A long time ago, before having kids, I bought the Charlie Brown holiday dvd set which contains It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving and A Charlie Brown Christmas. Every year I watch at least one show and now it’s interesting to see the reactions from my kids as they watch it for the first time, or with a new understanding as they get older. There’s really something for all ages including adults that makes it so great.
The Christmas tree is now up at Broadway Plaza in downtown Walnut Creek. Same decorations as last year but fun to see this time of year. More Broadway Plaza events are listed below:
Yesterday I had a chance to drop by the Walnut Creek Ice Rink which is open until January 13th. In previous years I always went in December or January but this time I went early and was amazed at how relatively empty it was, even on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. I would definitely recommend checking this out sooner rather than later as it can get extremely crowded!
Check out the open rink:
General admission is $11 Monday – Friday and $15 on weekends and Friday at 5pm. Unfortunately there is no children’s admission but kids 3 and under are free.
General Public Skating Hours (excluding holiday periods)
Monday – Thursday
12:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Friday
12:00 pm – 11:00 pm
Saturday
11:00 am – 11:00 pm
Sunday
11:00 am – 8:00 pm Holiday Period Admission
November 19 – 25 every day, all day $15
December 22 – January 6 every day, all day $15
Holiday Period Public Skating Hours
*Monday, Nov 19–Wednesday, Nov 21 Holiday Period 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
Recently I received an email from a reader who attached this photo of downtown Walnut Creek pointing out the lack of garbage cleanup. Has anyone noticed the garbage situation getting worse in downtown Walnut Creek? I haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary or maybe I haven’t been paying enough attention.
Every year the Moraga-Orinda Fire Department tests their hoses out to make sure it’s in proper working order. I was going for a jog one morning and happened across this scene. The hoses stretch all the way back out of frame for hundreds of feet. Pretty cool! In case you were wondering, the wider yellow hoses are for connecting from the hydrant (especially useful in hilly Orinda), while the white ones are what the firefighters hold closer up. They both fit on the fire engine itself.
Today are the elections so please get out and vote! You can find your closest Contra Costa County poll location here. An explanation of statewide ballot measures is here. Information about which candidates are running in Contra Costa including the President of the United States is here. The Walnut Creek Council Member election information is here, Lafayette here, Orinda here and Moraga here.
Spotted in Walnut Creek, the sign on the back of the car says, “BABY ON BOARD KEEP DISTANCE”. Please tell me this is coming from first-time parents. I remember those yellow “baby on board” signs in the 80s but haven’t seen them lately.
I finally had a chance to drop by the newly opened SusieCakes bakery in downtown Lafayette where everything looked amazing, both in terms of store design as well as bakery items. They even offered free doggie treats out front which you can see in the bottom left of the photo. Nice touch. I noticed a cake sample right away and it was excellent. I bought a chocolate chip cookie as I always do when trying new bakeries out for comparison purposes, and it was superb as well.
However, I have a bit of a pet peeve that I want to see how others feel about. As I was browsing their display case, I noticed there were no prices. When I’m deciding what to order I tend to take price into account. When I go to a cafe I look up at the board and check the prices, when I shop at a clothing store I check the price tag to help me decide what to buy, when I shopped at the Walnut Creek Baking Company (RIP), I looked at the prices listed next to items. Helpful information before deciding to get a snickerdoodle, or mini-cupcake, or frosted holiday cookie.
At SusieCakes, as you can see from the photo, it was rather crowded. A friendly person behind the counter asked if she could help. I looked at her, then looked at the display case to double check that I’m not losing my mind and that indeed there were no prices listed, then looked at her again, and started asking her how much things cost. Not wanting to hold up people as the employee told me the prices, she mentioned that there was a menu with the prices. So now I’m going back and forth between the menu and the display case trying to figure out what to order.
Then I get to the cashier and noticed a postcard mentioning Thanksgiving pie pre-orders. Again, there is no price listed. I ask the cashier why there are no prices listed and she explained that they want to engage us the customer. I was smiling incredulously as people were waiting behind me. So I asked her how much the pies were. She explained that the pumpkin pie and pecan pie are $18.95 and the apple pie is $24.95. Now am I expected to remember these prices as I bring the postcard home to show my wife? Why couldn’t they just put the price on the postcard? I already know it’s going to be delicious I know it’s going to be made from scratch. What’s there to engage about? I just want to know the price! So I took a pen that’s used to sign credit card receipts and wrote the price for each pie on the postcard. Meanwhile the people behind me are probably wondering what the hold up is. Frankly, it felt very awkward.
So for Friday’s question of the day, should bakeries post prices on a board or next to the items for sale à la WCBC, or are prices passé and not really relevant in this day and age?
