Last season, Pioneer Valley High School student Eric Vera took seventh in the California Interscholastic Federation State Wrestling Championship. This year, Vera’s coach said he has a good chance of fighting his way up to the very top. Vera, now a junior at Pioneer Valley, is remarkably coachable, according to coach Kent Olson. The 160-pound […]
Eric Vera
Posted inNews
Local federal employees home for shutdown
As the president and Congress played chicken over funding for a proposed wall at the U.S.-Mexico border at the end of the year, some local federal employees were out of work. The stalemate between President Donald Trump and Democratic Party leaders led to a partial government shutdown in late December, with federal employees across the […]
Posted inNews
Political Watch 12/27/18
• Outgoing Gov. Jerry Brown gave a warning about pension costs during an interview with The Sacramento Bee on Dec. 21, saying the state could fall into “fiscal oblivion” if it didn’t do more to address the cost of retirement benefits for government employees. Brown’s comments came weeks after his administration defended the state’s right […]
Posted inNews
Santa Maria City Council swears in re-elected and new members, honors retiring member
The Santa Maria City Council chambers were packed with supporters and city residents on Dec. 18 who were eager to see returning and new members of the council sworn in. But before re-elected Councilmember Etta Waterfield and newly elected Gloria Soto were sworn in to represent their respective districts, the council issued a proclamation honoring […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Solvang’s Good Seed Coffee delivers on fresh small batch coffee and organic eats
The first thing I learn about Leyla Williams is that she is full of non-stop energy. I was told this before I spoke to her, but nothing could have prepared me for her endless supply of joy and fervor, especially when it comes to talking about her and her husband Brad’s coffee shop, Good Seed […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Cellar songs: The Good Life in Solvang welcomes local artists and audiences for live music in the cellar
When local musician Nataly Lola first started playing at The Good Life in Solvang around six years ago, the venue stood out to her immediately. The small craft wine and beer spot, located in a brick-floored cellar in downtown Solvang, wasn’t what she was used to. “It’s down inside an actual cellar, so it’s actually […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Arroyo Grande author pens novel featuring Walt Disney
He ran and ran, but Mickey just couldn’t keep up with the speeding ambulance carrying away his creator’s body to a cryonics clinic. Fast forward 50 years, after that fateful Dec. 16, 1966, and Walt Disney has a crucial choice to make: To thaw or not to thaw? Bored curmudgeon Samuel Clemens (also known as […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Elverhoj Museum of History and Art hosts Danish artist Hanne Stovring
As Esther Jacobsen Bates walks through the main gallery of the Elverhoj Museum of History and Art, it’s clear that something feels very different about this latest exhibit. “You can see that big influence of [New York City],” she said, pointing to a large canvas marked by swoops of bright whirling colors, making out the […]
Posted inOpinion
Ask our supervisors: Oil or people?
Three oil companies (Aera, ERG, and PetroRock) have proposed to drill 768 new oil wells in Cat Canyon, through the Santa Maria groundwater basin, which provides drinking water to 200,000 people in 12 cities. The chemical-filled wastewater will be injected back into the ground, compromising the safety and health of the aquifer. Meanwhile, Shell/ExxonMobil (who […]
Posted inNews
New year brings new rule for junior livestock competitors
Kids who show animals will have more than just resolutions to fill out this new year. The California Department of Food and Agriculture announced in a letter on Nov. 30 that it would soon require all kids participating in junior livestock competitions at California fairs to first complete the Youth for the Quality Care of […]
Posted inNews
Hobnobbing with Helen: December doings
It has been, as expected, a frantic and frenetic month of shopping and socializing. Of course, there were holiday parties galore all over town. My December, by chance, was highlighted by hobnobbing opportunities with les femmes (this means “the ladies” in French–some words just sound better en francais). But I digress. Women’s Network Extravaganza Notable […]
Posted inNews
Farm Bill approved by Congress, addresses issues faced by Central Coast farmers
After months of negotiations, failed drafts, and a prolonged stalemate, Congress finally passed a farm bill this month, one that will almost certainly be signed into law by President Trump before the new year. The U.S. House of Representatives approved the $867 billion bill with a 386-47 vote on Dec. 11, a day after it […]