I generally go from my newly acquired home in Windsor to Hopland at least once a week. By Thursday morning, October 24, I heard that there was a fire at Geyserville. Certain areas were evacuated and certain roads were closed. I listened, watched, and tried to adsorb as much as I could. First, could I […]
I traded some property many years ago and bought an older country home in Healdsburg just out of town. I rented this house to a young couple with one child. The husband Nick approached me one day with a need to store a boat in my equipment shed for a couple of friends who were […]
I appeared in front of the Russian River Cemetery District Board of Directors last week at their monthly meeting. I was ushered in to what must be their chapel. They had set up a table in front where all of the board members sat, and then a crosswise table at each end. One end was […]
I was transferred back to the North Coast in 1965 by Ortho Chemical Company who I had worked for five years. I started with Ortho on the day my first of three daughters were born, June 1, 1960. My first job was in Ukiah running an agricultural chemical warehouse. I quickly was promoted to outside […]
I will probably not live forever, so it is time to make some plans for my passing. Last month I called Eversole Mortuary and inquired about a nice headstone to be placed in my Grandfather’s cemetery plot at the Ukiah Cemetery. I know there is one space left in this plot and it is for […]
With so much water this year, you probably think the state wouldn’t care about water for the coming growing season. Well, I am one of the lucky ones who got a stinging letter from the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to wit: we have discovered dam sites impounding water on your property, and you are […]
In my short life I have observed Mendocino County give away some great assets. In looking back, I can find no one who can justify just what was the thinking of our great leaders in the past years. The most talked about great give-away was Lake Mendocino. I recently attended the showing of the movie, […]
Nothing is closer to me than my grapes. I live and breathe each and every vine. So when I traveled down the Pinot Noir rows and observed damage I was immediately concerned. In no time I inspected damaged leaves and stems. They were not growing properly. Something was dreadfully wrong. The leaves were misshapen, the […]
Several years ago we rented a farm house to a couple new to the area. Ironically the man’s father-in-law had just purchased our property in Hopland, making it possible for us to purchase the small acreage plus the house in Healdsburg. We planted the small property into grapes. The tenant had a boat stored in […]
The Savings Bank of Mendocino County published Rainfall amounts on a small card several years ago. I look at this card often due to a long rainy winter this year. The total amounts are high but I cannot remember having so much rain so late in the year. This becomes a problem for grape growers. […]
Just south of Healdsburg on the east side of Highway 101 was the Campbell Ranch. Almost every resident of Healdsburg and many on the North Coast knew the ranch with the friendly two-story house sitting up on a slight knoll. Today the house is surrounded by grapevines. A “For Sale” sign has been removed, leading […]