Cover Stories
Best of Humboldt 2016
It’s that time of year again. The sun feels even warmer on the back end of summer and we’ve got a little color from lazy days on the river and afternoons at the ballpark. The kids are still in denial about returning to school and results of the Journal’s Best of Humboldt poll are in.…
Best of Services & Stuff 2016
Best Adult Clothing Store Best Hobby Shop Best Place to Work That Good Relations, the self-proclaimed education-based lovers’ boutique, swept three categories is impressive — just which categories it won raises an eyebrow. Best Hobby Shop? Well, it does rain here quite a bit, so Humboldt may be spending more time with indoor pursuits than…
3rd UPDATE: Suspect Killed in McKinleyville Standoff
3rd UPDATE: Multiple news agencies are reporting that the suspect in an armed Mckinleyville standoff that started yesterday morning and continued into the night was killed at about 2:30 a.m. in a shootout with police. According to the reports, an unidentified woman fled the suspect’s apartment, after which he set several fires inside the apartment…
Crescent City Man Gets 7 Years Under Felony Murder Rule
A 32-year-old Crescent City man was sentenced Tuesday to serve seven years in state prison stemming from a home invasion in 2013 that left his accomplice dead. But no one is arguing that Samuel Hawken actually killed Josh Sherer. Hawken pleaded guilty last month to voluntary manslaughter and assault with force likely to cause great…
Light and Fog
Under sunny skies on Saturday morning, the northwest corner of the Arcata Plaza was filled with people making their personalized remembrance lanterns for that evening’s 34th annual Lantern Floating Ceremony at Klopp Lake in the Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary. “This has become a way of remembering those who died 70 years ago in the…
Life-Saving Librarian, Narcan Prevent Overdose Death
The overdose reversal drug Narcan has saved at least two lives in Humboldt County this month. Over the weekend, Arcata police officers revived an unconscious 29-year-old man with a nasal spray dose in the department’s first use of Narcan since officers began carrying the medication that counteracts the effects of opioids. Earlier this month, librarian…
Renner’s New Owner: No Changes on Horizon
Renner Petroleum, one of Humboldt’s bright, homegrown success stories, is being sold to Stockton’s Valley Pacific Petroleum Services, Inc. Valley Pacific President and CEO Norman Crum said he doesn’t expect the sale to have much of a local impact. “They’ve got a very nice, clean operation running,” Crum said, noting the company’s solid safety record…
HumBug: Silver Spotted Tiger Moth Grows Up
Finally! Early this spring, coming back from the mailbox, I noted a brown glob about the size of my fist on one of my fir trees. On closer inspection, I saw several irregular blobs which all turned out to be bunches of brown furry caterpillars, each a little over an inch long. I wondered what…
Medical Marijuana Tax Bill Goes Up in Smoke
The second bill by a North Coast lawmaker seeking to tax medical marijuana has died quietly in the California Legislature, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat is reporting. North Coast Assemblyman Jim Wood, D-Healdsburg, had authored a unique bill aiming to tax the state’s booming medical marijuana market that appeared to have widespread support, passing the…
Council Races Take Shape: Stunning Turn in Eureka’s 2nd
City council races throughout Humboldt County are taking shape and a shocking turn has left Eureka Faith Center co-pastor Heidi Messner running unopposed for Eureka’s 2nd Ward seat, which is being vacated by the termed-out Linda Atkins. Both Wells Fargo broker Matthew Owen and former 5th Ward Councilman Chet Albin had submitted papers qualifying for…
Scenes from the Stafford Fire
Fires broke out on both sides of U.S. Highway 101 near Stafford on Thursday, with crews from seven agencies called to battle the blaze. As of 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Cal Fire reported that the fire had spanned 35 acres and was 10 percent contained. Scanner traffic Thursday afternoon indicated officials were concerned the fire could…
Garberville Man Drowns in South Jetty Boating Accident
A 66-year-old Garberville man drowned Thursday after a 19-foot boat wrecked on the rocks of the South Jetty, sending four people into the water. The Humboldt County Coroner’s Office identified the deceased man as Gary Floyd Abena, and its press release notes the other three boaters were treated for minor injuries and hypothermia. According to…
Pickled
When it comes to small-batch, artisanal foods and goods producers, Humboldt’s got it made. We’ve got cider makers, gluten-free bakers, award-winning brewers, cheese-makers, chocolatiers, picklers, distillers, winemakers and more. And we’ve got one of the most vibrant arts scenes in the state. How great would it be to sample a little bit of all that…
