Daily Republic: Monday, Sept. 26, 2022

Vallejo police chief decries violence after shooting leaves man dead

Glen faiSon GFAISON@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

VALLEJO — A shoot ing Saturday in the city left a 21-year-old San Francisco man dead and the police chief lamenting what he describes as “senseless” and “systemic” gun violence.

Officers responded shortly after 10:05 a.m. to a report of a shooting on the 1500 block of Valle Vista Avenue. The man was found at the scene with at least one gunshot wound and was pronounced dead, police report.

Authorities withheld the man’s name pending family notifications.

Information about what police suspect may have led to the shooting was not released.

Police Chief Shawny Williams in a press release charac terized a spate of deadly shoot ings as “senseless gun violence” that he said was “systemic.”

“We must double down on our efforts to stop community vio lence through adequately resourced intervention strate gies,” Williams said in the statement.

He called gun vio lence a public health crisis and urged the See Violence, Page A8

Fairfield police report 1 dead after shooting Sunday

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — Detec tives are searching for those responsible for a deadly shooting early Sunday in the city.

Dispatchers were notified of a fight shortly before 3:50 a.m. on the 1000 block of Eisen hower Drive, police report. Another caller shortly thereafter reported shots being fired outside his home.

Officers who responded to the area found a man in the yard with a gunshot wound. He was transported to a local hospital and died as a result of his injuries, police report. The man’s name, age and city of res idence were not released.

Investigations Divi sion personnel are working the case.

This is the city’s seventh reported homi cide of the year:

n A 44-year-old Fair field resident was shot and killed and two men from Suisun City were injured in a shooting shortly after 5:15 a.m. March 13 near a con venience store on the 200 block of East Tabor Avenue. One of the Suisun City men died two days later after being taken off life

support. Their names were not released.

n Anthony Fuimano, 56, of Fairfield, was shot at approximately 11:25 p.m. April 21 on the 300 block of Manzanita Avenue. Police report he died from his injuries at a local hospital at approxi mately 2 a.m. April 22.

n Charles David Parsons, 56, of Fairfield, was stabbed during an altercation reported just before 1 p.m. May 16 in front of a business on the 1300 block of West Texas Street. He died as a result of his injuries.

n Sao Loa, 56, of Fair field, was pronounced dead after being found unresponsive in the after math of a neighborhood altercation that occurred just before 11 a.m. May 31 on the 1200 block of Willet Court.

n A male was killed and another male was injured in a shooting that happened at approx imately 11:15 p.m. July 22 on the 1700 block of Enterprise Drive. Offi cers who arrived there found several people who were participating in the making of a music video, along with the two people who were shot. The names, ages and cities of residence were not released for those who were shot.

a lexei KoSeff CALMATTERS

There were four more requests for gun violence restraining orders on Jeff Brooker’s desk when he arrived at the San Diego City Attorney’s Office that July morning.

Officers had responded to a minor car crash at a mall where the driver, who carried a replica firearm, was rambling delusion ally and threatening to kill the “one-percenters” and a public official. Another man, during an argument outside a family mem ber’s home, had pulled a gun out of his waistband and pointed it at someone’s head as several others looked on.

It was not an unusual number of new cases for the depart ment’s eight-member gun violence restraining order unit, which Brooker oversees. In an average

week, they triage 30 referrals from local police, reviewing scenarios in which officers believe a resident is at risk of committing gun violence.

About a third of the time – in those instances when the person clearly poses a danger to them selves or others, and they aren’t already prohibited from pos sessing weapons for another reason – the office will petition a judge to temporarily seize their firearms, under a six-year-old Cal ifornia statute that was among the country’s first “red flag” laws.

More than 1,250 times since the end of 2017, when San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott launched the pioneering unit, Brooker’s team has successfully filed a gun violence restraining order, leading to the seizure, as of April, of nearly 1,600 firearms from 865 people –far more than any other agency in the state. An estimated one-third of the weapons, most of which

are handguns, have since been returned to the owners.

“Do you believe this person should have a gun? Your own sense is the best test,” said Brooker, who employs a cable television thought experiment to illustrate how he tries to depo liticize the highly charged red flag law: If a case hypothetically turns into a major news story, how might it be covered by both liberal MSNBC host Rachel Maddow and conservative Fox News anchor Sean Hannity?

“If this is a case they can agree on, this is the kind of case we’re going to file,” Brooker said.

These red flag laws, touted by advocates as one of the best tools available to prevent gun violence, received a renewed push this summer after a mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde,

3 people – 2 from Fairfield - die in head-on crash along Interstate-80

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — Three people died early Sunday in a head-on crash along Interstate 80 on the out skirts of Davis that sent two other people to a regional trauma center for treatment.

Two of those killed were Fairfield residents.

The crash happened at approximately 3:10 a.m. as a 31-year-old Fairfield woman was driving an

Infiniti sedan eastbound in the westbound lanes of I-80 west of Richards Boulevard in Davis and collided head-on with a Hyundai sedan, driven by a 30-year-old Pet aluma man, that was headed west in the fast lane on westbound I-80, the Solano area Cali fornia Highway Patrol office reports.

Both drivers were killed in the crash, along with a 27-year-old Fairfield woman who

was a passenger in the Infiniti. Their names were withheld pending family notifications, the CHP reports.

Two other passengers in the Infiniti had major injuries and were trans ported to the University of California, Davis Medical Center in Sac ramento for treatment, the CHP reports. They were identified as Calvin Parish, 36, of Oakland, and Terell Clark Sr., 31, of Sacramento.

Westbound I-80 was shut down for several hours with traffic rerouted around the crash scene. All lanes had reopened shortly before 6:25 a.m., the CHP reports.

The crash is being investigated by the Solano area CHP office.

The Solano County Coroner’s Office is han dling that aspect of the case as well as family

Travis’

Raquel Natalicchio/CalMatters office in San Diego, July 13.

Mare Island Dock of Bay Music Festival a treat

‘S

uperman vs. The Amazing SpiderMan” was a groundbreaking comic book in 1976. The two marquee heroes from the DC and Marvel universes teaming up was mind-blowing for this 12-year-old. Now, a real-life local equivalent was when two local impresarios, Kevin Frazier and Jeff Trager, who had been friendly rivals for years, pooled their talents in 2020 and became Frazier Trager Presents.

If the main supervil lain they’ve had to fight while they’ve put on music and comedy events all over the North Bay could be personified, it would be Covid Fear.

Last year, they launched the Mare Island Dock of Bay Music Festival in Vallejo. I was unable to attend the inaugural event, but thanks to the gener osity of my friend Jeff Trager, I attended the second annual show Sept. 17 with my wife Beth and two friends, Andy and Anna Peregoy.

It was held at the Mare Island Brewing Co. Coal Shed Brewery and featured a stage at either end of the prome nade. The start times of the eight bands that played were staggered between the prome nade stage and the main stage and we hiked back and forth between them.

There were vendors and food trucks. I enjoyed the art on the promenade as well as being hawked by vendors. I actu

ally was wearing some art – my all-over replica T-shirt of the cover of Stevie Wonder’s classic album “Songs in the Key of Life” – so I had to get a photo with a Stevie painting from a local artist.

Virtuoso musician Carlos Reyes kicked off the music playing his violin, at turns sweetly and fiery, with a powerhouse band. A highlight was the Chick Corea classic “Spain.”

Vinyl was the first band on the main stage and I thoroughly enjoyed their jamming, funky and mostly instrumental set punctuated with tight horns. In fact, they were able to get this non-dancer to get up and dance (no video footage exists, thank the Lawd). Fred Ross joined them on vocals and a highlight was the old William DeVaughn tune, “Be Thankful for What You Got.” I drive a Jeep Ren egade not a great big Cadillac, diamond in the back, sunroof top, diggin’ the scene with a gangsta lean, but I still stood tall and slow danced with my wife.

We made the trek back down to the other end to see Miles Schon, the 29-year-old son of Journey and Santana guitar ist Neal Schon. He inherited both his looks and his guitar chops from his pops and I really wanted to like his set, but the songs just didn’t connect. Worse, they did a version of Otis Redding’s signature song, “(Sittin’ On) the Dock of the Bay,” which, to me, calls for

someone with at least a li’l bit of soul in their voice. They don’t have to be Michael McDonald, but Schon’s singer was closer to Vince Neil of Mötley Crüe and it just didn’t work.

San Francisco-based The Mother Hips played next and they are a talented group. I especially liked the strummy song “Green Linen” from their 2021 album, “Glowing Lantern.”

It was cool to run into famil iar faces at the show, including my Armijo classmate Ed Lock hart, bass player for local band Rendishun Fauss Gamulo, Fairfield Vice Mayor Rick Vaccaro and his wife Sue, and singer extraordinaire Clau dette Ramirez.

I had told my wife about how awesome and funny bluesman Alvon was since I had seen him slay the audience at the Down town Theatre a few years back. After dinner we caught most of his set and she got to see what I was talking about. You don’t have to take my word for it, though. Alvon is closing out the first annual Fairfield Summer Music Festival at 6 p.m. Friday on the Solano County Lawn downtown.

The highlight of the Dock of Bay Music Festival for me was Eric. Freakin’. Gales. Before he even picked up his guitar, he said he wanted to gauge what kind of energy he would get from the crowd. He then announced that as of July 15 he celebrated six years clean and sober and the crowd erupted. Strapping on his guitar, he said, “Now it’s time to play my a** off

and I hope y’all enjoy the show.”

Gales’ set leaned heavily on his strong 2022 release, “Crown,” and he crushed songs like “The Storm,” “Sur vivor” and “You Don’t Know the Blues.” He also performed a song by another celebrated left-handed guitarist, “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)” and added his own flavor to it. It was great, as was a cover of The Beatles’ “Come Together” and the instrumental riff of “Back in Black,” which he incorporated into a funky jam.

Gales connected with the audience on a visceral level better than any of the other artists. It totally seemed like he was having as much or more fun than anyone else. He joy

fully pointed out a musician he knew in the crowd, had the audience recreate a rap battle scene from the film “8 Mile” as he wailed a solo, asked people in a boat in the marina if they were OK and they blew their horn twice in response – it was just unbridled fun.

I felt bad for Lorin Rowan’s Deep Blue Jam having to follow Gales on the promenade stage. I walked down and checked them out for a minute as they did a tasty cover of “Message in a Bottle” by The Police.

By that time, it was start ing to get a little chilly, but I had come prepared and was multi layered. Plus Beth and I were under a quilt my friend Nanci ann Gregg made for me. One of the very few downsides Beth and I have experienced from our massive weight loss is that we have eliminated a lot of body insulation and we get c-c-c-old much easier now.

I wanted to stay for the whole show and totally enjoyed the few songs we saw of Karl Den son’s Tiny Universe, including “Family Tree,” but eventually we succumbed to the cold and the fact that Gales had kind of stolen the show.

Fairfield freelance humor col umnist and accidental local historian Tony Wade writes two weekly columns: “The Last Laugh” on Mondays and “Back in the Day” on Fridays. Wade is also the author of The History Press books “Growing Up In Fairfield, California” and “Lost Restaurants of Fairfield, California.”

Index: Dallas ranks No. 1 for infidelity Former ‘Cheaters’ host has theories

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

DALLAS — A U.K.based dating website has crunched the data and determined that Texas has an inordinate amount of cities in its Infi delity Index.

Dallas ranks first and Fort Worth second on MyDatingAdviser.com’s list of most unfaith ful cities in the nation. Houston comes in third.

In a study of 200 metropolitan areas, MyDatingAdviser.com used U.S. Census Bureau data to compare rela tionship satisfaction, life satisfaction, infidelity intent and affair activities, said Amy Pritchett, a Lon don-based relationship writer and MyDatingAd viser.com editor.

Pritchett presented the rankings on the website, which offers and solicits dating advice.

“We also looked at the number of venues to meet for an affair, and the volume of searches on Google for affair hookup websites was also consid ered for the rankings,” Pritchett said in an email.

Tommy Habeeb, the Dallas resident who helped bring the reality television show "Cheaters" to widespread popular ity 20 years ago, saw the dating website’s findings and couldn’t agree more.

“I believe there’s [more of] a focus on appear ance, a focus on health, a focus on mental health in Texas than almost any where,” Habeeb said. “I really started to notice it when we started taping 'Cheaters.' ”

"Cheaters," which was created by Dallas lawyer Bobby Goldstein, contin ues today with the premise of spotlighting couples in which one partner is sneaking around.

Habeeb, who went by the persona Tommy Grand, hosted "Cheat ers" from its beginning in 2000 to 2002. He also hosts "STAG: A Test of Love," which profiles spouses-tobe before their weddings

and captures their reac tions to their partners’ bachelor or bachelor ette parties.

From looking into where and why people cheat, Habeeb has his the ories about patterns.

Over the years, he noticed a good deal infi delity was happening in the warmer climes in the southern U.S.

“It’s always warmer, and you’re outside more,” he said. “There’s the way we dress and the southern sweetness that comes off as possibly flirting.

“The next thing you know you’re out in the parking lot at lunch and bad things are going on.”

In her Infidelity Index, Pritchett ranked the top 10 unfaithful cities, listing the marriage rate, divorce rate, separation rate, hap piness index and Google search trends suggesting interest in an affair.

Google searches were tracked for “affair” and “Ashley Madison,” which is a Canadian-based dating site marketed to people who are married or in a relationship.

On the upside, Califor nia is a haven for those

seeking a faithful relation ship. Pasadena, Torrance, Roseville and Visalia were ranked first through fourth for faithfulness. Back in Texas, Laredo was No. 5 and McAllen No. 9 for the metric.

When "Cheaters" first aired, the Dallas-Fort Worth area was the back drop for the majority of the episodes. In discus sions about the show’s locale, Habeeb said D-FW was not regarded as Ground Zero for infidelity.

“It was never planned out that way – we had no idea,” said Habeeb, who now produces a pet rescue show called "To The Rescue." “We were going to go and travel around the country filming, but because of budget [con straints] and trying to catch people in the act, it takes time, and they’re not all perfect cases.

“We tried to film in other cities, and we did. But then it became: Why? Why would we do that and spend all this money when we have an unlim ited amount of material right here?”

Tony Wade The last laugh

Courtesy photo

Tony Wade, wearing his replica T-shirt of the cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Songs in the Key of Life” album, stands next to a painting of Wonder at the Mare Island Dock of Bay Music Festival, Sept. 17.

Travis AFB’s Toys for Tots campaign begins Saturday

FAIRFIELD — Travis Air Force Base personnel will man a booth Saturday at the Vacaville farmers market to get the word out about the official kickoff to the annual Toys for Tots campaign.

“I’ll have a table and canopy set up with pro motional materials and information, free goodies for anyone that wants any, and will just be raising awareness for the cam paign to try to reach as many people that need help this holiday season as possible,” Staff Sgt. Salva tore Rizzo, the 2022 Solano County Toys for Tots coor dinator, wrote in an email. “I’ll also have QR codes set up for local businesses to volunteer as a toy drop site so we can bring in as many toys as possible for those in need.”

There will be collection boxes on site for new and unwrapped toys.

