Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen meets with Speaker McCarthy at Reagan Library

• April 5, 2023

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen arrived at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley on a chilly Wednesday morning, April 5, for a historic meeting with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

“The friendship between America and the people of Taiwan has never been stronger,” McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, said in a tweet. “It is my honor to welcome President (Tsai) to the (Reagan Library).”

Tsai’s visit with McCarthy comes during a stopover on her way home after visits to Belize and Guatemala.

President Tsai Ing-wen is greeted by @SpeakerMcCarthy upon her arrival. pic.twitter.com/OGVkDcW7qN

— Hanna Kang (@byhannakang) April 5, 2023

She arrived amid countering demonstrators, some holding Taiwan flags and banners while others waved Chinese flags.

China views interactions between U.S. and Taiwanese officials as a challenge to its claim to the island as its territory. The United States broke off official ties with Taiwan in 1979, while formally establishing diplomatic relations with the Beijing government.

A representative for the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles condemned the planned meeting, saying the Chinese government is the “sole legal government representing the whole of China,” and Taiwan is “an inalienable part of China’s territory.”

A plane with a banner reading, “One China! Taiwan is part of China!” in red lettering circled the presidential library while a large crowd of local, national and international media congregated outside and the Taiwanese president and McCarthy were inside.

Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, last year, visited Taiwan. In an opinion piece published around the time of her visit, she said: “We must stand with Taiwan.”

This is a breaking news story and will be updated throughout the day.

City News Service and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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​ Orange County Register 

College operators ask Supreme Court to block student-loan accord

• April 5, 2023

By Greg Stohr | Bloomberg

Three college operators asked the US Supreme Court on Wednesday to block a legal settlement that would cancel an estimated $6 billion in debt for students who say they were misled by the schools about job prospects.

The emergency application, which challenges the Education Department’s authority to cancel so many loans in the accord, bears similarities to a pending Supreme Court fight over President Joe Biden’s plan to slash the student debt of more than 40 million people.

The Supreme Court’s handling of the new case could offer hints about the outcome of the bigger fight. The court heard arguments on Biden’s plan Feb. 28 and is scheduled to rule by the end of June.

The college operators making the new appeal to the high court include for-profit Lincoln Educational Services Corp. and American National University Inc., as well as nonprofit Everglades College Inc.

The borrowers in the latest case sued the Education Department in 2019, seeking action on long-pending requests to discharge their debt because of alleged wrongdoing by the schools they attended. The settlement went beyond the thrust of the lawsuit, with the Education Department agreeing to discharge loans for hundreds of thousands of borrowers who attended 151 schools.

In its Supreme Court filing, the schools said the department exceeded its authority under federal law. The colleges said the administration was making an “even more sweeping” claim than with the broader loan-forgiveness program, which centers on the economic fallout from the pandemic.

“The secretary’s claimed authority amounts to nothing less than the power to cancel, en masse, every student loan in the country,” the schools argued.

The San Francisco-based 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals refused to block the settlement, prompting the college operators to turn to the Supreme Court.

The application was filed with Justice Elena Kagan, who handles emergency matters from the 9th Circuit. She could act alone or refer the matter to the full nine-member court.

The case is Everglades College v. Cardona, 22A867.

Editors’ note: This article has been updated by Bloomberg, identifying Everglades College Inc. as a nonprofit. 

​ Orange County Register 

How a surge of creativity led to Dirty Heads releasing a trio of EPs in 2023

• April 5, 2023

The creative juices wouldn’t stop flowing for Huntington Beach’s Dirty Heads as they were recording the 10-track album “Midnight Control,” which debuted in the Top 10 on Billboard’s Alternative Albums chart last year. Vocalist Jared Watson also described it as one of the best albums the band has written.

The quintet was on such a musical high during those recording sessions that the creativity spilled over into 2023 in the form of a trio of EPs comprised of songs that came out of making the last studio album.

Dirty Heads recorded a total of 14 songs for the new album and decided to hold back four tracks to later release an EP.

But, “music was still coming out, we were still creating and it was still cohesive and really good,” Watson said.

Soon, the band found itself with enough content for three EP releases, the first of which is dubbed “Midnight Control Sessions: Night 2,” and drops April 14. It will be followed closely by “Midnight Control Sessions: Night 3” and “Midnight Control Sessions: Night 4.”

“We thought it would be a really fun, creative way to give it legs and let it live for a couple of tours and in this day and age you need content, you constantly have to be putting out music,” he added.

Formed in 2003, Dirty Heads have focused on catchy, upbeat melodies with their blend of reggae, hip-hop, alt-rock, and these days, pretty much whatever else they feel like throwing in the mix.

“We know how to captain our ship one hundred percent now,” Watson said. “I think that’s why that (new) album was so good, because we know how to get our sound; we know what we want to say and we know how to do it now.”

