On the phone in her gallery as a fountain flows in a small courtyard outside. At one point her landlord stops by. He''s fond of her. Calls her a sweetheart. Stacey had just finished running four miles. She''s lived in Carmel for 10 years.

Do you have confidence in President Bush?

Absolutely. With a capital A. I feel very secure with his whole cabinet. I think they''re very knowledgeable and smart. I''ve actually met Condoleezza Rice and she''s outstanding. I think they''re making the right decisions for our country.

Last night I liked the way he [Bush] explained the progression of Saddam Hussein''s behavior and why we are where we are right now. I feel like I''m at the end of my rope too. No more playing games. Also the AIDS help for Africa was good.

Do any government policies or laws affect you directly?

Just high taxes. I''m in the highest tax bracket. I''m a small business owner, self-employed, so I''m interested in making it. It''s all part of business and cash flow and taxes are a big part of making it or not.

Will war affect the economy?

I''m not worried about the war affecting business. I support it because we have to do it. But maybe because I feel like Carmel is so beautiful people will come here to escape the feelings of war. I sit on a board of the Carmel Art Festival, the Carmel Gallery Alliance. We put on an annual festival. There have been some board conversations about the success of this year''s festival because of the war. I''ve heard they''re concerned the festival will be way down. I happen to believe the opposite. It''s a cultural event and in a time of war people have to look for other things to take them away from being scared.

Do you trust corporate America?

I think there needs to be more checks and balances. I am appalled that these things have happened. There needs to be much more accountability, especially when you''re investing with someone.

Have you been hurt by any of the scandals?

The falling of Silicon Valley has hurt the art business. They were some of our weekenders.

What else is happening in Carmel?

We have the battles with the Coastal Commission. We have the Sunset Center, raising money for that. What I''m waiting for is some cohesiveness between the landlords and the business owners here. The rents are so high, there''s lots of turnover.

I''m not into the paid parking. There''s lots of those ''No Paid Parking'' signs in people''s windows, so I can''t imagine everyone is too into that. And what about employees? If you work here you don''t want to have to spend money on parking.

California. Good or Bad?

The best thing about California is the beauty. That''s the number one thing that keeps me here. I like the small town feel because I''m single. I think I''d be lonely in a big city. The worst thing for me is no theater. No music. No nightlife. I hate to offend anyone but everything is on such a small scale. A play is a like a high school play.

What are you afraid of these days?

The whole germ warfare thing scares the crap out of me. As far as the economy and business, what am I afraid of, pulling out and making it. I''ve seen a lot of businesses go out in Carmel, like crazy, everywhere you look.

Travel lately?

I went to Italy. Rome, Venice and Milan. It was in the first week of January. It was wonderful. Quiet. That''s what was so nice. No tourists. People aren''t flying. It was eating, shopping, walking. I went with my best friend. My best girlfriend. I try to get out of the country once a year.

Darell Warren
Amanda Wilkins
Nina Kelly
Stacey Pierrot
Tom Nolan
John Smitherman
Marley Knoles
Dustin Boyce
Cliff DuPaul
Arch T. Allen
Priscilla Griffin
Jose Nunez
Janet Chavez