Buy Chocolate in Bulk, Ghirardelli

Buy Chocolate in Bulk, Ghirardelli

A shelf full of Ghirardelli's chocolatesGhirardelli is the longest continually operating chocolatier in America. In 1849, Domenico Ghirardelli opened a supplies and confections store to miners in Stockton, CA. Within the same year he established himself in San Francisco. The San Francisco store at  900 North Point, near Fisherman’s Wharf, is now labeled the original store. In 1965 San Francisco declared Ghirardelli Square an official city landmark.

Little Ghirardelli chocolates by the poundAs a bargain hunter I was intrigued by the outlet store. In fact they have four outlet stores in the Bay Area! We went to the San Leandro’s outlet store. It’s fun to see all the different products they offer, from small packaged chocolates to hot chocolate mixes, and all chocolate related baking ingredients. As an added bonus you can also sip a mocha or enjoy an ice cream fudge. Which is a nice idea so you won’t shop hungry. We found that the super bulk items are the best deals. So, if you eat a lot of little chocolates, you might consider visiting. 

A bag of chocolates by the pound from the Ghirardelli outlet store in San Leandro including a chocolate bunnyGhirardelli Ice Cream & Chocolate Factory Outlet Stores: 

1111 139th Avenue, San Leandro

1015 Promontory Pkwy, Tracy

11980 S Harlan Road, Lathrop

447 Great Mall Drive #189, Milpitas

 

Are you a chocoholic?

Sign for the UC Davis Putah Creek

Watch Otters Frolicing, at the UC Davis Putah Creek Riparian Reserve

Putah Creek Riparian Reserve. In front some berry bushes, the muddy creekThe UC Davis Putah Creek Riparian Reserve is a gem amidst agricultural land south-west of Davis. The 640-acre natural riparian, meaning wetlands adjacent to rivers and streams, and grassland ecosystem is a model in wildlife protection and restoration. Right now you’ll be enjoying the wildflowers during your walk along the river. But a surprising movement in the river – a family of river otters playing. Because there are many species of wildlife you should leash your dog.

A river otter on the bank of the creekIn 2000 a lawsuit mandated year-round flow of the creek and was an invitation for wildlife. In fact, this scenic pass by the water is a green oasis that now hosts woodpeckers, kingfishers, and other birds. A paper on ecological restoration found that during the year 1999 and 2012 a significant increase in “the abundance of 27 breeding bird species as well as increases in the size and diversity of the entire breeding bird community”. 

Grassland with the Putah Creek in the backgroundThis is a reserve owned by the UC Davis and you can see student volunteers and interns removing invasive species and helping out with repairs. Nonetheless, it is open to the public for swimming, boating, fishing and hiking. They seem to have had trouble in the past with people vandalizing benches, and destroying experimentsThis was especially true in 2020 when people sought nature as an escape from the shelter-in-place policy. Please be mindful of this model for riparian restoration.

There are four parking lots with gravel roads for the Putah Creek Riparian Reserve. The parking lots, due to recent rain, might be a bit bumpy. We entered Pedric Rd, which had space for maybe 10 cars. Please note that the south side of the creek is private property. 

Road sign for the Grand Opening art salon and the famous Illusion Room

Stop by the Grand Opening with its Famous Illusion Room, Berkeley

Grand Opening art salon sign The perfect roadside attraction, off the beaten pass, but close enough to amenities, interesting things to look at, bathroom and a sample of local tea. We visited the Grand Opening and enjoyed all of the above. Grand Opening is an art collective with some events, for example on Saturday, March 9th, 2024 from 1 – 7pm, you can experience the 𝐻𝒪𝒰𝑅 𝒫𝐿𝐸𝒜𝒮𝒰𝑅𝐸 {𝕒 𝕘𝕠𝕠𝕕 𝕥𝕚𝕞𝕖} event, in celebration of the time change. Who could say no to a free event with food, beverages, and art? 

Inside Grand Opening in BerkeleyIf you already booked up that weekend, stop by another time and immerse yourself in the Illusion Room. You have to take off your shoes, your cellphone will be Lock box with a chain for your phoneslocked away in a box that will stay with you, then you may enter the Illusion Room. You have some time to chill and look around the room. When the bell chimes you know your time is up, but unless there are people waiting no one will force you to leave. I won’t tell you what you will find, but I can tell you I now have a sticker advertising this place on my car! 

