Cover Story
Crime Fighters
It might be the most powerful position in all of Humboldt. The county’s next district attorney will oversee a staff of nearly 60 people and wield the authority of the state to pursue criminal charges against local citizens, negotiate punishments and, in extreme cases, even pursue the death penalty. The Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office…
Bonus Track: Sub Pop’s Rose Windows at Siren’s Song tonight
It’s a real treat to get bands of this size here, said the host of KHSU’s “How to Breathe Underwater.” (Tuesdays, 2 to 4 p.m., 90.5 FM) He spoke of Sub Pop’s Rose Windows, a seven-piece whose dreamy, lovely melodies will make you swoon. See them at Siren’s Song tonight, hear them here and now:…
Grown-ass Cookie
Down on the bottom shelf of the cookie case at Ramone’s are the kiddie treats — animal cut-outs sprinkled with sparkly sugar and such. Up top is where they keep the chocolate drop cookie sprinkled with sea salt ($1). It’s dark, brownie-soft, lumpy with chocolate chips and falls apart a bit. Don’t try to dunk…
UPDATE: Deputy Shot in Shelter Cove, Suspect in Custody
The man accused of shooting a sheriff’s deputy in Shelter Cove on Tuesday was arrested early this morning at the property where the shootout occurred. The deputy has been released from the hospital. Sheriff’s office press release: On 05-07-2014, at approximately 3:30 a.m., 55 year old William Lloyd Nelson, was taken into custody at the…
You Can Now Stay in Jail Until Dawn
The sheriff’s office today announced several changes to its jail release policy, including a provision that will offer inmates the option to stay in custody until daylight. The sheriff’s office policy, which allows people arrested on drunk in public charges to leave the Humboldt County jail — day or night — once they’ve sobered up,…
Off the Tracks?
The Upstate RailConnect Committee will meet hold its meeting in Weaverville on Wednesday, but will do so without a highly-anticipated presentation from Robert Martin. Martin, a Tehama County business man, sent waves of curiosity and excitement through rail circles last month when he addressed the committee and unexpectedly urged it to back away from its…
Ballots in the Mail; Voter Registration Deadline Looms
The ballots are in the mail. The Humboldt County Elections office today sent out ballots to the more than 34,000 county residents who will be casting their ballots by mail this time around. Following national and state trends, nearly 46 percent of Humboldt’s 75,053 registered voters are now signed up to exercise their civic duty by…
Tonight’s Setlist: Sumner Brothers at the Sanctuary.
You know about the Black Prairie show already, but there’s another notable option happening tonight: Vancouver, B.C.’s The Sumner Brothers is playing a house gig in Arcata, specifically at the Sanctuary. The brothers have been featured on KEXP’s live sessions series (if you don’t know KEXP, it’s a public station out of Seattle that highlights excellent bands…
A Patriot Among Us
The North Coast Journal’s own Media Maven, Marcy Burstiner, recently took home the Redwood Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union’s 2014 Patriot Award for her support of free speech rights and open government. Burstiner, who chairs the Humboldt State University Journalism Department and is the faculty advisor to the university’s newspaper, The Lumberjack, is…
Advance Tickets Recommended: Black Prairie at the Playhouse Sunday night
What started out as an adventure experimenting with a sorta-bluegrass instrumental side project has evolved into a way of life for Black Prairie, a band consisting of four-fifths Decemberists and two-fifths Bearfoot, The Woolwines, Dolorean and Jackstraw. Yes, the math is weird, but we’re talking about a band based in Portland, where apparently no one…
Dry April Worsens Water Woes
After some better-than-average rainfall in February and March, April was a dry month in Humboldt County, with precipitation coming in at just 42 percent of normal, underscoring the fact that we’re still in a drought. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Eureka recorded 1.37 inches of precipitation in April, less than half the…
So Two Centuries Ago
Don’t know much about history? There’s a fair for that. Hop the horse-drawn carriage over to the Blue Ox Millworks for the May Day Living History and Artisan Faire on Saturday, May 3 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. ($10, $9 with nonperishable food donation, free to kids under 12). See how folks used to…
Don’t Hesitate. Nominate!
