Free Will Astrology, Week of Dec. 21

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ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries author Eric G. Wilson has written a book that I might typically recommend to 40% of the Aries tribe. But in 2023, I will raise that to 80%. The title is How to Be Weird: An Off-Kilter Guide to Living a One-of-a-Kind Life. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, it will make sense for you to stop making sense on a semi-regular basis. Cheerfully rebelling against the status quo should be one of your most rewarding hobbies. The best way to educate and entertain yourself will be to ask yourself, “What is the most original and imaginative thing I can do right now?”

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): One of your potential superpowers is cultivating links between the spiritual and physical worlds. If you develop this talent, you illuminate the ways that eternity permeates the everyday routine. You weave together the sacred and the mundane so they synergize each other. You understand how practical matters may be infused with archetypal energies and epic themes. I hope you will be doing a lot of this playful work in 2023, Taurus. Many of us non-Bulls would love you to teach us more about these mysteries.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Here are fun and useful projects for you to cultivate in 2023: 1. Initiate interesting trends. Don’t follow mediocre trends. 2. Exert buoyant leadership in the groups you are part of. 3. Practice the art of enhancing your concentration by relaxing. 4. Every Sunday at noon, renew your vow to not deceive or lie to yourself during the coming week. 5. Make it your goal to be a fabulous communicator, not just an average one. 6. Cultivate your ability to discern what people are hiding or pretending about.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): In 2023, I hope you will refine and deepen your relationship with your gut instinct. I will be ecstatic if you learn more about the differences between your lucid intuition and the worry mongering that your pesky demons rustle up. If you attend to these matters—and life will conspire to help you if you do—your rhythm will become dramatically more secure and stable. Your guidance system will serve you better than it ever has. A caveat: Seeking perfection in honing these skills is not necessary. Just do the best you can.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Psychiatrist and author Irvin Yalom wrote, “The question of meaning in life is, as the Buddha thought, not edifying. One must immerse oneself into the river of life and let the question drift away.” But Holocaust survivor and philosopher Viktor Frankl had a radically different view. He said that a sense of meaning is the single most important thing. That’s what sustains and nourishes us through the years: the feeling that our life has a meaning and that any particular experience has a meaning. I share Frankl’s perspective, and I advise you to adopt his approach throughout 2023. You will have unprecedented opportunities to see and know the overarching plan of your destiny, which has been only partially visible to you in the past. You will be regularly blessed with insights about your purpose here on Earth.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): As a young woman, Virgo-born Ingeborg Rapoport (1912–2017) studied medicine at the University of Hamburg in Germany. But in 1938, the Nazis refused to let her defend her PhD thesis and get her medical degree because of her Jewish ancestry. Seventy-seven years later, she was finally given a chance to finish what she had started. Success! The dean of the school said, “She was absolutely brilliant. Her specific knowledge about the latest developments in medicine was unbelievable.” I expect comparable developments for you in 2023, Virgo. You will receive defining opportunities or invitations that have not been possible before. Postponed breakthroughs and resolutions will become achievable.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Of the 2,200+ humans quoted in a 21st-century edition of Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, 164 are women—a mere 7%! At least that’s more than the four females represented in 1855’s first edition. Let’s take this atrocious injustice as our provocation for your horoscope. In accordance with astrological omens, one of your assignments in 2023 will be to make personal efforts to equalize power among the genders. Your well-being will thrive as you work to create a misogyny-free future. Here are possible actions: If you’re a woman or nonbinary person, be extra bold and brave as you say what you genuinely think and feel and mean. If you’re a man, foster your skills at listening to women and nonbinary people. Give them abundant space and welcome to speak their truths. It will be in your ultimate interest to do so!

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): To prepare you for 2023, I’m offering you wisdom from mythologist Michael Meade. Of all the signs in the zodiac, you Scorpios will be most likely to extract riches from it. Meade writes: “Becoming a genuine individual requires learning the oppositions within oneself. Those who fail or refuse to face the oppositions within have no choice but to find enemies to project upon. ‘Enemy’ simply means ‘not-friend’; unless a person deals with the not-friend within, they require enemies around them.”

