Sun, September 21, 2023

Breaking ground on the Enos Ranch Park and Cultural Center means the Santa Maria Japanese Community Center will soon have a permanent home, where members can host meetings, showcase local history, honor the first generation of immigrants, and teach classes on Japanese cooking, language, and cultural arts. Staff Writer Taylor O’Connor speaks with community center members to learn about their family’s history in the area and how it will be shared into the future [7]

In addition, you can read about the county’s contract for emergency services and its controversy [4]; the SLOPOKE art show [26]; and a home for pop-ups in the Santa Ynez Valley [29].

WHEN DEEP CALLS TO DEEP JOURNEYS OF THE SOUL FOR A CULTURE IN CRISIS

The challenges of our times are demanding more than just political reforms. They are compelling us towards journeys of the soul that will ask not only for great courage, but new understandings of power and inclusive leadership, new mythologies of collective heroism, more diverse communities and organizational models that are more sustainable ecosystems than hierarchical power pyramids. We invite you to engage with contemporary issues and the latest in depth psychological thinking and practices, join interactive learning sessions on the cutting edge of practice and theory, and explore all that Pacifica Graduate Institute has to offer for your personal and professional journey.

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• U.S. Sens. Alex Padilla (D-California) and Mike Braun (R-Indiana) introduced bipartisan legislation to streamline veterans’ access to their benefit claim files, according to a Sept. 14 statement from Padilla’s office. The Wounded Warrior Access Act would require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish and maintain a secure online tool or website to enable veterans or their representatives to make requests to receive their claim files electronically. When a veteran submits a claim for benefits to the VA, a claims file (C-File) is created. C-Files contain a veteran’s service records, results of VA exams, additional information submitted by the veteran, and any material the VA deems necessary to decide the claim. Currently, veterans must travel to a regional VA location or mail in a form to request a paper copy of their C-Files, slowing down the process for individuals to gain access to their information. “Those who have served our country with honor, courage, and distinction deserve our nation’s enduring support and gratitude,” Padilla said in the statement. “Veterans should not have to travel to a regional VA location to access their claim file or wait for a physical copy to come in the mail; they should be able to quickly access the information they need electronically.”

• The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors approved the appointment of Kristine Schmidt as the new director of Human Resources, according to a Sept. 12 statement from Santa Barbara County. Schmidt’s selection comes after an extensive nationwide search to find the ideal candidate to succeed Maria Elena De Guevara, who will retire from the position in January 2024. Schmidt will assume her new role on Jan. 2, 2024. She currently serves as the assistant city manager for the city of Goleta, a role she has been in since 2019. Before her tenure in Goleta, she dedicated 22 years of her career to the city of Santa Barbara from 1997 to 2019, where she held various positions in human resources, employee relations, and administrative services. “I am honored to join the county of Santa Barbara as the director of Human Resources. It is a privilege to serve this community, and I am committed to fostering a work environment that values employees and promotes their growth and well-being,” Schmidt said in the statement. “I look forward to collaborating with the county’s dedicated team to continue to attract, develop, and retain top talent to serve our community effectively.”

• Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the Board of State and Community Corrections unanimously awarded $267 million to 55 local law enforcement agencies across the state to combat organized retail crime—the largest investment in the state’s history—according to a Sept. 14 statement from the governor’s office. The funding, part of Newsom’s Real Public Safety Plan, will be dispersed on Oct. 1 to 34 police departments, seven sheriff’s departments, one probation department, and 13 district attorney’s offices to prevent and investigate cases of organized retail theft and arrest and prosecute more suspects.

The Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office will receive $800,000. Across the state, the funding will be used to create fully staffed retail theft investigative units, increase arrests, install advanced surveillance technology, train loss prevention officers, create new task forces, increase cooperation with businesses and the community, target criminals in blitz operations, as well as crack down on vehicle and catalytic converter theft. “California is investing hundreds of millions of dollars to crack down on organized crime and support local law enforcement,” Newsom said in the statement. “Enough with these brazen smash-and-grabs—we’re ensuring law enforcement agencies have the resources they need to take down these criminals.” m

Board of Supervisors looks at two ambulance service provider applications after approving nonexclusive agreement

The Santa Barbara County Fire Department will be the new countywide provider for emergency medical services after the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved its application.

During the Sept. 19 meeting, the supervisors heard from American Medical Response—its current ambulance provider—and County Fire about their proposals to provide ambulance services for the county. These applications came forward after the supervisors unanimously approved a nonexclusive ambulance services agreement to help combat duplicated services and costs to provide a streamlined medical response.

“They save lives on a daily basis; where I come down on this is we need to provide the most integrated and best service to our constituents,” 4th District Supervisor Bob Nelson said.

The nonexclusive program set up a tiered system and a new permitting process where applicants could apply for specific ambulance services they’d like to provide—including emergency medical calls; interfacility transport and special events transport; or critical care transport.

In order to be approved, applicants had to demonstrate their experience, the proposal’s feasibility and economic viability, and community benefits like innovative service delivery and local reinvestment, according to the staff report.

Santa Barbara County Fire applied for an emergency medical call permit, an interfacility transport and special event standby permit, and a critical care transport permit. Fire Chief Mark Hartwig highlighted that the entire system would be integrated and working with other first responders, provide 24/7 priority-based deployment and a dedicated interfacility and mental health transport fleet, have financial transparency for the community, and provide paramedicine opportunities where paramedics could conduct outreach.

“We can use these employees at work that aren’t running calls to do other work. We found through Behavioral Wellness and Public Health and the hospital that visits to discharged patients keeps them out of the hospital before it turns into an extreme situation,” Hartwig said.

American Medical Response applied for only the emergency medical call permit, to respond when someone calls in need of immediate medical attention.

In its proposal, AMR Regional Director Mike Sanders said that it will continue to provide services as it has over the past 50 years, using its

communications infrastructure; providing local CPR, “stop the bleed,” and school educational opportunities; and will provide data to develop a strong deployment strategy.

“The reason we did that is because permits two [interfacility transport] and three [critical care transport] in themselves simply aren’t sustainable,” AMR Regional Director Mike Sanders told the Supervisors. “We need permit one to make two and three work. We didn’t want to be denied one and be with two and three; we view ourselves as a 911 emergency provider primarily, but we realize the important services with interfacility transfers and critical care transport.”

Fourth District Supervisor Nelson said that this application was not complete and it didn’t consider how it would integrate with the current 37 fire stations to provide services and how it would respond to calls in rural areas like Cuyama, Tepusquet, and Sisquoc, when it hasn’t in the past, while County Fire had plans to have 24-hour coverage in those areas and incorporates its new substation in Cuyama.

Initially, Nelson said he wanted to approve AMR’s proposal with conditions that they come back with changes, but after further discussion he said he was ready to deny it altogether.

“If AMR walked away tomorrow, we would have to step up. We could have a further discussion for what could be shared, but I was disappointed you can’t even find the word Cuyama in their application. There’s no integration with the 37 stations,” Nelson said. “Being under different roofs is good for accountability, but it creates problems when we are trying to serve the public, and I want to keep it under one line.”

As of press time, the supervisors hadn’t voted to deny AMR’s contract.

—Taylor O’Connor

Two cannabis dispensaries move forward with Guadalupe City Council support

With plans to bring two new cannabis shops to downtown Guadalupe, two separate retailers recently entered into similar agreements with the city.

Public hearings for both projects, Root One and Element 7, were held back-to-back during the Guadalupe City Council’s Sept. 12 meeting. As part of their applications, each retailer was required to outline “the community benefits it was willing to offer the city,” according to the staff report.

Examples of the city’s suggested conditions for commercial cannabis businesses to uphold include maintaining public outreach and education efforts, participating in community

service projects, and providing resources that help “promote the public health, safety, and welfare of the city and its residents.”

The requirement for cannabis businesses to enter into a community benefit agreement— drafted on a case-by-case basis, unique to its respective project—with Guadalupe is part of the city’s cannabis ordinance, adopted in May 2021.

Austen Connella and Adam Laurent of SLOCAL Management, the LLC behind Root One, attended the City Council’s Sept. 12 meeting to discuss their project and some aspects of its community benefit agreement.

“The profits generated from Root One will be reinvested into the community, reigniting further economic growth,” Connella said. “It’s our mission to bring positive change to the city and to help revitalize the business district. … Our goal is to bring more businesses to Guadalupe by creating a thriving economic ecosystem.”

Root One was the subject of two resolutions up for adoption during the meeting; one to obtain a conditional use permit and the other to enter into its community benefits agreement with the city. Both resolutions were adopted 4-0 (Councilmember Eugene Costa Jr. was absent).

As part of its approved agreement, Root One will be subject to a “public benefit fee” of 6 percent on the gross receipts of all retail cannabis sales. According to the staff report, the fee will be dropped if the city implements a voter-approved cannabis tax in the future.

The applicants behind Root One also agreed to donate $4,000 a month during its first year of business to a designated nonprofit that serves Guadalupe. Other terms in the agreement will require the dispensary to source at least 75 percent of its employee base from residents within a 15-mile radius of the business and provide two $2,000 scholarships annually for graduating low-income Guadalupe High School students seeking higher education.

The community benefit agreement terms pitched by Element 7, which was granted a conditional use permit in June, were also approved by the Guadalupe City Council with a 4-0 vote during its Sept. 12 meeting.

Conditions of the Element 7 agreement will require the retailer to pay a public benefit fee of 4 percent of all sales to the city and donate at least $50,000 annually to local nonprofits and at least $5,000 annually to programs that specifically deal with homelessness issues in Guadalupe, according to the staff report.

Councilmember Megan Lizalde complimented the conditions included in the community benefit agreements proposed by both Element 7 and Root One, describing both as striving to “really fit the needs of our community.”

The full lists of terms in both community benefit agreements are available to view online at ci.guadalupe.ca.us.

—Caleb Wiseblood

Santa Maria community holds vigil for farmworker death

Between 80 and 100 people attended a vigil on Sept. 13 to honor a local farmworker who passed away in a work-related accident

“It was beautiful to see the community supporting the family, bringing flowers, candles. A local priest came to support the community,” said Andrea Echeverri Betancur, a senior policy advocate for Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy (CAUSE). “Most people didn’t know [the farmworker] but the community feels like they need to be there to support each other.”

Jose Samuel Velazquez, a 22-year-old originally from El Salvador, worked at Rancho Guadalupe—a local grower in Santa Maria—at the time of the accident. Echeverri Betancur told the Sun that a tractor backed over Velazquez

RURAL SERVICES: Fourth District Supervisor Bob Nelson said American Medical Response’s application to be a service provider was incomplete because it didn’t take into account rural areas like Cuyama, whereas fellow applicant Santa Barbara County Fire demonstrated its commitment and currently has a substation.

• Earthquakes in California are inevitable, but the damage they cause is preventable.

• Houses built before 1980 are especially at risk from earthquake damage.

• You can take steps to strengthen your older home to help prevent earthquake damage.

A Central Coast Native, Dr. Ryan Leachman DO, MBA, Graduated from Arroyo Grande High School in 2004. Dr. Leachman attended California Polytechnic State University where he earned dual degrees in Biology and Psychology and graduated Cum Lade. Dr. Leachman continued his education at Cal Poly where he earned a Masters in Business Administration. Dr. Leachman further continued his education at Midwestern University school of Medicine where he earned his medical degree. Dr. Leachman attended residency at OSU Pediatrics. He is board certified by the American Osteopathic Board of Pediatrics.

David Ikola, M.D. Shane Rostermundt, D.O. Joseph Nunez, M.D. Dr. Michele Kielty, D.O. Geronna Leonards, N.P.

Jessica Prather,

while he was at work on Sept. 7.

“This is what we got from the family, but they were not there at the time of the accident. That’s the information we have at this time,” she added.

Velazquez leaves behind a 2-year-old son and his partner. The death remains an active investigation with the Santa Barbara County Fire Department and Sheriff’s Office, and more details weren’t available as of press time.

Raquel Zick, the Sheriff’s Public Information Officer, said that the Coroner’s Bureau is awaiting toxicology results, which should be available in about a month. Work-related deaths are investigated by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal-OSHA), which said it could not provide further information to the Sun before press time.

The Sun reached out to Rancho Guadalupe for comment but couldn’t get in contact with anyone before press time.

“This raises awareness of what’s happening to our local farmworkers. They are the heart of our economy and they are exposed to extreme overwork and dangerous situations, putting safety and well-being at risk,” Echeverri Betancur said.

Agriculture is Santa Barbara County’s No. 1 economic driver, but farmworkers are often experiencing unsafe conditions, she said.

According to a study conducted by UC Merced, there was an estimated 19.4 deaths per 100,000 workers due to agriculture-related injuries in 2019, but many are hesitant to report illness or injury for fear of being deported or losing their jobs.

“In 2019, farmworkers accounted for 48 of 451 officially recorded worker deaths in California, despite

only comprising about 1 percent of the state’s workforce,” the study stated. “Farmworkers have among the fewest social and economic rights, and among the highest rates of occupational injury and illness, despite the Latino health paradox—and a demographic profile that would otherwise predict above average health.”

