New Year’s News from OB and Point Loma

Eukaryst, from their facebook.

OB Metal Band Album Named One of “Best of San Diego Albums of 2014” by CityBeat

An OB band, Eukaryst, was named as having one of the “Best of” local albums of 2014. In their latest issue, San Diego CityBeat named the group No. 5. Here is what they say:

Dreams in the Witch House, Eukaryst: San Diego metal ebbs and flows, but thanks to bands like Eukaryst, local heavy music is reaching another new peak. The Ocean Beach death-metal outfit’s latest is packed with venomous riffs, crushing rhythms and even a catchy melody or two. A beatdown of this magnitude deserves two horns up.

Zach Affolter on bullhorn.

Teen Activist Against SeaWorld Receives PETA Award

A local San Diego teenager who has been very active in the struggle against SeaWorld’s orca captivity, has just received a national award from PETA. Zach Affolter, who has written for the OB Rag, who has been visible organizing protests at SeaWorld, and who is also known for starting up a petition at his high school against school activities at SeaWorld, won a Libby Award from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals’ youth division, thanks to his dedicated animal activism. Zach goes to Westview High School.   UTSanDiego

A Plea for Surf Peace in OB and Other Spots

There’s a plea for peace in a recent San Diego Reader article which also offers advice to newbie surfers and other surfers unfamiliar with a spot they’re considering surfing.  The article advises people to know the “Surfers Rules”, and states:

No matter what you do, there is always at least one loud-mouthed jerk. If you know you are being courteous and following the rules, ignore him. Some of those guys have serious mental issues and yell at everyone.  Remember the aloha spirit. The waves belong to everyone. But keep in mind that there is protocol at the best breaks. Learn that protocol before you grab your board and head out to the big surf.  SDReader

Parrot Shootings Continue – First Was in OB

The Dec. 20 shooting in Lakeside is the third documented parrot shooting in the last five months in San Diego County. A wild parrot was shot in Ocean Beach in August and another in Imperial Beach in October. Both of those birds continue to receive extended care at the Jamul sanctuary.  UTSD

Flooding in OB During High Tide on Dec. 31, 1986

High tide in San Diego was 7.8 feet. Luckily, the weather was fine and the surf was small. Minor flooding occurred at coastal low spots on Mission Beach and Ocean Beach, and water lapped at the curbs of streets in Balboa Island, Newport Beach.

100 Years Ago in OB and San Diego

The following “Local Notes” appeared in The Daily Transcript’s Jan. 1, 1915 issue:

The Canadian Society this evening is having a grand New Year’s ball at the Dancing Academy, Eighth and Broadway.

 It is probable that a decision will be reached next week in the matter of the Ocean Beach sewer work, and bids advertised for. The matter is now under consideration by the engineering and street department, to whom it was referred last week by the city council.

The regular monthly meeting of the Federation of State Societies, and the first meeting of the year, will take place next Monday, 4th inst.

All the county officers elected last November will assume their offices next Monday, when, at noon, the old officers will turn their offices over to the new men, who, in a majority of cases, are the same.

After today no more citrus stock can be imported into the United States owing to the prevalence of plant diseases.

The opening of the Exposition at midnight last night was attended by thousands of visitors and thousands of residents, and the festivities brought to a climax the work of the past five years of preparation.

Point Loma High School Sailors Are Champs

Point Loman High School sailors are champions in Rose Bowl Regatta but face more challenges real soon. Here is what SailWorld  had to say about our locals:

Led by defending champion Georgetown University of Washington D.C., currently ranked second nationally, and San Diego’s Point Loma High School, all will sail two-person 13-foot, 3-inch CFJ dinghies off the beach at the Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier.  … Point Loma, meanwhile, hardly missed a beat in seizing its eighth consecutive High School Gold fleet championship in the Rose Bowl Regatta. …But this weekend the Pointers may face a stronger task against Newport Harbor, which has won the first two of six events of the PCISA series, followed by Point Loma with a third and second and Long Beach Wilson High School with a second and fourth. SailWorld.com

Point Loma Nuke Transport Chief Has History of Problems

The San Diego Reader is reporting on the guy who runs the Navy’s nuke transport program out of Point Loma has multiple personal problems and are raising questions about the appropriateness of his continued oversight of a very sensitive program.  They question whether the Squad Commander of the unit that transports nukes is in the right place. Plus we learn that,

“… Another 65 W-80-0 Tomahawk [submarine launched cruise missile] munitions are distributed between this storage facility and the La Playa Annex Naval Weapons Station in the Point Loma area of San Diego,” according to the website GlobalSecurity.org. Charged with transporting and protecting all that radioactive firepower as it discretely travels in and out of town is an Albuquerque, New Mexico–based outfit called the Office of Secure Transportation in the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration.”

The article goes on to list from a government audit that:

“We received an allegation that an Operations Squad Commander was engaged in unsuitable, reportable behavior and even though management was aware of the problems, no disciplinary action was taken,” a summary of the report says.

“We found that the Squad Commander, along with other agents, engaged in unsuitable, reportable behaviors, such as uncontrolled anger, hostility, and aggression toward fellow workers and authority figures.”

  SD Reader

Man Stabbed in OB

Another Dog Beach parking lot incident. This time a man had to be hospitalized with a non-life-threatening stab wound in the stomach after an argument. This incident happened around 9:35pm Thursday, Jan. 1. The 21 year-old victim was arguing with a woman on the 5100 block of Voltaire Street in Dog Beach when the suspect, a male in his mid-30s who had been nearby, stabbed him. Police described the suspect as white, five feet, nine inches tall, with short grey hair under a dark Fedora hat. He was carrying a multi-colored poncho and rolling a suitcase. Fox5

Victim of Fatal Christmas Day Pedestrian Incident Identified

The victim of a fatal car-pedestrian mix-up Christmas day has been identified as David Gordon Michi, who was a 54-year-old man and believed to be homeless. Michi was struck by a vehicle as he crossed a busy Midway District street mid-block. Initially, one car had stopped for him, as he walked across Camino Del Rio West near Moore Street about 5:40 p.m., but another vehicle pulled around the car and struck him. He died at the scene of multiple blunt force injuries. The driver stopped after the crash and police don’t believe alcohol was involved. There was no crosswalk in the area, according to the Medical Examiner’s report.

Medical examiner: Navy vet died of drowning due to meth intoxication

10News   This is very sad news. The young man whose body was found floating off Mission Beach around Halloween and who lived in OB, died of methamphetamine intoxication, a medical examiner determined.  Scott Bowles, 37, had been missing for a week when a kayaker came across his body. His father, John Bowles, told the medical examiner that his son had begun having problems with recreational drugs, including bath salts, three years ago. Scott Bowles was a Navy veteran who had worked on submarines. He was preparing to begin a new career as a heavy equipment operator for a company in Lakeside.

Another life is claimed by meth. This drug has taken too many lives in San Diego. It is a true killer. And while we can sympathize with its victims, we can still rail against its use.

Point Loma Gas Station Robbed

On Tuesday, Dec. 30th, a gas station in Point Loma was robbed by a man armed with a gun. It occurred in the neighborhood of Roseville neighborhood around 4:45 p.m. at the USA gas station on the 1500 block of Rosecrans Street.  The suspect walked up to the clerk inside the gas station kiosk, knocked on the glass with a black semi-automatic handgun and demanded cash. The suspect fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash. He was described as a white male, 6 feet tall and in his 40s.  Fox5