking are great exercise. Every minute on our feet is good for us. Our

POC JAN n 15

Writer Anita Clevenger enjoys a hike

bodies are meant to move. Studies show that the more we sit, the shorter our lives. We are encouraged to take 10,000 steps a day. It’s more fun to do them during your favorite activities rather than just trudging around the block. I’ve always gardened and been fairly active, but sometimes you need to do more. Four years ago, my physical condition was deteriorating. Forty-five extra pounds were in my way. I tried not to get down because it was hard to get back up. Long garden gauntlets, essential to a rose lover, were embarrassingly tight over my beefy arms. I love to hike, but it was a challenge just to walk around the Sacramento Historic City Cemetery’s rose garden where I volunteer. My left hip developed painful bursitis,

both feet hurt and my knees were so stiff that it was hard to go downstairs. My blood pressure crept higher. Then, alarmingly, I was diagnosed as prediabetic. The number on the scale didn’t motivate me, but setting some tangible goals did. I vowed to lower my fasting glucose to a normal level (under 100) and to hike up Nevada’s Mt. Rose, a 10,778-foot peak that overlooks Lake Tahoe. I read about diet and exercise, changing my habits a little at a time. I ate many more vegetables and fruits and cut out most fried, fatty or sweet food. I went to the gym five days a week and bicycled on errands around town. The weight came off gradually. I was 25 pounds lighter when my husband, son and I

reached Mt. Rose’s summit in July 2012. Since then, I’ve lost another 15 pounds, ascended a few more mountains and continue to eat well and work out. My blood sugar and blood pressure are normal, and I feel the best that I have in more than a decade. The bursitis is gone and my knees are surprisingly flexible and pain-free. Five extra pounds still cling to my short, stocky frame. I’d like to lose them, but my doctor says it’s not necessary. In fact, he congratulated me and shook my hand during my last appointment. It’s not possible to heal damaged joints, but you can lessen pain and increase mobility just by reducing the weight that you carry. Studies show that even a five-pound loss can

RUNNING ... WALKING ... CROSS TRAINING ... YOGA

Sacfit

The FUN running and walking club Over the past 10 years, we have successfully trained over 5,000 people – from couch potato to experienced athletes and everyone in between.

JOIN US FOR OUR 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY!

So come on out and make new friends, get fit for summer, fulfill that New Year’s resolution, and have fun along the way! Our next 16-week session begins Saturday, January 3, 2015 at 8:30 a.m. We meet at the Rio Americano High School gym.

Register online right now at Sacfit.com Register in person on January, 3rd , 10th, and 17th Questions? Call us at (916) SACFIT1 (722-3481) make your knees and hips feel better. Exercise increases joint mobility, strengthens muscles and keeps bones strong. Flexibility and balance improve, too, if you work at it. In the garden, I no longer hesitate to get down on the ground. I do, however, cushion my knees. Knees aren’t meant to bear weight, after all. Some people are able to work using a kneeling pad, but try wearing kneepads if you tend to move around.

If you decide to improve your fitness or lose some weight this year, be kind to yourself and take it slowly. If you decide to improve your fitness or lose some weight this year, be kind to yourself and take it slowly. Don’t hurt yourself in a new exercise regimen. Pounds that come

off too quickly tend to return. If your weight gets stuck at a plateau, change something that you are doing, but don’t give up. At some point, you’ll find that it’s pleasurable to eat nutritiously and exercise regularly. I’m addicted to the taste and crunch of fresh produce, whether plucked from my garden or found at the farmers market. I look forward to the invigoration of water and dance aerobic classes. Most pleasurable of all is the ability to garden or walk for hours without pain or premature fatigue. Many small changes can lead to big results in how you feel. Want to get down and dig in the dirt this year or climb a mountain? Start now to make it easier and more fun to do. Anita Clevenger is a Sacramento County UC Master Gardener. For answers to gardening questions, call 875-6913, go to ucanr.edu/sites/sacmg or attend the Master Gardeners’ workshop at Fair Oaks Horticulture Center on Saturday, Jan. 17, from 9 a.m. to noon. The center is at 11549 Fair Oaks Blvd. n

SPORTS FROM page 36 Land Park Ski & Sports reciprocates and reflects the community’s loyalty. Proffit has stuck with South Sacramento and its ever-changing stretch of Freeport Boulevard through good and bad. The ski shop began at the southwestern arm of Freeport and Sutterville, then expanded into the cursed old Crossroads shopping center when Corti Brothers was there. When the legendary wine merchant and specialty grocer left Freeport, Proffit stayed, moving up the street to the hamburger joint in 1994. The early 1990s were a remarkable time for the ski industry. New ski designs, some of them inspired by the acrobatic expectations of snowboarding, made the classic alpine sport more accessible and affordable for more people. Suddenly, a skier with generously shaped skis could be also be generously shaped, more George Foreman than Jean-Claude Killy, and still have fun at Squaw or Heavenly or Homewood or Northstar.