Locally, Echeverri Betancur said, farmworkers have reported a lack of cold water and sufficient shade when working in temperatures higher than 80 degrees, a lack of medical support after an accident, a lack of family support, and that they are subject to unsafe working conditions.

“Tragic accidents like this one suffered by Jose [Velazquez] are a result of the lack of commitment, compassion, and humanity from the agricultural organizations,” she said. “How many people need to die in this type of accident [until] farmers can actually do something?”

To prevent farmworker injuries, illness, and death, CAUSE partnered with fellow nonprofit Mixteco Indígena Community Organizing Project (MICOP) and Tu Tiempo Digital—a local broadcasting station—to provide more information about farmworker rights.

“We are trying to create a campaign to connect to hospitals so doctors will know the rights of farmworkers,” she added. “We are partnering with other organizations like MICOP to connect the community with health, community education, and labor opportunities and [encourage] farmworkers to contact our local organizations to get help.”

Call (805) 310-4165 for more information about CAUSE and its services. Call (805) 3498728 to confidentially report more information regarding the incident. m

—Taylor O’Connor

Grooming Externs: Cody Dugan & Holly Prewitt Groomers Assistants: Brandi Janke & Ryleigh MacLean

Japanese roots

Santa Maria Japanese Community Center highlights history as it breaks ground on new cultural center

BY TAYLOR O’CONNOR

Growing up, Judy Saki pushed away her Japanese heritage and fought to be “very American,” she said.

“I think part of the reason I was rejecting my Japanese heritage in my younger years was because it felt like I needed to fit a mold or something,” Saki said. “It’s something that really affected me, feeling like I couldn’t embrace my own family’s culture in a positive way, but on the other hand I look Japanese. I’m a Japanese-American woman and there’s no getting away from that.”

Saki’s grandfather was one of the Japanese pioneers, or issei in Japanese, who arrived in Santa Maria in 1903 for the burgeoning sugar beet industry in Santa Maria. He and Saki’s grandmother raised eight children in the Santa Maria Valley. Saki explained that her parents were in an arranged marriage, with Saki’s mother coming overseas to California from Japan to marry her father.

Saki’s mother wanted her daughter to be a “traditional Japanese girl,” but Saki said she struggled because she wanted to fit in and saw herself as “American.”

Saki, 62, said she’s since pivoted, embraced her heritage, and is researching her past to get a better understanding of her family history. She serves as the secretary for the Santa Maria Japanese Community Center—a nonprofit organization that brings fellow Japanese residents together and works to preserve Santa Maria Valley’s Japanese culture and history.

The Santa Maria Japanese Community Center has about 60 members and used to hold meetings in the old Japanese school, built in 1925, until the building was sold in 2017. With no meeting space, the group started going to restaurants to get together until the pandemic hit in 2020, as many members were considered at-risk, Saki said.

After more than a decade of advocacy, the nonprofit celebrated a groundbreaking ceremony on Sept. 6 for the new Enos Ranch Park and Cultural Center where the group can host meetings; provide Japanese cooking, language, and cultural arts classes; preserve local family history; and honor the issei.

Construction will cost about $6 million total, and the city received a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and $300,000 from the community center, Santa Maria Recreation and Parks officials told the Sun in an email. The

department expects more funding to be solicited as the project moves forward.

“We want to educate people and ourselves because a lot of us, even the second generation, are dying off. They are at that age. A lot of the sanseis [third generation] and fourth generations don’t know a lot about their culture,” Saki said. “Like me, they’ve become so Americanized that a lot of it’s kind of lost, so we’re trying to bring it back for all people to learn about Japanese culture—whether they are full-blooded Japanese or not.”

Local history

Single Japanese men started immigrating to the Santa Maria Valley in the 1900s to work in the sugar beet industry as farmers, Santa Maria Historical Society Curator Shelley Klein told the Sun.

“There were very interesting immigration laws back then. In the 1920s, there were a lot of immigration laws that limited all Asian people,” Klein said “So it’s amazing that they were able to come and do all of this stuff.”

Women came overseas as part of arranged marriages, and families grew across the valley, working in agriculture or operating their own farms, storefronts, and businesses. During this time, residents in Guadalupe and Santa Maria developed their own Japanese associations to preserve their culture and pass down the language to next generations, she said.

what they could carry, leaving behind their properties, homes, and businesses.

“I believe the people who were landowners, who had stores and had made a life and been here a long time, it was hardest on them. To lose that, to say, ‘How could the government turn on us, even to some who were born here?’” Klein said.

From 1942 to 1945, more than 16,000 Japanese Americans lived in the Gila River camp and worked for wages growing produce, working in war production, or teaching in the camp’s elementary and high schools, according to Densho Encyclopedia.

Most Santa Maria Japanese Community Center members’ parents and grandparents went to Gila River and came back to the valley, including the family of Jo Anne Nishino Spencer, the Japanese Community Center’s vice president.

“My father’s family was actually living in the San Pedro area, but their relatives lived here [in Santa Maria]. The Minamis called them over because they all wanted to go to the same camp,” Nishino Spencer said. “They moved here first and went to camp with the Santa Maria relatives.”

Her father played baseball, a popular pastime for people in the camps, for the high school’s Gila River Eagles team under the guidance of Kenichi Zenimura, a Japanese-born professional baseball player from the Fresno area who was also incarcerated in Gila, she said. Zenimura organized a 32-team baseball league, and the Gila River Eagles went on to later become champions, according to Densho Encyclopedia.

“It was an outlet; my dad loved baseball. The team would get together and celebrate. That’s the most positive experience that came out of camp for my family,” Nishino Spencer said.

Future generations

Wes Koyama had always wanted to learn about his Japanese heritage, but suppressed his interest because his parents wanted him to “be American” after returning from internment, said Koyama, the community center’s president.

“There was the shame of the war. We wanted to assimilate,” Koyama said. “We wanted to wake up being white. I felt ashamed of being Japanese.”

Koyama’s grandfather arrived in the United States in 1906 and settled in Santa Maria in the early ’20s after working on the railroads in Northern California and then growing cotton in Mexico. When his family came back in the 1950s from internment camps in Colorado, they started their own sugar beet and broccoli farm.

Born in 1966, Koyama didn’t get to go to the local Japanese school or learn Japanese because he was too young, but he went to judo instead, he said.

“I had a lot of regret not knowing my actual heritage until I was older, until I actually joined the club,” Koyama said.

Contribute, commemorate

The Santa Maria Japanese Community Center is accepting donations for the cultural center, which will be commemorated through a series of plaques in the building. Donations will be in tiers, ranging from $500 to $15,000, and donors must put “donor plaque” in the check’s memo section. Email weskoyama@gmail.com for more information on donations.

When the U.S. joined World War II in December 1941, Japanese families were relocated to internment camps in 1942 because of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s executive order, which stated that all people of Japanese descent, including U.S. citizens, were to be incarcerated, according to the National Archives.

“After the internment camps, not as many people came back. If you look at the yearbooks in Santa Maria High School from the 1930s and the early ’40s, there’s lots of Japanese families and then nothing until almost the ’50s,” Klein said.

Many Santa Maria Valley Japanese families went to the Gila River Relocation Center about 50 miles south of Phoenix, Arizona—one of 11 internment camps. Families could only bring

With the new community center, Koyama and fellow club members want to preserve their grandparents’ and parents’ history to share with the younger generations or the general public, he said. In the cultural center, members will submit photographs or heirlooms to be preserved in a gallery in the center’s lobby.

“I think it’s important; preserving that is one of our key goals to say this is what we had done, the first generation. Maybe some of my relatives … [will] want to come back and they’ll learn more about what happened here, what we did and what we accomplished,” Koyama said.

Koyama’s parents and grandparents have passed away, his four siblings moved away, and four out of his five children left Santa Maria—similar to many other local Japanese families—but Koyama and his fellow members stay because it’s home.

“Santa Maria has always been my home, and there’s something comforting about Santa Maria,” he said. “It just draws me back.” m

Reach Staff Writer Taylor O’Connor at toconnor@ santamariasun.com.

A NEW SPACE: (From left to right) Santa Maria Japanese Community Center Secretary Judy Saki, President Wes Koyama, Vice President Jo Anne Nishino Spencer, Member at Large Linda Mathiesen, and Treasurer Keiko Monahan gather on Sept. 15. They celebrated the groundbreaking ceremony of their new community center on Sept. 6 and hope to preserve their family photos in a gallery in the new space to commemorate their family history.

Love on a Leash

BY TAYLOR O’CONNOR

From listening to kids read to visiting seniors in bed care, Kelli the liver-spotted Dalmatian has provided a lot of joy on the Central Coast.

“She loves everybody. When we work with kids, she will lay down while the kids climb all over her,” said Toni Perez, Kelli’s owner and handler. “I adopted her when she was 3, and she was doing pet therapy within a month because she was a natural at it. She’s very calm and sweet.”

Perez and Kelli visit local schools and senior care facilities through Love on a Leash, a national nonprofit organization based in San Diego that has chapters all over the U.S.—including on the Central Coast, Perez said.

Love on a Leash’s Central Coast Chapter formed in 2016 after the kennel club stopped providing pet therapy opportunities, but several members wanted to continue the work, she said. Now the local chapter’s 11 members bring their dogs to Solvang, Santa Maria, Lompoc, Nipomo, and Arroyo Grande schools and senior care facilities, and they hope to add more members to expand their reach across the Central Coast.

“It’s not easy to find new members, but we would love to expand. We’re pretty limited now because of our small size,” Perez said. All Love on a Leash dogs are certified and go through basic obedience training. The animals are later tested to make sure they can be approached by humans and touched, she said. Once they pass initial evaluations by someone in Love on a Leash, they have to log 10 hours of supervised visits and then they can go on visits with their handler.

“You’re making these people happy for a few moments; you can’t help but respond positively. It makes me feel good, too,” Perez said.

The Central Coast Chapter started with monthly visits in senior care facilities, which mainly consisted of bedside visits where the dogs are within arm’s reach for seniors to pet, she said.

Over the years, the chapter has partnered with the Santa Maria Library to provide a “read with a dog” program for preschoolers, and also plans monthly visits with Lompoc high and middle schools and regular visits with several Santa Maria elementary and middle schools.

“With kids it’s more hands-on. It’s a lot of petting, holding, reading to them. The kids get a great deal out of it. The dogs are very calm and quiet and just allow these kids to pet them and read to them and they will just lay there and listen,” Perez said.

In Orcutt, Love on a Leash will also visit during lunch time and on the playground. They’ve visited special education classrooms across the Central Coast and brought the dogs into school libraries to help students who are having a difficult time in school and need extra support, she added.

“You see these kids and they light up. They’ll tell the dog they’ve had a tough day, or in one case last year one child started crying because her mother had passed away recently and she was holding and hugging [the dog],” Perez said. “I think that we provide a unique service that no one else does, and that is really rewarding for us, rewarding for those we serve.”

Love on a Leash services are free for any community member or organization to access. Visit loveonaleash.org/central-coast for more information. Email mysharra@aol.com with questions or for more information on becoming a Love on a Leash member.

Highlight

• The Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture recently announced 11 local artists who have been recognized as California Arts Council Artist Fellows. Funded by the California Arts Council, the program is designed to uplift and celebrate the excellence of California artists, to recognize the centrality of artists’ leadership in guiding the evolution of traditional and contemporary cultures, and to elevate their capacity for continued contribution. In addition to statewide recognition, the artists will receive prizes between $5,000 and $50,000. Artist Fellows from Santa Barbara County hail from diverse geographies and represent a range of artistic practices, including writing, filmmaking, music, visual arts, and social practice. The fellowships are designed to support artists of all disciplines at key career stages—emerging, established, and legacy. Emerging Fellows from Santa Barbara County include Adrienne De Guevara, Spenser Jaimes, Cheri Owen, Tai Rodrig,

Reach Staff Writer Taylor O’Connor at toconnor@santamariasun.com

Tama Takahashi, and Kai Tilley. Jack Forinash, Debra Herrick, Jennifer Reinish, and Emma Trelles were awarded Established Artist Fellowships. m

ALL THE LOVIN’: Love on a Leash Central Coast chapter dogs will visit schools throughout Santa Barbara and SLO counties to give students time to pet the dogs or read to them as part of pet therapy.

How do you feel about Santa Barbara County helping Guadalupe recover from the January storms?

46% I’m proud of our county for stepping up in a way it hasn’t before.

24% All of the above.

15% It’s ridiculous that state and federal agencies said there wasn’t an emergency and denied funding.

15% I’m glad we’re making investments now, but I’m still worried about the long term.

13 Votes

Vote online at www.santamariasun.com.

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Meeting the need?

State, county should stop giving Lompoc more than its fair share of low-income housing

BY RON FINK

For many years I was a Planning Commissioner, and during several hearings nonprofits or the Santa Barbara County Housing Authority said that Lompoc needed more low-income housing.

The state and federal government have been trying to “fix” the affordable housing problem since the early 1960s when they started creating large high-density apartment buildings and crammed thousands of low-income residents into tight spaces. All they managed to do was create poorly managed and maintained crimeridden ghettos.