Business donations of packing tape, black per manent markers, a dolly (to be returned after the campaign), three long foldable tables (to be returned after the cam paign), 10,000 black trash bags (“Toy Distribu tion Receptacles”), gas cards, and restaurant and grocery store gift cards to support and feed volun teers are all needed.

The recently dedicated Marine Corps League Charles “Bud” Hallam Detachment No. 1486 is involved in the campaign effort as well.

The farmers market runs from 8 a.m. to noon at the Creekwalk Plaza of Andrews Park, 614 E. Monte Vista Ave.

Pair of government meetings on local calendar

FAIRFIELD — The final week of September includes a pair of govern ment meetings that are open to the public. Check each agency’s website for attendance options and agendas.

The meetings include: n Solano County Board of Supervisors, 9 a.m. Tuesday, board chamber, Government Center, 675 Texas St., Fairfield. Info: www.solanocounty. com/depts/bos/meetings/ videos.asp.

n Vacaville City Council, 6 p.m. Tuesday, City Hall council chamber, 650 Merchant St. Info: ci.vacaville.ca.us.

Suisun agency hosts Art, Wine and Live Music Waterfront Festival

SUISUN CITY — More than 70 artisan booths will be part of the 17th annual Art, Wine and Live Music Waterfront Festival scheduled Saturday.

The festival is spon sored by the Suisun City Historic Waterfront Business District and runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. along Main and Solano streets.

Suisun City dance studio Sky Studios will offer a dance class at the waterfront at 10 a.m. Entertainment on the waterfront stage includes Jim Funk from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Shuffle with classic rock from 2 to 5 p.m., organizers said. Wine by the glass is available for $10 and includes a commemo rative glass.

Leave pets at home as the Suisun City ordi nance prohibits them at outdoor events.

For vendor or visitor information, go to www. suisunwaterfront.com.

Virtual employment focus of speaker series

FAIRFIELD — The challenges and oppor tunities of employment will be the focus of the next Solano Economic Development Corporation speaker series event set for Tuesday. Jeremiah Gill, vice president of HR Con sulting-Program Offices at Kaiser Permanente; Trish Sur, senior director of People and Culture at Genentech; and Heather Henry, president and executive director for the Workforce Devel opment Board of Solano County, are the sched uled speakers.

Go to https://us02web. zoom.us/webinar/ register/WN_Q3T7t2F dSUaRZPx_f5r3aA to register. The virtual event runs from noon to 1:30 p.m. The series is sponsored by Kaiser Permanente.

Saving Grace plans lasagna dinner fundraiser

VACAVILLE — The Saving Gracie’s Founda tion will host a drive-thru family lasagna dinner fundraiser and Amazon gift card giveaway on Thursday.

The event will be hosted by Anderson Family Catering in Vacav ille. Visitors can stay in the car for this one, as staff will bring the dinner to you. Visitors will also be eligible for an Amazon gift card. The meal serves up to six adults and includes a tray of “heat-andeat” hearty meat lasagna, including green salad, garlic bread and dessert.

Proceeds will benefit Saving Gracie, a local charitable foundation whose Angel Fund helps families avoid experi encing the heartbreak of losing their family pet. Through community donations, Saving Gracie offers Solano County fam ilies a financial option to receive veterinary care that they could not other wise afford.

The event will take place from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Anderson Family Catering, 1286 Callen St. The meals are $60.

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit saving-gracie.org or call 707-469-3496.

Vacaville Museum Gallery to host the 33rd Bunco Bash

VACAVILLE — People who manage the Vacaville Museum Gallery will host the 33rd Bunco Bash.

The evening will also include a lasagna meal with salad, bread, des serts, wine and other beverages before kicking

off the competition for cash prizes.

that has its roots in 18th century England. Its play during Prohibition in the 1920s gave rise to the term “bunco squads” to describe law enforcement groups who raided speak easies and other gambling dens. The game saw a rebirth as a family game in the late 20th century and early this century.

First place will win $75, second place will receive $50 and third place will get $40. Those with the most buncos and the most losses will receive $30. There will also be a drawing for various prizes.

The event, which raises money for the Vacav ille Museum, will begin at 6 p.m. Thursday at the museum gallery, 213 Buck Ave.

For more information on tickets, visit vaca villemuseum.org.

Learn about cemetery research at next genealogy meeting

VACAVILLE — Kathryn Marshall will present “Cemetery Research” at the next meeting of the Solano County Genealogi cal Society.

This virtual pre sentation begins at 11 a.m. Saturday.

Marshall was the director of the Lodi Family History Center for 14 years. Currently working with the Fam ilySearch website, she develops interactive maps for the Research Wiki and builds instruc tional content. She is a frequent speaker at genealogical conferences

Learn how to combine clues from obituaries, eteries to find and verify ancestors. Discover what more can be learned by physically visiting cem eteries than by relying solely on sources found online. Compare the websites FindaGrave and Billion Graves. Use Google Earth features to locate additional ceme teries in likely areas and see how different cultures honor their dead.

Guests are welcome to attend this free event. If interested, send an email to the society at scgs@ scgsca.org no later than 4 p.m. Friday and request an invitation.

More information on events can be found on the society’s webpage at www.scgsca.org.

Square dance club invites guests to join in

VACAVILLE — Vaca Valley Ramblers Square Dance club will host a dance Saturday at the Vet erans Memorial Building.

Dancing rounds will be cued by Erin Byars from 2:30 to 3 p.m., and squares called by Lawrence John stone from 3 to 6 p.m. The veterans hall is located at 549 Merchant St.

Entry fee is $12 per person. Door prizes, refreshments and 50/50 drawing are included.

Obituary

Barbara Hagadorn Dec. 29, 1932 — Sept. 11, 2022

Barbara Haga dorn went home to be with our Lord and savior on Sept. 11, 2022, at home with her husband and mate of 39 years by her side.

Barbara was born Dec. 29, 1932, in Cle burne, Texas, to Euell and Dorothy Cosgrove. She has been a resident of Fairfield, California, since 1965. She married Thomas Hagadorn on July 22, 2000, and was his partner since 1983.

Barbara earned her mas ter’s degree in English Liter ature from the University of California at Davis. She went on to teach Shakespeare, Steinbeck and others at Armijo High School for 20 years, retiring in 2004.

She enjoyed jazz and rock ’n’ roll music, going to concerts, dancing and reading mystery novels.

She was a member of Berean Baptist Church for 12 years, enjoying Sunday school, potluck dinners and the fellowship with other

members. She is survived by her husband, Thomas Hagadorn of Fairfield; son and daughter-in-law, Richard and Vivian Mugg of Vallejo; and nephew, Gary Giese of San Antonio.

She was preceded in death by her parents; sister and nephew, Mary Hendrix and Richard Giese of San Antonio.

Visitation will be held from 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022, at Bryan-Braker Funeral Home, 1850 W. Texas St., Fairfield. A brief grave side service will be held at 12:30 p.m. at Suisun-Fair field Cemetery, 1707 Union Ave., Fairfield, California.

In lieu of flowers, memo rials may be made to any Alzheimer’s/dementia research foundations.

Arrangements are under the direction of BryanBraker, 707-425-4697. You may sign the guest book at www.bryanbraker.com.

1st zero-emission highway bus, wireless charger coming to SolTrans

Todd R. H ansen THANSEN@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

VALLEJO — The first battery-electric, zero-emission highway bus will be unveiled Tuesday as part of Solano County Transit’s fleet, and will be opera tional this winter.

The occasion will be celebrated from 10 a.m. to noon by SolTrans directors along with Solano Transportation Authority and Momen tum Dynamics officials. Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, also is scheduled to appear.

The event will take place at the SolTrans Curtola Park and Ride Hub, 1501 Lemon St. in Vallejo, where the first wireless induc tive charger also will be unveiled.

“We are so proud to bring this technology and zero-emission bus to Solano County. The new (Build Your Dreams Battery-Electric, ZeroEmission) bus joins four other all-electric buses we already have in

operation on our local service. We are commit ted to bringing ambitious clean air strategies to our county’s public trans portation system. This is SolTrans’ next step in becoming fully zeroemission and improving the air quality in Solano County and beyond,” Beth Kranda, SolTrans executive director, said in a statement.

The inductive charg ing system was installed at the SolTrans Curtola Park and Ride Hub last winter by Momentum Dynamics. The wire less charger will provide frequent incremental charges to SolTrans’ new zero-emission bus, according to a press release. The all-elec tric bus will be piloted on the SolanoExpress Yellow Line beginning this winter.

Charging with this wire less system is fully automatic, requires very little interaction by the driver and extends the battery range of the bus,

For more information, leave a message at 707564-0909 for a call back, visit the club’s Facebook page or send an email to Peggy Rollins at child librarian@yahoo.com.

Ian Thompson/Daily Republic file (2013)

Travis Airmen, from left to right, Airman Basic Vincent Polanco, Airman Basic Derrick Sanchez and Airman Basic Jefferson Anthony sort toys, which will be sent to local nonprofits to be distributed to needy children, as part of Travis’ part of Toys for Tots, in 2013.

Robinson Kuntz/Daily Republic file (2017)

The Vaca Valley Ramblers square dance group dances at the Rush Ranch 27th Annual Open House event, in 2017.

Courtesy photo

Lex, a cat that benefited from Saving Gracie, a nonprofit that helps people with major vet bills.

Robinson Kuntz/Daily Republic file

A Solano Transportation Authority bus was on display at Solano Community College, in 2020.

See SolTrans, Page A7

Memory care centers over assisted living

Dear Annie: I want to share a story with you and your readers about a resource that has helped our family tremendously. They are called memory care centers, which is an alternative to assisted living.

In 1998, my sister and I were informed that the agency handling the 24/7 home care for my dad, who had Alzheimer’s, could no longer work with him because he was having too many falls in his house. They requested that we find other arrange ments for him.

My sister’s son located a brand-new facility in subur ban St. Paul, Minnesota. He was their first patient, and they treated him like a prince. The facility was within walking dis tance of my nephew’s house.

My dad had a private corner room with two large windows and a very comfortable hos pital-style bed. The room had a television and private bath room, and my sister bought an electric lift reclining chair for him when he wanted to watch TV, take a nap or just relax. He put up pictures of family as well as some of the build ings his company had built over the years.

I got my first look at it about

a month later when we were cleaning out my dad’s Minnesota condo.

I was absolutely amazed at how wonderful this place was. There was a dining room where everyone could eat their meals together if they wanted. They even pre pared special meals for him whenever they were serving something that was on his allergy list. They had an ice cream shop, barber, beauty shop, library and social room with a large-screen TV. They had a courtyard com pletely surrounded by the building where people could go out and sit in the sun with no fear of them wander ing off alone.

The front door had a buzzer system that could only be acti vated by the receptionist to let visitors in and out. My sister and any of her adult children could pick him up and take him out for dinner or to family events any time they wanted.

In earlier years, I saw my grandparents, and later my mother-in-law, in a nursing home situation, and it just turned my stomach.

These facilities are a far cry from most nursing homes. I remember that on the first day I visited, my father was with a group of people who were

Horoscopes by Holiday Mathis

ARIES (March 21-April 19).

As you slip into project man agement mode, the stars favor you. You’ll list, sort and schedule like a boss. The moment right after this plan ning session brings a surge of accomplishment.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20).

Your story isn’t static. Like all of the stories through out history, yours is subject to rewrites, especially as new con texts evolve. Keep in mind that the way you frame your past will often be the way others see it, too.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21).

You’d like to believe that justice wins in the end, but you’re not willing to relax and see what happens. Instead, you’ll crusade for what’s right and do whatever you can to build the future you believe in.

CANCER (June 22-July 22).

You’ve an instinct to protect a thing of beauty. Consider that sometimes you need protec tion from the thing of beauty instead. The same storm that is scary close up is a wonder to behold from the safety of a distant shelter.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). You’ll be out in the world with your heart wide-open today, and you don’t have to worry too much about losing it either. Like a smartphone, your heart is equipped with a location system. You can always find and retrieve it if necessary.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Though you usually strive to be

Today’s birthday

You’ll get where you’re going in style, whether you’re making a smooth landing with your first-class flair for communication or you’re rolling up in another iteration of your classic good taste. Treasures await on the outer edges of your comfort zone. A simmering admiration will develop into a deep connection. Leo and Gemini adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 9, 2, 22, 4 and 18.

your best, at times it is helpful to tone down your attractive energy in the manner of a spy. Blending in gives you the best vantage point for observing key nuances of your surroundings.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23).

It takes a seasoned eye to spot potential. You will recognize in others the very things you have developed in yourself. You’ll give the praise, acknowledge ment and help you wish had been afforded to you.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21).

It’s better to get good fortune out of the blue than to expect it, thus having the chance to assess whether it meets the expecta tion. You’re about to give a gift. The most effective way will be to make it a surprise.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22Dec. 21). People don’t appre

trying to carve pumpkins. I had never, EVER seen my dad try to carve a pumpkin, and it was hysterical -- and he was having a good time. The next day, they had a music therapist visiting and were singing all the songs that were popular when they were young.

And for the record, my two sons both know that if I am unfortunate enough to develop any form of dementia and can’t stay in my own home safely, they should find a facility for me exactly like the one my dad was in. -- Memory Care

Dear Memory Care: Thank you for your letter. I hope it helps others in similar situ ations. Going to a home that specializes in the type of care that your dad needed sounds like a great idea, and you found just the right place. You have a right to feel relieved and grate ful, and we appreciate your sharing your story.

Finding the right memory care facility or nursing home or assisted living facility for our elderly relatives is one of the most important decisions any of us can make. Kudos to you for helping your dad and, possibly, yourself, if you were to develop dementia later in life.

Send your questions for Annie Lane to dearannie@ creators.com.

ciate what’s readily available to them. You have informa tion, resources, attention and more to give. You’re better off making them work for it. They’ll like it more, and you’ll get the respect you deserve.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19). You learn fast. You may get it wrong a few times, but what matters is that you don’t get it wrong the same way twice. You’ll switch tactics until you discover what works, and then you’ll apply it again and again for the win.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 18). Do you sense your connection to things outside yourself such as animals or other people’s thoughts? It’s magical how synchronicity shows up for you, all springing from the peaceful, easy feeling you’ve been cultivating.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You don’t trust those who give too much information, and others won’t trust you if you tell stories that aren’t yours to tell. The safekeeping of certain secrets will be what’s best for all, at least for a time. Loose lips sink ships.

CELEBRITY PROFILES: In his short life, the legendary composer George Gershwin defined the American sound of his era. Gershwin’s natal sun and Jupiter were in artistic, aesthetic Libra, with his moon in musical Aquarius.

Write Holiday Mathis at HolidayMathis.com.

TAKING POTLUCK FROM THE BOARDS

This morning, while wondering what to write about, I selected the top board from a set sitting in a bookcase. I decided that we could take potluck. When I saw that all of the cards were in runs, I knew it was a teaching deal. It is quicker to preduplicate hands in which the cards are sequential. (I don’t own a

by Phillip Alder

dealing machine, and if I did, it would not talk to my software.)

What is the point of this deal?

A few players would upgrade the South hand to a one-no-trump opening. However, you should always try to show a five-card major. Here, also, you have a weak doubleton in hearts. North makes a game-invitational limit raise promising four or more spades, 10-12 support points and eight losers – textbook. South nudges on to game.

West leads the heart queen. How does that help South?

