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• Past, Present, and Future of Treasure Island

  • When
    September 28, 2024
  •  
    10:30 AM
  • Location
    Treasure Island Museum, 1 Ave of the Palms #111
  • Spaces left
    0

  Join waitlist

  To register, we prefer you pay online via the black "REGISTER" button. For other options, contact O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  This will be a docent led 1-hour tour of the Treasure Island Museum, housed in the historic Art Moderne Golden Gate International Exposition Administration

  Building, which was also the air terminal for the Pan American Clipper Ships. The second hour will be a 3-mile walking tour of the island with sun and wind exposure, but is easy walking.

  Gourmet snacks, a bar and restaurants are close by for those wanting to stay for lunch.

  We will learn of the past, present and future of Treasure Island.

  If this event is overprescribed, a second tour will be offered, so use the waiting list.

  Group max: 15

  When: Saturday, September 28th. 10:30 AM

  Where: Treasure Island Museum, 1 Ave of the Palms #111

  Cost: Members and guests $30 ($10 for Scholarships), Non-members and guests $45 ($25 for scholarships)

  Length: 2 hours

  Parking in front of the Museum

  
  

  PBKNCA rep- O’Neil Dillon

  If on the day of the event you find you can't make it, call O'Neil Dillon at 510-207-8761. Simply not paying or not replying prevents us from allowing someone else to attend. No-shows do NOT receive a refund!
  

  If you register, then later decide not to attend this event, there may be others on the waiting list who will be able to take your place, so please cancel (click HERE, or on "Already registered" if you are on the event page) or by contacting  O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  If you are on the waitlist and wish to be removed without being registered, please contact  O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

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• Dogpatch Art Walk - The Minnesota St Project

  • When
    October 05, 2024
  •  
    11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
  • Location
    1275 Minnesota St. San Francisco
  • Spaces left
    0

  Join waitlist

  

  To register, we prefer you pay online via the black "REGISTER" button. For other options, contact O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761 
  

  This exclusive, guided tour of contemporary art will begin at the Minnesota Street Project, a three warehouse complex dedicated to educating the public through exhibitions, galleries and programs. Led by collector, traveler and art historian, Rhoda Becker, participants will have access to galleries, meet owners and collectors, speak with artists and get an insider’s perspective on this vibrant contemporary art community. Our guide will have previewed the most current exhibits and created a varied itinerary showcasing current artists and works. They recommend allowing three hours to view all galleries and visit with creatives.

  Nearby cafes are available for lunch and refreshments or bring your own and eat in the nearby park.
  
  The Minnesota Street Project is in Dogpatch which is the new epicenter of innovation, craft and artistic expression. The Museum of Craft and Design, California College of the Arts, San Francisco Center for the Book, entrepreneurial ventures and various art spaces make this an internationally recognized art destination. After the tour, people may want to explore this vibrant area.

  Group size: 20
  Cost: members and guests  $40 ($15 for scholarships), Non-members and guests $50 ($25 for scholarships)
  Parking: Ample street parking
  PBKNCA rep:  Tina Hittenberger

  If on the day of the event you find you can't make it, call O'Neil Dillon at 510-207-8761. Simply not paying or not replying prevents us from allowing someone else to attend. No-shows do NOT receive a refund!
  

  If you register, then later decide not to attend this event, there may be others on the waiting list who will be able to take your place, so please cancel (click HERE, or on "Already registered" if you are on the event page) or by contacting  O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  If you are on the waitlist and wish to be removed without being registered, please contact  O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  Show details
• Museum Tour and Sake Tasting at Takara Sake USA, Inc.

  • When
    October 11, 2024
  •  
    1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
  • Location
    708 Addison Street (at Fourth Street, one block south of University Avenue), Berkeley
  • Spaces left
    19

  Register

  

  To register, we prefer you pay online via the black "REGISTER" button. For other options, contact O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  Signup cutoff September 16!
  

  Friday, October 11, 2024, 1:00 – 3:00 PM

  708 Addison Street (at Fourth Street, one block south of University Avenue), Berkeley, CA 94710

  Optional - meet at 11:45 am for lunch prior to the tour at Tacubaya, casual Mexican, 1782 4^th Street (3 ½ blocks north on 4^th Street).

   This is a golden opportunity to visit one of the few sake-producer tasting rooms in the U.S.  We will also be treated to a private tour of the on-site museum.
  

  Takara’s Junmai sake production achieves a delicate balance between traditional sake-making craftsmanship and advanced sake brewing technology.  The Berkeley facility produces the flagship “Sho Chiku Bai” brand of premium sake, flavored sake, plum wine and mirin, and also imports specialty sake and shochu from its sister breweries and distilleries in Japan, where Takara has been an industry leader for over 180 years.  The tasting room is a work of art in itself, designed by world-famous architect Don Hisaka.  The design reflects on the name Takara, which means “treasure from the rice paddy.”

