Around about 9:30ish, don’t you begin to crave a little something sweet to get you through the rest of the morning? Perhaps washed down with some hot java and accompanied by a little chit chat? If that’s you (and isn’t it all of us?!?) than it’s time to consume a few extra calories for a good cause…that’s right, you have our permission to eat sweets!!! Why? Because you’re invited to the 4th Annual: ETTORE’S COFFEE BREAK! Come join your friends and our Emcee, Ms. Kitty O’Neal, for some luscious Ettore pastries and Peerless coffee, enjoy the Big Band Sounds of the Rotary Rooters, hear John & Morgan Finegan sing “Sugar, Sugar” and witness the first ever Strawberry Dipping & Decorating conte

It was a very tough decision to choose the winners of The Sacramento Press 2012 Journalism Open. Fifty-three community contributors shared 93 stories about the greater Sacramento area and the quality of submissions this year really impressed the judges. Thank you to all of you who made this year’s Journalism Open a success. The Sacramento Press judges were Casey Kirk, Director of Community Outreach, Brandon Darnell, Copy Editor and Reporter, and Colleen Belcher, Editor-in-Chief. Each story was judged on newsworthiness, research and sources, spelling and grammar and how interesting they were. Each winner could only win one prize. Click here to read the complete judging criteria. First

Need a push getting started on your article for The Sacramento Press Journalism Open 2012? We've got a workshop for that. Bring your story ideas and questions about the writing contest to our Journalism Open workshop Tuesday, Jan. 17. We will go over how to enter photos: standalone or accompanying, judging criteria, past winners and how to develop your stories by including sources and doing research. The workshop will be from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. at The Sacramento Press office. Our office is located at 431 I St., Suite 107, in the Sacramento Valley Station station. We are in the same building complex as Starbucks. We recommend you find parking on the street, bike or take light rail, as th

The Sacramento Press’ “To Catch an Error" contest has ended for the month of December. We are excited to announce our winner, Steven Chea! Chea received a total of 46 points for catching minor spelling and grammar errors in stories by community contributors and editorial interns. Thanks to everyone who entered! If you missed last month’s contest, it’s time to start hunting again. Beginning today, we will wipe the slate clean and start our January contest. January’s winner will receive two tickets to see Paula Deen in the meet and greet section. One runner-up will receive a $15 gift card to Monsoon.  The deadline for entries will be midnight on Jan. 31. See below for complete rules. If

Bill Swayze enjoys entering contests on 96.9 The Eagle’s website, but little did he know that being chosen as their lucky winner would come at the perfect time for him and his family. After learning that a limb from a large heritage oak tree had fallen onto his son’s garage rendering it unusable, Bill wanted to help. Following his daily ritual, Bill went on to 96.9 The Eagle’s website that same morning only to discover a new PODS Moving and Storage of Sacramento’s Free Storage contest. In hopes that his son, Ty, could use the free storage while his garage was being repaired, Bill entered the contest. Receiving nearly 300 entries in the contest, participants were asked to tell why they ne

If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to publish your first article, consider the rewards of doing it on The Sacramento Press. Last year we gave out thousands in cash prizes to winners of The Sacramento Press Journalism Open, and we’re ready to do it again. This is the third year that we’ve hosted The Sacramento Press Journalism Open. The contest is pro-am, meaning writers of all skill levels are welcome to enter. If you aren’t familiar with The Sacramento Press, we’re a hyperlocal online newspaper that focuses on community news. We aim to be the best source for local news and we would like you to help us achieve that by sharing your stories. No reporter knows more than you when it c

The Sacramento Press’ “To Catch an Error” contest has ended for the month of November. We are excited to announce our winner, Marion Millin ! Millin received a total of 54 points for catching minor spelling and grammar errors in stories by community contributors and one of our staff reporters. Thanks to everyone who entered! If you missed last month’s contest, it’s time to start hunting again. Beginning today, we will wipe the slate clean and start our December contest. December’s winner will receive a complimentary lunch for two at Zocalo. Due to the New Year’s Eve holiday, the deadline for entries will be midnight on Dec. 30. See below for complete rules. If you have any feedback or

