What does it actually mean to protect democracy at the local level?

Will Knox, Kim Bryson and Allison Stillman of Democracy Ojai join us for a conversation about voting, civic participation, election confidence and the responsibilities that come with citizenship.

They talk about why Democracy Ojai formed, how a nonpartisan group navigates an intensely polarized moment, what history can teach us about the long American argument over who gets a voice, and why democracy depends on more than simply showing up every few years to cast a ballot.

The conversation also turns local: what civic life looks like in a small town, how to engage younger voters, what people misunderstand about elections, and what an ordinary person can realistically do to strengthen democratic participation.

We did not talk about the 1794 Festival of the Supreme Being, Ohtani's recovery protocol or Billy Corgan.

Ojai: Talk of the Town is hosted by Bret Bradigan. Check out the link below for more information about Democracy Ojai: https://www.facebook.com/p/Democracy-OJAI-61574098970478/

Why, in an age of TikTok, streaming video and infinite distraction, do we still gather in a room to hear one human being tell us a story?

Ojai Storytelling Festival executive director Kara Martin joins Bret along with internationally acclaimed storyteller Noa Baum for a conversation about one of humanity’s oldest technologies: the well-told tale.

They talk about why stories can reach places that facts and arguments sometimes cannot; the overlooked art of listening; whether shared stories still function as connective tissue in an increasingly fractured culture; and what actually happens between a storyteller and an audience when everything clicks.

Noa also tells the remarkable story of how a stalled acting career unexpectedly led her toward storytelling — through an encounter with a group of special-needs children that changed the course of her life.

Along the way: unreliable narrators, bad dinner-party storytellers, what children understand about stories that adults forget, and whether Kara now finds herself silently editing everyone she meets.

We did not talk about Taylor Swift's covid collaboration with The National, knife-sharpening gadgets or the remarkable Abyssinian Expedition of the mid-Victorian period.

The Ojai Storytelling Festival returns October 22–25, 2026, with performances at Libbey Bowl and the Ojai Art Center and a lineup that includes Baum, Kevin Kling, Geraldine Buckley, Sufian Zhemukhov, Lipbone Redding and emcee Mary Hamilton.

Turns out “Once upon a time” still has some life in it. Check out the festival and buy tickets at ... https://www.ojaistoryfest.org/

On June 27, 2023, Reed Christy was nearly killed in a motorcycle accident. He survived, but the crash cost him a leg and forced him into the long, difficult work of rebuilding a life he had once taken for granted.

What emerged was more than resilience. It was attention.

A lifelong athlete and fitness enthusiast, Reed had spent years valuing motion, discipline and performance. Recovery taught him something different: the power of attention. Of slowing down. Of being fully present for the people, moments and ordinary experiences that are easy to miss when life is moving fast.

Today, Reed speaks around the country about gratitude, awareness and intentional living — not as abstractions, but as lessons earned the hard way.

In this conversation, Reed talks about the accident, the physical and emotional realities of becoming an amputee, the discipline required to rebuild, and the surprising shift in perspective that followed. His story is not simply about surviving catastrophe. It is about waking up to the life that remains.

And it raises a question worth asking whether or not you’ve ever faced anything remotely like what Reed has:

How much of your own life are you actually noticing?

A thoughtful, funny and deeply human conversation about presence, gratitude and what it means to live deliberately.

We did not talk about circle hooks, Cy Young or the works of Milan Kundera.

You can learn more about Reed and his purpose at https://www.reedchristy.com/

What happens when you stretch 26 strings more than 60 feet across a room, turn an entire building into an instrument — and then follow the monarch butterfly migration with it?

Andrea Brook is the creator of Sonic Butterfly, the enormous immersive long-string harp that has been played in some remarkable places, from Seattle’s Space Needle to Taliesin West and beyond. Its story began during a Day of the Dead performance in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, where an encounter with the monarch migration helped transform Andrea’s earlier long-string work into the butterfly-shaped instrument she performs with today.

In this episode, Andrea joins Bret to talk about how Sonic Butterfly evolved, how those extraordinarily long strings actually produce sound, what it feels like to play an instrument that literally surrounds its audience, and some of the adventures involved in installing it around the world.

And the butterfly story is coming full circle.

On Friday, September 18, from 6:30–8:30 p.m., Andrea and Sonic Butterfly host The Return of the Western Monarch Butterfly, a FREE event at Chrysalis in Ojai, presented in collaboration with the Ventura County Resource Conservation District. The evening combines an immersive Sonic Butterfly performance with photographs by Elizabeth Weber, a short film by Ole Schell, a panel discussion and local environmental organizations — all focused on the western monarch and efforts to help bring its population back.

Chrysalis is at 850 Baldwin Road in Ojai, adjacent to the Montessori School. The event is free; RSVP by emailing [email protected].

Andrea also shares the bigger idea now taking flight: a Sonic Butterfly Migration Tour following monarch migration routes and using music, spectacle and community gatherings to connect people with the landscapes the butterflies depend upon.

We did not talk about how Peter the Great's scientific expeditions to Siberia influenced Thomas Jefferson's Lewis& Clark expedition, the relative greatness of the television show "Patriot," or Brazilian ju-jitsu.

It’s a conversation about music, engineering, migration, ecology — and what can happen when one wonderfully strange artistic idea grows wings.

What do the Grateful Dead, punk rock, philosophy, sobriety and a great neighborhood tavern have in common? For Sean Kelly, quite a lot.

The Philadelphia-born musician, restaurateur and new steward of Ojai’s historic Deer Lodge, who has also relaunched with Angie Edelsen the legendary Ranch House, joins us for a wide-ranging conversation about the music that shaped him, the philosophers who challenged him, the strange alchemy of live performance, and what decades in the restaurant business have taught him about people.

