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SACRAMENTO’S NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

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VOLUME 31, ISSUE 40

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S ’ E N H E T M UE O SS W I

THURSDAY, JANUARY 16, 2020

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contents

january 16, 2020 | Vol. 31, Issue 40

Gekkeikan USA in Folsom has been pumping out gallons of sake since 1989.

Learn more about Sacramento’s storied sake history.

editor’s note letters essay + streetalK greenlight news feature arts + Culture stage

04 05 06 08 10 16 22 25

29 dish plaCe Calendar Capital Cannabis guide asK joey

28 30 32 39 46

Cover design and illustration by sarah hansel

N&R Publications Editor Debbie Arrington Associate Publications Editors Derek McDow, Thea Rood

N&R Publications Staff Writers/Photographers Anne Stokes, Allen Pierleoni

Our Mission: To publish great newspapers that are successful and enduring. To create a quality work environment that encourages employees to grow professionally while respecting personal welfare. To have a positive impact on our communities and make them better places to live.

Editor Foon Rhee News Editor Raheem F. Hosseini Managing Editor Steph Rodriguez Staff Reporter Scott Thomas Anderson Arts Editors Rachel Mayfield, Maxfield Morris Calendar Editor Patrick Hyun Wilson Contributing Editor Rachel Leibrock Contributors Ngaio Bealum, Amy Bee, Rob Brezsny, Aaron Carnes, Jim Carnes, Joey Garcia, Kate Gonzales, Howard Hardee, Ashley Hayes-Stone, Jim Lane, Chris Macias, Ken Magri, Illyanna Maisonet, Tessa Marguerite Outland, Lindsay Oxford, James Raia, Patti Roberts, Dylan Svoboda, Bev Sykes, Jeremy Winslow, Graham Womack Creative Services Manager Elisabeth Bayard-Arthur Art Directors Sarah Hansel, Maria Ratinova Art of Information Director Serene Lusano Publications Designer Katelynn Mitrano Publications and Advertising Designer Nikki Exerjian Ad Designers Naisi Thomas, Cathy Arnold

Sales & Production Coordinator Skyler Morris Senior Advertising Consultants Rosemarie Messina, Kelsi White Advertising Consultants Sam Almaguer, Michael Nero, Vincent Marchese, Amy Yang

Director of First Impressions/Sweetdeals Coordinator Laura Anthony

Distribution Director Greg Erwin Distribution Assistant Lob Dunnica Distribution Drivers Mansour Aghdam, Rosemarie Beseler, Mike Cleary, Tom Downing, Marty Fetterley, Chris Fong, Ron Forsberg, Michael Jackson, Calvin Maxwell, Greg Meyers, Jeremy Meier, Jenny Plummer, Lloyd Rongley, Lolu Sholotan, Viv Tiqui

N&R Publications Editorial Coordinator Nisa Smith Marketing & Publications Lead Consultant Elizabeth Morabito

Development Consultant Greta Beekhuis Marketing & Publications Consultants Julia Ballantyne, Chris Cohen, Joseph Engle, Laura Golino, Sherri Heller, Rod Malloy

President/CEO Jeff vonKaenel Publisher Joe Chiodo Director of Nuts & Bolts Deborah Redmond Director of People & Culture David Stogner Director of Dollars & Sense Debbie Mantoan Account Jedi Jessica Kislanka Payroll/AP Wizard Miranda Hansen Developer John Bisignano System Support Specialist Kalin Jenkins

1124 Del Paso Boulevard, Sacramento, CA 95815 Phone (916) 498-1234 Fax (916) 498-7910 Website newsreview.com Got a News Tip? sactonewstips@newsreview.com Calendar Events newsreview.com/calendar Want to Advertise? Fax (916) 498-7910 or snradinfo@newsreview.com Classifieds (916) 498-1234, ext. 5 or classifieds@newsreview.com Job Opportunities jobs@newsreview.com Want to Subscribe to SN&R? sactosubs@newsreview.com Editorial Policies: Opinions expressed in SN&R are those of the authors and not of Chico Community Publishing, Inc. Contact the editor for permissions to reprint articles, cartoons or other portions of the paper. SN&R is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or review materials. Email letters to snrletters@newsreview.com. All letters received become the property of the publisher. We reserve the right to print letters in condensed form and to edit them for libel.

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state is spending a record $187 million on public outreach, six times more than was spent for the 2000 and 2010 censuses combined. But all those efforts won’t be as effective without enough census workers.

The Census Bureau is In Sacramento County, recruiting temporary pay starts at $21 an hour for workers for the 2020 office workers and census count. takers. Training is paid, and census takers also get reimbursed for mileage and other expenses.

While that’s more than minimum wage, which increased to $13 an hour for larger employers on Jan. 1, it’s not so easy to find workers in a strong economy. The state’s unemployment rate (3.7% in November) is the lowest since at least 1976, and is far lower than the 12.5% in January 2010 before the last Census.

The work is expected to last several weeks, but can have reduced hours or end sooner, depending on workload. The hours are flexible, but can be on nights and weekends. So the Census might be most attractive to those just entering the workforce, between jobs, working part time or retirees.

California is among states where Census income won’t be counted against eligibility for food stamps and other benefits. Applicants, however, do have to be fingerprinted and pass criminal background checks. For those with another job, it cannot create a conflict of interest. And partisan political activity is banned while on duty.

While advocacy groups are concerned that recent immigrants and ethnic minorities won’t be counted, the Census Bureau has some rules that appear to conflict. People who are fluent in different languages are encouraged to apply, but must be able to speak, read and write in English.

Non-citizens can be hired as translators, but only if citizens aren’t available. In the 2010 census, fewer than 4,000 non-citizen translators were hired.

The Trump administration tried to add a citizenship question to the Census, which would have further discouraged immigrants from being counted, but thankfully federal judges blocked that move. California, a state of immigrants, has even more reason to make sure the Census is accurate— and that requires enough workers. Ω PHOTO COURTESY OF U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

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If you have some free time and want to make sure that California keeps its political power and money, the Census Bureau is looking for a few good men and women.

Though the 2020 Census is the first population count being conducted mostly online, the bureau is still hiring 500,000 temporary workers across the country, including census takers, recruiting assistants, office clerks and supervisors.

While some have been hired and other applicants are in the pipeline, time is running out to get the workforce ready so Census officials are ramping up their recruitment push.

California Complete Count, the state’s effort, is also promoting the jobs. The bureau is seeking 77,000 workers in California, including 2,100 in Sacramento County. (You can apply for all jobs with one online form at 2020census.gov/en/ jobs.html.)

The first Census mailings are scheduled to go out March 12-20. Final reminders are to be sent April 20-27 before census takers follow up to households that don’t respond. The bureau expects more than 30% of households will need to be contacted in person.

A lot is on the line for an accurate count.

Because so many Californians are fleeing to Texas and other states, the state is in danger of losing one of its 53 seats in the U.S. House. And state officials want their full share of more than $800 billion in federal money divided each year based on population.

California has lost out before. The 1990 Census missed 2.7% of the state’s population, far higher than the 1.6% undercount nationally. That cost the state a congressional seat and at least $2 billion over the following decade. To avoid a repeat, the

fo o nr @ ne wsr e v ie w.c o m

LETTERS

EMAIL TO SACTOLETTERS@NEWSREVIEW.COM @SacNewsReview

@SacNewsReview

Facebook.com/SacNewsReview

Not so impractical Re: “Reminders of injustice” by Kula Koenig (Essay, Dec. 26): The importance of being right in one’s facts before making erroneous opinions or bias would help here. The owner of Mango’s is stated to have said regarding gender-neutral restrooms that they are impractical and that “nobody does that except gay clubs.”

Widespread public facilities—including in Sacramento Joe Marty’s restaurant, Tea Bar and some Starbucks, to name a few—have genderneutral restrooms. Such an arrangement offers adequate privacy stalls plus hygienic wash basins. This arrangement provides practical first-come, first-served use of facilities rather than females being forced to wait longer than males in many separate locations.

HARVEY CAIN S acr am e nt o / v i a e m a i l

A lost gem

No communists here

Re: “Tower of rubble” by Dylan Svoboda (News, Jan. 2): And just like the Alhambra Theater, another gem is lost forever. It was fun while it lasted.

So long, old friend, ’til we meet in that great big record store in the sky.

Re: “Soviet planning” by Bruce Booher (Letters, Jan. 2): Soviet planning? Your comparison of the modern progressive movement to failed communist plans is disingenuous and flawed. No one in the progressive movement wants anything like Soviet communism.

We want a government that values people over corporate greed and runaway capitalism.

ANGIE LOPEZ via F acebook

Look in the mirror Re: “Cruel and irresponsible” by Ginger Rutland (Letters, Jan. 2): I’m bemused by Ginger Rutland’s outrage over the recent story about whatever happened to former Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson. Rutland cites the fact that Johnson was never arrested or convicted for his many alleged sexual improprieties with both underage and fully grown women as if it were some sort of character recommendation. She balks that SN&R describes his supporters as “fixers.”

There is considerable irony here. Rutland, who never took the accusations seriously at The Sacramento Bee, is the sister of a prominent political consultant, Billy Rutland. This is precisely the class of “fixers” who protected Johnson for decades.

LEE ELVGREN M odes t o / v i a e m a i l

Corrections Re: “A rosy tradition” by Debbie Arrington (Garden, Jan. 2): The article incompletely described improvements at McKinley Park after a stormwater vault is built.

There will be a multipurpose turf field. SN&R regrets the error.

Re: “California’s cannabis turf”

by Craig Baracco (Cannabis guide, Dec. 19): A chart accompanying the story incorrectly described regulations in Sacramento and West Sacramento. Commercial cultivation is allowed in the two cities, with restrictions. SN&R regrets the error.

CHRISTINE CRAFT Sac rame n to / v i a em ai l Read more letters online at newsreview.com/sacramento.

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ESSAY

BY ROB KERTH

STREETALK

BY GRAHAM WOMACK

ASKED AT DOCO:

Most badass woman you know?

SONIA LEWIS

A powerful agenda

retired

Kerry Washington. She just seems to be daring and independent. She’s smart, she’s fierce, she takes on all kinds of roles. She’s not afraid to take chances.

SMUD’s new president outlines 2020 to-do list My six colleagues on the SMUD board have afforded me quite an honor. They have elected me board president for 2020, and I officially take that post on Thursday, Jan. 16.

My mission is very simple: to help SMUD continue to do what it does best—keep the lights on, the rates low and the customers satisfied.

The board has learned that this is what the public most wants from SMUD, and the 2,300 people who work at SMUD are dedicated to making this happen.

The details of delivering these three core items are daunting. To keep things on track for you, the board depends on a great general manager.

SMUD has enjoyed the leadership of a string of strong, and occasionally colorful, general managers. Our current general manager, Arlen Orchard, is retiring after years of wonderful service to the organization. The most important thing the board will do this year is select a replacement.

Watch for SMUD to stay the course on greenhouse gas reduction. Even though the United Nations is dawdling on adopting its year 2050 carbon neutral plan, the Trump administration is withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris climate treaty and California is straining with its 2045 plan, SMUD is ahead of schedule on its 2040 plan, years ahead of other utilities.

In 2020, two new solar farms will switch on and SMUD’s wind farm upgrades will start.

Together, these projects will provide “green” power to about 80,000 homes.

As an engineer, I can’t pass up the chance to mention wires and transformers.

SMUD will deliver capital improvements throughout Sacramento County to assure reliable delivery. Substations in central Sacramento, supply to south Folsom, a hydroelectric power tunnel improvement, a transmission line upgrade in the Pocket, and reconductoring (SMUD-speak for new wires) for economic development in older places are just the start of the list.

SMUD is in the midst of a good controversy about a reasonable level of subsidy for new, privately owned, solar panel installations. To

JUAN ARMENTA budget analyst

I’d say Nikki Haley … Even if you’re going against the grain, she speaks her mind. She just sticks to what she truly believes no matter what.

Rob Kerth, who becomes board president for the Sacramento Municipal Utility District on Jan. 16, represents Ward 5, which includes Midtown, downtown, North Sacramento, Natomas, Rio Linda and Elverta.

help jump start the solar industry, California required SMUD customers to heavily subsidize rooftop solar. The plan worked. Solar power is now plentiful, and the cost is dropping fast. To be fair to all our customers, it is time to dial back the subsidy on new installations so we can buy even more, cheaper solar. The solar installers are alarmed about losing this cash. You will hear more about this, much more, as SMUD wraps up a yearlong study of the public value of privately owned solar.

This coming year will also see SMUD engaged in programs to help customers save energy, rearrange their power consumption to save money and make the switch from gas to electric appliances and vehicles.

Don’t miss out on this. Look to smud.org for more information.

No agenda would be complete without this: Voters carved SMUD out of PG&E territory more than 70 years ago because they wanted less costly, more reliable power. Today SMUD is one of the country’s top-rated utilities. Without SMUD, Sacramento County residents would pay PG&E an extra $700 million a year for electricity.

If my agenda for 2020 works, this number will grow, like it has for more than 70 years. □

Watch SMUD to stay the course on greenhouse gas reduction.

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R ACHEL ELGINSMITH nonprofit CEO

RBG. [U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.] Because she’s inspiring and smart. She works out every day. I look up to all of her decisions, she’s very thoughtful and she’s a great leader.

K ARL CRUDUP director of special event sales for the Kings

Lisa Feigenbaum. She is the vice president of hospitality, group sales and events [for the Sacramento Kings]. She’s a trailblazer in the NBA ...

JERRY BILLIPS retired CHP officer

Ronda Rousey. She’s acting now, pretty good MMA fighter, boxing a little bit now.

BRENNA ROMO cashier

Alicia Keys. She’s not out there.

She’s famous and stuff, but she does stuff for herself. Mental health is really a good focus for her. And she’s just killing it.

Poor People’s Campaign

marches on Dr. King’s legacy behind a new call for a moral revival

President Trump’s 2020 Discretionary Budget Request (Funding in billions) Department of Defense

By yvonne R. WaLkeR P r e s i d e n t, s e i U L o c a L 1 0 0 0

M

onday, our nation celebrates the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. On this special day of remembrance, people will recall his speeches, especially “I have a Dream.”

Dr. King did much more than dream; among many things, he launched a campaign to address head on our nation’s poverty and its root causes. He called it the Poor People’s Campaign and saw it as a way to unite impoverished Americans of all ethnicities to fight against racism and the hardships brought by that racism.

Half a century after Dr. King’s assassination, that poverty and racism still exist today. So does the inherent inequality that goes with that racism; the gap between rich and poor keeps getting wider.

One man now is renewing Dr. King’s battle. Rev. William Barber leads the resurgent Poor People’s Campaign, a national call for a moral revival.

Rev. Barber has built this new campaign on four pillars: The evils of systemic racism; poverty and rising inequality; ecological devastation; and the war economy and militarism.

Dr. King would have recognized all these factors. Like the inequality gap, they’ve only gotten more extreme. And these pillars are more interrelated than you may think.

According to the Census Bureau, one in 12 non-Hispanic white people lives in poverty. The poverty rate is double for Hispanic people – one in six. For Black people, it’s one in five.

Historically, poor people get the short end when it comes to governmental services; they have less political power to go with less money. Their streets are the last to get paved; their neighborhood needs are ignored. The hazards that threaten their daily lives are allowed to persist.

That’s where racism intersects ecology. Racism enables governments to divert money from priorities like providing clean drinking water or eliminating toxic waste sites because the assumption is that only poor people will be affected and those poor people are not white.

That assumption, of course, is dead wrong; everybody suffers if there’s no clean water to drink or toxic sites are allowed to persist. In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom has made it a priority to protect clean water – even while the federal government rolled back protections and blamed the homeless for water pollution.

Remember Katrina and Maria? Those hurricanes devastated New Orleans and Puerto Rico, respectively. The hardest hit in both places: People of color. Following these weather-related catastrophes, services for people of color were limited and

Loading up on defense

Photo by the New york Public library via uNsPlash

severely underfunded. Making matters worse, public services were privatized while job quality eroded.

Those consequences continue. In New Orleans, for example, nearly all public schools are now privatized. In addition, the Davis-Bacon Act – a 1931 law requiring workers on public projects to be paid the prevailing wage – was suspended, allowing workers to be paid much less. Many contractors, with impunity, failed to pay wages at all.

As for the war economy, America continues to plow incredible amounts of money into the military instead of helping the homeless, feeding the poor and comforting the afflicted. In the last fiscal year, the U.S. spent $649 billion on defense. That’s more than the military spending of China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, India, France, Germany and the United Kingdom combined.

Back when Dr. King was alive, the U.S. gave up its war on poverty because political leaders said the country needed that cash for the war in Vietnam. Fifty years later, there’s still the same excuse; take away from the poor to fight more war.

I plan to help Rev. Barber in his Poor People’s Campaign any way I can. If we want to end poverty and racism, we should uphold Dr. King’s legacy every day – not just Monday.

Yvonne R. Walker President SEIU Local 1000

SPONSORED by SERvicE EmPlOyEES iNtERNatiONal uNiON lOcal 1000

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greenlight

Four people to watch in 2020

by Jeff vonKaenel

History is made by people. Here are four who will have a big impact on Sacramento in 2020.

In 2019, Sutter Health agreed to pay $575 million in an antitrust settlement and to comply with court-ordered reform. In 2020, Sutter Health President and CEO Sarah Krevans will have to oversee the revamping of Sutter’s health care system, including capping out-of-network costs, halting practices that prevent access to lower-cost plans and numerous other reforms. Sutter’s manipulations of the marketplace are one factor contributing to hospital costs that are 30% higher in Northern California than in Southern California, according to health care experts.

With hospital fees averaging $3,687 per person, according to the federal Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, this could be costing Northern California residents billions of dollars.

Sutter’s court-ordered reforms will have significant impacts on both the quality and the cost of our region’s health care.

Sacramento City Unified School District, which has 76 campuses and serves 43,000 students, must address its budget deficit to avoid financial insolvency in 2020. Much of the blame goes to a series of school superintendents who agreed to contracts that did not sufficiently reduce ongoing deficits.

But part of the blame also resides with the Sacramento City Teachers Association, whose negotiation tactics have contributed to the district’s financial dysfunction. In 2020, the person best positioned to prevent a state takeover is John Borsos, SCTA’s executive director. If Borsos continues to play hardball, then the district will likely go into receivership, an outcome that will not be good for the students, the teachers or the union.

Or Borsos could compromise to save the district, including on health care 8

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costs. The district pays significantly more than other districts; the union could support a less expensive health provider such as Kaiser, with co-pays, like other school districts. But Borsos continues to reject this idea. He has a big decision to make in 2020.

Every night, more than 5,000 of our neighbors will be without housing.

They will be sleeping in the cold, in the heat, in the rain, on our sidewalks, in our alleys and our parks. This is both a public policy failure and a moral failure. Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, more than anyone else, has the commitment, intellectual depth, political connections and the bully pulpit to work on this problem. Recently appointed

by Gov. Gavin Newsom to lead a new Commission on Homelessness and Supportive Housing, Steinberg will now spearhead the statewide effort.

