Editor’s Note: Our hearts go out to everyone in the LA area who has been impacted by the devasting fires. You are in our thoughts and prayers.

HAPPY 2025! Want to up your fitness this year, wow – take a look at some great hikes we love, from the challenging to the strolling kind. Let’s celebrate funny women this month with shows featuring Kathy Griffin and Maria Bamford. If you love Katherine McPhee she will be performing this month with her husband David Foster, an incredible show awaits. Then check out Noir City Film fest celebrating WOMEN as well This year’s theme is “Where Winsome Women Turn Wicked!”  And, almost time to welcome the Year of the Snake. The celebrations begin for Chinese New Year with two events this month leading up to the parade in February.

Jan. 25-26. The Chinese New Year Flower Market Fair

This is held on the weekend before Chinese New Year’s Day. The Flower Fair is the place to come to purchase fresh flowers, fruits, candies, and brand-new supplies for the home to begin the new lunar year. Delight in performances of traditional Chinese magicians, acrobats, folk dancers and opera as you take in the beautiful fragrances of spring. You will find over 120 booths and concessions making this a shopper’s paradise. The Flower Fair is the place to come to purchase fresh flowers, fruits, candies and brand-new supplies for the home to begin the new lunar year. Sat. 10am – 6pm Sun. 9am – 6pm.  GET THE DETAILS.

Jan. 18. Celebrate the Year of the Snake

Celebrate with the Richmond’s first-ever Lunar New Year Parade! Schools, community groups, businesses, and artists are invited to participate in this historic celebration by showcasing their creativity and spirit. Join us on Balboa Street and let the audience’s cheers decide the winners. Prizes will be awarded for Best Thematic Float, Most Entertaining Performance, and Best Community Spirit. January 18^th. 3:30 – 8:00 p.m. Balboa St and 35^th. LUNAR NEW YEAR PARADE

Jan. 31. Maria Bamford at Sydney Goldstein Theatre

Maria Bamford is a stand-up comedian and voice actress. She recently appeared in the fourth season of Arrested Development.

Recently lighting up TV and laptop screens around the world with her idiosyncratic Netflix series Lady Dynamite and stand-up special Old Baby, it may surprise some to find out that impression queen Maria Bamford has been honing her craft since the early 90s. Armed with a thousand voices, Bamford’s off the wall style mines the depths of mental health, pop culture and her own personal life with hilariously quirky results.

Although small and unassuming in stature, Bamford has the ability to light up the stage with her larger than life personalities – that’s right, she’s got more than one character and comedic style up her sleeve. Imitations aside, she’s able to pull off satire, roast and rapid-fire one-liners with aplomb, all wrapped up in her signature kookiness. This is one comedy powerhouse you won’t want to miss. January 31^st 7:30 p.m. Sydney Goldstein Theatre. MARIA BAMFORD TKTS

 Jan. 18. Kathy Griffin

Kathy Griffin is making a comeback with a brand-new show for 2025 – ‘The Kathy Griffin: My Life on the PTSD-List.’ Promising to get into the untold story behind what made her the person and comedian that her fans have grown to love. You can expect a no-holds-barred journey into the mind of one of the country’s most outrageous comedians.

Trevor Project Life Award honoree Kathy Griffin is a multi-faceted performer with rapid-fire wit and the kind of meanness that would make any high school queen bee cry. Expect mature content, strong language, political opinion, and more when Kathy comes home on this highly anticipated new trawl across North America. You have been warned. January 18^th 8:00 p.m. Masonic Theatre. KATHY GRIFFIN TICKETS

David Foster and Katharine McPhee

Famous Couple David Foster and Katharine McPhee are heading out on tour together again. Hitting the great North American road, the husband and wife duo embark on  ‘An Intimate Evening with David Foster and Katharine McPhee’. You can expect them to give the audience a special evening, performing popular hits written by David himself.

Quite simply the man behind some of the biggest pop hits of the 80s, 90s and 2000s, David Foster is one of the most commercially successful producers the world has ever known. His platinum-certified collaborations include working with Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Josh Groban, Diana Ross, Barbara Streisand and Toni Braxton. Don’t miss this chance to hear about his stellar journey to the upper echelons, from session musician to industry mogul, in his own words and music. January 19^th Ruth Finley Person Theatre. DAVID FOSTER and KATHARINE MCPHEE

Jan. 24-Feb. 2. NOIR CITY 22 Film Fest

There will be a distinctly feminine slant to the proceedings at NOIR CITY 22 Film Fest at Oakland’s Grand Lake Theatre. There will be classic noir creations from around the world at this year’s Noir City Film Festival with most works from the 1940’s and 50’s – they define tomatoes.  The lineup of classic films, featuring 24 movies over ten days and nights, shines a spotlight on women whose cinematic legacy is entwined with the rise of film noir. This year’s theme is “Where Winsome Women Turn Wicked!” and features 24 movies with femmes who made their film noire fatale!  NOIR FILM FEST

Get Out and Hike

 If your goal this year is to get outside and enjoy mother nature- We have some hikes for you that will boost your mood, strengthen your lungs and legs and help you head into this year with gusto.

The Perimeter Trail

You may need to ease into this one or leap in as you walk the 9.8 mile loop through Skyline Wilderness Park in Napa. The Perimeter Trail skirts the park’s edge through the Napa Valley foothills, past Lake Marie, and to the peak of Sugarloaf Mountain and its sprawling vineyard views. At almost ten miles in length and an elevation gain of 2,280 feet, it won’t be easy. But chances are this hike checks off a box or two on your list of New Year’s resolutions. Get your body moving and be grateful that you’ve made it to such a beautiful spot so early in 2025.  Skyline Wilderness Park.

Joseph D. Grant County Park

Next up, the  Joseph D. Grant County Park is a lush, beautiful emerald set on the slopes of San Jose’s Mount Hamilton. The Yerba Buena to Halls Valley Trail is one of its best, with sweeping vistas of the Diablo Range and the iconic Lick Observatory. The 6.7 mile loop begins at Halls Valley Lake and climbs up into the rolling hills along the Yerba Buena Trail before turning onto Canada De Pala, then back to Halls Valley. To reach the trailhead, drive past the park’s main entrance and pull into the lot a few hundred feet up on the left side of the road near the lake.  parks.santaclaracounty.gov

 Golden Gate Park

When’s the last time you took a hike through Golden Gate Park? That’s where you can head for a laidback, 2.3 mile loop around Golden Heron (formerly Stow) Lake and to the top of Strawberry Hill. The latter is an island at the water’s center, connected to the lake’s perimeter by bridges on the north and south sides. Walk around the lake, then cross one of the bridges and wind up the hill. Don’t forget to make a stop at the island’s Chinese peace pagoda-inspired Golden Gate Pavilion and the park’s first artificial waterfall, Huntington Falls, on your way back.  sfrecpark.org