Patti was building masts for racing boats, and looked into getting into coffee, because "that's the last thing people would give up" - during Covid, they learned that this was indeed true, as they were declared an "essential business"; Patti started Alta in Newport Beach in 1984, & moved to Santa Cruz in 1998; Patti, when she was "Sleepy John's" girlfriend, went to Costa Rica where they went to a finca (farm) which had the best coffee they had ever tasted; Patti looked into different kids of roasters, & decided on an air roaster, when there were hardly any small roasting companies, just the enormous ones putting out industrial coffee; Lilly, Patti's granddaughter, was born in 1999, and was "born into Alta Coffee"; Melia, Lilly's aunt (the family tree would take a half hour to explain!), was a Newport kid, and, after graduating UCSC, managed Alta in Santa Cruz; their roaster is big enough to climb into, & roasts 33 pounds at a time, roasting before the shop opens at 8am; they have a few single origin coffees, but are known for their house blends, like their Wild Women Blend; Alta was organic before it was a thing, & it's important to support restaurants that support organic, & organic in general; Q: How were they able to pass along a working business to the younger generation? A: "Nepotism!"; one nigiht over dinner Lilly asked Patti if she would sell the business to her, & Patti was releaved, as she was considering retirement but had not come up with a way for Alta to continue; what's their favorite Alta coffee? Mehlia: espresso blend, because the Ethiopean beans are sun-dried, resulting in a European-style coffee; Lilly: Etheopean wash single origin, because of the chocolate flavor; Patty: mountain blend (which combines Sumatra, Guatemala, Mexico...); all from Arabica beans, as they are high grown (Robusta beans are for more mass-produced coffee); "Friends Don't Let Friends Drink Industrial Coffee!!"; The Money Question: Patti: "Yes, it sustains me, & is thriving"; Lilly: "Yes, but we have different dreams & visions, but will continue with authentic hearts"; Melia: "Yes...it's only been a couple of months since taking over, but they are now in Patti's rich life shoes; Alta has 6 employees, & a shout out to them on Santa Cruz's Westside! (find them at AltaOrganicCoffee.com)

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan", "Goldenv Voice Gene" & "DJ Spark Plug", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.

"2-year bills" had a January deadline to pass out of their House of Origin - Assemblymember Pellerin's bill on Janus Services passed out of the Assembly, & is now in the Senate (it would allow a campus like Janus to have an umbrella license, simplifying inspections & administration); Assemblymember Pellerin reviewed the bills she has submitted or will submit today as this year's bill package - it includes AB1548, the Monterey Bay Area Stewardship Authority, or MBASA, for creative funding solutions that support conservation & stewardship; AB1668, on Open Space Property Tax Exemption; AB1736 on Deceptive Lobbying; AB1988, the "Pause Act" (using 988 because that's the mental health hotline #), which would require chatbots to pause for 20 minutes & a real human to come on the line if there's a risk of suicide; once a bill is submitted, there's a "30 days in print" rule before any hearings can happen; once a bill is assigned to a policy committee by the Rules Committee, the Assemblymember & her team advocate on behalf of their bills, & negotatiate; discussion of last night's town hall with 1st District County Supervisor Manu Koenig - both gave 5-15 minutes of prepared comments before Q&A; questions about 3 housing projects being built with the "builder's remedy"; one local landlord said that he has vacancies for the first time in a long time, so that there's a view toward rent stabilization, & maybe even decreasing rents; Speaker of the Assembly Robert Rivas has initiated a review of a handful of bills that were passed, to see what worked (& what hasn't) - Assemblymember Pellerin has one, AB2496, which was passed as a Band-Aid for 10,000 foster kids who were to be removed from their homes due to foster agencies getting hit by claims - it was to allow kids to stay whiel working on a longer term solution, but the Assembly never got a report, so they will now hold hearings in the Policy Committee that heard the bill initially, as they have the expertise; that bill sunsets in 2027, & may need to be renewed (with a new bill?) if there hasn't been enough progress.

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan","Golden Voice Gene" & "DJ Spark Plug", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.

Sonia didn't decide to play banjo originally...she was a cello player, but one of her oldest friends played the banjo, and Sonia wanted to find out if she could play as well (or better); was accepted to grad school when she decided to join a band instead - Sidesaddle (which had formed in 1979, but Sonia was asked to join in 1984)...Sonia played & toured with Sidesaddle for 9 years, until she quit to have kids, but later returned to the band; 90% of bluegrass is written from a man's point of view, and Sonia enjoys modifying the pronouns so that a song would be from a woman's point of view - the problem is, if the song is under copyright, she could get sued...but songs in the public domain are far game!!! (such as "I'm My Own Grandpa", which Sonia changed to be "I'm My Own Grandma") - 40 years ago she just sang it, but this last week, revisiting the lyrics (because Dangerous Dan requested it), she sees how the family structure evolves (Dan would like to diagram it sometime! :) // Sonia writes, but all of her songs are still in notebooks - but she has a plan to bring them out to work on a project with them; the bluegrass tradition has a large canon to draw from; Sonia was in The Goat Hill Girls, and later, Harmony Grits, who would play weekend afternoons at the San Gregorio Store, which was perfect for bringing her kids because she could park them on the lawn with coloring books while she played bluegrass banjo; The Money Question? A: You can make a living as a musician, but for Sonia, that involved part time "day jobs", such as music therapy for seniors, or teaching music lessons; Sonia wrote an instrumental inspired by My Fair Lady's 'I Could've Danced All Night"; Sonia still plays, & teaches, cello.

