North Bay Bohemian February 13-19, 2019

SERVING SONOMA & NAPA COUNTIES | FEBRUARY 13-19, 2019 | BOHEMIAN.COM • VOL. 40.41

Ira Yeager’s ‘Portraits of Nobility’ is the highlight of Thomas Broderick’s daylong adventure in Calistoga p14

Geysers Like Us THE CONTINUING SAGA OF ASHBRITT, DARIUS ANDERSON AND THE ‘PRESS DEMOCRAT’ P8

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NORTH BAY BOHEMIAN [ISSN 1532-0154] (incorporating the Sonoma County Independent) is published weekly, on Wednesdays, by Metrosa Inc., located at: 847 Fifth St., Santa Rosa, CA 95404. Phone: 707.527.1200; fax: 707.527.1288; e-mail: editor@bohemian.com. It is a legally adjudicated publication of the county of Sonoma by Superior Court of California decree No. 119483. Member: Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, National Newspaper Association, California Newspaper Publishers Association, Verified Audit Circulation. Subscriptions (per year): Sonoma County $75; out-of-county $90. Thirdclass postage paid at Santa Rosa, CA. FREE DISTRIBUTION: The BOHEMIAN is available free of charge at numerous locations, limited to one copy per reader. Additional copies may be purchased for one dollar, payable in advance at The BOHEMIAN’s office. The BOHEMIAN may be distributed only by its authorized distributors. No person may, without permission of the publisher, take more than one copy of each issue.The BOHEMIAN is printed on 40 % recycled paper.

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Rhapsodies BOHEMIAN

Who Will Pay? I agree with Cal Fire Chief Ken Pilmot on banning new homes in fire-prone areas (Open Mic, Jan. 30). But to require 20-foot-wide roads (are you adding the two-foot shoulders to both sides of the 20-foot-wide road—24 feet—or 16-foot-wide roads with shoulders?) for all dead-end roads would be costprohibitive. It would cost more to improve an existing road or cut a new 20-footwide road than the land and home would be worth. Who do you suggest pay for

these new requirements: the county or the property owners?

DAN KRIEDT Napa

Oppress the Rich I have empathy for Ms. Stephanie Land (“Parenting Below the Poverty Line,” Feb. 6), as I supported myself for decades with housecleaning and a variety of odd jobs. I have lived frugally, and often paid taxes as well.

THIS MODERN WORLD

I couldn’t work much due to my partial disability, chronic fatigue syndrome. Our government rarely recognizes this disability, and I did not get SSI. I am grateful for the government help that I do get.

Historically, it has been almost impossible for the poor to achieve any economic or social rights progress in America and globally. Remember, if we, the poor people, refuse to provide more slaves/cannon fodder for the rich, by not having children, then the middle class will be next to be oppressed. When they refuse this treatment, then the rich will be oppressed, and then

By Tom Tomorrow

finally the “1 percenters” will have to clean their own damn toilets.

BARBARA DAUGHERTY

Santa Rosa

Important and Revealing Thank you for the piece on Maid, a revealing, even important, memoir. The article had me at “young mother who fled an abusive relationship.” From here begins the author’s path into poverty, and how could it not, without a reliable partner or family to help, and without, yet, an education to lead to a secure job.

This begs the question, why did Ms. Land go through with her pregnancy? Surely, there is a sad tale that begat her pairing with an abuser. Congrats to her for leaving!

But while the choice to become a single parent is, OK, honorable, of course it comes with a lifetime of responsibility and costs.

As to public shaming for using the stamps for whatever she wants, shame on them! I’m happy to pay taxes for assistance and shelters. A safety net is crucial to a successful society.

I write this as one who, with no parental aid, put herself through college waitressing and bartending, and when along the way I was careless and got pregnant, made the difficult choice to not become a “young mother.” I live with that. A close friend of mine then, however, bravely chose to keep a child from a far-flung one-nighter.

She knew what she was getting into raising a child alone. The girl was her pride and joy. She took one step at a time and dreamed of the day she would study art, which she eventually did, slinging steaks to pay her way to a masters degree and now teaches high school art. Her choice to be a young mother was financially challenging, no surprise. But she wouldn’t have changed a thing. After all, we can’t change what we already did, can we? We can only learn to cope, bootstraps and all, and, well, maybe write a book about it.

JANE SILVER

Sebastopol Write to us at letters@bohemian.com.

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B

aby, it’s cold outside, but please, let’s lay off the denialist snowball posturing—global warming is a very real phenomenon, and there’s been lots of action on that critical political front since the November elections.

This week, a coalition of California energy providers, local governments and environmental organizations released a policy roadmap outlining a new statewide push to deal with a very large elephant in the living room: the continued burning of fossil fuels in homes and buildings—identified as a major blind spot in the state’s ongoing GHG-reduction effort.

The Building Decarbonization Coalition announced the initiative this week through the Oakland-based Sunshine Strategies media firm. The firm notes that while homes and buildings are responsible for 25 percent of annual greenhouse-gas emissions in the state every year, “unlike other high-emitting sectors, no comprehensive plan exists to help the state cut those emissions, the majority of which are caused by fossil fuel appliances like space and water heaters.” Hey, but it’s cold out there! As Mom used to say: Put on a sweater.

The coalition released a report on Feb. 12 that emphasizes an urgent need to accelerate the development of zero-emission homes and buildings in the state, if California’s to meet its GHG reduction plans before the whole planet just gives up the ghost. It’s all very “Green New Deal,” in its own right.

On that note, there are hard-working lawmakers out there working to reverse the reversals on climate change policy, but most of the Washington Republicans we’re hearing from these days are happy to just beat up on the Green New Deal. Signs of bipartisan agreement on climate change are scant and negligible.

U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman was one of 56 lawmakers to introduce the Still in Paris congressional resolution this week that reaffirms Congress’ support of the Paris Agreement (Blue Dog Dem Rep. Mike Thompson did not sign the resolution). President Donald Trump announced the United States would exit the Paris Agreement in 2017. The resolution is being promoted as a “bipartisan” reaffirmation of the Unites States’ participation in global efforts to combat global warming. It’s a bipartisan bill, barely: Pennsylvania Republican Brian Fitzpatrick is the only member of the House GOP to cosponsor the resolution.

Huffman was recently named to the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis and he also introduced a resolution this week that seeks to push back against Trump’s efforts to open Alaska’s arctic wilderness to fossil-fuel drilling. The bill to restore Arctic National Wildlife Refuge protections was promoted by House Democrats as a bipartisan bill. One hundred lawmakers co-sponsored the bill and yes—the only Republican co-sponsor was Fitzpatrick.

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Paper THE

FLAMEOUT Coffey Park, Santa Rosa, March 2018.

Cleanup Crew

AshBritt hires Darius Anderson’s lobbying firm as recovery faces continued criticism BY WILL CARRUTHERS

I

n the wake of the 2017 wildfires, a wave of federal contractors descended on Sonoma County, promising to manage the situation for those recovering from the disaster. It would prove to be the largest wildfire cleanup the federal government had ever managed—but, in many ways, it did not go well.

As the recovery got underway, local politicians told media outlets that they had spotted workers for one company, AshBritt Environmental, operating without proper safety equipment. In January 2018, the same company ceased its debrisremoval work for several days while filing complaints against other federal contractors.

In December 2017, an employee of one of AshBritt’s subcontractors was crushed to death by his own

truck while working at a Petaluma garbage dump.

A report by KQED published in July last year found that the federal cleanup in the Bay Area was far more expensive per-house than the state-run cleanup after the Thomas fire in 2015.

Meanwhile, AshBritt has been attempting to get more work in the state, in line with the disasterservice company’s time-honored strategy: develop local, state and

federal political connections, give money to both political parties, and hope for the best.

In early December 2018, as the cleanup for the Butte County Camp fire got underway, following a U.S. Government Accountability Office report unpacking the federal government’s use of contractors during its response to the 2017 disasters, California officials announced that they would manage the cleanup of the 2018 fires in an effort to solve some of the problems identified in the GAO report.

By the time Governor-elect Gavin Newsom and President Donald Trump met in the wreckage of Paradise in November, both men— or political action committees supporting them—had accepted campaign contributions from AshBritt. A month before the Paradise meet-up, Ashbritt hired Platinum Advisors, the powerhouse Sacramento lobbying firm headed

by Darius Anderson, and set out to try and secure the cleanup contracts in Butte County.

But the AshBritt strategy appears not to have worked as it sought to get a piece of the cleanup business in Butte County; AshBritt was rejected for two contracts in this year’s state-run cleanup after submitting high bids, according to a CalRecycle spokesperson.

Still in the Running?

Last Aug. 18, Mark Ghilarducci, director of the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (OES), wrote a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that detailed the feds’ poor showing in the 2017 cleanup.

In Sonoma County alone, he noted, there were “600 reports of overscraping, 80 additional properties that are so over-excavated a major engineering fix will be required and 260 properties with other damage to septic systems, wells, driveways, and retaining walls.”

The federal government’s 2017 North Bay cleanup cost an average of $280,000 per house compared with $77,000 during the statemanaged 2015 Valley fire cleanup, according to an analysis by KQED. AshBritt invoiced the Army Corps for a total of $320,351,681.07 for its work in California from December

Hurricane Katrina Parallels The 2017 fires were not the first time AshBritt faced criticism for its work, as the Bohemian has previously reported (See “Fire Wall,” Sept. 18, 2018).

A congressional oversight report about the debris-removal process after Hurricane Katrina swept through the Gulf Coast found that the Army Corps of Engineers awarded no-bid debris-removal contracts to four companies immediately after the hurricane struck.

After receiving federal contracts, the companies went on to set up “contracts with four or more layers of subcontractors collecting a cut, while the people doing the actual work receive pennies on the dollar,” according to the report.

“In addition, there are reports of double-billing for debris, making excess claims based on mileage,

receiving payment for ineligible debris, and other fraudulent practices,” the 2006 congressional report states.

The report resulted in a policy change undertaken by the federal government’s disaster-response agencies. Instead of awarding contracts in the wake of disasters, FEMA would now pre-award disaster contracts long in advance of disasters.

The policy change does not appear to have changed the results. Three companies who won contracts after Katrina—AshBritt, ECC and Ceres Environmental Services—were awarded competitive debris-removal contracts in 2014 by the Army Corps of Engineers and were later called on to respond to the 2017 fires by FEMA. A Dec. 6, 2018, report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office about the use of federal contracts in response to 2017 wildfires and hurricanes found numerous flaws that affected the cleanup process in California.

For instance, federal and state officials had differing expectations about “what structures would be removed from private property and acceptable soil contamination levels,” according to the GAO report.

There were also communication issues identified by the GAO. For instance, state officials were in contact with FEMA officials, but not those in charge of regional contracts, according to the report.

Contractors also exploited a clause in the Army Corps contract allowing them to charge by weight instead of volume.

“While hurricane debris is often priced by volume, [Army Corps] officials stated that the wildfire debris had to be priced by tonnage, and wrapped to prevent contamination,” the GAO report states.

An April 2018 lawsuit brought by a San Francisco law firm alleges that an AshBritt subcontractor, Tate’s Tree Service & Construction, did not pay minimum wage, and failed to compensate employees for lunch breaks, overtime and rest periods, while operating without licenses required to work in California.

AshBritt and Justin Tate, the owner of Tate’s Tree Service, were fined by the Contractors State License Board for operating without

the proper licenses, according to KQED. In court filings, lawyers for AshBritt refuted all of the lawsuit’s claims. The case is pending.

The Army Corps will award new debris-removal contracts for its South Pacific Region, the region that covers California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico, in April 2019, according to the December GAO report.

The Army Corps did not respond to questions about whether the debris-removal contract for the district has been changed in any way to avoid the issues that emerged during the 2017 fire cleanup locally.

California Connections In January, AshBritt’s name started surfacing in press coverage of the Butte County fire-recovery process.