It is $4 per person, stickers are $3 and you’ll get an offering of tea from nearby Blue Willow Tea

Front entrance of Grand Opening located at 1220 4th St, Berkeley. Triangle sign reads Are We OpenThe art is priced to sell with nothing more than $300. But a lot for less than that. 

You can find the Grand Opening and Illusion Room at 1220 4th St., Berkeley. Hours are Saturday and Sunday, 1 pm – 6 pm. Follow them on Instagram at @grand.opening.arts

Shroom out in Santa Cruz

Shroom out in Santa Cruz

A selection of mushrooms you can buy at Far West Fungi in Santa CruzIf you missed the 50th anniversary of the mushroom festival by the Fungus Federation of Santa Cruz (FFSC) this January you can still join fungi lovers on May 4th/5th for the Santa Cruz Mountain Mushroom Festival. At this event the mycological community is getting together for wild mushroom exploration, cooking and cultivation demos, functional mushroom talks, and DIY workshops. It comes with a steep price tag of $75 per day. In comparison tickets for the Morgan Hill Mushroom Festival, May 25th/26th, 2024 are $20 at the door. 

Far West Fungi product lineIf you just started out to be a fungi lover the easiest way to introduce you to all things fungi is visiting Far West Fungi – the Santa Cruz Mushroom store. This all mushroom place offers a one-of-a-kind mushroom cafe, a selection of fresh mushrooms, a line of at-home mushroom cultivation supplies, a collection of dried and powdered mushrooms, and a selection of myco-nutraceuticals (natural pharmaceutical).

Warning sign: Picking and eating wild mushrooms can kill youAn inexpensive way to admire mushrooms is to ‘hunt’ for them. I would not advise you to plug and eat, unless you know what you are doing. But to photograph these when they come up after the rain might just be a worthwhile hunt. 

Are you a fungiphile?

Far West Fungi – 224 Laurel St Suite A101, Santa Cruz, CA

Gills of a wild mushroom

Entrance to the Sonoma Overlook Trail

Hike the Sonoma Overlook Trail

Sign for the Sonoma Overlook upper meadow loopJust a few minutes north of the Sonoma plaza on 1st Street and Mountain Cemetery is the entrance to the Sonoma Overlook Trail. Parking is limited, but you can also start your hike from the cemetery. This 3 mile hike with a steady gradual 7% incline took us about 1 hour to complete. Once you reach the top you will be rewarded with gorgeous views of the Sonoma Valley and San Pablo Bay. From the south end you can see San Francisco on a clear day. 

Part of the trail of the Sonoma Overlook TrailThe road is uneven and sometimes muddy, so I would recommend wearing hiking shoes. It is mostly shady until you come to the top with the loop of the overlook trail and its meadow. We returned through the historic cemetery and I think that in itself is worth a visit. 

Way in the back you can see the Golden Gate BridgeAt the beginning, you can pick up several maps and info brochures by the map post near the parking area. No dogs, horses, or bikes are allowed. Please stay on the designated trail to avoid disrupting the hillside and encountering wildlife such as rattlesnakes, ticks, and mountain lions. 

You can find the entrance to the Sonoma Overlook Trail on 198 First St. W. in Sonoma, CA. On many weekends docent led hikes are available. 

Have you hiked in Sonoma?

Two Barbie dolls, one has its hands above her head

Reclaim and Reinvent Barbie, Sonoma Community Center

The Sonoma Community Center put together two popular concepts – reusing materials and Barbies as fashion models in its annual Trashion Fashion events. A funny wordplay on trash fashion. And who could be a better model than a Barbie doll? 

A tub full of Barbie dolls at the Sonoma Community CenterYou can pick up a doll at the community center for no charge. But to enter the contest you have to pay the non-refundable entry fee of $25 for one entry or $40 for two entries. If you, on the other side, have Barbie, Ken or other under 12 inches dolls to donate you can drop them off at the community center or at Bon Marche at 19405 Riverside Dr, Sonoma. Bon Marche is a Thrift Store that supports the community and funds building health clinics and gardens in Rwanda. Bon Marche accepts donations on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 10 am to 3 pm. Please don’t leave your donations outside. As a plus, if you buy something you will be a zero waste star to reuse!

