I smelled the smoke at about 11:15 a.m. yesterday morning, that acrid, sickening stench of burning wood. It was the strongest fire-smoke I’d smelled since before the pandemic: it was really hard to breathe, so I put on my mask.

Summertime is slow news time, which is maybe a good thing, in that we can relax from intensely covering developing news and take a bird’s-eye view of things. What have we learned in the past year?

I want to acknowledge the support of so many of you who write in to say how much you enjoy reading my blog. This means a lot to me. Writers, especially those online, never really know if their musings are being read or, if they are, if people like what they read, or are at least stimulated or provoked. Many of you go out of your way to say “Thanks” or “Keep up the good work,” and I want you to know how much that means to me.

I was interviewed yesterday by a reporter from the Bay Area News Group, which publishes the Mercury News, East Bay Times and Marin Independent Journal. The reporter, Marisa Kendall, wanted to know what I think Oakland’s new Homeless Administrator, Daniel Cooper, should do. I had an easy answer: “Quit.”

We should all be grateful that the City Council yesterday voted against placing a measure on the November ballot that would have given Oakland voters a chance to approve or disapprove the Howard Terminal project.