May
2004
Happy May
1st!
Today is
May Day, read about Edmonton's
Labor Arts Festival.
Then, remember 2004 is the
Fortieth Anniversary of west-Berkeley's Albatross Pub. Go to the
pub for a drink and you'll find out just why it is a Berkeley
institution--or not.
5/2/04
On Tuesday,
May 11th at 3:00 PM, there will be a community meeting at the
new CEID School at 1035 Grayson. The meeting will address the
problem of prostitution and related crime in Potter Creek. Present
will be a representative from our Mayor's office, our Councilwoman,
Margaret Breland or her representative, and Officer Warren of
the BPD. Please attend. Perhaps this problem can now be solved,
or more realistically just moved elsewhere.
It's
Spring aw-right!
While hanging
out at the Canned Food Store Saturday, I read the weekend edition
of the Berkeley Daily P. The front page story is about
the projected ten-million dollar Berkeley City budget deficit
and on page thirteen there is a story about the City Planning
Commision's Arts and Cultural proposal. Man, what are these folks
are smokin'?
My favorite
story about planning is the Soviet Union. They had a rigorously
planned economy that went seriously out of business in 1991.
And, Helen
Yoon, a young friend of mine, once said "The natural state
of the Universe is entropy." She also said about music writing
"It must be hard to put into words something you can appreciate
only in complete silence."
Then, I wonder
about this name the Berkeley Daily Planet. Though it does
seem to be largley about Berkeley, it isn't daily and often is
not of this planet. Probably something they teach you at business
school "First of all, get a catchy name."
5/3/04
"The house, by Bay Area
architect Regan Bice, is done in what Moreno calls 'contemporary
Mexican' style, rectangular and modern, with high ceilings and
rooms that open on to each other" reports Carolyne Zinko
in her wonderful "A
Day in the Life of . . . Rita Moreno." Regan has also
designed and built in Potter Creek. See his elegant design for
Susanne Hering and John Phillips building in People
and Their Places. And check out the side elevation of his
current project on 8th and Pardee. The
elegant Bauhaus building across the street is also his. Contact
Regan Bice at info@reganbice.com
5/4/04
There is
a new cafe at Uncommon Grounds. Pablo of Cafe Valpariso at La
Pena has opened a second location here. He is open in the morning
for coffee, espresso drinks and Central American treats and lunch
is served till 3:00 PM with home-cooked food of Central and South
American. Check it out!
5/5/03
Today is
Cinco De Mayo. Cinco De Mayo commemorates the defeat of the French
army by the Mexicans
at The Battle Of Puebla in 1862. For more information see Cinco
de Mayo History.
" [Meena
Palaniappan's] group concluded last year that indoor air at some
homes in West Oakland have five times higher levels of diesel
particulates than homes elsewhere" writes Sandy Kleffman
of the West County Times in "More
Asthma Attacks in Bay Area Regions" This is thought to be the product of heavy
truck traffic. What about delivery-truck-intensive Potter Creek?
I had lunch
today at Cafe Valparaiso. It's the new cafe behind V & W Door
and next to Uncommon Grounds. Lunch is served from 11:00 AM till
2:30 PM and features entrees from Peru, Chile, Brazil and Cuba.
I had the Chilean Carne Mehada--casserole trip-tip, onion, red
wine, tomatoes, and garlic with black beans and rice. It was hearty
and tasteful, the beef tender, the sauce (gravy) flavorful and
the black beans with just a hint of bay laurel--an artful touch.
It was $6.50. At breakfast you can have fresh roasted and brewed
Uncommon Grounds coffee-drinks and an empanada, or coffee and
donuts. Cafe Valparaiso is located at 2813 7th Street at the back
of the V &W lot and their phone is (510)-644-1569. Cafe Valparaiso
is open from 7:00 AM until 3:00 PM Monday through Friday. And
owner, Pablo and his staff are gentlemen. Check it out!
Also, check
out Sportman's Guide's French
military pleated chino pants, khaki. I've tried to wear out two pair--unsuccesssfully.
They're new, tough, washable, loose cut, 100% cotton, and $7.97!