“The industry hadn’t done much to change the shape of skis for something like 100 years,” Proffit says, exaggerating only a little. “A great skier could ski on fence boards, but most people couldn’t. Then, around the mid-’90s, the designers and manufacturers suddenly figured out they could make it easier for people to ski and turn with some pretty simple changes, basically with deeper sidecuts.” Today, alpine ski equipment is better than ever. And in recent years, Lake Tahoe-area resorts have begun to spruce up, with new ownership groups investing heavily in lodges, hotels, lifts and snowmaking machinery. The ability to make snow is a huge plus for skiers and retailers who cater to them. “Lift tickets are obviously more expensive these days, but with new amenities, the experience is far better than it used to be,” Proffit says. “All we need is a good long winter.” R.E. Graswich can be reached at reg@graswich.com n

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

One Good Reason SOME DAYS IT’S HARD TO GET OUT OF BED

“Second,” she says in a pious whisper, “God wants you to go to church.”

present and in control?”

besides yourself.”

It’s amazing how self-centered

“OK, God,” I prayed. “Guide me to

one becomes under a warm down

someone I can support through their

“Finally,” she lets loose with the

comforter on a cold morning. It’s

troubled day. Take me beside those

voice of a drill sergeant, “you’re

amazing how those sheets can envelop

who are feeling alone.”

the pastor, and the congregation is

one’s world.

As a hospital chaplain, I can relate

SPIRIT MATTERS

ask me to guide you to someone

No effect.

expecting a sermon!”

BY NORRIS BURKES

to assure their families that You are

As my prayer took shape, the echo

The truth is that my world had

of my words was enough to help me

already become pretty enveloping. As

hear the message I needed to reaffirm.

sometimes. It happened just last

of late, I had become an undercover

Namely, “The best way out of yourself

month as I lay in bed recalling several

worrier. Nothing seemed good

is through someone else.”

patients I had visited the previous

enough: not my writing, not my house

That is to say, God works best

week.

next to the barking dogs, not my kids,

on our problems when we show a

not even the cafeteria food.

willingness to become the process of

I thought about the nice aybe you’ve heard the

grandmother diagnosed with a painful

old joke about a man who

bone cancer. Across the hall from her

sang several choruses of “me, my,

resisted his wife’s urging

was a mother who’d inexplicably died

mine, me.”

to get out of bed for Sunday church

before her 12-year-old daughter could

Then I heard from God.

greeted my second-grade-teacher wife

services.

come for a visit. Then I thought of the

Not in the way televangelists hear

with a kiss. “Time to get up, sweetie.”

“Give me three good reasons I should get out of this warm bed,” he demands.

healing for another. At that point, I felt a renewed awakening. So I rolled over and

family of the college student who’d

from God; I’ve never heard God tell

mysteriously drowned alone in a pool.

me to build a television network or a

said as she turned to hit the snooze

They were all imprinted in my

prayer tower, but I do experience a

button one more time.

guiding presence from time to time.

“First,” she says, arms folded, “I’m

mind as I lay motionless, suffering

your wife, and you should respect my

from what felt like a very cluttered

wishes.”

soul. Like the pastor in the joke, I asked

He doesn’t move.

It had become all about me as I

God for one good reason I should go to work: “What do I have to offer these patients today? And who am I

I sensed God telling me: “No wonder you feel inadequate. Guess what? You are inadequate. However, I’m not.” “Now,” said this voice or presence,

“Give me three good reasons,” she

Norris Burkes is a chaplain, syndicated columnist, national speaker and author of the book “No Small Miracles.” He can be reached at ask@TheChaplain.net n

“shake yourself out of this funk and

For your Real Estate Needs…Select a Scharosch Greenhaven Residents since 1975 REALTORS over 30 years – Expect Outstanding Service ®

Jerry Scharosch

916 719-5122 jscharosch@cbnorcal.com www.topseller-sacramento.com CaBRE# 00330532

