Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, December 28-Wednesday, January 3, 2024: NYE + Black Lips | Wild Horses | Transfer | Schizophonics | The Creepy Creeps |

I always think I'm gonna have time. I wanted to dig through my archives and find a more NYE festive photo, but now I realize the photos I'm thinking of are actually probably from like five years ago so I'm just not organized enough to track them down because I need to sleep. I didn't realize the kid was flying out on Thursday and I get to be the one for airport dropoff at 8am. Sooo. I hope everyone had a really great Christmas and is ready to ring in 2024. I did my best with listings this week, but didn't go above and beyond for NYE for venues that I don't normally list here...frankly the high ticket parties and prix fixe dinners aren't what I'm after, so I'm sure you can find those sponsored listings elsewhere. I may add anything relevant to this site, but in case I get caught up and never get to my final diary of the year, have a great week and I'll catch ya in the new year. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, December 21-Wednesday, December 27, 2023: Well Well Well | Moans | Los Lobos | El Vez | Crasher | Exile on Kettner Blvd | The Silent Comedy |

Toby & I at Wild Holidays at Safari Park 

I was feeling like I was closing the year on a high note just after giving in and getting this new laptop, a new camera, traveling to the Great Lakes region and then ready to hit the holidays. In fact, we never ended up getting a Christmas tree, I'm spending more than I'm making at the moment, and one of the car registration lapsed which went completely under our radar, so not only are there late fees, but it's going to have to go into the shop (impossible during the holidays) to get the engine light off to then pass SMOG to then late-register. And of course, any time it's parked or driven could add another ticket. What a clusterf**k. 

Still, even with all that, on Wednesday night we had a big family dinner with my siblings and nieces and nephews and my cousin and uncle and it was the first time we'd all been back to Volare as a group since before my dad stopped walking, which was several years ago. So it will be a present-poor Christmas without a lot of gifts but filled with a whole lot of love, which is really the whole point of it all anyway. 

There's great stuff happening this week leading up to Christmas, I'm gonna do my best to go to Exile, and then more of the usual with the San Diego Zoo and Sea World with my family while they're all in town, and you know I'll be there even without them. 

Merry Christmas, y'all. I love you. Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, December 14-Wednesday, December 20, 2023: QOTSA | Grateful Shred | Emo Nite | TV Girl | Ziggy Shuffledust | Swive | More Fatter | Holiday Ramble |

I am sooo looking forward to the weekend to try and recover from my trip, spend some chill time with my visiting relatives, and enjoy the Casbah's holiday brunch on Sunday. I was able to hit the San Diego Zoo on Thursday to see all my babies that I missed so much. I got a little love from the gorillas before they went in, Karen the orangutan sat with my while I worked on my laptop, even little Kaja popped over to say hi. It was nice and empty, so I had the run of the place and also visited the gray parrots, Andean bears, my favorite langur, the red panda, the snow leopards, the red-tailed and swamp monkeys and more. There's a new binturong at Explorer's basecamp, but the tamandua is gone. If you are a take-pictures-with-Santa kinda person, there has been a line on weekends but on most days you can literally walk right in with no wait. It's kinda shocking actually. I've shaved a lot of time off how long the listings take with this new laptop, but I still had to do a newsletter and go through a zillion emails so I am fried. Have a great weekend, stay healthy, and when you hear all the people hacking around you, get as far away as you can-- they probably have COVID but many people don't even bother testing for it anymore, so steer clear. 

I love you.  

Rosey's Diary & Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, December 14, 2023: Sego | Coastal Wolves | Zoltan Kaszas | La Diabla | Meg McRee | Strung Out |

Sister Claudia, My Mama, Nadia, Jojo, Uncle Willy, & Me. Christy took this one. 

So, I really was not realistic at all when I went on this little trip for the past few days. I haven't flown anywhere since 2016, and I forget how much time I really end up sitting around talking with family, riding in cars, or driving and seeing scenery and how much time I am NOT online, or at least, not able to use my laptop. (Email is still amazing anywhere, anytime, except when I'm driving, of course.)

We left San Diego on Saturday at 6:30am, which made me wake up at 3:45am to be ready to go. Of course I don't really sleep on planes, so by the time we landed in Chicago and walked all up the Miracle Mile or the Magnificent Mile or the Millionaire Mile or whatever it is really called along Lake Shore Drive and then back to our hotel, I was zonked. But this was a girls trip for that part of the weekend, so I was with my mom, my sisters and my nieces, at the W, known for having Djs in the lobby and being a destination on weekends and, let's just say the no sleep week continued. Beyond going to Millennial Park to see The Bean (which is now behind security fences because, as the street vendors told us, "los jovenes") and Christmas stuff, I have to say it was all kind of a bust. I was in Chicago but by no means did Chicago. That was the theme for this whole trip, actually. Not that I didn't enjoy family time and seeing new things, but I didn't pack in what I would do if I had my say in all of it. Or any of it, really.

On Sunday, we left Chicago to drive to South Bend and that was the day of my uncle's Surprise Birthday Party for his 80th birthday. He got all weepy and it was beautiful and beers at the Country Club were $2.50 so I enjoyed myself and also learned a bunch of stuff about my family that I didn't know before and saw pictures, like of my real grandma who died when my mom was only 2 years old, that I was seeing for the first time. That was magic. 

By Sunday night, I was in party mode, drank beers and rye at our hotel while everyone slept, knowing I would be the one to stay while my sisters and nieces returned home on Monday. When it was just me and my mom and my uncle, we spent the greater part of a day at a local casino and then the next day driving around different nearby areas to eat, shop, and see Christmas lights. 

I'm now on the flight home and there's no way the wi-fi can handle me doing the listings for the whole week, so I'm just doing Thursday's and I'll do the rest on Thursday. I underestimated how much time we'd spend in cars, how much time we'd be hanging out telling stories, how much time I'd spend in the kennels and among the cats of the house. I especially underestimated how much time I would be the one driving, though I guess I should be used to it with my 80 year old uncle and 70+ year old mom. I also didn't know I'd be sleeping on a waterbed for 2 nights which makes laptopping in bed pretty much impossible. So I'm sorry the listings are abbreviated but when I get home, I need space, I need drinks, I need some loving from my babies, and I don't want to be up all night working on listings because I really need to see my favorite primates at the zoo in the morning. Also, thanks to this stupid bitch that won't stop coughing with her mouth open, even though I got my booster last week and even though I wore a mask during the stagnant air parts of the flight, I'm eating and drinking and trying to get cool air, so I'll be monitoring my health and thank goodness I am a bit overstocked with COVID tests at the moment. I actually think she's coughing out loud AT me, but I'm not about to start a fight on Southwest.  

Besides surprising my Uncle on his turf, we bought him a one-way ticket to San Diego to hang out as long as he wants. The last couple times were sad and for my dad's death, so hopefully this one will be more joyful. But also it means I'll probably be chauffer for at least some parts over the next couple weeks. Forgive me if you don't hear from me or if things are late or my Insta is all out of order or whatever. I gotta spend the time with these Olds while I can. xoxo

Here are Thursdays listings. I'm sorry if I missed stuff.