The first single from “Midnight Control Sessions: Night 2,” is “Rescue Me.” The song is currently available for streaming and is an ode to the band’s Southern California roots. The song is also driven by the Dirty Heads’ take on a melodic hook made famous by another local band. After settling on a guitar part written by a producer for the song, the ideas for hooks started coming and Watson said he couldn’t get a certain familiar radio hit out of his head.

“I couldn’t stop humming ‘Californication’ from the Red Hot Chili Peppers,” he said. “So we were like, yo, should we take this Chili Peppers melody and flip it? They’re a big California band that influenced us and it made sense and we loved it.”

With a breezier version of the Red Hot Chili Peppers melody, the song mixes hip-hop beats and rap vocals to create catchy summertime tune.

“The vibe of that song is just like cool to me,” said Dustin “Duddy B” Bushnell, Dirty Heads’ vocalist-guitarist and co-founder said. “It’s nothing too serious, it’s nothing too crazy. It’s just a hometown song really.”

The song “John Linen” on the EP is a straight-up hip-hop song with tinges of reggae soul that started out as a song for Watson’s hip-hop solo project, Sword Beach.

“Every time I played it for people it got this big, huge reaction,” Watson said. “There was something really special about that song that I thought could be better if I brought it into the Dirty Heads world.”

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The final song on the three-song EP is “Bright Side,” what includes a chorus created by Bushnell.

“It’s just a classic Dirty Heads song,” he said. “It’s got a good feel, a good upbeat tempo and when we were writing that song, it’s what we were going for. We just needed another classic upbeat, positive Dirty Heads song.”

The last of the original four songs that Dirty Heads cut off the “Midnight Control” album is “Island Glow.” Though it didn’t make the first EP, it will be on one of the following records and features Colombian musical ensemble Monsieur Perinè.

The release of the new EP also marks the kickoff of a busy season for the band, which will include its Island Glow Summer Tour featuring support from Lupe Fiasco, Yelawolf, G. Love & Special Sauce, Tropidelic and Bikini Trill. The tour kicks off in June and the band also announced it would be performing at the Alta Music Festival that takes place at Avila Beach near San Luis Obispo Sept. 23-24.

There are no local shows on the band’s schedule at the moment.

“No local shows have been announced yet,” Watson teased, emphasizing the word “announced.”  “Expect something very, very soon.”

​ Orange County Register 

Coachella 2023: 5 Southern California artists making their festival debut

• April 5, 2023

Singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers made her debut at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in 2022 and yes, she was wonderful both in the music she made and the excitement she displayed.

Bridgers, who was 5 when the inaugural Coachella took place in 1999, grew up in Pasadena dreaming of the desert festival. As a teen, before she was old enough to get her driver’s license, she convinced her mother for several years to drive to Indio and drop her off at the festival gates.

“Picture it. It’s 2011 and I’m in a Two Door Cinema Club crop top,” Bridgers told the crowd last year after thanking her mom for all those rides. “My hair is pink. And I am at this festival.

“Actually, don’t picture it,” she added – too late! – as the crowd laughed at that image. “But I am from L.A. and being here means so much to me.”

As festival season approached this year, the memory of that sweet, genuine moment got us thinking about what it will be like for other Southern California acts making their Coachella debuts this year.

Surely it’s a dream come true for any artist who grew up in the palm tree shadows of one of the world’s most prestigious music festivals.

ALSO SEE: More 2023 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival news

So before Coachella kicks off on Friday, April 14 for the first of two weekends, we tracked down five different groups or solo artists on the 2023 lineup and asked them about it.

This is what we heard.

The Linda Lindas

The four teen girls in the Linda Lindas range in age from 12-18. But just a year or two since they formed in Los Angeles, this terrifically fun punk rock band has already played festivals around the United States, Mexico, Japan, Germany and Spain.

Still, Coachella looms large as the Linda Lindas prepare to play – and attend – the desert fest.

“I think it’s going to be great – it’s going to be so fun,” says singer-guitarist Lucia de la Garza, 16. “It’ll be our first time going to Coachella to like see what it’s all about.

“We understand Coachella is a big deal, and so now we’re just gonna get a little more insight into like why?” she says.

“It’s one of those things that at least in school everybody would talk about who was going to Coachella that weekend,” says singer-guitarist Bela Salazar, 18, and the only band member to finish high school so far.  “Growing up in California it’s like a big thing.”

Drummer Mila de la Garza, 12, says she and Lucia’s mom and dad went to Coachella one year to see Beyoncé. Salazar says she started dreaming of attending around fifth or sixth grade when her own taste in music started to emerge. Bassist-singer Eloise Wong, 15, the De La Cruz sisters’ cousin, says she’s already picking out which acts she hopes to see this year.