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): “I will always be as difficult as necessary to achieve the best,” declared Sagittarian opera singer Maria Callas (1923–1977). Many critics say she was indeed one of the 20th century’s best. The consensus is that she was also a temperamental prima donna. Impresario Rudolf Bing said she was a trial to work with “because she was so much more intelligent. Other artists, you could get around. But Callas you could not get around. She knew exactly what she wanted and why she wanted it.” In accordance with astrological omens, Sagittarius, I authorize you, in your quest for success in 2023, to be as “difficult” as Callas was, in the sense of knowing exactly what you want. But please—so as to not undermine your success—don’t lapse into diva-like behavior.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): To inspire your self-inquiry in 2023, I have chosen a passage from Herman Hesse’s fairytale, A Dream Sequence. It will provide guidance as you dive further than ever before into the precious mysteries in your inner depths. Hesse addressed his “good ardent darkness, the warm cradle of the soul, and lost homeland.” He asked them to open up for him. He wanted them to be fully available to his conscious mind. Hesse said this to his soul: “Just feel your way, soul, just wander about, burrow into the full bath of innocent twilight drives!”

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Cardiovascular surgeon Michael DeBakey lived till age 99. He almost died at 97, but was able to capitalize on an invention that he himself had created years before: a polymer resin that could repair or replace aging blood vessels. Surgeons used his technology to return him to health. I am predicting that in 2023, you, too, will derive a number of benefits from your actions in the past. Things you made, projects you nurtured and ideas you initiated will prove valuable to you as you encounter the challenges and opportunities of the future.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): I decided to divine the state of your financial karma. To begin, I swirled a $10 bill through the flame rising from a green candle. Then I sought cosmic auguries in the burn patterns on the bill. The oracle provided bad news and good news. The bad news is that you live on a planet where one-fifth of the population owns much more than four-fifths of the wealth. The good news is that in 2023, you will be in decent shape to move closer to the elite one-fifth. Amazingly, the oracle also suggests that your ability to get richer quicker will increase in direct proportion to your integrity and generosity.

Wry ‘Ham’ on stage in Sebastopol

North Bay audiences seeking a little lightweight, somewhat-holiday-themed entertainment would do well to head out to Sebastopol and check out Ham for the Holidays. Written by Santa Rosa High School dropout-turned-game-show-contestant-turned-college-professor Shad Willingham, it runs at Main Stage West through Dec. 30.

It’s Christmas Eve, 1939, and the tiny hamlet of Hamlin, GA is buried in snow from an unexpected southern blizzard. Local ham magnate and radio station WHAM owner Cab Hoxton (Dodds Delzell) is in a tizzy preparing for the arrival of the great Orson Welles, who for some unfathomable reason has agreed to do a live broadcast from the station.

Postman Sam Wainwright (Keene Hudson) delivers Welles’ script, but station flunky Timmy Wilkins (Zane Walters) manages to lose it. To add insult to injury, Welles is stuck in a snowbound train, so how in the world will the show go on?

Well, blustery radio actor and playwright Dexter Armstrong (Garet Waterhouse) has an “original” play (Attack of the Space Robots from Outer Space) that with just a little tweaking can be turned into a Christmas show. As far as an actor with the stature of Welles, local Shakespearean-trained ham Dick McCann (John Craven) would be a suitable replacement, as long as he doesn’t have a narcoleptic episode in the middle of the broadcast.

Add an actress who insists on costume changes for radio (Maureen O’Neill), the station owner’s bungling daughter (Dale Leonheart) and a malfunctioning studio heater, and it’s no surprise when everything, of course, goes wrong.

Yes, it’s The (Radio) Play That Goes Wrong, which means lots of slapstick silliness. There’s no great message to be found here; in fact, no message at all. The only things being delivered are good-natured laughs via director Emily Cornelius’ hard-working cast.

They deliver those laughs on a well-detailed but somewhat anachronistically-appointed set by David Lear and in nice period costuming by Tracy Hinman. Keith Baker’s sound design also gives a big assist.

Ham for the Holidays is the type of show one doesn’t want to overthink. It’s very reminiscent of an extended sketch from one of television’s great comedy/variety shows of the ’60s and ’70s. It exists solely to elicit laughs and perhaps fond memories for some days of yore. It’s theater for the MeTV crowd.

