SFFD

So, today I was in my neighbor hood exploring the fire houses that respond to calls that are in the upper and lower Haight areas. I found out that the calls are divided between three different local fire stations: station 12, station 21 and station 6. Its crazy that there isnt like one central firehouse for the district and with the volume of calls they respond to you would think they would have a station right on haight street haha One of the firefighters that I talked to told me that so many of the calls that they respond to are dealing with the local haight street junkies and homeless people. When I was at station 6 they got a call for a heart attack down the street and it was cool to see how they are out at the drop of a dime and when they come back they are just so casual and ready for the next call. All the firefighters I met where extremely nice and welcoming which I feel is the general vibe of my hood.... hell, they even gave me milk and cookies!

Molotovs.

So, I have been spending a lot of time at the local bars in both the lower and upper Haight areas and I thought I would share a little about my favorite one so far- MOLOTOVS! The bar is located in the Lower Haight on Haight Street between Fillmore and Steiner. It is a small "dive bar" type that is good for grabbing a drink after work or partying hard on the weekends. They always have really good punk, metal, alternative or old school rock n roll playing and sometimes you can watch that really funny "manswers" show will you are in there. The bartenders are fast, drinks are cheap and STRONG! A few 4 dollar mixed drinks and you will be will on your way to toasted. There is also a lot of really interesting art work hanging on the walls that you can see... but you might need to use a flash light because it is normally pretty dark inside... aka be careful who you are flirting with because sometimes you will be shocked when they turn the lights on at last call! haha I was also told my a regular named Morgan Gessert that the "drink of choice" is Pabst which seems to be the same at all bars in the lower haight. Oh and if you have a dog this bar is perfect for you... they allow just about anyone to bring in any type of dog... hell, I even saw a dog drinking beer in there this past friday night!!!

Graffiti.

As many of you know, I did my crime article on graffiti in the Haight. While I was doing my reporting, I walked from one end of Haight Street all the way to the other end. As I walked down the street I stopped at all the various graffiti along the way and took some pictures. Honestly, I was shocked by all the graffiti that is so artistic and done with such talent.

Here are some of the pictures I took:








(from the outside of soul patch tattoo shop)


(also soul patch)


(also soul patch)




(this one is insane! you can't even tell it is on a door, it looks like a real painting!)




(notice the "fuck pigs"... not really the smartest idea to tag if you don't wanna go to jail haha)






(this was actually the only real tagging i found)

and then there was one wall that really caught my attention...



See, the thing is that it is a blank wall and really what harm would it be if it was used to graffiti? I think it is time for San Francisco to get with the times and start a program so graffiti artists can legally show off their talent. Like in Venice Beach in SoCal... they have walls reserved for graffiti... and guess what? They probably don't have as big as a problem with graffiti as San Francisco currently does.

420

so today is april 20th and i wanted to take a few minutes to bitch about how stupid i think people are. why do people feel the need to smoke a bunch of weed on the particular day? first of all, weed is illegal and second of all, it is for dirty nasty hippes.
i think all the damn stoners need to go get a life and find something better to do with their lies tahn sit around and smoke weed. it is really unattractive and i refuse to take part of it.

and to all my friends who are going out smoking wee dtonight, forget you know me.

