Greetings friends,
Wow, this is one of the best Septembers ever! First and foremost, before we even talk about the cool things to do, eat and drink here in our community; I and our family are celebrating. Becky and I are grandparents again and it is just as magical as the first time. I am unbelievably proud of my daughter Madison and Ryan as they welcomed a beautiful little girl. Wow. I can just sit and stare at her for hours and watch her first movements. Even at one day old, I felt she was connecting with all of us. We are already wrapped around her finger. The new issue barely got to the printer on time as that’s all we were focused on. Ok, now, let’s see what the big September scoop is.
Back in the early 80s when we were racing bicycles all over our region, high speed training and drafting trucks was a really cool thing. You could hang on in the slipstream, even getting up to nearly 55 MPH. But one morning, riding my bike to CSU Stanislaus like I did daily from Modesto, I jumped on the back of a tomato truck on the short stretch of 99 (yes it was legal) between Keyes Rd and Taylor Rd. It was the worst ever. Within seconds, I was immediately covered and drenched in the dripping tomato juice. I pulled off and went home to clean up. So, with that wonderful memory, I felt it would be great to talk about our amazing global world of tomatoes. Besides having the largest winery, our region produces 95% of the processed tomatoes in the USA. So let’s learn some more about our friend, the tomato and respect the thousands of tomato truck loads that make it all happen. Hopefully you will never experience a full coating of tomato juice.
There seems to be a momentum building here in Modesto in a couple of areas. There are big signs of life in our local restaurant community. New places like the Standard Pub are opening, Surla’s is back in full gear, the Goat will be back soon and there is the new Bake Shop will be bringing the smell of fresh-baked bread to 11th St. Not only that, more and more bands are finding places to play, Off the Air is back and you can feel some of the music in the air again. These are all great things but one thing they have in common is that we have to get out and go listen, go dance, go eat, go drink and take advantage of what is happening. Let’s build on this local energy all over town and make sure that we are all champions of local music, local food, local drinks and most importantly local business. That is the way we can all do our part to make Modesto stronger. The more success we have, the more places will open and expand. This is what makes us a desirable creative city.
Measure H needs to be well executed so that while this resurgence is happening, the City of Modesto is investing in what we need to do. Make sure your needs and demands are communicated to the city. Know your councilmember, email them, follow them on social media and make sure that they are aware of what you want. Then we can all know the plan and hold people accountable.
This month, Pride returns to Graceada Park on September 16 and it’s not just another year. LGBTQ+ attacks are on the rise. Seriously? Why should anyone get to decide who someone else loves? Let your beliefs and religion guide your own life and not others. Love and respect all. Hate has no place here or in any community.
Finally, as a musician, I know how cool the local music scene can be, and am stoked that we got noticed nationwide as the #1 under the radar music city. Now, let’s do what we can to put us ON the radar. Make sure you vote for your favorites for the MAMA Awards, coming up in October.
Hope to see you all out and about and let’s all do our part to make things better. ModestoView has been here since 1997, spreading the good information across our community. Here we are over 25 years later, lighting the Positive Modesto beacon daily.
Thanks to all that are a part of this crazy mission and I am grateful for all of you.
Much respect to ALL.
Chris Murphy
Founder and Publisher, ModestoView
chrism@modestoview.com<mailto:chrism@modestoview.com>
