Katz Bagels (& mediocre pizza) axed the crazy alien flying in a giant bagel from their signage recently. What is going on in my old neighborhood? Next thing they'll tell me is that B&K Cleaners will be overtaken by the Mob.
There's a before picture on Flickr where you can see the flying bagel in all its glory.
While I could complain about my sporadic access to hot water this week or the lack of power on my block for twelve hours this weekend, we all know there are more pressing concerns in the world. This week the country's oil issues hit close to home when a 810-foot-long container ship hit the Bay Bridge releasing 58,000 gallons of oil into the bay.
The area has been blanketed in a thick fog for a couple of weeks but this is typical weather here at 8:30 in the morning. No other ships in recent history have rammed into the bridge and investigations into the incident are ongoing. The Coast Guard is blaming the ship's pilot; the pilot is saying that the Guard gave him the okay. We'll probably be hearing about the case for months while it will take volunteers even longer to clean up the area.
The oil spill has already impacted the Bay Area. A triathlon on Treasure Island today became a biathlon as the swimming portion was canceled. The start of the crab season has been delayed and sport fishing has been closed.
During my sojourn home, I read an interesting article in the New Yorker on Paul Watson who is the man behind the Sea Shepherd Conversation Society.
Raffi Khatchadourian paints Watson as a controversial environmentalist whose extreme tactics are not supported by other major environmental agencies. (Watson was kicked out of Greenpeace.) He and his crew of mostly unpaid volunteers seek out fishing ships in the world's oceans and impair the ships to prevent them from continuing to hunt and fish. This tactic also puts his crews in danger. In seeking out a Japanese whaling fleet, Watson's ailing ship the Farley Mowat set out "to end its days at sea as a battering ram in the service of marine life."
Depending on the interpretation of laws applied to the oceans, specifically the U.N. World Charter for Nature, Watson's activities are illegal.
No country regards ramming, disabling, or scuttling ships to be legal activities, and, except on rare occasions, even naval ships cannot lawfully interfere with foreign vessels on the high seas.
This has caused Watson's ships to be stripped of their flags by countries who did not support his actions. When the Farley lost its flag in Australia, Watson ran a Sea Shepard flag up the line and told his crew that they were "on a pirate ship."
While Watson is fighting the good fight and his concerns about illegal fishing of endangered oceanic animals is admiral, the actions he takes are questionable. Read Khatchadourian's full article online at newyorker.com.
Unlike the beloved Bert on Sesame Street, I've never been all warm and fuzzy about pigeons. I usually wear a look of disgust when I see someone feeding them. However, I've never had a desire to punt one into the endzone either.
Yesterday, I Twittered about a pigeon that was stuck in a contraption on top of the roof my south facing windows look out on (click for my POV). (By the way, the sound of a pigeon trying to escape from an aluminum bowl resembles nails on a chalkboard.) The pigeon was still there today and had a visitor who appeared to be laughing down at his doomed brethren (see sketch). This was starting to bother me a bit. I was concerned about the pigeon. Not knowing how long it takes for a pigeon to starve to death, I really did not want to struggle with that guilt for a long time, but I wasn't sure what to do.
In a bit of random Friday conversation at work, we ended up chatting about pigeons. My co-workers care as much as (if not more than) I do about not letting helpless things suffer. They demanded encouraged me to take action, and immediately, I was sent a phone number for the local SPCA.
I went on the roof to check on the pigeon before calling to confirm that the pigeon was alive. It was in the vent and trapped in the space below the inner dome with nothing to grab on to and not enough room to spread its wings.
I called a few numbers before I got to the right one. The only number that matters is 415 554-9405 which I suppose you can call for your animal rescuing needs in San Francisco. I didn't get the feeling the guys on the phone cared about the pigeon trapped on the roof, and I was feeling a bit silly about calling. However, a woman showed up a couple hours later in an official looking khaki uniform with a net ready to go into action. She seemed to care even about the lowly pigeon. Within a minute, the pigeon flew away. She said that pigeons usually nest in those spaces, but this pigeon was unable to get out. It doesn't say much about the intelligence of this particular pigeon.
