Chicken gyro? Santa Barbara Sea Urchin Spaghetti? Yes please. They’re all here at Bar Lou, page 6
Keep the Magic Rollin’ Lights! Wheels! And plenty of smiling faces! The annual Magic Holiday Car Parade returns to a festive, adoring audience, page 38
Ring in the holiday season with late-night easy eats and live music every night
Rosewood at BOS – An appeal is filed and the County Board of Supervisors meet about the Rosewood Miramar expansion plan, P.11
Join the Revels-ry – Haddon Hall is here – Gillian Conway recalls with joy her immersion in Revels – the perennial celebration of caroling, P.16
Ride to O’side – Michelin stars, plenty of surf, and a touch of Top Gun. Take a break at a different beach –Oceanside, P.30
These dogs aren’t tired… they’re on the job wherever disaster strikes, page 16
Beings and Doings – Dawdle over lunch and a Japanese Slipper or two (up, with a cherry), mull that Byron Sofa Console, and exult in the Upper Village. RH Montecito has arrived.
In Business – Bar Lou is open – see what’s on the menu and minds of restaurateur Warner Ebbink and Chef Brandon Boudet
8 Montecito Miscellany – A corral of chorale, some holiday soirées, a Million Dollar Quartet, and more miscellany
Meeting at MA – Updates on the 101 widening project, the new Safety Committee, and other updates from the December meeting Tide Guide
Local News – The Miramar expansion comes before the Board of Supervisors to hear the appellants’ case
Society Invites – Holiday tea with the SB Rescue Mission and upcoming holiday happenings
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
16 The Giving List – Man and Woman’s best friend also makes the best search and rescue partner, and this organization helps each dog become their best self
On Entertainment – Gillian Conway is in Revels-ry, Peter Spam hams it up, and Alastair Greene talks blues
18 Ernie’s World – Will Ernie live forever? Let’s hope so… and with emerging technologies, here are all the possibilities
20
Brilliant Thoughts – It’s a race to figure out how we communicate – and even more so where Ashleigh’s thoughts will land you on the subject
22
Elizabeth’s Appraisals – After last week’s appraisal of a medal, Elizabeth goes rummaging through her house to find a badge of her own
28 Your Westmont – Alum gives cyber-blocking gifts to law enforcement, stargazers welcome Dec. 20, and the college honors a legend
29 Robert’s Big Questions – What does the recent assassination of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO say about medical insurance violence?
30
Travel Buzz – Surfers, Michelin star restaurants, and world class hotels – it’s not Santa Barbara… it’s Oceanside
32 Home for the Holidays – The final installment of the MJ ’s holiday gift guide – don’t worry, there’s still time to get some final gifts
38 Holiday Magic Car Parade – Vintage cars, bright lights, and holiday cheer filled the streets of Montecito during this annual event
44 Calendar of Events – ZooLights and the final holiday delights plus other seasonally vibrant weekly happenings
46 Classifieds – Our own “Craigslist” of classified ads
47 Mini Meta Crossword Puzzles
Local Business Directory – Smart business owners place business cards here
Photography: Alexis Adam
Beings and Doings
RH Montecito: The Old Firehouse Rekindled call 805 504 1965 to reserve
holly jolly tea time limited time Holiday Afternoon tea indulge in cozy tea and festive treats surrounded by the holiday sparkle of our garden, beautifully adorned with twinkling lights and merry decor
In Business
Bar Lou Brings French-Mediterranean
Fare to CVR
by Tiana Molony
Restaurateur Warner Ebbink and Chef Brandon Boudet didn’t plan on opening another restaurant. As it happened, the pair was focused on a hotel project in Ojai when the opportunity presented itself. But when the coveted building on the corner of Coast Village and Middle Road became available, they knew they had to have it. Even Ebbink’s wife recognized the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. “You should take it,” she told him. “Because I don’t want to hear about it for the rest of our lives.”
Ebbink and Boudet did take the space, and things moved quickly. “It’s not so much that we chose the location,” mused Ebbink. “It’s more like the location chose us.” Over four months, they transformed the space at 1198 Coast Village Road into Bar Lou, a French and Mediterranean-style restaurant.
While you might know Boudet and
Ebbink for their Italian restaurants, Little Dom’s Seafood in Carpinteria and Little Dom’s in Los Feliz, they sought a change of pace. Boudet said the idea of taking on a restaurant concept that strayed from Italian cuisine “was reinvigorating!” Ebbink felt the same way. He didn’t think Montecito “needed another Italian restaurant.”
Their new restaurant space was previously home to Oliver’s Montecito, a vegan joint that, after almost seven years of operation, closed in April 2023. Ebbink remembers dining at Oliver’s; he and his wife would discuss the beauty and versatility of the space with its indoor/outdoor design.
The existing structure provided the perfect canvas for their vision, enabling them to craft a unique dining experience. The pair worked with interior design group Mahte Design to perfect the space. After its transformation into Bar Lou, you would never guess another restaurant had been there before. They added booths and packed the indoor
dining area with more tables and chairs to increase the capacity and make the space more intimate. “I wanted it to feel really warm,” said Ebbink. “I wanted it to feel like a hug.”
Ebbink noted that the building’s exterior “feels like a house from the outside.” Wanting to lean into the building’s homey feel, they made the inside space just as inviting. Although the restaurant’s interior doesn’t exactly resemble the inside of a home, it is undoubtedly homey. Upon entering the indoor dining space, you’re greeted by a warm
and inviting outdoor patio. The main dining area boasts a charming ambiance, with tables and chairs scattered throughout the space. A stained-glass window divides the room. Inviting brown leather booths topped with sleek red marble slabs line the back wall.
One Friday night, shortly after opening, I dined at Bar Lou with friends and family. Boudet and Ebbink are at the restaurant every night, with Boudet creating in the kitchen and Ebbink greeting
In Business Page 294
Brandon & Warner at Bar Lou (courtesy photo)
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Montecito Miscellany
Holly, Jolly, & Hallelujah
by Richard Mineards
Santa Barbara Choral Society under veteran conductor JoAnne Wasserman was in top form for its 10th annual Hallelujah Project at the historic Lobero, which also included young Sing! project choral students from the Music Academy of the West, and Emmy-winning actress Meredith Baxter in a rocking chair reciting ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas
Accompanied by an orchestra, the enthusiastic carolers sang a number of Yuletide classics, as well as the “Hallelujah Chorus” from Handel’s beloved Messiah.
A jolly Santa Claus only added to the festive fun.
Everyone’s a Critic
The reviews are in for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s latest Netflix endeavor Polo, the penultimate installment of their $100 million deal with the streaming giant.
But despite the likely high hopes it would join the ranks of works like Disney’s soccer saga with Ryan Reynolds, Welcome to Wrexham, and 2020’s, The Last Dance, the series has been devastatingly panned by critics.
Receiving two stars or less across the board (out of a possible five), the documentary has been labelled “a tedious inside look at posh polo” and “a mostly boring look at a sport that very few people outside of elite circles have any particular interest in.”
The Daily Telegraph noted: “Not enough of the Sussexes to make this anything, but a dull indulgence about a rich man’s discipline.”
The Daily Mail , my former employer, carped: “Flat, plodding and really rather boring.”
The Riven Rock-based Duke of Sussex, 40, only appears a handful of times throughout the five episodes while
Meghan, 43, appears even less, despite being billed as executive producers. Harry appears in the show’s opening credits, but doesn’t appear again until episode four, when he is only part of a conversation with other players.
Swell ‘Dwelling Place’
Westmont College fielded its full arsenal at the Granada for its 20th annual sold-out Christmas Festival.
Always a wonderful start to Yuletide, the concert, Dwelling Place, was the fourth year at the historic theater after many years at the First Presbyterian Church. Featuring the Westmont Orchestra directed by Ruth Lin, head of the college’s music department, the College Choir and the Chamber Singers, alumni Daniel
Miscellany Page 424
A group of students with the Music Academy’s Sing! project (photo by Priscilla)
Meredith Baxter gave a riveting rocking chair performance (photo by Maxx Hennard)
There was even a visit from the big man himself (photo by Priscilla)
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Located within Ennisbrook’s prestigious gated community, residents enjoy access to exceptional amenities, including two pools, tennis and pickleball courts, fitness centers, clubhouse, and the scenic 44-acre Ennisbrook Preserve. Just moments from Montecito’s hiking trails, beaches, and vibrant Upper and Lower Villages, this home offers the perfect retreat for those seeking the best of Montecito living.
Meeting at MA
101 Updates, a Montecito Sheriff’s
Office, and More
by Joanne A Calitri
The Montecito Association
December meeting was held in person at the Montecito Library community room and on Zoom, Tuesday, December 10.
MA President Doug Black was absent. The meeting was led by 2nd Vice President Leslie Lundgren with assistance by MA Executive Director Houghton Hyatt
Via Zoom, Montecito Fire Chief David Neels updated attendees on the Franklin Fire in Malibu. Montecito Fire and Santa Barbara County responded at 2 am on December 10. He reminded everyone that a wind event or weather shift can cause significant fire spread, and fire season is not over yet in southern California. Montecito Sanitation District General Manager John Weigold reported on the Montecito manhole lining project which will line 93 manholes, many located in easements behind resident’s homes. This is a $1.5 million project.
Superintendent Montecito Union School District Anthony Ranii said that since last month they have instituted 13 safety enhancements – for example, adding cameras and constructing fences. He thanked Mindy Denson’s subcommittee on safety. He asked for recommendations for instructional assistants, and a Physical Education teacher. Jacqueline Duran who served for 12 years on MUS Board is leaving, and he talked about her many attributes. He is collaborating with the Montecito Journal for a story on all the MUS construction projects.
Superintendent & Principal of the Cold Spring School District Amy Alzina
talked about her holiday craft fair and holiday concert, and their healthy garden program.
Lt. Richard Brittingham reported on crime in Montecito, mostly area drug possessions, burglaries, domestic violence and deadly weapons (see the MJ’s weekly Crime in the ‘Cito). He addressed questions on burglaries in gated communities and homelessness.
Kirsten Ayars of Ayars & Associates, who does community outreach for the Highway 101 widening project, Michael Becker , Director of Planning for SBCAG, and Joe Arnold from Caltrans, were there to present the 101 updates.
Ayars said, “The project is going to the Montecito Planning Commission next week. There is a new Butterfly Lane closure. Carpinteria 101, Santa Claus Lane bikeway and the two roundabouts at Olive Mill and San Ysidro with landscaping are completed. Four projects still under construction: Padaro Lane segment, Summerland landscaping, Montecito segment Sheffield to Olive Mill, and Santa Barbara south. We’re grinding at night to put grooves in the 101 pavement for rain and noise reduction to offset the highway lane increase. Continuously reinforced highway pavement is being used. We will open the new northbound carpool lane this month, striping of the lane is dependent on the weather. In mid-January will open the southbound carpool lanes. Summerland landscaping continues with trees. Montecito construction for a year and half, progress on northbound side, summer 2025 we will work on southbound side. We will tell the Montecito Planning Commission next week about the design change we had to make. In the creeks area of Romero,
Oak and San Ysidro, FEMA restricts movement of water from one watershed to another watershed area. We needed to raise the profile of the freeway to keep the water in their watersheds and change the safety barrier on the outside edge of the freeway to an open concrete barrier so flood waters can flow through it. The work on the original median area of the highway in Montecito continues through Spring/Summer 2025; due to a new issue the Butterfly Lane undercrossing is closed till December 23; the Olive Mill ramp northbound will be closed through March 2025 and once opened, the Hermosillo ramp will be closed. Butterfly Lane undercrossing closure is due to the tunnel having an open grate in the ceiling.”
The MA Board brought up that there is insufficient lead time provided in the northbound signage, which alerts drivers of the need to exit San Ysidro Road in lieu of Olive Mill to get onto Coast Village Road. Lt. Richard Brittingham agreed. In response to all questions, Ayars stated she would either take it back to her team or Caltrans; no resolutions to the issues addressed were promised.
The new Safety Committee that is working with Lt. Brittingham reported their goal is to have a Sheriff’s station in Montecito with two computers to provide a police presence and rapid response time in the area. They will meet twice more in January and thanked Brittingham for an already-evident increase in police patrolling of Montecito. They proposed a community wide response drill.
Brittingham replied saying he would appreciate a Sheriff’s station in Montecito and is open to vetting locations. He further added that the CHP officers would also appreciate the space, as they frequently stop at the Carpinteria Sheriff’s office to do their reports. The MA Board invited him to look at their office space and their History Office space at the Montecito Library after the meeting. Brittingham said the Montecito Library location is ideal.
