DEVELOPER CONJUGATION… Just a few years ago, the noun Gerry Kehoe morphed into a past-tense verb around Oldtown Salinas. The Irish-born real estate developer (yeah, that’s it, developer!) wanted to build an ambitious hotel-and-condo project for the 100 block of Main Street, but couldn’t quite bring the financial pieces together. The city broke off negotiations in ’05 and some great wit coined the phrase, “We’ve been Kehoed!” (Although, in Kehoe’s defense, a consortium of biggie local names – Bruce Taylor, Peter Kasavan, JayDeSerpa – couldn’t get a similar project together either, and you don’t hear anyone walking around saying “We’ve been DeSerpaed!”) In any case, Squid hears from tipsters that Kehoe is in serious negotiations to buy 238-242 Main St. The building includes a newly renovated space some poor guy spent his life savings to turn into a wine-tasting room and café, only to have the owners evict him because opening took him so long (ahh, Salinas) that he couldn’t make the rent. If the deal goes through (the owners are asking $875,000 for the nearly 9,500-square-foot space), this would make four significant Oldtown properties Kehoe owns: the Dick Bruhn building, which Kehoe wants to turn into a boutique hotel; the Greyhound station, where nothing will happen until development of the intermodal transportation center begins; and the Wells Fargo bank building, which Kehoe is trying to turn into a nightclub. Let’s bring past tense into the present: We’re being Kehoed!

UP A SLEEVE… Squid feels funny around the holidays. Squid suddenly wants things from people. Good news. Gifts. Money. Holiday cheer. And Squid feels others wanting things from Squid, like good news (unlikely), gifts (less likely), money (yeah right) and holiday cheer (no chance). But Squid feels OK about expecting certain things. Like white elephant etiquette. And Snuggie respect.

Squid’s colleague attended a white pachyderm party the other day at stud chef Dory Ford’s place. Wonderful, said colleague reports. In N Out style burgers. Lobster-truffle mac ‘n’ cheese. And a great exchange of gifts – with one glaring hiccup.

Selecting near the beginning of the exchange (for the un-white-elephant-initiated, every gift is susceptible to as many as three “steals”) Dean McAthie, co-owner/president of Carmel Roasting Company, plucked a winner with his early blind choice: a deluxe Snuggie. (Squid heart be still.)

But any tinsel-and-mistletoe glow came to a crashing halt when a pick or two later someone declared a desire to “steal” the Blanket-You-Can-Wear. Fair enough. Only McAthie had quietly evacuated the premises – with the Snuggie. Leaves Squid wanting something more than gifts and good cheer, like Snuggie justice.