SACRAMENTO, CALIF.– In five days  jazz lovers converge on the State Capitol for the annual tradition– nearly a week of hot licks and cool steps all over town–from Old Sac to Midtown & Uptown. The annual Sacramento Jazz Festival May 24 – 27, 2013 features smokin’ entertainment with Dan Hicks & the Hot Licks, Los Lobos, 60 bands, 24 venues and the world’s best West Coast Swing dancers.

It’s fitting that Sacramento has the hottest jazz festival in the state (according to those who attend,) because it goes so well with West Coast Swing Dancing, the official state dance since 1988.  If dancing’s your thing, Sacramento recently greeted Midtown Stomp (midtownstomp.com), Northern California’s premier swing dancing and Lindy Hop venue, hosting one of the largest swing dances on the West Coast. Each Friday night hundreds of people of all ages and walks of life come for an evening of music and dancing that you have to see to believe. Upcoming acts include:  Mark Tortorici & the Hollywood Combo May 24, 2013; The Grand Street Stompers June 7, 2013; and Steve Lucky & the Rhumba Bums June 28, 2013 at 9 p.m.

The 2013 AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour:

Salt Lake City, Utah – August 16 – August 18
Cincinnati, Ohio – August 31- September 1
St. Petersburg, Fla. – September 14 – 15
Santa Barbara, Calif. – September 28 – 29
Huntington Beach, Calif. – October 19 – 20

After several years on the back burner, AVP beach volleyball is back! Purchased by a beach volleyball player, the organization is looking forward to good times ahead. 

Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) has seen highs and lows during the past several years when it looked like everyone was abandoning the ball and just walking away from the game. A variety of management and marketing organizations tried to create an entertainment model and buzz with billboards on California freeways showing tight shots of the backside of a female player in a tiny bikini. But, with all the money spent, sponsorship was hard to come by and the group filed for bankruptcy in 2010. In 2012 the organization was purchased for a reported $2 million by Donald Sun, son of  Kingston Technologies co-founder David Sun. Read more>

During the 1960s, Andy Bumatay picked grapes in the San Joaquin Valley fields near Delano, where he grew up. “It really motivated me,” said the man of Filipino ancestry, who has developed into a fantastic entertainer. “While picking grapes, I’d be thinking, ‘I want to get out of here, get an education, become a musician and go as far as I can go.’” Now 50 years later he’s still picking…read more>

BIGGEST CITY: LOS ANGELES with famed Venice Beach;  LITTLEST CITY: AMADOR (right 2 photos)

If you didn’t have the pleasure of growing up in California and missed out on all that great history and fact-learning about the state, you can join the club of millions of us who are in the dark about just how big the most populated state in the nation really is.  If we tell you there are less than 38 million residents, that information gets old fast. California typically has grown by a quarter -to- half a million people each year in recent years.   Even the list of cities will continue to grow but as of this posting there are 482 cities in the state. No wonder you may not have heard of Jurupa Valley, one of the newest cities.  FYI – Here is a  list of cities in California!

Pictured is the Orangevale Pow Wow Days Festival May 15-17, 2013. This fun community event includes a Pee Wee Rodeo on Sunday with a Boot Run and Dummy Roping.  California weekends are heating up to the Memorial Weekend build up when everyone goes crazy, deciding that they suddenly must travel. This weekend is busy enough for the average Californian ..see the full list>

• 5 County Fairs
• Call of the Wild Nature Events
• 3 Ethnic Festivals 
• Strawberry Festivals, Rodeos, Art Festivals, Home & Garden tours!
• Carmel Art Festival
• Huntington Beach Duckathon
• Oxnard California Strawberry Festival
• Yucaipa Iris Festival
• OC Greek Festival
• Castroville Artichoke Festival
• Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk kicks off the season
• Temecula Western Days
• Whitmore Mountain Fair
• Red Bluff Garden of Quilts Show
• Calexico Mariachi Festival
• Dana Point Doheny Blues Festival

If you love a parade, this weekend California has some!  In the heart of Napa-Sonoma wine country the city of Santa Rosa is having a Surf’N Safari Rose Parade celebrating one of several hometown heros, horticulturist Luther Burbank and his famous roses. Another hometown hero you may also see represented at the annual flower parade is Charles Schulz, creator of Snoopy, Woodstock, Charlie Brown, and many cartoon characters. Several museums in Santa Rosa honoring these famous citizens include Luther Burbank Museum and Charles Schulz Museum.  You can visit nearly any time.

