I know many of you are probably getting into the holiday season. San Jose (and I’m sure other cities) have had holiday decorations up around town for a couple of weeks now. In downtown San Jose, you can already go ice skating, and the tree lighting ceremony will be Nov. 28 at Christmas in the Park. (More info on that here). And I’m sure holiday festivities are starting around the South Bay each day.

But I have to admit, I’m becoming somewhat of a humbug. It started two years ago, actually. All the stress of buying gifts for people seemed futile. The people I was buying for didn’t need anything. I didn’t want anything from them, except maybe some time to spend together over dinner or drinks. So last year I decided - no gifts. Instead, I would be giving my precious (and few) hard-earned dollars to those who needed it. Did my friends and family miss the presents? Not one bit. Especially when I told my mom, who works for the Girl Scouts, that I was donating money to her organization. And I told my pet-loving friend I’d be donating to the local SPCA. They didn’t mind one bit.

Call me Charlie Brown, but the holidays have become so focused on presents, that I’m afraid people are forgetting about those who will be the coldest, the hungriest this season.

Now more than ever we need to keep those less fortunate in mind. We’re facing an economic “recession” (a euphemism, I’m convinced), and the local foodbanks will be seeing more hungry, hopeful faces this holiday season than they’ve seen in a few decades.

As a board member of a local nonprofit, I can tell you firsthand that charities are hurting. They’ve been hurting for the last couple of winters, but this year is bad. People are scared, and are grabbing that wallet tight - for good reason. But we can’t forget that our neighbors need our help. Even if it’s $20, or 10 cans of food.

To raise awareness that charities need your help, the Silicon Valley Open Arms Coalition was created by local funders and nonprofits. The website gives several ways for people to contribute this holiday season, depending on which organization they’d like to support. Some of the nonprofits involved are First 5, Second Harvest Food Bank, Sobrato Family Foundation, Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County, and The Health Trust.

Read more

This Tuesday is Santana Row’s 7th Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony beginning at 6:30 pm.

Festivities include live music, choirs, carolers, stilt walkers, hot chocolate sampling and activities for children.

The annual (40-foot) Tree Lighting Ceremony will take place at approximately 6:30 pm in Park Valencia; also, the lighting of more than 500,000 twinkling lights throughout Santana Row.

Scheduled on the Celebration Stage on Olin Avenue: San Jose native Katee Shean (So You Think You Can Dance), The Nutcracker performed by The Joy of Dancing, also a sneak peek of San Jose Repertory Theatre’s holiday production Around the World in 80 Days.

Santana Row
368 Santana Row, San Jose

Tuesday, November 18, 2008
6:30 pm – 9:00 pm

Free event

Found this in my inbox, from the San Jose Downtowner newsletter:

Downtown Ice is set to open at 5 p.m. Friday.  Come early and have a chance to show your skating prowess to the Bay Area.  Weather permitting, NBC’ Bay Area’s John Farley will be at the rink doing live weather reports during the 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. newscasts.

On Sunday and again Nov. 23, you can skate with the hardest working fish in the NHL - Sharkie!  He will skate with the kids, help inexperienced skaters, and play around with the others. He will also have photo cards to sign. He’ll be there both Sundays about 3:30 p.m. for an hour.

Next Monday-Thursday, and again Nov. 24-27, families can take advantage of the early bird promotion.  That is, one free child admission (12-under, a $13 value) with one paid adult admission ($15).  Download the coupon here. Limit: two free kids with two paid adults per coupon.

Downtown Ice is open 5 p.m.-midnight Friday; noon-midnight Saturday, noon-10 p.m. Sunday and 5-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday.

Admission, $15 for adults and $13 for 12-under, includes skate rental.
Rink information is available here.

The Cassini spacecraft has just entered its fifth year exploring the planet Saturn, its rings, and its large family of moons, including Titan.

This Wednesday astronomer Mark Showalter of the SETI Institute will give a non-technical, illustrated talk on Saturn’s Restless Rings: Latest Results from the Cassini Mission.

The Cassini-Huygens spacecraft launched on October 15, 1997 began its 7-year journey to Saturn arriving on July 1, 2004.

The Cassini-Huygens program is an international cooperative effort involving NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian space agency, as well as several separate European academic and industrial contributors.

NASA’s Cassini spacecraft is the first to explore the Saturn system of rings and moons from orbit. The European Space Agency’s Huygens Probe landed on Titan in January 2005. Instruments on both spacecraft are providing scientists with vital data and the best views ever.

Cassini has been making numerous orbits of Saturn, flybys of Titan along with flybys of some of the other moons.

