Half Moon Bay Memories – Page 186 – Created by June Morrall

September 4, 2006

The 3rd Avenue Library: San Mateo’s Sparkling New Jewel

Most cities are broke and their highways aren’t being fixed and their schools are falling apart– but San Mateo has a library–there might not be half a dozen libraries in the entire world that compare with this new library on 3rd avenue that takes up almost an entire square block.

Every donor’s name has been permanently engraved in steel plaques. I recognized many of them–Ken and Sherrilyn Fisher, the T.J. Fosters, Franklin-Templeton, Oracle, Genetech–

If you haven’t seen it, you gotta go. It was closed today, Labor Day and I just admired it from the outside. There are not many really pretty buildings, public or otherwise, and this one is just smashing.

I walked around the entire building and peered into the windows, some of them round like giant portholes. There are sculptures and benches and the inside (which I hope to see soon) looks cutting edge, worthy of the county where high-tech was born.

It’s certain to be a touristy place to go–this library is one we can all be very proud of.

Now if only we could get private funding for an exceptional new Coastside library.

(When I’m over there tomorrow, I’ll take a pix)

September 3, 2006

Butano Falls, Pescadero

September 3, 2006

“Babagi” Comes To The Coastside (1975) Part II

The Astanga Yoga that he practiced also embraced meditation, posture discipline as well as a vegetarian diet. Santa Cruz resident Peggy Bazarnick, an ardent follower for 15 years, told me in 1993 that Babji “stresses the right way of living. That means not harming anyone, caring for the body, while not being attached to the body.”

Peggy added that during private interviews “he never tells anyone what to do. He knows everything; he looks right through you and knows all. He will offer you options but he will never tell you what you should do.”

In 1971 the Hunuman Foundation, a California group, made the arrangements which brought Babi Hari Dass from India to Santa Cruz where he settled.

Not everyone in the tiny village of San Gregorio was pleased about the coming of the spiritual teacher.

“Dick the Gardener”, the tall, reclusive, awkward young man who lived on the worm farm, grumbled bitterly when the lower field was plowed for the festivities. A Cornell University graduate, he dropped out of the academic scene to pursue an alternative lifestyle.

“Dick the Gardener” leased a patch of land became locally renown for the quality of the organic tomatoes, squash and garlic that prospered under his care.

He was cynical about the event; he felt certain that the outsiders would trample and destory his precious new tomato crop.

…To be Continued…

September 3, 2006

(Might contain “spoilers”).

We watched “The Matador” (2006) starring Pierce Brosnan on the tele last night.

You know Pierce Brosnan is still identified with the sophisticated, high-tech James Bond, the British MI5 agent whose victims are very evil–and whose women are ooh la la.

But the star of the darkly humorous film Matador is Julian, a crudely unsophisticated Brosnan (but still handsome, I think, even when he reveals his teethy teeth)–a stark contrast to the polished Bond with the proper English accent.

So turn everything you know about the celluoid Bond upside down, inside out and round and round you go and you get Julian, an assassin whose assignments are passed to him by an unseemly agent on the streets of the world’s cities where Julian is eyeing “illiterate teenage girls”–he is a womanizer, who instead of making love with a gorgeous model at the Ritz in Paris, is found cavorting at the low-end bordello.

There are only 3 main characters in this darkly funny film. Greg Kinnear plays Danny Wright, the Denver-based “loser”–a traveling businessman who is seduced and corrupted by the deliciously amoral Julian. Most of the movie takes place in foreign cities but the final scenes unfold in Denver at Danny and his wife “Bean”‘s home (with Hope Davis perfectly playing “Bean”, a young numb matron ready to swing).

You may find it hard to identify with Julian but I loved him. Julian rationalizes his sordid “gigs” to an innocent Danny by telling him his victims are generically bad.

Danny is so sucked into Julian’s web that he becomes an accomplice in Julian’s “final” assignment.

What is really irrestiable about this movie is that Pierce Brosnan turned an original character that was was just a typed decription on a computer screen into a real, believable person.

Written by June Morrall & Burt Blumert

September 2, 2006

“Babagi” Comes To The Coastside Part I

In June of 1975, Babi Hari Dass, a spiritual teacher from India visited the Coastside. His appearance was later called “a visual spectacle, comparable to a scene from the movie, ‘Ghandi'”.

The “happening” took place in the lower field of what the locals called “the worm farm” at San Gregorio.

The “worm farmers” (who had traded the glitz of Los Angeles/Beverly Hills for the Coastside’s rustic serenity) were raising earthworms commercially in long, narrow, custom-built redwood planters in a small corner of the several hundred-acre ranch.

Not far from where the earthworms were burrowing in their special soil mixture in a scooped-out section of earth beside a creek, someone had unfurled a bright orange parachute. The colorful covering was protection for the 100 expected guests–a contrast of locals and devoted followers of Babi Hari Dass. They would sit on bales of hay or on pretty Oriental carpets that had been placed on the ground.