Rosey's Diary | Christmas In San Diego | COVID-19 & Flu & RSV | Biden's Economy | Housing | Citrus Quarantine |

DeBrazza Monkeys Lillie and Baby born 10.28.23

I am trying to wrap up loose ends before I get outta town this weekend, so it seemed like a good time for a post. I'm excited about my trip, but I can't really talk about it until after it happens, so just know that I'm going to be cold and I haven't been on a plane since 2016. I'm kinda freaking out a little, but I'll have to sort it all out tomorrow and I'm sure everything will be fine, but my biggest problem will be packing. I'm terrible at it. Have you seen how much stuff I take with me just to go to the zoo everyday? So yeah. At least I learned today that my leggings were ineffective at keeping me warm today in San Diego, so they're definitely not going to cut it where I'm going. 

So beyond that, things have been good. Work is crazy busy, this week we announced another 16 shows, when a typical week is about 5. In starting this post, I learned that my new laptop doesn't have an SD card slot, so that kinda blows, but I guess the HDMI will be adequate. The zoo has been especially fun this week because I found a better loop and get to spend more time with my favorite primates. Last weekend was the final open house of the year at the Alpaca Ranch, so I went to the zoo in the morning, then my mom and I went out to the ranch, and then I finished the evening at the zoo, which was deserted and perfect. When it's late like that, generally all the primates are all asleep, but it's a good chance to go to Basecamp to see the caracal, tamandua, coati, and sometimes local opossums or skunks moving around under the platformed walkway. I also like to visit these adorable little crocodiles that will sometimes swim right up to glass to make deep eye contact. It's kind of an amazing thing and they look really cute when they swim. At night, it's also fun to do the big lap around the elephants and into Kopje because sometimes you can hear the hyrax screaming, which is a pretty crazy sound if you're not expecting it. The zoo will get a lot crazier when Jungle Bells kicks off this weekend, but walk around the dark if you get the chance. Do it without a flashlight, and especially DON'T use the one on your phone.

I'll catch you all after my trip.

I love you. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, December 7-Wednesday, December 13, 2023: Depeche Mode | The Woggles | Dresden Dolls | The Tighten Ups | Rosa Rossa | North Park Winter Wonderland |

I feel like I have a little bit better control of everything now that I've got a new laptop and camera situation. Listings were a little slower because all the sites I use aren't cached in my history, but overall I'm happy with my purchase. I still have files to move and I'd like to eventually get the old one looked at because I think it's fixable, but I'm going out of town for five days and won't really have a chance to settle down for some time. It feels like with the holidays coming up and then Casbah anniversary month, I'm going to be busy af. All that is fine, as long as I get my zoo therapy in between it all, I'll be good. I'm going to do my best to get next week's listings done on time and ready to post by Thursday, but just in case, be forewarned that I'm traveling on Wednesday, my usual time to get them done. Maybe I can do them on the plane. 

Anyway, I love you all. I'll miss San Diego while I'm gone. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, November 30-Wednesday, December 6, 2023: Oh He Dead | Luna | Flor de Toloache | Mondo Cozmo | December Nights & Holiday Parades | Aterciopelados | Enanitos Verdes | Depeche Mode |

I love a good Santa. Free sitting with Santa at San Diego Zoo (Taken 11.25.23)

I didn't get a chance to do all of the holiday events on a separate page as I've done in the past, but there's a ton of holiday stuff, tree lightings, parades and more, in addition to the Christmas Celebration at Sea World, Wild Holidays at San Diego Zoo Safari Park, Jungle Bells at the San Diego Zoo, A Very Furry Christmas at Sesame Place, Lightscape at San Diego Botanic Garden, and all the different ice rinks. There's a pretty good assortment of holiday stuff listed here. 

I'm super into the holidays, but I also kind of get anxiety spirals. Like, just starting my listings on Tuesday had me kinda freaking out about how I'm gonna get them done in a couple weeks while I'm traveling. I went ahead and got a new camera and a new laptop, so now I'll have to figure out how to get all my stuff from here onto there and get that all set up. Not looking forward to that at all. But, when I can rein it all in, take a minute to breathe, I get excited. I've stocked up on hot cocoa and apple cider packets, I've pulled out all my beanies and mittens, and all my Christmas gear is ready to be worn. I'll be working for Mondo Cozmo on Friday night, but I should still have plenty of time to check out December Nights, and I'll probably try and get to the Alpaca ranch on Sunday, and sometime between I'll probably get a Christmas tree, too. I also have to plan a day to get my COVID vaccine before my trip, but I don't really have a full day to be knocked out, so I'll have to keep that in consideration. 

In the meantime, have a great week and stay safe out there.  

Rosey's Diary & Newsy Things: San Diego America's Most Expensive City and other rankings | Order More Free COVID Tests | Thanksgiving Most Dangerous Holiday For US Roadways |

 

Schmidt's Red-Tailed Family. Mom BB, Daughter Jenga, and Baby
(Born 11.11.23; taken 11.22.23 in Ituri Forest, San Diego Zoo)

A friend of mine recently pointed out to me that I haven't done a diary post in awhile. There are a ton of reasons for that. As I've said, my laptop is maybe on it's last legs, so it gets really hot and the fan doesn't kick on, so I have to take frequent breaks and it really messes up my thoughtflow. I've also been posting more on socials, which is probably a bad idea in a long-term historical context of the snapshot of my life, but sometimes it's just easier when I'm sitting with monkeys or gorillas or orangutans, or sitting on my patio at night in the cold, to just bust out my phone than my laptop. (Follow me on Instagram & Youtube). I've still been collecting links, as you'll see below, these span over a month and a half, and really the impetus to post came more from cleaning out my email inbox over the holiday weekend. I'm also working a show at Music Box and it's been slightly awkward...I didn't even have their register logged in until I'd already been here two hours. They're now taking the stage and I've sold 4 things all night. I'm sure that will pick up when they're done. 

Things have been good, overall. I'm working a lot and that's gonna maybe slow down in December, but January will be insane for Casbah's 35 Year Anniversary. I try to go to the Zoo every day, though I mix it up on occasion with Sea World or Safari Park. In fact, I talked my family - the kid, my mom, sister, and nieces - to go to Safari Park for Thanksgiving, which turned out to be a great idea, even if we really didn't do much walking or animal watching. Mostly we just sat and had a big charcuterie lunch and talked and mocked and it was kinda perfect. Darren joined us for his lunch break, and after we all left the park, reconvened at my mom's for the actual Thanksgiving hodge-podge dinner. Toby had strep throat all week, but we got him antibiotics so he was fine enough to partake in the activities. While he was sick, I was spending full days at the Zoo just to give him the run of the house and then I'd come home and wipe everything down with disinfecting wipes for good measure. 

I've always been a little notorious among my friends and family for breaking things and not just that, but everything all at once. So besides spending hours moving photo files off this laptop in case it does finally go caput, in the past couple months I also cracked my phone, got in a small car collision, and then my camera broke beyond repair when my backpack got soaked in rain when I worked at Quartyard last weekend. I ordered a new camera, which arrived today, and I probably should've taken advantage of Black Friday for a new phone and laptop, but I'm still recovering from the huge amount we spent on a rebuilt transmission for the van, so I'll keep my eye out and hopefully can work enough to offset a new phone before January. In spite of all that. things are pretty great. It's all just stuff, right?

II hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I'm gonna enjoy this weekend, but I'm so ready for Christmas. Wild Holidays has already begun at Safari Park, Christmas Celebration at Sea World is super festive, and the San Diego Zoo has Jungle Bells starting on December 9th (but extended hours have already started on select dates.)  The alpaca ranch I've been visiting, HazPaca, is having a holiday market the same weekend as December Nights, so maybe I can find a way to do both. I'm also traveling in December with my mom and sister and nieces, so I'm looking forward to going to a new place and seeing new sights for a few days. You know I'm already digging out all my Christmas gear I've bought on clearance over the past few years and can't wait for cold and rain and maybe even snow this year. On the other hand, Strep, Pneumonia, COVID, RSV, Influenza are all circulating. Stay safe and healthy out there. 

