Ode to Oakland 1 | Corn Dog

I've been thinking about a swan song to express my love of Oakland blogger-style as we prepare to move to Poissy, France August 17th.  What better way then to do a blog series ode to Oakland of what I love: people, places and things.

I started blogging several years ago through an ongoing conversation in a Peer Pastors Learning Group.  Bruce Reyes-Chow encouraged me to take

 the plunge. I started blogging, thinking that it could expand my ministry work at the church I served by empowering deeper and wider dialog (and an actual discussion instead of a "speaking at the congregation" about the scriptures texts began in worship on Sunday mornings.  I also imagined it as a great avenue for education and participation.  Little did I know that Corn Dog, a neighbor of the church and quite possibly one of the most vibrant and least public of the residents of both the Dimond District and 

Oakland, would teach me much about blogging.  Corn Dog is the reason behind and for #8 on the list of my previous post.

Here's what I love about Corn Dog (and Mr. Corn Dog too!):

She loves Oakland.  We say that a lot.  But she really does.  She loves the dirty and the gritty, the messy and the urban-decay-stuff-we-want-to-overlook and deny.  

She loves the people: not just the beautiful ones, but maybe even more so the  crazies.  It's often that she buys food for folks on the street.  She knows all the street people in the Dimond (and well beyond) by first name and life-story.  She considers them to be her neighbors too, ones that she is called to love in word and deed.

She is a connection-maker.  She knows everyone on the street - not just the street people - she knows the business owners, employees, etc. - by name.  She doesn't live in the hood.  She lives in her hood.

She is an amazing technology-using-communicator.  She creates and publishes more than you know in terms of paper and e-marketing/communication in the Dimond and greater Oakland.  She taught me a lot about blogging, writing and the connections that we can not only make but also mature online.  She also stood with me, having my back, when I got involved (not as much as she did) in the messy union-related tuff around Farmer Joe's a couple of years ago.

She knows and embodies the words GENEROSITY and SOLIDARITY more than anyone I've ever met.  I spend my days talking about what it means to love unconditionally, inclusively, as God first loves us in the person of Jesus of Nazareth.  I may be a good "talker" about that. Corn Dog lives it.

Corn Dog should probably be voted Oakland Resident #1.  She should definitely win, or at least be on, Jean Quan's Local Heroes list.  Of course even if she won she'd never show up to receive the prize or the praise.  You may not know her by name - but odds are you've seen her - walking her canine children through the Dimond, contemplating the giant Jesus at the Mormon Temple Center, at the monthly Dimond Peace Vigil [first Sunday of the month at 7pm at the corner of Champion and MacArthur] or riding the 57 bus.  I see her most days walking the hood and love encountering her on her online at Crazy 57 Bus: (uses to blog under the name Corn Dog)  The Corn Dogs embody the best of Oakland and the best that it can become.

Best of the East Bay

Make Your Voice Heard

I received a link to the run-off E-election for the Best of the East Bay - in nearly every category - at East Bay Express. Loads of local haunts, shops and jaunts are on the list: in particular several of my favorite businesses and business people in the Dimond District. Voting closes on Sunday, July 5th. So you still have time to make your voice heard [poll link here: you have to answer at least 26 of the 100 or so questions...can take as little as 5 minutes].

Beating in a Beauty Salon:

I hope that's not the core of the future-orientation of Oakland

I'm slaggin' on my blogging and have been thinking of this latest story to surface in the Dimond Community this past week.  Gone viral on the internet because of the disturbing video [embedded below] shared via Channel 7, the story concerns a beauty salon merchant in the Dimond District beat up in their store during business hours.  [link to blog article on the Channel 7 site].

What is it about violence that seems so impossible to overcome and the continuing crime that seems despairingly to be accepted as part of Oakland culture?  Maybe I'm watching too much of The Wire on netflix.  A friend is in town this week and repeated on a recent drive their surprise about how nice Oakland is, that it's not just crime-infested ghettos ridden with violence and drugs as portrayed in the news.  We were in the Glenview, on the border of the Dimond, in which there is crime like this beating, like the dead man dropped from a car in front of the library in the past month, and deals that I see happening most days along McArthur.

In the face of it all I feel helpless.  What can I do?  What do I do?  Believing through faith, that we're called to overcome evil with good I feel convicted and called, yet all do often unclear about what and how I can be present like that in our neighborhood and shared city.  A recent post on A Better Oakland asks the question "What are the core functions of a city?"  Maybe that's the starting point.  Oaktown has to be about more than hiring more cops, or putting up with crime, or hoping to move up the hill to Montclair.