   The Sake Museum covers ancient sake-making techniques and the fusion with modern technology, creating a rich tapestry of tradition and innovation.
  

  Group Size:  20 to 25, must be at least age 21 to participate

  Cost: Members and guests $40 (one half to be donated to the PBK scholarship fund and one half to cover the cost of the sake tasting)

  Non-members and guests $50 ($30 for scholarships, $20 for cost of sake)

  For information, go to:  https://www.takarasake.com/
  

  PBKNCA Leader:  Libby Tyler ehtyler6@gmail.com 217-493-4372

  If on the day of the event you find you can't make it, call O'Neil Dillon at 510-207-8761. Simply not paying or not replying prevents us from allowing someone else to attend. No-shows do NOT receive a refund!
  

  If you register, then later decide not to attend this event, there may be others on the waiting list who will be able to take your place, so please cancel (click HERE, or on "Already registered" if you are on the event page) or by contacting  O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  If you are on the waitlist and wish to be removed without being registered, please contact  O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  Show details
• Mary Cassatt, An American In Paris - at the Legion of Honor

  • When
    November 15, 2024
  •  
    10:30 AM
  • Location
    Legion of Honor, Lincoln Park, 100 34th Avenue (at Clement Street), San Francisco
  • Spaces left
    1

  Register

  To register, we prefer you pay online via the black "REGISTER" button. For other options, contact O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  Join  Claire and David Cunningham for the museum visit, lunch and discussion.
  

  See the work of this unique American artist who spent much of her life in France and was a close friend and artistic colleague of Edgar Degas.  Cassatt was both an artist of some merit in France and a promoter of French art in the US.
  

  Too often dismissed as a sentimental painter of mothers and children, Mary Cassatt (1844-1926) was in fact a modernist pioneer.  Her paintings, pastels, and prints are characterized by restless experimentation and change.  Cassatt was the only American to join the French Impressionists, first exhibiting with the group at Degas’ invitation in 1879, and quickly emerged as a key member of the movement.  Alongside scenes of women at the opera, visiting friends, and taking tea, Cassatt produced many images of “women’s work”—knitting and needlepoint, bathing children, and nursing infants.  These images suggest parallels between the work of art-making and the work of care-giving.  The exhibition calls attention to the artist’s own processes of making— how she used her brush, etching needle, pastel stick, and even fingertips to create radical art under the cover of “feminine” subject matter.    
  

  After viewing the art, we will join together for lunch at the Legion Cafe where we will seek to sit together and discuss what we have just seen.

  Date:  Friday November 15th
  Time:  10:30 AM
  Place:  The Legion of Honor, San Francisco.  Meet in the museum lobby behind the check-in counters (look for the PBK placard),  then  at 12:00 Noon  in the museum cafe.
  Parking:  At the museum
  PBKNCA leaders:  David and Claire Cunningham
  

  Limit 18

  
  

  Fees:

  1/ PBK Registration fee:  $10 (for scholarships)

  
  

  2/ The Museum entrance fee on the day of the  event is  $20 regular, $17 seniors. To pay the entrance fee in advance, go to:

  https://www.famsf.org/visit/legion-tickets-hours

  
  

   Museum members do not have to pay an entrance fee.
  
  

  3/ There may be an additional fee for the Cassatt show.

  
  

  4/ Optional $8 for Audio tour headset

  If on the day of the event you find you can't make it, call O'Neil Dillon at 510-207-8761. Simply not paying or not replying prevents us from allowing someone else to attend. No-shows do NOT receive a refund!
  

  If you register, then later decide not to attend this event, there may be others on the waiting list who will be able to take your place, so please cancel (click HERE, or on "Already registered" if you are on the event page) or by contacting  O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  If you are on the waitlist and wish to be removed without being registered, please contact  O'Neil Dillon at oneilsdillon@gmail.com or 510-207-8761

  Show details
• 38th Asilomar Conference - Feb 14-17, 2025

  • Start
    February 14, 2025
  •  
    4:00 PM
  • End
    February 17, 2025
  •  
    12:00 PM
  • Location
    Asilomar, 800 Asilomar Ave, Pacific Grove, CA

  Register

  
  

  What a great weekend we had! You can register now for 2025 now!  

  To register, we prefer you pay online via the black "REGISTER" button. But you may mail the coupon and a check by snail mail.  After you register you will receive information about reserving room and meals with the PBK group. For registration or logistics matters, please contact Barry Haskell at bghaskell@comcast.net. Registration is $150 (member and guests rate), which goes in part to scholarships.  (Remember, to be part of the PBKNCA package, do not reserve directly with the facility - wait for the information from Barry.) 

  A partial preview of 2025 Speakers includes the following. More will be listed on the website later. For more information, contact Deirdre Frontczak, (707) 546-4238, dfrontczak@santarosa.edu

  
  

  

  Seth Zupanc, PBKNCA Scholarship Awardee, 2024 (UC San Francisco, Medicine)

  Communication With End-Of-Life Patients

  A current doctoral student in at UCSF, Seth is working to develop innovative ways to identify and measure what matters most to patients facing life-limiting and life-threatening illnesses. Patients' goals and wishes, however, are often documented in the free-text of clinical notes rather than in the medical record. At the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Seth has been collaborating on a research stream that seeks to develop natural language processing software to make it easier to find the needle of patients' wishes in the haystack of the medical records.

