Welcome to La Jolla, home to champagne riches and caviar dreams, where you can shop for anything from Manolo Blahnik boots to 2009 beemers. Just be sure to stay far away from Via Capri and …

The City of El Cajon is broke, and according to a July press release, the community is losing nearly $6 million a year. “The City of El Cajon has a fiscal crisis, which is not …

“Theater matters because it’s the only place where one can find hope. Films are manufactured for us, but in the theater, the actors and the audience are getting together to manufacture a narrative, and to …

“ ‘The Motherhouse’ and ‘The Ascended Master Moves On (Hang Gliding in Heaven)’ are our homage to Father Yod, the spiritual master of musical vegetarianism,” says Eric Nielsen of High Mountain Tempel. The two songs …

Defamation League MC Chaz Lomack, 22, was to begin serving a four-month jail sentence on August 14 when he got a last-minute reprieve: the day before, he found a second job, which allowed him to …

“Eyes on first class from Cleveland to San Diego/ Will I return or stay, though my enemies don’t want me to go/ From snow to sunshine, it never rains, they lied/ But I rather move …

On August 10, Sherman Oaks—based 43-year-old character actor Shelley Malil, best known for a role in 2005’s 40-Year-Old Virgin, allegedly stabbed former girlfriend Kendra Beebe 20 times at her San Marcos home. With her two …

In 2006, Mission Beach’s WaveHouse tested the waters as a music venue by hosting concerts by James Blunt and Ziggy Marley; MTV filmed a Total Request Live segment there that year. Last year the club …

Album: Fretfull (2008) Artist: Wayne Riker Label: self-released Where available/price: Old Time Music Shop in North Park, Tecolote Guitar Works on Morena Boulevard, and online at CDBaby for $15 Songs: 1) The Betrayal 2) 8 …

AMERICAN ICARUS: LINCOLN BEACHEY LOOPS THE LOOP (Part Three) “Aviators are not born like poets,” said Lincoln Beachey, who claimed that anyone could fly a plane but that he, and only he, was the natural-born …

Roseville (named for its first settler, Louis Rose, not a shrub) is a Point Loma neighborhood also called “the village.” It’s a bit out of the way but has such a distinctive character that going …

“I’m a cook, not a chef,” says Mary. “There’s a difference?” says Carla, looking up from her dinner. She’s diving into her turkey, cranberry sauce, mash, and peas. Totally standard, but it’s been so long …

When Spring Awakening won eight Tony Awards for 2007, including Best Musical, word around the Big Apple went that it would never tour, that it was strictly a “New York show.” Why? Frank Wedekind’s “tragedy …

The end of summer is at hand, and I may well miss it. Jumping the gun a bit, but not by much, I find myself less disgruntled, overheated, and dying for that sense of “death …

The NFL regular season goes off in one week. Players who make the cut get a shot at millions of dollars and what goes with it, while their brothers are thrown into the hell of …

“God, You inhabit the praise of Your people,” said associate pastor Tony Inyang during the prayers before the service began, and the praise team started in making a suitable habitation. “Welcome into this place,” sang …

I use the word “booty“ for almost everything. I started saying it about six months ago. I think I heard a friend say it or something. I don’t remember. Anyway, I thought it sounded fun …

A splendid sense of isolation pervades the upper reaches of Solstice Canyon — thanks to the preservation of thousands of acres of land that have been incorporated into the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. …

Obama picked me to be vice president! And I picked Kermit the Frog to serve as my vice vice president, along with undersecretary Michael Phelps. Our first order of business will be to stage Kermit’s …

What are you reading? “Guitar: Music History Players by Richard Chapman. It’s a history of guitar players and of the guitar itself. It goes through every type of musical genre you might hear a guitar …

Video games are bad for you? That’s what they said about rock and roll. — Shigeru Miyamoto Heather was right when she said an explanation wouldn’t do it justice, that if I were to fully …

I went to North County for James’s 90th birthday. As I pulled up, I noticed that there was a party across the street for a woman expecting a baby. I thought that was an interesting …

