Hands Helping Homelessness

School Success – Cold Spring receives top marks in English and Mathematics, P.6

Butterfly Ball – An evening of fashion, fundraising, and winged spectacles helps Gwendolyn’s Playground take flight, P.14

Hope Floats – A buoyant wetsuit that is now helping people of all abilities, P.30 Wisdom Song – Local composer, Chumash activists, and the Symphony come together to craft a tune for the San Marcos Foothills, P.41

SERVING MONTECITO AND SOUTHERN SANTA BARBARA

www.montecitojournal.net

Hospice Santa Barbara hosts its annual Light Up a Life to bring brightness and joy for the loved ones we’ve lost, page 32

Ballroom Blitz

The California Star Ball, the longest running dance competition in North America, comes to the area for the first time, page 12

Bold Berkus

The perceptive and eclectic collection of modern art from Barry Berkus comes to Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art, page 20

P.6

Local News – Hands Across Montecito helps clean up a homeless encampment under the cemetery and two helpers share their story

Village Beat – Local schools and a staff member rank top in state and the Olive Mill Roundabout receives final approval

P.8

Montecito Miscellany – The animals come out to play for a cause, a CALM lunch, FisHouse helps Heal the Ocean, and more

P.14

P.20

Society Invites – The community comes out for Gwendolyn’s Playground and wears their butterfly best for the ball

Your Westmont – The museum exhibits ‘Highlights of the Berkus Collection’ and the Warriors head to nationals in several sports

P.40

P.41

Far Flung Travel – Head to the Channel Islands for a relaxing day spa and some pinniped company

On Entertainment – Wisdom of Water, Earth, Sky at the Granada, mountain reggae, the Doublewide Kings conquer, and others

P.22

P.10

Community Voices – Jeff Giordano writes in on cannabis, carbon filtration, and the Checks and Balances around them

Letters to the Editor – Carlos, The Bear, hosts Thanksgiving and some thoughts on the last election Tide Guide P.11

Montecito Reads – After long nights of cracking the RemoteToken codes, Hollis is hot on the trail of the ExOh funds P.12

Born to Boogie – After a lifetime of dance, David Alvarez is helping host the nation’s longest dance competition to the area

P.24

Brilliant Thoughts – It matters where we are, but how we value location varies Robert’s Big Questions – How does trust lead to a better and more prosperous society?

The Giving List – Hospice Santa Barbara brings back its in-person Light Up a Life holiday event

P. 43

News & Events Roundup – Santa Barbara walks to end Alzheimer’s and Girls Inc. seeks help to spread some holiday cheer

P.44

Calendar of Events – Keyboardist Matthew Whitaker, Spencer the Gardener’s newest growth, Ready to Hang is back, plus more

P.30

Local People – Mark Okrusko crafted the Floater vest to help people of all abilities safely swim in the ocean P.36

Mind-Body Matters – How to identify emotional eating and be more mindful about our eating habits

The Optimist Daily – The U.N. Climate Change Conference is giving the youth a seat at the table for the first time

P.46

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

P.47

Mini Meta Crossword Puzzles

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

The Hands Helping Homelessness

by Sharon Byrne

You’ve read in these pages about Hands Across Montecito, a very successful homeless outreach and placement team of the Montecito Association, made up of Montecitans, Sheriffs, Montecito Fire, Behavioral Wellness, and City Net. Our first client, Andrew Verlikanje , really hates litter, so he picks it up. Andrew impressed Heal the Ocean when he wanted to clear an old campsite out at Haskell’s Beach. He then started Earthcomb and hired people experiencing home lessness to help him. For Montecito’s Beautification Day, Andrew brought an energetic team to clear abandoned camps, and paid them a living wage. Montecito Association members enthu

siastically supported this project.

Andrew is on the Hands team for out reach in Montecito and clears abandoned camps we encounter. When we moved one senior gentleman indoors, who was living near the Butterfly Lane tunnel on the railroad tracks, Andrew hired him to disassemble and clear his camp. Caltrans loves this project.

Last Friday, Harry Rabin of Heal the Ocean was determined to remove the recurring camps on the beach under the cemetery. King Tides are coming, creating a danger where the camps wash out into the ocean. Hands team mem ber Tracey Wilfong alerted the County to these camps months ago, but the County process took a long time, though the inhabitants had police records, and one had an out-of-state warrant. They consistently refused services, so the sher iffs issued the vacate order, and Heal the Ocean and Earthcomb cleared the beach, only to watch it get re-occupied by these same individuals.

Harry was beyond frustrated, rightfully. On Friday, a crew of sheriffs, Earthcomb, and Harry convened to clear the beach yet again. I joined them and interviewed two of Andrew’s hires. I want to share their story with you. Both gentlemen worked Montecito’s Beautification Day and the beach clean-up a week later.

Kory

Now 42, Kory grew up in Oxnard, near Silver Strand Beach. He fell into meth addiction in his 20s, and it plagued him for a decade. His addiction made it very hard to hold down a job, so he spiraled down into living in the Santa Clarita River bottom. A friend of his was then murdered there. “That freaked me out,” he said, shuddering.

He bounced to Santa Barbara, work

Andrew and David helping clear the beach The Hands team scales the stones towards an

Village Beat Cold Spring School Latest

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Cold Spring School’s Coral Godlis was recently named the Confidential Employee of the Year for the State of California

by

In a recent article on edsource.org, data analysts report that students in California performed significantly worse on standardized testing (called Smarter Balanced) in 2022 compared to 2018/19, in what is believed to be a direct consequence of the in-home learning model many districts adopt ed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fewer than half of all students met the state standard in English Language Arts, which was down 4% from pre-pandem ic years. Math scores were down 6.5% from pre-pandemic years. Results from a national standardized test (National Assessment of Educational Progress or NAEP) were also recently released, con firming that the pandemic severely set back student learning both nationally and in California, although Smarter Balanced scores in California were bet

According to the article, the data is not completely surprising, especially com paring the higher rate of decline in math scores compared to English Language Arts. Historically, research shows that math proficiency is more sensitive to schooling, with parents having an easier time bolstering their kids’ reading than math skills.Cold Spring Superintendent Dr. Amy Alzina says that her school’s success in the standardized testing – 91.07% of students met or exceeded state standards in English and 92.79% in math – is likely due to the push to reopen the campus in September 2020, when many other schools across the state remained close and adopted in-home learning curric ulum. Dr. Alzina said reopening the school after the 1/9 debris flow in 2018 offered stability and refuge to students, and, noting that, she and the School Board decided to open the campus in September 2020, albeit with new pro tocols and outdoor curriculum in place, despite the risks.

To view the standardized testing scores, visit edsource.org.

Village Beat Page 394

ter than the average of nine of 10 other states that released scores.

by Richard Mineards

The party animals were out in force when the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network hosted a fun fête at the venerable Santa Barbara Club with the 240 guests raising around $200,000 for the popular organization, which has an annual budget of $1.8 million.

The boffo bash, A Wild Night Out, had a host of colorful and creative cos

tumes with Teresa Kuskey’s La Boheme Dancers showing off their talents, while supporters quaffed Owl-inis, a heady concoction of vodka and pomegranate juice, and Pelican Potions, a mixture of bourbon, lime juice, and ginger beer.

Mindy Denson emceed the event with Nick Di Nieri from Los Angeles acting as auctioneer for an Aladdin’s cave of items, including a Santa Barbara Channel charter, a Hawaiian vacation, a South African safari at the Zulu Nyala Game Lodge, and a two-night stay for

six in Summerland.

“This really celebrates all our hard work,” says Ariana Katovich, execu tive director of the Goleta-based charity. “We’re having fun and supporting an incredible cause.”

Among the animal lovers supporting the wild social were John and Connie Pearcy , Gretchen Lieff and Miles Hartfeld, Ginni Dreier, Lisa Osborn, Will and Sarah Borgess, Dwight and

The Cost of Codes

The most expensive zip codes in the U.S. have just been revealed and, needless to say, our rarefied enclave of

Kim Lowell , Chris Denson , Rick Oshay, Karen and John Jostes, and Roland and Joyce Bryan

Playing “Predators & Prey” were Meredith and Steve Junk, Will Borgers, Scott Pollard; In front: Sarah Borgers and Alyssa Pollard (photo by Priscilla)

Costumed supporters Margarita Lande, Kristen Wieners, and Pamela Fellows (photo by Priscilla)

Lynn Adams, Miles Hartfeld, Gretchen Lieff, Ariana Katovich, and Mindy Denson (photo by Priscilla)

Oscar Gutierrez, Geordie Scully, magician Gene Urban, Angie Swanson-Kyriaco, and James Kyriaco (photo by Priscilla)

Celebratethe Miramar Holidays at

Miramar is bringing the spirit of the season to Montecito this year. Enjoy the holidays at the resort with mouth-watering menus, awe-inspiring entertainment, and beautifully bespoke experiences. And—in true Miramar manner—each holiday celebration features spectacular service and impeccable attention to detail at every turn. Don’t miss the magic of Miramar, from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day.

NOV 24 DEC 24 DEC 25

anksgiving

Kick off the holiday season and gather in gratitude like never before. You’re invited to give thanks around every table at Miramar. Join us for brunches, dinners, music, and more at all of your favorite Miramar restaurants and bars.

Christmas Eve Christmas Day

Count down to Christmas at Miramar. Dig into Seven Fish dinners on the coastline at Caruso’s, revel in the music of carolers in the Living Room, and delight in snowfall on the Great Lawn. Here’s to making this your most memorable Christmas Eve yet.

Unwrap the magic of Christmas morning at Miramar. Delight in a delicious brunch of festive favorites and whimsical touches for a holiday celebration that your family will cherish for years to come.

DEC 31

New Year’s Eve

A night of unmatched elegance awaits at Miramar, the place to be on New Year’s Eve. Join us for an unforgettable evening where the ordinary is escaped and the extraordinary is embraced, including an oceanfront champagne dinner at Caruso’s, a gala hosted in the Chandelier Ballroom, and showstopping performances in The Manor Bar, culminating in a truly magical midnight toast.

JAN 01

New Year’s Day

Get ready to raise a glass to 2023 along the Central Coast. Miramar is offering a festive lineup of brunches, lunches, can’t-miss cocktails, and dinners, sure to make New Year’s Day memorably special. Cheers to starting the year in style.

To explore all of our holiday happenings, please visit us at: @rosewoodmiramarbeach www.rosewoodmiramarbeach.com facebook.com/RosewoodMiramarBeach/ email miramar@rosewoodhotels.com 805-900-8388

Community Voices

Santa Barbara: Tilting Toward Tyranny

by Jeff Giordano

At a time when, nationally, we’re discussing (i.e. screaming at one another) democracy, I thought it appropriate to bring the issue a bit closer to home. You see, part of any great democracy is the idea of Checks and Balances – it’s what separates us from authoritarianism. Unfortunately, in Santa Barbara we tend toward tyranny where power is unchecked and the public good suffers. Allow me to explain:

For those few who read my pieces, you know that all roads in our 3,800-squaremile county lead to five district Supervisors. They control our 20+ departments, hire our County executives and appoint, among others, our five Planning Commissioners. These Commissioners are subject-matter experts charged with “acting in the public interest” and recently they did just that by ruling that a Cannabis grow, one relatively close to the children at Cate School, should install a Carbon Filtration system.

Part of the issue for the Grower was cost but since when is private profitabili ty a public concern? Short answer: It isn’t! But, when it comes to Cannabis, always remember it’s more about spin than the facts. In a recent Forbes article, one of our local growers gleefully exclaimed that Cannabis will soon be grown for just “$100 per pound.” Now, I’m no Jeff Bezos but when wholesale pricing is $800+ per pound that sounds like a pret ty spectacular profit margin.

What burns me is that just 13 months ago these same Growers signed and broad ly publicized an agreement touting Carbon Filtration. I guess being a “good neigh bor” (Cannabis’ slogan) doesn’t mean all that much when dollars (or children) are involved—it’s always about the spin.

Anyway, knowing that the Board has never ruled against Cannabis, the Grower appealed. Cate was represent ed by Holland & Knight, a premier firm, who spoke about the supremacy

of Carbon Filtration. Remember, our Planning Commission, two of whom (Parke and Cooney) are attorneys, had already reviewed the legal briefs, heard arguments, and ruled in Cate’s favor.

The appeal went as expected with a few of the Supes, doing their best to “play” lawyer. Our First District Supervisor lead the charge by literally advocating on behalf of the Grow as if this particular seven acres of Cannabis (in a County where the “Cap” is 1,700 acres) was his raison d’être for service. The optics of the decision were as troubling as our uniquely different and cozy-Cannabis deal that will gross just $10M in taxes for our $1.4B County.

Third District Supervisor Joan Hartmann, the only lawyer in the bunch, was the lone dissenter with questions that, frankly, should have been asked before the Ordinance was passed: Shouldn’t we demand (like CO) that odors not cross the property line? If Carbon Filtration (used in CO) is the best technology, shouldn’t it be required in Santa Barbara? Board unanimity is a followers-game so, yes, dissenting opinions matter! One other Captain Obvious thought: The Board can amend the ordinance!

The real issue, however, is not Cannabis, it’s unchecked power that knows no ethical bounds. Out tax scheme was developed without the input (hmm) of our elected Tax Collector, Harry Hagen Also, the most recent filings show that certain Supervisors continue to take Cannabis money! We desperately need disclosure, moratoriums (how close to a vote is too close) and recusal standards –for all Special Interests. Believe me, there is much more because our lack of rules differ from most any other CA county and while the State has taken notice, even SB 1439 (Google it!) may be too little too late. We need to do more to shine a light on Santa Barbara’s dark underbelly because a democracy without Checks and Balances is like, well, turkey without the stuffing – enjoy the holiday.

Jeff Giordano, SB County Resident

Letters to the Editor

A Bear’s Thanksgiving

Carlos, The Bear, stood at the head of the table as Old Fox, Wise Owl, Connie Cougar, and Rocky Racoon, took their seats. Laid out on the table was a Thanksgiving dinner that couldn’t be beat. A Turkey, with all the trimmings and Carlos’ famous grub, berry and acorn mash, stuffing, it was a meal to savor.

After all his guests were seated and comfortably situated, Carlos held his paws to his sides and encouraged each guest to put paw to paw and paw to wing and said this:

“Welcome all for joining us here as we give thanks for the plants and animals that give us sustenance, and to The Earth for the air we breathe, the water and soil that nourishes the plants to help them grow and gives us life, and for our human neighbors who show concern for this wonderful gift of life and share, our land. May this food be blessed and everyone and everything that brought it to this table that we may eat and drink to survive. Let us eat and be grateful.”

With that they all enjoyed a Thanksgiving dinner that couldn’t be beat and were thankful.

Michael Edwards

First Things First

Our ex-President had many accom plishments.

A good economy, low inflation, a more secure border, a COVID vaccina tion in record time, and more.

Now we need to mention the drama.

Too many to mention – and we all know what he has said did to the detri ment of mankind.

The reason for the mini blue wave was January 6th.

The reason so many Americans did not create a red wave was the ex-Pres ident swore to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic.

The ex-President did stop his oath at

only swearing to defend us from foreign enemies.

Therefore, most reasonable people have come to the conclusion he did support, not defend us from, a domes tic attack that included five dead on one of the darkest days in our coun try’s history.

