Cover Story
A quiet epidemic: SLO County’s opioid problem
What does a drug addict look like? For most people, the words conjure up images gaunt and hollowed-eyed men and women in dirty clothes, ragged and shaking on the sidewalks of massive metropolitan cities. It’s an image more likely cribbed from old episodes of The Wire or Law and Order than from real life. But…
SLO embraces party registrations, not higher fines
On Jan. 17, the new San Luis Obispo City Council took a big step away from using increased fines to crack down on unruly partying. It voted 4-1 to reject a SLO Police Department (SLOPD) request to establish another “safety enhancement period”—where the fines for party-related violations like excessive noise and drinking in public are…
What’s your opinion on the Trump/Russia documents?
Sandy Forrester and Peter Ingraham Jr. retired “I think he’s a liar. He’s a two-faced liar. I don’t like the S.O.B. He’s trying to take our medical away from us!” Waylon Shibui meat popsicle “I really doubt [interfering in the election] happened. … Well, his job is as a diplomat. Sounds like they’ve paved the…
Six plates, infinite possibilities: Six Test Kitchen is the coolest local cooking class you’ve never heard of
From the outside, the home of Six Test Kitchen looks like a humble suburban garage nestled against a welcoming Arroyo Grande home. There’s the traditional green lawn, an unassuming driveway—absolutely nothing to indicate what’s going on inside. Well, there is something, if you know where to look. A lone number “six” hangs above a nondescript…
Underrated: Heavyweights
When? 1995 | What’s it rated? PG | Where’s it available? Streaming on Netflix, DVD. When you hear the name Judd Apatow, you’re reminded of the adult humor he expresses across the screen with actors such as Seth Rogan, Paul Rudd, and Will Ferrell. The most notable movies he’s written include Pineapple Express, This is…
Know your #slohistory
Once upon a time, the city of SLO was formed! But there’s much more to the story than that. Get all your basic and random history questions about our small Central Coast town answered at the History Center in SLO on Jan. 20 at 6 p.m. as part of the Why History Matters: A Community…
Get wild
Get in touch with the elements at the 12th annual Winter Wildlands Alliance Backcountry Film Festival on Jan. 19 at the San Luis Obispo Guild Hall. The event is a celebration of the human-powered experience and a gathering place for the backcountry snow sports community. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., and the film lineup begins…
Singin’ with the choir
Got a mini-American idol on your hands? The Central Coast Children’s Choir (CCCC) is welcoming new members. San Luis Obispo County boys and girls can join Debut Choir (grades 2-3), Apprentice Choir (grades 4-6), Premiere Choir (grades 6-9), Concert Choir (grades 7-12), and the Young Men’s Ensemble (grades 6-12). Students interested in Debut or Apprentice…
Food for miles: SLO restaurant month brings tasty deals to Milestone Tavern
We’re several weeks into January and the typical resolutions of eating better and spending less money abound. That usually translates into eating out less and ignoring the siren songs of San Luis Obispo’s many dining establishments. But good habits be damned, for January is also SLO County Restaurant Month, a magical time when restaurants from…
What’s in a name? Little Theatre kids tackle ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’
As author and playwright Oscar Wilde wrote, “The truth is rarely pure and never simple,” and the same can be said of love, at least the way this Irish man tells it in the classic late 1800s comedy The Importance of Being Earnest. This intellectual farce is currently showing at the San Luis Obispo Little…
What once was: Vanished art project, on display at Cuesta, connects to former California icons
How do you take a photo of something that doesn’t exist anymore? What sounds like a batty Mad Hatter-esque riddle is one of the challenges photographer Byron Wolfe set for himself in his collaborative art project, Vanished: A Chronicle of Discovery and Loss Across Half a Million Years. Shared between a team of six artists,…
The Apocalypse cometh?
