So. Allie Brosh is back and talking about her depression.
http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2
Quoting from the pertinent bits: "At first, I'd try to explain that it's not really negativity or sadness anymore, it's more just this detached, meaningless fog where you can't feel anything about anything — even the things you love, even fun things — and you're horribly bored and lonely, but since you've lost your ability to connect with any of the things that would normally make you feel less bored and lonely, you're stuck in the boring, lonely, meaningless void without anything to distract you from how boring, lonely, and meaningless it is. "
This. Depression isn't sadness. It can involve sadness for some people. For me, the worst symptom manifested as an inability to make myself do things I had once previously loved, up to drawing, writing, and worst of all, even reading. (That last one should tell you how deeply profound my depression could get.) I beat myself up for it, berated myself for laziness and a short attention span (okay, I probably do have ADD which doesn't help) and slept a lot. I self-medicated through WoW, which is probably not the best way to deal with depression, since you can find yourself in a soul-grinding cycle of doing something way past any enjoyment for it.
"My feelings did start to return eventually. But not all of them came back, and they didn't arrive symmetrically.
I had not been able to care for a very long time, and when I finally started being able to care about things again, I HATED them. But hatred is technically a feeling, and my brain latched onto it like a child learning a new word. "
And this. There was a point where I realised I had gotten chemically dependent on my state of OFFNESS. That feeling happy fucking scared me. And partly because I felt that any state of happiness was impermanent and could be taken away again like THAT, by forces beyond my control, and I resented being dragged back into an insecure place.
With that, I offer this, my list of ways on dealing with depression. Big caveat: What worked for me may not work for you. In fact, it's not even intended to really "cure" depression*. It's more like tiny bridges to get you to the future, if you find yourself in this spot.
http://pixelfish.livejournal.com/64
From the outside, the inside looks small. From the inside, it looks vast and unending. That's one of the weird horrible things about depression.
*I'm not cured. I'm just a LOT better. It's only been months since I had an anxiety attack instead of days or hours. And while I still have to struggle to write or draw at times, it's easier than in the past.
http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2
Quoting from the pertinent bits: "At first, I'd try to explain that it's not really negativity or sadness anymore, it's more just this detached, meaningless fog where you can't feel anything about anything — even the things you love, even fun things — and you're horribly bored and lonely, but since you've lost your ability to connect with any of the things that would normally make you feel less bored and lonely, you're stuck in the boring, lonely, meaningless void without anything to distract you from how boring, lonely, and meaningless it is. "
This. Depression isn't sadness. It can involve sadness for some people. For me, the worst symptom manifested as an inability to make myself do things I had once previously loved, up to drawing, writing, and worst of all, even reading. (That last one should tell you how deeply profound my depression could get.) I beat myself up for it, berated myself for laziness and a short attention span (okay, I probably do have ADD which doesn't help) and slept a lot. I self-medicated through WoW, which is probably not the best way to deal with depression, since you can find yourself in a soul-grinding cycle of doing something way past any enjoyment for it.
"My feelings did start to return eventually. But not all of them came back, and they didn't arrive symmetrically.
I had not been able to care for a very long time, and when I finally started being able to care about things again, I HATED them. But hatred is technically a feeling, and my brain latched onto it like a child learning a new word. "
And this. There was a point where I realised I had gotten chemically dependent on my state of OFFNESS. That feeling happy fucking scared me. And partly because I felt that any state of happiness was impermanent and could be taken away again like THAT, by forces beyond my control, and I resented being dragged back into an insecure place.
With that, I offer this, my list of ways on dealing with depression. Big caveat: What worked for me may not work for you. In fact, it's not even intended to really "cure" depression*. It's more like tiny bridges to get you to the future, if you find yourself in this spot.
http://pixelfish.livejournal.com/64
From the outside, the inside looks small. From the inside, it looks vast and unending. That's one of the weird horrible things about depression.
*I'm not cured. I'm just a LOT better. It's only been months since I had an anxiety attack instead of days or hours. And while I still have to struggle to write or draw at times, it's easier than in the past.
Yeah, so from here on out, it's all Iron Man spoilers. So don't click if you don't wanna see.
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Having just passed my 36th birthday, I noted that my last year's journal entries were rather sparse, and the year before that, things were definitely tailing off. I speculate too, that last year's dearth of writing in general might be linked to that. I can't tell if it's causal, or a symptom of the same malaise, but either way, it makes me a little sad and a little nervous.
When I lived in Calgary, I very openly kept a lot of my life online for people to consume. Occasionally, events cause me to back off of journalling so fervently, but then later, I wish that I had kept up. And I'm looking at my most recent year in SF, and realising that I have chronicled very little of it, while so much actually keeps happening. The absence of journal entries elides the existence of coworkers, my trainer, my teachers, my classmates, people on the bus, friendly neighbours, landlady and landlady's family, Twitter peeps, and even old and re-emerging friends. There's too much to catch up on, I suspect, and frantic notations of the hours I spent in the science museum or Golden Gate Park sketching are perhaps easier noted by the existence of my Flickr sets. I haven't set down any recent lyrics and tied them to events in my life. I haven't even posted any silly memes here lately.
