Month: November 2009

Cyclists, Drivers Debate Canyon Protocols

Shepherd Canyon has always been a challenging place shared by homeowners, bicyclists, drivers, walkers, soccer players, dogs – you name it.

Lately there’s been plenty of discussion about the appropriate protocols among the two-wheelers and four-wheelers who share the canyon road.  The terrain translates into few shoulders, many blind spots and no easy answers.

Shepherd Canyon Road, Oakland

The debates are lengthy, and depend on behaviors of rogues and law-abiding citizens.  We think it all boils down to these five perceptions:

  1. If rider is pedaling down the road, then that’s considered legal and appropriate behavior.
  2. If cautious driver follows rider, then driver needs to take heed and not surprise ’em.
  3. If rider gets angry at driver, then it might mean rider is concerned about life and limb.
  4. If driver is barreling down the road, then driver might put the rider ahead at risk.
  5. If rider uses railroad path, then walkers with and without dogs pose mutual risks.

We believe in using a little common sense and following the rules of the road.  We live in the hills, where terrain challenges are part of the bargain.  Are we missing anything here?

Rainy, With A Chance Of Blooming

The last couple dark, gray and rainy days were a little depressing, as we head into the winter season.  However, we managed to look up and see the November blooms – and realized all is not lost this time of year.  There’s a profusion of colors everywhere.

Purple Flower

Anything with jewel-like purple is an attention getter, and hundreds of princess flowers are blooming now.  Apparently these beauties hail from Brazil, typically thriving in tropic and subtropic spots.  Somehow they survive in this bad weather, though.

Pink White Flower

There’s nothing like a flashy flowers that says springtime, such as these pink and white numbers.  Light blue flowers provide the nice backdrop.  The hills seem ready for their Sunset Magazine photo-op, right this minute.

Red Flower

We also see plenty of pineapple sage, a late bloomer that lives in northern climates.  It’s strange seeing bees buzzing around the flowers, even in this misty weather.  At some point, we’ll have to pull a couple flowers and try to brew tea.

So look up from the fog, and feel a little better.

The Council Resolves Schoolyard Dispute

Last Tuesday eve, we switched to the Oakland City Council’s marathon meeting on Channel 10.  When the subject of local park projects came up for review, it felt like we were watching the Council resolve their schoolyard dispute live.

The Council approved resolutions to submit eight park projects for external grants.  Let’s rewind back to the original resolutions, beginning with seven projects nominated by district.  The process leading to approvals showed the balancing act between district and city-wide priorities.

City Council - Nov 3, 2009

Which projects would get funded? Well, no one knows ahead of time.  To keep things equitable, Council reps had decided to recommend one favored project for their respective districts.  Like any major metro, Oakland has a reasonable shot at receiving external funds for some park improvements.

Could another project be added? At the Council meeting, a handful of impassioned residents spoke about the need for a second West Oakland project:  a teen center.  They claimed that kids would stay out of trouble with somewhere to go, and it was hard to argue with the request at face value.

What process should Council follow? The schoolyard confusion began in earnest when Council Rep Nancy Nadel wanted to add this project in her district.  At-large Rep Rebecca Kaplan said that she never recommended a project before, and supported this new teen center.  Larry Reid protested repeatedly because the rules had changed in the game, and he had other projects that mattered too.

When could projects expand? There was some back-and-forth about combining the two West Oakland projects together. Yet that was scratched when a city staffer explained the grant process required projects to be located on contiguous property.

It was getting late.  Council Prez Jane Brunner said “enough” and the resolutions were passed:  five yeas; one nay; one abstention; one absence.  Despite schoolyard jealousy, eight projects made this final list.

Now the real work begins with a bevy of community meetings and project planning preps ahead – all required to improve Oakland’s odds at winning a capital infusion.

Electricity, Oakland Style

We were alerted to an unusual arrangement of power poles, quickly fixed after the last storm.  Yesterday we took a snapshot of some workers making additional repairs there.  Please take a close look at what passes for a temporary utility fix…what seems strange to you?

Utility Pole Or Two

Yes, you are seeing a half or quarter-sized pole and then a single full pole.  That smaller, broken pole is supported by an overhead cable as well as two brackets connected to the larger, standing pole.  Plenty of utility lines have been hung from the broken part!

We’re wondering what construction standards are getting followed with this dangling pole installation.  We know the brackets and broken pole aren’t exactly well-built elements.  Give us a windy storm or earthquake, and these lines probably would fall down again.

There’s a silver lining here:  it’s good to see some work getting done at this Montclair intersection yesterday.  Yet we’re not sure whether this “temporary fix” will stay there for months or years.  Are we tempting the fates?

Coming Out Of The Woodwork

Our little block is filled with long-time Montclarions, which we love!  We have one “mayor” who takes daily walks and just turned 83 years old.  He’s lived here for decades, and seems to know everyone.

Anyway, a neighbor got organized this year and invited fellow block dwellers to a combined Halloween and birthday celebration.  Our honored guest came with long hair and sort of resembled Keith Richards.  Other neighbors came out of the woodwork – ready to eat, drink and hang out.

Oakland Moon

It was so nice to meet and schmooze with neighbors on a beautiful Saturday night.  We sat in our alley-way and called out to the few trick-or-treating families with lots of candy offerings.  We also sugar-rushed together with all the cake, candy and marshmallows there.

Maybe this isn’t surprising, but everyone reveled in the “open secret” of the Oakland Hills.  The hassles of commuting, security concerns and natural disasters were accepted as trade-offs.  With decades of living in the Merriewood area, residents shared some memories as well:

  • Good old days – Apparently the power outages we have recently experienced were far more commonplace in the past.  The infrastructure’s never been that terrific, but hardiness gets worn like a badge of honor.
  • Beyond cats and dogs – Our own “Mr. Ed” resided in a small stable off Nottingham, and several of his horse friends also lived in the hills years ago.  There was a large menagerie of birds, along with dogs, living with the old Montclair vet (before he moved to Tasmania).
  • Weather perfection – Everyone recalled the once-in-a-lifetime snowfall, back in the 1970s, when the snow actually stuck and looked beautiful around here.  One couple starting considering retirement spots but kept discounting other locales due to, you know, weather.

As this motley crew chatted, we discovered how “place” drew us together.  We all knew the gray and white cat who visited often, and found out where he lived.  We complained about raccoons and skunks, and shared how we dealt with them.  We stared at the nearly full moon and even howled a bit at it!

We’re not complete and total strangers anymore.