Quantcast
Channel: The Bold Italic - San Francisco
Viewing all 3012 articles
Browse latest View live

A 4 Year Old Reviews Chez Panisse

0
0

It would be insane to produce a series of restaurant reviews, no matter how ridiculous the premise, out of the Bay Area and not hit Chez Panisse (an Internet dictionary reveals that the name roughly translates to “house of flat bread,” which I’d be super-into regardless of reputation). Alice Waters’ Berkeley restaurant essentially invented California cuisine and has been named one of the best restaurants in America as well as one of the top 50 restaurants in the world. The menu changes daily based on what’s fresh and in-season, using only local, organic, and sustainably farmed ingredients.

Isla and I took little Mila Allwood (favorite food: “regular orange fish [salmon?], because orange is a great color for a fish”) to Chez Panisse in order to get an unbiased, honest critique of some of the best food in the world. It’s a good thing we took her too. She insisted that only girls could be food reviewers because boys “would just punch everything and kick the food.” Maybe she’s right; no food was punched in the making of this article.

Bread

We started off with ever-the-hit: bread. Mila was worried about what kind of bread it would be and explained that she “sometimes needs help rubbing the butter.” No surprises here, though. After seven of these reviews, we can all be pretty confident that bread is the best thing in the entire world to a little kid. 


Beverages

Mila ordered the apple juice, and oh my God, was she into it as well as totally accurate in her account of how apple juice is made.

Given the occasion, she decided to try her first sip of sparkling water. This one went over…uh…less well, hence her spitting it back into the beautifully engraved glass.


Celery Soup with Crème Fraîche

The first dish to come out was a celery soup. At first glance, Mila was unimpressed, and it took some convincing to get her to try the green soup.


Crab and Little Gems Salad with Herb Vinaigrette

This crab salad was amazing. Unfortunately, when your young brain wholeheartedly believes that crab is chicken, it’s not good chicken.


Rocket Salad with Prosciutto, Almonds, and Parmesan

Protein confusion struck again with this dish, but the other way around. Convinced that the prosciutto was salmon (her favorite “regular orange fish”), she was set up for extreme disappointment and threw the first piece on the table.

Grilled Beet and Endive with Sauce Gribiche

Next was a gorgeous beet salad that we hyped up by telling her it was a rainbow salad (that approach had worked so well for the soup).


Grilled Chicken Leg

The first main dish was a grilled chicken leg. Despite the ever-growing pile of flatwear we were collecting on the table, Mila tried to cut through it with a spoon.


Crispy Rock Fish with Celery Root Puree and Meyer Lemon Sauce

Despite the non-orange color, this fish was Mila’s favorite. She was so into it, she wanted to take her own food photo.


Scallops with Mashed Potatoes and Herbs

The fish was a hard dish to follow, and Mila had a hard time figuring out what scallops even are.


Bucatini alla Palina with Cauliflower, Saffron, Currants, Onions, and Toasted Bread Crumbs

I was sure that any kind of pasta would be a hit, but Chez Panisse made the grave mistake of putting vegetables in the pasta.


Hazelnut Stracciatella with Bittersweet Chocolate Sauce

We ended our meal with an insanely good ice cream dessert. Before even giving it a taste, Mila started pouring sugar on it.




If you like this combo of kids + Chez Panisse, consider donating to or volunteering at The Edible Schoolyard Project, a program created by Alice Waters to bring "edible education" into the core curriculum of all schools.. 


Can I Avoid Spending Holidays with My BF's Family?

0
0

Hey Jessica,

I moved to SF three years ago from NYC, and I am blessed to have found a fantastic relationship with my boyfriend of 18 months. Last year was my first time experiencing Christmas with his family. I found it sweet (like in that classic holiday movie scene of gift opening and caroling) and extremely overwhelming (I had to sneak into a room to take a 30 minute nap). I really think I put on a good performance last year, but I don't want to do it again this year. Why? Because I just don't believe in making a big deal of buying gifts. And because I feel like such an outsider, watching a TV special about Christmas. When I was bored through the celebrations last year, I ended up in the yard with the dogs, so I guess I can do that again if that's what compromise means. I don't want to sound like the worst girlfriend ever, but I seriously find the whole thing weird and somewhat ludicrous. HELP!

I love love, and am so glad you have it with this guy!

There are some holes in your question that make it hard for me to know what the situation is. Does your boyfriend love Christmas? Is it his favorite holiday that he is super enthused to share with you, and if so, do you know why? Or is it a situation where he thinks it’s cray how TV special his family is, and he wants you to have his back through the cheer-fueled madness? Do you know if he cares at all, or are you just assuming he does? These details make a big difference! There is absolutely nothing wrong with you not wanting to spend this (or any other) holiday with your sweetheart’s family, or deciding not to celebrate Christmas at all of you don’t want to. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions about Christmas, and the holidays are high-pressure enough without driving yourself crazy with someone else’s family. No matter how much you love him, you do not owe him all of your Christmases. In the Big Book of Being a Fabulous Girlfriend, it says nowhere that you have to go to all holiday functions, but it does require you to communicate with your BF about your plans and needs well in advance. Any major event, especially involving your date’s family, needs to be talked about clearly beforehand. There is no universal right and wrong in these matters, but if you mislead your boo to think you’re down for stuff you secretly hate, you are passively paving the road for false expectations and possible resentments on his end. So just talk to him!

If you’re too successful at putting on your performance, you may convince him that you’re the kind of girl that’s indefinitely down for such merriment, and if things go well with him, you could end up spending the rest of your days in this Christmas debacle. 

It sounds like part of you doesn’t like the way his family celebrates Christmas, and also like you are (understandably) overwhelmed by the intensity of being around someone else’s family and traditions. It’s totally fair that you don’t wanna do it two years in a row, and it’s pretty standard in relationships to spend every other holiday with your sweetie’s family. Let him know that you’re not into a big show of presents and that you aren’t down for hella holiday cheer. If he wants you to be there, you of course don’t have to do it; but if you do go, you should at least have a good reason for suffering through the festivities. If you’re too successful at putting on your performance, you may convince him that you’re the kind of girl that’s indefinitely down for such merriment, and if things go well with him, you could end up spending the rest of your days in this Christmas debacle. The horrors! Be honest about how you feel and what your values really are, and compromise from that place (if you compromise at all).

Happy Christmas & good luck!

P.S. To all of you out there who don’t celebrate Christmas for any and all reasons, I invite you to enjoy the time-honored tradition of Jewish Christmas: dim sum and a movie with people you love. See you again on January 7th! 

