Thirty Years AgoOf Big Wednesday I have heard almost nothing good. My sources range from a Warner Brothers studio insider who rather traitorously has nicknamed the movie The Endless Bummer, to an Ocean Beach surfer …

It must be because he just rode his bike here to meet me, I thought. Why else would a twenty-something male who appeared to be in good health be sweating profusely on a cool fall …

The Tiki House in Pacific Beach is a very surf-friendly venue. I’ve seen surf bands from around the world tear it up behind the pool table and on the stage built for a one-man band. …

I came up with a term because I hate the term “beastly”; I think it doesn’t rhyme off the tongue as well. But “beasty” describes something so gnarly. It’s just, like, anything that is a …

Thirty Years Ago“Larry was so nice at first,” Mary sighed, recalling the nights she had spent in his warm embrace. “But then he started getting weird. He bought a big German shepherd and brought him …

You almost kind of expect to have some bad dates in your twenties. I’ve had my share: Still Living at Home Guy, Always on His Cell Phone Guy, Just Not Ready for a Relationship Guy, …

I have an adorable golden retriever named Charlie who was four years old on May 9. I have always said he should be a dodel, which is a dog model. I don’t know if there …

Thirty Years AgoIt grieves me that my first letter to the Reader should be in criticism of my favorite columnist, Eleanor Widmer. In writing about Sheldon’s Restaurant, her comment about “aging waitresses in orthopedic white …

When I first met my roommate, she was a very involved and social person. We were fine for the first year; neither of us was home often, as we kept busy. In the second year, …

You know how sometimes you’re just kickin’ it at home, wearing a shirt but no pants? That’s called Porky Piggin’ it. If you’ve seen the cartoon Porky Pig, you know he wore a top but …

Thirty Years AgoIn a little under nine hours Eichberger takes a dead bird from a clear plastic bag, does things to it that would be unspeakable at the dinner table, and ends up with a …

Thirty Years AgoDear Matthew Alice:With the biggest proposition in years coming to the vote June 6, I’m completely bewildered over what could, should, or would happen if Proposition 13 passes.G.A.B.North Park The thunder of debates …

Buttery, is something my friend came up with. It means that you did something with no problems. It’s very slick and smooth, something that gave you no problems. Another expression that I say a lot …

She sent me an email from work: “I’m bringing some friends over to help me move my stuff out at 6 o’clock. It’ll take a few hours. You probably shouldn’t be there. You can if …

Thirty Years AgoThe sport survives around here — in Escondido, Solana Beach, Harbison Canyon, La Mesa, San Marcos, and Eden Gardens — but that kind of cockfighting is very secretive and done on a small …

The University of California San Diego has a system regarding on-campus housing for returning sophomores. Toward the end of the spring quarter, all freshman students seeking on-campus housing for the following year are put into …

Dave Koz plays the Gaslamp Jazz Festival this Saturday, May 24 One of the most versatile musicians of the smooth jazz format these days has to be saxophonist Dave Koz. His latest CD, At the …

Thirty Years Ago “Got a bell at Palm and Kettner. Anybody for Palm and Kettner?” The call means someone at that corner has telephoned for a cab. But Taheri, cruising nearby, considers the location of …

“I can see them now! They’re coming over the walls!” Chilling words, made even more frightening by the fact that they were coming from my roommate’s bedroom. Steve had shown up out of the blue …

The “suck knob” is a myth I have created with bands, performers, and entertainers. I do sound at bars and events and stuff, and I set up their equipment. I got so sick of being …

Thirty Years AgoWhen Weird Marvin screams, he means business. He says he once screamed from the top of Mount Helix and a friend over on Mount Miguel heard him. Now Marvin is screaming off Hawley …

I worked with special-education kids for a very long time, and you have to be really careful what you say around them. You can’t cuss or say anything dirty because they will pick it up …

I was scraping by as a line cook in San Francisco in the mid-’80s when my landlord offered me the job of managing a 24-unit apartment building on Pine Street. It sounded like easy money: …

Thirty Years AgoJack Ford, son of the former president, will soon make his home in San Diego. The 26-year-old Ford, who first visited San Diego during vacation breaks from Utah State University, where he majored …

You know when you eat a bag of Chee-tos and you get that orange sludge on your fingers? You have to scrape it off your teeth and it’s really disgusting? That is called “cheedle.” It’s …

Lady BotoxFilm critic, soberingconclusion.com The 2006 re-release of David Lynch’s Dune contains both the extended version that you could previously only see on TV and the original theatrical release. This is an amazing movie staring …

