Efforts to restrict plant-based products from using the word “milk” are gaining traction again, despite little evidence that consumers are confused (Reuters, April 24, 2026). Most people know exactly what oat milk is—and choose it intentionally.
So why the push to regulate language? It’s hard not to see it as an attempt to shield one industry from growing competition.
Consumers benefit from clear labeling and diverse choices. Limiting how products are described doesn’t protect the public—it limits innovation and restricts access to alternatives many people prefer for health, environmental or ethical reasons.
What’s next? If the dairy lobby has their way, you soon might have to buy peanut spread instead of peanut butter.
Steven Alderson Santa Rosa
Merge Urge
Have you lost your freakin’ minds? There is no way merging Petaluma and Novato would work (‘Welcome to Novaluma: The Case for Merging Petaluma and Novato,’ May 13, 2026). First off, the traffic alone in your new mega-burb would create a Dantean level automotive purgatory. Also, the name sounds like a pharmaceutical for something embarrassing: “Ask your doctor if Novaluma is right for you.” No, thank you.
I have met James Freebury only twice. And both times after his accident. Our relationship was carried out over correspondence.
My first visit was along with local musician and impresario Josh Windmiller, who introduced us. We went to pantomime for James, a passage from the Scandinavian epic Beowulf of all things. We performed the scene where the hero confronts his monster.
The second visit I went alone—to establish a personal trust. I remember his room—I imagine he is waiting there now. Except for his bed and two art prints, the room is quite bare. It faces away from the sea into a garden and beyond it, a slanting street. I remember Freebury’s stillness; I remember the long pauses between my questions and his replies. But what I remember best are his eyes. They alone express his inner life and freedom now. Yes, I remember his eyes…
A Man Falls Down
What James Freebury can remember of his aneurysm was a blinding headache. He had just finished working a shift at the museum. Before putting himself to bed, he happened to tell his parents. That saved his life. James Freebury has not risen from his bed since. It’s been four years.
He remembers waking up some days later in the high tower of a hospital. It was grey outside and dreamlike. It brought to his mind the pleasant association of fairy tales.
In the next moment, Freebury found he could not move. He could not shift in bed to relieve some pressure. He could not reach his arm for his phone or for water to relieve his burning thirst. He found he could not speak. He could not rise. He could not escape. He could not even scream. Freebury was helpless—helpless as a baby. But a baby without a future—his future was in flames. James Freebury, age 38, awoke paralyzed from the neck down.
It is impossible for me to imagine his devastation in those early days. James Freebury had woken up in my own personal nightmare. Is it unprofessional for me to write that? Maybe. It’s honest. Be honest—through James Freebury we confront one of our greatest fears. That’s why his story is gripping. And that’s why we need for it to have “a happy ending”—for ourselves more than him.
In his hospital bed, James Freebury made an inventory. He found that he could still move his eyes—and he could still blink. He could turn his head from right to left. James Freebury found that he could still weep. And he could still hold his head up. These are small but defining human expressions.
And James Freebury found that he could still smile. He still had his mind and his memory. And he smiled as he remembered the fifth book of TheOdyssey—it was the first part of that myth that he had set out to learn by heart. He had once performed it in epic style, striding the ruins of Sutro Baths like a hero. Reciting the fifth book to an audience as the crashing waves beat the rhythm and the white gulls screeched overhead, wheeling.
In the fifth book, Troy is a smoking ruin and Odysseus is sailing home after 10 long years. Caught in a storm of divine proportions, his ship—his vessel—is smashed to a thousand pieces and he washes to shore, alone. Odysseus awakes to find himself cast away on a desert island—with nothing to do but rage the gods that had forsaken him.
New strength flowed into Freebury at the recollection. In some sense, he was Odysseus now. Deviser of the Trojan horse. He of cunning and stratagem. Odysseus has escaped his island of solitude. Freebury too would escape, and like Odysseus make it home to Ithaca. Within himself, he discovered inner resources. He had a Proustian memory to mine (he likens himself to a tunneling white rabbit). And his imagination was as free as Jean-Do Bauby’s butterfly. Perhaps, fatefully, James Freebury had been unknowingly preparing for his trial…
Adaptation
And so it was that James Freebury learned to speak for the second time in his life. The first time, as a child, was with his mouth. The second time, as an adult, James Freebury learned to speak with his eyes. A miracle device called the Tobii Dynavox tracks his eye movements as they range over a keyboard. It synthesizes for him his new half-robotic voice. Freebury now has a wheelchair—and the future prospect of one that he himself can steer with only his eyes. He dreams and devises other adaptive technologies for people in his locked-in condition.
It’s hopeful. But these themselves define the hard limits to his personal autonomy against which he struggles. He wrote to me a few days after our cordial second meeting, describing a “rough day” he spent “shaking and weeping with the physical and psychological affront” of his situation. He had been stuck down by fate in the full flood tide of his life.
Escapism
Our inner faculties of memory and imagination combine in the defining human act—the creation of story.
Freebury had written before his paralysis. But he had never considered himself a writer—he confessed that he lacked the discipline. But now, he notes with wry irony, “All I can do is write.”
