More West Coast via the Midwest
Brandon Hernández 8:18 a.m., May 21
Stories for January 2013
Thursday, January 31
Midway District’s Heritage Inn explosion unrelated to meth
Burn victims were processing pot
What was first thought to be a meth-lab explosion at the Heritage Inn in the Midway District on the morning of January 30 is now being reported as a different sort of drug-related disaster that ...
Tainan – Historic Heart of Taiwan
This southern Taiwanese city's a worthy stop for your next Asia tour.
Most travelers to Taiwan simply visit Taipei, its modern capital. Although filled with wonderful sights, Taipei has only been a city of significance since the Chinese Qing dynasty moved the provincial capital there in 1886. ...
Hot prowling and burglaries in Normal Heights
Victims at home asleep
Police are warning Normal Heights residents about a series of middle-of-the-night burglaries — with the victims at home asleep. The “hot prowls” all occurred in a small area of the neighborhood. "Hot-prowl burglaries are bold ...
They Could Pay Me in Beer
Careers in the brewing business
Good news: beer joints are popping up all over San Diego, so much that Time Magazine recently called San Diego the “hoppiest place on earth.” America’s craft-beer capital spells good news for people who want ...
Military Personnel Storm the Job Market
Military personnel are worried. They hear the news. They watch television. They hear terms such as sequestration, cutbacks, downsizing, rightsizing, reduction in force. Soon, we may find that many former military personnel are in the ...
Chula Vista’s Cricket becomes Sleep Train
Concert venue gets a name change
Coors Amphitheatre became San Diego County's largest concert locale when it opened in July of 1998 (the Spice Girls put on the first sold-out concert a month later). In April of 2008, the Chula Vista ...
Wednesday, January 30
What am I? Curious objects from San Diego's past
San Diego's curios — each with their own separate stories.
Sweetwater board votes to open second charter school
Superintendent Brand sees it as money-maker
At the January 28 Sweetwater Union High School District board meeting, the majority of trustees voted to support superintendent Ed Brand’s push to open a second charter school; following up the Stephen W. Hawking Math ...
Which San Diego cop won’t take your pot?
Border Patrol sure will
What's a medical cannabis patient to do in a routine encounter with the police? Depends on the police, it seems. The cannabis and paraphernalia in the photo above — from a bust at an I-8/East ...
Instant oatmeal taste test
Casa Kelly’s 2013 New Year’s resolution is healthier living — nutritious eating, physical activity, and enlightenment of the mind. The easy part for shopper Eve is the eating. Out go the chips, in come the ...
Desert View Trail, William Heise County Park
Hike up to 4927 feet for Glen’s View, with panoramic views that include North Peak, Julian, and the desert.
Songwriters are culture's poets
How does songwriting fit in at the Writer’s Symposium by the Sea at Point Loma Nazarene University?
Record-release roundup
Take Over, a local-music compilation from North County–based Pacific Ocean Records, drops January 31 with an 18-and-up party at Oceanside’s Red Crab Lounge. “We’ll give copies away to the first 50 people,” says label honcho ...
Stand Up Guys: A love story with guns
For 28 years, two loyal friends serve a concurrent prison sentence: Val (Al Pacino), behind bars for refusing to finger an associate, and Doc (Christopher Walken), on the outside, waiting to perform the hit when ...
The Generators plug in at Shakedown
USA Today once identified the Generators as one of America’s most underrated of punk bands. In truth, a punk-revival band from late 1990s Los Angeles, the Generators owe much to the Britpunk of the 1970s. ...
The Prince of Tides, by Pat Conroy
What are you reading? “The Prince of Tides, by Pat Conroy. It was made into a movie with Barbra Streisand. I’ve never seen the movie, but I’ve read great things about the book.” Tell me ...
No hipsters, no canines
Musician Ron Najor produces the film I Am Not a Hipster, screened at Sundance and now on cable and DVD.
Bonanza of bands
Desert Daze Music and Art Festival returns as a one-day camping jamboree near Desert Hot Springs, on the same weekend as Coachella Music and Arts Festival.
Betting on the Super Bowl has little to do with the game
Odds and evens
This column is for degenerate gamblers, a sporting demographic I’ve neglected lately. You can see why. When an internet gambling site runs a half-page, full-color ad in the sports section of a Super Bowl team’s ...
Tyler Crabe prefers not to take shortcuts
Name: Tyler Crabe Vehicle: 2000 Ford Ranger What do you like about your car? It’s a stick, it gets decent gas mileage, and it can hold stuff. I bought a camper shell, and it’s the ...
Ue Kara Grill takes sushi beyond the California roll
Ed kicks himself for not visiting Chef Arturo sooner.
Quadrophenia mania and the San Diego music scene, January 31-February 6
Thursday 31Atlanta band Nashville Pussy plugs in at Casbah Thursday night. Hubbie and wife guitarists Blaine Cartwright and Ruyter Suys (pronounced Rider Sighs) have been riding this eight-legged Southern-fried sleaze-rock beast since 1996, garnering a ...
Turn that down!
Heymatt: Why do some clubs have such loud music? I know loud volume is a substitute for quality tones, but do they really need to go that far? Some have sound levels of 105 decibels, ...
Canadian Nice
"Do you have Mexican food in Vancouver? Wait, that’s a stupid question — it’s a city, of course you do,” I said. “But it’s probably not as good as it is here...I mean, not because ...
Advice from ex-political boss
Speaking of David Alvarez, his ex-boss in the office of former South Bay Democratic state senator Denise Ducheny is raking in some big bucks from border-related city-hall lobbying of her former employee. Falcon Strategies, L.L.C., ...
Beauty goin' down
Sun Beauty crew members were saved after using an asparagus can to signal they needed rescuing.
Strong drinks, stout lobbyists
It hasn’t taken very long for freshman Democratic congressman Juan Vargas to hit the Washington fundraising circuit. According to a recent online invite from the Juan Vargas for Congress Committee, posted by the Sunlight Foundation’s ...
TV and video games may intensify violence
Are Hollywood, football, and the media to blame for America’s penchant for violence?
International mail: which country gets paid
Heymatt: Curious as to how an international letter works through the United States Postal Service? How does the USPS get paid and how much does the country receiving the letter get? Do both countries just ...