‘Ham for the Holidays’ runs through Dec. 30 at Main Stage West, 104 N. Main St., Sebastopol. Thu-Sat at 8pm; Sun, 5pm. $20-$32. Masking required. 707.823.0177. mainstagewest.com.

Letters, Week of Dec. 21

Lesson Unlearned

This week, we mark the 10 year anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. This was done by a 19-year-old white male with an AR-15. He killed 20 first grade children and six teachers.

The question is, what have we learned from this tragic incident? The answer is absolutely nothing.

When will we learn?

Brian Donohue

Mill Valley

Friends in Wry Places

I have a friend back East whose son was elected to Congress last month. The younger man told his Republican opponent during the last debate of the campaign, “If you will stop making shit up about me, I will stop telling voters the truth about you.”

Craig J. Corsini

San Rafael

Arbitrary

Twitter banned or suspended several high-profile journalists Thursday evening, a move that further reveals the seemingly arbitrary decision-making of Elon Musk, a self-avowed “free speech absolutist.”

I will bet that Joseph Goebbels called himself and other high ranking party members “free speech absolutists” or something similar.

Gary Sciford

Santa Rosa

DeLoach Vineyards is more than just a ‘big winery’

After 20-plus years in the wine industry, I can admit how little I really knew about DeLoach Vineyards, in particular about what has been happening there over the past 10 to 15 years.

DeLoach Vineyards is a part of the Boisset winery family and has been since 2003. While I knew the winery was a part of Boisset’s portfolio of brands, I wasn’t really aware of what that meant for the brand, the quality of the wines, etc., as I hadn’t taken the time to sit down and taste the breadth of DeLoach’s menu of wines since the early 2000s.

Winemaking at DeLoach has been under the guiding hand of winemaker Brian Maloney, an avid believer in site expressive wines, the differences between Russian River Valley’s six “neighborhoods” and highlighting single vineyards, since 2007.

The wines being made are interesting, expressive and multi-dimensional. Also, most of the wines are made in small quantities from as few as 50 cases to a few hundred, in the case of their vineyard designate wines.

Here are a few more reasons to get excited about DeLoach Vineyards and DeLoach’s wines:

Certified

The winery is not just a certified sustainable and certified organic winery but is also one of just a handful of local wineries that are Demeter certified as a biodynamic vineyard and winery.

Iconic Vineyards

DeLoach makes over 20 vineyard designate wines from unique sites that include iconic vineyards such as Heintz, Stubbs, Van der Kamp and Saitone, with a large percentage of these wines coming from cool weather sites in the Green Valley, Petaluma Gap and Sonoma Coast AVAs. A couple of my personal favorites are the Hawk Hill Vineyard Chardonnay and Maboroshi Vineyard Pinot Noir.

Skin Contact

Among their offerings are a skin contact ribolla gialla and carignane that are aged in terracotta amphorae and that are phenomenal (these wines are made in very limited quantities, so they are generally sold out for part of each year).

Varietals Galore

They’ve got a diverse list of wines that includes not just pinot noir and chardonnay but pinot blanc, ribolla gialla, riesling, carignane and zinfandel.

Tasting Experience

The winery offers an appellation-focused tasting experience that draws from different Sonoma County AVAs. They also offer a self-guided tour that allows guests to explore the estate’s 20 acre organic and biodynamic farm, which includes a half-acre culinary garden, and grazing chickens, sheep and goats.

Earth-Friendly

They are actively pursuing more ways to reduce the winery’s environmental footprint, increase their biodynamic and regenerative agriculture practices, and to support their local community. One example is the winery’s “Vinthropic” line of wines that was created to help fight against hunger. One hundred percent of Vinthropic’s proceeds go to benefit Sonoma County’s Redwood Empire Food Bank.

Where to Ring in 2023 on New Year’s Eve

From the oldest societies straight to today, an annual turn toward renewal has been celebrated, and in these challenging times, that celebration is as important as ever.

No need to look far afield to find an event that suits one’s needs. Sonoma and Napa are up to the challenge. Readers may have a look at these wonderful local celebrations of the turn toward good times.

British Dance Invasion

In recent years, the Flamingo—once the favored getaway spot of my mom—has taken its midcentury resort vibes and turned them into an ethos of cool. It is not an aesthetic with this place; it is a way of life. Regular dance nights and chill out events have become a must do experience as the pandemic has waned. So it is fitting that one of the most happening NYE parties would be right here.

