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I Hate It, I Love It, I’m Never Leaving

Mat Honan by

Local writer and long-time resident Mat Honan has written an immensely quote-worthy piece about why he moved here and never left. Here’s a snip:

I hate this place. It stinks and it’s dirty and there’s piss everywhere and needles and garbage and yesterday when I went for a run in the park I had to traverse a trail that had been completely covered in used toilet paper. I’ve been robbed at gunpoint here, just down the street from my apartment. San Francisco is expensive, and I’ll never be able to afford to buy a home. The city government is corrupt, there’s nowhere to park, the people are all fucking crazy, and don’t even get me started about MUNI.

I’m never leaving, motherfuckers.

Read the whole thing here. Visit Mat’s website, and follow him on Twitter.

Nice Color Scan of San Francisco Map circa 1907 Showing Fire Line and Cemeteries

1905 Map of San Francisco

This map (courtesy, Prelinger Library) is a good way to visualize how much of the city burned after the earthquake/fire of 1906. It of course led to the building of refugee camps around the city, including in Mission (now “Dolores”) Park.

Here’s a blow-up of the cemetery locations:

1905 Map of San Francisco, Cemeteries

Aerial Video Footage of San Francisco Taken from an RC Helicopter

Aerial video – San Francisco from Jason Lam on Vimeo.

With the ability to fly super close to the ground and surrounding objects, this really does provide a unique feel, like a free-floating crane or steady-cam. Pretty hot.

Jason Lam makes these videos for a company called SkyShutter, using “a camera equipped with ‘gyro-stabilized remote-controlled gimbals,’ along with a live streaming video connection.”

I just wish they’d put a camera on this guy’s helicopter!

Simply Hilarious (and Infuriating): BART Imaginings, 1957

BART plans, 1957

That’s right, the original plans recommended “first stage” service past Palo Alto to the south, and across the Bay to San Rafael to the north! I wonder how many stages ago that was?

Maybe they should have drafted up some counterfeit money with which to pay for this pipe dream. (Even a tiny fraction of this fantastical scheme is itself worth much higher fares year after year, it seems.)

(via)

Death & Sodomy in San Francisco

Death & Sex in San Francisco

I can’t even recall how I Googled my way onto this book review – by a psychiatrist, of a pathologist’s published work – but mercy me, how about this little nugget:

Many original contributions to forensic medicine were made by physicians associated with the Coroner’s Office and UCSF, including the “most unique” discovery that death by air embolism could occur with cunnilingus when air was blown into the vagina.

Was that an important move back in the day? Yikes.

Needless to say, I’m trying to get my twisted little hands on this gem of a book as I type. If anyone has seen it, please hit the comments.

It looks like Amazon only has links to used copies of the book: San Francisco Coroner’s Office: A History, 1850-1980.

Rick Prelinger’s Lost Landscapes of San Francisco 4

Rick Prelinger, Prelinger Archives, Lost Landscapes of San Francisco 4

“Guerrilla archivist” Rick Prelinger is once again joining forces with the Long Now Foundation for the 4th in his series of screenings titled, “Lost Landscapes of San Francisco.” More after the jump…
Continue reading Rick Prelinger’s Lost Landscapes of San Francisco 4

Film of Steam Locomotives on the Embarcadero, San Francisco, circa 1920s-30s

Came across this file randomly while browsing the Prelinger Archive, which I haven’t done in a while. The footage of longshoremen jockeying cargo on and off ships is a swift check on romanticism and a concrete reminder that, even long ago, industry on a mass scale was what drove almost all of our activity.

I logged a few of the bits that really stood out to me:

  • 3:00 – Steam locomotives navigating Market Street, and cruising along the Embarcardero.
  • 5:00 – Cool aerial footage; Ferry Building with street cars on a circular track in front and a heavy rail locomotive waiting (loading?) on the left; Golden Gate Ferries.
  • 6:50 – I believe this is a quick shot of Dolores Street.
  • 7:40 – Funky, animated relief maps of the area and trade routes, points of interest.
  • 8:55 – Aerial footage of downtown, City Hall and Golden Gate Park.
  • 10:45 – Aerial of the western side of the city; Golden Gate Park, including the bandshell area.