losers. haha

There are two distinctly different neighborhoods on the opposite ends of Haight Street. One half still holds true to its counter-culture while the other half has created its very own young and refreshing reputation in recent years.
The Haight is located between the Panhandle and Hayes Valley in San Francisco. It’s known worldwide for its deep history, beautiful houses, unique shops, artistic style, and of course, the eccentric people who roam the block.
Beverly Ryan has lived in the Haight for 41 years. When she was in her early twenties she hopped on a bus in a small town outside of Chicago and headed out to join the excitement in the Haight during what is now known as the Summer of Love. She fell in love with the neighborhood instantly and hasn’t left since then.
“Haight was like a dream come true to the herds of people who flocked there in the 60s and still draws in excited crowds day after day,” Ryan said. “It never lost its touch.”
When Ryan was younger, her days were filled with acid, music and long hair. Nowadays she has the advantage of reminiscing of those days while enjoying the new generation of Haight Street locals, the growing number of tourists and the commercial changes around the Haight.
Today approximately 39,000 people live in the Haight. These residents are all packed into the blocks of colorful old Victorian houses.
The median housing price is $1,096,337, which may explain while the majority of homes are renter occupied units. The majority of residents are between the ages of 25 to 34, including a large population of students and young professionals, according to About.com.
On the street level of these homes residents and visitors can find a variety of local businesses. You can go search for old records at Amoeba Music, grab a slice of pizza at Escape From New York, get a quick trim at Blade Runners Salon, get tattooed at Mom’s Tattoo or dig through bins of old-fashion clothes at Buffalo Exchange.
“My favorite part of working on Haight Street is staring out the shop window and watching the different people stroll up and down the block,” said Eric Jones, a local tattoo artist. “The people here seem to have the most character in the city. From the crack heads in the park to the old hippies, we’ve got it all.”
There are many different forms of eye-catching art on Haight Street such as street performers, graffiti and musicians who trying to make a buck or two. These artists fill the street corners during the day and at nighttime disc jockeys, bands and art galleries pull people in. Popular nightclubs such as The Underground SF, Club Deluxe and Milk keep the evenings on Haight Street alive.
There are also several schools located on Haight Street such as William R. De Avila Elementary School and Aim High Academy Middle School. There is a health clinic, Cole Street Clinic, located on the corner of Haight Street and Cole Street.
The Randall Museum serves as a children’s museum and nature center with science exhibits and live animals for the children to interact with. The museum is located right above the Buena Vista Park, a wonderful place to take your children.
But the real heart of the Haight seems to be at the very end of the street. Golden Gate Park brings together many different people form the neighborhood for events throughout the year such as the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, Aids Walk, Bay to Breakers and the annual Comedy Day festival.
“There may be thousands of people in the city but it seems that every Sunday I see familiar faces relaxing in the park,” said resident Jesse Palmer. “It’s like one big happy family.”

obamarama

A line across the entire Student Services building at San Francisco State University can only mean one thing: the FASFA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is due soon. But this year, more students than ever seem to be applying for financial aid as the economy gets worse and education prices sky rocket each semester.
Between budget cuts, teacher cuts, classroom size cuts and rising tuition rates, a college degree seems almost impossible for the average American student. However, with a new president in office and a recent slight “attitude change: in the American people, is it possible that we can work together to improve high education across the United States?
“All I want to do is graduate already,” said Brittany Mcgordy, a senior at San Francisco State University. “But it feels like all the odds are against me and I am never going to see graduation day/”
President Obama and his people have already begun to lay the pavement for the future of education and will continue to develop these plans in the next three months. The goal is for students to begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
“We will finally put a college degree n reach for anyone who wants one,” said President Obama.
Obama and Vice President Biden plan to create a new tax credit in order to make a college education possible for all those who are willing to put in the work for it. The credit will be call the “American Opportunity Tax Credit” and will be universal and fully refundable up to $4,000 of college education for Americans. Essentially, each year students who have paid their registration fees will get the amount they paid back when they do their taxes. It will cover approximately two-thirds of the average cost of tuition at public college and universities. This seems to put a smile on many college students since statistics show that the average college student graduates with $19,000 in debt. For some students they are already in the $60,000+ debt group, which is a scary thought considering the job market’s current situation.
In addition, the Obama Administration would also like to “simplify” the application process that students go through each year to get federal financial aid. As many students know, it seems like a battle to fill out the FASFA forms and there always seems to be some kind of problem that pops up in the process making the process not only stressful and annoying but sometimes very hard to understand. Obama would like to see it be as simple as checking a box on your tax form that would allow the information to be sent out for financial aid evaluation instead of dealing with a separate application.
But it’s not just getting through college that Obama cares about, he is also standing up for getting to college. The president focused a lot of attention on early education during his campaign and now, hopefully, we will see his words put into action.
On of the ongoing debates in education has been focused on standardized testing and its effects on the classroom. Some school districts have begun to change their curriculum in the classroom so they will increase students test scores so they will not lose government funding. But on the flip side, Obama believes that the testing has drained the creativity from the classroom and that teachers have become too focused on teaching only standardized testing material for the sake of saving their jobs. President Obama plans to solve the issue by providing more funds to allow states to develop a broader range of testing that will include the use of technology, research, investigation, problem solving and idea shaping.
Another heated subject is the controversial “No Child Left Behind” program that hasn’t seemed to do what it was originally planned to do when it was first introduced. The problem may be the teachers, students, parents, government or many other various factors but the point is that it just isn’t working and needs to be updated or taken out of the education field. Perhaps one of the biggest problems with the program is that we do not know how well every teacher is actually teaching and with all the budget cuts and teachers retiring it is hard to keep track of what teachers are actually dong their job and trying to follow the program in order to help every kid pass each grade.
The city of San Francisco has been greatly affected by budget cuts in both the lower and higher education systems. For the past two years, 500 teachers in the San Francisco Unified School District have faced the possibility of loosing their jobs. However, Mayor Gavin Newsom stepped in to save the day both times by providing funds from San Francisco’s “rainy day fund” to keep the teachers on staff for one more year.
However, not every city in the United States has back up funds of their own to use when necessary to save their cities education. Now it is up to the citizens to step up, work together and fight for quality, affordable and higher education. Lucky for the United States, we have a new and very optimistic president to guide us as we try to save education.
“I really hope younger generations do not have to go through this same battle when it is their turn to go to college,” said Mcgordy.

