(Want to get California Today by email? Sign up.)  For a second night on Wednesday, thousands of protesters gathered in cities across the state to denounce the idea of a Donald J. Trump-led America, with some chanting, ”Not my president!”  On social media, the hashtag #Calexit took off, echoing the British decision to leave the European Union.  And in Sacramento, a joint statement from legislative leaders said, “Today, we woke up feeling like strangers in a foreign land.”  For one group, the postelection reaction has been electrifying. Yes California, a grass-roots organization with 3,000 or so supporters, has for years been trying to persuade Californians to take up the cause of secession.  “We hit it big with Trump being elected,” Marcus Ruiz Evans, a spokesman, said on Wednesday.  California cannot, of course, just pick up and leave. Even if the state wanted to, an exit would require two-thirds approval of both the House and Senate in Washington, along with the blessing of 38 state legislatures — a feat analysts say is implausible.  But Mr. Evans may be on to something. After Mr. Trump clinched his victory late Tuesday, at least three tech investors signaled a willingness to finance a secession effort.  Shervin Pishevar, a co-founder of Hyperloop One, announced on Twitter that he would back a “legitimate campaign” for California to become its own nation.  Marc Hemeon, another entrepreneur, responded to Mr. Pishevar saying to count him in. So did Dave Morin, a founder of the social network Path.  Speaking by phone, Mr. Hemeon, who is the founder of Design Inc. in Orange County, said he was “reeling” from Mr. Trump’s win. He felt compelled to do something.  “Fighting for your family — that’s what it comes down to,” said Mr. Hemeon, who has two daughters and a son.  Calls for secession are not new in California. There have been at least 200 such proposals since the state’s founding in 1850.  Modern secessionists have argued that Californians have simply drifted too far culturally from the rest of the country. What’s more, they say, with an economy larger than France, the state doesn’t need America.  Mr. Evans, of Yes California, said help from sympathizers in Silicon Valley, where anti-Trump sentiment runs deep, could help speed the way toward his group’s nearest goal: a referendum on the ballot.  One purchase he would make right away, he said: billboard space along Interstate 5 heading into Sacramento.  The design is already created. It reads, “Welcome to Our Nation’s Capital.”  • With more states voting in favor of marijuana, a small business prepares to cross state lines, as legally as possible. [The New York Times]  • The pharmaceutical industry scored a victory as voters rejected Proposition 61, which would have added price controls. [The Associated Press]  • Congressional races: Darrell Issa, a Republican, and Ami Bera, a Democrat, held narrow leads. Steve Knight and Jeff Denham, both Republicans, prevailed. [The Associated Press]  • “The horror, the horror”: Silicon Valley’s reaction to a Trump presidency was grim. [The New York Times]  • Peter Thiel was the only prominent Silicon Valley investor to back Mr. Trump. Now, he’s positioned to reap rewards. [The New York Times]  • A slate of rent control measures in the Bay Area got mixed results. [San Francisco Business Times]  • Voters rejected a measure to abolish the death penalty, but approved another that would streamline the process. [Sacramento Bee]  • Hillary Clinton beat Mr. Trump in Orange County, the first time since 1936 the county went blue in a presidential election. [Orange County Register]  • After San Diego voters rejected funding of a new football stadium, the Chargers were left with questions about their future. [The New York Times]  • Half a century on, playing vintage blues is an act of preservation and reclamation for the Rolling Stones. [The New York Times]  Nick Offerman, the actor and comedian, wants you to love woodworking the way he does.  So he has written a book, “Good Clean Fun,” a how-to on crafting useful objects like a coaster or a birdhouse.  The book, Mr. Offerman’s third, also takes readers on a tour of the Offerman Woodshop, a collective of woodworkers that he started in Los Angeles in 2001.  We caught up with Mr. Offerman by phone.  What inspired you to write “Good Clean Fun”?  My obsession with woodworking is one that I can’t seem to shake, but also my evangelism — encouraging my readership to make things with their hands. And when I had the idea to do a woodworking book, I realized that would afford me some months in my shop where I could tell my agents to leave me alone.  What does woodworking do for you?  It’s an intrinsic part of my manhood. It’s not something that I think much about. I just have an organic need to keep altering my world for the better with tools.  It seems as if these manly arts are fading.  That’s what awakens the evangelist in me to say, ‘Hey guys, I understand you’re depressed. Trust me, if you paint a closet in your house or if you go out and change your tire on your car, I can’t tell you what an incredible feeling of accomplishment awaits you.’  Is it hard to make a living these days as a woodworker?  There are six workers in my shop making a living. It’s not the most exorbitant living but they do get a lot of recompense that can’t be counted in dollars. I think that they are much more satisfied with their lives at a lower salary than many people working in cubicles.  California Today goes live at 6 a.m. Pacific time weekdays. Tell us what you want to see: CAtoday@nytimes.com.  The California Today columnist, Mike McPhate, is a third-generation Californian — born outside Sacramento and raised in San Juan Capistrano. He lives in Davis. Follow him on Twitter.  California Today is edited by Julie Bloom, who grew up in Los Angeles and attended U.C. Berkeley.
Thursday: Donald J. Trump’s victory energizes a #Calexit movement, Peter Thiel is positioned to reap rewards, and a check-in with Nick Offerman.