Oakland: Hidden Treasures

For the fashionistas

2010-07-25T14:55:00.001-07:00

If you know who Hamish Bowles is, then you will flip to hear that I ran into him at the Famer's Market on Claremont. I was so giddy, you would not believe it!! In fact, I could not even say anything clever after he confirmed it was him. I just said "Thanks" and ran away :(

Oakland Over Adversity

2010-07-11T09:50:00.000-07:00

A lot of folks and news outlets have talked about the verdict of the BART officer involved in the death of Oscar Grant, but I'd like to focus on the frustration that multiple close friends have voiced about the expectation that Oakland would simply erupt. What I find even more disturbing is the number of highly intelligent and otherwise rational people who still stereotype Oakland as the badlands.

If you listen closely to the language used by some news e.g. "still no violence yet", "so far everything is calm", etc., they make it seem incredulous that people are not running mad and undermines all the great citizens of this proud city. And the late night problems that occurred were propagated by non-Oakland residents.

I've lived in Oakland for 10+ years, have amazing friends/neighbors and seen the influx of idealistic people wanting to shape this city into the jewel that it really is.

[PS- Time flies and that's no joke. I just saw that I've not posted since Sept09. Boy do I feel like a slacker.]

The view is different from a bike

2009-09-21T21:39:00.000-07:00

It's been a few weeks since my last posting. I was fortunate to be given a bike and have been riding almost every day. I am happy to report that yes, firmer gluts can be obtained via biking. Of course, as I'm gasping for air while riding up a hill, the last things I think about are my butt cheeks.
The East Bay Active Friends Couchsurfer group met up at Mua Lounge which made for a great night. Loved the atmosphere, but with my tiny bank account, salivation was my drink and meal. It's got that nice mix of edgy and upscale.
Last weekend, Uptown's the Fox Theatre was also meeting ground for the Furthur Fest. If you're like me, you'd need someone to explain that it's the continuation of the Grateful Dead concerts or ex-Grateful Dead. Somewhere the guy from Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream is calling me stupid. Needless to say, there were many drunk and happy folks. PS- You'd have to know the Grateful Dead to know why I mentioned Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream.

Eat Real Festival

2009-09-03T14:45:00.000-07:00

Sucks to be you if you missed out on the Eat Real Festival at Jack London Square the last weekend of August. Actually sucked to be me because I had NO money. Well, it didn't suck that bad because BHboy was nice enough to treat me to some food and there were tons of free samples. I think I ate 4 yogurt samples from Stonyfield. YUM. YUM. It was also HOT, HOT, HOT out there so we just parked ourselves right by the music stage which still had shade.

Check out the huge paella pans (or whatever you would call those behemots).

The one thing that did bother me was I saw no signs of compost and recycling bins but all the vendors used compostable utensils and paperware. Things that make you go hmmmmmm?

On the way back, I passed by The Home of Chicken and Waffles which has 4-7 Happy Hour deal of 2-1 drinks and a clockbeater entree e.g. you arrive at 4pm then that's your entree price.

Champa Garden before surgery

2009-08-20T13:22:00.000-07:00

Had my gum surgery yesterday and still recovering, but luckily I was able to get treated to Champa Garden over on 8th Ave and East 21st St. BHboy also bought me a to-go box of their Panang Catfish curry. YUMYUM. It was a good mix of people that included Couchsurfing and City Slicker friends. A few people discovered the joins of Beer Lao (light and dark). Here's to dreaming about chewing food again.

Art & Soul Festival

2009-08-16T07:17:00.000-07:00

This weekend is Art & Soul festival in downtown Oakland. I've not actually gone attended (mainly because I have a thing against paying a cover charge) but I've boogied on down to some great music from outside the fenced area.
Next weekend is Chinatown Fest. For sure I'll try to make that if my recovery from gum surgery doesn't stop me.

Guess where?

