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Editorial – How the ALERT Wildfire cameras project started as a collaboration between Wayne Siemens and Kevin Taylor P.6 Village Beat – Restoring the Casa Dorinda Triangle, Summerland signage, Cemetery construction on hold, and Rotary Club grants P.8

Montecito Miscellany – A roundup of holiday happenings, a farewell party for Unity Shoppe’s Tom Reed, and more P.10

Letters to the Editor – Dave Everett discusses the McMenemy Trail and its proposed changes Tide Guide P.12

Our Town – This year’s Holiday Donation Drive at Richie’s Barber Shop and eyes on some art for endangered animals P.14

Hot Topics – New ALERT Wildfire cameras are installed on TV Hill, provide real-time monitoring for the fire department

Montecito JOURNAL

“Where words fail, music speaks.” — Hans Christian Andersen

Suggestion Brings a Safer Montecito

by Gwyn Lurie

This week, Montecito became a little safer. On page 14 you can read about the ALERT Wildfire camera just installed on TV Hill that will provide 24/7 “eyes” on the Santa Barbara Front Country and eventually alert firefighters to new fire starts using artificial intelligence technology.

But before you read about this exciting and potentially lifesaving development, we wanted to reflect upon one of the reasons this is very special.

It’s hard to believe it’s been five years since December 2017, when the Thomas Fire burned its way across the Santa Ynez Mountain Range toward Montecito, and we watched in horror as our community came perilously close to being razed. What we didn’t know at the time was that for days before the fire reached Montecito, local firefighters were fever ously reinforcing our existing fuel treatment network behind the homes on East Mountain Drive, making a huge difference when, on December 16 at 6:30 pm, in what’s known as a “sundowner,” the fire came off the mountain making its run at Montecito.

According to Montecito’s Fire Chief, Kevin Taylor, what happened next was com pletely unheard of.

“There were over 300 engine companies in total in the community that Saturday morning when the sundowner blew the Thomas Fire into Montecito,” Taylor explains. “Shift change is at 7 pm. So that means both shifts, the off going shift (150 engines) along with the oncoming shift (150 engines), 1,200 firefighters, together fought the fire in an effort that quite literally saved Montecito.”

By the hair of our chinny-chin-chin, we escaped that disaster, only to be hit with another disaster when a rainstorm pummeled the charred hills above Montecito caus ing the January 9th debris flow.

Those of us living here at the time will never forget the trauma that gripped this community that day. Nor will we forget how we came together to help one another get through that catastrophic event and its painful aftermath. That moment revealed the spirit that lives at the core of Montecito. A spirit that not only involves looking out for one another, but one in which community members step up to help solve big problems.

Which leads me to a call I received two years ago from longtime resident Wayne Siemens, asking if I could connect him with Montecito Fire Chief Kevin Taylor to discuss an idea Siemens had to use drones as a tool for local fire monitoring.

“I know we’ve had some good fire chiefs and some lovable characters,” says Siemens, “but Chief Taylor’s the first guy that took out a notepad and said, ‘Let’s figure out how we can get something going that we don’t have now.’ And that was about two years ago. I originally wanted to discuss drones because that was all I knew about. And he grabbed that and said, ‘We’re going to work with this in the meantime or maybe forever.’”

I asked Chief Taylor to share his perspective on the new ALERT cameras and he began by reflecting on Wayne Siemens’ involvement.

“In the course of a day I meet many community members, but very few have ideas for how to make the community safer. The Ring Nets were another example. The thing that set Wayne apart from most people I meet with is that he had a vision of something that’s always watching the front country. And at the time of the vision, it was a drone. That triggered a thought in my mind of this camera supported by artificial intelligence that’s constantly watching for smoke to maybe give us a 60-, 90-, 120-second head start on that fire. Wayne’s suggestion reinvigorated what we were doing at the fire department already and caused us to move it up the priority list. To the point where now, literally today as we’re sitting here, one’s being installed on TV Hill and in the spring, there’ll be one up on Ortega Ridge. It’ll have 100% view of the front country. There’ll be no shadows. They are available to the community, so you can log on to this ALERT wildfire site and see it for yourself.”

So, hats off to Wayne Siemens for stepping up to support this community he loves so much. Like he did when he heard we might lose our iconic local pharmacy, so he organized community members to put together the funding to save it from falling into the hands of a big conglomerate. But that story is for another day…

ce of Mind.

Gwyn Lurie is CEO and Executive Editor of the Montecito Journal Media Group

Village Beat Plans for the Casa Dorinda Triangle

by Kelly Mahan Herrick

At the Montecito Association’s Land Use & Transportation Committee hearing earlier this week, the committee was briefed on upcoming plans to beautify the “triangle” in front of Casa Dorinda, where Olive Mill and Hot Springs roads meet.

The $200,000 project is being funded in part by Montecito Community Foundation, with help from Casa Dorinda and the Garden Club of Santa Barbara. MCF is currently seeking donations to help meet the goal. “It’s very symbolic for the community to have this built,” said MA Executive Director Sharon Byrne.

The area was badly damaged during the debris flow nearly five years ago, but County resources went to fixing roads and bridges. “We’ve had support from the County but no funding and no labor, as it was low on the list of priorities,” said Brian McCague, Casa Dorinda’s president. McCague added that the majority of the proper ty is in public right-of-way save for a small corner, and that the triangle has historically been irrigated by water from Casa Dorinda. “We are happy to continue voluntarily maintaining it, and the irrigation line is still intact,” he added.

The County has signed off on the project and has issued a building permit. Designed by Arcadia Studio, the landscape is designed to embrace the Montecito landscape, including native and Mediterranean-style plantings, all drought tolerant. A rock buffer

Photo by Todd Rosenberg Photography

The triangle at Hot Springs Road has long been austere, and is now slated for beautification

The proposed plan by Arcadia Studio for the Casa Dorinda triangle will include native, drought-tolerant plantings

Montecito Miscellany Memories of Theaters Past

by Richard Mineards

What could be more festive for Yuletide than Charles Dickens’s classic ghost story A Christmas Carol?

It is a show dear to my heart as it was the first-ever theater production I saw at the tender age of eight at the Northampton Repertory Theatre in England with a group of class

mates from my local prep school, which undoubtedly inculcated my love of the ater and drama.

I would also attend regularly – paying the equivalent of 20 cents – to sit in the Gods at the top of the auditorium, enthralled by the ever-changing pro gram. The 138-year-old, 460-seat the ater has now been renamed after Errol Flynn, who started his acting career there in the ‘30s.

Even the classic films starring Alastair

Sim, Albert Finney, and George C. Scott as Ebenezer Scrooge, hardy annuals on myriad TV channels, continue to garner

boffo ratings decades on.

Ensemble Theatre Company’s new adaptation at the New Vic by British scriptwriter Patrick Barlow and direct ed by Jamie Torcellini with a minimal cast of five actors playing the ghostly and myriad other roles is an absolute Christmas cracker.

Mark Capri as the miserly Scrooge is a Dickensian delight.

The show is poignant, touching, and comedic with the other actors – Bo Foxworth, Regina Fernandez, Louis Lotorto, and Jenna Cardia – adding mightily to the festive romp.

Prior to the show, which runs through December 18, the company’s artistic director Jonathan Fox joined members of Montecito Bank & Trust’s VIP travel and entertainment MClub for a boun tiful brunch at the Scarlett Begonia, a

Montecito Bank & Trust’s MClub members ready for A Christmas Carol (photo by Priscilla)

Louis Lotorto, Mark Capri, and Bo Foxworth star in the ETC’s production of A Christmas Carol (photo by Zach Mendez)

Christine Hollinger, Jonathan Fox, and Sybil Rosen (photo by Priscilla)

Letters to the Editor

McMenemy Trail: Don’t Switch the Switchbacks

On April 26th, 1965, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors unanimously passed Resolution #24671, accepting a trail easement from Logan and Elizabeth McMenemy. This easement solidified a new trail route for a historic trail that crossed the McMenemy lands, and a few years later a second easement was deeded by the San Ysidro Ranch, com pleting the McMenemy Trail where it still runs to this day. It was the brainchild of the Montecito Riding and Hiking Trails Association (MRHTA; now the Montecito Trails Foundation) working with the County of Santa Barbara and took over a year to complete. The reason behind moving this trail to the location where it now sits:

In order to build a trail that would stand the test of time and not lose usabil ity due to changes in land ownership, according to MRHTA founding member and president Peter Bakewell.

It was during this era the County of Santa Barbara and U.S. Forest Service (USFS) along with trail organizations fought hard to preserve trail access for future generations – knowing that development would soon encroach around the trails – therefore, easements were essential for ensuring their preser vation. The trail’s name prior to 1965 was the Old Pueblo Trail; yes, an exten sion of that trail with the same name on the other side of the creek – it was once one continuous trail. After the ease ment was granted, the County of S.B. agreed to rename this portion of trail the “Colonel McMenemy Trail,” thus a new chapter in trail history began. The inception of this trail was like so many others of this era. First built in 1918 in the name of fire protection, its strategic location provided a defensive

barrier between the last ridge of the mountains and the foothills, which it continues to do.

Lately I have found myself won dering, “What would Mr. Bakewell think if he knew the trail he helped build was being moved for the exact opposite reason he placed it where it is today?” The irony of it, the Montecito Trails Foundation is now leading the relocation of the McMenemy Trail, due in part to a neighbor requesting it be moved away from their property, and from what is listed on the agenda the County Riding and Hiking Trails Advisory Committee (CRAHTAC) is set to approve. I can only imagine if Mr. Bakewell was here today, he would be deeply disappointed, especially since his generation spent so much time and effort ensuring future trail users would have access to public trails – regard less of how many new homes were built nearby.

The movement to realign the McMenemy Trail over the proposed new route began on January 12th, 2021. This proposal is addressed to the owner of a nearby home and the manager of the San Ysidro Ranch. The objectives clearly state its pur pose, amongst them are: Prevent cut ting of switchbacks, safety, and to “provide relief to the two property owners through which the trail passes from encroachment into their parcels.”

This clearly demonstrates that moving this trail is in part to appease the needs of nearby neighbors, whose properties the trail crosses with deeded easements. The current realignment project differs from any previous versions as it devi ates from the current trail much further than the others have attempted in years past. (It should be noted that the cur

rent project manager for McMenemy Realignment has changed and is now the Montecito Trails Foundation.)

Probably the most frequent question I have been asked throughout this realign ment process is, “Which came first, the house or the trail?” McMenemy Trail has been in its current location, along those famous switchbacks which ascend the grassy hillside, since 1965. Before that, it still ascended the same grassy hillside but in a more direct path on what is known as the “fall line” trail, as would often be built in the early 1900s. The nearby home was built in the early ‘90s, long after McMenemy Trail had been established. Before this home was built, a vacant lot occupied that location. The parcel, which is owned by the San Ysidro Ranch and is the easternmost portion of trail, has always been vacant but will soon become a botanical garden for hotel guests to enjoy, hence all the work on this parcel in recent months.

I have met or spoken to representatives of the Montecito Trails Foundation, Los Padres Forest Association, and local agencies about the realignment, stating how I was opposed to it and the rea soning behind my decision. I explained how damaging to our fragile trail sys tem it could be, moving a trail at least in part due to a neighbor’s request. It places the neighbors’ needs before trail users and will almost certainly open the doors to the many other residents not wanting trails near their residences to expect the same accommodation in the future. I believe that if this realignment is approved, the fallout to our entire trail system could be catastrophic.

Another piece of important informa tion which can be gained by reading the Realignment Proposal – it was written by an active member of CRAHTAC. This is ironic since the topic of realign ing McMenemy Trail never appeared on any CRAHTAC agendas or min utes until mid-2022. It was known by County staff that this realignment project was in progress and a P-Line Trail had already been built by this CRAHTAC member. It should also be noted that the former project manag

MONTECITO TIDE GUIDE

Day Low Hgt High Hgt Low Hgt High Hgt Low Hgt

Thurs, Dec 8 2:24 AM 2.5 8:42 AM 6.1 04:05 PM -0.6 010:49 PM 3.5

Fri, Dec 9 2:53 AM 2.7 9:12 AM 6.0 04:41 PM -0.5 011:33 PM 3.4

Sat, Dec 10 3:23 AM 2.8 9:44 AM 5.7 05:19 PM -0.3

Sun, Dec 11 12:23 AM 3.3 3:55 AM 3.0 10:17 AM 5.5 06:00 PM -0.1

Mon, Dec 12 1:21 AM 3.3 4:34 AM 3.2 10:54 AM 5.1 06:45 PM 0.2

Tues, Dec 13 2:25 AM 3.4 5:30 AM 3.4 11:36 AM 4.7 07:32 PM 0.4

Weds, Dec 14

Thurs, Dec 15

er was set to benefit financially from this project, a project being funded by neighbors whose land the trail crosses. If nothing else, this raises the issue of conflict of interest. I plan on following up this topic in future correspondences with the County of Santa Barbara in much greater detail regarding policy for realigning County Trails and if what occurred in 2021 was done to CRAHTAC/County of SB standards.

The Proposed McMenemy Trail realignment trail has been reported to solve many problems, here is a list of sev eral of them and discussion:

Grassy hillside switchback “short cut ting” instead of using the trail – The majority of trail users stay on the des ignated path and erosion impact from McMenemy Trail cutting is minimal. Cutting of switchbacks is a common

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

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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.

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Montecito

“Where words leave off, music begins.” — Heinrich Heine

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issue on nearly every trail across Santa Barbara’s Front Country and beyond. Although prevalent, no other trail has been suggested to relocate due to short cutting and some trails have far worse erosion impact issues from it. Solution: Efforts have begun to prevent shorting these switchbacks and once completed these measures should all but eliminate this issue. Conservative efforts should always be made before more drastic actions are taken.

Fence complaints – As found on letters set to go to the USFS and County, the fence along the border of San Ysidro Ranch Property is listed as a reason for realigning this trail. This fence went up approximately two years ago, in some places encroaching on the trail’s 10-foot easement. Recent trail work has widened the area next to the fence, giving more space between the fence and outside edge of the trail, but areas are still encroached beyond the 10-foot mark. (It should be noted that all nearby trails have fencing on one side or both, including: Lower San Ysidro, Wiman Trail, Old Pueblo Trail, and Hot Springs Trail. Will they be realigned as well?)

