The ancient ayurvedic treatment called “netra basti” concentrates on the deep relaxation of the ocular muscles while cleansing and lubricating the eyeball and socket with castor oil (said to prevent cataracts), rose water or, most commonly, ghee (clarified butter). Local ayurvedic practitioner Heather Nagel recommends the treatment for anyone who spends long hours gazing into a computer screen.
News
Community Supported Agriculture Helps Farms Plan Ahead
“CSAs make it doable for farmers,” says Chris Menge of Tierra Madre Farm, a Santa Cruz County nursery operation that is offering its first Community Supported Agriculture program this spring.
La Posta Springs Eternal
The chickens are happy and squawking in their backyard territory. The kitchen herb garden is loaded with fragrance. And chef Katherine Stern’s seasonal menu sprouts beautiful plates of agnolotti with fava leaves and sugar snap peas, shaved asparagus salad with green garlic, and my new favorite—tender potato gnocchi laced with fava beans, green shallots and wild nettles.
Letters to the Editor: May 2-8
Hey, not so fast… says one reader defending the honor of political cartoonist DeCinzo and his latest poke at a possible desalination plant.
Humanity and Sanity
John Robbins has joined nine other progressive leaders in denouncing the movie ‘Thrive, in which they all appear, and which was made by Robbins’ old friends Foster and Kimberly Carter Gamble.
Food Revolution Summit is Live Online This Week
In this year’s Summit, which began Saturday, April 28, and runs through May 6, John and Ocean Robbins are hosting interviews with an impressive array of food experts on topics including health, corporate agriculture, food policy, local food, climate change, raw food, sustainable animal products, food justice and more.
Pioneering Provost Returns for UCSC Alumni Weekend
Oakes College started in 1972 as something of an experiment, a multi-cultural–themed resident UCSC college that represented a serious departure from the norm. As Don Rothman, senior writing lecturer emeritus, recalls, it soon became clear that the faculty there was doing things differently and leaving a mark.
World Book Night Goes Surfing
On the Monday after a hot weekend in town mobbed with tourists, Santa Cruz skies are solid and gray. The ocean is as flat as old beer from Cowell’s Beach to the Moss Landing power plant, and Vice Mayor Hilary Bryant looks mighty lonely paddling out on her waxy board, carrying a mesh backpack filled with books meant for the surfers who are lurking inland until they can ambush the real swell like a pack of alligators.
Hunting for Bigfoot in the Santa Cruz Mountains
When I found out I’d be going Bigfoot hunting with Michael Rugg, I figured we’d hike deep into the woods to some remote destination to conduct our search. In actuality, we spend most of the time in Felton, right along the road and close to the nearby homes. “Bigfoots don’t have to be in a big wilderness area to exist,” Rugg, who owns the Bigfoot Discovery Museum, explains to me on our outing. “They can exist around the edge of town.”
Fundraiser Lends Hand to Student Bike Programs
Bobby D. Richardson has been working on bikes for 33 years, but he didn’t start teaching people about them until September. Now the former bike mechanic instructs students at Scotts Valley High School in how to work on bikes, thanks to joint funding from the Santa Cruz County Office of Education and Project Bike Trip, a nonprofit that’s gearing up for a bike-a-thon fundraiser on behalf of students next month.
