Saturday’s KDVS Skate Jam, organized in conjunction with the UC Davis Aggie Hurricane skate club and The Vault skate shop, gave participants a nonstop cavalcade of tricks and turns.
Monica Stark/ EntErpriSE photoThe cracks on the G Street asphalt didn’t stop skateboarders from showing off their board slides and grinds as roller skaters freewheeled their dance moves and practiced their gnarly tricks at Saturday’s KDVS Skate Jam, organized in conjunction with the UC Davis Aggie Hurricane skate club and
The Vault skate shop.
From newcomers to old-timers, the event welcomed all forms of skating — rollerskaters, longboarders, inline skaters, and skateboarders — and allowed “an opportunity for skaters of all backgrounds, genders, and skill levels a safe space to meet others in the community and express themselves freely through the art of skat-
ing,” Aggie Hurricane Vice President Reese Valle explained.
For the first few hours, KDVS played music from the pavement before Exuvia, an East Bay-based queer-gothic metal band, hit the mic, followed by a three-piece band Angelite. Between band transitions, organizers raffled off skate equipment. Throughout the event, handmade art, jewelry, and
clothing vendors sold their merchandise, underlining the core ideal of skaters to “Support Local,” Valle said Aggie Hurricane was tasked with bringing skaters out to the event and supplying equipment such as skateboard decks, trucks, wheels, and bearings to those in need.
See SKATE, Back page
By Monica Stark Enterprise staff writer
This piece is the first installment of an irregularly timed column whereby a photo of something, hopefully, interesting is shown, causing the reader to wonder: Where is that?
Predictions of an “eviction tsunami” following the end of COVID19 eviction protections appear to be coming true in Yolo County.
“We are starting to see it hit,” Nolan Sullivan, the county’s director of health and human services, said Tuesday.
Moratoriums on evictions, quickly enacted at the state and local level in the early days of the pandemic, have expired within the last year, Sullivan told the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, and “we are starting to see a lot more people come through our doors with very large back rent in arrears.”
Pre-COVID, folks were coming through the door owing $3,000 or $4,000 in back rent, he said; now it’s $15,000 to $20,000, “massive amounts of back rent — that’s a lot harder to cover. So it is certainly a looming crisis.”
The other aspect of the crisis, he
Last century, California built dozens of large dams, creating the elaborate reservoir system that supplies the bulk of the state’s drinking and irrigation water. Now state officials and supporters are ready to build the next one.
in DaviS,
After hearing from some Gen-X skaters about “the Ditch,” my boyfriend Alex, dog Brownie and I went out to the old agricultural drainage ditch on County Road 32A near the Union Pacific railroad tracks and Dhillon Ranch.
As discussed in the article about the KDVS Skate Jam, some skaters prefer to skate at the Ditch over the Davis Skate
Park, where they say designers didn’t get input from skaters. While they are trying to get a new skate park built, the Ditch is their place to be.
“The thing is like we prefer
photo
Monica Stark/EntErpriSEprobably skating in the Ditch anyway,” said Luke Turner. “We just like the freedom of it. This is like, you know, a spot in the
See DITCH, Page A4
The Sites Reservoir — planned in a remote corner of the western Sacramento Valley for at least 40 years — has been gaining steam and support since 2014, when voters approved Prop. 1, a water bond that authorized $2.7 billion for new storage projects.
Still, Sites Reservoir remains almost a decade away: Acquisition of water rights, permitting and environmental review are still in the works. Kickoff of construction, which includes two large dams, had been scheduled for 2024, but likely will be
See EVICTION, Page A4 See SITES, Page A4
You can learn a lot of things by reading the newspaper, which is why I read as many as I can find, whether they're posted online or landing on my driveway.
The other day I learned something I previously hadn't known, and frankly, it shocked me.
This from a newspaper much larger than our own and one with far more reporters and editors than a small town daily can afford.
The story has made the rounds and has now appeared in a number of publications across the country. It is a story about that rapidly approaching phenomenon known as Daylight Saving Time.
The story broke DST down into a question-and-answer format, beginning with “Why does Daylight Saving Time exist?”
If you're sitting down with a cold glass of lemonade, slathered with sunscreen and wearing your Joe Biden model sunglasses, I'll proceed.
The answer is, “The general idea behind the time change is to increase the amount of sunlight in the Northern Hemisphere.”
Excuse me, but I think God just came down with a migraine.
You should know that the newspaper spreading such scientific
truths charges real money for its services, but wait, there's more.
“By falling back an hour in November and springing forward an hour in March, according to National Geographic, people can have one extra hour of sunlight.”
My guess is no one at National Geographic, including the guy washing the windows, ever said such a thing.
“Contrary to what many may believe, the purpose of saving daylight wasn't created so farmers could have more time in the field. The United States adopted the plan in 1918 to save daylight.”
I am not making this up.
Where all this newfound sunlight in the Northern Hemisphere is coming from is not explained, but presumably it's on loan from the Southern Hemisphere, where Daylight Saving Time would clearly never work because of the
gravitational pull of the North Star.
All of which explains why when Daylight Saving Time is in effect in the Northern Hemisphere, the Southern Hemisphere is plunged into darkness.
Afew years ago while writing about DST, I quoted a distinguished California State Senator who defended keeping Daylight Saving Time because “Our crops have gotten accustomed to it. They've, in fact, been bred to deal with that long harvest season.”
The good senator knows of what he speaks.
I was fortunate enough to work in the Plant Pathology greenhouses as a UC Davis undergraduate, rubbing elbows with some of the greatest plant scientists in the world. The biggest day of the year, of course, was that day in early March when we fought over which one of us would have the honor of moving the greenhouse clock forward.
Once the deed was done, the results were dramatic. Tiny tomato seedlings that had just been transplanted in Yolo Sandy Loam produced red, ripe tomatoes in less than 12 hours, even though
they did not have even a single yellow blossom at the start of the day.
One year, just for fun, we set the clocks two hours ahead on March 12 and had to call the fire department because some of the plants literally exploded with the extra sunlight. Put bluntly, there was ketchup everywhere. The next year we all wore helmets. Some crops, unfortunately, don't react as well as others. Sunflowers, of course, love having an extra hour of daylight, but corn, lacking any brain matter whatsoever, is unable to distinguish the time change and thus does not react as hoped. In fact, corn appears to fare just as well in those states without Daylight Time as those that have it. Go figure.
It's a mystery even UC Davis scientists can't solve.
No matter, for it's time once again to enjoy that extra hour of daylight that some genius dreamed up in 1918 to trick Mother Nature.
As you set your clock forward come Saturday night, remember to thank the Good Lord that you don't live in the Southern Hemisphere.
Reach Bob Dunning at bdunning@davisenterprise.net.
In honor of Women’s History
Month, the Yolo County Library will be showing the exhibit Herstory 1 & 2: The Legal History of Chinese American Women, at all branches except for the South Davis Montgomery Branch Library during March.
The exhibit, curated by Dr. Chang C. Chen, showcases the legal milestones and often harrowing stories of these women.
who, like Dr. Chen, have devoted their lives and talents to producing art, pursuing truth and reflecting the human condition decade after decade. More information is online at nationalwomenshistoryalliance .org.
on a cell phone or enter code 351799 when ordering online.
The theme for the 2023 Women’s History Month is "Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories." It was developed by the National Women’s History Alliance and honors women in every community
Chen will discuss her books and the exhibit at 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 25, at the Mary L. Stephens Davis Branch Library, 315 E. 14th St., and at 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 20, at the Arthur F. Turner Community Library, 1212 Merkley Ave. in West Sacramento. For information about the Yolo County Library, visit: www.yolocountylibrary.org or connect with the Library on Facebook at www.facebook. com/yolocountylibrary.org
* Editor’s note: This column first ran ahead of St. Patrick’s Day, 2019
In his book, “East of Eden,” John Steinbeck writes of the Irish, “They’re a dark people with a gift for suffering way past their deserving.”
It’s tough to disagree with this sentiment when you look to the music and literature that come out of the Emerald Isle. Pub songs like “I Am Stretched on your Grave” and “Finnegan’s Wake” don’t exactly inspire joy. And, while they may be among the best written and most profound books in the world, “Dracula,” “Angela’s Ashes” and “The Picture of Dorian Grey” could hardly be described as “light” reading or “life-affirming.”
But beyond the haunting music and heartbreaking writings, there is one custom that, more than any other, supports Steinbeck’s assessment of Irish people’s proclivity to suffer. That custom is the tragic way in which they boil their meat.
Nothing says “I don’t deserve happiness” like dumping a bloody hunk of salty meat into a pot of hot water. And watching that meat turn to rubber over the course of hours, as you periodically remove the lid to skim the scum from the surface, is the equivalent of telling yourself, “I have
nothing to live for.”
Why?
Why do we do this to ourselves? Why do we “celebrate” this beautiful island with its rich history and its strong, talented people by forcing our families to consume stringy, overcooked brisket and sodden, lifeless vegetables?
Haven’t the Irish suffered enough?
We are, indeed, a dark people with a gift for suffering.
I’d like to make a suggestion: Let’s break the sad-food cycle. Let’s find a new way to prepare our celebratory St. Patrick’s Day dinner. Let’s give our
dark, undeserving, guiltridden Irish selves one less reason to cry in our beer.
On the 17th, instead of boiling our corned beef, carrots, cabbage and potatoes, let’s try preparing everything in the oven. Let’s trade boiled brisket for baked, mustard-glazed corned beef. Let’s lose the limp, lifeless boiled cabbage and replace it with crispy, caramelized wedges. Rather than boiling carrots and potatoes to the point they are indistinguishable from each other, let’s toss them in olive oil and seasoning and roast them under high heat until they are browned on the outside
and tender on the inside.
