JUNE
2005
6/2/05
"Berkeley's bohemia" by Lis Taggert of Sunset Magazine offers
"Change your home (and yourself) along the city's now-thriving
San Pablo Avenue." Well my Aunt Mae was Bohemian, actually
I'm Bavarian. And the photo captioned Omega Salvage is actually
Caffé Trieste.
Pete and I recorded my public
service announcement Tuesday at the KALX studios. Adolph, my kindly
old German professor has his roots in 1930s American film where
a German male was often depicted as a slightly-off but always
lovable professor, music teacher or shop owner. (This stereotype
changed dramatically during WWII.) Pete's music, taken from 1940s
Warner Bros cartoons, fits perfectly.
George Avalos of the West
County Times reports "Double-digit rate cuts for workers'
compensation premiums are headed for employers, who have been
battered for the past several years by skyrocketing costs to cover
injured employees" in "Workers'
Comp Cost Cuts on the Way."
"LBNL Plans For Cleanup Challenged At Hearing"
by the Berkeley Daily
Planet's Richard Brenneman offers "Praised by citizen
activists in Richmond, the state Department of Toxic Substances
Control (DTSC) got a less than friendly reception Thursday night
in Berkeley." Well ok then!
From my log
6/1/05,12:35 PM warehouse
front fills with "melting plastic" odor.
6/1/05,1:20 PM entire warehouse
fills with "high plastic/chlorine" odor, over-rides
my two CARBON/HEPA/CPZ filters.
Time to get fresh air and
clear my head!
6/3/05
While government people from
all around the world are meeting in the city about our environment,
here are some phone numbers of local government agencies that
deal with our environment.
City of Berkeley Environmental
Health (510) 981-5310
City of Berkeley Hazardous
Materials (510) 981-7460
Alameda County Environmental
Protection (510) 567-6700
CALOSHA (510) 622-2891
US Environmental Protection
Agency (415) 947-8000
Then there's Bay Area Air
Quality (800) 334-6367. In keeping with "You get what you
pay for," there's "no charge to calling party."
6/5/05
Today is
Seychelles Liberation Day
6/11/05
Pete's Potter
Creek rain-gauge showed about 3/4 inch this week.
From my log
About 1:00
PM today, computer room fills with irritant--headachy, light-headed,
leave.
About 3:00
PM today, slight odor like hot brake-linings fills the air on
8th between Grayson and Pardee--medium west wind.
About 4:00
today, PM front-room fills with irritant, dry lips, mouth, skin.
Our City's
Planning and Development Department has a Toxics Management Division.
Check
it out!
Berkeley's
Penelope Houston emails "I'm just back from some screamingly
fun Avengers shows in the UK. The highlight of the Wasted Fest
was the hilarious TurboNegro of Norway (who asked me to sing a
duet on their next record!)
May was a
good month for international airplay of my last two CDs 'The Pale
Green Girl' and 'Snapshot'
http://www.penelope.net/allcds.html http://www.penelope.net/allcds.html
Songs from
each were played on these shows: DJ René Atilio Araya with
the radio show EXTRAÑO REVOLTIJO in CHILE; Popism, an extraordinary rock
and roll radio show hosted by Goran Obradovic, with a fantastic
mixture of rock and roll broadcast every Thursday on both Radio
MBI, Becej and Radio Fedra, Zrenjanin in Serbia.;'Alt-Country Cooking' is a show
on Radio Winschoten, The Netherlands
www.radiowinschoten.nl/audio/altcountrycooking.mp3"
6/12/05
"Burning Man at 20:
Working for the Man
'Desert rats' transform desolate playa into festival city -- then
back from wild land to badlands without a trace" reports
Meredith May at sfgate.com
And, read about our Peet's
Coffee & Tea Inc at sfgate.com here.
