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A character in a green tunic rides a brown horse through a vibrant, grassy landscape with mountains, a castle in the distance, and a glowing fairy-like creature floating nearby.

Video Game Symphony: Zelda

'The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses' is part of this movement to draw in audiences that may have previously dismissed video games and appreciate them as a legitimate art form.
A man with a short beard in a dark jacket is closely looking through the viewfinder of a professional video camera while filming outdoors in a snowy environment.

Elevating Horror

Fifty years ago this October, Tommie Smith and John Carlos climbed atop the Olympic medal podium in Mexico City and threw up a fist against racial inequality. As they each removed their shoes and raised a clenched, black-gloved hand in the air, the pair of San Jose State sprinters bowed their heads, symbolically refusing to acknowledge their country's national anthem as it played over the stadium's loudspeakers.
A cartoon-style telescope on a tripod is pointed toward a bright yellow star in the purple sky.

Free Will Astrology: Week of April 28, 2021

Virgo novelist Agatha Christie sold hundreds of millions of books, and is history's most-translated author. While growing up, she had few other kids to associate with, so she created a host of imaginary friends to fill the void. They eventually became key players in her work as an author, helping her dream up stories. More than that: She simply loved having those invisible characters around to keep her company. Even in her old age, she still consorted with them. I bring this to your attention, Virgo, because now is a great time to acquire new imaginary friends or resurrect old ones. Guardian angels and ancestral spirits would be good to call on, as well. How might they be of assistance and inspiration to you?

Silicon Alleys: Phone Home

It sounds strange, but in all the years of writing columns that required me to look up old street addresses or locations of former buildings, it never even occurred to me to track down where my dad lived. When I found out, the results felt mythological. The 1959 and 1960 phone books list my dad at 277 East San Salvador St., an address that doesn't exist anymore, since it's right where the Seventh Street parking garage now sits. The garage opened a few years later, in 1962. In the 1961 phone book, my dad is listed at 280 East San Salvador St., which is also gone, although it would have been right across the street, somewhere around the urine-soaked fence now separating the 7-11 from the Ph.D. Apartments.

August

Read the latest features and columns from the South Bay's Metro Newspaper, and find information on upcoming events, lifestyle, the arts and more.
A cartoon-style telescope on a tripod is pointed toward a bright yellow star in the purple sky.

Free Will Astrology: Week of April 21, 2021

Gemini-born Paul Gauguin (1848–1903) is today regarded as an innovative and influential painter. But his early years provided few hints that he would ultimately become renowned. As a teenager, he attended naval preparatory school, and later he joined the French navy. At age 23, he became a stockbroker. Although he also began dabbling as a painter at that time, it wasn't until the stock market crashed 11 years later that he made the decision to be a full-time painter. Is there a Gauguin-like turning point in your future, Gemini? If so, its early signs might show itself soon. It won't be as dramatic or stressful as Gauguin's, but I bet it will be quite galvanizing.
A beige brick building with a tree in front, a security camera, and a sign above a doorway that reads Caravan Lounge. The right side features green, white, and red stripes and faded letters on the wall.

Silicon Alleys: Holy Diver

I have revealed the secret history of the Caravan in this space multiple times before, but last week I randomly chose to flip through the 1963 phone book instead of all the others offered. Finding the original Caravan was like discovering the Dead Sea Scrolls. My inner archaeologist went wild. I'm glad my mom raised me in libraries.
A cartoon-style telescope on a tripod is pointed toward a bright yellow star in the purple sky.

Free Will Astrology: Week of April 14, 2021

Why don't rivers flow straight? Well, sometimes they do, but only for a relatively short stretch. According to the US Geological Survey, no river moves in a linear trajectory for a distance of more than 10 times its width. There are numerous reasons why this is so, including the friction caused by banks and the fact that river water streams faster at the center.
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