Whoa...

Turns out people have been really interested to hear that I'm moving.

Well to be fair, it actually turned out that people were more interested in my hastily thrown together list of things I would miss and, maybe more-so, the things I would NOT miss about the Mission. As a result, my blog was featured on two of the bigger Blogs in SF: Mission Mission and CurbedSF. I've had 1545 page views today alone - almost a quarter of all views since I started this thing.

While I appreciate the love and the new readership, it definitely made me realize I need to be careful what I put out there on a public forum. Not only did my post originally tell people where I was moving, I had a fuckin' picture of the house up and everything. Genius.

It also turns out not everybody thinks the pop culture references I make are exactly PC. *Sigh*. If only I was a black comedian. I'd be able to make fun of everyone and anything and it would be okay (see what I did there?). One commenter over on the Mission Mission site, likened my Bebe's kids reference to the term "pickanninies". Really?

The fact is, the Bebe's kids reference had nothing to do with historical racism. The movie came out in 1992, based on the stand up of Robin Harris (1953-1990). Guess what? He was black. In fact, the only reason I used the reference was because the way the kids in the street were acting is spot on the way the characters in the actual animated film acted (for some reason I had the VHS) - with complete disrespect towards other people. But I digress.

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It's the night before Thanksgiving. Supposedly one of the biggest drinking nights of the year. This is when all the college students come home to be with their families for the weekend, but realize how much 'home' actually bores the living shit out of them. Naturally, not wanting to sit around and play, "What are you doing when you graduate?" with Gram and Gramps, and Uncle Mike, everyone calls up their friends that are still in town or back from wherever, and they all get together to drink.

So I ask you, why are you still reading this? Why am I still typing this. Go work on that hangover that'll earn you that 3000 calorie meal and a good nap while your Aunt Betsie brags about her middle-school age daughter who made the "honor roll" for the first time.

Moving On...

After almost 2 years at my place in the Mission, I'm moving. You may (or most likely, may not) remember a post I did a few weeks ago about "stuff" and my wish to simplify and minimalize my life by freeing myself of many of the excess material possessions I have amassed over the years. This move is the perfect opportunity to follow through on my resolution. I'll be moving into a room that is about the half the size of my current room, and getting rid of/selling/donating a ton of stuff. The upside: The room has a HUGE private balcony attached to it that is perfect for barbecues, taking in the sun, and general chillin'. I've got some pretty big ambitions for what I'll be doing with this deck, so I'll ask you guys to stay tuned for updates.

From the rooftop, you can see the tips of the Golden Gate and on the other side, nearly all of Downtown SF. My room (and deck) are at the back of the house. Pretty excited. However, there are some things I'm going to miss. This is obviously begging for a Pros/Cons list, and guess what, you're in luck!

Things I'll Miss About Living in the Mission (specifically 24th and Shotwell):

• The 3 minute walk to BART
• The 40 Taquerias (Papalote and Vallarta, in particular) and the number of dive bars (Mission Bar, Nap's 3) within walking distance.
• The $3 Four Lokos I can conveniently purchase at the corner.
• The quick shot up to the top of Bernal Hill.
• St. Francis Fountain down the street
• The relative flatness of the Mission in general and being able to get anywhere in the area on my bike faster than a car.

Things I'll certainly NOT Miss About Living in the Mission (specifically 24and Shotwell)

• All those damn Bebe's kids running around near the Bernal Projects - especially the two 7-10yr olds who saw me approach the stop sign the other day as they were crossing the street, decided it was pertinent to dramatically slow their pace to the point that they were simply lifting their feet and putting them down in the same spot, and then snapped back at me when I asked out the window, "Really?"
• The bum/drunk who routinely drinks himself into a coma and pisses/shits himself within two doors of my house.
• All the stoop 40s parties that end with a ton of broken glass in the street.
• Shotwell being quite possibly the narrowest two-way street in the City of San Francisco, yet people still treating it like a racetrack.
• The sirens, gunshots, and fireworks (except for the World Series celebration).

In no way is this list inclusive of everything I'll miss (and not miss), but it was simply the things I was able to rattle off while they were at the forefront of my mind. Being that it's Friday and all, and I don't have plans to do ANYthing, I'm most likely going to start making a concerted effort to go through all my shit and see what's actually worth holding onto, what to try and sell, what to give away, and what is straight trash that I've been holding onto for waaaaaay too long. Wish me luck!

Note: If anyone out there is interested in helping me move, there is a meal of your choice and/or a punchbowl at Hobson's (which is conveniently right down the hill from the new place) in it for you. Leave me a note in the comments if you're down.

It Works Every Time...

