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¡Viva el Arte de Santa Barbara! brings top-notch performers to local families
Listen in: Mariachi Nuevo Tecatlitlán performs “Sones de Veracruz” live. Tres guitarras: Los Vega performs “Las Poblanas” from their album, En tonos muy diferentes. Music has the unique ability to connect people across cultures, generations, and even borders. It can also provide a snapshot of a place, people, or society. ¡Viva el Arte de…
What’s your favorite work of art?
Yajaira Diaz (with Isrian) student and mom “You know, recently we went over to a friend’s house for a boxing match, and he had a painting of The Last Supper that had to do with geometrical shapes. … I don’t know who it was by, but I saw it and I loved it.” Daniel Lopez…
Learn landscapes with MacKah
The C Gallery, in collaboration with Mary Kay West, is bringing the famous landscape painter John MacKah to the Central Coast for an intermediate landscape-painting workshop. The workshop, “Illuminated Landscapes: Artisanal Use of Oils,” will include five days of plein air painting with MacKah, and lunch. MacKah is based in North Carolina and has enjoyed…
Crafty kids
The Santa Maria Michaels presents arts and crafts events for kids, including “Kids’ Club Owl Puppet” on Sept. 21 from 10 a.m. to noon. “Kids Club Silly Monsters” and “Cake Roulette with Cake Boss” are on Sept. 28 from 10 a.m. to noon, and “Envelope Punch Board Show IN Tell” is Sept. 28 from 1…
Get close to a grizzly
The Santa Maria Valley Natural History Museum has a brand-new grizzly bear exhibit open to the public, as well as other multi-sensory experiences during the museum’s regular hours, Wednesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. at the museum, 412 S. McClelland St., Santa Maria. Donations accepted.…
Meet the author, Jenny Moshak
The Bookworm welcomes Jenny Moshak, former University of Tennessee athletic director and author of Ice ’n’ Go, on Sept. 26 at 3 p.m. with a question-and-answer session at 5 p.m. at the Bookworm, 230 E. Betteravia Road, suite K, Santa Maria. More info: 922-4282, quest@thebookwormcali.com, or thebookwormcali.com.
Altrusa is accepting applications for fall grants
The Altrusa International Foundation of the Central Coast is now accepting applications for the fall 2013 grant funds the organization gives away each year. The funds are allocated for nonprofit agencies of the Santa Maria Valley for programs involving literacy, childcare, senior programs, and programs for people with disabilities. All applications must be postmarked by…
The Santa Maria Civic Theatre starts its 55th season with a Hitchcockian classic
The Santa Maria Civic Theatre kicked off its 55th season with a suspenseful tour de force, Dial M for Murder by Frederick Knox. The production is a reminder that the Civic Theatre—while powered entirely by volunteer effort—can provide live, professional-level theater with plenty of drama. Dial M for Murder is a classic tale of intrigue…
PCPA’s Clybourne Park reveals that things don’t change
BIG MOUTH: Watch an excerpt from PCPA Theaterfest’s ‘Clybourne Park’ Sitting in the audience for PCPA Theaterfest’s newly opened play is slightly uncomfortable and definitely awkward. And that’s exactly the way it’s supposed to be for anyone watching Clybourne Park, a contemporary play written by Bruce Norris about racism, real estate, and sociological constructs.…
The Lompoc Concert Association welcomes organist Angela Kraft Cross
The organ has been called the “King of Instruments” because it gives the musician access to more sounds, range, and power than all other instruments. One must also remember that, before the age of electronics and synthesizers, the organ was the only instrument that could emulate scores of instruments, just with the flick of a…
The three sisters who check off all the boxes
My mother has two younger sisters to whom I have often referred on this page as Aunts 1 and 2 in order to protect the guilty. However, I have openly written about Mom using her name, Donna. It is high time that I out my aunts, whose names are Lorna, the oldest of the two,…
Enjoy a unique meal and benefit your neighbors at Empty Bowls and Dinner in the Dark
Two Santa Barbara County fundraisers this October give the dining public the opportunity to fill more than their tummies—they’ll also help replenish the coffers of a local service club and a nonprofit organization. On Saturday, Oct. 5, the Vandenberg Village Lions Club hosts a first-of-its-kind event in the area, Dinner in the Dark. That evening,…
Melanie Johnson
Ernest Righetti High School’s four-year varsity golf veteran, Melanie Johnson, practiced chipping balls from the sand onto the green at Rancho Maria Golf Course on a recent Friday after school. Johnson hit golf balls with her father at the age of 7, so she’s been working on her game for about 10 years. Since her…
What’s on Deck? 9/19-9/25
Thursday, Sept. 19 Girls’ Volleyball St. Joseph vs. Arroyo Grande @ SJHS, 6 p.m. Lompoc vs. Cabrillo @ CHS, 5:30 p.m. Nipomo vs. Santa Ynez @ NHS, 5:30 p.m. Righetti vs. Paso Robles @ RHS, 6 p.m. Boys’ Waterpolo St. Joseph vs. Santa Maria @ SMHS, 3 p.m. Nipomo…
Grow older actively
Annual Active Aging Week, Sept. 22 through 28, got its start with the International Council on Active Aging. The weeklong event emphasizes the importance of a healthy lifestyle for older adults while providing safe and diverse community activities. Come join the kick-off celebration Sept. 22 at the Elwin Mussell Senior Center from 11 a.m. to…
Rockin’ and Rollin’ at the Rec ‘n’ Roll roller skate/blade event
Join the Buellton Parks and Recreation Department for the annual Rec ’n’ Roll roller skate/blade event Sept. 21. The event will be filled with music, food, and exciting games. Beverages and pizza will be available for sale at the event. Families with kids ages 10 and under are invited to skate from 5:30 to 6:30…
