Just don't spiral dance in my face

You know you're in Sebastopol when you set out to purchase a garden hose and end up buying a candle holder.

It was just after noon on a Sunday and my friend and I were driving back from a short hike.  "I have to go get a garden hose," she announced.  "Seriously.  Mine hasn't been working for several months."
That was our intention.  But as we drove through town we got caught in the Whole Foods-farmer's market vortex.  We were just going to run in to Whole Foods.  I wanted something to drink and she wanted a latte and then we were going to go right back to our car.  But somebody was telling us about these really good tamales at the farmer's market, so we made our way across the street.  And actually there was good music playing as well. 
I talked to one of the musicians when they took a break.  He had played in an Irish band at the Celtic festival a few years ago.  I told him how disappointed I had been when the Sebastopol Celtic festival got cancelled.  "Me, too," he replied.  "This is one of my favorite areas to perform in.  Especially with the noodle dancers."
I looked at him.  For the life of me, I couldn't understand what he was referring to.  He got up and demonstrated a sort of willow-y Burning Man-esque type of move. 
I laughed.  "And you only see this in Sebastopol?" 
"I've performed at Celtic festivals all over the U.S. and Europe, and I've never seen that anywhere else."  He sat back down.  "And there are types of music that probably go with the noodle dance.  But not really Irish," he mused.  I had to concur.
After getting tamales (which were indeed very good) we ended up talking to someone at a booth selling locally made vases, candle holders and some objects I couldn't quite identify.  Some people were dancing on the grass area, and one couple spiral danced their way right next to us.  Several times.  I actually found it rather entertaining, but the booth owner was becoming quite annoyed.  Finally he said, "Can you please do your dancing over there?"  He pointed to the group of improv dancers.  Still looking at each other, without breaking eye contact, they semi-apologized and made their way back over to the grass.  "I don't mind the dancing," the merchant mumbled. "Just don't do it in my face."
My friend and I smiled at each other.  She was looking at a very pretty purple stained glass candle holder.  "I thought you needed to go to the hardware store," I reminded her.
"I do."  But she picked up another one.  "These are really nice."
I had a feeling there was going to be no new garden hose today.  I sat down on a bench as she continued looking at candle holders.  My friend Anna Beth has started doing intuitive readings at the market.  She told me that another reader was not so happy about Anna Beth doing readings "on her turf."
"There is kind of a showdown between me and her right now," she had informed me.  "We'll see what happens."  I wondered what other turf wars might be taking place at the farmer's market.
My friend came over to me.  "If I buy one he will give me the second one for half price."  So she bought the purple one for herself and I went home with a dark green one.  Candle holders, 2.  Garden hose, 0.

Favorite line of the week: 
Walking into the teen center behind a mother and her young daughter.  "Honey, do you have your snack?"
"Yes, mom."
"Do you have your water bottle?"
"Yes."
"Do you have your Buddha?"

You know you've lived in Sebastoppol for a long time...

You know you've lived in Sebastopol a long time when the conversation turns to discussing chakras, and you don't think of this as out of the ordinary.

A friend commented to me, "A lot of your Sebastopol experiences must come from hanging out at Milk and Honey."  Actually, many of the Very Sebastopol encounters I have happen at Whole Foods.  Or in front of Whole Foods.  Or in the Whole Foods parking lot. 

It was an unusually hot afternoon and I had been at a park in Santa Rosa, watching people guzzle Coke and Pepsi like there was no tomorrow.  Now I was sitting in the Sebastopol plaza where most people were drinking coconut water or organic lemonade.  I was sipping my pro-biotic drink.  My friend Sylvie was visiting from the east bay and wanted an iced coffee.  She wondered if it was worth trying the Starbucks at Safeway.  I was assuring her it was not.  But she didn't feel like getting back in her car to drive to the real Starbucks, so we did a short trek to Safeway via the Whole Foods parking lot.  Someone I had taken a massage class with jumped out of his car and rushed over to give me a hug.  "I've been on the computer all day..." he informed us.  "My third chakra is depleted.  This heat is killing me.  I am so drained.  My root chakra is not doing well, either.  I've got to get it together to go to this ecstatic dance thing tonight."  He pointed to his third eye.  "Maybe that will help me feel more aligned..."  We talked for another minute, and he was off to Whole Foods to apparently get some nourishing chakra chow. 

"Wow," Sylvie commented.  "On a scale of one to ten of 'How Sebastopol was that?' - I would say that was a nine."

But being from Sebastopol, I was pretty unfazed by this.

Welcome to Sebastoblog

I live in Sebastopol (in Sonoma County north of San Francisco).  I like Sebastopol and there are many things I appreciate about living here.  A friend visited recently and I realized we were within 20 minutes of driving to the coast, going to the redwoods or catching a good independent film.  I have lived in Sonoma County for 16 years and 12 of those years have been in Sebastopol.  My sister owns Milk and Honey in downtown Sebastopol, a goddess-themed gift shop for women.  I worked there part-time for over a year.   It is a “very Sebastopol” store.  I know this to be the case because I can’t count how many times people came in and said “My sister/cousin/friend I reconnected with on Facebook is visiting and I just had to bring them to Milk and Honey.  It’s part of the Sebastopol experience.” 

I enjoyed working at Milk and Honey and met some customers who are now close friends.  I had lengthy, meaningful and interesting discussions with folks who came in the shop.  (I alsob have been told I have meaningful, philosophical conversations chatting in line for groceries, so I can’t pin that all on Milk and Honey.)  But there were times people visited the shop that were so Very Sebastopol they pushed me over the edge.  One time when I was waiting to meet a friend a man came in and said he wanted to put together a goddess bag for his beautiful goddess girlfriend’s birthday.  I was innocently looking at birthday cards but for some reason he chose me as a “fellow goddess” from whom he wanted advice.  He showed me several things to assess how goddessy they were, one of them being a pen with a little Lakshmi on the end of it.  What would go better in a goddess room – this kind of candle?  Did this shop have any gift bags with a goddess on them?  Now, I have a Kwan Yin statue of my own at home, and also several pictures and carvings of Sarasvati (Hindu goddess of poetry and the arts).  But at one point, I thought to myself, if he says the word goddess one more time I am going to gouge myself with one of those Lakshmi pens.  

So there are some cultural aspects to this west county community that can be quite humorous.  I thought it was just me.  But about six months ago I posted on Facebook:  “You know you’ve lived in Sebastopol for a long time when you are talking to someone and they start doing tai chi, and you don’t even notice.”  For about a week, everywhere I went people kept telling me how funny that post was.  "And it's so true!" more than one individual exclaimed.  Even some who I thought might be offended, people I would consider Very Sebastopol themselves.   Every few weeks I would post a new “You know you’ve lived in Sebastopol for a while …” update.  At some point people started telling me I should start a blog.  Naturally, many days are quite ordinary.  So I can’t promise every post will be funny.  But it is an intriguing community and not many cities have prompted a bumper sticker that reads:  “Could I get directions to Sebastopol, or do I need to go on a vision quest to get there?”  
Welcome to notes, observations and contemplations from Sebastopol.  

~Cami 

First blogette

If you're tired of the same old story,
Ohhh, turn some pages...

--REO Speedwagon