Part of that is due to the beast that is Facebook. I love that it enables me to keep up with family and friends in such a way that I get to participate in their lives, even while living states and countries away BUT it seems to have sucked up so many of my words into an unfriendly and unlinkable morass. A lot of lost conversations there. Ditto Twitter, but then that's what happens to most conversations, right? They're all ephemeral, enjoyed in the moment.
That said, I miss the benefits of journalling. Being able to carthartically pour words onto a page without worrying. Being able to look back. Just the other day, I was trying to figure out when something had happened, and stumbled onto some journal entries that let me know just how far I'd gone from some pretty dark places. It's hard to see progress without having a point of reference.
....
Things to remember about today: It was a sunny day in San Francisco and despite lack of sleep and an attempt to focus on work, I went to a friend's birthday lunch even after I'd begged off. And I'm glad I went, because it was a warm friendly convivial moment. We went to Samovar Tea House in Yerba Buena Gardens and I had a delicious egg-curry sandwich that was the sort of food you just want to savour.
Work went rather quickly. Perhaps too quickly. I'm not sure I got as much done as I had hoped. But what I did get done, I felt good about.
I started off the morning with my trainer. It's kinda sad that the first entry (likely) wherein Tim makes an appearance, will be the one where I mention that he's quitting his job and no longer going to be my trainer. I'm a bit disappointed, although I hope he likes whatever he does next. Just Saturday, I'd been thinking of all the workout buddies I'd ever had, and how I got rather attached to them in specific ways, because working out and straining towards physical effort together was a weird but nice way of bonding. (Oscar, Wendy, John, and currently, Liz, Kristina, and Michael.) And while Tim was a paid workout buddy, I rather think I lucked out with my first trainer. He's always been fun to chat with, and I got him hooked on Avatar the Last Airbender and we liked to make fun of Jillian Michaels and Tracy Anderson (Gwyneth Paltrow's trainer) together. I joke that he's just quitting because the Pope did.
When I lived in Calgary, I very openly kept a lot of my life online for people to consume. Occasionally, events cause me to back off of journalling so fervently, but then later, I wish that I had kept up. And I'm looking at my most recent year in SF, and realising that I have chronicled very little of it, while so much actually keeps happening. The absence of journal entries elides the existence of coworkers, my trainer, my teachers, my classmates, people on the bus, friendly neighbours, landlady and landlady's family, Twitter peeps, and even old and re-emerging friends. There's too much to catch up on, I suspect, and frantic notations of the hours I spent in the science museum or Golden Gate Park sketching are perhaps easier noted by the existence of my Flickr sets. I haven't set down any recent lyrics and tied them to events in my life. I haven't even posted any silly memes here lately.
Part of that is due to the beast that is Facebook. I love that it enables me to keep up with family and friends in such a way that I get to participate in their lives, even while living states and countries away BUT it seems to have sucked up so many of my words into an unfriendly and unlinkable morass. A lot of lost conversations there. Ditto Twitter, but then that's what happens to most conversations, right? They're all ephemeral, enjoyed in the moment.
That said, I miss the benefits of journalling. Being able to carthartically pour words onto a page without worrying. Being able to look back. Just the other day, I was trying to figure out when something had happened, and stumbled onto some journal entries that let me know just how far I'd gone from some pretty dark places. It's hard to see progress without having a point of reference.
....
Things to remember about today: It was a sunny day in San Francisco and despite lack of sleep and an attempt to focus on work, I went to a friend's birthday lunch even after I'd begged off. And I'm glad I went, because it was a warm friendly convivial moment. We went to Samovar Tea House in Yerba Buena Gardens and I had a delicious egg-curry sandwich that was the sort of food you just want to savour.
Work went rather quickly. Perhaps too quickly. I'm not sure I got as much done as I had hoped. But what I did get done, I felt good about.
I started off the morning with my trainer. It's kinda sad that the first entry (likely) wherein Tim makes an appearance, will be the one where I mention that he's quitting his job and no longer going to be my trainer. I'm a bit disappointed, although I hope he likes whatever he does next. Just Saturday, I'd been thinking of all the workout buddies I'd ever had, and how I got rather attached to them in specific ways, because working out and straining towards physical effort together was a weird but nice way of bonding. (Oscar, Wendy, John, and currently, Liz, Kristina, and Michael.) And while Tim was a paid workout buddy, I rather think I lucked out with my first trainer. He's always been fun to chat with, and I got him hooked on Avatar the Last Airbender and we liked to make fun of Jillian Michaels and Tracy Anderson (Gwyneth Paltrow's trainer) together. I joke that he's just quitting because the Pope did.
Friend from Utah blogged about Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz tweeting California's list of agencies as reasons why California struggles.
(Chaffetz's list for reference: http://patriotpost.us/pages/256 )
My response: Yes, let's get rid of that respiratory board, great idea! Then companies won't have any reason to not take care to pollute and there will be no oversight to the federal level and my lungs will handle that just fine...except they won't and kids will start coming down with asthma even more than they already do.
