CoViD-19: County of San Diego Creates Restaurant Curfew | Beaches to Remain Open | Eviction Moratorium Extended

A Mandrill at San Diego Zoo (Taken 6.28.2020)

I had a bit of a crisis today when my laptop charger stopped working. Darren zipped off to Fry's to get me a replacement (which was not cheap) only to find that it didn't fit, but then suddenly my originally charger started working again. I'm not sure what's going on with it, but hopefully it was just an anomaly and we can just take the new one back. I didn't listen to the governor today, and only part of the county briefing, but I think I've got the gist below. I'm pretty wiped out today. After doing Monday's blog, we took Nova to soccer and went to La Jolla Cove during the practice, then after stopped along Mission Bay, and then Darren and I had a late night in the speakeasy. The big takeaways today are that beside the bar closure from yesterday, restaurants and businesses that do serve food or have partnered with food service must close from 10pm-5am, though technically the public health order allows for reservations up until 10pm but the spaces must be completely closed by 11pm. The County also noted that beaches would not be closed for 4th of July weekend, though individual jurisdictions may choose that for themselves. According to Nathan Fletcher, San Diego is using data to make decisions and as of now, there have been no outbreaks attributed to any outdoor activities. That doesn't mean they're *no* risk, but so far seem to be *low* risk. Apparently the Governor is making new restriction announcements on Wednesday, so as I said last night, hang on to your mask, things are still going from bad to worse. If you're looking for something new to watch, Homemade on Netflix is pretty great and each "episode" is a short-film by acclaimed filmmakers produced during the pandemic amid stay-at-home orders. They can be watched in any order, but number 3 hit me in all the feels. It's called "The Lucky Ones," by Rachel Morrison. Anyway, news after the jump. 

LA County Closes All Beaches For Fourth Of July Holiday Weekend: Will San Diego Follow? (Fireworks are done, too)

Will It All Come Crashing Back Down? (La Jolla Cove, 10.23.2019)

On Sunday, Governor Newsom sent a tweet. 

Due to the rising spread of #COVID19, CA is ordering bars to close in Fresno, Imperial, Kern, Kings, Los Angeles, San Joaquin, and Tulare, while recommending they close in Contra Costa, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Stanislaus, & Ventura.

On Monday, San Diego proactively decided to close bars, too, effective July 1st at 12am, so like, in the middle of Tuesday night bar hours. Many questions were asked of other closings and it was left open...the County would discuss with local cities and see if additional moves were needed. 

But now LA is closing all of their beaches for 4th of July weekend. That will certainly reverberate to all other nearby counties, including San Diego. Our County and all the coastal cities within should close the beaches for the weekend with tight enforcement. The LA press release is after the jump. Sounds like Tuesday is going to be another busy day of news and briefings and fighting over whose statistics matter, what they mean. Put on your masks, shit is about to get SUPER FUCKING UGLY. I'ma go drown myself in rye. 

*updated to add their press release about cancellation of all fireworks. PLEASE DO THIS IN SAN DIEGO 

CoViD-19 Continues to Spread | San Diego County Is Reclosing All Bars, Wineries, and Breweries | Stop Hate For Profit

Albino Wallaby Joey at San Diego Zoo Safari Park. Photo by Nova (6.28.2020)

I took the weekend off from CoViD-19 updates because at this point, if you're not paying attention, you're not going to now but I will do updates for today nonetheless. Instead, we spent Friday evening checking out the sea lions after Nova's first soccer practice/"camp", , we did a big CostCo run (but no paper towels!!), I finished reading another Mindy McGinnis book and started a new one, binged "Love, Victor" on Hulu, watched some other random streaming movies, and went to San Diego Zoo Safari Park in the late afternoon on Sunday. I got a new camera so it was fun to test it out, and Nova's learning to use my old one, so this is a pic of the albino wallaby joey that she took. We went back to the Zoo today but it turned into Stroller Derby and we had to get out of there. We hit up Costco again and people are either stocking up for the 4th or expecting stay-at-home to be reinstated so we still couldn't find paper towels. Today's news is pretty grim but not unexpected, so I'll do some Zoo and Safari Posts soon just to break things up a little bit. In the meantime, here's your briefing news...after the jump.  

CoViD-19 Pandemic Continues to Spike | Federal Police Reform On The Table |

My new camera is much better than my other one in lowlight situations. 
This is Bun Bun, the wild cottontail that lives in our yard. 

After our Thursday BBQ, Darren and I hung out in the studio till the wee hours of the morning and I got to test out my new camera on Bun Bun. As a result, Friday was a super non-productive day. I didn't watch any briefings (if there even were any?) and generally avoided news all day. Nova started soccer training today (not super happy about that), so after picking her up, we went to La Jolla Cove to see the sea lions for about a half hour. I was totally impressed with some people who followed us down the cliff, all maintaining space from us and the sea lions, which isn't always the case. We also made a big trip to CostCo to continue our raging Friday night. I've been trying to find new shows and movies to watch but haven't really found anything great. Straight Up on Netflix is meh. Athlete A on Netflix is stunning and shocking and sickening and very well done in its explorations of USA gymnastics' sexual abuse. Some links and stuff after the jump. 