It’s the beginning of round one, people. It’s time to submit your nominations of NCJ’s Best of Humboldt 2014. The nomination survey is up and running on the NCJ website and all of Humboldt is waiting to hear your opinion. Registration takes two shakes of a lamb’s tail and round one doesn’t end until May 22, so…
Logger Bar Switcheroo
Blue Lake’s Logger Bar (510 Railroad Ave.) wants to keep you on your toes. This Friday, May 2, rock and roll is out and folksy bluegrass is in. The fathers and sons band, Doug Fir & the 2x4s, were slated to take the stage, but Caitlin Jemma & The Long Gone Stringband have stepped up to take their place.…
Just Dance
If the last dance performance you saw included one of the Real Housewives of somewhere, it’s time to expand your horizons. Maybe start with a little of everything. On Saturday, May 3 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, May 4 at 2 p.m., Redwod Raks is host to Free the Beasts, a smorgasbord of local choreography.…
Rummage Elsewhere
If you had your heart set on Mother’s Day shopping at the Rummage and Bake Sale this weekend, you’re gonna need to formulate a new plan. The fundraiser for Arcata High’s Safe and Sober has been cancelled. Don’t fret, though; there are other, less rummagey options for Mother’s Day shopping this weekend. May we suggest…
High Art
Where does all the weed-themed art come from? There can be few subjects that engender such a vast body of work across a broad range of genres and mediums from devoted amateur artists. Go to Google Images and type in anything you can think of, preceded by the word “weed.” There you will find doctored…
She said,
“back when I was a fish…” and I imagine her sleek and slippery in her waterproof skin feathered fins trailing shadows like quills across rice her profile slashed by the scarlet fan of her gills.
Up, Up and Away!
There’s something about that one-time shot. That now-or-never, do-or-die, decision. Hesitate, and you lose. Act, and you’re a hero saving the day. Well, OK. At the Malia Matsumoto Pop-Up Show, acting fast may not save the day, but it will score you a fine piece of original, hand-made art. And that hero part? Totally true!…
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, phone Eureka Main Street at 442-9054 or go to www.eurekamainstreet.org 1a. AREA ONE AGENCY ON AGING 434 Seventh St., Suite A. “Be Here Now,” work by local senior artists in celebration of…
Fortuna’s First Friday
The Fortuna Downtown Business Association invites you to a fun-filled night of art, music, refreshments and merchant specials on the first Friday of every month. Enter to win $50 in Fortuna Bucks by picking up a “Passport to Downtown” at a participating business getting it stamped at 10 more. 1. BODY WORKS FITNESS CENTER…
Trinidad Art Night
Upper Trinidad OCEAN GROVE 480 Patricks Point Drive. Music by Buddy Reed and the Rip it Ups at 9pm. Admission $5. SAUNDER’S PARK (start of Patricks Point Drive) Spin Jam at 6 p.m. and Fire Dancing by Circus of the Elements at 8:45 p.m. TRINIDAD MUSEUM 400 Janis Court at Patricks Point Drive. The Trinidad Lighthouse: 1871-present. TRINIDAD TRADING…
Jefferson Über Alles
The Six Californias ballot initiative is not the pipe dream of some secessionist Siskiyou County constable. This intriguing proposal, recently cleared to gather signatures, would subdivide the Golden State into six more sensibly sized political jurisdictions, each with its own capital, legislature and, notably, pair of U.S. Senators. Just think: A one-hour drive would deliver…
Vengeance is Meh
Reviews THE OTHER WOMAN. Imagine, if you will: Some would-be marketing whiz gets a wild hair, has the Farrelly brothers (Dumb and Dumber, There’s Something About Mary) mash-up Sex and the City with every cheating husband comedy every made, making double-sure not to spare the laxative and hair remover jokes in the second act. Then,…
Radio, Radio
Editor: Having been part of underground and aboveground radio for years I take exception to professor Marcy Burstiner’s comment regarding the First Amendment in her column about the new KFRH FM transmitter (“Everything old is young again,” April 24). “They play whatever they want because they can, within general FCC guidelines. There is no boss.…
Plant ’em
Editor: Grant Scott-Goforth quoted big numbers in “How Green Is Your Weed?” (April 17) and they provoke big questions. I wonder if 3 percent of the state’s power usage is too much to pay for medicine that kills cancer cells and stops them from spreading? Is 3 percent too much to pay for medicine that…
Vote This Way
Editor: Our county government is looking more and more like an episode of House of Cards. HumCPR has taken over the Board of Supervisors and the Planning Commission. The “Gang of Four” has a clear agenda to unravel the GPU and remake it to benefit private interests. This is not trivial; this is the future…
What to Plant?
As marijuana planting season begins, medical growers and neighbors bothered by their gardens are still in the lurch as the county tries to come up with suitable guidelines for backyard gardens prevalent in the eastern and southern parts of the county. The board of supervisors’ struggle to come up with an ordinance limiting small, medical…
Bushwhacking
Let me preface this with a demand: Don’t bushwhack in your local park. City, state or national, I don’t care. Note that I use the word demand, not request. Stay on the trail your tax dollars paid for. Stamping trails over delicate flora will endear you to no one. I’m talking to you, Community-Forest-hollow-stump hotboxers.…
Houses of the Holy
Let’s start off with Sunday. Often on Sundays, I like to stay in my pajamas and refuse to leave the house unless the excursion has to do with walking to the beach. I’m not religious, but a day of rest is a concept I embrace. This Sunday, however, includes a gospel breakfast and two shows…
Viva Color!
Last year was my Year of Tarragon. I was incapable of making any savory dish without it, whining and beatings by friends notwithstanding. This year, Jada is All About Paprika. My father has been screaming about paprika for years — he has even dried and ground his own with peppers purchased at the farmers market.…
