Green Makes Green

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Green Makes Green

When the Santa Rosa Share Exchange filed an application this summer to become green-certified through the Sonoma Green Business Program, Rebecca Valentine was surprised to find there was nobody to process it. “Our county prides itself on its sustainability goals,” says the business’ outreach coordinator. “To have this missing-in-action piece feels like the county is not partnering with businesses who are waiting to be part of it.”

Sonoma County has one of the lowest number of green-certified businesses in the North Bay at 52, compared to Napa County’s 93 and Marin County’s whopping 432. This might be due in part to a six-month lull this year when the position of program coordinator went unfilled in Sonoma County.

At print time, a new coordinator from San Francisco has been hired and starts this month. “We’re prepared to move forward expeditiously once the new guy is on board,” says Ben Stone, director of the Sonoma County Economic Development Board. “Our goal is to be the most active program in the Bay Area.”

In the interim, there have been about 20 businesses hoping to get green-certified. “We will have sort of a pipeline of people interested in moving forward,” says Stone. Some smaller businesses, home offices included, are “pretty much self-certified” in less than a day, he adds, but to get larger businesses and manufacturers to join in takes more work. “It could take months,” says Stone, “simply because we have to work with other agencies and get them out there.”

Different types of businesses receive different checklists for certification. An auto shop has a different set of standards and regulations than an office building, for example. Larger operations warrant on-site checks by PG&E, the Sonoma County Water Agency, Sonoma County Waste Management and the Department of Emergency Services.

The advantages, in Stone’s eyes, are mostly economical. “It helps [businesses] become more efficient,” he says. “It helps them get prepared for increasing [environmental] regulations that may be coming.” And there’s the added benefit of using the official green-certified marketing materials, which attracts customers. Stone says despite the lack of coordinator, interest has been growing in the program. “I think companies see there’s economic benefit.”

The Bay Area Green Business Program has certified more than 2,300 businesses and public agencies since 1996. The Sonoma Green Business Program is funded by the Sonoma County Water Agency to the tune of $50,000 annually, paid by water-conservation fees.

After a meeting last week, Economic Development Board program manager Al Lerma said his department is looking forward to a “working partnership” with the Santa Rosa Share Exchange. Valentine said it was a step toward trying to establish connection and rapport with the EDB, and hopes to be a “downtown hub” for businesses to learn about the program from one that’s been through the process. “We want to have some kind of debriefing for small business,” says Valentine.

Journey’s End

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Journey’s End

A tour of Quicksilver Mine Co. with Khysie Horn, owner of the downtown Forestville gallery, goes beyond looking admiringly at paintings, collages and sculptures. Walking among the assemblage pieces, ceramics, pen- and-ink drawings and paintings feels like attending an elegant and spirited party, one populated by Horn’s friends and mentors spanning decades.

She points out an assemblage piece of wood, nails and a baby shoe, by Raymond Barnhart, the Sebastopol artist who died in a car accident in 1996. Next, an abstract painting by Horst Trave, Healdsburg artist and co-founder of the first Beat gallery in the Bay Area, who died this year at age 94. Younger artists like Hamlet Mateo and Kai Samuels-Davis also take part in the exhibit.

Horn talks fondly of this art, her voice tinged with nostalgia; after 30 years of existence, Quicksilver Mine Co. will permanently close its doors on Dec. 31. “The Last Hurrah” exhibit, showing now, features nearly 90 artists and craftspeople, just a fraction of the 600 that have exhibited in the gallery since 1983.

It’s a bittersweet time, Horn admits, sitting on a finely crafted wooden bench in the Quicksilver sculpture garden. The space has been a prime location for gallery talks, literary events, concerts and community gatherings. And though Horn remains passionate about the work, the gallery has taken up half of her life, and it’s time for a change. “There’s nothing I can imagine that would be more interesting than to work with all of these people that do all of the amazing things,” she says, “But I can’t really go anywhere or do anything; I’m essentially married to it.”

