The video “Dragging/Undragging” unfolds on a split screen. On the left, a person turns from the camera. The T-shirt comes off and a breast-flattening compression shirt goes on; next comes makeup and a comb to tease up a tall pompadour. Humboldt artist Brittany Britton becomes Jules, a West Coast drag king. At the same time, screen […]
Stories
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The Sweet Life
As a wildlife student at Humboldt State, Berit Meyer often snuck away to the library where she spent hours thumbing through old recipes and cookbooks. After graduating in 1981, a family friend gifted her a beautiful book on gourmet chocolate desserts — how did they know? she wondered. Thirty-seven years later, Meyer is still baking […]
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A Humboldt Hike Worth the Drive
Fall is a beautiful time to put on a few layers and explore Humboldt County. One must-see hike is the Lady Bird Johnson Grove Nature Walk Trail loop, which lies just 4 miles north of Orick. To get there heading north, take the first right turn outside of town onto Bald Hills Road. Continue for […]
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International Films, Humboldt Roots
The historic 1907 house, a few blocks from the Arcata Plaza, glows from its recent restoration. Sparse furnishings. No kitsch. Little evidence of the teen and 5 year old who live and do cartwheels there — or the additional two kids at last night’s slumber party. Humboldt-based screenwriter/director of The Wine of Summer (2013) Maria […]
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Kayaks & Crab
Gill’s By the Bay perches on the edge of the water, nestled between the seawall and the canals that form the community of King Salmon. Since 1990, the Gill family has been operating a popular restaurant here, catering to hungry fishermen and beachcombers. Many are lured from the exploration of tide pools or the tying […]
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Deco Redux
It was another one of those gilded ages, when Americans were lifting themselves out of economic depression and getting on with prosperity and excess. In 1939 Streamline Art Moderne designers rolled out the art deco New York World’s Fair, the aerodynamic GM Futurliner and the soaring rounded towers of Emerald City in The Wizard of […]
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Shipwrecks, Rivers and Railroads
Picnicking is an old-timey pleasure that never goes out of fashion. Perhaps that’s because enjoying a meal upon a cheerful blanket is a must-have image in any couple’s romantic montage. Picnics also appeal in the later stages of the relationship, when the new parents discover the exhaustion of wrangling children into restaurant booths. Not that […]
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Many Hats (and Roller Skates)
From government to the environment to music and the military in Humboldt, Natalie Arroyo has her foot in it or on it — figuratively and literally. One place that has special significance to her is the Eureka Waterfront Trail, the newly completed 6.3-mile contiguous trail that runs north from Herrick Avenue to Tydd Street. “Since […]
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Follow the Beat
On any given night, you can follow the sound of music and find yourself a good time in Arcata’s bars, restaurants, clubs and on sidewalks. Here are five rock-solid places to let the sound of local and visiting acts move you. The John Van Duzer Theatre on the Humboldt State University campus is the closest […]
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Attack of the Monster Women
A few minutes into the 2006 Humboldt County music documentary Rural Rock & Roll, The Monster Women’s guitarist and vocalist Courtney Jaxon describes our little slice of heaven. “There’s something strange and magical about this whole place,” she says. “It’s like we’re in the middle of some weird forest where things are different.” A bit […]
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Bar by Bar
They’re both comprised of different sized slats to strike to produce playful melodies. But the marimba, with its double row of wooden bars and metal resonator tubes below, is a far cry from the tinny, rainbow-colored toy you remember from grade school. Instead, it yields a warm, natural resonance like that of an acoustic guitar. […]
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Jewels of Humboldt
Slow down and look around. Humboldt County is a coastal treasure trove of historic buildings and cultural landscapes. Our architecture sheds light on the history of the redwood timber industry and the people who immigrated and traveled the routes of the earliest indigenous tribes, shaping the county into what you see today. Here are a […]