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan" & "DJ Spark Plug", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.

Ashwin lived in India until he was 12, where he played drums with his mother, before moving to England; dad was a vocalist by profession, but played sitar - he plays sitar in the Beatles movie, "Help!"; Ashwin lived in England until he was 21, & he learned sitar from his dad; at 21, he started at Cabrillo, and his family had a restaurant where Ashwin played sitar every night; the tablas are 2 separate drums, pitched, tuned to a "tonic" (middle C) - the doluk is a 2 headed drum made out of a hollowed log; Bollywood is completely different - more like Indian pop music; but his dad was from Lahore pre-Parition, which at the time was called "Lollywood" - after Partition, the movie industry moved to Bombay, thus "Bollywood"; Ashwin's dad started the first musician's union; Ashwin teaches 4 different classes at U.C. Santa Cruz, including tabla, singing, and raga jazz; Keshav recently completed his Ph.D. in music, playing what he calls "Indo Jazz" melody and rhythms, "Alap"-style - unmetered; the Money Question? "Luckily, yes. Father studied poultry farming, and they had chickens everywhere. If you can steadfastly make a good product, & be omnipresent. Ravi Shankar says you never say 'no.' Always have a back-up...Ashwin's is accounting; Ashwin coined the term "World Beat", which Shenachie Records took on as a label; tomorrow night's show will include bassist, keyboards, and Ashwin's sister singing.

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan" & "DJ Spark Plug", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.

starting in 1980 the "Continental Drifters", followed later in the 1980s with "Harmony Grits" - "Continental Drifters" started as bluegrass, but evolved into country rock - "Harmony Grits" was bluegrass; first heard Todd Snider at The Fat Fry,a KPIG / KUSP music festival at Aptos Village Park; Jim later joined a Leftover Salmon (Vince Hermon) spin off band "Great American Taxi", touring with them for 5 years - Todd Snider was in a similar orbit, and Great American Taxi occassionally opened for Todd, & then would play wiht Todd; Todd helped produce GAT CDs, as well as Jim Lewin's CDs; Jim played on Todd's "Live (The Storyteller)" album; JIm never got into any trouble playing some of Todd's more in-your-face songs, but Todd managed to get into trouble; "The Money Question" - yes!!! through a lot of day jobs...taught a lot of guitar...rent out part of his house... and playing in *many* bands both locally (duo with Diane Z; Tiger's Tails; backing 2 local women banjo players, Sonia Shell & Alison Steele) and touring nationally (Edge of the West; Great American Taxi); Todd Snider passed away unexpectedly last fall, and left an increidble catalog of heartfelt, sometimes quirky, songs (e.g.: "Alright Guy", ""Conservative Christian, Right Wing, Republican, Straight, White, American Males")

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.

City manager for 4 years, having moved to the area for the job; previously, Nevada County government (Grass Valley, Nevada City & Truckeet): from the forest & snow to Scotts Valley; bachelor's degree in political science, with a masters in public administration; there are various paths into city government, hers was analyst, but there's also finance & police; the Scotts Valley Citizens Academy does not have a hard requirement to be a Scotts Valley resident, but they'll prioritiae that, as well as people who want to get involved in local government; they have a mix of ages - and they provide dinner; it'll be in person, in the city council chambers, but with tours most weeks, including the police department (& not for being bad), wastewater treatment, & Scott House - it'll be a deep dive into how the city works; Scotts Valley just launched an ADU guide, with many affordable housing projects in progress - it'll be a 25% increase in units in 8 years!, including the Town Center project; Q: What is "affordable"? A: state sets, but there are needs at all ends of the spectrum (last year, a teacher did not qualify because of a 401(k) plan!!! Heartbreaking; ....need *diversity* of housing, not all single family detached homes; deadline to apply for Citizens Academy, with 20 applicants so far; no part of income taxes stay local!; Scotts Valley has 65 employees, with 28 of them police, who are 24/7; the annual budget is $20M (+ $10M for capital projects); citizens academy is government 101.

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan" & "DJ Spark Plug", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.