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“This time it’s really exciting because there are bands like Scowl and Destroy Boys and Soul Glo,” Eloise says. “And Blondie is playing and the Breeders.”

Festival veterans, the Linda Lindas figure their Saturday set will fall early in the day, giving them plenty of time over the three-day weekends to watch other acts perform.

The band hasn’t played since early January, instead taking time off to write new material, Eloise says. Coachella might get the live debuts of several new songs, Lucia adds.

“To just like jump right into Coachella is gonna be like really exciting,” Lucia says. “It’ll be a little weird to be on stage again.”

The youngest three members of the band have to go back to school on days between Coachella weekends, but even coming home offers something awesome: On Wednesday, April 19; they’ll open for fellow Coachella performers Blondie at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles.

Blondie, and especially singer Debbie Harry, have been idols of the Linda Lindas for years, the answer to the frequent interview question of “Who’d be your dream band to open for?” Lucia says.

“What do you do?” Eloise wonders. “If you’re like walking up to Debbie Harry, like, what happens then? What do you say?”

Gabriels

Singer Jacob Lusk of the Los Angeles band Gabriels laughs as he says he still doesn’t quite believe that he’s playing Coachella this year.

“I’m still like maybe it’s not really happening,” the 35-year-old Compton native says. “But if you’re interviewing me, I guess that means it has to really happening.”

Gabriels is printed on the Coachella poster, we observe.

“I am on the poster,” Lusk says, laughing. “I know. But they might have me like performing at the gate. I might be a parking lot singer.”

No chance of that. The modern soul-R&B fusion of Gabriels, which includes Ray Hope and Ari Balouzian, is poised to play many more prominent stages.

No less than Elton John greeted their 2021 debut EP “Love and Hate In a Different” as one of the best records he’d heard in a decade. In February, Gabriels was nominated for best international group at the 2023 Brit Awards along with 2023 Coachella headliner Blackpink, the hip-hop duo of Drake & 21 Savage, Swedish indie duo First Aid Kit, and the Irish band Fontaines D.C., which won the award.

As a teen growing up in Compton, Lusk sang gospel in church, and later R&B as a constant on “American Idol” where he finished fifth in 2011. Now 35, Lusk never thought of Coachella as a stage on which he might perform.

“In my wildest dreams I would have been like a male Adele or something like that,” Lusk says. “So I just never would have imagined me singing at Coachella, or anyone wanting to hear it there to be honest.

“Then in the last few years like we’ve seen more artists like Beyoncé there,” he says.

In 2016, the year Gabriels first formed, soul and R&B performers such as SZA and Mavis Staples played Coachella, we tell him.

“We can slide in,” Lusk says. “We’re somewhere between SZA and Mavis Staples. OK.”

Hope, for whom playing England’s Glastonbury last year was his version of the Coachella dream, is British.  Los Angeles native Balouzian is Armenian American.

“I grew up a whole ‘nother way,” says Lusk, who adds he sometimes describes his musical style as “If Nina Simone did pop music.”

“It’s really everyone’s music for everybody,” he says of Gabriels. “We want to create classy, timeless music that everyone can love and understand and relate to.”

Momma 

Last year, as the Los Angeles-based indie rock trio Momma was headlining a show on the road, the band members received at least a dozen missed calls on their phones. Of course, they couldn’t pick up while simultaneously shredding away.

As they got off stage and saw all of the notifications, they called home to check in. It was their manager hitting redial in a panic to let them know that they’d landed a spot on the 2023 Coachella lineup, a festival they all loved growing up.

“We were like ‘Dude, we’re legit playing on stage right now,’ but our team kept telling us it’s really important,” Allegra Weingarten, vocalist and guitarist of the group says. “(When) he told us we got Coachella, we couldn’t believe it. It’s still pretty surreal.”

Comprised of Weingarten, Etta Friedman and Aron Kobayashi Ritch, in one way or another each member has attended Coachella as a fan.

Weingarten and Friedman had their first Coachella experience in 2011, seeing acts like Kings of Leon, Arcade Fire and The Chemical Brothers. They’ve attended three different festival years, making 2023 their fourth Coachella, but their first as performing artists.

Friedman notes that their friends always hype them up, expressing to the group that this might just be the biggest performance they’ve played to date. But for Momma, it doesn’t feel that way.

“Truthfully, I don’t think it will be a crazy, big show for us when you have everyone else on the bill,” Friedman says. “It just feels like the beginning of forever regarding where we’re going.”

Paris Texas 

Not everyone will admit to or is successful at sneaking into a music festival like Coachella, but for the Los Angeles-based alternative rap duo Paris Texas, it’s a tale they don’t mind sharing. Producer Louis Pastel said that he sneaked his way into the festival back in 2013.

“This will technically be my first proper Coachella, even though I snuck in before and I can’t remember much,” he says while chuckling. “I just wanted to go see a few artists and leave.”

