The Good Life ~ Sacramento
Exploring a City with a Small-Town Feel and World of PotentialArchive for Community Support
Lights, Camera, Action, Enjoy
Crest's Marqui Being Remodled
Now in its 11th year, the SF&MF has grown quite colorfully to embrace and encourage new facets of filmmaking. Two programs for local filmmakers, both in their seventh year, encourage and support community engagement. Sac Music Seen is a program that matches local filmmakers to local musicians to make original music videos, with almost 150 completed projects to date. The 10×10 Filmmaker Challenge is SF&MF’s own answer to the guerilla filmmaking phenomenon, with teams being allowed ten days to make a ten minute movie.
The Festival also partners with other longstanding community events, such as the Sacramento International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. This year, one evening includes a fascinating pair of documentaries about the dangers to senior citizens in the LGBT community who sometimes find themselves going back into the closet to avoid discrimination in settings like assisted living facilities, and a film about transgendered musicians and singers.
SF&MF’s ongoing relationships allows for further interesting partnerships, including Sony, Rubios, Sacramento News & Review, Capital Film Arts Alliance and Mayor Kevin Johnson’s Arts Initiative. “Our primary mission is to showcase the work of talented filmmakers, but we’re also very much a community arts event and we work closely with our partners…to promote local interest and involvement at all levels.”
Freeport Festa: You are Cordially Invited
Mary, Monica & Justina Invite you to Festa
Festa Dinner
Saturday, May 29
Tri-Tip, Beans, Bread, Salad, Dessert
$15 per person
Music
Festa
Sunday, May 30
Parade starts at 10am
Mass at 11:30am
Auction at 1:30 (Donations are welcome)
Freeport-Clarksburg
Portuguese Hall
54113 South River Road
[North of Clarksburg in Yolo County - 2 ½ miles north of Freeport Bridge]
For more information, contact Monica Souza at (916) 925-8661.
Scotts, Celts, Kilts, Cold Beer!
Festival-Goers and Historical Characters Mingling
Since I live there, it’s probably okay for me to admit that Woodland is not especially well known for its fancy variety of world-renowned festivals… But having just attended the 134th Annual Sacramento Valley Scottish Games & Festival at the Yolo County Fairgrounds, I think this one’s worth writing home about.
Modeled after the traditional gatherings of Scots in their homeland, the weekend-long festival features Olympic-style heavy athletics and Highland dancing, pipe bands and Celtic rock groups, sheep dog trials, historical re-enactments and more.
Just like any festival, there’s plenty of good food and fun, cold beer and faire frills, shows and vendors (although I would have personally appreciated more of those). But unlike many festivals, this one’s got an eye-full of colorful kilts walking around, as well as those manly Scottish games playing out on the open field. This April, there was plenty of sunshine and luckily also plenty of shade beneath ye olde olive trees. And if there’s one thing about Woodland, everything’s pretty easy here: easy to access, easy entry… easy escape.
What began as a simple “Scottish Picnic Competition” in a park is now what allows the club to “benefit” the public through education, scholarships and charity. McKinley Park in East Sacramento was the site of the first Sacramento Scottish Games & Gathering on June 16, 1877. The festival moved to the 55-acre Yolo County Fairgrounds in 1997 due to it having more elbow room, ample parking and helpful fairground staff.
The event is hosted by the Caledonian Club of Sacramento, a nonprofit organization established in 1876. Club membership is open to any one of Scottish birth or descent, their kin, and to any person interested in the rich and historic traditions of Scotland. They host other annual events, including the Sacramento Tartan Ball in November.
Keep the Sacramento Scottish Games in mind next year; it’s a magical day for anyone interested in Scottish and Celtic arts, culture and history – or anyone just a fan of festivals, period. It takes place the last full weekend of every April.
http://www.saccallie.org, (916) 557-0764.
Moon in Your Eye Like a Big Pizza Pie
Camellia Symphony Orchestra
The moon was as round and large as a family-sized pizza from Ricos. It was even more startling since we hadn’t seen the likes of a moon in quite some time. The air had a hint of crispness to it, but not so much that it really felt like winter anymore.
After a cozy visit with drinks and spring rolls at PF Changs, Tom and I ventured just across the street to the Memorial Auditorium for some pre-show wine tasting by Scribner Bend. There was also a silent auction before ‘Charms, Spells and Enchantments’ was set to begin.
The title alone was enough to intrigue me, but the question remained: Would the Camellia Symphony Orchestra’s performance equally entrance us? There was, perhaps, another question I should have been asking myself instead… What is the Camellia Symphony all about?
