From January 2003, when he took control of the House Armed Services Committee, Duncan Hunter seemed like a man in the right place at the perfect time. "This century is going to be a very …

When I heard another guy talking about smacking his girl around if she "don't listen to what I say," it made me wonder if theme parties have problems with guys who "stay in character" too long.

Heymatt: How come there is so much FM radio interference on the 94 freeway between Lemon Grove and the 805? It sounds like overlapping Mexican stations. -- Nameless, on the road Short answer? The terrain, …

Dear Matt: Why is the English language so jacked up? Why do sometimes we pronounce "i" as "i" and other times as "e"? I'm thinking of starting a language where no "i" can be pronounced …

Matt: Have any Xtreme sports been invented in our own sunny San Diego? If not, a friend of mine has a suggestion for Xtreme Golf with 1000-yard holes. What do you think? -- Phil Mickelson …

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. And if you yourself are broke, only fix things that are draining you financially -- not things that are filling your coffers. It seems basic. But the State …

In the high country of the San Gabriel Mountains, a lightly timbered promontory rises to a peak elevation of 7283 feet. Some call it "Buckhorn Peak," a name given to the mountain summit by a …

The first time I tried to surf was almost three years ago — during the summer after freshman year in high school. I was 14 years old and had no idea what I was doing. …

If a San Diego County jury had not acquitted Beau John Maloney of terrorizing his father and younger half-brother in July 1998, a renowned Texas artist might still be alive today. Until her murder, Helen …

Critics of all that development activity over at SeaWorld, the burgeoning amusement park on Mission Bay, have long bemoaned the cozy financial connections between owner Anheuser-Busch and many of San Diego's elected officials. Last week, …

“At a Fourth of July party, the band was playing in the back yard. The police showed up and said we were too loud. The cops busted into the house. I said, ‘Do you have a warrant?’“

Finding yourself in jail or prison for the first time unlatches a simple conundrum: you can’t know what you’re about to face because, had you known, you might have avoided the crime, or at least …

I told Mike that when I saw him out front, I couldn't decide if he looked more like Kevin Bacon or Bart Simpson. He said, "Damn, I was going for the Ryan Seacrest look.”

MA: What's the longest recorded life span of a dog? -- Mr. B, the net The yap-yapping in the Guinness record book offices must be deafening. But they had to know, when they started keeping …

Matt:> I have tried, unsuccessfully, to get information on the roster of the Home Grown LPs that were issued by KGB. I'm POSITIVE that you and your elves remember these records, but just in case …

It's a juggling act worthy of vaudeville. The city is perched near the bankruptcy abyss. But its proposed 2005 budget is up almost 10 percent. This fat budget carves the heart out of critical services …

Eight of the 13 shots Palm fired traveled through Harper's body. Palm hid the gun in a nearby canyon, then returned home. Two hours and 40 minutes later, sheriff's deputies arrested Palm at his house. 

News that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is trying to shoehorn legalized gambling into every corner of the state doesn't come as a surprise to ex-San Diego city councilman Bruce Henderson. For years he's been predicting to …

The Climber's Loop and Kumeyaay Lake trails in Mission Trails Regional Park are a pleasant diversion on a spring or summer's eve.

My expectations used to be higher for Mother’s Day. When I was a young mother with only small children, I believed the world should stop for the mid-May holiday. In the weeks leading up to …

Michael Tuck threads his bathroom tissue over the roll, “definitely over.” For Carol LeBeau’s last meal, she’d eat peanut butter and jelly on fluffy white bread. And Paul Bloom wouldn’t tell me how old he …

McCaffrey grabbed a camcorder and asked me to state that, if anything happened to me, he wasn't liable. "Do you want the one-day waiver, or the life-time?" I made some joke about my calling my lawyer first.

MA of Reader: You know how they say that when someone jumps off a high bridge that when they hit the water it is the same as hitting the cement, I guess because of the …

Heymatt: What color is blood that is running through our veins? Why does it look blue under our skin? Why is it red when it comes out and not blue? Answer settles a respectable bet. …

Heymatt: Could you briefly outline the human mother's milk manufacturing process? -- Jerry Dixon, Santee Before pregnancy, breasts are just muscle and fat pads, with the mammary glands (alveolar cells and ducts) just sitting there, …

After two calamitous years, San Diego's Wireless Facilities boasted to its shareholders that it earned 32 cents a share in 2003. But look at the footnotes in the telecom company's annual report to the Securities …

Morse and I sit down with Manaole and Netter, who are discussing one-pocket pool. "It's the chess of pool," Manaole says, "because you have to put your opponent in trouble to gain an advantage."

Despite the reputedly hot market in downtown condos, sales of those pricey units atop the Omni Hotel next to the new downtown baseball stadium are coming in at a trickle. As of early this week, …

L.A.'s quintessential urban trail -- the trail to Mount Hollywood -- takes you to the point of highest elevation in Griffith Park, the sprawling patch of open space on the easternmost end of the Hollywood …

I’m allowed to write this article only because I’m a 7. I don’t mean that I’m a 7 the way Bo Derek was supposedly a 10. I mean that I’m a 7 on the Natural …

Sure enough, there were two parties going on. I walked into 214, and it was a room that looked to be only 12' by 12' with about 50 people in it. And they were playing volleyball.

'The hogs are at the trough." On February 17, 2000, David Farley, chief financial officer of Peregrine Systems, e-mailed those words to the company's attorney, Richard T. Nelson. Farley (now deceased) was perturbed that company …

Two years ago Mary Schenk received notification that her daughter Donna was self-mutilating. (Family members' names have been changed to protect the child's privacy.) "The school nurse called," says Schenk, "and it was the day …

With draconian staff cuts in the San Diego Unified School District, how much mad money could be floating around? Just two weeks ago, 616 jobs were axed and hours cut for another 2000 workers. Before …

Hey Matt: How come motorcycles can be as loud as they want, rattling windows and setting off car alarms? If my car was that loud, I couldn't go a block. Is it because all of …

Hey Matt!! At the top of the Coronado bridge are the (in)famous "Need Help?" signs with a phone number for counseling. Why aren't there any phones up there? These signs have been up way before …

Hey Matt: My husband thinks I'm wacko for this. We recently had a ceiling fan installed in our bedroom. I've noticed that, as I lie in bed, staring at the blades spinning round and round …

Sycuan Peak, midway between the inland communities of Alpine and Jamul, rises 2801 feet above sea level and overlooks miles of thinly populated valleys and hills. As part of a countywide effort to preserve native …

There’s three dogs and a cat here, so there’s a zoo-like quality. On most days, Benjamin gets up earlier than I do because he has this farm-boy physiology and I don’t. I’m kind of a sleepaholic.