Below are two recipes that are special to me. The first is for mustard-glazed corned beef. It is everevolving and always improving. This is how we prepared it last year and it was wonderful.
The second recipe for soda bread comes from my friend Beth Dean, who insisted I credit the recipe to Mary Ann Henry (even though I know if Mrs. Henry made it herself, it could never be as good as Beth’s).
Wishing you good luck, good health, good food and happiness.
— Shelley Dunning is a
Davis resident and a mom of four. Reach her at dunningsm@gmail.com.
Mustard Glazed Corned Beef
Ingredients:
2 pounds corned beef
1 bottle of Guinness Extra
Stout
1 cup dark Karo syrup
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
pepper
Putting it together:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place the corned beef on a rack in a roasting pan. Pour bottle of Guinness into bottom of pan and season the roast with pepper.
In a saucepan, bring the Karo syrup and Dijon mustard to a boil. Turn down heat and simmer for three minutes.
Spread half of the Karo syrup/mustard mixture over the beef. Cover loosely with foil and bake for 2½ hours. Remove roast from oven and turn oven to broil. Spread the remaining glaze over the top and place under the broiler for 5 minutes or until the top is brown.
Remove from oven, let
rest for 10 minutes and slice against the grain.
Mary Ann Henry’s Super Soda Bread
Makes 20 wedgeshaped slices.
Ingredients: 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus 1 tablespoon for dusting
½ cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon salt
3 cups dark seedless raisins
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1¼ cups buttermilk
1 cup sour cream
Putting it together:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9-inch round cast-iron skillet or baking pan.
Combine 4 cups flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, raisins and caraway seeds in large bowl. Blend eggs, buttermilk and sour cream in small bowl. Stir into flour mixture just until flour is moistened. Knead dough in bowl about 10 strokes; dough will be very sticky. Shape into ball, place in skillet. Cut 4-inch “X” ¾-inch deep across top of dough. Sprinkle with remaining tablespoon flour. Bake 65 to 75 minutes or until wooden pick inserted into center tests clean. Cool in skillet 10 minutes. Turn bread onto wire rack to cool completely.
The Valentine’s Day tradition chez nous: a special dinner and a special bottle. We skip the romantic restaurant meal (even before the pandemic). Romantic? Feb. 14 in a restaurant means to me a room packed with couples, expectations too high, some cranky with one another, some just impatient for their food from a kitchen and from servers who can barely keep up and cannot please.
No, we opt for the quiet of dining at home with some good music on the stereo, a lighted candle, and maybe a fire in our little wood stove. This year we made the meal simple — steelhead sautéed in butter and olive oil with shallots and garlic served over papparadelle. And a big salad made with Fiddlers Green mixed lettuces. What could be better?
And the wine? Usually I’d search for something off the beaten path — a Sicilian zibibbo or a Hungarian hárslevelü. Rather to my surprise, though, what I really craved was a chardonnay. No, not the ubiquitous buttery, oaky chard but something light on its feet, aromatic, crisp, minerally and, of course, delicious. A Chablis (by French law, 100% chardonnay), perhaps? But then, I thought, a good domestic version might be preferable. If we’re going to
spend a bit more than usual on a bottle, why not support local winemakers?
I remembered fondly a perfect chardonnay I tasted one day at Donkey and Goat Winery in Berkeley and another just down the street at Broc Cellars. But we weren’t in Berkeley and, besides, I wanted to try something completely new.
The wine we ended up choosing wasn’t really local (except in comparison to a Chablis) but close enough: Division 2021 Chardonnay “Un,” a blend of chard grapes from four vineyards in the Willamette Valley. Since I was headed to Portland shortly afterward, an Oregon wine seemed like a fine idea, especially since I had visited — and much enjoyed — Division Wine Bar/ Shop on a previous trip.
Division is the brainchild of Kate Norris and Thomas Monroe, founded in 2010, with the aim of creating great wines expressive of the valley’s “terroir,” using minimally interventionist techniques and making use of
vineyards that farm organically, biodynamically or regeneratively. They use oak — Austrian and French barrels — judiciously (as do many of the best makers of Chablis) to “help structure and season ... but not dominate.”
Only 625 cases of this “Un” were made, so I felt lucky to spot it on a shelf at the just officially opened Wines in Tandem in downtown Davis. Owner Ryan Crosbie encouraged the choice. And it certainly lived up to my expectations for a celebratory bottle. Filled with orchard fruit but completely dry, it danced beautifully with the flavor of the fish. At $29 it was a bit of a splurge, but the next day when I saw in a market a bottle of a ubiquitous, large production, popular chardonnay priced over $40, the delicious Division seemed a bargain.
Both Kate and Thomas say their winemaking is always evolving and flexible — as well as “simple.” They study the grapes, they pick at just-ripeness, they want their wines to have a story and a place to call home. They’re not interested in their wines imitating high-priced, high alcohol (the “Un” is, by the way, just 12.4%) Napa versions but are after something wilder, less predictable, unique: “We don’t follow any path exactly the same way each time. It’s always
modified with little changes made up to the last moment to reflect what that year has given us.”
While this chard does indeed reflect a time and a place, it is also unmistakably chardonnay — nothing marred the lovely, clean, flinty fruit flavors these grapes can produce, flavors enhanced by a beautiful nose. As one reviewer said, it “perfectly straddles the line between California and (white) Burgundy — or at least hints at it — with finesse, elegance and an understated complexity that will keep you coming back for one bottle after another.”
Another review made a similar point: “A throwback to Old World aciddriven style we love from this glorious grape. Coupled with a generosity of fruit and texture on the palate that makes you realize you are in the New World.” This Old World, New World combination isn’t surprising since Kate and Thomas learned their viticulture and winemaking in Beaujolais, Burgundy, the Loire and the Northern Rhone.
Last weekend, at one of its opening celebrations, I had a chance to sample a few other Wines in Tandem selections; I can enthusiastically recommend something special for your spring celebrations — birthdays, anniversaries, Easter, Equinox,
Purim, whatever. It’s the brick & mortar 2020 Brut Nature, a sparkler made from organic chardonnay and pinot noir from vineyards on the Sonoma Coast.
Alexis and Matt (UCD degree in viticulture and enology) Iaconis founded brick & mortar in 2011 and co-run the winery. “Our all-lowercase name serves as a metaphor for our foundational philosophy; highlight the vineyard with minimal intervention, and run a winery that is down to earth yet highly functional.” The wine’s delicious — lively, fruity, and lightly bubbly. I can imagine it with a fancier-than-usual “things” dinner, like sourdough focaccia, sautéed greens, smoked salmon, pork paté and mozzarella di bufala.
The bottle, like the Division chard, is at $29, a splurge but not in comparison to the Champagne that it resembles. These bubbles make every day feel like Valentine’s Day at its best, which to me is a celebration of love — for romantic partners, yes, but also for friends, family, good neighbors, and our irreplaceable Mother Earth. An attitude that meshes well with Division’s Kate Norris’s wine philosophy: “drink good things with good people.”
— Reach Susana Leonardi at vinosusana@gmail.com. Comment on this column at www. davisenterprise.com.
Enterprise staff
The Cal Aggie Alumni Association of UC Davis announced on March 2 the recipients of its 2023 Alumni Awards. This year is the 50th anniversary of honoring the achievements and impact of outstanding alumni and friends of UC Davis.
The winners are leaders in engineering, global and local government relations, agriculture, investment and education who are being honored for their unwavering efforts to help others through their work.
The Cal Aggie Alumni Association, or CAAA, which serves more than 304,000 UC Davis alumni, selected these exceptional individuals to
recognize the impact they have had on UC Davis and the world:
■ Outstanding Alumnus Award — Michael Hurlston, ‘88, M.B.A. ’90, M.S. ‘91
■ Emil M. Mrak International Award — Mari Elka Pangestu, Ph.D. ’86
■ Young Alumna Award Sadalia King, ’13
■ Aggie Service Award — Michael Campbell, ’68
■ Lifetime Achievement Award — C. Bryan Cameron, ’80
■ Distinguished Friend of the University — Rosalie S. Vanderhoef “Our Alumni Awards are a signature program of the Alumni Association
and to celebrate a halfcentury of Aggie excellence is truly a milestone,” said Dana Allen, assistant vice chancellor and executive director of CAAA. “The 2023 honorees have transformed the world around them and exemplify the values that are core to UC Davis.”
Emerson College named Julianna Morgan of Davis to the Dean’s List for the fall 2022 semester. The requirement to make Dean’s List is a grade point average of 3.7 or higher for that semester.
Morgan is an interdisciplinary major and is a member of the Class of 2023.
Based in Boston,
opposite the historic Boston Common and in the heart of the city’s Theatre District, Emerson College has approximately 4,161 undergraduates and 554 graduate students from across the United States and nearly 70 countries. For information, visit emerson.edu.
— Do you know of someone who has won an award or accomplished something noteworthy?
Davis’ plan to reduce carbon pollution in Davis to net zero by 2040 relies on electrifying buildings and transportation, among other changes.
On the latest edition of the KDRT program
“Davisville,” Kerry Daane Loux, project manager for the city’s Climate Action and Adaptation Plan, and City Councilman Bapu Vaitla talk about why Davis must change, and what’s ahead.
The City Council will take up the plan again in April. “The idea stage is nearing the end of its first phase,” Vaitla said.
“Davisville,” hosted by Bill Buchanan, appears on Davis station KDRT-LP, 95.7 FM on Mondays at 5:30 p.m., Tuesdays at noon, Fridays at 5 p.m., and Saturdays at 8:30 a.m. The current program will be broadcast through March 18, and is available anytime at https://kdrt.org/ davisville or on Apple podcasts.
