Photo by TARMO HANNULA
This train, the Altamont Corridor Express that here is traveling outside San Jose, is one example of a cleaner and better way to travel. The trains have accomodations for the disabled, bathrooms, laptop and phone chargers, free WiFi and bike racks. You can also enjoy eating and drinking without what always happens to me, spills and drips that ruin my clothes. EDITOR
Save the Tracks for Trains - No Railbanking
By DANIEL YOUNG
A group by the name of Greenway got Manu Koenig elected to the Board of Supervisors, and he wants to railbank the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line. Railbanking was established in 1983 as an amendment to the National Trails System Act that allowed for voluntary agreements between a railroad company and a trail agency to use out-of-service tracks as a trail until they are needed at a later date. I believe his intent is to scare the voters of Santa Cruz into convincing the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission, the RTC, that the light electric rail envisioned would cost too much. Past efforts of people now affiliated with Greenway included a plan to privatize parts of the right-of-way, ROW, and turn it back over to the property owners who are among Manu's supporters.
This plan appears to have gone underground, but the thought of it is outrageous because it would steal a public asset from the taxpayers of Santa Cruz, and give it to private citizens who own adjoining property. Railbanking would be the beginning of this process, and must be prevented.
Funding for the Branch Line revitalization will be high, however the long term cost of not taking advantage of the ROW to ease traffic congestion on Highway 1 will likely be higher because of increased global warming and CO2 pollution. Our children deserve every advantage we can provide to slow down the destruction of our environment.
An increase in local taxes to fund electric light rail on the Branch Line would be tolerable to forward thinking environmentalists in Santa Cruz, in my opinion, and the RTC should not delay progress on the rail by putting the decision to accept a funding report from staff on hold while Greenway manages to create another public vote on the future of the ROW, (which has already been decided by the voters.)
Please do what you can to save the planet by increaing mass transit options in Santa Cruz County and the Monterey Bay Area. The Santa Cruz County RTC may be contacted here.
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Even on a weekday, West Cliff attracks crowds of bikers, walkers, skaters, skateboaders and drivers.
Photo by TARMO HANNULA
A West Cliff Drive Safer For All
By RICK LONGINOTTI
West Cliff Drive must be among the most popular recreations spots in our city. Unfortunately, the safety and comfort of walking on West Cliff is often diminished by the fact that bicyclists use the same path as pedestrians. The image below represents collision data on West Cliff from 2010-2020 derived from the TIMS mapping program.
Gratefully, we now have a plan for improving the enjoyment of West Cliff for the thousands of people who use it. Early adoption of the Adaptation Plan’s Alternative 2, with one vehicle lane and a dedicated lane for bicyclists, will make the street safer for all users.
Santa Cruz City Council has declined to send Alternative 2 to the Transportation Commission for further study. Currently, staff said that it was too much work for them to try to do the community outreach necessary so that a plan would have community buy-in.
Kara Guzman, of Santa Cruz Local, reported that there were 60 letters to the Council asking for a safer West Cliff Dr. The Santa Cruz City Council can take a step towards making West Cliff Dr. safe for pedestrians and bicyclists.
Could you take a moment to write to CityCouncil@cityofsantacruz.com asking them to authorize the Transportation Commission to hold a hearing on Alternative 2 and make West Cliff a safer place for everyone ?
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Grant Wilson will read from Tom Scribner's autobiography by the Scribner sculpture, May 1, at 2pm accompanied with music by Jimmy Kelly. A march will follow.
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"COVID's Hidden Toll," a film by Daffodil Altan examines how COVID has effected some of the most critical workers in our economy, the people who provide us with food. |
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May Day with the Reel Work Labor Film Festival
By SARAH RINGLER
Colorized engraving of the Haymarket Riot,1886 in Harper's Weekly by Thure de Thustrup>
May 1st, International Workers' Day, will be celebrated with a public reading by Grant Wilson from the autobiography of local IWW member and saw player, Thomas Jefferson Scribners. Scribner died in 1982 and is immortalized in a bronze statue in front of the Bookshop Santa Cruz, 1520 Pacific Ave. where the reading will take place at 2pm. Nationally famous labor musician Jimmy Kelly will perform and all are invited to attend. Wear union shirts and bring banners. A march down the Pacific Garden mall to Sub Rosa with follow.
On May 1 at 8 pm, there will be an online discussion by Dana Frank, Labor Studies Professor Emeritus at UCSC and Adrian Prawica, filmmaker of the newly released film, "Haymarket." Learn about the history of Chicago's 1886 Haymarket Affair and about the sacrifices that have been made and future challenges as the past seems to be repeating itself. Here is the link to sign in and watch the film and for the online discussion.