We also explore community, reinvention, what Ojai needs more — and less — of, and the question running beneath it all: What makes for a life well lived?

We did not talk about Yo La Tengo, annatto paste or Bowie knives.

You can catch up to Sean and his plans for the Deer Lodge and Ranch House at DeerLodgeOjai.com.

Writer, photographer and wilderness guide Chuck Graham returns to Ojai: Talk of the Town to take us into the wild world of Channel Islands National Park — a place he has spent decades exploring by kayak and documenting up close. We talk about some genuinely encouraging conservation victories, from the remarkable recovery of the Channel Island fox and the return of bald eagles to fascinating examples of natural selection unfolding before our eyes. Chuck also shares stories from years of paddling these rugged waters and explains why this extraordinary archipelago — remote, biologically unique and surprisingly close to home — remains one of California’s most magical and underappreciated wild places.

Grammy-winning pianist, composer and arranger Roger Kellaway has spent more than six decades making music alongside some of the greatest names in jazz and American popular music. In this wide-ranging conversation, Roger looks back on the musicians who shaped him, what separates the truly great players from the merely accomplished, and why music education and learning to really listen still matter.

Roger talks about the fateful gig when he was hired by Norman Lear and his partner to write the closing song for "All in the Family," which became "Remembering You," one of the most recognizable tunes in television.

We also bring the story home to Ojai. Roger talks about meeting his wife, Jorjana Kellaway, how the two eventually found their way to the Ojai Valley, and some of the performances and musical moments at the Ojai Music Festival that have stayed with him.

Roger Kellaway is no stranger to the pages of Ojai Quarterly. He was featured for his collaboration with Joe Sohm and Clint Eastwood on "Visions of America." He is also a frequent, distinctive and distinguished audience member at the Ojai Music Festival.

We did not talk about Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey's friendship with Ted Williams, marlin fishing in the Sea of Cortez, or Gene Lees.

It's a conversation about jazz history, improvisation, teaching, creativity, love, place — and what a lifetime devoted to music teaches you about listening.

https://rogerkellaway.com/

It's our official 300th episode! In May 2020, I set out to interview interesting people. What I didn't realize was that each conversation would leave behind a clue — not just about my guests, but about what makes for a meaningful, creative, and fulfilling life.

In this special solo episode, I step out from behind the microphone to reflect on the lessons I've gathered from hundreds of conversations with artists, entrepreneurs, historians, volunteers, scientists, civic leaders, and the wonderfully eccentric personalities who make Ojai unlike anywhere else.

Along the way, I share stories from my own journey as a journalist, publisher, novelist, and longtime resident of the valley — touching on curiosity, failure, resilience, community, storytelling, and why it's never too late to reinvent yourself. I do not talk about Orel Hershisher's World Series shutout record, northern anchovy populations or Christopher Nolan films.

Whether you've been with me since Episode 1 or you're discovering Ojai: Talk of the Town for the first time, I hope this conversation leaves you seeing Ojai — and perhaps your own life — a little differently.

What happens when an artist follows curiosity so completely that it changes not only her work — but her life?

In this episode of Ojai: Talk of the Town, host Bret Bradigan sits down with acclaimed Ojai artist Marie McKenzie, whose breathtaking underwater paintings are inspired by firsthand encounters with California's disappearing kelp forests. After learning of the dramatic decline of these vital marine ecosystems, Marie did something few artists would: she learned to freedive, overcoming her fear of the ocean to immerse herself in the world she wanted to paint.

The result is Ocean Garden, a luminous new collection celebrating beauty, abundance and the surprising power of protecting what we love.

But this conversation goes far beyond art. Marie shares how she learned to trust her intuition over deadlines, why beauty may be a more powerful force for change than outrage, how she built a career painting one small canvas at a time, and what it means to move from simply surviving as an artist to truly thriving.

Whether you're an artist, entrepreneur, conservationist — or anyone searching for more meaning in your work — this episode is an inspiring reminder that your greatest breakthroughs often begin on the other side of curiosity.

In this episode you'll discover:

• Why Marie traded fear of the ocean for the freedom of freediving.
• How California's disappearing kelp forests transformed her artistic vision.
• Why she delayed releasing an entire collection until the paintings felt "ready."
• The surprising relationship between beauty, creativity and conservation.
• How a daily painting practice became the foundation of a successful artistic career.

If you've ever wondered where inspiration comes from — or how to build a life around what you love — this conversation will stay with you long after it ends.

Note: we did not talk about the Emily Wilson's Odyssey translation, the Cincinnati Reds or nano-technology.

Check out more about Marie at https://www.mariemckenzie.com

From interviewing rock musicians during music's golden era to helping shape the desktop publishing revolution, Kathleen Kaiser has spent a lifetime at the intersection of creativity, technology, and storytelling.

After twelve years as president of the Writers & Publishers Network, she's stepping aside — not to slow down, but to finally devote more time to her own writing, including a long-awaited novel, her new Substack Glimpses of a Life, and the Talking Book Publishing podcast.

In this wide-ranging conversation, Kathleen reflects on the evolution of publishing, the challenges facing today's authors, AI's growing role in the writing world, why marketing matters just as much as craft, and what she's learned from decades spent helping thousands of writers chase their dreams.

We talked about Brian Jones, fan culture and Fillmore. We did not talk about Japan's 400 salt varieties, kelp forests or Milan Kundera's theories of kitsch.

It's a thoughtful, funny conversation about reinvention, generosity, and the enduring power of a good story.

You can learn more about Kathleen here, and sign up for her Substack ... https://www.kathleenkaiser.com/about-kka.html