CoViD-19: A Summary of Hiking Closures

A View of Point Loma from Coronado, taken 12.28.2020

The other day I said I wouldn't post comments from a private group, but I thought this one was important. This is from Nick Gee, admin on the group San Diego Hiking Society, posted Marcg 24 around 9am. This is a constantly evolving situation:

There are numerous updated and current posts about closures to specific areas and lands managed by every agency present within San Diego County. County parks and preserves are still open, except those closed for rain damage. City parks and reservoirs are all closed. Torrey Pines State Reserve is closed. Carlsbad parks and beaches are closed. State parks like Cuyamaca, Anza-Borrego, and Palomar Mountain are open for hiking but not camping in developed campgrounds. Other wilderness areas, state conservation areas, and wildlife refuges are open. National parks like Cabrillo are open for hiking. Cleveland National Forest is open, though the two popular waterfall trails, Three Sisters and Cedar Creek Falls are closed to hiking. That's a comprehensive breakdown of current conditions on Tuesday morning, March 24th.
"The Trails" do not exist on their own. "The Trails" are a product of political acts made by many different agencies and public government entities. We really need to realize this for our future decisions of land use and jurisdiction for public lands and utilities, and private lands that surround them. Let's get serious about our hobby when this is over.

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CoViD-19 Diary: My Life During A Pandemic

Things have no doubt been crazy for everyone. I've been busy trying to keep up with information and posting that information, because I guess that's how I respond during crises. But like everyone, we're dealing the best we can. We have no shortage of food over here; I grew up in a house with four closets converted to pantries, two chest freezers, a full size fridge and three mini-fridges dispersed in various rooms around the house, so to say that it's ingrained in me to be prepared for anything is an understatement. Which is why I'm still so pissed we didn't get more toilet paper when we could. Where the fuck is all the toilet paper??? I was literally looking at an old CityBeat thinking, "hello, future toilet paper."

more after the jump.

CoViD 19: No School, No Work. What are we going to do?

People often comment on how much I go out, but I don't think that the reality of what a homebody I am is evident to everyone. But I am. I binge a lot of TV. I read a lot. I can stay in pajamas all day and all night. Financial concerns aside (because if there aren't emergency funds or reprieve for renters, we are effed) it isn't that hard for me to be asked to stay home. However, with all of us home, we are going to be right on top of each other, all day and night, for the foreseeable future, so here are some thoughts of ways we hope to ease this time. In lieu of listings this week, I give you #socialdistancing in San Diego:

Set Your Sights on the San Diego Zoo Safari Park

It is such an exciting time to be a member of the San Diego Zoo, which includes admission to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Valley Center. While membership fees have been steadily increasing over the years (while losing perks on general membership like the free guest passes that came with every adult membership), it's still a worthy and worthwhile purchase for San Diego County residents (Zip Codes 91900–92899.) I'm shocked by how many locals gave up on the old "Wild Animal Park" years ago, so if you haven't been in awhile, it's time to reconsider. You want to make sure to have at least one family member at the Keeper's Level so your Safari Park parking is always free (as opposed to $15 per visit) and at that level, you get the choice of two adults in the same household or one adult + one guest every time you go to either park. The African Tram, Cheetah Run, and the Australian Walkabout are all included in admission.

More info and lots of photos after the jump.

San Diego Summer: Family Outings, Summer Camps, & Things For Kids To Do

Nova has already finished 6th grade. Last Friday was her last day of school and we're in full how-to-occupy-her-time freak out. How are we going to keep her busy and prevent her from saying the forbidden word (B-O-R-E-D) when we still have to work around here? A couple years ago I did a post about Summer Camps because I was busy researching for her, but now that she's 12 (and spends a month in St. Louis during the peak of summer vacation), we tend to find fun stuff to do more readily, but I still thought I'd update this post for other parents out there who might be hunting for ways to keep the kids occupied. I'd love to hear your favorite spots or camps in the comments. And we'd love to be invited to your pools on a moments notice. Lists after the jump...

Recap: The In-Ko-Pah 4 Weekend

A few years ago, I was invited to a weird ass festival in Jacumba around the hot springs. The music was cool, but it was mostly high teenagers trying to bum booze, I was laughed at when I checked in for a press pass, and it was unbearably hot and dusty, resulting in us staying for just a few bands and returning home before sunset. If only those people had it half as together as The In-Ko-Pah.

I knew The In-Ko-Pah wasn't at the same location and found an article online to be helpful in giving us some idea where we were going. It was hotter than we expected in the desert this past weekend, and there was music, but that's where the similarities of the two events end. The In-Ko-Pah takes place at The High Desert Tower, a privately owned property in Jacumba, just north of the 8 freeway off exit 77. You know when you go somewhere or do something and you can't believe you never did it before and you kinda kick yourself? That's kinda how I was. I was just in awe the whole time, from the location to the participants to the attendees to the amenities and planning, it was just an incredible experience. I'd heard that the wind was especially brutal last year, so it was probably best that we waited to pop our cherry this year, but still, I can't believe I ever missed it. The In-Ko-Pah was an amazing experience.
Read more after the jump.