On Jan. 10, the Sacramento Bee reported that AshBritt’s former CEO, Randall Perkins, had toured the area in search of work. Ten days later, when PG&E announced plans to file for bankruptcy, AshBritt halted its tree-removal work for the utility, according to a report in the Chico Enterprise-Record.

By early 2019, the embattled utility and the disaster recovery had both hired Platinum Advisors, whose founder, Darius Anderson, is also the founder of Rebuild North Bay, the principal in Kenwood Investments and the managing partner of Sonoma Media Investments, which owns the Press Democrat and numerous other publications in the North Bay. In the new year, state officials have apparently distanced themselves from the cleanup challenges from 2018, if not from Ghilarducci’s letter to the Army Corps. At a Jan. 10 community event in Butte County, Eric Lamoureux, deputy director at OES, downplayed the damage done via the federal debris removal contractors in Sonoma County last year.

Lamoureux sought to “counter rumors heard that crews left big holes in last year’s Bay Area fire cleanups,” according to the Chico Enterprise-Record. Lamoureux’s account differed significantly from the letter sent by his boss Ghilarducci, to the Army Corps of Engineers just five months earlier.

For its part, AshBritt enhanced its political contributions and charitable donations at the local, state and federal levels after the criticisms against it surfaced late last year.

In October 2018, AshBritt hired Ballard Partners, a lobbying firm known for its close relationship to President Donald Trump. Earlier in the year, the company contributed $500,000 to America First Action, a Trump-supporting political action committee.

In California, AshBritt’s former CEO Randall Perkins contributed $250,000 to the California Democratic Party; current CEO Brittney Perkins donated $29,200 to Gavin Newsom’s campaign in the final months of the state elections, as first reported by KQED. And at the local level, the company has an ally in a local newspaper investor and lobbyist. In October, AshBritt hired Platinum Advisors for representation in Sacramento (according to a state disclosure form published in December) two weeks after telling the Bohemian that it had no connection to Anderson. AshBritt paid Platinum Advisors $60,000 for its services between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, according to a state disclosure form.

Rebuild North Bay

On Nov. 28, 2017, the Community Foundation Sonoma County hosted a conference called Resilience Convening, to discuss local recovery efforts.

In a panel discussion, Anderson represented the Rebuild North Bay Foundation, the nonprofit he founded in October 2017, meant to bridge the gap between businesses and public interest during the regional fire recovery for six months to five years after the fires.

“This is a public-private partnership,” Anderson told the attendees. “We really believe that if we are going ahead and meeting that ultimate goal of building back greener, cleaner and stronger than before the fires, we have to have our people in the public sector as our partners.”

From the beginning, Rebuild North Bay placed itself at the center of the rebuilding process ) 10 and brought in James

9 NO RTH BAY BO H E M I AN | FE BR UARY 1 3-19, 2019 | BOH EMI A N.COM

2017 through June of 2018, according to federal records.

In December, state officials announced that a state agency would oversee this year’s wildfire cleanup after state and local officials criticized the work of federal contractors during the cleanup effort in the North Bay last year.

Ghilarducci also criticized the federal agency for its “egregious oversight” of contractors.

“Given these subcontractors were paid per ton of soil removed, it is probable this over-excavation was an intentional effort to capitalize on this tragedy by defrauding the government,” Ghilarducci wrote.

Ghilarducci’s letter was wellreceived by Sonoma County Supervisor Shirlee Zane. The letter aligned with the complaints of many fire victims.

“This letter is just awesome, because this is exactly what we were talking about, that these fire survivors were victimized because of the negligence in the hiring of these contractors by the Corps of Engineers,” Zane told the Press Democrat at the time.

In fact, the 2017 cleanup went so poorly that the California officials announced in December that CalRecycle would manage the cleanup of the November 2018 fires instead of the federal government.

NORTH BAY BOH E MI A N | FEBR UARY 1 3-19, 20 19 | BO H E M I AN.COM

10 AshBritt ( 9

Lee Witt, former FEMA director under President Bill Clinton, to lead the organization. Its honorary board boasts a cross-section of shareholders that has included labor representation, a PG&E official and the wife of a Sonoma County supervisor.

“The majority of the money we need to rebuild our community is going to have to come in partnership with the federal government, the state government and local governments,” Anderson said at the November conference.

Jennifer Gray Thompson, who took over for Witt as the organization’s second director, voiced the need for “a new regional reality,” in an interview with the North Bay Business Journal, which is part of the Sonoma Media Investment portfolio of publications.

A slideshow from the presentation also states Rebuild planned to “partner with the Press Democrat” and pledged to “ensure transparency in the community.”

Rebuild North Bay did not respond to an emailed request for comment.

An email sent to Platinum Advisors for comment was not returned.

In the months since the conference, Rebuild and Anderson have made the news a few times, but the news hasn’t always made it into the pages of the Press Democrat.

For example, in March, the Bohemian reported that Platinum Advisors took on PG&E as a client just days before state legislators began to consider new legislation to regulate the utility. Steven Malnight, senior vice president for strategy and policy at PG&E, serves on Rebuild North Bay’s board of directors.

Steve Falk, the Press Democrat’s publisher, told the San Francisco Chronicle last August that Anderson is not involved in newsroom decisions.

“We have made that line absolutely clear in the sand—and not a single investor [in the Press Democrat] or Darius has stepped over that line once,” Falk told the Chronicle.

But there’s been notable absence of critical coverage of AshBritt in Anderson’s papers in the months since the company hired Platinum

Advisors in October. The paper has covered several local press-friendly events sponsored by AshBritt.

In early November, for example, AshBritt sponsored a North Bay Business Journal conference about the cleanup process.

The conference was covered in the Journal and the Press Democrat, but neither paper mentioned the complaints about AshBritt’s work in the county (which the Press Democrat had previously covered).

The paper did not mention allegations of possible fraud by federal contractors mentioned in Ghilarducci’s letter to the Army Corps. It did not mention AshBritt’s role in over-excavating local lots, or the December 2017 death of a truck driver hired by an AshBritt subcontractor (an event that the Press Democrat reported on at the time).

The company also contributed $450,000 to construct walls in Coffey Park in partnership with the Rebuild North Bay Foundation, according to the Press Democrat.

Rebuild’s website says the project cost $650,000.

The Press Democrat’s coverage of a Nov. 23 ribbon-cutting event featured a photograph of Supervisor James Gore helping to knock the old Coffey Park wall, but failed to mention that Anderson’s firm had by then started to lobby for the company, or that Gore’s wife, Elizabeth, is on the board of Rebuild North Bay. In response to a Bohemian article about the wall published last September, AshBritt’s then– general counsel Jared Moskowitz said “the suggestion that AshBritt made the donation because of some connection to Darius Anderson is unequivocally false.” Two weeks later, AshBritt hired Anderson’s lobbying firm to represent its interests in Sacramento.

Moskowitz, who served in the Florida House of Representatives as a Democrat when he talked to the Bohemian, was selected to lead the Florida Division of Emergency Management in December 2018.

For the past several months, the Press Democrat has also published a series of special sections on the recovery process titled “Rebuild North Bay.” The sections do not directly mention a partnership with

the nonprofit of the same name, but those stories do occasionally mention the nonprofit and include the obligatory mention of Anderson’s ownership stake in the Press Democrat.

Given Anderson’s multiple intersecting interests in California business and politics, Platinum Advisors appeared wellpositioned to provide AshBritt with the connections it needed to get more work in California. But it was not to be.

Public-Private Partnerships

Shortly after founding Rebuild North Bay, Anderson announced the organization’s first hire.

Witt was recruited to lead the nonprofit for several months in the hope of connecting local governments with federal disaster response money. At the time, the Bohemian was the only paper in town to highlight Witt’s numerous business interests in the so-called “disaster capitalism” economy.

Witt left Rebuild in early 2018.

At the Global Climate Action Summit in September, Supervisor James Gore and Witt gave separate speeches at the same event about the need for “climate resilience” in the coming years.

In his speech, Witt, who has worked as a lobbyist and consultant since leaving FEMA in 2001, announced a partnership with the National Association of Counties called Project Impact 2.

“In early 2019, Project Impact 2 will launch—this time backed by the private sector. This project is a nationwide campaign with the goal of engaging community leaders and the public to tackle future impacts of increasingly frequent and severe weather events and climate change,” Witt wrote in a Nov. 30 op-ed online at msn.com.

Gore’s wife, Elizabeth Gore, serves as president of Rebuild North Bay Foundation’s board of directors.

Gore says he has served as the board chair of the National Association of Counties Resilience Committee since January 2017.

“I met Witt immediately after our fires, but since we as a county had no formal relationship with his firm, I did not work with him,” says Gore,

adding that he had a few phone calls with Witt before the Global Climate Action Summit about a possible partnership between the Resiliency Committee and Witt.

“We had a few calls, were interested in the concept, announced a potential partnership at the summit, but ultimately no true partnership was formed,” Gore says.

A spokesperson at the National Organization of Counties says that the organization is still “evaluating how best to advance the concept [of Project Impact 2].”

On Jan. 8, Gore voted along with three other supervisors—Shirlee Zane was not at the meeting—to make Rebuild a fiscal agent for block captain programs in Zane’s district.

“The District 3 block captain group needed a legal entity to act as a fiscal agent to be able to receive the [county] grant funds for the community engagement activities they are going to pursue,” says county spokesperson Briana Khan of the contract.

“Most fiscal agents charge an administrative fee for fund management, but Rebuild North Bay offered to waive fees,” adds Khan.

The supervisor’s vote does not meet state standards for a conflict of interest since Elizabeth Gore’s position on the Rebuild’s board is unpaid, according to Sonoma County Counsel Bruce Goldstein.

Anderson is now listed as Rebuild’s Immediate Past Board President on the nonprofit’s website.

Late last year, the Bohemian reported on a multimillion-dollar fraud settlement with the Graton Casino that looped in another of his entities, Kenwood Investments.

Along with his work for Rebuild, Witt also has connections with AshBritt. He has worked on many projects with the company. An AshBritt spokesperson told the Bohemian in September that the company had never worked for or hired Witt, but that AshBritt has been monitored by Witt’s company, Witt O’Brien’s, “dozens of times” in other disaster-recovery efforts.

However, Witt Associates—the consulting company Witt founded after leaving FEMA—and AshBritt are named as partners on the disaster-removal contract with Alameda County signed in 2011. ) 12

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AshBritt ( 10 Under that contract, Witt Associates would use its proprietary software, WittTrak, to track AshBritt’s expenditures and draw up the documents required to file for FEMA reimbursements, among other roles.

“Witt Associates, Inc. consults on public safety and crisis management, with experience in emergency management, from preparedness and mitigation through response and recovery,” an Alameda County staff report from the time states.

The disaster-response world is a small one, and Witt’s consulting companies are well placed in it, largely due to Witt’s experience at FEMA and his political connections.

For instance, some familiar names advised the Little Hoover Commission, a body described online as “California’s Independent Oversight Agency,” in the creation of an April 2006 report on the state’s disaster-response plans.

Ghilarducci, who went on to become the director of Cal OES under Gov. Jerry Brown and now Gavin Newsom, worked as the director of Western States Regional Office of James Lee Witt Associates, according to a list of witnesses interviewed for the report.

According to Witt’s 2002 biography, Stronger in the Broken Places, Ghilarducci also worked for Witt at FEMA following the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995.

In his capacity as head of Rebuild North Bay, Witt acted as a liaison between Cal OES and other disaster response agencies, according to an interview he gave to the Press Democrat in 2017 that failed to provide any detail on his numerous outside business interests.

Representatives for Witt and Cal OES did not respond to requests for comment on the relationship between the two men.

Also listed in the report is Leon Panetta, the chief of staff to Clinton who later became Secretary of Defense in the Obama administration. In a 2017 interview with the San Francisco Business Times, Anderson said that he had hired Witt to lead Rebuild North Bay on the recommendation of Panetta.