And we could totally get rid of the State Audits department! That would be awesome! Then EVERYBODY could scam the government out of more money!
And that pesky board of geologists and geophysicists surely isn't needed in a state like California....oh, right, earthquakes.
My point is that almost all of these agencies are required for oversight or to make sure that business in California (which is still pretty healthy despite our budgetary woes) keeps on booming. And every state would have a similar lists. Chaffetz is being disingenuous if he's not bringing Utah's very similar list up. That's not a list of graft, that's a list of what government does for the people. We get taxed, we get stuff back. I'd be hella pissed if there wasn't a list that long since I do pay me some taxes. In fact, if you guys don't have a list that long, you're getting stiffed by your government. (At times like this, I think about the 300 odd bucks I got during the Bush admin as my tax break. I bought some IKEA and a friend's art with it. In a tax pool, it could have got me improved transit, health care, or something I couldn't get with my 300 all by myself.)
If you want to know another reason why California is struggling (comparatively) consider that in terms of taxes paid to the federal government, it is among the states that get the least back. For every dollar a Californian is taxed, they get 81 cents back (roughly).
Has charts (from 2012): http://www.motherjones.com/politics/201
Less recent chart (from 2004, showing this is not new): http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_
And this article from FoxBusiness even admits that while California gets a lot numerically, when you break things down by population, it doesn't get that much: http://www.foxbusiness.com/government/2
You might find this interesting as it talks about Utah specifically: http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2
So basically states like California are subsidizing states like North Dakota.
(Chaffetz's list for reference: http://patriotpost.us/pages/256 )
My response: Yes, let's get rid of that respiratory board, great idea! Then companies won't have any reason to not take care to pollute and there will be no oversight to the federal level and my lungs will handle that just fine...except they won't and kids will start coming down with asthma even more than they already do.
And we could totally get rid of the State Audits department! That would be awesome! Then EVERYBODY could scam the government out of more money!
And that pesky board of geologists and geophysicists surely isn't needed in a state like California....oh, right, earthquakes.
My point is that almost all of these agencies are required for oversight or to make sure that business in California (which is still pretty healthy despite our budgetary woes) keeps on booming. And every state would have a similar lists. Chaffetz is being disingenuous if he's not bringing Utah's very similar list up. That's not a list of graft, that's a list of what government does for the people. We get taxed, we get stuff back. I'd be hella pissed if there wasn't a list that long since I do pay me some taxes. In fact, if you guys don't have a list that long, you're getting stiffed by your government. (At times like this, I think about the 300 odd bucks I got during the Bush admin as my tax break. I bought some IKEA and a friend's art with it. In a tax pool, it could have got me improved transit, health care, or something I couldn't get with my 300 all by myself.)
If you want to know another reason why California is struggling (comparatively) consider that in terms of taxes paid to the federal government, it is among the states that get the least back. For every dollar a Californian is taxed, they get 81 cents back (roughly).
Has charts (from 2012): http://www.motherjones.com/politics/201
Less recent chart (from 2004, showing this is not new): http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_
And this article from FoxBusiness even admits that while California gets a lot numerically, when you break things down by population, it doesn't get that much: http://www.foxbusiness.com/government/2
You might find this interesting as it talks about Utah specifically: http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2
So basically states like California are subsidizing states like North Dakota.
Some thoughts you might find helpful: http://danceswithfat.wordpress.com/2
Gonna note that last year, I didn't really lose any weight, but I got my BP under control and was able to bump my lung capacity by 5%. This was pretty awesome, and entirely due to regular exercise. I would still like to lose weight, because it will help both the plantar fasciitis and the sleep apnea. (And that thigh chafing thing, which is frankly the most annoying thing EVAR.) So I do see some practical reasons to reduce.
One of the things I'm trying to do is to optimise my body for how it is NOW, as opposed to how it used to be. Stick-skinny old me fluctated in health--she still had acid reflux issues and wasn't always fit. I might never be that skinny again, and frankly, I think it would be unhealthy for me to go that far back. (That's not to say that you should police the eating habits and exercise of skinny people either. Individual choices.) What I am hoping to do with this year is take my body to another level in terms of fitness--but I see that as me lifting weights and having some nice solid muscle. If I can be a compact Valkyrie, that'll be fine by me.
Gonna note that last year, I didn't really lose any weight, but I got my BP under control and was able to bump my lung capacity by 5%. This was pretty awesome, and entirely due to regular exercise. I would still like to lose weight, because it will help both the plantar fasciitis and the sleep apnea. (And that thigh chafing thing, which is frankly the most annoying thing EVAR.) So I do see some practical reasons to reduce.
One of the things I'm trying to do is to optimise my body for how it is NOW, as opposed to how it used to be. Stick-skinny old me fluctated in health--she still had acid reflux issues and wasn't always fit. I might never be that skinny again, and frankly, I think it would be unhealthy for me to go that far back. (That's not to say that you should police the eating habits and exercise of skinny people either. Individual choices.) What I am hoping to do with this year is take my body to another level in terms of fitness--but I see that as me lifting weights and having some nice solid muscle. If I can be a compact Valkyrie, that'll be fine by me.