Join Tree Davis and their friends from TreeCircus at 11:45 a.m. on California Arbor Day, Saturday, March 11, at Central Park in downtown Davis to see the award-winning TreeCircus perform.
The TreeCircus show is a part of an all-day event sponsored by the Western Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture, starting with a tour and discussion at the State Capitol Arboretum, a bike ride across the causeway, and a tour of Davis Great Trees lead by Tree Davis Board President Dr. Greg McPherson.
The latest episode of “Timeout Radio” features sports broadcaster and UC Davis graduate, Jason Ross.
Ross is the program director at Sactown Sports 1140 KHTK and has worked in sports broadcasting for close to three decades. He has been broadcasting Sacramento Kings basketball since 1994 and in this episode he talks to host Rohan Baxi about this Kings' season through the NBA All-Star Break.
“Timeout Radio” airs on KDRT 95.7 FM from 5:30 to 6 p.m.
Tuesdays and 8 to 8:30 a.m. Saturdays. All episodes are archived at https://kdrt.org/pro gram/timeout-radio.
Local Davis Boy Scout and Girl Scout Units will be hosting their annual Scouting for Food event to benefit the Short Term Emergency Aid Committee’s food programs on Saturday, March 11. Door hanger announcements will be distributed in early March by scouts and their families to various neighborhoods in Davis.
If you receive a door hanger, leave a food donation out by your curb by no later than 9 a.m. Saturday, March 11. Scouts will be collecting food donations between 9 a.m. and noon that day. Pickup locations are limited to residents who receive door hangers only.
added, “is the vulnerability of the people we’re seeing … older folks with lots of medical issues.
“If you let the eviction go through, you probably have a death on the street or something horrendous,” Sullivan said. “It’s folks with congenital heart failure, or elderly folks with Stage 3 cancer. Really terrible situations.”
Legal Services of Northern California is seeing the same, including a 57 percent increase in eviction services, post-COVID.
The agency provides free civil legal services to low-income residents and those ages 60 and up, including for eviction defense.
“We are seeing a sharp increase in evictions based on the non-payment of rent,” said supervising attorney Brielle Mansell. “We do believe this is due to the expiration of the local and state COVID-19 eviction tenant protections, but it’s also due to the skyrocketing rent increases and the lack of deedrestricted affordable housing in our county.”
Mansell noted that once someone has an eviction judgement on
their record, “it’s virtually impossible for them to find new housing and often leads to homelessness.”
The good news, she told county supervisors, “is that we are finding that when a tenant is eligible for county eviction prevention services, it’s life changing. The county works quickly to make sure the rent is paid. These programs are preventing eviction, making the landlord whole and also giving the tenant time to get back on their feet.
“We really hope to see an expansion of these successful programs because many vulnerable individuals and families are currently not eligible for the programs,” she noted.
“Our county needs more funding to ensure that households facing eviction based on the short-term inability to pay rent, get that assistance to prevent mass eviction and homelessness.”
Sullivan said the two key tools of eviction prevention include legal assistance and guidance like Legal Services of Northern California provides, “assisting folks in navigating their landlords, leases and
other complex legal situations …
“The other piece that’s been really beneficial to them is really the ability to refer clients once they work through their legal issues either to the county for the very limited pots of eviction prevention we have or Empower Yolo (which has had some funding for that purpose).”
But there is a gap in services for individuals who don’t qualify for specific programs that could help, such as low-income families that earn just a little too much or vulnerable seniors on disability who are slightly over income to qualify for assistance.
“So there is this gap population, (and) that’s going to be the problem,” Sullivan said.
County supervisors urged staff to return with ideas for how to move forward.
“I would hope you could come to us … with some recommendations as to alternatives, how we might direct funding, whether it’s American Rescue Plan or other pots of money, because it is an emergency,” said Supervisor Jim Provenza of Davis.
Provenza noted that if Legal
From Page A1
middle of nowhere. We can just kind of do our own thing out there. We don’t have to worry about it being the city. The city skate park is terrible. The concrete is poured wrong; it’s all cracked up.”
To fix that up, skaters have added onto the Davis Skate Park themselves to make it fun. “That’s just, like, sad, man,” Turner said.
A DIY kind of spot, the Ditch is more of an accidental thing, Turner said. “Skateboarders always gravitate towards things that already exist. Things that are designed for the purpose of skateboarding aren’t as fun, right? Like, skateboarding is more about adapting to the terrain that’s already built. So the Ditch is already built and, well, it’s more creative,” he said.
Among the fun graffiti markings is the word, “Swingle.” I have seen “Swingle” on Google Maps and learned via the website latitude.to that “in the late 19th century, Swingle
contained cattle pens and was a shipment point on the Southern Pacific Railroad for cattle to market. A 1913 book described Swingle, along with Webster, as along the main automobile route from Davis to Broderick.”
According to Davis Wiki, The Lincoln Highway realignment through Davis from Sacramento crossed the Yolo Causeway and then traveled westbound along this very spot, and then “continued on a straight path along what is presently the bicycle path south of the Union Pacific Railroad tracks, connecting to today’s Olive Drive, and under the Richards Boulevard underpass. The highway then turned left onto First, right on B Street, and then along today’s Russell Boulevard, passing the original entrance to UC Davis, to Cactus Corners, and then turning left southward on today’s Pedrick Road, towards Dixon.”
If something catches your interest in Davis that you think could be a fun feature for this column, please email me at monica@davisenterprise.net.
Sept. 13, 1926 — Jan. 12, 2023
Marjorie passed away peacefully with her family by her side at her home at the University Retirement Community on Thursday, Jan. 12, 2023.
Marjorie was born in Riverside, raised on the family ranch by her parents Edna McMillan and T.J. Jackson, and surrounded by extended family. Marjorie’s early accomplishments included 4-H activities in cooking, sewing and sheep raising. She earned her county’s Top All Star Honors.
She graduated from Polytechnic High School in 1942 and went on to UC Santa Barbara to become a school teacher. She particularly enjoyed teaching history, culture and art. She began her teaching in Inglewood and restarted her career at North Davis Elementary after moving in 1964. She taught fourth and sixth grade until her retirement in 1985.
She was an active member of the PEO Sisterhood. She is fondly remembered by her students and coworkers to this day, and inspired three of her granddaughters to become teachers themselves.
At the end of World War II, Marjorie was invited on a blind date by a mutual friend where she met her future husband George O. Turner. They married in 1949 and honeymooned at the historic Mission Inn in Riverside. They started their family of four sons in Long Beach until George was transferred to Davis. They built their family home in El Macero where Marj was a gracious hostess to many and shared her talented culinary skills.
As a family, they enjoyed many outdoor activities including backpacking and camping in the Sierra Nevada. There were also frequent cross-country road adventures. They loved spending time at their cabin “Idyll Ours” at Donner Lake.
Marj had numerous passions and hobbies. She was a world traveler, always wanting to learn and explore the local culture around the globe. Her travel companions included husbands, beloved sister Pepper, daughter-in-law Diane, grandchildren and lifelong friends. Later in life she facilitated numerous family reunions all over the country.
She excelled in multiple forms of arts and crafts. Sewing, needlework and painting were just a few of her many talents. When it came to gardening, Marj had a green thumb. She grew a variety of beautiful flowers and was especially proud of her and George’s award-winning camellias.
In 1996, George passed away. In 2000, she moved to University Retirement Community where she was an active member, participating in many social activities and committees. Art shows and bridge were among her favorites. She loved meeting and making new friends.
This led to meeting her second husband, Hal Collins. They were married in 2003. Marj and Hal enjoyed life at URC as well as attending regional cultural events and travel. Marj expressed her gratefulness that she had two wonderful marriages and embraced her blended
family.
Services of Northern California, which deals with low-come clients, is experiencing that big of an increase, “I have to believe that increase is occurring and will continue.”
As for the gap population Sullivan referred to, Provenza noted that, “any time one of those people becomes homeless, it’s 10 times harder to get them rehoused and back on track, and then you have a mark against you on your record of an eviction, which is the last thing we need.
“We’re spending all this money on the homeless. We don’t need a new pipeline of homeless taking up the space of those we house,” Provenza added. “So I would appreciate a recommendation back from (county staff) as to how we might direct some funding in this area, some options.”
Staff will return with more information and recommendations, likely in time for the board’s upcoming budget workshops.
— Reach Anne Ternus-Bellamy at aternus@davisenterprise. net. Follow her on Twitter at @ATernusBellamy.
From Page A1
delayed another year. Completion is expected in 2030 or 2031.
Sites Reservoir would store as much as 1.5 million acre-feet of Sacramento River water and could eventually boost water supplies — especially in dry years — for more than 24 million people, mostly in Southern California, and 500,000 acres of Central Valley farmland. The reservoir is now projected to cost $4.4 billion, with Prop. 1 covering up to $875 million and much of the rest coming from federal loans to water suppliers.
For years, state lawmakers, farm representatives and city water suppliers have bemoaned that the reservoir hasn’t been built yet, and their criticism has escalated as it rains.
In less than two weeks of storms last month, Sites could
Marjorie was active in the Davis Community Church from 1964 until her passing. She served as an elder, a youth leader and as a longtime participant in the Bell Choir. She was also an active member of Friendship Mariners and Presbyterian Women.
Marjorie was predeceased by husbands George Turner and Hal Collins, son Mike Turner, sister Pepper Patterson, and brother Don Jackson.
