November 2007 Issue | Download the
Full Issue
Revitalize
Your Mind, Body & Spirit | Relics are new at Jeff
Mack’s Silverado Trading Post
The Old Boulevard: The History of 395 | Xeriscape:
Into the Future of Smart Water Use! | Desert Theater
REINS offers hope to disabled children | Rimrock:
Stretch Your Home Buying Dollar and Your View
Welk Resort Theatre presents ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie’
& ‘White Christmas’
What's UP at the DOWNS | Creekside Vet:
Getting Horses Ready For Winter | SNAP! CRACKLE! POP!
Belle Vista Winery’s Petite Sirah is more than just
a wine... it's an experience
Going For Par at Meadow Lake Golf Course
Revitalize Your Mind, Body & Spirit
It’s lunchtime at Cal-a-Vie Health Spa. In the kitchen Executive Chef Steve Pernetti has a wall-sized white board upon which he has written the preferences, dietary restrictions, calorie counts and allergies of each of the 24 guests.
“Most of them are here to lose weight, although occasionally you’ll get a wise guy who wants to gain weight,” observes Pernetti. An Italian transplant from Hoboken, New Jersey, he has been the exclusive spa’s signature chef since 1994, when his predecessor was “stolen” from the spa by Oprah Winfrey.
He smiles warmly. He likes those occasional deviations from the norm that allow him to practice some butter and cream sauces that gourmet chefs are known for.
But his real creativity comes from crafting delicious entrees within about 400 calories per meal. He specializes in light, yet flavorful cuisine. Think Lobster Mashed Potatoes, Spicy Rock Shrimp Won Ton or Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Cabernet Sauce.
This particular lunchtime the meal is a wrap of savory lobster and shrimp with vegetables and a peanut sauce. In the center of the plate are soba noodles. This healthful repast is followed by a dollop of citrus and mint flavored sorbet served in an antique egg cup.
It’s all very delicious, and you don’t have to feel guilty eating it. Pernetti offers cooking demonstrations in the kitchen on the type of cuisine he prepares. It is food designed to support the four-hour a day exercise regimen that is part of the spa’s successful weight-loss program.
The destination spa, which was founded 20 years ago but has flowered since it was purchased seven years ago by John and Terri Havens, is in the midst of an aggressive upgrade of facilities and a building program that amounts to a genteel, yet in-your-face challenge to the venerable Golden Door spa, which is just over the hill.
The accolades it is collecting from spa magazines would suggest that its challenge is succeeding. Spa Finder Magazine’s annual 2006 Reader’s Choice Awards gave Cal-a-Vie top awards for Best Cuisine, Best for Weight Loss, Best Yoga, Best for Hiking and Best for Mind/Body/Spirit.
Work has begun on an aquatic wellness center that will include several mineral pools, including one of the largest in Southern California.
Situated on 400 secluded acres just off Gopher Canyon Road, considered part of Vista, the spa offers celebrities (Paula Abdul and Uma Thurman are recent examples) and anyone else who has $3,395 to spend three-days of total immersion in a world devoted exclusively to their needs and comforts.
The spa makes a point of being flexible, offering, in addition to three-days, four and seven day packages, as well. A month? Get out your checkbook: $31,000.
Here guests practice the art of living well by treating their bodies well. Of course, they have help.
The staff to guest ratio is 4-1, compared to 3-1 for many spas. There are never more than 30 guests, and only 24 guest cottages. They cluster near a picturesque courtyard and fountain, creating a Mediterranean villa, or a French Provencal village. The aptronymic* Havenses have no plans to add more cottages. They like the intimate atmosphere as much as their guests.
From the village you can see the 400-year-old meditation chapel that was transported stone by stone from Dijon, France. Saturday nights it is the scene of intimate candlelight concerts by area musicians, and, occasionally, poets.
This building, by the way, is perhaps the oldest structure in San Diego county and possibly Southern California.
Mornings are devoted to fitness. Afternoons are devoted to restorative treatments and relaxation. A wooden bridge separates these two worlds.
On one side of that bridge are rigorous hikes, state-of-the-art weight rooms, cardio and pilates, all under the expert tutelage of world class instructors. They occasionally include famous fitness experts such as Mari Winsor, pilates instructor to the stars, who visits three times a year. Such celebrities are treated as much as guests as they are instructors.
The other world includes relaxing massages, facials acupuncture, hair treatments and baths in restorative waters.
All so you can get up again at 6 a.m. the next day and continue beating your body into shape!
The Havenses, who hale from Houston, Texas are antique buffs. An old mill house on the property is stuffed to the rafters with antiques, most of them French. The plan is to eventually open a high end antique shop in a 900-year-old French parish house that will be shipped to San Diego and reassembled next year.
Continental antiques, many of them from the 18th century, create the decor template for most of the facilities. Even staff members, instead if sitting at ordinary office desks, often work at desks and chairs hundreds of years old.
For the ultimate get away, without actually traveling very far, Cal-a-Vie might be your perfect destination!
* A person who has a name particularly apt for his profession.
Relics are new at Jeff Mack’s Silverado Trading Post
We’ve all had the experience of wandering through a wonderful collection of—not exactly junk—but piles of old stuff with little gems everywhere you look. It’s like a treasure hunt, except that the treasures don’t sparkle. More often than not they have a dull rusty glow.
Most of these kinds of operations are haphazard piles of stuff, where half of the fun is pawing through them.
Jeff Mack’s Silverado Trading Post in Rainbow tries real hard to give that impression, but it’s actually extremely well-organized—the organization is camouflaged so that true junk, er, junkies, won’t be scared off.
It is divided into a blacksmith shop, wine shop, garden antiques, Western Town, flea market and grandfather’s tools.You might find a bronze Art Deco peacock from the 1920s or an iron gate from Europe, circa the late 1800s. You might turn a corner and stumble upon a fireplace stand, a blacksmith’s tong, corn cutter or an old tea kettle.
You might come to a fence where it seems as though hundreds of wooden wagon wheels are leaning.
If you ever saw HBO’s dramatic series Deadwood, you’ll remember that its hallmark was gritty, realism that jerked you into the 1870s. You could almost smell the horse manure in the streets and taste the raw whisky in the bars—served in dirty glasses.Mack was one of the people responsible for creating that realism. He operates the Silverado Trading Post just off the I-15, in Rainbow, four miles south of Temecula.
