TOPANGA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1976 September 30, 2022 • Vol. 3, No. 19 PRESORTEDSTD USPOSTAGE PAID GARDENACA PERMITNO.40 ECRWSSEDDM POSTALCUSTOMER
Zen Rock, a masterpiece of luxury and serenity, has vast canyon and mountain views inviting deep contemplation. Step down the stone paths framed by stone walls, through the oaks, pines, and cedar trees of this 1/2 acre lot, to your personal Temple for peaceful living. You are sheltered under an architecturally impressive Pagoda style roof. The huge great room inspires with an intricate beamed ceiling, and walls of glass leading to a wide deck, perfect for watching the fog roll in below. The kitchen is open and elegant, with upscale appliances, granite counters, and plenty of room to create feasts for your loved ones. The stylish powder room with cement counters and a marble sink will wow your guests. The weather here in Fernwood Heights is nearly perfect, with cool coastal breezes, and bright sunny days above the fog line. Downstairs, another fireplace in an antechamber that could be your reading nook, your office, your quiet place. The main suite is framed in Shoji Screens, and opens to another deck with bravura views. Soak up to your chin in the deep tub in the indulgent bathroom. The glass walled, stone shower takes in the views of the treetops. A wide vanity holds marble sinks to enhance your morning rituals. Paths tumble down towards the spring fed, seasonal creek, below. Above, off-street parking for at least 5 cars is a neighborhood rarity. Walk into the vast wilderness of Topanga State Park, with chaparral cloaked paths, beckoning just down the street. Smell the pine scented breeze, touched with the salty hint of the nearby ocean. You are close to the village of Topanga, with it’s charm-filled shops, galleries, and cafes, the coast, Santa Monica, and Malibu. You are even closer to the sky.
family
2 September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19 Welcome to Zen Rock, a masterpiece of luxury and serenity in Fernwood. Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01991628. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may be made without notice. No statement is made as to the accuracy of any description. #1 Topanga agents status based on total closed transaction sides. All measurements and square footage are approximate. Adrian Wright 818.939.6415 adrian.wright@compass.com DRE 00935559 Jordan Wright 818.746.6987 jordanwright@compass.com DRE 01952694 Ready to see how different the curated white glove Compass approach is to selling real estate? Utilizing the Wright Way Team and our access to Compass Private Exclusives, Compass Concierge, and many other amazing services, will change how you have ever experienced the real estate process. There is a reason why Compass has been the #1 Brokerage in Topanga 3 years running and why the Wright Way Team is the #1 team in Topanga. We are a local
team powered by a forward thinking, fast moving, high touch and high technology company, changing the industry for the better, leading from the heart, and delivering exceptional results for our clients! @thewrightwayteam NUMBER ONE TOPANGA TEAM. PASSIONATE LOCAL AGENTS. UNPARALLELED MARKETING REACH. INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY. RESULTS DELIVERED. AN EXPERIENCE LIKE NO OTHER.
2 BED | 2 BATH | 1758 SQ FT | 1/2 ACRE $1,649,000 20193 OBSERVATION DR, TOPANGA
Thinking Out Loud
Publisher /
Flavia Potenza
Creative Director
Nira Lichten
Senior Reporter
Annemarie Donkin
Advertising Manager
Jenise Blanc-Chance
Creative Consultant
Eiffel Nazaryan
Contributors
Linda Ballou
Joel Bellman
Pablo Capra
Kathie Gibboney
Paula LaBrot
Kait Leonard
Amy Weisberg
Kim Zanti
Copy Editor / Distribution
Ellie Carroll
Frogs in a Political Pot of Hot Water*
“Hey, Mama Frog, look here! This looks like a great place to raise our pollywogs.”
“Yes, dear, but look over there. It looks like the neighbors are trying to get our attention.”
“Oh...I think they’re just having a good time.”
“I don’t know, dear. Those aren’t lovey-dovey, pollywog-making croaks I hear. That doesn’t look like a happy home to me.”
“Hmmm. I thought they were jumping for joy but it looks like they’re trying...to...jump out... (gasps)...but they can’t!”
*Is the boiling water what killed the frog? Absolutely. But what really killed it was its inability to decide when it had to jump out.
Jamie Clark-Mazur
Contact US editor@thecanyonchronicle.com
General inquiries: info@thecanyonchronicle.com
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Topanga, CA 90290 (310) 460-9786
Follow us on Instagram @thecanyonchronicle, & Facebook and twitter @CanyonChronicle
The Canyon Chronicle is an independent community newspaper published bi-weekly by Canyon Media, Inc.©2020. All rights reserved. thecanyonchronicle.com
Mama Frog recognizes danger when she sees it. Many Americans aren’t sure that this year’s mid-term elections are fraught with existential concerns for democracy. We must pay attention. Personally, I’m not a fan of oppressive minority rule that toes a rigid autocratic line through bullying, intimidation, violence and lies with the intent of eradicating American democracy as we know it. Six years of Trump and decades of the Republican party’s “will-to-win-at-any-cost” platform, have brought us to this moment of degradation of American society and citizens’ faith in the institutions of government that keep it civil. Decades of the drip, drip, drip of alienating rhetoric have sucessfully divided Americans until now, when “the enemy within” blatantly reveals itself. Our last resort to keep democracy as the guiding light of our Republic is to know that the candidates we will be voting for on November 8 are not “2020 election deniers” or extreme “MAGA Republicans” who would change voting laws to stay in power. Joel Bellman’s insightful column explains why in “This is the Democratic Moment.” (Page 12 )
Also In This Issue
Thank you, Kat High, for informing us of California Native American Day and your Little Free Library and book signing event. “Indian Day” was designated in 1939 by Gov. Culbert Olson, and evolved into California Native American Day in 1968 by Gov. Ronald Reagan and California tribal leaders. (Page 4)
Meet the new Girl Scouts troop alreading earning their badges. (Page 4)
Getting to “Know Your NOAA Weather Alert Radio” by Senior Reporter Annemarie Donkin with a sidebar by Jane Terjung and Bill Naylor are required reading for all residents living in our designated “Very High Fire Severity Zone.” (Pages 6-7)
Mental health has come front and center worldwide, especially so since the COVID-10 pandemic left its mark. Canyon Chronicle contributor Kait Leonard put aside her lifelong shame and the stigma of undiagnosed ADHD to tell her compelling story, “Diagnosed at Sixty—My ADHD Story.” (Pages 8-9)
Kait Leonard also hints at astrological events for October, that are full of tricks and treats and not just for Halloween. (Page 14)
Mental health has become front and center and people, like Canyon Chronicle contributor Kait Leonard, are putting aside the shame and
and telling their own stories. “ADHD
3September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19
Editor
Proofreader
stigma
Umbrella Project 2018 Neurodiversity Autism” by printkick is marked with CC BY 2.0.
CARTOONKATE.CO.UK
—Flavia Potenza
PHOTO BY ANNEMARIE DONKIN
Topangan Kat High (left) celebrated California Native American Day on Sept. 23, with a book signing by author Alan Salazar (right) and illustrator Mona Lewis (center), at an “open driveway” reception at the Little Free Library. (Page 4)
Topanga Girl Scouts
Topanga has a new Girl Scout Troop #2626 with many exciting events coming up including a visit to the Topanga Fire Station 69 for lessons on first aid and fire safety; hiking to Topanga Elementary School from Greenleaf to learn about respecting our environment and hiking safety; and a visit to our local vet, Holly Scoren, to learn some pet health care tips. On
Saturday, September 17, the girls gathered at Topanga Beach for Beach Cleanup Day to earn their Eco badges.
A big shout-out to Troop mothers, Stephanie Polansky and Lauren Farber, for rounding up these future leaders.
For girls, ages 5-8 (K-3rd grade) who may want to join, contact Stephanie Polansky, (424) 353-1606
Celebrating California Native American Day—Topanga Style
By Annemarie Donkin
Topangan Kat High celebrated the annual California Native American Day on Sept. 23 with an “open driveway” reception at her home on Entrada Road with Native American coloring pages, tastes of native nibbles and chia lemonade.
A member of the Hupa people, Kat welcomed the community to the Little Free Library on her shady driveway and invited the neighborhood to pick up and read a selection of books featuring Native American stories, history and narratives by Native authors.
Guests of honor were Chumash/ Tataviam author Alan Salazar and illustrator Mona Lewis, who held a book signing for their two books “Tata ,the Tataviam Towhee: A Tribal Story” and “A Tataviam Creation Story,” written by Salazar and beautifully illustrated with natural earth colors by Mona Lewis.
“Tataviam” means “people facing the sun. It is what our neighbors to the north, the Kitenemuk tribe, called us,” wrote Salazar, “Puchuk Ya’ia’c.”
We, the Tataviam people, believe we have lived in Tataviam territory since time immemorial. The Santa Clarita Valley is the center of Tataviam territory—it is our heart. In order for tribal cultures to survive, we must sing new songs and tell new stories. This is
Best Location in Top O’ Topanga
my original creation story. I tell it in the spirit of my Tataviam ancestors.”
