Does this weekend’s spectacular weather have you thinking about getting out and being more active? How about your kids …?

[sitethumb://www.willowglenextra.com/wgPAL/?p=254]The Willow Glen PAL Soccer program has begun accepting registrations for the league’s Fall 2008 season. Promotional fliers will go home with local elementary school students this week, and the league expects to have more than 350 neighborhood kids playing recreational soccer next Fall.

In addition to the traditional mail-in and walk-up registration process, the league has added an online registration process this year. The costs is $75 for players who sign-up before June 30.

Looking for something interesting to do on Saturday? Join Team Willow Glen on their training walk for the Avon Breast Cancer Walk (which itself is July 12-13). This week’s Willow Glen History Walk leaves from Elva’s Coffee Stop at 11:00 am. (more…)

Hey, you remember the unique Willow Glen Caboose, right?

Caboose owner Katy Dickinson has a fun opportunity for you to have Brunch on the Caboose, while supporting a major fundraising project of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Saratoga.

I took this portrait photo of WP668, our backyard caboose, since we are auctioning off a caboose brunch for six as one of the offerings in the SAMA Auction (Middle Eastern Feast and Auction to be held this Sunday, 13 April 2008, at 5:30 pm at St. Andrew’s, 13601 Saratoga Ave. Saratoga, CA).

SAMA is St. Andrew’s Medical Assistance Outreach program, and exists to provide hope and healing to a hurting world:

We raise funds annually through our annual Middle Eastern Feast and Auction and our Christmas Crafts sale. Medical Programs SAMA supports in the Holy Land include: Ahli Arab Hospital (the only Christian hospital in Gaza), and the Four Homes of Mercy (a home for the severely disabled based in Jerusalem).

By the way, Katy also blogs regularly on a variety of diverse topics, including her philanthropy, her job at SUN, and of course restored Caboose WP668.

Caboose Images Copyright 2008 by Katy Dickinson and John Plocher

Today will be another slow day of driving around Willow Glen. Construction continues this week on several major projects — and some minor ones — around the neighborhood.

Sidewalk installation and street upgrades have made some progress on Hamilton Avenue west of Meridian, but until someone moves that telephone pole, the sidewalk will have to wait. Crews installed the replacement pole two weeks ago, and have slowly been whittling down the old one as wires get transferred over. It remains to be seen if this project will positively impact traffic flow at the intersection, but fancy metal bollards have been installed to protect pedestrians on the corner.

Repaving along Curtner Avenue continues this week as well, following recent water and hydrant upgrades — although there has not been any progress on the long-delayed ramp from Almaden Expressway. The intersection of Booksin & Curtner is is getting the brunt of attention from crews this morning.

In addition to the big ones, small projects along Lincoln Avenue (north of Pine) will also slow drivers this week.

It’s not like you are looking to WillowGlenExtra for your up to the minute sports news, but just in case … the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin this week, and the San Jose Sharks will face the Calgary Flames in Game One tonight at 7:00.

WGx has decided to do its part for the home team by trying to eliminate the SJ Mercury’s newspaper racks that are still adorned with former Shark Owen Nolan’s smiling mug. The racks were installed several years ago, but still exist in small pockets. In a recent email to WGx, Merc Circulation VP David Rounds wishes the images were long gone, too:

—– Original Message —-
From: David Rounds
Subject: Owen on the Racks

Thanks for bringing this to our attention. I am not sure who had the bright idea to stencil on the racks an image of a specific player but I am sorry that they did (and it was before my time and I have been at the Mercury for three+ years). As we refurbish the racks and repaint them we will be taking care of this but it will take awhile. Meanwhile, here is to making the second round…..go Sharks.

David Rounds
Vice President/Circulation

Nolan may be wearing Sharks teal in the newspaper rack pictures, but he’s wearing Flames red this year.

And Nolan may still live in San Jose during the off-season, and current Sharks players down-play the connection … but that’s no excuse to have his face plastered all over our fair city more than five years after his departure via trade.

WGx has invited the Merc to co-sponsor a painting-over project – don’t call it graffiti – but we’ll have to see just how nasty this series gets before taking any drastic measures like that.

Of course, you can always try removing Owen’s picture yourself …. one pixel at a time.

