Canyon Sages Kick Off 2013 Programs

 

PHOTO BY KATIE DALSEMER © Andrea Makshanoff, center, Curtis Caddell  and Greg Safonov serve up tasty treats at the Sages Holiday party on December 2.

The Canyon Sages will dust off the tinsel and open for business in January, once again offering classes, clubs and special events, many of them not just for seniors but for all ages.

SAGES CLUBS ARE FREE AND OPEN TO ALL

A new Computer Club is already underway, hosted by John Coffer at the Community House Tuesdays from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Some of those who recently attended Larry Roberts’ excellent computer classes decided to meet on their own to share information and seek solutions for computer problems.

Are you a beginner? Come with your laptop and John will help you get started. Do you want to share a skill or practice manipulating photos, learn the nuances of word processing, go on Skype or Google? John will bring an extra computer and the Community House Wifi will be available to use.

Meditation Class and Walking Club meet on Tuesday and the Book Club on the second Thursday of the month has been extended so folks can socialize over lunch. Sages is close to launching a singing club that plans to meet monthly at a local home to sing and jam on everything from standards to folk and pop with some great Topanga musicians.

Check the Messenger’s Dateline or the OneTopanga.com calendar for times and places.

LOW-COST CLASSES ARE EXPANDING

Photography, Jan. 16: Messenger photo editor Katie Dalsemer, who taught Sages the fine points of digital cameras last year, will be back with another round of classes, teaching the mechanics that can help you use your camera to its fullest potential. There are four weeks of classes beginning Wednesday, Jan. 16, from 1 to 2 p.m. at the Community House for only $5 per class.

Cooking, Jan. 30: This fall, Sages, in a special series, learned how to cook raw, gluten-free and vegan and lingered to eat what they cooked. On Jan. 30, chef Elke Koch will share her expertise in Fresh Cooking French Style – “Potager.” Elke holds a B.A. in Hotel Management and was trained as a chef in a five-star restaurant in Provence serving French/Mediterranean cuisine. The class will be held in a private home and costs $20 per person, including a fabulous lunch. Due to limited space, the class is open to Sages only. Another cooking class is scheduled for February with an emphasis on small bites, beautifully presented by Karla Morrison.

Gardening, Jan. 29: Professional landscape artist Sarah Priest is holding the second of her very popular gardening classes, this one focused on winter garden care, on Tuesday, Jan. 29, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Community House. It’s only $5 for the class and open to all ages.

Exercise: In addition, our focused exercise classes, also open to all ages, is starting up again. Jackie Safanov’s Tai Chi and Qigong on Tuesdays and Susan Pinto’s Strengthen Your Core on Thursdays are only $40 for an eight-week session. Zumba Betty completes the week with her upbeat Dance on Friday, $6 per class.

Check the Messenger’s Dateline for details.

To join the Canyon Sages, call Michele at (310) 455-1319 or join on the Sages pages of the Topanga Town Council website at www.topangatowncouncil.org.

UPCOMING SPECIAL EVENTS

The Sages also host one-time events, outings and lectures. There are two special events scheduled for January, both open to all ages.

Wednesday, Jan. 23 at 7 p.m., the Canyon Sages and Topanga Library will present psychotherapist and English professor Carola Kaplan’s program, “Aging Gracefully and Disgracefully in Edith Pearlman’s Binocular Vision.”

On Sunday, Jan. 20 at 4 p.m., the Sages encourage all to see a staged reading of A Radical Friendship by Topanga playwright Jane Marla Robbins at the American Jewish University in Bel Air. The play, a world premiere, explores the unique and spiritual friendship between Rabbi Abraham Heschel and Martin Luther King. Ed Asner will read the role of Heschel.

Tickets are $45. If there are enough people interested, we can qualify for the 20 percent reduced group rate. R.S.V.P. to Michele, (310) 455-1319, if you plan to attend.

Later this spring, look for literary events, including a talk by award-winning novelist Kurt Kamm, a great storyteller who specializes in crime fiction from firefighters’ and paramedics’ points of view. Spring will also bring another Poetry Panel to the library, where participants join with poets to read and write in the genre.

In March, also at the library, as part of our self-improvement series, physical and occupational therapist Kat High will talk about senior health tips.

Also upcoming is a special report and panel on senior rights, inspired by a local senior’s cautionary tale about the difficulty of retaining her driver’s license after being involved in a fender-bender. We’ll hear her story and get feedback from both a lawyer familiar with senior legal issues and law enforcement.

All those who attended last year, will be excited to hear that another outing to the Theatricum Botanicum for Senior Days is in the works, featuring theater games, a potluck lunch and a performance of The Taming of the Shrew at a special senior rate.

The Sages has created a relationship with the newly formed Calabasas Savvy Seniors and plans to coordinate a trip with them to the Norton Simon Museum and Descanso Gardens in the spring. These trips are only $20 per person including shuttle transportation.

And remember to attend the Sages Socials on the first Friday of the month at 3:30 p.m. for a fantastic free dinner and warm conversation.

If you are 50-plus and want to join to receive regular e-mail updates, call Michele at (310) 455-1319.