Cover Story
Hard to swallow: What’s in SLO County’s water?
Correction: PFOA and PFOS was not found in samples of SLO City water, as the data indicated a statistical non-detection, according to SLO City and the EPA. The water comes out of the tap clear and cool. In the glass it looks just fine. Light dances across its surface, rippling off the liquid’s movement. But…
Guilty Pleasures: Kung Fury
Where? DVD and Netflix; June 2015 When I sat down to watch 2015’s Kung Fury for this review, it was my fourth time viewing what IMBD describes as a “Swedish English language action comedy.” I came away thinking the same thing I did after the three previous viewings. “What the hell did I just watch?”…
The BarrelHouse speakeasy is open for barrel-aged brews and beard trims in SLO
View a slideshow of the newly opened BarrelHouse Speakeasy and Barbershop. Make your way down Chorro Street toward the creek, and you can’t miss it: an old fashioned white-and-teal barber chair sitting alongside a spinning antique barber pole. The sign above the storefront reads “BarrelHouse Brewing Company,” but the space smacks more of beard trim…
Yarn and Beads brings a world of craft supplies to Grover Beach
Calling all knitters, crocheters, and beaders! Longtime local beader Kandra Norsigian opened a new shop in Grover Beach: Yarn and Beads—with an emphasis on the yarn. Norsigian joined forces with yarn connoisseur Julia Powers to bring a variety of yarns and beads to the community. Norsigian told New Times that the idea for a store…
Cal Poly students and faculty join forces to pen ‘queer studies’ minor
Merely hours after a Cal Poly “free speech wall” was erected on Dexter Lawn, it was speckled with bigoted comments and images drawn and written by students. Most eye-catching was a drawing of the Islamic prophet Muhammad holding a machine gun and yelling, “I’ll jihad your face.” Subtler yet equally as piercing were male and…
Celebrate Valentine’s Day early with Opera SLO
Want to show that special someone that you care, but aren’t keen on the Valentine’s Day crowds? Opera San Luis Obispo has the answer. Get your romance on a bit early at the That’s Amore Valentine’s Bouquet of Romantic Music event on Sunday, Feb. 7, at the Dolphin Bay Resort & Spa in Pismo Beach.…
GALA Center Gallery exhibits art of Lauren Jay
Things are about to change up over at the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Center Gallery on Palm Street in San Luis Obispo. The You’ll Love Our Art show is only hanging at the gallery until Jan. 23. The next exhibit is a solo show by local artist Lauren Jay. Her vibrant work will fill your…
Pink Faucet charms Linnaea’s Cafe crowd
It’s Saturday, Jan. 16, and Karla Mi Lugo and her percussionist Rakka Down, who call their duo Pink Faucet, are already performing when I walk in at 8 p.m. Karla is telling the crowd about how she was once hired to be a French singer. “Though I’ve never been to France until recently, I told…
Paul Thorn heaps on the southern charm on Jan. 24 at the Fremont Theater
Southern charm is a real thing, as talking to Paul Thorn proves. When I called him he was “chillin’ in my hotel room with some coffee,” and as you read this interview, be sure to add a Southern accent to everything Thorn says for the full effect. The singer-songwriter is the son of a preacher,…
Scout Coffee Co.’s Whiskey Latte and Fish Gaucho’s Smoke + Fire + Blood Cocktail
If you’re pouring whiskey into your morning coffee, you probably have a drinking problem. If you’re ordering a whiskey latte at Scout Coffee Co. in downtown SLO, you probably also have a problem. That is, a flavor fatigue problem. My name is Hayley Thomas and I am a flavor addict. But seriously, folks: I am…
You gonna eat that?
Spicy! Atascadero is gearing up for its first-ever Tamale Festival this Jan. 23 from noon to 4 p.m. at Sunken Gardens. Chow down on spicy, flavorful goodness while the kids partake in a bounce house and you take in some live music (admission is free). The best part? Stocking up on enough tamales to last…
What are you enjoying most about all the rain SLO is getting?
Mike Martin student “The fact that it’s filling up the water wells again.” Molly Williams server “The foggy mornings that the rain brings.” Mia Sahli student “To be able to see all the green again. I’m an outdoorsy person and love to hike. It’s also good for agriculture.” Jay Repollo student “The fact that it’s…
All wet
So a couple of days ago I’m driving down Santa Rosa Street (Some office machines have cars. It’s a thing.), and on the sidewalk across from Santa Rosa Park I see this fellow I’ve seen around town for years. He’s yelling something to no one and kicking and punching the air, clearly agitated. Next to…
Fix America’s inflation woes
History has shown that poor economic conditions lay the foundation for dictators. Economic conditions gave appeal to Hitler’s messages of “morality,” “equal opportunities,” and “equal conditions in economic competition,” which led to his peacetime election. Left and right progressives have laid that foundation in the U.S. today. Socialist ideals from Lasselle to Erzberger, who vowed,…
Are oil trucks next?