Steve Marko

MONTECITO TIDE GUIDE

Day Low Hgt High Hgt Low Hgt High Hgt Low Hgt

Thurs, Nov 17 5:57 AM 4.3 11:26 AM 2.9 04:30 PM 3.9 011:15 PM 0.8

Fri, Nov 18 6:13 AM 4.6 12:08 PM 2.2 05:33 PM 4.0 011:48 PM 0.9

Sat, Nov 19 6:30 AM 5.0 12:44 PM 1.5 06:26 PM 4.1

Sun, Nov 20 12:18 AM 1.0 6:50 AM 5.4 01:20 PM 0.7 07:15 PM 4.1

Mon, Nov 21 12:48 AM 1.2 7:14 AM 5.9 01:57 PM 0.0 08:03 PM 4.2

Tues, Nov 22 1:18 AM 1.5 7:41 AM 6.3 02:37 PM -0.6 08:51 PM 4.1

Weds, Nov 23 1:50 AM 1.8 8:13 AM 6.6 03:19 PM -1.0 09:42 PM 4.0

Thurs, Nov 24 2:25 AM 2.0 8:48 AM 6.8 04:04 PM -1.2 010:36 PM 3.8

Fri, Nov 25 3:02 AM 2.3 9:28 AM 6.8 04:54 PM -1.2 011:36 PM 3.6

“That’s one of the great things about Thanksgiving: Football’s on!” – Michael Strahan

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

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

VP, Sales & Marketing | Leanne Wood leanne@montecitojournal.net Managing Editor | Zach Rosen zach@montecitojournal.net

Art/Production Director | Trent Watanabe

Office Manager | Jessikah Moran

Graphic Design/Layout | Stevie Acuña

Account Managers | Sue Brooks, Tanis Nelson, Elizabeth Nadel, Bryce Eller

Contributing Editor | Kelly Mahan Herrick Copy Editor | Lily Buckley Harbin Proofreading | Helen Buckley Arts and Entertainment | Steven Libowitz

Contributors | Scott Craig, Ashleigh Brilliant, Kim Crail, Tom Farr, Chuck Graham, Stella Haffner, Mark Ashton Hunt, Dalina Michaels, Sharon Byrne, Robert Bernstein, Christina Favuzzi, Leslie Zemeckis, Sigrid Toye Gossip | Richard Mineards History | Hattie Beresford Humor | Ernie Witham Our Town/Society | Joanne A Calitri Travel | Jerry Dunn, Leslie Westbrook Food & Wine | Claudia Schou, Gabe Saglie

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

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

Montecito Reads Chasing Accounts and Riding Horses

by MJ Staff

Take a sneak peek of Montecito by Michael Cox in this ongoing serialization of his yet-to-be-published book. This fictional story is inspired by “tales of true crime THAT HAPPENED HERE.” With his hack of the RemoteToken fobs in place, Hollis prepares to hunt down where the ExOh money is going. Chapters 33 and 34 are available online at montecitojournal.net and the QR code below.

Montecito

by Michael Cox Chapter

35

I reported to Cyrus’s library room that morning as instructed. I brought a travel mug of black coffee but there was no risk of me nod ding off. My nerves were frayed, my right eyelid twitching painfully from the cocktail of sleep-deprivation and caffeine overdose. I arrived a

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Born to Boogie

David Alvarez and the California Star Ball Bring the Best in Dance to Town

by Zach Rosen

Dancing is arguably one of the oldest and most expressive art forms – one that transcends cultures and history with every area of the world having their own styles of the ancient art. Even if you’re not one to don the dancing shoes, just watching the wonder of a Waltz or rhythmic Rumba can get the spirits kicking. Seeing dance in the hands (and feet) of professionals is a mesmerizing experience. From the shimmering cos tumes to the impressive precision and astounding athleticism of the moves, competitive dance is a sight to behold and fortunately there are three days of it coming to Santa Barbara this Thanksgiving weekend.

Now in its 61st year and sanctioned by the National Dance Council of America (NDCA), the California Star Ball is the longest running dance competition in North America. This year’s event will be held from Friday to Sunday (November

25-27) at the Hilton Beachfront along Cabrillo and brings pros and amateur dancers together in all forms and from all age groups.

For David Alvarez, dance instructor and organizer of the California Star Ball, dance has been a lifelong pursuit

and passion. Growing up in Kingsville, Texas, David was already an amateur dancer by the time he went to col lege in Corpus Christi, competing in local competitions at clubs. During one night on the floor, two (now) friends approached him and mentioned that he had to visit the dance school down the street they were part of. When David heard it was “ballroom dancing,” he was initially resistant, associating it with “old

people,” but they insisted.

He entered to a couple dancing sensu ally to Santana, or as David describes it, “the most beautiful Bolero ever,” which was a bit different than the Lawrence Welk strutting he had in mind. He was immediately enamored with ballroom dance and the manager there felt he would be perfect for the new teaching

Born to Boogie Page 394

David Alvarez, organizer of the California Star Ball, lives his passion for dance

Evening sessions at the California Star Ball will exhibit some of the reigning U.S. champions

The kid competitors and future champions are not to be missed either

Society Invites

Butterfly Ball Deux Benefit for Gwendolyn’s Playground

by Joanne A Calitri

On a most chilly Saturday, November 12, the second Butterfly Ball fundraiser for Gwendolyn’s Playground took flight, raising spirits and funds at the Dos Pueblos Ranch. This intimate and elegant evening for over 300 attendees heated up with lavish dress and renditions of butterflies paired with fur to fend off the frigid Gaviota coastal temps. And for this East Coast gal, it was a tad more than official “sweater weather,” as I wore ‘The Sinclair,’ a luxuriously warm cashmere button down courtesy of Kelly Finefrock of KULE Montecito (com pliments and sweater envy did ensue). For most ladies it was flowing designer runway silk dresses, sequined onesies, gold metal and jeweled Paris cocktail bags, cuffs, butterfly deco wool fedoras, and those in Jimmy Choo stilettos were honored at check in with heel protec tors. The gents went vogue with raw silk and embroidered suits, butterflies on neckerchiefs and top-pocket hankies –though not to be outdone by celebrity

emcee Andrew Firestone with mod el-spouse Ivana, who raised significant funds with his live auction skills. Keynote speaker was Victoria Strong, founder of the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation, who donned a gold crown of butterflies and Grecian gold pleated sleeveless ball gown. She, with husband Bill, shared about their daughter Gwendolyn and their journey learning about disabilities and access for children, as well as their strong commitment to make a difference in the lives of children and adults with disabilities. They presented a short film about the foundation, funding, and the plans for the playground, which will start next year, along with Advisory Board member Analise Maggio helping share their vision to the wing-studded crowd. A line of cocktail staff with adult bub bly beverages and nibbles greeted guests. The first location area held dual bars with specialty drinks and wines, intermixed with volunteers next to easels holding enlarged plans for the fully accessible playground, and “butterfly dancers” from Santa Barbara Dance Academy flying around. The ranch greenhouse sported all

the live and silent auction items, as well as those who wanted to escape the cold to sip drinks and enjoy the warmth of their friends. The garden lawn dinner tables were formally set and decorated with large roses, and the wood dance floor was surrounded by bamboo lounges set to the groovy downbeat sounds of Gavin Roy Presents. After dinner, speeches, and auctions, peeps were dancing, munching on cheese plates, and taking cookies for the ride home.

Noted guests were Mary Firestone

Care for life

and Paul Fraser, Katrina Sprague and Justin Fantl, Marianne Sprague, Jessica Sprague, Bruce Davis, Analise Maggio and Ben Sprague, Tom Rollerson and Michael Erickson, Lucy Firestone and Hayden Felice, Mehera Blum, Nora and Michael Hurley, Robin and Roger Himovitz , Christina Bentley , Tess Council, Emily Gardner, Karie Ide, Beth Magid, Sylvie Rich, Nick Bartolo, Joshua Lippiner , Kelly Almeroth ,

Victoria Strong with Nora and Michael Hurley (photo by Joanne A Calitri)

Le Bal Cristal

A glimmering night of unmatched elegance where the ordinal is escaped, and the extraordinary is embraced awaits at our New Year’s Eve Le Bal Crystal. Inspired by a glamourous French fête along the American Riviera, we invite you to celebrate with lively libations, spectacular performers, champagne toasts and so much more.

For booth seating, tickets and more information, please visit our website or email our team at Miramar.NYE@rosewoodhotels.com or call us at 805.900.8388

ing temporary jobs while living on the railroad tracks behind Chase Palm Park. Heike Hyson, with AmeriCorps, engaged him. She referred him to New Beginnings, who housed him at El Carrillo leveraging an emergency hous ing voucher HUD issued in the pan demic. Thanks to terrific footwork by Emily Allen, our County was highly successful in placing people in housing using those vouchers. Los Angeles, in comparison, let thousands of housing vouchers expire, with 67,000 people experiencing homelessness.

Kory loves working with Earthcomb, though the work is part-time, and he wants full-time employment. I watched him clear trash, and then carry chairs for ladies setting up a wedding on Butterfly Beach. He hasn’t seen his family since he was seven. He was raised by his grand mother. His mother likely couldn’t afford to raise him, he thinks, but he’s not able to connect with her.

He understands the camp scene he just cleared. “People want to be able to just go, on a moment’s notice, somewhere they can use drugs – but then you get stuck in a rut and it becomes impossible to get out. I’m so glad I’m housed, after 15 years out here.”

David

David is a cautiously friendly guy one month shy of his 40th birthday, and not in a good place. He was extradited from Oregon to Santa Barbara a week ago, as he’s on parole here for assaulting a man. He has five months to go on his sentence. David had a job and a place to live in Oregon. Here, he just has the clothes on his back and nowhere to live, again. One wonders what the heck his parole officer was thinking.

He first experienced homelessness at age 15. “I was born and raised here. I don’t want to be here. Most of the people

on the street are not good people. They’ll drag you down, strung out on drugs.” His voice trembles, “You just can’t trust anybody on the street.”

He doesn’t want to go to the shelters in Santa Barbara. Fights are common among shelter residents who have previously had trouble with each other, now jammed together in a congregate setting. “I don’t need any more trouble.” He’s sleeping in a park in Santa Barbara instead.

City Net consistently asks for non-con gregate shelter because of experiences like David’s. We had non-congregate shelter with Project Roomkey, when Governor Newsom funded placing people expe riencing homelessness in vacant hotels during the pandemic. The community would need to sponsor a hotel room now, a costly and temporary solution.

We were able to solve one of David’s problems on the beach. I called Adam McKaig, of Adam’s Angels, a Montecitan who is truly an angel. I asked if he had any men’s clothes available, and he did, but couldn’t get to his storage unit until the weekend. About 30 minutes later, Adam texted me pictures of clothing he just bought at Costco for David. When I delivered them, David teared up, and hugged me.

I’ll ask David’s parole officer about let ting him return to Oregon, where he has employment, and can afford his rent. The law may be the law, but the community would not welcome people being forcibly relocated here to be made homeless. The Hands Across Montecito team can help get David to a better place in his life.

In our outreach, we have observed a significant increase in individuals experi encing homelessness in the 25-to-45-year age range – young Gen X and Millennials. The issues they struggle with are harder for the Hands team to solve. There is no medically assisted detox treatment for meth addiction, very widespread here. Criminal justice involvement is tough to navigate in trying to get someone out of homelessness.

This is the start of a conversation we need to have as a community, and we hope to share more voices like David’s and Kory’s. It’s easy to become unhoused in a too-tight, too-expen sive housing market, like playing highstakes musical chairs. Nextdoor hosts constant “in need of a place to rent” posts from people who apparently never make any noise, have no pets or kids, and work at professional occupations. It’s not hard to see how someone less together in their life will fall completely out of that housing game.

If you’d like to support Hands Across Montecito, please contact us at info@ montecitoassociation.org.

Sharon Byrne is Executive Director of the Montecito Association

Kory helps clear a bike off the beach

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10,000 oh-so tony residents is on the top ten list.

Atherton, California, tops the 2022 rankings for the third consecutive year with a median home listing price of $9 million, according to a study released by real estate data firm Realty Hop.

The Silicon Valley enclave, home to many tech executives, is followed by Sagaponack, New York, a small village in the Hamptons – where I used to spend many idyllic summers – where the medi an home listing price is $6.97 million.

In third place is Beverly Hills with its famous 90210 zip code, home to many celebrities and movie stars, with the aver age home listing at $6.7 million.

All told, California has 59 zip codes in the top rankings, with Montecito ranking 7th with a median home price of $4,995,000, up from $4,750,000 in 2020, a jump of 5.16 percent.

A Heartfelt (and Dry)

Lunch

It was the storm before the CALM when the charity, which helps with child hood trauma, hosted its 11th annual Calm at Heart lunch for 250 guests at Los Sueños, the Montecito estate of uber legal eagle Robert Lieff and his wife, Susan, which raised $370,000.

Fortunately, a large marquee was

erected before the heavens opened with more than three inches of rain two days before the fun fête – chaired by Carolyn Fitzgerald, Belle Hahn, Analise Maggio, and Caroline Powers, and organized by event planner Merryl Brown – prevent ing the sprawling lawn from becoming a decidedly soggy quagmire.

The ubiquitous Geoff Green, CEO of the Santa Barbara City College

Foundation, emceed the bash and auc tioned off a week at the Four Seasons in Costa Rica for $28,000, a one-night getaway at the Auberge at Mattei’s Tavern in the Santa Ynez Valley for $3,400, VIP tickets for the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium, and a night at the Proper Hotel nearby for $1,700, and a dinner

Thomasine Richards, Alexis Courson, Analise Maggio, Ben Sprague, and Ash Transki (photo by Isaac Hernandez)

Ashley Fox, Thomasine Richards, Nina Quiros, Lily Hahn, and Sophia Taylor (photo by Nell Campbell)

Janet Garufis, Alana Walczak, and Jon Clark (photo by Nell Campbell)

Elisabeth Fowler, Helene Schneider, and Richard Yao (photo by Nell Campbell)

Santa Barbara’s Premier Patrol Service

Your Westmont Exhibition Shares Highlights of Berkus Collection

by Scott Craig photography by Brad Elliott

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art shares the deep trove of art collected by the late Barry Berkus, an architect, urban planner, watercolor artist, and author, in A Bold and Unconventional Collector: Highlights from the Barry Berkus

Family Collection, which will be on display from November 17 to December 12. The public is invited to a free opening recep tion Thursday, November 17, from 4-6 pm at the museum.

Born in Los Angeles in 1935, Berkus grew up in Pasadena before pursuing his undergraduate education at UC Santa Barbara. He then studied archi tecture, graduating from the School of Architecture at USC, returning to Santa Barbara in the 1970s to open a practice. During his career he established two design firms: B3 Architects and Berkus Design Studio. In their heyday, his archi tectural firms had more than 200 architects with offices in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Washington, Atlanta, Miami, Tokyo, and Kuala Lumpur.

Berkus loved art – espe cially the art of his time.

He attended muse um and gallery openings, always open to learning and to meeting art ists and purchasing works that caught his eye. He was an intrepid collector, attracted to the most avant-garde works in an artist’s oeuvre.

“He favored art that was experi mental – art that explored unusual ideas,” says Jeff Berkus, Barry’s son and also an architect, “He was a bold and unconventional art collector.”

Barry Berkus, who died in 2017, collected art by David Hockney, Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Rauschenberg, James Rosenquist, Frank Stella, and Andy Warhol. But he also loved find ing new talent – international artists who might not be big names yet in the United States. Berkus also sup ported Santa Barbara artists purchasing works by artists like Tony Askew, Marie Schoeff , Dane Goodman , Wayne McCall , Keith Puccinelli , Mary Heebner, Marge Dunlap, and others.

The exhibition highlights selections from a major gift from the Berkus Family Collection to the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art, plus purchases made from the Berkus collection and noteworthy pieces

that remain in the Berkus Family Collection.

“The Berkus Family had the daunt ing task of dealing with Barry’s huge art collection after his death,” says Judy L. Larson, Askew professor of art his tory and museum director. “What I love about the gifts the family made to Westmont is the variety and quality of talented artists from all over the world.

As an architect, Berkus’ eye gravitat ed to works rooted in architecture like Iwan Baan, Stephen Talasnik, Michael Kenna, and Benjamin Edwards.”

Larson is most impressed with a stunning, large canvas by British painter John Walker, an abstract expressionist work by Michael David , and a photograph of a land art piece by Andy Goldsworthy, who visited Santa Barbara

John Walker’s oil painting “The Centre, #2”

Brian Alfred’s acrylic paint ing “Saddest Day of My Youth”

Brilliant Thoughts Where On Earth

by Ashleigh Brilliant

There’s a saying in the Real Estate busi ness that, in considering the value of a property, only three things really matter: Location, Location, and Location. But, if that means where a place actually is, many factors enter into play – such as what it’s near, and not near. We are often remind ed that “it’s a small world” – but of all the locations on our globe, approximately 71% are covered by oceans – to say nothing of all the other bodies of water, forming altogeth er, what’s called the “Hydrosphere.”

So, in terms of livable land, any search for a good location already has its scope to some extent limited purely by good old H2O – not surprising, really, because even our bodies are 60% water.

OK, most of us would agree that, for residential purposes, we would prefer to be on dry land. But then, by far the major part of all that acreage is, by ordinary human standards, scarcely habitable, consisting of deserts of various kinds, some icy cold, as at the poles, some sandy and hot, some rocky and arid. In fact, you need only look at any map of population distribution to realize just how little of our Earth’s surface is con sidered livable by most people.

As a species, we need water, and a way to get food. That’s why rivers, like the Nile and Euphrates, have been attractive locations for settlement and eventual civilization. And trade, travel, and climatic consider ations have made coastal areas where rivers meet the sea particularly popular places. An excellent illustration of this phenomenon is the continent of Australia, which is mostly desert, and where the vast majority of the population live in densely-inhabited areas of settlement on the coasts.