Steinberg has earned our trust. He deserves our support on this issue.

Our community needs an organization that can bring together people with different points of view and from different backgrounds to discuss problems and solutions. Amanda

Blackwood, executive director and CEO of the Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce, believes her organization can

play that role. So do I. The chamber can become our community’s big tent, where different views are welcome and ideas are shared, as opposed to the approach of the state and national chambers of commerce, which represent only the most regressive parts of the business community.

In 2019, Blackwood laid a foundation for a better chamber. In 2020, I hope to see the fruits of her labor. Ω

Jeff vonKaenel is the president, CEO and majority owner of the News & Review.

eSSay

by Sumiti mehta

Raising boys in #MeToo era Teaching respect starts with parents My husband Sudeep and I have two boys, Atiksh, 8, and Akshaj, 14, and we want to Sumiti Mehta, a Sacramento mother of two boys, serves on the city’s Parks and Community raise them to be good human beings who Enrichment Commission and several Natomas are happy, kind and respectful of everyone.

Unified School District committees.

There was a time, when I thought good parenting is about teaching kids to be courteous and empathetic and to make Until a few years ago, it was a struggle their beds, be hygienic and help around the for me to break these stereotypes in my own house. Instead, I find myself talking to them house. I grew up in the 1980s and ’90s in about gun control, mental health, inclusivity, India, where boys and girls are traditionally sexism, all-gender bathrooms, etc. divided.

Just the mere thought of either of So as we raise our family in the United my children being harassed or harassing States, my husband and I are mindful another child is enough to keep me awake of what we model at our house. We are all night. I am sure any parent has the consciously breaking gender stereotypes in same worry. our daily lives. My sons Akshaj and Atiksh Raising boys in the #MeToo era has do not see traditional gender roles in our many significant questions. One is: How house; Sudeep and I swap our chores can we successfully raise sons to and work as a team. Sudeep understand the need for mutual is in consulting, so he respect, inclusivity across travels, but whenever he genders and empathy for is home, the boys have all? We all agree that Just the mere seen him preparing girls can do anything, thought of either of my breakfast and dinner including playing with and helping with children being harassed cars and being good at cleaning and laundry. maths and science. or harassing another This has made our But what can child is enough to keep boys understand there boys do? are no gender-specific me awake all night.

Boys are still at chores. The boys help risk of being mocked every day with dishes, when they cry, play with cooking and dusting. dollhouses or kitchen sets or I am hoping this will make wear pink. Pre-teens and teen boys them grow up to caring and understandare under great pressure to “act like a man,” ing boyfriends, husbands and fathers. Akshaj which often means fitting into a stereotype has a nurturing quality that is setting a good that makes them shut down their feelings, example for his younger brother. He even which results in anxiety and depression. cooks and helps with Atiksh’s homework We need to let our sons express their when I am out at meetings. weak moments and emotions, and make Sudeep and I do feel fortunate that we a constant effort to listen to them and are able to talk openly to boys to make understand them. If they feel empowered, them understand the terms “sexism” and they will listen, react and embrace “gender inclusivity,” but as parents we everyone, including their parents. We told are still learning every day. Believe me, both our boys that it is OK to nurture and parenting has no short cuts and it does not be nurtured. This will in turn make them come with hacks. □ better human beings.

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Oumar Yaide was held for five months inside the Yuba County Jail’s controversial immigrant detention center.

Photo by Scott thomaS anderSon

Exiled from asylum Despite judicial protection order, gay asylum-seeker was deported to a country where his sexuality is illegal

by Scott thomaS anderSon

It was 8 a.m. when a groggy Charlie Remsen answered the door of his apartment in San Francisco’s Mission District to see five armed men in uniforms.

According to Remsen, the men didn’t identify what agency they worked for, only that they were searching for his friend Matt, who sometimes stayed there. Remsen told the men Matt was traveling overseas.

The agents insisted on coming inside to “have a look around,” Remsen recalled.

Remsen says he started leading the men up his staircase before coming to his senses. He had, at first, assumed these were San Francisco police officers. But then he noticed “SWAT” on one’s jacket and Homeland Security emblems on the others.

Remsen asked why the men thought they needed to enter his home. At that point, he says, the agents changed their story and 10

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whipped out a small photograph of his roommate.

That’s when they revealed they were really looking for Abderaman Oumar Yaide.

Remsen says the agents informed him they had a warrant for the 32-year-old immigrant from Chad and moved past him.

Moments later, Remsen watched helplessly as Yaide was dragged out of his bed in his pajama bottoms and handcuffed by the agents, who were from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

It was Aug. 28. Within hours, Yaide was sitting in the Yuba County Jail, which leases cells to the federal government to detain immigrants being processed for deportation.

The controversial arrangement between ICE and the jail where Yaide was brought

sc o tta @ ne wsr e v ie w.c o m

is under fire for a lack of staffing, accusations of dangerous conditions and claims of subpar medical and mental health treatment.

But friends say Yaide had far bigger worries on his mind. He was in the process of seeking legal asylum in the United States because he’s a gay man whose native country, Chad, criminalized homosexuality in 2017. Yaide believed being sent back would put his life at risk.

Court documents reveal that Yaide was not arrested for breaking any laws, but because the Bay Area’s ICE team considered his asylum case over and unsuccessful.

“Oumar was working at a pizza joint under his own name, getting checks in his own name and choosing not to do what I think a lot of people in his position would,

which is get a fake ID,” Remsen said. “He wasn’t trying to make it hard for them to find him.”

In November, Yaide’s new attorney, Sean McMahon of Pangea Legal Services, alerted Homeland Security he was filing an appeal based on developments in Chad.

McHahon told SN&R that since he’d been in regular contact with Homeland Security, he was shocked that on the very day he’d secured a judicial order preventing Yaide from being deported—Dec. 2—ICE agents put his client on a plane bound for Chad.

Now, as McHahon and Yaide’s circle of friends fight to bring him back to the United States, Yuba County’s immigrant detention facility is under another round of scrutiny from those who say it needs to close.

Yaide had been living in the United States without legal status since 2009. His attorney and friends say that, in all that time, he’d never had any run-ins with the law. Instead, they describe him as a hardworking and active member of his Bay Area community.

Sam Leishman first met Yaide in 2014 when the two worked together as line cooks at Gott’s Roadside in San Francisco’s Ferry Building. “Anyone who meets him, he always becomes one of their

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BiGotS are the minority favorite people,” Leishman said. “He opens up very quickly. He connects with people.”

Remsen has the same observation.

Traveling for work, he often rents his own room out in the apartment as an Airbnb.

Remsen says he’s constantly hearing from guests how much they enjoyed their stays because of interactions with Yaide.

“Without exception, they felt like it was Oumar who made them feel welcome,” Remsen said. “He just has this natural way of making friends with people. … I don’t think I’ve ever heard him even once raise his voice.”

Yaide had been seeking asylum since the moment he arrived in the United States.

Court records indicate his original claim was made on the basis of being part of the Gorane ethnic group, which is accused of being hostile to the government of Chad.

An immigration judge denied his claim in 2014. Yaide appealed, but appeared to be on the losing end of that, too, when the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denied his claim last year.

But something significant happened in Chad just prior to that: It outlawed homosexuality.

On Oct. 24, 2019, Yaide filed a motion to reopen his application for asylum.

“His country has seen a severe surge of homophobia and criminalization of homosexuality, which is relevant to Oumar, since that wasn’t part of his original asylum claim,” McMahon said.

Reviewing that claim, federal Judge Edward Chen ordered a hold on Yaide’s deportation. But that same day, Yaide was put on a plane for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on his way to Chad.

Chad is one of several African nations to either pass new anti-homosexuality laws or strengthen existing ones since 2013. Others include Tunisia, Gabon, Gambia, Nigeria and Uganda. Human Dignity Trust, a global LGBTQ rights group, has been monitoring the legal and humanitarian implications.

Emma Eastwood, the group’s head of communications, says that while reliable data is hard to come by from the continent’s patchwork of small governments, her organization knows of at least some mass arrests in recent years. In Tunisia in 2018, 115 people were arrested for their perceived sexual orientation or gender identity; 38 were later charged and convicted. That same year in Nigeria, 57 men were arrested, 47 of whom are set to stand trial.

“There is limited local media reporting on discrimination and violence against LGBT people in many criminalizing countries, and local activist organizations

lack resources to comprehensively record back. … The judge has issued this order, violence and hate crimes,” Eastwood told but so far they haven’t brought him back.

SN&R via email from her London office.

With every passing day, there’s more of a “The criminalization of private, consensual chance he could be harmed.” same-sex sexual activity in Africa is historic in nature, overwhelmingly finding its On Jan. 11, another protest outside the yuba origins in colonial-era laws.”

County Jail took aim at its immigrant At the same time, however, Eastman detention contract. Yuba County, which said there’s also been a recent trend of has been under a judge’s consent decree decriminalizing homosexuality in other to improve overall conditions at the African nations through the courts or legisjail for 43 years, has continued its $6.5 lative reform, including in South Africa, million annual contract with the federal Seychelles, Botswana, Angola and government to house people Mozambique. detained by ICE. But Chad is not part Alleged problems with “With of that liberalization. health care and safety Yaide’s recent asylum triggered several every passing request stresses that days-long hunger day, there’s more of he faces imprisonstrikes by detainees a chance he could be ment or worse if in 2019, along with forced to live in protests by dozens harmed.” his home country. of organizations and Sean McMahon, “Yaide fears that if faith groups. immigration attorney for he remains in Chad The latest protest Abderaman Oumar Yaide he will be tortured and at the Yuba facility killed by his own family, involved more than clan or the government,” 25 groups and churches, McMahon wrote in a court filing and was organized by the in December.

Japanese-American organization Tsuru On Dec. 8, federal Judge Charles for Solidarity. Attorney Josh Kaizuka, the R. Breyer ordered the Department of event’s main planner, says California’s Homeland Security to return Yaide to the Japanese-American community remains United States within two weeks, where haunted by the legacy of internment he’ll stay until his new asylum claim can during World War II—and the memory be heard. ICE officials claimed hardship of being imprisoned because of their and sought a delay. On Dec. 23, Breyer ethnicity. extended their deadline to Jan. 8. That deadIf Americans thought they learned line has passed and Yaide remains in Chad. from that dark period in history, recent According to Syracuse University’s events are threatening to prove them Transactional Records Access wrong.

Clearinghouse, immigration judges “The Japanese community has been decided a record number of asylum cases really stepping up, at least since 9/11, in 2019—and denied the vast majority of when Muslim Americans started being them. TRAC’s analysis indicates nearly targeted,” Kaizuka told SN&R. “Part of 70,000 requests for asylum were ruled on it has always been about remembering last year, with slightly more than 20,000 the past—remembering what happened actually granted. The average wait time for to the Japanese Americans, so it never a decision was 1,030 days. Cameroon was happens again.” the only African nation in the top 10 for Kaizuka structured the Jan. 11 protest individuals seeking asylum. around speakers who’d been imprisoned Yaide’s close friend Hayley Kay, who’s in California’s interment camps and could organized numerous fundraisers since his attest to “generational trauma.” He says arrest, is worried about the delays. “Oumar even though most are in their 70s and is really kind, sweet and funny, and an 80s, they were more than happy to stand all-around great person,” Kay said. “I’m in front of Yuba’s jail on a cold winter extremely concerned about him over there. afternoon.

We’re trying to get him back as quickly as “They say they’re doing this because possible.” they feel they have to,” Kaizuka said.

It’s a concern shared by Yaide’s “It’s their understanding that someone attorney. has to speak up for those who don’t have “He was easy to arrest because he a voice.” □ wasn’t hiding,” McMahon pointed out. “It’s the government’s obligation to bring him

A granite cropping in front of a Sikh center was defaced with swastikas and a “white power” message hours after the center’s grand opening in Orangevale on Sunday.

The stone tablet had yet to be etched with the name of the recently opened Guru maneyo Granth Gurdwara Sahib on Walnut Avenue, says Amar Shergill, an attorney and chairman of the progressive caucus of the California Democratic Party, who shared photos of the vandalism on Facebook on Monday. Shergill’s post had been shared more than 100 times by Tuesday. A gurdwara sahib is a place of worship for Sikhs, but also welcomes people from other faiths or no religious affiliation.

Basim Elkarra, executive director of the local chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, condemned the “hateful act of vandalism” in a statement. “We are here to support the Sikh community and encourage any witnesses to come forward with information about this hate attack on a house ow worship,” he said.

Orangevale lies in the jurisdiction of the Sacramento county Sheriff’s office, which was collecting evidence on Monday, a sheriff’s spokeswoman said.

The California Department of Justice recorded no anti-Sikh bias crimes in 2018 and reported that all hate crimes actually fell 2.5% from the previous year. But the DOJ only began collecting data on anti-Sikh crimes since 2014 and perpetrators often mistake Sikh Americans for Muslims. In 2011, two Sikh men were gunned down in a drive-by shooting while on an afternoon stroll in Elk Grove. The killings remain unsolved. (Raheem F. Hosseini)

fuGitiVe BrotherS loSe The second of two illegal gambling impresarios was recently captured in Israel and is now awaiting extradition to California to stand trial.

Orel Gohar’s arrest came on the heels of his brother, Yaniv Gohar, being sentenced to prison in December for the underground network of slot machines they were accused of running from the capital city to the southern border.

The Gohar brothers are Israeli nationals who were first arrested in 2017 following a lengthy investigation by California Department of Justice’s Bureau of Gambling Control. According to warrant affidavits, video surveillance showed that Orel was the point man for a gambling ring that installed slot machines in the back of small businesses, including a smoke shop on Stockton Boulevard.

The Gohars, along with associates Eran Buhbut and May Levy, were charged with engaging in illegal gambling, though Yaniv and Orel both fled the united States while on bond. Federal prosecutors say that, within days, Yaniv crashed his Porsche Panamera into a parked car and was cited and released. He vanished after that.

He was the first to be tracked down.

“Court documents detail [Yaniv] Gohar’s escape from the United States by charter jet through Mexico, France, and Israel,” Lauren Horwood, spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of California, wrote in a statement. “Gohar was arrested and extradited from Israel in July 2019.”

On Dec. 20, Yaniv Gohar was sentenced to three years in federal prison for operating an illegal gambling business, conspiracy to commit money laundering and failure to appear. Prosecutors say Orel Gohar’s return to U.S. authorities is imminent. (Scott Thomas Anderson)

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Challenger Katie Valenzuela / Councilman Steve Hansen.

Photos courtesy of the candidates

Race for the central city March primary pits well-known incumbent against housing and environmental equity advocate

by Scott thomaS anderSon

On Jan. 11, Sacramento City Councilman Steve Hansen kicked off his campaign for a third term as the central city’s representative—and was met by protesters unhappy with his efforts to protect tenants.

What a difference a rent control controversy makes.

When he was first elected eight years ago, Hansen became the council’s first openly gay member in history, an achievement that his supporters say have since been joined by others, involving equity, public safety and the arts. They also haven’t forgotten that Hansen stood up to former Mayor Kevin Johnson by publicly supporting workplace protections against sexual harassment inside City Hall before the #MeToo movement came into its own.

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But Hansen has also been dogged by claims that he has sided more with developers and real estate interests in the last two years, as the city experienced some of the fastest rising rents in the nation. His challenger, environmental policy director Katie Valenzuela, is betting there’s enough grassroots frustration to topple the well-funded incumbent this March.

The daughter of a Vietnam War veteranturned therapist, the 34-year-old Valenzuela first moved to Sacramento in 2004 after graduating from UC Davis with a master’s degree in community development. Her interest in Sacramento’s history of red-lining and neighborhood disinvestment led her to work as an education policy

advocate for the civil rights law firm Public Advocates, while helping form the Sacramento Urban Agriculture Coalition and the Sacramento Community Land Trust.

More recently, Valenzuela worked at the new Joint Legislative Committee on Climate Change Policies before getting hired as the policy and political director for the California Environmental Justice Alliance.

Valenzuela told SN&R that it was Hansen’s response to local renters that convinced her to enter the race.

Between early 2017 and late 2018, the City Council was inundated with public testimonials by residents who said they were being priced out of their homes or evicted without cause. Hansen’s initial response was to introduce a measure that gave tenants the right to nonbinding mediation with their landlords. He and council members Eric Guerra and Rick Jennings introduced the measure as Mayor Darrell Steinberg was separately negotiating rent protections with housing advocates.

The advocates said Hansen and the others were undercutting the mayor’s efforts.

“That was really the final straw,” Valenzuela told SN&R. “I’d just moved back into Midtown and was renting for double of what I’d had when I’d lived there. … I feel like what [Hansen’s] been promoting doesn’t reflect the needs of the people I hear from, so I wanted to run before things got worse.”

Hansen later joined with the mayor to pass the Tenant Protection and Relief Act, which caps annual rent hikes at 10% and bans no-cause evictions in the city for the next five years. But he and Steinberg have not supported putting a stronger, permanent measure before voters, despite housing advocates collecting 47,000 signatures to qualify it for the ballot.

Valenzuela says voters should get to decide for themselves. Another part of her platform is improving community engagement, she says, particularly when it comes to upcoming votes that are controversial. She’s vowed not to accept financial contributions from developers and real estate interests. Records indicate she’s raised roughly $27,000 from about 300 individual small donors.

“I’m glad I’m doing it this way, because it shows you really can stick to your principles and run a competitive campaign,” Valenzuela said.

Hansen’s more traditional campaign is seeing strong financial results, with some of $106,906 in his campaign coffers. While many of his donations came from individuals, he was also given thousands by real estate and development PACs that have lobbied against rent control and new tenant protections.

Hansen says he’s shown a track record of leadership in District 4, one that includes spearheading the Downtown Bikeways Project, establishing additional bikeways and pedestrian connections on Broadway Avenue, helping secure $200 million for a new I Street Bridge and converting a blighted parcel into an artcentric park at 19th and Q streets.

Hansen has taken an interest in public health, too. He joined a council majority in banning the sale of flavored vapes, as well as tobacco products near city schools.

“There’s not a corner of this district I haven’t worked with the community to touch,” Hansen told SN&R. On homelessness, Hansen was the first council member to meet the mayor’s challenge to select a location in his district for a shelter. Working with Mercy Housing and Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency, Hansen worked to convert the Capitol Park Hotel into a temporary shelter that will be remodeled into permanent apartments to support formerly homeless residents struggling with addiction and mental health issues. Hansen also was a driving political force behind Lavender Courtyard, a Midtown housing project for lower-income LGBTQ seniors now on the verge of being fully funded.

Hansen said his work on Lavender Courtyard, along with helping the Sacramento LGBT Community Center secure grants to move into a larger space, has been rewarding because of the stories he hears—stories individuals are comfortable sharing because he’s been open about his own life.

“I hear from so many kids and people who say I’ve given them hope, just being here,” he said. “In terms of how hard this job can be, I’m trying to walk the talk. … I’m not going to give up.” Ω

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PHOTO BY GRAHAM WOMACK

Drivers head north on 21st Street in Sacramento during rush hour.