Dimond Mural Day 2 - Sunday, April 26th

I told my children Friday about the Dimond Community Mural at Macarthur @ Champion Street and said that we could help on Sunday. They were beside themselves with excitement, counting down the days and then the hours on Sunday until we could go and make a "mark" on our hood.

Kristi, the artist creating, facilitating and driving this project was amazing: empowering my children, and others that showed up, to be involved, creative, learn about art, laugh, connect with each other, and celebrate their neighborhood and be proud of Oakland - all in the space of 90 minutes.




















My children loved seeing the computer image of what the mural would look like. Immediately they identified the California Poppies, Salmon, Redwood Trees, Oak Trees and Oakland skyline - all the native and/or indigenous aspects of what defines both the historic and emerging Oakland. As a 6 and 4 year olds they made the connection between Oakland, the Mural, and them. What more could we want for our kids? AND they ask now when they can next go back to paint, and if we can drive down the mural street to take a look.


Some criticism has arisen that there isn't enough indigenous stuff in the mural. I disagree - so do my preschooler and first grader - both of whom made the connection and clearly articulated it. Kristi is amazing - with older folks, 30somethings like me, and kids. She is a fan of La Farine (bread)...if you want to say thank you to her buy her a la Farine gift!

They still don't have enough funds to cover the cost of the mural. You can support the mural begun in part by the Dimond Improvement Association in 2 ways:

1. Make a personal contribution via Arts & Creative Expression ace.arts.eastbay@gmail.com

or

2. Encourage Jean Quan to decide to support the project with the local funds she directs/manages. She her a note or email at:

Mailing Address

City Hall

One Frank Ogawa Plaza

2nd Floor
Oakland, CA 94612

Email: jquan@oaklandnet.com

Community Mural in the Dimond District

I dropped by the mural being painted by the Dimond Community (and anyone who wants to help) near the corner of Macarthur Blvd & Champion Street (near the 7-11) and down the hill from the Dimond Gateway Peace Park. Kristi the artist facilitating the whole mural project was there working with several children, finishing up for the day. A neighbor who stays right in the Dimond, she is active in art and other social action efforts in and around Oakland. Her energy was contagious as the kids working with her were laughing, learning and having loads of fun. Here's some pictures of yesterday's work and the community that it inspired. A LINK to my previous post on the mural project with computer renditions. A schedule of community painting days is at the bottom of the post. We - YOU - can are are actually painting the mural. When I explained that to my kids they did a back flip: "you can paint a wall, do whatever you want?" they asked. "Just about" I replied. When else do you get such an opportunity. See you Sunday. .

New Mural for the Dimond

The Dimond Improvement Association is working to create a new mural at the Peace Park/ Gateway Garden at Lincoln Avenue and MacArthur, there is a small almond shape retainer wall across Lincoln Ave. from 7-Eleven that slopes down Lincoln toward Farmer Joe's.

Representatives from the DIA, the 22X NCPC Beautification Action Group, and Park designer Tricia Cristopher have begun discussions with artist Kristi Holohan of ACE Arts to design and implement a mural on this wall. The communities opinion is being sought and will be factored into the mural design.

They are also looking for donations to meet the $990 project budget. 7-Eleven and Lincoln Court are being asked to donate, contributions from the community are also needed and are fully tax deductible, details are at the bottom of the page. Below are pictures of the current site and the 2 proposed murals.

If you want more information find it on Dimondnew.org, where you can also post comments or send them directly to DIA Chair Daniel Swafford at danielswafford@aol.com

Little Caesar's in the Dimond

The new Little Caesar's opened this morning at 2218 MacArthur Blvd in the Dimond District. Here's a photo of the workers being trained on the cash registers by the manager this morning as food was being delivered.

What Makes a Good Store?

A local psychic made the new on channel 7 last night in a fraud investigation. The interview turns sour and both verbally aggressive and profane. [LINK to video] [LINK to blog & comments on report].

Throughout today I've seen at least a dozen comments on a neighborhood Yahoo group about the need to close this store down and remove it from our shopping neighborhood. The issue really isn't about the business owners, the store, or even the report on channel 7, I think it simply touches the nerve, the root of the problem, the desire of residents for different stores, more diversity and particular desires such as a brew pub, breakfast joint or family-friendly restaurants. It's about the tension of community, the one we live in and which is emerging around us and the one we dream of and work to live into.