CoVid-19: What Are We Even Doing? | Disneyland Walks Back Reopening | California Not Looking Good | Zonies: Follow The Rules or Stay Out

New camera, who dis? Obviously still learning. 6.25.2020)

The other day while doing my wake-up scroll I saw about six different friends writing some variation of "tell me something good." For some, it was being stuck creatively, for some it was missing human connections, for some it was just this existential sadness. I get it. I was feeling it, too. So much, in fact, that I even looked for answers in astrology and astronomy, something about Venus in retrograde or something. In my own house, sometimes we're a tight little family, and somehow the past couple weeks we've just started feeling like roommates. I'm up all night, Nova's up bright and shiny in the morning, and Darren falls between that, sometimes hanging out and sometimes finding a project to occupy his day in the studio. I'm only writing this because, as they say, sometimes admitting and identifying the problem is the first step. So today I asked D to fire up the grill and we proceeded to spend the entire afternoon into the night having a feast of a dinner with things from the freezer and refrigerator stockpiles. Fruit that would've otherwise gone bad in the little plastic containers became a beautiful fruit salad. Artichoke dip that would certainly be consumed as comfort eating in the late night hours provided a great appetizer for everyone. Hot links and a T-bone that wouldn't have survived much longer in the freezer became a great meal and tomorrow's tacos. So maybe like Antoni from Queer Eye always repeats, food is love. And we hung out and had actual conversations instead of passing grunts as we droop around the house and we'll get back to doing better. And we have to, because we're going to be almost entirely staying at home for a very, very long time. Today's news after the jump. 

CoViD-19 Still On The Rise | County News Briefing

Doom & Ben at Casbah (11.23.2017)

I'm at home listening to an online police scanner. The SDPD helicopter was circling over our intersection, shining it's searchlight over our street, and then sirens were blazing every which direction. So I turned on the scanner app and looked over NextDoor but then the commotion ended or seems to have moved away, so now I'm writing and still listening to the scanner. There's a vehicle that collided with a parked car on Euclid and flipped over with people in the vehicle. It made me think of another reason why I'm doing my best to mostly stay home: people drive like assholes. 

Last night, a teen driver of a 4Runner with seven other teenagers 'lost control' and flipped over in Carlsbad, injuring all the kids and killing one. I was in a gnarly crash when I was that age, so it could just be inexperience, but why the hell are EIGHT teenagers, during stay-at-home and no gathering rules, in a vehicle with an underage driver that isn't a family member, at 2:30am?? And you know how you know they're white? Because "suspicion of drugs and alcohol" isn't the first line in the story and the dead kid's family already raised $30k on Go Fund Me. It's super tragic for the family of the dead kid, no doubt. But it's frustrating, too. We all share the same roads. We're all in the same pandemic. It's really not all about you. Today's county briefing and more uplifting CoViD-19 news, after the jump. 

San Diego Music News: Pour House Renovates | Soda Bar & Casbah Offer New Merch | Bar Pink Livestreams | Switchfoot Bro-Am Goes Virtual | #StopHateforProfit

Me, Jake Najor and Tim Fears at the Office (Taken 1.28.2020)

A new phase of reopenings happened over the past few weeks, and with them new records being set on new Covid-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths for the state. I'm seeing places I love reopen, like the Ken Club and The Office and Space and it's so hard not to just find myself wandering out any random night to catch up with my friends.
But I can't do it. I've barely seen my parents for 3 months. I've seen my sister and nieces a few times, but mostly in drivebys, and our one camping trip where we did our best to mask up and socially distance. I'm not throwing that time home away so I can go be careless to have some drinks at a bar or dinner at a restaurant. I miss my friends, I really do. I even got a new interim camera which I can't wait to adjust to and practice with, but I'll save it for the outdoor things. I'm just not ready to sit in any room breathing in the same recirculated air for any prolonged amount of time just because I want this to be over. 
I was feeling pretty nostalgic, however, so I thought I'd so another local venue roundup. After the jump.

Police Reform Measures Move Forward | Covid Numbers Still Spiking | We're Still Talking About Lilac Hills? |

Father's Day at San Diego Zoo- Unmasked momentarily for the sake of a photo (6.21.2020)

Have you ever watched a show that turned out to be a total dud? I watched 13 Reasons Why when it first came out with the first season, but I recently picked up with seasons 2-4 and season 2 was meh but season 3 is horrible. And is there a more annoying character or actor than Clay? Ugh. I gave up last night and finished reading my book instead. Today was I've bounced from the County Supervisors Meeting to the Governor's media briefing, to the Mayor's briefing on police reform. It's a lot. But Lilac Hills is getting denied, so expect to see some sort of lawsuit or bullshit to continue dragging it out. It must be a super sweet job to be the paid for a job for over a decade with your expenses and writeoffs, all for your project to be declined because you just couldn't follow the rules for the 20th time. Anyway, I'm super tired and cranky, so naptime it is. Lots of updates after the jump.

