Oprah calls it an "Aha! moment," as if a single occurrence, like waking up, can impel someone to change. A sinner is usually caught in the act of sin before "seeing the light," a drug …

It is 8:14 a.m. and the sun is already shining strongly through the blinds like a peeping Tom, only more annoying. Last night I tossed and turned, dreading the decisions that would soon confront me. …

It was 1971. My husband, Bill, and I were in our mid-20s and had a six-month-old baby girl named Amy. We were just a couple of lads starting our life together when we bought a …

I've been an Ocean Beach girl for eight years. All this time, I've lived the way most people in O.B. do. I've lifted my mood by watching dogs break into fights on dog beach, I've …

Normal Avenue in La Mesa doesn't have much in common with Normal Street in San Diego. That didn't stop the Hillcrest plumber that 1 called one year from phoning me back. He had a Russian …

How do I even begin to tell you about the incredible turnaround my neighborhood has taken? I will start here. Hi, my name is Mychal McMahon. I am a single mom living with my mom …

I get these crazy dreams about her, the kind where I know I'm dreaming, so I can do whatever the hell I want. Sometimes I think she knows it too; the way she looks into …

When I was 28, and a man much too old for me had again broken my heart, I spent most of my free time in the car, as if I could outrun my sadness. Many …

Hip-hop artist MC Flow -- a.k.a. Abby Schwartz -- raps about politics and women's issues. She grew up in New York City and moved to San Diego in 2000 at the age of 30 to …

Oh, they love to tell you they're in a wheelchair, don't they? This one screamed it. "I see you're in a wheelchair, sir." I said, exasperated with his shenanigans. "Then why the hell did you …

Before anyone speaks at the La Jolla Playhouse, we could be watching a scene from the TV show All in the Family: balding Archie Bunker slumped in his old chair; Edith, clad in shapeless cotton, …

'The Portuguese people in Hawaii are like Polacks," says comedian Augie Tulba. "The Chinese are like Jewish people on the mainland. They buy everything under the sun -- hotels, buildings. They own a lot, but …

DJ: Hilary Station: Star94.1 FM Shift: 10:00 a.m.·3:00 p.m., Monday· Friday Seeing the Dave Matthews Band at Coors Amphitheatre has become a summer ritual in San Diego. At least for meat least it was for …

Robin MackenzieProgrammer, San Diego Film Festival's Women Filmmaker's Series Doing the rounds at festivals, on the hunt for films I think San Diego audiences would enjoy, I came across a documentary that shook me to …

Name: Liz Brolaski Vehicle: 2006 Lexus GX470 Lives: Encinitas Surfing: San Elijo State Beach Liz Brolaski didn't grow up in San Diego, but she's been living here and enjoying the ocean for the past 35 …

"Yom Kippur Is the Day of Repentance," read the colorful Hillel pamphlet at the entrance table. "It is the chance to fix the things in our lives that need a little repair. Jewish tradition gives …

"Send the chicken into the vineyard and let nature take its course."

Ramen Mmmmm. Poverty food. Tonight's dinner will be Ramen, that freeze-dried Eastern delicacy, flavor "Oriental." I will transport myself into the mystical realm of the ancient Orient, enjoying the delights of potassium carbonate, tocopherols and/or …

From the Evening-Tribune photo assignment sheet: "Get a shot or two of a policeman chatting informally with four or five students -- girls and boys, or all boys, whichever is easiest...idea is that cops and …

Anna Marie Bickford Age: 21 Occupation: Project Accountant Lives: Pacific Beach My friends and I rediscovered this old-fashioned term, "the witching hour" , which was used to describe creepy things that happened at night to …

My wife Beth and I moved from the quiet suburbs to an old, remodeled warehouse loft in downtown's East Village five years ago. We loved the sunsets from our fire escape, the fireworks over the …

They've risen from the sewers and they're back on TV, the walking undead from O.J.'s 1995 murder trial. And they're still hungry, still greedy, still needy for fame. Marcia Clark, the incompetent lead prosecutor in …

