This trinket trade box is on 20th Ave, between Pacheco and Quintara. Plenty of parking in the area…read moreso just park anywhere and walk to it First of all, the box is painted a gorgeous purple/blue! I love seeing how owners decorate and set up the boxes! The inside wall is a mirror which gives it such a cool effect Open up for lots of treasures, cute stuff. I found socks, ton of beaded bracelets, stickers, toys, even smaller pull out drawers for SMALL trinkets. Pretty nicely organized! Big thanks for the owner for setting this up for everyone. As I was checking it out, an older gentleman walking by asked me what this box was and I was happy to explain it to him. Fascinating and lovely isn't it?

"Variation on an Original Theme?"…read more Recently, the city of Dublin commissioned 12 new Little Free Library book boxes in city parks. Not to be outdone, some creative residents in San Ramon have built their own Community Book box-- but even better! This "book box" is just like other community book boxes, but instead of books, there are balls and sticks and frisbees. It's on the honor system of course. So if you snag a ball, please leave another one. It doesn't have to be a new ball, but just not overly slobbery. Ditto for exchanging sticks or frisbees. Bravo to these creative, wonderful residents in our local community.

this light brown wooden library (#0852) has an acorn-like top. it contains the usual types of…read morenonfiction & fiction books. reads: "The Negro in the Making of America" (Benjamin Quarles)1964 *.. chronicles noted Negro experience in America: -a needed involuntary work force during America's founding era. -fought in the Revolutionary Wars for whomever permitted them. -their slave labor in the South was instrumental for it's economy -free man (north & south) were craft artisans. -Civil War conclusion saw a few years when Negros were free in the South -when Northern industrialists wanted to do more business with the South, they steered the Republican Party away from supporting freed Negros legislatively in the south. -when H. Hoover ignored Negros during the great depression, they backed FDR in 1932 for president. -Negros became integrated into the military during WW2 after performing very well in some military actions. -post WW2, Negro equality was resisted in the South: *started by White Citizens' Council **aided by US Supreme Court ruling cases favorably for the South. **economic reprisals against whites & Negros who favored integration. -closing public integrated schools, opening private segregated schools supported by public funds -defunding Negro-improvement organizations (NAACP, Urban League) and prohibiting them from lending legal services in segregation cases. -violence against individual Negros and/or neighborhoods. -since the 1950's, sit-ins, freedom rides, nonviolent anti-segregation protests etc. evolved actions paving a path for equality for Negros.

On Diamond street, cross street is Conrad street. Plenty of street parking…read more Wow what a pretty and colorful landscape where this box is! The box is decorated with pretty stickers. Open it up to find lots of goodies and trinkets. Saw some jewelry, toys, figurines. Happiness!

this totally white library is named "Lower Bottoms Mini Library". per it's name. there's just a few…read morenonfiction and children's books within., read: "The Color Purple" (Alice Walker) -book is written in epistolary style: i.e. all written in letters from Celie to God & her sister Nettie and her replies back. -Celie is the main character. at an young age she was the subject of rape by her father. 2 children therefrom eventually disappeared. -al Black women in the book are initially mistreated by society in general and by men specifically. -when the women began helping each other, their collective futures prospered. sisterhood & feminism is an evolving theme. -at the novel's end, Celie was reunited with her sister & 2 children as well.

Free Books Free Minds is a newly installed big yellow framed box holding donated books, magazines &…read moreother media. These are meant to be exchanged for "donated" medium. "Fred Korematsu Speaks Up" wasn't from here. I borrowed it from the local library. By Laura Atkins & Stan Yogi, the book explains the events leading to Fred Korematsu being awarded the Presidents Medal of Freedom in '98 by Pres. Bill Clinton. The seeds of anti-Asian animus was planted when white miners objected to Chinese migrants mining gold in Ca. During the gold rush. It culminated in Executive Order #9066 by F.D.R. ordering the evacuation of all Japanese aliens & Japanese Americans from the west coast. Fred Korematsu did not evacuate. He Was arrested. The A.C.L.U. Defended him up to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Supreme Court ruled in Korematsu vs. U.S. that it was a "military necessity" for him & Japanese Americans to be evacuated, that no civil rights were violated. In 1983 Jeremy Irons & researcher Aiko Herzig-Yoshinaga found evidence in the National Archive to warrant an hearing. With Fred's consent, an appeal was made. The writ of coram nobis was granted, overturning Fred's conviction. The writ revealed that government lawyers had suppressed evidence that the Japanese Americans posed no threat, that they were loyal citizens. Jan. 30th is celebrated as Fred Korematsu Day. *May is Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

This review is for the science speakeasy series. Held at public works with ample cocktails and…read moresnacks, plus, best of all, SCIENCE!!! This weeknight activity was a great find. Tickets are $10 advance at $15 at the door Doors open at 6 and the talks start at 7. Public works is a great space, with an upstairs bar, perfectly lit for a first date. Downstairs is set up with rows of chairs, facing the stage for the night's speakers. Sage bakehouse was selling pies in addition to the upstairs and downstairs bar. Lots of restaurants near Public works, so if it's date night there's plenty of options. I attended Baseball in our Bones and was really pleased with the talks. Science speakeasy is like a grown up Cal Academy nightlife. A mix of a podcast and a hipster bar. Basically a perfect San Francisco evening.

This "Take a BooK! Leave a Book!" Little library is in front of the restrooms. This is a collab…read morewith Dublin library. These 2 books, written by Dominican Americans, are about Families & their girls. "The House on Mango Street" by Sandra Cisneros: *lst book about Dominicans in U.S.? -how an Dominican family of 6 with poor English skills survived in Chicago, slowly getting better jobs with increased English proficiency. -family constantly moving to better houses to avoid crime, bad schools, bad neighbors, abusive 'hoods. -though written for teens, adult level misbehavior isn't glossed over, it's mentioned casually without comment. "How the Garcia Girls lost Their Accents" by Julia Alavarez. Based on Author's experience. -story told thru voices of the 4 girls: Carla, Yolanda, Sandra, Sofir.. with recurring themes around N.J. -catholic girls do have fun -"4 girls, no sons". "Good Bulls sire cows" -family didn't have financial issues. Father has a business. Politics an issue as parents fled Dominican Republic to avoid killers sent by Pres. Rafael Trujillo. -girls made friends with the right kind of Americans: Hoover, Hanes, Scott, Reese. They let the Americans believe they were connected to riche$. -the girls seldom socialized with other Dom-Am's, only related family members. -mom always relies on quotes to relay her thought: "Necessity is the Daughter of Invention". *both books humanizes the immigrant experience that all Americans have endured. Hispanic Heritage Month: 9/15-10/15.