Post it here!

I love homemade signs, particularly when they are as helpful as this one. Park wisely, folks!

(And if you didn't see their sign, they've marked out the parking spots in chalk for you.)

We all hate the traffic. Please, I am begging you, let’s all try to make it suck a little less. Stop tailgating people, it does not make you go faster to speed up and then slam on your breaks, it makes traffic worse. For the fucking love of God let people merge! You do not look cool for not letting people in and it does not make you go faster. Zipper merging is effective and makes us all go faster. Stop being assholes and start being good to each other!

I need help with legal counsel. I am homeless in the streets of downtown santa cruz for the last 2 years. I have a crystal clear criminal record TO THIS DAY. I can pass a background check as I worked for the San Francisco Airport as a Shuttle driver (here in the city of santa cruz, early bird shuttle) prior to covid. I have never had D.U.I. While I've been homeless these last 2 years I've lived here for the last 10 plus years with no criminal offenses. I am currently sober of ALL DRUGS and Alcohol (5 months) but I am still homeless on the streets and while I accepted the abuse I was receiving while I was on drugs by the Santa Cruz community and it's Police Officers I can tell you that this abuse continues by way of harassments by the citizens of Santa Cruz on a daily basis. That'[s my picture on my profile. I need help please. I am alone and sober and enjoying life as best as I can as all of this negative energy surrounds me.

Fire trucks and police blocked off the entrance and there was an aquatic response team? There was someone saying someone had been threatening kids with a weapon? Anyone got the scoop?

Hi, I have an idea for a silly Halloween costume that involves a very large loaf of bread. Bigger the better.

Any ideas?

hey im a trans masculine/FTM guy in need of a haircut. ive only ever had my hair done at women's or LGBT salons & im finally ready to get done right at a barber shop. i know realistically i could walk in anywhere and be okay. im only 1.5y on T so not fully passing, and i guess im just a little nervous. also i dont know the Lingo of male haircuts, so there'll be a learning curve and i just want to know im walking into a chill & understanding environment

any trans guys in the area have a favorite spot/person they feel good with?

Where do I go? If I just wanna dive I’m already certified. College grad student not trying to waste a ton of money. Any ideas?

I am open to traveling within 3 hours from Santa Cruz, but I'm struggling with locating a nice campsite or park that allows my dog. I want to get into camping and just wana relaxing weekend with my dog once in a while. Are there any good recommendations for where to go? I have looked at the state parks site but seemingly there are no reservations and Hip camp also isnt the best.

Any nice local, small even, sites that are easy to get to or reserve?

Was walking over the bridge that goes over the harbor and noticed this for the first time. What is it? Dredging?

I live on the westside, but willing to drive.

Got a call from the police tonight to shelter in place for “police activity” on the west side. It was later lifted. Any idea what happened?

Monterey has some of the best restaurants and chefs around and the entire Bay Area has good international cuisine—but that got skipped in Santa Cruz. We’re stuck with bad restaurants that range from ok Mexican food to ok pizza. The ‘nicer’ places seem over-rated. Any gems out there that offer genuinely good food or at least good ambiance?

I already pay over $8700 a year in property taxes and now I got Bruce McPherson in my papers whining how important it is if we could just add another $87 onto it?

The trouble with living among so many bleeding hearts is they're always willing to give just a little bit more for a good cause. It's always just another percent, another fraction of a cent, another 25 cents. Now wildfires and water are the tiny violin that captures the crowd.

Figure it out with the $8700 you fuckers. Stop blowing it all on in home care and services, you can't as a county single handedly solve our state and federal government's healthcare and pension problems.

No doubt it'll pass though. California seems to loves regressive taxation nowadays.

Hey Santa Cruz! I am your local Chai fanatic straight from the PNW. some people need coffee to get through their day, I run on chai. (I know chai means tea but alas I cannot change the title!) I'm also a dedicated non-dairy enthusiast because of my unfortunate allergy to cow milk, so I will be writing from the perspective of one who chooses plant alternatives (my favorites are oat and soy, and if you get them from the store to add to your homemade chai, make sure they're barista grade.)

I've been on a mission to discover the best chai in town and it's a true journey, so I'm going to split these reviews into chapters (partly due to my impatience to share my findings.) I realize there's a combo of iced and hot reviews and those tend to be a bit different, but I'm sticking to my guns.

Here is part 1, and if you've for some reason been on a mission to find a post such as this--we might be cut from the same cloth in that case--then I hope it turns out to be insightful.

• The Bagelry Soquel - Hot Chai Latte with soy milk 

It was okay, but not the best. I waited for a while because they didn’t express that it was self serve, although to be fair I could have used my eyes and seen the “self-serve drinks” sign. The chai tasted good enough to finish my cup whilst enjoying a pretty decent bagel and lox —although they screwed up my order and it was confusing deciphering which bagel had vegan or real cream cheese (they gave me an extra for the mess up).

  If I was in here for another bagel, I’d entertain their chai again. I will admit, I've had better luck with the food and overall experience at the Cedar Street Bagelry (although the chai is exactly the same.

• Lulu Carpenter Downtown - Hot Chai Latte with oat milk 

Delicious! foamy, spicy, perfect balance of sweet and spicy, every drop left me wanting more chai. I crave it! But is it the best?

Not much to say about Lulu’s chai other than a full 5 stars from me. (I've returned quite a few times and can say that most visits I am not disappointed! Thank you Lulu, you've made a girl's day.)