You can always count on Bill Deneen to be way off the end of the dock and any issue. His views on Phillips 66 are another bent rail. Trains are the lifeblood of this country. The U.S. was developed around the railroads. Many of the towns in Santa Barbara and SLO counties are railroad towns.…
Let’s march to Phillips 66
I live in Nipomo, which is downwind from the Phillips 66 Santa Maria Refinery (P66). This industry wants to increase its activity, which would result in even more air pollution for Nipomo. With increased train activity, the chance of another burning-train disaster becomes overwhelming. The citizens of Pittsburg, Calif., joined together to prevent these problems…
Developers, SLO is waiting for you
Consider this an open letter to any fat-cat developer who is considering building a project in SLO: In case you’re thinking that SLO has a deserved reputation for being unfriendly to rampaging development, think again. Oh, sure, we have lots of rules and regulations, but not to worry: The city doesn’t enforce them. That applies…
SLO’s homeless center will be a ticket to the future
I applaud the SLO Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors for naming John Spatafore SLO Citizen of the Year. John is president of the Homeless Foundation of SLO County and has worked tirelessly along with other community leaders to raise funds to build the Homeless Services Center at 40 Prado Road, which is expected to…
Sinking into the tar pits
It would appear that the SLO County Planning Commission has an eating disorder. Force-feeding this community the idea that gluttony is a virtue is sick and demented. Freeport [McMoRan] was given a conditional use permit to operate and that permit not only expired, but Freeport failed to meet the conditions under which it was issued.…
Affordable housing
Most elected leaders in our community talk about the need for more “affordable” housing. In fact, last January, your SLO City Council made “housing” one of its top priorities for the 2015-2017 budget cycle. It’s easy to say we want housing, but do we put our money where our mouth is? What innovative or creative…
The space between: Eye Matters exhibit at SLOMA explores spatial relationships
In the mundane moments of everyday life, as a bus races by or a child jumps off a swing, art can be found, if you look closely, or in between the lines as they say. Erik Olson, a 67-year-old artist in Nipomo, is fascinated with the lines, curves, and all the other shapes and how…
Little Theatre, big show: ‘Little Women of Orchard House’ showcases talents of theatre’s academy
Sometimes the best things come in small packages. Although much of the cast for the San Luis Obispo Little Theatre’s current show, Little Women of Orchard House, is small in stature, they make up for it in acting chops. Based on the beloved young adult novel of the same name by Louisa May Alcott, Little…
Clubs 1/21/16 – 1/28/16
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…
Cougars & Mustangs
They say that a good education takes you places. As 2016 began for a notable chunk of Mustangs, that place was Pasadena for annual participation in the Tournament of Roses Parade. But that’s not the only parade, not even the only New Year parade, not even the only New Year! So, if you want another…
Atascadero bans medical marijuana cultivation
It’s official—every single city in San Luis Obispo County has placed restrictive bans on the cultivation of medical marijuana. On Jan. 19, the Atascadero City Council pulled up the rear of the heard, unanimously voting to ban all types of cultivation including for private use by patients who use medical cannabis. The ban was triggered…
Planning Commission approves Templeton behavioral health facility
A behavioral health hospital planned for a vacant lot across from Twin Cities Community Hospital in Templeton received the go-ahead from the San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission. The project’s opponents, however, said it’s certainly not over. The privately run facility will provide in-patient, short-term crisis and professional treatment to people with mental illnesses. Next…
Cuesta College faculty protests low wages
“Opening day” at Cuesta College commemorates the start of the spring semester and features speeches from the school’s top officials. But this year, a faculty protest stole the show. Roughly 100 Cuesta faculty and staff participated in an “informational picket” on campus on Jan. 15 to bring awareness to what they feel are poor and…
Audit reveals possible malfeasance at South SLO County Sanitation District
A detailed audit of the management practices of the South SLO County Sanitation District’s former administrator reveals troubling issues, including a spike in billing to his engineering firm and other practices that cost the district millions of dollars during his tenure. The audit, which cost the district more than $91,700, also pointed to potential malfeasance…