  Professors have noted that Seth is "passionate and knowledgeable across a broad range of issues" and is a "rare combination of prolific researcher and compassionate physician." 

  
  

  Dr. Franklin Utchen, DVM.  University of Illinois: PBK and Biology in 1982, DVM in 1986

  The Fountain of Woof
  

  We all know someone who considers themselves to be a "dog parent", someone who is taking their dogs on vacations, organizing their daily lives around walk schedules, and going through the entire grief cycle when their pet's time comes to be put down.  With 97% of owners viewing their pets like family members, how do we ensure our canine companions are living their best life for as long as they can? Dr. Franklin Utchen will delve into the burgeoning field of biogerontology (the science of aging), exploring how the latest scientific research can be applied to both dogs and humans. Dr. Utchen will present insights into the science of longevity and practical strategies for enhancing the health and lifespan of our canine companions, drawing on his personal experience as a veterinarian with over 35 years of daily practice and the extensive knowledge detailed in his groundbreaking book of the same name, "The Fountain of Woof". His discussion will cover cutting-edge findings from research on aging in dogs, and will also address how these principles can be translated into human applications.  This research will give you the information you need to ensure your dog is by your side - and you are by theirs - for many more memorable years.

   Dr. Franklin Utchen is a veterinarian, business owner, and author from the greater Chicago area who graduated with honors from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine in 1986 and moved to California, soon after, co-founding Norris Canyon Veterinary Medical Center in San Ramon, CA.  In 2000, he led the merger with another practice to form Bishop Ranch Veterinary Center (BRVC), also in San Ramon, which has been included on several lists featuring the best veterinary practices in the Bay Area.  Dr. Utchen shared his veterinary insights as a regular contributor to the East Bay Times for several years, and hosted an informational series on local radio.  Dr. Utchen blends his extensive experience with scientific research to offer innovative insights into canine health and longevity in his upcoming book "The Fountain of Woof", available fall 2024.  Now semi-retired, he focuses on mentoring veterinarians, backpacking, playing guitar, and enjoying time with his daughters, continuing to influence the field of veterinary medicine through his work and writings.

   

  The Tender Conscience (Victorian feminist literature)
  

  Esther Yu, PBKNCA Teaching Excellence Awardee, 2023 (Stanford University, Literature)

   

   As a fellow at the Stanford Humanities Center, Dr. Yu has been working on a forthcoming book, Experiencing the Novel: The Genre of Tender Conscience, which argues that subjects in seventeenth-century England claimed political voices through identifying as what they called “tender consciences.” The convictions of Yu’s research have thoroughly informed her pedagogy even during these trying times for, as early modern “tender consciences” realized, developing dispositions of care and sensitivity—even to texts that seem strange or initially difficult or irrelevant—can yield world-historical consequences.            
  

  Yu is especially mindful of the cultural divide that makes it difficult to ask students grappling with so many crises at once to read epic poems and epistolary novels with the intense receptivity that they require. But it is a challenge she feels compelled to take up, not least because of her own relationship as a postcolonial subject and minority scholar to the archive of English literature. Yu encourages students from diverse backgrounds to recognize the creative, transformative possibilities that attend experiences of textual distance and cultural alienation or hostility.

  
  

  Doug Christie, PBK Visiting Scholar for 2025 (Loyola Marymount University, Professor Emeritus, Theological Studies and Ecology)
  

  Thinking Like A Mountain: Contemplative Ecology In The Anthropocene
  

  The environmental thinker Aldo Leopold once asked: can we learn to "think like a mountain?" That is, can we learn to re-center our thinking, our ethics, our spiritual practice–beyond our own narrow concerns and within the living world? In this moment of global climate change, we are returning to this question with a new sense of urgency, asking ourselves what it will mean for us to relinquish control and learn to live with greater regard for the natural world. This lecture will consider what it will mean for us to cultivate an eco-centric, contemplative spiritual practice in the Anthropocene.
  

  Professor Christie is the author of The Word in The Desert: Scripture and the Quest for Holiness in Early Christian Monasticism (Oxford, 1993), The Blue Sapphire of the Mind: Note for a Contemplative Ecology (Oxford, 2013), and The Insurmountable Darkness of Love: Mysticism, Loss and the Common Life (Oxford, 2022). He has been awarded fellowships from the Luce Foundation, the Lilly Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. From 2013-2015 he served as Co-director of the Casa de la Mateada study abroad program in Córdoba, Argentina, a program rooted in the Jesuit vision of education for solidarity. He lives with his family in Los Angeles, and is currently working on a book on the desert as spiritual landscape.

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