XO,

Jessica

The Mission’s resident advisor gets booked months in advance by San Franciscans seeking help with all kinds of relationship issues. So we asked Jessica if she’d come on board to do a weekly advice column, Truth Talk, for The Bold Italic. If you have a burning question for Truth Talk with Jessica Lanyadoo, you can post your question anonymously here or email her at truthtalkwithjessica@gmail.com, and check back on Wednesdays to see if she has an answer for you.

Image from Thinkstock

Swedish American Hall Now Noise Pop's Music Venue

0
0

When news spread last year that the beloved Cafe du Nord music venue had been sold to restaurateurs, music lovers cried out for the shrinking San Francisco venue scene. So it's great news to know that not all shows have been lost in that building. The upstairs Swedish American Hall, a gorgeous historic Market St. space with lofty ceilings and an intimate show room, is being taken over by Noise Pop, the folks behind Treasure Island Music Festival, the Noise Pop Festival, and other great local music events.

The announcement just arrived this morning that Noise Pop will re-christen the venue, which has been undergoing a yearlong renovation, on Feb. 20, the launch of next year's Noise Pop Festival. I've seen a ton of excellent, intimate shows in this space, from John Waters to Andrew W.K. and Vincent Gallo, but the Swedish American Hall has also played host to Britt Daniel from Spoon, Joanna Newsom, Bob Mould, and other indie favorites. The full lineup of who's going to play the hall in 2015 will be announced later, but I'm so happy that this cozy landmark from 1907 will keep its music heritage. Noise Pop is planning on putting an emphasis on both national and local talent, which is also great as homegrown acts worry about the number of venues that allow smaller acts to get their foot in the door. 

The hall, which has a 300-person capacity, will also still make room for the local Swedish community, of course, and I imagine will also continue to be a beautiful space for very San Francisco weddings.

I don't remember the old Swedish American Hall having much in the way of booze, but the revised version of this venue comes with the Bon Vivants cocktail crew, or the folks behind the crazy menus and craft cocktails at Trick Dog. 

Food will come from the Ne Timeas Restaurant Group (Flour + Water, Central Kitchen, Salumeria), which will open a Basque-inspired restaurant called Aatxe within the Swedish American Hall and are part of the revised Cafe du Nord as well. 

I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of talent comes to play under those gorgeous rafters in 2015.

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com.

Photos by Charles Stricklin (top), and pre-rennovation images of the Swedish American Hall courtesy of Noise Pop

We Love State Bird's New Restaurant The Progress

0
0

The Progress is a brand new restaurant that debuted last night behind an unmarked door at 1525 Fillmore Street. It is the neighbor to the perpetually popular State Bird Provisions and also its younger but more voluptuous sister, so named because the building was called The Progress Theater when it opened in 1911. While The Progress has been two years in the making, word of this week’s opening was sudden, the local restaurant equivalent of Beyoncé or D’Angelo dropping epic surprise December albums after all of the year’s best-of lists have been written.

If you’ve been to or have even just heard of State Bird, you probably know that it’s still a difficult place to score a table almost three years after it opened. Reservations at The Progress opened up yesterday afternoon and were snapped up for the rest of the month within minutes, so it looks like demand could be similar. A little patience and persistence should pay off, though. If you want to try walking in to score a table, go early (5:30-6 p.m.) or late (9 p.m.) for the best chances. Otherwise, for now, there is standing room at the bar to eat and one little adorable seated alcove.

The Progress offers very large and long meals to be eating standing up, though, since the menu format is a checklist where you “choose your own adventure” of eight dishes for $65. This differs from the concept next door at State Bird, where servers carry around trays and wheel around carts in a spontaneous point-and-eat dim sum style of service.

Chefs/owners Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski had originally contemplated offering different set prices at The Progress, with the eight dish choice costing more than it does now, but abandoned the idea on opening night in favor of one value-minded direction. As is the custom at State Bird, expect that these items will vary frequently in order to maximize the best produce of the moment — and the creative musings of the chefs. Customers will be able to add on dishes à la carte if they somehow want more food (or the thrill of trying the whole menu).

“A great restaurant should change 10 or 12 times at first, and we’re already on version 7.0,” says Brioza of these key last minute changes.

There’s a fairly lengthy wine list as well as a small selection of craft beers and quirky cocktails like The Concession, made with popcorn infused rum, cherry cola syrup, and vermouth, and The Mezzanine, a smoky concoction of mezcal, banana liqueur, allspice, lime and nocino, a green walnut liqueur.

As you contemplate how the food side of the adventure will go, you are informed that Krasinski’s two imaginative dessert options could count as one of your eight selections, which is a joyous bit of information for someone with a sweet tooth to receive. Still, you’ll have to save room for it, since you will actually be served more than eight dishes, starting with a huge platter of four off-menu items — they call this the “banchan plate,” after the Korean style of serving many little dishes to begin a meal. Last night, this included crunchy tempura battered broccoli with creamy mushroom aioli, housemade Chinese pork sausage called lapsang dusted in crushed peanuts, goat cheese dip with turnips and radishes, and smoked trout salad with squid ink chips.

With so many choices and temptations, it’s easy to get carried away with carbs; we ordered dishes of pasta, rice, and dumplings without even thinking about it. Russian pierogi-style dumplings have a Japanese-inspired filling of matsutake mushrooms, potato, and sake lees, a yeast formed when making sake. Squid and chrysanthemum replace chicken and shrimp for a smoked black cod fried rice with a creamy sauce enlivened by green tomatoes. But the best of these offerings is a bowl of Dungeness crab and housemade ricotta cavatelli pasta in a tomato sauce (advertised as spicy but not particularly so). We were by no means starving for food by the time it arrived mid-meal, but it was the one time we so dearly wanted seconds.

Now let’s talk about pig fries. Pig. Fries. They look like crispy fast food standards, but instead of potato are made of pig ear, pork belly, and guanciale (pork jowl). They hide naughtily under razor-thin strips of cauliflower and herbs, and are probably the product of stoned dreams. It was one of several creative meat dishes seen last night.

Thin strips of dried duck were vibrant under a smoked prune romesco sauce dotted with almonds, taking on a prosciutto-like quality. Slices of BN Ranch beef came with a luscious mustard-miso oyster sauce, but instead of that sometimes dodgy bottled brown sauce that we think of, it was made with Hog Island Sweetwater oysters. And a “treasure chest” contained a pork broth with small ridgeback prawns, fermented sausage, tofu, and pumpkin-rice dumplings which Brioza described as “squash mochi.”

Dessert, luckily, is flavorful and light so as not to send you careening over the edge. The current collection is a dish of honey cocoa ice cream and olio nuovo (olive oil) paired with jasmine tea poached fruits, greengage plum jam, and ricotta whey and a persimmon sorbet with star anise lime caramel to accompany gingered-coconut floating island of meringue and candied slices of buddha’s hand citron.