Coming next is "COVID's Hidden Toll," a film by Daffodil Altan that shows how some of the most critical workers in our economy, the ones who provide us with food, have been hurt the most under the pandemic. Forced to go to work or starve, and with little support sometimes because of their immigration status, they still are proud of the work they do. The film can be watched here. An online discussion with filmmaker Daffodil Altan, Assemblymember Robert Rivas, local organizer for SMART Local 23 James Sandoval and Irene de Barraicua of Líderes Campesinas will occur May 4, 7pm. Join us for the discussion and register here.
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"Despite the absence of public debate about sexuality and the war on terrorism, the 'Abu Ghraib prison sexual torture abuse scandal' as it now termed, vividly reveals that sexuality constitutes a central and crucial component of the machinic assemblage that is American patriotism."
Jasbir K. Puar
Professor and Graduate Director of Women's and Gender Studies at Rutgers University and author of "Queer Times, Queer Assemblages."
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Wild turkeys are claiming their rightfull place at UCSC.
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Santa Cruz County Covid-19 Report
By SARAH RINGLER
The Santa Cruz County Health Department regularly releases data on the current status of Covid-19 in the county. As of April 29, there were 15,968 cases that tested positive. That is a 2% increase from the previous week. Deaths increased by one to 204. There were no significant changes in all the categories.
Santa Cruz County moved into the Orange Tier on March 30. For information, go here.
The county's Effective Reproductive Number is staying below one. See chart below. Numbers above one show the spread of the virus is increasing. Below one means the spread is decreasing.
To get tested without a doctor’s request, call 1-888-634-1123 or go online at https://lhi.care/covidtesting. Other testing sites that may have restricted access can be found here.
For vaccine information in Santa Cruz County, click here.
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% deaths by ethnicity/% of population:
White - 56%/58%
Latinx - 36%/34%
Black - 0/1%
Asian - 7%/4%
American Native - 0/not available
% deaths by gender/% of population:
Female - 51%/50%
Male - 49%/50%
Other - 0
Under Investigation - 0
Deaths by age/202:
30-39 - 2%
40-49 - 3%
50-59 - 2%
60-69 - 13%
70-79 - 21%
80-89 - 30%
90+ - 27%
Tested positive by region/% of population:
Mid-county - 21%/12%
North county - 20%/60%
South county - 58%/29%
Under investigation - 0%
Weekly increases in positive tests:
June 12-19 - 7%
June 19-26 - 23%
June 26 to July 3 - 22%
July 3-9 - 23%
July 9-16 - 40%
July 16-23 - 20%
July 23-30 - 27%
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July 30-Aug. 6 - 13%
Aug. 6-13- 12%
Aug.14-20 - 16%
Aug.20-28 - 10%
Aug. 28-Sept. 3 - 10%
Sept. 3-10 - 6%
Sept. 10-17- 8%
Sept. 17-24 - 7%
Sept. 25- Oct.1 - 5%
Oct. 1 - 9 - 4%
Oct. 9-15 - 4%
Oct. 15-22 - 5%
Oct. 23-29 - 4%
Oct. 30-Nov. 5 - 6%
Nov. 5-12 - 10%
Nov. 12-19 - 11%
Nov. 19-26 - holiday
Nov. 19-Dec. 3 - 29% 2 weeks of data for this week only
Dec. 3-10 - 16%
Dec. 10-17 - 17%
Dec. 17-24 - 14%
Dec. 24-31 - 19%
Jan. 1-7 - 13%
Jan. 7-14 - 14%
Jan. 15-21 - 11%
Jan. 21-28 - 5%
Jan. 28-Feb. 4 - 5%
Feb. 5-11 - 2%
Feb. 11-18 - 2%
Feb. 18-25 - 1%
Feb. 25-March 5 - 1%
March 5-11 - 1%
March 11-18 - 2%
March 18-25 - .5%
March 25- Apr. 1 - .7%
Apr. 1-8 - 0.1%
Apr. 9-15 - 1%
Apr. 16-22 - 2%
Apr. 22-30 - 2%
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Fashion Street - Hacky Sack players
By SARAH RINGLER
This is not the Pacific Garden Mall of the 1970s when I first came here. This photo is from a few weeks ago and it's gratifying to see young people keeping this tradition alive. Also, note the street band setting up in the background. They often play Grateful Dead classics creating a warming sense of déjà vu.
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Labor History Calendar for May 1-7 :
May 1, 1837: Mary G. Harris, Mother Jones's birthday.
May 1,1886: General Strike for the 8-hour day in Chicago and other cities.