Cathy Scharosch

916 801-9613 cscharosch@cbnorcal.com www.CathyScharosch4Homes.com CaBRE # 00586371 ©2014 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC, All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker is a registered trademark licensed to Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC . An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing opportunity. Each Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Ofﬁce is owned by a Subsidiary of NRT LLC CaBRE# 01908304

POC JAN n 15

• Drought Tolerant Landscapes • Consultations • Sprinklers & Drainage

• • • •

Exterior Lighting Pruning Plantings & Sod Full Landscaping

916-648-8455

Cont. Lic. #874165

Neighborhood References • Since 1984

How To Rehydrate WHEN EXERCISING, SHOULD YOU QUAFF A SPORTS DRINK OR WATER?

BY DR. AMY ROGERS SCIENCE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD

t fitness clubs around the region, new faces are turning up as people resolve to improve their health in the New Year. They’ll find a plethora of choices. Within the Arden Arcade area, clubs offer dance fitness (Latin-inspired Zumba and Cardio Dance at California Family Fitness), Les Mills programs (BodyAttack and BodyPump at Del Norte), cycling and power yoga (Arden Hills), and even Spiderman moves on ropes (Bodyweb at Crunch Gym). While sweating and panting through a group exercise class, participants are likely to get thirsty. During exertion, our bodies lose water. We exhale humid air in our breath, and we sweat to control our body temperature. To prevent dehydration, the lost water must be replaced by drinking. By drinking what? Water or a sports drink? Many people nowadays are choosing commercial sports drinks over old-fashioned water. Beyond marketing, the logic is this. Fluid lost through sweat isn’t pure water. It contains salt. Because both water and

salt leave the body in sweat, it makes sense that a drink that contains both is the best choice to replenish them. But is a sports drink really superior to water for hydration? Sports drinks contain electrolytes. This is a fancy word for dissolved salts. When a grain of table salt (sodium chloride) enters water, it falls apart into separate atoms of sodium and chloride. The sodium and chloride

become ions. That is, they carry an electrical charge (sodium positive, chloride negative). Because these ions are charged particles in water, they can carry an electric current. Hence the term electrolytes. The electrolytes sodium, potassium and chloride, along with calcium, magnesium and others in smaller amounts, are essential for life. Human blood is salty, and the fluid

inside cells is loaded with electrolytes. In the body, electrolytes are necessary for fluid balance, muscle contraction, nerve impulses, heartbeats, transporting chemicals into and out of cells, and much more. Regulating the amount of these ions in the blood is the job of the kidneys, which control how much water and electrolytes are dumped in urine and how much are retained. Electrolytes lost through sweat are replaced in the diet. As anyone who is trying to limit sodium intake can testify, salt is abundant in the foods we eat. After exercise, normal food plus plenty of tap water will replenish losses without the need for a special rehydrating beverage. For example, Gatorade is a solution of sodium, potassium and phosphate salts with sugar, food coloring and artificial flavors added. A 12-ounce bottle contains 160 milligrams of sodium. That’s about the amount of sodium in an equal volume of milk, or a cup of raisin bran cereal, or maybe 10 dry-roasted peanuts. Twelve ounces of Gatorade provides 45 milligrams of potassium. An average banana packs more than 420 milligrams. So after a workout, water plus a snack is just as good—or better—than Gatorade for replacing electrolytes. Is there any reason to consume a sports drink during exercise? Yes, but only during vigorous, prolonged activity. As a general guideline, sports drinks have no advantage over plain water during the first hour of exercise. As long as you’re drinking water and have healthy kidneys, your body can manage quite a bit of sodium loss. SCIENCE page 43

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Music in Her Soul LOCAL PROMOTER STRIVES TO CREATE COMMUNITY THROUGH SONG

BY DEB BELT ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

hen a singer like New York’s Catherine Russell comes to town, it’s a pretty sure bet who arranged the performance. Swell Productions is the quiet powerhouse bringing a vast world of music to Sacramento. From artists like Russell to piano phenomenon Marcia Ball to sacred steel players like The Campbell Brothers, Swell Productions rocks River City. “Remarkable music. Live” is Swell’s motto, and business partners Mindy Giles and Steve Nikkel draw upon deep experience in the music industry to land top acts in local venues. “The music business is a small world,” Giles says. “It’s a lot about keeping relationships alive.” Giles has established a treasure trove of relationships over the years through her work with labels such as Alligator in Chicago, Black Top in New Orleans and Tower Records distributor Bayside Entertainment. Giles has connected with music as long as she can remember. She was the kid playing records for the play in the neighbor’s garage in her hometown of Columbus, Ind. “I have detailed memories of making posters and tickets and picking the records,” she recalls. “It has always been a consistent thing in my life.” She listened hard to the music played by her parents and older brother, including Bobby Charles, Fats Domino and Lloyd Price. As soon as she was old enough, Giles landed a job at a local record store. It was 1969; she made about $1.50 an hour. When she went off to college