Quicksilver’s origins go back to the early ’80s and its initial incarnation as a Guerneville gift shop stocked with Sonoma County food products and crafts (long before “local” became a buzzword), along with original art displayed in the hallway of the Cinnabar building. Soon, Horn expanded into a space that provided for a “true” gallery. A committee of local artists, including John Chambers and Bonnie Smith, helped Horn curate shows. Later, she moved into a third location in Sebastopol. In 2001, Horn bought a building in Forestville, transforming the space into a sunlit, white-walled professional gallery.

“It is a special place she’s designed for artists,” says Janet Charnofsky, a Sebastopol artist who has both exhibited and purchased work at Quicksilver. “If you want to see everybody, you come to one of the openings. The artists gravitate toward Khysie.”

Satri Pencak, West County artist and independent curator, commends Quicksilver’s professional installations and Horn’s willingness to give artists their first solo shows, always open to emerging artists as well as those with international reputations.

“Over these past many years, the Quicksilver Mine Co. has been one of the best art galleries in Sonoma County, and perhaps north of the Golden Gate Bridge,” says Pencak.

If she had the energy to run the gallery forever, Horn says, she probably would.

“I love hanging shows,” she says with a wistful smile. ” I love working with the artists. I love the part of being in business for myself. But I really know it’s the right decision for me.”

Ch-Ch-Changes

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Ch-Ch-Changes

After 130 shows at Studio E in rural Sebastopol—an orchard-bound shed which has doubled as a haven for deadhead parties and a rehearsal space for Tom Waits—Laurie Schaeffer is looking for a new venue.

“I need somewhere easier to use,” the North Bay Live promoter says. “Hopefully requiring less volunteers.”

Schaeffer, who began putting on concerts 15 years ago and has been at Studio E for the past eight years, says she wants to “invent” a venue starting in early 2013. “I’m looking at old buildings like granges, and I have some exciting potentials.” This week, Kinky Friedman (pictured) closes Schaeffer’s run at the iconic listening room on Friday, Dec. 14, at 8pm. $40. Directions provided with tickets; see www.northbaylive.com for details.

Meanwhile, the long-running dance night Rock ‘n’ Roll Sunday School this week stops just short of a mammoth 10-year run. Since its inception at the Roaring 20s dive bar in Roseland, the weekly party has made lovers out of strangers, DJs out of dancers, miracles out of martinis and rapture out of rhythm at nearly a half-dozen venues as one of the county’s most enduring institutions. Organizers say this week’s will be the last; a playlist heavy on classic jams and a bittersweet kiss to 10 years of memories is guaranteed on Sunday, Dec. 16, at Society:Culture House. 528 Seventh St., Santa Rosa. 9:30pm. 707.336.2582.

Bucklin Winery

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Bucklin Winery

When Will Bucklin set out to make wine from his family’s own vineyard, his longtime grape buyer was dubious. After all, Joel Peterson had built a hugely successful winery on the strength of old vine Zinfandel from vineyards like Old Hill. It was sort of his baby, closely identified with Ravenswood Winery. But after taking one whiff of Bucklin’s version, Peterson handed it back and simply declared, “That’s Old Hill!”

They’d worked out a fastidious system to keep the harvest on a par. Planted in 1885 by William McPherson Hill, the 12-acre plot contains a hodgepodge of grapes besides Zinfandel; any variation in the pick could alter the wine’s character. Some of the vines stand out among the rest, as Bucklin’s cat demonstrates during a tour of the vineyard. Scrambling up a massive trunk, she enjoys a perch high above the Zinfandel atop a Grenache vine.

With the help of a UC Davis researcher, Bucklin developed an intricate, color-coded map of the vineyard’s resident varietals. At first glance, it might be a demographic map of lower Manhattan. Why so random? Bucklin is all too familiar with that question. Trying to guess at the overall plan is like divining meaning from the pattern of clouds—a kind of madness. Bucklin uses the map to cull Grenache from the field, resulting in the deeply colored and substantial 2010 Old Hill Ranch Grenache ($38).