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BY GRAHAM WOMACK

Police found the body near a crosswalk in South Hagginwood on a Friday evening. All they knew—all they still know—is that the older, dark sedan that trampled the victim kept going, and was last seen headed south on Rio Linda Boulevard.

No one has been arrested for the Jan. 3 hit-andrun killing of Anthony Moreno, 53, of Sacramento.

Odds are the adult daughter he left behind will never get justice for her father’s death.

Fatal traffic crashes in Sacramento County rarely result in felony vehicular manslaughter charges, an SN&R data analysis reveals.

According to figures obtained through public records requests, 148 people died from car collisions in the county between Oct. 1, 2018 and Sept. 30, 2019. These crashes led to fewer than 20 vehicular manslaughter filings.

Sacramento Superior Court spokeswoman Kim Pedersen said via email that there were 17 felony vehicular manslaughter filings during the same time period as the 148 deaths. Shelly Orio of the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office pegged the number of felony filings at 19, with at least one case an amended complaint originally filed in 2017.

The DA’s office had another 11 misdemeanor filings related to the 148 deaths and declined to file charges on six referred cases, according to a written statement Orio provided from the office’s homicide bureau chief, Rod Norgaard.

The numbers shine another light on how unsafe roads can be locally—and how difficult it can be to get justice after a fatal crash. Some of the difficulties are due to what prosecutors must prove for a conviction, often dictating whether charges are filed.

The statement from Norgaard, who declined an interview, said misdemeanor vehicular homicide can involve infractions such as running a red light or causing an accident that results in a death, while felony charges often relate to gross negligence or driving while impaired.

Norgaard questioned whether all the local deaths were chargeable.

“It is not uncommon to read about a head-on collision in which all of the occupants of both vehicles are killed,” Norgaard wrote. “These would appear as vehicular homicides per our Coroner’s Office, but no one is charged with a criminal offense for obvious reasons.”

The statement continued, “Likewise there are numerous accidents, including solo car accidents, in which the fatality is the driver of the vehicle at fault. … There are also a host of cases in which the law enforcement agency is unable to determine who the party at fault is and thus there is no criminal referral to our office.”

Unquestionably, though, illegal conduct has led to hundreds of preventable traffic deaths in Sacramento County in recent years.

According to the CHP, people most commonly died from traffic crashes in the county in 2018 because of pedestrian violations (32 deaths), driving or bicycling under the influence (25) and improper turns (22). In addition, 24 people died from motorists driving on the wrong side of the road from 2016 to 2018.

In all, 512 people died in traffic accidents in Sacramento County between 2016 and 2018, according to the CHP. Just 32 of the 148 traffic deaths between Oct. 1, 2018 and Sept. 30, 2019 occurred within Sacramento city limits, said Sacramento police spokesman Justin Hanks. Asked if the city has a problem with people getting away with vehicular manslaughter, Hanks echoed the skepticism expressed by the DA’s office.

“They’ve got to be able to prove that beyond a reasonable doubt, that this person was driving recklessly in gross negligence while driving the vehicle,” Hanks said.

Hanks said he spoke with a sergeant who found that motor vehicle deaths have actually gone down in the city, with a total of 68 between 2018 and 2019. □ Raheem F. Hosseini contributed to this report.

building a

HealtHy

Sacramento

One Woman of Color is Making History in Sacramento’s Growing Cannabis Industry

By E d G a R S a n C h E Z

B

etty Mitchell’s uncle was a pioneer in developing medical cannabis in Arkansas.

Now, Mitchell herself is being called a pioneer in Sacramento’s emerging $4-billiona-year legal marijuana industry.

Her uncle, Dr. Ulysses Hunter, a University of Arkansas physics professor, in the 1970s created a pot-based powder that could be cooked with food to eliminate pain. He packed the powder in 16-oz. glass jars that he donated to the medically uninsured in Arkansas.

“One summer, when I was 15, I tagged along with my uncle as he distributed his product to the poor,” Mitchell, a native of the Natural State, recalled recently.

The grateful recipients declared that Dr. Hunter’s elixir killed their aches, said Mitchell, who quickly became a believer in medicinal marijuana.

Destined for greatness, this enterprising woman twice made history.

In December, Mitchell was one of 13 people of color who became the first to graduate from the Cannabis Opportunity, Reinvestment and Equity Program (CORE) at the Greater Sacramento Urban League. The tuition-free program was created by the Sacramento City Council to help the underprivileged learn the legal marijuana trade, and how to succeed in it.

“To the 13 pioneers here, we celebrate you,” Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg told the graduates. “You are role models for others.”

CORE seeks to rectify the wrongs of the war on drugs, in which countless people of color were unjustly imprisoned, starting about 1970.

CORE proponents included local activists such as Malaki Seku Amen, of the California Urban Partnership, an economic justice organization supported by The California Endowment.

“ACCESS to CAPitAl iS tHE BiggESt tHiNg tHAt HAS kEPt AFriCAN AmEriCANS out oF tHiS [lEgAl CANNABiS] BuSiNESS.” Betty Mitchell Graduate, CORE Program

Mitchell’s other distinction: She was the first CORE participant to obtain a waiver from the city for the cost of a cannabis business operation permit (CBOP).

Though her permit would have cost about $10,000—such permits can cost much more—CORE graduates will get their Sacramento CBOPs cost-free.

Mitchell did, however, pay $20,000 for a second permit, from the state, for her Sacramento cannabis enterprise.

Sacramento is doing good by waiving the cost of cannabis business operation permits for CorE graduates, Betty mitchell said. She plans to start her Sacramento business, tively, soon. Photo by Edgar Sanchez

Her entity, Tively—think of positively, without the first four letters—will sell an improved version of her uncle’s medicinal food blend, starting in late February, to honor his legacy.

“Tively will start as a wholesaler to storefronts and dispensaries,” said Mitchell, who will remain a social worker in Sacramento, her home since 1985.

“Access to capital is the biggest thing that has kept African Americans out of this [legal cannabis] business,” Mitchell said, noting that marijuana remains illegal under federal law, a designation that means no bank loans for pot merchants. “I was lucky: I cashed out my annuities.”

Your ZIP code shouldn’t predict how long you’ll live – but it does. Staying healthy requires much more than doctors and diets. Every day, our surroundings and activities affect how long – and how well – we’ll live.

Health Happens in Neighborhoods. Health Happens in Schools.

Health Happens with Prevention.

paid with a grant from the california endowment

BuildiNg HEAltHY CommuNitiES in 2010, the California Endowment launched a 10-year, $1 billion plan to improve the health of 14 challenged communities across the state. over the 10 years, residents, communitybased organizations and public institutions will work together to address the socioeconomic and environmental challenges contributing to the poor health of their communities.

For more info, visit Tively.net www.SacBHC.org 01.16.20

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P A CL K C A B THE

WOMEN’S ISSUE

BY KATE GONZALES

LOCAL GROUPS PROTECT WOMEN’S RIGHTS, PURSUE EQUITY AND

I

t was three years ago that many women responded to a call to action: Don’t get comfortable, and don’t let “this” become the new normal.

The “this” they were resisting? The misogynistic behavior, stream of antiimmigrant rhetoric and the aversion to facts and accountability demonstrated by the man who occupied the Oval Office in January 2017.

Donald Trump’s Make America Great Again presidential campaign was marked by insulting and unfounded remarks about Mexican immigrants and Muslims, with disparaging comments about women thrown in for good measure. Even while apologizing for saying a decade earlier that his fame entitled him to “grab women by the pussy,” he excused the comment as locker-room talk. His campaign promise to nominate pro-life judges posed a threat to safe and legal abortions under Roe v. Wade.

In 2016, nearly 63 million Americans (though only 46.1%) voted for Trump, many attracted to his non-politically correct penchant for “telling it like it is.”

But his nativism and sexism ignited a clap back of epic proportions, which started with global Women’s March events on his Inauguration Day three years ago. An estimated 4.6 million demonstrators, including 20,000 in Sacramento, Who took to the streets in a pledge can forget to fight Trumpian values. last year’s famous literal clap back (The 2020 Women’s March during Trump’s State is on Saturday, Jan. 18; of the Union address, the Sacramento one starts when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, wearing at Southside Park at 9:30 suffragist white, seemed a.m. and ends at the state to condescendingly applaud the Capitol.) president.

In 2017, the activism of women launched the #MeToo movement, which has brought justice to longtime sexual abusers, raised public

FIGHT TRUMP

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awareness about sexual violence and produced major changes in law and policy.

That energy continued into the 2018 midterms, when voters elected a record number of Democratic women to the U.S. House. And who can forget last year’s famous literal clap back during Trump’s State of the Union address, when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, wearing suffragist white, seemed to condescendingly applaud the president for cooperation and the common good.

Pelosi struck again last year by leading House Democrats to impeach Trump over the Ukraine scandal. And now, even as he faces the impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate and talks of war against Iran, the Equal Rights Amendment—first passed by Congress in 1972—is about to be ratified by Virginia. That would be the 38th and last state required for ratification, but there’s a legal battle to come.

Ever since he took office, California has been a state of resistance—standing up for reproductive rights, immigrants, the environment and more. Attorney General Xavier Becerra has challenged the Trump

It’s the daily grind of grassroots efforts that will guarantee that Trump’s war on women turns out to be a brief detour in America’s progress.

administration in federal court more than 50 times.

But the issues that Trump and his supporters brought to the surface are not new.

Racism did not end with the 1964 Civil Rights Act, nor was health care access solved by the Affordable Care Act. In Sacramento and throughout California, organizations have long worked on issues that affect women, advocating for access to health

Y SA ES care and support for children, helping women experiencing homelessness get back on their feet and ensuring that women are protected in workplaces from harassment and discrimination.

It’s the daily grind of these grassroots efforts that will guarantee that Trump’s war on women turns out to be a brief detour in America’s progress toward becoming a better place for all, not a lasting and damaging new path.

“It was very stressful to say the least,” Robin said, “and really hopeless.”

At 38, she was accustomed to supporting herself so she was “a little ashamed, a little apprehensive.”

The program and the camaraderie it fosters helped Robin replace that shame with new skills and greater self-esteem.

Lisa Culp founded Women’s Empowerment in 2001 after working for nearby Loaves & Fishes, a nonprofit that also offers homeless CHANGING LIVES services.

“Women who were homeless … were falling Walking onto the Women’s Empowerment further and further behind,” Culp said. “They had campus, the first greeting you get may be a silent dreams and goals beyond their survival.” one. The faces of the nonprofit’s graduates fill She rounded up volunteers and launched most of the walls, their portraits next to brief the group, which today offers women who biographies. The stories of the 1,676 women who are experiencing homelessness or at risk of have completed the nine-week program speak becoming homeless with employment training volumes. and opportunities, computer classes, mock job Robin Kelly-Dunton didn’t reveal to interviews, plus a social worker who can connect many that she and her husband, Justin, were them with services and childcare. Four times a experiencing homelessness. They had both been year, a class of about 40 students take part in the working full-time and attending Sacramento five days a week program. Many are mothers, State University. He has epilepsy and couldn’t and about 3,600 children have received daycare get his medication, so when his health took a and developmental evaluations. nose-dive, Robin left school and work to become “What we screen for is motivation, and I have his caregiver. Both unable to work, they soon found that to be the best indicator of success,” couldn’t afford their rent.

Culp said.

They stayed in hotels or with friends Emily Berger, who started as the employment while seeking stability, all the more important specialist last year, can see the change in women as their family was growing. They became when they build their resume from scratch. They parents with the birth of their son, Justin may enter the program with little hope of getting Junior, in January 2016. a job, but Berger and volunteers help reveal their skills.

Robin, for instance, hadn’t From left, Renae Garcia, Lisa Culp and realized her caregiving skills were Emily Berger sit at the offices of Women's marketable. “I was just supporting Empowerment in Sacramento. my husband and trying to get him back to good health,” she said.

“I never thought about it in an employment manner.”

The program also offers courses in nutrition, domestic violence, parenting and fitness.

Women who attend a certain number of these optional classes receive a certificate of achievement, which they can show to prospective employers or the courts.

Many factors bring students into Women’s Empowerment.

“It could be a mental health diagnosis, anxiety. It could be drug use. It could be bereavement or grief,” explained Renae Garcia, a social worker and child development specialist since 2016.

PHOTO BY KATE GONZALES

“

CLAP BACK” CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

Empowering

women

WOMEN OF COLOR AND TRANSGENDER CALIFORNIANS ARE UNDERREPRESENTED IN GOVERNMENT

class was the most diverse in our history, with 80% of fellows identifying as people of color and one-third identifying as queer or something other than heterosexual.

Those voices of people impacted by gender-based oppression, violence and discrimination are often missing in Sacramento and at the local levels of

BY SURINA KHAN policymaking, which means that if we don’t participate in the policy process, our lives, The importance of the 2020 presidential bodies and futures will be legislated on in election cannot be overstated. The deciour absence. sions made this year have the potential to We must push for an intersectional drive forward racial, economic and gender political agenda, engage voters, elevate justice—or drag us even further back. the voices of communities of color and Elections can be a great motivator, but immigrant communities and work to the real key is to build community-based ensure everyone is counted. This is how we power every day, every month and every are building power to create policies that year. Policy is year-round. We have seen make every city and county in California a here in California that when we invest more equitable place. We deserve to live in in building the power of women and girls a state where young women, girls and genof color we can transform the state and der expansive youth have role models in solve our greatest problems. the halls of power and believe in their own That starts with representation. potential to change the world.

Women of color, trans and nonWe will use that power to binary people are dramatichange the way gender is cally unrepresented in discussed in the media our government. A fair and in our culture. system that works for We need to change all of us is impossible the culture to make without our particiit standard that pation. women vote, serve But in California, on councils and run things are changing. for office. We know Over the last 15 women are heads of years, the Women’s households and face Foundation of California’s many different barriers to Women’s Policy Institute Surina Khan is CEO of the Women’s political engagement, inpublic policy training Foundation of California. cluding a lack of outreach, program has radically access to transportation reshaped who particior child care. Women have the potential pates in our political process. The WPI has to hold so much power in our democracy, trained more than 500 transgender and and we’ve seen what can be done when we cisgender women, non-binary and gendercome together and support each other. queer people. The institute has helped pass We’re working to make policy and 40 far-reaching laws, including one that politics better for women, but we’re not made California the first state to require doing it alone. We’re proud to work with public universities to provide medication and support many organizations, leaders abortion and another that required the and efforts including Black Women for state to implement cultural competency Wellness, the Young Women’s Initiative, into all emergency and disaster planning.

Khmer Girls in Action, Parent Voices, Those 500 WPI fellows have personal the Young Women’s Freedom Center, networks of thousands of people—creatthe TransLatin@ Coalition and California ing the potential to activate millions of Latinas for Reproductive Justice—all of Californians. which are doing incredible work to support The institute exists because of the and build the power of girls, women and power in historically disenfranchised comgender expansive people across California. munities. The Women’s Foundation of CaliI am hopeful in 2020 that California will fornia is proud of the individual leaders we continue to be a leader for gender justice invest in, leaders who go back to their orand provide a clear vision to the world ganizations, educate their colleagues and of how we can all thrive when women lead public policy and advocacy initiatives and girls of color have access to quality in their communities throughout the state. education, healthcare, housing and be This is the power that will fuel the larger safe—all year long. □ gender justice movement. The 2018 WPI

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“

CLAP BACK”

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17

In recent years, she’s seen more women facing another barrier: affordable housing.

One of the newest offerings, the REStart Program, aims to address that need with paid property management training. The developer of the new 19J apartment building in Midtown has hired two graduates, and plans to employ 50 over the next decade.

Women’s Empowerment has also established an internship program with state Assemblyman Kevin McCarty’s office. After Robin graduated in fall 2016, she was hired as an intern and has since been promoted to a district representative with full-time benefits.

“That was a game-changer,” she said.

Women’s Empowerment also provides services for graduates, including access to a professional clothes, computers and counseling.

“After they graduate the session, we don’t just close the case,” Garcia said.

Today, Robin’s husband is healthy and also working again and they found an apartment soon after she completed the program. Their son, JJ, is about to turn four and he “was able to have his first birthday party in our new apartment,” she said. “That was a real win for us.”

PROVIDING CARE Her Health First has served women in Sacramento since 1988, with a goal of reducing the AfricanAmerican infant mortality rate. Based in South Oak Park, the nonprofit’s flagship program is Black Mothers United, which offers free prenatal care and support.

“Some of our women are single moms, some … are teen moms, others are married and have supportive partners,” said Shannon Shaw, the nonprofit’s executive director. Many clients are low-income.

According to the organization’s 2018 evaluation report, 81% of babies of mothers in the program were delivered healthy. A study of child deaths in Sacramento County between 1990 and 2009 revealed a higher death rate

for African-American children than any other ethnic group. That report prompted the launch of countywide effort, with First 5 Sacramento providing funding, including some that went to Her Health First.

“Our job is to make sure she has access to every single service that could impact her pregnancy in a positive way,” Shaw said.

That includes education on healthy eating, stress management, parenting skills, breastfeeding and safe sleeping techniques. Each woman is also assigned a pregnancy coach, who helps mothers develop a birthing plan and can connect them with health care, legal services, alcohol and drug counseling, as well as referrals to basic needs like car seats.

Women can also receive transportation assistance to pregnancy-related appointments. “That really could range—it could be their doctor’s appointment or it could be going to a food bank,” Shaw said.

The program also offers a sense of kinship.

Women often become friends, and meet at monthly Mommy Mingles, which center on a particular topic, sometimes presented by a guest speaker. Following the presentation, there is a craft or stress-release activity that focuses on wellness.

“It really is another way of building community for our pregnant moms,” said Shaw. “Often times women are just in need of an extra support system.”

“Reproductive rights and justice are paramount.

It’s important we have a voice at the table.”

BETSY BUTLER

executive director of California Women’s Law Center

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Shannon Shaw, executive director of Her Health First

REWRITING LAWS Betsy Butler never thought she’d see something like the #Me Too movement in her lifetime. She said she can’t count the number of times male colleagues had made inappropriate advances that she ignored or laughed off.

“I always thought women would be treated as second-class citizens,” she said.

In recent years, the Me Too and We Said Enough movements have both aimed to end sexual misconduct in the workplace. Butler, a Sacramento native, said many conditions for women aren’t as bad as decades ago, but acknowledged the need for continued improvement, particularly for the most marginalized women.

As the executive director of California Women’s Law Center, she and her team are working on that.

Based in Los Angeles and founded in 1989, the center advocates on issues including economic security, housing and reproductive health, across class, race and age.

Take the wage gap. Each April, Equal Pay Day serves as a reminder that women make 79 cents for every dollar earned by men and must work four more months to make what their male counterparts earn in a year. Those are the stats for white women. Black women must work eight more months and Latinas 11 more.

Butler said the pay disparity’s impact is even greater when considering long-term earnings and lower retirement savings. The estimated loss of income for Latinas over a lifetime is more than $1 million.

