Tag archives: covid 19
Jason Tavarez joined the Westmont community as director of institutional resilience in February 2020 and almost immediately began working to protect the college from the dangers of COVID-19. “My biggest concern has been keeping the coronavirus off our campus and doing everything we can, as a community, to keep our remaining students and employees safe […]
When I was younger, I dreaded my parents’ weekend declaration of an impending family walk. I would plead to ride my bike alongside them; to run, skip, cartwheel, anything but walk. We would (slowly) stroll along the dirt path at the nearby Ennisbrook trail and my eyes would meander towards trees that needed climbing, streams […]
Popular Santa Barbara eatery Mesa Burger has made its long-awaited debut on Coast Village Road, officially opening for business on Tuesday, July 21. “It’s been a long time coming,” said owner Chris Chiarappa when we stopped by the restaurant a few weeks before the opening, as Chiarappa was busy building a parklet to accommodate social […]
These days, Geoff Green‘s bed is more than just a place to sleep. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s now his office. Since he also sleeps there, he spends about 20 hours a day in his bedroom, exiting the cave only to eat or spend time with his family. His life is consumed by not only […]
WOW! It’s yet another week of rising COVID numbers as the country lurches forward and backward without any Federal leadership. This limbo period feels like it may never end. Well, in the dynamic context of conflicting realities of life and death, of abundance and growing homelessness, I’m writing today about living a meaningful life. Possibly […]
Despite complications from COVID-19, Personal Stories, Center Stage Theater’s popular series that features local authors and actors performing true first-person stories drawn from their own lives never actually went on hiatus. Sure, the PS performances were put on hold, but auditions and coaching continued in hopes that the theater would soon be reopening post-pandemic. Now […]
A baseball-themed double-header screens next in the UCSB Arts & Lectures free Summer Cinema series dubbed “Game On! Grit, Grace & Glory – Movies Under the Stars in Your Cars,” on Wednesday, July 29, at the West Wind Drive-In. At 8:30 pm, you can slide on down in your car’s front seat or folding chair […]
This week’s letter comes from a person who recently made their professional debut doing the 3D VFX work for the 2019 blockbuster Little Women. Animation student Beatrice Tolan is a rising senior at Northeastern University in Boston where she is pursuing her BA with a minor in theatre. This, of course, is no surprise to […]
There’s an old saying, “If you don’t plan on doing it right, you’d better plan on doing it again.” As I write, Governor Newsom has just stepped way out ahead of the federal government and ordered sweeping rollbacks of businesses in 30 counties across California, including our own. In Santa Barbara, not so long ago […]
The unrelenting disruption and uncertainty of our lives have rattled our emotional equilibrium. Patience has worn thin. The kids are getting scrappy and the parents are getting snappy. Small fractures in personal relationships are showing up and the large rift in our social contract has taken to the streets. This mandatory timeout has put us […]
Benjamin Franklin observed that “In this world, nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Right now, we are up to our eyeballs in coronavirus deaths (over 140,000 as of today) and equally consumed by taxes. The coronavirus death numbers conclusively prove the necessity for the U.S. to have a better public […]
This innovative concept to keep live music happening during the COVID-19 crisis has turned the massive parking lot at the Ventura County Fairgrounds into a site for “pop”-up entertainment. The Concerts in Your Car drive-in series features two or three live performances each week that people can enjoy from the comfort and safety of their […]
The Sunken Gardens at the Santa Barbara Courthouse is off limits for events as the coronavirus pandemic continues, as UCSB Arts & Lectures summer film series’ grass-fed version of beach blanket bingo would surely lead to a bounce in new cases of COVID-19. Instead, pivoting has produced a more practical solution for the free annual […]
No indoor dining? No problem! Local eateries pivot to al fresco service – Montecito style French bistro tables, olive trees, and soft breezes stirring lavender blossoms. These days, dining is a moveable feast as restaurants pivot, creating stunning al fresco settings. A state mandate to curb a surge in COVID-19 called for the immediate closure […]
I met Jakob Hammer, son of two of my favorite MUS teachers (Jackie and Kurt Hammer), in second grade. With our diametrically opposed love of Star Wars and Star Trek, Webkinz and Club Penguin, and contradictory opinions about Crocs as footwear, Jakob and I may not have seemed like a natural pairing, but we’ve now […]
Sometimes providence pops up in the unlikeliest of places – even during pandemics. But who would have predicted that COVID-19 could make a childhood dream come true? Like countless others during the initial days of stay-at-home lockdown, one of my Corona Coping Methods was binge-watching old television shows – peeling off the decades, gorging on […]
An Italian mayor, a Montecito philanthropist, and love in the time of coronavirus Everyone loves a love story, maybe even more so in these difficult times. I know I do, and by providence, my husband and I were able to be in the middle of this one. The story started with longtime Montecito resident Marjorie […]
In response to the staggering loss of local business related to the coronavirus pandemic, the City of Santa Barbara, in late May, authorized the use of “parklets” as an innovative way for restaurant owners to add physically distanced gathering spaces to public streets. The parklets are intended to be located in the parking lane adjacent […]
Longtime fixture Summerland Oriental Rugs has moved their showroom across the street to the former home of Clive Markey’s Pine Trader. Longtime treasure-filled Summerland Antiques Collective re-opened a few weeks ago and has been buzzing with activity adding to the retail mix… Carpinteria’sPorchis moving from Santa Claus Lane to Lillie Avenue (into the space formerly […]
Trying to catch up with Shane Brown, creator and owner of the newly opened home and garden lollapalooza called The Well, in the indoor/outdoor spaces formerly known as The French Bulldog, Café Luna, Mediterránee Antiques, Summerland Rugs, and more, is a bit like trying to catch a fish with greased hands. “I get things done! […]