Sr. Matteo: What's with the ocean temperatures this summer? Instead of the typical 70 to 71 degrees in July/August, it's been fluctuating wildly (for an ocean, that is). From 71 to 75 one week, back …

Restaurateur Tracy Borkum (Laurel, Chive, Kensington Grill) is a demanding mistress. Chefs who don't meet her exalted standards (or who don't want to meet them) vanish swiftly. But chef Hanis Cavin, now cooking at Kensington …

Name: Serge rey Age: 40 Occupation: Professor at Sdsu Neighborhood: La Mesa Where Interviewed: Cosmos coffee house, La mesa What book are you currently reading? "Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell. …

Continuing on my 20-year Mira Mesa High School reunion... I ran into Sebastian, who was in my kindergarten class. He was with his wife, and as we were chatting about the recent Beatles show LOVE, …

Thirty Years Ago Shotgun Tom Kelly, voted the nation's number-one Top-40 DJ last year by Billboard Magazine, is almost a parody, a flesh-and-blood caricature of what a disc jockey is supposed to be. At some …

Guess where this column has been. Regular readers will have a pretty good idea, and others won't much care. While in an inpatient therapy group after surgery during which new chest hardware was installed over …

San Diego is getting some astonishing surprises: prizes. In August, the housing project at Liberty Station won the Redevelopment Community of the Year Award from the Association of Defense Communities. The transformation of the old …

Artist: The Shining Path Song: "Hadliku Ner" (from their self-titled CD) Heard By: Willie Teran, Coronado It started out pretty cool, but it really didn't go anywhere. The beat was really nice, but I don't …

The pain passes, but the beauty remains.-- Pierre-Auguste Renoir 'C heck out the woman in the red shirt three sizes too small and the guy in purple plaid shorts," said David. "Eastern European?" I guessed. …

The City of San Diego's financial system needs to go on Viagra and stay on it. The Department of Finance is drawing a disturbing distinction between "hard debt" and "soft debt." Several experts worry that …

In new mouths, you hear the songs with new ears.

"People just sort of stand around and stare," says Mike Pereira of the San Diego Music Awards. "I wanted to do something that wasn't so serious." So, at the awards ceremony, Microphone Mike (a.k.a. Pereira) …

E-Low recently began a new season of The Grimmie Wreck TV Show. Since he was interviewed in "Blurt" one year ago, E-Low says his two-year-old hip-hop show has become profitable. "I'm paying myself back for …

Though they won the Best Alternative album category at last week's San Diego Music Awards, the Bloody Hollies were not at Viejas casino to pick up their statuette. Drummer Matt Bennett says the reason for …

Anya Marina recently appeared on The Shit Show Sirius radio program with comedian Andy Dick. "We made out once. I know you don't like to admit it," Dick told her. "We were drunk and I …

When presidential candidates come to San Diego, where do they spend their money? Mostly at the sorts of places where sought-after high-rolling campaign contributors hang out. Take the case of wealthy Democrat John Edwards, whose …

Local actor and musician Mark Gregg will be missed tomorrow at the San Diego Film Festival's area premiere of The Pacific and Eddy, his feature-length acting debut. Instead he will be remembered in a gathering …

"Metal music kept me going for a lot of years," says Tom Wren, creator of locally based online 'zine Metal Nightmare (www.metalnightmare.com). The thirtysomething software engineer published the first print edition of Metal Nightmare in …

KPBS, the public broadcasting operation owned and operated by San Diego State University, financed in large part by state taxpayers, has released more of the documents requested by City Attorney Mike Aguirre under the state's …

The Ocean Beach Starbucks on Newport Avenue, just west of Bacon Street, opened on September 11. Not September 11, 2007, but the September 11, in 2001. Doubtless, many in Ocean Beach don't consider that fact …

It's the year of the baby in Kellyville. Four families within our group of friends are expecting babies to arrive around the holidays. And Eve has meals for moms on the brain. Usually, the gals …

Cool Canyon, a deep crease in the east flank of Granite Mountain, stays truly cool only for a month or two before winter solstice, and for a couple of months afterward. If you visit the …

A note is taped to our front door. It says something about a community-standards violation and cites section 2B from the HOA policies handbook: All residents are responsible for the upkeep and general maintenance of …

Didn't want to be here. Liked the old place better, in the city. A housekeeper's flat in the back of a Craftsman-riche palazzo in Kensington. We grew baby raccoons in winter, big shimmery spiderwebs in …

"Random, mindless hilarity is always good."