Right on point with the retro aesthetic, one can get set for an invasion of favorite British artists and bands, as spun by DJ Armin. It is recommended to dress in British best for a costume contest with prizes. Tickets are limited and on sale now. Admission includes a complimentary glass of champagne for a midnight toast.

8 pm, Saturday, Dec. 31, the Vintage Space at the Flamingo Resort, 2777 4th St., Santa Rosa. $80. Spots can be reserved at tudorrosetearoom.com/nye-british-invasion.

Pop-up ‘Miracle’

Need to get a fix a little earlier in the day to make sure to start New Year’s Eve pre-filled with joy? One could bounce on over to the Napa Yard beer garden at Oxbow Gardens for the holiday pop-up bar, Miracle.

Growing in reputation, Miracle’s xmas-xplosion vibe and wacky cocktails invade choice spots around the Bay, including the Flamingo in Santa Rosa and Brewster’s in Petaluma. This season is the first time the hyper-spirited meta-cocktails will be slung in Napa.

The holiday oasis is overflowing with kitschy festive décor, right down to the glassware and a themed cocktail menu, with fan favorite cocktails such as Christmapolitan, Snowball Old-Fashioned, Yippie Ki Yay Mother F****r!, Jingle Balls Nog, Nice Shot and Naughty Shot. On my visit, I had a warm Christmas Carol Barrel while my buddy sipped Grandma Got Run Over By A T-Rex from a ceramic dinosaur.

And for even more motivation, at the end of this year’s season, Miracle will donate 10% of all proceeds from the sale of selected signature glassware to the Seva Foundation, a global nonprofit eye-care organization that works with local communities around the world.

Hours vary, now until Dec. 31, ​​Napa Yard Oxbow Gardens, 585 1st St., Napa. Closed Mondays.

Royal Jelly Jive

In this humble writer’s opinion, there is no dance party like a Royal Jelly Jive dance party. More on this phenomenally fun band in the next issue, but rest assured that the humid-in-one’s-clothes, NOLA-inspired band that puts the fun in funk is one the best tickets around. As keyboardist and band energizer bunny Jesse Lemme Adams said, “Some of our biggest shows have been New Year’s Eve shows.” This band has the big sound for it, and anyone who has been to the Mystic knows that the place knows how to party.

I am sworn to secrecy, but expect some guest appearances by other local luminaries from the Americana+ scene.

Doors 7pm, show 9pm, Saturday, Dec. 31, Mystic Theater, 23 Petaluma Blvd. N, Petaluma. $40. For tickets, go to mystictheatre.com.

Mischief Masquerade

The North Bay Cabaret is always a rollicking good time, a natural fit for the biggest night of the year. Whiskey Tip has ample indoor and outdoor space that allows for different simultaneous activities, like a multi-DJ silent disco dance party and a variety show featuring more than 15 performers, including special guest Jamie DeWolf. DeWolf is a notorious spoken word performance artist whose provocative hilarity has become a signature feature of North Bay Cabaret events.

Live local music will be featured, headlined by The Crux, plus Audio Angel, and Joshua James Jackson & The Dream Team.

The event was canceled last year due to the Omicron surge, so it is especially exciting to see the annual NYE Cabaret back for its sixth year, with its unique twist on art and live entertainment.

Doors at 6pm, variety show at 7pm, live music at 10pm, Saturday, Dec. 31, Whiskey Tip, 1910 Sebastopol Rd., Santa Rosa. Tickets are $85 at the door if available or $75 in advance at the Whiskey Tip, the Next Record Store or online at northbayevents.com.

Dawn Ranch

Those feeling the need for dinner and dancing all in one spot may like to hit Dawn Ranch in Guerneville.

DJs will be playing all night, starting with that dinner music vibe that one has to have to really celebrate. At 10pm, the party switches, the tables get kicked over (please check with venue before any table kicking) and a dance party breaks out with funky, groovy and soulful vibes on the turntables, courtesy of DJ Timote and DJ Bank$hot.

This is a sit down event from 8 till 10pm, followed by dancing until 1am. A champagne toast will be given at the stroke of midnight.

