Cover Story
Talking turkey: Central Coast residents share their long-standing Thanksgiving foodie traditions
Holidays by their very nature provide ample opportunity to create tradition. However, there is something about culinary practices that solidifies those traditions in a way that gift swaps, the annual portrait, or holiday outings cannot. People create tradition with their favorite dish. Some families pass a recipe down from one generation to the next. Often…
Santana’s singer Andy Vargas brings his “Soulero” sound to Nipomo
Imagine you just turned 20 years old and then you’re approached by one of the world’s leading rock bands to go on tour as a lead singer. Scared yet? Well, that’s what happened to Andy Vargas, when he joined Carlos Santana’s band in 1999 at the opening of the Supernatural Tour. “Honestly, it was completely…
What is your favorite Thanksgiving dish?
Blake Bolterman professional disc golfer “I don’t like turkey or ham. I’d have to say my grandma’s candied yams.” Talon Sheppard supervisor at Pacific Coast Drywall “Mashed potatoes because Blake stole my ‘candied yams’ answer.” John Villarreal lives in Santa Maria “My favorite thing to eat on Thanksgiving is this bacon wrapped chicken that my…
No fishy business: The Little Mermaid in Solvang delivers a meal fit for King Triton
It’s nearly impossible for me to embrace any version of The Little Mermaid that differentiates from the Disney film, including those that preceded it. Even the source material got it wrong. No offense to Hans Christian Andersen, but Ariel does not turn into foam at the end. Naturally, “Under the Sea” was stuck in my…
Eight-man wonders: For smaller schools like Cuyama Valley High School, there’s more than one way to play football
If American football is a religion in the U.S., then it’s worshiped during the course of the entire weekend starting with high school games on Friday and culminaiting with NFL games on Sunday. For the most part, we see only one version of the game: with 11 players on the field. But there’s also a…
To serve and protect
Thanksgiving is not my favorite holiday. I don’t think this bird needs to explain why. However, I’m welcoming it this year. Not for the turkey but for the food, and for the opportunity to divert people’s attention toward all the reasons to be thankful this season. It’s always good to be thankful and appreciate the…
We had to make the right decision
The displeasure of the faculty and students at UCSB, at the election of Donald Trump as our new U.S. president is well deserved by all of them. We seniors had to put up with their decisions to elect the Obamanation in the White House twice. So we started the Tea Party to protest—peacefully. In this…
Clearly, something went wrong
Supervisor Salud Carbajal made this apt observation at the close of the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors’ review of the proposed winery ordinance after 65 wine industry speakers passionately and emotionally objected to the ordinance. Only two spoke in favor of the ordinance and neither were from the wine industry. Supervisor Carbajal also correctly…
The election left me numb
I still can’t believe the outcome of the Nov. 8 election. I’m numb, shaken, lost, and extremely scared. I didn’t like Clinton. She wasn’t my first choice (I would have much rather had Bernie) but she was a hell of a lot better than that bloviating orange gasbag! I’m heartbroken. I was looking forward to…
Thanking heroes for helping students
Once again, as we celebrate this season of Thanksgiving, we want to give heartfelt thanks on behalf of our public schools to all the business and community members who support our local classrooms, families, and children in so many ways. It is so very encouraging and inspiring that even in challenging times, we can join…
I am, who I am
It happens every year around the holidays. I reminiscence about spectacular shopping trips, epic purchases, and gift-giving wishes come true. All of these things happened on my dime, but they weren’t my doing. About two years ago at Christmas, my identity was stolen and I’m still pissed. I didn’t learn about it until, apropos enough,…
Elverhoj Museum debuts textile art exhibit
Layers of Perception, a new textile art exhibition, opened Nov. 19 at the Elverhoj Museum of History and Art in Solvang. The exhibit showcases innovation in textile art and features surface design techniques from 15 local artists. The work on display represents new approaches to textile art technologies that challenge traditionally conceived “craft” materials.…
Julia Louis-Dreyfus supports campaign to restore Lompoc Theatre
Actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus and her husband, writer/director Brad Hall, recently made a major donation to the Lompoc Theatre Project (LTP), an initiative to restore and re-open the Lompoc Theatre. Louis-Dreyfus is known for her role as Elaine Benes from Seinfeld and her role as Selina Meyer on Veep, for which she received her ninth Emmy…
Altrusa of the Golden Valley holds Christmas tree fundraiser
Altrusa of Golden Valley holds its annual Magical Christmas Tree Fundraiser from Nov. 25 through Dec. 10. The club is giving away 46 decorated trees to raffle ticket winners. Students from both Righetti and Santa Maria high schools will paint murals for the event. The fundraiser takes place on the second floor of the Santa…