One of his many related businesses is providing authentic Old West implements and decor to film producers. So far, HBO’s Deadwood has been their biggest customer, although Mack has built two Western towns for other customers, as well.
For Deadwood, Mack worked with the prop master to create a whole street. Some items he provided were wagon wheels, horse drawn wagons, farm implements, ranch tools and blacksmith forges.
Mack and his wife, Candy, are the proprietors of Silverado Trading Post, which has one of California’s largest collections of primitive antiques spread out over 1.5 acres.
Mack does most of the buying during the week, which allows Candy to pursue her career as a teacher of at risk kids in Mission Viejo, which earned her Teacher of the Year award in 2004. On weekends she does do the bookkeeping for the business.
“Primitive antiques” are items that had one use in their former lives and often find a new use in the hands of new owners. For instance, an old clawfoot bathtub could be transformed into a garden planter. An old sewing machine might become a conversation piece in a house that has other older implements.
Mack gets 70% of his antiques and architectural salvage from American sources, older cities like Boston, New York and San Francisco, where they are busy demolishing their architectural heritage to make room for new buildings.
The other 30% comes from Eastern Europe, which is modernizing after decades under communism and where you can find old hay wagons, farm implements, wrought iron gates such as Americans were familiar with in the early part of the 20th century, but which are slowly fading in our collective memory.
“Europe is becoming a fertile area to find these items,” says Mack.
“If you find this stuff, you find it in old cities,” says Mack. These architectural diamonds in the rough can be polished into accent pieces that remind us of our heritage.
“It’s a very complicated world,” says Mack. “People want to surround themselves with interesting accent pieces that remind them of times that were simpler.”
Sometimes you find “purists” who buy the old, but still useful tools.
“A lot of guys are purists. They have no desire to live in the 21st century. They like the 19th just fine!” says Mack.
Mack believes he is one of just three architectural salvage operations in San Diego county. That’s his biggest business. For example, he sells hundreds of windows. Another part of his business is cabin decor: old snow skis and snow shoes, wood stoves. More often than not people don’t use these items for their original purpose, but as accent pieces.
For years Mack took his antique show on the road to Arizona, Texas, California and Nevada, but three years ago he sold an antique seed planting machine to the owner of the property on Fifth Street.
The owner had a couple of acres he needed to rent and Mack asked him what he thought about an open air antique mart. He liked the idea and Silverado Trading Post has been a going concern ever since.
Mack offers “real prices for real people.” “Our concept is to make our business fun and affordable.” The items you see are real, not reproductions. “A lot of people make things in China. We don’t go that route.”
Just a few weeks ago a weekend faire that Mack organizes began operating next to the trading post. Vendors offer a variety of products that complement the products Mack sells. There’s food and drink and live entertainment.
* * *
The Silverado Trading Post is located at 4811 Fifth St., in Rainbow. Take the Mission Road exit off I-15, as if you were going to go to Fallbrook. Instead, turn right onto Old 395 and turn right again onto Fifth Street. It is open Monday–Friday 11 a.m.–5 p.m. and weekends, 9 a.m.–6 p.m. You can reach them by calling 760-723-8483.
The Old Boulevard: The History of 395
There are some who got their kicks on Route 66. It was, after all, a highway that stretched from “Chicago to LA,” as the Nat King Cole song said. But how about a highway that touches three countries: Canada, the U.S. and Mexico?
That's what US Highway 395 was in its days of glory. It was a highway that was and is.
Motorists driving along Interstate 15 today will see references to “old Highway 395” and sometimes wonder what it is. In our neck of the woods it is the remnant of that great highway.
You can pick it up at Circle R where Champagne Boulevard becomes Old 395. It continues north towards Riverside County for several miles. It is the remnant of US Highway 395.
Much of what was called US Highway 395 still exists, and continues to serve as an important route connecting Southern California to Reno, Nevada for instance, as well as many other smaller towns, such as Bishop, Lone Pine, Victorville, Hesperia and Topaz Lake.
It eventually winds its way back from Nevada into Northern California, Oregon and Washington state to Spokane and the international border with Canada.
It serves the same south to north function along the eastern Sierra Nevadas as Interstate-5 serves in the central part of the state and US 101 serves on the coast.
At its greatest extent back in the 1960s it was nearly 1,500 miles long. In Southern California, at least, the highway was superseded by Interstate 15 beginning in 1969.
I recall that when I was attending Palomar Community College in 1973 that the huge building project that was the I-15 freeway was just starting to go through that area. State Route 78 was being turned into a freeway around the same time.
During the heyday of US Highway 395 it earned the colorful sobriquet of the “3 Flags Highway.” It was part of a wild romance that people in their cars had with roads and the desert. It inspired writers like Jack Kerouac to go "On the Road.”
Highway 395 also inspired filmmakers and is featured prominently in Out Of the Past, a 1947 classic noir film with Robert Mitchum.
Just about a century ago highway departments were formed in California and Washington state, and both began to fitfully construct state highway networks. About 98 years ago California legislature allocated money for the state highway system. That is when the first legs of what was to become US 395 were built.
A few years later Oregon formed its state highway department and began to build.
US 395, which in California at least, followed an Indian trading route for several hundred miles, would eventually connect disparate segments of road throughout all three states, plus Nevada once it formed its highway department.
One interesting place in Nevada that 395 traverses is the ghost town of Bodie, where gold was discovered in 1859 and the population was once 10,000. Today no one lives there but the ghost town itself is preserved for you to explore.
In 1925 Congress passed the Federal Highway act of 1925, one of the first halting steps in what would become the interstate highway network. A year later US 395 was designated as a federal highway. At first the various states adopted their own nomenclature for their highways. But eventually they began to name their highways using the same system that the federal government used.
By 1939 US 395 stretched from Canada to San Diego. During the 1940s and 1950s the alignment of US 395 underwent several changes, including bypassing communities such as Fallbrook, Murrietta and Lake Elsinore.
In San Diego County it at first followed what is now state Route 63, then it switched to what is now Interstate 15 to Temecula. From there it followed what is now Interstate 215 through the Cajon Pass to what is today the southernmost point of 395.
