Nick Jaina, Music Performance and Reading at Walnut Creek Library on April 27th

Walnut Creek Library
1644 N. Broadway, Walnut Creek
Wednesday, April 27th, 2016
6:30pm – 7:30pm | Free

Musician and author Nick Jaina will give a unique performance of storytelling and song at the Walnut Creek Library on Wednesday, April 27, at 6:30 pm. Jaina‘s live performance is an amalgamation of all he has learned from composing for dance and film, all the songs he wrote while touring the country with his band, and all the stories he has compiled in his book, Get It While You Can.

Jaina‘s performance is not like a normal music show or a reading. Jaina loops electric guitar passages, mixing in sounds from distant rocket launches played from his phone into the pickups of his guitar. After creating a bed of sound, he reads short passages from his book, such as unsent love letters, or chronicles of Don Quixote-like figures who tried to sail across oceans. The performance is soulful and engaging. The stories alternate between funny and beautiful. The format is almost like a podcast such as Radiolab or This American Life, reaching the listener on many different emotional and intellectual levels.

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Capital One Cafe Coming to Downtown Walnut Creek

April 25, 2016 11:30 am

1139 S. Main St, Walnut Creek

Last summer we learned that the GAP would be relocating to Broadway Plaza in downtown Walnut Creek this year and now according to a recent design review application submitted to the city we know that Capital One Cafe is planning to open in this spot.

When I read “Capital One” my first thought was, “credit cards”? Surely this must be some kind of mistake. It turns out this is a new, more casual style bank with a coffee shop, free wifi and meeting room spaces. Check out the rendering below to see what the exterior will look like. The modern look with larger windows to provide more light looks great.

From their website:

Ready for a reimagined banking experience? You’ve come to the right place. Capital One® is a new kind of bank, one that’s built on digital tools and human connections. People are at the heart of everything we do, so we keep the banking experience simple and straightforward—whether you’re mobile, online, at the ATM or in one of our Capital One Cafés, where our approach to banking comes to life. Here, you can take care of everyday banking needs with our friendly associates and fee-free ATMs, learn more about Capital One, or just get cozy with free Wi-Fi and hand-crafted Peet’s® beverages.

Rendering IA Interior Architects:

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Kit and Ace finally gets a Storefront in Broadway Plaza

April 25, 2016 8:30 am

Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek

Although Kit and Ace was one of the first stores to open in the new Broadway Plaza section in Walnut Creek, interestingly their storefront wasn’t finished until now. Finally.

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Celebrate Sant Jordi Day at Telefèric Barcelona on April 23rd

April 22, 2016 11:30 am

1500 Mount Diablo Blvd, Walnut Creek

From an email:

This Saturday, April 23, at Telefèric Barcelona – downtown Walnut Creek’s new Spanish tapas and pintxos hotspot – guests can celebrate Sant Jordi Day, Catalonia’s version of Valentine’s Day, with their friends and Diners at Teleferic will be presented with a rose, which is to be exchanged at the end of the meal over dessert. The legend of this curious and very original Catalonian tradition comes from the celebration of Catalonia’s 15th century patron saint and the legend that Saint Jordi courageously slewed a dragon, saving a princess from imminent death. The blood of the defeated dragon dropped to the ground and sprouted into a red rose bush. The heroic Saint Jordi then picked a rose from the bush and gave it to the princess. Today in Catalonia, it’s customary on Sant Jordi Day for the man to give his sweetheart a rose, and the woman to return the generosity with a book. All day on Saturday, April 23, at Telefèric Barcelona, every woman will be given a rose to commemorate this Telefèric Barcelona will also serve a one-day-only special Sant Jordi Day dessert and pintxo. The Pintxo Sant Jordi will be bread topped with caramelized onion, sopressata, Mahon cheese, and micro arugula. For dessert, the Give Me A Rose will be a chocolate cookie topped with Oaxacan chocolate ice cream, chocolate cream olive oil, maldon salt, garnished with rose petals.

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Sign of the Day (Fine Print Edition)

April 21, 2016 11:30 am

Last month we learned that Sports Authority was closing in downtown Walnut Creek so of course the Closing Sale sign appears outside. What I find funny about this sign is not that it states “save up to” 50% off which means the entire store could have no discount at all, but that below it says, “SOME EXCEPTIONS APPLY“.

What possible exceptions could apply to this 0% – 50% off sale!?

Shopper: The sign says up to 50% off but this is 75% off.
Cashier: That is correct, as noted on the sign, it does state: “some exceptions apply”.
Shopper: Oh, I see, thank you for clearing that up.

This doesn’t make any sense! What am I missing?

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New Bar Alert – Hops & Scotch may be Coming to Walnut Creek near Pleasant Hill BART

April 20, 2016 11:30 am

7001 Sunne Ln, Walnut Creek

Details are scant but potentially sweet news: according to a recent alcoholic beverage control pending license a new restaurant/bar called Hops & Scotch is coming to the Avalon apartment complex located near the Pleasant Hill BART station in Walnut Creek. It looks like they will be located next to where the indoor dog space Zoom Room used to be and on the same block as the Peruvian restaurant Parada is. Stay tuned…

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Pure Barre Opening April 25th in Downtown Walnut Creek

April 20, 2016 8:30 am

1645 Mt. Diablo Blvd, Walnut Creek

Last month we learned about Pure Barre opening soon in downtown Walnut Creek and they will be opening on April 25th. You can register for classes online here. They currently have a pre-opening special – “5 weeks of unlimited classes only $100”.

More photos of the inside after the jump…

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Embrace of the Serpent Playing at Walnut Creek Library on April 23rd

April 19, 2016 4:30 pm

Embrace of the Serpent:

Walnut Creek Library
1644 N. Broadway, Walnut Creek
Saturday, April 23rd, 2016
7:30pm | $12

“Embrace of the Serpent” was nominated for Best Foreign Language film at this year’s Academy Awards. It is the first Columbian film to be considered for an Oscar. With beautiful black and white cinematography, it tells the story of a shaman, the last of his tribe, in the Amazon. It is based on journals kept by Amazonian explorers in the early 20th Century and tells the tale of a lost people.

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At Home with Baystone Rebrands as Design Haus in Walnut Creek

April 19, 2016 8:30 am

1539 N. Main St, Walnut Creek

The kitchen and bath studio At Home with Baystone, which opened a few years ago in downtown Walnut Creek, has rebranded as Design Haus. The ownership remains the same. Check out their website here.

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Tesla Reopens in New Spot in Broadway Plaza

April 18, 2016 8:30 am

Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek

A couple of years ago Tesla opened a showroom in Broadway Plaza in Walnut Creek and they have now relocated to a new spot on the main Broadway Plaza strip next to the clothing store Madewell. Inside they still show the bottom frame on display and they also have a Model X on display with those cool Falcon Wing doors.

Previous showroom location:

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