She is survived by sons Don, Dave and Jim; their spouses Judy, Joanie and Paul; daughter-in-law Diane; and brother-in-law Joe Patterson. She was cherished by her grandchildren Jill, Ben, Katie, Jorie and Natalie. She was blessed with great-grandchildren Anna, Paige, Liam, Macie, Sylvie, Jude, June, Callum and Griff.
Her spirit and passion for art and life was an inspiration to all who had the pleasure and honor of knowing her. A loving mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. She will be greatly missed by all.
There will be a Celebration of Life to remember and honor her at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 11, at Davis Community Church.
The family is grateful to Yolo Hospice for their compassion and service. Memorial Donations can be made to Truckee Donner Land Trust Conservancy at truckeedonnerlandtrust. org or Davis Arts Center at davisartscenter.org.
have captured 120,000 acrefeet of water, enough to serve about 1.3 million Californians for a year, according to water agencies supporting the project.
Rep. John Garamendi, D-Walnut Grove, is one of many Sites advocates who have grown impatient waiting for the new reservoir.
“California just received 22 trillion gallons of rainwater last month, which could have filled Sites and provided a greater supply of water for the dry months,” Garamendi told CalMatters.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has rallied for the project, and his 2022 water strategy outlined a plan to create as much as 4 million acre-feet of new water storage space.
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, one of many potential investors, might get as much as 20% of the reservoir’s water.
Raphael A. Lemus Jr.
We are heartbroken to announce the death of Raphael ”Ray” A. Lemus Jr. of Davis.
Ray passed away peacefully on Monday morning, Feb. 27, 2023.
July 28, 1948 — Feb. 27, 2023 LEMUS
Born on July 28, 1948, in Woodland to Raphael B. Lemus & Frances A. Lemus. Ray is survived by his wife, Amparo P. Lemus; brother Ross Lemus; sisters Hope Zaragosa and Monica Landeros; daughter Tina Marie Lemus; son Valentine Lemus; and grandchildren Antonio
Torres, Raphael J. Torres and Tara Monique Lemus.
Self-anointed “El Rey,” Ray was famous for his intensely giving ways and party spirit. After proudly working at UC Davis for 35 years, he generously volunteered his Sundays at Sutter Davis Hospital for 10
years as an auxiliary member. On any given day, Ray would be seen on the streets of Yolo (or Davis or Woodland), rushing off to help family and friends with whatever was needed. He was always ready to orchestrate tequila shots to celebrate any happy moment — and there was always a happy moment to find! Simply put, Ray spread joy and laughter wherever he went, whether he was on the dance floor or at the local taco truck, and our world shimmers less in his absence. ¡Órale El Rey! We hope the tequila shots are flowing, wherever you are!
The Enterprise publishes brief death notices free of charge. These include name, age, city of residence, occupation, date of death and funeral/memorial information. Make submissions to www.davisenter prise.com/obit-form/. For information about paid obituaries or free death notices, call 530-756-0800.
Yolo Public Defender
Community Assistance and Re-Entry Support marks
National Public Defense Day with a fundraiser at MOD Pizza, 2051 Bronze Star Dr., Suite 100 in Woodland, on Thursday, March 16.
National Public Defense Day is March 18, commemorating the landmark 1963 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Gideon vs. Wainwright, which guarantees indigent defendants the right to courtappointed legal counsel.
MOD Pizza customers can mention the fundraiser at checkout from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., with 20 percent of their purchase going directly to Yolo Public Defender CARES. Online customers should use the
code MODGIVES20 at checkout.
Yolo Public Defender CARES is a nonprofit organization that partners with the Yolo County Public Defender’s Office to fill gaps in resources that assist people impacted by the local criminal legal system. The group aims to provide them with financial and other types of support, particularly for those struggling to re-enter society after incarceration.
For example, proceeds raised from the MOD Pizza fundraiser may be used to provide defendants with transportation to court hearings, cover outside expenses during incarceration or pay for essential prescription medications upon their release.
“Participating in this fundraiser is not only a great way to celebrate
National Public Defense Day, but it’s also an actionable step to help the most vulnerable among our community and in need of holistic support,” CARES board member Eliana Swerdlow said.
“Yolo Public Defender CARES recognizes that for community members who have encountered the criminal legal system, there are gaps in supports and resources that create barriers to their success,” added board member Benjamin Hernandez.
Tracie Olson, Yolo County’s chief public defender, will recognize the 60th anniversary of Gideon vs. Wainwright at the March 14 Yolo County Board of Supervisors meeting with a resolution proclaiming March 18 as “Public Defense Day” in Yolo County.
Motus
Special to The Enterprise
This month’s Yolo Audubon meeting features Levi Souza, who will be presenting an overview of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s efforts to create sentinel sites on select properties throughout the state.
Sentinel sites are locations where biological and climate sensors will track climate change, ecosystem health and wildlife diversity over long time frames.
A key component of the Department’s sentinel sites are Motus Wildlife Tracking System stations. Motus is a worldwide network of stationary automated telemetry receivers that collect data on tagged wildlife as it moves through the landscape. This technology will allow future researchers to answer questions about the behavior of many taxa that were previously exceedingly difficult to study on large spatial scales.
Souza has been a biologist for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife for more than 10 years and has played a key role in developing these sentinel sites. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 15, via Zoom. To join, go to yoloaudubon.org or
facebook.com/yoloaudu bonsociety.
On Saturday, March 11, meanwhile, Marc Hoshovsky, a local volunteer naturalist, will lead a field trip to the city of Davis’ South Fork Preserve. The preserve runs along the South Fork of Putah Creek, a few miles southeast of Davis. Almost 200 acres in size, it is one of the best stands of riparian and floodplain forest along Putah Creek, with some old trees wider than 5 feet in diameter.
The preserve’s 30-yearold restored oak woodland demonstrates how fast woodlands can recover, given a nearby creek and some loving care. The preserve attracts a lot of birds and other wildlife.
The walk will be a relatively slow paced 1-mile loop walk (all flat), allowing plenty of birding opportunities. The first few hundred feet are on a wheelchair-accessible gravel path that leads to a new observation deck overlooking the creek. Beginning birders are welcome on this field trip. For more information on how to participate in these events, go to the group’s websites; yoloaudubon.org or face book.com/yoloaudubon society.
The Yolo County District Attorney’s Office is accepting applications for its eight-week Citizen’s Academy.
Slated for 6 to 8:30 p.m. Thursdays from April 27 to June 15, the academy seeks to educate the public about the criminal justice system and improve relationships and communication between citizens and law enforcement.
Previously held virtually due to the Covid pandemic, the academy returns to an in-person format at the Woodland Police Department, 1000 Lincoln Ave. in Woodland.
Weekly topics include: the roles of the District Attorney and law enforcement, victim services, gangs, restorative justice practices and collaborative courts addressing mental illness and addiction, and breaking barriers addressing the schools-to-prison pipeline. In past years, participants observed DUI and K-9 officer presentations.
Participants must be at least 18 years old and live or work in Yolo County. Class space is limited.
The application deadline is Monday, April 3. To apply, contact Wendy Wilcox at wendy.wilcox@ yolocounty.org or 530-6668356. For information, visit www.yoloda.org.
Wildlife Tracking System stations make up a worldwide network of automated telemetry receivers that collect data on tagged animals as they move through the landscape.
In collaboration with The Vault, the student club accomplished this goal and provided skateboard decks to those hindered by the cost of starting. Organizers needed permits through the city of Davis for amplified sound and street use.
“We also were required to alert all businesses in the area that we had applied for these permits, giving them a chance to contest them if need be,” Valle said.
Many attendees heard about the event as advertised on KDVS.
KDVS listener Brother
Yufi of Sacramento brought his four kids, aged 3 to 8. The five were each rollerblading around, a fun family activity that Yufi said began during the COVID19 pandemic. His cousin, who teaches school-aged kids in Oakland to skate as part of an after-school program, inspired Yufi to rekindle some childhood magic.
It’s been since Yufi was a kid himself that until the last couple of years, he put his skates back on. “It feels like freedom. You can just go, right?” Because rollerblading is fun for him, it’s easy to excite his children to skate together.
Some attendees, like Sacramentan Indie Courtney, just went for the show.
Standing atop a picnic table with a film camera to her face, she looked forward to seeing how her photos turned out.
Katie “Traumagotshi”
Seward took the opportunity at the Skate Jam to pass out flyers for The Woodland Area Roller Derby (WARD). This amateur league practices on Sundays from 8:30 to 11 a.m. at Ferns Park in Woodland. Because the pandemic thinned out the league, they’re recruiting new members for an April
tournament. “We have almost a full roster, but even if you’re not ready for the tournament, we’re looking for people to join, learn to skate, and hopefully join our roster, so we can start having home bouts again,” Seward said.
A small group of Gen X townies came to the skate jam. Preferring to skate in an agricultural drainage ditch known as “the Ditch” over other areas like the Davis Skate Park, these skaters hit the Swingle part of town every Sunday around 11 a.m.
“It’s bad,” Luke Turner said of the Davis Skate Park. “Right now, we’re in the middle of trying to get a new skate park built because it’s not functional.”
Initially conceptualized by the previous KDVS event Directors Claire Tauber and Nash Rood in October of 2021, Valle explained the idea for the skate jam was inspired by Unity Skateboards (a queer skate group out of Oakland).
With the intent “to create a pop-up event at the Davis Skatepark to highlight femme, BIPOC, and queer skaters/artists/musicians” the event also aimed to encourage those who have never tried the sport to begin their journey and
learn from others.
Quoting SkateboardersHQ, Valle said of the sport: “Initially considered a form of self-expression practiced by outcasts, skateboarding collided with the emergence of punk rock and was closely associated due to similar anti-establishment ideologies.” Hence the intertwined connection between music and skating, he said.
