scrmbld711b.html

SEPTEMBER 2011

NEW

WEST BERKELEY

after 9/19/11, here

9/1/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

BPD, PIO, Sgt Mary Kusmiss emails

Property Crime Down 16% in the First Six Months of 2011!

Tuesday, August 30, 2011 The City of Berkeley Police Department
(BPD) Crime Analysis and Records Units have completed work on crime statistics for the
first six (6) months of 2011.

Based on preliminary FBI Uniform Crime Statistics (UCR), for the first six months of
2011, Part One Violent Crime in Berkeley declined by 4% while Part One Property Crime
declined by 16%. Part One Crime includes Homicide, Rape, Robbery, Aggravated Assault,
Burglary, Theft, Auto Theft and Arson. Based on preliminary data for 2010 and the first
few months of 2011, decreases in Part One Property Crime appear to be ahead of both
state and national trends.

Sgt. Kusmiss S6
Public Information
Officer (PIO)
(510) 981-5780

"Berkeley 'party patrol' targets underage student drinkers" by Doug Oakley, Berkeley Voice.

"It's a balmy Friday night in Berkeley and UC Berkeley students, some away from home for the first time, are partying like crazy.

The corner of Channing Way and Piedmont Avenue at 11 p.m. is packed with students on their way to one party or another. They appear to be having a lot of fun. School has just started and studying can wait.

Two blocks up the street at Channing and Prospect streets, three obviously drunk young men holding each other up walk right by two police officers, oblivious to the presence of the law.

Here in the heart of fraternity land, UC police Officer Brendan Tinney and Berkeley police Officer Jessica Nabozny are up to their ears in alcohol-related violations.

But they take their time, . . ."

BPD, PIO, Sgt Mary Kusmiss emails

Vehicles Vandalized in South Berkeley

As of this writing, 8:45 p.m., the City of Berkeley Police Department (BPD) has made no arrest(s) for the vandalism of tires in South Berkeley. The investigation is continuing and Officers are pursuing some potentially viable leads. The total documented count of vehicles that had tires damaged is 74. (61 in Berkeley, 13 in Oakland)

Last night, Berkeley community members who had returned home from the day's activities called to report additional tires punctured, some of which had been documented earlier by officers who had not been able to contact the registered owners, thus we are in the process of getting an exact number of cars, vans and trucks for you.

If an arrest or arrests are made, BPD will share the information as soon as appropriate and feasible.

Sergeant Mary C. Kusmiss S-6
BPD Public Information Officer

our Kerstin Fischer emails

friends
Just wanted to invite you all to join me and Paul McCurdy for an afternoon of French Art Song on Sunday, September 18th at 4:00pm at Piedmont Piano in Oakland.
We will be performing three song cycles by Ravel, Poulenc, and Berlioz, and would love for you to join us. (suggested donation $10)

Down the road a bit, on May 12th of next year, Miles Graber and I are scheduled to perform a group of (mostly) 20th Century songs by British composers in the Trinity Chamber Concerts Series here in Berkeley.

Links to both of these concerts, along with some other fun tidbits, can be found on my new website, just launched!
Please have a look

wishing you all the best,
Kerstin

our Sarah Santana

and her Brazilian band today at San Francisco's Embarcadero Two

END

POST FROM THE PAST

Jimi Hendrix

by Tony Almeida is here

Rock music is a music of youth, and the late 1960s was its coming of age. Like it or hate it, you couldn't ignore it. Jimi Hendrix, a guitarist, performer, and songwriter of the late '60s was the most influential rock artist of the era.

END

9/2/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

building size

portaits at Bayer

Kubik emails

We ate at 'Ta Krai Hom last night located at Sacramento and Dwight where
Dig's Bistro used to be.

We were well pleased.

They have redecorated the space and it is much
brighter and cheerier. The service was friendly and courteous. The
food was attractive and very good. The prices reasonable - about $8
per entree.

I say it is a "go to" place.

WD emails from Burlington Vermont

Irene in Burlington was just a lot of wind and rain with almost no damage.

To the South and east though, another story.

See here for pictures.

Here for a macabre video.

We're OK although disappointed to have missed some Shakespeare in Lenox, Ma. and Mark Morris at Jacob's Pillow last weekend.

But Summer has been full of good stuff, to wit, one Bizet, one Puccini, one Strauss, two Mozarts, an Ibsen, two Shakespeares, and one Rodgers and Hart. Twice to Marlboro (currently under water), lots of John playing chamber music here and in NH.

It will be a long time digging out.

END

9/3/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

"Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich holding Ask Me Anything forum on Reddit" by Michelle Castillo, cbsnews.com.

"From the Twitter Town Hall to President Barack Obama's Facebook Town Hall, politicians and other political figures are recognizing the ability that social media has in reaching the masses. You can add social news website reddit to the list. Robert Reich, former Secretary of Labor, author and University of California, Berkeley professor, has opened up an AMA -- Ask Me Anything -- forum and has been answering questions about everything from the U.S. economy to not inhaling together with former President Bill Clinton, who he served under.