POC JAN n 15

Mindy Giles

in Bloomington, she found work at Discount Records, a “deep catalog” store where she could really dig into the music. When she was offered an assistant manager position in Chicago at age 19, Giles quit college and hightailed it to the Windy City.

She remembers getting her first free tickets to a show, which turned out to be Muddy Waters and Friends and included, in part, Dr. John, Johnny Winter and Paul Butterfield. “In one fell swoop, I saw the fathers, mothers and sons of the blues,” she

says. “It was like Chicago just said, ‘Soak this up.’” She eventually returned to Bloomington to finish her degree in psychology and journalism. After a stint in film school, Giles was hired by PolyGram Records just in time to get swept up in “Saturday Night Fever,” which turned the recording industry on its ear. “Sales figures exploded,” she says. Then it happened again with “Grease.” After a year and a half of watching decision making at PolyGram that was centered in New York, Giles grew frustrated. “I was hearing young acts like Tom Petty and Graham Parker, but there was no interest in recording them,” she says. Deciding to find a situation closer to the artists, Giles began meeting with a group of independent record label owners. The sole woman in the group, she learned more about blues, folk and jazz and found her comfort zone with “the creative, feisty and underdog” small labels. In 1978, she answered a classified ad for someone to pour long hours, blood, sweat and tears into a blues label. “I knew it was Bruce Iglauer at Alligator,” she says. “The ad said ‘no phone calls.’ I called him.” Iglauer hired her to book all of Alligator’s artists in North America. Working in an upstairs office in Iglauer’s house and sharing a plywood desk, Giles booked Koko Taylor, Albert Collins, Lonnie Brooks, Johnny Winter and Professor Longhair. She threw record release parties, attended national booking conventions and discovered a young musician named Stevie Ray Vaughan, whom Iglauer did not want to sign. “I was crushed,” Giles says. “And I had to tell Stevie.”

Giles was once again out of work and once again took a leap of faith. In 2004, she started Swell Productions with Nikkel, a former Tower marketing manager. “First thing, I went straight to the executive director of Sierra 2 Center for the Arts to talk about upgrading the 24th Street Theater for live music,” she says. A fundraiser soon ensued. Using 24th Street Theater and other venues, Swell Productions has presented lap steel wizards, upstart trombone

For more information, go to swellproductions.com n

JANUARY AT ELLA BEST HAPPY HOUR IN TOWN M O N DAY – F R I DAY r 3 P M TO 6 P M $5 DRINK SPECIALS $5 BAR BITES

CONVENIENT VALET PARKING AVAILABLE

DINE DOWNTOWN WEEK JA N UA RY 1 5 - 2 4 $31 THREE-COURSE V E G E TA R I A N D I N N E R M E N U

VEGAN MENU OPTIONS AVAILABLE SUPPLEMENTAL WINE PAIRINGS AVAILABLE (PRICE EXCLUSIVE OF TAX AND GRATUITY)

BACON FEST WEEK JA N UA RY 1 9 - 2 5 LUNCH , HAPPY HOUR & C O C K TA I L S P E C I A L S

. 675((7 '2:172:1 6$&5$0(172 WWW.ELLA DINING ROOM AND BAR.COM SCIENCE FROM page 41

insidepublications.com

Giles says we are “hardwired” to respond to music. “It’s something elemental. The voice is the most human thing we relate to,” she explains. “You see it in kids. They are the always the ones right up by the stage dancing around. As we get older, we slip away from that nature.”

players, folk legends and renowned songwriters while also promoting local and regional musicians including Jackie Greene, Rowdy Kate, Jazz Gitan and Ricky Berger. Swell orchestrated the Delta-toDelta sister-city concert for Hurricane Katrina relief in 2005, and the second and third annual In The Flow festival of jazz and improvisational music. This year, Giles fully programmed the annual Iselton Cajun and Blues Festival. Tapping into the headliners at New Orleans’ legendary Jazz & Heritage Festival, she orchestrated a competitive festival in our own delta. About her eternal quest to bring live music to town, Giles says we are “hardwired” to respond to music. “It’s something elemental. The voice is the most human thing we relate to,” she explains. “You see it in kids. They are the always the ones right up by the stage dancing around. As we get older, we slip away from that nature.”