Troy Johnson's Family Outing- More Reviews

Reviews are trickling in little by little about Troy Johnson's hilarious memoir, Family Outing. It's funny how you recognize media consolidation when the same review appears on a dozen newspaper sites, but I guess that's the way of the world. It's like the time I was at dog park and was interviewed about the Bush administration's policy of listening in on international calls without search warrants. I thought I was being interviewed for North County Times and ended up on websites nationwide as an AP article, saying,

"Not so fast, says Rosey Bystrak, who works for an architectural firm in
San Diego. "Bush thinks he's a king and not a president, so it doesn't surprise
me," she says, referring to the recent revelation that after 9/11, the president
authorized the interception of communications between the US and other countries
without a judge's approval.

Yeah, that was weird. For a time, if you Googled my name, it came up in hundreds of papers with the same quote. Had I known that, I might have attempted greater eloquence of my political position. Turned out the guy interviewing me was the son of a teacher at my elementary school, so he took me off guard. Still, the more widespread the reviews for Troy Johnson, the better, because the book is so good, he deserves all the attention.

From Bay Windows, Windy City Times

Troy Johnson’s new book Family Outing is a scathing, funny, ribald case study in what can go wrong when that honesty and openness are missing. At 10 years old, in the middle of the Reagan era, Johnson found out his divorced mother was a lesbian when her ex-girlfriend outed her. His descent into juvenile delinquency, alcohol, and heterosexual promiscuity might seem like proof of the ultra-right’s assertion that LGBT people shouldn’t have children, but Johnson makes it clear the root causes were the secrecy, homophobia, and shame imposed by society, not his mother’s sexuality itself.

The book chronicles his journey to this realization without sugarcoating his own initial bigotry. Instead of "feel-good psychobabble about ’embracing our differences’" he says, "someone needed to say exactly what a shallow, self-absorbed teenager thought about the situation while he was experiencing it." He spends most of his adolescence trying to reassure himself he is not also gay. His chapter on COLAGE is titled "Freaks Everywhere." Even in the early chapters, though, he weaves in pointed observations about homophobia and religious bigotry that hint at a transformation to come: "One day you’re nodding along [at church], going ’Yep, they’re going to hell. Yep, them, too. Fry those suckers!’ Then the next day it’s ’Yep, they’re going, too - wait, what? Mom?"

This is a story of personal growth and redemption, a tale of coming-of-age as well as coming out as a member of an LGBT family. Johnson’s message is stronger because he never makes the process seem easy.

From Gay Bee

Family Outing tells the story of the angst-filled teen years of a young man coming to terms with having a lesbian mother. To make matters worse, the way he found out his mom was gay was less than ideal for any kid. The cards were stacked against him having a healthy, open relationship with his mom. Family Outing details his journey from that place into one of more open acceptance and understanding. Beneath all of the pain and acting out, however, is simply a kid who loves his mom and wants to feel safe. It’s a theme we can all identify with. Family Outing is very well written and humorous. The author has a fresh, sarcastic way of communication, and in telling his own story he comments on society at large, our strengths and our shortcomings.

If you haven't read it yet, pick it up. Honestly, its a quick read and you'll be done in a couple days and you'll love it. Everyone's a voyeur in some way, and Troy invites you right in.

Troy Johnson: Family Outing

The night before I took off on my vacation, I had a pretty full evening. The first stop was at Barnes & Noble in Mira Mesa to check out Troy Johnson's book reading.



I already wrote about how much I loved the book, but you can read some more reviews below.

CityBeat

Edge (Boston, MA)

Troy on "These Days"

LesbiaNation

Troy's Book Reading Correction

Just wanted to point out that at 7:00pm, Troy Johnson will be doing his book reading at Barnes & Noble in Mira Mesa (not Border's).

Family Outing: Due Out June 16

I mentioned that last week, Troy Johnson stopped by to drop off a copy of his memoir, Family Outing: What Happened When I Found Out My Mother Was Gay that is coming out on June 16th by Arcade Publishing. I've been meaning to write about it because I could not put it down and finished it in just a couple nights.

As most San Diegans are familiar with Troy from his days at CityBeat & FoxRox, as well as his Padres pre-game show and now the gameshow on Channel 4, I imagine most people who know Troy might read the book a little different than someone who doesn't know him. As a friend, it was hard not to feel like I was secretly reading a friend's diary. And as we're used to the way he speaks, it was hard not to feel like Troy was reading me his own diary, as it is very much written in his immistakable voice.

The book takes you on a time travel through Troy's life growing up- all of his insecurity and arrogance, sensitivity and brashness, chauvanism and adoration of women. It follows a general time line starting back when he got the news (quite awfully and awkwardly, I might add) but some of the chapters move quickly through time when related to a specific theme, like being sent away then references to how that time affected him in his later years. It's perhaps heartbreaking at times but easy to know that Troy is all good now (er, relatively :) makes some of those awkward and cringeworthy moments outright hilarious. As for his relationship with his mom, I'll let you read the book for all of that, but it's all very relatable; I mean especially when you're a tween, you're not really supposed to like your parents all that much anyway, then you grow up and realize you wouldn't have had it any other way.

Congrats, Troy, you wrote yourself a great first book.

Check out the MySpace page and catch one of the readings if you get the chance:

Jun 12 2008 7:00P "FAMILY OUTING" reading @ Barnes & Noble Mira Mesa
Jun 18 2008 10:30A "FAMILY OUTING" on "THESE DAYS" (KPBS 89.5FM radio)
Jun 19 2008 7:00P "FAMILY OUTING" reading @ Borders Mission Valley
Jun 20 2008 9:00P Book Release Party @ The Whistlestop (w/ Joanie Mendenhall and Angela Correa)