One of the joys of living in Vallejo is that we are adjacent to Napa County. In the city of Napa itself, we had a wonderful meal with a bunch of friends and had a long walk through the downtown area to see many light exhibits. The revamped downtown is very Parisian. There was lots of nightlife, a lot of live music and joy, despite the chill in the air.
We ate at a great Mexican restaurant on the river with heating lamps outside. Walking around town I noticed at least two groups of people who were speaking Italian, to my surprise. Here are some images of our evening.
This has been something we were looking to install for well over a year. We had a lot of quotes and plenty of false starts as people have fallen by the wayside with the shortage of resources during the pandemic. The light in the cathedral ceiling in our family room is quite a game changer. It feels wonderful to have a subtle natural light and not to even need a lamp on in the darkest part of the house. While it’s just a step away from the outside, this makes our family room more like a solarium. it also improves the light in the adjoining kitchen too.
My friend, neighbor, and fellow Humane Society of the North Bay volunteer, Carlene Coury, directed a staged reading of The White Card, written by Claudia Rankine, at the Pinole Community Theater. In the audience were some activist Vallejoans I was able to introduce her to. After the reading, we got to discuss the multi-layered script with the cast and director. It was quite a moving and timely experience for Black History Month.
Every Vallejo Art Walk (which is monthly and year-round), we make a point to stop in Anchor Pantry for specialty food items. it’s very vegetarian-friendly and has novelty items, which always keep our visits interesting. I love supporting local businesses and I really appreciate that they stay open late on Art Walk nights so we can explore their wares.
This pasta product doesn’t have an Italian name at all, but my daughter showed me this brand when she was at an Italian supermarket in the East Village of Manhattan years ago. I can’t believe it’s a thing, but yes, it is our last name! It’s very cool that they have it here in Vallejo too!
I’ve been doing activism against Big Tobacco for years as a volunteer. This week I got my official title as a Co-Chair of Tobacco Free Solano (TFS), a program of Vibe Solano (the Solano County Department of Health). It’s a two-year volunteer term. The picture below is a little gift package they sent which is very sweet. Little do they know I have no intention of watching the Super Bowl, but instead will be going to a play for Black History Month in Pinole, which was directed by my friend.
Many events have drawn me to this organization, including the fundraising Trivia Night, the Vallejo Garden Tour, and various symposia. I’m glad to further entrench myself in this community by supporting this amazing institution with a long history here in town.
We decided to foster Pancho because of his behavioral problems at the shelter. He is thriving in a quieter space even though we have dogs for him to interact with. He definitely needed a change of scenery and seems to be really happy in this video.
Attending a taco mixer with residents and various other businesses in the area at The Lodge, where we had our Vallejo Chamber of Commerce event a few months ago. I wore my hat as President of GCCA and went with one of my neighbors and HSNB volunteers, Carlene, to also represent the Humane Society of the North Bay. It was wonderful connecting with and hearing from staff and a few residents who joined us.