8 pm, Saturday, Dec. 31, Dawn Ranch, 16467 Hwy 116, Guerneville. $150 per diner.
Reservations may be booked at dawnranch.bpt.me.

John Courage Trio

On the other hand, if one is looking for cool-as-hell, no frills rockin’ and clockin’ sweaty night out, they’ll be heading to Healdsburg for John Courage. Called by the Bohemian “one of the most recognizable figures on Sonoma County’s music scene,” Courage’s current musical incarnation might be more down tempo and bluesy than in the past, but one can bet the originals and covers will be steamy, passionate and full of Sonoma verve. It’s recommended to dress in layers, since a lot of the fun space here is out of doors.

9 pm, Saturday, Dec. 31, the Elephant in the Room, 177A Healdsburg Ave., Healdsburg. $20 at the door.

California gives electric vehicle charging stations a boost

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) advanced actions last week that will help install more electric vehicle charging stations in the state. 

The commission gave Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) a go-ahead to install 2,822 EV charging stations at workplaces, housing complexes and public spaces in California. 

The $52.2 million program will run through 2025 and will require PG&E to use 65% of the funds in underserved communities.

Also approved on Thursday, Dec. 15, a new mandate sets a timeline for utility companies to bring EV charging stations online. Utilities must connect customers with EV charging stations to the grid in 125 days, take steps to make the process easier for customers, and gather data to identify ways the energization process gets bottlenecked.  

A series of mandates from the California Air Resources Board require new vehicles sold in the state to be zero-emission, which also includes buses and trucks. The commission said that it is essential to have EV charging infrastructure in place to make this into a reality. 

“Today’s energization decision takes big steps to speed up the process of connecting new EV chargers to the electric grid and to make sure utilities provide customers information about how that process works,” said CPUC Commissioner Clifford Rechtschaffen. 

With California taking the lead in electric car sales nationwide, CPUC allowed utility companies to allocate over $1.8 billion in their budgets for EV charging stations, and ensure EV charging rates are significantly cheaper than gas. 

There are currently 80,027 public and shared electric vehicle chargers, according to the California Energy Commission (CEC). Last year, the CEC found that the state will need 1.2 million chargers by 2030 in order to serve an anticipated 7.5 million EVs on the road.

In October, the Governor’s Office announced that electric car sales reached 18% of total new car sales, three times the nationwide rate.

California regulators update metering rules for solar panel

In a long-awaited vote, California regulators last week unanimously approved a policy which critics argue may reduce installation of new solar arrays on homes and businesses throughout the state.

The policy, approved on Thursday, Dec. 15, by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), updates the rules governing how solar owners can sell excess energy back to utility companies. 

Known as “net metering,” the state’s current rules allow roughly 1.5 million solar owners who send their excess power back into the grid to receive credits from one of the state’s private utilities. Customers can cash in their credits at the end of the year. 

The significant financial incentive net metering offered to small-scale customers fueled the uptick in the use of distributed solar throughout California; however, critics argued that the net metering rules needed to be changed to balance the state’s power system moving forward and lower the rates net metering customers received to a level closer to those received by larger producers.

One of the problems at play is a mismatch between supply and demand. Solar panels generate the most energy during the middle of the day, while energy use peaks later, when workers return home. As a result, too much solar energy without enough battery storage can lead to problems.

The CPUC argued that the new policy will encourage more battery adoption by offering new credits to those who own solar and battery set ups. 

“This is a vast improvement on the status quo,” Matt Baker, the head of the CPUC’s Public Advocates Office, told the Los Angeles Times. “For solar going forward, it is targeting exactly what we need to target, which is how do we get solar and battery adoption up to levels like Hawaii has.”

The solar industry and various other groups were not convinced that the changes will offer a net benefit. Protests over the past year led the CPUC to update their original proposal, including removing a “solar tax” included in an earlier version of the proposal.

In a statement, the California Solar and Storage Association (CalSSA), an industry group, warned that the CPUC’s vote would trigger “an expected cliff in the growth of new solar installations.” The industry group has estimated the policy change will reduce the amount of money future solar owners are paid for the energy they send back to the grid by 75% and argues the new policy does not do enough to encourage investments in costly battery systems.