For several decades Lompoc has somehow become a magnet for low-income housing. The results are the same: Some private and government subsidized projects are in very poor condition, others are in very good condition; gangs have “occupied” project areas and terrorize the occupants; and public safety service calls to these areas are escalating.

Currently there are 19 affordable housing projects in Lompoc, which add up to 29 percent of all the multi-family units available in our city. This compares to a high of only 6 percent in every other area of the county.

How did Lompoc become a magnet for low-income housing? The self-appointed elite of Santa Barbara needed service industry workers but didn’t want low-income housing to spoil their city even though they needed the workers who live in those units. Decades ago, the elected officials in Lompoc thought that all housing would help the general fund, no matter if it was market rate or subsidized low-income units. As time went on, they were proven wrong.

So, what is the result of having an overabundant supply of low-income housing? One is that Lompoc has an estimated median household income of $57,071, while the median household income of Santa Barbara County was $80,495, according to census data. Over 50 percent of the families in our city are in the low-to-medium income category.

What could be the cause of such a serious difference in median incomes? One might be that agriculture, not manufacturing, seems to dominate the private sector. Another might be that over the last few decades city leaders have made little effort to attract industries to the city, instead they opted for designer wines and cannabis processing and sales.

Yet another might be that, as the Planning Commission draft of the 2023-31 Lompoc Housing Element update report says, “Education outcomes varied throughout the county. Areas in the central and southeastern part of the county and in the cities of Goleta and Santa Barbara had more positive education outcomes compared to western and northeastern parts of the county and the cities of Santa Maria and Lompoc. Lompoc Unified School District enrolls approximately 9,600 students throughout its 17 schools. Approximately 66 percent of enrolled students were low income and 15 percent were English learners. Lompoc had less positive education scores throughout the entire city.”

Then there is the “homeless issue.” The Housing Element report states that “according to the Santa Barbara County 2022 Point-In-Time Count, 290 persons experiencing homelessness were recorded in Lompoc, which is the third highest in the county.”

When you consider that, according to the same report, to rent a three-bedroom home these families would pay $2,800 per month, equaling $33,600 per year plus utilities; that is well over 50 percent of their after-tax income. The median home value in Lompoc is $539,760 as of September 2022. None of those families could qualify for a loan to buy a home and certainly couldn’t pay the monthly payment.

According to analysis reports accompanying the Housing Element update, there are 391 substandard lowincome units as determined by

using the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development checklist. And, even when projects are totally renovated and brought up to current standards, the crime-related problems return to the project.

If the politicians in Sacramento wanted to “fix the low-income housing problem” in this county, they would have stipulated that there be an even distribution of these units throughout the county instead of concentrating a large number in any one location.

One-size-fits-all fixes never work. m

Ron Fink writes to the Sun from Lompoc. Send a letter for publication to letters@santamariasun.com.

WRITE NOW!

also fax it (1-805-546-8641) or e-mail it (letters@ santamariasun.com). All letters must include a name, address, and phone number for verification purposes; may be edited for space or clarity; and will be posted to santamariasun.com.

The truth of Trump is worse than an incorrect quote

I read with interest Clive Pinder’s letter in Sept. 7 edition of the Sun (“We’re entitled to our opinions, not our own facts”). According to The Hill, CNN.com, Politico, and PBS, Trump’s Truth Social response (Dec. 5, 2022) to losing the 2020 election was to state in all caps: “MASSIVE AND WIDESPREAD FRAUD AND DECEPTION” and claim that there were only two options: either to throw out the 2020 presidential election results and declare him the winner, or have a new election.

He then went a step further writing, “A massive fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations and articles, even those found in the Constitution. Our great ‘Founders’ did not want, and would not condone False and Fraudulent Elections!”

He followed up with, “UNPRECEDENTED FRAUD REQUIRES UNPRECEDENTED CURE!”

Or perhaps as stated by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, if this is allowed to stand, the next election will be settled with bullets, not ballots.

As our nation discovered on Jan. 6, 2021, words have consequences, and those kinds of words can result in great cost. With freedom comes great responsibility.

Greg Klein Santa Maria

Live more simply, save the planet

I do not know the author of “The Sea is Boiling,” Sept. 14. I imagine we would get along, as I share the same concerns about climate change. The small actions suggested are all good ideas, as we must all do something to steer us from disaster.

But I was struck that the writer has visited “her reef” every year for the last 15 years. Unless they sailed, powered by wind, I expect they flew.

Fifteen round trips by fossil-fueled jets created a huge amount of CO2 emissions that each passenger bears responsibility for.

The vast majority of people never fly, nor travel far from home. Most people have less and live simpler lives and are responsible for far fewer emissions than those who fly regularly, either for business or pleasure. Most people of means are not willing to reduce their consumption, and our capitalistic economy would not be pleased if they did.

As Wendell Berry said, “We must all learn to live more simply.”

Christine Mulholland San Luis Obispo

rewards of having two cannabis dispensaries operating in town: with each donating around $50,000 a year to nonprofits that serve the local community and a percentage of the dispensaries’ gross receipts heading into a public benefit fee. That sounds like a sweet deal for Guadalupe and it also sounds like Root One and Element 7 believe that local residents will be flocking into their shops to purchase cannabis.

Is the city of Santa Maria paying attention? I’m sure it could use public benefit funds and money for local nonprofits too. m

The Canary is all about the public benefit. Send ideas to canary@santamariasun.com.

Hot Stuff

FEATHER FORECAST

The Neal Taylor Nature Center at Cachuma Lake presents Birds in Black … and Blue: Corvids of Santa Ynez Valley, a lecture with guest speakers Dennis and Jess Beebe, on Sunday, Oct. 1, at 2 p.m. The program will highlight local crows, ravens, magpies, and other birds. Visit clnaturecenter.org to find out more about the event, which also features light refreshments. The Neal Taylor Nature Center is located at 2265 Highway 154, Cachuma Lake.

—Caleb Wiseblood

ARTS

SANTA MARIA VALLEY/LOS ALAMOS

ARTISTIC SELF ART STUDIO For adults ages 50 and over. Bring your art projects and supplies and work on them in a comfortable and relaxing atmosphere with other artists. This is a drop-in program. Wednesdays, 9-10 a.m. through Dec. 27 Free. 805-925-0951. Elwin Mussell

Senior Center, 510 Park Ave., Santa Maria.

AUTHOR TALK: TERI BAYUS Meet local author Teri Bayus, who recently published

The Greatest Of Ease a book about her time as a trapeze artist in a traveling circus in the 1980s. Patrons will have opportunity to purchase Teri’s book. For patrons ages 18 and up. Seating is limited. Sept. 23 Free.

805-925-0994. Santa Maria Public Library, 421 S. McClelland St., Santa Maria.

BALLROOM, LATIN, AND SWING DANCE

CLASSES Social ballroom, Latin, and swing lessons for all ages on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Beginner and advance classes. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, 7-9 p.m.

$45-$55. 805-928-7799. Kleindancesarts. com. KleinDance Arts, 3558 Skyway Drive, suite A, Santa Maria.

CASUAL CRAFTERNOON: YARN-

WRAPPED PUMPKINS Create an adorable pumpkin with yarn and twigs to take home and keep. All materials will be provided at this free workshop. Registration is required, for patrons 18 and older. Sept. 25 4 p.m. 805-9250994. Santa Maria Public Library, 421 S. McClelland St., Santa Maria.

COOKIES AND CHAPTERS BOOK CLUB

Each month will feature a new chapter book. Free copies of the book will be provided on a first come, first served basis. The book for September is When You Trap

a Tiger by Tae Keller. For ages 9-14. Sept. 23 11 a.m. 805-925-0994. engagedpatrons. org. Santa Maria Public Library (Altrusa Theater), 421 S. McClelland St., Santa Maria.

DANCE CLASSES: EVERYBODY CAN

DANCE Classes available for all skill levels. Class sizes limited. Everybody Can Dance, 628 S. McClelland St., Santa Maria, 805937-6753, everybodycandance.webs.com/.

LEARN CALIFORNIA’S OFFICIAL DANCE:

WEST COAST SWING Learn west coast swing in a casual, friendly environment, taught by Texas state swing champion, Gina Sigman. Free intro from 6:30 to 7 p.m. Beyond the Basics ($10) is 7 to 7:45 p.m. $10 entry includes social dance (7:45 to 8:15 p.m.). Tuesdays, 6:30-8:15 p.m. 805-344-1630. Cubanissimo Cuban Coffee House, 4869 S. Bradley Rd., #118, Orcutt.

SANTA YNEZ VALLEY

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE An installation by Northridge-based artist Elizabeth Criss. Through Feb. 1, 2024 wildlingmuseum.org. Wildling Museum of Art and Nature, 1511-B Mission Dr., Solvang, 805-688-1082.

SEDGWICK RESERVE: A CONSERVATION

STORY Through Oct. 16 Wildling Museum of Art and Nature, 1511-B Mission Dr., Solvang, 805-688-1082, wildlingmuseum.org.

WOODLANDS Award-winning artists Deborah Breedon, Kris Buck, and Chuck Klein present their fall exhibition. MondaysSundays, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. through Sept. Free. gallerylosolivos.com. Gallery Los Olivos, 2920 Grand Ave., Los Olivos, 805-688-7517.

LOMPOC/VANDENBERG

LVAA FALL SHOW OPEN COMPETITION

The Lompoc Valley Art Association is sponsoring its annual Fall Art Show competition, to take place at the Cypress Gallery during the month of October. The ingathering of work will be held on

Sept. 25. Cash awards, juried by public vote. See prospectus online. Sept. 25 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Entry fee: $25. 805-737-1129. lompocart.org/. Cypress Gallery, 119 E Cypress Ave., Lompoc.

SAN LUIS OBISPO

ACTOR’S EDGE: ACTING CLASSES

Actor’s Edge offers film and television acting training in San Luis Obispo, plus exposure to Los Angeles talent agents. All ages and skill levels welcome. Classes available in SLO, LA, and on zoom. ongoing $210 per month. actorsedge.com. Online, See website, San Luis Obispo.

ALL LEVELS POTTERY CLASSES Anam Cre is a pottery studio in SLO that offers a variety of classes. This specific class is open to any level. Teachers are present for questions, but the class feels more like an open studio time for potters. Thursdays, 6-8 p.m. $40. Anam Cre Pottery Studio, 1243 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo, anamcre.com.

ARTIST RIKI SCHUMACHER AT ART

CENTRAL GALLERY Schumacher’s work is pensive and introspective, inspiring one to take a solitary walk on a cloudy day. Wander in to reflect on her “delicious, wistful landscapes.” Mondays-Saturdays, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sundays, 12-4 p.m. 805-7474200. artcentralslo.com/gallery-artists/. Art Central, 1329 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

BEGINNING WATERCOLOR WITH JAN

FRENCH Be introduced to the personality and potential of this tricky but dynamic painting medium. For beginners or watercolor artists who would like to “loosen up.” Bring your own materials; list provided and supplies available at Art Central. Thursdays, 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. through Sept. 28 $120 for four classes. janfrench.com. Art Central, 1329 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo, 805-747-4200.

New Times and the Sun now share their community listings for a complete Central Coast calendar running from SLO County through northern Santa Barbara County. Submit events online by logging in with your Google, Facebook, or Twitter account at newtimesslo.com. You may also email calendar@newtimesslo.com.

Deadline is one week before the issue date on Thursdays. Submissions are subject to editing and approval. Contact Calendar Editor Caleb Wiseblood directly at cwiseblood@newtimesslo.com.

CERAMIC LESSONS AND MORE Now offering private one-on-one and group lessons in the ceramic arts. Both hand building and wheel throwing options. Beginners welcomed. ongoing 805-8355893. hmcruceceramics.com/. Online, See website, San Luis Obispo.

CLAY BABY HANDPRINTS Offers a unique experience of pressing your baby’s hand/ foot into clay so parents can cherish this time forever. Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Sundays $55. anamcre.com/babyhandprints. Anam Cre Pottery Studio, 1243 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

INTERMEDIATE OIL PAINTING: ADULT

ART CLASS This class is for students who may have tried oil painting in the past but are looking to advance their skill levels. Color theory and proportion study will be a focus in the class. Mondays, 2-5 p.m. $30 per student or $75 for 3 classes. 805747-4200. artcentralslo.com/workshopsevents/. Art Central, 1329 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

INTRO TO OIL PAINTING WITH SPENCER COLLINS The perfect class for those wanting to try oil painting for the first time. Guests discuss color theory, layering paint, and how to use various media. For ages 16 and over. Thursdays, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. $30 per class or $100 for 4 classes. 805747-4200. artcentralslo.com/workshopsevents/. Art Central, 1329 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

JAPANESE CALLIGRAPHY AND ART

Owen and Kyoko Hunt from Kyoto, Japan offer classes for Japanese calligraphy (Fridays, 5:30-6:30 p.m.), a Japanese art called “haiga” (Fridays, 10-11:30 a.m.) and more at Nesting Hawk Ranch. Fridays $45. 702-335-0730. Nesting Hawk Ranch, Call for address, San Luis Obispo.

