You mean those train tracks are actually used by real trains? The City of Berkeley is working to implement a quiet zone to prevent the freight trains from sounding their whistles at intersections due to complaints from residents of this traditionally industrial area. While we find train horns romantic, we must admit that we might find them less so if they were not so off-in-the-distance. Though we wonder why the City didn't make the developers of these new residential buildings and conversions soundproof them adequately.

New trends in theft - Okay, not exactly new, but with recyclers paying up to $3 per pound of copper, guess what is gaining popularity among thieves, and that might have caused a recent fire in Alameda? Construction sites and large farms in the Central Valley are favorite targets. The CA State Senate recently killed a bill that would have imposed more restrictions and documentation requirements on sellers of metal, due to pressure from ... recycling industry lobbyists. We wonder how recycling industry lobbyists feel about shopping cart theft.

Nope, still there - Our trash has not been picked up in over two weeks. We had a BBQ this weekend, though our can comes nowhere near the odor of the garbage from the catering company down the block. News on the Waste Management lockout and East Bay garbage woes: from the Chron and The Oakland Tribune.