“For the solar industry, it will result in business closures and the loss of green jobs. For middle class and working class neighborhoods where solar is growing fastest, it puts clean energy further out of reach,” CALSSA executive director Bernadette Del Chiaro said.

Existing net metering customers won’t be impacted by the rule change, but anyone who installs solar after April 2023 will be. 

A state law which went into effect on Jan. 1, 2020 mandates that all new single family homes and some new multi-family buildings be equipped with solar.

Picture Perfect: The 2018 Ehlers Estate Portrait Red Blend

Dorian Gray has nothing on this fine Portrait — a blend of four red Bordeaux varietals: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot hailing from the St. Helena and Napa Valley AVAs. The 2018 Ehlers Estate Portrait Red Blend arrives with delightfully broad shoulders and powerful hips with a warm mulberry color but that’s deep but not inky. (Take your favorite Prismacolor 995-garnet colored pencil and crosshatch over some indigo blots and you’re close). 

The wine is redolent with the flavors of bramble berries and English rose and arrives with a quiet cedar kiss and a pinch of anise as it rolls over the palate. The mouthfeel is brawny and kicks up a bit of forest floor and a hint of pepper and a bright acidity that adds to its overall balance. 

At around $72, the wine is appropriately priced for the value of its experience and would make a fine gift this season. If you’re going to send a portrait to your holiday card list, make it this one.

Rebuilding a welcoming political culture

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By Melinda Burrell

“I want to thank all of you, because there’s no excuses in life, and I’m not going to make excuses now because we put up one heck of a fight.”

With these words, Herschel Walker conceded the Georgia Senate run-off. He also echoed the calm, often gracious, concession speeches made across the country a few weeks earlier by candidates of both parties.

Entering the holiday season, can this political calm be extended? Research shows it can. Those concession speeches are key.

A team of psychologists and neuroscientists recently reviewed studies about how to reduce partisan animosity—those negative feelings towards people in the other party. Simply learning more about the other party can help, because partisan animosity distorts how one sees others. They think members of the other party dislike them more than they actually do, and they paint an unrealistically extreme picture of them.

In a recent study, Republicans believed 30% of Democrats are atheist or agnostic. The reality? Only 8% of Democrats identify that way. Democrats believed that 38% of Republicans earn over $250,000. The facts? Only 2% do.

One study revealed that even just seeing a warm interaction between political leaders helped reduce political animosity. Study participants were shown versions of a made-up news story about a dinner meeting between Sen. Mitch McConnell and Sen. Charles Schumer.

One version reported a friendly meeting, with the senators laughing together and parting with a hug. The other version reported table-side hostility. The versions also reported different policy outcomes for the meal—either agreeing to compromises on important immigration issues or failing to reach a compromise.

The end result? Seeing the senators get along made study participants feel more warmly about the other party—even more than when the senators reached a policy compromise. How our leaders treat each other matters.

Let’s use the holiday season to build on this calm. Our political culture is ours to create.

Melinda Burrell, PhD, is a former humanitarian aid worker and now trains on the neuroscience of communication and conflict.