US 395 remains relatively unchanged in Nevada and Washington state.
A road trip on what remains of US 395 is an experience to be savored. It allows you to see a part of the United States that moves at a somewhat different pace and is resisting, at least for a while, the trend towards being covered over by cookie cutter developments and malls that all look the same.
Xeriscape: Into the Future of Smart Water Use!
Those who think that being water wise along the I-15 Corridor—or as we call it, The Boulevard— means a dreary celebration of the endless variety of the color brown—think again. Just ask Marty Eberhardt, executive director of the Water Conservation Garden, which is funded by five area water districts and non-profit organizations.
The Water Conservation Garden, which was established in 1999, can show you hundreds of ways to xeriscape, although Eberhardt prefers terms such as “water wise,” or “low water use.”
“People, when they hear the word ‘xeriscape’ think that it means ‘zero-scape,’ and envision nothing but cacti, rocks and gravel. It doesn’t have to be that way at all,” she says.
Stop thinking that every bit of landscaping should be covered in “lawn.” And if you are going to use grass, keep it at a minimum, using it only where it serves a function— and use varieties that aren’t as thirsty. Hint: avoid turf grass, which has a raging thirst.
You can replace grass altogether with ground covers such as verbena, iceplant, rosemary, manzanita and ceanothus “Yankee Point.”
Think like the residents in Tucson, Arizona. They also live in a desert, but unlike many Southern California residents, they are in love with native plants.
Xeriscape landscaping doesn’t require native plants, but does suggest using plants from similar climates, such as Australia or South Africa.
“There are plants that bloom even in winter, such as lantana, and bottlebrush, or crape myrtle, which blooms all summer,” she says.
Mediterranean gardens bloom in late summer. It’s a matter of picking the plants that look the best in the summer.
The garden, located on five acres leased from Cuyamaca College in El Cajon, is most of the year a feast for the eyes, as well as being instructive in how to keep your water bills from becoming a pain in the…wallet.
Speaking of pain, here’s a painful statistic: 90% of Southern California’s water is imported and 50-70% of that is used for landscaping. That means you can cut down on showers, stop washing your car and even turn off the faucet while you brush your teeth, but unless you do something about landscaping you won’t make much of a dent in your water use.
A federal judge in the Central Valley has ordered the equivalent of a manmade drought that could cut water deliveries to Southern California by 30% for a very long time. So it behooves us all to find more efficient ways to do with less water. If we don’t do it voluntarily, it may be forced on us.
But here’s some Excedrin for that pain: Homeowners in our area have hundreds of gloriously colorful ways to save water.
All of the wisdom displayed at the water conservation garden you can easily adapt to your own landscaping. You can see the plants growing and take classes to learn about planning and designing landscaping, using the right mulch for your land and climate, efficient irrigation, appropriate turf covering and correct plant selection.
“Plant selection, proper irrigation and the proper mulch are the most important factors,” says Eberhardt.
If you live in a fire hazard area, as many along “The Boulevard” do, add another vital principle: spacing of the plants. No plants are totally fire resistant, but some are less flammable than others. Spacing them apart makes it harder for fires to jump from plant to plant.
Mulches, whose purpose is to hold water, cool the soil and reduce weeds and erosion, range from rocks to gravel to wood grindings or bark chips such as red cedar. People who live in fire areas should probably eschew bark-based mulches.
The composting exhibit at the garden shows how this resource helps create and retain moisture.
“We try to inspire people by the variety of plants they can use,” Eberhardt says. “You don’t mind cactus if it looks fabulous!” she says, pointing to a demonstration garden bursting with colors.
You can design “bird and butterfly” gardens that feature plants such bay laurel and blue sage that will lure flying creatures to cavort for your pleasure.
“One difficult thing is that people want ‘a recipe,’ ” says Eberhardt. There isn’t one “recipe,” any more than there is one recipe for diabetics, people with cholesterol and athletes trying to gain weight. You have to take into account whether your land is on a slope, whether you are near the ocean or are inland and the composition of your soil.
“People who are gardeners understand, but not everyone is a gardener,” she says. But lots of folks are concerned about water shortages, so more and more are educating themselves.
“We get a lot of people making a change in their gardening style to get ahead of the curve,” she says.
If you’d like more information about water wise landscaping and gardening, visit the Water Conservation Garden Web site at www.thegarden.org or call them at (619) 660-0614. You can also visit the Metropolitan Water District’s Web site: www.bewaterwise.com
Desert Theater
When most people think of a cactus, the image of a dry, spiny, unappealing desert plant is what first comes to mind. But at the Desert Theater nursery in Hidden Meadows, owner Brandon Bullard is out to change the popular opinion on a misunderstood plant.
“There are so many beautiful plants in the cactus family,” he says. “They’re not just spines; they’re low-maintenance, low-water plants that are cheaper to have in a garden than traditional lawns. And there are so many within the family that have beautiful flowers.”
Desert Theater is a nursery that specializes in cactus plants, along with drought-tolerant plants, succulents, African Euphorbias and tree aloes, with the purpose of helping residents create a unique, personalized garden space.
Not only do the gardens look nice, but Bullard says that with water shortages threatening more traditional garden spaces, a Desert Theater garden will help save money by using much less water.
“It really helps you cut back on water,” he says. “You can ignore these plants for long periods of time and they’ll still be healthy and prosperous, even without much water.”
Bullard says that Desert Theater will take care of everything from help in designing the garden to the actual installation of the plants.
“I know it's frustrating when the wife starts saying, ‘Honey, get out there and mow the lawn,’ especially when you’re trying to watch football or something,” Bullard says with a laugh. “So I say, go rip out that grass and put in the landscaping.”
Bullard started his involvement in the cactus-gardening business when he was a young man and looking for something new and exciting.
“When I was about twenty, I stumbled across this nursery in Hidden Meadows,” he says. “I fell in love with what they were doing, and I got bit by the bug, so to speak. So I worked my butt off for fifteen years and when the boss retired, I got the chance to take over.”
Bullard is especially happy to work in an environment that brings peace and relaxation into the lives of people who can be so busy.
