Progress?

Wandered up to Telegraph Ave. today. For those unfamiliar with the area around UC Berkeley, this is the street with the funky vendors, head shops, killer record stores and plenty of character. At least, that's what I remember.

Still a decent number of street vendors (one of mom's classmates has a jewelry stand), still some character, but it doesn't have the same gritty Berkeley charm. It's like the street sold out to the suburbanites that are inhabiting Cal these days.

Back in the day, there were lots of local businesses, real hippies and real punks. You could get a giant slice of pizza for about $1.50 and get a few CDs (or tapes!) for under $20. There wasn't a corporate presence.

A lot of that changed after the Rodney King verdict riots. Telegraph was a popular target for looters and many businesses couldn't afford to stay open.

That doesn't explain the presence of Hot Topic on Telegraph.

For a city known for quirkiness and uniqueness, WTF is Goth in the Box doing — especially on this street?

Maybe the suburban, Republican college students need to be reminded of the mall back home. But really. If you want vanilla, don't go to Cal. Pick some boring-ass school in the middle of the country, get a mediocre education and keep your boring-ness the hell out of what used to be the heart of the radical revolution.