Though the service styles and price points vary between State Bird Provisions and The Progress, it is exciting to see two creative restaurants standing and working together side by side. Yes, it can be as hard to get a reservation as scoring a concert ticket to that sold out show, but the effort and adventure is worth it.

Photos by Tamara Palmer

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com. 

New Map Shows the Decline of SF's Black Population

0
0

Conversations about the changing demographics in San Francisco and the Bay Area are never ending. One new map by the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project shows the loss of the African-American population in San Francisco and Alameda Counties during a span of 43 years. Using Census and American Community Survey data, the map shows the African-American population change in six different stretches of time, beginning in 1970 and ending in 2013. 

According to the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project, the African-American population has decreased from 15% to 12% in Alameda County and from 13% to 6% in San Francisco. The map also includes an infographic showing that the black population has decreased while the overall population of San Francisco has increased and continues to do so. 

The map is a response to two earlier projects — one visualizing the stories of those killed by the San Francisco Police Department, another with the Oakland Police Department. While people continue to protest across the country over police brutality, the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project felt this new map falls perfectly into the discussion. 

"There are a lot of conversations nationally about police brutality and one locally about evictions," said Erin McElroy of the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project. "We wanted to create this map to show that the African-American community is under attack in more than one way." 

In San Francisco, neighborhoods highly populated by African-Americans once included the Fillmore District, Western Addition, and the Bayview District. These areas were between 40% and over 95% black in 1970. If you fast-forward to the year 2000, the change is astounding. In the Western Addition, a population that was 80% black changed to only being 30% black. If you moving forward in dates and look at the 2013 estimates, that number is now only at seven percent for that neighborhood. 

Over in Alameda County, neighborhoods heavily populated by African-Americans in the 1970s included West Oakland and South Berkeley, with data showing that these areas were once 83% and 78% black, respectively. In 2010, some areas of West Oakland drop to 51% black whereas the decrease is more significant in South Berkeley, from 85% to 34% black. The data grows bleaker in 2013, showing that the same space in Berkeley now has only a 7.8% black population and only that demographic comprises only 26% of West Oakland. 

Top photo courtesy of the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com.

Updated: Market St Might Get Amazing Light Sculpture

0
0

Updated 12/17/2014: Lightrail has been approved by the Board of Supervisors Land Use and Economic Development committee, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, and the Department of Public Works. The Historic Preservation Commission has also approved the project's use of the Path of Gold Light Standards in the installation as a place to anchor the lights. According to SF Bay, the project is pending approval from the SF Board of Supervisors on December 23, 2014, but could be installed as soon as June 19, 2015.


Market Street is on its way to getting a colorful new look thanks to the creative thinkers behind the Bay Lights. Their latest idea, Lightrail is a proposed public art installation involving two LED strings running down Market Street that would light up to reflect the real-time movement of BART and MUNI below. If the plans get approved, the punny sculpture could go all the way from Van Ness to The Embarcadero, and the LEDs would be colored to correspond with the color of the transit lines' routes. At the end of the night, when BART stops running, the strings would still pulsate with light to represent foot traffic.

//player.vimeo.com/video/59437717

According to Hoodline, which broke the story of the proposal, Lightrail is privately funded and has received initial approval from the San Francisco Arts Commission. The project is being presented by Illuminate the Arts as well as interactive artists George Zisiadis and Stefano Corazza and was envisioned to celebrate the 40th anniversary of BART and the 100th anniversary of MUNI.

Via: Hoodline and SF Bay

Images courtesy of Lightrail 

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email us at tips@thebolditalic.com. 

Forget Hot Yoga, Have You Tried Pot Yoga?

0
0

In a truly “of freaking course we are” moment, San Francisco is getting its first pot-fueled yoga class.

Ganja Yoga is a “cannabis enhanced” class where participants (the ones with the medical cannibis cards) are encouraged to get high before working out.  CBS Local reports that instructor Dee Dussault is certified in Hatha Yoga and says that she hopes this class will allow yogis to “enjoy trippy relaxation, pain-relief, sensuality, and the cultivation of inner peace.”

In another “well durr” moment, classes like this one have already popped up in places like Los Angeles and Colorado.

Some yoga blogs speculate that adding weed into the mix will be a good way to release inhibitions and fully relax the body and mind. They also suggest that hemp plant increases one's connection with the god Shiva. I have done yoga while high several times — if by “yoga” you mean “trying to lift a bag of hot Cheetos with my toe so I don’t upset the laptop playing Blue Planet on my stomach.”

This course takes place on Wednesday nights from 7:15-8:45 p.m. and costs $15, although there are usually two “pay what you can” slots available. Ganja Yoga will join the pantheon of other offbeat yoga classes such as painted yoga,naked yoga, and yoga where you’re tied up in ropes.

Namaste.

Via CBS Local.

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com.

Image from Thinkstock

New Late Night Shuttle Between SF & Silicon Valley

0
0

Michael Horton, who lives and works in Santa Clara county but spends much of his free time in SF, was getting increasingly frustrated with his lack of late-night options. Caltrain, like BART, shuts down at midnight. There’s a late night public bus that travels to Palo Alto, but other areas in the South Bay are underserved. If Horton wanted to say in the city later than 11:30 p.m., he had to take a taxi all the way home, get a hotel room, or crash on a friend’s couch.

Following a precedent set by the likes of Uber, Lyft, and the tech buses, Horton decided that San Francisco’s public transportation issues could best be solved by the private sector. He partnered with his friend Cory Althoff and is launching the Midnight Express, a bus that will leave from the 4th street Caltrain station at 2 a.m. on weekend nights (mornings) and make stops in Palo Alto, Los Altos, and Mountain View.

At $12 a ticket, the Midnight Express is a far more cost effective alternative to an Uber or hotel room, and much safer than attempting to drive home drunk. The easy-to-use service even favors the (potentially) limited cognitive capacity of inebriated folks (or the lack of planning-ahead-capacity that afflicts many of us.) After buying a ticket online (or on your mobile phone), you simply need to arrive at the 4th street Caltrain station 10 minutes before the shuttle’s 2 a.m. departure and look for the Midnight Express sign on a “large comfy coach [bus] with restrooms, air-conditioning, a stereo music system, and video monitors.” To get on board, you only need to show a valid photo ID.   

The first bus leaves this Friday night (Saturday morning) at 2 a.m. It will stop in Palo Alto at 2:40 a.m., Los Altos at 2:55 a.m., and Mountain View at 3:05 a.m. They’re starting simple while they test the service and build awareness, but Horton says that he and Althoff have already spent a few weeks interviewing Caltrain riders at various stations and received an extremely positive response.

