When I arrived in Santa Cruz, Ed Ferrell hired me to work the graveyard shift at Ferrell’s Donuts, the old one on Mission Avenue where Pizzeria Avanti sits now. A cast of characters walked through the door between midnight and 6am, and my job was to flip over a mug, pour coffee and suggest donut options.
One night a disheveled, mumbling character with curly hair walked in and sat down. He confided in me that he was Bob Dylan and told me a few stories. Was he or wasn’t he? I asked him a few challenge questions to try and authenticate him, and while his answers weren’t entirely convincing, there was no way to prove him an imposter either. He paid for his coffee and left.
He was like the guy I’d run into on the Pacific Beach boardwalk each night who claimed to be Kiss’ Peter Criss, which was impossible to disprove without makeup.
The notion of Dylan appearing in a Santa Cruz donut shop at 3am was not entirely implausible. The Internet hadn’t been invented yet. There was no way to call an image up. Celebrities and literary figures could remain mysteries. They communicated through cryptic lyrics.
Dylan spoke with songs, and some evoked the Biblical prophets. Dylan found drugs, then Jesus, and then drifted away from the church.
Dylan was a larger than life figure in the way that no one can be these days. From that era, memories come shrouded in an aura. Was that mystical fog there when we were living in those days, or does it simply appear when we reminisce, like a movie flashback that flips to black and white when it comes on screen?
Dan Pulcrano | Publisher
PHOTO CONTEST
EARLY BIRD DINNER An osprey having a fresh seafood dinner overlooking West Cliff. Photograph by Vanessa Lee
GOOD IDEA
County libraries are seeking applicants to serve as the second Youth Poet Laureate. This initiative celebrates the vibrant world of youth poetry. The Poet Laureate will serve a one-year term, spanning from April 2025 to April 2026. This award offers reading and publication opportunities for the selected poet. The position is open to individuals 13-18 who live in the county and can commit to serving locally throughout the program year.
Visit the Youth Poet Laureate page at sites.google.com/view/santa-cruz-youth-poet-laureate or reach out to Farnaz Fatemi at sa***@ma*.com .
GOOD WORK
UC Santa Cruz is highlighting two transformational gifts to its campus. The recently established Sabatte Family Scholarship will provide four years of tuition plus living expenses for up to 50 high-achieving undergraduates annually for the next 30 years. Strathearn Ranch, the newly announced University of California natural reserve, will be the seventh stewarded by the campus, offering invaluable ecological, educational and research opportunities to UC students, faculty and other researchers for generations.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Let us sacrifice our today so that our children can have a better tomorrow.”
–A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