Well, Hello, Mr. Fancypants
The Arcata Theatre Lounge is showing a couple of movies this week you’ll want to clear your schedule for. First up is Army of Darkness, playing Friday, Aug. 12 at 8 p.m. ($5). The third movie in Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead franchise stars Bruce Campbell as long-suffering, wisecracking protagonist Ash Williams. Trapped in the…
Reggae Colors
By now, everybody who was grooving to irie sounds at French’s Camp last weekend during Reggae on the River has packed away their tents, shaken off the dust and returned to solid cell service. If you missed it or just miss it already, photographer Erica Botkin was right in the middle of the colorful four-day…
Canon Fire
Reviews SUICIDE SQUAD. My apologism for the canon of David Ayer has both strained my relationships with my more discerning friends and caused me to question my own taste. But I understand that much of Ayer’s work is best seen as indulgent, guilty-pleasure stuff: hyper-masculine SoCal cop genre cartoons festooned with violence. The screenplays for…
Fallen Giants
Editor: Timber companies hated Tim McKay because he took offense to the widescale mowing down of the forests and the collateral damage visited upon wildlife habitat, water quality and soils. Loggers and mill workers hated Tim because they saw him as a threat to their means of making a living and their way of life,…
Wasting All that Sun
Editor: In the article “The Tax Man Cometh” (July 28), Supervisor Estelle Fennell explained the noise of her generator by saying she likes to watch TV. Estelle, you worked at KMUD right across the street from Alternative Energy Engineering for years, interviewed me once and David Katz on more than one occasion about solar power…
Don’t Boo, Volunteer
Editor: Wow … I hope the recent article (“The Death of Jeannie Newstrom,” Aug. 4) is a wakeup call to all who have family or friends living in assisted living facilities. As horrible as this situation is, this is not an isolated incident of elder abuse in our community. While the majority of the assisted…
Being There
Last week I had the opportunity to chat with a hardworking band that spends a good portion of each year out on the road. Although we briefly talked about the upside of touring the country with a band — seeing many places that you most likely wouldn’t see with the family on a vacation, meeting…
Best of Food & Drink 2016
Best Grilled Cheese It’s the stuff of childhood: A seemingly simple fusion of bread and cheese that, once you add a griddle to the mix, is transformed into a comfort-evoking vision of oozing goodness. From the timeless American on white to a brie with green apple on sourdough, the variations are boundless. It takes a…
Best of Arts, Entertainment & Recreation 2016
Best Place to Shoot Pool Sure, the cavernous Rose’s Billiards is a natural choice for the pool shark, what with the regular tournaments, live cam and the rows of 7- and 9-foot Diamond pool tables. But even if you misspent your youth somewhere other than a pool hall, it’s a fine place to chalk up.…
Best of Cannabis 2016
Best 215 Physician I have a primary care physician. Her name is Eloi Hoopman and she’s wonderful. And, in the (luckily) rare instances I’ve had to go see a specialist, he or she has also had a name. So it was with some confusion that I looked at our Best of Humboldt listings, curious to…
Best of Bonus Round 2016
Best Humboldt Facebook Group Ah, the Internet. It’s the reason you’re probably not reading this, but that’s beside the point, because you’re not reading this. Everyone who is reading this and is trying to figure out what the heck “Only in Humboldt” is, let me summarize it for you. You know those friend-of-a-friends who seem…
Best of Staff Picks 2016
JoshFox Bread If you’ve never heard of JoshFox Bread, ask around. You’ll likely soon find a fan. Twice a week, enthusiasts line up at owner Josh Berger’s Arcata cottage to pick up the loaves they reserved a day earlier. There are no drop-ins here. Reservations are required. Berger’s burgeoning cottage industry bakery is built on word…
Arts! Arcata
Arts! Arcata is Arcata Main Street’s monthly celebration of visual and performing arts, held at locations in Arcata. Visit www.facebook.com/artsarcata for more information or call 822-4500. ARCATA ARTISANS 883 H St. Loryn White, ceramic pottery, and Susan Bornstein, acrylic paintings. ARCATA EXCHANGE 813 H St. “Driven to Abstraction,” Jay Brown, mixed media. Music by The Early Music Group. Wine…
A No-Win GMO Label Law
An unprecedented flurry of bipartisan activity followed the July 1 implementation of Vermont’s genetically modified (GM) food labeling law. Superseding individual state laws (which would have brought chaos to the food industry), a national GMO labeling law passed both houses in just a week. The president will probably have signed it by the time you…