“How differently had she lived her life if she had been paid fairly,” Butler asked rhetorically.

The center takes on causes based on what they hear from women across the state. That includes advocacy for domestic violence survivors, women’s reproductive rights and Title IX, which bars gender-based discrimination in schools.

The center also takes positions on proposed state legislation and also files briefs in court cases nationwide. Last year, the center authored or signed onto 29 amicus briefs, including one urging a federal appeals court to overturn a 2014 Louisiana abortion law. In the first week of the new year, more than 200 members of Congress asked the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade.

“Reproductive rights and justice are paramount here [in California],” Butler said. “It’s important we have a voice at the table.”

“I hope my project will allow students to feel like they have a place to go.”

LINDSEY HERRING

Founder of Grace Project to help female science majors at Sacramento State

EDUCATING THE NEXT GENERATION Sacramento State student Lindsey Herring wants to eliminate barriers to women pursuing a STEM education—especially those who are underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Nearly two years ago, Herring was close to switching her dietetics major after bombing a statistics midterm. The problem wasn’t her study habits; she was missing a vital tool for the exam—a graphing calculator. It was taken while she was studying on campus, and she couldn’t afford to buy a replacement.

“I kind of just felt like, well maybe this is a sign from the universe that I’m not even supposed to be here anyways,” she said. “Or maybe I’m not capable of this.”

A campus counselor urged her to tell her stats professor what happened, and when he allowed her to retake the test with a loaned calculator, she passed.

Still, she felt unprepared compared to other students in class and, on top of that, she was the only African-American woman in the room.

“Being a black woman also sometimes can feel like there’s a little bit more pressure to prove myself,” she said.

According to a 2019 National Science Foundation report, while black women are earning more degrees in psychology and social and biological sciences, they were awarded fewer science and engineering degrees between 1996 and 2016.

ESSAY ES SA Y

A powerful

THE

sisterhood WOMEN IN THE LEGISLATURE ARE LEADING THE WAY TO HELP CALIFORNIA FAMILIES

Herring stuck with her STEM classes and is on track to graduate in spring 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in dietetics and minors in chemistry and African Studies.

She knows, however, that not everyone overcomes the barriers she faced. She talked with black friends who took STEM courses and who felt judged for their appearance, or who struggled with lab costs, including goggles, a coat and manuals.

Herring wanted to create a solution so in 2019, she founded the Grace Project to help offset those costs. The funds can cover course supplies but also what Herring calls “life supplies” for lab, including close-toed shoes, long-sleeve shirts and pants without holes.

Last fall, Sac State President Robert S. Nelsen gave the project $10,000 from his office. Herring plans to develop partnerships so alumni, hospitals and others can donate used items to the Grace Project.

“I hope my project will allow students to feel like they have a place to go,” she said.

About a half an hour’s drive away at Mariposa Avenue Elementary School, fourth grade teacher Valerie Pasdera is part of an effort to foster girls’ love of science. She’s the coordinator of the school’s Snap the Gap program, a statewide effort that connects girls ages 10 to 12 with hands-on learning, mentors and a subscription to

DIY.org, a STEM learning platform and community for kids.

The Disney-funded program, a collaboration between UC Davis STEM Strategies and Million Women Mentors, aims to reach 15,000 girls statewide by June 2020.

Through partnerships with school districts, libraries and the Girl Scouts and other youth organizations, girls get 20 hours of engagement that includes mentorships and experiential learning with inventor kits that include templates to make robotic arms and other electronic items and tools to build their own creations.

“At this stage students are still really excited about hands-on activities,” said Beth Broome, senior adviser to the provost for UC Davis STEM Strategies.

When girls created something, they lit up, said Pasdera, who ran the program after school last year, with help from a volunteer mentor from Intel. One girl built a foot that could kick a soccer ball; another made a roaring dinosaur. This spring, she plans to introduce the inventor kits to her regular class as well.

Broome said that by maintaining girls’ interest in STEM at a young age, it can help continue closing the gender gap in higher education and the workforce.

“By the time women get to us, we’re not working on closing that gap but working on amplifying those skills,” she said. □

Former President Barack Obama said something in December that is hard to argue with: “I’m absolutely confident that for two years if every nation on earth was run by women, you would see a significant improvement across the board on just about everything.”

Agreed Mr. President.

In my years in the Legislature, I have watched with admiration as my female colleagues tackle some of the most complex and controversial issues facing California— the fifth largest economy in the world—from increasing access to affordable housing and reforming our state’s use-of-force laws to remedying gender parity on boards and commissions and ensuring workers using paid family leave receive full wage replacement.

We weren’t doing it for ourselves. We were doing it for our daughters, our sisters and, in many ways, our own mothers.

WOMEN’S ISSUE

BY TONI G. ATKINS

This was the first law of its kind we passed legislation and a state in the nation, and despite lawbudget that makes significant gains suits attempting to erode for California women and the progress we’ve families. made for women, We passed a business and the bold and responeconomy, it’s a sible budget that win-win: More included record women in these levels of investpositions make ment in public sense for profitK-12 and higher ability and for education, that equality. As does increased access our continued to health care and Toni G. Atkins, a San Diego work to lift and funding for aging Democrat, is president pro tem of the California State Senate, the protect women’s services, provided first woman and first openly LGBQT issues, and those $2.4 billion for person to hold the position. impacting women affordable housing PHOTO BY MELISSA JACOBS in California. and homelessness, This month, we doubled funding will begin deliberations on the state for reproductive health services budget, and I’m confident that we and that expanded the Earned will maximize our resources to best Income Tax Credit, thereby helping serve all Californians. Two areas Californians keep more of their that became a central focus of paychecks. investment last year, health care We provided funding for and housing, also will be the subject full-day kindergarten, of legislation this year. crafted legislation barring While we increased the number landlords from discriminating of people with access to health against low-income renters care and reduced the cost of health receiving public assistance care for middle-class Californians and negotiated a solution last year, we must continue to to protect ratepayers by work with the governor on the path overhauling the way our state toward health care for all. and utilities cover the cost of And because there is not enough wildfire damages. affordable housing construction to And we passed laws to promeet the need, we have to work on tect women’s bodies and our solutions that will create homes in rights, including legislation places that will increase access to requiring evidence-based, imjobs, reduce the time people spend plicit bias training to all health in their cars and help us meet Calicare providers involved in fornia’s greenhouse gas reduction perinatal services, and a law targets. ensuring students’ access to We also plan to advance a medication abortion services $4.1 billion bond measure to help on California public university communities invest in climate campuses. resiliency, including addressing sea We did all this while also fending level rise, preparing for droughts off attacks from the Trump and preventing wildfires. This administration and those who wish will help preserve, protect and to undermine progress and our improve our environment for not California values. only this generation of women, but I’m looking forward to seeing generations to come. increased parity in boardrooms It will undoubtedly be a busy this year thanks to landmark year, but with 37 strong, brilliant legislation that I jointly authored female colleagues by my side in the

by Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, DLegislature—not to mention the Santa Barbara, which requires all women on our staffs and at every publicly-held corporations in Calilevel of government—success is fornia to have at least one woman inevitable. □ on its board of directors.

In my years in the Legislature, I have watched with admiration as my female colleagues tackle some of the most complex and controversial issues facing California.

We’re doing it so the woman grappling with what to make her family for dinner has more money in her budget. So the high schooler dreaming about becoming a scientist can secure her seat in our UC or CSU system. So the daughter trying her best to care for her elderly parents has the resources and services she needs to help them age in place.

Last year, the Legislature was not only guided primarily by women leaders—three out of four of the top spots are filled by women—but

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Eliza Maroney

Mari Robi

THE

WOMEN’S ISSUE

5

women to watch

BY STEPH RODRIGUEZ • STEPHR@NEWSREVIEW.COM

HERE ARE FIVE SACRAMENTO WOMEN WORKING HARD TO BE POSITIVE ROLE MODELS, CARING EDUCATORS AND FIERCE ADVOCATES:

IMANI MITCHELL film director, activist

Imani Mitchell

Jamie Howard-Levoy

Imani Mitchell decided to write and direct her own film, Whirlpool, with an entirely AfricanAmerican cast to overcome stereotypical roles and to tell stories for black people, but aren’t solely about racial trauma. The movie is set to premiere in April.

“It’s a human story with this film,” Mitchell said. “Sometimes, we don’t want to be reminded of the horrors of our history. We want to be entertained or we just want a good story.”

Mitchell, 26, founded Black Women United, the organizers of the Black Women’s March, but since stepped down. In 2017, she received the Exceptional Women of Color Award from the Sac Cultural Hub Media Foundation. She has a 5-year-old daughter and is a local activist.

“A really great tool that we have now is social media and the power of it, too,” she said.

“I think for people who want to make women feel less than, or make women feel inferior or abuse women, people will call you out now.

There’s an accountability. Folks are feeling more empowered.”

ELIZA MARONEY cannabis educator, business owner

Inside her office on North 10th Street, Eliza Maroney sat peacefully feeding her 6-week-old son Zion, multitasking with ease as a cannabis wellness educator and co-founder of the monthly subscription service Lucky Box Club.

“Being pregnant in the industry was incredibly challenging, but also more rewarding than I could have imagined,” Maroney said.

Maroney is often invited to speak on panels that discuss cannabis and its health benefits.

Now, she’s the marketing director at Fenix Logistics, a cannabis distribution company, created a monthly industry mixer called the

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Lisa Miller

Herban Exchange and, as a certified yoga instructor, looks forward to publishing her book The Cannabis Yogi.

“Being a woman is hard, period. We are so marginalized and misunderstood. Being a woman of color, is even harder,” she said. “I’m not even sure what the future has in store for us, but I know that it’s made me cling to the other women in my life and really work with them and try to be inspirations to one another to try to stay focused on what matters.”

MARI ROBI

intersex advocate As a housing navigator with the Sacramento LGBT Community Center, Mari Robi helps those living at the 12-bed shelter get the resources they need, and hopefully, find stable homes.

“I get to be this really cool bridge for a lot of people connecting them to services that can house them long term,” they said.

Wrobi, an intersex activist, has volunteered just about everywhere in the LGBTQ community.

With a grant from Voices With Impact, Robi is producing a film titled The Side Effects of Normal on the effects of medical trauma on intersex people.

“I’m very active as somebody who identifies as trans. Trans rights have been attacked, threatened; we’ve just faced a lot, especially trans women of color,” they said. “That’s a huge demographic in our community that are facing atrocities and direct violence. Fighting against that can seem very hard, but we’re very resilient and very tough.”

LISA MILLER

founder, Pivot Sacramento When five teens on her street dropped out of high school more than a decade ago, Lisa Miller decided to get them into a GED program and bought them clothes for job interviews. Word spread throughout the neighborhood and people started knocking on her door for help.

Today, she runs the nonprofit Pivot Sacramento inside her former first grade classroom in Oak Park. Miller specializes in assisting single parents, the homeless and the recently incarcerated. Since she began 14 years ago, Miller has helped more than 700 people get the resources they need to be self-sufficient.

“I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

I’m here every morning and I’m here most of the day, holidays, weekends taking care of folks,” Miller said. “I just really love doing it.

I love working with people. I like seeing them dream and being able to navigate them to that, and then watching them shine.”

JAMIE HOWARD-LEVOY owner/head coach, California Storm

Jamie Howard-Levoy is the definition of hard work and determination as she went from volunteering in the snack back to assistant coach of the California Storm women’s soccer team.

When founder and former owner Jerry Zanelli died in 2018, he left the team to Howard-Levoy.

Now, as executive director and head coach, she and the Storm aim to make 2020 a breakout year. “The Storm is a real personal organization to me. I’ve been involved about 10 years,” she said. “I love that we’re seeing more women getting into the coaching and executive roles and we need to continue to see more of that in athletics.”

The Storm finished 11-1 last season; players also teach soccer drills to underserved students.

“There’s a lot of pressure for at-risk behaviors in the younger generation, and I think it’s important that they have role models that can connect with them in different ways,” HowardLevoy said. “We use the platform of sports to connect with them and use that to try to be a positive role model in their life.” □

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Artist of the YeAr Amber DeLaRosa Chrome Ghost Jessica Jolia Kennedy Wrose National Lines

releAse of the YeAr

New year. New music.

Cast your vote.

SN&R’s annual Sacramento Area Music Awards are back and have already set a record with more than 6,000 votes received for nominations.

What’s new? This year we introduced two new categories—spoken word (with music) and revival band. Nearly 200 bands and artists were nominated by our readers, with new talent staking their claim in each genre. SN&R also asked local music experts for advice on who actively gigged last year, who put out solid albums and also who’s new to the scene and deserves the recognition. After all, the busiest promoters, venue owners and record producers know best as they have their ears to the ground on what artists are working hard for audiences throughout the region.

In 2020, SN&R will again include audio as part of the voting process, so readers can listen to nominees and discover new music. The 28th annual SAMMIES aims to be the best yet; SN&R welcomes any suggestions on how to improve, so feel free to email stephr@ newsreview.com.

It’s time to go discover your new favorite artists and start voting Jan. 20 until March 11 at Sammies.com.

— Steph RodRiguez

22 | SN&R | 01.16.20

deejAY

The Austin Mo Xperience Katie Knipp Leo Bootes Matt Rainey and the Dippin’ Sauce Michael Ray Turnbuckle Blues Review Red’s Blues

DJ Elements DJ Epik DJ Hektor S DJ Lady Char DJ Madsticks DJ Zay DJ Zephyr Louie Giovanni Mike Diamond My Cousin Vinnie

CouNtrY/AmeriCANA/ Alt-CouNtrY Brotherly Mud Delta Mystics House of Mary Jennifer Belle Jon Emery & The Unconventionals Noelle & The Deserters The Ariel Jean Band The Nickel Slots

Cover BANd/ triBute BANd Cold Shot Hipper than Hip Band Joel The Band Journey Revisited Night Moves Mix N’ It Up MoonShine Crazy Peter Petty & His Terpsichoreans Red Voodoo Remix Shades of Pink Floyd Thunder Cover

eleCtroNiCA/ experimeNtAl Czechmate Echo the Natives Spacewalker

emCee Andru Defeye Illa Jay Kennedy Wrose Mahtie Bush Mi$tuh G

folk/BluegrAss According to Bazooka Jessica Malone Me&You Red Dirt Ruckus The Herald Tre Burt

fuNk Black Yacht Club Big Sticky Mess Ideateam Joy & Madness The Gold Souls The Pressure Lounge

hArdCore/iNdustriAl/ post-hArdCore A Foreign Affair Nail the Casket Wolf & Bear

hip-hop/rAp CreAtive AChievemeNt iN support of the musiC sCeNe

Peter Petty & His Terpsichoreans

Cider Sessions Elle Jaye (Music photography) Gabriell Garcia (Blue Lamp/ Cafe Colonial) Girls Rock Sacramento Heather Evans (Sacramento Song Writers Circle) The Library of MusicLandria The Silver Orange (Teen music venue)

Andru Defeye Antwon Vinnie Aye Tee Bru Lei Diamond Dez Illa Jay Jules Burn Kennedy Wrose Master Kingdom Mi$tuh G POOR Majesty

Photos by Maria ratinova

Nominees

Basi Vibe - Somnus Chrome Ghost - The Diving Bell Delta Mystics - 369 Hobo Johnson - The Fall of Hobo Johnson Jennifer Belle - Moving Day Kennedy Wrose - Wrose to the Occasion Mi$tuh G - Local GZ Koolin Mondo Deco - Take What Ya Like National Lines - Staring at the Ceiling Sad Girlz Club - Hard Feelings

Blues

Mi$tuh G drops new albuM see Music

24

diners, drive-ins and Gas see staGe

25

lunch with a Great Mission see dish

revIvaL/Back from tHe dead Band

r&B/souL

Bypassing Oblivion Flip the Switch The Knockoffs Unprovoked

Basi Vibe Harlequin Rose J Black Levi Moses Mona Villamayor Shadia Powell STRQ x Camilla The Philharmonik Yoey Composes

rock

Harlequin Rose - “Ride Around” National Lines - “Staring at the Ceiling” Sad Girlz Club - “Again” The Last Titan - “Seven Days of Reckoning” The New Crowns - “Focus” The Philharmonik - “Drugs”

Jazz

Amber DeLaRosa Brotherly Mud Delta Mystics Gamma People The Bad Barnacles

A Tribe Quartet Dos Hombres Trio Doug Pauly Tropicali Flames

LIve Performer Aye Tee Drop Dead Red Jessica Jolia National Lines Red Voodoo Band Samantha “Spike” Vaughn Höerner The Bad Barnacles The Ghost Town Rebellion

metaL/Hard rock A Waking Memory Astral Cult Chrome Ghost Dreams of Madness Ellusive Furs Failure by Proxy HellHeart Samora The Last Titan TriggerEffect

Amanda Gray Heather Evans Jasmine Bailey Jessica Jolia Kaylee Starr KC Shane Richard Urbino Zachary Van Dyck

Producer of tHe Year

Punk/Post-Punk Addalemon Captain Cutiepie Clevers Creux Lies Gamma People Jib and the Swigs Lamonta Las Pulgas!

Lightweight Marigold

Dyanna & the Cherry Kings Elvis Cantu Frankie and the Defenders Twilight Drifters

sInger songwrIter

new artIst

Joe Johnston, Pus Cavern John Morris, Tanglewood Recording Studios Patrick Hills, Earth Tone Studios Ree Realz Sean Stack, Fat Cat Recording Studio Tom Jiminez, The Audio Edge Studios

rockaBILLY

sPoken word (wItH musIc) Frankie and the Defenders

Alé Twosense Hernandez AndYes (David Loret de Mola) Bethany Crouch Grace Loescher Terry Freeman Moore

teen Arte de Amar Landline Paper Airplanes NoJay

sammies.com

musIc vIdeo

Dads Under Where Flight Mongoose For the Kids Roland Tonies So Much Light The Bad Barnacles The New Crowns Todd Morgan Vinnie Guidera & the Dead Birds

Arden Park Roots Eazy Dub Element of Soul Island of Black and White Mau Mind X Riotmaker

Band of Coyotes Cities You Wish You Were From Ghost Mesa Humble Wolf Life of the Afterparty Mondo Deco ONOFF Roa Shotgun Sawyer The Zach Waters Band

at

reggae/Jam IndIe

29

see off Menu

The Sacto Storytellers William Mylar

Sad Girlz Club Th’ Losin’ Streaks The Moans Yawzea House of Mary

28

learn sake, drink sake!

worLd musIc

voting ends

Carlos Kandia Don Gato Latin Band Sol Peligro

□

01.16.20

03.11.20 |

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Sac rapper Mi$tuh G produces his new album

by Maxfield Morris

ma x fie ld m@ ne wsr e v ie w.c o m

Wit It [Entertainment], and I’m still cool with some of my friends, but they had life things going on. They had kids, maybe a court case—but I was still embellished in the music.”

Gums says his style has remained the same, but ever since he started working with artist and producer E-Moe, he’s become part of the Paystyle Music family. Gums says the core group of artists is E-Moe, Dom Blanco, Mak7teen and iLLa J, who frequently collaborate and push new work as if it were their own.

