The Advocate

Almost 30,000 people have contracted COVID-19 in Alameda County and over 500 people have died from it. In San Leandro alone, we've had over 1,600 cases. The positive test rates in the most populated areas of the county, including most of San Leandro, vary from 5% to greater than 8%. The pandemic's impacted has disproportionately affected Black and Hispanic/Latino communities, particularly when adjusted as a share of the total population. But even when not looking at specific demographics, the devastation is startling, especially as we haven't even begun to review community spread from Thanksgiving yet. You can see the numbers for yourself, in a simple, interactive format on the county's website at https://covid-19.acgov.org/data. I understand people are scared. I understand people are frustrated. I understand there's lots of conflicting information crowding your media sources. I understand that the economic struggles are getting worse, the social and emotional tolls

(Mural by Roid Design ) Well, looks like we’re returning to sheltering-in-place. The colder weather is coming in, days are getting shorter, and we have an unusual holiday season ahead of us. So, I figure many people will be – like me – spending more time indoors with their immediate household. What board games do you enjoy to pass the time playing or just change up your daily activities with? Here are my top 5 for adults and top 5 for with children. Also, not all of them are strictly a “board” game. For adults: 1. Arkham Horror. A cooperative adventure game set in the fictional town of Arkham, Massachusetts, where you play together as various characters known as investigators (doctors, P.I.’s, librarians, professors, gangsters, salespersons, trust-fund kids, etc.) tasked with stopping the invasion of H.P. Lovecraft Cthulu-like monsters. It’s a long game, but extremely fun if you’re a fan of mysteries, horror, and weird history. 2. Pandemic. Another cooperative board game where you play

The coronavirus pandemic has done what generations of activism, reform, social justice, equity work, solidarity, dialogue, and diverse coalitions could not - have not done. It has upended the tea table . The cracks, crevices, faults, fissures, chasms, and precipices have been enlarged and inflamed. What we once thought was impossible - whether because of the status quo, the cost, the apathy, or whatever - has suddenly, profoundly, become not just possible, but imperative. Not just reachable, but downright doable. The shibboleths of our socio-political reality have been revealed to be little more than cobwebs and dust. Not even the death throes of an old system or its corpse. The detritus. In the past couple of weeks, I've seen more radical change implemented at an institutional level than in all my of my education and career. Some that bent the arc of history towards justice. Others designed purely to satisfy the avarice of hegemons. Regardless of what happens - or, actually, beca