This experience sadly was the most interesting episode of my week.
Although I've lived in San Francisco for almost 4 years, I have yet to get a California driver's license. This is not a problem since I don't own a car. However, it is annoying when the bartender has to take the extra time to locate the DOB on my Kansas license. "It's in the center," I tell them which really isn't of much help when staring at a small piece of plastic.
My birthday is approaching and thus my license is expiring. I considered not renewing or just getting a new Kansas license next time I was home, but I recently started using Zipcar.
Zipcar lets you reserve any of hundreds of cars parked around San Francisco for a few hours or a day for a modest fee. It's cheaper than renting a car, and you can't walk two blocks in the city without seeing a few Zipcars waiting for someone to drive them. It's really easy and all done online or through automated voicemail.
Now, I'm driving more and need to have a valid license, so I decided to head down to the DMV at 1377 Fell Street and get a California license.
First, schedule an appointment at the California DMV website. People looked at me enviously as I cut to the front of the line to collect my initial form. Besides the line cutting, my wait was minimal and my number was called within 10 minutes. (I still recommend bringing something to read or a crossword puzzle.)
Since I didn't drive to the DMV, I don't have any information on parking though there were several open spots on the Monday morning when I was there.
Not only did I need my passport (or birth certificate), but they also wanted to see my Kansas license. (They punched a hole in my license at the end which is highly annoying as it is my only proof of age until I receive my new license.) They also do not take credit cards, only cash, check, or debit cards. My fee was $27. I'd recommend bringing your own writing utensil as many of the chains on the counters no longer connected to pens. (Nothing is fill in the oval so no number 2 pencil is needed.)
The queue for pictures was long-ish but moved quickly as no one requested multiple shots.
The written test was 32 questions, and you can miss up to 6. (I missed 4.) The questions are annoying. Do you stop at a yellow light or wait for the signal change? What? It depends on your relative location to the intersection which is not clarified in the question. Fortunately, you can bone up on which way to turn your wheels when parked uphill by browsing the handbook or taking a sample tests on the website. The sample tests are loaded with questions related to trucks and trailers, but I didn't have any of those on my Class B test.
It takes 4-6 weeks to get the new license. Update: I received my new license in the mail within a week. In the meantime, I have to rely on my defaced Kansas license and a piece of paper.
Another update: Tickets are not available at any Amoeba store. Only by listening to KFOG or on the day of the show at Café Du Nord.
UPDATE: According to the Spoon mailing list, tickets will be given away. Here are the details:
...we'll be at Café Du Nord in San Francisco. You can win tickets by listening to KFOG and/or buying Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga at Amoeba (Berkeley) on 7/10. There will also be a small stash of tix sold at the door (for cheap) on the day of show. No advance tickets for this one. Rogue Wave opens.
Although I am not very excited by what I have heard of Spoon's new album, my curiosity is peaked by a show that was just announced for a week from Saturday. Here's what we do know:
KFOG Presents: SPOON There will be NO ADVANCE TICKET SALES for this show. All tickets will be sold day of show. Please continue to watch our website for further updates/details. Thank you!
Thank you, too, for managing to do nothing other than make me want to know more.
I'm not even sure if the show is at Cafe du Nord or the Swedish American Hall, but with tickets not being sold in advance, it means waiting in line more than once. Hmm. Saturday is my day off, but normal people also have that day off. Am I going to be able to get in? If the show is at Cafe du Nord, it will be packed with sweaty hipsters, but at Swedish American Hall there is seating and more space. (I saw Britt Daniel solo at Swedish American Hall, and it was awesome. (Read about that show.)
Even a mediocre Spoon album is better than 99% of everything else being released, so you should purchase Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga on July 10th when it is released.
While the rest of the world goes on about their lives, I'll be refreshing cafedunord.com every hour to find out more.