Saturn’s rings, believed to be made of pieces of shattered moons, comets and asteroids, are the most extensive and complex ring system in our solar system, extending hundreds of thousands of miles from the planet.

Dr. Mark Showalter, whose research focuses primarily on ring-moon systems, will share some of the pictures from Saturn and take a close-up look at the “lord of the rings.”

Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Arrive early to locate parking.
Parking lots 1, 7 and 8 provide stair and no-stair access to the Smithwick theatre.

Smithwick Theater, Foothill College
12345 El Monte Road, Los Altos Hills

Wednesday, November 12
7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Admission: Free
Parking: $2.00

650-949-7888

Kate Evans, a lecturer at San Jose State University, will be reading from her new novel “For the May Queen”  twice in November and twice in February. Her first local reading is 7:30 p.m. tomorrow night at an author’s open mic at the Barnes & Noble Almaden Plaza, San Jose.

Reviews of the novel:

“Can a novel about college freshman be a page turner? In Kate Evans’ capable hands, you bet! …  Evans hooks the reader from the first paragraph with this story of love and friendship among compelling characters who grapple with the essential question we all have to face: Who are you?” –Patricia Valdata, author of “The Other Sister”

“Evans skillfully reminds us all of what it means to be young, questioning, and prone to get a lot wrong on our way toward an adulthood where we know ourselves–and those around us— just a little better.” –Jayne Pupek, author of “Tomato Girl”

Read her first chapter here for free, read reviews here, buy the book here, or listen to an interview here.

Events featuring FOR THE MAY QUEEN:

Friday, Nov. 7, 7:30 p.m., Reading and Booksigning
(with several other California Writers Club Writers)
Barnes & Noble, Almaden Plaza, San Jose

Wednesday, Nov. 12, 12-1 p.m.
Reading and Booksigning (with Dan White)
San Jose State University, Student Union, 3rd floor (Umunhum Room)

Thursday, Feb. 5, 7 p.m.
Reading and Booksigning (with Patricia Harrelson)
Books Ins. in the Castro, San Francisco

Wednesday, Feb. 18 (2009), 7:30 p.m.
Reading and Booksigning, followed by reception
San Jose State University, MLK Library, 5th Floor (Schiro Program Room)

The Tech Museum of Innovation once again is offering free admission to The Tech’s regular museum galleries on the second Sunday of each month.

The Free Second Sundays program runs through September 2009, except August. It does not include admission to IMAX or to special exhibits, such as “Leonardo: 500 Years into the Future.”

Peter Friess, President of The Tech: “By opening the doors of The Tech once a month at no charge, we hope many more people will take advantage of all the museum has to offer. We applaud the ScholarShare College Savings Plan and Fidelity Investments for their dedication to education and the community.”

Check the Tech Museum of Innovation’s Website for directions, parking, and a plethora of information.

Free Sunday Dates:

November 9, 2008
December 14, 2008
January 11, 2009
February 8, 2009
March 8, 2009
April 12, 2009
May 10, 2009
June 14, 2009
July 12, 2009
No FREE Second Sunday in August
September 9, 2009

After you vote Tuesday, head on over to Starbucks, Krispy Kreme, and Ben & Jerry’s for your free goodies!

At Starbucks tell the barista you voted and receive a free tall (12 oz) cup of brewed coffee.

If there is a Krispy Kreme in your area, take your coffee with you to pick up your free star-shaped doughnut.

In the evening between 5:00 pm and 8:00 pm head on over to Ben & Jerry’s for a free scoop of ice cream.

Limit one per customer at all of the establishments mentioned (participating locations).

California Elections Code section 18521 (b) prohibits rewarding people for voting or not voting. The law was created to prevent any form of bribery for voting (or not voting) through free food, gifts, loans, or money. Thus, you need not prove you voted to receive the free item.

Starbucks locations: where isn’t there a Starbucks.

Ben & Jerry’s locations, check here.

Krispy Kreme locations:

Mountain View
2146 Leghorn Street, 94043
650-254-1231

Union City
32450 Dyer Street, 94587
510-471-6121

Pinole
1441 Fitzgerald Drive, 94564
510-262-6590

Daly City
1575 Sullivan Ave., 94015
650-985-5612

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission which operates the 511 service has added a new feature “511 Freeway Aid” that allows drivers to use their wireless phones to summon non-emergency roadside assistance on any freeway in the nine-county region.

A motorist in a non-emergency situation (out of gas, flat tire or mechanical problems) can dial 5-1-1 on their wireless phone (you may be charged airtime by your wireless service provider). At the main menu, the caller says “Freeway Aid” and the voice-recognition system will transfer the call to the privately operated call center that now handles incoming calls from the roadside call boxes.

