An important read, a grand contribution to the true history of America. A chorus of extraordinary voices comes together to tell one of history’s great epics: the four-hundred-year journey of African Americans from 1619 to the present—edited by Ibram X. Kendi, author of How to Be an Antiracist, and Keisha N. Blain, author of Set the World on Fire. The story begins in 1619—a … [Read more...]
Review: Al Franken Giant of the Senate by Al Franken
Let me start with the admission, I love every thing Al Franken does – the comedy and the politics. I’ve read his other books, lambasting the clay idols of the popular right wing culture, so I was excited to see what I thought might be his lambasting of his own persona. I was not disappointed. Done with humor and sufficient self-deprecation, he makes fun of comedians, … [Read more...]
Cooperative Wisdom Receives Nautilus Gold Award
A book by Santa Barbara author, Carolyn Jabs, is the recipient of a gold Nautilus Award. "Cooperative Wisdom: Bringing People Together When Things Fall Apart" won recognition for illuminating an innovative and high effective approach to conflict resolution. “We started working on the book in 2008, long before the recent election,” says Jabs. “Today, we find that people are … [Read more...]
Jeanie Greensfelder to Serve as San Luis Obispo County Poet Laureate
Jeanie Greensfelder, poet and retired psychologist, was named San Luis Obispo County Poet Laureate for 2017-2018. A panel of five convened on Tuesday, October 11, 2016 to hear presentations from four San Luis Obispo County poets for the position Nominees were evaluated on their poetry, volume of published works, plans for their tenure, public speaking, and presentation skills. … [Read more...]
Unplug and Connect
By Kalila Volkov My daughter may be considered weird. It’s not her bright blue hair that makes her particularly strange. She’s unusual because she’s 26 and isn’t obsessed with her cell phone. Some days she never even looks at it! Much of our society is preoccupied with cell phones and smart devices. Research shows that 64% of American adults now own some type of … [Read more...]
This Changes Everythings
April is a good time to discuss climate change, global warming, or whatever term you would like to use to describe how we have polluted our planet to the point we will not be able to sustain life on it forever. Except in Florida, of course, where the governor has forbidden the State Department of Environmental Protection from using any of those terms. It is hard, perhaps even … [Read more...]
Local Massage Therapist/Author Moves Mountains to Donate Kidney to Stranger
Eldonna Edwards wrote an entertaining and informative chronicle of her donation experience in the hopes of educating others about the need for more living donors. Edwards first became intrigued with the idea of donating a kidney after meeting a student with kidney disease and writing a paper for a class at Cuesta College. What started out as an altruistic response to an ailing … [Read more...]