James Freebury had first conceived of A Man Comes Down after he graduated college (with a degree in medieval lit). Inspiration came as he was reading Peter Carey’s novel, The True History of the Kelly Gang.The setting was Old West, but through the fundamentally Celtic quality of the Irish-immigrant Kelly, Freebury discerned deeper roots in Icelandic sagas. From there, tendrils stretched back to Greece and to Homer.
He loved the idea of playing up this connection in an original story. He had tried to write it before the paralysis. In his struggle with writer’s block, he had gradually grown to hate the project.
Why Freebury chose to take up this project during his convalescence he didn’t quite say—many of my questions went unanswered in our large but incomplete correspondence. I can guess that it was in part to mend the back broken continuity of his professional life. He would re-enter the arts with a major literary accomplishment. And in the long process of writing the novel, escape his paralysis into an imagined world in which he was a dangerous man of action. And, I can’t but think that in accomplishing what he was unable to when he was able-bodied but blocked, James Freebury would prove that in some narrow sense it was his old self that was paralyzed and himself the free man.
MOMENT What James Freebury can remember of his aneurysm was a blinding headache—he has not risen from his bed since. Photo by Asha Eden McElhaney.
A Man Comes Down
A Man Comes Down was published as a 20-part Substack serial over one year. Each letter of it held his gaze the one second required for the Tobii to register a keystroke.
As one reads the novel, Freebury names the camera shots that frame his scenes. And he embeds a contemporary folk and rock soundtrack to amplify key dramatic moments.
The setting is “The Coast,” a mythologized California of the lawless 1850s. As the story opens, a wounded gunfighter named Ezekiel rides down from the mountains with his ex-gang in pursuit. Fatefully, he collapses at the gate of Rowena, a lonely lighthouse keeper whose outlaw husband, Ned (think Kelly), has been Ezekiel’s employer and best friend for years.
Something compels Rowena to take him in during his convalescence. Set across three days and eight years, the story moves between intimate interior drama and wide landscape cinema. Its two central characters are people of unusual intelligence and restraint, whose slow-burning recognition of one another is the story’s engine. Oh… And it has a happy ending for Ezekiel.
A Man Comes Down is a novel that yearns to be a screenplay. With the right producer, it could be a new American classic. As a film, imagine McCabe and Mrs. Miller meets Secret of Roan Inish. As a cinematic TV series, imagine Poldark meets The Proposition. I would pair the adaptation with a documentary about Freebury himself—think The Diving Bell and the Butterfly meets The Burden of Dreams.
If he sold it into film, A Man Comes Down could carry James Freebury sailing into realms unknown.
Myth
Entertainments provide escapism, worlds and lives we can project ourselves into when we need to escape (the rooms where we live locked with our trauma). Escapism is important. But story elevated to myth is more than simple escapism.
My mentor once told me that with higher literature and film—like the myths and folktales they superseded—we return to our lives with a new understanding of how to be a human. Freebury has written a fine story. But has he achieved mythogenesis?
My question for him was what does his story teach us about life—how to survive the
trials of life—how to thrive?
He had this to say, “The point or the lesson, is that the person or the thing you most need, may not come from the direction that you expect, hopefully, you can be yourself three dimensionally enough that you can pivot to meet the positive chances to come your way, that is true in my very difficult circumstances as well…”
I would add, with some poignancy, that I detected the theme of escaping the stories others impose on us. It is the plight of both the central characters.
Ithaca
James could see me from his window as I left through the garden gate. Then I turned and disappeared from his fixed view.
I was newly mindful of each step I took as I climbed his hill to the VA hospital to take in the view of Ocean Beach. I needed to clear my head. It had been taxing for him to write his answers. It was taxing for me to wait for his replies in that close room.
His answers touched my questions but often flew off on his own flights of fancy. Had I seen him? Or was I mythologizing him with this article? Was I trapping him, or was I setting him free? I was in a black mood. Dark clouds raced across the dome of the sky as I climbed higher. I stood on his peak and watched the waves wash ashore.
There I remembered his answer to my last question: “James, if this story is your Odyssey, what is your Ithaca? What is your happy ending?”
He answered severally, ruefully mindful that one of the lessons of The Odyssey is that one can never go home again. He answered: His Ithaca was to lift himself from his hospital bed and “go upstairs to my old apartment and have a cup of tea in solitude again, with a view of the sea from above.” So small a journey and yet, so impossibly vast. Twenty thousand leagues for Odysseus and 20 steps for James are but the same.
A white butterfly flashed by, tumbling on the currents of wind that stung my eyes. How can we survive? The answer is surely in our myths.
Learn more: James Freebury has published ‘A Man Comes Down’ on his Substack, ‘Analysis by Paralysis,’ at analysisbyparalysis.substack.com. He hopes to have it made into a movie. Between the chapters, he has published autobiographical reflections dating from his aneurism. He welcomes collaborators to facilitate his adaptations.
The spirit of Terrapin Crossroads rolls back into Sonoma County when the Terrapin Roadshow returns for a two-night stand at the Monte Rio Amphitheater. Led in part by Grahame Lesh, the traveling series revives the communal, improvisational ethos long associated with the extended Grateful Dead universe, gathering an expansive roster of musicians for marathon evenings of jam-band exploration beneath the redwoods. The lineup shifts throughout the run but includes familiar names from the broader Dead-adjacent orbit, with equal emphasis placed on musicianship and the loose-knit fellowship that tends to form around this music. In Monte Rio, that combination of river-town atmosphere, outdoor amphitheater and persistent countercultural glow is especially well matched. 5pm, Saturday, May 30, and 2pm, Sunday, May 31, at Monte Rio Amphitheater, 9925 Main St. $81 general admission; $151 VIP. More information at terrapincrossroads.net.