Speaking of climate, this can be a mat ter of personal preference – though that can also largely depend on the conditions in which one grew up. My own experi ence led me elsewhere. My early years were spent in England, where I always found the winters miserably damp and cold, and in Washington, D.C., with its notoriously hot,

Real Estate Appraiser

humid summers. At some point, I came to realize that, for me, the ideal climate was what is classified as the “Mediterranean” type, with its warm dry summers and mild moist winters. In geography class at school, I learned that, besides the Mediterranean itself, there are only a few, relatively small, areas in the world with that kind of climate. They are all on the western coasts of large land masses, and all about the same distance north or south of the equator. One is around Santiago, Chile, on the west coast of South America. One is around Cape Town, on the west coast of South Africa. One is around Perth, on the west coast of Australia. And one is where I have now spent half my life, in Southern California, which of course is on the west coast of North America.

But, apart from climate, one thing that makes a place important is what happened there. It might have been a battle – and unfortunately, there are too many of these historic battlefields dappled around the world. Our own country is thick with them, especially from the Revolutionary War and of course the Civil War, which made places famous, like Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, which would otherwise today probably still be a sleepy country town instead of a major tourist attraction.

Then there are birthplaces, whose fame seems somewhat absurd, since the great person who was born there had nothing to do with the selection of that spot. Strangely, we are not so keen on deathplaces, unless the death was particularly dramatic, such as that of a President getting assassinated.

But there are locations with more pleas ant associations, like being where some great invention was developed, or some famous work of art or literature created.

Some cities, like London and Paris, take pride in such connections, and often put up plaques on buildings where some noted his torical figure lived and worked. Sometimes a local historical society will take great pains to re-create the quarters once inhabited by a long-dead great person.

And location remains an important issue. While latitude was fairly easy to determine, it took centuries to find a means of fixing longitude, and pinpoint exactly where you were. In the end, it came down to producing a reliable seaworthy clock. But, even today, as any traveler will tell you, no matter where you go on this planet, there is something very special about everywhere.

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

Robert’s Big Questions Trust to Thrive?

by Robert Bernstein

Do you want to be rich? To live really well? Then you will want to live in a society with high trust. Our World in Data detailed this in an article “Trust” by Esteban OrtizOspina and Max Roser. Much of the data comes from the World Value Survey. The World Value Survey plotted per capita GDP versus how many agreed with the statement “most people can be trusted.” In the lower left corner are countries like the Philippines, Brazil, and Uganda: Single digit levels of trust and incomes below $15K. In the upper right is Norway with trust at 75% and income at $65K. The U.S. is in between with 40% trust and $50K income.

Trust takes many forms. Trust between people and trust in institu tions are two key factors. In the past 60 years, trust between people in the U.S. has declined a bit from 40% to 30%. But the big decline has been with trust in government: Down from 75% to 20%. With a slight bump up with Biden.

Trust in government plummeted during the U.S. war in Vietnam and Nixon’s 1972 election crimes called “Watergate.” Reagan deliberately kept trust low by promoting the idea that government cannot be trusted. He made this prophesy self-fulfilling: he cut investments in technology and social capital, he sold weapons to terrorists and stole the money to fund other ter rorists, and he made the U.S. a debtor country for the first time.

How does trust build wealth? In low-trust countries, people put all their trust in their families and in a small circle of friends. Making poor peo ple dependent on other poor people. Enlarging that trust circle allows poor people to borrow from wealthier peo ple to invest in agriculture or manufac turing. And it allows wealthier people to benefit from these investments.

Trust also allows a longer time horizon for investment. A micro loan can allow a destitute person to buy wool to knit a sweater and sell it for a small profit. But it takes long-term investing to build a textile mill that can employ many peo ple with high productivity per capita. It then takes trust for that productivity to be redistributed to the workers and not all be taken by the owner.

So, how is trust built in a society? Individually, it is a virtuous cycle of taking a risk of trusting and then see ing a benefit. It starts by broadening one’s circle of connections. Before we trust someone, we first have to get to know them. And before we get to know them, we have to meet them.

It means getting out of one’s comfort zone and getting involved in new activ ities to meet new people.

But trust is also built top down by governments and organizations. A cor rupt government only serves those with money and power. But if the people are engaged in government, the gov ernment can trust that the people are there to support them and hold them accountable. In return, the government can provide good infrastructure, social services, and investment in technology.

Trust is not all about economics. It starts with community engagement. Here in Santa Barbara, we have huge community events like Solstice and Fiesta that bring people together for a common purpose. As people come together for such events, they go on to create lasting relationships and organizations for wider community enrichment. We have groups to pro mote environmental protection and enjoyment, performance arts, cultural events, and sports.

Education and trust feed each other. People with more education have high er levels of trust. Higher trust leads to greater wealth and investment in education. Investing in education is not just about the direct economic benefit of a skilled population. It is also about increasing trust.

What can you do? Individually, get out of your comfort zone and widen your circle of connections. Collectively, engage with government and organiza tions to strengthen them and hold them accountable.

A key graphic in the World Values Survey shows whether trust is increasing or decreasing in each country. The high est-trust countries continue to increase in trust. But even a few low-trust coun tries are getting better. The U.S. right now is declining in trust. Fortunately, this can be turned around. Imagine if we organized to demand investment in universal healthcare, high-speed public transit, sustainable energy, and scien tific exploration. High-trust countries already do this, and this increases trust even more. We can do this, too!

Robert Bernstein holds degrees from Physics departments of MIT and UCSB. Passion to understand the Big Questions of life, the universe and to be a good citizen of the planet. Visit facebook.com/ questionbig

few minutes early as always even though I knew I would be kept waiting. It was okay. More than ever, I needed time to think.

I remained in a cloud of shock. There had to be an explanation, but how could I ask for one without revealing how and why I was asking?

One thing was for certain, there was no abandoning this quest. My glitchy stomach assured me that any relief was conditional upon answers, and, right now, I had none. I hung my head, letting my neck crack, tem porarily relieving the pain radiating in my temples.

Cyrus strode in whistling; a first. “How are things today, my friend?”

I cleared my throat. “Good, Cyrus. And you?”

“Whoa, my friend!” he said, as he took his seat. “You look like hell. Have you caught a bug of some sort?”

I shook my head no, trying to blink away my red rimmed eyes. “No, I mean, yes,” I stammered. “Seasonal allergies, I think. Having a hard time sleeping.”

“Indeed,” Cyrus said. “Get yourself some Benadryl or Zyrtec or some thing. You shouldn’t be out in public like this.”

I smiled sheepishly and nodded. “I’ll get it taken care of.”

“So,” he said, putting two feet on the coffee table and clasping his hands behind his head. “Tell me: how can we get ExOh upgraded to the NASDAQ exchange?”

“Well…,” I said, then yawned. I had done the research as Cyrus demanded, finishing in time to get a grand total of ninety minutes of beauty rest. The simple answer was that ExOh currently traded on an exchange that housed the lowest tier of publicly traded companies: stalled startups, shell companies, former bankruptcies, community banks, and a whole lot of businesses safely described as other – it was the land of misfit toys. The NASDAQ was for real public companies. To go from the sandlot to Yankee Stadium, the company would need to go through an audit, produce registration statements at a higher standard, upgrade nearly every aspect of its compliance. In short, ExOh would need to behave like a responsible adult. After my previous night’s discovery, I wasn’t sure this was even possible. “Sorry,” I said when my yawn subsided. “It is a pretty straight-forward process with several different routes by which–”

“Which route would we use?” Cyrus interrupted, indicating he wanted the answer not the backstory.

“Right,” I yawned again. “We would only qualify for the market capital ization and assets route which requires–”

“Brilliant,” he interrupted again. “So, is it just paperwork?”

“Well,” I said, concealing a third yawn, “it’s a lot of paperwork, but–” “No problem–”

“BUT,” I shouted, interrupting him this time. “We would need a full audit.” He took his feet off the coffee table and sat up, elbows on knees. “Why?”

“I don’t know, Cyrus,” I said, leaning my elbows on my knees as well. “I guess they figure that some folks can’t be trusted.”

He turned his eyes to his bookshelves. “Well, fine. Find us an auditor here in town. Preferably one that wants to hitch their wagon to our star.”

“That won’t work,” I said. “ExOh would be required to use a specific kind of auditor. One that specializes in public companies. It’s called a PCAOB auditor, and–”

“Fine,” he interrupted. “Get us one of those then.”

I nodded, holding his gaze, contemplating how far to push this. “They are going to demand to see the bank statements, you know. No spread sheets this time. No promises. No pinky swears. It’s all or nothing.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because I interviewed three of them yesterday,” I said. “They each sent me checklists and all their checklists listed the same items.” This was a lie; I had not called anyone, but I suspected I was right, and I knew that Cyrus had not done his own research.

Cyrus looked angry but not flustered. He leaned back again, re-lacing his long fingers behind his head, staring at the ceiling. “Here’s the thing,” he began. “Huff Monroe has another four million dollars lined up for us. But he tells me that he can get us thirty million if we move the stock to the NASDAQ.”

I nodded excitedly. This was it. The fear versus greed pendulum in all its swing ing glory. I did not yet fully understand the game Cyrus was playing, but Huff Monroe was giving him thirty million reasons to open his kimono. If Cyrus’s reticence was purely paranoia, thirty million dollars might inspire him to take a Xanax and accept the disinfecting benefits of sunlight. I could only hope.

“The company could certainly use thirty million dollars,” I began cau tiously. “Why don’t we engage an accountant, turn over the bank statements, and get this–”

“Here’s what I want you to do,” Cyrus interrupted for the umpteenth time. “Send Huff an email. Tell him that you are working on getting the listing upgraded. Tell him that if he invests ten million now – before the NASDAQ listing – we will write him an option to purchase twenty million more at the same price after the NASDAQ listing.”

I shook my head, no. “I don’t think I can say that in good faith unless you are really willing to disclose–”

“You can and you will, Hollis.” He said.

“But Cyrus, I don’t—”

“I am assigning you to work on it, Hollis! You are the CEO of the company; this is your job. Phone an auditor every day between now and New Year’s until you find one that can handle our audit and its unique requirements. Work on it until you have exhausted every possible option. Then – and only then – will you no longer be working on it,” he said. “Are my instructions clear?”

I nodded; his instructions were indeed clear.

“Terrific. Then do whatever you need to do to feel confident that you are working on it as instructed. Understand?”

I dropped my head. “Ok,” I whispered. I wasn’t ready to call his bluff,

Grow

The Giving List

Hospice’s Light Up a Life

by Steven Libowitz

After two years lost to the pan demic, Hospice of Santa Barbara (HSB) is gearing up to once again brighten up the holidays in Santa Barbara and neighboring communities with its 39th annual Light Up a Life. The events – which were offered only virtually in 2020 and 2021 – take place live this year at four different locations in Goleta, Santa Barbara, Montecito, and Carpinteria within the span of a week in early December. They’re designed to bring people together to remember and honor loved ones who might be especial ly missed during December’s festivities, a seasonal service from the organization that all year long provides professional counseling, support groups, and patient care services free of charge to individuals and families who are grieving or facing life-threatening illnesses.

“We’re truly thrilled to be back in per son with each other, because at Hospice of Santa Barbara, it’s fundamental to our mode of operation and our philosophy to establish and build upon personal relationships,” said Charles Caldwell, the nonprofit’s Director of Strategic Advancement. “The ideology behind Light Up a Life is that people experi ence profound grief during the holidays because they’re struck by poignant mem ories of their family members from years of being with each other at this time of year. So it’s crucial for us to be able to be together in person so people don’t have to go through that isolating feeling of grief by themselves, but rather do it together side-by-side.”

The idea isn’t to ignore the grief or bypass the feelings, but rather to lighten the burden by the sharing of moments

Stars can be decorated or given a poem, quote, or other memento in honor of the one being remembered

and memories, Caldwell said. “It helps us to bare it a little bit better.”

To that end, each of the Light Up a Life ceremonies can be both a solemn and joy ous gathering. The events, which last about 45 minutes, are emceed by local civic lead ers – Steve Jacobsen, the former Executive Director of HSB and La Casa de Maria Retreat Center; Santa Barbara County Board of Education member Marybeth Carty; and Reverend Julia Hamilton of Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara – and includes a spiritual reflection at each cer emony led by HSB’s spiritual counselor Kristen Rohm. But they also include poet ry readings from a couple of the city’s for mer Poet Laureates and well as participants in HSB’s poetry grief group, led by fellow former Poet Laureate Perry Longo, plus live music (Dos Pueblos Jazz Choir and Cold Spring School Chorus, among others this year) and refreshments, and naturally, the lighting of a memorial tree.

It’s the latter activity that gives the events its title as guests are invited to hang one or more star-like ornaments on the Trees of Remembrance bearing the name of a loved one who has died and/ or in honor of someone living. Attendees are encouraged to personalize the stars, attaching a photo or scribbling a quote to commemorate memories shared.

The trees, which are intended to be inclu sive of all holiday tra ditions, are lit to close out each event with a countdown that cli maxes with children gathering round to throw confetti in the air upon their lighting. The trees will remain lit at each site through the end of the year.

Next month’s Light Up a Life ceremonies take place in Santa Barbara at the Lobero Theatre at 6 pm on Sunday, December 4; in Montecito’s Upper Village Green at 4:30 pm on Wednesday, December 7; at Carpinteria’s Seal Fountain at 5:30 pm on Saturday, December 10; and at Camino Real Marketplace in Goleta at 5:30 pm on Sunday, December 11. Between 100-300 people are expected at each ceremony, Caldwell said.

“There are some people who have been coming for decades, even a few who were at the first one 40 years ago,” he said. “Our memory of our loved ones never ceases. The paralyzing anguish can fade over time, but the sense of grief or loss never completely goes away. So there are those who first came as a child having lost a par ent who come back to Light Up a Life year after year, as teenagers and adults, and, later, with their own families. It can also be a way of connecting with HSB again, so that if they get triggered or something happens later on and they need us, it’s a reminder that we’re here for them.”

Indeed, Light Up a Life is part of a throughline of HSB’s normal activities, a community education program offering from the organization whose counselors, social workers, and volunteers gift what Caldwell called a “wrap-around of the medical aspect of hospice work” provided by doctors and nurses.

“We work with everything from antic

ipatory grief through the entire grief journey for both children and adults,” he said. “Our patient care services program works with those who have life-threaten ing ailments, not just terminal patients. And we also help our clients figure out their finances, how to get shopping done, and arrange transportation to med ical appointments, and even help them understand the various options that the doctors are telling them.”

Continuing a tradition of the last two years due to the COVID closure, HSB will also maintain a Virtual Tree of Remembrance again in 2022, and people can dedicate a digital star as well as hang a paper one at an in-person ceremony.

Admission to each Light Up a Life event is free, and the suggested donation of $15 per star that goes to support the event is just that – a suggestion, said Caldwell.

“We absolutely have people who walk up each year who don’t feel like they can or want to make a donation,” he said.

“That’s perfectly fine.”

Of course, those who want to make a larger donation in remembrance of a loved one or simply to support HSB’s services are also more than welcome to do so.

Call (805) 563-8820 or visit hospiceofsantabarbara.org.

Join Hospice Santa Barbara and community members in hanging a star on a tree in remembrance of a lost loved one

and like every spineless man who played a small role in a greater tragedy, I hoped that the next guy down the line would have more courage than me.

“Excellent,” Cyrus said, standing to signal that my presence was no lon ger required. I gathered my papers and coffee mug and made my way to the front door only to be stopped by the click-clacking of Genevieve’s heels.

“Hollis!” she said, hurrying down the hallway. “Oh good, I was afraid I would miss you.”

“Hi, Genevieve,” I said, raising my coffee mug without moving in for a more formal hello. I was anxious to get back home; to be free of Cyrus’s gaze.

“Would you ask Cricket and Isabel to join us for horse riding on Saturday?”

“Oh, I…,” I looked at Cyrus who had made a big deal of acting as if including Trip in the jaunt had ruined his family weekend. “I thought you guys were having a family ride?”

“Not anymore,” Cyrus said.

“Cyrus is playing golf,” Genevieve said, rolling her eyes.

“Not just golf. I’ve been invited to play The Valley Club,” he said, mim ing a golf stroke. “John Colton is sponsoring me for membership.”

I had heard of The Valley Club but had never seen the club’s entrance nor did I know where in Montecito the club resided. In that sense, I knew of The Valley Club in the same way I knew of ménage à trois.

