As of this writing, at the top of the 7th inning, the Texas Rangers are tied with the Kansas City Royals in a 0-0 nail-biter with obviously huge implications for the Oakland A’.
Whole Foods Oakland Birthday Party October 6th
Whole Foods is having an Oakland Birthday Party October 6th and according to Ashley Erickson, the Marketing Team Leader for Whole Foods Oakland, they’re inviting Oakland community groups to host a table at the event.
In the Adams Point Yahoo Group, she writes “Whole Foods Market Oakland is about to celebrate our 6th Birthday! We’re excited to celebrate 6 years in the Oakland community. We will be celebrating with cake, grilling, live music, and fun. We’re striving to make this event all about Oakland! We’re inviting local vendors and community groups to celebrate with us and enjoy the day. I will be the point for the event, and your day-of contact. If you’d like to attend, please fill out the attached vendor participation form to confirm your attendance at the Birthday Bash. In addition we’re doing a couple raffles at the event, so let me know if you have a prize you’d like to donate to the winners!”
If you’re interested in attending, she asks that you fill out a “vendor participation form,” which you can obtain if you email her at [email protected].
Back To The Future DeLorean Time Machine For Uber In Oakland At Lake Merritt
As I left the gym and walked down Grand at 10 PM two weeks ago, there was, of all things, a Back To The Future DeLorean Time Machine on a truck bed just sitting on the side of the street. A man was tying it into place, while this other gentleman stood and watched, and talked to the onlookers who were drawn to it. It was there because, as he said in the video, Uber, the transportation app company, was conducting a promotion for Downtown San Francisco. As I was talking with him, my iPhone ran out of juice, so that’s what I got.
So I learned that, according to CNET, Uber teamed with General Electric as part of its “Brilliant Machines” campaign to offer rides in a fleet of four Back To The Future DeLorean Time Machines.
But what gets me is why Uber would skip Oakland when it was obvious to me that having the Back To The Future DeLorean Time Machine would have attracted more attention on a per capita basis in our less crowded city? That’s the result of someone in marketing not thinking. Period. And note, that the Back To The Future DeLorean Time Machines was out late at night in Oakland, and nothing happened. Okay?
Oakland Cab Service Must Improve
When I get a taxi cab in San Francisco about 60 percent of the time the cab driver knows where I want to go if I just say, “Pier 40, please.” In Oakland that happens about 10 percent of the time. Oakland cab drivers aren’t asked to actually know the city and how to drive around it. This is true regardless if the company is Friendly Cab or the other few services around. I know Oakland, and long ago took up the practice of telling the drivers where I want to go. At first, some cab drivers didn’t like that I did this, and one reacted in a way that could only be called psycho:
But now, I have a good relationship with most of the drivers. Still, I can’t help but wonder how others are treated, particularly tourists. This should not be. It’s a good reason why alternatives like Uber are necessary. The City Of Oakland controls the cab companies, and yet has done nothing to improve the situation to date.
Stay tuned.