Come November, farm animals will be front and center on the ballot. Proposition 2, also known as the Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act, would outlaw veal cages, pig gestation crates, and battery cages used to hold egg-laying hens throughout California. If passed, all farms would have to be cage-free by 2015, and violators would […]
Opposition groups say Proposition 2 is something to cluck about
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Groups seek to limit methyl bromide exposure
Methyl bromide. It’s a chemical that residents of the Santa Maria Valley have heard a lot about, especially if they pay attention to the news. Most recently, it’s being tossed around in discussions about combating the “charcoal rot” fungus in local strawberry fields. The pesticide-that-could is back in the news—and has been back in court—since […]
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Athlete of the Week
After scoring his team’s only goal in the Santa Maria All Stars vs. Chivas USA exhibition game, Andy Contreras has been receiving a lot of attention. For a kid who hopes to play professional soccer someday, that’s a good thing. “He got a lot of compliments from the Chivas’ head coach,” said coach Al Garcia. […]
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Let your geek flag fly
The highest-grossing movies of this summer have been comic-book adaptations. Think Hollywood invented Iron Man? Hellboy? Batman? The Hulk? Please. Tinsel Town writers have been mining the most hallowed trusts of geekdom for their latest blockbusters, and comic books aren’t the only film fodder. Audiences still want to believe in Fox Mulder and Dana Scully: […]
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BMX finally rides into Santa Maria
Break out some gloves, a helmet, and that small-ish bike stashed away in the corner of the garage: It’s BMX time. The sport, which can best be described as a group of bike riders rolling over hills and berms at incredible speeds, has found its way to Santa Maria—and it’s just in time for a […]
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Local Paint Horse wins World Championships
Santa Ynez resident—and horse—Iron Star Man recently captured two World Championship titles at the 2008 World Championship Paint Horse Show in Fort Worth, Texas. Iron Star Man, a 5-year-old stallion owned by Gayle Benton, won the Junior Hunter Hack, shown by Karen Wildes, and the Junior Working Hunter, shown by Ryan Painter. In the Hunter […]
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California Stars Coast softball hosts open tryouts
Grab your bat and glove and head out to the California Stars Coast Girls Fast Pitch Softball Association tryouts—if you’re a girl interested in playing softball. Tryouts for the 2008-2009 season will be held Aug. 16 at the Colony Softball Fields, 5599 Traffic Way in Atascadero. Girls 14 and younger, and 16 and younger, start […]
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PCPA celebrates its 45th season
PCPA has announced its 2008-2009 season line-up, which will include five hit musicals, as well as a favorite Shakespeare comedy. The 45th anniversary season will kick off with Irving Berlin’s White Christmas playing in Santa Maria’s Marian Theatre Nov. 6 through Dec. 21. The play is about a pair of showbiz buddies putting on a […]
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Lasting memories
In the rolling hills of Orcutt, just off of Telephone Road, stands a spacious, 10-acre parcel of modest beauty. Christened Rancho Miranda, the locale sprawls out on the hillside dotted with various trees, benches, and cozy nooks. It doesn’t take an event planner to see that this spot is ideal for a shindig. In fact, […]
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Open for interpretation
Some visitors might view the art at the C Gallery in Los Alamos as odd, as avant-garde, as fanciful. And some might not. Whatever guests think of the contemporary art gallery’s offerings, it’s okay with owners Connie Rohde-Stanchfield and Nina Rohde Brown—as long as the guests are actually thinking about them. That’s exactly what the […]
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Local high school students receive academic honors from Allan Hancock College
More than 550 Allan Hancock College students were recently added to the college’s Dean’s Honors List and Special Honors List for the spring 2008 semester. The lists recognize students’ academic achievement at the college. For each semester, students named to the Dean’s Honors List must complete at least 12 units with a 3.5 or better […]
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Packed with care
El Montecito Presbyterian Church saw a lot of sorting and stuffing on July 19. Specifically, volunteers sorted and stuffed 900 backpacks to be distributed to students all over the coast, from Carpentaria to Guadalupe. Four Montecito churches worked together to provide the backpacks filled with school supplies for People’s Self-Help Housing students. Members of the […]