West continues with the heart eight, East winning with the king and shifting to the diamond six. What happens next?

South has three top red-suit losers, so he must find the club queen to make his contract. After winning the third trick, declarer should draw trumps and play a diamond himself – a discovery play. East takes that trick and returns his last diamond. Who has the club queen?

The opening lead placed the heart ace and king with East. He has also shown up with the diamond ace. Therefore, he cannot have the club queen. If he did, he would have 13 points and would have opened the bidding.

Keep track of the high-card points.

COPYRIGHT: FEATURE SYNDICATE Sudoku

by Wayne Gould

Bridge

Solution to 9/24/22: 9/26/22

TAKING POTLUCK FROM THE BOARDS

Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 grid contains the digits 1 through 9, with no repeats. That means that no number is repeated in any row, column or box. Solution, tips and computer program at www.sudoku.com

This morning, while wondering what to write about, I selected the top board from a set sitting in a bookcase. I decided that we could take potluck. When I saw that all of the cards were in

Bridge

Difficulty level: BRONZE

Word Sleuth

Annie Lane Dear Annie

Baldo Hector Cantú There is no job too big or small, we invite them all.

Give us a call to schedule an appointment or just stop by we always have coffee brewed and popcorn popped. We look forward to meeting you and providing you with excellent customer service.

(707) 427-1386

Mon.-Fri., 7:30AM-5:30PM Sat., 7:30AM-4:00PM 1245 Illinois St., Fairfield, CA

Amid cheating claims, Levine isn’t fazed

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

Maroon 5’s Adam Levine has been in the hot seat since cheating alle gations surfaced earlier this week. But it seems the “Payphone” musician isn’t breaking a sweat.

Levine seemed to be moving on from the scandal nearly unscathed in new photos with preg nant wife Behati Prinsloo.

On Wednesday, TMZ posted pictures of the singer with Prinsloo in Montecito, California, with both of them wearing their wedding bands, exchanging smiles and holding hands.

TMZ reported that “there’s really no appar ent sign of tension between” the couple, despite the recent cheating claims.

Levine’s professional life also seems untouched by the claims. Maroon 5 is heading to Las Vegas on

Oct. 1 for “The Event,” a benefit hosted by the Sha quille O’Neal Foundation, where they will perform alongside H.E.R., Maren Morris, John Mulaney and Pitbull.

The drama began Monday when Instagram model Sumner Stroh, 23, alleged on TikTok that she had been “having an affair with a man who’s married to a Victoria’s Secret model.” She said it was Levine, 43, and shared screenshots of their private messages.

A day later, Levine denied Stroh’s claims of an affair.

“I used poor judgment in speaking with anyone other than my wife in ANY kind of flirtatious manner. I did not have an affair, nevertheless, I crossed the line during a regrettable period in my life,” Levine said in a post to his Instagram stories on Tuesday.

Pickles Brian Crane

Zits Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

Pearls Before Swine Stephan Pastis

Dilbert Scott Adams

Baby Blues Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott

Present This Ad for 10% Discount off any Repair Service!

Pressure builds for workers’ compensation overhaul

Fair warning: This column will be about workers’ compensation, a topic that’s very complicated and totally lacking in sex appeal, but one that involves many billions of dollars and potentially affects millions of workers.

Work comp, as it’s dubbed, has been in effect for more than a century and is sup posed to provide income and medical treatment to workers who incur workrelated injuries and illnesses without resorting to lawsuits.

Annually, California employers spend more than $15 billion for insurance to cover work comp claims, not counting billions more that large employers set aside in self-insurance funds for their state-mandated coverage. That’s big money by anyone’s standards, which explains why there’s more or less perpetual political joust ing over the rules governing who is eligible for benefits and what they can receive.

For the past half-century the politics of work comp have followed a pattern. Roughly once a decade, a majority of the contending interests – employers, their insurers, labor unions, medical care providers and lawyers who specialize in making claims – agree of some “reforms” that are then muscled through the Legislature.

It’s an exercise in pure power politics that benefits the dominant coalition and always hits the minority faction with new costs and/ or new restrictions.

The last time it occurred was a decade ago when a coalition of employers, unions and insurers, with the blessing of then-Gov. Jerry Brown, tightened up medical care that both lowered employers’ costs and provided funds for cash benefit increases.

It worked as intended, or perhaps more than intended, because work comp insur ance premiums, which averaged about $3 per $100 of payroll at the time, have since dropped by nearly half to $1.76, according to a recent report from the Workers’ Compen sation Insurance Rating Bureau.

California’s premiums have been among the nation’s highest, according to the most recent state-by-state compilation by the Oregon Department of Consumer and Busi ness Services, the recognized authority on such data. With California’s recent reduc tions, it’s now somewhere in the middle.

That’s been good news for California employers, but grates on medical care pro viders who dislike the previous overhaul’s restrictions and on labor unions and work comp lawyers, who believe that employers got the best of the deal.

Pressure has been building for another decennial “reform” but Gov. Gavin Newsom has reportedly urged the contending factions to cool it until the effects of the Covid-19 pan demic have been fully understood. The insurance rating bureau says more than a quarter-million claims for pandemic-related disabilities have been made, with more than half coming from the health care and public safety sectors.

During the pandemic, the Legislature and Newsom issued some special rules making it easier to claim benefits, and their effect on the system’s finances is still being calculated.

Meanwhile, under pressure from unions, the Legislature has been chipping away at aspects of the last systemic overhaul – par ticularly on what’s called “presumption.”

Certain workers – such as police and fire personnel – can claim benefits for specified illnesses and injuries without having to prove they are job-related and bills have been expanding both the categories of workers and the types of disabilities that qualify.

For instance, three years ago legislation declared that post-traumatic stress disorder is presumed to be job-related for police offi cers and local firefighters and this month, Newsom signed a bill extending that pre sumption to state-employed firefighters and dispatchers for public safety agencies.

The proliferation of such bills is increas ing the pressure for a new systemic overhaul, but the makeup of the dominant coalition and what changes it will seek are still very unsettled.

CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how Cal ifornia’s state Capitol works and why it matters. For more columns by Dan Walters, go to calmatters.org/commentary.

Letters to the Editor

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Send letters to Letters to the Editor, the Daily Republic, P.O. Box 47, Fairfield, CA 94533, email to gfaison@dailyrepublic.net or drop them off at our office, 1250 Texas St. in downtown Fairfield.

Desperate Dems use distractions, deceit

As November elec tions approach, we have seen two interest ing things: Despera tion and distraction brought on by utter incompetency from the Biden administra tion. Why desperation? Well, since Joe Biden managed to get elected to the world’s most powerful political office, our nation has gone down hill rapidly. Here are the indisputable facts.

When President Donald Trump left office, America’s inflation rate was at 1.4%, food and energy gaso line prices were stable, there was a secure southern border, removal of 30,000 economically harmful reg ulations, veterans services were improved, law enforcement fully sup ported and our military was rebuilt.

NATO was admonished to pay its just share of defense costs. Health care choices were expanded. He appointed more than 200 originalist judges who believe the Constitution means what it says. He created the U.S. Space Force, promoting exploration and technologi cal innovation. ISIS was destroyed, he kept Russia and China in check, finally recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s right ful capital despite the wailing and gnashing of teeth by the Democratic Party – which I like to call the Dem ocrat Socialist Progressive Peoples Party – and the so-called main stream media.

Trump brokered peace treaties between Arab nations and Israel, breaking the decades-long Middle East stalemate. He lowered taxes, achieving a record setting economic comeback from the previous economic malaise. He created the highest employment of

African-Americans and other minorities in American history, including actual wage gains. All this despite constant undermining through false allegation against Presi dent Trump, his family and appointees like Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn.

This originating with the Democratic Party and its nefarious congressional members like Adan Schiff and other political hacks with vested interests.

The mainstream media, Facebook, Google and Twitter abdicated any pre tense of impartiality in 2016, mostly becoming a partisan propaganda organ any fascist would recognize. The recent Mar-a-Lago political stunt, the multiple FiSA court violations, alleged violation of the obscure emoluments clause and countless other nonsense, half-truths and innuendoed have shown a real need for wholesale exam ination, reform and reorganization of elements of our Department of Justice and the FBI.

In the end, regardless of alleged “mean tweets,” a leader should be measured by deeds not words. So, despite constant negative publicity and daily propounding of lies, President Trump accomplished much.

President Biden’s accomplished:

n Executive orders (98) costing tax payers 1.5 trillion.

n Inflation at 8.3%, a 40-year high.

n Average family of four will spend $5,400 more on food and energy.

n Stock market has lost $7.6 trillion

n National debt increased $3.1 trillion.

Robert Rubin, the former Trea sury secretary under President Bill

Clinton, when asked in a recent Forbes article where he thought the economy was going, said: “The best answer is who the hell knows.” He, along with former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and Federal Reserve Chair man Jerome Powell, all agreed “a recession is inevitable by the first quarter of 2023.”

Why? Johns Hopkins Univer sity professor Steve Hanke stated on CNBC’s Street Sign Asia program: “A major economic downturn has been made inevitable due to U.S. money supply soaring and stagnation.” He continued, “an 8.3% inflation rate rise compared to a year ago . . . . raises the alarm for a FED created recession.” This is a self-inflicted wound created by President Biden’s administration with Democratic Party congressio nal support.

The Inflation Reduction Act is anything but. It is a pork-a-thon of spending.

Zip Recruiter’s lead economists, Simon Buber, said: “The rise in core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy costs, is a worrying sign.” Core inflation, which is synonymous with future inflation, rose a shock ing 0.6% in August. Food prices rose 11.4%, the largest rise since 1979. Shelter costs rose 6.2% from 2021, Electricity up 15.8%, the largest rise since 1981. Great job, President Biden and your Democratic Party. California and America deserve better. Remember in November. Vote.

Jim McCully is a former chairman of the Solano County Republican Central Committee and former regional vice chairman of the California Repub lican Party.

Russian invasion seeds conflict in own neighborhood

War is contagious. Insta bility breeds more instability when war destabilizes a regional power. This is what appears to be happening now to Rus sia’s south. From Armenia to Tajikistan, conflict and discord are escalating to dangerous levels just as Russia appears at its weakest point in its war.

With Russia overextended in Ukraine, states in Russia’s sphere of influence are predictably becoming less stable as those who have been under Vladimir Putin’s thumb see an opportunity to punch back.

Russia’s power projection has been a source of both meddling and stability across these regions. Even as he has stoked separatist movements in coun tries that he deemed too independent, Putin has largely succeeded in keeping a lid on major transborder conflicts.

A decline in Russian influence is as likely to lead to chaos as it is to a posi tive period of transition. Power abhors a vacuum. The most immediate danger comes from two conflicts that esca lated just this month.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have had frequent border clashes, even before the Soviet Union collapsed. That conflict has typically centered on Nagorno-Karabakh, a contested area internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan but claimed by Armenia.

Conflict spiked in 2020, but Russia mediated a deal and sent forces to keep the peace.

Earlier this month, simmering ten sions erupted into a shooting war. While both sides blame the other, the initial cross-border attack appears to have come from Azerbaijan, expand ing the conflict beyond disputed territory into Armenia proper. Hun dreds have been killed.

Armenia purportedly falls within Russia’s protection as a military ally under the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a defense alli ance led by Russia with six other former Soviet states. The failure of any CSTO state, including Russia, to come to Armenia’s aid suggests that alliance is all but dead.

It’s not likely a coincidence that

Azerbaijan struck Armenia shortly after Ukraine routed Russia from much of the Kharkiv region.

Tajikistan also attacked Kyrgyzstan in recent days, even though both states are members of CSTO. The Tajik istan-Kyrgyzstan conflict also has deep roots in a long-stand ing border dispute, but the recent fighting marks a signif icant escalation as a sizable and premeditated operation. Nearly 100 people have been killed. While both sides blame the other, it was Tajik forces that entered Kyrgyz territory with tanks.

In other parts of Russia’s near abroad, anti-Russian elements see an opportunity to trounce Russian-backed separatist movements whose depen dence on Russian troops makes them vulnerable today.

Transnistria is a quasi-independent region that broke away from Moldova in the 1990s with Moscow’s backing and depends on Russia for security. It also borders Ukraine. With Russia looking to relocate many of its scat tered troops to the conflict next door, Moldova has its best opportunity in decades to reclaim the region. Moscow is aware and has openly warned Moldova not to move against Russian troops in the area.

Similar concerns have emerged from South Ossetia, a Russian-backed breakaway region of Georgia that also depends on Russia for military and financial backing.

The Georgian public has strongly supported a turn toward the European Union and NATO since Russia briefly invaded in 2008. But the ruling Geor gian Dream party is close to Putin and has actively sought to quash opposi tion, reversing years of democratic progress and stymieing ties to the West. This shift was possible despite lacking public support, thanks to increased corruption and manipula tion of the judiciary, all following the Putin playbook.

Georgia’s government has responded to public pressure to support Ukraine by calling for a refer endum on whether Georgia should go

to war with Russia. The government hopes the starkness of the question will secure a mandate from its restive public to stay neutral in the war and quell any ideas about ousting Russia from its occupied territories.

The discord between the govern ment’s position and the public could lead Georgia down a similar path to Ukraine’s in 2014, when Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, a Putin stooge, was driven from power after protests supporting deeper ties with Europe. He was later convicted of treason in absentia for doing Russia’s bidding. A weakened Russia could harden the Georgian public’s resolve, though it’s unlikely corrupt powers would quietly retreat.

For years, Russia’s foreign policy toward its “near abroad” has consisted of political and military interfer ence designed to foster dependence, impede democratic movements and keep friendly proxies in power within former Soviet states. Indeed, it was the failure of these efforts in Ukraine that led Putin to invade, both in 2014 and earlier this year.

Thirty years after the Soviet Union broke up, 3,000 miles of Rus sia’s sphere of influence is filled with potential flashpoints. Russia’s war in Ukraine, and its demonstrated weak ness there, only makes these local disputes more likely to explode.

The West might be inclined to cel ebrate Russia’s faltering influence across the Caucasus and Eurasia. With Russia’s appeal as a benefactor and security guarantor in question, fledg ling democracy movements could find oxygen to thrive, and the West could discover openings for increased part nership and influence.

But that path is not inevitable. If Russia’s struggles in Ukraine herald its broader decline, it’s unlikely an easy peace is ahead for many in Rus sia’s neighborhood.

Elizabeth Shackelford is a senior fellow on U.S. foreign policy with the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. She was previously a U.S. diplomat and is the author of “The Dissent Channel: American Diplomacy in a Dis honest Age.”

Dan Walters

Jim McCully Elizabteth Shackelford

Peña Adobe celebrates National Hispanic Heritage Month at park

daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

VACAVILLE —

Folklorico Juvenil Danz antes Unidos de Vacaville dancers will help the Peña Adobe Historical Society celebrate National His panic American Heritage Month at the society’s open house Friday.

“They are really excited to get together and share their culture with the community,” said Sandra Trujillo, coordina tor of the Folklorico group, which was founded eight years ago and is composed of middle school and high school students who will perform traditional dances from different regions of Mexico.

Joining them will be Francisco Pulido, from Rancho El Zapotillo in Dixon, and his horse, Pirate. Pulido will dem onstrate his roping and riding skills. Churro My Heart, a Fairfieldbased business, will offer churros.

