Southern Sonoma Country Life

Top Pick Summer Prep & Support for College Bound High School Juniors, Seniors and Parents

Petaluma's outstanding, locally-owned and operated Tutoring Center Grade A is offering several extremely useful programs designed to ease the college search stress. 

Programs are designed for college-bound juniors, seniors, and/or parents. Enrollment is limited, so register early for best availability. I personally recommend Grade A having utilized the tutoring center for SAT prep this spring, for my incoming high school senior. Inundated with brochures and phone calls from around the country, it's an overwhelming time for many families looking to send a kid off to college. 

SAT Prep:  3 options

1.  Week-long series, July 9-13, 11:00-12:00, $270
2.  Sunday series, starting on July 29th and running through September 9, 4:00-5:00, $270
3.  Custom, personalized appointments, $60 each

Improving Vocabulary Workshop

Taught by instructor Athena Kautsch, this workshop is designed to strengthen vocabulary skills for college-bound students.  A diverse and rich vocabulary helps students in myriad ways: in the "sentence completion" and "reading passage" sections of the SAT, in writing a strong SAT essay, and in composing their own college application essays.  Dates and other details to be determined, based upon registrations.

College Application Essay Workshop

Info:  June 26-28, 11:00-12:30, $125, Instructor: Athena Kautsch

Description:  Students will learn tips and techniques for top-notch college application essays.  They will receive immediate instructor feedback, read successful sample essays, and work to complete their own UC or Common App essays by the end of the workshop.

Parent Support Group

Info:  Last Monday of every month, 7:00 p.m., free

This monthly meeting is free to parents of Grade A students.  Join other parents who are currently or have previously engaged in the college search process.  Group meets at Grade A and has access to college brochures, books, websites, and other materials in the Grade A resource library.  Facilitator:  Stephanie Simon

More detailed information can be found at goGradeA.com.  (At the top of the home page, go to the "TUTORING" link and then "COLLEGE SEARCH" or "WORKSHOPS").

Call 707 779 9611.

Extreme Recycling - Petaluma's Reclamation Road Reality Show Hits Every Town America

"Every floorboard, every beam, every building tells a story, if you speak the language," says Petaluma's Heritage Salvage star of the new small screen reality show Reclamation Road. Watch out for the intrepid, poetic Michael 'Bug' Deakin as he travels the road less trod in search of abandoned, old buildings to tear down and use anew. Every Tuesday morning at 8am Pacific Time, Bug'll be releasing his latest episode from somewhere or other, or maybe your home town in the United States. The man is amazingly brilliant and with his gift of the gab, we're glued!

Sawdust and Swank - Dance to Bay Area's Favorite Pride and Joy Under Rustic Timbers and Glittering Chandeliers at the 2012 PEF 30th Anniversary BASH

Preparations are now well underway for Petaluma Educationa Foundation's s big glitzy 30th Birthday Bash, Saturday September 8th, 2012.

Clover Stornetta is rolling back its massive doors at 5400 Old Redwood Highway to reveal rustic timbers and glittering chandeliers, the sawdust and the swank of the fabulous Redwood Pavilion.

The bay area’s top pick for a dance band, Pride & Joy, will shake the rafters after paddles are raised to fund the future for school kids throughout Petaluma. Cick here for more info. 

Bay Area Based Acces Trips Announces First-of-A-Kind Morocco Culinary Tours

Photo Credit - Kasbah Omar/Access Trips

Photo Credit - Kasbah Omar/Access Trips

Photo Credit - Kasbah Omar/Access Trips

Photo Credit Credit - Kasbah Omar/Access Trips

With its September Morocco Culinary & Cultural Tour sold out, Bay Area-based leading exotic, adventure tour operator, Access Trips, is offering new August 2012 dates for its most popular group trip ever.

Under the expert guidance of CEO, Tamar Lowell, Access Trips has perfected an itinerary for guests that goes beyond a culinary immersion to illuminate what often becomes a life-long passion for Moroccan cooking, culture and cuisine.

As the first to offer a journey where the Moroccan culture is explored through its cuisine in 2010, Access Trips possesses a deep understanding of Morocco’s rich landscape, customs, and people. This expertise manifests itself in a trip that highlights the country’s magical and mysterious blend of Arabic, Berber, French and Spanish influences.

From the charming fishing community of Essaouira to a small, picturesque Berber village perched in the High Atlas Mountains, travelers experience the vast and vibrant diversity of Morocco on a culinary expedition that is not to be missed.

Don’t miss your chance to join what travelers have already called "the trip of a lifetime."

