Community Calendar • Arts & Entertainment – Pages 28

Second Saturdays Scotts Valley, 10-11:30 a.m. via video or phone — Facilitator: Diana Hull. Register by calling 800-272-3900 or email ymflores@alz.org. ••• Second Wednesdays Spanish, 7-8:30 p.m. via phone — Facilitator: Yuliana Mendoza. Register by calling 831-647-9890 or email ymflores@alz.org.

ONGOING EVENTS

Ongoing Through January 24

WATER TABLE TESTING

Santa Cruz County Environmental Health has opened the Winter Water Table Testing Period for Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems Dec. 29, through Jan. 24.

If you are considering developing a property, doing a major remodel or a repair on property served by an onsite wastewater treatment system that may be subject to high ground water levels, you should arrange to have groundwater on your property observed multiple times throughout this testing period. The testing period may be extended if rain persists

Piezometer readings are required at the beginning, middle, and end of the testing period. Piezometers must be in the ground and the site plan approved beforehand. Applicants should have a site evaluation application in place and a monitoring plan approved by Environmental Health staff.

If the testing period closes, it may be reopened with sufficient rainfall. Groundwater levels must be measured throughout this period. A minimum of three recorded readings are required. For parcels with an active site evaluation application, email your inspector to schedule readings at LandUse@santacruzcounty.us. First and Third Mondays Each Month

SENIOR LIFE ONLINE

4 p.m., Online Meeting Join a local group of senior citizens for “Senior Life Online,” a free online (Zoom) program featuring a presentation by a local expert. View the full schedule at scottsvalleyseniorlife.org/current-activities/.

Due to the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, the next Senior Life Online is on Monday, January 24 at 4:00 p.m.

Poet Trish Melehan will talk about her new book of poetry “Journey Fantastique,” about the late, great Santa Cruz artist and muralist James Carl Aschbacher.”

Melehan’s discussion includes her journey to creating and publishing the book.

Participants are encouraged to bring their questions to ask Melehan during the Q&A session.

To participate, you need an Internet connection and a computer, tablet or smart phone. A 1-time preregistration is required at https://tinyurl.com/SVSLA-6. Questions? Call George at (831) 334-7763. Senior Life Online is sponsored by Scotts Valley Senior Life Association (SVSLA), a 501(c)(3) non-profit whose mission is to promote healthy living for senior citizens. Information is at http://scottsvalleyseniorlife.org.

Tuesdays

FARMERS’ MARKET AT RAMSAY PARK

2–6 p.m., Ramsay Park, Watsonville El Mercado is a new farmers’ market hosted by Community Health Trust of Pajaro Valley.

There will be healthy locally grown produce, a veggie Rx redemption site, cooking demonstrations and wellness screenings. Sponsors include Lakeside Organic, Salud Para La Gente and Kaiser Permanente. Visit pvhealthtrust.org/elmercado for more info.

MUSHROOM HIKE

Saturday January 22

9 a.m. Start Time, Parking Lot, Big Sur River Inn, 46800 CA-1 Mushroom expert Dr Phil Carpenter, from the Fungus Federation of Santa Cruz, will lead a foraging hike on Saturday, Jan. 22, during the Foragers Festival. Lisa Haas and her team will display an array of wild mushrooms.

Dr. Carpenter is a regional trustee for the North American Mushroom Association. He has taught foraging and identification at UC Santa Cruz for 25 years and for restaurants, resorts and private parties.

He also provides identification and consulting for mushroom poisoning for hospitals and veterinarians.

Tickets are $60.

Meet at parking lot just north of Big Sur River Inn at 9 a.m. See https://www.facebook.com/bigsurforagersfestival/

First Tuesdays of the Month

UCSC ARBORETUM: FIRST TUESDAYS FREE

9 a.m. – 5 p.m., UC Santa Cruz Arboretum, 1156 High St, SC Community Day at the UCSC Arboretum means free admission on the first Tuesday of every month 9 a.m-5 p.m. Guests are invited to explore the biodiversity of the gardens, enjoy bird watching or relax on a bench in the shade. arboretum.ucsc.edu

Wednesdays in January

TECH TALKS

11 a.m.-Noon, Zoom Classes Is your New Year’s resolution to learn more about technology? Then the Santa Cruz Public Libraries is the place for you. Learn more about using your phone or tablet with this month’s series of Tech Talks. Each class is free. Registration is required.

Topics: • Thursday, Jan. 20, Google Calendar Optimized, learn to organize your schedule and life with calendar apps for both Apple and Android users.

Register at https://santacruzpl.libcal.com/ event/8611983. Call 831-427-7713 for help with registration. If you are new to using zoom, see santacruzpl.org/digitallearning.

