Words and pictures featuring music, vegetarian food, gardening, real estate, sports, art and travel - including all the tasty, exciting, unique, weird, (and sometimes bad stuff) that America has to offer!
...beer and wine. In a 'restaurant impossible' style move, workers have been tearing everything out and re making it to be completely new, included in this, is a new fenced off patio area. Sources tell me that this Starbucks location at 27315 jefferson avenue, temecula california; will be one of the new concept stores where they serve beer and wine after 2 pm.
Temecula, CA – Going to music shows around town is a splendid way to keep up with friends I’ve made in the band scene. The ever-changing tapestry on which the scene is painted and listened to never fails to delight in the most uneXpected ways. Take for instance a weekend night not long ago. It was a 7-band night at The Vault but only two of the bands listed were familiar to me. One I had just recently seen at a Tilted Kilt show so the only old acquaintance of the night I hadn’t seen for awhile was Bloodtype G.
One of the valley’s premier Christian bands, BTG plays both in the Christian music realm and the secular world, moving crowds to a hearty style of prog rock/rap with uplifting lyrics. Usually you can tell the band is in the house by the presence of the biggest, coolest, massively lifted Evening Blue pickup truck with the landing lights in full array. As I strolled up to the Vault’s parking lot, I knew the band was in the house.
Bloodtype G the band go back a long way in the scene. You see, Sports Fans, the music scene here is a crossroads for all genres and styles. From purely secular to just shy of a full-on choir, the many bands come in all shades. The Christian shade brought a trinity of well-received, extremely talented bands/entertainers to the forefront in T-town. That trinity would be Elizabeth Amirian [”Bipsy”], Souljourners, and Bloodtype G. In fact, Charles Cook [Prog C, lead guitar] sat with Keirah Robbins and me at Bipsy’s funeral. A song entitled ‘Battlecry’ on the initial CD release by BTG is dedicated to the beloved Bipsy.( Battlecry is the title of the posthumously released Bipsy CD.)
Since I run into Charles from time to time around town as he is the most socially known person in the band to me, we started to catch up as soon as I walked into the Vault’s door. It was great! But besides finding out that Elanna Brockenborough’s [vocals] brother David [Souljourners] was filling in on bass for BTG now, Charles had other big news about a new band sponsor, Synchbands.
Dancing around to show the flexibility of his black tennis shoes, Charles was quick to point out that his shoes could demonstrate this action because he had replaced his shoe laces with elastic bands that resembled shoe laces only superficially. Blinking, I had to take a second look. Sure enough, what looked like ultra-cool, stylish hipster shoe laces were actually these colorful bands of elastic weave cinched through the eyelets.
“They turn your shoes into slip-ons, and they are really comfortable, especially onstage. We [the band] are all wearing them,” said Charles.
I turned and looked at the other band members’ feet as they finished their load-in. though they all had their stage face on, Hashemi [lead vox], who rarely smiles before a performance, Nicky G, who seems invisible except behind his drum kit onstage, Elanna, and David flashed a quick smile as if they knew Charles and I’s conversation. Standing by the rail for the exciting stage show from the band and seeing the group is now more into a rock mood with metal fringes than prog rap these days, the shoes and their cool look did seem to give their feet wings. Heavenly faith, Red Bulls, or the new sponsor? See Bloodtype G live and you make the call.
Though to paraphrase Monty Burns, “I really like the shoes.” It’s a good look.
Temecula, CA – First let say that what happened in Colorado at the Premiere of The Dark Knight Riseswas bullshit and totality tragic. Everyone here at the Calendar is shocked and saddened by this latest senseless public shooting of people trying to enjoy themselves at a special event. It is like evil is trying to rain on every parade and for many people including myself, there is no logical sense to it. Trayvon Martin’s shooting was tragic but in the context of having police connections, traditional racism, and a ‘wanna be’ mind frame, it all made sense. I do hope Zimmerman gets justice. But this act was senseless beyond reason. Like the Norway shooter on trial now, the suspect with Vicodin in his system calmly walked along shooting people like he was varmint hunting.
Also like the Norway killer, James Holmes surrendered and so we may have some closure from finding out what his motive was for the rampage. I read some kneejerk reaction from some Texas politician who asked the question, “Didn’t anyone else in the theater have a gun?”
Well, reading the unfolding back story suggests that even if everyone at the theater was packing as much heat as Biggie’s bodyguards, it would have been to no avail. Holmes was protected head to toe. Nothing outside a .357 or an elephant gun would have caught Holmes attention. This guy is smart; twisted like his mentor The Joker,a fictional character Holmes seemed to fixate on.
Another creepy thing is that in the comic book series from which the movie title comes from, there is a theater shooting at a Batman porn theater that leaves 3 people dead. Perhaps the most puzzling thing to me though is the story about the young aspiring female sports writer, Jessica Ghawi 'Redfield'.
