|
||||
"Being too charming was never one of my faults." - Kill Me Later
Webcam 
Mine ::
about me.
wishlist
Powered by Blogger. |
awesome
Paul and I got stuck in a bit of a traffic jam on the Embarcadaro on our way home today. When we passed the ferry building we saw why: protesters. Global-warming-if-you-love-your-kids-you'd-be-a-vegan protesters. Who were taking their sweet, sweet time walking back and forth inside the crosswalks. I was not a happy camper. I hate traffic. And I REALLY HATE holier-than-thou protesters who are getting between me and my dinner. Which yes, involves meat, oh-so-delicious meat. Anyway, there was this monster-truck style tricked out red pickup a couple cars ahead of us, right in front of the crosswalk and I saw some people talking to the dude in the pickup. I figured it was probably not a friendly conversation since this guy clearly wasn't overly concerned about carbon emissions and then something AWESOME happened. The light changed and the protesters finally cleared the crosswalk and as the truck pulled away he gunned his engine and blew a cloud of dark exhaust into the crowd as he sped off. Labels: San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Friday, September 18, 2009
I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried. As I walked to meet Paul and a friend for dinner I was stopped by a polite looking young man. "Sorry to bother you, but I'm just here on a short trip." I was expecting him to ask me for directions, which is more often than not the case here, but instead he whipped out a stack of papers at which point I knew I was about to be asked for money. From the look of him I was expecting ACLU or Greenpeace or some other hippie-liberal organization, but instead? "During the Bush Administration a microchip was implanted into my brain stem [points to a document with a picture of a brain on it]. I'm trying to raise $28 so I can get a state ID so I can have surgery to have the chip removed." Um, what? Labels: 7 posts in 7 days, San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Just now I was walking home after drinks and another twelve hour day at work. As I was rounding the corner onto my street I saw an older woman with a dog collapse on the sidewalk. No one else was around and it was behind a row of bushes blocking us from the street. I ran to her to see if she was okay, and she didn't seem to be able to get up, though she was conscious. Her dog was walking around her and licking her face and she was crying saying, "Oh my God" over and over again. I knelt down beside her and started rubbing her shoulder asking if she was okay. Did she need me to call someone? I asked her if she needed help? She said yes. So I did the only thing I could think of. I called 9-1-1. It's funny because my recurring nightmare is that I will call 9-1-1 and either no one will answer or they'll put me on hold, but they answered on the first ring. The woman who answered asked me a lot of questions, is she breathing? Is she conscious? Is she bleeding? Yes, yes and no. She asked me if I knew how old she was, I asked the woman and she said 56. The same age as my mother. The paramedics arrived moments later and the dog began barking at them immediately. The woman said, no, no, I don't want the police. And I said, it's the firemen, they will help. She started lift the upper half of her body off the sidewalk so she was propped up. Her legs still seemed as though she couldn't stand. She said she didn't want them. A big group of firemen surrounded us, and then paramedics came out of an ambulance not far behind. They said they recognized her, they had seen her the other night. One of the younger firemen told me they had it from here. They seemed...cynical...but nice enough at the same time. They asked her if she'd been drinking. She said, no...then maybe yes. She seemed confused. I got up. One of the older firemen nearby seemed to understand how shocked and disturbed I was. He was warm and gentle and told me they knew her, she drank and she fell down, they had seen her before. They would take good care of her. And he thanked me. I walked off, dazed. She was the same age as my mother but looked older. While we were alone I had asked her if I could call anyone else for her, she said she lived alone. She kept saying she was so sorry, so sorry, and that I was so nice...and I told her she didn't have to be sorry at all.... I don't know?? Did I do the right thing? I didn't know what else to do, I was afraid she was hurt. But maybe she just needed someone, someone to talk to her, someone to care. Maybe that's why she drinks and falls down? Maybe I did the wrong thing, I don't know??? I hope I see her again. I hope I recognize her. I wish I hadn't just walked off when the emergency crew asked me to leave. I just wish I could have done something more since it now seems so clear she was looking for more than just physical help. I just wish life wasn't this way. Labels: navel gazing, San Francisco
Friday, September 19, 2008
Just another inevitably sad story from a city where the DA cares more about criminals than innocent citizens. I think this comment from "moseman23" says it all: I wonder if the ridiculousness of liberal policies on display here in this city will make some more San Franciscans vote for McCain? Hm...on second thought, it's still pretty unlikely. Labels: Criminals, San Francisco, Stupidity and Ignorance