“Tata, the Tataviam Towhee” is the first Tataviam story that is told and recorded by a Tataviam tribal elder and storyteller. Through his inquisitiveness, Tata, a small towhee bird teaches us a valuable lesson. He reminds us that our land will always have stories to tell. (Books available on Amazon).
About California Native American Day. Started in 1939 by Governor Culbert Olson, “Indian Day” evolved into The California Native American Day in 1968 thanks to Governor Ronald Reagan and California tribal leaders. The Day is considered a timehonored tradition in the California Native American community. The event is hosted by the California Tribal Chairpersons Association.
SAVE THE DATE! On Sunday, Oct. 16 from 11-4, Kat High will host a Gourd Making workshop for the holidays with Neshkinukat Master Artist Nadiya Littlewarrior. It’s a beginners’ class to find the spirit in your gourd and how to clean, decorate and enjoy a small gourd ornament or necklace. Open to 10 participants, ages 12 and up, first come, first served registration. Register at kiwenkikwe@yahoo.com
For more information on the Oct. 16 Holiday Gourd Workshop, contact Kat High at katcalls@aol.com.
4 September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19 News
1167 Cherokee TOPANGA | OFFERED AT $950,000 OLGA CRAWFORD DRE 2005209 310.633.1469 OLGA.CRAWFORD@COMPASS.COM compass.com Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the state of california and abides by equal housing opportunity laws. License number 2005209. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only. Information is compiled from sources deemed reliable but is subject to errors, omissions, changes in price, condition, sale, or withdrawal without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footages are approx imate. This is not intended to solicit property already listed. Nothing herein shall be construed as legal, accounting or other professional advice outside the realm of real estate brokerage.
with Views! FOR SALE PHOTO BY LAUREN FARBER
Top
left to right: Luci Harris, Evy Atkins, Willow Childers, Sophie Polansky, Sofia Farber, Yana Schwipper; Bottom left to right: Luca Atkins, Aspen Childers, Maddy LeVasseur, Amelia Farber, Emma Kate Weaver, and Cece Schwipper. Not pictured: Risa Akazawa-Herrador and Metzli Akazawa-Herrador.
LA Sheriff’s Report
Noteworthy Incidents for Serious Crimes.
July 2022
• A robbery occurred in the 1500 block of Old Topanga Canyon Road. The victim hired a handyman to paint his residence, was not satisfied with his work and asked him to leave. The suspect became angry, forcibly took the victim’s cell phone from the victim’s hands and fled the area.
• Two commercial burglaries were reported in the 100 block of South Topanga Canyon Blvd. which occurred during the same date and time frames. Both businesses had their front glass doors shattered to make entry. There were open cabinets, cash registers and drawers with items strewn about in both businesses. Unknown at this time what property was stolen. Video surveillance footage from one business showed two male adults wearing gloves and gray clothing running away from the area carrying unknown items.
• A trailer was burglarized in the 1700 block of Topanga Skyline Drive. Unknown suspect(s) made entry via an unlocked door and vandalized the cabinets.
• A 1988 Volkswagen Cabriolet was stolen in the 3100 block of Schweitzer Drive. The vehicle was recovered in the area of Entrado Drive and Topanga Canyon Blvd. No suspect(s) seen or heard.
• A domestic violence incident occurred in the 1500 block of Valley Drive. The suspect assaulted his ex-fiancé during an argument.
• A vehicle burglary was reported in the 20800 block of Entrada Road. The victims were hiking in the area during the time
of the incident. There were no signs of forced entry. A wallet, U.S. currency and credit/debit cards were stolen from inside the vehicle.
• A theft of a wetsuit occurred in the 22000 block of Canon Drive. The wetsuit was in the horse stable of the location when it was stolen by unknown suspect(s).
August 2022
• A robbery was reported in the 400 block of S. Topanga Canyon Road. The victim arrived at the location and parked her vehicle in the parking lot. The victim exited her vehicle and was walking towards the entrance with a bank bag containing U.S. Currency and her purse. One suspect grabbed the victim’s purse and a struggle began. The victim dropped the bank bag and the other suspect grabbed it and ran to a white, newer model Range Rover. Both suspects fled in the Range Rover.
• A residential burglary occurred in the 1500 block of Old Topanga Canyon Road. Suspect(s) unknown pried open the rear window of the location and stole tools.
• A theft was reported in the 19900 block of Sischo Drive. A battery cabinet was opened and batteries stolen. Cables connected to the batteries were cut. There were no signs of forced entry into the battery cabinet.
• A truck, ’90 Toyota T100, was stolen from the 20200 block of Paradise Lane. The vehicle was recovered in the bushes by the location. The truck was not damaged.
Jennifer L. Seetoo, Captain Malibu/Lost Hills Station
October
n Thursday, Oct. 6 at 6 P.M., New Criteria for Parks Measure A—Las Virgenes Homeowners Federation (LVHF) general ZOOM meeting revisits new criteria to establish funding for purchasing parkland and open space in the Santa Monica Mountains. Guest speaker is Clement Lau, Departmental Facilities Planner II (Section Head), Department of Parks and Recreation L.A. County Parks. Prior to this, it was all about urban parks. This is your opportunity to see how to consider next steps.
JOIN MEETING: https://us02web. zoom.us/j/86323644934?pwd=ejFaTG NVejF2Mi85bHhsb3dnTFB4Zz09.
–Kim Lamorie
n Friday, October 7, Topanga Peace Alliance, First Friday—Special program featuring Francesco Da Vinci, peace activist, conscientious objector, and author of the new book, “I Refuse to Kill.” This ’60s memoir is timely and relevant because the issues it raises are today’s top issues: social justice, police brutality, government surveillance, persecution of nonviolent activists, and war versus the nonviolent resolution of conflict.
n Sunday, October 9, 12:00 p.m., Topanga Symphony, 40th Anniversary—Join the Topanga Historical Society (THS) to celebrate with Music Director and Conductor Jerome Kessler and the Topanga Symphony Quartet at the Mountain Mermaid, 20421 Callon Drive, Topanga, CA 90290. Potluck luncheon begins at noon with a
presentation and performance at 1 p.m. The event is sponsored by the Topanga Historical Society. Become a member ($20/year for Individuals; $30/year for Families) and learn more about Topanga in their books and archives. Topangahistoricalsociety.org
n Saturday, Sunday, October 8 and 9, 7:30 p.m., Dear Margaret Sanger—Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum presents two staged readings of a new musical in development featuring music and lyrics by acclaimed singer/ songwriter Inara George and Grammy nominated composer Larry Goldings. Writer and director Jennifer Chang was inspired by the letters of real women to Margaret Sanger, birth control activist, sex educator, writer and nurse, whose advocacy for both reproductive choice and the insidious eugenics movement reverberates through the decades. Tickets: $25-$50: (310) 455-3723; theatricum.com
Theatricum Botanicum, 1419 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga. n Sunday, Oct. 16, 11-4, Holiday Gourd Making workshop—Kat High hosts Neshkinukat Master Artist Nadiya Littlewarrior for a beginners class. Find the spirit in your gourd and how to clean, decorate and enjoy a small gourd ornament or necklace. Open to 10 participants, ages 12 and up, first come, first served. Register at kiwenkikwe@yahoo.com. For more information: contact Kat at katcalls@ aol.com
SANTA MONICA
Santa
Our three-acre campus—SMC’s first in Malibu— includes a two-story educational building with dedicated science and computer labs, a 100-seat lecture hall with sloped seating for music and film, an art studio, open floor spaces for dance and yoga, general classrooms, a conference room, a community room, outdoor study spaces, and an interpretive center to tie into the rich and varied coastal features nearby. SMC will offer courses in Art, Biology, Creative Writing, Early Childhood Education, Psychology, and more!
SMC
Faculty Spotlight
Heather Lyle
Community Education Professor, Vocal Yoga
Heather Lyle is the creator of the Heather Lyle Vocal Yoga Method®and a certified Fitzmaurice Voicework®teacher for actors.
She is the author of the bestselling book Vocal Yoga, the Joy of Breathing, Singing and Sounding, which explores the deep roots of voice production and presents exercises that promote vocal freedom, resonance, and power. Heather has been teaching classes and workshops for SMC Community Education since 2008.
Visit smc.edu/malibu
5September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19
Events
SANTA
MONICA COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT BOARD OF TRUSTEES Dr. Louise Jaffe, Chair; Barry Snell, Vice Chair; Dr. Susan Aminoff; Dr. Nancy Greenstein; Dr. Margaret Quiñones-Perez; Rob Rader; Dr. Sion Roy; Catalina Fuentes Aguirre, Student Trustee; Kathryn E. Jeffery, Ph.D., Superintendent/President Santa Monica College, 1900 Pico Boulevard, Santa Monica, CA 90405
Monica College: Making Higher Education Affordable
will offer four types of classes at the Malibu Campus: Credit – Classes for credit that can be used toward an Associate degree or transfer to a four-year college. Noncredit – Short-term vocational and workforce preparation courses and certificates. Emeritus – Free noncredit and adult education courses specifically oriented to the interests of older adults. Community Education – Low-cost classes, seminars, and workshops.
COLLEGE MALIBU CAMPUS OPENING SPRING 2023
to learn more.