The event is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at

Peña Adobe Park. The park is home to the Mowers-Goheen Museum, with its artifacts from the area’s settlement, as well as the Willis Linn Jepson Memorial Garden and the Indian Council Ground.

Volunteers will offer tours

of the museum, the adobe and the grounds.

The Peña Adobe is one of the oldest struc tures in Solano County, dating back to 1842 when the Juan Felipe Peña and Manuel Vaca fami lies settled in Vacaville

180 years ago.

It is located in Lagoon Valley off of Interstate 80, at 4699 Peña Adobe Road.

The historical society can be reached at 707447-0518 or by email at penaadobe@gmail.com.

Prop. 31 will let state’s voters decide whether they want to ban flavored tobacco products

tRibune content agency

California voters will decide in Novem ber whether to uphold or block a law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed in 2020 that banned the sale of certain flavored tobacco products, an effort by antitobacco advocates to stop a youth vaping crisis and weaken the industry’s influence in the state.

Senate Bill 793 would have prohibited retail ers in California from selling flavored tobacco products, popular among teens, with excep tions made for hookah, some cigars and looseleaf tobacco. The bill passed the Legislature with bipartisan support, despite intense lobbying by the tobacco industry and other interest groups.

After it was signed, opponents gathered enough signatures from Californians to put the issue on the statewide ballot, which delayed the law’s implementation until voters could weigh in on the new policy. It will appear on the Nov. 8 ballot as Proposition 31.

A “yes” vote means the law will go into effect, while a “no” vote means it won’t.

Proponents of the ballot measure said the new rules would help prevent tobacco use among younger people, who often gravitate toward e-cigarettes that contain what the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls “kidfriendly” flavors such as cotton candy, berry and cherry.

The opposition said the ban would incentivize a black market and remove products that smokers use as a way to quit standard cigarette smoking.

Lindsey Freitas, advo cacy director for the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, said passing Proposition 31 is critical to stopping the sale of prod ucts she describes as the industry’s way “to hook a new generation.”

“These youth are drawn in by the flavors but hooked by the nicotine,” Freitas said.

A CDC youth survey in 2020 found that 20% of high school and 10% of middle school stu dents reported current e-cigarette use.

“This policy is really about protecting our kids from an industry that sees them as dollar signs and nothing more. If not us stepping up and standing in the way, they will spend millions and millions of dollars to go after them,” Freitas said.

The “Yes on 31” cam paign is supported by Newsom, the Califor nia Democratic Party, the California Teachers Association and a slew of organizations repre senting doctors, dentists, nurses and public health professionals. The cam paign to pass Proposition 31 has raised more than

$6.1 million, accord ing to state campaign finance records.

R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. and Philip Morris USA are supporting the campaign against Proposition 31, and the California Republican Party endorsed a “no” vote against the initiative. The opposition has raised more than $1.7 million.

These groups argue that the flavored tobacco ban is akin to “pro hibition,” and that it was would disproportion ately affect those who favor menthol-flavored products, particularly people of color.

They’ve also pointed out Proposition 31’s likely reduction of state tobacco tax revenues. The independent Leg islative Analyst’s Office estimates that loss could range from “tens of mil lions of dollars to around $100 million annually,” depending on if tobacco users stop smoking alto gether or simply switch to unflavored products.

Beth Miller, a spokes person for the “no” campaign, called Prop osition 31 a “sweeping ban” on products that are

already heavily regulated. Federal law prohibits the sale of tobacco prod ucts to anyone under 21. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has in recent years cracked down on flavored tobacco and e-cigarette products and in April announced a plan to ban the sale of menthol cigarettes. Dozens of California cities have already passed some level of restrictions against the sale of flavored tobacco products.

“What Proposition 31 would do is take this adult choice of what adults want to choose away from them,” Miller said. “We believe that prohibition doesn’t work.”

Miller said the “no” campaign agrees that kids shouldn’t have access to these products but that Proposition 31 would make it harder to enforce the law “because there’s nobody selling under ground cigarettes who is going to stop and ask kids for ID.”

The “yes” side has countered those claims by saying some products will still be available on the California market.

“This is not something that is going to ban (all) tobacco products,” said Dr. Michael Ong, chair of California’s Tobacco Education and Research Oversight Committee and a professor in residence of medicine and health policy and management at the University of Califor nia, Los Angeles.

“But it’s going to ban specific flavors that unfortunately are addicting kids, and also unfortunately are sus taining addiction among particular populations that is unfair, because they’ve been targeted by the tobacco industry.”

Black Lives Matter mural comes to life in Vallejo

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A star-studded lineup of artists made for a festive Saturday on Santa Clara Street, where a determined but joyous crowd put the finish ing touches on the city’s much anticipated Black Lives mural.

Organizer Askari Sowonde, a long and dif ficult wait – as well as a 5-2 city council vote of approval – behind her, was emotional when she saw the turnout for the unveiling of the art.

“You don’t understand how blessed and proud I am that people came out to support,” Sowonde said, speaking through tears. “I think it was Angel Ramos’ mother that she had to go out of town but if she could be here she would be here. One of the other impacted family members, she’s here. And that means so much to me because we are there for them and she’s here for us.

The mural, designed by Sowonde as well as Mario Saucedo, Randy Babb, Mishel Deniz

Adolph, Atsie Pirtle and Verlannia Manchester, was the centerpiece in an eight-hour block party featuring live entertain ment, salsa and music from Jasmine Rob inson, David El, Alvon Johnson and Zebra Man.

With two dozen of the city’s most spectacular cars in town, all eyes were still firmly planted on the middle of the street.

One of the other artists, Mishel Deniz Adolph, was glad to see the art come to life.

“It’s been a long two

years waiting to do this,” Adolph said. “We’re doing this for the commu nity and we wanted to involve the community. It’s been really difficult to get this done. Askari really had to do double time as people weren’t working here. But to see all the people here today, I mean I’m surprised to see this many people here today. I was on the phone saying, ‘Calling all artists, please come down today! Help us!’ And this is so much more than what I expected.”

Western Railway Museum Pumpkin Patch returns

iland SHILAND@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

SUISUN CITY — The Western Railway Muse um’s annual Pumpkin Patch Festival returns in October.

Special trains will carry passengers out to the pumpkin patch each Saturday and Sunday from Oct. 15-30.

The museum opens at 10:30 a.m. with train departures begin ning at 11 a.m.

Pumpkins will be available for purchase at the patch, as well as snacks, drinks and other homemade specialties.

There are plenty of activ ities for the whole family like pumpkin chuck ing, a petting zoo, tractor

rides, a hay fort, pony rides and more.

All proceeds benefit the Western Railway Museum (a nonprofit educational institution) and the Fairfield-Suisun, Cordelia and Dixon Rotary Clubs, whose members will provide lunch for the day as one of their fundraisers for the year.

Western Railway Museum’s Pumpkin Patch Festival admis sion is $8 to $23. Some activities may require an additional cost.

The museum is located at 5848 Highway 12, Suisun City.

For more information and tickets, visit wrm.org or call 707-374-2978.

SolTrans

according to the press release. Charging takes place while the passen gers are loading and unloading. Each charg ing session automatically ends when the bus pulls away from the pad.

Automatic charging during loading simplifies electric bus operations and lowers operating costs, according to the press release. The bus also has the option to be plugged in to charge away from public view at the SolTrans operations and maintenance facility.

The new bus was funded through the Transit and Intercity

Rail Capital Program with help from the Solano Transportation Authority. The wire less inductive charger was funded with Trans portation Development Act funds and a grant from the the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s Transporta tion Fund for Clean Air program.

The actual cost was not available. The person with the figures was out of the country. One estimate puts the com bined cost at more than $2.1 million.

Momentum Dynam ics, based in Malvern, Pennsylvania, provides high-power inductive charging for all types of electric vehicles, includ ing buses, taxis, delivery trucks and heavy trucks.

One person killed in midtown Sacramento after late-night shooting along popular block

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One person is dead following an overnight shooting on a popular midtown block home to restaurants, bars and a music spot, police said Sunday morning.

Sacramento Police Department spokes man Officer Chad Lewis said the “inves tigation remains very active” after officers were called to the inter section of 28th and J streets for a homicide.

Lewis said the shooting occurred before 1 a.m. in front of several establish ments on the 2700 block of J Street. Officers believe two shooters were involved, accord ing to Lewis, but no suspect information was available.

Radio calls to dispatchers around 12:45 a.m. indi cated officers were seeking a black pickup truck that was seen speeding away from the shooting by witnesses, while police radioed that one person was “down with a gun” along the north side of the intersection. The

block — home to Har low’s nightclub, BarWest sports bar, the Red Rabbit Kitchen and Bar, and Centro Cocina Mex icana – is bordered to the north by James Marshall Park.

Lewis said that the victim was pronounced dead at the scene by Sacramento Fire Department personnel after suffering “multi ple gunshot wounds.” He said no other injuries were reported.

The incident marks the third late-night shooting on the city’s grid outside of popular late-night spots.

An April 3 gang shoot outdowntownaround10th and K streets killed six people and wounded 12.

Three suspects — broth ers Smiley and Dandrae Martin and Mtula Payton – face murder and other charges in that incident.

From Page A3

Susan Hiland/Daily Republic file (2019)

Visitors at the annual Western Railway Pumpkin Patch loved the large hay fort created by Ian Anderson, Oct. 13, 2019.

On July 4, one person was killed and four were injured after shots rang out in front of the Mix Downtown nightclub at 16th and L streets. A suspect has not been identified in that shooting.

Susan Hiland/Daily Republic file (2021)

Members of the Folklorico Juvenil-Danzantes Unidos de Vacaville dance troupe entertain guests at the Pena Adobe Historical Society Fiesta Days celebration, Sept. 4, 2021.

Dreamstime/TNS

California voters will decide in November 2022, whether to uphold or block a law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed in 2020 that banned the sale of certain flavored tobacco products, an effort by anti-tobacco advocates to stop a youth vaping crisis and weaken the industry’s influence in the state.

community to unite and to join federal, state and county agencies “to ameliorate this systemic condition in our country.”

The shooting is the seventh homi cide this month in Vallejo and the 22nd homicide of the year. All but one of the homicides are being investigated by Vallejo police. The other – a deadly deputy shooting of a man in June in the city – is being handled by the Solano County Sheriff’s Office.

All but three of the 21 homicides being investigated this year by Vallejo police were shootings.

The deaths in September come as Vallejo is experiencing a rash of shoot ings – one just outside Vallejo High School that left Joe Pastrana, a coach and director of a community youth bas ketball league who published reports state serves as defensive coordinator for the school’s varsity football team and works as a school site safety supervisor, hospitalized.

Police report the coach was break ing up a fight at approximately 3:40 p.m. Sept. 13 – just as the school day was ending – in front of Vallejo High on Nebraska Street when he was shot once during a hail of gunfire by people in a car that was speeding away from the fight.

“This is a senseless act of violence committed by some individuals who do not value human life,” Williams said that day in the press release. “Enough is enough. It’s a sad day anyone is shot in front of our children at school where they should feel safe.”

Williams in a press conference about ghost guns legislation Sept. 7 reported there had been 174 shootings to date in the city with 74 people struck by gunfire. Four people have been shot and killed in the city since then, and another man shot the day before the press confer ence has died.

Anyone with information about the latest deadly shooting is asked to call Detective Yanette Hernandez 707917-4123 or Detective Bryan Murphy at 707-648-5430.

September 2022 Vallejo homicides

Seven people have been killed this month in Vallejo. Two were stabbed to death. Five were the victims of shootings:

n A 35-year-old Fairfield man was shot at approximately 10:30 p.m. Sept. 6 on the 2400 block of Sacramento Street. He was transported to a local hospital for emergency medical atten tion and died Sept. 12 as a result of his injuries.

n A shooting reported shortly after 6:25 p.m. Sept. 9 left a 23-year-old Vallejo man dead on Sonoma Boulevard near Nebraska Street.

n A 29-year-old Vallejo man was shot shortly after 3 p.m. Sept. 14 on the 2600 block of Springs Road. The man was hospitalized and died Sept. 18 as a result of his injuries.

n A 30-year-old Vallejo man was shot shortly after 11:45 a.m. Sept. 19 on the 2600 block of Solano Avenue. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died as a result of his injuries.

n A 21-year-old San Francisco man was shot shortly after 10:05 a.m. Sept. 24 on the 1500 block of Valle Vista Avenue and died at the scene. Law

Texas, left 19 students and two teachers dead.

Congress responded by passing rare gun safety legislation, with bipartisan support, that could provide hundreds of millions of dollars to help states adopt or expand their own red flag laws. Nineteen states and the District of Columbia already have laws, but a recent anal ysis by the Associated Press found that barely used.

In California, which ranked seventh in number of cases per capita, San Diego has been a model.

With many jurisdictions still slow to adopt the use of gun violence restrain ing orders, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Ser vices it would provide $1 million the San Diego City Attorney’s Office to expand its training efforts to other law enforce ment groups.

“We must work together to make sure our gun safety and red flag laws are being used to protect our communities. They’re being underutilized,” Attorney General Rob Bonta said at a joint press confer ence with Elliott last month. “Others should take San Diego’s lead – be aggressive, use the tool that is there.”

A pioneering program

While the California law allows police, close family members, housemates, employers, co-workers and school officials to seek a gun violence restraining order for someone they believe poses a danger to themselves or others, nearly all cases in the state are initiated by law enforcement. Assembly Bill 2870, now before Gov. Gavin Newsom, would expand the list of eligible petition ers to include more family members and people who are dating or share children with the gun owner.

A judge can immediately order the person to relin quish their guns and declare them ineligible to purchase firearms and ammunition for three weeks or, after a hearing, extend the ban to as long as five years. The person can then petition once a year to lift the order and have their weapons returned.

Under Elliott, San Diego has invested in its red flag program like nowhere else in California, with close coor dination between the city attorney’s office and the police department to stream line the process for obtaining an order. Brooker’s team includes three attorneys, a paralegal, a legal secretary, a police officer and two retired police officers who work part-time as investigators, preparing cases for review.

order can provide someone with time to cool off and sta bilize. If drug or alcohol abuse is involved, or if a person seems to have deeper mental disorders, Brooker said his team will likely ask for a longer seizure of their weapons.

“They’re not all bad people or criminals,” he said. “Some of them are just going through a period of crisis.”

Taking a cautious approach

The most common types of cases depend on what’s hap pening in the world. Brooker said that domestic violence, suicide, child abuse, protest threats and social media threats all picked up during the coronavirus pandemic. Around holidays, there are more domestic violence and suicide cases, while after any mass shooting, there are many potential copycats.

“If there was ever a time I was rethinking my life and career, it was in that month after Uvalde,” Brooker said. Schools were going into lock down every day, graduations were being threatened and his team was out every night executing search warrants for weapons that a judge had ordered removed.

Brooker said he takes a cautious approach to filing cases, because he is con cerned about blowback from gun rights advocates. Every petition is investigated by the retired police officers to ensure that the potential threat is not based on unvet ted evidence or an old history of violence.

