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The back wall of the Freemont Theatre in downtown San Luis Obispo is now home to a mural by artist Maria Molteni! Maria will be giving a talk about her work during Art & About from 5-6.

A recent NPR/PBS News/Marist poll found nearly 6-in-10 voters say President Trump's top priority should be lowering prices. That concern is being expressed loudly in the swing state of Wisconsin.

Congressional leaders and top security officials say the U.S. Capitol will be well-prepared for a far-right rally expected for the area this Saturday.

Ventura had 1.3", Santa Barbara 1.5", and Los Osos 2.2".

Doors open at 6pm, program begins at 6:30pm Dianne Lake was a beautiful and innocent wide eyed seventh grade student – whose hippie parents abandoned their traditional suburban lifestyle to join a cult called, The Wavy Gravy’s Hog Farm Commune in Tujunga, California. Along the way her parents met a man named Charles Manson. They were so impressed by him and, as unbelievable as it sounds, they turned their young daughter over to Manson. Dianne was just 14. What happened next is a personal odyssey that is hard to believe. She travelled with Manson’s raggle-taggle band of runaways and social misfits until they settled at the notorious Spahn Movie Ranch in Chatsworth, California. She became a chattel, a slave to Manson’s sexual whims and part of his depraved world of mind-blowing drugs which culminated in a series of horrendous, high profile Los Angeles murders in the Summer of l969. While never involved with any murders, Dianne was arrested and her life was almost destroyed. Today, in her late Sixties, she is a devout, church-going grandmother, who lives in Ventura County. She will tell her own unbelievable story of survival and redemption in the Museum of Ventura County’s newest episode of “Ivor Davis: Up Close and Personal with Dianne Lake” on Thursday March 24. Her story sounds like pure fiction but it’s all true. Museum members who register for this event (either in person or via Zoom) will be entered into a drawing to receive an autographed copy of Ivor Davis’ “Manson Exposed: A Reporter’s 50-Year Journey into Madness and Murder“. Become a member now and register for this event for your opportunity to receive the autographed book. Proof of vaccination will be required on arrival for in-person attendees. Masks will not be required for this event. If you would like a mask, we’re happy to provide one for you. Registration for Zoom closes at 4:30pm on March 24th.

Grammy-winning pianist Bill Cunliffe returns to Ojai for a special performance on Friday, September 30 at 7 pm. Come see this world-class musician at a new venue, Starborn Wellness Concert Hall in Meiners Oaks. Plus drummer Joe La Barbera and bassist Mike Gurrola join Bill on stage for this stellar night of jazz.

Imagine receiving an invitation to a gala featuring Bill Evans, Oscar Petersen, and Chick Corea. A piano performance by Bill Cunliffe is all that and more. It draws on Cunliffe’s decades of experience as a formidable jazz pianist and his considerable skill as a storyteller and teacher, producing a show that is greater than the sum of its dazzling parts. Bill has received four Grammy Nominations that resulted in his 2010 Grammy Award. He toured or recorded with Frank Sinatra, Freddy Hubbard, James Moody, Joe Henderson, Mary Lou Williams, and many others.

Joe La Barbera, an American jazz drummer and composer, is best known for his performances with pianist Bill Evans. His reputation grew in the 1970s when he recorded and toured with Chuck Mangione. He spent much of the 1980s and early 1990s with Tony Bennett. He also worked as a sideman for Jim Hall, Art Farmer, Art Pepper, John Scofield, Toots Thielemans, and Phil Woods.

Mike Gurrola quickly became an in-demand bassist on the international jazz-scene. He’s known for his solid technique, attentive musicianship, and his strong passion and love for the music. A Grammy-winner, and protégé of the great Ray Brown and John Clayton, Mike has toured and recorded with Eric Reed since 2013. He also stays busy with jazz A-listers including Benny Golson, Benny Green, Jeff Hamilton, Mary Stallings, Ralph Moore, Willie Jones III, and Roy McCurdy.

Tickets: $20 online, $25 at the door. Doors open at 6.30 pm. Free parking in the Ace Hardware lot.

No refunds. Questions? Call: 805-746-0936.

Motivational speaker Kathy Gruver, PhD will present “Be Yourself…But Who Is That?” at the next Association for Women in Communications, Santa Barbara chapter’s next meeting, scheduled from 5:30 – 7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 10, at Workzones, 351 Paseo Nuevo in Santa Barbara. In her talk, Gruver will provide practical, easy, and effective techniques to know one’s communication personality in order to become better leaders and more efficient communicators.

The event is free for members and $25 for nonmembers. For more information visit awcsb.org.

As part of its monthly lecture series, the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum (SBMM) is pleased to present “Sinkable: The Mysterious World of Shipwrecks and the Titanic” with Daniel Stone on Thursday, August 17, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. In his presentation, Stone will draw on his book, SINKABLE: Obsession, the Deep Sea, and the Shipwreck of the Titanic, as he dives into the incredible culture of shipwrecks in human history and in our own waters. Timelier than ever, Stone utilizes the Titanic as a lens to explore the topic of shipwrecks, including the fascinating science and aftermath.

