I needed to get out on the bike on this beautiful spring afternoon. I’ve also wanted to visit a little park I saw on the map the other day so I combined this need and want into a single event. I set out at around 3:00PM on my trusty two-wheeler. (I note that the little speedometer says I’ve put on nearly 100 miles since I moved the bike back to Oakland. It was without a working battery for a couple of weeks when we first got here so I think the actual miles ridden are higher than the speedometer reports, but I will mark the occasion of this trip as my first Oakland century of the new millenium.)

Union Point Park is a little oasis in the industrial landscape that fronts the Oakland Estuary. It seems to be a relatively new park with play-structures that appear to be five years old or younger. There’s an adjacent area with a new parking lot and a building that looks like it may be some sort of interpretive center. Currently the new area is fenced off for what looks like the last stage of construction and landscaping. The existing part of the park includes a fairly large grassy area for frisbee and other throwing sports. A big group of young people were there this afternoon playing catch with softballs and it looked like they intended to play a casual game. The play structures included a spiral walkway up a large mound. The landscaping looked unkempt — it was overrun with weedy plants, but there were hints of a purple bougainvillea trying to fight their way through the weeds.

I had come down to the park via the Lakeshore side of Lake Merritt. There was a lively gathering of salsa dancers practicing on the plaza at the El Embarcadero end of the lake, and a couple of chess tables set up outside the front door of the Lakeview Library. (The weather was absolutely perfect.) I rode down Second Avenue and then around the Laney College campus, crossing under 880 at 5th Avenue. The park is about a mile and a half southeast of where I crossed under the freeway. Riding along Embarcadero I passed the old (currently vacant) location of the Victoria Station Restaurant. (Sometime I may tell the story of Jon’s evening spent painting the ovens at the restaurant with his friend and school chum, Peter.) It was a fairly pleasant ride, but on the way home I decided to pedal through Jack London Square. I rode past the Oakland Amtrak Station, past Heinold’s First and Last Chance saloon, past Bocanova, then up Jackson Street to the Lake and around to Grand Avenue.

All in all it was a nice ride. About 8 miles and very flat. Perfect for a quiet Saturday afternoon.

Our good friend and mentor/teacher, Jim Schlader, died this weekend. Jim and his wife Harriet were the driving force behind Woodminster Amphitheater in Joaquin Miller Park. Jim was 96. To say that he had been influential in my life would be a gross understatement. Anna and I spent much of our youth in and around Woodminster. Much of what I know about being a performer, about living a life in the theatre I learned from Jim and Harriet. It was not a relationship without turbulence, but I loved him and sought his approval as one seeks the approval of respected teacher.

One of Jim’s favorite quotes was something that Konstantin Stanislavsky (the great Russian theatre artist) said: “Love the art in yourself, not yourself in the art.” Jim lived that philosophy. He was a humble man with a great gift. He could sing like nobody’s business. He had a twinkle in his eye and the art within him was easy for anyone to see. Jim loved the art in himself, and he shared that love with great generosity. Whenever I work in the theatre I am always aware of Jim’s presence. He gave me a great gift. I will miss him.

UPDATE: Brenda Payton wrote a nice piece about Jim and Harriet a few years ago.

Last week finished up with a bang. On Friday I had a couple of interviews with principals in Oakland (Edna Brewer and Elmhurst Community Prep) and one with a director of Special Ed for OUSD. Those got me pretty revved up. Saturday I took my CSET exams—7 hours of multiple choice and constructed response testing. Today (Mother’s Day) Anna and I drove up to her sister’s place and we did a nice wine tasting tour around the Dry Creek Valley with their mom. Delicious wine. Good company. It was the nicest possible way to wrap up the week.

One of the principals I met on Friday is interested in having a drama program at his school. Nothing would make me happier than to find a way to combine my love of theatre with my new love of teaching. It was an exciting conversation. In order to fit his needs I’d need to change my credentialing path. I’m not sure if it’s possible at this point in the TFA process, but I’ll be giving it a shot. I’m reminded of the Sir Ken Robinson TED talk about how some kids need dance and theatre and music programs as entry points into the education process. Wish me luck on making this happen.

The other great thing that happened this week was meeting some VERY bright young people in the Teach For America Bay Area Corps. I spent the day on Friday with Jonathan and Elizabeth. They’re great. A couple others really made a strong impression, too—Mike, Jackie, and Piper come to mind. I hope some of us will be assigned to the same school.

This week marks the first major event of my two year commitment to Teach For America. The May site visit is primarily a logistical event, but one aspect of the two day get-together is a chance to visit schools in one’s assigned district. We’ll be observing in a classroom and meeting a couple of principals. (My group starts the day at Edna Brewer Middle School and also visits the Elmhurst Community Prep campus. A couple of us will also have a short meeting with the director of Special Education for OUSD.)