“Please. Will you ask Cricket and Isabel to join us?” Genevieve said, clasping her hands together in prayer. “It will be such fun. I haven’t caught up with Cricket in ages.”

I looked at the two Wimbys, nearly side-by-side, and felt the need to question all my assumptions about Genevieve. Did she have any idea what her husband was up to? Did she know anything other than that he was a business tycoon who clearly took care of her every need and desire? I recalled prior moments when it seemed Genevieve was more than just a kept woman. When she stood up to John Colton condescendingly suggesting she could “pay the rent” with her cooking. Or when she gave me that eerie speech at the Entre Nous opening; the one that concluded with a reminder that no one gets to steak without a dead cow. Those sparks seemed distant memories now, as she stood with pleadingly clasped hands, talking of horses.

Genevieve was not Cricket, I concluded. Where my wife was not-so-se cretly our family’s Chairman, CEO, and Commander in Chief, Genevieve was simply a passenger in Cyrus’s first-class ride. Perhaps the life she led was too grand for penetrating questions. Or perhaps, standing at the edge of true knowledge, she instinctively backed away.

I felt sorry for Genevieve, though I respected her dilemma. Even with those we know best, we are blind to what we do not want to see.

“I’ll ask Cricket,” I said.

Chapter 36

It took me more than an hour to craft the five sentences of my email to Huff Monroe. Surely, he would sense my hedged, cautious words. Surely, an investor with enough money to casually discuss tens of millions of dol lars would intuitively step back at the first flash of warning. Surely, I would be saved from having to receive and transfer his money.

Surely not. The next day, ten million arrived in our Miramar account from Huff’s personal account in Texas. A wave of nausea came and went, but I powered through, recognizing the perverse silver lining. I knew once I moved the money, I would have a chance to watch the distributive after math via CryptoWallet. It was like my very own ant farm.

As I expected, I moved the money from the U.S. to Hong Kong then phoned Cyrus; thirty minutes later it disappeared. Just like our U.S. account, the Hong Kong account seemed to be nothing more than a passthrough. Every penny I transferred in was subsequently pushed to an HSBC bank account in Sydney, Australia. Was this the company’s operat ing account that I longed to see, and if so, could I access it?

I opened the pictures folder on my laptop and found the eight images of RemoteToken fobs; seven still with mysterious lineage. What were the chances that the HSBC account was attached to one of these remaining fobs? Fairly good, it seemed to me. While this should have made my stom ach knot further, I felt relief. My body wanted to know the truth.

Ninety minutes later, I had the HSBC account added to the CryptoWallet. This time there were several large payments made to generically named Limited Liability Corporations located in the Cayman Islands, but still no sign of the lifeblood of a business: revenues. Nothing from Bloomingdale’s, Selfridges, et al, and no signs of paychecks, bills, consulting fees, or any thing paid to anyone with a heartbeat. After each inflow from Hong Kong, the Cayman LLC’s each took their share. The balance was then wired to yet another ExOh account in yet another country: ICICI Bank in Mumbai. It was like watching the digestive track of an animal that ate money.

The sun set, the gar-office grew chilly, and I kept working. By process of elimination, I found the RemoteToken fob tied to the ICICI Bank account. In just under an hour – I was getting good at this – I had this latest account ready to be added to my CryptoWallet.

What-ifs and maybes sprinted through my mind as my cursor hovered over the Link Account button. I had been certain Hong Kong would fill the information gap. Then confident that Sydney would do it. Now, I was hopeful that Mumbai would hold the missing key. With each step down the ladder, my surety slacked. Was it possible that –

A hand landed softly on my shoulder, sending me screaming like a pet rified child.

“Jesus, Hollis!” Cricket said. “You’re going to wake up Oprah.”

My heart was in my throat. “Oh my Goodness, Cricket, I’m so sorry. I don’t…,” I shook my head, struggling for words. “What… what time is it?”

“It’s after midnight, Hollis. You skipped dinner again. I know you’ve got a lot going on at work, but this is getting ridiculous.”

My stomach growled, confirming her timeline. “I’m sorry.”

“Come to bed, Hollis. Whatever it is, it can wait.”

I dutifully followed, stopping in the kitchen to swallow a handful of Cheerios and drink directly from the milk gallon. Cricket shook her head at me. “It’s like I have three kids now, and you’re the worst of the group.”

I apologized again and fell into bed as if I had been drugged.

That night, I dreamed that I had been only one bank account away from discovering exactly what I sought. That the layers of bank accounts were simple financial engineering; conveniences for paying taxes and making local transactions. That it was all there, and business was booming. ExOh was making money hand over fist. Our investors were soon to look like mini-Warren Buffetts. That it was all just a big misunderstanding.

The first sound I heard the following morning was that of a fork scrap ing a pancake through a puddle of syrup. It was 8:30 am on a Saturday, and Cricket had filled in for me as chief of Saturday morning breakfast. I groaned, sitting up in bed to a sleep-deprivation headache. Much like a hangover, there was no cure but time.

“There’s Mr. Sleepyhead,” Trip proclaimed as I trudged into the kitchen for a cup of coffee. Cricket kissed my cheek while Isabel scrolled through Instagram on Cricket’s phone. We had not yet given into peer pressure and gotten Isabel a phone, but her twelfth birthday was in December and that was the agreed upon compromise date. To be honest, Cricket was looking forward to it; she would regain full custody of her own phone.

There were extra pancakes, so I tried a short stack on for size. They agreed with my stomach, so I helped myself to seconds. Even though my hacking mission might end disastrously – at least in terms of my employ ment – my gastrointestinal tract seemed to enjoy the hunt. Of course, my biorhythms were completely distorted by my lack of sleep and nutritionally deficient diet, but for the first time in months, I was not suffering from stomach cramps. On the pendulum of trade-offs, this was a win.

“What’s on the docket today?” I asked Cricket.

“You forgot?”

“I guess it goes without saying.”

She rolled her eyes. “We’re all riding horses with Genevieve and Priscilla today.”

I nodded. “Right, right, right, right,” I said. “Wait, I didn’t think you wanted to go?”

She squished her face, a signal that I had said something I was not supposed to say. She came in closer to me, whispering. “I didn’t want to. Trip does not care because he will be with Priscilla, but Isabel said that she would only go if I went, and that she really, really, really wanted to go. So, I am going. What are you going to do with your day off?”

I squished my face, a signal that I did not understand the meaning of the phrase day off.

“You know,” she said slowly, “Saturday? A day of rest and recuperation? A day to let the mind heal and the heart play?”

“Right,” I said. “I’ll be working.”

“What am I going to do with you, Hollis?”

I kissed her on the cheek and began to clean up the kitchen from the breakfast festivities; cleanup was my default job around the house. Already I was excited about the day in front of me. It just might prove to be enough time to reach the end of the RemoteToken thread, and – please, please, please – prove that all of this was just one big misunderstanding, fueled by my ignorance and paranoia. As much as I loved the hack-twenty-fourseven ethos, I was too old for this. I needed some sleep.

I drove the rest of the family the seven miles south to the stables in Carpinteria where Genevieve and Priscilla were waiting. A Polo match was about to begin on a beautiful carpet of green, and everywhere I looked were white pants and riding boots. Except of course for my family; Trip and Cricket were wearing blue jeans while Isabel had found a pair of khaki-col ored pants that looked like a darn good alternate uniform for horse riding.

With the family set for the day, I took off for home. The fog of sleep lessness and the drive to discover the truth blinded me to everything else in my life. In retrospect, I must have believed my previous night’s dream; that my hacking quest was one sure to end in the discovery of an amusing misunderstanding. Else, why would I have just dropped the three people I loved most in the world with someone I did not trust?

Back in the gar-office, I linked the ICICI account from Mumbai, hopeful that this would be the honey pot. I was quickly absolved of my optimism. Like the Sydney account, Mumbai connected to a host of ambiguously named accounts – these in the Isle of Man, a place I had never heard of before – but revealed no revenues. After Mumbai’s Isle of Man leeches consumed their share of each inflow, the balance was passed to an account in Amsterdam.

I had five RemoteToken fobs remaining.

Amsterdam distributed funds to a handful of accounts in Monaco then dropped the balance to an account in Helsinki, Finland.

Four RemoteToken fobs remaining.

Finland distributed funds to accounts in Panama then passed the remainder to an account in Vienna, Austria.

Three RemoteToken fobs remaining.

Vienna made payments to accounts in Lichtenstein then passed the rest along to Brussels, Belgium.

Two RemoteToken fobs remaining.

Brussels paid accounts in Bermuda then spit out the balance to an account in Zurich, Switzerland.

I buried my head in my arms, bleary from four hours of playing whacka-mole without a hit. I had hacked into seven bank accounts in seven countries, each time hoping that my worst fears would be resolved and each time feeling like a naive fool. All the accounts were empty. The thrill of the hunt – an endorphin-laced high that that had sustained me to this point – was eviscerated. In its place was pure dread.

Why had Cyrus done this? Why string together seven bank accounts that existed only as conduits? It seemed that the primary purpose was to keep the money in motion. I had read about such schemes before, orchestrated by covert drug cartels. These bandits knew that the banks and regulators were too slow to catch the action real time and quick to give up once the money left their borders. That pattern would certainly fit what I found here – swift, backto-back-to-back transactions, each bank transfer a flight from one country to the next. My thoughts were venturing well off the fantasy grid at this point, and at each turn, the conclusions made me want to retrace my steps, close the doors behind me, and pretend I had seen nothing.

There was still this one final Zurich bank account. If only this account con tained the verifying financial records I sought, all of the rest could be dismissed as needless drama manufactured by yours truly’s wild imagination. I wanted to be wrong; I needed to be wrong. Sure, the odds that this final Zurich bank account was the one were infinitesimally small, yet there remained a sliver of hope. But I knew, if I opened this final door, hoping to find that sliver, I would never be able to go back to a world in which I did not know the truth.

I picked my head off my arms and dove back into the RemoteToken server one final time. Any illusions that I had an escape hatch were as empty as the seven bank accounts I had already examined.

The first hack took hours; this one took minutes. I was as familiar with the laser room as a blind man in his kitchen. With a mirror of the fob’s passcode in hand, I went back to CryptoWallet and input the necessary information to link the accounts. Without thinking, I clicked the button to link them and watched as my screen filled with the Zurich account’s historical record.

My phone rang as my virtual wallet filled with new transactions. I rarely got phone calls and even when I did, I usually ignored them. My few friends knew this. That meant calls were almost always telemarketers, political pollsters, and kind people who just knew I needed reduced interest rates. Because of this, Cricket insisted I have a special ring tone just for her calls so that I would know when I needed to answer. So as information showered my screen, the acoustic intro riff of Damien Rice’s “Coconut Skins” echoed from my phone’s tinny speakers.

I pushed the answer icon, expecting to say hello and hear about the day riding horses, or options for dinner, or a vacation idea, or a just-arrived invitation, or simply, I love you. Instead, I was bombarded by the sound of ambulance sirens. I looked at the phone; the caller ID still read Cricket. “What’s going on?” I yelled, combatting the cacophony.

“Hollis? Hollis? Can you hear me?” Cricket yelled back.

“Yes, I hear you. What’s happening?” Somehow amidst all the back ground noise, I could hear Isabel’s muffled crying. I pictured her face buried into Cricket’s shirt.

“Hollis, I need you to meet us at Cottage Hospital right away,” Cricket said to me, followed by, “It’s going to be ok, baby. It’s going to be ok,” directed at our sobbing daughter.

I stood from my desk, sending my chair toppling backwards, and patted my empty pants pockets for my keys. I had just dropped the family at the stables: where were my goddamn keys? I knew nothing, but I was terrified, jumping straight through concerned and alarmed to DEFCON 1. “What is it, Cricket? Who’s hurt?”

I wish I could tell you that I would have been equally worried had the answer been Genevieve or Priscilla, but that would be a lie. In the nanosec ond between my question and Cricket’s answer, I prayed the most selfish prayer of my life: let it be anyone else.

“Oh, Hollis,” she moaned. “It’s Trip.”

Tune in next week for more Montecito

SANTA BARBARA

HOPE RANCH MONTECITO

Michael Cox is a 2005 graduate of the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a Wall Street refugee. Including Montecito, Michael has written three novels, each in various stages of the path to publication. He can be reached at mcox@alumni.gsb.stanford.edu.

party for 20 catered by DUO Catering snapped up for $14,000.

Speakers included Alana Walczak, president and CEO, therapists Jonathan Thompson and Rachel Brewer, and senior manager Yvonne Nelson.

Among the guests, quaffing the Margerum wine with the DUO catered fare, were Kerrilee Gore , Janet Garufis , Carrie Towbes , Lily Hahn , Lucy Firestone and Hayden Felice , Marsha Kotlyar , Joanne Rapp , Patti Herman , Marni Margerum , former mayor Helene Schneider , Steve and Amber Ortiz , Thomasine Richards , Susan Gulbransen , and Truman Davis .

A Healing House

A tsunami of supporters turned up at the FisHouse for a Heal the Ocean sunset soirée to thank donors for helping raise a most impressive $227,000 from its third consecutive imaginary gala.

“It’s the perfect kind of event,” enthuses Hillary Hauser, president and executive director of the popular charity. “Very little overhead and very generous guests!”

The bountiful bash, with crab, oysters, and clam chowder, was hosted by Tom White, owner of the popular eatery, a tiara’s toss from Stearns Wharf, who is also on the charity’s board of directors. Music was supplied by the surf band The

Kerrilee Gore and Jennifer Drucker (photo by Nell Campbell)

Jim Colomy, Drake Rabin, Hillary Hauser, and Jolene Colomy (photo by Harry Rabin)

Hillary Hauser, Brad Hall, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Harry Rabin (photo by Harry Rabin)

Julia LouisDreyfus, Elise and Jonathan Wygant, and Brad Hall (photo by Harry Rabin)

NEW LISTING

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Offering sweeping ocean, harbor and city views, this 4 bed/3 bath home sits on 0.36-acre w/ endless possibilities.

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This 1930’s vintage San Roque charmer has been meticulously renovated with modern amenities and open floor plan.

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One-of-a-kind, spacious 1,397 sq. ft. unit in the Sevilla building, stylishly renovated w/ expanive mtn view patio.

Local People

Mark Okrusko: The Local Surfer Giving People of All Abilities a Floating Hope

by Rachael Quisel

In 2010, Mark Okrusko, found er of Airtime Watertime, was surf ing at Rincon Beach when he was caught in a rip current. He struggled to swim toward the surface, but his efforts amounted to nothing. Rip currents, “powerful, narrow channels of fast-mov ing water,” catch tens of thousands of people in the United States every year. According to Okrusko, this wasn’t the first time he was forced to hold his breath and wait until the current released him. It was, however, the first time he surfaced with a plan to make sure it never happened again.

His idea, the Breathvest, a wetsuit that included a small air supply, had an unexpected benefit – it helped swim mers stay afloat. A natural innovator, Mark iterated on his original design until he landed on a suit that has since become a bestseller. He calls it the Floater, a wetsuit with a piece of poly vinyl chloride (PVC) foam that adds

buoyancy fitted in the suit’s front panel. In 2017, Okrusko launched a successful Kickstarter campaign, helping his idea surface and launch.

“Not only are we fundraising, but we’re educating,” Okrusko said. “Half the battle is getting people to know we exist.”

One of their aspirational promos shows a photo of a child wearing a 2mm neo prene spring Floater wetsuit resting on top of the ocean, eyes closed. Printed over the child are the words: “Imagine a wetsuit that would let you fall asleep in the water.” With a promise like this, it wasn’t long before word about the wet suit, which Okrusko believes is the first of its kind, got out.

Not long after opening, Okrusko’s company began sending shipments to a water therapy service provider in Poland. Now, the product has been available for four years and is sold worldwide. In 2021, a New York Times article written by a Todd Balf, who was left partially paralyzed after a spinal cord injury, attributed his ability to once again swim

autonomously to the Floater. The suit has a universal design that makes it usable by swimmers who are non-dis abled and disabled.

While personal flotation devices (PFDs) can keep people afloat, they’re bulky, difficult to swim in, and make it hard to blend in with other swimmers. The Floater is built for swimming in a way PFDs aren’t – it allows wearers to be comfortable in a horizontal position in the water.