“Most people are nine-to-five, and they don't want to work and then come home and have to work on the yard all evening,” he says. “These gardens look great and have beautiful flowers, but you don't have to pay to keep up with landscaping and all that. Plus, it can really turn into a passion for people, where they can come out and sit in a personal space that they've created.”
Desert Theater works with customers all over California and even into Arizona. To find out more about Desert Theater, drop by the nursery in Hidden Meadows (by appointment only). Call 760-594-2330.
REINS offers hope to disabled children
Horse people like to say that the outside of a horse is good for the inside of a man. That wisdom has a special application for disabled children.
Disabled children have a special affinity for horses. Horses have a therapeutic effect on children afflicted by many illnesses. Contact with the horse opens new or forgotten neural pathways.
At a special place in Fallbrook called REINS (Riding Emphasizing Individual Needs and Strengths), six days a week a dedicated staff and volunteers help children practice what we take for granted: maintaining balance and even walking, helped by a four-legged friend.
They provide weekly riding lessons for disabled children and adults. Riding is a form of physical, mental and emotional therapy.
"It is the movement,” says Director Debby Shiner. “That movement can help children who can’t walk—walk—or who can’t sit up— sit up."
Riding sends 132 types of vibrations to the brain. The horse encourages balance and opens up a new spectrum of sensory stimuli. Rhythmic motion and a horse’s warmth stimulate and exercise muscles. The rider experiences weight shift and trunk mobility similar to walking.
At REINS the arena is the therapy room. The horse is the tool.
On the first week after summer recess the children’s faces glow as they meet friends again. The mothers glow too, as they watch their youngsters do something they could never do before.
The horses are in the twilight of their useful lives. Most are 20 years old. Some were race horses. Some were show horses. Others were hunter jumpers. All get a renewed sense of self worth in helping these children.
“They love to be brushed. They love carrots,” says Shiner. Children get stimuli when they feed them carrots, when they grip their backs, as they care for them and strap buckets of oats for them to eat.
The youngest of 170 students is 2-years old. The oldest is 67. Two women suffered strokes. Some have Parkinson’s disease. The most common affliction is cerebral palsy.
Some severely handicapped children don't like wearing a helmet. They require great patience to become accustomed to it.
Riders can enjoy the therapy for a lifetime. There is no graduation.
“I can't begin to tell you how much it’s needed," says Shiner. “This is a form of therapy that is working. You could have it at every corner and it wouldn’t be enough. It’s Heaven sent for parents with disabled children.”
REINS is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) with no government funding. It is supported by private donations and fundraisers such as a golf tournament in June and Day at the Races in August. Volunteers aid instructors and staffers. Among their tasks: leading the horse and keeping the rider from falling.
REINS, founded in 1984 in San Marcos, moved to its current Fallbrook location in 1997. REINS serves the region. Perhaps 30% come from Fallbrook and Bonsall. The rest come from North County.
There are many ways to help REINS. Eagle Scouts, CSF members and the FFA build benches, display cases and fences. Eagle Scout candidates can call REINS and say “Do you have a project we could do?"
* * *
Contact them at 760-731-9168. Visit REINS at 4461 S. Mission Rd., Fallbrook or mail them at: REINS, P.O. Box 1283, Bonsall, CA 92003.
Rimrock: Stretch Your Home Buying Dollar and Your View
Those who aspire to estate-home living can now stretch their purchasing dollars as far as the elevated views from Rimrock Summit, located in Hidden Meadows, just off the I-15.
If you dream of owning a semi-custom home, you know that the price often exceeds your budget.
Couple custom designs with panoramic hilltop views from expansive two-acre homesites and the choices narrow, while prices skyrocket.
Fortunately, there’s Rimrock Summit, by MasterCraft Homes Group, where time seems to have returned to a time when stately oak and chaparral-covered hillsides ruled the landscape.
Pricing for this estate home community begins from the low $1 millions.
Rimrock is set among dramatic boulder-strewn hillsides atop Welk Resort. It gives the impression of being transported to a faraway countryside reminiscent of the Tuscany and Provence regions of Europe.
Each privacy-focused homesite in this guard-gated community averages nearly two acres. Sites were chiseled from the surrounding mountainside to preserve rocks and boulders, while harmonizing with the surroundings.
Homesites provide 360 degree vistas of Santa Catalina Island, Mt. Baldy, Big Bear and Palomar Mountain, yet each offers a rare sense of solitude. Many of the residences are also tucked behind elevated terrain and are only accessible by meandering driveways.
These entrances pave the way for five designs by award-winning Bassenian/Lagoni Architects, which then offer a choice of 32 distinct elevations.
The hilltop setting and contoured homesites are complemented by luxurious interiors. The five single and two story designs display up to seven elegant bedrooms and seven and one-half eye-catching baths, plus ample garage space for up to four cars, (select models), in from 3,000 to 5,642 sq. ft. of living area.
Design configurations include main floor master suites, guest casitas, central courtyards, home theaters and game rooms.
State of the art kitchens offer Thermador® and Bosch® stainless-steel appliances combined with contemporary granite slab countertops to create an upscale and stylish appearance.
Owners can upgrade with fireplaces in their master bedrooms, French doors opening to a second-floor deck showcasing a sunset (select plans), or a jetted tub in their master bath.
MasterCraft Homes Group has built more than 15,000 homes over the last 50 years. They have a proud tradition of hands-on involvement in every detail, from land planning to customer service.
The company is dedicated to superior design, quality assurance and outstanding materials, and the builder is proud to offer a continuing commitment to the total satisfaction of its customers.
To visit Rimrock Summit, travel I-15 to the Deer Springs Road/Mountain Meadows Road exit and head east. Then turn left on Champagne Boulevard and travel to Welk View Drive and turn right. The Sales Center and models are located at 9504 Welk View Court and are open daily from 10 a.m.–5 p.m. and Wednesdays from 1–5 p.m. For sales assistance, call (760) 749-4008 or visit www.RimrockSummit.com.
Welk Resort Theatre presents ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie’ & ‘White Christmas’
Welk Resort Theatre is currently running the musical Thoroughly Modern Millie, the charming story of a young woman who moves to New York City in search of a new life. It’s the beginning of the Roaring Twenties, the era of flappers, Prohibition, speakeasies and jazz.
