What in the World?! Seaweed causes Cancer?

October 29, 2015 11:30 am

I was browsing the food aisles at Cost Plus World Market in Walnut Creek the other day looking for a healthy snack when I encountered something so unbelievable I still can hardly believe it. I can’t say I wasn’t sorely tempted by the chocolate wafer snacks from Europe and Japanese sweets but I was determined and finally found it; a roasted Korean sesame snack called Say! Crunch. I thought it would make for a tasty snack but then I noticed the sign above:

Products containing seaweed contain chemicals known to the state of California to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm.

I know I’ve seen a similar sign in parking garages million times, but seaweed causing cancer?! Is this really true?!

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Parking Meters Coming to Lafayette Town Center Parking Lot

October 28, 2015 8:30 am

Lafayette Town Center Parking Lot

Parking meters are becoming more popular in Lafayette as Lafayette Town Center is following the lead of La Fiesta Square and introducing parking meters. According to the meter description, there will be a three hour limit in effect 7 days a week from 9am to 9 pm.

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Sign Confusion at Peet’s Coffee in Orinda

October 21, 2015 11:30 am

Over the weekend I decided to drop by for a drink at Peet’s Coffee & Tea in Orinda on Moraga Way and as I started waiting in line I noticed this sign. A few people were waiting on the right beans side. Nobody was waiting on the left drinks side. I read it very carefully, at least three times! Then I went up the counter via the left line and asked for a drink from a woman behind the counter. She mentioned the line at right. I replied that I wanted to order a drink, not order beans. She countered that she was busy and that maybe the other customers were also ordering drinks. So I went back in the right line and asked each customer whether they were ordering beans. They all replied that they were indeed ordering beans. So back I went to the left line and told the woman behind the counter that everyone was ordering beans. Ultimately I received my drink but it was certainly awkward. Make sense?

Enjoy this Seinfeld car reservation scene:

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Larkey Park Swim Center Closes for Renovation – Reopening Summer, 2017

October 15, 2015 8:30 am

2771 Buena Vista Ave, Walnut Creek

The synchronized swim club Walnut Creek Aquanuts held their final performance at Larkey Park Swim Center over the weekend. Located next to Lindsay Wildlife Experience in Walnut Creek, the swim center will reopen in the summer of 2017 with a new $5 million dollar swim center (see details below). They are still looking for donors here.

From the Larkey Splash website:

Project Details

10-lanes, square shape — Variety of swim activities including swim meets
and synchronized swim shows

Varying pool depths — Advanced training, greater variety of activities

Shade structures — Protect swimmers and families from the sun

Splash playground — Water-efficient, healthy, safe water play for all youth

Bathhouse — Family changing rooms and restrooms open to park visitors

Fully accessible — Fun and fitness for everyone

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Killer Bees Invade Reliez Valley in Lafayette

September 29, 2015 10:00 am

Via Google maps

SFGate is reporting that Africanized honeybees, aka killer bees, have been found in the Bay Area for the first time, specifically in Reliez Valley in Lafayette. Although the article notes that, “people should not be too concerned” and that there could be benefits since they could replace the European honeybees that are dying out, Brian Johnson, a honeybee researcher at UC Davis emphasized that, “the bees do pose danger wherever they are present.”

At the bottom of the article is a section titled, “How to get away from attacking bees”. What struck me the most was this:

Don’t jump in a swimming pool or bodies of water to get away. They have been known to wait for people to surface.

I thought I only had to worry about mountain lions and now this!?

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Sign of the Day

September 10, 2015 8:30 am

Spotted in downtown Walnut Creek on Locust Street. My kid said this must be a really old sign, like from the olden days, the 1980s. 🙂

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Walnut Creek Police Opposes Proposed Winter Homeless Shelter – City Council Meeting this Evening to Discuss

September 8, 2015 2:00 pm

Via Google Maps

Last week we learned about concerns over a proposed winter homeless shelter at the Armory near Civic Park and the Iron Horse Trail in downtown Walnut Creek and it turns out that the Walnut Creek police opposes the location of this shelter. Read the complete police memorandum here (click the link and then attachment 6a at right) to find out why they are “concerned that the project will negatively impact our ability to protect the community.”

This evening, Sept. 8th, at 7pm, the city council will hold a, “special meeting to consider the Trinity Center’s request that the City enter into a license agreement with the State Military Department so Trinity Center may operate a winter nights homeless shelter at the Armory adjacent to Civic Park”.

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Concerns about Proposed Walnut Creek Homeless Shelter

September 2, 2015 10:00 am

From a reader:

Are you aware of the proposed homeless shelter at the Armory located at 1800 Carmel Drive in Walnut Creek? I hope you can help raise aware of this proposal as I am shocked City leaders have not taken extra efforts to ensure the residents most impacted by the proposal were properly notified and given opportunities to voice concerns. I feel that more effort should have been made to make this proposal transparent.

I have been a resident of Walnut Creek on Carmel Drive for over 5 years…I paid a premium for my property because I felt the neighborhood was safe, and because I value the walkability of downtown.

Having reviewed the proposal on the Trinity Center website (trinitycenterwc.org), I have several concerns:

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Poison Oak Alert – Beware!

August 25, 2015 11:30 am

The other day I went on a tarantula trek in Mt. Diablo State Park and in addition to seeing tarantulas and scorpions, we also learned about poison oak. I’ve heard a lot about poison oak but never definitively encountered any until our guide helpfully pointed it out. Take a good look at the above photo. That is definitely poison oak.

According to Wikipedia:

The leaves are divided into three (rarely 5, 7, or 9) leaflets, 3.5 to 10 centimeters (1.4 to 3.9 in) long, with scalloped, toothed, or lobed edges. They generally resemble the lobed leaves of a true oak, though tend to be more glossy. Leaves are typically bronze when first unfolding in February to March, bright green in the spring, yellow-green to reddish in the summer, and bright red or pink from late July to October.

Unlike tarantulas, which are harmless to humans, poison oak, “causes itching; then evolves into dermatitis with inflammation, colorless bumps, severe itching, and blistering”. So stay away from poison oak, and remember these photos to remind you what to look out for.

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Sign of the Day

August 12, 2015 8:30 am

I thought Orinda pranksters were at work again with a new sign but it turns out a speed hump is an actual traffic sign. Check out the difference between a speed bump here.

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