Adhering to the organic practices of his late stepfather Otto Teller, who donated the ranch’s conservation easement to the Sonoma Land Trust, which he founded, Bucklin farms the vineyard with minimal input. His live-and-let-live critter policy is even extended to gophers—although the cats run their own program—and deer. As Teller used to say, “Deer got to eat, too.”

If the 2009 Old Hill Ranch Zinfandel ($34) is not simple, bright and jammy, it’s on target. Mixed spices and integrated, lingering flavors all play supporting roles in this complex field blend. Bucklin took cuttings from Zinfandel, Petite Sirah and Alicante Bouschet vines to create the new “Bambino” block. But the 2010 “Bambino” Zinfandel ($24) has a similar earthy-spicy aroma—cardamom, cocoa and cranberry bread—and rich, brooding fruit.

The Bucklins are happy to sell their wines mainly through traditional distribution channels, rather than spend a lot of time on self-promotion. Will Bucklin prefers to stay by the vineyard and walk it daily, on the insistence of his “best tool in the vineyard,” he says, gesturing toward patiently waiting dog Tanner. There’s always something new to discover in a historic vineyard that’s as unique as a thumbprint.

Bucklin Winery, 8 Old Hill Ranch Road, Glen Ellen. Visits by appointment only. 707.933.1726.

This Modern Retort

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This Modern Retort

I wanted to say that I found last week’s cartoon of This Modern World (Nov. 28) to be both a racist and sexist stereotype of white males. Not all white males are racist, sexist or conservative. That is politically correct BS propaganda. Is Joe Biden racist, sexist or conservative? What about Jerry Brown? I’ve noticed how quickly some people will rush to say, “Not all Muslims are terrorists.” The white male appears to be the one group of people you can get away with bashing these days. Those of the politically correct persuasion would very zealously defend anyone else.

Also it has been many white males who have made the biggest contributions to our modern world. Our founding fathers gave us the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. The Wright brothers gave us the airplane. Gary Watson gave us IBM. Henry Ford gave us the automobile. Have you forgotten that domestic violence is more prevalent in South Asia and the Middle East? There is also the practice of “honor killings”—females are usually the target of these. This happens whenever they displease their fathers or husbands. Courts in those countries are very lenient in those cases.

The Taliban kills women before letting them go to school. Yet the white male is always the one who gets put on the hot seat for racism and sexism. Accusing any other ethnicity of racism or sexism appears to be a serious faux pas, even if it’s true. I also know from personal experience that white people get racially discriminated against. I’ve applied at a few McDonald’s and found that out. I remember two times going in for an interview and noticing all the people working behind the counter were Mexican, mostly women. I didn’t get hired at either one. Tom Tomorrow’s cartoon is flawed and misinformed.

Let’s get down to it: all ethnicities are capable of being racist and sexist. It’s only white males who you can bash for it. That’s also a racist stereotype. Please at least get that right.

Ken Stout is a fifty-something white male living in the San Jose area.Open Mic is a weekly op/ed feature in the Bohemian.

We welcome your contribution. To have your topical essay of 350 words considered for publication, write op*****@******an.com.

Grape Appeal

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Grape Appeal

On Dec. 4, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors approved a proposal for a 10,000-case winery to be built near Mark West Creek. Henry Cornell (pictured), a wealthy Goldman Sachs partner who lives in Manhattan but owns 215 acres off St. Helena Road, released the proposal for the new winery nearly eight years ago. The supervisorial vote came after the project’s lawyers presented reports showing safeguards incorporated to protect wildlife and water. As reported by Alastair Bland in a 2011 Bohemian feature, neighbors and environmentalists protested the winery’s impact on the Mark West Watershed and the coho salmon and steelhead that once heavily populated its waters. Such protest remains, and New Old Ways Wholistically Emerging, the opposition group, is considering a legal challenge to the ruling, which they say doesn’t take the effects of a second winery upstream of Mark West Creek into consideration.