I just assembled this for a friend of a friend, but in case you need a quick and dirty guide to San Francisco, here's mine.
Transit: Having a car in the city is a pain in the butt and parking downtown is expensive and time-consuming. You are best off taking taxis or using the local bus system, the Muni. You can buy a weekly pass at the tourist bureau in the Powell Street Station plaza (Powell and Market in the below-street-level plaza by the cable car turnaround) or a Clipper card at any Muni station. The weekly pass is probably the cheaper option though, as each trip on Muni costs 2 dollars and transfers are only good for 90 minutes. Depending on your stamina and fitness, you can also walk a lot of places, which is what my husband and I do, but I am told that I am crazy by all my out-of-town folks. Seriously though, transit, cabs, and walking are generally easier than trying to park or drive a car through SF.
City Spacial Orientation: Market is the major street running through downtown SF. Everything to the north-west of it is perpendicular at 45 degrees. Everything south-east runs parallel. Underneath Market runs light-rail lines as part of the Muni system, and most lines run through the seven stations on Market: Embarcadero (closest to the Bay), Montgomery (Financial District), Powell (closest to Union Square and downtown shopping), Civic Center (the sketchiest area outside of the Tenderloin, which is close to Nob Hill), Van Ness (a major street running North-South), Church (bottom of the Castro), and Castro (top of the Castro). Beneath Embarcadero, Montgomery, Powell, and Civic are BART stations as well--and from the BART, you can transit to most points in the Bay Area, including the airport. In fact, if you come in from SFO, you can BART downtown for 8 bucks. Above ground in the City proper, you can ride either regular Muni Buses or the Historic F-line cars. http://www.streetcar.org/map/map-11
Restaurants: I like Belden Place, which is not a restaurant, but rather an alley in the Financial District with a whole host of small European style bistros and cafes to choose from. http://www.belden-place.com/ It runs parallel to Kearny and connects between Bush and Pine. (Kearney/Bush is the closest major cross street.) Of the restaurants there, I have sampled Taverna, Pleuf, Cafe Bastille, and Tiramisu, and found them all excellent. Tiramisu has a delicious dessert platter (sampling every item on the dessert tray for 20 dollars for 2 people--so essentially 10 dollars) while Cafe Bastille has some nice pate and crepes. Pleuf specialises in oysters (which are not my thing but beloved of other folks.) Links to Yelp pages follow:
Tiramisu - http://www.yelp.com/biz/cafe-tiramisu-s
Plouf - http://www.yelp.com/biz/plouf-san-franc
Belden Taverna - http://www.yelp.com/biz/belden-tave
Cafe Bastille - http://www.yelp.com/biz/cafe-bastille-s
Italian: You should check out North Beach, San Francisco's Little Italy, which abuts the top of Chinatown. The best way to get there is to walk down either Kearny (flatter but longer) or Grant (right through Chinatown but hilly) in a northerly direction until you run into Columbus. Then you proceed AWAY from the Transamerica building (the pointy pyramid one) in a north-westerly direction. You will find lots of lovely Italian restaurants on Columbus and just off of it. I like Rose Pistola and the world-famous Stinking Rose (a garlic restaurant, wherein even the ice cream has garlic in it--it's surprising delicious). Near Rose Pistola is Naia, one of my favourite gelaterias, and they have not just standby flavours like hazelnut, but also more arcane flavours like whiskey and rose. (I like combining the two.) The Coit Tower is in the area (not a restaurant) and has great views as well as murals by Diego Rivera. Z Ciocollato on Columbus is a great place to pick up specialty fudge to bring home.
Rose Pistola - http://www.yelp.com/biz/rose-pistola-sa
Stinking Rose - http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-stinking-ro
Naia - http://www.yelp.com/biz/gelateria-n
Z. Ciocolatto - http://www.yelp.com/biz/z-cioccolato-sa
Japanese food: You can probably safely try most any of the sushi places in the city. The two I know the best are sadly out of the way for you and up in the West Portal area (Sushi Shoh and Fuji) so I would stick to Japantown's offerings or anything you find downtown. In Japantown, a shopping complex on Geary Street, there are several excellent Shabu Shabu places to choose from. I also recommend dropping by the Kinokuniya bookstore for Japanese import books or Cako for cupcakes. http://www.yelp.com/biz/japantown-san-f
Chinese food: House of Nan King (edge of Chinatown and North Beach) and Fang are run by the same family and both are recommended. House of Nan King is the older establishment, and while it looks a little hole-in-the-wall and can be crowded, the food is tasty!
