San Francisco is My Home
San Francisco is My Home
10
Mar
Monday roundup
Author: kris, Category: Events, Holiday, Movies, Weekend preview
What ho, fellows. Time for our Monday weekend round-up. I thought I would actually write it on a Monday this week as a special treat, but don’t get used to it or anything.
Friday, March 14
The San Francisco Ballet is performing a tribute to Jerome Robinson (think West Side Story and you’ll have the man in mind). If normal ballet simply isn’t gay enough for you — I know it’s not gay enough for me — then you might enjoy this head-on collision of ballet and musical theater. I myself will be attending this performance, so if you’d care to say hello you can just watch for the girl making anxious faces every time someone leaps in the air. I am a worrier, and constantly on watch for someone to break an ankle at these little athletic trials.
Saturday, March 15
If you like St. Patrick’s Day but don’t like watching frat boys vomit green onto public sidewalks, eschew the drunken day-of celebrations and attend the family-friendly parade on Saturday instead. San Francisco takes its Irish community seriously (alas, we don’t seem to feel the same way about our Welsh), and the parade is an extravaganza of dancers, school bands, floats, bagpipes and Wolfhounds.
Sunday, March 16
The Asian American Film Festival will run from March 13 through March 23. The schedule for any given day is pretty dizzying, packed with stuff to see at several theaters all over town. Your options are extensive, but I like your chances with “I’m a Cyborg, But That’s OK.” Check out the synopsis:
“From acclaimed director Park Chan-wook comes I’m a Cyborg, But That’s OK, a playful, macabre tale of an existentially insecure cyborg and a kleptomaniac terrified of disappearing into a dot.
“Lim Soo-jung (also starring in Happiness) is Young-goon, a troubled girl who, after a traumatic separation from her grandmother, believes herself to be a cyborg. Committed to a mental institution, Young-goon forgoes food, convinced she must recharge through electrical devices. Ultimately, Young-goon is determined to gain enough strength to reunite with her grandmother—and mercilessly kill anyone who stands in her way. Enter Il-soon, played by pop icon Rain, a sensitive but unstable kleptomaniac with a penchant for stealing people’s characteristics. Through their budding romance, the two keep each other from literally and metaphorically vanishing into nothing.”
Um, yes please.
15
Feb
Post-Valentine’s Day — because you actually forgot
Author: kris, Category: Holiday, Landmarks, Shopping
You got home from work yesterday to a grimacing, pissed off significant other. He/she got you something for Valentine’s Day and you, by forgetting, basically spat in his/her face. This will teach you not to check San Francisco Is My Home several times a day. However, I will take pity on you. When you find yourself in the post-Valentine’s Day doghouse, try one of these tricks and treats (oops, wrong holiday) to be allowed back in the human house where you belong:
An expensive present
Readers voted Idle Hand the best tattoo shop in SF Weekly’s 2007 “best of” issue. A gift certificate or an exploratory trip to the store with your sig. other might be just what the doctor ordered to get you back in good graces.
A silly present
Tutti Frutti carries an extensive range of greeting cards and a bunch of silly toys and small gifts. You might find that the only thing keeping you from a romantic reconciliation is that male nurse action figure your lover didn’t even know he or she wanted.
A non-material present
Take your s.o. on a surprise outing to the Albany Bulb. This garbage-dump-turned-art-gallery is filled with enormous, strange, funny and beautiful artworks, perfect for distracting your person until he/she forgets exactly why he/she is mad at you. For extra points, create an art piece yourself before arriving and dedicate it to your one true love, or whoever you happen to be dating.
Leave a Comment14
Feb
Valentine’s Day — because you almost forgot
Author: kris, Category: Holiday, Shopping
The work day is almost over and a coworker has just tipped you off that it’s Valentine’s Day. Oops. Whoever you’ve got waiting at home is going to be pissed…unless you take a quick side trip to any of these handy retailers:
Don’t get sucked into one of the newly-boring all-cotton all-the-time Victoria’s Secret underwear emporiums. Instead, drop into this Post Street shop to find truly sexy, high-quality lingerie for actual women, not twelve year old girls. (Looks like someone has an axe to grind here, right? Sorry about that.) Remember: bringing home a sexy nurse costume is tacky (unless previously discussed). Bringing home a gorgeous satin nightie, on the other hand, is thoughtful. It’s a fine line, but it’s easy to see when you know it’s there.
Follow up your thoughtful sexy gift with the only thing more welcome: a tub of Mitchell’s ice cream. The ice cream that says, Baby, I don’t care what size you are, as long as you let me have another bite of that halo halo flavor. Mitchell’s is famous for their exotic, almost unbearably good ice creams. This gift will be perfect for a man, woman or child, or for keeping all to yourself.
