Back in Alameda

I'm not aware of any songs about Alameda so instead we'll begin with this.

Wasn't Michael Douglas's hair something to behold? It is worth a little time going back and watching episodes of this show if you have nothing better to do and are interested in binge-watching mid-70s cop shows. And you should always be interested in binge-watching mid-70s cop shows.

Anyway, I spent the last week in San Francisco attending a conference on employee engagement at a super fancy hotel with 300 other HR and organizational effectiveness professionals (I know you're all envisioning a raging party - I don't believe I was invited to it.). Presenters included HR representatives from companies like Hulu, Tesla, Clif Bars, Columbia Sportswear, and Stitchfix. I wonder if they took a bus together from the Silicon Valley or something equally hilarious and ironic all at the same time.

Since I was attending the pre-conference workshop on Monday, I arrived Sunday morning with a plan to visit the place where the blog began - the island of Alameda. I haven't been back to California since I moved away three years ago. I keep up to date on all things East Bay through my friends on Facebook and via email but it's just not the same. July is an excellent time to visit Northern California weather-wise and part of the beauty of work travel is visiting people you know while still doing your job. That's a win in my book.

The plan was to meet my friends, Joe and Sue, at the West Oakland BART station and then we'd have a drink at Forbidden Island before going to see a show at Altarena Playhouse. This plan combines two of my favorite Alameda pastimes: drinking at a tiki bar and going to the theatre. It also meant that I got to see a bunch of people I would not have otherwise seen.

To say Alameda is a unique place would be like saying DC is a political city. I believe I once described Alameda as being both provincial and hipster. It has a old time-y quality to it that's juxtaposed with cool kid things like artisanal cheese shops, hipster parents and their ironic statement babies, and multiple apiaries. People often joke that Alameda is where "hipsters come to breed" but it's not really a joke. It's a truth. Alameda is affordable, pleasant, and just cool enough for those leaving "the city" (San Francisco) to raise their families.

I loved living in Alameda. My move to California came at a time in my life when I needed a change and I needed to be outside of the Virginia/DC area. I didn't know anyone when I moved out there and that was both awesome and incredibly scary. While I never felt at home in Alameda, I felt it was the right place for me at the time. It was close enough to my office in Oakland so my commute was never bad. There's plenty to do and lots of restaurants and coffee shops to please every taste. Altarena Playhouse is a landmark; it's one of the oldest continuously operating community theatres in the Bay Area. There's a bowling alley, tiki bar, and two decent donut shops. What more could you want in a place to live? I remember having a conversation with a friend not too long before I moved that the only thing missing on the island was a Target. Had there been a Target I would never have to leave the island (except for work). It would have been glorious.

Guess what? Alameda got a Target! And an In N Out Burger! I leave and the Target opens. Joe was kind enough to drive my past the new store as we made our way into town. Look at how pretty it is.

Photo

Of course, it's also located near my first apartment so it would have been super easy to get to and enjoy. As excited as I am for Alameda, I have to admit that I'm surprised it's there. Given that Alameda is one of those places where no matter how long you live there you'll never truly be a local, a Target seems too off island. Island residents tend to dislike chain stores of any kind but the feedback has been pretty positive for Target. That's a great thing. From what my friends told me, it's only one part of more planned development on the island. This includes redevelopment of the old naval base and additional improvements and new businesses. Change can be hard but it's also necessary to move forward.

Many of the sessions presented during the conference focused on the importance of storytelling in employee engagement. Several presenters discussed the idea that personal stories are as much a part of a company as its products and services. It's those personal stories that create the culture of an organization and make it a place people want to be. Had I never lived in Alameda, I doubt I would have started this blog and started telling my story and stories as I've done over the four years since the Island was born. Many of the friends I saw on this trip are champions of this blog and for that, I thank them. It was nice to visit even if just for a little while. Maybe next time I'll get to stay a little longer and buy some unnecessary items at Target (as one does when traveling) and have a burger at In N Out (seriously, please come to the East Coast). What's nice to know is that even though I'll never be a local, I'll always be welcome in Alameda.

I brought Angry Unikitty (from my Lego figure army) with me on this trip. I may have played tourist a bit in San Francisco. 

Walking in Alameda

Alameda might be the perfect place for walking. It's an island so it's flat and designed to get you where you need to go even without some form of motorized or wheeled transportation. Also, the speed limit on the entire island is 25 mph and there are lots of pedestrian friendly cross areas so you don't feel like you're going to get hit by a car when you cross the street. (I'm talking to you, Washington, DC. Stop being a jerk when it comes to crosswalks.)

This is great for me because I love to walk for exercise. I don't like the gym and find it difficult to motivate myself to go. Gyms make me nervous and slightly self-conscious. I'm going to have to suck it up and go when I move. My new building has a great fitness center and I would be an idiot if I didn't use it (also I'm paying for it so I would be wasting money). But until then, I'm going to enjoy my walks around Alameda. I walk between 2-3 miles along the same route at least five times a week. I walk up San Jose to Park Street (or to Broadway) and then I walk back to Grand Street (I wish it was Grand Avenue-that sounds so much better) and then back to my building.

