Regular readers of this journal have noticed that I get a bit ornery about the poor state of San Francisco roads. How is it that a city that has a massive budget has streets that are in such ill-repair? It is one thing if you are in a car or Google Bus dodging potholes, but on a bike you sometimes head for the sidewalks just for personal safety. I wonder how many bikers have ended up in the emergency room after taking a spill from a pot hole. OK. I shall stop my rant as progress has been made!!!
After a few years the endless infrastructure upgrades (I have a feeling some of the sewer pipes down there are new) and maybe gas pipes (they do not really tell you) the road on San Jose Ave was completely repaved and the temporary lines drawn. Man this great!. I actually thought they were taking so long because they were doing secret archaeology of a long lost native tribe, perhaps under under Fairmount Elementary School.
I find it strange that Mayor Lee was not around to cut a ribbon as this street is literally one of the main entrances from the south into the San Francisco. In many places the lines are now just a scribble, like they were drawn by a drunk but eventually they will make them all pretty. I know the program.
I have always wanted to ski late in the year during a big snow year. 2017 was that year. It is a truly amazing experience to hike up and ski off the top of a mountain in 70 degree weather. The sun bright and hot. The snow hard but not yet slushy in the morning.
We made our way up to the top of this undisclosed mountain along the Pacific Crest Trail. A mile in we ran into a group of six hikers with packs. As usual custom along hiking trails we stopped and drank some water and chatted a bit. These were six people hiking the PCT all the way from Mexico to Canada. They had all started out doing the hike solo but formed a group over time. One person from Oregon. Another from Albuquerque. Another from Israel and another from New York. I asked them if they could let me know one of their most essential tools in their pack. Something they value most of all and could not do without. They first said what all people who backpack say. “Just too much shit. You do not need much in the end.” Then they stood and pondered and then one of the older hikers said, “You pack your fears. If you are afraid of being thirsty, you carry too much water. If you fear hunger, you pack too much food. If you are afraid of being cold, you pack too many clothes.” Some heavy trail knowledge – just in the nick of time.
“You pack your fears. If you are afraid of being thirsty, you carry too much water. If you fear hunger, you pack too much food. If you are afraid of being cold, you pack too many clothes.”
We kept heading up the mountain. At times using skins and skis. At other times hiking straight up. We made it to the top and ate lunch. The top of the mountain is a unusual place. Life was exploding with bugs, birds, rodents, birds and butterflies. 9100 feet. At one point a tiger swallowtail butterfly cruises by and you have to wonder what she is doing at the top of the world.
Photos is from the failed Ernest Shackleton voyage to the South Pole. Sometimes it is just really hard and you get stuck.
Just putting this out there for the technology trades that the Google Content ID project has remained in BETA for 10 years. Man, I have worked at some slow projects in the software world, but 10 years! Hello people in the white buses…
Google (Alphabet, Inc.) has poured resources into automated cars, artificial intelligence, buses to ferry workers back and forth to San Francisco, gender qualifying in movies (creepy stuff), a more cryptic privacy policy and better marketing tools and analytics… but God forbid they get Content ID out of BETA. No money to be made there.
June 14, 2017 – 10 year anniversary!
Google Content ID project has remained in BETA.
NUMBER OF DAYS content identification tools for YouTube HAS BEEN IN BETA
[getdays]
Why does this matter? The YouTube/Google Content ID is how Google pays the band. If you make it appear that you do not know the band even exists, then there is no one to pay and all the money just goes into Googles bank account. Brilliant plan for Google. Because of how the 1998 DMCA was written, there is no way (except for endless take-down notices) to get your work off of YouTube. For musicians, bands and artists – Google in the end is your master and owns you. My condolences.
“Imagine a business model where you are given all of the music publishing content for the last hundred years for free. After you build the initial interface, you basically do not have to do anything. The system is set up so that users and fans just give you content even though they have no rights to the ownership of that content. With much of this illegal content you garner about 50% of all advertisement revenue generated by that content. This can go on indefinitely. Sounds like there is no way you can fail. You will make billions off this stuff. YouTube just laughs all the all the way to the bank.”
Anonymous
BETA [bey-tuh or, esp. British, bee-] adj. A pre-release of software that is given out to a large group of users to try under real conditions.
– PC Magazine Encyclopedia
At what point will the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) of 1998 ever make it into the news? It is the basis of our digital world and the piracy it created was/is a huge giveaway from the creative class to the tech class.
People are making some sick money around here! I was walking down the street in SOMA and all these hundred and thousand dollar bills came flying out of this Audi sports car and they just keep driving.
— Anonymous conversation overheard on the streets of San Francisco – 2017
The tents with the homeless surviving inside sort of move around and play musical chairs with the freeway on-ramps. That has not changed in the last 5 years. The road repair in San Francisco sometimes means that the streets start talking another language, especially when riding a bike.
What road repair can do to messages..
The season has turned from spring to summer. The fog is beginning to roll in and we head to the coast only at opportune times. Morning low tide is the best in the summer. If you land in San Francisco at SFO and head north up Interstate 101 in the afternoon, during summer the fog will dance with hills like two tango dancers. An amazing sight. Gives you hope that the house is not completely burning down. If the heat becomes unbearable out there on the plains, you can cool down here on the coast. Like winter in the Midwest a time to watch the weather report and nourish the few sunny days. By July 4th the fireworks will as usual be obscured by the fog.
Below are some photos from March and April 2017…
The parking lots are falling into the ocean. This is from March when the waves were better.
Two pickers at Sunday Streets on Valencia
People are making some much money around here, I was walking down the street and all these thousand dollar bills came flying out of Audi sports car.
Radio Havana on Valencia
Looking down Ocean
CLICK ON IMAGES +
Rod repair in SF
The parking lots are falling into the ocean. This is from March when the waves were better.
Two pickers at Sunday Streets on Valencia
Was walking down the street and all these thousand dollar bills came flying out of Mark Zuckerbergs car.
It was a rather ordinary August afternoon in San Marcos, Guatemala. The sky was beginning to fill with the usual afternoon clouds that would soon make for scattered showers that are so common this time of year. I was going about town with Lucia, my seven-year-old daughter, doing some errands – a spool of white thread, socks, stop at the supermarket for the usual. Suddenly I saw her. She saw me. Our eyes met and I knew at that moment I had to have her. Her hands were together as though in prayer, and out from the crowded street, she called my name.
“Pablo, how are you these days? I need to speak with you. The matter is urgent.”
I quickly looked around, wondering whom it was that had spoken, when I suddenly realized it was she – the poster of The Virgin Guadalupe. Among the other tacky posters around, two puppy dogs with some corny slogan in beveled font, Don Johnson next to a Mustang looking so cool, she stood out as something of exquisite beauty and value.
“I am fine Guadalupe. And why do you inquire?”
“In the last five hundred years, after my meeting with Juan, we have built thousands of fine temples, and given peace and joy to the down trodden and suffering.”
“I know, there are many fine churches throughout the land now. They ring their bells early and late. Is this something that you can help me with? It often wakes me early in the morning, especially on the weekends. I believe it is recorded bells too, which I find cheap and disingenuous.”
“I hear you clearly my dear Pablo. I find it strange that the bells never make a mistake as well. If they are recorded, the least they could do is play in tune. I will do what I can.”
“But I am speaking to you now as merely a friend. I need your help. I have listened to the weeping, the sadness, the troubles and miseries of the people of this downtrodden land for five hundred years, and to be perfectly honest, I am a bit tired and depressed. Take me home with you.”
“You seem to be a person of great quality but I have never brought someone of your stature home. I think it would also make my wife a bit uncomfortable… you know another woman in the house and all.”
“My dear friend Pablo, I am a virgin and I intend to stay that way. Your wife should not worry. Besides I promise that I will just blend into the wall as best as I can.”
“But what of that little cherubic kid at your feet? Does he have to come along too?”
“Yes, he is my son. The Son of God. I fear waiting here in the bus station any longer will not be good for his health. You see he is not breathing too well the last few days. The fumes from all the buses are affecting his asthma. To be quite frank, because of all the noise, he has missed his nap all week and has been a real pill. He bugs me constantly for suckers and candy from all the venders who pass by. I do not think I can last much longer. Besides that, this Don Johnson guy next to me is really getting on my nerves. He thinks he’s soooooo cool. What an ego!”
“But I thought you were a virgin? Is your son adopted?”
“No he is not adopted. It is a long story and something that Joe, my former husband and I, have had to try to explain so many times… it is complicated. But do not fear. I am a woman of great quality and believe me, a virgin.”
Lucia and I stood on the narrow sidewalk and were truly captivated by the beauty of Guadalupe. We tried to ignore her pleas and walked away more than once, only to be called back by some sort of magical force. She had cast a spell on us. We had to have her. She seemed to be a work of art, unlike no other, in this culture-starved city.
We asked her master what was her price, thinking that perhaps she was holding our dear Guadalupe hostage, and would suggest an outrageous ransom. “Ten quetzals” she replied. I was astonished. A little over a dollar and I could free my new friend and her child from their misery.
As we walked home with Guadalupe rolled up, she continued to speak to me. “Pablo, thank you so much. I promise to look after you and your family. You know that nasty stomach infection you had. It was the water. Always brush your teeth with the bottled stuff. I promise, it won’t happen again.”
When we got home, we let Guadalupe have some space by herself at the end of the hall. She now looks after us daily. Her little kid who always hangs out at her feet no longer whines and is reading Mark Twain for a change. We all feel the arrangement is just grand.
The Internet has a strange way of broadcasting value and worth. A forty-year-old book about transgender issues can be a cornerstone of critical thought at the time but then gets misquoted and passed off as old fashion. Today the book is out-of-print but fetches around $100 used on Amazon for a used hard cover edition. You have to wonder why the publisher does not make another printing? Modern books read like pop self-help books, quoting daytime TV shows and sourcing checklists of acceptable pronouns. The Transgender Empire written by a “radical lesbian feminist” (how did she ever get that label?) is both academic, historical and cuts to the chase and journeys deep into the topic. Below is just a short quote from the 1994 reprinting.
