From the City of Walnut Creek Saturday Walks webpage:
October 20, 2012 Along the canals of Walnut Creek Click for walking guide.
An easy canal-side 4-mile walk on two regional trails, one statewide trail, and one nationwide trail, all in Walnut Creek! Meet at Heather Farm Community Center, 301 N. San Carlos Drive, for an 8:30 a.m. departure. Note date change to 3rd Saturday of the month for October only!
Recently I was at my favorite downtown Walnut Creek parking garage at N. Main & Duncan St. next to Starbucks when I noticed a guy there marking cars with chalk. For some reason he was marking very clearly so I now understand how they determine which cars to give tickets to.
Every hour they walk around the garage and make a mark on the tire of each car. If you parked within the first hour you will have one mark on your tire, as seen in the photo above. If you have been there between 2 and 3 hours you will have 2 marks, as seen in the photo below. And if you have 3 marks that means you have been there between 3 to 4 hours. The next time they come around in an hour you will get a ticket. Since it’s a private garage they can come around after 6pm and on Sundays and you are still responsible for moving your car within 3 hours.
I was driving around Moraga recently and noticed that every sign for Karen Mendonca, who is running for reelection for the Moraga Town Council is accompanied by a “Dump Mendonica” sign. Someone must really have it out for her given the amount of time and money they spent. Does anyone find this uncalled for or is negative campaigning expected these days?
In case you were wondering, this is from Karen Mendonca’s Council page:
Karen Mendonca was elected to the Moraga Town Council in November 2008. She served as Vice Mayor in 2010 and the Mayor of the Town of Moraga for 2011. Karen represents the Town of Moraga as its delegate to the League of California Cities (LOCC) and to the Contra Costa County Mayors’ Conference. She is Moraga’s liaison to the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG).
From the Town of Moraga website:
Sunday, October 14, 2012 at the Hacienda de las Flores
Mark your calendars for Sunday, October 14, from 3:00 to 7:00 PM. Live German band, Bavarian Dancers, bratwurst and beer, strudel and pretzels, jumpy houses, pumpkin painting, chalk drawing and more!
Oktoberfest is a fundraiser for the Hacienda Foundation of Moraga. All proceeds will go to improvements to the Hacienda de las Flores. Oktoberfest is sponsored by the Hacienda Foundation and the Recreation Department of the Town of Moraga.
Oktoberfest at the Hacienda is one happy occasion! Put on your dancing shoes and plan to be a part of this special day.
Gemütlichkeit!
Did you know that downtown Walnut Creek is home to a real pomegranate tree? I had just finished up a meal at the Greek restaurant Pomegranate on N. Main St. near Cypress Ave. and the owner happened to be standing outside. He pointed to the tree in front and said, “Look at the pomegranate tree.” I looked and thought he decorated it with fake pomegranates and replied, “Haha that’s funny”. But he was serious. He planted the tree about 15 years ago and there are quite a few large pomegranates growing right in the middle of downtown Walnut Creek! This is why I like downtown Walnut Creek so much. Secret Koi ponds, and now pomegranate trees. Amazing!
Spotted at the Moraga Commons parking lot, this Dodge 300 is designated as a “historical vehicle”. Anyone know what year this is from?
The Sleepy Hollow School in Orinda (20 Washington Lane) is hosting “The Great Pumpkin Party” on Saturday, October 13th from 10am – 3pm. Activities include:
carnival games
haunted house
bounce house
obstacle course
cupcake walk
petting zoo
pony rides
magic shows
photo booth and more
Tickets cost $15.
Back in April I noted that the children’s shoe store Tiny Feet opened in December in Theatre Square in Orinda and passing by recently I noticed it has closed. Not sure when it closed, but if you’re looking for children’s shoes you can drop by Howard’s Shoes in the back of Broadway Plaza in Walnut Creek and next door at the Nordstrom children’s shoe section on the 3rd floor.
I’ve been meaning to update this site’s logo for a while now and finally found a great designer to update it. Interestingly, he was able to reuse the three swirls from the original logo:
What do you think of the new logo? Did you notice Mt. Diablo in the logo?
Has anyone noticed gas prices going through the roof this weekend? I had read about refinery issues in Southern California but didn’t expect it to affect the Bay Area. But when I headed to the highway and passed some gas stations I did a double take. What the?
It looks like Governor Brown is trying to bring prices down by allowing winter-blend gas to be sold early:
Gov. Jerry Brown ordered state smog regulators Sunday to allow winter-blend gasoline to be sold in California earlier than usual to help drive prices down. Winter-blend gas typically isn’t sold until after October 31. Few refineries outside the state are currently making summer-blend gas, putting the pressure on already-taxed California manufacturers.
It’s a bit of relief that I purchased a more fuel efficient car to replace the Honda Civic I recently sold, but I hope prices go down soon.