Fang - http://www.yelp.com/biz/fang-san-franci
House of Nan King - http://www.yelp.com/biz/house-of-nankin
Mexican: The Mission is generally the place to go for Mexican or South American food. Pick a tacqueria and have at it. You can get to the Mission by taking the BART from any of the first four stations mentioned above (Embarcadero, Montgomery, Powell, Civic) to 16th or 24th street stations. These empty out onto Mission Street. One street to the West is Valencia, which is nicer and has a lot of trendy restaurants. Tacqueria Cancun is a bit hole-in-the-wall but excellent. Recent discovery: Limon - Peruvian (?) deliciocity. Not a restaurant but interesting: Paxton Gate, and the Pirate Store (aka 826 Valencia)
Limon: http://www.yelp.com/biz/lim%C3%B3n-roti
Tacqueria Cancun - http://www.yelp.com/biz/taqueria-canc%C
The Pirate Store - http://www.yelp.com/biz/826-valencia-sa
Paxton Gate - http://www.yelp.com/biz/paxton-gat
Seafood and Drinks: This is where my expertise will fail you as I don't really drink nor does my husband, and neither of us likes fish (outside of sushi.) However, it is safe to probably dispatch you in the direction of Fisherman's Wharf for all your touristy chowder needs and to note that any restaurant already mentioned that offers fish will also likely have fresh and tasty fish. I do however, mention the 21st Amendment (down by the Ballpark) which offers microbrews and IPAs of local manufacture, as well as a tasty Cubano sandwich. There is also Thirsty Bear which my drinking friends have approved of, and which has many a tasty appetiser as well.
21st Amendment - http://www.yelp.com/biz/21st-amend
Thirsty Bear - http://www.yelp.com/biz/thirstybear-bre
Miscellaneous and Loved Restaurants:
Samovar - Delicious tea and sandwiches: Three locations (Hayes Valley, Yerba Buena Gardens by the Metreon, and the Castro) http://www.yelp.com/biz/samovar-tea-lou
Chow or Park Chow - Great brunch, very casual, and I love their seasonal lasagnas as well as their ginger cake/pumpkin ice cream - I recommend the Park Chow location when you go to see Golden Gate Park, as it is close to the entrance nearest the Science Museum and the Arboretum http://www.yelp.com/biz/park-chow-san-f
Dobbs Ferry - Another good Hayes Valley spot: http://www.yelp.com/biz/dobbs-ferry-res
Frjtz - http://www.yelp.com/biz/frjtz-san-franc
Matterhorn - Swiss fondue http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-matter
Miette: https://www.miette.com/ - sweet treats
Museums and Things to Do:
Golden Gate Park has a nice clump of museums and park all together at the Music Concourse. (Side note: If you DO rent a car, there is a big underground parking garage here. One of the few places in SF where parking is not hellacious.) I HIGHLY recommend the California Academy of Science which has basically four museum attractions in one: the Osher Rainforest dome, the Steinhart Aquarium,the Tusher Wildlife hall (with penguins) and the Morrison Planetarium. I spent A LOT of time here. Site: http://www.calacademy.org/ Pics: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pixel
Opposite the California Academy of Science is the De Young museum, a fine art museum that is very large and also offers a great view from it's tower: http://deyoung.famsf.org/
Next to the De Young museum is the Japanese Tea Garden: http://japaneseteagardensf.com/ - One of my favourite places in San Francisco until dethroned by the Strybing Arboretum (which I get into for free by virtue of being a city resident). Charming stone bridges and lanterns and the oldest Japanese garden in North America.
The Strybing Arboretum (friend gate opposite Tea Garden, open until 4) http://www.sfbotanicalgarden.org/
The Conservatory of Flowers (heading the opposite direction from the Tea Garden and Arboretum and heading up JFK drive) - http://www.conservatoryofflowers.o
Fisherman's Wharf: Largely a tourist trap, but still a fun one. Take the F-line up Embarcadero and get off when it gets super crowded. There is a tall-ship, the Balclutha, and a submarine you can get on and explore. Also Ghiradelli is in the area, and the Boudin sourdough folks.
Lands End - Near the Cliff House (I've heard there's good dining there, but haven't been yet), there is a nice trail, and you can see Golden Gate Bridge from the WEST side (ocean side, as opposed to bay side.) http://www.parksconservancy.org/visit/p
Palace of Fine Arts: http://www.yelp.com/biz/palace-of-f
Shopping: For small shops, I would try either Hayes Valley (Octavia and Hayes) or Union Street/Pacific Heights (Union and Fillmore OR Chestnut and Steiner).
Transit: Having a car in the city is a pain in the butt and parking downtown is expensive and time-consuming. You are best off taking taxis or using the local bus system, the Muni. You can buy a weekly pass at the tourist bureau in the Powell Street Station plaza (Powell and Market in the below-street-level plaza by the cable car turnaround) or a Clipper card at any Muni station. The weekly pass is probably the cheaper option though, as each trip on Muni costs 2 dollars and transfers are only good for 90 minutes. Depending on your stamina and fitness, you can also walk a lot of places, which is what my husband and I do, but I am told that I am crazy by all my out-of-town folks. Seriously though, transit, cabs, and walking are generally easier than trying to park or drive a car through SF.
