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, […]
Sheila McCormick
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 […]
Library and Community Events of Interest in April:
Library and Community Events of Interest in April: Did you know that the Oakland Public Library hosts many events each month (e.g., lectures, craft projects, storytime, lego, chess, etc.) at various locations, including at our local Lakeview Branch? You can see all the events at http://www.oaklandlibrary.org/events, and can filter your search by Location or Audience […]
The East Bay Children’s Book Project is back in our neighborhood!
By Sheila McCormick The East Bay Children’s Book Project (EBCBP) helps build literacy – getting books to children with little or no access to them, via teachers, social workers, health care professionals, community outreach groups, housing authority employees, and police officers. Books are provided free of charge to schools, daycare and community centers, homeless shelters, and […]
Lakeview Library Happenings
Lakeview Library Happenings The Lakeview Branch Library is a great resource for our neighborhood. This article is for those (few?) in the neighborhood who might be unaware of the cool things happening there. Lakeview is open 5 days a week: Tuesday: 12:30 pm – 8:00 pm; Wednesday: 10:00 am – 5:30 pm; Thursday: 10:00 am […]
Exploring Our Neighborhoods on Foot and With Camera – March
A fifth neighborhood walk, this time in Adams Point. 2.82 miles, with a 152 ft. rise in elevation. Walk starts and ends at Grand and Euclid. You will see some historical houses (e.g. 88 Vernon, former residence of Governor Earl Warren and now administrative offices for Clausen House; 385 Bellevue, designed by Julia Morgan; and […]