The difference between recreation and re-creation
Heymatt: How come you can “recreate” something (like a Civil War battle) and it would be a “RE-creation,” but when you go play tennis (or whatever) it’s “WRECK-reation?” Are they different words or just the ...
Unidentified flying freebies
After a grueling election year, things are settling back to normal at San Diego’s city hall, with favors and freebies the coin of the city’s political realm, and elected officials scrambling to be the first ...
Sweetwater's gathering storm
Sweetwater Union High School District in Chula Vista has an excessive spending habit and may be in serious fiscal trouble soon.
10 Ways Your Camera Can Change Your Life in 2013 (Part One)
Shutterbug for life
A young man graduates, travels the world, and has his camera’s film stolen. He writes about it.
The "n" word rears its ugly head
In Plain Sight I was reading an article in your publication and I found some things that troubled me. On page 28, one of your writers is repeatedly quoting someone using the “n” word in ...
Night. Street. Lamp. Drugstore.
Night. Street. Lamp. Drugstore. Dull and sleazy light. Live twenty-five years more — It will be as now. No way out. You die — and again you begin. All is repeated as before: Night. The ...
Address from the President of the American Baptist Missionary Union to the Missionaries of Buffalo New York
You go to an embassy compared with which all the embassies of men dwindle into insignificance. You go forth as ambassadors of Christ. You go to crumble idols — to convey light to benighted minds ...
January 24 Crossword Contenders
Martha Awdziewicz, Clairemont, 12. L. Barling, El Cajon, 12. Johanna Barry, Pine Valley, 12. Evelyn Bowser, Hillcrest, 12. Bob Carlson, Serra Mesa, 12. Leslie Chase, Campo, 12. Joseph Ciprian, Little Italy, 12. Carolyn Clark, Lakeside, ...
January 24 Sudoku Contenders
Evil Patrick Driscoll, Santee, 12. Hiroshi Miyazaki, Normal Heights, 12. Jim Piburn, Point Loma, 12. Michael Rewa, Allied Gardens, 12. Bliss Beedle, Encinitas, 11. Vincent Lee, San Diego, 11. Joseph Ciprian, Little Italy, 10. Jerry ...
Tuesday, January 29
Sweetwater board succumbs to public outcry
Still, meeting time to be slightly earlier
On Monday, January 28, concerned parents, teachers, and community members packed the Sweetwater Union High School District board meeting. One reason for the big draw was the district’s proposal to move evening board meetings to ...
San Diego City Council finds funds to trim palm trees
Over $250,000 appropriated
The City of San Diego has a problem with falling palm fronds and has fallen way behind with palm-tree trimming. So, on January 29, the San Diego City Council unanimously (with two absent) approved the ...
Don't Pet the Sharks in Oahu
If you're in Oahu and seen enough scary people in panda suits waiting for you to give them money so they can lunge at your face, why not try a shark cage tour? There is ...
Shanghai's Hidden Garden
Venture past the crowds to get lost in Yuyuan.
Tucked away in Old Shanghai City lies Yuyuan Garden, a five-acre oasis in the midst of an otherwise sprawling metropolis. It's only a short walk from Line 10 of the Shanghai Metro, and you’ll be ...
Escape to Amsterdamse Bos
A biking adventure in Amsterdam.
Bicycles more than double that of the number of cars in Amsterdam, coming in at over half a million. In the city center, the number is probably closer to 5 to 1, as thousands of ...
Golden Hill post office becomes residential
Multistory structure added to back of lot
Major renovation is under way at 2692 C Street, the address that was previously home to George Washington Station, the post office that served Golden Hill from the '60s until it closed permanently in February ...
Monday, January 28
Drivers clog La Jolla to try and see Tiger win
Traffic a bear
The announcement of free entry to watch the Farmers Insurance Open golf tournament at Torrey Pines on Monday morning, January 28, created a run on parking spaces at the Torrey Pines Gliderport. The parking area, ...
Prep-school student assassinated in Ensenada
Suspects in car with California plates
A student attending a private prep school in Ensenada was murdered — reportedly shot at least ten times — on the afternoon of January 24. The recent arrival from Durango, Mexico, was reportedly lured from ...
Sunday, January 27
Borderlands: Two Days in Ensenada
We drove through downtown San Diego in a state of anxiety, paranoia and excitement. It’s hard not to be affected by the constant media deluge of horrors from south of the border: decapitated heads, mutilated ...
Saturday, January 26
Sweetwater board meeting times may change
Indignation ripples through the South Bay
The official Sweetwater Union High School District calendar says the next board meeting will be held on January 28 at 6:00, the usual time board meetings are held. However, over the January 19–20 weekend, an ...
Rock to roll onto Aldine Drive in Kensington?
City says it poses no danger
During the past two months, Kensington residents have been baffled by the sudden appearance of a large boulder lodged into a slope along Aldine Drive. To add to the mystery, all vegetation was quickly cleared ...
Friday, January 25
San Diego police K-9 units train at Lakeside’s El Monte Park
Fake suspect, real bites
Mid-week, you can often find San Diego police utilizing the large open spaces of El Monte Park (five miles east of Lakeside) to train their dogs. The K-9 unit pulls up to the staged scene, ...
Muse and the mothership descend on Valley View
Once spurned as another Radiohead rip-off, Muse has grown into a band with its own identity. With hints of Queen in its blood, Muse makes unique, bombastic arena rock. And rock they did at the ...
Thursday, January 24
Allez Allez say Night Marchers
Swami John Reis and the Night Marchers sat on this set for more than two years. Reis posts that it’s because he wanted each vinyl pressing hand-stamped. The only living human who does this, apparently, ...
Food + Art: Upstate in Dutchess County, NY
Dutchess County, New York, is part of the Hudson Valley. In one single county, you’ll find all types of cultures: historic, scenic outdoors, indie artists, foodie, horsey set and “beautiful people.” This is the land ...
The Imperial House's Negroni
Few drinks admit of such variety as the bittersweet Negroni. Switch out the shot of gin for vodka and you have a Negroski; add bourbon instead of gin and you’re drinking a Boulevardier; order a ...
Possible car arson in Santee’s Santana shopping center
Alarm and explosion at 3 a.m.
At approximately 3:00 a.m. on Tuesday, January 22, a possible car arson occurred in the Santana Village Shopping Center in Santee. The car was in the parking lot behind the Subway sandwich shop and across ...