“It’s not what you know, it’s who you know,” grumbled my nephew Walt over the phone last week. Two years out of college with a tech job, Walt had just seen his first major project …

Thirty Years AgoMao Tse-tung, chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, will be dead exactly two years September 9. The only major confrontation the Mao Memorial Committee has had was with another communist group — the …

He was ninety-one-and-a-half. It had been a long and gradual decline. Yet how quickly I could switch over from “I can’t believe he’s still here” to “I can’t believe he’s gone.” The passing of Manny …

“I’m not sure if Animal House is as cult-y as Harold and Maude — it might be a little bit more mainstream,” says Lauren Turner, marketing and communications coordinator for the Museum of Photographic Arts. …

The dollar is weak and the euro is strong, and the streets of American cities are humming with the sound of European tourists — often with their arms full of shopping bags from the Apple …

“It comes up all the time,” John Gourley says via telephone when I ask him to explain the name of his band. They call themselves “Portugal. The Man.” “It’s pretty off the wall, but at …

American consumers are tightening their belts. So companies selling to households are pulling in their horns. Wall Street expects San Diego consumer companies such as Jack in the Box, Rubio’s, Charlotte Russe, WD-40, and Callaway …

“I’m not drinking any fucking Merlot!” — Miles, a Pinot Noir fan, in the film Sideways. Miles was that reviled thing: a tremendous, unabashed wine snob. And yet, people listened. Pinot Noir sales in America …

Heymatt: I see that Horton Plaza has a section of parking for pregnant women. As a male, if I park there, will the cops (or mall cops) treat this the same way they would if …

Tijuana Equals Death I would like to express my deep concern for the portrayal of Tijuana in two recent reports featured in the Reader: “Greetings from Tijuana” (Cover Story, August 7) and “Suicide Tourism” (Cover …

They came, they conquered, and they stayed, but you’d hardly know it if you weren’t an entomologist. After years of media hype, Africanized hybrid honeybees, once commonly called “killer bees,” have established themselves in urban …

Author: Lane Tobias Neighborhood: Ocean Beach Age: 24 Occupation: Wildfire Relief Case Manager I am a recent transplant from New Jersey living in Ocean Beach. I already know what locals or natives think of me. …

A recent inspection by Blaylock Engineers found that the Imperial Beach pier is in need of a makeover — a $1.6 million makeover, even though the port commission deems the pier to be in “generally …

Sam Lopez is the environmental director for Urban Corps, a nonprofit agency that gives young adults jobs such as weed abatement and graffiti and trash removal throughout local communities while helping them earn high school …

Name: Yiga Miyashiro Age: 25 Lives In: O.B. Occupation: Professional brewer Favorite Surf Movie: Endless Summer Favorite Local Surf Spot: Black’s Yiga, who has surfed since he was eight, braves the crowds for a Saturday-morning …

Moments before Wednesday’s meeting of the Imperial Beach City Council — which would include a debate over allowing residents to own pet chickens — city manager Gary Brown brought out a bucket of fried chicken …

Tijuana has long attracted people seeking medicine and medical procedures unavailable or unaffordable in their home countries. They've been joined recently by people seeking the means to kill themselves. And some of them are coming …

Traces of the old tile pattern still darken the stained concrete floor at Christ Lutheran, but they don’t distract much from the surface’s overall look — that of parched, cracked earth. It’s in sharp contrast …

The most attractive asset of the Warner Springs Ranch is the spring-fed, hot mineral water pool. So maybe it’s fitting that through the years, this backcountry ranch has been in financial hot water. After opening …

Ever wonder why public works cost taxpayers so much? Consider the case of one small project, the new Otay Valley Regional Park ranger station and restroom. Under a joint powers agreement among San Diego County, …

Who Cares? I Don’t There are so many problems with your latest issue that I don’t know where to start. “Remote Control” keeps changing locations. Why? Enough with that. Keep it in one place already. …