Now, for the South Central-bred Pastel and rap frontman Felix, performing alongside artists on the lineup this year like Frank Ocean, Kaytranada and Gorillaz is “a pretty big deal.”

Pastel says that even though it’s just days away, they don’t necessarily have a game plan. What they do know is that it’ll be a show unlike any other they’ve done in the past.

“This year, we plan to drop so much new music, and the Coachella audience is going to get a taste of that,” Felix says. “We want to make sure visually, we give them something cool, too. We don’t have a live band, so we want to just bring good energy and a mix of old and new stuff that people can enjoy, even if they’ve never heard or seen us before.”

The duo dropped its full-length debut, “Boy Anonymous,” in May 2021. The lead single, “Force of Habit,” became a viral hit. Though the pair have only created music together for a short period of time, Paris Texas is ready to take on Coachella and the world.

“We still can’t believe we could play this year, and it feels like we can only go up,” Felix says. “You know we’ve grown up in Los Angeles and this always seemed like a distant dream, so it’s cool to have it now.”

DannyLux

For DannyLux, the Gen Z Chicano rocker making modern corrido ballads, the Coachella festival is essentially in the backyard of his childhood home. Though DannyLux grew up in Palm Springs and recalls seeing festival goers crowd the area each year, he never got to attend himself.

This year, that’s all changing as he’ll finally make his debut at Coachella as a performer and as a fan. The 19-year-old Mexican American artist said that this forthcoming festival set feels full circle in many ways.

“It’s a blessing, to be honest. I just feel extremely lucky,” DannyLux says. “To be playing in my hometown and at Coachella just feels crazy. This performance, I’m making sure just to give it my all, but I am pretty nervous since I haven’t chosen the outfits I will be wearing or the setlist, so there’s still a lot to figure out.”

More so than in recent years, the Coachella 2023 lineup is stacked with Latin artists including Friday headliner Bad Bunny and sets throughout the weekend by acts like Becky G, Rosalía, Fabulosos Cadillacs, Conexión Divina, Kali Uchis and Eladio Carrión. Danny notes that playing alongside his Latin counterparts both Friday’s of the festival is exciting and nerve-wracking.

DannyLux is part of a new generation of rising Latin stars coming out of the Mexican indie music scene. He headlined Viva! Pomona and embarked on a mini tour with Los Angeles Chicano act Cuco last year. His 2023 is shaping up to be even bigger, he says.

“I never imagined myself playing in the big leagues, and this year, it’s just all happening so fast,” he says. “For this Coachella performance, I just want fans and anyone who happens to catch us to vibe out. It’ll be the most interactive performance. I mean we have to, it’s our hometown.”

Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival

When: 12 p.m. April 14-16 and April 21-23

Where: Empire Polo Club, 81-800 Avenue 51, Indio

Tickets: Weekend one passes are sold-out, but available through secondary sellers; Weekend two passes are $549 for three-day general admission; $1,069 for three-day VIP admission. All admission, parking and on-site camping options are available at coachella.com.

​ Orange County Register 

Easter 2023: These restaurants will have holiday specials on Sunday, April 9

• April 5, 2023

Ham, and occasionally lamb, will be featured on restaurants’ Easter menus this Sunday, April 9.

Most restaurants will be serving sit-down dinners, but some are offering family meals for pickup as well.

Here is what several chain restaurants have announced for the holiday. Prices and participation may vary by location, so check with your local restaurants before committing.

Full-service and quick service restaurants

Acapulco Restaurant & Cantina: An all-you-can-eat brunch will feature a tri-tip and ham carving station and an omelet station, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., according to the chain’s website. Prices are $36 for adults and $12 for children. acapulcorestaurants.com/easter

Black Angus Steakhouse: Lamb chops are on the menu as a seasonal special, served with bread and two sides for $28.99. The chain’s Lent dish, salmon and crispy shrimp, will be available through Friday, April 7, according to a news release. blackangus.com

Black Bear Diner: Specials on Sunday, April 9 will include three holiday ham dinners, one with 8 ounces of ham, one with 4 ounces and one for children with 2 ounces, a 10-ounce prime rib dinner and a Chicken Fried Steak Kitchen Sink Omelette. There will also be a family ham dinner to go that serves four. blackbeardiner.com

Claim Jumper Restaurant & Bar: An Easter brunch buffet will be served 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday at most locations, according to the chain’s website. It will include an omelet bar, carving stations and bottomless mimosas, according to the chain’s website. Restaurants in Costa Mesa and Palmdale won’t be participating. claimjumper.com

Coco’s Bakery Restaurant: A special ham dinner is available for $15.99 through Easter, according to the chain’s website. Coco’s is also promoting a pre-order ham feast for $84.99. It serves four to six people. cocosbakery.com

