Bear Not!

by Russell Johnson 

There is a little cluster of teddy bears trembling in a corner at the Hanford House in Sutter Creek, California. "What shall be our fate?" they cry through their little button mouths. "A few years ago bed and breakfasts were safe-houses for us. We swung naked from the rafters, we sat on window sills in our frilly little outfits, we heard laughter as guests made up `unbearable` puns about us."

Cutesy is out in Sutter Creek, the gateway to California's "other" wine country. Oriental antiques and designer olive oil are in. Amador County, in the heart of Gold Country, has a winemaking tradition that dates back to Gold Rush days. It is, refreshingly, what the Napa Valley was thirty years ago...at least for now.

The Cotati, California Accordion Festival

Tee shirt at the Cotati Accordion Festival

The accordion -- the "the squeeze box," the "stomach Steinway" -- may be may be due for a comeback. Accordions reached their peak in the pre-rock-and-roll 1950s when primitive infomercials, featuring twangy guys with Brylcream hair, flogged instruments and lessons while squeezing out "Lady of Spain" or "Beer Barrel Polka."

I once interviewed Brazilian gem mogul Hans Stern in his office in Rio. He said that he sold his accordion back in the '50s and, with the proceeds, founded H. Stern.

Yeah, right.

Audio: MP3

I had long considered Acapulco a tired "Elvis" sort of place, the kitschy kind of tourist trap that was once featured in Elvis movies. A place where even the best hotels were close but "sin cigaro." Acapulco had lost its luster as the Mexican Riviera where Jack and Jackie, Bill and Hillary and Elizabeth and I forgot whom honeymooned.

But I hadn't been there in 15 years.