January 9 to January 15, 2014
www.coachellavalleyweekly.com
PET PLACE The Cubicle Cats A
Texas publishing company might not seem like the typical home for a cat. But for Jeffy, a tuxedo male cat rescued from the local public shelter, getting a “home” at Mike Byrnes & Associates Publishing, probably saved his life. He paid his employer back by entertaining their clients and calming frazzled office nerves with his playful antics. Jeffy now has his own business cards with the job title of Stress Manager. Loving All Animals, a Palm Desert animal welfare organization, has 3 office cats residing at their office. They were rescued from local shelters, and spread the agency’s message by their presence. Although they have their own little room with feeding station and cozy beds, the trio have access to all inside areas and happily greet all visitors. Having an animal at a local shop or business is nothing new, but now scientific studies prove that a cat in the office results in a less stressed and more productive workforce. Meredith Wells-Lepley, Ph.D, with the University of Kentucky’s Institute for Workplace Innovation, found that pets
bombay kitten Fabulous black Bombay kitten, only 5 months old, would love to join your family for 2014! Come meet this precious fellow, cat ID#1068091, at the Coachella Valley Animal Campus, 72-050 Pet Land Place, Thousand Palms. Call (760) 343-3644 for shelter hours.
lovely lynx I’m Lynx, a young female terrier mix, hoping to be your best “fur” friend in 2014! Come meet me at the Palm Springs Animal Shelter at 4575 E. Mesquite, Palm Springs. Call (760) 416-5719.
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improve both employee and customer moods. One of her studies, “Critters in the Cube Farm” demonstrates that cats foster social interaction and make the work environment appear more friendly. Animals tend to make a setting appear warm and inviting. One third of American works experience some form of workplace stress. A sweet, purring furball in the office is a calming presence that can reduce a lot of office tension. The owner of Artworks, a Northern California company, noted that her business actually increased after Goover, a homeless Siamese cat moved in. Theresa Espinola explains, “Our customers think better of us. He (Groover) is obviously well cared for and friendly, so that shows we are kind and friendly.” People subconsciously think that businesses with animals are kinder and therefore will treat them better in their transactions. Another employer reports the benefits, “We deal with lots of deadlines and client demands. I always kid that when employees get stressed, I throw a cat on their lap to calm them down. And clients love that we rescued the cats - - we get extra points for that.”
www.coachellavalleyweekly.com
by Janet McAfee
Companies that house cats need to inform prospective employees that a feline companion may share their office space. If an applicant is allergic, the job is probably not a good fit. The animal needs to be a good match. If a cat is a “door dasher” or skittish around strangers, it would not do well at a bustling office with lots of humans coming and going. The biggest controversy may be deciding who changes the little box! People enjoy feeding, but keeping the litter box clean is a less pleasant task. Luckily cats are low maintenance animals and fastidious about using their litter boxes. The task may be shared, but usually it falls to the business owner by default. Business owners usually assume the responsibility for paying for food, supplies, and vet care. An “office collection” system may work at larger companies. More and more companies now allow employees to bring their own pets to work, and in some cases dogs are the beneficiaries of this policy. For stressed, tired workers a tail wag or a lick on the cheek can be comforting and therapeutic. Workplace pet policies usually require that dogs be vaccinated, housetrained, and no aggressive behavior is tolerated. Some government offices house a happy feline. One U.S. Forest Service office is now
home to Molly who wandered in as a stray. The staff reports that this amazing feline is very vocal, almost to the point of appearing to converse. If someone comes to the front counter unhappy about something, Molly jumps to attention to “talk” to them, and the mood softens dramatically. We could reduce the number of homeless cats in animal shelters if more companies would consider adopting one or even two. Sadly, cats in public shelters, particularly the adults, have a low adoption rate and many are euthanized. What about your workplace? You might show this article to your boss and propose your company adopt a feline. If you own your own business, why not give it a try? Where do you go in the Coachella Valley to adopt a cat? Our three public shelters have hundreds to choose from. Contact the Palm Springs shelter for directions and hours at (760) 416-5718. The large Riverside county shelter in Thousand Palms, the Coachella Valley Animal Campus, has many fabulous cats, so call them at (760) 343-3644. If you are at the east end of the Valley, contact Animal Care Center of Indio at (760) 391-4135. All the shelters have a special visiting area where you can interact with a cat and see if it is the “purrfect” match for your office.
