Blog

Sep

Elevation 66

Posted In: Contra Costa County, El Cerrito, Food and Dining

Elevation 66 is the newest talk on the block. It is the much-awaited new brew pub in El Cerrito near the Cerrito Theater. I went there with my girls and a colleague on opening day. We got there about 5:15, and the place was already packed. We only had to wait about 15 minutes to get seated, which was good [...]

Jun

Mr. Mopps in Berkeley isn’t going anywhere

Posted In: Berkeley, Community, Fun for Kids

I received a sweet call last weekend from Devin McDonald, the new owner of Mr. Mopps in Berkeley. The call was in response to a post I did awhile back about the store closing. Seems people keep walking in there saying “aren’t you closing?” Well, they aren’t! And I am truly thrilled that they aren’t. You see, there aren’t a [...]

Jun

Spotted @ Off the Grid in Berkeley

Posted In: Food and Dining, For the Heck of It, Good Eats, Good ol' Fashion Humor

I love this! Only in Berkeley would you find a pimped-out walker. This was spotted at the official launch of Off-the-Grid in Berkeley. (and yes! this time we were there early enough to get some tasty food truck grub)

Jun

Dog Park in Albany?

Posted In: Albany, Community, For the Heck of It, Places

A dog park in Albany? They are one step closer to getting one! I was talking with a colleague about the new pool that is coming to Albany High School, and that conversation led to another conversation about the new fence that will be installed at Memorial Park to separate the ballpark from the rest of the park. City Council [...]

Jun

Real Estate’s Double Dip and the Catfish Recovery

Posted In: Economy, For Buyers, For Sellers, Foreclosures & Short Sales, Local Market Statistics

DQ News reported a few days ago about the current status of the double dip, and uses a little humor while doing so. http://www.dsnews.com/articles/double-dip-altos-says-prices-have-been-steadily-rising-since-then-2011-06-02 What I find completely hilarious (and true!) is that the article deems the ebb and flow of home prices as the “Catfish Recovery.” You laugh, but think about it. As the article references, a catfish is [...]

Jun

Friday Fun Day

Posted In: For the Heck of It, Good ol' Fashion Humor, Web/Tech

Jun

Off the Grid Makes Berkeley Debut

Posted In: Berkeley, Food and Dining, Good Eats

Last night was the debut of the East Bay Off the Grid, a mobile food truck extravaganza that debuted at the corner of Shattuck and Rose, in the same spot as the Farmer’s Market. As many of you know I am a food truck junkie (I follow many of them on Facebook) so this was an evening I have been [...]

Jun

Why Buy Now?

Posted In: First Time Home Buyers, For Buyers, General Real Estate News, Mortgage & Finance

Aha, the magic question. Why should you buy now? I know this may seem a little biased considering my profession, but let me show you a few things that are happening, and are about to happen, in the lending world. 1) 30 Year Mortgage. You can get a 30 year mortgage today with as little as 3% down. 2) Appreciation. [...]

May

www.Cost2Drive.com

Posted In: For Buyers, For the Heck of It

www.Cost2Drive.com is a website that allows users who are particularly worried (or just curious) about gas prices and what it will cost them to get from point A to point B. The site asks users where they are going and what car they drive, and calculates how much it will cost to get there, how long it will take, and [...]

May

Doof-a-Palooza

Posted In: Alameda County, Food and Dining, For the Heck of It, Fun for Grown Ups, Fun for Kids

Doof-a-What?? Doof-a-Palooza, food spelled backwards, is why we live in such a cool place. Doof-a-Palooza is why kids who grow up here never want to leave. It’s probably why I won’t leave. DooF-a-Palooza, the crazy, food-backwards, table-to-source, food educational experience for kids and adults of all ages took place at Jack London Square yesterday. It included contests, games, entertainment and [...]