When someone dies in the state of California, we know, or can find out, what would seem to be everything we might want to know about the event: the place, date, and time of death; …
May 25, 1995
Thursday, May 25
Who uses hospice care in San Diego
The uselessness of toilet seat covers
Dear Matthew Alice: Regarding those thin, tissue-like toilet seat liners. Printed on the box that holds them it says, “Provided by the management for your protection.’’ Other than butt grime, what can and do these …
May 25, 1995
Breathe Right's help for deviated septum
Dear Matthew Alice: Those funky nose clips all the athletes are wearing— wots the deal? Is there a proven medical benefit, or is this good old-fashioned American marketing (i.e., lies) at work? I’ve heard they …
May 25, 1995
The scoring of American football explained
Matt: In all my years of watching football, I’ve never heard anyone explain why a touchdown is worth six points, a field goal three, a point-after one. Who came up with this screwy scoring method, …
May 25, 1995
Coronado prom night – is this for real?
I never thought anyone would respond to the flier. The suit is ugly, the flower looks more appropriate for a funeral, and I’m posting with a 32-ounce can of Miller, Buttafuocco style. I’m every high …
May 25, 1995
Thursday, May 18
Ted Geisel, his first and second wives, Neil Morgan, and the Jewish question
La Jolla needed liberals like a hole in the head. By then even Herb Klein was Ted’s good friend, Herb Klein of I’m-Nixon’s-pal fame. (“Hey!” you say, “isn’t Klein a Jew’s name?” Could be. But what’s in a name?)
May 18, 1995
San Diego's concrete kings Hazard and Daley
Straight to the Hippest: Who would whup in a fight between Old Man Hazard and Old Man Daley? — Chris Raney, [email protected] Choose your weapon. Asphalt and concrete at ten paces? Probably a draw, at …
May 18, 1995
The color of coot feces and other kinds, too
Dear Matthew Alice: Where I exercise daily, the recreation area east of Crown Point, whole communities of coots cross and recross the cement path, leaving their droppings behind them. Coot turds are a startling shade …
May 18, 1995
The look of San Diego branch libraries
“We narrowed the Mira Mesa branch down to a design we liked, one with a roof we thought was very attractive. But the community group didn’t like it: they thought it looked like a Quonset hut.”
May 18, 1995
Your body can serve as antenna
Dear Matthew Alice: I listen to jazz on my radio at work, and in order to get a clear broadcast signal, I have to hold the radio cord in my hand. Is there some scientific …
May 18, 1995
Jack Kerouac's Heirs Slug It Out
I asked about Ginsberg. “Ginsberg,” Jan said, “has turned out to be a real hypocrite.. At the Beat Conference last year in May, he would come up to me and say, ‘How are you feeling, my dear?’"
May 18, 1995
Thursday, May 11
SEALS give first-hand account of America's Cup spying- part 2
Jack and I made our way through the low-intensity night jog of the Bali Ha'i parking lot that was now nearly filled. We reached our vehicles — Jack's Nissan pickup and my Ford Escort — …
May 11, 1995
Men breast feeding — no
Dear Matthew Alice: I’ve heard that a woman who is not pregnant can produce breast milk, but it takes many months of preparing the breasts. Is it possible for men to breast-feed as well? If …
May 11, 1995
I deal with my parents when they are very old
We watch TV together. I listen to complaints about their health, answer ritualistic questions about my life, glance surreptitiously at my watch, and wait until it is over. We’ve never been “close.”
May 11, 1995
Ted Williams' climb from San Diego to Boston
"There goes Ted Williams, the greatest hitter who ever lived!" That was the goal — the constant wish — of The Kid as expressed not only in his autobiography My Turn at Bat (1969) but …
May 11, 1995
Thursday, May 4
SEALS give first-hand account of America's Cup spying, part 1
"Koch's edge over Conner, and later over the Italian team he thrashed to take the Cup, was achieved with the help of espionage tactics... [that included] sending frogmen armed with bubble-free 'rebreathers' to inspect competing …
May 4, 1995
The skim that forms on top of milk
Hey, Mattie Alicia: Why does a skin form on top of milk when you heat it up? — Insomniac in U.C. Milk is a pretty unstable liquid. Treat it badly, heat it too high too …
May 4, 1995
Port of L.A. paying to restore Batiquitos Lagoon
Dear Matthew Alice: I was driving up PCH the other day, just south of Carlsbad State Beach, where a new bridge is being built. Out of idle curiosity, I read the “Your Tax Dollars at …
May 4, 1995
Hollywood success measured only in dollars
Dear Matthew Alice: Why is it when a new movie opens, its success (or failure) is measured in dollars, such as “...grossed only $1.9 million in its first weekend” or “...has grossed $100 million to …
May 4, 1995
Charles Bukowski: an appreciation
I got up, went in, pulled down my pants, sat down, thought, fucking often has nothing to do with being “lovers” and fucking seldom has much to do with literature and literature has nothing to …
May 4, 1995
Catherine wheel is named after saint
Dear Matthew Alice: Who or what is “Catherine Wheel”? I know there’s an English musical group by that name, and I’ve seen a pub in England named Catherine Wheel. Please enlighten me. — Michelle S., …
May 4, 1995