Thirty Years AgoJack Ford, son of the former president, will soon make his home in San Diego. The 26-year-old Ford, who first visited San Diego during vacation breaks from Utah State University, where he majored …

You know when you eat a bag of Chee-tos and you get that orange sludge on your fingers? You have to scrape it off your teeth and it’s really disgusting? That is called “cheedle.” It’s …

I do not like Krispy Kreme. All of their donuts look like creepy little clones of each other, so I call them clonuts. Where I come from we have Dunkin Donuts. The donuts are beautiful, …

Thirty Years Ago Why do you buy ink especially designed to come off all over me? I have to be careful not to read your issue wearing light-colored clothing! Surely you get letters asking if …

Worst break up ever? In the late ’80s I lived in a basement apartment in San Francisco a block off Haight Street. I was in my twenties and casting about for some deeper purpose in …

Siliclone refers to the group of girls that you would usually see in the Gaslamp or P.B. You know, implants, bleached hair, platform flip-flops, skanktastic tattoos. They all look alike to me. I think they …

Kids With Promise I was at work today reading in bits and pieces your cover story about “families” in San Diego (“If There Are Families,” Cover Story, April 10). I believe this cover story is …

I remember the band Mickey Ratt back in high school, in 1970-something. They were the big local band around town. I was at some parties they were at. It’s all kinda hazy for me right …

Thirty Years AgoThe cypress trees remain. So do the eucalyptus, pine, and groves of pepper trees. They are memorials to people who turned a dusty, chaparral-covered section of Point Loma into a utopian wonderland. Of …

My ex-girlfriend at the end of the 20th Century (1995–1998) and I made the mistake of letting an acquaintance stay with us. This fellow, “Bill,” was from Los Angeles (or so he said) and living …

Thirty Years AgoSunday morning in the little desert pit stop of Burro Bend. Everything’s quiet. The sun has just risen over the Salton Sea; in the light, it looks like a vast oil slick. The …

I have to admit, the word I use the most came from the movie Never Been Kissed. The word is Rufus, and it’s used to describe something really cool. I love the way it sounds …

Hackintosh. I made it up to refer to computers that are composed of different components. It’s my way of sticking it to the man. I work on computers for a living, and I believe that …

Over the span of a normal lifetime, how often do you see a loved one off for a trip? A long trip? A long and dangerous trip? It’s five o’clock in the morning in a …

This isn’t the first time I’ve been on during the daytime at a rock station. I began cracking the mic back in the late ’80s. A lot of the music from that era was disposable. …

Thirty Years AgoThank you for your article on our boss, Lowell Blankfort (“Press Passes,” March 30). We commend Paul Krueger’s skill in capturing the personality of this Star-News co-publisher quite accurately (in the view of …

Thirty Years AgoA former alcoholic, Sister Winnie first immersed herself in rescue work 28 years ago when she took over the city’s oldest such haven (then 25 years old) and rechristened it God’s Extended Hand. …

It was one of my favorite events of the year: the Brazil Carnaval at 4th&B. She and I had just met, but we danced the samba as if we had known each other forever. The …

Post Date: March 12, 2007Post Title: The Problem with Really Good TimesIt’s partly the empty chest of a lingering hangover, but at the end of weekends like this I feel like breaking down over the …

Lisa FranekFilmmaker and lecturer, SDSU Arturo Ripstein’s No One Writes the Colonel is just beautiful. The camerawork is amazing; it’s filled with rich colors. It’s a beautiful storyline that’s dark and dreary but still really …

The first time I heard the word Larry was when my old boss said it to me. I bumped into him and he yelled, “Watch out, Larry!” I wondered who Larry was and then I …

Post Date: August 8, 2007Post Title: A Simple Request to My Friends Prelude: One year ago, early morning in Las Vegas. I woke up on the floor of our friends’ hotel room with a brain …

Thirty Years AgoLarry Remer’s first fundraiser for his weekly newspaper, Newsline, held in the stately Mission Hills home of Janed Casady, rallied 150 fellow liberals at $12.50 each. The ticket price paid for a chance …

One of my favorite memories takes me back to my years on the high school varsity tennis team and turning our school’s losing record into one of the best for the girls’ tennis team. Believe …

Thomas PierceLibrary technician, Encinitas Pink Floyd The Wall has a dark, evocative story by Roger Waters and brilliant animation by Gerald Scarfe. It’s essentially a feature-length music video directed by Alan Parker. Parker also directed …

A schwiggler is a sneaky person, someone who is trying to trick you or hide from you. It’s something my friends and I call each other. Of you’re trying to avoid phone calls from someone …