Ah, June is almost over which means that Pride is over and fireworks will soon be polluting the sky. The pomp and circumstance of Pride does not interest me, so my participation is limited to watching parades from the sidelines and going to see movies at the queer film festival, and Frameline 31 screens hundreds of films throughout the Bay Area for two weeks each June.
Itty Bitty Titty Committee was the closing night film I attended. Producer Andrea Sperling won the 2007 Frameline Award which was presented before the movie started with a far too long retrospective followed by a few speeches.
Sperling's wife, Jamie Babbit, is the director of Itty Bitty Titty Committee and was also in the audience to introduce the film. IBTC is a look at a feminist radical group fueled by a soundtrack of all your favorite Riot Grrrl bands. It's a fun film with some fantastical moments at the end that were only forgotten by the making out montage closing the film. If you don't take the film too seriously, it is easy to enjoy. The acting and production values are better than many films with bigger budgets. (Watch the trailer on YouTube.)
A few members of the cast and crew answered questions after the film, including Nicole Vicius, who played Sadie the worst-girlfriend-ever; Daniela Sea, who got the most applause, not for her character Calvin, but for her part on The L Word; and Guinevere Turner, who had a glorified cameo as a reporter. Babbit fielded most of the questions. One audience member was concerned about the excessive smoking by the characters in the film. There is a campaign to keep smoking out of the queer community that is building steam. I've seen posters on the sides of Muni buses in the city. Babbit, a non-smoker, said that the entire cast smoked which contributed, but smoking by twenty-something members of a radical group is not uncommon.
Audience Award Winner, Vier Minuten (Four Minutes), was the stand out of the three showings I attended at Frameline. A story of a piano teacher at a women's prison in Germany as she connects with a jailed prodigy. The film weaved glimpses of the present with Nazi activity in the same prison during WWII. The piano teacher was the common link between the two eras. It's a beautiful story about the relationship between these two very different women. I forgot to vote, so I'm really glad this film won the Audience Award.
The Look of Love was the title of the shorts program at the Roxie described as a "collection of shorts highlight[ing] the ups and downs of searching for love." The shorts ranged from okay to bad to awful. Licorice, Last Exit, Running Home, and Jo FM were the highlights.
It's always potluck when selecting films at Frameline. You have to purchase tickets in advance for most films, and usually, there is very little known about the film. I really happy with my choices this year, and I recommend both full-length features.
I finished reading The Kite Runner today. Khaled Hosseini's story starts with Amir's childhood in Afghanistan before the Taliban destroyed his homeland and chronicles his family's escape to San Francisco. The real heartbreak occurs when Amir faces his demons (literally through a far-fetched coincidence) when he goes back to Afghanistan as an adult to discover surprising truths and right his and his father's mistakes. Despite many grim scenes, the book ends on a hopeful note and is riveting throughout its nearly 400 pages.
Unfortunately, the book is being made into a movie. The filmmaker's decided other areas are more picturesque than the Fremont where Amir and his father live after moving to the US as scenes were filmed seemingly everywhere in the East Bay except Fremont.
From good to bad...I saw Because I Said So this afternoon. Mandy Moore is adorable but that's about all this movie had in the positive column. Lauren Graham was underused as were all the supporting cast (except Tom Everett Scott who was annoying as one of Moore's suiters). I wonder if there were originally subplots with the supporting cast. Most of these actors we watch weekly deliver on their own television shows, but in this movie, you barely even noticed them. I think Piper Perabo's ass got more screen time than she did.
Skip Because I Said So and see Catch and Release if you need to see a chickflick this weekend.
SFist: Other Things That Happened Today.
Kink.com did indeed buy the Armory at 14th and Mission to use for filming fetish porn. The Armory's architecture was inspired by Moorish castle architecture, and the directors at Kink.com were particularly excited by details like a "dungeon-like basement," the stone staircases, and a drill court that covers an acre.