Kids on the Outside

Roughly 700 homeless youth sleep on Sonoma County streets on any given night, according to recent surveys. On Dec. 14, Social Advocates for Youth promotes awareness of this reality with the SAY Sock Walk. The walk features a cell phone walking tour that enables participants to hear directly from the homeless youth served by the Sonoma County organization. At the end of the walk, hot soup and beverages from Rendez Vous Bistro, Dierk’s Parkside Café and Big River Coffee Company are served. Hear the voices of homeless teens on Friday, Dec. 14, at Courthouse Square in Santa Rosa. 5:30pm-7:45pm. Cost is one pair of socks for homeless youth with a requested donation of $10 (no one will be turned away). 707.544.3299.

25 Days Project: Golden Carrot Natural Foods

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25 Days Project: Golden Carrot Natural Foods

GoldenCarrot.jpg

I can picture the red-haired Lorna Bridsall in another age, holding court in a Celtic cottage where dried herbs hang thickly from the rafters and more than one cauldron steams fragrantly over the peat fire. There, Lorna’s calm presence would have a placebo effect, getting clients to start healing even before she gave them their herbs. For a shopkeeper of the 21st century, Lorna comes pretty close to that archetype at her corner store, Golden Carrot Natural Foods. When I drop in to pick up something organic or hard-to-find, she’s usually listening patiently to someone about an ache, pain or dietary challenge; she responds not as a salesperson but as an empathetic and knowledgeable healer who’s been through it all herself and genuinely loves to help people. Small wonder her few employees do not turn over. It’s like a family. The other day her employees threw Lorna a private birthday party in the back of the store; when I came in they showed me what they’d created for her—an intricately adorned scene, replete from ceiling to table with nesting birds and bits of forest treasures. Pretty Celtic-looking, I thought, and pretty loving. You can’t buy this at Whole Foods. 1621 W. Imola Ave., Napa, 707.224.3117.—Juliane Poirier

The 25 Days Project is an online series through the month of December spotlighting some of our favorite local businesses. Read more about the project here, and about our commitment to shopping locally here.

The North Bay Shines in New Easy Leaves Video

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The new Easy Leaves video for the song “Get Down,” directed by Sebastian Nau, is a sweet little tribute to the band’s Sonoma County roots. I’m not sure where the video was filmed (maybe Petaluma?), but there’s lots of shots of lush and rolling emerald hills, grazing cows, tractors, and craggly live oaks. The premise is simple. Main band guys Kevin Carducci and Safe Fifield wake up to a day of drudgery in the fields when all they want to be doing is playing music with their friends and drinking Lagunitas beers until the wee hours of the night. It’s a simple paen by these 2011 NorBay Award Winners to the joy within “an ocean of smoke and wine.”
The Easy Leaves bring their North Bay Americana to the Great American Music Hall on January 4th. More info here: http://www.theeasyleaves.com/

25 Days Project: Starbase No. 1 Arcade

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25 Days Project: Starbase No. 1 Arcade

Starbase.jpg

In the late ’70s and much of the 1980s, when people wanted to play the latest video games, they didn’t turn on the TV and fire up the PlayStation. They went down to the nearest video arcade, dropped some quarters into the blinking, blurring, electronic-music-making machine of their choice, and were transported—right there in public—into a world of space invaders, centipedes, Pac-Men, paperboys and asteroids. Today, the once-thriving arcade biz has been driven to near-extinction by the multibillion dollar, often-internet-driven home-video-game business, providing an endless stream of interactive entertainment for the lonesome formats of television, laptops, tablets and cell phones. But there are still a few places to play your favorite game in public, alongside others who still appreciate the noisy thrill of the live arcade experience. Video Bob’s Starbase No. 1 Arcade, in downtown San Rafael, is a good, old-fashioned, bells-and-whistles mom-and-pop operation, not unlike the one nostalgically portrayed in the hit animated movie Wreck-It Ralph. One of the last dedicated arcades in the Bay Area, Star Base Arcade, run for years by Bob Allbritten, is a splash of newfangled video magic with the pleasantly retro charm of days gone by. 1545 Fourth St., San Rafael, 415.459.7655.—D.T.