Then, read about our ex-mayor
in "Berkeley ex-mayor touts Southern fare
Steinbeck traveled with Charley, Harry traveled with Tonto,
and former Berkeley Mayor Shirley Dean has just returned after
an 8,000-mile cross country trip with her husband, Dan, and their
Labrador retriever, Ben. (They stayed at Motel 6 all along the
way because the motel chain accepts dogs)" at cctimes.com
Finally, "City Fines
Bring End To Arbor On Acton" by Richard Brenneman
"While many who live near the corner of Acton and Addison
streets see it as a neighborhood delight, city officials see it
as a code violation" is at
berkeleydailyplanet.com
Doc's
just had his Jaguar XK-140 resprayed
One of the ways Berkeley
is changing is shown by the relatively new "No Parking at
Any Time You Hippy Scum" signs along University west of the
freeway. Bad art, Boss.
5/13/05
Yesterday,
Kimar served an early Summer Farmer's Market Supper of deep-fired zucchini blossoms
in a light batter and covered with Parmesan cheese and fresh Basil; grilled French bread topped
with Brie and chopped tomatoes marinated in olive oil, fresh garlic
and Basil; and deep-fried
jumbo shrimp in a mildly spicy batter. Words fail but I'm still full and happy. Maybe it was the Italian white
wine.
6/14/05
"E-retailers
bookmark court ruling" by Kim Curtis of the Associated Press
can be read atcctimes.com "A little-noticed appellate
court ruling against Borders Group Inc. sets a precedent that
could enable California to force some major Internet retailers
to start paying state sales tax for books, music and other goods
sold online to state residents, analysts said Monday." Andy's
happy this morning!
From my log
8:00AM front
room fills with irritant, dry lips, slight headache, slight cough,
light-headed, leave.
"UC Staff Walk Out;
Toxic Inquiry at Field Station" reports Richard Brenneman
of the Berkeley Daily Planet. "Lichterman said the
union has already identified one worker who has tested positive
for mercury in her system and said a second case of possible toxic
exposure is also under investigation." Read more at berkeleydailyplanet.com
And, "West
Berkeley Residents Demand Quieter Train Whistles" reports
Mattew Artz of the Daily Planet. I'm about a half mile
down wind of the tracks and when there's a strong west wind the
trains seem as if they're across the street. On the other hand,
I love trains.
Jill Ellis, CEID's Director
emails "Just wanted to let you know that Channel 2's news
reporter, Renee Kemp showed
up at our door today to do a follow up story after reading recent
articles in the news. It is expected to show tonight, TUESDAY
at 5 or 6 pm on the evening news --CHANNEL 2."
is
now open
2508
san pablo ave
510.848.1966
www.magnetboutique.com
6/15/05
I've always loved Twinkies
and in the '80s when Kimar, Moe and a bunch of us few to London
on Pan Am, as we got right over the Pole the hostess served me
theTwinkies and milk that Kimar had slipped her on boarding. But
"maybe Twinkies don't last forever after all. The manufacturer
of the iconic American treat, Kansas City, Mo.-based Interstate
Bakeries Corp., declared bankruptcy last year and announced plans
last week to shutter two San Francisco factories. As it teeters
on the brink of solvency, many local consumers bemoan the possible
loss of the ladyfinger-shaped sponge cake" reports James
Temple of the West County Times.The sad story is here.
"By parents, for parents;
Ginger Ogle is a self-professed geek. The mother of three doesn't
knit or make scrapbooks, or while away afternoons crafting elaborate
meals. She also isn't a traditional PTA mom. She doesn't spend
hours volunteering at school functions or hanging out at the local
playgrounds. Ogle does have one interesting hobby, however. She
maintains one of the most popular parenting Web sites in the nation,
the Berkeley Parents Network." Read more in the West County
Times report by Peggy Spear
here.
In the New York Times,
Dean E. Murphy reports "California Reins In Clinics Using
Marijuana for Medical Purposes; Even before the Supreme Court
upheld the federal government's authority over marijuana, San
Francisco officials have been questioning how much of the drug
is enough." Read more here.
"Reddy victims
sue lawyers who helped them win case" reports Lisa Fernandez
in the
West County Times story.
"Berkeley: Liquor store
clerk arrested in sting; A liquor store clerk bought illegal merchandise
from an undercover officer five times this year during a three-month-long
law enforcement sting,
police said."
There's new stuff at our
Planning & Development Department site. Check
it out!
6/16/05
Regularly, people tell me
about cordial discussions and negotiations in west -Berkeley held
in good faith between neighbors and property buyers and sellers
and developers and architects. This is good. Sadly, the participants
don't want their activities known. That's not good. They're afraid
that "activists" will make an issue out of it. That's
really not good--fear's a bummer!
