Double-bladed, surgical steel guillotine cutter in hand, a fellow in a Hawaiian shirt slices off a little less than a quarter of an inch, and the cap falls to the floor. It’s a clean, decisive …
September 24, 2008
Blog Entries
- Paulson Raked in $27 Million a Year While Heading Goldman, Says Expert Graef Crystal, Who Opposes the $700 Billion Bailout and Also Opposes Compensation Controls
23 comments
- Reporters Say They Have Seen Singleton at U-T. But Will His MediaNews, with Hearst, Be A Buyer?
6 comments
- Biotech Sequenom Stock Up 32% on Optimism for Down Syndrome Test
- Blog Satirist Says Paulson's Plan for Wall St. Bailout Resembles Nigerian Letter
12 comments
- Politics & $$$$$$
News & Stories
Kearny Mesa comes close to being our cigar district
Raise the Bar
"I figured there would be a lot of riesling. That’s why I brought a chardonnay – but it’s a different sort of Australian chardonnay, the Bindi Composition.” You don’t often hear sentences like that – …
Palin’s progress
Carlsbad-based self-help guru Deepak Chopra is reportedly getting paid big bucks to appear in a new series of commercials for Microsoft that attempt to rebut those long-running Apple “I’m a PC and I’m a Mac” …
September 24, 2008
Panini with a Private Eye
This restaurant is closed “I came before crack hit the streets,” says the Mother of East Village. “That’s how long I’ve been here.” Which means that Gloria Poore arrived in the 1960s, when this part …
September 24, 2008
The Movable Feast Returns
Of all the “charity eat-a-thons” in this town, my favorite by far is the Chef Celebration, a series of extraordinary banquets crafted by some of the county’s top chefs and held at several of the …
September 24, 2008
Oat Mountain
A rambling patch of newly acquired open space that goes by the long-winded name of Michael D. Antonovich Regional Park at Joughin Ranch spreads over a south-facing slope that culminates in a 3747-foot summit called …
September 24, 2008
Ivy and Concrete
“Squash is associated with Ivy League schools and expensive athletic clubs,” says Renato Paiva, executive director of Surf City Squash. “But that image is changing. Right now there are 55 colleges in the country [with …
September 24, 2008
In Bulk
We can easily tell when summer’s over. In lieu of the lazy pace of one mainstream blockbuster and an also-ran, plus perhaps one or two “alternatives,” we get seven, eight, nine new movies per week, …
September 24, 2008
Fast Passports
It’s been a while since I’ve seen my husband Patrick’s impulsive side. But last week was our anniversary, and he surprised me with a trip to Italy. “Last-minute deal on the package — tremendous bargain,” …
September 24, 2008
Blood, Sweat, and Beers
Sirhan Sirhan founder Jason Blackmore wasn’t at the San Diego Music Awards last week when his band won the Best Hard Rock Album award. He assumed his “balls-out hardcore rock band” would continue to get …
September 24, 2008
Dad, Do You Have to Smoke?
Visitation weekends are an anxiety experience for Baldwin, punctuated by sheer bliss. Baldwin is in his 50s and lives in Mission Hills. His little boy is 32 years old. Since 2003 he has registered bipolar …
September 24, 2008
Three Damned Characters
Picture hell. For those who live in Pacific Beach and work nine-to-five jobs, hell arrives every Thursday afternoon. College students schedule their classes Monday through Thursday. Come that afternoon, especially in the “Kill Zone” around …
September 24, 2008
Comfort Food
An easygoing husband is the one indispensable comfort of life. — Marie Louise De La Ramee ‘You know what sounds really good right now?” David looked up from the magazine in his hands. “Frozen ravioli …
September 24, 2008
Rich get richer
Many are predicting that next year’s state budget deficit will grow to $7 billion, but that hasn’t stopped the University of California from its habit of handing out big salaries to high-ranking executives. At their …
September 24, 2008
Better Than I Think I Can Be
Sal Convento is chief instructor and owner of the United States Karate Academy in Point Loma (uskasandiego.com). He’s single, 36 years old, a third-degree black belt, and world champion. I don’t find any of that …
September 24, 2008
Marriage scouting
The battle between pro– and anti–gay-marriage forces continues. Among the latest to back Proposition 8, the proposed statewide ban on gay marriages, is Robert Bolingbroke of Rancho Santa Fe, who recently kicked in $25,000. The …
September 24, 2008
No Sleep Brings Death? Tumco
Heymatt: Sometimes I don’t sleep for a couple of days. I have a friend who told me that I could die from lack of sleep. I can’t believe that, but this friend is always throwing …