Designs for an outdoor amphitheater, an open-air plaza and a walk of fame were announced Tuesday as the top three contenders in the Think Big Sacramento Citizen Architect competition – a contest to design a portion of the planned entertainment sports complex. The contest, which began in July, has been touted by the Think Big Sacramento committee as a way for the public to “leave its legacy” on the new complex, according to a press release. Ideas submitted by Troy Bedal, a sporting goods store manager from Roseville, Shaun Baland, a state worker from Lincoln, and Gary Bladen, a recent UC Davis graduate working on sustainable development, were chosen as the top three out of more than 20 su

California Family Fitness (CFF) today announced that its’ next Body Fit Challenge (BFC) will begin Saturday, August 13, and interested individuals are encouraged to sign-up. The BFC is an eight-week long group training program, in which the participants are coached by a trainer through twice weekly group workout sessions, and educated on exercise habits, nutrition and lifestyle changes. “The Body Fit Challenge has been a great success for our members since it first started three years ago,” said Randy Karr, president of California Family Fitness. “Throughout the duration of the BFC, participants have shed more than 33,000 pounds. We are very proud of the BFC, and are thrilled to be a part

Imagine this: You’re driving down the highway in a new Sacramento Tree Foundation Truck. It’s your first full day on the job, it’s raining, you’re slowing down to look for your exit when… bam! Another truck sideswipes you at 70 MPH. Suddenly you’re tumbling, tail over hood, down the embankment, until finally you come to a stop – miraculously right side up and without a scratch on you. The roll bar saved your life, but the trees, the truck, and yes, your first day are completely wrecked. Know what’s even worse? You don’t have to imagine it. It happened. On one rainy day in April the Sacramento Tree Foundation lost a truck that we had hoped would help us move trees and large supplies to our

KVIE Public Television is seeking video submissions for You on the Road, a community video companion project to its Rob on the Road series hosted by Rob Stewart. This project is an opportunity for anyone to use public television to share their stories about the people and places that inspire them, and capture what makes our region an exciting place to live and work. Through Rob on the Road and You on the Road stories, you can help others experience our region in a new and inspiring way! From the submissions received, KVIE will select stories to be featured in a 30-minute special edition of Rob on the Road. The producers of the selected videos may also have the opportunity to be interviewe

Saturday, VIBE organization will be organizing and hosting a cake-decorating contest where local bakeries will showcase their designs in Midtown for the Second Saturday Art Walk. Cake Craze is a fundraiser and all proceeds will benefit the VIBE Foundation and the new teen center that is being built. VIBE is a youth organization which was founded in 2007 and officially became a nonprofit organization about a year ago. “The VIBE Youth Board was brainstorming ideas and came up with the Cake Craze contest,” said VIBE spokeswoman Mylesha Ramey. Julia Hildago, chairwoman of VIBE, said this is the first time we’ve done an event like this and we’re very excited. The youth organization is made

The Sacramento Press Journalism Open is well underway and we're very pleased to see new bylines popping up on our site because of the contest.  The contest ends at 11:59 p.m. Jan. 31, so make sure you've posted all of your entries and tagged them open2011 by that deadline.  First place wins $700, second place $500, and there are many other cash prizes, including prizes for best photos. For those of you who have questions about the contest, we will host a workshop Wednesday, Jan. 12 from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. at our office. We will be happy to give advice and suggestions on how to develop your story ideas. Our office is located at 431 I St., Suite 107, in the Amtrak station. We are in the sa