With all the hype surrounding the banning of Four Loko in several US States, it's always good to know that nobody is banning the old standby:

BREAKING NEWS: As I was putting up this post, a quick google search revealed that the company that makes Four Loko announced today that they are planning to remove the caffeine from their recipe, much like Four Loko's predecessor, Sparks. Get out there and hoard the real thing while you still can! There really is nothing like spending $3.00 for the buzz of a six pack of beer and the jolt of two cups of coffee. Except maybe doubling down and spending $6.00.

Tired of Pandora?

The other day I was perusing the November catalog over at Urban Outfitters and stumbled upon their "music" page. Not only do they have some of the newest trends in fashion, furniture and random toys and books, but they actually let you download 5 new, free tracks every Monday. Not to mention UO Radio, which lets you listen to full length albums (again, for FREE). One of the awesome bands I found on the site is Blonde Redhead (yes, bands still use MySpace - even if no one else does) and their album Penny Sparkle check 'em out. Perfect music to have playing low at your desk in order to get some work done.


Similar to the music you'll hear in one of their massive and awesome stores, most of it comes from the ultra-indie. While some of it is easily skippable, you can't beat the fact that they are essentially giving you the opportunity to be super cool and have knowledge of a band nobody's ever heard of.

So head over to the site, check out the new catalog, see the sale items, and check out the music. And if you're wondering, I like gift cards.

Weekend Best

24th Street from Strike Anywhere on Vimeo.

Found over at Mission Mission.

If you can, watch this in full screen. My 'hood is in the distance. This is flat out amazing. I might be a little bit in love with this girl. Keep watching. You'll see who I'm talking about. I like quick sentences. See?

24 Hour - Potrero

Sure, your gym bathrooms don't smell like a thousand animals pissed themselves and died immediately after. And, sure, you get a towel without having to pay extra. You don't have characters like this guy. I'm willing to bet you even have people that put the weights back where they belong. Your pool probably has the correct chemical balance, and you might even have some classes that aren't overflowing out of the door.

I'll show you what you don't have though:

Yup. Big ass windows looking out towards the Pacific, right next to the weight sets. As the sun goes down a little further, you can actually see Sutro Tower in the distance and catch some pretty amazing views of the city lights.

And of course, Sports Basement. I also pay less than $15/month for access to any club since I've been a member for so long. Not too shabby.

Fair to say, however, the view outside is much better than the "view" inside.

Rewind

It's a shame MTV took the "M" out of their programming. I miss watching the TOP 20 Countdown from back around 1995-1997. Fuck TRL, but the TOP 20 was awesome. I bet this video would've gotten some love had they still actually played music videos when this song came out.



Listening to the song, I find myself thinking about the past. A lot. But who doesn't? After all, everything we happen to be is based on what has happened to us in the past, right? Right. BUT, I think it's important to realize that our past does not dictate our future. Sure we've all made some mistakes or done some things we regret (if you are one of those people who always says, "no regrets" you're a damn liar and you know it), but the important thing to realize is that nothing, absolutely NOTHING, will change what has already taken place. Move on from it. Learn from it, but move on.

One of the minimalist bloggers I follow (and have referenced in the past) recently posted something about this that resonated with me in a number of ways. Everett Bogue over at Far Beyond The Stars, writes:

"The reality is that the past is dead. It happened, it shaped who you are, but
it’s gone now.

And it’s never coming back.

No matter how many Facebook messages you send to your high school ex-girlfriend/boyfriend when you’re drunk at night, you’re never going to be 17 again. You’re never going to share the connection you had then.

No matter how many times you look at that picture of the perfect Halloween, with the displaced tribe of a dozen remarkable individuals, they’ll never be together again in the same way.

And this is okay. The world changes. We evolve into new and better
individuals every single day."

Boom.

Take some time to actually think about that. How many times have you caught yourself telling stories about awesome times in the past, instead of getting out there and actually creating awesome times in the present?

MapCrunch

If you're like me, you love the idea of traveling. However, if you're truly like me, you don't have the unlimited funds and free time to do it all day everyday. If you haven't heard, the folks over at MapCrunch have solved the crisis for us.

One click and about a half a second later and you'll be whisked away to a random place in the world. I just went to Finland, Denmark, Mexico, and Italy in under 10 seconds. Oh yeah, and freakin' ANTARTICA.



The best part? Each image is similarly functional to the Google Maps Street View we're all used to. Check it out. It'll sure make the days at the cubicle go by a lot more quickly.

Not Smug, Just Better

Without making excuses (I HATE excuses), it's been a decent while since I've posted a blog - what with The Boys winning the World Series on the first day of November and all...

Anyhow, what didn't slip was my passion for skimming through other blogs in SF and the Bay Area to see what they have been up to. One of my favorite blogs is I Live Here SF. Of all the stories of all the transplants in this great city, few people are as able to capture the essence of it all through pictures like Julie Michelle can. She is currently showing many of the actual prints from a number of her encounters at SOMArts over at 934 Brannan St.

One of my favorite photos is below:

The exhibition runs 'til November 30th. Check it out if you get a chance.