the deal
circa 2002
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 ABOUT OAKLOG
So far as it goes, a small thing may give analogy of great things, and show the tracks of knowledge.
—Lucretius, 99-55 B.C.E.
oaklog's about a bunch of things, most of which will be explained farther on. It's about civic pride, keeping track of stuff, getting to know ourselves, and making friends feel bad when they move far away. It's about bringing together the entrenched, the newly arrived, and those stopping through but enjoying the stay, and making something new—by Oakland, for Oakland, and without doing anything we wouldn't be doing anyway.
Like most of us, oaklog's a product of Oakland, California, which is a real good city in the same way as happy cows make real good milk. Groups like Nonchalance and Oaktown Underground have said more and better about this, so we won't bother here, except to say that anywhere in the world, right after rain starts, the sharpness that escapes the streets and sidewalks smells like Oakland.
It's true that parts are more Oaktown-specific, but use them anyway. It'll do you good, and teach us that if we ever drive out to god-forsaken Chicago, we should avoid southeast Asian restaurants at all costs. Through logs and ranking lists, we show each other what we do and how we think, and who we are; even if you're far away, we might end up liking you.
ABOUT LOGS
"I never travel without my diary; one should always have something sensational to read on the train."
—Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest, 1895
It's tough to find more potential entertainment than in one's own journal, but you can always try anyone else's. Logs don't have to be scandalous, and scandal doesn't have to be badly written, but whatever you write—so long as you keep it interesting—will be read here.
ABOUT RANKINGS
…the purpose is not to disclose the real essence of the phenomena but only to track down, so far as it is possible, relations between the manifold aspects of our experience.
—Niels Bohr, Atomic Theory and the Description of Nature, 1934
In a city of four hundred thousand people, in a county of four million, there's room for a lot to happen, but it's hard to keep tabs. We like to keep track of things. It adds allure to each movie we watch, each book we read, each new romance or cold-weather day, and it'll be really damned helpful when our minds start to go from age or excessive drug use.
Rankings make up four of oaklog's sections: book, film, food, and song. These allow users to rate, using a relational scale, each book read, film viewed, restaurant meal eaten, and musical album purchased. Each section's ranking guidelines are a little different; see the "guideline" links on those pages.
So, get to it. If you've got things to say, say them.
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