On Feb. 3, Aggie Hurricane held their weekly skate session to honor the memory of Tyre Nichols, a Black skater with roots in Sacramento who officers brutally killed in Memphis.
“Hate has no place in our club, and we felt that we must use our voices to bring awareness to the issue and honor Tyre’s memory. Our members responded well; to our weekly skate sesh we brought cardboard and markers, and people began enthusiastically creating signs. It was great to see everyone show support.”
Aggie Hurricane was established in 2018 by a group of female skaters who were new to the sport yet interested in creating a skate club, Valle explained. They were inclined to encourage new skaters and introduce the sport to as many people as possible. The group would skate at the Parking Garage at the intersection of Hutchison Drive and Dairy Road. Afterward, the members would collectively get a drink called the “Aggie Hurricane” at the Segundo Market, hence the name.
The Aggie Hurricane skate club holds our skate sessions on Fridays from 6 to 7 p.m. at various locations around Davis, usually in parking lots or anywhere with flat ground such as Central Park.
— Contact Monica Stark at monica@ davisenterprise.net.
Individuals can safeguard brain health — particularly cognitive health — by taking preventative steps.
adobE/Stock photo
Metro
Special to The Enterprise
Cognitive health is not something to take for granted. Although a certain level of memory loss can be expected as people age, when the ability to clearly think, learn and remember is compromised, those changes can affect an individual’s ability to perform daily activities and should serve as a cause for concern.
Brain health should be a priority for everyone. The National Institute on Aging says brain health is an umbrella term that encompasses a host of factors, including:
■ cognitive health, which is how well you think, learn and remember
■ motor function, or how you make and control movements
■ tactile function, which is how you feel sensations; and
■ emotional function, or how emotions are interpreted and responded to. Individuals can safeguard brain health — particularly cognitive health — by taking these steps.
Working with doctors, individuals can put their health first. This includes getting routine screenings,
managing chronic health problems, limiting or avoiding alcohol and nicotine products, and getting the recommended amount of sleep each night.
All chronic conditions cause long-term repercussions, but the NIA indicates that observational studies show having high blood pressure in mid-life increases the risk of cognitive decline later in life. Lowering blood pressure lowers the risk for mild cognitive impairment and possibly dementia.
Harvard Medical School says nurturing social contacts, engaging in stimulating mental activities like reading and doing puzzles, seeing new places, and learning new things can help keep the brain in top form.
Stress can take its toll on the body, and there is reason to believe that it may adversely affect cognitive health as well. Make every stride to reduce stress, whether that involves taking vacations, meditating,
laughing with friends and family, or engaging in relaxing activities that relieve stress.
Vitamin D is linked to a host health benefits, including its potential to promote a healthy brain. Individuals can get more time outdoors to get vitamin D naturally from the sun and eat foods rich in vitamin D. If doctors find that vitamin D levels are exceptionally low, supplementation can help.
Certain hearing loss has been linked to cognitive decline, says Healthline. Researchers in Italy concluded that people with central hearing loss had a higher risk of mild cognitive impairment than those with no hearing loss or peripheral hearing loss. Individuals with central hearing loss are urged to speak to their physicians to determine if they can take preventive action to stave off further decline.
Cognitive health should be a priority. Adults can employ various strategies to reduce their risk of cognitive decline as they age.
editor
Davis High boys soccer head coach
Alex Park has a lot of patience.
He was confident that his Blue Devils would put the ball into the back of the net against Clovis North High’s squad in the California Interscholastic Federation
NorCal Boys Soccer Championships
Division I on the Dewey Halden Field at Ron and Mary Brown Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
In a battle of two California and nationally ranked teams playing for the coveted NorCal title, DHS took many shots on goal against the Broncos.
Blue Devil forward Simon VacaLorenzi had two of those opportunities. His second shot was the one that counted.
That led to top-seed Davis (22-0-1) posting a thrilling 1-0 win over No. 2 seed Clovis North (26-1-1) for the program to capture its first-ever regional title in front of approximately 1,800 fans.
“We talked about the fact that (scoring) was going to come sooner or later,” Park said. “Just be patient with it, be positive and believe, and it did.”
Davis entered the title game ranked No. 2 in California by MaxPreps. JSerra Catholic (20-1-1), which beat Birmingham 3-0 to win the CIF SoCal Boys Soccer Championships D-I title, is ranked No. 1.
The Blue Devils maintained their No. 3 spot in the national rankings behind No. 2 Clinton (21-0-1), out of Mississippi
and No. 1 JSerra Catholic.
This was also the second time this school year a DHS boys athletic team won in CIF regional crown. The Blue Devil boys water polo team recorded an 11-10 win over San Ramon Valley for the D-II title at American River College in Sacramento last November.
Vaca-Lorenzi took what would be the only goal in the game in the 65th minute of the contest.
Davis took possession of the ball down the Broncos’ sidelines on the east side of the stadium. After numerous DHS and Clovis North players battled for the soccer ball on the south end of the field, Vaca-Lorenzi found himself with the ball on the side of net.
Vaca-Lorenzi raced past a Bronco defender, booted the soccer ball that sailed into the back of the net for the goal.
Then he raised his arms to his side in celebration of the goal. His Blue Devil teammates raced to the south end of the field to celebrate Vaca-Lorenzi’s goal.
“I saw the ball, run past the guy and said, ‘why not shoot it?’” Vaca-Lorenzi said. “It was awesome.”
Davis goalie Declan Fee had two big saves a minute before Vaca-Lorenzi’s shot, plus later in the half.
Coming off a free kick before the goal, a Clovis North player used his head to advance the ball on the north end of the goal. But Fee leaped up to snag the save and put the ball back into play.
Fee came up with another leaping save
See TITLE, Page B2
There are a lot of ways to spend a Saturday afternoon, but those who chose to spend it at the University Credit Union Center on the UC Davis campus were treated to a game for the ages and an Aggie men’s basketball win to boot.
The Aggies came back from an 11-point deficit in the final 61 seconds to force overtime, then used two free throws by Eli Pepper in the second overtime to take a 93-92 win from Long Beach State in the Big West Conference regularseason finale for both schools.
Both came into this door-die scenario needing a win to secure sixth place in league play and earn one of six first-round byes in the Big West tournament that begun Tuesday at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nev.
The Aggies finished at 11-8 in Big West play for sixth place, while Long Beach dropped to 11-9 to finish seventh.
UCD now opens the Big West tournament on Thursday. Long Beach played Cal Poly on Tuesday evening. See the story to the right of this story for more information.
Enterprise staff
The UC Davis men will open the Big West Conference basketball tournament with a quarterfinal game against UC Riverside Thursday at 8:30 p.m. at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nev.
The Aggies enter the tournament as the No. 6 seed, while Riverside is No. 3.
UCD lost to the Highlanders twice in the regular season, 74-72 at home and 72-65 on the road.
The game will be televised by ESPN+ and broadcast by Sactown Radio (1140 AM), which is UC Davis' broadcast partner.
Should the Aggies win on Thursday, they will meet an opponent yet to be determined Friday at 8:30 p.m., nationally televised by ESPNU and broadcast again by Sactown Radio.
The men's championship game is Saturday at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
The No. 4 Aggie women open tournament play Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. against No. 5 UC Santa Barbara (ESPN+), a team they split with during the regular season.
Brown tossed all eight innings, allowing eight runs — four earned on 14 hits while striking out nine. The 6-foot-2 junior improves her record to 6-3 this season.
Mike BUsh/ enterprise photo
The UC Davis softball team took Cal to extra innings, but the visiting Golden Bears posted an 8-5 in Tuesday afternoon at La Rue Field.
Libbie McMahan went 3-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs for UCD (106). Sarah Starks had a base hit and an RBI.
The Aggies got the scoring started early, putting one run on the board in the bottom the first inning with an RBI single from McMahan, which plated Anna Dethlefson.
The Golden Bears then rallied to score five runs and take a 5-1 lead before the Aggies got back on the board in the sixth. UCD picked up a run on McMahan’s leadoff home run off of junior Sona Halajian, which brought the score to 5-2 in favor of the Golden Bears.
UCD kept the Golden Bears off the scoreboard before rallying to even it up at five in the seventh. Cal then scored three times over the remaining one inning to break the tie and grab the 8-5 win.
Kenedi Brown started and took the loss in the circle for UCD. The righthander tossed all eight innings, allowing eight runs — four earned on 14 hits while striking out nine.
The Aggies will head to the Silicon Valley Classic Tournament co-hosted by San Jose State and Santa Clara for four games this weekend.
Weather permitting Friday, UCD will play Rhode Island at noon and San Jose State at 3 p.m.
On Saturday at noon, the Aggies play Utah State University and Santa Clara at 2:30 p.m.
James Williams had three of UCD’s seven hits, but Sacramento State came out with a 9-6 win in Tuesday’s Causeway meeting at John Smith Field on the Hornets’ campus.
Nick Leehey had two hits for UCD
UCSB won, 77-64, in Davis, but just last Thursday the Aggies routed the Gauchos, 80-59, in Santa Barbara.
UCD roUnDUp
(5-5), which is just one win away from matching the total number of wins it accomplished during the 2022 season. The Aggies went 6-34.
The Hornets had eight hits in the game. UCD will play a three-game series at Arizona State starting on Friday, which is scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m. Saturday’s game in Tempe, Ariz. will also start at 6:30 p.m. Sunday’s game will go at 12:30 p.m.
Nicole Beales has been recognized by the Eastern College Athletic Conference as a Rider of the Month for February.
Beales, a senior studying Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems, had a dominant February, earning two MOPs in Flat. Beales scored a 77 in the Aggies’ rout of Minnesota Crookston and a 76 against TCU that helped the Aggies sweep the Horned Frogs in Flat.