January 9 to January 15, 2014
by Rick Riozza
Wine Cuddling at Palms Springs Film Fest
W
e are once again enjoying the glam at the 25th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival, where the likes of Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Bradley Cooper, and Meryl Streep as well as a flock of other appearing celebs jump into town. And we’re in the mix too, where we vino literati get to dream out loud with our favorite film and wine pairing schemes that this film fest allows us to imagine. With more than 400 screenings of over 100 films from over 40 countries, this desert’s successful event is further enhanced when we open up our imagined international theatre wine-bar—which, as you’ll notice, is fully stocked! (Film notes quoted herein are provided by psfilmfest. org.) More movie houses are attempting to increase their business by transforming their snack bar to an open bar. And we are more than happy to put up with those clear plastic cups as long as they make available— and keep pouring, the good vino. Wine and theatre go back beyond Ancient Greece, and, although wine friendly movie venues are the minority report, that doesn’t stop us from dreaming out loud of a wine we’d like to enjoy for each different film we catch. The Arts mix well: Art of film, Art of wine—It’s a natural! As with food & wine pairing, where one teams the different combinations of flavors, densities, touch, and nuance of the meal to the points and counterpoints of a designated wine, movies offer us the same, if not a broader matrix of jumpoff points. Film origins, story lines, titles, geography, and even character names can imaginatively take us to a myriad of wines around the world. Just a few years ago, this film fest offered movies with titles like, “Cooking History” and “Mediterranean Food” that screamed out for wine and dispensed easy pairings on a silver screen platter. Last year was testy,
this year is leisurely. Wine selection is always a breeze if we simply pair with movie titles: “The Grand Seduction” is a great warm-up to those new (or skeptical) to wine-movie pairings. Here, you would wish to bring that one wine that seduced you to real wine appreciation: that vino epiphany scenario you still can recall. Mine was the ’78 Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cab. What was yours? Of course, we can go deeper into the story: “The Grand Seduction is a droll comedy featuring a superb performance from Brendan Gleeson as one of the downon-their-luck Newfoundland villagers determined to trick a big-city doctor (a delightful Taylor Kitsch) into settling in their costal community.” This is a seaside story— so we’re probably talking seafood. Bring that white wine that won over your heart and stomach. “Love and Lemons” is the culinary comedy of the festival about love, friendship and the courage it takes to follow your dreams. Agnes is a chef and she loves cooking and has nothing left to lose when a friend asks her if she would like to be part owner of a new restaurant . . . pretty much required in a culinary comedy, the food is gorgeously photographed.” Better bring your wine A-game to this one. Your appetite will be lusting so have a wine that can work with an onslaught sensory shoot. A sturdy red wine always works but an extra-dry Champagne with all those lemony flavors could be the sexy move here with the bubbles getting you through the entire film. On the serious sides of things, “The death of Nelson Mandela unleashed a torrent of tributes and reminiscences – but not many secrets. In the fascinating documentary “Plot for Peace”, the French businessman Jean-Yves Olivier lets out a doozy. Turns out that this rather nondescript man traveled up-and-down the African continent brokering a peace treaty between warring African factions and Cold War combatants; in so doing, he made way for the end of apartheid in South Africa.” To get an absolute taste and feel for this film, it’s time to discover the wonderful wines of “the Cape” (South Africa). We Californians can immediately associate with the well-known wine investor Charles Banks—owner of Sandhi, Wind Gap, Qupé and Mayacamas). The widely respected Cape Stellenbosch winery, Mulderbosch, was bought last year by Banks. Keen to take Mulderbosch wines to the next level, Charles began to focus in on some of the old vine material available—especially the $13
Chenin Blanc, known as Steen. This wine owns a powerful nose of guava, lime zest and ripe pear braced by honeysuckle and orange blossoms. A juicy palate with opulent passion-fruit finishing off with tart grapefruit characteristics. A perfect sensual metaphor for the film.
And while we’re at it, another fantastic Mulderbosch is their $11 Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé . A sexy pink color with lively hues. The nose combines aromas of ripe blood-oranges, cherry-drops and black currant cordial with fragrant sandalwood whiffs and racy acidity. (You can find these wines at Total Wine & More in Palm Desert just before heading out to the movie.) In the film Enemy, Jake Gyllenhaal plays a bored professor who is shocked and thrilled to find an actor who looks just like him. As he sets out to track down the actor, their lackluster lives become bizarrely intertwined. Gyllenhaal delivers the (dual) performance of his career.” Movie reviewers deem this as a “cult thriller”. Now I’m not sure how this immediately gets cult status but I’m very aware of the Napa Valley Cult Cabernets that everyone drools over. You know those great Cabs whose fruit is ethereal and where Martha Stewart cries over them: The Harlans, Grace Family or Colgins etc. Well—even in a dark theatre, I’ll smell those wines out and come by & cuddle with you happy quaffers. “Have plastic wine cup, will travel.” See you at the movies! Cheers!
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