Cover Story
Put to pasture: Area cattlemen talk drought, feed, and an uncertain future
In the early midwinter morning, Dick Nock drove his Jeep Grand Cherokee up a dirt road to a hilltop where a small group of cattle lingered like they were expecting him. As he slowed to a stop, the cattle gathered around the vehicle, staring inside, and started to moo. The mooing continued, incessantly. They were…
Filmmaker Benjamin Cooper takes on Poe at Point San Luis
I have always been interested in horror films. I couldn’t wait for my parents to leave for the night, watching a creature feature in the dark den. If I wasn’t watching a horror film, I listened to Edgar Allan’s Poe’s Tell -Tale Heart on vinyl. Later, as an English student, I studied Poe’s The…
Grover to pay $35K for a stormwater snafu
After failing to submit mandatory annual reports about their stormwater management plans for three consecutive years, the city of Grover Beach agreed to pay a $35,000 fine to the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board on Feb. 10. Despite numerous warnings about their error, Grover Beach leaders didn’t submit any annual reports to the…
When were you the thirstiest you have ever been?
John Bravo student “I was on a 100-mile bike ride. I had ran out of my second pack of water bottles in the last ten miles.” Brian Willis student “When I was sick—and I couldn’t hold anything down.” Alek Johnson student “I run track, so sometimes at practice I get really thirsty and have cotton…
The Mighty Fine releases their new album at SLO Brew on March 3!
Local punk rock act The Mighty Fine is about to drop some wax on your ass. Yes, I mean vinyl, as in a big flat shiny record! So retro! Titled Brothers & Smugglers, the album kicks off with opening track “Into the Clouds,” a soaring pop punk anthem in the tradition of NOFX or Bad…
Ruth Starr’s retrospective at the GALA Center showcases a lifetime of art practice
Take time to walk slowly around what must once have been the front parlor of 1060 Palm St., which now houses the GALA Center. This becolumned former residence presents an inviting façade to the viewer, entirely in keeping with its current exhibit of the work of Ruth Starr. The collection is tucked amid a mixture…
Dennis Mukai’s Just Looking Gallery retrospective brings out the collectors and the models!
It’s Saturday, Feb. 22, and I’ve just strolled into the Just Looking Gallery for the Dennis Mukai retrospective. The gallery has rolled out the red carpet for this event, with Malik Miko Thorne spinning wax in the breezeway, lots of food, and a guy whipping up martinis. The first people I meet are a couple…
The fourth annual SLO Comedy Festival keeps bringing the laughs
“If you ever talk to a comedian that says that they’ve never bombed, then they’ve never done comedy.” These words of wisdom tumble like jewels from the mouth of Los Angeles comedian Eric Shantz, who, by necessity of his job description, can tell you plenty of stories about rough gigs—like the one involving a woman…
Groceries-to-you: Farmgram delivers locally sourced health foods
The last thing anyone wants to come home to after a long day at work is an empty pantry. Scratch that. The last thing anyone wants to come home to is a pantry littered with random pastas, a can of green beans, and a bag of marshmallows. Dinner won’t make itself, and you certainly won’t…
Alban 2012 Syrah Edna Valley Patrina
I enjoyed the brambly aromas and flavors and ripe fruit that make this syrah easy drinking on its own. It opens with deep notes of blackberries and plums weaved with notes of earth, game, and smoke, and a satisfying, lingering finish. I’d pair this with equally bold dishes, grilled ribeye steak, pasta with porcini mushrooms…
Sake 101 at Kanpai Sushi in Shell Beach
I’m excited to share the news about my favorite new Japanese restaurant that opened early this month in Shell Beach: Kanpai Sushi. This outstanding new eatery offers fine Japanese cuisine with excellent choices of cooked foods for those who don’t eat raw. I loved the pork belly which can be ordered traditional style or crispy…
Requiem for a drought: Hear what climate scientists have to say about the potential causes of California’s drought
Mother Nature doesn’t play politics. Wherever you stand in the climate change debate, the last few months have provided plenty of anecdotal evidence to support an argument for or against global warming. Deniers might point to the frigid air freezing the East Coast and Southeast as a clear sign that the planet isn’t warming—you know,…
Cougars & Mustangs
Readers may recall a column I wrote sometime last year about a Cuesta College phenomenon (do doo do doo do) overwhelming the Cuesta Cafe with the triumphant odor of nerd culture—in other words, the reek of geek. Cafeteria-goers are probably aware that Magic: The Gathering, the original and ever-popular collectible card game, has a loyal…
Correction
In a recent article about Justin Vineyards (“The 25th anniversary of Justin Isosceles,” Feb. 13), winemaker Steve Glossner was mistakenly referred to as the owner of a particular business. He is actually the owner of PasoPort Wine Company.
