HAYWARD — Sorry this is last-minute, but there’s a free art exhibit at Westminster Hills Outreach Center on Friday, May 3. It runs until 9 p.m.

The exhibit, called PLAY, is composed of repurposed and refreshed children’s toys and games, designed to reminder viewers of their own playful days.

There will be a reception for the artists from 5 to 9 p.m. at the center, 27287 Patrick Ave.

The exhibit is free, but items from the Homeless Angels’ on-site art and gift store will be available for purchase. Prices range from $5 to $25. The Homeless Angels project works to eliminate obstacles to self-sufficiency.

For more information, go to www.southhaywardparish.org/hcan.

HAYWARD – An orientation session is planned Saturday, April 27, for anyone interested in volunteering at the city’s animal shelter.

Volunteers are involved in a variety of tasks, including community outreach, animal “pet pals,” social media, office assistant, kennel assistant, groomer, housekeeper, photographer, humane educator, adoption specialist and helping at special adoption events.

The one-hour orientation begins at 10:30 a.m. at the shelter, 16 Barnes Court. Please RSVP to 510-881-7927.

HAYWARD — Patricia Smith will recite some of her latest poetry Thursday, April 25, at Cal State as part of the Distinguished Writers Series

The 7 p.m. event will be held in the Biella Room of the University Library, 25800 Carlos Bee Blvd. Admission is free, and the public is invited. A book signing and question and answer session will follow. The event is hosted by the university’s English department.

Smith, who is also a playwright and performing artist, has published six books of poetry, including “Blood Dazzler,” a National Book Award finalist, and “Teahouse of the Almighty,” a National Poetry series winner.

The Chicago native is a four-time National Poetry Slam individual champion.
“We’re fortunate to celebrate April, National Poetry Month, with a reading by one of the nation’s foremost writers and performance artists,” Susan Gubernat, English professor and director of the Distinguished Writers Series for 2012-13, said in a release.

Smith is a professor of English at City University of New York and a faculty member of the Sierra Nevada masters of fine arts program and Cave Canem Foundation.
She has performed on stage and on film, CDs and in the HBO series “Def Poetry Jam.” She has been published in numerous literary journals.
Campus parking is $2 per hour, payable at kiosk machines in the parking lots.

CASTRO VALLEY — The Class of 1963 graduated at the beginning of what would become the turbulent 1960s. Those high school seniors saw a lot of changes over the next decade, and listened to a lot of great music.

Fifty years later, Castro Valley High School 1963 grads are planning a reunion the weekend of Sept. 21. Tentative plans include a casual get-together Friday evening, a Saturday barbecue/picnic and a Saturday evening main event.

Reunion organizers are compiling a contact list and ask that all 1963 Spartan classmates email Tara O’Leary at olearytara@mac.com.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, it appears that Castro Valley High students were called the Spartans before the school merged with Canyon High School and Canyon became a middle school.

CASTRO VALLEY — A Castro Valley High graduate who became a mountaineer will share some of his adventures March 15.

Marty Schmidt, who now lives in New Zealand, is a certified mountain climber and guide. He has ascended some of hte world’s highest peaks without bottled oxygen.

He will be showing some photographs and talk about his climbs on Mount Everest, Makalu, Gasherbrum 1 and 2, and other peaks.

Schmidt’s presentation begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Castro Valley Center for the Arts, 19501 Redwood Road.

Workers tearing out old sidewalks along Mission Boulevard in Hayward accidentally cut the gas line to Sue’s Cuts & Perms on Saturday morning.

That meant no hot water, and thus no shampoos or perms Saturday or Sunday. a serious hit for the shop. A electric heater was brought in so the haircuts could continue. Sue’s is at 24277 Mission, across the street from Memorial Park.

The sidewalks are being replaced along Mission in the stretch south of the Jackson-Foothill intersection as part of the Route 238 Improvement Corridor Project.

Drivers can expect slow traffic through the area the next few days as work continues.

Rumors that trees would not be planted along Foothill Boulevard are false.

The rumors apparently started when work crews filled up the tree wells with asphalt. Not to worry – the asphalt will be dug out and trees will go in later. The trees are part of the landscaping along Foothill, which also has new sidewalks and streetlights as part of the Route 238 Corridor Improvement Project.

