Here Comes the Village 4th Celebration!

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

5 Message from MA – Pie-eating contests, a parade, and firemen serving pancakes – sounds like America – and another great Village 4th

6 Beings & Doings – The Channel Islands play backdrop to both abject horror and jaw-dropping exaltation. We’re a complicated species.

8 Montecito Miscellany – It’s Curtains Up! for ETC, MOXI’s millionth visitor, Fiesta fun at Stow House, and more miscellany

News Bytes – A break-in on CVR, cleanups on the beach, and other snippets from around town Tide Guide

Giving List – The oldest Holocaust museum in the country is helping new generations remember past atrocities, and understand current

Town – UCSB’s CNSI is helping start-up Dragon Q Energy get their PowerPole off the ground (actually, it is installed in the ground)

Society Invites – These new docents are ready to help spread the word and knowledge around Casa del Herrero

16 This Week at MAW – The genius (it’s certified) of Denk explores the brilliance of Fauré and more with his upcoming performances

18 An Independent Mind – The past 20 years have brought unprecedented technological advancement and it ain’t slowing down now

20 Montecito Health Coach – What is the balance between pushing our children, coddling them, and letting them feel the stress of life?

24 Elizabeth’s Appraisals – Elizabeth polls her clientele for their biggest buying/selling regrets and here are the top responses

26 Brilliant Thoughts – It’s a world of thought around how one can love a country, or even just identify ‘their’ country

28 Ajay & Adam – Fresh off the court, Ajay Mitchell heads over to Adam’s Angels to help serve up some philanthropy

29 On Entertainment – The Lobero flies high, Doublewide Kings and the SB Symphony are reuniting, and more to amuse you

30 Community Voices – Why the Board of Supes could maybe use a raise, plus the progress of Montecito Water

33 Your Westmont – Supervisor-elect Roy Lee visits campus, and alum returns to perform with MAW

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Ernie’s World – Ernie is gearing up for his workshop – now if he can just get the possessed printer to print

35 Foraging Thyme – No reason to cry over this sweet onion jam that is both tasty and healthy

40 Calendar of Events – Some music outside, a little gyro in the park, a lot of ‘80s in the Bowl, and other happenings

42 Classifieds – Our own “Craigslist” of classified ads, in which sellers offer everything from summer rentals to estate sales

43 Mini Meta Crossword Puzzles

Local Business Directory – Smart business owners place business cards here so readers know where to look when they need what those businesses offer

Message from MA

Join Us for the VILLAGE 4TH CELEBRATION!

by Houghton Hyatt

We are excited to announce the return of our traditional 4th of July celebration, co-sponsored by the Montecito Community Foundation and Rosewood Miramar, featuring the “Biggest Little Parade” down San Ysidro Road and ending in a grand picnic in the park!

Your 4th of July Committee – spearheaded by board member, Mindy Denson – has been hard at work, making sure this is the best Village 4th celebration yet!

This year, we are thrilled to honor David Boyd as our Grand Marshall, a true gem of our community! For more than two decades, David has generously dedicated his time and energy to a variety of organizations, including Montecito Emergency Response and Recovery (MERRAG), Peoples’ Self-Help Housing, the Food Bank of Santa Barbara, and Transition House.

David and his wife Alyce have been cherished members of All-Saints-bythe-Sea for over 20 years. David finds immense joy in helping others, always ready to lend a hand wherever it’s needed.

Join us in celebrating David Boyd as he takes his place as Grand Marshall on a 1928 Chandler Dual Cowl Phaeton in the world’s “shortest parade!”

But before the parade starts, join us and Montecito Fire Department for their annual pancake breakfast! They will be serving

The Village 4th crew are getting ready for another fun year of festivities

Grand Marshall David Boyd with the MA’s Mindy Denson, Trish Davis, and Houghton Hyatt

pancakes from 7 am to 11 am. From there (and now with a belly full of pancakes), get your bikes, scooters or vehicles ready for the parade... or scout out a spot from which to watch the parade along San Ysidro Road – between Upper Manning Park and Montecito Union School.

The parade will kick off at 11:30 am at Upper Manning Park and will include walkers, riders, animals, and vehicles, all decked out in festive 4th of July decorations. The parade ends at Lower Manning Park where participants and spectators will gather for an afternoon filled with live music, pie-eating contests, games, and more! Some delectable bites will be available from Rosewood Miramar, Lindsay’s Little Bakery, Coastal Doggz, and Sazon Latino Restaurant.

We will also be judging the parade entries and dishing out some fabulous prizes for the Most Patriotic, Most Entertaining, and Best Community Spirit participants. Think you’ve got what it takes to win? We still have room for more parade entries!

Visit www.montecitoassociation.org/ events/4th-of-july to sign up!

A hearty thank you goes to our co-sponsors, the Montecito Community Foundation and Rosewood Miramar, as well as for the support from Esbee, Duran Capital Management, Montecito Water District, Riskin Partners, Puretec Industrial Water, Mission Linen Supply, Leslie & Phil Bernstein, and Montecito Journal

Beings & Doings

The Channel Islands as Curse and Salvation: ‘The Devil in My Friend’ by Ivor Davis

by Jeff Wing

Malibu has been called a colony, an enclave, and several other things along an overwrought continuum that can stray into bad poetry. The very idea of Malibu can be so frankly dazzling it beggars reliable description, this macabre strip of trillion-dollar stilted waterfront huts peopled by reclusive skulking titans. Fitzgerald famously said, “the rich are different,” and it’s arguable they are nowhere more different than in Malibu. Wikimedia smugly tries to bring it down to size by calling the place “…a beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County.” Nice try, Wiki. Kind of like calling Neil Armstrong a onetime pilot and failed husband. Malibu is storied in a way that only a self-referent American locus can be storied. It is a town, yes. But more significantly Malibu is symbol of a largesse unique to our founding economic prayer here in the States, where striving is both means and end. Summiting is the gold-plated American raison d’être, but some of the shortcuts from base camp are paved with sorrow.

Ivor Davis’ relentless The Devil in My Friend is a tightly-written, meticulously reported chronicle of, yes, a Malibu Murder – that place name and noun announced in hemoglobin red on the book’s cover. This true crime story’s hook may be its proximity to magical Malibu (the crime itself took place on the water near the Channel Islands), but Ivor Davis’ chronicle, written with Sally Ogle Davis, ultimately succeeds on the fastidiously mesmerizing nuts and bolts of its reporting, and on its calibrated willingness to color the reportage with just a hint of writerly come hither.

If you’re averse to true crime books that make you a seven-hour hostage, avoid this one. The book’s compulsively readable verve is given angular momentum by the author’s relationship with the murderer, and Davis’ initial outrage at the suspect’s arrest for what plainly looked like an accident at sea. It seems the convicted killer was the author’s friend and Malibu neighbor; a twice-married, twice widowed (widowered?) life insurance enthusiast named Fred Roehler. We may never wholly know what evil lurks in the hearts of men, but we do know that it is very often bank-account adjacent. What some people are capable of in pursuit of liquidity never ceases to amaze.

The details of the crime itself are hypnotically sloppy in a way that makes a trial attorney’s pulse quicken. The captured reader is walked inexorably to a courtroom drama absolutely rife with granular forensics, victims’ viscera being woefully intermingled in post-mortem buckets (literally), and a witness producing a skull from a grocery bag. Never mind the large orange dory propped on sawhorses a few feet from the jury. This review can’t begin to document the deep evidentiary filigree that defined the case, but it is Davis’ mastery at bringing all the byzantine detail into focus that makes this book both addictive and – in the manner of the very best true crime documents – actually edifying.

At this writing there is still a public campaign to free Fred Roehler, so arguably dense and divisive is the whirlpool of evidence related to the case. Roehler has been in jail for 42 years. These true stories of determined mayhem are almost uniformly unlikely. Just off Santa Cruz Island one afternoon, something terrible happened at the sun-drenched intersection of fiduciary desire and a dog jumping out of a rowboat. From such beige bric-a-brac can tragic malfeasance blossom like a corpse flower.

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‘The Devil in My Friend:’ an orange dory, a leaping dog, and thou

MUSIC ACADEMY OF THE WEST | MOSHER GUEST ARTISTS CELEBRITY SERIES

& DENK | JULY 2, 7:30 PM, GRANADA THEATRE

ISSERLIS with Connie Shih | JULY 3, 7:30 PM, HAHN HALL

BROWNLEE with John Churchwell | JULY 23, 7:30 PM, HAHN

BELL

STEVEN

LAWRENCE

HALL

Montecito Miscellany

ETC Encore

by Richard Mineards

Drama fans were out in force when the Ensemble Theatre Company hosted its annual Curtain Up! gala, kicking off with a Legends of Santa Barbara concert at the New Vic featuring iconic songs from a number of our Eden by the Beach’s legendary artists including Kenny Loggins, Michael McDonald, Katy Perry, Brian Wilson, and Mike Love, and Jackson Browne. The hour-long show, directed by Jenny

Stars local and from afar took to the stage for the gala (photo by Priscilla)

Brian McDonald, Mercedes

Sullivan, featured singers Morganfield Burnett, Miriam Dance, Jackson Gillies, and Lois Mahalia, with music director

John Enrico Douglas and talented musicians Tariqh Akoni, Austin Beede, Justin Claveria, George Friedenthal, Randy Tico, and Maitland Ward

The 150 guests helped raise around $250,000 for the company, which is celebrating its 46th anniversary “Legends & Legacies” season. Afterwards, attendees repaired a tiara’s toss or two down the road to the historic Santa Barbara Club for cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and dinner

Millington, Susan Torrey, and ETC Director Scott DeVine with classical guitarist Chris Fossek (photo by Priscilla)

in the garden, serenaded by the ubiquitous classical guitarist Chris Fossek

Among the theatrical horde were Scott and Edie DeVine , Dan and Meg Burnham, Sybil Rosen, Robert Weinman, Bob and Val Montgomery, Eve Bernstein , Stewart Hudnut ,

Chicago White Sox Charities

Dream

Simon and Euzetta Williams, George Konstantinow , Mary Dorra , Rod Lathim , David and Anne Gersh , Howard Jay Smith and Patricia Dixon, Joan Rutkowski, Dana White, Peter

Miscellany Page 364

Carol Vernon, Bob Turbin, Joan Davidson, and Ward LeHardy (photo by Priscilla)

News Bytes

Grand Theft on CVR

by MJ Staff

After the reported break-in that occurred on Coast Village Road, we reached out to the Santa Barbara Police Department for a statement:

“On June 12, 2024, around 1:20 pm, the Santa Barbara Police Department Combined Communications Center received a report about a grand theft that occurred from a local clothing store in the 1200 block of Coast Village Road. Officers arrived on scene and contacted the manager, who reported two adult female suspects had entered the store and had stolen some clothing items estimated to be worth approximately $2,000. The female suspects left the area in an unknown direction and are currently outstanding. Detectives are actively working on this case. The Santa Barbara Police Department is reminding the community and businesses to stay vigilant and call 9-1-1 to report suspicious individuals. If anyone has information pertaining to this theft or others that may not have been reported, please call our dispatch center at (805) 882-8900.”

Carpinteria Beautiful Beach Clean Up and brewLAB Afterparty June 29

Carpinteria, home to the world’s safest beach, is having its first annual beach and community clean-up day, Saturday, June 29, from 9 am to 12 pm.

All volunteers are requested to wear sun protection, closed toe shoes, and to bring their own protective gloves. Clean Up

leaders will provide a map, materials and instructions. People can work in teams and as families.

brewLAB is hosting an after-party fundraiser from 3-9 pm for Carp Beautiful (and the thirsty helpers). Clean up volunteers will get the 2-for-1 pricing on beverages as a thank you. There will be music, face painting, a BBQ, and Rori’s ice cream. Donations are accepted via cash and Venmo.

411: www.facebook.com/carpinteriabeautiful

County of Santa Barbara Active Transportation Plan

The County of Santa Barbara Active Transportation Plan (ATP) is worth a read, given the pedestrian, cyclist, and vehicle issues Montecito residents are expressing, as well as in Summerland and along Toro Canyon.

The ATP was built upon the premise of public safety, and the increase in human-powered transportation, especially e-bikes. The plan includes SBC trails as well, meaning Jalama Beach Trail, Gaviota Coastal Trail, Rincon, Los Olivos, and Guadalupe.

The teams reviewing and forming the

plan are reps from SB County, Caltrans, a Community Advisory Group like the Bucket Brigade, and consultants Fehr & Peers, Here LA and Mark Thomas & Co.

The goals of ATP are pedestrians-sidewalk improvements, pedestrian pathways, curb ramp upgrades, elevated pedestrian walkways, high visibility crosswalks, corner curb extensions, pedestrian lighting, and signage. For vehicles, goals are better traffic signage, pavement markings, roundabouts, and sustainable paving. Bicycle improvements include multi-use paths, separated bike paths, bike boxes at intersections, and bike racks. For more details see 411.

411: https://sbco.mysocialpinpoint.com/atphome#/

Hike the Trails with CA Assemblymember Gregg Hart

Assemblymember Gregg Hart , in conjunction with Santa Barbara County Trails Council, Healthy People Healthy Trails, and the UC Santa Barbara Cheadle Center for Biological and Ecological Restoration, is holding his regular hike ‘n’ talk on Saturday, June 29 from 12-2 pm.

The trail hike is free and open to everyone. Bring your thoughts, discussion items, and questions to ask Hart directly while on the nature walk with him.

Meet at the UCSB North Campus Open Space area located at 6969 Whittier Drive in Goleta. Parking is in the lot next to the trailhead, or on the street adjacent to the trail. RSVP required.

411: https://a37.asmdc.org/event/20240629hike-hart-june-29

David Quincy, MD, Joins SB Cottage Primary Care

David R. Quincy, MD, has joined Cottage Primary Care Santa Barbara

MONTECITO TIDE GUIDE

July 4

July 5

where he will practice primary care medicine alongside Yana Gristan, MD and Arielle Kanner, DO. Currently serving as Cottage Health’s Chief Ambulatory Medical Officer, Quincy is a family physician with over 30 years of experience. He is board-certified by the American Board of Family Practice and holds a Certificate in Primary Care Sports Medicine. He is proficient in medical Spanish and has a strong commitment to community service.