Furthermore, the Realignment Proposal states, “In site visits with Bart and Ian, I think there is an understand ing that some level of fencing will be required at the east and west ends of the proposed trail realignment to prevent public access.

“This is especially true on the west end where the hillside is relatively open, and users may still attempt to use the older trail. As noted above, part of the project should include a resto ration component whose goal will be to return the tread and denuded hillsides to as natural a condition as possible. This should help discourage access but realistically fencing will be needed, especially as trail users get used to the new alignment.”

If this is accurate, the realigned trail would actually have more fencing than the current trail!

McMenemy Trail current conditions and safety – McMenemy overall has one of the most gentle grades of any nearby trails. It is severely lacking in basic maintenance needs, which have led to erosion and current conditions. The agency-sponsored National Public Lands Day was held on this trail in September of 2022 in which volunteers and staff began the long overdue resto ration process of this trail. Volunteer efforts are ongoing on McMenemy Trail and many of the areas deemed unrepairable have been restored, mak ing the trail more sustainable. By the end of winter, this trail should be fully restored and in better shape than prior to the Thomas Fire and debris flow, with new erosion prevention features that will facilitate maintenance and lessen the need for future repairs.

McMenemy Trail location and geolo

gy – Recently an agency geologist was invited to look at the current and pro posed realignment of McMenemy Trail. I accompanied the geologist along with a representative from the Los Padres Forest Association. The Geologist’s first comment when he arrived on site was to the effect of, “The current trail’s location is geologically perfect, why do you want to move it?” His concerns were with regards to the proposed trail’s stability over an undercut 20-to-25-foot section during and after heavy rains, and the slide potential overall when a wet winter saturates the steep hillsides. Normal rule of thumb, always move a trail away from an area with these poten tial problems, not the reverse. Decreased user safety, decreased satisfaction, and increased trail upkeep will certainly be the new norm if the trail is realigned as proposed.

We are so lucky to have the system of trails we have. Countless individuals and organizations have contributed to the formation of our interconnected system of trails over the decades. The history of who these people were and how the trails came to be – each one falling into place with its own individual story – together, makes Santa Barbara’s Trail System a spe cial place unlike any other. We are part of a pivotal moment in history today and this decision will affect generations to come. As trail advocates it is our duty to protect and take the best care possible of these precious assets before handing them off to the next generation. The only log ical decision is rejecting the realignment of McMenemy Trail.

Additionally, I believe we need to reestablish an ongoing Front Country Trails Task Force, as was active in years past, which is needed to better deal with issues such as this. During the realignment planning process, signif icant confusion occurred related to the existence of easement documents and which agency should oversee the project. Providing community out reach regarding changes to the trail system has been severely lacking on the County’s part and more efforts should have been made in this area. These are public trails, and the trail users at large need to be involved every step of the way. On that note, being that the USFS holds one easement for this trail and it will likely be necessary for them to complete NEPA-related public outreach, which at last check had not yet begun.

We are at a pivotal moment in trail management history, and it is not too late to make the only reasonable choice with regards to McMenemy Trail – leave it as is and see how good it can become with modern trail-building techniques.

Sincerely, Dave Everett

Editor’s Note: The received letter was submitted before the deciding CRAHTAC meeting last month.

“Santa Barbara Design and Build was fabulous. Don and his crew were the BEST from day one. He was honest, timely, flexible, artistic, patient and skilled. They understood my vision and built my dream home”. -Santa Barbara Resident

Let’s Reach Higher Together

Our Town

11th Annual Richie’s Barber Shop Holiday Donation Drive: This Year for St. Vincent’s and Adam’s Angels

A charitable gift annuity can be a great way to optimize your philanthropy. What’s more your generosity ensures that the people of the Central Coast have the best health care right here at home. For questions and to request a complimentary proposal please contact:

Carla Long, Director of Planned Giving 805-879-8987 or 805-879-8982 clong@sbch.org

Richie’s Barber Shop on Coast Village Road is having its 11th Annual Holiday Donation Drive, this year for St. Vincent’s Santa Barbara and Adam’s Angels. The Shop’s event chair and lead barber Jessica Jay is coordinating with Regina Ruiz, Chief Development Officer of St. Vincent’s Santa Barbara, and with Adam McKaig, who formed Adam’s Angels to bring meaningful volunteer work around town for the past few years. St. Vincent’s is asking for donations of new toys (unwrapped) and gift cards, which will be given to those in their programs, especially single moms. Adam’s Angels is asking for donations of new or lightly used warm weather clothing for those in need. “We will be giving out warm clothes at our Christmas meal at the Veterans Memorial Building on the 25th. All donations and volunteers welcome,” McKaig said.

Everyone who makes a donation can pick an ornament from the Barber Shop Holiday Tree, which may have a secret surprise, like a complimentary haircut, candy bar, or a big shop THANK YOU shout out from the team.

Shop owner Richie Ramirez added, “The holiday season is the spirit of happiness, love, and laughter among family, friends, and our community. We hope everyone will come out and support our two drives. Every donation, no matter how big or how small, will make a huge impact and create a smile for someone in need. From my team to all of you, Happy Holidays!”

411: Richie’s Barber Shop, 1187 Coast Village Road Drop off times: Monday through Saturday between 9 am to 6 pm or call (805) 845-9701

Art for Endangered Animals

The Thomas Reynolds Gallery is generously hosting a wall for the art of two local oil painters on a mission to raise awareness of endangered animals and factory farmed animals. The exhibit is titled “EYE AM ART” and is on view now through December 31. The oil painters are longtime painter, illustrator, and teacher Nancy Taliaferro and renowned screenwriter Caroline Thompson

Taliaferro was born in Baltimore and comes from a family of painters, studying at the Schuler School of Fine Art, the Maryland Institute of Art, and receiving her BFA from the Philadelphia College of Art. Her work is both commissioned and in private collections, and she is represented by Davis Gallery in Austin, Texas.

Thompson wrote Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey, The Secret Garden, City of Ember, and The Addams Family, and was the first woman to receive the Austin Film Festival’s Distinguished

story and photos by Joanne A Calitri

Ready for your holiday donations are (from left) Adam McKaig and Richie Ramirez with his Richie’s Barber Shop team

Topics

New Wildfire Cameras Will Spot Fires on the Santa Barbara Front Country

by Christina Favuzzi

looking for an unobstructed, panoramic view of the Santa Barbara South Coast, there are few better vantage points than from TV Hill. The back patio of KEYT News Channel’s newsroom has been the setting of annual Unity Telethons and countless news reporter live shots.

Flames also licked up the TV Hill hillside in May 2021, while fire engines parked on that patio protected the TV studio from the Loma Fire.

When Wildland Fire Specialists from Santa Barbara City Fire Department and Montecito Fire Department started talking about where to place a camera that would detect smoke and flames in the initial moments of a wildfire, there was a clear answer.

In addition to providing that stel lar backdrop for John Palminteri’s live shots, TV Hill is also now home to an ALERT Wildfire camera. This camera will provide 24/7 “eyes” on the Santa Barbara Front Country and eventually,

alert firefighters to new fire starts using artificial intelligence technology.

The network of ALERT Wildfire cam eras is rapidly expanding across the West. The camera on TV Hill and plans for another on Ortega Ridge will join a net work of hundreds of cameras that provide coverage of wildland areas. Currently,

there are two cameras on Gibraltar Peak. “Thanks to these cameras, it’s now rare that we respond to a fire that we don’t have eyes on before going to it,” Montecito Wildland Fire Specialist Nic Elmquist said. “But until now, we have had limited coverage of the South Coast’s wildland areas. It’s a huge advantage to be able to watch an incident emerge from the first puff of smoke.”

ALERT Wildfire is a consortium of three universities – The University of Nevada Reno (UNR), University of California San Diego, (UCSD) and the University of Oregon (UO) – providing access to state-of-the-art Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) fire cameras and associated tools to help firefighters and first responders:

1. Discover, locate, and confirm fire ignition;

2. Quickly scale fire resources up or down appropriately;

3. Monitor fire behavior;

4. Help guide evacuation processes through enhanced situational awareness, and;

5. Monitor contained fires for flare-ups.

ALERT Wildfire cameras are the digi tal age’s version of fire lookouts.

“When I first started as a firefighter 20 years ago, there were lookout towers that were staffed during high fire season,” said Montecito Wildland Fire Specialist Maeve Juarez. “You would hear a look out get on the radio and call in a smoke with their best attempt at giving us the location so we could hike in and extin guish the fire.”

These state-of-the-art Pan-Tilt-Zoom fire cameras provide real-time monitoring of the area

Resident Wayne Siemens (left) spearheaded the conversation around fire detection cameras with Fire Chief Kevin Taylor (right)

Phone:

Dan Encell

Phone: (805) 565-4896 Email:

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

Celebrating History Surfing

and Life at ‘Rincon Point,’ a New Book

by Hattie Beresford

It was Shuku when a band of nearly 300 Chumash lived on the point of land that today marks the boundary between Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. It became Rancheria San Mateo after the Spanish settled the area in 1782. It became El Rincon (the corner) after the Mexican governor of Alta California granted the point and over 4,000 acres to presidio vet eran Teodoro Arellanes. In 1855 Arellanes deeded the rancho to his son-in-law, Mateo Henry Biggs, who had arrived at the brink of American ownership of California. Biggs sold off hundreds of acres of the rancho, opening the way for over 150 years of his tory leading to the Rincon Point of today. Carpinteria natives Vincent Burns and Stephen Bates have chronicled that his tory in a new “Images of America” book that includes maps and hundreds of pho tographs, many collected from the fami lies of longtime residents of Carpinteria. Chock full of personal reminiscences, the book shows the evolution of the area fostered by changes in transportation and the growth of the highway.

Stories about life on the Rincon include that of the Ota family, who leased land from the Bates and also farmed their own land in Carpinteria. The Bates and Ota children became great friends. When the Otas were interned during WWII, the Bates family took care of their property and visited them in the camps. Kijuro Ota had built a prosperous produce business before the war; afterward, they returned and were able to resume farming but never achieved their earlier success. My favorite photo of this section is of Kenji Ota and Bobby Bates wearing beamish smiles while sitting by the most ramshackle playhouse ever built but obviously created by them. (The way all playhouses should be.)

By the 1960s, the Rincon had become world famous as a surfing destination. I grew up in the San Fernando Valley, so I was a Valley Girl, but no ho-daddy. I remember tying my 9’6’’ Bing surfboard with its tapered balsa wood stringer to our family’s 1954 two-toned Belair Chevy with Powerglide stick shift. A time or two, we headed to the Rincon. Bates and Burns have dozens of stories and photographs of

the surfing life of Rincon Point. Bates and Burns also have aerial images of the development of the point itself. In the 1920s a few small beach cottages, a small group of farmhouses and outbuild ings lining the cantaloupe fields, and the Merryland Inn, a bootlegger’s haven despite repeated raids, were all that occupied the site. Today, though many original families have retained their older beach homes, the farmland of the point has grown into over 80 homesites behind a private gate. The lands west of the point are open to the public as Rincon Beach County Park; the lands to the east of the point are open to the public as Rincon Point State Beach.

Burns and Bates will give a slide talk on their new book at the Ojai Library on January 14 from 1-2 pm. (Call 805-6461639 for more information.) They will speak at the Carpinteria Community Library on January 15, from 3-4:30 pm. (Call 805-6844314 for more information.)

Images of America’s Rincon Point is avail able at Chaucer’s Books, 3321 State Street, Santa Barbara, and at Tecolote Book Shop, 1470 East Valley Road, Montecito.

Hattie Beresford has been writing a local history column for the Montecito Journal for more than a decade and is the author of several books on Santa Barbara’s historic past

Construction engineers, Kenji Ota and Bobby Bates

Surfin’ safari at Rincon Point

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.

Library Mojo Lime Creek

Christmas

by Kim Crail

Come enjoy Anthony Zerbe ’s stage adaptation of Lime Creek Christmas , a spoken-word and music performance based on Joe Henry’s novel, Lime Creek. With musical accom paniment provided by singer-guitarist Chris Zerbe, the show will take place in the Montecito Community Hall at the Montecito Library on Saturday, December 17 at 1 pm. Please arrive early to find parking and be seated in time.

Lime Creek Christmas tells the story of a man returning to the Wyoming ranch where he was raised, sharing childhood memories of a Christmas long past, which speaks to the beauty of the land, hard work, and pure spirit that defined the lives of ranchers and their families in the far West.

Anthony Zerbe is recognized as one of the country’s most versatile charac ter actors with extensive credits in film, television, and theater. A partial list of his film and television credits include American Hustle, The Matrix Reloaded and Matrix Revolutions, Star Trek Insurrection, Cool Hand Luke, License to Kill, Bonanza, Gunsmoke, The Dead Zone, Farewell My Lovely, Dynasty, and Mission Impossible Mr. Zerbe generously offered this perfor mance back in 2019 and Montecito Library staff are ecstatic to welcome him back.

Learn Library Apps

Interested in learning how you can use library tools for personal learning or research needs? This monthly series will introduce you to library apps and digital resources available for free with your library card. Each class is designed to pro vide an introduction to the resource and will allow plenty of time for questions and troubleshooting. All levels of tech skill are invited to attend.

Classes at Montecito Library will be offered the first Wednesday of each month at 10 am. There will be repeat classes at Eastside Library the second Wednesday and a Virtual class the third Wednesday. Please register in advance on SBPLibrary.org or call us to sign up over the phone (805) 969-5063.

In December, we will learn PressReader, a new app for electronic newspapers and magazines, and Palace Project, an app to access eBooks and eAudiobooks. These apps are very easy to use and you will leave with access to tons of digital materials.

Notes of Thanks

Our branch library is known for its personal touches and welcoming staff. Here’s a gold origami star to the five

Montecito Library staff members that work so hard and provide the kind of public service that our patrons deserve.

We are all very grateful for community members who offer their talents and knowl edge to our library. One stellar example is geologist Tom Farr, who has been offering a Space Talk Series for kids and families over the last couple of months, igniting curiosity and interest in science and math.

Finally, to our Friends of the Montecito Library for all of their sup port and efforts on our library’s behalf, a big hearty thank you!

