I’ve been gone a long time. When I wake up in the morning and look out my window, the deep topaz sky over Carmel Valley is so inviting. Palm fronds clack at my window, beckoning …

During District 2 councilmember Kevin Faulconer’s state of the district speech on April 27, he listed his accomplishments during the past three years. One of his proudest accomplishments so far has been banning alcohol from …

Korean Goodies I enjoyed Moss Gropen’s article on the Korean spirit soju (“Our Favorite Drinks and Where We Drink Them,” Cover Story, April 23). I was introduced to the stuff by my friend and his …

Neal and Linden Blue, the La Jolla millionaires who own and operate General Atomics, makers of the Predator unmanned aerial vehicle, have been getting a lot of good ink of late about their government-sponsored efforts …

Sacramento’s Capitol Weekly is out with its top-100 list of the biggest “influence peddlers, power brokers and political players in California.” Only two San Diegans, both Republicans, make the cut: Bob White, the ex-aide to …

Doug Hutcheson, CEO of San Diego’s Leap Wireless, has chipped in $2500 to the campaign for Props 1A through E, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s five measures on the May ballot. Prop 1A would hike state sales and …

Report from the front: pressure mounting, resistance weakening, defenses leaking. Try as I might to hold the line, more and more movies in recent months and years, mainly movies of the “alternative” as distinct from …

From the first downbeat of a Mike Doughty , you know you’re in for something crafty and powerful and maybe a little strange. He’s a flawless modern craftsman, and that encourages a listener to embrace …

I don’t want to say that Damien Jurado is somber. Let’s just say that he’s the kind of guy who writes lyrics like “Happy birthday, John/ Where has your sweetheart gone?/ She left today with …

“‘What Do All the People Know’ was a fun song, and I still enjoy listening to it,” says Rusty Jones, whose San Diego band the Monroes toured with Rick Springfield, Toto, and Greg Kihn in …

Thirty Years AgoEaster at the Colorado River is like a holy pilgrimage for those who believe. They pour out of the hot cities of Southern California in endless caravans, crossing the mountains and deserts, enduring …

Slab City lies at the southeast corner of the Salton Sea, where the Anza-Borrego Desert becomes the Colorado Desert. The “slabs” are what’s left from WWII training facility Camp Dunlop. And there’s an Olympic-sized swimming …

Eighties electronic duo Red Flag performed for the first time in San Diego since 2002 on April 22 at the House of Blues. Originally a project of siblings Chris and Mark Reynolds, the show marked …

From 1994 to 2004, guitarist Ryan Ruiz and bassist Steve Van Wyk played in Surf Report, a band known for retooling metal songs (“Ace of Spades,” “Crazy Train”) into instrumental surf tunes. They opened for …

Matt Curreri of the Exfriends has been looking for a venue where he can play weekly shows, like the dive bar on Manhattan’s Lower East Side where he used to play every Sunday with his …

“Live clean, die nasty,” as suggested in track three, “19:04,” seems to be the prevailing theme of this rap album. The four men behind it — Kostik, Tank, Mute, Kalibur — paint a tough-as-nails portrait …

Adjoining the vast spaces of Angeles National Forest, Claremont Hills Wilderness Park spreads over foothills spilling down toward the college town of Claremont. The Cobal Canyon Loop, the one significant hike in the park that …

A loaf of bread and a pitcher (presumably of wine) flanked the oversized open Bible on the long stone altar at Northminster Presbyterian on Sunday, but there was no communion service. There wasn’t much liturgy …

These things are fun every long once in awhile. Every long once in awhile has passed. Let the fun begin. Short-Term Memory section, 2008 NFL division. 1. One of these teams won all their home …

"In Spain there was Guernica! But here there was only hot swing music and liquor, dance halls, bars, and movies, and sex that hung in the gloom like a chandelier and flooded the world with …

“Slow down, you move too fast. You’ve got to make the morning last...” Can’t help humming that Simon and Garfunkel ditty. Life’s pouring through my veins again. How not? It’s one of those crisp, sunny …

When the new Gio took over the space of the old Village Garden, the charming neighborhood of La Mesa Village acquired something like a “downtown-y” restaurant, a sophisticated but family-friendly indoor-outdoor bistro and wine bar. …

Artist: Po County featuring Big Money BlueSong: “Po County Livin’ It Up (Slamming)” (from their two-song CDR)Heard By: Richard Medlen, San Diego It was good; it had a great beat to it. It was something …

Hi, Matt Alice: I cleaned my silver necklace’s cross using a name-brand silver cleaner, but my wife says I am a stupid, ignorant, ugly male idiot because silver, as she briefs me from watching antique …

In late March, I went to a park in Hillcrest for a going-away party. People there dubbed the theme “crokaoke” because they were playing croquet and singing karaoke. The guest of honor was a local …

“How’s life in the new house?” I asked my friend Suzy, who recently bought a North Park bungalow. “New?” she answered. “More like old. I’m still charmed, but ever since we decided to have a …

Author: D. Kinsley Neighborhood: Encinitas Age: 32 Occupation: Sous chef Little did I know that upon moving into my neighborhood that I was sooner or later going to have to go around in a circle …

Border Patrol agent Richard Gonzales pushes a button in the shiny white Chevy Tahoe he’s driving. In response, a gate rolls open to allow entry to the no-man’s-land between the secondary fence and the old …

Call it a riptide in the ranks of city lifeguards. A dissident group is roiling the city’s beachfront guardians with an effort to split from the San Diego Municipal Employees Association, which represents them and …

“We have no suspects and only very limited information,” reports Captain Ed Aceves with the La Mesa Police Department. There is a stabbing victim, though: he was treated early Sunday morning at Sharp Grossmont Hospital. …