It was fun to meet the other new Teach For America Bay Area Corps Members. It was also a relief to scan the room and see one other older guy in the corps. At our first break this morning I introduced myself to Michael and we shared a chuckle about the fact that most of the other new teachers in the corps were young enough to be our kids. It was also great to meet the TFA staff for the Bay Area. Several of them live in Oakland, which is cool.

I have to hit the road early on Friday morning so I’m heading to bed.

I’ve been back in Oakland for a couple of days. The top of my list of ToDos was to spend some quality time with Anna. Check! (This is not an activity on which I believe it’s possible to overindulge, so I’m happily testing how much time I have to spend with her to be drunk with love!) When I got home I saw that she had been expanding the garden on our little terrace. Looks sweet, and it’s a nice place to sit and take in the morning sun.

Today I’m heading over to Foster City for the first big gathering of my Teach For America experience. I’ll be meeting new friends, learning more about the program, and celebrating the fact that I’ve been tentatively assigned to teach in the Oakland Unified School District! This will mean a little shift in focus on the blog. Not only are Anna and I back in Oakland for the empty nest phase of our life, but I’m going back to Oakland public schools. I don’t have a specific school assignment yet, but I know I’ll be teaching special education. I expect the next two years to be really challenging.

It’s been hard (depressing) to read about the struggles Oakland teachers and the OUSD are facing with regard to teacher contracts. I’m trying to keep an open mind about that conflict. Striking seems counterproductive to the ultimate goal: to work to assure that every child has access to the kind of education that will prepare him or her to go to college. Large class sizes and low teacher salaries aren’t a pathway to that goal, either. It’s a gnarly problem and requires creative solutions that will involve sacrifice. I’m trying to do my part. I hope the rest of the community is willing to step up.

Over the next few weeks, as I find out more about my assignment for next year, I’ll be reflecting on the challenges and sacrifices that go along with teaching in Oakland’s public schools.

I’m having a shot of espresso, a slice of rhubarb pie, and a cappuccino this morning with Jon and Sonja. This is the last morning we’ll share for a while. It’s been a wonderful way to spend 9 weeks—Jon pulls shots and makes the cappuccino, Sonja and I read the news. We nibble on some goodies or chow down on some cereal. It’s a good routine and I’ll miss our time together. But…

Today I’m hopping on a United flight in Moline, flying to Denver and then to Oakland where I’ll be united with my honey. It’s about time!

I expect to visit some of my favorite Oakland haunts in the next couple of days. Hello Modern Café, Trueburger, and Fenton’s. A couple new spots have opened while I’ve been away: Bake Sale Betty has a new site in Uptown and Remedy has opened their new cafe. I’ve got some exploring to do.

The big celebration, though, will happen when I see Anna at the airport in a few hours. Take me home, silver bird!

I woke up this morning at about 6:30 and it was warm, breezy and the birds were singing. I could hear distant chimes from porches around the neighborhood. Last night’s dress rehearsal for The Seagull was good. Not without it’s little flaws, but for the slightly superstitious, the little flaws predict an awesome opening night.

After I came home from the theatre last night, Sam, a student from the Augustana Choir, texted to ask if Jon and I wanted to meet him and a handful of seniors in the choir for a drink. We decided to join them at Blue Cat for a beer. That was a nice way to put a period on this long rehearsal sequence. A glass of Big Bad Dog English Ale and conversation with some college seniors who remain optimistic about their lives even in the face of uncertain employment opportunities after graduation. Jon played pool with the guys. I chatted.

The breezy weather creates a sense of anticipation. There’s a good chance we’ll see some thunderstorms later. It’s a perfect feeling for the morning of an opening night. Today I have a stack of thank you notes to write. It should be easy — this cast has been a delight to work with. It won’t be easy to say goodbye to them. Fortunately i have someone fantastic waiting for me in Oakland to fill the space that leaving here will create in my heart.

I’ll be home soon Anna!

(P.S. I’ve been reading about the reopening of the Oakland Museum. It sounds like we need to plan a visit real soon.)

We made it through our tech rehearsal weekend for The Seagull without any major tragedies. (There was one small incident that involved a dropped bottle of Perrier, but no one was hurt.) It’s looking good. I’m very happy with the progress we’ve made to this point and with four dress rehearsals leading up to our Friday opening I think the little rough spots will get smoothed out and we’ll see a beautifully rendered production of Chekov’s play. If you’re in the Quad Cities I hope you’ll join us. Augustana Ticket Office »

Even more exciting for me is the anticipation of being reunited with my lovely Anna a week from today. I’m eager to get back to Oakland, get on my bike and spin around the lake, chow on a Trueburger, enjoy a sandwich at the new uptown Bake Sale Betty and generally snuggle into the routine of being home. 9 weeks is too long to be separated from one’s primary partner and lover. I wouldn’t have made it had I not been living with Jon and Sonja (and my nephew Jens). They helped me make the best of my time here. (I really enjoyed seeing how Jens has grown as a theatre artist. He sang with the barbershop quartet in the Moline High School production of The Music Man last week and he was awesome. A great presence on stage.)

