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Paradox in paradise: One local’s experience working in Yellowstone as the park shuts down due to flooding
San Luis Obispo-raised backpacker Cody Stapley’s love for the backcountry made sure he was sufficiently equipped when historic floods slammed Yellowstone National Park in mid-June. “I’m used to being in the woods and mountains for days at a time. I had all my gear. I was perfectly warm when the heaters went out and it…
Oceano musician and digital marketing expert Kevin Carr pens The Musician’s Guide to Digital Marketing
Book smart Keven Carr’s ebook The Musician’s Guide to Digital Marketing is available at amazon.com. To find out more about Cuesta College Community Programs, visit cuesta.edu. In local digital marketing guru Kevin Carr’s new book, The Musician’s Guide to Digital Marketing, he begins with a contemporary myth: “Fate was written in the stars for the…
Congress passes first gun safety legislation in 30 years
Barely two days after the Supreme Court repealed a New York gun law that regulated who could carry concealed weapons in public, President Joe Biden signed a bipartisan gun safety package that deals with red flag laws. The package has some ties to the Central Coast, too, with U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) of…
Paso Robles Youth Arts Center collaborates with The IDEA Project on upcoming Discovery Day event
The Paso Robles Youth Arts Center will host Discovery Day on Saturday, July 16, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The venue is partnering with The IDEA Project of San Luis Obispo County to hold the free event, which invites children and families to participate in a wide variety of educational summer activities. Ryan Flores,…
Judge allows League of Women Voters to join redistricting lawsuit
The League of Women Voters of San Luis Obispo County officially got the green light to join the citizen-led lawsuit challenging SLO County’s new redistricting map, following a June 17 court ruling. SLO Superior Court Judge Rita Federman sided with the League and its recent motion to intervene in the case—concluding that the 60-year-old local…
Orcutt Mineral Society to hold annual Rainbow of Gems Show in Nipomo
The Orcutt Mineral Society recently announced that it will host the 54th annual Rainbow of Gems Show at Nipomo High School on Friday, Aug. 5, and Saturday, Aug. 6, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, Aug. 7, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. More than 40 vendors selling rocks, fossils, jewelry, and other…
After 20 years of winemaking, Cayucos’ Aaron Jackson cements his legacy as a fierce promoter and protector of the region
Aloha Aaron Wines is open Thursday to Monday, 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., at 3050 Limestone Way in Paso Robles. Reservations are recommended. Visit aaronwines.com for more information. Follow the winery on Facebook @aaronpetitesirah and on Instagram @aaronwines. Winemaker Aaron Jackson is a force of nature, reaping the benefits of Central Coast soil, surf, and…
Singer-songwriter Susan Ritchie explores love’s kaleidoscope on How Many Miles?
Arroyo Grande singer-songwriter Susan Ritchie’s new EP, How Many Miles?, is six desperate love-songs-long, 23 minutes of intense emotional turmoil, and absolutely essential listening for fans of soulful blues rock. As Ritchie describes it, it’s “a melding of soul and blues mixed with some rock and Americana—think Hall & Oats meets TedeschiTrucks, sprinkled with some…
Bodily autonomy
While the ideological divide between right and left seems as deep as the ocean and just as hard to bridge, in terms of personal health care, we all seem to want the same thing. We want respect for our decisions; we want government to stay out of our affairs; and we want to be treated…
A strategy to control
The right to abortion was never enshrined into law in this country, and that’s the problem. The ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment by the reluctant southern states could have made Roe v. Wade more difficult to overturn, but the fact remains that a Supreme Court determined to place their boots on American women’s necks…
Our rights
Today, half of the U.S. population, women, have had their rights severely limited regarding personal medical decisions and become second class citizens. Now my daughters, granddaughters, and nieces have less rights than I had at child-bearing age. Here are the percentages of birth control failing: cervical cap, 12 percent; condom, 18 percent; diaphragm, 12 percent;…
Let’s reform the Supreme Court
Nowhere in the Constitution does it say that we have to have nine Supreme Court justices. Nor would it require a Constitutional amendment to add more seats. In fact, Congress has expanded the Supreme Court five times throughout American history. Congress should use its constitutional authority to rebalance the Supreme Court, which has been taken…
Elvis is a visual and sonic feast
ELVIS What’s it rated? PG-13 What’s it worth, Anna? Full price What’s it worth, Glen? Full price Where’s it showing? Bay, Downtown Centre, Fair Oaks, Park, Stadium 10 Co-writer/director Baz Luhrmann (Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge!, Australia, The Great Gatsby) directs this biopic about famed rockstar Elvis Presley (Austin Butler) and his complicated relationships with…
Keeping up with the Joneses
These must be the End Times. I just saw that Paso Robles made it onto InfoWars, which Wikipedia describes as a “far-right conspiracy theory and fake news website owned by Alex Jones.” The website has claimed 9/11 was a false flag operation, the government staged the 2016 Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting, the 2012 Sandy Hook…
Love on the Spectrum U.S.
What’s it rated? TV-14 When? 2022 Where’s it showing? Netflix When Netflix released the U.K.’s Love on the Spectrum in 2019, audiences fell in love with the cast and their neurodivergent journeys to find love. This time around, the cast all live across the U.S., and I am happy to report that this group of…
Hustle
What’s it rated? R When? 2022 Where’s it showing? Netflix Jeremiah Zager (We the Animals) directs Adam Sandler as Stanley Sugerman, a globetrotting but down-on-his-luck basketball scout for the Philadelphia ’76ers who dreams of a coaching job that will keep him closer to home and his wife Teresa (Queen Latifah) and daughter Alex (Jordan Hull).…
Atascadero approves grocery store, mixed-use development on Del Rio
The empty lot in Atascadero that was once a Walmart battlefield could hold a grocery store and mixed-use residential and retail development in the near future. Although some neighbors expressed concerns about recent changes to the project and questioned the city’s transparency efforts, the City Council unanimously approved a conditional use permit for the project…
Rally attendees mourn Roe v. Wade, encourage people to vote
Déjà vu was in full swing for many of the hundreds gathered in front of the San Luis Obispo Courthouse Annex on June 24. Only this time, people were angrier. One of them was Ann Hou, who made a head-turning statement by wearing chains of metal clothes hangers, all hooked to each other with strings…
County Parks wins statewide award for Dairy Creek Golf Course turnaround
Five years ago, Dairy Creek Golf Course was on the verge of collapse. An unsolvable water shortage at El Chorro Regional Park had turned its fairways brown—driving golfers away and putting the once beloved municipal course on a path to closure. But instead of throwing in the towel, the San Luis Obispo County Parks and…
Paso Robles high school and junior high school campuses are getting surveillance systems and vape sensors this summer
Cameras are nothing new at Paso Robles High School. They’ve been recording Bearcat faces for a little more than 15 years, but an incident in January highlighted the system’s need for an upgrade, according to Curt Dubost, Paso Robles Joint Unified School District’s superintendent. On Jan. 8, a student was rushing to class in a…
Primary election results solidify with latest count
Following the largest single day of vote counting of the past three weeks, the June 7 primary election results are finally solidifying in San Luis Obispo County. With 97 percent of the vote in, 4th District county supervisor candidate Jimmy Paulding is keeping his narrow lead over incumbent Lynn Compton—a 51.8 percent to 48.2 percent…
