Rodeo Parade is Coming

A week from Saturday (that is, May 9) will be the annual Rowell Ranch Rodeo Parade on Castro Valley Boulevard in Castro Valley. The night-before Chili Cookoff is also in the works, but it appears from the schedule that the morning-of Pancake Breakfast is not being held this year.

Since it is never listed in the promotional materials, Your Boulevardier reminds readers that the Castro Valley Community Band, of which yours truly is a member, will perform in the parking lot of Castro Village starting at 9:15 a.m.

Don Dons His Gay Apparel

A few days back, Your Boulevardier noted that Don, the fiberglass horse in front of Rowell's Saddlery, was looking quite festive in a quilted red satin jacket. But as of Monday of this week, he had doffed the coat and switched to a bridle of red garland. Your Boulevardier suspects this is because the ongoing rain would damage the coat and make it unsalable.



Readers, remember that you can always click on a photo for a larger view.

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!

Castro Valley On The Move

Your Boulevardier visited (via auto) the Castro Village today. Parking was a disaster, because much of the lot (especially between Walgreens and Don Jose's) was in the process of being patched and resurfaced. Homeless cars cruised the remaining aisles like sharks, looking for spots to become available. Actually, the cars weren't like sharks, because sharks (with some exceptions) don't stop moving.

Also on the move: the racks and aisle at our local Trader Joe's. The store was a bit chaotic today when Your Boulevardier went shopping, with products being transferred to temporary racks (on movable feet) in preparation for some sort of rearrangement.

Our third moving item for the day: a report on last Saturday's Rowell Ranch Rodeo Parade. Actually, Your Boulevardier did not see most of the parade (though he participated with the warm-up act); however, several other Castro Valley bloggers have chimed in with good reports. Coincidentally, all are young mothers. XTina, AKA Lucky Number 8, posts some beautiful photos. Laurie of A Joyful Life gives a kids' eye view of the event. And Graciela tells the story of how her child's preschool participated.