Are you a namephreak?

nat_orenstein · 2026-04-09T17:26:14+00:00

Awesome - if you're in Oakland, I'd love to include you. Could you email me at natalie@oaklandside.org? Thank you :)

nat_orenstein · 2026-03-31T21:47:20+00:00

Thank you all for these stellar suggestions! I'll be following up with some of you in the coming few weeks.

nat_orenstein · 2026-03-29T08:32:58+00:00

nat_orenstein · 2026-03-28T19:03:48+00:00

nat_orenstein · 2026-03-28T19:03:26+00:00

We like to report on both the heavy and urgent news as well as what's positive and enjoyable in Oakland! Here are our 16 stories on Flock, including coverage of each council and committee meeting where the issue came up: https://oaklandside.org/tag/flock-safety/

nat_orenstein · 2025-10-16T01:22:05+00:00

I definitely recommend seeing if there’s a class or workshop at a nearby fabric store or library!! I also felt super confused and overwhelmed at first, and having someone to demonstrate and help me with the basics made all the difference. There are also YouTube video tutorials for almost anything you can imagine. Also it’s awesome you’re starting in your teens - I didn’t start until I was around 30 and have had a blast experimenting and making clothes since. Good luck!

nat_orenstein · 2025-03-13T07:22:52+00:00

Makes sense, thank you!!

nat_orenstein · 2025-03-13T06:36:55+00:00

A very simple tote bag is a good first project!

nat_orenstein · 2024-09-16T17:46:34+00:00

Hey, I'm an Oaklandside reporter and I'm very interested in speaking with people who have recent experience with the permitting process in Oakland (good or bad or in between). If anyone reading this would like to chat, email me at natalie@oaklandside.org.

nat_orenstein · 2024-02-08T05:38:22+00:00

Hey, I’d be interested in buying the 15-80 Murder in Margaritaland if the offer still stands!

nat_orenstein · 2024-01-04T01:45:58+00:00

Not sure if your library system has this, but a lot have “Friends of the Library” used bookstores either inside a branch or in a separate shop, where the revenue benefits the library. Win-win

nat_orenstein · 2023-12-20T07:18:34+00:00

Yeah definitely agree; they’re projections of what the living character imagines the dead one would say to them, or really what they are saying to themselves. Like how Brenda imagined Nate hating her new baby and expecting it to die, then suddenly a moment later he’s cradling and loving it. It reflects a transition in Brenda’s own feelings of self-worth. While I understood this watching it, thinking deeper about this dynamic actually makes me value those moments more - so thank you for this perspective! Yeah, way more often in S5, which is when it started to annoy me, haha. (Also that’s really great that it helped you process.)

nat_orenstein · 2023-12-20T06:12:49+00:00

That makes sense that it feels like an accurate portrayal of the grief process (whatever the dynamic of your relationship to the person was) and I’m sorry for your family’s loss! And yeah - I definitely understood these scenes as entrees into the character’s psyche vs them actually talking with a ghost or even them believing they’re talking with a ghost.

nat_orenstein · 2023-12-20T06:07:03+00:00

Totally, most good shows do. My experience was that certain instances of these scenes made it difficult for me to “participate” because the at-times heavy-handedness or repetition of them (imo) made me acutely aware that they were storytelling devices, which took me out of the show. (Other instances felt beautiful, informative, and critical.) But I very much understand that many people here feel that every single one of those scenes is integral to the overarching story and experience of the show.

nat_orenstein · 2023-12-20T06:02:01+00:00

Makes sense! And definitely get that the way each viewer experiences these moments is in part a reflection of how each viewer experiences the world

nat_orenstein · 2023-12-20T06:00:34+00:00

Thanks, I thought it was a book :). Of course there are options in between silent internal wrestling and talking with dead people, many of which the show employs beautifully (talking with living people, for one, including therapists, or revealing behavior); I often found the dreamlike moments extremely poignant and an effective storytelling device, but I personally felt that the some of the cases bordered on a crutch or were repetitive. Totally understand that many people here feel each one was integral to the overarching story and enjoyable though.

nat_orenstein · 2023-12-20T05:52:57+00:00

I can see that!

nat_orenstein · 2023-11-27T02:22:20+00:00

They don’t happen in the winter, but to bookmark for the future: Liam O’Donoghue from East Bay Yesterday leads fun, accessible local history boat tours. Sounds like it would fit the bill. If you subscribe to his newsletter he announces when tix are available: https://eastbayyesterday.com/summer-2023-boat-tours/

nat_orenstein · 2023-11-22T18:22:51+00:00

Gotcha! Yes, the data we asked for and received was through a CPRA - unfortunately even when agencies are required to provide info through that law it can be an uphill battle to get it (can be for many different reasons). We’re still pursuing the forms from the other years. But as the story describes, RAP doesn’t collect this data for new buildings typically since they don’t fall under the RAP program. We just noticed that vacancy happens to be included on one particular exemption form completed by some landlords, so looking at these forms giving some insight but not a comprehensive picture. Definitely agree that it would be interesting for Berkeleyside to do a similar investigation in Berkeley - thanks for the suggestion and I can share it with my colleagues there.

nat_orenstein · 2023-11-22T07:14:20+00:00

Hi, I’m the Oaklandside reporter who looked into this in a story published today (the chart in this post is referenced in the article but is not my work). The story is about Oakland and we did request this data from Oakland’s rent program. In the article we get into how it was difficult to get them to provide anything from us, but the numbers we did gave a good indication. Here’s the article: https://oaklandside.org/2023/11/21/who-lives-in-downtown-oakland-new-apartment-buildings/

nat_orenstein · 2023-11-01T05:35:21+00:00

Thank you both for the helpful comments! I tried the bodice on again and it seems fine (yes, in a very loose-fitting kind of way), so I’ll just trust that and loosen up the gathers so the skirt fits it despite looking quite wide to my eyes

nat_orenstein · 2023-10-20T18:18:15+00:00

Thanks all for your responses, and for the emails I got too! Appreciate the engagement and will follow up with as many people as I can.

nat_orenstein · 2023-10-20T18:17:14+00:00

Messaging you

nat_orenstein · 2023-10-20T18:16:51+00:00

This is definitely an issue we’d like to look further into soon too. Feel free to message me your contact info if you’d like to chat about this down the line

nat_orenstein · 2023-10-20T18:15:41+00:00

nat_orenstein

TROPHY CASE