The same is true for G Files. E-Moe took some verses and also left a voice message, as did other collaborators. But the project is still a Mi$tuh G creation.

Mi$tuh G recently opened up his filing system and released G files.

“I write about whatever the beat tells me,” Gums said. “Sometimes I write about how I’m feeling, I kinda like to go off of life. Sometimes I can write about some haters, It’s a new album and an opportunity to showcase I can write songs about relationships, good or bad.” some new talent for Mi$tuh G, Kendall Gums. G G Files’ album cover and intro both feature Files, released Jan. 10 on Spotify and CD Baby, is Gums’ uncle, and the pair act as a prologue to the the latest project from the Sacramento-born-andconstant flow of Mi$tuh G’s lyrics. They’re deft, raised rapper—and it mixes things up, Mi$tuh fresh and interesting, and paired with the often G says. emotional voicemail interludes, they take on a new “With the new album, something different was depth, woven into a dialogue about family, love I took more control of the production,” Gums said. and being so good at rapping you should be “Like, I produced the whole album.” called “The Human Pen.” That meant taking more control of They’re subjects that Gums says the sound, the beats and the choices, “I might surprise some listeners. a challenge that Gums was excited feel like it’s “I know that’s kind of where to take on, and one that he hopes the Sacramento scene is at showcases his versatility. It something people now, people dissing each also means some more creative could listen through other’s neighborhoods and risks—weaving in some of straight through, just cliques, but that’s not what Mi$tuh G’s voicemail as the we’re pushing,” he said. album’s interstitial tissue. because of the journey it “Everybody’s just pushing for “I’m checking the messages takes you on.” the music.” on my phone, and I feel like it’s Gums isn’t interested in something people could listen Kendall Gums changing his style, and says he’s through straight through,” Gums Mi$tuh G working to stay independent of said, “just because of the journey it expectations. Paystyle Music helps keep takes you on.” the rap center stage.

The skits were Gums’ way of channeling “I will have people that’ll tell me to change my albums such as Kendrick Lamar’s Good Kid, style a little bit, because I have a quick, fast-paced M.A.A.D. City and Snoop Dogg’s Doggystyle, chopper style, and that’s just how I do what I do,” and they give the listener an insight into some of Gums said. “I don’t feel like I need to dumb down Mi$tuh G’s relationships. Some of the messages what I’m doing. I know that there’s a lane for what are unprompted, while some were loosely directed I’m doing. I just gotta get into that lane.” □

by Gums, but they all explore questions of persona and underline the album’s themes of searching for respect and especially camaraderie.

“My whole crew had left, y’know? My crew Listen to Mi$tuh G’s new album G files, out now on spotify. was gone,” Gums said. “So I was pushing Kome Photo courtesy of Mi$tuh G

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American pie

BY JIM CARNES

PHOTO COURTESY OF CINDY LAWTON

STAGE PICK A family struggles to make sense of tragedy.

Pumped up kids

The pump boys know how to get things done.

Pump Boys and Dinettes

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Wed 7pm, Thu 7pm, Fri 8pm, Sat 2pm & 8pm, Sun 2pm & 7pm; Through 2/16; $25-$40; Sacramento Theatre Company, 1419 H St., (916) 443-6722, sactheatre.org.

Along a stretch of Highway 57 in North Carolina, between the towns of Frog Level and Smyrna, lies L.M. and Jim’s gas station, and the Double Cupp Diner run by sisters Rhetta and Prudie Cupp. The boys, along with employees Jackson and Eddie, pump gas. The sisters sell tasty pies and pour hot coffee (the second cup is free). These are the pump boys and dinettes of the musical now at Sacramento Theatre Company.

The play doesn’t really have a plot. It’s more a character study revealed in a rockin’ countrified beat of a half-dozen characters, their lives and loves and dreams.

Pump Boys and Dinettes was conceived, written and originally performed in 1981 by John Foley, Mark Hardwick, Debra Monk, Cass Morgan, John Schimmel and Jim Wann. It debuted on Broadway in 1982. Subsequent productions all attempt to recreate the friendly charm of that original cast, and the STC production has really nailed it.

Sam C. Jones plays Jim and rocks a mean guitar; Brady Wease is L.M.; Darrell Johnson plays Jackson; Rebecca Mason is Rhetta; Sidney Raey-Gonzales is Prudie; and Michael LaPlante is Eddie, who doesn’t talk much, but when he sings the touching “Mamaw,” he can bring tears.

Director Abbey Campbell guides this outstanding group of actor-singer-musicians with a deft hand and never takes the easy step of mocking the culture.

Rather, she gives us an opportunity to experience a genuine taste of a simpler, maybe purer, slice of American life. Ω

Only one more weekend to catch Acme Theatre’s The Burials.

Written by Caitlin Parrish, the play is a modern reimagining of Antigone, the final entry in Sophocles’ Theban trilogy. When a school shooting ends in tragedy, once carefree teen Sophie Martin struggles to navigate life, as she finds herself caught between the slew of digital media coverage and her conservative dad’s election campaign. Check out this all-youth production’s take on the devastating impact of gun violence in America. Thu, 1/16, 7pm; Fri, 1/17, 7pm; Sat, 1/18, 7pm; Sun, 1/19, 2pm; Through 1/19; $10-$15; Veterans Memorial Center, 203 E 14th St., Davis; (530) 401-6688; acmetheatre.net

5 Change of habit Sister Act is one joyous musical from start to finish.

Based on the 1992 movie starring Whoopi Goldberg, the stage musical adds music by Alan Menken with lyrics by Glenn Slater. But it takes it over the top, losing the more personal, poignant pieces of the story—so flashy it’s like the nuns had moved from a low-income parish to the Vegas stage.

Deborah Hammond is Deloris Van Cartier, a lounge singer under the thumb of her gangster boyfriend Curtis (David Ewey) who witnesses a murder he commits. Fearing her life is in danger, Deloris reports to police officer Eddie (Erik Catalan), who hides her in a local convent under the name Sister Mary Clarence.

Hammond is magnificent with a powerful voice that raises the roof. Each of the ten numbers in which she is featured are wonderful.

Lenore Sebastian as Mother Superior is every bit her equal, frustrated with having to hide a woman she does not approve, who is such a disruption to her quiet convent. Her anguished “I Haven’t Got a Prayer,” where she tries to ask God for guidance, was a stand-out.

When Sister Mary Clarence makes improvements in the convent choir, it brings parishioners back to the church and eventually becomes a news story. It all ends gloriously with the nuns—in their Vegas-worthy habits—coming to Deloris’ aid when Curtis shows up to kill her, and they receive a well-deserved standing ovation.

—BEV SYKES

Sister Act : Fri 7:30, Sat 7:30pm, Sun 2pm; Through 2/2; $7-$25; Woodland Opera House, 340 2nd St., Woodland; (530) 666-9617; woodlandoperahouse.org.

—RACHEL MAYFIELD

SCREEN PICK Two journalists explore one of nature’s biggest marvels in Into the Canyon.

A bee in your bonnet Things in the world are getting pretty rough, environmentally speaking. But, if you’ve got hope for the future and an environmentalist bug that just keeps biting, consider checking out the Wild & Scenic Film Festival. Now in its 18th year, the festival boasts 140 top-notch docs about nature and humanity’s relationship to it. Watch two journalists traverse the Grand Canyon by foot in Into the Canyon, or catch a screening of Not If But When: Wildfire Solutions to hear what experts have to say about California’s growing wildfire crisis. Thu, 1/16 through Sat, 1/20; $0-$500; Various locations in Nevada City and Grass Valley; (530) 265-2692; wildandscenicfilmfestival.org.

—RACHEL MAYFIELD

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SUBLIME DON’T MISS

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Green thumb extraordinaire Alli Okumura can help transform just about any space into a lush oasis.

Photo by Melissa Uroff

It’s Easy Being Green Propagate can help bring a little bit of nature inside

by Anne S tokes

I

Midtown owned & operated House Made Jewelry, Repairs & Local Artisan Gifts 1111 24th Street (Corner K & 24th) • Open Daily Mon-Fri 11-6 • Sat & Sun by Appointment • 916.346.4615 26

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f you look around your home and feel something’s missing, chances are you need a little greenery.

“If you’re working on a room and it just doesn’t feel complete, it’s most likely a plant that’s missing,” says Alli Okumura, green thumb and owner of Propagate.

“Nature just instantly makes people feel better. … Being able to bring that into your home makes such an impact.”

Whether you have a black-thumb or are a veteran plant parent, Propagate has an ever-growing selection of tropical houseplants and pots.

“We try to carry things that are more unique,” she says. “We definitely carry plants like pothos and monsteras, things that people are really familiar with and really like, but we do try to find things that are a little more interesting.”

Staff at Propagate also provide complimentary plant doctor services and can help diagnose or repot any struggling plants you have. Not sure about what will work best in your space? They can help you find something that will thrive.

“We tend to ask a lot of questions about your space before recommending a plant and we don’t really let people leave without understanding how to properly care for a plant,” Okumura says. “We’re here after you buy the plant to guide you through how to keep it alive and happy.”

In addition to the shop, Propagate also provides interior plant design and maintenance services for businesses. If you’re planning an event — be it a baby shower, engagement or birthday party — the shop also can be rented out, verdant décor included!

Visit Propogate at 1700 I St., Sacramento, 95811, online at www.propagatesac.com or call 916-399-4804 for hours and more information.

Ada Handcrafted Events

Services

Thursday, Jan. 16

Drink Me: Mixing Memories in a Glass

JEwELry rEpair Little relics 1111 24th St., #103 Sacramento

Kennedy Gallery 1931 L St., Sacramento

GLuTEn frEE dininG

Sacred Cacao Ceremony and Sound Healing Circle Welcome the wonders of cacao in this sacred cacao ceremony and sound healing circle. The meditative practice is enhanced due to cacao’s ability to help open the heart, increase present-moment awareness, release stress and more! The cacao journey will also feature healing sounds from crystal bowls, wind chimes, fairy chimes and rainsticks. Come in light-colored clothing and bring a blanket, yoga mat, pillow and water bottle. 5 p.m., $33. her Elevated studio 1900 28th St., Sacramento

TuEsday, Jan. 21

HIV/HCV Walk-in Testing Receive free and confidential HIV/ HCV counseling and testing on-site.

12 p.m., free. sacramento LGBT Community Center 2012 K St., Sacramento

Mention this ad for 15% oFF at both locations while supplies last!

Call the shop for an appointment 916.346.4615

Peruse an array of cocktail compositions in the “Drink Me” exhibit at the Kennedy Gallery. The exhibit of varied medium from over 20 resident artists is on display until February 4. Extended hours for January 11 Second Saturday are from noon to 10 p.m., and the occasion features a full-service no-host bar, perfect for the exhibit!

12 p.m., free.

saTurday, Jan. 18

Leather Belts

shoE shinE

For more information, go online at www.shawnreginald.com or call 916-400-4060. shawn reginald 1729 L St., Sacramento

Visit Sacramento’s first gluten-free cider taphouse. The establishment features a completely gluten-free kitchen, so everyone can sip and nibble in peace.

Sugar Shack Boutique 2425 J St Sacramento, CA 95816

Krazy Mary’s Boutique 3230 Folsom Blvd Sacramento, CA 95816

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Cider house 1111 24th St., Sacramento

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Tips & tricks

MonThLy MopEd suBsCripTion Conscious commuting

Zip around town in an easy to use moped. The fully electric vehicle is available through a monthly subscription of $99 a month and comes to your home fully assembled. Easy parking, reduced congestion and no carbon emissions! Order yours at zebranow.com.

parKinG app

Reserve a parking space!

The City of Sacramento has teamed with Parkmobile to provide more options to pay for parking at select locations using a mobile app!

You can set up a free account by calling 916-722-7275 or visiting Parkmobile.com.

Paid advertisment

The Shawn Reginald Men’s Boutique is now open in Midtown Sacramento, featuring business-casual clothing, and haberdashery items.

Mention this ad for 10% off 1 72 9 L S treet | S a c ra men to | 916.400.4060 | www.Shawn regin aLd.com

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The báhn mì, with herb-infused pulled pork, comes with all the traditional components down to the crunchy baguette.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF MY SISTER’S HOUSE

My sister’s keeper

BY STEPH RODRIGUEZ

During a Wednesday afternoon lunch rush, just about every seat in this small cafe is filled with downtown workers.

Large, steamy bowls of the day’s ramen special, with its generous garnish of leafy greens, warms most diners while others nosh on colorful wraps and stacked sandwiches.

This popular lunch spot is more than a just convenient place to get a quick bite. My Sister’s Cafe is also a place that nourishes its employees and its volunteers—and it fuels My Sister’s House, a nonprofit that provides shelter and services for women impacted by domestic violence.

Sitting at a table overlooking Downtown Commons, Nilda Valmores twirls a fork full of noodles while using her spoon to shape each brothsoaked bite.

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“Eating good food is always my favorite part,” says Valmores, executive director of My Sister’s House, “but seeing the women grow and change—I mean, how could anyone not like that part?”

Valmores has worked at My Sister’s House for 14 years helping women get the resources they need to live healthier, happier lives. The women are mainly of Asian and Pacific Islander descent, though the nonprofit opens its doors to women of all cultures who seek refuge at its six-bed shelters located in three houses.

“The comforting thing about that is it’s an ordinary home. It’s an ordinary house,” she said. “That’s really important, especially culturally.”

My Sister’s House makes all this possible with a staff of 20 who provide job readiness skills to as many as 500

clients a year. The organization’s crisis line handles about 3,000 calls annually. And about a quarter of the staff also work the cafe, making American food with an Asian twist.

While the nonprofit holds five different fundraisers a year, each with a different audience, many people learn about its mission through the cafe.

“This cafe, this social enterprise, has been really helpful,” Valmores said.

One of the most popular items on the menu is its bánh mì, with herbinfused pulled pork, pickled daikon radish and shredded carrots, fresh cilantro, thinly sliced jalapeños and cucumbers, with a kick of soy sauce.

The bánh mì can also be ordered with lightly fried tofu or rotisserie chicken.

“Our first manager said the secret of the bánh mì is having great bread,” Valmores said. The baguette ties the sandwich together; it’s sturdy enough to hold all the delicious ingredients, but also gives a satisfying crunch down to the last bite.

The cafe generates nearly $180,000 a year for My Sister’s House, helping fund programs such as Women to Work, which last year provided $100,000 in wage support for domestic violence survivors—like Agnus.

A former refugee, she urgently needed help in Los Angeles, but was having difficulty overcoming a language barrier. A nonprofit there put in a call to Valmores, and Agnus, along with her then 3-year-old daughter, were accepted at My Sister’s House.

“Even though she didn’t know anything about me, she still opened the door and was willing to take the risk to help me ... I’m grateful to have this organization,” said Agnus, who asked that her last name not be used.

Her eyes swelled with tears before she sat up straight and smiled at Valmores.

“She knew that I hardly spoke English, so I had to figure out a way to communicate with the staff in order to express my needs.”

When she was ready to find work, My Sister’s House paid the fees so Agnus could obtain her food handler’s certification. Valmores also helped her make the connections so she could buy her first vehicle and guided her through her citizenship paperwork.

Today, Agnus holds a steady job, her daughter is thriving in school and she’s studying for her California food manager’s certification.

She said Valmores—or as she calls her, Ms. Nilda—is very much like a mother.

“If I didn’t know My Sister’s House, I wouldn’t know that I could get help for me and my daughter. It’s why I survived and made it through

Workers and volunteers of My Sister’s Cafe celebrate its fifth birthday on-site with tropical ice cream sundaes.

everything,” Agnus said. “All the skills they taught me when I first started, now I’m able to apply it and help other women. I teach them how to do the same thing and sometimes they melt down and say it’s hard, but I speak from experience, ‘Don’t give up.’” Ω Visit My Sister’s Cafe for a crunchy báhn mì or a warm bowl of ramen in support of My Sister’s House at 455 Capitol Mall, Suite 110, mysisterscafe.org.

ILLUSTRATION BY MARK STIVERS

Did someone say

fried chicken?(and bahn mi, and ramen)

Join us everyday for our multi-Asian inspired menu, and reserve for our Chef’s Counter and Kaiseki dining experiences.

4801 Folsom Blvd | Sacramento | 916.400.3075 | origamiasiangrill.com

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DRINK

For goodness sake

if you would like to carry the paper for free, call GreG at 916.498.1234, ext. 1317 or email GreGe@newsreview.com n e w s r e v i e w.c o m

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flavor. If you want something more approachable, give flavored sake a shot with choices such as blueberry, pineapple and plum or the Zipang, a zesty sparkling sake.

You can also bring sake home and make cocktails or even cook with it. The SMV (sake meter value) on every bottle tells you whether the sake is sweet or dry.

The more positive the number, the drier the sake.

Sake can be enjoyed chilled, over ice, at room temperature, or warmed depending on the sake type.

Sip it like wine, and try not to take it like a shot despite how easy it may be. For a local stop with a range of sakes to buy—stop by Oto’s Marketplace over on Freeport Boulevard.

If you’d rather hand over the reins, Sacramento restaurants have a great variety of sake offerings for all levels of experience and taste. Kodaiko, a ramen bar on K Street, has an awesome one-cup sake menu.

The Joto Graffitti Cup ($10) is a refreshing and playful Honjozo in a vibrant, colorful paper cup.

Another local option for a great sake list is Aji Dori on R Street, where sake is on tap, in bottles and by the glass at varying price points. Southpaw Sushi on Del Paso Boulevard has a list that includes Gekkeikan and is so extensive that it’s categorized by type and spans an entire page.

Sake is an art and as with any art form there is always room for interpretation, so visit local spots for happy hours (Sake bombs? Yes please!), peruse menus and shop around to find your preferences.

Above all, don’t be afraid to ask questions …

Kanpai! □

h

Exploring sake can feel intimidating at first, but don’t get bogged down by the different temperatures, names, drinkware and distinctions—just sip and savor the experience.

There are four basic ingredients that every sake shares: rice, water, kōji (a fungus used during fermentation) and yeast. How much the rice is polished down from its original size—among other factors, such as types of rice used, water minerality and quality, brewing processes, filtration and fermentation processes— distinguishes each sake type.

A great place to start your sake journey is Gekkeikan Sake USA in Folsom. This brewery has been pumping out gallons of sake since 1989 (though the Gekkeikan company is over 370 years old).

Folsom shares similarities with Gekkeikan’s original brewery in Fushimi, Japan. Both were selected as brewery locations because of their proximity to clean, crisp water including the American River, which feeds from the Sierra Nevada mountains. The Folsom brewery also uses high-quality Calrose Rice from fields in the Sacramento Valley.

To experience the sake brewing process first-hand, take the self-guided tour through the brewery’s buildings and check out the massive fermentation tanks. Then, stroll around a beautiful koi pond before stopping by the tasting room where you can ask questions and sample Gekkeikan’s American and Japanese brews.