Corky’s Kitchen & Bakery. Specials will include strawberry pancakes, Florentine Eggs Benny and a ham dinner after 11 a.m. Sunday, according to a Facebook post. corkyskitchenandbakery.com

Cracker Barrel: Heat-and-serve family feasts with ham or prime rib can be ordered for $139-$189. crackerbarrel.com

Dickey’s Barbecue Pit: Customers can receive 20% off orders of $35 or more using the code SPRING20 on Dickey’s app or when making online orders, according to a news release. dickeys.com

El Torito: Most locations will offer an all-you-can-eat brunch with a carving station 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Prices are $36 for adults and $12 for children. The Marina del Rey restaurant will serve a four-course meal for $34 in addition to its usual weekend brunch, according to a news release. eltorito.com

Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Bar: A three-course dinner includes filet mignon with choice of crab-stuffed shrimp or lobster tail scampi. Restaurants open at 11 a.m. Sunday. flemingssteakhouse.com

Golden Corral: Family Easter meals to go feed five to eight people and include the choice of glazed ham or fried chicken. Prices range from $49.99 to $89.99 but vary by location, according to a news release. goldencorral.com

Honey Baked Ham: Ham dinners that serve four to eight people are available for pickup at $89.99-$104.99, according to the chain’s website. Stores are closed Sunday but have extended hours for Easter week. honeybaked.com

Marie Callender’s Restaurant & Bakery: Easter dinner specials include ham, salmon and New York strip steak, according to its website. Prices range from $23.99-$24.99. The chain also offers a ham family meal for $54.99. mariecallenders.com

Polly’s Pies: A takeout bundle that feeds six or more people features quiche, biscuits, jam and choice of pie for $109. pollyspies.com

Urban Plates: Lamb osso bucco is on the menu for $21.95, according to the chain’s website and Facebook page. urbanplates.com

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Snacks

Baskin-Robbins: Customizable ice cream cakes are available with themes such as bunnies, chicks and Easter egg hunts. baskinrobbins.com

Duck Donuts: An Easter assortment with such flavors as Chocolate Covered Strawberry and Glazed Easter Confetti is available through April 9, according to the chain’s website. duckdonuts.com

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts: Spring mini doughnuts with decorations such as bunnies, ducks and daffodils will be available through April 9, according to the chain’s website. krispykreme.com

Randy’s Donuts: Peeps Easter Donuts, featuring a chick-shaped marshmallow on top of a raised doughnut, are available through April 9 at all locations, according to a news release. cq randysdonuts.com

​ Orange County Register 

Alexander: The California Coast Classic bike tour’s biggest booster

• April 5, 2023

Pete Staylor is persistent. He has been for 22 years.

He floods the zone – with flyers, with social media posts, with mentions in conversations with friends and acquaintances and anyone who might possibly be interested. His goal: To raise awareness and participation for the annual California Coast Classic bike tour, an eight-day, 525-mile jaunt down Highway 1 from San Francisco to Los Angeles.

It will begin on Sept. 30 and will conclude Oct. 7. It is the Arthritis Foundation’s main fundraising event, routinely raising more than $1 million a year, and riders are required to raise a minimum of $3,500 to participate, either by soliciting smaller donations or by writing a check.

Staylor, 69 and a resident of Riverside, will be riding in the event for the 20th time, with a personal fundraising goal this time of $20,525. His first ride was in 2002, and his motivation then was simple.

“I started doing it because I wanted to find a cure, because I had arthritic knees,” he said. “I was kind of selfish. I want to do something big, make a difference.”

The motivation: Staylor’s knees no longer allowed him to play basketball, his first passion. He was pretty good in high school – full disclosure, This Space was a year behind him at Notre Dame High in Riverside and can vouch for it – and he said that as he got older “I got way better than I was in high school. … I would play five, six days a week, and when my knees went south it was horrible. I kept trying to play, because I love playing basketball.”

For help, Staylor went to orthopedic surgeon Gregory Heinen, who gave him Synvisc injections in each knee in November of 2001 to help cushion the knees and allow for greater movement. As Staylor told it, when he realized how much better those injections made his knees feel, “I said, ‘Doc, this is great. Can I go play ball?’

“And he said, ‘No, no, no, no, NO! You can swim or ride a bike.’”

Fair enough.

“I’m making a car payment at the bank, and I see this flyer and pick it up: ‘Take the ride of a lifetime, sleep under the stars, make a difference,’” Staylor said. “I don’t own a bike. I look at it. I took it home. I looked at it for two weeks, and I told my wife (Merry Lou), ‘I’ve got to do this.’

“My wife says, ‘You’re crazy.’ I said, ‘I know, but I’m doing it.’”