Okrusko, who has lived off and on in Santa Barbara since 1971, was at Butterfly Beach with his friend, Gustavo Ritterstein , who has paral ysis that affects his body from the neck down, when he noticed a woman watching them. She began crying and Okrusko asked if she was okay. The woman had noticed Ritterstein swim ming with the aid of the Floater. Okrusko recounted that she said, “The reason I’m crying is because my hus band just had brain surgery. They told him he couldn’t go in the water any more; that he had to be watched in the shower.” That’s when Okrusko walked to his car, got a suit in her husband’s size, and gave it to her.

To me, Okrsuko said, “I feel that emotional energy, and I want to help people find the good stuff in life.” Recently, Okrusko started a water ther apy program, Āpa , which may benefit veterans with post-traumatic stress dis

order (PTSD).

“I tried to contact the Veterans Administration many times and left mes sages,” Okrusko said. “No one got back to me.” A few weeks ago, he reached out to Congressman Salud Carbajal.

“He called me the next day and said, ‘We have a meeting with the Secretary of the Veterans Administration; you have 20 minutes to create a proposal.’”

Okrusko hopes he will get the oppor tunity to help the eight out of 10 U.S. veterans who have PTSD. Until then, the buoyant wetsuit will continue to benefit people with disabilities, people who fear water, children, heavy swimmers, and recreational athletes.

“The Floater offers a totally new level of security, confidence, and freedom to all who wish to enjoy the water.”

Visit airtimewatertime.com for more information on the Floater and the other devices Okrusko has in the works.

“Departure,”

The Floater is a buoyant wetsuit that lets people of all abilities swim with ease, keeping them both hori zontal and afloat

Rachael Quisel is a freelance writer who specializes in health and fitness. Their short story,

was nominated for the 2022 Pushcart Prize.

THE FUTURE IS NOW

The Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara is pleased to introduce the most advanced digital PET/CT scanner to the Ridley-Tree Cancer Center, the first of its kind in our community.

Our dedication to bring state-of-theart technology to the Central Coast is just one example of our enduring commitment to excellence and to our community—now and for the future. cfsb.org/nucmed

Wrinkled Teenagers.

Among the guests were multi-Em my-winning actress Julia LouisDreyfus , actor-writer husband Brad Hall , oceanographer Jean-Michel Cousteau, Kenny Loggins, Alan and Lisa Parsons, Gretchen Lieff and Miles Hartfeld, Harry and Randi Rabin, and Freddy Maldonado

A New Dreamy Book

by

Bill

Montecito author and illustrator Bill Dalziel has published his second chil dren’s book Charlie’s Dream, a sequel to his first Ulma, the Kidnapped Tree, which he will help launch at Tecolote in the Upper Village on December 3, with 10 percent of the book purchases at the bash donated to Storyteller Children’s Center, a local nonprofit.

In a fantastic dream Charlie, the

Eastern Blue Jay, imagines he brings together a gathering of his finest feath ered friends – the Blue Jays, Crows, and Ravens – to rescue Ulma, an American elm tree from a fate sure to destroy the tree.

The bird visits an arachnid of amazing size known to be a soothsayer to find out how to free Ulma. She closes her nine eyes and sees her “beloved California” as the safe place to take her with Santa Barbara as the locale.

Bill’s story began in 2019 with his first children’s book, based on an event in his life when he was brought on as an architect for the design and con struction of the Northridge Fashion Center project. JCPenney wanted a live tree showcased in their courtyard and he was sent back East to visit a 150-year-old tree nursery, and decided on a Liberty tree, a young American elm already 30 feet tall.

“In these books we find lessons of friendship, determination, environmen tal concerns, and the magic of nature, creating a pair of inspiring books for children, with a message of hope,” says Bill, an abstract impressionist from the early ‘60s.

A world traveler, he sailed across the Pacific to Honolulu on a sloop.

His next project is a book on Zen poet ry and musings, and a book of portraits to be published in spring 2023.

Fellows Fly Off to London

In its largest global exchange to date, Montecito’s Music Academy is sending 32 fellows to London this month as part of its 75th anniversary programming. The milestone year celebrations

“Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.” – Henry Van Dyke

Heal The Ocean staff including Jasmin, Lucy, Sydni, and Drake (photo by Harry Rabin)

Jed Hirsch, Eric Peterson, and Linda Krop (photo by Harry Rabin)

Author Bill Dalziel publishes latest children’s book

The event brought in $750,000, which included a matching $200,000 from the Sprague family. A key moment was Summerland residents Nora McNeely

the Manitou Fund granting $1M for the multi-story “Magical Tree,” who shared with me, “One of the long-term pillars of focus for my family and the Manitou Fund is access. Access is key not only for a diver sity of representation – access is also about achieving more multifaceted perspectives, empathy, respect, and understanding for all walks of life. Providing accessibility for all to nature and outdoor recreation has been a long-time passion of our family. Our support is first and foremost for the organizational mission. It will be recognized specifically for the Magical Tree and all the wonders that it will offer, yet my investment is really in the Strongs’ incredible vision, which I trust implicitly. Gwendolyn’s Playground will benefit generations of deserving children and their families well into the future. I am humbled, thrilled, and grateful for the opportunity to support this project, an artful, impactful destination for play and a source of great happiness and positivity in our community.”

With founder Victoria Strong adding:

Funding needed? We were at $4M prior to the event tonight, and gained $750,000 at the event, which leaves $1.25M remaining for the $6M goal.

Ground breaking date? We received unanimous approval by the Planning Commission and the Architectural Board of Review gave us the approval to begin

construction drawings, which we are doing now. We will go back to ABR for final approval in the spring, with plans to break ground this time next year. Construction will take roughly a year.

Is this a blueprint for playgrounds in other communities?

The design and vision for Gwendolyn’s Playground have come from my heart and research in studying the best inclusive spaces around the world. Some design choices were made to best utilize the topography of the space so that will be unique to Santa Barbara. And the Magical Tree is a custom, one-of-a-kind piece. However, other aspects of the playground can be replicated, and I am already con

Your mission? Every child deserves to play. It is a fundamental right of child hood and yet not a single public park is accessible in Santa Barbara, which means 25% of the population is segregated from the rest of the community. In building Gwendolyn’s Playground, not only are we finally giving access to all community members, but we are also cultivating opportunities to bring people together in joy, dismantling stigma along the way.

Thanks to The Good Lion, Artiste Winery, the Himovitz Family & the Dos Pueblos Institute, Duo Events, PunkMe Tender, Pedro de la Cruz, Justin Fantl, Amber and Andrew O’Neill, Mildred E & Harvey S Mudd Foundation, Montecito Bank & Trust, Mosher Foundation, Natalie Orfalea Foundation, Rudi Schulte Family Foundation, Alice Tweed Tuohy Foundation, BMW SB, and Yardi Systems.

411: nevergiveup.org

Joanne A. Calitri is a profes sional international photogra pher and journalist. Contact her at: artraks@yahoo.com

Great Kitchens Don’t Just Happen . . . They Happen by Design.

Laura Capps, Katie Crocker, Jenny Deakyne, Marina Delio, Ronda Fallon, Grace Fisher, Erin Galbraith, Erinn Lynch, Alixe Mattingly, JJ McLeod, Sarah Paskin, and Jillian Pirozzi

Hurley and musician husband Michael of

sulting with other communities on their inclusive playground projects.

From left: Justin Fantl and Katrina Sprague, Marianne Sprague, Victoria and Bill Strong, Jessica Sprague, and Bruce Davis (photo by Joanne A Calitri)

Foundation advisory board member Sarah Paskin and founder Victoria Strong (photo by Joanne A Calitri)

Mehera Blum with her artwork for the live auction (photo by Joanne A Calitri)

Paul Fraser and Mary Firestone (photo by Joanne A Calitri)

Did You Know……

• Montecito Library is the busiest library in SB County based on population, with over 45,000 visits in a typical year!

• Funding for operating the Montecito Library comes from two sources: SB County and the Friends of the Montecito Library.

• Friends of the Montecito Library fund up to 50% of the library’s $400,000 operating budget each year.

• The Friends of the Montecito Library need your help to ensure that our library remains open at least five days a week. We want it to continue to be a place where both young and old are inspired and can learn and expand their horizons.

We Need You.

Make your tax-deductible donation this month and be included in our list of supporters to be published in the Montecito Journal in January. Go to www.montecitolibraryfriends.org to donate OR mail your check payable to: Friends of the Montecito Library, P.O.Box 5788A, Santa Barbara. CA 93150

on the invitation of Berkus.

“What I respect about Berkus is that he trusted his own eye,” says Chris Rupp, curator and collections manager. “As an architect he had modernist sensibilities and that carried over into his collecting. He wasn’t someone to follow collecting trends but sought out innovative artists who personally appealed to him.”

“His enthusiasm for contemporary art was contagious,” says Tony Askew, who has a piece in the Berkus collection. “It was always a pleasure to talk with Barry about what was happening in the art world. He seemed to sparkle with excite ment about a new artist he had met or a work he had just purchased.”

Athletes Advance to National Championships

Championship on Thorrington Field. They had previously won the GSAC Regular Season Championship.

“It is a pretty big day for the team,” said Westmont head coach Jenny Jaggard, who is 50-11-9 (.779) in four years at the helm. “Winning the title is always an exciting thing and I told the seniors that this is our 50th win together. It’s an exciting way to do it.”

The No. 8 men’s and No. 9 women’s cross country teams will compete at the National Championships on Friday, November 18, at the Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee, Florida. There will be 78 men and 80 women competing in their respective races.

Westmont’s men’s team is headlined by Zola Sokhela, the 2022 NAIA Cross Country West Region Men’s Athlete of the Year. The team includes Garrett Miller and Danny Rubin, who both made the All-GSAC team following stel lar races in Rocklin.

The women’s team has been led by freshman Annie West, who was named GSAC Freshman of the Year after taking 5th place at the conference champi onships. The team also includes AllGSAC runners Kari Anema, Madden Hundley, and Landon Torres.

Four Westmont athletics teams hit the road with hopes of bringing home national championships.

No. 15 Westmont women’s soccer (14-0-3) battle No. 22 Lindsey Wilson College (KY) (7-4-4) on Thursday, November 17, at 9:30 am PST at Southeastern University in Florida for the first round of the NAIA National Championship. The winner advances to play the winner of No. 19 Southeastern vs. Georgia Gwinnett College in Round Two on Saturday, November 19, at 3 pm PST.

The Warriors beat Ottawa (AZ) 2-1 on November 12 to secure the Golden State Athletic Conference Tournament

“Even in the trials of life, if we have eyes to see them, we can find good things everywhere

No. 25 Westmont volleyball (22-6), winners of the GSAC Regular Season Championship, will face No. 17 Montana Tech (24-8) in the opening round match of the NAIA Women’s Volleyball Championship on Saturday, November 19, in Butte, Montana. The Orediggers were the Regular Season Champions of the Frontier Conference, going 9-1 in conference play. The winner will advance to the final site in Sioux City, Iowa, along with the winners of the other 23 open ing round matches for action beginning November 30.

we look.” – Joanna Gaines

Scott Craig is manager of media relations at Westmont College

Women’s soccer cel ebrates after win ning the Conference Tournament Championship November 12

Zola Sokhela looks to lead the Warriors in Tallahassee

WEALTH OF WELLNESS

Mind-Body Matters Freedom From Emotional Eating

We are what we feel – and what we eat –and with emotional eating, one might be conflating the two

What Is Emotional Eating?

Emotional eating is when your emo tions, such as boredom, stress, or sadness, guide what, when, and how much you eat. Furthermore, emotional eating doesn’t have to respond to a life-altering event or intense news; it can also occur in response to every day emotions (including excitement!).

As a Licensed Family & Marriage Therapist specializing in eating disorders, I see many clients who come to me and initially believe their emotional eating is somehow due to a lack of self-control. However, disordered eating is not just a simple “discipline issue.” Struggles with food can result from deeper-rooted issues, such as food being your only source of pleasure or struggling to tolerate uncom fortable emotions (and so much more).

food to self-soothe, and determining new ways to cope (sans food). One of the best ways to do this is to utilize mindful eating.

Mindful Eating as the Antidote to Emotional Eating

by Rebecca Capps

With the holiday season on the way, stresses can run high and food can be both plentiful and comforting – often leading to emotional eating as a response. Emotional eating can induce a lot of shame and become a chronic experience if it goes unaddressed. While

nearly everyone has experienced emotional eating at one point, it can create additional guilt, stress, and anxiety when it becomes a habit. It can also lead to a disordered rela tionship with food and cause further men tal and physical health struggles. So, let’s examine what precisely emotional eating is, how to gauge if you’re doing it, and discuss a few ways you can start coping with your emotions more effectively.

Simply put, emotional eating may be characterized as a loss of control around food while in an emotional state. Not only may you reach for food whenever you’re feeling emotional, but you may also strug gle to respond to your satiety cues. For this reason, therapy can be a valuable option to help you regain balance with eating.

Are You

Emotionally Eating?

At this point, you may be wondering: “Am I an emotional eater?” Here are a few questions to ask yourself to help determine whether or not you’re emo tionally eating:

– Do you use food for comfort when you’re feeling emotional?

– Do you tend to eat until you’re uncom fortable anytime you feel stressed?

– Do you have trouble telling the differ ence between physical and non-physical hunger (i.e., cravings) for food?

– Do you use food as a reward or punishment?

– Do you feel out of control or anxious about food?

The occasional celebration with food is not a habitual problem (even moderation in moderation), but if your regular behavior reflects “yes” to one or more of these ques tions, you might be emotionally eating.

How to Navigate Emotional Eating

Emotional eating is a conditioned response more than anything. You may unknowingly use food to cope with emotions. Eventually, though, and before you know it, you are con ditioning yourself to reach for sweet or savory foods whenever stress feels unmanageable.

To properly navigate this emotional response to food, you must create a new habit. Make a habit of identifying your emo tions, acknowledging when you are using

Mindful eating is a practice that trains you to be more intentional about your eating patterns while maintaining a bal anced relationship with food. When you’re eating due to your emotions, you tend to disconnect from the sacred ritual and experience of eating. Whatever the problem, the solution is not to use food to cope. As Renée Jones declares, “Face your stuff; don’t stuff your face.” When you eat mindfully, you slow down and pay attention to your food, which enables you to better digest and savor every bite.

Tune in With Yourself

The idea that you crave food starts in your mind, and then you go through the motions of getting it and eating it. But how often are you tuning in with yourself after you choose what you want to eat or before you follow through with the food? Checking in with yourself can make all the difference in healing your emotional eating. It can be hard to distinguish when you’re eating due to hunger versus when you’re eating due to your emotions. Try tuning in with yourself before you eat this week and view it as an experiment. Ask yourself: “Am I physically hungry?” If not, try examining what feelings may be driving your response to food. Tuning in with yourself provides excellent insight into your patterns of emotional eating.

Become Familiar with Your Hunger Cues

Hunger cues are the body’s way of signaling a need for energy. Hunger is a physical sensation triggered by a hor mone called ghrelin, which notifies your brain when it’s time to eat. When emo tions determine when or how you eat, it can be easy to ignore your hunger cues and simply eat whenever you want. Take some time to reconnect with your body and listen to its cues. When do you feel the sensation of hunger, and how long does it usually take after eating a meal before feeling hungry again?

The more you become familiar with your hunger cues, the easier it will be to notice when you’re ignoring them. Keep in mind that the number one predictor of overeating is restriction. Therefore, if you desire more control over your eating habits, the answer is to stop trying to disregard your hunger cues.

Photo

from 32)

began with three performances of the London Symphony Orchestra in Santa Barbara in March with conductor Sir Simon Rattle

The 32 Keston MAX – Music Academy Exchange – winners from 2019-2022 will train and perform with the orches tra and LSO principal guest conductor Gianandrea Noseda

LSO musicians coach all finalists who competed to win the exchange and adjudicated auditions, selecting all winners.

All fellows receive a $1,500 award, plus travel, housing, and meals, spending 10 days performing and being coached.

Local Animator Graced With Award

Sentebale helps deprived children with AIDS in the South African nation of Lesotho, has spent some of the happiest times of his life in countries like Botswana.

His ex-girlfriend Chelsy Davy is from Zimbabwe.

Harry interviewed Goodall for British Vogue edited by Markle in 2019.

An Inspirational Walk

Oscar-winning actor Jeff Bridges worked with a trainer in order to walk his daughter Hayley down the aisle fol lowing his recent health struggle.

The 72-year-old Montecito resident was diagnosed with cancer of the lym phatic system in 2020 and was also hit hard by COVID-19, which he previously admitted left him at “death’s door.”

However, after being able to stand for ‘45 seconds’ Jeff sought professional help before his youngest daughter tied the knot in the Santa Ynez Valley in August 2021.

