“If the English language made any sense, ‘lackadaisical’ would have something to do with a shortage of flowers.” ~Doug Larson, columnist
My English Composition students are often overwhelmed by the word choices they face when they write an essay. It’s the same with me, as a gardener. When I pour over […]
Christopheren Nomura, at age 51, is perhaps the preeminent baritone singer of his generation. The Japanese-American prodigy was raised in the San Francisco Bay area and began his singing career early as a boy soprano. He made his professional operatic debut in the boys’ choir of the San Francisco Opera at age 6 and performed […]
One of the 11 plays the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) is presenting in repertory this season is the classical American musical, Guys and Dolls. I saw it at OSF’s Angus Bowmer Theater in Ashland on Sunday, April 19, 2015. I’ve been asked by numerous inquirers, both before, and after, seeing the OSF production, “is it […]
At times, we all feel the need to fix some aspect of our life to be truly happy, often spending a lot of time and money on products and regimes that promise the quick results we yearn for. The most common pursuits for happiness revolve around love, money and health. Have […]
I sat down in a good mood on a sunny Sunday morning to look at my email and there it was, lying in wait. The email was from a colleague who is, in every respect, my doppelgänger: same age, same work, same writing style, graduate school, hair color, sense of humor—same […]
Channel surfing the other night, I landed on National Geographic’s Big Cats of the Serengeti. This is where my wife usually exits the room but not before shooting me a subtle yet unmistakable look of disapproval. Okay, I’m drawn to the drama of the plains but not because of […]
In 1907, the Fenton Glass Company in West Virginia produced a style of glass referred to as “iridescent ware.” Fenton called it Iridill and labeled it “Venetian Art.” The idea was to mass-produce a beautiful product that could compete with the expensive, iridescent art glass made by Tiffany and Steuben.
The […]
In recent years, the synthetic grass turf industry has experienced rapid growth despite the slow economy in the commercial and residential building markets. The turf industry coasted through the recession relatively unscathed, propelled by growing demand primarily due to advancements in quality and cost reduction efforts by sporting venues, municipalities, […]
It looks like 2015 will be a great year for sellers to sell their homes and buyers to buy a home! It’s unusual that it’s a great market for both… but here is why.
For home sellers: the number of homes that have resold has increased by 18% and the […]
A Few Minutes with the Mayor – April 2015
As you know, this column seldom devotes attention to affairs outside of Jacksonville; numerous other news and opinion outlets exist for such information. However, reports on the national level about Hillary Clinton’s emails prompted me to join in the conversation, so please bear […]
Cemetery Marker Cleaning and Workshops Resume on April 18, 2015—Join us for a fun and worthwhile volunteer project helping clean grave markers in our Pioneer Cemetery. This will be our third year offering these workshops with our trained volunteers helping to clean and preserve the markers. In 2013 and 2014, volunteers cleaned 244 markers, which […]
In 2013, the Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA) excavated a burned house in what was formerly Jacksonville’s Chinese Quarter. Thousands of bones, or faunal remains, from a variety of animals were recovered in the dig. All artifacts can tell us something unique about their time and place in history […]
With spring and summer vacations looming, some of you will be driving over the Siskiyous to visit family and friends in California; others may be looking forward to guests making the trip in reverse. Possible weather and traffic issues aside, drivers and passengers will be experiencing the luxury of riding on […]
“Plant an Almond Tree and in the spring when it blooms, you will know that I have come to visit you.”
Those where my father’s last words to me! A Twenty-One word Greek Cultural salute to help me bury my fear that, I would lose him while being far away in Oregon without the chance to […]
This month we had the pleasure of interviewing Elizabeth Worcester of Daisy Creek Farm. Now in their 4th season of leading the agricultural activities at Hanley Farm, we learned more about no-till agriculture and what we can expect to see at the Farm this season.
What is no-till agriculture?—No-Till […]
Americans for the Arts (www.americansforthearts.org) Ten Reasons to Support the Arts Reason #2: “Arts improve academic performance. Students with an education rich in the arts have higher GPAs and standardized test scores, and lower dropout rates—benefits reaped by students regardless of socioeconomic status. Students with 4 years of arts or music […]
Two men with irrevocably intertwined lives passed away at the end of February: a world-famous actor, beloved by millions; and a highly successful producer, well known in Hollywood, less familiar to people outside of entertainment circles.