Love you all. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Friday, November 24-Wednesday, November 29: FEAR | Pleasure Pill | Capyac | We Are Scientists | Stevie Nics | John Waters | Spectre Jones |

Oh my goodness. I completely forgot that I was supposed to do listings on Thanksgiving but we all went to Safari Park and then did the family thing at my mom's and I never got around to it. So now it's almost 4 and I'm only get an hour in at the zoo. So I gotta scram. Listings after the jump. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, November 16-Thursday, November 23, 2024: The Ocean Blue | Durand Jones | Wild Nothing | The Japanese House | The Linda Lindas | Echo & The Bunnymen | Maná | black midi |

Me & The Ocean Blue at November 16, 2019

The Ocean Blue are playing the Casbah on Thursday night and to find a photo for my header, I looked back in my archives to see the last time they played. I also sold merch for them back then, and it was NOVEMBER 16, 2019!!! Exactly 4 years ago. So weird. Maybe that is planned, maybe they carbon copied their old tour and were just like, "Book it again! That went great for us!" but it's kind of a trip, no? It was an entire PANDEMIC ago. A whole different lifetime ago, it feels, in a way.

So it rained a lot of the day on Wednesday, I had a great zoo day, and though I was too late to see the gorilla boys, it was pretty empty and I sat with Aisha for nearly two hours undisturbed because she sat by me against the glass, pulling her burlap sack over her and just kinda hiding from passers by and the rain, like a little secret between us while I did my work. Darren came in the afternoon and it was nice to walk around in the rain, visiting some of our favorites. We then went to Toby's first pep band performance of the year during a girls varsity basketball game. I will admit I was digging through my photo archives a bit and it is so easy to get sidetracked, so now it's after midnight, I got a glimpse of my raccoon on the roof for a little bit, and now I'm ready to wrap it up, set these things to post in the morning and get some sleep. 

The weekend looks pretty chill for me, I have to work at the WIld Nothing show on Friday, but hopefully the rain takes a break or we could have to cancel the show...Quartyard isn't really safe to have an outdoor show in heavy rain. We'll see. If you have tickets, check Casbah's Instagram for updates. 

And we're also staring down Thanksgiving, just a week away. Darren will be working, so maybe I'll drag the kid up to the park for a few hours before we convene at my Mom's for a family gathering, our first without Dad. There are a million shows this weekend before the holiday, too, and I was really thinking this would all be in a diary post and not the listings, but at this moment in my life, time feels a little extra precious so laptopping just isn't top priority. Maybe I'll find that groove again. 

For now, listings are after the jump. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, November 9-Wednesday, November 15, 2023: Noah Gunderson | Joy Oladokun | Deap Vally | Small Black | Frenship | Soda Bar 15 Year Anniversary | Devo | Sun Kil Moon | The National |

I was tired of using the same stage photo week after week, since I haven't done any diary posts in a minute to separate posts, so this week you get this beautiful alpaca. I know the listings are mostly about music, but I'm being a little bitchy because I didn't get approved for a photo pass for The National, so instead of digging through my archives from one of the more than DOZEN times I've shot them to use for my for my header shot, I'm sharing this sweet alpaca from Hazard Alpacas, who are having their FREE monthly open ranch on Saturday. If everything goes according to plan, I'll hit the zoo in the morning and go to the alpaca ranch in the afternoon, then get back in time to see The National, without my camera. Or maybe I'll bring a point and shoot? I dunno. (By the way, if you haven't read this, do it NOW. Getting older, with — or without? — The National - NPR Music, 10.14.23)

Anyhow, I've been really focusing on having only good days, but I'm a little run down at the moment. I had Tim's 70th birthday on Sunday which was amazing, but let's face it, whenever Tim is involved, the tequila is flowing, so a hungover Monday wasn't the best way to start the week. I've been trying to do bursts of work in the mornings, maintenance while I'm at the zoo in the afternoons, and then family and work and everything else in the evenings. Darren and I went to see The New Pornographers at Music Box on Tuesday, for example, but after I ended up staying up till 5am on Wednesday morning doing these listings, knowing I wouldn't get them done on Wednesday night because I was working for Altın Gün and I still wanted actual sleep, had to do actual work, and still wanted to get some afternoon outdoor time in my day. Anyway, there's always *stuff* and I'm trying to manage but the longer I write this, the less sleep I'm getting. So I'll just say, there is a ton of stuff happening this weekend. Like, it's bonkers. And a ton of it is already sold out. Still, let me know if I missed anything. On top of everything, the Casbah had another week where we announced like a dozen new shows, so take a look and make sure to buy tickets early because all the January stuff is selling out within minutes or hours of going on sale. 35 years is a big deal. I'm looking forward to being a part of it. But I'm already exhausted thinking about it. And speaking of anniversaries, happy 15th to everyone at Soda Bar. What an amazing run it's been and it's getting better all the time. I may not go to shows like I used to, but I love knowing I live walking distance from such a kick ass spot and am proud to occasionally be one of the crew.  

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, November 2-Wednesday, November 8, 2023: Palehound | Monophonics | Delicate Steve | GIrl Ray | A Wilhelm Scream | Black Joe Lewis | MarchFourth | The New Pornographers | DURRY | Liz Phair | Helena Deland | Be Your Own Pet |

I had this crazy thought that if I did merch on Wednesday night, I'd sit there with my laptop and get listings done. Alas, besides actually selling merch, and going through a billion emails that are coming through (because I'm supposed to really ramp up my marketing for your show in February, even though we literally have at least 100 other shows between now and your date) I just couldn't. So that meant coming home and watching an Emily D Baker stream from last week while I got listings done. Which means it's now 4:30am and I'm exhausted and I'm gonna be pissed if I don't get up in time to see my primate pals, complicated by the fact that the van is back in the shop because that rebuilt transmission we got is giving us trouble (but thankfully all the work is under warranty and I can just catch the bus to the Zoo.) So, I don't expect I'll be updating these listings unless I find something super cool that I can't believe I missed. Otherwise, have a great weekend and if you're not subscribed to the Casbah newsletter, please go do that here (on the desktop site, it's in the top right of the page. On mobile, it's at the bottom after all the events) because we're making some massive announcements for our 35 year anniversary in the coming weeks and you don't want to miss presales and your chances to get your tickets to the ones that are definitely going to sell out fast. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, October 26-Wednesday, November 1, 2023: Halloween | Dia De Los Muertos | Interpol | Good Morning | OFF! | Geese | Men I Trust | Say She She |

I am aware that I am no fun. The only thing I like about Halloween is that it means we're getting closer to Christmas. Darren is pretty excited about the costume he's been planning all year, but I think with a Santa Ana expected on the day itself, he might have to retool his costume which involves a very heavy knit sweater. 

I do enjoy participating in Dia de los Muertos events, and with so much loss this year, it will definitely be more resonant, but we've never been traditional and had an ofrenda, so I'll just have to keep it in my head and my heart or visit others. I know people love this time of year, however, so I tried to gather as many events as I could for everyone to pick from. 