He did it and has continued to do it. Staylor started training in June of 2002 – a couple of months later than is usually recommended for this event – and did the ride for the first time that September. He did it again the next year and has kept at it ever since, save for 2014 and 2015. That hiatus came because he had both knees replaced, then reinjured one of them, and was prepared to give up riding and instead stay involved as a volunteer. But he discovered that riding an e-bike was easier on his joints, and he’s ridden one in this event ever since.

And a footnote: After nearly two decades of Staylor bugging his doctor to join him on the ride, Heinen finally acquiesced and rode in the 2021 event, and he’ll be back this year. Did we say Pete’s persuasive?

“He’s bold,” said Shannon Marang Cox, the ride director and associate executive director of the Arthritis Foundation. “And he’s figured it out – you just ask everyone because you never know. People that you would absolutely think, ‘Oh, they’ll donate to me,’ sometimes don’t. And sometimes people come out of the woodwork and you’re thinking, ‘Well, I haven’t talked to that person since high school, and I’m just Facebook friends with them. And yet here they came with a really, you know, kind and generous donation for my campaign.’

“And so I think Pete has figured out (the approach). You sort of ask everyone. You remind people frequently.”

The tour isn’t a race but instead a go-your-own-pace ride, with rest stops every 20 to 25 miles, support vans tagging along and free campgrounds – or hotels, for those willing to pay for more comfort – between stages. The first stage goes along Highway 1 from San Francisco to Santa Cruz, with subsequent stops at Monterey, Big Sur, Cambria, Oceano (which is 17 miles south of San Luis Obispo), Buellton, Ventura and finally L.A.

The aim is for around 250 riders, and Cox said that as of this week “there’s probably about 45 or 50 spaces left. And we do sometimes over-register, just because we have attrition.”

There is also the Arthritis Challenge Experience, which allows riders who can’t do the eight-day tour or those who live in other regions to pay a $39 registration fee, receive an official T-shirt, choose their own activity, post about it on social media and connect virtually to other participants.

That concept might have had its roots in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic limited not only this event but all kinds of pursuits. Even so, the Arthritis Foundation raised $960,000 that year without the eight-day tour, “which was remarkable,” Cox said. “I mean, when you consider that people fundraise to be able to do this event and it’s like a vacation, a trip of a lifetime or a challenge, to not have that and to have people continue to support, it spoke a lot about how committed people are to our cause and our mission.”

A good number of riders either are affected by arthritis or have family members who are affected. Others have their own back stories, whether they’re participating for a particular cause or in memory of a loved one, or just because it checks off an item on their bucket list.

Staylor recalled the 2018 ride, when he had a 30-rider team that included two people riding in memory of relatives who had passed away. Another woman who had reached out for help in training for the ride told him, “I’ve got two angels on my shoulders,” for her two sons who had passed away in the previous seven months.

“She had the largest group of people ever waiting for her at the finish line,” Staylor said. “And there wasn’t a dry eye in the place.”

There has been a celebrity component over the years. Former Olympic miler Mary Decker Slaney has ridden in it. So has actor Nancy Travis and former KCBS/KCAL news anchor Linda Alvarez.

But when it comes to getting attention for this cause and this ride, few are as effective (or, yes, persistent) as the guy his fellow riders refer to as Cap’n Pete.

Case in point: During last year’s tour, Staylor was part of a group relaxing at a Mexican restaurant in Oceano after the day’s ride when a San Luis Obispo TV reporter showed up with a camera and said he’d been sent to talk to riders. He asked who was willing to be interviewed, and the other eight all pointed at Staylor.

“So I’m kind of an unofficial spokesperson,” he said.

“You have to self-promote. I’m not looking for attention. I’m looking for connection.”

For additional information about the California Coast Classic or to register, the event website is arthritis.org/CaliforniaCoastClassic 

[email protected]

​ Orange County Register 

Orange County cities, not food vendors, act like gangs against communities

• April 5, 2023

To hear some local council members describe it, gang-like enterprises are overrunning their cities and attacking the quality of life of cities. They’re calling for a stepped-up police presence, new regulations and a crackdown to stop what Orange Council member Kathy Tavoularis reportedly described as “another attempt to get into our neighborhoods.”

Before Orange County residents get swept up in the latest big-government-enabling moral panic, we urge them to put the matter in perspective. We’re not talking about street gangs or human-trafficking operations but – and try not to laugh too hard – mostly small vendors who sell tacos, tortas, frutas and churros on street corners and in parking lots.

Late last month, the city of Orange voted unanimously to develop a new law that would limit, regulate and fine local vendors. Stanton is looking at strengthening its existing ordinance. In 2020, Tustin passed a new street-vendor law that imposes myriad conditions on food sellers. With help from Orange County health officials, Santa Ana shutteredmore than 1000 vendors last year.