Getting To Know Your NOAA Weather Alert Radio
By Annemarie Donkin
The Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) and Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD) are continuing to distribute free National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) weather radios to L.A. County residents living in “Very High Fire Severity Zones.”
The radios are designed to literally “wake you up” in the middle of the night with alerts from fire to earthquakes in areas where communications can be a challenge due to little or no cell coverage and/or power outages. Locally, the radios are earmarked for residents of the Santa Monica Mountains region.
This includes the Cities of Agoura Hills, Calabasas, Hidden Hills, Malibu and Westlake
NOAA Alert Radio Quick Start Guide
All the preparation in the world won’t help us if we’re ambushed by an emergency.
By Jane Terjung and Bill Naylor
Getting alerted as fast and effectively as possible is an essential part of our survival safety net. Starting with our phones, there are several alerts we can subscribe to—see them listed here. In addition, landline phones are automatically subscribed to AlertLA, and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) are sent to any cell phone within a specific geographic region, including visitors to an area.
For more information on “How To Get Alerted,” janeterjung.org/GetAlerted
WHAT IF WE LOSE POWER OR WE’VE MUTED OUR PHONES? For years, folks lobbied for canyon-wide sirens to wake us if needed, and it never went anywhere. This year’s free NOAA Alert Radio is an improvement on this situation. Many of us got one from the County and some of us got one from Canyon SAGES. But anyone can buy their own: the same model or fancier versions that run on solar and/ or hand-cranked but make sure it’s a S.A.M.E (“Specific Area Message Encode”) brand ($92). amazon.com/dp/B07SXF87LJ
AN ALERT RADIO IS OUR PERSONAL SIREN. The NOAA Alert Radio serves to close an important gap in our emergency safety net. Its primary asset is its ability to wake us up in an emergency, especially if our home has lost power (as in the Woolsey Fire) and we may not be receiving any of the other phone alerts we have signed up for (AlertLA, MyShake, TCEP, Twitter, etc.) Also, many of us mute our phones at night and could sleep through those phone alerts.
BY PERSONAL, WE MEAN ALL OF L.A. COUNTY. Have you looked at a map lately? L.A. County is huge. For those who got their radios up and working in the early days, it alerted us to all the events, like the recent Castaic fire, and later when it screamed out a Flood-O-Rama Thunderstorm in the San Gabriel mountains. For folks with small children and freakable dogs, it can be a pain, but the powers that be are working on making the defined area smaller than the whole county. For now, if it’s a false alarm, just rejoice that it’s not in your backyard.
WHAT IT DOES NOT DO. It does not get AM/ FM stations. It cannot be used to call anyone else. It lives and breathes just to wake us up in an emergency. But what about the weather report or the message that comes in with an alert? It does have some information but it’s not the most useful source of local, detailed information.
BONUS TIP: IT WORKS BEST WITH A BUDDY RADIO. We added a bedside AM/FM radio ($10) that’s pre-tuned to KNX-AM 1070 so that we can quickly and easily check on the location of the L.A. County NOAA alert to see if there are any evacuations for our zone. Some folks tell us they’ll just use their car radio, but we’d rather stay inside (away from possible embers or earthquake hazards). If the alert is about the Outer Mongolia region of L.A. County, we plan to go back to sleep. amazon.com/dp/B09KBX1BHF
CARE & FEEDING of YOUR ALERT RADIO. Because we live in a canyon with hills and such, getting proper radio reception may be a challenge for some of us. To successfully receive NOAA Radio emergency alerts, setting your radio up in the right place is essential. This means two things: first, that the radio gets the signal, and second, that you can hear it.
SUCCESSFULLY SETTING UP YOUR RADIO
1. Find a good spot
• Get as close to your bedroom as possible
• Hit the Weather/Snooze button and listen for a strong weather report
• Find the closest electrical outlet (or buy an extension cord)
• If you fail, see below
2. Plug it in and keep it that way
• Batteries only last 6 hours (being actively used), or up to 3 days (waiting in standby for alerts).
3. Will it wake you up?
• It comes programmed for the “VOICE” Alert, an 8-second wee-waw-wee-waw (too wimpy for our ears)
• To hear the louder “TONE” Alert, a 3-minute wake the dead siren, see “Alert Test” on page 6 in the manual.
• Need it louder (like us)? Switch to “TONE”: See page 5 in the manual.
• Bill and I switched to the “TONE” siren since our radio was far away from our bedroom.
• The VOICE siren is immediately followed by the current 3-minute weather broadcast, which we could not understand from afar.
• Once alerted and awake, we can hit
Village—plus Topanga Canyon, Sunset Mesa, Monte Nido, Seminole Springs, Malibou Lake and all other unincorporated communities within the County.
Additionally, through a grant from Southern California Edison, several hundred radios were designated for the Canyon SAGES.
“As of Sept. 22, L.A. County has distributed about 2,000 NOAA Weather Alert Radios throughout the entire Santa Monica Mountains region, and approximately 600 of those were to residents of Topanga Canyon,” wrote Megan Currier, Community Services Liaison, Los Angeles County Fire Department, Division 7.
“However, we are not done handing the radios out. We will be scheduling more distribution events within the next couple of months, and I will be sending out an email to everyone who has
Weather/Snooze to silence the siren and then again to hear the current emergency broadcast.
• You can also add “pillow shakers” that are available free from the County: contact Canyon Sages or Megan Currier.
4. Confirm it’s working
• Every Sunday check to see if it’s flashing and beeping.
• If it is flashing and beeping, then it is telling you it failed the Wednesday weekly signal test, which tells you to find a place with better reception or add an antenna.
• Having Problems?
• You can buy a $25 antenna.
• We bought one you can try before you buy to own Caution: antennas often don’t solve the problem. (amazon.com/ dp/B00009V2YP/ref=cm_sw_r_api_i_ K2VF5VNAAJV6AQ373N02_0)
LONG-TERM MAINTENANCE
• Once a year, replace the batteries.
• Dusting, while optional, sends a subtle message of emergency superiority.
PROGRAMMING YOUR RADIO
1. If you got a free one at a giveaway event
• It should be all programmed and ready to go once you insert batteries and plug it in.
• Maybe change the Alert Type from “VOICE” to “TONE” (louder & longer): see page 5 in the manual.
• If you’re a perfectionist who also wants the time set, see page 1 in the manual.
2. If you bought your own radio
• See the manual for programming
• For “CHANNEL,” Topanga and Calabasas work best with Channel 7.
• Malibu and Palisades might be best using Channels 7 or 4.
3. POWER OUTAGE BLACKOUT ALARM
• If nothing works, we have a band-aid for an early alert solution—get a Power-Outage Blackout Alarm.
• In wild and wooly Topanga and some parts of Malibu, a middle-of-the-night power outage may be the first sign of disaster and if other parts of our safety net fail, it may be all that wakes us up.
• We found the *cutest* little gadget ($20) that just plugs into an electrical outlet near our bed. If the power fails, it screams out just like a smoke alarm. amazon.com/ Reliance-Control-Corporation-MfrPartNoTHP207M/dp/B018A30T8Q.
6 September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19 NEWS
registered for a radio but not yet picked it up. There are about 450 Topanga residents who have registered and not picked up their radio.”
The distribution events will also be posted on the registration link at: https:// bit.ly/LACORadio7.
Plug and Play: Your NOAA radio is already pre-programmed for all L.A. County weather, fire and earthquake alerts that could result in imminent danger. All you have to do is install the three AAA batteries (included), set the time. and plug it in. For more information, go to the recorded online training at ready.lacounty.gov/emergencynotifications.
“One purpose of the weather radio program is to send out warnings and alerts using as many modes as possible,” said Jeanne O’Donnell, CEO of the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management (OEM).
“We have other alerts that rely on cellphone reception and the internet; this system uses radio frequencies. Having a weather radio in your home is like a personal alarm; it is one more way to receive urgent messages. Since the radios use batteries as a backup, you will still get alerts when there’s no power. `ning systems. Anyone can purchase a weather radio; they are widely available and used throughout the U.S.”
Topanga’s Role: James Grasso of TCEP and Co-chair of the Topanga Emergency Management Task Force, and Bryce Anderson of TCEP played major roles in pushing for the radio program in answer to the perpetual question, how to alert people in Topanga and the Santa Monica Mountains in emergencies.
Ultimately, the NOAA weather radio was
the answer, because of the possibility of a Public Service Power Shutoff (PSPS) where utilities may temporarily turn off power to specific areas to reduce the risk of fires caused by electric infrastructure.
“The County finally saw this was low-hanging fruit,” Grasso said after he had conducted research on what model radio would work best to alert people. “We pushed and pushed and were able to get some federal monies to make this happen, and came up with the idea that is ultimately a relatively easy solution to a difficult problem.”
Grasso acknowledged that the alerts are not just for communities such as Topanga, but for L.A. County as a whole, which means you’ll also receive alerts that do not pertain to our area.
“Nevertheless,” he said, “that might not be a bad thing. What I would say is to ignore the out-of-area alerts but stay aware that we are in fire season and use
it as an early warning system.”
