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Synchronicity in Little Italy

Published June 13, 2025 Blog Comments
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April 19, 2011              This all played out at a  lunch at Craft & Commerce in downtown San Diego on the corner of Beech and Indio Streets with Richard Page and Mike Weaver.  It’s a new gastro pub in Little Italy in a very old building with an English pub-African safari theme.  The furnishings were […]

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For the Vernons- Some Backstory

Published April 17, 2025 Blog Comments
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As I was pulling together For The Vernons, I reminisced about my brushes with brothers James and  Livingston Taylor. The Guitar Regift I’ve been a huge admirer of James Vernon Taylor ever since he released his monster album, Sweet Baby James in 1970. I’ve entertained myself and a few others with my covers of many […]

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A Silver Cup

Published March 31, 2025 Blog Comments
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James E. Birch-California’s Stagecoach King James Birch stood out among the crowd of passengers and well-wishers assembled on the pier at Vallejo Street wharf in San Francisco. Thursday, August 20, 1857, was a beautiful, warm, sunny day as the 491 passengers began to board the steamship SS Sonora on the first leg of their journey […]

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The Best USC Card Stunt RFs of All Time

Published January 26, 2025 Blog Comments
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The Paradine Case Movie Caper: 1948 Rose Bowl USC vs Michigan My wife, Hilary, and I went to the 2019 Holiday Bowl at San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium with fellow USC alumni, my uncle Stan Case, and his son Dave.  The USC Trojans were soundly beaten by the Iowa Hawkeyes, but everything else was great, including […]

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Captain Hiram Burt

Published October 16, 2024 Blog Comments
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Introduction and Dedication Capt. Hiram Burt (1812-1866) Hiram Burt was born on November 3, 1812, in Taunton, Bristol County, Massachusetts, to Enos Burt (1760-1822) and Hannah Haskins (1774-1843).  He was the second youngest of 10 siblings and had 5 brothers and four sisters.  His father and grandfather, Captain Jacob Haskins, were both soldiers with the […]

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HANNAH GAUNTT

Published June 23, 2024 Blog Comments
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Introduction Hannah Gauntt is enshrined in the legend and lore of Newberry, South Carolina for the bravery she exhibited during the American Revolution.   A woman of “Amazonian” size and strength, Hannah exemplified the courage and toughness of the pioneer women who staked out a living in what was then the thinly settled hinterlands of the […]

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ANTIWAR PROTESTS-54 YEARS AGO

Published April 29, 2024 Blog Comments
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The Vietnam War is a bad memory that has faded over time for many of us who were young adults when the conflict was raging in a full-throated roar. By 1968, 500,000 American soldiers were stationed in Vietnam.   50,000 had been killed in action.  Multiples more wounded in body and mind. Martin Luther King was […]

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FOR THE VERNONS

Published March 21, 2024 Blog Comments
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Introduction Many wouldn’t know the middle name of singer-songwriter-Music Hall-of-Famer- James Taylor is Vernon.   I was particularly pleased to discover this rather obscure fact because my name is Vernon, although I’ve always gone by Casey.  James’ younger brother Livingston doesn’t have a middle name, as far as I know.  Nor did his uncle, Livingston Vernon. […]

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VERNON FAMILY TREE

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[Note:   This is far from a complete Vernon Family Tree.  It tracks the direct lineage to the Taylor siblings.  In the author’s experience, the reliability of the accuracy of a family tree wanes after the 5th generation.  However, in this case, based on research of similar family trees on Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.com, there is more […]

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FOR THE STUMBLERS

Published January 24, 2024 Blog Comments
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Greetings- I hope 2024 is off to a good start.  For Christmas I got some new, beautiful titanium pieces for my neck.  I also traded in some that weren’t playing nice with my “born-with” parts. It’s like a strange necklace you can’t see.   Recovery is intentionally slow the first couple of months, but we’re getting […]

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Author Bios

Write Me Something Beautiful Authors - Casey and Jimmy Gauntt

Casey Gauntt

is a retired attorney and former senior executive of a major San Diego real estate company. He lives in Solana Beach, California, with his wife, Hilary. Casey grew up in Itasca, Illinois, graduated Lake Park High School in 1968, and received B.S., JD and MBA degrees from the University of Southern California.

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Jimmy Gauntt

was born and raised in Solana Beach and graduated from Torrey Pines High School in 2002.   A prestigious Trustee Scholar at the University of Southern California, he majored in English and Spanish. He authored six plays, five screenplays, and a multitude of poems and short stories. Beginning in 2010, the USC English Department annually bestows the Jimmy Gauntt Memorial Award—aka “The Jimmy”—to the top graduates in English.  Jimmy passed over to the other side in 2008 at age 24.

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