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It began with an all-nighter about 10 weeks ago. Local photographer Leon Villagomez sat in front of a computer monitor in his Arcata home, processing photos as the sounds of the night trickled in: the crack of a bat and cheers from the ballpark; a police siren; bits of animated conversation; hoots from plaza revelers.…
Garberville Death Ruled a Homicide; County Eclipses Grisly Record
A forensic pathologist’s determination that a Georgia man died of blunt force injuries not consistent with a fall has morphed a suspicious death investigation into a homicide case, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office announced today. It would be the county’s seventh homicide of the year. Deputies responded shortly before 1 p.m. on July 18 to…
The Reluctant Cyclist, part 4
Number of miles ridden (part one): 5.6 Time traveled: 23:54 minutes Number of miles ridden (part two): 3 Time traveled: 22.43 minutes (This included a stop at the Co-op during which I left Strava on. Oops.) Number of stop signs deliberately blown through (clear view of no cars! momentum! some guilt!): 1 Number of times…
The Jefferson Project Fights Summer Hunger
“We had kids getting off the school bus and telling us they were hungry,” says Heidi Benzonelli, president of the Westside Community Improvement Association. The WCIA’s community center, the Jefferson Project, is located in the old Jefferson Elementary School and offers and oversees free programs to community members, including after-school care. Jefferson Elementary closed in…
Humboldt’s Got Style
Our county’s residents boast a variety of styles, but when it comes to looking your Humboldt-est, we don’t think anyone does it better than Eureka’s Traci and Barney Barnwell, as photographed by Jay Cowden. This year, they put on their Fourth of July best and enlisted their chicken friend Buffy the Bug Slayer to pose…
Rolled, Rocked and Raised
Journal contributor Jennifer Savage emceed this year’s Roll on the Mattole, the Honeydew Volunteer Fire Company’s annual fundraiser. Also in attendance was Journal staff writer — and Honeydew native — Linda Stansberry. Here’s their report from the day: LS: Honeydew is the BEST! Reporting done. Everyone go home and donate some money to the HVFC! JS:…
Marsh Homeless’ Eviction Notice is Today, What’s Going to Happen?
“The main thing is to get people here so we can connect as a community,” said Roger Pryor as he laid out bowls of taco fillings on Wednesday, July 22. Pryor is part of a group of advocates dubbed “Friends of the Marsh,” who have been serving weekly lunches in the Bayshore Mall’s north parking…
HumBug: Tiny and Primitive
If you have sharp eyes or good glasses, pick up a potted plant and you might see a tiny gray thing, not much larger than the period at the end of this sentence, scurry away or even leap. This particular kind of critter has been hiding under rocks for a very long time. These are…
Bigger Numbers or Just Better Data? Point in Time Count is Out
The Humboldt Housing and Homeless Coalition released a final draft of its Point in Time Count today, which you can find here. While the overall figures seem to indicate a jump in the number of homeless people in Humboldt, (1,319 people in 2015, up from 1,054 in 2013), organizers of the biannual tally say that…
Arcata’s Best Chile Relleno, Determined
Okay, lovers of Mexican food, we heard you. You said last week’s entry into the Arcata bracket, the eggy, crepe-y delish dish from Fiesta Grill and Cantina, was inadequate competition against the traditional battered and fried version from Carmela’s. So we returned to that foggy college town and made the rounds again, this time including the…
Skilled Nursing Facilities Now Taking Patients
Lisa Ciccanti, spokesperson for St. Joseph Hospital, confirmed that local skilled nursing facilities have begun accepting patients from the hospital again. St. Joseph had previously been told by the facilities’ management company, Rockport, that they would not accept any of the hospital’s patients, forcing those who needed skilled nursing to go out of county. The…
Roll With it, Baby
Ever wonder what it takes to fight back flames and keep a community safe — entirely by the hands of hard-working volunteers? Evidently, a big ol’ party. Head out to the Mattole Grange on Saturday, July 25 for Roll on the Mattole, a full day of food, music and fun that serves as the largest…
Rumble in the Redwoods
It’s summertime and the sun is shining on classic cars and tricked out trucks revving for the Fortuna Redwood AutoXpo (free). Check out the Chevelle-load of Corvettes and Camaros at the judged show on Main Street (entrants are parked by class and further sorted by year), and openly ogle at the Show & Shine/Vintage &…
Three Heads for Every Bed
Terrie Smith and Steve Tyson have moved seven times in the last three months: down the abandoned Northwestern Pacific railroad line to unincorporated territory, across the tracks and then back north into Eureka city limits, towing their dogs, bikes and tent with them. They are two of the estimated 730 people living homeless in Eureka,…
Discovery
Earth brown bark pencil thin curled in on self. Roughly smooth to the touch jagged ends crumble. Hard and brittle cracking objections to being unfurled. Protruding knobby circle exhibits history of a twig. Within the curling where no eyes can pry an opportunist sow bug shelters.