San Diego Music News: New Music From Jake Najor | Al Howard Writes | New Casbah Merch

Jake Najor (Taken 1.27.2020)

There were no media briefings today, but there were both a City Council and County Supervisors meeting. I didn't watch either. I'll pore over the deets and get back to you later, though I do know the City Council passed the resolution to add a November ballot measure to dissolve the CRB and create a new Independent Commission on Police Practices, so that's something. I'm currently trying to watch Clueless with Nova and it's so hard knowing Stacy Dash is such an awful person irl. Anyway, thought I'd (mostly) stick to some music news for today. After the jump. 

CoViD-19 Spiking in County and State | San Diego Zoo Announces Amur Leopard Cubs | Mandatory Face Covering Policy (Again)

Amur Cubs born April 26, 2020. Photo taken 6.21.2020

Today we had to do some shopping and restock our shelves. We were going to Big Lots in La Mesa, so we stopped by Extraordinary Banana Pudding. I don't remember all the prices but their 8oz packages are $8 and we opted for banana, cheesecake, and chocolate. This is a black owned business and they have $2 off during "happy hour" from 4-6pm. We made it to Big Lots and it seems like maybe the supply chain is faltering because a lot of shelves were empty, but they had a ton of toilet paper and sell a box of 50 masks for $20 (same as Costco) if you're looking for the disposable kind. We also hit Grocery Outlet in Allied Gardens and left with a very full cart of all of our favorites. I spent the night listening to today's press conferences and the news is pretty grim but the county is pretty adamant that they won't be closing anything that has already reopened. And commenters continue to be fucking imbeciles. So yeah, super fun Monday. We'll most likely be locking down this week. News, articles, and a Zoo press release are after the jump. 

Photos: San Diego Zoo Safari Park (June 20, 2020)

As I mentioned in a previous post, my sister invited us to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park on Friday, but we couldn't get it together in time. I've long avoided both the Safari Park and Zoo on weekends, but then I thought harder about maintaining that stance. First of all, Saturday was the official reopening to the public, but the announcement had come relatively quickly, so I figured that there would still be fewer tourists than normal. I also figured most members go early in the day and since there's currently no re-entry allowed for day passes or memberships, we took our chances on a late afternoon trip. 

We arrived around 5pm and stayed until the 8pm closing. We always like to map out a plan for the park. This time, we went up to the Australian Outback first, up to the condors and mountain goats, down through Tiger Trail, then through the center of the park. From there, we went down to the Elephant Valley, wrapped around the African Plains Trail, through Lion Camp, then around the African Loop back to the elevator then out of the park. It was a lovely afternoon and we thoroughly enjoyed the longest day of summer. 

It's really hard to wear a mask for hours on end, but these little jaunts are much easier and we'll enjoy them as much as we can until the weather gets too hot for comfort. There are a lot of changes for the safety of guests, staff, and animals, but they're mostly minor and easy to get used to and also give a lot of peace of mind. 

I know people are still having a financially difficult time right now, and who knows what's gonna happen once EDD cuts back to normal after July, but if you have the funds, I don't think there's a better value in San Diego than Zoo Membership, and I don't think there are many lower risk places than the Safari Park and Zoo right now. 
Get all the info on the park and membership here. 

Covid-19 Updates | Juneteenth Reading | How To Watch The Solar Eclipse | Kitten Abundance | San Diego Zoo & Safari Park Reopen

Today I talked to my sister on the phone. She was at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, enjoying a little picnic in one of our favorite little secret areas, and I was feeling bad because me and Darren were up so late in our 'speakeasy' that I slept through the invite and miss the chance to join them. But then I got to thinking about last night and how valuable it has been to have a separate space for me and Darren to hang out and have drinks and have long talks and listen to music and appreciate each other and be thankful that during this pandemic and all the crazy times that we have each other. So no, I didn't get to watch the juvenile elephants romp around today, but I get to be with this dude and that is not at all worth any regret. 

Today is Juneteenth, so I've included a ton of reading, a couple Covid updates and a link to this weekend's eclipse. Also, my Casbah playlist was released today. Check it out here.
Hope you enjoy. 

CoVid-19: San Diego Community Outbreaks Hit Trigger | Live Nation Losses To Fall On Backs Of Artists | City Expands Curbside Programs | Juneteenth Education

I've spent the morning putting together my playlist for Casbah Live and it's funny that as someone who has over 3,000 live videos on my YouTube Channel, I found this process to be super unfun. This is why I don't DJ. I love the music that I love but I'm way too self-conscious to share it with other people. I think that's what makes the Casbah so magical. You can love what you love and there are other people there to love it with you. My list goes live at 1pm on Friday and it consists entirely of live performances I've shot at the Casbah and a couple Casbah presents shows. We're watching it now so decided to have day beers to go with it. 

In other news, this morning Mayor Faulconer spoke about the expansion of "Curbside SD" which allows businesses to extend services outdoors in limited capacities. There weren't supposed to be any media briefiengs but today we're getting an emergency County Health Media Briefing which isn't good because yesterday we were at 6/7 community outbreaks in seven days and that is supposed to be an automatic trigger to revise the public health order if we hit seven new community outbreaks in a seven day period. 