The medical model is also a disease model. And here exactly is the rub. If transsexualism is treated as a disease, then does desire qualify as disease? As Thomas Szasz asked in his New York Times review of The Transsexual Empire, does an old person who wants to be young suffer from the “disease” of being a “transchronological, ” or does a poor person who wants to be rich suffer from the “disease” of being a “transeconomical”? Does a Black person who wants to be white suffer from the “disease” of being a “transracial”?
All these questions, of course, raise larger social and political issues and remove these conjectural “diseases” from the medical/psychiatric framework.
Hector’s Hauling & Clean Up – Out with the old, in with the new – (415) 215-9120
Best hauling service in the outer mission district of San Francisco.
Highly recommended! I always get a kick out of Hector’s truck. The hand painted lettering just lets you know this is your guy when you need a bunch of crap moved, and moved ASAP.
Here are the before and after shots of my summer project – replacing a retaining wall. Hector hauled the concrete off to the dump. Swept it all up. Great guy. Excellent listener.
Concrete
Concrete
Concrete gone!!!
3 Months Later
With Fencing – Pros
http://www.withfencing.com/
Need a retaining wall, these guys do it all the time
Lo Buglio Design
http://www.lobugliodesignbuild.com/
Need someone to give great advice on woodworking and construction. Nick is the guy.
This is an open letter to Robert Thompson of NewsCorp. There is no link on your webpage on how to contact you so I thought I would write a letter. Sort of “old-school” don’t you think? I recently read Fake News and the Digital Duopoly in the April 5th version of the Wall Street Journal. Found it on a cafe table. Great op-ed, and I agree with everything in it. Clear and crisp writing and the article shed much needed light on lots of things.
“publishers will routinely and selectively “unpublish” certain views and news.”
Robert Thompson – Fake News and the Digital Duopoly Wall Street Journal
I posted a piece on Facebook that was critical of Facebook and Google, the gist of which was just making sure all my “friends” know that Google and Facebook are private companies and that the space is NOT public and that they gather and mine your intimate personal history starting with – of course your birthday. This post of course disappeared from my history a few months later… never to be found again.
Your business model can’t be based on both intimate, gradual details about users and no clue whatsoever about rather obvious pirate sites.
I hate to tell you Mr. Thompson. Google and YouTube are the pirates. YouTube is one massive landscape of unlimited counterfeit movies and music. That should be the first thing addressed. It is called the revising of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. It is wishful thinking that this will happen by the sense of goodwill and altruism of YouTube.
Pretty refreshing that the city got around to doing some road repair on Mission Street at Valencia. Por fin! This is a very busy intersection and in the repair they moved the bus stop further north which was a good move. Below are some composite creations of the old fading into the new. They did a pretty good job overall. Did some drainage work. More concrete! More concrete! Those buses are heavy!
(click om images)
Mission at Valencia – Old to New
Mission at Valencia – Old to New
Mission at Valencia – New
Mission at Valencia -Looking South
Nice new Rock Gardens
Nice new Rock Gardens
San Jose Ave
Now just repair San Jose Ave. San Jose is a disaster and I challenge any city official to ride a bike down that bike lane. San Jose Ave has been like Swiss cheese for years.
The other amazing thing about San Jose is that for nine months the city and sometimes a contractor parks a backhoe at the corner of San Jose and Dolores Street. I know parking is bad in the city but parking a backhoe from months on end at San Jose and Dolores, a main thoroughfare is pretty ridiculous. Just finish the job! Maybe by the year 2020 San Jose will be resurfaced?
Temporarily out of stock. Order now and we’ll deliver when available.
Great to hear that vinyl is still the go to medium! Booker Little on trumpet is completely amazing! This is an album that I am not familiar with that is perfect for these times. It is truly incredible that it is over 50 years since this was made. It gives you the feeling that in present times we are moving backwards
It was over a year ago in January of 2016 that I posted the article below, imploring the San Francisco mayor Ed Lee to focus a bit more on infrastructure. I called the mayor’s office and sent a print out of the post below to the mayor. No results. The roads in San Francisco are simply terrible. It has been said that they are like the roads in a third world country. I must say that in most third world countries I have visited the road s are way better. Travel through Latin America. The roads are better.
If you take the 14 Mission bus you get a feel for just how bad these roads are, as the bus is literally bouncing all over the road. I mentioned this to a 14 Mission bus driver while departing from the bus and she said “all the roads in this city are really bad.” The wear and tear on the Muni buses must be great and the costs just get us down the road.
The San Francisco economy is bursting at the seams. Now is the time! How can the roads be in such ill-repair? One day last week while riding to work I saw a group of people meeting around a new sidewalk rock garden on Mission and Valencia. I asked a person what was going on and what was happening with the crappy roads. The man, evidently working for the city, said that they were schedule to repave this section of Mission this weekend but because of the rain it may be delayed. I asked about San Jose avenue a few blocks away and he said he had no idea. I am not confident anything will happen out here in the hinterland south of Cesar Chavez.
A year later here are the photos of the same places as the year before.
Standing in line at the Onondaga post office, in the outer Mission in between Mission and Alemany I experienced an amazing moment of humanity this afternoon. I had just entered and was standing in the back of the line. A white guy around 35 years old, was yelling expletives at the post office teller, complaining that they did not have the correct size box. He was trying to mail a new skateboard deck and it did not fit in the standard size boxes. “What the fuck! We are living in California. No fuckin’ skateboard boxes. What the hell is this place? Give me a fucking box that will work!” At that moment a woman in line told the guy “Please stop swearing and treat the postal worker with some respect.” The guy then sort of softened and confessed that his best friend had recently died and that he was in a real bad way. He then tried to shove the skateboard into the box that was too small. Eventually, using two boxes and getting help from two people in line, they got the skateboard packed up. The woman, then at the teller expressed her condolences in a kind way. “ I am sorry for your loss.” “Yeah, it has been really hard.”
San Francisco. A place of many people. Asian, black, white, arab, latino all standing in that post office line, and at that moment the very fabric of society was at stake. Do we as a society accept the concept of people being rude and abusive to one another? Is this a form of entertainment? Do we think that acting like a two year old when you are an adult is adequate? At that moment, the character of San Francisco was on display and we moved forward one small step. Civility and empathy these days seems to be in short supply but I witnessed it there in the Onondaga post office.
A big thanks and shout out to Sandy Cressman. She was that woman in line at the Onondaga post office bringing some humanity to the situation.
On the new United States President’s website https://www.whitehouse.gov/1600/constitution is a page about The U.S. Constitution. What is strange is that it is not the actual U.S. Constitution but an interpretation of The Constitution – so inconsistent with the strict constructionism or originalists so popular with conservatives these days. Is Scalia rolling over in his grave? Why would the U.S. Constitution be presented on the whitehouse.gov website this way? It is actually a form of disinformation or what is often now called fake news. Kids, remember to always refer to the original source not some hack’s interpretation of the document.
Let’s do a comparison.
First Amendment
Actual U.S. Constitution.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Trump’s Whitehouse Website
The First Amendment provides that Congress make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting its free exercise. It protects freedom of speech, the press, assembly, and the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
So far pretty good, but why not just publish the actual text and not how to think about the text. Then things get weird.
Second Amendment
Actual U.S. Constitution.
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
Trump’s Whitehouse Website
The Second Amendment gives citizens the right to bear arms.
In Trump’s version there is no mention of the “well regulated Militia.” As always, people see what they want to see and disregard the rest. What we are witnessing here is what George Orwell called “Newspeak.” A simplifying of words, meanings and vocabulary.
A bit late on this post but it does not really matter as Toots Thielemans was a timeless artist. His life and music were extraordinary. If you want to read the standard obit, peruse the the New York Times – Toots NY Times Obit. We will be hearing his music for years to come and his genius will live on.
As the year came to and end it was interesting that there was a lot of media covering the musicians who passed away in 2016. Prince, Bowie and George Michael seemed to get all the press. Interesting artists for sure but their lives and music were retold incessantly in print and on the radio. Toots on the other hand lived to 94, at least 30 years longer than the three above and played in so many genres and eras it was a life that had a Forrest Gump quality. He was places that defined music and art for years. Imagine in the late 40s playing with Charlie Parker and then Benny Goodman the next year – two people who were at the top of American music but in very different social and cultural worlds. For many years he was working in New York just scraping along, playing jazz gigs and studio dates – TV commercials and movies. Then an amazing era where he played Brazilian music. A few years on salary with ABC studios. Imagine that happening today!
One thing left out of the usual obits is the fact that where he finally made some money was with writing a song called Ladyfingers that was recorded on Herb Albert’s Whipped Cream & Other Delights It was a simple little ditty but with every album sold – over a million, Toots got a penny. So he took his $100,000 and bought a house and probably breathed a bit easier.
There is an interesting eBook you can read about Toots written by his friend Paula Marckx. If is more like just hanging out with Toots for a few hours but fun to get his take on his life and the twentieth century.
Within the book are a lot of links to unusual videos. Toots traveled a lot and did all kinds of commercials. Here is on from 1982 in Japan. Pretty hilarious!
Anyway, rest in peace Toots. Thanks for all the great music. Most people probably have heard Toots from the theme to Sesame Street and various pop albums. One that I remember that had that enchanting Toots Thielemans solos and sound is Night Game by Paul Simon, a song that is never ever covered. Too difficult to pull off with the changing meters and that amazing harmonica solo.
We will be discovering more of Toots work for years to come. It was an epic life.
Just the local enforcer with a convenient pdf download, for when you are riding down Valencia and there is the Uber car with the flashers on for five minutes smack dab in the bike lane. The SFPD simply does not enforce this law and instead of getting pissed off I simply put these notices under the windshield of the offender.
As an added bonus, here is the chorus to a song called Bike Lane by Luke French
Bike Lane
by Lucas French
On that old bike Lane I’ll ride it once again. Just no longer will I ride with you. I saw you pretending indifferent. From the warmth of your automobile. This road has broken some strong ones. But it’s never gonna take my will. The path beneath us is wicked, and best traveled on two wheels.