Bruised and Content
As promised, the Rubberneckers’ reunion show was all that and then some. Half original members plus half longtime local rockers incorporated into the madness equaled a whole lot of fun. The nostalgia, celebration and pure love had the crowd in a frenzy. Tainted Zucchini featured butt cheeks and body writing. Three sheriff’s deputies showed up.…
A Roach in the Batter
Yeah, it’s a cure-all. My buddy Jonah broke his elbow one time. He just smoked some weed. It still clicks, but it’s cool. -Ben Stone in the film Knocked Up. Maybe Ben Stone and his friend Jonah were onto something. A study by Israeli scientists recently published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research…
Got Fruit? Make Cobbler
My vegetable pipeline flows unimpeded in winter and spring. Brussel sprouts, various leafy greens, root vegetables, purple sprouting broccoli, leeks and spring onions provide ample material for dishes. And I always manage to stretch my stash of winter squashes until the early months of the year. In the fruit department, on the other hand, come…
Potential
Reviews ANT-MAN. When mentions of this latest Marvel cash machine appeared, they were enlivened by the presence of writer-director Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World). He left the project in pre-production; quietly, undoubtedly with a stiff upper lip. His screenplay, co-written with Joe Cornish (Attack the Block, which everyone should…
Before You’re Married for 23 Years
1. Children, money, sex and housework; these are the things you must come to agreement on. 2. The clichéd advice is often correct: Date nights, compliments, indulging his or her bids for attention — these all make a difference, as does the lack of them. The two of you (or more; shout-out to the polyamorous)…
Spotting for Spots
Artful Dodgers Today, faced with the humdrum task of taking old stuff out to the compost bin, I grabbed a camera on the off chance I might see something more interesting than rotten potato peels. Flying low and fast, dodging between grass stalks and tangled branches was a Common Whitetail (Plathemis lydia). With their dark…
Hail the Burger Queen
Editor: I’ve been meaning to do this for a long time and decided no better than the present. Jennifer Fumiko Cahill is one great asset for the NCJ. Her name initially grabbed my eye because as a kid in South City I took Judo classes from a family named Cahill. I wondered if there was…
Meh …
Editor: In regard to Alan Sanborn’s upset over the Journal’s choices of news coverage (“Letters,” July 9) … (Hi Alan!) Anyone who is interested in substantive, local, well-written coverage may want to consider subscribing to the Mad River Union … it’s the first and only Humboldt newspaper that I’ve ever ordered and look forward to…
Fuzzy Numbers
Editor: I would like to comment on Steve Dodge’s op-ed piece titled “Left With Nothing” (July 16). Welcome to the world of legal, regulated and taxed industry. This falls under the category of “be careful what you wish for” — you may end up having to play by the same (overburdensome) rules the rest of…
Hemp, Hemp Hooray!
Editor: I’m encouraged and dismayed at the debate on the legalization of cannabis. I’m in agreement with “Woods” (“Growing Greed,” July 9) and Amy Gustin on their take on the situation (small farms, environmental awareness of impacts). I’m dismayed by the California Legislature’s attempts to craft a bill so far, since all I see is…
Flagging Ignorance
Editor: Why identify one’s self as a Loser? The Confederate states lost! Their flag was the stars and bars (“Stars, Bars and the Backs of Cars,” July 16). Perhaps those who so proudly display this symbol wallow in the same ignorance as the Humboldt citizens who unleashed their cowardly brutality on Woodley Island in 1860.…
A Colossal Underbelly
Editor: I thoroughly enjoy Barry Evans’ commentaries in the Journal. With respect to his latest one (“Down All the Way?,” July 16), I believe those who use the fall of the Roman empire as a template for the “decline” of the U.S are creating a red herring to support their own sense of powerlessness. The…