Topangans Bill Naylor and Jane Terjung helped program about 100 of the radios and acknowledge the role others played in the distribution.
“The free Alert Radios were from an L.A. County grant and a separate SCE Grant to Canyon SAGES,” wrote Terjung. “Megan Currier, our helpful Fire Department Community Liaison, worked tirelessly to help distribute all over L.A. County and was flexible about allowing neighbors to pick up for each other.
Susan Clark of Topanga Animal Rescue home-delivered about 50 to our vulnerable residents (aided by Velvet Marshall and her husband, Chris Chavez).”
Naylor and Terjung now have a new webpage full of Alert Radio information, plus the entire “How Two Get Alerted” topic in detail: janeterjung.org/GetAlerted.
Also refer to the sidebar to this article: “NOAA Alert Radio Quick Start Guide.”
About the Office of Emergency Management: Regarding Topanga and the aftermath of fires and disasters, the OEM has the responsibility of comprehensively planning for, responding to, and recovering from large-scale emergencies and disasters that impact Los Angeles County.
OEM’s work is accomplished in partnership and collaboration with first-response agencies, as well as non-profit, private sector, and government partners.
Los Angeles County has established various disaster preparedness programs to assist individuals and businesses to prepare for emergencies. For more information: lacounty.gov/emergency.
High in the Mountains of Topanga Canyon
This new construction, semi industrial, architectural build awaits with stunning canyon views as far as the eye can see Designed by renowned architect Bruce Bolander, AIA, this 3 story home features 3 bedrooms, 2 of which include en suite baths, and 3 bathrooms, 12' ceilings with 9' doors throughout create voluminous space inside the home, rivaling the mountains that surround it! Additionally, in an ode to simpler times, this extraordinary home features numerous exterior "sleeping" porches to capture the essence of life up in the mountains of Topanga Canyon.
7September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19 Marcus Miceli, Broker DRE# 01439068 (310) 741 8342 Nestled
www.20720medleylane.com Just Listed! $3,200,000 Initiate Realty, Inc.
PHOTO BY ANNEMARIE DONKIN
Free NOAA weather radios continue to be distributed to L.A. County residents living in “Very High Fire Severity Zones.”
Diagnosed at Sixty My
By Kait Leonard
My doctor wore the expression of someone with a problem to solve. He was looking at me.
I froze. Prior to seeing his furrowed brow, I had no more than mild curiosity about the outcome of the questionnaires I’d completed, designed to determine whether or not I had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. I was 60 years old, held multiple graduate degrees, and had a successful career working with people with special needs no less. Kids get diagnosed with ADHD, usually after driving parents and teachers completely bonkers for years. I only agreed to be tested to make my doctor drop the subject.
“Your tests are very clear, but let me ask you some questions,” he said.
Did I get in trouble for talking in class as a kid? Did I have frequent angry outbursts in elementary school? Did I struggle with promiscuity or addiction as a teen? Do I start but not finish things? Do I have a history of interrupting people? Do I get anxious in social groups?
“Does anyone answer ‘No’ to these?” I asked.
I left the office that day with a prescription for Adderall, which I didn’t take right away. I still didn’t believe I had ADHD, a neurodevelopmental disorder people are born with. How could I go sixty years without the diagnosis? I spent hours considering the questions my doctor had asked. As I did, memories surfaced.
“You have such a big mouth!” Mrs. Phillips, my fifth-grade teacher, said loud enough for the whole class to hear. (It was a different time back then. Teachers didn’t have to even pretend to be nice.)
“We do not slap our friends!” Mrs. Garcia yelled that summer after my friend, Chrissie, ran home with my handprint on her cheek.
“Do you know why you’ve been sent to see me,” the principal asked, when I got summoned in sixth grade. (I had a pretty good idea, but shook my head “no” because I wasn’t stupid.)
“Ray said you hit him in the head with your lunch box. Is that true?”
It was.
As stories vied for my attention, I tried to convince myself that these were simply the behaviors of a strong-willed kid. After all, I haven’t slapped anyone in a long time. Then memories from my many marriages (another sign of ADHD, I would later learn) began streaming across my mental screen like a series of B-movies. Shattering a phone against the wall, breaking a stack of vinyl records in the middle of the street, jumping out of a moving car during an argument—yes, I did all of these things and so much more.
I took my first Adderall at eight o’clock in the morning, two days after the doctor’s visit. And the world slowed down. Or at least my brain did.
Adderall is an amphetamine, an upper, speed, but it calmed the chaos in my head. Truth be told, I’ve always loved speed, every kind of it. Who knew I actually needed it?
THE NEED FOR DOPAMINE
In the seventies, I took black beauties and dexies, both amphetamines. In the eighties, I did my share of cocaine but stopped using it because it put me to sleep. (That should have been a hint, but no one knew about adult ADHD back then). I craved other kinds of speed, too. I gunned my car like a drag racer (at least as much as a Ford Pinto would allow) and dated boys who drove motorcycles so fast they had to lay them almost flat to take turns. I talk fast and walk fast, and my plate is always empty before everyone else’s.
Given all this, it’s probably no surprise that since high school people have called me things like “wild” and “crazy.” Eventually, I embraced the labels, thinking of myself as crazy in that free-spirited way. Now I have a new label— neurodivergent. There are times when I’d prefer to go back to crazy. The truth is my brain is different from typical brains. And since my diagnosis, I’ve learned that so many of my pre-prescription behaviors were signs that I needed a dopamine hit. People with ADHD don’t have enough of this feelgood hormone, and speed is one of the many options for boosting it.
In addition to being impulsive, moving fast, and taking amphetamines as a younger person, the need to score dopamine led to many other troubling and dangerous behaviors. For example, I’ve struggled with disordered eating for most of my life. In general, I lack an off-switch. I’ll eat until food stacks up into my esophagus forcing me to vomit. And woe to the person who tries to get between me and sugar. I’ve made full meals of chocolate cake, Nutter Butters, and ice cream.
I’ve yo-yo balanced my weight over the years with the help of diet pills and credit cards. Once I see the scale tipping my upper limit, I put myself on a starvation diet and head for the mall. Both eating and shopping provide the fix of dopamine I’m craving. And both have done serious damage to my life. I declared bankruptcy when I was in my twenties and have paid so much interest to credit card companies that I could have bought a house or two if I’d saved it.
A LIFETIME OF NEGATIVE MESSAGES
Scoring dopamine in self-destructive ways isn’t the only downside of untreated ADHD. Some researchers have estimated that by the ripe old age of ten, children
with ADHD receive 20,000 more negative messages than their neurotypical peers. This might seem impossible, but think back to elementary school.
Every person remembers that kid, usually a boy but certainly not always, who couldn’t sit still, wouldn’t shut up, never completed work, blurted out while others were speaking, got into fights. Remember him? Now picture the teacher’s face. (I see you Mrs. Phillips.) Unfortunately, the displeased expressions, reprimands and punishments don’t come only from teachers. The face of disapproval followed that kid home and to church, to the grocery store, out with his friends, to the dentist’s office, the library, the hair salon, and everywhere else. I know. I was that kid.
All kinds of things happen when that much negativity stalks you. One of the most common responses to a lifetime of being wrong is to develop a deep fear of other people (now known as social phobia). For me, years of eye rolls and worse created such a deep fear of the inevitable social alienation that I drank. And drank. A lot. It didn’t stop the negative judgments from others, but it gave me the courage to show up.
Thinking back to the time of self-medicating conjures some of my most painful memories. I drank way too much to remember full plot lines, but I have a head full of nightmare fragments. The work party where I fell over the back of a sofa, red stilettos sticking straight up in the air. The dance party where I drank so much in the parking lot that when my first partner led me into a spin, I puked on his chest. The images go on and on.
Every drunken experience confirmed to me that I was a loser, and each
time I humiliated myself or hurt someone else, I would swear off alcohol. But I couldn’t go into groups without it. A couple of shots of vodka provided the fuck-it buzz I needed to face those critical expressions.
I quit drinking long before the Adderall prescription. It wasn’t difficult. I had never been addicted to the booze, I just needed it to numb the fear. I replaced vodka with loneliness, opting out of group events almost completely. I even made excuses to get out of most one-on-one visits with friends. I was tired of trying to fit in. And I was sad.
LOOSENING THE STRAIGHTJACKET OF SHAME
My diagnosis, not my medication, began to shift how I thought about myself. It didn’t happen overnight. But recognizing that I’m wired differently from other people loosened the straightjacket of shame. I threw myself into ADHD research. I wanted to understand everything I could about my brain.
I learned that people with this condition don’t read social cues well, so they often act in ways other people find odd or inappropriate. We blurt out whatever comes to mind, even when others are talking, because we have impaired executive functioning. We engage in all kinds of risky behavior, sometimes because we can’t think through the possible consequences, other times because we crave the thrill aka, dopamine hit. Recent research suggests
8 September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19
ADHD
ADHD Journey
that we take rejection harder than a typical person would (rejection sensitivity disorder), which in my case, caused profound social phobia. And we selfmedicate, self-isolate, and develop low self-esteem.
