Archive for the ‘Palo Alto’ Category

A Pilgrim’s Odyssey, or There and Back Again, Part 2

Saturday, March 13th, 2010

CIMG0264

Whereas the 66 was a calm low-key ride, the 522 was a grittier urban experience. It was nearly full so I was lucky to find a seat near the back like I wanted, but it was on the driver’s side. I had wanted to sit on the passenger side so I could observe the east side of El Camino as we traveled north. I was going to be hard-core about this, ignoring everything on the left (west) side of the street, only looking at the right (east) side. I would catch the west side on the return trip. Great plan, right? For it to work I needed to be on the right side of the bus so I resolved to bide my time and switch seats as soon as one became available. Fortunately the view out the passenger-side windows was not too bad from across the aisle.

If you’ve ever seen the 522 bus you know how distinctive it is with the snazzy bright blue and red wrap covering the entire exterior, including the windows. Let me say that again…including the windows. It looks cool from the outside but from the inside looking out the view is horribly obscured by zillions of halftone screen dots. The world outside is low resolution, making it hard to see details and read street signs—a poor choice for sightseeing. It was bad enough from the driver side but once I got my coveted window seat it was even worse because the dots were right in my face. I thought about opening a window but I didn’t want the chill and I suspect my fellow passengers wouldn’t have been too happy about it either. So I squinted and craned and made the best of it but it was far from ideal.

CIMG0262

There was another problem with the 522: speed. A few seconds after I boarded the driver took off, literally leaving behind an old lady who was shuffling up the street, flagging him down. Passengers shouted for the driver to wait but he shouted back that he was late and that there were many 522s behind him. He’s right; the 522 runs every 15 minutes so I’m sure the little old lady was fine. But that was the start of a ride that can best be described as breakneck. The 522 hauls you-know-what up El Camino, pedal-to-the-metal from stop to stop. I have since learned that they even have sensors which cause traffic signals to change, like for emergency vehicles. All this efficiency is awesome for commuters but for a sightseer like me, not so much. I’m glad to have experienced it, but honestly the pixelated view of El Camino whizzing by the 522 at top speed wasn’t what I wanted. In retrospect I should have taken the VTA 22: same route, but a more relaxed schedule and clear windows. Next time.

Time : 12:40 PM
Place: Downtown San Jose
Route: VTA 522 Westbound
Fare: $0.00 w/day pass
Total: $6.00

I had my notebook out to write down things of interest. There was no way to capture everything on El Camino so I only jotted when something struck me. You would think a big old bus would be a pretty smooth ride but it turns out there’s a lot of motion which makes it difficult to write, so I tried my best. (My handwriting is not the most legible, even under ideal conditions.) I definitely wanted to be sure to record all the Historic El Camino Real bells I passed along the way. The first one was downtown San Jose near where Santa Clara Street crosses over the Guadalupe River. A little further up near HP Pavilion I could see the tents and tables in preparation for the Silicon Valley Turkey Trot the following day. The road was going to be closed on Thanksgiving Day so it’s lucky I didn’t get caught up in that. (Years ago I was not so lucky. I set out on a similar excursion to drive State Route 84 from end-to-end, Livermore to the Pacific Ocean, but after 70 miles in San Gregorio the road was closed so I never made it. D’oh!)

The bus continued onto The Alameda. I made a note of Downtown College Preparatory, the first high school we passed. Somehow I missed recording the El Camino bell there, but I did note the one a mere two blocks away at Singletary. These two bells are oddly close together.

Near the Santa Clara city limit I saw a gas station and decided to count all the gas stations we passed. There’s another bell near Santa Clara University‘s Loyola Hall. That’s where we left The Alameda and where El Camino Real in name begins. I made a note of the Roxio building because as a well-known CD and DVD burning software company they stand out as one of the few household-name high tech companies conspicuous on El Camino. This road is the backbone of Silicon Valley but for some reason the tech companies have shunned it. I saw a sign for Alviso St. which was puzzling until later I checked some maps that show that Alviso St., The Alameda, and El Camino Real all confusingly combine at Mission Santa Clara and shoot out Lafayette St. which in the 1800s was the main road from the mission to the all-important port city of Alviso.

