Local Events

Get 15 Minutes Of Gardening Fame

How can you get your 15 minutes?  Apply for a coveted spot on the Bay Friendly Gardening Tour, where you can showcase your lovely back or front yard efforts.  Your garden does not have to be large, but it must be eco-friendly – which means all standard lawns and water-hogging flora are thumbs-down.

It’s time for Montclair gardens to shine.  Last year, some really cool gardens were featured from other places.  One Berkeley garden contained a mini-orchard along with salvaged junk-art.  There also was a nice yard in Alameda, which included a picture-perfect pond – proving that HGTV shows come true.

When I visit homes throughout Montclair, I’m amazed by the landscapes and sheer variety around places.  Some are quite verdant spots, with different flowering trees and plants.  Others are more natural settings in the woods.  Still others have very nice decks and views, but the plant life is far more sparse.

While the Tour site says there’s an August 1st deadline, we have confirmed that local gardeners may apply online through month’s end.  The tour organizers would like to include a range of Oakland Hills gardens, along with the Friends of Sausal Creek’s native plant nursery.

To make sure your entry’s received properly, please reach Jeanne Nader at jnader@stopwaste.org or 510-891-6500.  Here’s hoping you get your 15 minutes of gardening fame, next spring!

Those Impressionist Gals

Sometimes it’s worth venturing beyond Oakland – this time to visit the Women Impressionists show across the Bay.  The Legion of Honor is the only U.S. venue for this exhibit, which displays 140 works loaned from museums and private collections worldwide.

Expect the calming effects of typical mothers and children, portraits, nature and other 19th century scenes.  Berthe Morisot, Mary Cassatt, Eva Gonzales and Marie Bracquemond were devoted to their artwork, in an era when they were supposed to sit home and eat bonbons.

While we like to think of these women as ground-breakers, they didn’t regard themselves that way.  They simply followed their creative muses and preferred the impressionist ethos.  Learn more about the artists from exhibit organizers and experts, in this recent KQED program.

All the French Impressionists were connected, whether male or female, in their rebellion from the formality of the French Salon.  Well-known men like Degas, Manet, Monet and Renoir welcomed participation by these talented women.

Degas first asked Cassatt, an American artist in Paris, to join the Impressionists.  Manet accepted only one student in his career, Eva Gonzales.  Morisot went a step further and married Manet’s brother.  Bracquemont actively participated in the group, despite protests from her husband.

Whether in art or other intellectual pursuits, a few doors were opening for late-19th century women.  (One proof statement might be Oakland’s Mills College, the first women’s college founded in the West.)  These opportunities set the stage for more widespread rights, not yet obvious to women of that era.

More Info:  The Legion of Honor is located in Lincoln Park, San Francisco (map).  Including the Women Impressionists exhibit, admission costs $15/head and parking is free.  Museum hours are Tuesday-Sunday, 9:15am – 5:15pm.  The exhibit runs through September 21st.

Meet The Neighbors, Tuesday Evening

This evening, please meet the neighbors at a block party near you.  If you have not received an invitation or flier, then feel free to crash one of the Montclair parties that’s closest to your home.

I’m going to make the effort to show up at my block’s get-together.  My neighborly contacts are pathetically limited to some quick waves or chats with the daily dog walkers.  In fact, I know the coffee shop regulars a lot better than folks who live on my street.  It’s time to fix that.

“Everyone” is organizing these block parties as part of the official National Night Out.  There are already 400 parties scattered throughout Oakland alone, pretty impressive.

Check out the latest list of Montclair parties.  From what I have heard, many of these gatherings will feature a little pot-luck dinner – so it’s best to come with some contributions.

  • Ascot Homeowners/Piedmont Pines, 6035 Ascot near Morley Dr, 7-9 pm
  • Balboa at Colton, 5526 Balboa Dr, 7-9 pm
  • Beaconsfield Park at Keswick/ Friends of Sausal Creek, 7-9 pm
  • Carisbrook Cooperative, 2557 Carisbrook near Chelton, 5-9 pm
  • Chelsea Court, 20 Chelsea Ct, 7-9 pm
  • Cortereal Cul-de-sac, 1900 block of Cortereal, 7-8 pm
  • Fernwood Community Club, 1470 Mountain Blvd, 7-9 pm
  • Girvin Drive at Thackery, 6281 Girvin, 7-8:30 pm
  • Holyrood Neighborhood Group, 2975 Holyrood near Ascot, 7-8 pm
  • Liggett Neighbors, 6708 Liggett Drive, 7-9 pm
  • Mastlands/Larry Lane, 2101 Mastlands Drive, 6-8 pm
  • McAndrew Group/Estates Drive, 6:30-9 pm
  • Merriewood Neighbors, 5574 Merriewood Drive @ Valley View, 7-9 pm
  • Montclair Valle Vista, 6095 Mazuela Drive,  6-8:30 pm
  • Montclair West Neighborhood Association, Pershing Dr & Marsh Place, 7-9 pm
  • Moongate/Skyline Neighborhood near Totterdell, 9393 Skyline Blvd, 7-9 pm
  • Mountain Gate Ascot Neighbors, Ascot Place at Ascot Drive/Scout Rd, 6-8 pm
  • Pelham Place, 2340 Pelham near Girvin, 7:30-9 pm
  • Piedmont Pines, 6477 Melville at Ascot, 6-8 pm
  • Sims Drive near Estates Drive, 6784 Sims, 7-9 pm
  • Thornhill Creekside Neighbors & Friends, Alhambra Court off  Alhambra Lane, 6:30-8:30 pm
  • Trafalgar Place, 2173 Trafalgar near LaSalle Ave, 6:30-7:30 pm

There must be some Montclair block that calls you their own!  With the natural catastrophes that can happen here, it’s nice to know who lives around the corner and have a chance to schmooze with them – at least once a year.

Visit the Alps In Oakland – Sunday at 1pm

Come check out an Oakland tradition tomorrow, when the Schuhplattlers Dance Group and Internationals Band perform at Biergartenfest 2008.

Hosted by the German Tourist Club, the Fest takes place at the Nature Friends’ headquarters, 3115 Butters Drive (map).  The celebration begins Sunday at 1pm, with $10 donations requested to cover food and beverages.  Kids are free.

The Schuhplattlers will perform German folk dances, which they have been doing for over 50 years!  Check out these photos, with the costumed dancers from 1957, 1980 and today.

Besides the dancing and music, this celebration is an early Oktoberfest too.  The outdoor biergarten will serve German brews along with sausages, pork chops and more – so come with an hearty appetite.

The annual Biergartenfest is taking place at Nature Friends, which seeks to “foster, perpetuate and preserve the European Alpine social activities, cultural heritage and customs.”  They also encourage berg frei or freedom in the mountains, and maintain a Donner Pass lodge.

Why not visit the Alps in Oakland?  Our local Germans offer a taste of Alpine bierseligkeit (that’s beer guzzling merriment) and traditional entertainment, tomorrow in our hills.

Faded Memories Back At Yoshi’s

Back in the 1980s, I remember thinking that Spyro Gyra was so cool.  At least their brand of jazz seemed to stand out, as bland pop-rock played all around.  I’m no music snob, but what happened?

Listen to these MP3 tracks available on the group’s website, like Harbor Nights and Breakfast at Igor’s.  They are still nice enough, but start to sound the same.  The music doesn’t seem special anymore.

Based in NYC now, Spyro Gyra continues hitting the road.  They will be performing at Yoshi’s in Jack London Square, over the next three nights.  Tickets are completely reasonable, for the six scheduled shows.

Anyway, am I alone with these faded memories?