The line, maybe 400 people long, ran back along Seventh Avenue from the entrance to the Hillcrest Whole Foods. An unusual sight for a winemaker bottle-signing, which made sense, because it was an unusual winemaker …
United States
Hedonistic
Hellman Wilderness Park
The rambling Puente Hills, overlooking the San Gabriel Valley to the north and Orange County to the south, interrupt what would otherwise be a continuous spread of flat, nondescript suburbs. Rising no higher than 1500 …
December 23, 2008
House Money
Gentlemen, please remove your hats. For the first time in Sporting Box history, I am pleased to offer congratulations to the A-R-I-Z-O-N-A C-A-R-D-I-N-A-L-S. Funny how that name rolls awkwardly off the tongue, making a strange, …
December 10, 2008
Leaving It All on the Field
There is no I or, in this instance, no finger in “team.” As you’ve heard by now, Trevor Wikre, a 6-foot-3, 280-pound offensive right guard for the Mesa State College Mavericks, snagged his little finger …
October 8, 2008
Old School
The Dalles, Oregon, is found on the south bank of the Columbia River, 85 miles upstream from Portland. Today’s population of 12,000 is about what it was 20 years ago. They grow cereal grains, sweet …
October 1, 2008
Summer in Chicago
The end of summer is at hand, and I may well miss it. Jumping the gun a bit, but not by much, I find myself less disgruntled, overheated, and dying for that sense of “death …
Groove and Jam
With a band name like Moontucky Risin, you might expect to hear Southern-fried or Cajun-cooked rock, perhaps with a side of bluegrass or a pinch of rockabilly. And that’s what listeners got, back when cofounders …
August 20, 2008
Hellacious L.A.
A Scribe Amidst the Lions singer/guitarist Kristofer Towne says the band was unloading before a recent gig at L.A.’s Viper Room when… “Out of nowhere, a speeding car [was] careening into the parking lot at …
June 25, 2008
I'onte Mut Know
I’m originally from Birmingham, Alabama, and all my slang is dirty South. “I’onte mut know,” is something that you say if you don’t know an answer. Like if someone asks you if you’re going to …
Derbytime
For those who do not follow horse racing, and that’s 98 percent of the population, I should explain that Derbytime refers to the Kentucky Derby and especially the money-making festivities leading up to it. Horse …
April 30, 2008
Back in Time
The La Mesa library recently placed California Wine a Sunset Pictorial, published in 1973 and edited by the estimable Bob Thompson, in a cardboard box outside the building’s front door. A visual history of the …
April 9, 2008
Catch a panoramic view of the L.A. Basin from the historic Mount Wilson Toll Road high above Pasadena.
For hikers, the flattish 5700-foot summit of Mount Wilson -- home of the historic (and still viable) Mount Wilson Observatory -- is a jumping-off spot for vintage trails that run downhill in practically every direction. …
November 29, 2007
Remote Piru Creek, in the Los Padres National Forest north of Los Angeles, offers a challenging wilderness experience.
Although relatively unknown among hikers, the Piru Creek gorge offers a rugged wilderness experience less than one hour's drive away from L.A.'s northern suburbs. In 1992 the 220,000-acre Sespe Wilderness was carved out of lands …
November 15, 2007
Melinda in Greenville, Ohio
Moving Day Dear Noah, You found out today that the girls next door are moving. You are very upset about this. You told me you would have to say goodbye to them forever, all the …
November 15, 2007
Blue Streak
"I've been on every day since April of '78 & five original shows a week."
November 15, 2007