City Spacial Orientation: Market is the major street running through downtown SF. Everything to the north-west of it is perpendicular at 45 degrees. Everything south-east runs parallel. Underneath Market runs light-rail lines as part of the Muni system, and most lines run through the seven stations on Market: Embarcadero (closest to the Bay), Montgomery (Financial District), Powell (closest to Union Square and downtown shopping), Civic Center (the sketchiest area outside of the Tenderloin, which is close to Nob Hill), Van Ness (a major street running North-South), Church (bottom of the Castro), and Castro (top of the Castro). Beneath Embarcadero, Montgomery, Powell, and Civic are BART stations as well--and from the BART, you can transit to most points in the Bay Area, including the airport. In fact, if you come in from SFO, you can BART downtown for 8 bucks. Above ground in the City proper, you can ride either regular Muni Buses or the Historic F-line cars. http://www.streetcar.org/map/map-11
Restaurants: I like Belden Place, which is not a restaurant, but rather an alley in the Financial District with a whole host of small European style bistros and cafes to choose from. http://www.belden-place.com/ It runs parallel to Kearny and connects between Bush and Pine. (Kearney/Bush is the closest major cross street.) Of the restaurants there, I have sampled Taverna, Pleuf, Cafe Bastille, and Tiramisu, and found them all excellent. Tiramisu has a delicious dessert platter (sampling every item on the dessert tray for 20 dollars for 2 people--so essentially 10 dollars) while Cafe Bastille has some nice pate and crepes. Pleuf specialises in oysters (which are not my thing but beloved of other folks.) Links to Yelp pages follow:
Tiramisu - http://www.yelp.com/biz/cafe-tiramisu-s
Plouf - http://www.yelp.com/biz/plouf-san-franc
Belden Taverna - http://www.yelp.com/biz/belden-tave
Cafe Bastille - http://www.yelp.com/biz/cafe-bastille-s
Italian: You should check out North Beach, San Francisco's Little Italy, which abuts the top of Chinatown. The best way to get there is to walk down either Kearny (flatter but longer) or Grant (right through Chinatown but hilly) in a northerly direction until you run into Columbus. Then you proceed AWAY from the Transamerica building (the pointy pyramid one) in a north-westerly direction. You will find lots of lovely Italian restaurants on Columbus and just off of it. I like Rose Pistola and the world-famous Stinking Rose (a garlic restaurant, wherein even the ice cream has garlic in it--it's surprising delicious). Near Rose Pistola is Naia, one of my favourite gelaterias, and they have not just standby flavours like hazelnut, but also more arcane flavours like whiskey and rose. (I like combining the two.) The Coit Tower is in the area (not a restaurant) and has great views as well as murals by Diego Rivera. Z Ciocollato on Columbus is a great place to pick up specialty fudge to bring home.
Rose Pistola - http://www.yelp.com/biz/rose-pistola-sa
Stinking Rose - http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-stinking-ro
Naia - http://www.yelp.com/biz/gelateria-n
Z. Ciocolatto - http://www.yelp.com/biz/z-cioccolato-sa
Japanese food: You can probably safely try most any of the sushi places in the city. The two I know the best are sadly out of the way for you and up in the West Portal area (Sushi Shoh and Fuji) so I would stick to Japantown's offerings or anything you find downtown. In Japantown, a shopping complex on Geary Street, there are several excellent Shabu Shabu places to choose from. I also recommend dropping by the Kinokuniya bookstore for Japanese import books or Cako for cupcakes. http://www.yelp.com/biz/japantown-san-f
Chinese food: House of Nan King (edge of Chinatown and North Beach) and Fang are run by the same family and both are recommended. House of Nan King is the older establishment, and while it looks a little hole-in-the-wall and can be crowded, the food is tasty!
Fang - http://www.yelp.com/biz/fang-san-franci
House of Nan King - http://www.yelp.com/biz/house-of-nankin
Mexican: The Mission is generally the place to go for Mexican or South American food. Pick a tacqueria and have at it. You can get to the Mission by taking the BART from any of the first four stations mentioned above (Embarcadero, Montgomery, Powell, Civic) to 16th or 24th street stations. These empty out onto Mission Street. One street to the West is Valencia, which is nicer and has a lot of trendy restaurants. Tacqueria Cancun is a bit hole-in-the-wall but excellent. Recent discovery: Limon - Peruvian (?) deliciocity. Not a restaurant but interesting: Paxton Gate, and the Pirate Store (aka 826 Valencia)
Limon: http://www.yelp.com/biz/lim%C3%B3n-roti
Tacqueria Cancun - http://www.yelp.com/biz/taqueria-canc%C
The Pirate Store - http://www.yelp.com/biz/826-valencia-sa
Paxton Gate - http://www.yelp.com/biz/paxton-gat
Seafood and Drinks: This is where my expertise will fail you as I don't really drink nor does my husband, and neither of us likes fish (outside of sushi.) However, it is safe to probably dispatch you in the direction of Fisherman's Wharf for all your touristy chowder needs and to note that any restaurant already mentioned that offers fish will also likely have fresh and tasty fish. I do however, mention the 21st Amendment (down by the Ballpark) which offers microbrews and IPAs of local manufacture, as well as a tasty Cubano sandwich. There is also Thirsty Bear which my drinking friends have approved of, and which has many a tasty appetiser as well.
