Mustang power

I am not one to watch football, and I have never been full of spirit for my old high school. But I have to admit I certainly got into the game last Friday between the Gilroy Mustangs and the Hollister HayBalers. The rivalry goes back 53 years to the very first Prune Bowl, as the annual game has been dubbed.

Trust me when I say people take the rivalry seriously. Working in Hollister, I often get razzed by San Benito High School graduates for being a Gilroy high grad. In fact, I picked out several of my coworkers on the other side of the field, and I am sure I was the only one sitting on the visitors' side of the stadium.

This year was the last Prune Bowl since a new high school opened in Gilroy this year and there will be some new rivalry created between the two schools. It will probably be dubbed the Garlic Bowl. So there was a lot on the line this year.

The trophy has been in Gilroy for two years, but the team hasn't had the best run this season. There was a new batch of coaches, the star quarterback graduated last year and some seniors quit the team mid-season, from what I hear. With only a couple wins under their belt, Gilroy's players went up against the Balers, who had lost just one game all season.


We arrived at Andy Hardin Stadium just after 6 p.m. after parking in a secret lot that only locals know about, and we found a front row seat in the bleachers. The JV game was half over and the Mustangs lost by a few points. But as anyone knows, only the varsity game counts. The varsity Mustangs came out strong and scored quickly. The game kept the crowd on the edge of their seats as the teams took turns in the lead.

The weather was cold, as it always is in Hollister, and we were still unprepared for the chill even with a handful of blankets and hoodie sweatshirts. But it was a good enough game that we were willing to sit through it to the end even as our cheeks turned bright red from the cold and our teeth chattered.


I still can't say I understand the game, but there were some plays that even I knew were awesome as one of the Mustangs intercepted the ball and ran all the way down the field for a touchdown. The crowd collectively stood up and cheered, "Go, Go, Go." And it was as though the players could hear us. It was the first game all season that the cheerleaders actually seemed to get into, leading the audience in chants. It was the only time in my life where I could kinda understand the reason so many people get so into football.


In the last quarter, the Mustangs were still down a few points. Minutes from the end of the game, they scored the final touchdown and kick, taking the lead. The Mustangs won 35 to 30 and secured possession of the VFW trophy for perpetuity. It was a good game and it was exciting to watch my home town win. But I guess I feel a little bad for the Balers, who I know really wanted the win, too.

But don't think this has made me into a football. The last three years have been enough to last me for at least a decade.

Local talent

In my few years as a reporter in San Benito and Gilroy, I've had the chance to read books by local authors, see performances by local playwriters and listen to songs by local musicians. Few people know that San Juan has a theater group with a decades-long history and connections with a Hollywood filmmaker - it's called El Teatro Campesino. Or that a Hollister dancer from West Coast Dance FX participated in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade a few years ago. Or that a Hollister kid made it to the Vegas tryouts of "So You Think You Can Dance."

These small towns are surprisingly full of talent, be it performing, visual, musical or literary arts.

Back in August I had a chance to talk to a young musician who is probably just at the beginning of her career. Cally Nunes graduated from San Benito High School last spring and her goal for this fall is just to get as many gigs as she can. Though I haven't heard her sing live, I have listened to her songs on myspace and watched one of her videos on YouTube. And I hope to see her perform in person soon.

Her music has a country edge to it, but has more mature themes than other teenager singers, such as Taylor Swift. For anyone who wants to hear Cally live, she will be singing at the Mars Hill Coffe House in Hollister, on Sixth and San Benito Street, Sept. 19, at 9 p.m. She will also be singing at the Farmers Market in downtown Hollister for the next three Wednesdays, starting tomorrow. See her local gigs while you can because if Cally has her way, she'll be Nashville bound soon enough.

A Rising Star

Cally Nunes knew she wanted to be a musician when she was a 5-year-old living in Oklahoma.

"My first vivid memory is of when I was 5 and a song came on the radio, 'Shut Up and Kiss Me,'" she said. "I don't remember who it was by, but it was country and I knew then there was nothing else I wanted to do."

The song was a pop country one by Mary Chapin Carpenter, and the artist is one of many who has influenced Nunes, now 18.

A 2009 graduate of San Benito High School, she's like a lot of kids her age. She is short, with a small frame and shock of dark hair that is sometimes curly, sometimes straight. She looks as comfortable in jeans and sneakers as in a pair of cowboy boots. She isn't sure what she wants to do this fall, except find a job.

"I made a lot of plans, but life is crazy," she said, adding that her father was moving out of the area. "I'm just trying to get a job."

She's taking a semester off school, but plans to enroll at a local community college next spring.

Unlike other kids her age, though, Nunes has posted her first album online for sale at sites such as Nimbit.com and Cdbaby.com. The album, "Sadly Wrong," will soon be on iTunes. She has a MySpace music page, where a few of her songs can be played. The album contains five original songs by Nunes, and five songs by other writers that she selected with the help of a music developer.

Read the full story here.

Photo courtesy of Pinnacle file photos

Cally Nunes rehearses a few songs in August at Mars Hill Coffee House in Hollister.

Tomatoes finally flourish

When I moved to the house I live in now on Birdsong Street the thing I was looking forward to most was a backyard that gets full sun. Since I turned 15, I've lived in townhomes, dorm rooms or apartments with nothing more than patios overshawdowed by other buildings. I futiley tried container gardening, but as anyone who knows me knows, I don't really have a green thumb.

I figured when we moved to our new place, where we've been for two and a half years now that the large amount of sunlight might be enough to make things flourish. The first summer at the house I tried to grow a variety of vegetables from seedlings and then transplant them in the yard. They all died, but it was still early enough in the season to buy some transplants at local nurseries. We had our fill of early girl and cherry tomatoes for the summer. That year I discovered a couple of recipes that have become regular favorites - like one with freshly chopped tomatoes and shredded basil tossed in bowtie pasta with a little olive oil, balsamic vinegar and parmesan cheese. It's delicious and perfect for hot summer nights when we don't want to do too much cooking.

Last summer bruschetta was the hit. We made it half a dozen times and I got requests for it from friends who wanted me to bring it for parties.

This summer, our plants got a slow start due to the mild temperatures early in the summer. It is just in the last couple weeks that we've started to get a good batch off our plants. Luckily the farmers market in Hollister is just through the alley from my office on Wednesdays so I've been able to get beefsteaks and heirlooms to boost our supply. Last weekend I tried out a gazpacho recipe, a Spanish dish that is made with pureed tomatoes and vegetables. Since it is chilled, it's also a great summer meal. For the recipe, visit the Weekend Pinnacle life section.

Photo by Melissa Flores

Gazpacho is made with pureed tomatoes, chipotle and corn.