VISIT

Deciding it was time to move on, Giles left Alligator and went to work for Rounder, another independent label and distributor. Specializing in marketing for a few smaller labels distributed by Rounder, including New Orleans’ Black Top Records, she organized the Black Top Blues-ARama train tour from New Orleans to Chicago in 1994. When Black Top began litigation with Rounder, Giles found herself out of work and moved to Sacramento in 1997 to become marketing director for Tower Records’ Bayside Entertainment Distribution. However, in a few years, Tower began to crumble due to the Internet, larger chain stores and a depressed world economy, and Bayside was bought by another distribution company.

Even among marathon runners, hyponatremia (the condition of having too little salt in the blood) is rare. If you’re doing one group class at the gym, water is all you need, and you can avoid the extra calories found in sports drinks. For athletes who are going harder and longer, or who are exercising in hot, dry conditions that promote a lot of sweating, sports drinks can be useful. In addition to replacing electrolytes (salt), sports drinks include sugar (carbohydrate) in the mix. Sugar water gives a jolt of easily absorbed energy. As a bonus, sugar also helps with hydration. One important transport protein located in the lining of the small intestine only absorbs salt when sugar is present. The protein systematically grabs one glucose molecule and one sodium ion from the gut and moves both of them simultaneously into the circulation. Water follows along. Thus, adding sugar to an electrolyte

drink helps the body to absorb salt and water. The sugar benefit can be overdone. If the concentration of sugar in a drink is more than about 8 percent, it slows the rate at which fluid leaves the stomach. This impairs rehydration. So high-sugar beverages like soft drinks and fruit juices are not a good choice for hydration during a workout. (Plus, they have few electrolytes.) The most important part of staying hydrated during exercise is the “hydra” part: water. Whether you choose to fill your bottle at the tap for free or pay several dollars for a colorful, brand name sugar-salt solution at the store, keep drinking to stay in peak form. Amy Rogers is a novelist, scientist, and educator. Contact her at amy@ sciencethrillers.com or learn more at her website, ScienceThrillers.com n

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Start the Day Right BREAKFAST SPECIALIST BACON & BUTTER RELOCATES TO TAHOE PARK

BY GREG SABIN RESTAURANT INSIDER

f breakfast is the most important meal of the day, then choosing the right place to eat breakfast can be the most important food decision of your day. A day can be ruined by crumbly pancakes, shattered by soggy waffles, obliterated by overdone eggs. Conversely, a fine plate of biscuits and gravy can brighten up the whole day and make the sun shine that much brighter. So, if you’re wondering where to breakfast, turn your gaze to daybreak standout Bacon & Butter. Opened in 2012 in Midtown, the breakfast eatery recently relocated to Tahoe Park in a larger, more inviting space. Unlike its somewhat awkward Midtown location on 21st Street (restaurant by day, nightclub by night), the new Bacon & Butter feels warm and casual. Dressed up with light colors and chalkboards and centered on a substantial L-shaped counter, the space is open and bright, lending itself to a lovely morning meal. The first thing you might notice on arriving is the line out the door. Whether it’s 11 a.m. on a Thursday or 8 a.m. on a Saturday, you’re likely to wait anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour for a table. The folks of Tahoe Park and surrounding neighborhoods are eating up the new businesses that have opened in just the past year, including B&B and Public House Theater, a movie theater and bar. If you’ve got time for the wait, then you’ll most likely be rewarded with a strong cup of Old Soul coffee

