Before we got there a crowd of over 1000 people were tear gassed and the crowd that we joined was tear gassed two more times. The canisters were not only thrown into a peacefully protesting crowd but the second time the canisters were thrown all the way down the street to a smaller group of people who we were standing with.

A few nights later we went to a general assembly with over 3000 people. Together we listened to people speak and discussed and passed a proposal to have a city wide strike in Oakland which will take place tomorrow Nov. 2nd. I have been loosely involved in protests before but always felt nervous because all it takes is one person to disregard the agreement to remain peaceful and things get out of hand. I was incredibly proud of this group, who after getting tear gassed three times continued to keep the peace and remind each other to do the same. At one point a protester overturned a garbage can into the street and many people around called out to stop  and helped pick it up and collect the spilled trash.

The ability for a group of people at this scale to organize and practice their right to protest peacefully for the need to be heard is humbling. I understand people are upset and protesting for different reasons, which is one of the criticisms of the occupy movement but I feel and sympathies with the outrage and the need to let our communities and country know that the system we have now is not working for the 99%. I am not going to get too political but I am very proud of and stand in solidarity with the occupy movement.

The first one, which happened way back in May, was a big birthday bash for Eva.

Eli's Flavor of the Month Club Band, Hope You Enjoy the Show

We had the privilege of being serenaded by Eli’s Flavor of the Month Club Band, which on that day was Eli Goldsmith on the keys and Bil Hager on base. Thanks to everyone for coming out!! It was a beautiful rocking good time.

  Thanks so much to Tanya Garner for the Sweet photos!!

And another big thanks to Craig for throwing down two boats on the party I have got the best boat neighbors ever!

We finally have an oven on our boat! Thanks to the Donati’s for their awesome gift.

Today our neighbor Craig took us out on his friend’s Excalubur 26 to start teaching Eva how sailboats work. It wasn’t too windy, the water was calm, and the tide slacking; perfect conditions for learning!

She did really well and we are excited to continue repairs on ours so we can finally sail Magnolia!

- Install bathroom lighting: check!

- Replace automatic bilge pump (the thing that makes sure that excess water is pumped overboard i.e. prevents sinking): check!

Being on spring break is good for my boat fixing productivity!

There is a new addition to our dock. A catamaran called Spirit, owned by sailing expert Craig and inhabited by our new friend Tanya. Craig is a fan of late night sails, and we are always happy to join them.

We have a couple of fun posts coming up, but we wanted to share our first actual sailing experience in the bay, on this great catamaran. In the picture, check out Eva reaching for a container ship on our way upwind in the estuary. Sorry for picture quality, we should have better ones up soon.

Eva hard at work making a new entrance panel for magnolia!

Thank you to those who did make it out, and to anyone who couldn’t – you are welcome any time

Life in the boat has been fun as we have started getting things organized and doing our best to keep dry. The first rains helped us find the leaks but those are not as big of a problem as the humidity. The condensation on the ceiling and windows is so great that it sometimes  drips… we are still in the process of figuring that one out.

On the other hand our kitchen has been more than accommodating as we cook in it every night. And the views have been out of this world! They truly bring new meaning to the phrase “I live in the Bay”.

Yesterday jerry brown held a rally right in front of our boat. Hundreds of people showed to hear him speak, and Eva and I were stoked (more like giddy actually) that Barbara boxer and kamala harris were there as well. There is an awesome democratic ticket this election season.

I will be joining Eva at the polls tonight (though still as an observer, not a participant), have you voted yet?

P.s. sorry for all the pictures being shown like that, posted from my phone.

Young people are the best mirrors to the oppression in our society. They internalize it, act upon it, even attempt to perpetuate it. The bullies don’t know any better than to act upon what they notice in their surroundings. The bullied, if oppressive systems aren’t directly challenged at their homes, internalize the oppressive statements and act upon them.

Eva certainly sees it at her school, where many of the young African-American students are surrounded by messages of the inferiority of their people – of their limited societal worth – and internalize it by turning on each other and disregarding the value of the education they are receiving.

It’s up to all of us to behave as allies and work together to dismantle oppression. This is a conversation that, especially white allies, are often reluctant to have, but one necessary if we are to work towards a more just world.

We decided, since we have this widely read (49 people the other day!!!) blog, that we would take this opportunity to try to trigger this important conversation.

What are you doing, or what would you like to do, to contribute to the dismantling of systems of oppression in your community?