Presidents' Day: What's Open, What's Closed in Los Altos

Monday is Presidents' Day, which means we get a three-day weekend as we celebrate the birthdays of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.

Presidents Day began as a day of remembrance in 1800, the year after President George Washington died. It was observed on Feb. 22, Washington's birthday. The holiday was shifted to the third Monday of February in 1971 under the Uniform Monday Holiday Act. In California, it was combined with the observance of President Abraham Lincoln's birthday (Feb. 12). While the name of the federal holiday remains Washington's Birthday, in many states, it is renamed Presidents' Day.

Closed:

• School districts serving Los Altos students are closed Monday. Additionally, the following schools are closed for the rest of the week: Los Altos School District, Cupertino Union School District, Fremont Union High School District (Palo Alto Unified School District is closed Monday, only).
• Los Altos City Hall 
• Los Altos Hills Town Hall City
• Santa Clara County offices
• Santa Clara County courts
• Los Altos and Woodland libraries (and all Santa Clara County Library District libraries) 
• Banks
• U.S. Postal Service offices 

Open:

• VTA buses and light rail operate on a regular schedule. 
• Mission Trail will serve Los Altos on the usual days.
• Greenwaste will serve Los Altos Hills on the usual days.

So what can you do?

• Rancho San Antonio Park 
• There are nature walks and history demonstrations at Wilder Ranch State Park, Big Basin State Park and Santa Cruz Mission State Historic Park.
• There's free parking downtown on Monday.
• SF Beer Week wraps up with Twisted Tasting, a beer and food pairing showcasing about 40 brews at the Top of the Rittenhouse building in Santa Cruz.

Three-day weekend sales and Presidents' Day deals started cropping up in the 1980s.

This weekend, shoppers can find sales at Best Buy, Carter's (with coupons)and Kohl's. Shoppers can find plenty of sales in downtown Los Altos from  to Kula Sweet. Several stores along Main Street and at Rancho Shopping Center, such as Syd Boutique have sale signs on their windows. Most stores are having major reductions on their winter merchandise. Check their websites or Facebook pages for the details, or simply stroll down the popular street and enjoy shopping!

There are online sales as well:

• American Eagle Outfitters: 25% Off + Free Shipping with code 21393551
• Old Navy, Gap and Banana Republic: 15-20% off with your credit card, online code is ONPDAY.
• Kohl's: Take an additional 30, 20 or 15% off everything; sale on men's wear; 40-50% off various brands including Elle and Rock & Republic; also, get free shipping with Kohl's card with code: LUV2BMVC
• Macy's: Get $10 off a $75 purchase with code X192B6SU28 or save 15% off a purchase with code PRES
• Patagonia is discounting its Fall 2012 clothing and gear collection up to 60%. Get free shipping when you spend $75 or more. 
• Forever21: Up to 75 percent off, through Feb. 20.

If you own a business in Santa Cruz and are having a sale, tell us in the comments and we'll add you to the list!