As we passed under De La Cruz Avenue El Camino took on the commercial strip character that defines so much of its length through Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties: strip malls, parking lots, driveways, and low-slung cookie-cutter architecture. I decided to start tallying fast food chain stores, notching a Jack in the Box, KFC, and a Burger King before we got to the El Camino bell at the Santa Clara Civic Center. At Bowers we crossed over some water which I learned is Saratoga Creek. At some point we passed into Sunnyvale.

I say “at some point” because it turned out to be surprisingly difficult to tell where one city ends and the next begins. Sometimes there are posted signs but they are easy to miss through pixelated bus windows. I tried to keep track of city boundaries in my notes but mostly they were just guesstimates. I wrote down that the Lucky grocery store and a Blockbuster Video just past Lawrence Expressway were in Sunnyvale (deciding to count those as well as fast food joints and gas stations), but they’re actually in Santa Clara. Who knew?

Speaking of Blockbuster, that one was closing, and it was the second closing store I had seen so far. They were hard to miss as they each had a person standing outside waving bright “Store Closing” signs and the stores carried similar banners. This was the scoop of the day as I hadn’t realized this was happening. I thought maybe the whole company had gone out of business but it wasn’t quite that bad; still it was a major reduction. This shook me as we’ve recently had not one but two neighborhood Hollywood Video stores close on us. Evidently Blockbuster is faring no better in the face of withering entertainment competition from Netflix, digital television, and the internet. I paused to reflect how I had watched the videotape and DVD rental business grow from its earliest humble beginnings to being the go-to weekend entertainment option to being on life support in a couple short decades. We’re witnessing the end of an era.

On into Sunnyvale I tallied a Carl’s Jr., a Kragen auto parts store, Safeway, Subway, Togo’s, and my first of many Taco Bells. I smiled as I recalled many good times at Golfland. I noticed that at some point the name of the road had changed to “E. El Camino Real” which reminded me of a paradox I had noticed about El Camino years ago: that somehow a single monotonic contiguous road has North, South, East, and West variants. I resolved to confirm this conundrum, and confirm it I did.

It’s been years since I’ve been to Rooster T. Feathers comedy club but what always struck me was the long list of rules and regulations they have telling you what you can and can not do. My friend Dan told me an amazing story that it used to be called Andy Capps and is where Nolan Bushnell of Atari installed the first PONG coin-operated video game prototype, and hence could be considered the birthplace of the commercial video game industry.

I noted the newly opened Sunnyvale Art Gallery and made a plan to visit soon. (I have. More later.) It was coincidental to pass the elegant Grand Hotel because I had just recently watched for the first time the famous 1932 film of the same name featuring Greta “I Vant to Be Alone” Garbo and a star-studded cast. As we were nearing the end of Sunnyvale I realized I hadn’t spotted any bells yet in the city. Just then, we passed one at Mary. I observed a closed car dealership near Bernardo and my first McDonalds, then we were in Mountain View.

My first note was the Hotel Avante, followed shortly by the El Camino bell at State Route 85. We crossed over Stevens Creek and the Stevens Creek trail then passed Hotel Zico. There’s a tourism ad for Mountain View somewhere in there: “Need a place to stay? We have Hotels from Avante to Zico.” I spied a historical marker in front of BMW of Mountain View commemorating the “Site of Old Mountain View.” Nearby was a De Anza Trail marker at State Route 237. I imagine this crossroads was historically very significant since the road to Alviso and Milpitas was a crucial link to rest of the Bay Area before the railroads and bridges were built.