Guitar man plays on at Chula Vista’s Steak House on Broadway
Voice reclaimed after medical problem
The Steak House on Broadway in Chula Vista, formerly known as the Butcher Shop, gets a lot of attention from me. I've been going there for years. A number of things keep me coming back: ...
Thank God I Got Laid Off
Because now I have my dream job
Before he was laid off in 2005, Sean Margolin worked 20 years for an electronics company. It took him about five minutes to decide what he was going to do next. “I got my captain’s ...
A Pile is Not a File
The importance of job search organization
Carolyn Walstein, profession organizer, explains the importance of staying organized in your job search. First, please tell me what you do. I’m a professional organizer. I help people update and prioritize, and let go of ...
Wednesday, January 23
I felt the bullet whiz past my ear
Guns 'n' stoners
A dope deal with a stranger goes — you guessed it — wrong!
Preservationists speak up at La Mesa town hall meeting
Spring House and old façades discussed
At a La Mesa town hall meeting last week (January 17), two residents urged the council to preserve the Spring House in Collier Park. The park on Palm Avenue was named for David Charles Collier, ...
Workers’ Patience Has Run Out
After years of clinging to jobs, workers are expected to seek better employment.
Mock animal at Plumeria
Ed has hot-hot-hot soup at Plumeria, which is a Thai restaurant that bills itself first as “vegetarian.”
The musical alter egos of the Country Rockin’ Rebels
The Country Rockin’ Rebels were founded by Bad Science Fiction guitarist Michael Head, operator of local Headtrap Studios for around 20 years, and singer-songwriter Tristan Luhrs. “He and I have worked in my studio since ...
Lou & Mickey's Scorpion's Sting
Tiki-cocktail culture might be making a comeback, but at Lou & Mickey’s, it never went away. Take yourself downtown, where bartender Brian Gaudet is ready to take the sting out of your day by putting ...
Jon Goodhue plays to the masses
Golf, fishing, and rock and roll: Jon Goodhue emails that he is just leaving the course at Carmel Mountain Ranch at one point during the month that I spend interviewing him. A San Diego transplant ...
Where Ron took Veronica
With so many local performers relocating in search of success, Brothers Gow bucked the trend by moving to San Diego this past August. “We didn’t even know we wanted to move from the Bay Area ...
Shameless
I couldn’t think of two people with more divergent worldviews than my father — a ribald Brooklyn boy turned retired naval officer who runs military war games abroad — and the proper young woman with ...
Sounds around town, January 24–30
Thursday 24Sunset Strip rock royalty Queen Caveat will rule Bar Pink Thursday night. Led by cagey stage banshee Lauren Little (think young Courtney Love with Joan Jett’s pipes), the hard-rocking quartet’s held residencies at L.A. ...
In other news...
Fake-girlfriend edition
They didn’t talk about women while working on the Alaskan pipeline project in the ’70s.
John Jorgenson Quintet at AMSD
John Jorgenson’s one of those guitarists with an astonishing facility, a modern performer capable of firing off lightning-fast Danny Gatton licks without a second thought, or of mastering Django Reinhardt licks using only two fingers. ...
Radio quiet
Piano-and-voice teacher Deborah Cooney is convinced electric meters made her sick and destroyed her music business.
The Lone Wolf hits a Royal Flush
Tuna for days
Every sport or occupation has a dream scenario: score the winning goal; close the impossible sale. For old-time tuna “bait boats,” it was the Big Catch, a mammoth haul with bamboo poles and lines. In ...
Bullets in a bonfire
Do bullets thrown into a campfire go off with the same velocity as when they are fired from a gun?
Butchery’s history
Heymatt: Supposedly, butchers are supposed to retire after a set amount of years (10, 15, 20?) because they’re otherwise highly prone to mental problems, i.e. they go crazy. I’ve snooped around a little but have ...
Anza-Borrego's all-access trails
Paved and dirt trails encourage all visitors (including those in wheelchairs) to experience the desert
Del Mar Racetrack’s long lost airport
You could take a plane
If the recent plan to have a train stop at the Del Mar Fairgrounds falls through, resurrecting the adjacent former airport is certainly a nonstarter. Located on the San Dieguito River wetlands between the Del ...
The celebrity rescue of the West Memphis Three
Revisiting the imprisoned
The “West Memphis Three” (Jessie Misskelley, Damien Echols, and Jason Baldwin) were teenagers in 1993 when they were wrongfully convicted of the murders of three eight-year-old boys. Directed by investigative journalist Amy Berg (Deliver Us ...
Shaw's back in town — finally! The Old Globe stages Pygmalion
What a treat! George Bernard Shaw’s back at the Old Globe — finally! — with first-class direction, performances, and design work. Even a balky turntable on opening night couldn’t tarnish the luster. For the past ...
Environmental Health Coalition takes on the whole wide world
Bob Filner and San Diego’s Democratic city-council majority have a lot of problems to solve — including global warming, in the opinion of one well-connected nonprofit. According to a recent lobbyist disclosure filing by the ...
Breast milk's not on the menu
To breastfeed in the California bubble was all she wanted.
Jamie Boyd and Joseph Taylor are confronted at Felix’s Restaurant in Lincoln Park and told that breastfeeding must be done outside of the dining area.
First lobbyist Nathan Fletcher
Last week, new Democratic mayor Bob Filner gave his first State of the City Speech. Before he took the microphone at the Balboa Theatre, the mayor was preceded by Nathan Fletcher, former GOP assemblyman-turned-independent who ...
Not America's sweethearts
In silent movies, Mary Pickford was angelic — her Southern California admirers aren’t. Elizabeth and Thomas Coldicutt, helped by San Diegans, allegedly set up shell companies to lure investors.
Paradise Valley Seventh Day Adventist Church
8000 pounds of food a week to about 500 families
Interview with Will James, pastor at Paradise Valley Seventh Day Adventist Church.
Lots o' letters
Uncovered My name is Sabrina and I am 19 years old. I'm featured on the cover of the Reader and interviewed for the article (“Cosplay in the Park: Adorable When I Dress Up,” January 10), ...
Missing You
The nights are long, the days long between the nights — no time for sleep; the sheets are ochre with damp, with the one body restless in the folds, the eyelids wide in premonition: another ...