Montecito Tide Guide
Dec 25
Dec 26
Dec 27
Hyatt asked the MA board to vote on the draft letter to SBC Board of Supervisors regarding the pathways being constructed in Montecito – in order to request clarification on all fronts. Draft letter was approved unanimously. Board members brought up that the pathways are not handicap accessible, and the SBC Public Works Dept is coming out and tearing up the right of way easements on residents’ properties who would not comply with the pathways.
History Chair Trish Davis reported that Montecito’s architecture is being featured in Town & Country Magazine. Hands Across Montecito Chair Andrea Newquist reported that although the team tries to help the homeless in Montecito, they are not considered eligible for services from the nonprofits in Santa Barbara due to the area they inhabit.
Updates from the Land Use committee were that the committee itself is trying to revive their review status on local projects – prior to projects going to the Montecito Board of Architectural Review and Montecito Planning Commission. They stated that at this time projects that come to them are already approved.
Account Managers | Sue Brooks, Tanis Nelson, Elizabeth Scott, Natasha Kucherenko
Contributing Editor | Kelly Mahan Herrick
Proofreading | Helen Buckley Arts and Entertainment | Steven Libowitz
Contributors | Scott Craig, Ashleigh Brilliant, Chuck Graham, Mark Ashton Hunt, Dalina Michaels, Robert Bernstein, Christina Atchison, Leslie Zemeckis, Sigrid Toye, Elizabeth Stewart, Beatrice Tolan, Leana Orsua, Jeffrey Harding, Tiana Molony, Houghton Hyatt, Jeff Wing
Gossip | Richard Mineards
History | Hattie Beresford
Humor | Ernie Witham
Our Town/Society | Joanne A Calitri
Health/Wellness | Ann Brode, Deann Zampelli
Travel | Jerry Dunn, Leslie Westbrook
Food & Wine | Melissa Petitto, Gabe Saglie, Jamie Knee
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Local News
Rosewood Miramar Goes to the Board of Supervisors
by Tiana Molony
Over one year ago, the Rosewood Miramar went before the Montecito Association Land Use Committee to share its expansion plans. From one county meeting to the next, Miramar owner Rick Caruso and his team presented numerous iterations of the plan, each time receiving feedback from county officials, neighbors, and other community members who voiced opinions, positive or otherwise.
The resort moved closer to construction when, on November 1st, the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission approved the plan. While Miramar’s neighbor – All Saints-by-the-Sea Episcopal Church –was initially an appellant, it withdrew its opposition before the meeting after reaching a compromise with the Miramar. On December 10th, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors denied all appeals to the plan, paving the way for the project to progress.
As it stands, the project will include 26 affordable housing units for Miramar staff and eight market-rate apartments. Another 17,500 square feet will hold 12 shops and a cafe.
The supervisors heard appeals from neighbors, the Los Angeles-based labor union UNITE HERE! Local 11, and Heal the Ocean (HTO), a nonprofit concerned with ocean pollution and wastewater infrastructure. Appellants raised issues related to environmental impacts, public access, traffic, air pollution, evacuation concerns, flooding, and parking.
Hillary Hauser, executive director of Heal the Ocean, shared that the nonprofit “is all for affordable housing.” However, she was concerned that the affordable housing would be located in a FEMA floodplain. Worried about human safety and the effects of climate change, Heal the Ocean engaged Integral Consulting Inc., an environmental consulting company, to peer-review the hydrology studies submitted by Miramar regarding reports on drainage, stormwater control, and sea level rise.
“It is our request of this board that this project be put on hold until some of these issues are resolved because the implications of what Integral has discovered are significant and have to do with human safety as climate change bears down on us,” said Hauser.
Cliff Gherson, who lives near Miramar, appeared before the Board of Supervisors as an appellant of the project. Gherson felt there was “a lack of a fair and impartial hearing by the planning commission at
their November 1st meeting.” He cited Commissioner John Parke’s refusal to recuse himself despite his communications between All Saints and the Miramar.
Gherson also argued that the retail component would harm Montecito’s charming character and violate the community plan.
“By having so much retail space at the resort, it goes beyond the incidental needs of visitors and completely changes the character of the place,” he said.
Other appellants wanted an entire California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review, feeling that it was “piecemealed.” However, county staff said the project is exempt from CEQA as it meets the conditions required by a residential or mixed-use housing project.
Miramar’s senior vice president of planning and development, Chris Robertson, addressed some claims during the rebuttal period. She refuted claims of a parking shortage, citing their study, which confirmed adequate parking. She also assured the supervisors that Miramar’s sea-level rise report showed “that the project will be safe from coastal hazards, including from flooding and erosion.”
She also highlighted that under the State Density Bonus Law, Miramar must make affordable housing units affordable for at least 55 years. However, Miramar voluntarily committed to maintaining their units’ affordability for the project’s lifetime.
Ahead of the vote, Supervisor Das Williams said that while he disagreed with the “legal points made by the appellants,” he thought their sentiments were “well-taken.” He also said that while he isn’t enthusiastic about the commercial element of the plan, he believes that “people have the right to make money. A business has a right to make some money.”
Supervisor Laura Capps said she fully supports workforce housing. However, she acknowledged that Montecito still has a long way to go regarding affordable housing compared to its civic counterparts. “And again, this is a very small step, 26 out of thousands that are happening elsewhere, but it does get my enthusiastic support,” she said.
Supervisor Joan Hartmann was impressed by the quality of the employee housing, noting that the employee housing units are in a visible and prominent location rather than being stuck in the back. “I think many of us would love to live there,” she said.
The project received unanimous support from all supervisors. However, it can still be appealed to the California Coastal Commission.
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Society Invites
SB Rescue Mission Women’s Auxiliary Annual Holiday Tea for Bethel House
by Joanne A Calitri
The Santa Barbara Rescue Mission (SBRM) Women’s Auxiliary held its annual Bethel House Christmas Tea for its women in recovery program on Wednesday, December 11 at the home of Susan Hughes. Organizing the event were newly appointed SBRM Women’s Auxiliary President Cindy Anderson , with Auxiliary members Dianne Davis, and Kirsten Walters This beloved holiday celebration for the women in recovery has been held annually for over 10 years.
The Holiday Tea program starts with a tea and home baked goodies reception. Next, everyone sings Christmas carols and selected members read from scripture. Playing piano this year was Sara Coleman. The event concludes with breakout rooms for one-on-one sessions with assigned Women’s Auxiliary members and the Bethel House residents. Attendees were board members and officers of the Women’s Auxiliary, their friends who expressed interest in joining, and the women residents of Bethel House.
The SBRM Women’s Auxiliary supports SBRM through fundraising for its in-house programs and community outreach. The Bethel House Women’s Residential Treatment Program is a 12-month, faith-centered, 12-step social model program. Residents are provided with a living and learning environment that addresses the issues of addiction in a holistic way. SBRM provides immediate help and lasting hope to those with no place else to go, via a 12-month residential recovery program for men and women who desire to break free from cycles of addiction, poverty, homelessness, and crime.
411: www.sbrm.org
Home for the Holidays Happenings
Home for the Holidays? Celebrate it in style with Society’s Holiday Listing!
December 24, Tuesday – Christmas Eve
December 25, Wednesday – Christmas Day
December 26, Thursday – Chanukah
Services:
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church, 1300 East Valley Road, Montecito Fr. Lawrence Seyer, Pastor
Christmas Eve Masses: 4 pm and 9 pm (no midnight mass)
Christmas Day Masses: 8 am, 10 am, and 12 pm noon
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Susan Hughes and Women’s Auxiliary President Cindy Anderson (photo by Joanne A Calitri)
Kirsten Walters, Dianne Davis and at the piano, Sara Coleman (photo by Joanne A Calitri)
411: www.mtcarmelsb.com/index.cfm
Montecito Covenant Church, 671 Cold Spring Road, Montecito
Mark Seversen, Lead Pastor
Christmas Eve Services: 4:30 pm
Christmas Eve Cookies and Carols: 5 pm 411: www.mcchurch.org
El Montecito Presbyterian Church, 1455 East Valley Road, Montecito
Pastor Rev. Tom Haugen PhD
Candlelight Christmas Eve Service of Lessons and Carols: 4 and 5:30 pm 411: https://elmopres.org
All Saints by-the-Sea Episcopal Church, 83 Eucalyptus Lane, Montecito
Rector Rev. Channing Smith
Christmas Eve Family Service: 3 pm
Traditional Christmas Eve Choral Eucharist and Candle Lighting: 8 pm
Christmas Day, Lessons & Carols Eucharist Service: 10:30 am and Christmas lunch 411: https://allsaintsbythesea.org
Vedanta Temple, 927 Ladera Lane, Montecito
Christmas Eve Vespers and Christmas Carols: 6:15-7:15 pm
Christmas Day Christ Puja: 11:30 am 411: https://vedanta.org/santa-barbara-temple
Chabad of Montecito, public service at Upper Village Green, Montecito Rabbi Chaim Loschak
Chanukah Services and Menorah Lighting: December 26, 4 pm, Open to all denominations. Latkes, donuts, music, Dreidel man, crafts, entertainment. 411: www.jewishmontecito.org
Rosewood Miramar Beach, 1759 S. Jameson Lane, Montecito
Menorah Lighting Ceremony: Dec. 25-Jan. 2, 5 pm, lobby area
Enjoy delicious treats, the lighting of the Menorah, and stories of hope and resilience in a festive atmosphere that welcomes all to share in the tradition. Free.
El Encanto Belmond Hotel, 800 Alvarado Pl, Santa Barbara Menorah Lighting & Latkes: Thursday, December 26, 5-7 pm
Celebrate Hanukkah’s first night with a Menorah Lighting Ceremony, traditional songs, and gourmet latkes.
Santa Visits
Montecito Country Mart: December 21, 1-4 pm, bring your wish list!
Ritz-Carlton Bacara: December 23 to 25, 4-5 pm
Story Time with Santa by the fireplace. Listen to some of Santa’s favorite bedtime stories while enjoying freshly baked cookies and a glass of milk.
Dining
San Ysidro Ranch, 900 San Ysidro Lane, Montecito
Chef Matt Johnson
Christmas Day Dinner: 12-3:30 pm
Four Course Dinner. Entrée options: Crispy Skin California Striped Bass, New Zealand Ora King Salmon En Croute, Guajillo Maple Leaf Farms Duck Breast, SRF Wagyu Ribeye Filet Flambeed Tableside, and Slow Braised Colorado Lamb Shank. Starter, soup, and dessert highlights include Jerusalem Artichoke Bisque, Seared Maine Diver Scallop, and a signature Gingerbread Yule Log.
411: www.sanysidroranch.com
Rosewood Miramar Beach, 1759 S. Jameson Lane, Montecito
Chef Massimo Falsini
Christmas Eve Brunch: 7 am - 2:30 pm
Christmas Eve Dinner at Caruso’s: 5:30-9 pm, Carolers, snow on the Great Lawn
Christmas Day Festive Brunch: 11 am – 2:30 pm
Christmas Day Dinner at Caruso’s: 3 – 9 pm Reservations Required.
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The Giving List National Disaster Search Dog Foundation
by Steven Libowitz
Thirty years ago this coming April, FEMA-Certified Canine Search Specialist Wilma Melville and her black lab Murphy spent a week rummaging through the rubble of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building bombing in Oklahoma. What stood out was just how few other rescue dogs were on site to search for survivors. When Melville realized only 15 such certified canine-human teams existed in the country at that time, she sprung into action, and a year later launched The National Disaster Search Dog Foundation, nonprofit based in Santa Paula aimed at addressing the dearth of rescue canines-human teams.
Melville’s vision was to formalize and set up a system of canine recruitment, selecting dogs who had been abused or abandoned from animal shelters, partnering them with fire department and other first-responder professionals, and training both in tandem to work together to efficiently serve as search and rescue teams when disaster strikes.
Nearly three decades later, the idea is still working to help find victims of hurricanes, earthquakes, train wrecks, mudslides and other disasters across the country and even around the world. There are currently 94 SDF-trained Canine Disaster Search Teams located in California, Florida, Nebraska, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Baja California. Through mutual aid agreements between counties, cities and states, those life-saving resources can be deployed regionally and nationally to make sure that when disaster strikes, no one is left behind.
On Entertainment Having a ‘Hall’ of a time with Revels
by Steven Libowitz
The last couple of years have been especially busy for the SDF-trained teams.
“We had the earthquake in Turkey, the Maui wildfires, the New Mexico wildfires, then the back-to-back hurricanes in Florida and North Carolina – 27 of the teams that we trained were deployed in the two hurricanes alone,” said Denise Sanders, SDF’s Senior Director of Communications & Search Team Operations. “Unfortunately we know that there are people that are missing after these, whether they’re alive or not. What the dog teams can do is vitally important to the search and rescue efforts.”
