I've really taken a liking to working and being in Oakland, and I thought I'd share some photos of the city and my commute home. Usually, when people not in the know think Oakland, they think crime-ridden war zone. Well, parts of it are definitely able to measure up to such a description, but a lot of it is really nice, and it's getting better. The cost of real estate is much less than comparable spots in SF, and the weather is generally nicer. Lots of public transportation options, lots of bike-friendly work being done and an extremely central location means Oakland has a lot going for it.
First off, preferred parking. Nobody in the building has a better spot for their transportation. The coworkers named my bike Lola and tagged the cube "Lola's Cube." Works for me.
My building. I once had an office on the top floor towards the right side, but now I'm a cellar dweller. I'm actually happier to be in the basement because I get to keep my bike close by and I no longer have that dizzy feeling at the end of the day when I get back down to the ground (which I attributed to building movement.) Plus I don't have to do the whole elevator thing.
Broadway and 14th. Behind the truck are bike lockers and the elevator to get to the train. Across the street is Mr Pizza Man. $2.50 for a slice and soda! Oakland has lots of super-cool architecture that has been wonderfully preserved, and much of it is undergoing revitalization.
The Oakland Federal Buildings.
Renovation on the Fox Theater on Telegraph Ave. I didn't get a shot of it, but I'm standing in front of an art deco building that appears to now house a soon-to-be opened restaurant or something. No signs out, so I'm not sure what they are opening yet, but it looks promising.
A shot heading north on Telegraph just past the Fox Theater. Former mayor Jerry Brown's idea of bringing in residents to attract business. Kind of the opposite of the usual idea of wooing business and hoping people move in after.
Telegraph apparently used to be a stage coach route between Oakland and Berkeley. I'd sure like to see what people of that era would think if they could see it today.
Heading north on Telegraph just outside of downtown. This is something of a Korean district, I think. It's a little scruffy, but not bad. Just remember to take the lane because folks will squeeze you if you don't.A bike lane would be nice for the stretch into Berkeley.
Telegraph Ave. just inside Berkeley. At this point I've passed my daughter's pediatrician's office, the hospital where they were born and Cafe' Colucci where you can get some of the most awesome Ethiopian food on the planet.About half the distance of Telegraph (in Berkeley) is striped for bike lanes. The rest is striped as "Sharrows." As far as I can determine, the goal of a sharrow is to tell motorists to share the road because it's too narrow for a bike lane. In actual practice I don't think drivers are so much listening...
Next up: The Berkeley part of the commute.
11 Important Comment(s):
Very nice pictorial. I like things like this to help visualize all the stories we hear better.
I work in a basement too. Rules, regulations, inspections, etc. don't seem to make it down my way as much. Much easier to get away with a bicycling lifestyle that way! If I worked upstairs, I think it'd be harder to bring a muddy mountain bike through the office...
I noticed you put some stats on the blog. Is this part of the STIA (Smudgemo's Total Information Awareness) program?
great photos.
moving to the basement made me think of 'office space'. hopefully you're nothing like the guy with the red stapler. [sometimes i forget that guy was the big winner at the end of the film.]
my bike has made a good prop, already impressing some environmental-minded clients. i started bringing it upstairs after the last one was stolen from the ground floor entryway.
I think your smoking crack if you think that building was swaying when you were working up top! :^) Maybe during a tremor, but it doesn't appear to be tall enough to be impacted by the wind.
Of course, what do I know.
I love the Flatiron building (The triangular one). Every major city seems to have one of those at the intersection of diagonal streets.
Still, it is very cool.
Really love the old Deco movie theaters. Nice to see that someone is preserving and giving it new life.
Ah, bike lanes. It would be nice to see one of those here. I'm not sure anyone in the County has even seen one before!
Looks like a great place to live and work. Especially if your a commuter.
Just trying something new, Jeff.
Perhaps my whole group is the Milton of the company because I've got plenty of company, Clark.
I suppose you are correct about the wind, but something is going on in the building that my brain doesn't like.
I'm crazy about stats! I look over my data every day to see when to post things, what gets the most hits, where traffic is coming from, keyword searches, etc.
We have a state building that is now condemned. The middle of the building sank, so all the floors are slanted towards the center. You can't really see it unless you look for visual clues...right angles and stuff. I felt sea sick in that building when visiting! If you sat in your chair and picked up your feet, the chair would spin around to the center of the building! They finally evacuated the place this year.
Nice! Thanks for th insight cuz I pictured Oakland a burned out wasteland.
Mostly from watching Raider home games on TV and seeing those scary people.
Raider fans are scary, but they take pride in it. Commitment to excellence or something...
Love the dedicated bike parking... Once a bike-riding co-worker and I were the only ones left in a wing of a building when 100+ people moved to a new office. We had the place to ourselves for a lovely month. We cooked pizza in a toaster oven, dried wet jerseys on spare monitors in other cubes, and basically stunk up the place.
Who says cubicle life is all bad?
Nice pics.
Question: What kind of panniers are those? They look like they'd be great.
Cheers.
Ortliebs. They are just like those waterproof stuff sacks for kayaking. You roll the top closed and cinch the strap across the top, and nothing gets wet. Ever. Plus they are super-easy to put on and take off, and come in a number of colors. My daughter actually owns them as a client of my wife's was moving to Japan and didn't want to take them. Brand new! Guess I'll need to buy her a replacement set in 12-15 years or so...
Mucho gracious!
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