Cover Story
Obon Humboldt Style
People are still trickling into the lot in front of the Arcata Playhouse, thickening the crowd already encircling the low stage, where Marylyn Paik-Nicely, a “founding mother” of Humboldt Asians and Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI), stands in pink sneakers and a purple T-shirt commemorating this, the first Obon festival in Humboldt County, a cell…
Election Countdown: Council, Mayor Races Set for November
The list of candidates vying for open city council seats across Humboldt County is now set for the November election, which will also see dozens of local school and special district board races on the ballot. Over in Arcata, six candidates are seeking to fill two open seats, including incumbents Meredith Matthews, who was appointed…
What’s Behind Newsom’s Safe Injection Sites Veto?
Read between the lines of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Monday veto of a controversial bill that would have allowed San Francisco, Oakland and Los Angeles to launch trial supervised drug injection sites in a bid to curb California’s epidemic of fatal overdoses, and you might catch a glimpse of the political tightrope he’s walking. Although the…
Fishing Association, Environmental Groups Appeal Fish Farm EIR Certification
The Humboldt Fishermen’s Marketing Association, the Redwood Region Audubon Society and 350 Humboldt have appealed the Humboldt County Planning Commission’s recent approval of an environmental review of a large fish farm on the Samoa Peninsula to the Board of Supervisors. In an Aug. 17 letter , the three agencies listed numerous issues with the review…
Photos: Rising Up at the Klamath Salmon Festival
The 58th annual Klamath Salmon Festival got underway on the morning of Saturday, Aug. 20, after a two-year pandemic break. The usual Fogust low clouds soon cleared and, thankfully, the only smoke in the air was coming from the salmon barbecue pit — no wildfire smoke blew in from the nearby inland fires. The Yurok…
Labor Unions Have a Week to Agree on Housing Bills. Can They Do It?
Days from the end of the legislative session, political observers are once again asking themselves whether a bitter, unresolved battle over labor standards will spell the end of California’s most ambitious proposal to solve its housing affordability crisis. Assembly Bill 2011, which would unlock commercial real estate for residential use, potentially leading to more than…
Wiyot Tribe Reclaims Mouralherwaqh
The fog gave way to the sun late morning on Friday, Aug. 19, as dozens of people gathered around the podium positioned in the meadow. Spruce trees and huckleberry bushes stood in the near distance as the scent of saltwater and highway traffic drifted up from the bay and road below. Tribal Chair Ted Hernandez…
NCJ Preview: A Japanese Festival, Wildfire Helpers and Bagel News
This week we’re looking at how Humboldt Asians and Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI) brought the county’s first Obon festival, a Japanese Buddhist tradition with dancing, drumming and honoring ancestors. Also, if you’re looking for help in the midst of the Six Rivers fires, or looking to help those in need, we’ve got resources to…
Humboldt Sunday Markets are Bustling
Sunday markets all over the county are in full bloom in this mid-to-end of August. Starting up this weekend is the new Blue Lake Sunday Market, which is on Sunday, Aug. 21 (and every Sunday through Sept. 25) from 1 to 5 p.m. and features a farmers market, live music, vendors and a bar. The…
California Legislature: Slouching Toward Sine Die
California lawmakers have less than two weeks to wrap up their work before the end of the legislative session on Aug. 31. And so begins the final legislative traffic jam, as bills line up for final votes. A piece of legislation’s particular place in that line is the complex product of political horse-trading, the competing…
Astronomical Fun in Bridgeville
Oh yes, it’s back! From outer space. The universe-renowned BridgeFest and Flying Saucer Contest returns this Saturday, Aug. 20 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. for a day of fun in the hot August sun (free). Where else can humans compete against aliens in a flying saucer throwing contest all in the name of outrageous…
California’s Fast Food Bill Could Link Chains to Wage Theft and Other Workplace Violations
California lawmakers this month are considering a fast food bill that would significantly shift the relationship between restaurant workers and the corporate chains whose products they sell. If Assembly Bill 257 passes, California would be the first state to assign labor liability to fast food corporations and not just their individual franchise owners. The bill’s…