the walden house

The Walden House serves as a national leader in drug and alcohol addictions to the people of San Francisco and throughout the state of California. The program serves adults, children, people with extensive criminal backgrounds, people with HIV/AIDS and people with multiple diagnoses. Currently there are about 3,400 people taking advantage of the various different services the Walden House has to offer such as:
- Mental Health (Outpatient): Individual treatment plans made for each patient in order to meet their individual needs. These plans can include individual therapy, group therapy, medication services, case management, skills training and crisis services. There is also an intensive outpatient harm reduction day treatment program for patients who may be unsure about giving up heir addiction but would still like to improve their life. Diagnosis day treatment is available Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
- Mental Health (Residential): All the services offered for outpatient patients but for those in need of more attention and serious treatment. Patients may be kept for any period between three days and one year and follow a Wellness Recovery Action Plan to help reach stabilization and better health. There are currently four different residential sites in San Francisco.
- Representative Payee Program: Offered for patients who receive financial benefits such as supplemental security income or social security and need assistance managing their money in order to make sure they have food, clothing, shelter and all the other things necessary for them to go on. There is a monthly fee for this program that is deducted from the patients check each month.
- Crisis Stabilization: Designed to help HIV positive patients through detoxification and getting back into the community. The program can last from one to six weeks. The San Francisco CARE Council funds the program.
- Community Housing: Provides both permanent and transitional living spaces for patients. The sober living environments are safe and secure for patients as they work their way through treatment.
- Homeless Services: Walden House participates in Major Gavin Newsom’s “Homeless Connect” in order to connect those in need with resources, prevention services and treatment.
- Criminal Justice Programs: Serving patients in custody who wish to enroll in treatment while they are serving their time. The Walden House currently operates two in-custody substance abuse treatment programs for women at Valley State Prison for women in Chowchilla, CA. They work with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to meet the needs of inmates.
- Walden Institute of Training: Provides basic and advanced courses in motivational interviewing, dialectical behavior therapy, cognitive behavior therapy, tobacco cessation education, harm reduction, stages of change, recovery education, alcohol and drug education, sexually transmitted disease education, case management, treatment planning, cultural competence, and gender-response treatment intervention for Walden House staff and members of community-based treatment centers in California. The Walden Institute of Training is approved by the American Psychological Association.

this is just practice

Sarah Millett, a journalism student at San Francisco State University who devoted her time to filmmaking and various forms of activism, has died of a methamphetamine overdose.

Ms. Millett was 24 years old when she died in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco on Monday after paramedics fought to save her life.

