“My biggest fashion faux pas was wearing gauchos to work every day.”

Another Four-Letter Word I am a member of KPLUG, the Linux group mentioned in your "Night Is My Day" cover story (December 6). It was a nice article; however, I take exception to my friends …

Thirty Years Ago Tom Gade stood up and told the assembly that he had voted against critical portions of Mayor Wilson's policy and then proceeded to point out the problems of such a growth strategy. …

"I hope it's a long lunch, 'cause I have a long list of things to cover with Dubya."

Underfoot in the Christmas rush: Margot at the Wedding is Noah Baumbach's somewhat disappointing follow-up to The Squid and the Whale, though maybe not so disappointing if proper heed had been taken of his slovenly …

Kirsten ElmsScreenwriter As a writer on strike and having just seen No Country for Old Men -- I'm drawn to another Coens' film -- Barton Fink -- about a writer in Hollywood. I love the …

"One of the reasons I've been able to pay my rent is a procedure called 'neck-angle reset,'" says Bill Meyer. "That's removing the neck from the guitar and changing the angle that the neck is …

"It's cool if you're a punk rocker and you have to walk with a cane, but if you're just doing it for looks, like the Droogs from Clockwork Orange, it's kind of played out." Shot …

Album: What Say You (2007) Artist: Blue Sky Blonde Label: Olive Drive Records Where available/price: http://www.cdBaby.com, http://myspace.com/blueskyblondeband for $12. iTunes for 99 cents per downloaded song. Songs: 1) Hell If I Know 2) Beside Myself …

Joe Lodico Lives: La Jolla/UTC Surfing: Pump House, Pacific Beach Last week's big swell reversed almost all aspects of the San Diego surfing scene; tourists and kooks fled the water and left the waves to …

Artist: The Experiments Song: "Smells like Christmas Spirit" (from the EP Smells like Christmas Spirit) Heard By: Alex Chavez, South Bay It had a Social Distortion--type feel. The whole holiday thing made it seem just …

Oak leaves fluttering in the sunlight, pine needles soughing in the breeze, gray squirrels scurrying, and pungent-sweet fragrances in the air. These dependable pre-Cedar-fire experiences are now a work-in-progress. The rate and extent of postfire …

Some leaves have fallen off some trees, temperatures have sunk below 50 degrees, and Fashion Valley Mall is open an extra hour in the evenings. This means it's Christmastime, people. I'm getting a fast start …

St. Dunstan's — the building was dedicated in 1969 — is a church on the cusp. If you look back and up as you pass through the front door, you behold a row of exquisitely …

"The secret police? What is this, California?"

Two years ago, around this time, I built a time machine from a Dynamo clothes dryer and sent an orange housecat to the past. To allay any of your concerns, the cat was not seriously …

The road to Hell is paved with good intentions. -- English proverb I was yanked into consciousness -- adrenaline tensed my muscles for fight or flight, and my heart was pumping fast, as though I'd …

A couple weeks ago I missed several parties because I was sick. One guy called from Mira Mesa when he noticed his neighbor was having a party. Glad I missed that -- there was a …

Flying in airplanes used to be one of my greatest delights. Taking off and landing were my favorite parts (only later did I learn they were the most critical parts of the flight). I would …

It was a dark and stormy night. (Well, it was. ) And that night, as the rain streamed down and sideways onto Third Avenue, forming a shin-deep pond at the corner, we were sipping a …

My earliest Christmas-tree memories are not of candy canes or twinkling lights, but of cold knuckles and snow boots. Always, in the first week of December, our family would tromp out through the early-winter cold …

"We show everything from American football to Iraqi soccer."

The Escondido recording studio that played a role in the careers of New Found Glory, Unwritten Law, blink-182, and Ike Turner closed its doors last month. In 1989, New Yorker Don Lithgow founded DML Studios …

"'Canes in San Diego's Mission Beach is right on the boardwalk." So begins the SD entry in a Band of Horses "Road Log" story in the last issue of Filter magazine. "It's a fairly disgusting …

Liar's Club regulars and employees found the Mission Beach bar and restaurant closed on November 21. A liquor-license-suspension notice was posted on the front of the building. A state Alcohol Beverage Control board (ABC) spokesman …

Hundreds of Placebo fans submitted video of themselves lip-synching to the band's cover of Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill." The band made a video consisting of fan-made clips. Local singer/songwriter Roberta Hofer's work was …

Nearly 22 years ago -- on 12/15/85, the Dead Kennedys played one of their final shows with original singer Jello Biafra at downtown's California Theatre. As the set wrapped up, fans tore up the seats …

Off the Ground, by Amy Chini and Tom Zohar New Village Arts Theatre Christmas Is Comin' Uptown, Common Ground Theatre, WorldBeat Center Kristianne Kurner's set previews Off the Ground before the actors arrive. It's Christmas …

What are you currently reading? "I mostly read textbooks because I'm a business student. I just finished Never Eat Alone: And Other Secrets to Success, One Relationship at a Time by Keith Ferrazzi. Tell me …

Charles Brandes, 64, and Warren Buffett, 77, have a lot in common. They both have made fortunes by following the "value" investing concept. It was taught to them by the same person: Benjamin Graham, along …

"You would be smarter to look to South America than to most parts of the United States."

You decide to take the trolley to Tijuana. The day goes well, and you're ready to start homeward. Before boarding the Blue Line, a cup of coffee at the McDonald's Trolley Station in San Ysidro …

Los Angeles Democratic mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has hired Jennifer LeSar, a close friend of San Diego city councilwoman Toni Atkins, to "orchestrate development" of what a news release calls a "visionary plan" to redevelop Central …

Corky Carroll at the 1966 World Surfing Championship contest in O.B. (Australia's Nat Young won.) In recognition of the contest, the mayor proclaimed it "World Surfing Week," and the city council forked over $1495 for …

Struggling liberal radio network Air America, thrown off KLSD-AM here last month, is making a San Diego comeback of sorts. Come February 23, the first Air America Radio Cruise is set to depart from downtown's …

It's hard to talk to blues singer Janiva Magness and not bring up the rub board. "It's custom made," she says. "The patent is owned by a woman from New Orleans." Magness tells me where …

La Jollan Mark Fabiani, who once worked for the late L.A. mayor Tom Bradley and Vice President Al Gore, has in recent times been toiling for Republican mega-millionaire Alex Spanos in a seemingly never-ending quest …

Back in the mid-'90s, Imperial Teen charmed critics and indie audiences with their simple, hook-filled songs and friendly stage presence. The band members, Roddy Bottum, Will Schwartz, Lynn Perko, and Jone Stebbins, traded instruments and …