Petaluma ART/WORK
Labor gets the gallery treatment in ART/WORK, a group exhibition at IceHouse Gallery featuring artists Cat Alden, Ryan Carrington and Emma Logan, curated by Carin Jacobs. The show examines work wear, labor tools and the broader social meanings attached to work itself, using unexpected materials and interdisciplinary ideas pulled from sociology, politics, economics and gender studies. Set inside the industrial bones of the Burdell Building—once tied to Petaluma’s poultry and dairy economy—the exhibition gains an added layer of resonance, turning the gallery into a meditation on what societies value, produce and wear down in the process. Thoughtful, tactile and occasionally sly, it’s an art show with dirt under its fingernails. Exhibition continues through June 5 at IceHouse Gallery, 405 East D St., Petaluma. Gallery hours 11am–5pm Monday–Friday, 11am–4pm Saturday. Free admission. More information at digitalgrange.com/icehouse-gallery.
Novato Saxsquatch
Somewhere between cryptid folklore, EDM spectacle and late-night jam-band fever dream lurks Saxsquatch, the seven-foot-tall saxophone-wielding creature bringing his “Bigfoot Rave” energy to the HopMonk Novato Cookout Concert Series. Equal parts electronic producer, philosopher and genuinely skilled multi-instrumentalist, Saxsquatch has built a massive online following through absurdist charm, laser-heavy live shows and collaborations that veer from John Oates to Billy Ray Cyrus. DJ Zack Darling opens. 6pm, Friday, May 22, at HopMonk Novato, 224 Vintage Way. Tickets required. More information at hopmonk.com.
Sausalito Authors Among Us
Sausalito’s long-running reputation as a haven for bohemians, poets and colorful literary types gets a proper airing when the Sausalito Historical Society hosts an evening devoted to the town’s writerly past. Part of the society’s new Authors exhibit, the program features readings from the works of late Sausalito authors including Shel Silverstein, Maya Angelou and others whose lives and careers intersected with the famously eccentric waterfront community. The broader exhibit highlights the published works of 40 writers connected to Sausalito, spanning poets, playwrights, screenwriters, adventurers and assorted intellectual mischief-makers. Literary history, in other words, with a sea breeze attached. 6–7:30pm, Friday, May 22, at Sausalito Library, 420 Litho St. Free admission. More information at sausalitohistoricalsociety.com.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): If you’re a professional photographer, now is an ideal moment to invest in the higher-end lens you know would expand your best work. If you’re a committed chef, it’s a perfect time to spring for a precision knife set that elevates your craft. If you’re a devoted yoga or meditation teacher preparing a new series, you might decide to purchase an upgraded sound system to share your vocal offerings more crisply. And if you are none of the above, consider this your sign to obtain a key instrument or tool that will help you move to the next level of professionalism in the work you’re called to do.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): When we hear people described as having fertile imaginations, we may assume they are artists, writers or musicians. But the truth is that many creative visualizers are engineers, city planners, inventors and the like: those who design and build functional wonders. Of this group, you Tauruses make up a disproportionately high percentage. Your tribe is often most imaginative when vitalizing concrete details and transforming practical matters. In the coming weeks, this will be a vibrant X-factor in your relationship with the world.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): When many people reflect on their early years, they focus on the alienation and wounds they endured. Few recall, in vivid detail, the moments of joy, triumph and breakthrough. It’s a symptom, I suppose, of our era’s compulsive cynicism, and not necessarily an accurate account of the past. So many good things happened, too. This isn’t to dismiss the real pain that shaped us in our tender years. Still, I want you to know that you are in a season when it’s essential to recognize and celebrate the blessings of your beginnings—the fun, guidance and grace that helped you flourish. Update your gratitude.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Of all the zodiac signs, you have the most potential to cultivate robust emotional intelligence that’s helpful in practical situations. More than everyone else, your feelings are less likely to render you vulnerable and fragile and more likely to make you a powerhouse. The coming weeks will be prime time to deploy these talents to the max. I encourage you to summon gleeful exuberance as you provide your sensitive, heartful nurturing. Practice the ingenious art of keeping the world emotionally literate and spiritually alert.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): I am pleased to predict that you will be less egotistical and narcissistic in the coming weeks than you have ever been in your life. In saying that, I don’t mean to imply that you’re any more egotistical and narcissistic than the rest of us. I’m simply saying you can get a liberating reprieve from the excessive pride and selfishness that regularly debilitates us all. Congratulations, Leo. This grace period should enable you to deepen your attunement with your soul’s blueprint, the design of destiny you chose before birth. I bet you will enjoy a period of vibrant, exciting tranquility.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Consider this a friendly heads-up to your inner critic, your gloomy side and any voice in your head that expects too little from life. Upcoming astrological omens are influencing me to predict a stream of auspicious omens and fortunate events. So if you’d rather cling to tired stories about not being good enough or strong enough, you might want to skip my forecasts for a while. But if you’re ready to vivify your faith in your power to eagerly create what you desire, stay tuned. Karmic blessings are coming.