It features musical numbers such as Not For The Life of Me, How The Other Half Lives, Forget About The Boy, What Do I Need With Love? and Gimme Gimme.
The show won the Tony in 2002 for Best Musical.
Star Diana Kaarina is in the unique position of playing Millie Dillmount in the Welk production after having played the role of Miss Dorothy Brown for four years in the national tour.
Born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, she began working professionally at age 17. She also appeared in Phantom of the Opera, where she played the best friend of the female lead and acted for three and a half years in Les Miserables, playing Eponine. She also played most of the female roles in Rent.
We caught her between performances.
Q: You must enjoy the play since this is your second time performing in it.
A: I had a great time doing the national tour. It was a blast. It’s a great comedy. You get out there and get people laughing.Q: Are you a fulltime actress?
A: Yes.Q: How does the character of Miss Dorothy Brown differ from Millie’s role?
A: They are a hundred and eighty degrees different. Dorothy Brown is more operatic. She plays a spoof of the Jeanette McDonalds of the era. She is traditional, living in the years before everyone became a flapper. They are complete opposites, but both are young women; both have dreams. Millie wants to marry her boss and become rich. Miss Dorothy Brown is wealthy and wants to see what it’s like to live on the other side of the tracks. But they connect.Q: I hear you recently had a baby.
A: Yes! This is the second role I’ve done since being on maternity leave. I had my baby in June. She’s a girl, Kylie.Q: Is it tough being a mom and actress?
A: It is sometimes when you get off stage and you have a baby to care for. It’s more tiring than I’m used to. But it’s actually a great schedule. She naps when I’m going on. This is the second show I’ve done with her, so far so good.Q: What does this play about a young flapper in the 1920s have to say to today’s audiences?
A: I think what it really represents is if you have a dream and want to see it through, you can. She is a small town girl who goes to New York and makes her dream comes true through the force of sheer determination. It speaks of true love and the qualities that go along with that and how important that is in life.Q: What sort of roles do you seek?
A: I seek a variety of things. I just like to do things that are completely different from what I’ve done before.
* * *
On Nov. 7 Millie will be replaced by White Christmas, based on the Irving Berlin musical that starred Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye in the 1950s. It will run until the end of December. Directing it is Jon Engstrom, who has done about a dozen shows for Welk’s.Engstrom first saw this revival at the Pantages theater and was delighted. “I wanted to do this because it is full of tap numbers, and when Welk called and asked me to direct it, I was thrilled.”
He rented the movie to compare it to the revival and found that they had changed it slightly and added music.
“It’s just really good music,” he says. “It’s a perfect holiday show. And, of course, you can’t do better than Irving Berlin!”
Tunes featured in the show are I love a Piano, Let Yourself Go, Blue Skies, and a funny number entitled Falling Out of Love Can Be Fun.
Engstrom will be working with some actors that are new to him: John Racca stars in the role of “Bob Wallace” (Crosby's role in the movie). Mishi Schueller stars in the role of “Phil Davis” (Danny Kaye's role in the movie). Erika Amato stars in the role of "Betty Haynes” (Rosemary Clooney’s role in the movie). She starred as “Dorothy Brock” in the most recent production of 42nd Street at the Welk Resort Theatre. Rayne Marcus stars in the role of “Judy Haynes” (Vera Ellen's role in the movie).
“It’s a good bunch of people,” says Engstrom.
A Welk veteran, Engstrom’s first show for them was No, No Nanette, which he performed as a dancer on Broadway in 1970 with Ruby Keeler.
That was Engstrom’s first Broadway show and the beginning of a 15-year run as a much-in-demand dancer. He followed this with two productions of 42nd Street. For one he was the dance captain in the 1980s. His production of 42nd Street in Germany was voted by the International Press as one of the two most popular musicals in Europe. He directed and choreographed the first staged production of a musical version of Little Women. Other shows he directed and choreographed include Stephen Sondheim’s Saturday Night, Annie, Evita, Guys and Dolls and many others. He doesn’t perform anymore.
“When the whole thing started I had no intention of any of this. I grew up in a farming town outside of Fresno. I took dance at an early age, and it kind of stuck with me,” he recalls.
He obtained a scholarship to study ballet with the idea of teaching. However, one thing led to another and he realized that he could perform. He saw an ad where a Broadway producer was looking for tap dancers. This led him to audition and be cast in a featured role in No, No Nanette.
He worked with greats such as Bob Fosse and was always fascinated with the director’s job. He wanted to learn from a Tony Award-winning American theatre director, choreographer, and dancer Gower Champion at his last show, 42nd Street, which also turned out to be Engstrom’s last show.
“When I left the show everybody asked me to restage the show and that’s how I got started directing. Things change and you have different careers. I like to see the finished product and stand back and watch it happen.”
He adds, “I had a good run. It was fun. It was glorious. I was in terrific shows!”
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To get tickets for Thoroughly Modern Millie or White Christmas contact the Welk Resorts Theatre Box Office at 760-749-3448 or toll free at 1-888-802-7469. For group reservations of 15 or more persons call 760-749-8501.
What's UP at the DOWNS
It’s different to walk on a field that was developed solely for horse racing. Just being at a racetrack that stretches for a mile, listening to hooves pounding the dirt, seeing the tower where trainers follow the horses’ progress—it is evident that you are in a different world.
Paula Capestro has been involved with San Luis Rey Downs for ten years. She has been in the industry for 13 and worked with horses all her life.
Leigh Ann Howard, general manager of the Downs, calls Capestro the stable’s top trainer.
“We’re believers in healthy, happy horses, so we go the extra mile,” explained Capestro. “We call our place out here ‘The Spa.’ We make it very horse-friendly, we have turnouts, a eurosizer, we have beautiful training tracks and trails, round pens—it’s pretty much a full-service facility.”
SLRD is approved by the California Horse Racing Board—trainers do official workouts there, rather than going to the main track to train for a race. It is the only CHRB licensed training track in the state.
San Luis Rey Downs was built in 1968-69 by John Alessio and partner C. Arnholdt Smith to be a racetrack, but under Gov. Ronald Reagan they couldn’t get permission from the State Racing Commission.
When Smith’s bank was foreclosed, the Downs was put in receivership under the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.) until the Vessels family bought it in 1979. They added barns and made it a training center. In 1999, it was purchased by a subsidiary of Magna Entertainment Corp., MI Developments.