There's a trick to those stinky nicotine patches. You've got to attach them to the tender flesh at the zenith of the ribcage curve to get the good zang! flush of chemicals. The informational packet …

'We have a 10,000-acre ranch an hour and 20 minutes away from Ensenada," says Ernie Preciado of the San Antonio Ranch in Ojos Negros, Baja California. "It's a valley, and it's hot. If you've seen …

Mary AndersonTheatre executive director, Coronado Playhouse, www.cornadoplayhouse.com The same week that the Coronado Playhouse's free production of As You Like It opened, HBO released Kenneth Branagh's long-awaited film version of Shakespeare's pastoral comedy. Originally scheduled …

Name: Rene Escalante Vehicle: 2004 Nissan Xterra Lives: Imperial Beach Surfing: Hospitals, La Jolla Rene Escalante is an Imperial Beach native who's been surfing and bodyboarding nearly all his life. This morning, Rene strapped his …

On September 16, the Self-Realization Fellowship in Encinitas opened its doors to the public for an Open House and free concert. Just inside the entrance to the Fellowship grounds, a china setting was laid out …

"Want skin as smooth as a baby's bottom?" say a couple of handmade signs at Yakitori Yakyudori. "Try our Kawasu!" They're not touting some new Japanese moisturizer, but actual chicken skin, boiled and shredded and …

"In the early evening, at least, most sales were half-bottles of Beaujolais to solitary ladies."

You wonder if Alfred Huntington Isham knew his last name harbored a confession of guilt. Maybe he did. But given his dim view of human nature, and supreme confidence in his persuasive powers, maybe “I …

"We're clean, we're eco-friendly, and we're a San Diego sport, man."

In June of 1965, the Evening Tribune sent a photographer to 3535 Tomahawk Lane in Clairemont. The angle of the story isn't clear today, but the assignment sheet reads: "Take photo of Lorna [Montgomery, standing, …

Why I don't leave When our eyes met, I felt that I was growing pale. A curious sensation of terror came over me. I knew that I had come face to face with someone whose …

Edward Pickens Age: 34 Occupation: Bookkeeper Lives: North Park "Shralpin' on the gnar gnar," isn't really surfer slang, it's more like making fun of bad '80s surfer slang. I use that one as a joke …

Happily, I got the "Norv Is a Hack" column out of the way before the NFL season started, so I can say "Norv Is a Hack" now without being accused of jumping on the bandwagon. …

Heymatt-- Do flies go to the bathroom, deposit feces? -- Devon Davis, 782 CBSSS/PK Hi, Matt: The flies in my home seem slower than usual, and I am serious. They hop around on the floor …

Hi, Matt: When my boyfriend drinks beer out of a glass, he puts a paper coaster or the like on top of the glass to cover the opening. He says it keeps his beer colder …

Hey, Matt: My husband swears the Tostitos of his childhood (late '70s, early '80s) were round and nacho cheese flavored. He even remembers a commercial starring a guy named Fernando that thought the chips should …

I met a guy at a party six months ago who told me that he had crashed his high school reunion. My 20-year reunion was coming up, and I decided to do the same. I …

Name: Patty Ayer Age: 58 Occupation: Homemaker/Volunteer Neighborhood: Lemon Grove Where Interviewed: Outside the Library What book are you currently reading? "My library discussion group is supposed to be reading The Kite Runner by Khaled …

People of that once-perfect peninsula, Point Loma, fear that a perfect storm is gathering. Governments at the federal, state, county, and local levels are taking actions that threaten to increase the noise, traffic, pollution, population, …

"It's over, I'm done with all of this and I can't handle another second of it..." The sobs echoed through the narrow hallway of the tiny Sixth Avenue complex. "There's no more us...there's just Russ." …

