The theatre only seats 45 lucky people. If you want to be one of them, you have to plan ahead. In June they will celebrate their 10 year anniversary. They are in an unexpected industrial building and if you aren’t really looking for a theatre, you might not even notice it at all. That only makes it feel more special.

Pear Slices is a special production that the theatre does every year. This year it was 9 little plays, each about 7 to 10 minutes. The plays were all written by members of the Pear Avenue Playwrights Guild. Pear Slices 2012 runs through June 3^rd. Visit their website for tickets as soon as possible because this particular play sells out very quickly.

My favorite actors in Pear Slices were Sam Tillis and Fred Pitts. Sam was in 4 of the 9 plays and Fred was in 5 of them. The subjects covered in the 9 plays were so varied and interesting that I almost wanted a few minutes in between each play to process what I had just seen. One of the plays, No Dogs Go to Heaven by Bridgette Portman, was about rationalizing the misguided belief that you are separate from the lives around you.

In my opinion, going to a play at Pear Avenue Theatre is so much more enjoyable than going to a movie and there is plenty of parking. You’ll be supporting local artists and live theatre which is so important. Lots of people in the audience were introducing themselves to their neighbors before the play started. It was really a very friendly and comfortable atmosphere. I think I should probably considering buying season tickets to Pear Avenue Theatre—I liked it that much! I love Mountain View.

She’s been a vet for almost 20 years and became a Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist in 2005. Dr. McCain does house calls. She told me that she noticed lots of her patients (or their owners) were interested in a more holistic treatment as opposed to taking pills for chronic conditions, so she started offering animal acupuncture.  Some of the conditions that are treated with acupuncture are pain, paralysis, asthmatic problems, inflammatory bowel disease and sinus problems. She also offers Chinese herbal medications that are formulated especially for animals.

She offers acupuncture treatment on the peninsula (at the patient’s home) and at her office in Mountain View. Sometimes large animals are difficult to get into a vehicle and especially if they have some kind of back pain or issues that require veterinary help. It’s very helpful to the owner for Dr. McCain to drive to their home when animals are in pain or difficult to move; it’s also much less stressful on the animal if they can stay in their usual environment.

Romeo was at his 2^nd acupuncture treatment the day that I went to see him. He’s been having difficulty jumping up onto furniture and going up and down the stairs in his home. He didn’t seem to mind having 16 needles poked in him at all. He just looked out the window and watched birds while his tail swished back and forth a bit. The treatment lasted 20 minutes. The needles seemed to having a calming effect on him. Dr. McCain told my friend that Romeo would probably be very mellow when they got home and that he would be sleepy as a result of the acupuncture.

I asked Dr. McCain what kinds of other animals she has performed acupuncture on and she said that she has treated mostly cats and dogs, but that she has also done rabbits and chinchillas. I really love that our community has someone offering this service to our pets. Please visit Dr. McCain’s website or email her for more details. Thanks Sharlene for inviting me to join Romeo at his appointment. I love Mountain View.

Earlier this week I spent some time in a few art classes at the ‘Waldorf School of the Peninsula’ in Mountain View. The whole time I was there, I kept thinking how much I would have loved being a student at that school.

Lucy Wurtz, the Development Director of the school, led me around through some classes and talked to me about the artwork that was posted in the halls. Although Waldorf School isn’t specifically an art school and the academic curriculum is rather rigorous, there is a great deal of emphasis on the arts. The high school students study fine arts, practical arts, drama and music. I asked what kinds of “practical arts” the younger students learn and Lucy told me felting, crochet, knitting, and cross stitch.

I filmed some of the classes. In the first part of the little video I was in the “Architectural Design and Model Building” class. The students are using the traditional tools that an architect would use to create diagrams and plans for a new building. I like that it wasn’t being done using AutoCAD or some other quick draw software. They learn how to do it the real way, with engineering rulers, triangles, protractors and a compass. And they even learn how to freehand the proper lettering used on architectural drawings.

I also went into a weaving class. The students were learning to use a loom to make a scarf. The day I visited was the first day of ceramics for the freshmen. They were asked to recreate an organic shape out of clay. The instructor passed out different shapes and everyone went to work with nothing but a ball of clay and a small wooden carving tool. I peeked in on a water color painting class. A few students stood in front of easels and each worked on their “veil paintings.”   They layer many layers of very thin, watery paint to slowly build up the saturation level. The completed images that were hanging in the hallway were beautiful.