Discover Your Passion for Moroccan Culture and Cuisine on Access Trips’ Morocco – Culinary & Cultural Tour.
 
Indulge your senses as you experience the vibrant colors, complex customs and striking flavors of a country on the crossroads of civilization. Learn the art of preparing local cuisine, become acquainted with regional specialties and traditions, uncover the tools of the Moroccan kitchen and discover your inner chef all with the help of experienced local chefs and an expert multilingual guide.

To meet booming demand, Access Trips is announcing a new tour departing August 30, 2012. This trip is in addition to the tour’s remaining 2012 departures on October 11, November 8 and December 20 – with the September trip already sold out.

Highlights of the nine-day tour include:

Masterful Moroccan Cooking Instruction – Learn the art behind the preparation of Morocco’s abundant regional specialties from expert local instructors. Discover your inner chef as you are taught to prepare fish tajine using the catch of the day in the fishing village of Essaouira. While staying in the village of Anrar in the High Atlas Mountains, master Berber specialties including barbeque kebabs, breakfast crepes, and the delectable pastilla – a delicacy combining flaky pastry, savory meat and sultry spices. From traditional lemon chicken, to Moroccan soups, salads and coucous there is no end to the culinary delight that awaits.
Retreat to Essaouira – Wonder at the authentic charm of the old fishing village and artist enclave as you explore a cultural mix of ancient architecture, enjoy a spectacular seaside lunch, ride a camel and peruse local art galleries.
 
Experience a Berber Village – Explore the traditional Berber village of Anrar, and become acquainted with regional customs as you stop in for a cup of tea with a local Berber family before enjoying a sumptuous dinner back at the riad Kasbah Omar.
 
Navigate the Vibrant Markets of the High Atlas – After a 45-minute walk through olive and fruit groves along a river, delight the senses as you explore the souk lathine – the traditional Monday Market where Berber villagers come to trade. Select organic vegetables, meat and chicken to be used in the day’s cooking classes and walk back to the Kasbah with your donkey carrying the produce.
 
Explore the Ourika Valley – Embark on a journey through the Ourika Valley, one of the most stunning and ancient valleys of the High Atlas. Drive to the ancient Jewish village of Algjii and meet with the last Jew in the valley, a man who has dedicated his life to guarding the 500-year-old tomb of a legendary rabbi. Visit an organic herb garden before choosing to either embark on a rewarding hike to a magical waterfall or return to the village for a traditional ceramic workshop.
 
Discover the Imperial City of Marrakesh – Explore this enchanting palm oasis set against the snow-capped peaks of the High Atlas Mountains, as you spend an two days touring mystical Marrakesh. Discover the expansive harem quarters of the Bahia Palace, the ancient royal Saadian Tombs, the vibrant and historic Jewish mellah and the majestic Koutoubia Mosque all before even entering the 9th century walled medina.
 
Wonder at the Markets of the Medina --Wind your way through a serpentine labyrinth of the ancient bustling souk and take in the sights of Moroccan craftsmanship at its best. Learn about local artisan specialties, such as carpets and metalwork, during visits to local artisan co-ops.
 
Thrill in the Magic of Djemaa el-Fna Square – Roam the famed square where mystical snake charmers, hustlers and mischievous monkeys add to the nightly drama, as Berber acrobats, fortune-tellers, musicians and engaging storytellers seduce a bustling crowd.
 
Deluxe Accommodations in Stunning Riads – Unwind at the end of each day in the comforts of stunning Moroccan riads, traditional Moroccan homes featuring an interior courtyard and garden. Whether overlooking the jaw-dropping High Atlas Mountains or the sparkling sea, all accommodations feature breathtaking views of the Moroccan landscape.
 
Marvel at the Rare Argan Tree – Stop to tour an argan oil cooperative on your journey from Essaouira to Marakesh, and witness the elusive, UNESCO protected argan tree endemic only to Morocco.
 
Rates start at $2,890 per person and include transfer to and from the airport in Casablanca and Marrakesh, all breakfasts, one lunch, five dinners, and deluxe accommodations. Groups are limited to 12 travelers, who are accompanied by a multilingual local guide. For more information please visit www.accesstrips.com or call (650) 492-4778.

Access Trips has announced its full lineup of 2013 dates available now for booking at www.accesstrips.com.

ABOUT ACCESS TRIPS

Access Trips is the leading adventure tour operator specializing in exotic learning vacations to 13 countries worldwide. Access Trips offers a wide range of small-group outdoor sports and culinary-focused trips that are expertly designed to allow guests to experience a new culture, learn new skills or fine-tune existing ones, and revel in the splendor of their destination.