"Chiron revises flu-vaccine
forecasts" reports Judy Silber of the West County Times
"Back-pedaling on estimates made only six weeks ago, Emeryville-based
Chiron Corp. said on Wednesday that it will produce fewer doses
of flu vaccine than it had projected, causing Wall Street analysts
to question the company's ability to deliver on its promises."
Read more here.
From my log
Last night around 5:30 PM
entire warehouse-front fills with high-end odor, seems to be "residue"
of something stronger, leave.
7:30 AM warehouse filled
with with high-end odor, seems to be "residue" of something
stronger, air out.
6/17/05
Pete's Potter Creek raingauge
showed .2 inch for yesterday.
Did our Zelda B overdo her
hiking in Spain's mountains? Hey Z, when I emailed "Break
a leg!" I didn't mean literally.
Jill Ellis, CEID director,
emails "Thanks for including CEID in your communications
- we really appreciate it!"
Another neighbor today said
that Scrambled Eggs and Lox offers some of the most constructive
thought in Potter Creek.
6/18/05
Zelda B reports that in the
Daily Planet photo of Friday that's not a soft cast on her foot
but she's standing behind her water bottle.
Berkeley PD's very visible
presence in Potter Creek in the last few weeks--especially along
San Pablo Ave-- is much appreciated. I've even seen some Special
Enforcement units in Potter Creek, one driven by their unit Commander.
"Police Raid Telegraph
Shop, Seize Stolen, Altered Bikes" reports Richard Brenneman
"Berkeley police officers sorted through hundreds of used
bikes Wednesday as they searched for hot wheels at a well known
cyclery." Read more here at berkeleydailyplanet.com
Here's our
city's Homepage.
From my log
2:00 PM orderless irritant
immediately in front of 2743 8th, dry lips, etc.
About 3:00 PM slight "plastic"
smell in air on Grayson between 8th and 9th, almost direct west
wind, down wind of American Starch, and Tulip.
About 5:30 PM medium "new
tire" smell in air on Grayson between 8th and 9th, almost
direct west wind, down wind of American Starch, and Tulip.
6/19/05
"It's a dog's life here
at the Pink, and that's the way we like it" reports the Chronicle's
Joe Brown "A tip of the Pink baseball cap to Berkeley's own
Bark magazine, which just put out a summer issue dedicated to
dog humor, with contributions from Mo Rocca, Merrill Markoe and
Patrick "Mutts" McDonnell, in addition to the usual
wisdom about dog culture. David Sedaris chipped in a page of characteristically
odd "Dog Poems," including this one:
Most ev'ry evening Goldilocks
Snacks from Kitty's litter
box.
Then on command, she gives
her missus
Lots of little doggie kisses."
Read about dogs and Potter
Creek's The Bark at sfgate.com
Pete's Potter Creek raingauge
showed .2 inches for yesterday.
6/20/05
Pete's "Men in Maine:
Bring Condoms" public service announcement is now running
on KALX.
Scharffen
Berger has acquired a lease on a warehouse on Anthony and virtually
all large truck pickups and deliveries will be made there considerably
reducing delivery truck traffic on Heinz.
Café
Cacao is now under new management with a new chef and new manager,
and menu changes will be made soon.
And, four
large planters valued at thousands of dollars have been recently
stolen from their patio.
A second
Scharffen Berger New York City store is in the offing and their
Healdsberg store has just opened in Plaza Farms, 106 Matheson--it's
on the square and on the Internet.
During the weekdays, 9th
is often closed to traffic because of sewer work and 8th can be
difficult with construction between Pardee and Carelton.
6/21/05
"What's the Matter with
Berkeley?" asks Zelda B in the Daily Planet. Read
her answers here.
In a story about the new progressive cities reporter John
Nichol's writes in the Nation, according to Z, that "Lawrence
and Irvine are newsworthy; progressive Berkeley rates a yawn."
That's probably because the new Radicalism hasn't been happening
here. Whatever the new Progressivism is, or will become, we no
longer are leading it. Why? We're too restricted by the long-out-of-date
old one?
