Our cities are often overshadowed by larger ones like San Francisco and San Jose, or towns that are smaller yet richer or more “newsworthy,” like Berkeley and Palo Alto. The national census, which happens every 10 years, is a chance to not only update the numbers on our “Welcome To…” signs, but to make ourselves visible–as a state, as a region, as cities, and as age, gender, and ethnic communities.

In order to find out how much money the state, county, and city should get (for schools and other services), and how many representatives our state should have in Congress, we have to know how many people live in each city. Census results are also used look for inequalities such as civil rights violations, education disparities, and so on (and hopefully to help address these problems). So you and I really need to take a few minutes and fill out the census this year and send it in. It’s much shorter than usual, so it shouldn’t take much effort.

You can get information for it in lots of languages, so please encourage any friends or family who don’t read English well to fill it out, too. The details of the census are private for 72 years. According to US law, the INS, the FBI, Homeland Security, the IRS, the police, your landlord, etc., cannot get to the information you fill out. (And yes, non-citizens can and should fill it out. Anyone who is living at the address should be counted, regardless of their status.) So please fill it out honestly and fully, and remember to write down both adults and children in your household. New residents of the US, non-native English speakers, and younger people tend not to get represented, and that’s not good.

In 2000, although our area’s response rate was above average, a lot of people still didn’t get counted. Let’s change that!

Previously, Newark was the winner with a rate of 78%–well, that’s still only a grade of C, isn’t it?–followed by Union City 77%. Milpitas tied Fremont at 76% (my “tract” was at only 66%! Ouch, you guys! Especially with some other areas coming in at 84%!). I’m pretty sure we can do better than that.

It’s easiest if you mail it back right after you get it, (postage is paid for you), but if you don’t, you’ll probably get an in-person visit from a census taker. That worker will ask you the questions in person, so please be nice to them–they’re probably terrified of anti-government folks screaming at them. It’s just their job–and yes, technically, you are required to participate in the census and answer honestly, so it’s better to just get it done by mail.

About 3 million people will also receive the longer American Community Survey, which is a longer survey with socioeconomic questions that’s like the old long-form census. This is sent out every year to this relatively small segment of the population, so you probably won’t get it.

There’s a lot of information at the state census website, California Complete Count, and the national census website. You can see what’s on the questionnaire and why. You can read about some of the ways in which your community benefits from responses. There’s also a nice site for teachers and students. Queer the Census, an effort to get an outright question about sexual orientation placed on the census or American Community Survey, has a FAQ with advice about answering the census/ACS if you are LGBTQ and/or in a multiracial relationship (the latter because apparently the “ethnicity of a family” is determined by the ethnicity of whoever is listed as respondent #1, so if you were going to pick at random, you might want to consider that, since many groups are historically under-counted in the census).

Anyway, I’m really excited about this! There’s been coverage from the Argus and the Tri-City Voice, if you’d like to read more. Of course, there’s also information at www.leafcenter.org. You might see some familiar names and faces, such as that of Bill Merill, who’s the former manager of the late, lamented Navlet’s garden center.

What would you like to grow if it happens? I know my husband is all about the heirloom tomatoes. Me, I don’t know–maybe some kind of berries, and perhaps some of the few Japanese things that I can’t always get at the farmers’ market already. Could I grow shiso/perilla in that kind of setting? I’m not sure!

When I was looking up Diwali to see if there were any relevant videos, I saw the president’s video and assumed it wouldn’t be at all relevant, because politicians’ sound-bites about holidays they don’t observe are usually terribly generic. But this is actually specific to the holiday.

How did he do? (Not politically, I mean in terms of discussing Diwali!)

As this is a lunar holiday like Chinese New Year (and Easter, really), next year’s Diwali will fall on November 5. If you plan ahead, there are usually dances and other festivities that you may be able to attend.

diwali by Raven3k

Finally, glowing images of Diwali 2009 from around the world, posted to the Flickr blog just as I was about to publish this post. Maybe you can find our area in there later tonight or tomorrow morning!

It’s also a good place to go if you or your dining companions are internationally jet-lagged or coming off a night shift or have an iron stomach and want a full Mexican lunch at 9:15 AM, because they’ll serve it to you. Something for everyone!

Most people haven’t discovered their breakfast service, so you usually have the place mostly to yourself if you drop in. You can order a variety of basic American and Mexican (well, Tex-Mex) breakfast items, although the latter are available all day. Most weekdays, they open at 9, but it’s 8 on Friday, Saturday, and (I think) Sunday, when they also offer their more well known brunch buffet.

At some point I might find a ratings plug-in here and start actual reviews, or connect this to my Yelp account, but today I just wanted to let you know about a breakfast option near BART in central Fremont that most people don’t know about. For some reason, maybe for BART commuters and hospital workers, there’s a little cluster of breakfast food here along Paseo Padre between Mowry and Walnut–PJ’s (my go-to bagel place, far better than any other Fremont option), Panera, Peet’s (well, sort of), and Burger King (if you just have to have it, I guess). And opening a little later in the day, Frodo Joe’s Petit Cafe also has a breakfast crepe. On Sundays, you can add Sweet Tomatoes’ brunch to the list.

This blog is under development and may change design, focus, or policies at any moment. I can tell you right now, though, that although comments are currently open, I reserve the right to moderate them, particularly in case of racism, etc. I hope that won’t come up, though!

Today has been quite a day in Fremont–a rare mid-October storm (the remnants of a typhoon), which brought down a tree in my apartment complex, followed by an earthquake centered a couple miles from Sunol! (Don’t forget to fill out “Did You Feel It?”) What a day to get started on…