“I know they’re waiting for us to file one bad case so they can jump all over us,” he said. “That’s the case that’s going to bite us.”

were ushered into the court room by the bailiff, who informed Brooker that none of his respondents had checked in yet.

“Good, because I’ve got two dismissals and a continu ance today,” Brooker replied.

While Superior Court Judge Adelaida Lopez led the parties and witnesses through an oath, Brooker was on his phone, writing notes about how he expected the cases to go and taking another quick read of the files to be prepared for any ques tions. In between, he checked his email and snuck a peek at a few photos from his son who had just moved to Swit zerland for college.

Brooker’s cases were among the first to be heard. In one, a man had told police he was trying to drink himself to death. While he didn’t have any firearms that the officers knew of, they wanted to obtain a gun vio lence restraining order to prevent the man from legally buying one in a moment of desperation.

Brooker asked for another continuance, giving his office more time to serve the defendant with a notice of the hearing.

“We tried him using soft contacts first for officer safety and obvious reasons, so there is due diligence, I can assure you,” Brooker said. Lopez granted another 21-day continuance. Then Brooker moved to his next case, where the defendant had also been put under a mental health hold, which would prohibit him from pos sessing firearms and make a gun violence restraining order unnecessary.

baffled and frustrated gun safety advocates, who point to research that has found the approach is an effective tool for reducing suicides and preventing mass shootings. Some states that passed red flag laws more recently – particu larly Florida, which acted following the 2018 high school shooting in Parkland –quickly surpassed California in their use of the orders.

“I’m mystified,” said Brooker, who blames some combination of a lack of resources and a lack of motivation.

“We live in a society and a day of reaction, not proaction,” he said. “They don’t want to do it until they have to do it. And usually they have to because there was a shooting and there’s all of the attention on it.”

But as promotion of gun violence restraining orders – and pressure to use the law – has grown, Brooker and his team have become a resource for the entire state. Brooker said people call him from agencies and departments like a customer support line; more than 100 from outside San Diego County have reached out to him for help since January.

Just that morning, he had spoken with the Naval Crim inal Investigative Service about filing an order for a San Diego-based sailor who was hospitalized for homi cidal and suicidal thoughts. NCIS wanted to remove the man’s firearms now that he was being released from the hospital, but the unit had no jurisdiction to seize the weapons off base.

notifications.

Authorities are working to determine where the driver of the Infiniti entered westbound I-80 headed in the wrong direction, the CHP reports. They were also working to determine if alcohol may have played a role in the crash.

Anyone with information perti nent to the investigation is asked to call the CHP’s nonemergency line at 1-800-TELL-CHP (1-800-835-5247) or the CHP Solano area office at 707-6395600. Be sure to state that you have information for CHP-Solano and Officer Matthew Engle, Badge No. 22834, who is handling this investigation.

Petitions for orders arrive around the clock, Brooker said. While police can obtain an emergency order directly from a judge to take some one’s firearms for 21 days, the city attorney’s office steps in to decide whether to pursue a longer-term seizure of a year or more. Brooker’s team is in court every morning filing paperwork and con ducting hearings for new cases or existing orders that are expiring.

The investigators had already been in for several hours when Brooker arrived at their fifth-floor office, over looking Civic Center Plaza in downtown San Diego. Infor mational packets were ready for several new petitions that had come in overnight.

Brooker’s corner office overflows with “Star Wars” memorabilia, including a signed poster of Princess Leia and an Obi-Wan Kenobi T-shirt sharing a coat rack with his jackets and ties. On his bookshelf, a tome about the original Star Wars trilogy abuts Shakespeare’s collected works and a copy of the Constitution.

His team’s goal is only to remove guns from a situa tion until it can be made safe, Brooker said, so sometimes they work with a person on a plan to return their firearms, rather than requesting to extend the order.

This is more common for threats of suicide, when the gun violence restraining

Though the red flag law has not encountered widespread resistance in Cal ifornia, it does remain deeply controversial with gun rights activists. Critics argue that the law violates due process rights by allowing a judge to order someone’s firearms removed before they’ve ever had a chance to defend them selves and by requiring that person to go to court to get their weapons back. Groups across the country are eyeing new legal challenges to red flag laws, which have been consistently upheld in court, following a summer Supreme Court ruling that strength ened gun rights.

Sam Paredes, executive director of the advocacy group Gun Owners of Cal ifornia, called the law an “insincere” attempt to deal with gun violence, without dealing with the underlying mental health issues or other dangerous situations.

“We don’t have an issue with trying to deal with people who are identified as a danger to themselves or others. We have an existing procedure to deal with that all the way,” Paredes said. “Gun violence restraining orders or red flag laws are nothing more than a political football that is being thrown around the field.”

Considered in court

When Brooker and a col league arrived at the county courthouse at 9 a.m., they

“I think we can take it off the calendar. And will that result in a dismissal?” Lopez said. “Item 32 is dismissed. That protective order is dissolved.”

“Very good. Thank you, Your Honor,” Brooker said. The whole proceeding took less than five minutes.

It’s not always so quick. Brooker said his team once sought an order for an IT worker who was suspected of scoping out the hospital from which he had been fired, setting off fears that he was planning a mass shooting. The man hired high-pow ered lawyers, and there were five days of witness testimony before the judge ultimately agreed to grant the gun removal order.

Back in the office after court, a colleague informed Brooker that she had received a call from the nearby Carlsbad Police Department. Officers had obtained a gun violence restraining order for a man and served it to him during a vehicle stop, which is con sidered safer than doing it at home. But the man was refusing to give them the combination to the gun safe in his car, so the officers had detained him.

Brooker told his colleague to send the officers a template for a search warrant. When he checked back in with the Carlsbad police later – each text message to his phone arriving with the sound of Darth Vader breathing – he learned that the officers had ultimately kept the safe and let the man go, while they

Brooker’s team also reg ularly conducts training for law enforcement agencies across the state – the requests always pick up after another mass shooting.

Many officers are intim idated at first, Brooker said. They think they don’t have time to follow all of the steps, or they get lost in the weeds the first few times and it sours them on the law. That’s why he believes a dedicated team like his, which can work hand-in-hand with the local police every day, is critical to success.

“There’s cops that want to do them. There’s cops that try to do them. But if you don’t have support from the command and resources, it’s going to fall short,” Brooker said. “Now there’s weeks I wish they wouldn’t send me so many.”

Yet even as an evangelist for California’s red flag law, Brooker worries that policy makers, through bills like the one currently sitting on New som’s desk, are expanding it in counterproductive ways.

He considers it too dan gerous for anyone but law enforcement to remove someone’s guns. But a gun violence restraining order that a judge grants a family member or other civil peti tioners is served by a process server, giving the recipi ent 24 to 48 hours to turn in their weapons – and, Brooker fears, retaliate against the petitioner, creating just the sort of shooting that the red flag law is trying to prevent.

“Just call the police,” he said. “I have yet to see one of these filed by a school or a workplace, and I’m grate ful for that.”

Raquel Natalicchio/CalMatters

Jeffrey Brooker, the San Diego supervising deputy city attorney, in his office in San Diego, July 13.

J.D. Davis’ 4 hits, big home run, lead Giants over Dbacks

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

After strand ing runners in scoring position the previous two innings, when the Giants rallied in the eighth inning Sunday against the Diamond backs, manager Gabe Kapler turned to his bench.

The first man called upon, Mike Yastrzemski, walked, loading the bases.

Evan Longoria, their next pinch-hitter, ripped a double into left field.

The double broke the

Giants’ scoring drought, driving in their first two runs of the game, and gave them the lead. But it took an add-on shot from J.D. Davis in the ninth inning to pull out a 3-2 win over the D-backs, after Arizona clawed back for one run against Camilo Doval in the ninth inning.

Davis’ ninth-inning home run landed in the pool beyond right field, his fourth hit of the game, matching a career-high.

Between Doval recording the final three outs and a pair of

Rihanna set to headline Super Bowl halftime

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

Rihanna will be the “Only Girl” at the Super Bowl halftime show.

The “Umbrella” singer announced her new gig Sunday, sharing a photo on social media of a hand holding a foot ball in the air that was then retweeted by the NFL and Roc Nation, which has a long-term deal with the NFL to “advise” on the halftime show performer.

“Rihanna is a genera tional talent, a woman of humble beginnings who has surpassed expecta tions at every turn,” Roc Nation founder Jay-Z said in a statement. “A person born on the small island of Barbados who became one of the most prominent artists ever. Self-made in business and entertainment.”

Seth Dudowsky, who oversees music at the NFL, also called her

a “once-in-a-generation artist who has been a cultural force through out her career.”

With week 3 of the NFL underway, Super Bowl 2023 is still almost five months out but the headlin ing gig was already cause for rampant rumor-mongering.

Taylor Swift, who has a new album due out in October, was the talk of the town late last week, but reportedly passed until she rere cords all of her albums to get out from under the control of former manager Scooter Braun.

The “Shut Up and Drive” singer was pre viously offered the stage at the 2020 champion ship, but turned down the job in support of Colin Kaepernick.

“I just couldn’t be a sellout, I couldn’t be an enabler,” she told Vogue in October 2019.

openers – lefties Scott Alexander and Jarlín García – record ing the first five, Jakob Junis limited Arizona to one run on five hits while striking out seven over 5⅓ innings.

With Davis’ big day, Longoria’s clutch hit and another shut down showing from their bullpen, the Giants fin ished their penultimate road trip of the season 6-1, taking two of three in Arizona after a fourgame sweep in Colorado.

“I’m really proud of

the way the guys pre pared all the way through this road trip,” Kapler told reporters in Phoenix. “You get toward the end of the year – it’s been a long season – a lot of guys are tired. But the preparation has been excellent.”

The Giants’ bullpen, including Junis’ bulk work on Sunday, covered 44 of the 63 innings on the trip –70% of the workload – and limited the D-backs and Rockies to six runs (five earned), a 1.02 ERA.

Junis’ outing was one of his most effective

since returning from the injured list in July. He was 0-5 with a 6.00 ERA in his past 12 games enter ing Sunday, though he also allowed one run over seven innings against Arizona in August.

It was also one of Junis’ best perfor mances with Austin Wynns behind the plate.

Wynns has a 3.75 catch er’s ERA this season.

Logan Webb’s ERA in nine starts with him? 1.41. Carlos Rodón’s in 14 starts: 1.85. However, entering Sunday, Junis

had a 9.75 ERA when pitching to Wynns.

“I thought Austin Wynns and Jakob Junis worked really well together today,” Kapler said.

Longoria was pinchhitting for Ford Proctor, who made his majorleague debut Saturday and picked up his first major-league hit with a line-drive single to left field that kicked off a bases-loaded rally in the seventh inning.

Steph Curry ‘still getting better’ as he enters 14th NBA season

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

SAN FRANCISCO — Talking heads on TV and fans on social media can continue to spec ulate who’s the best player in the NBA. But Giannis Antetok ounmpo believes the answer to who deserves that title is quite simple.

It’s Stephen Curry.

Speaking to reporters Sunday at Bucks media day, Antetokounmpo shared his reasoning.

“The best player in the world is the person that is the last one standing, the person that takes his team to the finish line and helps them win games and become champion,” Antetokounmpo said.

Anthony ‘Fluffy’ Hernandez wins third UFC fight in a row

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

With three wins in a row now in the UFC following this past week end’s bout, local fighter and Dunnigan native Anthony “Fluffy” Her nandez is in arguably the best form of his fighting career.

“Things are going up,” Hernandez said. “I believed I was going to be here for a long time. I just had to get through some mental stuff, but I’m good now and project to keep winning. I’ve gotten older and smarter and taken a wiser approach lately, and it’s been paying off. It’s a lot less damaging. I listen to my body and don’t overtrain it.”

Last Satur day, Sept. 17, at 210: Sandhagen

Hernandez showed off his submission arsenal and technique in a mid dleweight bout when he defeated Canadian Marc-André Barriault via a third-round sub mission, improving to 10-2 in the UFC with one no-contest.

Hernandez has now ended three out of his previous five fights, four of them wins, with three different submissions, including an arm-trian gle chokehold against Barriault, a guillotine choke against Rodolfo Vieira back in February of 2021, and an ana conda choke against Jun Yong Park in 2019.

“Honestly, I have a lot of submission skills, but I’ve been exploring them a lot more,” Her nandez said. “I feel my

“. . . In my opinion, the way I view it, the winner is the best. . . I believe that the best player in the world is Steph Curry until the next player.”

Curry blushed at Antetok ounmpo’s remarks when they were shared with him later at War riors’ media day.

“We all want to win the cham pionship, and when you look at the team that’s the last team standing and who was playing the best, I was thinking the same thing about him last year, coming off their run,” Curry said.

Curry might be viewed as the best player in the league by a fellow competitor and have another NBA ring coming his way on opening night. But don’t think for a second that the reigning Finals MVP is at all complacent heading into his 14th NBA season.

If anything, the Warriors’ most recent hike to the league’s mountaintop only revitalized the 34-year-old superstar.

“That championship glow is

real,” Curry said. “To get back there was meaningful, and you embrace it and appreciate it. Appreciate the vibe you’ve built with the new-look team built on the core, the guys that have been around the block.

“Very excited about what it means coming into this season trying to defend, knowing there will be new challenges for every body as a team and everybody individually.”

Curry is embracing being one of the oldest guys in the locker room – alongside 38-year-old Andre Iguodala, who’s returning for his 19th NBA season. And Curry believes he still has ample left in the tank as he eyes another chance at a repeat.

Curry said he’s “fresh and

Mets’ Alonso drives in five in win over A’s

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

OAKLAND — Think of the best seasons by the best hitters – any of them – in the history of the Mets. Who comes to mind? Darryl Strawberry a bunch of years in the 1980s. Mike Piazza right before or after the turn of the century. John Olerud in 1998. David Wright in ’07 or ’08, to choose two. Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado along with him. The list goes on.

Pete Alonso has topped them all in one of the cat egories he values most: runs batted in.

He highlighted the Mets’ 13-4 win over the Athletics on Sunday with a massive game: 4-for-5, a titanic two-run homer, a three-run double that was nearly a grand slam, three

runs scored.

Those five RBIs upped his total to 128, a singleseason franchise record and the most in the National League this year. He powered past the prodigious produc tion of 1999 Piazza and 2008 Wright, who each had 124. Alonso is also tied for fourth on that list, by the way, with 120 in 2019, his rookie season.

Alonso began the day one RBI shy of tying the record. The Mets already led Oakland by five in the fourth inning when he stepped to the plate with Francisco Lindor (two-run double) on second and two outs. He greeted rookie reliever Norge Ruiz, who had just entered the game, by sending a slider into the second section of seats in

left-centerfield.

At a projected 451 feet, Alonso’s 39th home run was his longest of the season.

The record was his. And then he extended it. With the bases loaded in the eighth, he lined a double off the right field wall, plating all three runs.

Lindor (three RBIs, three runs) and Eduardo Escobar (two RBIs) each had three hits. Every Mets starting position player except Darin Ruf (0-for-4, walk) reached base multiple times.

Max Scherzer, mean while, tossed a routine six innings in which he allowed one run, four hits and a walk. He struck out seven.

Most significantly, on a day when the Mets scored

plenty and manager Buck Showalter had several relievers he wanted to get into the game, Scherzer reached his approximate pitch limit of 91 – a normal step up from his previous outing, setting him up for 100 or more next weekend against Atlanta.

