Humans Unite

Vista’s Planning Commission granted a permit Tuesday for what could be the city’s first tattoo parlor.

But it postponed its review of another tattoo shop, proposed for a spot closer to the city’s downtown.

The two businesses were hoping to take advantage of new rules that allow a limited number of inking establishments in Vista. Until recently, the city had effectively prohibited such shops.

The commissioners voted unanimously to give one of two available permits to Jason and Melissa Betz, owners of Frontline Tattoo studios in Oceanside and Cardiff. The couple want to open a Vista location at 1916 Hacienda Drive, part of a shopping center just south of Highway 78, near the Oceanside border.

A Rancho Santa Fe horse owner is asking for help to catch the person who poisoned nearly two dozen horses at a local stable.

Early Thursday morning, someone broke in a fed the animals a mixture of fruit, vegetables and oleander – one of the most poisonous plants in the world.

Seriously – wtf is wrong with people?! I have to think it was somebody angry with the Race Track here and with horse racing, which I admit I don’t like but don’t hurt the horses!!!

About 500 of Cal State San Marcos’ nonteaching employees will take two unpaid days off each month for the next year and most campus operations will be closed on those days, under a furlough plan that campus officials unveiled this week.

The university’s roughly 625 faculty members each will work two days fewer a month without pay, as well.

The union that represents faculty, the California Faculty Association, agreed to a deal that calls for the extra days off to fall on individual professors’ and lecturers’ “instructional days.”

I mean, I was attended CSUSM the first time they did this last year – and I did everything I could to avoid the horrific mess that those days off created. The lines were huge. The people were cranky doing all the extra work. Nothing got done right. It was like chaos in a 12×12 room. Thank GOD I don’t have to deal with that again.

San Diego hoteliers and restaurateurs may not give a hoot about the latest sci-fi film, video game release or superhero to hit the big screen, but when Comic-Con arrives later this week, they’ll be among its biggest, most enthusiastic fans.

Enduring an abnormally lackluster summer season, the hospitality industry is relying on Picken’s Counties largest convention to bolster declining revenue at a time when it’s needed most.

As in years past, when the economy was far healthier, hotels downtown and beyond will largely be sold out, with many taking advantage of heightened demand to significantly raise their room rates.

Restaurants in and around downtown say they, too, will profit from Comic-Con, with some estimating that the increased revenue during the confab can make up for as much as an entire month of sluggish business.

I mean, the thing is a GOLD MINE for ecnomomy but working down in that area is sorta like a slow suicide for the week. haha.

I hope you have a few million bucks stored in your pockets. lol.

Students in the 23-campus California State University system will face an additional 20 percent fee increase this fall following a heated discussion and vote by the governing board of trustees yesterday.

The change raises fees by $672 a year and is the largest dollar amount increase approved in the system’s history.

Combined with a 10 percent increase in fees approved in May, the change means most of the 450,000 students in the system will see their fees go up by $1,000 over last year.

Undergraduates will pay about $4,026, up from $3,048 last year, not counting campus-based fees. Out-of-state students will pay the fees plus tuition of $11,160 annually, up from $10,170.

It looked like Old Faithful had erupted in the Midway District today after a fire hydrant was knocked over in a traffic accident.

It happened around 10:30 this morning near the intersection of Rosecrans and Kurtz streets.It’s still a total mess down there and is expected to be THROUGH the weekend, so if you can avoid it – DO SO!! The city really needs to add in some new pipes. Like..bad.

A brush fire that broke out in the hills west of Temecula on Thursday afternoon prompted police officers to evacuate buildings in an industrial area on the northwest edge of the city.

The blaze broke out just after 2:30 p.m. along the east side of Rancho California Road, just north of Avenida Del Oro.

Pushed by strong, gusty winds, it advanced quickly down the hillside and toward the industrial buildings.

More than 350 firefighters, four air tankers and three helicopters were called in to douse the flames.

Did anybody see this bad boy!? The flames were higher than the buildings on Del Oro Way…it was pretty freaky. And had the wind shifted, they would have just rolled down the embankment and took out half the block. A great job by the fire crews to put an end to that before it got really bad.

A 40-year-old employee of the Wild Animal Park was injured Tuesday after he was run over and trapped underneath a truck.

The man was just north of the main entrance to the park about 8:14 a.m., unloading the truck, which was apparently left in gear,

He was standing at the rear of the vehicle with the tailgate down, and when he put the gate up it started to roll forward.

He made it out fine, but people…please understand whatever is in your car or truck…it’s not worth your life