The process starts with finding dogs that are suitable for the job, Sanders said. Ironically, what might make them get passed over for adoption as unsuitable for a family pet – high energy, tenacity and boldness – could be ideal for search and rescue duties.
“The first thing we usually look for is their intense interest in a toy, almost to the point of fixation,” she said. “Then we see them in the yard, and look at whether they just want to play for a few minutes and then give up after having a chance to stretch their legs. Or do they want to continue engaging with us and keep searching for the ball or toy?”
After passing stringent medical screening and testing criteria, the dogs are then trained to harness that drive and tenacity into life-saving skills at SDF’s National Training Center, which boasts 145 acres filled with environments meant to mimic disasters such as collapsed structures, broad swathes of rubble, vehicle wreckage, wilderness
Giving List Page 244
Starring as the Duchess in The Ghosts of Haddon Hall – the 2024 production of “The Christmas Revels: A Winter Solstice Celebration” this weekend – is a real full circle moment 11 years in the making for Gillian Conway. The Montecito native saw her first Santa Barbara Christmas Revels as a family outing back in 2013, coincidentally the last time the company presented the Haddon Hall show.
It was love at first sight.
“My dad is English, and we love all the English traditions, the mummers play and English carols,” recalled Conway, whose day job is co-owner and manager of Conway Family Wines, the 17-year-old winery that produces under the Deep Sea and Conway labels, and runs the Deep Sea Tasting Room on Stearns Wharf. “So when my mom saw an ad for the show, we all decided to go. We were totally hooked. And we went back every year.”
But despite having acted at Laguna Blanca, Conway never considered participating in the annual community theater presentation. That was also her mother’s idea.
“She forwarded the audition date email to me in 2021 and just wrote ‘I dare you’ in the subject line,” Conway said. “She was just being silly, but I thought, why not?”
Conway missed the actual audition date but emailed the music director and was invited to show up that night 15 minutes before rehearsal. She landed a spot in the chorus, stepped up to acting in the mummers play a year later, and this year won a lead role in the show set in 1926 and based on historical events. The Duke of Rutland has come with his wife and children for a last viewing of his family’s historic manor house, Haddon Hall, which has sat abandoned for over 200 years and is slated to be torn down to make way for a modern motorway. But the ghosts of the estate’s multi-generational residents begin to emerge for their annual Winter Solstice gathering, treating the Duke and Duchess’ family, along with the audience, to a celebration that includes 800 years of English and European music, colorful and boisterous country dancing and amusing seasonal traditions, along with all the annual Revels traditions including sing-alongs, and even a dragon.
The characters also don period costumes to match the era they represent in the show –once again produced by founding Artistic Director Susan Keller and directed by longtime Revel-er Matt Tavianini, with Dauri Kennedy as the new music director. Conway is playing opposite veteran Revel-er Bill Egan, who also portrayed the Duke back in 2013.
She’s having a blast.
“It’s been so great to get on stage again, just getting up there and doing something that maybe scares you or makes you uncomfortable, and it’s given me a new sense of self-confidence that I had been lacking in my life,” she said. “It’s just so much fun.”
A big part of the appeal, she said, was the camaraderie amongst the cast and musicians each year, serving the true spirit of the season and of community theater.
“Everybody just wants the absolute best for the other people on stage. It is so supportive and everyone has a great time. We might not see each other for months after the show is over, but it’s like a homecoming every fall, getting back with the close-knit group of people I’d probably never have crossed paths with otherwise.”
In other words, Conway is the living embodiment of the Revels’ original catchphrase: “Join us and be joyous!” So much so that she not only participates in all the
On Entertainment Page 414
The Ghosts of Haddon Hall performs December 21-22 at the Lobero Theatre (courtesy photo)
Deacon and Mike Toepfer search rubble after the earthquakes in Turkey (courtesy photo)
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Ernie’s World Live Long and Prosper
by Ernie Witham
“Pass the salt, willya?”
“I swear if you keep using that much salt, you won’t live to see 130,” my wife told me.
“I hope you’re wrong. I want to see the great-great grandkids graduate.” I cleared my throat.
“Oh no, you’re not going to sing again are you?”
I strummed my air guitar. “Imagine all the people living for today... and the next 100 years or more...”
“That sound you just heard was John Lennon fans all over the world groaning.”
I do apologize to John for adding lyrics to his incredible ballad, but I just heard some exciting news at a seminar presented by the head of USCB’s Center for Aging and Longevity Studies. He told us that humans are poised at the threshold of remarkable changes in their relationship with time. Research in the aging and longevity field holds the promise of forestalling the onset of age-related disease and thereby allowing us to live much, much longer and healthier.
I strummed my air guitar again. “Time, time, time is on my side, side, side... Say, is there any more wine?”
Pat passed the bottle. “Moderation, remember?”
“But wine helps my singing voice... Bottle of wine, fruit of the vine, when you gonna let me get sober? Leave me alone, let me go home, let me go home and start over... See? Crooner, right?”
Pat opened another bottle. “Try the cab, Sinatra. See if that helps.”
This relatively new field of research is taking a different approach to longevity. Instead of looking at all the age-related diseases that are shortening lifespans, they are looking at ways to slow or even reverse the aging process itself.
“Can you imagine if, like, I became that young man you first met with long hair and those cool sideburns? And my day-glow poster collection? Sitting by my lava lamp hammering out those first humor pieces on my rental SmithCoroner? Wonder what ever happened to that lava lamp?”
“Oh great,” muttered Pat. “Thirtyseven years of molding, redirecting, refining down the tubes.”
Another interesting facet of the anti-aging research is that we could change the way we plan our lives. “Imagine going to college, having a career and then, at
retirement, starting a family when you could better afford one and have the time to devote to raising them,” the professor told us at the seminar.
A number of women in the audience groaned. “Birth at 65, fuhgeddaboudit!”
“Or,” the professor added, “you could begin a brand new career. Try something you always wanted but couldn’t because you were building your first career.”
“Wow! You know, dear, how I’ve always been interested in taxidermy? Just think of all the possibilities.” Pat looked around the condo, the walls full of art she has collected for years. Then she took out a tape measure, measured me and a section of the hallway. “Okay, okay definitely not taxidermy. Maybe sculpting?”
Part of the problem today – as I understand it – is that as we age some of our cells die and like dead cells are wont to do, they just hang out and get in the way. So new “avenger” cells are being developed that will hunt down these cells and “take them out” kinda like paid assassins in a Netflix movie. Other advanced cells will be looking for abnormal cells that often lead to disease and eliminate them.
“Wow! It’ll be a big shootout inside of me. Wonder if I could swallow my iPhone and capture some video? I’d probably get like a million likes on Instagram or something.”
There will be new longevity drugs to take and vaccines to aid in this new science. I mean, Pfizer has to have something to sell when we no longer need the disease cures they make now, with their five million side effects. There will also be gene therapies, and of course artificial intelligence will have a role. I wonder if we’ll still be able to check that little box that pops up for software updates: “Are you a robot?”
I smiled at Pat. “You know, I’m glad I’m going to get to spend another fifty or sixty more years with you, dear.”
She hugged me. “That may be the nicest thing you say to me for the next 150 years.”
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.
BY Colin Escott AND Floyd Mutrux DIRECTED BY Brian McDonald
L to R: Ian Fairlee, Will Riddle, Nick Voss and Blake Burgess Photo: Zach Mendez
Brilliant Thoughts
News
by Ashleigh Brilliant
Until the era of electronic communication, getting word of happenings in other places (to say nothing of instantaneous moving pictures in color) used to be a long, slow process. News could travel on land only as fast as the fastest runner or rider. A man living in California might get a letter from his brother, prospering and healthy in Europe –only to find out a year later that his brother had died many months earlier.
There was one exception to this limitation – and that was communicating by line of sight. With telescopes, two people on mountain tops, miles distant from each other, might send messages by agreed signals. Ships at sea could, to a limited extent, keep in touch by means of flags strung along a rope. There is a story concerning the famous last message to his fleet from the British Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson in 1805, just before the crucial Battle of Trafalgar. What Nelson wanted to say was “ENGLAND CONFIDES [i.e. has confidence] THAT EVERY MAN WILL DO HIS DUTY.” But his Signal Officer suggested “EXPECTS” which would be easier to send, because “confides” was not in his signal book. So, the “England Expects” version was used, and it became one of the most famous messages in English History.
Sadly – or gloriously – Nelson himself did not survive the battle. He had already lost an arm and an eye in previous engagements. But the average English schoolchild today, if they know little else of their country’s history, is probably familiar with the words that follow “England Expects.” In London, a road junction in the heart of the City is called Trafalgar Square, after that Battle – and at its center is a single tall column, so tall that the statue of Nelson on top of it is hard to see.
Incidentally, that Battle in 1805 was just part of a whole series of conflicts lasting for decades and known as the Napoleonic wars. Napoleon Bonaparte not only ruled France, but, either directly or indirectly, he controlled the entire “Continent” of Western Europe. Despite the crushing British defeat at Cape Trafalgar of Napoleon’s combined force of French and Spanish ships in 1805 – an astounding victory of
which the British are still so proud – it took another ten years before Napoleon was finally and permanently defeated, at Waterloo, in 1815.
I will leave it to you to guess how long it took for news of that Battle to reach various parts of the world.
But France now, in a different way, comes into our story of the development of communications. France was a leader in the development of what are called semaphore systems, which involve visible signals, sometimes made from specially constructed towers, with movable “arms.” This made it possible to send news, emanating from Paris, all over the country very speedily. But the system had its limitations. It depended on human “watchers” stationed at fixed points being ready at agreed times to receive and transmit messages. And at night, only fire could be seen.
The big breakthrough came with the discovery that messages could be sent along wires. Hence came the electric telegraph. But, like the subsequent computer, it could function only with a transmitted language comprised of a series of “ons” and “offs.” To turn this into meaningful messages was the achievement of a man named Samuel Morse, who was, of course, the inventor of the Code named after him. You probably know that the first telegraphed message using that code was a quote from the Bible: “WHAT HATH GOD WROUGHT.”
Long before then, however – in fact, as long ago as 490 BC – the first great news story took place in Ancient Greece. Greece was at war with the mighty Persian Empire, which then included what we now call Turkey. From there a Persian army crossed the Aegean Sea and landed on the Greek coast near a place called Marathon, where they were confronted and soundly defeated by an army from Athens.
According to legend, news of this glorious and crucial victory was brought to the Athenian Acropolis by a runner named Pheidippides. But the legend also tells us that, having covered a distance of about 26 miles – which, of course, is the length of most “Marathon” races today – this heroic runner delivered his message, then collapsed and died.
The idea of reviving the whole concept of an Olympic Games to be held every four years – as they were in Ancient Greece – took shape in Athens, in 1896. And, thanks to modern communications, they were open to competitors from around the world.
Ashleigh Brilliant born England 1933, came to California in 1955, to Santa Barbara in 1973, 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.
Imagine Having a Whole VILLAGE Behind You.
Elizabeth’s Appraisals Belgian Order of Knighthood
by Elizabeth Stewart
his article is about my early 19th century medal, an Order of Knighthood, which may be connected to my partner’s family history. When objects of history lie in a drawer for years (I don’t remember where I got this) and are rediscovered – the find is historically relevant to my partner! You see, my partner’s last name is Flandrick, (Province of Flanders), having an ancestor related to Queen of Flanders. This medal was and still is given for actions of merit to Belgian notable persons, bestowed by the Kings of Belgium for 192 years. I became interested in this medal after writing last week’s article about a reader’s (different) honorary medal – and dug it out of hiding…
This medal, technically called a badge, is an award of the National Honorary Order of Knighthood, founded by the first King of the Belgians (from 18311865), Leopold I. The medal is given by royal decree as a diplomatic gift to notables in the military, maritime service, and civilians of Belgian birth, and to foreign dignitaries who have served the Belgian people – Winston Churchill and Dwight D. Eisenhower, for example, who helped to liberate Belgium from German occupation. Presently, the current King of the Belgians, Philippe, (who was educated at Stanford), has recently bestowed the Order on Belgian/American psychiatrist Esther Perel, who was made a Knight of the Order of the Cross in 2022. The Order was bestowed on Emmanuel de Merode, the director of the conservation area Virunga National Park of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The design was created in 1832 by Félix de Merode (Emmanuel’s patrilineal ancestor), and approved as to the color and grades of honorific titles conferred
by Leopold I. The Grand Cordon or Commander’s Cross badge, as it is called, is worn on a shoulder sash of purple silk, the badge attached to the sash rosette end at the hip. It is sometimes awarded with a large gold or silver breast star worn on the coat. If the Order is given in recognition of acts of charity, there’s a silver stripe in the purple silk; if for valor, there’s a gold stripe. As is the case with my medal, the civil award is made only to those over 42 years of age who have served Belgium for at least 20 years in a meritorious field.