So I find myself thinking and wondering today as I walked through the Dimond District taking pictures of neighborhood businesses both old and new, both well-loved and tolerated, what makes for a good neighborhood store? How do you balance that with fears of gentrification and needs of development? How do you balance that in terms of age, cultural background, class and family/single issues? What do we do to encourage new desired businesses in Oakland when it seems to be so hard to open one [See today's trib article "Oakland Zoning Rules a Minefield for Businesses"] In the end I wonder for my own thinking what I deem a good business is it simply because of my individual tastes: this is ghetto, this is trashy, this is bobo, this is chic, this is locally empowering; or do I think about businesses in the district a systemic or community way: this is good for the community because it addresses this or that sub-population, or in the sense that this or that business is sustainable and will contribute to the ongoing transformation of the business distrcit for the good of all?

In the end I think I probably most think about it in an individualistic way even if I am intentional about how I spend my money to invest in and encourage locally-owned sustainable businesses that meet my - the the needs of my family. Can we get beyond our individual own tastes and preferences? And should we try to?

What do you think? What makes a good neighborhood store?

The Bay Cafe

New Restaurant in the Bret Harte
(Border of Dimond and Laurel Districts)

The Bay Cafe opened yesterday at 2818 MacArthur Blvd (at Coolidge). After hearing kudos from local business extraordinaires Ruth and Diane, I thought I'd check out the new eating place across the street from my work. The owners have done a nice job of redoing the interiors, updating the kitchen, new paint and furniture. There's now a pizza oven! They plan to expand their seating to include several outdoor tables.

The menu (below) includes good sandwiches, burgers, pizza/calzones and some nice breakfast options. And it's a good deal. $5 for a sandwich/burger with fries/chips. I got a cheeseburger which was good, made fresh as well as the fries. They also have a great can-do attitude salted with humor in terms of dealing with the often overwhelming student population of Bret Harte Middle School in the afternoon. It's a great walk-to-place for those of us that live and work in between the Dimond and Laurel Districts. This year I've heard several times people declaring that they'd like to have a breakfast joint that they can walk to on the weekend. We'll now they have no excuse. I'll be going back.

Here's a few shots of the new restaurant

Here's their menu (click on the image to get a bigger version).

Dimond District Survey for Improvement

If you live, work or hang out in the Dimond in Oakland, I encourage you to take this online survey that the Dimond Improvement Association is hosting in view of community organization and next steps in the immediate future. Takes between 5-10 minutes.

Here's the link.

Charm Boutique
New Women's Contemporary Clothing in the Dimond

Strolling down MacArthur today I noticed the vibrantly painted Charm Boutique (2569 MacArthur Blvd.) Owner Porsche opened the store in early November. She purchases her clothes for adult women from vendors in Los Angeles and New York with the goal to make a woman feel good about herself.

She opened in the Dimond as she has other family members working in our (re)emerging neighborhood and would like to help collaborate with the wider community to make our neighborhood a shopping destination! Her clothes were amazing and the colors very modern, clean and crisp.

www.charmboutique.net

Here's some photos!!!

Little Caesar's in the Dimond

The Little Caesar's Franchise that has been discussed online around the Dimond for the past few months is nearing completion of its construction phase, and I imagine will be opening within the next 3 weeks. Here's some pictures I took of the progressing construction, as I walked by yesterday at 2216 MacArthur Blvd.

Eating in the Dimond

I finally ate at Shaan the new Indian restaurant in the Dimond on Fruitvale next to the Dimond Cafe last week. It was fantastic [here's a picture worth 999 more descriptive words]. My wife and friend and I ate for $50 (including drinks, appetizers and tip.) The staff was great, kind and helpful. The bathrooms are gorgeous (not common in the Dimond) and the wall mural is a nice touch. Plus they have chai tea for $1! They do need a larger waiting space though. Of course that's an emerging need in our transforming Dimond eating scene. I'm also including an upload of the menu below as images [click on the image to make it bigger]




Nama Sushi is now doing happy hour! 4-6pm Monday thru Thursday. $2.50 for draft beer - all in a setting in which the windows are not blacked out! Such a happy hour environment is exactly what many people have long dreamed of and longer for in our Dimond community. I'm looking forward to going soon. Maybe I can start scheduling my church meetings there?

Dimond Winter Festival 2008

Here's some of my snapshots in a slideshow and some youtubed videos from today's 4th Annual Dimond Winter Festival that took place at Fruitvale Presbyterian Church. Thanks to Ruth Villsenor and Carolyn Vallerga who worked with me in a productive trio that helped to make all the fun from the pancakes with Francis and Frank, to the local music, from the crafts to the local vendors all possible!

The proceeds of today's events went to the COPE program of Fruitvale Presbyterian Church, which seeks to feed and offer concrete solidarity to those in need here in our context. Thanks to you we raised over $600 to fund our efforts to fight hunger!

Thanks to many of the local stores and merchants who donated items to help make the day so meaningful, including: Las Comales, Farmer Joe's, La Farine, The Food Mill, Full Moon Seafood, Mary and Me, Paws & Claws & Peet's Coffee.