JOHN BARRETT John Barrett was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1952 and grew up in

Manhattan Beach, California. He began pursuing his career as an artist in the late 1960s influenced by his great-grandfather, a painter. Through Nov. 27, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Free. 805-543-8562. sloma.org/exhibition/

john-barrett/. San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, 1010 Broad St., San Luis Obispo.

KIDS POTTERY CLASSES Enjoy making animal sculptures, bowls, plates, etc. Please arrive on time, not early, as venue uses the transition time between classes to sanitize. Designed to sign up on a weekly basis. Thursdays, 1:30-2:30 p.m. $40. anamcre.com. Anam Cre Pottery Studio, 1243 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

LEARN TO WEAVE MONDAYS An opportunity to learn how a four-shaft loom works. You will get acquainted as a new weaver or as a refresher with lots of tips and tricks. This class includes getting to know a loom, how to prepare/dress a loom, and much much more. Mondays, 1-4 p.m. $75 monthly. 805-441-8257.

Patricia Martin: Whispering Vista Studios, 224 Squire Canyon Rd, San Luis Obispo, patriciamartinartist.com.

NUNSENSE The five nuns from Little Sisters of Hoboken put on a fundraiser to bury sisters accidentally poisoned by the convent cook, Sister Julia, Child of God. Fortunately, the remaining sisters all have hidden talents that bring merriment to this show full of “nun” puns. ThursdaysSaturdays, 7-9 p.m. and Saturdays, Sundays, 2-4 p.m. through Oct. 15 $20-$45. 805-786-2440. slorep.org/shows/ nunsense-a-musical-comedy/. SLO Rep, 888 Morro St., San Luis Obispo.

PARENT-CHILD POTTERY CLASS Make lasting memories with clay together as a family. For ages 6 and over. Thursdays, 10:30 a.m.-noon $70. Anam Cre Pottery Studio, 1243 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo, anamcre.com.

PLEIN AIR PAINTERS OF THE CENTRAL COAST A self-directed fun group of dynamic artists who enjoy painting and sketching outdoors. Artists meet on site at various locations. Weekly plein air destinations are provided by Kirsti Wothe via email (mrswothe@yahoo.com).

Wednesdays, 9 a.m.-noon SLO County, Various locations, San Luis Obispo.

POTTERY: BEGINNING WHEEL CLASS

This series is a great intro to the pottery wheel. Students learn to throw various shapes, surface decorate, and glaze. Clay and firing included with admission. Thursdays, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. $180. anamcre.com. Anam Cre Pottery Studio, 1243 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

REDEMPTIVELY GROTESQUE FILM

SERIES This Fall, Cal Poly Professor Paul Marchbanks will usher participants through a series of “Redemptively Grotesque” films at the San Luis Obispo Library; stories that will juxtapose human suffering and the prospect of transcendent hope. See Library’s Event Calendar for more information about the films. Sept. 29 6-8 p.m. Free. 805781-5991. slolibrary.org. San Luis Obispo Library Community Room, 995 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo.

SCAB PICKER: MOLLY SEGAL Los Angeles-based painter Molly Segal’s surreal largescale watercolors explore a world with finite resources, both natural and emotional, where we find ourselves grappling with insatiable needs and limited provisions. Mondays-Fridays, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. through Oct. 13 Free. 805-5463202. cuesta.edu/student/campuslife/ artgallery/index.html. Harold J. Miossi Gallery, Highway 1, San Luis Obispo.

SCULPTURE CLASS WITH ROD PEREZ

This weekly sculpture drop-in class gives an opportunity for potters to take on new projects and learn new techniques relating to sculptural work. Additionally, every first Friday of the month, a new project will be taught by Rod Perez for beginners. Fridays, 10 a.m.-noon $40. anamcre.com. Anam Cre Pottery Studio, 1243 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

SENIOR CLAY CLASS Offered to the senior community as an outlet to explore the beauty of clay. For ages 60 and over. Caretakers welcome for an additional $20. Fridays, 10 a.m.-noon $40. anamcre.com. Anam Cre Pottery Studio, 1243 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

SEWING FELT ANIMALS FOR AGES 12-16

Four-week course for teenagers who want to learn how to sew. Students will learn

the basics of hand-sewing and create cute felt animals (an owl or fox). All materials included. Sept. 27 1-2:30 p.m. $100. 702-335-0730. nestinghawkshop.com/ workshops-and-lessons. Nesting Hawk Ranch, Call for address, San Luis Obispo.

SLO DRAWZ: OPEN FIGURE DRAWING

GROUP Improve your drawing skills while also building a community of supportive creatives with live models. This is not a guided class, please bring your own materials. To sign up, email chantellegoldthwaite@gmail.com. Every other Thursday, 5-7 p.m. through Dec. $20 per session; or $60 for a month pass. 805-747-4200. instagram.com/slodrawz/. Art Central, 1329 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

SLODRAWZ FIGURE DRAWING GROUP

Doesn’t include guided instructions. Students are encouraged to bring whatever media they desire. Features a different nude model each session. All skill levels welcome. Fourth Monday of every month, 5-7 p.m. through Nov. 27 $20 ($3 tip recommended). 559-250-3081. spencerpoulterart.com. Art Central, 1329 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

TINY POTTERS: WISE ONES AND WEE

ONES PAINT For ages 4 to 6. Kids have the option to paint animals and other subjects. Tuesdays, 10:30-11:30 a.m. $30. anamcre. com/booking. Anam Cre Pottery Studio, 1243 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

VANESSA WALLACE-GONZALES

Wallace-Gonzales is a Black-Latinx and Santa Barbara-based artist who uses elements of mythology to explore her identity and personal experiences. Through Oct. 2, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Free. 805543-8562. sloma.org/exhibition/vanessawallace-gonzales/. San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, 1010 Broad St., San Luis Obispo.

VIRGINIA MACK: BEGINNING

WATERCOLOR This is a watercolor

class designed to let you jump in and try out this engaging medium through experimentation. It’s designed for beginners and those with watercolor experience who wish to expand their knowledge of painting in watercolors.

To enroll please contact Mack via email: vbmack@charter.net Wednesdays, 1:303:30 p.m. $35. 805-747-4200. artcentralslo. com/workshops-events/. Art Central, 1329 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

NORTH COAST SLO COUNTY

BOTTLE AND GLASS PAINTING Creative

Me Time will guide participants through the process of painting a wine bottle and pair of glasses using stencils or freehand designs. Sept. 24 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Various. 805-927-1625. creativemetime. com. Harmony Cellars, 3255 Harmony Valley Rd., P.O. Box 2502, Harmony.

FINE ART FUSED GLASS BY LINDA

HILL Linda Hill is a fused glass artist living and working in Los Osos. Linda has been working at her craft for more than 20 years and she loves color, patterns, shapes, and creating fused glass art. Mondays, Wednesdays-Sundays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. through Sept. 29 Free. 805-772-1068. galleryatmarinasquare.com. Gallery at Marina Square, 601 Embarcadero suite 10, Morro Bay.

FINE ART WATERCOLORS BY NANCY

JENSEN Nancy Jensen celebrates the simple joys of living on the central coast of California. In her watercolor paintings, she honors the fruits of the harvest in local vineyards, the springtime surprises of bright wildflowers, and blooming gardens and the Central Coast as a whole. Mondays, Wednesdays-Sundays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. through Sept. 29 Free. 805-772-1068. galleryatmarinasquare.com. Gallery at Marina Square, 601 Embarcadero suite 10, Morro Bay.

FOREVER STOKED PAINT PARTY Join us at the gallery, for a few hours to travel on a creative paint journey. You will receive as much or as little instruction as you prefer.

WEBINAR ON WINGS

The Santa Ynez Valley Natural History Society will host a free Zoom lecture with science writer and bird enthusiast Rebecca Heisman on Thursday, Sept. 21, starting at 7 p.m. Heisman will be discussing her new book on bird migration, Flight Paths: How a Passionate and Quirky Group of Pioneering Scientists Solved the Mystery of Bird Migration, during the webinar. Visit syvnature. org for more info on Heisman’s upcoming Zoom event.

No experience is necessary. Saturdays, 7-9 p.m. $45. 805-772-9095. Forever Stoked, 1164 Quintana Rd., Morro Bay.

GALLERY AT MARINA SQUARE

PRESENTS FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY

GROUP SHOW: WILD AUTUMN A group photography show with Alice Cahill, Michael Johnston, Jessica Weiss, Lynda Roeller, and Liz Linzmeier. These wonderful photograpers will be showcasing their amazing photographs of the wild animals, horses, seals, otters, whales, birds, and autumn mood scenes that our visitors love. Mondays, Wednesdays-Sundays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.

through Sept. 29 Free. 805-772-1068. galleryatmarinasquare.com. Gallery at Marina Square, 601 Embarcadero suite 10, Morro Bay.

METAL ART BY TRUDI GILLIAM Gilliam creates her sculptures using copper, brass, nickel/silver, and found objects. This new series of whales and birds uses copper and sea glass. ongoing 805-772-9955. Seven Sisters Gallery, 601 Embarcadero Ste. 8, Morro Bay, sevensistersgalleryca.com.

MOSAIC TRIVET WORKSHOP During this workshop, you will learn how to design

and create a mosaic trivet. You will learn how to select materials, lay out a pleasing pattern, and adhere the tiles to the trivet base. You will learn how to properly grout and seal your project. ongoing, 1-4 p.m. $60. 805-772-2504. artcentermorrobay. org/index.php/workshops/. Art Center Morro Bay, 835 Main St., Morro Bay. THE PLEIN AIR TEAM Acrylic artist, Nancy Lynn, and husband, watercolorist, Robert Fleming, have an ongoing show of originals and giclee prints of Morro Bay and local birds. 805-772-9955. Seven Sisters Gallery, 601 Embarcadero Ste. 8, Morro Bay, sevensistersgalleryca.com.

THE REBOOT: STORYTELLING

REIMAGINED (HOT MESS) A live story show in Top Dog’s lush garden theater under the stars with seasoned tellers and first-timers sharing true personal stories around this month’s theme, “HOT MESS.” Not a comedy show, but often hysterical; “always magical.” Dress warm, and come early for first-come seating. Sept. 29, 7-9:15 p.m. Free. 805-772-9225. facebook. com/the.reboot4u. Top Dog Coffee Bar, 857 Main St., Morro Bay.

CULTURE & LIFESTYLE

SANTA MARIA VALLEY/LOS ALAMOS

30 VOLUNTEERS NEEDED IN SANTA MARIA/ORCUTT Community Partners in Caring is seeking volunteers to help support dependent older adults and seniors. ongoing partnersincaring.org. Santa Maria, Citywide, Santa Maria.

BOUNCING BABY STORY TIME Explore pre-literacy skills through music, movement, and visual stimulation, and promote a healthy bond between baby and caregiver. Learn, connect, and grow with other babies and caregivers. For 0-12 months. Wednesdays, 10 a.m. through Oct. 4 805-925-0994. engagedpatrons.org. Santa Maria Public Library (Altrusa Theater), 421 S. McClelland St., Santa Maria.

D-AND-D AT THE LIBRARY Ready to roll?

Join an epic adventure with Dungeons and Dragons at the Library. This easy to learn game is the world’s most popular tabletop RPG. Everyone is welcome regardless of previous experience. Space is limited and registration is required. For patrons ages 18 and older. Sept. 24, 1-4:30 p.m. Free. 805925-0994. Santa Maria Public Library, 421 S. McClelland St., Santa Maria.

CULTURE & LIFESTYLE continued page 19

No one fights alone. The journey begins together.

Founded in 2016, The Teal Journey Ovarian Cancer Foundation’s mission is to promote awareness, aid in early detection, and educate the Central Coast community on the signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer.

Empowering patients. Supporting families. Every step of the way.

A new cancer diagnosis can be traumatic for an entire family and presents emotional, logistical, and financial challenges to navigate. Our patient support services help relieve the burden, allowing families to stay resilient and patients to focus on treatment and wellness. We cultivate strong partnerships with regional healthcare networks to advocate for families and connect patients to leading oncological care. This National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, let’s stand together with patients, survivors and advocates to imagine a world free of this devastating disease.

Break the silence. Anyone can be at

Did you know?

• Known as the “silent killer,” ovarian cancer ranks fifth in cancer deaths among women and accounts for more deaths than any other female reproductive cancer.

• In 2023, 19,710 American women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer and 13,270 will die of ovarian cancer [American Cancer Society].

• Ovarian cancer affects entire families, people of all genders, races, ethnicities, and ages.

• Men can be carriers of BRCA and other gene mutations that cause ovarian cancer.

Rewriting the script on ovarian cancer

Teal Journey is 100% volunteer-led, forming a compassionate network of care to accompany patients at every mile of the journey. Many of our volunteers are themselves cancer patients, survivors, caregivers, and medical professionals who understand that supporting patients and their families continues long after the initial diagnosis. Serving Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties on the Central Coast, we support those who are newly diagnosed, those considered at-risk, and those in treatment with cancer navigation resources, including:

• Free genetic testing and consultation for those at risk, defined as having at least one first-degree relative who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer

• Comfort care bags for new patients beginning treatment

• Financial stipends to offset medical and travel expenses

• Patient advocacy and ontological counseling

• Family advocacy services

• Male carriers of ovarian cancer-causing genes can pass them on to their children, and may themselves be susceptible to developing other forms of cancer associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer, including melanoma, pancreatic cancer, prostate cancer, stomach cancer, and esophageal cancer.

