OB Rag

9:30 am. We arrived at the Sea World Drive parking lot shortly after Gary Gilmore had opened the gate-with bolt cutters. Gary says this has become an annual tradition. The gate is never opened by the City as planned and Gary has learned to never leave home on this day without the OBMA bolt cutters.

Two shiny Old Town Trolleys were waiting there …

by Lane Tobias

Treated to a beautiful San Diego summer day, thousands of people flocked to OB to take part in the 30th incarnation of the Ocean Beach Street Fair and Chili Cook-Off Festival. …

As for the vendors, the very people who make this fair the bustling event that it is, it was obvious even before the crowds started showing up around 2:00pm who was going to have a good day.

After the historic 30th annual OB Street Fair, the seaside beach community nurses its hangover from the day of partying.

It was a picture-perfect day for OB’s annual street festival, its Chili-Cook-off, the bands, the vendors, the food, the festivities and crowds.

Here’s the first crop of photos, taken by Doug Porter and Jeff Stone. We’ll be adding more as they come in!

by Gary Gilmore

There’s more to our little Street Fair than chili, music, beer & good times.

What makes this whole extravaganza tick is money. That’s right, crass as it may seem, it’s money that makes the Street Fair go ‘round.

All 250 vendors (give or take a few) with their colorful booths, … had to fork over $365 bucks each …

OB Rag Makes the Union-Tribune

Today – June 26, 2009: this was the original headline one year ago, posted on June 14, 2008. We thought we would run it again for some obvious reasons.

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Here’s the piece on O.B. that ran in Saturday’s U-T and we’re quoted …

Why hassle with trying to find a parking space when you can be eating chili and groovin’ to the tunes this Saturday? If you are one of the 70,000 people anticipated to attend the fair, and if you are driving, you can park at two locations, take a trolley and leave the hassles to Larry, Curley and Bob. And it’s FREE!

by Gregg Robinson

Yesterday roughly 150 people showed up at the California State building on Front Street to demand rejection of Gov. Schwartzenegger’s draconian cuts to state services. Rally attendees heard speakers from religious, trade-union, and community groups speak out against the cuts.

With nearly one million children threatened …

Jim Grant is one of the best local photographers in the OB/ Point Loma area. He keeps sending us his shots of sunsets and other wonderful views – and we just have to share. Which one do you prefer?

If you have any beautiful – or not so beautiful photos of OB or Point Loma you’d like us to showcase, send them to us via email : obragblog@gmail.com

I worried, oh how I worried, when my favorite ice cream company, Ben & Jerry’s, was bought out in 2000.

Since I live in their home area, rumors were thick; the giant, Unilever, decided they couldn’t beat them, so they made Ben & Jerry’s join them. I heard from supermarket managers that they were up against losing shelf space, always hotly contested. Stock problems; premium ice cream losing sales; owners getting older.

by Lane Tobias

As I have been following the election protests in Iran over the last week or so, I can’t help but feel inspired by the movement’s energy. Long a polarizing global political figure, Iran now has everyone fixated on the unrest in its streets.

For those of us who grew up only knowing Iran as an “evil” place with religious dictators who present death doctrines for anyone not supportive of the ruling regime, it has been an eye-opening experience seeing first-hand the cultural importance Iranians place on personal freedom.

People United Against Cuts is a local coalition formed to oppose the Governor’s recent “All Cuts” budget. The Governor’s proposed…

Protesters Rally, Bloggers and Journalists Arrested, Re-form Clerics Step Up Their Criticism of Government – 3 Days of Mourning Called for the Dead

Peaceful demonstrations on Sunday. Here’s alleged video from a blogger in Iran. CNN reported on Twitter: “Eyewitnesses: Thousands of riot police lining Tehran streets Sunday; marches taking place, but no violence reported.”