Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, April 25-Wednesday, May 1, 2024: Neil Young | Emo Night Karaoke | La Lom | Art Alive | ArtWalk | Encinitas Street Fair | Adams Avenue Unplugged | Book Crawl | San Diego Music Awards | San Fermin | Yellow Days |

I'm not gonna lie, trying to get listings done in a timely fashion so they publish in the morning while also spending long days away from home because everyone else in my household is currently sick really sucks. It also kinda feels like I'm just planning on getting whatever non-Covid thing they have eventually, so I'm trying to stay on top of work and shopping and general adulting. So. Lots of stuff this week and weekend. Lots of San Diego Music Awards showcases leading up to the awards on Tuesday night at Humphrey's. Adams Avenue Unplugged, Artwalk, Book Crawl, Encinitas Street Fair...there's a lot!! I'll be working at the Casbah on Friday for the Emo Night Karaoke and can't wait to see what everyone sings and also be working at the Julia Wolf show on Sunday at Quartyard. Beyond that, I'm just gonna see which way the wind blows, drink a shit-ton of fluids and immune boosters, be outside as much as possible, keep the air purifiers running, and do my best not to get sick with this plague that some are calling "The 100 Day Cough". Also, Tim Fears did a photo post. Check it out. 

Stay safe out there.  

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, April 11-Wednesday, April 17, 2024: Sheer Mag | Trevor Noah | Bad Religion & Social D | The Hangmen | Lang Lang | Billy Joel & Sting | Schizophonics |

For a while I had been hearing that The Merrow had been sold, but this week is the first time I've noticed that a link to the old website now goes to the new name, EQ. I'll get around to updating my music venues page, but just know that EQ is FKA The Merrow. 

I started listings on Tuesday and finally went to bed around 4, then worked from the zoo all day Wednesday, then worked at the Chastity Belt show, then had to finish the listings, so I'm pretty wiped. I'm certain I'm missing a lot from these listings, so feel free to shoot me a DM on socials to tell me what's up and I'll update when I can. This weekend is the open ranch at the alpaca ranch that I love, I'm not including it in the listings but you can find it on Facebook if you search Hazpaca. I'll be going to the Bad Religion show with my mom, sister, and nieces on Friday, and have some busy weekend plans, but I'll try and manage my time and get all the things updated. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, March 28- Wednesday, April 3, 2024: Mike Doughty | Marnie Stern | Mary Timony | Skating Polly | Victoria Canal | Andy Frasco & The UN | The Vices | Melissa Etheridge | Torres | Adi Oasis | Madi Diaz |

Listings are done. I don't have a lot to say except there are some great shows this week. With Easter and family and all the things, I don't know how much I'll be out, but I will be working the Adi Oasis show on Tuesday at Quartyard, so say hi if you're coming by. Full listings this week are after the jump. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, March 14-Wednesday, March 20, 2024: Emo Nite | Karl Denson | Wild Party | Grace Potter | Shane Hall | William Fitzsimmons | Cold War Kids | The Lone Bellow |

I haven't put together a diary/links post this week because I've been out doing life. Darren gave up his second job so he can finally have some days off, and we took advantage on Monday by driving out to Jacumba Hot Springs Hotel for lunch, then doing a hike in Anza-Borrego along The Impossible Railroad. It was quite an adventure and probably one we wouldn't do again because the primitive road was kinda sketchy for our non-4x4 vehicle, but it was fun nonetheless, and the weather out there was perfect - sunny, but not crazy hot, some wind gusts but nothing a windbreaker didn't protect from. My week continued with all day at the zoo on Tuesday, where I learned my wi-fi was strong enough to do a Google Meet conference call. On Wednesday, I decided to go to work with Darren since he only had a five hour shift, and it ended up being pure magic. I spent a couple hours with the tigers before getting an impromptu behind-the-scenes peek where I got to meet some ambassador animals, including petting an echidna and watching a special session with Estrella, the sloth, and I even got to feed it. I didn't even end up doing the tram and after we had a white-Mexican dinner at On The Border. Not gonna lie, that endless enchilada deal was pretty good. 

This week continues to be great as all my usual work emails have slowed while every PR person is in Austin for SXSW and as we approach St. Patrick's Day and spring break. Seaworld (varies), San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park (9am-7pm March 16-April 7) will all have extended hours, so check their schedules if you plan on giving it a go. My favorite Alpaca Ranch has another open house on Sunday, so I'll probably head out there, too. 