Step Right Up! HumCo Fair Kicks Off Today
Hot jumbo corn dog! The 126th annual Humboldt County Fair’s 10-day run of old-fashioned community fun starts today. From Thursday, Aug. 18 to Sunday, Aug. 28 (closed Monday, Aug. 22) the Humboldt County Fairgrounds will be open noon to 10 p.m. for the beloved end-of-summer ritual that has all your favorites: carnival, horse racing, exhibits,…
EXIT Theatre’s Indie Development
When you approach the building on the Arcata Plaza in which EXIT Theatre is located, the first thing you’ll notice is first-floor occupant Moore’s Sleep World (“Sale, Sale, Sale” “Welcome back Students …”). And then to the right side on the front part of the building there’s an “Aikido” sign promoting the Northcoast Aikido studio.…
Claiming Races and Maidens
Cindy Olsen-Bugenig doesn’t count on how many horses are coming to the races at the Humboldt County Fair until she “can see the whites of their eyes crossing Fernbridge.” Olsen-Bugenig, herself a racing horse owner and breeder since 1979, is the vice-president of the Humboldt County Fair Association and chair of its Racing Committee. The…
Fall-Run Salmon Quotas Underway on the Klamath
Fall regulations began Aug. 15 on the Klamath River, triggering the start of the fall salmon quota. The California Fish and Game Commission adopted bag and possession limits for the Klamath Basin based on a quota of 2,119 fall-run adult kings. On the Klamath, the fall season closes Dec. 31. The fall season on the…
The Bear Roars
I’ve never been a particularly dedicated consumer of food shows, despite my infatuation with eating. Killing a couple of minutes before bed with whichever PBS cooking show might be on is always a simple delight (unless you are hungry). All the better if the host is traveling. Polished food documentaries like Jiro Dreams of Sushi…
Just Followin’ Directions
Related Stories
Correction
The Best of Humboldt listings in the Aug. 4, 2022, edition of the North Coast Journal included incorrect contact information for Megan Lynch, voted best personal trainer. She can be reached at (707) 834-3877. The Journal regrets the error.
No Crabs Allowed
The large sign over the archway said: “Welcome to Pillowburg Resort and Spa!” The small sign next to it said: “No Crabs Allowed.” The guard, a flabby sea slug, noticed me and said, “Oi! We don’t allow your kind. Beat it.” I was like, “Why? What did I do?” The guard said, “You are a…
Traveling
In that first moment Seeing all those stars, My journey began. Mexico, Canada, Paris, Todos Santos, Across the States Sleeping on trains, And all those “trips” Were just distractions From my daily trek: Thanking my ego, Letting him go, And embracing The Wonder Of it all! Kirk Gothier
Free Will Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky wrote, “All my life, I’ve been going around waiting for something—as if I were waiting in a railway station. And I’ve always felt as if the living I’ve done so far hasn’t actually been real life but a long wait for it—a long wait for something real.”…
Becoming the First Native Woman in Space
Nicole Aunapu Mann will be making history as the first Native woman to fly into space this fall. Mann, enrolled in Wailacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes in northern California, will be aboard the SpaceX Crew-5 mission to go to the International Space Station no earlier than Sept. 29. (The Wailacki’s ancestral territory lies along…
Two Kinds of Tunes
It has stuck with me over the years is how haunted some artists are (or were). I’m talking about folks like John Fahey, Townes Van Zandt, early-career-pre-coming-out Janis Ian (her record Between the Lines remains one of my misery favorites) and the late Jason Molina of Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co., who unceremoniously drank…
New Faces at Frankie’s NY Bagels
On Sunday morning, Steve Band stood by the register at Frankie’s NY Bagels, a crowd of paper bags marked with customers’ names at his elbow. Beside him, Frankie Baker, owner and founder of the shop tucked in Redwood Acres, greeted a customer and introduced the new guy. Band and his wife, Rebecca, would be learning…
Ingrid Nickelsen’s Legacy at Morris Graves
Ingrid Nickelsen was not originally from Humboldt County but her legacy here is strong in her landscape paintings capturing the raw beauty of rivers, creeks and wilderness areas both familiar and remote. It is also alive in the estate Nickelsen bequeathed to help nurture local women artists after her death in 2005. Since 2007, the…
