Free Movie – How the West was Won:
Orinda Theatre
4 Orinda Theatre Square, Orinda
Thursday, January 11th, 2017
6:30 PM | FreeWinner of three Academy Awards, How the West Was Won is a family saga covering several decades of Westward expansion into the United States from the 1830s to the 1880s – including the Gold Rush, the Civil War, and the building of the railroads.
Science Cafe: The Science of Stress:
Lafayette Library and Learning Center
3491 Mt Diablo Blvd, Lafayette
Thursday, January 25th, 2017
7:00 – 8:00pm | $10Ori Hofmekler discusses the science of stress and how to put hormesis into powerful practice. Hofmeklers latest book, The 7 Principles of Stress: Extend Life, Stay Fit, and Ward Off Fat is a call to action–a manifesto of living life to its utmost evolutionary potential, under stress, as nature intended.
Supported by cutting-edge research, Hofmekler redefines the term “nutrition” as it reveals the stress-mimicking nutrients that yield the same benefits of fasting and exercising. At the books core is the biology of stress and the way it affects all key aspects of life from feeding and sexual behavior to mental and physical performance.
Ori Hofmekler is the author of The Warrior Diet and the first to introduce the concept of intermittent fasting in practice. Hofmekler presents his approach in workshops targeting groups from special agents, air marshals, and SWAT to university professors, students, and fitness advocates.
Photo by Flickr user edbierman
Golden Gate Park
County Fair Building
9th Ave and Lincoln
Saturday, January 6th – Sunday, January 7th, 2018
FreeNorthern California’s Finest Selection of Postcards, Trade Cards, Stereoviews, Photography, Labels, Brochures, Victorian, Transportation & Sports Memorabilia, and All Manner of Curious, Beautiful and Interesting Old Paper!
Photo by Flickr user ontask
Bounty From Your Garden: Fruit Trees 101:
Rodgers Ranch Heritage Center
315 Cortsen Rd, Pleasant Hill
Thursday, January 18th, 2018
10:00am – 12:00pm | $25Fresh fruit off your tree is so much better than what you find in stores! The best time to plant fruit trees and berries is in January and February, when nurseries have the best selection of bare root plants. Learn how to choose, prep, plant, prune, and maintain your fruit trees. Special attention will be given to keeping them small through first and subsequent pruning (dwarfing rootstock doesn’t keep them small). We will also touch on berries and go over differences in planting blackberries, raspberries and blueberries.
Lesher Center for the Arts
1601 Civic Dr, Walnut Creek
Saturday, January 13th, 2018
7:30pm | $30Patterned after Broadway’s Tony awards, the Shellies honor over 120 individuals and their work in musical and non-musical theatrical productions that took place between September 1 and August 31.
Running Time: approx. 3 hours, with one intermission
Walnut Creek Library
1644 N. Broadway, Walnut Creek
Friday, January 5th, Saturday, January 6th, 2017
$12Still playing the festival circuit (Berlin, Seattle, Mill Valley & more …), Mountain Shadow has snagged this touching film from New Zealand about what it means to be family and ‘at home.’ After surviving a nasty car accident, Tia has nowhere to go. Estranged from her mother and rejected by her father, she attempts to befriend the strangers involved in the accident. Caught between the innocence of youth and the immaturity of young adulthood, this is a coming-of-age story that is both authentic and poignant.
Lafayette Library and Learning Center
3491 Mt Diablo Blvd, Lafayette
Thursday, January 18th, 2017
7:00 – 8:00pm | FreeJoin us for an evening with Tia Kratter, author of The Color of Pixar. She will share how the details of color convey a story and deepen our emotions.
Tia Kratter joined Pixar Animation Studios in 1993 during the production of the studios first feature film, Toy Story. She was a shader art director of five films, including Brave. She currently manages Pixar Universitys art and film education classes.
NYE 2018 “A Crystal Ball Affair”:
Blackhawk Museum
3700 Blackhawk Plaza Cir, Danville
Sunday, December 31st, 2017
9:00pm – 1:30amCelebrate the closing of another year and ring in a bright and sparkly 2018!! After AMAZING feedback from last year’s event we have decided to continue the tradition and INCLUDE ALL PREMIUM BEVERAGES with your ticket purchase! That’s right, purchase your ticket and you will receive complimentary PREMIUM beverages all night long!!! Join us for Happy Hour from 9pm – 10pm for complimentary passed hors d’oeuvres in the foyer.
Making his return to the Crystal Ball Affair is Bay Area Native and WILD 94.9 DJ Jose Melendez playing the hotest hits of today and yesterday!
Casino Gaming – Multiple Balloon Drops at Midnight – Party Favors – Complimentary Photo Booth
Lesher Center for the Arts
1601 Civic Dr, Walnut Creek
Saturday, January 6th, 2018
6:00 – 7:00pm | $17.75At Lindsay Wildlife, we’re making white sharks great again! Join us and Dr. John McCosker, who literally wrote the book on Great White Sharks. McCosker, coauthor of Great White Shark and a consistent presence in Discovery Channel shark documentaries, will present on the threats to sharks and what we can do to help preserve the future of marine life.
Photo by Flickr user mrhayata
The Japanese Tea Ceremony: Serenity for the Ages:
Ygnacio Valley Library
2661 Oak Grove Rd, Walnut Creek
Thursday, January 11th, 2018
6:30pm | FreeOn Thursday, January 11, 2018, at 6:30 PM, tea teacher Ikuko Kubo Thomas will present the art, meaning and beauty of the Japanese Tea Ceremony at Ygnacio Valley Library. Guests will have the opportunity to experience a small part of the Tea Ceremony and partake of matcha tea prepared at the time.
“The Japanese Tea Ceremony, Chanoyu, has been the core of Japanese culture and has formed the Japanese way of thinking, as well as the Japanese sense of beauty, for centuries,” Thomas explains. From the brutal samurai period of the 1600’s through the frenzied modern life of the 21st century, the fundamental precepts of the Japanese tea ceremony have remained the same: hospitality, harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility of spirit. “We all benefit from the atmosphere, the beauty, the movement, the quiet sounds, and the attention to detail presented by the host while enjoying a lovely bowl of warm matcha with all of its health benefits.”