The actor was Leonard Nimoy. He entered the business in l951, performing onstage and onscreen, […]
Have you ever had one of those eerie, exhilarating experiences of feeling “unstuck” in time and space, like the characters in a Kurt Vonnegut novel (e.g., Slaughterhouse-Five, The Sirens of Titan, Cat’s Cradle, etc.)? That’s what it was like attending my first concert at the Artistic Piano Gallery showroom on Biddle Rd. in Medford, a […]
It is my pleasure to devote this column to introducing and welcoming Kay Hilton, Britt’s new Director of Education and Engagement. With 18 years of experience at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival as the Music Coordinator, she comes to Britt with an extensive background in performing arts and education. Kay is knowledgeable and passionate about music, […]
The musical, Sunset Boulevard has a checkered history. Various productions of the musical have received very mixed reviews. When it’s been good, it’s very, very good, and when it’s not, it’s landed like a thud. The musical owes its roots to the 1950 film by Billy Wilder that tells the story of the relationship between […]
Americans for the Arts (www.americansforthearts.org) Ten Reasons to Support the Arts Reason #3: “Arts strengthen the economy. In 2014, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that the arts and culture sector represents 3.25% of the nation’s GDP—a larger share of the […]
Learning how to get around in the Jacksonville Woodlands and the Forest Park trail systems can be challenging to first-time visitors. Even returning hikers and mountain bikers enjoying these diversified natural areas can get confused in the myriad of trails. After all, there are 15 miles of trails on […]
Trust is one of the most important ingredients in any relationship. It takes courage, time and effort to build trust. When we trust someone we can let go of fear and doubt. We get a comforting feeling in our bones that this person is true, honest and real. This allows us […]
I remember the day Mary’s obstetrician told us the baby was transverse lie breach (hugging mamma high and tight sideways) though we still had time. The due day was a few weeks out and there was no sign of an early delivery, not to worry! Leaving the office, however, […]
As a young girl I loved the Little House book series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, which chronicled her life growing up in the 1860s. I read the books many times and when the television series came out, I was glued to it. I recently got to revisit those halcyon days on […]
My friend Charlotte, in New York keeps me abreast of the latest decorating news. We are both lovers of mixing old and new. A new dress with a vintage pin—a vintage dress with a new scarf…an Ikea dining table with flow blue—a mahogany table with stark white. My daughter paired […]
If you unexpectedly find yourself with a home to rent, you’re what we call an accidental landlord. You never really planned on owning rental property, but maybe you’re facing a job transfer or recently inherited a piece of property. The local real estate market has rebounded nicely and homes […]
Cemetery Clean-Up Day is Saturday, March 14, 9:00am-Noon—Be sure to mark your calendars and join us, the Jacksonville Boosters and other community organizations for a few hours of work cleaning-up the cemetery grounds. Bring gloves to wear, leaf rakes, gas-operated blowers, pruning shears, brooms, eye and ear protection, and help us clean-up winter debris. We […]
Our days are finally feeling longer as spring begins to show herself at the Farm. The field of daffodils greets us under the front walnut trees and green buds abound. The Volunteer Garden is actively taking shape as we tenderly care for over 200 heritage plants that were recently […]
Since March 17th celebrates St. Patrick and all things Irish, it seems appropriate for this month’s Pioneer Profiles to feature Jeremiah Nunan, one of Jacksonville’s Irish pioneers. Most people associate Nunan’s name with his elaborate Queen Anne style home on North Oregon Street, one of the town’s most photographed historic landmarks. […]
At the February 5th Classical Festival Announcement, Music Director Teddy Abrams promised an “epic season,” and after hearing about it, we believe him! Not only is Teddy’s enthusiasm infectious, his programming is diverse, bold and inspiring. The 2015 Britt Classical Festival lineup is already generating an energetic buzz around […]
British singer/songwriter Sam Smith is either a very lucky guy…or not quite so.
