Cover Story
A balancing act: Unicyclists spread love for the sport throughout SLO and prepare to compete internationally
View a slideshow of more unicycling antics. It’s simple enough: One wheel and two pedals. But the unicycle is still a rather uncommon sight that elicits a smile or a chuckle from passersby, every time. That sweet simplicity drew Mark Wilder to the unicycle on his birthday years ago. He was looking for a distraction…
Guilty Pleasures: Darkman
Rated: R | Where? Streaming on Netflix When you mention the name of famed filmmaker Sam Rami, you’re likely to remember him one of two ways. The first is as the young, ambitious “indie-before-there-was-an-indie” filmmaker who, along with his college buddies and very little cash, birthed the frantic, gory, and bizarrely comedic Evil Dead horror…
SLO has a homeless problem
I spent two lovely days in San Luis Obispo last week visiting my daughter who is a senior at Cal Poly. I am from Massachusetts. The weather and surroundings were beautiful. You have a lovely city. However, my last day there was ruined by an unprovoked verbal assault from one of your homeless citizens. After…
A positive direction
This letter is in response to Bob Cuddy’s opinion piece “Leftover shoo goo” from the March 24 issue of New Times. While Cuddy correctly identified that there are issues presenting themselves within the city of Arroyo Grande and the City Council, he misidentified the reasons behind the issues. He points only to two people, Mayor…
What do you want to do with your life?
Vivian Farias eighth grader “Either become a photographer or an anime artist.” Analupita Bernal eighth grader “I want to be able to study a career in politics so I can get to the Supreme Court.” Rebecca Geddes eighth grader “I want to become an author and illustrator and make my own books.” Lana Halvorsen eighth…
Bike SLO County serves up Women’s Night at the Bike Kitchen
Opportunities for bike riding abound in SLO County, with hundreds of miles of Central Coast beauty awaiting you and your two wheels. While that hobby brings nothing but joy to the biker, it can take a toll on the bicycle itself. Bike SLO County is a local nonprofit that operates the Bike Kitchen in downtown…
Cougars & Mustangs
Good morning, readers! … Already on your phone, I see … Well, if you truly plan on being distracted by this “Facebook” thing the kids these days are saying is all the rage, here are a few things to remember: The first is that both Cuesta College and Cal Poly’s various organizations and clubs generally…
Rangeland everlasting: Eagle Ranch donates 3,200 acres to conservation easement, preserving it in perpetuity
More than 5 square miles of land south of Atascadero are now untouchable to developers. It can’t be subdivided. Water can’t be diverted. Oak trees can’t be cut down. It will always be what it is now, at least in theory. “In my view, it’s quintessential California,” said Jeff Smith, a principal of Eagle Ranch…
SLO Supervisors bet on Diablo desal project
South SLO County is drying up. Punished by the state’s historic drought, recent rains have brought little relief to Five Cities-area municipalities like Grover Beach, Oceano, Arroyo Grande, and Pismo Beach. A recent analysis by the county predicted that South County water sources—including Lopez Lake—could dry up as soon as 2018. “We are in a…
FPPC to investigate Howell campaign contribution
The California Fair Political Practices Commission will investigate a complaint filed by a Pismo Beach resident over a campaign contribution received by Pismo Beach City Councilmember Erik Howell. The complaint alleges that Howell violated a California ethics law when he voted on a controversial housing project two months after receiving a $1,000 contribution from the…
Carpenter pulls support for SLO election ordinance
Early plans for a fresh new elections ordinance in San Luis Obispo may be killed weeks after a key approval. The San Luis Obispo City Council voted 3-2 on March 15 to begin drafting an ordinance that would create a public financing option for candidates, an ethics board, and new rules for independent campaign expenditures.…
Cal Poly strike looms as CSU and faculty union are still gridlocked
It’s becoming increasingly likely that faculty picket lines and five days of canceled classes will be the focus of the Cal Poly Open House in April. On March 28, the California Faculty Association (CFA) announced that the release of a final independent fact-finding report and the ensuing 10-day “blackout” negotiating period resulted in no compromises…
A.J. Santana takes stand in perjury trial after testimony from former colleagues; claims to have found ‘Breaking Bad’ meth
Former SLO County District Attorney investigator A.J. Santana took the stand in his own defense March 28 after a parade of his former colleagues testified against him. Santana, a former U.S. Marine and Pismo Beach police detective, is facing felony perjury charges after he allegedly falsified information on a sworn affidavit for a drug-related search…
Wine Shine’s Turkish Fig Brandy and The Hatch Rotisserie’s Old Fashioned
How do the hardworking guys at Wine Shine know that the Paso Robles craft distillery movement is definitely on the rise? Well, they keep running out of their delicious concoctions, for one. Just like the magic of spring, this slightly sweet, totally alluring Turkish Fig Brandy (made with figs grown in Creston) will be gone…
Blooming now
So fresh and so green: Buzz, buzz! I hear that Villa Creek in downtown Paso Robles is mixing up a fantastic elderberry martini that is fit for a breezy spring garden party (if you haven’t checked out their cocktail menu lately, it’s totally time for a refresher; villacreek.com) … SLO has enough acai places to…
Craft cocktail alchemy is alive at SLO Bitter Co.