As for music, there are a ton of great shows coming up. Humphrey's announced their full summer lineup and tickets go on sale this Saturday at 10am for ones that hadn't already previously been announced. Casbah has two nights with The Lone Bellow which is kind of a big deal considering the sized venues they usually play. Plus, if you love St. Patty's Day, there are events all over the county to get into some shenanigans, even though this year's OB event is canceled.

Have a great week. Stay safe out there. I love you. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, March 7-Wednesday, March 13, 2024: Gregory Alan Isakov | Forester | The Screamin' Yeehaws | Real Estate | Liily | Sam Outlaw | Birdtalker | OKAN |

I don't know about you, but I did not expect all that rain on Wednesday. I was prepared -- because January 22nd should've taught us all not to be caught off guard even when forecasters say just a 'chance of rain' -- but it was still a little more than I expected. It's not bad for me personally, but it definitely made me change plans. I was going to drive to Mission Valley during rush hour, completely forgetting about Gold Cup, but I guess in that way, the rain and traffic was a blessing because I just went home instead. Dumb errands can always wait.

This week I'm going to The Sound for Gregory Alan Isakov (with Damien Jurado opening!!) and going to see one of my kids' elementary school friends in Freaky Friday at Grossmont High. I want to see Real Estate at Observatory but I didn't really make any effort to make it happen, so that's probably a no-go at this point. I will say I'm sooo glad Super Tuesday is behind us and hope we get at least some reprieve from political ads for awhile. What a horrible nightmare shitshow those are. 

If you didn't see my last post, the HIPPOS have finally been moved back to their renovated habitat at the Zoo and the gorillas were back out today, too, so if you need to find me, I think you know where I'll be. 

Have a great week and stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, February 22-Wednesday, February 28, 2024: Husbands | Big Business | Ty Segall | Evan Dando | Great Lake Swimmers | Otoboke Beaver | KRS-One |

I stayed up all night on Tuesday to get listings done, while I watched all 8 episodes of Fool Me Once on Netflix. The minute I finished, I regretted not including February 29, because next week is Darren's birthday, Evan Dando is in town, and we're hoping to all go to the Arlo Parks show on Thursday and have some celebrating in between, so I don't know when I'm gonna have time to carve out for listings. But I'll do it, of course, that's what I do. 

I just finished a diary post, so I don't have much to say except that there are way too many good shows this week for me to get them all in my title, and I also included the Audobon's Bird Festival because it's really fun and there are plenty of free parts you can attend without paying for festival registration, even if it's just to check out their pop-up book store or the trade show, which always has a gazillion amazing cameras, binoculars, and lenses to check out. And who doesn't love bird merch? I mean, come on. 

I'm tired and want to have a productive Thursday, so I'm off to bed. These listings will see you in the morning. 

Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do in San Diego: Thursday, January 18-Wednesday, January 24, 2024: Cayucas | Mayer Hawthorne | No Knife | aMiniature | Tomcat Courtney Memorial | Ozomatli | Y La Bamba | Pinback |

I didn't go to the zoo on Wednesday and instead spent the entire day slowly doing listings because I finally caught the funk. It's not COVID, it just feels like a cold, nothing Alka Seltzer Plus and Nyquil can't quash, but I figured if I'm bitching about parents bringing their sick kids to the zoo, and they in turn get me sick, I have to at least try not to go and get everyone else around me sick, too. So a day of rest, and green juice and effervescent tabs and nearly four hours of the Murdaugh hearing and I'm wrapping up my night and ready to go to bed. I just got word that JJUUJJUU has to cancel their Thursday night appearance at the Casbah so it sounds like we're canceling entirely and will be closed for the night. I expect this was a quick 24-hour knockout and I am willing myself to be better and able to rejoin the world on Thursday, and ready for my merch gigs on Saturday and Sunday.