He says he practiced taking walks down his hospital corridor while still attached to oxygen.

“My first goal was how long could I stand up, and my record was 45 seconds,” he told the U.K.’s Independent newspa per. “And then – how many steps could I take?

“And it turns out I not only got to walk my daughter down the aisle, but I got to do the wedding dance as well.”

Merchandise to the Future

Jeanette Fantone, a Japanese Filipino animator from Carpinteria, has won a 2022 Princess Grace Award.

Her work largely stems from cultural nostalgia and gravitas towards the manip ulation of textures and tactility as a way of invoking impressions of memory.

Fantone received her BFA in Experimental Animation from CalArts this year and competed three films in residence, the latest being her grad uation film Fairies Inside a Tumbling Balloon

Her works have screened in film festi vals in Ottawa, Canada, and San Diego.

Fantone is a member of the AfterHours Animation Community, and vol unteers with mutual aid in Little Tokyo.

She received her award from Prince Albert of Monaco, Grace’s son, at a social ly-gridlocked ceremony in Manhattan, which I used to attend regularly at the Waldorf-Astoria.

Childhood Dreams

Prince Harry wanted to bring up his son Archie, 3, in Africa “running bare foot with local children,” according to his friend, celebrated primatologist Dame Jane Goodall

The Duke of Sussex, whose charity

Montecito actors Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd have teamed up to launch a merchandise line from their beloved 1985 film Back to the Future.

Lloyd, 84, who played eccentric Doc Brown in the movie, broke the news on Twitter.

“Great Scott!” he wrote using his character’s tagline. “Our first ever Back to the Future merchandise store that @ RealMikeFox and I designed is finally here!”

“This collaboration is for the fans,” Fix, 61, wrote on the line’s website. “We think these items are perfect. Enjoy it.”

The collection is largely comprised of T-shirts costing $29.99, long-sleeve shirts at $37.99, and hoodies at $49.99 featuring animated versions of images from the movie, as well as famous lines and phrases.

Seacrest Out

TV host Ryan Seacrest , 47, who bought his Beverly Hills estate from Montecito’s Ellen DeGeneres for $36.5 million in 2012, has sold it for $51 million.

Chef Dario Furlati

The Ca’Dario family wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving (gift cards available)

Santa Barbara 37 E. Victoria Street 2pm to 9pm

Montecito 1187 Coast Village Road 2pm to 9pm

Goleta 250 Storke Road 2pm to 9pm

To view our holiday menu or catering options, please visit: cadariorestaurants.com or call 805-884-9419 ext 2 .

Takeout and delivery will not be available on this day.

serving a four-course prix fixe dinner with specialities from Northern Italy as well as a traditional turkey dinner with all the fixings in Montecito, Santa Barbara and Goleta. We are grateful for the support of our wonderful community.

CHICKEN SOUP & MATZAH BALLS

RUGELACH

Jeanette Fantone receives Princess Grace Award from Prince Albert of Monaco

Utilize Support

You can utilize support, such as therapy or nutritional counseling, to address your underlying emotions and be accountable as you become a more mindful eater. By enlisting professional help, you can learn valuable strategies to help you on your path to wellness.

Shift Your Energy

Replacing old habits with new ones is an essential feature of behavior change. Every night, especially after a long and stressful day, you may find yourself think ing about all of the issues you’re currently facing and, as a result, turn to food for comfort. By redirecting your energy to something else whenever this urge hap pens, you can begin to shift your existing emotional eating habit and replace it with a new one. For example, instead of suc cumbing to your urge to eat emotionally, you may replace that habit with listening to music, reading, yoga, or journaling –habits that can interact with and improve your emotional state. Whatever it is, make sure it’s something you actually enjoy vs. something you’re doing just because you think you “should.”

It’s important to note that shifting your energy will only address your emotional

eating partially. When it comes to heal ing from emotional eating, let me quote Geneen Roth, who wrote, “Your work is not to change what you do, but to wit ness what you do with enough awareness, curiosity, and tenderness that the lies and old decisions upon which the compulsion is based become apparent and fall away. You will stop when you no longer believe eating will save your life when you feel exhausted, overwhelmed, or lonely. When you believe in yourself more than you believe in food, you will stop using food as if it were your only chance at not falling apart. When the shape of your body no longer matches the shape of your beliefs, the weight disappears.” (Women, Food, and God: An Unexpected Path to Almost Everything, p. 80-81).

Rebecca Capps, LMFT is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and Wellness Coach who specializes in the treatment of Eating Disorders and Addictions. mindbodythrive.com; rebecca@mind bodythrive. com

Youth Get a “Seat at the Table” at COP27: For the First Time Ever!

This year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference in Egypt, more com monly referred to as COP27, is the first ever to give children an official plat form: the Children and Youth Pavilion.

Considering how young activists like Vanessa Nakate and Greta Thunberg have led the climate campaign in recent years, and the fact that young people will shoulder the lion’s share of the consequences of climate change, it’s surprising that younger gen erations have never had the chance to be represented at a Climate Change Conference.

This welcome development allows youth to undertake conversations and policy brief ings at the newly announced Children and Youth Pavilion at COP27. It is situated in the ‘Blue Zone,’ the inner U.N.-managed region where global negotiations will take place.

“Climate change is disproportionately affecting children, young people, and will harm future generations,” says Dr. Omnia El Omrani, COP27 Youth Envoy.

Omrani goes on to say that the Children and Youth Pavilion at COP27 would address this injustice by providing a forum for young people.

“We will convene young experts and climate advocates globally to showcase the groundbreaking initiatives led by youth around the world and accelerate and integrate our engagement in real climate policy discussions.”

Young people are understandably skeptical of climate talks. They are frequently dis appointed by politicians’ broken promises and the lack of immediate action required to address the climate issue.

Our global youth demand that world leaders listen to and prioritize measures that protect those most vulnerable to climate change, particularly Indigenous Peoples and those in the Global South.

“At COP26, pledges to provide loss and damage finance to developing nations were yet again disregarded at the hands of the world’s wealthiest and most polluting nations,” said Vanessa Nakate, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and climate activist.

“At COP27, young people will have a seat at the table. We will use that platform and our voices to demand climate finance for mitigation, adaptation, and a separate fund for loss and damage.”

The Children and Youth Pavilion is organized by youth-led organizations and insti tutions that foster youth engagement and inclusion, such as Fridays for Future and the Loss and Damage Youth Coalition.

The pavilion’s other institutional partners include Save the Children and UNICEF.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The fol lowing person(s) is/are doing business as: Ramirez Plumb ing, 314 W Canon Perdido #5, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Clarion Call Express, INC, 1401 21ST St. Ste. R, Sacramento, CA, 95811. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on October 21, 2022. This statement ex pires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 2022-0002590. Published November 9, 16, 23, 30, 2022

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business as: ReGen Coop; Dreamscape Santa Barbara, 506 S Salinas, Santa Barbara, CA 93103. Regenerative Landscape Alliance, LLC, 506 S Salinas, Santa Barbara, CA 93103. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on October 24, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my

office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 20220002599. Published November 16, 23, 30, December 7, 2022

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The fol lowing person(s) is/are doing business as: Cheddar Photo Booths, 37 Dearborn Pl. #79, Goleta, CA 93117. Michael A Mendoza, 37 Dearborn Pl. #79, Goleta, CA 93117. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on September 30, 2022. This state ment expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 2022-0002441. Published Octo ber 26, November 2, 9, 16, 2022

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The fol lowing person(s) is/are doing business as: Santa Barbara Sage, 2729 Puesta Del Sol, San ta Barbara, CA 93105. Seana M Sears, 2729 Puesta Del Sol, Santa Barbara, CA 93105. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on October 14, 2022. This statement expires five years from

the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 2022-0002543. Published Octo ber 26, November 2, 9, 16, 2022

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: CASE No. 22CV03990. To all interested parties: Petitioner James Chiam Ken-Ming filed a petition with Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara, for a decree changing name to James Tan Ken-Ming. The Court orders that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted.

Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted.

If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing. Filed October 19, 2022 by Narzralli

Baksh. Hearing date: December

28, 2022 at 10 am in Dept. 3, 1100 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Published November 16, 23, 30, December 7, 2022

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: CASE No. 22CV03910. To all interested parties: Petitioner Sharon Lynn Alexander-Weir filed a petition with Superior Court of Califor nia, County of Santa Barbara, for a decree changing name to Sharyn Lynn Alexander-Weir The Court orders that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted.

Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted.

If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing. Filed October 19, 2022 by Narzralli Baksh. Hearing date: December 9, 2022 at 10 am in Dept. 4, 1100 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Published October 26, November 2, 9, 16, 2022

Also happening on campus, the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA), a Statewide organization that rep resents public and charter school adminis trators, has recognized Mrs. Coral Godlis, Executive Assistant to Dr. Alzina, as the Confidential Employee of the Year for the State of California. Dr. Alzina announced the recognition at the Montecito Association Board of Directors meeting last week.

ACSA is the largest umbrella organiza tion for school leaders in the United States, serving more than 17,000 California edu cators. The Confidential Employee of the Year distinction is awarded each year to a confidential employee that demonstrates exceptional leadership skills that repre sent the excellence and commitment of California’s educators. Coral was recog nized at the Statewide ACSA Leadership Summit in San Diego, California, on November 4. ACSA recognizes school administrators and employees throughout California in 21 subcategories of awards.

“Mrs. Godlis is an exceptionally com mitted leader who is highly respected amongst her peers and the community,” said Dr. Alzina. Godlis is a proud Cold Spring alum and mother to two girls that attend Cold Spring School. “The Cold Spring School District is honored to have Mrs. Godlis’ relationship-driven approach in the administration of the District and School,” Dr. Alzina said.

Lastly, the school has announced its first-ever Holiday Market, with hopes that it will turn into an annual event. The community is invited to the school on Saturday, December 3 from 9 am to noon to enjoy live holiday music, gourmet lattes, and hot chocolate while perusing crafts and baked goods made and sold by CSS students. “We are really excited about it, and proceeds go directly to specialist programs,” Dr. Alzina said.

The market is a cash-only event. For more information, contact aalzina@ coldspringschool.net.

Olive Mill Roundabout Receives Final Approval

On Monday, November 14, the Montecito Board of Architectural Review and City of Santa Barbara Architectural Review Board held a joint hearing to consider the Olive Mill Roundabout for final design approval. The meeting was a follow-up to another joint hearing earlier this month, when several details about the project, including size of the olive trees in the roundabout, material of the fencing on Jameson Way, signage, land scape and irrigation plans, and others still needed to be hashed out.

The two boards, which each sent three representatives to the meeting, voted to approve the project – scheduled to begin construction the week after Thanksgiving – barring an appeal of the final approv al (there is a 10-day appeal period). Last week we reported on a formal rib bon-cutting for the project, which has

been in the works for years as part of the Highway 101 widening, and will improve traffic flow at the intersection at Olive Mill Road, Coast Village Road, North Jameson Lane, the northbound Highway 101 off-ramp at Olive Mill Road, and the southbound Highway 101 on-ramp at Olive Mill Road. Word on Coast Village Road is that people are eager to have an alternative to the clunky intersection, but are concerned about the construction and traffic and parking impacts on Coast Village Road.

Residents are reminded that there is expected to be at least 5-10 minutes of delay in the area, which is already occur ring as utility work is being finalized before construction begins. While motorists will be able to drive through the intersection throughout the entire construction period – late November 2022 through summer 2023 – the northbound off-ramp at Olive Mill Road will be closed throughout con struction as the contractor is staging on the off-ramp. Drivers will be detoured to exit the freeway at San Ysidro Road.

The southbound on-ramp at Olive Mill will also be closed from the beginning of construction through the end of the year.

Drivers traveling south will be detoured on North Jameson Lane to the new on-ramp at Sheffield Drive. The axis between the NB off-ramp and SB on-ramp is where the center of the roundabout will be built, which will be the first section of the proj ect to be completed.

Flaggers will be on-site controlling traffic, and the majority of the work will take place Monday through Friday, 7:30 am to 4:30 pm, with some nighttime construction as needed. Reps are current ly working with local business owners including the Montecito Inn to schedule those overnight shifts.

Once the roundabout structure is built and usable, crews will work on the “cor ners” of the project, adding landscaping, improving drainage, and putting the fin ishing touches on the project, which will include lighting and signage.

Thereafter, construction will begin on the San Ysidro roundabout in Spring 2023. By the time the construction starts there, the Olive Mill roundabout will be able to be partially utilized and the southbound onramp to Highway 101 will be open, according to reps.

For updates, visit sbroads.com.

to Boogie

program they were starting.

The teaching program would run Monday to Friday, but being a fulltime college student, the schedule was impossible for him. Alvarez decided to come in that Monday, just to give it one day and see how he liked it. In short, he never left (but he did end up dropping out of college shortly after). In fact, each Friday the instructors would cut any students not keeping up. What started out as 20 potential teachers, ended up only having two people, including David, completing the program.

Since then, Alvarez has “never stopped dancing” and now a certi fied instructor, he began to teach at his local studio in Texas. When the dance center got a new manager, she encouraged David to go pro. While he was happy just doing his teaching and dancing, she felt he was too talented for the school and needed to go some where he could expand on his moves. Her father owned several studios in Texas, but also had one in Nashville, Tennessee. After making some calls and further encouragement, David moved to Nashville. The studio owner where he landed was a U.S. champion and the instruction David found there was “100 times” better than what he was receiving at his previous schools.

He lived in Nashville for three years before getting a call from a Hawaii dance school where he was told about another instructor he needed to meet. They offered him a week paid vaca tion to come check out the school. Having never been to Hawaii, he figured “why not?” and ended up not leaving Hawaii until he made the move to Santa Barbara in 1995. While in Hawaii, David was dating a guy who lived in Santa Barbara and managed an Arthur Murray school here. He encouraged David to move here, but after having taught at the prevalent Fred Astaire and Arthur Murray dance studios, David stated that if he was going to come to Santa Barbara, he would want to start his own school – and that is what he did. Originally founding his local studio as A Fascinating Rhythm Dance Center, this later became the current Santa Barbara Dance Center.

These days he only teaches pri vate lessons, mostly to competitive students with many of them having trained with David on a daily basis for 15-25 years. After one of the ballet schools lost its building three years ago, he took in the entire academy and now spends the latter parts of his days training their school, being their only ballroom instructor.

Of course, the island vibes never quite left him and nearly 10 years ago David took ownership over the Hawaii Star Ball, a three-day dance competition held on the islands. More

recently he took over the organization of the California Star Ball from Gitte Svendsen and is bringing this historic competition to Santa Barbara for the very first time.

The Ball begins on Friday evening with Saturday and Sunday both hav ing a morning/afternoon session and then an evening round as well. “If they want to come and see high-level dancing, the evening sessions are the best ticket in Santa Barbara,” says David. “I mean – they’re going to see the best dancing they’ve ever seen right in front of them.”

For fans of So You Think You Can Dance or Dancing with the Stars , the evening sessions are their chance to come see the stars of the dance world with current reigning U.S. cham pions gracing the floor. Saturday evening is the crux of the competi tion and David will be bringing in a live singer for the Latin rounds. Live music is uncommon for these events, but David has done this at his Hawaiian Star Ball as well and wanted to give those attending the Santa Barbara one something special to remember, especially since it is the first time it is being held here.

While the pro level competitions are the pièces de résistance, the other sessions have inspiring sights to offer, including the Teddy Bear and Preteen scenes. “These kids are so amazing. These are our future champions. They’re amateurs now and then they become professionals when they get a little older,” adds David. “But we have kids that are four years old, competing all the way up to 91 years old. So, we have every age category. You see every one out there dancing.” Dancers only compete in their age group, however the competitions are also divided by style, such as “Ballroom Single” or “Latin International,” and further dis tinguished by skill level, professional or amateur.

Whether it is going to see some sensual Salsa or an enticing Tango, the California Star Ball promises to impress and inspire.

More information and individual tickets can be bought for each session (morning/afternoon $25, evening $30) from www.californiastarball.com

Rosen is the Managing Editor of the Montecito Journal. He also enjoys working with beer, art, and life.

Kelly Mahan Herrick, also a licensed realtor with Berkshire Hathaway Home Services, has been editor at large for the Journal since 2007, reporting on news in Montecito and beyond.

