The Bujalski Family Reunion planning committee rented the Windsor Community Center for a recent…read moreSaturday evening. It was potluck and for the 100+ people attending, it was a nice roomy venue to socialize and be entertained within the family legacy.

We were passing through on vacation and this place caught my attention had to stop to check it out…read moreglad I did. It was a very nice historic home and had a beautiful garden Lots of facts around the place explains what things are and even the history of the gentleman that lived and Is buried there. Enjoyed exploring I loved that you can hear the facts online while looking around.

A darling, historic home and garden open for a casual stroll just minutes from the historic…read moredowntown area. We enjoyed the grounds, and spent about 30 minutes here during our time exploring Santa Rosa. I highly recommend going, and booking the guided tour if it's available when you go!

I'm very impressed with downtown Santa Rosa. Its got a Barnes and Noble and a very popular brewery…read more- Russian River and parking is free after 6pm. Overall the city looks clean and pleasant. Parks and green areas are there for you to enjoy after trying some restaurants. The downtown area is cute and intimate and very pleasant. The buildings are old and interesting and there are no monster ugly new construction in sight. Pliny the Younger season is still in session for a couple more days - if you live in the bay its a once a year opportunity that you should jump on if you can. Live a little. Parking is abundant and free after 6pm. There are tons of lots and garages and it shouldn't be an issue. They say that any neighborhood with a Barnes and Noble is a good one. This must be amore affluent area than I first imagined. I suppose Santa Rosa is within reasonable distance to San Francisco that people may choose to commute in. I tend to think its at the edge of being considered part of the bay area. I think downtown Santa Rosa could be a destination for you. Research a few things you'd enjoy and have a plan B in case Russian River's wait line doesn't work out for you.

Santa Rosa was not a destination, until recently. Still, it doesn't have much, yet. It has a…read moregritty feeling, like Venice Beach. The homeless don't help it, but what can you/we do? Things to do: 2/5 Safety: 3/5 Cleanliness: 2.5/5 Features: ======== * It's all about 4th street (and a lil about 5th) * Russian River Brewing * La Rosa Tequileria & Grille * Santa Rosa Plaza mall -- 120 shops * Hotel E -- a restored old courthouse Nearby, in Santa Rosa, West of the 101: =================== * Hyatt * Courtyard Marriott * New Coddingtown Shopping Center

In the heart of Santa Rosa is the Sonoma Clean Power Customer Center…read more It's one of the country's few centers that gives the public the opportunity to see and sometimes interact with the latest innovations on fuel efficiency and more environmentally sound appliances. More than just a showroom, it is an education center that has large meeting spaces and demonstration areas to inspire homeowners on how to incorporate the use of new technologies that can help reduce fossil fuel emissions in your home. Heat pumps, efficient water heaters, and induction ranges are all here to show the average person that such technologies are within reach and easy use, with a little introduction about the different devices. This space is also a customer center where the public can call regarding their SPC services. And of course, there is more than adequate parking. Drop by if you can, and see how you can learn more about clean energy! Thank you for making the space, Sonoma.Clean Power!!!

Small town with a good amount of stuff to do and see. Some good shopping as well. It to busyread more

Straddling the category of rural and suburban, Rohnert Park is a bedroom community 50 miles outside…read moreSan Francisco, touching the edge of Sonoma's famous wine country. You'd live in Rohnert Park to have more space to raise a family or get away from big city life (there was a bump in median income and population in 2020) or you'd be there if you teach or are a student at Sonoma State University. The town has the usual suburban amenities of fast food, juice bars, banks, Starbucks peppered with cute little shops and mom 'n pop casual restaurants. Chain restaurants and upscale dining are both here. The proximity to Sonoma and all it has to offer is just minutes away.