Ms. Millett's short film "Gender Pains," an experimental documentary that shed light on the hardships surrounding gender roles as an individual and as a part of society, was shown on KQED and played at various film festivals throughout California, Texas and Minnesota. The film also included Sarah's own personal and ongoing struggle with her identity as a young girl going though a gender transition, which she called her "butch phase."

"She had a quality about her that's deep, thoughtful, truthful, sincere and trustworthy," said Eileen Bautista, who had befriended Sarah when the worked together at City College of San Francisco before she transferred to San Francisco State University.

In 2007, Millett displayed a collage she made at the California Young Women's Collaborative art show. In addition, she coordinated the Insights Art Exhibition at San Francisco City Hall for two years, an annual art show that is made up of works from blind or visually impaired artists.

"She has always stepped to a different drum beat than the rest of the kids her age," said Mother Karen Saltekoff. "In fact, I think she was in charge of the whole damn band most of the time."

Friends and family will remember Sarah as a very compulsive and passionate writer. She often had conflicting characteristics that helped shape her into an intriguing woman. Her interests also included notes, magazines and painting. She enjoyed making new friends and spending time with her old ones.

"As long as I am involved in art and activism, I think I will have a chance at happiness," said Sarah shortly before she died.

Survivors include her Mother, Karen Saltekoff of Toledo, Oregon; and sister, Jennifer Millett of Portland, Oregon.

A memorial ceremony will be held Thursday at 6 p.m. at The Old First Presbyterian Church, 1751 Sacramento Street, San Francisco. A private burial will follow the next morning.

Ms. Millett's family has asked that memorial donations be made to the Bay Area National Council of Alcoholism and other Drug Addictions, 944 Market Street, 3rd Floor, San Francisco, CA, 94102.

very important issue: underage drinking

I know most of you guys are going to think, "What the fuck is Jamey talking about... that girl loves to party!" However this is a very serious issue to me. As someone who has been personally impacted by drinking problems, duis and the death of a good friend due to booze I think this issue is very important to our society. There is not a single good thing that could possibly come from lowering the drinking age to 18. Please, set aside your love for beer and realize what is best for the country as a whole. Thanks!

The following is an email I just got from MADD:

An estimated 25,000 lives have been saved by the 21 Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA), which is why we were gravely concerned to learn that the college and university presidents and representatives listed below have added their names to a misguided initiative aimed at attacking the minimum drinking age of 21.

We are not alone in our concern. The public strongly disagrees with efforts to lower the drinking age. According to a new survey released by Nationwide Insurance this week:

78 percent of adults support 21 as the minimum drinking age
72 percent of adults think lowering the drinking age would make alcohol more accessible to kids
Nearly half believe it would increase binge drinking among teens
More than half say they are less likely to vote for a state representative who supports lowering the legal limit or send their children to colleges or universities with "party school" reputations
Contact the college and university presidents who have signed on to this initiative and request they remove their signatures and support the 21 Minimum Legal Drinking Age.

We must work together to find a responsible solution to the underage drinking problem, one that does not jeopardize a law that has saved nearly 25,000 lives since going into effect. Solutions include: enforcing the drinking age, tightening alcohol policy, working within the college community to ensure the environment supports the above and working with parents to talk to their children well before peer pressure begins, around fourth grade.

