All Things Vertigo in San Juan Bautista

In this instance, not Vertigo Coffee, but Vertigo, the 1958 film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak. And, that is what Vertigo Day at the San Juan Bautista State Historic Park on September 26, 2015 will be all about.

The event is sponsored by San Juan Bautista State Historic Park and the Plaza History Association and features a tour, a lecture, and a showing of Vertigo.

• 3:00 p.m. — a 1.5 hour guide tour of the mission and park, highlighting Vertigo stories and film locations.
• 4:30 p.m. — "Mastery of Hitchcock," a talk by Luis Camara, CSU Monterey Bay film professor, at the Plaza Saloon.
• 8:10 p.m — Vertigo on the Plaza lawn. Bring lawn chairs or blankets. It may be chilly, so bring jackets or extra blankets. 

The movie is free. The tour is $15/person and Professor Camara's lecture is $10/person. You can do both the tour and lecture for $20/per person. For more information about Vertigo Day, click here.

Wondering where to eat before the movie? San Juan Bautista has several restaurants, including Vertigo Coffee which serves awesome handcrafted, oven baked pizza. For info about places to eat and drink in San Juan Bautista, check out this link.

I can't leave you without a clip from Vertigo. This scene is from the imaginary bell tower of Mission San Juan Bautista. By the time Hitchcock came to San Juan to shoot, the mission no longer had a bell tower, so he built one for the movie. And, a taller one at that.

2015 Aromas Day Parade

The Aromas Day Parade is the narrowest of all the parades that take place in San Benito County. Hands down. The parade, which took place last Sunday—Aromas Day, gracefully marched up Carpenteria Street that was lined with booths on both sides. I loved the joyful cheers and happy faces of the parade participants and us, parade viewers.

The Husband and I were getting corn dogs when the parade started so we missed the first few floats and also a good spot from where short me could see. No problem. I simply held the camera up high, clicked, and hoped for the best. Here are four of my favorite parade entries.

North Monterey County High School Marching Band

Former Aromas 4-H members

Women's Club of Hollister

Transition Aromas

To see more photos of the Aromas Day Parade, check out my album at Take 25 to Hollister Facbook page. You ought be able to see the photos without logging on or having a Facebook account.

Aromas Day!

Aromas Day was a blast! I could not ever have imagined what it would be like. It had a little of everything for everyone—live music, fine arts and crafts, food, fresh produce, classic cars, and pony and carnival rides for the kids. And, many of the residents held yard sales. 

Too bad the Husband and I got there towards the end of the day. Next time, we'll be there earlier to see all the booths as well as hear the various bands and check out the many, many yard sales. Well, I'll do the sales, while the Husband enjoys the bands under the shade.

One of my favorite things of the day was riding the shuttle from the big field of a parking lot by the school to the center of town. We could've easily walked the short distance, but once we saw the shuttle, we hopped on. It was a trailer hooked up to a tractor. We slowly rumbled our way up the street amidst the walkers who were stopping now and then to look at stuff for sale in people's front yards.

I noticed golf carts and a hay wagon pulled by a tractor were also used as shuttles. I liked ours the best because it reminded us of a San Francisco cable car. I also liked that I sat next to a woman  with a lovely English accent who reminded me of Kate Winslet. She was quite friendly and magical. Talking with her and waving at the walkers got me into the spirit of fun. 

I loved the whimsy of the amazing handcrafted items that the artists had on display and for sale, which was another favorite aspect about Aromas Day for me. That art piece of a garment in the above photo was made by Aromas artist Susan Shirley of Mosshollow. The dress, made of natural fibers, including wool that she spun, also has a bustle.  Very cool!

Until last year, I had driven through Aromas a few times while meandering the back roads. When a friend and I checked out several of the artists during last year's Open Studios Art Tour, I kinda fell in love with the town. Aromas is a non-incorporated city with nearly 2,700 residents. The town has the distinction of sitting on the border between San Benito and Monterey counties, which means some residents technically live in San Benito County and others in Monterey County. 

One more favorite thing of mine about Aromas Day: We purchased three fresh ears of corn for $1 from the Aromas 4-H booth. Here are a few more random photos of Aromas Day. Come back tomorrow for photos of the Aromas Day Parade.

Saturday in the Park

It was a perfect lazy afternoon at Dunne Park yesterday. Just as Saturday ought to be—relaxing on the lawn, eating, watching kids play, chatting with friends, and listening to the music of our local bands.

Dave Huboi & the Architecturals performed the first hour of the Music in the Park concert, while Mr. O's Jazz Bank played the second hour. We are fortunate to have wonderfully talented local musicians.

The free Music in the Park concerts in Dunne Park were organized by Greg Harvey of the Joshua Inn Bed & Breakfast and Mr. O's Academy of the Arts. Last Saturday afternoon was the first of three concerts. The next two will be September 26 and October 24.  They'll be both Saturday afternoon, from 4 to 6 p.m.

Here are few more photos from Saturday.

The Library Bookmobile

Driving a bookmobile is one of my dream jobs. It would be so fun and satisfying. It would be like bringing Christmas gifts to people everyday.

For more about the San Benito County Library Bookmobile, click here.