I was walking around with a friend who was talking about leaving Santa Cruz for some place called Orcutt, down South. It was quieter, it wasn't infested with crime and the housing prices are cheaper.
But will you get Folklorica dance on a random Friday night, not to mention some buskers on slide guitar and art everywhere?
In his mind, Santa Cruz has become like the Tenderloin. It's easy to think that if you just read the crime reports. But seriously, in my years here since 1977, I've never felt threatened or uncomfortable, except for once. But I shouldn't have cursed at a gang member on Halloween who tried to stop me from taking a picture. What was I thinking? Oh, F-him. Who is he to come to our town and tell us what to do?
Thanks to the cops who grabbed him before he made me eat my camera. That aside, every time I go downtown I come up with some treasure, whether it's a performance or a personality, that I wouldn't find anywhere else.
For the people who say they are afraid to walk downtown, well, I don't know how they'd fare in New York or San Francisco. One block there has more peril than the entire 300 miles of our county.
And while we may not have all the art and culture of the big cities, I don't think you'd find a city of 60,000 people anywhere else with as much cultural richness as we have here.
The UCSC Folklorico dance company was the highlight this Friday. They didn't want to identify themselves because they feared they were doing something illegal. No, even with our more restrictive street performing laws, I think they were safe from being arrested. Come to think of it, I didn't see a cop downtown all night.
Check out the dancing, outside a surf shop, and remember --tomorrow there will be something out there just as splendid and different.
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