Cover Story
Caught in the middle
You can still see the scar on Vicky Duniven’s sternum. It barely peeks over the neckline of her shirt—a glint of mangled skin that hints at the remnants of a much larger wound left when her chest was split open to remove a cancerous growth the size of a grapefruit. Duniven is a quintessentially tragic…
It makes calls, too?
Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to introduce you to the newest member of the family. Weighing 5.78 ounces, at just over 4.3 inches, is my new HTC Inspire 4G Android phone. This is a Big Deal for yours truly. For a tech writer, I’m a late adapter of technology. I’ve had the same model phone…
CLUBS
Goin’ South … BRANCH ST. DELI: 203 East Branch St., Arroyo Grande, 489-9099. Live music Fri. from 5:30-8:30pm. THE CLIFFS RESORT: 2757 Shell Beach Road, 773-5000 or cliffsresort.com. F. MCLINTOCKS SALOON: 750 Mattie Road, Pismo Beach, 773-1892 or mclintocks.com. Live music every Mon.-Wed., 6-9pm.: Tennessee Jimmy Harrell, Fri.-Sat., 6-9pm: Doc Stoltey. GATHER WINE BAR: 122 E. Branch St.…
Zaca Mesa 2007 Roussanne Santa Ynez Valley
This delicious white wine impressed me from the first sip to the last. Beautifully balanced, it’s quite lovely on its own. A subtle blend of citrus and minerality, this dry wine has nuances of spice and honey. But this wine is even better at the table, where it will pair nicely with an array of…
Au Bon Climat 2009 Pinot Gris-Pinot Blanc Santa Barbara County
During a cooking demonstration at the CC Wine Classic, I enjoyed this fabulous wine with salmon confit garnished with green tomato salsa and sour cream. It was a brilliant pairing by “ABC” winemaker Jim Clendenen. The tanginess of the wine was the perfect foil for that “sour tomato” topping. But it wasn’t just the food…
Good food at cheap prices!
SLO’s favorite Asian noodle eatery, Mee Heng Low Noodle House has finally reopened after nearly a month of forced closure due to underground plumbing problems. Located in what was once considered the Chinatown section of SLO on Palm Street in the early 1920s, owner and chef Paul Kwong noted that this small Asian restaurant is…
TV troubadour
You probably don’t notice, but when you’re watching your favorite TV show, those songs you hear in the background come from someone, and if your favorite shows include Grey’s Anatomy, One Tree Hill, or Californication, you’ve probably already heard the music of John Elliott. The singer-songwriter may be unknown to many Central Coast residents, but…
American dreamer
When Mark Beck lived here nearly two decades ago, he was regarded as one of the best local painters we’ve ever had. His “house” paintings—simple compositions frequently featuring two barrack-style houses lushly painted in oil—were selling like hotcakes. He had big shows throughout California and even Japan, and by the time he left he was…
STENZKULL’S GHANDI
They do get around Eight talented street artists from all over the California Coast are currently showing work in a group show at Los Angeles’ Le Spec Gallery. Titled “Friendly Fire: An Urban Art Show” the exhibit unites eight creative individuals often perceived as criminals by society. Among them is Daniel Woehrle of Los Osos,…
‘It’s fine, it’s fine, it’s fine’
There’s a lot to like about The Last Five Years, staged at Arroyo Grande’s sweet new performance space The Spot. First, there’s the unconventional trajectory: In front of a New York City backdrop, budding novelist Jamie Wellerstein (Jake McGuire) and aspiring actress Catherine Hiatt (recent high school grad Leanne Gosmeyer) tell us, in song, the…
A madness most discreet
Cindy Totten’s ethereal speaking voice turns even dreamier when she talks about Shakespeare. “We just want to tell these wonderful stories,” the director breathes, “whether it’s something about love, or really fun and wacky, with mistaken identities and twins, with a little bit of Elvis thrown in, and gangsters.” Wait, what? An annual celebration of…
Let the good times roll!
In November 2010, a small electrical fire smoldered overnight in the Bon Temps Creole Café, the well-loved New Orleans eatery best known as the colorful hangout spot that has lit fires in the hearts—and mouths—of its patrons since 1995. But unlike the satisfying burn that comes after a plate of the Café’s Gumbo Ya-Ya, the…
Can City Hall be stopped?
Lory Frank Farrior is ready to fight. Sitting on the back porch of her house on a recent hot afternoon, Farrior took a drag from a cigarette and looked out at the field that falls away from the side of her house. “I have to fight,” she said, looking toward some cattle grazing at the…
We don’t have enough rich people to fix our money problems
I am a local auto mechanic (make 50k/year, not a Republican) responding to Istar Holliday’s letter (“Start looking for Oliver Twist,” July 7). I guess Istar didn’t hear about Obama and General Electric. He/she also criticized Republicans for not ending tax cuts for the richest Americans, while claiming that when taxes were progressive the economy…
Our area is trapped by the cult of smoke
Looking back at the last 60 years from the first Earth Day in 1970, the Surgeon-General’s “second-hand smoke” report of 1984, the pivotal London Smoke event of 1952, San Francisco is somewhat slow to act, considering its recent Spare the Air Day. But at least action is being taken. San Luis Obispo, on the other…
A bear or cougar will pay the price
With regards to your article on the CSD (“A world all their own,” June 16) and with the bear being killed in SLO for eating chickens raised in the person’s backyard (“Bear killed for eating chickens,” June 30), I wonder how long it will take until another bear or cougar or bobcat finds the chickens…
Are you police or vultures?