A few years back, rock critic Chuck Klosterman listed Matthew Sweet as one of the most accurately rated (as opposed to over- or underrated) artists in rock history, saying, “Every Matthew Sweet album has only …

He was sitting outside a coffee shop downtown with a shopping cart and a paper sign that read, “Need help/ Homeless/ And ugly.” He had a thick Southern drawl, a friendly face, and a busted …

With a band name like Moontucky Risin, you might expect to hear Southern-fried or Cajun-cooked rock, perhaps with a side of bluegrass or a pinch of rockabilly. And that’s what listeners got, back when cofounders …

“American Tribal Style is an inclusive belly-dance form,” says dancer Sandi Kay. “The dancer in the lead position can cue the dancers on what move they’re going to do next, so every dance ends up …

Human pretension is generally good for a laugh. Two new comedies to do with the Creative Process, unequal in size, equally uneven in quality, equally unsteady in mood, deliver the laugh over and around constant …

Thirty Years Ago“I came across polyethylene foam in the 1960s,” he told me recently. “But it took a long time to turn it into something that could he used to ride waves. You could say …

At the family reunion swim party last week, there was an accident. Cousin Hugh jumped off the diving board into the water, and on his return to the surface another cousin dove headfirst on top …

I’m sure most guys can say they’ve never had a drink thrown in their face or been slapped by a woman in a bar. Those are things you see in sitcoms. But I had one …

Yoga is difficult for the one whose mind is not subdued. — Bhagavad Gita Despite all the dismissive things I’ve said about patchouli-wearing chakra tweakers, I still wanted to try yoga. Though my inherent impatience …

Here I sit, hunched over my pad of yellow stickies and pile of inconsequential receipts, my crayon poised in shaking fingers, and I’m livid. I write this to you in Crayola “Brick” on the reverse …

With two steep ravines spanned by quaint footbridges, scores of well-kept, historically significant homes, and mature landscaping, Banker’s Hill is a monument to the elegance of the past. The work of early-century architects Irving Gill, …

While watching the NBC Olympics on television, quietly enjoying the 105th consecutive evening of women’s beach volleyball, I had a sad thought: This is going to end someday. Then, like the morning sun rising over …

We San Diegans are a self-congratulatory lot; the weather itself is, to us, a kind seal of approval on our meritocracy. After 28 years here, I see it much this way if I don’t think …

I’ve always been fascinated by sources of artistic inspiration. What triggered Hamlet, say, or The Iliad? What alchemy transformed ambient noise into Don Giovanni? Was it something writ large: a sign in the sky, a …

I’ve always been a goat guy. Yes, it’s sometimes gamey, but that’s the point: goat meat’s never bland. So today I’m thinking, why not? Right here on Imperial in Sherman Heights, where a couple of …

Samurai Jim confessed recently he’d never eaten Indian food. Curries, yes — his mother cooks them Japanese style. But he didn’t know a Samosa from a pakora, a poori from a naan. Well, we can’t …

AMERICAN ICARUS: BEACHEY COMES TO SAN DIEGO (Part Two) “Death was always my opponent,” said Lincoln Beachey at a celebration in his honor, “and I gave tremendous odds.” He spoke at the Olympic Club in …

On average, Lindbergh Field (also known as San Diego International Airport) performs 620 operations a day: 310 departures and 310 arrivals. All 620 of these operations are performed, whether planes are coming or going, over …

Artist: Slightly Stoopid Song: “The Fruits” (from the CD Slightly Not Stoned Enough to Eat Breakfast Yet Stoopid Heard By: Marlon Hendred, Mission Hills I thought it was pretty good, but it’s not like I …

Gary John, co-owner of the Air Conditioned Lounge in University Heights, believes his bar was unfairly implicated in news stories and broadcasts that covered the July 29 murder of 27-year-old Miguel Leon-Fregoso. In a July …

“The Static Lounge show was great, until that shooting during the last set by Cherry Chuck Gang,” says 40oz Chris of Massterpiece Entertainment, who helped promote the August 7 “DayGo Unity Concert.” The downtown event …