By retiring his first two batters in the first inning, Scherzer ran his streak of consecutive outs to 27 – as many as one would have in a perfect game. Those came across three starts, though, dating to Sept. 3.

His biggest out was the last of the first. With two on and two out, Scher zer struck out Dermis Garcia. The Mets took the lead against lefthander JP Sears (3 2/3 innings, six runs) in the next halfinning and expanded on it shortly thereafter.

Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group file

Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry (30) holds up his MVP trophies as his wife Ayesha Curry looks on during the Championship Parade on Market Street in San Francisco, June 20.

Mike Coppola/Getty Images/TNS

Rihanna poses for a picture as she celebrates her beauty brands Fenty Beauty and Fenty Skin at Goya Studios, Los Angeles, Feb. 11.

3 versatile no-cook sauces for weeknight pasta dinners

A nn M Aloney THE WASHINGTON POST

You know that little tingle of excitement you feel when Netflix is about to drop a new season of your favorite show? I get that feeling when I find out Sabrina Ghayour is about to release a new cookbook.

Recently, I ripped open a thick envelope and found an advance copy of her “Persiana Everyday.” The book is due out in October.

I’m a fan because Ghayour writes for the harried home cook who wants big flavor.

“I cook every day. I’ve cooked every day since I was a kid – every meal in the house,” she said in a phone call from home in the United Kingdom. The Iranian British chef has written about growing up an only child in a house with parents who did not cook. She credits that with freeing her from being hidebound by tra dition and giving her room to experiment.

When I asked Ghayour about the deftness of her tightly written recipes, the author of six cookbooks said: “I’m phenome nally lazy. I don’t like washing things if I don’t have to.”

She often refers to herself as “stubborn,” saying she respects classic cooking tech niques, but in her day-to-day life as a working stepmom, she leans into efficiency and away from what she calls “momma cooking,” cooking it the way it has always been done, following specific rules, a firm ingredient list and using multiple bowls, pots and pans.

“I wanted to be a com mercially available Middle Eastern girl,” she said of her food writing and recipe devel opment. “I want people to cook from my books – not do one amazing feast that took 15 hours to prepare and then put the book back on the shelf.

“If you really want to be truthful, there is really not that much authenticity in this book, because I made this up.

“My whole ethos and style is stripping things back from the perspective of what we don’t need. If, as Persians, we have certain ingredients that you have to hunt down, I’m like, don’t use that.”

Case in point: Several simple recipes feature rose harissa, the Tunisian chile paste with

rose petals or water for a more floral note.

I told her I struggled to choose a recipe from her latest cookbook because I’m tempted by so many, including her Harissa and Lemon Roasted Chicken Thighs, in which the chicken is slathered with a mixture of harissa, yogurt, lemon juice and zest and baked until slightly charred.

“I’m making them right now,” she said. “I really make them all the time. They’re just like a two-minute no-brainer. I can have the chicken with wraps or rice and tomorrow it will go into a curry.”

When I mentioned how often she uses harissa in her recipes, Ghayour said: “I live in a village with no grocery store, no shops, so I use the same things over and over again.”

Harissa is one of the condi ments she urges home cooks to keep on hand because it is so versatile. (If you buy a jar, you also can use it to make the Harissa Chicken Noodle Lettuce Cups from her “Simply: Easy Everyday Dishes” cookbook.)

“It’s great stirred into pasta sauces. It’s great in stir-fries to make it spicy. It’s great in salad dressing. It’s great in butter compounds. It’s just that com pletely giving ingredient that you cannot stop using.” Still, she said, if you don’t have it, substi tute your favorite chile paste.

“In terms of food, [the pan demic] has been an education that I didn’t expect,” she said. “It made us realize that, as cooking professionals, we’re lucky our pantries are stocked a little better with somewhat [hard-to-find] ingredients.”

The recipe I eventually settled on is a 10-minute, no-cook Pepper, Harissa and Tomato Pasta Sauce, which has multiple uses.

Ghayour encouraged me to imagine quickly pan-frying bone-in chicken thighs, then baking them with this sauce and a handful of salty black olives. The pepper sauce also is great with cubed potatoes for a patatas bravas-style dish or tossed with lamb meatballs.

She included recipes for two other no-cook pasta sauces on the same page, and I tried those as well.

She also recommends serving the Walnut, Spinach and Herb With Zucchini Pasta

Sauce over thin, breaded chicken cutlets with a squeeze of lemon, while the Yogurt, Tarragon and Pistachio Pasta Sauce pairs well with lamb or kefta kebabs.

All three of these sauces freeze beautifully. I know because I made them all in one night and sampled each, and then froze the leftovers.

And, if Ghayour writes another cookbook, which I hope and think she will, I’ll probably write about that one, too. Keep on being stubborn, Ms. Ghayour.

WALNUT, SPINACH AND HERB WITH ZUCCHINI PASTA SAUCE 20 minutes

4 to 6 servings (3 cups sauce)

This no-cook, vegetable-rich pasta sauce is bright and fresh-tasting right after it is made but will mellow out after a day or two in the refrigera tor. For a smoother sauce, use a highspeed blender. A generous sprinkling of parmesan cheese when serving adds a hit of umami to finish the dish. To make this dish vegan, substitute a vegan alternative for the cheese.

Make Ahead: The sauce can be made up to 3 days in advance.

Storage Notes: Refrigerate left over sauce for up to 3 days; or freeze for up to 1 month.

1 pound spaghetti or your favorite pasta shape

Fine salt

2 medium zucchini (about 1 pound), coarsely grated

1 2⁄3 cups fresh spinach leaves

1⁄2 cup (2 ounces) grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

1⁄3 cup coarsely chopped raw walnuts

About 1⁄3 cup olive oil, or more as needed

1 large clove garlic

1⁄4 cup tightly packed fresh basil leaves, plus more for serving

1⁄4 cup tightly packed fresh cilantro leaves, plus more for serving

Juice of 1 lime

Freshly ground black pepper

Fill a large pot with water, place over high heat and bring to a boil. Season lightly with salt, add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions, stirring occa sionally, until the pasta is al dente, with just a little bit of bite.

While the pasta is cooking, place the zucchini, spinach, cheese, walnuts, olive oil, garlic, basil, cilan tro and lime juice in a food proces sor (or blender; see headnote) and pulse until smooth. If the sauce seems too dry, add more olive oil, 1 tablespoon at a time. Taste,

and season with salt and pepper, as needed.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain and add it to a large bowl. Pour the sauce over it and, using tongs or two big forks, toss to coat. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro and parsley leaves, if desired. Serve, familystyle, with parmesan cheese on the side.

Nutrition information per serving (1 1 3 cups pasta and 1⁄2 cup sauce) based on 6 | Calories: 486; Total Fat: 65g; Saturated Fat: 20g; Cholesterol: 300mg; Sodium: 2,400mg; Total Carbohydrates: 300g; Dietary Fiber: 25g

YOGURT, TARRAGON AND PISTACHIO PASTA SAUCE

If you love the flavor of fresh tarragon, you’ll want to put this no-cook pasta sauce on repeat. For a smooth-assilk sauce, use a high-speed blender. If you use a regular blender, you may end up with small chunks of pista chios in your sauce, but it will still taste great. The thick sauce coats any shape of pasta, making this a dish to dig into while curled up in your favorite chair. The dish makes a quick main meal but also tastes great with broiled or grilled seafood.

20 minutes

Serves 4 to 6 (makes 1 1⁄2 cups sauce)

Make Ahead: The sauce can be made up to 3 days in advance.

Storage Notes: Refrigerate left over sauce for up to 3 days; or freeze up to 1 month.

1 pound spaghetti or your favorite pasta shape

Fine salt

1 cup Greek yogurt

2 3 cup unsalted raw pistachio nuts

1 4 cup tightly packed fresh tarragon leaves, plus more for garnish 2 tablespoons olive or garlic oil

Freshly ground black pepper

Grated parmesan cheese, for serving (optional)

Fill a large pot with water, place over high heat and bring to a boil. Season lightly with salt, add the pasta and stir, making sure all is submerged. Cook according to the package instructions, stirring occa sionally, until the pasta is al dente, with just a little bit of bite.

While the pasta is boiling, place the yogurt, pistachios, tarragon and oil in a high-speed blender (see headnote) and process until smooth. Taste, and season with salt and pepper, as needed.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain and add it to a large bowl. Pour the sauce over it and, using tongs or two big forks, toss to coat. Sprinkle with tarragon leaves and season with freshly cracked pepper. Serve, family style, with parmesan or vegan cheese on the side.

Nutrition information per serving (1 1⁄3 cups pasta and 1 4 cup sauce), based on 6 | Calories: 440; Total Fat: 65g; Saturated Fat: Less than 20g; Cholesterol: Less than 300mg; Sodium: Less than 2,400mg; Total Carbohydrates: 300g; Dietary Fiber: 25g

PEPPER, HARISSA AND TOMATO PASTA SAUCE 20 minutes 4 to 6 servings

This spicy red no-cook sauce comes together in about 10 minutes in a blender. It’s so easy to make, it might be done before your pasta has fin ished boiling. The dish can be a fastand-easy weeknight meal, but it also works well as a side dish with simply cooked proteins, such as steak, grilled chicken, lamb or tofu.

Storage Notes: Refrigerate left over sauce for up to 3 days; freeze for up to 1 month.

Where to Buy: Make your own rose harissa, or find it in inter national markets or online.

1 pound your favorite pasta shape

Fine salt

2 large red, orange or yellow bell peppers (14 ounces total), cored, seeded and coarsely chopped

6 ounces oil-packed sundried tomatoes

2 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons rose harissa

Freshly ground black pepper

Grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Fill a large pot with water, place over high heat and bring to a boil. Season lightly with salt, add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions, stirring occa sionally, until al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, place the bell peppers, sun-dried toma toes, garlic and harissa in a blender and process until smooth. Taste, and season with salt and pepper, as needed.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain and add it to a large bowl. Pour the sauce over it and, using tongs or two big forks, toss to coat. Serve family-style, with parmesan cheese, if desired.

Nutrition information per serving (1 1 3 cups pasta, 1⁄3 cup sauce), based on 6 | Calories: 364; Total Fat: 6 g; Saturated Fat: 1 g; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Sodium: 168 mg; Carbohydrates: 67 g; Dietary Fiber: 5 g; Sugar: 5 g; Protein: 12 g

The analyses are estimates based on available ingredients and this preparation. It should not sub stitute for a dietitian’s or nutrition ist’s advice.

From “Persiana Everyday” by Sabrina Ghayour (Hachette, 2022).

Justin Tsucalas/The Washington Post

Try one of Sabrina Ghayour’s quick, no-cook pasta sauces, from left, walnut, spinach and herb with zucchini; yogurt, tarragon and pistachio; and pepper, harissa and tomato.

The WashingTon PosT

At the end of July, a Jack in the Box in Chula Vista got a new employee. He stood there for a couple of weeks while other workers swirled around him, jockeying between flat top and fryer, filling up paper sleeves with the tacos that the fast-food brand sells every year by the hundred million.

And then, having learned the ropes, he began to work, focusing exclusively on the fry station, dropping baskets of seasoned curly fries and stuffed jalapeños into vats of oil, eagle-eyeing when they were perfectly golden. He doesn’t take breaks, never shirks when the boss isn’t looking, won’t call out sick or lean heavy on the company health insur ance. But that doesn’t mean he comes cheap. Flippy the Robot cost $50 million to develop, and cost Jack in the Box about $5,000 for installation and $3,500 per month for rental.

Restaurants have toyed with robotics for years, cropping up as early as 1983 when Two Panda Deli in Pasadena, Calif., used robots to schlep Chinese food from the kitchen to customers. There have been sushi-rolling robots and cof fee-brewing robots and tiny drone “iTray” waiters: Often they are consumer-facing, a form of customer entertain ment and “value added” to set a brand apart.

But now – with restau

rants facing a protracted labor shortage and robotic technol ogy becoming both better and cheaper – restaurant brands are doing new math. How long before an initial technol ogy investment pays off? How long will it take to train human employees to work alongside robot co-workers? And, ulti mately, how many restaurant jobs will be permanently com mandeered by robots?

The way Miso Robotics chief executive Mike Bell tells it, Flippy was initially a solu tion in search of a problem. The company has been around six years, five entirely in research and development, trying to bring a product to market. The robotics lab’s sprawling ware house in Pasadena is packed with whizzing robot pieces and 3D printers hustling to keep up with the demands of 120 engi neers and programmers. Their initial question: In a nation that consumes nearly 50 billion burgers each year, why not develop a robot that can flip them with precision at every fast-food restaurant?

They took the idea to White Castle. The burger brand’s executives said the idea sounded nice, but they had a more pressing need: Got any thing for the fryer?

The fryer station is hot and it’s dangerous.

It’s frequently where workplace accidents occur. It’s also where the drive-through gets jammed up at night with people waiting on their loaded fries and chicken rings.

So Miso let Flippy keep his jaunty name but re-engi neered him to start dipping fries. White Castle bought in, installing Flippy in a Mer rillville, Ind., location and then several others around the country, with the aim of having 100 over the next few years. Jack in the Box execs zipped up to Pasadena for a demo.

Miso Robotics kept going, developing a coffee forecastermaker-pourer for Panera. It began work on Sippy, a drink fulfillment robot that pours, seals and labels beverage orders – which will also be employed later this year at Jack in the Box – as well as Chippy, which will soon be frying and seasoning fresh tor tilla chips at Chipotle. The robots, with their articulated arms, multiple cameras and machine learning, excel at those mind-numbing tasks res taurant workers have to repeat again and again. And they aren’t sniffy about working the graveyard shift.

“We realized for a robotic solution to be a real solution for our customers, it had to have a really high customer return on investment. Which meant it had to take a mean ingful amount of labor off the table,” Bell said.

For now, they’ve shelved guacamole robots and icecream-scooping robots. They are trying to stay focused.

Jack in the Box’s mascot, Jack, is kind of a proto-robot, modeled on a historic toy from the 1500s, a mechani cal clown that would pop out of a box when you cranked a handle. They’ve ditched the clown in marketing efforts in recent years, part of the com pany’s long-standing strategy of throwing things out there to see what sticks. The company was early to the two-way intercom system now ubiqui tous in fast food; it introduced breakfast sandwiches and por

ROBOTS

table salads. And its menu has a more-is-more exuber ance that Oscar Wilde would approve of: These days it has upward of 80 menu items, about 60% of which end up in the fryer.

Flippy has his work cut out for him.

But there won’t be the legions of robots from the movie “I, Robot” any time soon. “Fry, Robot” will be slower: Of the 2,270 Jack in the Boxes, 93% of which are franchises, it’s just this one Chula Vista store where Flippy is being employed to work out the kinks, with Sippy following at the end of this year. The goal is to have Flippy installed in another 5 to 10 high-volume Jack in the Box locations in 2023.

If robots are cheaper and more efficient, experts wonder, will the more than 3 million entry-level fast-food jobs be ceded to robots entirely in the future? For now, the thorny problem is there just aren’t enough humans who want to do the work.

