Sep 27, 2020
Michael Neumann has been thinking about the serenity prayer a lot lately: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”
Neumann has retired after 40 years as artistic director and conductor of the Premier Orchestra of the Sacramento Youth Symphony, an orchestral youth organization that started in 1956. What began as an ensemble of 55 youth musicians has grown into an award-winning powerhouse of 400 members from all over the region.
Sep 27, 2020
One recent sunny day, I was wandering around Garcia Bend Park and met a family eager to spend some time along the river. They hoped to access the levee at Garcia Bend, but quickly realized that was impossible. The levee was fenced off. No admission. It’s a staging area for the Big Dig levee-repair project.
“Is there a way we can get to the levee?” the mom asked. Great question. Normally, I would have shown them a pathway. But this time I directed the family over to Zacharias Park, which was still open.
Sep 27, 2020
Longtime Carmichael resident Al Striplen has led many lives as an educator, artist and musician, but the common thread among all his interests is his love of learning.
A native of Bakersfield, Striplen studied botany at Humboldt State before moving to Lake County to teach middle and high school sciences and, eventually, mechanical drawing (he says he’s been artistic for as long as he can remember).
Sep 27, 2020
Sacramento soccer fans are patient. It’s the secret to their survival. Elder aficionados have waited 40 years to see a local side match the skill and excitement of the Sacramento Gold, which filled Hughes Stadium, won the 1979 American Soccer League championship and lost the final in 1980.
Someday local fans may cheer a stronger left foot than the one that made the Gold’s Ian Filby the best scorer in the league. And they may find a more clever coach than Billy Williams, who built the Gold into a United Nations of diversity with winners imported from England, Scotland, Latin America and South Africa.
Sep 27, 2020
Over the years, people have asked me if I dance. I often reply, “No, I’m a Baptist.”
“What does that have to do with your dancing ability?” they’ll ask.
My answer comes from the lyrics—“Guilty feet have got no rhythm”—from George Michael’s 1984 hit song “Careless Whisper.”
Sep 27, 2020
Reminiscent of New Orleans, the upstairs balcony of the 1950 Land Park home is ideal for enjoying Sacramento’s cool breezes and waving to neighbors from a social distance.
“We sit out there every evening,” homeowner Tamara Kaestner says.
Rocking chairs, three long rugs and a row of potted and hanging plants add to the convivial atmosphere. Look up and marvel at a starlit night sky hand-painted on the balcony ceiling by Tamara’s husband, Ken. “It was just dead space,” he says. “So we said let’s turn it into another room. Now we spend more time up there than just about anywhere else.”