Howard became general manager shortly thereafter. She is credited with many improvements.
“After I took over management in 2001, I had a friend help me mark off trails that I wanted, and then we dumped shavings on them and spread them around,” said Howard. “Later I found out that I’d won an award for being one of the top commercial recyclers because I used old shavings from out of the barns. I thought it was funny because I was only trying to save money.”
Howard also banned alcohol on the premises.
“It took a long time for that to set in,” Howard said. “I had other race track managers call me and criticize me, but I stuck to it. You know what happened? Everything got a whole lot cleaner. The bathrooms are cleaner, the place isn’t hammered up like it was. There isn’t the drug use that we had before. It’s amazing. Every racetrack has those sorts of problems. Now that they’ve seen how successful we are here, they’re doing the same thing.”
SLRD maintains other strict policies, like a security gate. Workers undergo background checks, including fingerprinting. They must be licensed.
“We jump through all the hoops,” said Howard, “but it’s worth it to be able to ship our horses from here the morning of the race.”
Each trainer rents his shop. SLRD maintains the grounds and track. Horse owners pay trainers’ fees. Trainers work to make the horses winners.
“Paula Capestro is top trainer because she has the best horse,” said Howard. “That doesn’t necessarily make her the main trainer, because others have more horses and have won more races.”
Trainers manage riders, horses, veterinarians, stabling, feed and billing. They decide when the horse is ready to race.
“It’s a hard thing to learn,” said Capestro. “Typically you do workouts and as your horse gets closer to a race, the workouts get farther and faster, and you have to do workouts out of the gate.
“Once you get to that point where you believe your horse is ready, you start looking for a race. Sometimes you’re right, sometimes you’re wrong. Some trainers send their horses to race when they’re not ready on purpose just to give them a race. Other trainers want to be completely ready their first time out. A lot of it just depends on the maturity of the horse and racing luck.”
At the highest level they are called allowance horses. They can run in stakes races. The percentage at that level is 5%. Capestro’s horse is a grade one stakes horse, the highest among stakes horses.
“We start training horses late in their yearling year,” said Capestro.
In Capestro’s experience, few horses that train for less than six months do well.
She showed me a particular horse doing a “fast workout,” which is done once a week, and is started in short distances that gradually increase.
“It doesn’t take long to tell what sort of training a horse received,” Capestro said. “This horse came in good shape, so I know he had a good trainer.
“When they’re babies it’s a day-to-day determination,” said Capestro, “but once you get to the racing stage, it’s mostly just taking care of them with easy gallops and jogs, and really, you just gauge them by their workouts.” Race horses are very fragile. “You have to be judicious about their health and their physical fitness, because when you go fast, the wheels can fly off.”
Creekside Vet: Getting Horses Ready For Winter
Winter in Southern California brings to mind cool crisp mornings, moderate days, and good sleeping-weather nights. Because we live in such a temperate zone, we may not realize that our horses have some special “winter” needs.
With this in mind, Dr. Daniel Grove, of Creekside Veterinary Service in Escondido offers us some tips and reminders to see to our horses’ optimal winter health needs.
His concerns and recommendations reflect the service’s mission statement: “To heal, comfort, and promote health for our animal companions.”
From the novice to the equestrian pro, these tips are valid and timely. Let’s look at what Dr. Grove has to say.
Hoof care—first and foremost, hoof care! Veterinarians see many problems with hooves, due to moisture and mud. That may surprise you, since we are in such a mild climate, and have dry pasture areas.Moisture/mud problems are more common in small stalls, where the horse is more apt to stand in excrements. This allows moisture and bacteria to enter the hoof area.
The one problem is Seedy Toe or White Line disease. Treatment may include topical and/or systemic drugs, and cutting away the portion of infected hoof. The healing time, Dr. Grove tells us, make take six months to a year to complete. And the horse may not be able to be ridden. So take good care of those hooves, and keep the stall clean.
Worming—your horse is very important. “Because horses are shedding parasites year-around, those parasite eggs can be ingested year-around,” according to Dr. Grove.
The importance of worming goes back to the nutritional needs of the animal. Worms, being parasites, compete for nutrients that the horse needs to stay warm and healthy. An underweight animal may possibly be worm-burdened.
Also, keep the living area clean, to reduce exposure to parasites. If in a stall, muck it a least once a day. The doctor recommends worming once every three months. With a group of horses that are in a grass pasture, worming every two months is more important, because moisture on the grass helps to complete the life cycle of the parasites. The manure in the pasture is also spread out more, too, so it’s a “catch-22.”
The most important aspect of worming, says Dr. Grove, “… it is very, very important to rotate the product. You want to be using different drugs throughout the year.” That prevents resistance to the medication, and addresses different types of worms.
As a rule, Creekside recommends rotating the following worm-type medications: fall Moxidectin, spring—Ivermectin, winter—Fenbendazoel and summer—Pyrantel-Pamoate. Check with your individual vet for his/her personal recommendation.
Vaccinations / Medications—horses need vaccinations throughout the year to stay healthy. According to the doctor, this is a good time for a Flu-Rhino booster.
Because San Diego has a long mosquito season, don’t forget a West Nile booster. Creekside recommends the booster once a year.
Dentistry—maintaining body heat during the winter depends upon the ability of your horse to chew well. If the horse’s teeth are too sharp, the food won’t be ground adequately, and therefore not digested well. The result is that the horse won’t get as many nutrients from the feed.
Dr. Grove suggests checking your horse’s teeth yearly. When necessary, your vet can float the teeth to restore them to proper use.
Blankets—you might consider covering a horse that does not produce a winter coat, and that is thin-skinned.
Feed—provide plenty of roughage, long-stem hay, pellets/cubes. For more heat, feed items such as rice bran (up to three-four pounds a day), and vegetable oil (some owners give one to two cups a day). These foods provide twice the calories per pound as carbohydrates or proteins. An increase in electrolyte supplements (found in powder, paste, table salt and salt blocks) is also warranted.Water—first and foremost, always clean, and change regularly! Know, too, that during the colder months, at times ice might form on the top. Remember warmer water helps maintain body heat, but if the ice is too thick, or if the horse has not been given water, its body temperature will drop. “No water equals a cold horse.”
