Cover Story
Adventures in negative space
In the basement of Cal Poly’s Graphic Arts Building (number 26 for those who prefer integers to words, though this is very much a story about words) reside cases upon cases of type punctuated by huge wooden drawers with metal handles that heft outward to display their treasures. Antique presses, numbering more than a dozen…
What would you show a visitor to SLO?
Mike Kyle business owner “A hike on Madonna Mountain for a little exercise and a great view of SLO.” Stanley Laysa maintenance “Bubble gum alley, because it’s so famous, recognizable, and it’s been around forever.” Hillary Braun student “Montaña de Oro, because it’s outdoors and you can hike around and just show them everything.” Cheri…
Lights, camera, action!
There’s a new video production house in town that specializes in digital media and cable TV advertising and, according to proprietor John Munro, now’s the time to advertise. Often during a recession, businesses tighten their belts, cutting expenses wherever possible. One of the first things to go is advertising budgets, but many experts say that’s…
Think before posting
In the first week of March, SLO police arrested a 23-year-old man named Cody Robert Hubbard after watching him vandalize the side of a building with a marker. According to a press release, Hubbard is considered responsible for $20,000 worth of damage for similarly styled tags found around downtown and he was arrested without incident.…
Not Red, bill is dead
The Chinese government was not happy with a seemingly innocuous bill by Assemblyman Sam Blakeslee to declare March 10 Tibet Awareness Day in California. In a possibly unprecedented move, representatives from the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco actively lobbied against the bill in Sacramento. That lobbying appears to have worked. With his non-binding “consent item,”…
Pink slips go out
Hundreds of employees in SLO County schools have been handed pink slips. While many know they won’t have a job, many others are left waiting to find out. In total, 369 layoff notices have been handed out throughout county school districts. The Lucia Mar School District is in the most trouble, with 226 pink slips…
Robbing the poor
Call it a sign of the times: Staff at the Maxine Lewis Memorial Shelter in SLO discovered March 12 they had been robbed. According to EOC Homeless Services Director Dee Torres, the thief broke a window in the office behind the shelter and took several items including a computer and cell phone issued to staff.…
Underage drinking could cost party hosts
By midnight on St. Patrick’s Day, when SLO City Council members finally brought up a measure to toughen penalties for party hosts, the irony of cracking down on drinking and partying on what is practically a national holiday dedicated to drinking and partying appeared lost. The change would increase fines levied against the hosts of…
Man arrested after telling Sheriff’s Department of plans to hurt congresswoman
A Santa Maria man was arrested March 13, after he allegedly called the SLO County Sheriff’s Department to make death threats against U.S. Rep. Lois Capps. While Capps was not in the area at the time of the threat, deputies apparently took the alleged threats seriously, obtaining a search warrant and arresting him within four…
Earthquake aid comes too late
Emergency or not, it took three years before federal money meant to help repair earthquake-damaged homes reached SLO County. Then, after a failed two-year search, there was seemingly no one left to spend that money on, so it’s being spent elsewhere. In early 2004, less than one month after the earthquake, President George W. Bush…
It’s already free
SLO County assessors are warning homeowners not to pay for services they can already get for free. For the second time in as many years, according to Assistant Assessor Kirk Kidwell, local homeowners received notices from Property Tax Assessor Records Corp., offering yearly property tax savings. For $25, the company promises to handle the paperwork…
Local medical marijuana martyr makes national news
Charles Lynch, who owned the now-defunct Central Coast Compassionate Caregivers medical marijuana dispensary in Morro Bay, was recently featured in a 20/20 segment with ABC News’ John Stossel, and a second feature by Al Roker on MSNBC. Both shows deal with the battle between state and federal laws regarding the medicine/drug, with the Lynch case…
Ward off the bandits
New Times What’s your background, Jerica? Jerica Kuster, Lead Superman in Seven Supermans I’ve been in theater since my freshman year at Arroyo Grande High [Kuster is now a senior] and I love theater. I’ve done every single play we’ve done. New Times What else have you done with the Arroyo Grande High School Theatre…
Start here
As part of this year’s Spring Arts issue, Arts Editor Ashley Schwellenbach scoured the county’s public spaces for words, and found thousands—in storefronts, on plaques and menu boards, etc. The purpose of the exercise was to discover narratives of space, tales that can’t possibly exist elsewhere because these words are our own. Also, we wanted…
Vihuela 2007 Incendio Paso Robles
