To the delight of South Bay audiences, the San Jose Repertory Theatre is bringing back the much loved A Christmas Story this winter. They are also offering more ways for families to enjoy the play. A Christmas Story runs from November 21 – December 20, 2009, at the San Jose Repertory Theatre, 101 Paseo de San Antonio in downtown San Jose.

The San Jose Rep is again trying to help everyone afford to see a show this season. Besides their Pay What You Will Tuesdays, their second annual Black Friday Ticket Sales Event will be Friday, November 27. You can save up to 41% on tickets for any of their remaining shows of the 09-10 Season. All Balcony tickets will be $29 each if purchased on Black Friday. They are even waiving the handling fee! Tickets are available for all their remaining shows: A Christmas Story, The Weir, Ain’t Misbehavin’ and Sonia Flew.

To take advantage of San Jose Rep’s Black Friday Event, patrons may purchase tickets by calling the box office at (408) 367-7255 or in person at the San Jose Rep Box Office at 101 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose, CA 95113. The box office will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

And more! Pay What You Will Tuesday for A Christmas Story is November 24. Family Packs, which include two adult and two youth tickets, are available for A Christmas Story at the affordable rate of $99 and $119. New this year, are Stocking Stuffer Gift Packs for $89 and $69. Live theatre makes the perfect holiday gift – it’s good for the environment and uplifting for the human spirit. The $89 stocking includes two ticket vouchers for any show in the 09-10 Season, a box of assorted chocolates from San Jose’s own Schurra’s Confectioners, and a bottle of champagne. The $69 stocking includes two ticket vouchers for any show in the 09-10 Season. A gift of live theatre at the Rep is creative, hassle-free and green. To order San Jose Rep Stocking Stuffers, call the box office at 408-367-7255.

I just saw this article on Stretsblog San Francisco, thanks to Jonathan at NNASJ. Basically, if a new bicycle plan passes in City Council on November 17, look forward to some dramatic improvements to bicycle access downtown in the coming years. The city is looking in to some experimental lane configurations (according to CalTrans, although they’re all things that have been done successfully elsewhere) that should make it safer and more convenient to ride major east-west and north-south corridors.

The Tech Museum of Innovation continues for another year to offer free admission to The Tech’s regular museum galleries on the second Sunday of each month.

The Free Second Sundays program runs through September 2010. It does not include admission to IMAX or to special exhibits, such as “Star Trek: The Exhibition.”

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

Free Sunday Dates:

November 8, 2009
December 13, 2009
January 10, 2010
February 14, 2010
March 14, 2010
April 11, 2010
May 9, 2010
June 13, 2010
July 11, 2010
August 8, 2010
September 12, 2010

fun-size bar

The San Jose Tech Museum is looking for yucky leftover Halloween candy. It can be traded for a yummy NESTLÉ CRUNCH fun-size bar, and 10% off admission through November 8.
The collected candy is being transformed into a rocket ship sculpture. What fun!

Whats new at The Tech

When I’m going out to eat, I love Thai food. I love the spicy stir-fries, red and green curries, and the noodle dishes. When I’m with my vegetarian girlfriend we love all the options without meat. Thai restaurants also tend to notch up the decor and service compared to other restaurants in the same price range. And downtown San Jose is developing a serious concentration of Thai restaurants, with at least three new places opening up downtown and nearby over the last year or two.

Sa-By Thai (346 E. William St.) I decided to do this post after eating at Sa-By for the first time in a year or more. Sa-By is kind of a student hangout, but since I was there last they have cleaned up considerably. They removed a loud and annoying karaoke machine, and brightened up the dining area. The servers now wear Sa-By polo shirts instead of whatever they wore to class that day. The food here is light and spicy, with some interesting choices on the menu. And the prices are still low compared to the other restaurants I’ll include here.

Thepthai (23 N. Market St.) and House of Siam (151 S. Second St.) are probably the two longest-established Thai restaurants in downtown. Once in the last year I tried Thepthai, and it was fine. But, I rarely eat at either of these because they don’t have as many vegetarian choices as other nearby Thai restaurants.

Hanuman Thai Cuisine (1 E. San Fernando St.) is a relative newcomer to downtown, opening maybe a year ago. On my first visit I found the food fresh, spicy, and flavorful. On later visits, the recipes seemed to have changed. I guess they are (or were) still experimenting with the menu. Given the relatively high prices, I haven’t been back in the last few months to see if they’ve settled on flavors I’d really enjoy.

Tee Nee Thai (1423 The Alameda) is also relatively new, and probably the priciest of these restaurants (but still tending to $20 or less per person). The food is excellent, but the highlight for me is their extensive list of Belgian trappist beers, which go amazingly well with spicy Thai dishes. Be prepared to wait for a table if you show up on Friday or Saturday night with no reservation.

Blue Mango (635 Coleman Ave.) I haven’t been yet to this new outlet of a perpetual “Best of” winner from West San Jose. I have been to the Stevens Creek location many times, and its a great lunch place, though the menu is fairly narrow at dinner time. Probably all that “Best of” hype raised expectations a little too high, because Yelp! reviews for the new site are not super enthusiastic.