And, much to my surprise, my favorite class that I visited was the Eurythmy class. It looked similar to modern dance. The students are learning a sense of space through movement and they’re also learning to communicate sounds through movement. The room is spotless and carpeted and the students take their shoes off. The instructor guides them through each song as the piano plays in the corner of the room. I could have stayed and watched them all afternoon.

I noticed how well all of the students got along with each other and mentioned it to Lucy. She explained to me that many of them have known each other for years and that they feel like family to each other. It is such a nurturing environment and it was obvious that the students were having fun and laughing with each other, not at each other.

Waldorf  School of the Peninsula is having an enrollment open house on March 31^st. It’s for both students and parents. It’s from 10 am to 12:30 pm at their “new campus” here in Mountain View, 180 N. Rengstorff Ave. Waldorf is accredited by WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) and by AWSNA ( Association of Waldorf Schools of North America). I was so impressed with everything I saw and I left feeling like I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to see so many amazing places around town and then write about them. I love Mountain View.

Cinderella opens March 3 and runs through March 11, 2012. It’s a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical adaptation of the classic fairy-tale. Here’s a link to Cinderella tickets. And the special production that includes parents, PYT staff and alumni is called “To PYT with Love” and it’s only one night, Thursday, March 8^th.  This show is a collection of some of the most popular numbers that PYT has done over the years. It shows the audience what it’s like to be backstage during a performance and working in a theatre. They’re poking fun at themselves and some the people involved in theatre. Sounds like fun to see the tables turned, parents up on stage singing and dancing while the kids watch (and giggle) from the audience.

There are several narrators in the show and one of them is Brian Miller. Brian was in PYT as a teenager and now he is working as a choreographer for the company.  He grew-up in PYT and now he’s a seasoned professional and they’re quite proud of him.

Getting your child involved in PYT is a great way to build self-esteem. Kids involved in theatre learn about creativity, problem solving and collaboration skills. They get the chance to learn about public speaking at an early age. And they learn about commitment and dedication, much like they would if they were on a sports team. I recently met with a group of girl scouts and one of them in particular was very confident and out-spoken. It occurred to me that she might be in children theatre, so I asked her. Yes, she was in PYT and it was obvious. She had lots of creative ideas and she was good at, not just sharing her opinions with the group, but persuading the others to agree with her ideas.

PYT is a fabulous activity for a child. Check out their website to see the details on auditions and rehearsals and what it takes to get involved. And go see a show, either Cinderella or To PYT with Love would be a great choice. I love Mountain View.

The key ingredient is the “fromage blanc.” It’s handmade cheese. The Milk Pail owns 29 cows. They live in Orland, California. That’s about 3 hours north. The cows have 39 acres to graze on and they’re quite happy about their job. Paul Schmidt, the magical cheesemaker and dairy farmer, also lives in Orland on the farm. Paul makes the fromage blanc and Steve takes the fresh cheese to his ravioli maker. Steve sometimes, actually most of the time, tweaks the recipe by blending other ingredients with the fresh fromage blanc.  The selection of raviolis changes from time to time. Steve told me that he likes to mix it up for his “thrill-seeker customers.” I guess I’m included in that group.

Fromage blanc can be used in the place of ricotta or cottage cheese. It has much more of a tangy flavor than ricotta or cottage. The tartness comes form the natural lactic acid in the cheese. Other, lower quality cheeses that aren’t as flavorful, add lemon juice or vinegar to get that same flavor. You can use the fromage blanc in crepes, tiramisu or lasagna, just to name a few. I got a container of it and I plan on making lasagna this week.

Last night I made two different kinds of the Milk Pail’s ravioli. I made the one with both parmigiano reggiano and fromage blanc cheeses and also the one that is a blend of three cheeses, including fromage blanc. The shapes of the raviolis are different so you can make them together and you’ll still be able to tell them apart from each other. I boiled them until they were perfectly al dente and then added them to browned butter with fresh parsley and tiny grape tomatoes. It was heavenly. Honestly, you don’t need sauce on them because they have so much flavor on their own. I planned on taking a cute photo of them before we sat to eat, but I was overwhelmed with excitement and I forgot that part. That’s why the photo for this story is of the frozen raviolis in their package. I also forgot to crack open a bottle of red wine, but I’ll be sure I do that when I serve the lasagna.

