Oakland

Yesterday was a tragic day for Oakland, with three police officers killed and one critically injured after two different shoot-outs with a lone gunman. It felt particularly immediate to me, because it all happened only a couple blocks from the hardware store at 67th and Foothill that I've been frequenting to buy planting soil and compost.

Last night I was watching the movie "Steelyard Blues," which was shot in Oakland in the early 1970s.  I was fascinated by a scene in the opening credits that recalls another tragic day in Oakland history.   Peter Boyle and Donald Sutherland are seen standing in front of the Cypress Freeway, which is the double-decker freeway that collapsed in the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake:

The giant structure that collapsed was replaced by a broad boulevard.  Several blocks north of where they are standing is a memorial to the collapse, and a trendy neo-soul food restaurant, where there is often a long wait for brunch on Sunday morning.