And there’s more! In their quest to provide a continuing level of service, the practice recently acquired Creekside Farm, to provide onsite care.
It offers stalls, covered pens, pastures, a 50-ft round pen with a “well-groomed arena with excellent footing,” so doctors can diagnose lameness under saddle or on the long-line. Or if you need somewhere to house your mare for breeding, this just might be the place.
When you give them a call, ask about their new Equine Wellness Program, being offered at a 40% savings from September through December. The program covers a call fee, physical exam, complete blood profile, nutritional consultation, dental/oral examination and yearly deworming program.
You can reach Dr. Grove, or one of their other veterinarians (and be sure to welcome Dr. Tad Bender, who recently joined their team!) at Creekside Veterinary Service, 8751 Old Castle Road, Escondido, CA 92026. Office phone: 760-751-1020 and for appointments and emergencies call 760-728-2319. Further information is available on their Web site: www.creeksidevets.net.
SNAP! CRACKLE! POP!
The flames licked under the huge wok and then flaired up its glossy iron sides, almost alarmingly. In a Chinese kitchen cooking is done in less than a minute. Snap! Crackle! Pop!—Suddenly you have Kung Pao chicken! They add the peanuts at the end because if you cook them, they may become soggy and beanlike.
I was visiting the kitchen at the Peking Wok to see where all this delicious food is prepared. It had been a while since I was in a true Chinese kitchen, but the important things are timeless: What gives the food its zest is the rapid cooking time—for that you need those reliable large iron woks.
The Sam family has been in River Village, Bonsall, for a little over a year. They moved from their old location in Vista when they lost their lease—Fortunately, many of their loyal clientele followed them. Many were from this area to begin with —so they had moved closer to their clientele.
They made new loyal customers. The first hectic week they ran out of everything: tablecloths, and some food, on Sunday, so they decided to close on Monday. That has remained their day off ever since!
The loyal diners remain. Many visit weekly. Some drop by three times a week. I met two on the night I dined there: Edward & Carol Sticka.
“We were just heartbroken when they moved—and so happy to find them again,” said Mrs. Sticka.
Almost every night you hear someone at the piano. Three nights a week it’s Bud Roberts, a retired music teacher who taught at Fallbrook High School for three decades. Many former students drop in to say Hi! and introduce him to their children.
“I was very lucky to get a good pianist,” remarked Jane Sam, the mother of the Sam family. Mr. Roberts followed them from their old Vista location.
Peking Wok offers a variety of favorites, five full pages of menu. It combines Mandarin and Szechwan cuisine. Szechwan offerings include Kung Pao dishes with hot garlic sauce. Cantonese food is sauteed or steamed.
Sam, the son, and general manager, wants to introduce Pan-Asian or Pacific Rim dishes that will combine wok preparation with flavors associated with Vietnamese or Thai cuisine, fusing flavors, techniques and textures. They are also going to try some curries and satays.
Most Chinese cooking, said Sam, is based on five or six basic sauces, such as Kung Pao sauce, traditional dark sauce and orange peel sauce—blended to create different flavors.
One ingredient you won’t find is MSG.
“Lots of people who got into Chinese cooking don’t know how to do it right.” Good Chinese cuisine shouldn’t be heavy. It shouldn’t be greasy,” he said.
The Sams are Vietnamese. They have been in the restaurant business for over two decades. In 1980 their restaurant was the first to serve Dim Sum in Orange County. Jane Sam grew up in Vietnam and left in 1976, shortly after the Communist takeover of the South.
Service is a top priority. There’s no shortage of servers and they move quickly and efficiently. “We’re proud of our homemade style and service,” said Jane Sam. “We provide an atmosphere for our customers that’s like their home.”
It was early on a Thursday night and the restaurant was bustling. In the background Mr. Roberts tickled the ivories with old favorites.
The decor, design and ambience are classic contemporary. A private banquet room is built around a 17-foot faux wood carving of a Chinese scene.
I ordered pot stickers to start. Stuffed with pork and spices. They are crispy and soft.
For my entree, I ordered Peter’s Chicken (Peter is the father of the family), which was savory pieces of chicken with a sauce where many flavors vie for attention. It’s spicy enough to make your cheeks glow, but not too, with a nice hint of garlic, and a nutty crunch.
Mrs. Sam suggested I try one of their signature dishes: Lover’s Shrimp. That’s two kinds of shrimp. One is braised, with a sweet, but not too sweet sauce. The other is toasted with garlic. Both were excellent. Both came in generous portions.
In June and August the Peking Wok hosted two jazz soirees featuring Bob Coons, Marty Holland, Herman Eberitzsch and Doug Freedman. Sam, a jazz fan, wants to bring them back, possibly for a New Year’s Eve celebration.
Eventually the restaurant will expand to the patio.
Peking Wok is located at 5256 South Mission Rd., No. 303, Bonsall. To phone ahead call 760-724-8078, especially on weekend nights.
Belle Vista Winery’s Petite Sirah is more than just a wine... it's an experience
The Bella Vista Winery has a rich heritage, beginning with the introduction of original Napa Valley rootstock in 1968, by its first owner, who bottled under the Cilurzo Wine label.
This gave the winery the distinction of being Temecula’s first commercial vineyard. A few years ago it was purchased by current owners Imre and Gizella Cziraki.
Five acres of this first crop are still supplying those luscious, fragrant grapes, right next to the winery, which was built in 1978.
The Petite Sirah series is profiled a little later in this article. It can best be understood by including the qualities of not only the vintage grapes that make up the wine, but also understanding that 320 days of sunshine a year, controlled irrigation, decomposed granite and loamy soil, altogether blessed by the balmy warm Temecula breezes, breath additional life into the flavor of the wine.
But there is more: it is a deep richness derived from owner Imre Cziraki, which comes from winemaking knowledge learned at the knee of his Hungarian grandfather, when he was seven years old.
Combine this with the joy shared with staff and strangers, and the relaxed California atmosphere of this extraordinary family-run business, and you begin to understand the blended nuances of the Petite Sirah wines.
Meet Bella Vista’s Petite Sirahs—there are three, fresh from the vine at three different seasons of the year.