Here’s looking forward to the weekend!

Today, April 17, is actress Olivia Hussey’s birthday. Normally I wouldn’t take note of such an anniversary, but I was sitting on the porch, looking at an iPhone app called On this Day… and noticed Ms. Hussey’s name. Whenever I hear her name I am reminded of an experience I had at Mills College back in the 1970s. (Aha! An Oakland connection for this story!)

I was performing in Romeo and Juliet at Mills. It was an abridged production, combining some of the scenes from the play and a few scenes danced as a ballet. Howard Malpas, the chair of the Mills drama department (no longer in existence, sadly), came up with the idea as a way of getting around the fact that Mills had no male students to fill out a full production of the play. He asked me to play /dance the role of Romeo and there were a couple of women who shared the role of Juliet — one acted the scenes, another danced the ballet sequences. One of Howard’s ideas was to invite a friend of his from England to direct the scenes and to act the role of the Chorus. His friend was Leonard Whiting, the actor who had played Romeo in Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 film of Shakespeare’s play.

We had an al fresco dinner one night during the run of the show. A couple of bottles of wine and lighthearted conversation led to Leonard sharing some of his memories of Ms. Hussey and their work together. I can’t watch that film anymore without thinking about that dinner. I also can’t pass Mills and not be reminded of happy hours spent on campus there. In the late 1970s and early 1980s I was a regular participant in their productions. In the early 1990s I made my last appearance in a production of Christmas Carol. It was one of my happiest theatre experiences ever: I played Bob Cratchit and my older son, Justin, played Tiny Tim. I’ll share that story in detail sometime during December.

Urban living has its advantages. We’re close to cafés, good shopping, arts and culture. But nature tends to get pushed to the margins of our daily experience. We do have our pal Rocky the squirrel who visits the front terrace and buries his nuts in our planter boxes. And there are some cute birds that are finding our little feeder. Also, the birds that visit and live around Lake Merritt are fun to watch — some are pretty exotic, like the herons and pelicans. (As I’m currently directing The Seagull here in Illinois, I’m grateful for the time I was able to spend observing gulls around the lake.) But on the whole, living in the city means that the sites and sounds that dominate our experience are cultural, not natural.

Here in Moline I’m sleeping in an upstairs bedroom in Jon and Sonja’s house. (When I’m not around it’s my niece Kjerstin’s room and it’s decked out in a leopard theme.) It was pretty hot here yesterday (around 80 degrees) and last night was a perfect night for sleeping with the windows open. This morning, a little after 5, I was awakened by the lush sounds of a birdsong symphony in full voice. The sky was beginning to lighten, but the sun hadn’t yet risen. It was a magnificent sound. There was no hint of traffic noise or other city sound playing counterpoint to the birds. It was a full throated expression of nature.

I enjoy birds, trees, pretty skies, a beautiful landscape, and fresh air, but I’m not a hardcore nature addict. I like culture. I enjoy the sounds of a city — honking horns, sirens, people yelling, and the echoing of sound in the canyons of tall buildings. At 5AM, though, I was still in that poetic space between being asleep and awake, and the song of the birds made me ecstatic.

Spring in the midwest is very different than spring in Oakland. Even though I missed most of the Midwestern winter, I am able to appreciate the onset of spring. The biggest differences between our new hometown and Spring in Moline are the greening of the grass and the leafing of the trees. Oh, and also the popping up of bulbs and perennials like hostas and bleeding hearts. It seems like you could see them growing for the past couple of days. The green leaves of the poppies next to our old front walk have grown about three inches in the past few days. The bleeding hearts next to the back door are growing even faster. (If you’re looking for a home with lots of charm in the Quad Cities, let us know — we have one that’s still for sale. UPDATE: if you’re interested, you can see a gallery of photos of the house here »)

The landscape here in Moline is quickly brightening from brownish gray to green. Birds seem to be thrilled with the change. There’s a lot more chirping, and the seesawing call of the cardinal can be heard all afternoon.  Yesterday we had some whopping thunderclaps, and the National Weather Service announced a tornado watch for a few hours in the late evening. 

The transition from winter to spring in Oakland is more subtle—perhaps because the winter in Oakland is so subtle. During my short winter stay in the Bay Area I never had to put on a heavy coat, rode my bike nearly every day, and enjoyed gardening and green plants on the front terrace. By the time I hopped on the train at the beginning of March, to head to Illinois, the winter seemed to have ended.    

I’m glad to have had a mild winter in Oakland, but I’m also happy to be getting a dose of spring here in the Mississippi Valley of Illinois. This just never gets old.