As it turns out, the CSO musicians are volunteers. It’s been that way for 47 years. And for 47 years, area residents have enjoyed and supported the orchestra in return. I just wish I knew that going in. I also wish I knew this was a one-night only gig. Meaning, the musicians put all that blood, sweat and tears into learning these magnificent pieces… only to perform them in front of a crowd once.
On this night – Saturday, February 27th – the music unveiled a tale that words perhaps could not, but a little background information did help set the stage. ‘Charms, Spells and Enchantments’ was composed of three unusual masterpieces that are not frequently played. Each one is “derived from worlds of fantasy and magic … capable of transporting the receptive listener into realms foreign to customary daily life.” For instance, there’s a wizard’s apprentice who summons up some serious trouble; a broomstick brought to life, a flood of cascading waters and an anarchic world of frenzy (The Sorcerer’s Apprentice by Paul Dukas). And a beautiful gypsy girl falls in love with a handsome young man, only to be held back from true love by a pursuant ghost (El Amor Brujo by Manuel De Falla). Finally, with Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, the “unrelenting rhythms mirror our darker, more irrational nature” and tendency to sacrifice purity for prosperity.
Although often mesmerized by the movements of the musicians, I had to look at the majesty of the space I was in to fully engage my imagination. What the Memorial Auditorium lacks in acoustics, it makes up for with eclectic and elegant old-world beauty. Built in 1926, the auditorium has welcomed such musical talents as the Rolling Stones, Beach Boys, Melissa Etheridge and Death Cab for Cutie. It is on the National Historic Register.
The Camellia Symphony Orchestra next will present ‘The Great Classics’ on April 17, again at the Memorial Auditorium. Tickets are affordable, the venue is enchanting and the music is moving and soothing to the soul.
Local volunteer musicians and members ensure the orchestra will persevere, making it practically a family affair. When it comes to the survival of art in all forms in our community, it is in large part up to us to stay engaged and continue to try new things. Charms, spells and enchantments ~ Isn’t that pretty much what life is all about?
[On the way home, you might think I was craving a pizza... But what I actually had to have instead was a cold, creamy chocolate milkshake.] ; }
For more information, visit http://www.camelliasymphony.org.
And thanks to http://www.SacramentoPress.com for the lovely evening!
The Secret Life of Birds
Yolo Basin Trails - Davis, Yolo County, CA
California Duck Days, a wetlands festival in the heart of the Pacific Flyway, will be held on February 19th and 20th. A FREE gala reception and Wildlife Art Show will launch the festivities on Friday evening February 19th at the Davis Arts Center, from 5:30 to 7:30pm.
On Saturday February 20th the festival will feature one full day of field trips, workshops and other activities at the Yolo Wildlife Area Headquarters facility in South Davis. Field Trips include rice farming first-hand, central valley raptors and birding by bicycle. Workshops include duck calling, decoy painting and bat class.
•Workshops and onsite activities only: $20
•Workshops/onsite plus 1 field trip: $23
•Workshops/onsite plus 2 field trips: $25
[Children 16 and under are free when accompanied by an adult]
Rise and Shine
photo courtesy of http://www.apoliticalblog.com
As I looked around the room at all these officers in uniform, I was reminded they are also regular people – regular people who put their fear (emotion) aside in place of courage (action) every single day of their lives. And at this thoughtful, compassionate ode to law enforcement and public safety, we were all asked to look out for one another in our everyday lives, hopefully willing to walk through our fears and help a stranger in need if and when the ocassion arises.
In a world so full of tragic consequences, we seem more likely these days to shy away from stepping in when help is needed. But I think that’s just what we need to do ~ Be willing to get involved. Because it truly makes a difference – and not just in one person’s life. We all learn by observing those around us… And we either see heroes. Or we don’t.
There is something special about Sacramento; the rich land upon which it was built, the rivers that flow through, the bounty around it and the people who make the Sacramento area their home.
Life is good in California’s Capital City for many reasons, including climate and geography, community and amenities, nature and wildlife, and so much more. It’s hard to imagine a warmer feeling than a sunshine-drenched morning here, an easier feeling than a refreshing post-rain spring day, or a more engaging experience than a night on the town with friends or family.
There’s truly something here for everyone and every mood, for Sacramento is a shifting entity itself, with four distinct but relatively mild seasons, diverse neighborhoods and people, a ripening food and restaurant scene, year-round events and outdoor fun, and daytime and night-time adventures. Its magic is a blend of history and tradition, vision and reinvention. And there’s so much pleasure to be had here – with family and friends, food and wine, adventures and experiences – that they’re likely to create the kind of fond memories that might seem so familiar… but aren’t quite like any other.