You know when Robin Kirk Wolf is casting spells again. She’ll be in the kitchen, consulting glittering glass jars filled with magic potions. A pinch of this, a sniff of that; she huffs from each jar as she works her mysterious magic. Fleshy pink peppercorns. Delicate rose hips. Pungent, eight-pointed star anise, like wild fennel…
Found objects find new life in ‘Stitched Together’ at Studios on the Park
For everything that artists make, it takes a little bit of resources from the earth. With this in mind and looking ahead to Earth Day on April 22, Studios on the Park in Paso Robles is presenting the exhibit Stitched Together, which features gowns made with recycled and found materials that have a humble, contemporary…
One-woman show ‘Oreos and Percodan’ debuts at SLO Little Theatre
“Be funny.” It’s a bold, daunting request. Yet those crazy comedians jump at the chance to oblige every time they take the stage. Stand-up gal Becky Pedigo is debuting her original, one-woman show, Oreos and Percodan (directed by Jill Turnbow), at the San Luis Obispo Little Theatre from April 8 through 16. Pedigo’s unique comic…
The Rides of March brings dozens of vintage scooters to SLO County
It’s Saturday, March 26, and my wife and I are pulling into Blackhorse on Foothill Boulevard on our 1977 Vespa 150 Sprint to pick up our rally packs for this year’s Rides of March, the vintage scooter rally hosted annually by the local PushStart Motor Scooter Club. A few dozen Vespas and Lambrettas are already…
Great American Melodrama wags its tale with ‘A Dog’s Life’
A dog can be anyone’s best friend, not just man’s. They befriend men and women, children, other dogs, and sometimes even cats. The incredible mindset and temperament of the canine is the subject of A Dog’s Life, currently showing at the Great American Melodrama in Oceano, which explores the subject with wit, humor, music, and…
Making waves: Cayucos electrician Cass Holuk turns copper wires into art
The sight and thrill of harnessing kinetic energy is enough to keep surfers chasing after waves for a lifetime. While the beauty of the ocean’s power and copper wire from the walls of a home seem like an unlikely combination, local surfer and electrician Cass Holuk found a unique way to repurpose materials formerly used…
Cafe Musique releases their fourth album at Cambria Center for the Arts
Whenever I listen to Café Musique, I feel swept away, as if a dark mysterious stranger has appeared out of nowhere, offered her hand, and led me in a sexy and impassioned impromptu tango before whisking me into the night to a secret Gypsy encampment, where we while away the twilight, exchanging swing, folk, jazz,…
Clubs 3/31/16 – 4/7/16
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…
Oh shut up!
District 3 county supervisor candidates seem to be doing more than simply running for office. They’re also having a “say dumb stuff” contest! Former Grover Beach Mayor Debbie Peterson recently released a self-congratulatory press release: “PETERSON LEADS NON-INCUMBENTS IN FUNDRAISING.” She’s ahead of fellow candidate and SLO city Vice Mayor Dan Carpenter as well as…
Governments waste time arguing about the homeless issue
OK, so the big crisis in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo and probably the rest of Coastal California is along riverbeds where homeless people can live and not be bothered too much for nine months of the year—warmer months. A couple of years ago, New Times printed three separate stories about the “great” Dan…
Marijuana’s not the enemy
Some people use it for medication. Some people use it for recreation. Some people use it for inspiration. Some people use it for relaxation. Marijuana helps you live if you use it right. — Paul Williams – Morro Bay
A minimum wage hike will cost jobs
I’ve been an employee at an automotive repair shop in San Luis Obispo for 15 years now. I started working a full-time position at $9 an hour. Though I had an associate degree in automotive, my starting wage was fitting because the quantity and quality of work I was able to produce was low. I…
Trader Joe’s should support local fisheries
I often shop at the Trader Joe’s store in Templeton. In the past three to four months’ time there have been no wild shrimp carried in the frozen seafood section of that store. After looking weekly, I finally went up to speak to someone at the customer service kiosk in the store. I explained that…
