AIRPORT Drive the 5 from downtown and — boom! — just overhead, an aircraft with a bloated belly screams. Wheels down, tilting for landing, 50 yards between plane and road. Or how about having to …

“When I was depressed, I would listen to her.”

'Drains are great if you're draining a pond, but if you're setting up an ecosystem you need rocks at the bottom," says Cindy Collins, owner of Aqua Designs. "If you do it correctly, it looks …

Thirty Years Ago Not that I'm putting Las Vegas down. Anyone is entitled to a descent into a neoned hell where women dressed in mink coats sit in air-conditioned Cadillacs counting nickels held in Dixie …

Preverbal and Illiterate My father is French, but I was raised American (in Florida) to the extent that my half-Frenchness always felt like trivia, not identity. I moved to Paris about 18 months ago, and …

In the investigation of a neurotic style of life, we must always suspect an opponent, and note who suffers most because of the patient's condition. Usually this is a member of the family. -- Alfred …

Teeth grind when you're addicted. Every second of the day. While you sleep. While you shower. You never eat when you're addicted. If you did eat, your teeth and dry mouth would grind everything into …

“Look at the bars. They close at 2:00 a.m.! We like to party all night.”

Mount Lowe is only one of many named summits in the so-called Front Range of the San Gabriel Mountains overlooking Pasadena and the rest of the vast Los Angeles metropolitan region. Its strategic location, affording …

Harry N. Abrams, 2005; 160 pages; $32.50 FROM THE DUST JACKET: From legendary jewelers such as Tiffany and Cartier to out-of-the-way flea markets, from chic design houses like Prada, Louis Vuitton, and Chanel to tiny …

I mentioned that songwriters make big bucks if a song of theirs is covered, I asked if that made him a millionaire. He laughed and said, "I'm not a millionaire. Not even close. I still have a day job."

'I know a gold-digger when I see one," huffed my Aunt Azelda. "And I'm not about to let her bluff her way through me to Frankie. I'm going to do some digging of my own, …

When Bo Diddley played the Belly Up Tavern on June 23, everyone was allowed backstage after the show (two at a time). One guy wouldn't stop talking to Diddley; we all waited 30 minutes for …

Screaming middle-aged women showed up to see Donny Osmond at the Barnes & Noble in Mira Mesa on June 22. He emerged from the bathroom and began signing his new CD. Females grabbed at him …

Pacific Beach business owner Kevin Frank says the PB Block Party has gotten out of hand. As the owner of New Seed Nutrition on Garnet Avenue, Frank concludes that this year's attempt to bring in …

"I actually have a mafioso in my neighborhood," says electronica artist El Poeta (Angelo Gastelum). Last month, the techno-savvy laptop whiz went freelance as a Web designer so he could concentrate on music. He and …

Overheard June 11 at the after-party for Music Midtown in Atlanta (similar to Street Scene): Louis XIV guitarist Brian Karscig saying, "Jimmy [Armbrust, bassist] got the crabs during this tour. It wasn't what you think, …

After Switchfoot played the Sphere in Buffalo, New York, on June 25, the Buffalo News reported, "Switchfoot look as comfortable in front of an audience as they would be in one. Sometimes too comfortable -- …

Thirty-eight years ago tomorrow, in 1967, Jim Morrison -- once a student at Clairemont's Longfellow Elementary School -- appeared with the Doors at Balboa Stadium. It was the band's first appearance in Morrison's former hometown. …

I didn't know how fond I was of Parisian-style neighborhood bistros until I found myself living without one. A bistro is a place to enjoy a good quick (or slow) lunch, to depressurize after work …

This is the last year Americans will follow the Tour de France. Little children will torment their pets, master their first video game, log 26,000 hours in front of the family television set, and borrow …

“Electricity, stainless steel, yeasts — we didn’t even know yeasts were involved until 1857.”

The movie at two hours was already a bit short on action and long on character.

The 1999 World Trade Organization riots occurred on Norm Stamper's watch as chief of police in Seattle (he retired in 2000). But the homicide he writes "I committed" was the most traumatic event in his …

Gulp. Glacier-brand water, which you can get from supermarket vending machines all over the county, should be safe to drink. But I can't say it's safe to invest in the stock of the parent company, …

Word that ailing actor and favorite son Cliff Robertson has finally unloaded his historic La Jolla beachfront mansion is causing a minor stir among the city's upper crust. Originally listed for $25 million back in …

Heymatt: If an American on vacation in another country gives birth, is the kid automatically a US citizen? Is the kid also a citizen of the birth country? Also, will the newborn require a passport …

Dear Mr. Alice: We just came back from a very green vacation. Tramped through woods and fields and we all got poison ivy and were pretty miserable. But we also saw lots of animals around …

Rabbi Jeff Lipschultz, a barrel-chested man, welcomed the congregants by name as they walked in for Shabbat Service at Temple Beth Sholom. A conversation began about the possibility of new chairs for the temple. Lipschultz …