Pivoting in the pandemic, Inklings Coffee & Tea has changed that. The coffee shop and community meeting space has lots of parking, so it's now set up a drive-thru lane so customers can call in an order and then pick it up in their car. Walk-up and takeout service also is available. They've partnered with downtown restaurant Salt Craft to offer its breakfast sandwiches with freshly baked English muffins.
"We know that coffee is a daily ritual for many people and we enjoy seeing so many regulars at Inklings. During this time we wanted to find a way to make it more convenient for people to get their coffee, stay warm, and stay in their car," said Jonathan Louie, Inklings general manager.
Inklings also has partnered with Valley Community Church and Blue Oaks Church to help nearly 1,000 children enjoy a better Christmas.
Executive Director Joe Jewell said, "We are also partnering with Monthly Miracles to adopt families in need. We have a Christmas Tree at Inklings where you can grab a card and go shop for a specific need. You can bring those items back to Inklings or, if you prefer, hand it to the recipient personally on Christmas morning at the homeless outreach."
It's refreshing to read opinions by state legislators that depart from the party line.
One such voice is Assemblyman Jim Cooper of Elk Grove. He's written two opinion pieces for CalMatters that depart from Democratic orthodoxy on climate change. He's challenged Gov. Gavin Newsom over his executive order to ban gasoline-powered cars by 2035. He argued that it will affect poor black and brown people far more than the wealthy whites such as Newsom and his coastal elite.
Cooper joined with Republican Assemblywoman Megan Dahle of Bieber, a tiny hamlet on the Pit River in Lassen County about 90 miles northeast of Susanville, in an opinion piece about dealing with climate change as it relates to the huge wildfires that burned through California this year. Last weekend's rains should have finally brought the fire season to an end in Northern California.
Newsom is taking on what he calls "a climate damn emergency" by banning gasoline-powered cars and doing little about managing the forest. It's been the mismanagement of the forests that allowed much more dense vegetation that fuels explosive fires. The legislators point out that 4.2 million acres burned this year and 31 lives were lost.
From an emissions standpoint, the wildfires in 2018 contributed 45.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, which was the first increase in emissions since 2012. This year's fires are estimated to double that number. They also point out that even if California's emissions were zero, it would amount to just a 1% global reduction.
They argue forest management will have a far greater impact from both an emissions and forest health standpoint to say nothing of the human impact. Both represent communities with poorer people who will not be interested in purchasing a new electric vehicle -- let alone in sparsely population Lassen County.