David R. Quincy, MD, has joined Cottage Primary Care (courtesy photo)

JOURNAL newspaper

Executive Editor/CEO | Gwyn Lurie gwyn@montecitojournal.net

President/COO | Timothy Lennon Buckley tim@montecitojournal.net

Managing Editor | Zach Rosen, zach@montecitojournal.net

MoJo Contributing Editor | Christopher Matteo Connor

Art/Production Director | Trent Watanabe

Graphic Design/Layout | Stevie Acuña

Administration | Jessikah Fechner

Administrative Assistant | Kassidy Craner VP, Sales & Marketing | Leanne Wood leanne@montecitojournal.net

Account Managers | Sue Brooks, Tanis Nelson, Elizabeth Scott, Natasha Kucherenko

Contributing Editor | Kelly Mahan Herrick

Copy Editor | Lily Buckley Harbin

Proofreading | Helen Buckley

Arts and Entertainment | Steven Libowitz

Contributors | Scott Craig, Ashleigh Brilliant Kim Crail, Tom Farr, Chuck Graham, Stella Haffner, Mark Ashton Hunt, Dalina Michaels, Robert Bernstein, Christina Atchison, Leslie Zemeckis, Sigrid Toye, Elizabeth Stewart, Amélie Dieux, Houghton Hyatt, Jeff Wing

Gossip | Richard Mineards

History | Hattie Beresford

Humor | Ernie Witham

Our Town/Society | Joanne A Calitri

Travel | Jerry Dunn, Leslie Westbrook

Food & Wine | Melissa Petitto, Gabe Saglie, Jamie Knee,

Published by: Montecito Journal Media Group, LLC

Montecito Journal is compiled, compounded, calibrated, cogitated over, and coughed up every Wednesday by an exacting agglomeration of excitable (and often exemplary) expert edifiers at 1206 Coast Village Circle, Suite G, Montecito, CA 93108.

How to reach us: (805) 565-1860; FAX: (805) 969-6654; Montecito Journal, 1206 Coast Village Circle, Suite G, Montecito, CA 93108; EMAIL: tim@montecitojournal.net

The Giving List Holocaust Museum

by Steven Libowitz

HMuseum LA was founded in 1961 by a group of survivors who met each other in an ESL class at a Hollywood high school – just 16 years after the end of World War II, making HMLA the oldest Holocaust museum in the country. In its more than half a century of existence, the museum has been grounded in making sure the Holocaust is never forgotten by teaching the lessons and the social relevance of the Holocaust, and in empowering students and visitors to stand up and speak out against antisemitism in all forms of hate. Surprisingly, given the passage of time,

The Holocaust Museum LA still uses talks from survivors as its most effective tool for reaching new generations (photo by Tamara Leigh)

survivors of the atrocities still participate integrally in the museum’s activities. Participants in the museum’s tours not only get a 90-minute immersive experience in the history and artifacts from the Holocaust, but also usually have the opportunity to interact with a Holocaust survivor who shares stories of their struggles to encourage people to treat each other equally, with dignity and respect, to ensure history doesn’t repeat itself.

“Museums are viewed as trusted spaces, which creates a huge opportunity for us to make an impact and be effective in our mission,” said Beth Kean, HMLA’s CEO. “We take that responsibility very seriously. That’s

You want to surround yourself with the best possible team of trusted advisors:

Your attorney for legal advice; Your accountant for tax advice; Your financial advisor for wealth management; and Dan Encell for your real estate needs!

For most people, real estate transactions involve some of the most important decisions they make. Make sure you are getting the best advice, and the best representation possible. Dan Encell has been successfully selling residential real estate for over 34+ years. Dan is one of the few agents in the world who has sold over a billion dollars in residential real estate. He is a graduate of UCLA School of Law, and former practicing attorney, with training in real estate law, contracts, tax, and estate planning.

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Our Town Dragon Q Energy & California NanoSystems Institute at UCSB

by Joanne A Calitri

At UCSB, the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI) is a Technology Incubator Lab in Elings Hall. The Incubator has 1,500 square feet with wet bench lab space and office space available for lease by local tech start-ups. Its location near the CNSI Shared Experimental Facilities, the Materials Characterization Facilities, as well as conference rooms and meeting spaces, encourages successful engagement and innovation. Incubator companies benefit from UCSB’s entrepreneurial mentorship and training ecosystem, and the vibrant research community of CNSI. Heading the Incubator is Tal Margalith, Executive Director of Scientific Initiatives and Innovation.

One of the start-ups, Dragon Q Energy (DQE), leased space there to develop a new way to build safe and scalable grid-sized battery energy storage systems (BESS). Their team includes founder Dan Casey, mechanical engineer Quang Bui, electrical engineer Eliana Petreikis, and marketing director Liam Casey. Their product is an off-grid, solar integrated power system called the PowerPole, which places the battery portion underground and yields 15kWh of energy per unit. They are designating it for communities in need of electrical power.

DQE received a grant from the UCSB Bren School of Environmental Sciences and Management, and is partnered with Unite to Light, a nonprofit foundation. DQE asserts they are a mission-based company that will manufacture and design products, not a foundation or nonprofit organization. They reached out to me regarding their product, and their need to obtain further funding to complete it. Due to the team’s various schedules, we opted for an email interview for the details.

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We invite you to dive in and experience a new world in financial management.

Q. How did you get to the CNSI Incubator Lab?

A. This is the exceptional part about CNSI, they accept professor spinouts, student and alum lead start-ups, and Santa Barbara-based startups. We interviewed with the directors of CNSI about 18 months ago and they extended DQE a lease on lab, workshop, and office space. A few weeks ago, we relocated to the Capella Ventures & CNSI Flight Deck. The Flight Deck is a collaboration with CNSI and is used as a steppingstone for later-stage start-ups to expand with more workspace. There are four CNSI incubated startups here. The Flight Deck was instrumental in DQE securing a reasonably priced workspace in the competitive and expensive SB real estate market. We still have access to UCSB facilities, equipment, internships, and grants.

And the Bren School Grant…

We applied for the Bren/CNSI innovator grant on May 20th and received our proposal acceptance on June 19. The timeline for the use of the grant runs from Q3 2024 to Q2 2025. The funds came down from the State of California. We applied for and received the $50,000 Proof of Concept after demonstrating thorough customer and user discovery, and a plan for a community project. The use of funds will help finalize engineering and build three minimum viable product (MVP) units for community pilot projects with Unite to Light.

Suzi Schomer SVP, Wealth Strategist

Our Town Page 344

Dan Casey and Quang Bui with their PowerPole (photo courtesy of DQE)

Society Invites

Second Annual Casa del Herrero Docent Graduation

by Joanne A Calitri

Casa del Herrero held its 2nd Annual Docent Graduation on Friday, June 21, at the estate. The new docents are responsible for leading the classic 90-minute tours of the Casa, volunteer at events where they provide modified tours that cater to the focus of the event, and answer any questions visitors have about the property.

Docent Steering Committee Members are Carolyn Williams, Chair and Casa del Herrero Trustee; Rose Thomas, Secretary; Kristi Marks, Social Chair; and Michel Nellis, Treasurer.

At the graduation Williams said, “These new docents are capturing the magic of stepping back a century into the George Washington Smith-designed home filled with antiquities from the Spanish Golden Age and the surrounding historic Moorish gardens. They are now prepared to share their knowledge with

our community and far beyond.”

Each new docent received their official name tag, docent program completion certificate and a celebratory long stem rose.

Board President Heather Biles, who was away in Montana, emailed in her wishes, “We are so excited about this graduating class of docents at Casa del Herrero! Their generosity with their time and energy is truly appreciated. As the first face visitors see – and the first touchpoint for the Casa – our wonderful group of docents help educate the public about this very special architectural treasure and Montecito’s only National Historic Landmark. They play a huge role in inspiring future volunteers and supporters of the Casa. Thank you for all that you do!”

The 2024 Casa del Herrero docent grads are:

Hilary Burkemper is an attorney who has served on the Casa del Herrero

Board and lives in Montecito. She is an accomplished equestrian and competitor. Originally from St. Louis, Missouri, she attended UCSB and Pepperdine Law School.

Leslie Franklin is a retired Speech and Language Pathologist who worked with children. She is an actress at the Santa Maria Civic Center Community Theatre.

Sevanne Sarkis is an attorney working with U.S. hospitals doing Community Health Needs Assessments. She moved to the area from Chicago in 2022.

Wendy Scott is a retired Chief HR Officer for Varian Medical. Originally from Sacramento, she attended Occidental College, Boston University, and holds a Masters in English Literature from Stanford University. She is an equestrian and volunteers at the SB Women’s Fund.

Dr. James Sturgeon is a 30-year career dentist who in addition to private practice, has worked with Direct Relief International in remote areas of China. He is a Mensa member, and an avid history, antique and gadget enthusiast. He is a docent with his wife at Lotusland, repairs and maintains the SB Courthouse Tower Clock and the Arlington Theatre’s organ.

Lynn Sturgeon worked as a probation officer for 15 years, is a Mensa member, and UCSB graduate. She and her husband James volunteer at Lotusland and the SB Courthouse.

Kitty Thomassin moved to the U.S. in 1978. She has volunteered at Lotusland since 2005.

Society Page 304

New Docents: Leslie Zuller, Katie Williamson, Executive Director

Rosie Rafferty, Leslie Franklin, Wendy Scott, Kitty Thomassin, Lynn Sturgeon, and James Sturgeon (photo by Joanne A Calitri)

Play. Learn. Discover.

This Week at MAW Denk’s Foray into Fauré

by Steven Libowitz

The Music Academy audience has already seen a lot of Jeremy Denk. The piano great is in his 10th season as a faculty teaching artist on campus, which assignment began less than two years after Denk was awarded a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship, and the summer after he served as the Ojai Festival’s music director. In the course of his role as MAW faculty teaching artist, there have been two master classes, as well as Denk’s MAW debut as a lecturer-performer. That debut saw Denk both playing and discussing Charles Ives’ “Concord Piano Sonata No. 2,” this on the auspicious occasion of Mr. Ives’ 150th birthday. Denk describes the event as having gone better than he expected, as he’s a big fan of the composer.

“He’s very impatient with a lot of the pretension of classical music, and he tries to reassess what the purpose of listening to music is,” Denk explained. “He’s also trying to recreate the idea of music as an emblem of community. It’s so incredibly moving, the way that he makes us re-hear even the most fundamental aspects of music.”

The same, of course, could be said of Denk, a master who seems to approach a piece with both enthusiasm and a wondrous curiosity. It’s as if Denk is avidly playing the piece for the first time, even as he pours into its all of the experience and wisdom he’s acquired over the years.

We’ll get to enjoy the pianist in performance twice more before Denk’s four-week residency expires at the end of next week, starting with a July 2 recital with Mosher guest artist and Grammy-winning violinist Joshua Bell at the Granada, who was just there this past spring as music director of the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields.

The Granada concert is the rekindling of a longtime connection between the two superstar musicians, one that dates back decades, even if the concertizing took a moment to come about.

“Actually, it was Joshua’s mother who felt we should play together before Joshua ever did,” Denk said, explaining that she had heard the pianist play in Bloomington. But it wasn’t until Bell heard Denk play Bach in Spoleto that he reached out, after noticing that Denk was a fellow storyteller. That began an association that resulted in touring together on-and-off for eight years.

“We all want to bring the narrative across by whatever means possible, even though we may have some very different perspectives on how you might do that,” said Denk, whose prowess at the other kind of keyboard – the one he uses to write prose – has also been confirmed via his bestselling 2002 book Every Good Boy Does Fine: A Love Story, in Music Lessons. “We developed a shorthand to work with the creative tension which, at its best, becomes something really useful for the music. We still very much enjoy playing together.”

Five years ago, Bell and Denk also toured with cellist Steven Isserlis in a trio that performed in concert at Campbell Hall for UCSB A&L. Now at MAW, Denk, Bell and Mosher guest artist Isserlis are also part of the Fauré Project, along with faculty violist Richard O’Neill of the Takács Quartet. They’ll mark the 100-year anniversary of French composer Gabriel Fauré’s death by playing three of his finest

Week at MAW Page 354

Jeremy Denk is roughly halfway through his four week residency and is just getting started (photo by Zach Mendez)

PLACES TO GIVE. PLACES TO GROW.

An Independent Mind

The Quickest Twenty Years in History

by Jeffrey Harding

It has been said that there has been more technological innovation and more data produced in the last 20 years than, well, no one actually knows, but it has been an unprecedented period of innovation. There definitely has been more data produced than in the entire history of mankind given the amount of material on the internet.

I’m going to discuss the technology that didn’t exist 20 years ago and how the technology created since then has dramatically impacted our lives. I know there are scientific, environmental, and medical advancements, but I’m going to stick with personal technology.

Let’s start with the Apple iPhone (2007). It was the beginning of the smartphone revolution. Or, putting it another way, it was the start of a life-changing technological revolution. Now we walk around with a powerful computer that is a phone/email-texting device/web browser/video-music player/camera-movie

maker. It can store huge amounts of data. You can watch live TV, make movies, call your cousin in Zamboanga, monitor your vital signs, and check the weather. You are connected to the world. Now everyone has a smartphone. And an iPad and iWatch.

In 2008 Apple introduced its App Store where you can download useful third-party programs onto your iPhone. You can also buy music from Apple Music and play it on your Apple devices. It has been a leader in personal technology. Thank you Steve Jobs.

Amazon introduced the Kindle (2007), a portable device to read e-books. You can download an e-book in seconds. This revolutionized the book business. Amazon and the Kindle had a lot to do with the decline of bookstores. Good? Bad? Well, now we can read any book anywhere on our iPhones, iPads, and Kindles. You authors can publish an e-book for free and put it on the internet for all to see. Do you like to meet people and catch up on their doings? Do you want to sell stuff online? There was a revolution in

that too. Facebook changed the world by giving anyone a free web page to talk about whatever they want. This platform gave your family, friends, and followers a way to see what you’re up to. Facebook was the start. Now there’s Instagram, X (Twitter), Snapchat, Reddit, Pinterest, TikTok. You can make a living on these sites by plugging your products or someone else’s.

that holds your files safely and securely. Amazon’s AWS started this service (2006) but was quickly followed by Dropbox, Google Drive, Microsoft, and Apple’s iCloud. Google Drive is free and iCloud is cheap.

I’m just touching the surface of technology that has improved our daily lives.

And then there’s Amazon Prime (2005). You can buy anything on Amazon at very competitive prices, many with free overnight delivery. And you also get streaming TV content and music. Retailers can complain about being driven out of business but it is we consumers who have voted with our dollars. They are now the number 2 retailer after Walmart. If you worry about losing your computer files you should take advantage of storing everything in the Cloud. The Cloud is just a computer storage site

All my devices are Apple products: laptop, iPads, iPhones, iWatch. I use Apple’s iCloud service which automatically uploads my photos and files to the Cloud. Any changes I make are uploaded almost instantaneously. Wherever I am I can access any iCloud file from any of my Apple devices. I don’t worry about losing anything.