There are a ton of great shows -- with or without the Halloween element -- so it should be easy to find some fun this weekend. This is the first Interpol tour I've missed in a long time, but I know they're always incredible live. I'll be working tonight and tomorrow for comedian Leanne Morgan and I really enjoyed her Netflix special -- I'm right in her demo--, so those shows should be pretty fun (though they're already both sold out). Beyond that, it's the final weekend of HalGLOWeen at the San Diego Zoo and the Autumn Festival at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, so I will do my best to take advantage before hours cut drastically in November.  The usual suspects will have their big things to do this weekend -- kpbs, San Diego Magazine, and Pacific (subscription required) -- in case I missed anything. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, October 19-Wednesday, October 25, 2023: Memorial For O | Claud | Abraham Alexander | The Cult | Willi Carlisle | The Breeders | Ritt Momney | Atta Boy | Christopher Cross | Interpol |

I think I might have to reassess when I'm publishing listings. I've been starting them on Tuesday nights and then finishing on Wednesday night, but since Darren's only day off during the week is on Wednesday, it's kinda sucks to be up late working on Tuesdays if he wants to hang out or plan something for Wednesday. So it ends up that I'm here on my couch at 3:45am watching some snob New Yorkers freak out about preschool applications on RHONY2 as I work, and I dread that I won't be able to fall asleep the second I close this laptop. My actual work has been kind of insane this week so I felt tethered to my phone and laptop all day, even if I am sitting at the zoo while doing it. So I shall sleep and hopefully get a little break in the day, and then Darren, the kid, and I are going to see Claud at The Loft which should be fun since I haven't been there in a few years. I'll also be working at Ritt Momney on Saturday, and The Sound on Sunday. 

There are a ton of really great events coming up this week, and I'm sure I missed a ton of stuff, but the most important thing you should know is that there is a memorial for O on Sunday at the Sound. The "tickets" are free, though there is paid reserved seating, and I'm aware that there will be a couple bands and plenty of tributes and a lot of stories being told about such an amazing dude, and the loss we all still feel since he's been gone. If anyone reading this would like to volunteer for the event in hospitality or ushering or a few other things, I know they could definitely use the help to keep it all seamless. Reach out to me and I can connect you with the proper people. 

Stay safe out there. 

| COVID-19 | San Diego County District 4 Supervisor Election In Effect | Governor Newsom Signs/Vetoes A Boatload of Bills | Baby Tigers Debut At San Diego Zoo Safari Park |

Mama Diana and one of her tiger cubs at San Diego Zoo Safari Park (Taken 10.15.23)

I guess I haven't been writing much, so apologies for that made me go overboard with a super long header in the last listings. I'm gonna start working on this week's listings while I watch the Real Housewives of New York, since I didn't really know they've pretty much aired the whole season with the new cast. I guess I traded in Housewives for zoo animals, which are way better, but I can't have that all the time. Since the last one was long, this one will be short. I've been doing the usual, though I worked at Quartyard for Cheekface last week and I really dug their lyrical style, and Sunday I spent 12 hours at San Diego Zoo Safari Park, because I went up early with Darren and we ended up staying to do a cart safari and then spent nearly an hour with the platypus, whose enclosure lights turn on at 6pm. A pretty magical day. The highlight, of course, was seeing the Sumatran Tiger Cubs, who made their public debut over the weekend. A friend and I were tipped off that they'd be out around 10am, so we did Darren's early tram then staked our spots and had a sweet time just watching them play.  

Note, I had a lot of problems trying to upload photos, so I was finally able to do it from my phone, but I'll add more if/when the issue with Blogger resolves. 

Stay safe out there. Lots of kids hacking at the zoo makes me think a COVID surge is coming with Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Eve right around the corner. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, October 12-Wednesday, October 18, 2023: Bandalos Chinos | Richard Marx & John Waite | JMSN | Field Medic | Nickel Creek | Matt & Kim | Pkew Pkew Pkew | Jalen Ngonda | Angel Olsen |

I am beat. It's been a busy week of family stuff and birthdays and work and entertaining and I know the life of this laptop is coming to an end, so that's a whole other headache I need to deal with and start planning for because it's not gonna survive my daily zoo trips much longer. 

I always fit my zoo time in, but I also went to the El Cajon Oktoberfest at the German American Societies Club over the weekend with my family then got dragged to my niece's soccer. Man, I am glad our kid dropped out of that soccer life. It's so demanding and stressful, I don't know how so many parents do it, especially on competitive and pricey club teams, but that's neither here nor there. 

After my zoo time on Monday, I sold merch for corook at the Casbah, which was a pretty fun show. On Tuesday, my mom had to drop her vehicle in El Cajon to get some work done on it for a few days, so we were all over the county. We went to Miramar to visit my dad's grave. That's not really my thing...I feel my dad with me all the time and I don't need a marker in the ground to remind me of him, but it makes my mom happy so it was worth the drive. Afterward I dragged her to the zoo and she fell in love with my little langur and all the birds and my little Aisha. I took her back to Chula Vista, and then I probably shouldn't have gone shopping but I couldn't resist. I was so tired of driving and what better way to get out of traffic for awhile then to buy new shoes? 

On Wednesday I tried to crank out the listings and get ahead of work before I caught just an hour with the gorilla boys before Darren and I raced to Carlsbad to meet up with his cousin who was visiting from Geneva. I booked a tour at Carlsbad Aquafarm, where they sustainably farm mussels and oysters using the intake water at the desalination plant. It's a really cool cycle and system and the tour was very cool, and culminated with our guide teaching us how to shuck the half dozen oysters we got to eat at the end of the tour. Highly recommend this experience. 

Of course, that means I was on my phone while we hung out at the beach, making sure I was caught up with work stuff, which gave Darren a chance to catch up with his cousin. After that, we drove back south and I popped by for the last hour of zoo, and then spent Wednesday night busting ass to get the listings done. But I did them, even if I'm going to bed way later than I planned. 

My cousin is coming to town this weekend and I am working at Quartyard on Friday and have some other plans, so I don't suspect I'll be updating here much if I missed anything. I hope everyone has a really great week ahead.

Ohhhhh. And kind of a big deal...Casbah is a finalist for the Hometown Venues of Consequence thing and I had to answer all their questions, so check that out and GO VOTE for the Casbah. Like everyday.  

I love you. 

Stay safe out there. 

And RIP to my favorite walrus, Mitik, who passed away over the weekend. What a heartbreaker. 

Spooky Season Events at San Diego County Parks

This only covers COUNTY events, not CITY events, but some of you may find this useful. 
For more information, go here. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, October 5-Wednesday, October 11, 2023: Oktoberfests | Miniaturized | Lewis Black | Sure Fire Soul Ensemble | Owl City | Clem Snide | 98° | corook | Psychedelic Furs & Squeeze | Orions Belte |

I was working on listings on Tuesday night and then Darren started telling me how he was telling his friends at work about our experience at the LA Zoo and the Abandoned Zoo and for some reason, they all started telling him about the Big Bear Alpine Zoo, and suddenly we were trying to plan a day trip to go there on Wednesday. Spoiler alert - we didn't go. I still worked until 2 in the morning that night, and when my morning alarm went off (yes, I set morning alarms now) I snoozed it and decided there would be no road trip, that I had too much work to do, and that I would sleep in a little bit longer. So Wednesday ended up being a pretty typical work/zoo day for me, but after all my family stuff was done and I got back to doing listings...well, you can see there is SO.MUCH.STUFF happening this weekend. I used to really pride myself on covering everything, but on a weekend like this, I've certainly missed some things and I expect to be so busy that I'm definitely not going to update or put links to everyone else's listings here. So, forgive me. I did my best. And it's 4am and I'm wiped out and I would like to have a day on Thursday, so email or text if I missed anything obvious, but otherwise, enjoy the weekend and all the street fairs and Oktoberfests and live music. We live in a pretty amazing place.

