I’ve been living with kidney failure since 2019. Like so many Californians, I’ve faced more than just one diagnosis—diabetes, high blood pressure, gastroparesis, gout—and even the amputation of my foot due to sepsis. Dialysis, an intensive treatment done three times per week to keep me alive, has permanently affected my life. But I’ve fought every […]
Opinion
Posted inOpinion
Eat, prey, love
Even as a fully fledged bird, I need a mother every now and again. Sometimes I miss the comfort of a sheltering wing; sometimes I just need to be reminded of what’s right and what’s wrong. But needing someone to fill that mama-shaped hole in my heart is no excuse for going all cuckoo on […]
Posted inOpinion
Testy and zesty
Things got a little testy at a recent Guadalupe City Council meeting. Any guesses as to the topic du jour? Ding, ding, ding! Yes. It was the Royal Theater renovation project—you know the one, with grant issues, cost issues, redesign controversy, and the failed potential ballot initiative idea. Residents have complained multiple times about the […]
Posted inOpinion
National chaos has become a local crisis
For years, I’ve devoted my time to local issues. I’ve done so not because I’m apathetic to national politics, but because I’ve believed—and still believe—that our most direct influence lies in our own backyard. While the media machine churns 24/7 content about Congress, cable news spats, and whoever President Trump is threatening this week, I’ve […]
Posted inOpinion
Richards Ranch development will bring much-needed housing and opportunities to Orcutt
As a lifelong resident of Orcutt, I’ve watched this community grow and change over the years—but some things haven’t changed at all. One of those is the empty Richards Ranch property, which has sat vacant for more than 40 years, growing weeds instead of providing homes and opportunities for local families. I knew the original […]
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Shady baby
Richards Ranch sure has a bee in its bonnet about 4th District Santa Barbara County Supervisor Bob Nelson. For the third meeting in a row, the development’s attorney, Beth Collins, has accused the county and Nelson of doing shady things in processing the two concurrent applications for the same project—one that aims to annex 58 […]
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Politicians must realize wind and solar power are not totally reliable
For decades California politicians, mostly Democrats and environmental activists—these days you really can’t tell them apart—have been hell-bent on eliminating fossil fuel as a source of energy. Their claims have been that natural power from the wind and sun was the way to go; isn’t there plenty of each in a state the size of […]
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I’ll continue exercising my rights!
These are indeed trying times. The hits on my 401k do not allow me to visit my friends in Canada, and my Canadian friends are telling me there is no way in hell they are going anywhere “south of the border.” I will miss them. I can no longer avoid buying Chinese products at Walmart […]
Posted inOpinion
Trump doesn’t belong in office
There are two great mysteries in the universe. The first has to do with the nature of dark matter, and the second is why the Sun keeps printing John Donegan’s pompous bullshit. First, it was he and his political party that created the mess by enthroning one Donald J. Trump in the Oval Office. The […]
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Money trumps quails
What can I say about quails? They’re kind of cute, especially the babies. They can’t fly like I can, but they are native to California. You can attract them into your yard by sprinkling the right food around and providing them with some thick shrubbery for cover. Which is cool, unless you live in Solvang’s […]
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County agency formation commission should look deeper at Richards Ranch proposal issues
These are my accurate, historical comments sent to LAFCO [Local Agency Formation Commission] for its May 8 meeting, and I’ve seen some misinformation reported. As an Orcutt resident who has followed this process since 2022 and will be directly affected, I hope this study/informational session will address the following issues. First and most importantly, my […]
Posted inOpinion
Triggered
Should transgender students be able to use the bathrooms and locker rooms that align with their gender identities? Should trans women be able to compete in women’s athletics? These are complicated questions that we have been struggling to navigate and answer over the past several years, and we’ve made progress and gained a more complete […]