Google offers some amazing free apps you can use. They have replicated Microsoft’s Office tools (Word, Excel, etc.). They give you free email accounts. With Maps and Google Earth you can see the entire planet with satellite views.

Entertainment has been revolutionized by streaming services: Netflix (2007), Hulu (2008), HBO (2010), Prime (2011), Apple TV (2019). Now, with your 85” screen and giant speakers, you have theater-like entertainment at home. Content is exploding and providers are scrambling to deliver new content with major actors, even new movies.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is brand new and it is already changing the world. ChatGPT-3 was introduced in 2020. ChatGPT-4 was introduced in 2022. It is free up to a point. With heavy use they charge a fee.

ChatGPT is an amazing tool. It’s changing our world. Businesses are rushing to adapt it to their needs. I use it for research. I don’t let it write my articles. There are many competitors entering this field. I recently discovered Perplexity, an AI engine similar to ChatGPT but with one big difference: it gives citations of where it got the information it gives you. This can solve the misinformation sometimes generated by AI engines (the so-called “hallucinations”).

I’m just touching the surface of technology that has improved our daily lives. There is also YouTube, Spotify, podcasts, Tesla, Neuralink, SpaceX, Webb, Uber, Zoom, Skype, LinkedIn, WordPress. This is great stuff and it won’t stop.

Jeffrey Harding is a real estate investor and long-time resident of Montecito. He previously published a popular financial blog, The Daily Capitalist. He is a retired SBCC adjunct professor.

Montecito Health Coach

The Anxiety of Accomplishment

by Deann Zampelli

My 16-year-old son recently came home from school, freaking out that he might get a B in an AP class. Historically, this has not been his M.O., but at the beginning of his sophomore year it started to dawn on him that it was time to get to work. He was hearing and feeling the stress of those around him about their GPA, the classes they had to take and what colleges they wanted to go to and was convinced that this one B was sure to doom him to be a failure for all of eternity.

As parents, my husband and I take a different (and somewhat unorthodox) approach to all of this. We have always encouraged both of our children (who are now 14 and 16) to do their best, but it was more to fortify their self-esteem and create discipline than to insure their place in an Ivy League. But more than anything, it was to help them internalize what it feels like to do a good job at something, and of course, to reap the rewards, which could

be external such as a promotion or a good grade, or internal such as feeling pride about giving something your all.

But at what point does this drive which many teens are exhibiting become self-destructive? The media has been having a field day with how our children today are not hearty and are – according to Abigail Shrier, investigative journalist and author of Bad Therapy: Why the Kids Aren’t Growing Up – turning into “emotional hypochondriacs.” Meaning, if something isn’t going right in their life, they are “depressed.” If they are worried about a test, they have an “anxiety disorder.”

So, on one hand, we (as a society, or as parents, social media, etc.) are sending the message to our kids that they must get into a good university, that the competition is brutal, 4.3 is not high enough, etc., but simultaneously we are coddling them to a point where any emotion that isn’t overtly positive is automatically processed as negative.

According to Dr. Amy Alzina , Superintendent/Principal of Cold Spring Elementary School District, “In today’s fast-paced world, it’s essential that we

instill grit and determination in our children. Teaching them that they can overcome challenges and do hard things builds resilience and a sense of accomplishment. However, parents must be cautious about quickly labeling their child’s struggle as anxiety. It’s crucial to allow children to navigate through difficulties and experience the triumph of perseverance, fostering a deeper sense of purpose and self-worth.”

It seems counterintuitive, but what we are being told is that by pandering to our children’s emotions, we are not preparing them for the natural stress that is part of life. The problem is, we are doing this while pushing them to get better grades, take more AP classes, be leaders, do more volunteer hours, make Varsity – and the list goes on.

I started wondering how early these signs of stress are appearing in our kids, so I spoke with Natasha Quintero, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) here in Santa Barbara, “In my clinical practice I have seen it manifest as early as 4th grade, the correlation I have made is that at this grade level children transition from number values to letter grades and testing. For many of my clients, this is when parents begin to discuss and place value on their children’s performance in school in addition to their overall functioning as little humans.”

dow. But with UC schools costing an average of $15,000/year for in state students to $50,000/year for out of state, not to mention the various institutional scandals over the last few years, some parents are pausing to see if the cost/benefit analysis still makes sense. And with good reason.

According to the Strada Institute for the Future of Work and the Burning Glass Institute, “52% of graduates with only a bachelor’s degree end up underemployed a year after getting their diploma.” Meaning, they work in jobs that don’t require a college degree, or they really are unemployed. So, all this planning, energy, stress, and often accumulated debt… just to end up with a 48% chance of getting a job in your field of study?

I feel like somewhere along the way we forgot what universities were intended for. They were created to satisfy intellectual curiosity, to expand one’s mind and to foster creativity. It was thought that those fortunate enough to have this experience would make better leaders through their open-mindedness and broader expanse of knowledge. But today, what is the purpose? What is the goal?

As early as 4th grade? When I was in 4th grade my biggest stressor was worrying if I lost my 4-color Bic Retractable Pen.

As tuition skyrockets, I cannot help but wonder. What is the actual price of accomplishment?

I understand if your kid is a prodigy, or knew from an early age that they wanted to be something that would require a high level of educational planning (such as going to medical school, law school, etc.), but otherwise, what is the end game?

Movies and TV shows have been mocking this for years, showing angst ridden parents crying that because their threeyear-old didn’t get into the right preschool any chance of Harvard was out the win-

The answer, like the question itself, is going to be personal to each parent and to each student. But perhaps we should take a page from the scholars of old and allow the higher learning to be about broadening our children’s intellectual horizons rather than what the initials are on the banner over their dorm room bed.

Trained at Duke Integrative Medicine, Deann Zampelli owns Montecito Coaching & Nutrition and has a broad range of clients working on everything from nutrition to improving their marathon pace. She also has a Masters in Clinical Psychology and has been a resident of Montecito since 2006.

A LA CARTE EXPERIENCE

Embrace the essence of summer at Rosewood Miramar Beach with al fresco dining at AMA Sushi. Each evening, our team presents the freshest ingredients, perfectly paired with a selection of wine, sake, and inovative cocktails. We welcome you to choose between two distinct dining styles: a la carte and prix fixe, both offered on our outdoor patio or opt for the traditional Edomae-style omakase indoors at the sushi bar. Whichever you choose, we invite you to indulge in a unique and memorable dining experience.

4 events - Save 20%

Itzhak Perlman and Friends

Thu, Nov 7 / 7 PM / Granada Theatre

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

Julia Bullock, soprano

Tue, Jan 21 / 7 PM / Lobero Theatre

Danish String Quartet

Fri, Jan 31 / 7 PM / UCSB Campbell Hall

Yuja Wang, piano

Víkingur Ólafsson, piano

Fri, Feb 28 / 7 PM / Granada Theatre

Save up to 25% with a Curated series, or Create Your Own series of 4 or more events and save 10%

Great Performances B

4 events - Save 20%

HARAWI, An AMOC Production

Julia Bullock , soprano

Fri, Oct 4 / 8 PM / UCSB Campbell Hall

London Philharmonic Orchestra

Edward Gardner, Principal Conductor

Patricia Kopatchinskaja, violin

Sat, Oct 12 / 7 PM / Granada Theatre

An Evening with Yo-Yo Ma

Reflections in Words and Music

Sat, Apr 5 / 7 PM / Arlington Theatre

Isata Kanneh-Mason, piano

Sheku Kanneh-Mason, cello

Thu, May 29 / 7 PM / UCSB Campbell Hall

Great Performances Suite

8 events (series A+B) - Save 25%

Great things come in pairs! Get two exceptional orchestras, two dynamic duos, two quality quartets and a couple of complete legends – all for one suite price.

Elizabeth’s Appraisals

Top Ten Regrets

by Elizabeth Stewart

This article is the brainchild of a reader who has a wonderful California ceramic collection; he sent me two of his Beatrice Woods (BEATO) bowls that entered his collection and I convinced him to “buy the best” and leave the rest. I polled ten of my favorite clients for their buying or selling regrets regarding their collections of art, records, cars, antiques, contemporary culture, and books. The overall consensus was that many wished that special objects they had sold were still in their collections. They mentioned needing space and money, or selling when the market was right, making the best of a certain situation. Still, many sold special pieces that they MISSED. This is classic Seller’s Remorse! A few folks mentioned experiences when they SHOULD have bought (missed out on a purchase), or sold too late when the market had already fallen. Here’s the Best Responses to my question: What have you collected or sold that YOU regret?

1. “I regret that I sold my grandmother’s English 19th century oil painting TOO CHEAPLY. The dealer to whom I sold it made a HUGE profit!”

My comment: this is what is called “action” on the secondary market, and that ‘resale’ market is super important. Here’s proof: eBay’s 2023 annual revenue was $10.1 BILLION; their net income was $2.78 BILLION. Buying and selling for a profit is expected – we all have to pay for our LUNCH.

2. “I regret not researching the value of a particular object I sold at Mom’s yard

sale, because once I saw the gleam in the buyer’s eye I got worried, but I just wanted to get it over with.”

Here’s my hint: leave the items you are unsure about UNPRICED. If someone gets out a phone and diligently looks something up at your sale, he/she smells a ‘score.’ Ask him/her to make you an offer, listen, and double that offer. And counter…

3. “I regret selling my 1932 Ford three-window coupe: We didn’t have the space, the rats got to the wiring, my wife hated it, and I told myself we could use the money. So, I took the money. On the one hand, I have a pile of money. On the other I have a pile of potential regrets. I miss the darn thing!”

4. “I bought too many ‘bargains’ that turned out to be mediocre pieces. I regret not buying at the top end. Today I take quality over quantity for my midcentury California Ceramic collecting.”

5. “I regret selling my vinyl LP collection, so I am now buying some of those treasured records BACK. I could KICK myself for both selling and buying (again).”

6. “I regret I ever started a collection (in this case comic books). I am guilty of three hundred counts of regret. At one

time I loved the hunt, the knowledge, the fans, the competitive greed for a good title, and today the issues sit in five big cardboard boxes. My time is valuable and there are too many to research! I always thought of the collection as a huge investment, but I could not predict the future; now it is an extra object to insure. (The following is said *hopefully*) ‘I am banking on the comic books increasing in value...’”

7. “I regret that I am out of style because I LIKE my things; I am not politically or environmentally correct –as my kids say, I am an old hoarder! My kids would like me to donate or sell before they have to deal with the stuff; they don’t want the hassle. They say, ‘get with the times, mom. People don’t have antiques anymore. They have hardly any monetary value.’ Even though I feel I am a dinosaur, they DO have value to me... but I feel guilty for keeping them.”

8. I looked on ‘Community eBay’ (a seller’s forum) for their thread ‘Your Biggest Selling Regret.’ Those “flippers” – those professional sellers – had to train themselves NOT to regret selling something to which they could have become attached. One seller said:

“A collector can become an object, and the objects then become the collector (of the person!) And in turn the collection collects the dust which the collector will eventually become. Memento Mori...” He suggested before THAT end happens, pass the objects ALONG and let someone else find the thrill of the hunt – or in his words, “find the joy.”

9. “I regret beginning to own ANYTHING.”

10. “I regret SELLING a few things that I will never forget.”

Elizabeth Stewart, PhD is a veteran appraiser of fine art, furniture, glass, and other collectibles, and a cert. member of the AAA and an accr. member of the ASA. Please send any objects to be appraised to Elizabethappraisals@ gmail.com

One of the BEATO bowls that convinced a reader to only buy the best

Sample Sale

JUNE 27 - JULY 11

1114 State Street, Suite 24, in La Arcada by the Turtle Fountain

Brilliant Thoughts

My Country

by Ashleigh Brilliant

According to the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations (2nd Edition), there are several different versions of the last words of William Pitt (17591806), one of the greatest British statesmen. One version is “Oh my country! How I love my country!” Another is “Oh my country! How I leave my country!”

A third version quotes the words as “My country! Oh, my country!”

But there is yet a fourth version, which the Dictionary also includes:

“I think I could eat one of Bellamy’s veal pies.”

I have been unable to trace Bellamy or his pies, but somehow, they cast a new light upon Love of Country. If they could indeed (allegedly) have been uppermost in the mind of such a great man in his final moments, why do we tend to value so highly whatever we mean by “My Country?” – And just what do we mean, anyway? Is it simply the land

within certain borders? Then, what happens when those borders change?

I’m reminded of a story based on the fact that borders do change, often as the result of wars. One border which historically has often been disputed was that between Poland and Russia. When a Boundary Commission set up after World War I informed a certain woman that her house was now definitely in Poland, she exclaimed “Thank God! I don’t think I could have stood another of those Russian winters!”

Then we have Nathan Hale supposedly uttering these last words before he was, in 1776, hanged as a spy by the British: “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.”

Quite apart from the heroic nature of these words, it seems significant that the “country” being referred to did not even exist until three months previously, when a group of “colonies” started declaring themselves to be “states,” and “united” for the purposes of separating themselves from their distant “Mother Country.” These concepts are, of course, legal and political

fictions. But they have been, and still are, strong enough in men’s minds to justify the mass killing known as war, and the individual sacrifice of lives which war involves.

Nathan Hale was only 21 years old when his life was ended, and he came from a “Country” called Connecticut. He died on an island we now call Manhattan, in the “Country” of New York (a name derived from the city of York in the Country of Great Britain), whose original European settlers came from the Netherlands (which means “Low Countries.”) They called it “New Amsterdam.” But a war was going on, of which the winning side has always deemed Nathan Hale a hero. He was unquestionably a spy – a role which has generally been considered an act of Treason – that is, betrayal of one’s own Country. From the British point of view, Nathan Hale, and indeed all the other “colonists” who were in revolt, were traitors. Those on the other, pro-British, side, were called, and are still referred to, as “Loyalists.”

alleged crimes, (during World War II) the United States was officially allied. So, having a Country, or being a Country, is not always a straightforward matter. One determining factor is the issuing of passports. Any place calling itself a Country usually provides its citizens with such a document, if only because other Countries require the showing of one when crossing their borders. And even becoming a Citizen can, in many cases, be a complicated matter, especially if you weren’t born there – or even if you were, if your birthmother got in illegally.

You are probably familiar with the song which begins, “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee.”

But there were traitors on both sides. The most notorious of those who betrayed the colonists’ side was Benedict Arnold. He spent his last years in the capital city of the “Mother Country” –London. Once the Revolutionary War was over, however, and a new Country was established and recognized, that Country (now called the United States) produced its own home-grown betrayers. Probably the best-known of these were Julius and Ethel Rosenburg, a couple who were executed in 1953 for passing nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union, a Country with which, at the time of the

Since, as a child, I went to schools in 3 different Countries – (England, Canada, and the U.S.) – I may perhaps be pardoned, upon learning to sing that song in the third Country, for being under the impression that “Tisof Thee” must be the name of the Country!