It’s been a few years since my diagnosis. Adderall settles my brain and helps me focus, giving me the relative mental clarity I need to get through my days with less fear that something disastrous will happen. I’ve had some time to review my life, focusing on the many humiliations, crazy choices, and dangerous behaviors, and I’ve been able to forgive myself to some extent. But my healing isn’t complete, and I don’t think it ever will be.
I wonder if people might have been kinder if they’d known I actually was doing my best. I try to imagine Mrs. Phillips gently explaining to fifth-grade-me that I should let other people finish talking before taking my turn. She smiles and nods in reassurance. I apologize, and she gives me a thumbs-up. I beam with pride and bask in the warm glow of acceptance. Right? Probably not.
I’ve worked in special education for years, and I see the challenges kids with ADHD and other neurodevelopmental disorders face. It’s better now, absolutely. For one thing, today’s students are protected by law and schools are required to provide certain accommodations in general education classrooms. But laws don’t dictate people’s faces and tones of voice. In spite of the steps forward, neurodivergent kids (and adults) are still expected to contort themselves to fit into molds that weren’t made for them. Standards based on neurotypicality still define success. And “disruptive” behavior still gets punished.
ADHD IS AGE-INCLUSIVE
In some ways, it’s worse for all of us diagnosed as adults. Most people never consider that an adult has ADHD. And we didn’t grow up being taught to ask for the accommodations we need. It’s even worse for women, who tend to present differently than their male counterparts, and for senior adults who get mislabeled as displaying signs of cognitive decline. We have a long way to go in our understanding and acceptance of neurodivergence.
While things aren’t perfect, having the diagnosis helps. The medication helps. Perhaps most importantly, understanding my brain has propelled me back into the world because I’m committed to being as public as I can be about having ADHD. I hope adults who recognize something in my story will get assessed. A diagnostic label won’t bring back the years of struggling to fit in, and it won’t make everyone accept our differences now. Let’s face it, there will always be the Mrs. Phillipses of the world. But the diagnosis does shift how we perceive ourselves. And that’s worth so much MORE.
Originally published on lunchticket.org and reprinted with permission of the author.
9September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19
Top: “ADHD,” By Tara Winstead.
Above: “Human Brain: Please do not pick up or shake” by Hatchibombotar, is marked with CC BY 2.0.
Left: Umbrella Project 2018 “Neurodiversity Autism” by printkick is marked with CC BY 2.0.
at TECS
By TECS News Team
The new co-chairs of the Topanga Elementary Charter School (TECS) Science Committee have pledged to uphold the school’s position as the “Beacon on the Hill” of LAUSD by using the unique canyon campus and skills of engaged parents.
TECS parents Molly Lynn and Jessica Williamson will lead the Science Committee this year, stepping into the role previously shared by Kent Hill and Alisa Land, who have devoted immeasurable hours and energy as the committee’s co-chairs since 2017.
Science, along with the arts, are the two pillars of the TECS charter, in keeping with the interests of much of Topanga’s wider community. The new leaders of the Science Committee, a vital subcommittee of the school’s fundraising booster club, Topanga Enrichment Programs (TEP), are committed to building upon the hard work that has previously established the school as a leading light for environmental science education and conservation, and engaging children with the natural world using the five acres of oak woodland and nature trails on the campus.
“This year, we’re excited to welcome a whole new science committee of parents that are enthusiastic about making the school’s science program and enrichments the best they can be,” said Lynn, a communications and environmental programs expert and new Science Committee co-chair. “A new science program, agreed upon by leadership at the end of the last school year, aims to encourage intellectual exploration, building critical thinking skills so that students can use data to solve problems, and engage in the stewardship of environmental resources,”.The committee of parent volunteers will support the work of Jeffrey Esparza, the new science enrichment teacher who started at TECS in August. Esparza, whose position is funded by TEP using donations from parents, will be splitting his instructional time between lab work in his specialist science classroom, and learning through nature outdoors.
The skills of the new generation of local parents are being tapped to add additional science events to the school calendar. Longstanding highlights like the Science Fair and Raptor Day will return, along with weekly science hikes for students. Alongside these existing events, some fresh offerings being created by the new committee members include rattlesnake awareness, a stargazing evening for budding astronomers, and special excursions to explore the tide pools at Topanga Beach. Building on an existing initiative, it is also hoped that more children from inner-city schools can visit Topanga Elementary in the future to experience the campus and unique learning opportunities.
Rectifying the Loss of Oak Woodlands
The new Science Committee has been formed at a particularly critical time for the stewardship of the
school’s outside spaces, with members of the local community currently demanding that LAUSD rectify mistakes made during brush clearance at the campus ordered by the District in Spring 2020, when protected oaks and native pollinator habitats were removed.
“We recognize Topanga Elementary’s potential as a “Shining Beacon on the Hill,” said Williamson, new committee co-chair and director of the environmental conservation organization, World Information Transfer. “We are committed to preserving our environmental resources, creating more green spaces for children, and maintaining the capacity to create a flagship model that can have a big impact throughout LAUSD.”
Williamson made proposals to LAUSD executive Mark Hovatter at September’s Topanga Town Council meeting to ensure the school’s precious natural environment is protected in the future. “We aim to create a conservation easement, where we put together a committee of local stakeholders who are experts in the native and environmental landscape, who LAUSD would need to consult before doing any future construction or improvements to the campus,” she said.
Butterfly Day was “Hugely Successful”
Previous co-chairs Hill and Land, who were among the organizers of the hugely successful Butterfly Day among countless other local events and initiatives, have been passing on their wisdom and experience to this year’s committee as they hand over the reins. All proceeds from the fundraiser benefit science education at TECS and the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.
“It is important to note that we represent just one link in a long chain of parents who brought science
enrichment activities to kids of Topanga,” said Hill. “Misty and Jared Vest, Deborah and Greg Grether, Hannah Wear, Richard Brody, Rosi Dagit are a few names of parent alumni that showed us the way. We are thus particularly happy to see a new generation of very capable parents taking the baton as engaged and enthusiastic supporters of science enrichment, and bringing science activities to children at the school.”
Parents or community members with ideas for the Science Committee should email tepboard@ topangaelementary.com.
TECS Students Tackle Topanga Beach Cleanup
TECS students and their families collected more than 150 pounds of trash from Topanga Beach to mark California Coastal Cleanup Day. Dangerous waste from tiny Styrofoam pieces to large bicycle wheels, were collected by the team of more than 100 members of the school community on September 17. The group recorded data on the trash collected using Ocean Conservancy’s Clean Swell App, thanks to parent Elisa Clay, mom of fourth grader Ella and first grader Vylet.
Flagship Fundraisers
Coming up this month are two of the school’s flagship fundraisers. On October 7, students take part in the annual Coyote Run, where they complete sponsored laps of the school track to raise money for TEP. On October 22, the highly anticipated Halloween Carnival at the Topanga Community Center returns, featuring music, games, and plenty of frights.
Money raised by TEP goes towards paying for resources that LAUSD doesn’t fund, including class aides and the Science, Art, and Physical Education teachers. To donate: topangaelementary.org/donate.
10 September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19
Schoolhouse Scoop Science Committee Evolves
PHOTO BY MARTINA PARADISO
Jorge Camil and his son, first grader Eli, with the trash they collected at the Topanga Beach Cleanup.
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The Bong Wizard, Part II
By Miles Erickson
In the previous issue, I left off in the middle of a party off Fernwood. We now pick up about four hours later, late into the night as everyone is heading home. Some girl had offered Spenser and me a ride. I don’t remember her name but I remember she had a homemade jean jacket with a picture of Charles Manson on the back and “Yaddy” written underneath.
Yaddy hopped in through the passenger-side door, next to her boyfriend, Davis, who was driving. Spenser and I filled up the back seats and the Wizard caught a ride in the open-air trunk. It was pouring rain, so much so that we were only a couple inches of water off from hoisting sail.
As we turned down Old Topanga Road, to drop off the Wizard, the car rocked back and forth as he tried to settle into the crammed caboose.
“Hey what’re these?” The Wizard asked, tugging on a theater cloth as a mysterious noise came from underneath. The Wizard pulled the cloth away to reveal a mysterious box underneath. Suddenly, the car was filled with screaming filled with horrible fear and madness. The Wizard was losing his mind, demanded to be let out of the car, despite the torrential downpour.
I turned around to see what were multiple large, clear plastic bins full of writhing insects filling the trunk. I can’t print any of what was said in the moment because it was mostly expletives and curses. Once everybody was relatively calm, I made an inquiry as to the nature of the boxes.
“They’re Madagascar hissing cockroaches,” said Davis.
“He breeds them,” Yaddy chimed in, sounding very proud of her man, with an inflection as if she’d said, “He’s a pediatric surgeon.”
For those who aren’t familiar with the party scene, I can assure you there is no bigger buzz kill than a box of 500 Madagascar hissing cockroaches. And there were at least two boxes from what I remember.
“Why do you breed them?” Spenser asked.
“For work,” Davis replied, “Ya know, a lot of movies need animals for productions.”
Honestly, the lengths people will go to avoid working at at Home Depot or something.
“Okay, yeah, that makes sense for like dogs and stuff but how many movies could possibly need two boxes of cockroaches?” I asked.
