‘Just Across the Bridge’
A public infrastructure project stymies tourism and pushes Rio Dell’s overdue economic resurgence into the distance.
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‘Just Across the Bridge’
Rio Dell’s comeback story has been long in the making. The small city (population 3,400) on the banks of the Eel River was once the seamy playground for the company-town employees of neighboring Scotia, seeing booming business during the Prohibition era when it was an unincorporated area known as “Wildwood.” Incorporation in 1965 could have…
UPDATE: Arcata Council Sends McKinley Initiative to Voters
UPDATE: Multiple news outlets are reporting that the Arcata City Council voted unanimously last night, with Mayor Sofia Pereira absent, to put an initiative before voters seeking to prevent the removal of the President William McKinley statue from the Arcata Plaza. The council voted 4-1, with Councilmember Michael Winkler dissenting, to remove the McKinley statute…
Moses the Yak Dies at the Zoo
The Sequoia Park Zoo today announced via Facebook that Moses, a domestic yak, has died. He was estimated to be 15 and was suffering from age-related arthritis that increasing left him in pain. According to the post, Moses was “a very sweet and endearing individual” that came to the zoo in 2012 with his sister…
On Parade in Sunny Blue Lake (Slideshow)
The 51st annual Annie & Mary Day Celebration kicked off Sunday morning in Blue Lake with the usual parade (led by reenactors in the roles of Annie and Mary (plus Larry), lots of firetrucks, Dell’Arte performers, samba dancers and lots of horseback riders. Mandy Mager, Blue Lake city manager, was named grand marshal of the…
Music Tonight: Wednesday, July 11
I am digging the solid punk praxis of throwing all-ages shows at the indoor skatepark. It feels truly right and just, like wearing off-brand shoes without socks until they disintegrate or running against and beating an incumbent neoliberal politician as a young-left populist in a previously safe primary. Anyway, Rampart Skatepark is hosting another cool…
Huffman Asks FBI to Assist on Lawson Investigation; the Bureau Has Not Responded
North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman is asking the FBI to step in and assist with investigating the still unsolved slaying of a Humboldt State University sophomore. “The tragic death of 19-year-old David Josiah Lawson on April 15, 2017, has been devastating to this rural community in my congressional district,” read the letter Huffman sent FBI…
Music Tonight: Tuesday, July 10
Local found-sound, plural instrumental act Medicine Baul plays its first show tonight at The Outer Space without fallen founding member Gregg DeVaney at 7 p.m. ($5). I expect some cross-plane aural hosannas to our dearly departed will be in order. Joining the Baul are two interesting experimental noise acts from Portland, Oregon, The Social Stomach…
Crabs Eat Gumbo from Walnut Creek
If any time during the Crabs short 49-game season can be called the Dog Days, it is now. On the heels of Independence Day, with Oyster Fest and Father’s Day far off in the rear-view mirror, Crabs players and fans alike need to dig deep and show their mettle. This past series against the Walnut…
Music Tonight: Monday, July 9
Isle of Klezbos is a neotraditional folk sextet specializing in Jewish drinking songs from the days of the Soviet Iron Curtain, among many other influences. Celebrating 20 years in the world-touring biz, the Klezbians come to Eureka this evening at 7 p.m. to play for the lucky fans at Temple Beth El ($20/$15 advance).
