We live in a world of labels. And right or wrong, the labels we choose have an impact on how others perceive us — even during the holidays.

In the weeks since the election, I have felt like a stranger in a foreign land. My own cherished beliefs about the benefits of balanced budgets, lower taxes and free enterprise don’t seem to be shared by a majority of my fellow citizens.

Salon owner Carol Milani had never invented anything before, but she needed a way to keep her strong and fearless Bengal cat from escaping the yard.

Stand outside Sandra Dee’s long enough on a Sunday, and you’ll see groups of hungry guests walk up and squawk at the realization that the famed soul food restaurant is closed.

Kipp Blewett, 46, is a principal partner and co-founder of Rubicon Partners Inc. He is also a member of the board of directors for the Downtown Sacramento Partnership.

A week after graduating with a bachelor’s in accounting, I showed up to my new job at a Big Five accounting firm with the best JC Penney suit my signing bonus could buy. It was the middle of the dot-com boom, and although the term business casual was starting to surface, no one could give a straight answer on its definition.

Much of the discussion about how to improve education has been reduced in recent years by a venomous national debate over whether teachers should be judged by the standardized test scores of their students.

City dwellers driving past the expansive cotton fields and scattered farmhouses along Highway 43 to Corcoran might get the feeling they’ve left California. A haze of dust, bugs and little particles of cow dung blanket the road between Fresno and Bakersfield. Even on a nice day, wiping debris from a car windshield begins to feel futile.

In one of the first actions designed to help the city of Sacramento move forward next year, the City Council OK’d a proposal concerning where we all stop.

The arts may be underfunded in the Capital Region, but creativity abounds. Among Sacramento’s prime talents, a number of product designers stand out for their vision, craft and ingenuity.

The king stood over the toilet. The reluctant owner of that famous belly, that bowlful of jelly, lifted the overarching fold with two hands, exhaled, concentrated and waited for the stream to bolt from its alcove. No luck. Seconds passed, and a soreness grew in his knees.

Earlier this year, most locals couldn’t help but overhear buzz about the launch of local eateries like The Red Rabbit and Pour House. Imagine that same tenor about contributing to local charities.

John Lewis Sullivan was addicted to drugs at age 13, stealing to support his habit and generally making mischief of varying degrees. He’s since spent 18 of his 42 years in jail or in California’s prison system.

Doug Pringle lost a leg to the Vietnam War in 1968. He was recovering at the Presidio of San Francisco hospital the day World War II veterans stopped by for a visit.