I really wanted to go back to the San Diego Zoo or head up to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, but I'm kinda wheezy and sneezy from allergies today so I don't wanna look like I'm out in public while sick and we're going on the third hour of a plumber fixing our shower/bathtub faucet. Anyway, I'll update the trigger info back to this post after the 2:30 briefing. Links after the jump. 

Covid-19: County Is One Community Outbreak Shy of Trigger | Distance Music Classes & Camp | Parking Enforcement to Resume in July | Anti-Racist Reading | Photos: La Jolla Cove

We had a late night in the speakeasy so today was super lazy and chill, catching up on my dumbass Bravo reality shows. I have nothing interesting to report today. Covid numbers continue to climb nationwide and the online and in-real-life ignorance is baffling and depressing.  I'm gonna post some of my Monday photos from La Jolla Cove after the updates and links in this post. My top pic is terrible lighting but I loved watching this little pup so much that he gets top billing. I'll get back to normal life tomorrow.

San Diego Zoo Reopens To Members | Masks Still Work | Black Lives Still Matter | Zoo Photos

Andean Bear Cub, Agapito (Taken 6.16.2020)

It's nearly 11pm and I finally got through all of today's news and emails. I woke up bright and shiny this morning and took Nova to the San Diego Zoo for the member preview days (Tu-Th, 9am-5pm, Before the reopen to the public on Saturday) and I was super nervous about it, but it ended up being awesome, never too crowded, and we were there for just about 3 hours, so we didn't have to use the facilities. I had some beautiful moments with baby hippo Amahle, the mandrills were up to their usual antics, and all the Babirusas were cute as ever and love attention. Hoping to head back there or Safari Park over the next two days. Everyone was wearing masks and observing physical distancing and the staff was on top of sanitization. It was lovely. The rest of the day was email and news, though I made a pretty amazing dinner with Argentinian red shrimp, corn, and rice. Now we're in the speakeasy cleaning more stuff out while cocktailing and it's pretty chill, so I'm gonna say goodnight and maybe I'll have more news tomorrow. Lots of Zoo pics at the end of the post. 

CoVid-19 & Black Lives Matter: Supreme Court Protects LGBT | Violence Against Protesters Documented | County: More Openings, Masks Work, Spikes Will Cause Reclosure

A Meerkat at the San Diego Zoo (Taken 2.12.2020)

Today I found out that the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park will be having "preview days" Tuesday-Thursday from 9am-5pm at both parks for card-carrying members only. This makes me elated and stokes major anxiety in me at the same time. I can't wait to go back to both when it's safe, but is it yet? None of us can really know. If and when I do go there (or anywhere for that matter), you can be sure that in my possession will be my own soap, my own sanitizer, my own toilet paper, and my mask and face shield. I'm not taking any chance.  Anyway, we'll test that out now as we're off to do a La Jolla drive-by, only stopping if it's not insane with foot-traffic. I'll report back later. Some more of today's updates after the jump.

CoViD-19: Reopening Risk Assessment | NIVA Pushes For Longterm Assistance for Venues | Governor Newsom's Briefing: Don't Open If You're Not Ready

Ficus enjoying the backyard

I try really hard not to spend too much time writing about the Covitiot-in-chief and his racist minions, but I had to laugh this weekend when there was a MAGAt boat rally. Whether there were dozens or hundreds of boats doesn't really matter, as I saw people arguing about the 'facts' in online comments. The arrogance is the point. The waste, the luxury, the extravagance, the in-your-faceness of it all is the point. That anyone thought this was okay in any way, in the middle of a global pandemic when millions of people lost jobs and many are still waiting for any kind of assistance while also in the middle of worldwide protests to eliminate systemic racism in our legislation, law enforcement, and in all aspects of civil society, is so demonstrative of this administration and the despicable people who support it. It's obvious those people exist around us every day, but seeing it put on such display makes me sad for my City. Meanwhile, I feel like everyone is on my jock today and I don't like it, so I might try and escape for a bit to celebrate #NationalPhotographyDay. This is just the first post today since the Governor finally gave another media briefing. Today's morning stuff after the jump. 

CoVid-19: Masks Still Work | CoVid Conundrum: Lockdown or Party? | Dashboard Confessional's Chris Carrabba Seriously Injured | RIP Nina Leilani Deering

Chris Carrabba of Dashboard Confessional at Observatory North Park (Taken 2.12.2020)

After my camping outing, we got home, unpacked, organized, ate food, and then I slept more than 12 hours, falling asleep around 7pm. So there you go, the way to solve insomnia is camping and drinking and staying up late, then uncomfortably sleeping in a tent for two nights. When I woke up around 7 this morning, I perused social media and saw the days trends...that life in San Diego is 'back to normal'--with equal amounts of people celebrating getting out while the rest were dismayed at the lack of courtesy and following the rules of wearing facial coverings and physical distancing. 

I also have to admit that I'm kinda loving the other trending gossip news like the firing of Stassi and Kristen (and Brett and Max) from Vanderpump Rules and the backlash on that nobody NASCAR truck driver who is quitting because of the ban on the confederate flag. But that's neither here nor there. So like I said, we'll be staying put this weekend. I'm loaded up on e-books and audiobooks, we've got a slew of things to watch on our streaming queues, and we've got some housekeeping to do, so our time will be well occupied. At home. 