Among his interesting conversations includes one question asked by absinthe718 which says, 'If you could eliminate a single federal regulation and replace it with some other regulation (or nothing at all), what would it be and why?' Reich simply responds, 'I'd start by legalizing marijuana,' which of course spurned a flurry of responses from the excited reddit community."

And Reich opines about "The Limping Middle Class at nytimes.com.

"The 5 percent of Americans with the highest incomes now account for 37 percent of all consumer purchases, according to the latest research from Moody's Analytics. That should come as no surprise. Our society has become more and more unequal.

When so much income goes to the top, the middle class doesn't have enough purchasing power to keep the economy going without sinking ever more deeply into debt - which, as we've seen, ends badly. An economy so dependent on the spending of a few is also prone to great booms and busts. The rich splurge and speculate when their savings are doing well. But when the values of their assets tumble, they pull back. That can lead to wild gyrations. Sound familiar? "

The PBS News Hour explores structural unemployment in Paul Solman's "Can America's Jobless fill America;s Jobs?" and in another story concludes "Amid New NCAA Football Scandals, 'The Root of the Problem Is Money'. "

Richmond Rambler Cliff Miller emails

a 3-D Light Show

This show was projected on the face of a building in Portugal.
It's 5-1/2 minutes and it's definitely worth taking the time to watch here.

END

POST FROM THE PAST

4/19/08

"Police putting together details of restaurant robberies:It's all about the money" report Harry Harris and Angela Woodall of the Oakland Tribune.

"It's not for thrills - although they probably get a rush out of what they are doing - but the belief that their targets are lucrative.

That's the take of Oakland investigators about why there has been a recent spree of takeover restaurant robberies in Oakland and Berkeley in the past month.

END

9/5/11

Labor Day

Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

"College students seek council seat" by Matt Krupnick, Contra Costa Times.

"UC Berkeley student leaders are trying to inject more gown into the town-gown relationship.

The students are hoping to muster their political clout to redraw City Council districts into a new, student-dominated zone just south of campus. The group hopes the new district would lead to a student on the City Council."

"Why governments don't get startups" Steve Blank at reuters.com.

"Not understanding and agreeing what 'Entrepreneur' and 'Startup' mean can sink an entire country's entrepreneurial ecosystem."

END

POST FROM THE PAST

9/4/10

"Hummingbirds: Magic in the Air--Video Full Episode" is a most extraordinary program at pbs.org.

"Hummingbirds are the tiniest of birds, yet they are some of the toughest, most energetic creatures on the planet. Their unique flying abilities give them unmatched maneuverability, but at the cost of a supercharged metabolism that keeps them on the edge of survival. Hummingbirds spend most their lives in fast forward, but now high-speed video lets us enter their world."

END

9/6/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

In "The Day" Al Braver, my boss at Campus Records, used to say "It's the Groundskeepers at Cal who should get the awards."

Maybe now something like that applies to Wareham.

"California Lawyer Magazine and Hastings Law School Ignore Interesting Women" by Lainey Feingold at beyondchron.org.

"The title of the speakers' series caught my attention: 'Legally Speaking: Conversations with the Most Interesting Lawyers in the World.' I saw it referenced in California Lawyer Magazine, a monthly publication sent for free to lawyers in the state. I subsequently learned that the lectures were a joint project of the magazine and San Francisco's Hastings College of the Law, my law school alma mater. What else did I discover? That only one of the ten 'interesting lawyers' is a woman. Is this really how these institutions see women attorneys in 2011? "

"Betty Skelton passes" washingtonpost.com.

"Betty Skelton, a daredevil pilot who was a three-time national aerobatics champion and became known as the 'fastest woman on Earth' when she set speed records in airplanes and automobiles, died Aug. 31 at her home in The Villages, Fla. She was 85."

END

POST FROM THE PAST

9/5/04

The kids are "back" at É'cole Bilingue, Hourra!

END

9/8/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

"Distinguished classical producer Harold Lawrence died; he was 88" by Janko Tietz, Oakland Tribune.

a Mary Lawrence photo

Artur Rubinstein, Harold Lawrence, and André Previn

"There are not many people in Oakland who had such an illustrious circle of friends and colleagues from around the world as Harold Lawrence.
Known as one of the world's most important classical music producers, Lawrence worked with conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein, Polish-born pianist Arthur Rubinstein, Russian-born piano-virtuoso Vladimir Horowitz and Berlin-born pianist and conductor Andre Previn, to name a few.

Lawrence died Aug. 22 from a blood disorder. He was 88."

Stories by and about Harold, here and following.

"Sound, the Way the Brain Prefers to Hear It" by Guy Gugliotta at nytimes.com.

"There is, perhaps, no more uplifting musical experience than hearing the 'Hallelujah' chorus from Handel's 'Messiah' performed in a perfect space. Many critics regard Symphony Hall in Boston - 70 feet wide, 120 feet long and 65 feet high - as just that space.

