Kearny High Girls Hit the Gridiron
Plus: Farmers Market, Kitakata Ramen, Community Garden, Health Fair, Councilmember Office Hours, Time and Einstein in LV, Kearny Boys Football, LV Planning Group, and Nature Arts and Crafts Day
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Popular sports like pickleball and lacrosse have recently claimed the title of fastest growing sport here in the United States. But based on a decision made earlier this year by the California Scholastic Federation (the state’s official overseer of high school sports), one other sport can now at least claim to be the fastest growing sport here in California. Girls Flag Football is now an officially sanctioned high school sport in this state. The sport is currently enjoying its inaugural season, and our local public high school—Kearny High—has joined the action by fielding its own varsity girls flag football team.
This past Tuesday, the Kearny team faced off against a team from Clairemont High and scored a 26-0 victory, led by the passing of Kiara Arcasi. The Komets now sport a 2-5 overall record, and a 1-1 record in league play.
The team plays a 15 game schedule over the course of this season, which extends to the end of October.
Besides having only seven players at a time on the field (versus 11 for boys football), there are several noticeable differences between the boys football game we are used to seeing and the girls flag football version, to include the following:
The field is only 80 yards between end zones
All players must use a mouthpiece
Blocking or screening is not permitted
All players on offense are eligible receivers
The ball does not have to be snapped between the legs to the QB
The width of the playing field is 40 yards maximum
Players wear three flags
Tackling is not allowed
The QB can run the ball once per series of downs
Playing time includes two 20 minute halves (a running clock is used)
In talking about his team, Head Coach Elliot Thomas commented that his 17 varsity players have been practicing since early August, and though the majority of players are new to the game “A few of our players have experience through an after-school club we had last school year.”
The team has already generated some attention with Komet quarterback Kiara Arcasi being recognized as a San Diego Union-Tribune Player of the Week—the first Girls Flag Football player to win this honor. In addition to Arcasi, Coach Thomas also noted the play of Sophomore Kamara Ellis (RB, CB) and Senior Jayda Russ-Wheeler (WR, LB). Other players on the roster include Dayani Perez, Michelle Hernandez, Tiana Cunningham, Makenzie Kilgore, Zaray Villatoro, Kaylie Schwartz-Ybarra, Zaryah Robinson, Isis Verastegui, Jayda Russ- Wheeler, RJ Ibarra, Malone Neugent, Aglade Valencia, Kelly Morales, Aminah Furcron, and Andie Estrada,
The Komets’ next home game is scheduled for Monday September 25 (5:30 pm). The Komets will play a non-league game against Mar Vista High School. This game will present local football fans with the perfect opportunity to see how flag football is played.
Community News
Come to the Love, Linda Vista Farmers Market
Kitakata Ramen Opens in Convoy District
In last week’s LV Update, I asked readers to let me know if there was a place they wanted us to try. Sonia D., one of our enthusiastic readers, responded quickly and asked us to review Kitakata Ramen. If you haven’t heard of it, it is a new restaurant in the area between Target and the Business Costco on Othello, off Convoy Street.
Accordingly, we grabbed the Carnivore Sidekick and went there for lunch between football games on Sunday. I was surprised to see a couple of new restaurants and a bakery will be opening there soon. So, that means I keep my job for a couple more weeks as I won’t run out of restaurants.
Kitakata opened in July. It is very spacious and has a nice vibe. Lots of posters on the wall and adequate seating inside. As the name implies, it is a Ramen restaurant and they have many types of ramen as well as fried chicken, some appetizers and bowls, including gyoza and ban nai bun and curry. One thing they are not heavy on is food without meat. See the menu here.
This place was heaven for the Carnivore who ordered the Kitakata Ramen. The server was nice enough to tell us that they realize they only have one vegetarian entrée. They do have edamame, and octopus balls, but most everything is pork based. Steve ordered the one vegetarian item, Vegan Miso Ramen. I noticed they had a mixed boiled vegetable Ramen, but the server told me it was in a pork broth (though we learned they could put the pork belly on the side instead of putting it in the bowl.) She then said they could trade out the broth for the vegan broth and we would give Carnivore the extra pork belly to put in his ramen; a win-win situation, especially for the Carnivore.
The food arrived in very large bowls although we had ordered the regular size rather than the large. The unanimous decision was that it was delicious. The food tasted healthy and was obviously chock full of fresh veggies. The flavor was excellent though carnivore added some hot seasoning to his. The servings were so big that Steve was the only one who ate his whole meal. The Carnivore and I saved half for another meal, so though the price may seem high, if it makes two meals, it has to be considered a bargain. Carnivore’s dish was chock full of Toro Chashu (thanks to the addition of mine), scallions and bamboo shoots in a shoyu base. Steve’s was vegan broth, miso base, seasoned tofu, cabbage, carrots, spinach, garlic and sesame oil. Mine was the vegan broth, bean sprouts, cabbage carrots, spinach, Asian chives and sesame oil. They also have a selection of beers, sake, tea and other drinks. The service was very good and we did not feel rushed. The restaurant seemed to be doing a good business and as the weather cools, I think it will do even better.
So give this place a try. And if you see another new restaurant spring up in the area, let us know. We are always ready for a good meal.
Community Event
Come to the Garden Gathering
The next LV Community Garden Gathering will be held on Wednesday September 27 from 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm. Check out the flyer for more details.
Community Event
Free Community Health Fair
Civic Event
Councilmember Campillo Office Hours in September
Councilmember Raul Campillo’s Community Office Hours provide opportunities for District 7 residents to meet directly with him and ask questions or share concerns.