Sherrie Ross, a real estate agent, was looking for ways to persuade kids to stay away from San Diego gangs. So she was happy two years ago to meet Travis Stocking at a community-organizing event. …

Thirty Years Ago Your surrealistic story on me was taken far too seriously by some of your readers (if the vehemence of some of the letters you received is any indication). As journalism, the piece …

Union-Tribune editorial pages have opened fire on City Attorney Mike Aguirre for asking for previously unrevealed details about the finances of KPBS, the public broadcasting operation owned and operated by San Diego State University. The …

A common complaint about Ticketmaster is that the company charges too much for "convenience" -- the fees that hover around 40 percent of the base price of a ticket. A growing number of local venues …

Pollstar magazine reports that $55 to $95 Bruce Springsteen tickets are selling for $1200 on StubHub. Don't look to buy one of those for a local show, because Springsteen and the E Street won't be …

When you're born, you get a ticket to the freak show. When you're born in America, you get a front row seat. -- George Carlin I stood at the kitchen counter, enjoying a hardboiled egg. …

When Martin Sauerman opened his Over the Border bar in Chula Vista about ten years ago, he figured he could make a lot of money if he brought in accordion-playing norteño bands. "They drink a …

WikiScanner is a hot new website that allows users to follow the history of editorial changes on Wikipedia, the user-edited online encyclopedia of almost everything. Created by a computer science grad student, WikiScanner allows the …

Artist Mike Clift has drawn gory, zombie-heavy record covers for bands such as GutRot, Nocturnus, DiamondHead, and Skinlab. He's probably best known for his sleeve artwork for long-gone locals Psychotic Waltz, whose drummer, Norm Leggio, …

If E.L. Doctorow had written Ragtime as a musical in 1975, instead of a novel, I wonder if Broadway would have staged it. Set in the Progressive Era (roughly 1900 to 1914), the book extols …

What's available and what isn't is a constant source of puzzlement.

After Macy Gray's 4th & B show on August 19, some friends and I went to a bar downtown. When we were leaving at around 1 a.m., Gray's tour bus was stopped at a hotel …

Back in March of last year, the Idaho Statesman ran a big story about the connections between fallen GOP Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham and Senator Larry Craig, then one of the most powerful politicians in …

'That's it," said my friend Bernice, exhausted and grumpy after what was supposed to be a relaxing afternoon of shopping. "Customer service is officially a thing of the past. I'm shopping online from here on …

“You have got to be kidding me!” My outburst was not at all surprising, after I saw the over-half- million-dollar price neatly printed on a colorful placard in front of the model house. My family …

Coyotes howl, water splashes down a willow-lined creek, and hummingbirds flit about in search of nectar. All of this takes place barely a mile from the grid of suburban streets on the fringe of Los …

Shade of Orange I scurried through dancing shadows to reach my carpool pick-up spot at the swimming pool-mailboxes annex within the condo complex. I glanced at my watch. It was 6:07 a.m. All was quiet …

I am old. My neighborhood is shrinking. Once, my Coronado was mainly blocks and blocks of houses with just a few shops and cafes. Now it has grown, but my world has been reduced to …

My earliest memories of Shelltown are those of a chaotic and scary place. I was an impressionable and tender ten years of age when my family moved into the impoverished Southeast San Diego neighborhood, which …

I meet DB at the Coffee Grounds, where we catch up on gossip. He asks why I moved from downtown to Rancho San Diego, his gaze fixated on the very competent, very cute, barista. I …

I have lived on the same block, in the same city in the same state, and in the same house for my whole life. Fifteen years to be exact. It's hard growing up in Fletcher …

When I moved into Peutz Valley, this deadend, oak-lined community in Alpine, my family consisted of two boys still living at home, craving a country atmosphere. Here we could raise animals and grow a garden, …

When I think of my neighborhood, I think of transformation. My five-year-old daughter and I were mesmerized when we first saw Mountain Shadows Mobile Home Park in '94. There were plum and orange trees growing …