Why did you join Pacific Voices? Krista - it was the dead middle of the pandemic, & her other singing group was not able to meet; upcoming concert theme, "Wisdom of the Ages"; Q: where is the best place to listen to a choir, outside, or in a building? A: a capella means "in the style of the chapel," referring to music performed in a church without musical accompaniment, so a church is the best place to hear a choir - but this weekend's concert is in a hall built for spoken word; Mitch joined Pacific Voices because he was raising 4 kids, & needed to re-connect with *his* passion; how do they visually spice up their music? Not so much, but they have a surprise for the upcoming show; impact of Pacific Voices on their lives? Tommy: connected to community; Camilla: Family (after arriving in 2023 & knowing no one); Most enjoyable aspect of Pacific Voices? Tommy: creativity.

The "+ 1" is Bonnie Holmer-Orange (tenor), currently chair of the Pacific Voices Choir Council.

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan" & "DJ Spark Plug", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.

When we spoke in 2023, we discussed how bad things had gotten...& now we pine for those days!! "What's transpired in the last year, and even the last 2 weeks, is an administration that is off the rails!!" California is facing a deficit, with cuts to medical / medicare where state funding is interleved with federal funds....& the cuts are being felt, & will be felt; the insults & assaults are adding up, pushing independents away from the administration; how frame Democrats? "One size does not fit all." - candidates need to fit their district, & address what the issues are at the local level; Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's speech at Davos 2 days ago, that "Middle countries cannot acquiesce to bullying." Listener Q: "Why can't Dems vote together?" A: it's a Big Tent, with Diverse Voices - so it's a tightrope walk, built on relationships; The Grateful Dead Archive in Monning's Senate District (U.C. Santa Cruz McHenry Library); Bobby Weir's passing - the youngest in the group - leaves behind a legacy of music; the cultural front can be a wedge to face Goliath / monolith, & address the collective mental health crisis; Qs for the next generation? What sparked DJ Spark Plug's interest in joining KZSC? A: building community. Mood on campus? A: Pessimism, with opportunities disappearing, but organizing; Government CAN work, as evidenced by Monning's youth in Pasadena marred by smog alerts & unable to play / practice outside - government got the lead out of gas, and mandated catalytic converters to reduce smog.

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan" & "DJ Spark Plug", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.

Joe got the nickname "Rooster" back in the Way Out West trio days; Larry is dreaming up a Bob Weir tribute for tomorrow night's show; Larry has written a ton of songs since the Sweet Rain CD 3 years ago, and this Monday they will be in the studio recording a song with lyrics written by Bobby Peterson, who wrote the lyrics to Unbroken Chain & Pride of Cucamonga; CD sales? Physical media sales suffering due to the financial devaluation of recorded music in the era of streaming - CDs become a promotional tool, a "business card" - this puts a premium on live music, especially for jam-oriented bands; have to raise prices for live music (tomorrow night's double bill, with Broken Compass Bluegrass, is $30); "Music is religion...and requires feeding / watering / nurturing and a culture of support." - Joe Craven; The Money Question: Joe - everything requirs feeding & watering...wind up making a go of it if you have enough eggs in the basket; Larry - "if you rehearse, it's not new!" Joe - David Lindley never rehearsed, "rehearsal is for cowards!"; but vocals need rehearsal, and new things need rehearsals; sometimes there are train wrrecks, which are OK, "as long as you get it back on the rails!", the Grateful Dead would have train wrecks, and you could hear the crowd voice their appreciation when they got it back on the rails.

Painted Mandolin is Joe (percussion, stringed instruments, vocals) and Larry (guitar, vocals), plus Matt Hardle (guitar, vocals) and Dan Robbins (bass).

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.

Back in the district; last night, presented an award at the Santa Cruz Warriors arena to the Harlem Globetrotters celebration 100 years; just starting the 2nd year of a 2 year legislative session; "2 year bills" that were held over have been heard in policy committee - the deadline for new bill submittals is Feb. 20; Assemblymemember Pellerin's bill package is not finalized - working on public safety, mental health, consumer protection, AI...one bill that has received a number is AB-1548, the Monterey Bay Area Stewardship Authority - now that it has a #, it's in a "30 day introduction hold" when the rules committee will assign it to a policy committee; last year, Assemblymember Pellerin advanced 10 bills, and all 10 were signed by the governor; 2 year bill: Janus (Roman god of new beginnings & doorways) single license, also clean up AI in elections bill; Governor's "State of the State" address - in person - first time since 2020: California as a leader, highlighting 9% reduction in homelessness, but also laying out a need for a federal aid package for LA after last year's fires; California budget: the governor released his "first draft" budget on 1/10 - it fills in gaps left by slashed federal funding, but it's cautious - the governor projects a $3 Billion deficit, vs. the GAO's $18 B projection in November (does the governor look out of "rose colored glasses"?) - looking ahead to a "May Revise", and a state constitutional requirement to have a budget out of the legislature by June 15; looking at the horrific murder of Maddy Middleton with the County DA, & how to balance juvenile perpetrator hearings for early release against the victim's family having to re-live the tragedy every 2 years...also traumatizing testimony & pictures triggering jurors, and how to offer mental health services after jury duty; proposed "billionaire tax" ballot measure - the need is real, but how to address it.

An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan" & "DJ Spark Plug", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.