December Events:

Stay & Play – Tuesdays, Drop in anytime 9-10:30 am

Knit ‘n’ Needle – Thursdays, 2-3:30 pm

Learn Library Apps: PressReader and Palace Project – Wed, 12/7, 10-11am

Library On the Go Van @ Cold Spring School – Wed, 12/7, 3:30-5:30 pm

Poetry Club: Everyday Moments of Gratitude – Thurs, 12/15, 2-3 pm

Space Talk: Pluto, Planets Around Other Stars, and More – Thurs, 12/15, 4-5 pm Anthony and Chris Zerbe Perform Lime Creek Christmas – Sat, 12/17, 1-2 pm

Montecito Book Club: Dear America by Jose Antonio Vargas – Tues, 12/20, 12-1 pm

Winter Closure Dates:

12/24-1/1

See you at the library!

Kim is the Branch Lead of the Montecito Library. Questions or comments? Contact her: kcrail@santabarbaraca.gov

Montecito

“Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.” — Confucius

Actor Anthony Zerbe to perform Lime Creek Christmas

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

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

by Charles Dickens A New Adaptation by Patrick Barlow Directed by Jamie Torcellini

Screenwriter Award in 2011. Her husband is film producer Steve Nicolaides. She transitioned to oil painting and is taking classes from Taliaferro.

They both took time for a quick interview at the gallery opening on Saturday, December 3. Thompson shared, “I was desperate for an oil painting teacher and found her on the internet and she is the best teacher of anything I’ve ever had. We both found out we love animals and being 60s flower children thought to use classical art to help raise awareness of endangered species and factory farmed animals, instead of protest art. Our eye concept came from the lover’s eye jewelry, as depicted in the movie Dangerous Liaison . Since the eyes express the emotion, we focused on painting the eyes of animals to reach out to people, art x beauty. It’s our project that we’d also like to work with local schools on. A woman at the National Gallery of Art D.C. saw our paintings and said she would love to talk about it with the Smithsonian, and we are talking about doing NFTs with a friend of mine. The World Wildlife Fund is giving us their top 20 endangered animals, and from there we are going to ask people to vote for five on our website that we will paint.”

Taliaferro added, “In addition to paintings, we have a website, an app, a Wordle, educational games, interactive eye of the week, and merch. We’ve part nered with the local Wildlife Care Network, and had virtual time-based shows in London, NYC, and L.A. Our frames are made by woodworker William Smith III in Rhode Island, and the panel we paint on is made by Santa Barbara Art Panels. Because we are inspired by broaches, we decided on a small oval scale for each eye painting. The frames are decorated with gold leaf and gold paint to give it a jew el-like quality. We selected the animals from hundreds of images of animals that had the right expression. We just started and our project is to continue to raise awareness through our art. We are working with award winning U.K. illustrator and graphic designer Liubov Edwards , a graduate of the Saint Petersburg Stieglitz State Academy of Art and Design.”

A review of the actual paintings shows 47 small-scale oval works in gilded antique style brown painted frames. The animal eyes are done in intricate detail using classical portrait format with the frames being the darkened edges, similar to 17th-18th century art. The artists use what I call a Rembrandt portrait tech nique with both prosaic realism and expressionism to cause interpretive emotion from a single eye versus having both eyes of the animal. Many who came to the opening spent time guessing which animal the eye belonged to, some of which are Iberian lynx, wild African ass, northern gray whale, and an owl. Check out the website and guess the weekly animal Wordle of the Week via the QR code found there.

Joanne A. Calitri is a professional international photographer and journalist.

Artists Caroline Thompson and Nancy Taliaferro with their Eye Am Art exhibit at the Thomas Reynolds Gallery

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.

tiara’s toss down West Victoria Street, explaining how the second show of the company’s season came about.

Joining in the Christmas rev els, while scoffing Eggs Benedict and quaffing mimosas, were Sybil Rosen, Anne Luther, Lynda Millner, Dana Newquist , Robert Luria , Christine Hollinger, Carolyn Gargano, Sandra Sheehan, Helga Morris, Garrison and Kathy Bielen, Maria McCall and Dirk Brandts

.

A Westmont Yuletide

The full arsenal of Westmont College’s musical talent was on display at the Granada for the 18th annual

Christmas Festival.

Always a great start to Yuletide, the concert “Prince of Peace” was the second year at the venerable State Street theater after years at the First

Presbyterian Church.

Ruth Lin, chair of the music depart ment, conducted the Westmont Orchestra, with other talents including the Choral Union, Chamber Singers, and College Choir.

Alumnus Daniel Gee, Westmont direc tor of choral activities and director of the Santa Barbara Youth Orchestra, conduct ed the choir and chamber singers.

Lonnie Ostrander conducted the

Choral Union. More than 100 musicians and singers filled the cavernous stage. Always a glittering and enjoyable soldout event.

Celebratory Farewell to Reed

After more than two decades as the public face of the Unity Shoppe Executive Director Tom Reed, 76, hosted a retire ment bash at the Kenny Loggins Pavilion, where much of the 105-year-old charity’s work is based.

“It’s time to enjoy some new activities with my wife and grandchildren,” says Tom, who joined the popular organiza tion in 2002, helping the late Barbara Tellefson grow the sustainable year-round charity, providing needy families with clothing, food, and toys, as well as disas ter relief, job training, school supplies,

Andrew Chung

Carolyn Gargano, Sandra Sheehan, Maria McCall, and Robert Luria being served by Minh Nguyen (photo by Priscilla)

Daniel Gee conducting at Westmont’s Christmas Festival (photo by Brad Elliott)

Randy Weiss, Frank Corral, Debbie Darke, Tom Reed, and Vince Caballero (photo by Priscilla)

The Giving List

Martin Luther King Jr. Committee

by Steven Libowitz

The Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday is still a month away, but the Martin Luther King Jr. Committee of Santa Barbara is already ramping up for its annual Holiday Celebration of the famed civil rights leader. That’s because the 2023 event – the organization’s 16th, which takes place on January 16 – will mark the first in-person celebration in three years, as both the 2021 and 2022 events were forced to go virtual.

“Those two years were really tough because being together is a big part of what the event is about,” said MLKSB Board President E. onja Brown. “We’re really excited to be able to share our pro grams and celebration honoring the great Dr. King and all he stood for, live and in person, with our community again.”

With the resuming of an in-person gath ering, the holiday celebration will begin as usual with a morning program in De La Guerra Plaza at 9 am that starts with an opening prayer followed by live music per formances. Then, some of the winners of the annual student essay and poetry programs will read their winning entries. The morning

portion concludes with an inclusive dance from the World Dance for Humanity group to warm up the audience and get the body moving in anticipation of the 10 am march up State Street to the Arlington Theatre.

The David Gorospe Jazz group will be playing in the venue’s historic plaza foyer to greet the marchers as they arrive. The on-stage 90-minute program at the Arlington includes speeches from local political representatives – Santa Barbara Mayor Randy Rowse, Congressman Salud Carbajal, and State Senator Monique Limón are among those already confirmed, plus mini performances from a choir, soloists, and a demonstration of Capoeira, the Afro-Brazilian martial art/ dance hybrid, to break up the spoken word presentations. The Keynote Speaker this year is Dr. Daina Ramey Berry, the newly appointed Michael Douglas Dean of Humanities and Fine Arts at UCSB. Dr. Berry, an internationally recognized scholar of the enslaved, a specialist on gender and slavery, and the award-win ning author and editor of six books and numerous scholarly articles, including her most recent book, A Black Women’s History of the United States, won the 2021 Susan Koppelman Award for the Best Book in

Feminist Studies and was a 2021 NAACP Finalist for Literary Non-Fiction.

Dr. Berry’s talk on servant leadership and the impact of Dr. King’s legacy is very much in line with the theme of the Martin Luther King Jr. Committee’s 2023 event, which was drawn from a speech Dr. King made in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1957: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’”

The theme has also been the catalyst for the student essays and poems – and both programs at the January 16 event will include live readings from the top awardees of the MLKSB Essay and Poetry Awards Program (EPAP). A dozen essay and poetry pieces were chosen by the judges from the nearly 200 entries from students spanning Carpinteria to Lompoc, with the entrants divided into two age groups covering ages 6-12 and 13-18. The top three awardees in each age group receive cash prizes that this year total $2,000, as well as opportu nities for training in public speaking, poise, appropriate dress, and stage presence.

“Giving a top award of $300 is some thing, but we wish it could be more in this day and age, because we really want our students to be receiving a meaningful scholarship,” Brown said.

But that takes a bigger budget than the all-volunteer organization currently pos sesses, a situation Brown, who has been not only the board chair but also a de facto unpaid acting executive director for eight years, would like to resolve soon.

“We really have a need for donations in so many ways, not just to support schol arships,” she said. “We need money to pay for the photographer and graphic design, and even the printing of the brochures.”

Another way to help would be for more volunteers to get involved in activities surrounding the MLKSB’s 16th annual Holiday Celebration.

“I need people to call the churches and the faith organizations to find out whether they’re going to have a service or recogni tion of Dr. King on the weekend before the

holiday,” Brown said. “We want to bring back the luncheon and we’ll need help with the setup and take down of the table, chairs, and decoration. We need volunteers to help monitor the marches at the event. And we could really use a volunteer coordinator right now to help arrange all of that. There are all sorts of things people can volunteer to do, just go to our website and sign up and let us know what you want to do or if you just want to help where it’s needed.”

And beyond the annual celebration, the MLKSB committee has big plans for the future, all with the goal of getting more connected and involved in imple menting Dr. King’s vision with the Santa Barbara community.

“We want to be an established, rec ognized organization in Santa Barbara that will be here permanently, making a difference,” said Brown, who currently devotes 40-50 hours a week to everything from administration to coordination, planning, and fundraising. “Right now, we’re mostly just looked upon as a oncea-year thing: Oh, it’s Martin Luther King Day, so here they come, same old, same old. But we are here all year long and we need financial support to stay afloat so we can continue to provide and grow our programs, meet immediate needs, and address current issues.”

Brown said that hiring an executive director, with a salary commensurate with the market – the first in the organi zation’s history – is a top priority. Finding office space is also among the most pressing administrative pursuits for the committee to become a more established and full-service organization.

“We desperately need a place for an office because my second bedroom can’t continue to be it forever,” she said. “There are boxes and files all over the place.”

www.mlksb.org (805) 259-5782

Martin Luther King Jr. Committee of Santa Barbara E. onja Brown, president

E.

will be along the perimeter, to deter pedestrians and dog walkers. There will be a mix of ground cover and low-lying species as not to obstruct the views of drivers.

“When you drive by that area, all you think about is the debris flow,” said com mittee chair, Chad Chase. “This is going to make it so much better.” Montecito Water District public information officer Laura Camp also chimed in on the plans, thanking Arcadia Studio for creating a landscape plan that will be an example of water efficiency. “It’s wonderful to have an exemplary garden where everyone can see it, and that it doesn’t need a lot of water,” she said.

The project will be built once funding is complete. To help, visit www. montecitofoundation.org.

Summerland Signage Woes

Also at the Land Use Committee meet ing, representatives from the Summerland Citizens Association (SCA) reported to the committee that they are spearhead ing an appeal of a portion of developer John Price’s new Fuel Depot project at 2285 Lillie Avenue in Summerland. Specifically, the SCA is appealing the gas station’s sign on the back side of the building, fronting Highway 101. “This sign will be visible from Highway 101 and nowhere else,” said attorney Marc Chytilo, who is assisting the Association with the appeal. “It sets a precedent for other signs on the back of buildings visible from the 101.” The sign would be illuminated by four, 18-inch gooseneck lights.

According to Chytilo, the County’s Sign Ordinance allows wall signs only on street frontage with public access, which makes the sign, which faces Highway 101, an inap propriate location for the sign. New signs are also prohibited in setbacks; the building in question is within the setback. “We don’t want to see billboards on the back of buildings,” said Phyllis Noble, president of the Summerland Citizens Association. Chytilo reported that the Association has issues with other portions of the project, which are not being addressed at this time.

The Land Use Committee voted to send a letter to the Board of Supervisors, which is meeting next week, in support of the appeal. Committee member Bill Macfadyen, also publisher of Noozhawk, abstained from the vote, citing his close relationship with Price.

Cemetery Project on Hold

Early next year, the Montecito Planning Commission (MPC) will further consider a project by the Santa Barbara Cemetery that involves the subterranean installation of 2,358 cubic yards pre-cast, double-depth, concrete crypts and associated grading and drainage.

The proposed project will require approximately 9,859 cubic yards of cut and 4,066 cubic yards of fill over an area of approximately 1.17 acres; approximately 5,793 cubic yards of excess material will be exported offsite. The proposed project also includes the installation of a subterranean drainage system that will drain to an existing drywell previously installed for this purpose. Upon completion of the installation, the lawn will be restored with new sod.

At issue for the MPC, which first considered the project in November, is that the proposed project will remove one mature Moreton Bay fig tree. According to a staff report, the tree has been identified by a certified arborist as being in poor condition and unlikely to recover. The proposed project also includes three new 36-inch box canary island pines to be planted within the proposed project footprint. Commissioner Donna Senauer requested that the arborist’s report be peer reviewed before approving the project, as she called the large tree a significant, heritage tree.

While crypts at the cemetery are typically installed one at a time as needed for indi vidual burials using a backhoe or similar equipment, this proposed project is a mass installation of double-depth crypts, which will allow for the inclusion of a drainage system, and will allow for future burials/installation of caskets to be performed with hand tools for more efficient cemetery operations, according to project reps.

The installation of additional crypts and re-contouring of the area will not be readily visible from Channel Drive or other public viewing areas, according to County staff.

The project will be back in front of the Montecito Planning Commission on January 18, 2023.

Rotary Club Awards $11K

The Rotary Club of Montecito Foundation has awarded a total of $11,000 to sup port the work of 11 Santa Barbara-area nonprofit organizations. The grants, awarded under the Foundation’s annual Community Grants Program, were $1,000 each and

A 51” by 120” sign slated for the new Fuel Depot in Summerland is being appealed by the Summerland Citizens Association

Here’s to making memories, Santa Barbara!

“Music and dance have an uncanny ability to take you on a journey to unknown places. We’re very fortunate to have the programmers at

our

“Be humble. Be grateful. Be kind.” – Jake Shimabukuro

Singer-songwriter Allison Russell in a transformative performance of her new album Outside Child at UCSB Campbell Hall

Community rehearsal with Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company

Ukulele master Jake Shimabukuro performs and teaches for nearly 1,000 fourth through eighth graders at The Granada Theatre

Global risk expert Ian Bremmer addresses today’s greatest threats and opportunities for a hopeful future in a captivating talk at the Granada Theatre

“One of the standout concerts of the year.” Santa Barbara Independent

“Easily the best lecture I’ve attended in the past five years!”

