Quote of the Week
‘I’m going to tell you the truth. In some instances, those files don’t exist anymore.’
-County auditor/controller Bob Geis, on documentation of applicants’ eligibility for below-market homeownership.
Year: 2006
Contemplative Cat
Tigger the kitty peers out from a window of the antique shop Cominichi’s on Haley Street as day turns to dusk. Photo by Larry Mills.
205,000
Acre-feet of water in Lake Cachuma when it is filled to capacity.
Source: wikipedia.org.
Knots Hanging
Spring Show
At 19 Haley Art Space, through May 31. Closing reception Sunday, May 28.
When Dennis Adderton opened the doors of 19 Haley Art Space, he did so with little fanfare-just a word-of-mouth reception-and he has already rotated exhibitions once since opening the gallery doors in February. But while Adderton’s first show garnered notice from just a few sharp-eyed local aficionados, the curious and fashion-forward who venture through the doors of 19 Haley this month are lured in by the whimsical pairing of Daniel Landman’s paintings and Andriana Mitchell’s textile confections (pictured).
Landman’s paintings combine paganism with a fantastical art nouveau sensibility. From the psychedelic swirls of his early triptych to the delicately nuanced more recent portraits, one can see that Landman’s style is constantly evolving. His palette has shifted as well, moving from muted browns and tans to rich jewel tones-cherry reds, lush purples, and intense aquamarines.
Elect Bill Brown for Sheriff
The Sheriff’s Department is in serious need of help. And that help must come from a new sheriff who is not part of the current infighting, public debacles, or divided loyalties now afflicting the department.
Police Chief Bill Brown fits the bill perfectly. He has the right mix of leadership skills, political savvy, and common sense. With 28 years’ experience as a law enforcement officer, 10 years as Lompoc police chief, Brown has proven to be tough, creative, shrewd, and compassionate. Chief Brown has reduced crime, built public trust, and recruited high-quality officers.
MARITIME MANAGEMENT:
After several years on the table, the draft management plan for the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary was released this week. The several-thousand-page documentan update of the 1983 management planoutlined 10 specific courses of action to protect the 1,200-square-nautical-mile preserve surrounding the five Channel Islands.
Lurid, CharacterLess, Better
Poseidon
Kurt Russell, Josh Lucas, Emmy Rossum, and Jacinda Barrett star in a film written by Mark Protosevich, based on the novel by Paul Gallico, and directed by Wolfgang Petersen.
Critics excuse our lurid fascination with disaster films by claiming the genre provides a gaze into the human condition while said humans are under considerable pressure. The formerly great Wolfgang Petersen has virtually stripped character from this film, or at least shrunk the exposition of it down to a few semaphore signals, so this is more like a soft-core porn film in which the ridiculous plot has been virtually excised.
Dining and Whining
The Dining Room
At the Circle Bar B Theatre, Saturday, May 13. Shows through July 2.
Is the dining room really becoming an obsolete tradition, fit for anthropological studies and museum exhibits of vanishing customs and cultures? According to American playwright A.R. Gurney’s comic drama The Dining Room, people are abandoning the haunt of family dinners and evening parties for casual meals in kitchens and eating in front of the television, juggling plates. But is it a loss to bemoan? Gurney’s portrayals of dining room dynamics are often painful. Children struggle to behave in front of a disapproving and controlling father who admonishes a son’s desire to be on time for school, saying that he will remember their pleasant breakfasts long after memories of hymns and arithmetic have faded. He will likely remember the trauma of being yelled at during breakfast.
Adventure Couture
What’s a horny toad? Technically, it’s a horned lizard, best known for winding up squashed on Southwestern roadways; but in Santa Barbara, a horny toad is a stylish, comfortably outfitted lover of all things adventurous, earth-friendly, and fun. The Santa Barbara-based clothing company that calls itself Horny Toad specializes in cool, comfy pieces that are perfect for pretty much whatever floats your boat, whether it be yoga, running, kayaking, biking, or hiking; but the kicker is that they’re stylish enough to smoothly transition from walking the dog or playing 18 holes to dinner out.
Bravery Trumps Bigotry
The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till
A documentary directed by Keith Beauchamp. Screens at UCSB’s Campbell Hall on Monday, May 22, 7:30 p.m.
While Rosa Parks’s name and story resonates with household-name familiarity, the tragic tale and social significance of Emmett Till continue to be not as widely known as they should be. Till was a slightly mischievous (i.e., normal teenaged) Chicagoan 14-year-old who, while visiting his uncle in Mississippi in 1955, wolf-whistled at a woman named Carolyn Bryant. A few nights later, her husband and a friend arrived and snatched away young Till, to “talk to him.” His body was later discovered in a river, brutally tortured, castrated, and with a bullet through his head.
