I've read more than one book on San Francisco wherein someone remarks upon the strangeness of imposing such a strict (for values of 'strict' that include 16 different grids) grid on such hilly terrain - cities in Europe and South America have worked with the hills, wending the streets around in order to avoid having to cut steps into the sidewalks ( Read more... )

Cool article in 7x7 (SF mag) - Diary Of A Mixologist. Mixology is certainly the Hot Thing in the world of drinking right now, and San Francisco likes to fancy itself on the cutting edge. (This is also the kind of bartending that Jeffrey Morgenthaler up in Eugene does. His East Of Eden is a triumph of gin ( Read more... )

The sun hasn't really been out this past week. Instead, we have a glowing orange dot in the sky, obscured by haze. The unceasing winds are pushing fog from the west and smoke from everywhere else. The haze has been so bad that I can't see the hill that faces mine most mornings. The smoke is so bad that even the Embarcadero smells of it ( Read more... )

Dude, it is hot out. Which, for SF, means it's 85 or so, but that's plenty warm. (Heh - it spiked up to 95. That, my friends, is hot. Period.)

A light to burn all the empires
So bright the sun is ashamed to rise and be
In love with all of these vampires I'm not bitching, because I remember wondering about 3 weeks ago if I was ever going to be ( Read more... )

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To my lovely friends who want me to return to MSP, I'm just sayin':

Minneapolis:
-3°F
Clear
Wind: NW at 7 mph
Humidity: 54%

San Francisco:
50°F
Mostly Cloudy
Wind: W at 14 mph
Humidity: 66 ( Read more... )

I'm in the throes of my annual Overdose of Stone Fruits. I love them - pluots, nectarines, cherries, plums.... nom nom nom nom. And the farmer's market is so close and has such a great selection. MY FRUITS, LET ME SHOW YOU THEM ( Read more... )

The Chinese New Year Parade is this Saturday - which means that I'll see a lot of dragon dancers practicing for the rest of the week. Awesome.

Hopefully, I'll feel better and actually make it to the parade this year.

Full-on thunder, lightning, and hailstorm. Haven't seen one of these since I got here.

Cool.

(Glad I don't have to be out in it.)

It does not feel like winter (I'm ignoring the SADD for now). On my run the other day, the weather was clear, I could see across the Bay, and there was no snow on the ground. I was singing along to Lucero's "Tonight Ain't Gonna Be Good", and I was totally agreeing with the line "Summer's winding down," until I realized that it was freakin' ( Read more... )