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Kudos to the Chronicle for continuing to investigate and shine light on this story. There's a lot to dislike about the paper but in this case they are definitely doing the right thing. I know a lot of San Franciscans were worried that this story would fade into memory but I think it really has the potential to be a rallying cry for forcing some common sense onto our city government. Especially in light of this newest development. At the end of the article, a government lawyer says he "doesn't know" if the killings could have been prevented, but the widow of Tony Bologna (who also lost two of her precious sons) has it exactly right: Any lawyers out there know if she can sue the city for negligence or something along those lines? Labels: illegal immigration, News, San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Yesterday, Newsom said in a news conference that he had no authority to order illegal immigrant juveniles be turned over to federal law enforcement. I guess he really just needed to sleep on it, because apparently today, he found just such authority. Labels: illegal immigration, San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
So if Paul and I really do end up buying a home in the city, I guess this kind of crap is what our property taxes will be funding. Suddenly the commute from the suburbs isn't looking so bad...Sad because I really do love so much about this city. Thanks again liberals! Labels: Criminals, San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Wow. Just, wow. I think Newsom has completely lost touch with reality. Way to "protect your citizens" Newsom. I'm sure Danielle Bologna appreciates it...oh wait...maybe not. Labels: Guns, San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Friday, June 27, 2008
So the story behind the slaughtering of the Bologna family here in SF keeps getting more and more...predictable: And then of course there's this article that is hidden deep in the depths of the Chronicle website... So to sum it up, assuming this really is the guy who committed these disgusting murders, the police had their man in custody and knew that he was in fact a member of MS-13, currently known as the most violent and brutal street gang in America, but thanks to a D.A. who believes it's her job to hug criminals and "understand" how they came to be sub-human scum, and our mayor who likes to advertise the fact that San Francisco is a sanctuary city....well this animal was free to murder a hard-working father and his two young sons, both with bright futures ahead of them. Yes, liberals, your policies are clearly working. Labels: Criminals, illegal immigration, San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Probably the most heart-breaking story I've heard out of this city for, oh, a couple months or so. I don't know how the rest of the country views San Francisco, but I can tell you it is not a safe city. We'll see if the police chief and DA come out from hiding under their desks for this one. Fifty-one murders in 2008 and counting. The Bologna family has set up two funds (information can be found in this article) so please donate if you can. Labels: Criminals, News, San Francisco
Sunday, June 08, 2008
I've been bashing San Francisco a lot lately and that really doesn't reflect how I feel about this city. There is so much to love about San Francisco that it becomes easy to look past the politics and call this place home. I'm personally convinced that part of the reason I'm still madly in love with this city is because I'm lucky enough to live in North Beach. From my apartment, it's a thirty minute walk or a short street-car ride to the Ferry Building. Paul and I like to wander down there every so often to splurge on specialty food products (yesterday we came home with cheese from Cowgirl Creamery, an entire focaccia from Acme Bakery and Paul recreated the $11 grilled cheese from Hog Island Oyster Bar...it was only slightly cheaper to make at home). Unfortunately, we did not come home with any mushrooms. This is the view a few blocks up the street from my apartment. That's Alcatraz back there! And, uh, pay no attention to the streetlight...  Also a few blocks up the street...and, yes, the sky is usually this blue here...  Washington Square Park - half a mile away from our apartment, too bad it's all uphill! Ah well, it keeps us in shape at least... A San Francisco classic...the cable car stop at Union Square. If we had been willing to shell out five bucks each the cable car stops a few blocks away from home...but since we had nowhere to be we decided to walk instead. A view of the trees on a winter day stroll through Golden Gate Park with my momma. Okay, so this has nothing to do with SF, but it's cute so here it is. Labels: Pictures, San Francisco, Taz wingless was still breathing at 11:43 AM - 0 comments