Smith reached the top of the charts last year with his soulful composition, “Stay With Me.” Then, just a few weeks ago at the 2015 Grammy Awards, the tune was named both “Song of the Year” and “Record […]
As practically everyone is aware, Sunday, February 22, 2015 was the night of the Academy Award ceremony and broadcast from Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre where this year’s Oscar winners were announced. Locally, the event was celebrated in a big way by the Ashland Independent Film Festival (AIFF) which filled the Historic Ashland Armory with a black […]
Our Volunteer Efforts are Noticed and Appreciated—Thanks to all of our wonderful and dedicated volunteers, 2014 was another very busy and productive year for the Friends of Jacksonville’s Historic Cemetery. We received a number of very generous year-end donations that will help support some major projects that are being considered for the New Year. With […]
During these normally quiet months of winter, a special new garden is developing at Hanley Farm. In response to the alarming population crash of the iconic monarch butterfly throughout North America over the last ten years, a small group of concerned local citizens began establishing Monarch Waystations throughout the […]
On Sunday, February 8, 2015, the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers, under the direction of Dr. Paul French, took their audience at the SOU Music Recital Hall in Ashland on a musical journey reflecting on the seasons of life in The Passing of Time concert. I’ve written about Dr. French in these pages before (“His is […]
Joyfull Living – February 2015
Seeing all the hearts around this month can be a great reminder to check in with your emotional heart and evaluate how you feel about your life. As I am writing this article, I just heard on the news that studies show that a happy heart is more likely to be […]
After twenty-five years of marital bliss, I’ve come to understand a great many more things about life, love, and the beautiful reality of imperfection called marriage. Some things can’t be taught in the classroom, only learned on the job. We raise our kids with the best of intentions especially […]
I don’t mean to burst anyone’s romantic bubble, but I thought a little education about the heart and the origins of Valentine’s Day might be of interest. An alternative, if you will, to the commercial sentimentality foisted upon us February 14 by Hallmark, Inc.
The modern, mid-month celebration of Valentine’s Day morphed […]
One thing I’ve been collecting lately is tiny, multi- functional, elegant, practical, universal, and easy to afford—my growing collection of Salt Cellars, also known as salts, open dips, open salts, salt dish, or master salt.
The individual cellar would have typically been sterling silver, […]
2014 Recap—2014 was a good year for the U.S. economy with 3 million jobs added and the unemployment rate dropping to 5.6%, the lowest level since June 2008. We also saw declining gasoline prices and natural gas prices in most of the Midwest and East Coast, all combined with […]
Before beginning this first column of the year, I wish to thank the editor/ publisher of this newspaper who approached me four years ago with the offer to write my own column, promising to allow me total freedom to write whatever I felt like. Now I ask you, […]
As Jacksonville celebrates Chinese New Year this month, we should not lose sight of the original “welcome” given Chinese immigrants when they first arrived in Oregon in the 1850s.
Jackson County greeted the Chinese with a $2-per month Chinese mining tax levied in 1857 and doubled in 1858, and Oregon included a […]
The movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid opens with this line on the screen: “Most of what follows is true.” While the main characters actually existed, their story’s timeframe has been truncated for convenience, and, some characters, for dramatic convenience, are consolidations of several actual people. Such is the […]
As we enter the New Year, Britt welcomes Jacksonville’s three newest City Council members: Ken Gregg, Brad Bennington and Jim Lewis. As volunteers, the City Council works tirelessly with the city’s administrative staff and citizens to provide a framework for the ongoing operations of the City. As I have participated in many proceedings over the […]
When most of us think of weed control, it’s usually in the context of our own yard, or neighborhood, and that’s not unexpected. After all, weeds are primarily what keep us from achieving the look and feel we try to portrait with our landscaping.
Let’s switch gears […]
Love is a messy ordeal. The stomach bug is roaring through our house as I write this, and you all know how ugly that can be. Ugly. So here we are mopping-up messes off the floor at five in the morning, and sometimes it’s easy to wonder what in the world we signed […]
Imagine, if you can, a large country estate, isolated, surrounded by vineyards, orchards and agrarian fields. Having a great room, with a vaulted ceiling and walls lined with original paintings, able to hold over 50 seated guests, and of course, featuring a classic baby grand piano. A venue much like the chamber room of a […]
Siskiyou Singers performed their 2014 holiday season concert on December 12, 13 & 14 under the direction of Mark Reppert, at the SOU Music Recital Hall in Ashland.
Soul Matters – December 2014/January 2015
The other morning I sat in the pre-dawn darkness on my porch, wrapped up against the cold, staring at the stars with their piercing, distant magnificence. I listened to invisible raccoons running through the trees, saw the inky outline of the branches bending under their weight. I heard the soft […]