Columnists

We’re at it again. The Morgan Hill Downtown Association will be luring what we hope is about 1,000 wine aficionados to the downtown to sample some of the finest of our land’s bounty in a glass (yes, you’ve heard me use that line before...).On Saturday, April 30 the “Original local Wine Stroll” is proud to have our finest downtown businesses host the best in local winemaking for what should be a repeat of the success of the previous events.What’s really exciting is we now have the biggest event yet, and it will feature some new activities for our  “Original Wine Stroll”—trying to make a great event just a little better.It was only a year ago that the local wineries were concerned that our Wine Stroll was not focusing on the best of the local wines because of the combination of compensation for their product, the number of tickets sold and the perceived low cost of the tickets.The Wine Stroll Committee listened to the Wine Association’s concerns and increased compensation, reduced the number of tickets sold by 250 and increased the price of the tickets.The reason we raised the ticket price was twofold. First, the price was low in comparison to that of other communities’ wine strolls. Second, we hoped that increasing the price would bring in a more discerning crowd who’d be more interested in sampling wine than seeing if they could consume 20-plus ounces of wine in four hours (that’s almost a bottle).We believe that our efforts paid off at last year’s event. The reduced ticket sales were almost offset by the increase in cost and we received positive comments about the crowd. It was different and perceived by many to be better, whatever that really means—I’ll take it.What was really heartening was to see a nearly complete reversal in attitudes of many of the wineries who now want to participate in our “Original Wine Stroll.” We ended up running out of merchant host locations and had to turn away wineries which we would have loved to include. We also now have the Wineries of Santa Clara Valley Wine Association as a sponsor, which helped in the event planning too.The special touches include shutting down the west end of Third Street to include the parking garage plaza in the event, and hosting an arts and crafts market. We will have an art competition hosted by the Morgan Hill Art Gallery, where we will select next year’s poster design from local artists’ submissions. Local musicians will set up on the corners to provide a nice background feel.And last but not least is the Wine and Food Week which starts April 24. We added food to this title because our local restaurants are really starting to stand out in the region for their menu offerings. This week of events will give restaurateurs an opportunity to shine with their special menus tailored around select local wines.  I hope you will find your way downtown during the Wine and Food Week where you can get a little closer to the winemakers. I also have to warn you to get tickets and make dinner reservations because this year’s events are already selling quickly.See you downtown!For more information, visit morganhilldowntown.org.John McKay is a Morgan Hill resident, board member of the Morgan Hill Downtown Association, city planning commissioner and co-founder of the Morgan Hill Tourism Alliance.

As the saying goes, “If it looks too good to be true, it usually isn’t.”

I have always been truly amazed at the tenacity and patience of wildflowers. Seeds sit on hot bone-dry ground year after desiccating year, all the while remaining viable, waiting for the right moment. “No, not this spring,” says the seed. “I'll never be able to sprout, create a flower, and most important, produce mature seeds on that paltry rainfall. I think I'll wait.”

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley does it again with its regional premiere of Edmond Rostand’s Cyrano, translated by Michael Hollinger and adapted by Hollinger and Aaron Posner. There are a number of versions about this character since 1897 and this offering by TheatreWorks brings a fresh look at this romantic, swirling, swashbuckling, poignant character.

Parents, let’s be honest with ourselves for a second.

The 2009 Tony Award-winning play God Of Carnage opened at the Morgan Hill Playhouse on April 8 and raised the bar on South Valley Civic Theatre presentations. We have talent here in our little town and it’s really good.

Earlier this week Michelle and I got the call that we had been dreading for way too long. Our dear friend known for his integrity, compassion and ability to get things done lost a battle with an opponent that paid no regard to any of those qualities. Cancer was his foe, and in a world where the odds of surviving this foe grow greater every day, too often it is still unstoppable.There was no way to win this battle. Any sense of victory would have to come from the way he faced the world and fought the battle with the usual tenacity and calm air of dignity around him. He can claim that victory.The battle took place over months and brought out a cast of characters to lend support in every imaginable way. Too numerous to name everyone here, it included his son Matthew, Jill Kirk and Kathy Sullivan who need to be mentioned for all of the difficult decisions and daily toil.Everyone involved in the battle could now be considered family because the man engendered that kind of bond amongst a group that otherwise might not have naturally gravitated to each other. I guess that is what some people can do. I hope this is something everyone can understand since I wouldn’t have if I had not been involved.I know in the coming days we will hear about what a great statesman he was and how much he gave to the community and what an inspiration he is, and I think they would all be true. But what matters to me was who he was as a person.So often in public someone would come up and say, “Remember me? I met you at so-and-so working on this-or-that…” And he would always take the time to engage them—or even better, if he didn’t have the time he expressed that in a way that I could only dream of.He was honest about his time and if you got any you got it all.We both loved good food and a fine glass of wine, and we shared many—usually with a gathering of friends with varied and energetic conversations.Even the quietest of moments are remembered, maybe now the most.He was also a man that suffered more pain than most. He had lost his first wife to a debilitating disease that lingered for too many years before exacting its final toll. He lost his second wife to an insidious disease that also lingered but had more than physical effects which he had to deal with that hurt him so much inside. The final blow which was so unfair was the recent loss of his beloved Nika, his canine companion who was also the vessel that carried so many fond reminders of his last wife. Is there any fairness?But you would never guess that this man had experienced so much inequity from his approach to life.Holidays, birthdays and those other special occasions will now be a little hollow. Discussions regarding city politics, the Downtown Association, or which flavor gelato is best will be missing a voice.The sun will come up, darkness will fall, we will laugh, we will cry, we will go on. But life will never be quite the same.Dennis Kennedy has left the room.John McKay is a Morgan Hill resident, Interim President of the Downtown Association, city planning commissioner and co-founder of the Morgan Hill Tourism Alliance.

Mix tradition, obsession and inflexibility into a pan of sushi and you have the basics of Kimber Lee’s “tokyo fish story’.