POC JAN n 15

Start the day with a plate of biscuits and bacon gravy from Bacon & Butter at Broadway and 59th Street

or a morning eye-opener. (My favorite is the Ciderosa, a mixture of hard cider and orange juice.) The menu is compact but wide ranging. Nothing will jump out as particularly adventurous or outside your comfort zone. This is America, after all, and this is breakfast we’re talking about. On the lighter side, you can’t miss with the housemade granola ($7.50). My mother, who fancies herself a granola aficionado, claims it’s the best in town. Rich and sweet, crunchy and fruity, it goes way beyond the handful

of trail mix you’ve come to expect when it comes to granola. If you’re not in the mood for a full plate of gut-busting breakfast fun, B&B’s rotating selection of freshly baked breads and pastries might be just the thing to get your morning started. The cupcakes are amazing, the best I’ve had in memory. For the holidays, the eggnog cupcake was a particularly incredible bite, topped with cream cheese frosting and filled with eggnog custard. Also, the cookies are top-notch. The apple and bacon fritter, despite being the

best-sounding thing I’ve ever heard of, is a bit of a letdown, too doughy and dense. But let’s face it. You didn’t wait in line for an hour so that you could eat light. Dig into a stack of flapjacks ($9), solid but not leaden, sweet and satisfying. Plain will do, but do yourself a favor and order the Meyer lemon and poppy seed version ($13). Just take note that you’ll need to split them between three people if

RESTAURANT page 46

HAVE “INSIDE,” WILL TRAVEL 1. Bill and Linda Sweeney along with Linda’s son, Kevin Roberts, his wife, Emilia, and children, Kian and Elyse, on safari at Mfuwe Lodge in Zambia, Africa 2. Rob and Cynthia Boriskin participated in a 5-day Cowboy Academy at V6 Ranch in Parkﬁeld, California 3. Bill Pieper and Cathy Holden visited Alcobaca Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in Alcobaca, Portugal 4. Jack Burkhardt at Burnt Cedar Beach on Lake Tahoe in Incline Village, Nevada 5. Emily & Jacob Brezinski taking in the sun at Napili Kai in Maui, Hawaii 6. Remy Garrigan with her grandparents, Lynn & Wayne Stokes, celebrating her 10th birthday in Nashville, Tennessee

Take a picture with Inside Publications and e-mail a high-resolution copy to travel@insidepublications.com. Due to volume of submissions, we cannot guarantee all photos will be printed or posted. Can’t get enough of Have Inside, Will Travel? Find more photos on Instagram: InsidePublications

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

Keep Your New Year’s Resolutions.

Asian Cuisine: Delicious, Fresh and Healthful Since 2700 B.C. F A T ’S ASIA BISTRO

2585 Iron Point Road Folsom 916-983-1133

806 L Street Sacramento 916-442-7092

1500 Eureka Road Roseville 916-787-3287

fatsrestaurants.com

The dining room at Bacon & Butter

RESTAURANT FROM page 44 you want to leave the restaurant in anything other than a wheelbarrow. Feeling like eggs and bacon? Then order the grilled cheese Benedict ($14). Two mighty stacks of challah, four different cheeses, bacon, poached egg and hollandaise make for a mighty start to your day. And, if consumed with a side of potatoes, it might constitute the end of your day as well. Did you say biscuits? I did. Try the biscuit sandwich ($11), a dense tower of dough, egg, caramelized onion, mascarpone and a cheese skirt a la Squeeze Inn. I know what you’re thinking. “This sounds too light and insubstantial for my breakfast needs.” Don’t fear: You can add a smothering of bacon gravy for just $2 more. Almost every dish at Bacon & Butter is perfectly suitable for splitting. Each plate comes teetering with more food than a non-Olympicathlete could consume and still

POC JAN n 15

function. Yet each plate is also well thought out and well crafted. Owner and chef Billy Zoellin might be a little overzealous with his portions and a bit gratuitous with his cheese/gravy/ bacon additions to most dishes, but the flavors are strong and exciting, bright and seasonal. You can taste the care and the work going into each dish. This isn’t diner food. This isn’t greasy-spoon fare. Nor is it white-tablecloth brunch. This is hearty, seasonal food cooked with an attentive eye and a steady hand. These are carefully sourced ingredients and expert preparations. Bacon & Butter is, then, a pretty darned good place for breakfast. Bacon & Butter is at 5913 Broadway; 346-4445; baconandbuttersac.com Greg Sabin can be reached at gregsabin@hotmail.com n

French-inspired pastries, cakes and breads handcrafted on-site every morning by artisan bakers and chefs!