Based in San Francisco, California and launched in 2001, Access Trips’ impressive portfolio includes cooking, surfing, mountain biking, snowboarding, skiing, and multisport itineraries. Regardless of the focus of the activity, Access Trips caters to a variety of skill levels, serving the novice as well as the expert in a relaxed, non-intimidating setting with the help of world-class instructors and multilingual guides. 

Photo Credit - Riad el Assafir

Salon des Sens - An Edible Art Feast For the Eyes

Heading up to Healdsburg next month?Don't miss an exciting new exhibition at stunning Studio BARNDIVA, next door to the BARNDIVA restaurant in collaboration with San Francisco curator Maggie Spicer.

Salon des Sens is a food art show engaging the senses from compost to carrot crémeux, a curated collection from 15 remarkable artists who work in a variety of media ~ photography, video, acrylics, wire sculpture, watercolor, soil and food.

The opening reception on June 2nd will feature edible art by Barndiva’s Chef Ryan Fancher, and cocktails by St. George Spirits.

To experience life’s cycle from compost to plant to plate is a sensual journey we take every day with little or no thought. Yet it is potentially a visual exploration of taste, texture, shape, and smell which has the power to affect and teach us on the deepest level.
Studio Barndiva and Guest Curator Maggie Spicer are proud to present Salon des Sens, a group exhibition which sets out to explore how art can frame and elevate a conversation we should be having about the food we eat.

Opening Reception Studio BARNDIVA ,Saturday, June 2nd, 2012 6-8pm
Show runs June 2nd through 12th

Artists:
Caren Alpert photographer, electron microscopes
Carol Beck artist, poet, author, acrylic on canvas
Maren Caruso photographer, vegetable dissection, wine viscosity
Ryan Fancher chef, savory edible art
Jil Hales visionary, video creative direction, 3 Minute Meal
Drew Kelly videographer, 3 Minute Meal
Nader Khouri photographer, food & landscapes
Michael Lamotte photographer, local food stills
Seth Minor wire sculptor
Susan Preston mixed-media artist
Rob Scheid photographer, food & travel
Maria Schoettler painter, watercolors
Maggie Spicer curator, edible compost
Rachel Weidinger watercolorist, farmer's markets
John Youngblood photographer, selenium agriculture
*image credits, clockwise from top: Nader Khouri, Salon des Sens; Michael Lamotte, Celery Root; Maren Caruso, Wine; Maren Caruso, conceptual series, Carrot; Carol Beck, Manifestation

Learn How to Make Accordian Travel Books, Découpage on Glass and Miniature Works of Art at Maude

Window dsiplays at Maude Rare Finds, at 10 Western Avenue, in downtown Petaluma, enchant with their fine and whimsical, handcrafted wares, but there's more to Maude than meets the eye.

Check out the boutique's extenstive range of art and design classes to discover your inner artisan!

Lino Cut & Block Printing ........ $50 materials included.Be introduced to materials and techniques needed to create beautiful block prints for wall art, note cards, wrapping paper & more. Dates to be announced. Guest instructor.

Collage on Canvas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $45 materials included.Introduction to collage techniques — includes exploration of image transfer options, adhesives, color composition and image balance. Create a collaged canvas using provided imagery and materials. limit 8 students.
Monday, April 23 ............................ 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Thursday, May 31 ................................ 6:30 – 9:00 pm

Hinged Circus Animal Puppets ......... $30 materials included.Elephants, tigers and butterflies. Assemble a series of black & white animals with hinged limbs, mounted on wooden posts. Embellish each with clothing, a touch of paint and plenty of sparkle. Who says a zebra can’t wear a skirt? limit 8 students.
Thursday, April 26 .............................. 6:30 – 9:00 pm

Intro to Bookbinding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50 materials included. Includes a brief overview of different binding structures, anatomy of a book and the tools fundamental to the craft. Simple bookbinding techniques will be taught and students will create 2 small hand-bound books. limit 8 students.
Wednesday, June 6 .................................... 6:00 – 9:00 pm

Altered Books .................... $30 support materials included.Enter the whimsical world of altered books. Transform an old or damaged hardbound book using simple collage and bookbinding techniques while creating an interior hiding place for treasures! Bring book — min. 1/2” thick. limit 8 students.
Monday, May 14 ............................... 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Monday, August 27.............................. 6:30 – 9:30 pm

Accordion Travel Books ................... $35 materials included.Book covering, folding & collage techniques essential to creating a custom accordion travel book. Perfect for notes with pockets for images, ticket stubs, maps & more. Perfect timing for your summer adventures! limit 8 students.
Wednesday, May 16................................ 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Monday, June 11 ................................ 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Thursday, July 26 ................................. 6:30 – 9:00 pm