Ashleigh Brilliant was born in England in 1933, came to California in 1955, to Santa Barbara in 1973, then to the Montecito Journal in 2016. Best-known for his illustrated epigrams, called “Pot-Shots,” now a series of 10,000. email: ashleigh@west. net. web: www.ash leighbrilliant.com.

Ajay & Adam Santa Barbara’s Spirit of Giving Takes Center Court

by Jamie Knee

Santa Barbara’s spirit of giving back permeates every corner, a truth I constantly witness as a writer chronicling the vibrant lifestyles of our community. This truth shines brightly in Ajay Mitchell, a local sports hero who isn’t just electrifying audiences with his performance for the UCSB Gauchos, but also leaving a lasting impression through his heartfelt community service. As Mitchell chases his NBA dream, his unwavering commitment to giving back continues to inspire our beloved Santa Barbara.

A standout athlete and role model, Mitchell recently declared for the NBA Draft. Three stellar seasons secured him two All-Big West First Team honors and the prestigious Big West Player of the Year title (2022-23). His impressive stats (16.1 points, 4.3 assists, and 3.0 rebounds per game) speak volumes about his athletic prowess. But it’s his dedication off the court that truly makes him shine.

Looking to fulfill some community service hours, Mitchell found himself connected with Adam McKaig, the founder of Adam’s Angels, a volunteer group dedicated to feeding Santa Barbara’s unhoused population. McKaig, a pillar of local philanthropy, welcomed Mitchell with open arms.

Together they tackled Costco, meticulously selecting non-perishable food items that would meet the critical needs of those relying on Adam’s Angels. For many, this food would be their sustenance for days, highlighting the immense impact of the mission.

“A community thrives when everyone contributes,” McKaig shared. “Ajay’s enthusiasm and dedication were truly inspiring. He’s more than just an exceptional athlete; he’s someone who genuinely cares about making a difference.”

Mitchell’s dedication to service adds another exciting layer to his upcoming NBA Draft. The Montecito Club will

be hosting a celebratory event on June 27th to honor this momentous occasion. Friends, family, and the entire Santa Barbara community will gather to support their young star as he embarks on his potential NBA journey.

Mitchell’s time as a Gaucho clearly fostered his passion for service. As a standout player for UCSB and an active member of the Santa Barbara community, he shared, “I always felt like giving back to the community was important. My goal is to be able to help others and show love to everyone who is around!”

This spirit of giving back is deeply ingrained in him. Reflecting on his experiences, Mitchell highlights the values that will guide him in the NBA. “I think for me as a Christian, the key lesson and value is to always try to help people around me,” he says. “Transitioning to the NBA, I feel it will be the same goal, using my status to show the world that kindness and love goes a long way!”

As the draft approaches, the Santa Barbara community eagerly awaits the chance to celebrate Mitchell’s success. No matter where his professional career takes him, his commitment to service ensures he’ll always be a cherished member of our Santa Barbara family. Beyond the world of sports, Ajay Mitchell exemplifies the values of hard work, humility, and compassion. His story reminds us all that true greatness lies not just in what you achieve, but in how you use your success to uplift others.

Jamie Knee is a global wine communicator and travel writer, has hosted 100+ winemaker interviews, international wine judge, and holds multiple wine, sommelier, and educator certifications.

Ajay Mitchell helps Adam McKaig with a Costco run

On Entertainment Flying High at the Lobero

by Steven Libowitz

Jazz at the Ballroom’s latest show, “Flying High: Big Band Canaries Who Soared,” is committed to keeping the Great American Songbook and swinging, classic jazz thriving. The producing organization is a California-based nonprofit that is as much about education as entertainment, and “Flying High,” which celebrates female jazz vocalists Billie Holiday, Rosemary Clooney, Ella Fitzgerald and others, who started with the big bands of the day and went on to solo careers, has a truly talented lineup. The two singers joining musical director/bandleader/ pianist Champian Fulton and her swinging band are Carmen Bradford, who actually sang with the Count Basie Orchestra in the 1980s, and the great Jane Monheit, whose debut album at the tender age of 22 back in 2000 was a wonderland. After the Lobero show, the Grammy-nominated, chart-topping veteran of a dozen solo albums will be back at the clubs, singing with her quartet at Catalina Bar & Grill in Hollywood next month.

Catch Monheit, Bradford et al in the swinging “Flying High” show at the Lobero on Saturday, June 29.

It’s Good to Be Kings

Montecito-based music makers

Doublewide Kings have had a pretty busy summer. But their attention is also focused on the fall, as the country/classic rock band is once again headed to the grand stage at the Granada Theatre. One year after The Kings and the Santa Barbara Symphony rocked our world with the Van

Morrison tribute show Moondance, they are collaborating again to play the music of The Band in tribute to the legendary farewell concert The Last Waltz. Adding strings and things to “The Weight,” “Up on Cripple Creek,” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” among others, should make for another incredible night almost 50 years after that fabled concert. In the meantime, the Kings are headed back up to the Santa Ynez Valley after recently launching this summer’s Music in the Garden series at the Solvang Festival Theater. The boys will play Fess Parker Winery’s WineStock series on June 30, and then head over to a new event July 6 at Buttonwood Farm & Vineyard – the first annual “Red, White & Blues” event in support of the White Buffalo Land Trust. They’ll be focusing on the bluesier side of the Kings’ repertoire, and chowing down on, yep, Buffalo wings.

Fiesta Flavors, New Heights from Hayward

The early events of the 100th edition of Old Spanish Days Fiesta fired up in fine fashion last week at Fiesta Ranchera, the annual dine, drink, and dance gathering at the still spectacular Rancho La Patera gardens. There were plenty of appetizers to go around, with all the vendors serving

generous pours of both wine and beer from all-local wineries and breweries to lubricate the limbs and loosen inhibitions. Which is why, after a fine set from Latin music guitarist Tony Ybarra and band and a rousing routine from 2024 Spirit of Fiesta Georgey Taupin, guests immediately packed the temporary dance floor as Area 51 took the stage an hour before sunset. If the full 100th Fiesta celebration follows suit, we’re in for a rollicking early August festival.

Then it was off to the Lobero for a surprisingly stirring set from Justin Hayward, the lead vocalist and chief songwriter of the Moody Blues. Hayward’s four-piece band eschewed both drums and bass, leaving the rhythm to come from his acoustic guitar, a second guitarist, a versatile if understated synthesizer player and a flutist-vocalist. The effect was a great focus on the essence of the songs, including the sound of Hayward’s voice, which still soars with yearning over the melodies through its owner’s 77 year. Without the bombastic synth lines and drums and bass dominating, the heart of such Haywardcomposed songs as “Nights in White Satin,” “Question,” “I Know You’re Out There Somewhere,” “Story in Your Eyes,” and even “Your Wildest Dreams” evinced more wistfulness than ever, underscoring the Moody part of his music.

Enjoy the moving, jazzy tunes of the great Big Band Canaries at the Lobero on Saturday, June 29

Kasia Thurlow was born in Poland, graduated from the university there and moved to the U.K. She with her husband and two daughters have lived in a few different countries, and love to travel. She teaches Pilates, hikes, and is a docent at Lotusland for the past five years.

Katie Williamson is a California native raised in Brentwood. She is a realtor with Village Properties and a member of American Society of Interior Design. Her interests are art, architecture, interior design, fashion, gardening, and children. She has been involved in philanthropic organizations for many years – Costume Council of the Los Angeles Museum of Art, Luminaries of the Doheny Eye Institute, Library Associates of the Los Angeles Public Library, Young Literati of Los Angeles Public Library, Lotusland, Storyteller, CADA, and a supporter of Casa del Herrero.

Leslie Zuller is a California native and works as the Business Manager at St. Mark’s in the Valley Episcopal Church in Los Olivos for 21 years. She is an avid tile enthusiast, plays Mah-jongg, and does her own artwork.

411: www.casadelherrero.com

Joanne A Calitri is a professional international photographer and journalist. Contact her at: artraks@ yahoo.com

Community Voices

Do Our Five Monarchs (not including Meghan & Harry) Earn Too Little?

by Jeff Giordano

Ioften rage about the fact that our County spending continues to increase (this year by 7.3%), while our population slowly decreases. So, yes, it’s difficult for a devout fiscal hawk to write about salaries that might be depressed, yet in a county that employs 4,763 people there may actually be five individuals – just five – that are in fact underpaid. Allow me to explain:

Much has been written about inflated public sector salaries. Often cited is the fact that CA government salaries and benefits are, on average, significantly greater than they are in the private sector. Dig more deeply, however, and you’ll find that executive pay still remains at least slightly higher in the private sector. So, what is it that drives the government salary average up? Simple – for those jobs requiring a high school degree or “some” college, government jobs pay significantly more.

For those of us who worked in government at a time when it barely paid a living wage it’s tough to understand the realities of today – so allow me to lay it out: JFK’s Executive Order and Nixon’s Civil Service Act (how’s that for party neutrality) changed the game by allowing public employees to unionize. This, together with civil service tenure (and ever shorter probationary periods), makes personnel-related cuts difficult. It’s why government MUST hire slow and fire fast! Anyway, let’s not pine for the days when your reward for public service was the service itself because those days are LONG gone.

Now, let’s talk about our five elected non-unionized Supervisors who outside of our eight county cities oversee just about everything in our unincorporated towns including, of course, Montecito, Summerland, and the unincorporated areas of Carpinteria. Nearly 140,000 residents live in these areas without a

city council or mayor to lean on, i.e., it’s all about “their” Supervisor. So, how much do the five most powerful elected officials in the county earn? Well, let me tell you: Not nearly enough.

The average pay of all other elected officials (e.g., County Clerk, Joe Holland; Auditor Controller, Betsy Schaffer; Sheriff, Bill Brown, etc.) is 2.2X greater than our Supervisors. In fact, their own painfully thin senior staff can make as much as 24% more than the Supervisor’s own $111,800 salary. And, as it relates to other executives including our Assistant CEOs, they make nearly 2X more, on average. These are folks who ultimately report to the Board of Supervisors, as do 25 other County Departments and Department Heads. Indeed, the current rate of Supervisor pay makes them eligible for low-income housing. FUN FACT: When looking at total compensation my guesstimate is that more than 2,400 county employees earn more than our Supervisors who as executives are not, rightfully, entitled to overtime.

Other counties have tried to diffuse the politics of Supervisor pay by tethering their compensation to State Judicial salaries. Some have engaged citizen review panels to take a look. And, certainly, there are details to discuss including their ability to do outside work and comparative compensation levels. Monterey with 5,019 employees, for example, pays approximately 40% more to their Supervisors. Any compensation discussion should also include the idea of staff. There is simply no way that anyone can effectively manage an 800 page $1.6B budget, 26 departments and 4,763 employees with a staff of basically two people. Other departments have deep staff talent (probably too deep!) but not the Supervisors. Silly.

We need to attract engaged, smart, qualified and full-time elected officials.

MY HOPE: Let’s start a conversation.

MY DREAM: That we could choose

Docent Steering Committee Members: Rose Thomas, Carolyn Williams, Kristi Marks, and Michel Nellis (photo by Joanne A Calitri)

which Supervisor(s) gets a bump in pay based on their Tuesday votes. But, alas, we’re not yet at a place where bonus pay can be tied to the whims of the MJ…

Montecito Water Progress Report

by Tobe Plough and Floyd Wicks

Ten years ago, Montecito was in a water crisis – we were literally about to run out of water. Forced to take action, the Water District rationed water supply to customers, imposed extreme penalties of $45 per 100 acre-feet for overuse, threatened flow restrictors and severe fines, and totally relied on purchasing supplemental supplies of water at very high prices.

All this because the District Board and Staff had failed to plan. There was no State-mandated Urban Water Management Plan, no District strategic plan, and no short-term water supply plan. Just tell the customers to conserve and penalize them if they did not.

A group of Montecito residents decided they’d enough of this dysfunction and encouraged us to run for election to the Board in late 2016. We were successful, and in 2018, the election of Ken Coates, Brian Goebel, and Cori Hayman completed the remake of the Board.

Montecito Water District Accomplishments

The Montecito Water District Board has gone from shaming its customers and failing to deal with drought issues, to a Board that emphasizes customer service and has a sound strategic plan. The Board is executing the plan effectively to navigate the risks of future drought and preserve the character of our community. Some of the accomplishments:

- Developed Urban Water Management Plan for the first time in over 10 years; crafted the first strategic plan in decades in conjunction with the District’s 100year anniversary.

- Eliminated water allocations and extreme penalties for usage above allocation; reduced or eliminated various fees that discouraged customers from protesting District actions.

- Issued permits for new water meters for the first time since 2014.

- Completed temporary and permanent fixes to the District infrastructure damaged by the Thomas Fire and the subsequent Debris Flow.

- Invested $1.9 million in an underground water banking facility near Bakersfield with storage capability of 4,500 acre-feet – a oneyear supply of water with no risk of spills or evaporation losses. There are currently 4,500 acre-feet in this secure storage – a one- year supply for District customers.

- Completed a 50-year water supply agreement with the City of Santa Barbara based on desalination supply. Water deliveries began January 1, 2022, and provide about one-third of our water supply. This agreement provided water security for Montecito and Summerland when many other districts in California were implementing draconian cutbacks to their customers.

- Completed two comprehensive studies on recycling wastewater. Although these studies resulted in potentially workable alternatives, none are financially feasible at this time because of rapid inflation in construction costs and cutbacks on State funding. Unfortunately, we have put recycling on hold until conditions improve. We will, of course, continue to monitor the situation and reactivate the effort when appropriate.

- Implemented a Groundwater Sustainability Agency to preserve this critical local source of water supply. A detailed Groundwater Sustainability Plan has been submitted to the State that protects the Montecito and Toro Canyon Basins against the over-drafting and other negative effects that have affected other parts of California. This effort reflected substantial input from local experts and customers.

- Installed smart water meters that are more accurate and permit much faster detection of leaks and other usage issues. The customer interface application provides customers with the capability to monitor usage on a daily or more frequent basis.

- Developed a reservoir retrofit and replacement project to improve resilience and longevity for the District’s storage tanks.

- Continue the systematic replacement of pipelines to minimize leaks and water loss.

- Adopted a thorough, business-like approach to policy making based on facts and analysis, not opinion.

- Refinanced the District’s long-term debt to create the financial flexibility to secure additional water supplies, minimize customer rate increases, and invest in critical infrastructure upgrades.