Last June, the Santa Rosa City Council approved an $88,000

contract for Witt O’Brien’s—a company that resulted from a merger between Witt Associates and another company—to complete an after-action report for the fire department. James Lee Witt is no longer associated with Witt O’Brien’s, according to the website of Witt Global Partners.

Preexisting Contracts AshBritt has a longer history in the Bay Area than first meets the eye.

In September 2014, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors approved a contract with AshBritt, as an extension of a contract the company signed with Alameda County in 2011.

The contract with AshBritt is known as a “turnkey contractor” for its ability to give full-service response and immediate enhanced access to federal disaster response dollars. It’s meant to provide peace of mind to local governments who lack the resources to plan and implement a disaster response plan on their own.

Politically connected contractors are also necessary to navigate the state and federal bureaucracies and extract as much recovery funding as possible.

“The process of recovering funds from FEMA is highly complex with frequent rule changes, and one in which errors can cost local governments millions,” Alameda County staff advised the county’s board of supervisors in 2011 before signing the contract with AshBritt.

Alameda and Sonoma counties have both extended their contracts with AshBritt until July 31, 2021— but the county’s contract was not in effect during the county’s recovery to the fires, according to Michael Gossman, a deputy county administrator in charge of the Office of Recovery and Resiliency.

Even if the county had wanted to terminate the contract with AshBritt in 2018, it couldn’t.

“There was never an obligation to use the contract, and so termination never came up,” explains Gossman.

“As part of the federal assistance provided, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers procured work from the contractors the federal government selected, including AshBritt.”

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14 NORTH BAY BOH E MI A N | FEBR UARY 1 3-19, 20 19 | BO H E M I AN.COM

a few minutes, and I joined a short convoy of cars making the slow, windy journey up the ridge.

Although the drive was a bit hairraising for this local accustomed to valley floor cruising, the view became more beautiful with each passing second. When I reached the crest that exposed the Napa Valley below, I was rewarded with a moving sight: light fog drifting through redwood groves more than one thousand feet below me.

No wonder so many artists call this place home.

A Buttery Breakfast

AMAZED Calistoga Springs invites you to slow the heck down on the property’s meditative labyrinth.

Calistoga Calling Wherein the Spotlight writer gets a warm reception on a chilly day

BY THOMAS BRODERICK

I

f you live in the North Bay, odds are that you’ve met at least one tourist who spent 10-plus hours in a plane to experience the culinary bounty and natural wonder that you can drive to any time you want. I don’t know about you, but that fact makes me feel a little guilty. So when the editor asked me to write about how a local could have a memorable day in Calistoga for $100, I knew it would be a great way to reconnect with our shared corner of the world.

However, there was a catch: I’d have to get up early.

A Cold Thursday Morning on Calistoga Road Yawning profusely, I set out before dawn with my trusty companion, Blue (my Honda Fit).

Reaching Santa Rosa, I turned onto Highway 12 before making a left on Calistoga Road. Blue reported that it was 28 degrees outside. A new record. The commuter traffic dissipated after

I parked on Lincoln Avenue just after 8, and it seemed that most of Calistoga was still asleep, and the only people on the street were locals getting coffee or walking their dogs. I was desperately in need of warmth, caffeine and calories. Cafe Sarafornia (1413 Lincoln Ave.) was one of the few open spots where I could take refuge from the biting cold. The only other diners were an out-oftown couple and a few retirees.

Warmed up by the coffee, I examined the breakfast menu and ordered the “2-two-2” ($10.95): two pancakes, two strips of bacon and two scrambled eggs. The hearty meal arrived less than five minutes later. The two cakes were topped with tiny orange slices and a golf ball–size pat of butter.

Even after buttering up my cakes, there was still enough butter left for at least three more breakfasts.

I cleaned my plate—minus the remaining butter pat.

Why can’t I eat like this every day?

Some Light Trespassing It was a little warmer outside, and if I was going to have lunch in a few hours, I had to start burning off that fat breakfast. It was time for a long walk.

Like many first-time visitors to Calistoga, I quickly noticed the natural geyser next to Indian Springs Calistoga (1712 Lincoln Ave.), one of the many famous resorts where weary travelers soak in mineral water and mud. I've never understood the mud soaks,

A History Lesson Not much is open in Calistoga before 11 am, so I spent an hour at Bella Bakery (1353 Lincoln Ave). The food, especially the impeccably glazed doughnuts that would make Homer Simpson drool, made me regret eating such a big breakfast. I got a coffee and busted out my laptop to do some work. Around me, Calistoga locals came and went. It’s a rule that when you go to a town with a touristy reputation, places the locals visit are the best places.

Near the end of my time at Bella Bakery, a Hispanic man approached me. “Do you speak languages?” He asked. Having forgotten most of my high school French and college Japanese, I shook my head. “I speak five languages,” he said before greeting me in Spanish and French. “Do you know who invented the color television?” Again, I shook my head. “He was a Mexican. Bless you and have a good day.” He promptly turned and left the cafe.

After a moment of stunned silence, I got on Wikipedia.

When he was just 17, Guillermo González Camarena patented one of the first color TV transmission systems. And this was in 1934.

How about that?

Getting Seasonal

After briefly visiting the Yäger Galerie to set up an interview appointment for later in the day (see sidebar), it was time to start thinking about lunch.

A weekday during the offseason is a strange, but amazing, time to have a meal in Calistoga. In other words, restaurants may feel deserted, but you receive special attention no matter where you eat.

All Seasons (1400 ) 16 Lincoln Ave.) has nearly

15

Ira Yeager A Portrait of the Artist and His Passion ituated on the Napa River’s east bank, the Yäger Galerie’s two rooms tell a unique story on every wall. Stepping inside, visitors are not only greeted by impressionist paintings depicting 17th-century French rural life, but also artifacts: loaves of bread on wooden racks, a food preparation table covered in flour, and a wine press.

Standing in the first room, the artifacts, all collected by the artist during his 65-year career, feel like natural extensions of the art hanging on the walls. The effect is that visitors become immersed in a more intimate experience than that most galleries and museums provide.

S

The Yäger Galerie owes its existence not only to the artist, who, at 80, still works daily in his Calistoga studio, but also to Brian Fuller, the gallery’s director and Yeager’s representative for the last 25 years. The gallery, open since June 2018, represents Fuller’s passion for bringing the painter’s work to a larger audience.

Born in Bellingham, Wash., in 1938, Ira Yeager became interested in painting as a teenager. At 18, he moved to San Francisco. At the time, the Bay Area figurative movement rebelled against abstract expressionism (e.g., Jackson Pollock) by returning to more recognizable forms. A “starving artist” in his early years, Yeager studied at what was then called the California College of Arts and Crafts and the San Francisco Art Institute before, at the age of 21, traveling to Florence, Italy, to study at the city’s famed Accademia d’Arte.

Although Yeager has made multiple trips to Europe to gain both inspiration and many of the artifacts on display in his gallery, his formative years studying under figurative movement artists continues to influence his style. “My continued seven-day-a-week painting schedule only excites me more for new fertile ventures on the canvas, daringly playing out that exhilarating game of chaos versus order,” he writes on his website.

In fact, one of Yeager’s newest pieces currently hangs just right of the entrance. Next to it, just like the rest of the work on display, is a small plaque indicating the painting’s name, date, and price.

As Fuller and I stood next to a larger canvas in the front room (it was $15,000), he explained that

the plaques had just gone up the day I visited. He had struggled with the decision for months, trying to balance the needs of collectors who want to know prices against the sensitivities of others who visit the gallery solely for cultural enrichment. To the latter group, seeing prices could make them feel awkward and want to leave. At that moment, a couple and their four young children entered. Mr. Fuller greeted them warmly and invited them to stay as long as they wanted. The children were less interested in the art than whether the loaves of bread were real. “They are,” gallery assistant Ren Ta explained, “but they’re probably really stale by now.”

The Yäger Galerie’s backroom is a contrast to the front. Although many of the works inspire fantasies of the French countryside, a large portion of the room is dedicated to featuring works from Yeager’s Indian Summer: Portraits of Nobility series. These portraits, painted on canvas, rusty metal signs and even the door from an old Ford truck, depict Plains Indians with an emphasis on male chiefs and warriors. Beside them are many of the original tools Yeager used to create these works. They leave the impression that the artist will return at any moment and continue painting.

Yäger Galerie visitors can expect a new experience every time they walk inside. Not only does new work take the place of sold pieces, but Fuller is also continually experimenting with new themes and arrangements. The back room has hosted more than Yeager’s art. A Boston quartet recently played there, to patrons’ delight. Fuller also hopes to one day use the space as a teaching environment for children interested in the arts.

I left the Yäger Galerie with a deep respect for the man and his art. I can heartily recommend that those planning trips to Calistoga add modern art to their itineraries alongside delectable food, fantastic wine and stunning nature.—Thomas Broderick The Yäger Galerie is open daily from 11am-5pm. Walk-ins are welcome, and prospective buyers can set up viewing appointments by calling 707. 341.3141.

NO RTH BAY BO H E M I AN | FE BR UARY 1 3-19, 2019 | BOH EMI A N.COM

but to each his own. Infiltrating the Indian Springs grounds, I avoided workers driving around on golf carts as I approached my goal: the geyser. But, alas, the geyser was behind the main office. I settled for traversing the stone maze on the property’s edge.

Passersby must think I’m nuts, I thought as I tiptoed between the rocks.

NORTH BAY BOH EMI A N | FEBR UARY 1 3-19, 20 19 | BO H E M I AN.COM

16

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Calistoga ( 15 a hundred seats, but only four were occupied as I stepped inside just after noon. Taking a small table near the window, I ordered a glass of 2016 Saddleback Cellars Vermentino ($12), a cup of butternut squash soup ($9) and ahi tuna carpaccio ($16). The wine was dry and light, and it reminded me of Granny Smith apple slices tossed in lemon juice. The soup was another delight, perfect for a Northern California winter day.

The smooth, creamy soup was even adorned with fried squash blossoms. Alas, the carpaccio was a bit off. The flavors—lime, bitter greens, ponzu sauce, sesame seeds—were all perfect, but the razor-thin tuna slices were lost in the mix.

You can’t win ’em all, I jotted down in my notebook before ordering another glass of the excellent Vermentino.

Appreciating the Past Just as ubiquitous as the spas in Calistoga are the antique stores. And as a history nerd, I wondered which one would have items that related to California and Calistoga history. Seeing the century-old wine presses in front of ROAM Antiques & Design (1124 Lincoln Ave.), I immediately knew that this store would be worth my time and then some.

Stepping inside, Shayna walked up to greet me. Shayna was a small, old white dog bundled up in a doggie sweater. I couldn’t help but scratch her behind the ears before introducing myself to her human, Barbra Hana-Austin. When she’s not helping out ROAM’s owner, Barbra keeps the past alive through her weekly podcast: Kosher Style Stories. In each episode, she weaves a yarn about her early life in New York City.

As I had hoped, the store featured many relics from California’s past, including various maps and a patinaed Hewlett-Packard test oscillator that was not just designed in Palo Alto, but actually built there in the 1950s.

Those were the days.

Heavy Metal Exposure Tasting rooms are a dime a dozen in Calistoga, and for any new one to survive, it has to stand apart from the competition. No tasting room does this better than Tank Garage Winery (1020 Foothill Blvd.), an establishment that for the last five years has served customers from a repurposed 1930s garage and gas station. This boutique winery solely produces one-off wines. In other words, buy a bottle today—because once it’s gone, it’s gone forever.

What else sets Tank Garage apart—besides the prohibition-era décor, tasteful merch and fullyrestored Indian motorcycle—is the employees’ attitude towards the tasting experience. Heath Cooley, one of the most approachable hosts I have ever met, took me through Tank Garage's history while pouring me splashes of two smooth reds and two crisp whites, all blends of four to eight varietals.

