Bingeable: Harry Potter
“You’re a wizard, Harry.” Those lines, delivered so perfectly by Robbie Coltrane as Rubeus Hagrid in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, are what herald the true beginning of an eight-movie saga that follows the young Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) through his education at the wizarding school Hogwarts, adventures with his friends Ron Weasley (Rupert…
Economy of servants
More than half a century ago, California was the gold standard for achieving the American dream of home ownership, a modest but prosperous lifestyle, the best education system in the nation, virtually the best of everything. When I first sojourned into the state at the age of 13, California was a beacon for everything that…
A whale of a fest
If you like your craft beer with a side of yoga, your kombucha with a side of arts and crafts, and your live tunes with an array of tacos, pizza, barbecue, acai, and vegan/vegetarian options, there’s a whale you should probably talk to this Sept 15 and 16. Founded by a couple of Paso Robles…
Ageism or sexism?
It’s time for the next installment in the drama that has overtaken the political NIMBYsphere known as San Luis Obispo. And yes, it involves that damn bikeway in the Anholm neighborhood. Amid cries of ageism that have spattered the New Times opinion section, local talk radio shows, and the pages of certain local media websites,…
Kerouac’s On the Road scroll manuscript to be displayed at the SLO Library
Starting on Friday, Sept. 21, the manuscript for writer Jack Kerouac’s seminal 1957 fictionalized but autobiographical novel On the Road will be on display and open to the public at the SLO Library. It’s perhaps the most important Beat Generation artifact in existence, one surrounded by mythos. On the Road was purportedly written on a…
Not for civil liberties
Two years ago, I went to a picnic in SLO thrown by the then-new local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. I attended with my wife and a young journalist friend who was interested in civil liberties. I asked him to come. I introduced my wife and friend to Stew Jenkins, the lawyer who…
Social media sound off
New Times readers took to Facebook to share their thoughts our Sept. 6 news brief, “SLO approves bikeway that removes parking.” {image-1] {image-2] {image-3] {image-4]
Pressing Matters printmakers’ show comes to SLOMA
Between the lines Pressing Matters is on display at the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art through Oct. 14. Visit sloma.org for more information. For Juan Fuentes, art and politics have always been intrinsically linked. Across more than 30 years of working as a printmaker, Fuentes has crafted posters for South African President and revolutionary…
Cycletracks and ageism
SLO’s current City Council, with the exception of Andy Pease who’s a totally decent person, inherited the happiest place in America and quickly turned it toxic. Mayor Heidi Harmon, who calls herself a community builder, is a community splitter, pitting her tribes against everyone else. This council’s heartless disdain for the old and infirm is…
New community, unbroken culture
A glottal stop is a consonant made by closing the flow of air to the throat; its symbol, “ʔ,” mimics the curvature of a question mark. It may not be familiar to many Cal Poly students, but it is helping solve a familiar problem: the campus housing shortage. A new residential community, yakitutu, is bringing…
Nature on the big screen
The Central Coast State Parks Association (CCSPA) will be hosting the 16th annual Wild and Scenic Film Festival, Sept. 27 through 29, from approximately 7 to 9:30 p.m. each night. While the festival’s nearly 30 films cover a wide range of topics, nature is the central theme found in all of them. The festival moves…
Can we speak honestly about oil?