Reading her back story, I was moved by the ‘warning/feeling’ she got that tipped her to leave the Toronto Mall food court almost seconds before a gunman started shooting there, killing some people there maybe a little over a month ago. For me I couldn’t get past the writer being warned about one life-threatening event but not the other only 30 days later.
I discussed this with my close friend who also saw the movie The Adjustment Bureau. The short story called ‘Adjustment Team’ by Philip K. Dick from which the film derives asks the question do we control our fate, or do unseen forces manipulate us? Matt Damon stars in the thriller. Talking to my friend I noted that an angel comes to Mary and specifically request that the expectant mother name her forthcoming son Jesus. Was Mary going to name him Thomas or Herschel or something?
My friend said that probably her family took a moment to reflect on their daughter’s strange close call. That extra month provided that moment to stop and appreciate her.
I thanked my friend but his explanation didn’t quite scratch that itch. I still could not make heads or tails from the month of extra life granted to this young promising writer. I mean after warning her out of harm’s way only a month earlier, WTF?
Magic is a funny thing. Many years ago I asked a witch how magic worked during my first actual writing position in the 80s. She said, “You put a desire out to the Universe and the Universe answers that desire.”
About an hour after I had talked to my friend, my ex-wife called; ‘the witch’ as my valley friends call her from my past tales of wonder. So I put the question to her that I had asked my philosophical friend to shed some light on. Almost without missing a beat she answered,
“Everyone has a time. Canada [Toronto] wasn’t her time but in the last 30 days that she was alive, she crossed the path of someone she needed to and that is why she was granted another 30 days.”
Having recently met a random young woman at the Huntington Beach Label GMO tour after party and delivered some answers to a question that she had formulated just two days prior, that answer made the most sense to me.
I will probably never know if my hypothesis is correct but from reading about the young writer killed in the theater with the eleven others, her life, her style, her promise, thanks be for the extra 30 days that she and the others enriched the planet by being here. Lord have mercy on the rest of us still here; to the victims, rest in peace; and to the survivors, the Lord grant you The Comforter.
Temecula, CA – Everyone knows that the most real view comes from ground level. The reality of war comes to pilots when they see the bombs’ damage from ground level. So it was with Occupy LA and the other camps. While the interviews were a Facebook media event, all the press had to do was to show the protesters signs rather than the mug shots. That’s what the news used to do before the news became a ratings show. Issue #5 shows ‘the fox wears no clothes’. TFSZ. Enjoy.
PRESS-ENTERPRISE STORY ‘EDITED FOR PUBLIC’ CONSUMPTION
Temecula, CA – It is no wonder that good people don’t rise up and join the revolution when you understand that these ‘good people’ get all their news from the ‘official’ commercial advertised news sources. When Hitler started his final solution of extinguishing the Jewish race, rounding up various German groups for the concentration camps wasn’t enough. Hitler’s propaganda mills churned out offers of free German vacations to Jews outside of the country. Hitler knew that people believe what they read when it looks official and is mainstream. Following is the PE news report from yesterday’s DEA raid in Lake Elsinore. Following that is what really happened.
‘Federal agents raided a medical marijuana dispensary in unincorporated Lake Elsinore on Tuesday, July 17, the second time the operation was hit in three months. Drug Enforcement Administration agents served a federal search warrant at Compassionate Patients Association, in the 17500 block of Grand Avenue. No arrests were made.
The agents seized 313 plants, 6.4 kilograms (14.1 pounds) of processed marijuana and 76 kilograms (167.6 pounds) of edible marijuana, said DEA spokesman Jose Martinez
.
Karen Ann Jackson, who took over as the dispensary’s president after the first federal raid in April, said she isn’t sure whether the dispensary will re-open. A steady stream of patients arrived at the nondescript storefront shortly after the agents left, and were disappointed to find it closed.
Peggie Delroy, of Lake Elsinore, said she uses medical marijuana for pain and anxiety.
“Without this, I’m going to be in pain and probably going to be depressed,” she said. “We need to keep these places open.”
The agents didn't take any money or paperwork, Jackson said. She said they told her marijuana is illegal under federal law, despite what state law allows, and they ‘told her to shut down’.
Martinez the agents were serving a federal warrant and that the case would be forwarded to the U.S. attorney’s office for review.
No one has been charged in connection with the first raid on the dispensary, said the group’s attorney, Christopher S. Hammatt.
California votersin 1996 legalized marijuana for medical use, but federal officials have increasingly targeted marijuana storefronts for raids and prosecutions in recent months. Marijuana is illegal under federal law.