A selection of dolls for the Trashion Fashion exhibitAfter you acquire your doll the fun starts. Decorate your childhood style icon with recycled materials (please only wholesome images!). There will be a silent auction from March 28th – April 12, 2024. If your entry hasn’t sold in the auction it will be returned to you.

Your Barbie applications are due on or before: Friday, March 15th.

The Trashion Barbie: Reclaimed & Reinvented Gallery exhibit and auction has its opening night on March 28  and the exhibit will run through April 12th, 2024. The Sonoma Community Center is located at 276 East Napa Street, Sonoma. It is open 7 days a week from 8 am to 9 pm.

Trashion Classes & WorkshopsA group of dolls for the Trashion Fashion exhibit

February 10th

Trashion Design for Kids & Teens

10:00 am – 12:30 pm

February 12th, February 26th

Free Open Trashion Design Studio & All Star Demo’s

5:30 pm – 8:00 pm

 

There will also be two Trashion Runway Shows on April 6, 2024,  2:00 pm & 5:00 pm. These are wearable trashion creations. Tickets go on sale early March with SCC members 48 hour pre-sale. On the second floor of the SCC you can see previous examples of the winners.

 

Entrance to the UC Davis Design Museum

Still…Racism in America, UC Davis

A cartoon from Barbara Brandon-Croft in 2016. 'America put white-supremacy on the ballot. Guess what happend.'No one should be flabbergasted by the notion that there is still racism in the United States. We’ve all seen the pictures of white-supremacist storming the Capitol, Black Lives Matter protests in 2020. We know about gentrification, gerrymandering, redlining, tokenism, and other catch phrases explaining inequality. That these concepts still define racism in America postulates an exhibit at the UC Davis Design Museum. 

Cartoon panels are on display at the UC Davis Design MuseumThe complete title of the new exhibit at the UC Davis Design Museum is: “Still…Racism in America: A Retrospective in Cartoons”. On display are cartoons by the father/daughter duo Brumsic Brandon Jr. and Barbara Brandon-Croft. Brumsic created the comic strip Luther in the late sixties. His daughter Barbara was the nation’s first black female cartoonist. She is known for: Where I’m Coming From

The Design Quarterly outside of the exhibitThe Design Quarterly outside of the Design Museum are mock-up newspaper pages about the exhibit. Listed are the subject matters of the exhibit: The Original Sin, White Supremacy,  Racial Subjugation, Voting Rights, Racial Disparities, Redlining, Politicians, Extremism, Domestic Terrorism, Affirmative Action, Tokenism, Policing, (Mis)Education, Black History, Self-Reflection/Hope. And yes, everything is STILL there.

Inside are cartoon panels mixed from both artists, the year they were published, underneath. I get the stagnation, feel how exhausting it must be, smirk at the sarcasm. But I am still hopeful. The way to equality is to uncover the inequality and make people understand. 

The UC Davis Design Museum is open Monday thru Friday noon to 4pm. Admission is free. Located at Cruess Hall, #124, Davis, CA. Still will be on display until April 21, 2024.

Entrance to the exhibit Different Worlds at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art

View Different Worlds, Sonoma

View of some of the artworks by Tsherin Sherpa. In front is one of the carpets.Different Worlds is the title of the new exhibit at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art in downtown Sonoma. The exhibit shows works by Bay Area artist Tsherin Sherpa

SA carpet depicting a tiger and in the back some of the paintings by Tsherin Sherpaherpa was trained in his home country of Kathmandu, Nepal as a thangka painter. Thangkas are traditional Tibetan Buddhist art. The artist invites us to his different worlds as an artistic mixtape of his religious roots and contemporary perspectives. The outcome is mystic but familiar. On our visit we caught up with a museum guide who explained some of the symbolism and techniques. I really liked the vibrant deconstructed paintings of swirled thangkas suggesting the artist’s mixed emotions and introducing the western world into his traditional upbringing. 