- Completed a five-year agreement for the sale of State Water Project water that is in excess of the District’s needs in any given year. The resulting revenue will help offset the cost of desalination water from the City of Santa Barbara.

The Montecito Water Board members have proven that they have the flexibility and receptivity to new ideas and opportunities that will ensure water security for our community now and in the future. At a time when government dysfunction is often the norm, they have quietly done exactly what they were elected to do.

We are gratefully appreciative to the people of Montecito and Summerland for their encouragement and involvement as we continue to make progress on water security and far more resilient communities.

Unleash your dog’s full potential and your own. Learn from Santa Barbara’s most quali ed dog trainer, Nathan Woods. Training available for dogs of all ages and behavioral issues. There are many packages which are speci cally designed to set dogs and owners up for maximum success.

Available for dogs 16 weeks and above. This program is exclusive to a limited number of lucky dogs. This is a great way to develop a young dog’s social skills as they learn proper etiquette, and most importantly, how to pace themselves. This will help them avoid many behavioral issues they may encounter in public.

In our lobby, we o er an array of curated products that you and your dog are sure to love.

“I’ve found that most people consistently underestimate their dog’s potential. My purpose in life is to help people bring out the best in their dogs.”

Channeling Earth: ‘Paddling Into a Natural Balance’ by Chuck Graham

Down here on the ground, the planet Mars is familiar as a bright orange dot in the morning sky before dawn. “Hey, see that? It’s Mars.” “Huh. Cool.” Then you get a look at the images sent back by the plucky Mars rover (the suitably named Perseverance), and there are mountain ranges and canyons and plains and craters. The dot unfolds into a world and the crazy juxtaposition fascinates. So it is with our Channel Islands, the neighborly archipelago parked off our coast like a familiar old pal. It rarely occurs to the casual observer that one can go ashore and walk around these things. When a skilled, impassioned, and lovesick artist (and MJ contributor) like Chuck Graham does exactly that on our behalf, the conveyed sense of amazement is very nearly Martian. Honestly.

“‘I’ve been a surfer for nearly 50 years, a beach lifeguard for 32 years. I’ve kayaked the islands for 28 years, 22 of those as a guide,” Graham tells us in the forward of his magisterial Paddling into a Natural Balance – a dizzying cornucopia of hypnotic photojournalism that surrounds and completely captures the reader. Graham is as organic a creature of his beloved Channel Islands as are the Brandt’s cormorants that nest and make their lives

‘Paddling Into a Natural Balance:’ Chuck Graham’s startling love song to the Channel Islands

there, and his ease and natural sympathy with the islands’ rhythms bring you right into the magic. The author’s unadorned but loving prose wraps around a collection of proffered photos you have to see to believe.

Graham puts you right there on the largely unimaginable islands – part of the national park system since 1980 – where you find yourself a goggle-eyed wanderer. Were the scenery not contained in this moveable feast of a book, you would be in some danger of waking off a cliff with an idiot grin plastered onto your yap. Whatever your feelings about “nature photography” you haven’t seen it done the Chuck Graham way. These are stupendous visuals, stupendously captured. His images have the effect of somehow compounding the mystery of the islands, so crazy is the glory out there.

There is a photo on page 36 of Graham’s book, taken on the “North Side of Point Bennett,” that will renew your faith in... well, you name it. Graham’s images are startling in their beauty, and in the wordless storytelling laid bare in their composition. By his own description, he takes painstaking care – often in the truest “hours of stillness” tradition of our most celebrated nature photographers – to capture and present us those moments that speak indescribable volumes.

ON THE SIDE

Polish Escapee at the Plow and Angel

“An illuminating tour-de-force performance.”

DC THEATER ARTS

TONY AWARD WINNER

JOHN RUBINSTEIN IN

ELLENSTEIN

Graham’s accompanying text throughout is a plainspoken first-person narrative that charms in the author’s tenor of frank astonishment at what he sees and records – an astonishment undiminished by his decades of island visitation as guide, explorer, and monastic pilgrim. This book is part walking tour of an island chain as varied and extraordinary as any in the world, part engrossing conservation record, and part unguarded love story. Yeah, you’re going to fall in love with the islands. In this context Graham is the Cyrano whose expressionist art seals the deal. The whole project is offered in a spirit of variously playful and prayerful reverence, by a guy whose own lifelong mission remains singular; to lift the veil on natural wonder itself.

Chuck Graham simply and movingly dedicates Paddling Into a Natural Balance to his father, quietly introducing the whole stunning project with a telling grace note. Here is a parent who saw what his child was destined to be and held the door for him. Graham Sr.’s blessing is a gift to us all.

Jeff Wing is a journalist, raconteur, autodidact, and polysyllable enthusiast. He has been writing about Montecito and environs since before some people were born. He can be reached at jeff@ montecitojournal.net

A squintingly tiny April 1958 San Ysidro Ranch advert in the Montecito Ledger tastefully touts the Plow and Angel. “Santa Barbara’s Most Distinctive Bar. Tomas Glinski, famed continental pianist, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evenings.” The blobby little ad doesn’t mention that Tomasz Glinski had been a celebrated Polish musician and composer and had fled Poland with his family approximately one step ahead of the Nazi tsunami during WWII. (His daughter is longtime (1949!) Montecitan, Real Estate, and Travel agent Teresa McWilliams). Need we be reminded – never presume to know the backstory of the cocktail pianist noodling away in the corner. Or anyone else for that matter.

Union Oil Company –The Poetry

A 66-year-old promotion for Montecito’s Union 76 station gives Auden a run for his money with this high-octane limerick:

All the Harrys, Toms, and Dicks Roll their hot rods to “76” After Minute Man service They never are nervous That their chicks will be stuck in the sticks...

Authorial intrusion – were there only “hot rods” in that day? And men with cigarette packs improbably rolled up into the short sleeves of their ill-advisedly form-fitting white tee shirts, hair slicked back under a semi-solid shell of flammable pomade? And what were these oddballs doing hauling baby chickens around in their jalopies? Discuss.

Your Westmont

Supervisor-Elect Tours Westmont

by Scott Craig, photos by Brad Elliott

Roy Lee, Santa Barbara County 1st District supervisor-elect and Carpinteria councilman, will spend the six months before he’s sworn into office listening to his constituents. He and his chief of staff, Wade Cowper, met for breakfast with Westmont’s executive team, including President Gayle D. Beebe, before touring the 111-acre campus by golf cart on June 12.

“It’s been a great opportunity to reach out to the community and learn everything about the county – Westmont, public safety, fire, law enforcement, Southern California Edison, Cottage Hospital – for the next few months,” Lee said. “People haven’t felt heard. So, I’m reaching out to all the different communities and being present, showing them that I’m here. What can I do for you? What are your priorities and what can I do to solve them?”

As for specifics, Lee says stay tuned. “We’re still drafting our agenda, given that we have so much time. It gives us the opportunity to reprioritize what we want to do. When I take office, I’ll be able to take off running.”

“We’re thankful for Supervisor Lee spending time at Westmont getting to know us,” says Irene Neller, vice president for enrollment, marketing and communication. “We look forward to a strong partnership. His leadership, vision for our county and personal story of valuing education are energizing.”

“Westmont is not just a college but a partner in our community and in the county,” Lee says. “They want to do more, including providing affordable workforce housing for the staff and students. That’s something I strongly believe in, and I want to help streamline that process.

“I’m grateful and excited to be given this opportunity to serve. I look forward to January, and I want to let everybody

Kim

Denu, Wade Cowper, Roy Lee, Doug Jones, Gayle D. Beebe, Reed Sheard, and Irene Neller

able to perform in my home city, where I can invite my family and friends to attend.”

Telescope on campus. “It’s a fun toy, and I had it all to myself,” he says. See the images he created at timspacepics.weebly.com.

After graduating, he got a software position with Las Cumbres Observatory in Santa Barbara, a small nonprofit with a worldwide network of robotically operated telescopes that astronomy researchers use to monitor targets and events. “Software engineering felt like a natural continuation of my physics background,” he says.

know that I’m available. Reach out to me anytime if you have any issues, and I will respond.”

Cellist Returns to Perform at MAW

Westmont alumnus and local resident Tim Beccue (’18) is back on campus, this time as a fellow of the Music Academy of the West. Since 2016, Westmont houses 140 exceptional young classical musicians each summer for the academy, which provides live events through Aug. 3. Visit musicacademy. org for a full calendar of concerts.

“I have lots of memories embedded throughout Westmont’s campus from my time as an undergrad,” he says. “Being back with a different organization and as a different person myself feels quite surreal, as the old memories bleed into the present. I’m glad to be back, and looking forward to making more great memories in this beautiful setting.”

Beccue, who completed a master’s degree in cello performance at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore, wanted to continue to grow as a performer through the summer. “I had my eye on this particular festival in part because Santa Barbara is my home,” he says. “I’m really excited to be

He is looking forward to performing a repertoire he describes as wonderfully challenging, both in quantity and quality.

“With orchestra concerts every week, there are so many incredible works that I’ll get the chance to perform,” he says. “I’m especially excited for Dvořák’s “Symphony No. 9” from the New World Symphony, and Mahler’s “Symphony No. 6.” Perhaps it will be like drinking from a firehose, but I can’t wait.”

True to Westmont’s liberal arts’ mission, Beccue graduated with a degree in physics. As an undergrad, he took the initiative to learn how to take photos with the Keck

Next year, Beccue returns to Baltimore for a string quartet residency with Mount Vernon Virtuosi, an organization founded by his former teacher, Amit Peled. “I’m excited, not just because I’ve always dreamed of playing in a fulltime string quartet, but also because of the program’s unique vision to have musicians living and working in underserved communities in Baltimore,” he says.

Tim Beccue at the Peabody Institute

Beccue at Westmont in 2016

Scott Craig is manager of media relations at Westmont College

World

How to Prepare for a Writers Conference

by Ernie Witham

Ispend a lot of time alone in my office. It gives me time to contemplate the oddities of life. Like why my printer suddenly refused to print the workshop materials I needed to bring to the Santa Barbara Writers Conference.

No matter how calmly I coaxed it –“You stupid #%&^#*^%#! I ought to take your cheap plastic butt straight to recycling.” – it ignored me.

“Did I hear you say you are going to recycling?” My wife yelled from the other room. “Can you take the stuff in the garage?”

I had read the one page of instructions, a third of which were in Spanish and a third in Chinese. They mainly just talked about what a great deal it was if you ordered ink directly from them, even suggesting a subscription service that could save me up to two cents a copy.

“What freakin’ copies? The thing won’t even print.”

Next I tried going to the website and chatting with an AI representative. “Would you like information on some of our other great printing products?”

“No. I just want this one to print.”

“Would you like more information on our HP Club? You can get additional discounts on our inks and may be eligible to win a free ‘I Love HP’ tee shirt.”

“I just want the damn thing to print!”

“Thank you for using our chat service. Please don’t hesitate to contact us anytime for more useful information. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye? You didn’t fix the problem. Hello? Hello?”

Okay Mr. HP Envy Inspire! Your time is up. You are about to become a big pile of plastic parts. I’ll tear your insides out. Rip your cord off. Bust up your...

The printer made a noise. Lights lit up. A piece of paper started to feed. Finally! Then it stopped feeding, the lights went out, and my office became silent. Well, kinda silent...

“#%%##%&^#*^%##%&^#*^%#”

“Everything okay dear?” My wife asked. “Need anything?”

“Can you bring me a flame thrower and some fire-retardant gloves?”

“Ah... No. How about a Xanax instead?”

The printer lights came on again, as if to say: I’d like a Xanax. Then turned off.

My wife walked into my office. She was holding a steaming cup of tea. “Caffeine free,” she said. “What are you trying to print?”

“Stuff for my workshop, ‘How to find humor in everyday situations.’”

“Like your tiff with the printer?” She smiled. Then she placed her hand on it. It sprung to life, lights flashed, paper fed, and it made what can only be described as happy noises. Then it began printing my pages!

“What are you the King Midas of electronics?” We laughed.

But the printer didn’t stop. Because I had pushed the print button dozens of times trying to get it to work, it was now printing dozens of copies, faster than I have ever seen it print. It was shooting pages all over my office floor.

I kept pressing stop, to no avail. My shoes disappeared. The room started to heat up with mechanical smells. I reached over and pulled my wife’s hand off. Even that didn’t work. Now the thing was jumping about on its stand, getting louder and louder, going faster and faster. I tried to pull the plug out of the wall. I got a shock.

“Maybe we’d better leave,” my wife suggested. She ducked out the door, but I couldn’t get through. It was as if the printer had decided to do me in.

“I was just, you know, kidding about that flamethrower.”

It spit out another page that became airborne and hit me on the bridge of the nose.

“Ow! Hey...”

Another page went for my left eye, but I was able to duck. I tried climbing under the desk, but there was no room with all the pages stacking up. Maybe I should get on top of the desk. The printer started spitting pages in that direction as if it heard me and understood.

“I won’t take you to recycling. Promise.”

Then... it stopped. A light flashed that said, “Please load more paper.”

Not a freakin’ chance! It shut off again.

Well, at least I had the pages I needed. I picked up page one. It had a typo. I headed for the liquor cabinet.

How does the PowerPole provide electricity?

I think it’s important to note that this will not create a “grid.” The PowerPole provides direct electricity to the end user without a complicated grid. Users can either directly plug into the PowerPole via a series of outlets (that can be customized based on region and need) or the PowerPole can be connected to a building by a skilled electrician. For the first few PowerPole installations we expect to send a DQE staff person to complete the install. Long term, we intend to create a step-by-step manual so that any electrician can install the system and perform maintenance. We will, of course, follow any and all building codes and regulations as required by local governments.

After the sale of the PowerPole units, we will take on the responsibility of ensuring local stakeholders are trained to manage and maintain the PowerPole units. Working with organizations such as Engineers Without Borders will allow for training programs and repair manuals to be developed to increase system reliability, sustainability and empower local expertise. Additionally, customers will have the option to buy replacement parts for the PowerPole directly from an inventory of parts maintained around the continent by Dragon Q Energy and our suppliers.

Where are you in terms of R & D?

We like to say we’re in development mode, or the D part of R and D. We have a field deployed prototype, which we are collecting data on. Investors don’t like funding for research in our experience. In the remainder of 2024 and into 2025, we will complete the experimental design, design for the manufacturer, and conduct the experiments to validate our safety and efficiency claims. We will move from a technical readiness level (TRL) of 5 to 8. Our punch list of items to get an MVP are all engineering problems at this point.

Have you addressed battery storage underground as a contaminant of the soil and water supplies, and the use of argon in your product?

