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![(Illustration by Aurora Roberts, Photographed by Kelly Turner) (Illustration by Aurora Roberts, Photographed by Kelly Turner)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_ft_law_lead.png?1577874530)
Legal Limitations
As children pour across the border, new state money will train local attorneys to take their cases
Little more than half of the nearly 13,000 children who have faced deportation proceedings in California since 2005 have had attorneys. Now, a state law passed in September gives local attorneys the means to represent more of the growing wave of Central American children crossing into the United States.
![(Shutterstock) (Shutterstock)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_edletter_ss.png?1577874530)
New Year’s No’s
Let’s make a list some goals to avoid
This year, I’m focusing on “no.” It’s a magical word rarely used when it comes to answering work emails on vacation, committing to stuff you swore you would avoid and attending events that drain productivity from your day. And for what? If you count the number of really valuable nonmandatory meetings, networking mixers and fundraisers you attended in 2014, how many would you come up with?
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_opinion_lt.png?1577874530)
Raise It Up
Our minimum wage should leave no one behind
Improving the minimum wage and making Sacramento a better place to do business are not mutually exclusive goals. Done properly, an increase to the minimum wage targeted at Sacramento’s working poor will strengthen the economy, benefit the entire community and help create the Sacramento that we all want.
![(Shutterstock) (Shutterstock)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_update_ss.png?1577874530)
Status Check: Roseville Sports Complex
Placer Valley Tourism makes progress in large-scale sports development
Last May we reported on the upcoming development of a $30 million, 12-field soccer complex in west Roseville and the addition of five baseball and softball fields in the existing Whitney Park complex in Rocklin. Here’s where things stand:
![(Shutterstock) (Shutterstock)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_evilhr_ss.jpg?1577874530)
Unpolished Problems
How to politely enforce your dresscode
“We have a male employee whose shirt buttons pop open, leaving his skin exposed. We also have a female employee whose tight clothing reveals her undergarments. This is a horribly awkward and uncomfortable situation, but their attire is not appropriate for the office. How should HR address this?”
![(Design Elements courtesy of EtiAmmos / Shutterstock) (Design Elements courtesy of EtiAmmos / Shutterstock)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_mentoring_asklt.png?1577874530)
The Modern Mentor
The workplace is changing, but the need for good counsel remains
Traditional mentorship, like the internal coaching model lauded by previous generations, has become more myth than method. The modern world is faster, busier and ever-changing, and this has lead to big shifts in the business world.
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_career_liar_ss.png?1577874530)
How to Spot a Liar
9 tips for reading body language when the truth is on the line
Recognizing key signs of dishonesty and deception is a professional skill that can pay off in spades. If you’re keen, you can see people’s body language change when they lie, as they try to manage their anxiety. So unless you’re dealing with a sociopath or a superb actor, you can spot those who try to mislead you by monitoring their nonverbal signals. Here’s how:
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_acuity_jc.jpg?1577874530)
Tech Support
Acuity with Kirk Uhler
Longtime Placer County supervisor Kirk Uhler was recently selected as the new CEO of the Sacramento Area Regional Technology Alliance. Uhler is also the owner of Roseville-based Rensa Group, a marketing, communications and government relations firm, and the co-founder of VidGage, a social media platform.
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_discourse_nn.jpg?1577874530)
Ted Talks
Senator Ted Gaines on Tesla, California's business climate and the future of taxes
A long-time small-business owner before entering politics, California Senator Ted Gaines has become a key figure in some of the most important political crusades facing the Sacramento region in recent years, including the battle to save the Kings and efforts to keep electric carmaker Tesla in the Golden State.
![On Biba restaurant’s menu: Grilled Niman Ranch pork porterhouse cut with a balsamic vinegar glaze served with farro, butternut squash and radicchio. On Biba restaurant’s menu: Grilled Niman Ranch pork porterhouse cut with a balsamic vinegar glaze served with farro, butternut squash and radicchio.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_taste_embed_jc2.jpg?1577874530)
What’s in a Word?
The art and science of writing a menu
The menu you get at the onset of your dining experience is much more than a laundry list of food and prices; it’s the opening volley in a courtship dance between your taste buds and the kitchen.
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/education_sacstate.jpg?1577874530)
Wossamotta U
Skeptical and debt-ridden, millennial alumni scale back donations to their alma maters
Eight of 10 alumni under 35 say the main reason they haven’t donated to their alma maters is that they feel they’ve paid enough already in tuition. Over half said they “don’t think the school really needs the money.” Add that to the common belief that their money ends up in some institutional “black hole,” and the currently bleak donation landscape makes sense.
