Between the peaches and the peonies, nestled among the fresh berries and artisan bread, a different kind of booth was drawing curious shoppers late last month at the Windsor farmers market.
The sign read: “OLD COOTS GIVING ADVICE: It’s probably bad advice, but it’s free.”
Seated behind the table were six retirees offering everything from life wisdom to dad jokes — and plenty of unsolicited opinions — to anyone who stopped by.
“We’re really not here to solve life’s problems, just create community,” said Steve Clark, 70, of Windsor, who organized the event. “We never said it was good advice.”
Clark was inspired by a segment he saw on CBS News featuring a similar concept.
Though the idea isn’t new, he said it hadn’t yet made its way to Sonoma County — so he decided to change that.
Armed with camp chairs, coffee and a lifetime of stories, Clark and his friends launched the local version Sunday, June 29, with hopes of returning monthly and maybe popping up at other markets around the county.
One of those seated at the table was Tim Oxford, 67, better known as “Santa Tim.”
A Windsor resident for 42 years, Oxford has donned the red suit for nonprofit holiday events across Sonoma County for more than three decades.
Sunday, he was answering questions as just another coot with something to say.
A young student approached and asked: “What advice would you give young people in this current state of the world?”
Oxford lit up.
“I think what feels the best is that a young person would approach us to ask us that question,” he said.
“They’re yearning to learn. The fact that they do that is important, especially in this day and age where the phone disconnects us from what we’re doing here right now — sitting and talking.”
Clark has only one rule for the group: No politics. No religion. Just good conversation.
Marketgoers snapped photos of the cheeky banner and peppered the coots with questions — some serious, some silly. The responses were part insight, part improv.
Here’s a sample:
Question: What makes you old coots qualified to give me advice?
Answer: “I have owned 10 businesses, walked Diana Ross’ dog, lived in 10 states and am a member of SIR (Sons in Retirement),” Clark said.
Q: What’s the meaning of life?
A: “There is no meaning,” said Bob Wallace, 73. “Life is an experience. It’s what you bring to it.”
Q: What stock should I invest in if I want to retire in 20 years?
A: “Resources that are going to be worth more in the future, such as hydrogen, lithium or water,” someone chimed in.
Q: What pretzel should I get?
A: “The salty one that’s wrapped really weird — with a little bit of mustard,” the group agreed.
Whether their advice changes lives or just sparks a laugh, the Old Coots say they’ll keep showing up — as long as someone’s asking questions.
You can reach Staff Writer Alana Minkler at 707-526-8531 or alana.minkler@pressdemocrat.com. On X (Twitter,) @alana_minkler.