Halloween is almost here and it is time to get creative! Sereno’s in on the spirit too.   Each year, Sereno Group Real Estate offices in the San Jose and Silicon Valley area have a Halloween pumpkin decorating contest for kids.  Winner’s pumpkins (and names of winners if parental permission is received) will be advertised in our local papers after the contest is finished.

Contest Rules:

No Carving

Decorate your own small pumpkin, or pick up a complimentary pumpkin at one of our offices in Los Gatos, Saratoga, Soquel/Santa Cruz, Los Altos, or Palo Alto.

3 age groups: toddler, early elementary, late elementary

All contestants will receive a gift goodie bag

One grand prize per age group, per office, will be awarded

Any carved or punctured pumpkins will be disqualified due to rotting

All entries must be dropped off at your nearest Sereno Group Office by Friday, October 21st at 5pm.  Judging will happen the week of October 24th during our regular real estate marketing meeting.

Where and when can you drop off a pumpkin?  Please find the office locations and hours below.  We are looking forward to seeing some wonderful kids’ creations!

Please stop by a Sereno Group office near you to take part in a FREE e-waste, e-recycling
collection event on
SATURDAY MAY 2 1 9AM- 1 PM

Items accepted:
Monitors/TVs
Computers/Laptops
Cell phones/Telecom Equipment
Wire/Cable/PC Boards/Scrap Metal
Mice/Keyboards
Printers/Fax/Copy Machines
Stereo Equipment, Speakers
DVD/CD/MP3 Players
Microwave Ovens

Please, No Household Appliances:
Vacuum Cleaners, Toasters, Ovens, Etc.

Where to go?

Los Gatos/Saratoga
214 Los Gatos-Saratoga Rd.
Los Gatos 408-335-1400

Los Altos/Palo Alto
369 S. San Antonio Rd.
Los Altos 650-947-2900

Santa Cruz
2407 Porter St. #150
Soquel 831-460-1100

Service Provided by
GreenMouse, Inc. a CA State Approved Col lector , CEW ID# 103153
442 Reynolds Ci rcle, San Jose, CA 95112
(408) 464-9999
www.greenmouse.com

The Santa Cruz, CA, Lighthouse

Santa Cruz is just 30-60 minutes “over the hill” but in many ways is an entirely different world than Silicon Valley.  I spent a lot of time there while growing up in Santa Clara and Saratoga, mostly because my grandparents lived in Pasatiempo (a lovely neighborhood centered on a golf course) in Santa Cruz and later in retirement communities nearby.  Jim and I lived in Santa Cruz ourselves for three years when we were newly married.  [I taught first at Marello Prep in Santa Cruz (now closed) and later at Notre Dame High School in Salinas while living at the coast, in life before real estate.]

We have a lot of wonderful memories & experience with the Santa Cruz – Capitola – Aptos – Soquel area.  Today I wanted to share a few general tips and food tips for those who may be new to this part of California and spending some time by the coast.

Some general tips

1. Weather: always, always have layers available as the shore is unpredictible.  It might be 100 in Willow Glen but cold and windy with the fog rolling in at the wharf.   The coastal communities have varying degrees of fog, sun and wind: microclimates are the norm.  If it’s sunny and toasty at the lighthouse, it may not be that way at Seacliff Beach. Don’t rely on webcams!
   
2. Restrooms: know where the restrooms are before you visit.  The city of Santa Cruz has a list of public restrooms and a map online. It’s pretty awful if you spend a lot of time shopping on Pacific Avenue (downtown Santa Cruz), only to find no bathroom when you need one.  Your visit will be happier if you plan ahead!
3. There’s more to do than just the beach: the coastal communities near Santa Cruz have loads going on with festivals, shows, musical productions and more.  Check out the online roster of events near the Monterey Bay.
4. The Boardwalk has no admission fee and is a great place to people-watch and get tasty junk food, even if the rides don’t appeal to you.  In summer there are free music concerts on Friday nights (check the website for info) and on Monday & Tuesday evenings after 5pm they celelebrate 1907 nights: rides and hot dogs, cotton candy and most fountain drinks are just $1 each.   This is a bargain!
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Each year, RelocateAmerica.com puts out a series of lists of “best places to live” for various categories.  Santa Cruz made the grade for the Top Ten Recreation Cities.

http://rismedia.com/2010-05-04/americas-top-places-to-live-for-2010/

This is no surprise to me (or probably to most of us who’ve lived in Santa Clara County for any length of time) that Santa Cruz is almost like a big playground.  We know it for the wharf, the beaches, the boardwalk, for kiting, biking, surfing, sunning, sailing, fishing, photography, loads of other sports and more. There’s no shortage of music or shopping, and in summer there’s a Shakespeare festival too.  Recreation? You bet.

In life before real estate, Jim & I lived in Santa Cruz for three years.  During that time he was working in Salinas all three years and I taught at Marello Prep (now a closed school) for one year, then two more at Notre Dame High School in Salinas.  The year I was at Marello was eye-opening.  Even though I’d spent a lot of time in Santa Cruz as a kid (mostly because my grandparents lived at Pasatiempo), it was a different thing to be teaching in a school perched on the cliffs of the west side and enjoying a view of the Monterey Bay and the Boardwalk.  Several times before class would start, someone – usually a student but sometimes a teacher – would check the waves from my classroom windows and hollar “surf’s up!”   At that point it would be harder to keep their attention…..

Yes, Santa Cruz is definitely a recreation-centered place.  The award is well deserved.  Congratulations, Santa Cruz!