Opinion

Once Upon a Time…

My father, a world class story-teller, invented the 16mm Ampro projector. He never forgot the technologies he was developing were simply new platforms from which to practice an art as old as…

Falling

We are falling into fall and it is important to acknowledge the seasons we live in and live through during times such as these. The leaves are changing colors, animals are preparing…

Questions and Ant Sirs?

“We have a deal,” Jen says to me. “I don’t go into their territory. But if they come in the house, I kill them.” This sounded reasonable to me. One more answer…

The First Amendment in Peril

As the Messenger Mountain News prepared for launch at the beginning of the year, the founders knew it needed a motto—a credo, if you will—to both express its aspirations and react to…

Transport

  I still have last year’s volunteer badge for Topanga’s very own literary festival, Transport.   Thanks to the guidance of visionary Kim Zanti, Library Manager Oleg Kagan, Jenni Klemp and their…

Future Cities

In 2050, it is predicted that 70 percent of the world’s population will live in mega-cities.  Today, many previously decayed urban neighborhoods are being reclaimed, renovated and re-populated by young Millennials who…

Don’t Sell Beetle-Infested Firewood!

Dear Editor, I was glad to see the article from Suzanne Guldimann about the bad beetles (Refer to “Wreaking Havoc on California’s Trees,” September 8, 2017, Vol. 1, No. 18) but realized…

Private Property or Public Land?

Pablo Capra, a former resident of Lower Topanga, took this photos of the gated compound where the State Parks ranger lives in the back of the Topanga Ranch Motel. He writes: Parks…

What We Miss

When they are gone we miss them, but mostly we miss the little things in daily life that we take for granted or don’t notice while they are still here. People enter…

Howling with Hurricanes

It’s Thursday afternoon, and I’m driving home from Co-Opportunity in Santa Monica, happy about my fresh organic groceries and my older sister’s upcoming visit in November. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and…