2009-08-16T07:16:00.001-07:00

Grand Tavern then had my heart stopped

2009-08-09T00:51:00.000-07:00

Went to Grand Tavern with BHboy and Paul from Couchsurfing. Met a couple of cool guys and the owner, who is a really cool and welcoming host, have is free fries. Considering that the $8 for 8 beers tasting was already great deal, I had no complaints. Allagash White is an amazing beer-buttery and smooth aftertaste.
Then we had some amazing pizza at Lane Splitter on MacArthur across from the Lake Merritt parking lot. Has a Heartstopper pizza and a bit of pepperoni and Carnivore pizza. Great food. I also like that they have composting bins.

Luchadores at "Best of" Aug 7

2009-08-08T01:09:00.000-07:00

Just got back from a cool freebie event (especially as we all got buzzed) at the Oakland Museum which was the site for East Bay Express' "Best Of" Party. I mainly hung around the stage area, watched a bit of wrestling and Indian dancing. Found a potential model, ran into someone I met at People's Grocery farm party and a few other Couchsurfers.

Guess where?

2009-08-05T16:21:00.000-07:00

National Night Out: 5 hot dogs, some BBQ and a mayoral sighting

2009-08-04T22:33:00.000-07:00

I walked with my neighbor to Market St and 12th and stopped in to offer assistance with setting up for their block party. Ended up spending a couple of hours helping with serving food and grilling hot dogs. Don't worry I managed to still eat 5 hot dogs and some ribs/chicken/potato salad from Everett and Jones. It's the first time I've had their famous BBQ and let's just say we made sure the sauce was not thrown away!
There were sandwiches donated by the Subway Sandwich at 7th and Mandela Parkway. Mandela Foods Cooperative also donated drinks, fruits and other snacks. You have to love businesses that give back to their community!
Some groovy beats and Mayor Ron Dellums was there for about 30 minutes. Like him or not, at least he made the effort.
Then BHboy showed up and we headed over to 34th and Peralta for the party hosted by City Slicker Farms to hang out a bit with Adelle. We also briefly visited the party at 32nd and Peralta. No I did not eat any more food.

Sundrenched evening stroll

2009-08-03T20:19:00.000-07:00

Was suppose to be at Sheila's place for my first crystal healing lesson, but I was hungry and decided to stop off at the Pupuseria on 7th between Henry and Center St. I'd tell you how great it was, but at $2 a pop for such a miniscule treat, I decided to pass. Even their tacos are $2 each. OUTRAGEOUS for such a dive. I'll just save up for Fruitvale.
On the bright side, a block away, Mandela Foods Cooperative opened not too long ago. It's small, but has a good range of items. The prices are reasonable too.

20 minute door to door commute

2009-08-03T06:38:00.000-07:00

Don't know about all my peeps living in East Oakland or people who drive but hoping on the NL bus takes me to work in SF in under 20 min. Did I mention Wi-fi on the bus? If you've never taken a Transbay bus you're also missing out on the amazing views from being up higher on the bridge. About to step off the bus.

Inspiration to blog

2009-08-02T21:27:00.000-07:00

I spent the day with my friend BHboy today and we had experienced so many good sides to Oakland just this weekend alone, but the news always seems to pick up the more negative aspect. I LIVE IN WEST OAKLAND AND LOVE OAKLAND for its diversity (despite all the talk of corrupt politicians, crime and poverty) and have always tried to get people to see that it has a lot to offer. Anyway, BHboy in his youthful wisdom suggested I should blog about all the cool things this city has to do. Bare in mind that as geeky as I am, I am not into the web social scene (even my boss is dumbfounded that I don't have a F*c#book profile) and only carry around a mobile phone because I have to for work.
I'm a bit drained today from a sweet meal at Drunken Fish Sushi (3314 Piedmont Ave, 94611) after sipping wine in peaceful Morcom Rose Garden (700 Jean St, 94610) and strolling through the second day of Lake Fest at Lakeshore. There were some great bands and I almost got my groove on.
Tomorrow I'm getting a lesson in crystal healing from my new friend Sheila who co-owns Satin Crystals with her sister Lisa.