• Early detection is key, and the most important factor in influencing outcomes. When caught early, 90% of ovarian cancer cases are treatable.

• Genetic testing is considered the single most reliable and effective method of prevention for the disease, and can screen for multiple ovarian cancer-causing risk factors.

By the numbers

$1,500: The average cost of a genetic testing kit, which typically is not covered by insurance

TTJOCF covers 100% of genetic testing for at-risk individuals, lifting the barrier to a vital and potentially life-saving diagnostic.

To date, TTJOCF has donated over $140,000 to Mission Hope Cancer Center in Santa Maria to ensure that these expenses remain fully covered for at-risk members of the community.

100% of proceeds stay on the Central Coast, directly supporting local patients and families.

From 2019 to 2022, 717 at-risk individuals received genetic counseling free of charge.

Last year, of genetic tests provided, 34% resulted in a positive carrier status for BRCA or other variants. Of those assessed, 47% had no prior personal history of cancer.

Since TTJOC began providing the service in 2019, genetic testing has resulted in a diagnosis of gynecological cancer for 13.5% of those tested, and a diagnosis of more than one type of cancer for 5% of those tested, aiding in early detection and improved treatment outcomes for over 100 patients and their families.

risk. Anyone can be an advocate.

How you can help:

1. Advocate

Awareness saves lives.

Know the early signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer:

• Abdominal bloating or discomfort

• Increased or urgent need to urinate

• Difficulty eating or feeling full quickly

• Pelvic pain

Pledge to share with a friend or loved one today.

2. Donate

Each gift directly supports early detection initiatives and patient resources, bringing us closer to a world free of this devastating disease.

Join our community of fighters, survivors and advocates in making a lasting impact today.

To learn more or make a gift, visit www.thetealjourney.org

3. Support our annual fundraising events

Help us drive out ovarian cancer at the Julie McKinsey Memorial Golf Tournament, held in September. Or catwalk for a cause at the Valentina Martins Memorial Fashion Show, returning in April 2024. There are many different opportunities to help. Advertise your business in our event programs, sponsor a table, volunteer as event staff, or even walk the runway as a fashion model. All proceeds of both events directly benefit local ovarian cancer patients and their families.

To learn more or get involved, visit tealjourney.org

Contact: 805-310-3381 | 805-598-3325 | Facebook: facebook.com/thetealjourney

Join us in making a difference in the fight against ovarian cancer.

FEEL GOOD YOGA Tuesdays, Thursdays, 8:30-9:30 a.m. 805-937-9750. oasisorcutt.org. Oasis Center, 420 Soares Ave., Orcutt.

GROUP WALKS AND HIKES Check website for the remainder of this year’s group hike dates and private hike offerings. ongoing 805-343-2455. dunescenter.org. GuadalupeNipomo Dunes Center, 1065 Guadalupe St., Guadalupe.

PAWS TO READ Reading to dogs is a wonderful way for children to gain confidence while reading aloud. These dogs absolutely love books and are excellent listeners. No one pays attention to a child reading quite like a dog. First come, first served for 15-minute time slots. Sept. 26, 3:30-5 p.m. 805-925-0994. engagedpatrons.org. Santa Maria Public Library (Altrusa Theater), 421 S. McClelland St., Santa Maria.

SANTA MARIA FAMILY FESTIVAL: SANTA

MARIA VALLEY YOUTH AND FAMILY

CENTER’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY An event to commemorate SMVYFC’s 50th anniversary. This community celebration will include delicious food, music, games, and fun activities fit for all ages. Oct. 1 1-4 p.m. Free. fsacares.org/events/smvyfc50th/. Machado Plaza, 105 N. Lincoln St., Santa Maria, 805-928-1707.

SMVGS MEETING Visitors welcome. Contact smvgs.org for program and location info. Third Thursday of every month, 2:15-4 p.m. smvgs.org. Santa Maria Valley Genealogical Society, 908 Sierra Madre, Santa Maria.

TECH MADE EASY: COMPUTER BASICS

This beginner’s workshop will go over the basic components of a computer, terminology, internet searching, email, and databases. Feel free to bring your own laptop or use one of the library’s.

Registration is required. Sept. 23 , 10:3011:30 a.m. Free. 805-925-0994. Santa Maria Public Library, 421 S. McClelland St., Santa Maria.

SOUTH COAST SLO COUNTY

BEGINNER GROUP SURF LESSONS AND SURF CAMPS Lessons and camp packages available daily. All equipment included. ongoing Starts at $70. 805-8357873. sandbarsurf.com/. Sandbar Surf School Meetup Spot, 110 Park Ave., Pismo Beach.

DONATION-BASED YOGA FOR FIRST RESPONDERS, EMTS, AND CARETAKERS Class schedule varies. Contact empoweryoga805@gmail for details and reservations. ongoing 805-619-0989. empoweryoga805.com.

Empower Yoga Studio and Community Boutique, 775 W. Grand Ave., Grover Beach.

HERITAGE DAY Roll back the clock and experience a different era in California history. Dancers, musicians, gold miners, mountain men, and more will be available to meet. Throughout the day, presentations will be provided highlighting the re-enactors’ skills.

Sept. 30, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults; $3 for youth. 805-929-5679. danaadobe.org. DANA Adobe Cultural Center, 671 S. Oakglen Ave., Nipomo.

NORTHERN CHUMASH HISTORY: INDIGENOUS LAND CARING AND PRACTICES This class will focus on the Indigenous people of San Luis Obispo County and their relationships with and practices of caring for the land Sept. 23 9 a.m.-noon $40. 628-888-4012. cuesta.edu/ communityprograms/ranch-education/ index.html. DANA Adobe Cultural Center, 671 S. Oakglen Ave., Nipomo.

POINT SAN LUIS LIGHTHOUSE TOURS

Tours will give you a glimpse into the lives of Lighthouse Keepers and their families, while helping keep our jewel of the Central Coast preserved and protected. Check website for more details. Wednesdays, Saturdays pointsanluislighthouse.org/.

Point San Luis Lighthouse, 1 Lighthouse Rd., Avila Beach.

WEEKLY WATER SAFETY LESSONS

Facility advertised as open and safe. Give

OBSTACLE SPECTACLE

SLO Parks and Recreation will host its September Scramble at the Laguna Lake Golf Course on Saturday, Sept. 30, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Attendees of the event, open to ages 5 and older, can look forward to enjoying a family-friendly adventure course with more than 20 obstacles. Admission is $15 per youth, or $40 per family. Visit sloreactivities.org for more info. Laguna Lake Golf Course is located at 11175 Los Osos Valley Road, San Luis Obispo. —C.W.

the office a call to register over the phone. Mondays-Fridays $160-$190. 805-4816399. 5 Cities Swim School, 425 Traffic Way, Arroyo Grande, 5citiesswimschool.com.

SAN LUIS OBISPO

13TH ANNUAL CENTRAL COAST

CLASSIC MOTORCYCLE SHOW AND SWAP MEET Proceeds will support the SLO Noor Foundation, which provides health care for the uninsured. This is a judged motorcycle show with awards given to the best motorcycles in 14 classes; see webpage for all details. Food truck on location. Sept. 30, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. $10. 805-440-4511. CentralCoastClassicMC. com. Mountainbrook Community Church, 1775 Calle Joaquin, San Luis Obispo.

AERIAL SILKS CLINIC In the aerial silks clinic, you’ll learn aerial skills that build memory, strength, coordination, confidence, and endurance. Ages 7-17; no experience necessary. Sept. 23 , 1-3 p.m. $25 for first child; $10 per additional sibling. 805-547-1496. performanceathleticsslo.com/events.

Performance Athletics Gymnastics, 4484 Broad St., San Luis Obispo.

ANNUAL BIONEERS CONFERENCE Enjoy workshops on the expansion of the Carrizo Plain National Monument, pesticides in California, renewables-driven microgrids, a method for preserving glacial ice, and more. Plus talks on Diablo Canyon and clean energy, live music, and the everpopular marketplace. Breakfast included and lunch available. Sept. 23 9 a.m.-4 p.m. $55 for adults and $35 for students, including breakfast. 805-548-0597. ecologistics.org/ccb-conference-2023/. Octagon Barn Center, 4400 Octagon Way, San Luis Obispo.

BDSM 101 This monthly class from the Central Coast Kink Community provides a basic overview of kink, consent, rules, and information to help practitioners be successful and safe. Attendees must be 18 years of age or older. Fourth Friday of every month, 6-8 p.m. No admission. galacc.org/events/. Online, See website, San Luis Obispo.

BEYOND MINDFULNESS Realize your potential through individualized meditation instruction with an experienced teacher via Zoom. This class is for those who wish to begin a practice or seek to deepen an existing one. Flexible days and times. Certified with IMTA. Email or text for information. Mondays-Sundays, 5:30-6:30 p.m. Sliding scale. 559-9059274. theartofsilence.net. Online, See website, San Luis Obispo.

BIRDS AND BOTANY MONTHLY WALK

AT SLO BOTANICAL GARDEN The Garden is excited to present a monthly bird walk series on the fourth Thursday of every month which explores the intersection of birds and botany. Fourth Thursday of every month, 8-11 a.m. $10 for Garden Members; $40 for general public. 805541-1400. slobg.org. San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden, 3450 Dairy Creek Rd., San Luis Obispo.

CAL HOPE SLO GROUPS AT TMHA Visit website for full list of weekly Zoom groups available. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays calhopeconnect.org. Transitions

Mental Health Warehouse, 784 High Street, San Luis Obispo, 805-270-3346.

DIVERSITY COALITION ANNUAL

FUNDRAISER: GIVE FOR GOOD The inaugural fundraiser of the Diversity Coalition in SLO County. Give for Good will be an evening celebrating the richness of cultures and voices that make SLO County unique, while raising funds for programs. Sept. 21 5-8 p.m. $100 early bird admission; $125 general admission. betterunite.com/diversitycoalitiongiveforgood2023 805-704-9634. Flying Caballos Ranch, 1150 Farmhouse Lane, San Luis Obispo.

ELECTRIC VEHICLES ARE COMING: ARE WE READY? The state mandates that all new vehicles sold after 2035 must be electric. Will California be ready? This informative presentation will highlight the promise of an all electric transportation system. Barry Rands is a retired Civil Engineer and SLO Climate Coalition volunteer. Sept. 26, 4-5:30 p.m. Free. 805781-5991. slolibrary.org. San Luis Obispo Library Community Room, 995 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo.

ENERGY CODE COMPLIANCE FOR

ALL-ELECTRIC ADUS Get a walkthrough of an all-electric tiny home and learn how it does and doesn’t meet energy code compliance. Experts will share tips on what code compliance you should keep in mind for other tiny home or ADU projects in SLO county. Sept. 21 12-1 p.m. Free. 1-805-568-3508. 3c-ren.org. SLO Guild Hall, 2880 Broad St., San Luis Obispo.

HEALING DEPRESSION SUPPORT

GROUP A safe place for anyone suffering from the pain of depression. We do not criticize but do share our journey, feelings, and what works for us. We can meet in person or use Zoom if needed. Mondays, 6-7 p.m. Free. 805-528-3194. Hope House Wellness Center, 1306 Nipomo St., San Luis Obispo.

CULTURE & LIFESTYLE continued page 20

INTRODUCTION TO PICKLEBALL

For ages 18 and over. Come see what pickleball is all about. Participants will learn the basics of the game including the rules, basic skills and strategy, types of equipment, and game safety. Saturdays, 9:30-11:30 a.m. through Oct. 14 $35. slocity.org. Meadow Park, 2251 Meadow St., San Luis Obispo.

LOTERÍA NIGHTS Enjoy a game of La Lotería Mexicana, a bingostyle game with colorful and beautifully-drawn cards. With drink specials and prizes for the winners. RSVP encouraged. Thursdays, 6 p.m. drinkramblingspirits.com. Rambling Spirits, 3845 S. Higuera St. (in SLO Public Market), San Luis Obispo. MINDFULNESS & MEDITATION A Zoom series hosted by TMHA. Thursdays, 10:30 a.m.-noon Transitions Mental Health Warehouse, 784 High Street, San Luis Obispo, 805-270-3346. PLUG-IN TO LOCAL CLIMATE ACTION Get inspired by local action, connect with others, and discover more ways to get involved with the SLO Climate Coalition. Attend virtually or in-person. Sustainable snacks and childcare will be provided. Third Thursday of every month, 6-8 p.m. sloclimatecoalition.org. Ludwick Community Center, 864 Santa Rosa, San Luis Obispo. Q YOUTH GROUP (VIRTUALLY VIA ZOOM) This is a social support group for LGBTQ+ and questioning youth between the ages of 11-18. Each week the group explores personal, cultural, and social identity. Thursdays, 6-8 p.m. Free. galacc.org/events/. Online, See website, San Luis Obispo.