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): To be blunt, dear Libra, I think you need soul medicine that’s most available in frontiers, borderlands and thresholds. Some of these might be bright, shiny places, and others may be akin to mazes and tunnels. Please keep in mind that your main motivation, as you seek adventures in the outskirts, should be the quest to have fun as you blow your own mind. For the sake of your lust for life and joie de vivre, you really must explore power spots untouched by trivia and pettiness: sanctuaries where vastness, freedom and raw vitality can wash away at least some of your fixations and habits.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Giant Pacific octopus dens are identifiable by the “gardens” of debris outside. They include shells and bones, arranged like ornamentation around the entrance. Are the creatures trying to decorate? Scientists don’t know. But it’s clear they are leaving evidence of their appetites. The result is distinctive, artistic and revealing. With this scenario as your metaphorical meditation, Scorpio, I invite you to look at what you have been pursuing and consuming in recent months. Contemplate the stuff piling up in your sphere. What do your finished experiences reveal about your quest for meaning? Does this pattern reflect your deepest intentions? Is this who you want to be? Make sure the story you’re telling about yourself is the right one.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Advising a Sagittarius to be patient is like asking a bonfire to burn slowly and politely. Still, I will give it a try. Because I love you, I will dare to be frank. So here goes: If you want to align yourself with astrological currents, practice being reverently at ease with life’s madness as you watch and wait. See if you can take genuine pleasure in resting within a field of calm trust. Imagine, with fearless delight, the rewards that will find you as you nurture a steady, unhurried confidence in your intuition, which will ultimately tell you exactly what you need to do.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In 1994, immunologist Polly Matzinger revolutionized her field with a radical theory. She discovered that our immune systems don’t focus on distinguishing “self” from “non-self,” but rather responding to threats. The body puts less emphasis on asking, “Is this me?” and more on “Is this harmful?” Her breakthrough transformed our understanding of immunity, autoimmune disease and transplant rejection. According to my analysis of the astrological riddles, you Capricorns could benefit from a similar adjustment. Don’t worry about whether any particular influence harmonizes with your identity or aligns with your history. Instead, ask, “Is it nourishing or harmful? Supportive or useless?” As you refresh your approach to guarding and protecting your precious self, new options will become visible.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): According to my interpretation of the astrological signals, you have run into an obstacle to your creative flow, or may soon do so. Though this could feel discouraging at first, I think it’s a promising sign. It indicates that a hidden bug is surfacing. An inner saboteur is no longer operating in the shadows. You’re being given the opportunity to repair an unseen energy leak that has been sapping your vitality. To illuminate this process, consider the wisdom of author Joyce Carol Oates. She says that writer’s block arises when a writer subconsciously believes that what they’re trying to create is false, misguided or harmful to themselves, which results in a temporary creative paralysis. Be brave and relentless in hunting down the glitch in your self-love, Aquarius.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Maybe you’ve been having thoughts like this: “I’m too scrambled to do what’s necessary to get unscrambled.” Here’s another snag that may be tangling your mind: “I’m too mixed up to know what questions to ask to sort out my confusion.” If this is true, Pisces, I’m here to offer advice. Imagine calling a timeout on the whole noisy world and slipping free of the habitual trance. Consider retreating to a sanctuary where time doesn’t oppress you and complications subside. Let your mind be empty, give your ambitions a rest and immerse your tender attention in the deepest part of yourself you can find.
Homework: The most beautiful thing you’ve done? The most beautiful thing you’ll do? https://tinyurl.com/333×999
For most music fans, Colin Hay will be forever known as a founding member of Men at Work, a group he spent six years in during its original run from 1978 to 1986.
During that time, the original quintet released three studio albums and won the 1983 Grammy for Best New Artist. In the four decades since the band’s first breakup, Hay has carved out a solid solo career for himself, releasing 16 solo albums.
He’s also worked with the likes of actor Zach Braff, who extensively used Hay’s music in the former’s 2004 cinematic debut, Garden State, and also invited the Scottish-born singer-songwriter to appear as himself in Braff’s sitcom, Scrubs. Through it all, Men at Work has never been far afield, as Hay has periodically reformed the group, at one point with his former bandmate, the late Greg Ham.
Hay will appear with a reformulated Men at Work tour lineup at BottleRock Napa Valley this Friday, May 22.
Meanwhile, Hay most recently released Men @ Work Volume 2, the sequel to his eighth studio album, Man @ Work. Like that collection, Volume 2 features reworkings of Hay’s group and solo work. For the 72-year-old rocker, the timing was right.
“After 23 years, it turns out (Man @ Work) sold 100,000 copies,” Hay said. “The label I’ve been working with all that time, Compass Records, sent me a little plaque (marking that milestone). It’s not bad for an independent release, in light of what was possible in the past. It’s still relatively humble in a way because it’s hard to get from zero to that amount in 23 years. The label said we should really do another one, and (I agreed) since I didn’t really have a new album of original material ready to go.”
He added, “I’d been doing some Men at Work material live, so they think there are tracks I could redo and reimagine. When I started to think about it, there were some songs I really liked that I wouldn’t mind doing again. It seemed to be the thing to do. Then we had the idea of re-photographing the cover to make it exactly the same cover, except it’s many odd years later.”