Still, some weekend reading for you after the jump.

CoViD-19 & Black Lives Matter: More San Diego County and City Reopenings | Scrutinizing Police Practices | Must Watch: Dave Chappelle's 8:46

View From Sweetwater Summit County Park Campground (6.11.2020)

I'm home from camping now and it was lovely and I'm glad we went. The site was Sweetwater Summit County Park & Campground and funny enough, my sister only found it because I had told her about our hike at the Sweetwater West Staging Area, before County parks closed, so she went exploring and driving around and found this place. I had no idea such a place existed so close to home. We hadn't arranged for a pet sitter, so we still ran home to feed the pets and shower (I'm still not entirely comfortable sharing communal facilities), we even grabbed Ficus to hang out with us for a few hours before returning her home in the evening (and I maybe snuck in a nap at home), but I made campfires just like my dad taught me and we slept in a tent for two nights and ate hot dogs and made s'mores and cooked a giant breakfast in my iron skillet on a butane stove, so I think it still counts as camping. Mostly it was just nice to close my laptop on Wednesday and not open it again until today (Of course I still checked email on my phone. No true vacations exist in my world).
After two showers, my hair still smells like a firepit. There's all kinds of hiking and biking and a safe and smooth road for skateboarding, so the girls had fun, but I was 100% relaxed and pretty much stayed at our site enjoying the fresh air besides the aforementioned trips home and back.
As for businesses, things are ramping up quickly though I'm glad the Casbah is still not reopening with no intent to just open as a bar without entertainment. It's the weekend, which means we'll be staying home and avoiding the masses, but with Nova's soccer "day camp" maybe resuming next week, I'm probably going to slowly start enjoying the places and things I love like La Jolla Cove, Fiesta Island, and Balboa Park. You'll just see me in a mask and face shield while I do. Lots of catching up after the jump, but first, go read this amazing Twitter thread answering the question, "why do liberals think Trump supporters are stupid?" Updates after the jump.

CoVid-19: Ken Club & Music Box Reopen This Week | San Diego Zoo Outlines Reopening | Mayor Celebrates Passed Budget

San Diego Zoo & Safari Park Have Set Reopening Date to June 20 (Taken 3.13.2020)

I have really destroyed any trace or possibility of getting normal sleep. We're supposed to go camping today and the anxiety about it has wrecked me but Nova is now pouting in her room so I feel like a jerk for even having shared the possibility. It's so confusing and the information is so wide-ranging, from Fauci saying to slow down the reopenings to the WHO making declarations then backpedalling. We've seen spikes across the country after Mother's Day, Memorial Day, and many saying we'll see more from protests and other reopenings. I mean, who wants to CHOOSE to sit in a movie theater for 2+ hours to watch the trash Hollywood is still pushing on us?? Yet they'll be open come Friday. I understand businesses who want to reopen. I'm also glad to be able to choose to hunker down and wait all of this out a little longer. I'm glad that the Casbah and Bar Pink are erring on the side of caution. Yesterday's briefing, San Diego Zoo reopening, Johns Hopkins info, and some local bar updates, after the jump.

CoVid-19 Diary: Reopening Incumbent Upon Guideline Adherence | SD City Council Passes Mayor's Budget | Otter Named 'Nova' | Zoo Can Reopen As Early As Friday | SD Opera Lays Out 2020-2021 Season

It is unclear if Sea World can fly as an "aquarium" and reopen this week  (Taken 12.13.2019)

My sister booked a campsite in the South Bay this week and while we're still unclear if we're allowed to meet up with them because of confusing language (campsites are open; gatherings with members outside of household are not, yet restaurants can seat different households together, and bars and breweries can reopen, HUH?), I decided that we might  try to join them, if allowed. Doesn't seem impossible to share a campsite and still keep distanced and masked, even outdoors, so I made a huge Costco run. And if those hot dogs end up just being for us at home, that would be okay, too.
But what I wanted to share was that, what I imagine is just for a limited time, Costco has stopped making their sheet cakes and instead are making 12" round cakes, since obviously no gatherings, no demand for massive cakes. They're selling for $12.99 and it seemed like we had to get one since Nova got royally screwed on her birthday back in May and because, well, we.love.cake. So there's my hot tip. Also, the Mission Valley store (and I imagine all of the others) have radically shifted where things are, so beer is now in the middle section, just before the refrigerated goods instead of on the perimeter walls. I also did a driveby and Ikea is fully open again, so I'll have to investigate that in the next few weeks, too.
I like doing my errands during the last hour stores are open...they tend to be emptier and feel safer (even if that's just in my head). I realized today that I have to adjust my mindset and read all the stats, and one stuck out to me. It's slide 18/23 of the daily briefings. I keep watching the cases rise, but this one points out that while there are 8619 confirmed cases in San Diego County, 6,501 of them are considered 'recovered'. That's 2,119 active cases, a number I can much more easily wrap my head around. I don't know if they also subtract the deaths from there or if those are included in the 'recovered' count but I can at least understand why people are pushing for openings.
I've been watching Outer Banks on Netflix and didn't expect to love the Scooby-Dooness of it. And while I'm fully turning back into a 14 year old, I had to take a break from some of the heavy shit I've been reading and am exploring a YA author named Mindy McInnis. So there's that. Things that actually matter, after the jump.