“I prefer someone who burns the flag and then wraps themselves up in the Constitution over someone who burns the Constitution and then wraps themselves up in the flag.”
― Molly Ivins
Heard this quote from a friend while riding bikes. Molly Ivins gets the point that’s for sure. If you have not read it in a while, The Constitution of the United States with the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation are actually a really good reads. Highly recommended for people in Wisconsin, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
If you are in the north bay, a must check out show. Wil Blades is amazing. Joe Bagale is a great drummer and sings from the heart. If you are within 10 miles, drop everything. You will not be disappointed.
Wil Blades Trio
Thursday, December 1st
7:30-10:30pm
If you are within 10 miles, drop everything and go hear Wil Blades Trio at Big Easy in Petaluma. You will not be disappointed.
with:
Joe Bagale – drums
Kai Lyons – guitar
Big Easy in *Petaluma*
http://www.bigeasypetaluma.com/
Doctor’s Lounge
4826 Mission St, San Francisco, California 94112 Wednesday, November 30, 2016
8pm to Midnight
For around 3 years the amazing band The Beauty Operators has played a monthly, third Thursday of the month gig at The Doctor’s Lounge. It was one set then an open jam. Sometimes as many as 15 people would get up on “the stage” and join the effort. It has been a fun run.
But alas, the lease ran out and the owner of the building is upin’ the rent 80%. Good grief! Such is life on the Royal Highway now known as Mission Street. The Dr’s Lounge location has been a bar for over 50 years with a lot of history, some memorable, some probably people will want to maybe forget. I remember a few years back in December showing up for the gig and there was a fundraiser – a crab feed to raise money for a school I think. The place was all dressed up. White table cloths. Candles. The crab, garlic and white wine smelled like heaven. We serinaded them with a trio for the first set. Cool gig.
But usually the place is frequented by the locals. Working class folk. Most making an honest dollar. Retired longshoreman. Roofers. Handyman. Cooks and cleaners.
Anyway, if you are in the area – San Francisco, Mission and Onondaga, stop by by for a pint. They are five bucks. If they reopen as a bar I predict some major inflation.
Doctor’s Lounge
4826 Mission St, San Francisco, California 94112
Photos from the last night at the Doctor’s Lounge (click on images)
In San Francisco, 9 out of 10 people voted for Hillary Clinton. That is remarkable. Did people in San Francisco think Hillary Clinton was the perfect candidate? Probably not. But what they did do was take their responsibility to vote for someone who was a decent human being who spoke in complete sentences.
While there have been many downright creepy and dim-wit presidents, mark 2016 as when the United States of America elected someone who did not even pretend to be a gentleman or show social graces in any way. Reagan, the Bushes, secretive and criminal like many, but at least they appeared civilized. Now we are a barbaric tribe who is becoming more illiterate every day. There was a time when people would read and think about the Bible. Obviously in the Mid-West and South, this is a thing of the past.
On January 20th, Trump will take the oath of office.
“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”
– Section 1:8
I do hope that between now and then he will read and study the Constitution of the United States. Please pay particular attention to these few details.
Section 4
The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.
I particularly like this little ditty that has been trampled upon in the last 20 years.
8: To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;
And that freedom of the press thing will be good to go over.
Article [I]
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
And now what all the Evangelicals that voted for Donald Trump have been waiting for – the religious posters. Hang these up in your kitchens and above your bed just to remind yourself how incredibly inconsistent you are in your beliefs. This courtesy of the Huffington Post.
“On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart’s desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.”
-H. L. Mencken
I do not know much about this character Mencken but what amazing foresight.
And something else to give you pause and maybe pull yourself together with.
We liberal elitists are now completely in the clear. The government is in Republican hands. Let them deal with him. Democrats can spend four years raising heirloom tomatoes, meditating, reading Jane Austen, traveling around the country, tasting artisan beers, and let the Republicans build the wall and carry on the trade war with China and deport the undocumented and deal with opioids and we Democrats can go for a long brisk walk and smell the roses.
For me, the biggest disappointment with this whole election is there should be some level of decorum, respect and dignity when it comes to the election of the president. It just went out the window. Maybe we should’ve seen it coming over the last 10 years. You look at society, you look at what’s popular. People are getting paid millions of dollars to go on TV and scream at each other, whether it’s in sports, politics or entertainment. I guess it was only a matter of time before it spilled over to politics. Then all of a sudden you’re faced with the reality that the man who’s going to lead you has routinely used racist, misogynist, insulting words. That’s a tough one. That’s a tough one. I wish him well. I hope he’s a good president. I have no idea what kind of president he’ll be because he hasn’t said anything about what he’s going to do. We don’t know. It’s tough when you want there to be some respect and dignity and there hasn’t been any. Then you walk into a room with your daughter and your wife, who’ve basically been insulted by his comments, and they’re distraught. Then you walk in and you see the faces of your players, most of whom have been insulted directly as a result of being minorities. It’s shocking, it really is. We talked about it as a team this morning. I don’t know what else to say. Just the whole process has left us feeling kind of disgusted and disappointed. I thought we were better than this. I thought ‘The Jerry Springer Show’ was ‘The Jerry Springer Show.’ Watching the last debate, Trump would make a crack at (Hillary) Clinton and you’d look at the fans. The fans would go, “Oooh! Oooh, no he didn’t!” It’s like, “Yeah, he did. Yeah, this is a presidential election, it’s not ‘The Jerry Springer Show.’ I’m sorry, this is my rant and I’m disappointed in the lack of respect and dignity that’s involved. That’s the way it goes.
-Steve Kerr – Head basketball coach of the Golden State Warriors
Just one quote from the speech. How far we have come… or at this point in history be humbled by a great speaker and a bright mind. It is interesting how at the time the word “terror” meant missiles from Russia. I actual fear that today in 2016 we are living in a James Bond movie without James and Melania Trump may be a spy. That would not be good but with all the weird stuff that is going on not out of the realm of possibilities.
Also, one of the simplest paths to deep change is for the less powerful to speak as much as they listen, and for the more powerful to listen as much as they speak”
“More reliable than anything else on earth, the road will force you to live in the present.”
I asked her how she has remained herself all these years. She looks at me as if at a slow pupil. “You’re always the person you were when you were born” she says impatiently. “You just keep finding new ways to express it. Gloria Steinem in conversation with ninety-eight year old former Ziegfeld Woman
All of my life campaigning have given me one clear message. Voting isn’t the most we can do, but it is the least.
All quotes by Gloria Steinem – from My Life on the Road (2015)
Available at your local bookstore.
Passed on October 12, 1998, by a unanimous vote in the United States Senate and signed into law by President Bill Clinton on October 28, 1998, the DMCA amended Title 17 of the United States Code to extend the reach of copyright, while limiting the liability of the providers of online services for copyright infringement by their users. wikipedia.org
It is 1998 – The Senate Now Has E-Mail
Let’s Have a Party!
18 years ago today the Digital Millennium Copyright Act was passed. I would wager that very few people even know what the DMCA is, but it has affected modern life substantially. It is in many ways just one more version of an old story of plunder by larger more powerful entities, and the taking advantage of the smaller, but often more vibrant creators. In many ways, it has made it so the copyright laws in such industries as music are pointless.
But let’s back up a bit. Everyone can remember the transition that happened when CDs came out and then everyone was ripping their CDs to MP3s and handing off 100 gig drives full of music files to their buddies. Then there was Napster that simply stitched all these drives together in one big mass orgy of free MP3s. Napster got the injunction primarily because the established music industry had no cut of the racket. Along come tech giants like Google, Apple, Microsoft and Samsung and to cover their liability the DMCA made perfect sense. If someone has “illegal” music on their devices, they should not be held accountable. Furthermore, if someone uploads a Beatles tune as a video with a picture of Ringo Starr as the graphics to YouTube, why should YouTube be held accountable for such blatant infringement? All good and well. But that was 1998. Today is 2016. I am certain that in 1998 most members of the Senate had no idea the true implications of the DMCA. In 1998, most of the members of the Senate probably did not even know how to manage their own email. They were still licking stamps.
The DMCA’s principal innovation in the field of copyright is the exemption from direct and indirect liability of Internet service providers and other intermediaries. wikipedia.org
Let’s look back a bit. In 1998 the leading browser of the day was Netscape 2. Internet Explorer was at version 5.5. If anyone remembers IE 6, imagine how terrible IE 5.5 must have been. Windows 98 had probably just been released. Man, that is scary. My point is that the DMCA has not been updated for 18 years and is an extremely flawed piece of legislation. The large tech companies have in many ways based their entire industry on the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. It allows for basically everyone to break the law everyday and not have to worry about it. When was the last time that a cop pulled someone over and wanted to check if the person had pirated music on their phone? There probably is thousands of dollars of contraband on everyone’s devices. Ain’t gonna happen.
Times Have Changed – Google Is Our Master of Information
But this is what is disingenuous about the DMCA. Companies like Google know just about everything about you. What you buy. What websites you visit. Your birthday. Your favorite color.
In 2016 they have the ability to determine if a piece of music is copyrighted via matching wave forms, and indeed this is how they “monetize” this work. But YouTube refuses to acknowledge this UNLESS they are in a position to make money off of that music – they make money anyway but that is another post. The only way the copyright holder can get the videos of their music taken down is with take-down notices. If a song is popular, this can mean hundreds of separate videos with the same song on it. The artists cannot simply tell the ISP such as YouTube “I do not want my work on your network.” YouTube is sort of like that creepy neighbor running a crack-house who borrowed your weed-whacker last spring and refuses to give it back claiming ignorance. Musicians, songwriters and composers have better things to do with their time than chase down illegal version of their work.
YouTube is sort of like that creepy neighbor running a crack-house who borrowed your weed-whacker last spring and refuses to give it back claiming ignorance. Musicians, songwriters and composers have better things to do with their time than chase down illegal version of their work.