“In Santa Clara county, there are thousands of young people that want to go out in San Francisco,” says Horton. Midnight Express is “grouping those people together in order to provide a way to get them back to their towns that same night.” Although Uber and Lyft now offer the ability to carpool or split the fare with friends, Midnight Express encompasses an even larger group of passengers, which means even more reasonable prices. Groups of five or more friends can also get a $5 discount per person on ticket prices.  

In a way, Midnight Express is like a Google Bus headed the opposite direction. While these private tech buses have come under fire for being elitist, their defenders argue that real problem is San Francisco’s notoriously inadequate public transportation system. Like the Google buses, the Midnight Express will cater to a certain demographic; its target market is young professionals who live in Santa Clara county but “want to party” in SF. However, one can argue that there’s a glaring need to serve that market; Santa Clara’s population grew 1.5% in 2013, which translates in 27,600 new residents.

The area hasn’t been offered much in the way of late-night transportation options, unlike the East Bay. A similar private service launched earlier this year to ferry riders between Oakland and SF and AC Transit has recently launched a pilot to improve all night bus service. And while tech buses are controversial because they transport workers who drive up rent prices in the city while supporting economic growth in other counties, services like the Midnight Express will make it more appealing for people who work at South Bay companies to actually live in the South Bay.

Of course, in an ideal world, the public transportation would catch on and get up to speed on the needs of the Bay Area’s growing population. But until that happens, we’ve got party buses.

Midnight Express is offering Bold Italic readers a $5 discount on tickets. Simply enter the code “BOLD” when checking out online.  

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com. 

Image from Thinkstock


Photos: 24 Hours in San Francisco

0
0

For 24 Hours in San Francisco, 17 students from The Academy of Art University's PH 462: Editorial Photography captured moments in SF to create a story spanning an entire day. Each student was assigned a four-hour period with the task of capturing the city at its best during those hours. The result is a 24-hour collection of enticing moments seen through the eyes of a group of eclectic photographers. From freshly baked donuts after a night out at 4 a.m. to the city falling into its slumber at midnight, these images will take you through a typical San Francisco day.

This Will Help You Cope With The End Of Serial

0
0

This time tomorrow the season finale of the crazy popular podcastSerial will be out. For months we have been listening to the saga of Adnan, Jay, MailChimp, and the Crab Crib unfold as we try to make sense of the circumstances of Hae Min Lee’s death. We’ve listened as Sarah Koenig dissects every minute detail of the case and tomorrow we’ll have ... closure? It’s hard to say. Key players in the actual events, such as Rabia, have been careful to only discuss things that have already been part of Serial to avoid “spoiling” the podcast end to this story. Koenig has hinted several times that she still has bits of the case yet to reveal and the online forums are abuzz with theories about how this last chapter will play out.

Whether it ends neatly tied up like a great episode of a crime drama, or messy and open to interpretation like so much of real life drama, these videos will help you cope with your post- Serial feelings.

//www.youtube.com/embed/X8xyfK4lES8

Comedian Zach Sherwin spits a sick rhyme over the infamous Serial theme music and brings up some good points about the show at large. He even utilizes audio from an interview with Bay Area comedian W. Kamau Bell that dissects Koenig’s coverage bias on the topic of race. It’s incredible and catchy food for thought. My only issue is his mention of Koenig’s “manipulation” of the listeners. Can we all agree this is a flawed argument? I don’t know about you but I think all writers are manipulating their audience in some way to get their point across, even Sherwin.

On the sillier end of the spectrum is this Funny Or Die video featuring SNL alum Michaela Watkins playing Koenig recording the last episode. This video paints Koenig as frantic to figure out the ending at the eleventh hour as smiling MailChimp executives listen in nearby. The poignant line “this child murder has been great for business” reminds us of something important, though. Ghouly as we have been following this case, this series couldn’t have happened had this tragic and brutal murder of a teenage girl not taken place. It’s something to keep in mind as we consume more media like this in the future.

http://www.funnyordie.com/embed/6ab2d45a77

But I guess ultimately we’ll all have to wait ... until next time on Serial.

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Send them to tips@thebolditalic.com

San Francisco Is Just Better with a Stoop

0
0

Twenty-two grand steps, painted a foggy, blue-gray hue, lead up to my apartment door. Oh, how my heart simultaneously sang and sank on move-in day as I stared up at that quintessential San Francisco stoop. I marched up and down the concrete mountain with a thousand boxes, balancing bulky furniture in precarious fashion, cursing until completion. Sweaty and peeved, I had survived the grueling challenge and decided to sit my quivering ass on the landing with a celebratory beer – and that is where this love story begins.

That inaugural climb was three years ago, and I’ve since racked up a ridiculous number of hours atop my glorious roost overlooking Fulton Street. My experience as a San Francisco resident just wouldn’t be the same without my dear stoop, a stairway that not only welcomes me home but also plays host to hangs with friends and family, holds me while I cry, and sets the mood for make-outs and dinner parties alike.

My experience as a San Francisco resident just wouldn’t be the same without my dear stoop, a stairway that not only welcomes me home but also plays host to hangs with friends and family, holds me while I cry, and sets the mood for make-outs and dinner parties alike.

You’ll find me stoopin’ at least once a day, every day. Morning is sublime, especially the dreary foggy days that start with a slow drag. Sporting pajamas, bedhead, and glasses, I step outside with my coffee mug, crouch down on the top step and wrap my arms and sweater around my bent knees. Sleepy eyed and deep in quiet contemplation, I take notes on the hustle below: the hurried steps, the whir of motors, spinning wheels, and squeaky breaks. The first few minutes are spent getting right with my neighborhood vibe – you know, the “energy” out there. I survey the scene, check the pace, and fill up on that sense of belonging that makes living in a city such a unique treat.

I pan left to right. Dogs are walking. Dogs are dumping. Strollers inch past. Runners skip over a pothole. I look right to left. Phones are ringing. Cars are parking. Usually nothing too weird (besides that woman jaywalking with a rat in her coat pocket or the Prius covered in Silly String or the fresh “Shit Faced” tag on the garage), which satisfies me a great deal. There is so much pleasure to be had in watching people go about their normal business when you’re observing from the safety of a stoop. There may not be an invisibility curtain for top-secret spying or an iron gate to keep out the chumps, but there are those 22 steps – no one is gonna hike all the way up here to mess with the blond.

Sometimes I break character and shyly make eye contact. People on the sidewalk often grin, and it makes me wish people still wore caps for tipping. Impatient drivers blink with sad eyes from behind their windshields. Tourists regularly take photos – this is awkward and also quite dangerous for my ego.

