Video by SEAN WITT
An Alternative to Bumper to Bumper Traffic
By SARAH RINGLER
At certain times of the day, most of us who have traveled on Highway 1 between Santa Cruz and Watsonville have had to endure frustrating bumper to bumper traffic. And, there are increasingly fewer times of the day when traffic moves at the speed limit at all. Wouldn’t it be great if at least some of that traffic was reduced?
Half of Santa Cruz County’s population, 92 parks and 44 school are located within one mile of the existing train tracks where a Light Electric Rail could run. Also, the existing rail corridor runs by many businesses as well as close to the downtowns of Santa Cruz and Watsonville. This, as well as coordination with our METRO bus system, and individuals who like to ride their bikes or walk, guarantees a healthy ridership and trains that can run frequently and affordably.
It’s time to say enough to traffic congestion and look at environmentally sound and equitable options like an electric light rail. People going to work and students going to school can save money that otherwise would go to maintaining a car. Differently abled people and seniors would have another option to the bus.
Imagine taking a train across the county to go out to dinner or to the beach. There is money from the state to implement a light rail system. If we don’t utilize those funds, it will go to other communities and we’ll still be stuck in traffic wondering the impossible. Our population is growing and it is obvious that it is time for use the resources we already have, our train tracks, to improve our county’s mobility.
|
|
A man sleeps on the sidewalk outside the American Legion in Watsonville.
Photo by TARMO HANNULA
I live in the United States of America
By KEITH MCHENRY, Food Not Bombs
Clouds tumbled slowly over my beach town Santa Cruz as I arrived at Lot 27, home to the daily Food Not Bombs meal. The first thing that caught my eye was the new bright white canopy with walls that hugged the Credit Union wall.
The proud owner was a family of four that had returned to Santa Cruz the day before just in time to snag this palace of a donation.
The mother of the house smiled as she told of her family's effort to find a place in Nevada and several other states. “It’s the same everywhere we went, so we just came back.” Her son reminds me that he had volunteered with Food Not Bombs when we shared at the downtown Post Office. He asked if I could get a larger tent for them. All four we stuffed into a two person pup tent sheltered by the canopy.
Friends joined me to report on the events at our asphalt dining room that I had missed the day before. We needed to restock the larger plates and another friend needed money to buy another green canister of propane for their Coleman so they could make coffee in the morning. Our coffee arrives at noon.
Two more friends who live in a tent that clings to a patch of dry grass along the levee come to let me know the police told them that morning that they would have to leave by Monday. They asked the officers where they should move and the police didn’t know but suggested they might try the San Lorenzo Park Benchlands where a few hundred other people were already camping.
Another friend drives into the parking lot grinning fresh blue tape strengthening the new back window we were able to buy to replace the plastic that had been between his worldly possessions and the thieves of the streets.
Student volunteers join the festival. One has agreed to post our flyers seeking more volunteers around campus so I give her the posters, a J21 staple gun and backup staples. The school year has begun.
My dear activist friend pulls in next to the Food Not Bombs van. We hug that long hug of our friendship. She is delivering a t-shirt she designed saying, “Most of my heroes have done some time in jail” with my name included in a list of revolutionaries. I passed her a few of the Food Not Bombs pot holders that she had requested and signed page 617 of her hardback copy of “A People’s History of the United States” by Howard Zinn. She didn’t depart until she had made a generous financial donation and another long hug.
More friends arrived, several seeking tents to replace the ones that were stolen by a desperate neighbor or trashed by the city.
Then it was time to unload my Honda Pilot of its cases of coffee, coconut oil, sugar and creamer at the kitchen. A loyal occupant of the streets did the heavy lifting. He and I meet a few minutes later at India Joze to move our pallets of that day's Second Harvest delivery. One load goes to our shipping container at Laurel and Front Streets. The rice is stored in Joe’s office and the balance fills my car again for the trip to the Benchlands camp.
Our staff at the Santa Cruz Homeless Union tent unpacks the first half of the load. I take the other half to “Mama Judy’s Memorial Honor Pantry”. A grumpy camper tells me to screw off when I call out for help and returns to his dismantling of his tiny tent tossing parts into a pile of unloved debris.
But a couple of other friends answered the call and the pantry was restocked. A passerby asked if I had water and I let him know I would return with a supply in about an hour.
