It’s hard to tell why this Ferris wheel was on Treasure Island recently – it was either for the Treasure Island Music Festival or Oracle OpenWorld 2009.
Or maybe it was for both.
T.I. in the foreground and distant Berkeley in the background:
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I’ll tell you, the reason why the home county of the exchange student who was recently sexually asaulted in San Franciscois resting easy these days is that the media of said home country isn’t aware of the attack. And why’s that? Apparently, it’s the policy of San Francisco to not give out that kind of information. Per the SF Appeal:
“Police are not releasing information about the country the alleged victim is from in order to protect her identity, Tomioka said.”
I’m wondering how small a country has to be such that saying its name discloses the identity of any particular tourist in San Francisco.
Like if there’s a famous exchange program in Monaco (population 30k) and they send ten students a year to the States? That would seem to fit the bill, fair enough.
But what if the exchange student is from one of the following Big Ten tourist-producing countries (countries avec concomitant robust, aggresive media, of course)?
Germany
United Kingdom
France
China
Italy
Japan
Canada
Russia
South Korea
Mexico
If the student is from one of these countries, I’d be hard-pressed to see how saying the name of the country would identify any particular person from that country. Maybe there’s a written policy, or maybe there’s an unwritten rule, the way the MSM won’t report routine cases of Golden Gate Bridge jumpings?
That is all.
Election night for the race to follow Supervisor Chris Daly in San Francisco’s District 6 is only 500-something days away, so it’s time for campaigns to get starting. This was the scene last night, when Debra Walker hosted a Karaoke Night (pronounce that “Carry Okie” or “Kara Okay” – your choice, that’s your right as an American) at the Cat Club in the SoMA.
Read all about it, with accounts from Linda Post and Luke Thomas
With Supervisor David Campos:
Fashion touches included white ceramic buttons and belt buckle flair.
Good luck, Debra!
Of course it’s only been two decades since the Loma Prieta earthquake damaged the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge, so it’s only natural that we’re still working on it. Let’s check out progress on California’s Bridge to Nowhere So Far.
That’s Treasure Island you can see ‘neath the Bay Bridge’s northern cable, and there’s Azkaban in the background. Click to expand:
But guess what - a “15.5-foot-wide bicycle and pedestrian path will run along the eastbound deck of the 2-mile long structure.”
Can you see the white bicycle and pedestrian path there on the near side of the new eastern span? They even have balconies. Check it:
Man, that’s going to be awesome. What’s the speed limit going to be for those going downhill?
Try to imagine it filled up with cars though, as that’s how it’s going to be, 24-7. Think back to the old days when traffic was so light you could pull over and conversate, at least that’s the way it was according to this segment of Shadow of the Thin Man from 1941 (at about minute 8:30 or so). (And all the trains were underneath on the lower deck, but that’s another story.)
(One time, I managed to change a tire (illegally?) on the upper deck of the suspension span, but that’s another story. A scary story)
But hey, what about a bike path on the western span? Well, that’s still pie in the sky these days. Maybe in a couple MORE decades…
Required reading:
San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge East Span Seismic Safety Project : pedestrian & bicycle study.
/ California. Department of Transportation. Oakland, CA : Caltrans, 1998.
TG25 .S33,C275 1998 no.10
Feasibility report : San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge West Span : bicycle / pedestrian / maintenance path planning and feasibility study
/ prepared by CH2M Hill in association with SC Solutions. Oakland, CA : Caltrans, 2001.
TG25 .S335 C27 2001r Oversize New Book Shelf.
And There You Have It.
See you there!
You know what makes you better than all those melon farmers out there? It’s the fact that you hang your hat every night in the City and County of San Francisco. That makes you special. To celebrate you, the California Academy of Sciences is offering free admission for you (and your neighbors). Just match up your zip code with the handy chart below, gather up the necessary proof of where you reside, and head on over to Golden Gate Park.
And the nice thing about this free admission program is that it probably won’t be as crowded as it sometimes gets on the third Wednesday of the month, when everyone gets in sans tariff.
Celebrated Missionites getting a little camera time in front of the green screen before entering the Cal Academy yesterday. Bide your time, your free day is coming:
Read the fine print. Click to expand:
Thanks, Bank of America.
Well, it was before, back in the day, when the military was there. But then the military left and things were wide open.
And then TI became a real community, complete with a store (and without it’s legendary phone booth, which must have been removed over the summer.)
But what’s this? Is it The Man? Is he there all the time? (It seemed to be just a regular day.)
Is Treasure Island just like Presidio Terrace now?
Click to expand.
Do incidents such as this have residents scared?
It’s hard to say…
Let’s say you live in San Francisco’s “newest community”, Treasure Island. Now just how on Earth are you supposed to get back home from the Outside Lands of San Francisco when the only eastbound exit from the Bay Bridge to TI is blocked by the California Highway Patrol? (Hey, are they’re still hiring? Yes!)
Seriously, unless you had a boat, you’d have to wait to get back to your non-rent-controlled abode. Click to expand:
Say hello to my little friend, a Remington Police Magnum 870P 12-gauge shotgun:
Whatever the cause of all the fuss, it didn’t last all that long.
Stay safe, Islanders!
People who travel down the small isthmus from San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Island are now greeted by Abdul Nassar’s Island Market and Deli, right where the Main Gate used to be. This is proof positive that San Francisco’s newest nabe is coming along nicely.
‘Cause you can’t have a community without ready access to coffee and FUNYUNS®.
“Funyuns Onion Flavored Rings are a deliciously different snack that is fun to eat. These playful rings have a crisp texture and are packed full of zesty onion flavor. Next time you’re in the mood for a snack that’s out of the ordinary, try Funyuns Onion Flavored Rings.”
And they probably have a bunch of other stuff too.
Good luck T.I.!
First of all, why does San Francisco even have a 13th Street? That’s some bad juju right there. This road pictured below is “covered by the Central Skyway making it one of the darkest and ugliest streets in San Francisco.”
And actually, we’ve got two entirely different 13th Streets in town - the proper one in the SOMA (illustrated below) plus that other one on Treasure Island. We’re just asking for trouble, aren’t we?
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Second of all, MUNI will probably get this 60-foot, articulated ETI Skoda 21Tr-SF TrolleyBus back on the road (eventually), but these Skodas seem to hitch a lot of rides on this ginourmous tow truck. Good thing that these bendy-left-and-right buses are also bendy up and down - it makes towing lots easier.
MUNI fever – catch it!