Editor's note: More than 600 San Diegans submitted stories for the Reader "My Neighborhood" writing contest. Ocean Beach led all communities with over 20 entries. Writers 10 to 87 years old sent pieces from as …

My dentist looked at me as though he knew a secret, as if he knew something about my underpants and extra-virgin olive oil. He twisted his face and covered his mouth and whispered to the …

Skylar EpplerAssistant, La Jolla Landmark Midnight Madness Donnie Darko: Director's Cut will be a cult classic for years to come. Worthy of midnight moviegoers, young and old. A young boy learns a few things about …

Sammy Sosa leans over confidentially. "It was a special treat for the king. For the Aztec king. Ordinary people couldn't eat it." I look at the black morass on my plate. I almost expect him …

'When I structure my classes, they're usually themed," says Elizabeth Podsiadlo, known as the Opera-Singing Chef. "If I'm doing Italian, I'll be singing Italian. If I'm doing French, I'll be singing Carmen. Once I did …

DJ: Sam Bass Station: 96.5 KYXY FM Shift: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekdays; Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. When I was in fourth grade, I was told by my dentist that …

A churchgoer of a certain age might take in the '60s décor at Covenant Presbyterian Church and think, "Time for an update." The tawny gold of the deep pile carpet, the worn blue velveteen on …

Name: Eli Humphrey Vehicle: 1996 Toyota Tacoma LX Lives: La Jolla Surfing: Hospitals, La Jolla Eli Humphrey grew up in South Carolina but moved to San Diego ten years ago and has been surfing ever …

"Perhaps the Merrie Englanders and the Puritans are not so far apart as each imagines."

Depending on who tells the story, when Captain Charles Fitzallen sailed from Cardiff, Wales, aboard the Challenger in 1887, he had a bald spot either the size of a monk’s tonsure or the Great Globe …

"I have a Wright Brothers bike that the Smithsonian wants."

Ten years earlier, plans got under way to develop the 780-acre Sorrento Valley Industrial Park -- "one of the greatest industrial parks in the nation," according to developers quoted in the local daily. As development …

The Junky's Wife Explained When I was in my late teens and early 20s, I was a spectacular train wreck. I used coke, a lot, sometimes for days on end. I cut myself. I hated …

Earlier this year, I attended a couple of business affairs. At an afternoon party, Muttropolis in La Jolla had a spread of food -- corn on the cob, grilled ribs and burgers. Upon closer inspection, …

The phone rings, I pick up, Dorothy Giliam says, "Hello." "Dorothy, been a long time. How are you?" UNLV, 1969 "I'm good," Dorothy says. "I finished editing Frank's book, and it's published now. I remarried. …

Hi, Matt: One of my favorite E. John songs is "Candle in the Wind." One question: How the hell did they make Norma Jean change her name? Was there slavery back then? Did they hold …

Hey, Matt: There are plenty of ingredients or toppings that add spice to a meal, but is there anything I can add to "cool" the food down? Does the jalapeño have an opposite? -- Jay, …

'We have serious concerns about the management," says stock market research firm Morningstar, Inc., about a publicly held company, Usana Health Sciences. "The company is under investigation by the SEC, and scandals about directors and …

No fewer than 50 framed diplomas and certificates hang on the wall in the office of José Ríos Hernández, the capitán del puerto, or harbormaster, of the port of Ensenada. A cherrywood desk the size …

Name: Chris Olsen Occupation: Lock Salesman Neighborhood: Pacific Beach Where Interviewed: La Jolla Cove What book are you currently reading? "The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous I've read through chapter four, but I decided to …

The TV spots are already running, posters are up all over downtown, banners fly from the lampposts, and hotel reservations are presumably booked, and the speedy little airplanes of the Red Bull Air Race, set …

Thirty Years Ago The tall blonde who sits on a barstool in front of the Princess Rap Parlor on lower Fifth reacts warily to questions about her trade. "That's all I ever do, man; just …

Steve Rohrer booked the bands for "Ranchita Rocks," a three-day event at which 40 bands will play. Concertgoers are encouraged to camp out on the 160-acre Golightly Farms Ranch between Warner Springs and Julian. Rohrer's …