21st Amendment - http://www.yelp.com/biz/21st-amend
Thirsty Bear - http://www.yelp.com/biz/thirstybear-bre
Miscellaneous and Loved Restaurants:
Samovar - Delicious tea and sandwiches: Three locations (Hayes Valley, Yerba Buena Gardens by the Metreon, and the Castro) http://www.yelp.com/biz/samovar-tea-lou
Chow or Park Chow - Great brunch, very casual, and I love their seasonal lasagnas as well as their ginger cake/pumpkin ice cream - I recommend the Park Chow location when you go to see Golden Gate Park, as it is close to the entrance nearest the Science Museum and the Arboretum http://www.yelp.com/biz/park-chow-san-f
Dobbs Ferry - Another good Hayes Valley spot: http://www.yelp.com/biz/dobbs-ferry-res
Frjtz - http://www.yelp.com/biz/frjtz-san-franc
Matterhorn - Swiss fondue http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-matter
Miette: https://www.miette.com/ - sweet treats
Museums and Things to Do:
Golden Gate Park has a nice clump of museums and park all together at the Music Concourse. (Side note: If you DO rent a car, there is a big underground parking garage here. One of the few places in SF where parking is not hellacious.) I HIGHLY recommend the California Academy of Science which has basically four museum attractions in one: the Osher Rainforest dome, the Steinhart Aquarium,the Tusher Wildlife hall (with penguins) and the Morrison Planetarium. I spent A LOT of time here. Site: http://www.calacademy.org/ Pics: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pixel
Opposite the California Academy of Science is the De Young museum, a fine art museum that is very large and also offers a great view from it's tower: http://deyoung.famsf.org/
Next to the De Young museum is the Japanese Tea Garden: http://japaneseteagardensf.com/ - One of my favourite places in San Francisco until dethroned by the Strybing Arboretum (which I get into for free by virtue of being a city resident). Charming stone bridges and lanterns and the oldest Japanese garden in North America.
The Strybing Arboretum (friend gate opposite Tea Garden, open until 4) http://www.sfbotanicalgarden.org/
The Conservatory of Flowers (heading the opposite direction from the Tea Garden and Arboretum and heading up JFK drive) - http://www.conservatoryofflowers.o
Fisherman's Wharf: Largely a tourist trap, but still a fun one. Take the F-line up Embarcadero and get off when it gets super crowded. There is a tall-ship, the Balclutha, and a submarine you can get on and explore. Also Ghiradelli is in the area, and the Boudin sourdough folks.
Lands End - Near the Cliff House (I've heard there's good dining there, but haven't been yet), there is a nice trail, and you can see Golden Gate Bridge from the WEST side (ocean side, as opposed to bay side.) http://www.parksconservancy.org/visit/p
Palace of Fine Arts: http://www.yelp.com/biz/palace-of-f
Shopping: For small shops, I would try either Hayes Valley (Octavia and Hayes) or Union Street/Pacific Heights (Union and Fillmore OR Chestnut and Steiner).
Good-bye, 2012. On balance, I rather liked you, even though I know many friends did not. Here's some of the art I made this year: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pixelf
I said good-bye to my grandmother, and hello to a niece and a nephew apiece. I flew to Seattle twice, Toronto and Vegas once, and visited Utah in February. I got my final wisdom tooth out, had my first BPPV attack, trained all year with Tim, and flossed like a flossing machine. I did not lose any weight, but start the next year in reasonably healthy condition (barring today's vertigo attack and sore throat). My lungs are mostly under control, as is my blood pressure. Oh, and the dude I voted for is currently President. (Which, you know, will help somewhat with my blood pressure, if not all of yours.) I performed stand-up comedy about a dozen times, and had at least two perfect strangers tell me they laughed. Woot! I got a ukelele, but sadly I still only know seven chords, and five notes on the A string, and a very bad rendition of Mad World. I beat everybody in my Fitocracy group on the 100 Mile challenge, but suck at the push-ups. I know marginally more 3DsMax and AfterEffects leaving the year than going into it, although I only have about 5000 more words on Snakes which is my deep and very ongoing shame. I explored the science museum and the arboretum so many times, while possibly not taking as much advantage of my MOMA membership as I could have. I had a lovely week with Anna and Ben, and hope more of my friends will visit San Francisco in 2013. (Some of you made it out for lunches! We got to see Amy and Maury and various other folks.)
As mentioned already, I don't really have resolutions for 2013. Just goals that I'm tracking hours towards. Snakes is on there, as the list of people piling up on me about it is getting rather large. Health remains a priority, as does art. But if something could be improved, it is me keeping up with my friends. I know I've missed some of you something fierce over the last year, but I'm not always good at keeping up with you. Hopefully I can get better at that in 2013.