And now what really happened:
Joe Grumbine wrote “We watched them [DEA] take an atm [$] out of the building and much paperwork. Too bad more weren't there to witness what actuallyhappened. Bad reporting. Remember cops lie!”
If you are into totally believing all that you read in heavily sponsored daily news sources, print or media, you are already dead. What is evident here is either the reporter ‘phoned it in’ or the DEA gave the paper the story details to rubber blotter to the readers. Remember Jesus said to be aware. What do you think he meant by that?
Temecula, CA – There was a time when a ‘can-do attitude’ and ‘Yankee ingenuity’ meant that the ‘Do’s have it’. Well Sports Fans, the Do’s have shit the bed. It is the day of the Don’ts, and the Do’s better be listening because the Don’ts are the 99%. Issue #4, anonymously written in The Free Speech Zone. Enjoy.
Temecula, CA – Recently up in LA on an Art Walk Thursday, Occupy LAprotesters and others were arrested in a beat down that was totally uncalled for, brought on by the bullying show of unnecessary force though it wasn’t portrayed as such in the main stream news. Before we go to the actual skinny on the ground from a writer who was there, ask yourself these questions. If those in charge are really in charge and their cause is right, why do they fear the truth? What would they really do if Jesus returned? Now a report by Dan Bluemel via a scene source after the break.
“A protest over activists being arrested for chalking messages on sidewalks erupted into a near-riot on Thursday, July 12 in downtown Los Angeles. Members of Occupy Los Angeles held a planned act of civil disobedience over what they argue is their constitutionally protected right to chalk politically sensitive messages on the sidewalk.
The event was staged during the monthly LA ArtWalk, where LA’s art galleries and artists can showcase their wares. Occupiers wrote messages on sidewalks using the non-toxic, water-solublechalk that is marketed to children. Protesters, saying “Freechalk for free speech,” handed out chalk to passersby, many of whom participated in the civil disobedience.
Although tense with emotion after eight occupiers and non-occupiers were arrested for chalking, occupiers were on the verge of leaving by 9 p.m. However, a large crowd began to amass at the intersection of Fifth and Spring streets where a sizable contingent of riot-clad LAPD officers stood on standby.
The crowd, seemingly incensed by the police presence, demanded they leave and taunted them with gestures. Occasionally, plastic and glass bottles were thrown at cops. According to the Los Angeles Times, four officers were injured, one suffering a minor concussion from a thrown object.
The LAPD arrested 17 people related to the civil disobedience and uprising. It is certain that at least eight were for chalking, the first arrest occurring within15 minutes of leaving Pershing Square, the protesters’ starting point.
The arrests we witnessed were for chalking sidewalks; however, private property had also been marked with chalk during the uprising. It is not discernible if occupiers engaged in the vandalism or if it were done by the numerous people who were given chalk by occupiers. Although they participated in the uprising, occupiers made up only a fraction of the hundreds of people who joined the protest.
Occupier Karo Szymanska spent part of the protest playing hopscotch with children. She assumed, she said, they would be safe within the family-friendly and artistic ethos of ArtWalk.
“I was really shocked that it escalated to this degree,” she said. “There was one woman who was chalking and she got grabbed and slammed onto the sidewalk, face first, [by police].”
Police shot at least two people with beanbag rounds fired from shotguns, although it is not clear why, as those moments were not marked by any violence on the part of demonstrators. Szymanska said police tried to grab her while she was attempting to assist one of the protesters wounded by the less-lethal rounds.
“It is really shocking, the amount of escalation they had over chalking, which really makes me think what we are doing has hit a nerve with them,” she said. “I mean, had any other group decided to be like, ‘Hey, let’s chalk at ArtWalk,’ this wouldn’t have happened.”
Szymanska’s opinion is shared by many occupiers, who are accusing the LAPD of attempting to silence their dissent. In their argument, they are citing a 1995 court case, MacKinney v. Nielsen, where the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that police lacked the justification to arrest a protester who was marking the sidewalk with chalk.
“No reasonable person could think that writing with chalk would damage a sidewalk,” stated the court.
Ironically, the protester, Christopher MacKinney, was chalking, “A police state is more expensive than a welfare state — we guarantee it,” at the time of his arrest.
More recently, it was ruled by a federal judge in Florida that Orlando policeviolated the First Amendment rights of Timothy Osmar, an Occupy protester who was arrested twice for chalking political messages.
“It is definitely unconstitutional to arrest somebody for chalking on a public sidewalk,” said LA Occupier Cheryl Aichele, who recently wrote an article on the arrests for LA Progressive, an online news/opinion blog.
According to LAPD Lt. Peter Casey, who was present at Thursday’s demonstrations, police are applying penal code 594, an anti-vandalism law. If they are found in violation of the law a vandal could face up to a year in jail and a $1,000 in fines.
