by Marcia Lam I was born in North Vietnam. In February 1978, as property was being confiscated and relations with China were deteriorating, my parents (like thousands of other ethnic Chinese) decided to leave with their four kids (ages 8, 6, 4, and 2) plus one in my mom’s tummy. We were accompanied by my […]
Guest Post
Farmers Market Update – November 2020
by Market Manager, Dan Foster Oakland’s own Red Bay Coffee will be joining the market starting next Saturday, November 7. Look for their truck on Lake Park Avenue. County Line Harvest is returning to the market on October 31 with produce from their farm in Thermal. Sunnyland Orchards (nee: EGB Farms) is also returning to […]
Splash Pad News – August 2020
Salsa By The Lake by C.J.Hirschfield You really could call communications/public affairs professional Isaac Kos-Reed the ultimate Lake Merritt lover. He lives on its shore and, for 13 years, he’s been dancing by it. And now? He’s taken a sworn oath to protect it. But the current weekend craziness at his beloved Lake threatens to […]
Elida Scola – Celebrates 35 Years on Grand
In 1983 when I met Michael, the owner of Donoho Gallery at 3421 Grand, we had dark brown hair. We were both skinny and anxious, he as the caregiver to a partner with a mysterious disease and me on the brink of self-employment. Mothers with children were no longer forced to cross the street since […]
Oakland Is On A Roll
Oakland Is on a Roll by Gary Meyer Social media has been hot for BLACK PANTHER and two weeks ago it set an all-time advance ticket sales record for a Marvel film.Wait until you read the advance tweets from critics and celebrities. Can’t wait to see it with an audience at the Grand Lake where Oakland director Ryan Coogler’s […]
Fairyland’s C.J. Hirschfield: “We’re in the Memory-Making Business”
by David Gans C. J. Hirschfield is the Executive Director of Children’s Fairyland, the first storybook-themed park in America, located in Lakeside Park in downtown Oakland. “Fairyland is a therapeutic environment,” she says. “It’s ten acres of gardens in the heart of the city, totally low-tech. It’s about appreciating family time. We are a cynicism-free zone. […]