A new student entering Paule McPherson’s cooking classes in the late ’70s through ‘90s at Santa Barbara Adult Education might have worried they were in the wrong place — a party rather than a culinary lesson. The room was packed and the clink of coffee cups containing hidden beverages blended with a dozen conversations. One attendee mingled by giving shoulder massages.
Finally, students would turn their attention to the instructor, usually because she would call out above the din with a booming English accent — “Quiet down, you lot!” — or loudly ring a bell.