Some 3,000 miles away, however, a visitor led into the pitch-blackness of Chris Kyriakakis's audio lab at the University of Southern California to hear a recording of the performance would have no way to know how big the room was.

At first it sounded like elegant music played in the parlor on good equipment. Nothing special. But as engineers added combinations of speakers, the room seemed to expand and the music swelled in richness and depth, until finally it was as if the visitor were sitting with the audience in Boston.

Then the music stopped and the lights came on. "

Potter Creek's evarize

San Pablo and Carleton

"Ishi studied as ambassador of vanished culture" Debra Levi Holtz, Special to The Chronicle.

"A century after a starving Native American known as Ishi emerged from the Northern California wilderness and was studied by University of California anthropologists, efforts are under way to present him and other American Indians as educators rather than descendants of a vanished culture.

American Indian scholars say Ishi and other indigenous people have long been subjected to academic scrutiny and their culture idealized in museum exhibits through the display of their garments, headdresses and other artifacts. But increasingly, anthropologists are partnering with American Indians to portray a more authentic voice."

As a teenager in Milwaukee, my Aunt Hattie tried to introduce me to the heritage of Ishi--sadly without success.

END

POST FROM THE PAST

Harold Lawrence Interviews Acoustician, Derek Sugden.

Derek, acoustic designer of The Maltings sometimes used a Webley .445 revolver to check for reverb.

END

"Can the Middle Class Be Rebuilt?" asks nytimes.com.

"Should the government strive to create middle-paying jobs? If that is a lost battle, what is the alternative path to recovery?"

9/11/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

It was the 9 11 attack on our homeland that made me start thinking I should give something of myself to others, that perhaps I should get off my aging-ass and volunteer. Never much of a joiner, in late 2002 I decided to volunteer Scrambled Eggs and Lox.

Berkeley News Page (excerpt)

The City Manager's Annual Report to the residents was mailed to every home and business in Berkeley..

our Sgt Mary Kusmiss, BPD, PIO emails

Suspect Arrested for Tire Vandalism Spree

The City of Berkeley Police Department has arrested the suspect responsible for vandalizing dozens of
vehicle tires and spray painting a couple cars in South Berkeley and Oakland on
August 31, 2011. The total number of vehicles vandalized was 74 - 61 in the City of
Berkeley and 13 in the City of Oakland.

BPD Officers arrested Mandisa Monroe of Berkeley at about 12:30 a.m. on
September 6, 2011 near her home. After a thoughtful and tedious investigation,
reevaluation of the cases, community support and discovery of evidence that linked her
to the crimes, a BPD Sergeant obtained both a Ramey Warrant for her arrest and a
Search Warrant for her home. During the search of the home, Officers seized a number
of items that connected Monroe to images on surveillance videotape. The videotape
captured the suspect committing one of the crimes. During an interview after her
arrest, Monroe denied puncturing the tires but did explain phrases that had been tagged
on the cars.

On September, 7, 2011, the District Attorney (DA) charged Monroe with
felony vandalism.

"Man Beaten Unconscious Outside Cal-Fresno State Football Game Saturday" Bay City News.

"A man was beaten unconscious outside a college football game at San Francisco's Candlestick Park on Saturday, two weeks after several instances of violence in and around the stadium during an NFL preseason game, police said.

The latest attack occurred at about 4 p.m. Saturday in the parking lot outside of the stadium near the start of a game between University of California at Berkeley and California State University, Fresno."

"Death of former UC Berkeley golfer 'suspicious' " at ktvu.com.

"Fremont police announced Friday that they are investigating the 'suspicious' death of Diane Kwon, a 21-year-old former University of California at Berkeley golfer whose body was found in a Fremont parking lot late Monday night."

our Councilman Darryl Moore emails (excerpt)

Community Meeting:Meet Your BPD Area Coordinator

September 13th, 2011 6pm - 8pm, Rosa Parks Elementary Multipurpose Room, 920 Allston Way

I just wanted to remind you all that we have an upcoming meeting for community members to meet our new Berkeley Police Department Area 4 Coordinator, Officer Cesar Melero and to discuss the natural gas pipelines that run through Berkeley.

Officer Melero was selected by the Berkeley Police command staff to replace Officer Karen Buckheit who has completed her 3 plus years in the Community Services Bureau and rotated back to patrol.

full email here

cannot be viewed on all computers

"Berkeley homeless youth shelter at a crossroads" by Doug Oakley, Berkeley Voice.

"Berkeley's only homeless shelter for young adults is at a funding crossroads and is asking the public for donations."

"For Emily Yates, the worst part of serving in Iraq with the U.S. Army was the loss of control" at reuters.com.

"Yates, now a 29-year-old student at the University of California, Berkeley, was sent twice to Baghdad, serving as a public affairs specialist, military journalist and photographer with the 2nd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division."