Free Will Astrology, Week of Dec. 14

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ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries painter Vincent van Gogh was renowned for translating his sublime and unruly passions into colors and shapes on canvas. It was a demanding task. He careened between torment and ecstasy. “I put my heart and soul into my work,” he said, “and I have lost my mind in the process.” That’s sad! But I have good news for you, Aries. In the coming months, you will have the potential to reach unprecedented new depths of zest as you put your heart and soul into your work and play. And hallelujah, you won’t lose your mind in the process! In fact, I suspect you will become more mentally healthy than you’ve been in a long time.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): “The soul is silent,” writes Taurus poet Louise Glück. “If it speaks at all, it speaks in dreams.” I don’t agree with her in general, and I especially don’t agree with her in regard to your life in the coming weeks. I believe your soul will be singing, telling jokes, whispering in the dark and flinging out unexpected observations. Your soul will be extra alive and alert and awake, tempting you to dance in the grocery store and fling out random praise and fantasize about having your own podcast. Don’t underestimate how vivacious your soul might be, Taurus. Give it permission to be as fun and funny as it yearns to be.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): The coming weeks will be an excellent time to expand your understanding about the nature of stress. Here are three study aids: 1. High stress levels are not healthy for your mind and body, but low to moderate stress can be good for you. 2. Low to moderate stress is even better for you if it involves dilemmas that you can ultimately solve. 3. There is a thing called “eustress,” which means beneficial stress. It arises from a challenge that evokes your vigor, resilience and willpower. As you deal with it, you feel hopeful and hardy. It’s meaningful and interesting. I bring these ideas to your attention, dear Gemini, because you are primed to enjoy a rousing upgrade in your relationship with stress.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Long before he launched his illustrious career, Cancerian inventor Buckminster Fuller was accepted to enroll at Harvard University. Studying at such a prestigious educational institution was a high honor and set him up for a bright future. Alas, he was expelled for partying too hard. Soon he was working at odd jobs. His fortunes dwindled, and he grew depressed. But at age 32, he had a pivotal mystical experience. He seemed to be immersed in a globe of white light hovering above the ground. A disembodied voice spoke, telling him he “belonged to the universe” and that he would fulfill his life purpose if he applied himself to serving “the highest advantage of others.” How would you like a Buckminster Fuller-style intervention, Cancerian? It’s available if you want it and ask for it.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Leo-born Judith Love Cohen was an electrical engineer who worked on NASA’s Apollo Space Program. She was also the mother of the famous actor Jack Black. When she was nine months pregnant with Jack, on the day she went into labor, she performed a heroic service. On their way to the moon, the three astronauts aboard the Apollo 13 spacecraft had encountered a major systems failure. In the midst of her birth process, Cohen carried out advanced troubleshooting that helped save their lives and bring their vehicle safely back to Earth. I don’t expect you to achieve such a monumental feat in the coming days, Leo. But I suspect you will be extra intrepid and even epic in your efforts. And your ability to magically multitask will be at a peak.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): When you’re at the height of your powers, you provide the people in your life with high-quality help and support. And I believe you could perform this role even stronger in 2023. Here are some of the best benefits you can offer: 1. Assist your allies in extracting bright ideas from confusing mishmashes. 2. Help them cull fertile seeds from decaying dross. 3. As they wander through messy abysses, aid them in finding where the redemption is. 4. Cheer on their successes with wit and charm.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): A blogger named Daydreamydyke explains the art of bestowing soulful gifts. Don’t give people you care for generic consumer goods, she tells us. Instead, say to them, “I picked up this cool rock I found on the ground that reminded me of you,” or “I bought you this necklace for 50 cents at a yard sale because I thought you’d like it,” or “I’ve had this odd little treasure since childhood, but I feel like it could be of use to you or give you comfort, so I want you to have it.” That’s the spirit I hope you will adopt during the holiday season, Libra—as well as for all of 2023, which will be the year you could become a virtuoso gift-giver.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In 1957, engineers Alfred Fielding and Marc Chavannes invented three-dimensional plastic wallpaper. No one bought the stuff, though. A few years later, they rebranded it as Bubble Wrap and marketed it as material to protect packages during shipment. Success! Its new use has been popular ever since. I suspect you are in a phase comparable to the time between when their plastic wallpaper flopped and before they dreamed up Bubble Wrap. Have faith in the possibility of there being a Second Act, Scorpio. Be alert for new applications of possibilities that didn’t quite make a splash the first time around.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): I applaud your expansive curiosity. I admire your yearning to learn more and more about our mysterious world as you add to your understanding of how the game of life works. Your greed for interesting experiences is good greed! It is one of your most beautiful qualities. But now and then, there come times when you need to scale down your quest for fresh, raw truths and work on integrating what you have already absorbed. The coming weeks will be one of those times.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Better than most, you have a rich potential to attune yourself to the cyclical patterns of life. It’s your birthright to become skilled at discerning natural rhythms at work in the human comedy. Even more fortunately, Capricorn, you can be deeply comforted by this awareness. Educated by it. Motivated by it. I hope that in 2023, you will develop your capacity to the next level. The cosmic flow will be on your side as you strive to feel it—and place yourself in closer and closer alignment with it.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Anne, a character in a book by L. M. Montgomery, says she prefers the word “dusk” over “twilight” because it sounds so “velvety and shadowy.” She continues, “In daylight, I belong to the world . . . in the night to sleep and eternity. But in the dusk, I’m free from both and belong only to myself.” According to my astrological assessment, you Aquarians will go through a dusk-like phase in the coming weeks: a time when you will belong solely to yourself and any other creature you choose to join you in your velvety, shadowy emancipation.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): My Piscean friend Venus told me, “We Pisceans feel everything very intensely, but alas, we do not possess the survival skills of a Scorpio or the enough-is-enough, self-protective mechanism of the Cancerians. We are the water sign most susceptible to being engulfed and flooded and overwhelmed.” I think Venus is somewhat correct in her assessment. But I also believe you Fishes have a potent asset that you may not fully appreciate or call on enough. Your ability to tune into the very deepest levels of emotion potentially provides you with access to a divine power source beyond your personality. If you allow it to give you all of its gifts, it will keep you shielded and safe and supported.