“I think there are some interesting takes on the songs and some acoustic ones that came out well. I enjoyed making it because of all the time I was in the studio by myself, and I can mess around. I’d just have a microphone and guitar and have another bite at the cherry, so to speak,” Hay continued.
Highlights on Volume 2 range from “Into My Life,” a pop nugget wrapped in chiming mandolin runs and layered vocal choruses that first appeared on Hay’s 1990 sophomore bow, Wayfaring Sons; the reggae-flavored “Blue for You” from the 1983 Men at Work album, Cargo; and closer “Next Year People,” an acoustic Dylanesque anthem of hope from the 2015 solo album of the same name.
Songs from the “Men at Work” albums will, of course, be included in the shows Hay is playing this summer, as he takes the current version of Men at Work on the road on a bill that also includes Toad The Wet Sprocket and Shonen Knife. The band is rounded out by bassist Yosmel Montejo, drummer Jimmy Branly, multi-instrumentalist Rachel Mazer, guitarist San Miguel Pérez and Hay’s spouse, Cecilia Noël, on harmony vocals and percussion.
When asked what fans can expect him to play for these shows, Hay responded with a clever analogy.
“It’s like when you walk into a party and think, ‘So and so will be there. It’ll be good to see him or her.’ You want to see these friends you’ve known for years,” he explained. “But, at the same time, it would be nice to have a conversation with a couple of strangers. You don’t want to be overwhelmed by the strangers, but sometimes, if there are too many old friends, you think that you’re sick of these people.”
Hay’s love of music dates back to a childhood growing up in Scotland, with memories of his mother vacuuming the house to the sounds of British big band stars like Al Bowlly and the Ray Noble Orchestra on a big Gramophone radio as her son lay there with his head against the speaker.
A major inflection point came when his father opened a record shop when his son was five and ran it until Hay was 14, at which point the entire family immigrated to Australia. Hay is quick to point out how much of his musical passions and influences were shaped by that particular time period.
“That was extraordinary, more so when I grew up and was an adult realizing that the most [remarkable] music was made during that time period, between 1958 and 1967, when we had the shop,” he recalled.
“You had the birth of everything and the discovery of everything. I was of course mad for The Beatles, The Kinks, The Rolling Stones, The Who, and then my brother turned me onto Booker T and the MGs, Otis Redding, Sam Cooke and all that stuff. That was a whole other deal. It was a rarified way to grow up,” added Hay.
Landing in another continent halfway around the world also proved to be fairly earth shattering for the young Scot, who quickly found a bubbling music scene to which he could relate.
“At that age, you are so impressionable,” Hay said. “By the time I went, I was almost who I was, but I got very much affected by my new environment. Although I had dreams about my Scottish homeland.”
“The curious thing was that there were a lot of bands made up of immigrants like me. AC/DC was from Scotland, and The Bee Gees were from England,” he noted. “The Little River Band was also made up of people from England. There were so many bands made up of immigrants in Australia during the ’60s and ’70s.”
Fast forward to the present, and Hay’s musical journey has taken him from early multi-platinum success with Men at Work to a steady solo career and being recruited to be a member of Ringo Starr’s All Starr Band back in 2003 that led to his being a regular member starting in 2018. He’s doing a run of dates with the former Beatle in late May and June, just ahead of the Men at Work U.S. tour. Even with so much history under his belt, the man from Down Under has plenty of unfinished business.
Said Hay, “I realize I don’t have as much time as I think I have, so I just need to get on with it.”
Men at Work performs at 8:45pm Friday, May 22 at the HelloFresh Stage at BottleRock Napa Valley. For more information, visit bottlerocknapavalley.com.
Philosophy, obsession and integrity are themes at the forefront of 6th Street Playhouse’s latest offering, The Lifespan of a Fact, directed by Libby Oberlin, now playing on their Monroe Stage in Santa Rosa through May 24.
The production is an actors’ showcase about human behavior. Some very grounded interactions are on full display here, as three characters grapple with the fact-checking process of a literary essay that takes myriad creative liberties in the name of emotional “truth.”
Jim Fingal (a subtle, persuasive Noah Vondralee-Sternhill, who excels at his comedic bits) is an eager up-and-coming writer assigned by his editor, Emily (Emily Lynn Cornelius, wielding her character’s high status with truth and unfussy humanity), to fact-check an essay by an aggressive author, John D’Agata (Marty Pistone, relishing the outlandish nature of this subversive character), who doesn’t take kindly to being dictated to. Egos and tension flare between the men, mediated by level-headed Emily, as they find themselves dissecting the very meaning of truth.
Though the characters aren’t given a ton of backstory, the time we spend with them reveals their nature organically. Their motivations are apparent without the obvious drama that can be tempting for a less experienced group of actors to ham it up.
The writing by Jeremy Kareken, David Murrell and Gordon Farrell is razor sharp without being artificial. Each actor had a few shaky moments as well as a number of instances of great believability too. Cornelius is particularly compelling as the harried editor, who recognizes the need for both airy poetry and dirty truth in a nonfiction piece of prose.
