A bushy-haired kid was hitchhiking on Sweetwater Road. I picked him up at the crest of the hill, just past the light at Kenwood. He mumbled something, hung his head crookedly so he could watch …
Thursday, December 23
Dear Matthew Alice: Other than an occasional victory cigar, we've never seen pictures of our U.S. presidents with a cigarette in their hand. Were there any modern-day presidents that actively inhaled while in office? — …
You know the biggest lobby currently in Washington is the one whose job it is to keep ingredients off the beer labels. They’ve done a pretty good job, wouldn’t you say?
He sold Spaceman of Ocean Beach bumper stickers. He began handing out free “space cards,” assuring their bearers passage to a new planet once the earth was “cleansed” of people in the year 2005.
Dear Matthew Alice: What is Boxing Day? On my calendar it says “December 26, Boxing Day (Canada)." My girlfriend guessed that it was the day you take all your old boxes back to the supermarket. …
Thursday, December 16
The Troupes say they didn’t experience a single instance of racism while they searched for a home in La Jolla, which has a reputation for being a sort of white-only uppercrust enclave.
Dear Matthew Alice: Why do dogs wag their tails when they are happy? And where is my dog’s bellybutton? — Dave R., La Jolla Uh, Dave, dogs sometimes wag their tails when they’re pissed, so …
Wood redraws the diagram, “This guy right here is the cause of the problem. He’s even making tackles on the offside play. Nobody’s blocking him so we’re far better off chop-blocking this guy.”
Dear Matthew Alice: The other day some friends and I were out on the town being a little wacky, zany, so to speak, and we were wondering if we were “raising cane” or “raising coin.” …
Thursday, December 9
The New River, one of the longest year-round rivers in Southern California, flows green and murky through the heart of the Imperial Valley on its three-day journey from Mexicali, Mexico, to the brackish Salton Sea, …
Dear Matthew Alice: As you may know. Tootsie Pop wrappers come with scenes printed on them of kids doing various activities. When I was a kid, there was a story that if you got a …
Thursday, December 2
For a few years back in the '60s, Mike Doyle was the hottest surfer in the world. With an unusual combination of power on big waves and stylistic grace on small waves, he became one …
Although Garnet Peak isn’t the highest peaklet along the eastern escarpment of the Laguna Mountains, its exposed position makes it a fine place to view both the pine-clad high country and the raw desert below. …
Dear M.A.: Why do ocean waves come in series of seven? And is there any connection between that and the fact that music also comes in seven-note scales (do, re, mi, etc.)? Sting says that …