– Melissa, A&L patron

UCSB Arts & Lectures helping to curate

cultural adventures.” Santa Barbara Independent

by Stella Haffner

When a motocross racer crashes in the middle of nowhere, a mysterious man responds in haste. But who is he – A lonely doctor? A good Samaritan? A satanic mechanic? Watch Matthew Rollins’ new short film Whiskey Throttle to find out!

Q. How did this project get started? A. I took a year off from school for COVID and came back with this second wind. I’d had a whole year to think – it just felt like time to make something. I felt the stress of graduating soon, thinking: “I have to get going while I still can!”

I sat down and wrote the screenplay in the fall, at Emerson College in Boston. But I knew it needed to be shot in Santa Barbara.

Had you done short film work before?

I had done some friends’ stuff. My major at Emerson is media production, which includes film production; I’ve just been more focused on sound in the past couple of years, but I’ve always wanted to make my own short that felt true to my personal taste in film.

What would you say Whiskey Throttle is about?

I think it’s about transformation through pain and how a painful thing

can reshape the rest of your life, whether that’s in a good or bad way. It is inspired by that, but it leaves you at the end with what is designed to be more or a prompt, at least in my mind. It’s designed to be more of a “so what’s next?”

Were you able to draw on some personal inspiration to work on this project?

Yeah, definitely. In a lot of ways too. I feel life always cycles into the “it need ed to happen” for transformation, for growth. The end of this movie, in reality, isn’t a good ending. It’s safe to say it isn’t a purely positive transformation, but that’s sometimes how it goes. Regardless, it has a part in shaping the rest of your life.

Tell me more about the stylistic elements of the film. What went into a process like designing the sound for this proj ect?

My good friend Aidan O’Flaherty worked on the sound with me. We wanted to put a lot of attention into every single sound you hear. The flies, crickets – the smallest little things. We felt good about putting a lot of attention into it, and that’s the way I had always planned on doing it because there’s no sound on the film. No sound was recorded when we shot anything, it was all recreated after we shot it. We wanted to have full control over the sonic environment.

We basically treated sound recording day as its own shoot ing day. We got the actors to rec reate little moments, the charac ter’s breaths, his screams, more delicate things like the metallic sounds. The way we recorded the dirt bike sound was a little sketchy, but it ended up work ing. I got a TASCAM portable recorder, and we zip-tied it to

Whiskey Throttle is a new short film by Matthew Rollins

Behind the scenes of Whiskey Throttle

Angie Huff, Architect

the bike and had the stunt double do laps around the property. Obviously those conditions made for a pretty dirty record ing, but during the sound design process we were able to clean it up and use the sound of the actual bike, which I cared about a lot. It’s a very unique sounding bike, really loud, really scary, so I really wanted to capture that sound.

What about the look of the project? Why did you decide to shoot on real film?

The cinematographer, Luke Rudy , and I decided to shoot it on this Bolex 16mm camera, I think it was from the ‘70s, and this thing had no viewfinder. In the moment, it was pretty much a guess as to what we were actually shoot

ing. This worked pretty well because I had this idea of how rough I wanted it to feel, and the film really leant itself to that.

Because it’s not supposed to be taken as a realistic turn of events, I wanted that sheen, that barrier of it being in “movie world” – it’s not real. I love movies that are movies. Film, unconsciously for the viewer, helps create that sheen of “this is a film, this is on film.” If I were to shoot this whole thing on an iPhone, which might be cool for some projects, you would be able to treat it more like real life. I wanted to separate that, and I think doing the sound how we did helps create this same effect that the film does. It separates.

You’re done with the creative process, what happens now?

I have been submitting it to festivals and gotten into a couple, although still waiting to hear back from the majority of them. We actually premiered at a festival in Las Vegas where we won best horror short, which was nice. At this point it’s just about trying to get as many people who would like to see it to see it and using the whole thing as a learning expe rience to level up in the future.

Is there anything else you want people to know about Whiskey Throttle?

It’s an homage to a subculture of this Santa Barbara area, it’s a love letter to the ranch we shot it on, but mostly it’s a love

From the shores of Scotland, Stella Haffner keeps her connection to her home in Montecito by bringing grads of local schools to the pages of the Montecito Journal

letter to Santa Barbara.

Visit the Whiskey Throttle website at whis keythrottle.online to watch the film!

Brilliant Thoughts

by Ashleigh Brilliant

No doubt you have often received invitations which say at the bot tom “R.S.V.P.” – and you prob ably know that this means that you are being asked to respond. I’m not a great linguist, but I know enough French to be able to tell you that these letters stand for “Répondez S’il Vous Plaît.” The first word simply means “Reply,” but the other three words are more complex. Taking them literally, they say “if it to you is pleasing.” This is the formal French way of saying what in English became “if you please,” which we then boiled down to just the word “please.”

Some innocently ignorant people, when preparing invitations, put: “Please R.S.V.P.” which of course is an unneces sary repetition.

But it was from “please” that we got “pleasure,” and “pleasant,” and similar words, all very cheerful and upbeat. In view of the popularity of the senti ment, it’s not surprising that there are so many different ways in which people are pleased. If we were to make a list, it could be so long and detailed that one might wonder how there was any room left for that other list, of all the possible causes of displeasure and unhappiness.

One might safely hypothesize that the most universal pleasures are those con nected with bodily functions, such as eat ing, sleeping, eliminating, and, of course, having various kinds of sex. There are others, which seldom get the glory they deserve. I don’t know about you, but to me, sneezing can be one of the great plea sures of life. So can yawning. But nothing beats the satisfaction you can get from scratching an itch. Then there are the “athletic” pleasures, which unfortunately we often grow out of, such as running, jumping, and throwing.

But, apart from those basics, getting pleasure, or enjoyment, or fun, is very much an individual matter. In almost every category, such as art, music, lit erature, or entertainment, what appeals to one person is bound to sicken, repel, offend, or simply not interest, someone else. As an originator and circulator of condensed Thoughts, I have found wide variations in the popularity of specific messages. Before the task became too overwhelming, I once made a care ful study of the relative public appeal of the first 1,000 of what eventually became an oeuvre of 10,000 published Thoughts. This survey was based on mail orders received from people who had seen only the words, and not any accompanying illustration.

So, of those 1,000, what was the most popular message? Far in the lead, with hundreds of “votes,” was #980,

which simply says: “Your smile is one of the great sights of the world.” And what came in as the least preferred, the only Thought not chosen by a sin gle person? It turned out to be #693, which says, “One possible reason why I don’t believe in fate is that I wasn’t fated to.” I can understand the “smile” message being a best-seller – but why did #693 not garner more support? I can only speculate that it just wasn’t fated to.

My own pleasures include singing, especially while hiking – which, alas, entails one of my biggest regrets, because none of the women I’ve been involved with has ever shared that enthusiasm.

And what about “intellectual plea sures,” such as puzzles, quizzes, and certain board games? I’ve never liked most puzzles, and for most of my life, that included crosswords. Then, bored on some long flight, I tried the puzzle in the airline magazine, and, to my sur prise, found myself enjoying it. Before long, I was hooked. The same thing, apparently, happened to the public at large, after crossword puzzles began appearing in newspapers in 1913. Isn’t it amazing that, after more than a cen tury, this form of amusement retains its popularity! Don’t they ever run out of ideas for different words, patterns, and clues?

But it isn’t enough for some people that pleasure exists. They must try to analyze it – thereby, of course, taking all the fun out of it. Those people, in par ticular, are scientists, who have discov ered that our bodies produce something called endorphins, which actually reduce pain and heighten sensations of pleasure. Unfortunately, the problem of how to produce endorphins artificially, in some form that doesn’t threaten to cause addic tion (as with related substances called opioids), hasn’t yet been solved.

In the meantime, let me leave you with this caution from an unimpeachable source (myself):

“If you postpone a pleasure long enough, It may melt, spoil, die, Evaporate, Or move away.”

Robert’s Big Questions What Is Voting For?

by Robert Bernstein

The 2010 midterm election for President Obama brought a dev astating change in Congress. But, what did it mean?

I happened to be listening to San Francisco talk radio KGO for several hours just before that election. The host asked people to call in, offering this framing of the issue:

President Bush made a mess of the country.

Obama hasn’t fixed everything yet. Obama must be punished for not fixing everything.

Therefore, we will elect the Bush peo ple back to punish Obama.

He asked people to call in to justify this insane sort of thinking. There was no shortage of people who called in and said that was exactly what they believed... and were proud of it!

I listened in awe as one guy repeated this absurd “logic” back to the host. He agreed that Bush had wrecked the econ omy and started wars for no reason. He agreed that Obama was doing the best he could to fix things.

But he felt angry that he was hurting financially. And the way to “express this anger” was to vote Republican. Even though that has the effect of making it even harder for Obama to fix things. And he knew that!

The host calmly tried to point out that this was the question, not an answer. The question being, why would you vote to make things worse, just to express your anger? When the conversation was over, you could tell that the caller was sure that the host was an idiot.

This was in the forefront of my mind during this midterm election. The coun try is fortunate that Republicans taking away women’s reproductive rights cre ated enough anger to prevent a repeat of the 2010 debacle. But is anger and irrational punishment any way to run an election?

What are elections for? I have met real people who vote with “horse race” logic. They want to be on the winning team. They do not care which team wins, as long as they are supporting the winner.

away women’s reproductive rights, cut ting social services, cutting environmen tal protections. All horrible things. But at least they stood for something. Now is it anything more than “Yay for us”?

Candidate Reagan infamously asked President Carter, “Are you better off today than you were four years ago?” Is that any way to run a country or an economy?

Carter correctly was starting to invest in solar, wind, and other sustainable energy sources. He put solar panels on the White House roof. Which Reagan triumphantly tore down.

Do voters understand that the effects of policies may take years or even gen erations to be visible?

In my view, the mistake made by both Carter and Obama was to be too timid in their investments in the future. They both knew that investment in sustain able transportation and energy had to be done in a massive way. But they were afraid of that silly “logic” of being pun ished for not making everything perfect right away.

Right now, President Biden is doing his best to deal with Putin’s brutal inva sion of Ukraine. This has meant taking military risks, with Putin irresponsibly talking nuclear war and endangering nuclear power plants in Ukraine. In my view Biden has done exactly the right thing by standing up for justice and not caving to terrorist threats.

But Biden has also been taking eco nomic risks by leading the world in reducing fossil fuel purchases from Russia. This has raised the cost of fossil fuels. At the same time, Biden is invest ing in sustainable energy. Some voters are angry at higher fuel prices. Do they understand that this is driven by supply and demand? That maybe they should be angry at fellow motorists for driving too much in excessively piggy vehicles?

Thomas Jefferson said, “The govern ment you elect is the government you deserve.” Can people try a bit harder to think about why they are voting? To think long term? To understand that you may not deserve good government, but the future of our planet needs it?

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

In my parents’ era they had civics classes that were supposed to teach good citizen ship. I learned from them that elections are a way to support people who share your values. So that they can enact policies in line with your values. Civics classes are fading. Is this logic also fading?

Are people aware that the 2020 Republican Platform was to have no platform at all? Past platforms were about cutting taxes on the rich, taking

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

“Music is an agreeable harmony for the honor of God and the permissible delights of the soul.” — Johann Sebastian Bach

Montecito Reads Balloons and Swollen Accounts

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.” Hollis works in Cottage Hospital as Trip recovers from his injuries. Chapters 39 and 40 are available online at montecitojour nal.net and the QR code below.

had called on mine to lift heavy objects, but now, those once atrophied muscles were back to fighting shape. Thus, I was like a hammer looking for nails. In addition to hacking all of Cyrus’s hidden bank accounts, I decided to worm my way in to the OTC Market’s central server. From there, I could see the details for every trade of ExOh’s shares, allowing me to finally solve that conundrum from ExOh’s first day of trading: Why had virtually all of the trades been between mysterious entities in the Cayman Islands and Hong Kong?

The answer, of course, were that these mysterious entities were no longer mysterious; at least, not to me. I recognized their names from the hidden bank accounts. They were all on the Cyrus Wimby dole, getting paid out every time Cyrus raised money from duped investors. In exchange, the Cayman Islands and Hong Kong boys played hot potato with ExOh’s stock, trading shares back and forth as needed to keep the stock price moving higher and give the impression of a frothy market.

Like mosquitoes to a bug zapper, the rising stock price brought more investors. Another five-million dollars was wired to the Miramar bank account from investors new and old who wanted more skin in Cyrus’s game. I dutifully moved the money along to Hong Kong, then watched as the trail of parasitic accounts consumed their shares before the balance plopped into the Zurich account. If Zurich was Cyrus’s personal piggy bank – as it appeared to be – he was keeping just over fifty percent of every dollar that entered the top of the funnel. Since I had joined on to ExOh, Cyrus had raised forty-five million dollars under false pretenses, and the Zurich account had swollen by twenty-four million.

Montecito

by Michael Cox

Chapter 41

Three days later, Trip’s tracheotomy tube was removed. Another week, and his helmet of gauze was reduced to common bandages, revealing that his shaved head had begun to sprout its new carpet. With each passing day, he looked less like a victim and more like my boy.

As Cyrus had predicted, the market flipped over ExOh’s second quarter results. I read the release and numbers for the first time from my laptop. Upon reexamination of my missed BatSignal messages, it was clear that Noah had supplied the numbers – blindly blessed by our cut-rate CPA and high-dollar lawyer – and Kai had written the commentary. I was quoted heavily in the accompanying press release. For things I never did and never would say, they were great quotes. ExOh had recorded forty-three-million-dollars of fictitious sales in the second quarter and a pretend profit per share of just over two dollars. Additionally, in an act of uncharacteristic bravado, I had promised the world that ExOh’s run rate revenues would top two-hundred million by year end. Wow, I sounded very much like a CEO.

ExOh’s stock price jumped to $62 per share prompting a round of virtual high fives between Cyrus, Kai, Umed, Reuben, and Noah over BatSignal. They even threw some unwarranted praise my way. I nodded along mutely, aware that Cyrus was not just faking the financial results; he was faking the trading too.