There is so much pleasure to be had in watching people go about their normal business when you’re observing from the safety of a stoop. 

From my stoop I can keep tabs on all the usual characters: the guy who carries two coffees each morning; I imagine his lazy lover(s). The curly-haired toddler who watches me from her bay window, her sticky fingers pressed against the glass. The cute barista. The bread maker. The mysterious bike messenger with his wavy tresses riding the breeze. Sometimes I catch a glimpse of the old man who skateboards in the dark. And the dogs of Fulton – put together a lineup, and I could match hound to owner, no problem.

Yes, I admit I’m a bit of a nosy neighbor, and having a stoop makes me one lucky little creep. Spying on strangers and trying to piece together their stories is definitely a favorite pastime of mine. I like weaving us all together – the threads of little me intertwining with the passersby.

Then there’s extra-special nodding to neighbors I already know and trading pleasant how-do-you-dos with the familiar folks. Developing actual relationships with those who live around you seems to be a rare occurrence, and I have the stoop to thank for my new homies. The retired couple who own the neighboring stoop? Yeah, we’ve gone so far as to leave treasures on each other’s elevated doorsteps, e.g., trading scones for succulents. Knowing your neighbors is underrated.

Developing actual relationships with those who live around you seems to be a rare occurrence, and I have the stoop to thank for my new homies.

I do some of my best thinking during solo stoop time, but inviting my favorite humans to sit beside my curious bones and join the gawking is prime. Our apartment doesn’t have a living room, which means the party is literally always outside. The stairs have hosted everything from candlelit hot-toddy socials and topless tequila parties to adorable cuddle puddles under the full moon and Sunday brunch feasts.

Smoking, boozing, kissing, blasting jams, and eating sandwiches – everything is better with a view. San Francisco is just better with a perch. Don’t have one? Start winking at your neighborhood stoop potato. You’ll be gettin’ stoopid in no time.

[Photo by Interrobang via Flickr]

7 Road Trips to Take This Winter

0
0

San Francisco can get a bad rap for its lack of seasons, but we have winter too – some of it snowy, some of it not, but all within quick driving distance. From dogsledding on Mt. Shasta to Nordic skiing in Tahoe, here are some of the best winter weekend getaways in Northern California.

Ice-Skate in Yosemite National Park

Turns out that Half Dome isn’t the only reason crowds flock to Yosemite – people have been coming here to ice-skate since the 1930s. From mid-November until early March, head to the Curry Village Ice Rink in Yosemite Valley for ice-skating with some pretty epic views of Half Dome and Glacier Point. Between skating sessions (rent a pair of skates on-site or bring your own), warm up around the outdoor fire pit – and don’t forget to bring s’mores supplies.

It’s almost a four-hour drive from San Francisco, so you’ll definitely want to make this one a weekend trip. Stay a few nights at the Evergreen Lodge, another old-school Yosemite favorite since 1921.

See the Elephant Seals at Año Nuevo

Head 60 miles down the coast and you’ll hit Año Nuevo State Park, where a huge colony of elephant seals swim ashore each year. From early December through the beginning of March, you can see these massive, two-ton pinnipeds give birth to their pups, take care of them for a few months, mate again, and swim back out to sea. Take a guided walking tour of the park to get the skinny on the blubber.

Make a weekend of it and stay the night at the Costanoa Lodge in nearby Pescadero, where you can stay in anything from the lodge to tent bungalows to cabins.

Take a Dogsledding Tour near Mt. Shasta

You don’t have to be training for the Iditarod to experience what it’s like to be pulled across the snow by a team of huskies. Drive four hours north to go for a run yourself with Dogsled Express. The hour-long rides aren’t cheap and you’ll need to reserve in advance, but the views through the snowy countryside of Mt. Shasta, Mt. Lassen, and Castle Crags – not to mention spending time with the excited pups – will make it worth your while.

Making it a weekend journey? Book a night or two in the classic Gilden Lodge or try staying in a creekside yurt.

Cross-Country Ski in Tahoe City

Tahoe is probably the number one weekend getaway spot for many San Franciscans going skiing and snowboarding, but one snow sport often goes overlooked: cross-country skiing. At Tahoe XC, rent skis for a day and explore the 24 different trails just north of Tahoe City. Extra perk? Several of the trails are dog friendly, so you can ski with your canine pal.

If you want to spend the weekend in Tahoe, check Airbnb and choose from dozens of cozy cabins.

Whale Watch in Half Moon Bay

Each winter, about 15,000 gray whales make their annual migration from their Arctic feeding grounds to breeding waters around Baja, California. Luckily for us, much of their path follows along the California coastline, and a simple drive south to Half Moon Bay means you can even see the whales swimming by when you’re on the shore. Get an up-close look when you take a cruise with the Oceanic Society, which offers tours every Saturday and Sunday from December through May.

Visit Mendocino’s Orr Hot Springs

What could be better than dipping into a natural hot spring on a cold day? Head north to Orr Hot Springs Resort in Mendocino and you’ll find yourself doing just that. Choose from communal springs, private tubs under the stars, or steam rooms (to name a few) and don’t be surprised if many of your fellow visitors are in the buff – Orr Hot Springs is clothing optional.

Stay the night in one of the resort’s rooms, rent a yurt or a cabin, or camp on the 27 acres of property to wake up and do it all over again in the morning.

Snowshoe in the Sequoias

Beginners and advanced snowshoers alike will find something to love at Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks. On snowy weekends, you can take a two-hour long, ranger-guided walk through the giant sequoias on snowshoes. If you’re looking for something more challenging, you can head six miles up to the Pear Lake Ski Hut, stay the night, and come back down again in the morning.

Stay the night close by in one of the 36 rooms in the classic John Muir Lodge in Grant Grove Village.

[Photo of snowshoeing in Sequoia NP by Petor Smit via Flickr]

Send a 100-Ft Holiday Message on a Building

0
0

’Tis the season for holiday greeting card GIFs — at least if you want to make your holidays extra special this year. 

A website called GIF the Halls is here to make your holiday GIF dreams come true. Anyone can go to the website, pick from one of the seven designs for a card, write something, and then the “GIF-card” will be displayed primarily at 773 Market Street, above the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in the Yerba Buena alley. Another location to be announced soon. 

The cards will be projected as 100-ft animated GIFS from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. from December 20-24th, but those who submit one will receive an animated GIF of their projection – meaning, they'll get to see passersby and everything else that happened at the location when the card went up. 

So far, the submitted cards are heartwarming, which will make the experience sweeter to enjoy. "I can imagine how it might feel to be walking down Market Street and see some sweet little text projected on a wall, and feel like you've been given an intimate glimpse into someone's life," said Doctor Popular, one of the organizers of the event.