The 25 Days Project is an online series through the month of December spotlighting some of our favorite local businesses. Read more about the project here, and about our commitment to shopping locally here.

25 Days Project: G&G Supermarket

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25 Days Project: G&G Supermarket

G_G.jpg

I’ll never forget the night I packed the final batch of my things in my station wagon and drove away for the last time. She even made me take the cat, which I guess was fair. It was 1999, and I was single again, driving to my new one-bedroom apartment. Might as well learn to cook, I thought, as I pulled into G&G Supermarket. Starting with something easy—I think it was stir-fry—I asked an employee for tips about kimchi. Quickly, I learned that everyone working at the store had ideas on cooking, and was happy to help craft my clueless ambition into edible dinners for one on a nightly basis. Those dinners are now for two—whoops, three, actually!—but they’re still bought at G&G. They’ve got a huge selection, great prices and scads of lesser common items that continue to pique my imagination after 13 years. Markets that take your whole paycheck try to seem home-spun with handwritten signs and folksy decor, but G&G’s vast collection of vintage promotional items and signs from the 1980s (the Virginia Slims conveyor belt splitter!) are proof that the Gong family has been embedded in the community for generations. And, they occasionally sell weird things, like antique telephone wire insulators (see photo). You ain’t gonna see that at Safeway, that’s for sure. 1211 W. College Ave., Santa Rosa, 707.546.6877; 701 Sonoma Mountain Pkwy., Petaluma, 707.765.1198.

The 25 Days Project is an online series through the month of December spotlighting some of our favorite local businesses. Read more about the project here, and about our commitment to shopping locally here.

Green Makes Green

Sonoma Green Business Program gets coordinator, teams up with Santa Rosa Share Exchange
Read more

Journey’s End

Quicksilver Mine Co. closes its doors after 30 years of art and community
Read more

Ch-Ch-Changes

Studio E evolves, Rock 'n' Roll Sunday School ends
Read more

Bucklin Winery

The enchanting madness of Old Hill
Read more

This Modern Retort

All ethnicities capable of racism, sexism Ken Stout
Read more

Grape Appeal

On Dec. 4, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors approved a proposal for a 10,000-case winery to be built near Mark West Creek. Henry Cornell (pictured), a wealthy Goldman Sachs partner who lives in Manhattan but owns 215 acres off St. Helena Road, released the proposal for the new winery nearly eight years ago. The supervisorial vote came after...
Read more

25 Days Project: Golden Carrot Natural Foods

I can picture the red-haired Lorna Bridsall in another age, holding court in a Celtic cottage where dried herbs hang thickly from the rafters and more than one cauldron steams fragrantly over the peat fire. There, Lorna’s calm presence would have a placebo effect, getting clients to start healing even before she gave them their herbs. For a shopkeeper...
Read more

The North Bay Shines in New Easy Leaves Video

The new Easy Leaves video for the song "Get Down," directed by Sebastian Nau, is a sweet little tribute to the band's Sonoma County roots. I'm not sure where the video was filmed (maybe Petaluma?), but there's lots of shots of lush and rolling emerald hills, grazing cows, tractors, and craggly live oaks. The premise is simple. Main band...
Read more

25 Days Project: Starbase No. 1 Arcade

In the late ’70s and much of the 1980s, when people wanted to play the latest video games, they didn’t turn on the TV and fire up the PlayStation. They went down to the nearest video arcade, dropped some quarters into the blinking, blurring, electronic-music-making machine of their choice, and were transported—right there in public—into a world of space...
Read more

25 Days Project: G&G Supermarket

I’ll never forget the night I packed the final batch of my things in my station wagon and drove away for the last time. She even made me take the cat, which I guess was fair. It was 1999, and I was single again, driving to my new one-bedroom apartment. Might as well learn to cook, I thought, as...
Read more
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