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“The Great Leap,” a basketball-centric play, is coming to Old Town San Diego’s Cygnet Theatre Jan. 22, 2020. Written by multi-award-winner Lauren Yee, it was one of the 10 most-produced plays in the United States in 2019, along with her “Cambodian Rock Band,” recently staged at La Jolla Playhouse. “The Great Leap,” which premiered in Denver in 2018, is about an American basketball team going to China for an exhibition game. There’s more than a game at stake; there are long-buried personal histories, a clash of dreams and ambitions, and the main setting is Beijing in 1989, when student protesters were about to be massacred in Tienanmen Square. With all this going on, there’s still plenty of humor — one of the playwright’s conspicuous gifts.
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A new book by a British-born, San Diego-based author examines leadership failures in a variety of arenas, including business, politics, the defense industry, nonprofits and education, and offers a blueprint for leaders in all walks of life to become more effective and successful.
We do have some powerful self-protective weapons at our disposal — food selection and handling being the most effective. Ancient cultures relied on that for their health; even before old Hippocrates advised using food as medicine. So, while you arm yourself with tools provided by personal trainers, meditation gurus and other healers, I’ll provide the edible components of your healthy lifestyle to keep you vibrant for years to come.
Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla will celebrate the fifth anniversary of housing this rescued Loggerhead sea turtle with a ‘Turtle-versary,’ including crafts, sea-turtle science and family-friendly activities 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Jan. 11-12, 2020.
Jackson Design and Remodeling’s award-winning team of designers and architects have compiled their annual list of the top design trends for the new year. Continuing an evolving movement toward expressing individuality in home design, 2020 trends range from the humble to the bold. Organic handmade elements, “lived in” minimalism and “Japandi” design connect with an emphasis on simplicity and wellness. On the other end of the (decidedly retro) spectrum are bold geometrics, 3-D walls, and nostalgia for colors and materials from the 1970s and 1980s.
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At the supermarket produce aisle, I befriended a shopper choosing assorted leafy greens and venting about how she must pay the piper for an indulgent holiday food orgy. She grumbled about the light, airiness of salads, and how “rabbit food” was hardly a satisfying meal. Looking outside the bowl, you can easily find an exciting bounty of roots, fruits, seeds, grains, gourds, greens, succulent seafood and other lean proteins to beef up an otherwise anemic salad, giving it a nutritional and gratifying oomph. -
Strolling the aisles of my favorite supermarket looking back at the gustatory highlights of the year, I then gaze at my culinary crystal ball perched in the child’s seat of my shopping cart to predict what’s ahead for 2020. This has been a year of imposter foods — cauliflower impersonated everything from mashed potatoes and rice to pizza crust, breads and gravies. Plant-based proteins and molecules (like pea and heme iron) made mock meats taste, smell, chew and even “bleed” like the real McCoy. Shredded Jackfruit doubled for crab cakes, while spiral sliced zucchini and other squashes disguised themselves as noodles, aka “zoodles.”
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’Tis the season when Christmas and the eight-day Chanukah hoopla merge. Chanukah, which begins on Dec. 22 this year, used to be a minor celebration in the Jewish line-up of holidays. Thanks to Christmas-envy among Jewish children (and adults) who are awe-struck by the bedecked trees and sparkling neighborhoods lit-up like a fairytale wonderland, Chanukah has been elevated to the holiday A-list. As for the food part, we’re fortunate to partake in the delights of both traditions that can be enjoyed during a joint celebration.
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Rancho Santa Fe native and performance artist Anna Garner’s video self-portrait is now on display at the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C., breaking through to her authentic self by becoming a part of the action.
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When the Playwrights Project unveiled its 35th annual iteration of its Plays by Young Writers Festival, a familiar North County name popped up: Izzy Ster, a 16-year-old Carmel Valley resident and junior at Canyon Crest Academy.
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Falcons junior Nick Herrmann spent 70 days in the hospital and it was feared he might lose his leg
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Author Jessica Johnson will appear at the Rancho Santa Fe Library Saturday, Jan. 25, at 2 p.m. to talk about “Abandoned San Diego,” her book about fascinating — and some hidden — places in San Diego.
