LOOKOUT PM: What is BOLO? Let me tell you about it & then some news
Happy Thursday, everyone — it’s an exciting day for us here at Lookout, so we’ve got a little of our own news to amplify before we unpack the day’s headlines.
Not only did we get a cool new, super-valuable digital resource launched (more on that in a minute) — but in the launching of it, our own real-life-starved staff members viscerally reclaimed just a tad bit of our old lives, our old selves.
“Wow, there really is a lot going on,” Lookout’s el jefe, Ken Doctor, said as he scanned the just-launched events calendar and curated ‘Best Bets’ guide from Lookout headquarters above Abbott Square on Thursday afternoon.
Seeing was believing for both Ken and the Team Bolo staffers that surrounded him ... and re-feeling what it might actually be like to attend a live music or arts event in the manner we did way back in the good ol’ days, pre-March 2020.
The byproduct of our belief that Santa Cruz is not only well past ready to get back out there and have fun, but that this area has deserved a quality one-stop-shop for “the fun stuff” for far too long has arrived. And it’s called BOLO.
The cool kids tipped us off that it stands for Be On The Lookout, and we thought that was indeed pretty cool — and apt for our mission to inform, watch out and look ahead. So we snatched and applied.
The overview of what we’ll give you, our dear readers: A constantly updated calendar of local arts and entertainment events; a Thursday afternoon sampling of Team Bolo-curated ‘Best Bets’ for the weekend and week ahead; a wider look out at the event world ahead, a look Down The Line if you will (and, yes, my surf-oriented friends, that term does have a cool duplicity and was applied for good reason).
More on all those offerings from the links above, including how to opt in to text and email alerts if you aren’t already. For now all the more we’ll say about it from this space is this: The smiles on Team BOLO’s faces below say everything about the epic moment at hand. Can’t wait to actually bump into you at a concert or show ... and for that to be more than OK!
They won’t be as fun (sorry), but to the headlines of the day we go...Santa Cruz County now in drought state of emergency
It’s official: Gov. Gavin Newsom added Santa Cruz County to the state’s drought state of emergency list Thursday; with that list now including 50 of California’s 58 counties, Newsom is encouraging all residents to voluntarily reduce water usage by 15%. More from us on that here.
California’s regional drought state of emergency: What you need to know (LA Times)
The heat wave ahead & Santa Cruz County
Pleasantly warm in the lowlands, hot, hot, hot in the upper mountains: Downtown Santa Cruz will reach the upper 80s on Saturday but the higher points of the San Lorenzo Valley — such as Ben Lomond and Boulder Creek — will push as high as 104 and possibly not cool down below the low 80s at night. More from us here.
5.9 quake centered between Yosemite and Mammoth
Bay Area rumblings even: Shaking felt as far west as San Francisco. The preliminary epicenter was just west of the town of Walker, where fewer than 1,000 people live, in the northern edge of Mono County. The epicenter was about 70 miles northwest of Mammoth Mountain. More from the LA Times here.
Kaiser Permanente gives back: providing local residents equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines
Kaiser Permanente gives back: providing local residents equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines
Quick Take
Kaiser Permanente’s Santa Cruz County service area is building partnerships with community and government organizations...
How your DNA might make you more susceptible to COVID-19
Explainer: Scientists have found 13 places in the human genome that may influence our susceptibility to a coronavirus infection or risk of severe COVID-19. More from the Times here.
COVID ‘long-hauler’ first-person
It’s taught me to be fearless, push back and take lots of notes’: More than one year after Sandhya Kambhampati was diagnosed with COVID-19, she shares her story as she continues to recover. More from the Times here.
Get your summer reads on
Santa Cruz libraries expanding hours: Beginning Saturday, the downtown, Live Oak, Capitola, Scotts Valley, Felton and La Selva Beach branches will all have extended hours as county facilities continue their post-pandemic reopening. More from us on that here.
See you tomorrow, everyone — TGIF!
Mark Conley
Deputy Managing Editor