Stay safe out there. 

Newsy Things & Rosey's Diary: Birthday Week | Order Free COVID Tests | West Nile In San Diego | Blue Envelope Program | LN Drops Merch Cuts In Smaller Venues | SD Is Greenest City In America | Your Baby Name Is So Basic |

Lauren Eve Mayberry at the Troubadour, Los Angeles (9.29.23)

I've been doing my best to be out and living life. I have a couple separate posts in the pipeline, but since it was my birthday, I've been online as minimally as possible. Obviously I've been at the zoo pretty much every day, except that Darren and I drove to LA on Thursday night and spent Friday at the Los Angeles Zoo, went to the Abandoned Zoo, hit a great street taco vendor near Silverlake, then went to WeHo for our show on Friday night at The Troubadour with Lauren Eve Mayberry, then drove back home. On Saturday I hit the zoo again before Darren, Toby (fka Nova) and I went to see The Tallest Man On Earth at the Observatory. I was starting to feel pretty rundown, but fought it off with fresh air, cold medicine, and a ton of tea and honey. I did COVID test just in case and was thankfully negative, but I have been back to carrying a mask and using it when it feels necessary. 

Sunday was the first night of HalGLOWeen at the San Diego Zoo, and I was loaded up with hot tea (Zoo hack: take a hot beverage tumbler and teabags and ask for free hot water from the concessions) and got to see some of the animals after dark as well as the amazing mariachis that play every hour at Sabretooth Grill. Now that it's October, I've been busting my ass to stay on top of work so that I can have freer days because Darren has been loading me up with behind-the-scenes Zoo tours. On Tuesday, I did a "surprise tour" which took us in the care specialist areas of the Koalas, Elephants and Giraffes, and on his Wednesday day off, we did Giraffe and Friends, which took us to the Hamadryas Baboons, and then again to Elephants and Giraffes, but which felt a lot longer and gave us a better and longer chance to feed the giraffes. I stayed until near closing, picked up my fam and we went to Chula Vista for my niece's birthday. My brother is also in town briefly, so all the cousins were together and we ate and talked and had cake and so now I find myself, once again, catching up on work after midnight. 

There's obviously a ton of nonsense happening in news and politics right now, but these are older links I collected and I'm honestly so sick of TFG and his whackjob party that while I pay attention to everything going on, I'd rather not platform or amplify any of it here. 

On the other hand, I will say THANK YOU, JOE BIDEN! If you have student loans that were in default, you can apply for FRESH START and it will wipe those negatives from your credit report and start you back into repayment status. In doing so, you also kinda get a free 30-45 days before repayment, even though technically repayment was supposed to start this month. I believe you can apply for FRESH START through the end of 2023. 

And also, they indicted someone for the murder of Tupac! 

Life is bonkers. 

Listings are coming. So are some other posts, but probably not tonight. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, September 28-Wednesday, October 4, 2023: The Chats | Coldplay | Odesza | Oktoberfest | Bad Religion | The Tallest Man On Earth | Local Natives | Brant Bjork | Moon Hooch | P!NK & Brandi Carlile | L7 | Sting | Rev Peyton |

Happy birthday to me! Yay. I've had a really great week and I finally feel like I caught up with work and things enough that I'm good taking off from my laptop for a bit. I feel like I deserve it because (besides work) I finally moved nearly 1TB of stuff off of it and then it overheated because I think the fan isn't working so that's gonna be fun to try to sort out and find someone to fix or drop a grand on a new laptop when I'd rather not. And also I got locked out of my password so there was a point where I was working on Darren's laptop, checking email on my Chromebook, and having to use two-factor authorization to get into it to move the data in the first place. So yeah. Besides the Casbah newsletter, I'm hoping to be offline as much as possible the next few days. 

My zoo days have been awesome, the weather has been perfect and it's been really empty before October "free kids month" returns. I'm certain that the apes are all empaths and I got a little birthday lovin from the gorillas, the orangs, the langurs, and a little head nod from Loretta, the bonobo. I hope to spend Thursday with them all again. The red panda cub has re-emerged from the den, so I've been able to see her a few times, and it's just been really nice being able to work on my phone and laptop when needed but walk and get steps in between. 

I'm super excited to go to the Troubadour to see Lauren Eve Mayberry from Chvrches on Friday...I bought the tickets as a birthday gift to myself when they went on sale, and I'm also super excited to see The Tallest Man On Earth at the Observatory on Saturday. You may not remember this, but the Casbah presented him at The North Park Theatre ages ago when it was first being renovated and still had seats. I worked the door and was blown away by him and stoked on the venue being reactivated for concerts. After that, I ended up working there for a few years for David as it evolved from The North Park Theatre to Observatory and it was a really magical time in my life. Anyway. Amazing stuff happening this weekend. Maybe I'll make it to Oktoberfest or some other shenanigans, too. Or maybe I'll treat myself to sleep. That's always good, too. I love you all. Enjoy this beautiful week. 

Oh...and remember how they shut down the I-5 South between the 8 and 163 for the whole weekend a few weeks ago? It's happening again, but this time on the NORTHBOUND lanes starting at the 15N origin at the 5 near National Avenue. It's supposed to be closed from Friday night to Monday morning, so plan accordingly. Check out more from Caltrans here. 

Stay safe out there. 

Thing To Do In San Diego: Thursday, September 21-Wednesday, September 27, 2023: Jockstrap | Ambar Lucid | Inspector | Super Girl Surf Pro | Sweeping Promises | Miya Folick | Adams Avenue Street Fair | Generationals | Goth Babe | Little Dragon | Coldplay |

I am super bummed I didn't make it to the Casbah last night for Fools & Fables because I really wanted to see my old pal Brian Holwerda, but it was my mom's birthday and we had a big old family dinner and by the time we were all done, I was knocked out and was in bed by 10pm. That also means I woke up at 3:45am so I could get these listings done. THERE IS SO MUCH GOING ON THIS WEEK!! Holy shit. We're gonna need a weekend after the weekend just to recover from the weekend. I always look forward to Adams Avenue Street Fair, and for the first time in several years, it doesn't look like it's gonna be a crazy hot weekend, which should make it much more tolerable (though you should still leave your dogs at home because it's gonna be nuts to butts). I won't get to see everyone I want to see, however, because I'll be working at Quartyard for The Generationals show. It's also a really good year to make it up to the Super Girl Challenge if you've never been, because Aloe Blacc is one of the featured performers. It's also CRSSD Fest with lots of CRSSD After Dark events, the Miramar Air Show might make driving up the 15 a challenge, and then two nights of Coldplay at Snapdragon will make traffic an issue around Mission Valley, though you definitely want to take the trolley if you're going for either night. 

My internet is driving me crazy so I'm gonna sign out for now. 
Stay safe out there. 

Newsy Things & Rosey's Diary: New COVID-19 Boosters Are Here | Point La Jolla To Be Closed Year Round | Waterfront Park Getting New Amenities | Student Loan Repayments Resume | Airbnb Has Ruined Everything |

Point La Jolla (Taken 7.16.23)

I guess I started this post a couple weeks ago and never posted, so I'll put this up before I get to my listings. I'm currently watching "Wilderness" on Prime and am super into it, so hopefully a good binge will help me get some work done. 

