High school is a lot like the reality show Survivor. Mismatched people are plunked into a one-way-out lawless arena where they form alliances, learn from each other, and with as much luck as skill, duke …
August 19, 2009
Blog Entries
- CIA Hired Blackwater to Kill Jihadists, Says NY Times
24 comments
- Two Plead Guilty to Bribing SPAWAR Official
2 comments
- The Java Journey
3 comments
- "It's better than St Paul", an Interview with Mike
6 comments
- Milwaukee Mayor in a Fight, Cops and Shoplifters in Flight
18 comments
- SVDP
1 comment
News & Stories
The year I taught at Morse Senior High I spent $2000 on school supplies and making copies
Cut Up
A stabbing incident occurred on the corner of Texas Street and University Avenue in North Park early Tuesday morning, August 18. According to San Diego police radio traffic, at around 1:35 a.m., two men were …
August 19, 2009
Hard Times
San Diego police responded to a call on Sunday night, August 16, at about 11:50 p.m. near University Avenue and Park Boulevard in Hillcrest. A man called police and said his sister was jumping in …
August 19, 2009
Chick Rock
On Friday, August 14, Casbah staged a pop-punk triple bill featuring locals Revenge Club, Bay Area band the Lovemakers, and L.A. trio the Muffs. Revenge Club was a pleasant surprise. You never know how the …
August 19, 2009
What Smoke?
At about 7:25 p.m. on Saturday, August 15, a large fleet of fire trucks began to encircle the 14-story Diamond Terrace condominium located on the 400 block of Ninth Avenue in the East Village. The …
August 19, 2009
Get Down on the Bayou
On Thursday, August 13, two blues legends came to Belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach. James Cotton's Superharp Band started the night. I didn't know that Cotton underwent throat surgery in 1994 making it difficult …
August 19, 2009
Total Recall
December 8 will be a day that lives in infamy, at least for Oceanside city councilmember Jerry Kern. That's when residents decide whether to recall the first-term councilmember from office. Three weeks ago, activist group …
August 19, 2009
No Doubt about No Doubt
On Saturday, August 8, the Billboard-topping, Grammy-winning L.A. band No Doubt, fronted by pop diva Gwen Stefani, concluded their 2009 tour at Cricket Amphitheatre in Chula Vista. As my musical tastes tend to heavy metal, …
August 19, 2009
Seven Year Itch
When something itches, my dear sir, the natural tendency is to scratch. — Dr. Brubaker in The Seven Year Itch Are you getting itchy?” I asked. “Why, are you?” David countered. “Hey, that’s not an …
August 19, 2009
Becky Hurt
Becky Hurt, 30, is a “Master Teaching Artist” at Eveoke Dance Center in North Park, at present teaching hip-hop dance. She is self-described as having, “naturally brown hair. Also, I’m only 5’ 3”, but I …
August 19, 2009
Pile-Drivin' Tacos
A Mexican wrestler was pictured on the invitation to a party I went to a month ago. The card was for John’s 40th birthday “smackdown,” and I had to be “ready to rumble.” The thought …
August 19, 2009
Sell It, Trade It, Keep It
I love autograph stories. When a friend found out I wrote for Autograph Magazine, he told me about a guy he knows who runs an art gallery in North Park. This guy’s mother sewed clothing …
August 19, 2009
Hook Up to Hike
You’re new in San Diego — or maybe just new to walking and hiking — and you want to hit the local trails with other individuals. How do you get plugged into the hiking community …
August 19, 2009
Greek to Me
“What men or gods are these? What maidens loth? What mad pursuit? What struggle to escape?What pipes and timbrels? What wild ecstasy?” Huh. I impress myself. I do remember something from high school English. John …
August 19, 2009
Ship Christenings, Chocolate Susans
Hey, Matt: A ship was christened the other day. I believe it was named after the soldier that jumped onto a grenade during combat, saving his troops. The soldier’s mother was breaking the bottle of …
August 19, 2009
Unforgettable: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Dare Part 2
THE FALL. On September 1, 1890, while he was in San Francisco on business, John W. Collins’s wife Fannie, daughter Mary, son Johnny, and three others drowned in a boating accident off Point Loma. “Nothing …
August 19, 2009
Dannicus Live
Lakeside Celtic crew Dannicus Live had the most downloaded MP3 from SDReader.com during July, “Sirens.” This is the band’s second Most Downloaded track. Follows is an interview with frontman Dan. This song is pretty different …
August 19, 2009
Winter Garden
Abundance flowed from the Kelly garden boxes this summer. When the first produce was ready to be picked, I licked my lips as I planned a family feast. We’ve been chowing down on zucchini, cucumbers, …
Under the Wire
August, the customary summer dumping ground, has suddenly yielded the best wide-release mainstream films of the season. And a long, long season it has been: the kickoff, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, feels like another year. Reparation …
August 19, 2009
San Diego Sandanista
Thirty Years AgoLate last April John Holtz brought home to San Diego four bullet holes in the trunk of his Renault station wagon. “I was an American driving a car with Venezuela plates, and a …
August 19, 2009
Seasonal Bouquet
What a difference nine years makes, just 80,000 little hours. Over those years, Mille Fleurs has mellowed markedly, adapting to leaner times. This major mood change takes the restaurant out of the big-occasion realm of …
August 19, 2009
Get the Union-Tribune — For Almost Nothing
How would you like to buy a whole year’s home-delivery subscription to the Union-Tribune, Thursday through Sunday,for $29.95? That’s particularly enticing, because if you want only six months of the same thing, you pay more …
August 19, 2009
Rack 'Em
A 4th&B show headlined by LBC, a Long Beach Sublime tribute band, ended with the bassist beaten and hospitalized by an unhappy fan and an opening band claiming they were underpaid by $1000. “It was …
August 19, 2009
Long Gone Cheong
“After seven and a half years hosting Lestat’s open mike,” says MC Isaac Cheong, “I stepped down so I could take an opportunity to work in Sydney, Australia.” Performers who cut their teeth at Lestat’s …
August 19, 2009
Record Release Roundup
F.u.z.z. will have their Tentacle CD-release party at the Ruby Room on Saturday, August 29. “Expect Tim Felton [Genius of Soul] to be sitting in on keys,” says the band, “plus some projected visuals, and …
August 19, 2009
Bootsie Wasn't Interested
Tony Gidlund, bassist, guitarist, and vocalist for math-rock band Fever Sleeves, has written songs with two guitar parts since 2005, around the time when the band started to consider adding a new member. Four years …
August 19, 2009
Scripps Ranch fight over eucalyptus
In 1909, newspaper magnate Edward Willis Scripps began planting eucalyptus on the San Diego ranch he’d bought 11 years earlier. Those trees and their descendents have become the signature emblem of today’s Scripps Ranch. So …
August 19, 2009
Get off the Grid in Jalama Beach
Welcome to the feeling of camping in the 1970s: Advance registration for single sites is not available at Jalama Beach Park, located west of Lompoc in Santa Barbara County. From Highway 1, the 14-mile Jalama …
August 19, 2009
Heavy Metal Role Reversal
On Tuesday, August 4, legendary British bands Whitesnake and Judas Priest played SDSU's Open Air Theatre. Though I was eager to see headlining heavy-metal giants Judas Priest, I was dismissive of Whitesnake's popular but goofy …
August 19, 2009
Pantages Theatre, Hollywood
The Pantages Theatre, located on 6233 Hollywood Blvd (near Vine just off the 101), is a Hollywood landmark with more than its share of entertainment history. It’s played host to Vaudeville acts in the 1930s, …
August 19, 2009