Make sure to try the Haiku, a premium Tokubetsu Junmai made using 60% polished rice and a unique type of yeast that gives a distinct dryness and clean

Feel PowerFul with a Power Bowl

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916.594.7689 • 980 9th Street • Sacramento, CA 95814

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Old is new again New seeds and plants for 2020 are twists on past favorites

BY DEBBIE ARRINGTON Named for an 1860 novel, “The Mill on the Floss” looks like a Victorian rose from the 1800s, but it’s a 2020 introduction from David Austin Roses.

“fresh, home-grown, vine-ripened meat,” the catalog boasts) and “Jaws,” a sweet corn with ginormous 12-inch ears (“Caution: You’re going to need a bigger pot!”).

What if you’re a city gardener without room to grow oversized crops? As our yards have shrunk, so have some vegetables. The most popular are itty-bitty pumpkins (such as Burpee’s Bumpkin, Gooligan and Hooligan) and “personal watermelons,” just big enough for one or two servings (such as Piccolo mini-seedless).

Gardeners want veggies that taste great and flowers that smell like they came out of Grandma’s backyard, preferably without the use of chemicals. That’s why heirlooms have been such a hit.

The selection of possibilities just keeps growing.

For example, Baker Creek’s “2020 Whole Seed Catalog” is its biggest in 22 years with 452 pages.

Baker Creek (rareseeds.com) offers more than 1,200 varieties of heirloom seeds and sends its catalog to more than 1 million organic gardeners nationwide. Among its new oldies for 2020: “Hopi Black-Dye Sunflower,” “Death Spiral” hot pepper, “Bloody Mary” nasturtium, “Amazing Grey” poppy and “Queen of Malinalco” golden tomatillo.

Names go a long way in selling these new introductions. Take this assortment of new varieties from David Austin Roses (davidaustinroses.com), the hybridizer of English-style roses. With evocative names, these shrub roses are known for their amazing scent and bloom-filled bushes.

For 2020, Austin Roses is introducing three roses with literary ties: “Emily Brontë,” “Totteringby-Gently” and “The Mill on the Floss.” A golden apricot bloom with 100 petals, the first is named for the beloved writer of Wuthering Heights. A whimsical wildflower-like yellow rose, “Totteringby-Gently” gets its name from a long-running cartoon in “Country Life,” the quintessential British magazine. Reminiscent of big pink cabbage-style Victorian roses, “The Mill on the Floss” is named for an 1860 novel by George Eliot.

In the 2020 garden, everything old is indeed new again. □ PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID AUSTIN ROSES

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GARDEN

We want bigger tomatoes, smaller pumpkins and old-fashioned flowers in modern hues.

But a revolutionary turnip?

At least, that’s what we’ll find as we peruse seed catalogs and browse online for 2020’s new plant introductions.

Yearning for the past (heirloom tomatoes, fragrant roses, colorful zinnias), consumers still demand modern convenience (disease resistance, prolific production, easy care). That’s a challenge for plant breeders, who continually put new twists on familiar favorites.

For example, Burpee—the seed catalog giant (burpee.com)—boasts nearly 100 new varieties for 2020. Promising to “add flair and flavor to your life and home,” Burpee chairman George Ball introduced his three favorites this way: “Our plant breeders’ achievements begin 2020 with ‘Bodacious,’ the new standard in large, round slicing tomatoes that roll off the vines, and ‘Zesty’ zinnias that create kaleidoscopes of sensuous semidouble blooms,” Ball wrote. “Rounding out our bevy of innovations, ‘Silky Sweet’ revolutionizes the humble turnip with lovely, crisp, moist, lightly sweet orbs of delight. You’ve never dreamed of turnips— you’re about to start.”

Such hyperbole is standard for seed catalogs.

(I never thought of biting into a raw turnip like an apple, as Ball recommends with Silky Sweet.) But the new varieties follow gardeners’ desire for bigger and better.

Other recent Burpee introductions also follow Debbie Arrington, an award-winning garden writer and lifelong that trend, including “Meatball,” a gigantic eggplant gardener, is co-creator of the Sacramento Digs Gardening blog and website. that mimics the texture of beef (think of it as 30

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A gathering place to create (and read) Carol’s Books so much more than a bookstore

by Allen pierleoni

C

arol’s Books, which has had a presence on Del Paso Boulevard for 15 years, is more of an artists’ salon than an independent bookstore, a gathering place where writers, musicians and filmmakers congregate to share and learn.

Of course, there are shelves of books – fiction, nonfiction and children’s, mostly by African American authors, with audiobooks coming.

Far beyond that, owner Sharon Wright has brought together a large slice of Sacramento’s creative community in what she calls “a safe place, a haven.”

“So much amazing talent comes through these doors,” she said. “They come here to learn, to share life experiences, to pass on knowledge, to gain skills. I believe the role of the neighborhood bookstore is a delicate balance between philanthropy and business. Our role is being able to maintain both those things.”

It was the late trailblazer Carol McNeal who first opened Carol’s Books in South

Sacramento in 1984, the first African American-centric bookstore in Sacramento and now the oldest. It was known as “a library of the black experience.” When McNeal announced her retirement, Wright stepped in to buy the store and relocate it to Del Paso Boulevard.

Why Del Paso? “North Sacramento had a need for a changing narrative, and I felt that bringing a literary aspect would start to develop that,” she explained. “Today this is an amazing community of people looking for entrepreneurial opportunities.”

Carol’s invariably fills up for its regularly scheduled events, which include comedy night, live music jams, book readings for adults and children, author appearances, and a round table where topics range from screenwriting and book reviews to politics and current events.

Wright has had a long relationship with the California Film Foundation, which regularly comes to Carol’s to sponsor a variety of workshops and host guest speakers. Most recently, writer-producer

Sharon Wright has made Carol’s Books into a haven for Sacramento writers, musicians and filmmakers.

Photo by Anne StokeS

Mark S. Allen of ABC’s TV show “Morning Blend” appeared to talk about the newly released horror movie “Apparition,” which he helped write and produce.

Wright’s “troupe” of local directors, actors and writers took first place in the California Film Foundation’s 48 Hour Film Festival with their movie, “Perceptions.” They’ve even filmed 12 episodes of a sitcom set in a bookstore called Pages. “I think we’ll have that on YouTube,” Wright said.

“What we do here is help create opportunities and serve as a platform for others to showcase their talent,” she said.

“It’s about collaboration, but it all revolves around literacy.”

For a schedule of Carol’s Books events, go to www.instagram.com/ carolsbooksstore/

CArol’s Books 1913 Del Paso Blvd., Sacramento 916-600-0151.

Come discover the Boulevard or visit us online at delpasoboulevard.com

UpComing EvEnts ThurSDay, Jan. 16

FriDay, Jan. 17

SaTurDay, Jan. 18

Salsa Nights 8 p.m. | $7

Gaming Events Live 6 p.m.| FrEE

Family Storytime 1 p.m.| FrEE

Step onto the dance floor with confidence after these beginning and intermediate salsa lessons. Partners are not needed for this energizing experience led by Mike Del Campo; so, utilize one of the drink specials for a little courage and dance the night away!

Watch “Dragon Ball Z: Karakot” played live by a secret guest gamer! The live game will be streamed for viewers on a 20 x 10 ft digital LED wall. Attendees can also win Dragon Ball Z prizes, including a copy of the game! All ages are welcome, register on eventbrite.

Join the Sacramento Public Library for Family Storytime! The whole family is invited to partake in songs, rhymes, stories and fingerplay activities to build early literacy skills. Activities focus on ages 0-5.

Stoney’s Rockin Rodeo 1320 Del Paso Blvd., Sacramento

The Rink Studios 1031 Del Paso Blvd., Sacramento

WanT your evenT on Del PaSo BoulevarD To Be FeaTureD here?

Submit it to our online calendar at https:// www.newsreview.com/sacramento/ calendar#!/ and click “Add Event”

North SacramentoHagginwood Library 2109 Del Paso Blvd., Sacramento

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FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 16

BY PATRICK HYUN WILSON

POST EVENTS ONLINE FOR FREE AT newsreview.com/sacramento

MUSIC THURSDAY, 1/16 THE BEATLES’ WHITE ALBUM LIVE BENEFIT: The Beatles released the White Album in 1968 but never played any of the songs live. This is your chance to see one of the greatest pages in Beatles’ history played live by more than 40 professional musicians. 7pm, $31$66. Harris Center, 10 College Pkwy, Folsom.

MATING RITUAL: Alt-pop duo, Mating Ritual takes the stage at Holy Diver, joined by Jakarta based collaboration band, SEGO. 6:30pm, $10. Holy Diver, 1517 21st St.

THE MINDFUL: The Mindful return to the Torch

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Monster Jam Triple Threat Series GOLDEN 1 CENTER, 7PM, $15-$72 Monsters are coming to Sacramento.

They’ve got names such as Earthshaker, Grave Digger, SPORTS & OUTDOORS Zombie and Megalodon. Oh, and they’re also giant trucks that do wheelies, jumps, doughnuts and more. The Monster Jam Triple Threat Series is coming to Sacramento, to tear up the dirt in the Golden 1 Center. Do you crave automobile-related excitement? Does driving on the street normally feel too

TICKET WINDOW

slow-paced? Have you ever wanted to see giant trucks flying through the air?

Then Monster Jam Triple Threat Series is the place to be. The 27-year-old series pits monster trucks, speedsters and ATVs against one another in high-flying action to get the adrenaline pumping.

Athletes will be competing head to head for a chance at the Monster Jam World Finals so bring the family and let your inner monster scream. 500 David J. Stern Walk, golden1center.com.

AVERY*SUNSHINE DUO Some

people have a calling that is undeniable and Avery*Sunshine is no exception. Yet the former church pianist and musical director, who scored a No. 1 Billboard hit, was at once a reluctant warrior. She’ll be coming to the Sofia in February so be sure to hear the artist who even caught the attention of the late Aretha Franklin.

2/11, 8:30pm, $35, on sale now. The Sofia, bstreettheatre.org.

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Baune, violin, and John Chernoff, piano, perform Bartok’s Sonata No. 1, a piece written for and dedicated to Jelly D’Aranyi, the fiery Hungarian violinist of the early 20th century. 12:05pm, no cover. UC Davis, 1 Shields Ave, Davis.

WAND: Los Angeles band Wand comes to perform in Sacramento. 7pm, $15. Harlow’s, 2708 J St.

FRIDAY, 1/17 AFTER DARK BAND: Coming together over a decade ago, this high energy rock band has been playing gigs all over the western United States. 9:30pm, $7-$12. Opera House Saloon, 108 Main St., Roseville.

CUFFIN: With Good Co. All your favorite R&B hits. Sooshie, John Reyes & Moday Moday. 10pm, $5. Highwater, 1910 Q St. Sacramento during their Winter Tour 2020. 8pm, $8. Torch Club, 904 15th St.

Get your tickets, fresh off the grill.

A mysterious island ruled by goddesses.

After directing her daughter’s coming of age ceremony, honoring femininity, renewal, rebirth and balance, Queen Prospera causes a storm. See the rest of the story at Cirque Du Soleil Amaluna.

1/22-2/23, various times, on sale now. Sutter Health Park, cirquedusoleil.com/amaluna.

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hall and hip-hop/R&B, and bringing cultures together while enjoying music from a different angle of the Afro music genre. 9:30pm, no cover. Chaise Lounge, 1330 H St.

THE DELTAZ: The Deltaz make a stop in

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL AMALUNA

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ROYAL THURSDAYS: Spinning Afro beats, dance

BARTOK-SONATA NO. 1 FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO: Terrie

Shine, Avery*Sunshine.

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PHOTO BY PAULO GUERETA

Monster Jam will be tearing up the dirt at Golden 1.

Club to play a full evening of music. The Sacramento experimental rock group is compared to bands such as Radiohead and The Mars Volta and described as “Pink Floyd meets Steely Dan” 9pm, $7. Torch Club, 904 15th St.

01.16.20

DISNEY ON ICE PRESENTS MICKEY’S SEARCH PARTY Join Mickey

Mouse and his friends in a brand-new adventure filled with world-class skating, highflying acrobatics and unexpected stunts. 2/13-2/17, 7pm, $10-$113, on sale now. Golden 1 Center, golden1center.com.

RIDERS IN THE SKY For more than

30 years Riders In The Sky have been keepers of the flame passed on by the Sons of the Pioneers, Gene Autry and Roy Rogers, reviving and revitalizing the genre of Western music, while putting their own comedic spin on it. 2/18, 8pm, $50$60, on sale now. Sutter Creek Theatre,

suttercreektheater. com.

JB SMOOVE

Jerry Angelo Brooks performs stand-up under the name J. B. Smoove. He started his career with the television series Def Comedy Jam in 1995 and in February is coming to perform live in Sacramento. 2/27-2/29, various times, $25-$35, on sale now. Live Nation, concerts1.livenation.com.

WHINDERSSON NUNES With

more than 3 billion views on YouTube, Whindersson Nunes has something to say, and you’ll want to hear it, but only if you can understand Portuguese 2/27, 8:30pm, $30-$35, on sale now. Crest Theatre, crestsacramento.com.

ELECTRIC FEELS: Electric Feels is an experiential dance party that features all your favorite indie rock and dance songs with amazing DJs, stage production and more. 7:30pm, $10. Ace of Spades, 1417 R St.

GROUNDWAVE: Kick start your weekend with the 2020 premier return of Groundwave. 6pm, no cover. The Trocadero, 119 Church St., Roseville.

JOSH WARD AND RANDALL KING: Texan country musician Josh Ward will be visiting Sacramento during his 2020 tour. 7:30pm, $15. Goldfield Trading Post, 1630 J St.

MYLAR’S HIPPIE HOUR FRIDAYS: Award-winning singer-songwriter William Mylar has been performing these free live music events since 2012 and after hundreds of shows, none have ever been the same. 5:30pm, no cover. Louie’s Cocktail Lounge, 3030 Mather Field Road, Rancho Cordova.

snr c a le nd a r @ ne wsr e v ie w.c o m

Online listings will be considered for print. Print listings are edited for space and accuracy. Deadline for print listings is 5 p.m. Wednesday. Deadline for NightLife listings is midnight Sunday.

Send photos and reference materials to Calendar Editor Patrick Hyun Wilson at snrcalendar@newsreview.com.

TAINTED LOVE: With their highly stylized, nonstop ’80s show, Tainted Love offers a refreshing change from the usual party bands. Its mission is to have you on the dance floor all night partying “like it’s 1985.” 10pm, $20 Harlow’s, 2708 J St.

TOMORROWS BAD SEEDS: Los Angeles reggae, rock, pop fusion band Tomorrows Bad Seeds perform with Tunnel Vision, The John Dank Show and Pacific Roots. 7pm, $15. Holy Diver, 1517 21st St.

SATURDAY, 1/18 BACKBAR SATURDAY’S W/ MIKE DIAMOND: Backbar Saturday’s is every week in the backbar of Golden Bear with DJ Mike Diamond spinning house, bass, rap and electronica. 10pm, no cover. Golden Bear, 2326 K St.

THE BERGAMOT: Brooklyn-based, indie-folk rock band Bergamot comes to Sacramento

as part of their West Coast tour. 7:30pm, $10. Goldfield Trading Post, 1630 J St.

THE EASY LEAVES DUO: At the top of the country heap in San Francisco, headlining and filling big rooms, The Easy Leaves have written their own collection of poetry for the common man. 6:30pm, $10. Sutter Creek Provisions, 78 Main St., Sutter Creek.

IN THE END: Founded with love and respect for the music of Linkin Park, In The End are veterans of the music industry and have performed on some of the biggest stages in the world 6pm, $16. Ace of Spades, 1417 R St.

SMOKEY RED: Live music every weekend at Laughs Unlimited. 3:30pm, no cover. Laughs Unlimited Comedy Club, 1207 Front St.

MIDGE URE: Midge Ure returns to North America’s intimate venue circuit with his open and honest “Songs, Questions and Answers Tour.” Midge will be playing alongside multi-instrumentist Tony Solis 6pm, $20. Harlow’s, 2708 J St.

SHOTGUN SLIM: Be ready to rock out with Shotgun Slim! Come hungry because Mama’s Tacos will be there, and come thirsty because Tower Brewing will be serving beer.

6pm, no cover. Tower Brewing, 1210 66th St.

SPENCER DAY: Spencer Day, the No. 1 Billboard charting pop/jazz singer and songwriter, has headlined venues including Birdland, Lincoln Center, Hollywood Bowl and London’s West End. 7pm, $35. The Sofia, 2700 Capitol Ave.

THEO KATZMAN W/ RETT MADISON: Theo Katzman at Harlow’s w/ Rett Madison. 9:30pm, $22.50 Harlow’s, 2708 J St. TOM RIGNEY AND FLAMBEAU: Electrifying violinistcomposer Tom Rigney joins forces with some of the finest musicians on the San Francisco roots music scene to form Tom Rigney and Flambeau. 7:30pm, $28. Auburn State Theatre, 985 Lincoln Way, Auburn.

SUNDAY, 1/19 LEIF VOLLEBEKK: Folk musician Leif Vollebekk performs with special guest Rebecca Foon in Sacramento. 7pm, $20. Harlow’s, 2708 J St.

PENNYWISE: Pennywise, The Adolescents, Guttermouth and Slaughterhouse perform in Sacramento. 6pm, $29.50. Ace of Spades, 1417 R St.

Saturday, 1/18

Progressive Game Jam Hacker Lab, 11am, no cover

How does Mario know to jump when you press A? Do tiny video game gnomes watch your every controller movement and tell Mario what to do and when?

Well, probably not, but Festivals if you’ve never made a video game before, then it might be difficult to know how they work. Not to fear, the Sacramento Developers Collective is hosting the sixth annual Progressive Game Jam, taking participants who’ve been dreaming of making their own video game through the entire game development process. By the way, let us know if there really are video game gnomes. 2533 R St. Suite 120, meetup.com/gamedeveloper.

sUNDaY sessiONs live W/ tHe O’MallY sisteRs: Blue Note Brewing Presents Sunday Sessions Live featuring The O’Mally Sisters. 3pm, no cover. Blue Note Brewing, 750 Dead Cat Alley, Woodland.

MOnday, 1/20 eaRtHGaNG: Hip-Hop duo Earthgang comes to Sacramento, joined by Mick Jenkins for their Welcome to Mirrorland Tour. 7pm, $22.50. Ace of Spades, 1417 R St.

FOG laKe W/ FOXes iN FiCtiON: Fog Lake began recording drone music in high school before moving on to more pop-oriented structures in college, releasing his first album Farther Reaches in January 2013. 6pm, $10. The Starlet Room, 2708 J St.

sKa PaRaDe 30tH aNNiveRsaRY tOUR: Performers include Los Kung-Fu Monkeys, Monkey, Hans Gruber and the Die Hards, The Holophonics, Joker’s Republic, Life Of The Afterparty 6pm, $14. Holy Diver, 1517 21st St.