Stay safe and healthy out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, January 11-Wednesday, January 17, 2024: Casbah Day 2024! | Neil Hamburger | The Dragons | Sum 41 | Tommy Castro | Talib Kweli | The Beat Farmers | Memorial For Otto | Dessa | Buck Meek |

This week has been a little busy so I'm feeling pretty behind in work at the moment, but I had to get listings done. The Music Box had a holiday/staff party this week and it was pretty great. It was a casino night at the Carte Hotel rooftop, so I had great fun playing blackjack most of the night. Also this week, San Diego City Council proclaimed January 12th, 2024 as Casbah Day in San Diego in honor of the 35 year anniversary, so although there wasn't much fanfare in council, it is still pretty cool to be a part of that.

 

I will say that I'm a little irritated with San Diego at the moment for having two horrible events this weekend. I can't believe a place called PETCO PARK would play host to a goddamn rodeo, an event completely devoted to animal cruelty. This is why stadiums shouldn't get one fucking dollar from the cities in which they build. Meanwhile, Snapdragon is getting demolished by Monster Jam, a stupid event borne of destruction and the weird worship of truck culture. It's gross and I don't understand how hauling 26 Million pounds of dirt is even allowed in light of the Climate Action Plan and the fucking waste of it all just makes me insane. 

I'll be at the Casbah all weekend selling 35 year anniversary merch, so if you have tickets to the Dragons or The Beat Farmers, pop over to my table and say hello. 

Stay safe out there. 

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 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.  

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, 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. 

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. 

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, March 23-Wednesday, March 29, 2023: Andy Frasco | Adi Oasis | Delta Rae | David Cross | Copeland | Mustache Bash | Beabadoobee | Daniel Rodriguez | Vanessa Carlton |

It's a big week with a ton of sold out and almost sold out shows, so my recommendation to you is to get used to buying your tickets in advance because our small venues are on fire right now. Casbah has continued to announce a bunch of new shows, including Bully, Manic Hispanic, and The Amalgamated but probably the biggest news this week is that The Boss, Bruce Springsteen, announced a San Diego show on December 2nd at Pechanga Arena, with tickets on sale Friday. I'll be working at the Delta Rae show on Saturday, going to beabadoobee on Monday, and might check out Vanessa Carlton on Wednesday since I haven't seen her since Sunset Sessions a million years ago. And Darren wants to go to Andy Frasco, but seeing as I'm finishing these listings at 5:45am, I'm going to try to get some real sleep. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Thursday, December 8-Wednesday, December 14, 2022: The Sheepdogs | JVN | Hembree | Chelsea Handler | Schizophonics | Tiltwheel | The New Pornographers | The Woggles | Harry Connick, Jr. |

Ugh. It took me all day to do these listings. It's way easier to do in the middle of the night without distractions, but they're done. I'll sprinkle in anything else I see that comes up, but know that San Diego Zoo will now be open until 8 starting on Friday, Safari Park has Wild Holidays on select weekend dates and they're open until 7 on those nights, and Sea World is having their Christmas Celebration with entertainment, too, so they're open later on select dates (and unfortunately doing fireworks for several days). There's some really fun stuff happening this week as far as live music goes. Check Pacific SD for even more holiday stuff that I'm not listing here. 

Flu and Covid are still on the rise. Stay safe out there. 

Things To Do In San Diego: Wednesday, August 10-Tuesday, August 16, 2022: She Wants Revenge | Tones and I | The Regrettes | Shamir | Creepy Creeps | Trombone Shorty's Voodoo Threauxdown | Tchotchke | Robert Plant & Allison Krauss | MUNA | Durand Jones |

Today I saw a friend post about being completely non-functional during the daytime and I was feeling it and comforted that I'm not the only one. I looked over at my air conditioner wondering why it was not cooling the room, even after sundown, and one of my jerk kittens had stepped on it and set the temperature to 79. 79!! Now it's back to 64, unfortunately as low as it goes, and I was finally able to get this week's listings done. They may not have all the music news and announcements - I tend to get a lot of updates on Thursday and Friday after I publish, but check back and there will be more, I'm sure. 

Stay safe out there. 