It was back to the union tent and the collection of empty dusty five-gallon water jugs and the run to New Leaf to fill them with filtered water. If you live in Santa Cruz, you would know that the tap water tastes like a mixture of chlorine and algae and that’s what the one faucet in the park provides.
I run into an old friend at the grocery. He tells me he is tired of the police repression in Santa Cruz and plans to leave. The city has seized his vehicular homes twice now. He shared that he lost all his family photos, precious childhood belongings and work tools in the first tow. He lost the replacement tools in the second. He is done with it.
It was another day navigating the country I live in. It won't be long before the Bidenvilles of America will double in size and numbers. This will be a rough winter for millions in the country I live in.
|
|
“While there is a lower class, I am in it,
while there is a criminal element, I am of it, and while there is a soul in prison, I am not free.”
Eugene V. Debs
|
|
Photo by TARMO HANNULA
A long-billed curlew prowls the waters of Moss Landing for afternoon tidbits.
|
|
Pesticides in the Pajaro Valley
By SARAH RINGLER
The Campaign for Organic and Regenerative Agriculture(CORA), is organizing an informational forum on the use of toxic pesticides in the Pajaro Valley. The forum will feature speakers with expertise on where harmful pesticides are sprayed, and on the health and environmental impacts. Speakers will also discuss possible challenges and explore opportunities in transitioning Pajaro Valley farmland to organic methods that help, rather than harm our workers, neighbors, and the local and planetary ecosystems.
The forum will be held on Nov. 14, 3-4:30 at the Watsonville Community Room (4th Floor of City Hall). To attend virtually, click here for Zoom Link. See the poster below for more information.
|
|
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. The number of cases on Thursday, Nov. 4, totaled 20,210 up 104, from last Thursday's 20,106. The number of deaths has not changed and is currently at 220. Click to view a graph of hospitalizations here.
On the county's vaccination webpage, as of Nov. 1, 72% of the county have had at least one dose and 67% have had two doses. Both numbers have not changed in the last two weeks. Here are more details on the county's vaccination data.
This webpage also has a link where you can get a digital copy and scannable QR code of your vaccination record. Keep track of your four digit code because that is your access to the site.
The county's Effective Reproductive Number is below one. See chart below. Numbers above one show the spread of the virus is increasing. Below one means the spread is decreasing.
There are many COVID-19 testing locations around the county and a few sites have free testing. For information on how to get tested, visit this site. Click here to make an appointment to get tested.
Any Californian age 12 or up can get vaccinated for free. For information on getting vaccinated, click here.
|
|
 |
% deaths by ethnicity:
White - 55%
Latinx - 36%
Black - 1%
Asian - 7%
American Native - 1%
Unknown - 1%
% deaths by gender/% of population:
Female - 50%/50%
Male - 50%/50%
Other - 0
Under Investigation - 0
Deaths by age/220:
25-34 - 2%
35-44 - 3%
45-54 - 3%
55-59 - 1%
60-64 - 6%
65-74 - 18%
75-84 - 21%
85+ - 45%
% tested positive by region/% of population:
Mid-county - 12%/12%
North county - 59%/56%
South county - 29%/32%
Under investigation - 1%
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%
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%
Apr. 30 - May 6 - .3%
May 6-13 - 2%
May 13-20 - 0%
May 24 - Data readjustment by county means percentages cannot be calculated this week.
May 27 - June 3 - 0%
June 3-10 - 0%
June 11-17 - .25%
June 18-24 - 0%
June 25-July 1 - 0%
July 2-8 - .3%
July 9-15 - .2%
July 16-22 - .5%
July 23-29 - 1.2%
July 30-Aug. 5 - 2%
Aug. 6-12 - .7%
Aug.13-19 - 4%
Aug. 20-26 - .7%
Aug. 26-Sept. 2 - 3%
Sept. 2-9 - 2%
Sept. 10-16 - 1%
Sept. 17-22 - 1%
Sept. 23-30 - 2%
Oct. 1-7 - 0%
Oct. 8-14 - 1%
Oct. 15-21 - 1%
Oct. 22-28 - 1%
Oct. 29-Nov. 4 - 1%
|
|
|
|
Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Fashion Street - Wet Suits on West Cliff
|
|
Labor History Calendar for November 5-11, 2021:
Nov. 5 - Guy Fawkes Day
Nov. 5, 1855: Eugene Debs, one of the founders of the Industrial Workers of the World, born in Terre Haute, Indiana.