Things have been going pretty great these days. I've been working a lot which is good since the Zoo is back to closing at 6pm and I have the time. I'm not on any big fitness kick, but I have turned back on my Samsung Health step counter and have been doing really great if you don't count Tuesday, in which I spent the day recovering from Monday, when SDZWA had their annual Employee Appreciation Party. This year it was at Belmont Park and we had a great time, but after we got home I couldn't resist a little tequila and stayed up way too late. So I never made it to the Zoo on Tuesday, but I did sling merch for Cut Worms which was pretty chill for being a sold out show. 

Besides that, everyone seems to be doing good. Wednesday is my mom's birthday, her first without my dad, so we're going to have a big to-do to try and make it special and fun and steer away from the sadness. My birthday is coming up soon, too, and I'm looking forward to a trip to The Troubadour to see Lauren Mayberry, my gift to myself that I actually bought tickets for. 

Anyway, life is good, I'm gonna get back to this murder show and get some work done. I didn't choose to cover all the news of the past few weeks because, well, yawn, but new COVID boosters are out, so I'll hopefully be getting mine soon, and also the San Diego City Council voted to close Boomer Beach and Point La Jolla year round. I was not a fan when it was proposed because I had a little special cliff spot I loved to shoot photos from, but people are assholes and ruin everything for everyone else, so I completely understand why this is the necessary solution. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, September 14-Wednesday, September 20, 2023: PLOSIVS | Mrs. Magician | Wolfmother | Lucy's Fur Coat | Mo Lowda | The Pixies & Modest Mouse | Mapache | Yoke Lore | Cut Worms | The Baseball Project |

I really thought listings wouldn't take long this week, but I found it a little hard to focus and there's all kinds of stuff all over town -- as will continue to be the trend for the next 4 weekends or so --- because Local's Summer is on in a big way. So many beer fests and food fests and art fests and tastings and free shows and tours and...well, it's pretty exhausting. Get yourself the Pronto App, save money on rideshares and cabs and gas, and get yourself to shows. I'm a little North Park-centric, but Casbah, Music Box, House of Blues, Soda Bar, Til-Two Club, Observatory and a few others are all right on transit lines and NUMTOT-ing might be the hot new trend for bar hopping because otherwise it's so expensive to go out these days, just when all the best shows are coming to town. Try it. Maybe we can get bussing while buzzed to be the hot new thing (just don't be an asshole to your drivers or fellow passengers.) 

Be safe out there, buy your tickets, and do a shot at home before you go. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, September 7-Wednesday, September 13, 2023: Buddy Guy | Ocean Alley | Bit Brigade | Ocean Alley | Nate Bergatze | City And Colour | White Denim | Ben Harper | The Revivalists & Band of Horses | The Silent Comedy | Islands |

I didn't do a newsy post this week because it was a holiday weekend so all the news is either about the weather, TFG (yawn), or that COVID-19 is back on the rise and updated vaccines might get approval as early as this week (fingers crossed). Pretty boring though, in general, though, which is not a bad thing. The San Diego Zoo has gone back to normal hours, so right now they close at 6pm, and Sea World has gone back to 5pm on weeknights, so I have to work a little harder to get my work done and still get in my visits and steps. On the plus side, I'm not working on listings until 4am and I have a ton of Bravo shows to catch up on since I've not been watching TV much lately. 

This week has some great shows and it's fall festival season, so you can pretty much find free street fairs or events for the next several weekends, like ArtWalk, Adams Avenue Street Fair, Oktoberfests, etc. 

It is also worth noting that there's a pretty major freeway shutdown this weekend: 

Due to the scheduled bridge repair by Caltrans, southbound I-5 will be closed at I-8 from Friday, Sept. 8 at 9 p.m. to Monday, Sept. 11 at 5 a.m. 

I think it reopens where the 163 hits the 5 South, but the past couple weekends it wasn't completely closed, just down to one lane, which is still kind of a nightmare. Just take City streets if you're going to the Casbah or Waterfront or downtown in general. 

I hope everyone has a great rest of the week and weekend. My allergies kinda kicked my ass the past couple days but it seems to be under control now. Also, today is my dad's birthday, our first one without him, so he's in my thoughts even more than usual. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, August 31-Wednesday, September 6, 2022: 50 Cent | Sylvan Esso | Owl Be Damned | Ziggy Alberts | Senses Fail | Nitzer Ebb | Counting Crows | Weezer | Young The Giant | Nate Bergatze | Corteo |

As I mentioned in the last post, it's been a pretty good week, albeit hot AF, and I'm really really trying to take a long weekend so of course I'll be on my phone doing all the things expected of me, but I'm gonna try to enjoy the zoo, do some shopping, and generally lounge around. It's supposed to be a cooler weekend and I'm here for it. I don't know if I'l get around to updating this post, because inevitably people shoot me emails about things I missed, but just know there's a lot to do this weekend. Too much, in fact, to waste time sitting around online. 

Love you. 

Stay safe out there. 

Newsy Things & DIary: Goodest Boys Detect COVID | Watch Out For 'Pirola' | Lithium Battery Danger | The Fight For Restoring Endangered Species Act | Late Links On Hilary |

Denny (8.18.23)

It's time for me to do listings so I probably should've posted these links last week, but then Hilary happened (or didn't, really, thankfully) and I was posting like crazy, and then we were luckily spared but I've been busy with work and I did some side merch gigs three nights in a row and then this week has been hot and miserable, so sitting on my laptop has kinda been the last thing I've wanted to do, but it's always a way to clear the slate, get these things posted and then move on to listings. Old news in some cases, but new COVID variants news and other things, too. 

I will say again that the San Diego Zoo's summer hours are ending on Labor Day and this has been such a joyful summer spending time there, particularly watching 8 year old Denny the gorilla transition from his family group in the afternoons to his bachelor group with his brothers in the mornings. If you get a chance, go see them. It's a rare thing to be witness to and to watch his brothers teach him how to be a proper gorilla dude. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, August 24-Wednesday, August 31, 2023: Pleasure Pill | Chris Shiflett | Ugly Things Weekender | Bully | San Diego Fest | Michael Bolton | Justin John Rodriguez Benefit | Dogstar |

Justin John Rodriguez

I'm sorry these are a few hours late, but I need to jet, so if I missed anything, I'll update tonight when I'm working at Music Box. There's a ton of good stuff this weekend and kids are mostly all back in school and things are good, but COVID is up, so do what you gotta do to stay healthy. 

I love you. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, August 23-Wednesday, August 30, 2023: Listings To Come

I just wanted to do a quick post to let you know listings will NOT be posted at 6am on Thursday. I spent Wednesday at a Memorial for a close family friend and I lost steam afterward and couldn't finish. I'm halfway done with listings for the week and I hope to have them up before the afternoon, but I desperately need sleep. Sorry for the inconvenience. 

I love you. 
Stay safe out there. 

Hurricane/Cyclone Hilary : San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park, SeaWorld To Close Sunday | California State Parks Urges Public to Limit Outdoor Activities During Hurricane Hilary (Press Release) | Humane Society | Other Storm Stuff.