See you next year on the first Saturday of December!!!

Solidarity in the Dimond
Two-Star Market's Thanksgiving Dinner 2008

Abdo down at Two Star Market hosted a Thanksgiving Day Dinner for the Community and those on the street. Cooked and served in his parking lot on MacArthur Blvd., I've heard that he (fellow collaborating merchants and his volunteer crew) served a hot meal to between 350-400 people. Kudos to him and to the spirit of solidarity in the Dimond!

Here's some online pictures of the event:
Two Star Market's New Blog and [expanded photo link]

Photos of last year's event [tim chapman's blog]

8th Annual Community Thanksgiving Dinner
Highlights

The church I serve as pastor celebrated it's 8th Annual Community Thanksgiving Dinner yesterday afternoon. The church hall eerily seemed a bit too empty 45 minutes before the beginning of the meal, and was quickly filled to more than capacity with a diverse crowd of participants hungry for a hot meal, for the opportunity to celebrate with others, and the chance to meet neighbors. Kids running from the pie area to the crafts table, flutes melodiously playing underneath the brouhaha of discussion, snaking lines for food, quick moving hands dancing above the serving tables, Bertha surrounded by all those pies, Di-Di washing all those dishes and the different conversations I entered into: all those snapshots compose the mosaic of my memories from yesterday's event. Thanks to all who helped, from the meal coordinators, to the turkey cookers, from the flutists to the water servers, from the decorators to the cleaner-uppers!

What a statement of what community is and can be. What a proclamation of the power that Oakland needs to move forward harnassing and empowering the long-present desires for continued emerging organizing, school improvement, civic involvement, and local sense of community.

Here's some of my shapshots

Here's a video snapshot of some of the music. This piece performed by the Candelight Quartet.


If you're still looking for a way to volunteer this Thanksgiving Season here in Oakland, look for connections in my blog article from last week"Volunteering to make a difference"

Shaan Opens in the Dimond Tomorrow
Friday, November 21st

I heard today that new South Indian Restaurant SHAAN is opening tomorrow (Friday, November 21st) in the Dimond District. It's located on Fruitvale Ave. near MacArthur next to the Dimond Cafe, and roughly across the street from La Farine.

Owner Parmgite Sing, is offering a free buffet for the community from 5:00-8:30. I'm busy, but would love to stop by. You can go, taste and try it out and welcome this new restaurant to the neighborhood!

A photo of the interior was posted tonight on the Farmer Joe's & Friends Blog.

If you go, leave a message with your thoughts!

Soon To Open Restaurants in the Dimond

I heard from an on-line little bird last night that Naan: the Indian Restaurant on Fruitvale between WaMu and the Dimond Cafe is set to open next week, either on Monday or Tuesday. They've taken a while longer than they first projected to open. Most likely because of the state of the building. I'm looking forward to checking out their menu.

I noticed walking around today that the Little Ceasar's, going in at 2216 MacArthur between Cafe Dieum and Radio Shack is looking close to completed. Here's a picture I snapped trying to get an even better view of how it's coming along. I'm not that excited about LC's - we have more than enough of such to-go food shops in the Dimond AND I'm glad that a new business is coming in.

Sorting out the Suds after the Oktoberfest in the Dimond

In the midst of the rain late last Friday night I feared that the Oktoberfest in the Dimond Event would go down the drain. Yet come morning the sun showed up as well as thousands of people throughout the day to enjoy the event, our hood and each other. I spent most of the day at the booth of the church community I serve talking with folks as they came and went. I ran into dozens of people I have connections with through the Dimond, my church community and the schools our children attend, as well as friends who came via facebook invitations to check out the fun. I was blown away by the mass of people hanging out - and seemingly enjoying themselves (or was that the beer?) - in the Dimond. Encouraging for our (re)emerging sense of community and growing business district. Here's some other online posts about the event if you want to read or see more about it:

William Brand (Tribune Beer guy) on the Rockin' Ocktoberfest in Oakland

East Bay Reality Pro Blog (a real estate view of the East Bay)

Flickr Picture Album by Ron

Article in the Montclarion

If you came to the event what did you enjoy? How did it encourage you about our 'hood?

New Indian Food in the Dimond

Here's some snapshots of the exterior of the Shaan the new Indian Restaurant preparing to open in the Dimond on Fruitvale Ave. (next to Dimond Cafe). Can't wait. They even have applied for a liquor license to sell beer. It seems like exactly what some many Dimondites have been looking forward to a "nice" place where you can go with your family and even get a drink. Here's some photos of what I encountered today. Check out reviews of the Berkeley restaurant.