Recently a new Potter Creek
building owner planted long-awaited saplings around his property.
That evening one of his fresh, new walls was splattered with graffiti.
That would be protesting the tree plantings? Redding has recently
complete its functional, multi-use, artful Sun Dial bridge. We
built a, in its fullest meaning, pedestrian, bicycle bridge.
Richard Brenneman of our
Daily Planet reports"Meetings
Target Concerns at Toxic Richmond Sites."
From my log
6/20/05, 4:15 PM, irritant
present in front-room until 5:30 PM.
6/20/05, 7: 45 PM irritant
in front of 2743/ 2741 8th with smell like "burning natural
gas combined with plastic."
6/21/05, mild irritant in
warehouse mid-afternoon and early evening. 7:00PM irritant in
front of 2743 8th.
How do we know it's Summer
in Potter Creek? Thieves are stealing garden benches and garden
statues from businesses and residences instead of our bikes?
6/22/05
"UC Berkeley's admissions department chief
looks for ways to reverse the school's recent decline in minority
enrollment" reports
Matt Krupnick of the West County Times.
He also reports
"UC faculty to vote on program: University of California
faculty leaders will decide today whether to recommend their campuses
stop participating in the National Merit Scholarship Program."
And the Times reports
"Google denies PayPal plans: Google Inc. CEO Eric Schmidt
on Tuesday denied recent media and analyst reports that the online
search engine leader is gearing up to compete directly with eBay
Inc.'s pioneering PayPal service, although he acknowledged some
kind of electronic payment product is in the works." The
full story is here.
Finally, in "Found on
eBay: Users unhappy over changes" it is reported
"For
years, eBay has been defined by its uniquely loyal 'community':
the enthusiastic masses of sellers and buyers who have turned
it into the world's largest online marketplace."
6/23/06
What's wrong with Berkeley?
My sentence-or-four op-ed piece.
In The Day, our city was
defined by Love. Sadly, we've become impotent. For myself, I'm
going to make love more often.
6/24/05
What's special about Berkeley?
Nothing. Kids are special. Graduating from college is special.
Us? We're spoiled. It's easy to mistake spoiled for special. We're
bright, funny, not bad looking, and talk well. But special? Get
over it!
6/25/05
What can be learned from
Matthew Artz' Daily Planet "report""City
Receives High Marks in Mayor's Poll"? Well, to begin
with Da Boss acknowledges "that the survey was not a validly
accurate public opinion poll." So . . . . . . ?
Take heart Boss, "
Google may not have all the answers" either reports Michael
Liedtke of the AP. Read his story at cctimes.com
But "Health
Officials Urge Changes at Field Station, Campus Bay" is
a real story by The Planet's Richard Brenneman.
And, seems you don't have
to be funky to by concerned about our environment. Check out "Decor
for the earth-conscious" atsfgate.com
With my friend Nick Despotopoulos
launching his recorded music auction sight and other niche auction
sites springing up, reporting "EBay faces uphill battle to
retain premier status" seems timely. Read about it at cctimes.com
Yesterday morning, Channel
2 News picked up Ms May's earlier-in-the-week scoop
"Berkeley: Ruby in the rough leads to riches." If you
haven't already, read her story at sfgate.com
And, as if "the state" doesn't
have enough power, our Supreme Court justices voted to expand
eminent domain. "The Supreme Court gave cities broad power
Thursday to bulldoze homes and small stores to make way for business
development, a ruling the dissenters said puts shopkeepers and
homeowners at the mercy of revenue-hungry governments" writes
LA Times' David Savage. Read his report at cctimes.com
During the night, someone
dumped a washing machine on the west side of 8th street directly
across from Adams & Chittenden Scientific Glass.
Wells Fargo security, Gianni
La Rosa reports that Berkeley PD now has a female motor-officer.
Also, seems Berkeley PD has removed some of the baffles from their
Harley mufflers. Now we can hear that Harley Sound even with the
siren on! That's not why they did it, however.
Gianni, who's spent much
of his life in Law Enforcement, and whose Dad was a career San
Francisco cop, believes that more than in other organizations,
a police department head--the Chief--is most important in setting
the organization's tone. He also remember's that Berkeley, a pioneer
in training, had one of the first Police Academies.