Which brings me back to 1998. Do you really think in 1998 anyone could predict such entities as YouTube or Facebook? And unlike the owners of these companies, I believe these entities are not just platforms, they are simply publishers with free content providers and creators. These publishers have to take responsibility as well for copyright infringement. It is within their technical realm but they are playing dumb as the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 suits them just fine. The DMCA is to their advantage.
The real master of deception with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act is YouTube. Facebook, Twitter and the like have simply entered personal lives and monetized birthdays and other important life events until people depart from this world. Personalized marketing on steroids that the users all agree to though without really reading the privacy policies.
But all such companies are the modern-day plunderers. Instead of grabbing continents, forests, rivers, enslaving the natives and digging for gold, they are plundering your personal events and consumer habits along with the likes of great artists like James Brown, Elton John, Charlie Palmieri, Vince Gill, Willie Green, Slayer, Bette Midler, Woody Guthrie (the list is endless) and any person who has recorded or published a piece of music in the last hundred years.
Conclusion
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act needs to be reexamined and rewritten every five years to reflect and take into consideration the changes in technology, creativity and platforms. It is an important part of combating the many inequities in our society.
It is with great pleasure that we were asked again to present The Pelican Cafe 2016 Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Awards . So many great bands… so many stages. It is a world-class event still free to everyone.
As usual, I start this post with a brief assessment of the weather. The first week of October in San Francisco is usually the beginning of our “Indian Summer,” that two month period of time between the horrid fog of summer and the torrential rains of December, where we get some consistent sunlight and winds often blow out of the east. Surfers take to the ocean, as this time of year is when the waves are at their best. Last year during the festival was no exception, but this year during the The 2016 Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival the northwest winds were already beginning to howl at around 9 am. Of course this made it so the entire weekend was not what surfers would call “rideable.” It also had another effect. On many of the stages facing west, the sound got literally blown away by the wind. It is not ideal to have these winds when putting on an outdoor festival.
The winds off Ocean Beach San Francisco on October 1, 2016
People (all three of you), who follow this publication, know that every year I give out these precious awards to the deserving people and musicians. It is a lot of work narrowing down the selections, but I think I nailed it this time around.
Outstanding Billionaire of 2016: Warren Hellman
It is easy when you attend a free festival to give thanks to the person paying for everything. In our winner-take-all economy, that guy is Warren Hellman, who now is somewhere six feet under and must accept this award posthumously. Unlike, one of the current presidential candidates, Warren Hellman actual had a passion for something other than himself. That was bluegrass music and the banjo, and he actually gave money back to the community. He spent his days as a banker and venture capitalist and somewhere along the way started the festival. He made so much money that he has funded The Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival for a decade after his death in 2011. Mark your calendars. That would be 2021. Thanks Warren. The entire American Beverage Association and all the corner stores within a mile radius of Golden Gate Park really thank you.
Chadrick Honore – Trumpet Player in Rebirth Brass Band
Outstanding Musician: Chadrick Honore – Trumpet Player in Rebirth Brass Band
I took off work early on Friday as I simply had to go see the Rebirth Brass Band play at the Arrow Stage. The band, with a long tradition and many members over the years, is playing really well these days. The trumpet player Chadrick Honore was simply on fire and the way he plays trumpet makes it look effortless. As usual, New Orleans’ musicians are much more than just playing an instrument. Chadrick was singing and working the crowd as well. But, his playing was truly outstanding. It is curious that as time goes on with The Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival that there are more wind instruments and less banjos. I would wager there were fewer banjos this year than any of the last five. Perhaps the festival should be renamed The Hardly ANY Bluegrass Festival. But that is OK with me. Just bring on more bands from Louisiana.
This one needs to be replaced…
Terrible Speaker that Needs to Be Replaced Banjo Stage
With that Northwest winds howling and blowing the trees, I was wondering if that speaker about 100 yards down the meadow from the Banjo Stage was even on? Yes it was. But, let me tell you – it sounded like crap. Sometimes speakers like this just get old and fall apart inside.
Actually not a bad spot to see a show at the Rooster Stage. Jackson Browne, somewhere down there.
Best Babyboomer Singing “Life Soundtrack Songs” Jackson Browne
I have never been to a Jacksom Browne concert. Now I have. It was pretty good. He played a lot of his big hits, titles that I do not know but the melodies that have been ingrained in you somehow. He is a great singer-songwriter and I came to realize that what he really writes are simply hymns. Lots of IV to I. Lots of V SUS chords to I. All good. Not very bluesy at all. During one of his songs he got about 8 bars in and simply stopped. I have know idea if he suddenly forgot the words or the chords, but he just took a little pause and started it all over. I think half the audience didn’t even noticed. Performers take note.
Band that Never Made it Due to Flight Delays Geno Delafose and French Rockin’ Boogie
With a name like that, how would you NOT want to go all the way across town and check it out. But alas, the flight was delayed and they missed the show.
During Curtis’ set at the Arrow Stage
Amazing Special Treat of the Festival Curtis Salgado
Man, can this guy sing and play harmonica. A really special musician who has been there through the years. It is truly strange that he was not listed on the schedule. Curtis is the “real deal.” http://www.curtissalgado.com/
Strangest Aspect of the Festival So few San Francisco Bands
In the early days of the festival, word has it that there were actual a fair amount of San Francisco bands on the stages. Not so much these days. Sure there are local musicians like Boz Scaggs, part of the booking, and locals who get the gig playing behind him, but I find it perplexing that the band Front Country, a really good bluegrass band from San Francisco, is not on one of the stages. There are many other great San Francisco bands people in the area do not even know. The closest thing this year, was the showcasing of the Little Village Foundation, a local non-profit that is doing some really good work. Diverse and very Northern Californian.
Anyway, I caught about 12 bands in total, a bit less than years past but it was about right. All of The Pelican Cafe 2016 Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Awards are guaranteed for 30 days from this reading. After that you are on your own. Go out and hear some live music from the locals. Until 2017…
I wanted to post this video back a while back and found it in my files. It is a trumpet section practicing in a neighborhood near Frenchman’s Street in New Orleans around jazz fest this past April. Unlike most of the world, I often like hearing musicians practice more than the actual performance. You can learn a lot just from how they go about breaking down the music and get a real sense of the amount of work it takes to play well. I do not know what this tune is but I was walking and heard this trumpet section practicing. A guy came up to me and started trying to bum some money off of me. I asked him to just give me a few minutes to listen to the horns. He explained to me that they were running the scales and that you get a better sound if you tighten your lips. We converse for a bit and I spotted him a few Washington’s for keeping the block safe.
The scale they were playing is what sometimes is called the diatonic bebop scale. I remember hearing that David Baker coined the term but it does not really matter, as I call it the New Orleans scale.
What I love about it is the tension of the I to VII to flat VII. How about the “Welcome to America” scale.
The winds were about 15 to 20 knots out of the northwest. It was a bit gusty. The sky was overcast. I love to watch these guys fly. There are kites of all kinds at Fort Funston. High performance racers that do arching turns and loops. Larger, a bit clunkier tanks and slow tandems. Fun to watch!
Four years ago I made a call out to my friend Piers that I still had his surfboards. https://sfjournal.net/blog/piers-lewis-please-pick-up-your-surf-board/ Since then two of mine sort of bit the dust. After a while, surf boards get dings and become delaminated, sort of like their riders perhaps, and become too gone to repair.
At the present moment I am basically down to the Piers Lewis Nev and a SF Surf Shop big wave board called a gun. The summer is not a good time to surf around here, but I took the Nev out for a test ride today. Piers. The Nev has turned out to be a great board for summer waves around here. Those short period windswelly, shifty buggers. Thanks for letting me store it. Just let me know when you need it back. I will keep it safe and always remember to tie it down on the roof rack. Your friend, Paul
From April 2012…
PIERS LEWIS… PLEASE PICK UP YOUR SURF BOARD
APRIL 22, 2012 PAUL LYONS
Hi Piers,
It has been a long time. Actually a really long time. I hope you are doing well. Where you are, I have no idea. We knew each other back in “the day.” You took up surfing as you thought the paddling would help out the carpel-tunnel in the arms. Exercise. The remedy of last resort for the inflicted. Not sure if it worked but in the end you left town and your surf board ended up in my basement. It is an 8 foot Nev, well-built with very few miles. I have used it perhaps 3 or 4 times. Actually it was my friends who rode it when we were short a board on surf ventures.
The issue is this. I cannot find you anywhere. Not on Google. Not on Facebook. Not on LinkedIn. You have done it! You have maintained your sanity and privacy. In the future, when someone needs a privacy policy, I will just send them to you as you got it down. The only problem is, I will have no way to get a hold of you. Anyway, I really want to get rid of the Nev surf board. The surf season is upon us and I have eyes on a more high performance model. Maybe a 7 foot pin tail. Something that really carves. Let me tell you. That Nev is not made for carving.
So just email me before say Thanksgiving. Lets work out a deal.
Your friend,
Paul
The Mission District in San Francisco has changed a lot in the last five years. When I arrived 28 years ago, it was definitely more of a working class Latino neighborhood. Everyday you would hear a car go by with salsa blasting out of the windows. It was thought of as being a dangerous spot, but if you lived there for just a few weeks you knew right away where not to be at 2 am (these are actually the same corners today) and everyone scraped along to get by. It was possible to move into a place and make it as a young artist or musician. Rents where not extreme. We were lucky. There were still phone booths every few blocks and your best place to get the latest news was the corner store.
The changes in the Mission are not reported about very often in the media very well I think. Sure, there are a lot of pieces about the price of housing and all the “techies” moving in, but not much about what it actually looks like and how it has changed in terms of culture and human interactions.
One street that has gone through a lot of changes is Valencia. A few years back, a Mission neighborhood youth group was performing on Valencia. You know the usual story. Probably a summer program. Keep the kids out of gangs and away from drugs. Part of the performance was a percussion ensemble and that is when it got weird. The luxury, custom bike shop inside, came out and requested the youth ensemble to stop playing as it was interfering with the store selling bikes. A similar thing happened at a nearby playground when some techies reserved a soccer field that was used every afternoon by the local youth for pickup soccer games. Here you could see the insensitivity and sense of entitlement by the newcomers in the glaring light.