QI GONG FITNESS ONLINE Hosted by the San Luis Coastal Adult School. Gentle but powerful exercises for mind and body with instructor Gary West. Enhance your well being, improve your balance, and practice mindfulness. 19 weeks. Wednesdays, 9:30-10:30 a.m. through Dec. 13 $95. 805-549-1222. ae.slcusd. org/. Online, See website, San Luis Obispo.

QUEER ASCENTS FUNDRAISER The Pad is hosting a fundraiser to support Queer Ascents, a local climbing group for the LGBTQIA+ community. The gym will donate 50 percent of day pass sales on Sept. 24 to Queer Ascents. Bring your friends and family to come climb and support a good cause. Sept. 24 11 a.m.-10 p.m. queerascents.com. The Pad Climbing Gym SLO, 888 Ricardo Court, San Luis Obispo.

SLO CAL FOUR-WEEK EVENT There will be a curated selection of local products for marketgoers to purchase each week, as well as live musical performances and social media giveaways. Thursdays. through Sept. 21 SLOCAL.com. Downtown SLO, Chorro Street, San Luis Obispo.

SLO FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY BOOK SALE Large pre-owned book sale with all proceeds benefiting the SLO Library. Adult, teen, and children’s books; fiction and nonfiction; and more. Book pricing is $1.50 per inch. $5 per bag on Saturday. Sept. 21 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Sept. 22 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sept. 23 9 a.m.-5 p.m. slofol.org. San Luis Obispo Library Community Room, 995 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, 805-781-5991.

SLO NOONTIME TOASTMASTERS CLUB MEETINGS Want to improve speaking and leadership skills in a supportive and positive environment? Contact us to get a meeting link for info. Tuesdays, 12-1 p.m. Free. slonoontime.toastmastersclubs.org. Zoom, Online, Inquire for Zoom ID.

SUNDAY EVENING RAP LGBTQ+ AA GROUP (VIRTUALLY VIA ZOOM) Alcoholics Anonymous is a voluntary, worldwide fellowship of folks from all walks of life who together, attain and maintain sobriety. Requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. Email aarapgroup@gmail.com for password access. Sundays, 7-8 p.m. No fee. galacc.org/events/. Online, See website, San Luis Obispo.

TOUR THE HISTORIC OCTAGON BARN CENTER The Octagon Barn, built in 1906, has a rich history that The Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County looks forward to sharing with visitors. Please RSVP. Fourth Sunday of every month, 2-2:45 & 3-3:45 p.m. Tours are free; donations are appreciated. Octagon Barn Center, 4400 Octagon Way, San Luis Obispo, (805) 544-9096, octagonbarn.org.

TRANS* TUESDAY A safe space providing peer-to-peer support for trans, gender non-conforming, non-binary, and questioning people. In-person and Zoom meetings held. Contact tranzcentralcoast@gmail.com for more details. Tuesdays, 7-9 p.m. Free. GALA Pride and Diversity Center, 1060 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, 805-541-4252.

TRANS* YOUTH PEER SUPPORT GROUP This group is a safe place for trans* and gender non-conforming people, as well as those questioning, from ages of 11 to 18. A facilitated emotional support group to be heard, share your story, and hear stories that may sound surprisingly like your own. Fourth Tuesday of every month, 6-8 p.m. Free. GALA Pride and Diversity Center, 1060 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, 805-541-4252.

NORTH COAST SLO COUNTY

AXE THROWING Enjoy the art of axe throwing in a safe and fun environment. Kids ages 10 and older are welcome with an adult. No personal axes please. Fridays, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. and Saturdays, 12-6 p.m. $20. 805-528-4880. baysidemartialarts. com. Bayside Martial Arts, 1200 2nd St., Los Osos. CENTRAL COAST WOOD CARVERS Learn the art of wood carving or wood burning. Join Central Coast Wood Carvers in Morro Bay at St. Timothy’s. Open for beginners, intermediate, or advance. Learn a wide range of techniques and skills. Mask Required. Tuesdays, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Free. St. Timothy’s Catholic Church, 962 Piney Way, Morro Bay, 805-772-2840, sttimothymorrobay.org.

Hot Stuff

CO-DEPENDENTS ANONYMOUS MEETING Co-Dependents Anonymous (CoDA) is a Twelve Step recovery program for anyone who desires to have healthy and loving relationships with themselves and others. Meeting is hybrid (both in person and on Zoom). For information, call 805-900-5237. Saturdays, 1-2:15 p.m. Free. thecambriaconnection.org/. Cambria Connection, 1069 Main St., Cambria, (805) 927-1654.

ECO-PADDLE WITH MANDY DAVIS OF WILDHEART COASTAL ADVENTURES This kayak tour includes the mid-Estuary grassy island, Fairbanks Point, and more. Kayakers will see sea otters, sea lions, harbor seals, local nesting birds, and a variety of raptors. Part of Central Coast Bioneers Conference. Proceeds go to Pacific Wildlife Care. Sept. 22 9:45 a.m.-noon $25 plus kayak rental ($50 single, $60 double). 805-548-0597. ecologistics.org/ ccb-conference-2023/. Estero Adventures, 501 Embarcadero, Morro Bay.

SHOP, SIP, AND STROLL Enjoy two delightful Thursday evenings exploring the best of Morro Bay’s Embarcadero and Downtown during the Morro Bay Chamber of Commerce’s Shop, Sip and Stroll event. Sept. 28 my805tix.com. Morro Bay Chamber of Commerce, 695 Harbor St., Morro Bay, 805-772-4467.

SOCRATES: DISCUSSION GROUP Group members present interesting and thought provoking topics of all sorts. Topics are selected in advance and moderated by volunteers. Vaccinations are necessary. Enter through wooden gate to garden area. Wednesdays, 10 a.m. 805-528-7111. Coalesce Bookstore, 845 Main St., Morro Bay, coalescebookstore.com/.

FOOD & DRINK

SANTA MARIA VALLEY/LOS ALAMOS

805 BAGGERZ CORN HOLE TOURNAMENT Check in at noon; bags fly at 1 p.m. No outside food/drinks. Beer bucket specials offered. All participants must sign up on Scoreholio app. Sept. 23 1-7 p.m. $20. 805-356-6018. guadalupesocialclub.com. Guadalupe Social Club, 945 Guadalupe St., Guadalupe.

FIFTH ANNUAL SANTA BARBARA COUNTY FARM DAY

A once-a-year opportunity to experience how the food we eat is grown. The day includes behind-the-scenes tours, tractor with trailer rides, tastings, giveaways, and kid-friendly activities. Sept. 23 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Free. 805-892-8155.

SantaBarbaraCountyFarmDay.com. Farms throughout Santa Maria Valley, Multiple venues, Santa Maria.

FOOD TRUCK FRIDAYS AT COSTA DE ORO Featured vendors in the series include Cali Coast Tacos, Cubanissimo, Danny’s Pizza Co., Chef Ricks, and more. Call venue for monthly schedules. Fridays 805-922-1468. costadeorowines.com. Costa De Oro Winery, 1331 S. Nicholson Ave., Santa Maria.

FOOD TRUCK FRIDAYS AT WINE STONE INN Fridays, 5-8 p.m. Wine Stone Inn, 255 W. Clark Ave., Orcutt, 805-332-3532, winestoneinn.com/.

FRIDAY NIGHT FUN Karaoke with DJ Nasty. With Beer Bucket specials. Kitchen stays open late. Come out and sing your favorite song. Fridays, 9 p.m.-2 a.m. Roscoe’s Kitchen, 229 Town Center E, Santa Maria, 805-623-8866.

PRESQU’ILE WINERY: WINE CLUB Call or go online to make a reservation to taste at the winery or find more info on the winery’s Wine Club offerings. ongoing presquilewine.com/club/.

Presqu’ile Winery, 5391 Presqu’ile Dr., Santa Maria, 805-937-8110.

TACO TUESDAY Tuesdays, 5-8 p.m. Wine Stone Inn, 255 W. Clark Ave., Orcutt, 805-332-3532, winestoneinn.com/.

THURSDAY EVENING BAR TAKEOVER Call venue or visit website to find out about featured vintners. Thursdays stellerscellar.com. Steller’s Cellar, 405 E. Clark Ave., Orcutt.

WINE AND DESIGN CLASSES Check Wine and Design’s Orcutt website for the complete list of classes, for various ages. ongoing Varies. wineanddesign.com/orcutt. Wine and Design, 3420 Orcutt Road, suite 105, Orcutt.

LOMPOC/VANDENBERG

HEAD GAMES TRIVIA AND TACO TUESDAYS CLASH Don’t miss Head Games Trivia at COLD Coast Brewing Company every Tuesday night. Teams can be up to 6 members. Earn prizes and bragging rights. Kekas will be serving their delicious local fare. Fun for all ages. Tuesdays, 7-9 p.m. Free. 805-819-0723. coldcoastbrewing.com. COLD Coast Brewing Company, 118 W Ocean Ave, Lompoc.

SOUTH COAST SLO COUNTY

EMPTY BOWLS 2023 Empty Bowls benefits families who are homeless or are facing homelessness. Receive a hand-crafted bowl generously donated by a local artists, and a coupon for a free bowl of soup from a participating local restaurant. Sept. 21 11 a.m.-1 p.m. my805tix.com. St. Patrick’s Church, 501 Fair Oaks Ave., Arroyo Grande.

SAN LUIS OBISPO

What is more festive than a piñata? Join for some brunch drinks and a couple of good hits to a piñata (or two). Good times and goofy prices promised. Turns will be determined on a first come, first served basis. First Sunday of every month Free. Rambling Spirits, 3845 S. Higuera St. (inside SLO Public Market), San Luis Obispo, drinkramblingspirits.com.

PIÑATAS ON THE PATIO

MUSIC

FALL/WINTER

SANTA MARIA VALLEY/LOS ALAMOS

BYEBYE SUMMER PARTY Enjoy dancing, food, and wine. Sept. 30 5-8 p.m. 805-937-8463. cottonwoodcanyon.com. Cottonwood Canyon Vineyard And Winery, 3940 Dominion Rd, Santa Maria.

FLANNEL 101 LIVE A 1990s tribute band. Sept. 23 3 p.m. my805tix.com. Blast 825 Brewery, 241 S Broadway St., Ste. 101, Orcutt, 805-934-3777.

THE HOMESTEAD: LIVE MUSIC ON THE PATIO Check the Homestead’s Facebook page for details on live music events. Fridays, Saturdays The Homestead, 105 W. Clark Ave, Old Orcutt, 805-287-9891, thehomesteadoldorcutt.com.

LADIES NIGHT OUT Music by DJ Van Gloryious and DJ Panda. Features delicious daiquiri specials. Thursdays, 8 p.m.-midnight

Roscoe’s Kitchen, 229 Town Center E, Santa Maria, 805-623-8866.

LINE DANCING FUN For adults ages 50 and older. Learn basic patterns and steps to some of your favorite music. This beginnerfriendly class is for anyone that enjoys dancing. Wednesdays,

1:30-2:30 p.m. through Dec. 27 Free. 805-925-0951. Elwin Mussell Senior Center, 510 Park Ave., Santa Maria.

LIVE MUSIC AT STELLER’S CELLAR Enjoy live music most Fridays and Saturdays. Call venue or check website to find out who’s performing. Fridays, Saturdays stellerscellar.com. Steller’s Cellar, 405 E. Clark Ave., Orcutt.

MUSIC AT ROSCOE’S KITCHEN Live DJ and karaoke every Friday and Saturday night. Featured acts include Soul Fyah Band, DJ Nasty, DJ Jovas, and more. Fridays, Saturdays, 9 p.m.-2 a.m. Roscoe’s Kitchen, 229 Town Center E, Santa Maria, 805-623-8866.

MUSIC LESSONS AT COELHO ACADEMY Learn to play piano, drums, guitar, base, ukulele, or violin, or take vocal lessons. ongoing 805-925-0464. coelhomusic.com/Lessons/lessons.html.

Coelho Academy of Music, 325 E. Betteravia Rd., Santa Maria.

OLD TIME GOSPEL SING-ALONG All are welcome. Call for more details. Last Saturday of every month, 5-6 p.m. 805-478-6198. Roscoe’s Kitchen, 229 Town Center E, Santa Maria.

SIPPIN’ SUNDAYS: WINE, MUSIC, AND MORE Enjoy a flight of six distinctively different age-worthy wines while listening to live entertainment presented by a local band, musician, or disc jockey. Features sweet treats from Santa Maria food vendors and local artisans. Sundays, 1-4 p.m. through Nov. 19 Free. 805-9378463. instagram.com/cottonwoodcanyonwinery/. Cottonwood Canyon Vineyard And Winery, 3940 Dominion Rd, Santa Maria. SUNDAY NIGHT FUN End the weekend with some good vibes. Music by DJ Van Gloryious. Sundays, 8 p.m.-midnight Roscoe’s Kitchen, 229 Town Center E, Santa Maria, 805-623-8866.

