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Still Frames Transcend Time

Santa Barbara has long occupied a magically engineered time warp, where the past and present wash over each other and, for the most part, seem to peacefully coexist. Maybe it started after the 1925 earthquake, when the town’s leading citizens decided to reinvent the hamlet as an Andalusian fantasy, rooted in a heady cocktail of historic fact and fiction. Mostly, it has worked.

From the Mouths of Babes

During the Christmas holidays, some of us might be lucky enough to spend time with loved ones, hunkered down in the embrace of sweet indolence. But for some, the holidays will be defined by sand, grit, grime, fear, and extreme vigilance. These are members of the armed forces, pursuing a military mission that every day seems increasingly doomed to failure.

Letters Abroad

Notes from Servicemembers in Iraq

Vision Quest

S.B.’s Direct Relief International Brings Sight to Salvadorans

Letters Abroad

In 2004, Santa Barbaran Sally Brown started sending care packages twice a month to a family friend who was serving in Iraq. Word spread about what she was doing, and soon people inquired as to how to get their loved ones on the list-and so began the group effort, headed by Brown, called the Santa Barbara Angels.

Santa Barbara New Year’s Events 2006

While you’re making plans for the December holidays, don’t forget that the end of 2006 is right around the corner. To help you decide how best to spend your New Year’s Eve, we’ve listed some events happening around town that are sure to ring in 2007 with a bang.

Made In Santa Barbara, 2006

For this year’s Made In issue, we’ve decided to do something a bit different than previous years. Since it’s our 20th anniversary, we thought we’d find out what-if anything-our little hamlet had created that has broken through the county boundary and become nationally recognized. It was surprisingly easy to come up with 20 fabulous things. For example, did you know that Motel 6 was started in S.B.? And Hidden Valley Ranch dressing, Earth Day, and the Egg McMuffin, for that matter? Read on to learn of the other now commonly known national products that germinated here.

‘Tis the Season

The weather outside may not be frightful, but the holiday season is upon us nonetheless. The month of December offers a host of holiday happenings for the young and the young at heart, from seasonal holiday boutiques to caroling, parades, ballets, and more for whatever tradition you celebrate this time of year. Whether you’re settling in for a night by the fire or stepping out for a night on the town, have a very happy holiday.

Local Heroes 2006

They’re surrounding us, and we don’t even know it. People from all walks of life, doing special deeds to help their fellow human. These are heroes of the highest order, individuals and groups who dedicate their time, money, and skills to helping the less fortunate, empowering the powerless, and teaching the students who require it most. These are Santa Barbara’s Local Heroes, a breed that we at The Independent honor every year with this annual issue.
So here we go again. We give to you 23 individuals and groups who deserve our thanks and praise. Read on and be inspired to do your own works of good.
Click Here to read the Local Heroes Honor Roll 1986-2006

Pretty Women?

Suicide Girls is a cultural phenomenon. It’s Playboy meets MySpace.com, as brought to you by Tim Burton. It’s a Web site. It’s erotica. Some say it’s punk-goth-softcore porn. It’s the cute girl at the punk show posing naked for pictures, and it’s the girl’s boyfriend, the band’s lead singer, and the geeky guy in the corner who never gets any play, all paying four dollars a month to look at those pictures. It’s interviews with Pixies frontman Frank Black and articles about abortion rights. It’s discussions about Macintosh computers, animal rights, and the benefits of getting really, really drunk. It’s an endless diversion. It’s objectification internalized. It’s the bold new face of feminism’s third wave. It’s the same old misogyny with Manic Panic hair color and a septum piercing. It’s a brilliant marketing vessel that taps into the geek, deviant, and misfit in all of us. It’s just a business. It’s a life-changing revolution. It’s a cry for help. It’s a career.

Six Knots Toward Enlightenment

Sailing (and Surfing)
Around the World

A year has passed since Swell and I set forth from the Santa Barbara Harbor and began our southern migration in search of surf, adventure, and a different way of life. Traveling 3,900 nautical miles at a slow and steady six knots, my perspectives have evolved as gradually as the landscapes passing by. Southern California’s busy blacktop transformed into the dry, desolate dunes of Baja and then into Central America’s steamy, green jungles. The changes came slowly-a new smell in the air, a different bird in the sky, or a slight climb in the water temperature. Instead of seals and kelp, I now wave to sea turtles and get tangled in jellyfish…

Also in this issue, don’t forget to check out the
New Local Surf Products for the Coming Season

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