Gentrification is the new colonialism
– From a sign in a shop on Valencia
Most mornings during the week I bike to work down the bike lane on Valencia. Going the other way, heading south to Silicon Valley, are scores of “Google buses” – large white tall things with tinted windows where the passengers seem to be riding twenty feet up in air. They pull up to the stops and pick up the workers – mostly white – probably mostly software engineers or marketing coordinators, and take them of to their corporate “campuses.” In many of these companies, these workers have been instructed to not talk to the media. In the afternoon, these same buses come the other way. These same workers, returning from their isolated corporate enclaves returning to the city with the cool zip codes. While it is commendable that they sometimes take the bus, I find it strange that they do not look anything like the diversity of San Francisco. They are the reason that people have gotten priced out of San Francisco. I would wager that not a single person on these buses makes less than six figures. San Francisco teachers’ salaries top out at under 90k. Anyway, it would be interesting to do a study on why these new young techies live in San Francisco.
Google buses heading back down San Jose Ave…
Peaceful Demonstrations
This past year there has been a lot of outrage about police brutality. It got to the point where eventually the San Francisco police chief resigned – the pressure was just too much. One such situation was the shooting by police of Alex Nieto, a truly tragic event.
https://justice4alexnieto.org/alex-story/
One time while riding home from work, I stopped to take some photos outside of the Mission police department, where demonstrators were holding up signs. They where completely peaceful and it was a quite a sight. People of all ages and walks of life were there with their homemade signs. While trying to take some photos, the Google buses just kept blocking the view. One after another, like the buses were schools of fish.
Turn Down the Volume
One of the things that has changed is the number of white tablecloth restaurants and cafes. They are everywhere. Where are the techies going to plan there next IPO if there are not cafes where everyone is staring into their laptops?
One place that has been in the Mission for a while is Radio Habana, a little hole in the wall at 22nd street and Valencia. It is run by a long-time San Franciscan Leila Mansur. For years there has been a Cuban rumba on Sunday afternoons. Many great rumberos from all over the Bay Area would make a pilgrimage to hangout and play. The level of playing was often quite high and it was a serious place for Caribbean musics.
But alas, the upstairs neighbors started to complain about the music. Too loud I suppose. My comment to them is that you are living in the city. If you want a quiet suburb, move to Walnut Creek! This sort of stifling of performance spaces is going on all over town. Where ever the new condos go in, the culture gets zapped. This sort of cultural event is the reason many people live here in the first place. Fortunately, the Sunday rumba has moved to other spots but there is nothing like Radio Habana. It is a closet with soul.
Burning Down the Place
Then there is the mysterious burning down of some of the older buildings in the Mission. First it was huge building on Mission and 22nd.
Mission and 22nd before the fire
Mission Meat Market
This building was from another era, when people got around on horses. The first floor was a microcosm of San Francisco with granted a heavy Latin bent. You had the florist in front, the travel agent, the dress maker, the Asian butcher, the Mission Meat Market which was run by some old-school San Francisco white folk, the Latin grocery and produce store. It had an open market feel that seems to disappear once the old make way for the new. I remember buying fresh wild salmon back in the 90s when they were running. Delicious and affordable. It was a place where a variety of people did business and had to get along. Geographically, it was one of important soulful places in the barrio.
Mission and 22nd – 6/2016
Mission and 22nd – 6/2016
Mission and 22nd – 6/2016
Mission and 22nd – 6/2016
Mission and 22nd – 6/2016
It burned down and then burned down again. The rent-controlled apartments above are no more. The shops all just a memory. Now it is but a hole in the ground waiting to become yet another beehive of condos and apartments, priced for those riding the Google buses. Soulless places made of glass and steel.
In April I was given a painting by Laurie Wigham of this building after the fire, but before the tear-down. Thanks Andy!
22nd and Valenicia – Laurie Wigham
Then just last month further down Mission near 30th street, the building where Cole Hardware was burned down as well. All very mysterious.
New Buildings in San Francisco – The Private Life
New Condos
New Condos
The changes now are not only the people but the actual physical structures that have made up the fabric of the communities for decades. The very cool funkiness of San Francisco is making way for more modern cold geography. There are places south of the Giant’s ballpark that look like San Jose.
The topic of homelessness has been all over the news these days. Series in the San Francisco Chronicle. Radio shows. Magazines. One thing that seems to be missing to me is actual photos of homelessness. Mostly I see tents on sidewalks. Street after street. Housing in 2016. Brought to you by Coleman and the $50 tent.
One thing is true when it comes to homeless people. Everyone who is living on the streets is a unique story. There are the young artists who would rather do their thing than work for the man. There are the middle age men who are tired of the dead end jobs. There are junkies. There are the crazy people who just scream at the stars.
I work in a area south of market in San Francisco where there are basically encampments all over the place. At first it was primarily tents. Lately it has become plywood carts on wheels. I guess we still call this the first world.
Here are some photos from Carnaval 2016. After many years of camping in Humboldt during this weekend, we now stay in town and take in San Francisco Carnaval. This year we were at both the festival and parade. The weather was stupendous.
Saturday Line-up
Fogo Na Roupa
Loco Bloco
Loco Bloco
Eating on Valencia
Oscar De Leon
Oscar De Leon
Oscar De Leon
Oscar De Leon
Oscar De Leon
Oscar De Leon
Oscar De Leon
Oscar De Leon
Oscar De Leon
Rumba with Radio Havana Club
Loco Bloco
Loco Bloco
Julius Melendez with Caranson
Soltron
Soltron
The highlight of the stages was hearing Oscar De Leon on Saturday. At 72 years of age he is still singing great. He is an amazing musician. As is often the case at Carnaval the sound is terrible. This year it was JK Sound delivering the incompetence. Oscar got up on stage and after the first ten seconds knew he had to do his own sound check. He stopped the band and started with the congas, got that level set. Next the bongos. That was working. Timbales then bass came next. OK… those mics are on. Piano took a while but that eventually got some volume. He then adjusted the mix a bit and when his garden of sound was working go enough he went into a 90 minute set that was phenomenal. Of course in his improvised pregones he wasted no time in criticizing the sound company and sound guys. It was all pretty funny as it was all in fun and the sound people had no idea that Oscar was playing with them and cutting them down. Oscar De Leon’s band had six horns! Three trumpets and three trombones as well as a guitar. From classic hits to some covers, it was a great set.
The next day we watched the parade. Stationed at 24th and Mission we caught all the floats until about #55 and then left. Hopefully the photos give you an idea of the diversity of cultures. Everything from well-maintained old cars, some with hydraulics to Aztec dancing, to Central American to Brazilian. Fogo Na Roupa numbers were astounding.
We heading back to Harrison, with our very much appreciated folding camp chairs, and heard more local groups. Soltron played there unique blend of Bay Area grooves to an excited crowd.
At the New Orleans’s Jazz Fest you can buy tickets at the gate. We never had to wait more than a few minutes. The price per day was $75 and we paid no service fee. One day, my cousin Ben had one to give away. Thanks Ben! This simple information was not easy to find. I would rather give a few more bucks to the festival than Ticketron. Just saying.
Paul, Guy from Argentina and Steve. Three outsiders making the trek to one of the Holy Lands of music.
First, I need to give a disclaimer that this essay is absolutely ridiculous. There is no way to give awards out at this festival. Every day at the New Orleans Jazz Fest there are at least 60 bands on all kinds of stages. To possibly cast judgement and give out an award, besides being absurd, you would have to literally be six places at once. Instead, in the interest of confessional writing so prevalent today, I will simply highlight the journey and give out a few awards , the most accurate being the one at the end – MOST OUTSTANDING MUSICIAN IN NEW ORLEANS.
Below are the groups that I heard. Many were planned. Others just sort of happened based on the bathroom lines and meal breaks. By the end of the day the portapotties look like they were ready to tumble over but never did. In the concessions, the trout with crab on top was excellent. All the food was really good.
Friday, April 22
Alexis Spight
New Orleans Classic Recording Divas featuring The Dixie Cups, Wanda Rouzan and Jean Knight
Kermit Ruffins
Real Untouchable Brass Band
Michael McDonnald
Steely Dan
Saturday, April 23
Big Sams Funky Nation
Tad Benoit
Keith Frank and the Soliel Zydeco Band
DeJonnette, Coltrane and Garrison
Boz Scaggs
Night at a Club
George Clinton and Parlament
Sunday, April 24
The New Orleans Suspects
Henry Butler and Jambalaya
Leroy Jones and the New Orleans Finest
The Zion Harmonizers
Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter
John Mayall
Other Shows of Note
Treme Brass Band at DBA
Harmonica Marathon at Frenchman Theater
INTRODUCTION
Every time I go to New Orleans I cry. In fact, I remember the exact moment that I cried every day of the festival. It often happens unexpectedly. It is similar to what happened to me the first and only time I got acupuncture. I am not sure modern medicine has researched it but crying, especially for joy is a good thing and the therapy is all that sometimes works to get you through the ups and downs of life. It is cathartic and surely the great balancer of the soul.
Alexa Spight in the Gospel Temt
The first day we had a very rough plan and were a little disoriented as we entered the gates. To get our bearings we walked into the Gospel Tent and heard Alexis Spight. We sat in the front row, as it was an early show and there I was overcome with emotion. Her voice was strong and clear and you could hear decades of gospel tradition in her voice. The band seemed a bit under rehearsed but the spirit was there and it seemed like the entire group just went with it. And as it does often with the first show, the tears came streaming down my cheeks. Probably not the first person to wail in the Gospel Tent.