The design is a Maltese Cross on either sterling silver or gold, surrounded by a green enameled wreath of laurel and oak leaves between the arms of the cross. A central cartouche features a lion – regally rearing in black enamel – surrounded by a red enamel ring which says “L’ Union Fait La Force” or ‘unity makes strength.’ Interestingly, that motto, which originated in Homer’s Iliad (“even weak men have strength in unity”) is on the coat of arms of Belgium, Bolivia, Malaysia, Georgia, Haiti, and Bulgaria.
The Order of Knighthood, similar to orders granted by France, originated after the Belgian Revolution of 1830. United Netherlands at the time was controlled by the Dutch, but French speakers revolted to form an independent Belgium (hence the “unity” phrase in the medal). After some bloody skirmishes in Brussels, the Dutch were pushed back, and a Constitutional Monarchy was envisioned. A King was then found: an aristocrat of Bavaria who accepted the throne. Interestingly, Leopold Saxe-Coburg was uncle to both HRH Queen Victoria and her husband, Prince Albert.
Two weeks after Leopold was crowned the Dutch again attacked, and conflict raged for eight years. Thus, Leopold desired an Order of Knighthood to honor those who fought in the Belgian Revolution, and those who served the Belgian people as a whole. Leopold uni-
fied Belgian’s nine provinces, including liberal progressives and Catholic conservatives. Leopold was called the “Nestor” of Europe (after the wise negotiator in Homer’s Iliad); he aimed to remain neutral in negotiations with Napoleon III, French Emperor, and the court of Queen Victoria.
Leopold created this Knighthood to unite the country, even bestowing the order on aristocratic couples who wed and formed their own “courts.” He also offered the knighthood as a diplomatic gift to honor Belgian leaders, the military, and the aristocracy.
The mid-19th century was a particularly trying time in the history of Belgium. Just when it seemed that Leopold’s efforts to achieve unity were failing, the Dutch shut down Belgian trading seaports and banned Belgian merchants from trading in Dutch colonies. An economic crisis loomed, and between 1845-1849 a famine in Flanders forced a third of the population to emigrate – to leave Belgium. If not for the struggle in Flanders under Leopold I, my partner’s family might never have come to Minnesota! (remember his name is Flandrick…)
The Order of Knighthood is rare, and in this excellent shape – it is worth $350.
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
This badge of knighthood was – and still is – conferred to notable Belgians for actions of merit (photo by John Flandrick)
A close-up of the insignia, L’ Union Fait La Force (photo by John Flandrick)
ravines and more. After eight to 10 months of professional training they are teamed with a handler, which significantly reduces the time it takes to attain FEMA Advanced Certification
Joanne A Calitri is a professional international photographer and journalist. Contact her at: artraks@yahoo.com
SOTHEBY’S INTERNATIONAL REALTY
SDF’s extensive pre-screening of canine candidates and rigorous training have produced remarkable results, flipping the rate of dogs who eventually become certified from 15 to 85%.
“It’s very intensive. We’re training to the highest level that we can because we never know when they might be called into service,” Sanders said. “They’re ready to be deployed. It’s about making sure when they’re out there at a disaster that they’re ready for anything.”
SDF considers each dog as an individual and tries to determine the animal’s unique needs.
“We don’t start with what they can do for us, but rather what they need from us to make them successful,” Sanders explained. “We want them to be successful in whatever line of work they go into. It’s a very tricky process. There are all these different little, tiny nuances that the average person doesn’t necessarily recognize. We try to determine what the dog is telling us is more fun for them so that we can use that in the training. Because for them, it’s just a big game they get to keep playing for the love of the game. When they’re engaged, that’s when we know that they will do their job in clearing an area when they’re deployed to a disaster.”
SDF is always working to improve its training, debriefing the human handlers when they return from a deployment and creating new training “props” new to the facility. Most recently that was an area of
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rubble from collapsed roof tiling made of shale, material that can be slippery to navigate, which had impeded efforts after the earthquake in Turkey in early 2023.
“We got to work right away designing, figuring out how we could give teams a chance to challenge their dogs on slippery surfaces with pieces at difficult angles with the dogs staying alert to catch the scent,” Sander said. “I wouldn’t try to climb up it, but the dogs do a fantastic job. It’s all part of evolving the training to make sure nobody gets left behind.”
That philosophy also extends to the canine component of the team: No dog left behind.
“If they are capable of being a working dog and they have what it takes, we want to be able to turn them into that amazing rescuer that was always there inside them,” Sanders said. “We want to provide those kinds of second chances for everyone, human and canine alike. And when we provide this resource for the fire department or task force, they need to make sure that the dog can be ready to go for weeks at a time.”
And once SDF selects a dog for training, they’re always part of the SDF family, Sanders said, whether they serve for years, or don’t actually end up being part of the program for whatever reason. Not only are they not returned to a shelter, the dogs are also placed in appropriate homes, and the nonprofit covers medical expenses and often even food.
“We fully commit to each and every dog that enters our program for life,” she said. “That’s our promise, to always take care of them.”
Each dog is given rigorous training so that they can face anything encountered in the field (courtesy photo)
Summerland, as is Entertainment Executive Paul Haas, robustly greeted by Friedman Moon Juice Founder Amanda Chantal Bacon, designers Birgit Klein and Martyn Lawrence Bullard, investor extraordinaire Sean Hecht – the curated guest list promises to send word of RH’s Montecito unveiling to the four corners of the locally enchanted forest, tonight’s swinging event happily benefitting The Montecito Firefighters’ Charitable Foundation.
Through it all, our Gwyneth circulates with that inimitable cool that has been her embraceable aura since around the time of Shakespeare in Love (don’t get me started), her expression tonight – as always – on the cusp of frank amusement. When Mr. Friedman shows up, the seas – to his great credit – do not part. A soft-spoken and knowledgeable member of the RH team had earlier in the evening fielded a few of Judie’s and my questions about the magnetically simple furnishings in one of the Gallery’s appointed rooms. Oh, and what sort of Titan is Mr. Friedman? we’d dared inquire.
“When he talks to you, it isn’t show. You have his complete attention! He engages, and it’s real. I’ve never worked for anyone like him.” The guy’s tone of wonder says a lot about the corporate template RH and Friedman have been smashing with aplomb for some time now.
Friedman is RH’s near-legendary CEO. He has planted these Galleries all over the world, and they range from Versailles-like style compounds to lightly gilded local majesty; our dear Old Firehouse, for instance. Tonight’s soirée is effectively Friedman’s Happening to command. But on arrival, he doesn’t swagger in ceremonially, neither does a hush befall the crowd. Friedman wades into the mix like someone’s dad on poker night, shaking hands all around, pointing at pals, laughing unguardedly. Yeah, he is in head-to-toe black.
“What is that?”
Look, thousands of millions of years ago (bear with me) our home planet was a dumb hot rock – covered with raging, lifeless seas but otherwise not a particularly happening place. A bolt of lightning struck the heaving waters and in fairly short order we got Kate Hepburn, Poitier, Ella, Shakespeare, Cheever, Sinatra, Dionne Warwick, and shortbread cookies. What looks like a miracle is hardworking and fantastically implausible chemistry, slapped into wakefulness by a spark. So it is with a “company,” which is someone’s brainstorm made flesh
through intensely fussy administrative hoo-ha and nutty infusions of capital. For all that, the thing will be a moribund slab of potential until visited by a lightning strike. In the corporate realm these lightning strikes are people. Here’s one named Gary Friedman.
Few, if any, American companies have been blessed with so apt a signifier as the “Restoration” in Restoration Hardware. This is thanks to Friedman, whose fearless restorative intuitions turned a querulous home furnishings company into an experiential global empire of luxury lifestyle fun. As is often the case, this storied corporate resuscitation was routinely blasted by the sage advisory blowback we’ll call “conventional corporate wisdom.”
In this piece I’ll forgo Mr. Friedman’s deep biographical details, which are so “come from behind” fantastical if you typed them into a screenplay, you would be considered a Frank Capraadoring hack.
So let’s start with Friedman’s alighting at the gates of Restoration Hardware – at the time of his entry some 23 years ago a four-alarm fire whose stock had plummeted 96%. Restoration Hardware at that time had been intermingling decorative domestic hardware and handsome furnishings with such whimsical, irony-seeking curiosa as the
Acme Dog Biscuit Mix and Atomic Robot Man toy. It may not be an overstatement to say that Friedman was aghast on arrival. There are stories of the newly-installed CEO walking through one of their stores circa 2001, pointing at the merch and asking a clerk “What is that?” – and not rhetorically (it was an Aqua–Troll Sprinkler). Friedman had his work cut out for him.
The New Old Firehouse
By the by, Friedman “restored” the place into RH, a cozily-lustrous lifestyle Gallery aglow with real stuff for the discriminating seeker of design simplicity in home goods. RH’s cornucopia of stylish and popular offerings grew so vast that only ~10% of what they carried could even be categorically repped on their collective brick+mortar sales floor. What to do? Expand and reinvent the sales floor. Lavishly.
It took some time, but now that eagle has not only landed in the middle of our enchanted village; RH Montecito – The Gallery at the Old Firehouse has pointedly adopted our village vibe. On Saturday the 14th the giant Seussian scissors came out and a ribbon was cut. RH Montecito is open for business. But, um… is it a place to find that perfect floor lamp and Italian Swivel Chair combo? A place to ruminatively roam lush gardens in sun-drenched midday quietude? Or is it a place to relax over a stupendous two Martini lunch by crackling fireplace? Yup.
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
Gary Friedman, Paul Haas. Sometimes it is polite to point. (photo by Steve Lucero/BFA.com)
Man of the Hour with the evening’s beneficiaries (photo by Steve Lucero/BFA.com)
Kyle Amundsen
After attending Art Center College of Design Kyle pursued a career in design and advertising that lead him to work at John Moran Auctioneers for 15 years. It was here he became fascinated with American & California Impressionist art, fine jewelry and diamonds. For the last 15 years Kyle has owned a company in Pasadena brokering estate jewelry, fine art, buying and selling diamonds & cutting diamonds.
Hana Goble Hana attended Gemological Institute of America after graduating from UC Riverside and has been passionate about antique jewelry for over a decade. Her deep interest in the history and craftsmanship of fine jewelry led her to work as a traveling buyer for a prominent estate jeweler, specializing in old-cut diamonds and signed pieces. She especially enjoys researching hallmarks and uncovering the history behind jewelry she encounters.
Michael Merritt
Mike is the owner of this company and host of the event. He has 36 years of experience in buying and selling new and vintage jewelry, wrist watches, pocket watches, currency and silver. Mike personally takes almost every call for the appointments and will be happy to answer all of your questions about the process and about what items are purchased.
Alan Bedwell Alan grew up working in the family jewelry business in London. That store is still located in the prestigious Gray Antique Market today. It was here that Alan learned the trade of fine English and American silver, signed European vintage jewelry and swiss watches. For the last 18 years Alan has been living in New York City and owns a business curating special pieces for stores all across the country.
Your Westmont
Alum Gives Cyber-Blocking Gifts
by Scott Craig, photos by Brad Elliott
Christmas came early for area law enforcement agencies who received Mission Darkness Faraday bags, tents, and lockers that block radio waves, including cell phone signals. Westmont alumnus Ryan Judy (‘08), MOS Equipment founder, hosted the second annual giveaway luncheon December 11th for dozens of members of the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office, Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, Santa Maria Police Department, Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office and the San Luis Obispo District Attorney’s Office Bureau of Investigations.
“These products block signals for mobile devices under investigation, seized from criminals, transported, brought to an office and then subsequently investigated. And you all do that,” Judy said.
He pointed out that earlier in the day on national news, investigators reported the suspected killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson had used a Faraday bag to avoid cell phone detection as he fled New York. “If anybody didn’t know about Faraday bags, a lot of people now are finding out,” he said. At the event, two agencies walked away with Faraday tents, valued at $25,000, that allow investigators to move more freely in a protected area. “You can investigate mobile devices, have them sitting under password-cracking operation extractions, and not worry that signals are going through and corrupting
the evidence,” he said.
Judy described the CyberCylent Faraday Tent with a vestibule doorway he was giving away, which allows investigators to go in and out, closing one door while opening the other, while blocking cell signals. “It’s like a spaceship air lock. It’s pretty cool,” he said.
Judy thanked the agencies, saying he appreciated the feedback he received from the devices he gave away last year.
