Why don’t people steal zip cars?

Because:

The Zipcar system knows when a given car was reserved and by which member. When that time comes, the member can hold his Zipcard up to the windshield, and a dashboard-mounted card reader automatically unlocks both the door and the engine. Zipcar’s proprietary systems are so deeply embedded in its fleet that burglars couldn’t steal the car even if they broke in and cracked the steering column.

She Wolf

I am loving this new Shakira song:

The music video is kind of weird, but the song itself is catchy. Can’t wait to go dancing to it!

The Nearest Corridor

Divisadero, the large street near my apartment, is being completely revamped. I heard a rumor the new set up is supposed to look like Octavia Street, which I have mixed feelings about. As it is, Divisadero is pocked and scabbed and it feels like you are off-roading when you drive down it – so repairs are definitely in need. The Octavia Street model is confusing and flawed, so hopefully they have edited it for a better pedestrian/bicycle/car experience.

 

Currently

 

Proposed

Of course, all the money for these repairs is coming from the Federal stimulus, as CA is broke as a joke and all city based street repairs have been stalled.

The work goes on, for about a month, from what I’ve heard. The street I live on has been closed all week. There are major construction vehicles, barriers and men in orange vests everywhere. In fact, for the past few days, I have had major street crossing anxiety. All the sidewalks and crosswalks are closed off, meaning you can only get across the street if you walk in the middle of the road, and even then you could end up knee deep in concrete. It would make sense to me to walk down the next block to cross, but, those intersections are barriered off as well. The other day I ended up just sort of pacing between a parked dump truck and a back hoe, until I was noticed by one of the workers. He was kind enough to escort me to the middle of the intersection, where I promptly leapt over a cement stream and ran through three lanes of pissed off drivers to the safety of a coned off corner.

Normally, I am not like this. In fact, in the past I have discussed authoring a book called “How to Walk in a City,” in which I would disclose tips to city dwellers about how to properly walk around. These tips would include: walk on the right side of the side-walk, similar to when you drive and just because it says “Don’t Walk,” as long as there are no cars coming, you can cross the street. This book would also, perhaps, have an addendum called “How to Ride your Bike in a City.” The only thing I would say in that section is: Don’t be an asshole.

Maybe it’s just the fumes from the construction vehicles, but I really feel this project has thrown me through a loop.

Welcome, September

The forget-me-not is the flower of September. I am into the color.

I plan to paint my kitchen in the next month or so… I’m thinkin’ fire engine red? What do you think?

I almost forgot my password,

so it’s a good thing I use the same one for everything!

Too much going on to catch up.

I’ve been thinking about this article a lot.

Little Town Review

Whenever I take the train, I pass through Benicia and Martinez. It occurred to me that these places might be worth visiting, because from the train window they look like old-Western destinations. On Sunday, my friends and I headed over “the hills” to check these locations off of our “places to visit” lists.

Martinez was a tiny little city, nestled behind olive-colored mounds and snuggled up against where the river meets the bay. The town was hosting its weekly farmer’s market while we were there and along the main strip (Main Street), there were several antique shops and second hand stores. The prices in these joints were refreshing. In SF, you can’t get an old, holey tee-shirt for under $10, and in Martinez, I got the raddest pair of vintage sunglasses for all of $1.00! We scored major at Alley Cats, a co-operative thrift store, with a plethora of vintage furnishings, clothes, jewelry, and toys. They have no Web site, but here is their Yelp! Profile. I got this most amazing resin switch plate for $3.oo:

Benicia (once the capital of California), was more touristy, with an enormous amount of chic-y boutiques. I was really set on finding the “glass beach” that I had heard about. We didn’t see it, and none of the locals could point us in the right direction. It remains a mystery.

An added bonus: we got to spend the entire afternoon soaking in the sun that was hiding from San Franicsco yesterday.

What would you do?

A few days ago, I was walking through SoMa with some friends, and we came across this little guy:

A new baby bird, stranded in a sea of shrubbery. After we took a hundred pictures of him, I picked him up with a spare branch and placed him further up in the tree, hoping his mother would come to his rescue. It crossed all of our minds that this was nature at work – perhaps this little fuzzhead was the weakest of his siblings and he was pushed out of the nest, to survive, or most likely, not survive, on his own.  Should you call Animal Control? Or do you let nature take it’s course?

Podcasting

Is it true? Podcasting is the last totally free art form?

It is free.

I love my iPod and more recently, I have dedicated a lot of time to the digital download  of several podcasts. The closest thing to podcasting is talk radio. Podcasting may not be an art form, but it is surely the future of radio.

Sound Opinions was referred to me by my bestie. Podcasts are almost entirely marketed by word of mouth. Their popularity seems to be more organic. It’s not based on a big mysterious rating system. Sound Opinions features two well-known music geeks who produce a weekly showcase of music news, feature an artist or a music-centered discussion and then critique new albums. It is inherently interesting and totally gets me pumped about new music. The discussions are intelligent and actually relevant. The most interesting discussions occur around the future of music, and the music industry.

Of course, I listen to This American Life, a program that is, week after week, iTunes’ #1 downloaded podcast. Best described as a collection of small sound documentaries, it is exactly as the title reads, life today in America. Fascinating and ironic and honest.

The last of my top-three podcasts is the newest to the mix, The Adam Carolla Podcast. I have stated  that I was a huge fan of LoveLine back in the day, so the Carolla podcast features the funnier of the LoveLine duo, Adam Carolla. The podcast is essentially a one hour rant. Carolla hosts guests, but he does most of the talking. I am fine with this… in several ways, I think Carolla is extremely smart, and a talented comedian. The man can make an analogy to explain any situation, which is brilliant.

 

So, what do you listen to?

A Little Life

A couple weeks ago, I added some life to my room by purchasing several plants. I  got a fern:

A little plant:

And some Irish Moss, which I lovingly call, my yard:

Today, I got a small package from my grandmother. Inside were some accessories for my new green grass. Now my set up is complete! Thanks Grammy!

this is still relevant

This poster became really (re)popular a few years ago. Originally, it was a WWII poster plastered in England to inspire comfort during a time of world unrest. Today, you can buy it in a post card, mouse pad or tee-shirt form. I love it.

I also like this incarnation:

And I can see the humor in this one: