Cover Story
Maria Garcia, Citizen
The students are from El Salvador, Afghanistan, Chile, Mexico, Indonesia, Guatemala, the Dominican Republic. They are mostly women and mostly young, although there are several middle-aged couples and one tiny baby. The classroom door is closed but you can still hear bangs and shouts in the hallway of the Jefferson Project community center and occasionally…
UPDATE: HCSO Releases Names of Involved Officers in Ferndale Shootout
UPDATE: The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office has identified the deputies involved in the shooting as Deputy Rosalie Freixas and Sgt. Gregory Musson. Freixas, who was injured, is “doing well and recovering from her injuries.” In its press release, the officers are credited with exemplifying “courage and strength throughout this incident.” Previously: With several members of…
UPDATE: Norovirus hits ECS Prompting School Closures
Eureka City Schools is confirming that all of the district’s campuses will be closed on the Thursday and Friday before winter break to try to stem an outbreak of the norovirus that closed down South Bay Union School District’s three campuses last week. ECS prepped parents for the possibility yesterday by announcing that absenteeism was…
Music Tonight: Wednesday, Dec. 20 (Last Evening of Hannukah)
Krampus is the dark abusive Old World twin of Santa Claus who delivers corporal punishment to wicked children during the yuletide. “Krampmus” is a portmanteau word of Krampus and Christmas, presumably invented by the good people at the Miniplex who are staging a Krampmus Holiday Revue tonight there at 7 p.m. The show features the…
Krampmus Holiday Revue
He knows if you’ve been bad or good. Uh-oh. Well, show up anyway, kids, and have your picture taken with the horned beast himself at the Krampmus Holiday Revue and Pictures with Krampus on Wednesday, Dec. 20 from 7 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. at The Miniplex ($10). Have your picture taken with Krampus and, if…
Music Tonight: Tuesday, Dec. 19
If you missed the last three shows come to the Arkley Center tonight at 7 p.m. for this year’s last performance of North Coast Dance’s rendition of Tchaicovsky’s The Nutcracker ($25 adults, $15 children). Pictures can be taken tonight with Clara and the Nutcracker himself. Personally, having broken my aunt’s decorative nutcracker trying to get…
Hundreds Line Fortuna’s Main Street to Welcome Champs Home
Hundreds turned out on Fortuna’s Main Street this afternoon to welcome home the city’s state champion high school football team. The Fortuna High School Huskies outscored Katella High School 26-6 in the second half of Saturday’s CIF State Division 5-A title game to take the championship by a commanding 54-33 score. The team spent Sunday…
Supes to Consider Public Defender’s $25K Severance Agreement
When the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors convenes tomorrow, it will discuss whether to approve a severance agreement for former Public Defender David Marcus that has already been executed and can’t legally be ratified. The severance agreement, which followed Marcus’ Nov. 22 resignation after nine embattled months on the job and pays him about $25,000,…
Music Tonight: Monday, Dec. 18
Sushi Spot, McKinleyville’s busiest restaurant (every time I have ever gone, anyway), has the musical stylings of jazz duo Anemones of the State tonight at 5 p.m. The music is free for those who can catch a table. Elementary school concerts are fun, as far as memory serves. I might be childless but, as the…
Deputy, Suspect Wounded in Shootout Near Ferndale
A Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputy and a suspect were both hospitalized early this morning after a shootout at a residence in the 700 block of Ferndale’s Coppini Lane. The deputy, whose name hasn’t been released, is in stable condition, according to the sheriff’s office. The suspect, Hugo Parral-Aguierre, 30, was shot multiple times. His condition…
Music Tonight: Sunday, Dec. 17
Friends and family have given me grief for not including enough (or any) McKinleyville venues in this column. As a native son of Dow’s Prairie, I feel compelled to remind them that I still have the homegrown attitude and nascent fuck-you-a-tiveness of that place trapped in my character (Mack Town, I owe you NOTHING). But…
St. Joseph Nurses Decry Operating Room Staffing, Hospital Pledges ‘Comprehensive Plan’
The California Nurses Association issued a statement this morning indicating that nurses in St. Joseph Hospital’s operating room worked their Friday shifts while formally objecting to what they deem “unsafe staffing” conditions that included a nurse working a 15-hour shift. According to the association, nurses worked Friday in the operating room under an “assignment Despite…
Probation Chief to Retire
Bill Damiano, one of Humboldt County’s longest-serving public servants, has announced he will retire in April of next year. The county’s chief probation officer, Damiano first began working in the department Oct. 1, 1988. “I’ve spent more than half my life here,” Damiano told the Journal in a phone interview. “It’s time for a new…
Music Tonight: Saturday, Dec. 16
This week, Saturday night’s alright for psychedelic shows. At 9 p.m. the Jam has the poppy sunset sheen of Paradise Inc. (featuring local gun-for-hire guitar hero Leo Plummer of Object Heavy fame), the cactus, mezcal and clapboard liturgy of Opossum Sun Trail and the jazzy weirdness of Foxtrot ($5). Roger Ebert had a rule which…
Update: South Bay District Closes Schools as Norovirus Outbreak Hits
Humboldt County health officials are warning parents about an apparent norovirus outbreak that struck more than 130 students in the South Bay Union School District, along with several staff members this week. The district announced today that it is closing its three campuses beginning Monday and running through Winter Break. “This precautionary measure will prevent…
Update: Coroner IDs 31st Vehicle Fatality of Year
Update: The Humboldt County Coroner’s Office has identified the pedestrian killed in Eureka last night as Dwight Stephen Davis, often known in the community as “Dirty Dave.” He was 71. Previously: The death of a pedestrian in Eureka last night marks Humboldt’s 31st traffic fatality of the year, officially tying a previous record for the deadliest…
Huffman Introduces ‘Moments of Truth’ on Trump
North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman, an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump, has given the first of what he says will be a series of “moment of truth” speeches on what he describes as the 45th president’s compromised conduct. Huffman’s office said in a release that each of the remarks will describe different examples of…
The Polar Express Read-Aloud and Movie
All aboard The Polar Express Read-Aloud and Movie, Saturday, Dec. 16 from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the Arcata Library (free). Families, hear the book read aloud, then enjoy hot chocolate and watch the animated holiday movie about a boy who goes on a special ride to the North Pole. Missed the train on Saturday?…
Music Tonight: Friday, Dec. 15
As Robert Smith of The Cure sobbed into my Walkman-covered ears repeatedly circa 1996, “Friday I’m in Love.” Nowadays, when it comes to music I might perhaps know disco from Crisco but I am still pretty unsure about love. However, these two dance parties seem like a good place to start looking for some kind…
Wander in Wonder
The Humboldt Botanical Garden is all dressed up for the holidays and if you haven’t been to see this impressive display of native and diverse plants, there’s no better time than the holiday season. Bring loved ones out for a magical walk in the garden at night with luminaries and live music, refreshments and merriment…
KQED’s California Report Visits Humboldt County
John Sepulvado, host of San Francisco public radio station KQED’s California Report, is reporting from KHSU this week. The California Report is broadcast on public radio stations across the state. This morning, KQED aired an interview with Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal in which he talked about the impact of prison realignment on local jails,…
Arcata, Meet Your New Mayor and Vice Mayor
The Arcata City Council today selected Sofia Pereira to serve as mayor for the next year and Brett Watson, who was appointed to his seat in April, to serve as vice mayor. The council rotates the honorary positions on an annual basis. Pereira, a Humboldt State graduate and the community manager for She Should Run, a…
Visions of Sugar Plums
Take a break from shopping and stress and take a seat for one of the most beloved holiday family traditions, a live performance of The Nutcracker ballet. The classic story, set to one of the most recognized and beautiful pieces of classical music, takes the stage when North Coast Dance’s The Nutcracker waltzes into the…
Ugly Sweaters
Don we now our tacky apparel. Put out your worst for the chance to be the best at the Ugly Sweater Contest on Friday, Dec. 15 from 8 to 10 p.m. at Bear River Casino Resort (free). Show ’em how thirsty you are at the Thirsty Bear and you could walk away with $100. Toss…
Music Tonight: Thursday, Dec. 14
Let’s start the week out right with an often underappreciated medium for discovering the beginning ticks of the needle for our local music scene’s seismographic chart: The open mic night. I know, I know, but hear me out. For every hackneyed version of “Wagon Wheel” or mumbled recitation of poetry which should have stayed locked…
Hum Plate Round-up
Sea Change The stretch of Eureka’s Fourth Street between T and R streets is broad-daylight sketchy. And yet two restaurants have built cult followings there: Tandoori Bites, with its lunch buffet of curries, and La Patria Mariscos and Grill (1718 Fourth St.), just a samosa’s throw across the street. A couple of years ago, Adrian and…