In response to “Like Oil and Water” and how the oil companies are misleading our community on Measure G, Katie Ferrari describes how every barrel of oil the field is accompanied by 19 barrels of highly contaminated “produced water” (Sept. 6). What she fails to mention is that “produced water” never was drinkable water. It…
Ease of access
Last September, Cal Poly students started their academic year in a little bit of a shock. SLO Transit, which serves the university with public transportation, rolled out a new bus schedule that summer—and it did not favor Mustang riders. The student reactions were scathing: “Bus schedules are so inconvenient and do not at all align…
An occasion to celebrate
7Sisters Brewing Company is celebrating its one-year anniversary in style on Friday, Sept. 21, from 4 to 11 p.m. This celebration event includes a wine tasting from Ultima Tulie Wines, live music from B and The Hive, and a drag show from SLOQueerdos. The entirety of the event is both kid- and dog-friendly. The celebration…
Atascadero gets a college
When Shirley Perry was a young adult, her father wouldn’t let her go to college. He firmly believed that she needed to be at home raising her two boys. “He told her she ‘didn’t need to be going off to school’ but it was something she always wanted to do,” said Alyssa Perry, president of…
Fundraising by the sea
The third annual Swingin’ By The Sea Chapman Estate Foundation Fundraiser will be held at the Chapman Estate on Saturday, Sept. 22, from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The estate is a highly visible tudor-style home toward the end of Ocean Boulevard in Pismo Beach. Clifford Chapman expressed a desire for his home to be…
Live and let LARP
Saturday in the park The Seven Sleeping Dragons meet every Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. at Santa Rosa Park in SLO. Visit their Facebook page for more information. It’s Saturday afternoon at Santa Rosa Park and the Seven Sleeping Dragons (SSD) don’t look asleep to me. A few members of the local Amtgard group…
Exploring the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose
Magical mystery tour The Winchester Mystery House is located at 525 S. Winchester Blvd. in San Jose. Tours occur daily. Visit winchestermysteryhouse.com to find out more. I was expecting the Winchester Mystery House to be tucked away in a forest outside the city limits like Wayne Manor. Either that or in the middle of Nowhere,…
Your voice matters
SPEAK UP To learn more about the political affiliation that’s right for you, find the Cal Poly College Republicans and/or the Cal Poly Democrats on Facebook. You can find out about what’s going on at the county party level by visiting the Republican Party of SLO at rpslo.org or the San Luis Obispo County Democratic…
Generic vanilla
Pierre Morel (District B13, Taken, The Gunman) directs Chad St. John’s (London Has Fallen) action-thriller script about a young mother (Jennifer Garner) with nothing to lose, out to avenge the deaths of her husband and daughter who were killed in a drive-by shooting. (102 min.) Glen Welcome to the end-of-summer dumping ground, where terrible films…
Career focus
It might be 2018, but when it comes to career and technical education programs, John Cascamo says many people’s perceptions are still rooted decades in the past. “Many people think of it in terms of it just being a welding or auto shop class, and those are great,” Cascamo, dean of Workforce and Economic Development…
Film Listings, 9/13/18 – 9/20/18
Editor’s note: Listings for Galaxy Theatres of Atascadero (805-466-8437) were incomplete at press time. BLACKKKLANSMAN What’s it rated? R What’s it worth? Full price Where’s it showing? The Palm, Stadium 10 PickSpike Lee (Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, Summer of Sam, Inside Man) directs this comedic crime biography about Ron Stallworth (John David Washington),…
Get to know your super
Belonging in the educational field didn’t completely click for Cuesta College’s new superintendent, Jill Stearns, until she dove into working with community colleges. “I didn’t attend a community college, and I really did not understand the role of community colleges until I went to work for one,” she said. As soon as she understood the…
Lake Street Dive headlines the annual Whale Rock Music and Arts Festival, held on Sept. 15-16
At first glance, Lake Street Dive seems like a sugary pop act. Populated by a group of lifelong musicians and multi-instrumentalists trained at the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music, the group’s shiny happy music is the bubblegum smack track of ’50s drive-in movie make-out sessions. Dig a little deeper, however, and Lake Street Dive…
Time-out over
Each year of college can be a fresh start, a blank slate. In keeping with that tradition, Cal Poly decided to give its fraternities and sororities a chance to redeem themselves this fall following a disastrous spring. Cal Poly announced on Sept. 6 that it had lifted the interim suspension placed on all 27 of…
Dignity Health merger proposal draws community concerns