I do not like Krispy Kreme. All of their donuts look like creepy little clones of each other, so I call them clonuts. Where I come from we have Dunkin Donuts. The donuts are beautiful, …

Thirty Years Ago Why do you buy ink especially designed to come off all over me? I have to be careful not to read your issue wearing light-colored clothing! Surely you get letters asking if …

I remember the band Mickey Ratt back in high school, in 1970-something. They were the big local band around town. I was at some parties they were at. It’s all kinda hazy for me right …

Thirty Years AgoThe cypress trees remain. So do the eucalyptus, pine, and groves of pepper trees. They are memorials to people who turned a dusty, chaparral-covered section of Point Loma into a utopian wonderland. Of …

Kids With Promise I was at work today reading in bits and pieces your cover story about “families” in San Diego (“If There Are Families,” Cover Story, April 10). I believe this cover story is …

Worst break up ever? In the late ’80s I lived in a basement apartment in San Francisco a block off Haight Street. I was in my twenties and casting about for some deeper purpose in …

Siliclone refers to the group of girls that you would usually see in the Gaslamp or P.B. You know, implants, bleached hair, platform flip-flops, skanktastic tattoos. They all look alike to me. I think they …

Thirty Years AgoSunday morning in the little desert pit stop of Burro Bend. Everything’s quiet. The sun has just risen over the Salton Sea; in the light, it looks like a vast oil slick. The …

My ex-girlfriend at the end of the 20th Century (1995–1998) and I made the mistake of letting an acquaintance stay with us. This fellow, “Bill,” was from Los Angeles (or so he said) and living …

I have to admit, the word I use the most came from the movie Never Been Kissed. The word is Rufus, and it’s used to describe something really cool. I love the way it sounds …

Thirty Years AgoThank you for your article on our boss, Lowell Blankfort (“Press Passes,” March 30). We commend Paul Krueger’s skill in capturing the personality of this Star-News co-publisher quite accurately (in the view of …

Over the span of a normal lifetime, how often do you see a loved one off for a trip? A long trip? A long and dangerous trip? It’s five o’clock in the morning in a …

Hackintosh. I made it up to refer to computers that are composed of different components. It’s my way of sticking it to the man. I work on computers for a living, and I believe that …

This isn’t the first time I’ve been on during the daytime at a rock station. I began cracking the mic back in the late ’80s. A lot of the music from that era was disposable. …

The first time I heard the word Larry was when my old boss said it to me. I bumped into him and he yelled, “Watch out, Larry!” I wondered who Larry was and then I …

Lisa FranekFilmmaker and lecturer, SDSU Arturo Ripstein’s No One Writes the Colonel is just beautiful. The camerawork is amazing; it’s filled with rich colors. It’s a beautiful storyline that’s dark and dreary but still really …

It was one of my favorite events of the year: the Brazil Carnaval at 4th&B. She and I had just met, but we danced the samba as if we had known each other forever. The …

Thirty Years AgoA former alcoholic, Sister Winnie first immersed herself in rescue work 28 years ago when she took over the city’s oldest such haven (then 25 years old) and rechristened it God’s Extended Hand. …

Post Date: March 12, 2007Post Title: The Problem with Really Good TimesIt’s partly the empty chest of a lingering hangover, but at the end of weekends like this I feel like breaking down over the …

Thomas PierceLibrary technician, Encinitas Pink Floyd The Wall has a dark, evocative story by Roger Waters and brilliant animation by Gerald Scarfe. It’s essentially a feature-length music video directed by Alan Parker. Parker also directed …

Thirty Years AgoLarry Remer’s first fundraiser for his weekly newspaper, Newsline, held in the stately Mission Hills home of Janed Casady, rallied 150 fellow liberals at $12.50 each. The ticket price paid for a chance …

Post Date: August 8, 2007Post Title: A Simple Request to My Friends Prelude: One year ago, early morning in Las Vegas. I woke up on the floor of our friends’ hotel room with a brain …

One of my favorite memories takes me back to my years on the high school varsity tennis team and turning our school’s losing record into one of the best for the girls’ tennis team. Believe …

James VasquezFilmmaker-actor, Daisy 3 Pictures, readyokmovie.com Paper Moon, shot in B&W, features an Oscar-winning performance by 11-year-old Tatum O’Neal. Director Peter Bogdanovich takes his time telling this funny father-daughter story, often with long static shots, …