A statute of the goddess Kwan Yin, with one palm extended and open, the joined forefinger and thumb forming a circle on the other hand, conveyed a peaceful spirit among the pots of pink and white Sweet Williams.

Special care was taken by all to avoid treading on the large Indian rug, centrally located and reserved for the 51-year-old spiritual guest of honor.

Along with other Coastsiders, I was invited to meet and ask questions of “Babaji” (a term of respect). He was a short, kind-faced, bearded man wearing a long white robe. What was most unusual was that as a practitioner of Astanga Yoga, he had not spoken a word to anyone for 25 years.

“Babaji” communicated by writing on the little chalkboard strung around his neck–or when more words were necessary, he used the larger, portable chalkboard strung around his neck–or when even more words were necessary, he used the large, portable chalkboard that he carried with him.

…to be continued…

September 1, 2006

“I Like To Drive….”

If This 1957 Chevy Is El Granada Mike’s “Other Car”: Just Imagine How Pristine His Vintage Corvettes Are…

*Note: If you’re wondering what Mike’s wife drives, he says “Hondas”.

BTW: How come my old high school boyfriend’s dark green ’57 Chevy didn’t look this good in 1963?

P.S. This car was also photographed for a calendar–has anyone seen it? Mike didn’t get a copy. Please send him one.

August 30, 2006

Local Character “Billy the Kid”

was a competitive foot racer who kept in shape by running up to the top of Devil’s Slide and back everyday. That’s Devil’s Slide in the back of this amazing photo, taken when? I don’t know, early 20th century?

Photo courtesy San Mateo County History Center. Visit the museum at the historic Redwood City courthouse.

August 30, 2006

The Chalkboard Man

In 1975 one of the more colorful characters that lived at Princeton-by-the-Sea– drat! I can’t remember his name or his face—but I do remember what he did—I guess, in his search for spirituality.

He stopped talking; he stopped communicating verbally. He didn’t speak to anybody.

He wore a small square chalkboard on a leather cord around his neck and if you wanted to ask him something he gave you a piece of white chalk to write with. His response, if he chose to answer, was on the reverse side of the chalkboard.

Obviously questions and answers had to be short because the chalkboard wasn’t big enough for long back and forths.

This went on for months. I don’t know how many months. The last time I saw him wearing the blackboard around his neck was at the Ketch JoAnne–and that was 30 years ago.

There are a couple of things I wonder about:

1. Is he still around and using his chalkboard?

2.Did he throw away the chalkboard—and find spiritual peace?

August 30, 2006

A Friend of Sharon Zugay Writes

Dear June,
I happened upon your Archive 7-06 piece
on Sharon Zugay. Thank you. Sharon is very special to me, though I was not there with her at the time of her transition. We dated in high school and met periodically through the years. Do you know if the artist, Dennis Swensen is still living in your area? His sensitive rendering of Sharon is beautiful. If you can provide me with contact info, I’d appreciate it.
I will soon visit San Mateo, for my 40th! high school reunion. I’ve lived in Denver for 30 years, but the Bay Area still feels like home. My buddies and I used to surf at the Breakwater in the 60’s. Anyway .. memories are sweet.
Sincerely, Steven Ridley

August 29, 2006

Marion & Bill Miramontes Interview (1980) Part II

Bill Miramontes: My father–being that he worked on the highway–used to commute from Half Moon Bay to Pedro Valley on the Ocean Shore. On holidays, or Sundays, he didn’t work so he’d take me with him to San Francisco.

Bill: My father was a huge man. He’d take me to San Francisco to see the town. I used to get a big kick out of going down to see the waterfront. Around noon you’d see all those beautiful teams come in. They’d put the feedbags on ’em…All these beer companies that have matched horses, matched teams of fours…beautiful. Their harnesses, all glistened, polished.

Bill: When we’d go to San Francisco, I couldn’t stand looking in the ocean over Devil’s Slide. I used to jump across the train and look out against the hill….You’d look right over the water, oh brother….I couldn’t bear that…we’d go round, in through the tunnel and around….

June: How long did it take?

Bill: About an hour.

Marion Miramontes: Oh, longer than that, honey. They used to make all those stops every mile or two.

Bill: About two hours. Every time we had a little rain we had a landslide…rocks on the track around Devil’s Slide. During the latter part of the life of the Ocean Shore they used a gas train… it didn’t pay them to run a big steam engine down here. They’d bring down 30-40 people…had this gasoline bus…it was really a bus….on the tracks and could hold 40-50 people.

Photo: Gas train at Moss Beach

Bill: [The Ocean Shore Railroad] failed because these farmers who were so close to San Francisco started using trucks–people from Half Moon Bay started buying trucks and cars and doing their own hauling and riding into San Francisco in their own cars.

..to be continued…