Humbug: That’s One Big Moth
Coming home late from the Fortuna fireworks display on July 3, on a whim, I stopped at the Carlotta Fire hall. To my surprise I got to see a species of moth I photographed for the first time last year. Near the light was a Polyphemus Moth. At 6 inches it has the largest wingspan…
It Came from the Library
Freaking out about North Korea and the threat of nuclear war? It’s practically the 1950s all over again. Might as well come out of your bunker at 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays in July for the Humboldt County Library’s Classic Cold War Sci-fi Series (free). Those of you who survived the series kick-off with the Ray Harryhausen…
Music Tonight: Sunday, July 8
It’s Annie and Mary Day in Blue Lake so come on out to Perigot Park for fun and games, courtesy of the Humboldt Folklife Society. Celtic-tinged string band The Gatehouse Well plays a set for the happy crowd at 3 p.m., so don’t miss out. Deep Groove Society presents Sundaze at The Jam tonight with…
Music Tonight: Saturday, July 7
The kick-off festivities for the Humboldt Folklife Society’s Folklife Festival happen today at 2 p.m. at the Mad River Brewery with music by That Buckin’ String Band and La Patinas, as well as Psychedelvis and The Rounders, who will also be playing another free gig at the Logger Bar at 9 p.m. tonight. So now…
Sundberg Concedes Fifth to Madrone
Supervisor Ryan Sundberg today conceded the race for the Fifth District seat to Steve “Sungnome” Madrone, who won by a narrow 118-vote margin, according to final election results released this week. In a post to his Facebook page, Sundberg says he believes he left the sprawling district — which includes McKinleyville north to the county…
When Worlds Collide — The Last Weekend of Mad River Festival Theatre
#//<EMBEDDED>//# and Life Beneath the Stars at the Arcata Playhouse, Eli and the Bear at the Carlo Theatre in Blue Lake all challenge our perceptions of reality and our role in the world. #//<EMBEDDED>//# For anyone concerned with humankind’s increasing overlap with, and dependence on, internet-connected machines, this is must-see theatre. The central character, a…
Loleta Community Celebration
There’s more family fun on tap this Sunday, July 8 at the Loleta Community Celebration at Loleta Downtown Park from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. (free admission, $15-$10 deep pit barbecue) with loads of vendors, face painting, crafts, information booths, live music, Dutch auctions and speeder car rides courtesy of the Timber Heritage Association.
Music Tonight: Friday, July 6
It’s First Fridays on the Arcata Plaza today, an ongoing concert series for you summer babies. Today at 2 p.m. you can catch Object Heavy for free near the shade of the contentious statue. Another free show is going down at Wrangletown Cider as The Handshakers play a fermented gig at 5:30 p.m. with the…
Independence Day, Plaza Style
As is the annual tradition, scores of revelers descended on the Arcata Plaza yesterday to celebrate the July Fourth holiday. True to Arcata form, there were aerial dancers, wax hands, face painting and even a bubble parade. If you missed the fun — or enjoyed every last bubble and want to reminisce — local photographer…
Body Found on Centerville Beach Identified as Oregon Man
The Humboldt County Coroner’s Office has identified a body found Feb. 24 on Centerville Beach as that of Jeremy Dimitri Vlahos, 37, of Eugene, Oregon. Vlahos was found wearing a shirt with the words “HumboldtANARCHO, STATE FREE- HA TE FREE – FIGHT BIGOTRY.” The sheriff’s office released a photo of the shirt on May 7 with…
Traditional Beef & Beans BBQ at the Mattole Grange
Nothing beats a barbecue in July and the Mattole Grange is serving up a heap of good eats at its Traditional Beef & Beans BBQ, Sunday, July 8 from noon-4 p.m. ($15, $10 kids 6-12, free for kids under 6). This fundraiser to benefit the building fund has a raffle, games and prizes for all.
Music Tonight: Thursday, July 5
Legends of the Mind is a blues/folk duo comprised of a guitar player and harmonica blower who both sing and play tasteful covers and simple originals from the roots menu of American music. Last week I had the pleasure of seeing the pair at the Clam Beach Tavern during their usual Thursday night residency and…
Free Will Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Twentieth-century French novelist Marcel Proust described nineteenth-century novelist Gustave Flaubert as a *trottoire roulant*, or “rolling sidewalk”: plodding, toneless, droning. Meanwhile, critic Roger Shattuck compared Proust’s writing to an “electric generator” from which flows a “powerful current always ready to shock not only our morality but our very sense of humanity.”…
Trinidad Art Night
For more info visit: www.trinidadartnights.com. Look for roaming entertainment by ‘Certainly Circus’ throughout town. FORBES AND ASSOCIATES 343 Main St. Grand opening of newly remodeled office. Christopher Knopp, watercolors. MOONSTONE CROSSING 529 Trinity St. Lynn Niekrasz, oil paintings. Music by The Mad River Rounders. NED SIMMONS GALLERY 380 Janis Court (Trinidad Coastal Land Trust). “Second…
First Saturday Night Arts Alive!
