MONTCLARION: March 4, 2011

Oakland never met a tax it didn’t like, and parking meters seem to be the new cash cow.

Last June the City Council voted to spread the joy that only a ticket dispenser can bring and add enough meters to generate $267,000 a year.

Never mind that they didn’t know where to put them — they just forged ahead like they’ve done with so many other misguided projects. (Can you say pot farm fiasco?) Continue reading →

MONTCLARION: February 25, 2011

Honk if you love open space. Motorists are getting the message that many neighbors don’t want the City of Piedmont to build a big sports complex in Blair Park. Ongoing protests catch your eye as you drive past the park on a busy stretch of Moraga Avenue that critics say will be impacted if the project goes through. Continue reading →

MONTCLARION: February 18, 2011

Animals — they can be our best friends or our worst enemies.

When I was in high school, a neighborhood dog bit my finger. It was a deep, gaping wound that still gives me trouble today. How did it happen? The dog I was walking was attacked by an aggressive animal — and I tried to protect him.

Fast-forward to today and an incident that’s been making headlines in the hills. Two rescue pit bulls that killed an elderly woman’s Shih Tzu are still living with their owners near Broadway Terrace and Pinewood. Neighbors are outraged and are urging the city to act. Continue reading →

A Minnesota lounge chair - made of ice

MONTCLARION: February 11, 2011

They say midlife is a time for self-revelation. Well, I made a doozy of a discovery this week. I do not like warm weather in the middle of winter.

Having grown up in Minnesota, I’ve always felt I was a little different. My friends in California lap up the sunshine and I complain about eye strain. They wear tank tops and I prefer fleece.

Last week I went back to the Midwest and it hit me like a wet snowball. Folks there like winter and are actually giddy about the record amounts of snow that have been falling. Great mounds of white are piled up along city streets and instead of being put out, people are building snow caves and making ice sculptures. Continue reading →

MONTCLARION: February 4, 2011

ALL THE BEAUTIFUL people gathered in Rheem this week for the California Independent Film Festival. I haven’t seen this many tuxes and pearls since I wandered through Macy’s at prom time.

It’s a big deal when a small town rolls out the red carpet. The classic Art Deco Rheem Theater beams as her patrons sip wine from local vineyards and dine daintily on crunchy bruschetta. Continue reading →

MONTCLARION: January 27, 2011

THINGS ARE looking up — literally. Our mild, springlike weather has been perfect for stargazing at Chabot Space & Science Center. On Friday and Saturday nights (weather permitting) Chabot’s outdoor plaza is filled with amateur astronomers and their telescopes.

“Look at the swirling gas cloud around the nebula,” said an enthusiastic volunteer showing a computer image on his iPad last weekend. He was warming up the crowd for what they would see when they looked through a telescope trained on Orion. Continue reading →

MONTCLARION: January 20, 2011

The Glenview’s got it going on. Most of you know it’s a hot dining destination, but this Park Boulevard neighborhood is fast becoming a draw for the Bay Area’s top singer/songwriters. Continue reading →

MONTCLARION: January 14, 2011

It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood. The world is another story — but here in Montclair, things are rather rosy. Kindhearted neighbors are planting a butterfly habitat in Shepherd Canyon Park, folks are sprinkling wildflower seeds about town and five local Girl Scouts are getting their Gold Awards. Continue reading →

MONTCLARION: December 10, 2010

There’s something about the holidays that’s both sweet – and sour. Sweet is the sound of trumpets and carolers and choirs and bells. Sour is the sound of horns blaring in traffic and motorists jawing about parking.

I take this time, each year, to recount the memory of a man who gave me the middle figure salute one Christmas Eve in the parking lot of Lucky’s. He was a senior, but his arthritic finger drove home the point that his time was too valuable to be spent waiting for me to pull out.

Okay, I get it. We’re all really busy – especially at holiday time. But there is no excuse on earth for this next bit of news, which involves a local dad and a hit and run Prius driver. Continue reading →

MONTCLARION: December 3, 2010

Now that we’ve survived Black Friday and the gluttonous feast that is Thanksgiving, let the countdown for Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa (or fill-in-the-blank) begin. In our house, the tree is up, and it’s Day 3 of little chocolates on the Advent calendar. Meanwhile, I’m exercising furiously to fit into my red velvet leggings and sequin-studded top. I’ll be retiring my dancing cat Christmas sweater this year, after finding out my daughter wore it to the Tacky Holiday Garment Party at her college sorority. It hurts, but it’s time to move on. Continue reading →