According to the National Restaurant Association, 65% of restaurant owners still say finding enough workers is a central problem. In the Great Resignation, prospective hospi tality workers were being lured back with the promise of fancy fitness club memberships and 401(k) plans. It’s an industry that has faced a stark reckon ing, even before the pandemic, about pay, worker safety and career advancement.

For the country’s almost 200,000 fast-food restaurants, the customers are there but the workers are not. Owners have cut the hours they’re open, closed dine-in options, stream lined menus to accommodate the changes. Along with QR codes, kiosk ordering and con tactless payment, maybe robots are the balm to soothe the pain.

Back at the Miso Robot ics lab there’s a Flippy in the corner repeatedly dropping a

fryer basket into an empty oil vat to test for armature failure. The noise drives the engineers nuts. But there’s some testing that’s harder to do. How do you test for the best way to have humans and robots working alongside each other? How do you make sure the humans don’t resent the robots, don’t get paranoid about losing their jobs?

“This is an enhancement, not a replacement,” said Ali Nemat, Jack’s vice president of operations services, sitting in the Chula Vista dining room just before the lunch rush. “Our fry person is getting pro moted and Flippy is their assistant.”

At any given time, a Jack in the Box restaurant has 25 human employees, with one person on the fry shift –and even with Flippy they still bag and box, add lettuce and cheese. But this could change. You could see it coming. Flippy started acting weird, jerking and hitching. The worker on the fry station had witnessed this behavior before. Even Joe Garcia, the Miso Robotics “robot support specialist” assigned to trou bleshoot at Jack in the Box, had seen it. Garcia, a mechan ical engineering graduate from Loyola Marymount Univer sity who one day wants to work for NASA, is spending his days swooping in when Flippy occa sionally loses his mind as he encounters tacos. Back at Miso, there’s a whole Slack channel devoted to why Flippy freaks out sometimes when he has to drop a row of tacos in the special metal perforated taco tray. Engineers watch the vid eotapes on replay, discuss.

The human worker fished out the soggy row of lost tacos, flicking them in the garbage while Flippy stood by, inscru table and unconcerned about a performance review.

Maggie Shannon/The Washington Post photos French fries and onion rings fried by Flippy 2.

LEFT: Flippy Light, also known as Chippy, at the Miso Robotics office in Pasadena.

Flippy a Jack in the Box restaurant in Chula Vista.

Check out these awesome acts at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass 2022

SAN JOSE — Expect to see even more smiles than usual when the beloved Hardly Strictly Bluegrass makes its long awaited return to Golden Gate Park in San Francisco Sept. 30-Oct. 2.

It marks the first in-person HSB since 2019. The 2020 and 2021 events were online-only affairs due to concerns over the Covid-19 pandemic.

Yet, what a way to make a comeback. Steve Earle and the Dukes, Elvis Costello, Allison Russell, Charley Crock ett, Meklit, Marcus Mumford, Bela Fleck and Emmylou Harris are among the dozens of acclaimed acts performing at this year’s festival.

It’s another stellar lineup for a festival that has certainly had no shortage of them over its storied history.

And, as always, admis sion is free.

The following are a dozen of our top picks, listed chrono logically, for the 2022 Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. Under scoring the “Hardly Strictly” portion of the festival’s name, our choices range from country and rock to folk, R&B and more.

For more information about the three-day event – and to get acquainted with the festival’s do’s-and-don’ts – visit hardlys trictlybluegrass.com. That’s the same place where you will find music from two of HSB’s six stages – the Swan and Tower of Gold stages – being streamed throughout the weekend.

Friday (Sept. 30)

Satya: The 22-year-old Oakland artist gets her name from a Sanskrit word that trans lates to “truth.” So, it perhaps it shouldn’t come as a surprise that there’s such a tangible sense of emotional openness and honesty to be found in her recordings. She tackles the topic of love in a variety of styles – dealing with both heart break and healing – on her latest EP “Deep Blue,” all the while showcasing an impecca ble vocal delivery on her slow, southing and soulful offerings. (2-2:30 p.m. Bandwagon Stage)

Allison Russell: “Outside Child,” the debut solo outing from this highly talented Canadian singer-songwriterclarinetist, was the best album of 2021. It offered up a spell binding array of musical styles, from jazz and soul to country and world music, as well as elegant vocal work paired with harrowing lyrics telling of the abuse Russell suffered as a child at the hands of her adop tive father. It was nothing short of a stunning artistic achieve ment, which should translate to a huge crowd waiting to see the Montreal native at Golden Gate Park. (4:45-5:45 p.m.

Saturday (Oct. 1)

Michaela Anne: The Brooklyn, New York-born singer-songwriter first caught the public’s ear with “Ease My Mind,” which the Village Voice named one of the best country albums of 2014. Since then, she’s released three more wellreceived full-lengths, including this year’s “Oh to Be That Free,” nicely showcasing her clever lyrics, superb singing voice and an overall sound that blends elements of Americana, classic country, indie-rock/ pop and honky-tonk. (12:301:10 p.m. Porch Stage)

Joseph: Finding the right band name can be crucial. The Closner sisters – Natalie, Allison, and Meegan – located theirs eight years ago during a trip to visit their grandfather in the small eastern Oregon city of Joseph. Of course, even a good name – and an accompa nying cool back story – won’t help a band if it doesn’t have talent. Fortunately, this sister act absolutely wows in that cat egory, filling their soft folk-pop numbers with a wide array of vocal delights – from soaring full-band harmonies to pristine lead and back-up work. (2:153:05 p.m. Banjo Stage)

Tre Burt: A folk singer has to be pretty talented to land a deal with Oh Boy Records, the independent label founded by one of the genre’s all time greats – John Prine – in the ‘80s. Thankfully, talent is something this Sacramento singer-song writer has in abundance. Drop the needle on the 2020 debut “Caught It From the Rye” or the 2022 follow-up “You, Yeah, You” and what you’ll find is an artist who crafts strong lyrics and melodies that grip and hold the attention of listeners. (4:355:20 p.m. Porch Stage)

Jerry Harrison, Adrian Belew – Remain in Light: Get ready to sing along with “Once in a Lifetime” and “Crosseyed and Painless” during this allstar live performance of the Talking Heads’ “Remain in Light.” Helping to lead the

charge is Harrison, who obvi ously should know the classic album very well given that he created it in the studio along side fellow original band members David Byrne, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth as well as producer Brian Eno in 1980. His co-captain for the endeavor is Belew, the long time Kim Crimson great and solo artist who has also worked with the likes of David Bowie, Nine Inch Nails, Tori Amos, Paul Simon and Cyndi Lauper over the years. (5:55-7 p.m. Swan Stage)

Sunday (Oct. 2)

Arooj Aftab: The singersongwriter-composer made history earlier this year when she became the first Pakistani artist to win a Grammy Award. She accomplished the feat with the mesmerizing “Mohabbat,” which took the title of Best Global Music Performance at the award show. The song hails the “Vulture Prince,” the latest offering from this Brook lyn-based artist who uses Urdu poetry and ghazals in her cap tivating, minimalist-rooted compositions. (12:30-1:15 p.m. Rooster Stage)

Fare Thee Well: Celebrating the Songs of John Prine, Nancy Bechtle, Justin Townes Earle & More: This should be an incred ibly moving set of music, as organizers pause to honor and remember members of the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass com munity who have died in recent years. Steve Earle – Justin’s father – will lead a “guitar pull” with a number of other artists. (2-3:15 p.m. Bango Stage)

Jesse Colin Young: He’s accomplished so much during a career that now stretches some 60 years, including releasing over 20 studio albums and uti lizing his substantial talents on a number of memorable songs. Yet, one tune remains the most memorable, right? Of course, we’re talking about the amazing Summer of Love anthem “Get Together,” a number written by the Quicksilver Messenger

See Harldy, Page B5

REMEMBER THE CARDS – REMEMBER WHAT?

Fran Lebowitz quipped, “Remember that as a teenager you are at the last stage of your life when you will be happy to hear that the phone is for you.”

South tried to run rings around the

defenders on this deal by being clever with his diamond spots.

South was in four spades after using New Minor Forcing to learn that his partner had three-card spade support.

West led his singleton diamond seven: three, king, two. East cashed the diamond ace: nine, club three, diamond four. Next, East played the diamond six: 10, heart five, diamond jack. What should West have done now?

When delivering the ruff, East led the six, his lower-remaining diamond, a suit-preference signal, asking for a club return. However, note that declarer had been clever with his diamond spots. West hadn’t seen the diamond five and eight. He didn’t know whether East’s diamond six was high or low. Should West have shifted to a spade or a club?

From the diagram, you can see that a club is right – but how does West know that?

The answer lies in East’s plays to the first two tricks. He should anticipate that West might have trouble deciphering the diamond six. So, if he wants a heart switch, he wins the first trick with the diamond ace, not the king. As he won trick one with the king, then played the ace, East is requesting a club return.

COPYRIGHT: FEATURE SYNDICATE

Bridge

Yesterday’s solution: 9/27/22

Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 grid contains the digits 1 through 9, with no repeats. That means that no number is repeated in any row, column or box. Solution, tips and computer program at www.sudoku.com

REMEMBER THE CARDS – REMEMBER WHAT?

Fran Lebowitz quipped, “Remember that as a teenager you are at the last stage of your life when you will be

Difficulty

Sudoku by Wayne Gould

Bridge

by Phillip Alder

Swan Stage)

Marcus Ingram/Getty Images/TNS

Allison Russell performs onstage during the Beautiful Noise Live Equality on the Ballot panel at Buckhead Theatre, in Atlanta, Sept. 19.

Love and terror coming to movie theaters this week

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — Two guys search for love in "Bros," which comes to local theaters Thursday. The romantic comedy is an adventure in dating and finding true love. Also showing in theaters is "Smile," a terrifying film about a doctor who sees something she can't explain that haunts her every move afterward.

Opening nationwide are: "Bros," in which two guys look for meaningful love in this comedy star ring Billy Eichner and Luke MacFarlane. They struggle with the biggest issues of relationships, like communication and trust. The film is rated R.

"Smile," in which Dr. Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon) starts experi encing frightening occurrences she can't explain after a terrify ing experience at work. The terror continues for her until she realizes facing her past is the only way to survive. The film is rated R.

Opening in limited release are:

"Dead for a Dollar," in which a famed bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz) runs into his enemy, a professional gambler and outlaw (Willem Dafoe) he had sent to prison years before while on a mission to find and return the wife (Rachel Brosnahan) of a success ful businessman who is being held hostage in Mexico. The film is rated R.

"God's Creatures," in which a mother's lies threaten her family and son's life. Emily Watson is the mother in a tightknit Irish fishing village

trying her best to protect her beloved child. The film is rated R.

"Never Forgotten," in which three best friends – Nick, a writer and a simple man; Donny, the charismatic, wealthy one; and Emile, the artist with a bleeding heart – still reside in the small town in which they grew up. As their 10-year high school reunion approaches, a dark secret from their past returns to haunt them. The film is not rated.

"The Good House," which follows Hildy Good (Sigourney Weaver), a wry New England Realtor and descendant of the Salem witches, who loves her wine and her secrets. Her compartmentalized life begins to unravel as she rekindles a romance with her old high-school flame, Frank Getch ell (Kevin Kline), and becomes dangerously entwined in one person’s reckless behavior. Ignit ing long-buried emotions and family secrets, Hildy is propelled toward a reckoning with the one person she’s been avoid ing for decades: herself. The film is rated R.

For information on Edwards Cinemas in Fairfield, visit www.reg movies.com/theatres/ regal-edwards-fair field-imax. For Vacaville showtimes, visit www. brendentheatres.com.

For Vallejo showtimes, check www.cinemark. com/theatres/ca-vallejo. More information about upcoming films is available at www.movie insider.com.

3:10 p.m. Porch Stage)

Service’s Chet Powers (aka Dino Valenti) that Young and his Young bloods featured on their eponymous debut from 1967. The chance to hear Young perform that classic in Golden Gate Park – where all ‘60s peace anthems just seem to ring louder – is a major reason to attend to this year’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. (2:30-

Yasmin Williams: The Alexandria, Vir ginia-based artist is a Guitar Hero 2 success story. As legend has it, Williams begged her parents to buy her a real guitar after playing the popular video game back in 2009. Good thing the parents agreed, because their daughter is now an amazing guitarist who is sharing her talent with a growing audi ence of appreciative fans. (5-5:45 p.m. Band wagon Stage)

Zits Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

Pearls Before Swine Stephan Pastis

Dilbert Scott Adams

Baby Blues Rick Kirkman Jerry Scott

Baldo Hector Cantú and Carlos Castellanos

Tropical Storm Ian primed to power up, hit Florida as hurricane

Tribune C

MIAMI – On Sunday morning, Tropical Storm Ian remained on track for a potential landfall some where along the Florida Gulf coast later this week – with the Big Bend area in the center of a forecast track that could still change.

The storm continued to slowly organize but by Monday the National Hur ricane Center expects it to morph into a monster, approaching Cuba on Tuesday as a Category 4 storm with 130 mph winds. The western part of the island, including Havana, was now under a hurricane warning. By early Wednesday, Ian is expected to be more than 100 miles west of Key West – a dangerous system with its final des tination still up in the air.

At 2 p.m. EDT Sunday, the latest track from the National Hurricane Center continued a west ward trend that kept much of South Florida, includ ing the Florida Keys, solidly out of the cone of uncertainty. But forecast ers warned that the cone only shows where the most powerful eye of the storm might go.

The NHC predicts the system could begin to weaken before it makes landfall, possibly as a Cat egory 1 along the Big Bend on Friday, but heavy rain and winds could be felt throughout the state next week. And if comes ashore sooner near the Tampa Bay area at the eastern edge of the cone, the storm could be stronger.

Jamie Rhone, acting director of the NHC, warned southeast Florida and the upper Keys not to tune out the storm just yet in a Sunday morning broadcast.

“You can’t be too fixated on this cone and it moving around a little bit,” he said. “The track has now shifted just enough that you’re out of the damaging wind potential, but I still need you to prepare for heavy rains and some of the gusty squalls.”

All of Florida remained

under a state of emer gency and President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency in Florida Saturday night. Officials in the Florida Keys met Sunday and once again bumped the decision to call for evacuations to Monday, though that seemed increas ingly unlikely.

The ‘cone of uncer tainty’ is getting smaller – but it still matters if you’re outside it

Ian projected to strengthen

As of the 2 pm. alert, Ian had strength ened little overnight, with maximum sustained winds near 50 mph. It picked up the pace and was back to a west-north west motion at 14 mph.

It was about 265 miles south-southeast of Grand Cayman, which was under a hurricane warning, and about 540 miles south east from the western tip of Cuba, parts of which had their hurricane watch upgraded to a warning.

On Saturday, fore casters were watching Tropical Storm Ian for signs of rapid intensi fication, when a storm gains at least 30 mph in sustained winds over a 24-hour period.

An overnight inves tigation from the Air Force Reserve found Ian was still disorganized, with misaligned low and mid-level centers. The

hurricane center noted in its 5 a.m. advisory that it wasn’t sure exactly where the center was and it’s likely a new one will form somewhere else soon.

Storms are hard to track without a defined center, which could be part of the reason computer models still appeared split about the storm’s projected landfall in Florida or the eastern Gulf coast – a factor that makes the path four or five days out uncertain.

