While the tin can house had a red tile roof like any other adobe home, it was never normal. “It was a natural celestial spot. Except for Red Rock, it had the highest peak on the mesa.”
Thursday, February 27
Matmail: Is it known whether animals masturbate? Two possible species that I considered were elephants and primates. —jwavrider, the Net Elephants? I don’t even want to know how you came up with that one in …
Dear Matt: What is the origin of all the colored paint splotches in both directions on Highway 52? There seem to be new ones all the time and of many different colors. Is it a …
Dear Matt: Saw Bill Clinton on TV signing his name to a stack of documents. There were at least a dozen pens lined up on his desk, and he used a different pen for each …
A day after last week's ruling on the stadium case, plaintiff's attorney Michael Aguirre sat down for an interview, portions of which follow. I take it your view was that by ruling the way he …
When Pete DeJung applied for a bank loan to start a dairy in 1951, he was turned down. "We didn't speak the language very well," recalls DeJung, who is Dutch. "We were very green in …
Republican moneyman Darrel Issa, a financial mainstay of last year's GOP convention, is reportedly running for U.S. Senate. Issa, president of Vista-based Directed Electronics, told the California Political Review he expects to spend $8 million …
Prompted by a second glass of wine, Clifford’s dad said, “The way I treated my son, pushed Cliff into that war, I wouldn’t blame him if he accused me of intentionally wrecking his life.”
Thursday, February 20
Chris Ahrens lives in the kind of house any surfer would love. It’s on the hill above Cardiff, with a view of one of the best reef breaks in San Diego county. Wet suits are …
Matmail: Just received this urgent e-mail. “Doctors are blaming a rare electrical imbalance in the brain for the bizarre death of a chess player whose head literally exploded in the middle of a championship game. …
Dear Matthew Alice: Why are cinnamon candies “red hot”? I have never thought the taste of a cinnamon roll or other baked good particularly eye-watering. — R.R., S.D. Tastes that bludgeon our senses have always …
Dear Matthew Alice: Why are margarine and butter sold in different shapes on the East and West Coasts? In the West, the cubes are short and fat, while on the East Coast they are long …
It's a politician's worst nightmare - even worse if you're a judge or sheriff, district attorney or city attorney. It's Proposition 208, the campaign finance reform initiative passed by voters last November, and it caps …
The sign on Steve Olson's office door says Olson Avocado Management. The logo on his jacket reads Olson Firewood. When you work in agriculture, you have to stay flexible. "Groves we planted 10, 20 years …
Latest way to spend tax money at San Diego city hall: $30,000 for a six-month "road hump study." The city's contract with Kimley-Horn and Associates says the work will begin with "a survey of cities …
A half dozen Indians stood pointing hoses from which I could see no water escaping — they looked like a mime troupe parodying a fire brigade. One man threw down his hose and began stomping a circle around himself.
Somebody once told us that if you like cats, you like all breeds of cats, but if you like a certain breed of dog, you don’t necessarily like other breeds of dogs.”
Thursday, February 13
It was all of it sad, godforsaken country. Last summer in a remote area south of here, around Split Mountain, a man whose car had broken down was found dead. He was shoeless and his brain had boiled.
"Let's say you figure the guy is going to live two years," says Ted Martin. "Here's the way a breakdown would work: You take his $100,000 [life insurance] policy. You're going to pay the guy, …
The speeches are over, the yard signs are long gone, and the TV reporters are back covering drive-by shootings or bemoaning the possible demise of the Holiday Bowl parade. Campaigns for four seats on the …
Ex-congresswoman Lynn Schenk is still kicking around the idea of running for state attorney general. Campaign reports show that over the past six months the lawyer from La Jolla has raised $52,000 for her "exploratory" …
"Talk to him," my wife commands, and I obey. I bend down, place my mouth against her belly, and say hello to my son, whose ears are fully developed by now. I tell him that …
Now, anybody don’t trust me, he ought to say so. He ought to come clean.”“What happens do he say so?” Pill queried. Donald leaned closer to me, “Boy come clean, he go back to the hall. That’s what.”
Thursday, February 6
Eddie Osterland, one of 29 master sommeliers in the U.S., left New York because he wanted to raise his daughter in less aggressive surroundings, and he chose San Diego because “this is a beautiful city, …
M Alice: How do freeze-dryers work? Why can’t you buy them for home use? I find practically no information on the subject, as if there was a coverup conspired by giant food-processing corporations. Am I …
Dear Matthew Alice: Does it make a difference to a vampire which side of the neck he/she bites? If the vampire wants iron-rich blood, then the left side is the place to suckle. Or the …
San Diego may soon be home to a notorious New England killer. On a hot summer day in July 1985, in the northwest Vermont farming town of St. Albans, a man named Monica Pollard plunged …
"You're a hard man to find." Glassy red eyes regard me with fear. The stubble-haired male, somewhere between 60 and 80, is buried deep in his sleeping bag. The brown cotton bag stinks of urine …
The scrap over the stadium has drawn the attention of the Bond Buyer, the national magazine for those in the business of buying and selling municipal securities. "Bond dealers wonder if San Diego is repeating …
I took a job substitute teaching for the Grossmont high school district and tried writing a novel. My desk was in the dining room, but most of my roommates had day jobs, so the afternoons were quiet enough.