Warning: Explicit pictures below, not suitable for kids. (Even though they were taken in public, in a park, in broad daylight, but alas this is the point of the post.) Yesterday it was a gorgeous sunny day here in the city and Paul and I decided to wander down along the Embarcadaro with all the tourists to do some shopping at the Ferry Building. Imagine our surprise when we happened along this scene in the park in front of Embarcadaro Four (a busy shopping center directly across from an even busier tourist attraction - the Ferry Building and Saturday morning farmers market): Yes, there was full frontal and this picture doesn't really capture just how many men were in their birthday suits... As you can imagine, living in San Francisco, I'm pretty used to gay people and have no problem with them at all. They can be a tad over-sensitive but for the most part they are fun and interesting people to hang out with. But, man, this is the kind of the stuff that makes This is a picture of the other side of the metal structure in the first picture...Yup those are little kids playing at the fountain. Why do some gay people think it is okay for them to do this? If you know the area at all, it is a tourist filled, family oriented area - we are not talking about a traditional area of the city where you know you might be exposing your kids to some questionable sights if you bring them there...But I guess now we have to pretty much declare all of San Francisco off limits to parents who don't want to explain to their three year olds why there are naked men making out with each other while other naked men wander about taking pictures. The worst part was that there was really no warning for any parents who might be leaving some of the other attractions in the area with their children...I saw a dad in a suit walking with his maybe four year old son, seemed like they were probably heading out to the street car heading home, he said to his son, "Look at the fountain!" and all I could think was that I really hoped they didn't walk around the fountain for some reason...or the dad would be walking into a lot more than he was expecting! And you know this would be every bit as bad if it were naked men and women making out and groping each other in full view of children - but that wouldn't happen because I think even in San Francisco they would have been arrested! (At one point when we were coming out of the shopping center we saw a cop standing at the top of some stairs watching the goings on from a distance, basically just there to make sure nothing violent happened? Public nudity is apparently legal in this city, just like everything else is...) Oh and the very best part? On the side where all the kids were playing in the fountain they were also setting up for a Crohns & Colitis Foundation event: There are some words you can't really see in this shrunken down version under Camp Oasis...it says "Kids Corral." Why they chose to put the Kids Corral on the side closest to...well..."the other side" I have no idea. If San Francisco becomes any more "family friendly" you'll have to have your ID checked just to get into the city... Labels: San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Saturday, May 31, 2008
I have this habit where I like to be on top of all the murders that are going on in this city via the Chronicle and this website. This story is especially disturbing to me because a) at least at first blush it would appear to be a pretty random act of violence (road rage perhaps?) and b) we were actually about two blocks away from there around the time the article reports shots were reported to police. Sometimes I find it really hard to believe that liberals can actually think this city makes a great case for letting them run the country. Labels: Criminals, San Francisco
If you want to know what an America run by knee-jerk liberals would look like, well, look no further than the beautiful city of San Francisco: That last part just boggles my mind. What's worse is that if you look at this database you'll find that there are 8,180 city employees making over $100k annually. That's 818 million dollars a year at a minimum just in salaries alone for 1/3 of the city's workforce. And it's actually a much higher number than that because if you look at the database you'll see the highest city paid worker is making $350,324 a year and that the number decreases at a modest rate over the next 409 pages. The number has got to be well over a billion dollars a year - not including the other two-thirds of the city's payroll. Anyway, this is how liberals can manage to run what should be a prosperous city into the ground. This is where a love of unions and ever-expanding social programs leads. Labels: San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Voted NO on all the state propositions, I would have voted for 91 except the pro-argument says to vote NO since the exact same thing has already been passed into law by the legislature/Arnold. I only had time to stop by the California Secretary of State website before voting so I didn't even realize there were city propositions until I saw them on my ballot. I literally laughed out loud when I read Proposition C which actually suggests that San Francisco buy Alcatraz from the federal government and turn it into the - I kid you not - Global Peace Center! And a guy named Da Vid is going to run it. Not David, that's too "normal." He is Da. Vid. Sigh, only in San Francisco. Oh yeah, and I voted for Romney. Labels: 2008 Elections, Politics, San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