A split in the models

The latest forecast calls for Ian to move northwest and strengthen Sunday and Monday into a Cate gory 4 hurricane over a patch of very warm ocean water south of Cuba, before heading into the Gulf of Mexico.

“However, there is still significant uncer tainty in the long-range track forecast of Ian, and future adjustments to this portion of the forecast will likely be required,” forecasters wrote in the 11 a.m. update.

The two major com puter models still showed a split track: with the Euro taking Ian into west central Florida and the GFS aiming for the panhandle.

John Morales, a hurri cane specialist for NBC6, tweeted Sunday that the split between models left “plenty of reason for concern still for west-cen

tral Florida.” He noted that the computer models appear more clustered around west-central Florida compared to yes terday, a signal of growing confidence in predictions.

How far north it goes matters for its inten sity. Wind shear by the panhandle is expected to weaken the storm from a Category 4 to a Category 1 ahead of a

“Despite the reduction in intensity, Ian is likely to have an expanding wind field and will be slowing down by that time, which will have the potential to produce significant wind and storm surge impacts,” the NHC warned.

Impacts in Florida

With models still divided on a right-hand turn into Florida’s west coast or a more northern run into the panhandle, both options present a potentially dangerous week ahead for Florida.

Florida’s west coast – and Tampa Bay in particular – is uniquely vulnerable to storm surge. The shallow shelf in the Gulf of Mexico can push tremendous amounts of water onshore, especially if the storm is slow moving and “weaker,” as the hur ricane center is currently predicting.

Rhome, acting NHC director, said the region had “perhaps some of the highest vulnerabil ity in the country” to storm surge.

“I’m telling you it doesn’t take an onshore or a direct hit from a hurri cane to pile up the water,” he said. “We could see a significant amount of storm surge on the west coast of Florida even if the storm stays offshore.”

Tropical Storm Ian’s new projected path means Floridians could start to feel its winds and rains slightly later than originally pre dicted, with winds picking up on the west coast starting Tuesday evening and rising to hurricane-force starting Wednesday morning.

Far-right leader is poised to succeed Draghi in Italy

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

Italian voters are expected to propel Giorgia Meloni toward the premiership Sunday, which would make her the country’s first female and first far-right prime minister since it became a republic.

Meloni, leader of the Brothers of Italy party, is favorite to win the general elections at the head of a right-wing coalition, according to opinion polls published before a blackout period.

While political maneuvering to form a government after a vote has dragged on for an average of 45 days in recent times, the winners will have no time to waste. Inves tors and foreign partners are watching closely, with the euro area’s third-biggest economy hit by Russia’s inva sion of Ukraine, spiking energy prices and rising interest rates.

Meloni has repeat edly sought to calm fears she would challenge European Union rules designed to keep deficits in check, or jeopardize almost 200 billion euros ($196 billion) in recov ery funds from the bloc by seeking to renegotiate some of the terms. Any change in Italy’s pro-EU stance could exacerbate fears about the country’s colossal debt burden.

At noon, turnout of 19.1% was in line with the 19.5% reported at the same time during the last general election in 2018, Interior Ministry figures representing 95% of towns showed.

The first exit polls are due when voting ends at 11 p.m. Rome time on Sunday, with results following through the night. Meloni’s alliance includes Matteo Salvini of the anti-migrant League and Silvio Berlusconi of the centerright Forza Italia.

The talks to forge a new administration will

come after Italy held its first-ever election in the fall, the period when governments have to draft the budget law for approval by year-end.

Meloni’s reassur ing messages have kept Italy’s risk premium contained. The spread between Italian and Germany government bonds, a barometer of debt risk, has widened by only 15 basis points since July 19 – the day before outgoing premier Mario Draghi announced his resignation.

However, Meloni’s slight government expe rience could exacerbate the challenge ahead.

“The probability that Brothers of Italy will lead Italy’s next govern ment is very high,” said Martina Carone, a politi cal analyst at YouTrend.

“For investors, any gov ernment she will form will be less credible com pared to the outgoing one, but this is also why she will do as much as she can to act up.”

Among the first steps in forging a new administration will be consultations with parties led by Presi dent Sergio Mattarella, whose task it is desig nate a premier candidate who likely has enough support win a confi dence vote in the new parliament. The new par liament, which has been downsized to 200 sena tors and 400 lower house lawmakers, will meet on Oct. 13 to elect the speak ers of both houses.

“In the middle of October we will see what the chemistry looks like within the right-wing coalition,” Francesco Galietti, a political analyst at Policy Sonar in Rome, told Bloomberg TV on Friday. “Because you want to see how Meloni deals with Salvini and Berlusconi, who becomes the speaker of the senate, who becomes the speaker of the house, that would be a good indicator.”

National Hurricane Center/TNS

Tropical Storm Ian’s projected path, from the National Hurricane Center’s 2 p.m. Sunday update.

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See the huge upgrade to SAP Center that Sharks fans simply can’t miss

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

SAN JOSE — The San Jose Sharks have made a handful of upgrades to SAP Center in recent years, although some improvements have been more noticeable to the public than others.

Spectators couldn’t miss the latest addition to the arena if they tried.

A humongous new cen ter-hung video scoreboard that crews spent roughly two months construct ing made its hockey game debut Sunday afternoon as the Sharks hosted the Los Angeles Kings in the first preseason game for both teams.

The new video board is approximately nine feet taller and 15 feet wider than the previous board as all four sides are now identical in size.

Per the Sharks, the board weighs the same as the previous one but has the unique ability to “demonstrate continu ous content throughout.” Infrastructure had to be added to the ceiling of the building to support the width of the board.

The previous setup had an 18.9 mm Pixel Pitch LED board, which was replaced by a 5.9 mm Daktronics Pixel Pitch board – basically meaning the new board has four times the pixels.

Fans didn’t see all of the board’s bells and whistles Sunday, though, as it remains under construction.

A team spokesman said some hardware tweaks still need to be made to

the bottom side of the board, as cameras and speakers will be added. The software needs to be upgraded and the board still has to be pro grammed, so what was shown on the board Sunday remained identi cal to what patrons saw in previous Sharks seasons.

The plan is to upgrade the board from 720p to 1080Pi full HD images and The Sharks are also replacing the Facia LED

Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group

boards that circles the rink around the bottom part of the upper bowl.

The Sharks expect the board to be fully operational – and other upgrades to be in place – in time for the Sharks’ home opener on Oct. 14, when they play Brent Burns and the Carolina Hurricanes.

The cost of the upgrades was approxi mately $5 million, paid for by the organization, the spokesman said.

However, he was left on third base when Davis lined out to end the inning.

Davis, who had hits in all his other four at-bats, didn’t get cheated. He attacked the first pitch, and the line drive left his bat at 104.6 mph, with an expected batting average of .770. Only problem: it was lined directly at short stop Sergio Alcantara.

Longoria’s pinch-hit double was the Giants’ second hit in 11 at-bats with runners in scoring position; they left 12 men on base. The Giants put runners on in every inning, but it took until the eighth to break through.

Davis’ homer was his 10th of the season and his sixth since the Giants acquired him in a trade with the Mets at the beginning of August.

Davis also doubled twice – his seventh and eighth with San Fran cisco – but, like Proctor, he was stranded on base each time.

has equaled his number of doubles, too.

When he arrived in San Francisco via trade at the start of August, Davis said he committed to not wor rying about results but rather at-bat quality as he gathered intel against his new divi sional opponents.

And yet, results have followed.

“I’m back in my hometown, family and friends I see all the time, so obviously that’s great, not being 3,000 miles away,” Davis told the NBC Sports Bay Area broadcast. “Just having a breath of fresh air and a little more playing time on a more consistent note . . . I think that helps me keep my timing and my mechan ics lined up.”

Improving to 14-10 in September, the Giants clinched their first month without a losing record since June.

They return home for the final home stand of the season at Oracle Park, beginning Tuesday against Colorado, before wrapping up the sched ule with three games in San Diego.

Curry

From B1

“I feel like in my head [I’m] still getting better,” Curry said. “Trying to feed off that [and] under stand it’s a long journey.

“We are on hope fully another nine-month journey starting [Satur day]. And it’s exciting. You’re blessed to play this game at the highest level and understand that we still have an opportu nity to win a couple more championships.”

Here’s what else Curry had to say Sunday at War riors’ media day:

On whether there’s a different motivation heading into this season after proving doubters wrong once again:

“It’d be dumb to try to nay say us and actually think people are going to take you seriously. But we also know a lot goes in to winning a championship and it’s not a guaran tee every year, no matter how much of a chip on our shoulder we have. You just kind of embrace the work and the motivation.

“For me, it’s the genius question about where you are in your career and really reestablishing what is it to be in your prime and maintaining that level of play for as long as you can. And then also feeding into the fact that every body on our team is in a different situation and has to embrace whatever that is for themselves and bring their best self every single day.

“And as leaders of the team, we have to encour age that as much as possible and find chemis try with the new additions that we have and guys

who are going to be more – have a more signif icant role in our rotation from jump.”

On how to manage an offseason after winning a title:

“We have experienced a little bit of everything, which helps, because it gives me confidence no matter what you need to do, you’ll be able to find a way to get it done and have a recharge men tally and physically to get ready for the year.

“So I’m glad the season is back because I feel repaired. I only took like two weeks off and kind of understood that espe cially as you get later in your career, you can’t really have — you don’t have time to really get too far away from it because it’s too hard to build back up. So there’s a lot of expe rience and collaboration on what that looks like in the summers.

On how his minutes might be managed this season as he enters his 14th season:

“The last couple years there’s been more conver sations around what that looks like. Like I know I can play 36 and feel great every single night. That’s me as a competitor.

“Obviously my opinion matters, but there’s trust knowing we’ll put our selves in the best position to win and knowing there’s room to ebb and flow on either side of that depending how the season is going. Coach is a very smart man and will make smart decisions.”

On his favorite non-bas ketball offseason activity:

“There was a lot of great things. Going back to Davidson was special for sure, knowing how long in the making that was and celebrating not only my accomplishment

in the classroom and as a Davidson basketball player and all that but also celebrating Coach McK illop and his 33 years leading the program.

“And he’s a very humble guy. That cel ebration was obviously centered around me, but it was more of a reflection of what he’s built in that program and the results of the human beings that have gone through and come out of that program and done some amazing things, not just in the NBA but all around.

“That was a special, special time, especially coming off a champion ship where none of that happens without him and sending me off on my ways, the three years that I was there.”

On what Andre Iguoda la’s return does for him:

“He’s not coming back if he doesn’t think he can play and contribute, whether it’s 10 minutes, 20 minutes. . . He’s not here to be a coach first, player second. So excited about what he can prove on that front, but obvi ously the mentorship is a big part of the pres ence that he brings in the locker room, on the court, front office, management. He’s a sound box for everybody and a voice of reason for everybody.

“It’s built on 19 years of him being who he is. And it was a great podcast to listen to hearing he’s coming back.”

On whether he actu ally believes this is the 38-year-old veteran’s final season:

“He didn’t say that last year. He kind of was a little vague coming back. We all assumed it was his last year. But he’s planting his flag now, which I think, for him, is a healthy way for him to approach this

year, knowing he’s giving everything he’s got.”

On his reaction to the Robert Sarver news:

“The outcome was exactly what should have happened. I had con versations with Adam Silver directly and kind of got his point of view of what decisions and, I guess, mechanisms he had to intervene and bring down a punishment that was worthy of the actions that we were all respond ing to and representing the league as a whole and protecting the integrity of the league and the stan dard that we set terms of from execs, owner ship, all the way down to players. There should be a standard around what’s tolerable and what’s not.

“I’m glad we got to a point where hopefully the team is up for sale sooner than later and can kind of move on knowing that’s where it should be.”

On how the young sters are looking two days into camp:

“We have a really good group of young guys who are approaching it the right way and who are going to get the rewards in due time if they stick with the program and just come ready to work every day. So with all our success, it’s easy to forget like when we first — when I was a rookie, I had no idea what I was doing. And obviously we have a real set system now that has some championships behind it and has a little more oomph.

“From their per spective, it’s probably overwhelming, but just stick with the program and knowing you’re going to be better for it and we are going to be better for it as a team.”

In 41 games with the Giants, Davis is batting .271 with an .885 OPS.

Their next win will clinch their first month with a winning record since April. They must win six of their final nine to finish the season at .500. Only three teams in major-league history have followed a 100-win season with a losing record.prime, ready to go.”

Nearing the end of his second month with San Francisco, Davis has already exceeded home run total in four months with New York; with the third four-hit game of his career, he

UFC

game has gone thorugh the roof with the training and grappling partners I have now. Submissions are something we train all the time. We go over the techniques and the finishes. You can know all the submissions in the world, but if you dont know how to apply every single one cor rectly, then it doesn’t do you any good.”

While he still trains at MMAGold, in El Dorado

Hills, Hernandez men tions that within the past few years, his coach has brought in other expe rienced mixed martial artists or wrestlers with accolades such as a black belt or an NCAA wres tling championship.

“The guys I train with are really good,” Hernandez said. “Train ing with all of them and learning the tech niques, holding my own against them in class, and knowing I’m getting better has helped my confidence in certain areas I thought I was flawed. My game is so much better.”

Boston at N.Y. Yankees (n) Monday’s Games Cincinnati at Pittsburgh, 3:35 p.m. Atlanta at Washington, 4:05 p.m. N.Y. Yankees at Toronto, 4:07 p.m. Baltimore at Boston, 4:10 p.m. Tuesday’s Games OAKLAND at L.A. Angels, 6:38 p.m. Colorado at SAN FRANCISCO, 6:45 p.m. Tampa Bay at Cleveland, 3:30 p.m. Cincinnati at Pittsburgh, 3:35 p.m. Kansas City at Detroit, 3:40 p.m. Atlanta at Washington, 4:05 p.m. N.Y. Yankees at Toronto, 4:07 p.m. Baltimore at Boston, 4:10 p.m. Miami at N.Y. Mets, 4:10 p.m. Philadelphia at Chicago Cubs, 4:40 p.m. Chicago White Sox at Minnesota, 4:40 p.m. St. Louis at Milwaukee, 4:40 p.m. Arizona at Houston, 5:10 p.m. L.A. Dodgers at San Diego, 6:40 p.m. Texas at Seattle, 6:40 p.m.

Week 3 Thursday’s Game Cleveland 29, Pittsburgh 17 Sunday’s Games SAN FRANCISCO at Denver (n) Carolina 22, New Orleans 14 Chicago 23, Houston 20 Indianapolis 20, Kansas City 17 Miami 21, Buffalo 19 Minnesota 28, Detroit 24 Baltimore 37, New England 26 Cincinnati 27, N.Y. Jets 12 Tennessee 24, Las Vegas 22 Philadelphia 24, Washington 8 Jacksonville 38, L.A. Chargers 10 L.A. Rams 20, Arizona 12 Atlanta 27, Seattle 23 Green Bay 14, Tampa Bay 12 Monday’s Game Dallas at N.Y. Giants, 5:15 p.m.

The new scoreboard at the SAP Center before the Los Angeles Kings versus San Jose Sharks preseason game in San Jose, Sunday.