I used to buy snacks at the Isla Vista Deli Mart even though they were a bit more expensive than the competitors. I went there just to engage the former owner Mike in debate about Donald Trump, whom he supported. (Note that the Deli Mart has new owners who are not Trump supporters.) When Trump would […]
Darkness Deepens, and Then Light It was the first Sunday evening of a gloomy 2021. We tried our best at making it seem like a “Happy” New Year, full of new hope and promise. But it was not. We had just returned from a dog walk through our Montecito neighborhood and it was usually lovely […]
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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 […]
Hi. My name is Ernie… “Hi Ernie!” …and I am a Pinterest-aholic. It has been 12 days, 5 hours, and 31 minutes since my last Pinterest purchase. (Light applause.) Thank you. Funny, I remember a few years back when they predicted that we would all be shopping online in the future. I scoffed at this. […]
I was already in the Science Team room at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory when the second cycle of radar images of the surface of Venus were beamed down in May of 1991. I waited impatiently for the five-inch print roll to start spooling out. The first cycle had gone well and most of Venus’s surface […]
I’m sure you’ve heard it said that “you can’t make an omelet without breaking eggs.” This, I suppose, is another way of stating the Machiavellian principle that “the end justifies the means” – i.e. to get a good outcome, you sometimes have to employ less-than-good methods. My problem is that I don’t like breaking eggs […]
Suzy “Squeaky Wheel” Cawthon has spent eight long years on a long and winding road of a dream that began with Fran Davis, the “founding mother” of an effort to re-imagine and enhance Lookout Park. The idea was to move the camp host from its perch and a primo spot to the upper end of […]
Like most of us, I can’t help noticing the signs and notices people put up, even if they don’t apply to me. One which inevitably catches my eye is on a white picket fence I pass every day, while walking to or from my office. It’s a probably store-bought sign, and says simply, “No Dumping.” […]
If life is a swimming pool, look for me at the shallow end. I’m not (by my own standards) a very adventurous person – and advancing years have not made me any braver. But what they have done is make me increasingly aware of how many different things I depend on, just to keep going […]
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Hannah-Beth Jackson may have run out of time as State Senator, but she never ran out of the fierce will that got her to Sacramento. She looks back on a legacy of fighting for disaster relief and equal rights for all. Q. Which superhero do you visualize yourself as? A. “I love Wonder Woman – […]
One of my most popular epigrams (which is why I made it the title of one of my books) says: “All I want is a warm bed, and a kind word – and unlimited power.” I suppose we’d all like to be able to control things a little more than we can – starting with […]
Congratulations to Senator Monique Limón,who was sworn in as our new state senator in Sacramento on December 7 and is also a new mom to baby Gianna.
Every November, I look forward to the Holiday Home Tour in nearby Ojai that benefits the annual Ojai Music Festival, now entering its 75th year. Organized by the OMF Women’s Committee, this year, due to COVID, they have done a terrific job of creating a video tour of three lovely homes. Narrated by architect/designers Steve […]
Mark Osiel is a lawyer, author, and law professor who holds the Aliber Family Chair at the University of Iowa. So, what’s he doing in Summerland? Well, he adds yet another accomplished and interesting citizen to the community for starters. Here’s a little to know about the professor and author. Q. You recently moved to […]
