Happy Wednesday!

🎟️ Concert Ticket Giveaway: Win a pair of tickets to see award-winning bluegrass, country, and gospel duo Dailey & Vincent live at The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, plus a $50 merch credit. We're giving away three prize packages. Enter here.

Big weekend ahead…

The OC Fair opens, San Clemente gets salty with an ocean festival featuring surf contests, sandcastles, and a mermaid parade, and Ringling Bros. rolls into Anaheim.

Then cap it off with Buffet Beach, a Jimmy Buffett tribute for anyone who believes Sunday should come with a tropical drink.

To all the new readers, welcome to The Scene… Our motto is: the more you know, the more you’ll go. That’s what this newsletter is all about, sharing ideas big and small to make it easier (and more fun) to get out and enjoy OC.

See you out there!
Lorna & Jason

You’ve saved $1.5 million. Now comes the real test.

Can it produce $10,000 a month, or will that pace drain your portfolio?

Most retirees do not get a clear answer until it is too late.

The issue is not just how much you have. It is whether your portfolio was built to pay you, not just grow.

That difference can determine whether your money lasts decades or starts breaking down early.

Sequence of returns, taxes on withdrawals, healthcare costs, and whether the 4% rule still applies all play a role.

Fiduciary advisors created a breakdown showing what drives sustainable income and why the same $1.5M can produce very different outcomes.

If you have $1M or more invested, do not guess.

See How Long My Money Lasts

Learn More

🎡 OC Fair
The OC Fair returns with carnival rides, fried food, live entertainment, exhibits, games, shopping, and peak summer people-watching. Tickets required.
July 17–August 16 | OC Fair & Event Center, Costa Mesa

☕ Coffee Concert
Enjoy a morning performance by local musicians paired with fresh brews from High Tide Coffee.
Fri, July 17 | 10am | Casa Romantica, San Clemente

🎨 Save 20% at Pagaent of the Masters
Pageant of the Masters returns with “The Greatest of All Time,” recreating legendary works by Michelangelo, Picasso, Monet, Van Gogh, Rockwell living tableaux. Save 20% with code ART26
Through Sept 4 | 8:30pm | Festival of Arts Pageant Grounds, Laguna Beach

🥾 Friday Evening Bommer Canyon Hike
Kick off the weekend with a 3-mile guided hike through Bommer Canyon, featuring coastal sage scrub, city views, and steep climbs. Registration required.
Friday, July 17 | 6–8pm | Bommer Canyon Preserve, Irvine

🎶 🎶 Checkout all of this weekend’s Live Music Options

➡️ NEXT WEEK
Scroll down to see events happening next week and beyond.

🌊 San Clemente Ocean Festival
Surf contests, paddle races, ocean swims, a 5K beach run, sandcastle building, a mermaid parade, and live entertainment.
Saturday–Sunday, July 18–19 | San Clemente Pier, San Clemente

🎤 Don’t Tell Comedy All-Stars
A secret Irvine hotel becomes a comedy club for the nightfeaturing a surprise lineup of comics from their viral Secret Sets.
Saturday, July 18 | 8 pm, doors 7:30pm | Secret hotel venue, Irvine

🎨 American Craft Open Studios Weekend
Step inside local artist studios during this free national craft event, including Teri Brudnak’s Capistrano Beach studio featuring handmade contemporary jewelry and prints. Register free for tour map.
Saturday–Sunday, July 18–19 | 11am | Capistrano Beach

🤠 Star Spangled Country Night Market
Country music, line dancing, food vendors, local makers, a beer garden, and a kids play area. Free admission.
Saturday, July 18 | 5–9pm | 25282 Marguerite Pkwy, Mission Viejo

🛍️ The Bloom Pop-Up Market + Summer Concert
Shop handmade goods from local makers, then stick around for a free outdoor concert with Tijuana Dogs.
Sat, July 18 | 4–8pm | Lake Forest Sports Park, Lake Forest