CoViD-19 & Black Lives Matter: More Facilities To Reopen As Covid Cases Continue to Rise | Faulconer's Lip Service | San Diego Budget Hearing

Starting on Friday, June 12th, places like San Diego Zoo may reopen in San Diego County.
(Whether they do or not is another story. Taken 3.9.2020)

I've only listened to a very small amount of the City Council meeting today, but after listening to about five hours of last week's public comment, most calls are to 'defund' the police. For some it means not adding any additional money for next year, especially not from the CARES Act monies, and other calls for significant reduction in current funding levels, or some to abolish the department altogether. And judging from the Mayor's briefing, he doesn't expect any of those roadblocks to stop his budget tonight, but there are still an enormous amount of calls before any motions will be made by the Council. Unfortunately I think that once the public is allowed to attend meetings in person, the ability to call in will likely be discontinued as repeated callers have ended their calls with "Fuck The Police" or one that called out Faulconer "to read a book, look at the world around you, instead of going to play putt-putt golf or whatever the fuck you rich white people do for fun." Yikes.

Anyway, things are moving quickly, things are opening quickly, and we're already reviewing the guidelines for the Casbah (perhaps without music), but in the meantime, all proceeds from Casbah merch sales this week will go to the ACLU. Bars and Zoos are on the list to open Friday and I'm not emotionally ready for it. I can't wait to go, at the same time, I my anxiety about the world around me and people not following the rules tells me that it might be awhile before I'm comfortable really leaving my cocoon.

Covid-19 & Black Lives Matter Demonstrations: Covid-19 Counts Still Rising | Defunding The Police Takes Root | San Diego Council Budget Hearing

Today I was supposed to judge the Battle of the Bands at the San Diego County Fair (taken 6.17.2019)

When we look back at 2020, I hope we're able to refer to it as "The Great Awakening" or "The Metamorphosis" or something that appropriately defines and captures the energy of today's climate. The surfacing of deaths at the hands of cops that have never received proper media attention, like #MauriceCooper and #ElijahMcClain, and the spreadsheet showing the nationwide violence should have all of our heads spinning and activating in the ways that we can while still in a full-blown and maybe about to explode pandemic. On Thursday a woman appeared to be kidnapped at a bus stop by San Diego High, and by the weekend the cops are under investigation (though one day threatening to kill people should be formalized in policy that results in mandatory termination without pay and benefits) and the item to put an Independent Police Practices Commission ballot measure in November has officially been docketed for the June 23rd San Diego City Council meeting by Georgette Gomez. Things are happening. Keep pushing. Stay safe out there. Lots of weekend reading after the jump.     

COVID-19 & Protests: County Expecting Stage 3 State Guidance | County Lifts Beach Restrictions | Parking Lots & Reservoirs To Open

Today is World Environment Day (Mission Trails 5.25.2019)

I finally got some sleep today, but now it's time for me to head to the speakeasy with Darren, so be safe out there. The helicopter has been buzzing back and forth over our house for the last several hours, so as we've done for the last two and half months, and keep our butts at home during the weekend. I did want to mention I ordered these super dorky face shields, but they're also kinda awesome, they're cheap, washable, reusable, fit on any standard baseball hat, and just might be the future of drinking at bars. The shipping is a little ridic, but they're heavy in their flat pack. You can buy them here. Today's briefing notes after the jump.

Black Lives Matter: Governor Briefing On Proposed Police Reform | Controversial Arrest In San Diego | Protests May Spike Covid-19

Fiesta Island will be opening next week, but no cars until July (taken 6.9.2019)

I'm going to break up today's posts, because this one ended up being a bit long with details of Governor Gavin Newsom's briefing and plans for police reform and social justice. There's another "protest" happening today, though I believe it's more of a vigil for Breonna Taylor on what should have been her 27th birthday at Morley Field. Videos and media continue to pour in from around the country of police inciting violence including some scary local incidents. We're just bunkered in at home for the weekend and maybe as restrictions ease my anxiety will chill and we'll start getting out of the house again. Newsom's briefing notes are after the jump.

CoViD-19 & Black Lives Matter| Balboa Park Events Reschulduling Tabled | Restaurant Week To Return | #WearOrange | Crisis Fatigue

Bea Evenson Fountain taken 6.4.2019
Balboa Park Central Mesa and All Lots Will Fully Reopen 6.12.2020

I meant to post this post on Thursday night, but I got caught up in the CRB meeting and then watched the Balboa Park Committee meeting on Youtube through our Roku, and then I had to record my presentation for the Virtual San Diego Music Awards (taking place on July 6) and then compose a Casbah newsletter for today and then I just never got back to publish my post here. But the biggest thing I want to say is that I was wrong about last night's march that took place from Downtown to North Park. I felt the demands missed the mark because they were already being addressed or addressing the wrong jurisdiction, but I can see now, that wasn't really the point nor the driver of why so many people turned out. One can never predict how things are going to go, but I saw hundreds of peaceful protesters walking together, saw dozens of photos and read numerous accounts and even watched some of the live streaming footage of the event and it looked like quite a beautiful thing. I imagine many of the people were the same people who submitted over 3500 comments to the Community Review Board, proving you can fight the same fight from multiple fronts simultaneously for more impact. I'm so impressed and I hope that marches, demonstrations, and protests and remain peaceful throughout the weekend.

