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Here’s The Scoop On The National Ice Cream Month of July

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

It’s July, the mercury is finally climbing and it’s National Ice Cream Month. L.A. offerings are abundant and it’s just not about vanilla and chocolate anymore. Celebrate the month with everything from a strawberry tres leches shortcake taco to Scoops on Tap with a stroll down Ice Cream Alley. Or, say happy birthday with a Barbie-inspired pink cotton candy ice cream cake.Smorgasburg LA’s Ice Cream Alley said farewell to the Wanderlust team this week after seven successful years. The brand got its start on the alley along with other frozen favorites like Evil Cooks, Creamo, and Happy Ice. With Wanderlust leaving, this year’s Ice Cream Alley will be a chance for the public to decide who gets to take its place at the end of the summer as the next full-time ice cream vendor.  Smorgasburg’s Annual Ice Cream Alley will launch on National Ice Cream Day, July 16, and will run every Sunday through Labor Day Weekend. Here’s the summer’s lineup:Ice Cream Alley (Courtesy Smorgasburg)SadGirl Cre...

Lakeyah Wants Em Hood

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

Lakeyah Wants Em Hood: Milwaukee-born rapper and singer Lakeyah has released new single “Want Em Hood,” which sees her detail exactly what she wants from a man, while sampling the Gorilla Joe hit “Hood N****.”“‘Hood N****’ is one of my favorite tracks that was leading the early 2000s,” Lakeyah said in a statement. “That was my favorite era of music and I wanted to exude that fun, feel-good but braggadocious vibe. ‘Want Em Hood’ is perfect for the summer and it’s empowering for my guys and girls. We love em from the hood!”It is the perfect summer anthem; chill vibes and hard lyrics. According to the press release, “the Milwaukee-bred wunderkind has dominated in the media and entertainment space, most recently headlining the 2023 installment of CultureCon L.A. – as People detailed. Not to mention, Lakeyah is gearing up for the return of BET+’s unscripted reality series “The Impact Atlanta,” doubling back for season two after a succ...

Thinking About Planting Commercial CBD Hemp? Consider These Facts On Growing Hemp In The US!

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

There wouldn’t be a “CBD boom” without plenty of commercial hemp farmers. Although hemp isn’t a “staple” crop in North America, it has become an increasingly attractive option throughout the agricultural industry. Indeed, some farmers have begun phasing out plants like tobacco in favor of CBD hemp.While growing CBD hemp certainly has commercial potential, new farmers need to know how to legally go about this process. Since the US didn’t fully legalize hemp till 2018, there are still a lot of questions about its cultivation patterns. Plus, hemp farmers typically require more licenses to operate in the USA. Hopefully, the pointers below will help prospective CBD farmers start their hemp cultivation journey.Establish Why You Want To Grow HempBefore applying to start growing hemp, new farmers must acquaint themselves with this plant’s many uses. Of course, hemp could be used to extract CBD oil, but there are many other potential uses for this crop. In fact, there’s an entire category ca...

Bay Area man pleads to killing of transient and jail guard assault

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

A Solano County Jail inmate last week pleaded no contest to the 2018 murder of a transient and to the 2020 assault of a female corrections officer and will face 25 years to life in state prison, The Reporter has learned.Derek Edward Dunlap Jr., 32, who, in advance of his July 24 trial for the killing, appeared July 7 in Department 23 for pre-trial matters and entered no-contest pleas in both cases.With the pleas, which included a dismissal of an attempted murder charge in the jail assault case, Dunlap did not admit guilt but stated, essentially, he would offer no defense.Solano County Superior Court Judge John B. Ellis immediately found Dunlap guilty of first-degree murder with premeditation and assault with a deadly weapon with possible great bodily injury for the jail attack. Dunlap received a three-year sentence on the assault charge, with the prison time to run concurrently with the murder sentence, court records show.Afterward, the judge, who dismissed the balance of charges in...

Man stabbed 3 times while walking dog in Marin County

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

A San Rafael man was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after police said he stabbed a man walking his dog in the Canal neighborhood.The incident was reported at 8:40 p.m. Friday in the 3400 block of Kerner Boulevard.Police said the suspect approached the victim and stabbed him three times. A witness called 911 and officers and paramedics arrived within minutes. The victim told police he did not know the assailant. He was rushed to a local hospital and is expected to recover.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Committee to weigh ‘safe parking’ sites for twice-convicted Bay Area rapist’s pending release Crime and Public Safety | Oakland murder trial will center on three human teeth picked up off the pavement Crime and Public Safety | Prosecutors charge 29-year-old man in killing of motorist in East Bay Crime and Public Safety | Man goes from Arizona prison to San Jose jail after being charged in 2022 killing ...

