Morning Report: Feeling the Temblor

So, you might have heard (or felt) that there was an earthquake yesterday.

The consensus: It jolted us here more than any other temblor in recent memory, but did little damage locally.

The quake’s greatest impact hit at the twin border cities of Calexico, Calif., and Mexicali, Mexico, the damage, the Los Angeles Times reported from Mexico, where two deaths have been linked to the earthquake.

Tijuana residents saw their water use extremely limited after the aqueduct that carries water from Mexicali to Tijuana cracked, according to the UT. The paper also wonders whether Sunday’s quake could trigger other faults.

We rounded up the best of the web as of last night to spotlight the top photos, videos and stories. Check out our Facebook page for a real-time record of what people felt and saw.

In other not-quite-as-earth-shattering news:

• In the conservative world of pension investing, San Diego County’s retirement fund has long stood out like a Formula One racecar in a fleet of grey four-door sedans.

  In recent years, the pension gunned an aggressive and complex mix of investments that backfired during the financial crisis. Now, the fund’s managers are retooling and launching a novel investment strategy that seeks to boost returns by using borrowed money.

  That’s the start of our latest look into San Diego County’s always intriguing pension investments. Here’s the rest. Last week, you might remember, a plan by the pension fund’s outsourced investment guru to outsource the rest of its investment team to him was declared illegal.

• Entry-level homes have gotten pricier, and you can thank the government, says Rich Toscano in his latest post, which is replete with more of his famous charts.
• Once a month for years now Kelly Bennett has spent a day on the job with one San Diegan for her series People at Work. The idea: Whether or not our job defines us, we spend a whole heck of a lot of time doing it every week. And this place is full of fascinating, fun, heart-wrenching or back-breaking occupations.

  This month, with a nice stroke of storytelling, Bennett takes us into Randy Janson’s “experiment in voyeurism, art and community where patrons sip espresso, eavesdrop and spy on each others’ improvements to hair and skin.”

• Fact Check time: We look into claims about mandatory OT for firefighters and find they are … well, you’ll have to see for yourself.

Elsewhere:

• Brian Bilbray “has proved to be Democrats’ most inviting, and most elusive, Republican congressional target in San Diego County,” the UT says in a story about yet another battle between Bilbray and Francine Busby for a congressional seat. 
• Craig Noel, the founding director of the Old Globe theater, has passed away. Check out the smattering of obits from the LAT, the NCT and the UT.
• Play ball! The Padres start off the 2010 season today on the road against the Arizona Diamondbacks at 2:10 p.m. local time. For you casual fans, here’s a little on the new face that will be taking the mound for the Friars on Opening Day. If you’re more than just a casual fan, check out the fan-run blog Gaslamp Ball for links and a hearty discussion of the hometown team.

  And if you’re not a fan at all, well, did you know the team lowered beer prices?

— ANDREW DONOHUE