"Rita Moreno sparkles in 'Life Without Makeup' " by Karen D'Souza, insidebayarea.

insidebayarea photo

"Rita Moreno has never been the kind of actress who needed sequins to sparkle.

She started dancing her heart out when she was 5, and she's been hoofing it ever since. Now almost 80, the star recounts her glitzy life story in 'Life Without Makeup.' In its world premiere at Berkeley Rep, it's a highly pleasurable showbiz memoir steeped in the nostalgia of the Golden Age of Hollywood. If Moreno never quite bares her soul onstage, she does radiate razzle-dazzle like few celebrities out there, and she never disappoints in this plucky star turn that really comes into its own in the second act.

Moreno crafted the solo show with Tony Taccone (who had been trying to talk her into the project for years), and it's definitely a showcase for her strengths, among them an absolute command of the spotlight."

"Oakland's Harold Lawrence Passing Means My Circle Loses Another Friend" writes Zennie Abraham

at sfgate.com.

And he continues about Harold's video recording craft "See, Harold was an old school video maker. Earlier, I referred to him as video blogger, but that's not right at all. Harold didn't blog - he crafted videos. He was from the time that video equipment was expensive and there was a clear method of making films. Each way - video blogging and video making - has its charms. Harold was quick to remind me that video making was better 'I think I make better videos that you do, Zennie,' he once said.

And while I bristled at the remark. Well,that's a lie; Harold pissed me off. Let's just be honest about that!

a Zennie Abraham still

But, you know, from the standpoint of video-making, he's right. He offered to show me how he does it, but sadly, we never got there. But I never forgot what he told me. And it's one reason why I'm basically relearning video - to be more than a video-blogger. "

Video recording was one of Harold's later vocations. I'd almost forgotten about that and about the video he made of students at the Anne Crowden School playing the Felix Mendelshon Octet, still simply the most alive music video I've seen. Full of youthfull energy and superb playing, it seems real. So absorbed was I when first watching the recording I forgot it was a tape. Harold could do that.

END

POST FROM THE PAST

Some time ago I wrote this of the Richter/Rostropovich, Beethoven Cello and Piano Sonatas--the Third of which was produced and recorded by Harold.

Beethoven, Ludwig v. Sonata for 'Cello and Piano No. 1 in F Major, Op.5, No. 1. Sonata for 'Cello and Piano No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 5, No. 2. Sonata for 'Cello and Piano No. 3 in A Major, Op. 69. Sonata for 'Cello and Piano No. 4 in C Major, Op. 102, No. 1. Sonata for 'Cello and Piano No. 5 in D Major, Op. 102, No. 2. Philips 835182/83 AY (c1964). Mstislav Rostropovich, 'cello. Sviatoslav Richter, piano. Harold Lawrence, record producer of Sonata No. 3.

These superb performances of the great Beethoven Piano-'Cello Sonatas are filled with power and passion. Both artists display absolute mastery of their instruments and set about playing even the most difficult passages with ease. But most importantly, these two virtuosi offer a true chamber performance blending their talents to the serve the music.

The recordings of the five sonatas were made at three different places at three different times. Sonata No. 3 was recorded in London in July 1961, and Nos. 1 and 5 were recorded March 25-31, 1963 in Vienna. Also recorded in Vienna on June 4-9, 1961 were Sonatas 2 and 4. . . . Generally the critical 'cello/piano balance is good, especially in Sonatas 1, 3 and 5. In Sonata No. 3 the interplay of the 'cello and piano is most beautifully captured.

According to Harold Lawrence the recording of the A Major Sonata is one of the Philips recordings made with the Mercury Living Presence technique. Although Harold has had several different pressings of these performances, it was this set that he most often played. He confessed that though he loved the American Philips version because of its great dynamic, power and realism, he preferred regularly listening to the European records because of their quiet surfaces. (I believe the recorded-performance of the Sonata No. 3 to be one of the great chamber recordings. It is an example of fine musicians playing together superbly in great music artistically recorded. And it is a recording that shows Harold's enormous talent.)

END

"The 9/11 Tapes: The Story in the Air" at nytimes.com.

A selection of audio recordings from the Federal Aviation Administration (F.A.A.), North American Aerospace Defense Command (Norad) and American Airlines from the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. The recordings, some of which have been published previously, are being released in a multimedia report originally intended to be part of the Sept. 11 Commission's 2004 report."

"Calif. lawmakers approve Amazon tax compromise" Adam Weintraub, AP at google.com.

"Lawmakers on Friday sent Gov. Jerry Brown a compromise bill that delays California's effort to force online retailers such as Amazon.com to collect the state's sales taxes while retailers lobby Congress for national rules governing online sales taxes.

The state Assembly approved AB155 on a bipartisan, 59-8 vote in the final hours of this year's legislative session. The bill had passed the Senate, 36-1, hours earlier.

Democratic Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner of Berkeley, one of the bill's authors, called it a ground-breaking agreement that could help level the playing field between traditional and online retailers."

