2016's best stories and reflections

The Soul of California

This 32-minute episode takes a look back at a few of this year’s best stories and reflections.

In the following order, we have:

• Shelly Spiegel-Coleman on the need for a dignified and humane approach to the treatment of illegal immigrants and their families;
• Sabrina Fendrick of Berkeley Patients Group on the domination of women in the cannabis industry;
• Emily Burns of Save the Redwoods Alliance on how carbon is measured in giant Sequoia and Redwood trees.
• Alan Hess on William Pereira’s reputation among the East Coast elite and how he was “Hollywood’s version of an architect”;
• Magnus Torén of the Henry Miller Library on the development challenges of Big Sur - “it’s being loved to death”;
• multi-instrumentalist Louise Goffin on why the piano is her favourite instrument.
• Daniel Ostroff on how he inadvertently started collecting Charles and Ray Eames;
• Jon Christensen on Reyner Banham and why living in LA is actually better than visiting it.
• Justin Akers Chacon on the irony of how drastic immigration legislation had a dramatic economic effect in some towns;
• Samantha Schoech of Independent Bookstore Day comparing books with the vinyl revival and the staying power of paper books.
• Grant Lee Phillips recounting his salad days as a 13-year old magician in bars and clubs off of Route 99;
• Mary Colwell on John Muir’s theory of glaciers as to the real reason why Yosemite is so spectacular;
• Tom Williams on “catching a glimpse” of his subject when reading a series of unreleased letters from Raymond Chandler to his childhood friends;
• Kevin Break on the peace, quiet and bustling nature of the LA River at 2am.

Next episodes include US parking guru Donald Shoup and Reb Kennedy of Wild Records.

Thanks for listening to the show this year. Please don’t forget to leave a review.

Have a good holiday and a great new year. Feed your soul. Keep listening.