The designs were all selected by the Gray Area Foundation and include notable Bay Area artists, like Mitch Tale and Steve Teeple. 

The project is by WP Engine Labs, a team from WordPress that creates new technologies for consumers to test out as well as creating new projects for the company. GIF the Halls also received some help from The Yerba Buena Community Benefit District, which selected the locations where the GIFs will be projected and 10up.

If you won’t be out of town just yet or if your family is coming to San Francisco this year, this might just be the perfect way to give them a little surprise and extra love this holiday season. 

Top photo courtesy of GIF the Halls.

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com.

Pac Heights Losing Its Working Class Outlets

0
0

By now, it’s an all too familiar tale in this pretty city of ours: a building is acquired by new owners, contracts are up and so is the rent — way, way, up — leaving incumbent businesses fighting for survival. Such is the reality facing Juicy News, an independently-owned magazine, book, and stationery store located on Fillmore Street in Pacific Heights.

If you haven’t been, Juicy News is a gem of a place, piled high with an incredible range of niche and mainstream international magazines. For a print geek like me, it’s heaven. One of my first gigs was in the marketing department of a magazine publishing house in London, working on a bunch of titles — some of which, to my heart’s delight, Juicy News carries. So I’ve seen first hand the army of people and amount of skill and dedication it takes to create an aesthetically beautiful, useful, and commercially viable product, month in, month out. In Juicy News, owner Moe Salimi has curated a store that is the living embodiment of that, and his tenure first as manager, and since 2008 as owner, he’s also created something more — a powerful community hub.

As a perpetually broke freelancer, Pacific Heights, with its mansions and Maseratis can feel like a surreal place to live. But Juicy News, and its now-shuttered neighbor Tully’s Coffee, worked as the neighborhood’s real social levelers, accessible and welcoming to the super-rich and the super-struggling. As Moe says, “Everyone ends up here. The range is here, we cater to everyone. Relationships have started here, people get married, move away and come back to visit us with their kids.”

In recent years, Fillmore Street has seemed set on an uninspiring mission to turn itself into the least-useful-street-to-live-on (™), with more and more high-end — and seemingly devoid of customers — clothing stores moving in. Perhaps it makes sense to them to pay out the astronomical rents to get the visibility and association a spot on Fillmore allows them, but that just isn’t a viable option for an independently-owned store like Juicy News. And here’s the thing — Juicy News is a thriving business, just not thriving enough to shoulder the huge rent increase it is facing.

In recent years, Fillmore Street has seemed set on an uninspiring mission to turn itself into the least-useful-street-to-live-on (™), with more and more high-end — and seemingly devoid of customers — clothing stores moving in. 

Over the last five years, despite the recession and the ever-present looming specter proclaiming “print is dead!”, Moe has grown the business substantially, sourcing magazines, books, and cards that serve the diverse needs of the local community and beyond (he ships to customers in Honolulu, and people drive down from Sacramento to get their fix). And as unlikely as it may seem, the future of print in general looks bright. According to 2014 research by Nielsen, millennials are embracing magazines like never before, even more than the boomer generation.

So to the future. What is certain is that by 31st January 2015, Juicy News will have to leave its premises of 23 years, at 2453 Fillmore Street. Since announcing the news, Moe says the community support has been amazing, citing a letter-writing campaign to the new owner (with whom he harbors no ill feeling) which he believes helped him negotiate an extension on his lease.

Now the focus is on moving up and moving on, and finding a new location to the store, but to make that a possibility, Juicy News needs to find the estimated $60K in associated moving costs and has launched an Indiegogo campaign to try and raise it.

And through it all, Moe is staying positive. As he says, “We believe in print, we love print, we need more places like Juicy News because there is a market for it. We’re committed to making it work.”

So come see this Fillmore treasure while you can, check out thecampaign site, and if print lights your fire, help Save Juicy News.

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com.

Image from Google Maps

What San Franciscans Really Want for Christmas

0
0

December is the month of gift guides, wish lists, and many, many emails and print ads, but somehow the things we really want are rarely included. To right that wrong, we present a list of gifts that San Franciscans would truly want to have this holiday season, without all that pesky reality weighing us down or holding us back.

1. A parking space

Is that so much to ask? In San Francisco, it obviously is, but file this one under “Damn, that would be nice.”

2. Snow

Sure, everyone would probably freak out and not know what to do with themselves, but having a white Christmas would also be snow much fun that it might even make puns like that acceptable.

3. Upstairs neighbors to go out of town

Maybe you don’t have any, but if you do, you know your holiday would be better without what sounds like elephants learning to cha-cha above you. We’re pretty sure this is the point of “Silent Night.” No?

4. Union Square without any of the people so you could holiday-shop in peace

This would be terrible for the economy but excellent for your mood. Imagine how quickly you could try things on and find things in other sizes without squeezing past a bazillion (I’m estimating) other people.

5. A reservation at State Bird Provisions

Or their new restaurant next door. We hear Santa knows a guy. 

6. More time

San Franciscans are a busy bunch. One extra weekend day would be nice. Maybe the lines for brunch each day would be shorter? Probably not.

7. Calorie-free morning bun

It is rather cruel to have such delicious holiday food and cookies and then have a tradition of getting dolled up and sucking it in on New Year’s Eve. Don’t we have the technology for this yet? 

This wish list is brought to you by the Chevrolet Spark EV, which is, incidentally, another good item to add to your wish list. With convenient charging stations throughout the city, this mini-car makes SF parking a little less of the frustrating hell-scape that it is. Plus, what you were going to spend on gas can go toward laundry or vinyls or something. That’s the gift of money the whole year round.


A Man And His Dog Are Reunited After #Hellastorm

0
0

After last week's #hellastorm, some people lost power, dealt with flooding, and other issues but Steve Alioto lost both his home in Sausalito and dog. But like a Christmas miracle, Steve is reunited with his dog once more. 

When last week's storm happened, Steve was out helping a friend and left his boat, which is his home, anchored out in the water. He then returned to his boat, found that it had sunk, and assumed the worst — that Daisy, his dog, went down with the ship. However, that Friday after the storm, Steve went to a local church he visits from time to time for meals and found out that Daisy was alive and very happy to see him. 

Daisy had apparently made her way out of the sinking boat, swum a mile and a quarter to shore, and found the church that she remembered going to with Steve. The Reverend Paul Mowry of the Sausalito Presbyterian Church realized who she belonged to and reunited her with Steve on Saturday morning at the Marin Humane Society. 

While Steve and Daisy are currently homeless and sleeping on another friend's boat, they have each other and are happy to be together again.

