News Story #1

Avoid the 13 campaign issues correction: DUIs UP from last year

In a 21-day holiday DUI crackdown that started Dec. 12 and ended at midnight Jan.1, law enforcement officers in Sonoma County brought in 250 DUI suspects, not 176 as the “Avoid the 13” group had previously reported. This is a 13 percent increase from last year’s total of 222 arrests, not a decrease.
There is still [...]

January 5th, 2009 | Continued

News Story #2

CalTrans to resume Highway 12 work on Monday

Morning commutes will likely be unaffected, but three projects in Sonoma Valley are due to start on Monday, January 5, according to the California Department of Transportation.
The first is daytime work for sidewalks and street improvements along Highway 12 in the Springs areas. This is a continuation of the work started in late December that [...]

January 4th, 2009 | Continued

News Story #3

Sonoma responds to Obama health care call

On the eve of the last night of 2008, and 22 days before Barack Obama assumes office, some 64 people crowded into the social hall at Sonoma’s Trinity Episcopal Church to respond to the President-elect’s invitation to communities, extended by the Obama-Biden Transition Project, to express their views and offer their ideas, stories and “collective [...]

January 2nd, 2009 | Continued

Cover Story

Celebrating wine country’s other big harvest: olive oil

One sure sign that something has entered the mainstream is when it surfaces as a puzzle solution on TV’s “Wheel of Fortune.” That was the case one recent night, when Vanna White turned over the letters to spell out “extra virgin olive oil.”
“It took 20 years, but we are finally getting recognized,” said vintner Bruce [...]

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Nomaville | The end is nigh

According to environmental advocacy group Conservation International, every 20 minutes sees another earthly species shuffles off its... Continue

Epicure | Food world not immune to topsy-turvy changes of 2008

Buzz words such as sustainable, sustainably grown, local, organic, locavore and green got way overused, and without any agreed-upon... Continue

SVMS | Mondo and El Dorado Kitchen keep the music coming

Mondo American Beer garden is keeping the live music happening this Saturday, Jan. 3, with the band Hard Travelin’. The group plays... Continue

just joan | Debunking superstitions and accepting cultural tradition

Have you ever seen actual specimens of human organs? Drs. Samaram and Maru regard education as such an important component of their... Continue

Public Citizen | The domino effect revisited

My daughter and her husband are on their honeymoon. They didn’t go to Paris or to London or to Rio de Janeiro. They went to Vietnam. For... Read more

Dr. Jeffery Low | What makes a family: part 2

The Relationship Column A s I began discussing last week, the role of the traditional family has changed tremendously in our society... Read more

Pets | Boyfriend’s cat nips her toes and sleeps on her face

Dear Dr. Forsythe: My boyfriend has a cat that will not leave me alone. I am a little upset by this because I am not a “cat person.”... Read more

most popular stories

news more news
Montini land plan disappoints all around
January 2, 2009

With less than 10 days left of public comment – extended to Jan. 7 due to the holidays – and no forum scheduled for further discussion,... Continue

Council to consider smoking ban in parks
January 2, 2009

The Sonoma City Council is considering a policy recommendation from the Community Services and Environment Commission to ban smoking... Continue

features more features
Look back in wonder: Top films of 2008
January 2, 2009

‘T is the season of unsolicited fruit cakes, four-page Christmas card letters documenting (in 10-point font) what the cousins in... Continue

Gatehouse Gallery offers array of art in new year
January 2, 2009

In architectural parlance, a gatehouse is a structure affixed to the entrance of a castle to help protect the riches within. The notion... Continue

sports more sports
Athlete of the Week: Ellie Ceja
January 2, 2009

Ellie Ceja, a 5-foot-7 sophomore forward on the Sonoma Lady Dragons basketball squad, is making her presence felt in her first year... Continue

Sports Briefs
January 2, 2009

Softball sign-ups Girls ages 6-14 can sign up for the 2009 softball season on Jan. 14, from 6 to 8 p.m.; Jan. 17, from 9 a.m. to noon;... Continue

community more community
SDC employees graduate as psych techs
January 2, 2009

Sonoma Developmental Center (SDC) employees earn and learn thanks to a sponsorship program that benefits the center as well. In December,... Continue

Community Briefs
January 2, 2009

SVHS Boosters Club crab feed The Sonoma Valley High School Boosters Club will hold its annual crab feed on Saturday, Jan. 31, from... Continue