Sunday Gazette: September 27, 2026
Hello Riverside, and Happy Sunday! Follow the water west from the Box Springs foothills, past fairways golfers have walked since 1903, down toward a park that carries a name this city holds close.
Now — water, citrus era, Riverside — you're already thinking of a certain famous canal. Fair guess. Still not the answer.
This one was here long before any canal. It's a natural arroyo, and a stubborn one — stubborn enough that, in the 1880s, engineers had to build an elevated flume just to get that famous canal across it.
What waterway is it, and why does the "wrong" answer keep crossing its path?
Guesses to newsroom@raincrossgazette.com — and send us your own Riverside lore while you're at it.
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COMMUNITY
Cati Porter Turns the Page With Mile Square Press
Funded by pre-orders rather than outside money, Mile Square Press will debut with a children's history of Riverside, followed by a poetry collection from UCR's Carlos Cortés
After leaving her role last December as executive director of the Inlandia Institute, a literary arts nonprofit, Cati Porter spent the majority of her time enjoying life free of obligation and other commitments.
But the question of how she wanted to transform her career lingered on. That question was answered when she saw a need in the city of Riverside.
"One of the things that I really enjoyed about my past job was the publishing side of the business," she said.
"I knew about this book that one of my colleagues was writing and it really needed to be out in the community."
Porter saw a need and decided to fill it with her publishing expertise through Mile Square Press — an independent publishing house.
The book is called "Riverside California: The City Built from the River Up" by Janine Pourroy. It's about the history of the city, written for children. There are plenty of books about Riverside history for adults, but there aren't many for kids, Porter said.
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READING ROOM
Are Riverside's Leaders Readers?
Welcome to Reading Room, an invitation to make (more) room for reading in your life this week from Riversider, writer and reader Cati Porter.
As an avid reader, I know you can learn a lot about people by talking to them about their favorite books. As a Riverside resident, I'm also aware of how our public servants are often perceived one-dimensionally. I wanted to give us all an opportunity to see each of them in a different light, as a full person who has a life and interests outside of their office.
Why not just march right into City Hall and ask everyone what they read?
I put together four easy questions: What's your favorite genre? What's the last book you read for pleasure? Is there a favorite book from your youth? And — the kicker: Do you have a Riverside Public Library card?
Riverside City Hall is an impressive brick building built in the mid-1970s and recently designated a historic landmark.When you walk through the sliding glass doors, the first people you meet are the security guards. Today, three are at the desk.
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CREATIVE PROMPTS
The Pot Thickens
A prompt to encourage your practice of creativity this week from Riversider and local author Larry Burns.
This week’s nudge takes us out of the closet and invites us into the kitchen: a coffee pot. Back in Creative Nudge 27, we spent time with the first cup of the day, feeling its weight and listening to the pour. Apparently, I never turned around to look at what was filling mine. I drink roughly a pot a day, so perhaps I’m too close to the object to see its other charms.
At home, I run two coffee pots: regular for me and decaf for the rest of the family. There’s a K-Cup machine for mornings when I wake before the automatic brew. I cannot wait fifteen minutes for coffee without somebody’s feelings getting hurt, usually mine. Meanwhile, the plastic French press I take camping makes a better cup than either machine at home. I haven’t shared this well researched review with any of them.
I started drinking coffee in my twenties, after getting my first office job in a call center. I’d had no trouble staying awake on a machine shop floor, where there was always something to do and dangerous machinery ready to eat you. Put me on a padded chair in a padded room, though, and I needed a reason to keep my eyes open. The office coffee pot also gave me a place to escape the padded cell a few times a day, hear what was happening beyond my desk.