During OLA’s occupation at City Hall, the LAPD gave occupiers a wide berth from their zest for law enforcement. But, according to occupiers, all that changed significantly on May 29, when OLAbegan protesting the Central City Association, a powerful downtown business lobby.
“That is about the time when the chalking arrests really ramped up,” said Aichele.
In the interest of local businesses and multinational corporations, the CCA lobbies city and state governments. The group has also lobbied the city attorney and the LAPD for tougher policing on Skid Row. Recently, their efforts got them 40 additional police officers to target the homeless or what is commonly termed “quality of life issues,” such as aggressive panhandling and people sleeping on sidewalks in the Skid Row area.
[Ed aside – This is where the issues get sticky. Aggressive panhandling is annoying and scary, particularly for people shopping for deals in the neighboring commercial districts but only a few blocks away there sits a completely empty brand new multi-storied jail building, marred down in some red tape. Common sense says the homeless could be housed there in some sort of program.]
Occupiers have been camping out nearly every night to protest the CCA’s efforts to, according to activists, push the poor and homeless out of downtown so as to attract more investors. OLA has enlisted the help of Carol Sobel, an attorney with the National Lawyers Guild. She submitted a letter, dated June 5, to Gerald Chaleff, LAPD’s Special Assistant for Constitutional Policing, informing him of the MacKinney court ruling. However, despite the notification, the chalking arrests continued.
Until yesterday, there had been 12 arrests for chalking, which occurred since the beginning of the CCA demonstrations. Through the help of Sobel, occupiers hope to get a court injunction that will stop the arrests.
Ryan Rice, an occupier who has been present for many of the CCA demonstrations, figures the total of arrests for all infractions, which are designed to target the homeless, such as no sitting or lying down on the sidewalk after 6 a.m., to be upwards of twenty or more.
“The significance of that number is that these were not planned arrests,” he said about the chalking incidents. “We didn’t sit in the street and plan for them to take us one by one. These have been in the dead of night. They have been totally unexpected.”
Rice feels the police are being pressured by the CCA to end the demonstrations. He said one officer admitted to an occupier that the arrests were unnecessary.
“It’s a situation where they are clearly being ordered to do this, and they know they could be doing something more productive,” he said. “All signs point to following the money. I assume the LAPD doesn’t give a shit about chalking, but it’s happening right in front of a building that controls this town.”
Police activity since the CCA protests certainly have taken on a more heavy-handed tone. In June, a swarm of 20 to 30 cops was sent in to arrest two occupiers and a non-occupier for sitting on the steps of a downtown office building near the CCA. Police never provided the arrestees with a warning or an opportunity to leave. According to occupiers, none of the arrests held up in court.
Arrests for chalking have been similar, sometimes with the aid of the Downtown Center Business Improvement Districts’ private security force, which is related to the CCA via Carol Schatz, who is president and CEO of both organizations.
Occupiers describe officers rushing into their encampments or protests en masse and leaving with people in handcuffs. Because of the nature of such incidents, activists have begun to describe the arrests as “snatches” or even “kidnappings.”
None of the nightly demonstrations at the CCA have been violent or resulted in vandalism, said Rice. He assumes occupiers are being targeted because of their outreach, such as with Skid Row’s homeless, a development, he said, that may leave the city’s power structure more than a little nervous.
“If we can get a true network of solidarity between Skid Row homeless people and lower middle-class people, then it’s a whole new ball game, and I think the state knows that,” he said.
ArtWalk attendees mostly expressed bewilderment over the fact that chalking a sidewalk was illegal. Possibly none could have been more puzzled, and outspoken, than 12-year-old Carmelo Rodriguez, who joined the occupiers’ protest while walking through downtown.
When he was told people were getting arrested for chalking, he said it was “the most ridiculous thing he ever heard of in his life.”
“Let me put it this way, they used to chalk when they were kids too, and people love chalk,” he said. “So what are they going to tell Crayola, ‘You are not allowed to sell any chalk products’?”
Rodriguez said he would like to be like Martin Luther King Jr. when he grows up — minus getting murdered, of course. He expresses sympathy for police who have to make the chalking arrests.
“The cops have better things to do than arrest a whole bunch of kids,” he said. “I think what the cops sign up for is not what they think they are going to sign up for. I can even feel the cops on this one, because they are probably regretting it too, but they have orders.”
However, when it comes to chalking and the law, Rodriguez is pretty clear on the issue.
“It’s not vandalizing,” he said. “It washes away. It doesn’t leave a scar or a mark. So, I think it is just a whole bunch of hogwash.”
And now this video about the police state of California that is south of us.
Westbound I-8 in Southern California, an East-West highway that NEVER intersects the international border ON JULY 9,2012.