5/6/04
Here are
a couple recorded-music recommendations from some of Potter Creek's
songbirds. During the day I always play music in the warehouse
and the birds outside often sing along. Here are their current
favorites. They love the Brahms German Requiem as performed by
Herbert Blomstedt and the San Francisco Symphony and Chorus (London
443 771-2 [c1995] ) and are particularly enthusiastic about the
loud, large, choral movements. Generally, Mozart is a favorite
and they now love his "Coronation Mass" in C, K. 317,
again singing ecstatically along with the choruses. Their favorite
performance seems to be that of Colin Davis conducting the London
Symphony and Chorus-Philips 438 800-2 (c1993). And though I haven't
recently played Stravinsky, they always sing along with his ballet
scores-they specially love the Firebird.
The 932 Grayson
Lemonade Stand was open again during our hot-days. Colleen and
her friend, Maddy successfully sold lemonade and cookies. The
Tippet guys and girls were big customers.
This is a
review of the Loosen Bros German Reisling from the San Francisco
Chronicle. "Very good. Hint of petrol and rubber over
shy citrus nose; ripe lime, tangerine, peach, red apple and pear
with light petrol on the palate, mouth watering and succulent;
rich finish." And what have THESE folks been smokin'? Petrol
and rubber over shy citrus nose?
5/7/04
Fast Eddie
got his driver's license back--they shouldn't have taken it away
in the first place, it seems. There is a water-main break on 8th
between Grayson and Pardee. And the fire-hydrant is leaking at
the corner of 8th and Grayson. (All this even after Jupiter went
direct. Well, . . . some ephemeri show it direct tomorrow.)
Kimar's Tips
At Smart
and Final you can find the Land 'O Frost one pound package of
sliced deli meats including ham, turkey breast or chicken for
$3.49. At Safeway and Andronico's they cost $5.49. Smart and Final
also has Torani Italian Syrups for $3.99. They cost $6.49 at Andronico's.
(The Land 'O Frost ham is slightly smoked, really thin cut and
really delicious. And Mercury is now direct in all ephemeri.Ron)
Potter Creek's
songbirds are enjoying Hilary Hahn's performance of the Bach E
Major Partita today.
5/8/04
This morning's
songbirds' favorite is "I've Got a Heart Filled with Love"
by the Glenn Miller Army Air Force Band--goodness, what varied
taste.
Harvey-the-mailman
has fully recovered from his mountain-bike racing accident. When
his bike hit a pothole, he went over the handlebars and was medivaced
to a Sacto area hospital. A guy riding behind him was an MD and
gave first aid and called the medics.
The Canned
Food Store has some new, first-line VHS tapes for $2.99. I bought
Willie Nelson's "Honeysuckle Rose" and Dudley Moore's
"Arthur."
5/9/04
"Imagine wearing point-blank
body armor, an M-16 and all the power in the world, and the authority
of God. That power is very addictive" quotes John Simerman
is his on the ground story in the West County Times "East
Bay Soldiers Back Up Rationale." And, my understanding
is that the military chain-of-command is very simple and direct,
the President is the Commander-in-Chief.
On Sunday,
May 23 the École Bilingue is holding their annual
La Place du Marché. Of last year's event, my neighbor
observed "It was packed, wonderful, and reeeeally
French!"
In keeping
with our food theme, I've decided to make Diana Krall's "Peel
Me a Grape" the official song of these pages. Then again,
I do love Billie's "God Bless the Child." Of course,
there's Nina's "My Baby Just Cares for Me?"or Louie's
"What a Wondeful World." Hmmmm . . .
5/10/04
"Dissension Grows In Senior Ranks on War
Strategy: U.S. May Be Winning Battles in Iraq but Losing the War,
Some Officers Say"
reports Thomas E. Rick of the Washington Post.
5/12/04
There was a community meeting
yesterday afternoon at CEID dealing with the prostitution problem
in Potter Creek. The meeting lasted two hours with between thirty
and forty people in attendance-discussion was lively and frank.
