This is really a “festive” weekend in Sacramento.  If you live in the Natomas community in North Sacramento you probably got a personal phone call from your Councilmember Ray Tretheway inviting you to come to the 7th annual Natomas Community Festival on Saturday.  (Well maybe it was one of those automated calls that politicans use when they really care about you and want your vote, but still a very touching message.)  This year’s festival will showcase all that is wonderful about Natomas.  Imagine that, everything wonderful and it’s free!  The fun starts at noon at the South Natomas Community Center – 2921 Truxel Road and ends with the fireworks at 8:00PM.

• More than 20 local acts on the Natomas Community Stage
• Dance floor (dance lessons available)
• Tile painting for Fort Natomas
• Musical performances by local bands
• Over 150 booths with local businesses and government agencies
• Fireworks Show at 8:00PM 

I know the Polish Festival is happening in on Main Street in Roseville tomorrow too, but if you get going early maybe you can make it to both celebrations!  OK Sacramento, ready…..set…..Party!

The Out-N-About Parents Group will get together at the Natomas Community Festival

All day the weather has been the big news on CNN.  Hurricane Ike is heading for Texas!  Thank goodness that’s something we don’t have to worry about here in Sacramento.  Sure we have a few hot days in Sacramento, but the “Delta Breeze” usually comes in at night and takes care of that.  Our humidity is low too so that means “it’s a dry heat”.  I spent a few weeks in Houston last summer and believe me the hot humid weather there almost makes you wish for a hurricane so you can leave town.  I think the big problem there is when everybody heads north to get out of the hurricane path there’s not enough hotels with rooms available.  I guess all those Texans should just head for Sacramento for the weekend since we have plenty of hotels here.  They might find out how good we have it and just stay.

That’s kind of what happened when all those people headed west to find gold back in the 1850’s.  Thousands of prospectors descended on Captain John Sutter’s settlement hoping to find the mother lode.  But when they didn’t all strike it rich in the gold mines they realized this was a pretty good place to be.  Although I don’t think it was as easy to find a hotel room back then.  Since they couldn’t find a hotel room, I guess they just built a house and settled in and planted a garden.

Don’t get me wrong, I may make fun of their normally hot and humid weather, but there is nothing worse than not feeling safe in your home for whatever reason.  So we hope that all those Texans find a safe place to wait out Hurricane Ike and go home to find everything is back to normal even though they are all still wishing they were here in Sacramento.  Hey Texans, next hurricane just call and we’ll book you a hotel room and meet you at a restaurant in Old Sac for margaritas.

Hurricane Ike