Little Tour
Tonight I dropped by Blue Bear Music in Fort Mason Center to sign up for the Rock Vocals class. Sheila and Victor had suggested I take something either at Blue Bear or City College or Skyline. I decided I would focus on singing, as I felt I had hit a wall there learning on my own. But the class was cancelled, and they suggested I take another class, 5 weeks only, starting in February. I will now check out the classes City College and Skyline offer. I was also interested in taking a composition or band performance class, but no one but Blue Bear offer those at times that I can actually take them (6pm or later).
Victor then gave me a tour of San Francisco neighborhoods I could potentially live in. I am already familiar with the inner Richmond, as I live there now, and the outer Richmond to the west; and the Sunset, south of the park, which I drive through on the way to work. I'd checked out a house this morning at 39th and Ortega. This is less than 10 blocks from the ocean in the Sunset. The trouble with the Sunset is isolation (hills and 19th ave to the east, Daly City and wilderness to the south and the park to the north) and fog. It'd be nearly as far away from work as I live now, but more boring. Though the price for the house was right, this made it hard to accept.
We drove from Fort Mason, on the edge of the pricey and trendy Marina, through Pacific Heights. Judging by Osamu's reluctance to admit the price of his place there, I assume it is unaffordable; anyway, I wouldn't want to live there either. Parking is a bitch, and it's too dense-- mostly apartments.
We drove south across Market into SOMA, where the landscape is dominated by two story industrial buildings with studios on 2nd floors. Not really my scene either, though close to freeway access.
Next we went south, zig zagging between 280 to the west and 101 to the east, through Potrero. The parking here is reasonable; the hills are steep but walkable; and the view of downtown is spectacular. The place is not totally dead, like the Dog patch east of 101.
Headed down 3rd into the Bayview, which, despite being much improved, is still the ghetto. No drug deals on street corners, but every window is barred and Victor had to watch for hooded men running across the street and the bums stumbling outside liquor stores.
From the Bayview we entered Visitacion Valley, in the Cow Palace area. Much improved on the Bayview, but still the sort of area where you wouldn't be surprised to find your car had be broken into overnight.
Heading up the hill to the west and respectability was regained; Excelsior seemed totally adequate, not pretty but with shops and fairly neat residential areas. The view from John McLaren park was good, but the distance to downtown was surprising. Downtown went from dominating the sky like in Potrero to a cluster of lit up buildings behind Bernal hill. The outer mission got a little dumpier and much tighter on parking.
Bernal Heights to the north was totally acceptable, despite its proximity to the mission it seemed far neater and less crowded.
Headed west of the Mission, Glen Park is a maze of twisty one way streets in the hills north of 280. Very much residential, and somewhat crowded feeling.
That roughly covered the neighborhoods where I could afford to live; what form those accomodations might take varies, but I'll look into it more.
I'm still resisting heading south. I saw a huge place with a pool in Santa Clara. But my commute would equal the one I have now if I were in Santa Clara; and be nearly the same further north in Sunnyvale. No offense to those who live there, but if the commute will be the same I'd rather be in San Francisco. Later in my life I will probably opt for square footage over location. For now, I'm going for cool.
Victor then gave me a tour of San Francisco neighborhoods I could potentially live in. I am already familiar with the inner Richmond, as I live there now, and the outer Richmond to the west; and the Sunset, south of the park, which I drive through on the way to work. I'd checked out a house this morning at 39th and Ortega. This is less than 10 blocks from the ocean in the Sunset. The trouble with the Sunset is isolation (hills and 19th ave to the east, Daly City and wilderness to the south and the park to the north) and fog. It'd be nearly as far away from work as I live now, but more boring. Though the price for the house was right, this made it hard to accept.
We drove from Fort Mason, on the edge of the pricey and trendy Marina, through Pacific Heights. Judging by Osamu's reluctance to admit the price of his place there, I assume it is unaffordable; anyway, I wouldn't want to live there either. Parking is a bitch, and it's too dense-- mostly apartments.
We drove south across Market into SOMA, where the landscape is dominated by two story industrial buildings with studios on 2nd floors. Not really my scene either, though close to freeway access.
Next we went south, zig zagging between 280 to the west and 101 to the east, through Potrero. The parking here is reasonable; the hills are steep but walkable; and the view of downtown is spectacular. The place is not totally dead, like the Dog patch east of 101.
Headed down 3rd into the Bayview, which, despite being much improved, is still the ghetto. No drug deals on street corners, but every window is barred and Victor had to watch for hooded men running across the street and the bums stumbling outside liquor stores.
From the Bayview we entered Visitacion Valley, in the Cow Palace area. Much improved on the Bayview, but still the sort of area where you wouldn't be surprised to find your car had be broken into overnight.
Heading up the hill to the west and respectability was regained; Excelsior seemed totally adequate, not pretty but with shops and fairly neat residential areas. The view from John McLaren park was good, but the distance to downtown was surprising. Downtown went from dominating the sky like in Potrero to a cluster of lit up buildings behind Bernal hill. The outer mission got a little dumpier and much tighter on parking.
Bernal Heights to the north was totally acceptable, despite its proximity to the mission it seemed far neater and less crowded.
Headed west of the Mission, Glen Park is a maze of twisty one way streets in the hills north of 280. Very much residential, and somewhat crowded feeling.
That roughly covered the neighborhoods where I could afford to live; what form those accomodations might take varies, but I'll look into it more.
I'm still resisting heading south. I saw a huge place with a pool in Santa Clara. But my commute would equal the one I have now if I were in Santa Clara; and be nearly the same further north in Sunnyvale. No offense to those who live there, but if the commute will be the same I'd rather be in San Francisco. Later in my life I will probably opt for square footage over location. For now, I'm going for cool.