“Well it’s not just movies, its TV shows, too,” Davis answered defensively.
If you never rode in a car with 1,000 bugs shoved into Tupperware
containers, I can attest that you suddenly become acutely aware of every single pothole in the road. Considering how wet the ground was, the risk of hydroplaning was relatively high but there was a bigger risk. The car only made it to Cali Camp before it broke down. Steam rose from the car’s hood as we slowed to a crawl in the Topanga Pet Resort parking lot. It was 3 a.m. and raining hard.
That area of Old Topanga is geographically the lowest, situated in a depression between two hills and was quite flooded. Opening my door, I spilled out onto the watery ground, wet up to my ankles.
“Come on,” I said. “There”s a gymnastics tent up that hill on camp property. We can sit out the rain there. I can call my mom to come get us in the morning.” If you or a child had ever been enrolled in Cali Camp, you may know what I’m talking about. The tent is massive, the size of a house, with gym mat floors and various foam structures making up its inner architecture.
Davis popped the trunk, grabbing his Tupperware boxes. “I’m not leaving them” he said. It was at this point I got a good look at the boxes and noticed they were filled to the absolute brim.
Inside the tent there where a couple of yoga hammocks, blankets that hang from the ceiling where people suspend themselves and swing around. The Wizard ran over to one and immediately started swinging around, while Davis and Yaddy sat on the ground under him with their roach boxes. Spenser and I laid flat on the mats, soaking wet and counting the minutes until the rain died out and the sun came up.
It only took about a minute before
The Wizard, hanging upside down and swinging like a pendulum, sideswiped one of the boxes with his forehead, spilling its nightmarish contents everywhere.
I don’t know if you, the reader, have ever seen a grown man crying on an aerial yoga hammock, but it’s an image that becomes seared into your brain forever.
“Noooo,” cried Davis. “You have to help me grab them!”
The Wizard swung back and forth, frantically trying to free himself as his hair picked up more bugs with each swipe. Davis berating his girlfriend as she tried to grab up all the bugs. Calling them seemingly by their individual names as she worked. “Come on, Rosie, come here Charles!”
“Spenser.” I turned to my friend. “I wanna go home.”
So we took our chances, setting out into the pouring rain, seven miles away from home, never to see any of those people again. Madagascar hissing roaches are about the size of a fist and are an invasive species. Seven years later, I’m still waiting for the day when I stumble upon one while walking through Old Canyon.
Long Distance Listening Party, Vol. 17
This playlist is available on Spotify. Search my user name, Mileserickson-354
• Speedway, Morrissey
• 100% Endurance, Yard Act
• Prank Calls, Kelley Stoltz
• Places of Montezuma, Grinderman
• Killer Parties, The Hold Steady
Speedway, Morrissey. I never thought that I would have two
separate points of reference when discussing artists using chainsaws as an instrument. If you wanna hear a good example of this, check out Death Metal artist Mick Gordon.
If you wanna hear a bad example of this, listen to “Speedway.” The reason it doesn’t work in this song is because it’s completely at odds with the musical aesthetic. Even if it makes sense poetically, as it pertains to the lyrics, it’s not diegetic* and at that point, it’s pretty much a glorified sound effect.
In Mick Gordons “Rip and Tear,” the chainsaw is run through a synthey pedal and is melodically in tune with the rest of the song, providing structure by acting in place of a rhythm guitar. “Speedway” only features an actual chainsaw once, at the beginning, though I get the impression that the crunchy synth is supposed to register with the audience as being a chainsaw. Anyway, at the end it is a good song, and this is my favorite Morrissey album.
Prank Calls, Kelley Stoltz. If you don’t know what the difference between Alt Rock and Indie Rock, Alt Rock is your late post-Grunge, early 2000 bands like Red Hot Chili Peppers, White Stripes, Pixies etc. Indie Rock would be your early 2010 acts like Fitz, Grouplove, Modest Mouse etc. “Prank Calls” definitely fits the mold of the latter. Howling telephone vocals over marching upbeat piano riffs sort of defines the entire genre.
Places of Montezuma, Grinderman
I can’t really write about this song without referencing The Rolling Stones and Beggars Banquet which Grinderman is clearly influenced by on this song. The lyrics are a little more early ’80s New Wave, with Grinderman doing his Depeche Mode deep vocals. The song sort of half-asses a chorus, replacing potential lyrics with a very brief melodic release and some vocal “ooos” and “aaahs.”
*Common examples of diegetic music include music playing on the radio, overhead music playing in a cafe, as well as any music played by musicians that are performing in a scene. Often, a music editor will add filters to diegetic music to give the effect of how a character would be hearing the music in their environment.
Miles Erickson is a recent graduate of CalArts, published author, and currently enrolled in a prestigious, four-year, student loan repayment program. Long Distance Listening Party’s vague intention is to discuss topics framed in the context of what I’m currently listening to.
11September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19 TheCanyonChronicle.com LONG DISTANCE LISTENING PARTY
Rude Interruptions
This Is the Democratic Moment
By Joel Bellman
In less than six weeks, Americans will be casting ballots in one of the most momentous mid-term elections in my lifetime. The conventional (and historically grounded) wisdom is that the party in the White House always fares poorly, an inevitable combination perhaps of disenchantment within the incumbent president’s party, and vengeful opportunism within the opposing party.
The political press, after doing their best to hype the drama and conflict throughout the campaign, will then complacently default to some variation of, “The American people seem to prefer a divided government, refusing to concentrate too much power in the hands of one party, invoking the checks and balances, just as the Framers intended.” Then, following a decent interval, they will resume complaining about the partisan gridlock paralyzing Washington and frustrating the will of the voters.
Today’s political situation is too perilous for that familiar template of coverage-as-usual. American democracy is facing an internal threat and an existential crisis like we haven’t seen in many years, if ever.
I appreciate Joe Biden’s recent speech defending democracy, but it was almost two years too late. He should have been talking about it back in the fall of 2020 during the post-election months, when the
Trump forces were trying to steal back the presidency through spurious legal challenges, undermining public confidence in voting procedures, bullying election officials, fielding fake elector slates, while pressuring the vice president to reject the legitimate elector slates, and ultimately inciting a violent insurrection to block congressional certification of the Electoral College vote.
I’m a lifelong Democrat, so you may be inclined to dismiss what I
less than repudiation at the polls as a mandate to press on with their suicide mission to promote Trumpism at any cost. Make no mistake: if they retake Congress, they’re empowered to thwart the rest of the Biden presidency and virtually ensure the Democrats’ defeat in 2024, ushering in the return of Trumpism if not Trump himself.
A few principled conservatives have been honest enough to admit that simply defeating Trump, the man, won’t be enough to eradicate
Republican Party. Trump isn’t an aberration of the Republican Party; he is the Republican Party in a purified form.” (Stuart Stevens, “It Was All a Lie,” 2020)
Soon to be former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming) offers the most striking recent example of unreserved repentance. Along with her Republican colleague on the House select Jan. 6 investigating committee, Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Illinois), she has been one of the most vocal and eloquent critics of Trump and the alarming authoritarian turn his Republican Party has taken. Last October, Kinzinger announced his intended retirement this year, and today speaks with the serenity of a man who has put electoral politics behind him.
say as blind partisanship but listen to what prominent former Republicans have to say:
“It’s not only that Trump has to lose, but that all his enablers have to lose. We have to collectively, in essence, burn down the Republican Party. We have to level them because if there are survivors, if there are people who weather this storm, they will do it again.”(Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin, 8/25/19)
This is why these mid-terms are so important. Republican leaders and Trump cultists (who are functionally indistinguishable) will take anything
the scourge of his movement, a toxic brew of bigotry, corruption, aggressive ignorance, incompetence, democratic disenfranchisement and authoritarianism tipping into outright fascism.
“The nation’s downward spiral into acrimony and sporadic anarchy has had many causes much larger than the small man who is the great exacerbator of them…. The measures necessary for restoration of national equilibrium are many and will be protracted far beyond his removal. One such measure must be the removal of those in Congress who, unlike the sycophantic mediocrities who cosset him in the White House, will not disappear magically.” (Washington Post columnist George Will, 6/1/20)
George Will has been among the most prominent Washington intellectual champions of Republican Party conservatism for nearly 50 years. He is such a fixture in the Washington establishment that he secretly helped Ronald Reagan prep for his debates with Jimmy Carter, using briefing materials stolen from the Carter campaign, while offering nominally independent commentary in his Washington Post column and in TV interviews, only conceding 25 years later that it had been “inappropriate.” It takes a hell of a lot to sever a guy like that from his Republican roots.