Webcast radio owner Luis Kaloyan said he launched X1FM and its streams of five music programs (alternative, electronic, disco, rock en español, classic rock) in 2006 because he had a “passion for the freedom of …

In early August, Encinitas record label and management company Surfdog Records released The Dave Stewart Songbook, Volume I. Stewart, best known for being half of the Eurythmics (with Annie Lennox), has produced tracks for Aretha …

+44 bassist Mark Hoppus filed a lawsuit on August 11 against Missicom LLC of San Diego, alleging the firm embezzled funds “to the tune of over 1.5 million dollars.” Hoppus’s attorney, Howard King, says, “This …

Hey, Matt: Ever see big jets flying overhead, the ones leaving a white smoke trail? They fly right over our houses daily. Whee! Say, listen…I have a certain keen ol’ hand-held walkie-talkie, good for hiking, …

As a recovering stand-up comic, I have had the opportunity to open for many national acts. Sadly, this is more a reflection of a concert promoter’s frugality than an indication of my amazing comedic talents. …

It was business as usual during the first 30 minutes of the meeting for Greater Golden Hill’s Maintenance Assessment District (MAD) on August 18th. Back-and-forth squabbling over the purchase of 28 state-of-the-art trashcans with dog-bag …

Give me a K...give me an N...give me an S... What’s that spell? Kensington. At the August 13th meeting of the Kensington-Talmadge Planning Committee, Louise Guarnotta, the treasurer for the Kensington-Talmadge Community Association, updated the …

For over an hour, 29 residents of southwest Chula Vista pleaded to Mayor Cheryl Cox and Chula Vista’s council members to rescind the approval of energy company MMC’s proposed “peaker” power plant slated for their …

Hugo Salazar is positive that all hell would break loose if a new power plant were proposed for a wealthy area such as La Jolla or Rancho Bernardo. Salazar, spokesperson for the Stop the MMC …

The struggle to ban vacation rentals amid single-family homes.

“Dangerous” Dick Spenneberg does stand-up comedy at local clubs in San Diego five nights a week, most often at the Comedy Store. From July 30 to August 2, he emceed the Cheech and Chong reunion …

Recipe by Hanis Cavin, Chef de Cuisine, Kensington Grill. I work a lot, usually about 75 hours a week. During “Restaurant Week” I broke 100, so I cook very little at home. I don’t get …

Rustic Canyon, now almost fully reverted to wilderness condition after nature’s one-two punches of fire and flood, was quite lively in the past. Pop-philosopher Will Rogers and his associates used it as a retreat back …

If you judged only by externals, you'd swear that Jonathan Waxman, protagonist of Sight Unseen, has it all. Waxman's a "bad-boy visionary" artist who had an eight-page feature in the New York Times Sunday magazine. …

With the Union-Tribune up for sale, executives are rushing to clear the decks of as many unwanted encumbrances as possible. At least one is apparently now history, after a federal judge late last month dismissed …

Another top executive at utility behemoth Sempra Energy has given big money to the campaign to ban gay marriage in California. On August 1, Darcel Hulse contributed $5000 to the ProtectMarriage.com - Yes on 8 …

Where did San Diego’s most prominent political givers place their bets during this year’s California primary? Padres owner John Moores gave $15,000 to the ill-fated “Yes on Prop 93” campaign to loosen up legislative term …

No Rosarito Cover-Up I am the U.S. public relations representative for Rosarito Beach, and I would like to express our concerns about this week’s “Greetings from Tijuana” cover story (August 7). While much of it …

In an alleyway in Ocean Beach, near the intersection of Newport and Bacon, Keith Morgan sits in a white plastic chair padded with two pieces of cardboard. He’s slept in that chair since May, when …

Let’s quit the caviling and cut to the chase: the U.S. is in a recession, and so is San Diego. On the last day of July, the U.S. revised its numbers and said the economy …

San Diego’s cost of living tops the nation’s by 50 percent, but household incomes are only about 20 percent higher. Ergo, squeezed San Diegans live on “psychic income,” or pay a “sunshine tax.” But according …