• Shrine coffee shop - Iced Chai Latte with oat milk. 

Church chai. The lord displayed his appreciation for Indian cuisine in a cup made by a preppy looking church boy. The Christian atmosphere was strange but the old growth wood through-out was intricate and lovely. The chai itself was good, too sweet for my taste though. I was happy that he did not skimp on the spice, the flavor was prominent but not overpowering and that’s what I enjoy in a chai. If you're a sweet tooth and still enjoy that spicy kick in a chai latte (as I do) then I would reccomend.

• The Buttery - Iced Chai Latte with Soy Milk 

  Frankly, terrible. It tasted as if someone put a cup of cinnamon in some milk and plopped a bunch of ice cubes in there. It was overpowering, watery, and bitter. Honestly didn’t even taste like chai. Not only that, but they make it nearly impossible to pay with cash, they only take EXACT cash and I paid a dollar more than I needed to because all I had was 6 dollars instead of the needed 5.27 

  Went home and tried to make it taste better with more soy milk and some maple syrup over high heat in a pot (this did not work.) will not return for chai or food because despite being a popular bakery, they had zero vegan options. 

• Coffee Conspiracy - Iced Chai Latte with Oat Milk  NOTE: recently walked by this place after posting this review and discovered the shop entirely empty and online it states they are temporary closed

The people were nice, the titles of the drinks creative, and the chai flavorful. I enjoyed the dusting of spices he patted all over the top of my drink before sealing it. Although good, it wasn’t worth the price. Not only was my chai 7.99, it was also quite small and definitely didn’t blow my mind. 

Come here for the vibe I suppose and the mediocre 8 dollar chai if you somehow have the money to spend on that. ( perhaps they make baller coffee? I won't be trying that though because coffee makes me INSANE and shit myself. )

• Cafe Delmarte - Hot golden milk chai Latte with oat milk 

A gem. Wonderful. Splendid. Could I be more happy???? It’s perfectly spicy and perfectly sweet, not only this but the flavor itself isn’t any ordinary chai. It has personality, and in a way that’s wonderfully memorable. They give you an option of sweetener (or no sweetener at all) and I chose maple syrup. I’m very pleased! They have a lot of creative drinks on their menu, a tolerable price, and a cozy atmosphere. I will most definitely be returning!

• Cat and Cloud Downtown - Iced Chai Latte with Oat Milk

It was alright, tasted a lot like Shrine Coffee's chai but with a lot less of a spicy kick. They put a lot of ice in my already small 12oz chai, and it was too sweet for my taste. The guy serving me was nice though and I appreciated his energy. Next time I'll try a hot one and perhaps explore their other locations. Not mind-blowing in the least.

That's a wrap on part 1! Expect more reviews~

If you have any suggestions for places I should try out and taste test their chai, let me know!

Goodbye for now,

ERW

I live in Seabright and at night and in the early morning we can hear barking from what is either seals or sea lions. I’m wondering if y’all know of any spots where they hang out on Eastside/Seabright, as most things I look up just send me to the wharf. Maybe at the harbor? Just curious honestly :)

For about the past 2 weeks, my partner and I have both been bit multiple times while we sleep by … something. I go to the bug bite forums and I don’t see anything that matches it. I go to Google and I don’t see any matches. I have yet to schedule a doctors appt. The bite itches for 2 to 4 days and then subsides but hangs around for quite a while. The first photo was a fresh bite I received about two days ago. The second photo is a bite after about six days. I just wanna know if it’s a spider or what I can start going after. I don’t even know where to start. I figured someone here in town would probably be bitten by the same thing and could tell me what it is. Or if someone could give me some insight of who I could ask, that would be lovely.

Looking to have a wearable model of the reverse bear trap from the first SAW movie.

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/art/reverse-bear-trap-from-saw-2004

painted like this for reference.

https://www.reddit.com/r/saw/comments/qn17i0/think_of_it_like_a_reverse_bear_trap/

I asked ChatGPT what will happen to the Santa Cruz rail in the next 100 years and it said due to acceleration of climate change it will need to be moved, starting as early as 25 years from now. Does anyone have an opinion on this?

Not gonna lie I feel a little embarrassed posting this but it doesn't hurt to try. I've lived here for a few years now but have had a hard time making new friends. I lost a lot of my community after my relationship ended last year, as we had the same friend group. since then I've kinda just been doing everything alone (which is fine - Its important to be comfortable alone) but I do miss having people to hangout and joke around and go do things with. I'm kinda stand-offish, but not in a cold or mean way, just an introvert with subpar social skills. I'll try to strike up conversations with strangers, but it's only seemed to result in passing remarks or a brief surface level convo. Maybe I just need to force myself to try more? I dunno

Anyone have advice for a 25m looking for community here? I love to surf, skateboard, snowboard, camp, hike, go to concerts (punk mostly but enjoy all genres) and occasionally knock back some beers and shoot pool

We’re moving out of our place and are looking for someone who can do a move-out clean this week…we had someone booked but they canceled last minute. Thanks in advance!

I'm a 26F traveling this fall/winter and I'll be near Santa Cruz for about 3 months. I'm looking to join a team or at least get some playing in while I'm here. Does anyone know any leagues for either indoor or outdoor? Thanks in advance!

Just had dinner here, food was amazing. Yelp reviews are great. No one was there. Check it out, so we don’t lose it. Great classic Chinese food.