More Mountain View highlights include Amber Café, Indian Bits ‘n’ Bites and El Camino bells at Castro and at Rengstorff. By the way in these parts the road is called “W. El Camino Real.”At the San Antonio Transit Center I spotted my second The Offramp bicycle shop and the extensive Avalon Towers apartment complex. It’s always heartening to see high density housing near transit hubs and El Camino has its share. I noticed a pole-top wi-fi antenna, courtesy of Google, and a couple 24 Hour Fitnesses (48 Hour Fitness?) oddly co-located at the San Antonio Shopping Center. So long, Mountain View; hello Palo Alto.

Palo Alto Bowl made me wistful since it’s about to close after 55 years, to be replaced by a mixed-use hotel and townhouse complex. A little further up at Charleston there’s a brand new single-family housing development, Redwood Gate. I bagged a bell at Page Mill, nodded to the eminently strollable California Street, and wondered about the Ananda Church of Self-Realization at Stanford Avenue. Hits came hot-n-heavy: Palo Alto High School, a bell at Embarcadero, the now-booming Town & Country Village, and Palo Alto Medical Foundation. Shortly we turned off of El Camino into the Palo Alto Caltrain station, end of the line for the 522. It was 1:40 PM, exactly one hour after I boarded. We piled off the bus and I looked for my next connection.

Next installment…The Undiscovered County.

New Trader Joe’s Opens in Palo Alto

Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009

Trader Joe's

The brand new Trader Joe’s grocery store in Palo Alto will celebrate its grand opening this Friday, December 4, 2009. It’s located at Town & Country Village at the corner of El Camino Real and Embarcadero Road. There will be a ceremonial lei-cutting at 8:00 AM accompanied by face-painting, live music, and balloons. The interior is decorated with local flavor such as logos and spirit wear from nearby Stanford University, Palo Alto High, and Gunn High School. Residents have lamented the lack of grocery stores in the city, so many are looking forward to this latest addition.

Your pictures from Winkflash.com have arrivedWithout a doubt Trader Joe’s is a happy place. My fondest memory of TJ’s is from a family vacation we took to Monterey, CA many years ago. Our son was a young toddler so we rented a suite with a full kitchen so we could keep him fed with milk and Cheerios on our own schedule and not have to deal with eating out for every meal. We shopped for our groceries at the Pacific Grove Trader Joe’s. Sure we bought staples but since we were on vacation we also loaded up on a variety of tasty snacks like party mix, trail mix, chips, and cookies. It still ranks as one of our best vacations ever.

Ever since then I always associate Trader Joe’s with treats, not “serious food,” but we have several friends who do all their everyday shopping there. We’re not quite on that bandwagon since we live walking distance to a different chain grocery store. Also it’s a recognized fact in our family that as a rule Traders Joe’ses have…the…worst…parking lots. Always small, cramped, and awkward. We think they design them that way on purpose, maybe to encourage greener modes of transportation. Well it works for us. We walk…to a different store.

Speaking of parking, I expect it will be a challenge for the new Palo Alto store. When I was at Stanford twenty years ago Town & Country was languishing. I went there for Hobee’s but that was it. In 2004 the then-51-year-old shopping center was purchased by Ellis Partners LLC who set out to transform the place by painfully terminating some longtime tenants’ month-to-month leases and kicking off a multi-year $25 million renovation. It seems to have worked. It has the same funky charm but they have managed to attract a vibrant mix of restaurants and boutiques and the village now is packed. Some might say too packed, a victim of its own success. A couple months ago I thought I’d swing by at lunchtime on a weekday to grab a smoothie from Jamba Juice. I spent 15 minutes circling the entire center twice looking for a parking spot with no success. I finally gave up and went to a different Jamba Juice that had plenty of parking to get my Razzmatazz on. The Trader Joe’s will add some new spots but at peak times I know it will be a struggle. And don’t get me started on the bizarre left turn exit onto Embarcardero.

I don’t mean to be a killjoy. I’m genuinely happy for the many Palo Altoans who will enjoy their new store. I even expect the Stanford dorm parties to start serving better fare. In my day it was inevitably giant bags of pretzels and yellow popcorn from Costco; here’s hoping for baklava and Pirate’s Booty. No excuses! So go to Trader Joe’s, bring your own bag, and when you get home raise your glass of Two Buck Chuck in good cheer. Salut!

