Frances Dinkelspiel's favorite things
OBJECTS OF AFFECTION After treasured possessions burned in Oakland fire, author Frances Dinkelspiel knows what she values
"Some of my favorite things are now just memories," says journalist and author Frances Dinkelspiel.
Rebuilding happened quickly; within two years she was again looking out onto Claremont Canyon from huge picture windows.
In this new, more modern home, furnishings are sparse; it's evident that here the emphasis is on the life of the mind.
How One Jewish Immigrant Named Isaias Hellman Created California, about her great-great-grandfather, a financier who made a huge imprint on California history and founded Wells Fargo Bank, she is working a second book, centering on wine zealots, and a 2005 arson fire in Vallejo that destroyed 4.5 million bottles of wine valued at more than $250 million.
In addition to her book projects, Dinkelspiel is editor and co-founder of Berkeleyside, an independent online news site.
Most days she's up early, at her desk by 7, to write and post a steady stream of stories about her beloved town.
Dinkelspiel, a veteran reporter for several daily newspapers, and her cohort at Berkeleyside have successfully challenged the thinking that people are finished with news.
"Berkeley is home to an amazing array of talented and innovative people," she says, lauding the obvious famous ones - Michael Pollan and Alice Waters - but also many community activists who are doing amazing work.
Not surprisingly, Dinkelspiel's most prized possessions include books and family heirlooms, many of which were elsewhere during the destructive blaze.
Dinkelspiel attends a long-standing writers' group and stresses the importance of buying books - especially those written by friends.
Referred to as the floating house paintings: After the fire, the idea of home became more ethereal.