I'm starting to feel like this city is just chock-full of random It's probably just my perception but I feel like I read a lot more about crimes like this now then when I lived in Los Angeles. Maybe I just read the local news up here more consistently than I did down there. It's funny though isn't it, in the two San Francisco cases, how the bad guys still managed to get guns into the city despite the fact that there is a law against guns and everything. A law. Written down on paper somewhere and everything. How in the world did guns get past that? Paul and I always have the discussion about how utterly lawless this city is in so many ways. Like the time we saw a guy run a redlight - nearly hitting a cop making a left turn - and he didn't even get pulled over! Paul actually told me later that I didn't see the first car which ran the redlight before the guy I saw went through...that's how red the light was. I have literally gone days without seeing a single police officer anywhere. Edited to add: Hm, I must have seen something shiny or something because not only is that where this leaves off, I also forgot to hit publish. Genius! Labels: Guns, San Francisco
Monday, October 22, 2007
Unsurprisingly, San Francisco is a city full of ironic juxtapositions. I can't even count the number of times I've overheard some hippies jabbering at the next table about the usual hippie crap - and then they go on to order dinner and wine that costs easily over $150 on two people without batting an eye. Meanwhile, there are bums all over the place. Not that they're going hungry here either though. And apparently, a lot of them could have a roof over their heads if they so pleased. I'm going off on a tangent here but why is that even an excuse? And if someone says to you "I would rather do drugs and live like an animal in the street than have a roof over my head without drugs," well, what are you really supposed to do about that? Will increasing funding for the homeless really "help" someone like that? Is it even possible to help someone like that? And at what point is society not responsible for someone's personal decisions in the liberal mind? Pretty sure there are no answers to any of those questions. Labels: San Francisco, those whacky liberals
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Only in San Francisco can someone run a red light, nearly hitting a cop making a left turn, and not get so much as pulled over. Labels: San Francisco
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Last Sunday Paul and I went to Alice 97.3's Now and Zen Festival in Golden Gate Park. Peter Bjorn and John, Gin Blossoms, Joss Stone, James Blunt and the strangest crowd you've ever seen - a San Francisco crowd. The first really odd thing I noticed was an abundance of old people. This lady sitting next to us literally looked like she might be someone's grandmother and, yes, that IS butterscotch! The weirdest part was that about halfway through the concert she was joined by a younger woman who kept smoking cigarettes and was wearing black lipstick and swearing a lot. In contrast, on the other side of us was this young couple with their maybe two year old baby. Poor kid got pulled out of his stroller for Joss Stone's performance and immediately commenced crying his little head off because all he wanted was a nap. Despite the fact that this was supposed to be a Zen festival, there was actually quite a lot of negative energy. Mainly due to the fact that where all these people are standing and blocking the view? That is where people used to be sitting on the grass until latecomers came and tried to stand in the bare patches of grass and ended up forcing the whole front area to get up. There was much cursing and yelling and threats of bodily harm. Not very Zen. Just your average hippies, though, I guess. By the end of it, you either had to stand or get a lovely view of everyone's bottoms. Does this remind anyone else of the "What doesn't belong" game we used to play in elementary school? Or how about this dude who looks like he fell out of another decade? And then there was Random Nacar Dad. Of course there were many old hippy couples everywhere. And old hippy ladies...you'll just have to take my word for it that they are old because from the back you can't really tell. That reminds me, the other day Paul and I went to this burger place in the neighborhood and there were these three old ladies (in their 60's) in tie-dye shirts talking proudly (and loudly) about the days when they used to smoke black tea. WTF? Only in San Francisco. By the way, I am now major-ly in love with Joss Stone. *Swoon* Finally, was close enough to James Blunt to tell him how I think his Beautiful song makes him sound like a complete loser - but I chickened out =( Paul and I came to the conclusion that only in SF would you see such an eclectic crowd at a concert featuring these artists. What do you expect from a city full of aging hippies who can't let go of their youth? Labels: San Francisco
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