Morro Bay selects an interim attorney and starts its search for a manager
In a departure from its own previous hiring practices, Morro Bay decided to switch its in-house city attorney to an outside contractor, and use in-house staff rather than an outside contractor to search for a new city manager. On Feb. 25, Morro Bay city councilmembers voted 5-0 to hire Joseph Pannone of the firm Aleshire…
Where does Atascadero’s sub-basin fit?
The Atascadero City Council voted Feb. 26 to ask that the Atascadero sub-basin be excluded from plans drawn up for a proposed water district in North County. The Paso Robles Basin Water District, a proposed management body that’s currently going through the process of potential government approval, has been drawn up in the wake of…
Morro Bay’s chamber oopsie
For approximately seven months, Morro Bay has been making monthly payments to the Morro Bay Chamber of Commerce as part of a contract that long since expired for services the chamber can no longer provide in full. So far this fiscal year, the city has paid the chamber $34,081 of the $58,425 annual allotment under…
Pismo’s Howell appointed to Coastal Commission
Gov. Jerry Brown appointed Pismo Beach City Councilman Erik Howell to the California Coastal Commission’s vacant South Central Coast seat on Feb. 21, putting an end to months of political jockeying. Brown’s office and Howell both confirmed the appointment to New Times. “It’s a great honor,” Howell said. “I’m looking forward to the work, I’m…
Cheek, meet tongue
With great sorrow, but no surprise whatsoever, President Barack Obama announced on Wednesday, Feb. 26, that the United States of America finally lost the battle for cultural and intellectual superiority to China, Japan, pretty much the entire European Union, all of the cold countries, half a dozen African nations, and even Australia, which startled everyone…
Editor’s note
Shredder received several responses to the Feb. 20 “Spay a ho, neuter a bro” column, all from members of the Cal Poly Greek community. Authors of letters that were critical of the piece declined to allow their words to appear in print; they were content merely to give Shredder advice on how to write future…
I am against creating this unfair water district
Dear Board of Directors, I am a concerned resident of Ground Squirrel Hollow. I have recently attended a PRAAGS and PRO Water Equity meeting regarding the formation of a water district as a means to govern the water resources in our area. At first, I thought it was a good idea, and I signed my…
The stuff of dreams: Indica Design
According to legend, dreamcatchers allow only good dreams to pass through the net and down to the sleeper below, while bad dreams remain tangled inside the net, disappearing with the light of day. Similar to the webs of a dreamcatcher, 21-year-old Erica Kim has come to possess a special dream all her own with Indica…
Clubs 2/27/14
Goin’ South … THE CLIFFS RESORT: 2757 Shell Beach Road, 773-5000 or cliffsresort.com. CUVEE BISTRO AND CHAMPAGNE BAR: 550 1st St., Avila Beach, 595-2245. Live music Thurs. and Sat. 6-9pm. F. MCLINTOCKS SALOON: Two locations: 750 Mattie Road in Pismo Beach and 133 Bridge St. in Arroyo Grande. 773-1892 or mclintocks.com. Live music at the…
Arizona’s anti-gay law is cloaked in religiosity
Billy—a smart and handsome 30-something young man—and I cozied up over a delightful glass of a California red blend wine in a noisy, hip, artisan Sonoma restaurant on a recent Friday night. We wanted to get to know each other better. His wit is as sharp as his beautiful eyes. Well, I’ve always been a…