 So I'm sitting at Music Box while I sell merch and I'm checking email and watching socials roll in about the storm. It's like the two worlds. Half of downtown is raging like a regular Saturday night, and half of downtown has sand bags and boarded up windows and the City placed lines of sand bags and hay rolls around storm drains. It's super weird. I'm inside and have no idea what's actually happening outside, but I'm glad that we decided to fix the roof of our van and repaint it last year because otherwise it wouldn't be able to have handled the winter and spring storms, let alone what is expected from this one. Hopefully our studio can handle big rains and winds? Fingers crossed. I'm posting a lot on Instagram, kinda like I did with updates back in the day on this little site called Twitter before that sociopath took it over, but you should know that lots of events, particularly outdoor ones are being canceled or postponed. The San Diego Zoo, San Diego Zoo Safari Park, and SeaWorld are all going to be closed. Weirdly, as of 9pm Saturday, America's Finest City Half Marathon & 5K are still happening. I guess I'll be cracking open a freshie of Bulleit and sleeping in on Sunday. So far, San Diego Unified is still preparing to be open on Monday for the 2023-2024 school year, but if you're a parent, you should make sure you're opted into their texts by sending "YES" to 67587. Hopefully you have water in case ours gets tainted...that's kinda my biggest fear about all of this is our aged infrastructure causing the damage: backed up storm drains, downed power lines, water main breaks, backed up sewage mixing with potable water. Gross. Hopefully the warnings are all overblown, but I'm glad I'm a prepper nonetheless. I mean, I'll find any excuse to already be wearing my Chooka rainboots, because, hey, that storm could hit by the time I'm getting out of this show around midnight. And if the roads are undrivable, I have enough shit in my van to sleep a few days. (Joking, not joking.)  At the very least, charge your phones in case power is interrupted. I don't trust SDG&E for shit. And let's all pray our wi-fi doesn't go down. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, August 17-Wedneday, August 23: Ben Heyne 30 Years at The Casbah | Tab Benoit | Surprise Chef | Voice of Baceprot | Boy George | Os Mutantes | The Silent Comedy | Young The Gian & Milky Chance | Duran Duran | MMJ | Jason Mraz | Mt. Joy |

Ben Heyne Celebrates 30 Years at The Casbah

It's always a great feeling when I finish the listings and this week I switched up the picture because our sweet friend Ben is celebrating 30 years at the Casbah! I'm coming up on 15 in January and have had the joy of working with cantankerous Ben all these years. Thursday night will be a free show with awesome bands, but you should really just come down and tell him how awesome he is and gush about him because it will embarrass the hell out of him. 

There are a lot of great shows this week, but take heed of all the Hurricane Hilary warnings. I mean, come on. Really? A HURRICANE is going to affect San Diego? Well, maybe, and that means you should plan accordingly, maybe some of these outdoor shows could be affected so check your venues before you head out in case circumstances change or events are postponed. Watch out for falling stuff - trees, palm fronts, and the like, and maybe stay out of the ocean until this whole thing passes. And if it passes with no effects, great. But don't be the dumb-dumb driving in Mission Valley and getting a flooded car because you didn't heed the warning that the San Diego River could be gushing by the weekend. 

Be smart. 

Be safe out there.  

UPDATES: The free The Silent Comedy show at Moonlight Beach will be postponed with a new date TBA. The Wave SC game has changed start time, Padres have moved Sunday's game to Saturday at 12:10pm

Newsy Things & Diary: More COVID Eris Information | New National Monument | Hurricane Hilary Could Slam West Coast | Maui Fires Aftermath |

An Old Photo Of Devi, RIP

I'm not good at letting go of things. Grudges, either, but in this instance I mean actual things. I have diaries from junior high and high school. I don't dare read them because who needs that cringe in their adult life? But I know that I have them. Same with photos. Great photographers take lots of photos and know how to cull those photos; they know that there are photos nobody ever needs to see, especially in context of perhaps great photos taken in the same surrounding moments. 

I'm not one of those people. 

My laptop is running out of space (again) so it means that all the photos and videos I currently have on here need to be sorted by place or band or species or event or what-have-you so that when (if) I ever need to access them, I know where to look. But I'm not culling, only sorting. And I have A LOT of photographs. They track where I've been, what was important or funny or beautiful to me in a particular moment, and sometimes how fast I could adjust my camera settings to get a moment...like when I was shooting a concert or trying to get pictures of my roof opossum at night and then go to take photos of animals the next morning and now my settings leave me with overexposed gorillas or orangutans or capybaras. 

I don't mind having the external hard drives that will one day obsolete or unusable, but going through everything is quite a process and stirs up so much memory and emotion...the pandemic, Nova growing up, my doggy getting older, animals at the zoo, places I've been, travels, bands I've seen.

And then I start finding the markers of the passage of time. Bands that broke up or a band member died. Friends who've died. My sister-in-law and my dad dying and all the photos of the past, the holidays and gathering and the more recent funerals and memorials. I'm getting older. Death becomes a part of life. Last week my high school best friend's mom died and next week will be her memorial. Even though I hadn't seen her in years, it hits hard. 

It's a lot. 

So bear with me this week as I try to move at least half a terabyte off my computer, and then 100 gigs off my phone, and then try to keep it organized and keep it together emotionally, all the while watching the slow drip of transferring data from one device to another.

 

There was a ton of news this week, particularly the Lahaina, Maui fires and devastation and yet more indictments of TFG. I'm not linking anything about the latter, I just don't think that POS warrants any more bytes than I've already given in this sentence.  

Hurricane Hilary (hilariously names, if we're being honest) is perhaps coming. Be prepared. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, August 10-Wednesday, August 16, 2023: Donny Benet | Wild Child | Smashing Pumpkins | Cigarettes After Sex | The Spits | The Price of Dope | Lower Class Brats | Post Malone | Gipsy Kings | Fools & Fables |

So this week is looking up! The Adams Avenue Street Fair lineup has been released, I got to go to the Phoenix, Japanese Breakfast, Sir Chloe, and Beck show on Tuesday, and Darren is finally COVID negative (and he tested twice on different brands to be sure)!! And Nova and I didn't get it so we did a good job isolating even though it really, really sucked. I felt like I was living out of my van trying to make myself scarce around the house and we missed our 12 year anniversary but we spent Wednesday together at Sea World using my All-Day Dining pass that I earned doing their "Passport To Summer" promotion and testing the value of the thing, and if two humans can actually eat every 90 minutes. The answer was YES but one pass was enough for both of us (with leftover desserts and a chicken sandwich we brought home.) We only did a partial day, so I imagine it would be a whole other thing if we'd been there since opening or if we were there on a busy day, but it was pretty awesome and we definitely ate in excess of the value of the thing if we were to have purchased all the things separately. He'll be back at work on Tuesday and Safari Park late summer hours end this weekend, so head up there and ride his tram in the evening if you get the chance!

There's a lot of great stuff coming up in the next week and I know a lot of people are already back to school or preparing for it, so enjoy the last free days you might have but don't be afraid to bust out those N95 masks in busy indoor locations because "Eris" is no bueno and is extra catchy even if the symptoms weren't debilitating, at least for D. 

And, if you are here checking for event listings I guess I consider you insiders, so I'll tell you that the Casbah website and ticketing is going through some backend tweaks, not initiated by us, so the site may be a little wonky at the moment. Particularly shows that are SOLD OUT not showing as such and FREE events like Ben Heyne's 30th Casbah Anniversary Show and Adams Avenue Street Fair saying "tickets at the Box Office" when we know no Box Office exists. We're working on it and pushing to get it better, but bear with us while we figure it out.  

Stay safe out there. 

Newsy Things & Diary: COVID Variants Arcturus & Eris Dominate | Denny Diary | County District 4 Special Election | FDA Approves Postpartum Pill | SD Approves Streetlight Cameras |

 

Denny The Gorilla, 8.5 years old  (8.6.23)

I was scrolling through my old Instagram posts because I was trying to find the day that I decided that I was going to become friends with a gorilla. That first post was in February of 2020, just before everything shut down because of COVID. It wasn't the first time I met him, I have pictures of him over the years, including at just a few weeks old, but now was different. I had no idea then that this little gorilla would so quickly become such a huge part of my life and change me in so many different ways. 

