Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed
Big Screen — Movie commentary
Blurt — Music's inside track
Booze News — San Diego spirits
Classical Music — Immortal beauty
Classifieds — Free and easy
Close to Home — What it’s like on the street where you live
Cover Stories — Front-page features
Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes
Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts
Feast! — Food & drink reviews
Feature Stories — Local news & stories
Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore
From the Archives — Spotlight on the past
Golden Dreams — Talk of the town
The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it
Letters — Our inbox
Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites
Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans
Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists
Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news
News Ticker — News & politics
Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated
Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna
Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated
Poetry — The old and the new
Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers
Reading — The hunt for intellectuals
Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails
San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds
SD on the QT — Almost factual news
Sheep and Goats — Places of worship
Special Issues — The best of
Street Style — San Diego streets have style
Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves
Theater — On stage in San Diego this week
Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative
Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work
Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego
Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads
Your Week — Daily event picks
Sweetwater trustee Arlie Ricasa to resign
Some good thoughts there. Maty Adato would make an excellent Trustee, as she actually understands the concept. I am wondering how all of this fits into the big picture. If Arlie goes 'state's evidence', it is possible she could still try and message the data (in the proverbial Sweetwater tradition) to lessen charges against Jim. Pretty sure Fast Eddy is all in favor of leaving Bertha and Pearl to their own devices. I think this Arlie plea was very strategic. Would be very surprised if this isn't somehow already factored into a rescue of Jim...just some thoughts, not worth much of anything to anyone. And all of this is merely alleged, of course.— December 19, 2013 10:20 p.m.
Sweetwater trustee Arlie Ricasa to resign
I see your point of view very clearly, which is why I think you would find this documentary particularly valuable. It is supposed to be shown in SD in February I think, at just one theater. The way the two teachers manage to capture the imaginations of the students, and get them working together is really great to see.— December 19, 2013 3:15 p.m.
Sweetwater trustee Arlie Ricasa to resign
Just curious, did anything happen with our old friend, Bonnie Garcia? You remember, the one who overcharged for everything and had Sweetwater wasting all sorts of money on law suits that dragged out--some of which should never have happened in the first place? Is he still practicing law? Would anyone hire him? Just wondering where some of Ed Brand's friends are now.— December 19, 2013 2:46 p.m.
Sweetwater trustee Arlie Ricasa to resign
BBQ--Something to think about: If You Build It--A Documentary Very good demonstration of shop class reworked to incorporate all sorts of design principles and practical techniques, for all students. The documentary is about a school in North Carolina, and the kids who really learned something. The two teachers now have their programs working in four schools in Berkeley, CA. It shows what can be done when people really want to do something.— December 19, 2013 1:28 p.m.
Sweetwater trustee Arlie Ricasa to resign
Great list...or not-so-great list when I really think about it. Something to add: the new CIF section, so that poor Sweetwater won't have to complete against all the other kids who have better facilities... but wait a minute!! How can you have your own CIF section if you don't even have facilities for competition? One pool (Mar Vista) for how many schools? All others sharing Southwestern's pool, or Parkway or Loma Verde or even Las Palmas in National City, even though that isn't even a short course pool... No facility in Sweetwater for Track and Field CIF competition... So why would anyone think it would be a good idea to have their own CIF section? Because Ed Brand's friends could be supplied with cushy jobs. You see, it really isn't about the kids, it is about Ed Brand spending tax and bond money on whatever he wants, and the board lacking the intelligence or willpower to stand up to him. Or just maybe they were bought. Let's hope there will be no more new CIF section talk. Maybe when things get straightened out in Sweetwater, there can be some intelligent planning, and the Sweetwater students can get some facilities, so that they can have a better chance to complete against all the schools that have full athletic facilities.— December 19, 2013 12:54 p.m.
Sweetwater trustee Arlie Ricasa to resign
Or maybe just a 'lick and a promise', which is how lackadaisical housekeeping was described years back...— December 18, 2013 9:53 p.m.
Sweetwater trustee Arlie Ricasa to resign
What amazes me is that the leader of the pack remains untouched by all of this. How is it that somehow people are thinking that all of this takes place in a leadership vacuum? Well, it does take place in a leadership vacuum, which is to say there is no real leadership, and this board, unable to come up with any backbone, intelligence or leadership on their own, will always give sway to Ed Brand. Because, just perhaps Ed Brand has promised to "protect" them, has promised to see that they have a job (via one of his scam/schemes?), or otherwise has the goods on them--so the majority board plays his game. Will Ed Brand get to name Ms. Ricasa's replacement? Will the County Board of Education wake up, smell the coffee and grow a backbone?— December 18, 2013 6:05 p.m.
Santa and Grinch visit Sweetwater District meeting
Also, I recently came across some basic Mello-Roos info that might be helpful for one and all. Apparently Sweetwater school district is second in the county for Mello-Roos "revenue", after Poway. Of course, Poway is a unified school district...Chula Vista Elementary is number 3. Unfortunately I could not get the link to work. The gist is that Poway comes in at $42 million, approximately. Sweetwater is $24.3, while Chula Vista Elementary is $14.3, which means if Sweetwater/CVE would be combined, they would still be #2 at $38.6 million. Let's think about that for a minute. $24.3 million for 2012-13...and what has happened to that money? I guess it is part of the missing $40 - 50 million, right?— December 18, 2013 1:20 p.m.
Santa and Grinch visit Sweetwater District meeting
*********NEWS FLASH*********************************************************************************** Arlie Ricasa has accepted a misdemeanor charge and resigned. So, this must mean that the board will fill her spot...any thoughts as to what is going to be taking place? Do you think that Cartmill is going to be next? Can the public request a competency hearing for McCann?— December 18, 2013 1:08 p.m.
Santa and Grinch visit Sweetwater District meeting
There is also George Bernard Shaw: "Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty, and the pig likes it."— December 16, 2013 9:56 p.m.