FRIDAYS

Doughnut Day &

SUNDAY Croixnut Day

(ﬂavor changes every week)

FRENCH TEA SERVICE

$25/PERSON Set menu includes: tea sandwiches, assorted pastries, macaroon, tarts and choice of organic tea (reservation required)

Located on the corner of 9th & K in downtown Sacramento M-F 7-6, Sat 8-6, Sun 8-4 | 551-1500 | info@estellspatisserie.com

HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM RE/MAX GOLD! Our agents will help you make 2015 a spectacular year. We are the industry leader in placing buyers in their perfect home. RE/MAX agents are the most productive and experienced in the market. Whether you are buying or selling this year, our agents are confidently equipped with tools specifically

designed to assist you. Call a RE/MAX Gold agent today to start your celebration of

home ownership.

MIDTOWN

SIERRRA OAKS

NATOMAS

ELK GROVE

FAIR OAKS

FOLSOM

2014 CAPITOL AVE. #100 SACRAMENTO, CA 95811 916.227.8155

3620 FAIR OAKS BLVD #300 SACRAMENTO, CA 95864 916.609.2800

2081 ARENA BLVD. #100 SACRAMENTO, CA 95834 916.285.1000

9280 W. STOCKTON BLVD #111 ELK GROVE, CA 95758 916.405.5200

5252 SUNRISE BLVD. #6 FAIR OAKS, CA 95628 916.537.2400

2340 E. BIDWELL STREET FOLSOM, CA 95630 916.948.8778

IPO n INSIDEPUBLICATIONS.COM

WE’RE YOUR NEIGHBOR! pending

CARMICHAEL

Desirable Cameron Ranch location. Open Àoor plan, large yard, breezeway, built in pool, spa, large covered patio, lots of fruit trees & mature landscaping. 4 Beds, 2 bths, new roof, corner lot. Easy access to transportation, schools, parks & shopping. $427,500 DAVID OHARA 916-600-9495

MULTI-UNIT IN MIDTOWN

Prime midtown location! Well maintained 4-plex, all units have central heat & air, huge brick ¿replaces, 2 with backyards, 2 with balconies. Coin laundry possible. $579,000 JOHN WONG 916-531-7150

HOLLYWOOD PARK

3 bed, 2 bth, single family home in the heart of Hollywood Park. Roof & gutters approx. 2 years old, dual pane windows throughout, updated kitchen and bath. Close to neighborhood schools! $289,950 JOHN WONG 916-531-7150

pending

GREENHAVEN/POCKET

Updtd 3bd, 3bth a few blocks from Didion. Granite counters & new cabinets in kitchen, remodeled baths, new dual pane windows/sliders, plantation shutters, custom lighting, resurfaced & retiled built in pool & so much more! $399,500 NICK LAPLACA 916-764-7500

DOWNTOWN

3 bd, 1.1bth home in a prime mid-town location. Open & spacious w/ bay windows in living & dining rooms. Wonderful wood Àoors, newer carpet, granite counters in kitchen. Beautifully maintained & only one block from McKinley Park! $418,000 BERNADETTE CHIANG 916-261-2888

ELK GROVE

This Cresleigh Ranch beauty boasts 3 beds, 2 bths & a spacious den with double doors. The kitchen opens to the family room & consists of granite counters, stainless steel appliances, closet pantry & bar area that accommodates 4 bar stools. $345,000 BRANDON SHEPARD 916-479-1936

POCKET AREA

3 bd, 2.5 bth w/formal living & dining rooms. Fabulous family room addition open to the kitchen. Big yard w/patio. Updtd roof in 2013. New carpet in 2014. Laminate Àooring in living rm, dining rm & family rm. $320,000 BILL BONNER 916-320-1888/NICK LAPLACA 916-764-7500

GREENHAVEN/POCKET

Large 4 bed, 2.5 bth with spacious family room with dramatic vaulted ceilings, separate living/dining area, bright kitchen w/nook with large window over looking the backyard, wood laminate Àooring in entry, living area & nook. $339,000 BERNADETTE CHIANG 916-261-2888

GRANITE BAY

Spacious Àoorplan w/sep living & family rms, formal dining area, lge open kitchen w/granite counters & stainless steel appliances, double ovens & wine refrigerator. Private backyard w/built in pool, wet bar & personal spa..perfect for entertaining! $579,999 JOLEEN DUNNIGAN 916-717-3559

A real estate company is like a home. The great ones have a strong foundation. Our agents come with a network of experience and are backed by the most admired name in the world.

Visit bhhsdunnigan.com

Good to Know.™

916-422-3756

©2014 BHH AfÀliates, LLC. An independently owned and operated franchisee of BHH AfÀliates, LLC. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices symbol are registered service marks of HomeServices of America, Inc.® Equal Houseing Opportunity.