I received a ticket on Los Osos Valley Road on May 30 for not stopping at a street light without power during the replacement of a damaged power pole. The three-way street light was located at Laguna Street on a holiday (Memorial Day). I debated on fighting this one because what was happening was so…
Split the state in five for the children
With respect to the proposed “South California” secession: Oh dear, another halfway measure. The answer is to divide into five states: South Coast would become DEMENTIA, the Central Coast would become PRETENSIA, the Bay Area would become PERVERSIA, the northmost counties would become CANNABIS, and the eastern tier would become WEST REDNECK. Each child in…
You accent-uate the negative
In his piece “‘Asshole’s neighbor’” (July 7) concerning an ongoing community dispute in Cayucos, New Times News Editor Colin Rigley emphasizes the so-called “thick accent” of the “profoundly Brooklyn” subject of the article, who Rigley claims “sounds like he was born in an East Coast deli.” Rigley implies, by his comments, that all or most…
We have freedoms here in America
I would like to believe that in America, we have a better chance of achieving our dreams than other countries. My goals have changed, as I get older, but I feel great knowing I can shoot for them with hard work. I admire Dr. Lewis’s plight of growing up in the Bronx, going to med school,…
Can McCarthy act independently?
Brava to Emily Esslinger for bringing to the attention of your readers the importance of supporting HR 1489 (“Support Glass-Steagall,” June 30), which would re-instate the Glass-Steagall law that forbade the mixing of investment banks with commercial banks. Readers would benefit further by watching Too Big to Fail to understand the enormous influence of speculative…
Less isn’t better
Before I took this wonderful position as staff photographer for New Times and the Sun, I was a tour guide at Hearst Castle for close to 17 years. Just recently, after more than 50 years, the entire tour operation changed dramatically. There had been rumblings about changing the way the tours worked from the day…
Chal Fanning
NEW TIMES How’s the season? FANNING It’s going pretty well. We’re ranked in the top 10 in the nation for collegiate summer baseball and we’re currently tied for first place in the California Collegiate League (with the Santa Barbara Foresters). NEW TIMES Describe the attendance. FANNING The games are really fun. There’s a lot…
We’ll always have Mardi Gras
I wept. And don’t you dare call me a sissy. Jesus did it too … allegedly. And I’m pretty sure he could kick your ass. Anyway, tears were my initial reaction when word first spread that our much-beloved Chief of Police Deb Linden was retiring. Criminals and thugs everywhere cartwheeled across their lawns before being…
Telltale signs
Some small-business owners in Morro Bay are feeling short-changed as the city rolls forward with beautification efforts to attract tourism revenues and stimulate the local economy. At the center of the issue is a new city ordinance barring the use of temporary flags, banners, and A-frame “sandwich board” style signs anywhere in the city. Such…
Correction
In the July 7 Strokes and Plugs, “Soothing touch,” the contact information for Jayna Troutman, infant massage instructor, was misstated. Her phone number is 459-1959, and her e-mail is jaynatroutman@gmail.com.
First Solar project approved
Despite some hanging environmental impacts, San Luis Obispo County supervisors approved a second utility-grade solar project proposed to be built in the Carrizo Plains. On July 12, county supervisors unanimously denied an appeal of First Solar’s 550-megawatt Topaz Solar Farm and approved the project with a few modifications to the permit. Public opinion on the…
SLORTA cancels service for elderly, plans new $10 million facility
The San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Authority Board of Directors eliminated a door-to-door shuttle service used primarily by the elderly in Los Osos and, at the same July 13 meeting, discussed future “capital needs” that include plans for a future $10 million facility. The RTA’s Dial-A-Ride service fell $10,000 short of the amount that would…
De Vaul to jail, evictions on the way?
First Dan De Vaul was bailed out of jail by one of the jurors who convicted him. Then he unsuccessfully tried to serve his sentence but was told the jail couldn’t accept him without a court order. Now De Vaul is finally scheduled to go to jail. De Vaul must appear on Oct. 22 to…
Judgment strains Oceano finances
The Oceano Community Services District is having difficulty fulfilling a court ordered legal judgment against it and may claim “unreasonable hardship” in an effort to spread required payments over months or years. San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Charles Crandall awarded Pamela Dean, a former board member, $74,441 in legal fees in late June stemming…
Former AG city councilman to serve jail time
The embattled former Arroyo Grande city councilman who pleaded no contest to charges of residential burglary and possession of child pornography will serve nine months in county jail. Ed Arnold, 46, heard his sentence in San Luis Obispo Superior Court on July 12, and as part of his plea bargain with prosecutors, will serve 270…
What do you want on your tombstone?
Abe Gibson Garden Gallery employee “You think you know, but you have no idea.” Linda Jaramillo retired “A great mom.” Maya Weeks student “I don’t want a tombstone. I plan to be cremated and spread in the ocean.” Bradford Smith student “I want my face carved into the tombstone in 3D with an inscription that…