Multiple collages but also two carpets and a statue are on display until April 28th. Opening reception is Saturday, January 27th from 5 -7 pm. The film screening of ‘Above and Below: The Life of Artist Tsherin Sherpa’ is unfortunately sold out. But the museum might add a second screening. There are also activities for kids, for example free mangalas.

Two of Tsherin Sherpa's paintings with swirlsThe SVMA is located at 551 Broadway in downtown Sonoma. Opening hours are: Wednesday thru Sunday 11 am to 5 pm. Admissions is free every Wednesday, otherwise general admission is $10, seniors, students, and Sonoma Valley residents pay $7, people under 18 are free. 

How would your different worlds look like?

 

Follow up of People’s Park, Berkeley

Follow up of People’s Park, Berkeley

A barrier on one side and shipping container on the other side ending in a dead end.After a long legal battle the UC Berkeley moved ahead the night of January 3rd, 2024 to clear People’s Park from its inhabitants and wall it off with double-stacked shipping containers. The park near Telegraph Ave, on the corner of Haste and Bowditch Streets and Dwight Way, will be reinvented with much needed student housing. The plan also includes affordable housing units and almost ⅔ of it will remain greenspace. The large greenspace is to commemorate the park’s history as a meeting point for free speech and protest culture. 

Double stack shipping containers blocking off People's Park in BerkeleyThe City thought that the unsightly container wall was needed after protestors destroyed $1.5 million worth of equipment last year. 

So who is opposing the development? 

Is it just wealthy progressive people being NIMBY’s (Not In My BackYard)? Or are these nostalgic hippies, recollecting the historical fights planned out in the park?

A tree peeking out over the shipping containersI think it is a mixture of both. The halt of the building project by a court order in 2022 citing environmental reasons. This definitely was a NIMBY move. In a KQED report on the park, students expressed  concern that not all possible sites were evaluated before People’s Park was chosen. People’s Park is a historic landmark, and already has a bloody track record each time the UC decided to develop it.

Who is responsible for the housing shortage? 

Barbed wire on top of the shipping containersBerkeley has the lowest rate of housing offered to their students among the UCs (about 20% for undergraduates and 9% for graduates). When the university was founded in 1868 it modeled itself after German universities that offer a great education but no housing. The Bay Area, being one of the most expensive places in the world to live, worries students each year in search of affordable housing.

Are you a supporter of affordable housing or People’s Park?

Resources

https://www.kqed.org/news/11971858/berkeley-locals-lament-the-closure-of-peoples-park-as-shipping-container-barricades-go-up

https://www.berkeleyside.org/2022/05/08/uc-berkeley-student-housing-building

https://www.peoplespark.org/wp/

https://news.berkeley.edu/2024/01/03/uc-berkeley-launches-closure-of-peoples-park-construction-site

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27s_Park_(Berkeley)

Front window of The Art Butiki

Party at the Art Butiki, San José

What is Art Butiki you might ask? A Comic book store, a T-shirt printing business, and an all age music venue, in short a cool place to hang out.

A display case with comic books inside Art ButikiWe visited during comic store hours, Monday – Friday 11am to 4pm. With an interesting selection of comic books and t-shirts, the store also has some seats and two sofas to let you chill. Behind the counter the owner Dan Vado explained the uphill battle of running a cult classic store and music venue, and let us peek in the back at the event space. 

Mural of a Tiki holding a flameWhile Covid closed the place down, he found a workaround by recording local artists. The resulting videos can still be watched on YouTube or the Art Butiki website. Offering local musicians a stage for an all age audience is a tough business. Ticket prices for the shows are only around $20. The 300 person venue looks cozy and iconic, decorated with a lot of tiki figures.

The skull marks the entrance to the bar to order food and drinksI came across Art Butiki while I researched my list for 50 Free Things to do in San José. They have some events that are free, like a Drink ‘n Draw, open mic, and jazz jam. While I usually only note things in my 50 lists that I have been to, I include these because I still want to check out events at Art Butiki. I hope you’ll visit this independently owned venue and support local artists.

Art Butiki is located at 44 Race Street in San Jose’s The Alameda neighborhood. Parking might be a challenge; if you have to park in the neighborhood be mindful.