Zach

Far Flung Travel Island

by Chuck Graham

It’s just one of so many countless hid den nooks and crannies carved out over time by volcanic upheaval, the surf, and weather along the craggy coast lines of the Channel Islands National Park. Most of these concealed, volcanic alcoves, corridors, and toothy grottos are only accessible by kayak. Going on foot or even by boat won’t get you to these

secretive denizens for viewing island fauna. I first came upon this tucked away, emerald-green, and blue pool a year ago while working as a volunteer ranger out on San Miguel Island. Of course, like any other island trip, I had my kayak with me. So, if and when, the weather permits the goal is to always circumnavigate the 27 coastal miles of the windswept islet. Sometimes it’s much easier said than done but the rewards are visually astounding. Mostly I paddle at a steady pace but there are several locations where I stop for lengths of time and photograph one of the greatest wildlife spectacles in the world. The entire island is a haul out site for six species of seals and sea lions but navigat ing the teeming reefs surrounding Point Bennett offers incredible looks at the largest congregation of pinnipeds on the planet. Northern elephant seals, northern fur seals, harbor seals, and California sea lions number well into the thousands. Stellar sea lions and Guadalupe fur seals are in much smaller attendance, but they

Coastal Hideaways

also utilize Point Bennett. I’ll typically make a point of stopping at places like Castle Rock, Otter Cove, Point Bennett proper, Adam’s Cove, Crook Point, and Hoffman Point to see the possibilities.

When volunteering at San Miguel with girlfriend Holly Lohuis, we usually spend at least a week there in September and October, when the northern fur seal and California sea lion pups are a mere three to four months old and very active. They are curious, rambunctious, and playful. Due to the unpredictable weath er, swell, currents, and remoteness of this idyllic isle, it’s highly likely these animals are laying eyes on a kayaker for the first time in their young, volatile lives.

However, beyond Point Bennett are numerous pocket coves and secluded beaches loaded with pinnipeds, shore birds, and seabirds. Because San Miguel Island endures such weather fluctuations, and is so exposed to swell, it’s hard to imagine a little pelagic Shangri-La hid den within the wave-battered cliffs and weather-beaten islet, but it’s there for a few northern elephant seals to enjoy.

When I first kayaked into the entrance of this sheltered pool surrounded in sharp, barnacle-encrusted crags, several subadult elephant seals were napping and sunbathing on the surface of the aqua marine-colored water. They were sticking their heads out of the water, their whiskered snouts pointing sky ward as if they were worshiping the sun. Their eyes were closed. They all seemed at peace. Every few seconds one would snort, yawn, and roll back and forth

in the tranquil waters as water droplets hung onto their long whiskers.

The ease of the incoming tide and its ebb and flow only enhanced the serene atmo sphere. It was as if they were being lulled to sleep. However, every now and then a more curious, playful juvenile elephant seal would arrive and swim inside. He would gently bump into and jostle with its snooz ing, meditative cohorts. There would be a few moments of reconfiguring everyone’s floatation status in this perfect pelagic place before they all settled again.

I could’ve spent the whole day there watching and photographing the world’s second largest pinniped lazing the morn ing away. The Island Packers boat was on its way from neighboring Santa Rosa Island. It was 40 minutes to the east of us. Another island trip was coming to an end. I fired off a few more frames before climbing around the fringe of the pool and back into my kayak. It’s good knowing though there’s so many things to look forward to, to return to because the islands keep giving.

Welcome to the island day spa – kayak required for entry

Local pinnipeds receiving a salt and sun facial treatment

Cuyler Harbor offers body treatments for Northern elephant seals and other guests

Chuck Graham is a free lance writer and photogra pher based in Carpinteria, where he also leads kayak tours and backpack ing trips in Channel Islands National Park

On Entertainment Wisdom Song for the Symphony

in the middle of his time in Los Angeles establishing his career as a composer for film, TV, videos, nature documentaries, and sports, the latter including a theme for the Olympic Games.

Westheimer said he doesn’t care if Wisdom of Water, Earth, Sky ever gets another performance after this week end’s premiere concert that also fea tures Schumann’s “Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54” with soloist Alessio Bax, Sibelius’ “Valse Triste, Op. 44, No. 1,” and Mozart’s “Symphony No. 40.”

“I wrote this for Ernestine and Maryanne. I wrote it for the foothills,” he said. “It’s for my hometown.”

Westheimer’s Wisdom of Water, Earth, Sky will be performed at the Granada on Saturday, November 19, at 7:30 pm and Sunday, November 20, at 3 pm. Visit thesymphony.org for more information.

Classical Corner: Sofia Solos

concertmaster for the last four years and has both soloed and sat in the first violin section with the Santa Barbara Symphony. Malvinni program of mas terworks features Bach’s “Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004,” Eugène Ysaÿe’s “Sonata in D minor, ‘Ballade,’ Op. 27, No. 3,” and two Paganini Capriccios: “No. 13 in B-flat major” (“The Devil’s Laugh”), and “No. 24 in A minor”… The Grammy Award-winning Parker Quartet also returns to town this week, playing its fourth performance at the Museum of Art’s Mary Craig Auditorium on Monday, November 21, with a program featuring Caroline Shaw ’s “Valencia,” Ligeti’s “Quartet No. 2,” and Beethoven’s “Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 127.”

Go Tell It on the Mountain

The threat of imminent develop ment of the western parcel of the San Marcos Foothills Preserve 18 months ago not only triggered an astonishingly speedy and successful cam paign to purchase the land as a nature preserve in perpetuity, it also synchronis tically spawned a sensational new piece of music from a Santa Barbara native: Cody Westheimer’s Wisdom of Water, Earth, Sky, which has its world premiere with the Santa Barbara Symphony this weekend.

The composer, who grew up in Goleta near the Ellwood Mesa but now lives near and goes on regular trail runs in the San Marcos Foothills, was horrified when he came upon bulldozers at the entrance just above the “Bridge to Nowhere” parallel to Highway 154. The protests and pas sion spurred the composer-filmmaker to create original music videos that spring boarded the cause.

“Unless you’ve been there and expe rienced the preserve, it’s hard to really understand the value of such a place,” Westheimer explained. “I had to get involved and do what I could for the cause.”

Not long after, Santa Barbara Symphony director Nir Kabaretti approached Westheimer with an idea to commission a piece honoring the indigenous peo ple of the land, the composer immedi ately thought of Chumash descendants Marianne Parra and Ernestine YgnacioDeSoto, who were deeply involved with saving the San Marcos Nature Preserve, and how the storytelling of the Chumash people had inspired him.

“I am so in awe of the way the Chumash

had this relationship with nature,” he said. “It’s a blueprint for the way I want to live my life, and how we as humanity need to look at nature as a collaborator rather than an adversary.”

Concerned about the issue of cultural appropriation, the composer approached Parra and Ygnacio-DeSoto for permis sion to share in a respectful way some of the sensibilities of their tradition. He received not only their blessing, but also their collaboration.

Westheimer’s 20-minute piece encom passes six movements, each focusing on an animal and a story from the Chumash culture – including the redtail hawk that engenders a somatic response whenever the composer sees one soaring in the sky above him – bookended by sunrise and sunset.

Ygnacio-DeSoto not only suggested adding a visual component to enhance the orchestral experience – Westheimer shot and edited the video footage that will be projected behind the orchestra, returning to the preserve for both film ing and continued musical inspiration – the Chumash elder will appear onstage alongside Parra to introduce each section, reading a story in the Chumash language while Parra provides an interpretive poet ic English translation.

“They’re like the soloists in the orches tra,” Westheimer said.

The premiere represents another trip around the full circle of his relationship with the Symphony, as Westheimer had his first exposure to music with the orga nization’s music education outreach pro gram. His connection continued through his time in the Youth Orchestra, for which he later composed an original piece not long after Kabaretti arrived in town more than a decade ago – smack

Santa Barbara native Sofia Malvinni –a former violin prodigy whose first teach er at age three was her Curtis Institute alumna mother, as well as a Santa Barbara Music Club scholarship award winner –will be returning when she plays a free solo recital at First United Methodist Church on November 19. Still a teen ager, Sofia is a three-time winner in the Santa Barbara Youth Orchestra Concerto Competition, where she has served as

Reggae on the Mountain (ROTM) was a charming hometown festival for its Topanga Canyon co-founders before relocating to an expansive site in the Malibu hills for its 10th anniversary. After a two-year hiatus due to the pan demic, ROTM is on the move again, tak ing up residency at Live Oak Camp at the top of San Marcos Pass from November 18-20, creating what might just be the biggest reggae festival ever in the 805.

BY

Patrick Barlow

DIRECTED BY Jamie Torcellini

by Steven Libowitz

Cody Westheimer’s Wisdom of Water, Earth, Sky was composed to honor the San Marcos Foothills and Chumash culture

The roster at the three-day event that features two stages of nonstop music, camping, a wellness area, vendor village, and art show spans both sub-genres and generations, from acts that got their start in the 1970s (Don Carlos, Yellowman, Steel Pulse, Barrington Levy) to vet erans of more recent decades ( Pato Banton, Prezident Brown) and modern purveyors of the hypnotic rhythms both local and regional. But the most recog nizable name belongs to Ziggy Marley, the eldest son of reggae’s most popular pioneer, Bob Marley, who will be mak ing his ROTM debut.

Despite performing for some 45 years, garnering Grammys galore and scoring multiple hits, Marley – who has now out lived his famous father by almost 20 years – is definitely not planning on phoning it in for his headlining gig anchoring ROTM on Sunday night.

“I’m gonna come really hard, go with more of a revolutionary type of songs, and a message to the people,” Marley said over the phone last week. “We like to enjoy and feel good and be happy, but there are some serious things going on in the world right now, and these songs are about having hard conversations with the audience with the music.”

While he’s always focused on social justice alongside waging for peace and unity in his music, Marley said the time has come for a change in tone.

“It’s not anger. That’s not the right word. More determined. We have to be a little bit tougher in order to get our message out there because the message of divisiveness, racism, and anti-Semitism is very loud. We need to have that revolutionary state of mind for the ideas of love and peace and unity. That takes a certain mindset, an attitude of urgency in changing this world. Because it’s been a long time.”

To that end, Marley plans on per

forming the new song “Lift Our Spirits, Raise Our Voice” live for the first time in Santa Barbara on Sunday. “It’s rele vant and I want people to hear it and hear what I’m saying.”

But Marley will also reach back into the archives to play the first and biggest hit of his career, “Tomorrow People,” which he recorded as a teenager with his sibling band the Melody Makers, the year after his father died.

“It’s a message I still like singing because what it was about is still true,” he said. “If you don’t know your past, you don’t know your future. People are always trying to rewrite history, but the children must know the truth, the real thing, and not make a fantasy out of reality. And we’re not going to stop. It doesn’t matter the situation. It’s not gonna deter me. It’s not going to make me less positive about how life could be so much better for the world. It might take 1,000 years, but that’s a blink in the eye of God. So we’re going to keep making a concerted effort to unite the people with love… When you hear the truth in the music, every body feels it.”

Reggae on the Mountain takes place November 18-20 at Live Oak Campground. Visit reggaeonthemountain.com.

Kings Conquer with Double Wide Range

If all you know about the Doublewide Kings is their name, you might think the band is all about trailer park tailgating. That idea goes out the window, though, in favor of thinking this might be a vani ty band when you realize the Kings were formed by Palmer Jackson, Jr., whose famous family members are among the better-known philanthropists in town with a decades-old foundation that sup ports myriad nonprofits on an annual

basis. But that’s not right, either. Discovering that the Kings have done three different full evening tribute shows since 2018 focusing on music by Neil Young, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and the Allman Brothers – all of which sold out 600-plus seats at the Lobero, the first one providing the big break through in stepping up from gigs at SOhO – you might think they’re merely a classic rock cover band cashing in on the nostalgic craze. But then you’ll see them playing for free on the plaza in front of the Granada, or entertaining at a benefit, and maybe even catch an original song or two.

So what gives?

“We’re as surprised as anyone just how popular we are, but really it’s just that we’re having so much fun,” said Jackson, the rhythm guitarist who formed the Doublewide Kings as an offshoot of the Bay Area group Mobile Home Boys (get it?) a few years after returning to town. “I think it’s really contagious.”

Fun is certainly an operative fac tor, but the other fact that matters is that the Doublewide Kings are good. Really good. Not many bands can move between the intricate polyrhythms and slide guitar licks of The Allmans’ “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed,” the lul laby allure of Neil Young’s “Harvest Moon,” the twang of CS&N’s “Teach Your Children,” and the raunch of the Rolling Stones without missing a beat (or a note). That’s because the five members, each of whom has a regular day job, care a whole lot about making music too, and have managed to get together to rehearse weekly on a regular basis for years.

The Kings includes two other mem bers of the Home Boys (singer/harmon ica player John Simpson and drummer Charlie Crisafulli) plus two longtime locals Jackson has known for decades, gui tarist Cord Pereira, who he first played with back at the Cate School in the early ‘80s, and bassist Robert Teneyck, who he met at work 15 years ago.

That longstanding camaraderie is the connective tissue that not only holds the Kings together, but also is palpably on display whenever they play.

“We’re really good friends and it’s a

This Saturday night, November 19, the Kings return to the Lobero for their first-ever non-single-artist-trib ute appearance at the theater. What’s more, the focus will be on original songs that fit quite nicely alongside the radio staples.

“We’ve written a bunch of songs over the last nine years or so, and now that we have a fan base, we decided to honor that music and share it with people,” he said. “Of course, we’ll do some of our favorite covers, too.”

Which will likely result in another sleepless night for the band members post-gig.

“There’s just so much adrenaline when we play for people who are into it,” Jackson said. “It’s like a big virtuous cir cle of fun.”

Or in other words, your grin at night’s end will likely be double wide.

Notes Around Town

Jason Libs, the longtime piano man at the Red Piano, moves eight blocks uptown to host one of his periodic Living Room Jam nights at SOhO, featuring The Congregation, The SB Allstars, and special guests, in memory of the late Alan Kozlowski, who used to host similar sessions in his downtown loft (November 17)... The Hansen Family Songfest kicks off the holiday season at SOhO on Thanksgiving eve (November 23) with dinnertime music provided by friends of the owners and club followed by a set from the Hansen Family Band, with surprise guests.

“When you arise in the morning, give thanks for the food and for the joy of living.” – Tecumseh

blast hanging out and playing music together,” Jackson said.

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

Reggae on the Mountain will fea ture Ziggy Marley among many other iconic and local reggae artists

The Doublewide Kings return to the Lobero with a collection of their own and others’ classic tunes

The 2.87-acre, four-bedroom, six-bathroom, 9,200-square-foot prop erty was first listed two years ago for a hefty $85 million before being reduced to $74.5 million and $69 million.

The sale comes after Seacrest, who also hosts American Idol, purchased a massive six-story townhouse in Manhattan when he moved to New York to host the syndicated show Live with Kelly and Ryan.

Goop in the Stockings

Montecito actress Gwyneth Paltrow has just revealed her latest Goop Christmas specials, divided into 10 cat egories.

The 50-year-old Oscar winner’s Yuletide collection includes more than 40 items in her “ridiculous but awe some” category.

In total the luxury list contains gifts worth around $900,000 with higher ticket items including a $286,000 New Zealand getaway, a $250,000 vintage Ford Bronco and a $135,000 private jet safari experience in South Africa.

On a lesser scale there’s an $18 selec tion of six new toilet paper rolls and a $50 hair color kit for dogs approved by canine dermatologists.

Other gifts include a $2,390 Louis Vuitton surfboard, a $426 Gucci holder for the detritus of doggie sinners past, an $8,000 pave white diamond neck lace, and a $29,495 Rolex watch.

Running for a Cause

Carpinteria actor Ashton Kutcher, 44, joined 50,000 other athletes cross ing the finishing line in Central Park in the New York City Marathon.

The Stoner Cats star maintained a low presence in the race through the city streets wearing a black Nike T-shirt with the Team Thorn logo and bright pink running shoes.

Ashton’s lengthy trek was to raise money for the charity he founded to combat the sexual exploitation of chil dren on the internet.

Although he didn’t win the race, he finished with a respectable 3:54:01, but his efforts were victorious, resulting in

more than $1 million in donations from fans and friends.

He lost 12 pounds while training and said it was “brutal” on his body.

Remembering Michael Butler

On a personal note, I remember Michael Butler, Tony-winning produc er of Hair on Broadway, who has died in our Eden by the Beach aged 95.

Butler was an international celebrity in the ‘60s and ‘70s with friendships with such global figures as the Shah of Iran and the Maharaja of Jaipur.

Above all, Butler was a polo fanat ic, including the British Royal Family among his equestrian friends at his sprawling polo grounds in the U.K.