Rapper Tonex (pronounced toe-NAY), a pastor at Truth Apostolic Community Church, has generated controversy because he curses in his song "The Naked Truth": "I got out alive, nigga...I did it, I made it, [I'm] the …

At press time there was speculation that Dynamite Walls, Scarlet Symphony, and Dirty Sweet might be last-minute additions to next weekend's Street Scene lineup. Weeks earlier, the booking of side stage headliner DJ Kid Lightning …

When vocalist-guitarist Amber Coffman takes the Casbah stage this weekend as a member of Brooklyn's art-pop band Dirty Projectors, it will mark a sort of homecoming. Before relocating to New York at the beginning of …

Pinback, Goblin Cock, Thingy, Heavy Vegetable, Optiganally Yours, Other Men...man of a thousand bands Rob Crow has referred to the Star Wars film series in nearly all his musical projects: "She purrs and sabers light, …

Tyler De Los Reyes says, "I had a good family. We didn't have any violence. We just didn't have a place to stay." He was out on the streets by age 13. De Los Reyes …

Some writers thrive on deadlines, with the egg-timer ticking or a nine-milly pointed at their brain. Noel Coward penned Private Lives in three days, in a bathtub, he says. William Saroyan allegedly locked himself in …

Toys were lots of fun before they became capitalist tools. -- Beth Copeland Vargo The thermostat read 85, but it felt more like 100. Jen and I sat side by side on the warm concrete, …

This is not so much a film of the individual trees as of the overall forest.

Steve Serrano, drummer for Dynamite Walls, says that the first night of their first national tour was, unbeknownst to the band, spent in a home where one of Seattle's worst shootings had taken place the …

Clean notebooks and sharpened pencils, white sneakers and new socks, homework and carpooling -- the school year has begun. This year's hectic schedule of school and sports has made me eager to have one night …

Guatay Mountain, a gently swelling, chaparral-covered ridge rising about 900 feet over the hamlet of Guatay, is distinguished by its old-growth population of Tecate cypress trees. This particular species of cypress has a very spotty …

Mario is a recent immigrant from Mexico, and he's typical of homeowners facing foreclosure. He doesn't want me to use his surname; he's ashamed of getting behind on his payments. He thinks he's been irresponsible, …

That woman in Howard the Duck did it with him, and he was a duck, and that's weird and sad, but it's not why the movie is glorious and hysterical. Nor is it because Howard …

Greg EichelbergerEditor and film critic, East County Herald News For quality television comedy writing and execution, few can match The Muppet Show. It combined classic, lovable characters such as Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie …

Driving home from Vegas, I got into San Marcos around 10:00 p.m. I drove by a house that had festive lights glowing in the back yard and several cars parked in front.I went home, took …

I don't want to compare to any other group of people, but Brazilians are not pushovers," says Jaro Pribyl. "They want to do something for themselves, they want to make more money, be more successful." …

Cafe One Three feels like home for a San Francisco expat -- an eclectic, creative eatery that you might find in the Inner Sunset or Cole Valley, where good neighborhood restaurants are thick on the …

The high inverted V made by the slanting walls made it clear that this was a church, but the overall effect was unobtrusive: abstracted stained glass on the high front wall shedding light onto a …

Name: Roger Witthoeft Home: Santee Vehicle: 1967 Volkswagen Bug Surfing: Dog Beach in Ocean Beach Roger Witthoeft's Bug trundles and rattles into the parking lot on mismatched wheels and bare tires. Its paint, multitoned and …

"These may be the first South African coconut balls in America."

"We have to get back to the visceral love, pleasure, seduction, sensuality of it."