UC Davis Equestrian return to action at the ECAC Championships, which will be held in Brookings, S.D. on March 23-25.
UC Davis freshman Amelia Moneymaker was named the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Freshman of the Week, the conference office announced Tuesday.
The honor is the third of the season for the newcomer.
Moneymaker finished seventh on vault in the quad-meet with San Jose State, Southern Utah and Sacramento State with a score of 9.80. She was eighth on floor with a 9.875 and placed 10th on bars at 9.775.
The Aggies will head to Cal on Sunday to take on the Golden Bears, Sacramento State and Arizona.
OT: ‘Two days to
The difference is significant, given that UCD is still recovering from a rash of late-season injuries.
“We can really use those extra two days to help heal,” said Aggie coach Jim Les. “We still have a number of guys who aren’t 100 percent.”
You wouldn’t have known it by the way the Aggies played down the stretch.
UCD led 39-29 at half and still enjoyed a 50-43 advantage after a 3-pointer by Pepper with 10:12 remaining.
But the Aggies went ice cold at that point, managing just two free throws and no field goals in an eightminute stretch as Long Beach went on a 20-2 binge to eventually forge a 67-56 lead with just 1:01 remaining.
However, seemingly no deficit is insurmountable for Les’ band of never-saydie warriors.
Most folks have never seen a five-point possession, but Robby Beasley hit the first two of three free throws, then UCD rebounded a miss of the third and Beasley hammered a 3-pointer and sud-
p.m. (ESPN+). The men’s and women’s tournament winners advance to the NCAA tournament as an automatic bid for the Big West champions.
denly the Aggies were just two scores down at 67-61.
Still, there were only 55 seconds remaining, Long Beach had the ball and the odds of a successful comeback were still long.
They got even longer when The Beach went up 69-61, but Ty Johnson hit two free throws, Pepper converted a layup off a steal and Beasley hit two more free throws to time the deficit to 69-67 with 19.1 seconds remaining.
Two free throws by Pepper with 2.2 seconds to go finally tied things at 73 to force overtime in front of a frenzied crowd of 2,217 at the UCUC.
Long Beach struck first and eventually took an 81-77 lead into the final minute of overtime, but UCD again fought back with a basket by Pepper to tie things at 82 and force a second overtime.
This time the Aggies forged an 89-84 advantage entering the final 1:30, but Long Beach used a couple of steals to take a 92-91 lead at 0:28. Pepper then made two free throws to give the lead back to UCD at 0:21 and Ade Adebayo’s rebound off a last-second miss by Long
Beach State’s Amari Stroud sealed the win.
“I just credit the resolve of this group,” Les noted.
“Even in the huddle during timeout they were saying we could still do this. We just put some pressure on them and things went our way.”
For Pepper, 28 points and 10 rebounds along with four steals was just another day at the office.
“We needed everything to happen right,” Pepper noted about the comeback. “This will give us some great momentum going into the tournament.”
Les agrees.
“We’re looking forward to playing Thursday night,” he said. “There’s great parity in this league and we’ve had a number of close games this season.”
Christian Anigwe, playing his final game on UCD’s home floor, had 21 points, while Johnson had 22 and Adebayo was a force inside with 10 rebounds and two key blocks.
The game was won at the foul line, where UCD hit 33 of 40 attempts to just 15 of 27 for Long Beach. UCD sizzling 14 of 15 at the line in the two overtimes combined.
TITLE: ‘Kind of set the tone’
six minutes remaining in the contest in what would be the Broncos’ final attempt in putting the ball into the back of the net.
Three DHS players moved the ball between them in the 47th minute in what appeared to be setting up a goal.
Defender Emanuel TamesKaimowitz, along with Vaca-Lorenzi and forward Lucas Liu, passed the ball on the ground. But the final movement sent the ball out of bounds and Bronco possession.
Tames-Kaimowitz had a shot on goal in the third minute of the game. But the Broncos goalie scooped up TamesKaimowitz’s shot, which was taken inside the box.
Clovis North forward Matt Swanbeck took his team’s first shot on goal four minutes after TamesKaimowitz had hit chance. Fee came up with another save at that point.
“I think the first one ... kind of set the tone,” Fee said.
Blue Devil forward Rigo Guerra, who celebrated his
18th birthday on Saturday, almost gave his teammates and himself a goal in the 8th minute of the game. He had a line-drive shot, but it hit the left goal post on the north end of the field and bounced out of bounds.
Vaca-Lorenzi put a direct shot into the net in the 14th minute of the game for what appeared to be a goal. But a foul was called on the play.
The Broncos galloped a minute later in their way to trying another shot. But Blue Devil defender Holt Klineberg forced the ball inching closer to the Blue Devils’ goal out of bounds.
Clovis North midfielder Brandon Lopez’s shot on goal in the 28th minute was high and sailed over DHS’ goal.
The Blue Devils had another chance at the Broncos’ goal a minute before halftime. Guerra had another opportunity, but the Clovis North goalie rolled out of the box and picked up the ball for the save.
How does it feel for DHS players and their coach to win the regional title?
“It feels amazing,” Fee said.
Vaca-Lorenzi echoed the same sentiment as Fee.
“My last game ever,” said Vaca-Lorenzi of DHS soccer, as he plans to play college soccer after he graduates in June.
Park was treated to an ice bath from his players after the team received their championship plaque and medals. A good thing he was wearing a heavy-duty jacket.
“It felt great,” Park said. “Nothing is going to make me feel bad tonight. I think we made history today. It feels good.”
Saturday’s game was also the last one for the Blue Devils’ 15 seniors on the team. Those players are Vaca-Lorenzi, Fee, goalie Joey Clark, defenders Holt Klineberg, Collin Morris, midfielder Ayush Tuladhar, Tames-Kaimowitz, Liu, defender Zayn Dmeiri, midfielder Nicolas Montano, Guerra, midfielder Caleb Yoon, forwards Riley McCormick, Jason King and Andrew Yang.
— Contact Mike Bush at mike@davisenterprise.net. Follow on Twitter: @MBDavisSports.
River Cats, Sky River Casino partner for the 2023 season
WEST SACRAMENTO — The Sacramento River Cats and Sky River Casino are excited to jointly announce their multi-year partnership for the naming rights of Sutter Health Park’s Solon Club, the semi exclusive club area along the right-field line.
“Sky River Casino is an organization much like the River Cats who prides itself on community outreach, its members, and supporting the greater Sacramento region”, said Sacramento River Cats president and COO, Chip Maxson.
“We are very excited about our new partnership with Sky River Casino as we team up to support our community and bring fun and excitement to River Cats fans.”
The Solon Club, a name inspired by the former club that played in Sacramento until 1976, is the perfect
place to enjoy a baseball game, the beautiful city skyline and intimate cocktail parties.
“We’re thrilled to partner with the Sacramento River Cats and join the community in celebrating America’s love for baseball,” said Chris Gibase, who is Sky River Casino’s president and chief operating officer.
“It is especially fitting for Sky River to align with the Solon Club that showcases the rich history of baseball that brings so many Northern Californians together to enjoy our national pastime.”
Aside from branding the Sky River Casino Solon Club, the River Cats and Sky River Casino will also focus on a handful of prizing opportunities through Fan Compass, an enter-towin sweepstakes platform.
Deborah Poulos
Please look up my two books on Amazon.
• Home Schooling: During COVID-19 and Beyond
• The Conscious Teacher I taught in Davis for 27 years. These books will be helpful for teachers and parents. I would appreciate if you would check in with me at dnpoulos@urcad.org
170 sq. ft office space for rent at 130 D St. Downtown Davis. $700 per month.
(626)375-8336
NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF LYNNE O. CRANDALL Case No. PR2022-0263
To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both, of LYNNE O. CRANDALL
A PETITION FOR PROBATE has been filed by Bradford G. Crandall, Sr. in the Superior Court of California, County of YOLO.
THE PETITION FOR PROBATE requests that Bradford G. Crandall, Sr. be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.
THE PETITION requests the decedent's lost will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. Copies of the lost will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court.
THE PETITION requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.)
The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.
A HEARING on the petition will be held on March 30, 2023 at 9:00 AM in Dept. No. 11 located at 1000 Main St., Woodland, CA 95695.
IF YOU OBJECT to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney.
IF YOU ARE A CREDITOR or a contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code.
Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.
YOU MAY EXAMINE the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk.
Attorney for petitioner:
STACIE P NELSON ESQ SBN 185164
JAIME B HERREN ESQ SBN 271680
HOLLAND & KNIGHT LLP
560 MISSION ST STE 1900 SAN FRANCISCO CA 94105
CN994415 CRANDALL Mar 8,10,15, 2023
To place a classified ad, visit https://www.davisenterprise.com/submit-ad/
To submit an obituary, visit https://www.davisenterprise.com/obit-form/
To submit a legal notice, email a copy to legals@davisenterprise.com For questions, call Shawn at 530-747-8061.