[Via: Marin News and CBS 5top image via KPIX CBS]

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com.

Kronner Burger's Public Art Controversy in Oakland

0
0

For obvious reasons, the temperature in the East Bay has been burning hot lately. Apart from national social justice issues, disguised CHP cops threatening protesters, and news that former Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums is now a lobbyist for Walmart, there is now a controversy about public art. Inside Scoop reported that the upcoming location of Kronner Burger at 4063 Piedmont Avenue ripped out a section of wall where a mural depicting Oakland's historic Key System streetcar had been painted on the building’s exterior in 2005.

Amid the protests and background noise of gentrification, people are primed to draw quick conclusions about this episode. While it is undoubtedly tragic to witness art get destroyed for commerce, the underlying motivations are not always immediately clear.

I asked the muralist, Rocky Rische-Baird, if anyone had spoken with him before this came to light or since, or if he had anything otherwise to add. He replied by email only to say, “No, I was never contacted by the business owner, Kronner, or the building owner before the mural was destroyed.” A follow-up email to Rische-Baird went unreturned.

Chris Kronner of Kronner Burger, however, had much to say. Alternately defiant and contrite, he firmly believes that he made a good-faith effort to go through the proper channels, but the recent rains had seeped in and made it clear that a moldy, 400-lb. piece of plaster was beyond salvaging and required immediate intervention. “The decision to remove that part of the wall was made when it became very apparent that it was literally not supported by anything. You could see through the wall, and it was hanging over a public walking space. It isn’t like we set out with the intention of damaging the mural.” He claims to have done his due diligence, meeting with an architect prior to signing the lease and contacting his landlord and the head of the local neighborhood association about the damage, and then acted only at the behest of his contractor.

Kronner also disputes any characterization of himself as an interloper. “I’m a 32-year-old person who’s worked the past 14 years cooking, who lives a block away from this restaurant, whose partner and business partner has lived in Oakland for 27 years. I have everything on the line: my name, my professional reputation, all of the money that we have.”

What seems to stick in people’s craw, however, was Kronner’s remark to Inside Scoop that “It should never have been painted there in the first place,” which reverberated on Twitter and which he repeated to me over the phone. Again, this statement depends on context. What he meant was that the wall (which had been erected in 1962, hastily and without a permit, to cover a window) was in such disrepair that it was a bad place to paint a mural. It was not a haughty dismissal of a community’s aesthetics.

“I understand that it was a piece of public art,” Kronner added. “I am for as much public art as we possibly can sustain. Cover every wall. But don’t cover 50-year-old rotting window openings… The failure to recognize that this was done out of necessity to prevent a hazard, as opposed to some malicious act against the community, was ridiculous.” People will judge as they will, but in the end, this appears to be a damn shame that just couldn’t be helped.

[Via: Inside Scoop; image by Thomas Hawk via Flickr]


Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com.

Help Big Sur’s Magical Music Venue Stick Around

0
0

There’s only one place you can see great bands like Arcade Fire, The Flaming Lips, TV on the Radio, Fleet Foxes, and Beach House under a cluster of Big Sur redwoods with only a few hundred other people. That spot would be the Henry Miller Library, the historic wooden cabin bookstore and adjacent grassy lawn that’s been host to writing workshops, film festivals, and some the most magical concerts I’ve ever seen. And if you agree in the powers of this space, now’s the time to help make sure this intimate lawn can remain a music venue.

The Henry Miller Library has drawn people from all over the world to experience an unparalleled concert setting. The fog drops down between the trees. Cell reception drops out completely. Strings of glass bulbs light the space between the redwoods. Musicians and fans share the same cozy plot of land, or browse through the same Beat books and posters in the Library store. The uniqueness of the space and the energy of the crowds it attracts caused fans of the place to freak out when we heard the Library temporarily closed its doors on November 15. Executive Director Magnus Toren wrote in a letter to Library supporters that the place went dark for three weeks in order to comply with Monterey County officials, who wanted the venue to obtain operating permits. The Monterey County Weeklyreported last week that in 33 years of business, the former home of Emil White (Henry Miller’s old buddy), never had a “valid permit allowing public uses.” The Monterey Heraldfurther detailed the issues facing the non-profit arts space, including upgrades in bathroom facilities, parking, and water (Toren wrote in a recent email to Library fans that they've made "major improvements in recent years to address concerns around water and septic issues.") The Monterey County Planning Commission granted the Library the permit to reopen as a bookstore on December 10, but the venue hasn’t received the additional permitting to host events. That decision is expected to come down in January.

“The plan is to get the official permit for 10 events a year,” Britt Govea, who has been responsible for bringing amazing music to Big Sur under his FolkYeah umbrella for the past nine years, told me. “We want to go totally legit.” Govea, who is a board member of the Library, explained that between now and mid-January, the Library is in dire need of letters of support from people who know how transformative the space is for experiencing not only live music, but the town of Big Sur itself. He adds that it isn’t just about the Library but also the fact that people make a big deal of experiencing the space as a whole. They don’t have their cell phones out the whole time. They explore nearby beaches and hikes and cabins and campsites. And of course, “The performances are bar none,” he adds.

Having shows at the Henry Miller Library has put the historical cabin on the map more than traditional publicity ever could, and performances there merge the cultures of music, literature, and Big Sur. “People come to hang out, buy books, and tell stories about what they’ve experienced at the Library,” Govea says. “The shows have been a real beacon” for Big Sur.

Govea says there are plans in the works to make the show-going experience even smoother in the future, including experimenting with running shuttles from Carmel to the Library to help with some of the parking issues. But for now the biggest concern is showing Monterey County officials how vital the Library has become to people around the world. If you’re a fan of the venue sticking around for shows, email Monterey County Planning Managing Specialist Luke Connolly (ConnollyLT@co.monterey.ca.us) and the Henry Miller Library's Magnus Toren (magnus@henrymiller.org) your letters of support by early January. The non-profit can always use financial donations as well. We have a very special thing going down in Big Sur, and it's up to all of us who understand that to help keep it going. 

Photo of the Flaming Lips at Henry Miller Library courtesy of Terry Way Photography/Follow Terry at Terry Way Facebook and Terry Way Instagram; bottom photo from Wikimedia Commons

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email tips@thebolditalic.com. 

Startup to Bring Fast Internet to the Mission

0
0

You know what people always say, the best ideas come from the brains of monkeys.

Actually no one says that but a Mission District-based internet service provider, Monkey Brains has a plan to bring "insane" speed to the neighborhood's internet.

The company's campaign on Indiegogo is now fully funded (they well exceeded their $250,000 goal) and they will begin their "Gigabit to home" project. Mission Local reported that Monkey Brains would install antennas atop of buildings that would offer a connection of 300 to 500 megabits per second. To give you an idea of how much faster this new system will be most internet connections function at 10 to 60 megabits per second.

