California, At 1979 Santa Barbara, Dorothea Fields is really a single mum in her mid-50s who's increasing her son at a time brimming with rebellion and cultural shift. Dorothea together with the support of 2 younger women -- Abbie, a free-spirited punk artist living as a boarder at the Fields' dwelling and Juliea educated and provocative teenaged woman -- to help with Jamie's upbringing.