When the World Wide Web launched into the public domain in 1993, it came with the great promise of a so-called global village, where people could come together over niche interests and earnest observations. Now, we get algorithms that bombard us with anger-inducing slop.
Hans Lehmann, who is 94 and lives in the artsy little town of Carmel-by-the-Sea, fights the rage-bait — and the depressing headlines that have made him and many other Americans turn off the news — by blasting out digital sunshine.
Lehmann writes “Walking My Ways” on Substack. His sweet, short posts twice a week detail serendipitous run-ins with old friends and new acquaintances, the satisfaction of midday naps, and the simple joys of life on the Monterey Peninsula, like the fluffy rosemary olive bread from a local bakery.
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Lehmann — whose family settled in Carmel after fleeing the Nazis in his native Germany — started blogging two years ago. The nonagenarian long ago retired from a career with Macy’s and wrote three books about his life, including about dressing as Santa Claus each Christmas.
“I love to talk to people. I love to talk!” said Lehmann, who never married or had children. “It’s just a joy for me to see life around me, and then, if it’s positive or good, I try to spread it out.”
Proceeds help restore his landmark home
Plus, he figured, paid Substack subscriptions could help him pay for renovations on his house, a 1929 redwood cottage that once was a downtown Carmel restaurant called Ella’s Southern Kitchen. In 1941, the whole house was put on rollers, pushed up a steep hill and plopped onto a foundation of beach sand.
That led to foundation issues that had to be resolved. Then, Lehmann said, “I had a hot water heater go, then woodpeckers tried to take over my house, so I had to have some wood replaced and painted. You know, an old house needs a lot of attention.”
Like most residences in Carmel-by-the-Sea, where houses this year will get numbered street addresses for the first time in the town’s history, his home has a nickname: Pine Gates. He blogs about it a lot.
Mostly, he blogs about people
“Happiness comes in many ways. One of which is walking to the Post Office,” he wrote on May 11, describing a stroll during which he saw two little girls, ages 1 1/2 and 4, “and their mom and handsome dog, all waiting for grandma,” as well as “a young boy, on his smart phone,” a friend of six decades with whom he “chatted up a storm,” and “a lady with an armload of packages” who joked that she must be popular.
In another post, he describes his weekly volunteer work, serving meals to the food insecure, including a tent-dwelling homeless woman who, one afternoon, radiated contentment while eating on a bench.
“I told her how unusually happy she looked,” Lehmann wrote. “Yes, she said, she felt extremely content and was at peace with the world. Not always, she added. But in this moment, with beautiful weather and a full stomach she felt on top of the world.”
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Lehmann said his Walking My Ways has some 400 subscribers, about a quarter of whom pay. Not too shabby for a man with an outmoded flip phone.
He joked that he has very thin skin. “If somebody unsubscribes and I know them, it really hurts.”
One of his loyal subscribers is Carmel-by-the-Sea Mayor Dale Byrne, who said in an email that “when his post lands in my inbox a couple of times a week, I actually stop what I am doing and read it. That is a rare thing.” “He approaches the world with a curiosity and physical energy that I genuinely find inspiring,” Byrne said.
Today’s top stories 
Worshipers attend an interfaith vigil near the Islamic Center of San Diego on May 19. Three people were killed and two shooters are dead after an attack the day before at San Diego’s largest mosque.
(Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images)
Worshipers at San Diego’s largest mosque seek answers after attackFires ring Southern California and it’s only MayDemocrats may cast last-minute ballots for governorWith the top two candidates in the primary advancing, many Democratic-leaning voters appear to be waiting for a clear leader to emerge, political analysts say.Last-minute ballots could create the potential for a slower vote count or a longer wait to find out the winners.The dirtiest beaches in CaliforniaFor the 10th consecutive year, the area around the Santa Monica Pier was named one of California’s dirtiest beaches by researchers with the environmental nonprofit Heal the Bay.Of the 490 beaches that Heal the Bay monitored between 2025 and 2026, the top 10 dirtiest also included six in San Mateo County, one in San Diego County and another in Humboldt County.What else is going on
Commentary and opinions
This morning’s must readOther must readsFor your downtime 
Marionettes twirl on stage at the premiere of “Choo Choo Revue” at the Bob Baker Marionette Theater.
(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)
Going outTheater: The Bob Baker Marionette Theater’s “Choo Choo Revue” arrives at a pivotal time for the troupe, which is in the process of buying its Highland Park home.Restaurants: The new crown jewel of Los Feliz excels at British food. But that’s just for starters.Art installations: Part root vegetable, part deity: Here’s an inside look at Everything Is Terrible’s new Meow Wolf L.A. installation, coming soon to L.A.Staying inSticker shock: Send us examples of California houses with sticker prices that truly shocked you.
Is it worse than this burnt-out three-bedroom in Torrance that sold for over $1 million? Email us at essentialcalifornia@latimes.com, and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.
And finally … the photo of the day 
Michelle Lougee’s “The Transfusion,” at the “Hospital of Emotions,” an immersive art experience at St. Vincent Medical Center near downtown Los Angeles.
(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)
Today’s great photo is from Times contributor Carlin Stiehl inside a shuttered downtown L.A. hospital where immersive art is taking over 80 rooms.
Have a great day, from the Essential California team
Hailey Branson-Potts, staff reporter
Hugo Martín, assistant editor, Fast Break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew J. Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.