The Lompoc Veterans Memorial Building features murals by Fulton Leroy Washington, the artist pardoned by President Obama
Since 2008 a group of dedicated volunteers including veterans, local politicians, business owners, and citizens have given a gargantuan amount of time and money to restore the Lompoc Veterans Memorial Building. The 80-year-old building was in a state of disrepair, but thanks to hundreds of thousands of dollars raised, which put contractors and other laborers…
38 Santa Barbara county residents graduate from Citizens Academy
After eight weeks of interactive classes, 38 Santa Barbara County residents graduated Nov. 12 from the Citizens Academy. The participants ranged from 18 to 82 years of age with different backgrounds, life experiences, and perspectives. The group included students, business owners, an author, media members, activists, and retirees, just to name a few. This is…
St. Mary’s gets a dance lesson from Versa-Style Dance Company
After performing and teaching more than 700,000 students in Los Angeles, Versa-Style Dance Company brought music and dance to St. Mary’s School, Thursday, Nov. 10. The thumping sounds and beat of hip-hop and Afro-Latin music could be heard coming from the school as the student body was engaged with an interactive performance. After a short…
Hobnobbing with Helen: Casablanca nights for the Philharmonic
What a swell party it was! There was music in the air and flowers everywhere. A guitarist in the bar. A cocktail-hour pianist in the foyer. The Riptide Big Band playing during dinner and afterwards for dancing. What an entertainment lineup! As if that wasn’t enough, before dinner, 11-year-old pianist Sarah Girges dazzled a handful…
Spotlight on: MindBody Inc.
Rick Stollmeyer could’ve taken his company, MindBody Inc., to Silicon Valley or Silicon Beach, but instead he decided to keep it on the Central Coast in San Luis Obispo (SLO), where the company’s headquarters are located. And when it came time to expand the company to another location, he chose Santa Maria, where he recently…
Political Watch 11/24/16
• On Nov. 14, Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara) celebrated the U.S. House of Representatives’ passage of two bills she co-authored, the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act (H.R. 2713) and the Improving Access to Maternity Care Act (H.R. 1209). Both bills passed unanimously and now go to the Senate for consideration. “I am so…
Community Notebook 11/24/16 – 12/1/16
MONDAY, NOV. 28 • The South County Advisory Council has its regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. at the Nipomo Community Services District Headquarters, 148 S. Wilson St., Nipomo. • The Solvang City Council has its regular meeting at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 1644 Oak Street, Solvang. THURSDAY, DEC. 1 • The Buellton Planning…
Thirsty for more: Protest vote in New Cuyama fails to prevent water and sewer bill increases in its community services district
Just 11 votes prevented Cuyama residents from stopping a water and sewer rate hike at a Nov. 15 Cuyama Community Services District (CCSD) meeting. Only 86 of the 197 votes disapproved of the hike, 99 votes (or more than 50 percent) were needed in order to stymie the proposal. Tensions ran high for a moment…
Central Coast vintners propose new official grape varieties
Avid wine drinkers may start seeing some new grape varieties appear on labels from local wineries for the first time in five years, pending federal approval. The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau proposed to amend wine labeling regulations by adding new grape variety names to the list of those approved for American wines,…
SWAT standoff on Mariposa Way ends with suspect’s surrender and a house fire
View a slideshow of the Nov. 16 standoff. A standoff with the Santa Maria Police Department (SMPD) SWAT team on Nov. 16 ended with the surrender of a man who barricaded himself inside a home in the 800 block of East Mariposa Way. The man was wanted on suspicion of domestic violence. According to Sgt.…
Lompoc and community services districts to consider forming groundwater sustainability agency
On Nov. 17, the Lompoc City Council held a special meeting to decide whether it should join a handful of nearby community services districts to form a groundwater sustainability agency (GSA). The agency would encompass the Western Management Area portion of the Santa Ynez Valley Basin and includes Lompoc, the Mission Hills and Vandenberg Village…
Santa Barbara area law enforcement responds to deportation concerns
With a Donald Trump presidency on the horizon, some of his campaign promises are sinking in with undocumented immigrants nationwide—including the estimated 40,000 in Santa Barbara County. In an interview on 60 Minutes, Trump promised a crackdown on “criminal aliens” and said he plans to deport 2 million to 3 million people who are in…
Santa Maria Police Department aims to make streets safer for cyclists
Santa Maria has never exactly been known as a bike-friendly city, but the police department is taking action to change that. Starting on Nov. 22, the Santa Maria Police Department (SMPD) implemented new enforcement operations for bike and pedestrian safety. Enforcement will focus on collision-causing factors involving motorists, pedestrians, and bicyclists, according to a news…