Notes: Citizens Review Board on Police Practices Emergency Meeting (6.4.2020)

North Park at Night, taken12.18.2019

It's a little funny watching San Diego committee and board meetings. Obviously current circumstances brought new interest into these groups, but the fact that they're watchable on YouTube is making people finally step up and pay attention. It was almost funny hearing the comments from the public read out loud because you could feel the boardmembers seething...like "WHAT DO YOU THINK WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON FOR ALL THESE YEARS???" So all that to say that the board had already been considering a lot of the policies that people and organizations were demanding. It was a pretty interesting meeting, but if you don't wanna sit through a 90 minute video, I took notes. Meanwhile the marchers must've reached North Park because I can hear the police helicopter circling nearby. 

Notes after the jump. 

Covid-19 & Black Lives Matter Protests : Community Review Board of Police Practices TODAY | San Diego Beaches & Parks Reopening Schedule

North Park During the 2019 Rock n Roll Marathon 6.2.2019

I try not to think too much about my diet. I especially hate when people talk about dieting. I eat what I eat when I'm hungry and sometimes I eat junk and sometimes I drink and sometimes I try intermittent fasting but whatever, I cook, I eat, it's nothing worth talking about, but yesterday I don't know what possessed me to drink a little bottle of Starbucks mocha, a can of Coke, and then a bottle of Mexican Coke all in the same day but there's a reason I don't really drink coffee or caffeinated beverages. I was up all night long with the caffeine and sugar coursing through my veins. I finally got some sleep today, however, and am feeling much better. I suppose the anxiety of our new property management company coming by today didn't do me any favors, but he was chill and it was short and now it's behind us. There was no Governor's briefing or County briefing today, but the big news is that Community Review Board on Police Practices will be meeting today at 6pm and you can comment now online and watch live when it streams on YouTube. I haven't delved into the news much today, but there is a Downtown to North Park march today, and other links and stories are after the jump.

• There's a protest march happening today from Downtown San Diego to North Park at 5pm that is claiming to be youth led. Many people are vouching for the fact. I'm not here to silence voices, but it's unfortunate that the march starts at 5pm, when really all of the participants could be contributing to the Community Review Board on Police Practices which starts at 6pm. 
• The young protesters have made three demands: 
• (1) Ban military grade weapons on unarmed protesters (tear gas and rubber bullets) 
• (2) Terminate La Mesa PD Officer Matthew Dadge for unlawfully assaulting and detaining an unarmed man 
• (3) Reform police practices and enforce culturally competent training to prevent police brutality and deaths. 
• Again, I don't wish to silence these kids, but marching through San Diego while trying to have a La Mesa PD officer terminated might not be so effective?
• Meanwhile, a national campaign by Campaign Zero has been launched called #8cantwait with specific targets that all law enforcement agencies should aim to meet. 
• See the agenda of the Community Review Board of Police Practices
• Submit a public comment for the Board here (over 3500 comments have already come into the CRBPP)

• George Floyd Updates: Somber Memorial Gives Way to 10th Night of Protest - NY Times (6.4.2020)
• Why Aren’t We All Talking About Breonna Taylor? - NY Times (6.4.2020)
• Sign the Change.org Petition "Justice For Breonna Taylor"
• It shouldn't have taken Covid-19 or protests to make City meetings more accessible but hopefully the YouTube live broadcasts continue even after life returns back to 'normal' and whatever that looks like. You should take the time to peruse the committee and board videos that are now archived, and you can sign up for notifications for future meetings, too. Check out the channel here.
• I've posted a lot about protesting in the time of Covid-19, but I'll just remind people that the numbers of cases in San Diego are still growing, and the disease is known to have a 2-14 day incubation period while some people remain asymptomatic. You should monitor yourself for ANY symptoms (CDC): 
• Fever or chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Congestion or runny nose
• Nausea or vomiting
• Diarrhea
• City of San Diego Mayor Faulconer Briefing:
• Update on protests in San Diego (no new arrests on Wednesday)
• Keeping the peace in San Diego
• Community groups need to remain organized and Lead
• Police officers are working around the clock
• Sheriff's request for National Guard in La Mesa
• City of San Diego has not requested nor has used National Guard
• Responsibly invested in SDPD to not feel additional support is necessary
• More than a dozen law enforcement agencies have pledged to eliminate the use of the carotid restraint. (Not one has said what consequences for its use would be)
• City received more than 4,000 comments on emergency Board and Committee Meetings
• Phase 2 Beach Reopening Plan
• June 8- East and West Mission Bay Park. Fiesta Island open for peds, dogs, cyclists
• June 9- All piers and boardwalks open
• June 12-Balboa Park Central Mesa and all parking lots
• July 6- Fiesta Island open to vehicles

Covid-19 & Black Lives Matter Demonstrations: Dr Weber's Amazing Speech | County Explains Triggers | Mayor Talks SDPD | Carotid Restraint Discontinued Countywide

Downtown San Diego Skyline 1.23.2020

I guess I didn't really need to watch the press briefings because they were super repetitive. The County one went over the metrics they're using to push for Stage 3 reopening and the dashboard to monitor the triggers and the Mayor spoke of the special committee meetings and proposed SDPD reform and legislation. What is worth watching is the California Black Caucus presentations from Tuesday. You should also make sure you watch the remarks from La Mesa after the mayor and the police chief left the podium. Still, all the notes are after the jump.

