Death cap mushrooms are rearing their ugly heads again. Already, the season’s first rains are responsible for the death of a young dog in Oakland. A reader wrote that the 10-week-old pup died after eating a poisonous mushroom near Lake Merritt.

Death caps often pop up in parks and other moist places laced with walking trails. It’s impossible to eliminate the mushrooms completely, so pup owners might want to keep a tight leash on dogs in these areas.

Celebrity endorsement: A new book on the life of Montclarion Roy Clay Sr. has caught the attention of Warriors superstar Steph Curry. “Unstoppable: The Unlikely Story of a Silicon Valley Godfather” is the December pick for Stephen’s Underrated Book Club.

“Unstoppable” is the story of how Clay’s expertise in computer programming helped make Hewlett-Packard a household name. Clay started writing code in the 1950s — rare for anyone in those early days of computer programming and unheard of for an African American. The Underrated Book Club focuses on lesser-known authors and stories with an online discussion group moderated by Curry and other celebrities.

Around town: There’s some headway in the redesign of the retail space at 2064 Antioch Court in Montclair — the new home of Sliver Pizzeria. With locations in Oakland, Berkeley and Danville, this nonmeat eatery already has a fan base, plans for live music and even mezcal margaritas to complement its veggie-based pizza of the day.

Speaking of Montclair Village, there may be a way to decrease the number of motorists making illegal left turns from Antioch Court onto Mountain Blvd. At least one reader notes that the existing “no left turn” sign is on the right side of the street, where drivers may not be looking. Moving the sign to the left side of Antioch Court would make it more visible as cars approach the new bulb-out sidewalk that makes left turns dangerous.

Crime blotter: Add Tide laundry pods to the list of catalytic converters and other things thieves are stealing in Oakland and around the country in broad daylight. Police say the 150-ounce containers of Tide can buy thieves $10 of crack cocaine, pot or a quick $5 in cash.

If the pod thief gets caught, it’s often just a small fine for shoplifting so there’s no real deterrent to stealing detergent. Meanwhile, hills residents continue to report daytime thefts of catalytic converters — even in high-traffic areas like swim club parking lots.

Musical note: The small retail space by Taps and Takeout (5736 Thornhill Drive) is taking on a speakeasy vibe these days. Part of Taps and Takeout’s music series, the little lounge hosts some big acts that are often just advertised to their email list and on their Facebook page.

I popped in and saw a great group the other night. The Cut Featuring Junior Morrow is a bluesy band with Morrow on guitar and vocals, John Simmons on drums/vocals and Montclair’s Michael Esterson on bass and backup vocals. The group also plays at 6:30 p.m. Saturdays in Lounge 3411 (3411 MacArthur Blvd.), and Esterson says the blues jam sessions in the Laurel District are attracting good musicians.

“It’s incredible native music — we call it ‘blues church’ — and we have a wide range of players young and old, black and white and in between,” he said.

Ginny Prior can be followed on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and at ginnyprior.com. Email her at ginnyprior@hotmail.com.