SF Auto Return: fuck you and your caring.

Idon't want to actually get into the whole story that precludes this picture, but those of us who are unfortunate enough to have visited this godawful place (where I'm convinced karma goes to die) can definitely appreciate the irony. I'm pretty sure that it was only by slim chance that the second I saw this sign, rain didn't start pouring down. Although I did hear thunder crackle - but maybe it was a minor brain spasm.

The Sunset's former supervisor, Ed Jew of Burlingame, was stripped of title and office in 2007 following two investigations and multiple charges brought against him: one for failing to comply with residency requirements for his position, and the second for accepting $40,000 in FBI-marked bills as a bribe to help the awful tapioca/desert cafe Quickly set up shop in another location in his district. The news comes out now that the lawyer Jew hired to represent him in the federal bribe case was also the lawyer who initially brought the case to the FBI. What is going on here? Is there only one lawyer in this town who happened to print enough business cards for the year?

Conflict of interest issues notwithstanding, Jew's current representation wants to throw out the judgement in the federal case because his former representation was understandably compromised. Although ethically speaking, I would be uncomfortable if my attorney was directly responsible for the charges being brought against me, Ed Jew really made his bed (having been told, before a witness, that Gruel had prior involvement with the case)... so why shouldn't he be forced to lay in it? If you watch as much Law & Order as I do, you'll recognize this as a common last-ditch effort to toss out or reduce a major charge - but what's kind of scary is that this is San Francisco, and our motto is essentially "Casos Vigesimos Damus" (we give twentieth chances) *, and you have to shoot a cop, unprovoked, while he is trying to offer you a cupcake, and then make a hat out of a baby, in order to get set to the slammer.

* And yes... I did have someone translate that into Latin. Doesn't that show my blogger dedication??

Shooting for success.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of hanging out with the Avalos and Daly clans at a kiddy birthday party, where Sarah handed me a 2 month old child and I promptly freaked out. Let this be a lesson to all: do not hand me your babies, I don't know what to do with them. Adam shot John (and I assisted), surrounded by community members and friends as well as solo, and overall we had an extremely productive day all over the district. This was all made possible by the return of the sun, so hell yea, welcome back warm weather! I am about to go grab my bike and hit the park.


10:30pm edit: Today, however, was as opposite of "productive" as you can get without spending an entire day in bed. Since my post this afternoon, the roommate and I made plans to watch a movie at AMC1000 and hit the gym two blocks up Van Ness - all good and healthy intentions, keeping in mind our Hawaii trip coming up fast at the end of March - but instead we just spent 6 hours in the theater. Go us.

Is a krama the kaffiyeh of 2008?

My world-savvy partner - I wouldn't call him a hipster, but let's just say he wears high-tops and skinny raw jeans - has recently started sporting a Cambodian krama as a scarf, although traditionally the garment has many other uses such as carrying your babies and cushioning your head when you nap. Will the krama slowly begin to replace the kaffiyeh, a hipster favorite, as the accessory of the year?

2008, you're not so great.

We are only 17 days into the new year, and San Francisco's already seen this year's true colors: murderous blood-red. Really though. Already two people have been gunned down in the general vicinity of the 24th@Mission BART station and my favorite taqueria - just 2 of the 6 murders reported by murder-victim-clearinghouse blog SF Crime - and MUNI is running amok hitting pedestrians and vehicles left and right, most notably dragging a man (who had tripped while attempting to board) underneath it for two blocks. Across the bay, a 10-year-old taking piano lessons was hit by a stray bullet which bisected his spinal cord. Really though.

Winners never quit (even if they don't always win).

What has progressive goldenboy and tireless (but, seriously, if you know anything about him, you know that "tireless" isn't even CLOSE to what he is) progressive philanthropist Andy Blue been up to lately? After Quintin Mecke's 2007 run for Mayor of San Francisco, where he scored second place (never mind the percentages), Señor Blue has picked up a new gig:

My TL, Your TL, Everyone's TL.

This morning, walking past one of my favorite bars on the way to work, I saw a large pile of human excrement in one of the doorways and immediately knew who it belonged to: Rita, a creepily under-developed homeless crackhead who looks to be about 12 years old and constantly pulls clothes off her body for loose change. She likes to hang out on that corner, vacantly staring from her 4-something feet of height, and I've even seen her get shoved into a cop car several times... but like the fog, Rita returns, not exactly a welcome addition to your day but also no longer a surprise. I've had several run-ins with Rita myself and, unfortunately, I've seen her naked or partially naked too many times to take whatever problems she's carrying seriously.

I also saw two bullet casings on the ground at Jones and O'Farrell. I pushed them around with my toe for a minute but then decided that police evidence does not equal street souvenirs for Kay.

Home, Sweet home!

And already, all I can think about is my next meal. My trip to Chicago padded me nicely with a few extra pounds since food there is amazing and very filling, but it wasn't too bad since we got to take in all of downtown and the surrounding areas on foot. I love cities where you can walk and walk until your scenery completely changes. But there's still almost three months until a Hawaii wedding (not mine - no worries!), and I'm glad Dine About Town happens in January and not March. Dine About Town is a nice deal but never saves me as much money as I expect it to, since the $31.95/Dinner rate is a prix-fix menu and I always end up wanting additional things off the menu, mainly fancy appetizers, since those are kind of my thing. But most people have far more self control than I do when it comes to food: this is perfect for them.

So far on my radar are Aziza (Mediterranean), Baraka (French), Cassis (French - this one for the beef stew), Le Colonial (Vietnamese), RNM (American, and even though I've been here a few times I'm always too suaced up to remember specifics), Supperclub, and AsiaSF, which I can't believe I still haven't been to. Plus AsiaSF's got a lot more variety for their prix-fix menu than other restaurants.

In the meantime, to keep my brainmatter from slowly turning into a polenta-like substance, I've decided to take Farsi classes in order to keep people on their toes.