Exercises in Transitions

Your Boulevardier, accompanied by the Trusty BoulevarDog, walked the Main Drag this morning from Castro Valley Boulevard's West End to Midtown. Some random observations, cleverly strung together:

Canine and human noses were pressed to the glass at Le Saigon Bistro, which by appearances is soon to open. The new restaurant, across from Pete's Hardware, features high-backed leather chairs, a dramatic red back wall with a pass-through to a gleaming kitchen, and a feng-shui friendly fountain just inside the door.

Speaking of fountains, the water feature outside of El Rancho Steak House has once again been soaped by bubbly vandals.

Speaking of ranches (ah, now one sees how this transition business works), a cowboy in full Western regalia -- broad-brimmed hat, slim jeans, knee-high snakeskin boots, and, for goodness sake, spurs -- was noted at the Post Office this morning.

Speaking of the Post Office, Your Boulevardier notes belatedly that the coin-operated stamp machine has been removed. With it goes the last place in town to get shiny gold dollar coins for gifts, not to mention postage for personal communications.

Speaking of personal communications, an Alameda County Sheriff's officer (I don't believe she was a deputy sheriff, because she was driving a dark blue department pickup truck and not a cruiser) was seen talking on a cell phone without a hands-free device as she drove down The Boulevard this morning. Grabbing that one final opportunity before the laws change, one supposes.

Speaking of final opportunities, this is the last tortured transition for today. Your Boulevardier thanks you for reading!

Overpass Gets a Blast

Graffiti-removal crews have worked for two days to clear graffiti from the pedestrian walkway over I-580 connecting the Baywood District with the BART station and downtown Castro Valley. As Your Boulevardier and the Trusty BoulevarDog are regular users of this overpass, its cleaning is most welcome.

A workman on the crew told Your Boulevardier that his firm had been hired by Alameda County to do the work. He said that there had been some conflict between CalTrans and the County over who was responsible for the cleanup but that in the final analysis the responsibility had fallen to the County. He also said that cleanup was not (yet) on a regular schedule, so it would behoove users of the walkway to contact the County when the tags reappear. One can call (510) 670-5500; more information can be found here.

Personally, Your Boulevardier is busy composing a thank-you note to Supervisor Miley. One does not know if he was responsible for the cleanup, but it's good that he knows that graffiti removal is important to residents of Castro Valley.

Comings and Goings

Your Boulevardier got his hair cut on Friday and picked up a bit of news from around the town.

• The price of a haircut at the Village Barber Shop will soon rise to $18. The cost of just about everything is on the rise, it seems. One wonders how this increase will affect the barbers' tips.
• The Peking Village restaurant closed on Father's Day. The storefront has a thank you note in the window.
• The former Primrose Bakery site in Castro Village will become an Indian restaurant.
• The El Rancho Supermercado (across from Trader Joe's) is back in business after having their building largely redone. (The reconstruction was a result of the fire at the next-door antique store, which now sits vacant.)
• EBMUD's Stanton Property has been taken off the market. (This was confirmed by the Daily Review.)