A proposed merger between two nonprofit hospital systems will have impacts across the country, including in San Luis Obispo County. If approved, the merger between Dignity Health and Colorado-based Catholic Health Initiatives would create one of the country’s largest nonprofit hospital systems and effect two local Dignity-owned hospitals: French Hospital Medical Center in SLO and…
Escape to the outside
Check it ASI Poly Escapes trips open for registration on Sept. 17. The first trip heads to Pear Lake in Sequoia National Forest on Sept. 29. You can learn more about the program by attending an informational meeting in the training room at the Recreation Center on Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. Interested in becoming…
Injured student athlete files a complaint against Lucia Mar
A mother of a Nipomo High School student claims that her son was injured due to a lack of safety protocol during a track and field competition. The complaint, filed on Aug. 31 against the Lucia Mar School District, alleges that Jennifer Philson’s son James Philson suffered a head injury when school employees did not…
Tacos, wine, and vinyl spin at Traffic Records in Atown
In the groove Traffic Records is located at 4870 Traffic Way in Atascadero. For more information about the shop, go to trafficrecordstore.com. Taqueria Don Jose is located at 9965 El Camino Real in Atascadero. Nelle Winery is located at 3310 Ramada Drive, suite A, in Paso Robles. For general information and updates on the Saturday,…
Students witnessed teacher taking illicit videos of students, parent alleges
The Atascadero Unified School District teacher accused of taking inappropriate videos of female students was caught in the act by some of the students in his class, according to one parent familiar with the case. The Atascadero Police Department arrested Chris Lynn Berdoll, a 48-year-old teacher at the Atascadero Fine Arts Academy, on Sept. 10…
Just let it happen
I reside in Cayucos and support the dissolution of the Cayucos Fire Department and the implementation of SLO County Cal Fire. I am writing to ask residents, registered voters, and property and business owners to do nothing. Do nothing and let Cal Fire assume its new role in our community. Like many others, I have…
Treat yoself
Got the munchies? Well you will now. When Martha Stewart needed a one-of-a-kind ice cream treat for Snoop Dogg on their cooking show, Martha & Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party, she turned to the local ice cream experts at Doc Burnstein’s. Doc put together a colossal, 300-pound ice cream sandwich that was recently featured on the…
Coast Unified teachers want a leadership change
Community members and teachers packed the Sept. 6 Coast Unified School District board meeting room to lodge their renewed complaints about the district’s superintendent. The closed session agenda at the special meeting included the evaluation of Superintendent Victoria Schumacher’s performance and her employment with the district. Earlier this summer, the Cambria Teacher’s Association wrote a…
Shame on Atascadero City Council candidate Funk
I would like to thank all of the community members and businesses that supported ECHO Homeless Shelter’s Long Walk Home event on Saturday, Aug. 25. It was a great turnout and show of support for an organization that is helping people who are less fortunate than ourselves. I was surprised, however, that the candidate for…
Soil and sky
Farming for all: Join the gang at Moon Phase Farmers for a workshop to inspire and educate young and beginning farmers to get their hands dirty. Learn from their journey and get going on the steps you need to make progress now, from finding access to land to creating successful management practices (Brunch buffet included;…
Socialist organization wants to address housing, homeless issues in SLO
Mitchell Park is usually a place where SLO residents gather to relax and play. But on the first Wednesday of every month, it’s also a hub for the city’s nascent socialist movement. The park is where members of the SLO Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) hold their monthly general meetings. The SLO DSA has been…
Bicyclists need to generate road money, too
Looks like motorists in California have been snookered again. When the state Legislature passed SB 1 (the gas tax increase), it was sold to us as money that was going to be used to repair our crumbling roads and bridges. Well it is no surprise that that money is now going to build bike paths.…
Savor September
Howdy neighbor: Cambria has welcomed a new eatery to its cozy village! The Spot can be found nestled above the Cookie Crock next to La Terazza on 1135 Knollwood Circle. Expect an array of crepes, panini, and juices … Get your fill at the Taste of Downtown Art de Tiza this Sept. 15. From 11…
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife works to bring a Natural Resource and Volunteer Program to the Central Coast
The Central Coast is has plenty of land preserved where locals and visitors alike can enjoy a camping trip, a day at the beach, or an afternoon hike. There is a plethora of ways to contribute to the preservation of these lands, even if it’s just by leaving the area as you found it. Now,…