Tuesday, January 22
Mayor Bob Filner visits Tijuana
Discounts State Dept. warnings
Together with Tijuana mayor Carlos Bustamante and border entrepreneurs, on January 21 San Diego mayor Bob Filner dismissed U.S. State Department–issued travel-alert warnings for visitors to Tijuana and Mexicali. According to Uniradioinforma, Filner said, "I ...
Lakeside Rodeo trades sign for big screen
Goodbye, longhorns; hello, pixels
In Lakeside on January 17, the finishing touches were put on the new Lakeside Rodeo marquee. The old sign was put up in the early ’70s and was showing signs of wear. The cost of ...
Bosque del Apache, New Mexico
Wildlife encounter on the Rio Grande.
It’s 5:30 a.m., 27 degrees and pitch-black dark on a November morning in New Mexico. I’m standing in a small group on a wooden platform built out over the water named “The Flight Deck.” Although ...
La Mesa residents seek to stifle 7-Eleven
Booze rules and limited hours discussed
At a January 17 town-hall meeting in La Mesa, Ted Crisostomo, Neighborhood Watch captain for the Dalhart Avenue and Dallas Street area, objected to the possible opening of a 24-hour 7-Eleven near the Big Lots! ...
Testaccio – The Rome You've Never Been To
When you’re in Rome and need a break from frescos and friezes, hop onto Metro Line B and get off at the Piramide stop to visit one of its most authentic neighborhoods – where butchers ...
Monday, January 21
Old World Solvang, CA
A continent away, just 4 hours north of San Diego.
Usually it's places with some sort of dark, twisted history that attract me. If a place doesn't have that, it's pretty rare that I'll visit, much less make it a regular stomping ground. So, considering ...
Sixth College at UCSD wraps up Winter GameFest
Fluff crushes enemy
“Fluff,” professional gamer Brian Lee, led a team that crushed the enemy in Defenders of the Ancients on Sunday, January 20, at UCSD’s Price Center. Gamers surrounded the tables and watched over the players' screens ...
Saturday, January 19
Robb Field skate park crasher was asleep
Haz-mat follows rescuers
A barricade and orange cone mark the point of impact from a van that went flying over a fence surrounding Robb Field Skateboard Park on Tuesday morning, January 15. San Diego police have declared that ...
Friday, January 18
En Route in Port-au-Prince
A first impression following the 3-year anniversary of the quake.
I stepped off the plane and onto the tarmac, directed toward a small white building with bright blue lettering: "Toussaint Louverture." The massive cracks in the side of the building were visible even before we ...
Lost Animal's Ex Tropical
A synth player who leaves a popular Aussie band, St Helens, to explore the possibilities of himself with his machines? Sounds like a fairly risky set-up. But the short-lived indie band’s ex-songwriter/singer/guitarist/keyboardist has crafted a ...
Keane sing-alongs at House of Blues
Since 1997 the band from East Essex named Keane has been producing piano-driven melodies much to the delight of fans both here and overseas. The quartet showcased their music library for the sold-out crowd at ...
Sweetwater U partnership opposed by Freedom from Religion
Foundation objects to “Christian worldview”
The Sweetwater Union High School District voted in 2011 to move forward on a university-related project. Superintendent Ed Brand told the Reader in a December 2011 interview that the district was surveying the residents to ...
Thursday, January 17
Cabins, Karaoke and Snow Pain in Wrightwood
Giving the mountains a second chance.
Wrightwood, CA, is a ski town just 1–10 hours away from L.A., depending on traffic. Mark and I were excited for our fully stocked rented weekend cabin. It belonged to a friend’s soon-to-be ex-wife. We ...
Cambodia's Khmer Legacy
Beyond the tourist sites are Buddhist shrines hidden in the jungle.
The temples of Cambodia arguably stand alone as the finest blending of art and architecture in the world. Most people are aware of the monumental achievements in building championed by the Greeks, Egyptians and Mayans. ...
Imperial Beach phone booth dumped
For years, a phone booth sat on the corner just outside of the Siesta RV Park in the 400 block of Palm Avenue in Imperial Beach. Made of aluminum and glass with a light in ...
Dad rescues daughter from Embarcadero’s water
Second time in two weeks!
People walking along the Embarcadero near Anthony's Seafood restaurant on Sunday afternoon, January 13, at around 4:30, were startled to see a soaking-wet, fully dressed man running along the sidewalk. The man was the father ...
Wednesday, January 16
Realty's new reality
Bunny, bunny, bunny...
San Diego realtors have made do during years of a depressed market. They are optimistic in 2013.
The Best BBQ Sauce
Sauce for your bones
We use a lot of barbecue sauce in the Kelly house. Our favorite has always been Gates Original. It hails from Kansas City, and my mom sends me a bottle every year at both Christmas ...
Ja jien mein (noodles with meat sauce)
Recipe by executive chef/owner, Khan’s Cave
Mark Sun opened Khan’s Cave after he realized he couldn’t stay out of the kitchen on a Friday night.
Heard of the Baja-Med movement?
Ed says “What the heck” and orders the snail pizza
Snail pizza at Tijuana’s El Taller Baja-Mex Restaurant.
Outlaw-country-blues-rockers Tilt to release debut full-length at Belly Up
“The band is now essentially myself and singer Jesse Malley...we do the songwriting and band management,” says guitarist Jeff Irwin of outlaw-country-blues-rockers Tilt, whose debut full-length, Howlin’, will drop January 23 at the Belly Up. ...
Under the Sea
I stood alone in the middle of a long aisle at Party City. I looked left. The only person in sight was the young clerk behind the register. Her face was turned away from me. ...
The Harbaugh brothers get another chance at the Super Bowl
Fade In 2
Coaching twins have another chance — read the script.
Cat mitzvah
A shaggy dog story about a nearly hairless cat in 1920s Algiers. He serves his master the rabbi, but he loves his mistress, the rabbi’s fleshy daughter. When he eats the family parrot and so ...
Sunset trail
Big Sky Country in San Diego County
Montana is not the only state that can boast being “Big Sky Country.” We have the same bragging rights in our own backyard: the Laguna Mountains (locals call it “the Lagunas”). Tucked in the Cleveland ...
Joey Harris & the Mentals — rock stars posing as a club act
“A rock star posing as a club act.” This is how a talent buyer at a local nightclub once characterized Joey Harris. A guitarist and a singer and a songwriter, Harris was solid gold even ...