trasher magazine

As I begin to take dig a little deeper with my magazine, Thrasher, I have realized that this magazine is seriously genius. Although there is none stop ads, the editors have really designed everything so that as you flip through the pages you seem to forget that you are even looking at advertisements. The lay out is planned so perfectly that the reader just gets caught up in the visual stimulation on the magazine.
There are a few similarities and differences that I noticed in this months issue compared to last month. For starters, although there are still 90% ads, it seems that all the ads are different this month than last. I didn’t notice any repetitive ads or pictures in the ads. This month was not a special issue like last months but they did have a central feature article this month, an interview with the boy who was awarded Skater of the Year and announced in last months issue. This month they sat down with him and interviewed him about his career, skating and what the award means to him. When I was reading this article I noticed what my favorite part of Thrasher is- PULL QUOTES! They seriously pick the perfect pull quotes for each article and they really serve as an entry point to grab the reader’s attention.
Thrashers mission statement is, “ Thrasher fuses the excitement of top-level skateboarding with reader participation, hard-edged music and attitude.” I think this issue was a perfect example of their mission statement. I noticed that this month there was a little more music articles than last months, which was a nice change. One other thing that I noticed was that they have a mail order shopping section in the magazine where they sell various Thrasher t-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, baby clothes and underwear. The master minds behind this magazine have really thought of everyway to market the company to its readers to make a lot of money in various ventures.
I also did a little research this month and got a hold of some old media kits and information. Last month I had a hard time finding the magazine so in my research I found out that Thrasher magazine is distributed throughout the United States and Canada by Curtis Circulation Company. There are also a few other companies that they work with in the US but it still seems like it is difficult to find it at the magazine stand at Walgreens or Safeway sometimes. In 2003, there total distribution was 196,000 and 31% of that was in California alone. I also found some advertising rates that showed clearly why Thrasher is not going out of business anytime soon. In 2000 it cost $5,690 for a full-page color ad to run once and in 2003 it cost $11,117 for the exact same ad. I emailed their advertising director and am waiting to hear back about the ad rates for 2008 and 2009.
Honestly, the more and more I look at Thrasher, the more I am upset that I didn’t think of this magazine!

flapper girls

Throughout history women as a whole have continued to evolve and fight for what they want. But not all women have the same opinions and views as to how they want to go about these issues. When we look at feminism issues today we can clearly see a distinct difference between the older more traditional feminist and the “new age” feminist that arrived on scene in the 1920s. By taking advantage of several different developments in their time, the new feminists were about to gain more ground as a sex and define their gender in a way no one would have imagined was possible.
The first significant development I noticed in the reading was the newfound “freedom of choice” that females of the time were acting on. Females of this time were determined to not be like their older relatives and they sure were not going to continue their ways. Although the ladies of the 1920s admired and respected the pioneer feminist, they were ready to set their own tone. It was time for them to develop their new attitude and make decisions for themselves. Of the many decisions they would begin to make for themselves the two biggest ones were if one was to marry or not and if one was to have children or not. The modern women handled these new decisions by developing a sense of balance between their marriage, family life, careers and personal lives. They believed the
most important thing was to prove their value not just in the home but also in every other aspect of life. “Love may die, and children may grow up, but one’s work goes on forever.” (Ware, Page 128)
Next, and probably the most noted development of the time, came women’s expression of their sexual identity. Woman began to show off their sexuality in a variety of ways including clothing, make-up, flirting, dancing, dating and even having sexual relationships with men. “Like the flappers… defined social control and conventions, who was modern, sophisticated, and frank in speech, dress, morals and lifestyle.” (The Chinese Flapper) As the younger women of the generation began to show some sexuality and confidence they were faced with generational and cultural conflicts with older women. Because females were still viewed as a reflection on the family, many women had problems living the way they wanted to live and definitely weren’t always able to get away with flashy clothes or sexy make-up. In the article The Flapper and the Chaperone, they discuss the various ways families tried to control women. Many girls could not do anything on their own because people seemed to be afraid that they were becoming too expressive and explorative. They were not allowed to go to dances, dates or even have a male walk them home without a chaperone, which many young females viewed as a “spy.” “Faced with this type of situation, young women had three options: they could accept the rules set down for them; they could rebel; or they could find ways to compromise or circumvent traditional standards.” (The Flapper and the Chaperone) I believe the goal of chaperones was to keep the women in control and control their wondering thoughts. The concern was that if women begun wearing make-up and dresses she would look and act like a flapper no matter what. One interesting thing I could was that Luna stated that she remembered that she used to think kissing would get you pregnant. On the contrary, women enjoyed talking and flirting with men because their ideas interested her and she found it amusing to flirt. (Ware, Page 129) However, they weren’t able to control women that well and they eventually found ways around and lived the way they wanted to with the men they wanted to do so with. Chaperones were no longer able to control or harass women’s personal behavior and sexuality.
Lastly, as a journalism student I could not help but noticed the development of the media during the flapper era. In all the readings I noticed that some form of media was mentioned (magazines and newspapers mostly). According to Lupe Velez, “The social authority of the media of mass culture replaced older forms of family authority and behavior.” It seemed as though the media was displaying the new remodeled female for the world to see. The new ideas of the females were reinforced in various English and Spanish publications. They began to include feature advice columns, horoscopes and celebrity gossip for women. Magazines began to run ads and articles for make up, hair and other beauty products to market them to females. As one company selling skin cream claimed, “Those with lighter, more healthy skin tones will become much more successful in business, love and society.” The press was conveying the new societal norms and models for the readers to follow.
As a whole, I believe that the women of the time really were helping the gender gain ground for themselves and women of the future. As I was reading I realized that a lot of the issues they faced in the 1920s are still issues that young women face today and I believe the women of the 1920s set the tone for how we are living our life today. Sure, there will always be obstacles with your parents and pressure to get married and have kids from some families, but the women of the 1920s showed us that we have a choice and we can live our life anyway we want to. Because of them I can continue to be single, flirt as much as I want and wear the brightest lipstick around!

