It’s a sad thing to note that we need to have a Women’s Refuge in Shasta County. But it’s good to know that since we do need it, our community supports it wholeheartedly. One of their big fundraisers is their Annual Crabfeed, held at the Anderson Fairgrounds. It’s run by volunteers, and among them is the Active 20-30 club, where Erin is a member. Here’s the club volunteers for last Saturday’s event.

There was a good turnout. Erin gets a shot with Shasta County Sherriff, Tom Bosenko.
Here’s Erin with Shasta County District Attorney, Jerry Benito.

Below, Chita and Lia from KRCR TV, along with Erin. Their table’s theme was ’80s Prom wear.

Our thanks to all the many volunteers who make this fundraising event possible! Actually, our community is frequently blessed with a strong volunteer spirit. It’s Really Redding.
Avatar is all that
Sculptor Dave Allred at The Old City Hall Gallery
Posting about sculptor Man of Steel in Shingletown the other day reminded me that David Allred has a showing currently at the The Old City Hall Art gallery.

Dave’s work is really lovely. This is a small sample of what you can find there.


On top of that, Dave’s a neighbor of mine. He lives around the corner and down a ways. It’s Really Redding.

(old) Brick’s Smokehouse BBQ & Grille, on 1718 Placer in Redding
Note: Brick’s is still going strong, but has moved since this post first ran.

There’s a new BBQ joint in town, Brick’s Barbecue and Smokehouse, on Placer just east of Court Street. Longtime Redding folks will recall this as the old Between the Bun restaurant.

You’ll be enchanted by the smell before anything else. They cook with fragrant smoke.

Looks like a family affair. Here’s owner Mike, with his son Dakota.

The kitchen is super clean. The food is terrific and plentiful. We’ll probably be regulars here, and expect they will do well.

Co-owner Solange showed off her lovely Valentine’s nails for fun. Best wishes to this fledgling family business!

Brick’s Smokehouse BBQ & Grille, 1718 Placer can be reached at (530) 245 9158
Man of Steel in Shingletown
Shingletown is blessed to be the home of the Man of Steel, sculptor Doug Stewart.

Doug Stewart’s artistic and fanciful life-sized metal renderings of animals dot the landscape. They share space with larger-than-life busy insects made durable in steel and stone.


You can learn more about Shingletown’s Man of Steel at his artist website.



His art is a prominent feature of this gallery at he corner of Hwy 44 and Black Butte Road. This Shingletown art gallery building is for sale too, and you can read more about it at the link. It’s a building with as many creative possibilities as the art it contains.

Big fun at Redding Soroptimist Mardi Gras
The 38th Annual Redding Soroptimist Mardi Gras took place last Saturday night. It was a blast! Who is that masked woman?

Funds received from this fun event are used to provide scholarships to deserving young women as well as to fund other service projects of the club.

Here is Erin Murphy with Dylan Darling from the Record Searchlight celebrating a win. The real winners are the scholarship beneficiaries.
You can learn more about our Soroptimist Club at their website. Thanks to all the volunteers and sponsors! See you again next year!!
Best photo of the fashion show
Sunday, I ran several photos I took of last Saturday’s benefit fashion show titled “The Collage.” I got some OK shots. But ultimately the most beautiful photo I saw was this, captured by my evening companion, the lovely Karry, using a Nikon S570. This is Kim, of Kimberly Nicole Boutique. The full size shot is really nice, with poetic depth and grace, and a good balanced composition. It’s a shot I wish I could say I took! I hope you enjoy this web version. Our thanks to the model, and again to all the models and show participants.

Rainy day reflection

We real estate agents are independent contractors. That means we often work many hours for free, hoping to meet somebody buying or selling a house. This very rainy weekend I held a house open both days on Foothill Blvd, and it was looong time between few lookers. I believe this was also the weekend for NFL playoffs. No playoffs here.
I’m still remaining hopeful that someone will come along eventually; they simply have to. This house is wonderful, and it will also put me in good stead when it comes to having the responsibility of selling homes in the future. In some cases, we may decide to look at other ways to purchase real estate, like through a land contract, for example. The person looking to buy the land makes an agreement regarding the payments with the seller, and will then pay the remaining figures over a certain amount of time. This again is decided between both buyer and seller. But don’t worry, once it has been paid off, the buyer has ownership of the property. Good, right? Of course, you will need a company like Amerinote Xchange to help you along the way, especially if you are looking to sell your own land. And there are some great pieces of land around here, which is probably why so many people have decided to build real estate properties on them. If I was looking for a house, I’d definitely consider buying one in this area, maybe even the homes that I set up an open house for on Foothill Blvd because they were amazing. But just looking for someone, anyone, who is interested in this property is my first obstacle to overcome.

Well, there is time for reflection. And whining, apparently! Things could be worse…
Fashion show pix
Took a few quick photos at the Fashion Show held yesterday at the Old City Hall to benefit the Shasta County Arts Council, and support our local clothing and jewelery designers. It was a terrific show and a lot of fun. We have some really talented local people. Here’s some quick photos:







Erin with Kimberly, of Kimberly Nicole Boutique.

It’s Really Redding.
Soup Supper at Lema Ranch for LWV
We attended the League of Women Voters Soup Supper at Lema Ranch. I sat for soup with Redding Mayor, Patrick Jones. He’s a very dedicated public servant, and I came away impressed.

Above, LWV member Erin Murphy and Redding Mayor Patrick Jones. Along with great homeade food in a matchless setting, we listened to a presentation by the State Auditor’s office about the upcoming legislative redistricting. There’s more about that, and how you can be involved at this article I wrote at A News Cafe.
Seen above, Mary Stegall of the Redding City Council, getting some soup. You can learn more about the Redding LWV at their online newsletter The Voter. Also, come on over and become a friend of the League at their Facebook Group. Their mission of non-partisan voter education continues.