You see, hacking skills are like muscles. It had been a while since I

I say swollen because unlike the other bank accounts in this scam, the Zurich account had not started at zero. Judging by the account activity predating ExOh, this was not Cyrus Wimby’s first dalliance with deceit. His Zurich account now held more than one-hundred-sev enteen-million dollars. How many times had Cyrus used the ExOh scam playbook? How many people had he ripped off in building this fortune? How many other Hollis Crawfords were out there, unwitting accomplices to a master con man?

I was no longer keeping any of this from Cricket. Like a breaking news marathon on CNN, she and I would overanalyze each snippet, looking for new angles and theories. At first, I think she harbored a bit of blame towards me; even from within the fog, how could I have missed all these warning signs? But as the depth and breadth of Cyrus’s scamming came into focus, she began to appreciate that it was not all about my gullibility. Sometimes you have to tip your hat to the magician.

Despite all my digging, there was so much I could not discover on my own. ExOh was now revealed to be just one part of a mechanism for laundering money. Drugs? Gambling? Smuggling? Sex trafficking? The list of illicit pursuits at Cyrus Wimby’s fingertips was long, but he had the financial infrastructure in place to chase them all down; Cyrus could be the Procter & Gamble of fraud.

Unfortunately, I knew that in signing my name to the financial release and transferring the money from the U.S. to Hong Kong, I was adding to the list of Cyrus’s victims. But it was too soon to blow my whistle. I want ed more evidence; I needed more time. I had one chance to get this right, and I had no idea what Cyrus would do when he realized I was on his tail. Would he fight? Would he flee? Would he come after me?

The only thing I knew for certain was that it would be a lot harder to do anything if he was already in handcuffs.

Chapter 42

With the passage of yet another week, Trip consciously opened his eyes for the first time in thirty-two days. There was no accompanying soundtrack or dramatic ah-ha reveal. He caught me tapping away on my laptop, putting together the final pieces of the Cyrus Wimby jigsaw puzzle.

Scan here for Chapter 39 & 40

Shamefully, I did not notice his purposeful movements until I heard his sweet voice scratch out a raspy, “Dad?”

Not that the cosmos was finally turning my way, but Trip’s awakening could not have been better timed. With twenty-four days to pour my guilt, anxiety, and nervous energy into hacking and internet sleuthing, I had created a one-hundred-fourteen-page dossier on Cyrus Wimby, ExOh Holdings, and its string of money laundering bank accounts. Perhaps, in an alternate reality where Trip had not been injured, I would have chosen to simply tell the authorities of what I had learned instead of creating a dissertation on the subject. Who knows? To me, it felt like time well spent. The mission kept me focused; the focus kept me sane.

As I have experienced in previous hospital adventures, the word soon as in you will be processed for release soon has a different meaning when uttered by doctors and nurses. In their lexicon, it is solely a directional indicator. Soon only means sooner than you were thinking before you heard the word soon. We received our notice of impending release on a late September afternoon but did not leave the hospital until the next morning.

With the assurance that we would eventually be going home, I finally asked Trip about the day he was injured. As I suspected, he could neither confirm nor deny the presence of a man or a bear in the woods that day. He saw something black leap from the side of the trail for Priscilla. He heard her scream; he felt Flip-Flop bolt. Then the world turned upside down and dark.

“I’m sorry, dad,” he said.

“Don’t worry, Trip,” I said. “I know everything I need to know.”

Cricket and Isabel picked us up from the hospital in Cricket’s Land Cruiser, windows covered with shoe-polished words of encouragement and balloons tied to the bumper.

“You’re not throwing a party, are you?” I asked.

“Of course not,” Cricket said, then winked.

On our arrival home, the house was decorated with more balloons and welcome home signs. Paul, Jenny, and a few of Cricket’s other close friends were waiting in the front yard along with several of Trip’s MUS classmates and their parents. Our Sonos speakers were outside, crooning Cricket’s favorite playlist, titled appropriately, “Who Wants to Have Fun?” Oldfashioned metal wash bins were filled with ice and beverages: adult and kid varietals.

Trip had always been shy like his father, but, since his coma awaken ing, he seemed to possess more of Cricket’s spunk. His wheelchair with straight-leg extension was a party foul waiting to happen with every turn, but he found great fun in embracing it all. Whenever someone would express an iota of sympathy, he would snap back that he was going to be just fine – better even – because with pins in his leg, he was just like Iron Man.

Trip’s greatest challenges were on the horizon. In the surgeries to come over the next year and beyond, there would be many days with no crowd, no balloons, and no music. But for today, he was saying all the right things and giving me hope that the devastation I had wrought would indeed be overcome.

By early afternoon, Trip had passed out. We transitioned him to his new bed, delivered by the hospital supply company that morning, and thanked all those who had come to share the joy. The Wimbys, of course, were not invited.

With the well-wishers dissipated, and Trip finally back home, my thoughts returned to what lay in front of me. My takedown dossier on Cyrus Wimby and ExOh was all that I hoped it would be. I had already given it to Cricket for her feedback, feeling much like a debut novelist delivering his first novel. She found plenty of typos and wrote margin notes like punch this up and dumb this down, but generally, she was my biggest backer. On the cover page, I assigned Cricket one question that

continued to baffle me: Does Genevieve know?

Despite the natural suspicion that Genevieve – as Cyrus’s wife – had to know something, I had found no evidence that she was a party to the frauds. Her name was nowhere in the documents. She had never provided directions or instructions to me. She had never met with investors in any capacity other than that of Cyrus’s loving gourmand wife. She was the epitome of a 1950s housewife: she cooked, she entertained, she dressed for her man, she added to his sheen of accomplishment, she served as another trophy for his case.

Cricket too was adamant that Genevieve was in the dark. “She’s in love with a bad man,” Cricket said. “Love is not only blind, it’s blind-ing.”

“What about her dismissal of the man in the woods?” I challenged.

Cricket nodded. “Honestly, I think she just wanted you to leave Priscilla alone.”

I accepted her answer without further argument. It seemed that Cyrus Wimby was the sole proprietor of his crimes.

As the day began to wind down, it struck me that it had been almost a month since I had slept in my own bed. By 4 pm, the accumulated exhaustion had crept up on me like a mountain lion to a wounded animal.

I dozed on the couch, trying to clear my head of the buzzing thoughts when a new one bit: how would I deliver my dissertation to the authori ties? Was I supposed to drive to the FBI office in Los Angeles and knock on the front door? I reached for my laptop to google the question when the doorbell rang.

It was quite rare to get a walk-up visitor in Montecito. The lack of sidewalks and the tall hedges were a deterrent to all but the Girl Scouts who could sell ice to Eskimos. Cricket did not move, so I got up to answer the door, feeling for my wallet just to make sure I had a few dollars on me.

But the three men at our front door were not Girl Scouts. Tall, sinewy, dressed in tailored navy suits, and wearing aviator sunglasses, the three men looked like random variants on the same avatar. My heartrate imme diately leveled up. One of the men – the shortest at only six-feet-three – was wearing a wired earpiece. Though he looked like a Secret Service agent, I doubted these visitors were here to inform me of a surprise visit from the President.

I took a deep breath. If I could have hidden from them – ducking into the kitchen and pretending not to be home – I would have. But our front door was framed by sidelight windows; our visitors could have watched the TV from their position outside. I was trapped, so I moved forward and opened the door.

“May I help you?” I asked.

“Hollis Crawford?” said the earpiece-clad man.

“Yes?”

“I’m Agent Daniel Andrews with the FBI,” he said, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a bi-fold wallet displaying his credentials. “Would you mind if we asked you a few questions?”

Tune in next week for more 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.

With fire lookout towers no longer staffed in Santa Barbara County and across much of California, the cameras are a 21st century solution, providing real-time information about emerging incidents.

“Now, there are enough cameras across the network that even when a fire starts in a remote area like Yosemite or in the Sierra Nevada Range, you can most likely find one, if not more cameras that provide 24-hour access to watch the fire,” Juarez said. “These cameras have changed the way we do business.”

Elmquist says within the first few min utes of a wildfire, the cameras’ AI tech nology can detect smoke and send an alert to firefighters.

That alert includes a weather report from the nearest weather station, a precise location of the fire, map of the area, as well as a computer-modeled, three-hour prediction of the fire’s potential spread.

“We can pull up that camera and based on the location, topography, access, time of year, available firefighting resources, weather, and other factors, we can imme diately get a good idea of whether the fire can be stopped quickly or will likely turn into a major incident,” Elmquist said.

The camera views are also publicly available so that community members can gain a better understanding of where a fire is burning.

While Juarez was assigned to the 2021 Dixie Fire, she says the cameras played a crucial role in evacuation planning.

“We were about three weeks into that fire and were still pulling up the cameras to detect spot fires and assist us with figuring out evacuation routes,” she said. “The Sheriff’s deputies looked at the cameras alongside us. With the data from the cameras, we gave our input on fire severity and timing so the deputies could then determine how to get people out quickly and safely.”

The conversation around implement ing more wildfire detection cameras on the South Coast has been ongoing for years, spearheaded by Montecito resident Wayne Siemens.

“Generations of Montecitans will benefit from this exciting new plan,” Siemens said.

Siemens came to Montecito Fire Chief Kevin Taylor in 2021 with the idea for the cameras. Chief Taylor brought the

suggestion to the Montecito Fire Board of Directors who allocated funding this year for the program. Montecito Fire’s Prevention Bureau staff then brought the idea to fruition.

“Montecito Fire stayed the course from the idea stage through budgeting, design, and now, installation,” Siemens said.

Twenty thousand dollars have been allocated from the Fire District’s general fund for the cameras. Chief Taylor says it is a worthwhile, long-term investment in fire safety and prevention.

“Community collaboration has been at the core of this project since our first conversation with Wayne,” Chief Taylor said. “None of it would be possi ble without the teamwork and support from Wayne, Santa Barbara City Fire, and KEYT.”

Chief Taylor hopes the TV Hill camera and Ortega Ridge camera, planned for installation in early 2023, will be the start of many more cameras to come across the South Coast.

“A network of ALERT Wildfire cam eras on the Santa Barbara front country will provide real-time monitoring of fires at their inception and reduce risk to our community members in the first 24 hours of a large-scale, wind-driven wild fire with evacuations,” Taylor said. “This is just the beginning.”

and special gifts for seniors.

Tom, a former U.S. Air Force pilot in Vietnam before relocating to the West Coast, says joining the Unity Shoppe, which has its 36th annual TV telethon Unity in the Community on Friday (December 9), gave him a new direction.

The charity has 1,700 volunteers who help annually, as well as 18,000 clients referred by 300 social service agencies.

Tom is being replaced by Angela Miller-Bevan

Among those turning out to wish him well were Dana Newquist, Bob Bryant, Randy Weiss, Jonatha King, Michael Baker, and Susan Rodriguez

Design Awards

The American Institute of Architects Santa Barbara hosted their annual Design Awards gala at the Cabrillo Pavilion honoring the achievements of local architects and architecture.

The award program recognizes design

excellence in architecture, residential architecture, restoration-renovation, and urban design.

Among the honorees was the Santa Barbara Museum of Art and Kupiec Architects, with the Cabrillo Pavilion and KBZ Architects recognized for merit, and Montecito architect Robert Easton winning honorable mention in the historical preservation category for his work on All Saints-by-the-Sea Episcopal Church.

Christmas Kicks Off

The Rosewood Miramar was flood ed with Yuletide illuminations, as well as dozens of miniature trees, when Managing Director Rick Fidel , accompanied by a very jolly Santa Claus, lit the tony hostelry’s Christmas tree in the grand lobby watched by dozens of parents and their children.

As guests quaffed hot chocolate, apple cider, and prosecco cocktails, accompa nied by festively decorated cookies and macaroons, Los Angeles singer-songwrit er Annie Bosko performed an entertain ing selection of festive songs and carols.

The 17-foot noble fir, which had been flat bedded from Silverton, Oregon, was festooned with more than 500 decora tions by Petals by David, a Big Orange decorator, and Perla Mercade with a team of 15 “elves” in 24 hours.

The festive fête also raised gifts for Toys for Tots Santa Barbara.

Just 24 hours earlier La Arcada, the charming thoroughfare off State Street, had its 27th annual Christmas Walk with carolers in Dickensian costume, a snow-making machine, and free popcorn.

And the week kicked off in festive style

Bob Bryant, Jonatha King, Lauren Davis, Susan Rodriguez, Michael Baker, Jerry Herzberg, George Frampton, and Reed Spangler (photo by Priscilla)

Tom Ochsner, AIA, receiving his award from jurors Michael Folonis and Maureen Sullivan (photo by Nishat Subah Peau)

Awardee Robert Kupiec, AIA, (center) with jurors Michael Folonis and Maureen Sullivan (photo by Nishat Subah Peau)

TV Hill gives these ALERT Wildfire cameras unobstructed views of the Santa Barbara Front Country

Christina Favuzzi is the Montecito Fire Public Information Officer

Ornate State Holiday Shopping Along State Street and Beyond

by Zachary Rosen

With the pedestrian paths that now run down State Street, it is easier than ever to do some holiday shopping or just spend a day downtown with the fam ily. In week three of our Home for the Holidays Guide, here are just a few of the fun events and spots to stop in along the way.

The Santa Barbara Fine Art Gallery, nestled next to the Arlington, is the first stop for finding plein air artworks that capture the spirit of the California Central Coast. The gallery is run by Julie and Richard Schloss, an esteemed plein air painter of 50 years whose works can be found in the permanent collections of museums around the area. Their Holiday Show has just opened this month with many of the featured works com ing from their friends and members of the historic OAK Group of plein air artists, including Michael Drury, Arturo Tello, and John Comer, among many others. If looking for a quick gift, Richard Schloss has also just released a book, Painting the Light. This tome, available at the gallery, is Richard’s magnum opus on his understanding of light and how to paint it, one of the key traits his work is known for.

domecíl in Victoria Court is a women-owned company with an eye towards socially responsible and sustainable business practices and materials. Their single batch wear ables are crafted at a small worker-owned sewing studio in downtown Los Angeles. The range of linen smocks, bags, and other attire has a rustic yet fashionable look to the environmentally-friendly line of goods. The quaint store features fiber arts, ceramics, and woodwork to accompany the organic garb.