Thirty Years Ago“Jacumba Hotel, Ida here.” “Hello, I’d like a reservation for this weekend.” “Sorry, honey, we’re filled up. We’ve got two groups coming in — the glider club and the A.A. — plus all …

In the early ’80s, at 19, I enrolled in a culinary school in Hyde Park, New York. I’d planned on finding an apartment off campus, but after getting lost and stuck in a traffic jam …

James VasquezFilmmaker-actor, Daisy 3 Pictures, readyokmovie.com Paper Moon, shot in B&W, features an Oscar-winning performance by 11-year-old Tatum O’Neal. Director Peter Bogdanovich takes his time telling this funny father-daughter story, often with long static shots, …

Considering they’ve been making noise and upsetting parental status-quo sensibilities since 1980, it’s not only a pleasure to be on the receiving end of fresh Bad Religion albums every 24 months or so, it’s also …

Thirty Years AgoSunday, country music figurehead Johnny Cash makes his annual visit to San Diego at the Civic Theatre with his perennial partners, June Carter and the Carter family. Cash has long been the most …

Mauricio ChernovetskyDirector, Cassandra To someone who’s a fan of long, contemplative takes and abstract narrative techniques, Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Syndromes and a Century really delivers! But what’s most refreshing is the lightness and humor …

Greeth is a combination of ‘“gross” and “teeth.” I guess it could also be “green” and “teeth,” depending on how long it had been since the person brushed. “Grums” is the same idea but pertaining …

I think there’s a particular kind of relationship — specific to each person — that you must endure before you find the one that you are going to spend the rest of your life with. …

My word is “squadouche,” which basically means “nothing.” Don’t really know where I heard it from... But basically used in the context, “Hey dude, what’d you get at the store today?” “Squadouche! I didn’t get …

It was the night I became a man. It was Ocean Beach, California. It was a Halloween party in 1999 and I was dressed as a P.E. teacher. You should have seen my outfit: tiny …

Levi, “social chairman” of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity at Cal State San Marcos, says, “Most of the students don’t live within a five-mile radius of the campus. There isn’t much to do on campus. …

Keturah StickannAssistant director, San Diego Opera, 2008 seasonsdopera.org John Carney’s Once is one of the best depictions of the creative process I’ve ever seen. I love its sincerity, and I really love its soundtrack. Little …

He was gorgeous. Kristen and I sat on the lawn at Orange Glen High School, watching Chris walk by on his way to the cafeteria. It was winter in sunny Southern California, and he wore …

Thirty Years AgoWhile I have permitted myself, the last week or two, to become hopelessly tangled up in writing about, or trying to, Wim Wenders’s The American Friend, a near traffic jam of other important …

I saw Queensrÿche at the Sports Arena in the early ’90s, when Operation: Mindcrime came out. I wasn’t even in radio back then. There were two things I noticed about the crowd: a lot of …

“There is no single person who has the juice to book major acts [at 4th&B],” says an insider who suggests that the 1500-capacity venue has created the best business plan it could, considering the competition; …

Post Date: September 17, 2007Post Title: Kokeshi 101Kokeshi is the name for a traditional Japanese doll usually representing a woman or girl. Made from wood, they are originally believed to have been created for tourists …

Thirty Years AgoIt’s 1:30 a.m. Standing beside a pair of pay phones and a silver train of piggybacked carts, you figure you’re ready for Mayfair Market’s morning crowd. The store lights up a quiet section …

I had just seen the movie Across the Universe about an English guy who falls in love with an American girl. It brought back all my memories of visiting England when I was 18. That …

Karen Huff-WillisDirector, San Diego Black Film Festival, sandiegoblackfilmfestival.com For Black History Month I would like people to see something by Oscar Micheaux, like Within Our Gates. He’s from the 1920s, and he made wonderful films. …

Edoardo MuellerPrincipal guest conductor, San Diego Opera, sdopera.org Renata Tebaldi: Profonda ed infinita is a collection of the best videos Renata did in her life — her interviews and performances, and footage of all her …

I just recently heard “ass antlers” and I think it’s wonderful. It refers to tattoos on the lower back, sometimes also called a “tramp stamp.” They are usually tribal tattoos in a v-shape and sit …

“Carlsbad’s gotten ugly,” says a musician who supports himself by playing music in Carlsbad clubs. Following noise complaints by nearby residents, the City of Carlsbad is enforcing a new entertainment ordinance that went into effect …

I met Paul online, and it wasn’t long before we were talking on the phone, engaging in the most introspective, enlightening, and enjoyable conversations I’ve ever had, replete with deep discussions about the world, about …