Here are weekend parades:

• SANTA ROSA  Luther Burbank Rose Parade & Festival, roseparadefestival.com
• ORANGEVALE Pow Wow Days Festival & Parade
• LONG BEACH Gay Pride Festival & Parade  (LGBT – Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgender)
• TORRANCE Armed Forces Day Parade
• COULTERVILLE Coyote Howl Parade
• LOS ALTOS  Kiwanis Pet Parade
• SAN CARLOS Hometown Days Festival & Parade
• KINGSBURG Swedish Festival Parade
• CASTROVILLE Artichoke Festival Parade

Torrance City Hall includes flags from all military branches, a Veteran’s Memorial, and sponsorship of the Armed Forces Day Parade & Festival  May 17-19, 2013. The event includes miliary bands, units of all major military branches, military displays, and your chance to wave the flag. The event is free. It ranks as one of the few such events nationwide sanctioned by the Department of Defense. Celebrating its 54th year, it is the nation’s longest running military parade sponsored by any city!

We made such a big deal out of the California Strawberry Festival this weekend, that we forgot to mention Galt’s Strawberry Festival, as well. Maybe it isn’t the biggest strawberry festival in the nation like Oxnard’s event promises to be, but among locals living 20 miles south of Sacramento, it’s sweeter than anything on the planet! In addition to the delicious berry fest, this is the BIG Castroville Artichoke Festival weekend, as well! California is the biggest producer of artichokes and strawberries in the nation. Be sure to sink your teeth into that info!

From the wild Coyote Howl in Coulterville, A Walk on the Wildside in Freeport where you’ll see birds going wild to a Bug Fair in L.A., California’s out of control. Here are some great weekend events:

• COULTERVILLE – Coyote Howl & Car Show. A parade, car show, great music and popular Coyote Howling Contest  Call: (209) 878-3015, coultervillemuseum.org
• FREEPORT – Walk on the Wildside. Free outdoor festival with live animals, kids activities, tours, music, conservation booths, and more!  Freeport, California, at the Beach Lake Picnic Area. fws.gov
• LOS ANGELES Bug Fair Saturday, May 18 and Sunday, May 19, 2013, 9:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. Nearly 70 exhibitors fill Museum Halls!
• ANGELS CAMP –  Jumping Frog Jubilee – time honored tradition at Calaveras County Fair May 19, 2013, frogtown.com

Photos of celebs attending last year’s beach bash that YOU can attend. Bring $500 to get in–better RSVP!

SANTA MONICA (PACIFIC PALISADES), CALIF. — What are you doing tonight? Are you hob-nobbing with celebs? You could be if you wanted to spring $500, a small price for a beach party to “Heal the Bay“.  Bring Back the Beach gala benefit on May 16, 2013, at the private Jonathan Beach Club in Santa Monica invites you to relax with your toes in the sand while you meet and mix with leaders from Southern California’s environmental, political, business and entertainment communities. A fun-filled evening under the stars includes Oscar-winning actor and environmental champion Jeremy Irons (Voices the Fight Against Plastic Pollution), and a special acoustic performance by five-time Grammy Award winner Ziggy Marley.

Cocktail Reception & Auction featuring the 2013 Scion, Dinner, Live Auction, Entertainment and Dancing from 5 p.m. – 11 p.m.
Attire: Beach Chic–be prepared to walk in the sand to your table. Choose shoes accordingly! healthebay.org