The week in music in San Diego, January 17-23
The Reader's picks for best pop, rock 'n' soul, punk 'n' blues 'n' all that jazz
Daniel Sigmon's dream of a Smart Car
Name: Daniel Sigmon Vehicle: 2004 Pontiac Vibe How do you feel about your car? I actually like it quite a bit. This is hard because I don’t care about cars. My dream is not to ...
Serious supporters of Sweetwater trustee Pearl Quiñones
Surprising allegations, questionable tactics
It’s no secret that the allegations of long-term corruption in the Sweetwater Union High School District have roiled the South Bay waters. A recent U-T article even calls on South Bay politicians to discuss the ...
Rozzers — a slang term for police
Hey Matt: My English friend was riding in my car recently when I was pulled over by the police. I had not noticed them, but Nigel did and exclaimed, “Cripes, the rozzers are after us!” ...
Leucadia’s Calypso Cafe closes
The Calypso Cafe, which opened in Leucadia in 1995 and featured music seven nights a week for most of its existence, held its final show this New Year’s Eve. Located in a converted house, the ...
Santee house fire displaces family
Firefighter injured, dogs rescued
A Santee family of four was burned out of their Poinciana Drive home Tuesday, January 15, by a two-alarm fire that destroyed much of the house's interior. A firefighter and a civilian suffered minor injuries ...
San Diego Central Library's moving daze
Now that the new downtown library is almost finished and preparing to open in July, moving day is just around the corner. This being the city, of course, a contractor is required. Based on a ...
Let's catch us some tuna!
The tuna spotters sought jumpers, foamers, and boilers on the water’s surface, an indication of schools below and potential future profits.
Are cats lazier than dogs?
Hey Matt: Why is it that a dog stays firm and muscular when you pick him up while a cat goes all loose and floppy and sags to the bottom like the stuff in a ...
Send in the AUSAs
Duffy fears San Diego will turn into Amsterdam West
United States Attorney Laura Duffy, who has been waging a lengthy war against medical marijuana in San Diego — along with the city’s current mayor — is calling for reinforcements. During last year’s campaign, the ...
Free barbecue in Ocean Beach
Hot dogs for the homeless
I was riding my bike along Abbott Street and Saratoga Avenue on January 13 and smelled the smoke of a barbecue coming from Saratoga Park, right next to the sand. I saw a long line ...
He woke to a knife at his throat
The kidnapper wanted money, tools, and a señorita.
A scheme to extort money from an Oceanside car-repair shop goes sideways.
Where paper sizes come from
Heymatt: How did we arrive at our crazy “standards” for paper sizes? I mean, where did sizes like eight-and-a-half by eleven inches come from? Who is responsible for this mess? And what would have happened ...
Tied up in notes
Newly installed Democratic congressman Scott Peters is already entangled in some nagging post-election financial disclosure questions, courtesy of the Federal Election Commission. In a letter to Peters campaign treasurer Nancy Haley, dated January 4, the ...
To: Reader From: readers
Cosplay Replay I just read the article by Siobhan Braun (“Adorable When I Dress Up,” January 10), and I would like to extend an invitation to her to go to another cosplay gathering. A handful ...
Excerpt from Church of the Holy Trinity v. United States
Our laws and our institutions must necessarily be based upon and embody the teachings of the Redeemer of mankind. It is impossible that it should be otherwise; and in this sense and to this extent ...
Remember those black-haired dead souls who hold up the white-haired mothers
If my feet are chained, I’ll use my ten fingers to climb to you If my hands are tied, I’ll use my knees and chin to climb to you If my legs are smashed, I’ll ...
Catch and Compassion Fatigue
Blogger pledges to devote most, if not all, of her do-good energies to the plight of the orangutan.
January 10 Crossword Contenders
Martha Awdziewicz, Clairemont, 10. L. Barling, El Cajon, 10. Johanna Barry, Pine Valley, 10. Evelyn Bowser, Hillcrest, 10. Bob Carlson, Serra Mesa, 10. Leslie Chase, Campo, 10. Joseph Ciprian, Little Italy, 10. Carolyn Clark, Lakeside, ...
January 10 Sudoku Contenders
Evil Patrick Driscoll, Santee, 10. Hiroshi Miyazaki, Normal Heights, 10. Jim Piburn, Point Loma, 10. Bliss Beedle, Encinitas, 9. Vincent Lee, San Diego, 9. Joe Arbusto, Rancho Penasquitos, 8. Joseph Ciprian, Little Italy, 8. Jerry ...
Tuesday, January 15
Re-Planet recycling guy leaves Encinitas post
Plans to spend more time with Ritual Torture
A longtime fixture at the recycling center behind the Vons on El Camino Real has left his Encinitas post. After nine years of lifting large blue barrels, weighing in cans, bottles, and plastics, recycler Steve ...
Last Stop: Chloride, AZ
A pit-stop worthy ghost town for your next Grand Canyon visit.
We were heading to the majestic Grand Canyon, surely America’s most famous crevasse, when we decided to stop off at the neat little ghost town of Chloride, AZ. Nestling halfway between Las Vegas and the ...
Roman Abramovich yacht on San Diego’s Embarcadero
Two helicopter pads, pool, spa, hot tub...
Anyone strolling along San Diego's Embarcadero might wonder who owns the super yacht docked at the B Street/Broadway Pier. The yacht, named Luna, is 377 feet long and is owned by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich. ...
North Park Main Street update
Office remodel, financial snapshot
It appeared North Park Main Street, a business improvement district established by the City of San Diego, might be moving. Last month on two walkabouts it was dark inside, boxes and pictures were strewn about, ...
Monday, January 14
Cold morning over Corte Madera Dam
Snowbird’s eye view
Flying eastbound along Interstate 8 this Saturday morning of January 12, I could not help but notice the beauty of our East County with a light dusting of snow. It has been so cold (in ...
King tides create salty problems in Imperial Beach
Flood parking areas, require bulldozer work
Residents in Imperial Beach were dealing with more flooding as unusually high “king tides” hit the California coast last week. Condominiums along Seacoast Drive were inundated with water on Friday morning, January 11. The high ...
Polar Bear Season in Churchill, Manitoba
Our plane knifed through the dark grey clouds and plunged into a driving snowstorm. As the wheels touched down on the tarmac we could distinguish the hulking remains of previously crashed planes lining the runway. ...