Trader Joe’s Grand Opening

Friday, December 4, 2009
8:00 AM – 10:00 PM
855 El Camino Real, Palo Alto, CA
http://traderjoes.com/

[Source: San Jose Mercury News]

Shell-shocked

Thursday, October 29th, 2009

Egg Wars. (Egg wars Trilogy)

This is Spirit Week at Palo Alto High School, the week leading up to the homecoming football game. The students celebrate with rallies and costumes and classes compete for points. Many juniors and seniors however take the competition a bit farther in an unsanctioned activity called “egg wars.” In past years they’ve met under cover of darkness in the groves on Stanford’s campus along El Camino and pelted each other with raw eggs. This year however on Tuesday night the police were ready for them and were patrolling the groves. So the students went to Town and Country but the police were there too. A field decision was made to go over to nearby Gunn High school. The coast was clear and the two classes faced off and the eggs flew. The problem is that the eggs also landed…all over school property. Reportedly mess was left at the swimming pool and on the scoreboard, requiring extensive cleanup and possibly repairs.

It gets worse. Apparently some students brought frozen eggs so there were injuries. They are thankfully minor but completely unnecessary.

So the Paly administration has come down hard. They are seeking out all the juniors and seniors involved, who could face suspension. The administration also canceled rallies for the whole school yesterday and upcoming activities are up in the air.

The punishment may seem a bit harsh for high school high jinks but in the big picture there are aggravating circumstances. In 2007 a senior parked a car upside down on campus, causing $3000 in damage in the process. The school didn’t see it as a prank; they considered it vandalism and brought criminal charges against him. This year the tragic series of suicides at Gunn High School casts Tuesday’s egg attack as particularly insensitive.

It’s a shame to punish the whole school for the actions of some, and I hope the school is able to resume their Spirit Week and enjoy the homecoming game against Los Gatos Friday. The administration is justified in punishing those responsible for the recklessness, and surely they’ll spell out their expectations and tolerances very clearly next year. It is after all a school, and this is a prime teachable moment for everyone, students and staff.

[Source: The Paly Voice]

P.S. This is the first article I’ve ever read in the Paly Voice and I was very impressed by it. I found it well-written, thorough, and  professional. Commendations to the entire staff, especially the authors junior Chloe Chen and senior Patricia Ho. Unless of course they were the shadowy instigators of the egg war all along.

Here Come the Men of Stanford

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

The Stanford Athletics department has produced this hilarious promotional video featuring my old a cappella group, the Stanford Fleet Street Singers. This is one of those strange weeks where things seem to converge. Last Saturday, the anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake, I wrote about how I was at a Fleet Street rehearsal when the shaking started. Next Saturday, I’ll be attending the Stanford Homecoming A Cappella concert of all the groups on campus. Afterwards I’ll be rooting for the Cardinal at the Homecoming football game against Arizona State. So naturally yesterday, hump day, I received this video featuring Stanford football and a cappella. It’s like a mashup of my life.

Now I have it on good authority that the world does not in fact revolve around me, but I must point out that I actually arranged the song that Fleet Street is doo-doo-doo-ing at the start of the video, “Lulu’s Back in Town.” I arranged it my Freshman year. That’s pretty good longevity for an arrangement, considering some of the guys in the video were born the year I graduated.

Stanford Reunion Homecoming A Cappella Concert

Memorial Auditorium, Stanford University
Saturday, October 24, 2009
2:00pm – 4:00pm

Stanford Homecoming Football Game

Arizona State @ Stanford
Stanford Stadium, Stanford University
Saturday, October 24, 2009
7:25pm kickoff

Stanford Football Home Opener

Saturday, September 19th, 2009

The Stanford Cardinal play in their football home opener tonight against the San Jose State Spartans. Kickoff is set for 6:00 PM at Stanford Stadium. This game is affectionately named the Bill Walsh Legacy Game in memory of the Pro Hall of Famer and Bay Area coaching great who played at San Jose and coached at Stanford.