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This Week in Riverside
Sunday, September 27
- FREE YOGA - The Evolution of Ashtanga with Kristin Varner at Community Yoga Center
- Rise Against Hunger food packing event at Magnolia Presbyterian Church
- Prayers and Public Information Meeting at Riverside Baha'i Center
- Reel Faith: God & Country Film Screening at Civil Rights Institute Inland Southern California
- Men I Trust at Riverside Municipal Auditorium
- Sonic Live In Concert at Fox Performing Arts Center
Monday, September 28
- Volunteer Interest Hour at Riverside Meals on Wheels
- Housing and Homelessness Committee at Riverside City Hall
- Board of Public Utilities at Riverside City Hall
- FREE YOGA - Moody Mondays with Cherie Amour at Community Yoga Center
- Adult Ballet Class at Riverside Ballet Arts LLC
- Goeske Bingo at Janet Goeske Center ($20- $100)
Tuesday, September 29
- ScotSurplus Sale at ScotSurplus Store
- FREE YOGA - Mandala Yoga with Alejandro at Community Yoga Center
- Until Help Arrives Emergency Preparedness Training at Community Room Riverside Main Library
- Karaoke Tuesday Competition at The Hideaway
Wednesday, September 30
- Riverside East Rotary Club at Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern
- Stretch & Dance Class at Janet Goeske Senior Center
- Adult Ballet Class at Riverside Ballet Arts LLC
- First-Time Homebuyers Workshop presented by AP Mortgage at University of California, Riverside
- FREE Reading Assistance Program (RAP) at My Learning Studio
- History on the Rocks - Round Two! at Mission Inn Foundation ($71.21)
- Men's Soccer vs Cal State Fullerton at UCR Soccer Stadium
- Needlefelt Ghosts at Marcy Library
- Riverside Jams at Carbon Nation Brewery
- Riverside Mission Belles at Victoria Presbyterian Church ($25)
- FREE YOGA - Seated Yoga with Kristin Varner at All Saints Episcopal Church
- Sight Unseen Reframed Exhibition at Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern
- Earl Sweatshirt & MIKE: Home on the Range Tour 2026 at Riverside Municipal Auditorium
Thursday, October 1
- Board of Ethics at Riverside City Hall
- Artswalk: Victorian Afterlife Rituals at Corner of Main Street and University Avenue
- FREE ADMISSION - First Thursday of every month during Riverside ArtsWalk at Riverside Art Museum
- Let's Talk About It: A Conversation on Mental Health in BIPOC Communities at Riverside Main Library --Community Room
- Riverside Off-Road & Jeep Nights at D'Elia's Grinders
- JPEGMAFIA: the Experimental Rap Tour at Riverside Municipal Auditorium
Friday, October 2
- Riverside Sunrise Rotary Club Meeting at Zacatecas Café
- Women's Volleyball vs. UC Irvine at SRC Arena
- THE EMO NIGHT TOUR (18+) at Riverside Municipal Auditorium
- MOCEDADES US TOUR 2026 at Fox Performing Arts Center
- Seussical Jr and Seussical Kids at The Box Theater ($15- $22)
Saturday, October 3
- Magnolia Center Cleanup at Alin Party Supply Parking Lot
- Donuts & Dragsters at Target Store Riverside-Arlington
- Low-Cost Vaccination Clinic at Mary S. Roberts Pet Adoption Center's Spay-Neuter Clinic ($10- $28)
- Blessing of the Animals at First United Methodist Church of Riverside
- 250 (Million) Years of Riverside's Ecology at Riverside Corona Resource Conservation District LandUse Learning Center
- Aquamotion Aquathon at Shamel Pool
- BofA Museums On Us offers FREE admission at Riverside Art Museum
- Broadway at RCC at Landis Performing Arts Center
- FREE YOGA - The Art of Vinyasa with Catherine Murray at Community Yoga Center
- FREE YOGA - Yin Yoga with Kristin Varner at Community Yoga Center
- French Police at Riverside Municipal Auditorium
- MarioAguilar - "Diezmadre" at Fox Performing Arts Center
- Women's Soccer vs. UC Irvine at UCR Soccer Stadium
Save the Date
- Oct 4: FREE YOGA - The Evolution of Ashtanga with Kristin Varner at Community Yoga Center
- Oct 4: Riverside Historical Society Local History Book Fair at Villegas Community Center
- Oct 5: FREE YOGA - Moody Mondays with Cherie Amour at Community Yoga Center
- Oct 7: Fifty & Better Health Fair at Janet Goeske Center
- Oct 7: FREE YOGA - Seated Yoga with Kristin Varner at All Saints Episcopal Church
- Oct 9: Riverside Sunrise Rotary Club Meeting at Zacatecas Café
- Oct 10: FREE YOGA - The Art of Vinyasa with Catherine Murray at Community Yoga Center
- Oct 10: FREE YOGA - Yin Yoga with Kristin Varner at Community Yoga Center
- Oct 17: Spooky Music Organ Concert at First Congregational Church of Riverside ($30)
- Oct 22: Experience RUSD, Riverside Unified State of the District at Riverside Municipal Airport
- Oct 24: Vintage Car and Warbird Show at Riverside Airport - Commemorative Air Force Hanger and Museum
- Nov 14: Riverside Veterans Parade - Downtown Riverside/Market St.
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