Tank Garage’s two owners wanted to create an approachable and casual tasting room. I think they’ve succeeded tremendously.

The tasting room’s most interesting feature involves something visitors may not notice on their first or 10th visit: the floor.

The concrete’s reddish tinge owes its existence to heavy metals in the soil; six decades of auto work will do that. Heath recalled that the EPA made them tear up the foundation twice before they finally approved it. The way Health told it, it sounded like the feds just got tired of coming out there. But rest assured, dear readers: it’s safe to visit.

Thanks for comping the wine, Heath.

Revelations During the Drive Home Leaving Calistoga just after 5pm, I got caught up in the traffic.

However, the slow ride up the mountain gave me time to reflect on the excellent food and wine, the people I had met and the natural beauty. And just like in the morning, when I reached the top of the ridge, I saw a beautiful valley below me. But this time it was the Valley of the Moon. It was good to be home.

GO WEST Chef Gustavo Rios’ career started in faraway Virginia.

The Gus Is Loose!

Gustavo Rios returns to Calistoga’s Solbar as executive chef BY CHARLENE PETERS

T

o say chef Gustavo Rios knows his way around the culinary scene in Calistoga is a safe bet. Upon his arrival over a decade ago, he had already honed experience at some of the best restaurants on the east and west coasts.

Known as Gus (pronounced like “goose”) to his close friends and family, Rios began his career at River’s Inn Restaurant in Virginia, where he managed a small tapas-

style kitchen. From there he worked in a kitchen at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and at the Inn at the Little Washington, a five-star restaurant in Virginia.

In 2002, Rios decided to move to the West Coast to experience the rising culinary scene of California.

He worked at the Peninsula Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles as chef’s assistant before joining the Thomas Keller team at Michelin star–rated Bouchon Bistro in Yountville in 2005, where he served as chef de partie.

A few years later, Rios left Bouchon Bistro for mentoring from seven-time Michelin star recipient Brandon Sharp at Solbar, the restaurant at Solage, an Auberge Resort in Calistoga.

During his seven years at Solbar, Rios played an integral team role in achieving those Michelin star awards. Rios was recognized in 2013 for his dedication and passion as Manager of the Year, and climbed from his role as chef de partie to executive sous chef and chef de cuisine before an

Solbar at Solage Resort & Spa, 755 Silverado Trail, Calistoga.

866.942.7442.

17 NO RTH BAY BO H E M I AN | FE BR UARY 1 3-19, 2019 | BOH EMI A N.COM

Dining

irresistible opportunity surfaced in 2015: Rios joined forces with Sharp to create the concept for a Calistoga-based French bistro.

Which would become Evangeline.

When Evangeline opened its doors in 2015, Rios took on the task as head of culinary operations and executive chef. While Sharp soon returned to his hometown in North Carolina, Rios shined with creativity; some say he started a “to-go” fried chicken cult following on Thursdays during the summertime Calistoga Concerts in the Park. It’s safe to say Rios has been an integral part of Evangeline’s success and popularity, and that he has elevated the culinary scene in Calistoga and the Napa Valley.

This year, Rios returned to Solbar as executive chef. He plans to continue to draw on his deep, long-standing relationships with top Napa Valley farmers and winemakers to take the culinary operations at this hot spot resort in Calistoga up a notch, perhaps securing a Michelin star again.

Most notable about Rios is his commitment to using whatever is in season. “We are extremely spoiled with what is available right in our backyard,” he says. “I cook what I cook because of people like Barni from Forni Brown or Kory from Wineforest [mushrooms], or Tim from K&J Orchards.”

At Solbar, the first order of business for Rios is to re-create comfort with ever-changing menus featuring seasonal, soulful dishes that celebrate bold flavors and incorporate his Latin background, his innovative methods and his experience in European cooking.

Signature dishes such as Solbar’s fish tacos will remain, and prix fixe tasting menus will be added to showcase some of the top local and world-renowned wineries such as Chateau Montelena, Eisele Vineyard and Knights Bridge.

Chef Rios has no qualms about his return. “It’s home for me, and when this opportunity presented itself, it was an easy decision to return and reestablish the restaurant as one of the very best.”

NORTH BAY BOH EMI A N | FEBR UARY 1 3-19, 20 19 | BO H E M I AN.COM

18

Change the way you relax.

Finding Our New Normal. Together.

visitCalistoga.com

As our region recovers from the 2017 fires, Healthcare Foundation, together with local and national partners, created the Wildfire Mental Health Collaborative. We want all local residents to have access to evidence-based strategies to recover and build resiliency post-wildfire, including: Drop-in counseling sessions • Individual and group counseling • Download the free app Sonoma Rises • Online wellness self-assessment MySonomaStrong.com • Restorative yoga and meditation sessions • Mental health professionals available to work with your group.

Tune in to THE DRIVE’S “California Wine Country” with Co-host Dan Berger, Wine Expert!

Please donate to fund these free bilingual services to support our employees, friends and neighbors in their healing. Visit healthcarefoundation.net or call 707-473-0583 today.

Free health services brought to you by the Wildfire Mental Health Collaborative— an initiative of the Healthcare Foundation Northern Sonoma County. Media campaign supported by the Community Foundation Sonoma County’s Resilience Fund, Constellation Brands and Medtronic. Support also provided by Tipping Point Community Emergency Relief Fund.

WEDNESDAYS AT 5PM The Drive 3 TO 6, WEEKDAY AFTERNOONS ON KSRO 1350AM & 103.5FM To become a Drive sponsor contact Cathy Ratto at cathy.ratto@yahoo.com

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19

Crush CULTURE

THE WEEK’S EVENTS: A SELECTIVE GUIDE

SONOMA

O C C I D E N TA L

Show Some Love

Historical Sleuthing

Sonoma’s own Nat Aslaksen and Larry Ginesi respectively lost their sound equipment and lighting equipment businesses when their warehouse was consumed by fire last year (“Losing Illusions,” Nov. 19). Now Sonoma’s musical community gathers to support their colleagues with ‘An Evening of Love for Nat and Larry,’ featuring performances by T-Luke & the Tight Suits, the Sean Carscadden Trio, Long Story Short and live band karaoke featuring the Sonoma Sound Syndicate.

Food, beverages and a silent auction round out the event on Friday, Feb. 15, at Sonoma Community Center, 276 E. Napa St., Sonoma. 6pm. $20 and up. 707.938.4626.

The story of David Fagen begins in 1899, when the 20-year-old AfricanAmerican soldier was sent to the Philippines by the United States to suppress a revolution. Fagen deserted to the side of the revolutionaries and became a guerrilla leader, though his tale remained steeped in mystery—until now. Forestville-based historian and writer Michael Morey digs deep for the whole story in his new book, ‘Fagen: An African American Renegade in the Philippine-American War,’ which Morey reads from at the book’s launch on Friday, Feb. 15, at the Occidental Center for the Arts, 3850 Doris Murphy Court, Occidental. 7pm. Free. 707.874.9392.

HEALDSBURG

N A PA

For Love of Art Born and raised in Paris, though a Bay Area local for more than 30 years, Zaza Fetterly is one of the most prolific painters and sculptors working in the region, and one of the most popular stops at the annual Open Studios Napa Valley event. Known for creating whimsical works infused with optimism that are sold at reasonable prices, Fetterly shows her latest art at Napa co-working and meeting space Workmix Cafe & Lounge for the next three months, and she is on hand for an opening reception on Saturday, Feb. 16, at 950 Randolph St., Napa. 5pm. Free.

707.603.3986.

Musical Courses

In addition to its annual event, the Healdsburg Jazz Festival stays busy throughout the year running highly successful music-education programs in local schools. This month, the community is invited to support the cause while enjoying live jazz performances and great food at nine restaurants in Healdsburg and Geyserville during the ninth annual Jazz on the Menu fundraiser. All participating restaurants donate 25 percent of their food and beverage sales to the school programs, and an afterparty at Costeaux French Bakery & Cafe raises a glass to jazz on Wednesday, Feb. 20. Locations, information and tickets available at healdsburgjazz.org.

—Charlie Swanson

NO RTH BAY BO H E M I AN | FE BR UARY 1 3-19, 2019 | BOH EMI A N.COM

ALL 4 ONE Improvisational comedy kings Whose Live Anyway? return to the Luther Burbank Center for the Arts in Santa Rosa on Sunday, Feb. 17.

See Comedy, p24.

Stage Eric Chazankin

NORTH BAY BOH EMI A N | FEBR UARY 1 3-19, 20 19 | BO H E M I AN.COM

20

SLOW DANCE Sandra Ish and

Dean Linnard get close in ‘Sex with Strangers.’

Night Moves

Left Edge offers tantalizing take on modern love

BY HARRY DUKE

AUDITIONS FOR OUR SPRING PRODUCTION OF

Hansel and Gretel ALL AGES AND LEVELS WELCOME!

February 16 at 10:30am Call us for more info! 707.536.9523 905 Mendocino Ave, Santa Rosa www.newworldballet.com

‘W

ho are you?”

That’s the opening line from Laura Eason’s Sex with Strangers, running now through Feb. 17 at Left Edge Theatre. It’s a question that lingers throughout the Diane Bailey–directed production.

In the good ol’ days, getting to know someone meant hanging out, dating, talking on the phone for hours, etc. With the advent of the cell phone and social media, these days you get to “know” someone via a Google search and a look at a person’s Facebook or Instagram accounts.

But is a person’s online presence a true reflection of that person or is it simply a persona

crafted for the medium? As Shakespeare said, “One man in his time plays many parts.”

What part is Ethan (Dean Linnard) playing when he happens to run into his literary idol Olivia (Sandra Ish) at a lakeside retreat?

Is he the young, cocky misogynist behind the Sex with Strangers blog that documented 52 weeks of sexual conquests, or is he the sensitive, thoughtful scribe now seeking to be taken seriously as a writer? Is it really just a chance encounter between him and Olivia, or is there something nefarious going on?

Ostensibly, he’s there for the same reasons as Olivia. He’s there to write. He needs to deliver a screenplay based on the bestselling books compiled from his blog. Olivia, who basically gave up writing after the failure of her first novel, continues to write but only for herself.

She’s retreated to the safety of academia, unable to fathom a return to the literary world.

Snowbound in a rural cottage and cut off from the world (no WiFi), what’s there to do but talk and, eventually, have sex?

In between the bouts of coitus, they get to know each other with Ethan insisting he’s really not the person he portrayed himself as on his blog—OK, he is, but he won’t be to Olivia—and he wants to help bring Olivia back into the literary fold. Will Olivia succumb to his charms? And who is charming who?

Credulity is strained throughout Eason’s story, but if you buy into the premise, it’s a rather interesting tale. While often funny, there’s a dark current running beneath it all buttressed by the ambiguity of the ending.

Linnard and Ish do well with their multilayered characters. By the show’s conclusion, we still don’t know who they really are, which makes sense, because they don’t either.

Rating (out of 5): HHHH ‘Sex with Strangers’ runs through Feb. 17 at Left Edge Theatre. 50 Mark West Springs Road, Santa Rosa. Friday– Saturday, 8pm; Sunday, 2pm. $25–$40.

707.546.3600. leftedgetheatre.com.

21 NO RTH BAY BO H E M I AN | FE BR UARY 1 3-19, 2019 | BOH EMI A N.COM

Film

SEASON OF THE WITCH Luca Guadagnino’s ‘Suspiria’ is the ballet horror film you’ve been waiting for.

Dance of Death

Art-house horror remake ‘Suspiria’ was 2018’s best-kept secret BY RICHARD VON BUSACK

H

aunted houses are bad, but what’s really frightening is a haunted city.

The 2018 remake of Italian horror director Dario Argento’s Suspiria—“six acts and an epilogue in divided Berlin”—shows a coven of bloodthirsty witches as just one cadre of plotters in a city riddled with them. It unfolds during the “German Autumn” of 1977, the era of the Red Army Faction, of kidnappers and terror bombings.