Carole Manning at Tavern Owners Bartenders School on Union Street, 1971. In May of '71, the state supreme court decided it was unconstitutional to prevent women from holding a job as bartender. "Percy Husong claims …

A Spoon He called and asked me to bring him a pair of shorts, his sketch pad, a soda, and something to eat. He made a big deal about how I shouldn't look in the …

They named a crater on Mars for Richard Anthony Proctor. The British astronomer (1837–1888) not only popularized his subject, he enjoyed making controversial claims: that there could be life on other planets; that the moon …

Alan Alzona Age: 23 Occupation: Sales Associate Lives: Hillcrest I'm a big MySpace fan, and my friends and me have some good terms we use for general MySpace stalking. We'll say someone was "lurking the …

Before we get to the Chargers, I should note Division II dwelling Appalachian State and its convincing 34-32 victory over nationally ranked (number 5) Division I opponent Michigan. The game was played at Michigan. Follows …

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce regularly opposes legislation favoring citizen entitlements that would, theoretically, promote the general welfare. But the chamber and its local affiliates are all for corporate welfare. Indeed, four years ago, two …

Imagine the food and trash that restaurants in San Diego's tony Gaslamp Quarter throw away every night. For more than 15 years, an alley on G Street between Fourth and Fifth avenues made things easier. …

San Diego city councilman Jim Madaffer has been elected president of the League of California Cities, and one of the city's biggest special interests is throwing a party to celebrate. "It's Jim Time!" says an …

Two weeks ago Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger used his line-item veto to slash $30 million from the state budget earmarked for city and county governments for use in dealing with adverse impacts of Indian gambling casinos. …

San Diego mayor Jerry Sanders's resigned development czar recently took out a big mortgage on his mansion on La Jolla Scenic Drive. According to a trust deed recorded April 12, Jim Waring, who departed city …

Last night, Roses on Her Grave debuted at the Viper Room, the same West Hollywood showcase that rewarded Dirty Sweet with a month-long residency last year. "Dirty Sweet are now in the about-to-be-the-biggest-thing-ever mode," says …

Name: Brenda Larnin Occupation: Spa Manager Neighborhood: Pacific beach Where Interviewed: crown point What book are you currently reading? What page are you on? "Katherine by Anya Seton. I'm on 12, but this is the …

Pinback's in-store appearance this Tuesday at Lou's Records in Encinitas coincides with the release of their fourth full-length album, Autumn of the Seraphs. The band's subsequent national and world tours will be the first with …

"The radio doesn't play reggae down here," says tijuanense Carlos Garcia, bassist in the Astrorumberos. "The only time we get to play [in Tijuana] is when Pato Banton or Manu Chao comes down here and …

Todd Loren launched Rock 'N' Roll Comics in 1989 to spin unlicensed comic-book biographies of rock stars. Some, like Frank Zappa and Kiss, were supportive, while others -- such as the New Kids on the …

"It pays to have your mom as a GM," says Shey Euphoria guitarist Ian Cochran, 17. His mother Kathleen is general manager at Loews Coronado Bay Resort and Spa, the site of three recent "Jam …

This great Friday night: fly-blown and beer redolent, resounding with the subsonic backbeat booming from the trunks and rear seats with words of racial hatred, fantasies of bullet-riddled cops echoing up Texas Street, the odor …

Kiss front man Paul Stanley has begun a career as an artist. La Jolla's Wentworth Gallery will present an exhibition of his work beginning September 7 and 8. Consisting of a series of abstracts with …

Thirty Years Ago When Winchell's Donuts first cast its corporate eye on the intersection of Sunset Cliffs and West Point Loma Boulevard, company officials doubtless never expected such sticky questions. Winchell's tried to sweeten the …

When Toby Keith performs at Coors Amphitheatre on Sunday, September 9, "artist has his own roaming glow ring, glow rose and live rose operation...no glow products of any nature or any live roses are allowed …

Since forming in 2005, the CHI Club have been playing shows around San Diego wherever they can. Whether you run across the band rocking on the beach, at a house party, a farmers' market, or …

'Tricked out?" I asked Patrick, incredulous. "You want to get the minivan tricked out? Let's get serious. I'm not sure that a Toyota Sienna is the sort of car you trick out. More importantly, I'm …

Point Mugu State Park, midway between Los Angeles and Ventura, sprawls across 15,000 acres of the coast-hugging Santa Monica Mountains. About 70 miles of hiking, biking, and equestrian trails lace through the park. Campers are …