So much for Orange County as a bastion of free markets. Tavoularis even made an odd ethic argument regarding these mostly Latino food vendors. “Everybody here knows my dad owned restaurants, a lot of Greeks own restaurants. I’m sticking up for the Greeks,” she said, per VoiceofOC. She accused the vendors of cheating restauranteurs.

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Her argument unveiled a key motivation of these rules, which, as the publication noted, are “fueled in part by complaints from brick and mortar restaurants.” Street vendors are not cheating anyone – but merely offer an alternative for some quick food. It’s not the job of government to protect the market share of influential businesses.

Gov. Gavin Newsom last year signed Senate Bill 972, which decriminalizes these operations. The law recognizes – as does this Editorial Board – that local governments have a proper role enforcing regulations to, say, keep vendors from blocking traffic or creating litter.

OC cities are going beyond those reasonable rules. Street vendors meet a need and help immigrants earn a living. They should be applauded, not harassed.

​ Orange County Register 

Travel: Cruise ship believed to be the world’s most expensive coming to Southern California

• April 5, 2023

When the supposed most expensive luxury cruise ship ever built sails into Los Angeles Harbor early next year, she will have onboard a prized art collection with the first Fabergé egg permanently on display at sea along with something else that California probably hasn’t seen — or sniffed — in the 31-year history of Regent Seven Seas: a vessel barely out of the shipyard.

That rare new-ship smell awaits cruisers boarding the Seven Seas Grandeur on Jan. 8 from San Pedro’s World Cruise Center. When the future fleet flagship welcomes her first embarking passengers out of L.A., the $545-million vessel will have only completed four itineraries. For the fifth, this one starting in the shadow of a just-turned 60-year-old Vincent Thomas Bridge, Grandeur will go back to Miami the same way she came: a 16-night sail through the Panama Canal.

The Italian-built, 746-passenger ship is a sister to Seven Seas Splendor, which debuted in 2020, and the 2016-christened Seven Seas Explorer. And what a lovely lineage it is. Both of Grandeur’s older siblings are beauties as Alaska-bound passengers will attest on Explorer this summer while Splendor, current flagship of the ultra-luxury fleet (www.rssc.com), spends the next two seasons in the Mediterranean and Northern Europe.

Seven Seas Splendor, docked in Cozumel, is a sister ship of Grandeur, debuting in L.A. this winter. (Photo by David Dickstein)

Before crossing the Atlantic a few days ago, Splendor’s seven-night “Heritage of the Maya” roundtrip sailing out of Miami served as a sneak peek for guests who are booked on Regent Seven Seas’ next big thing sight unseen. Actually, the nearly completed Grandeur is the fleet’s next mid-sized thing. Like most luxury-category vessels, the Explorer-class triplets — each measuring 55,000 gross tons — aren’t that large. By comparison, Norwegian Prima, the flagship of Norwegian Cruise Line, a sister subsidiary to Regent Seven Seas, has a gross tonnage of over 143,000. But while their internal volume is modest contrasted with those floating cities called megaships, Splendor, Explorer and Grandeur are big in terms of space ratio, a measure of how much real estate there is per passenger, and small in regard to staff-to-guest ratio, a good indicator of personalized service.

Splendor’s 1:1.5 ratio on the recent near-capacity cruise out of Miami was evident from bow to stern. Near-impeccable attention was prevalent from the ship’s six restaurants and well-serviced bars, lounges and main theater to the surprisingly spacious spa, casino and boutiques. Even the entertainment team, usually a cliquey bunch of professional singers and dancers, genuinely cared that guests had a grand time while hosting myriad shipboard activities, many worth points redeemable for sweet swag.

Afternoon tea aboard the Seven Seas Splendor. (Photo by David Dickstein)

Hospitality at a loftier level is provided to the more privileged Regent Seven Seas guests. Whereas butler service is an automatic amenity on Silversea, a direct competitor, only those in premium suites come with a genie in tails who can book your spa appointments, make dinner reservations and basically take care of all of your needs during your voyage. Having encountered a number of logistical and communications-related headaches over the seven days on Splendor, this coddling-allergic cruiser gained a better appreciation of his previous sail on Silversea.

Splendor’s atrium is stately, but Grandeur’s will boast the first Fabergé egg permanently displayed at sea. (Photo by David Dickstein)

It’s not that one ultra-luxury cruise line is better than the other; it’s just a matter of taste, as California-based travel planner Kelly Baker agrees.

“You can compare Silversea and Regent Seven Seas as apples to apples, but it’s more like Fuji to Granny Smith,” said Baker of Ships and Trips Travel. “They are both comparable ultra-luxury cruise lines that will satisfy your cravings. However, it all depends on your tastebuds with regard to finery.”

