Lake County Wine Studio in Upper Lake is launching a special series of chess education and game playing from 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Thursdays, beginning Jan. 27 and continuing through April 28.

Grandmaster-trained chess expert Thomas Southerland will be that guest educator at this series.

Southerland has written articles for the prestigious European Chess Web site, www.chessdom.com and also for the Official U.S. Chess Federation Web site, http://uschess.org.

Southerland had two games from the Chicago Open 1996 published in the official magazine of the USCF, Chesslife, for their brilliance according to Life Master Jerry Hanken.

He also has organized and sponsored the first-ever Online Grand Master Chess Event at Internet Chess Club in 1996, and has remained active partners in organizing and promoting Grand Master Chess Events with ICC to this day.

Southerland has interviewed for radio, Grandmasters Var Akobian, Yury Shulman (2008 U.S. Champion) and Israeli Grandmaster Victor Mikhalevski, and was promoted by Grandmaster Susan Polgar (Former Women's World Champion) during his last event.

Southerland organized the two-day multiple rapid chess matches between Grandmasters Var Akobian and Yury Shulman held in April 2009 at the Lake County Wine Studio and is currently working to organize his next major chess event to be held in beautiful Lake County early this summer.

Southerland will devote the first hour of each Thursday session to going over strategy fundamentals of end, middle and opening games as published in “Modern Chess Strategy” by International Master of chess, Edward Lasker (Dec. 3, 1885 – March 25, 1981).

Lake County Wine Studio is located on the corner of First and Main Streets in historic Upper Lake, across from the famous Tallman Hotel and Blue Wing Saloon.

For more information, contact Susan Feiler at 707-275-8030 or 707-293-8752, or visit This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Included are Mendocino County projects that may impact Lake County commuters.

LAKE COUNTY

Highway 20

– Caltrans will perform routine maintenance from Blue Lakes Road to Bachelor Valley Road beginning Monday, Jan. 10. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Thursday. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

– PG&E of Ukiah has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for an aerial crossing at Second Street on Tuesday, Jan. 11. Work hours are 9 a.m. to noon. Intermittent full road closures will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays.

Highway 29

– Caltrans will perform routine maintenance from Kelseyville Auto Sales to Bottle Rock Road beginning Monday, Jan. 10. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Thursday. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

Highway 175

– PG&E of Ukiah has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for tree trimming from 0.2 mile west to 0.5 mile east of Mathews Road beginning Tuesday, Jan. 11. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

– PG&E of Ukiah has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for tree trimming from 0.2 mile east of the junction of Route 29/175 near Kelseyville to the Putah Creek Bridge beginning Tuesday, Jan. 11. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

MENDOCINO COUNTY

Highway 1

– PG&E of Ukiah has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for tree trimming from 0.3 mile north of Signal Port Creek Road to Windy Hollow Road beginning Tuesday, Jan. 11. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

Highway 101

– A pavement repair project from Cox-Schrader Road to Uva will continue. Work hours are 4 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays. Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction of travel. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns. Contractor – Granite Construction Inc. of Ukiah.

– A metal beam guardrail repair project at various locations from Route 222 (Talmage Road) to the northern Long Valley Creek Bridge will continue. Work hours are 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., weekdays. Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction of travel. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns. The southbound offramp to Route 222 (Exit 548A) will be intermittently closed from 10:30 p.m. to 7 a.m., Sunday evening through Friday morning. Motorists will be advised to use an alternate route and may experience minor delays. Contractor – Wahlund Construction of Eureka.

– Pavement striping from 0.1 mile south of Harwood Road to 2.5 miles south of Rattlesnake Summit will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekdays. Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction of travel. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns. Contractor – Mercer-Fraser Company of Eureka.

– A metal beam guardrail repair project at various locations from the Cummings Road Overcrossing to 0.6 mile south of the junction of Route 101/271 near Reynolds will continue. Work hours are 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., weekdays. Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction of travel. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns. Contractor – Wahlund Construction of Eureka.

Highway 222

– Replacement of the Russian River Bridge will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control with a temporary signal will be in effect 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists should anticipate 15-minute delays during work hours and five-minute delays at other times. Contractor – CC Myers of Rancho Cordova.

All projects are weather permitting and subject to change. Motorists should drive with caution when approaching work areas and to be prepared to stop at traffic control stations.

The Caltrans Traffic Operations Office has reviewed each project and determined that individual project delays are expected to be less than the statewide policy maximum of 30 minutes, unless noted otherwise above.

For information pertaining to emergency roadwork or for updates to scheduled roadwork, please contact the California Highway Information Network (CHIN) at 1-800-GAS-ROAD (1-800-427-7623).

The Moore Family Winery, 11990 Bottle Rock Road, Cobb, will host the fundraising dinner, which starts at 6 p.m.

Tickets are priced at $40 each.

Included are: a three-course Italian dinner with a glass of Moore Family Wine or nonalcoholic beverage, silent auction, entertainment by locals the Gill Brothers Plus One and poetry readings presented by Sandra Wade.

The Lake County Office of Education administrates the project supported by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Proceeds go toward the one-to-one match that the federal grant requires.

Tickets are on sale at Big Read partner locations: Mountain High Coffee and Books, 16295 Highway 175, Cobb, and at 19849 Hartmann Road, Hidden Valley; Catfish Books, 1013 11th St., Lakeport; and Watershed Book Store, 305 N. Main St., Lakeport. Lower Lake High School also will be selling event tickets.

For more information, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. and take place at the Calpine Cartwright Geothermal Visitors Center, 15500 Central Park Road, Middletown.

Agenda items include actions items for promoting MATH, youth activities, videotaping at MATH meetings and the streetlight project.

Under new business, District 1 Supervisor Jim Comstock will give a report, the group will hold board elections and election of officers for the coming year.

MATH meetings are subject to videotaping.

Meeting proceedings may be available for viewing on public access television and/or the Internet.

MATH is a municipal advisory council serving the residents of Anderson Springs, Cobb, Coyote Valley (includes HVL), Long Valley and Middletown.

The show will be broadcast at 5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 7.

Tina Tidmore from PANDORA and MCWPA will discuss new developments for this disease which affects millions of people.

A medical doctor also will join Tidmore to discuss medical aspects and research developments in this field.

Email your questions to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and the talk show hosts will pose the questions to the guests.

Pictured are Interact Club members Delia Glueck, Linda Olivera, Tawny White and Billie Jeffers; and Kelseyville Rotary Club members Wally Holbrook, Rita Abbey, Jim Hilton and Richard Smith.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Rotary Club of Kelseyville Sunrise recently conducted its annual visit to third grade classrooms in the Kelseyville Unified School District to distribute dictionaries to all students.

Interact Club members from Kelseyville High School also participated in the event.

The Dictionary Project is just one way Kelseyville’s Rotary Club supports literacy.

The club also purchases books for its guest speakers to autograph and then donates them to the school libraries.

Club members and Interact Club members read to elementary school students each month and the club is a sponsor of “The Big Read” kickoff event at Moore Family Winery on Saturday, Jan. 8.

The Big Read is a project of the Lake County Office of Education; sponsorship of this project is another way the Rotary Club of Kelseyville Sunrise supports the countywide Literacy Task Force.