Whether prepping some holiday dishes or finding a gift for the foodie in your life, Viva Oliva has a range of gourmet goods to bring some Mediterranean flavor to the American Riviera table. The extra virgin olive oils are painstakingly sourced from olive-growing regions around the world. There is also a selection of seasoned olive oils that have classic additions like truffles or lemon, as well as some more exotic seasonings such as harissa or Tunisian Baklouti green peppers. Of course there are sampler sets for those who want to try (or gift) a few flavors. Naturally, there are a range of balsamic vinegars to play the tangy counterpart to these oils with just as interesting flavors to match, including an elderberry dark balsamic, honey ginger white balsamic, or espresso dark balsamic, to name a few. A selection of meats, chees

Each of Beth Katz’s graceful handmade ceramic bells is a one-of-a-kind work of art

Calm Waters, Yosemite Valley by Richard Schloss

Need presents!

better

Country House Antiques

New shipment! Swedish, French, English antiques & decorative accessories

Hogue & Co.

Come visit our shop, transformed into a festive holiday cottage, filled with trees covered in ornaments, beads & garlands. Custom flowers & plants for any occasion

House of

Honey

A female collective of interior designers. We create spaces that celebrate life.

Jenni Kayne

The holidays have arrived! From luxe takes on essential outerwear to the coziest knits, dressing for the weather has never looked better.

Jenni Kayne Home

Discover the makings of your dream space with essential décor and timeless furniture designed for your warmest welcome home, long beyond the holiday season.

Montecito Coffee Shop

For 30+ years, the best breakfast café in Montecito

Randy Solakian Estates Group

Coldwell Banker Realty

Private Estates Brokerage

San Ysidro Pharmacy

PCAB accredited ∙ Compounding ∙

Luxury gifts ∙ Cosmetics ∙ Vitamins ∙

Brand new shipments of beautiful holiday gifts & candles!

The UPS Store

Visit us for all your holiday packing and shipping. We are here to help!

William Laman

Furniture. Garden. Antiques. Hand selected antiques & home furnishings. Great accessories for entertaining and gift giving, in a beautifully curated setting

American Riviera Bank Bank on

es, and other artisan edibles, as well as olive wood kitchen accessories, make it easy to put together a charcuterie board or a gift.

Located next to Santa Barbara Roasting Company, Folio Press & Paperie features a little bit of everything, including stationery and writing utensils, kids’ gifts and clothes, home décor and accessories, and so much more. Each item in the store is selected with the same care and consideration that owners Frank and Marlene Bucy put into each of their custom prints. Because, in addition to the gift and stationery items, Folio Press & Paperie is a letterpress design studio and full-service print shop. Be it a holiday party invitation or a custom Christmas card to send out, Folio can help provide some eloquent elegance on the paper.

La Arcada Plaza and El Paseo

The boutique stores of La Arcada and El Paseo bring luxury shopping and charming views to the stone-lined walkways of these plazas with many of the establishments being longtime residents of the spaces, such as Bryant & Sons, which is still in its original El Paseo location. Founded in 1965, this family-owned jewelry store offers the finest in rings, bracelets, earrings, and other jeweled spectacles. Today, the store is run more by the “Sons” but the longtime company remains an active supporter of the community and just as dedicated to their craft as ever. Nearby in La Arcada, Waterhouse Gallery, which just celebrated its 38th

Peruse the large selection of olive oils and vine gars at Viva Oliva

Viva Oliva carries plenty of nibbles and other gourmet goods to accompany a holiday cheese plate or charcuterie board

A letterpress holiday greeting card, designed and printed in-house at Folio and paired with a Traveler’s Notebook brass fountain pen

There’s a little bit of everything at Folio Press & Paperie

it.

in

are often made with sultry silks and other soft, luxurious fabrics. The popular Daria Blouse comes in a variety of colors and patterns but each one has the natural yet sleek fit that Gee has become known for. Gee is based in Santa Barbara with her award-win ning designs having graced many A-listers along the walkway and red carpet.

year, is run by Diane and artist Ralph Waterhouse . The collection of paintings offers a variety of works from California-based artists with the duo selling and shipping the art pieces around the world from their La Arcada space.

Catherine Gee is more modern than the other stores in La Arcada and has the fash ion to fit

Founded

2015 by its namesake designer and artist, her textile artworks

Catherine Gee’s designs and stores combine fashion and comfort

Waterhouse Gallery has been dealing art for 38 years

Waterhouse Gallery is located in La Arcada Plaza

Stunning 18k white gold diamond, rubellite, and amethyst earrings from Bryant & Sons

Sitting on the corner of La Arcada at Figueroa and State is The Yes Store. The name also answers the question, “Is there somewhere I can go to find a gift while supporting local craftspeople and arti sans?” This artists’ cooperative has been

A longtime addition to La Arcada, Coast 2 Coast collection features two floors of high-end dining and table ware, jewelry, gifts, and home accesso ries in popular brands like Christofle, Waterford, and others. This pristine selection of goods is overseen by owner Holly Murphy , who swaps out the collection quarterly, meaning that after this season is over, there is a whole new store to look at. The mesmerizing maze of mementos make it easy to find something that catches the eye. If any thing, there is so much to see that it is tough to know where to begin to look. Fortunately, Murphy and the other staff are there to assist. This Saturday (December 10) from 12-5 pm and Sunday (December 11) from 11 am4 pm, Anna Giuliani , an ambassador from VIETRI, will be there to sign and personalize any VIETRI gifts purchased with proceeds to benefit the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.

Catherine Gee is located in La Arcada Plaza but her designs have been seen around the world

A selection of colors and designs of the popular Daria Blouse

Coast 2 Coast has a quarterly-rotating supply of gifts and goods

Coast 2 Coast stocks many of the favorite luxury brands

Paseo Nuevo

in some

or form or pop-up since 1968 and spans a wide

of crafts and arts from ceramics and handmade wooden cutting boards to jewelry, clothing, and leatherwork. If you’re shopping for multiple people in a variety of styles, this is the spot to go to. The metal lace wearables from Elaine Unzicker or crankshaft clock from Ben’s Auto Décor (B.A.D.) can fit the metalhead in your life. A handmade kalei doscope or one of the otherworldly glassworks by longtime area artist Elaine Hyde would suit the more dreamy giftee.

‘Tis the season to visit Paseo Nuevo, with the outdoor shopping space not just decked out with decorations, but also featuring daily and ongoing festive events held throughout the month, including nightly snowfall (5:30 and 6:30 pm), visits and photos with Santa, and even a Silent Night, Silent Disco (December 15). Peruse the slew of stores, stop in at a restaurant, or catch a movie for a little shopping nightcap.

Mama Luma in Paseo Nuevo features couture for a daughter, niece, or any young woman looking to dress up for a holiday party. Each of their clothing lines have thematic elements and coordinated colors that fit the dresses, jackets, and other attire. The Napa Rose collection often contains elements of the epony mous flower and the distinctive deep ruby reds that defines it. The Sicily line brings emerald greens with layers of pink and dashes of lines and polka dots. For the holiday season, Mama Luma has sale prices on different offerings from their various lines in colors that accompany the seasonal palette.

Heading Off State

Open since 1975, Mountain Air Sports (MAS) has been fitting and sup plying locals for nearly 50 years with their cold and warm weather gear. MAS suits those who enjoy the outdoors with kayaks, car racks, and the clothes to put in your pack. And if you’re heading off to the mountains for some snow-filled fun, the selection of winter gear, skis, and snowboards lets one get their gear before heading up the hill. MAS also offers ski and snowboard tune ups for your own gear or rentals if you still need some, as well as custom boot or pack fittings for any adjustments needed (if it’s been a while). There’s also clothing and activewear in the brands in demand for that lifestyle, such as Patagonia, True Grit, and Toad and Co.

Glass works by Elaine Hyde

Special occasion dresses, party outfits, and exqui site looks from Mama Luma

Patagonia down sweater hoody from Mountain Air Sports

Located near the popular Mony’s (a little chilaquiles during your holiday shopping?), sbmidmod features a collection of mid-century and modern objects carefully curated by owner Tracey Strobel. She brings over 20 years of experience in collecting and restoring antique and vintage objects so one knows the quality of each piece featured in the store. The collection includes art, lamps, furniture, plus other curiosities, and of course, chairs that are endlessly popular with collectors. This shop is filled with all of the engaging colors, luxurious curves, and exquisite craftsmanship that this era is known for.

Chaucer’s at Five Points shopping center on Upper State Street is a staple of the local literary community. The winding rows of books bring a fantastic supply of fic tions, classics, and referential works, plus a wall of greeting cards and tables of curated knick-knacks that make it easy to pick up other gifts along the way. The friendly staff at Chaucer’s is available for recommendations and can either help you find anything on the shelves or order anything not found there.

Vintage goods and antiques never seem to really go out of style and Moving Miss Daisy has a good deal of both. This consignment shop has an ever-turning selection of lighting, rugs, furniture, memorabilia, and much more. Whether it is finding a stylish something special for someone or just getting your home ready for the holidays, there is plenty to discover in this intricate La Cumbre shop. Plus, the Consign for a Cause program donates a portion of that item to a designated nonprofit so you can know that your purchase is also providing some holiday help.

And if you need a little more help on what to look for this season, scan this QR code for more gift ideas!

1221 state st., suite 7 santa barbara, ca 93101 in victoria court www.domecil.com

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

Mid Century Seguso for Marbro Murano Uranium Blue Green Glass Lamps from sbmidmod

Limited edition Arabian horse bronze sculpture by Raymond D. Anderson mounted on black Italian marble from sbmidmod

Moving Miss Daisy is a consignment shop with much to discover

Moving Miss Daisy offers unusual items like this antique cast iron St. Bernard nutcracker

Creativity With Grace

by Steven Libowitz

In the last several years, Santa Barbara composer and artist Grace Fisher has accumulated a number of admirable accomplishments. She’s written music for symphonies and scores for short films, the latter claiming awards at film festi vals. She also created a few animation shorts as well as several paintings, been a part of two locally-created documenta ries, produced four full evening concerts at the Granada Theatre, and, just last summer, graduated with a degree in music composition from UCSB.

Not bad for a typical 25-year-old, for sure, even more astounding considering Fisher has been confined to a wheelchair for the last eight years. Fisher was para lyzed from the waist down by an exceed ingly rare spinal cord disease that struck without warning at a party when she was an extremely active 17-year-old preparing to attend the prestigious Berklee College of Music.

At the moment, Fisher is preparing for the fifth annual Winter Music Showcase at the Granada, a variety concert featur ing groups, ensembles, and friends Fisher has been associated with over the years, a concept her mom Debbie came up with in 2018 to connect Grace with her onetime colleagues.

“My friends were off at college, and she thought it would be fun to get people back together for a performance,” Fisher recalled. “The idea was to surprise me. But once I heard about it, I wanted to be involved in the planning of the event and choosing the groups as I thought it would be a great opportunity to do a benefit for the foundation and at the same time support other local music groups. Music just has this ability to bring people and community together.”

That’s typical of Fisher, who hasn’t let

the fact that she doesn’t have any use of her hands stop her from being very “hands-on” with anything she puts her mind to – employing a device called a mouth stick to both maintain a level of independence via navigating her wheel chair and to create art, music scores, and more, one meticulous note or computer brushstroke at a time.

The first concert featured members of the Santa Barbara Youth Symphony and the San Marcos Madrigals along with Jackson Gillies, Will Breman, and the barbershop quartet the Bar-Back Boys. The concept is still the same for the 2022 concert on December 9, with Gillies, Breman and the Bar-Back Boys – friends of Fisher’s from high school whose members have scattered around the country but return each year to per form in the Winter Showcase – joined by the Santa Barbara Folk Orchestra, State Street Ballet (SSB) professional track dancers, the Westmont Chamber Singers, and others.

The SSB dancers will be perform ing to one of Fisher’s compositions called “Grace’s Lament” performed by an octet and choreographed by Cecily MacDougall, the founder of the compa ny’s Library Dances outreach program. Despite its title, Fisher said the piece isn’t a downer. “It’s sad and happy, or sad but happy. A good type of sad, I guess. It doesn’t sound sad.”

The Folk Orchestra will reprise its pre sentation of Fisher’s “Tapping Suite,” a piece she began writing before her audition for Berklee and completed last spring to be performed as part of her senior recital at UCSB. Guitarist Chris Fossek will play the solo for the work that sprung out of an old video of Fisher practicing the tapping technique on the guitar that she recorded with her phone back when she was 17.

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the packed Granada with host Lucy Darling introducing a cavalcade of creatively cos tumed circus figures, including jugglers, trapeze artists, and acrobats.

The two-hour show, part of a mul ticity tour, also featured colorful time-travel videos and impressively creative neon lighting.

Local Couple Shares Photos

The battle of the Windsors has been ramping up!

“There is no feeling, except the extremes of fear and grief, that does not find relief in music.” — George Eliot

the American Theatre Guild host

Magical Cirque Christmas at

Robert Perrin and Colleen Koch with young friends awaiting Santa’s arrival and lighting of the Christmas Tree (photo by Priscilla)

Carolers Kim Collins, Jan Hahka, Charlie Jenkins, and Pat Hackney (photo by Priscilla)

Charlotte Anderson with Santa (Richard Pommerville) and excited children (photo by Priscilla)

Santa and Rick Fidel greet excited children and delighted parents at the Rosewood Miramar (photo by Priscilla)

Goldie sampling a Rosewood Christmas treat with parents Lauren and Doug Barry (photo by Priscilla)

Grace Fisher brings her inspiring and festive Winter Music Showcase to the Granada for the fifth year

What might evoke resentment over being an innocent victim, instead serves as a source of joy and inspiration for Fisher.

“I get a lot of pleasure seeing old videos of myself playing or dancing,” she said. “I’m so thankful that I had the experience of learning so many different things and I still really like to watch myself. It was cool to recover this video because even though I can’t do it anymore, it’s still alive and a part of me. Having the Folk Orchestra play this piece is a way for that part to live on.”

All proceeds from the Winter Showcase benefit the Grace Fisher Foundation, which Fisher founded with a mission of connecting children and young adults with disabilities to art, music, and dance programs. As soon as the show ends, Fisher will turn her attention back to the foundation’s newest project: opening a facility at La Cumbre Plaza early next year to have a single site for its adaptive pro grams that include Painting with Grace. But the space will be open to all, she said.