The two-deck Constellation Theater on Seven Seas Splendor. (Photo by David Dickstein)

Silversea gets the nod over Regent Seven Seas in several key categories — sheer elegance and food quality, in particular — but when it comes to entertainment and onboard activities in general, Regent gets a standing ovation. The shows presented in the two-deck Constellation Theater are not only some of the most elaborate in the luxury cruising category, but they rival those staged on megaships. The eclectic, contemporary and, yes, even sensual “Bohemian Soul” is the standout among the five — five! — full productions satisfying showgoers on seven-night sails.

Another tip of the hat in Regent Seven Seas’ direction is the vacation-y vibe. No offense to cruisers who prefer tuxedos over Tommy Bahama or formal gowns over country club chic, but in 2023, many seafaring holidaymakers don’t really want to dress to the nines. “Elegant casual” is as strict as Regent Seven Seas gets, and Seabourn, also responding to a trend, matched this more flexible nightly dress standard at the beginning of the year. Silversea seems to be holding firm, though a poll of Silver Moon passengers wearing tuxes on a recent formal night indicated an overwhelming desire to jettison the penguin suit.

Prime 7 is Regent Seven Seas’ signature steakhouse. (Photo by David Dickstein)

Curbing the stereotypical snootiness of luxury cruising does make Regent Seven Seas seem like a premium-class line at times, if not even mainstream. Except for the caviar station and reduced traffic, the indoor and poolside breakfast buffets on Splendor are no better or worse than what’s found on Carnival, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean ships. L’Occitane toiletries and a curtain separating the living and sleeping areas are nice touches for a basic suite, but the differences between these staterooms and those of a similar category on less-expensive Oceania, Holland America and Windstar are minuscule.

Pacific Rim, Splendor’s specialty Asian restaurant, features a dramatic entrance. (Photo by David Dickstein)

Little coming out of the galleys oozed wow factor, but lips were smacked over the filet mignon and lamb chops at Prime 7 steakhouse and the Compass Rose main dining room, cioppino at Sette Mari at La Veranda, popcorn lobster at Asian-influenced Pacific Rim and the Dover sole at French-accented Chartreuse.

Some of the best cooking on Splendor that week was done by passengers at the Culinary Arts Kitchen. The loosely themed “New World Mediterranean” cooking class had 18 amateur chefs preparing roasted ratatouille, zucchini fritters and chocolate lava cakes. Offered on Splendor, Explorer and, soon, Grandeur, these classes are expertly designed to expand guests’ culinary skills through highly individualized, hands-on instruction. Each weeklong cruise tends to offer three different classes and costs $89 per person. Generous pours of well-paired wines and cocktails add to the fun of tasting the fruits (and other ingredients) of one’s labor.

Culinary Arts Kitchen chef instructor Noelle Barille shows off the class’s bounty. (Photo by David Dickstein)

The fully equipped classroom looks like it belongs at the Culinary Institute of America. It’s gorgeous and functional. Then again, so is the entire ship. More than 46,000 square feet of polished Italian marble, dramatic crystal chandeliers, rich upholstery and some of the finest pieces of the cruise line’s multi-million-dollar, museum-quality art collection make Splendor one ritzy, yet unpretentious resort at sea.

On the subject of art, it seems that Regent Seven Seas is putting all its Fabergé eggs in one floating basket. Playing favorites among its children, the cruise line is giving the collection’s pièce de resistance to the youngest triplet. The handcrafted objet d’art, named “Journey in Jewels,” will be on permanent display in Grandeur’s atrium, which we predict will be renamed as the “Egg-trium.”

Unlimited viewing of this first-of-its-kind piece from the swanky jewelry house will be included in the fare, as is pretty much everything else on a Regent Seven Seas cruise. A single price covers airfare, transfers, shore excursions, dining, bottomless wines and spirits, valet laundry service, unlimited Wi-Fi and gratuities.

West Coasters who want to experience Regent Seven Seas before January will have to venture elsewhere. Those set on sailing on Grandeur earlier than her California debut can hitch a ride on the inaugural cruise that embarks on Nov. 18 from Trieste, Italy — a mere 121 nautical miles from her birthplace across the Adriatic Sea. This seven-night sail disembarks in Barcelona. After paying a visit to the land of tapas, cava and Gaudi, Grandeur will make that voyage to Miami with sights set on Southern California.

Upon Grandeur’s Jan. 6 arrival, she will become the youngest in Regent Seven Seas’ fleet to dock on the West Coast. Grandeur’s local visit may be fleeting with just a single itinerary out of California, but here’s some good news if you miss the boat: Grandeur returns to San Pedro the following winter for two exciting voyages. The first, leaving Dec. 29, 2024, is a 10-night Mexican Riviera cruise that makes calls in rarely visited Manzanillo and La Paz. That’s followed by a 16-night voyage to Miami through the Panama Canal, and it just so happens to begin on the one-year anniversary of Grandeur’s first cruise from the Pacific. Talk about grandeur.

​ Orange County Register