I love that we have had the Milk Pail Market here for the last 38 years and that they continue to offer us high quality products. It’s businesses like the Milk Pail Market that make our city the unique place that it is. I love Mountain View.

I asked Shelley to talk to me about the different ways the community can get involved in KMVT. She told me about the numerous workshops that are offered throughout the year. The first one that should be on your agenda if you are at all interested in being part of a crew is the “Studio Production” workshop. You’ll learn about operating cameras, teleprompter, and audio equipment. Other workshops being offered include: Producer Training, Field Production, Adobe Premiere, Intro to Motion Graphics, and Citizen Journalism. There are some Students Camps (ages 10-14) that are very popular, including Claymation. I expressed interest in the Claymation workshop and Shelley told me that they’re working on creating a Claymation workshop for adults as well. I’m pretty sure that we all secretly wish we knew how to film our own version of Wallace & Gromit.

People attend the workshops for all different reasons—some want to learn about the station so they can volunteer, others want to know more about the ever-changing media and the role that they play in our community, and others want training for a career in television. Whatever the case, KMVT is very progressive and they offer a wide variety of possible opportunities for people who want to get involved.

KMVT is always looking for experts who would be willing to teach workshops. If you have some amazing skill that you would be willing to share with others in the community, please contact Shelley Wolfe. And KMVT is always interested in getting feedback from the community. If you have ideas or comments about programming, please get in touch with them. If you know of anyone who would be willing to donate a small, fuel efficient vehicle to the station, please pass the word along. Currently, they have a large vehicle and it works great for big community events like the festivals, but they need a small or medium sized automobile that can carry the equipment needed to cover sports events. It would be a good tax write-off.

If you aren’t able to watch KMVT (if you have dish or satellite TV instead), you can find them on YouTube. Please visit the KMVT website if you have questions about the station, their message board, or their programming—really, they’re doing some amazing things. I’m always in favor of public access television, creative people getting involved in the community and our First Amendment rights. I love Mountain View.

I live and work downtown and the idea that I can walk to a neighborhood market that has organic fruits and vegetables, Acme bread (which is made in Mountain View), locally raised grass-fed beef and organic eggs is quite appealing. I recently pulled out my juicer and I’ve been making lots of juice. It’s amazing how many apples and beets I can go through in a week and Ava’s has lots of fresh, organic produce. And the prices on the produce are really reasonable.

The owners, Juan and Ann, are in the store everyday. If you want them to carry something specific, you should stop by and introduce yourself. I’m sure that they would be happy to hear what products the neighborhood wants. That’s exactly why I’m writing about them right now instead of waiting until they’re done remodeling the store. They need to hear from the community about what we want. We all wanted a good quality grocery store downtown for years, and finally, we have it. I think we should all do our best to support them.

I asked for frozen pie crust because I couldn’t find it in their freezer section and they immediately started ordering some for me. Honestly, I can’t think of very many other stores that would be willing to take special requests from their customers. I wouldn’t even begin to know how to ask for something special from a big store. The small independent grocers in our community are competing with really huge companies that have tremendous buying power, but those big stores aren’t really connected to the neighborhood. No one says, “Hi Heidi” when I enter Safeway, but they know me at Ava’s Downtown Market. Actually, I’ve heard Juan call customers by their names quite a few times. I connected to them on Facebook and I feel good about buying groceries from them. It just occurred to me today that I can probably request special items via their Facebook page too. I think I’ll try that the next time I dream up something specific that I want them to carry for me. I love Ava’s Downtown Market and Deli and I love downtown Mountain View.