Third Thursday Each Month

PET LOSS AND GRIEF SUPPORT VIA ZOOM

6 to 7:30 p.m., virtual meeting BirchBark Foundation’s Pet Loss and Grief Support Zoom group offers a free support group, moderated by a licensed grief counseling therapist, on the third Thursday of each month. Register at https://www.birchbarkfoundation.org/griefsupport or call 831-471-7255. Saturdays & Sundays

ECOLOGICAL RESERVE TOURS AT ELKHORN SLOUGH

Tours start at 10 a.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. Sunday,1700 Elkhorn Road, Watsonville Volunteers lead walks highlighting the natural history of the Elkhorn Slough. Capacity is limited due to physical distancing requirements, and individuals must sign up on a first-come, first-served basis.

Groups of six or more should call ahead at (831) 728-2822 or visit https://www.elkhornslough.org/ group-reservation/ to reserve a tour. For more info, visit www.elkhornslough.org/esnerr/tours/

First Sunday Every Month

WESTSIDE MARKETPLACE

11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Old Wrigley Building Parking Lot, 2801 Mission Street, Santa Cruz Come by on Sundays and shop at over 40 unique & wonderful artists, makers & vintage sellers — there’s something for everyone at the Westside Marketplace!

Rain dates are scheduled for the following Sundays.

The Market is free to attend and is 100% local!

All local and state health guidelines will be followed. Please wear your mask, maintain social distance while you shop and stay home if you don’t feel well. Hand sanitizing stations will be available. For more info, go to the event page: www.facebook.com/ events/ 170470481551895

DATED EVENTS

safety protocols at UC Santa Cruz. CruzHacks is free for participants. Mentors and judges are needed. See https:// www.cruzhacks.com/ for more information and follow CruzHacks on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Reddit.

To be eligible for prizes, projects must fit into a CruzHacks or sponsor category.

Workshops will be available to help participants who have no to little prior technical experience. Last year, 25% of participants were first-time hackers, and 47% were from outside UC Santa Cruz.

CruzCoins is returning, giving members who choose to participate a chance to earn points for workshops, social media games and riddles. The more points you earn, the better chance you have of winning additional swag! Sign up for CruzCoins at https://tinyurl.com/cruzcoins-members

Saturday January 15

SATURDAY SHAKESPEARE RETURNS WITH OTHELLO

10 a.m., Weekly Online Discussion Shakespeare’s tragedy “Othello,” along with the film version featuring Laurence Fishburne, will be examined when the Saturday Shakespeare Club begins its new sessions via Zoom.

The gatherings, each open to the public, begin with a lecture lasting about an hour and include a brief discussion, followed by a reading aloud of that portion of the play under consideration.

UCSC Emeritus Professor Michael Warren, a noted Shakespeare authority and dramaturg for Santa Cruz Shakespeare, will first give an overview of the play, its history, relevance to its time and ours, and aspects of special interest.

On Jan. 22, Sean Keilen, associate professor of literature at UCSC and director of the university’s Shakespeare Workshop, will address the group. The following Saturday, Jan. 29, a DVD lecture discussing “Othello” by Peter Saccio, professor of Shakespearean studies at Dartmouth College, will be shown.

On Feb. 5, Rebecca Clark, of the UCSC education committee, will examine aspects of race, gender and politics revealed in the play.

The film version of “Othello” will be shown Feb. 12. Directed by Kenneth Branagh, who also plays Iago, it features Irene Jacob as Desdemona to Fishburne’s Othello.

Although all sessions are free, those who tune in are encouraged to send a donation of at least $2 per session or $10 for the series to Santa Cruz Shakespeare, with a check made payable to the organization at 500 Chestnut St., Suite #250, Santa Cruz, 95060. People who are not yet on the email list but would like to attend and get the Zoom link should email a request to: saturdayshakespeare@gmail.com

Monday January 17

DAY OF SERVICE

9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., Homeless Garden Project Farm, Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz The Homeless Garden Project will host its annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service for community members at the Homeless Garden Project Farm.

Community members are invited to perform winter farm tasks to prepare for spring planting. Volunteers will be able to work on several different projects at the small farm, where assigned tasks will depend on the weather.

“Please come prepared with the flexibility to work on different tasks,” said Volunteer Coordinator Omar Guzman. “This is a great opportunity to come to the farm and connect with HGP, to make a difference, and to connect with the community.”

During lunch, the community will hear from a guest speaker and a trainee from the Homeless Garden Project. If it rains, the event will be rescheduled to Jan. 23. For more information, visit homelessgardenproject.org

“Calendar” page 31