“We all are different, whether it’s phys ical or something else. We’re all more related than we think we are. The goal is for us to just connect more.”

Keeping busy is what keeps Fisher happy.

“It’s my survival mode,” she said. “To be happy, I need to put my energy into things that I love doing. It’s a positive looping cycle: the more that I do, the more that I have fun with my art, the more that I’m able to give that back to other people.”

The Grace Fisher Foundation’s fifth annual Winter Music Showcase takes place at 7 pm on December 9 at the Granada Theatre, 1214 State Street. Tickets cost $18-$60. Call (805) 899-2222 or visit www.granadasb.org.

Holiday Happenings

Una Noche de Las Posadas (“The Inns”), the time-honored reenactment of Joseph and Mary’s search for lodging in Bethlehem as observed throughout Latin America, returns to downtown Santa Barbara at 7 pm on December 9. The free event begins at the Chapel at El Presidio de Santa Bárbara State Historic Park, followed by a short procession that travels just a couple of blocks to Casa de la Guerra followed by singing of holiday songs in Spanish. Rudy’s Mexican Restaurant Presidio serves traditional Posadas food and the Mujeres Makers Market will be curating a spe cial evening market full of vintage and handmade goods that starts at 5 pm. Visit www.sbthp.org/lasposadas.

Santa Barbara Festival Ballet’s produc tion of The Nutcracker (see calendar) and next weekend’s performance by State Street Ballet are merely the marquee event presentations of the Tchaikovsky classic. Myriad other smaller organizations also have condensed versions for the holidays, including Westside Dance’s The Nutcracker Sweet, which offers a shorter, sweeter ver sion of the holiday favorite, perfect for all ages and attention spans December 10 & 11 at the Marjorie Luke Theatre. That

Montecito

same venue hosts Goleta School of Ballet’s special Nutcracker performance featuring their youngest dancers in a December 17 production aimed at delighting the whole family. Visit www.luketheatre.org/events.

Feeling like something a little different?

The Big Brass Tuba Christmas should suffice, blowing you away by delivering the holiday tunes with a lot of bravado from noon to 3 pm on December 17 in Storke Placita (722-724 State Street). The Youth Makers Market, boasting all sorts of gifts and crafts, takes place simul taneously on the same 700 block.

Chorale Corralled

The Santa Barbara Master Chorale has canceled “Holiday Lights,” its annual open ing concert with music celebrating the sea son followed by a sing-along of favorite car ols that was slated to take place at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Montecito on December 11. The concert was to have marked the debut of the choir’s new artis tic director and conductor David Torres, who was artistic director and conductor of the Los Angeles-based Echo Lumino and associate conductor of Angeles Chorale. Torres, who is completing his doctorate in Choral Conducting at UCSB, also serves as conductor of UCSB’s Lumina Choir, assis tant conductor for the Chamber Choir, and artistic director and conductor of the choral ensemble Vocal Affinity, and has succeeded former Westmont professor Dr. Steven Hodson at the helm of the Master Chorale. But after he contracted COVID last week end, his formal debut with the choir will now take place January 28-29 with Haydn’s The Creation as the centerpiece.

Ventura Ventura

Namba Arts Center’s fifth annual holiday kickoff concert is once again hosted by the space’s musical director Doc Ventura, who has hand-picked an assortment of local tal ent for the single show. Dubbed “Holiday Blues: Doc the Halls,” the December 10 concert features a mix of holiday hits and other musical performances in an often-ir reverent celebration of the season. The roster boasts original acoustic reggae from Bombyfiya, folk music by Preston Smith, the blues harp specialist R.J. Mischo, ubiq uitous multi-instrument master Bill Flores (who plays everything from mandolin to saxophone), and Canned Heat drummer Adolfo “Fito” De La Parra backed by Namba’s All Star blues Band. Visit www. nambaarts.com…

French Record Label Brings Forgotten Women Composers into the Spotlight

Anew record label is helping to bring classical music’s unsung heroines into the spotlight.

Héloïse Luzzati, a French cellist, established this revolutionary record label, La Boîte à Pépites (The Jewel Box). It expands on the “Elles – Women Composers” festival and YouTube channel Luzzati founded to showcase under-appreciated female composers.

Luzzati spent many hours going over original manuscripts and first editions to bring these composers’ works back from the brink of obscurity, as many of them have never been recorded before.

The realization that she had spent the better part of three decades studying and performing work created completely by men spurred Luzzati into action.

“How could I have spent so many years without ever having played a piece com posed by a woman?” she quipped. “Too few works by women are published and therefore even fewer recorded.”

According to the charity Donne, Women in Music’s research, just five percent of the 15,000 works performed by orchestras in the 2020-2021 season were composed by women. This gender imbalance, according to Luzzati, is deeply entrenched in the classroom.

“This problem is present from the time we learn music as children,” she said. “We don’t work on any, or almost any, pieces by women composers throughout our studies. They are absent from music theory classes, from music history classes.”

The first UK release from La Boîte à Pépites, which came out in September, is a threeCD box collection of work by late French composer Charlotte Sohy, who died in 1955.

In order to avoid prejudice, Sohy, a mother of seven who survived two world wars, frequently composed under the name of her grandfather Charles.

Sohy’s oeuvre, which consists of 35 separate compositions, is described by Luzzati as “some times impressionistic, sometimes figurative, with colors of Ravel, Chausson, or Debussy.”

New music by Liza Lehmann, Alice Mary Smith, and Adela Maddison, three relatively unknown British composers, is in the works.

“I hope that by rehabilitating these women composers of the past, we will give access to a more equitable version of the history of music to younger generations,” Luzzati stated.

rife with dark humor about trying to fix her dysfunctional family that culminates in her estranged, alcoholic brother threat ening to kill Burrows and her kids.

Bulletproof Unicorn’s title hints at its theme, as Burrows showed up in Texas “armed with nothing but glitter and good intentions, wanting to bring to my family my desire only to make things better, what ever the problem is, whether it’s having a bad day or being a mentally ill addict.” Which is where she ran into her brother armed with guns and a murderous intent.

Burrows, familiar to local audiences for a few previous performances at Center Stage with her erstwhile musical com edy-banter duo MommyTonk – which Burrows calls “the filthy mothers’ version of the Smothers Brothers” – created Bulletproof Unicorn out of a now-aban

doned documentary film and original soundtrack that traced her family’s dys functional history called No Good Drunk

The Texas trip, however, spurred a shift in focus that catalyzed later back home one night while she was asleep.

“The whole show was sort of written in a dream. I was on stage but instead of doing bits, I just told the story, but instead of a depressing documentary of trauma, I found the dark humor,” Burrows said. “It’s what a comedy club owner in New York told me 20 years ago: ‘If you had the nerve to just stand up, tell the truth, talk about your fam ily, make it funny, people will love it’. I finally got it.”

After developing the story with On Entertainment Page 504

It would be hard to imagine something more polar opposite from a Christmas show than Bulletproof Unicorn, a one-wom an show from Los Angeles-based comedi an and singer-songwriter Stacie Burrows

“Music is the great uniter. An incredible force.” — Sarah Dessen

A Christmas ‘Unicorn’: And Now for Something Completely Different…

Stacie Burrows brings a little light and dark humor for the holidays in Bulletproof Unicorn

As Prince William and his wife Kate launched their whirlwind three-day tour in Boston for an Earshot Prize gala, younger brother, Riven Rock-based Harry, 38, and his actress wife Meghan Markle, 41, released an incredibly illtimed one-minute-12-second trailer for their highly anticipated Netflix docu mentary, part of their $100 million deal with the streaming giant.

The tony twosome shared a series of never-before-seen photos of them as a couple, while hinting the documentary will see them launching fresh unwel come attention on the Monarchy.

It comes after William’s godmoth er, Lady Susan Hussey, who served as the late Queen Elizabeth’s lady-inwaiting faultlessly for 60 years, was accused of making racist comments to a black domestic abuse campaigner at a Buckingham Palace reception hosted by Queen Consort Camilla, which ended with her resignation.

New Tune at the Red Piano

It was music to everyone’s ears when the Santa Barbara Symphony hosted a

fundraising bash at the State Street eatery, The Red Piano, with syndi cated radio host Jim Brickman , who has two Grammy nominations and 21 Number One albums, tickling the ivories magnificently for two hours as part of his 28-stop A Very Merry Christmas tour.

The event was organized by award-win ning actress and opera singer Deborah Bertling and Catherine Remak, morn ing show co-host on K-LITE radio, on which Brinkman hosts his eponymous show on weekends.

Brickman, who has worked with Carly Simon , Herb Alpert , Kenny Rogers, Donny Osmond , Johnny Mathis , Kenny Loggins , and Michael Bolton , sang a selection of his songs as well as many Yuletide hits and carols.

Among the supporters cramming the bijou spot were Ralph and Diana MacFarlane, Dan and Meg Burnham, John and Hazel Blankenship, Peter and Kathryn Martin, Julie Askew, George Konstantinow , John Palminteri, Jeep Holden, Fred and Nancy Golden , Ginny Bliss , and Henry and Gwen Baker

Open House

Lebanese TV personality Marcus Lemonis, 48, is selling his Montecito home in the gated Ennisbrook enclave for $22.75 million.

Lemonis, who hosts CNBC’s The Profit about taking over struggling businesses, paid $6.85 million for the five-bedroom, eight-bathroom 1989built home on 2.09 acres when he bought it from British financier and car collector Andrew Pisker in 2017.

Miscellany Page 504

go to organizations benefitting a wide range of constituents, including children, seniors, low-income families, and animals. All grants are funded by bequests and ongoing contributions from Rotary Club members.

“Rotary Club members are committed to raising funds for good causes, and sup porting activities and projects that make our communities stronger,” said Montecito Rotary Club Foundation President Bruce McRoy. “These grants allow us to support a wide variety of services to our community and are a great example of the cooperative spirit that’s an essential part of Rotary’s work.”

This year’s grant recipients are: C.A.R.E.4Paws, Friendship House, Little Village Foundation, Hospice of Santa Barbara, Habitat for Humanity of Southern Santa Barbara County, Choral Society, Montecito Trails Foundation, Mission Scholars, Teacher’s Fund, South Coast Youth Orchestra, and Nuclear Peace Foundation. The Community Grants Program is an annual initiative by the Rotary Club of Montecito Foundation to support worthy, community-oriented causes. Local nonprofit organi zations are encouraged to apply. Since the program’s inception, the Foundation has awarded more than $60,000 in assistance to the Santa Barbara community.

Rotary Club is the nation’s oldest global service organization. Founded in 1905 in Chicago, the organization today has 1.2 million members connected to each other by a network of 33,000 clubs in more than 200 countries. There are nine Rotary Clubs in Carpinteria, Goleta, and Santa Barbara.

The Rotary Club of Montecito launched in 1953. Members are business and profes sional leaders who come together to develop friendships, raise funds, and support local and international volunteer projects. International projects have included bringing solar lights to Morelia, Mexico, supporting teacher training in Sri Lanka, building a water system and providing school and hospital supplies in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and supporting immunization campaigns.

At the local level, in addition to funding the Community Grants Program, Rotary Club of Montecito members regularly volunteer at area organizations including the Santa Barbara Food Bank, Salvation Army, and Unity Shoppe, participate in beach clean-up events, and provide annual scholarships to Santa Barbara Community College students.

For more information about the Rotary Club of Montecito visit: portal.clubrunner.ca/2839

Ralph and Diana MacFarlane, Santa, Deborah Bertling, Karen Kerns, and Robert Ooley (photo by Priscilla)

Bob Heazlit, Jim Brickman, Catherine Remak, and Kathryn Martin (photo by Priscilla)

Jim Brickman and Deborah Bertling perform at the Red Piano (photo by Priscilla)

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.

Nonprofit repre sentatives accepting grants from the Rotary Club of Montecito

Greg Walloch, who produced Hasan Minhaj ’s recent award-winning Homecoming King Netflix special, Burrows took Bulletproof Unicorn to the famed Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where audiences lapped up the dozen performances of her hour-long harrow ing yet hilarious true tale.

This weekend’s shows in Santa Barbara came about through a cancella tion at Center Stage that also had good timing for Burrows, despite the holiday surroundings. But audiences don’t leave depressed, she said.

“It’s dark, but then the next thing you know, I’m making balloon animals, which I do throughout the show, and every body’s laughing at the absurdity of it all,” Burrows said. “I think it connects with people because we all have somebody in our family like my brother. Hearing some thing like that helps us to know we’re not alone and feel better about it.”

Stacie Burrows performs Bulletproof Unicorn at 7:30 pm December 8-10 at Center Stage Theater, 751 Paseo Nuevo. Tickets cost $30-$50. Call (805) 9630408 or visit www.centerstagetheater.org.

Over in Ojai

Cellist Evgeny Tonkha , a First Prize Gold Medal Winner at the 12th International Cello Competition in

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS

NAME STATEMENT: The follow ing person(s) is/are doing busi ness as: One Thread Collective, 6261 Marlborough Drive, Gole ta, CA 93117. Jacqueline E. Gil bert, 6261 Marlborough Drive, Goleta, CA 93117. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on No vember 7, 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, Coun ty Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 20220002727. Published November 30, December 7, 14, 21, 2022

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS

NAME STATEMENT: The fol lowing person(s) is/are doing business as: Gilmour Land Surveying INC, 470 Linfield Place, Apt F, Goleta, CA 93117. Gilmour Land Surveying INC, 470 Linfield Place, Apt F, Go leta, CA 93117. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara Coun ty on November 18, 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-

the Czech Republic and Special Jury Prize Winner at the 13th International Tchaikovsky Competition, teams up with pianist Steven Vanhauwaert , a First Prize Winner at the Los Angeles International Liszt Competition, for a December 11 recital as part of the Chamber on the Mountain series. The pair will perform Fauré’s “ Élégie , Op. 24,” Grieg’s “Cello Sonata Op. 36,” Debussy’s “Cello Sonata in D minor,” “Clair de lune,” and “Minstrels,” plus de Falla’s “Spanish Folk Suite” at Logan House at the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts in Upper Ojai. Audience members are invited to meet the artists at an outdoor patio reception follow ing the performance. Visit www. C hamberOnTheMountain.com

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

He put the 8,100-square-foot sin gle-story farmhouse property, which has been totally renovated, on the market in February for $24.9 million.