6/26/05
"Chronicle wins 22 East
Bay journalism awards
Series on wounded Iraqi boy wins 1st place" reports the Chronicle
"Chronicle reporter Meredith May took the top prize in the
series category for 'Operation Lion Heart,' about a wounded Iraqi
boy whose family reunited in Oakland." Check all this out
at sfgate.com
And,
here's Chronicle photographer Russell Yip's
Meredith May
Milo's Mom thinks our diversity
is special. And, while walking around Potter Creek with her new
friend, she rediscovered our flowers. Shirley, who had never seen
Potter Creek before, enthused. "Look at all the flowers,
backyards are full, they're in front yards, they're on fences.
They're everywhere!"
Kimar thinks all our fresh
vegetables, fruits, fish, meats, are special.
Scrambled Eggs and Lox Staff
has voted for "Hunk of the Year, January to June 2005."
The vote is evenly divided. I'm gong to toss the coin next week.
6/27/05
Meredith May reports on a
shooting at 60th an San Pablo in "Teen
father of 2 killed on busy street."
"Feds offer state help
in measuring toxic contaminants in people" is another story
at sfgate.com
From my log
6/23/05, off and on all day
smell in front of warehouse depending on wind, sometimes gets
in front room.
6/26/05, 9:35 AM irritant
in computer room, light-headed, dry lips, eyes sting, etc.
3:35 PM same as above
5:00 PM same as above but
more serious with burning lips, eyes, chest, etc, leave.
6/29/05
On August 10, 2003 I posted "Potter Creek lore has
it that pesticides were developed in the '50s by a Hyman Laboratory
in a facility at the end of 8th Street. I have been able to confirm
that a Julius Hyman invented the pesticides chlordane, aldrin
and dieldrin. If any one can confirm that this Julius Hyman was
the Hyman of Berkeley or that development was done at the Berkeley
Hyman Laboratory, please email me at ronpenndorf@earthlink.net"
Today I received this email
Edward Lorenz, Reid-Knox Professor at Alma College "I have
been doing research related to Julius Hyman and just noticed a
link to you on Google. I can answer the question you posed in
2003 but would like to see what information you have. Hyman was
the 'inventor' of chlordane as well as three other persistent
organic pollutants (POPs) - endrin, dieldrin and andrin. He was
a founder of Velsicol Chemical in Chicago and was their general
manager from 1931-1946 when he quit to found Julus Hyman and Co.,
in Denver. According to American Men and Women of Science 12th
ed., vol. 3, p. 2937, he ran Hyman Labs from 1953-1964 and Fundamental
Research Co. after 1958. His address at Fundamental was 2840 Eighth
St., Berkeley 94710. I am coming to a conference in San Jose in
early August and would very much like to meet you and see this
site if you are interested."
Edward Lorenz follows up
with an explanation of his interest in Julius Hyman "I hope
the information on Julius Hyman helped. I have been interested
in him because he was the General manager of Velsicol Chemical,
which dumped many tons of DDT and other contaminats into a river
here. We have the 5th most expensive superfund clean-up taking
place there. Velsicol is being sold, and we're trying to get as
many assets as possible."
I'll be meeting with Professor
Lorenz here in early August.
Mattew Artz of the our Daily
Planet reports "West Berkeley Carries City's Sales Tax."
But in his story, he reports that the greatest increases in sales
tax revenue have come from some of Berkeley's retail districts.
Read the whole story here.
Chris of Christopher's Auto
Repair on 9th and Carleton has his son with him in his shop these
days. Chris is an Old School businessman--his son can learn much
from that.
My flip-of-the-coin has determined
Scrambled Eggs and Lox "Hunk of the Year, January to June
2005." Photo to follow.
Trader Joe's Emeryville has
Pepper Wood Grove, 2001 California Zinfandel for $1.29 a bottle
or fifteen and change for a case. Ordinarily, an-around $7.00
a bottle wine, it is a more than just a drinkable Zinfandel. Sandy
and Linda, Kimar's gourmet friends here from Guadalajara offer
"It's spicy, slightly sweet and not at all acidic. Highly
acceptable."
Getting salittle woozy, time
for some fersh air.
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