Artist Trading Cards (ATC’s) .......... $25 materials included.Artist Trading Cards are miniature works of art created on 2.5”x 3.5” card stock. Explore basic collage and painting techniques to create small edition, original trading cards for the purpose of
trading with other artists in the workshop. limit 8 students.
Monday, June 18 ................................ 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Monday, July 23 ................................ 9:30 am – 12:30 pm

Open Studio Evenings ................... $10 materials fee.The second Wednesday of each month — the perfect way to complete those un-finished projects with access to materials and light instruction if needed ..................... 7 – 9:30 pm

Intro to Box Making . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$55 materials included
Receive a brief overview of materials, tools and techniques fundamental to the art of box-making. Through the application of book cloth and fine Italian papers, students will constructa keepsake box reflecting their personal style. limit 6 students.
Tuesday, July 31 ................................. 6:30 – 9:30 pm
Thursday, August 23 ........................... 6:30 – 9:30 pm

Découpage on Glass ................ $50 materials included.Venetian craftsmen used Découpage as a way of imitating expensive inlay, marquetry and Chinese lacquerwork. It quickly spread to France where it was given its name. Guest instructor.
Please call to schedule private party (3 hrs.) ........ limit 8 students
Papier Mâché Birds & Owls ............. $30 materials included

Create small whimsical papier mâché birds by layering clay models with vintage book pages, poetry, clip art, decorative papers & gouache paint. Each bird tells a story. limit 10 students
Monday, June 4 ............................... 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Wednesday, August 15 ........................... 6:00 – 9:00 pm

Summer Series for Ages 10 and up ..........All Monday morning workshops can be adapted. Please contact  if interested!

Maude hosts whimsical, custom parties for ages 10 and above. Private parties can be scheduled any day of the week & are limited to 10 guests. The party revolves around a custom workshop tailored to the age group & each guest leaves with their artwork in hand. Custom invitations, gourmet cupcakes, birthday cakes & snacks are available as well as beautiful “Maude” inspired decorations, paper hats and more. Host your next book club meeting complete with bookbinding workshop, birthday parties, work events, fund raisers, bridal & baby showers . . . please inquire & reserve your date now! please contact kimberly hillman by telephone 707.758.3474 or email kim@inkfishdesign.com

Move over Martha - Michelle's in the Garden with "American Grown"

How wonderfully Martha in so many ways? And why not opt for the crisp, collared shirt, rolled up to the elbows, a la Stewart-style, a basket of American-grown bounty for how many cover shots over past decades, who could possibily keep count?

Back in the spring of 2009, First Lady Michelle Obama planted her kitchen garden on the White House’s South Lawn. Though the garden's roots stretch back to George Washington, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, Michelle's garden has been designed for the future. 

The First Lady's flourishing White House Kitchen Garden has inspired conversation across the country regarding the food we feed our schoolkids, our families and ourselves and the impact this has on the health and well-being of children. 
 
Her first book, American Grown, promises to welcome the reader into the White House Kitchen Garden, from first planting to the most recent harvest. With a May 29th, 2012 publishing date, an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look at each season of the garden’s growth, with striking original photographs promise to bring its story to life.

The book features unique recipes created by White House chefs and made with ingredients freshly-picked from the White House garden as well as tips to help plant your own backyard, school or community garden. 
 
Stories of other gardens that have moved and inspired the First Lady are also featured, includingtales of a modern day vegetable truck bringing fresh produce to underserved communities in Chicago, Houston office workers who make the sidewalk bloom,  a New York City School that created a scented garden for the visually impaired,a North Carolina garden that devotes its entire harvest to those less fortunate and other stories of communities that are transforming the lives and health of their citizens. Move over Martha, Mrs. O's taking the publishing spotlight for May!
 
   

Petaluma's 4th Annual Film Fest, Saturday May 5th, 2012

Three eclectic programs of international award-winners and local student short films are set to be showcased at the fourth annual Film Fest Petaluma, this Saturday, May 5th, 2012 at the historic Mystic Theatre, downtown. 

Programs feature a broad mix of animated and live action short films as well as a blend of comedy and drama.  Shows run at 2:30pm and 7:30pm with an edgier program at midnight.  Each session will host filmmakers in conversation.  