I just hit the six week mark at my new job and I thought it might be a good time to reflect a bit. For the most part this blog seems to have dropped off my radar since I started working and I mean to correct that. The first several weeks I was so slammed with the crazy markets and trying to learn everything and my coworker going on vacation only four weeks after my start date that I had no energy to do anything computer-related when I got home in the afternoons. Now that I'm finally getting into a groove at work, hopefully I can pick up my hobbies again...like reading all my favorite political blogs! I have to admit though, it's tough being a red girl in a blue city (my new blog title). It was hard for me to imagine a city more liberal than Los Angeles, but yup, here I am in good ol' San Francisco, home of Nancy Pelosi. Ugh. And even though I'm working for an investment bank which you would think should lean to the right, most of my coworkers are decidedly, uh, blue. Maybe not dark blue, but pretty damn blue nevertheless. Even though the boss is probably one of the coolest bosses I can imagine and has made it perfectly clear that he wants everyone to speak up whether or not their opinions are in the majority, I still feel it wise to keep out of politically heated discussions until I've been around awhile...After all, we all know I can get pretty passionate about certain topics. My recent lack of interest in politics has also been tied to work-related exhaustion. After using my brain every minute of every hour for 10-12 hours straight, there was just nothing left in me to expend on thinking about politics. I finally understand what people mean when they say there is just too much else going on to think about that stuff. But you know me, I can never stay away for long. So anyway, work. How is work? Let's give it six more weeks because history shows that three months is the big test for me, but so far? I'm loving it. I work hard, but I'm paid well. I'm appreciated, I'm learning, my coworkers are awesome, my manager treats me so well and the big boss is, as I've already mentioned, super chill and approachable and very interested in improving the office and team building. The only problem I can foresee is that I'm not sure that the "next step" in this position is appealing to me, but regardless it's a great position where I'm learning about the business every day and working for a big name resume builder. Oh yeah, and did I mention they are actually paying me well? This still shocks me sometimes, but I'm actually making more than what I made at my first job (fund-raising) and last job (recruiting) COMBINED. Including my bonus and all the perks (401k matching, etc.) I will probably come very close to making more than all three of my previous jobs combined. Sad. Well, I guess not sad anymore, but sad about my previous jobs. Hopefully I'm not jinxing myself, but I'm really loving my life. Paul and I have really settled into this whole domestic thing (as you can see from our Labor Day weekend). I'm used to my work schedule and actually like the fact that I get out at 3pm on most days and can stroll home amidst the hubub of the city. I've started taking a slightly more hilly route home as opposed to the very flat and direct I used to take. It takes me through a much busier part of the city including Washington Square Park (and plus I could use the exercise). The more strenuous route also takes me down into one of my favorite views in the whole city. Which also happens to be my own street! I wish I had a better camera so I could really capture the amazing-ness of it. I must look like a tourist with my camera constantly out but I find that in this city you need it! Labels: San Francisco, the grind
Sunday, September 02, 2007
Paul and I are spending our first long weekend in the city... My parents came over for dinner yesterday and Paul, being the awesome host that he is grilled up some skewers. I made the corn. A take on one of Paula Dean's recipes - mayo, salt and pepper, wrapped in foil and tossed on the grill. Yum. After the parents left we enjoyed some Moscato d'Asti from our neighborhood Italian market Molinari's. We both agreed it was the best Moscato d'Asti we've ever had. Which is saying something cause we've had a lot of it. And I tossed in some cherries for extra deliciousness. This morning I woke up feeling ambitious and prepared a cheese (smoked fontina) and salami (also from Molinari's) plate for Paul. Of course it wouldn't be complete without a glass of red wine. Even if it was nine in the morning. I was in the mood to cook so we walked to the Safeway and got some tortillas so I could make some smoked fontina quesadillas to go with more of Paul skewers. And of course, since we were firing up the grill, more corn was in order. After lunch we played about 5 hours of DOTA before heading up the street to reservations at Mangarosa. We've passed this place a billion times already and finally decided to try it. I'm torn on how I feel about this place. The water was served without ice which really doesn't bother me since I got pretty used to that in France and actually kind of prefer it if its not a super hot day. They also didn't serve us any bread, so for a long time we were just sitting there with our drinks as we waited for our main courses (we didn't order any apps or salad). We found out later you have to ask (possibly pay?) for the bread which put me off a bit. It made me feel like this place was just a bit too pretentious. Despite consuming copious amounts of steak in the past 48 hours Paul opted for the Brazilian Steak Rechaud. The boy just can't get enough of grilling. Even when he has to pay $30 to do it. I opted for the "Frango Assado" (crispy chicken with aged balsamic vinegar). It was absolutely delicious and made me feel better about the overall experience. The side of mashed potatoes (which you have to order separately) was only ok. We decided to stop by Trader Joe's on the way home to prepare for another big day of eating tomorrow! Labels: Bon Appetite, San Francisco
