At 8:52 P.M. on July 11th, Joaquín Guzmán Loera, the drug kingpin known as El Chapo, sat on the bed of his cell in Altiplano, Mexico’s only super-maximum-security prison. Surveillance footage appears to show a …
December 16, 2015
News & Stories
Sinaloa cartel tunnels to Otay Mesa are infrastructural marvels
Seven Grand returns to its whiskey atmosphere
One of the unique gems of the North Park music scene has gone dark. The stage in the back room of Seven Grand is no more. “I felt our music program was amazing, but we …
December 16, 2015
Jamie Hamrick travels for free again
An already well-traveled executive at the San Diego city employees’ retirement system has been on the road again, taking another trip to New York City courtesy of a well-heeled investment fund. The free trip is …
December 16, 2015
Two sonnets by William Wordsworth
The Virgin Mother! whose virgin bosom was uncrost With the least shade of thought to sin allied. Woman! above all women glorified, Our tainted nature’s solitary boast; Purer than foam on central ocean tost; Brighter …
December 16, 2015
Masters' Vieux Carre goes down like soda
The classic Vieux Carre oozes with the decadence of a New Orleans cathouse even as its name invokes the baroque sophistication of the cast iron rail- and grillwork that entwines the French Quarter. Named for …
December 16, 2015
Hey hey hey! Cosby countersues Fallbrook lawyer
Bill Cosby on Monday (December 14) filed a countersuit in federal court in Massachusetts, claiming that seven women who have accused him of drugging and sexually exploiting them are guilty of "malicious, opportunistic, and false …
December 16, 2015
Chicken climax
“It’s fresh, not processed, and have you ever seen a fat Japanese guy? Except for sumo wrestlers?”
Honky-tonk outsider Wayne "The Train" Hancock hits town
Wayne Hancock. His nickname is “the Train,” and his act is what remains of honky-tonk, a scarce form of entertainment these days. In truth, honky-tonk defines a type of venue and an era more than …
December 16, 2015
Dark Horse’s new stable
Normal Heights coffee roaster Dark Horse will soon become a Golden Hill coffee roaster. Following more than a year of planning and construction, the company soft-opened its new retail shop on 25th Street just before …
December 16, 2015
Music Zirconia pays tribute
Scott Weiland’s recent death may increase sales of his records, but fans may want to hold off on honoring his musical memory by starting a tribute band. “There are a dozen Stone Temple Pilot tribute …
December 16, 2015
The fix is in. Possibly.
Is the fix in for choosing a future operator of San Diego’s putative new taxpayer-funded film commission? So worries an unidentified respondent to the city’s October 29 “request for ideas” regarding setting up a new …
December 16, 2015
Wildflowers bloom late on Wilson Peak
Wilson Trail and Peak were named for the rancher, Alfred Wilson, who ran cattle in this area in the first half of the 20th Century. The Wilson Trail goes southeast along Pinyon Ridge for several …
December 16, 2015
Wrapper’s delight
“I wrapped one with the Sunday comics, one in an old map, one in a beautiful silk scarf...”
Rachel Weisz is humbled and thrilled to be in Youth
In Youth, Rachel Weisz plays Lena, the long-suffering daughter of famous composer Fred Ballinger. She had a rough time of it as a kid, what with Dad always paying attention to the Muse and all, …
December 16, 2015
Ace Parking gets the contract again?
San Diego’s controversial but well-connected Ace Parking has been around since 1950, making it one of the city’s most well-entrenched special interests. As is the case with the Evans hotel family, another influential local dynasty, …
December 16, 2015
A Scrooge is born
Charles Dickens wrote at top speed, in part because of gifts that didn’t seem so at the time. In his youth, he was a court stenographer. He learned the intricate Gurney system of shorthand in …
December 16, 2015
Document king tide
A three-foot rise in sea level would displace an estimated 480,000 people in San Diego.
December 16, 2015
This bot sucks
“If you think you’re done, Buster, think again,” he said to the machine as if it could understand him. “I’m just going to keep running you until that floor is clean.”
December 16, 2015
Pickled eggs for christmas — no reason why not
Dear Hipster: I almost always have a really hard time buying gifts for people. Birthdays are tough enough, but this time of year is all but impossible, seeing as how there are so many people …
December 16, 2015
City to implement climate action plan
Following years of planning and nearly two hours' worth of public comment on December 15, San Diego's city council voted unanimously (8-0, with councilmember Scott Sherman not attending) to approve a final climate action plan …
December 16, 2015
Grizzly Business finds alternative venues
The obvious item on the how-to-get-gigs list would be: make good music. That became clear to Grizzly Business when they put out the catchy pop tune “Rich Girls” in February. “After it came out we …
December 16, 2015
The re-reinvention of Pasaje Rodriguez
When Luis Montijo came upon downtown Tijuana’s Pasaje Rodriguez, the arts and culture alleyway was losing steam. “It wasn’t really going anywhere,” the 32-year-old Tijuana native recalls of his 2013 visit from Mexico City, where …
December 16, 2015
"There are too many people like him in San Diego"
No Mainstream Media Here Re: “Angel’s No Angel” (December 10 cover story) Finally, you guys are describing a military automatic assault rifle — the ones that the mainstream media keep thinking that the public can …
December 16, 2015
Sam Outlaw goes whole hog for country
When he attended Poway High in the late ’90s, music didn’t mean that much to Sam Morgan. For starters, he was raised in a conservative Christian household that didn’t permit rock music indoors. And even …
December 16, 2015
Catholic priest turned Presbyterian pastor
It seemed that God was far away, but He was very near. Suddenly the thought entered my mind: “You have your Gospel; read it, and you will find the light.” On my knees, and with …
December 16, 2015