Hee. This is a couple of blocks from my apartment. I used to walk by this place when I actually left my apartment during the day. (Ah, I miss those days!) The building is a really interesting structure, and I always wondered what it was used for. Now, I know it is going to be used to film porn. Fun!
The new cameras that are going to be installed on 16th & Mission will be able to film the porn stars during their commute.
The San Jose Sharks lost tonight, but Cheechoo and Thorton will be starting in the NHL all star game. I really know nothing about hockey, but I like to say Cheechoo.
Update: The Chron has published a story and pictures of the soon to be porn studio on Mission Street.
From the New York Times - San Franciscans Hurl Their Rage at Parking Patrol:
Burdened with one of the densest downtowns in the country and a Californian love for moving vehicles, San Franciscans have been shocked in recent months by crimes related to finding places to park, including an attack in September in which a young man was killed trying to defend a spot he had found.
This is why I do not want to own a car in this city. I probably spent less than $50 last year on transportion around the city. That includes several trips to the airport and the occassional cab ride.
You definitely do not need a car in the city. If you live in the Eastern peninsula, the T-Third Line will get you from point A to B. A result of the Third Street Light Rail Project, the T-Third Line runs up and down third street connecting Downtown to Monster Park. And starting on January 13th, you can ride on the weekends for free! Full service does not start until April 1st. Unfortunately, this new line doesn't really benefit me unless I become really lazy and would rather switch trains and ride an extra 15 minutes to walk 3 fewer blocks in SOMA.
The dream to provide wireless access to everyone in the city may actually happen. Mr. Mayor has signed an agreement with Google and Earthlink. Don't cancel your DSL or cable internet service though. The speeds are slow and the additional monthly fee for an upgrade isn't really worth it. The full details of the agreement are available here. Speed and security are the most obvious concerns for those of us that work and play online. It will be nice to not have to look for "Free Wi-Fi" signs before patronizing a coffeshop or bar, but I'm not giving up my home service.
The scientists are weighing in, trying to calm fears about the Big One.
HAYWARD FAULT / 3 recent temblors are usual activity.
"These three quakes are minor occurrences," said David Schwartz, a USGS geologist. "The fact they occurred within four days has to be looked at as random and coincidental." The quakes occurred in what experts called a "pocket" of the Hayward Fault that is prone to quakes. Although it is somewhat unusual to see three quakes in such quick succession, they said, it is not unheard of.
I've lived in San Francisco for over three years, and I've felt four quakes--three in the last week. Now, I can recognize the difference between an earthquake and someone slamming a door in my building.
The picture here was taken about 10 feet to the north of my apartment building. It is no secret that I have no digital camera. (My camera phone takes shitty pictures.) So when I find a picture of my neighborhood, I'm going to steal share it.
SFist: Where Have All the Fliers Gone?.
Where have all the fliers gone? Long time pasting. According to the story, there's some dude who has been taking it upon himself to clean up the neighborhood by going around and tearing off all the fliers and handbills that have been taped onto walls, barricades, and streetlights. The dude, Gideon Kramer, is backed up by both state and local laws banning the posting of fliers.
I have only seen a woman tearing down fliers and posters, but she could be one of Gideon's minions. I actually saw her today wearing navy sweatpants and an ugly red sweater vest. The polls will not stay bare for long.
Imagine if Sleater-Kinney and the White Stripes mated and produced a spinoff band. The teenaged "Sleater-Stripes" venture would resemble the Bay Area band, Two Seconds.
With drums and a guitar, Sierra Frost and Lily Faden put together thirteen songs on To Pass The Time from Popsmear Records. Call 'em pop bursts since all but two of the tracks clock in at under 2 minutes and are littered with lyrics overheard at the skating rink or lemonade stand. Nothing resembling Colin Meloy here, but it is fun and catchy and that's all that matters with a pop song.
Give these tracks a listen (a little higher quality than what you'll hear on their MySpace page) and look out for what happens on their next record.