Keith Frank and the Soliel Zydeco Band
The second day it was listening to Keith Frank and the Soliel Zydeco Band. Many times I heard people in New Orleans area say that Zydeco songs “sound all the same.” To me this makes no sense. Sure the accordion can be irritating, in the same way as say the banjo, but the songs do not sound all the same. One of the grooves from Keith Frank sounded like James Brown or perhaps something James Brown appropriated. The next like we were on the Bayou in a cowboy hat. Somewhere, during that James Brown groove it hit me again. Keith Frank with his two kids under ten, one on accordion and the other on cowbell by his side, it just got me again. Tears of joy.
Which brings me to an award.
BEST TROMBONE SOLO IN A SECOND LINE BAND
The Real Untouchables Brass Band… the guy on the far right – stage left. I was unable to figure out his name and apologies about that, but if you show up and San Francisco I will buy you dinner. His solos combined the street sound, the grit and dirt with great pitch and rhythm. I can never get enough of second line brass bands. The reason why I liked this guy’s playing so much is his sound. Full of dirt and smears and all in a very organic, lyric way.
Real Untouchable Brass Band
Later that day I heard Steely Dan with the very fine trombonist Jim Pugh who’s long career even includes writing the theme that still runs for NPR’s Morning Edition. But Pugh’s playing, when he finds himself in a bit of improvisational jam, relies on his squeaky high chops and lots of notes. In New Orleans, trombones usually just go with growls and smears. The Untouchables trombone player had that and much more.
But I have become distracted. On the third day I broke down listening to Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. The crowd was building up for this one. Big names in jazz. Not a seat in the Jazz Tent. Standing room only. I thought – do people really know what they are getting into here? Herbie and Wayne are some of the most expert improvisers on the planet and the show was just that. Herbie played both acoustic and electric and his synth work brought to mind some of Wayne’s work with Joe Zawinul and Weather Report. Too much music for many folks ears which for the rest of us meant a good seat as people left. The last tune they played was something I would have never expected. A modern, sort of loosely constructed version of “Now’s the Time” in a boogaloo groove. This was not a 12 bar blues but more of a free-flowing thing and was a great vehicle for Wayne’s sparse but thematic solos. He played all soprano throughout the entire set.
BEST TENOR SAXOPHONIST I HAD NO IDEA WAS SO DARN GOOD
Ravi Cotrane. What an excellent player. Period. Not sure how you follow in the footsteps of his father John but Ravi does it well.
ODDS AND ENDS
Some notable experiences while in New Orleans were crashing a Crawfish Boil party in the Garden District and finally learning how to propery eat these bugs. We left that party a bit too early only to be packed like sardines into Frenchman Street clubs and hear some of the locals sweat it out with the tourist crowds.
After the second day, eating another crawfish boil in the garage of a house next to the festival and then heading off to catch George Clinton and Parliament at a club in the Wearhouse District. Now that was about as funky as it gets. 15 member band. George sitting on a stool in the middle of it all directing traffic. I have a feeling there is not a conductor on the planet that could pull that off with such effortlessness. Everyone got a moment to shine and band was dynamic. George is still going strong.
MY PARTNERS IN CRIME
Special awards go to Ben my nephew and Natalie who put me up and Steve my buddy from high school who was an amazing partner on this adventure in New Orleans. Steve still has the ability to scope out a situation, make friends, avoid getting mugged and still brush his teeth when he gets back to the crib at 2 am.
THE WEEKDAYS BETWEEN
Steve caught a plane back home on Monday. I stuck around New Oreans until Thursday riding around on Ben’s bike and exploring New Orleans and taking photos. One day Ben took me to the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and the Barataria Preserve. We hung out in the swamps with the snakes and alligators for a few hours. Tuesday night I caught The Treme Brass Band at DBA with Ben. It was a great to hear them on their home turf. Shamarr Allen on trumpet sounded to me of tradition and essence of New Orleans. Cities get their signature sounds and in New Orleans that sound is the sound of the trumpet. Shamarr was playing what looked like a cornet looking pocket trumpet – tarnished brass, with a sound and skill that would make Louis Armstrong smile. Shamarr’s playing reaches back a hundred years but makes a clear statement about the present. His sound and chops will just blow your mind. Beyond that his singing and rapport with the audience was simply awesome. Everyone was having a great time.
MOST OUTSTANDING MUSICIAN IN NEW ORLEANS
Shamarr Allen… need to say more.
LEAVING
For a few days I probably did not cry. That will happen after you experience about 30 bands over three days. You are all cried out. But, leaving New Orleans, heading to a wedding in Austin and seeing that Megabus in the distance, with Houston on the front, it happened again and I got all choked up. New Orleans. I wouldn’t want to live there but a great place to visit and hear some great American music.
[click on images]
Jazzfest 2016
George Clinton and Parliament
John Mayall
Keith Frank and the Soliel Zydeco Band
Spotted Cat
Real Untouchables Brass Band
After the Festival
Michael McDonald
Wedding band
New favorite meal
Local Barber Shop
Local Barber Shop letting the tagger the rules
Cigar Shop
Cigar Shop
After the Festival
Spotted Cat
Real Untouchables Brass Band
Alexa Spight in the Gospel Temt
Paul, Guy from Argentina and Steve. Three outsiders making the trek to one of the Holy Lands of music.
In 2012 I wrote a piece here on this website called First Glance. It documented my introduction to large waves and surfing in general and talked about how the government was transporting sand from the north end to the south end of Ocean Beach in a valiant attempt to ward off the ocean’s constant pounding of the coastline.
Anyone who has surfed that place in the winter knows that the ocean always wins in the end. If the ocean wants to eat a parking lot for breakfast, there is nothing you can do about it. A big December swell and a 6.2-foot high tide and half that sand will end up back were it came from.
Below is what the second parking lot at Ocean Beach in San Francisco looked like in 2008.
Ocean Beach in 2008 at the Second Parking Lot
While I had not ventured out to Ocean Beach in a few weeks, I was passing by when I noticed that the second parking lot at Sloat Ave along the Great Highway was closed. It had disappeared. The ocean had taken a large bite out of it for breakfast, probably during one of the big winter swells we have had this year. All the sand that they had hauled from the north end to the south had disappeared. In about five years there will be no Great Highway here. Pretty soon the San Francisco Zoo will be underwater.
In the end, the ocean always wins.
Below is what the second parking lot at Ocean Beach in San Francisco looked like in March of 2016.
Ocean Beach – Second Parking Lot 3/19/2016
I find it a bit strange that the fact that the Ocean ate the parking lot of a major metropolitan city did not make it into the local main stream press.
Thursday, March 17, 2016
Beauty Operators
8:30 – 11 pm
The Doctor’s Lounge
Late-night hangout featuring cocktails & standard comfort grub in an old-school, easygoing setting.
Address: 4826 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94112
Phone:(415) 586-9730
Yep. Third Thursday of the Month Show and Jam
But, you probably should not go there. Way too dangerous. Not far from Jerry Garcia’s house off Mission, and I am not talking about the ice cream flavor. Just two blocks over from where Patty Hearst was holed up in a safe house for a month – you know the place, and her image in the late 70s was pasted all over the 6 o’clock news for days on end. Same neighborhood where coach George Seifert’s in-laws lived, and that award-winning burrito spot down the block. Crazy Dan White had a house out there as well… no relation to Barry White. The Doctor’s Lounge this Thursday, 8:30pm. Bluegrass and originals about the treacherous life. Misery. Love. Treachery. And good beer.
THE BEAUTY OPERATORS (SF)
This stringband was born out of San Francisco bluegrass jam scene- on the mean streets of SF and its music venues and various flea markets. The Beauty Operators are known for their high-energy live performances, mixing traditional bluegrass, modern originals, and irreverent transformations of pop songs, and of course, cutting hair.
http://www.thebeautyoperators.com/
Members: Jeremy Pollock – guitar and vocals Perry Spinalli – fiddle and vocals Paul – Harmonica Jed – Banjo Matt Lauer – bass and more bass Lucky Luke – mandolin and vocals
Who are you?
One who’s house I resurrect
From this unbelievable grime.
Only an optimist would be fool enough.
“The roof is leaking,” you must have said.
Up a ladder you went with carpet and 5 gallon buckets of tar
Many times I know, the roofers covered in that black tar,
With blank stares of disbelief.
Hatchets swinging down on the black gooey bed.
That tar that ended up everywhere.
In the drain in the back yard.
Excavated with a metal rod,
Blows to the concrete and iron pipes,
To the handiwork of the 1940’s,
When this structure came into being.
Repaired with credit at “Home Depot.”
Plastic pipes and tools for scraping.
Floors.
I think I see floors.
A few steps an hour under the
Knee pads covered in the red dust that was a carpet pad.
I see the fog out on the ocean and mindlessly listen to baseball games,
Hoping for extra innings to prolong the company.
“The roof is leaking.”
The ceilings are dripping.
The floor is getting wet.
“More Black Jack and carpet tommorow.”
A great sense of humor you must have had.
The carpet wet to your ankles,
You made your way to the basement,
Holding firm to the bannister on the right,
Then the railing’s end at the bottom,
To the sanctuary in the basement.
Rebuilding cars.
Engines in the downstairs study
One surely under the stairs.
Oil on the concrete – like a birthmark.
The spiders down here I battle with newspapers rolled.
In their stubborn retreats they seem too wise for this simple execution.
These hundreds must go.
They pay not the mortgage but only watch the shadows.
Nuts and bolts in every crevice.
A radiator hose.
A rusted pully.
Endless useless parts.
The sanctuary overflowed to the thickets in the backyard.
Gaskets
Car doors.
Auto glass that grew like clover.
A gas tank like a torpedo.
Huge rusted grates, for rabbits we suppose.
“The roof is leaking.”
Johnnie you were not alone.
A rat holed up behind the tools.
His nest was dry.
He left when you did – I hope.
The mice in the kitchen had free reign too.
They left their trail.
Remedied with toxicity – bleach and trisodium phospate.
A latch on every door.
You were careful in your later years.
The family must have visited often.
You distrusted them no doubt.
I wonder who it was that came
On that day to find you after your last breath.
Perhaps an automotive project on the floor.
