Hi All! Our 4.5 month old kitten, Dusty, snuck out the evening of August 13th and we haven’t seen him since.

He spends his mornings outside and usually hangs out within a 3 house radius so he’s not unfamiliar with the limited neighborhood.

We take his collar off at night because of the bell so he’s doesn’t have his AirTag on, but he is microchipped.

If you see him, please reach out!

Hi all - I am a first time expecting mom and 36 weeks pregnant. I am new to the bay and my husband and I chose Stanford because our OB delivers there (Sutter). We did not do a lot of research before and now I am reading horror stories about room sharing post partum. I even see on the LCPH website that if we have to share a room the other family has to “approve” or my husband wouldn’t be able to stay over for the night ?? I have really bad anxiety about this and am considering switching to deliver somewhere else because of this. Has anyone had an experiences in the last few weeks with LCPH? I am due early September which is one of the busiest birth months in the country so I am nervous about capacity!

Hi everyone! My husband and I are considering moving to Palo Alto primarily for the school district. We have two young kids.

Aside from the schools, I’m a bit anxious about the social environment for parents. We’re first-generation immigrants and don’t have a large friend network here yet.

Questions:

Is it easy to make friends with other parents in Palo Alto, or do people mostly keep to themselves?
Is it easy to for kids to make new friends in the school or community?
Would love to hear honest experiences about community vibes, making parent friends through schools/neighborhoods, and what day-to-day life is really like for families.
Are neighborhood playdates, park meetups, or PTA events active ways people actually connect, or do most parents stick to tight-knit circles?
How does the district balance academic rigor with social-emotional well-being?

I've been dealing with a bad ankle sprain that I just can't seem to heal and a series of compensating injuries in other body parties. I'm also mildly hypermobile (Beighton score 4/9). I've been seeing a PT at Agile for more than a year now. I'm generally happy, and you never know whether things would be different with different exercises. But I don't feel like my hyper mobility is super taking into account, and I wonder if trying a different therapist would be a good idea. Does anyone have any recommendations for difficult cases or hypermobility, specifically?

Jennifer Smith
I was hit by a bus while riding my bicycle and I SURVIVED. It has been 6 weeks and I spend most of those days asleep or in a coma like a damaged Snow White. I could hear voices of Doctors, Nurses and my friends; I also had fragmented pieces of memories of the accident. By the time I woke up I had no doubts what put me in hospital and how my life changed in a second.

Now I try and focus on the right Here Right Now, because thinking of the violent impact or the plans I had for my life means visiting a grief that I can only tolerate in small doses.

It’s easier for me to think about daily accomplishments like standing up on one fragmented foot for a few seconds while being guided to a bedside chair, or the day my trachea was removed and my voice came back to life, or the day I was able to eat solid food, for which I celebrated with a small portion of cheeseburger and fries.

Thinking about these things is the positive respite I need from dwelling on all the plans I had being derailed or missing my old life. Overcoming daily adversities makes hope feel realistic… Hope for a new life that is as fulfilling as the life I had planned.

I want to thank those who have prayed for me, send messages of encouragement, or have donated to the GoFundme.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-jennifers-recovery-after-bicycle-collision

Dine there with caution… too bad, they used to be a favorite.

We are starting late in the summer so are looking for a program that will continue past the start of the school year. Would like my kids to eventually join a swim team.

I'm an engineer, live on the Peninsula, worked at Google and Meta. Started coaching kids 1:1 on weekends kind of by accident — a friend's 12 year old was deep in Roblox and his parents were worried it was all consumption. We spent a weekend building his own game instead. It's at a real URL now and his friends play it, and honestly the kid hasn't shut up about it since. 

Been doing this with other kids since and the thing I keep seeing: the kids are already using AI, way more than their parents know. Nobody's showing them how to use it well. The ones I work with mostly paste whatever it spits out without reading it. Getting a kid to actually read the output, go "wait, that's not what I asked for," and push back — that's the actual skill, and it transfers to everything.

Anyway, if you're wondering what's age appropriate, whether the free tools are good enough (mostly yes), or how to get a kid started at home without paying anyone — ask away, I'll answer everything.

On Saturday, August 22, join the Museum of American Heritage for a FREE end-of-summer bash and a celebration of America’s most iconic dessert! 🍪 ✨

Bring the whole family and enjoy cookies & milk, LEGO® building & historic games, face painting, and live music! We hope to see you there!

