By Brian Lafferty

"This is one of the best movies of the year." -- Brian Lafferty

July 22, 2010 (San Diego's East County)--Dreams have always been part of  cinema. A common film use is the “it was only a dream” stunt applied to generate cheap thrills and groans (Jaws: The Revenge) or to foment laughter (A Serious Man, An American Werewolf in London).  Dreams have also acted as visually expressive tools to reveal character or relay exposition (Salvador Dali’s dream sequence in Alfred Hitchcock’s Spellbound). Sometimes, dreams have been used to shock the audience (the movies of Luis Bunuel, particularly Un Chien Andalou, which opens with an eyeball being slashed).

Dreams may be old subjects in motion pictures, but with Inception Christopher Nolan has delivered one of--if not the most--original movie of the year, taking the concept in many new directions I never thought possible.

Warning: What you don't know can be deadly

July 21, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – Most East County residents know safety steps to take during an earthquake or wildfire, which are common in our area. But many are misinformed about dangers posed by lightning, a less common peril in our region. When a thunderstorm does strike, however, risks are substantial—and relying on myths can be deadly.

Lightning has caused deaths in California and in San Diego County. In East County, a man in Rancho Cuyamaca State Park was killed by lightning. Another local resident suffered neurological damage.  Lightning strikes have caused many fires in East County. A Campo resident lost phone service due to lightning; in Alpine, a writer's computer was destroyed by a bolt.  

 
Test your knowledge on lightning—the answers may shock you!

ONLY 40 REMAIN IN THE WILD; MOST ENDANGERED ANIMALS IN NORTH AMERICA

"There were pups. Now it will be a challenge for them to survive."--Patrick Valentino, California Wolf Preserve in Julian

July 21, 2010 (Julian) -- “It’s depressing—very bad news,” Patrick Valentino at the California Wolf Center in Julian said upon learning that two endangered Mexican grey wolves had been found shot in Arizona. Eva Sargent at Defenders of Wildlife in Tucson told East County Magazine that a third Mexican wolf, or lobo, has been found dead in New Mexico under suspicious causes.  A fourth wolf is missing.

July 20, 2010 (Rancho San Diego) – Where can you see a snake charmer and fire dancers, sample foods from around the world, savor music and dancing by top performers, enjoy beer and wine gardens, find face-painting for kids and a mesmerizing magic show—all free? Rancho San Diego-Jamul Chamber of Commerce invites you to the first-ever Summer Music & Culture Festival on Sunday, August 8.

July 19, 2010 (Lyons Valley) -- A brush fire in the Lyons Valley area of  Jamul has been contained at three acres, Cal-Fire reports. No structures were damaged or destroyed, but smoke was widely visible in the Deerhorn Flats area to the east, between Deerhorn Valley and Barrett Lake.  (photo: View from Lyons Valley peak webcam at 1:30 p.m.)

A Terrible Mistake, The Murder of Frank Olson and the CIA’s Secret Cold War Experiments, By H.P. Albarelli, Jr. (Trine Day, LLC, Walterville, Oregon, 2009, 826 pages.)
 

Book Review by Dennis Moore

By Miriam Raftery

July 18, 2010 (Sacramento) – Being a lame duck legislator (leaving office in January due to term limits) hasn’t stopped Senator Dennis Hollingsworth from authoring legislation to create two free days a year for hunting ducks and other wild game without a license.

The San Diego Republican’s Senate Bill 1179 has passed the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee, after already winning approval from the State Senate.  It  will next be heard by the Assembly Committee on Appropriations.

Fun Continues Tonight at Gio's with more headliner comics

By Miriam Raftery

July 18, 2010 (La Mesa) – Brew-Ha-Ha’s first weekly comedy show upstairs at Gio Bistro and Wine Bar in La Mesa opened to a sold-out crowd last Sunday night. The act proved a rollicking success—artfully blending universally funny jokes with some East County-oriented punch lines.   Brew Ha Ha is the remedy for the blues--serving up light-hearted relief from tough times in an intimate yet friendly atmosphere with palate-pleasing food at Gio's.

BROTHERS SAVE LITTLE SISTER, 4

Updated July 18, 2010
July 17, 2010 (Spring Valley) -- 100 degree heat in Spring Valley today did not slow the attack of San Miguel firefighters on a house fire in the 8600 block of Sandy Bev Lane.  A mother and seven of her eight children were home when the blaze was reported. The mother told investigators she was in the kitchen preparing a meal when she heard the smoke alarm sound. She went down a hallway to investigate and found one of the children’s bedrooms on fire.

Seven family members evacuated safely, but once outside realized that a four-year-old child was missing.  The girls brothers, 14 and 18, ran back inside and found her hiding in her bedroom closet and rescued her.

"The policy of the GUHSD in thunder/lightning storm conditions would be to immediately seek safe shelter at the first sound of thunder." -- Larry Pear, Grossmont Union High School District

ECM Special Report

Story by Miriam Raftery, photos by Dennis Richardson

July 16, 2010 (Lakeside)—While lightning strikes caused multiple fires in East County including Lakeside, El Capitan’s football team continued practicing on an open field during a thunderstorm in direct violation of district rules.

“There was thunder and lightning in the immediate area striking the ground...during the time the kids were practicing,” ECM photographer Dennis Richardson reports. “As I was shooting pictures of the players [from a hill nearby], a man who was watching the lightning storm from the safety of his home near me told me he had just seen a bolt of lightning hit a power pole near Wildcat Canyon and Willow Road.” That’s about half a mile from the football practice, he estimated.

 

Playing sports during a thunderstorm can be deadly. In 2008, all eleven players on a football team in the Democratic Republic of the Congo were killed when lightning struck the field. 

July 17, 2010 (San Diego) – Looking for some summertime family fun? San Diego County has announced “Movies in the Park” at parks and pools countywide. Grab your beach chairs, beat the heat, and head out to a park near you—including numerous locations in East County.

July 16, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – Cal-Fire is on the scene of two small fires, both caused by lightning. The Henderson Fire, on Indian Head Peak in the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is two to three acres. Firefighters and a helitack crew have cut a containment line around the blaze. A second blaze, the Cougar Fire, is burning on the Los Coyotes Indian Reservation and is less than an acre in an area with heavy fuel.

July 16, 2010 (San Diego) – Today, Sacramento County Superior Court Patrick Marlette denied a request by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to force State Controller John Chiang to reduce state workers’ pay to the federal minimum wage. The ruling could affect 200,000 California state employees.
 

July 15, 2010 (San Diego's East County) - Rainfall aided firefighters in battling numerous fires in backcountry areas late today. Most were started by lightning strikes from thunderstorms.  The largest blaze in San Felipe along the Banner Grade near Julian had reached over 100 acres by early evening and is burning toward the desert.

Smaller fires were swiftly controlled in other communities including Warner Springs, Campo, and Lakeside.  Fast action by Lakeside resident Charley Barranco helped extinguish a brush fire in a  on the Levy water pump station at Lake Jennnings Park.

July 1, 2010 (San Diego)—San Diego Police report that homicide detectives are investigating after a dead body was found inside a burned car in the 14200 block of Highland Valley Road, San Pasqual at 1:10 a.m.