
Dream On
10 tips for the sleep-deprived, one of which might ruin your life
Let me take a wild guess: You feel like you don’t get enough sleep. Too much to do, you’re stressed out and you think getting eight hours of sleep is about as realistic as keeping current on Oprah’s Book Club. Or maybe you’re annoyed that your body needs too much sleep? Think of all the workouts you could get in, books you could read and emails you could return with a few extra hours in each day. Wouldn’t we all love to train our bodies to require less sleep?

The Upside of the Downturn
3 ways the sharing economy is a better economy
The sharing economy is a collaborative economic movement inspired by the efficiency of loaning and sharing existing resources on a fee-for-service model. It reduces environmental waste while supporting financial sustainability and building stronger communities, and it’s having a bigger impact than you might realize.

Haunting Dollars
Placerville's Gold Rush Tours mix the eerie with the authentic
Linda Bottjer is not a psychic or paranormal expert. But through her research online and at the local historical society, she has become intimately familiar with the ghosts of Placerville. They are a mischievous lot, known for rearranging furniture and shattering wine glasses.

How Do You Brew?
Make sure you get the best out of every beer festival
Pick your poison, find a pairing, and let us know your favorite local brewery in the Capital Region.

Winters Brew
Berryessa Brewing Co. reaps the benefits of committed regulars but may soon face growing pains
On hot summer weekends, a 20-barrel brewery west of Winters overflows with patrons. They flood the taproom and crowd around shaded picnic tables, sipping beer while soaking in live music. A few kids play baseball in the gravel lot. Others pull wooden blocks from an oversized Jenga set by the food truck. Some are locals, but many come from Davis, Sacramento and beyond to get a taste of whatever Berryessa Brewing Co. has on tap for the week.

Star Power to Ignite Sac Soccer
Owners hope new investment lineup will boost city's chances of going MLS
The Sacramento Republic FC has bolstered its quest to become a Major League Soccer franchise. On Monday the team announced an impressive addition of more than a dozen new business leaders who will invest in the group, including Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter and local business owner Urijah Faber.

Sacramento Republic FC prepares to host championship game
Following a big win last Saturday, Sacramento will host the championship match against the Harrisburg City Islanders this weekend.

David and Anna Sobon’s Vegas Glam Wedding
A veritable who’s who of Sacramento’s business, philanthropic and arts communities came together to celebrate the marriage of David and Anna Sobon in grand style. The spectacular “Vegas Glam” wedding featured an Elvis officiating the nuptials, and the finest food, brew (Hoppy), wine (Sobon Estate), décor and entertainment one could possible hope for. Congrats to the happy bride and groom.

The Mind’s Eye
Blind photographer Pete Eckert views the world a bit differently
Pete Eckert envisioned himself as an architect, but a degenerative eye disease derailed his plan. He instead pursued his MBA and photography and now sells his art worldwide.

Art Elevated
Local muralists seek to set precedent for public art
Few of the thousands of shoppers at Sacramento’s Sunday farmers market at 8th and W streets ever look up at the gray concrete ceiling looming above them. But by next spring, it may be tough to look at anything else.

Strings that Sing
Waylin Carpenter crafts guitars that are built to last
Waylin Carpenter has been building custom, classical guitars in his home workshop in Sacramento since 2000. Carpenter makes 5-, 6- and 7-string guitars, and each can take 150 to 200 hours to complete. He is about to finish his 20th guitar.

Rubble Reel
Live webcam monitors mall demolition
The demolition now underway at the east end of Downtown Plaza, the site of the new Kings Arena, is a sidewalk superintendent’s dream.

A Little Bit of Everything
Delightful global fusion in a faceless Elk Grove bistro
Todo un poco means “a little bit of everything,” and that’s exactly how co-owner Marie Mertz describes her strategy. She runs the bistro’s operations, cooks, builds menus, chooses the daily specials, buys fresh produce, trains staff, handles community relations and hand-selects her wines. She’s proud of being in business for so many years, but “who’s counting when you’re having fun?” she says.

A Fine Opportunity
One trio’s quest to finance fine dining in Placerville
It was a question they’d asked themselves time and again. Could Placerville support fine dining? Surely, they thought, the market for their envisioned eatery, The Independent Restaurant and Bar, must exist.

Go Brew Yourself
Video: How to make homemade beer away from home
The whole DIY video tutorial trend might be good if you want to concoct a hair conditioner with condiments, practice putting on lipstick with crayons or make pencils float in midair. But if you’re trying to brew your own beer at home, you’re going to need a bit more than a six-minute YouTube clip.

Your Check is in the Mail
5 steps to turning art into sustainable income
Whether you are a starving or established artist, we could all use a little mailbox money. Here’s how to get started:

Arcade Fire
Tahoe startup is expanding its waistline
Arcade belts has moved beyond the living room floor.

The Pitmaster
Chef Jacob Carriker helped turn a nightclub into a BBQ-lover's dream
The past two years have been remarkably unpredictable for long-time Sacramento chef Jacob Carriker.

Tapped Out
Is Sac's craft beer bubble on the verge of bursting?
When downtown Sacramento’s Brew It Up poured its last beer in 2011, owner Michael Costello lost more than his business. “I lost everything,” he says. “Nobody really knows the whole breadth of it. It’s not an easy thing to go through.”