Goodbye

Over 27 years ago I walked into the Montecito Journal’s offices and told the founder of the new paper, Jim Buckley, that he didn’t have a society column. He replied, “Write one and if we like it, it’s yours.” Seen Around Town was born and my life changed forever!

I always had liked to dress up and wear fancy clothes, not play clothes, much to my mother’s chagrin. No mud pies for me. I found jobs that were clean like modeling or retail clothing. After we moved to Santa Barbara, I wrote some local society pieces for a Los Angeles society magazine and another in Palm Springs. I didn’t really like to write. I liked to go to parties.

Who knew I would write thousands of words and if a picture is worth a thousand words, I have thousands of those too. When Don and I traveled the world, the column turned into a travel diary with photos called Seen Around the World. My favorite quote: “The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” – St. Augustine

I began writing so long ago I used to write the column by hand on a yellow legal pad. Somewhere along the way, even non-techy me ended up with a laptop.

And so the memories begin. First a huge thank you to Jim, his son Tim, and ending with Zach – editors who let me do whatever I wanted and rarely changed a word. I can’t forget my husband, Don Seth, who was my faithful “gofer” for years. Thanks to the many organizations that invited me to their events. I went to hundreds of parties. And lastly to my loyal readers and supporters. I’ll be around, still a docent at Casa de Herrero and soon the Courthouse.

It’s been quite a ride!