While a few prominent Republicans have rejected Trump but still wax nostalgic for the days of supposedly “reasonable” conservative Republicans like Reagan, Stuart Stevens, a former Republican campaign consultant, is having none of it. After some deep soul-searching, this veteran operative has emerged as a very public penitent. Stevens’ most recent book opens with a stark confession: “I have no one to blame but myself. I believed. That’s where it all started to go wrong.” He goes on to write:
“There is nothing strange or unexpected about Donald Trump. He is the logical conclusion of what the Republican Party became over the last fifty or so years, a natural product of the seeds of race, self-deception, and anger that became the essence of the
But Cheney doubled down on her criticism knowing that it was certain political suicide in her re-election bid. Last month, after her landslide defeat in this year’s primary, she told a TV interviewer:
“I feel sad about where my party is. I feel sad about the way that too many of my colleagues have responded to what I think is a great moral test and challenge of our time, a great moment to determine whether or not people are going to stand up on behalf of the democracy and on behalf of our republic. And so, it does make me sad that so many people have failed the test.” (Rep. Liz Cheney, 8/19/22)
William Kristol, son of the prominent conservative intellectual and journalist Irving Kristol, and a conservative movement figure who served as Vice-President Dan Quayle’s chief of staff and later promoted Sarah Palin’s vice-presidential candidacy, is another early and ferocious critic of Trump and Trumpism who has abandoned the Republican Party. In a Washington Post interview earlier this month, he said:
“You can’t overestimate how much damage the capitulation of conservative and Republican elites has done. Trump by himself succeeding was bad. The Republican Party going along with Trump— and the conservative establishment legitimating and rationalizing and enabling Trump—created the very dangerous situation we’re now in…. [I]f we don’t have two reasonably healthy parties, the unhealthy party has to be defeated.” (Bill Kristol, former Republican, 9/6/22)
These conservative former Republicans have it right. There is no possible rapprochement with political adversaries who reject the most fundamental principles of democratic government. Two weeks ago, the New York Times reported that, following Trump’s lead, at least a dozen Republican candidates for governor or U.S. senator refused to commit to honoring the election results should they lose.
Our choice, therefore, is clear: either we burn to the ground today’s Republican Party, or we watch today’s Republican Party burn to the ground our democracy.
12 September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19
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ALL THINGS
Car Culture’s New Chapter
By Paula LaBrot
Los Angeles is the car culture capitol of the country. It is, literally, built into the city. If you drive down Wilshire Boulevard and study the buildings of the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s, you will find the storefront windows laid out closer to the ground than in other cities, so drivers could ‘”window shop” as they cruised up and down the street.
LA’s freeways were once viewed by futurists as the epitome of innovation and engineering genius, according to Colin Marshall, author of “A Los Angeles Primer.” Reyner Banham, a Los Angeles architectural critic, wrote glowingly about the freeways, ranking them as “among the greater works of Man.”
But there remained those pesky nuances that the freeway people skimmed over in their hurry to build out the future. Nuances that lined the pockets of the automotive industry and destroyed the public transportation infrastructure systems that were already built. Today, the current rage for electric cars has emerged as the darling of the car culture. In an executive order, Governor Newsom has called for elimination of new internal combustion passenger vehicles by 2035.
It is, however, important to think through technologies like electric cars, because they come with a lot of infrastructure investment and permanency that could squelch other, possibly better, possibilities.
A Little History—“Show Me the Money”
Just as Mulholland and his developer cohorts made fortunes from diverting Owens Valley water (paid for by citizens of the City of Los Angeles) to the undeveloped Valley where they had large land holdings (re-watch Chinatown), so corrupt city officials, business interests and land speculators laid out the transportation plans for roads and freeways in Los Angeles.
James Kushmer writes in “A Tale of Three Cities” that Henry Huntington and friends built miles of track for the Pacific Electric Company’s Red Car network of trolleys and buses that covered over 1,100 miles of the region, connecting neighborhoods and communities. By buying rural lands, building railway networks, and reselling land plots to individuals, Huntington fueled the horizontal growth known as urban sprawl, also referred to as “Los Angelization.”
Bill Dotson, writing for the USC Digital Library, explains how the fate of the Red Cars was inextricable from LA’s postwar car culture. “The
Red Cars were inconvenient and did not run along many of LA’s urban neighborhoods. They did not take into account the metropolis that Los Angeles would eventually become. Cars became cheaper and more plentiful. Starting in 1947 and into the 1950s, LA built and expanded its freeways and organized its streets and other features to better support the car and personal, rather than public transportation,” Dotson wrote.
Los Angeles urban planners jumped into freeway development, spurred on by the usual special interest groups and financed by gas taxes levied on the public.
“One of the leading advocates to freeway development was Harry Chandler, the publisher and owner of the Los Angeles Times . Chandler, who owned large amounts of stocks in automobile industries, used his paper to promote the automobile…,” notes Jovanni Perez, who writes eloquently about the ruthless, racist community displacements of working-class immigrant communities who lived along the planned freeway routes but had no political influence. If you had money, the route went around you. If you had no money or influence, the route went through you.
Over the years, as more people came to LA, more cars came to LA. Traffic jammed. LA got smog. Engine emissions became a problem. Air quality control boards were established. The need for cleaner fuels emerged.
Future Fuels
Electric vehicles are one way to reduce carbon emissions but there are big eco-downsides in their production, maintenance, and disposal. There are other eco-friendly technologies as well that can use existing roads and engines.
• Natural gas vehicles run very clean and require no big infrastructure adjustment; the United States is loaded with natural gas. Not only is it clean, it is cheap and readily available.
• BioNGV or Biomethane is an energy obtained from organic waste. Many cities today use biomethane for their public transportation vehicles.
• Hydrogen cars’ only emission is water, but, at this point, the processes used to obtain the hydrogen in a usable form produce
The Dutch Lightyear 1 solar car can go 450 miles on a single charge.
either CO2 or use toxic products and metals harmful to the planet.
• Biofuels are fuels produced from biomass or green waste, e.g., plants, cereals, agricultural waste, and can be used as an energy source in vehicles. Ethanol comes from vegetable resources like beets, wheat or corn and produces 75% less greenhouse gas than gasoline.
• The Dutch Lightyear 1 solar car,
a very long-range car, can go 450 miles on a single charge.
• Piston engine cars can be powered by nitrogen.
All these technologies have kinks to work out, but scientists and engineers are closing in on solutions.
Emerging Technologies
Future energy technologies are on the cusp of refinement and efficacy. I could give you a list of new battery technologies about to pop that would blow your mind. Believe me, lithium batteries, mostly produced in China, are the floppy disks of future fuels.
The changes are coming fast and furiously. Letting the government choose which future fuel will be the winner now is not a good idea; it just makes a few people and energy corporations uber-rich and sticks the public with permanent infrastructure we may not want next week.
And the bill! Our grids are not ready for, or capable of this kind of sea change yet. Let things emerge.
Remember how computers were all wired and not very portable? Remember how fast all the advances happened? How fast we went from analog to digital? From floppy disk to jump drive? There are so many technologies closing in on real solutions to eco-friendly fuel. Let’s not stifle the competition and get stuck hard-wired to a predictably limiting technology.
Vamos a ver!
13September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19
Look to the future! EVs will not be the only solution to carbon-free vehicles. Choosing which future fuel will be the winner now is not a good idea.
CONNECTED
Pacific Electric Company’s Red Car network of trolleys and buses that covered over 1,100 miles of LA connecting neighborhoods and communities and contributing to “urban sprawl.”
By Kait Leonard
Astrology
Delivers the Treats and the Tricks
Saturn has everything to do with being able to put in the hard work necessary to achieve high goals.
asleep at your Halloween party.
Spooky
Season starts off more treat than trick with Venus and Jupiter bestowing blessings and Mercury turning direct. We’ll also get some relief from the heavy energy we’ve been under when Pluto and Saturn begin to move forward. But to whatever extent possible, get ready for a couple of jump-scares with the eclipse along the Taurus/Scorpio axis and Mars turning retrograde. After all, ’tis the season. Boo! Gotcha!
October begins with Venus in Libra opposing Jupiter retrograding through Aries. Even in opposition, the two most auspicious planets in the sky bring lots of treats with their combined positive energy. In this case, they support finding balance between what is good for the collective and what works for the individual. Check your natal chart to see where Libra and Aries fall. These will be the areas most impacted by this very productive energy.
On October 2nd, Mercury turns direct ending what has been a very challenging retrograde due to the antagonistic angle the messenger planet has been making with Mars. This combative relationship will continue until October 10th when Mercury moves into Libra, but at least the extra challenge of the retrograde will be taken out of the mix. And while we’re talking about all the retrograde energy we’ve been living with, Pluto, the planet of deep transformation and power, will go direct on October 8th. This should make stepping into personal power and moving forward easier than it's been in a while. And taskmaster Saturn goes direct on October 22nd.
By the end of the month, we’ll all feel like it’s easier to get to work and make stuff happen.
It’s not all forward momentum through October, however, because Jupiter, the planet of expansion and good luck, Uranus, the planet of unexpected change, and Neptune, the planet of
The Moon goes full in Aries on October 9th. As always, the full moon happens when the two luminaries oppose each other, encouraging us to balance our inner desires and needs with our outer goals and actions. This lunation brings special blessings because Venus is close to the Sun and Jupiter is in Aries with the Moon. Having the two most positive planets adding their energy to the Full Moon ensures that intentions set during this time will be fulfilled and probably bring extra bonus blessings.
idealism, will continue to crawl backward through the sky. And just to keep the season appropriately scary, Mars turns retrograde on October 30th. (Consider costuming as a gladiator or a sociopath for Halloween?) Usually, the warrior planet facilitates assertive communication, but how dull would that be during this very dramatic season?
