Magazine

Courtesy of YMCA of Silicon Valley

Members of the El Camino YMCA on Grant Road in Mountain View take part in a spin class.

When Spa of Los Altos (formerly Lydia Young’s Health Spa) closed nearly a decade ago to make way for the Packard Foundation’s new digs, members scattered. Many had belonged to the women-only club for decades; they lost a convenient place to work out as well as a sense of community. Gathering for yoga or step classes, chatting on the treadmills or simply lounging in the Jacuzzi, the women had formed friendships while getting fit or soothing their aching muscles. 

Megan V. Winslow/Town Crier

Children race toward a bowl of treats during a past Halloween Spooktacular in downtown Los Altos. This year’s event is scheduled for noon to 4 p.m. Oct. 31.

Fall is full of local events – from plays to concerts. A rundown of what’s happening when and where follows. 

Megan V. Winslow/Town Crier

Jeremy Minshull’s brother, Jonathan Minshull, above, painted an elaborate mural on the façade of Jeremy and Caroline Horn’s Los Altos home.

The neighbors call it a magic house. And, in a way, it is. A recently painted mural on the facade of this Los Altos home makes it virtually disappear.

Tanya Kucak/Special to the Town Crier
Overwintered pepper plants can be more productive, and produce earlier crops, compared with new transplants. Slow-growing hot peppers and hard-to-find varieties are especially worth overwintering.

Curious neighbors wondered why I was potting up all the pepper plants in my garden last November.

For the past several years, I’ve overwintered at least one of my most robust or interesting pepper plants. Last year I decided to experiment on a larger scale.

“Prison Free” was purchased on the street in downtown Chicago from a local artist.
Lei Tung/Special to the Town Crier

"Everyone discusses my art and pretends to understand - as if it were necessary to understand - when it is simply necessary to love."

- Claude Monet

In interior design, art is often treated as an afterthought. Long after the paint has dried and all of the furniture has been arranged, we start thinking about the art.

Julia Isaac/Special to the Town Crier
Michelle Isaac’s garden boasts one of her favorite pink roses, the Geoff Hamilton.

Roses come in various colors. I love pink roses. Lucky for me, there are many pink roses to choose from, including dozens of pink rose plants in the United States, in a wide variety of shades.