In the pre-titles to Luca Guadagnino’s remake, a patient bursts in on the aged German psychiatrist Dr. Joseph Klemperer (Tilda Swinton in one of multiple parts). The patient, Patricia (Chloë Grace Moretz), has tales of persecution, claiming the instructors at her dance academy are witches, and are threatening to gut her. She leaves behind baffling notebooks filled with strange geometric patterns.

During the titles, a chilling D-minor waltz by Thom Yorke of Radiohead plays on what sounds like an imperfectly tuned dance studio rehearsal piano. We witness the last gasps of an Amish woman (Malgorzata Bela), mutely pleading for the end.

In Berlin, mere feet from the graffitied Wall, is a Brutalist performance hall, of streaky green marble and dingy curtains, called the Markos Tanzgruppe, where a new dancer, Susie (Dakota Johnson)— daughter of the dying woman we just saw—is moving into the dormitories to take Patricia’s place. The official story is that Patricia dropped out to join the bomb-throwing rebels.

If there is an alchemy in ballet— making the human body do what it normally can’t—it explains a favorite movie fantasy that choreographed beauty comes at a sacrifice. What if everything artists talks casually about, regarding the “ritual” in their art, were true?

The biggest idea in Argento’s 1977 original Suspiria was an Unholy Trinity of three mothers, older than the Fates, and that’s the most important carryover into this new version. As in the original, there are fantastically shocking images, but Suspiria is not completely morbid; the movie goes full-throatedly emotional in its last shot. It’s summer finally, and the camera pulls up to note the last relic of a love which has already been erased from life by witchcraft and history.

‘Suspiria’ is available to rent on Amazon.com.

Honorable 2/15–2/21 2019 Oscar Nominated Short Films – Animation NR 10:45-4:15 2019 Oscar Nominated Short Films – Live Action NR 7:00pm 2019 Oscar Nominated Short Films – Documentary NR 1:00pm Capernaum– Subtitled –AD R 10:45-1:45-4:45-7:45

On the Basis of Sex – CC & AD PG13

11:00-5:00

Stan & Ollie – CC & AD PG 10:15-4:00 Cold War – Subtitled R 7:15pm If Beale Street Could Talk – CC & AD R 7:45pm

Shoplifters – Subtitled R 1:15pm The Favourite – CC & AD R 2:00pm Green Book – CC & AD PG13

10:30-1:30-4:30-7:30 551 SUMMERFIELD ROAD • SANTA ROSA 707.525.8909 • SUMMERFIELDCINEMAS.COM

® BRINGING THE BEST FILMS IN THE WORLD TO SONOMA COUNTY

Schedule for Fri, February 15 – Thu, February 21

DINE-IN CINEMA Bargain Tuesday - $7.50 All Shows Bargain Tuesday $7.00 All Shows Schedule forFri, Fri,April Feb -16th 20th Thu, Feb 26th Schedule for –– Thu, April 22nd

Schedule for Fri, June 22nd• -Salads Thu, June 28th Bruschetta • Academy Paninis • Award Soups • Appetizers “Moore Gives Her BestNominee Performance 8 Great Beers on Tap + Wine by the Glass and Bottle

Foreign Language Film!Stone In Years!”

– Box Office “RawBest and Riveting!”

– Rolling

® Moore David Duchovny Demi WALTZ WITH HEART BASHIRSHORTS OSCAR NOMINATED A MIGHTY (1:00) THE 3:00 5:00 9:15 RR (12:30) 2:45 JONESES 5:00 7:00 7:20 9:458:45 (2:45) NR DOCUMENTARY (12:30) 2:40 4:50 7:10 9:20 R 2 Academy Award Noms Including Best (2:30) 8:30Actor!

NR LIVE ACTION “A Triumph!”

– New “A Glorious Throwback ToYork The Observer More Stylized, THE WRESTLER (12:30 4:45) NR ANIMATED Painterly Work Of Decades Past!”

–6:40 LA (12:20) 5:10 9:45 R Times LA2:45 VIE EN 7:30 ROSE (12:45) 3:45 6:45 9:45 PG-13 THEAward SECRET OF PG KELLS (12:20) 6:20 Subtitled 10MIRAI Academy Noms Including Best Picture!

(1:00) 3:00 5:00 7:00 9:00 NR SLuMDOG MILLIONAIRE “★★★★ –IT Really, Truly, Deeply – ISN’T ROMANTIC “Superb!

No One Could Make This 4:00 7:10 R Believable One of (1:15) This Year’s Best!”9:40 – Newsday

One of This Year’s Best!” – PG-13 Newsday (12:45 3:00 5:15) 7:30 CC DV If It Were Fiction!”

– San 9:40 Francisco Chronicle

ONCE 8 Academy Award Noms Including

8 Academy Award Noms Including PRODIGAL SONS ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL (1:00) 3:10 R 2D Best Picture, Best5:20 Actor7:30 & Best9:40 Director!

(2:20) 9:10 NR No 9:10 Show Tue or Thu (1:00 3:45) 6:40 9:15 PG-13 CC DV MILK

“Haunting and Hypnotic!” – Rolling Stone “Wise, Humble and Effortlessly (1:30) 4:10 6:45 Funny!”

9:30 R – Newsweek

THE LEGO MOVIE 2: THE GIRL THE TATTOO Please Note: 1:30 Show Sat, PleaseWITH Note: No No 1:30 ShowDRAGON Sat, No No 6:45 6:45 Show Show Thu Thu WAITRESS

WAITRESS (1:10) 4:30 7:30 NR (1:30) 7:10 9:30 Best R Picture!

5 Academy Award4:00 Noms Including (1:45 7:00 9:20 PG –CCUSA DVToday “★★★ 1/2!4:15) AnFROST/NIXON unexpected Gem!”

THE SECOND PART FROST/NIXON

THE FAVOURITE

(2:15)Mysterious, 7:20 R GREENBERG “Swoonly Romatic, Hilarious!”

(12:00) 5:00 R – Slant Magazine (2:15) 6:50 R 9:50 CC DV

REVOLuTIONARY ROAD

“Deliciously unsettling!”

– LA Times PARIS, JE T’AIME

2/8–2/12 Closed Caption and Audio Description available for all films

Alita: Battle Angel • Isn't It Romantic The LEGO Movie 2: The 2nd Part The Upside • Green Book Bistro Menu Items, Beer & Wine available in all 4 Auditoriums

SHOWTIMES: ravenfilmcenter.com 707.525.8909 • HEALDSBURG

PARIS, JE T’AIME (11:45) 4:45 9:50 R 4:50) COLDTHE WAR (1:15) 4:15(12:15 7:00 9:30 R 9:15 R GHOST Kevin Jorgenson presents the WRITER California Premiere of (2:15) 7:15 PG-13 GREEN BOOK PuRE: A BOuLDERING FLICK Michael Moore’s Thu, Feb 26th at 7:15 (1:15 4:20) 7:20 9:55 PG-13 CC DV THE MOST DANGEROuS

SICKO

SICKO MOVIES MORNING MANIN INTHE AMERICA BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY

Starts Fri, June 29th!

Fri, Sat, Sun Mon DANIEL ELLSBERG AND THE&PENTAGON PAPERS Advance Tickets On Sale at Box Fri-Mon: (1:10) 6:40Now PG-13 CCOffice!

DV 9:50 AM (12:10) 4:30 6:50 6:50 Show Tue or Thu FROZEN RIVER (12:00) 2:30 NR 5:00No7:30 10:00 Tue: (3:30) Wed: (1:10) 8:45 Thu: (1:10) 10:15 AM VICKY Their CRISTINA BARCELONA First Joint Venture In 25 Years!

10:20 AM CHANGELING (4:00) 9:30 R Close CC DV Venessa RedgraveAND Meryl Streep Glenn CHEECH CHONG’S 10:40 AM RACHEL GETTING MARRIED 10:45 AM HEY(1:00) WATCH 2009 LIVE ACTION SHORTS (Fri/Mon EVENING 6:45 THIS ROnly)) Subtitled 10:45 Sat, Apr17th at 11pm & Tue, Apr 20th 8pmAM 2009 ANIMATED SHORTS Only) Starts Fri,(Sun June 29th!

STAN & OLLIE ROMA THE UPSIDE

PG-13 CC DV

Fri-Mon: (4:00) 9:30 Tue: 9:30 Wed/Thu: (4:00)

NORTH BAY BOH E MI A N | FEBR UARY 1 3-19, 20 19 | BO H E M I AN.COM

22

Music

HOPMONK .COM

WEDNESDAY

SEBASTOPOL

The Abbey WED, FEB 13 • 7:00PM

SINATRA VALENTINE’S SPECIAL 2019 WED, FEB 13 • 7:00 TRIVIA NIGHT FRI, FEB 15 & SAT, FEB 16 • 8:00 SOL HORIZON BOB MARLEY

TRIBUTE, 2 NIGHTS! SUN, FEB 17 • 7:00 • EVERY 3RD SUNDAY COMEDY OPEN MIC MON, FEB 18 • 10:00 MONDAY NIGHT EDUTAINMENT LOS RAKAS (GRAMMY NOMINATED INTERNATIONAL ARTISTS FROM PANAMA) WITH SPECIAL

GUESTS DELWIN G & OSO CALI TUE, FEB 19 • 7:00 • EVERY TUES OPEN MIC NIGHT W⁄ CENI FRI, FEB 22 • 8:00

MARTY O’REILLY AND THE OLD SOUL ORCHESTRA SAT, FEB 23 • 8:00 THE BIG FIT MON, FEB 25 • 10:00PM

THE EXPENDABLES WITH

& KASH'D OUT FEB 13 BALLYHOO! REGGAE • DOORS 7:30PM • 21+ FRIDAY

ALBERT CUMMINGS WITH

CLICK & THE HELL FEB 15 DANNY YEAHS BLUES • DOORS 7:30PM • 21+ SATURDAY

FEB 16

HOUSE OF FLOYD

COVERS/TRIBUTE • DOORS 7:30PM • 21+

FRIDAY

PRIDE & JOY

FRIDAY

COMMON KINGS

FEB 22 MAR 1

SOUL ⁄FUNK • DOORS 8:30PM • 21+

WITH NATTALI RIZE

REGGAE • DOORS 7:30PM • 21+

SATURDAY

TAINTED LOVE

SUNDAY

SHOOK TWINS

BEST OF THE 80'S LIVE MAR 2 THE COVERS⁄ TRIBUTE • DOORS 8PM • 21+

MAR 3

WITH RAINBOW GIRLS FOLK • DOORS 7:30PM • 21+

FRIDAY SAMVEGA ⁄ DOWN DIRTY ⁄ MIDNIGHT TRANSIT MAR 8 SHAKE PSYCH • DOORS 7:30PM • 21+ 3⁄9 TWRP w/ Planet Booty, 3⁄10 Ripe w/ The Brook & The Bluff, 3⁄15 The Suffers, 3⁄16 Kitchen Dwellers, 3⁄21 The Sam Chase & The Untraditional with The Soft White Sixties, 3⁄23 Steve Poltz w/ special guest Daniel Rodriguez (of Elephant Revival), 3⁄24 Stephen Marley (Acoustic) w/ Mystic Marley, 3⁄29 Mustache Harbor, 4⁄4 The King Street Giants w/ The Crux, 4⁄5 Low Cut Connie

