Our weekly Events Wire newsletter is your guide to Northern Santa Barbara County concerts, arts, and local happenings—delivered every Friday.
I am a very good traveler. However, unlike the poet Geoffrey Chaucer, who shared amusing anecdotes with “nine and twentye in a companye of sondrye folke” on his way to Canterbury in the 1300s, I travel best alone. I’m more of a Clint Eastwood journeyer, cantering along at my own pace, enjoying in the sites […]
I used to love shopping for school. The first day of school wasn’t until the day after Labor Day. The final warm days of summer brought the promise of autumn, with warm colors in hues of red, brown, gold, and forest green. I remember my favorite green and red plaid book bag with its leather […]
I have officially become a geezer! I know, because I love going to the fair. I’ve been to Renaissance fairs, job fairs, and, before I married my Brit, I had a few love affairs. But state and county fairs were something only kids and geezers attended. Well, now I’m one of them—and happily so. My […]
Look in any dictionary for “stork” and you’ll find a picture of my husband. He has often been stalked by avid bird watchers who thought they had sited a rare, migrating, hack-kneed bittern, only to discover an emigre bare-legged Brit from Hackney. The first time I saw his pencil-thin legs I was reminded of a […]
This month has been a momentous one here at Waterman Manor. Arsenal, my British spouse’s football club (Brit-speak for soccer team), finished the season in the No. 3 slot, qualifying them to compete for the European Cup. Our grandson, Britween, has brought home yet another stellar report card. Hey, I reserve the right to kvell […]
“Grandma, where do babies come from?” The question was one I had been expecting, but not just yet. Mini-Brit was then only in kindergarten. Always an observant little fellow, he noticed that a classmate’s mother’s tummy was growing quite large. When he asked his schoolmate about it, she announced that her mommy was going to […]
You know there’s trouble brewing when you come into the house and hear these words: “Oh my God, what were you thinking? She’s going to kill you!” Spoken by my grandson, the Britween, to my husband, the Brit, they hold ominous portent, especially when followed by the Brit’s utterance that can only mean total mayhem […]
The month of March is said to come in like a lion and go out like a lamb, referring, of course, to weather conditions. March is also Women’s History Month, which is fitting since we have come in with a roar since the beginning of the Women’s Movement. My personal history involves one woman who […]
We at Waterman Manor watched the Giants win the Super Bowl, not that I ever get that excited about the game. I must admit that I enjoy watching the commercials. A few of the ads that aired during the game were thought provoking and several were hilarious. The Teleflora commercial, however, was neither. It featured […]
The 2012 American Library Association Awards represent the best in children’s literature. One of the ALA Awards categories is the prestigious Coretta Scott King Book Award, recognizing an African-American author and illustrator of outstanding books for children and young adults. This year’s recipient is Kadir Nelson, author and illustrator of Heart and Soul: The Story […]
It is 2012 and, now that the celebrations are done and hangovers cured, we can all get back to the normal day-to-day grind of work, looking for work, and wondering when our government is going to get to work. But I’ll leave those worries for the Canary to chirp on. After all, I wouldn’t want […]
The holidays at my house are an international affair. I plan my shopping, baking, decorating, and gifts with the kind of precision that went into the Yalta Conference. I, of course, represent President Roosevelt, the American contingent. I replace Stalin with stollen—sweeter, nicer, and far more palatable—and my husband is Sir Winston Churchill, cigar and […]