Carla Bozulich is probably best known as the leader of 1990s band the Geraldine Fibbers, who played a sprawling, majestic, cathartic kind of music that could hardly be contained by as humble a term as …

Mr. Furia explains that in Barcelona, an invitation to dinner before nine in the evening is considered early. This is in response to my question about Spain’s late-night club scene. “Our daily clock,” he says, …

“A tiki party is different than a luau,” says Otto von Stroheim, publisher of Tiki News magazine. “Luaus have hula dancers and Hawaiian-style music and a roasted pig. At a tiki party there’s bongo music, …

You can’t claim that Woody Allen’s rapid rate of production doesn’t show. Even the title of his latest handiwork sounds more like brainstorming for a title than like a final decision, Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Three …

AMERICAN ICARUS: LINCOLN BEACHEY LOOPS THE LOOP (Part One) Lincoln Beachey was one of America's first superstars. By 1915, the daredevil stunt pilot had performed before more people than anyone in history. An estimated one …

"January 9, 2008, is a day that will live in infamy," says Terry Brickman, a beachgoer I talk to in early April about the day the beach booze ban went into effect. I am surprised …

I'm wearing a denim skirt that shows off my legs, the one part of my body I actually like. I'm doing my best to walk gracefully in the black wedged heels I bought last summer. …

It will have been some weeks after the San Diego comic convention by the time this sees print, but it hasn't happened yet as I write this. I'm hoping to avoid the thing if possible, …

Thirty Years Ago Josephine Scripps, probably the most eccentric living member of the Scripps clan, was coming out of the Natural History Museum one night when she spotted a garbage can of seashells discarded by …

Linda Castignola Age: 30 Occupation: Retail Manager/Fashion Designer Lives: North Park “Cray-cray,” I got it from my posse of gay friends. [It’s] another word for crazy, and you use it in the context of “he’s …

I hate television. I hate it as much as peanuts. But I can't stop eating peanuts. -- Orson Welles I wondered whether or not it mattered that I'd missed the first few episodes and decided …

'Porta-potties?" asked Patrick, eyebrows raised in disbelief. "You're going to write about porta-potties? Just tell me you aren't going to open with a story about what Uncle Harold did to our downstairs bathroom at last …

I saw a story in an entertainment magazine about how Tara Reid lowered the price she gets for attending parties. She used to ask for $25,000 to attend a party or grand opening. Nobody was …

Stately, plump Bruce Aidells came from the smoker bearing a bowl in which a sausage and a French roll lay crossed. That was some 30 years ago, and Aidells's original creations were the start of …

I take the pig's rectum, hold it on the fork. This is it. Chomp. Try not to think, I tell myself. I mean, if this wasn't what it is, I'd quite enjoy it. A little …

Nobody's ever asked the question "What if a vampire and a zombie were trapped together in a sealed room?" Until now. You see, here at stately Underpants Manor we're gigglingly wealthy, curious, and a little …

Amber Ojeda’s “Don’t Rush” was the most-downloaded MP3 during July. What’s your favorite moment in “Don’t Rush”? Amber Ojeda: The hook is my favorite part of the song. It reminds me to stay grounded and …

“We’re gonna play a cover [song]. If you are from ASCAP or BMI, you can fuck off.” That’s how Jackson Milgaten, singer/guitarist/bassist with Vision of a Dying World, introduced a Daniel Johnston song recently at …

Moondoggies in PB has been found in contempt of court for substituting generic energy drinks for Red Bull without telling patrons who order the beverage by its brand name. “This is the second time that …

Real estate developer Orrin Day, who has owned the Ramona movie theater on Main Street for six years, stopped showing films two years ago because people weren’t coming. So, he put the 6000-square-foot theater (built …

One of the more downhearted groups in the world must be the 2012 London Olympics organizers after watching Beijing's opening ceremony. China's big show had astounding scale, precision, balance, intimacy, and surprise. It was an …