Dishes in that nasty sink.
I’m certain you passed away here.
Self-sufficient to the end,
Your truck parked down the street for weeks after.
The tickets came in the mail.
I ‘ve thrown out most of the 50 years.
The old sports cards from the 40’s, a vacuum away under the study,
shed light on earlier days and occupents.
I have kept those as mementos.
Most everthing was hauled off by Marcos, the amazing roofer, to the dump.
Your hammer is still here.
I saved that for the jobs to be done.
Top quality,
It is broken in perfectly.
After days of pulling out 3 inch nails from the walls,
Swearing under my breath, I find it in the basement, in the rubble I know not where.
In a stupor I was.
Time oblivious.
Yet a more perfect weight hammer I have not known.
Wrapped in leather lace.
Solid steel both head and handle.
Weighted like a clock
Weathered the years it tells of a right handed owner.
Slight bend to the left.
It falls with even blows.
With each swing
I shake your hand.
Just a gentle reminder that when you park your car in San Francisco, just think for a second about the next guy. Sometimes it can take a bit of time to park your car around here. Street cleaning. Two hour zones. Lots of driveways. The city is aching to write a fat ticket and put it under your wiper. So if you notice that if just moved your car up five feet or so and it would make for two spaces – go for it! Do the right thing!
Here are two examples of parking for the country, not the city. I hope that next time they will have to circle the neighborhood for a half hour in search of a spot.
Examples of how NOT TO PARK
Where the Parking Guys Get to Park
And then there are the little carts that dole out the tickets. They get to park anywhere. Even in red zones.
As I muse over the absurdity of the non-profit status National Football League, I have but one New Year’s resolution for San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee: repave some of these streets that are south of Cesar Chavez Boulevard. Good grief! The streets look like some war-torn country in the Third World! With the booming economy now in San Francisco, it seems like a good time to spend some money on this sort of infrastructure. In a few years, when the third tech bubble bursts, there will no longer be all that money in coffers.
Here is my list in order of importance. I am not talking about just filling in the holes. We are talking repaving the entire street. You will get a lot of cyclists on your side. Just do the right thing Ed. This is really a matter of public safety.
STREETS IN SF THAT NEED REPAVING
1. Mission Street at the corner of Valencia and Mission. We all know this gets a lot of bus traffic but just look at this patchwork of repairs. One would think that a city with a billion dollar budget could pave one of the major thoroughfares of the city in need of repair. The irony is that Mission Street’s real name is El Camino Real – the “Royal Highway” Nothing “royal” about the highway here. Imagine if a street was in this shape in say the Marina Neighborhood. Fat chance!
(click to see detailed versions)
2. San Jose avenue behind the Safeway. Anyone who has biked along here has discovered a challenging obstacle course. Mountain bikes strongly encouraged. The photos do not do this justice. Pretty nasty section.
3. Under Highway 280 by the Glen Park Bart. This year I witnessed a middle-aged gentleman wipe out here… he basically did a face plant after hitting a series of pot holes. He looked like an experienced cyclist on a road bike and in full spandex garb. Blood on the cement. Minor concussion probably. Hope he is OK. Fortunately he was not run over by a Google Bus or car.
4. Moscow Street at Excelsior Granted, this may be a little self-serving as this is my street but this street has not been paved for decades. This photo is of the good section. Go up about 20 yards and the street looks like you could turn it into a kiddies swimming pool. You will have to get the kids out every twenty minutes though as the 54 Felton Bus comes flying over the hill.
Those are the roads that seem in dire need. I do know many others in other parts of San Francisco as well. The “Wiggle” in the lower Haight is particularly treacherous. Get on a bike and check it out.
Indeed, the Super Bowl will come and go and this benevolent non-profit, the NFL, will pay many employees the meager $92,000 for their day’s work. I bet in a year many of the roads mentioned above will be worse for the wear. Prove me wrong.
Looking for a movie on Netflix Streaming? It seems that documentaries are the largest category in Netflix. Below are four movies that I highly recommend.
The Legend of Eddie Aikau http://www.netflix.com/title/70273674
If you do not know who Eddie Aikau was, you will by the end of the movie. A remarkable person, amazing athelete and incredible life. Indeed, “Eddie would go.”
Little White Lie http://www.netflix.com/watch/80020254
This documentary is remarkable, not only for the story but also the fact that the filmmaker is so young and yet makes a film that is so mature.
The Zen of Bennet http://www.netflix.com/watch/70236498
I have no idea why this movie has only three stars in places. Even if you do not like the music and singing of Tony Bennet, the movie is a great view into a man, way up there in years, who still has it all together. Features many pop artists including Amy Winehouse.
Muscle Shoals http://www.netflix.com/watch/70267584
There is no reason why this is at the bottom of the four. I am assuming that you have already seen this movie. This is the sort of history that always seems to get torn out of history books. You may be Caucasian but that does not mean you cannot be funky.
It is a bit odd that when you search for “Robert Reich” on Google you find this.
The fact that Robert Reich is a man who is perhaps often looking up should probably not be the first thing on his list of accomplishments or even personality traits. For Robert Reich, I would probably just pull this line from John Taylor that begins his latest book Saving Capitalism. This pretty much sums it up.
“There are two modes of invading private property; the first by which the poor plunder the rich… sudden and violent; the second, by which the rich plunder the poor, slow and legal.”
JOHN TAYLOR, An inquiry into the Principles and Policy of the Government of the United States (1814)
But with Google, perception is a bit slow and plodding. Just a bunch of numbers banging their heads against one another. On that same page, a bit further down, you see a post by his son who is announcing to the world that his lawyer mom and his professor dad Robert, former Secretary of Labor under Clinton, have legally separated. His mom left law, I suppose, and is now a license acupuncturist. No, I did not make that up and that news did not make it onto the front page of the Enquirer so it did not register for Google I guess. His son, in order to clear up and confusing had to write a blog post about it, so that Google could index the information. Bizarre.
Robert Reich “Saving Capitalism”
Available at your local bookstore
A Call for Observations
Some other people in the news. Bernie Sanders seems to rarely get mentioned in the media though his following seems to be growing daily. Any ideas what to make of this stuff? It seems like an odd way to present this content. Google is a private company with interests. I wonder what sort if editorial goes into this stuff. Any observations?
The first thing that seems really strange, is that Robert Reich and the guy on the bottom were born just 10 days apart, not to far from each other. Something to ponder.
NUMBER OF DAYS content identification tools for YouTube HAS BEEN IN BETA
[getdays]
BETA [bey-tuh or, esp. British, bee-] adj. A pre-release of software that is given out to a large group of users to try under real conditions.
– PC Magazine Encyclopedia
We all are amazed at this tech giant Google and their many other companies such as YouTube. Their ability to meet the technological challenges of our times is phenomenal. Back in June 14, 2007, they announce an exciting new program called content identification tools for YouTube. I am certain the marketing department had many long meetings trying to figure out a catchy name for this new tool.
“We’ve been developing improved content identification for months, and we’re confident that in the not-too-distant future, we’ll unveil an innovative solution that will work for users and content creators alike. This is one of the most technologically complicated tasks that we have ever undertaken. But YouTube has always been committed to developing sustainable and scalable tools that work for all content owners.
Even though we haven’t given too many details, we’ve been hard at work.”
Hard at work? Really? Then why is this program still in BETA?
From my submission 11/28/2015
And then when you try to see what is going on with your Content ID submission you get a denied. Just because you took down videos to protect your copyrights should logically have no bearing as to the fact that you own the copyrights to that material.
Ted calls Google, which owns YouTube, “a company that has done more to impoverish musicians and other creative professionals than any entity on the face of the planet.”
So Google, just so you can keep your important projects up-to-date and rolling out in time, I will keep a YouTube Content ID in BETA widget on the right column of this website. Keep up the hard work Google! Maybe some day by the next millennium in the year 2107 Google’s YouTube Content ID project will get out of BETA and have a Release candidate of this product. Trust me. I am NOT holding my breath!
“Imagine a business model where you are given all of the music publishing content for the last hundred years for free. After you build the initial interface, you basically do not have to do anything. The system is set up so that users and fans just give you content even though they have no rights to the ownership of that content. With much of this illegal content you garner about 50% of all advertisement revenue generated by that content. This can go on indefinitely. Sounds like there is no way you can fail. You will make billions off this stuff. YouTube just laughs all the all the way to the bank.”
Anonymous
FURTHER READING ON THE SERIOUSLY FLAWED Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Passed on October 12, 1998, by a unanimous vote in the United States Senate and signed into law by President Bill Clinton on October 28, 1998, the DMCA amended Title 17 of the United States Code to extend the reach of copyright, while limiting the liability of the providers of online services for copyright infringement by their users.
Congresswoman Judy Chu, a job creation advocate from California, provided real time proof that Google was failing in burying pirated sites in their search results. Barely typing in a few keystrokes associated with the Oscar Winning Film, 12 Years a Slave, numerous pirate sites appeared immediately on her iPad near the top of Google’s first search page. Unfazed, the representative from Google continued to extoll the progress that was being made by her company in pushing these pirate sites down in their rankings.
Azabache is/was a salsa band from San Francisco, California. Twenty-three years ago the CD was published by Leopard Music. I am guessing that only 1000 were printed. The music industry was in flux as always, and with the rise of Napster and MP3s everywhere publishing was finding its feet.
Since that time, the CD has made its way around the globe mostly streaming, but probably in suitcases as well. A big thanks to Amazon, iTunes and Spotify for their automation, tireless domination and and endless servers and warehouses, otherwise we would be licking stamps and going to the post office.
BREAKING NEWS: CD BABY NO LONGER SELLS CDS, Go figure…
Where’s the CD Baby Store?
CD Baby retired our music store in March of 2020 in order to place our focus entirely on the tools and services that are most meaningful to musicians today and tomorrow. https://store.cdbaby.com/
(Thanks for letting us know. Does that mean we threw the baby out with the bathwater?)
