Tonight I realized I am within biking distance of the best ice cream sandwich I've had in the Bay Area, C.R.E.A.M. in Berkeley. I think that spells trouble. What C.R.E.A.M. ("Cookies Rule Everything Around Me") does right it gives you choices, lots of choices, for cheap. You have a dozen or so ice cream flavors and…
Category: SF Bay Area
FreePlay Dance Crew’s Top Secret Mission at Vertigo
Yesterday night, I and the FreePlay Dance Crew did a really fun gig at Club Vertigo in downtown San Francisco to benefit the YMCA. We chose a spy-themed routine, the "Shadows" conspiring against the "Light" team to get the mysterious package. But what was really so valuable? It was a fun, crazy night performing in…
Jeskat’s Transformation from Modern Gal to Victorian Lady for the Dickens Fair
On Saturday, I was hanging out with my friend Jeskat and her family, as they were getting ready to go to rehearsals for the Dickens Fair this Christmas season. Dickens Fair sounds like a wonderful holiday happening, sort of a Rennaissance Faire but set in Victorian England. Jeskat will be singing, dancing, and performing, all…
FreePlay Dance Crew performing for YMCA Youth Chance High School this Saturday!
I'm excited to announce that my hip-hop dance crew FreePlay is doing a special performance this Saturday November 12, as a fundraiser for a great cause: the YMCA Youth Chance High School. Youth Chance is a special school for teens who have dropped out of other schools and are given special help and attention so that they…
Thousands take to the street for Occupy Oakland General Strike (pics)
I just spent about an hour at the Occupy Oakland General Strike today near Frank Ogawa Plaza in downtown Oakland. It was a beautiful day as thousands turned out to peacefully express their various political and economic views. Most were calling for some kind of economic reforms — greater taxes on the rich, curbing…
Arbor Cafe: Straight Up Coffee and a Smile in Temescal
One of my "must haves" for a neighborhood is being able to go out and get decent coffee. It's one of the snobbiest things about me that I'll admit. Luckily, I have lots of great options nearby, including the tiny but potent Sub Rosa on 40th, the too popular Remedy Cafe on Telegraph, and the Mixing Bowl a couple…
The Oakland Museum of California: The Best Bay Area Museum You Never Heard Of
Today I managed a first, too-short visit to the Oakland Museum of California, a science, art and history museum dedicated to "telling the story of California." It was a quiet Wednesday afternoon, so I had much of the museum to myself, which was really nice for a first visit. The museum is divided into 3…
Amazing Metal Sculptures in West Oakland!
My sister and I were randomly driving around West Oakland, looking for the onramp to the freeway, when we encountered some truly stunning metal artwork in two different spots. The first was Alliance Recycling on Peralta Street (Google map) , which features several really neat metal sculptures on their storefront. This junk metal C3PO is…
Catch Teatro Zinzanni’s newest and last(?) show “On the Air” by December 31
A couple of weeks ago, Miss Jeskat and I had the pleasure of watching Teatro Zinzanni, a long-running cabaret / circus dinner show in San Francisco. For those that don't know, for many years, Teatro Zinzanni has been putting on lavish three-hour shows complete with singing, magic, trapeze, juggling and more. It's very much an…
What I Saw in Oakland on a Friday Night
On Friday night, I did a little bike ride from my pad down Telegraph and then back up Broadway in Oakland. Here's what I saw: A street festival with food trucks, artwork for sale, and a burlesque show later An open air R&B concert with a bunch of teens doing a Michael Jackson medley A…