Twenty-five years ago today (8/14/83), Peter Gabriel performed at SDSU’s outdoor amphitheatre with the Call as opening act. Though battling marital problems and dealing with financial trouble due to his failed Womad festival, Gabriel pulled …

Author: Dominic Carrillo Neighborhood: Barrio Logan Age: 32 Occupation: Counselor It’s a noun. It’s the place where I live. It’s Barrio Logan, to be exact, but that lone fact is insignificant, really. There’s no Sherman …

Author: Elizabeth Zerbe Neighborhood: Valley Center Age: Over 40 Occupation: Care provider Saturday night, and everyone was going out to dinner — even the six-inch black-and-silver tarantula in the driveway, heading to our ­house. It …

There’s a party going on at Universal Nightclub -- located on the corner of University Avenue and Vermont Street in Hillcrest -- and the celebration has lasted far too long. Residents of the community and …

The End of the World A mile east of the Tijuana International Airport is an area police call El Fin del Mundo, the End of the World, where drug-cartel assassins dump their victims. Both Mexican …

Twenty-nine years ago this week (8/5/79), Jack Murphy Stadium hosted Blue Öyster Cult, Cheap Trick, UFO, Pat Travers, and Shakin’ Street. To launch the all-day show, promoter Marc Berman battled the fire department over attendees …

Local hip-hop artists Kayo, Play B, and Young Mass are joining forces as the Three Rappers. “We’re doing it mainly because there is a lack of unity [in San Diego],” says Kayo. “We got Bloods …

“The Jumping Turtle is a mainly metal place,” says rapper Bryan Mason of the San Marcos venue. “They are paying national headliners thousands of dollars. I wish they were that cool with hip-hop.” Mason, who …

When the Linkery moved north and Sea Rocket took over its former quarters, I could barely contain myself. Seafood in North Park, less than ten minutes from home via my favorite scenic “Secret Freeway” (Pershing …

Yippee! It’s okay to eat burgers again!” This is our neighbor Lisa. She’s yelling it from the balcony of her apartment. Us burger-loving burghers, Carla and I, gather ’neath her balcony. “Burgers are back!” Lisa …

‘Every show starts with a stack of papers,” says Duane Daniels, founder of the Fritz Theatre, “words on a page, from the script to production demands, and they’re just the tip of one humongous iceberg” …

Hot enough for you? I’m counting on the heat still being a predominant if subliminal influence this first week of August. As I often do this time of year, I find myself reaching for science …

“Dance, like words, is a form of expression, a way of explaining who we are,” says Adelaide of the Shimmy Sisters, a belly-dancing duo she formed in 2006 with her sister Leilainia. “A dance can …

For a unique look at La Jolla — from the edge of the village’s commercial center to 811 feet of elevation — try this obscure walking or bicycling route. Cyclists beware: there are some tough …

I look like the most reviled creature on Earth, and I’ll tell you what it is: an Ewok. If you don’t hate Ewoks, you’re not paying attention. And don’t give me that “you said ‘the …

What is bought is cheaper than a gift. — Portuguese proverb I had told Jen to be ready at 8:15 a.m. At 8 a.m. she was folding laundry in her garage and, from the look …

I made the mistake of trying to go to a party in the Hillcrest area during the Gay Pride Festival. Not that there’s anything wrong with that...other than road closures and parking problems! My girlfriend …

Restlessness grows daily in the Kelly home. Midsummer boredom is percolating in my kids and threatening to boil over. Some new hobbies are needed. Pal Bernice suggested square dancing. “We danced a lot of summer …

Thirty Years AgoThree weeks ago The Unhappy Gays — the 12th book written by Reverend Tim LaHaye, president of Christian Heritage College in El Cajon — was released in religious bookstores across the country. LaHaye, …

She was breaking up with me for something that was not my fault, punishing me for something for which I had no control: a tragedy, an act of God. She had had a miscarriage. The …