September 24, 2008
Purple Prose
Thirty Years AgoMy former colleague, Jonathan Saville, has the town abuzz with his “review” of Shange’s For Colored Girls. I found both the poetry and the stage production of Colored Girls to be ambitious, adventurous, …
September 24, 2008
Breaking Dawn
What are you reading? “Breaking Dawn, by Stephenie Meyer.” What’s it about? “It’s a romance novel about a young woman, Bella, and a vampire, Edward. It’s part of the Twilight series. This one is different …
September 24, 2008
Mother Antonia Speaks
“For more than 30 years,” said Vision pastor Patti Paris in her introduction, “Mother Antonia has lived in a small, cold cell in Tijuana’s La Mesa prison, where she ministers to some of the most …
September 24, 2008
Friends Like These
The Modlins wear suits and skinny ties and play what they call “oldies-influenced indie-pop.” That may lead you to assume that the band plays obscure cover tunes from the early 1960s, but the Modlins play …
September 24, 2008
Journey Continues
Before Journey appears at the Pechanga casino in Temecula on October 1, “All announcements must be done 20 minutes before the performance.” They want — on call — an ear, nose, and throat doctor, an …
September 24, 2008
The Narcoleptic Dingo
As my superhero alter ego, Narcoleptic Dingo, I plan to attack Washington and Wall Street. Sure, sure, the trio of supervillains, Fedsy McMoneychanger, the Tax Reaper, and Bendover Herecomesthe-porkbarrelspending Monster will try to confuse me …
September 24, 2008
Multiple Fetuses Okay
“If things in the music biz continue to fall apart,” says Manganista singer Matt Rhea, “maybe we’ll have [X-Ray Babies] to fall back on. People may stop paying for music, but they’ll never stop having …
September 24, 2008
Live or Death
“We record nearly all of our shows because every performance is a unique one-off and we want to capture the magic,” says bassist Larry Vernec of Blue44. All three albums by the Encinitas band were …
September 24, 2008
Sprung Monkey
It was at X-Fest at SDSU several years ago — blink 182 was scheduled to headline the evening, but Sprung Monkey, another local band, owned the afternoon. Sprung’s popularity was beginning to soar on the …
September 24, 2008
Mike Pinto
Album: Mike Pinto (2007) Artist: Mike Pinto Label: self-released Songs: 1) Full Speed 2) Surf Tune 3) Addictions 4) Backburner 5) Get Me Down 6) Temptation 7) Bad Luck 8) Knocked Up 9) Never Hold …
September 24, 2008
Flogging Molly...and Amanda
I was living in Seattle [in 2005], across the street from the Space Needle...in the shadow of the Space Needle, really — no sunlight, and rain to boot; it made me want to sleep a …
September 24, 2008
Tough Blow
“If anyone tries to sell it, I will certainly know about it,” says uilleann-pipe player Tim Foley, whose instrument was stolen on September 6. “There’s a lot of eyes and ears on the lookout there.” …
September 24, 2008
Dandy Warhols
In the mid-’90s, when every other musician in the musician-rich city of Portland, Oregon, was cultivating a lo-fi sound and a low-budget look, the Dandy Warhols sounded, dressed, and acted like rock stars. In the …
September 24, 2008
Beer Me! (1870s Style)
Beer garden at City Brewery, circa 1870s. In 1868, the same year Austrian brew-master Christian Doblier established San Diego’s first brewery in Spring Valley (Chollas Valley Brewery), City Brewery opened on the northwest corner of …
September 24, 2008
Comerica Park, Chase Field – banks foolish to use stadiums
Are you entrusting your money to banking houses or sportin’ houses? The United States is in its worst credit crisis since the Great Depression, as shotgun marriages are arranged and financed by the government. Investment …
September 24, 2008
End of Rosarito-Ensenado bicycle ride
Organizers of the semiannual Rosarito Ensenada Fun Bicycle Ride recently announced that the September 27 event would be their last. As with Baja tourism in general, participation in the ride has been declining. In April, …
September 24, 2008
Pumping Up City Council
At 9:00 a.m., Saturday morning, under the steady hum from the air conditioner inside Salvation Army’s Fellowship Hall, District Six councilmember Donna Frye and councilmember-elect from District Five Carl DeMaio conversed with a sparse crowd …
September 24, 2008
Green Jerseys and Red Vines
A friend scored a pair of tickets to the Chargers’ final preseason game against Seattle. I don’t care much about preseason, but it would give me a chance to check out the Seahawks running back …
September 24, 2008