“We like to do this,” Judy said. “It’s an opportunity for us to spread holiday cheer and give away products to our local agencies that support our safety and our security. Thank you all for doing that. That means everything to us.”
Star Party Features Saturn, Jupiter
Westmont’s final monthly stargazing event of 2024 features our solar system’s two gas giants, as well as Orion, the Owl Cluster, and the Andromeda galaxy – on
Friday, December 20, at 6:30 pm and lasting several hours at the Westmont Observatory. Along with the college’s powerful Keck Telescope, members of the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit bring their telescopes to share with the public.
“Saturn and Jupiter will open the evening with Orion rising later,” says Jen Ito, assistant professor of physics. “My favorite, the Owl Cluster, will be high in the sky, as well as the Andromeda galaxy, which is our closest neighboring spiral galaxy at 2.5 million light-years away. It will be a beautifully dark night sky as the moon is not going to rise until past 10 pm.”
Free parking is available near the Westmont Observatory, which is between the baseball field and the track and field/ soccer complex. To enter Westmont’s campus, please use the Main Entrance off of La Paz Road. The lower entrance off Cold Spring Road is closed to visitors after 7 pm.
In case of overcast weather, please call the Telescope Viewing Hotline at (805) 565-6272 and check the observatory website to see if the viewing has been canceled.
Tine Hardeman to be Honored
Westmont honored alumnus Tine Hardeman (‘55) – who died Dec. 2 at age 92 – prior to the women’s basketball game against Azusa Pacific University on Dec. 14 in Murchison Gym.
Hardeman’s son, T.J. (’78), who coaches APU’s women’s team, and several family members were in attendance for the brief ceremony. Several of Tine’s children and grandchildren also attended Westmont and at least six Hardemans have played on Westmont men’s and women’s basketball teams.
Tine retired in Santa Barbara and over the last few years Westmont fans have become accustomed to seeing him at
basketball games sitting in the front row behind the scorer’s table.
As a player, Tine set the Westmont single-game scoring record of 46 points against Chapman his senior year. His 624 points during the 1954-55 season ranks sixth in the Westmont record book and his 24.0 points per game is the second most by a Warrior in a single season. He was inducted into the Westmont Athletics Hall of Fame in October 2010.
Hardeman served as a missionary in the Philippines for more than 50 years after his graduation from Westmont. On furlough from his missionary work during the 1974-75 basketball season, Hardeman served as Westmont men’s basketball interim head coach.
In the games that followed, the women (4-5, 1-2 PacWest) fell to No. 11 APU 72-65. The men (4-6, 2-1 PacWest) beat APU 72-57, the Warriors’ first win over the Cougars since 2006.
Judy speaks with Sheriff’s Detective R. Miller and Sergeant J. McDonald about the Faraday tent
The legendary Tine Hardeman (circa 1955 courtesy Westmont College Archives)
Judy says he hopes the giveaway supports our safety and security
The Westmont Observatory opens to the public Dec. 20.
The Hardeman family
Robert’s Big Questions
Medical Insurance Violence?
by Robert Bernstein
The recent murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson raises several Big Questions.
Under his leadership, UnitedHealthcare’s profits increased from $12 billion in 2021 to $16 billion in 2023. At the time of his death, the company was the largest health insurer in the United States.
One way their profits soared? Denial of payment for lack of “prior authorization.” Before he became CEO in 2021 the denial rate was 9%. By 2022 it was 23%.
Here are some interesting quotes from a New York Times opinion piece by Zeynep Tufekci. “I’ve been studying social media for a long time, and I can’t think of any other incident when a murder in this country has been so openly celebrated.”
“The vast inequities of the [late 19th century Gilded Age] fueled political movements that targeted corporate titans, politicians, judges and others for violence.” “The turbulence and violence of the Gilded Age eventually gave way to comprehensive social reform.”
“The concentration of extreme wealth in the United States has recently surpassed that of the Gilded Age. And the will among politicians to push for broad public solutions appears to have all but vanished.”
There has been an outpouring of human stories of suffering and death as a result of the denials of payment by UnitedHealthcare under Thompson. There have also already been some consequences. In the immediate wake of Thompson’s murder, Blue Cross Blue Shield canceled a plan to stop covering the cost of anesthesia for longer surgeries.
President Kennedy once famously said, “Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.”
Emergency physician Dr. Helen Ouyang described a case in another New York Times piece. She faced a patient in a “dire state” in the emergency room. “After a pause, he beckoned me closer. His forehead furrowed with concern. I thought he would ask if he was going to be OK or if he needed surgery –questions I’m comfortable fielding. But instead he asked, ‘Will my insurance cover my stay?’” It did not end well. When I told my wife about the glee over the killing of Thompson, she said many of those celebrating probably voted for Trump. And that is the problem. It is good to see the anger and outrage over the horrors, indignities, injustice and pure violence of the U.S. healthcare non-system. No other indus-
trialized country allows its people to die for lack of medical treatment.
But the anger means nothing if it is not directed to political change. When Medicare was proposed in the 1960s, Reagan famously recorded a message for the American Medical Association warning that Medicare would lead to the U.S. becoming like the Soviet Union. As with most Reagan statements, it was full of completely madeup stories that never happened.
The American Medical Association and the Republican Party have opposed almost every attempt to bring universal healthcare to the American people. Far too many healthcare providers place their personal profits ahead of their patients. Do I applaud the murder of Thompson? That is the wrong question. Physicians for a National Health Program recently estimated that 44,789 Americans of working age die each year because they lack health insurance. Every one of those people had a life. They had family, friends and were part of their community. But they die anonymously instead of on a security camera video as Thompson died. Are they any less dead? Is their death any less violent?
How will this change? When the American people support organizations and candidates who call for universal health care.
Watch Michael Moore’s 2007 film Sicko if you haven’t yet. It shows the horrors of the U.S. healthcare non-system. In every case, the patient had insurance. Former Cigna Vice President Wendell Potter resigned in 2008 shortly after the death of Nataline Sarkisyan. Sarkisyan died after repeatedly being refused a liver transplant by Cigna. Potter is now an outspoken advocate for true universal healthcare in the U.S. Insurance companies deny care while wasting billions in bureaucracy and profits that could go for care. Medicare for All or socialized medicine would eliminate this useless industry. Saving lives and money. Other countries have done this. Why can’t we?
Can we finally put an end to medical insurance violence?
Robert Bernstein holds degrees from Physics departments of MIT and UCSB. His passion to understand the Big Questions of life, the universe and to be a good citizen of the planet. Visit facebook. com/questionbig
guests. “I like touching the tables,” Ebbink shared. “I like meeting all the guests.” It’s easy to pick him out from the crowd – he’s the one gliding from table to table, chatting with diners and occasionally taking a break to watch the proceedings, unassumingly, from a discreet corner.
Upon ordering our food, the waiter told us the dishes were shared style (sometimes known as “family style”).
On Boudet’s choice to do shareable dishes, he said he’s “a big believer” in shared food and that it “creates a much more enjoyable atmosphere for our guests.”
We ordered French Fries, Crab Cakes with Creole Remoulade, and Chicken Gyro. For our main dishes, we tried the Halibut Almondine and the Santa Barbara Sea Urchin Spaghetti. For dessert, we ordered the Apple Fritters. Like others on the menu, this sweet treat is the work of pastry chef Ann Kirk, who also serves at Ebbink and Boudet’s other establishments. While we didn’t order the Steak au Poivre and Frites, which I regret, it’s definitely the fan favorite. Ebbink says that they sell almost 40 of them a night. “It’s bananas.”
Recognizing that Oliver’s had retained loyal customers over the years, Warner and Ebbink also wanted to offer vegan menu options at Bar Lou, such as the Smashed Chickpea Toast on Charcoal Sourdough and the Fried Zucchini Blossoms with Anchoïade sauce.
Quality is paramount to Boudet and Ebbink, so they source ingredients locally whenever possible. “For us at all the restaurants, it’s about using the best quality ingredients we can put on that plate,” says Ebbink. Their attention to detail and quality is certainly not lost on me as I taste the buttery halibut and the crispy crab cakes.
While just opening, they’re already looking to expand their hours. In the new year, they plan to offer lunch seven days a week and weekend
brunch. The menu will include classic French-inspired sandwiches and salads, such as a Niçoise Salad and a Jamón Baguette with Bordier Butter. For brunch, diners can expect a French Omelet, Spanish French Toast, Kuku Sabzi, and French Cruller. They are also planning to offer a traditional New Orleans lunch on Fridays.
Ebbink and Chef Boudet want Bar Lou to be a gathering spot for all purposes. Whether you’re looking for a place you can go for a special occasion or a casual night out, they hope Bar Lou comes to mind. “I want this place to be an easy, accessible place for everyone in the community,” shared Ebbink.
Tiana Molony is a journalist who writes for the Montecito Journal Media Group, LLC. She has also written for Backpacker Magazine, Mountain Gazette, and the Santa Barbara Independent.
Tomato, Avocado, and Cucumber Salad (courtesy photo)
Take a seat at Bar Lou (courtesy photo)
Travel Buzz
Oceanside or O’side
Upscale Mexican Food at Michelin
Star-rated Valle Is a Star Attraction
by Leslie A. Westbrook
The last time I visited Oceanside, in northern San Diego County, was a decade ago. There was a lively restaurant, The Flying Pig Pub and Kitchen, which survived COVID (that I did not revisit this time) and a lone little Victorian cottage, the “Graves House” sitting in an empty, weedy beachfront field.
More popularly known as the “Top Gun House” – due to its appearance in the 1986 Tom Cruise flick – the 1887 bungalow has been restored and sells fresh fruit hand-pies. It is now surrounded by a seven-story, hip Hyatt hotel property called Mission Pacific Beach Resort.
The interior design mixes corporate and trendy: in the lobby, a stack of books on a large wooden table includes a Jean-Michel Basquiat tome, and midcentury-style
ceramics adorn the shelves. I learned that the three-year-old high rise began life as a Joie De Vivre hotel – hence the mod design. The company was bought out by Hyatt and are now branded as JdV by Hyatt. The hotel was recently voted the No. 1 Resort Hotel in the U.S. and California by Travel + Leisure World’s Best Awards 2024 (best in San Diego and the U.S.).
Some rooms have soaking tubs and ocean views. Ocean view suites – some with kitchens – have names, like “Bohemian.”
The small but interesting menu impressed at The Rooftop, the hotel’s surprisingly scenic rooftop bar and restaurant. While watching surfers and a show of military helicopters (I assume on training missions), we indulged in delicious pork wings, flavorful king mushroom skewers with tahini marinade. Grilled and marinated pulpo is served with house chorizo and fennel on a bed of white polenta. All washed down nicely with a Paso Robles red blend and a crisp albariño.
If upscale Mexican food is your thing, get down to O’side. The hotel also houses Chef Roberto Alcocer’s fine dining restaurant, Valle. Billed as a “tasting experience” from Baja Mexico’s Valle de Guadalupe, Valle earned a Michelin star soon after it opened in 2021. It is Oceanside’s only Michelin star-rated restaurant, though there is one “notable” – Dija Mara. Chef Alcocer also owns the highly-rated Malva restaurant in Valle de Guadalupe, not far from Ensenada, where he grew up.
Chef Alcocer’s restaurant in the hotel is one of my top SoCal dining experiences in recent memory – from the ambience and service to the incredible nine-course symphonic tasting menu (begins at $150/per person) that kicked off with Alcocer’s take on Mexican botanas (snacks), then crescendo’ed with a charred onion tart topped with Sterling supreme caviar before exploding with flavors that burst on the palate
SUNDAY THRU THURSDAY AM - PM 7:0010:00 FRIDAY AND SATURDAY AM7:0012:00AM
SUNDAY THRU THURSDAY 7:30 AM - 10:00 PM FRIDAY AND SATURDAY 7:30 AM - 12:00 PM
The many boards filling the California Surf Museum (photo by Leslie A. Westbrook)
The colorful library at Mission Pacific Beach Resort (photo by Leslie A. Westbrook)
from the “Chayote, Ike Jime” – leche de tigre marinade of rock cod with olive oil pearls. That was just starters! Ingredients in the beautifully crafted dishes, served in lovely handmade Mexican pottery, include herbs like epazote, tiny cilantro blossoms, blue and yellow corn, and local bass that is aged onsite. An outta sight corn masa tamale was wrapped in hoja santa leaf. Zucchini-wrapped asparagus, a filling sweetbread taco and more continued to wow. Two “main course” choices on the summer menu were conejo (rabbit) or a Wagyu carne asada (additional charge). We wisely chose the conejo with huitlacoche (a fave – the mold from corn) and a 25-ingredient mole accompanied by a lovely stuffed squash blossom fried in rice flower. The food is the star at this restaurant – but the sultry dining room, playlist (great Latin music and jazz) and superb service by a rotating knowledgeable staff dressed in all black, make Valle a foodie destination worth the drive and the dollars. The Mar y Terra (sea and earth) tasting menu is worth the $185/pp. Wine pairing is additional.
