Q: I’m hoping you will write about the sideshow last Sunday in Richmond that involved 200 cars. Participants were throwing illegal fireworks at police and there was one critical injury, according to the Grandview Independent. An important angle on this story is the support that the mayor and city council have shown in recognizing sideshows as culturally important and, therefore, they say participants should not be criminalized.
Ellen Sasaki, Richmond
A: This sideshow sounds particularly dangerous. Safety is one of the significant concerns with sideshows, generally, and with this one, in particular. There are other concerns, too. We’ve covered sideshows in Roadshow before, and readers have very strong and varying opinions on them.
Q: I have been wanting to write you for quite a while. I live in Pleasanton. So now that we are back at work, the traffic is back, too. I live off Highway 84, so Interstate 680 is bumper-to-bumper.
I finally took the time to concentrate on the area around me instead of fuming while going 15 mph. I never noticed so many things before: small housing communities, farms, etc. As I drove 680 near the interchange with 84, I noticed on top of a hill there is an area that is fenced off. There is a business-type building (not a farm or home) but not highly visible from 680. I just want to know what it is. It’s something that has made me quite curious.
Lisa Tahamtanzadeh, Pleasanton
A: Sometimes as traffic gets worse, it forces us to slow down and take in the world around us more than we do when we’re in go-go-go mode. As for what that building is, I’m not sure. Does anyone else know?
Q: There are so many complaints about the DMV, I wanted to share my positive experience.
I renewed my driver’s license last week at the Concord office. Several weeks ahead of my appointment, I set up an account online with the DMV. I was able to not only complete my application online, but also to take and pass the test. They had the test set up so that it was more of a learning experience and easy to pass. Also, it was much less pressure.
When I went to my appointment at the DMV, the whole process took about 15 minutes. I had to go over and verify the information I had given earlier, get my picture and thumbprint taken. That was it!
Anne Winter, Walnut Creek
A: Great to hear. Thanks for your story.
Look for Gary Richards at Facebook.com/mr.roadshow or contact him at mrroadshow@bayareanewsgroup.com.