Who knew that the Japanese lead the trends in the antiques world? Steve Sylvester, owner of The Antique Company, knows and he says that teak furniture is trending now. “The antiques market is run by the Japanese who have been buying teak. They set the fads. England is six months behind Japan and California is six months behind England,” elaborates Sylvester. To keep ahead of the local market, Sylvester works with exporters in England who tell him what the Japanese are buying and then Sylvester buys similar items. Teak bars, sidebars and dining room sets are in vogue. Art deco merchandise is also popular. Being knowledgeable about trends and current values is critical for success in the

Hitchcock Directed by Sacha Gervasi There’s a similarity between the new film “Hitchcock” and “Lincoln,” which opened and was reviewed three weeks ago. Both are films about strong, well regarded men at the top of their respective professions, who had impressive and broad-ranging careers and life stories that could be adapted into  films of epic proportions. But, instead, both films tackle a very specific time period and project, relatively late in their respective careers, in an attempt to illustrate the men and their temperaments and achievements through those specific chapters in their lives. In “Lincoln,” the focus is on the passage of what would become the 13th Amendment to the US Co

-- Press Release from the City of Sacramento Office of Media & Communications -- Partnership agreement signed focuses on mutual collaboration, shared opportunities to encourage economic development activity and job creation Sacramento, CA (July 23, 2012) – In an effort to promote international economic development opportunities, officials of City of Sacramento and Chongqing, China today signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) outlining their plans to work together to encourage trade, investment and job creation, as well as explore ways to collaborate and work for mutual economic development. Councilmember Rob Fong spearheaded this effort and worked diligently the past six mo

Written in memory of our brave daughter, Katie Janae Cramer, who went to Heaven January 6, 2011.   TO THE HOUSE OF THE KING Continued from A Journey of Hope- Part 1 It was January 2007, and our family would spend the next three years, three months climbing out of the valley of childhood cancer. We emerged - battle-fatigued and scarred - but we had emerged! And no one enjoyed being out of that valley more than our daughter. Katie seemed to have a renewed vigor for life. The battle hadn’t dampened her spirit - it energized it! She was ready to put her ordeal behind her and get on with life. She enjoyed her friends, being involved at church, and continued to excel in school. In February

A Chinese invasion of sorts took place on Saturday in Lincoln, where Thunder Valley Casino hosted a Chinese concert series starring some of the biggest names in Chinese entertainment. The stars of the show were Dragon Li, Michelle Kim and Niki Chow. All were well received by the mostly — scratch that — all Asian crowd. That was a good thing since the concert was mostly in Chinese, with only a couple of songs with English interspersed. At one point I could swear they were talking about me. I usually only get paranoid after taking illicit drugs or riding in an elevator with people talking in a language I don’t understand. Oh well, next time I’ll have to bring a Chinese-to-English translato

 From the versatile dances to the colorful scenery, Shen Yun is a unique traveling show that presents its audience with an understanding and a visual of the traditional Chinese culture. Shen Yun will be coming to Sacramento on Tuesday and Wednesday. Both showings will begin at 8 p.m. at Sacramento’s Community Center Theater at 1301 L St. across from Capitol Park. “Every year, Shen Yun has brand-new performances,” said Sherry Zhang, who works for the Asian Arts Foundation as a local presenter for Shen Yun. “The 5,000 years of Chinese history and culture have so many stories and legends. Dancers in Shen Yun bring to life many of these legends and stories,” Zhang said. Every year, Shen Y

The Han Chinese and the Uighur Chinese minority both live in the city of Kashgar in western China, but they’re worlds apart. Not only do they speak different languages, they also live in different time zones. So why do they get along fine playing baseball together? This is the subject of Diamond in the Dunes, a new documentary by local filmmakers Christopher Rufo and Keith Ochwat of The Documentary Foundation. Their last documentary Roughing It: Mongolia was picked up by PBS and broadcast last summer. In that film, the two young explorers, both in their early twenties, search for interesting people in Mongolia, eventually following a herd of nomads. But by the time Diamond in the Dunes

Case # 0352093834. But, with this case, I need to do a follow-up, so henceforth the case number. Only the cases that I need to look back upon with a follow-up, get case numbers and this is one of them. The date is January 31, 2009, Saturday. This morning I get an urgent call from a mid twenties Asian girl that calls herself Sonye. Sonye is a science major at UC Davis and a foreign exchange student. She was born and raised in Shang-hai. Before, I talk about Sonye, let me tell you how my Friday went. This has been a busy weekend, Gina De La Rosa (HPI Scout), met with me at Fanny Anns in Old Sacramento on Friday, where I tried to do some EVP work, then she showed me another haunted location