Nightwriters: No Need For Forgiveness

nightwriters_logoBy Dennis Eamon Young

Scully felt the heat of the blood run down his arms and chest. It was burned into his brain. The look, smell, the taste— all part of that vivid long ago picture. He’d been nineteen at the time, but it took four grown men to pry him off his father.
“Was it that confrontation that started you on such a life of violence, my son?” the old priest asked.
“No, Father. That just provided a stop along the way.” Scully noted the shaky edge in the priest’s voice, and the lack of eye contact. The man didn’t want to be here anymore than Scully wanted him. That was obvious. Scully didn’t care.
“Don’t be afraid, Father. The guards are right here. They won’t let me hurt you.” Scully laughed from that deep, dark place inside, the place where a little boy had cowered in abysmal fear for as long as he could remember. The same little boy who’d been hurt time and again, and who covered his eyes so he didn’t have to watch his mother getting battered. Continue reading Nightwriters: No Need For Forgiveness

Sports Shorts

Michael Elliott Tolosa Press
Michael Elliott

By Michael Elliott

West Coast Swing- And what a delightful time they had in Cali as the Professional Golfer’s Association tour recently concluded their version of the swing.  A month ago Brandt Snedeker waited out the Monday conclusion to triumph at Torrey Pines in San Diego after a bit of inclement weather induced the Monday play.  Two weeks later a man without a full-time PGA card snuck in the back door at Pebble Beach in Carmel and posted his first victory in more than ten years.  One Vaughn Taylor looked on at the 18th green as Phil Mickelson scooted a five-footer left of the hole and the title was Vaughn’s.  And just this past weekend hubba Bubba Watson reined in his emotions down the stretch to post a one-stroke victory at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles.
Ah, the game of golf.  Most would say “Ouch, the game of golf!”  If you are eager to test out a game that most mirrors life as we know it, then go tee it up.  The emotional roller coaster associated with chasing the small white one is not for the feint of heart.  Veins flowing ice and a heart as hard as Hannibal Lecter›s are prerequisites should one choose to spend four to five hours traipsing around acres of grass with sandy pitfalls, serene ball gobbling lakes and 400-foot tall trees wagging their tongues, er, leaves at you as you attempt to shoot as low a score as possible.
Golf is a true test of courage and patience:  Courage to step up to that initial tee box to begin your round and patience to hold it together mentally and physically long enough to complete your round.  If you are looking to discover things that you may not have known about yourself…go golfing.
The Old Man And the C- A little late here, but not sorry.  The old man, Peyton Manning, stuck it to the «C», Cam Newton, in the Super Bowl.  While Denver›s defense was the star of the game Manning completed just enough of his wounded-duck passes to enable the Broncos to ease by the Panthers.  Newton looked stiff and out of sync all game long as did the rest of his teammates.  Cam was not up for the elevation to the big stage.
This was Manning’s fourth gig in the Super Bowl and he knew just how to manage himself and his compatriots this time around at the rodeo.  Poise and familiarity of the situation are precursors to winning these things, not to mention the number one defense in all of football, as well.
One For Three- Pretty darn good night in the batter›s box I›d say. Not so at the free throw line.  Okay.  There›s the lead-in since this is a sports column. You decide if this one-for-three is a yea or a nay.
Years ago at an Eddie Money concert in Paso I finagled my way up to the stage prior to the opening number and placed my Eddie Money CD liner with pen at the most strategic location for possible signage by Mr. Money.  Midway through he signs it but I can’t navigate the crowd to get to it.  Concert is over and I make my way up and the signed liner is gone! I ask a roadie if he can check backstage, he does and comes out with it.
Last year in Santa Barbara same scenario with Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders.  I can see my pen and paper throughout the concert.  Chrissie does not oblige.  Concert is over and I make my way up to the stage and luckily snag my items of forlorn.
A few nights ago in Beverly Hills same scenario with Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad.  While Mark’s strutting around during the show I just know he sees my “We’re An American Band» gold vinyl album cover with the cool sharpie attached.  Now, I›ve gone out on the limb here.  If he does not sign and one of the roadies banishes my precious album cover to the trash receptacle or beyond I don›t know that I›ll ever recover emotionally.
Alas, Mark shuns my attempt and I race through the crowd at concert’s end and retrieve my artifact.  One-for-three.  While ambivalent over the 33% record of securing autographs of my, yea I’ll say it, idols, I take heart in knowing that I tried.  And I have the utmost faith that on their next tour Mick Jagger certainly will not reject my literary advance.  Would he?

Send your autograph percentages to Michael at [email protected]

What’s the Best Way to Stretch?

15313-a-healthy-young-woman-stretching-outdoors-pvBy Michele S Jang, PT

I recently read an article published by The New York Times titled, Stretching: The Truth. Often we have been taught to perform static stretches and hold them for 30 seconds.  The University of Nevada, Las Vegas conducted a study that showed static stretching actually resulted in less muscle strength in athletes. Other similar studies have reported that static stretching reduces muscle strength by as much as 30%. So are we to just throw out static stretching all together?  Here are some of my thoughts on stretching.

The goal of stretching is to help elongate muscles.  Tight muscles have been targeted as one of the reasons why someone may have pain such as sciatica or even bad posture.  Stretching can be performed in two ways.  Static stretching involves holding the muscles in a stretched out position for an extended period of time; 30 seconds to even minutes.  Dynamic stretching incorporates gentle active movements. An example of dynamic stretching is standing and rhythmically twisting from your waist, arms passively dangling. This motion creates rotational stretching of the spine.

I personally feel that both types of stretches are beneficial.  Static stretches are excellent for cooling down after you’ve participated in an athletic endeavor when your muscles are warm, supple and fatigued.  Static stretches are also excellent for those who need increased awareness of proper body mechanics.  Additionally, static stretches are beneficial when someone is experiencing an acute injury.   Continue reading What’s the Best Way to Stretch?

Framed: Moon Tree

Framed A Moon Tree MT3A1913-1-L

Photo and Story by
www.Photo.ByVivian.com

Among the trees that grow alongside the San Luis Creek in Mission Plaza in San Luis Obispo is a Coastal Redwood that as a seed took a 9-day trip into space on the Apollo 14, the 8th manned space mission, with Major Stuart Roosa, the Command Module Pilot, Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell. In a project between NASA and USFS this Coastal Redwood along with 499 other tree seeds, launched into space in Roosa’s (a former smoke jumper) pack on Jan. 31, 1971 on the United States’ third trip to the lunar surface.

Apollo 14 splashed back down into the Pacific Ocean on Feb. 9. The seeds that traveled on the mission were planted at the US Forest Service Forest Genetics Nursery in Placerville, CA and Gulfport, Mississippi. Of the 500 seeds, 420 sprouted and the seedlings, known as Moon Trees, were presented to dignitaries around the world, (Italy, Brazil and Switzerland to name a few) and various western and southern States. The San Luis Obispo Moon Tree was planted along the creek on July 30, 1976 commemorating the Bicentennial of the United States of America.

So the next time you are enjoying a meal on a Creekside patio, strolling along the Creek Walk, visiting the Mission or Carnegie Library, take a look at the Coastal Redwood, our Moon Tree, which has flourished into a beautiful tree reaching high into the sky where it once journeyed and where most of us will never go.