Archive for July 1st, 2010

The Horribles

By William Burg

In the era following the Civil War, Sacramento and other cities celebrated July 4th with considerable reverence. After the long struggle, patriotism helped heal a wounded nation. In Sacramento, the Independence Day parade brought every local organization of note together, ending with a series of patriotic speeches, poems and reading of the Declaration of Independence at the Grand Pavilion. In the shadow of this solemnity, a band of ill-tempered and intemperate Sacramentans held their own parade, meant to poke the pompous and temper the seriousness of the occasion with acts of public lunacy. They were called the Horribles. Read more »

Daytrip: Marin Headlands

story and photos by Niki Kangas

Across the banks of the red bluffs, a gentle but unyielding breeze coaxes tall marshy grasses into a tidy comb-over; rainbows of shaking wildflowers bow reverently to the sea. A net of haze blurs the ocean and sky into a blue beyond compare, and there are sighs all around in the company I keep. Amen, we are out of town! Read more »