Along the way, I'm treated to some beautiful homes, lovely flowers, weird lawn decorations, and some homes that can only be described as "in need of a hug and some paint." When I tell people that one of the things that I liked immediately about Alameda when I moved here was that it reminded me of New Orleans, I get weird looks. If you know New Orleans houses and you've been to Alameda, the similarities are pretty amazing. There are all styles of homes (Victorians, Mission style, Tudors, shotguns, ranch style, bungalows) painted boring beige to wild purple. Here are two of my favorite houses on my walk:

This is on the corner of Willow and San Jose. Gorgeous. The pink house is on San Jose-it's such a great color.






For today's walk I decided that I wanted to change up my path a bit and go see the Alameda Spite House. Seeing this house is on my list of things to do before I move. Yes, we have our own spite house in Alameda. A spite house, a tiki bar, a bowling alley-what else do we need? A spite house is a house built to irritate a neighbor, city, or other parties with some type of land stake. According to Wikipedia (the lazy blogger's best friend), they're usually obstructions or have designs that would be prohibitive to the neighbor(s). Disputes over inheritance, cities taking land for public spaces, and neighbors who dislike one another seem to be the chief reasons spite houses exist.

Charles Froling built the Alameda Spite House in the early 1900s. He had inherited land and intended to build his dream home. The state of California saw otherwise and took a large portion of Froling's land to build a street. He built the home to fit the strip of land left to him: 10 feet (3.0 m) deep, 54 feet (16 m) long and 20 feet (6.1 m) high.

I had read about this house when I was researching places to live in the East Bay. I love stories like this. They add an odd character to a place. The address wasn't listed on either of the sites I originally looked at. When I moved here I asked a few people about the house. Most didn't know what I was talking about. One person did tell me the address but I forgot (and didn't write it down). When I posted my things to do post, Island reader Sue posted the address for me. Thanks Sue!

So today I set out for the Alameda Spite House. I had mixed feelings about taking pictures - I'm sure the residents are used to it but I try to be stealthy since I wouldn't want people standing outside my house snapping away.  I'll say this (just in case the current owners ever read this): the house is really lovely. You can tell they love their home and take excellent care of it.

This was about a block away and I thought it was fun.

Back view - this is what I saw first.

Across the street view

Front view- look at how close the two houses are.

I can't say that the house was exactly what I expected. I'm not really sure what I expected at all. Most people don't even know it's there and I find that fascinating. I've driven past it many times on my way to the theater and didn't realize I had driven past. Charles Froling is probably still pretty mad about the whole "California took my land" thing but I hope that he is at least enjoying that his home is still there, inhabited by people who clearly love and care for it. And that there are people like me whose curiosity always gets the better of them and they have to search out hidden treasures like this house.

On a side note, Happy 75th Birthday to the Golden Gate Bridge! I would come see you today, GG, but there are probably 8 million people there already and I don't want to deal with the crowds. We do have a date before I move as I try to get over my bridge fear by walking further across than I have before. I don't have to cross the bridge, just walk about halfway. I think that's a reasonable goal.

My first attempt on New Year's Day

So much to do, so little time

Renting my apartment last week made me realize that I will be moving very, very soon (insert sound effect of my hand slapping my forehead because this is such an obvious statement). I have 2-ish months to pack and plan the drive to VA and clean and travel for work. Pretty soon, the planner part of me will take over and I will start to calendar out my life down to the hour to make sure everything gets done. These are the times I wish I was less organized and more spontaneous but that is not my personality. My lists will start to have list babies and I won't be able to stop myself. In the interest of my own sanity, I've made a list (ha ha) of things that I should do before I leave the Bay Area. Hopefully, I'll get to do all of these things while also doing all the necessary tasks involved in moving cross country.

Here's my tentative list:

• Go to Alameda's Got Talent at the historic Alameda Theater - this sounds like it could be the greatest event ever or an utter disaster. Like the Lou Reed/Metallica album.
• Do the spirits tasting at St. George's Distillery (and yes, I would like the version that includes absinthe)
• Go to both an A's and Giants game
• Walk on the Golden Gate Bridge again. I only went a short distance on it on New Year's Day but I feel like I should try again. I don't need to walk across it but I need to go a little further in order to truly conquer my fear of bridges. 
• Hang out in Marin so that I can feel better when I roll my eyes when people make Marin jokes
• Go to a concert - how is it that I haven't seen one show since I moved here? What is wrong with me?
• One more trip to Napa - I went on Sunday for the second time but feel like I need one more trip before I leave.
• Visit the USS Hornet Museum
• Go to the fortune cookie factory in SF's Chinatown
• Attend the Alameda 4th of July parade which is the second oldest and longest in the US
• See a movie at the Castro Theatre
• See the sunrise from Twin Peaks
• Go to the Oakland Zoo
• Find the Froling spite house in Alameda  
• Finally go to the Alameda Flea Market - I always seem to have something else to do on the first Sunday of every month. How is that possible?
• Take a trip to Yosemite and/or Muir Woods
• Try a few more restaurants in the area. In Alameda I specifically want to try:
• Hob Nob
• Mona's 
• Ole's 
• Dragon Rouge 

Suggestions for other things to do? Anyone want to walk the Golden Gate Bridge with me? Or go to find the Froling spite house (or know where it is)?