Last time Britt Daniel played a solo show in San Francisco, I was still working overnights and disappointed that I would be unable to attend. The next time Spoon came through town, they played the overpriced Fillmore and there was no way I was going to go. Fortunately, Britt decided to grace us with his presence at the charming Swedish American Hall during Noise Pop.
Armed with a toy box filled beats, like the evening's earlier performer Laura Veirs, and an electric guitar, Britt charmed us all with messed up hair and a modest "I don't know if I can play that" persona. He did play that. He played "Fitted Shirt" during the encore, although reluctantly. It was a great rendition of a song I've loved since I first heard Girls Can Tell.
He went through the back catalogue hitting a few from Series of Sneaks and, my favorite Spoon album Kill the Moonlight, including "The Way We Get By" which is a great live song.
He also played a new song that has been circling the blogosphere since SXSW, "Make Me A Target" (mp3) which I've uploaded for you to sample.
Tonight, I will be seeing Jason Collett in the dungey little basement called Cafe du Nord.
Seattle's Laura Veirs took the stage at Swedish American Hall solo but with the help of some recorded beats and a loop pedal she created a macrame of sound that filled the large hall. At first, I was put off by her constant need to spend the last 2-3 minutes of a song building layers of vocals and guitars before a slow fade out, but by the end of her set, it was a really nice to see something other than a few chords strummed on an acoustic guitar.
Although I've spent many a night downstairs at Cafe du Nord, Thursday night's Noise Pop event with Britt Daniel headlining was my first time in the Swedish American Hall. The room is vast, in stark contrast to crowded basement venue below. And, the show was seated! The entire show was short--I was there little more than two hours--so standing would have been okay too.
Laura Veirs took advantage the crowd's orderly seating arrangement and walked through crowd while playing "Spelunking" and called for requests. (Silly me, I forgot to request "Rapture".)
Look for more on Britt Daniel's show tomorrow. It's been so long since I blogged, I thought I should spread the night out over two days worth of posts.
Last time Will Sheff stood behind the mic at Cafe du Nord, he had a sore throat but still ended up playing for almost an hour and a half with all of Okkervil River backing him up.
On Wednesday, a healthy Will stood alone on the tiny stage with an acoustic guitar, a set of harmonicas, and a keyboard. He kept thanking us for being there and seemed surprised by our applause, looking for our approval after each new song.
Although he played a lot of new songs which sounded great, the highlights were "No Key, No Plan" and a piano only version of "For Real" which was still as powerful as the album track.
He also played a few songs from the other band he plays a small part in, Shearwater.
Moving from the guitar to the keyboard, he was uncertain what song to play, changing is mind more than once. Deciding on a song, he stopped himself to warn us that the theme of the set was moving away from an "anti-Valentine's Day" feel to songs about decay.
The leader of a large band can sometimes flounder in the spotlight of the solo show, but Will Sheff embraced it and brought an enigmatic presence to the stage that was impossible not to watch.
If you haven't already, I highly recommend picking up Black Sheep Boy Appendix. Even though it is only an EP, the album contains some of the best songs from last year.
Continue reading "Will Sheff at Cafe du Nord on 08 Feb 2006" »
...but I probably couldn't afford to go see the Pretenders anyway.
brooklynvegan: The Pretenders & The Go-Go's | Tour Dates including:
Thu, 03/30/06 The Warfield - San Francisco, CA
I link to SFist.com constantly but that is because they are the source for local happenings in the Bay Area. It helps that they gave me free passes to see a movie at IndieFest last weekend.
Though after watching the screening of Lie With Me last Friday, I was glad that I didn't actually pay for my ticket. It wasn't a horrible film. At times, the cinematography painted beautiful colors on the screen but it felt like a porn film with more attractive actors.
Two people make eye-contact and have a non-verbal moment at party and for half of the movie their relationship is love at first sight without the messy dialogue. They stick to the sex until David's dying father starts making jokes prompting David and Leila to actually start talking.
The couple's parents are the only thing in the film giving the characters depth. It is hard to watch a film when you don't care about the characters even if you are given full nudity. (Seeing the characters naked does not make them three-dimensional!)