I Sent an Email with a Period Instead of an Exclamation Mark and Everyone Died
This happened at my former employer and only now, years later, do I feel like I can speak about it. I’m not making excuses and I still take full responsibility for what happened, but it’s important that you know we truly were out of paperclips. “Ken,” I typed in an email to our supply manager,…
The Alder Grove
Two trees frame my backyard, planted from rogue seedlings sprung in fallow pots, thirty-one, twenty-eight years ago, when I sowed the two saplings above the afterbirth of my two sons. Alders were what I had in the pot at the time. There was no master plan, no forced metaphor in mind. I save things without…
A Matter of Choice
The 2,000 or so Humboldt County families with children attending schools outside their home districts may need to do a little extra planning in the future under a draft enrollment policy coming before area school boards this week. And just to be on the safe side, they might also want to take the time to…
Macktown Smackdown
By Collin Yeo Having gotten slightly verbose and heavy in last week’s introduction, I am going to leave this one a tad lighter. This week I’ll be looking for themes to some evenings while making occasional rude personal connections to our local geography and generally stinking things up with what I’d like to think passes…
There May Be Scromiting
If you suffer episodes of violent retching and abdominal pain that leave you writhing on the floor, wishing for death or calling out to deceased relatives, you probably need to see a doctor. But, according to a flurry of recent news reports, you might also just need to put down the joint. An obscure syndrome…
‘In the Interest of Justice’
I’m driving in the Safety Corridor when Eric Hollenbeck calls. “Are you in Eureka?” his voice gravels from the car speakers. “I got something I wanna show you.” A short while later, I navigate my Subaru down the Blue Ox Millworks driveway; around potholes the size of hot tubs. I dodge a couple of cats…
Kudos and Thanks
Editor: Sunday, Nov. 19, was a milestone day along the shores of Humboldt Bay (“The Envelope, Please,” Nov. 16). The city of Arcata held its grand opening of the Humboldt Bay Trail North after decades of planning and difficult work. The other milestone event that day was a reception for the Humboldt Bay Trail Fund…
Take it Down
Editor: I urge the Arcata City Council to approve the removal of the McKinley statue from the center of the Arcata Plaza (“A Monumental Decision,” Dec. 7). Why? 1.) President McKinley represented a set of values in a particular point in time, values that no longer represent the majority of the people in Arcata. It…
Morning Irritations
Editor: I read two very irritating articles this a.m. “Looking Out for the Little Guy” (Dec. 7) is so frustrating. Since the 1970s, the small farmer has been taking all the risks; targeted relentlessly by CAMP, facing serious jail time and loss of property and much more. While not excepted as an acceptable source of financial support…
Veterans Support S.B. 562
Editor: Supporting peace at home and abroad, Veterans for Peace Chapter 56 strongly supports single payer healthcare for all (“Healthcare for All,” Nov. 30). Peace and security go hand in hand, and security should include secure healthcare, which is newly threatened in Washington. Those of us who have Veterans Administration coverage have found that single…
Predators and Paparazzi
Ground Beetles Tip over a rock and you’ll likely encounter something. Frequently, you’ll see a black beetle a little smaller than a pumpkin seed scurry away from the light. These are a type of ground beetle, members of the family carabidae, one of the largest families of animals in the world. They are predators, preying…
Beautiful Losers
Reviews THE DISASTER ARTIST. So … The Room. When I became aware of The Room, sometime in the mid-2000s, it was only peripherally. I was still avidly reading Sight & Sound and FilmComment and Movie Maker, spending a fair amount of time at the video store and building an almost impenetrable Netflix queue; I was…
Don’t Screw This up Again
One could easily argue that former Humboldt County Public Defender David Marcus’ tenure ended much as it began: with a mistake. The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Dec. 5 to accept Marcus’ resignation after nine tumultuous months on the job, during which nearly every employee of his office signed letters questioning his competence…
HumBug: Bugs in the Wood
In July, PG&E sent a crew to take down some big trees on its easement across the back of my property. I had no objection, as this area is unused. Now, six months later, when I finally got around to bucking and splitting it, I find the wood already colonized by insects. The bugs gnawing…