Related book: Historic Photos of San Francisco
From Amazon
From Powell’s

Photo: Infamous Bay Bridge Crack

Photo: Infamous Bay Bridge Crack

@ekai via @case points us to this extensive engineer’s analysis of the Bay Bridge’s woes. Do I feel compelled to read the whole damn thing? Not exactly. What I did do was scan for the juicy bits and offer them up here.

That image above is the best quality photo around of the original crack they found back on Labor Day that led to the “fix” which of course FAILed and came crashing down on drivers the other day and closed the bridge.

This engineer thinks the fix was a “kludge” (awesome word), i.e., it was under designed. But he also thinks we can possibly blame the Cal Trans guy who did the welding.

The good news is he thinks the original design of the bridge is pretty darn solid, which should make you feel good if you ever get to use it again.

Graffiti Guy Girafa Arrested

The prolific Bay Area graffiti artist was apparently taken downtown on Thursday.

Steven Free, 30, of San Francisco was arrested Tuesday on a $100,000 warrant, charging him in 10 felony cases in San Jose involving $40,000 in damages.

During a search of his San Francisco home, officers discovered thousands of pictures of graffiti with the “Girafa” moniker and cartoon characters of giraffes on several of his social Web sites.

“He was just causing a lot of vandalism around the Bay Area, anywhere he would find a spot, he would use this moniker,” said San Jose police officer Jermaine Thomas.

Free also is also accused leaving his tags on multiple places in Alameda, San Francisco and Contra Costa counties.

Coming Soon: Mission Casbah

Mission Casbah, San Francisco

Made all the more urgent by the recent news that Alameda Point flea market is possibly shutting down, some locals are bringing a little bit of North London to San Francisco, beginning Saturday, November 7th, and happening every Saturday after that.

Organizers Barbara Billee & Siobhan are converting Sub-Mission gallery on Mission at 18th from a punk Latin club into a Casbah market for artisan goods. Admission will be free, and DJs, including Jonah Sharp, will be spinning throughout the day.

From an email to vendors:

We are veterans of Camden Market in North London and we’ve finally found the right venue to start a weekly market in San Francisco!

The gallery is large, with three connected interior spaces, a back patio for chilling and a killer sound system. The bar will open at noon.

We have room for fifty vendors: the pitch size is 6ft x 5ft, vendors will supply their own tables and display materials. The space has bathrooms, security, power outlets and a roof – perfect for year-round trading.

Mission Casbah website

Opposite Ends of the Mobility Spectrum

Street photography this stunning and powerful is too rare. The ideal combination of subject, setting, perspective, and of course, timing.

Here I see so many things besides the obvious: purpose, ambition, and perhaps mostly, the continuum of life. Photography has done for me what years of meditation practice couldn’t. It makes me aware of the world.

Twitter Cheats for Gavin Newsom, Soon to be CA CZAR

gavin newsom, mayor of San Francisco

Also, Twitter hates Republicans who run for governor in California:

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom is on the suggested user list and has 1.2 million followers. His likely opponent for the Democratic nomination, Attorney General Jerry Brown, has 960,000 followers even though he is not a declared candidate and has posted the fewest tweets of all the gubernatorial hopefuls.

None of the three Republican candidates is on the list, and all have fewer than 5,000 followers.

Hey, here’s a thought: Those people are lower not on the list because they have fewer followers. Oh, wait:

Twitter co-founder Biz Stone said in a March posting on his blog that he and a handful of other company employees make the final choice about who will be featured, a list that has grown to about 500 people.

Ha, Newsom has no excuse for losing now. (That is so not fair.)