The Midtown Business Association is inviting businesses to light up Midtown by transforming their store windows into a winter wonderland this season with an opportunity to win a $1,000 advertising grant from the MBA. This is the second year the MBA has hosted “Light Up Midtown” in the hope of opening the doors of local businesses to more customers this holiday season. “We wanted to find a way to dress up the district and be festive and let people feel very involved in it,” said Heather Philpott, MBA communications and events coordinator. “Businesses can take ownership of the project and get an opportunity to be a part of making the district look great,” Philpott said Wednesday, “and bes

What’s a sign that it’s officially summer in Sacramento? Summer is around the corner, and signs of the season are showing up everywhere in the city, the days are warmer and outside recreational activities begin to increase. The Sacramento Press stopped locals in the central city during the Second Saturday Art Walk, and asked, “What’s a sign that it’s officially summer in Sacramento?” Musician/singer Elijah Bell, 19, lives downtown and said he knows it’s summer when girls are walking around wearing less clothing. He added, “The days seem longer, and more songs come out on the radio.” Live music and local street performers are also more prevalent during summer on Second Saturdays. Stre

What better time is there to get back on track and win some basketball games than a five-game home stand during Christmas week? The Sacramento Kings were looking to do just that beginning with a Sunday matinee against the Houston Rockets. However, in what has become an unfortunate theme this season, the Kings once again could not put together a complete game and produced just 12 points in the fourth quarter, resulting in a 102-93 loss to the Rockets. Sunday’s loss was Sacramento’s fifth in a row, which dropped the team’s record to 5-20 while Houston improved to 12-15 with the victory. On Saturday, the Kings announced they would be without the services of forward Jason Thompson for the

  Fall was definitely in the air Saturday as the Davis Farmers Market held its annual festival to celebrate the season. In addition to the typical market fare of garden-fresh fruits and vegetables, the festival, which is held on the last Saturday in October, brought a fall theme including Halloween decorations, a scarecrow display, additional vendors and more activities for families. Overcast skies and cool air accompanied the dozens of Mylar balloons, cornstalks and hay bales that made up the many decorations in the market area. Joy Wills, the assistant manager who has worked at the market for 18 years, described the festival as a “celebration of the fall harvest.” Wills also mentioned

  In a game that took just two hours and 22 minutes to complete Friday, the Sacramento River Cats were shut out and held to just three hits in the finale of a four-game series against the Tacoma Rainiers. Rainiers starting pitcher Chris Seddon threw 106 pitches in what was the first complete game in his career. This is Seddon’s 10th season as a pro baseball player; he improved his record this season to six wins and two losses. River Cats starter Travis Blackley also pitched a nice game, lasting 6 1/3 innings with six strikeouts and one walk. His only blemish was a two-run home run to Mike Wilson. The only scoring of the night came in the top of the second inning when Tacoma right field

One of the best kept secrets of the South Sacramento area is a small, private school tucked away in the Lanai Shopping Center on Freeport Boulevard, neighboring the Sacramento Executive Airport, where it has existed in rented space for 21 years. Over the years, most of the shopping center tenants have moved away. Meanwhile, countless hours of parent, teacher and student work have gone into transforming a run-down property into a school with colorful classrooms and playgrounds. It has an understated entrance, but Camellia Waldorf School is an oasis for children. The kindergarten yard is home to Mr. Mountain, a big pile of dirt, and Ms. Sandy, a big pile of sand. There are climbing struct