Breakfast at the resort’s oceanfront High/Low is a collaboration with California native Tara Lazar (creator of several Coachella Valley hotspots). Arrive early, as the place hops with both hotel guests and locals.
What to Do in Oceanside
Once upon a time, Oceanside was a bit rough and tumble, better known as a military town due to Camp Pendleton and as an inexpensive summer beachside vacation destination for those fleeing the heat of the Inland Empire.
Stroll the waterfront that’s Mission Pacific Hotel Resort adjacent. The historic Oceanside pier recently suffered from a fire at the far end – but was 3/4 walkable during my visit.
I’m a fan of the contemporary Oceanside Museum of Art that also curated the wide-ranging contemporary art at the hotel (and sister hotel next door). Check out the very cool California Surf Museum filled with surfboards and a popular special exhibit showing a Bethany Hamilton documentary – she’s the Kauai surfer who lost her arm to a shark attack. What’s left of her actual surfboard is on display.
Surf shops, craft beer joints and even vestiges of earlier times like cool architectural historic spots include the 1956 marquee of the Star Theatre, Handel’s homemade ice cream shop (open since 1945) and, a rarity these days, a store that sells used military apparel and collectibles – including WWI trench art.
It’s pretty cool to see the corporate hotel world digging into local culture and reflecting our beloved SoCal lifestyle for visitors and natives alike.
Today, little O’side seems to have joined the string of California beach towns moving more and more towards gentrification, which I’ll leave for old timers and visitors to hash out and decide if the changes are for better… or worse.
Details
Getting There: Oceanside is about a 3.5-hour drive from Santa Barbara, but you can also take Amtrak which drops you just a few blocks from beachfront hotels and other attractions.
Where to Stay: Mission Pacific Hotel Resort – 161 spacious rooms and suites with ocean, partial ocean and city views start from $349; suites starting from $449. There’s also an Ocean View Sanctuary Suite, Ethereal Suite, Bohemian Suite with kitchenette, and Dreamscape Suite. MP hotel guests can walk across the street to sister hotel Seabird and check out the restaurants, spa and art gallery. www.missionpacifichotel.com www.seabirdhotel.com
Leslie A. Westbrook is a Lowell Thomas Award-winning travel writer and journalist who loves exploring the globe. A 3rd generation Californian., Leslie also assists clients sell fine art, antiques, and collectibles via auction. www.auctionliaison.com
The “Top Gun House” now sells fruit pies… apparently no Goose pies… (photo by Douglas Freidman)
One of the tasty dishes from the Michelin-rated Valle restaurant (photo by Leslie A. Westbrook)
by Zach Rosen
he holiday cards are (hopefully) in the mail and the easy gifts have been checked off, wrapped, and lovingly crammed under the tree. But what to do about those harder-to-gift people in your life? Well, here are some options. Happy hunting.
Books are the gift that keeps giving. A literary favorite can be read until the pages wear as thin as the tissue paper the typographical gift was wrapped in. And really, is there anything more quaint than the community bookstore? Neatly piled stacks of books where an aged staff sits quietly behind a counter. Occasionally a neighborhood author will come by in the evening and read to a beleaguered audience with juice and cookies sitting on a table nearby. Well, Chaucer’s may be the community bookstore, but it is hardly considered quaint as its over 150,000 titles can attest. Both local and
international authors have come in to host readings and signings at this Upper State store. They offer unparalleled customer service with a friendly staff that will help guide you through the rows of tomes, or can order any books that may unexpectedly not appear on their bustling shelves. Chaucer’s is a true gem of the community and beloved by all who visit it. It’s more than just books. And puzzles. And games. And gifts. It’s community. And it’s this all-encompassing quality that has kept this local mainstay around for over 50 years.
The Furniture Gallery by Mattress Mike is not one of those bait-and-switch outfits. You won’t walk into a discouraging, sloppily assembled little shop with a couple easy chairs and a crooked-looking armoire. This place is indeed a Furniture Gallery with a 55,000 square foot showroom. The scale is what hits you first. Actually, what hits you first is a greeter, right inside the entry. Human, not algorithmic. Can you believe it? “Oh yeah, okay; I get it. That’s where the hard-selling starts, huh?” Easy there, understandably jaded shopper. The greeter just wants to say “hi,” with meaning! This is just the first of The Furniture Gallery by Mattress Mike’s pleasant surprises. The second, as I was saying before rudely interrupting myself, is the scale of the place. You half expect to see the Space Shuttle parked in a discreet section of the store. The place is like a NASA hangar, but tastefully appointed with … um … just about anything you can imagine in the “furniture” realm, and repped by that full array of recognizably rock-solid brands that meet you at every price point without sacrificing a whit of quality. What follows is a sentence fragment. Mattresses, bookcases, ottomans, recliners, sofas, dining room tables, hutches, media consoles, ceiling lights, nightstands, loveseats, bar stools, and a
Photo: David Kafer
partridge in a pear tree – this is but a fraction of what you will find there. General Manager and COO Garret Gustason roams “the floor” like a knowledgeable friend and loves puncturing the wary customer’s fear of a hovering salesperson. “It’s my favorite thing,” Garret says, “when I walk up to a customer and their guard’s up. I say, ‘…if you have any questions, grab me.’ The moment I actually step away, they go, ‘um…wait a minute…!’ I love that moment.”
Alright, we’ve got the ottoman for Papa Joe from Mattress Mike but we’re still looking for the vintage Victorian trinket box for Aunt Sue, some white gold jewelry for Cousin Jess, and I don’t know what for her brother, “Mr. Hard-to-Buy-for” Jeff. Well, don’t move the car because Miss Daisy’s Consignment and Auction House is right next door to The Furniture Gallery and is a one stop shop for all and any of those unique pieces you need.
What started off as a foray into senior downsizing and relocation, has led to a bustling consignment business, auction house, and occasional event center that revolves around this near dizzying array of furniture, houseware, textiles, lighting, and oh so
SALT
much more. Started by Glenn Novack in 2016, Miss Daisy’s later joined forces with Mattress Mike to create a unique blend of new and consignment offerings under one massive, massive roof.
“Oh no, grandma, not another t-shirt…” It’s something that no gifting grandparent wants to hear. Well, up-level your garment giving to that precocious (and rather ungrateful) 30-something with Esbee Montecito. This homespun clothing company weaves together Supima cotton with Montecito style in a series of men’s clothes that fits the yearround beach weather. The range of crew and long sleeve shirts and sweaters come in such aptly named colors as “Mesa Fog” gray or “Olive Mill” green. With a selection of hats to boot, Esbee can bring garmented glee in a gift. Esbee is available online or they hand deliver the same day to local Santa Barbara residents, stores, and hotel guests. It’s
the kind of casual-but-luxury company that suits Montecito and will have those whipper-snappers jumping with joy atop the wrapping paper and proclaiming it’s their new favorite shirt, squealing, “It’s perfect!” As Esbee puts it themselves: “We’re chasing perfection, not trends.”
Picture it. You’re at the new art opening. A mysterious person enters, framed in light as the cold, dark night whips around them in the doorway. With a flick of the wrist, they snap off their shades as their eyes pierce the room around them. “Why are they wearing sunglasses at night?” You may ask. It doesn’t matter. They are the master of the room.
Or maybe you’re driving along CVR in the newest model of your favorite car. At the stop sign you look over to see a group of teens donning some rad patterns and the most modern parachute pants you’ve ever seen. Slowly, the group lowers their hip specs in perfect synchronicity to gaze at your ride in awe.
Or maybe you’re just a bespectacled scientist looking warily over the rim of your glasses – you see it clearly now… the answer that will remedy the world’s imminent end is right there on the screen.
You think that it’s the person making these iconic moments possible? No, it’s glasses that are the real heroes here. And without this crucial accessory, none of these scenes would look right.
Holidays Page 364
Miss Daisy’s
Esbee Montecito
Chaucer's Books
Readings!
Well, see. This is where SALT Optics comes in play. This premium eyewear company makes art for the eyes and a great gift for the classy, cool persons (or budding scientist) in your life. The proprietary lenses use optical-grade glass, CR-39 materials, and Japanese polarizing technology, which are then wrapped in frames made with acetate from Takiron Rowland, a century-old Japanese factory. From aviators to rounds, these shades come in all of the shapes and hues to ensure one looks Top Gun cool at any time and place.
The rolling hills of Tuscany… an ancient tale about star-crossed lovers… the heart-broken maiden whose tears fill a grotto which trickles into the roots of a grove of enchanted olive trees on the ruins of a 10th-century castle. With each harvest, the tearsoaked fruits’ first pressings bring forth the liquid gold that has been nourishing civilizations for millennia. It’s the kind of story that should be made into a movie.
Well, Robert Zemeckis knows a thing or two about that. And he actually knows a bit about olive oil as well. The legendary filmmaker and Montecito local, captures this golden tale in each bottle of his Z Family Grotto Olive Oil – made from the olive trees of those very storied Tuscan hills. Whether a cinephile, an epicurean, or both, a bottle of this Extra Virgin Olive Oil can make a perfect gift from the Zemeckis family to yours. An autographed bottle is even available by request. As ole Robert puts it: “The first press of olive oil is like great cinema; it transcends.”
The holidays are often a time of travel. Whether it is jumping in the car to go see the in-laws or hopping on a plane with the whole family to head off to some
Z Family Grotto
SBTV
international destination – the winter break often offers a chance to leave the comfort of one’s home and enter the exhilarating, life-changing process known as “travel.” Some people like gifts, other people live for this simple T-word that can be packed with so much adventure. Just take it from local travel guru himself, Rick Steves. In fact, on Friday, February 21, 2025, at the Arlington, you will be able to take a lot more than just that from the beloved host of the wayfaring show, Travel with Rick Steves
Hosted by TV Santa Barbara, this evening will not only feature Rick’s stories on the joys of international travel – the gathering will also second as a 50th anniversary celebration of TVSB. Pick up a pair of tickets as a gift for your favorite travel buddy. It can be a fitting follow up after the holiday travels, or a way to live vicariously through the stories of this galivanting globetrotter.
Phew… okay it’s done… the holiday shopping is complete. The kids have been pacified with eggnog, cookies, and threats about the Naughty List. You’ve put Santa’s simple double-checking to shame as you’ve spreadsheeted, cross-referenced, and plotted the family tree with the perfect gifts for each limb (honestly, that portly amateur could learn a thing or two from you). That’s it – it’s time for a drink.
Fortunately, San Ysidro Ranch has you covered. So pull up to The Ranch and stroll past the 60,000 twinkling lights to The Speakeasy at Plow & Angel – where the space has been decked out with over 2,500 ornaments and a festive drink list to top it off. It’s the kind of festive spectacle that landed San Ysidro Ranch on Condé Nast Traveler’s Gold List for 2025. Relax in the embrace of a Spiced Old Fashioned while surrounded by the relaxing roar of a fire and the hum of musicians in holiday attire. The Grinch can wash away any holiday worries with its wisps of mint, cacao, and coconut adorned by a candy cane topper. Yes, sit back with an SYR Eggnog. Soak in the enchanting ambiance of The Speakeasy and take a deep breath. The holidays are about to happen.
San Ysidro Ranch
Relax, and take a sip at SYR. The holidays are just beginning. (courtesy photo)
Zach Rosen is the Managing Editor of the Montecito Journal. He also enjoys working with beer, art, and life.
Apple Strudel & Kringles Hand-decorated Holiday Cookies Authentic Danishes Yule Log & Apple Pie
Cakes
It’s not to early to reserve
Holiday Magic Car Parade
Montecito Association Hosts 4th Annual Parade of Lights, Cars, and Holiday Spirit
story and
photos
by Joanne A Calitri
The Montecito Association’s 4th Annual Holiday Car Parade took place on Saturday, December 14 at 5pm. The celebration started at 3 pm in the Upper Village with a Sip ‘n’ Shop and live music by Maitland Ward
Signing up to be in the parade this year were Lt. Butch Arnoldi and Lt. Rich Brittingham, SBC Sheriff’s Office; Montecito Fire Chief David Neels and the Montecito Firefighters; MA Executive Director Houghton Hyatt with her family; Jason Copus for SB Search & Rescue; Montecito Union School kids and families on a bus with Superintendent Anthony Ranii; Cold Spring School kids and families with Superintendent/Principal Amy Alzina; the Rosewood Miramar Beach with two trolleys; John Weigold for the Montecito Sanitary District; Kelly Hatchett for Friends of the Montecito Library; Laura Camp and Nick Turner for the Montecito Water District; SB City College’s Jordan Killebrew and Trustee Dr. Charlotte Gullap-Moore; Montecito Bank and Trust; Mike Bishop with First District incoming SBC Board of Supervisors Roy Lee and Laura Capps; Maddie Haurin for Post Alarm Systems; Dana and Andrea Newquist; Dolores Gillmore, Hayley Carty, Dave Williams, Bob Patterson, Sharon Bradford, Richard Krusky, Megan Orloff, Monte Wilson, Leslie Zemeckis, and of course, Santa Claus.