Lauryn Malilay continues her impressive scenic design streak with a clean, thoughtfully decorated set, aided with props by Ben Harper and Rachel Anderson. Projections, also by Malilay, are crisply executed. Noah Hewitt’s light design is both expansive and insular and darkens as the characters go more inward in their reflection.
The pacing was at times labored, with a few noticeable lulls in energy. But when it was firing on all cylinders, the action was riveting. Oberlin has an intelligent cast working hard to bring a very intellectual story to life. Those seeking a thought-provoking piece of theater will no doubt appreciate these efforts.
If that’s the kind of theater that sounds intriguing, one may consider grabbing a ticket to this original and unique story.
‘The Lifespan of a Fact’ runs through May 24 on the Monroe Stage at 6th Street Playhouse, 52 W. 6th Street, Santa Rosa. Fri–Sat, 7:30pm; Sat & Sun, 2pm. $27–$48. 707.523.4185. 6thstreetplayhouse.com.
It’s before noon on a Friday and downtown Petaluma is already buzzing with preparations for the first warm weekend of spring.
Nearby, the inside of the new building known as WonderStump matches the bustle even though it’s still not ready for its full debut.
That day will arrive at WonderStump on Friday, May 29, with Minneapolis-based punk-rock supergroup UltraBomb, which features members of Hüsker Dü, Social Distortion and Soul Asylum, taking the stage with Reno’s own Boss’ Daughter and Sonoma County rockers Redwood Chrome. But, as one looks around the space, it still feels miles away from hosting a night that is sure to pack the building which housed Al Stack’s Radiator Repair shop for as long as any Petaluman can remember.
However, there’s nothing stressful about talking to WonderStump co-founders Josh Cardenas—official title: “Director of Bits & Atoms, Lead Experience Designer”—and Kirsten Bjore—official title: “Curator of Creatures & Connection, Chief Creative Officer”—who are extremely chill while also excited to launch their dream project.
Essentially, WonderStump will be a combination interactive art space and museum by day and an event venue by night. Cardenas and Bjore’s paths crossed as both were high school art teachers by trade and both realized a shared vision of the kind of communal environment/immersive art space that WonderStump intends to become.
Cardenas, who grew up in Southern California, says he was “influenced by Disneyland, just being immersed in the whole themed-attraction thing.” This led him first into a career in theater and eventually to visual effects for film as well as 3D modeling and animation. “I just always really loved creating other worlds and other things for people to explore,” he says.
Bjore’s journey was much different. Hailing from Alaska, she always had a passion for more traditional art. Bjore says, “I was a teacher for 15 years but an artist my whole life” and notes drawing, painting and printmaking as her mediums, as well as leatherworking and costuming. As if on cue, we look to the left where some lovely, elaborate costumes she made are displayed.
Serendipitously, the duo crossed paths the first time as art teachers on a college trip with students. Cardenas says, “Kirsten was living in Texas at the time and we just got to talking and I said, ‘Oh, I’d love to do some kind of crazy, immersive art-space type stuff.’” A kindred spirit was discovered.
The two stayed in touch. “It was a shared dream that both of us always wanted to do, but we were in these other lives, teaching,” Bjore says. Yet again, fate’s hand intervened as Bjore soon moved to Northern California where the dream slowly became a reality. “Our biggest dream is to create a space where people feel inspired, joyful and curious. We all need more play and connection in our lives, and WonderStump is a place to find both,” she says.
Bjore also notes that after looking at countless spaces in and around the Bay Area, Petaluma’s artistic inclusivity made the town the perfect place for WonderStump. She mentions fellow art spaces like Slough City Studios, Alchemia and fellow newcomers Art Play Café and Grand Central Café as inspiration for what they have planned.
A brief tour of the space provides an intriguing and fun sneak peek at what Cardenas and Bjore have simmering for the upcoming concert, which will serve as a mere taste of the full WonderStump experience which opens to the public on June 20.
Many of the site’s permanent exhibits feature trees and their bases. One such tree stands over 8 feet tall and is embedded with small television sets that, upon completion, will stream video clips that serve as clues to a mystery one can solve. “Sort of like an escape room, but in reverse,” Cardenas says.
Nearby a set of train tracks with a couch nestled on them portend a Willy Wonka-esque video journey for guests, while across the room an intricately designed doorway housing a high-definition video screen beckons. A stage and lights are already set up but the question remains: Just what is a WonderStump?
At this question, Bjore’s ever-present sense of whimsy comes out in full. She says the idea for the name “is that a stump has potential. It might become a seat or a sculpture or a home for new life. The tree might have fallen or been cut down, but its story isn’t over.”
For more information about WonderStump and tickets for the May 29 concert with UltraBomb, Boss’ Daughter and Redwood Chrome, head to wonderstump.art.
Who doesn’t love Dr. Seuss? The works of Theodor Geisel, under his medical nom-de-plume, have been entertaining children and their parents for decades be they books such as The Cat in the Hat, television specials such as The Grinch Who Stole Christmas or films such as The Lorax.
Geisel, with a few notable exceptions, was reluctant to allow his books to be adapted to other media, but his widow signed off on a Broadway musical adaptation. Seussical the Musical debuted on the Great White Way back in 2000 and has become a favorite for theaters looking to mount family friendly shows. Rohnert Park’s Spreckels Theatre Company joins that group with a production running in their Codding Theater through May 17.