They put cool compression packs on your major muscle groups and core. A cooling helmet goes on your head and your feet (without shoes or socks) go on really cold copper pedals. Then you workout hard for 20 minutes. I’ll try to explain the technology, but obviously, you should go to their website for a thorough explanation. Here goes: Because the workout is cold, the blood that would normally go to the surface of your body to cool you down is now staying in your muscles. Lactic acid that would normally build up in muscles doesn’t with a Vasper workout. Your pituitary gland sends out HGH and other hormones to repair and rebuild, but your muscles aren’t sore so they don’t require all that human growth hormone. This creates a surge of HGH in your body. It’s supposed to make you feel great because cooler blood retains more oxygen. The extra HGH helps your brain to be more focused and productive. It actually makes you smarter… well, they didn’t tell me that part, I just made it up and I’m hoping that I’m smarter now. And you don’t sweat! That part is true. You can workout and go back to the office. Have you ever heard of anything like this? No, you haven’t.

After the 20 minute workout you lay down for 20 minutes on a special bed that keeps your spine cool. You also hold onto a Tesla coil during the cooling period. They turn off the lights and you can sleep or meditate. It’s the most peaceful place on earth.

NASA is using the workout because when astronauts are in a zero-gravity situation they lose muscle and bone strength quickly. The Sharks have tested the technology on their players and loved it. It has also been used by Olympic athletes, Rescue Squads and military Special Forces. The founder of Vasper Fitness and Performance Systems, Peter Wasowski, is at the office everyday and he can answer any questions you might have, but he also has a really nice staff of trainers. Kat helped me with one of my workouts and I loved her energy.

Every so often I get to learn about and experience something incredibly special because I write this website about our city. Vasper is one of those special places. I love Mountain View.

Apparently many people are under the misconception that rugby is a rough and dangerous sport. Paul tells me that it is actually very strict and civilized. “Although it is very physical, you have the utmost respect for your opponent” in the game of rugby. The kids learn good conduct and sportsmanship and the game builds their confidence and self-esteem. One of the major aspects of the game is not letting your team down by behaving disrespectfully to your teammates, your opponents or to the team captains or referees. Everyone needs to follow the rules.

The AYRU is open to all kids, boys and girls from ages 6 to 14. There are about 50 kids involved in the Mountain View Bobcats right now and there is room for another 50. Everyone gets to play, regardless of skill level. There are scholarships available to those that might have difficulty with the registration fee. You can contact Paul and play for a day to test it out and see if you would like to join the team. Some of the games are tough/tag rugby and others are contact. I asked how many broken bones they have had and Paul told me that there have been none in the 3 seasons in Mountain View. That’s a pretty good record.

Two of the coaches of the Mountain View Bobcats have played professional rugby and the “advisior” to the team, Brian McCellahan, is currently a professional player. Brian also happens to have been born in Mountain View. One of the coaches is the owner of St. Stephens Green on Castro Street. Many of the parents want to learn about the game after they watch it for a few minutes while their children are playing and they end up becoming coaches for the team.

After a game, both of the teams sit down together for a meal. They talk about the game and get to know each other. That’s very different from other sports. They are given the chance to critique each other’s technique, give feedback to the other team and talk about how they can improve their performance. It all sounds so civil and respectful. I really like that. To learn more about the Mountain View Bobcats, AYRU, and sponsoring or joining the team, please visit their website or their Facebook page.
I love Mountain View.

When I arrived there was a class taking place so I sat quietly and watched through the one-way viewing mirror. The class I watched was a “Mommy and Me.” Lesley has a wide variety of classes including: Kinderdance, Tiny Tots, Tap, Musical Theater, Classical, Hip-Hop, teen & adult Jazz, and teen & adult Ballet. She also offers Yoga and Zumba.

There are lots of new classes starting January 2, 2012. The dance classes will be performing on Second Stage at the Center for the Performing Arts in June. If your child enrolls in a class right now, they’ll be a pro by June. They will want to invite all of their friends and family to come see them on stage.

I was thinking how much fun it would be to reserve For the Love of Dance for a birthday party. I could just imagine how happy a group of little girls would be to get to go to a party in a dance studio! The walls are painted purple and lavender and the wood floor is beautiful. Little girls would love it!

Lesley is a mother of four and she and her family live here in Mountain View. She understands how demanding some dance studios can be, that’s why For the Love of Dance is different. She allows students to join a class at any time, not just during the beginning registration period, although, you’re going to want to get started learning your routines if you’re going to be on stage at the annual recital in the Center for the Performing Arts in June, right?