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Gilroy welterweight Robert Guerrero returns to action Aug. 27 in Anaheim, headlining a three-bout card airing on the cable network Spike.

Peeking through racks of clothes this week, I was on the lookout for someone looking fabulous and fashionable. The timeless Coco Chanel once said, “Simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance.”

Where should a first time homebuyer land, Gilroy, Morgan Hill or Hollister?

It’s mid-August, and for avid gardeners this means tiptoeing over tangled watermelon and winter squash vines and arms stained green up to the elbows from reaching into crowded tomato cages. As the temperature rises, it seems like there’s just no stopping the veggies. Even gardeners with ample growing space are starting to feel the squeeze around this time of year. If only I had one more garden plot…one more patio pot. So much food to grow, never enough space. Boo hoo. I think it’s time to grow up.

The amazing story of Carole King is an inspiring one, showing what talent and drive could do in the world of popular music back in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s. She has won four Grammys, been inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame and was the first woman to receive the Library Of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. Her list of achievements goes on and on.

Beware! There are mountaineers out there, and they are all around you. They are hard to spot, because they look just like you and me. Cleverly disguised as teachers, accountants, students and such, they are hidden from view. You may not recognize them, but believe me, they are out there.On a recent Saturday morning in mid-July, 68 of your friends and neighbors stood at the foot of 10,381-foot Round Top Mountain in the Sierra, and set out on a mountaineering challenge they had prepared for over the past seven months. It began with a four-mile loop at Coyote Valley Open Space Preserve on New Year's morning. Throughout the winter and spring, we tromped five more trails, some as close as Henry Coe State Park; others farther afield like Mount Diablo State Park. At each stop, we strengthened legs, lungs, and group esprit for the summer's coming challenge. Round Top was the fourth summer challenge. Five years ago, I wrote a November column inviting readers to make a bold commitment; something exciting and a bit scary. ‘Come with me to the top of Clouds Rest in Yosemite next July; a thirteen mile round trip walk to a 9,926-foot peak that looks 1,100 feet down on Half Dome.’ The first of six "prep" hikes would be New Year's morning, an annual tradition I had invited readers to for several years. With the challenge as an incentive, the 20 or so that had come in years past exploded to well over 100. Nearly 70 people came to Clouds Rest and similar numbers have come in subsequent years as we have tackled Mt. Tallac (9,738') and Mount Hoffman (10,856'). It would be easy to dismiss these people as lycra-clad fitness fanatics. It just isn't so. Round Top challengers ranged from age eight to 76, and they came in every size and shape. The day before the challenge, we gather for a short hike to stretch our legs and acclimate to the altitude. Round Top is near Carson Pass (8,652 feet) where Highway 88 crosses the Sierra crest not too far south of Lake Tahoe. We set out from the trailhead at the very top of the pass where the Pacific Crest Trail crosses the road. After a short walk through a forest of lodgepole and western white pines, we emerged into a beautiful landscape characteristic of the high altitude terrain we would travel throughout our wanderings. Timberline at Carson Pass is much lower than it is farther south in the Sierra. At a relatively modest elevation, we had popped into wide open alpine country. In between sporadic wind-sculpted whitebark pines—the only conifers still hanging on—nothing grew above thigh high. The view was limitless in every direction, but the wide open landscape played second fiddle to the wildflower display. Lupine, several penstemon, iris, spreading phlox, mule's ears, several paintbrushes, wallflowers, delphiniums, and on and on. It was all too gaudy to be God's refined tastes—I suspect that Disney had a hand in it. We lunched beside Winnemucca Lake nestled beneath Round Top. Every inch of terrain was laid bare between the toes of our boots and the summit looming impressively overhead. Many sat quietly, just looking up. The Woods Lake trailhead was humming with greetings and lively chatter by 8:30 Saturday morning. Prior challenges had been out-and-back hikes, but our route this year would be a loop. When I did a reconnaissance of the route several weeks earlier, the first leg to Round Top Lake was covered with snow. While I never lost my way, I did lose the trail several times. I cautioned people that if the trail was hidden, follow the creek, which would lead you to Round Top Lake. Just below Round Top Lake, we popped above the trees and back into the open terrain we enjoyed yesterday. Here, we left the gently graded trail and turned up, steeply up. No more trees, but surprisingly colorful ground hugging alpine plants matted the inhospitable rocky slope. Rather than hiking, we were now trudging, each step a triumph of will. I tell people that half way up these climbs, they will want to grab a rope, organize a posse and give me some old west justice. But when they get to the top, all will be forgiven. Dead tired, chest pounding, every step up a seemingly endless mountain slope like Round Top is a test of will. But when the "up" vanishes and all the world is beneath your feet, it is hard to describe the feeling and for many—the transformation—that comes over you. The wind was brisk and the view was infinite at the top. Round Top Lake and Winnemucca Lake just below appeared as if through an airplane window. To the north, Lake Tahoe and Desolation Wilderness. To the south, the restless Sierra grew higher and higher down toward Yosemite and beyond. In better visibility, we would have seen Mount Diablo out west. The weather, the country, the flowers and the views teamed up to give us a memorable day. As ever, I thank all of you who come, but more than that, I tip my cap to you. For many of you, it is just a hard day on the trail, but for others, I know Round Top tested your limits. Yet, you took the challenge. 

Our South County marketplace can be a daunting one for first time buyers, or for anyone who may not have 20 percent to put down on a home. There are many options to help you without the limiting factor of 20 percent down. Lenders have a variety of products that can help anyone who doesn't quite have that much saved for the down payment.

Gilroy may not be the New York or Paris of fashion, but that does not mean our little town lacks a sense of style. Walking around Gilroy this weekend, I ran into many people of different genders, races and ages. Despite all these differences, they had one very special trait in common—a striking sense of style.Starbucks, the hot spot for sleep deprived workers, teenage girls and… this just in..., electronic design firm owners? Melanie Byerly, 65, was on her way to Monterey, when she made a quick pit stop at the Gilroy Outlets. Like others who can remember midcentury elegance, her fashion inspiration is Jackie Kennedy. Byerly says “[Mrs. Kennedy] had a great sense of style, but of course she had a great deal of money so she could buy the best,” says Byerly. “I like the simplicity of her dress, the beautiful lines, and she used beautiful fabrics, not a lot of ornamentation.” One can match Byerly’s beautiful style by spending $500 per month on clothes and shopping at her favorite store, J Crew.Starbucks must be the fashion hub of Gilroy, because standing in line waiting to buy a cool beverage, was Acacia Alvarez, 16. Her teal hair caught my eye, and I knew I had to sit down and talk with her.Alvarez is a full-time student, but works at Tapioca Express and babysits on the side. Being a student, she limits how much she spends on clothes, spending less than $25 on most items. Some of her fashion choices are inspired by Manon Macasaet and Ceilidh Joy, two models that focus on vintage clothing, but often add their own personal, modern twist to their style. For example, Alvarez says, they’ll wear a vintage top and then rock it with a tight black leather skirt. These two extremes make a very bold fashion statement—one Alvarez strives for.

We are very fortunate that the hills west of Interstate 280 along the San Francisco Peninsula remain largely wild and undeveloped. Many acres of that land are open every day to the public at no charge or for a small day use fee, but not all.

In a world of fad diets and low-fat foods, the major pork producers in America have, over the last 60 years or so, reengineered the tasty hog.