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Weekend Highlights: Two Outdoor Fairs, Abstract Art and Gay Comedy Festival

Here are just a few highlights of this weekend's activities.

Live Oak Park Fair

  • Where/When: , June 11-12, 10 a.m. to  6 p.m. 
  • Why Go: This arts and crafts festival features performers, food and more and this year is its 41st year. Performances for kids take place at 12:00 pm and 2:00 pm both days at the "Tree Stage." For more information: http://www.liveoakparkfair.com/index.html
  • How to Get There: A free shuttle to the Fair will run every 30 minutes from the Downtown Berkeley BART Station and the North Berkeley BART Station from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. both days. Wheelchair accessible.
  • Price: Free

The Berkeley Gay Comedy Festival

  • Where/When: , June 11, 13 & 18, 8:30 p.m.
  • Why Go: Berkeleyside wrote, It’s LGBT Pride Month, and downtown Berkeley’s coming out with a sense of humor.” Comedian Marga Gomez told the East Bay Express that the entire show is "not for the easily offended." For more information about the line-up: http://www.themarsh.org/gay_comedy_festival.html
  • Price: Monday $10, Saturday $15 - $35 sliding scale, $50 reserved tickets. Buy tix online or by phone, Mon - Fri 1:00 - 4:00pm (415) 282-3055

Abstract Visions – Opening Reception

  • Where:
  • When: Opening Reception on June 11, 5:30-7:30pm; Regular gallery hours are Wednesday – Sunday, 12–5 p.m.
  • Why Go: Curated by Peter Selz, noted art historian, curator, and founder of the Berkeley Art Museum, this compelling compilation of work attests to the present-day vibrancy of abstract art. Artists featured include Gary Edward Blum, Eva Bovenzi, Donna Brookman, Bruce Hasson, Kevan Jenson, Naomie Kremer, Keiko Nelson, Gloria Tanchelev
  • Price: Free. Suggested donation: $5 Family, $3 Individual, $2 Limited Income. All donations support the Berkeley Art Center, a private, non-profit organization.

Chocolate & Chalk Art Festival

  • Where/When: Shattuck Ave, Berkeley (Gourmet Ghetto); June 11, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Originally scheduled for June 4 but re-scheduled due to weather)
  • Why Go: The sidewalks along North Shattuck Ave. in the Gourmet Ghetto in Berkeley are the target of artists young and old, professional and greenhorn during the 15th annual Chocolate & Chalk Art Festival. Vendors with fair-trade chocolate, chocolate-related items, hand made arts & crafts, and pony rides fill the event area and many more surprises fill your senses as you stroll along the sidewalks viewing the artwork that remains in place for the next two weeks.  
  • Price: Free

Have a weekend activity you'd like to recommend? Send email to monica.lam@patch.com

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Just a short thought to get the word out quickly about anything in your neighborhood.
Share something with your neighbors. Write a new post... What's up? Make an announcement, speak your mind, or sell something
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protests in Washington DC
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actors from Clerks 1 and 2
nick mastick April 28, 2013 at 09:34 pm
Of all the concerns in our society, I put this just about dead last.
Steven Murphy April 17, 2013 at 02:25 am
Hmm. So I think you're telling me I need to add the countdown timers to the long list of BerkeleyRead More idiosyncrasies I need to ignore? I guess can do that. Thanks. --Murph
Alexander Sinclair Merenkov April 15, 2013 at 04:34 pm
This is very interesting. I bicycle and walk a lot around Berkeley. I think i know exactly whatRead More signal is being referred to the walk sign across Bancroft at MLK specifically will reset itself. many of the walk signals rely on induction loops which are loops placed in the ground that can detect Bicycles and Cars when the Bicycles or cars pass over them disrupting the current. You can often see these loops as they look like hexagonal saw cuts in the ground. Anyways the intersection detects traffic with these devices & if it doesn't detect anything then it assumes nothing is there and gives right of way to the major throughway in this case being MLK. So the reason the counter to cross Bancroft resets itself is totally logical because the intersection suspects no one is there and since that side of Bancroft is more or less residential there would be no point in setting that intersection to a timer where it gives priority to one light then the other & switches based on that & not on wether it detects any bicycles or cars passing over the induction loops. Also this is Berkeley and we are rather quirky and always have been so nobody exactly fallows the rules or knows about them its funny how simple crossing the street really is but its anything but simple in reality. Many people choose to jay walk if its safe to do so, this is typical on Shattuck at alston especially and makes sense for efficiency but isn't very safe or lawful. If the hand is flashing/Counting down dont cross!
Janet Scrivener April 6, 2013 at 11:15 pm
Actually, I just saw and spoke to him about an hour ago - the wire sculpture man. He'd moved downRead More Solano a few blocks, opposite Safeway. I asked him if the police had moved him off Colusa. He said he didn't want to talk about it. He wasn't in a very good mood. I told him that people had asked about him on a web local news site. He said, "People want to know how I'm doing? I need a car. I need somewhere to put my stuff in. To get off the streets. I don't want to sit around starving in public." I thought to myself, "Who do I think I am? A Girl Scout leader? Pollyana?" I realized my upbeat, cheery tone was really not what was needed just then. I said I couldn't help him with a car. "People want to know how I'm doing?" he said again. "Tell them that." I said, "I will." I turned to walk away, knowing only too well that the real needs that exist, yes, right here in our lovely, excellent neighborhood, are great and once you start giving you'll find it's difficult to get out of. He did say, "Thank you," as I left. He doesn't look like he's starving. But he's right about being out in public more than he would like to be. As a reasonable human being, I have to ask myself, what sort of person finds himself in that position? Ex con? Mental illness? Mind-blown Vet? Drugs? Alcohol? Incapacitated by an accident? An unforgivable act? Some combination of the above? Jesus did say, "The poor you shall have always with you." What would you do?
P. Park April 4, 2013 at 03:29 am
I agree Shattuck, especially right in front of the fire station is the scariest street around.
Mary April 3, 2013 at 06:45 pm
I am not disabled, but I am terrified of crossing streets nowadays because there are too manyRead More careless and aggressive drivers who act is if red lights, speed limits, and crosswalks either don't exist or don't apply to them. Shattuck in particular has become a nightmare to cross. Sometimes I have counted over 30 cars going by before one stops for the crosswalk. What we need is far more law enforcement - the tickets written would more than pay for the cost of hiring extra officers.