Nov. 5, 1916: At least six IWW members killed in massacre in Everett, Washington.
Nov. 5, 1984: Anti-apartheid general strike in South Africa.
Nov. 6, 1918: Revolt in shipyards in Kiel & Hamburg and creation of Workers' Council in Germany.
Nov. 7, 1912; First appearance of IWW Ernest Riebe's "Mr. Block" comic strip.
Nov. 7, 1917: Bolshevik Revolution launched in Russia.
Nov. 8, 1892: 20,000 black and white workers stage general strike in New Orleans.
Nov. 8, 1924: Australian dockers strike against overtime until Dec. 13th.
Nov. 9, 1935: Congress of Industrial Organizations founded.
Nov. 9, 1989: Berlin Wall falls.
Nov. 10, 1816: The word "scab," meaning strike breaker, appears in print for the first time.
Nov. 10, 1933: Sit-down strike begins at Austin, Minn. Hormel plant.
Nov. 10, 1992: General strike against anti-union laws in Australia.
Nov. 11, 1887: Haymarket martyrs executed.
Nov. 11, 1919: IWW organizer Wesley Everest lynched after Centralia, Washington IWW hall attacked.
|
|
Photo by TARMO HANNULA
A Noble Cookie
By SARAH RINGLER
Adding a bay leaf as flavoring to a buttery oatmeal cookie might seem unusual but I think it was adventurous and appropriate. It gave the cookie a warm and subtle flavor. The recipe is from Ron Mendoza and was in his Last Bite column in the Winter 2018 edition of the locally available magazine, “Edible Monterey Bay.”
The Latin name for the bay tree is Laurel nobilis. It is native to the Mediterranean region and is widely integrated into Greek and Roman culture. In one Greek myth, Apollo falls in love with Daphne who spurns him and then goes off to Crete where she changes herself into a bay laurel tree; daphne is the Greek name for the tree. Awards at the Pythian Games, a sporting event held in honor of Apollo, were made of wreathes of bay laurel leaves. The words baccalaureate or bachelor’s degree, poet laureate and the saying, “resting on one’s laurels,” all are derived from the tree's name.
Bay Laurel trees are easy to grow in our area. Like redwoods, new trees grow out of the base of its parent so it’s easy to share them with others by digging out a new shoot as long as it has some roots. Be aware that they grow fast and fairly large. Fresh leaves should be dried and aged for a few weeks, and they can keep for up to a year according to Aliza Green’s “Field Guide to Herbs and Spices.”
There is a native bay tree that grows in California but absolutely do not use it in this recipe. Although its looks like the Mediterranean version, if you break a leaf in half and smell it, you might knock yourself out. The scent is so powerful that local native people called it the “headache tree.” It is common in our forests and is called California Bay or California Laurel. Spelt flour, called for in the recipe, is a species of wheat that was widely used in medieval Europe and is also connected to Greek mythology; it was the goddess Demeter's gift to the Greeks. It is also called dinkel or hulled wheat. I just used whole wheat flour.
8 ounces butter, 2 sticks
1 bay leaf
¼ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
2 eggs
¼ cup flour
½ cup whole wheat flour
¼ cup spelt flour or more whole wheat flour
½ cup oats
1 teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
¾ cup walnuts, chocolate chips or dried fruit like cranberries or raisins
In a medium saucepan, melt butter with the bay leaf or leaves. Cook over medium low heat until butter becomes bubbly and gradually turns light brown and smells nutty. This takes 15 minutes more or less. Watch the heat. Remove from the heat and cool. Take out the bay leaf.
Whisk or beat eggs and sugars until well mixed and the sugars have dissolved. Slowly add cooled butter in a stream and whisk until smooth.
Sift or whisk flours, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and ginger in a separate bowl. Using a spatula, blend into the butter-egg mixture. Finally, blend in nuts, chips or dried fruit.
Let dough rest 20 minutes. Form into balls about the size of ping pong balls and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake cookies for about 10 minutes. Makes about 24 cookies.
|
|
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
If you are enjoying the Serf City Times, forward it on to others. We need readers, artists, photographers and writers.
Thanks, Sarah Ringler
|
|
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
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