WEdnESday, 1/22 KNUF: Knuf is very excited to make its Torch Club debut, blazing a trail with soaring jams and tight compositions. 8:30pm, $6. Torch Club, 904 15th St.

stRUGGle JeNNiNGs: Outlaw hip-hop and rock ’n’ roll musician Struggle Jennings plays Sacramento as part of his The Widows Sons Tour. 7:30pm, $13. Goldfield Trading Post, 1630 J St.

tORD GUstavseN tRiO: Norwegian pianist Tord Gustavsen on his recent album, The Other Side, returns to the piano trio setting with new compositions as well as arrangements of J.S. Bach chorales and traditional Scandinavian hymns. 7pm, $47. Mondavi Center, 400 Mrak Hall Drive, Davis.

FEStiValS Saturday, 1/18

PHOtO By Patrick Hyun WilSOn

entering its sixth year with the Sacramento Developer Collective. The aim of the program is to take participants through the entire game development process and help them create and ship a game in a short time frame. 11am, no cover. Hacker Lab, 2533 R St. Suite 120.

teDX sHelDONHiGH: TEDxSheldonHigh will explore the theme of Impact. TEDxSheldonHigh was established by students and for students to celebrate the ideas of the high schoolers in Sacramento. 10am, $10. Sheldon High School Studio Theatre, 8333 Kingsbridge Drive.

FOOd & drink tHurSday, 1/16 DiNe DOWNtOWN: Get ready to feast, Dine Downtown is back until Jan. 20. Visit one or all 30 of the downtown restaurants offering special three-course, pre-fixed menus while also giving back to the community with each meal providing a donation to food literacy and social service beneficiaries. 10am, $40. Downtown Sacramento, various locations.

Friday, 1/17 DistilleRY tOURs aND sPiRit tastiNGs: J.J. Pfister Distilling is hosting tours and tastings at the local distillery room. Enjoy the awardwinning Capitol Gin and Potato Vodka, or the newly released Apple Brandy and Navy Strength Rum. 4pm, $5. J.J. Pfister Distilling Co., 9819 Business Park Drive.

Saturday, 1/18 WiNteR ONe POt Meals: Chilly weather calls for comfort foods gently braised and simmered for flavorful results. Learn to make simple one-pot meals that are perfect for weeknight meals and to have planned leftovers for lunch or to freeze. 10am, $45. Soil Born Farms, 2140 Chase Drive, Rancho Cordova.

HaRRY POtteR YUle Ball: For this ballroom dance party, dancers should grab their owls and spell books for a one-of-a-kind evening.

Participants should feel free to practice their spells, manage all kinds of mischief and learn to dance. 7:45pm, $15. Spotlight Ballroom, 2534 Industrial Blvd. Suite 150, West Sacramento.

FilM tHurSday, 1/16 MOvies ON tHe veRGe PReseNts vaRDa BY aGNÈs: Presented in partnership with

PROGRessive GaMe JaM BY saCRaMeNtO DevelOPeR COlleCtive: The Progressive Game Jam is an eight-month game jam program

CaleNDaR listiNGs CONtiNUeD ON PaGe 34

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SEE MORE EVENTS AND SUBMIT YOUR OWN AT NEWSREVIEW.COM/SACRAMENTO/CALENDAR

THURSDAY, 1/16

PERFORMING ARTS THEATER AT RANCHO CORDOVA HIGH SCHOOL: Behind the Apron. Sacramento

Varda by Agnès VERGE CENTER FOR THE ARTS, 7:30PM, $9

Bonne Annee! Start the new year with the Sacramento French Film Festival FILM and Verge Center for the Arts at Movies on the Verge. The first film of the year will be Varda PHOTO COURTESY OF HARALD KRICHEL

by Agnès, the final film by Belgian-born French auteur Agnès Varda. Varda by Agnès, serves as an autobiographical look at Varda’s career and success in creating films. As she said, “You don’t make films to watch them alone. You make them to show them.” So join Verge for the premiere screening of Varda’s parting gift to the world of French cinema. 625 S St., vergeart.ejoinme.org/varda.

stand up in Sacramento. Various times, 1/1719. $20. 1207 Front St.

CALENDAR LISTINGS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 33 the Sacramento French Film Festival, the first screening of the New Year is the Sacramento premiere of Varda by Agnès, the final film from the late Agnès Varda. 7:30pm, $9. Verge Center for the Arts, 625 S St.

PUNCH LINE: Bill Bellamy. Using his experiences growing up in Newark, Bill Bellamy started doing stand-up while he was a student at Rutgers University. Bellamy quickly discovered how much he enjoyed making people laugh, and began honing his skills at small comedy clubs around the country. Various times, 1/17-19. $27.50. 2100 Arden Way, Suite 225.

FRIDAY, 1/17 SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN (1952): A silent film production company and cast make a difficult transition to sound. When the transition is being made from silent films to “talkies,” everyone has trouble adapting. 7:30pm, $10. Crest Theatre, 1013 K St.

SATURDAY, 1/18

STAB! COMEDY THEATER: Willie Listen. Willie Listen is a blend of comedy, nostalgia and music, where we hope you leave with that earwig you never knew you wanted. Willie and sidekick Nicole listen and discuss personal music choices with this month’s guests. 8pm, Friday, 1/17. $7. 1710 Broadway.

SACRAMENTO COMEDY SPOT: Invisible Disabilities Comedy Show (with ASL Interpreting).

Comedians perform jokes about their invisible conditions. This month’s topics are depression, anxiety, PTSD, speech impediments, missing a leg, dyslexia and many more. 7pm, Sunday, 1/19. $15. 1050 20th St., Suite 130.

FRIDAY (1995): Smokey and Craig smoke a dope dealer’s weed and try to figure a way to get the $200 they owe to the dealer by 10 p.m. that night. A 1995 American stoner comedy film directed by F. Gary Gray and written by Ice Cube and DJ Pooh. 3:30pm, $10-$22. Crest Theatre, 1013 K St.

TUESDAY, 1/21 MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 LIVE THE GREAT CHEESY MOVIE CIRCUS: The hilarious Peabody Award-winning comedy comes to Folsom with an all-new tour. Join show creator Joel Hodgson on an exhilarating ride through some of the cheesiest films ever made. 7:30pm, $45-$79. Harris Center, 10 College Pkwy, Folsom.

COMEDY

CAPITAL STAGE: Alabaster. An all-female darkly comic Southern drama about women on the verge, art and the power of human connection. After a tornado barrels through a North Alabama town leaving nothing but death and destruction, only June and her wisecracking pet goat Weezy live to tell the tale. Various times, 1/22-2/23. $25-$49. 2215 J St.

Lake. Prince Siegfried has come of age and entered upon a new world of affairs of war and the burdens of manhood. The prince’s subjects come from far and wide to take part in festivities. 7:30pm, 1/22, $19-$68.

10 College Pkwy, Folsom.

CSZ SACRAMENTO: ComedySportz Improv

JEAN HENDERSON PERFORMING ARTS: The Drowsy

LAUGHS UNLIMITED: Greg Wilson. You know those TV shows where comedians bag on various TV and YouTube clips? Greg has been on almost all of them. He’s done stand-up on Showtime, Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen and Comedy.TV. He’ll be performing

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SACRAMENTO THEATRE: The Musical Adventures of Oliver Twist. Delight with all of the engaging characters from this family favorite classic tale the Artful Dodger, Fagin, the menacing Bill Sikes, the kind-hearted Nancy and, of course, Oliver Twist. Various times, 1/16-19, $17-$20. 1419 H St.

ART BLUE LINE ARTS: Art Critiques with Pat Abraham. Join us in the gallery for a special four-part monthly series of art critiques lead by local artist, Pat Abraham. Each artist attendee will be able to bring two works of art for the two-hour discussion. 1pm, Tuesday, 1/21. $130. 405 Vernon St. Suite 100, Roseville.

HARRIS CENTER: Bhaskar’s Arts Academy presents Annual Recital 2020. From India’s Tamil Nadu to Singapore and now Folsom, the Bhaskar family legacy brings classical Bharata Natyam to the Harris Center to celebrate time, tradition and this most exquisite dance form of Bharata Natyam. 3pm, Saturday, 1/18. $15.50.

10 College Pkwy, Folsom.

BOOKS THURSDAY, 1/16 BLACK AUTHORS GROUP-MONTHLY MEET & GREET: Join this group to share your written work, hear from other people who have been in your authorly shoes and to get on track to publish your work. 6:30pm, no cover. Capsity Coworking, 2572 21st St.

BOOK CLUB ON THE GO: Do you need reading inspiration? Do you aspire to get more steps in? This group is a low- to nopressure lunchtime book club designed to encourage exercise and reading. 12pm, no

828 I St.

FRIDAY, 1/17 TWEEN COMICS CLUB: Join us for the McKinley Library’s Tween Comics Club. Every third Thursday, we will have snacks, discuss a comic book, do a craft and have a trivia con test. 3:30pm, no cover. Sacramento Public Library-McKinley, 601 Alhambra Blvd.

SATURDAY, 1/18 READ TO A DOG: Read aloud to a friendly trained therapy dog. Bring a book from home or borrow one of ours. For kids 6 to 12. 2pm, no cover. Sacramento Public Library-North Sacramento, 2109 Del Paso Blvd.

SUNDAY, 1/19

with the club. Republic FC coaching and technical staff—including General Manager Todd Dunivant—will be on hand to observe during both days. 1/18-19, various times, $215. Bonney Field, 1600 Exposition Blvd.

LGBTQ FRIDAY, 1/17 TRANS TAKEOVER VII: Trans Takeover VII featuring punk music from Gender Trash, comedians Davey and Diana Ramsey, and danceable propaganda by Temple K. Kirk. 9pm, $5-$10. Fox & Goose, 1001 R St.

CLASSES

BOOK SIGNING AT TIME TESTED BOOKS: Elizabeth Varadan will be reading from and signing their latest book, a cozy mystery, Deadly Vintage, set in Braga, Portugal. 3pm, no cover. Time Tested Books, 1114 21st St.

SPORTS & OUTDOORS THURSDAY, 1/16 DOWNTOWN ICE RINK: Sharpen your skates and get ready to perfect your triple axel, the 28th season of the Downtown Sacramento Ice Rink is open daily through Jan. 20 at Ali Youssefi Square in downtown Sacramento. 10am, $6-$15. Ali Youssefi Square, 701 K St.

FRIDAY, 1/17 MONSTER JAM TRIPLE THREAT SERIES: Monster Jam is a points-based format that showcases the best lineup of Monster Jam vehicles that deliver what fans want to see most: more trucks, more racing, more freestyle, more doughnuts, more wheelies, more action. See it in Sacramento Friday, Saturday or Sunday. 7pm, $15-$72. Golden 1 Center, 500 David J. Stern Walk.

SATURDAY, 1/18 INTRO TO 3D PRINTING: Learn the basics of designing in 3D in this beginner-friendly class. Then print your creation on Colonial Heights’s 3D printer. All ages and experience levels welcome. 10am, no cover. Colonial Heights Library, 4799 Stockton Blvd.

TAYLOR’S MARKET BUTCHERING 101: Taylor’s Market butcher Danny Johnson presents Butchering 101 with a focus on poultry, seafood and knife skills. Danny will cover proper butchering techniques, buying tips and preparation techniques. 10am, $45. Taylor’s Kitchen, 292 Freeport Blvd.

SUNDAY, 1/19 IMPROV FOR LIVING BABY BOOMER EDITION: A four-session class for self-described Baby Boomers who want to practice a new, lighter perspective in life. In this class, students will learn the basics of improv comedy in order apply these ideas in daily life. 1pm, $125. Comedy Spot Training Center, 1050 T St.

SATURDAY, 1/18 REPUBLIC FC OPEN TRYOUTS: Republic FC open tryouts offer participants the opportunity to be evaluated by Republic FC staff in hopes of signing a professional contract

ON STAGE

HARRIS CENTER: Russian National Ballet’s Swan

Comedy. Hilarious, spontaneous, interactive improv comedy for all ages. Not comedy about sports, comedy played as a sport.

Two teams compete for your laughs and points. 8pm. Through 2/1. $10-$14. 2230 Arden Way, Suite B.

Contemporary Dance Theatre presents OUT. Join Sacramento Contemporary Dance Theatre in partnership with Bobbin and Patrick Mulvaney for an event that will change the way you see mental health in the restaurant industry. Various times, Saturday, 1/18. $25-$50. 2239 Chase Drive, Rancho Cordova.

cover. Sacramento Public Library-Central,

01.16.20

Chaperone. With the houselights down, a man in a chair appears on stage and puts on his favorite record—the cast recording of a fictitious 1928 musical. The recording comes to life and The Drowsy Chaperone begins as the man in the chair looks on. Various times 1/17-25. $20. 607 Pena Drive, Davis.

SATURDAY 1/18

Harry Potter Yule Ball SPOTLIGHT BALLROOM, 8:30PM-10:30PM, $10-$20

If you solemnly swear you are up to no good, then follow the Marauder’s Map to Spotlight Ballroom where you can be whisked away into the Wizarding World FESTIVALS of Harry Potter, Yule Ball. The event is open to any witch or wizard, but you’ll have to leave your owls, rats, cats and toads at home. An all-level waltz lesson will be provided by Spotlight Ballroom for those who come early. For Sacramento Potterheads this is a must-attend event, but act fast because last year’s Yule Ball sold out quicker than you could say “Accio Yule Ball ticket!” Come ready to learn to dance, practice your spells and manage your mischief. Spotlight Ballroom, spotlightballroom.com.

PHOTO COURTESY OF SPOTLIGHT BALLROOM

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THURSDAY 1/16 AT EASE BREWING CO.

Trivia at Ease, 7pm, no cover

BADLANDS

Poprockz 90s Night, 10pm, no cover

CAPITOL GARAGE

Karaoke at Cap, 9pm, no cover

1825 I ST., (916) 431-7940

2003 K ST., (916) 448-8790 1500 K ST., (916) 444-3633

CREST THEATRE

1013 K ST., (916) 476-3356

Leif Vollebekk

SUNDAY 1/19

MONDAY-WEDNESDAY 1/20-1/22

Fierce Fridays, 7pm, call for cover

Spectacular Saturdays, 6pm, call for cover

Industry Sundays, 9pm, no cover

After Hours with Apple, 9pm, M, no cover; Trapicana, 11pm, W, no cover

Singin’ In The Rain, 7:30pm, $10-$22

Friday, 3:30pm & 9:30pm, $10-$22; Princess Mononoke, 6pm, $10-$22

Psycho (1960), 7:30pm, $10-$22

Sunday Funday, 3pm, no cover

S’mores & Stouts, 5pm, call for cover

FACES

Karaoke Night, 9pm, call for cover

Absolut Fridays, 9pm, $6

Sequin Saturdays, 9:30pm, call for cover

FOX & GOOSE

Steve McLane, 8pm, no cover

Trans Takeover VII, 9pm, $5-$10

The Tentpole The Bard Show, 9pm, $5-$10

Monster Jam Triple Threat Series, 7pm, $15-$82

Monster Jam Triple Threat Series, 7pm, $20-$95

2000 K ST., (916) 448-7798 1001 R ST., (916) 443-8825

GOLDEN 1 CENTER

with Rebecca Foon 7pm Sunday, $20 Harlow’s Folk

SATURDAY 1/18

DRAKE’S: THE BARN

985 RIVERFRONT ST., WEST SAC, (510) 423-0971

PHOTO COURTESY OF TORE SÆTRE

FRIDAY 1/17

500 DAVID J STERN WALK, (888) 915-4647

GUILD THEATER

HALFTIME BAR & GRILL

5681 LONETREE BLVD., ROCKLIN, (916) 626-3600

HARLOW’S

Wand, 7pm, $15-$18

HIDEAWAY BAR & GRILL

Vinyl Soul/Ska/Punk, 8pm, call for cover

2708 J ST., (916) 441-4693 2565 FRANKLIN BLVD., (916) 455-1331

Brian Lee Bender, 6pm, no cover

RASH Neil Peart Memorial Concert, 9pm, $20

Tainted Love- The Best of the 80s Live, 9pm, $18-$20

Midge Ure, 6pm, $20-$25; Theo Katzman, 9:30pm, $22.50-$25

HOLY DIVER

Mating Ritual, 6:30pm, $10

1517 21ST ST.

Tomorrows Bad Seeds, 7pm, $15

JACKRABBIT BREWING CO. KUPROS

Live music, 7pm, no cover

Ross Hammond, 5pm, no cover

OLD IRONSIDES

Open Acoustic Jam, 8pm, no cover

The Bad Barnacles, The Loose Threads, The Dark Whatever, 8:30pm, $10

1217 21ST ST., (916) 440-0401 1901 10TH ST., (916) 442-3504

ON THE Y

upComing sHows live MuSic

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Ska Parade, 6pm, M, $14; Local Showcase, 6:30pm, T & W, $5

Triviology 101, 7:30pm, no cover

Open-Mic, 7pm, T, no cover

Lipstick! Presents: We are your friends Dance Club, 9pm, $5

1/17

the o’mally sisters

1/24

todd morgan

1/25

banjo bones

1/31

part robot

2/7

bangarang

2/8

grey finch

2/15

the o’mally sisters

101 Main Street, roSeville 916-774-0505 · lunch/dinner 7 days a week fri & sat 9:30pm - close 21+

/bar101roseville

Live Music with Heath Williamson, 5:30pm, M, no cover Tuesday Night Karaoke w/ Jimbo, 9pm, T, no cover

Sacramento’S #1 UndergroUnd metal VenUe iS Back!

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Lil Boii Kantu & Ph4de, 6:30pm, $15

Open-Mic Comedy & Karaoke, 8pm, no cover

670 FULTON AVE., (916) 487-3731

1217 21st St • 916.440.0401 www.KuprosCrafthouse.com

OHGEEZY, 7pm, $25

3rd Friday Free Karaoke, 7pm, no cover

1323 TERMINAL ST., WEST SAC (916) 873-8659

Eat. Drink.

Be Merry. Repeat.

