Slept in late Sunday and discovered to my horror that my cupboard was bare. So I donned fake fur-lined boots, a down jacket and pants and headed for The Street for some lunch. The sound of crunching and crackling leaves was satisfying as I plowed through piles of them. The trees showed off their autumn finery in shades of vermilion, cadmium red and yellow, and raw and burnt umber against a cloudless cerulean sky. As I turned the corner on East D St., I waved to Patrick who was starting his trusty and rusty old truck, double-parked in front of Adobe. Gardners in Avant Garden were plowing their earthen plots preparing for winter plantings — turning over the earth for perhaps the last time as rumors circulate about imminent development sometime next year. An electric guitar blasted the air space around Lucca’s whose patio was filled despite the chill. Mare Island Brewery’s outdoor tables and counter were buzzing. Elisa’s Victorian front porch displayed a row of colorful boots, baskets of scarves, and a rack of over-the-top Christmas sweaters. Walking by Bell and Brass, the new home decoration and furnishing shop, an array of colorful felt dolls made by the ethnic women of Kyrgyzstan caught my eye. I identified Elton John, Van Gogh, Jackie Kennedy, and Dr. Fauci who were all hanging out together on a Christmas tree. Fauci was the only one wearing a mask.
A friend and I took the Ferry to SF this week — only $4.50 for a senior if you have a Senior Clipper Card. Turns out I’ve been paying more than double because I hadn’t bought the Card. We then caught the #5 R (rapid) bus to the De Young Museum. Only $1.25 with the Clipper. Uber would have cost $25-30. Our destination was the Faith Ringgold exhibit which was a revelation — playful, sobering, and inspirational. Faith is a multi-media artist, public speaker, Black rights activist, performance artist, and teacher. She tells the history of African Americans through her paintings, sculpture, quilts, and drawings in a beautiful and visceral way.
You’re all familiar with the popular store on First Street — Mozart, Einstein & Me — loved by kids and adults alike who are drawn to the wide variety of musical instruments, games, puzzles, toys, and books that feed the creative side of the brain. Well … Einstein has left the building. When he died in 1955, he willed all of his papers and the rights to his name and image to Hebrew University in Jerusalem, which he also co-founded in 1919. Now one of the top universities in the world, particularly for the sciences, having graduated eight Noble Prize winners, University attorneys recently sent a cease and desist order to Stan Houston, CEO of the popular shop — stop using Einstein’s name or turn over the store’s trademark rights to the University. No discussion. Talk about the long arm of the law. And just in time for the holidays.
What would Albert think? As a kid he would have loved the Benicia store. As an adult it would have been his favorite hang. It was said that the reason he was a genius was because both the right side and the left side of his brain were so well connected. His greatest love was playing the violin. “I know that the most joy in my life has come to me from my violin,” which he named “Lina.” Coincidently, Mozart was his favorite composer. In his biography “Albert Einstein—The Early Years,” his sister Maria says that he used to love playing with “puzzles, jigsaws, and a construction kit.” Sound familiar? The shop hasn’t heard a peep from Mozart as his name is now in the public domain. Roll over Amadeus and tell Albert the news.
Stan explained his reaction to the University’s letter from the Holy Land. “Long known for expressing my reactions with colorful language and a sense of sardonic humor nurtured by the likes of Mel Brooks movies, I spent the weekend exercising my frustration by what can only be described as sarcastic and edgy remarks based on nomadic culture, inventions, and the solar system.”
It took a few weeks for a decision to be made. Stan certainly wasn’t going to turn over his trademark rights. Andrea Gizzo, the store’s General Manager, advocor replacing Einstein with a woman. According to Stan, “We felt it was time to honor and recognize the contributions of women in history. It didn’t take long to settle on aviation hero Amelia Earhart, who promoted adventure, strength, and equality.” Their new business cards now say “Mozart, Earhart & Me.” Stan summed it up: “ Einstein would be replaced by Earhart; Albert was gone and Amelia was in. The scientist extraordinaire would give way to the explorer, writer, and artist. And for what Einstein might have inspired in a young child’s universe, Earhart is posed to launch them into space.” Houston, we have lift off!
Sarah Beserra is an artist, Dharma practitioner, and retired lobbyist.
Letters From Benicia 