Murals Beautify Hayward

Hayward, California has made a commitment to improving itself with some sensational murals in its Mural Art Program.

Besides the gorgeous one shown at left, the largest one in town is Andrew Kong Knight's 3,500-square-foot "Gateway to Hayward" just a block away. It portrays Hayward as it would possibly have looked before all the people and their buildings moved in.

There are many more beautiful works of wall art around town.

Amazing New Concert Hall Opens

In Miami Beach, the incredible New World Center has opened. It houses the New World Symphony, which since 1987 has given young orchestra players a chance to work together and learn from great players and conductors before beginning their professional careers.

The building, designed by great modern architect Frank Gehry, not only provides a fine concert venue, but also has many other work spaces for the musicians, and features projection screens (sails) that allow multimedia presentations.

Michael Tilson Thomas, the founding conductor, has big plans for special events--featuring the work of one composer only, or various festivals and concerts and different times and in new formats. The idea is to not only produce great classical musicians for the future, but to open up the concert hall and expose more people to the joys of classical music.

Huge Job Transporting Windmills

Have you ever driven past one of those windmill farms, where giant fans live on breezy hills and turn frighteningly fast? If so, have you ever wondered how they got the windmills up there in the first place?

Well, an article in the January 2011 issue of Sun & Wind Energy magazine talks about the incredible logistics (and cost) of moving the pieces, which can weigh 120 tons and, in the case of the fan blades, stretch nearly 400 feet long.

Andreas Petzold, a delivery expert at Nordex Energy, says transportation cost can run 6 to 10 percent of the cost of the installation. That would include hiring cranes and special equipment to get the pieces around sharp mountain road corners and precisely through old tunnels.

Whew! Download the whole story here.

Don't Make Assumptions

An odd thing happened to me today. I was meeting some colleagues for lunch at a Chinese restaurant. I arrived first, and when I told the employee I was meeting a group there, he showed me to the table and then started gathering up the pre-set chopsticks from each place setting.

I asked him to please leave them as many of my lunchmates were actually Chinese--and, I'd be using the chopsticks myself. He promptly put them back, but left forks in two spots. I found out later that the reservation had been made under a non-Chinese name--I guess the forks were for us two.

I was amused by this, but later wondered if it was a form of profiling. The waiter made an assumption--a racial one--that wasn't based on facts.

The lunch went well (4 of the 10 diners, it turned out, were actually Asian--and the meal was ordered in Chinese). The food was fine. I'll go back again sometime. But it was an eye-opening experience.

I Followed a Nissan Leaf Today

One of the most exciting automotive debuts in many years--for me at least--is the arrival of the all-electric Nissan Leaf. I have seen it at the car shows and one passed me in traffic a few weeks ago. But tonight, on my way home from work, I found myself behind one as I approached the freeway entrance.

It was black, with the Leaf's unique and characteristic high, slim taillamps comprising strips of small, red dots. I followed the car about 10 miles until it pulled off at an exit.

As I followed, I felt a sense of change. Before too long, we'll have lots of electric cars zooming down the highways. I thought of how I could buy one and charge it at work--and at home--and someday, even from my own solar panels. It felt like the future had arrived.

We have many reasons to cut our use of petroleum. The Leaf is a great way to do it.

The Leaf's one weakness is its range--which realistically is well under 100 miles. But that will change. If I knew I could charge it at work, would I order one now? Well, I just might.

An Even Smaller MINI -- Rocketman!

I can hear Elton John's iconic song from 1973 in my head as I consider a new, even smaller MINI.

It only makes sense, really, as the new four-door, larger MINI Countryman appears on the scene. MINI is going back to its roots with a car sized more like the original!

When MINI releases a concept, they normally build it later, so this could be the real thing. It will sell against the smart car and tiny offerings from Toyota, among others.

Read all about it, courtesy of Autoweek.

One Man's Favorite Car--that You May Not Have Heard Of

Today, my colleague Slava told me about the first car that he had when he came to the U.S. It was a Nissan Axxess. He loved it and put more than 160,000 miles on it. He also developed a fondness for Nissans from that experience.

Do you remember the Axxess? Known as the Prairie in Japan, it was a small minivan with sliding doors on both sides. It was sold here only in 1990-92. Small and economical, but also roomy, it was a niche vehicle and came and went quickly. But--today, you can buy the swoopy 2012 Mazda5 and get nearly the same kind of thing. The new Ford C-Max minivan, coming out soon, will also offer a compact way to transport lots of folks.

What's your favorite oddball car? Mine is the Nash Metropolitan (see post of January 19). I also like the Volvo 1800 ES--a sportwagon from early 1970's. In modern cars, it's the MINI Cooper--especially the extended Clubman version.