After the United States, French films dominate the line-up with seven titles including this year’s Cesar winner for best live action short in France, L’Accordeur (The Piano Tuner). Canada, Australia, England, and Spain also have strong showings with single entries from Norway, Germany, and Japan.  “It’s the strongest program we’ve ever had.” says festival director Michael Traina.  “Each program features 8-10 shorts and there’s a little something for everyone.”  This year’s Oscar winner for Best Animated Short, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, is screening on the 2:30pm program.  More than a dozen filmmakers from five countries will be on hand to discuss the films and take questions from the audience.

Three Sonoma County student filmmakers will also be showcased throughout the day. Top films from SRJC’s Associated Students Film Festival on April 6^th were invited to screen at the downtown event.  Students from Santa Rosa High School’s ArtQuest program were awarded the top three slots.  Fiona Becker will screen The Pulsera Project on 2:30pm show, Amy West & Jacob Bellochio will screen Mud on the 7:30pm show, and Nick Nuebel will screen Ancient Alien Ice Road Trucker Wars on the midnight show.

Tickets for the Fest are available at McNear’s Restaurant, Copperfield’s Books in Petaluma, or online through the Petaluma Film Alliance and Mystic Theatre websites.  Tickets range from $10-$15.  All-day passes are available for $25.  Programs are recommended for 15 and over.

Visit FilmFestPetaluma.com for the complete film schedule and ticket information.

A Ship Full of Children - 'Oranges and Sunshine'

Somehow the gripping true story of one woman taking on two governments for a lost population of so-called orphans, powerfully depicted in the movie Oranges and Sunshine had eluded my radar until my current visit to Australia.

Around 130,000 children were deported from the UK to cruel, austere and rampantly, often horrifically abusive Australian institutions in the outback as part of a secret agreement that went horribly wrong between two direly, ill-advised countries through to the 1960s.

A chance meeting with one of these lost children, who returned to the UK in the 80s as a young woman seeking some inkling into her roots, led British social worker Margaret Humphreys (the superb Emily Watson) head and heart first into one of the biggest social scandals of our time.

Adapted from the best selling book Empty Cradles, this compelling, heartbreaking story shines a glaring light on the perils of government programs in the international arena of child welfare. This is a shocking film, though handled with immense finesse in the unraveling of the horrors of many of the victims' personal histories and Humphrey's humanitarian campaign to call governments to justice.

 

 

Spotlight on Dickens' Enduring Universe - Emerging From the Fog in Santa Cruz

Calling all Masterpiece Theater addicts. Were you glued to the latest incarnation of Great Expectations (with Gillian Anderson as Miss Haversham), aired on PBS Masterpiece Theater on Sunday evenings, this month? If you're a push-over for anything with top hats, petticoats and British accents, author Charles Dickens' 200th anniversary year of his birth should more than satiate your penchant for proper good tele!

And in addition to a slew of newly published editions of Dickens classics in paperback on the market in bookstores this Spring, I've embarked on (reading, that is, not writing) several new biographical takes in print, on the man with the timeless literary goods.

Though, I must confess, it did take me the better part of a month to absorb a thorough read of David Copperfield, Dickens' substantially sized semi-autobiographical novel and understandably, the work that is said to have been closest to his heart. It's not that I didn't enjoy my first-ever foray into the complete Copperfield saga, it's just that it's so rare that as an avid reader, I experience anything remotely close to such intense character and plot development.

Everywhere I turn, if its not a Titanic memorial media coverage, it's likely to be something or other to do with Dickens Bicentenary.

Readathons and special events are taking place around the world. It's a wonderful thing, though not to be embarked upon if you've a short attention span, in which case televised offerings such as this weekend's April 15, 2026 at 9pm The Mystery of Edwin Drood are just the ticket. - One 120-minute episode - an adaptation and completion of Dickens' final novel left unfinished at his death, The Mystery Of Edwin Drood is a psychological thriller about a provincial choirmaster's obsession with 17-year-old Rosa Bud. Cast includes Matthew Rhys (Brothers & Sisters) and Julia MacKenzie (Miss Marple).

If you just can't get enough of Dickens and his unforgettable cast of characters, here's an opportunity for coastal Californians to live his vivid imaginary world for a few days in the rather unlikely, though super convenient summertime setting of the scenic UC Santa Cruz campus. 

Since 1981, a powerful force of global scholarship consisting of international students, teachers, professors, stage and screen actors and ordinary people with a passion for Dickens 19th Century world and works gather for annual summer session in Northern California, to collaborate in the unfolding of a selected text. This year, the 26th annual Dickens Universe ,part of the extensive UC Santa Cruz Dickens Project takes place under the Pacific redwoods from Sunday July 29th through Friday August 3rd, 2012. Cost to participate in all-things Bleak House is $1,220 for single room occupancy, full board.

Who'd have thought? In Santa Cruz.