The Ethiopian Army caught up with the boys at the Gilo River. "Most of us couldn't swim," says Isaac. "It was really very deep and swollen because of rains. The currents were very, very fast. …

Hairstyles of the Damned by Joe Meno. Punk Planet Books (an imprint of Akashic Books), 2004, 270 pages, $13.95 FROM THE COVER: The riotous exploits of a Catholic school malcontent and a punk rock girl …

The Specialist, known in certain circles as Rocker Nutley Bugspray, said that she was willing to bet that recurring nightmares about my mother would recede, then fade, shortly after Mom's death almost two years ago. …

It's a challenge to stay unspoiled after Children of Men and Letters from Iwo Jima on successive weeks. Many a week out of the year, Le Petit Lieutenant would doubtless be a sight for sore …

The El Cajon Wherehouse closes its doors forever tonight. One insider says that its managers will likely be transferred to other stores but that many employees will be out of a job. In the early …

"Fuck George Bush I want my homies back/ I'll go to war with anybody if they can give your boy dat/ Then to top it all off when Katrina popped off/ I was in the …

"Maybe Guns [N' Roses] canceling the two local shows is why we're getting a bigger turnout lately," says Dust N' Bones singer Richard Gwaltney. "[Last month] we were contacted through MySpace by this indie record …

The four members of the Four Kings attended Point Loma High when they got some unexpected attention in 2003. Singer/guitarist Andrew Bent says, "A friend of a friend told us that he really liked our …

Anne Tropeano, manager for San Diego roots rockers Tapwater, recounts a stroke of good luck the band had while on a recent five-month tour: "We were touring through Georgia and someone recommended a booking agency …

"I didn't really know what I was doing," says Seventh Soldier singer Hyun Soo of his recent attempt to book a tour for his band. "I found this guy on MySpace, Captain Grind Me Booking, …

Thirty Years Ago Now that I am no longer querying and probing, the strangeness of this situation hits me full. I am sitting in a monastery, in a soundproofed room with a gate of bars …

One of the unwritten rules of theater: never let the audience get ahead of the story. If they can anticipate where you're going, you've lost them. Coughing bouts break out. Programs crackle. Chins nestle on …

Although it slices only six miles inland from the Pacific shoreline, Zuma Canyon harbors one of the deepest gorges in the Santa Monica Mountains -- and it has the further distinction of never having suffered …

People talk about "dysfunctional" families; I've never seen any other kind. -- Sue Grafton I don't know why I was so surprised. I mean, I've been with him for four years -- it was bound …

I was on my way to a belly-dancing party in Spring Valley while talkinq to a friend on my cell phone who said, "I would drive to Reno to see a bunch of hot belly …

Bernice's mom has diabetes. My friend began to take on the care of her mother's household -- shopping and cleaning. "Her feet hurt," said Bernice on the phone, "she has become more sedentary, and I …

"My goal is to make California-class wines in Ramona."

This blog started out as a school project (set up a WordPress and tweak the branding) that I didn't want to waste, so I started using it to pimp my YouTube show. Right now, the …

"I have the soup every time. That's every week, for ten years!"

Nearly everything about East Clairemont Southern Baptist's church was unabashedly midcentury Modern, from the rust-orange carpet and pew cushions to the rough-face concrete block to the space-age chandeliers to the quarter-circle shape of the place, …

Death of a cynic I'm happy. And it makes me feel pathetic on a very fundamental level. I'm a cynic, okay? I don't know what emotional or accessorized state you base your self-image on, but …

'I started playing the fiddle at the age of four," says Michael Cleveland. "I went to the Kentucky School for the Blind in Louisville, where they taught the Suzuki method -- this guy from Japan, …

"It's kind of a geographical expression of how I'd love my life to be!"

A stupid Matt Damon movie is on. Any movie will do. I turn the TV up loud, louder than my neighbors will like, but I don't care. I have to get her voice out of …

When Chicago plays Indianapolis on Sunday next there will be several Super Bowl games going on at the same time. One game will be on radio, one on television, one in the stadium, one on …

"Let me just say that the 91X vs. 94/9 feud is very real and leave it at that."

The noose is tightening around Marty Schottenheimer's neck, even though the Chargers have retained his services for next season. According to some howling fans and nitpicking sportswriters, the Chargers coach chokes in playoff games. His …

Ask a nonresident of Imperial Beach to name a restaurant or bar in San Diego County's southernmost beach town. If he can name anything at all, it likely will be Ye Olde Plank Inn. The …

Freshman San Diego city councilman Kevin Faulconer -- a close ally of Mayor Jerry Sanders -- is in the clear regarding a vote he cast January 9 to advance Doug Manchester's Navy Broadway Complex plans. …

The impending sale of the Copley newspapers in Ohio and Illinois has inspired some to reminisce about how the chain came to be in the first place. One interesting reference comes from Time magazine's April …

Democratic state assemblywoman Lori Saldaña was along for the ride on a lavish two-week postelection junket through South America that is causing big static in L.A. Paid for by an outfit called the California Foundation …