Leif Vollebekk, 7pm, $20

Cuffin, 6pm, $5

1910 Q ST., (916) 706-2465

with Adolescents 6pm Sunday, $42 Ace of Spades Rock

Monster Jam Triple Threat Series, 1pm, $18-$75

Shitshow Karaoke, 8pm, M, no cover; Twisted Trivia, 8pm, W, no cover

HIGHWATER

Pennywise

Open-Mic Night, 7:30pm, M, no cover; Pub Quiz, 7pm, T, no cover

Dream it Believe It Achieve It Talent Showcase, 7pm, $5-$25

2828 35TH ST., (916) 905-7024

PHOTO COURTESY OF MONTECRUZ FOTO

Every Damn Monday, 8pm, M, no cover;

$10 coVer | doorS at 7Pm | 21+

January 31st emBryonic deVoUrment cUrSed | SeVer all Short FUSe february 1st hellway Patrol (Brazil) more tBa

HappY Hour

12Pm - 7Pm

karaoke

tue 9Pm - 2am, thu 10Pm - 2am ComedY open miC

thu 8Pm - 10Pm

Visit for eVent updates & booking information

670 Fulton avenue, Sacramento, ca open daily 12Pm – 2am | (916) 487-3731

voted sacramento’s

best dance club 2017/2018 Karaoke up Front Wednesday-sunday amazing Food and specials nightly Country dancing in Back Wed, Fri, sat & sun salsa/West Coast swing thursdays new grand remodel will be finished soon – new Parking lot coming soon

staY tUneD For the best happY hoUr coMinG to sacraMento Join Us For pbr WeeKenD Fri Jan 24th Michael Beck Band sat Jan 25th locked & loaded sun Jan 26th – Cliff huey

1320 Del paso blvD in olD north sac

2 steps from downtown | 916.402.2407 stoneyinn.com for nightly drink specials & events

SuBmiT your calenDar liSTingS for free aT newSreview.com/SacramenTo/calenDar FriDay 1/17

saturDay 1/18

Opera HOuse salOOn

thursDay 1/16

After Dark Band, 9:30pm, $7-$12

Dana Moret, Mr. December & Outlaw Trail, 9:30pm, $10-$15

palms playHOuse

Sver: Nordic Folk, 8pm, $22-$26

Special Consensus, 8pm, $22-$26

Burning Daylight People, 8pm, call for cover

Matt Rainey & The Dippin’ Sauce, 8pm, call for cover

Cheeseballs, 10pm, call for cover

Powerplay, 10pm, call for cover

411 liNcolN st., roseVille (916) 970-9777 13 MaiN st., WiNters, (530) 795-1825

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C A N N A B I S

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY MARIA RATINOVA

Mommy’s little helper

before dinner, hit her vape pen a couple of times and felt immediately calmer.

“I wasn’t angry anymore,” she said. “I wasn’t pissed off. I wasn’t bitching about work. I could just focus on my family.”

BY DANIELLE SIMONE BRAND

Alcohol is a well-known fixture of mainstream mom culture. References to “mommy-juice” and “wine-o’clock” abound, as do countless memes and videos about how alcohol takes the edge off parenting challenges.

Now, with legal cannabis increasingly available and normalized, are “cannabis moms” the new thing?

A quick search points to “yes.” Outlets ranging from The New York Times to The Guardian to Jezebel have published works by parents—mostly moms—about how they feel healthier after giving up alcohol for weed, or how cannabis helps them with pretend play and creativity. Good Morning America even featured a recent segment about an Alaskan mom who microdoses

THC for the kind of pain relief that, she says, makes her a better parent.

An estimated 3.5 million adults in the U.S. use medical marijuana to treat conditions such as chronic pain and insomnia—and, as any mom can attest, caring for children comes a lot easier when rested and pain-free.

So does cannabis make you a better mom?

The answer depends on a variety of factors. It’s true that cannabis releases pleasure-associated neurochemicals including anandamide and serotonin, helping the user feel more relaxed, euphoric and emotionally warm. As such, it can be a game-changer in the parent-child dynamic because raising

children—no matter the age—involves a good deal of patience and repetition.

“When they are silly or raucous and I am high, I will be silly and raucous with them,” said Leah, an attorney and mother of two kids in elementary school. SN&R omitted her last name for legal purposes.

Indeed, a key ingredient to many parents’ enjoyment of cannabis is the ability to feel deeply into a moment with their children and to just be—present and unburdened by tasks and to-dos.

Amber Morelli of Sacramento, who has a teenage son, says that vaping THC at the end of the day helped her decompress from a particularly stressful job overseeing more than 200 employees as a performance manager at a call center. She went outside

Does cannabis negatively affect parenting? Carl Hart is a professor of psychology at Columbia University and a substance abuse expert who has authored over 60 peer-reviewed articles on drug use, addiction and treatment. He’s conducted research on the cognitive functioning of cannabis users and co-wrote the textbook Drugs, Society & Human Behavior (McGraw-Hill, 2014).

Hart presented an affidavit in New York’s Family Court asserting that recreational cannabis use does not compromise one’s parenting ability. In his research, Hart found that subjects under the moderate influence of cannabis are able to respond appropriately to social situations and emergencies. In other words, yes— you can smoke weed and parent well.

Of course, responsible use is key here. If you’re new to cannabis, an

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“mommy’s liTTle helper” conTinued from page 39

wouldn’t want their kids at my house because they’d wonder if I’d be smoking cannabis in front of them.”

But once she opened up about her job, the myriad wellness benefits of the plant and her own responsible use, she said she’s found that other moms are both curious and open-minded.

Morelli credits her positive social experiences with cannabis to her willingness to educate and answer questions and says that many moms in her social circle have tried cannabis and discovered their own benefits after hearing her story.

“It tends to set a different tone for discussion,” she said. “People say, ‘Oh, I’ve heard it’s good for anxiety, or I heard it helps you sleep.’”

alcohol analogy helps illustrate the point: using cannabis responsibly is like having a glass of wine with dinner—not the entire bottle. To that end, here are a few tips: Microdose—even if you’re a seasoned enthusiast, try taking one puff of your favorite chill strain or consuming a low-dose edible.

If possible, you’ll also want to consider the terpene content of your flower or vape oil because terpenes influence the mood of the high. While you may want to relax, you’ll definitely want to avoid “couch-lock” when spending time with kids. Be aware, too, that your mood will affect the endocannabinoid system’s response. If you’re reaching for cannabis to channel your patient and fun side while parenting, it’s ideal to take a few minutes for self-care practices such as yoga, There are times when pot and parenting mindfulness, journaling or walking to start do—and do not—mix. Some moms wait the mental shift before consuming. And last, until after their kids are in bed, while others be sure to buy your product on the regulated discreetly consume as the day winds down market because it’s safer. to increase their patience for frequent lastStill, sigmas remain. Many parents still minute requests for water and trips to the refrain from openly discussing their enjoypotty. Others prefer more transparency with ment of cannabis—afraid of being judged their children to model a healthy relationship or stereotyped at best, reported or arrested to cannabis. Cannabis and parenting can mix at worst. It’s important to note women of and even become a fruitful pairing during color usually suffer worse outcomes than low-risk activities such as coloring, painting white women when it comes to and crafting, or even any kind of parental rights and the law. pretend play.

Nicole, a high school You can also garden teacher in San Diego, “There are (you may want to do finds attitudes among so many moms who a quick coordination her peers and check first), read to have these day-to-day colleagues changyour children or ing, though not as symptoms like anxiety, or listen to them read, quickly as she’d depression, or the winter or watch an agelike. Because appropriate movie blues. Cannabis can do so legalization is or show together. still relatively much to help them” Avoid using new, and because cannabis when caring Amber Morelli federal laws have yet for a baby or toddler mom and sales manager for to keep pace, Nicole alone, driving, spending Pure Vape chooses to remain quiet time in or around water about her preferences. unless with a sober adult, “I would hate to have my parenting in a high-stress situation career limited, or my children treated or trying a new-to-you cannabis product or differently,” she told SN&R, “because I like dose. Research isn’t clear enough yet about pot more than alcohol.” the risks of consuming while pregnant or Morelli, who now works as the breastfeeding.

Sacramento area sales manager for For many moms, cannabis can bridge the cannabis company Pure Vape, has the gap between medical and recreational found her own willingness to talk about benefits—an area that some have started to cannabis—as well as her community’s call cannabis for wellness. attitudes—becoming more open. During her “There are so many moms who have first two years of working in the cannabis these day-to-day symptoms like anxiety, industry, she was extremely cautious about or depression, or the winter blues,” sharing her experience.

Morelli said. Instead of turning to “It was my own fear that held me prescriptions or alcohol, “cannabis can do back,” she said. “I was afraid that other so much to help them.” Ω parents wouldn’t want me to drive because they’d think I’m high all the time, or they

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C

ASK 420

C AN N A B I S

Slow and low

BY NGAIO BEALUM

a s k 4 2 0 @ne w s re v i e w . c o m

go. You may also want to look for I used to smoke daily some of these newer 1:1 (THC:CBD) cannabis strains at your local shop.

30 years ago. Now, I way, you can take a few more hits rarely smoke and when That and a few less risks.

I do, I get absolutely wrecked. Are there Smoke anything good strains whose potency lately?

Yes. Yes, I have. I mean, I smoke is like that of my good all the time, but I just got youth, but still taste as back from Vancouver, and let me you, their weed is getting better good as the crazy sh** tell and better all the time. But first, available now? shout out to Lucky Doughnuts for

I feel you. I generally dismiss all the creating the sourdough doughnut. “today’s weed is way stronger than It’s tangy, lightly glazed and just it was back in the day, what about a sweet enough fried delight that the children?!?” talk as prohibitionist goes excellently with some coffee propaganda, but today’s weed is way and a nice doobie. Vancouver weed stronger than it was 30 years ago, highlights: The Twax joint from and CBD (cannabidiol) levels CannaCzar is one of those have plummeted in today’s “weed mixed with hash most popular strains. rolled in a hemp blunt There is no Lest we forget, CBD and covered in hash oil need to chuff acts as a sort of THC and kief” monstrosities neutralizer, so it can that will either enliven the whole doobie keep you from getting or deaden a party, straight to the too high, which is depending on the face. nice. People just wanna tolerance levels of the be giggly and silly, not people in the room. I also anxious and paranoid. tried an excellent Ice Cream Fortunately, there are soluWedding Cake that was all tions. The first one: take fewer hits. sweetness and giggles, and something There is no need to chuff the whole called Dank Pink. It smelled like doobie straight to the face. If you roses and was perfect for walking know you’re smoking a strain with around on a cold dreary day. I wish high amounts of THC, only take two I could have brought some back hits, or even just one, and see how to share, but you can’t bring weed you feel. If people wanna give you across international borders. Maybe a hard time for being a lightweight, next year. Ω tell ’em to stop being a buzzkill.

Peer pressure is for middle school, and we are all adults now. Also, look for strains with less than 15% THC. Remember: A high THC percentage indicates strong weed, but not always Ngaio Bealum is a Sacramento good weed. Everclear is 90% alcohol, comedian, activist and marijuana expert. Email him questions at but no one considers it a top-shelf ask420@newsreview.com. liquor. Terpenes are the things that really give you the effects you want, so if you can find a “low” THC strain @Ngaio420 that smells good to you, grab it and

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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY

ASK JOEY

FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 16, 2020

Family fights

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Comedian John Cleese

BY JOEY GARCIA

@AskJoeyGarcia

In other words, we put words in people’s My family does not talk to each other when there is conflict. This made mouths. Don’t weaponize this awareness. things hard for me when I was growing It doesn’t mean you’re a terrible person. It up. I feel like I haven’t had a stable could mean that you’re hard on yourself. relationship with loved ones and now It may also mean that you imagine people it’s ruining my ability to have a good saying negative things about you because relationship with my boyfriend. We’re it validates your insecurities. Another both in college and each work two jobs. approach is to validate your skills, talents That’s stressful enough but we fight a and gifts. Motivation by encouragement lot, too. Can you help me figure out how is much more successful than motivation to get through this? through self-hate.

Your family taught you one tool for Trauma lodges in our bodies. facing conflict: denial. It’s a response We may experience it as headaches, that allows us to pack away pain, pretend stomachaches, disrupted sleep, TMJ, we’re not hurt and to behave as though mysterious bouts of exhaustion or whatever happened is not an issue. muscular knots in the shoulders, You’ve shut down so often, glutes and feet. By tending to it’s become a habit. Exit our thoughts, we can provide that rut by practicing You’ve better care for our bodies. something new. Give This changes everything. shut down so yourself tools for After all, who wants to managing or dissipatoften, it becomes give up feeling good ing conflict. Try a habit. Exit that in order to step into an speaking up warmly, argument? You will be rut by practicing with an openness and more likely to create the vulnerability. Say: “My something new. ideal environment for a habit is to stop talking conversation focused on and to freeze you out. I’m finding an equitable solution, changing because I love us, I and that’s a beautiful way to start love you and I love myself enough your 2020. □ to know that my old behavior no longer serves me.”

The best time to practice new attitudes MEDITATION OF THE WEEK or actions is when you’re not in an argument with your man. It’s difficult to change the way you argue without “People who deny the practicing new responses when all is existence of dragons are well. Consider the commitment people often eaten by dragons. From make to head to a gym and give their within,” said author Ursula K. physical muscles a workout. We have to Le Guin. Have you befriended engage that same commitment to retrain your shadow? our minds. Thoughts drive attitudes and behaviors. Attitudes and behaviors create our circumstances. To grow in awareness of your thoughts, it helps to Want to talk about this or other Ask Joey columns? Like befriend silence. Go on walks solo and the Ask Joey Facebook page and join the conversation! without listening to anything except what is rattling around in your head. Notice judgments, the ones you direct at others Write, email or leave a message for and the ones you imagine they direct at Joey at the News & Review. Give you. Question assumptions. your name, telephone number We can’t know what someone else (for verification purposes only) and question—all is thinking unless they tell us. What we correspondence will be kept strictly confidential. can know is this: Whatever we imagine Write Joey, 1124 Del Paso Boulevard, Sacramento, CA someone else thinking is often the sum 95815; call (916) 498-1234, ext. 1360; or email askjoey@newsreview.com. of our own thoughts projected outward.

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BY ROB BREZSNY

has an insight I hope you’ll consider. He says, “It’s easier to do trivial things that are urgent than it is to do important things that are not urgent. It’s also easier to do little things we know we can do than to start on big things that we’re not so sure about.” I hope you’ll make this advice a priority in the coming weeks. You’ll be wise to prioritize important tasks, even those that aren’t urgent, as you de-emphasize trivial matters that tempt you to think they’re crucial.

Focus on big things that are challenging, rather than on little things that are a snap.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Author Honoré Balzac (1799-1850) was born with sun and Mercury in Taurus and in the 10th house. Astrologers might hypothesize from these placements that he was ambitious, productive, tenacious, diligent, realistic and willful. The evidence supporting this theory is strong. Balzac wrote more than 80 novels that displayed a profound and nuanced understanding of the human comedy. I predict that 2020 will be a year when you could make dramatic progress in cultivating a Balzac-like approach in your own sphere. But here’s a caveat: Balzac didn’t take good care of his body. He drank far too much coffee and had a careless approach to eating and sleeping. My hope is that as you hone your drive for success, you’ll be impeccable in tending to your health.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Before he was 21 years old, William Shakespeare and his wife had three kids. When he was 25, while the brood was still young, he started churning out literary masterpieces. By the time Will became a grandfather at age 43, he had written many of the works that ultimately made him one of history’s most illustrious authors. From this evidence, we might speculate that being a parent and husband heightened his creative flow. I bring this to your attention because I want to ask you: What role will commitment and duty and devotion play in your life during the coming months? (I suspect it’ll be a good one.)

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Cancerian-born painter Stanley Spencer (1891-1959) didn’t align himself with any artistic movement. Early on, his work was an odd blend of French post-Impressionism and 14th-century Italian painting. I appreciate his stylistic independence, and suggest you draw inspiration from it in 2020. Another unique aspect of Spencer’s art was its mix of eroticism and religiosity. I think you’ll enjoy exploring that blend yourself in the coming months. Your spiritual and sexual longings could be quite synergistic.

There’s one part of Spencer’s quirky nature I don’t recommend you imitate, however. He often wore pajamas beneath his clothes, even to formal occasions. Doing that wouldn’t serve your interests. (But it will be healthy for you to be somewhat indifferent to people’s opinions.)

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press in the 1440s. In subsequent decades, millions of mass-produced books became available for the first time, making their contents available to a far wider audience than ever before. The printing press caused other changes, too—some not as positive. For instance, people who worked as scribes found it harder to get work. In our era, big, culture-wide shifts are impacting our personal lives. Climate change, the internet, smart phones, automation and human-like robots are just a few examples. What are doing to adjust to the many innovations? And what will you do in the future? Now is an excellent time to meditate on these issues.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You’re skilled at the art of self-editing. When bright new ideas well up in you, you understand they are not yet ready for prime time, but will need to be honed and finessed. When your creativity overflows, tantalizing you with fresh perspectives and novel approaches, you know that you’ll have to harness the raw surge. However, it’s also true that sometimes you go too far in your efforts to refine your imagination’s breakthroughs; you

over-think and over-polish. But I have a good feeling about the coming weeks. I suspect you’ll find the sweet spot, self-editing with just the right touch.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Thomas Love Peacock was a Libran author whose specialty was writing satirical novels that featured people sitting around tables arguing about opinions and ideas.

He was not renowned for cheerful optimism.

And yet he did appreciate sheer beauty. “There is nothing perfect in this world,” he said, “except Mozart.” So much did Peacock love Mozart’s music that during one several-month stretch he attended six performances of the opera Don Giovanni. In this spirit, and in accordance with astrological indicators, I encourage you to make a list of your own perfect things—and spend extra time communing with them in the coming weeks.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Jean-Michel Basquiat started his career as a graffiti artist. When he evolved into being a full-time painter, he incorporated words amidst his images. On many occasions, he’d draw lines through the words.

Why? “I cross out words so you will see them more,” he said. “The fact that they are obscured makes you want to read them.” In the coming weeks, you might benefit from discreetly using this strategy in your own life. In other words, draw attention to the things you want to emphasize by downplaying them or being mysterious about them or suggesting they are secret.

Reverse psychology can be an asset for you.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Because of the onslaught of the internet and social media, lots of people no longer read books. But in 2020, I highly recommend that you not be one of that crowd. In my astrological opinion, you need more of the slow, deep wisdom that comes from reading books. You will also benefit from other acts of rebellion against the Short Attention Span Era. Crucial blessings will flow in your direction as you honor the gradual, incremental approach to everything.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): “I love to be surprised by something I have never thought of,” declares Capricorn actor Ralph Fiennes.

According to my analysis of the astrological aspects, you’ll be wise to make that one of your top mottoes in 2020. Why? First, life is likely to bring to your attention a steady stream of things you’ve never imagined. And second, your ability to make good use of surprises will be at an all-time high. Here’s further advice to help ensure that the vast majority of your surprises will be welcome, even fun: Set aside as many of your dogmas and expectations as possible, so that you can be abundantly receptive to things you’ve never thought of.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): “I love fools’ experiments. I am always making them.” So said one of the most famous and influential scientists who ever lived, Aquarian-born naturalist Charles Darwin. In accordance with upcoming astrological factors, I invite you to draw inspiration from his approach. Allow yourself to explore playfully as you conduct fun research. Just assume that you have a mandate to drum up educational experiences, and that a good way to do that is to amuse yourself with improvisational adventures.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): “How do you get your main pleasure in life?” That question was posed to Scorpio author Evelyn Waugh and Piscean social reformer William Beveridge. Waugh said, “I get mine spreading alarm and despondency.”

Beveridge said, “I get mine trying to leave the world a better place than I found it.” I hope you will favor Beveridge’s approach over Waugh’s in 2020—for two reasons. First, the world already has plenty of alarm and despondency; it doesn’t need even a tiny bit more. Second, aspiring to be like Beveridge will be the best possible strategy for fostering your mental and physical health.

01.16.20

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SN&R

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