The U-shaped house also has a pavil ion tennis court, olive tree garden, and a three-car garage.

Stern Requests Modesty

Don’t expect former TV talk show titan Oprah Winfrey to be inviting New York radio shock jock Howard Stern over for tea and crumpets any time soon.

The controversial radio host, 68, has blasted Oprah for showing off her lavish lifestyle on social media.

Stern, who earns $90 million annu ally, spoke out about how the media mogul, 68, worth about $2.5 billion according to Forbes , “loves showing off her wealth” and “is not embarrassed by it” on his eponymous nationally syndi cate show.

“I find it mind blowing when you follow her on Instagram,” he told his co-host Robin Quivers, 70, before add ing: “You gotta be a little self-aware and know that these people are struggling out there.

“Oprah’s not embarrassed by her wealth at all,” he said. Stern, who is worth around $650 million, also stated that when you follow Oprah on Instagram “you see her estates, her gardens, and the people who service her.”

famous brands. He has a track record of identifying problems, creating solutions, and guiding those solutions to success.

Pollack is considered a human catalyst, pairing organizations with the worldclass people they need, whether it’s from the perspective of an investor, partner, advisor, director, or management.

He has helped more than 100 com panies create advisory boards and sits on many himself with the Dream Foundation his latest addition.

Pollack’s business acumen developed early. At just 13, he built a multimil lion-dollar sports memorabilia business while training to play professional base ball. And before the age of 20, he had founded five different companies, on his way to being a founder or founding investor in over 20 more.

Kirstie Alley Remembered

On a personal note, I remember actress Kirstie Alley, who has died aged 71 after a battle with cancer.

Kirstie, a two-time Emmy winning for the classic TV series Cheers, owned a home in Dark Harbor, Maine, the former Isleboro Inn, where I used to sail annually in Penobscot Bay with friends.

0002825. Published November 23, 30, December 7, 14, 2022

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The fol lowing person(s) is/are doing business as: Central Coast Plumbing & Mechanical, 100 Vega Drive, Goleta, CA 93117. Kristopher R Dills, 100 Vega Drive, Goleta, CA 93117. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barba ra County on November 16, 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. Hol land, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 2022-0002800. Published November 23, 30, December 7, 14, 2022

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The follow ing person(s) is/are doing busi ness as: ReGen Coop; Dream scape Santa Barbara, 506 S Salinas, Santa Barbara, CA 93103. Regenerative Landscape Alliance, LLC, 506 S Salinas, Santa Barbara, CA 93103. This state ment was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on October 24, 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, Coun ty Clerk (SEAL). FBN No. 20220002599. Published November 16, 23, 30, December 7, 2022

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: CASE No. 22CV03990. To all interested parties: Petitioner James Chi am Ken-Ming filed a petition with Superior Court of Califor nia, 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 objec tion 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 Octo ber 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

He added: “She knows how to be rich and likes to show it off, which is something I’m not comfortable with. I don’t think people should show off their wealth.”

Wood on Board

Community Arts Music Association of Santa Barbara, which is celebrating its 104th concert season, has elected Nancy Wood to its board of directors.

Wood, who recently moved back to our Eden by the Beach after 10 years in Oakland, served on CAMA’s women’s board from 1998 and as its president from 2003 to 2005, where she chaired the successful Hidden Gardens Tours for several years.

She was elected to the board of direc tors in April 2005 and served until 2012, during which time she elected second Vice President from 2008 to 2011 and chaired CAMA’s International Circle.

In 2004, Wood was named Volunteer of the Year for the Santa Barbara-Ventura Counties Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.

Joining the Dream

Landon Pollack, managing partner of Ignite Venture Partners, has joined the board of directors of the Dream Foundation.

As an executive advisor, Pollack has worked with some of the world’s most

“The wise musicians are those who play what they can master.” — Duke Ellington

I remember one particular occasion when her then-husband, actor Parker Stevenson, former Cheers star Woody Harrelson, and Danny DeVito and his wife Rhea Perlman, were enter tained to a concert at the idyllic spot by the Tigertones, the acapella choir from Parker’s alma mater Princeton.

Another day we all sailed over to near by Camden and had a very raucous lunch at the Waterfront restaurant.

Fond memories...

Sightings

Actor Harry Hamlin and Real Housewives of Beverly Hills wife Lisa Rinna strolling on Miramar Beach... Ellen DeGeneres and actress wife Portia de Rossi at the Honor Bar... Oscar winner Gwyneth Paltrow and producer husband Brad Falchuk enjoying the sights of Paris.

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

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

Calendar of Events

by Steven Libowitz

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8

Local Luminaries, Unplugged – After decades of appearances in town that served as benefits for a bunch of nonprofits, Toad the Wet Sprocket actually performed a few times locally in regular concerts as part of tours, including twice on the heels of new releases. Tonight, the band that was formed by teenagers at San Marcos High School and went on to achieve pop stardom in the 1990s with such hits as “Walk on the Ocean” and “Fall Down” is back to their usual selfless efforts, as Toad will toe the stage at the Marjorie Luke as a fundraiser for Doctors Without Walls – Santa Barbara Street Medicine. The evening offers a rare chance to see the group that still features three of its four original members, including the charismatic and versatile lead sing er-songwriter Glen Phillips , performing “unplugged,” which means guests will get a glimpse into the heart of the band’s songs unadorned by crunchy guitars and any sort of sound effects. It’s a logical approach considering concert proceeds will help DWW continue to provide free healthcare to Santa Barbara County’s most vulnerable populations through its DWW Van and Street Medicine Outreach Teams, which dispense care on site at more than a dozen outdoor locations every week. Which is about as unplugged as med icine can get. Santa Barbara-raised singer/multi-instrumentalist/producer Omar Velasco , one of the select artists affiliated with Santa Barbara Records, opens the show.

WHEN: 6:30-10 pm

WHERE: Marjorie Luke Theatre, Santa Barbara Junior High, 721 E. Cota St. COST: $55 general, $125 VIP (includes premier seating and admission to a community song circle before the concert); discounts for First Responders and students

INFO: sbdww.org/event/toad-the-wet-sprocket-unplugged

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10

Get ‘Crackin’ – Santa Bar bara’s first, biggest, and longest-running perfor mance of Tchaikovsky’s be loved Nutcracker ballet hits the stage at the Arlington yet again as Santa Barbara Festival Ballet takes on the classic holiday work to continue a four-decadesplus tradition. The truly community event finds locals coming year after year, as the ballet rekindles the wonder and wide-eyed excitement of families strolling through the lobby doors anticipating seeing Herr Drosselmeyer’s dolls come to life and the magical Christmas tree extending far above the stage. It’s not at all rare to see young children escorted by a parent or grand parent who also grew up with Festival’s production at the historic Arlington Theatre, ready to bring the Kingdom of Sweets to a new generation. The shows offer a rare chance to hear Tchaikovsky’s brilliant music played as in tended by a full live symphony orchestra – conducted by Elise Unruh, whose first turn wielding the baton for the Santa Barbara ’Cracker was 35 years ago – and featuring seven musicians whose tenure dates back three decades. The huge cast features dozens of local students of the conservatory, SBFB com pany dancers and alumni, UCSB Department of Dance students, the UCSB Dance Company, and members of the community, plus several professional guest artists from New York and beyond. Is it fantasy, fiction, or just fabulous fun? You decide.

WHEN: 2:30 & 7 pm today, 2:30 pm tomorrow

WHERE: 1317 State St.

COST: $27.50-$47.50 ($125 gala on Saturday night)

INFO: (805) 963-4408 / www.thearlingtontheatre.com or www.axs.com/ venues/2330

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10

Milpas Holiday Parade – Santa Barbara’s annual big Christmas Parade down State Street, initially postponed by the pandemic in 2020, remains on hiatus apparently in definitely, but the Milpas Holiday Parade is still making memories. Everyone is invited to the annual Eastside tradition, which this year carries a Santa Barbara-centric theme of “Surfin’ Santa.” The event features marching bands, floats, local officials and dignitaries, dance ensembles, lots of lights, and more, including a visit from Ol’ St. Nick himself.

WHEN: 5:30-7:30 pm

WHERE: Milpas Street from De la Guerra St. to Mason St.

COST: Free INFO: (805) 602-0914 or www.sbeastside.org/holiday-parade

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10

Holiday at the Ranch – Rancho La Patera & Stow House’s annual Christmas event features live music, tractor rides, face painting, ornament making, a variety of vendors for gift-giving, and a food and coffee truck to keep you warm. The holiday open house also features a visit with Santa Claus and his costumed “rein-goats.” WHEN: 9 am-4 pm

WHERE: 304 N. Los Carneros Road, Goleta COST: free-$10 INFO: (805) 681-7216 or www.goletahistory.org/holiday-at-the-ranch

Hallelujah Project – Santa Barbara Choral Society celebrates its 75th anniversary and also marks artistic director and conductor Jo Anne Wasserman’s milestone 30th year at the helm with its annual Hallelujah Project at the Lobero Theatre. The concert features a selection of seasonal classics and traditional holiday music performed by chorus, orchestra, and the angelic voices of children, who are drawn this year from the Music Academy’s SING! Program. The crowd-pleasing repertoire includes Bach’s cantata “Gloria in excelsis Deo, BWV 191,” and holiday favorites by Irving Berlin, Mack Wilberg, and Randall Bass, plus John Williams’ holiday songs from the film Home Alone, “Light the Legend, a Song for Chanukah,” and, of course, the wondrous “Halle lujah Chorus” from Handel’s Messiah. An annual highlight is the orchestrated version of Clement Moore’s beloved Christmas poem, ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, which in past years has been performed by comedienne Fannie Flagg and actresses Stephanie Zimbalist, Alison Sweeney, and Shirley Jones, among others. This year’s guest of honor is Scott Reed, the President and CEO of the Music Academy – which runs the SING! program – accompanied by his young daughter, Ruby, and friends. Stick around for the end of the story as that’s when Santa shows up just in time, and then shows up for photo ops and hands out candy canes to good little boys and girls (and assumedly the naughty kids in line as well) after the concert. And to all a good night.

WHEN: 7 pm tonight, 3 pm tomorrow

WHERE: Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St. COST: $10-$30, VIP $50 (Includes premium seating and post-show reception with the artists)

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

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13

Handel Harmonies for All – After a two-year pandemic pause, First Presbyterian Church is hosting the 40th annual Messiah Sing-Along in which everyone is invit ed to be part of the chorus. Phillip McLendon, the founder and first Music Direc tor of The Santa Barbara Master Chorale who led the ensemble for more than 20 years, steps in to conduct the orchestra organized by James Mooy and featuring members of the Santa Barbara City College Symphony along with organist Erin Bonski-Evans. Four local soloists are the featured singers for the performance of George Frideric Handel’s choral masterpiece in which the audience forms a huge part of the singing. (Scores are available at Chaucer’s Books.) The event serves as a special benefit for Unity Shoppe.

“If you’ve lost your faith in love and music, then the end won’t be long.” — Pete Doherty

Parade of Lights – Santa Barba ra’s harbor and shoreline will once again be gloriously illuminated by a succession of motor-powered watercraft decorated with Christ mas lights and more. The annual festival begins at 3 pm with a family-friendly Winter Wonder land on the City Pier in Santa Barbara Harbor, with holiday elves, 10 tons of snow, live holiday music, and even a visit from Santa among the activities. At 3:30 pm, the human-powered category of the parade’s competition gets underway during daylight as dozens of standup paddlers and kayakers dressed in festive attire will loop the harbor and Stearns Wharf, spreading cheer for all to see and hear. Back on Stearns Wharf next to the Sea Center, holiday tunes sung by the Dos Pueblos Jazz Choir will provide the soundtrack for a tree lighting ceremony at 5 pm. The main course comes at 5:30 pm when 30 or so illuminated watercraft adorned with decorations, lights, and holiday revelers from stem to stern – some of which might even literally adopt the punny theme for the 36th annual parade of “Deck the hulls” – make their way from Leadbetter Beach down the coast to the Cabrillo Arts Pavilion, then back along the shoreline and up the east side of Stearns Wharf. When the last vessel has passed by, the parade will be capped off by a brief fireworks show shot from the sand on West Beach, lighting up SBCC and the cityscape in true Santa Barbara tradition.

WHEN: 3-6:30 pm

WHERE: Stearns Wharf

COST: free

INFO: (805) 618-8642 or santabarbaraca.gov/events/santa-barbara-harborparade-lights

WHEN: 7:30 pm

WHERE: First Presbyterian Church, 21 E. Constance Ave.

COST: $10

INFO: unityshoppe.org/ways-to-give/40th-annual-messiah-sing-along

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15

Antler Antics – Brad Nack’s planned retirement from painting a new series of miniature reindeer portraits and putting on a one-night only show lasted barely two years. Nack called it quits to creating new editions of the elegantly framed, intricately detailed, and multi-layered one-of-akind portraits of the cute critters back in the 2020 pandemic year, in favor of writing a retrospective book about how he has captured the antlered beasts on canvas for almost a quarter of a century. But now the veteran Santa Barbara artist/musi cian/producer has once again spent a part of his year fashioning a new herd, er batch, of reindeer paintings for the 2022 holiday season. Composed of layer upon layer of oil paint, glaze, and varnish applied to canvases that are measured in square inches, the reindeer portraits feature the Christmas-y caribou in poses that are alternately shy, silly, mischievous, skeptical, or joyful in attitude, but never less than whimsical in presentation. And yes, once again the herd is heading over to the restaurant, Roy, the reindeer home-away-from-home since the beginning. But this time around, the paintings are being offered online in small batches at Nack’s Etsy site (where you can also purchase unsold portraits from previous years’ collections) before the show happens. So by the time of the reception at Roy, they may all be sold out, which used to happen in a matter of minutes when the doors opened. Even so, seeing the four walls of whimsy in Na ck’s depictions of the winter-time mammals is always a cheery good time, lifting the spirits in ways Santa could never have imagined.

WHEN: 5 pm

WHERE: Roy, 7. W. Carrillo St.

COST: free

INFO: www.bradnack.com or www.etsy.com/shop/bradnack

300 Years of Owl Illustration

Exhibit now open

John and Peggy Maximus Gallery 2559 Puesta del Sol, Santa Barbara, CA 93105 805-682-4711 • sbnature.org

Open Wed–Mon 10:00 AM–5:00 PM

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