Presented by Eureka Main Street. Opening receptions for artists, exhibits and performances are held the first Saturday of each month. For more information, call 442-9054 or go to www.eurekamainstreet.org. 707 BAR (formerly Steve and Dave’s) First and C streets. Barry Evans photography. Music by Dr. Squid. ADORNI CENTER 1011 Waterfront St. Paul Rickard, watercolors; Barbara…
Fight for KHSU
Editor: I write in regard to your article (“Concerned Community Members Flood Meeting to Discuss Firing of Woman who ‘Put the K in KHSU,'” posted May 31) and another informative one (“KHSU Pledge Drive Postponed Amid Community Concerns,” Posted June 8) on the firing of KHSU’s beloved Katie Whiteside. The fallout from Katie’s treatment and…
Correction
It has come to our attention that the guest opinion piece headlined “Why I’m Pulling my Support from KHSU After 25 Years” that ran in the June 14, 2018, edition of the North Coast Journal included inaccurate information. Neither NPR nor the Corporation for Public Broadcasting have any say in the process of hiring a…
Know Your Enemies
In some ways, there’s little different about last week’s mass shooting in Annapolis, Maryland, that left five people dead and three injured. After all, it was the 154th such shooting of the year in the United States and it came just 177 days into 2018. Let that sink in for a minute. Then there’s the…
Marchers Say ‘Enough is Enough’ at Families Belong Together Rally
A diverse crowd of protesters stretching three city blocks made their way through the streets of Old Town Eureka on Saturday, peacefully decrying the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” policy at the border and demanding the reunification of separated families. As they wound along the route, marchers held aloft handmade signs, some reading “In our America…
Elegant Macerated Strawberries
My relationship with strawberries is complex. My only opportunity to buy groceries is in the dead of night, having finally left a 12-hour shift working on a TV show production set or photoshoot. Safeway or 7-Eleven are my only options, and when I have strawberry cravings, the quality from those stores is lackluster. I miss…
The Marijuanapocalypse
It’s been dubbed the Marijuanapocalypse of 2018. Six months into the advent of legalized recreational cannabis markets, the industry underwent a seismic shift July 1. When the state issued its new cannabis regulations late last year, they came with stringent testing requirements that demanding that all cannabis products — whether flowers, concentrates or edibles —…
Mr. Nice Guy
Reviews SICARIO: DAY OF THE SOLDADO. It might make sense to preface this, if only to lend some additional context. Sicario (2015) is for me a deeply soothing, satisfying experience, a cinematic comfort that lives on a short list of movies I can put on anytime — usually late at night, usually after a few…
Big, Ugly
Mr. Big Moth Back when cameras used film, I noticed large sections of leaf chewed away on the madrone tree in my front yard. I found three large green caterpillars gnawing away at them. I watched carefully over the next few weeks until they each spun a cocoon. I put a mesh bag over each…
Authentic Threads
Old Town Eureka’s newest artspace Canvas + Clay opens this month in the handsomely renovated Buhne Building. The space boasts lofty ceilings, track lighting and pristine white walls, not to mention a logo that rejects the ampersand in favor of a fashion-forward plus. A tour of the sleekly remodeled exhibition space confirms the professional first…
Vinny in the Bardo
Early last week after my deadline had passed, I heard the sad news that Gregg DeVaney had succumbed to the aggressive brain cancer with which he was recently diagnosed. From the outside, it was shocking how quickly it came. I have known Gregg for three decades, since I was a child, and I would like…
Blue Lake Afternoon
folk-life falling bright on the Blue Lake afternoon sun shine content upon the hills, the trees, the people the bales of hay soft, and meant to catch resting minds set on bodies willing to hear how we can weave words with wonder songs, strung and set upon the air, clear and concise clean, as the…
Lost Coast Kennel Club Dog Shows
The pooches at the Lost Coast Kennel Club Dog Shows will be strutting their stuff Friday through Sunday, July 6-8 at the Humboldt County Fairgrounds (free entry, parking fee). Watch them compete in conformation, obedience and rally. See your favorite breeds, enjoy food, vendors and raffles and more.
The Humboldt Folk Life Festival is Back
The Humboldt Folklife Festival, that plucky, good-time community get-together presented by the Humboldt Folklife Society and officially part of Dell’Arte’s Mad River Festival, is back for its 40th year. The jug jubilee in Blue Lake spans eight days — July 7-14 — offering nightly performances, a barn dance and two all-day festivals that bookend the…