eric jones

The gun is loaded, blood will flow, a buzz will pierce through ears, moans of pain will be heard and tears may even drip. But in the end, Eric Jones will have branded you will a one-of-a-kind tattoo.
Jones has not even hit 40 and has already made his mark in the tattoo industry. Between maxing out his credit cards, dealing with various city officials and spreading the word about his brand new tattoo shop, Jones sometimes barely makes it though the day without passing out from excitement or exhaustion. His secret: pure passion, of course.
“I believe we are all put on this earth for one thing,” said Jones. “If mine isn’t tattooing than I don’t know what I am doing here.”
Jones was born on November 17th 1972 in Carmel Valley. The first 18 years of his life was spent moving around Northern California; Monterey, Davis, Sacramento and eventually he landed himself in San Francisco in 1990.
When he was 18 years old he got his first tattoo and fell in love with the needle right away. A few months later Jones decided he wanted to get into tattooing and began practicing drawing and did his first tattoo on himself using Lincoln logs and sewing needles to create a make shift tattoo gun. At 20 be began his first apprenticeship at Craven Images in Redwood City.
“Originally I thought tattooing was reserved for old school biker dudes but then I noticed some younger artists starting and knew it would be a really cool job,” said Jones.
Today Jones is completely covered from his neck down to his feet in tattoos that he has collected through the years from various artists across the states.
Although Jones never went to college, he had always excelled in the arts growing up. Before entering the tattoo world, Jones had a wide variety of jobs from working at music stories to health food store. His mother, a social work college professor, never gave him a hard time for not going to college and eventually came to terms with his choice of careers.
“At first she wasn’t so into the idea of me being a tattoo artist but over time she became very proud of me once she began to see how much hard work and dedication I put into my job,” said Jones.
The long hours, sketch after sketch and stress of developing his art was all worth it when Jones
Jones’ first real full-time tattooing gig was at Anubis Warpus in San Francisco. He has also worked at Incognito in Pasadena and East Side Ink in New York. Eventually he landed back in San Francisco and started work at Mom’s Tattoo on Haight Street where he would spend the next eight years of his life.
“He is such a talented artist and in the past few years has become one of the best artists in the city,“ said former co-worker Jesse Palmer. “He is going to go very far in life.”
During those eight years Jones was able to improve as an artist, build relationships with his clients and get fed up with bosses just enough to motivate him to quit open his own shop where he can do things his way.
Later this month Jones’ will open the doors of his shop, Let it Bleed, to the public. Yes, the name is a Rolling Stones reference. The shop is located in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco at the corner of Polk Street and Post Street.
“To be honest, I really have no desire to own my own shop but I just don’t want to have a boss anymore,” said Jones. “My biggest fear once the shop opens up and employees start is that I will end up becoming a shitty boss that everyone hates.”
Jones financed the shop completely on his own. Luckily, he has very good credit and was able to pay for everything between a few credit cards and selling valuable personal items such as old guitars and various other vintage items he had lying around his apartment.
So far Jones has got everything he needs signed off by the city plumbing department, fire department and health department. The only thing he is waiting on now is the official business license.
“It was a nightmare dealing with the city and all its different departments but the worst part is done now,” said Jones.
Jones is aware that there is going to me some tough competition with other tattoo shops in San Francisco that already have some kind of special reputation. Goldfield’s Tattoo in North Beach is the oldest shop in the city. Black and Blue in the mission is the only all female tattoo shop. And of course there will be pressure to exceed his success at Mom’s Tattoo.
“It’s going to be hard being the new shop on the block but I am designing my shop to me a mix of a custom shop and a street shop,” said Jones. “There is going to be a lot of original hand painted flash work… and not the corny typical flash you see at those shops that attract a bad clientele. We aren’t going to be specializing in tribal tattoos, that’s for sure.”
Jones is also planning to eventually give his employee’s health insurance, something that is almost unheard of in the tattoo industry. In addition he is going to strive to give back to his friends and the community.
Danny Smith, a former co-worker, recently found out he needed over $10k work of dental work done. Smith does not have insurance and has been trying to come up with the money. When Jones heard about it he immediately offered to hold a fundraiser doing tattoos of teeth for only $30 at his new shop. All proceeds would be given to Smith to help him get the denial work done.
“It’s situation like these that makes Eric stand out,” said Smith. “He has got it down when it comes to being a great guy, both personally and professionally.”

