We used to decorate the outside of our house, but not anymore. We put a bow in front of our gate and we put lights up, that's about it. I always wanted the moving reindeer, but no.

Movies reviewed this week: The Aviator, Bad Education, House of Flying Daggers, Ocean's Twelve, and A Very Long Engagement

(Santa arrives. Santa and I greet.) Ollie: So, Santa, you don't mind if I ask you a question to verify you are the real Santa, do you? Santa: No, Anthony, not at all. O: Where's …

“A customer bought this at auction in Europe. It’s the last bottle, probably bottled 40 years ago.”

This is a typical southern Italian dish served in the winter, and it's one that I personally like. The sausage with the broccoli is common in Italy. It was usually served as a sandwich, but …

"They are taking personal stabs at Roxy because she is white. To say that someone does not have a rightful place in a certain sector of the music business based on race, in the year …

After a long day of nasty politics and "bubble trouble," what kind of music does District 6 San Diego city councilmember Donna Frye relax to when she goes home? "Jazz," she says. "And what do …

"It always happens the Wednesday before Christmas. Last year Clear Channel fired 20 people. The year before that it was 34. And it was always right before Christmas." That's from a local radio employee. On …

Tina Chamberlin of La Mesa was happy when her 82-year-old mother Rena Marseli decided to give up driving this past summer. Besides being 82 years old, Mrs. Marseli "had a vision problem," Chamberlin explains. "My …

Set cynicism aside. The ballot-bubble hubbub may yet bring a happy ending: the swearing-in of a legitimately elected mayor, Donna Frye. This column offers an agenda for Frye's first term. She was not consulted, of …

The intrigue -- not to mention the cost -- surrounding the ongoing San Diego city audit and pension-fund scandal continues to grow. The Texas law firm of Susman Godfrey, L.L.P., hired to help sort out …

Venture capitalist David Cremin, 44, is co-owner of the two-year-old Santa Barbara--based firm DFJ Frontier Fund, which has invested around $25 million in several emerging companies. Among them is Poway's OnTech Delaware, Inc., which makes …

Seventy-seven-year-old Clora Bryant refers to herself as a "trumpetiste" in a new documentary film chronicling her pioneering career as one of the few woman musicians to infiltrate L.A.'s Central Avenue jazz scene in the 1950s. …

"I'm halfway through a three-month chemotherapy program. It sucks all the energy out of you." To make ends meet, Phil Cole, 45, has had to liquidate. "I have a mobile recording studio. I've had to …

Six-year-old Before Today signed a three-record deal with Equal Vision in January, which released their Celebration of an Ending (recorded locally at Double Time) in September. Equal Vision (the New York label known for breaking …

"The bands have just submitted lyric sheets to the board of directors, to make sure there's no cussing and stuff." Lori Wiar is the coordinator of First Night Escondido's third annual Battle of the Bands, …

Dust of Snow The way a crow Shook down on me The dust of snow From a hemlock tree Has given my heartA change of mood And saved some partOf a day I had rued. …

In contra dancing you get a new partner after each set of dances. During the set, you and your partner dance with another couple for a round -- one pair being the active couple. Then …

The Disneyesque guided hiking tour of lower Tahquitz Canyon, right on the edge of Palm Springs, is a far cry from the scene here in the 1970s and '80s, when scores -- sometimes hundreds -- …

"We both realized that he wasn't playing his guitar and the song was still going on."

Normally, if a restaurant sounds too good to be true -- it is. So my group entered George's at the Cove with a high degree of collective skepticism. "George's wins so many awards and popularity …

You enter into a certain amount of madness when you marry a person with pets. -- Nora Ephron 'I have a surprise for you," David said as he opened the door on his way into …

"Faith Presbyterian Church is one of the more liberal churches in the county. We believe there are a lot of folks who want to find a place where the message is one of inclusiveness. Our …

'Son-of-a-bitch! Son-of-a-bitchin' jackhammers!" This is December 24, 1980, in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. I'm working off a class-B hangover and getting my ass kicked by an 80-pound jackhammer. Self, hangover, and jackhammer are struggling at the …

My family likes to get into its cups at holiday time. Some of them have deeper cups than others. A few of them stay in them all year round. For those soggy few, the holidays …

I got an invitation to celebrate the 39th anniversary of John Sant's 21st birthday. I don't know what age that makes him. I'm sure it's a simple math problem....His house was on Mount Soledad. As …

The Alices took a vote last week, and the majority favored canceling Christmas. Or Holiday, or whatever it's called now. But of course the elves didn't fill in the bubbles, and in the recount, Grandma's …

“Uh-oh. Look outside, man,” says Hank. “Is there a back door? The place is surrounded by cops.”