Our battery containers are designed and built to readily adopted standards and specifications (ASME and ASTM) for pressurized vessels and the battery packs will be sold in compliance/certified in accordance with UL and UN rules for shipping and use to ensure the safest battery systems for our customers

Argon is an inert non-hazardous gas that poses virtually no danger to the environment or soil as utilized in this application. Our systems will generally be used outdoors and in low volumes that greatly reduce or eliminate any risk.

Ernie Witham has been writing humor for more than 25 years. He is the author of three humor books and is the humor workshop leader at the prestigious Santa Barbara Writers Conference.

Furthermore, our container offers double containment of the battery cell chemistry, and when installed in the field, we can provide a tertiary (3rd way) method to contain cell chemistry and prevent it from escaping. Our differentiated approach is also chemistry agnostic (beyond Li-ion) and we are going to market with a Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) cell offering. Toyota famously used, and still uses, NiMH cells in many of its hybrid vehicles. The electrolyte is water based, materials are non-toxic, and simpler for our customers to use from a logistics and shipping standpoint.

What is your ask for investors?

This is our pre-seed raise, and we’re looking for strategic partner alignment and $750,000 from various investors. We have a firm commitment from one investor, a soft commitment on zero-interest loan as a follow-on from a previous grant fund, and a similar soft commitment for funds for community pilot projects with Unite to Light. We’d like to emphasize that the Montecito Journal reader base can help DQE on our mission to empower people and communities who lack electricity.

Eliana Petreikis with the DQE PowerPole (photo courtesy of DQE)

Foraging Thyme

Sweet

Onions

by Melissa Petitto

The sweet onion, part of the allium family and related to the leek, garlic, and shallots, is a nutritious and versatile vegetable that boasts an array of vitamins, minerals, and plant compounds. Something Good Organics has some lovely ones right now that look as if they were just pulled from the rich soil. The onion has been used in ancient medicine for thousands of years, treating everything from purifying blood in athletes in Ancient Greece to treating heart disease and heartache in medieval times. Vitamin C, which is important for regulating our immune health, iron absorption, collagen production, and fighting free radicals, is quite rich in onions. They are also a great source of B vitamins, including folate and B6, which are essential for metabolism, nerve function, fetal development, and red blood cell production. Onions also contain a large amount of quercetin, a flavonoid and anti-inflammatory compound that has been shown to lower blood pressure, fight viruses, and protect against heart disease, and fight certain cancers. Quercetin may even help with the aging process. Onions have also been shown to have antibacterial properties. Many studies have shown that they inhibit the growth of several strains of bacteria. These versatile vegetables are a rich source of fiber and prebiotics that make it so beneficial for our digestive health. While most think of onions as the base of most dishes, they can also be the star. Let’s take them into the kitchen!

Sweet Onion Jam

Yield: About 1 cup

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

4 each medium sweet onions,

¼ inch diced

2 each thyme sprigs

2 each parsley sprigs

1 each rosemary sprig

1 each bay leaf

1 cup unprocessed raw sugar

¾ cup white balsamic vinegar

½ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. In a large heavy bottomed Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat until hot.

2. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes.

3. Tie the thyme, parsley, rosemary, and bay leaves into a bundle with kitchen twine. You can omit this step and just pick them out at the end.

4. Reduce the heat to low and add the herb bundle. Cook, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes.

5. Sprinkle the sugar over the onions and allow to cook, without stirring, until the sugar melts, about 5 minutes.

6. Increase the heat to medium high and allow to cook, again without stirring, until an amber brown caramel forms, about 5 to 6 minutes.

7. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and simmer over low heat, stirring a few times, until the jam is thick, about 5 minutes longer. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Remove the herb bundle and season with salt and pepper.

8. If there is any left, store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

chamber works at Hahn Hall on July 5. The impetus was classical record label Hyperion wanting to record all of Fauré’s chamber music with the trio and others, Denk said.

“I figured this summer would be a great time for us all to be here and talk about Fauré’s music and work on it and rehearse. And then I figured with Josh here, why not take out some pieces that we hadn’t played together for a while and play them for all of you as kind of a reunion. This is a very long-term artistic collaboration that we’ve had many great times with. Let’s do it again.”

Which is why the Granada duo concert features Mozart’s “Sonata No. 18,” Beethoven’s “Sonata No. 7,” Stravinsky’s “Divertimento” (Le Baiser de la fée), as well as a piece not yet listed on the program.

“Joshua hasn’t told me yet, either, so it will be a surprise; although hopefully I’ll know a few days before we play it,” Denk said. “I think the classical world could use a little more of that program to-be-announced situation.”

While Denk and Bell have played all the pieces together before, he said he imagines there will be subtle if not more pronounced adjustments this time around.

“Life just comes into us, and then it can’t help but affect the way that you want music to feel,” he said. “It’s not that you’re channeling your personal traumas, although sometimes that happens. But values shift as you grow older, or you move to different places in how you experience the music. I’m always hearing differently, different tempos, a different whole vibe.”

Asked for an example, Denk cited Mozart.

“He included a broad cross section of humanity from peasant to upper class to everything in between in his operas. He has this kind of universal empathy, and my sense of Mozart and how to play him is more like that now than ever.”

The Fauré Project has also fostered an increased appreciation of the composer’s career, Denk said.

“He had these fascinating phases. We’re playing some of the more opulent, conventionally romantic middle Fauré in a piano quartet, then two later pieces when he becomes even more intriguing because he’d lived in a way past his own style,” Denk explained. “He became a romantic composer adrift in the wilds of modernism. He begins to reevaluate the ideas and gestures that he used to write, and becomes more abstract, weaving into the harmonies and almost getting lost entirely, as in an amazing Henry James sentence – finding these incredibly subtle paths through the world of harmony. Steven is one of the great interpreters of this music, and he has a way of creating a line through the labyrinth while also harnessing the incredible pulsing expression underneath all the complicated harmonies.

“That’s the reason I wanted to do this project – to play this music with him and to imbibe his learning, and just revel in the gorgeous harmonies one after the other.”

On both July 2, and July 5, surely the audience will be doing a lot of reveling too.

Thursday, June 27: César Cañón, MAW’s new principal coach of Lehrer Vocal Institute’s studio artists, is a veteran of instrumental chamber piano music as well as Week at MAW Page 374

Sweet onions are in season and Something Good Organics has some good ones right now (photo by crjr2757 via Wikimedia Commons)

Melissa Petitto, R.D., is an executive chef and co-founder at Thymeless My Chef SB, was a celebrity personal chef for 16 years, just finished her 10th cookbook, and is an expert on nutrition and wellness.

Joshua Bell joins Denk for a Granada show on July 2nd (photo by Phillip Knott)

and Deborah Bertling, Robert Turbin, and Helene Segal. Unlike last year, there was not an earthquake to be heard...

MOXI’s Millionth

MOXI: The Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation, which opened its doors in 2017, welcomed its one millionth guest last week in colorful and explosive style.

As Vincent Regina, manager of Chili’s in

MOXI’s president and CEO Robin Gose with Vincent Regina (photo courtesy of MOXI)

Goleta, brought his youngsters Dante, 3, and Vivian, 5, through the door, a cannon of colorful confetti unloaded, much to the delight of the other children in the lobby, with DJ Gavin Roy playing the latest hits. “What a total surprise!” exclaimed Regina. “We really had absolutely no idea.”

Robin Gose, MOXI’s president and CEO, described it as “quite an accomplishment.” “We are thrilled to have become an integral part of the Santa

Miscellany Page 384

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS

NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business as: J Reels, 220 Ladera Street Apt. 205, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Jenny M. Sims, 360 El Sueno Rd, Santa Barbara, CA 93110. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on June 17, 2024. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 2024-0001447.

Published June 12, 19, 26, July 3, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS

NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business as: The Light Zone, 19 E Mission Street, Suite C, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Light Zone LLC, 360 El Sueno Rd, Santa Barbara, CA 93110. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on May 30, 2024. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 2024-0001313. Published June 12, 19, 26, July 3, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS

NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business as: Safina Design, 1187 Coast Village Rd, STE 1494, Santa Barbara, CA 93108. Gwynne M Thomas, 1187 Coast Village Rd, STE 1494, Santa Barbara, CA 93108. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on June 5, 2024. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 2024-0001356. Published June 12, 19, 26, July 3, 2024

A

PUBLIC NOTICE

Montecito Fire Protection District in the Matter of the Preliminary Budget for Fiscal Year 2024-25 Health and Safety Code Section 13893

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the preliminary budget of the Montecito Fire Protection District for fiscal year 2024-25 was adopted by the Board of Directors of said District on June 24, 2024, and is available for inspection Monday through Friday, between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. at the Montecito Fire Protection District, 595 San Ysidro Road, Santa Barbara, California and on the District’s website.

NOTICE IS ALSO GIVEN that on September 23, 2024 at 2:00 p.m., the Board of Directors will meet at the Montecito Fire Protection District, 595 San Ysidro Road, Santa Barbara, California, for the purpose of adopting the District's final budget at which time and place any person may appear and be heard regarding any item in the budget or regarding the addition of other items.

This Notice shall be published in accordance with California Health & Safety Code Section 13893.

By order of the Board of Directors of the Montecito Fire Protection District, State of California, this 24th day of June, 2024.

Sylvia Easton, Secretary

Published June 26 and July 3, 2024 Montecito Journal

NOTICE TO BIDDERS

Bids open at 2:00 PM on Thursday, July 11, 2024 for:

VIA REAL COASTAL TRAIL ENHANCEMENTS IN THE 1ST SUPERVISORIAL DISTRICT

COUNTY PROJECT No. 862417

General project work description: Widen Roadway, install curb, gutter and sidewalks

The Plans, Specifications, and Bid Book are available at https://www.planetbids.com/portal/portal.cfm?CompanyID=43874

The Contractor must have either a Class A license or any combination of the following Class C licenses which constitutes a majority of the work: C-8, C-12, C-13, & C-31

Submit sealed bids to the web address below. Bids will be opened and available at the web address below immediately following the submittal deadline.

PlanetBids

https://www.planetbids.com/portal/portal.cfm?CompanyID=43874

Complete the project work within 90 Workings Days

The estimated cost of the project is $ 3,440,000

This project is subject to compliance monitoring and enforcement by the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR).

A contractor or subcontractor shall not be qualified to bid on, be listed in a bid proposal, subject to the requirements of PCC Section 4104, or engage in the performance of any contract for public work, as defined in this chapter, unless currently registered and qualified to perform public work pursuant to Labor Code (LAB) Section 1725.5. It is not a violation of this section for an unregistered contractor to submit a bid that is authorized by Business and Professions Code (BPC) Section 7029.1 or by PCC Section 10164 or 20103.5 provided the contractor is registered to perform public work pursuant to LAB Section 1725.5 at the time the contract is awarded.

Prevailing wages are required on this Contract. The Director of the California Department of Industrial Relations determines the general prevailing wage rates. Obtain the wage rates at the DIR website https://www.dir.ca.gov/

Inquiries or questions based on alleged patent ambiguity of the plans, specifications, or estimate must be submitted as a bidder inquiry by 2:00 PM on 07/05/2024. Submittals after this date will not be addressed. Questions pertaining to this Project prior to Award of the Contract must be submitted via PlanetBids Q&A tab.

Bidders (Plan Holders of Record) will be notified by electronic mail if addendums are issued. The addendums, if issued, will only be available on the County’s PlanetBids website, https://www.planetbids.com/portal/portal.cfm?CompanyID=43874

Christopher Sneddon Director of Public Works

Published June 19 & 26, 2024 Montecito Journal

MOXI celebrated the momentous millionth visit with a bang (photo courtesy of MOXI)

The MOXI staff were there to cheer on Vincent, Dante, and Vivian (photo courtesy of MOXI)

why we have primary sources, artifacts and oral testimonies. It’s really important for the museum to articulate the truth.”

HMLA’s mission has only increased in importance over recent years, Kean said.

“There was 135 percent increase in antisemitic incidents in K-12 classrooms in 2023 from the year before. California reported the most hate crimes from any state in the country. Another survey showed that 66 percent of millennials have never heard of Auschwitz. So we have our work cut out for us because we believe that education is really the only way forward. We can be part of the solution.”

HMLA’s research shows it’s been very effective in reaching people, especially students, who take free trips to the museum to satisfy the state’s requirement for Holocaust education in public schools. The demographics show that 60 percent are Latinx, and 65 percent are Gen Z and millennials combined. Just one percent of the students are Jewish, as are just 8 percent of the overall visitors.

“You’ll see people of every color, race, ethnic background and religion when you walk through on a Sunday, our busiest day.” Kean said. “Our programming focuses on how we can bring diverse groups together for conversations, and on educating on the Holocaust in a way to make that history relatable to what’s happening today.”

It’s that last part that has been particularly useful in the wake of events since last October, when thousands of armed Hamas terrorists breached a border security fence separating Gaza from Israel, and tortured, captured, or killed Israeli civilians in their homes and at an open-air music festival that had been billed as a celebration of “unity and love.” The attacks and Israel’s ongoing response has perpetuated a massive spike in antisemitism around the world.

“Our Holocaust survivors are saying they can’t believe they’re seeing this again in their lifetime,” Kean said. “But antisemitism is alive and well today. The propaganda and misinformation out there are similar to the tropes that were used in Germany. It really underscores the importance for our museum to be the premier resource for combating antisemitism and all forms of hate in Southern California. We have the brick-and-mortar space, which gives the unique position to bring diverse communities of people together, as we have been doing that for a very long time.

HMLA has incorporated current events into the narrative during the student tour programs and put together resources for educators to use in their classroom, Kean said.

“We’re constantly updating them. We offer information about how to talk to your kids about the conflict. And we have launched a bold social media campaign

targeted to 18 to 38-year-old people to provide content that’s factual to combat the misinformation that’s out there and build empathy. It’s a very fluid situation.”

The museum has also resorted to its preferred method of education by hosting talks with members of the latest group of survivors – those who were at the Israeli music festival but escaped.

“We’re trying to get as many young people as possible in front of them to hear the truth from their mouths,” Kean said. “But they have to come together quickly, so we do them privately to avoid protests.”

Indeed, Kean said, the museum security budget has tripled since October, as isolated incidents of graffiti in the past have turned into protestors, bomb threats, threatening phone calls, hate comments, social media and even “swatting” – where the LAPD shows up heavily armed in response to a false report of a terrorist attack.

Sadly, the hate has also reached Kean’s own family. Her 25-year-old daughter, who remained social media friends with a group of international students she’s studied with in Italy, saw a post from a young Egyptian man who was part of that student cohort shortly after the attacks, which he called “a happy dance” with a dance emoji.

“He was actually celebrating because Jewish people were killed,” Kean said. “It just was this harsh reality that people hate Jews. How do you make sense of this?”