WWW.MYSTICTHEATRE.COM 23 PETALUMA BLVD N. PETALUMA, CA 94952

MONDAY NIGHT EDUTAINMENT

DJ JACQUES FRI, MAR 1 • 8:00 DEADGRASS

TWIN OAKS PENNGROVE

The Grand Ballroom THU, FEB 14 • 8:30

LEVI’S WORKSHOP WITH DANIEL CASTRO FRI, FEB 15 • 8:30 SAM CHASE (SOLO) AND WILLY TEA TAYLOR SAT, FEB 16 • 8:00

ATTILA VIOLA AND THE BAKERSFIELD BOYS MON, FEB 18 • 8:00

BLUES DEFENDERS PRO JAM WED, FEB 20 • 7:30

HONKY TONK NIGHT

EVERY 1ST & 3RD WEDNESDAY THU, FEB 21 • 7:00

COUNTRY LINE DANCE FRI, FEB 22 • 8:00

JOE VALLEY BAND 20+ SHOWS PER WEEK VISIT HOPMONK.COM FOR FULL CALENDAR

SEBASTOPOL | SONOMA NOVATO | PENNGROVE

OPEN MIC

EVERY MONDAY • 6:30–9:30 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 13 • 6PM

PETALUMA SCHOOL JAZZ BAND BENEFIT CONCERT FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15 • 8PM

DAN MARTIN AND THE NOMA ROCK STEADY BAND SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 16 • 8PM • $10

THE SIDE MEN

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 17 • 12PM

PETER WELKER SEXTET FEATURING JEFF OSTER FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22 • 7PM • $5

MISS MOONSHINE

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 23 • 7PM • $5

REDWOOD HIGHWAY RAMBLERS SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 24 • 12PM

DORIAN MODE

FRIDAY, MARCH 1 • 7PM • $10

THE PULSATORS

SATURDAY, MARCH 2 • 7PM • $5

BATACHA SALSA GROUP

HAPPY HOUR: MON—FRI, 4PM—6PM BRUNCH: SAT, SUN 11AM—2PM

Mon—Thu: 11:30am—9pm, Fri—Sat: 11:30am—12am Food served til 11pm; Fri, Sat & Karaoke Wed til 10

707.559.5133 101 2ND ST #190, PETALUMA

FOR RESERVATIONS:

EDUTAIN US Grammy-nominated Los Rakas make the most of Monday with a concert in Sebastopol.

In Session

Do your homework at HopMonk’s MNE BY AIYANA MOYA

L

ong-running concert series Monday Night Edutainment (MNE) at HopMonk Tavern in Sebastopol inspires a feeling similar to that of listening to a new album from a band you love: you hear the familiar beats and rhythms, but you also hear new sounds, sometimes surprising and out of character.

For DJ Jacques, introducing audiences to new sounds is just as important as giving them the music they came for. This is the concept of MNE: music as not simply a form of entertainment, but also a channel for education.

DJ Jacques has been DJ-ing HopMonk’s MNE since its formation in 2001. His musical style starts with Jamaican bass and spins off to include hip-hop percussion or Latin rhythms, often playing with traditional and modern elements of reggae dancehall.

“I don’t believe in loving just one thing,” Jacques says. Although the Monday nights are sometimes characterized as simply reggae nights, Jacques rejects this classification, as he often includes Latin, hip-hop and jazz artists, basing criteria of new artists on quality rather than genre. “My job is

to get the artists the audience needs to hear,” he says. “I find what is next, and curate the new stuff so that gems don’t get overlooked.”

Jacques’ knack for finding fresh talent comes from years of musical obsession. He was introduced to the world of music at home; his grandfather was a musician in the Cleveland symphony and his uncle, a conductor at the Metropolitan Opera.

“Ironically, my mother is deaf,” Jacques laughs. “Which is honestly a huge part of how I got into music.”

When his mother would send Jacques to bed, he would bring the radio with him. “I was addicted to staying up late and listening to the top 100 countdowns,” he says.

Maybe it was the late nights with music beating beneath his sheets, or shouldering records across Europe and Central America, or maybe it’s just hereditary, but Jacques holds a natural inclination for musicians on the rise.

On Feb. 18, Jacques hosts Grammy-nominated group Los Rakas (pictured), a band melting Spanish beats and lyrics into Oakland-style hip-hop. As with every Monday concert, expect a night filled with “edutainment.”

Los Rakas perform on Monday, Feb. 18, at HopMonk Tavern, 230 Petaluma Ave., Sebastopol. 10pm. $10. 707.829.7300.

B.A. Liberal Studies @ Napa & Solano

Ready to complete your degree?

Info Session Thursday, February 21 6:30 - 7:00 p.m.

Zoom Live Web Broadcast (online) RSVP: sonoma.education/libs-info

amy.unger@sonoma.edu 707.664.2601

Fireside Dining Sat & Sun Brunch 11–3

Lunch & Dinner 7 Days a Week

Din n er & A Show

HAPPY H O U R 3-7 M-F

Celebrate Valentine’s Day with

THURSDAY ATOMIC COCKTAIL (no cover)

The Steve & Carmen Show

MARCH 3 RODNEY STRONG VINEYARDS DANCE SERIES

A Romantic Evening of Dining & Dancing

Bring your sweetheart Thursday night for an evening with live music, dancing & fabulous food & drink!

February 14

Trinity Irish Dance Company

Fri

MARCH 7

Sat

The Wood Brothers

Rock & Roll Party!

Feb 15 Beer Scouts 7:00 ⁄ No Cover

Drew Harrison Feb 16 “Beatles and More”

The Acoustic Show Moves Indoors!

8:00

Emily Bonn & The Vivants Feb 17 Old Time Swing to Honky Tonk Sun

4:00 ⁄ No Cover

MARCH 15 A Conversation with

John Cusack

following a screening of High Fidelity

MARCH 29

Kip Moore - Room to Spare Acoustic Tour special guest Muscadine Bloodline

Cathy Lemons and Phil Berkowitz & Band Feb 22 The Lucky Losers Fri

Classic R&B and Blues 7:00 ⁄ No Cover

Stompy Jones featuring Dance Feb 23 Annette Moreno Party!

Sat

8:00

Tommy Castro & The Painkillers

Weekend

Mar 22 & Mar 23

Fri Night Only! Special Guest Ron Thompson Reservations Advised

707.546.3600 | yourLBC.org

415.662.2219

On the Town Square, Nicasio www.ranchonicasio.com

02.14 FRIDAY

02.15

Valentine’s Day Special 8-11

COMPLICATED ANIMALS 8:30-11:30 (no cover)

SATURDAY THREE ON A MATCH

02.16

8:30-11:30 (no cover)

THURSDAY LIVE BAND KARAOKE

02.21

8-10 (no cover)

THURSDAY OPEN MIC NIGHT

03.07

8-10 hosted By Randy Burrows

FRIDAY

LEE VANDEVEER BAND 8:30-11:30 (no cover)

SUNDAY

GENTLEMEN SOLDIERS ST. PATRICK’S DAY CELEBRATION Irish Punk/Folk 4-7 (no cover)

03.08 03.17

19380 CA-12 SONOMA CA 95476

707 938 7442 starlingsonoma.com

NO RTH BAY BO H E M I AN | FE BR UARY 1 3-19, 2019 | BOH EMI A N.COM

Degree Completion

23

NORTH BAY BOH E MI A N | FE BR UARY 1 3-19, 20 19 | BO H E M I AN.COM

24

Calendar Concerts SONOMA A Far Cry

Grammy-nominated string orchestra provides high-energy performances with thoughtful, innovative and unpredictable programming. Feb 16, 7:30pm. $25 and up. Green Music Center Weill Hall, 1801 East Cotati Ave, Rohnert Park. 866.955.6040.

Daniel Glover

Internationally touring pianist appears on the Cinnabar stage for the first time to perform works by Debussy, Liszt, Copland, Gershwin and more.

Feb 17, 7:30pm. $25. Cinnabar Theater, 3333 Petaluma Blvd N, Petaluma. 707.763.8920.

Los Rakas

Monday Night Edutainment presents Oakland duo of Panamanian cousins who create dance music featuring worldly beats. Feb 18, 10pm. $10-$20. HopMonk Sebastopol, 230 Petaluma Ave, Sebastopol.

707.829.7300.

MARIN The Crooked Jades

San Francisco string band reimagines old-time music with vintage melodies filtered through a post-9/11 lens. Feb 17, 8pm. $17-$20. Sweetwater Music Hall, 19 Corte Madera Ave, Mill Valley. 415.388.3850.

Cryptical

Stu Allen joins the acclaimed Grateful Dead tribute band for a night of timeless music.

Feb 16, 8pm. $25. Terrapin Crossroads, 100 Yacht Club Dr, San Rafael. 415.524.2773.

Steve Gunn

For over a decade, the pivotal guitarist and vocalist has crafted psychedelic sonic landscapes with emotional depth. Feb 15, 9pm. $18.

HopMonk Novato, 224 Vintage Way, Novato. 415.892.6200.

NAPA Rockapella

Spend Valentine’s night with the impeccable harmonies and humor of the five-man a cappella sensation. Feb 14, 7:30pm. $38-$45. Napa Valley College Performing Arts Center,

2277 Napa Vallejo Hwy, Napa.

707.256.7000.

Clubs & Venues SONOMA Green Music Center Schroeder Hall

Feb 16, 3pm, Sonoma Bach Guest Recital: “The Bright Field” with Clerestory. Feb 17, 2pm, Navarro Trio. 1801 E Cotati Ave, Rohnert Park. 866.955.6040.

HopMonk Sebastopol

Feb 13, Sinatra Valentine’s Day special. Feb 15-16, tribute to Bob Marley with Sol Horizon.

230 Petaluma Ave, Sebastopol.

707.829.7300.

Mystic Theatre & Music Hall

Feb 13, the Expendables with Ballyhoo and Kash’d Out. Feb 15, Albert Cummings with Danny Click & the Hell Yeahs.

Feb 16, House of FLoyd. 23 Petaluma Blvd N, Petaluma.

707.775.6048.

Occidental Center for the Arts

Feb 16, Onye & the Messengers.

3850 Doris Murphy Ct, Occidental. 707.874.9392.

The Phoenix Theater

Feb 16, Sabertooth Zombie with Brown Bags and Thus the Buzz. 201 Washington St, Petaluma. 707.762.3565.

The Reel Fish Shop & Grill Feb 14, 6pm, Valentine’s at the Reel with Nate Lopez.

401 Grove St, Sonoma.

707.343.0044.

Ruth McGowan’s Brewpub

Feb 14, 6pm, Big Blue House Valentine’s Jazz with Jim Passarell. 131 E First St, Cloverdale. 707.894.9610.

Whiskey Tip

Feb 14, Edgy Open Mic with Star Blue. Feb 15, Girls Night Out: Valentine’s Day Edition.

Feb 16, silent disco.

1910 Sebastopol Rd, Santa Rosa. 707.843.5535.

MARIN Sweetwater Music Hall

Through Feb 14, Steve Kimock

and friends featuring Jeff Chimenti and Reed Mathis. Feb 15-16, the English Beat. Soldout. 19 Corte Madera Ave, Mill Valley. 415.388.3850.

Terrapin Crossroads

Feb 13, Danny Click & the Hell Yeahs. Feb 14, “Love Songs” with Elliott Peck and friends.

Feb 16, Gregg’s Eggs featuring Greg Anton and friends. Feb 17, Stu Allen and friends featuring Scott Guberman and Reed Mathis. Feb 20, Danny Click & the Hell Yeahs. 100 Yacht Club Dr, San Rafael. 415.524.2773.

NAPA Blue Note Napa

Feb 13, Liz Lokre. Feb 14-16, 7 and 9pm, Take 6. Feb 17, 11:30am, Sunday Brunch with Mike Greensill. Feb 19, Mix It Up pro jam. Feb 20, Mark Allen Felton. 1030 Main St, Napa.

707.880.2300.

Downtown Joe’s Brewery & Restaurant

Feb 16, the Special Guests. Feb 17, the Sorry Lot. 902 Main St, Napa. 707.258.2337.