Free Will Astrology, Week of Dec. 21

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries author Eric G. Wilson has written a book that I might typically recommend to 40% of the Aries tribe. But in 2023, I will raise that to 80%. The title is How to Be Weird: An Off-Kilter Guide to Living a One-of-a-Kind Life. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, it will make...

Wry ‘Ham’ on stage in Sebastopol

North Bay audiences seeking a little lightweight, somewhat-holiday-themed entertainment would do well to head out to Sebastopol and check out Ham for the Holidays. Written by Santa Rosa High School dropout-turned-game-show-contestant-turned-college-professor Shad Willingham, it runs at Main Stage West through Dec. 30. It’s Christmas Eve, 1939, and the tiny hamlet of Hamlin, GA is buried in snow from an unexpected...

Letters, Week of Dec. 21

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Lesson Unlearned This week, we mark the 10 year anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. This was done by a 19-year-old white male with an AR-15. He killed 20 first grade children and six teachers. The question is, what have we learned from this tragic incident? The answer is absolutely nothing. When will we learn? Brian Donohue Mill Valley Friends in Wry Places I...

DeLoach Vineyards is more than just a ‘big winery’

After 20-plus years in the wine industry, I can admit how little I really knew about DeLoach Vineyards, in particular about what has been happening there over the past 10 to 15 years. DeLoach Vineyards is a part of the Boisset winery family and has been since 2003. While I knew the winery was a part of Boisset’s portfolio of...

Where to Ring in 2023 on New Year’s Eve

From the oldest societies straight to today, an annual turn toward renewal has been celebrated, and in these challenging times, that celebration is as important as ever. No need to look far afield to find an event that suits one’s needs. Sonoma and Napa are up to the challenge. Readers may have a look at these wonderful local celebrations of...

California gives electric vehicle charging stations a boost

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The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) advanced actions last week that will help install more electric vehicle charging stations in the state.  The commission gave Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) a go-ahead to install 2,822 EV charging stations at workplaces, housing complexes and public spaces in California.  The $52.2 million program will run through 2025 and will require PG&E to use...

California regulators update metering rules for solar panel

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In a long-awaited vote, California regulators last week unanimously approved a policy which critics argue may reduce installation of new solar arrays on homes and businesses throughout the state. The policy, approved on Thursday, Dec. 15, by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), updates the rules governing how solar owners can sell excess energy back to utility companies.  Known as “net...

Picture Perfect: The 2018 Ehlers Estate Portrait Red Blend

Dorian Gray has nothing on this fine Portrait — a blend of four red Bordeaux varietals: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot hailing from the St. Helena and Napa Valley AVAs. The 2018 Ehlers Estate Portrait Red Blend arrives with delightfully broad shoulders and powerful hips with a warm mulberry color but that’s deep but not inky. (Take...

Rebuilding a welcoming political culture

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By Melinda Burrell “I want to thank all of you, because there’s no excuses in life, and I'm not going to make excuses now because we put up one heck of a fight.” With these words, Herschel Walker conceded the Georgia Senate run-off. He also echoed the calm, often gracious, concession speeches made across the country a few weeks earlier by...

Free Will Astrology, Week of Dec. 14

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries painter Vincent van Gogh was renowned for translating his sublime and unruly passions into colors and shapes on canvas. It was a demanding task. He careened between torment and ecstasy. "I put my heart and soul into my work," he said, "and I have lost my mind in the process." That's sad! But I...
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