Frequent collaborators Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty (Ragtime) have taken material from about 20 Seuss stories, added about two dozen Seuss-like songs, and come up with a two-hour stage spectacular that’s a feast to look at and listen to but a jumbled mess to those familiar with the stories.
The main throughline is a combination of Horton Hears a Who and Horton Hatches the Egg with Gertrude McFuzz as Horton the Elephant (Malik Charles D. Wade I) tries to save the microscopic Who world from destruction while hatching the egg of irresponsible parent Mayzie LaBird (Nicole Stanley) with help from the ever-pining Gertrude McFuzz (Molly Larsen-Shine). The story is narrated by The Cat in the Hat (Nelson Brown) with an assist from the imagination of little JoJo Who (Tina Traboulsi).
Along the line the audience meets just about every other Dr. Seuss character, from the Sour Kangaroo (Monica Burrowes) and the residents of the Jungle of Nool to Yertle the Turtle (Peter Rogers).
This “spot the star” approach really doesn’t work, as the characters are injected into the story haphazardly. It’s apt to create some confusion in the minds of some young’uns, who will already be asking what pills Gertrude’s been popping and why Mayzie is slurring her words.
Despite the sloppy book, this show has several things going for it. There’s some outstanding character and vocal work being done, particularly by Larsen-Shine, Burrowes and Stanley; the 12-piece orchestra under the direction of Lucas Sherman sounds great; and the costumes (Donnie Frank) and set (courtesy Napa Valley College) are eye-popping. The show’s messages of coming together, accepting differences and having faith in one’s self are good for all ages.
Dr. Seuss purists may be aghast, but the target audience should have a good time at Seussical.
‘Seussical’ runs through May 17 in the Codding Theater at the Spreckels Performing Arts Center, 5409 Snyder Lane, Rohnert Park. Fri, 7:30pm; Sat & Sun, 2pm. $16-$44. 707.588.3400. spreckelsonline.com
Joining her father in 2010 after over two decades in the energy industry before that, Mia Mascarin became the fourth generation in the family wine business under its 32 Winds label.
Today, after the recent launch of its Mascarin Wines portfolio, which focuses on family owned or controlled single-vineyard wines and sustainable and organic farming practices, Mascarin says that her job description is “facilitating happiness and collaboration among my team members for the ultimate goal of producing seriously delicious wines, and curating fun ways to experience them.”
The winery recently hosted a pivotal industry panel at its idyllic creekside tasting room off Dry Creek Road, which focused on climate change and alternative grape varieties. Ana Carolina Quintela, the Sonoma County correspondent at Decanter, moderated the event. She was joined by Scott Schultz, of Jolie-Laide Wines; Sam Bilbro, of Idlewild Wines; and Mascarin winemaker Matt Taylor, also of Ink Grade & Matt Taylor Wines. The event explored and tasted nontraditional varieties like Trousseau Gris, Timorasso and Melon de Bourgogne, all indicating that California has microclimates suitable for broader experimentation that should be welcomed and celebrated.
Since 2025, Mascarin has been replanting its Angelo Vineyard, led by Taylor with the aim to transition to Loire varieties. Mascarin says this is the winery’s future. “Lesser-known varieties have long existed in California but are now experiencing a real resurgence,” she said. “Winemakers like Scott, Sam and Matt are helping bring these nearly forgotten grapes back into focus, and what they’re doing reflects exactly what today’s consumers are hungry for.”
Amber Turpin: How did you get into this work?
Mia Mascarin: I unwittingly followed my father into it, who followed his father and grandfather before him.
Did you ever have an “aha” moment with a certain beverage? If so, tell us about it.
When travelling through the Loire Valley and visiting local vignerons, I tasted a wine made by Benoit Courault—a Pineau d’Aunis blend that blew my mind with its fruit and spice complexity and sheer elegance. Benoit farms his organic vineyards with a horse and plow!
What is your favorite thing to drink at home?
Mascarin sauvignon blanc.
Where do you like to go out for a drink?
Fern Bar in Sebastopol.
If you were stuck on a desert island, what would you want to be drinking—besides fresh water?
It’s a toss-up between a blend of lemon and pineapple juices with turmeric, and a cold Vermentino. Need both for sustenance.
Mascarin Family Wines, 1010 Dry Creek Rd., Healdsburg. 707.433.1010. mascarin-wines.com
This weekend, May 14-17, boy’s town becomes girl’s town as the sapphic community descends on Guerneville for Women’s Weekend, a tradition 50 years in the making.
This year, our local queer fems will be joined by sisters from 22 states and three foreign countries. A projected 2,000 “beaver badge” weekend passes will be sold. Volunteers will exceed 120 in number. And with dyke rides, bike rides, yoga, hikes and floats, activations and entertainments across dozens of venues between Surrey Resort and R3, it’s difficult to imagine that just three years ago this tradition had dwindled down to 200 guests. It was time for a generational passing of the torch.
Producer Jodi Goldstein and superstar entertainer Tressa Young—also known as Miss Shugana and Madd Dogg 20/20—formed Shug-Dogg Productions to save it. They simply had to save it, says drag king Tressa Young.
Outside of The Dinah in Palm Springs, very few sapphic-centering events on scale exist on the West Coast. Most queer events are led by their gay brothers or the LGBTQIA+ alliance. And in these embattled times this pink “love bubble” needed to be protected, needed to be fostered and grown.