The first Sacramento Press Journalism Open was a success, and we’re ready to do it all over again! We will have some exciting prizes for our top submissions, and your stories could be chosen for our section pages or newsletter for thousands to read and enjoy. Becoming a published writer is easier than you think, and we’re here to walk you through the process and get you committing acts of journalism. I'm David Watts Barton, editor in chief of The Sacramento Press, our area's top hyper-local news website, where we focus on up-close, in-depth coverage of neighborhoods like yours. We aim to spread the traditional habits of good journalism – accuracy, fairness and a diversity of opinion – ac

The Dude abides. Twelve years after cult classic "The Big Lebowski" starring Jeff Bridges and John Goodman hit theaters, fans are still celebrating the film’s unpredictable and sometimes confusing plot, startling brute violence and hysterical, expletive-riddled dialogue, prime for quoting. Marilyn’s on K Street hosted The Big Lebowski Fiesta Friday night for these fans, and the White Russians and robes were suitably flowing. Marilyn’s deserves some party-throwing props. The costume contest brought all the favorite Big L characters to life: the White Russian won for best female costume, and The Jesus won the male competition. The cute female in the short furry white dress and high-heeled b

The lucky winner of our Deal Ticket Sweepstakes is Lauren Edvalson!!!!!! A little bit about the winner: Lauren currently holds a position within The Sacramento Bee’s advertising department, where she specializes in developing multimedia advertising campaigns to drive sales and awareness for her clients in the arts and entertainment industry. Lauren also serves as vice president of corporate support for the AMASV (American Marketing Association, Sacramento Valley Chapter) fostering relationships with marketing executives in the Sacramento region. When Lauren is not working, she manages her own business as a stylist for the Stella & Dot jewelry. Congratulations Lauren! By spreading the w

It was a who's who of legendary rock n roll music on Monday night at Pearl on the River in Sacramento.  Starship's Mickey Thomas and the legendary Mickey Dolenz from the Monkees graced Sacramento fans with a patio jam.  Handfuls of fans crammed into the gorgeous eatery to sip on vino from various local wineries including Frank Family Vineyards, while listening to the nostalgic music of an era gone by.  Dolenz is in town cutting a tribute album with songs from Carole King at Gigatone Records for the my record fantasy contest.     

We are excited to announce a special opportunity and want our users, as part of The Sacramento Press community, to be the first to take advantage. How would you like to save 51-90 percent on Sacramento's top restaurants, salons and businesses every day? Well, now you can! We introduce to you: Deal Ticket. It’s really easy to sign up and start saving. Every day, we feature a fantastic deal from a local business. That deal is featured for one day only. You click to buy the deal and save money by doing so. All you have to do is sign up for the daily Deal Ticket e-mail so you don’t miss out on deals you’ll love. To give you an idea of what's in store, we have great deals at Tuli Bistro (60

This Saturday, July 24, Athletes vs Cancer (AVC) will hold the annual community event to support research, create awareness, provide screening opportunities and deliver subsequent support to cancer patients. Founded in 2009 by Matt Barnes in memory of his mother, the Foundation has expanded to recruit additional athletes and coaches touched by cancer. It’s primary focus in 2010 is to secure a mobile cancer screening van. The vehicle will visit low-income neighborhoods providing free cancer screenings, awareness and resources from AVC and its partner organizations. This awareness-raising celebrity golf invitational takes place Saturday, July 24 at the lovely Woodcreek Golf Course in Rosevi

The Journeys Backyard BBQ Tour rolled into Roseville Saturday to amaze hundreds of action sports fans for its only California stop during the 2010 tour.   Fans from all over Northern California flooded the south parking lot of the Galleria Mall in Roseville for the opportunity to watch their favorite extreme sports athletes. The event brought Sacramento a rare opportunity to watch stars participate in freestyle motocross, skateboarding and BMX demos on a 60,000-square-foot playground of ramps.   The event featured stars Rob Dyrdek, Danny Way, Dave Mirra and riders from the Metal Mulisha freestyle motocross team.   While the athletes were not putting on a show, live bands entertained