Freeway Service Patrol tow trucks, which provide their services free of charge, will be dispatched to respond to 511 Freeway Aid calls during peak periods on the Bay Area’s busiest routes. Towing companies that operate on rotations under contract with Caltrans and the CHP will be dispatched at other times and will charge motorists for their services. You may wish to inquirer if there will be a charge.

If you are on a toll bridge or in a tunnel, the information will be sent immediately to Caltrans and/or the CHP.

You will no longer have to hike to one of those roadside call boxes.

The MTC nine-county regions: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, Sonoma.

“511 is a free phone and Web service that consolidates Bay Area transportation information into a one-stop resource. 511 provides up-to-the-minute information on traffic conditions, incidents and driving times, schedule, route and fare information for the Bay Area’s public transportation services, instant carpool and vanpool referrals, bicycling information and more. It’s available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.”

This time of year always comes up quick and equally goes by just as quick.  Halloween is tomorrow, whoa, where did that come from?  I could have sworn there was at least another week. So today I scrambled around finishing up costumes and getting appetizers for a kiddie party we are attending tonight. Yikes.  But I will admit it’s fun, and I love it!

When I was working in the Corporate atmosphere, if Halloween fell on a weekday, I would head down to the local Cemetery on my lunch hour.  There I would walk around in hopes something would pop up and scare me.  Nothing or no one ever did.  I always asked my co-workers to join me, and they said I was looney, “Eh, it’s all in the Spirit of the season” I said.  I don’t do that anymore, that would mean having to bring my own little goblins with me, and chasing them around tombstones would probably make the Dead laugh at me, not try and scare me. But as soon as I deem my kids old enough, I plan to hand this tradition down. 

I just discovered today that a lot of newbie parents are still unaware of places you can take your kids besides the proverbial street Trick or Treating. Which is cool, unless the weather gets grisly.  So here are a few local haunts that are hopping with family fun.

Westgate Mall: Halloween Trick-or-Treat event  –5:pm to 7:pm Westgate Mall’s annual Trick or Treat event located in Center Court, in front of Ross. Join us for trick-or-treating, live entertainment, balloon characters, arts & crafts and more! Plus, all children receive a FREE Westgate Mall trick-or-treat bag.

Westfield Valley Fair: Dress up in your favorite costume and join Westfield Valley Fair for a safe evening of Halloween fun. Trick-or-treating will be from 5:00pm to 6:00pm at participating retailers and the Westfield Concierge. 

Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California:  Games and prizes, tricks and treats, arts and crafts and goodies to eat! On October 31 there is only one place to be: the Halloween Carnival at JCCCNC!  6:00 - 8:30pm

Children’s Discovery Museum:  Come in your favorite costume and be a Fanciful Wonderland Visitor. Don’t forget your camera . . . there are many wonderful photo opportunities in Alice’s Wonderland.  10am to 5:pm

I want to mention also that many Community Churches are holding events though out San Jose, but I don’t have those actual website to list. I apologize!  I’ll be happy to add them if you let me know!  Otherwise, just give your local Church a call and ask if they have anything brewing for the kiddies! 

So go out there and have some fun! And be safe, for All Hallows sake! 

KFRC was home to Merv Griffin in the 40’s (swing music) and Dr. Don Rose in the 60’s (Top 40) when the station was on the AM dial at 610. The station has gone through a number of format changes over the years. CBS bought KFRC, leaving the AM dial ending up at 99.7 FM. More format changes with KFRC becoming Movin’ 99.7 playing dance music. About a year later CBS’ Free FM shock-talk format at 106.9 was dropped and 106.9 FM became the new home for KFRC playing a classic hits format. Got it so far? Try this.

If you have not already heard, Monday the KFRC on-air staff was told that they were history; KFRC would start simulcasting KCBS all news broadcasts beginning Monday, October 27.

This past season the A’s were on KFRC, it has been suggested that they helped lower the station’s ratings but were not at all the main reason for the poor numbers. Jumping around the dial and format changes did not help. Low ratings and KCBS wanting to expand its audience, younger listeners who hang out on the FM dial being a reason for the move.

KFRC’s Classic Hits have not completely disappeared; the classic hits will continue to be available as streaming audio at KFRC.com and on KFRC-HD2; however, you will not hear Dave Sholin, Celeste Perry, Sue Hall, Jay Coffey, and Ben Fong-Torres.

If this turns out to be a positive move for KCBS, will KGO and KLIV be next?