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Benefit event presented by Rancho Coastal Humane Society and San Diego Botanic Garden
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Comedy ‘Men Are From Mars – Women Are From Venus LIVE!’
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The Village Community Presbyterian Church hopes to move ahead with its plans to build a columbarium, a memorial garden with niches to keep human cremains, a use that is currently prohibited by the Rancho Santa Fe Association’s Protective Covenant.
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Is the real world getting a bit too crazy for you, during this ho-ho-ho-holiday season? Why not take a virtual reality break at the San Diego Art Institute (SDAI) in Balboa Park, which the folks from Wonderspaces have taken over for a month-long Virtual Reality Showcase. Wonderspaces is an annual pop-up show of immersive art installations that started out in San Diego in the summer of 2017 and has attracted thousands of visitors every year. Now they’re adding a little fall/winter show-time and offering a quartet of short VR films that have been audience favorites.
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Over the years, I’ve attended many holiday parties, and hosted even more. I’ve appreciated all festive offerings, and while I would never turn my nose up at a jar of caviar or good bottle of wine, the gifts I’ve enjoyed the most came from creative minds and loving hearts. A particularly memorable one was a forest green ceramic planter filled with fresh sprouting seasonal herbs, including rosemary, sage and thyme, potted in an edible soil of crumbled dark chocolate brownies. These whimsical treats can be tailor-made to accommodate the dietary restrictions of the host (low cholesterol, or gluten-, lactose-, tree nut-, or sugar-free), and preferences (mild, hot, smoky, crunchy, sweet, savory, or vegan). You will need some simple supplies like Mason jars, cruets, clear gift bags, decorative tins, ramekins, twine and labels. Now let’s get this craft party started!
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Mason’s “The Winter Soldier” has generated rave reviews
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Years ago, my aunt hosted a Thanksgiving dinner for 20 people. She prepared a turkey feast from scratch and it was delicious. The next day, 18 of us had a date with the toilet bowl and were queasy for days. The only two who weren’t impacted were the vegetarians. We were all stymied and started asking questions trying to deduce the source of our illness. Remember the board game “Clue”? Well, Mrs. Peacock poisoned Mr. Boddy with a contaminated turkey leg in the dining room. Turns out that Auntie left the unwrapped, partially frozen turkey on the counter to thaw overnight, so the vegetarians were unscathed by her “fowl” deed. Here are some cautions to help keep your dinner guests healthy, happy and free from harm.
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Village Church’s Village Community Chorale, with an 80-voice choir, soloists and San Diego Symphony members, will add to this year’s Christmas celebration in Rancho Santa Fe by performing all three parts of Handel’s “Messiah” Dec. 8-9, starting at 7 p.m. both days.
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Local artist Margot Wallace will host a gallery opening Dec. 1 from 2 to 5 p.m. at her new gallery and studio in Rancho Santa Fe.
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“Nails have been a path to artistic expression for thousands of years,” reads a sign at the entry to Oceanside Museum of Art’s supersized exhibition “Tiny Canvases: The Art of Nails.” Farther along, there’s a sign about the history of nail adornment, mentioning “manicure kits dating as far back as 3200 BCE in the tombs of Babylonian soldiers.” Babylonian soldiers? Who knew? Jan Arnold did. She’s the co-founder and style director of Creative Nail Design (CND), the company that co-produced this stunning display of nail art, which opened in October and continues through Feb. 9, 2020.
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For more than 40 years, a hardcover book with a red cover, filled with handwritten observations and details about a long-ago adventure, sat nearly forgotten on a shelf as the book’s owners, retired Superior Court Judge Marshall Hockett and his wife Debbie, pursued careers and raised a family.
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Rancho Santa Fe resident espouses suicide prevention in dance video
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With Thanksgiving approaching at gigabit speed, we’re all gearing up for the big day with a main course of stress, and side dishes of angst and doubts about menu choices, modes of preparation, presentation (and dinner guests). To help make this feast a delightfully memorable one, I’ll now take your questions and offer cooking tips.
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