Sunday, January 13
Shoestring Travel: Madrid
Taking you to European destinations on a dime (7 of 7).
After leaving Barcelona and falling in love with the city, we hopped on the high-speed train to Madrid. Three hours later we arrived at our flat (that we found on AirBnb) overlooking Plaza De Santa ...
Saturday, January 12
Mall cops chase off unwanted habitués of Glasshouse Square
Parking and begging problems alleviated
As recently as last summer, Glasshouse Square Shopping Center, located in the Midway District, was home turf to many shelter-challenged individuals. Many customers and patrons were turned off by the presence of vagrants who would ...
Friday, January 11
Guatemala: My First Trip Abroad
Tikal, Lake Atitlan, Antigua and Rio Hondo.
Have you ever eaten a marshmallow melted by a volcano? Well, I have. Let me tell you how this happened. I’m eleven years old and I just took my first trip overseas to Guatemala. I ...
Documents hint at Sweetwater board’s diners’ club
High school student investigated 10 years ago
The latest round of indictments handed down by San Diego’s criminal grand jury is so extensive, people wonder if corruption is just another name for South Bay. Fifteen defendants from three separate South Bay school ...
Lonerism, by Tame Impala
Lonerism is the second outing for the brainchild of Perth’s Kevin Parker, for it is he who composes, produces, sings, and plays (almost) everything on Tame Impala records. He’s even responsible for the sleeve photography. ...
X mass at Casbah
The punk-rock masses came out for a pre-Christmas “X mass” at the Casbah. It was a different type of spiritual gathering than your traditional church service, but for those of us that worship at the ...
Thursday, January 10
Sweetwater school board supporters and detractors show in court
Additional indictments brought by DA
“We love you Pearl!” shouted several people to Pearl Quiñones inside the lobby of the downtown courthouse on January 7. Handfuls of supporters and opponents in the alleged Sweetwater Union High School District “pay for ...
Orcas and Kayaking in the San Juans
We were shivering under cloudy skies on the top deck of the 114-foot ferry as it entered Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands. The overcast sky suddenly parted, as if on cue, and there ...
Zürich: Switzerland’s Secret to Success
How the Swiss banking capital sets a quality-of-living gold standard.
The Economist ranks Switzerland the best country “to be born in 2013.” Zürich, the largest Swiss metropolis with 380,000 residents, has been voted the planet’s best city by Mercer Human Resource Consulting, Monocle and others. ...
Wednesday, January 9
SDPD Eastern Division crime report from Capt. Andy Mills
Increases in arrests, crime, suicides
San Carlos was among the neighborhoods where residential burglaries increased during 2012, San Diego Police Department captain Andy Mills reported at the January 2 San Carlos Area Council meeting. Mills is commanding officer for the ...
The appeal of 98 Bottles
Taking their name from a twist on the drawn-out folk song (the 99th bottle presumably being the one in your hand), 98 Bottles lends its own flourishes to the bottle-shop/beer-lounge arrangement that is on the ...
Story poles and oleander along I-5
Hi Matt: Travelling between San Diego and Oceanside via the 5 I’ve noticed a couple of things. At the Via de la Valle turn-off on both sides of the freeway there are white PVC pipes ...
Ways to quit smoking
Kick cigarette butts in 2013!
The cognitive thought-based method versus hypnosis for quitting the habit.
The Clinic's got positive swag
Clairemont rapper Joseph Sardina, aka Lil’ Joe, is now known as the Clinic.
In the Lab
I squeezed the plastic dropper and watched the first tiny glob break away and plummet into the big bowl. The droplet was supposed to slip through the surface of the liquid and end up at ...
Borderphobia in Tecate
"I don’t know what you know about big cats,” Emilio says as he reclines in his chair and draws from a glass of whiskey, “but one thing you have to know is to always look ...
Gangster Squad = Gangster Goulash
Bad cop, bad cop
Judging by the dewy exhalation that sighed forth from at least half the audience in attendance at the prerelease screening, it may be that the opportunity to put sensitive, handsome Ryan Gosling in a suit ...
Bond. Favorite Bond.
Gadgets really define the Bond films and the ones I really love are ones that would be great to actually have because I could see myself using them. One gadget is from one of the ...
The Caravaggio effect
Consider two decapitations
Caravaggio and His Legacy, on view at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art until February 10. 5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles. 323-857-6000; lacma.org In his 20s, in Rome, in the first decade of the ...
P.R. at eleven
The nation’s TV and radio stations use the public airways — which are licensed by the Federal Communications Commission — to make a lot of money. The stations are required to file a quarterly “Issues ...
Rock 'n' soul 'n' punk 'n' blues 'n' all that jazz in San Diego January 10-16
Thursday 10From the mythical city of Tijuana, borderland goth-pop band Dancing Strangers will visit their beats-borne take on ’80s post-punk (Joy Division, JAMC) on the Tin Can Ale House. Astronauta Jackson (Niña Camara) and Eric ...
Tijuana waiter busted cloning credit cards
Restaurant unnamed in report
A waiter at a restaurant in the popular and upscale Zona Rio business district was recently busted by TJ police when it was discovered he was cloning patrons’ credit cards. The scam was discovered when ...
Why everyone loves pizza
Heymatt: So, everyone likes different kinds of music, clothing, TV shows, beer, food, jobs, cars, etc. My question is: if everyone likes all sorts of different things in life, why does everyone love pizza? At ...
Engineers dislike H-1B; bosses gloat
H-1B visa opponents say corporations such as Qualcomm are using the program to lower the prevailing wage for engineers and tech employees across the board.
Buzz and Bob
Investigative Newsource, San Diego’s smallest nonprofit online-news operation, managed to grow its cash a bit in 2011, according to an annual charitable disclosure report filed in August with the Internal Revenue Service and recently posted ...
Firefighting CO2
Heymatt: If fire extinguishers use carbon dioxide to snuff out flames, why is it that the CO2 in expelled breath doesn’t blow out a fire? In fact, blowing on a hot ember usually causes it ...
Red Wanting Blue
They can make a whole song out of two major chords. This means that something very entertaining must also be going on simultaneously. Not that it happens all the time in the Red Wanting Blue ...
Dear Reader:
The L.A. Reader? Last week you forgot the remaining part of Barbarella’s column. This week you forgot the movie showtimes. I think you guys are drinking over there or something. You’re really messing things up ...