"Bill would move all initiatives to Nov. ballots" Juliet Williams, AP at sfgate.com.

"The Assembly on Friday approved legislation that would move all statewide initiatives and referendums to November general election ballots and postpone a June vote on California's rainy day fund that was part of last year's budget compromise.

The move drew complaints from Republican lawmakers who said the bill undermines California's unique initiative process.

SB202 by Sen. Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley, drew heated debate as Republicans opposed what they called a power grab by union interests seeking to delay anti-labor ballot initiatives that could end up on the June 2012 ballot, when GOP turnout is expected to be high for the Republican presidential primary.

Statewide initiatives now can appear on the general election or June primary ballots.

Democrats argued that pushing all initiatives to general election ballots ensures more Californians get to vote on them, because turnout is generally much higher than for primary contests."

9/13/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

We've just discovered the Red Velvet Cake at Marita's Sweet Potato Pie Company in Hilltop Mall

"The best Red Velvet Cake I've had. A twelve on a scale of ten."

says Courtney Bean, server at 900 GRAYSON.

I agee!

"This place blew us away!! It really is the BEST red velvet cake you're going to try in the Bay Area . . . "

Check out Marita's other yelps.

Marita's is now in the Hilltop Mall next to 24 Hour Fitness. They seem to just be getting organized at this apparently new location. Call before going.

"Don't be cross, it's all in the name of home decor" Meredith May at sfgate.com.

sfgate photo

"I'm not sure where I saw it. Might have been in the movie, 'Frida,' or perhaps in an article about Madonna's home decor. Could have been in a dream after eating too much dark chocolate.

But I have this compulsion to cover one wall in my home, ceiling to floor, with religious crosses. The more over-the-top the better. I like the thorns, the stigmata, the Virgen de Guadalupe made of rainbow-colored sequins.
It's my home design quirk. Everyone has one, right?"

Nazis and UFOs in Pre and WW II Germany?

A Steven Spielberg film?

No, persistant rumors.

END

POSTS FROM THE PAST

12/15/05

Sweet potatoes are not yams. A sweet potato and a yam are two completely different plant species. True yams were brought to this country from Africa and are not grown in the United States on a commercial basis. Their flesh is white and not sweet at all. Occasionally a well-stocked Latin market may have a few yams, but generally they are difficult to locate. Louisiana and East Texas growers like to call their product yams in order to distinguish their potatoes from those grown in the north, a marketing technique that is confusing. And some canned sweet potatoes may be labeled yams, further complicating the issue.

SWEET POTATO PIE
2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons flour
teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 cup half-and-half
1 cup cooked sweet potato
2 eggs
1 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 9-inch unbaked pie crust, chilled
Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Whisk together the sugar, flour, salt and nutmeg in mixer bowl. Add the half-and-half, sweet potato, eggs and butter, one at a time, beating on medium speed about 30 seconds after each ingredient is added. Pour the filling into the pie shell. Bake 45 to 50 minutes, until filling is firm on the sides and just barely shakes in the middle. Cool on a wire rack. The pie may be served warm or cold and yields 8 servings.

Certainly not a sweet potato

but a sweetie--Milo is 1 year old

END

9/15/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

the City, early morning

from Potter Creek

remodeling and expansion at Weatherford

continue apace

This 10 million dollar project includes constructing a second story in the large metal structure and building another facility between the showroom and that large metal building.

our Robert Rittenhouse emails

Free Community Pedestrian Safety Workshop

Thursday, September 15, 2011 , 4 to 8 pm Tan Oak Room

UCB MLK Student Center

(follow signs from Sproul Plaza or download map at
www.safetrec.berkeley.edu/pedtraining/berkeley.html)

Do you walk in Berkeley?
Are you concerned that drivers may not stop for
you, your friends or your children?
Do you want to learn how to make walking safe
and accessible around campus and nearby?
Then this freeworkshop is for you. . .

"California Coastal Cleanup Day is Saturday" by Kristin J. Bender, mercurynews.com.

"The Bay Area is offering several volunteer events.

In Berkeley, volunteers should register between 9 and 10:30 a.m. in the dirt lot behind the Sea Breeze Market and Deli, at West Frontage Road and University Avenue. The cleanup will be at the mouth of three creeks, along the east shoreline and around the Berkeley Marina. Groups of 10 or more must preregister by calling 510-981-6720."

The Washington Post has a great selection of comics

on line

"New research points to lessons from Dutch cannabis system" Kathleen Maclay, Media Relations, UC.

"The Netherlands's system of quasi-legal retail marijuana sales steadily evolving since 1976 may have modestly increased the number of marijuana users, but does not seem to have intensified their use of marijuana or the likelihood that they will move on to harder drugs, according to a University of California, Berkeley, study just published in the journal Addiction."

Whoa, "Want better wireless service in America? Socialize it" Joshua Topolsky, washingtonpost.com.