Look out for manipulation, angry outbursts, and ideas long repressed finally blasting to the surface. Mars also gives us the fiery energy we need to get things done, so while he’s retrograde, we may find our get-up-and-go a bit zombie-like. Try not to fall
October is a mixed trick-or-treat bag, but the haunt season truly gets underway on October 25th with the partial solar eclipse in the very spooky sign of Scorpio. Expect to get a jolt from the scorpion’s tail wherever he lands on your natal chart. Eclipses bring change, like it or not, and since Scorpio is a fixed water sign (think ice) it doesn’t always celebrate being forced to transform. Fortunately, this eclipse is partial so it won’t zap us too badly. Look to this area of life and gently release anything that isn’t serving you well. Approach it as you do those scary dark places in Halloween mazes. Just keep reminding yourself that you’re having so much fun.
On Halloween, Mercury, the Sun, Venus, and the South Node in Scorpio form a positive aspect to Neptune, the planet of make believe, and Jupiter, the planet of good luck and expansion. So dress up, find a party, and have a spooky good time. Just keep that Mars retro motion in mind, and try not to get into too many arguments.
Happy Halloween!
14 September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19 Stunning Views From Impeccable A-Frame In Topanga Canyon This tri-level mountain home features 4-bedrooms and is designed to take in light and nature from its cathedral-like windows, tiered decks and walkways, manicured gardens, and a surround of pristine land for expanding! An open kitchen with newer appliances, marble counters, storage and pantry opens to a large dining room that can be used as an additional bedroom. On the upper level, the master loft bedroom is an inspiring escape with its sweeping views, separate office space, en suite bathroom, and private outdoor deck. The lower level has two bedrooms that share a full bathroom, walk-in closet and sliding glass doors that open to the private garden. There is a 2-car garage with workspace, and driveway parking for multiple vehicles. Compelling features include a wood-burning fireplace, solar panels, a rooftop deck, waterfall and the everpresent mountain views. Located on a corner ot just minutes to the center of town this bright, beautiful home offers both serenity and convenience. Come see, and make this your forever home! 845 Via de la Paz, Pacific Palisades Each office independently Keller Williams Realty condition or features buyer is advised to licensed professionals. Tanya Starcevich R e a l t o r ® R a n k e d T o p 1 0 % K e l e r W i l l i a m s P a l i s a d e s | M a l i b u | T o p a n g a c : ( 3 1 0 ) 7 3 9 4 2 1 6 w w w t a n y a s h o u s e s c o m D R E # 0 1 8 6 4 2 5 9 Y O U R H O M E S V A L U E ? S C A N H E R E
JUST SOLD 2 6 2 1 T O P A N G A S K Y L N E D R T O P A N G A C A 9 0 2 9 0 $1,800,000 Price 3 Beds 3 Baths 1,680 SqFt A F R A M E W I T H M O U N T A I N V I E W S Photo by Miriam Geer. Jennifer deSpain, CPA, CFP® Business/Personal Tax & Financial Services Tel. 818.883.4800 CanyonOakFinancial .com October 2022
15September 30 • Vol. 3 No. 19 TEXT TOPANGA TANYA WHEN YOU ARE READY TO BUY SELL OR INVEST TANYA STARCEVICH REALTOR® Ranked Top 10% Keller Williams Pacific Palisades | Malibu | Topanga T: 310.774.3824 | C: 310.739.4216 tanyastarcevich@gmail.com www.tanyashouses.com Broker #01499010 | BRE Lic #01864259 Serving Your Business through Ours THE MARKETPLACE niraten@gmail.com | niraten.com GRAPHIC DESIGN nira lichten awards-winning graphic designer It’sNot Really Magic!Barbara Allen E.A. 310-455-2375 riklin@barbaraalleneataxservices.com Tax Preparation & Audit Representation For Individuals, Small Businesses, Estates, Trusts and Tax-Exempt Entities www.barbaraalleneataxservices.com • Small Ads for Big Ideas • Affordable $60/month • We will design for you THE MARKETPLACE Serving Your Business through Ours Contact us: ads@thecanyonchronicle.com | 310.460.9786 The Canyon Chronicle P.O. Box 1101, Topanga CA 90290 Feel safe to heal and inspired to grow Jean Wolfe Powers, LMFT Expert on Trauma, Grief, Loss and Transition (434) 996-5387 jean.wlf@gmail.com jeanwolfepowers.com Sandy Sonderling Soloist / Chamber Music Private Instruction in Your Home 818.951.4033 sscellist@yahoo.com sandysonderlingcello.com R.W. ROLDAN HEATING AND AIR CONDITIONING You Can Control Your Environment Lic. 585114 Locally Owned SERVICE & INSTALLATION Ray Roldan Travis Roldan 818.477.7932 818.288.7078 Creek side dining for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner & Sunday Brunch. A perfect place for that special moment Weddings, Events & Private Parties (310) 455-1311 128 Old Topanga Canyon Road, Topanga, CA 90290 innoftheseventhray.com of the Seventh Ray Holistic Wellness & Healing Dianne Porchia, MA, DMBM 310.455.2851 porchiaswish.com LIFE IN BALANCE BODY • MIND • HEART • SOUL Featured in HEAL Documentary Complete Eyecare for All Ages BOUTIQUE OPTICAL Call or Schedule Online 747.232.2202 lunaoptometry.com Located Within Gelson’s Village 22247 Mulholland Hwy, CalabasasDr. Emily James | Optometrist cphelps@searchlightinsurance.com www.searchlightinsurance.com Searchlight Insurance Services Craig Phelps T: 888-257-8200 C: 626-437-7900 F: 877-777-5199 SMS: 310-455-8205 CA License # 6000548 SUV WANTED ** 1999-2001 Toyota 4-Runner or Nissan Pathfinder ** 2002-2006 Nissan X-Terra TEXT TO: (310) 924-5984
Callado Way William Preston Bowling (310) 428-5085 $162,000 MOUNTAIN VIEW LOT OUTSIDE COASTAL 0.42 acre Pritchett-Rapf Realtors TOPANGA (310) 455-4363 • PRTopanga.com Call for more information! Offices in Malibu & Topanga LOCAL & GLOBAL CalDRE 00528707Pritchett-Rapf Realtors LAND Hillside Drive William Preston Bowling (310) 428-5085 $979,000 3.498 acre PANORAMIC VIEWS ACROSS FROM STATE PARK LAND Saddle Peak Road William Preston Bowling (310) 428-5085 $525,000 0.857 acre PANORAMIC OCEAN VIEW LOT ON PRIVATE STREET LAND Chryssa Lightheart - (310) 663-3696 Perfect combo of country living and business opportunity. Topanga’s original gem, this was one of the original homes in this corner of the canyon. Since 2005, it has hosted a successful private facility offering dog training, boarding, and daycare. Old Topanga Canyon Blvd. 3 Bed | 2 Bath $4,600,000 Exquisite custom Mediterranean oasis on approx. 11 acres overlooking the majestic boulders of Red Rock Park and offering complete gated and fenced privacy with lush landscaping, fruit trees, vegetable garden, and large outdoor usable spaces with private hiking trails on the property. This newly built custom home features 3 bedrooms and 3.5 baths in the main house, a spacious detached three car garage with separate office/gym/guest room and half bath below. All bedrooms are en suite with access to outdoor patios, large closet space and stone floors in bathrooms. There is a complete chef’s kitchen with oversized center island, quartz counters, custom cabinetry and Viking appliances. The modern open floor plan incorporates the kitchen, family and dining room with a separate living room great for entertaining. The home includes long plank oak floors, vaulted wood beam ceilings and Loewen windows which maximize your beautiful mountain and rock formation views. The outdoor patios are on opposite sides of the home, each with their own separate serene seating areas overlooking the property and mountain views. Offered at $3,790,000 Gayle Pritchett (310) 748-1580 DRE# 00585628 Lacey Rose Gorden (310) 383-1848 DRE# 02122031 Exquisite Custom Mediterranean Oasis on Approx. 11 acres SOLD Chryssa Lightheart - (310) 663-3696 This mountain view home boasts floor to ceiling windows and captures Topanga State Park. Located at the end of the quiet cul-de-sac. The open floor plan has sliding glass doors from the living and dining room to the entertainer size decks to drink in nature. Horseshoe Drive 4 Bed | 3 Bath $1,875,000 SOLD Chryssa Lightheart - (310) 663-3696 Mountaintop Forever Views on 5.2 acres. The double door entry opens to living room with fireplace, hardwood floors and formal dining area. Open kitchen, breakfast area, center island & office (or 4th bdrm), vegetable garden, fruit trees, 5 beehives, and chickens. Alta Drive 3 Bed | 3 Bath $1,900,000 Chryssa Lightheart - (310) 663-3696 California Dreaming where Palm Springs meets Topanga. An elegant one story midcentury home in the Viewridge Estates with resort-like grounds. Close to shopping and dining and steps from the trails. Amazing views to the south and west. Voltaire Drive 6 Bed | 3 Bath $1,970,000 NEW LISTING