AS WE approach the end of 2009, Metro is presenting its Year in Review issue, with an emphasis on what went wrong in the past 12 months. For whatever reason, when colleagues collectively appear to be in bad moods, I usually wind up in a good mood. I don’t know why. Somehow it just happens that way. In spite of what you’ll read in the rest of this week’s issue, I, for one, had a great 2009. Looking back through some of the columns that appeared in this space proved it. So saddle up. Here are some of the faves.
In January, I suggested renaming the first block of South Almaden Avenue after the ’60s San Jose band Count Five, which still exists. Similar things have happened in other cities much more hip than us, like Bakersfield and Oklahoma City. That particular side street, which houses the Blank Club, the Greyhound station and the Caravan dive bar, would be perfect, as Count Five is an overlooked band one often discovers by accident while searching for something else—much like that street. Imagine walking up to a public kiosk and hearing “Psychotic Reaction”—that’s the sort of thing you’d expect. A Count Five history walk along that street would perfectly dovetail with the future San Jose Public Market in San Pedro Square, with its own history walks. And renaming that street would be easy, since no one lives on it. We will have to wait and see.
In another column, I wrote about Barry Eisler’s recent thriller, Fault Line, because it features scenes at the San Jose Police Headquarters and the opulent Four Seasons Hotel in Palo Alto. He even staged the author event and booksigning at the hotel. Sarcastically speaking, I wrote that he should have held it at the police station instead, since they could use the publicity. That comment did not sit well with a few anonymous readers in the blogosphere.
But back to some more fave columns from 2009. These days, even San Jose officials admit that festivals are examples of what the city actually does right, so, a new event, Left Coast Live, emerged last spring, attempting to bring all of downtown San Jose together through a diverse array of live music in every venue humanly possible. Look for a new version of this ever-evolving event next summer. Plus, the SubZERO street festival—a gig during off-years when the 01SJ Art Biennial doesn’t happen—marked another milestone. Jut like Left Coast Live, the city played a helpful leadership role in making it happen, as opposed to playing an interventionist, controlling role, which is how things used to be.
The fun didn’t stop there. Reportage also came sailing in from O’Reilly’s 2009 Emerging Technology Conference (Etech) and the World Fantasy Convention 2009, both of which filled the Fairmont, at least for a few days. And Silicon Alleys couldn’t miss the annual Conspiracy Convention in Santa Clara, where a sordid mishmash of types offered their ideas and conjectures. Each one of those weekends was a hoedown for all time, and in each case, the future was predicted. Again, we will have to wait and see.
In addition, 2009 saw the urban-blight exploration junkie relapsing and getting his fix in several neighborhoods, including Cambrian Park, Willow Glen and, most recently, Keyes Street. He even surfaced in downtown Los Angeles for two columns, hitting skid row to explore the ‘hoods in John Fante novels. The junkie will live on, as there exist many more pockets of Silicon Valley wasteland to explore. Your suggestions are always welcome.
And yet still more columns: KFJC, the greatest college station west of WFMU, turned 50 this year; One Step Beyond, an old music club from the ’80s, came roaring back; and the Century 25 Theater was reborn as the RetroDome. World-renowned San Jose skateboarder the late Tim Brauch was honored in a documentary, the Rosicrucians celebrated the 100th anniversary of H. Spencer Lewis’ original initiation, and the Little Italy San Jose effort made headway. Yeah!
If that’s just an inkling of what’s to come next year in this space, I am definitely in a good mood. Happy New Year and let the ideas begin.