Fortunately, as the need for its services are growing, HMLA is already well on its way toward a massive expansion, one that will let it meet the spiraling demand by dramatically increasing its capacity to accommodate 500,000 visitors annually, including 150,000 students. The $65 million capital campaign, dubbed Building Truth, includes building a new 2,500-square-foot gallery for temporary exhibitions, a 200-seat theater for film screenings and panel discussions, as well as two classrooms.

In addition, another new gallery will house something very old – an actual train box car that was used to transport Jews to Nazi concentration camps in World War II. It’s as tangible as a primary source can be.

“It was found outside of a death camp, and it was donated to us,” Kean said. “We’re keeping it fully intact, and it will be on display in its own room so you can see its true size as soon as you walk in. You can begin to feel the experience the prisoners must have felt as they were packed into this car that was meant to transport cattle.”

The capital campaign can still use some donations, but much smaller funds are also very valuable. Just a few hundred dollars can go a long way toward educating another group of students, and building compassion, understanding and empathy where it matters most.

art song and operatic repertoire. But here he focuses on coaching and teaching, including today’s masterclass, where, we imagine, the vocal pianists will get some attention (3:30 pm; Hahn Hall; $10)... Tonight’s second X2 concert of the summer pairs a full 14 fellows with half a dozen faculty artists, including John Churchwell – the MAW vet in his second year as co-director of LVI – for a notably varied program. The bill has Beethoven’s “Wind Quintet in E-flat Major” leading to two vocal works in Vaughan Williams’ song cycle On Wenlock Edge, and Schubert’s Lied “Der Hirt auf dem Felsen, D. 965” (The Shepherd on the Rock), before closing out with Schoenberg’s one movement string sextet “Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4” (Transfigured Night). That’s a lot of classical bang for your buck! (7:30 pm; Hahn Hall; $45)

Friday, June 28: It was just two weeks ago that the winner of the 2023 Solo Piano Competition performed in recital at Hahn Hall to kick off the season, but it’s already time for this year’s half-dozen keyboard virtuosos to take their shot at stardom, MAW-style. Prizes for whomever emerges from the fierce but friendly battle between Po Han Chiu, Henry From, Iskandar Mamadaliev, Sol Park, Kevin Takeda, and Alice Zhang include a significant cash award (11 am; Hahn Hall; $55)... Picnic Concerts have transformed into Fellows Fridays, which is truly just a new name for a marvelous MAW tradition, as guests can now not only bring their own fancy lunches or dinners for every event at Miraflores, they can even reserve a table in advance. The concerts still consist of fellows-curated programs of favored chamber works and those they want or need to learn for the future. Tonight, 17 different young musicians combine to play a 90-minute program that includes Jan Zelenka’s “Trio Sonata No. 3 in B-flat Major,” William Grant Still’s “Ennanga,” James Stephenson’s “Celestial Suite” and Gabriela Ortiz’ “Atlas Pumas.” (7:30 pm; Hahn Hall; $45)

Saturday, June 29: For his MAW debut last year, Renaissance music man Anthony Parnther – he of the singularly unique career that melds his love for the music of all genres with his prowess as a conductor, producer, bassoon soloist, recording artist, opera singer, storyteller, comedian, voice-over artist, and activist, not to mention highly sought-after conductor for movie and TV soundtracks – was “relegated” to Hahn Hall. This year, he’s graduated to the Granada where a lot more folks can witness his acumen, artistry and charm in a cleverly curated program of Joan Huang’s “Tujia Dance,” Florence Price’s unjustly overlooked “Symphony No. 3 in C Minor” and Stravinsky’s once controversial/now classic “The Rite of Spring.” Superstar Parnther said his visit to Miraflores last summer was his favorite experience of the year. Coincidentally, he was also my favorite interview of the season. (7:30 pm; Granada; $18-$115)

Wednesday, July 3: Mosher guest artist and cellist extraordinaire Steven Isserlis, who is also part of next week’s Fauré Project, plays in recital with frequent pianist partner Connie Shih for sonatas by Beethoven and Fauré, “Trois pièces” by Nadia Boulanger and “Lieux retrouvés” by Thomas Adès. (7:30 pm; Hahn Hall; $65)

Steven Libowitz has covered a plethora of topics for the Journal since 1997, and now leads our extensive arts and entertainment coverage

After a stunning performance in Hahn Hall last year, Anthony Parnther is taking over the Granada (photo by Zach Mendez)

Barbara experience and a trusted resource for scientific learning. We look forward to many years of fun and discovery ahead.”

To mark the occasion Dante and Vivian, students at Starr King ParentChild Workshop, received a $250 gift card for a spending spree at the museum’s store and guest passes to the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, the Museum of Natural History, the Botanic Garden, Casa del Herrero, the Santa Barbara Mission, and the zoo.

There were also gift cards for Rusty’s Pizza, and Dart Coffee at the SB Maritime Museum. What fun...

Changes of the Seasons

Having settled his four-year battle with the Toronto-based Four Seasons hotel group, Beanie Baby billionaire Ty Warner is planning to turn 50 of the 368 rooms at his iconic I. M. Pei-designed Manhattan hostelry into up to 50 apartments, according to the New York Post

“The units would cater to full-time residents who will be paying hefty maintenance fees,” a source tells the Rupert Murdoch tabloid.

It’s not clear whether the eponymous 4,300 square foot Ty Warner Penthouse on the 52nd floor, which has 360-degree views of the city, four balconies, 26-foot cathedral ceilings, a Chinese onyx bathtub, and a Bösendorfer baby grand

piano, is one of the apartments reportedly being put up for sale.

Reps for the Four Seasons and Warner aren’t commenting.

Stay tuned...

Osmo, Opera, and More at MAW

Finnish conductor Osmo Vänskä, 71, former musical director of the Seoul Philharmonic, was in fine form at the Granada when he led the Academy

Festival Orchestra in its first performance of the summer festival season.

The highly entertaining concert opened with Wagner’s Overture to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. and Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer, concluding with Sibelius’ “Symphony No. 2 in D Major,” which the composer described as “a confession of the soul.”

Just 24 hours earlier the spotlight was on Hahn Hall for a selection of opera scenes by the likes of Donizetti, Menotti, Leoncavallo, von Flotow, Catan, Tchaikovsky, Gounod, Mozart, and Strauss.

An evening of high note.

Hahn Hall was in the spotlight again on Thursday for the X2 Series opener with two tony trios performing Brod’s Duo from Donizetti’s “Lucia di Lammermoor” with Eugene Izotov on oboe, Dennis Michel on bassoon, and Deven Shah on piano, followed by Schumann’s “Piano Trio in D Minor” with exquisite violinist Qian Chang, cellist Alan Stepansky , and pianist Jonathan Feldman

The hugely entertaining concert concluded with another performance by artists in residence, the Takács Quartet with Dvořák’s “Piano Quintet No. 2 in A Major” with Alice Zhang on piano.

Rockin’ Ranchera

As Fiesta prepares to celebrate its century, Fiesta Ranchera was marking its 16th anniversary with more than

500 glamorously garbed guests gathering at the 152-year-old Rancho La Patera Gardens in Goleta raising more than $25,000 – split equally between Old Spanish Days and the Goleta Valley Historical Society.

New El Presidente Brian Schwabecher, blazingly attired in red, exclaimed: “It’s going to be quite a year, with the pandemic very much in the rear-view mirror!”

More than 25 food and drink vendors

Just tasty snippets of opera at MAW’s return of Opera Scenes (photo by Zach Mendez)

The X2 performances opened with Eugene Izotov, Dennis Michel, and Deven Shah (photo by Zach Mendez)

Colin Hayward, Mayor Randy Rowse, Michele Fitch, and Councilmember

James Kyriaco (photo by Priscilla)

Osmo Vänskä with bariton Michael Segura and the Academy Festival Orchestra (photo by Andre Yew)

Paula Bottiani, Brian and Kris Kittle, with Shirley and Don Blankenship (photo by Priscilla)

2024’s Spirit of Fiesta Georgey Taupin with El Presidente Brian Schwabecher, and Junior Spirit Aleenah Soriano (photo by Priscilla)

were on the rustic site with Georgey Taupin, 16, daughter of Sir Elton John’s lyricist Bernie Taupin, as Spirit of Fiesta, and Aleenah Soriano, 10, as Junior Spirit, showing off their talents, along with guitarist Tony Ybarra and Area 51 providing entertainment.

Among the supporters turning out were Fritz Olenberger and his wife Gretchen, Stephanie Petlow, Drew Wakefield, David Bolton, Denise Sanford, and Gonzalo Sarmiento

But How’s the Song?

Santa Barbara warbler Katy Perry had her own “break the internet’ moment when she stripped down to a tiny white bikini to promote her own big musical comeback.

Katy, 39, showed sexy photos shot by British photographer Jack Bridgland as she launched ‘a new era’ with the announcement of her ‘empowering’ upcoming single, “Woman’s World.”

Now insiders have revealed the secret behind her jaw-dropping new look –British actor fiancé Orlando Bloom

The “Roar” hitmaker has been using the 47-year-old actor’s diet and exercise routines in preparation for her first album release in four years, cutting out processed food and curbing her drink intake.

“Orlando has been her right-hand man and has helped her out,” says a friend. “They eat the same and work out the same. She has cut out tons of processed food and doesn’t drink that much.”

House Available

Former Montecito resident Michael Douglas and his Welsh actress wife Catherine Zeta-Jones have put their 1920s-era mansion in New York’s Westchester County up for sale.

The 79-year-old Oscar winner and the 51-year-old Chicago star have listed the 12,000 square foot space for $12 million.

The sale could net the tony twosome a $7.5 million payday as Zeta-Jones bought the home in 2019 for only $4.5 million.

The home is in the oh-so exclusive enclave of Irvington, New York – about 20 miles from the Big Apple – and boasts an impressive 12 acres running along the picturesque Hudson River. There is 130 feet of frontage between the Georgianstyle house and the river.

Sutherland Reflections

Montecito actor Billy Baldwin has reflected on the life and career of actor Donald Sutherland, who has died at the age of 88.

Of his more than 200 films and TV

roles, Billy, 61, got to work alongside the late actor on three productions, including the action-drama Backdraft in 1991, the sci-fi thriller Virus in 1994, the ABC drama series Dirty Sexy Money (2003-2009).

“Donald was a complex, complicated and quirky man,” he reflected on X. “He had a gentle, childish and boyish streak in him that I absolutely adored.

“His person onscreen and his personality in life were as interesting and original as the features on his face. He was a true original. A one of a kind.”

House Sold

Former Google honcho Eric Schmidt, who owns Montecito’s Solana estate –formerly the aerie of Bill and Sandi Nicholson – has offloaded his Silicon Valley estate, barely two months after putting it on the market.

The beautiful property in the ritzy enclave of Atherton was initially listed at the end of April for $24.5 million.

Details of the buyer remain under wraps as the sale records have not been made public.

Schmidt, 69, and his wife – philanthropist and businesswoman Wendy –painstakingly assembled the three-acre estate over two decades, starting in 1990 when they bought the 5,265 square foot main house, built in 1969, for $2 million.

Atherton consistently lands on the richest cities list. Median prices in May hit $13.9 million, a staggering 50 percent jump from last year.

Stardom Cemented

It was a reunion of two icons.

Montecito comedy legend Carol Burnett , 91, and Dick Van Dyke , 98, gathered in Los Angeles last week as Carol left her hand and footprint in the cement at the Hollywood TCL Chinese Theatre, joining stars such as Sidney Poitier, Marilyn Monroe and Van Dyke’s Mary Poppins co-star Julie Andrews

Van Dyke’s prints were also there, having left them in 1966.

He appeared in 11 episodes of The Carol Burnett Show, which aired between 1967 and 1978.

Sayonara ‘Yellowstone’

It’s the end of the road for Carpinteria actor Kevin Costner after confirming he is done for good with his Paramount hit show Yellowstone

In a short clip shared on his media accounts, the Oscar winner, 69, made it official he’d not be returning for an appearance on the hit Western crime

series when it returns for Series 5B.

A sequel with Matthew McConaughey and Michelle Pfeiffer is now being developed.

In other Costner news, he has also revealed “a very sweet connection” with William, the Prince of Wakes, 15 years after nearly casting his late mother, Princess Diana, in a sequel to his $411 million grossing blockbuster The Bodyguard from 1992.

Tragically, Diana was killed at the age of 26 in a 1997 Paris car crash, one day after the first draft of the script was completed, so Costner scrapped the project.

But in an interview with People, he revealed more behind-the-scenes details, noting Prince Andrew’s wife Fergie, Duchess of York, had helped broker Costner’s meeting with Diana about possibly doing the sequel.

Years later, Costner happened to be in England and Prince William reached out to him for a meeting.

“And we meet in this room. It was just us. There was nobody else. We sit down and shake hands. The first line out his mouth was, “You know, my mom kind of fancied you.”

Blushing, Costner replied: “I know” to William and they spoke for about half an hour.

“I’ll never say what we talked about, but it was a very special thing. And we just chatted. We’ve never been pen pals, or anything like that. But I’ve had such fond memories of who he was, how I was approached, and what we talked about.

Hayes Retires

After a successful 43-year career in commercial real estate, Steve Hayes is retiring from the business and from his namesake brokerage of 31 years.

He leaves a legacy of team-focused leadership, integrity, skillful deal-making, and enduring friendships with clients, colleagues, and competitors alike.

“It has been a long road of challenging and rewarding work,” says Hayes. “But what I will miss most is the people and the camaraderie. Real estate is about buildings, but the real estate business is about people.”

After graduating from USC, Hayes started in corporate sales at Xerox before deciding to try commercial real estate.

He got his feet wet during four years at Coldwell Banker Commercial before switching to Grubb & Ellis, where he worked for eight years. He moved to our Eden by the Beach in 1981 and has called it home ever since.

On April Fool’s Day in 1993, Hayes did something some of his colleagues considered foolish. He launched a private

brokerage with John Blair in a small office in downtown Santa Barbara.

Taking the leap from a large “big name” brokerage to a two-man shop was indeed risky, especially considering the economic situation in the early 1990s, but the firm took root and added clientele.

The rest is history...

Seeing Stars for Years

The Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara has received its 12th consecutive four-star rating from the nonprofit evaluator, Charity Navigator.

The rating – Charity Navigator’s highest – indicates superior financial efficiency and transparency in scholarship foundation operations.

The foundation has now received 21 four-star ratings in 22 years.

Sightings

Actress Meg Ryan strolling on State Street... Comedian-actor Sebastian Maniscalco and wife Lana noshing at Olio e Limone... Bo Derek at the Filming Italy Festival in Sardinia.