Since the beginning of 2022 alone, several major shipwrecks have been found. From Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance to the Atlanta, which was found in Lake Superior, and to an ancient wreck found off the coast of Greece and the discovery of a marble head of Hercules from 2,000 years ago, each discovery brings new attention and fascination with the deep sea and its treasures. Driven by his own curiosity about shipwrecks, Stone spent years interviewing marine biologists and astrophysicists, wreck experts, historians, and many more. From the Titanic to the USS Maine, Stone’s book, and presentation, takes readers on a deep dive into the depths of the world’s oceans and the people who devote their lives to tracking lost ships and lost treasure.

“So many of us grew up living with the ghost of the Titanic without realizing that she was still alive, only in another form,” said Rachel Lance, author of In the Waves: My Quest to Solve the Mystery of a Civil War Submarine. “Daniel Stone pushes back the murky waters of the ocean to reveal the secret second phase of a ship’s life, the one that occurs after it has disappeared from the view of all humanity, except for intrepid explorers and daring optimists. The story is beautifully written, captivating from the first line, and an engrossing reminder of the inextricable link between those of us living above the ocean, and the things lurking below it. Including the shipwrecks.”

The cost is free for SBMM’s Navigator Circle Members, $10 for all other members, and $20 for members of the public. There will also be a pre-lecture reception for members only from 6:15-6:45 p.m.

Register at https://sbmm.org/santa-barbara-event/sinkable-the-mysterious-world-of-shipwrecks-and-the-titanic-with-daniel-stone/ and learn how to become a member at https://sbmm.org/santa-barbara-maritime-museum-membership/.

The lecture series is generously sponsored by Marie L. Morrisroe. The lecture reception is generously sponsored by Hank and Mari Mitchel and Tim and Louise Casey.

About Our Speaker – Daniel Stone

A native of Los Angeles, Daniel Stone is a national bestselling writer on adventure, history, and science. He is a former senior editor for National Geographic and a former White House correspondent for Newsweek. His first book, The Food Explorer, was a national bestseller and selected as the American Horticultural Society’s book of the year. The Food Explorer is currently in development for a TV series. His book Sinkable, released in 2022, is about shipwrecks, the deep sea, and the strange underworld of shipwreck obsession.

Stone is also a professor of environmental science and policy at Johns Hopkins University, where he teaches environmental communication, history, and storytelling. He is an occasional contributor to The Washington Post, Time Magazine, and Vice, and has presented at the National Academy of Sciences. A lover of science and the outdoors, he currently lives in Santa Barbara with his wife and two sons, one of whom is a dog.

Santa Barbara Permaculture Network Presents Beavers in the Landscape -

An Evening with Dr. Emily Fairfax

FREE - Farmer & the Cook Restaurant / Outdoor Patio (Wood-fired Pizza available)

Beaver dams are gaining popularity as a low-tech, low-cost strategy to build climate resiliency at the landscape scale.

Join Santa Barbara Permaculture Network for an evening with Dr. Emily Fairfax, PhD. as she shares her research focused on beaver, a keystone species, that until very recently was a vastly underrated ecosystem restoration hero.

Passionate about science from a young age, Dr. Fairfax was happy when nature and science came together with her interest in beavers. As a geoscientist who studies ecohydrology of wetlands and riparian areas, it was a perfect academic and vocational match. Beavers are native to North America (Castor canadensis), in populations topping 600 million before trappers in the 1800’s decimated their numbers almost to extinction. They were responsible for a landscape most early settlers and farmers took for granted--- deep soils built up over centuries--- in wetlands they created. These wetlands then and now function as natural sponges trapping silt and water, which are excellent carbon sinks.

With extended droughts and catastrophic fires plaguing California and the West in recent years, Dr. Fairfax began focusing her research on the impact of beaver on wildfires. Squishy, wet landscapes simply don’t burn. And where beaver are, with multiple dam and pond complexes, squishy land abounds. These observations of the positive impact of beavers on wildfires prompted Dr. Fairfax to coin the phrase “Smokey the Beaver”.

As a part of the evening event we will share the work of, Cooper Lienheart a recent engineering grad of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, who currently works as a SLO Beaver Brigade Restoration Specialist, and has decided to make beaver and wetland restoration his life work.

Dr. Emily Fairfax is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Science and Resource Management at California State University Channel Islands. D She uses a combination of remote sensing and field work to research how beaver activity can create drought and fire resistant patches in the landscape under a changing climate.

The event takes place on Thursday, November 11, 5-8pm, at the Farmer & the Cook Restaurant, outdoor patio, 339 W. El Roblar Dr, Meiners Oaks (near Ojai). Woodfired Pizza available for purchase.

For more info contact margie@sbpermaculture.org, 805-962-2571, www.sbpermaculture.org. Hosted by Santa Barbara Permaculture Network Co-sponsors: The Farmer & the Cook; San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, & Ojai Beaver Brigades

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who directed the ranking Republican on the Homeland Security Committee to negotiate the structure of the commission, now says he will vote against the deal.