Month: June 2014

RIP OB Marshmallow Wars – 1985 to 2013

The Ocean Beach Town Council hopes to bury the OB Marshmallow Wars this July. And the group says: “Rest in Peace, OB Marshmallow Wars” – you lasted from 1985 to 2013, and now it’s time to bury you.

The Town Council is calling on community members to sign their “Pledge” to “Mallow out”. Plus they’re looking for volunteers for the Peace Patrol that will collect marshmallows in the hours leading up to the Fireworks show. The OBTC will also be devoting part of their next meeting on June 25th on the campaign to end the marshmallow as a weapon and destructive device in OB.

Here’s the Pledge.

Here’s what the Town Council says about their campaign (from their website): …

Petition Drive Spreads

At last night’s meeting of the organizers who are spearheading the campaign to rally the village in support the OB Community Plan, it was clear that organizers and volunteers were moving into high gear.

The goal is to show up at the June 30th City Council hearing on the Community Plan with thousands of signatures on petitions and to have hundreds of OBceans in the audience. All in support of the Plan and against the drastic recommendation of the Planning Commission.

Gio Ingolia, co-chair of the Sub-committee that has been working on the Community Plan Update, gaveled the gathering together, nearly twenty people meeting in the open room at the Dog Beach Dog Wash on Voltaire.

Mindy Pellissier – the other co-chair – said: “It has to do with the character of OB and our desire to keep its small scale,” she said.

By Matthew Wood

Stroll by Te Mana Café on a Tuesday afternoon and you’re liable to see some of the future movers and shakers in the OB business community.

That’s where the Ocean Beach Networking Group has been meeting for a weekly luncheon ever since March. The group was the brainchild of Chuck Hardwick and C.C. Summerfield.

“None of my clients were in OB. They’re all over,” said Hardwick, who owns a web marketing business. “I really wanted to meet some local people. That’s how it came about.”

So he took to the Internet, posting a message on LinkedIn looking for interest. That’s where he met Summerfield, a real estate agent in the area.

By Judi Curry

As my Golden Retriever “Buddy” was quickly losing his ability to stand or walk, I decided it was time to start looking for another dog. I hoped that the new dog would breathe some life into Buddy, and although I had been looking for months for the “right” dog, none came to the forefront. None, that is, until I found “SHADOW”, aka Thomas, at the Baja Animal Sanctuary. He was just what I thought Buddy and I needed.

Although we cannot be sure of Shadow’s heritage, he appears to be a pure Retriever, but what kind is in question. You see, I think I have the “Superman” of the Retriever genre. He can’t leap buildings in a single leap, but he sure as hell can jump over the coffee table, with all the geegaws on it, to jump up on the couch to watch the people go by.

by Larry Rotolo / SD Entertainer Magazine News / June 16, 2014

The greatest San Diego sports figure ever, one of the last hall-of-famers to play his entire career with one team, a Powegian for 30+ years, the well-respected coach of the Aztecs’ revived program, Tony Gwynn has died.

Only 54 when cancer took him early this morning at Pomerado Hospital in Poway, in the company of his family, Gwynn was renowned not just for the 3,141 hits of his 20-year career, or the 18th best career batting average of .338 with its accompanying 8 National League batting titles; but for being a humble, approachable, likable local hero. He was our hall of famer, our San Diego Padre.

A 1000 signatures have been collected

A special meeting has been called for tonight, Monday, June 16th, as part of the campaign by OB planners to galvanized the community in support of t he OB Community Plan.

All OB villagers are invited – and especially OBceans who are highly concerned about what is coming down from the San Diego Planning Commission in terms of recommending that the OB Plan be de-clawed.

The meeting is at 6 pm and will be held at Dog Beach Dog Wash, located at 4933 Voltaire Street.

Town Council Will Fund Those Who Will Promote the Betterment and Beautification of OB and its Residents

The Ocean Beach Town Council (OBTC) is now accepting applications for community grants that the Council will fund for the year 2014.

The OBTC seeks to award grants to local organizations, groups, and persons that will promote the general betterment and beautification of Ocean Beach and the welfare of its residents.

The OBTC will award up to a total of $6,000 in community grants in 2014. Grant amounts will range from $300 to $1,000.

To apply for an OBTC Community Grant: …. COME INSIDE

Gardening is the new front porch in urban America- share yours!

By Susan Taylor / San Diego Free Press

Here’s good news for everyone. Ninety-five percent of all the insects you find in your garden are beneficial! Before you use or purchase any chemical (read toxic) solutions, you can first check online at the UCDavis Integrated Pest Management (IPM) site. Take a photo of your suspicious little bug and check it at the IPM website to be sure what your insect is and what, if anything, to do about it. Often times you can put some water and a drop or two of dish soap into a plastic spray bottle and that will do the trick (aphids come to mind). Remember to spray UNDER the leaves as well as the tops. I find this website very reassuring because I can’t remember everything, but I can remember where to look for information.

It is early June here in San Diego and you can still plant all your summer vegetables.

By Jim Miller and Kelly Mayhew

Last week’s decision in the Vergara v. the State of California lawsuit that undermined tenure and seniority rights was a profound slap in the face to teachers who have committed their careers to improving the lives of our children. It was yet another significant victory for those who are seeking to impose corporate education reforms by pitting teachers against children in a cynical, destructive, and utterly counterproductive fashion.

As tenured professors in the community college system, union members, and parents of a child in California’s public school system, we have a unique perspective on this matter. …

Editor: Tonight, Friday the 13th, Channel 10 News broadcast a story about the current fight to maintain OB’s character, having interviewed Mindy Pellessier and Frank Gormlie earlier in the day. Michael Chen, the reporter, had been struck by Gormlie’s article, How OB Stayed “OB” and Avoided Over Development Like Mission Beach.

By Michael Chen / ABC Channel 10 / Friday, June 13, 2014

OCEAN BEACH – A proposed tweak in the Ocean Beach community plan has led to what some are calling an all-out fight over OB’s soul.

At Dog Beach Dog Wash in Ocean Beach, there are signs of a building fight. For several days, owner and former OB planning board chair Mindy Pellissier has been busy collecting signatures.

“What’s at stake is the character and heart of Ocean Beach,” said Pellissier.

By Tom Engelhardt / TomDispatch.com

The United States has been at war — major boots-on-the-ground conflicts and minor interventions, firefights, air strikes, drone assassination campaigns, occupations, special ops raids, proxy conflicts, and covert actions — nearly nonstop since the Vietnam War began. That’s more than half a century of experience with war, American-style, and yet few in our world bother to draw the obvious conclusions.

Given the historical record, those conclusions should be staring us in the face. … So here are five straightforward lessons —

By Susan Murphy / KPBS / June 11, 2014

Above-average sea surface temperatures are developing in the tropical Pacific Ocean. The weather phenomenon, called El Niño, changes the heating pattern of the atmosphere and pulls the Pacific jet stream farther south. It has the potential to play havoc on weather systems across the globe, causing heavy rain and mudslides in some areas, drought in others, and disrupting the marine food chain.

Previous strong El Niños caused above-average rainfall and coastal erosion in San Diego. In 1997-1998, the event was credited with dumping 17 inches of rain at Lindbergh Field.

“This looks really a lot like the ’97-’98 El Niño event, which was one of the biggest ones ever recorded,” said Tim Barnett, marine research physicist emeritus with Scripps Institution of Oceanography.