Cincinnatus Hibbard: Will y’all be making a drag appearance this year?
Jodi: No, because we really are too busy. We are trying to carve out time to be in the drag and burlesque Drag Strip.
Tressa: Friday and Saturday Night [of Women’s Weekend].
Festival production on this level isn’t easy, and you and your co-producers and board of 10 work all year before the frenzy. What should I tell queer, fem first-timers about Women’s Weekend?
Jodi: It is the Summer’s Kickoff for queer women. … One thing that brings a tear to my eye is that people say they feel profoundly welcomed and accepted—and celebrated in a way that they just aren’t outside of the Women’s Weekend bubble.
Tressa: And so many friendships are formed—that’s the feedback we get all year … people come back to see old friends and meet new friends.
Jodi: A lot of weddings happen afterwards, too.
How do you create such emotional and physical safety?
Jodi: We have pink signs, security and staff in pink shirts—but it’s really the community that is Women’s Weekend. They are fiercely protective of each other and will scoop up the lone bird into the wings of their group.
Any new events?
Jodi: The Saph Olympics—very silly, very tongue-and-cheek. The events are top secret but I will tell you one—the dildo javelin toss. Also, we have the best butch pageant at the welcome party. Oh, and inspirational rock painting.
Your event is perhaps best known for your drag burlesque and your pool parties—both at Surrey and R3. What top talent do you have this year?
Jodi: Lady Orion, a DJ who is also a player on the Golden State Valkyries basketball team; DJ Keesey, known for Klituation parties; and DJ PNasty.
Tressa: We also have Coco Lamar MC’ing our Drag show and Red Bone, who is a drag Legend.
Jodi: And Drag Superstar Mad Dogg 20/20! We have all of the parties, but we have chill stuff for people that get overwhelmed. We got yoga, we got artsy-craftsy, we have bonfires and we got a recovery meeting each morning before the debauchery begins [laughs].
Learn More: The full schedule can be seen, and beaver badge weekend passes and individual event tickets purchased, at womensweekendrussianriver.com. Get updates and hype on the instagram profile @womens_weekend_russian_river. Sorry baby gays, this event is 21+.
Milk Cops
Efforts to restrict plant-based products from using the word “milk” are gaining traction again, despite little evidence that consumers are confused (Reuters, April 24, 2026). Most people know exactly what oat milk is—and choose it intentionally.
So why the push to regulate language? It’s hard not to see it as an attempt to shield one industry from growing competition.
Consumers...
I have met James Freebury only twice. And both times after his accident. Our relationship was carried out over correspondence.
My first visit was along with local musician and impresario Josh Windmiller, who introduced us. We went to pantomime for James, a passage from the Scandinavian epic Beowulf of all things. We performed the scene where the hero confronts his...
Monte RioKeep on Truckin’
The spirit of Terrapin Crossroads rolls back into Sonoma County when the Terrapin Roadshow returns for a two-night stand at the Monte Rio Amphitheater. Led in part by Grahame Lesh, the traveling series revives the communal, improvisational ethos long associated with the extended Grateful Dead universe, gathering an expansive roster of musicians for marathon evenings of...
ARIES (March 21-April 19): If you’re a professional photographer, now is an ideal moment to invest in the higher-end lens you know would expand your best work. If you’re a committed chef, it’s a perfect time to spring for a precision knife set that elevates your craft. If you’re a devoted yoga or meditation teacher preparing a new series,...
For most music fans, Colin Hay will be forever known as a founding member of Men at Work, a group he spent six years in during its original run from 1978 to 1986.
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Philosophy, obsession and integrity are themes at the forefront of 6th Street Playhouse’s latest offering, The Lifespan of a Fact, directed by Libby Oberlin, now playing on their Monroe Stage in Santa Rosa through May 24.
The production is an actors’ showcase about human behavior. Some very grounded interactions are on full display here, as three characters grapple with the...
It’s before noon on a Friday and downtown Petaluma is already buzzing with preparations for the first warm weekend of spring.
Nearby, the inside of the new building known as WonderStump matches the bustle even though it’s still not ready for its full debut.
That day will arrive at WonderStump on Friday, May 29, with Minneapolis-based punk-rock supergroup UltraBomb, which features...
Who doesn’t love Dr. Seuss? The works of Theodor Geisel, under his medical nom-de-plume, have been entertaining children and their parents for decades be they books such as The Cat in the Hat, television specials such as The Grinch Who Stole Christmas or films such as The Lorax.
Geisel, with a few notable exceptions, was reluctant to allow his books...
Joining her father in 2010 after over two decades in the energy industry before that, Mia Mascarin became the fourth generation in the family wine business under its 32 Winds label.
Today, after the recent launch of its Mascarin Wines portfolio, which focuses on family owned or controlled single-vineyard wines and sustainable and organic farming practices, Mascarin says that her...
This weekend, May 14-17, boy’s town becomes girl’s town as the sapphic community descends on Guerneville for Women’s Weekend, a tradition 50 years in the making.
This year, our local queer fems will be joined by sisters from 22 states and three foreign countries. A projected 2,000 “beaver badge” weekend passes will be sold. Volunteers will exceed 120 in number....
