This fall, my wife and I have been enjoying a great CSM class held here in Half Moon Bay.  "Studies in Film: Directors" has been an excellent introduction to some new work we’d not seen before. We’ve definitely participated in the freewheeling discussions after each screening. And so far, no one’s fallen asleep during the professor, David Laderman’s, insightful lectures.

This film class is a first for CSM on the Coastside, a super bargain: 15 films and class conversations for only $60 tuition.

Problem is, worried college administrators are threatening to close out this Spring’s class if there’s not enough community interest [20 students]. Classes run each Thursday from 6:00 to 9:30.

So movie lovers, check out Film 200 "Film Genres" CRN 35125. 

If you’re at all like us, the class will help you enjoy your movie-going even more than before.  And if you don’t like it, you can always drop the class for no charge come January.

Ed: You can include emails:  [email protected] or [email protected] if you think they’re appropriate.  Thanks

Named "One of the hottest drummers in the business" by the Star Gazette, following her 2005 solo album,"Music for the New Millennium", Cindy Blackman is a rarity as a female jazz percussionist.  Known for her 11 year stint with retro funk rocker Lenny Kravitz, Cindy has returned to her Jazz roots. Her recent performance in Hartford, CT "captivated the capacity crowd during two high-energy sets of no-nonsense post-bop jazz. Blackman’s dexterity, endurance and finesse called to mind the admirable performances of last month’s Olympic athletes.  Chuck Obuchowski, September 15, 2008
George Mitchell, acoustic bass; Carlton Holmes, keyboards; Antoine Roney, sax, Cindy Blackman, drums

Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society
At the Douglas Beach House on Miramar Beach
307 Mirada Road, Half Moon Bay, CA 94019
$30.  Tickets at the door.  Priority seating for Members.
Doors Open at 3 PM, Music from 4:30 to 7:30 PM, with intermission.

"Artist in the Holiday Garden"—Four women artists, a Natasha Foucault fashion show, floral displays, live music, and hors d’oeuvres & wine will be featured at Shelldance Orchids in Pacifica Saturday, Dec 6, from noon to 4pm. Guests will receive an orchid with each purchase over $150.

Arrive with friends & family for an enchanting & uniquely entertaining afternoon of great art- featured in the Orchid Gardens of Shelldance in Pacifica, easy parking & a sweeping view of the ocean.   

Shelldance Orchids
2000 Coast Hwy 1
Pacifica, CA 94044
(650) 355-4845

Farallone View Elementary’s 28th annual Holiday Gift Bazaar will be Saturday, Dec 6, in the Multi-Use room from 9am to 2pm.
There will be lots of holiday favorites –-  photos with Santa, handmade crafts, fresh wreaths, baked goodies and lunch, games, a children’s craft area featuring gingerbread houses and face painting. There will also be live entertainment and the famous cake walk.
Children’s Shopping Hour is from 9 to 10am. During this time, kids will have the opportunity to shop and gift wrap their purchases without help from their parents. We’ll need older kids (10 and over) to help the younger ones. Students from 4th & 5th grades can sign-up to help.
Parent volunteers are needed to help out on the day of the Bazaar.

Giftwrap: Wrapping supplies are needed for the Kids’ Wrapping Station. This station is where all the students can have their purchases gift wrapped free of charge during the Bazaar. They rely on your donations of paper, ribbon and gift bags. There will be a donation box available in the PTA room for you to drop off your donations. If you are unable to get your donations to the school, call Mara Krasts at 563-9505 to request a pick up.
Gingerbread Houses: They will happily accept boxes of graham crackers, lots of white frosting, hard candy and leftover Halloween candy.
Baked Items and other Goodies: Baked goods are sold during the Bazaar. Homemade or store-bought items are welcome and appreciated. This includes cookies, muffins, brownies, festive breads and cakes for the cake walk. Donations of soda or juice boxes, paper plates, napkins and cups are also needed. Baked goods and cakes will go to the PTO room (next to the MU room) on Friday, December 5th or the morning of the Bazaar.
Questions? Call Pat Davison (650) 563-9073

Half Moon Bay’s municipal code is now online. We’ve also added it to our "Useful Links" at the bottom of every page.

The National Weather Service has issued a high surf advisory through 4pm Sunday. 

If you’ve gazed west after sunset, you’ve probably seen two bright lights converging over the last month or so. These are the planets Venus and Jupiter, with Venus being the brighter one.

On November 30 and December 1 the planets will be about a finger width apart. As a special bonus, they will be joined by the new crescent moon. Luckily, this time, the weather forecast looks good for those two nights.

Have fun.

Ric Lohman

As an ongoing part of the League for Coastside Protection’s Outreach Program, I would like to report on two of our recent happenings.

This is a wonderful heartwarming story

I went to Safeway Monday morning to buy some turkeys to be given to Coastside Hope by the League for Coastside Protection.  I started to load six of these birds into my cart when a lady told me that Safeway had a limit of two.  I told her and the two women she was with that the turkeys were donations by the League to a local charity.  Upon hearing this, she volunteered to buy two, one of her friends said she would buy two and the third woman said she would purchase one for Coastside Hope and the other for her family.  After check out, these wonderful people transferred their turkeys into my cart.  In addition, they placed a flat of tangerines and a 10 lb. bag of potatoes.

There are wonderful people on the Coastside

On Saturday, November 15, we had a successful clean-up at Francis State Park.  The volunteers started the trash pickup at Kelly Avenue, went south on the beach to the Ritz Carlton while some of these folks headed north to Miramar.  We were blessed with beautiful weather and a spectacular ocean swell.  The commemorative League for Coastside hats were just the ticket to keep the sun off our faces.

More than 80 people, both adults and children, participated.  Some of our beach cleaners came from as far as San Jose and the East Bay.

John Lynch

In Santa Clara County, open space preserves are being used to grow marijuana, creating what could be a dangerous situation, reports the Mercury News.

In the hillsides high above Saratoga, three men guarded a garden of nearly 40,000 marijuana plants, representing more than $116 million in illegal sales. Tipped off by suspicious neighbors, a team of eradication experts hiked to a remote swath of land nestled between private property and El Sereno Open Space Preserve to seize the pot growing there and arrest the farmers.

During the operation, which took place on July 10, shots were exchanged, leaving one grower dead and scattering the two others into the brush. While law enforcement officials say it is safe for residents to continue hiking and enjoying the preserves, the two men remain at large and the incident has left some mountain residents uneasy. ...

In 2008, Santa Clara County law enforcement teams performed 11 raids over five days, eradicating 76,278 pot plants, arresting three suspects and confiscating one weapon, according to statistics provided by Campaign Against Marijuana Planting (CAMP), a coalition of federal, county and local narcotics officers. About $11.6 billion in illegal marijuana plants were confiscated statewide, making California the No. 1 producer of commercially grown marijuana. The numbers do not reflect those marijuana gardens destroyed during the wildfires earlier this summer.

At first glance, the area does not appear conducive to growing a large marijuana garden. The hillsides are laden with steep ravines; there is no obvious water source. But far off the roadside, past poison oak plants, one notices how the trees eventually form a perfect canopy for camouflage.

The county sheriff is advising open space users to stay on trails to avoid growers, who are going to keep their crops off the beaten path.