Art Openings SONOMA Fulton Crossing

Feb 15-28, “February Art Show at Fulton Crossing,” several artist tenants open their studios to the public to show their creative work. Reception, Feb 15 at 5pm. 1200 River Rd, Fulton. Sat-Sun, noon to 5pm 707.536.3305.

Graton Gallery

Feb 16-Mar 17, “Partners & Friends,” each partner of Graton Gallery has asked an artist friend to show a piece of work alongside their own.

Reception, Feb 16 at 2pm. 9048 Graton Rd, Graton. Tues-Sat, 10:30 to 6; Sun, 10:30 to 4.

707.829.8912.

Upstairs Art Gallery

Feb 13-24, “Art from the Heart,” show features heartfelt artworks by Linda Barretta, Donna Schaffer, Carolyn Wilson and others. Reception, Feb 17 at 2pm. 306 Center St, Healdsburg. Sun-Thurs, 11 to 6; Fri-Sat, 11 to 9. 707.431.4214.

NAPA Workmix Cafe Lounge Feb 16-Mar 31, “Zaza Fetterly

Solo Show,” the French artist makes art to help people connect with their inner goodness and innate optimism.

Reception, Feb 16 at 5pm. 950 Randolph St, Napa. Mon-Fri, 8am to 5pm; 7am to 5 for members; twilight hours, 5 to 7pm. 707.603.3986.

Comedy Gabriel ‘Fluffy’ Iglesias

One of America’s most successful standup comedians performs as part of his “Beyond the Fluffy” tour. Feb 14, 8pm. $75-$95. Napa Valley Performing Arts Center at Lincoln Theater, 100 California Dr, Yountville. 707.944.9900.

Please Swipe Right

Evil Comedy’s latest show mixes live improv and sketch comedy to talk about love and modern dating. Feb 14, 7pm. $10. Arlene Francis Center, 99 Sixth St, Santa Rosa.

707.528.3009.

Whose Live Anyway?

Quartet of veteran improvisers return for a night of laughs.

Feb 17, 7pm. $39-$59. Luther Burbank Center for the Arts, 50 Mark West Springs Rd, Santa Rosa. 707.546.3600.

Events Chinese New Year Fundraiser

Celebrate the Year of the Pig with traditional cuisine, wines, live and silent auction and more to support the Sonoma Sister Cities Association. Feb 17, 12pm. $88. Jacuzzi Family Vineyards, 24724 Arnold Dr, Sonoma. sonomasistercitiesassociation.org.

Cloverdale Citrus Fair

Founded in 1892, this familyfriendly fair boasts a parade, citrus sculpture exhibits, livestock activities, rides and live entertainment. Feb 15-18. $5-$8. Cloverdale Fairgrounds, 1 Citrus Fair Dr, Cloverdale. cloverdalecitrusfair.org.

Downtown Drawdown

Introduction is followed by a series of five workshops designed to enroll viewers as activists to prevent climate disaster. Feb 13, 6pm. Petaluma Bank Hub, 199 Petaluma Blvd N, Petaluma. 707.347.9463.

Evening of Love for Nat & Larry

Fundraiser for Sonoma business owners who lost their

warehouses to fire features live music, food, wine, beer and silent auction. Feb 15, 6pm. $20 and up. Sonoma Community Center, 276 E Napa St, Sonoma.

707.938.4626.

One Billion Rising

Part of a nationwide event to end violence against women and children, this gathering includes workshops, bilingual presentations and an evening performance of “The Vagina Monologues.” Feb 14, 4:30pm.

Free, $20 for performance.

Mentor Me Cavanagh Recreation Center, 426 Eighth St, Petaluma. 707.778.4798.

Bohemian Rhapsody Sing-Along

Recent acclaimed biopic of Queen and lead singer Freddie Mercury gets a special screening. Feb 17, 6pm. $11.

Sebastiani Theatre, 476 First St E, Sonoma. 707.996.9756.

CinemaBites

Documentary “Ulam: Main Dish,” which follows the rise of Filipino food, screens with food and wine courtesy of Cliff Family with chef John McConnell and Rhea-Marie Quilala. Feb 18, 4:45pm. $45.

Cameo Cinema, 1340 Main St, St Helena. 707.963.9779.

One Love Diversity Festival

Great Art On Screen

Celebrate diversity through entertainment, food and student services and programs.

Feb 13, 10:30am. Bertolini Student Center, SRJC, 1501 Mendocino Ave, Santa Rosa.

707.527.4011.

Art exhibition film “Van Gogh: Of Wheat Fields & Clouded Skies,” that offers new look at the largest private collection of artworks by the Dutch painter.

Feb 19, 1 and 7pm. $16. Rialto Cinemas, 6868 McKinley St, Sebastopol. 707.525.4840.

Valentine’s Partner Yoga

Orson Welles & War of the Worlds

Evening of yoga and Thai massage is hosted by Blue Muse Sound Healing. Feb 14, 6:30pm. $35. Devi Yoga Center, 7151 Wilton Ave, Sebastopol.

707.318.6538.

Wild Jungle Love Party Curious about love in the wild?

Take an adults-only tour of the wildlife preserve and enjoy bites, lectures and more. Feb 16-17. $165. Safari West, 3115 Porter Creek Rd, Santa Rosa.

707.579.2551.

Field Trips Marine Mammal Seminar & Seal Watch Training

Classroom session covering topics relevant to California’s marine mammals is followed by docent training. Feb 16, 9am and 1pm. $20. Jenner Community Center, 10398 Hwy 1, Jenner. 707.865.1767.

Film André: The Voice of Wine

See the feature-length documentary on the “Dean of American Winemakers,” André Tchelistcheff, with wine reception and panel discussion.

Feb 15, 5pm. $95. Jarvis Conservatory, 1711 Main St, Napa. 707.255.5445.

Learn about the radio play that caused mass panic over a Martian invasion in 1938 in this film class with Ian McIver. Feb 19, 1pm. $10. Cameo Cinema, 1340 Main St, St Helena.

707.963.9779.

Walkabout

Nicolas Roeg’s 1971 comingof-age fable is set in the Australian Outback, where two stranded siblings encounter an Aboriginal youth. Fri, Feb 15, 7pm and Sun, Feb 17, 4:30pm. $5 donation. Sonoma Film Institute, Warren Auditorium, SSU, 1801 E Cotati Ave, Rohnert Park. 707.664.2606.

Food & Drink The Chef’s Table Special Edition

Intimate and interactive dinner gets romantic for Valentine’s Day. Feb 14, 5pm. $150. CIA at Copia, 500 First St, Napa.

707.967.2530.

Date Night at Notre Vue

Couples are invited to sip wines, savor small bites and enjoy a festive dessert. Feb 15, 6pm. $60. Notre Vue Estate Winery & Vineyard, 11010 Estate Lane, Windsor.

707.433.4050.

Romantic Dinner in Bodega Bay

Watch the sunset and enjoy a classic Italian menu of ocean

Lectures

Simoncini Vineyards Valentine’s Wine & Food Pairing

Professor Sergio La Porta delivers a lecture for the Alliance for the Study of the Holocaust and Genocide.

Feb 19, 4pm. Free. Warren Auditorium, Ives Hall, SSU, 1801 E Cotati Ave, Rohnert Park.

707.235.5582.

Six-course meal set in the wine cave is paired with Simoncini Vineyards’ small-production wine. Feb 16, 12pm. $95.

Simoncini Vineyards, 2303 West Dry Creek Rd, Healdsburg.

707.433.8811.

Sweetheart Dinner Bring your loved one(s) and enjoy a delicious three-course meal prepared by CIA chefs.

Feb 14, 6pm. $125. CIA at Greystone, 2555 Main St, St Helena. 707.967.2320.

Valentine’s Day at FARM at Carneros Candlelight and live jazz add to the romantic ambiance. Feb 14-16. $125. Carneros Resort & Spa, 4048 Sonoma Hwy, Napa.

888.400.9000.

Valentine’s Day at Goose & Gander A special menu made exclusively for the holiday includes three creative courses and optional wine pairing. Feb 14. Goose & Gander, 1245 Spring St, St Helena. 707.967.8779.

Valentine’s Day Dining at Spoonbar Keep things sweet and savory this Valentine’s Day with a four-course menu from new chef Matthew D’Ambrosi.

Feb 14. $65 plus wine pairing.

Spoonbar, 219 Healdsburg Ave, Healdsburg. 707.433.7222.

Valentine’s Day Menu at the Rooftop Healdsburg’s only publicly accessible rooftop bar offers an elegant threecourse dinner. Feb 14. $59.

Harmon Guest House, 227 Healdsburg Ave, Healdsburg.

707.431.8220.

Valentine’s Day on the Wine Train Lunch and dinner reservations on the touring train is a perfect gift for loved ones all weekend.

Feb 14-17. Napa Valley Wine Train, 1275 McKinstry St, Napa.

800.427.4124.

Yoga & Beer Beginner-friendly yoga class goes well with drinking fine craft beer. Feb 17, 10:30am. $12. Cooperage Brewing Co, 981 Airway Ct, Santa Rosa.

707.293.9787.

Armenian Genocide Memorial Lecture

WILD Napa

Hamlet The timeless tragedy gets a powerful, eye-popping production marking Spreckels’ first-ever mounting of Shakespeare. Through Feb 17. $16-$26. Spreckels Performing Arts Center, 5409 Snyder Lane, Rohnert Park. 707.588.3400.

Join Napa Wildlife Rescue to learn what a wildlife rescue does and how you can help care for wildlife.

Feb 13, 7pm. Free. Napa Main Library, 580 Coombs St, Napa.

707.253.4070.

Sex with Strangers

Readings

The Spy Who Killed Me

Charles M Schulz Museum

Feb 16, 2pm, “The Complete Peanuts Family Album” with Andrew Farago, includes panel of special guests. 2301 Hardies Lane, Santa Rosa 707.579.4452.

Napa Main Library

Feb 19, 7pm, “The Five Invitations” with Frank Ostaseski. 580 Coombs St, Napa 707.253.4070.

Occidental Center for the Arts

Feb 15, 7pm, “Fagen: An African American Renegade in the Philippine-American War” with Michael Morey. 3850 Doris Murphy Ct, Occidental 707.874.9392.

Petaluma Copperfield’s Books

Feb 15, 7pm, “Maid” with Stephanie Land. 140 Kentucky St, Petaluma 707.762.0563.

Santa Rosa Copperfield’s Books

Feb 16, 7pm, “Wounds of War” with Suzanne Gordon.

Feb 19, 7pm, “Daughter of Moloka’i” with Alan Brennert.

775 Village Court, Santa Rosa 707.578.8938.

Sebastopol Copperfield’s Books

Feb 15, 7pm, “Heart of the Goddess” with Iglehart Austen.

138 N Main St, Sebastopol 707.823.2618.

Theater Farce of Habit

Valley Players present the absurdly funny romp about a gaggle of nuns invading a quiet fishing lodge. Feb 15-23.

25

$20. Napa Valley Performing Arts Center at Lincoln Theater, 100 California Dr, Yountville.

707.944.9900.

NO RTH BAY BO H E M I AN | FE BR UARY 1 3-19, 2019 | BOH EMI A N.COM

delights. Feb 14. Bay View Restaurant at the Inn at the Tides. 800 Hwy 1, Bodega Bay. 707.875.2751.

Passion and intellects clash in this tantalizing take on modern love, presented by Left Edge Theatre. Through Feb 17. $25$40. Luther Burbank Center for the Arts, 50 Mark West Springs Rd, Santa Rosa. 707.546.3600.

Get a Clue Productions hosts an interactive and humorous murder-mystery dinner theater experience. Sat, Feb 16, 7pm. $68 (includes meal). Charlie’s Restaurant, Windsor Golf Club, 1320 19th Hole Dr, Windsor. getaclueproductions.com.

A Streetcar Named Desire The classic Tennessee Williams-penned drama plays in the small studio theater.