The Holiday Car Parade Committee was Houghton Hyatt, Megan Orloff, Mindy Denson, and Dana & Andrea Newquist
Hyatt added, “We’re thrilled to announce that this parade features more vehicles than ever before, and the excitement is electric! Among the highlights were some amazing vintage cars and a beautifully restored 1937 Fire Truck carrying the Hands Across Montecito team, along with our heroic Montecito Firefighters and Search and Rescue crew. Both Montecito Union and Cold Spring schools also joined in the fun, spreading holiday cheer. We’re honored to have in the parade this year incoming first District Supervisor Roy Lee, and riding with him Laura Capps. Thank you to our sponsors, Noozhawk, Montecito Bank & Trust, Valley Improvement, Montecito Fire Protection District, Santa Barbara County Sheriffs, Santa Barbara County Search & Rescue, Montecito Sanitary District, Rosewood Miramar, Ca’Dario Restaurant, Riskin Partners, Sharon Bradford, Robert Pavloff, Sybil Rosen, Megan Orloff, Dana & Andrea Newquist, Kathryn Washburn, Penelope Bianchi, and Jan & Rock Rockenbach.”
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Revels peripheral events during the year, but also hosted the recent Pub Sing at the Deep Sea tasting room.
“I drink the Kool-Aid,” said the winemaker. “I’m super into it.”
The Ghosts of Haddon Hall performs December 21-22 at the Lobero Theatre. Call (805) 963-0761 or visit www.lobero.org
Spam a lot: Huerta Hams it up with ‘Peter Pan’ Spoof
If Monty Python’s Eric Idle could spoof the Legend of King Arthur with the sweet-and-starchy-ground-pork-and-ham product in Spamalot back in 2004, another expat Brit should be able to do the same for the story of the boy who never grew up. Indeed, it was less than two years later that longtime Santa Barbara theater pro and educator Emma-Jane Huerta created Peter Spam for Upstarts Youth Theatre, among many original works for the children’s theater school she ran for 20 years.
“Spam and ketchup sandwiches – which are a big thing in England – is a theme running through the play, a kind of magic of Neverland,” she explained. “Everyone in the story loves them.”
But lampooning the classic J. M. Barrie tale with the laughable luncheon meat isn’t the only twist for Huerta’s play, a revival for her brand new Kerfuffle Theatre Company. She’s also cast every role – Peter, Wendy, Tinkerbell (here Stinkerbell), Nana the dog, and even the crocodile – with full-fledged adults.
“I never wrote my plays specifically for kids,” she explained. “I wrote them for the theater, and it just happened to be a youth theater that did them. I always treated the kids as adults, so now I’m treating the adults as kids.”
The show features Santa Barbara theater stalwarts Ed Lee as Peter Spam and Tiffany Story as Stinkerbell, along with a dozen other actors portraying all the characters in the family-friendly piece.
“Ed’s got some gray hair, which is great, because it makes so much sense for the story of the little boy who doesn’t want to grow up,” Huerta said.
Peter Spam features fantastic puppets and a big Bollywood number that opens the show – but eschews both Barrie’s retrograde native Americans, and the original’s mermaids.
“I am very much drawn to spectacle, giant theater, street theater – the pantomime style as we call it in England,” she said. “I have giant things in the play. Everything’s big. Big actors, big clocks for the crocodile, who carries it as an accessory.”
Availability at Center Stage Theater had a lot to do with slotting Peter Spam to run December 28–31, during the lull between Christmas and New Year, but Huerta said the timing works well for a spoof with family appeal and to launch Kerfuffle.
“That word is such an accurate description of what it’s like to put a play on. It’s one big unholy mess. People fighting and struggling and then you come out with these magical results. A big, chaotic mess ends up as wonderful art.”
Going Greene with the Blue
If all you want for Christmas is some tasty blues rock with teeth, look no further than SOhO on Friday night, December 20. That’s when the veteran guitarist-sing-
er-songwriter Alastair Greene will be throwing down at his old stomping grounds, taking to the stage in a reunion with his longtime SoCal based band mates Jim Rankin on bass and Austin Beede on drums.
Seeing Greene gigging around town used to be easy, as the Santa Barbara native honed his chops over many years performing in bars and clubs, including Whiskey Richards, The Brewhouse, the James Joyce pub, Figueroa Mountain Brewing Company and the like. Even during the seven years he served as the guitarist in Alan Parsons band, Greene would get himself over to one of his regular haunts whenever the world-touring band got home.
But three years ago, Greene left our seaside city behind to head off to Texas, the land that gave us ZZ Top, Johnny Winter, Stevie Ray Vaughan and so many other blues-rock greats. The man with the black hat perched atop his long, wavy, jet-black hair is now shredding on the guitar with Austin as his home base.
Q. What possessed you to move to Austin after spending nearly your whole life in Santa Barbara?
A. Southern California is beautiful, and I’ve still got family and friends here. But I tell you one thing, man, the price of gas in Texas, it’s a lot different than Santa Barbara! Austin is the live music capital of the world. But it’s also a lot closer to where I need to be to tour, because most of the places to play are east of the Mississippi River. I didn’t want to have to drive three days to the first gig of a tour. I got to a point where it was like, man, I’m either serious about doing this, having a career where I get to play in front of a lot of people and make a real living, or I’m not.
Sounds like what you said when you decided to leave the Parsons band in 2017. Yeah, it was great, but I’d sort of reached whatever pinnacle of notoriety I was going to get as a (sideman) guitar player. But I wanted to be a solo artist, I need to get to doing that. I mean, I’d come home from playing stadiums in Europe and show up on a Wednesday at the Brewhouse doing acoustic blues and rock covers for 75 bucks and a hamburger while people watched the Dodgers game – just to be able to play.
So has the Texas Blues scene influenced you?
Absolutely. One of the jokes that I’ll make on stage is that I moved to Austin because I heard they needed another blues rock guitar player. On any given night of the week, you can catch so many great blues guitarists in town. If there’s something in the water here, I definitely want to take a swig and see what happens.
Your new album is called Standing Out Loud. Seems like you are making a statement. It’s a proclamation of claiming your life and what you want to do with it. Standing Out Loud is the first studio record I put out after I moved to Austin, so I definitely leaned more toward early seventies rock and roll, drawing more on my rock roots, ZZ Top and Zeppelin, and not steering so much to the blues side. It’s a matter of continuing to be true to myself as a musician, going with what I get the most enjoyment from, what I’m best at. I want to play to my strengths. For me, finding my voice in music is going to include more of my rock influence. I also did a lot of co-writing on this record, part of the evolution in experimenting.
How are you feeling about the SOhO show, especially in late December when a lot of old fans might be back in town?
I’m really excited. I hatched this scheme when I was making plans to come out here for the holidays to visit family and friends myself. I haven’t played a show with both Austin and Jim since 2018, and I invited Debbie Davies to play, and also my buddy Chris Chalk, who was the singer in (my early 1990s band) Scarecrow. We’re just going to celebrate, play some of my old tunes, and some covers from the old days. It’s going to be a great time.
Steven Libowitz has covered a plethora of topics for the Journal since 1997, and now leads our extensive arts and entertainment coverage
These adults don’t plan to grow up anytime soon (courtesy photo)
Santa Barbara native Alastair Greene swings by SOhO for one more show (photo by Nicola Gell)
Gee, director of college choral activities and director of the Santa Barbara Youth Orchestra, conducted the Westmont College Choir and the Chamber Singers. Always a glittering and festive occasion...
WEV-traordinary
“Extraordinary” was the theme at the Women’s Economic Ventures annual holiday appreciation fête for the League of
Extraordinary Women at the downtown eatery Gala.
Restaurateur Tara Penke, who catered my 71st birthday bash in July, and organization CEO Nicki Parr celebrated a year of impact for WEV – which has been supporting women in their pursuit of financial independence for more than 30 years.
The league, which has around 150 members, aims to boost the local economy through their entrepreneurial endeavors.
Supporting the cause were Susan Washing, Wendy Edmunds, Naomi Dewey , Simon Dixon , María Ballesteros-Sola, Andrew Winchester, and WEV’s founder Marsha Bailey
A Historical Holiday Soirée
Santa Barbara Historical Museum had more than 300 lunar-tics at the Members Holiday Soirée under a full moon, which also marked the opening of two new exhibitions: The Chair, featuring seating through the ages, and J. Walter Collinge, displaying the photographer’s images of our Eden by the Beach before and after the 1925 earthquake.
The exhibits run through April 20 and May 11.
Mayor Randy Rowse with hosts SBB President Kerry Methner, and SBB Board
Members Mark Whitehurst, Jo Ann Mermis, and SBB Secretary Jacqueline Dyson (photo by Priscilla)
Among the planetary throng were Marc Appleton, Betsy Atwater, Michael and Hattie Beresford , David and Sharon Bradford, Hilary Burkemper, Bill Burtness, Yvette Cabrera, Robert Adams, Nancy Caponi, Mary Collier, Joanne Funari, Rhonda Henderson,
Scott Burns, Carol Scott-Wathen, Robert Adams, Erin Caird, Pat Caird, and Mayor Randy Rowse (photo by Priscilla)
Dacia Harwood, Hilary Burkemper, Sharon Bradford, with Peggy and Mark Appleton (photo by Priscilla)
Martin and Gina Bell with Kerrie Smith (photo by Priscilla)
Dacia Harwood , Mary Heilmann , Karl and Nancy Hutterer, Richard and Amanda Payatt, Stephanie Petlow, and mayor Randy Rowse
A Beautiful Yuletide Voice
Social gridlock reigned when Santa Barbara Beautiful threw its annual Yuletide bash at the Voice Gallery in La Cumbre Plaza with 100 guests.
Since its founding in 1965 the organization has planted 13,000 trees in our Eden by the Beach as well as placing colorful murals in the Library Plaza and the area at the back of the Granada theater.
Pianist Konrad Kono played traditional fare while the beautiful crowds included MarkWhitehurst, Kerry Methner, Robert Adams, Nancy Caponi, Joan Rutkowski, Frank Tabar, John Whitehurst, Dean Noble, John Palminteri, Janice Ferrante, Eric Friedman, Penny Little, and Duke McPherson
CALM-ing Holiday Tea
Lobero Associates hosted its annual holiday tea at the University Club while collecting toys for CALM, which fights child abuse.
Westmont College Christmas Festival captivates (photo by Brad Elliott)
WEV Board members Junemarie Justus and Simon Dixon with CEO Nicki Parr (courtesy photo)
Tamara Honey, Nicki Parr, Emily Latour, and Barbara Edelston Peterson (courtesy photo)
Andria Cohen and Jonnie Williams (courtesy photo)
Mark Hamilton, Trace Robinson, Leslee Sipress, pianist Konrad Kono, and Robert Adams (photo by Priscilla)
Joan Rutkowski with publishers Mark Whitehurst and Kerry Methner (photo by Priscilla)
Whole Lotta Clappin’ Going On
Talk about the Fab Four!
The Tony Award-winning musical, Million Dollar Quartet staged by the Ensemble Theatre Company at the New Vic is set on December 4, 1956, when, in an extraordinary twist of fate, Elvis
Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins were brought together at Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee, for one of the greatest jam sessions ever.
The highly energized and hugely entertaining show brings that legendary night to life with its irresistible tale of broken promises, betrayal, secrets, and celebrations that is both poignant and funny.
The 100-minute show focuses on rock ‘n’ roll, gospel, R & B, and country hits performed onstage by talented actors and musicians, on a most impressive set – by Mike Billings – depicting an old auto garage, where the recording studio was located,
Under director Brian McDonald and music director David Lamoureux the actors – Blake Burgess as Johnny Cash, Ian Fairlee as Jerry Lee Lewis, Will Riddle as Carl Perkins, and Nicholas Voss as Elvis Presley with Andy Hoff as the record company’s founder, Jordan Lamoureux as Perkins’ brother, Janaya Mahealani Jones as Presley’s girlfriend, and Gus Graham as Fluke.