Good news, Cal Poly Party Animals! Under new leadership, the SLO City Council has decided to stop putting the screws to you! Yay! The council, under leadership from new Mayor Heidi Harmon, voted down double fines for the month of March that were designed to squelch St. Fratty’s Day parties. Let the roof collapsing commence!…
The terrifying dawn of new unity
So, speaker of the U.S. House of Represententatives Paul Ryan says, “Welcome to the dawn of a new unified Republican government” and the first thing this new government tries to implement is the gutting of the ethics panel in Congress. Now, I know that congressional (House & Senate) Republicans have no ethics, are total frauds,…
Liberal protest could crash on itself
The leftist tide of anti-Trump loathing and hatred has turned into a tsunami of hysteria that Michael Goodwin says is like sounding five alarms for a dumpster fire. These people are so terrified of a country without liberal progressivism that it’s no longer enough to call Trump a racist and a bigot who hates minorities.…
President-elect Trump and Republicans
The hysteria on display by the left regarding Trump, their refusal to acknowledge that he was legitimately elected under our system of electing presidents, and their overt threats of violence to disrupt his inauguration on Friday does not bode well for America. Similar antics were on display at the Democrats’ 1968 convention in Chicago and…
Smoke and fire
“Why,” my wife asked, “would she say something like that if it weren’t true?” Gayle was referring to failed candidate for county supervisor Debbie Peterson’s November claim that, several years ago, the candidate who trounced her in this year’s election, Adam Hill, menaced her. The Tribune debunked the tall tale, and Gayle was reading about…
Lake love affair: Friends of Atascadero Lake propose aeration project
A staple in the community of Atascadero is a body of water that provides a serene view of nature. But that wasn’t always the case for the Atascadero Lake. About three years ago, a group of residents formed the Friends of Atascadero Lake, and they keep the city updated about what the lake needs and…
Less water, more problems: Some SLO residents question the city’s ability to develop with its current water resources
Rain was pouring down, much to the delight of a group gathered at the Steynberg Gallery on Jan. 8 to hear another argument against future development in San Luis Obispo. Retired Cal Poly Associate Dean of Architecture Allan Cooper and SLO residents Robert Lucas and Bob Shanbrom led the talk. Their main point: SLO envisions…
Building unity: Republican Party of SLO County elects new leadership, turns focus to protecting local power
Riding a wave of election victories, the Republican Party of San Luis Obispo County voted an odd couple into its top two leadership roles on Jan. 13, continuing an effort to unify a diverse member base ranging from traditional establishment Republicans to hardline Tea Party activists. Tom Bordonaro, SLO County’s assessor since 2002 and a…
Renewed push for Grover Beach polystyrene ban
A small but vocal group of Grover Beach residents wants the city to follow the example of other SLO County municipalities and ban the use of polystyrene food and drink containers. Residents made their case at the Grover Beach City Council’s Jan. 9 regular meeting, encouraging the body to begin the process of discussing and…
HASLO creates affordable housing for veterans
Construction of a 20-unit apartment complex to house low-income, homeless veterans on Humbert Avenue in San Luis Obispo is nearing completion, and the applications are flooding in. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2015, the population of veterans in SLO County was about 19,000. Housing Authority of San Luis Obispo (HASLO) Executive director Scott…
SLO ‘Walkouts’ and marches planned for inauguration
As Donald J. Trump is sworn in as the next President of the United States on Jan. 20, a coalition of Cal Poly students will be marching through the streets of San Luis Obispo in protest of his impending administration. The following morning, thousands of locals are expected to participate in a Women’s March at…
Pismo Beach revives pot ban
After a two-month long back and fourth, the Pismo Beach City Council finally settled on a decision to prohibit large swaths of commercial activity relating marijuana. During a late night meeting Jan. 17, the council voted 4-1 to pass an ordinance banning outdoor cultivation, manufacturing, laboratory testing, labeling, storing, and wholesale distribution or retail of…
SLO’s Women’s March on Jan. 21 to be followed by music in Mitchell Park and the Fremont Theater
Barring the world bursting into flames upon Cheeto Mussolini, uh, I mean President-elect Donald J. Trump’s inauguration as our 45th president, life will go on come Saturday, Jan. 21, and if it does, you can join a whole bunch of folks as they march in solidarity with the Women’s March on Washington happening at the…
Halter Ranch’s 2014 Ancestor Estate Reserve Blend and Bliss Cafe’s Mega Greens Smoothie
Halter Ranch’s flagship red wine isn’t just a badass Bordeaux-style blend of the very best cabernet sauvignon, malbec, and petit verdot. It is also a testament to the winery’s “Ancestor Tree,” the largest coast live oak tree on record, located on the Paso Robles winery’s sprawling ranch. With aromas of local olallieberries, currants, and cocoa…
Gas up the jalopy
Road trip worthy: Tiki time! Restaurant, bar, and California wine industry veteran Michael Cobb has opened High Roller Tiki Lounge in downtown Solvang and it is kitch-tacular! The lounge offers up cocktails and wines in a secluded, bamboo-laden space hidden behind Cobb’s Sort This Out Cellars wine tasting room (the wine label approaches its 10th…
The real anti-Semites
A full rebuttal to all the falsehoods, fabrications, and deliberate distortions in Al Fonzi’s recent opinion piece “Can we skip to 2018?” (New Times, Jan. 5) would fill your entire newspaper, so let me just address the ugliest slur leveled by Mr. Fonzi—the assertion that President Obama is an anti-Semite who “hates the Jewish people.”…
We made this political mess
What can I say, what is there to say, and to whom am I to say it? “Surrealistic” is the only word I can think of! I’m not gonna point fingers because that just causes trouble; I do that enough on Facebook. Whether we know it or not , this ship we call America is…
Good riddance, Obama
I am so glad that we have elected a president of the United States that will help in two areas, I believe: 1. Supporting the nation of Israel (when it comes to Bible prophecy). 2. Natural disasters such as earthquakes and volcanoes. During the last eight years of the Obama administration, we had a president…
Clubs 1/19/17 – 1/26/17
Goin’ South THE CLIFFS RESORT: 2757 Shell Beach Rd., Shell Beach, 773-5000, cliffsresort.com. FIGUEROA MOUNTAIN BREWING CO.: Singer/Songwriter Night every Wed. from 7:30-10pm. 1462 E. Grand Ave., Arroyo Grande, 474-8525, figmtnbrew.com. 1/20: Vista Point Duo from 8:30-11pm; 1/21: Brian Titus Trio from 8:30-11pm. HARRY’S NIGHT CLUB AND BEACH BAR: Cypress and Pomeroy, downtown Pismo Beach,…
