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Jogging at Lake Merritt

A feathered creature glides across a white-pillowed sky, flapping its wings as though to maintain pace with the whisking winds. Its ivory body nearly blends into the backdrop, but its smoky tail soars in opposition. Attracted by a clear lagoon, it lands. The seagull plops its webbed feet unto the waters of Lake Merritt, as its eyes meet the stares of geese. Unbothered by the others, it paddles. Western gulls share Lake Merritt with other birds including Canada geese and…

People watching at Jack London Square

The gentle breeze carrying a cool mist from Oakland’s Inner Harbor, hits the faces of people scattered around the docks of Jack London Square. The area is without much activity and the water is calm. The sky is filled with clouds, but the wind is quickly shuffling them away, revealing the warm rays of the sun. The few people sitting on benches are either keeping up with the latest news or making tough life decisions. “Do you want to get…

Taking physical education class at Lincoln Square Park

Second grade children come out to the basketball court. They are all coming from the school next door to the Lincoln Square Park in Chinatown, Oakland. Almost all in uniform, they are all dressed in white tops and beige pants. But there’s one little girl who sticks out. She wears her jet-black straight hair in a ponytail, and is wearing a navy blue skirt and black tights that don’t quite match. The kids’ homeroom teacher instructs them to stretch. He…

Business owners take damage done during anti-Trump protests in stride

On election night, protesters gathered in downtown Oakland after midnight yelling angry things like “Not my president!” and “Fuck Trump!” in the quiet streets. Others took it a step further and lashed out against nearby businesses, breaking glass doors and windows and spray-painting graffiti anywhere visible, like on the windows of the Chase bank, the walls of the BART public elevator and the pillars of the Oakland federal building.

Garbage cans were set on fire and worried faces peeked out through doors after the angry crowd passed. Confused bystanders were upset at the damage to their property, and others worried about their safety, while the rest followed the trail of fires left on Broadway, trying to catch up to the mob either by running or riding their bikes. By the next morning, garbage, broken glass and graffiti covered the downtown.

Oakland’s own video game archive, the M.A.D.E.

The Museum of Digital Art and Entertainment, or the M.A.D.E.,  is a gateway to, and an archive for, video game history, showcasing consoles and games from gaming’s early days in the 1970’s to the present day. Not only does it showcase video game history, the museum also holds free classes such as beginner coding and game designing for participants of all ages. Other museums have shown limited video game exhibits, while Stanford University has its own private video game archive. The M.A.D.E.,…

Gabby Falzone translates the study of trauma

When she was 12, Gabby Falzone and her family became homeless in New York. At 15, she ran away. She moved between squats and stints with her family, but said she suffered too much abuse from them to stay for long. At 17, she moved to Boston, where she said she survived by exchanging sex for rent. At 19, she got into a friend’s car and drove to San Francisco. Within a month, she said, she was shooting heroin. “I…