A 92-year-old Carmel resident, Hans Lehmann, spreads positivity through his blog.

If Santa Claus were to have a vacation home, it’d probably be in Carmel. And it would also probably be decorated like a Swiss chateau-by-the-sea, complete with a working cuckoo clock on the wall and Swiss designs carved out of wood in the interior, with cookies at the ready for any guests that come by.

This is Hans Lehmann’s house. Whether or not he is Mr. Claus himself may be up for interpretation. But the nonagenarian certainly understands this type of celebrity status, so much so he’s even written a book about it called Santa Has An Agent.

He’s a natural storyteller. Say “hi” to him and he’ll easily draw you into the most pleasant conversation you’ve had all day. The secret is his simple observations of life, which he’s immortalized into a blog called Walking My Ways. The blog is on Substack, and describes everyday stories about what Lehmann’s life is like living in Carmel and on the Monterey Peninsula. They are simple stories about run-ins with ordinary people. He writes them down and sends them out to his 290 current subscribers twice a week.

Just like the plump, red-clad elf, goodwill was the impetus for Lehmann in starting his blog.

Weekly: Why did you decide to start a blog?

Lehmann: I started Walking My Ways about a year ago for three reasons. I love to write, and the world is kind of a mess so I wanted to do something positive if I could. I wanted to reach out to others in a positive and lighthearted fashion, to bring happiness, goodwill and joy. Maybe even laughter.

And the third reason is that I needed some money for this house.

Money for the house?

The house you’re sitting in is about 100 years old. It was built in 1929 and it was moved from downtown Carmel in the ’40s. This half was a restaurant and this was probably the dining room. But they used inferior sand in the foundation and it started to crumble. So last year I put in a new partial foundation, which cost a lot of money. So I encourage people to get paid subscriptions to the blog. Substack reports that about 5 to 10 percent of subscribers are paid – I currently have 73 of them.

What have been some of the responses to the blog?

[Reading from a printout]: “We love hearing your stories. I’m so glad you have the subscribers.” I got a lot of positive responses. Another one says, “I can’t tell you how happy Walking My Ways makes me.”

That makes me happy. It’s great for the ego.

You mentioned before that the world is a mess. How do you hold onto optimism?

It goes back to being blessed. I’m very fortunate and things seem to work out. They always have. I have no idea why. I’ve had a lot of miracles in my life – every day. My mother, my father, my brother and I came to Carmel from Germany in 1939 through Albania. My father’s family was Jewish so we really had to leave, and luckily we did.

Have you always been a writer?

I’ve written several articles for local newspapers, mostly about travel. And I’ve written three books. When I wrote my last book called Blessed and Zany, it was because my life has been blessed and zany. That was probably my longest book. I also wrote another book on personal mischief called How to Lose Friends and Other Social Graces because I love to play practical jokes. I had an aunt who always said that no one likes a practical joke except the one who’s playing it.

The third book is on Santa because I have played Santa in Carmel for the tree lighting ceremony. The person at the city that was responsible for organizing the event called me last year the day before. She explained that the person who was supposed to play Santa was sick and, serendipitously, she had read my blog and asked me to come. I used to have an agent, so when I wrote the book I called it Santa Has An Agent.

What inspires you?

To become Santa? [Laughs]

Actually, for the content of the blog.

Sometimes it’s easier than other times. So far I haven’t gotten writer’s block but I’m a little concerned. I do have maybe four or five blog [posts] that I’ve already written that I can use if needed. But it’s never gotten to the point where I get scared. Now I just enjoy writing. Inspiration is a complicated word.

WALKING MY WAYS is a blog on Substack at hanslehmann.substack.com. Paid subscription plans are available starting at $5 per month.