‘The Ice Book’ traces a cocktail writer’s obsession with designing perfect, diamond-clear ice

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

Camper English has, let’s just say, strong feelings about ice.“There’s not a huge difference between clear and cloudy ice in taste or melting speed,” he says. “But aesthetically, it’s a gargantuan difference between ugly, cloudy, garbage ice and slick-and-glossy, diamond-style clear ice. You can eat filet mignon out of a ditch, or you can eat it off a plate at a fine-dining restaurant.”English, a cocktail writer from San Francisco, was once a consumer of “garbage ice” – those home freezer tray cubes with fuzzy-white nebulae. But in 2009, he devised a homegrown technique to make ice as clear as a Siberian lake in winter. He basically employed an Igloo cooler to “directionally freeze” ice from the top down and force air bubbles and minerals to the bottom, where they are cut or poured off. English now travels the planet giving talks about ice and has an army of ice nerds on Instagram trying to top one another with spectacular frozen delights.This May, English ventured...

Bay Area Outdoors: 5 shady cool hikes for hot weather

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

Hiking on a hot day might not sound all that appealing. But it can be a great way to escape the heat — as long as you pick the right trail.Here are five possibilities that offer up great views, varied experiences and enough overhead foliage to help protect you from the rays. (But remember to bring a hat and pack sunscreen and water!)  if you want further protection.)Castle Rock, Walnut Creek Every winter and spring, peregrine falcons come to nest at this stunning collection of sandstone pinnacles that loom over a pleasant canyon filled with oak forest, meadows and meandering Pine Creek.From February to early August, humans are asked to refrain from clambering over the craggy cliffs to give the falcons some space. But you can still get a great view of the formations via a 1.5-mile walk into Pine Creek canyon along the Stage Road trail. The route starts at a parking lot that serves both Diablo Foothills Regional Park and the Castle Rock Regional Area.The oak forest provides shad...

Powerball ticket worth more than $350,000 sold in San Jose

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

SAN JOSE — A lottery ticket sold at a Valero gas station in West San Jose became an instant life-changer Monday night after it matched the first five numbers of the night’s Powerball drawing, according to the California Lottery.The ticket purchased on 1185 South De Anza Boulevard is now worth $352,712 after the drawing.It contained the lucky numbers of 2, 24, 34, 53 and 58, and just missed out on the Powerball, which was 13. Had it hit the Powerball, the ticket would have been worth $675 million. No tickets sold matched all six numbers, so Wednesday’s drawing is estimated to be at about $725 million, according to the lottery.The win comes after a hot streak for California Lottery players at the end of last year and start of 2023. A record-breaking $2.04 billion Powerball ticket was purchased in the Los Angeles County area of Altadena in November. In January, a San Jose man redeemed his ticket worth about $247 million that he purchased at a 7-Eleven store near Pioneer Hig...

Driving like a German has made me safer and more courteous: Roadshow

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

Q: A friend in Germany says they describe a merge as a zipper, with alternating cars merging into one lane. I don’t know if it’s a law, or a generally accepted custom, but I occasionally see it used here. Wow, it makes traffic flow so smoothly, and without ruffled feathers.Of course, those clowns who ignore the need to merge and just drive up as far as possible, then push their way into the lane screw this up. But still … the practice has made me a safer, more courteous driver.Claire Lomax, OaklandA: I like the description of merging traffic as a zipper. You’re right, traffic can move more smoothly and safely when two flows of traffic merge this cooperatively.Q: I managed to lose my REAL ID driver’s license. I tried to get a replacement online, but the DMV insists my correct identifying information does not ring a bell with them. Now I need to descend into Dante’s Ninth Circle of Hell with an unscheduled in-person visit to the DMV (I confess that when I got my REAL ID, i...

Will Santa Clara finally rebuild the aging International Swim Center?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:59 GMT

SANTA CLARA — It’s been nearly three months since anyone has swam at the storied George F. Haines International Swim Center — renown pools where world-class Olympic teams once trained daily.As it turns out, a broken heater at the city-owned aquatics facility could keep swimmers sidelined until the end of August or September, said Santa Clara Parks and Recreation Director James Teixeira.Now, there’s a renewed push by groups using the pools and elected officials for the city to rebuild the nearly 60-year-old swim center.Set in a single-family neighborhood off the bustling San Tomas Expressway, the International Swim Center, which was renamed in 2000 to bear the famed U.S. Olympic coach’s name, has been the training grounds for elite swimmers with the Santa Clara Swim Club, like Don Schollander, Donna de Varona and Mark Spitz.The facility’s Olympic lore stretches to the 17-foot-deep diving well where the legendary Santa Clara Aquamaids train. Head co...