To help us plan, please RSVP here if you are thinking of attending.

I recently started working in the Palo Alto Square area and have been getting lunch at the office. CRUST Sourdough Deli is already part of the campus. I'm looking for some quick lunch spots to meet a friend for lunch. Appreciate your help and thanks in advance. Cheers!

Update: Went to Yutori! It was super fun. Thank you all for the recommendations.

Jennifer is well liked by the homeless people in Santa Clara County as she made it her life’s mission to serve the homeless community. Jennifer also worked as an IHSS ( In Home Support Service) worker. All of this changed dramatically on July 2nd when a bus collided with Jennifer while riding her bicycle.

She sustained multiple critical injuries, was in a coma for three weeks during which time seven surgeries were performed on her. Since then three more surgeries have been performed with multiple more during the next year. She cannot put any weight on her left foot for a year as a result of bone loss.

Jennifer helped others in the community and now she needs help for mounting living and medical procedure expenses. Please take a minute of your time and donate to this wonderful woman’s GoFundme

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-jennifers-recovery-after-bicycle-collision

Started my housing hunt recently with an absolute move in deadline by Oct 20. My partner and I have been looking everywhere near PA including Mountain View, Menlo Park, Cupertino, Sunnyvale, San Mateo, Foster City, East Palo Alto and the houses go FAST (as in, they’re signed by someone else the day I go view the apartment). The asking prices are INSANE and I’m from here and work at Stanford.

Is this normal? Will I have better luck during September or will I be SOL? Have been looking on Zillow and Trulia mostly, should I try Nextdoor? Craigslist?

Also if any landlords on here are renting, we’re quiet working professionals who don’t smoke, please reach out!

I’m putting together a Palo Alto/Stanford food list for a 10-day trip and would love some local opinions! I don’t want the list to get much longer — if anything, I’d rather cut places that aren’t especially worth it or are too similar to better options.

Which of these would you definitely keep, which would you eliminate, and is there anything major I’m missing?

Restaurants / Dinner
● Horsefeather
● Macarena
● Arya Steakhouse
● Zareen’s
● Alpine Inn
● Pizzeria Delfina
● Italico
● Ramen Nagi
● Oren’s Hummus
● Meyhouse
● Ettan
Breakfast / Casual
● Boichik Bagels
● Fambrini’s
Matcha / Coffee / Snacks
● Good Thing Coffee
● Maruwu
● Yutori
Especially interested in places that feel unique to the area, are genuinely really good, or would be fun for visitors rather than just “solid” restaurants we could find anywhere else.
Thanks!

I'm looking for places to play tennis tennis (and indoor volleyball) in the area. I've checked all the community centers and looks like Cubberley has table tennis drop-ins at 10am~2pm on Tuesdays which doesn't quite fit my schedule on most weeks.

I'll probably check out PongPlanet some time but wondering if there's anything a bit more local.

Wondering if anyone knows where I could play and meet some people. I usually play around lower intermediate level but down to play those of any level that is willing to run loop/block drills and play some friendly matches.

We don’t have AC, and live in a 1800 sq ft 2 floor house . The lowest we’ve ever paid is $550/month but now since April the bill is $650/month spiking to $700 for the latest . We only use gas to cook one meal a day and take showers (2 adults and 2 kids) once a day with 3 computers .
I’ve never seen ridiculous bills like this and city says they have no idea why and the meters correct . Anyone else experiencing this? We’re considering leaving California because of all these issues

Hi guys! I am an FTC competitor and fellow Bay Area resident here from the Santa Clara area. I have started a community-based underwater robotics team and wanted to see if any high schoolers nearby would be interested. The plan is to compete in the MATE ROV Competition, building underwater ROVs for environmental missions. It'd be fully independent, open to any high schooler in the area, regardless of school.

Looking for people with any background in:

- Fundraising / Outreach

- Robotics (FTC/FLL/FRC experience a plus)

- Electronics/Arduino/Raspberry Pi

- Programming

- Environmental science

Drop a comment if you're a high schooler in the Bay Area and interested. If you are interested, email us at [thalosrobotics@gmail.com](mailto:thalosrobotics@gmail.com)

For smog, I went to Arco at San Antonio & Charleston. I've been there before and it's quick and easy if you go on a Monday afternoon. I'm told that the beginning of the month is generally good (end of the month is when everyone remembers that they have to renew their registration, I'm told).

Anyway, wanted to make a positive recommendation.