There’s something about momentum. In our daily phone call last Sunday, Anna and I chatted about the Oakland Running Festival. She was practically in tears as she told me about people standing on the side of the route, or leaning out of apartment windows cheering on the runners. She described a route that took runners through the eclectic neighborhoods that make up our hometown. The festival included the first running of a marathon in Oakland in 25 years. I was very sad to be out of town for what seemed like a giant, happy multi-block party in Oakland. She sent me some photos and, thanks to my blogging friends, I enjoyed the event vicariously.

The running festival is just one event that reflects the kind of momentum that seems to be pulsing through Oakland. In spite of a sagging economy, troubling acts of violence, and other challenges, Oaklanders seem to be looking forward, pushing a vision of optimism. The city seems poised for a renaissance.

Moline (where I’m living temporarily with Jon and Sonja) is facing some of the same challenges that are pressuring Oakland. Moline is a great town. Filled with fine people and home to one of the world’s most successful businesses, John Deere. Moline was our home town for the past 7 years. We owned our first home here. Our dog Smiley is buried here and our pal Tucker grew up here.

There are significant differences between Moline and Oakland. Size, climate, industry, and culture, to name a few. Oakland and Moline do have some things in common, though. There are buildings in each city built by businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. There were nearly 1,700 Carnegie Libraries built in the US between 1883 and 1929. Carnegie funded library buildings in both Moline and Oakland. The original Main Oakland library at the corner of 14th Street and Martin Luther King Boulevard (just a few blocks from the start/finish line of the Oakland Marathon) is now home to the African American Museum and Library. The building was lovingly restored in 2002 following damage suffered in the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake. This is one of 6 Carnegie funded library buildings in Oakland, 4 of which are still libraries. The Mills College Carnegie Library (designed by architect Julia Morgan) still stands, but was replaced as the college library in 1989. Of Oakland’s Carnegie Libraries, only the former 23rd Avenue Branch of the Oakland Free Library is currently vacant.

The original Carnegie funded Moline Main Library is for sale. Could Moline be on the brink of the kind of renaissance that’s reflected in the momentum in Oakland? We’ll see who buys the Moline Carnegie Library. That will be an indicator of which direction the city is headed.

Color me star struck. I had a reply from @TomHanks via Twitter yesterday. He’s making a new movie (with Julia Roberts) about a guy named Larry Crowne. Larry goes back to school (community college) as a 50 year old. Tom had tweeted a question asking if any of his twitter followers had done the same. My experience was a little different, but I did finally earn a bachelor’s degree at 52, so I tweeted a response. He was kind enough to reply.

Anna and Tom were classmates at Skyline High School, graduating in 1974. (Tom played Luther Billis in the Skyline production of South Pacific that year.) During high school they attended a church youth group together. Naturally we’ve followed Tom’s career. My favorite Hanks films are Forest Gump and Philadelphia. Larry Crowne will be his second film with Julia Roberts, and it’s a safe bet we’ll be seeing it as soon as it’s released.

It’s been almost three weeks since I hopped a train in Emeryville for my 9 week sojourn on the banks of the mighty Mississippi. While it’s good to see old friends and to be working on a theatre project, I’m feeling pretty lonely for my sweet Anna. We talk every day, of course, but it’s not the same as knowing the love of your life could appear at your side any moment and give you a squeeze. So, to help pass my days and to feel a bit more connected to my Oakland home, I’m committing to a little Back To Oakland blogging activity for the next six weeks.

We drank some swell Oakland coffee here in Moline for about a week and a half after I arrived. We started with The Sermon by Verve which I picked up at Modern Coffee just before I hopped on Amtrak. (I brewed several cups of The Sermon on the train in my little french press.) Once the Verve beans were gone we tore in to the two different bags of Blue Bottle beans: Hayes Valley Espresso and Roman Espresso. All three coffees were tasty, tart, fruity, and worth carrying across country in my suitcase. Jon and I enjoyed trying them in cappucino and ristretto. When we ran out we moved on to an African bean from Intelligentsia, delivered by one of Jon’s music faculty friends, straight from Chicago. We agreed that the African beans in this particular roast could have benefitted from blending with some of the South American beans that balance out the three blended coffee’s I brought from Oakland.

Now that the coffee is gone I’m looking for other Oakland diversions to keep me happy. I’ve enjoyed following several Oakland twitterers. I feel like I am generally in touch with what’s going on in the neighborhood when I see tweets from @vsmoothe, @oaklandbecks, @dto510, @davidcolburn, @moderncoffee, @danapalooza, @farleyseast, @katymurphy, and @egratto. They provide an eclectic POV that satisfies my need to know that Oakland is still humming. I had a fun twitter conversation that I’ll share a little more about tomorrow, involving a famous Oaklander from Anna’s class at Skyline High.

Till then, keep your coffee warm.