Covering Both Ends of Life

Our Senior Editor Tyler Hayden has been with the Independent since he interned here in 2009. Since then, he’s spent his days editing and writing stories, wrangling interns, and helping manage independent.com.

What is one of your favorite memories from your time here at the Independent? After 13 years here, it’s too hard to pick one, so here are a few: flying in a helicopter over the Channel Islands, flying in a helicopter over Neverland Ranch, meeting a Mars rover at Vandenberg, meeting condors at the zoo, meeting my wife at the office, going on national TV, interviewing Local Heroes, using the police department’s gun range, fishing off the breakwater, eating at San Ysidro Ranch, judging our cocktail contest, smelling the world’s stinkiest flower.

You’ve been working on Active Aging and Indy Parenting; what are the insights you’ve gotten in both areas? I’m learning that Santa Barbara is rich in resources for families and seniors, but that finding them isn’t always easy. That’s where we come in — to help connect people. Our Active Aging issue has been doing that for 6 years and this issue will do the same. We just launched Indy Parenting but we’re already getting a lot of positive response.

How have these projects changed your life outside of work? I’m trying some of the tips and
tricks from the Indy Parenting column, “Kids and a Clean Home: Not Impossible.” It’s a slow process though.
“Organized” and “shared responsibility” aren’t in our toddler’s vocabulary yet. On the Active Aging front, I’ve
pointed his great-grandma — who just turned 99 and is a hardcore Dodger’s fan — to our stories on Ageless Fitness,
a senior exercise center, and Vistas Lifelong Learning, a series of lectures and seminars on a wide variety of topics.
She said she’ll look into them when baseball season ends.