"Imagine you're headed out of town for the weekend in your new Prius. If you don't own a Prius, don't worry - this is an alternate reality. You're leaving Maryland for New York City and looking forward to a leisurely afternoon drive.

A small group of private companies actually owns the roads, and they want you to follow their rules - so you can't get to New York unless you drive a sport-utility vehicle. To get on Interstate 95 north, you've got to have an Escalade or an Explorer. On the other hand, the company that owns the roads around Washington allows only green cars, so those big SUVs have no way of getting from New York to vast swaths of Maryland.

Oh, there are also towns that neither type of car can drive to because no one has built any roads there yet. Sorry! That's just how someone decided to make the transportation network work.

Sounds crazy, right? Well, I've just described the current state of the U.S. wireless phone business.
We've got a serious problem with the way our wireless providers operate, and if we don't do something soon, we risk slipping behind the rest of the world in how we do business and how we innovate.

There are two major challenges."

What is Apple's future? Well, Steve Jobs was as much a cult leader as a CEO. Look for that to play out in the mix, . . . in time.

And the new Fourth Street Apple Store seems an exception to SOME of the surrounding stores which may not be part of the new normal--expensive chotchkies not probably part of THAT mix.

END

POST FROM THE PAST

9/23/04

Caffé Trieste is open!

Photos of the morning of opening day

HERE

END

9/16/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

Join CEID in celebration of Deaf Awareness Week

Since 1951, the last week of September each year has been designated as Deaf Awareness Week across the Nation. This year, the Center for Early Intervention on Deafness, headquartered in Berkeley, wants to draw attention to the needs of young children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing. CEID will open its doors as part of Deaf Awareness Week for behind-the-scene tours of classrooms. We hope you can join us for this unique opportunity!

Tuesday and Wednesday, September 27 and 28 from 9:30-11:30 A.M.

1035 Grayson Street, Berkeley, CA 94710

Please RSVP by Sunday, September 25, 2011 to:
Leah Dahlgren email, leah@ceid.org or by phone 510-848-4800x320

"Graduation Rate in Berkeley Surpasses County, State Average" Emily Henry, berkeleypatch.com.

"New data shows that Berkeley students are completing high school at a higher rate than the county and state average."

"BAM/PFA advances plans for new facility, presents schematic design by Diller Scofidio and Renfro architectural firm to public" is a UC story release at newscenter.berkeley.edu..

"The University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive . . . held a community open house to present the schematic design for its new facility to the public. The project, designed by the renowned New York City-based firm of Diller Scofidio and Renfro , will unite a repurposed former UC Berkeley printing plant at 2120 Oxford Street with a new structure."

Definitely worth watching isTavis Smiley's no-nonsense conversation with, Jessye Norman.

END

POSTS FROM THE PAST

9/17/06

Today, during an email exchange with a Russian aviation-book collector, I mentioned that I majored in Russian Studies, took three years of the Russian language and was a great admirer of Russian culture--but that now I remember little of the Russian language. Gleb replied "I studied Vietnamese and do not remember much of it either. But when I was a student I said that basically you need to know just two phrases--but in as many languages as is possible.
Do not eat me, I am a Russian specialist, and
Do not shoot, I surrender!"

Which reminds me of my favorite quote from the movie, "Russia House." Sean Connery's character--a drunk and jazz playing, British book-publisher--offers, when interrogated by the CIA. "I love the Russians, they're just a corrupt as you Americans but with less bull-shit."

Potter Creek car art

Jeff's FordV-8/Healey 100-6

END

9/17/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

"Carville to Obama: Fire your staff" at washingtonpost.com.

"President Obama needs to fire a lot of people. That's the conclusion of longtime Democratic strategist and TV pundit James Carville, who unloaded on Obama Thursday for failing to change his White House team despite months of lagging poll numbers and stagnant economic indicators.
'For God's sake,' Carville wrote on CNN's web site , 'why are we still looking at the same political and economic advisers that got us into this mess? It's not working.' "

Often emotional, Carvelle still tells it like he sees it. If now is not the time for over-the-top thinking, it certainly is time for thinking out-of-the-box.

From oaklandsymphonychorus.org.

"Harold Lawrence, a longtime member of the Oakland Youth Orchestra board and former president, a distinguished classical music recording producer and orchestra manager, and great friend to the Oakland Symphony Chorus died on August 22nd in his Oakland home at the age of 88.

Harold Lawrence was Music Director of Mercury Records from 1956 until 1967, during which time he participated in and produced over 350 Living Presence recordings, known as Mercury's 'golden age.' He is legendary among music aficionados and collectors for the unsurpassed technical and artistic excellence of this series.

In 1967, Harold became the first American appointed as General Manager of the London Symphony Orchestra, the most recorded orchestra in the world.

In 1977, Edgar Kaiser persuaded Harold Lawrence to come to Oakland as President and General Manager of the Oakland Symphony, and he persuaded the board to hire the brilliant 29-year-old Calvin Simmons, whose life ended tragically in a boating accident in August, 1982.