I said good-bye to my grandmother, and hello to a niece and a nephew apiece. I flew to Seattle twice, Toronto and Vegas once, and visited Utah in February. I got my final wisdom tooth out, had my first BPPV attack, trained all year with Tim, and flossed like a flossing machine. I did not lose any weight, but start the next year in reasonably healthy condition (barring today's vertigo attack and sore throat). My lungs are mostly under control, as is my blood pressure. Oh, and the dude I voted for is currently President. (Which, you know, will help somewhat with my blood pressure, if not all of yours.) I performed stand-up comedy about a dozen times, and had at least two perfect strangers tell me they laughed. Woot! I got a ukelele, but sadly I still only know seven chords, and five notes on the A string, and a very bad rendition of Mad World. I beat everybody in my Fitocracy group on the 100 Mile challenge, but suck at the push-ups. I know marginally more 3DsMax and AfterEffects leaving the year than going into it, although I only have about 5000 more words on Snakes which is my deep and very ongoing shame. I explored the science museum and the arboretum so many times, while possibly not taking as much advantage of my MOMA membership as I could have. I had a lovely week with Anna and Ben, and hope more of my friends will visit San Francisco in 2013. (Some of you made it out for lunches! We got to see Amy and Maury and various other folks.)
As mentioned already, I don't really have resolutions for 2013. Just goals that I'm tracking hours towards. Snakes is on there, as the list of people piling up on me about it is getting rather large. Health remains a priority, as does art. But if something could be improved, it is me keeping up with my friends. I know I've missed some of you something fierce over the last year, but I'm not always good at keeping up with you. Hopefully I can get better at that in 2013.
Tonight I had an epic adventure. I went to the Target downtown looking for the camera I want, which they had for 150 less than Amazon, but only for today. They were out. They told me the Target in Colma had one and the Target in Serramonte had two. So I went to Colma. No luck. Walked to Serramonte, found out that when Target says it has one at a store (UPC in system), they mean the display model which they will not sell you. (Would have been nice to know this two Targets ago.) Ran (and I mean, literally, RAN, as in on my feet) all over suburbia.
Suburbia is scary btw. The sidewalks run out for no reason. They don't warn you, they just stop. On a dark road, with no shoulder, a four foot tall hedge to your right, and no indication of sidewalk to connect to on the far side. I ran for a quarter of a mile, looking over my shoulder, ready to jump into a hedge should any car come barrelling down my lane. (You may ask how I got there, and I got there by taxi. But I was not being got back thither since my phone stopped working.)
After hauling ass all over Colma and Daly City ON FOOT IN THE DARK IN THE POURING RAIN, I made the discovery that the Best Buy in San Francisco, a mere hop and a skip from the 16th Street Bart station had the same camera for the same sale price. And yes, only for today. I skibbled like mad for the BART, got downtown, and lo, the Best Buy had closed. But John was able to order the camera over the interwebs AND have it for me to pick up in the store tomorrow.
I should feel a little silly for having hauled ass for nothing...but actually I ended up feeling mighty, as I faced the elements and ran through the storm. I mean, I got three miles in, flirted with danger, and made it back to the city safely. And whee for the exercise. I didn't feel winded or broken. Plus the storm made it easy to run around without overheating. This always warm super power has to be good for something.
Suburbia is scary btw. The sidewalks run out for no reason. They don't warn you, they just stop. On a dark road, with no shoulder, a four foot tall hedge to your right, and no indication of sidewalk to connect to on the far side. I ran for a quarter of a mile, looking over my shoulder, ready to jump into a hedge should any car come barrelling down my lane. (You may ask how I got there, and I got there by taxi. But I was not being got back thither since my phone stopped working.)
After hauling ass all over Colma and Daly City ON FOOT IN THE DARK IN THE POURING RAIN, I made the discovery that the Best Buy in San Francisco, a mere hop and a skip from the 16th Street Bart station had the same camera for the same sale price. And yes, only for today. I skibbled like mad for the BART, got downtown, and lo, the Best Buy had closed. But John was able to order the camera over the interwebs AND have it for me to pick up in the store tomorrow.
I should feel a little silly for having hauled ass for nothing...but actually I ended up feeling mighty, as I faced the elements and ran through the storm. I mean, I got three miles in, flirted with danger, and made it back to the city safely. And whee for the exercise. I didn't feel winded or broken. Plus the storm made it easy to run around without overheating. This always warm super power has to be good for something.
Thankful for: John and his back-scratching talons and his late night painting ways. Having a job I enjoy. My museums: rainforest, bones, sea dragons, nautiluses, orchids, epiphytes, and surreal landscapes. Fog. No fog. Family: old blood relatives, new blood relatives, new adopted relatives, and all the family I've accreted from friends old and new. My girl friend posse, though they be scattered far and wide--I miss them so. My books and my book devices. Music that sounds like heartbeats and lightning. Muscles that flex and tear and grow. Breasts without lumps, lungs that mostly work, feet that smell like feet, and hair that only has a few strands of silver so far. Imaginary people. The smell of rain. The internet. Meteor showers, lightning bugs, and tectonic plates. Four years. Future possibilities nestled in tiny gametes. (Only gametes, jeez, people. ;) No diploid cells yet.) Peace and quiet inside my skull's zen garden.
Blasphemy warning and all that. You know I'm ex-Mormon, and I'm about to discuss church stuff, so if you want to keep on reading, know I'm about to discuss stuff that is probably gonna wander over into blasphemy if you believe. So, you know, fair warning. ( Read more...Collapse )