![(Shutterstock) (Shutterstock)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_ft_education_sb_lead.png?1577874530)
Donor Behavior
Who is giving what to their alma maters?
Universities are having a hard time getting recent grads to loosen their purse strings. Here’s what current donation trends look like:
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_ft_etiquette_lead_zh.png?1577874530)
Extreme Makeover: Work Edition
Does your office need an etiquette expert?
You know That Guy. He wears too much Axe body spray, he makes loud personal calls while you’re trying to work, he chews food with his mouth open. He’s a close-talker with his shirt open one button too far. He’s also really good at his job. If you’re a manager, what do you do with That Guy?
![(design by Lily Therens; elements courtesy of Shutterstock) (design by Lily Therens; elements courtesy of Shutterstock)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_ft_etiquette_sb_sselements.png?1577874530)
Mind Your Manners
Top 4 etiquette schools in the Capital Region
Etiquette programs throughout Northern California cover everything you need to know, from effective communication to dining with chopsticks. Schools offer customized workshops for organizations and individuals alike.
![Units in the renovated industrial space at Warehouse Artist Lofts feature exposed ductwork, original concrete columns and period-appropriate light fixtures.
Units in the renovated industrial space at Warehouse Artist Lofts feature exposed ductwork, original concrete columns and period-appropriate light fixtures.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_ft_construction_embed_kj_1.jpg?1577874530)
Catalyzing R Street
Tax credits and public money make the numbers work for artist lofts
Here’s a recipe to breathe new life into a lifeless block of R Street: Start with a 5-story warehouse made of solid concrete, suitable for loft conversion. Add subsidized rents. Then attract artists, writers and other creative types, plus their spouses, lovers, kids and hangers-on. Sprinkle in baby strollers, coffee shops, galleries, some painful-looking piercings and plenty of ink on skin.
![(Shutterstock) (Shutterstock)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_ft_philanthropy_lead_ss.jpg?1577874530)
Fight of the Navigators
Connecting homeless to health care saves money in the ER
Regina Vasquez ended up homeless after her father passed away. Embarrassed by incontinence caused by Crohn’s disease, she found living out of her car a more dignified alternative to life in a public shelter. She worried constantly about her next visit to Sutter’s emergency department, and whether she would need yet another surgery. She estimates she made six to eight ER visits per year during her time on the streets.
![Among the technologies that help the Kings lead the pack are a camera-equipped drone and an Oculus Rift virtual reality headset. Among the technologies that help the Kings lead the pack are a camera-equipped drone and an Oculus Rift virtual reality headset.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_ft_tech_lead_jc.jpg?1577874530)
Create the Future. Now.
The Sacramento Kings' Ryan Montoya scouts the globe for the best in tech
Ryan Montoya’s task is clear, straightforward and possibly, well, impossible: Turn the Sacramento Kings into the most technologically adept sports franchise in the world.
![(Shutterstock) (Shutterstock)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_sb_tech_ss.png?1577874530)
Crown of Innovation
The Sacramento Kings make geek chic
The technology website GeekWire calls the Sacramento Kings the “NBA’s most geeky franchise.” They mean it as a compliment. Here are some of the ways the Kings are maintaining their edge.
![Andy Heape has been a California Department of Fish and Wildlife technician at the Nimbus Fish Hatchery in Gold River — where he sorts, fertilizes and counts salmon — for 15 years. The fall-run Chinook (king) salmon spawn started Nov. 3 — later than usual because of the drought. Andy Heape has been a California Department of Fish and Wildlife technician at the Nimbus Fish Hatchery in Gold River — where he sorts, fertilizes and counts salmon — for 15 years. The fall-run Chinook (king) salmon spawn started Nov. 3 — later than usual because of the drought.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_snap_kj2_1.jpg?1577874530)
Counting Roe
The spawn of a salmon
Andy Heape has been a California Department of Fish and Wildlife technician at the Nimbus Fish Hatchery in Gold River — where he sorts, fertilizes and counts salmon — for 15 years.
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0115_dept_infographic_lead_lt.png?1577874530)
Happy National Blood Donor Month!
Here's a breakdown on the business of blood
The American Red Cross recognizes January as National Blood Donor Month. Here’s an infographic on what we have — and what we need.