In high school, I was a shy, bookish, awkward child. I didn't do much besides go to school and study. My entire world was contained within the couple of miles between my home and my small Christian private school, in the sleepy suburb of Pleasanton in Northern California. A pivotal moment that broadened my vision…
Category: SF Bay Area
Freeplay Dance Crew Performing for Bay Area Dance Week April 29
I'm excited to report that the Freeplay Dance Crew will be performing as part of Bay Area Dance Week on April 29th in Berkeley. This is our first time doing a BADW event, so we are super-psyched to be involved. Specifically, we are dancing as part of "Dance-A-Rama," an afternoon of various dance performances organized…
Cherry Blossoms in Cemetery: Beauty and Transcience
In Japan, cherry blossoms are symbols of the fleeting nature of life, since they bloom so quickly, and are gone just as fast. So it's appropriate to see a cluster of them at the Mountain View cemetery in Oakland, where I run a couple of times a week. Seeing the blossoms in bloom this morning…
Visiting a Packed Cal Academy on a Rainy Saturday Afternoon
Yesterday, I got to take some family members to the California Academy of Sciences for the first time as a staff member. It was really fun showing them my favorite exhibits and giving them a bit of the insider perspective on the Academy. It was also the first time I have been to the museum…
Josh Klipp and the Klipptones Swings at Savanna Jazz April 7
My friend Josh Klipp is a triple threat singer / dancer / musician which kind of blows me away. (Plus he's not hideously ugly, as you can see.) Josh and his jazz band the Klipptones will be performing on Saturday April 7 at Savanna Jazz in San Francisco. I'll be there to dance and enjoy…
Mark Cantor’s Treasure Trove of Vintage Jazz Footage on Film
On Saturday, I had the pleasure of sitting in a packed auditorium at the Jewish Center of San Francisco to watch a lovingly curated showing of vintage clips of jazz dance on film from the 1930s to the 1950s. Called the "Giants of Jazz on Film," this is a popular series of film clip showings…
Gregoire’s Potato Puffs : Tater Tots from Heaven
Gregoire's is my go-to take-out place when I want something French-y but not spendy. Situated in a claustrophobic storefront on Piedmont Avenue in Piedmont, Gregoire's churns out a surprising array of delicacies, from soups to sandwiches to full-dinners. After reading about all the raves on Yelp, I finally had to try Gregoire's crispy potato puffs….
Hack-A-Thon for Youth Health March 31 in San Francisco
Attention Bay Area coders, designers and tech innovators! On March 31, TechSoup.org and ISIS are co-sponsoring a "hack-a-thon" on youth health in San Francisco. You can help design an app that can save the lives of young people. Here's the details: ISIS is hosting our first ever hack-a-thon, together with our partners TechSoup. A hack-a-thon…
Thankful
About a year ago, I moved to the Bay Area from New York, with some fairly ill-defined goals — more of what Quakers call a “leading,” rather than any kind of concrete plan. I knew that I wanted to be closer to my family. I felt like it was time for some kind of big…
My New Gig at…. wait for it… the California Academy of Sciences!
So I've been waiting to tell people this news because frankly I'm not sure I believe it's actually happened. I'm now working at the California Academy of Sciences as a program assistant in their new Digital Learning Program. It's kind of a dream come true for a geek like me. I will share more details as…