Just got back from this event today. One word: Outstanding!!! Jenny K. is absolutely, positively…read morecorrect. This is the greatest deal in the kingdom for great wine tasting for only $10. You just pay $10 a person, get a wristband and wine glass, and off you go to over 100 wineries. Well, we made five of them today, and it was a truly a memorable time. Not only is there barrel tasting which may or may not be good, all the wineries are pouring their regular wines. You can talk to the owners and winemakers about the futures, how the '05 year is shaping up, and gets anwers to anything you need to know about the wine making process. It is wine hedonism at its best. And, all the wineries we stopped at had some type of food and snack items. Bottled water is free at all wineries. So, we DID have a designated driver today, and went for it with all the gusto we could. Very nice weather day, and the time went by quick. Our stops (hope I can remember them all): Russian River Area 1. Martinelli Killer zins and other wines are great also. The barrel tasting was their top of the line Giuseppe and Louisa Zin. It was the '06 and will be released in Nov. It tasted good to me today, although a little sediment remained. Headed over to the wine tasting bar, and had the real '05 Giuseppe and Louisa. Robert Parker gave it 94 points, and when you taste it you will see why. Rich, dark, deep flavors, with fantastic finish. Food was lasagna, bread, cookies and chips. 2. Sunce I just love this little Croatian owner winery. He does a super job and makes about 15 reds and 4 whites plus late harvest dessert wine. The ones we really liked were the Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. Light, crisp and refreshing and the price is less than $15 a bottle. One of the best buys in the Valley. We settled on the future zin, a rich bold wine with great potential When you buy futures on it you get it for 1/2 price. Paid $15 a bottle, and will sell for $30 a bottle in November. Food here was great. They had bbq ribs, mashed potatoes, bread and a salad. All free with many free bottles of water. We stayed a bit here and talked with the wine maker. Hey, was time to move on and off we drove to Healdsburg. Dry Creek Valley 1. Mauritson - The pinnacle in my opinion for great zin. The Rockpile zin was simply fabulous as always. Very special appellation area that the Mauritson family owns. Saw Clay the owner/winemaker and his cute and darling wife, Carrie. They both are so nice as well as their staff. Food was cookies, some pizza bread, and soup. Nice! 2. Bella Great place that we spend a lot of time at. They had Bluegrass band playing inside the cave. It was a riot. Great music. Food was to die for from the Zin Restaurant in town. The chef had pulled pork which he put in a cup over homemade grits. Let's see how many helpings did I have? Hmmm.. Can't remember. It was just fabulous. Barrel tasting of the Lily zin and a syrah, but I was in no pain by then. Regular zin and syrah were good also. We sat on the chair in the nice open area, admired the beautiful Dry Creek Valley and watched the vines grow in the nice sun. A quintessential California wine country setting for sure. 3. Dutcher Crossing Ok, Dr. M, the resident Yelp wine expert told me I better go there. I did. I liked. The Zin just won the SF Chronicle Gold Medal Award. It was tasty and deserved. The Chardonnay was super and a throw back a little for the buttery/oakey finish. Very nice. Hell, I joined there Club after sweet Sindy, the owner's wife told me members get invited to release parties and she home cooks the food. Yippeee!. The food here was good also. They had a mushroom bisque, Pt. Reyes cheese with fig jam, bread, chips, almonds, and whatever. The setting in the back is really pretty overlooking the vineyards and the valley with the mustard now growing between all the vine rows. That did it. No mas!! We (the drinkers and food eaters) jumped in the SUV, fell back, and were feeling no pain. We asked Robert to drive us back to San Jose, which of course, none of us remember. What a day and what an experience all for only $10. Here is the good news, they are repeating next weekend. Check out the website. Have fun, get a designated driver, and have a Roman type drinking and eating day. Man, I am going to bed now, I am just plain worn out from all this fun! Note to myself: take some Alka Seltzer! This event truly was a blast. But hey, this is only for 5 of the wineries. There are 95 yet to go!

Give these people your money!…read more Seriously, the events this group throws are the best events ever. I've been to the Food and Wine Affair twice now. And I just got back from the Winter Wineland event. I cannot say enough good things. These events are well organized, a great value and thus far not completely insane with crowds. This Sunday, for $40 (because I failed to buy in advance, which would have saved me $10), I was granted access to 123 wineries in the Healdsburg area. Granted, I only made it to like 8 or 9 before I was down for the count, but what a good time. So yes, check out the website and see if any events are coming up. And if one piques your interest, then gather some friends and go for it. Napa is for snobs. Healdsburg is for lovers. Or something like that.

Okay, no one wants to actually be here. But if they are here are a few ground rules…read more When visiting dress nicely casual or like you are going to court. Each person gets a one hour visit once a week based on where they are housed. There is an ATM style kiosk that takes money for commesary (if your loved one needs to call you, this is what money they will use). Note ... despite signs saying one cannot add money from 12 to 12 on Saturday, due to the kiosk disregard this. And yes the kiosk does charge a dependent fee based on money added. You may have items mailed from Barnes and Noble or Amazon.com directly. You may send mail through the post and pictures. Just know that everything you send will be read.

Place was 5 stars all the way!! Great meals! Bologna was top notch shit!read more

In between wine adventures, my fiancé and I decided to do little hikes around the area. We found…read morethe Petrified Forest and were excited to check it out. It was about $14 each to enter, which was a little pricey for what we saw. You are able to do the entire space under an hour if you so wish. The people who work here are kind. There is a gift shop with both gifts and drinks. There were rudimentary women and mens restrooms. And plenty of free parking out front. You can check out the petrified woods up close. They also have a lot of informational plaques around.

We had some time to kill today and none of us had ever seen petrified anything so thought it would…read morebe cool to stop by. It's about a mile total around the inner loop + the out and back for some additional scenery. It is a little hilly but not too bad, my 65 year old mother was able to walk the entirety of the loop. The petrified wood is pretty cool along with all of the lava stone and ash. The trees are pretty huge. It was $14 which I thought was a little steep for how much (or little) there was to see, but I don't regret going.