Hit songs included “Great Balls of Fire,” “Walk the Line,” “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Folsom Prison Blues,” “Fever,” “Hound Dog,” “See You Later Alligator,” and “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On.”
The show, which runs through Dec. 22 and has had two extra performances added because of demand, is really not be missed!
Local Neighbors Sing Carols
Santa Barbara warbler Katy Perry has revealed a secret Christmas tradition she and British actor fiancé Orlando Bloom share each year.
Katy, 40, was in London last week for the filming of a TV special Night of a Lifetime and told the audience of her Christmas Eve plans.
She revealed she dresses up as The Grinch and would be singing to her neighbors, including Prince Harry and his wife, former actress Meghan Markle, who live a tiara’s toss or two away.
“We rent a trolley and we dress up with lighting on the trolley and go around the neighborhood in my home town... We love caroling, and even knock on some people’s door and do some carols.”
I can’t wait...
Condolences to Conan
My condolences to Carpinteria TV host Conan O’Brien, 61, with the loss of both his father and mother within three days of each other.
His mom, Ruth Reardon O’Brien, died just 72 hours after his dad, Thomas O’Brien
The couple both passed away at their Brookline, Massachusetts, home. He on Dec. 9 at age 95 and Ruth on Dec. 12 at the age of 92.
They were married for 66 years.
Sightings
Gwyneth Paltrow at the opening of Restoration Hardware on East Valley Road... Kevin Costner at the Merry Miramar Christmas tree lighting party... Bo Derek and John Corbett at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival Kirk Douglas Award at the Ritz Carlton Bacara.
Pip! Pip!
Established in 1972, the associates have raised more than $1.5 million – purchasing a Steinway grand piano, updating the historic theater’s bathrooms and replacing the theater’s ancient curtain, and undertaking innumerable other tasks.
Paula Bottiani baked the delicious scones, complete with jam and cream, with other supporters including Brenda Blalock, Trish Davis, Stephanie Petlow, Denise Sanford, Karen Byers, Paige Beard, Charles and Barbara de L’Arbre, Regina Henderson, Leslie Haight, Lily Marx, Anne Towbes, and Carol Wathen.
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
visit our site at: www.williamdalziel.work idareproductions.com
Fredrik Rosvall entertained on the club’s grand piano.
Special Christmas delights by Stephanie Petlow, Paula Bottiani, and a delighted taster Paige Beard (photo by Priscilla)
LTA President Denise Sanford, Administrator Marianne Clark, Janet McCann, and Torben von Staden (photo by Priscilla)
Marianne Clarke, Sylvie Monsivais, Shelia Caldwell, and Brandon Mowery (photo by Priscilla)
What a rockin’ show (photo by Zach Mendez)
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Calendar of Events
by Steven Libowitz
ENDING THIS WEEK
Thanks a ‘Million’ – Jukebox musicals aren’t my favorite genre in theater, but even this crusty curmudgeon couldn’t resist the rockin’ appeal of Million Dollar Quartet, with its fearsome foursome of future rock and roll legends Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis forging their way through changing relationships on a single day at the famed Sun Records studio. The talented actor-musicians portraying the early rock stars – each of whom is reprising a previously performed part – were all excellent in their roles, and the Sam Phillips character clearly brings across both his bravado and pain. There’s no great moral story to be learned here, but it sure is a whole lotta fun hearing such sharply played 1950s hits “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Fever,” “Walk the Line,” “Sixteen Tons,” “Who Do You Love?,” “Great Balls of Fire,” “Folsom Prison Blues,” “Hound Dog” and many more, before the final curtain comes down with a much-anticipated mini-concert. The Ensemble Theatre Company’s production of the Tony Award-nominated show –which opened with a “Community Pay-What-You-Can” preview exactly 68 years after its historical setting of December 4, 1956 – closes this weekend.
WHEN: Through December 22
WHERE: New Vic Theater, 33 W. Victoria St.
COST: $25-$94
INFO: (805) 965-5400 or www.etcsb.org
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 20-SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21
Flamenco & Clara-meets-Grinch for Christmas – The dance school Puro Flamenco presents “Una Navidad de Flamenco 2024,” its annual holiday student showcase at Center Stage Theatre. Directed and choreographed by Alda Escárcega, the two evening, hour-long performances feature young talented dancers of Puro Flamenco – four dozen in all – doing up the dance steps and routines in a family-friendly show familiar from Fiesta time. Viva! … Inspire Dance Santa Barbara’s holiday celebration of their ninth year of performances at Center Stage Theater features A Holiday Twist, a fun and creative showcase/ mashup of two previous Christmastime shows Inspire has performed at the venue – namely The Grinch and Clara in the Land of Sweets. Catch the holiday spirit of this cherished time of year by seeing the dedicated dancers ages 5-13 perform roles meant to illustrate their talent and energy while touching your heart and making you smile.
Home on the Rubicon Range – Rubicon Theatre’s concurrent production of their own sort of jukebox musical
– A Cowboy Lullaby, the latest original piece by company veterans James O’Neil and Dan Wheetman – is also heading into its final weekend at the Ventura venue.
In what’s more of a theatrical concert, Lullaby is set at a present-day campfire, where the performers reflect on ideas of freedom, adventure and community. The production traces the origins of cowboy music back through time as far as California’s vaquero culture (which predates the famed late 1860s cattle drives by 200 years), and up through the modern era. The show is meant to both embrace and challenge the world-renowned stereotype of the cowboy as an independent loner, capturing the essence of the trope while also examining his evolution. The songs, of course, are the key, with a bevy of well-known and more obscure songs that stretch the boundaries of cowboy music.
WHEN: Through December 22
WHERE: Rubicon Theatre, 1006 E. Main St., Ventura
COST: $35-$94.50 (discounts for students, seniors, veterans & active military)
INFO: (805) 667-2900 or www.rubicontheatre.org
ONGOING
ZooLights’s Electrical Delights – For the third consecutive year, visitors have the chance to see the Santa Barbara Zoo in, ahem, a whole new light, via the annual ZooLights installation. While the animal habitat maintains normal operations during the day, the oceanfront wildlife park transforms after dark into a magical world of lights, featuring thousands of handcrafted, silk-covered lanterns aglow with more than 50,000 LED bulbs. A walk through the expansive environs of the hilltop haven for humans shines with the interactive light exhibits as the illuminated lanterns showcase animal and nature scenes, representing wild places from around the world. Discover underwater seascapes, beautiful birds in tropical forests, wild safari creatures on the prowl, and dozens of other animals – including an extinct animal showcase decorated with dinosaurs. The larger-thanlife immersive experience takes place on the Zoo’s sprawling, uniquely beautiful grounds overlooking the Pacific. To keep everybody’s tummy in tip-top shape, seasonal snacks and warm drinks are available for purchase.
WHEN: 4:30-8:30 pm on select dates through January 12
WHERE: Center Stage Theatre, 751 Paseo Nuevo, second floor
COST: $20
INFO: (805) 963-0408 or https://centerstagetheater.org
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21
‘Let It Glow’ – Santa Barbara Solstice teams up with other local organizations – yes, six months away from its usual summer celebration – to present a Winter Solstice lighted costume party on two blocks of lower State Street. Participating State Street bars and restaurants will give a discount – a “Winter Solstice Special” bite or drink – to patrons who proffer the password “Solstice!” to their server, and the costumed fest will boast the exuberant, and almost ubiquitous, local group The Brasscals. The brass band will take the party down the street at 6:30 pm, culminating at Wylde Works, where one of famed Solstice artist Pali-X-Mano’s giant inflatable sculptures will light up the night. Meanwhile, onsite Light projections by Jon Smith of The Environment Makers will feature the artwork of internationally acclaimed art director Larry Vigon. Wear your fabulous winter whites and bring your bling, or buy a simple lighted instance of costume-wear on site. On that same night, the more alternative local arts group Fishbon will be doing their annual Fishmas Holiday Adventure (aka “Santa-Con”), meeting up at 4:30 pm in De La Guerra Plaza. They are likely to get in the mix with the Solstice crew somewhere along the way, likely at the Brasscals blowout in front of Wylde Works. The Fishbon cocktail quest continues down State Street.
WHEN: 5-10 pm
WHERE: 500-700 block of State Street
COST: free
INFO: www.solsticeparade.com/calendar
Winter Solstice Walk – Looking for a spiritual-yet-non-denominational way to mark the season? Lompoc’s Sunburst Sanctuary might have just the thing. Visitors are invited to go deep into meditation, connect with open-hearted friends both new and old at dinner, and experience the magic of a labyrinth walk with luminaria under the stars on the retreat’s expansive grounds nestled amid the oak-dotted rolling hills of California’s Central Coast.
WHEN: 12 noon-8:30 pm
WHERE: Sunburst Sanctuary, 7200 S. Highway 1, Lompoc
COST: call
INFO: (805) 736-6528 or http://sunburst.org
How Does it Feel? – SBIFF hasn’t yet announced a filmmaker for this morning’s apparently final Cinema Society screening before the actual 40th Santa
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21
Boyz will Be Men – The veteran R&B vocal group Boyz II Men, which still features two founding members in Nathan Morris and Wanyá Morris, head up the San Marcos Pass for a solstice night celebration of their soulful career. The group left a lasting impact on the boy band scene in the 1990s, starting with their 1991 debut album featuring the Top 5 singles “Motownphilly” and “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday.” The very next year, their 1992 release of the massive hit “End of the Road” held the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for a full three months. Their 1994 album sold over 12 million copies in the United States alone and earned two Grammy Awards, including “Best R&B Album” and “Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal” for the single “I’ll Make Love to You.” The charts hits have gone the way of their youth, but Boyz II Men, who were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2003, still brings it in concerts around the world.
WHEN: 8 pm
WHERE: Samala Showroom at the Chumash Casino Resort, 3400 E. Hwy. 246, Santa Ynez
COST: $99-$159
INFO: (800) CHUMASH (248-6274) or www.chumashcasino.com
Barbara International Film Festival opens in early February. But it’s still a great chance to catch a sneak preview four days before the official opening on Christmas of A Complete Unknown, set in Greenwich Village back in 1961, when the enigmatic 19-year-old Bob Dylan (born Robert Zimmerman) arrived in New York from Minnesota – the unheralded beginnings of his destiny as the singer-songwriter who would change the course of American music. But who knows? Maybe once and likely 2025 Oscar nominee Chalamet – slated to receive SBIFF’s Arlington Artist of the Year Award on February 11 – will just show up. That happened a couple months ago when he surprised everyone by popping up at a Timothée Chalamet lookalike contest in Washington Square Park – just a block from some of Dylan’s Village hangouts. In the spirit of fairness, Chalamet didn’t enter the actual competition.
WHEN: 11 am
WHERE: SBIFF’s Riviera Theatre, 2044 Alameda Padre Serra COST: $20
INFO: (805) 963-0023 or www.sbiff.org
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21-SUNDAY, DECEMBER 22
A ‘Crack-ling Classic – State Street Ballet celebrates 30 years of The Nutcracker with its spectacular season production of the Tchaikovsky classic featuring original choreography by recently retired company founder and artistic director Rodney Gustafson. More than 150 dancers, musicians, singers and community performers collaborate on the timeless holiday tale that follows a dreaming Clara on an enchanting journey as her toy nutcracker comes to life. The two travel to the land of the sweets, where they encounter battling toy soldiers and mice, sparkling snowflakes, waltzing flowers and the dazzling Sugar Plum Fairy. As always, the year-end show represents a homecoming for State Street Ballet following tours to Spokane, Washington, and Durango, Colorado. Students from the State Street Ballet Academy and trainees from its Professional Track program dance alongside professional dancers from the company’s main ensemble, all performing to live music from the Opera San Luis Obispo Grand Orchestra, with choral work from the SING children’s choir of Music Academy of the West. A special highlight of this year’s production is a new snow pas de deux choreographed by Nilas Martins – former principal dancer with New York City Ballet and State Street Ballet’s new Artistic Associate – that is sure to become an annual attraction.
WHEN: 2 & 7:30 pm Saturday, 2 pm Sunday
WHERE: Granada Theatre, 1214 State Street
COST: $35-$130, discounts for students & children
INFO: (805) 899-2222/www.granadasb.org or (805) 893-3535/https://artsandlectures.ucsb.edu
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Framed floral paintings, approximately 1985 or earlier.
Peonies 24’’ by 20”
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TILE SETTING
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PET/ HOUSE SITTING
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LOANS SOUGHT
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Join us as we learn about how to manage this emotional time of year of joy while experiencing grief and loss. A candlelight ceremony follows, along with light refreshments to celebrate those who have passed. Summerland Church December 21, 5pm-7pm
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