He also had a legendary affair with the actress Audrey Hepburn, boasted the actor Tyrone Power as a godfather, and was a friend of the Kennedy family –joining them on their jaunts in Hyannis Port, Maine; Newport, Rhode Island; and Greenwich Village, New York.

Butler was also a regular at the Santa Barbara Polo Club with actress Stefanie Powers where I last saw him this summer.

Sightings

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle noshing on Tandoori chicken at The Dutchess in Ojai... NCIS: Los Angeles star Chris O’Donnell picking up his Java jolt at Pierre Lafond before playing a round of golf at the Valley Club...

Former Today Show anchor Bryant Gumbel at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara.

Pip! Pip! Be safe, wear a mask when necessary, and get vaccinated.

News & Events Roundup Walk to End Alzheimer’s

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 a decade

by MJ Staff

Earlier this month, nearly 450 area residents strapped on their sneakers for the Walk to End Alzheimer’s. A Promise Flower ceremony was held before the Walk with Santa Barbara Mayor Randy Rowse helping count down the beginning of the event. Together this bipedal push raised more than $135,000 to fund research and free local services throughout the Central Coast, including support groups, education programs, care consulta tions, and a 24/7 Helpline [(800) 272-3900] in both English and Spanish.

With more than 690,000 people living with Alzheimer’s and 1.12 million family caregivers in this state alone, the Walk was one big step towards providing those affected by the disease.

The top fundraising team at this year’s Walk to End Alzheimer’s was Alzheimer’s Women’s Initiative, raising more than $16,400 in support of the cause. Other top teams included Team Carpinteria, Team Union Bank, and Carpinteria Morning Rotary.

“We all know someone that has been affected by Alzheimer’s disease or other dementia,” said Lindsey Leonard, Alzheimer’s Association California Central Coast Chapter executive director. “The strong turnout at the Walk reflected how much of a priority it is for people to come together in support of each other, raise awareness, and to unite efforts to further our cause.”

Visit alz.org or call (800) 272-3900 for more information.

Girls Inc. and Cox Communications Partner for 3rd Annual “Operation Holiday Cheer”

Girls Inc. of Carpinteria is bringing back their wintery gift-giving event, Operation Holiday Cheer. Launched in 2020 and presented by Cox Communications, this program brings gifts and some holiday spirit to local girls and their families that are experiencing economic hardships resulting from the pandemic.

“We are proud to host our 3rd Annual Operation Holiday Cheer in partnership with Cox Communications to once again spread holiday cheer for local girls and families and show them we are in their corner,” said Jamie Collins, executive director of Girls Inc. Carpinteria. “We encourage local businesses and community members looking for a way to support those in need this season to join our efforts to make a meaningful difference and ensure all families receive gifts for the holidays.”

With an expected offering of 500 gifts to over 125 families in a special December 10th event, there are three ways to join the operation:

– Giving Tree: Items can be picked and purchased off of the tree in the Girls Inc. office at 5315 Foothill Road.

– Fill the Box: Sign up to bring a holiday box to your business with gift tags that contain a Christmas wish. Employees can take a tag, purchase the item and return to fill the box.

– Purchase a gift from the organization’s Amazon Wish List, which will ship directly to Girls Inc. of Carpinteria.

To get involved or learn more about Operation Holiday Cheer, call 805-684-6364. For more information about Girls Inc. of Carpinteria, visit girlsinc-carp.org.

Polo fanatic Michael Butler R.I.P. (right)

The Walk began with a Promise Flower ceremony and inspirational emceeing by event chair, Gabriella Garcia (photo by Janelle Boesch)

Participants cross the finish line after a successful event (photo by Janelle Boesch)

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Calendar of Events

by Steven Libowitz

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17

The Wonder of Whitaker – The word prodigy gets overused by the hype ma chine, but it surely applies to keyboardist Matthew Whitaker. A pianist since age three, Whitaker also taught himself how to play the Hammond B3 organ and at 13 became the youngest artist endorsed by the company in its 80-year history. Two years later Whitaker was named a Yamaha Artist at 15, also setting a record as the youngest musician to join the stellar group of jazz pianists. On stage, Whita ker, then nine, was a winning participant in the Child Stars of Tomorrow compe tition as part of Amateur Night at the Apollo, and a year later opened for fellow blind keyboardist Stevie Wonder’s induction into the legendary theater’s Hall of Fame. Whitaker, an improvisation specialist who also composes, has played just about every major jazz hall and festival in the land, and tonight, at age 21, he makes his Santa Barbara debut at UCSB’s Campbell Hall on the heels of his most recent album, Connections.

WHEN: 8 pm

WHERE: UCSB Campbell Hall

COST: $30-$45 INFO: (805) 893-3535 or artsandlectures.ucsb.edu

Straight Talk at Museum – New York Times award-winning author Susan Straight returns to the Santa Barbara Museum of Art’s Parallel Stories to read from her highly praised latest novel Mecca, which, like an Iñárritu film, is told from different points of view in interwoven narrative. Set in Southern California’s inland and high desert area, Mecca spins a story of freeways, wildfires, secrets, and struggles that is also a love song for a place and its people as they experience loneliness and grief, and relays the ways in which language, with its power and peculiarities, carries a culture’s hopes and fears. Straight has been lauded for looking closely at the Cali fornia few see with courage and grace, pushing deep into the difficult territories of the past few years and perhaps shifting how we see the land and each other.

WHEN: 5:30 pm

WHERE: Mary Craig Auditorium, 1130 State St. (entrance in the rear)

COST: $10

INFO: (805) 963-4364 or sbma.net

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18

Amazing Range – Camerata Pacifica’s eclectic program tonight traverses a wide musical territory and a couple of centuries even though the ensemble is only show casing two of its performers. Camerata fave, principal percussionist Ji Hye Jung, makes her season debut, employing the concert marimba for Emma O’Halloran’s How Sweet the Sound of You as Infinite and Joseph Schwantner’s Velociti. Soyeon Kate Lee, the highly praised pianist who recently became the first woman of Asian descent to join the piano faculty at the Juilliard School, showcases her technique on the “Variations on a Theme of Corelli Op. 42” by Rachmaninoff. Chopin’s “Mazurka in A Minor, Op. 17, No. 4,” and “Gustave Le Gray,” by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Caroline Shaw Lee and Jung also team up for Christopher Cerrone’s “Double Happiness,” fashioning a unique aural world that combines piano, percussion instruments, and vibraphone with pre-recorded electronic sounds. Note: tonight’s pro gram takes place at Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History’s Fleischmann Hall, where the ensemble will also perform its next concert after a threemonth hiatus in February before returning to its usual home of Hahn Hall at the Music Academy from March-May.

WHEN: 7:30 pm

WHERE: 2559 Puesta Del Sol Rd.

COST: $68: INFO: (805) 884-8410 or cameratapacifica.org

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18

Collective Collaborative – SBCC Dance hosts its seventh annual two-day festival bringing together professional and pre-professional companies from Santa Barbara and the Southern California area. With a stated goal of introducing a diverse and inclusive group of artists to the Santa Barbara community, Collec tive Collaborative offers an opportu nity for smaller dance companies to present their works to local dancers and dance-lovers alongside other such outfits in the intimate black box space of Center Stage Theater. Joining the SBCC Dance Company this year are its collegiate cousin the UCSB Dance Company, plus AKOMIDance, Jess Harper & Dancers, Selah Dance, Volta Dance, Jazz Spectrum Dance Company, and FUSE Dance Company. SBCC’s Tracy R. Kofford serves as Artistic Director. WHEN: 7 pm tonight & tomorrow

WHERE: 751 Paseo Nuevo, at the intersection of Chapala and De la Guerra streets COST: $23 in advance, $28 at the door

INFO: (805) 963-0408 or centerstagetheater.org

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18

Tending the Gardener – It would be almost impossible to have lived in Santa Barbara for any length of time and not have encountered Spencer Barnitz. The singer-songwriter-guitarist and bandleader has fronted several groups around town for more than four decades, ranging from The Tan, which plied the house party, high school, and club gig circuit all around town, to the dance outfit ap propriately called The Wedding Band, which plays hits and more filtered through Barnitz’s blend of pop, horn-filled funk, hip-hop, salsa, and more. Of course, Spencer the Gardener is his most ubiquitous band, one that shows up at every festival, block party, street fair, clubs, and sometimes theaters around the city for 25 or so years, with Barnitz writing a bunch of original songs that range from raunchy to child-friendly. Not that Barnitz bails on self-promotion, but tonight’s celebration intensifies the focus on Spencer himself in a special event that will be full of music from STG and guests, and showcases a sneak preview of a docu mentary still in progress that takes a look at what makes the local hero tick, and how he’s managed to maintain the laid-back lifestyle filled with surf, sun, and music while living on an artist’s wage. The evening will be filmed to be included in the documentary, so dress the part, although Barnitz himself will be shuffling over from his home less than a block from the Lobero.

WHEN: 7 pm

WHERE: Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St. COST: $36 INFO: (805) 963-0761 or lobero.com

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19

Groovin’ on Gratitude – Louie Schwartzberg spent 25 years in Hollywood working as a cinematographer on blockbusters and Oscar-winning films be fore choosing to focus full time on making films celebrating nature, life, and the human spirit. Powered by his pioneering techniques in high-end time-lapse cinematography blended with expert interviews, Schwartzberg’s 2019 documen tary Fantastic Fungi proved a major breakthrough in capturing both critics and audiences. His follow-up film, Gratitude Revealed, gets a special screening to night in town sponsored by the Santa Barbara Permaculture Network just in time for Thanksgiving. The film interweaves breathtaking time-lapse images of the natural world with extraordinary stories of “ordinary” people, including segments with such luminaries as Norman Lear, Jack Kornfield, Deepak Chopra, Michael Beckwith, and several others. The director says he was “compelled to show my gratitude for our world during the complex and unpredictable time brought about by the pandemic to help people in desperate need of connection, both internal and external, and address the global suffering from isolation, stress, and

“If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself.” – Tecumseh

A (Square) Foot in the Door

– The annual Ready to Hang one-day pop-up local art exhibition features a large assortment of works for sale by dozens of area painters, photographers, assemblage makers, tattoo artists, print makers, and others who have created new pieces each sized 12 inches by 12 inches to hang alongside fellow artists rep resenting entire community. The exhibition finds works from some of Santa Barbara’s best-known artists sharing walls with pieces from artists for whom Ready to Hang serves as their first show. The third show also corresponds with the 15-year anniversary of the Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative, a non profit committed to sustaining and growing all forms of the arts in the area that has worked to renovate and develop the Santa Barbara Community Arts Workshop as an affordable work/living space for local artists, performers, and students and to serve as a hub for creativity, inspiration, and dialogue. Up to 450 pieces are anticipated to adorn the walls at SBCAW this evening, with a record number of artists and visitors participating. Get there early, as all the artwork is for sale – 30 percent earmarked for SBAC – and purchases will be immediately available to “un-hang” and take home.

WHEN: 4-7 pm

WHERE: Community Arts Workshop, 631 Garden St. COST: free admission

INFO: (805) 324-7443 or sbcaw.org/hang

anxiety.” Mission accomplished. If the rapturous reviews from writers and viewers – who have called the film transformational, an antidote to negative thinking, and utterly joy-inducing – are any indication. The screening will be followed by a Q&A session with Louie Schwartzberg on stage.

WHEN: 6:30 pm

WHERE: Marjorie Luke Theatre, Santa Barbara Junior High, 721 East Cota St. COST: $10

INFO: (805) 962-2571 or sbpermaculture.org

It’s a Family Affair – After decades playing alongside each other in various combinations as sidemen for a legion of pop music legends, Danny Kortch mar (guitar and vocals), Waddy Wachtel (guitar and vocals), Le land Sklar (bass), Russ Kunkel (drums), and longtime friend, session guitarist, and songwrit er Steve Postell (guitar and vocals) decided to actually form their own band several years ago between tours and recording sessions to see what might transpire. After weathering the pandemic not long after recording a debut album and hitting the road, The Immediate Family has forged a path that has proven formidable and popular in its own right. A new album has a bevy of new original songs, which they will perform alongside favorites from some of the artists they’ve backed on and off since the early 1970s, including James Taylor, Carole King (the Family played behind King at her induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame a year ago), Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Nicks, Keith Richards, Warren Zevon, Graham Nash, Neil Young, David Crosby, and many more. (Waddy wailing on “Werewolves of London” is not to be missed.) Be forewarned: This third time through of the Immediate Family taking the stage at the Lobero promises to be a raucously rocking affair that might threaten the eardrums of anyone still around from the sing er-songwriter era.

WHEN: 7 pm

WHERE: Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St. COST: $35-$106

INFO: (805) 963-0761 or lobero.com

Storytelling

Nov 11, 2022–Apr 30, 2023

Influenced by the pictorialist movement of the early twentieth century, Edward S. Curtis set out to create a photo and ethnographic record of Indigenous peoples living in Western regions from the Mexican border to Alaskan shores. 100 years later, Native people still contend with “Indian” stereotypes that are consequences of Edward Curtis’s vision.

This exhibit endeavors to present his breathtaking photogravures within the context of American colonialism.

Sponsored by Knight Real Estate Group of Village Properties, First Republic Bank, Kathleen Kalp and Jim Balsitis, Kelly and Tory Milazzo

Native People through the Lens of Edward S. Curtis

2559 Puesta del Sol Santa Barbara, CA 93105 sbnature.org/storytelling

“Replastering a Paguate House,” 1925, Edward S. Curtis

Elaine (805)708-6113

Christa (805)450-8382 Email: theclearinghouseSB@cox.net Website: www.theclearinghouseSB.com

Decorator Warehouse Sale

Hosted by The Clearing House for Metamorphosis Staging/Design

130 Garden Street

(behind Budget U-Store)

November 18, 2pm – 6pm, November 19, 20 9pm – 3pm

Fabulous selection of premium Staging Furniture and Décor from high-end Montecito and Santa Barbara homes

Named Makers - Priced to Sell!

On-site Delivery available For Sale Details go to: theclearinghousesb.com

MOVING MISS DAISY

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TRESOR We Buy, Sell and Broker

Important Estate Jewelry. Located in the upper village of Montecito. Graduate Gemologists with 30 years of experience. We do free evalua tions and private consultation. 1470 East Valley Rd Suite V. 805 969-0888

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HELP required to assist executive. Handle business correspondence, Insurance claims, etc. Computers literacy and typing ability necessary. Charles – 805-698-6299

REAL ESTATE SERVICES

Get the money you need to close your deals! Fund ing available for nearly all commercial industries, such as hospitality, multi-family, subdivisions, equipment loans and new construction. Don’t wait for interest rates to continue climbing, get help today! 1-800-791-9713 or roxitcapital.com Launch your project with Roxit!

PHYSICAL TRAINING & THERAPY

Stillwell Fitness of Santa Barbara

In Home Personal Train ing Sessions for 65+ Help with: Strength, Flexibility, Balance, Motivation, and Consistency

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

Want to improve the way you

GOT OSTEOPOROSIS? WE CAN HELP

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

WRITING SERVICES

THE MOST SPLENDID GIFT

Honor your spouse or your parents with the ultimate expression of love and admiration. I will work with your special person to re search, write and publish a stirring biography or autobiography. The published book will be professional, impressive, thorough and en tertaining. Give this as a holiday present this year and we’ll have the book finished by next December. David Wilk (805) 455-5980. Great references. www.BiographyDavidWilk.com

FOR SALE

Santa Barbara Cemetery upper hillside Companion Side by Side gravesite for 2 persons overlooking Montecito Country Club and mountains. Lot 113 located in Central Block B. For inquiries or to make an offer Telephone or Text 309-368-0224

AVAILABLE FOR RENT

Montecito, Santa Barbara, Ca Furnished home for rent $30,000.00 per mo. with a 5yr. lease 4bd+4ba, nanny quar ters, &

RENTAL WANTED

NONPROFIT CENTER

The Coast Village Non profit Center is coming soon. 8 nonprofits including Coast Village Cleaners, BellosGuardo, a Fire Prevention Program, Afford able Housing & The Zoo. 4 new B.O.Ds in process. Vast details are available. Contact clint4re@yahoo.com or call me at (805) 280-2999

LOOKING FOR A MIRACLE

Professional married couple who are getting ready to retire from 37 years in health services, are looking for a possible miracle. Would you or do you know any one who would sell us a house consider ably below market value? We just can’t afford market prices and our greatest wish is to stay in the community we love and have served instead of being forced to make the choice to leave the area. Please call Mark at 820 587 4314.

“Gratitude is a divine emotion: it fills the heart, but not to bursting; it warms it, but not to fever.” – Charlotte Bronte