Tag archives: quarantine

Looking over my 2020 Filofax calendar (yes, I still use one of those) and reviewing the past year, it’s not nearly as full as previous years. 2020 stated out well enough: it went from meeting friends at Tharios’ Kitchen and Field + Fort, Sunday brunches at El Encanto, Miramar, Four Seasons Biltmore for an Edible […]

Happy New Year! 2021 is finally here and while I’ve never been more ecstatic to watch the ball drop in Times Square, I know a number does not a miracle make. As much as we crave instant relief from the dumpster fire that was 2020 and the pandemic that defined it, unfortunately none of the […]

The prospect of sheltering during the holidays has thrown us all out of our comfort zone. But hunkering down and getting creative with your meal making should be a cinch, especially when you consider fondue, a classic holiday tradition that brings cohabitants together for an evening of festivity in the kitchen, dining room, or living […]

Very few Westmont students have tested positive for the coronavirus since returning to campus in mid-September, and faculty and staff are finding innovative ways for students to thrive while staying safe. More than 90 percent of students chose to return to campus rather than learning remotely in their homes. All students were tested for the […]

For many people, addiction is a scary word. So scary, just reading it will have some skip over this piece entirely. Maybe it’s a challenge you or a loved one faces today? But don’t feel ashamed – you are not alone. I’ve been there and I still struggle. Alcohol was my first bag and marijuana […]

Quarantine can heighten the risk of domestic violence, but help is available Maria Carbonell gratefully remembers the week she took refuge at a Domestic Violence Solutions safe house eight years ago. “A lot of people didn’t know I went to a safe house. I never shared it with anybody,” says Carbonell, 52, in a recent […]

After nearly 16 years living in Montecito, not a day goes by when I don’t think how lucky we are to live in such a special place. Since quarantine and now as my kids have started three different schools online from their bedrooms, never have I been more appreciative of our precious beaches where I […]

As schools around the country start to reopen and older students begin the migration back to college life, I worry about the safety of teachers and pupils alike. But a smaller, less socially conscious voice in the back of my head quietly cheers for the small freedom of leaving home. Some of us may have […]

It seems apropos to be writing about one of my newfound loves, pottery, on the 30-year anniversary of the movie Ghost, in which a clay-splattered Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze share the pottery wheel in one of cinema’s most famous romantic scenes. As inspiring as that movie scene was, after months practicing how to “throw […]

It’s not nearly as well known as its far more famous cousin of SBIFF, but the Ojai Film Festival has quietly been making a name for itself over the years. And with frustrated moviegoers once again stuck at home sheltering, the OFF endeared itself with a new online film series called Festival Highlights. The streaming […]

This week’s letter comes from a person who recently made their professional debut doing the 3D VFX work for the 2019 blockbuster Little Women. Animation student Beatrice Tolan is a rising senior at Northeastern University in Boston where she is pursuing her BA with a minor in theatre. This, of course, is no surprise to […]

Montecito mom Susan Crosby has been offering work out sessions and personal training for years, but now with everyone staying home, she has found a new way to connect with her clients. The Crosby family first moved to Montecito in 2003, thinking (like everyone else!) it would be a great place to raise a family […]

It’s been more than three months since the scary reality of the coronavirus threat began to sink in with public officials in California, and unfortunately, the pandemic shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, recent reports suggest the virus is not only spreading thanks to lackluster social-distancing efforts by sun-worshipping millennials, but is possibly […]

Summer is officially underway, so what better way to celebrate the season than to embrace the summer tradition of backyard grilling with family and friends? A cookout is the perfect way to practice social distancing with loved ones while satiating your gustatory appetites.  Whether you’re in the mood for burgers, marinated meats, grilled tofu and […]

Two months deep into quarantine, it quickly became clear how seriously my social skills had atrophied when I picked up the phone to call the home of Brett Matthews and Ginger Salazar. I had the intention of asking whichever parent picked up the phone if their son, the MUS, Marymount, and Cate alum Parker Matthews, […]

Bella DePaulo is an author, speaker, columnist, and authority on being single who has lived in Summerland for 20 years. She coined the word “singlism” which is “the stereotyping and stigmatizing of single people” and is the author of several books on single people, including The Best of Single Life and Singled Out: How Singles […]

Thanks To the Internet of Things, It’s Always Open Mic Night at Su Casa Humanity may never have been more disjointed, tribal, and disconnected but our stuff, thanks to the Internet of Things, is thriving wirelessly and virtually everything has been WiFi enabled, or, in today’s parlance, is “smart.” It’s my observation that most things […]

A college education consists of more than just a degree and a major. University time allows a student to discover which issues are meaningful to them and develop the voice that will continue into their career. The Raab Writing Fellows Program within the Writing Program at UC Santa Barbara is helping students find that voice. […]