Entertainment

Close Encounters of the Safe Kind

Meet and greets with animals delight the young—and the young at heart Article by Krista Minard | Photography by Various As summer winds down and the kids look toward getting back to school, one last-gasp outing for families could involve some furred (and feathered) friends. Several farms and organizations in the region provide ample opportunity to safely spend time with animals—admiring up close and sometimes petting and feeding. Here are a few local spots for animal encounters. Jollity Farm...

Entertainment

Summer’s End Bucket List

This month, savor the final days of the school break with some local fun Article by Krista Minard | Photography by Various As summer vacation winds down and the calendar closes in on the first day of school, families looking to capture some last-gasp adventure have plenty of opportunities in the region. Here are some ideas.  For Younger Kids (Toddlers–10)  Explore a Storybook World Visit Fairytale Town in Sacramento’s venerable Land Park, where kids walk the Crooked Mile and climb...

Education

Sustaining Community Gardens

A local nonprofit provides green learning in the classroom, the schoolyard, and beyond Article by Krista Minard | Photography by Project Green Project Green brings gardens and outdoor art to schools and youth communities in El Dorado County. Operating in Rescue Union, Latrobe, Gold Oak, Placerville Union, and El Dorado Union school districts, as well as at Boys and Girls Club Western Slope and Summitview’s youth-at-risk facility in El Dorado Hills, Project Green has participants ranging from...

Arts + Culture

Connecting People Through Art and Emotion

A local artist finds inspiration and themes in communication, shared experience, and womanhood Article by Krista Minard | Photography by Tom Honeycutt As a self-taught visual artist living in El Dorado Hills, Volha Naruta-Johnson creates textured pieces exploring the human experience—layered and imperfect. Her figurative oil series, “Being a Woman,” visits the often-pervasive tension between motherhood, career, and female identity. Born in Belarus, Naruta-Johnson studied Cultural Heritage...

Travel

Granite Splendor

Always alluring, Yosemite National Park is the place for hiking, waterfall viewing, and basking in nature’s glory. Article by Krista Minard | Photography by Various The forests, glacier-carved rock formations, rivers, creeks, waterfalls, flora, and fauna within Yosemite National Park create an unforgettable experience for some 4.4 million sightseers who come each year to enjoy the park’s spectacular vistas and commune with nature. In the valley and the high country, no matter the season, the...

Entertainment

Adventure by Chance

A local production company films an adventure travel documentary built on a roll of the dice Article by Kristy Murdoch | Photography by Charlene Taylor When most people set out to create a documentary, they begin with a destination, a subject, or a carefully structured storyline. But for the production team behind Pure Chance , the journey began in an unexpected way—through a Craigslist ad and an unconventional idea. What followed was a new take on the traditional travel documentary...

Food + Beverage

The Old-Fashioned

Some background on the classic rich-amber cocktail Article by Krista Minard | Photography by Chris Gora It seems it all began in the early 1800s, when cocktails were very simple: spirits plus sugar plus water plus bitters. Such a concoction was first documented in a New York publication in 1806 and identified as a “cocktail.” Nowadays, pretty much any mixture including hard liquor is called a cocktail, and that original mixture of whiskey, sugar, and bitters has undergone plenty of creative...

Auto + Marine

A Collector’s Classic

EDH Motors presents the 1966 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible from its curated collection Article by Todd Murdoch | Photography by Charlene Taylor The Bonneville is widely considered Pontiac’s flagship model, serving for decades as the brand’s most luxurious offering from its introduction in 1957.  Its long, sculpted body lines, stacked headlights, and signature wide grille create an unmistakable presence, while the convertible top invites open-air driving. Inside, spacious seating emphasizes...

Home Services

Keep Your Cool

Summer means air-conditioning, and American Energy Home Pros shares insight about ways to help your AC system do its job Article by Krista Minard | Photography by Kaela McGuire Here we go—it’s 103 degrees outside at 5 p.m. on a Friday in June, and the air-conditioning isn’t working. Maybe it’s blowing tepid air or none at all, and that metal box in the yard isn’t sounding the way it should. Delays and dollar signs and sleepless nights start adding up, and whether you’re facing a simple repair...

Wellness

Reclaiming Confidence in the City of Empires

A personal journey from uncertainty to action through hair restoration in Istanbul Article and Photography by Todd Murdoch For me, the first signs of a thinning crown didn’t happen all at once. It was gradual, easy to ignore at first, until it wasn’t. Like a lot of people, I went down the rabbit hole of possible fixes: low-level laser therapy caps, specialized shampoos, supplements. Some of it helped in small ways, but none of it really addressed the bigger issue. At a certain point, it...