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Milroy Harrison tells how he restores a painting
Jack Nicholson has a Picasso in his bathroom, so he and his guests have something to look at while doing business.— October 5, 2008 12:25 p.m.
He Grabs the Gold
San Diego theater has lost much with the passing of the very talented and kind Priscilla Allen.— August 23, 2008 1:23 p.m.
Letters
"..." -- David Foster Wallace, The Broom of the System— August 23, 2008 1:16 p.m.
Violence up in Baja – especially for journalists
Cepoole offers sage advice when he says, "Don't keep all your money together, and always carry enough hidden to get home, or pay for a taxi to the border." Spread your money out to several pockets -- I usually keep $20-100 hidden in my shoe as emergency for a hotel room, for a taxi back, a soda if the line back in the States is long, and if long, $5-10 for those vans that get you through quicker.— August 12, 2008 2:29 p.m.
Puttin' on the Blitz
Ah, Duane once again re-writing history to a fiction. The Blitz was Karin Williams' idea, her baby, at its best from age 1-5, abused to a mockery after that.— August 12, 2008 1:49 p.m.
Violence up in Baja – especially for journalists
Crossborder_Kenn -- You are lucky that you have lived down there for two years and have not yet been pulled over and had to pay. I am sure there are many people in Mexico and Tijuana who have never had that experience; but there are many who have, so perhaps "the wrong place at the wrong time" is the apropos phrase.— August 9, 2008 1:16 p.m.
Violence up in Baja – especially for journalists
Answer to #5 Linda, all the events reported are verifiable and you can do your own research via the sources given to see for yourself. It's difficult sometimes to accept that these things are happening a few miles from our homes, because it makes us feel less safe. I have known people (and know people) who will not watch the news on TV or read the paper because they don't want to hear about the murder that took place five miles away, or the rape that happened two blocks away, let alone what is happening in Dufar, Iraq, or Mexico City; they do not want to "believe" that such things occur so close to a safe and quiet home. In one way, this could be a good thing, to keep the dark stuff away, those matters that will make you scared and depressed; in another, it is not good -- shielding oneself from these truths is to shield oneself from reality. I would like to hope that a middle ground could be met where we can ignore the monster outside but become aware that it is indeed there and to steer clear of it. Violence in TJ is not comparable to "SD, LA, NY" -- in SD, LA, and NY, we do not have a plethora of politicians, police chiefs, and journalists assassinated in broad daylight, or decapitated heads left out in public with warning messages attached. International news outlets such as the BBC, Reuters, and Al Jazeera report about Mexico's drug cartel violence because it is unlike any other in the Western world, there are human rights violations going on, and politically the atmosphere and leadership could change overnight.— August 7, 2008 9:59 p.m.
Violence up in Baja – especially for journalists
Answer to #3 -- The "fake cops" won't be in the main tourist areas because the authentic cops and the federales will spot them. The guys dressed up as TJ cops are in other areas and usually on a quick mission, if you will -- a kidnapping or a gun-down, a get in and get out fast operation. That's not to say trust all TJ cops. The "honest" public relations cops on Revolucion (women cops too, to make female tourists "feel safe") are just for show; next week they may be working for someone else.— August 7, 2008 9:38 p.m.
Violence up in Baja – especially for journalists
In some cases, those guys on the street who offer to take you "upstairs" where there will be "girls, food, margaritas" are going to mug you in the stairway or an empty room. Advice to the tourist "looking for a good time" is to check various guides online that alert to dangers and what is safe, ask some Americans in the area who look like they've been there for advice, don't travel alone if you're green to TJ, keep an eye out on who is walking behind you and how close, and pretty much never trust anyone on the street and their grand offers -- and if they get threatening and irate, ignore them, walk away, give them a dollar to shut up, just don't start a conflict that will make the police interested in what is going on because they're not going to care about "your side" of the story.— August 7, 2008 10:27 a.m.
Time to Kill
As a former Guitar Center employee back in the late 80s (something I cringe at admitting, but hey I was in a band and needed a job) I can attest that since they buy in bulk, the company pays 30-40% of the so called "list price." In the backroom, where salesmen pretend to "go up to bat" for you, there is The Book, that allegedly states what they paid for an item, that the manager shows the salesmen and says, "You have to get them up to where we make grift!" And then there in The Real Book (which I imagine by now is an electonic file) for management eyes only, that shows what they REALLY paid for it, which is most likely not the real price from Corporate, as they never tell their managers the truth anyway. The manager will say, "Tell the guy I yelled at you, threatened to fire you, that you got on your knees and begged for XXX price." You become the custumer's good buddy so he/she will feel bad that you are getting yelled and, and they will pay a certain price. So let's say GC paid 40% of that $3900 list price...GC still made money...that salesman would never have sold the stuff for $2K without a manager's sign-off and some "grift" made...and commission there (at least in the 80s) was a joke. One did not get a commission until one exceeded a certain dollar value of sales, beyond the base min. wage pay, which hardly any of them do. You have to sell quite a bit of high-end name brand guitars, drum sets, or synthesizers to get there. And management, when I was there, was always looking for ways to get out of paying commission, as they were pressured to by Corporate. The only time I made any commission was during Xmas when there was a staff shortage, and I was working every department on the floor. And customers pulled that same line on me all the time, "I'll be back and do you well with an excellent sale," etc. The guy was just bargaining a good deal, not ripping anyone off. Trust me when I say GC management would have never approved the sale unless profit was made. Anyone who pays list price for musical instruments is a fool. Stores like GC are set up for haggling; most people in the U.S. do not know how to haggle a price so simply pay "list" (and what list is that, the one they make up) because they happen to have a new credit card and are excited -- I mean, when someone offered to pay list price, I never told them, "Gee, you can have this for 40% less..." I rang 'em up. With a smile. And a, "Thank you for shopping here, come back soon!" Disclaimer - Opinions are mine only and the GC I worked at, on El Cajon and 68th, no longer exists there.— June 12, 2008 10:22 p.m.