Matt's Writing

Matt Werner, writer & editor

Joaquin Miller: Oakland’s First Hipster?

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Joaquin Miller (Courtesy Oakland Public Library, Oakland History Room.)
Over the past year, I’ve overheard Oakland natives complaining about the influx of hipsters moving to Oakland. However, this trend is as old as the city itself. Poseurs have been coming to the East Bay since the pioneer days. Today we honor one of these famous poseurs, Joaquin Miller, on his 175th birthday.

Joaquin Miller was known as the “Poet of the Sierras,” and lived in a white cottage he called “The Abbey” in the Oakland hills from 1886 to his death in 1913. He earned his fame as an eccentric poet who told tall tales, and as a fashion icon. His house and hillside monuments now make up Joaquin Miller Park.

Read the full post about this Oakland fashionista on the Oaklandish blog

 

1,000+ cyclists turn out for East Bay Bike Party

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Over 1,000 cyclists turned out for one of the most popular East Bay Bike Parties to date. At 8pm on Friday, August 10, 2012, the lower lot at Rockridge BART was overflowing with cyclists of all ages from throughout the East Bay. People were on all types of bikes: road and mountain bikes, tall bikes, track bikes, custom “Burning Man-style” bikes, and even a tricycle outfitted with a canvas frame that made it look like a food truck vending donuts throughout the ride.

Read the full article on Oakland Local.

200 Cyclists Participate in 5th Annual Peace Ride

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Hiram Lawrence was one-year-old when he was shot in Oakland on November 28, 2011. On Saturday, July 21, 2012 approximately 200 cyclists turned out for the 5th Annual Peace Ride in his honor. The event, sponsored by Bikes 4 Life bike shop, ended in West Oakland with a tree planting and dedication ceremony in Hiram’s honor, attended by Oakland Mayor Jean Quan.

Read the full article on Oakland Local

Huffington Post publishes excerpt from Oakland in Popular Memory

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The Huffington Post published an excerpt from Oakland in Popular Memory–the afterword titled “Gertrude Stein’s Oakland.” Read the post here.

This piece is adapted from a blog post I wrote for the Google Books blog for Gertrude Stein’s birthday on February 3, 2012.

Also, the book release party is tonight at University Press Books in Berkeley, California.

Click here for more information about Oakland in Popular Memory.

Oakland in Popular Memory is available from Amazon and Thought Publishing, as well as these Bay Area independent bookstores.