08
Feb
10

These Birds Aren’t Shy

Two handfuls of steller’s jays visited this morning.  They seemed like the quarterbacks of the bird world – handsome, hearty and very secure with themselves.  They also were quite noisy and not remotely shy, and checked out my place on their own terms.

Our visitors made themselves comfortable on the deck railing, roof line and nearby trees.  First we noticed two jays sitting on the railing for a pretty long time.  Then we “tuned in” and spotted three more tails sticking out from the roof-line.  A couple more were actively flying, landing and taking off around a nearby pine tree.

With plenty of windows, we felt lucky these visitors didn’t start attacking their own reflections – which they mistake for other birds.  According to Bay Nature, these birds may get rather feisty during mating season but not today.

Then we decided to get closer, and walked onto the deck.  The bold jays on the deck railing weren’t spooked and stuck around.  Maybe they were waiting for some morsels, which weren’t forthcoming from this stingy human!

Apparently these steller’s jays were stopping to catch their breaths, before departing for greener digs.  After 15 minutes or so, their visit was over and they took off to parts unknown.

07
Feb
10

Montclarions Speak: Singers You Like

Montclarions are more mainstream than we expected, at least when it comes to favorite singers.

A couple weeks back, Today in Montclair conducted a survey and asked about all kinds of entertainment picks.  Now that the Grammy Awards have been doled out, we wanted to see how your singer selections fared.

Your Favorites This Past Year

For male singers, you liked Jason Mraz and Michael Buble best.  Here your tastes matched up with Grammy voters.  Lately, Mraz has stretched out a bit with his jazzier Make It Mine.  And Buble has kept crooning, though we did laugh while watching his not-so-smooth supermarket video:

You also stuck to Grammy winners when declaring favorite group and female singer, respectively.  The Black Eyed Peas have been around for some time, and their I Gotta Feeling was the “let’s party” hit last year.  Of course Taylor Swift broke from the 2009 pack, complete with her sweet and angsty country numbers like You Belong With Me.

Your Favorites Over The Years

There weren’t a lot of alternative rocker or rapper fans here.  Among male singers, you preferred John Mayer and Ben Harper this past decade.  Sting and Michael Jackson hit the radar for your favorite male artists of all time.

You were less unified when picking your favorite females, but Beyonce, Sarah McLachlan and Kelly Clarkson made the list this decade.  Earlier-era favorites included Madonna and Janis Joplin.

Finally, your top groups changed over time too.  Coldplay was the clear pick during the ‘aughts.  Before then, the Beatles and Rolling Stones were your all-timer groups.  And here I thought the Grateful Dead would emerge – no dice.

04
Feb
10

New Sushi Spot In Two Weeks

We are really excited about Kakui, a new sushi spot that’s scheduled to open in two weeks.  Today we stopped by this former Jamba Juice location to check the progress, and you don’t see much that makes you think “banana smoothie” anymore.

Years ago, there was a 50’s era restaurant here and maybe some features will re-emerge now.  Much of the exterior stucco has been removed, and you see a nice wood-topped entry instead.

We took a quick look inside.  The first thing that stands out is an elegant north wall with vertical cut-outs for sake.  A sushi bar takes its position on the opposite side, but doesn’t overwhelm the place.  Although Kakui’s tables and chairs were wrapped up, some espresso wood pieces peeked out.

Fortunately we ran into the proprietor, Yingji Huang, who was overseeing all the preparations today.  He’s eager to fill the gap for a top-notch sushi restaurant, and we can’t argue with that goal.  While Toshi Sushi is not far away, some serious competition is a very good thing!

Back in 2008, we asked about your Asian food consumption and half reported eating sushi once or twice monthly.  The most ardent sushi eaters didn’t stick around much at all, traveling to Berkeley and even San Francisco for fresh fish morsels.

My sense (and hope) is that Kakui will shine – and look forward to giving it a test run soon.

More info:  Kakui is at 2060B Mountain Blvd, in Montclair Village.  You may reach them at (510) 338-1188.

03
Feb
10

No Attacks Overhead, No Worries

No, we’re not going to witness any warfare or attacks in the Oakland Hills this Friday and Saturday.  However, some military aircraft will be operating around Oakland International Airport.

An all-points-bulletin is making the rounds, so that Oaklanders aren’t shocked by the noise.

We understand a T-38A jet aircraft, operated by the United States Air Force, is scheduled to land Friday at noon.  It will depart sometime the next morning.

This is one of those major flying machines piloted for years by our top guns.  It takes off with some intense afterburners that make everyone within earshot jump.

Oakland International will let us complain.  If you want to share “aircraft noise concerns” with them, then call this hotline:  510-563-6463.  But we think this rare T-38A sighting is worth relishing instead.

02
Feb
10

It Was Late In The Evening, At 8pm

Last night, several of us had gathered in downtown Montclair after work.  We were “doing good” for a local non-profit, and making some decisions about our online tactics.

Then the clock struck 8pm, and our carriage turned into a pumpkin.  All the third-place places on Antioch and Mountain row were closing up – and we were bereft.

Horrors of horrors! We realized there would be no regular drip of WiFi ’til the morning light.  And we headed to the lonely street.

So where do you spread out, grab a coffee, and get down to work?  Without a hotspot from Metro or Peet’s, the only open place nearby was El Agavero.  Luckily they were gracious, even though we rang up a minor tab.

In most cosmopolitan reaches, that 8pm bewitching hour is earlier than suppertime -  but not here.  Welcome to Oakland, the city that gets its sleep.




 

February 2010
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Welcome to Montclair, Oakland

We live in the city yet are invaded by nature - or perhaps it's the other way around. Stop by often, and find out what's interesting to 94611 denizens.