My Grandmother’s Love Letters
There are no stars tonight But those of memory. Yet how much room for memory there is In the loose girdle of soft rain. There is even room enough For the letters of my mother’s ...
January 3 Crossword Contenders
Martha Awdziewicz, Clairemont, 9. L. Barling, El Cajon, 9. Johanna Barry, Pine Valley, 9. Evelyn Bowser, Hillcrest, 9. Bob Carlson, Serra Mesa, 9. Leslie Chase, Campo, 9. Carolyn Clark, Lakeside, 9. Maria Coda, Oceanside, 9. ...
January 3 Sudoku Contenders
Evil Patrick Driscoll, Santee, 9. Hiroshi Miyazaki, Normal Heights, 9. Jim Piburn, Point Loma, 9. Bliss Beedle, Encinitas, 8. Joseph Ciprian, Little Italy, 8. Vincent Lee, San Diego, 8. Joe Arbusto, Rancho Penasquitos, 7. Ralph ...
Tuesday, January 8
Hiking Ukraine's Carpathian Mountains
Far off the beaten path...
The Carpathian Mountains of Ukraine occupy the far western part of the country. They are considered moderate – nothing quite as massive or high as the Rockies, nor as rolling or subtle as the Appalachians. ...
Caltrans to chip in for Cabrillo Bridge seismic retrofit
A project apart from controversial detour extension
The San Diego City Council on January 8 unanimously approved a cooperative agreement between the City and the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to seismically retrofit and rehabilitate the Laurel Street (Cabrillo) Bridge. Under the ...
SDG&E works on Normal Heights power outage
Sewer contractor crushes electrical cable
About 1300 people in Normal Heights went without electricity for ten hours, starting at 5 p.m. Monday, January 7, after a construction crew replacing sewer pipes crushed underground power lines at 33rd Street and Meade ...
Taste Carmel Valley, CA
Wines, olive oil, fresh produce and herbs near the PCH.
Enjoy a few leisurely hours driving east along picturesque Carmel Valley Road, just off Highway 1 near Carmel, California, where you can stop, taste and shop for veggies and herbs on an organic farm and ...
A Priceless Photo in Timbuktu
Posing as a Tuareg nomad.
When you travel far enough for long enough, sometimes very cool things happen that sound like a far-fetched story to many. I have traveled both long and far enough. Photographing in Mali, West Africa, I ...
Strange cakes at Clairemont bakery/deli/donut shop
Selection changes for Three Kings holiday
Entering Best Donuts Deli in Clairemont this past Sunday, January 6, I was greeted by a display case full of Mexican pastries unlike the ones I’m more familiar with — their empanadas, muffins, cakes, and ...
Monday, January 7
Remodel starts on Ocean Beach’s Apple Tree Market
Pirates Cove coffee shop departs parking lot
The new occupants of the old Apple Tree Market that closed in Ocean Beach on December 31 have lost no time in gutting the aged supermarket and getting it ready to become a Foodland store. ...
Malmö: Gateway to Sweden
Do as the Swedes do in this cosmopolitan Old World city.
Malmö is at the very southern tip of Sweden. This lively, modern-thinking international city has been around since the Middle Ages and used to be part of Denmark. In fact, to visit Malmö, you fly ...
Sunday, January 6
Costumed attendees share audience with San Diego Symphony
Steampunk warms to high society
San Diego started 2013 in style and grace with a fantastic "Salute to Vienna" concert at Copley Symphony Hall. The Strauss Symphony of America performed elegant pieces that included waltzes, polkas, and Die Fladermaus while ...
Saturday, January 5
Water main break in Normal Heights
Neighbors share buckets
Hundreds of people in Normal Heights were without water Friday night, January 4, after a water main broke at 32nd and Meade Avenue at around 4 p.m. Crews were still working to repair the main ...
Worker rescued from trench in Spring Valley
Pinned by a 1400-pound concrete form
A 31-year-old construction worker in Spring Valley fell into a 5-by-15-foot trench and was subsequently pinned by a 1400-pound concrete form on the morning of January 4. After being rescued by CalFire personnel, the worker ...
Friday, January 4
More parking problems soon for La Jolla’s VA Medical Center
Shortage for patients and employees
The troublesome parking situation at the VA Medical Center in La Jolla began to percolate about a decade ago; for a few reasons, it has now boiled over. Space remains finite. Most mornings, lines of ...
Alleged bus thief run over by bus in Tijuana
Driver pistol-whipped, leads to crash
Minutes after pistol-whipping a bus driver unconscious, an alleged thief was run over by the same bus he had just robbed in the Nueva Tijuana neighborhood of the city, the Tijuana daily Frontera reports. The ...
Must-see Colombia
Get off the tourist track and see undiscovered Caribbean coast.
Most of the Caribbean has long since lost its authenticity, being overrun by cruise ships, high-pressure touts and one too many Jimmy Buffet wannabes. But there are still a few places where you can find ...
Denver Is Paranormal: Cheesman Park
(Reputedly) one of the world's most haunted places.
For days he had been calling me. And it was always revolving around the same subject. "You gotta come here and check it out. You won't believe it." My brother had moved from San Diego ...
A Thing Called Divine Fits
A Thing Called Divine Fits could also be called a thing that Britt Daniel (Spoon) and Daniel Boeckner (Wolf Parade) came up with during downtime from their full-time bands. A Thing Called Divine Fits could ...
Trash Talk in Mira Mesa
Wrapping up its West Coast tour, Sacramento hardcore band Trash Talk left it all onstage at the Epicentre in Mira Mesa. The intensity of the show came from every angle of the room, from the ...
Thursday, January 3
Mayor Bob Filner to address SDG&E issues
He’s collecting info from planning groups
Mayor Bob Filner announced at the January 2 San Carlos Area Council meeting that he will "take on" San Diego Gas & Electric. Filner also said that he was interviewing to hire an energy advocate ...
Bushwick – Brooklyn's Hip Haven
Discovering the unexpected... and great pizza.
Directions scribbled on the back of a napkin or coaster usually lead you to unforgettable locations. It was no different on this Sunday afternoon. As I sat and enjoyed a very good East Coast brew ...
The Conformity Curse
If you are like everyone else, you are sacrificing your individuality, your goals, and your uniqueness.
Wednesday, January 2
Yellow Deli People: Mellow believers or cult of opportunists?