If you are simply too tired to stop off after work, you can complete your Valentine requirements online as well. Order your sig. other one of these gift certificates for a luxurious spa treatment at the Claremont Spa, or make it a couples massage if you are really into getting naked with your beloved and then letting complete strangers touch you for an hour. And who isn’t?
02
Jan
Tree pickup in San Francisco
Author: kris, Category: Holiday
Maybe your Christmas tree is already out of your life. The ornaments are individually wrapped in their own pieces of tissue paper and stowed away in a box in the closet, the stockings are neatly folded in a drawer, and the lights are carefully coiled in the garage.
Or maybe you’re like me, and you’re staring bleakly at a dead, fully-decorated tree, wondering what to do with this four-foot plant you’ve invited in as a short-term house guest, a plant that seems to be planning to stay for the long haul.
Well, congratulations, for you are about the reap the benefits of my half hour of internet research, plus a few minutes on hold with the Sunset Scavenger Company. (I love that name, incidentally. It makes me feel that my trash is being taken away and made into new, useful things, like a house for the Littles or parts for MacGuiver’s car.)
Here’s what I’ve learned: trees get picked up on your normal trash day. Be sure, of course, to remove all flocking, tinsel, stands, lights, ornaments, partridges and anything else you’ve added.
On the websites I read, I was told that this is the week for leaving trees out with the normal pickup, but a quick phone call to the company informed me that my normal pickup was Tuesday. Whoops. (I live in an apartment, okay? I never have to deal with my own trash.) However, the extremely nice lady on the phone assured me that I can also leave my tree out next week and there won’t be a problem. Added bonus: I get to enjoy my tree a few days longer than I normally would, and I’ve got a legitimate excuse.
For more info, visit the Sunset Scavenger website here.
Leave a Comment20
Dec
Wizard of Oz night at the Symphony
Author: kris, Category: Holiday, Music
This is the first post in a planned series. The working title of this series is “Stuff I would do if I didn’t already have plans to do other stuff.” Suggestions for a better series title are welcomed.
First up in the series is the San Francisco Symphony’s unique take on The Wizard of Oz. This is a weekend-long celebration starting tonight at the Wizard of Oz Party. Dress as your favorite character, join in the sing-along and drink drink drink. Plus, surprises!
Even if you can’t attend the party, there are two other performances to check out. The performance, by the way, is a showing of the film on a screen while the Symphony performs the music for you live. If you don’t think that sounds awesome then maybe you need awesome lessons. Our symphony rocks, and if you attend this event perhaps you, too, will become known as one who rocks.
Leave a Comment18
Dec
Volunteer with Friends of the Elderly
Author: kris, Category: Charity, Holiday, Volunteering
If you’re still looking for some good you can do at this time of year, you might check out Little Brothers — Friends of the Elderly. Don’t let the name fool you: this organization welcomes all genders. Currently they’re looking for volunteers for their Christmas program. Those who sign up will spend a few hours on Christmas Day delivering a meal and hanging out with one of the many seniors the organization assists. I like these guys because their stated mission is to feed people’s spirits as well as their bodies. It’s not a religious thing; they just recognize that lonely people need companionship as well as a free lunch.
To sign up for this or one of their many other programs throughout the year, check out their website here.
Leave a Comment04
Dec
Get a little, give a little
Author: kris, Category: Charity, Holiday
We enter into the holiday season with merry faces and rain. The far-off hills mist over, remembering past holidays, and think to themselves, “Selves, how come we never do anything charitable at this time of year?” Or at any time, really. But the rain and the cold remind us of the homeless, the lonely, the discriminated-against, the bereft, and we wish to help them if we may.
In the spirit of holiday giving, I’m going to be posting some charitable endeavors here over the coming weeks which you, the red-nosed and jolly, may wish to take part in. ‘Tis the season, after all.
My first suggestion is simple: volunteer to run a donation drive for your office or school. This is a lot easier than it sounds. For example, the San Francisco Food Bank makes it very easy to run a food drive. They bring the empty food barrels to your office and pick them up at the end of the drive. They also provide you with flyers, posters and a guide on how to run things. Click here for details.
If running the drive yourself is too much work, consider contributing to someone else’s collection. For example, Toys For Tots has a toy drive ending 12/20. Post a few flyers around the office asking people to leave their donations at your desk, and plan to drive the toys to the drop-off location. You can see all the contact info for the San Francisco Toys for Tots location here.
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