Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times of year. I love how the holiday allows us to reflect and give gratitude before we launch into the rest of the end-of-year holidays. Oh, and I love the food. This year I find Thanksgiving especially poignant. For those not felled by COVID, we’re coming up on the […]
Lea más“The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.” And Zooey Deschanel hasn’t stopped doing so ever since her musical introduction to the world in the holiday cult classic, Elf. As a 21-year-old at the time, Deschanel feels fortunate to have identified the script as one that was timeless — […]
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Philanthropist Pierre Claeyssens (1908-2003) believed that “to be killed in wars is not the worst that can happen. To be lost is not the worst that can happen. To be forgotten is the worst.” In order to pay tribute to all the U.S. Armed Forces, past and present in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, he […]
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One of our local luminaries, Mary Tonetti Dorra, has just published another book. I first met Mary on a Santa Barbara Museum of Art trip to New Zealand where she had entrée to the American Ambassador’s home and particularly the gardens. The Santa Barbara gang got to come along. Since then, she’s been a busy […]
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It’s been a championship season for the South Coast, with the Cate 8-man football team capturing its first CIF title with a 50-30 throttling of Grace Brethren on November 19 at Carpinteria High School. The Rams finished the season 10-1.
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The Rotary Club of Montecito Foundation has awarded a total of $15,000 to support the work of 15 Santa Barbara-area nonprofit organizations.The grants awarded under the foundation’s annual Community Grants Program were $1,000 each and go to organizations benefitting a wide range of constituents, including children, seniors, low-income families, and animals. All grants are funded […]
Lea másMontecito Board of Architectural Review and Montecito Planning Commission have been busy hearing and making decisions about a multitude of residential – and a few commercial – projects in Montecito. MBAR is held via Zoom every three weeks, while MPC meets once a month, also via Zoom. At their hearing last week, the Montecito Planning […]
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Christmas would appear to have arrived early! Mega restaurateur Sherry Villanueva, who owns The Lark and La Paloma Cafe through her Acme Hospitality group, among many other eateries, has worked a Yuletide “miracle” at Pearl Social, which normally serves as a Funk Zone cocktail and music bar. Described as “a kitschy Christmas experience” that will […]
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The past 20 months for educators have been ones of great angst and innovation — with the need for patience and a willingness to embrace the unknown paramount to serving thousands of students in the Santa Barbara Unified School District. It has also been thankless. Educators have not only had to teach students through computer […]
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Richie’s Barber Shop on Coast Village Road is having its 10th Annual Holiday Donation Drive, this year for Domestic Violence Solutions (DVS) Santa Barbara, with the theme, “The Limit Does Not Exist.” Shop event lead and barber Jessica Jay is coordinating with DVS Executive Director Jan Campbell to ensure the donated items will work for […]
Lea másThe last six months of my father’s life were spent in isolation from our family and his friends, but not, as I was to learn, from a new, adhoc family that embraced him. Like millions across the U.S., the COVID lockdowns kept me, my mother, and my siblings completely apart from my 80-year-old father. But, […]
Lea másThere are people who believe that, after they die, they’ll be reunited with all the people to whom they were closest in life. It’s a beautiful vision – but what condition will we all be in, and at what age? Few of us would prefer to meet our loved ones again as they may have […]
Lea másDear Montecito, It is rarely a good sign to hear the latest about your hometown through the national news before discovering the information on local sources. Such was my experience opening my browser to CNN and seeing the now infamous contribution of Charlie Munger to our local university. Of course, the news did not stay […]
Lea másThe trial of Kyle Rittenhouse has galvanized the country, splitting already “warring factions” into something far more dramatic. The travesty of that trial began with the systematic exclusion of Black jurors and was further amplified by a clearly biased and incompetent judge: he openly fought with the prosecution in front of the jury, denied them […]
Lea másWe just want to take this opportunity to tell you how grateful we are for you, our beloved community, for all the ways you’ve inspired us with your generosity, come through in spades for your community, been through the worst of times and stood so strong, and made this just one of the finest places […]
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‘Tis the season to hit the pavement to find the retail steals of your dreams, even if you are tempted to stay in your pajamas and do the ordering from the comforts of your cushy couch. But then you wouldn’t get to experience Mary Lynn Harms-Romo’s favorite holiday tradition. The longtime marketing director at Paseo […]
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‘Tis the season for our little slice of heaven to showcase its robust heart, with nonprofits across the South Coast hosting a plethora of events and fundraisers to aid those in need. Throughout the season, we’ll highlight companies that need help in order to hit their goals. This week, we take a look at the […]
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As a community, we sit days away from the certification of our recent mayoral and city council election and I wanted to take a few minutes to address my city: It was an honor and a privilege to serve as a catalyst for change and to truly hold to my campaign motto: “A New Day. […]
Lea másLovely warm days mixed with overcast mornings and a couple of very chilly nights tells us that we are heading into winter (more rain please). Daylight saving time has kicked in, which is great for the early birds and surfers, bringing light before 6 am. That said, I’m still getting used to darkness in the […]
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New music — or at least its place in the history of classical music — is also the topic of the first installment of a new in-depth multimedia presentation curated by Henry Michaels, the Music Academy of the West’s Director of Audience Experience and Engagement, that begins this week. “I Hear Dead People: The Cult […]
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