Turning the clock back 2000 years is no easy task.
The Twelve Tribes religious sect staffs their Yellow Delis with volunteers. Thus, they don’t pay workers’ compensation or minimum wage. Thus, they are in trouble with the IRS.
Imperial Beach contamination prompts closure
Bad timing by suspected illegal border-crosser
Tijuana River contamination forced the closure of the entire Imperial Beach shoreline on Wednesday, January 2. According to the county Department of Environmental Health, the contamination stretched from the Mexican border to the north end ...
Belize's Baboon Sanctuary
Howling with Abraham.
Sometimes the beauty of Central America is its simplicity. A small sign on the west side of the road announces that you’ve arrived at the Belize Community Baboon Sanctuary. (A misnomer, Belize’s "baboons" are in ...
Hula for moolah in Encinitas
Kelia swings her butt as only Hawaiians can. “That’s called ‘hula for moolah,’” says her mom, Kealani. They burst out laughing. “I used to have all the staff do it,” Kealani says. “Every time a ...
Minglewise
"So, what do you do at — ” I stole a glance at the name badge on the chest in front of me. “San Diego Story?” “I review music,” said Christian, the man behind the ...
The PettyBreakers go after Superstorm Sandy
“We’ve all got friends on the East Coast.” Guitarist John McAllister talks about the benefit gig to help the Red Cross effort for Hurricane Sandy victims that he and his band, the PettyBreakers, are spearheading. ...
Simeon Flick, studio hermit
Unless you’re a zombie, Simeon Flick’s latest album of tighter songs, better production, and more proficient engineering should inspire a stronger emotional response than previous records.
Lizzie Wann's Ode to Her Hair
Interview with poet/producer Lizzie Wann, who used to be able to do one side of a Rubik’s cube with her feet.
San Clemente, No Car Necessary
Take Amtrak 1.5 hours north for an authentic beach town vibe.
Halfway between San Diego and Los Angeles is the charming coastal town of San Clemente, CA. Somewhat akin to San Diego in its wholesomeness, San Clemente also boasts beachside ambiance without the pretensions commonly found ...
Full GFE
Long-distance call girl
Suzy Favor-Hamilton, one-time track star, now the third-most popular prostitute in Las Vegas.
Kate O. Sessions Memorial Park
Explore the wild side of this much-loved neighborhood park with beautiful views and a wide array of native and exotic plants.
Near death
Fight for your life, become a better person
Harrowing life-reckoning times while reluctantly fighting death.
Some call sharrows a “bike in a house”
Heymatt: I use a bicycle a lot to get around San Diego, often avoiding hills and apparently clueless car drivers. Now, I see sharrows on some roads. What are people supposed to do when we ...
More hurt from Kathryn Bigelow
Spoiler alert: it ends with the bad guy getting killed. More hurt from Kathryn Bigelow in this docudrama-style (read: handheld) account of the hunt for Osama bin Laden. You can’t preach due process without practicing ...
A 2012 rock-roll rundown
The Reader asked musicians and music-industry locals to name their favorite hometown CD releases of the year. Here’s what they had to say. Diana Death (musician/Rock ’n’ Roll Preservation Society DJ): The New Kinetics, In ...
No sex offenders in homeless shelters
Heymatt:How come San Diego is the only city on the entire West Coast that does not allow sex offenders to enter a homeless shelter? Don’t believe it? Check out www.lawsuit.tk.— Anonymous Well, I didn’t believe ...
We don't bang
“We’re going for a walk.” “Oh, yeah?” Blam! Blam! Blam!
Three Carlsbad residents were shot in an unprovoked incident allegedly instigated by Luciano Velasquez.
Happy new city council stipends
San Diego mayor Bob Filner makes an annual salary of $100,464, and city council members are each paid $75,386. Their relatively modest remuneration is unlikely to increase soon, but municipal leaders have discovered another, not-often-discussed ...
Does new UCAN board want reform?
The high-maintenance watchdog
UCAN, the San Diego–based Utility Consumers’ Action Network, burdened by scandal and misuse of funds, should shut down, some say. Some say otherwise.
Concrete patches in the slow lane
Yo Matt: I have a question about some weird concrete patches in some of the slow lanes on our interstates. They’re rectangular cutouts, in two rows of four, very neatly patched. They seem to run ...
The Second Day of the Year
No one ever talks about it. The parties have ended. Confetti has been swept up and thrown away. Headaches have disappeared. And maybe that’s why I’ve always preferred the second day of the year. Because ...
Letters from readers
Not SEALs — EODT I’m calling about the Yukon story in the December 20 issue (City Lights: “Why the Yukon will Continue to Kill Divers,”) and how it kept referencing that the SEALs were the ...
The Mahabharata
And, O Yudhisthira, the Selfcreate Grandsire, Almighty God, spreading illusion, slayeth the creatures by the instrumentality of his creatures, as one may break a piece of inert and senseless wood with wood, or stone with ...
December 27 Crossword Contenders
Martha Awdziewicz, Clairemont, 8. L. Barling, El Cajon, 8. Johanna Barry, Pine Valley, 8. * Evelyn Bowser, Hillcrest, 8. Bob Carlson, Serra Mesa, 8. Leslie Chase, Campo, 8. Joseph Ciprian, Little Italy, 8. * Carolyn ...
December 27 Sudoku Contenders
Evil Joseph Ciprian, Little Italy, 8. Patrick Driscoll, Santee, 8. Hiroshi Miyazaki, Normal Heights, 8. Jim Piburn, Point Loma, 8. Bliss Beedle, Encinitas, 7. Vincent Lee, San Diego, 7. Jerry Noser, Bankers Hill, 7. Ric ...
Tuesday, January 1
Drive-thru at SDG&E payment center closes willy-nilly
Disabled and moms most inconvenienced
The San Diego Gas & Electric payment and customer service center at 436 H Street in Chula Vista has a habit of closing their drive-thru bill-payment window on the side of the building unannounced. Mothers ...
Eucalyptus art at Ruocco Park in Harbor District
Port sports wood work by Roman de Salvo
An interesting local public-art installation can be found in Ruocco Park, 3.3 acres of bayfront land that were dedicated on September 18, 2012, according to the Port of San Diego website. Located west of Pacific ...
Workplace Changes to Look for in 2013
This will be the year that employers are forced to decide whether they value their workforce enough to invest in it.