Firmly settled in Oakland, Harold and Mary Lawrence played an important role in the Bay Area's cultural life for more than three decades. Harold served Oakland for years as a Mayoral appointee to its Cultural Arts Commission. He has served as grants panelist for the California Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts and the Oakland Arts Council."

from the website of Barbara Stack - former OYO Executive Director

" 'As Michael Morgan described him: "Harold Lawrence made many contributions to the symphony and the youth orchestra over the years, but the greatest was his vision. Having worked with such large orchestras and with so many great artists, he brought a larger world perspective to all of our discussions. Small organizations need that in order to grow. His generosity was unfailing and he always retained a tremendous enthusiasm for all the arts, particularly as they impacted young people." ' "

Read much more in Stack's wonderful appreciation of Harold."

Harold Lawrence Memorial Fund

A memorial fund has been setup at Oakland Youth Orchestra in his honor. Online contributions can be made via this link, or send a check to Oakland Youth Orchestra, 2201 Broadway, Suite 300, Oakland CA 94612.

END

POST FROM THE PAST

Bernstein in London, a Personal Memoir

by Harold Lawrence

Lawrence's association with Leonard Bemstein began in 1967, after Lawrence was appointed general manager of the London Symphony Orchestra. It continued in New York when Lawrence became manager of the New York Philhannonic in 1973.

In January 1968, a few weeks after I had taken over as general manager of the London Symphony, I phoned Leonard Bernstein. The LSO was without a principal conductor and it was my job to help the orchestra find a successor. A number of conductors were being approached, musicians with whom the LSO had a special relationship. One of these was Leonard Bernstein, whose association with the orchestra included highly successful concerts and recordings.

"I'm deeply honored," Bernstein said. "But I've promised myself that when I retire from the Philharmonic after next season, I will not accept any more titular positions. Please tell the boys how touched I am. (The London Symphony was then an all-male ensemble.) "But we'll be working together again, hopefully in '69," he added.

One of the projects we talked about for his next visit was the Verdi Requiem. It took the following twenty months to make the arrangements for the visit, which turned out to be a multi-media extravaganza, including concerts, a CBS recording, and a television production. Fitting the dates into Bernstein's schedule was like solving a jigsaw puzzle. Lining up world-star singers was even more difficult.

The great day finally came. On February 18, 1970, Bernstein arrived at London's Heathrow Airport with his charming wife, Felicia Montealegre

END

"Researchers Solve High-Voltage Mystery" at laboratoryequipment.com.

"If solar cells could generate higher voltages when sunlight falls on them, they'd produce more electrical power more efficiently. For over half a century scientists have known that ferroelectrics, materials whose atomic structure allows them to have an overall electrical polarization, can develop very high photovoltages under illumination. Until now, no one has figured out exactly how this photovoltaic process occurs.

Now a team of researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the Univ. of California at Berkeley has resolved the high-voltage mystery for one ferroelectric material and determined that the same principle should be at work in all similar materials."

"Ferroelectrics could offer ultra-low power computing" tgdaily.com.

"Engineers at the University of California, Berkeley, say they've been able to reduce the minimum voltage necessary to store charge in a capacitor, cutting the power draw and heat generation of electronic devices.

'Just like a Formula One car, the faster you run your computer, the hotter it gets. So the key to having a fast microprocessor is to make its building block, the transistor, more energy efficient,"'says graduate student Asif Khan.

'Unfortunately, a transistor's power supply voltage, analogous to a car's fuel, has been stuck at 1 volt for about 10 years due to the fundamental physics of its operation. Transistors have not become as 'fuel-efficient' as they need to be to keep up with the market's thirst for more computing speed, resulting in a cumulative and unsustainable increase in the power draw of microprocessors. We think we can change that.' "

9/18/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

"Tata Air Car Powered Entirely by Compressed Air. Blow Me Down!" at the Australian themotorreport.com.

"Tata Motors, once derided as the company with a name that sounds like it ought to be spread on a Fillet-o-Fish, has been making some serious forward movement in the past year or two.

Now, hot on the heels of its recent acquisition of Land Rover and Jaguar, and news of the impending assault on the European market with the Tata Nano, the Indian company is set to release a car powered entirely by air. But is it all hot air? (You see what I did there.)

Turns out it's very much a legitimate prospect. Sure, it looks bloody ordinary, but let's look beyond the styling for the moment. The MiniCAT (Compressed Air Technology), invented by French madman and ex-F1 engineer Guy Negre and his company Motor Development International (MDI), is a lightweight fibreglass urban car built around a tubular chassis which is glued together rather than welded. More importantly than that, and as you've no doubt gathered, it's powered entirely by compressed air."

An older report "Air Car by Guy Negre on The Science Channel" can be viewed on youtube.

One of Wareham's new tenants is involved in the "new compressed air/energy technology."