This friendly wine is tasty on its own and even better with food. A well-made blend of Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot, the balanced red and black fruit flavors are ripe and complex, balanced by notes of earth and spice. A good choice for Spanish tapas, paella, grilled quail, steaks, or buffalo. The retail…
Cru Vin Dogs 2005 Chardonnay
Dog lovers are going to embrace this new brand: At least 10 percent of all sales are donated to charitable organizations benefiting man’s best friend. And I’m happy to report their easy-drinking wines aren’t dogs either. I enjoyed the delicious aromas and flavors of ripe pears, apples, and nectarines in this fruity Chardonnay that’s highlighted…
The melody in wine
During a visit to Vihuela’s new tasting room in downtown Paso Robles, within the same building as the new restaurant Thomas Hill Organics, I found both businesses busy with a steady stream of patrons. I felt like Johnny-come-lately, since I knew little about either of them. Luckily, I did manage to get the last table…
Don’t sack teachers
I am appalled that more than 229 pink slips were given to teachers in the Lucia Mar school district last week. Without these teachers, class sizes in primary grades may go from 20 to 29 kids and the students per teacher in the upper elementary grades will be increased as well. Elementary teachers are going…
Listen, council members
I am a 53-year-old homeless, disabled woman. I would like to be an advocate for the homeless and their rights. I went to a SLO City Council meeting on March 11 at 7 p.m. to speak about us. You think Atascasdero has a three-ring circus for their council (“Welcome to the Circus,” March 12)? See…
Why blame Obama?
How can these Republicans defend Henry Paulson and the George W. Bush administration’s handling of the beginning of the stimulus with their three-page plan to give their friends $350 billion without any restrictions? And how can they blame President Obama for those thieving traders at AIG receiving bonuses that were the norm for the deregulated…
Cheers to Blakeslee for Tibet
Please join me in commending Assemblyman Sam Blakeslee for his work in introducing legislation that would recognize Tibet’s exiled leader, the Dalai Lama, for his “outstanding moral and religious leadership.” Had it been adopted in time, it would also have declared this March 10, the 50th anniversary of a Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule, as Tibet…
Reform teacher layoff rules
Thousands of teachers in California have been laid off in the past weeks, leaving us to wonder, “What about the quality of my child’s education?” The seniority-based layoffs have resulted in some of our best and brightest young teachers looking for work, while some ineffective teachers with seniority remain. Laying off teachers based on seniority…
Injustice to one is injustice to all
I am writing on behalf of our city’s homeless residents. I have written to our city officials with the hope that they will use their power to bring an end to the injustice I have witnessed recently in Mitchell Park, yet I believe even more in the power of the individual and especially that of…
See them clearly and help
I appreciated your coverage of the young people who are homeless in downtown San Luis Obispo (“A stop on the squatter’s trail,” March 5). The stories some of them told about their lives to your reporter were revealing. Like all of us, we have a face to present to others, some of it true, some of…
Look again
I am disappointed that I was not given time to properly address the subject of SLO County Sitters, Inc. closing. I am deeply saddened that the article (“Baby-sitting service closes, owing thousands to families and sitters,” March 12) was focused solely on the negative aspects instead of the positive feedback that I am receiving from…
All aboard the art train
I meet a lot of artists. Every day I meet a new one. No joke, I met one three minutes before I typed the first sentence of this piece. The artists I meet come in all shapes and sizes—musicians, painters, poets, graphic designers, street artists, photographers, movie makers, fashion designers, sculptors, and writers, to name…
David Harvey
New Times: What’s the longest time you’ve spent on a site? Harvey: I put up windows at a hospital for a solid two months. New Times: What’s the funniest thing that has ever happened on site? Harvey: We worked on a house one time at a location in north county, and it was very trashy…
Hung out to dry on the blue line
If you want evidence of bias in the newspapers, consider this: The crumbling husks of daily newspapers are filling their depleted news holes during the worst recession in American history with stories about the demise of … newspapers. I understand that newspaper writers are interested in the topic. I agree it matters to society. But…
Cowboy up!
Every time I go to San Miguel, it feels deserted. Occasionally a stray dog will cross the street followed by a tumbleweed (insert Sergio Morricone music here). True, it does have one of the more authentic missions (with a mass grave from an old mass murder), the Elkhorn Bar (said to have been frequented by…