I’m a Stanford alum but I live in San Jose so in theory I should be conflicted over this game. But I’m not. Go Cardinal!

2009 Stanford Football Schedule

Date

Opponent / Event

Location

Result

Sat., Sep. 5 at Washington State Pullman, WA W, 39-13
Sat., Sep. 12 at Wake Forest Winston-Salem, NC L, 17-24
Sat., Sep. 19 vs. San Jose State Stanford Stadium 6:00 PM PT
Sat., Sep. 26 vs. Washington Stanford Stadium 6:00 PM PT
Sat., Oct. 3 vs. UCLA Stanford Stadium TBA
Sat., Oct. 10 at Oregon State Corvallis, OR TBA
Sat., Oct. 17 at Arizona Tucson, AZ 3:00 PM PT
Sat., Oct. 24 vs. Arizona State Stanford Stadium 7:15 PM PT
Sat., Nov. 7 vs. Oregon Stanford Stadium TBA
Sat., Nov. 14 at USC Los Angeles, CA TBA
Sat., Nov. 21 vs. California Stanford Stadium TBA
Sat., Nov. 28 vs. Notre Dame Stanford Stadium 5:00 PM PT

Miss Cougar America Contest

Tuesday, August 18th, 2009

Friends, this is big news. The first ever National Single Cougars Convention is coming up at the end of the month:

What: National Single Cougars Convention
When: Friday, August 28, 2009,  7:30 PM
Where: Dinah’s Garden Hotel
4261 El Camino Real
Palo Alto, CA

See the link below for the press release. There will be speeches, vendors, dancing, and revelry. The highlight of the evening will come when one cougar in attendance is crowned the very first Miss Cougar America.

Miss Cougar America Contest Featured at National Single Cougars Convention

Yep, cougar. As in cougar cougar. As in Mrs. Robinson cougar. Think Eartha Kitt in Boomerang or pretty much anything she did after “Batman.”

If you’re still not following me, a cougar is an older woman romantically involved with or pursuing a younger man. It’s all subjective of course but the contest guidelines require the cougar to be over forty and unmarried. The younger men are referred to by the convention promoters as cubs; their age is unspecified but I think at least five years younger is a generally accepted rule of thumb. I personally wouldn’t have chosen the term “cub” as I think it introduces an Oedipal element which is out of place. “Cougar bait” has enjoyed widespread usage but to me it’s too passive and doesn’t capture the reciprocity of the relationship. I’ll go on record here and suggest a new term for the males of the species: toms. Cougars and toms. When you hear it on “The View,” remember you heard it here first.

The idea of a cougar started I think as a bit of a mean joke. A caricature of a pathetic divorcée prowling bars and nightclubs, abusing alcohol and sex to fill a personal void. But guess what. It’s changing folks. The cougars don’t see themselves as a joke anymore. They see themselves as independent and fabulous and they’re looking for men who can keep up with them. They’ve embraced the word “cougar” and are shaping it in their image. They’ve reclaimed it.

Take the convention keynote speakers. She is a 50-something shamanic sex therapist (with great skin by the way). He is a tantric yoga instructor. They are a couple and there are 14 years between them. You’d best believe their connection is deeply spiritual. What’s a few years’ difference when you’re dancing with eternity?

This convention is just the beginning. Cougars are going mainstream. This past spring B-side cable brought us “The Cougar,” a “Bachelor”-style reality dating show. This fall ABC airs “Cougar Town” starring Courteney Cox. There are books, seminars, even a line of lingerie (or maybe not…ahead of its time?).

This convention and its crowning moment will mark a major cultural shift from which there will be no going back. I would love to go and witness history but as the following chart shows, I am somewhat out of the core demographic. If you go, let me know all about it.

Cougars Toms Me

You cougars out there, I salute you and say, “Go ahead!” And to the toms I say, “Go to school. Learn something.” Be safe, have fun, and let the opposites attract! rrrrRRRAWR!