What you are left with is two pretty, yet damaged, people who will never be together because they are too fucked up and an audience who doesn't care what happens to them.
Lie With Me stars Eric Balfour and Lauren Lee Smith. Eric played Buffy's "potential friend" in the pilot of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". Lauren currently plays The Soup Chef on "The L Word".
IndieFest continues through Valentine's Day at various theatres in San Francisco. The preview for the Danielson: A Family Movie looked promising so I will probably try to catch it at the Roxie.
Last year, I saw Ted Leo and the Velvet Teen, discovered the Golden Republic, and was reminded why I didn't like Nada Surf.
San Francisco's Noise Pop 2006, as usual, proclaims itself better than ever and now with self-cleaning action! The website has finally appeared but is still skimpy on information.
Shows I'm likely to go to between March 28th and April 2nd:
Shows I might go to:
Tickets to most of the shows go on sale Sunday at 10AM. However, the schedule is still quite bare. A lot of the shows do not have more than an act listed at a venue per night. I hate to buy tickets to one show when something more appealing might appear later.
If you have never been to Cafe du Nord, you should know that the stage is very tiny. But all eight members of Margot & the Nuclear So & So's managed to squeeze onto the stage and match the brilliance of their debut album, The dust of retreat, during a forty minute opening set tonight.
The band is: Richard Edwards' rugged lead vocals underscored by the soft backing vocals from Emily Watkins who also plays the synth and rhodes organ. A cello and trumpet adding so much to the songs even though the instruments were quiet and not at the forefront of the sound. An electric guitar and bass guitar huddled in the corner but still managing to move around a bit. And two percussionists--one at a drum kit, another with a suitcase full of toys.
A highlight was "Broad ripple is burning" (mp3) which is not on their currently unavailable album, but I cut it from their WOXY.com Lounge Acts performance from 28 November 2005.
You can still download three tracks from an earlier post I wrote on the band. The album is going to be re-released in March, until then you will just have to try to catch them live in a city near you.
SFMOMA has started releasing "artcasts" for your listening pleasure. You no longer need to rent a tape machine with a headset from 1982 to listen to an "educational" lecture about the art you are viewing. The "artcasts" are released in monthly installments with additional podcasts for the main exhibits.
(I'm going to test this out when I go back to check out the Kiki Smith exhibit again this week.)
The much talked about Rogue Wave album, Descended Like Vultures, was one of the few discs on music blog end of the year lists that I had yet to purchase. 10:01 (download from Sub Pop) is a great track I've listened to on repeat but I hadn't been motivated to purchase the album until yesterday. An excess of credit at Amoeba led to multiple purchases. Besides Rogue Wave, I picked up the Birdmonster EP and four 7" (The Kills, Matson Jones, Mountain Goats, and Mclusky). Of course, I ended up spending more than my credit covered but I expected as much. After a few listens to each, I'm not disappointed with my purchases. Birdmonster is a San Francisco band I should be able to see live in the future and their EP has been pimped in more a few music blogs recently.
Taking the 33 from the Mission to Haight is always an experience. (Will the bus make that knife's edge turn onto Clayton or scrape against the cement wall?) Yesterday, a women across the aisle from me, who had been talking to numerous people I could not see, choose to pull out her crack pipe and smoke a bit in response to the mechanical voice declaring that "smoking is prohibited on all MUNI buses." Lovely. I got off at the next stop, not that it mattered, since I bounded down Haight where I inhaled second-hand weed smoke for several blocks.
If you are looking for a good falafel on Valencia, please try Ali Baba's Cave on 19th. Cheap and good. Other places try to charge you extra for hummus and potatoes but not Ali Baba's. Yummy.
As the author is easily distracted, this blog does not have a clear purpose. Topics range from music to San Francisco to hockey. To know exactly what I am up to now, you can follow me on FriendFeed. Any pictures I've taken will be available on Flickr. More information is available in the FAQ.