The asphalt is temporary, says Kevin Briggs, Hayward’s project manager for the road construction. “We put the asphalt in for the holiday season to clean things up and make the area more pedestrian friendly,” he says.

And some of the irrigation system still needs to be installed before the trees are planted, Briggs says.

UPDATE: Story on forum.

Tomorrow’s brief, today: The League of Women Voters-Eden Area will host a pair of nonpartisan political forums Tuesday night, one for Hayward City Council candidates and the other for contenders in the 15th Congressional District.

For Hayward City Council, nine candidates are vying for four seats that are up in June. Incumbents Barbara Halliday, Olden Henson and Francisco Zermeno are facing challengers Shahla Azimi, Peter Bufete, Ralph Farias Jr., Greg Jones, Fahim Khan and Al Mendall.

It will be followed by candidates in District 15, where incumbent Pete Stark is up against challengers Chris Pareja and Eric Swallwell.

The City Council forum starts at 6:30 p.m., District 15 at 8 p.m. at Hayward City Hall, 777 B St.

Judging from various candidate statements, there’s sure to be talk about economic revitalization and bringing businesses to Hayward. Other possible hot topics (and new territory for HayWord commenters as well) include a contested Walmart Neighborhood Market in south Hayward, and the reuse of the former Mervyn’s headquarters site as upscale housing. And there’s always gang injunctions or even happy hour restrictions/alcohol policy.

Take a gander at political reporter Josh Richman’s blog for the latest word on the District 15 race.

From the City Manager’s report. By the way, has anyone seen the Honda Pilot commercial shot in Hayward? Portions were filmed at the newly renovated 1/4-pound Giant Burger and the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge.

Harley Davidson Commercial – Saturday, March 31 – Fresh off a Honda Pilot commercial filmed in December 2011, another vehicle company has chosen Hayward as their location for filming. On Saturday, March 31, Gravy Productions LLC in partnership with Harley Davidson, will be filming a still shoot commercial in front of Casper’s Hot Dogs, located at 951 “C” Street. The producers were looking for a vintage theme to showcase their illustrative bikes. Harley Davidson has been a long standing motorcycle company known for innovation and attraction.

These are exciting times in Hayward as the City is receiving unprecedented requests for these types of activities. Anytime you can have a commercial or an ad filmed in your City, it increases exposure and places you on the map for future productions.Haywardis becoming a popular Bay Area destination for filming, which is aiding in our efforts of attracting even more of these productions. The City looks forward to increasing its filming presence and becoming a permanent destination for these types of activities.

Two barn owls, that's whooo!

UPDATE 4/9: Got this from Wendy on Thursday, haven’t had a chance to blog. 

“Just a quick up date on the Owl Cam at Sulphur Creek. Five eggs have hatched to date and we expect the 6^th egg to hatch on Good Friday, April 6^th.  All the babies seem to be doing well.   The male had been bringing in food at night and mom has been patiently feeding the little babies (owlets) little pieces of rodent that the dad brought in.   The owl cam has been a huge success.   Since put onto the web three weeks ago, we now have had over 35,000 hits by 4,000 viewers from 25 countries.  Images of the babies show that the owlet the first hatched is substantially bigger than his siblings, but all are doing well.”

Feel like snooping on some feathered friends? Sulphur Creek Nature Center set up a camera to record what’s going on with a pair of wild, nesting barn owls and their six eggs. They expect them to hatch any day, and you can take a real-time peek at what’s going on right now on the Hayward Area Recreation and Park District website.

The small camera was placed in a nesting box that is used every year, said Wendy Winsted, an coordinator at the center. It is equipped with infrared light, so activity in the box can be watched 24 hours a day.

Winsted said the first egg is expected to hatch between now and Monday, and the others will follow at two-day intervals.

That’s different than for, say, ducks, because owls lay an egg and immediately start incubating it, Winsted said. Ducks also lay an egg every two days or so but wait until they’re all done before they incubate the lot of ‘em. So they all hatch at once.

With owls, Winsted said, the first egg out will contain an owl with considerable advantages over its peers. It will always be the one that’s a bit bigger.

Winsted is very excited about the owl-cam, and said they tried something similar  years ago with a system wired to a VCR. But going public with it brings an all new element.

“This is something we’ve wanted to do for a long time,” Winsted said, adding that technological assistance was provided by the Hayward Area Recreation and Park Department, funding from the Castro Valley Rotary Club.

More info on press release after the jump.

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