On October 25, 2003, I go outside to touch base with the night sky and feel the air before retiring to bed. Tonight feels different. A Santa Ana is brewing and I smell smoke. I …

We erred here last week when we said that the San Diego State University Research Foundation was replacing ex-GOP congressman Bill Lowery as its lobbyist. Lowery is still in the running to keep that job, …

Franklin Gatlin IV has been in a little trouble lately. Last year, the 26-year-old allegedly smashed a beer bottle in the face of a fellow partygoer at his mother's Rancho Santa Fe house and ten …

San Diego city councilman Ben Hueso is doing some reverse bundling in connection with his scheduled Tuesday swim across San Diego Bay this week. According to a recent news release by his office, Hueso is …

It's an ill wind that blows no one any good, so will the weak dollar help San Diego? For example, the Canadian dollar, which as recently as early 2002 was worth 62 cents, is now …

It was succor for Wall Street and "Sucker!" to the overall economy, including San Diego and other cities with housing-related economic woes. On September 18, the Federal Reserve prescribed a double dose of sharply lower …

She's holding on to his little tusks with both hands. She nuzzles her face right into his trunk, between his eyes. You can tell they're in love. The picture of the shaved-head girl monk and …

Bay Area-based chef Bradley Ogden is still the official guiding spirit at Arterra, but ever since executive chef Carl Schroeder left to open his own Market about 18 months ago, the top toque working actively …

Harvey Fierstein's musical remake of A Catered Affair begins like a pebble tossed in a pond. Janey and Ralph are getting married. They don't want a big wedding, just a ten-dollar/ten-minute affair at City Hall, …

'I play for a myriad of artists in a variety of venues," says Brandon "the Sideman" Walters. Walters can be seen all over San Diego -- and up and down the West Coast -- performing …

Title: The G Manifesto: The Guide to Getting More out of Life Address: www.thegmanifesto.com Author: Michael Porfirio Mason From: Little Italy/Miami Beach Blogging since: September 2005 Post Date: August 9, 2007 Post Title: The Making …

'The Salvation Army insisted on seeing a purely cultural event with political eyes and then complained that the event was political," says Manal Swairjo, co-organizer of the concert featuring Lebanese oud (Arabic lute) composer Marcel …

DJ: Marco Collins Station: 91X Shift: 2:00-7:00 p.m. Saturday; 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Sunday I've seen Jane's Addiction probably 15 times, and I definitely remember the early shows as being completely out of control. That was …

Some excerpts from online venue reviews written by patrons: The Aero Club: "The owner, Bill, is meticulous about his beer lines. He uses a mix of nitrogen and CO2. He uses a special dishwashing detergent …

When I joined the Fading Captains as their bassist, a strange year in my life began. We played Guided By Voices songs exclusively. The band is pretty well known in the underground indie-rock circuit but …

For over a year, DJ Olivier Dalle has hosted a monthly dance event called Trans-Europe Express (named after the Kraftwerk album). "When I started it, I had people screaming at me because I wasn't playing …

"Our last drummer disappeared and [went to] jail for art theft," says Tim Malley, guitarist and singer for Tim and the 23s. "After our second practice with him, we couldn't get ahold of him. It …

Insiders say L.A.-based AEG -- the country's second-largest concert firm that opened an office here this summer -- will soon announce plans to build a 12,000-capacity outdoor venue. Now, AEG's venue options are extremely limited. …

Local four-man band Pierce the Veil finished their third U.S. tour last week opening for Chiodos, the Michigan band that last month had the number-one record on Billboard's Top Rock Album and Top Alternative Album …

"We go back to '59 on Burgundy, '61 on Bordeaux, '74 on California."

Resolved Church (Bay Park) Denomination: Acts 29Address: 1717 Morena Boulevard, Bay Park, 619-393-1990Founded locally: 2005Senior pastor: Duane SmetsCongregation size: 50>Staff size: 1Sunday school enrollment: 4Annual budget: n/aWeekly giving: about $500/weekSingles program: noDress: casualDiversity: mostly CaucasianSunday …

George LinAssociate Festival Director, San Diego Asian Film Festival, www.sdaff.org To anyone familiar with the Hong Kong New Wave cinema of the '80s, Patrick Tam needs no introduction. His 1982 classic Nomad confronted realistic topics …

Local Rotary Club member Mrs. Homer Peabody talks steak thickness with food authority George Mardikian (1958). As a teen, Armenian-born Mardikian escaped from a Turkish prison camp and made his way to the U.S. He …

Chris Lonner Age: 21 Occupation: Student researcher Lives: La Jolla My friends and I love playing Halo and we're getting ready for Halo 3 by breaking out our video-game slang. A word that gets thrown …

Watching the USC/Stanford game on Versus. The spread is 40 1/2 in most of Vegas, 41 at Stations. Over/under is 57 1/2 in Nevada, 58 on the Internet. It appears Stanford is not intimidated by …

Hey, Matt: Here's another argument for you to settle. I say we're born with full-size eyeballs. They don't grow as we get older. The person who's wrong says that can't be possible because babies are …

Austria is not Mexico. That's the slogan Ron and I devised after our third day in Vienna. The whole slogan goes, "Hey, settle down, man. This isn't Mexico," which means: There are rules you aren't …

Thirty Years Ago The phone is answered, and the voice I hear is Mort Sahl's. "In an article in the Los Angeles Times [August 8, 1977], you were quoted as saying that there should be …

I got an invite to a party in Santee. I was told there'd be a band called Mudwolf playing in the back yard. I figured, hey, I love Steppenwolf...and Wolfmother. Odds are I'll like this …

To the sober person, adventurous conduct seems insanity.-- Aristotle I awoke to the same rhythmic rocking that had lulled me to sleep seven hours earlier. I could hear David stirring on the bunk above, an …

Artist: Jenn Grinels Song: "No Better" (from the CD Little Words) Heard By: Matt Valdivia, University Heights To be honest, I wasn't really too into it. The vocal style turned me off. It seemed flat …

The rich, saturated, radiantly warmed color does full justice to the local palette.

My daughter is obsessed with horses. Her room is decorated with equine photos, her bookshelf stocked with classic horse books, and her dream is to raise horses. For her birthday this year, we gave her …

In 1991 Orange County opened the 1500-acre Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park, which sprawls across the foothills of the Santa Ana Mountains just east of the communities of Lake Forest and El Toro. One surprise can …