Victor LarucciaManaging director and board member, San Diego Italian Film Festival The 2008 San Diego Italian Film Festival is dedicated to beloved artist Italo Scanga, who brought to San Diego and to his art the …

“Some people will flat out tell you, ‘I don’t want anything too hard,’” says Kathryn Smith. “With most people, you can just kind of tell what games they’d be good at. I had one crowd …

“I’ve always enjoyed music and singing,” says singer/songwriter Jodi V, “but I grew up in a religious household, so singing anywhere else but at church was not an option.” Her first public performance was at …

Or, the Whale — that’s how they write it — is a seven-piece band from San Francisco with some country and folk instruments (banjo, acoustic guitar, pedal steel) mixed in with distorted guitars, drums, some …

Not a good sign, I suppose, when tales of drug abuse crop up in the third paragraph of a press release — and when thrown such a bone, most of the rock press will take …

Spanish slang connoisseur Roxana Fitch grew up in Tijuana, birthplace of some of the most distinctive slang words — or jergas — in the entire Spanish-speaking world. The proximity of Tijuana, and of Mexico's entire …

Artist: A Scribe amidst the Lions Song: “Wet Bird” (from the CD Sunken Cities) Heard By: Richie Lauridsen, Golden Hill It’s not my cup of tea; however, the band is technically proficient. That song kind …

Allen Glick, 1979. In the ’70s, Glick had a real estate office in San Diego near Banker’s Hill. Around the same time (according to Wikipedia), Glick “was the front man for the syndicate-controlled Stardust Casino …

Name: Dusty Engel Age: 30 Occupation: High School Math Teacher Lives: La Mesa Surfing: Dog Beach Girls in the Water? “Wish there were more!” “On a big day, I get crushed by waves,” admits Dusty …

The website for the California Marriage Protection Act (protectmarriagesd) features a “Protect Marriage” timeline, one which incorporates both spiritual and political efforts. (The act seeks to amend the California State Constitution so that marriage will …

Recipe by Matt Gardner, owner of Bronx Pizza, Hillcrest. Every Sunday is pasta day, so that’s probably my favorite thing to make. I make my traditional pasta sauce with sausage. I start it in the …

The Chargers say they have a problem: Qualcomm Stadium is antiquated. Sorry. The Chargers’ problem is much broader and deeper than that. The Chargers have a problem with San Diego. Period. It’s not big enough …

Acoustic guitarist Shawn Rohlf has played Sunday mornings at the Hillcrest farmers’ market for 11 years. “It’s the most difficult gig of the week for any musician,” says Rohlf, who’s fronted the 7th Day Buskers …

The Gill Action Fund, a political arm of the Colorado-based Gill Foundation, which recently named ex–Jerry Sanders PR aide Fred Sainz its director of communications, gave $250,000 to the No on Prop 8 campaign last …

The People’s Park? Re “What’s wrong with Balboa Park?” (Cover Story, July 31). Your author attended the introductory lecture that addressed this subject, read the accompanying report, interviewed a few officials, and prepared a report …

Communism has taken a hit in recent years. At one time or another, 31 countries were self-declared communist states, including such sleepers as Ethiopia, Benin, Congo, and Grenada. (France and California are omitted for technical …

Ex-KFMB Channel 8 TV weathercaster and part-time Mission Beach stand-up comic Larry Mendte has been making the wrong kind of headlines in his adopted hometown of Philadelphia lately. Mendte, who departed San Diego to work …

Sempra Energy, lobbying hard to build that controversial power line across Anza-Borrego state park, has taken its battle to the stomachs of legislators and their staffers. According to the company’s latest lobbyist disclosure statement, filed …

For over two years now, the City of San Diego and local residents have wanted to stabilize the cliff on Aldine Drive in the Kensington/Talmadge area. They fear the cliff will give way when substantial …

At last week’s city council meeting for the Chula Vista City Council meeting, councilmember Steve Castaneda persisted in moving for a citywide ban on plastic bags. “ I end up with a stack of them …

Pinback live at Del Mar Fairgrounds on Friday, August 1, 2008.