It was agreed that the problem has gotten worse especially on
10th Street, with increased activity and verbal confrontations.
Members of both Ecole Bilingue and the Center for the Education
of the Infant Deaf participated. Calvin Fong, our Mayor's representative
and councilwoman Margaret Breland and Staff were also present,
as was Officer S. Warren of Berkeley PD. Officer Warren stressed
the importance of reporting ALL suspicious activity. Calvin Fong
stressed community involvement. And, at Ms Breland's suggestion,
a meeting was set for June 2, 6:30 PM at CEID to discuss Neighborhood
Watch.
CEID is our
new neighbor on Grayson Street.
5/17/04
CD (DVD) Rot is the deterioration
of one the disc's laminated layers making playback difficult or
impossible. Over a decade ago, after a phone interview with me,
The Wall Street Journal became one of the first of the
mainstream press to break the story--though their emphasis was
more on CDROM. Archivists were leery from the beginning, as were
some music-lovers. You can again read about the problem in the
West County Times' story, "CDs,
DVDs Not So Immortal After All" by Peter Svensson of
the Associated Press.
5/18/04
Almost immediately
after our last community meeting, I noticed an increased police
presence in our neighborhood. My thanks to Berkeley PD, Ms. Breland,
Mr. Fong, Ms. Warren, and, last but not least, Bob and Steve!
I believe
Councilwoman Breland's Birthday is coming up soon.
5/19/04
Today is
Cameroon National Day and Cuba Independence Day.
5/20/04
one of Peter's
beautiful intruments
5/22/04
If you believe
Berkeley Bowl's retail store should be here but smaller, sign
the petition that Sarah's circulating. The petition can be found
at her house. Sarah will present the petition to the City of Berkeley
Planning Commission.
Potter Creek's
songbirds are enjoying their favorite this morning, Stravinky's The Firebird. They prefer the Bernstein, New York Philharmonic
performance to the Boulez.
My Gold Wing buddy, Clifford
emailed "If raising children was going to be easy, it never
would have started with something called labor" and "Don't
argue with an idiot; people watching may not be able to tell the
difference."
5/23/04
pals
5/25/04
Hybrid hype? Check out "Hybrids'
Fuel Efficiency Falls Short of Claims"in the West
County Times. It is a report of CBS Market Watch's Chris Pummer.
One view of the Internet's
future can be seen in "Micropayments Making a Comeback"
by the Wall Street Journal's Daniel Nasaw. It appears in
this morning's West County Times.
Rick Auerbach's
back and is playing in Potter Creek this Friday evening. Lest
we forget that this is Berkeley still, I suggest you consider
a recital by Shimshai and the Natural Mystiquensemble. They are
performing Friday, May 28 from 9:00 PM till 12:30 AM at Studio
Rasa, 933 Parker. Their music "fuses an eclectic blend of
reggae, soul, and jazz, [and it] delivers solid grooves layered
with angelic harmonies [and] spirited lyrics." It costs $8.00-$10.00.
5/26/04
1:00 PM today: There is a
large police action on the west side of Aquatic Park.
Last Sunday night/Monday
morning Byron's brownish-grey, 4-door, 1989 Honda Accord was stolen
from in front of his house on 8th Street.
5/27/04
Remember,
at our Councilwoman, Ms Breland's suggestion, a community meeting
is set for June 2, 6:30 PM at CEID School to discuss Neighborhood
Watch. The CEID School is at 1035 Grayson.
5/29/04
The neighborhood
meeting will still be held at 6:30 PM this coming Wednesday, June
2nd. BUT, it will be at TIPPETT STUDIOS - 2741 10th St, NOT at
CEID. Perhaps we should have an open agenda. Perhaps we should
have an organization.
5/30/04
HAPPY
BIRTHDAY MS. BRELAND!
5/31/04
HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!
- "It's a hawk"
Mike said, and got up and walked to the edge of the my drive
to get a better view of it in Kruse's fruit tree. As a sparrow
flew up from the Ecole Bilingue drive, the hawk shot down, hit
the bird in mid-flight and without slowing, carried the still
fluttering little sparrow to lunch.
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