PROFESSIONAL OFFICE FOR LEASE. Central Davis location on Kennedy Place, at J Street near Covell. Great parking. Beautiful wood built ins. 600 square feet. Call (530) 759-0200 or email rent1105kennedy@gmail.com
Notice of Public Sale: Self-Storage unit contents of the following customers containing household and other goods will be sold for cash or credit card by CubeSmart Self Storage 541 Harbor Blvd. West Sacramento, Ca 95691 to satisfy a lien on March 22, 2023, approx. 12:00pm on storagetreasures.com
Sabrina Lopez, Chang Liu, Surendra Sundar, Aicha FousshiFischel, Kathy Pinola, Rahkell Howard, Ruth Henderson Published March 8, 15, 2023 #2199
Summer leadership camp opportunities for high school juniors. The Davis Sunrise Rotary club is offering full scholarships to current high school juniors for two summer leadership camps, Camp Royal and Camp Venture. If interested, contact Don Winters, dsw0419@gmail.com
Public Notice NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS
Notice is hereby given that the County of Yolo General Services Department will receive sealed bids for the
“Health & Human Service Agency Gonzales Building Project Refresh ” before 2:00 p.m. on Thursday March 30, 2023 at the Yolo County General Services Department, 120 West Main Street, Suite G, Woodland, CA 95695 , and promptly thereafter the bid opening will follow at 2:15 p.m. in the conference room at 120 West Main Street, Suite G, Woodland, CA 95695. Bidders must attend the mandatory pre-bid conferences to be held at the project site 137 North Cottonwood Street, Woodland, CA 95695 at 2:00 p.m. on March 8, 2023 in order to submit bids for this project.
Each bid must conform to the requirements of the Contract Documents which can be downloaded along with all bid documents at www.bidsync.com. It is the bidder’s responsibility to register at www.bidsync.com to ensure notification of all addenda and issued project information. It is the bidder’s responsibility to arrange for printing services. For more information, send questions through www.bidsync.com.
Note to General Contractors; Joint Apprenticeship Committee Participation Requirement: The County adopted a policy that one of requirements to be deemed a responsive bidder is that when submitting a bid at or in excess of one million dollars ($1,000,000) the bidder must then be participating in a joint apprenticeship committee on public works projects. The California Department of Industrial Relations defines a joint apprenticeship committee as a committee made up of equal number of members from labor and management. Bidders submitting bids at or in excess of one million dollars ($1,000,000) must complete a California Department of Industrial Relations’ DAS-7 form that documents the bidder’s participation in a joint apprenticeship committee. Bids that are not accompanied by such proof of participation will be rejected. The County will verify participation prior to the award.
March 3, 8,
#2196
In 2024, Californians will vote on whether the state should continue producing oil under the world’s strongest environmental, health and labor laws or if California should increase its reliance on imported oil, which could come from other oil-rich countries.
The “Stop the Energy Shutdown” referendum collected nearly 1 million signatures in record time because many Californians don’t want to send their hardearned money to foreign dictators who don’t share our values.
We got to this point because Senate Bill 1137 was gutted and amended five days before the end of the 2022 legislative session. The new language instituted a prohibition of new or reworked oil wells within 3,200-feet from “sensitive receptors,” or structures. In most cases, the oil wells were operational long before the structures were built.
Legislators had already rejected a similar bill earlier in the session and a regulatory process on the issue was also underway.
The legislative process is there for a reason. It provides for public hearings so that experts and impacted groups can provide testimony, ask questions and offer solutions in a public forum. For example, an exhaustive review of government studies on the question of setbacks conducted by the city of Los Angeles concluded that there was “a lack of empirical evidence correlating oil and gas operations within the City of Los Angeles to widespread negative health impacts.”
California Independent Petroleum Association engineers found that SB 1137 would threaten 15,500 existing wells and prevent planned, new, in-state production. Yet, in the five-day legislative rush job, there wasn’t real discussion on gas price impacts, the loss of revenue for local communities, the financial impact to the 55,000 highpaid workers in the oil industry, or the additional oil tankers it would take, coming from overseas to meet current oil demand.
Last-minute gut-and-amend bills in the final hours aren’t the way to make good policy. When politicians jam through legislation like SB 1137, the people of California have the right to respond.
California already has oil-well setback rules, and more than 20 local, county, state and federal agencies oversee every aspect of oil production in California.
California-produced oil is also the only crude in the world compliant with the state’s climate regulations. Our oil producers must follow the state’s greenhouse gas reduction programs and account for all emissions, but oil imports are entirely exempt from these regulations. Foreign countries don’t pay local taxes that fund police, fire, roads and schools, nor do they support local projects like affordable housing and higher education scholarships.
How much will gas prices increase if 15,500 existing California wells are shut down and the supply shifts to imported oil?
Nearly half of all electric cars in America are sold in California, yet petroleum demand has steadily increased over the past decade. In 2012, California’s petroleum demand was 598 million barrels. In 2019, it was 659 million.
How will we meet oil demand for the foreseeable future?
Even if California grounded every airplane and banned every combustion engine, we would still rely on every drop of in-state oil to produce the more than 6,000 petroleum-based everyday products our residents depend on.
How can Californians drive their electric vehicles without the petroleum-based tires, car body shell, batteries or asphalt to drive on?
These critical questions should have been discussed when considering legislation of this magnitude.
Californians’ last barrel of oil should come from California, not from foreign dictators or countries who do not reflect our values. Voters will get to decide this question in November 2024, which is the very definition of democracy.
— Rock Zierman is the CEO of the California Independent Petroleum Association.
It didn’t take long to kill my optimism. When I read a CalMatters report in late February regarding Senate Bill 1439, I was heartened. The law, which Gov. Newsom signed last September, prohibits any local elected official from voting on “a license, permit or other entitlement” sought by a donor who has contributed $250 or more to that politician.
We already had in place similar prohibitions against anyone appointed to local and state agencies. This new law extends that to elected officials who regularly seek tens of thousands of dollars from individuals, groups and businesses that stand to lose or gain much more money based on government policies.
As everyone should understand, it is corrupt for a politician to take money from people who are seeking favors from or doing business with the government and then repaying those donations by giving donors favorable deals.
Payback is the reason public employees, trade unions, contractors, farmers, insurers, bankers, lawyers, builders, developers, professional associations and so on contribute to the campaigns of people running for office. They invest millions to get billions in return.
The law’s author, Sen. Steve Glazer (D-Orinda), believes SB-1439 is “the most significant political reform of the last 50 years.”
It builds on Assembly Bill 1040 of 1982. According to the legislative analyst, excluding members of city councils, county boards of supervisors and the state legislature AB-1040 “prohibited an elected or appointed officer, alternate or candidate for office who serves on a specific
quasi-judicial board or commission from accepting, soliciting or directing a contribution of $250 or more from any person or their agent who has an application for a license, permit or other entitlement for use pending before the body and for three months following the date a decision is rendered on the application or until the end of the officer’s term, whichever is longer, or from any person, or their agent, who actively opposes the application.”
The impetus for AB-1040 was reporting by the L.A. Times that “several coastal commissioners had solicited and received large campaign contributions from persons who had applications pending before them.”
For the last 20 years, I have written about the problem in Davis of having members of the City Council directly and indirectly accepting tens of thousands of dollars from our firefighters and their union (collectively) and then, behind closed doors, giving them raises in wages and benefits worth tens of millions of dollars.
Increases in total hourly compensation — particularly pricey pension plans — that have greatly exceeded revenue growth in Davis is the main reason our city is in dire financial condition now and why we are on course to be in much worse shape in the years ahead. It’s why with much more money the city is able to do so much less for
I live in North Davis and shop Trader Joe’s often. I truly miss the Cost Plus that used to reside at University Mall which along the TJ’s, made it a one-stop shopping match made in heaven. (It is now occupied by “Encounters UFO Experience”.)
A consumer-friendly store such as Home Goods, Pier 1, Pottery Barn, or
President
everyone in need.
Bad bargaining by corrupted politicians is also why our infrastructure — especially city trees, streets, bike paths and sidewalks — is poorly maintained.
While we cannot undue what corrupted councils have already done, I was sanguine that SB-1439 would at least give members of the City Council reason to negotiate in good faith with city employees. That, after all, is what collective bargaining is supposed to entail.
As I wrote last October, winning city council candidates Gloria Partida and Bapu Vaitla took thousands of dollars from firefighters in Davis and from their union in 2022. I was curious to know if that would mean those two could not take part in the next negotiations with Davis Firefighters Local 3494.
It turns out, alas, they can. Davis City Manager Mike Webb told me that “SB-1439 is not to be applied retroactively.”
According to Davis city clerk Zoe Mirabile, “SB-1439 applies to contributions received on or after Jan. 1, 2023.”
Another matter I wondered was whether, for example, 20 union firefighters each giving $150 — that’s the cap in Davis — would count collectively as $3,000? Or if those donations would be looked at as “just” $150 a person?
Mirabile informed me that “SB-1439 does not aggregate contributions from multiple individuals.” So in that respect, with our $150 per person contribution limit, it seems untrue for Davis that this new law is “the most significant political reform of the last 50 years.”
Mirabile also explained to me that SB-1439 “excludes
Crate and Barrel would make a much better match for this space.
Lowering the 90-plus-foot feet height by less than 10 feet wouldn’t seem enough to appease the local residents objecting to the project, but wouldn’t making it a 2- or even 3-story building be an agreeable compromise and make the shopping experience great for us all?
Diane Steele DavisThere are times in life when evil
The Hon. Joe Biden, The White House, Washington, D.C., 20500; 202-456-1111 (comments), 202-456-1414 (switchboard); email: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact
U.S. Senate
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, 331 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20510; 202-224-3841; email: https://www. feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/ e-mail-me
Sen. Alex Padilla, 112 Hart Senate Office
Building, Washington, D.C., 20510; 202224-3553; email: https://www.padilla. senate.gov/contact/contact-form/
House of Representatives
Rep. Mike Thompson, 268 Cannon Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20515; 202225-3311. District office: 622 Main Street, Suite 106, Woodland, CA 95695; 530-753-5301; email: https:// https:// mikethompsonforms.house.gov/contact/
Governor Gov. Gavin Newsom, State Capitol, Suite 1173, Sacramento, CA 95814; 916-4452841; email: https://govapps.gov.ca.gov/ gov40mail/
labor or personal employment contracts.”