The company also has plans to give back to the community with this advancement. In a video on their Indiegogo Monkey Brains employees say that if customers buy a pair of gigabit to home receivers the company will place one of them in a lower income neighborhood. This will spread access to fast internet to places in the city it has never been before.

The Indiegogo campaign started as a way for the company to earn enough money to buy enough of these gigabit "links" and sell them to interested buyers at cost. Currently you can own one for $35 monthly. 

As Mission Local points out, hopes for a fiber connection in the city are "dwindling" and this local company could have the perfect solution.

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Send them to tips@thebolditalic.com

Photo courtesy of Flickr user Photosteve101

The 2014 San Francisco Year in Review

0
0

It’s that time of year again when we get super-contemplative and hole up inside with thoughts like “Oh my God, is it seriously already almost 2015? When did that even have time to happen? There was so much I wanted to do! Damn, I’m getting old.”

Before those thoughts turn into self-loathing, then depression, then wrought determination and a series of totally unrealistic New Year’s resolutions, it’s best to look back over the past year and see exactly where we went wrong, where we went right, and what the hell went on around us.

Don’t worry, 2014 wasn’t all bad news, despite many long-standing establishments going out of business and the exodus of those making under six figures. San Francisco also had some memorable, fun times.

So come with us on our year in review, and fondly remember the good and not-so-good times gone by.

The Giants Won the World Series Again, and the Mission Was Set on Fire Again

For the third time in recent years, the San Francisco Giants won the World Series, and despite citywide outrage after the postgame celebration in 2012, crowds of people trashed the streets anyway. Why do these victories always end in violence and mayhem? Well, alcohol, for one reason. Douchebags, for another.

We Lost Robin Williams, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Joan Rivers

Celebrity deaths are always tough, but this year seemed especially difficult to deal with, perhaps because Williams’s suicide, Hoffman’s overdose, and Rivers’s botched surgery all seemed somehow avoidable, and because all three were still working hard and known for their indomitable spirit. Also on the list of the fondly missed are Harold Ramis, Shirley Temple, Maya Angelou, Marian Brown of San Francisco’s Brown Twins, and Alice from the Brady Bunch, among others.

The Castro Got a Colorful Facelift

After months of loud, dirty, traffic-causing construction along Castro Street, the new redesign included wider sidewalks, misspelled LGBT plaques, and rainbow crosswalks. It seemed about time for an updated look, although we could’ve done without “trangendered” plaques.

Half of Dolores Park Is Gone as We Knew It

Construction in Dolores Park razed Hipster Hill. Although the Gay Beach is still around and kicking, the loss of that sloping valley packed with hula-hoopers, hacky-sackers, day drinkers, and drug dealers will always hold a fond place in our hearts.

The Napa Earthquake Woke Everybody Up

Although not nearly as intense as the 1989 Loma Prieta quake, the magnitude 6.0 quake in South Napa in August startled the residents of San Francisco and those of the rest of the bay (and according to Twitter, interrupted a ton of dates with “Palmela Handerson”), but despite the severity of the quake, luckily the resulting damage and injuries were minimal compared to those of earlier tremors, and we were all reminded that we do still live in California, where earthquakes happen all the time.

We Voted in a $15 Minimum Wage While the Rest of the Country Went Red

Good news for those of us who’ve managed to avoid being priced out of the city, because in the recent midterm-election cycle, San Francisco voted for an increase in the minimum wage to $15 by 2018. Meanwhile, Republicans took control of the Senate by winning nine seats, which was expected but still depressing – as was voter turnout.

Bill Murray Drove a Taxi So His Cabbie Could Practice the Sax

Hurricane Murray (which is what I call Bill Murray for his crazy antics around the country) hit the Bay Area, leaving good vibes and unbelievable stories in his wake. This time, upon learning of his cab driver’s musical ambitions, he took the wheel and told the cabbie, “Pull over and get in the back. I know how to drive a car.” With so much misery in the world, Bill Murray’s activities are a golden ray of hope. Murray for Everything 2016. 

Airbnb and Rideshares Got the City’s Official Approval and New Regulations

This has been a huge year for the biggest “sharing” companies in San Francisco. Airbnb regulations made reasonable rentals legal and by the book, and shared-transit companies were buoyed by new airport allowances and a legal framework. The sharing industry is now booming and happy, much to the chagrin of the hotel and taxi lobbies.

The ALS Water Challenge and the Very Bad, No-Good Drought

In a somewhat ironic coincidence, the viral and very effective fundraising trend of dumping ice water on your head to promote ALS research was going on at the same time as Governor Jerry Brown announced a state of emergency due to the worst drought California has ever seen, as well as the passage of a bunch of regulations to conserve water. I got around this by performing the Ice Bucket Challenge on the roof of my car every time I had to clean it.

Ex-Senator Leland Yee Screwed the Pooch

Probably the most surprising story of this year was the revelation that state senator Leland Yee was allegedly buying assault weapons from an Islamic separatist group in the Philippines to resell to undercover FBI agents. He was also met with a bunch of corruption charges, including blatant bribery, and racketeering – crimes I didn’t think I’d hear about outside of a Dick Tracy comic.

#BlackLivesMatter, and We Want You to Know It

Following a grand jury’s decisions not to prosecute a police officer for the killings of black men in Ferguson and Staten Island, activists in Berkeley, Oakland, and San Francisco joined Americans everywhere in saying, “Hell. No. Nuh-uh. This is some bullshit.” This led to ongoing protests, rallies, and a total BART shutdown/sit-in accomplished by protesters who chained themselves to the insides of a BART train and then to each other out onto the platform, stopping service out of San Francisco for over an hour.

Get Off the Google Bus

Early this year, the ongoing Google Bus protests were emblematic of the city’s anger at the tech industry’s presence causing rents to skyrocket and indirectly forcing longtime residents out of their homes. There was even a study that showed that rents near Google Bus stops had risen by 20% on average. In the last year, we’ve seen much of this city’s low-income population abandon ship, young and old alike. Who knows what SF will look like this time next year?

Hey, Mom! We’re on TV!

Finally, San Francisco got its place on a regular TV show in a realistic way for the first time since Full House’s opening credits, thanks to the HBO show Looking. Although residents in Potrero Hill and other shooting locations have put up a fuss about parking and the like, it’s been worth it for the city to be on the small screen. San Francisco is slowly becoming the hot new filming spot, so LA can suck it (just kidding, The Bold Italic also loves LA).

Viewing all 3012 articles
Browse latest View live




Latest Images