In search of safe crossing
Tri-County Independent Living, residents raise alarm over pedestrian safety on Eureka’s Fourth, Fifth streets
Cover Story
In Search of Safe Crossing
Sitting in the rec room of the Bayview Heights apartment complex on Eureka’s Fourth Street earlier this month, Robert Lane says he feels like he’s become a prisoner in his own home. Every time he goes out — whether to walk his beloved 13-year-old boxer mix Sadie, or to visit friends — it’s the same…
Lane Berti
Originally from Humboldt County, Lane has called Sonoma County his home for the past 36 years. He lived in Petaluma for many years before settling in Penngrove with his wife Barbara. Born in Scotia, California, to the late Frank and Norma Berti. He grew up in Ferndale, where he attended Assumption Catholic School and Ferndale…
Redwood Coast Music Fest Kicks Off Tonight
The Redwood Coast Music Festival brings legendary names in blues, jazz, Americana, rockabilly and more to our seaside city for four days of music, dancing and good times, and we are here for it. Clear your calendars Oct. 5-8 and snag your tickets to catch performances by artists like Jon Cleary, Duke Robillard, Mark Hummel…
Music Tonight: Thursday, Oct. 5
Tonight sees the kick-off of not one, but two local culture festivals. First up, it’s the 12th annual Savage Henry Comedy Festival. There will be shows scattered around quite a few local venues, so instead of getting lost in the outfield with the details, let me give you my pick. Kyle Kinane headlines the gig…
NCJ’s Flash Fiction Contest is On
Feel that electricity in the air? The Journal’s annual 99-word Flash Fiction Contest is now open. Send us your original stories of 99 words or fewer (not including title) and your work might just wind up in a special issue of the Journal. Send up to three entries in the body of an email (no…
How Laphonza Butler Could Reshape California’s U.S. Senate Race
Laphonza Butler — Gov. Gavin Newsom’s pick to succeed the late U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein — will be sworn in today, making history as the first openly LGBTQ person and the second Black woman to represent California in the Senate. But how long does she want to keep the job? She isn’t saying, yet. “This…
Susan Ellisa MacConnie: 1952-2023
“Sue is one of the kindest, most accomplished and thoughtful people I’ve ever met. Everything she attempted she conquered with immense interest and ultimate mastery. She did this while always maintaining her genuinely nice and caring character.” “We’ve lost a brilliant friend, loving partner, dedicated educator, wood-working aficionado, amazing family member and thoughtful, caring and…
Crossing Crisis, Ghosts Students and New Food and Drink
This week we’re talking about the dangers of crossing traffic on Fourth and Fifth streets in Eureka and what can be done about it. And over at College of the Redwoods, the “ghost student” scam is taking vital funds and class space. We’ve got a sneak peek at the new restaurant and new brewery opening…
‘About That Wood Smoke’
Editor: Developing solutions to self-destructive human behaviors requires deeper and broader understanding of complex motivations (Mailbox, Sept. 14). While both destructive and toxic, domestic firewood heating is arguably less devastating than “fracked” natural gas (poisoning diminishing sources of fresh, clean water for entire communities). Humboldt County’s large population of low-income seniors and disabled, with access…
In Mourning
Editor: I would like to request a week of mourning for the loss of the 150-year-old Eucalyptus trees that were removed from the farthest north section near Indianola Cutoff the third week of August (Mailbox, Aug. 31). This section of trees in a huge sense defined that stretch of 101 since the mid 1800s and…
Darwin’s Bulldog
“I was the most popular man in Oxford for full four & twenty hours.” — T.H. Huxley, following his debate with Bishop Wilberforce At 25, Thomas Henry Huxley returned from a four-year stint in the Royal Navy — he was assistant surgeon on a Royal Navy corvette exploring the South Seas from 1846 to 1850…
My Obituary
When nothing becomes me And the mystery is done, Hummingbirds will continue To feed on the endless florets Dangling in that wistful tree Where I would sit for hours Alone, in my garden. Kirk Gothier
Ghosting the System
College of the Redwoods is facing an enrollment problem — scammers who use bots to submit fake applications, taking advantage of the community college system’s open-door policy in an attempt to sign up for classes and steal financial aid meant for students in need. But it’s not just about the money. These so-called “ghost students”…
Because It’s There
I’m packing up and heading out of town this week with the promise that I’ll return with tales of adventure and conquest. For me, that boils down to the possibility of going far enough north up the Pacific Coast to see a puffin in its native home. While I concede a floating puffin is a…
What’s Good
Carriage House readies to open Over the phone, chef Rochelle Burgess says she wasn’t looking for a restaurant gig after the abrupt closure of her former post, the Angelina Inn, in Fernbridge. Her work as a personal chef was going well enough and she wasn’t eager to work for someone else again. But after a…
Sea of Possibilities
“I think I’ve always looked for the forgotten places,” says Oregon-based artist Emily Jung Miller. “I feel an honesty and also a mystery in the silent stories told by things left behind,” she explains. “Over time, nature transforms our human creations into something new and collaborative.” Ghost Net Landscape, Miller’s current exhibition at Cal Poly…
Trinidad Art Night
Find a variety of art exhibits and music throughout town, including food and wine tastings, crafts and face-painting, with Fire Dancing at the end of the evening. Hosted by Westhaven Center for the Arts. THE LIGHTHOUSE GRILL 355 Main St. Jeff Stanley, acrylic paintings. Susan Mayclin Stephenson and Jeff Stanley, prints, notecards and books. SAUNDERS…
It Lives Inside‘s Desi Demons
IT LIVES INSIDE. As deeply as the tropes of teen horror movies are carved in the genre, a shift in perspective, in setting, in character can turn them on their head. Focused on an Indian American teenager, writer and director Bishal Dutta’s It Lives Inside opens up new avenues to explore isolation, shame and family…
‘Our Best Interests’
Editor: Thank you for printing Patty Harvey’s opinion piece, “California Says No to Privatizing Medicare” (Sept. 21). Each year, seniors are given the opportunity to change their Medicare plans during the Annual Election Period (AEP), this year Oct. 15 to Dec. 7. Navigating all of the options can be overwhelming and it’s not because all…