——-

It didn’t work out too well last year, but WGx is happy to join the Sharks Bandwagon again for 2008, celebrating Stanley Cup events in WG and other neighborhoods. If you know of a Sharks event, a viewing party open to the public, or any other display of team colors, contact WGx to promote it and get your picture published right here.

In a follow-up to news first reported on WillowGlenExtra …

The Willow Glen ACE Hardware store now has a website and a date for their grand opening celebration!

The bright neon lights are on, and stocked shelves are visible through the new front windows. ACE plans to open the first week of May, with its “Grand Opening Celebration” scheduled for May 16-18.

For the moment, the website only provides a portal to an online store and includes a nice history of the family behind the new franchise.

With all of the musical talent on display this week at WG High School and next week at WG Middle School, you’d think someone from Willow Glen might have a shot at the SJ Library’s San Jose Teen Idol contest:

If you are 12-19 years old and a resident of San José, then you can compete during the month of April for a chance to win San José Public Library’s “San José Teen Idol” competition! Each branch library will host its own local neighborhood competition and winners will receive cash prizes:

• First Place = $50
• Second Place = $25
• Third Place = $10

The first place winner from each branch will be one of the finalists to compete for the grand prize at the main event downtown at the Dr. Martin Luther, Jr. Library in May! Please come to the library to register and pick up a rule sheet

Students are apparently welcome to compete at any local library — albeit not yet one in Willow Glen. Just like last year’s WG-less affair, there appear to be no geographic limitations, so check out the library’s competition schedule, which runs April 10 through 26. Rose Garden hosts its show this Thursday, and your chance at Cambrian is on Saturday!

Booksin School combines its two annual collection drives this month, accepting food donations on behalf of Second Harvest and clothing donations for SJUSD’s Healthy Start Family Support Center through Friday, April 11.

If you don’t have a Booksin student to help you deliver them, just drop them by the school during open hours this week. For the food drive, cans with pull-tops are especially helpful. The school also accepts big boxes to help sort clothes. (more…)

It’s been a while since the last WG Library update from WGx, but the City of San Jose is now reporting the library is 87% complete!

Replacement of the existing branch library for a new 13,338 SF facility.
Phase: Phase V - Construction
Current Status: Project is approximately 87% completed.

While we all wait for the last 13%, the WG Neighborhood Association comes through with a recent “Picture of the Week” (opens w/o frames), taken inside the library last month.

WGNA guru Larry Ames took the picture one day when he was walking by with his camera, and construction crews let him in:

Just happened to be lucky and wandered by while they had the gate down and were working inside. Looking forward to seeing the finished project!

It was one of those “quiet grand openings” a few weeks go, but alert WGNA eLister Mark Sweiger caught the arrival of Willow Glen on Google’s Street View maps feature:

From: Mark Sweiger
Subject: Smile, you’re on Candid Camera

I just noticed that most of Willow Glen north of Minnesota as well as the part west of Newport and north of Pine is now on Google Street View. … You may see yourself watering the lawn, your cat in the window, or, as some have discovered, your image coming out of the Pink Poodle. I just checked and you can see in the open door of the Pink Poodle but it will take better spy software than I’ve got to look through the partition, so you are all safe for now until the Google Insect Cruise Cam comes into your house.

Where is my flyswatter?

This maps feature from Google made news this past week when a couple in Pennsylvania sued Google for invasion of privacy:

PITTSBURGH - A western Pennsylvania couple has sued Google Inc., saying pictures of their home on its Web site violate their privacy and devalued their property.

Images of the home Aaron and Christine Boring bought in the Pittsburgh suburb of Franklin Park in October 2006 appeared on Google’s “Street View” feature, which allows users to find street-level photos by clicking on a map.

“A major component of their purchase decision was a desire for privacy,” according to their complaint, filed Wednesday in state court, which also says the couple suffered mental distress.

The images must have been taken from the couple’s long driveway, which is labeled “Private Road,” and that violated their privacy, according to the complaint.

Mark’s joke was penned before the lawsuit was announced. But it may only be a matter of time before similar suits appear from folks found in compromising positions. Of course, the privacy issues didn’t stop local bog Valleywag’s posting of pictures of the Pennsylvania residence.

Google uses vehicles with mounted digital cameras to collect pictures for Street View. Some of these vehicles were spotted in WG last Fall, which seems to correlate with some of the images recognized by neighbors. Right now, Street View is only available for areas north of Pine Avenue (marked in blue above). Stay tuned for more.