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Yesterday was another twelve hour day for yours truly. Thank GOD my partner is going to be back on Monday. He better be anyway. It was still a good day though, the big boss in the office bought me my lunch for getting through "a rough week" and another guy in the office brought in bagels, also in honor of me surviving the week. AND the best par? My manager is giving me an "under the table" day off to take sometime before the end of the year! Wahoo! It feels good to be appreciated, especially considering I know the week wasn't easy for them either with only one sales assistant in our office. I walked home through the city around 5pm and it was a completely different world since I had last seen it twelve hours earlier at 5am. It was a beautiful day and the city was bustling. People were spilling out of bars in the financial district, Chinatown was full of tourists. Washington Square Park packed with people lounging in the grass or playing with their dogs or eating Gelato and strolling about. Also, crazy homeless people yelling, but whatever. I even stopped by this great bakery in Chinatown and got dozens of bao zi to bring home to the family in Fremont. As I was heading down the hill towards Pier 39, almost home, I had an amazing view of the bay, boats in the horizon, the sky perfectly blue and it struck me how lucky I am to live where I do. I mean, really, in the last seven years of my life, other than a brief stint in Turlock (which by the way I actually really enjoyed) I've been living in places where people go on vacation. Not even in the suburbs of these places, but like smack dab in the middle of West Los Angeles, Paris and San Francisco. Labels: Life, San Francisco, the grind
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
I forgot to mention that Paul rearranged the furniture while I was staying at my parents last weekend. No more nightmares. Coincidence? Perhaps. But I like the new layout better anyway. It's strange. I know that someone my age (mid-20's, gads, can't believe I'm in my mid-20's already) is supposed to prefer living in the city, particularly in North Beach, but I find myself heading back to my parents place. I don't think it has anything to do with Paul, but maybe something to do with the fact that the cat is still living with my parents. And as much as I did enjoy living in Paris, I'm pretty much done with the city life and would much rather reside in the mundane suburbs. A white picket fence might be nice too. Labels: San Francisco
Monday, June 11, 2007
Our new apartment is mostly set up now, which I guess makes it official: We're San Franciscans. I love the apartment, mainly due to the awesome-ness of the location which puts us literally two blocks away from Fisherman's Wharf. Two blocks! But there's still a lot of adjusting to be done and I've been having nightmares both nights I've spent there so far. The superstitious half of me is convinced our set up is bad feng shui and we need to rearrange our bed, the practical half of me (also known as "Paul") says that the apartment is so tiny it only allows for one arrangement - the one we've got going right now. Anyway, I'm back at my parents tonight so we'll see how I sleep here. (I don't really believe in feng shui anyway.) Labels: San Francisco
Saturday, June 09, 2007
No idea what I'm still doing up. As if ten minutes past midnight is a real late night or something. Obviously, I'm old. Really though, I should be sleeping as Paul and I are...wait for it...moving tomorrow! For some reason this feels like our first grown up apartment even though we've already had our first apartment together in Los Angeles and it was also a studio. Of course our new rent is nearly double our old one despite the fact that the new apartment may actually be slightly smaller. And yet the fact that we are furnishing this apartment from scratch makes it feel like a more grown up place. Even though most of the furniture is still from IKEA, it's different because this time it's all color coordinated! From our comforter to the new, very expensive shelving unit Paul had to have. So yes, we are moving in to our new place early in the morning, thus making now fifteen minutes past midnight very late. In a lucky twist of fate my knees and elbows are hurting immensely and are even somewhat swollen, for good measure, so I will once again be rendered completely useless in the moving process. Labels: San Francisco
(c) 2001-2006 transcended.net - all rights reserved |
|||