CoViD-19 Mistaking 'Open' for 'Safe' | Missing 'Weak Ties' | Late Night Twitter Wars | Twisting Words | COVID Is Still Deadly | Mayor Gloria Hosts Vaccine Town Hall (VIDEO) |

My Trees Have Now Been Slaughtered (Taken 12.9.2020)

Darren and I were totally gonna rage last night and of course, we both zonked out. Unfortunately it meant I napped at night and ended up waking up and watching Friendsgiving on Netflix which was pretty funny. I ended up going to bed but just endlessly scrolling through my phone and discovering late night Twitter. I got caught up with university and government epidemiologists fighting over school openings, Biden diehards joining with trolls lighting up a hashtag of #BlueMAGA, the idea that basically Biden is the same as T***p and lied about $2,000 checks, and people outraged over Governor Cuomo and Governor Newsom. I have a lot to say about all of those things, but I'll throw them after the jump and just keep it simple here. 

I ended up staying up all night, finally falling asleep around 8am, which I guess was ideal because then the developers came and cut down our trees. Darren made sure to vacuum, run my fan and air conditioner, and generally make noise so I wouldn't hear them and go chain myself to the trees or shoot arrows at them. By afternoon, Darren got Nova from her sleepover and it's been a pretty normal Monday. News is still bonkers, but what can we do? It will be this way for some time. I may skip tomorrow's media briefings because we have our San Diego Zoo reservation, but we'll see. Stay safe out there. 

COVID-19: Cases Decline But Deaths Still High | SD Resumes Parking Enforcement | County Attempts To Improve Vaccine Distribution | Stop Saying Schools Can Reopen |

Monkey Puzzle Tree (Taken 1.28.2021)

It is safe to assume that everyone wants kids back in school. The differences of opinions have been about how and when it is safe to do so. So the other day, the CDC shared a study saying that schools can reopen with specific safety precautions. The problem is that this was not a guidance or recommendation or even an endorsement, but every single media outlet took it as such. That's why it was so refreshing today to hear Press Secretary Jen Psaki emphasized this point and also the fact that the study was based on one school in rural Wisconsin. What they also aren't talking about is that the actual age of a school matters. If ventilation is one of the highest determinants of spread, newer modern buildings have a clear advantage. Are my nieces safe to go back to High Tech High sooner than students who go to my alma mater Hilltop High which was build decades ago? Probably. But even then, the time isn't here yet. Especially since teachers aren't getting vaccinated until the next tier (after the 1.2 million health care workers and 65+) and students under 16 can't even get vaccinated until the studies are done and vaccines approved for kids. The news channels love to get people riled up and make them think opening is in the near future and then show the outrage when they are reality checked and told that it is not. It is incredibly frustrating. 

I've been thinking of questions I would ask at media briefings and would hope that I would come off better than some of the idiots who get the privilege of calling in. I would ask Dr. Ghaly if the 4 week ICU projections include hospital rooms at normal function or are they including the surge beds, where non-traditional spaces have been converted to hospital beds and ERs turned into additional ICU capacity. Does it also include the waivers so that staff can be more thinly ratioed from 1 nurse to 2 patients to 1 nurse to 3 patients. 

I would ask Nathan Fletcher if there is a plan for homebound seniors like my dad, or the people receiving the 92,000 daily meal deliveries through the Great Plates program to be vaccinated and if so, how they can sign up for such a program. 

I would ask Governor Newsom to speak about the issues with EDD and when the "reopen claim" glitch will be fixed on all accounts, and I would also ask him to speak about filing for Covered California when people have been on unemployment for nearly a year and their income is likely to have dramatically changed from prior years. 

Today's briefings were pretty interesting so there are a lot of notes if you're interested what is coming from the president's office and San Diego County Board with regard to vaccines and variants and all that stuff, check the notes below. 

Nothing really new around here. Apparently my trees will be coming down this weekend or by Monday and we'll have a new fence by the end of next week. I'll believe it when I see it. It was a really beautiful day today, so we did spend a lot of time in the backyard enjoying the trees while we still have them and I took dozens of photos so I could have them forever. We talked to my parents and Nova will be staying with them on Sunday so she doesn't have to do distance school with all the construction noise while they break up the asphalt currently covering the lot. We continue to stay home, but I am getting more and more excited about our San Diego Zoo and Safari Park reservations next week. 

Quote of the Day: "In terms of executive actions, he also ran with a commitment to take steps immediately to address the pain and suffering that the American people were feeling, and that includes overturning some of the detrimental, harmful, and at times immoral policies and actions of the prior administration." - Jen Psaki (when the 5th or 6th reporter asked about Biden's executive orders being contrary to his claims of 'unity')