Jack London Square Lights

Last night, I went to Jack London Square for the Full Moon Buy Night. The weather was gorgeous, and it was a fun, mellow event. At the beginning of the evening, I walked around alone and snapped a bunch of photos on my iPhone. For some reason, I gravitated towards various forms of light so I thought I’d share that here.

There was of course the light from the moon.

And there were lights strung up all around Jack London Square.

Light emanated from the pizza oven, which produced some of the most delicious pizza I’ve ever had, topped with pesto, feta, and dry-farmed tomatoes (though the wait was an hour long).

The sunset, over the cranes and San Francisco, was one of the most beautiful I’ve seen in Oakland.

September 28-October 4 Oakland Political & Community Events

Monday, September 28th – The Story of How Copenhagen Became a Cycling City

In the 1970s, Copenhagen was an automobile-centric city, even though it had a substantial cycling population. Huge public demonstrations in the early 1980s resulted in significant changes in the city’s transportation infrastructure. Since that time, Copenhagen has become of one the world’s preeminent cycling cities. How did this transformation happen? What changes in policy and design made Copenhagen such a pro-cycling city? What benefits have the city and its people seen as a result? WOBO is a local host to delegates from the German Marshall Fund’s Transatlantic Cities Network. They’ll be sharing their experiences and expert opinions on how and why Oakland can become a world-class cycling city. This even will be held from 5:30-7:30pm at Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza – Hearing Rm 4.

Tuesday, September 29th – Free Urban Bicycle Safety Class

consists of a 3.5 hour Traffic Safety 101 Classroom workshop (formerly Day One Street Skills) and a 6.5 hour Traffic Safety 101 Road Class (formerly known as Day Two Road I class) of on-bike instruction. We encourage you to take both Day One and Day Two and to entice you to do so, we’ll give you a free front/back bike light upon completing the class. If, however, your time is limited, sign up for a Day One class. You can always take a Day Two class later. The class will take place from 6-9:30 pm at Kaiser Medical Center, 3801 Howe St, Fabiola Building Room G65B. Register online at: www.ebbc.org/safety.

Wednesday, September 30th – Meet the New OUSD Superintendent

OUSD Director Jody London invites the public to a Town Hall Meeting with new Superintendent Tony Smith. Learn about Oakland’s education priorities, provide your ideas and compare notes with other public school supporters. Refreshments provided. The town hall will take place from 7-8 pm at Oakland International High School, 4521 Webster Street. Contact Jody London for details at 459-0667.

Thursday, October 1st – Central Estuary Plan Community Workshop #5

This Thursday, the fifth meeting will be held for for the Central Estuary Plan, which is designed to build a vision and provide a framework to support development and enhancement of the Estuary from Adeline Street to 66th Avenue.  Community Workshop #5 will include an in-depth presentation of three draft land use alternatives. Come share your thoughts about the draft land use alternatives! You can read about the first meeting at Oakland Streets or at A Better Oakland. (The CEDA website also includes meeting presentations and other materials.) This workshop will be held from 6:30-9:00 pm at The Unity Council, Fruitvale-San Antonio Senior Center, 3301 East 12th Street, Suite 201 (Fruitvale Transit Village).

Thursday, October 1st – Full Moon Buy Night

Join Oakland Unwrapped for Oakland’s first Full Moon Buy Night – an indie night bazaar featuring shops and artisans from Oakland Unwrapped!, food and drink from Jack London Square Restaurants, a twilight farmer’s market, and lots of music, fire, dancing, ice skating and more. Bike Valet provided by Bay Area Bikes! This event will take place from 5:30-9:30 pm at Jack London Square, Broadway and Embarcadero. For more info, visit the Oakland Unwrapped website.

Friday, October 2nd – Art Murmur

Check out the monthly evening of art gallery shows and entertainment in Uptown. Read my review of the art murmur here. The Art Murmur runs from 6-10pm but individual art gallery times vary. The galleries are mostly located in Uptown, between Broadway and Telegraph, and Grand and 29th. Visit the Murmur’s website for more info.

Friday, October 2nd – FilmNight 4.0 at Swarm

Swarm Gallery is pleased to announce the fourth in a series of monthly screenings of experimental, documentary, short, feature-length and animated film, video and all formats in between, curated by filmmakers and film enthusiasts from the Bay Area and beyond. There is a new home for film in Oakland! FILMNIGHT 4.0 features an evening of artifacts from the Bay Area’s live cinema milieu with a spotlight on the work of musicians who are making unique statements in the world of film. Including work from: Liz Allbee, Elise Baldwin, Jordan Glenn, epic[ABRIDGED], Kadet Kuhne, Daniel Popsicle, WetGate, Wiggwaum, and small, intense surprises. FILMNMIGHT 4.0 is curated by Suki O’Kane, Project Coordinator for ILLUMINATED CORRIDOR, a collision of public art, live music and film. “Doors” open at 7:30 and screening begins at 8:00 pm in the Oakland Ironworks parking lot [behind Swarm Gallery], 3rd Street between Jefferson and Clay. Find more info at Swarm’s website.

Saturday, October 3rd – State Reps Host Day of Financial Planning

Join Assemblymember Sandré Swanson, State Contorller John Chiang, Senator Loni Hancock, the City of Oakland and other sponsors for a day of free financial advice and planning assistance. Hear from certified financial planning professionals through a series of free workshops and clinics. This event will be your chance to learn information about 401ks, mortgages, savings accounts, IRAs, loans, estate planning, foreclosures, and tax preparation for personal finance needs and/or the financial needs of non-profit and religious organizations. Certified public accountants will be available for private consultations, so please feel free to bring necessary financial documents if you have questions or concerns. The services provided at this event are free and confidential and participating professional advisors will not solicit their services or promote themselves in any way. Private financial institutions will NOT be included in this event as this program is free of any kind of promotion. This event will be held from 10am-4pm at Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza. For additional information or to RSVP, call: Iesha Powell, (510) 286-1670 or email clinicregistration@yahoo.com.

Saturday, October 3rd – 8th Annual Walk Against Domestic Violence

Walkers meet at the Lake Merritt Boat House in Oakland for a Walk Against Domestic and Teen Dating Violence. This is a collaborative effort by Communities-N-Concert, and Progressive Transitions, with support from the Alameda County Domestic Violence Coalition. The walk takes place from 8am-12pm.

Sunday, October 4th – Sundays in the Redwoods – Jon Jang & James Newton

This free concert features the Jon Jang & James Newton. Bring sunscreen, hats and water– it can get very hot in the sun. Gates open at 1:30– concerts start at Woodminster Amphitheater in Joaquin Miller Park, 3300 Joaquin Miller Road. To reserve a picnic table, contact Renee Tucker at 238-4720. Find more info at the Sundays in the Redwoods website.