The legislation states that the law applies to, “all business, professional, trade and land use licenses and permits and all other entitlements for use, including all entitlements for land use, all contracts (other than competitively bid, labor, or personal employment contracts) and all franchises.”
Since our labor contracts are not competitively bid, I asked our city attorney, Inder Khalsa, if that means the memorandums of understanding with city workers fall under the provisions of SB-1439?
Khalsa says no: “‘Competitively bid’ describes one type of contract that is exempt from SB-1439, with other types of exempt contracts being labor contracts and personal employment contracts. ‘Competitively bid’ qualifies ‘contract,’ not ‘labor or personal employment contract.’”
Khalsa adds, “In the case of labor agreements, the city is required to negotiate with the bargaining unit or union chosen by the city’s employees. Competitively bidding a labor agreement would violate state law requirements that we negotiate with the union or bargaining group of the employees’ choice. For that reason, those contracts are never competitively bid.”
My hopes for Glazer’s bill benefitting Davis have been dashed. Services in town will only improve if the voters wake up and realize that City Council members who take money from developers and city employees are not working for us.
— Rich Rifkin is a Davis resident; his column is published every other week. Reach him at Lxartist@yahoo.com.
prevails, and it its always discouraging. It takes courage to come against it. It seems like a small thing, but it never is. Our board voted not to renew our new music director’s contract. Shame on them.
Jan Peiffer Woodland ComicsBaby Blues is back. So happy to see this.
A sweet strip back in our comics. Thanks.
Marcia Kasabach Davis
The 2023 Oscar awards ceremony has a slew of excellent films vying to win Best Picture on Mar. 12. These 10 films represent 24 hours of viewing time. That’s why the HUB is bringing you mini-reviews so you can choose how to spend your time!
“Every bit as jam-packed with ideas as its title would suggest.”
“The real magic is the love for filmmaking that is plainly evident throughout.”
“Everything
Everywhere All At Once” is a story every bit as jam-packed with ideas as its title would suggest. It defies an easy summary of its plot, and overflows with style, novel concepts and love for the craft of filmmaking; if there was an award for creativity it would wholeheartedly deserve it. But more than that, “Everything Everywhere All At Once” expertly grounds its insane moments with two incredibly empathetic performances from Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan, giving the movie more of an emotional core than most of its competition this year. There’s not a whole lot to say about this movie; to pick out any moments would ruin the magic of the film, and to make any broad statements would fail to capture just how clever and entertaining it is. Go watch it.
“It seems like you’re eavesdropping on real people, not watching a movie.”
“Tár” follows a world-renowned conductor, Lydia Tár, whose arrogance and manipulative nature begins to overshadow her genius for her craft. Of all the movies nominated for best picture, this one has the most believable characters; at times it seems like you’re eavesdropping on real people, not watching a movie. This effect is enhanced by a masterful performance from the entire cast, who never felt anything less than completely real. However, while “Tár” undeniably deserves credit for its writing and acting, it’s still not enough to blind the viewer to the film’s flaws. The biggest problem with “Tár” is that it asks audiences to merely exist in its world as it slowly meanders, ultimately arriving nowhere and accomplishing very little in the way of story. Despite its flaws, Lydia Tár remains a terrifically fascinating character, who all but makes up for a script that might otherwise have been called bloated.
“Better than an action movie about guys flying planes has any right to be.”
They really don’t make many movies like this anymore. “Top Gun: Maverick” may not be as complex or as emotionally charged as some of the other movies on this list, but it is every bit as entertaining as the best of them. It’s one of the most fun movies of the year, in the vein of the classic ’80s action film, brought to us by Tom Cruise, whose commitment to old Hollywood style blockbusters makes him one of the last true living movie stars. After all the nostalgia-baiting remakes of beloved intellectual property to be released in the last few years, many people may have had a cynical outlook on Maverick. But do not be fooled; this one is a great movie in and of itself. Beautifully shot and unnecessarily well-acted, it’s better than an action movie about guys flying planes has any right to be.
“Lacks the emotional core of other films to debut this year.”
“The Banshees of Inisherin” is a film about very human characters going through very human struggles–which unfortunately are of little real interest. A technically solid film, it lacks the emotional core of other films that debuted this year. The result is a very intelligent, meticulously crafted, beautifully shot film that feels completely cold. Actor Colin Farrell’s character Pádraic endures a truly miserable series of events, and yet not once does his character–or any of the other unhappy characters that populate the isle of Inisherin–inspire any sort of sympathy. “The Banshees of Inisherin” ultimately feels like a puzzle with the center missing. The writers take great care to set up all the pieces in this meticulously crafted movie but forget to bother making a connection with the audience. The end result is a finale that leaves the viewer feeling numb to the plight of the central characters.
“Has neither the artfulness nor the realism to keep the viewer’s attention.”
In the vein of classic dialogue-focused films such as “12 Angry Men” and “Before Sunrise,” “Women Talking” follows the women of a Mennonite colony as they discuss what to do after several men in the community are arrested for a series of sexual assaults. The structure is the most notable thing about the film, and it relies heavily on its writing. The problem is that the dialouge it’s built upon is bland and inauthentic. Conversations circle without any clear sense of headway and everyone speaks with a precision that is hard to believe would come from “uneducated” characters. That lack of authenticity in the script is alienating, a flaw which is exacerbated by an uneven collection of performances and an over-reliance on narration. Some films can make a movie with this structure interesting, but “Women Talking” has neither the artfulness nor the realism to keep the viewer’s attention, despite an intriguing core premise.
On its face, “The Fabelmans” is a semi-autobiographical retelling of director Stephen Spielberg’s childhood amidst an increasingly unstable home life. At its core, it’s really a movie about talent and art. Sam Fabelman, that stand-in for Spielberg, is caught between his artistically-inclined mother and his more scientific father. Anyone with a passing familiarity with the name Spielberg knows how that turned out, but the movie takes the less obvious route of showing how both of Sam’s parents influenced who he grew up to be, a storyline that is helped by two strong performances from Michelle Williams and Paul Dano. But the real magic of “The Fabelmans” is the love for filmmaking that is plainly evident throughout. In its goal to be a send-up of filmmaking and art, “The Fabelmans” is oftentimes protracted and cheesy, but who can complain when it’s so effortlessly entertaining.
“This is the only film I wish had been a little bit longer.”
“Triangle of Sadness,” written and directed by Ruben Östlund, is a satirization of class hierarchy, wealth and influencer culture. The film follows two influencers who attend a luxury cruise populated with an assortment of comically oblivious and self-absorbed ultra-wealthy vacationers. Thanks to a biting script from Östlund, these characters come alive in all of their arrogant glory. This makes the film an entertaining watch, but at times it’s hard to avoid the feeling that the film is not quite as smart as it wants to be. Östlund repeatedly introduces an interesting idea, but before he can really dissect it he moves on, never really giving enough time to any of these fascinating ideas. Admittedly, a sharp left turn in the third act does allow some of these themes to be revisited in a satisfying manner, but of all the oftentimes self-indulgent, ponderous films to be nominated for Best Picture, this is the only film I wish had been a little bit longer.
“At its best when its characters are in the immediate vicinity of the war.”
“All Quiet on the Western Front,” adapted from the 1928 novel of the same name, follows a German recruit during World War I as he navigates the Western Front of WWI. Telling one of the most famous anti-war stories of all time, the movie portrays the violence of WWI in a suitably grim manner. Featuring gruesome depictions of the war’s violence in vivid detail, it’s safe to say that the film does not hold a lofty opinion of war, and the movie is at its best when its characters are in the immediate vicinity of the war; the sections of the film that drift away from the conflict noticeably sag, as the audience is asked to spend time with overtly one-dimensional characters and the viewer becomes increasingly aware of the film’s 2 1/2 hour runtime. The problem is its subject matter, which, while remarkably well-produced, is also my greatest criticism of the film: it’s just not saying anything new.
“Nobody will ever accuse Baz Luhrmann’s ‘Elvis’ of being dull.”
Nobody will ever accuse Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis” of being dull. The camera soars through roaring stadiums and incandescent carnivals; every moment is punctuated with rapid-fire cuts, never giving you an opportunity to breathe. Whether on purpose or not, the film does succeed in making the audience share in Elvis’s exhaustion by the end of the film’s nearly three hour runtime. That being said, I find it unlikely that I’ll ever watch “Elvis” again. The thing about this movie isn’t even that it’s the worst thing in the world. The film is undeniably artistic, albeit tiresomely maximalist in its approach, and it features a compelling performance from Austin Butler as the King of Rock and Roll. If “Elvis” were an hour shorter, maybe it wouldn’t leave me with such a bad taste in my mouth, but Luhrmann never once exercises a modicum of restraint, and “Elvis” is all the worse for it.
“Exists only as a vessel for the film’s admittedly impressive visuals.”
Why this was nominated for Best Picture over more notable films like “Aftersun” or “The Whale” is a mystery to me. The follow-up to James Cameron’s iconic Avatar is just as superficial as its predecessor; “Avatar: The Way of Water” is a shallow action adventure that exists only as a vessel for the film’s admittedly impressive visuals. At the very least, Cameron’s attention to detail and love for the world of Pandora is evident, if only it had translated to a more sophisticated and challenging story. Cameron wants to deal with big themes about conservation and protecting the environment, but the script falls short of saying anything particularly interesting or new about these ideas, and instead falls back on trite messages about family ripped straight from the pages of a “Fast and Furious” movie. If you’re looking for some pretty visuals, “Avatar: The Way of Water” won’t disappoint, but don’t expect anything else.