May 1, 1986: 1.5 milllion join General Strike in South Africa against apartheid.
May 1, 2006: 2.5 workers rally in the US for immigrant rights.
May 2, 1984: 33,000 West German metal wokrers strike for a 35 hour week.
May 3, 1886: Police attack McCormick Reapers strikers.
May 3, 1926: UK General Strike in support if miners.
May 3, 1937: Spanish republican army attacks workers
May 4, 1886: Police attack Haymarket Square rally called to protest police brutality at McCormick Works.
May 4, 1961: US Freedom rides.
May 5, 1818: Birth of Karl Marx
May 5, 1931: Battle of Harlan County, KY
May 5, 1998: Poor farmers break into supermarkets to seize food in Gravata, Brazil.
May 6, 1980: 170,000 workers in Russia's Togliatti auto plant stay home in support of bus drivers' walkout.
May 7, 1968: French students and workers revolt in Paris, France.
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Orange cornmeal cake baked in a cast iron pan
By SARAH RINGLER
This is not your fancy bakery cake, but rather a homey dessert that would work following a light dinner. It resembles sweet cornbread but has orange slices embedded in the top that become caramelized and candied when baked.
Also, in a rather homey style, the cake is baked in a cast iron pan. The recipe is for a 12-inch diameter pan but you can cut the recipe in half for an 9-inch pan, like I did.
The recipe is from a February 2017 issue of Better Homes and Gardens magazine. The article includes an evaluation of twelve cast iron pan that are currently available for sale. Pans are judged by their ability to hold heat, sear and clean up easily. The Editor’s Choice for 2017 was the Lodge 12-inch pan, second was the 11 ½ inch Country Cabin pre-seasoned cast iron and third, was the 11 ¾ inch Le Creuset Signature.
I have a varied cast iron pan collection that I gathered along the way from family as well as one griddle that was salvaged from a sinking logging camp off of northern Vancouver Island in the 1970s. Since logging operations moved around up and down the island, the camps were built on floating wooden booms and dragged by boats to new locations where they were tied up to trees along the shore. This one had long been abandoned and most of it was already under a foot of water. The kitchen had not sunk yet and I managed to claim a griddle.
My prize cast iron fry pan is made by Griswold, a company who made cast iron products from 1865 to 1957 out of Erie, Pennsylvania. I got it from my mother-in-law who had a sharp eye for valuables when shopping at Goodwill and other second-hand stores. It has a beautiful smooth finish and is thinner than most cast iron pans. You can pick them up online for less money than some of the newer ones mentioned above.
Orange Cornmeal Cake
Cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup cornmeal
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cup white sugar
4 eggs
1 cup whole milk
4 teaspoons orange zest
Topping:
2 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, plus sprigs for garnish
1 large washed and unpeeled orange sliced into 1/8” inch slices
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix the batter, in a medium bowl by firstwhisking flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt.
In a large bowl, cream softened butter with an electric beater. Add sugar and beat 1 minutes until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each one. The mixture should be well combined and fluffy.
Alternately add half of the flour mixture, half the milk, mixing until each is blended then repeat. Stir in the orange zest.
Heat a 12-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat for 1-2 minutes on the stove. Add the ½ cup of butter and stir around until the bottom of the pan is coated.
Whisk in the brown sugar, 1 ½ teaspoons of vanilla and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and cook for 1-2 minutes until thickened and caramelized. Stir in thyme leaves and remove from heat.
Arrange the orange sliced in one even layer on the bottom of the pan. Spoon batter evenly over the orange slices. Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until knife or toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
When baked, set cake out to cool for 5 minutes. Then, carefully invert on a serving plate. Add any fruit or topping that has stuck onto the cake. Cool 20 minutes more. Garnish with thyme springs and serve.
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YOUR STORY OR ART HERE: Please submit a story that you think would be of interest to the people of Santa Cruz County. Try and keep the word count to around 400. Also, there should be suggested actions if possible. Submit to coluyaki@gmail.com
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Welcome to Serf City Times. Over time, our county has grown more stratified and divided with many people feeling left out. Housing affordability, racism and low wages are the most obvious factors. However, many groups and individuals in Santa Cruz County work tirelessly to make our county a better place for everyone. These people work on the environment, housing, economic justice, health, criminal justice, disability rights, immigrant rights, racial justice, transportation, workers’ rights, education reform, gender issues, equity issues, electoral politics and more. Often, one group doesn’t know what another is doing. The Serf City Times is dedicated to serving as a clearinghouse for those issues by letting you know what is going on, what actions you can take and how you can support these groups.This is a self-funded enterprise and all work is volunteer.
Copyright © 2021 Sarah Ringler - All rights reserved
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