This week: Hip-hop at Yoshi’s, coastal trails, national park sweethearts, and a Muni beer crawl. Plus, turning Lake Merritt trash into art, repairing bikes for kids, a light bulb that never goes out, and the big cat on campus.
Campus legend
An orange cat named Cheeto, who's been an internet meme for quite some time, is a fixture of the physics department at the University of California, Davis campus, where students and staff leave out food, beds, and the occasional note about his whereabouts.
Sightings get logged on Instagram, and he’s even picked up a joking Rate My Professors profile, complete with five-star reviews. Most days, Cheeto is easy to find — sleeping in the sun or stretched out in the landscaping, clearly unbothered by his reputation. — The California Aggie
Park crushes
Lots of accounts did the sweetheart meme this week, but Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy's take is the most creative, pairing park-themed Valentines with fun, local references.
The cards also offer some date ideas across Bay Area parks. — Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy/Instagram
Found things by the lake
Around Lake Merritt, a volunteer group known as the Trash Falcons has spent years picking up what gets left behind during walks around the water. The group meets weekly and removes more than 15 tons of trash a year, with most of it recycled and a small portion recontextualized as art.
Some of those objects — plastic forks, odd fragments, things too strange to toss back into a bin — now anchor a temporary museum built from about 175 finds, as part of an exhibition at Oakland’s Junior Center of Art and Science called What We Sow. The Trash Falcons’ museum is on view through March 6, with a related art exhibit in the gallery running into April. — NBC Bay Area
Wind along the bluffs
Along the Cowell–Purísima Coastal Trail, the coastline opens up in long, clean lines of cliff, water, and sky. The 3.6-mile, mostly flat path traces the edge of the bluffs just south of Half Moon Bay, with steady ocean views and few interruptions.
On clear days, it’s the kind of walk that invites an unhurried pace, with room to stop, look out, and keep going. The trail is open year-round and runs one way along the coast, with access points near Highway 1. — Anjali/Instagram
Century light, quiet glow
In Livermore, a single bulb has been glowing almost nonstop since 1901, tucked into the ceiling of Fire Station Number 6. Built by Shelby Electric and hardened like a tiny carbon diamond, the Centennial Light Bulb has outlasted generations of firefighters, power outages, and even its own moves between stations.
Visitors from across the globe stop by to see it, though for the crew, it’s just another fixture in the daily rhythm of the station. The bulb now burns at 4 watts and is expected to mark 125 years this June. — San Francisco Chronicle
Pints along the lines
Hop on Muni ties craft beer to four Muni routes across the city. Grab a limited-edition IPA at Standard Deviant, collect stickers at bars along each line, and finish back at the brewery to enter for prizes.
The first 25 to complete their cards take home a pint glass, and the grand prize includes SFCFC gear. The crawl runs February 21 through March 2, sending participants through familiar streets in a new kind of loop. — SFMTA
Tables and basslines
At Yoshi’s, hip-hop has been quietly reshaping the room, with rappers performing alongside live bands in a space once defined almost entirely by jazz. Post-pandemic crowds skew older, local, and seated at tables, but the energy shifts once artists like DJ Quik or Spice 1 start stretching songs and trading solos with the band.
The programming reflects where the audience is now, even as the format keeps the club’s improvisational spirit intact. Upcoming shows include Mistah FAB on Jan. 22, GZA on Feb. 8, and Twista on April 23. — KQED
Wheels of change
In San Jose, Jim Gardner has turned childhood tinkering into a lifeline for the unhoused. Through Good Karma Bikes, he and volunteers repair and give away bicycles, helping people regain mobility, confidence, and a foothold in life.
The nonprofit serves thousands, from middle schoolers to adults in recovery, and runs programs that teach bike mechanics and hands-on skills. Gardner recently received recognition for his work, underscoring a decade of connecting tools, talent, and trust to lift neighbors forward. — KPIX
Top image: Trash Falcons
Previously: Field Notes: Bean Meeting, Magnolias in Bloom, and Christopher Burch’s Cosmic Paintings