The ongoing battle between outraged citizens and corporate bigwigs trying to take control over this years Bay to Breakers festival was addressed once again at this months Board of Supervisors meeting.
Several citizens spoke directly to the board in order to gain support from their district leaders to keep the traditions and spirit of Bay to Breakers alive while improving safety and control of the large crowd the event draws. In other business, the board addressed new tobacco zoning polices and recognized local women who have worked to improve the city’s quality of life.
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi urged the adoption of collaboration between the organizers of Bay to Breakers, city agencies, neighborhood groups, race advocates and residents to develop a comprehensive plan that protects the neighborhoods while preserving the unique spirit of the race.
Public urination, public intoxication and disorderly conduct are at the top of the list of concerns for all organizations and citizens. There may be several solutions to these problems such as more port-a-potties, alcohol enforcement officers and more police on patrol during the event.
“The logistical issues will be an important thing to look at as the race approaches and we work out the details,” said Ed Sharp, member of Citizens for the Preservation of Bay to Breakers.
The issue was sent to committee for further discussion and will be addressed again at next month’s board of supervisors meeting.
“I think it’s really important that the council acknowledge that this is a San Francisco tradition and we need to keep hold of the traditions we have here,” said San Francisco resident Christopher Watson. “Letting corporations come in and set the guidelines and be the dictators of what does on in our city ends up taking away from all of the San Francisco traditions and makes it an ING tradition.”
In another order of business, a resolution, which will enforce more strict guidelines and operational standards for tobacco paraphernalia establishments in the Haight Street Neighborhood Commercial District, was adopted.
“This is just to supplement what is now a citywide law in providing for a conditional use in trying to regulate some of the tobacco and head shop paraphernalia stores with the concentration in the retail stores in the upper Haight,” said Mirkarimi. “There are approximately 16 within a four or five block region. We thought we could do a little bit better in regulating.”
Finally, Several women were recognized as leaders who have not only improved the quality of life in San Francisco but have also made a “green” impact on the planet.
The women were recognized as part of a celebration for Women’s History Month. Since 1996 the San Francisco Commission and the Department on the Status of Women have recognized the important work local women do.
Among the women recognized were Melonie and Melorra Green, residents of Lower Haight, who were recognized for their dedication to mending the gap between the artist community and the rest of San Francisco to help residents gain an understanding of what it really means to be “green.”
“Literally, their last name is Green,” said Mirkarimi.
The Green sisters have held several different events and demonstrations in order to teach people the easiest and cheapest ways to lead an environmentally friendly lifestyle. They are also owners of Infin8 Sync, an ego-friendly art environment, which provides a monthly networking and showcasing art event.
“Today is really about celebrating women living in their purpose,” Melonie Green said.

