San Francisco in the Dark

 

Just some shots of San Francisco in the early morning hours (like 5:00 am):

It is amazing how quiet and beautiful the City of St. Francis is in the early morning hours. 

A True Fans Fest

 

Last Saturday, something cool and powerful took place in Oakland. Fans of the Oakland A's threw a Fans Fest. 

A little background- The Oakland A's have said that they are going to move to Las Vegas and their lease runs out at the Oakland Coliseum after this season. The owner John Fisher and the team president David Kaval  over the last couple of years have alienated the Oakland fan base to the point where a lot of long-time fans have given up and stopped going to game. Also, the Oakland management have not marketed the team at all to the Bay Area in the last couple of years. They have not put on a Fan Fest (as most teams do before the season) since 2020.  It is a sad deal

For me, it totally sucks. The Oakland A's have been a big part of my life (if you have read this blog at all-you would know) and my kids life.  The thing that gets me is the underhanded way that Fisher and Kaval have operated over the last three years. Basically, saying that Oakland and East Bay people are worthless and can not support the team. Being someone who has been both for all of his life, the area can support the team. Yes, you need to market the team and keep the players around but this area has supported baseball for over a 100 years- The A's since 1968 and before Major League Baseball came to the West Coast-The Oakland Oaks in the old PCL before that.

Anyway (sorry all the words), Two groups decided to throw a Fans Fest for the A's (The team did nothing to help). The Oakland 68ers and the Last Dive Bar organized the Fest. They got all the sponsors, the permits and even got some former players (All good guys) to come back. They did an amazing job and over 10,000 A's fans came and had a great time:

The Oakland Roots Soccer Club was there

And there was some A's Memorabilia for sale:

And a lot of anit-John Fisher feelings:

And some former players:

Former Outfielder Coco Crisp

Former reliever Grant Balfour

The Oakland 68ers and The Last Dive Bar did an amazing job and it was a true Fans Fast that was organized by the Fans.

Walking Thru Olympic Sculpture Park

 

Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle is an outdoor park that features modern sculptures in it and it is a great place to walk. The park opened in 2007:

And what was really cool was this little shoreline I found inside the park:

Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle is a super cool place to visit. 

Music Monday: It Happens Only Once Every Four Years

 For this Music Monday, we are celebrating the Leap Year with songs that hopefully will get you jumpin':

And....

Hope everyone has a great week.

Panels of the National AIDS Memorial Quilt

 

My daughter and I visited The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) in Portland. When we were  there, OMSI had some panels of the National AIDS Memorial Quilt on display. The quilt has over 50,000 panels and it honors more than 110,000 people who have lost their lives to HIV/AIDS. The first panel on the quilt was done in 1987:

It was interesting and somber to see these panels from the quilt.

Max's Cakes

 

Max's Cakes is a cool place in Hayward. It is owned by Max Soto. Soto, was 19 when he appeared on the Food Network show "Big Time Bake" in 2020. He opened his shop in Downtown Hayward in 2022:

And the food is good:

And my favorite slice is the Chocolate Cake:

Max's Cakes is really cool place and it has become one of my favorites.