Through Feb 17. $23-$28. 6th Street Playhouse, 52 W Sixth St, Santa Rosa. 707.523.4185.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Sonoma State University presents the award-winning musical thriller by Stephen Sondheim. Through Feb 17. $5-$17. Evert B. Person Theater, SSU, 1801 E Cotati Ave, Rohnert Park. 707.664.4246.

Underneath the Lintel Sonoma County actor John Shillington plays a reclusive librarian who finds a 113-year overdue book in this mysterycomedy. Through Feb 17. $28$30. Cinnabar Theater, 3333 Petaluma Blvd N, Petaluma.

707.763.8920.

The BOHEMIAN’s calendar is produced as a service to the community. If you have an item for the calendar, send it to calendar@bohemian. com, or mail it to: NORTH BAY BOHEMIAN, 847 Fifth St, Santa Rosa CA 95404. Inclusion of events in the print edition is at the editor’s discretion. Deadline is two weeks prior to desired publication date.

Sebastiani Theatre Presents Sun 2⁄17 • Doors 7pm ⁄ $17–20 • All Ages

"The finest string band in America" —The Boston Herald

The Crooked Jades w/ Blue Summit

Oscar Party Fundraiser

Thu 2⁄21 • Doors 7pm ⁄ $30–35 • All Ages Grammy Winning Blues Legend Bobby Rush (solo seated show)

+ HowellDevine

Fri 2⁄22 • Doors 8pm ⁄ $12–15 • All Ages Performing and celebrating the music and magic of the Jerry Garcia Band

Jerry's Middle Finger

Wed 2⁄27 & Thu 2⁄28 • Doors 7pm ⁄ $35–40• All Ages

Jethro Tull's Martin Barre Band

February 24th

with Special Guest Matt Jaffe Fri 3⁄1 & Sat 3⁄2 • Doors 8pm ⁄ $42–47 • 21+

Bohemian Rhapsody

feat Dave Malone (The Radiators), Camile Baudoin (The Radiators), Reggie Scanlan (The Radiators), Mitch Stein (CRYPTICAL) & Eric Bolivar (Anders Osborne) + Special Guests Sun 3⁄3 • Doors 7pm ⁄ $19–22 • All Ages

An Affair To Remember

GATORATORS

Deadgrass

Celebrating the music of Jerry Garcia Thu 3⁄7 • Doors 7pm ⁄ $25–30 • All Ages

Greg Loiacono (The Mother Hips, Green

Leaf Rustlers) with special guests Scott Hirsch (Hiss Golden Messenger) & Jamie Drake (seated show)

www.sweetwatermusichall.com 19 Corte Madera Ave, Mill Valley Café 388-1700 | Box Office 388-3850

The Sing-Along February 17th

February 18th

Oscar Shorts

February 22nd - 28th www.SebastianiTheatre.com

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26

Very Old Bones The Nugget has a senior moment

BY JONAH RASKIN

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he last time I used, it was 50 years ago, and now I don’t know whether to eat it, smoke it or rub it in,” a white-haired gentleman complains to Eli Melrod, the co-founder and CEO at Sol, Sebastopol’s model dispensary, where one-third of the customers are over 60 years old and half are women.

Once upon a time, baby boomers smoked dope and got stoned. Now many suffer from aches and pains, can’t sleep and have lost their zest. When it comes to medical cannabis, they don’t know what or who to trust.

Enter two experts: entrepreneur extraordinaire, Eli Melrod, who grew up and came of age with dispensaries; and Mike Benziger— from Glentucky Farms in Glen Ellen—the world’s foremost biodynamic cannabis cultivator, and a renowned winemaker, too.

On a rainy day, 55 “newbies,” as

Melrod calls them, descend on the Sebastopol Senior Center to hear the dynamic duo, who sound like a mutual admiration society, and why not? No one can answer questions about cannabis more clearly than Benziger, a cancer survivor himself, and Melrod—whose father has battled cancer—and who tells the crowd, “At Sol, we want relationships, not transactions.”

The newbies are mostly women, many from Oakmont eager to learn, as one of them explains, “what we’ve been missing all our adult lives and how to find it.” Chris from Sebastopol found it a few years ago.

“I grow from seeds. I recognize the males and pull them before they get to my females,” she says. “Cannabis is the love of my life.”

Scotty King, the senior center’s operations manager, kicks off the event—which is billed as “Let’s Talk Cannabis”—with a memory.

“My mom smoked weed in the 1960s and told me not to say anything at school,” he explains.

“We’ve come a long way.”

Benziger looks at him and then at the newbies and says, “Not far enough. If you want free pot next time, petition your representatives.”

Benziger sings the praises of compost, microbes, biodynamic farming and Sol’s CEO. “Eli isn’t afraid to come into the field and get his boots muddy,” he says.

Melrod then took over and touted the benefits of terpenes, THC and CBD. He and Benziger both insist that CBD needs THC to do its job. They swear by outdoor cultivation in direct sunlight, and swear at state and local regulators.

Benziger discourages the newbies from investing in the cannabiz, saying, “It’s too risky.”

A woman in the front row asks, “After harvesting, what do you do with the leaves.” Benziger smiles and exclaims, “That’s a great question!” Melrod adds, “Come to Sol. We’ll tell you everything you need to know about leaves, flowers, capsules, tinctures and more.”

Jonah Raskin puffs, puffs and then passes.

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Astrology For the week of February 13

ARIES (March 21–April 19) When directors of movies say, “It’s a wrap,” they mean that the shooting of a scene has finished. They may use the same expression when the shooting of the entire film is completed. That’s not the end of the creative process, of course. All the editing must still be done. Once that’s accomplished, the producer may declare that the final product is “in the can,” and ready to be released or broadcast. From what I can determine, Aries, you’re on the verge of being able to say “It’s a wrap” for one of your own projects. There’ll be more work before you’re ready to assert “It’s in the can.”

TAURUS (April 20–May 20)

In accordance with astrological omens, I invite you to create your own royal throne and sit on it whenever you need to think deep thoughts and formulate important decisions.

Make sure your power chair is comfortable as well as beautiful and elegant. To enhance your ability to wield your waxing authority with grace and courage, I also encourage you to fashion your own crown, scepter and ceremonial footwear. They, too, should be comfortable, beautiful and elegant.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) In 1995, astronomer Bob Williams got a strong urge to investigate a small scrap of the night sky that most other astronomers regarded as boring. It was near the handle of the constellation known as the Big Dipper. Luckily for him, he could ignore his colleagues’ discouraging pressure. That’s because he had been authorized to use the high-powered Hubble Space Telescope for a 10-day period. To the surprise of everyone but Williams, his project soon discovered that this seemingly unremarkable part of the heavens is teeming with over 3,000 galaxies. I suspect you may have a challenge akin to Williams’, Gemini. A pet project or crazy notion of yours may not get much support, but I hope you’ll pursue it anyway. I bet your findings will be different from what anyone expects.

CANCER (June 21–July 22) A study by the Humane Research Council found that more than 80 percent of those who commit to being vegetarians eventually give up and return to eating meat. A study by the National Institute of Health showed that only about 36 percent of alcoholics are able to achieve full recovery; the remainder relapse. And we all know how many people make New Year’s resolutions to exercise more often, but then stop going to the gym by February.

That’s the bad news. The good news, Cancerian, is that during the coming weeks you will possess an enhanced power to stick with any commitment you know is right and good for you. Take advantage!

LEO (July 23–August 22) Are there two places on earth more different from each other than Europe and Africa? Yet there is a place, the Strait of Gibraltar, where Europe and Africa are just 8.7 miles apart. Russia and the United States are also profoundly unlike each other, but only 2.5 miles apart where the Bering Strait separates them. I foresee a metaphorically comparable phenomenon in your life. Two situations or influences or perspectives that may seem to have little in common will turn out to be closer to each other than you imagined possible.

VIRGO (August 23–September 22) Virgo basketball star Latrell Sprewell played professionally for 13 years. He could have extended his career at least three more seasons, but he turned down an offer for $21 million from the Minnesota team, complaining that it wouldn’t be sufficient to feed his four children. I will ask you not to imitate his behavior, Virgo. If you’re offered a deal or opportunity that doesn’t perfectly meet all your requirements, don’t dismiss it out of hand. A bit of compromise is sensible right now.

LIBRA (September 23–October 22) In 1992, an Ethiopian man named Belachew Girma became an alcoholic after he saw his wife die from AIDS. And yet today he is renowned as a Laughter Master, having dedicated himself to explore the healing powers of ebullience and amusement. He presides over a school that teaches people the fine points of laughter, and he holds the world’s record for longest continuous laughter at three hours and six minutes. I nominate him to be your role model in the next two weeks. According

BY ROB BREZSNY

to my analysis of the astrological omens, you will be especially primed to benefit from the healing power of laughter. You’re likely to encounter more droll and whimsical and hilarious events than usual, and your sense of humor should be especially hearty and finely tuned.

SCORPIO (October 23–November 21)

A study published in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science suggests that people who use curse words tend to be more candid. “Swearing is often inappropriate but it can also be evidence that someone is telling you their honest opinion,” said the lead researcher. “Just as they aren’t filtering their language to be more palatable, they’re also not filtering their views.” If that’s true, Scorpio, I’m going to encourage you to curse more than usual in the coming weeks. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, it’s crucial that you tell as much of the whole truth as is humanly possible. (P.S.: Your cursing outbursts don’t necessarily have to be delivered with total abandon everywhere you go. You could accomplish a lot just by going into rooms by yourself and exuberantly allowing the expletives to roll out of your mouth.)

SAGITTARIUS (November 22–December 21) In the mid-1980s, a California carrot farmer grew frustrated with the fact that grocery stories didn’t want to buy his broken and oddly shaped carrots. A lot of his crop was going to waste. Then he got the bright idea to cut and shave the imperfect carrots so as to make smooth little baby carrots. They became a big success. Can you think of a metaphorically comparable adjustment you could undertake, Sagittarius? Is it possible to transform a resource that’s partially going to waste? Might you be able to enhance your possibilities by making some simple modifications?

CAPRICORN (December 22–January 19) Mongolia is a huge landlocked country. It borders no oceans or seas. Nevertheless, it has a navy of seven sailors. Its lone ship is a tugboat moored on Lake Khovsgol, which is 3 percent the size of North America’s Lake Superior. I’m offering up the Mongolian navy as an apt metaphor for you to draw inspiration from in the coming weeks. I believe it makes good astrological sense for you to launch a seemingly quixotic quest to assert your power, however modestly, in a situation that may seem out of your league.

AQUARIUS (January 20–February 18) “A freshness lives deep in me which no one can take from me,” wrote poet Swedish poet Gunnar Ekelöf.

“Something unstilled, unstillable is within me; it wants to be voiced,” wrote philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. In accordance with your astrological omens, I propose we make those two quotes your mottoes for the next four weeks. In my opinion, you have a mandate to tap into what’s freshest and most unstillable about you—and then cultivate it, celebrate it and express it with the full power of your grateful, brilliant joy.

PISCES (February 19–March 20)

According to the Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology, the word “obsession” used to refer to the agitated state of a person who was besieged by rowdy or unruly spirits arriving from outside the person. “Possession,” on the other hand, once meant the agitated state of a person struggling against rowdy or unruly spirits arising from within. In the Western Christian perspective, both modes have been considered primarily negative and problematic. In many other cultures, however, spirits from both the inside and outside have sometimes been regarded as relatively benevolent, and their effect quite positive. As long as you don’t buy into the Western Christian view, I suspect that the coming weeks will be a favorable time for you to consort with spirits like those.

Go to REALASTROLOGY.COM to check out Rob Brezsny’s Expanded Weekly Audio Horoscopes and Daily Text Message Horoscopes. Audio horoscopes are also available by phone at 1.877.873.4888 or 1.900.950.7700.

27 NO RTH BAY BO H E M I AN | FE BR UARY 1 3-19, 2019 | BOH EMI A N.COM

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