Splash Pad Calendar by Sheila McCormick August 1, Monday, 4-5pm *ZOOM* The Marine Mammal Center. Ridiculous Rescues. It takes a dedicated team of staff and volunteers to rescue marine mammals in need. Join us as we ask our experts about some of the most unusual and notable rescues yet! Register here. August 2, Tuesday, 5:30pm […]
Sheila McCormick
Splash Pad Calendar – July 2022
Splash Pad Calendar by Sheila McCormick July 1, Friday, 7-8pm *ZOOM* Rotary Nature Center Friends. Lakeside Chat #20 – Neighborhood Snakes: Meet Your Neighbors! Our featured guest will be environmental educator Audra Barrios of Things That Creep. Register here. July 4, Monday, 1-3pm *In Person* Oakland Municipal Band. A Selection of Patriotic Music. Location: Lakeside […]
Splash Pad Calendar – June 2022
Splash Pad Calendar by Sheila McCormick June 2, Thursday, 7pm *ZOOM* Golden Gate Audubon Society: The Awe of Birdwatching African-American ornithologist John C. Robinson uses his own experiences to explain the multiple ways that inner city and minority youth and young adults can become motivated to discover and appreciate nature through bird-watching. He will discuss […]
Splash Pad Calendar – May 2022
Splash Pad Calendar by Sheila McCormick May 1, Sunday-May 6 *Small Business Week Helps Oakland Businesses Thrive Oakland will celebrate Small Business Week with more than a dozen virtual and in-person workshops and other activities for small business owners and entrepreneurs. Full schedule and registration links here. May 2, Monday – May 8, Sunday * […]
Splash Pad Calendar – April 2022
Splash Pad Calendar by Sheila McCormick April 1, Friday, 7-8pm *ZOOM* Rotary Nature Center Friends: A Birder Back in Her Patch – Hilary Powers at Lake Merritt Join Hilary Powers, a volunteer with Golden Gate Audubon, as she takes us to some of her favorite birding spots at Lake Merritt. Register here. April 3, Sunday, […]
My New and Fun Volunteer Job
by Sheila McCormick I started exploring other volunteer options in October 2020, when I stepped down from the Board of the Friends of the Oakland Public Library. In 2016 or so, I had heard a presentation from the UC-Berkeley Retirees Association that had mentioned Ashby Village. What is Ashby Village? It is not a residential […]
Empanadas: A How-To Guide
by Sheila McCormick For several years, we have been making empanadas a couple of times a year. Paul first had them in Paraguay when he was in the Peace Corps – but there they were fried in the morning and sold cold. I don’t remember when I first had them, but we liked the similar […]
Movies Free With an Oakland Library Card
by Sheila McCormick – For more than thirty years I have been keeping a running list of quirky, or funny, or in-some-way amazing movies to recommend to friends. Some are available on the standard streaming services such as Amazon and Netflix, so do check there first if you already subscribe. If you don’t have a streaming […]
Online Diversions and Distractions in this 8th month of Sheltering in-Place
By Sheila McCormick Trivia Nights are nice diversions for an hour or two. You can join with friends, as a team, or be assigned to a team. I think joining randomly assigned teams is fun, and it also makes it more likely that the team members will know more things. For example, my Skype Scientist […]
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 […]