Out & About
By Jessica Laskey
December 2023
Serving Sustainability
Mobile cafe dishes up art, not food
Atrium 916, a nonprofit collaborative hub for artists and creative entrepreneurs, has launched a Zero Waste Mobile Art Cafe that serves art, not food.
Housed in a 1950s horse trailer upcycled by artist Mike Jones and powered by solar, the cafe travels around town to offer inclusive art activities paired with locally brewed KC Kombucha.
Take a seat at one of the bistro tables to paint on a provided canvas or your own reusable tote bag and learn about sustainability with the cafe’s Recycle Challenge game.
“We have been serving art at our location in Old Sacramento, but we wanted a way that we could reach people and serve healing arts where they are while providing information and fun education on sustainability,” says Shira Lane, designer and executive director of Atrium 916.
To find out where the art cafe will be next, follow @atrium916 on Instagram or visit atrium916.com/artcafe. Also visit Atrium 916 at 1020 Front St. from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.
WORDS OF WISDOM
You might remember “Grandpa” Don Wulf, who was featured in Inside Sacramento in 2021 for the wise missives he collects and aggregates into booklets he hands out free to inspire others.
He’s now a published author. With help from his son Tim, Wulf released “Grandpa Don’s Words of Wisdom for YOU!” on Amazon to reach even more people.
“Dad has always been an extremely upbeat person,” Tim says of his 94-year-old father who lives in Wilhaggin with his wife of 73 years, Barbara. “(He) is committed to thought, spirit and deed by giving back to society in every way he can.”
“It’s humbling and inspiring to be able to reach more people with this book,” Wulf says. “As I wrote in the front, ‘May this amazing book bring you added joy, satisfaction, success, inspiration and happiness.’”
Royalties from book sales will help provide more free books for anyone who needs what Wulf calls “an extra boost.”
SEE’S CANDIES DRIVE
Help provide women and girls access to education and economic empowerment by doing something delicious—buying See’s Candies.
Soroptimist International of Sacramento, which celebrated its centennial in March, is hosting its annual See’s store fundraiser to collect money for scholarships, education and training awards, and a career support and mentoring program.
SIS has raised nearly $160,000 over 15 years. The store is open Dec. 1–24 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Lake Crest Village Shopping Center (by Nugget Market) on Florin Road West off I-5. For information, visit soroptimistsacramento.org.
E-TRIKE PROGRAM
Do your errands in a more sustainable—and enjoyable—way by renting an e-trike at Colonial Heights Library as part of Sacramento Public Library’s new pilot program.
Anyone with a library card in good standing who is at least 18 years old can check out a three-wheeled electric tricycle for up to three weeks. There are five trikes available with plans to add five more and expand to new locations.
“We have partnered with the city of Sacramento in this project because more people need to experience alternative transportation methods if we, as a community, are going to meet our clean-air goals,” says Cathy Crosthwaite, library deputy director of public services.
“Public libraries are a place where people are encouraged to discover new things,” she says. “So why not discover different modes of electric transportation?”
Colonial Heights Library is at 4799 Stockton Blvd. For information, visit saclibrary.org/etrike.
CHAMBERS ART
Here’s a new reason to attend a meeting of the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors: beautiful artwork in the board chambers. “Oceans of Air: Paintings by Jim Darke” is on display through Jan. 19.
“I consider having my work on display in the Board of Supervisors chambers a sign of respect,” says Darke, a South Land Park resident and former naval aviator and glider pilot, jobs that inspire his atmospheric subject matter.
“As a painter who is approaching 80, I’ve accepted that I’m not going to achieve widespread fame and fortune, but having my paintings hung in what seems to me like an auspicious location is just nice.”
Visitors can view the art, which rotates biannually, when meetings are in session at 700 H St. For a meeting calendar, visit bos.saccounty.gov.
LOWRIDER EXHIBIT
Sacramento History Museum’s “Boulevard Dreams,” celebrating our city’s history of lowrider and cruising culture, is open through Jan. 21 at the Old Sacramento Waterfront.
In partnership with the Sacramento Lowrider Commission, with support from Sol Collective and local lowrider car clubs, the exhibit explores the discrimination and prejudice that led to a citywide ban on cruising in the 1980s and the grassroots efforts that rescinded the ban in 2022.
The exhibit includes stories, fashion, music, art and memorabilia. The Sacramento History Museum is at 101 I St. For information, visit sachistorymuseum.org.
LIGHT UP CURTIS PARK
The annual Light Up Curtis Park is now in full swing. Curtis Park residents decorate front yards, porches, windows, roofs and more with festive lights and creative displays to enchant neighbors and passersby.
Register your home by Dec. 15 to be part of the People’s Choice competition. Residents vote for their favorites online Dec. 16–31. Winners, announced Jan. 4, receive gift cards from local businesses. For information, visit sierra2.org/lightup23.
DIDION LIBRARY
Thanks to a $500,000 gift from the Didion family and the Sacramento Historical Society, Sacramento City College’s library will be renamed the Joan Didion Learning Resource Center in honor of author Joan Didion.
“We’re proud that she started her college career here,” says Sac City President Albert Garcia. “Her status as an author of international renown, as a creative and incisive thinker, makes her a wonderful inspiration for our college community.”
The gift will support student writing scholarships and faculty research programs that align with the late author’s interests.
HOLIDAY TREE
The holidays have hit the Old Sacramento Waterfront—in the form of a 60-foot decorated tree.
The white fir hails from Carlton Christmas Trees in Shasta County. The tree is decorated with 24,000 lights, 550 icicles, 400 strobes and other specialty lights designed and installed by Stage Nine Exhibits and Stage Nine Entertainment.
Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Submissions are due six weeks prior to the publication month. Follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram: @insidesacramento.
