Author Archives: Kit Stolz

Understanding Drought: Lesson One

From a useful op-ed in today’s Los Angeles Times: In January, it rained a lot in Southern California. The usual street intersections flooded. Water tumbled down the Los Angeles River. And houses in areas ravaged by fires last fall seemed in danger of sliding off their hilltop perches. It was chaotic, as always — butContinue reading “Understanding Drought: Lesson One”

Wall Street Journal to Bush: You’re a Joke

Not an exaggeration. Believe it or don’t. Here’s their headline atop a story about Bush’s speech to the meat-eating right-wingers at the Conservative Policitial Action Conference yesterday: PEACE, PROSPERITY AT STAKE IN PRESIDENTIAL VOTE, BUSH SAYS But of course, we as a nation are at war, and, most people and economists agree, headed into aContinue reading “Wall Street Journal to Bush: You’re a Joke”

GROWING UP NAKED: Rain Perry Relives Her Hippie Childhood, in Song and on Stage

Here’s a story I wrote about two good friends, on the cover of this week’s Ventura County Reporter:

Growing up in the l960’s, Rain Perry had the kind of childhood your grandparents warn you against. As a young child, she had to depend on a hippie dad with not enough money and too many girlfriends. She shared houses with roommates with names such as “Superman” and “Bear,” wore hand-me-down clothes from other poor kids, ate rennet-less jack cheese sandwiches for lunch, and was told never to smoke pot – except with her dad.

Was it a tragic experience?

Not really: Perry survived, as children usually do survive the excesses of their parents, and along the way grew up to be an award-winning singer/songwriter, becoming the sort of semi-famous artist her late father always wanted to be.

Now with characteristic good humor she is opening a theater show about her upbringing, having some fun with her hippie past, but also giving audiences a chance to hear in song (and see in photographs) exactly what it felt like — the joy and heartache of growing up a “wild child.” 

A new song by that name tells the story of her youth in foggy West Marin County, to the north of San Francisco. Now the area is known for B&Bs and well-off tourists, but at the time Inverness was an obscure little town with big farmhouses that could be rented cheaply – ideal for hippies living communally. Perry sings:

Played tag on the ridge by moonlight
Just because it was a lovely night…
Everyone in a circle
We had so much time!

I don’t think Rain will mind if I give you a taste of her upcoming album, a good one:

Download 02_cinderblock_bookshelves.mp3

And an extra added attraction: picture by noted rock photographer Guy Webster:

Rainperrybyguywebster

Democratic Tide: Still Coming In

So says veteran political analyst Morton Kondracke: After Super Tuesday, Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) has every right to declare himself the Republican presidential frontrunner, but he has miles to go in getting himself and his party in shape to face his Democratic opponent. One measure of his task is that more than 14.6 million DemocratsContinue reading “Democratic Tide: Still Coming In”

The Democratic Tide Keeps Coming In — Even in Florida

As DHinMN notes for KOS: First, let’s begin with actual results.  With 95% of the vote reported, the current tallies show a total of 1,655,220 Democratic votes and 1,872,684 Republican votes.  Every Republican fought as hard as he could for the win in Florida.  The Democrats—since the DNC won’t seat Florida’s delegates because they floutedContinue reading “The Democratic Tide Keeps Coming In — Even in Florida”

Will Climate Change Threaten the Redwoods?

No one knows. Some climate modeling suggests it might, especially if the California Current System is affected, which is certainly possible, and has been speculated about quite a lot. In the New York Times yesterday, Healy Hamilton of the California Academy of Sciences was quoted on the subject: Dr. Hamilton said that on the NorthernContinue reading “Will Climate Change Threaten the Redwoods?”