Fall (and Ghosts?) Come to Capitola Village

My shop () has never really depended on the tourist season. It is, of course, nice to see familiar faces visiting us year after year in the summer.

So, it always seems funny when fall pays Capitola a visit. Suddenly the Village streets are emptied of tourists. In the evenings it's almost like a ghost town. In fact, every once in a while, you might even feel a tiny bit spooked out right after Halloween as the sun sets earlier and earlier each day.

Despite the fact that we've always catered to the locals, I always think how strange it is that all the tourists pack up and leave us just as the fall brings the coastal region some of its very best weather. It's not really cold, in fact it's still pretty warm, and there is very little fog. Okay, so we just had a little rain...but now the air just smells fresh.

I guess anyone who has lived in the Santa Cruz area really knows that good stuff keeps happening even in the off season. Shops like mine have coupons in various local papers such as The Connection Magazine and The Good Times, and we also offer discount cards for frequent shoppers. I know that many more than one of our local restaurants regularly offers special neighborhood deals too.

Fortunately, right about now is when the locals should start to return. Why?B ecause there are parking spaces! Plenty of them!

Until then, maybe I'll just have to get my ghost meter out and start taking base line measurements of our local streets...what a thought! And yes, I do have a ghost meter. If I could just remember where I put it…