To order an actual CD, you no longer go to CD Baby. CD Baby is now only a digital distribution facilitator. The music industry is always changing. CDs are now 8-tracks. Jewel boxes in everyone’s basements gather dust until the next wave. A gosar! A bailar!
I am not sure that many Americans know the name Allen Toussaint. I surely did not until I was well into my twenties. Like so many really important things, Mr. Toussaint was not a part of the standard core curriculum. I think Allen Toussaint should be on a stamp! He was an incredible musician and force in 20th Century American music. Period. But unfortunately, Mr. Allen Toussaint has left the building and passed away November 10, 2015.
Allen Toussaint
January 14, 1938 – November 10, 2015
Harry Shearer’s radio show, Le Show, this week plays an interview with Allen Toussaint from a few years back. It is about ten minutes in, just past the “apologies of the the week.” http://wwno.org/post/le-show-week-nov-15-2015
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
I am not qualified to write about this man. I heard Allen Toussaint play live just one time. It was at the San Francisco Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival in about 2012. It was at the Star Stage and I was simply amazed that there were not more people in attendance. Allen Toussaint, on the stage, with a grand piano, for free!!! He was there with a quintet. I remembering seeing him back stage, impeccably dressed, smoking a cigarette, by himself. He seemed to be going over the lyrics in his head. His gaze was far off and he seemed to be talking to himself. He was about to go out and sing about twelve tunes in a row, probably a few he had not played in a while. His band seemed in a bit of disarray. But then they hit and all was good. I distinctly remembering him sing a beautiful rendition City of New Orleans by Steve Goodman. Like the absolute pro he was, he nailed every verse.
Night time on the City Of New Orleans
Changing cars in Memphis Tennessee
Halfway home – we’ll be there by morning
Through the Mississippi darkness, rolling down to the sea
Cities always go through changes. These changes are viewed in broad strokes like the tide. It rolls in and out and somehow all the details are lost in the generalities. Here are some of the details with the tech invasion of 2015 in San Francisco.
In San Francisco, one thing is for certain. In 2015, it is very expensive to find a place to live. Busloads of young tech workers have moved to San Francisco and everyday they ride the large, usually plain white, employer-provided buses back and forth to Silicon Valley. Their generally high wages have pushed rents up in San Francisco to insane levels. The local folks have been hanging on for dear life but many have been pushed out to Oakland and beyond. Rent increases. Shady landlords. Better housing opportunities inland. If you are an artist or musician scraping by a living, it is really tough.
These “Google Buses” have many consequences. Besides the increase in cost of living they have the effect of turning places like Valencia Street into something like Walnut Creek. Bedroom communities where people do not actually live in the neighborhood but basically just sleep there, come home exhausted to their modern million dollar 600 square foot condo, then occasionally go out to eat at one of the fancy new restaurants with white table cloths that have sprung up. Maybe hit a SOMA bar.
From a telephone pole in Potrero Hill in San Francisco
It is indeed a strange irony that the tech workers actually have little understanding of the actual history of cultural dynamics of the neighborhoods they have invaded. I know this from simply going to Carnival in the Mission and seeing very few of them. Or witnessing “The Box” try to schedule out the local kids out of their pick up soccer games at the Mission Playground. The tech workers have yet to bring anything culturally to the equation. But with all the building, if you are in the trades, you are doing well.
Not a Tech Worker in Sight Here at Carnival 2015
What I also find very interesting about these new tech workers and these buses is just how vanilla every thing is. The commuters stand in line waiting for their bus, staring morosely at their iPhones, rarely interacting with one another. They then get in their massive buses, like the tour bus B.B. King would ride, but it is all white and definitely does not say B.B King on the sides. The fact that these buses do not have any marketing on the sides is indeed strange. Companies like Google have made their billions by marketing and advertising. You would think a bus going down the roads and highways of one the most expensive places in the world would garner some advertising revenue. But in the end Google and LinkedIn probably decided to that being incognito with the buses was more important. Keep peace with the natives. But there is no hiding. When you ride your bike down Valencia during commute hours, these Google Buses travel in herds.
Furthermore, I do not find anyone of these commuters documenting this commute. Do a Google search. Nothing. No one is blogging about this who actually does the commute. With all the publishing tools at their disposal, what a bunch of bores.
A few months ago a friend asked me what I would recommend to some newly arrived tourist who were interested in touring Silicon Valley. You see, for outsiders there is this sense that Silicon Valley and billionaires being made in this very dynamic environment. I told him it probably is not that exciting. It is usually a lot of people not interacting with each other, simply staring into computers in a nondescript office building. Perhaps in meetings trying to figure out how to position a product that does very little as something you absolutely have to have. I suggested to my friend that their visitors should simply try to sneak on to a Google Bus and get an inside view. Anyone done that one yet just for kicks?
San Francisco Carnival 2015 and some folk who have been holding down the neighborhood for decades.
Eventual, if you live in San Francisco, you make your way to Ocean Beach. Ocean Beach spans about four miles of the city, of course on the West, by this large mass of water called the Pacific Ocean. It is a major recreation area for locals. People run along the beach and adjacent paths. You can often find volleyball, football and ultimate frisbee going on. Dogs can be found chasing seagulls and romping on the water’s edge.
In the winter the swells at Ocean Beach can get very large, even over twenty feet high. In the spring, the west winds pick up and the swell gets small. Often the entire beach gets fogged in with a marine layer. It gets cold. Then in autumn, the west winds back off and there often is some manageable six foot swell, making for hundreds of surfers in the water.
Below are few desktop backgrounds of Ocean Beach in San Francisco. Right click and SAVE AS. Feel free to grab and use for your personal, non-commercial use.
There have been many requests for the Pelican Café to have a privacy policy posted and I think somewhere there is a law that states that we must. For crying out loud, we are only a little café! If you want privacy, stay home or crawl into a hole somewhere!!
Pelican Café Privacy Policy
The Pelican Café reserves the right to refuse service to anyone including people who never have visited the café or website. So there! When you fill out one of the forms on this website, we may gather information such as your name and email address. We may use cookies. We may not. It all depends if we have a sweet tooth on that day and if we actually have eggs in the house to make cookies. We may some day even capture your IP address if we get around to it, but just let it be known, if you spend hours and hours in the Pelican Café, espousing your amazingly intelligent comments or blasphemous nonsense, we may simply email you and ask you to look out a nearby window, get some fresh air and get a life. But if you are worried about remaining anonymous in this world, we wish you the best of luck. Unless your name is Bill Smith, live in a tree fort in Maine and never have had a computer, just about anyone can find you, including strange people you do not even remember from high school.
The Pelican Café may use your personal information for online promotions and special offers but this is quite unlikely. We are presently at a complete loss as to what these online promotions and special offers would be. We know that if we tried, our email promotions and newsletters would all end up in your email “spam-bulk” folder. We know better.
The Pelican Café may indeed sell your email address and other important information (i.e. your name) to a large evil company that wants you to buy sexual enhancement drugs, a get rich pyramid scheme or home refinancing. We are presently fielding offers for the highest bidder. All of our readers are from that mysterious 1% of the most wealthy people in our society that seem to just get more and more loot, so make an offer today.
Clothing is required at the Pelican Café. I know that many people like to use the café as a home base for their streaking ventures around the block, but using the café as base camp to bring back a fad from the 1970s is going too far. You have no idea how many miscellaneous items of clothing I find lying around behind the couches. The socks I can deal with but the underwear is sometimes really gross; please pick up your items from the lost and found. So let it be stated that the only place you can pull down your pants is in the bathroom stall and that is if you have to relieve yourself.
Speaking of the bathroom, let it be known that we have but one bathroom and that it gets a lot of traffic. Please do not use it as your preferred place for reading. I know the batting averages of the National League West are extremely captivating and that you must read an article until the very end, but in the morning, after a cup of Joe, some people need your favorite seat as well. Remember to flush, turn on the fan and for the love of God, wash your hands.
The Pelican Café is outfitted with a free wireless network. Being a café though we ask that you take the time to actually interact with your friends and others in the café. Instant messaging others who are just at the next table is just strange.
On the topic of technology, let it be stated that it is fine to make cellphone calls from the café, but if you are going to rant and rave about the party you went to the night before, please take it outside to the tables on the sidewalk. Do realize that everyone within a two-block radius can hear everything you are saying, so choose your words and topics accordingly. Stories of so-and-so throwing up may be entertaining to some, but unappetizing to someone at the next table eating an Omelet of the Day.
Above is the Pelican Café Privacy Policy. We reserve the right to change any part at any time depending on whether it is to our advantage SO THERE!
Photos of Soltron, Anthony Blea, Orlando Torriente, Louis Romero and Carl Perazo outside the House of Brakes.
South Van Ness and Mission. 10/10/2015
A minute of Sotron….
Chata Gutierrez Murel
Soltron
Soltron
Soltron
Soltron
Soltron
Soltron
Louis Romero
Had to be there.
The legacy of the late Chata Gutierrez, radio personality and salsa DJ on KPOO and KPFA, remains in the forefront for Mission District locals. The Chata Mural Project aims to showcase Gutierrez’s cultivation of heritage through an honorary mural by Carlos Kookie Gonzalez — and the proposed location: The Mission.
SFWEEKLY
While the rest of the city was battling the fog, the Mission had a special day honoring the late Chata Gutierrez, a very influential person in the San Francisco music scene. Her shows on KPOO and KPFA informed the entire Bay Area about Caribbean, African and various American musics.
Many local groups played and the 48 MUNI bus keep passing by. Beautiful restored from the late 50s cars were parked out front of the House of Brakes while the music found its groove. The mural is beautiful. It was the old neighborhood crowd and only they knew the significance. Louis Romero, John Calloway, Karl Perazzo, Anthony Blea on the same stage!! Soltron, full or original material and some solid songs are building upon the tradition.
The Internet has a strange way of broadcasting value and worth. A forty-year-old book about transgender issues can be a cornerstone of critical thought at the time but then gets misquoted and passed off as old fashion. Today the book is out-of-print but fetches around 