Denny became a habit. I'm a bit obsessive about, well, everything, so when I decided that we would be friends, I adjusted my life accordingly. Not so much at first, but as I grew to "know" him and the rest of the gorillas at San Diego Zoo, and after the zoo reopened after COVID shutdowns, I was there as much as I could be. I mean, it has been a long time that I've been taking photos there or dragging my laptop around and plugging in to get work done, or dragging Darren so many times that he eventually decided to work for SDZWA, but suddenly I was compelled to be there at a particular time every day, or as many days as I could, to see him. Over time, this has meant gigs of videos and photos, but it has also meant meeting a whole group of interesting and diverse zoo friends, marginally better sleep and work habits, not as much drinking and fewer late nights. It has also meant fewer shows and participation in other life events, but the reality is I needed a little diversion from some things that weren't feeding my soul. I was burning the candle at both ends and it wasn't doing me any favors.  

It has also been emotional. I was with Denny when my sister called to tell me that she was flying to New Mexico because our sister-in-law wasn't expected to make it through the night; that cancer had taken over her body. Denny was at the glass and put his hand to mine as tears rolled down my cheeks. When just a couple weeks later, on Easter Sunday, my sister called to tell me my dad took his last breath, Denny pulled his burlap sack over his head and put his forehead to mine through the glass before I left to join my family. Last week, I was watching him interact with his parents for the last real time as I was on the phone finding out my high school best friend's mom was placed in hospice, where she would pass just a couple days later. We were on the phone for awhile before Denny came over, and I ended the call. "I have to go, my gorilla is asking to see my phone."

And it's all so weird. Darren has COVID, so in an effort to let him get real rest in our house, I've been spending full days at the zoo as much as possible. Part of that has been watching Denny as he's been moved from his family troop with his mom and dad to the bachelor troop with his three silverback half brothers. It was gradual until it wasn't. We all knew it would happen, just not so suddenly, going from Monday with his brothers in the morning to his parents in the afternoon to Tuesday only with his brothers. Full-time. And it's funny, Denny has been so readily accepted by the bachelors (mostly. Ekuba will come around) that I haven't really been able to snap any great photos of him. This one I chose is from Sunday, the 12 year anniversary of the day Darren and I met!! (and no, Darren doesn't get a post because we'll postpone any celebration until he's well and back in the world of the COVID-free.) 

I'm not trying to compare or conflate this gorilla growing up with losing my sister-in-law or dad or my best friend's mom, but it marks the passage of time. That we all get older. That time stops for nobody. That sometimes all we have is this very moment. But it's all this excitement about Denny and his life changes that makes it easier to accept changes in mine. So yes, Darren will get a full celebration. And I will mourn the loss of my friend's mom properly with her family. But for now, this little ape gets the love, because I'm a profoundly different human because of him.  

Stay safe out there.
Tell your people you love them.  

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, August 3-Wednesday, August 9, 2023: Tiki Oasis | Danny Elfman | Suzanne Santo | Ramy Youssef | Weathers | BLEACHED Festival | ArtWalk | Swive | Thr Good Life | Trombone Shorty | Beck & Phoenix | Noah Kahan | Donny Benet |

Ugh. Sooo COVID is back in my household. Darren woke up on Wednesday feeling like he had a terrible hangover. Only problem was he hadn't consumed any alcohol. He was a little perplexed then decided to test, and alas, those super dark double lines appeared. Of course, we share a household and a bedroom and space so I tested but so far I'm negative and have no symptoms indicating I may be pre-positive. Just Tuesday I was saying how we hardly see each other around here because Nova is off doing their thing and I'm always at the Zoo and Darren is always at work, and then I'm up super late in the living room while everyone else is asleep to make sure I'm all caught up with my actual job, plus email and all the stuff that comes with having this here website. When I do sleep, there's a fan blasting on me from one direction and an air conditioner from the other. All this to say, I really, really hope I can dodge getting COVID again. For now, Darren feels like shit and is isolating in our studio, and we've got fans and air purifiers and open windows and doors as much as possible. Still, it's a little shocking considering his job is like 96% outside. I am so sad for him. Having COVID is really isolating and lonely, besides it being scary and feeling like absolute crap for days. 

And I know this is supposed to be the part of my weekly listings where I mention all the amazing shows and events coming up this week, but the truth is that last week a friend of mine told me that half his friend group that went to Comic-Con tested positive, another friend was canceling his life because his household all tested positive, and you just start to hear about more and more people getting sick -- we're what, like 9 or 10 months past our boosters with new ones yet to be approved -- and testing, and thus public data are non-existent. It's kinda up to us to pay attention to this shit. Literally. (San Diego Wastewater Surveillance). 

Anyway, I always say "stay safe out there" but I mean it. Of course, because I'm a close contact I'm masking up again after months of being lax about it. I'm back on guard. But there are still lots of outside things to do. And I guess I'll be burning through tests in the meantime. Enjoy the amazing shows and events this week. But maybe give everyone a little extra breathing room and keep to well ventilated spaces.  

Stay safe out there. 

Rosey's Diary & Newsy Things | Clear The Shelters: No Fee Adoptions | Some County Parks Close For August: It's Too Hot! | COVID Uptick |

Tornero, an ambassador sloth, as seen at San Diego Zoo (8.2.23)

I'm gonna keep this week's post pretty short because all the national news is about the indictments of TFG and seriously, who cares? If he can still run we're all just stuck seeing his stupid face non-stop for the next year anyway. And then all the local news is about the so-called "camping ban" and we just have to hear that one 'homeless advocate" over and over talking about how nothing being done works but never hearing what he's ever actually offered to actually deal with the problem so that is, well, a giant yawn, too. Go read Voice of San Diego or KPBS news for all the back and forth on that ad infinitum. 

As for me, Nova is done with Upward Bound for this summer, so we have a couple weeks before their band camp and then school starts again. Darren is busy working his ass off at the Park and as you can imagine, the heat just takes it out of you so he's pretty beat when he gets home from work. I've been doing my usual and have a fun group of zoo friends I see pretty regularly. I worked both Lucy's Fur Coat Shows this weekend and Friday was a blast, but Saturday's crowd was...how do we say...weekend warriors? Not quite as fun but the band still slayed. My niece turned 16 so we also did a birthday thing on Monday and the rest of the time, I just stay out of my overheating apartment and try to get my daily steps and plenty of outdoor time. I'm gonna start listings tonight but we'll see how far along I get because I got a lot of sun today and it also really took it out of me. We're going to the Fred Armisen show on Wednesday, so I guess I better get the listings cranked out before that happens. 

Stay safe out there. If you have room in your home, go help Clear The Shelters. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, July 27-Wednesday, August 2, 2023: Hasan Minhaj | Lucy's Fur Coat | High Vis | Guster | Earthless | The Dollyrots | Yellowcard | Fred Armisen |

It's a really good thing that I got these mostly done on Tuesday because Darren ended up with a day off of work so we were completely non-productive and didn't do a damn thing all day in the heat until a little late afternoon visit to the zoo. There's some really great stuff this week and I'll be working at both Lucy's shows so be sure to say hi! Don't forget to hit the Devo presale that's currently running, too. Full listings after the jump.