Email: (See my email address at the bottom of the Albany Patch or Berkeley Patch homepage.)
Phone: 510-435-4127
Now in my fourth year with Patch.com, I'm the editor of and Albany Patch and Berkeley Patch.
I worked many years as a staff writer and editor at the San Francisco Chronicle until April of 2009, when I switched to freelancing. I then wrote for the Los Angeles Times and other publications, and I also took on editing assignments for UC Berkeley and the United Nations.
Being an East Bay reporter for Patch brings my career full circle in the East Bay. My first bylines appeared in the East Bay Review of the Performing Arts. I next worked as a reporter and editor at the Daily Californian while studying at UC Berkeley, where I obtained a master's in journalism. I was a reporter at the Contra Costa Independent, Berkeley Gazette and San Francisco Examiner before moving to the Chronicle, where I worked several years in the Berkeley bureau and in the main East Bay bureau in Oakland.
A preliminary hearing – to determine if the case should go to trial – has been set for April 4 for Diane Sydenham, the Albany woman charged with killing 81-year-old James Durkin of Kensington with a steak knife to the heart.
A preliminary hearing – to determine if the case should go to trial – has been set for April 4 for Diane Sydenham, the Albany woman charged with killing 81-year-old James Durkin of Kensington with a steak knife to the heart.
Battling a loss of revenue, the U.S. Postal Service will host a public meeting tonight, Tuesday, at the Berkeley City Council chambers on reuse of the main Berkeley Post Office. A council subcommittee voted against a sale.
With only a week left in the run-up to the March 5 vote on renewing Piedmont's parcel tax for schools, an informal survey of yard signs indicates strong support for the Piedmont Unified School District measure.
Earlier this month, we asked readers if they could pinpoint where a well-known photo of a young Mark Twain was taken in Piedmont. Here are directions to and a current photo of the location in the middle of Piedmont Park.
If you want to try the most ordered offering at Alameda's unique Doggy-Style Hotdogs on Park Street, ask for the Doggyzilla, a Japanese-inspired combination of bratwurst, Asian slaw, homemade wasabi mayo and teriyaki sauce.
As Piedmont's longtime Director of Finance & Human Resources, Mark Bichsel, prepares to clean out his desk, he offers appreciation for the "incredible" enthusiasm that the community has for helping the city.
Many people call today Presidents Day, or Presidents' Day, or President's Day, but officially in the eyes of the U.S. government, it's none of those.
Paris is coming to the Rockridge Library on Saturday, Feb. 23, when three Bay Area novelists will appear together to discuss their novels set in the City of Light. The event is sponsored by the Oakland-Piedmont chapter of AAUW.
There aren't many red fish on permanent parade in Albany, but we found one for the Patch Mystery Photo contest. If you're first to tell us in the comments where this spotted creature can be spotted, you'll win a prize.
On Feb. 26, the Kensington Municipal Advisory Council will accept public comments and review applications for AT&T cell phone towers at nine locations in Kensington. The installations have to be approved by Contra Costa County.
The Alameda Free Library took a novel approach to celebrating Valentine's Day – inviting readers to take home gift-wrapped books (chosen and covered in Valentine-themed wrapping by the library) without knowing what they are.
The Draft Environmental Impact Report for the proposed reconstruction and expansion of the Rockridge Shopping Center, including a new "Lifestyle" Safeway, will be the subject of an Oakland Planning Commission hearing on Feb. 20.
The Berkeley book van brings library services – like books requested by patrons – to neighborhoods where branch libraries are closed for reconstruction. The weather has a big effect on the number of visitors on a given day.
Two couples took advantage of the wedding package offerings from the Alameda City Clerk's office to get married in the City Council Chambers at City Hall on Valentine's Day.
Federal and state investigators probing the cause of the large Aug. 6 fire at the Chevron refinery in Richmond issued findings Wednesday and blamed the oil giant for failing to replace a badly corroded pipe that caused the blaze.
A young woman dressed as a giant penis was among the students from UC Berkeley's sexual health program handing out condoms on Sproul Plaza this week for National Condom Week, timed to accompany Valentine's Day.
If newts had X-rated movies, one of the hottest titles might be "Newt Love at UC Berkeley," posted by the campus this week on YouTube. The video shows the amorous amphibians in action at Cal's Botanical Garden.
The El Cerrito Police Blotter for Feb. 8-10 says a group of car thieves and burglars and a commercial burglar were arrested following deployment of plainclothes officers in commercial areas on two of the last three weekends.
If newts had X-rated movies, one of the hottest titles might be "Newt Love at UC Berkeley," posted by the campus this week on YouTube. The video shows the amorous amphibians in action at Cal's Botanical Garden.