UKULELE JAM SESSIONS This is a drop-in program. Play melodies and songs with other musicians. Ukuleles are available to use or bring your own. Music and music strands provided. Mondays, Wednesdays, 10:30-11:30 a.m. through Dec. Free. 805925-0951. Elwin Mussell Senior Center, 510 Park Ave., Santa Maria.

SANTA YNEZ VALLEY

LIVE MUSIC SUNDAYS Sundays, 2-6 p.m. Brick Barn Wine Estate, 795 W. Hwy 246, Buellton, 805-686-1208, brickbarnwineestate. com.

WINE DOWN WEDNESDAYS Wednesdays, 4:30-5:30 p.m. Brick Barn Wine Estate, 795 W. Hwy 246, Buellton, 805-686-1208, brickbarnwineestate.com.

LOMPOC/VANDENBERG

LIQUID BLANKET A heavy tribute to Pink Floyd. Sept. 22 7 p.m. my805tix.com. Flower City Ballroom, 110 W. Ocean Ave., Lompoc.

YOUTH OPEN MIC NIGHT A fun, welcoming environment for first time performers and an opportunity for kids and teens to showcase their talent. Prizes awarded every month for Outstanding Performer. Last Friday of every month, 6-8 p.m. certainsparks.com/. Certain Sparks Music, 107 S. H St., Lompoc.

SOUTH COAST SLO COUNTY

KARAOKE EVERY FRIDAY Enjoy some good food and karaoke. Fridays, 5-8 p.m. 805-723-5550. The Central Grill, 545 Orchard Road, Nipomo.

KARAOKE EVERY WEDNESDAY A weekly event with barbecue offerings and more. Wednesdays, 4-8 p.m. Rancho Nipomo BBQ, 108 Cuyama Ln., Nipomo, 805-925-3500.

MOTHER CORN SHUCKERS LIVE Part of the Lighthouse’s live music series. Sept. 23 , 2-5:30 p.m. my805tix.com. Point San Luis Lighthouse, 1 Lighthouse Rd., Avila Beach.

TOM RIGNEY AND FLAMBEAU, TRES WHISKEYS, AND SPECIAL GUEST Presented by the Basin Street Regulars. Sept. 24 , 12:20-4 p.m. my805tix.com. Pismo Beach Veterans Memorial Hall, 780 Bello St., Pismo Beach.

SAN LUIS OBISPO

ANYA HINKLE FEAT. BILLY CARDINE HOUSE CONCERT An intimate evening concert by award-winning, North Carolinabased Americana songstress Anya Hinkle, featuring Billy Cardine. Opening by Little Tyme. Sept. 21 6-8 p.m. $25. 702-335-0730.

Nesting Hawk Ranch, Call for address, San Luis Obispo.

EASTON EVERETT SOLO Enjoy some indie-acoustic, live music. Thursdays, 5:30-7:30 p.m. eastoneverett.com. Big Sky Cafe, 1121 Broad Street, San Luis Obispo, (805)545-5401.

EMPTY BOTTLE, FULL THROTTLE

Creative Me Time presents its bottle and glass painting workshop at Harmony Cellars on Sunday, Sept. 24, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Participants of the class will paint one wine bottle and a pair of glasses using stencils or freehand designs. Call (805) 9271625 or visit creativemetime.com for more details. Harmony Cellars is located at 3255 Harmony Valley Road, Harmony. —C.W.

FIELD DAY COFFEE: MO BETTER JAZZ SERIES Visit site for more info on the concert series and tickets. Sept. 24 3-4:30 p.m. my805tix.com. Field Day Coffee, 1185 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo.

KREUZBERG: MO BETTA JAZZ SERIES Visit site for tickets and more info on the jazz series. Sept. 23 7:30 p.m. my805tix.com. Kreuzberg Coffee Company, 685 Higuera Street, San Luis Obispo, 805-430-0260.

LIVE MUSIC AT LIQUID GRAVITY Check social media and calendar for weekly updates. Saturdays, 2-5 p.m. and Fridays, 6-9 p.m. Liquid Gravity, 675 Clarion Court, San Luis Obispo.

LIVE MUSIC FROM GUITAR WIZ BILLY FOPPIANO AND MAD DOG Join “Guitar Wiz” Billy Foppiano and his trusty side kick Mad Dog for a mix of blues, R&B, and more. Saturdays, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. 805-544-2100. Bon Temps Creole Cafe, 1819 Osos Street, San Luis Obispo, bontempscreolecafe.com/index.htm.

SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY BAND The San Luis Obispo County Band performs a variety of music for the enjoyment of Farmer’s Market patrons. At the corner of Higuera and Nipomo during the third Thursdays of July, August, and September. Sept. 21 , 6-8:45 p.m. Free admission. 630-421-2556. San Luis Obispo Farmers Market, Broad and Higuera, San Luis Obispo.

SQUARE DANCE 12-WEEK CLASS Learn to square dance. Wide variety of music. No dress code and no dance experience needed. Every Thursday, Thanksgiving excluded. No partner needed; couples are welcome. Thursdays, 7-9 p.m. through Nov. 30 $70 per person for full program. 805-781-7300. squaredancecentralcoast/classes. SLO Guild Hall, 2880 Broad St., San Luis Obispo.

SUNDAY MUSIC AT RAGTAG WINE CO. Enjoy live music by local favorites. Wine available by the flight, glass, or bottle. Sundays, 4-7 p.m. Ragtag Wine Co., 779 Higuera St., San Luis Obispo, 805439-0774, ragtagwineco.com.

TAIMANE: IN CONCERT Experience Taimane’s captivating versatility on the ukulele as she masterfully blends genres from classical to rock to flamenco. Taimane dazzles audiences with her innovative compositions, fierce energy, and graceful stage presence. Sept. 22 7:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. $39. 805-756-4849. calpolyarts.org/20232024-events/taimane. Spanos Theatre, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.

WAIPUNA CONCERT: “LOKAHI” (COMING TOGETHER) A fundraiser featuring live music, dancing, and more. Sept. 23 , 6-8 p.m. $35. 805-252-6878. tickets.cuesta.edu. Cuesta College Cultural and Performing Arts Center, Highway 1, San Luis Obispo.

NORTH COAST SLO COUNTY SEA SHANTY SING-ALONG The Morro Bay Shanty Project will perform sea shanties and other songs of the sea at the Morro Bay Maritime Museum. Audience members will be encouraged to sing along, and share favorites. Sept. 23 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Free. Morro Bay Maritime Museum, 1154 Front St., Morro Bay. m

5 Cities Homeless Coalition: Empty Bowls Fundraiser

St.

FRI, SAT, SUN, SEPT. 22–OCT. 1 Paso Robles Youth Arts Center

Live Music, Trivia, Karaoke, and more!

Performing Arts

CHECK WEBSITE FOR DETAILS Templeton Mercantile, Club Car Bar

Saunter Yoga & Wellness: Beer Yoga SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 Ancient Owl Beer Garden, Atascadero

SEEAG’s 5th Annual Santa Barbara County Farm Day SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 Multiple Locations

Flannel 101 SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 The Stockyard at Blast 825 Brewery, Orcutt

Mo Betta Summer Jazz Series Concerts SAT & SUN, SEPTEMBER 23 & 24 Kruezberg Coffee & Field Day Coffee, SLO

Tom Rigney and Flambeau, Tres Whiskeys & Special Guest SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 Pismo Beach Veterans’ Hall

Morro Bay Chamber of Commerce: Shop, Sip & Stroll

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 28 Downtown Morro Bay

Chef’s Harvest Dinner

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 Secret Garden at Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort & Spa, SLO

SLOFunny Comedy Show: Key

Lewis, John DiResta, Matt Knudsen

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

The Siren El Chorro, Dairy Creek, SLO

2023 Fall Folk-n-Soak Music, Hot Springs, Yoga, Camping FRI, SAT, SUN, SEPT. 29, 30, OCT. 1 Franklin Hot Springs, Paso Robles

Brick by Brick Fall Wine Festival

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 30

Atascadero Printery

Camp Arroyo Grande Dinner Dance

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 7

Camp Arroyo Grande

Unity in the Community: Zongo All-Stars

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 1 South Bay Community Center, Los Osos

Dark Horse Music Collective Presents: Songwriters in the Round MONDAY, OCTOBER 2 BarrelHouse Brewing Taproom, SLO

Three Speckled Hens: Antiques & Old Stuff Show

& SAT, OCTOBER 6 & 7

Wine Club Pick-Up Party

SLOFunny Comedy JamboreeGrover Beach

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11 Rib Line By The Beach, Grover Beach

SLOFunny Comedy Jamboree - Los Osos

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12 Central Coast Pizza, Los Osos

SLO County Arts Open Studio Art Tour Kickoff Celebration

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 13

Orcutt Road, The Bunker SLO

Ransom Note (80s Hair/Glam Metal)

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 13

Flower City Ballroom, Lompoc

2023 New Times Music Awards

Presentation and Showcase FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3 SLO Brew Rock, San Luis Obispo

www.santamariasun.com • September 21 - September 28, 2023 • Sun 25

ARTS BRIEFS

Central Coast Railroad Festival holds exhibits, festivities in Santa Barbara, SLO counties

Showtime! Send gallery, stage, and cultural festivities to cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.

Farm frames

The 13th annual SLOPOKE Art of the West Show is open on Sept. 22, 23, and 24 at Flag Is Up Farms, located at 901 E. Highway 246, Solvang. Visit the-slopoke.com to find out more about the group exhibition.

For the 2023 showcase, Knight submitted a handful of landscapes in oil that depict coastal areas, mountains, rivers, and rolling hills in California.

Several events are slated to take place between Friday, Oct. 6, and Sunday, Oct. 8, across the Central Coast as part of the 13th annual Central Coast Railroad Festival.

The festival’s main event will be held at the San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum on Saturday, Oct. 7, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Throughout the day, guests of the museum will have access to various exhibits and special activities.

The winners of the museum’s 2023 Photo Contest will also be revealed during the Oct. 7 event. While the deadline to enter the SLO-based contest is past, there is still time to enter the Friends of the Santa Maria Valley Railroad Photo Contest. Participants of this contest are asked to submit photos of the Santa Maria Valley Railroad and the manifest freight trains that serve it.

The deadline to enter the Santa Maria-based competition is Saturday, Oct. 1. Six winners will be selected to receive prizes ranging between $25 and $100. The winning photos will be announced in November and will be showcased in the Friends of the Santa Maria Valley Railroad newsletter and social media pages.

Also in conjunction with the Central Coast Railroad Festival, the Santa Maria Valley Historical Society Museum will host free displays and exhibits on Friday, Oct. 6, and Saturday, Oct. 7, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days.

Other venues along the Central Coast that are hosting festival programs include the Oceano Train Depot, the Pioneer Museum in Paso Robles, Central Coast Trains in Atascadero, and other locations. Check ccrrf.com for the full event schedule and list of participating venues.

Wildling Museum showcases art inspired by California’s nine national parks

West in show

Three local painters discuss their displays at this year’s SLOPOKE exhibition

BY CALEB WISEBLOOD

Sprawling landscapes and intimate still life paintings will be among the works on display at Flag Is Up Farms in Solvang, as part of an upcoming three-day art festival.

The 13th annual SLOPOKE Art of the West Show, to be held on Sept. 22, 23, and 24, drew in dozens of artists who submitted pieces of various media that celebrate the American West, in hopes of being juried into this year’s exhibition.

The 2023 event will mark Santa Ynez Valley-based painter Natalie Groves’ “first rodeo” with SLOPOKE, she said, as an Art of the West first-timer with four of her animal portraits featured in the showcase.

“Animals have always been my favorite subject,” said Groves, who often illustrates animals in either pen or watercolor but took a different approach for SLOPOKE.

“For a long time, I have wanted to explore using NuPastels in a fine art setting,” said Groves, who was introduced to NuPastels—firm color sticks known to be stronger than traditional soft pastels—12 years ago while working as a chalk artist at a Trader Joe’s.

She described her goal in returning to NuPastels as “moving beyond the advertising chalkboard and into works worthy to be framed behind museum glass.”

Revisiting an artform from her early days as an artist for SLOPOKE wasn’t the only big flashback for Groves during the process, she said.

“This was a perfect opportunity to return to my first love,” said Groves, whose fanciful Beatrix Potter-inspired paintings often feature personified foxes, birds, and frogs, but never horses.

She used to love drawing realistic, nonpersonified versions of horses as a kid, though.

“As a girl, growing up in Portland, Oregon, I always imagined myself in another setting, riding free on the back of a horse,” Groves said. “Since I couldn’t ride horses, I drew them.”

Groves’ departure from her usual whimsy is also apparent in her portraits of nonpersonified chickens and bulls featured in the SLOPOKE exhibit as well.

Other participating artists in this year’s showcase include Orcutt-based painter Sheryl Knight, who shed some light on the SLO in SLOPOKE, which originated as a group show in Pismo Beach more than a decade ago.

“I actually heard about it when it was still in San Luis Obispo County,” said Knight, who was introduced to the annual exhibit by Tom Burgher, who co-founded SLOPOKE with his wife, Sherie Burgher, in 2011.