END

POST FROM THE PAST

4/18/11

Mr. Peanut's New Planters Nutmobile

"As part of our sustainability journey, Planters is embarking on the 2011 'Naturally Remarkable' tour, encouraging Americans to grow stronger communities through service and conservation. The tour inspires people to become planters by volunteering with The Corps Network, the nation's service and conservation corps. As part of the tour, Mr. Peanut's new Planters Nutmobile, fueled by biodiesel and powered with solar energy, will travel to over 16 cities across the U.S. "

END

9/19/11

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS

The San Francisco Sypmhony is celebrating its 100th Birthday.

Scrambled Eggs and its parent Recollections Journal of Recorded Music have been celebrating our symphony and Maître for years.

Pierre Monteux, Maître

The Monteux Era by Thomas Simone

Honorary Fire Chief

Hancock Maine VFA

The Monteux School was and is in Hancock, his wife's hometown.

Monteux's San Fransico Years by Ronald Penndorf

END

from my log

9/2/11-5:26 PM--irritant in warehouse front, stops Marsha working, headache. 7:40 PM--SERIOUS irritant in warehouse front and IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, muscus membrane irritation.

9/3/11--9:26 AM--SERIOUS irritant in warehouse front and IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, light head, nausea, Marsha SERIOUS muscus membrane irritation, LEAVE. 4:07 PM--SERIOUS irritant in warehouse front and IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, light head, blurred vision, Marsha, muscus membrane irritation.

9/5/11--10:33 AM--SERIOUS irritant IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, light head. 5:06 PM-- irritant IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, Marsha, muscus membrane irritation. 5:12--similar, mucus membrane irritation, watery eyes, etc.

9/6/11--6:02 PM--"burning gas" odor in front room. 6:22 PM--dirty dry air, mucus membrane irritation.

9/7/11--7:46 PM--VERY SERIOUS irritant in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, SERIOUS mucus membrane irritation.

9/8/118:59 AM--irritant in front room, mucus membrane irritation. 9:15 AM--similar, "hot asbestos" odor.

9/10/11--1:14 PM--SERIOUS irritant in warehouse front and IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, light head. 1:48 PM--mucus membrane irritation, Marsha similar.

9/11/11--4:34 PM--SERIOUSirritant in warehouse front and IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, muscus membrane irritation, Marsha, muscus membrane irritation. 7:07 PM--similar, nausea.

9/15/11--11:16 AM--irritant in front room, mucus membrane irritation. 2:22 PM--irritant in warehouse front and IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, light head, nausea. 2:48 PM--SERIOUS -irritant in front room, light head, nausea. 8:49 PM--irritant in warehouse front and IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, muscus membrane irritation.

9/17/11--9:11 AM--SERIOUS irritant in warehouse front and IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, mucus membrane irritation, Marsha similar.

9/18/11--9:21 AM--irritant in warehouse front and IMMEDIATELY in front of warehouse, dirty dry air, mucus membrane irritation, Marsha similar.

eternally useful links

Bay Area home prices from sfgate.com

Bay Area foreclosures from sfgate.com

Our City Council update is here.

Our Planning Commision update is here

You can find more information about our current weather conditions than is good for you at www.wunderground.com

Want to see weather coming in, going out, beautiful sunsets, and much, much more? Check out http://sv.berkeley.edu/view/ This very hip site was in an email from reader and contributor, Tony Almeida. Read Tony's Jimi Hendrix story on the only page that routinely gets more hits than Scrambled Eggs.

Best gas prices in 94710, as well as all of US and Canada, are here at gasbuddy.com

Kimar finds Costco routinely has the lowest price.

Richmond Ramblers' motorcycle club member, Cliff Miller emails a very

useful link

If you ever need to get a human being on the phone at a credit card company or bank, etc., this site tells you how to defeat their automated system and get you to a human being within a few seconds.

http://gethuman.com/

Markets is not just a reference for Berkeley-Hills radicals with 1.5 mil homes and considerable portfolios.

Our City of Berkeley Boards and Commissions page is here--redone and friendly.

Berkeley Police reports at insidebay area.com are here.

Our Berkeley PD Site with crime statistics and more is here.

Crime Log for 94710 is here

This site is NOT affiliated with Berkeley PD.
Take time to report crime!

All reports of crime-in-progress should first go to Berkeley PD dispatch--911 or non-emergency, 981-5900. THEN make sure you notify EACH of these City people.

The contacts are below:

Our Area Coordinator, Berkeley PD - 981-5774.

AND check out BPD feature "Who are these Suspects."

Ryan Lau, aid to Darryl Moore - 981-7120 rlau@ci.berkeley.ca.us

Darryl Moore, City Councilman dmoore@ci.berkeley.ca.us

More Scrambled Eggs & Lox, here

and

Stories about Berkeley and stories about recorded-music

are at

Journal of Recorded Music 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11

ronpenndorf@earthlink.net

The original owner of all posted material retains copyright. The material is used only to illustrate.