Category: Life Events

Latest data shows more than 1 million people living in families with incomes too low for expenses

Center on Policy Initiatives

A new report from the Center on Policy Initiatives finds that a third (33%) of all household in San Diego County have incomes below the level needed to cover basic living expenses.

Women and children are most impacted, largely because employed women throughout the county earn 74 cents for every $1 paid to men. Among households headed by single mothers, 69% have incomes below the bare-bones level known as the Self-Sufficiency Standard.

Trevor Tice, the founder of a yoga fitness empire, whose death in December at his Point Loma mansion initially thought by police to be “suspicious”, accidentally inflicted serious injuries on himself in a number of falls and collapses. His death has been ruled an accident by the San Diego County Medical Examiner in a report released January 26th.

Tice, whose body was found by police December 12th at his house at 952 Cornish Drive, died of head injuries after several drunken falls inside his multi-million dollar home it was concluded. After testing, he was found to have been very intoxicated with a blood-alcohol level of .20 percent and had taken a benzodiazepine — a tranquilizer like Valium and other antidepressant drugs.

Today, we look at what’s new among the businesses along Point Loma Avenue in south Ocean Beach.

This is the last part of our 3-part series on the commercial areas of Ocean Beach. (Here is the Voltaire Street update and here is the Newport Avenue update.)

The commercial area along Point Loma Avenue is the smallest and shortest business district, and like the other main business streets in OB, it’s a tough, challenging street – as it’s never easy being a small storefront along that one block. And our photo-report of the block is not pretty.

John Baker Frames Closed

One of the most well-known business, John Baker Picture Frames, has definitely closed its doors.

It was readily apparent that the 4-day yoga festival held in Ocean Beach that began on Friday, Jan. 27th, was a rousing success. Some 800 people took part – and it continues today, Jan. 30th – as festival-goers had dozens of options in how to participate – from participating in traditional classes overlooking the ocean, wine-tasting-based yoga sessions, yoga with your dog, a “namastoked” sunset surf session.

More info on today, Jan. 30, see the website of the San Diego Yoga Festival.

One of the key coordinators was our own Melanie Williams, board member of the OB Town Counsil and owner of TriPower Yoga in Ocean Beach. She told the San Diego Union-Tribune that planning the festival and then pulling it together was “a labor of love.”

In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, a candle light vigil was held for Ariana Toro, the woman who died after being swept off rocks at the end of Santa Cruz Avenue in Ocean Beach January 21st. The vigil was held on Saturday, the 29th, as co-workers of Toro mourned her loss.

Meanwhile, in Ocean Beach, a debate has developed in our pages over how to respond to her death and the other injuries and fatalities along Sunset Cliffs, and Santa Cruz beach itself.

We offer the following report of the vigil as a way for OBceans to get to know the actual person who died off our cliffs …. from Baton Rouge channel 9CBS:

By Ed Harris

The rocky shore between the Ocean Beach Pier and Santa Cruz Cove is an area that has claimed several lives.

On January 21, two woman were swept into the water at Santa Cruz Cove. Lifeguards responded and learned a citizen had rescued one women but the other was still in the water. The surf at this point was 15 feet, making the rescue attempt difficult and dangerous. Lifeguards entered the water unable to see her as they battled strong surge and tried to breath in the thick ocean foam. After 40 minutes, the woman was recovered and transported to the hospital, but unfortunately did not survive. Several lifeguards sustained minor injuries, and two were taken to the hospital for observation.

This scenario has happened there before.

The OB Warehouse on Newport Ave in OB, part of the Cohn family’s Eatery Empire, is scheduled to close up business in mid-February. This report comes from an online restaurant/ beer tabloid, sandieogville.com .

The OB Warehouse just opened in August of 2014 with a lot of fanfare and was much-heralded for its construction motif with award-winning restrooms. It was the 3rd Cohn Restaurant Group restaurant to open in the Peninsula (Corvette Diner in Liberty Station and Bo-Beau’s on Voltaire Street in northwest OB being the others).

By Anne Haule / Musings of a Boomer Feminist

I love Nora Ephron’s book, “I Feel Bad About My Neck”. I have been feeling bad about my neck since I was about 55. As the years passed, my feelings grew as my weight increased and my necked sagged. All my photos are full face – no side shots allowed.

At 62 I had a consult with a plastic surgeon. When I told him I wanted to lose weight, he told me to wait on the surgery until I reached my weight loss goal – no point in sucking out the fat, cutting the muscles and stretching the skin just to have it sag again on an otherwise svelte neck – assuming I actually lost the weight.

By Carlos Batara

As the new year dawns, most of us need to reflect where we’re headed, individually and collectively.

Unfortunately, far too many of those active in immigration circles are caught in the “feel sorry for myself” moment. With a new president, one who has articulated strong law enforcement measures, about to take office, the “doom and gloom” sentiments of immigrants and their advocates are deafening.

Yet, stop for a moment and reflect back to 2009 and 2013. What has really changed in immigration law since that time? In the majority of cases, my office helps immigrants under the same rules that existed back then.

By Miles Himmel / The Following Story

It starts like a riddle. What gets older, but never changes?

While the waves crash along the shore and the wind blows the palm trees from side to side. An aroma feels the air right about the time as the sun fades away. And sure, the people get older, but no matter what, Ocean Beach never dies.

I finally left the warmth of my parents home about two years after graduating from college. I never intended to stay as long as I did, but when my dad passed away, I lived with my mom as we both coped from my dad losing his life to cancer.

As I looked for my first place to live away from home in San Diego, I wanted a fun place. Not somewhere in the suburbs. I had spent my childhood out in the boonies, away from the action. This was my only time to be somewhere loud and fun! I looked downtown, too expensive. I looked in Barrio Logan, nothing for sale.

By Ernie McCray

It makes perfect sense to me that the House Republicans tried to secretly curtail the powers of the Office of Congressional Ethics because, if you have no ethics, you damn sure don’t want some nosy person poking around documenting it.

And these GOP characters are as to ethical behavior as a sea turtle is to Death Valley. They’ve demonstrated for decades, which anyone can google, that they are not, by any means, on speaking terms with anything anywhere near synonymous with “ethics.” They are, in a word, ethic-less, if you will.

Progress at Apple Tree Market on Newport

Community Beach Cleanup – Jan. 7th

Larry Himmell Remembered in OB Son’s Foundation

Local Muralist Puts Brush to Wall – Paints Storefront

Silver Gate Students Get New Crosswalk

OB’s Serial Sharpie Tagger – “Mama Bear” – Gets Some Press

Suspect Jumped into San Diego River in Midway Area – Refused to Leave Sandbar

Sensory Deprivation in OB?

Now that La Jollans Are Upset with Planned Flight Route Changes – Something Might Happen

Worries About the Eucalyptus in Loma Portal

Sleeping Toddler in Jeep Stolen in Point Loma Heights Found After Thief Calls Cops

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