This month’s Office Hours will be held Wednesday September 27 from 9:00 am to 12:30 pm at the Linda Vista Library.:
If you would like to talk with the Councilmember, please email his office at CherylW@@sandiego.gov to make an appointment.
Commentary
Time, Einstein, and Linda Vista
I recently saw the movie Oppenheimer, which details the events leading up to the construction of the first atomic bomb during World War II. One of the many historical figures that makes an appearance in the movie is the famous physicist Albert Einstein. As remarkable as it may seem, Einstein’s appearance in the movie immediately made me think of life here in Linda Vista. I know what you are thinking, and the answer is no… unlike First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, there is no truth to the rumor that Einstein once gave a speech at the Linda Vista Shopping Center during World War II. That’s not what my Einstein - Linda Vista connection is all about. Einstein’s appearance in the movie made me think of how time is relative, and all that other complicated stuff about the time-space continuum, especially as experienced here in our community. Einstein maintained that the rate at which time passes depends on your frame of reference. Let me show you how that thinking applies to Linda Vista with the examples provided below:
Morena Pump Station Construction: It seems that construction on Friars Road related to the Pure Water San Diego program, specifically for the Morena Pump station on Sherman Street, has been going on for decades, even though it actually started in June of 2021. In terms of Einstein’s theory of relativity, it appears to many local residents as if time in this geographic area has come to a complete stop. This construction has a direct impact on Linda Vista residents because the prolonged construction means we can’t travel west on Friars Road. How much longer will this construction go on? The City’s Public Utilities web page says till 2025. That’s a long time! This means that the Morena Pump Station project will actually take longer than the famous Manhattan Project that produced the first atomic bomb. I guess this inconvenience will all be worth it when the completed Morena Pump station can divert all those million gallons of water for eventual purification.
Kiosks at McDonalds: I’m still not totally sure, but it seems to me that time does indeed move faster when using the new automated ordering kiosks at the McDonalds in downtown Linda Vista. These “relatively” new kiosks allow customers to submit their order without standing in line at the counter. In the past, I always felt frustrated having to wait at the counter behind a long single line of customers. There would inevitably be a couple customers slowing down the ordering process by asking numerous questions about menu items, changing their orders back and forth, and/or searching their pockets for the right amount of change when it was time to pay. Completing an order at these new kiosks (there are four of them) seems to make time move faster. I haven’t encountered any lines or delays so far. But speaking about time, when I order my usual Diet Coke and fries at McDonalds, I often find myself wishing I could travel back in time to 1968, when a drink and an order of fries cost a total of 20 cents.
The Padres’ Season: Einstein once said… "A man sits with a pretty girl for an hour and it seems shorter than a minute. But tell that same man to sit on a hot stove for a minute, it is longer than any hour. That's relativity." This sentiment about relativity sort of sums up how I feel about this year’s Padres season. Each time the Padres won a game and thereby gave us hope for a successful season, time seemed to joyfully speed ahead toward October, but then each heartbreaking loss (and there were so many) gave us reason to think this was nothing but an exceptionally slow moving, torturous season. Though the Padres haven’t been above .500 since early May, the fact that they continued for so long to remain in contention for a wild card playoff spot without being mathematically eliminated made the season move in an often excruciatingly painful, sluggish manner, as if we were watching a train wreck in slow motion, over and over again.
Hazard Road Extension: We were surprised this past week to notice that the Hazard Road extension has finally opened, with little to no fanfare. We have written in the past about this extension and how it was designed to connect Hazard Center with the Fashion Valley Mall. It was designed, in part, to provide traffic relief for traffic going to these two malls, and to provide infrastructure for additional housing units that will eventually be built in that area. The extension begins across from the Doubletree Hotel on Hazard Center Road, goes under the SR 163 overpass, and then extends to the parking lot at Fashion Valley Mall. This is a road that was initially talked about as a possibility way back in the 1980’s. It’s not a City street, but one paid for by the developer who owns the Hazard Center. What I find interesting about this newly open road, is that it reminds me of a wormhole. As you may have previously read in your favorite physics newsletter, a wormhole is a hypothetical structure connecting disparate points in space and time. According to physicist Stephen Hawking, such wormholes could theoretically make time travel possible. But keep in mind that wormholes—or time travel portals, as they are sometimes called—are thought to be unstable. They open and close without warning, sort of like the Guardian of Forever time portal seen in a couple memorable Star Trek episodes. If you want to try out this new road extension, make sure you do so soon, because you never know when this portal might suddenly close. That is very likely to occur the next time it rains, and all of Mission Valley to include any road extension (or time traveling portal) that sits below sea level, is once again flooded.
More High School Sports
Kearny High Boys Football Plays Tomorrow Night
The undefeated Kearny High Boys Varsity football team plays a home game against Escondido Charter tomorrow night September 22. The 4-0 Komets are off to a fast start this season and hope to score their fifth consecutive victory with a win over the White Tigers. Kick off time is 7:00 pm.
Upcoming Meeting
LV Community Planning Group Meeting
The Linda Vista Community Planning Group will have its monthly meeting this Monday September 27 beginning at 6:00 pm. The meeting will be held at the American Legion Post 731. The public is invited to attend. You can check out the meeting agenda, and instruction for connecting with Zoom, by clicking here.
Upcoming Community Event
Nature Arts and Crafts Day
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Loved your issue this week especially the Oppenheimer opinion piece! Well written well thought out and just plain funny! Always enjoy getting the update in my mailbox to see the local news and especially your reviews of restaurants and humorous pieces like this. Many thanks!