Did I miss your favorite spot for Thai near downtown? Got an opinion about one of these places? Let us know in the comments!

Vietnamese-American marchers came to the county building to seek a grand jury investigation into the death of Daniel Pham.

I only saw this because I drove by as the event was winding down. But according to the Merc’s report, these marchers are requesting the county to open a grand jury investigation into the police shooting of Daniel Pham this past May.

Paige Baxter

Finding a good hair stylist is like finding a good hand bag; which can be one of a woman’s biggest challenges. I tried a celebrity stylist in Willow Glen. As far as I know he doesn’t do celebs, he just thinks that he is one. Mr. Celeb took a quick look at my hair and then turned me over to a shampoo girl. Mr. Celeb took all of 10 minutes to do the cut. He then called over another girl to blow dry and style. That will be $100 please. I wondered what did that C-note cover? Just the cut? The experience felt odd, and to make it worse I didn’t like my hair.

One afternoon I was up near SFO with some time to kill. Always on the search for that good hair cut, I happened into Roobik’s, in Burlingame. Martine listened to me, cut my hair to perfection, and that will be $18 please! Even though it means a trip to Burlingame; one of my life’s biggest challenges is solved.

The last time I was up there for my cut Martine told me about her daughter Paige. She is the drummer with a group called Wonderland Syndrome.

Wonderland Syndrome @ VooDoo Lounge
14 S 2ND ST, San Jose
Tonight – Friday, Oct. 2
7:30 PM

Roobik’s
1805 El Camino Real # B @ Trousdale Dr.
Burlingame, CA 94010-3202
(650) 697-424
* Ask for Martine

Bachelder 'Dutch Boy' tiles were reproduced as part of the restoration of the Rotary Ryland Pool.

Near-downtown residents got together today to celebrate the completion of historical restoration work on the Rotary Ryland Pool at Ryland Park in the Vendome neighborhood. Vendome Neighborhood Association president Tina Morrill presented restored tilework on the pool, as well as educational signage, a commemorative plaque, and a new sign for the entry to the pool.

The pool was originally built in the 1920’s, featuring the Batchelder “Dutch Boy” tiles around its perimeter wall. These tiles were later painted over, probably in the 1970’s. What’s worse, to make the paint adhere better, the tiles were sandblasted, eliminating their original glaze and much of their relief pattern.

In 2006, when the city of San Jose wanted to close the pool, the public outcry, massive efforts by a small group of volunteers, and $1.4 million in funding came together to save it. The pool reopened last summer, but the historical restoration work continued over the past year.

Reproduction Dutch Boy tiles were produced from a mold taken from a 1920’s era Batchelder tile found at an out-of-state antique tile dealer. A commemorative plaque was installed, recognizing the contribution of the Rotary Club in donating the original pool and funding the recent restoration work. An education placard was also posted, explaining the restoration proces, and also hopefully making the point that historic resources should not be treated as cavalierly as the pool and its tiles once were. Finally, a new sign was added at the entry to the pool, designed by Northsider Sonya Lu and fabricated by Brian’s Welding, just down the street from the park.

The new entryway sign at Ryland Pool.

October 4th is just a couple of weeks away, so it is time for San Jose runners to get ready for the Rock ‘n’ Roll 1/2 Marathon. Though this news is exciting for the runners, and good for the city, for me it is just ho-hum. That was until I heard about the post race concert.

* Rock ‘n’ Roll 1/2 Marathon Post-Race Concert:
* Finish Line Festival Stage – Plaza de Caesar Chavez.

# 1 Jonny Lang – (Grammy winner) is the concert headliner.

# 2 It is free! – and open to the public. (the concert)

# 3 Lang is scheduled to take the stage around 12 PM.

Note: For the marathon – register online

Al Gore: Global Humanitarian Award

This year 15 Laureates, who were selected from 650 world wide nominations, are vying for recognition. Laureates in five categories: environment, economic development, education, equality, and health will be rewarded for their efforts to improve lives around the world. One Laureate in each category will receive a $50,000 cash prize.

“The global challenges of the day have become increasingly strident, more deeply rooted,” said Peter Friess, president of The Tech Museum. “Still, there is hope. These incredibly impressive Laureates have all proven to be equal to, or better than, the challenge to make the world a better place.”

To make the evening even more special, this year’s recipient of The Global Humanitarian Award is Al Gore.

“With all that is going on in the United States it is easy to forget that much of the world is still without power, lighting and access to quality, or sometimes to any, health care and education.” said Mike Splinter, Chairman and CEO of Applied Materials. “This year’s laureates remind us that through creativity, entrepreneurship and determination, individuals and small groups can have a powerful impact and bring innovative solutions to the world’s most immediate problems. We salute all of The Tech Awards Laureates for their amazing work to benefit humanity and thank Vice President Gore for his tireless work to inspire action to save the planet.”

The Tech Awards Gala: Information & Tickets (buy now – tickets are going fast)

Thursday, November 19, 2009
6:00 p.m. Reception
7:00 p.m. Dinner
San Jose McEnery Convention Center
150 West San Carlos Street, San Jose, California, 95113