Pip! Pip!

From musings on the Royals to celebrity real estate deals, Richard Mineards is our man on the society scene and has been for more than 15 years

Steve Hayes retires after four decades in commercial real estate (courtesy photo)

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Calendar of Events

by Steven Libowitz

ONGOING

‘Beat’ the Heat with al Fresco Music – The Tearaways, the beloved Santa Barbara institution of more than four decades, bring its high-energy power pop to the public park, as the fab four – that now features Blondie drummer Clem Burke manning the kits – kicks off Concerts in the Park on June 27. The summertime frolic features free live music on the Great Meadow in Chase Palm Park, along Santa Barbara’s Cabrillo Blvd. waterfront. The lucky audience perches on chairs and blankets adorning the gently-sloping hill, every attendee with a full view of the stage amid palm trees and ocean views. Next week (July 4) is dark for the Independence Day holiday.

WHEN: 5 pm opening act, headliner 6-7:30 pm

WHERE: 300 W. Cabrillo Blvd.

COST: free

INFO: (805) 564-5418 or www.santabarbaraca.gov/gov/depts/parksrec/ recreation/events/parkrec/concerts.asp

For a bit of a mini-getaway, check out El Capitan Canyon, where select local artists perform under the stars in The Canyon Market Garden on Saturday evenings, just a 20-minute oceanside drive from town. This week: Reggae band The Good Vibes brings a bit of an island feel to the canyon oasis, with optional BBQ dinner available. WHEN: 4-7 pm

WHERE: El Capitan Canyon Campground, 11560 Calle Real COST: $20

INFO: (805) 685-3887 or https://elcapitancanyon.com/activities

The 2024 Downtown Santa Barbara Live Music Series, which takes place every Wednesday on the 700 Block of State Street (between Ortega and De La Guerra), brings local bands to the heart of town in the heart of summer. Grab dinner or a treat from a neighboring restaurant or bring your own food and set up your chair near 718 State Street to soak up the sounds and the summer vibes. This week (July 3): The Apple and The Tree set the mood for celebrating our nation’s independence.

WHEN: 5:30-7:30 pm

WHERE: 700 Block of State Street COST: free

INFO: www.downtownsb.org/events/summer-music-series

THURSDAY, JUNE 27

Semana Nautica – Santa Barbara’s annual Summer Sports Festival dates back to 1933 when some enterprising local athletes challenged five U.S. Navy battleship crews, their ships moored outside the harbor, to a series of contests along the beach. Dubbed Fleet Week, the resulting enthusiasm inspired the City Council to charter the event on a permanent basis the following year and change the name to Semana Nautica in honor of the town’s Spanish heritage. Some of the festival’s events change every year, including some that are extremely physically challenging and others that welcome participants of all ages and abilities. These include ocean swimming, water polo, volleyball, beach biathlon, running races, cycling, fishing, sailing, lawn bowling, adaptive paddling, tennis, water polo, inline hockey, basketball, gymnastics, softball, semipro baseball, tug-of-war; and the silly and soaking Crazy Kardboard Kayak Race. There are several awards handed out each year, but the thrill of competition, teamwork, collaboration, and athletic accomplishment are the true rewards.

WHEN: Today through July 14

WHERE: various beachside locations

COST: entry fees vary, free for spectators

INFO: https://semananautica.com

FRIDAY, JUNE 28

Punch up Your Jazz – The veteran percussionist Poncho Sanchez is among the most influential in the jazz world. The Grammy-winner has brewed up a fiery stew of straight-ahead jazz, gritty soul music, and infectious melodies and rhythms from a variety of Latin American and South American sources for over four decades. Sanchez was raised in L.A. on that unusual cross section of sounds, and by his teen years his musical consciousness had been solidified by such greats as John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Cal Tjader, Mongo Santamaria, Wilson Pickett, and James Brown. Along the way, he taught himself to play guitar, flute, drums and timbales, but eventually settled on the congas, carrying on the tradition of such innovators as Santamaria, Tito Puente, and Tjader. With his most recent album, Trane’s Delight, Sanchez continues to honor the giants whose music has helped shape his own, while building upon the rich legacy they’ve left behind. Sanchez’s deeply personal reimagining of the jazz canon, as well as his own spirited original compositions, affirm his place at the forefront of Latin Jazz’s trailblazers, still going strong at 72.

WHEN: 7:30 pm

WHERE: Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St.

COST: $41 & $55 ($106 VIP tickets includes premier seating and a pre-show reception with drinks and hors d’oeuvres) INFO: (805) 963-0761 or www.lobero.com

FRIDAY, JUNE 28

You Can Dance if You Want to – The ushers and security guards at the Santa Barbara Bowl might have a hard time with crowd control if they tried to stop people from getting up and shaking their groove things tonight when the Totally Tubular Festival rocks the hillside amphitheater. Who can sit still listening to a succession of bands that include Thomas Dolby, Thompson Twins’ Tom Bailey, Modern English, Men Without Hats, The Tubes, Wang Chung, Bow Wow Wow, Tommy Tutone and Eddie Munoz of The Plimsouls. In truth, they’ll only be scratching the surface of the surfeit of iconic hits from the 1980s, but the non-stop beat will still propel you to your feet with chart-topping classics like “She Blinded Me with Science,” “Hold Me Now,” “I Melt with You,” “The Safety Dance,” “What I Like About You,” “I Want Candy,” “867-5309/Jenny,” and “A Million Miles Away.” No need to take a chill pill – it’s a righteous mix, dude, with an early start time to get all the hits in before the curfew.

WHEN: 4:45 pm

WHERE: 1122 N. Milpas St.

COST: $55.50-$300.50

INFO: (805) 962-7411 or www.sbbowl.com

Candlelight Comes to Santa Barbara – Candlelight Concerts are a series of original music concerts created by Fever Productions. The aim? Democratize access to classical music by allowing people all over the world to enjoy live candlelit performances played by their local musicians, and in various stunning locations illuminated by hundreds of LED candles. Initially conceived as a classical music series with concerts featuring works from the greatest composers, the series’ ever-growing list of programs includes a wide variety of themes and genres, including tributes to contemporary artists like Queen, ABBA, Coldplay, and Ed Sheeran, as well as shows dedicated to K-Pop, movie soundtracks and many more. The Santa Barbara debut returns to the original concept with the Listeso String Quartet performing well-known concertos by Vivaldi with sprinkles of Piazzola and Jules Massenet at the New Vic, home of the Ensemble Theatre. Upcoming shows include Coldplay, soundtrack great Hans Zimmer, and a tribute to the biggest star on the scene, Taylor Swift

WHEN: 6:30 & 9 pm

WHERE: New Vic Theatre, 33 W. Victoria St.

COST: $41-$69

INFO: (805) 965-5400 or https://etcsb.org/whats-on/community-events or https://feverup.com/m/173213

FRIDAY, JUNE 28

Greek Festival – The Santa Barbara Greek Festival, one of the beloved ethnic festivals that used to occupy Oak Park for countless warm weather weekends annually, is returning to an in-person gathering for the first time since 2019. Saint Barbara’s Greek Orthodox Church, which sponsors the festival as a fundraiser and kept it going as a gyro-on-the-go pickup event during the pandemic, now heads to Chase Palm Park by the beach for its 51st celebration. Expect two days filled with traditional Greek cuisine (everything from gyros to hummus to spanakopita, Greek salads, and, of course, baklava); Greek drinks including imported Greek sodas, beer and wine; lively authentic music and dance performances and even Greek dancing lessons, plus other family-friendly activities including lawn games, arts and crafts and much more. Experience the spirit of Greece and a slice of Greek life on the American Riviera and the new breeze-cooled location along the waterfront. Opa!

WHEN: 2-9 pm today, 11 am-9 pm tomorrow

WHERE: Chase Palm Park, 236 East Cabrillo Blvd.

COST: free

INFO: www.sbgreekfest.org

SUNDAY, JUNE 30

Tavana Takes to SOhO – Tavana is one of Hawaii’s most explosive new talents, a one-man musical wrecking crew from Honolulu who uses his feet to lay down a variety of grooves while simultaneously playing guitar, banjo, lap steel, or ukulele and singing deep-soulful, island-inspired rock and blues. Known for his Waikiki jam sessions where he regularly shares the stage with big-name players in Hawaii, Tavana has jammed with many musical greats, including Jack Johnson, Pat Simmons, Michael McDonald, Henry Kapono, G. Love, Willie K, John Cruz, Ron and Thunderstorm Artis, and Leon Mobley. Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder invited Tavana to sing “Hawaii 78,” an unofficial Hawaii anthem, with him at the Hawaii Theatre, recorded and distributed their performance and took Tavana out on tour for several dates as his opening act for his solo album. Now on his first tour of California’s West Coast, Tavana’s tour is titled after his latest single “In the Water,” which was written for and is dedicated to everyone impacted by the fires in Lahaina, Maui.

WHEN: 8 pm

WHERE: SOhO Restaurant & Music Club, 1221 State Street

COST: $18

INFO: (805) 962-7776 or www.sohosb.com

SATURDAY, JUNE 29

Pride at Chaucer’s – The midtown book sellers celebrate Pride Month by hosting Miss Angel for Read with Pride! – a story time reading event of selected children’s books based on Storytime with Miss Angel Those ongoing events are fanciful experiences filled with laughter, crafts and stories as Miss Angel invites and welcomes the entire family to bring their happy minds and smiling hearts and join in and relive their childhood, page by page, book by book, story by story.

With a diverse library of books that focus on kindness, self-love, empathy and inclusion that also features a wide range of LGBTQ+ children’s books, Miss Angel – an author, an elementary school educator and a curriculum consultant with a master’s degree in education – creates a safe and encouraging space for everyone.

WHEN: 2 pm

WHERE: Chaucer’s Books, 3321 State St. in Loreto Plaza Shopping Center

COST: free

INFO: (805) 682-6787 or www.chaucersbooks.com

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POSITION WANTED

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

Organize receipts for taxes, pay bills, write checks, reservations, scheduling. Confidential. Semi-retired professional. Excellent references. Sandra (805) 636-3089.

PHYSICAL TRAINING & THERAPY

Stillwell Fitness of Santa Barbara In Home Personal Training Sessions for 65+ Help with: Strength, Flexibility, Balance. Motivation, and Consistency

John Stillwell, CPT, Specialist in Senior Fitness 805-705-2014 StillwellFitness.com

GOT OSTEOPOROSIS? WE CAN HELP

At OsteoStrong our proven non-drug protocol takes just ten minutes once a week to improve your bone density and aid in more energy, strength, balance and agility. Please call for a complimentary session! Call Now (805) 453-6086

AUTOMOBILES WANTED

We buy Classic Cars Running or not. Foreign/Domestic Chevy/Ford/Porsche/Mercedes/Etc. We come to you. Call Steven - 805-699-0684 Website – Avantiauto.group

AVAILABLE CAREGIVER

Trusted, Experienced Caregiver, CA State registered and background checked. Vaccinated. Loving and caring provides transportation, medications, etc. Lina 805-940-6888

Montecito Electric Repairs and Inspections Licensed C10485353 805-969-1575

TILE SETTING

Local tile setter of 35 years is now doing small jobs only. Services include grout cleaning and repair, caulking, sealing, replacing damaged tiles and basic plumbing needs. Call Doug Watts at 805-729-3211 for a free estimate.

PAINTING SERVICES

Transform your home into a masterpiece with Casa Real Painting!

Call Cesar Real at (805) 570-1055 or email casarealpainting@gmail.com for a free estimate today. Let us show you how we can transform your space with color and creativity!

Your Space, Your Color, Your Creation!

AVAILABLE FOR RENT

Montecito Home, $12,000 per month. 3 BD 3 BA with Pool, Jacuzzi, views, and space! One year lease. (805) 722-5396

Montecito Home. $30,000 per month. 4 BD 4 BTH – attached Nanny’s Quarters + Guest House. Minimum of 2 years lease. (310) 498-0315.

Charming cottage in the heart of Montecito. 2 bedrooms and 1 bath, spacious living room and large garden. Available now and for the summer. $8500 per month. Email: RebeccaAtwater@gmail.com or call/text (805) 886-9825

PRIVATE CHEF AVAILABLE

In Home. Chef Bradley Mark 50 yrs. local experience Lv. msg. (805) 403-1769 Serve Safe Cert. #6168504

LANDSCAPE

Casa L. M. Landscape hedges installed. Ficus to flowering. Disease resistant. Great privacy. Licensed & insured. Call (805) 963-6909

CARPET CLEANING

Carpet Cleaning Since 1978 (805) 963-5304

Rafael Mendez Cell: 689-8397 or 963-3117

$10 MINIMUM TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED AD

It’s simple. Charge is $3 per line, each line with 31 characters. Minimum is $10 per issue. Photo/logo/visual is an additional $20 per issue. Email Classified Ad to frontdesk@montecitojournal.net or call (805) 565-1860. All ads must be finalized by Friday at 2pm the week prior to printing. We accept Visa/MasterCard/Amex (3% surcharge)

SEARCHING FOR GARDENER

Searching for excellent gardener; one who appreciates magnificent mature garden. Call (805) 969-6195 Lv. Telephone Number

SHOE & HAT REPAIR SBShoe Repair & Grand Central Hat Makers

Goods & Hats

Sizing

Cleaning

Refurbishing

Maintenance

Orthopedics

Shaping

No one is better suited to help you or your loved one stay sober. I provide round the clock care, on-call service and transportation. Very discrete/NDA (707) 606-8580

Beautiful office for rent in Montecito Village, near Tecolote Bookstore!

Floor to ceiling cedar panels, 15 ft vaulted ceiling, mountain view, nearby church clock tower tolls on the hour, coffee shops, and eateries. 350 Square feet. Rent: $1310. 1470 East Valley Road, Suite R. (upstairs). Valley.improvement@verizon.net Gerda (805) 969-3711

DOG & HOUSE SITTER

Longtime Santa Barbara resident, retired, active 70 yr old woman. Experienced with house sitting and dog sitting. Prefer 1 small dog or 1 cat. Trustworthy, tidy, pet lover. References upon request. (805) 451-3415

DONATIONS NEEDED

Santa Barbara Bird Sanctuary Menagerie 2430 Lillie Avenue Summerland, CA 93067 (805) 969-1944

Donate to the Parrot Pantry! At SB Bird Sanctuary, backyard farmer’s bounty is our birds best bowl of food! The flock goes bananas for your apples, oranges & other homegrown fruits & veggies.

Volunteers

Do you have a special talent or skill? Do you need community service hours? The flock at SB Bird Sanctuary could always use some extra love and socialization. Call us and let’s talk about how you can help. (805) 969-1944

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