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January 20, 2026

What I didn’t know before I opened a bookstore

business owner photo
My North Santa Cruz Avenue business, Beyond Text Bookstore, has now been open for over six months. That’s six months the place has been filled with real people—not just my dreams and hopes. Upon reflection, I wanted to share a little about what I didn’t know...

Tackling emerging contaminants in drinking water

inspector
Emerging contaminants, also known as “contaminants of emerging concern,” are substances in the environment that may be detrimental to wildlife and/or human health. Some emerging contaminants are chemicals and compounds entering bodies of water like lakes and rivers, which are identified, tracked, studied, and ultimately...

Never criticize your boss

Image by DanaTentis from Pixabay
Contributor Jeffrey P. Blum is a family law mediator. Robert Greene’s book “The 48 Laws of Power” instructs us to never criticize our boss. Avoiding criticizing your boss is important for maintaining your position and gaining favor. Criticisms can be perceived as a challenge to...

Court ruling provides a cautionary tale to our town

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
I am an attorney, but I am not a First Amendment free speech attorney. However, as the saying goes, I know enough to be dangerous. Moreover, I am usually pretty good at issue spotting, even in areas outside of my area of legal expertise....

Racism: innate or taught?

Photo of a woman in front of a round blue door
Why does racism still continue to prevail in our society, covertly and overtly? The intent here is to answer these questions analytically.

When public service is met with personal attacks

Jeffrey Blum
For the past several years, I have served the Town of Los Gatos as a volunteer commissioner and code enforcement hearing officer. Throughout that time, my goal has been to contribute constructively, help resolve problems, and support the town I call home. Nothing in that...

The ‘perfect day’ in Los Gatos?

Bear Creek Redwoods
The Laurel and Hardy film “Perfect Day” is a masterclass in irony. In about twenty minutes, it captures the unraveling of a well-intentioned Sunday outing. The boys and their wives are dressed and ready for a relaxing picnic. But the car won’t start. Tempers...

Doug Brent: Self-driving ‘hype’ becoming reality

Self driving in the snow
Back in 2015, Elon Musk made this pronouncement about the future of self-driving cars, “We’re going to end up with complete autonomy, and I think we’ll have complete autonomy in about two years.” At that time, I was a technology leader at Trimble, a...

Blum: When Grown Men Cry

Jeffrey Blum
Crying doesn’t mean something’s wrong. Sometimes it means everything is gloriously right.

We’re moving from chips to charm

manzanita tree in Los Gatos
Santa Clara County has been carrying around the nickname Silicon Valley for half a century. However, the nickname is as one-dimensional as a microchip. The phrase summons images of hoodie-clad coders, driverless cars, and tech CEOs who think kombucha is a food group. Silicon...

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