Keep it clean, Santa Barbara
Here on the Central Coast, the beautiful beaches are a wonderful place for those who love to be active. While they provide a beautiful venue for everything from beach volleyball to a brisk jog, all the traffic makes for some dirty sand. In honor of the annual Coastal Cleanup event on Sept. 21, Santa Barbara…
The Benchwarmer’s Hopes for the 2013 NFL Season
The days are growing shorter and the air is growing chillier. From my cozy spot on the bench, I can see the scattering of brown and yellow leaves and smell fall—by far the best time of the year—in the air. For some of us, fall signifies the much-awaited return of the Pumpkin Spice Latte at…
What Kids are Reading: Frog Trouble … and Eleven Other Pretty Serious Songs
“There’s only one thing gets a Cowboy down. It’s the kind of trouble that we’ve got in this town—Frog Trouble.” The moment I saw the cover of this book, showing three burly, green frogs, one sporting a 10-gallon hat, I knew Frog Trouble was going to be a fun read. Author, cartoonist, and songwriter Sandra…
Careers and charisma take center stage at Hancock
Santa Maria Valley locals can learn how to get ahead in the job market by taking two courses, Your Leadership Charisma and The Career of Your Dreams, in September and October at Allan Hancock College. The Community Education classes with instructor Cary Gray are offered Saturdays on the Santa Maria campus in room S-109. In…
You’ve got to read what you want to read
It’s at hand again: one of my favorite non-holiday, yet holiday-like celebrations of the year. Banned Books Week—described by organizers as “the national book community’s annual celebration of the freedom to read”—is set for Sept. 22 through 28 in 2013. This year’s efforts come just days after a controversy in Ohio, where author Toni Morrison…
From the depths to the heights and in between
The headline in the San Francisco Chronicle read: “Rift puts Maldonado campaign in even bigger hole.” It’s not a flattering image. Just picture the former lieutenant governor sitting, forlorn, at the bottom of a pit. Maybe there’s some gravel tumbling down the edges as they widen. He’s looking up with those big, brown eyes of…
Happy 75th, St. Mary!
St. Mary of the Assumption School kicked off a year’s worth of 75th anniversary celebrations this week with a pep rally, open house, and dinner. The Sisters of St. Francis of Penance and Christian Charity welcomed children on Sept. 14, 1938 to St. Mary of the Assumption School, the first Catholic school in the Santa…
Spotlight on: Creative Juices
The brand new Creative Juices Lounge in Guadalupe is not your typical juice bar—it’s closer to an actual bar and comes complete with munchies, beer, and wine. But it does have a “killer smoothie” on the menu, according to the restaurant flier. Owner Randy Kirkendoll said some of the people who stop by his downtown…
Political Watch 9/19/13
Gov. Jerry Brown recently signed a bill authored by state Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) that will protect women from harassment and intimidation as they are seeking services at reproductive health care facilities. Senate Bill 340 removes a sunset clause on the Reproductive Rights Law Enforcement Act, thus making it permanent. Because of this act,…
Community Notebook 9/19-9/26
MONDAY, SEPT. 23 • 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. TUESDAY, SEPT. 24 • The Lompoc Unified School District has its board meeting at 5:30 p.m. at the Education Center Board Room, 1301 N. A St., Lompoc.…
Community Corner: Get healthy in Buellton
Are you or someone you know interested in getting a discount on screenings for diabetes, heart disease, or prostate cancer? If the answer is yes, look no further than the Santa Ynez Valley Cottage Hospital 31st annual Health Fair on Oct. 5. The free fair runs from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Santa…
Hobnobbing With Helen
The indomitable Liz Addamo e-mailed me and asked if I would like to join a group of 20 for wine and appetizers at the home of Etta and Buck Waterfield. If Liz was callin’, Liz was cookin’. Who could say no to the former Bistro Baroness (she recently sold her fabled tasting room and restaurant…
‘Green’ energy is key at the Chumash Casino and Resort
It’d be near impossible to cram information about all of the Chumash’s green energy initiatives into one article. The tribe has developed an impressive array of programs designed to make its casino, resort, and reservation as energy-efficient as possible. From solar thermal heating to LED lighting, to biofuel to waste management, the Chumash have it…
Fight allegedly leads to a felony fire at a Nipomo residence
What started as an otherwise normal fight between a Nipomo resident and his ex-girlfriend allegedly turned felonious, according to court records recently obtained by the Sun. According to an affidavit, on June 1 of this year, then-20-year-old Kailey Lind Chillinsky of San Luis Obispo confronted her ex-boyfriend at his workplace in Pismo Beach. The affidavit…
Technology talk takes up the latest Ibarra pre-trial hearing
Family members of defendants waited in the Santa Maria Juvenile Hall lobby, seemingly banished from watching the latest pre-trial hearing in the Anthony Ibarra murder trial. Some traveled from as far as Bakersfield for the Sept. 12 hearing, only to sit and wait for an intercom to be turned on so they could hear what…
Officers catch 18 people attempting to smuggle pot into Santa Barbara County via panga
Seven of the 18 people arrested for allegedly transporting more than 2,000 pounds of marijuana via panga to Arroyo Quemada Beach in Goleta were scheduled to appear in a Los Angeles federal courtroom Sept. 16. According to an affidavit provided by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Alejandro Cortez-Garcia, Carlos Cortez-De La Cruz, Manton Pine,…