CoVid-19 & Black Lives Matter Demonstrations: Obama Speaks | County Updates CoViD Triggers | Face Coverings Work | Police Policy Reforms

PB Sunset taken 1.29.2020

There's a reason why news outlets have teams of reporters and writers and photographers. There's been so much to cover today and I still haven't gotten to the daily briefings, nor have I really found any good summaries of them, so I guess I'll watch them once Nova is asleep. I watched the full Citizens Advisory Board On Police/Community Relations Meeting and I recommend watching it, at least the first 30-45 minutes of it when the community organizations presented their positions on police policy reform, which resulted in the formation of an ad hoc committee which is meeting at 11am on Thursday make sure they adequately compile all of the information to present at Thursday's Community Review Board on Police Practices.

CoViD-19 & Protests: La Mesa Community Leaders Are Outraged | Covidiot In Chief Divides A Nation | Thoughts On Demonstrations

Mission Trails 1.9.2020

It's Wednesday and I had a lot of thoughts on my brain last night and am still catching up on all the press briefings today. I'm gonna have to get them into a separate post because the La Mesa press briefing was really intense. Meanwhile, our covidiot-in-chief is still a worthless piece of shit while my godfather's sociopathic wife--who herself is an immigrant and a person of color, which she seems to have forgotten-- is still posting memes of herself carrying machine guns in full fatigues in front of the American flag and it is so fucking gross I can't even believe that this is a person, albeit distantly, connected to me in real life. So there's a lot today. It's after 5pm and I have barely touched today's emails. There's a lot to unpack, so first some reading, after the jump. A reminder that the public meeting for the San Diego Citizens Advisory Board On Police/Community Relations starts at 6pm today.

Protests Amid Pandemic: Covid-19 Updates | Anti-Racism Resources | County Pushes For Stage 3 Reopening | Renter's Aid in San Diego

Gaslamp Quarter During Comiccon 7.17.2019

I've been in a quandary. I absolutely disagree with the #blackouttuesday in practice but agree in principle? If the original intent was to cease business operations and "reflect and mobilize" I'm all for it, but "blacking out" social media is suppressive not supportive and I can't get behind it. Part of the reason I post so much here is because I don't feel like my Facebook presence helps, sometimes the best thing I feel like I can do is get out of the way for the valuable messages to rise to the top, I'll continue to use this page to elevate those messages. I've also had to decide how to handle things from the perspective of the Casbah, and honestly, I cannot stand when brands and businesses post some generic message for whatever the cause-du-jour might be; I feel like we demonstrate our support in how our business is run in the first place--the artists that we book, how safe people feel within our doors, and how employees and patrons are treated every day. I also know silence can be interpreted as complicity, so I love a message like Ben & Jerry's, but their message has been part of their brand since their inception. I don't know the right answers but I will continue to ask questions and do my best.

Reading List: CoViD-19 | Black Lives Matter Protests | Extreme Night Owls | Cleveland National Forest Extends Closures

Bun Bun has gotten more used to me taking photos of her in the yard at night. (5.29.2020)

It's two a.m. and I still haven't worked my way through all of Monday's emails. I'd love to see the #blackoutTuesday mean that I could get a day of no new emails. I didn't really watch any of the protest livestreams today, so I really don't have a concept of how they went locally or nationally. The reality was that I just needed a day of family time so we watched Birdbox on Netflix which felt appropriate in this time of Covid isolation. There are really important things happening in our City and across the country and it really makes all other things trivial, but I sometimes gotta just take a minute off and deal with the ants that are trying to penetrate our house or take some photos of the bunny in the yard or call my mom and dad, you know? Lots of reading today. 

CoVid-19 & Protests: Daily Briefings | Mayor Bans Use of Carotid Restraint By SDPD | Beaches Reopen For Passive Use

9.9.2017

It's been a crazy few days. I definitely appreciate the local people who have been on the ground documenting and livestreaming the protests over the weekend to provide the rest of us with a window into what was happening in our own community. We watched live as protests turned from peaceful to violent, often at the hands of law enforcement. And while intellectually I understand how property damage is a tool by protesters to demand attention, I can't stop visualizing the woman who walked out of the La Mesa Vons with a mylar balloon or the teenage Chicana who broke a window of a small business with a bat, seemingly to impress her friends. Anyway, I haven't really gotten through the news and the 300 emails in my inbox today, but I thought I should post today's briefings and I'll follow up with more news and thoughts later. Looking forward to finally hitting La Jolla Cove soon for the first time in two and half months.