Cover Story
Stitching skin: A SLO County taxidermist brings the dead to life
Look for the eyes. They’ll tell you all you need to know. If they bug out too far, that’s how you know you’re dealing with an amateur. Don Anderson, who has been stitching skin to perfection on animal hides for more than 30 years in San Luis Obispo County, knows a thing or two about…
Shaken up: Los Osos CSD and GM appear to be parting ways on yet-to-be-disclosed terms
After nearly three months of turmoil, the Los Osos Community Services District (LOCSD) and General Manager Kathy Kivley might be breaking it off. On Dec. 4, the LOCSD Board of Directors voted to place Kivley on paid administrative leave. The LOCSD then announced that it had reached a “unanimous confidential, conditional agreement with Kivley” on…
What trophies do you still cherish?
Vladimir Cervin musician “I still have all my childhood soccer trophies. My family’s really competitive about it!” Jess Bernal actor/stage tech “In eighth grade, my teacher gave me an ‘Oscar’ for most likely to become an actor. Now, I am an actor. I keep it because they saw something in me that I didn’t know…
Granting wishes: Make-A-Wish Foundation of the Tri-Counties offers hope to children with life-threatening illnesses
Evan Price, of Grover Beach, was dealt a tough hand. Born with rare spinal and kidney disorders, Evan was in and out of the hospital as a child. He endured 10 surgeries and faced an uncertain future. While characteristically brave and positive, his mother remembers one difficult stint in the hospital where Evan gave away…
Cougars & Mustangs
Another year, another smattering of finals obliterated. What on earth are you going to do with the rest of your year? I mean, other than Christmas, of course, don’t let’s be silly. Well, it’s not too late to visit Pasadena! Pasadena?!, you ask, wondering what could be found there that relates back to the topics…
County raises Santa Margarita water rates
The last time San Luis Obispo County tried to raise Santa Margarita residents’ water rates, residents successfully protested the increase. This time, residents barely whispered. “Here we are again,” Will Clemens, who takes care of finances for the Public Works Department, told the SLO County Board of Supervisors at its meeting on Dec. 15. “Three…
Cal Poly slapped with discrimination suit
As the Cal Poly campus was rocked by discussions about race, gender, and equality from students, a former assistant professor accused the university of sexism and discrimination. Former business assistant professor Alison Mackey filed a lawsuit against Cal Poly, claiming that she was passed up for tenure because she was pregnant and because of her…
Local governments talk pot cultivation regs
For local medical cannabis patients, cultivators, collectives, and their advocates—and the local jurisdictions tasked with drafting policies to regulate them—it’s going to be a busy couple of months. Currently, all five cities in San Luis Obispo County and the county itself are drafting ordinances to control or ban the cultivation of medical marijuana in order…
Paso Underground pours small-batch wines off the beaten path
A train barrels by just one block from Paso Underground, obscuring the sound of drizzling rain. I’m sipping one of Orion Stang’s ultra-small-batch Dilecta label releases, his 2013 Match blend of grenache, syrah, and mourvedre sourced from three Paso vineyards. The wine—like the nearby locomotive—boasts a lingering finish that haunts the senses long after the physical…
Ho, ho, whoa!
Keep those ugly sweaters coming! Tap It Brewing Co. in SLO wants to see your craziest reindeer getup this Dec. 18! The brewery is offering free shuttles from downtown to the brewery (and back) and a $10 presale ticket includes your first brew. DJ Malik will be spinning eclectic vinyl finds from 7 to 11…
J. Lohr’s 2013 Seven Oaks cabernet sauvignon and Kreuzberg’s Peppermint Mocha Latte
Chili recipes don’t usually call for wine, but when you have a really good bottle of cab just sitting on the counter, why not pour in a cup or two and see what happens? This was my lip-smacking thought as I allowed the mixture of ground bison, beans, tomato, spices, and 2013 J. Lohr Seven…
Poor me!