’06 Petite Sirah Rosé®—the early harvest wine, is fruity and surprising with fresh accents of strawberry, watermelon and raspberry. This first fruit is divine with a crisp fresh salad, and as a complement to cheese—a superb summer fare.
’01 Petite Sirah Reserve®—is the Cilurzo Estate Wine. This rich and spicy wine teases the palate with its dry, fruity flavor, that is a little naughty or rough around the edges. At first sip, a piping hot steak comes to mind as its personal companion for an intimate candlelit dinner. It comes by its cockiness naturally: winner of gold, two silver and four bronze medals.
’04 Late Harvest Petite Sirah®—a deceptively small package (375 ml) that caresses the tongue with liquid red velvet—serve chilled.
Some tantalizing accompaniments recommended by the winery include: pouring over berry desserts, cheesecake or vanilla bean ice cream. Or, just sip it all alone in front of the fire. Or, perhaps you are persuaded to try the pièce de résistance. Slip some smooth chocolate into the palate and follow with a sip of Late Harvest Petite Sirah®.
The two flavors envelope each other and explode upon the taste buds, and can only be stilled by the quiet, sweet addition of two parts of Bella Vista Champagne to one part of the wine. The perfect finish to the perfect evening of fine wine.
Take time to pursue the many offerings of the Bella Vista Winery. You will find that they also offer a stunning view, a covered palapa area for outdoor dining, a peaceful duck pond, a new bandstand, and their renovated relaxed-atmosphere California-style tasting bar. (In the future look for fine, high-end dining in a time-honored adobe located at the site and facilities to accommodate weddings, parties and events.)
The Wine Connoisseur Club may be your way of bringing a little bit (or a lot!) of their fine Hungarian hospitality into your home. And don’t forget to sample their Hungarian sausage that complements many of their wines. You may just find it in your bag going home with you.
Visit on the Web: www.bellavistawinery.com. Just a few miles up the road in Temecula, they are located at 41220 Calle Contento, 92592 or call 951-676-5250.
Going For Par at Meadow Lake Golf Course
Tucked away amidst the rolling hills and California oak trees of Hidden Meadows is Meadow Lake Golf Club. The club has seen its share of ownership changes over the last decade, from the Welk Group, to Lennar Homes, to a privately held company to its present ownership. Each owner has had an impact on this 6,217 yard (from the blue tees) par 71 course.
Meadow Lake is still a course of hills, doglegs and although not as many blind shots, more than you would normally see on a public golf link. But actually, Meadow Lake is semi-private.
I haven’t played this course for some time, and I was astounded just how much the course had changed. And I don’t mean just adding a few bunkers and lengthening some holes. In 2003/2004 under the ownership of Lennar, several holes were taken shorter, some longer, and some completely rebuilt.
For example: No. 14, a previously short par 3 was rebuilt and turned into a challenging 220-yard par 3.
No. 15, was shortened from a par 5 to a 408-yard par 4 eliminating a 2nd shot blind shot. On the front nine, the signature 4th hole, a downhill 160-yard par 3, was actually a par 5 the last time that I played the course.
The number 1 hole was rebuilt into a very challenging par 5, 545 yards from the blue tees. Also in this same time period, all the cart paths were redone, from asphalt to concrete and all were moved off the fairways to the sides.
What hasn’t changed are some of the most panoramic views of the rolling hills and valleys of North County. The tee box from the signature 4th hole offers a breathtaking view of Palomar Mountain, the hills of Valley Center, and on a clear day, all the way to Riverside and the mountains beyond.
My favorite holes: Of course, the 4th is spectacular with its views. I love the look of the 16th. This is one of the easiest holes on the course, a short 143-yard par 3 with mature trees hanging over the edge of the green, a very generous landing area and a very forgiving trip to the green.
Also, I enjoyed playing the 12th hole, a 368-yard par 4, the last of a 3 hole stretch, holes 10–12, that comprise the most level part of the course. Number 12 is a severe dogleg right. This hole has a nice feel about it and gives the player a break before beginning the climb again on the 13th. There is also a small stream that can come into play about 30 yards in front of the green, so check your scorecard.
Speaking of water, there is water on the course on the 2nd hole and the 7th hole on the front nine, but you would have to be wayward with your second shot on number 2 and your tee shot on number 7 for water to have any play.
Number 13 is a par 5, 490-yard monster that is up hill all the way and a slight dogleg left. I found it harder to play than its 8 handicap. The two finishing holes: number 17—a 444 yard par 4, number 2 handicap hole, requires precision placement of your tee shot, it has a severe dogleg left, go short and you’re never going to reach the green in two, go long and your probably out of bounds or in real trouble.
Number 18, a 547-yard par 5, has a fairway that is well bouldered, yes bouldered—not bunkered—and has a blind second shot over a ridge and down to the green.
Meadow Lake is not a heavily bunkered course and most holes have a generous fairway for weekend duffers. The greens are well manicured with a poa bent grass that gives a true natural roll. The greens are flat with few undulations.
Meadow Lake gives the experienced golfer a round full of challenges, a duffer a course that will not eat you alive, and those that are looking for a nice walk in the park, plenty to look at.
Meadow Lake recently completed an attractive patio area off of its restaurant, which is open for breakfast, lunch and Friday evening dinners until 7 p.m. The general manager and director of golf, Gerald Ward, told me that the new patio area is available for weddings, fund-raisers and other special events.
The fee structure is very attractive with a twilight rate of $40 after 1 p.m. and a super twilight rate of $25 after 4 p.m. on the weekends.
During the week the twilight rates are $30 after 1 p.m. and $20 after 4 p.m. The weekend rates are $55 including cart with a senior discount of $5 every day before 1 p.m.
If you buy a frequent player card for $25 you get $5 off every round. After your tenth round you get a free weekday round with cart, or a free weekend round, but you need to pay for the cart.
Meadow Lake offers a wide variety of membership packages, both individual and family. Meadow Lake is located in Hidden Meadows at 10333 Meadow Glen Way East. The course phone number is 760-749-1620. For additional information go to www.Meadowlakegolfclub.com.
The Boulevard Magazine
P.O.B. 1529, Valley Center, CA 92082
Tel. 760.749.1112 Fax 760.749.1688