🤠 Country in the Canyon
Line dancing, live country music + wine. Features the James Kelly Band, plus dancing with Champagne Cowgirl. Registration required.
Sat, July 18 | 4pm | Giracci Vineyards, Silverado

🚗 Hot Rods on the Tarmac
Classic hot rods, customs, roadsters, pickups, vintage aircraft, and aviation history collide for a morning of chrome and horsepower at Lyon Air Museum.
Sat, July 18 | 10am–1pm | Lyon Air Museum at John Wayne Airport, Santa Ana

👻 Monster Mall
A haunted Victorian home turns into a spooky market with 50+ vendors, paranormal vibes, and guided tours through one of OC’s most infamous houses.
Sat, July 18 | Dr. Willella Howe-Waffle House, Santa Ana

🌴 Jimmy Buffett Tribute Night
Laguna Beach's Slim Freaky opens with its blend of ska, reggae, and funk before Buffett Beach takes the stage with a tribute to Jimmy Buffett's biggest hits.
Sun, July 19 | 7pm | The Coach House, San Juan Capistrano

🥾 Summer Morning Hike
Take a brisk 2-mile guided hike through Little Sycamore Canyon, with oak groves, seasonal creek crossings, colorful cliffs, and ridge views.
Sunday, July 19 | 8–10am | Nix Nature Center, Laguna Beach

🎪 Ringling Bros. at Honda Center
The reimagined circus returns with aerial acts, acrobatics, BMX and trampoline stunts, comedy, music, and family-friendly spectacle. Tickets required.
Final Night July 19 | Honda Center, Anaheim

🎷 Jazz at Club 616
Ease into Sunday evening with live jazz, cocktails, and old-school lounge energy at Club 616.
Sunday, July 19 | 5–8pm | Club 616, Santa Ana

⚽ World Cup Final
Spain or Argentina? Who are you rooting for? Watch it with a crowd at local spots like Bosscat, Goody’s Tavern, Pub Thirty Two, Mulready’s, or Oggi’s. Check with venues first for seating, and any watch-party details.
Sunday, July 19 | 12pm PT | Various OC locations

🍷 This Wine Trail Is an Hour From South OC (& It's NOT Temecula)

🍸 Visit a 1920s Speakeasy in San Clemente

🚶‍♀️ Hike to an Outlaw Hideout

⭐ 5 Places That REFUSE to Die in OC!

🧐 Trivia Answer:

✅ D - Advanced Treated Recycled Water

Lake Mission Viejo may look natural, but it was built as a recreational lake and first filled in 1978. For nearly 40 years, the lake used drinking water to help maintain its water levels.

That became a big issue during drought years because the lake loses a surprising amount of water to evaporation: about 500,000 gallons a day. That is a lot of perfectly good drinking water disappearing into the Mission Viejo sky.

So the lake switched to advanced treated recycled water for refills. The process starts with already-treated recycled water, then gives it extra polishing through advanced filtration tanks, reverse osmosis, and ultraviolet light.

The result is water that meets the lake’s standards for swimming, boating, fishing, and other recreation, while saving more than 100 million gallons of drinking water each year.

The lake also hosts boat rentals, paddleboarding, fishing, beach days, and big summer concerts, but there is one very Mission Viejo catch: it is private. To get in, you need to be a Lake Mission Viejo Association member or go as the guest of one.

🥱 Boring Stuff

Publication Disclaimer: Everything included here is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. It is always best to double-check links to be sure event information hasn’t changed if you plan on attending something.

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©️ 2025 The Scene: South OC | All content and information set forth above was created by Lorna Ladd and Jason Ladd and is the intellectual property of this publication. It is protected under US copyright law, including but not limited to “The Digital Millennium Copyright Act.” Unauthorized reproduction, distribution, or duplication of any material, in whole or in part, without express written authorization & consent, is strictly prohibited by law and may result in legal action. Violators will be subject to prosecution to the fullest extent of the law.