You can probably find Cal Poly student and Alpha Chi Omega sorority member Lindsy Mobley at the beach in a bikini, even though it’s 45 degrees outside. And at that beach, the young Mobley will probably be lamenting the fact that life is no longer the way it used to be in San Luis Obispo,…
Sing-along ‘Messiah’ at the PAC Dec. 19
You sing in the rain, in the car, and of course in the shower. And you sound great. If the world needs to hear your dulcet melodies, consider upping your amateur singing game by attending the Handel’s Messiah: A Sing-along Holiday Treat event at the Cal Poly Performing Arts Center on Saturday, Dec.19, at 7:30…
Artsy gifts abound at Studios on the Park’s Handcrafted for the Holidays
Still searching for that perfect gift for the person who has it all? Look no further than the Handcrafted for the Holidays exhibition at Studios on the Park in Paso Robles. Discover unique, affordable creations made by more than 30 of California’s finest artists and craftspeople. Indulge yourself; find the perfect present that will benefit…
Oh, the irony!
It is ironic that on the very day the New Times published Matt Kokkonen’s recommendation to prohibit all Syrian refugees from entering the U.S. (“Stay home, refugees,” Dec. 10), Canada warmly welcomed 2,500 refugees as the first part of 25,000 who will enter that country by March 2016. This can be taken as a small…
Arguments against development at the old Shell station
San Luis Obispo is potentially in the forefront because we have the brains, the money, and the public will to address (rather than ignore) the cataclysmic impacts of climate change. Any significant increase in downtown commercial development will drive up the demand for housing, and we do not have the water (due to climate change)…
Say no to the Morro Bay wind energy project
This project is a serious danger to whale migration/navigation (anchored into the seabed a mile below!) and serves only to keep the power plant “on ice” for the future start up of a large desalination unit or some other very destructive industrial use of the “once-through cooling” seawater intake. Scientists are also concerned about the…
America the brave
Regarding a recent commentary by Mr. Kokkonen (“Stay home, terrorists,” Dec. 10) on the need to deny refuge to those displaced by the disastrous situation in the Middle East, I feel that as a foreign-born person he may not quite understand the principle involved. I could not help but note that he used the better…
The antidote
The recent opinion piece by Matt Kokkonen on terrorists from Syria (“Stay home, terrorists,” Dec. 10) contains some sensible parts and a touching history of his and his family’s commitment to helping immigrants, and they themselves being helped by others when they were displaced years ago. Matt’s demands that would-be immigrants from the Middle East…
12 days before Christmas: Basically, it’s almost too late to find a live tree
For some of us, getting into the holiday cheer can be a lethargic process. I’m sure there are plenty of excuses—maybe it takes a while for the Thanksgiving glut to digest; maybe some people were too caught up in the online debate over red Starbucks cups and forgot that it was actually Christmastime; or perhaps…
Local teacher pens educational mystery books for children set in Pismo Beach
When Five Cities-born physical education teacher Jerome Jones was working at a school in Utah, he went to the school library to find a book for kids that broke down health and nutrition on a level they could understand. But no such book could be found. Jones, 33, decided to solve the problem by writing…
Santa’s (reluctant) little hell-per: ‘Santaland Diaries’ show dark, hilarious side of Christmas
It’s a sad day indeed when a grown man can list “elf” on his professional résumé. But when the elf in question is legendarily hilarious and sarcastic essayist David Sedaris, all moments big and small from the elf interview process to Christmas Eve are up for the audience’s viewing pleasure. Based on a story from…
Last call: SLO Brew brings its final two concerts to the Garden Street stage
Are you guys ready for the end of an era? Maybe a better way to put that is: Are you ready for the start of a new one? In this case, when one stage shuts its lights off, another one takes its place. It just won’t be downtown, and it won’t be for a while.…
Clubs 12/17/15 – 12/24/15
Goin’ South THE CLIFFS RESORT: 2757 Shell Beach Rd., Shell Beach, 773-5000, cliffsresort.com. F. MCLINTOCKS SALOON: Two locations: 750 Mattie Rd. in Pismo Beach and 133 Bridge St. in Arroyo Grande. 773-1892 or mclintocks.com. Live music at the Pismo Beach location every Fri. and Sat. from 6-9pm. Tennessee Jimmy Harrell and Doc Stoltey play on…
