Kait Leonard

A Gift from the Pandemic A Gift from the Pandemic An evening with John Waters and Jim Jarmusch Amidst all the bad right now, there are a few good things that have come out o...Read more Optimism & Joy Mark Festival Despite Pandemic Optimism & Joy Mark Festival Despite Pandemic Reimagining the Indian Festival of the Chariots required protective masks, drive-through worship, and to-go boxes as the Hare Krishnas hono...Read more Social Distance and Mental Health Social Distance and Mental Health Mental health issues may be the next-wave threat associated with the coronavirus pandemic. According to research, loneliness is as physically harmf...Read more   Necessities of Life Necessities of Life While maintaining as much distance as possible, people are lined up on a downtown sidewalk, waiting. Some read newspapers, others engage in small talk...Read more Aycil Yeltan-The Artist and the Art Aycil Yeltan-The Artist and the Art I last touched based with filmmaker, actress, and artist, Aycil Yeltan, in May of 2020. I had the privilege of meeting her in her Topanga Canyon home,...Read more Haunt Season at Zombie Joe’s Haunt Season at Zombie Joe’s Why are zombies, ghouls, and general psycho-monsters at Zombie Joe’s Underground (ZJU) Theater quaking in their grave-dirt covered boots? Because Ha...Read more   Topanga Cares Meal Distribution Launch Topanga Cares Meal Distribution Launch On Monday, July 13, 2020, Topanga Cares successfully launched the new meal program to help Topanga neighbors facing food insecurities. The program ...Read more Another Threat to Wildlife Another Threat to Wildlife Thousands of animals die yearly in netting installed to prevent them from stealing fruit from trees. These animals tend to die horrific deaths, sustai...Read more Dancing in the Narrows Dancing in the Narrows Anna Penenberg’s memoir, “Dancing in the Narrows,” a mother-daughter odyssey through chronic illness (July 7, 2020, She Writes Press), takes rea...Read more   Hey Baby(dog)! What’s your sign? Hey Baby(dog)! What’s your sign? The Dog Days of Summer span from July 3 to August 11, 2020. Let’s celebrate the Dog Star, Sirius, by checking out what the heavens have to say ab...Read more Ecotherapy: Keeping Nature Close Ecotherapy: Keeping Nature Close The term “tree-hugger” conjures images of hippies in bell-bottoms and tie-dyed tee-shirts. Actually, the phrase dates back to 1730, when more than...Read more Hello October 2020! Hello October 2020! October is a huge month astrologically. There’s so much going on in the sky that I’m not going to go into each sign this month. The planets will h...Read more   Local Businesses Test the Waters Local Businesses Test the Waters By Kait Leonard As Los Angeles County attempts to get back to normal, or something like it, Topanga businesses explore this new phase. While not everyone has emerged ...Read more Teens: Empower Your Power Behind the Wheel Teens: Empower Your Power Behind the Wheel Automotive educator, plus-size model, and social media influencer, Chaya Milchtein, launches her new Automotive Fundamentals program for te...Read more The 400-Year-Old Pandemic: Police Violence Against Blacks The 400-Year-Old Pandemic: Police Violence Against Blacks June 5, 2020. Approximately 300 people gather peacefully on Wilshire Blvd. in Beverly Hills to protest police violence against the African American co...Read more   Providing House Calls to the Unhoused Providing House Calls to the Unhoused Medical teams bring old-fashioned house calls to unsheltered homeless communities. Back in the day, when patients couldn’t get to the doct...Read more The Humble Milkweed The Humble Milkweed By planting native species, we support the insects and other animals who depend on them. This will go a long way to reversing some of the damage we’...Read more Skid Row’s Hippie Kitchen Keeps On Feeding Skid Row’s Hippie Kitchen Keeps On Feeding More people than usual are sitting side-by-side around park tables and on the ground eating food supplied by the Hospitality Kitchen, known by locals ...Read more   Welcome to September 2020! Welcome to September 2020! This has been a doozy of a year and according to the planets we won’t be out of the tunnel until December, so hang on! Mars, the planet of courage a...Read more