“His [Tom’s] gallery in Pismo Beach represented me and my work for many years, so we had a good relationship,” said Knight, who has participated in the exhibition twice prior to this year’s event and scored an Artists’ Choice award during last year’s competition.

“I don’t usually paint wildlife, but I do put cows into my paintings from time to time,” said Knight, whose entries in this year’s SLOPOKE include Green Pastures, a calm scene of cows grazing.

Like Knight, Arroyo Grande-based artist Rosemary Bauer is familiar with the history of SLOPOKE and its beginnings in SLO County. Like Groves, however, this year’s exhibition marks Bauer’s first time participating.

“I am known as a landscape painter, though I venture into other areas as well,” added Bauer, who entered multiple landscapes into the show, as well as an interior still life, The Padre’s Kitchen

A dining table is at the center of the intimate scene, full of colorful furnishings and accessories “reflective of life in California during the 18th century,” Bauer said.

One of Bauer’s ranch landscapes in this year’s SLOPOKE show is a plein air piece centered on a large rock formation titled Uplifting, a title with a double meaning, she explained.

“It was a hot day and I sweated it out to try and capture the shadows in the rock outcropping before they changed,” Bauer said. “The name [Uplifting] came from both the illusion that the rock is emerging from the ground and the joy at capturing the shadows before the light changed.” m

Send uplifting comments to Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood at cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.

SETTING: Orcutt-based artist Sheryl Knight submitted a handful of landscapes into this year’s SLOPOKE exhibition, including Red Barn and Wildflowers

The opening reception for a new juried exhibition, California National Parks: Stories of Water, at the Wildling Museum of Art and Nature will be held on Sunday, Sept. 24, from 3 to 5 p.m. The exhibit includes artworks of various media by 37 participating artists and will remain on display through February 2024.

The selected artworks in the show were juried from a pool of more than 240 submissions. Pieces in the exhibit explore the “various impacts of water—or its lack—in California’s national parks,” according to press materials.

For more info, call (805) 688-1082 or visit wildlingmuseum. org. The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature is located at 1511 Mission Drive, unit B, Solvang. m

Arts Briefs is compiled by Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood. Send information to cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.

PHOTO

COURTESY IMAGE BY ROSEMARY BAUER

TABLE TOP-TIER: Arroyo Grande-based artist Rosemary Bauer described her painting, The Padre’s Kitchen, as full of colorful furnishings and accessories that are “reflective of life in California during the 18th century.”

DAY AND KNIGHT: The upcoming SLOPOKE Art of the West Show in Solvang features artworks from more than 20 participating artists, including Sheryl Knight. One of Knight’s paintings displayed at the exhibit is Green Pastures

COURTESY IMAGE BY SHERYL KNIGHT

COURTESY IMAGE BY KEVIN GLEASON

SCENIC

COURTESY IMAGE BY NATALIE GROVES

SADDLE UP: Head in the Clouds is one of Santa Ynez Valley-based artist Natalie Groves’ paintings featured in the SLOPOKE Art of the West Show.

The truth will out

Kenneth Branagh is back with his third go-around rebooting classic mysteries by novelist Agatha Christie. After Murder on the Orient Express (2017) and Death on the Nile (2022), we find Hercule Poirot (Branagh) retired in post-World War II Venice. On Halloween, novelist Ariadne Oliver (Tina Fey) persuades him to attend a séance, where she plans to unmask as a fraud medium Joyce Reynolds (Michelle Yeoh), who has been hired by opera singer Rowena Drake (Kelly Reilly) to commune with her dead daughter, Alicia (Rowan Robison), who committed suicide after her American chef fiancé, Maxime Gerard (Kyle Allen), ended their engagement. Also in attendance are Poirot’s bodyguard, Vitale Portfoglio (Riccardo Scamarcio); Rowena’s housekeeper, Olga Seminoff (Camille Cottin); the Drake family doctor, Leslie Ferrier (Jamie Dornan), and his son, Leopold (Jude Hill); and Reynolds’ assistant, Desdemona Holland (Emma Laird). When people start dying, Poirot must use his powers of deduction to reveal the killer. (103 min.)

Glen: This is a stylishly directed and beautifully filmed (by cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos) movie, in an obviously gorgeous setting. I mean, Venice! Wowzah. Unlike the sunny light of the previous film, Death on the Nile, however, A Haunting in Venice is dark and shadowy and nearly always drenched in rain, and the setting is contained in a claustrophobic and aging palazzo with a dark past. The acting is first rate, so this has all the

elements of a terrific film; however, I find these Agatha Christie mysteries very old fashioned. They rely too much on exposition, but the nice thing is even if you’re familiar with the source material, a 1969 novel called Hallowe’en Party, the adaptation by Michael Green (he also adapted the previous Christie films and wrote Logan, Blade Runner 2049, The Call of the Wild, and Jungle Cruise) takes enough creative license from the novel to keep you, or at least me, guessing.

Anna: Unfortunately, sleuths who watch Dateline and who have a bit of a knack for guessing at whodunits may feel like I did while watching this film—I had a solid guess at the answer fairly early on; I just was watching the why and how play out on screen. It’s certainly beautiful—a cramped setting filled with suspicious characters despite being held in a sprawling palazzo. Poirot starts this journey as a seemingly retired man, unwilling to help the droves of folks who congregate outside his door each day looking to him to solve their various mysteries. Branagh is a great choice for this role: refined and mustachioed. He doesn’t give away too much while staying understandable. Poirot is a bit of a mystery himself, and in this film, he feels compromised by the forces around him. Voices others don’t hear, shadows others don’t see—he feels a bit untethered, and it proves compelling.

Glen: Yeah, well, “psychic anomalies” he encounters can come in various forms.

Eventually, all is neatly revealed, and that’s also the problem with these by-the-book mysteries. Everything must eventually make sense. It feels a little too pat. This is watchable for a lot of compelling reasons—mostly the acting, cinematography, and direction—but the story is pedestrian. I think it’s worth a matinee, but as films goes, it’s mostly glossy surface.

Anna: A bit of fun that feels mostly like fluff, this sort of mystery fits neatly in that pocket. There’s plenty here to sell the film: It has the cast, the money, and the ambience. It sits nice

DOWN FOR LOVE

What’s it rated? TV-14

HYPNOTIC

What’s it rated? TV-MA

When? 2023

Where’s it showing? Peacock

Robert Rodriguez ( Desperado, Spy Kids, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For) directs this sci-fi mystery that mixes elements of Inception, Looper, Fury and Firestarter into a detective story with a significant mid-film twist.

Danny Rourke (Ben Affleck), an Austin Police Department detective, is a tormented man. While at the park under his supervision, his 7-year-old daughter, Minnie (Ionie Olivia Nieves), went missing, leading to the dissolution of his marriage. His missing daughter hangs over everything he does, so when he and his partner receive a tip to stake out a bank and a possible safety deposit box robbery, they do, and Rourke discovers that inside the box is a photo of his missing daughter inscribed with the message “Find Lev Dellrayne,” the name of the would-be bank robber (William Fichtner). Alice Braga stars as Diana Cruz, who may be able to help Rourke solve the case and find his daughter.

If you like reality-bending sci-fi and have Peacock, this

MIND BENDER: Ben Affleck stars as police detective Danny Rourke, whose current case may be connected to his missing daughter, in Hypnotic, streaming on Peacock.

might be worth 90 minutes, but this comes nowhere close to being as good as the aforementioned films it aspires to. That said, it’s got a solid cast that includes cameo appearances from Jeff Fahey and Jackie Earle Haley. (93 min.)

—Glen

When? 2023

Where’s it showing? Netflix

This five-episode reality series by Netflix follows several young hopefuls looking for love. It’s similar to their program Love on the Spectrum but instead of autism diagnoses, Netflix introduces us to six young men and women who all have been diagnosed with Down syndrome.

Libby Hunsdale may be a familiar face. She’s an actress known for her role in Poppy She wants the world to know that “your disability doesn’t define who you can date.” We also meet thrill seeker John Halliday, a Special Olympics snowboarder who wants to find a partner who matches his love of thrill and adventure. All the characters are incredibly likable people, and we also meet many of their family members who are rooting for them to find love as well and watch as they work through the awkward moments of their first dates.

This style of dating show is what they all should be— not weird competitions, hotness contests, and rivalries. Instead, this is a sweet look into the always complicated

and neat in the realm of enjoyable to watch, but not necessarily super compelling. Because this type of story can’t rely on being out-ofthe-box surprising or horror-film scary, it must rely on painting a beautiful picture, and A Haunting in Venice does just that. It’s worth a matinee if you need a little bit of Hollywood gold dust in your life. m

New Times Senior Staff Writer Glen Starkey and freelancer Anna Starkey write Sun Screen. Comment at gstarkey@newtimesslo.com.

TAKE A CHANCE: Libby Hunsdale and Josh Bradley have Down Syndrome, but that doesn’t stop them and their fellow daters from looking for love in the Netflix reality TV series Down for Love

world of dating through the lens of these six real people and those in their corners supporting them. (five 46-min. episodes) m

—Anna

DEBUNK MATES Novelist Ariadne Oliver (Tina Fey) persuades retired detective Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) to join her at a séance in the hopes of debunking it, in A Haunting in Venice, screening in local theaters.

BY CALEB WISEBLOOD

Previously a tank car station on the historic Pacific Coast Railway, the Refugio Ranch Vineyards’ tasting room in Los Olivos is now one of two repurposed railroad facilities on the winery’s property.

In August, Gleason Family Vineyards—the parent brand behind Refugio Ranch—finished a multilayered expansion project at the site, which included renovations at the ranch’s original tasting room, new outdoor entertainment areas, a new farmstand marketplace, and a sibling tasting room, converted from a cabin its owners believe was originally a train station ticketing booth.

The winery is currently offering a newly curated railroadthemed tasting flight in honor of the new tasting room, which neighbors the original space, separated by a large outdoor seating patio between the two.

“We created a special ‘Ticket Booth’ tasting flight to acknowledge the history of the space,” said Max Gleason, Gleason Family Vineyards’ creative director who spearheaded the recent expansion efforts at Refugio Ranch.

Guests of the former ticketing office will find the flight offering outlined on a train ticket-shaped menu. It even lists locations of departure and destination.

“Departure: Los Olivos. Destination: State of Utter Bliss.”

A handful of tastings or “stops” are listed on the ticket, which costs $25 total. Sangiovese, syrah, and pinot noir are among the featured wines.

Gleason added that the outdoor dining expansions, including a new 900-square-foot open-air patio, at Refugio Ranch have also allowed the winery ample space to host a new series of outdoor food pop-ups, which launched in early September. The series is titled 29 Ninety, a reference to the site’s 2990 Grand Ave. address.

“We love that we have been able to incorporate the cabin and new courtyard into the Refugio Ranch tasting room

experience,” said Gleason, who described the 29 Ninety series held in the courtyard as the fulcrum between the two tasting spaces. “It truly creates an encompassing corner at the north end of Los

Olivos.

WINE AND DINE: A recent expansion project at Refugio Ranch Vineyards in Los Olivos resulted in a new courtyard space and food pop-up series, during which guests can grab one of chef Peter Cham’s “Chamburgers” to enjoy with their wine.

FIRST CLASS: A former ticketing office that served the Pacific Coast Railway during the early 1900s was recently converted into a new tasting room at Refugio Ranch Vineyards.

“Those who have visited this end of Los Olivos before, as well as the locals, are amazed by the transformation of the space,” Gleason added. “The new courtyard, especially, has this relaxing, idyllic vibe that guests love to soak up.”

Food selections in the courtyard during the 29 Ninety pop-up series are provided by Gleason Family Vineyards chefs Peter Cham and Lee Gottheimer. One of the duo’s new offerings as part of the series is a “swankier” version of chips and onion dip, Cham explained.

“I grew up with parents, like I’m sure many others have, that would make [onion dip] for every weekend barbecue with family and friends, albeit being storebought sour cream with Lipton onion dip mix packets,” Cham said. “I wanted to do a fun and slightly fancier version utilizing techniques that showcase different uses of alliums, black charred onion powder, bright red pickled shallots, and vibrant green chive oil.”

Cham described the September debut of the new pop-series—which currently runs

every Saturday and Sunday—a success, and said one of the launch party’s star attractions was his signature burger, the Chamburger.

It’s a double Wagyu beef smash burger with caramelized onions, shredded lettuce, “secret sauce,” dill pickles, and American cheese— all stacked within a potato bun.

Other dishes attendees of the 29 Ninety series can look forward to finding include barbecue spice-braised pulled pork tacos, and a Little Gem wedge salad, with some ingredients that can be found at the new Refugio Ranch farmstand marketplace, sourced from Roblar Farm in Santa Ynez, another local brand under the umbrella of Gleason Family Vineyards.

“We source scallions and herbs to make our buttermilk ranch dressing,” Cham said, “as well as small cherry and sungold tomatoes from [Roblar Farm].” m

Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood wants to know your favorite kind of dressing at cwiseblood@ santamariasun.com.