lions mouth

On a small round table in the corner of Whiskey Thieves, a smoke filled dive bar where Geary and Larkin meet, a stack of Lion’s Mouth magazines wait to be picked up by the local neighbor hood residents and bums. The Lion’s Mouth may not have an official office but this dark corner of the bar is considered home to local tenderloin magazine, which made it the perfect place to meet up with its founder. Every night more copies are picked up and the word spreads a little more about the hilarious yet extremely legit magazine.
A local resident named Rachel, who refuses to give her last name when asked, started the Lion’s Mouth roughly three years ago. Rachel, 30, just finally graduated college from San Francisco State University after twelve ridiculously long years of studying English Literature and Creative Writing. Sure, at first the magazine was just a random drunken idea a group of friends thought of one night at Night Cap Bar (see: dirtiest bar in San Francisco) but to Rachel and many others who have become part of the magazine’s family, it has become not only a second job but a first love to them. When asked about the magazines mission statement Rachel exclaims, “We actually have an anti-mission statement. Our role is not to try to write serious shit to fix problems, we are just trying to put everything out there and create awareness about the tenderloin via humor and human interest. It is also about having Lion Pride and loving our neighbor hood no matter how many zombies you see crawling the streets at 4am.” With the funny stories about crack pipes, local event coverage of sketchy street corner bum fights, random drinking mishaps at Whiskey Thieves, interviews with the tenderloin police chief and various other creative artistic forms, the magazine was an instant hit. The title of the magazine came from the San Francisco district it was created in, the one and only tenderloin. Although the streets of the tenderloin are most often covered in crack heads, tranny hookers and drunken hipsters it is very much an up and coming popular area in downtown San Francisco. Rachel has no plans of ever changing the name because it is simply a perfect fit for the magazine and it’s readers.
With the sixth issue just released, The Lion’s mouth has been published about every 3-5 months since its start up. Production times depend on the material they have collected or tabled and how long it takes them to put everything together. Rachel and her contributors all have regular day jobs and have been balancing their paying jobs and their fun magazine job very well so far. With their hard work and dedication they have been able to continue running the magazine. In fact, they have already seen a fair amount of growth in circulation. The first issue printed was 1,500 copies and now they are printing between 5,000-6,000 each issue.
As a non-profit magazine there have been some troubles with money in the past. Because they do not have much advertisement, by choice, the staff has been running the magazine with a lot of money out of their own pockets. They have considered more advertisement but for right now they are happy selling one or two $100 ads to local stores. Rachel ads, “I want to be able to print whatever I want and not have to be at the hands of advertisers.” The regular staff consists of self-appointed Editor-In-Chief, Rachel, and eight regular writers. They also have about 20 freelance contributors that submit articles when needed. In addition, in the latest issue they ran an ad for an Internship position at The Lion’s Mouth. Naturally the required skills included: answering phones, making coffee, gardening, photocopying and giving really mean blow jobs. A few weeks later, a very drunk man stumbling around Whiskey Thieves filled the position. I guess the staff will see how he works out.
Distribution has slowly spread throughout the city and now covers various bars, cafes, bookstores, clubs and music stores from the Castro to the Embarcadero. One of the best parts of the magazine is its price, totally free!!! Rachel hopes that whenever you see one around you are able and welcome to pick up one or two if you have a friend. The target reader is typically young adults in their mid 20’s-early 30’s who live or spend a lot of time in the tenderloin district. However, they do have a few older or non-TL resident readers as well. Because its writers are already paying for the magazine the recent economic changes really haven’t affected them much. The Lion’s Mouth is the only true local magazine in the tenderloin there is not much competition but there is a small about of competition with other small San Francisco publications such as Lo Card but the Lion’s Mouth is very confident in their magazine.
The future looks bright for The Lion’s Mouth with big plans for improvement including sweatshirts and various other forms of merchandise. They are also planning to finally update their website which has not been touched in about two years. They are also searching local bars, schools and cafes to look for new writers and artists to help with new material. When asked, Rachel says her favorite part of the magazine is simply “how real it is and how on point the writing about the local antics of the tenderloin is.” The Lion’s Mouth may not be the next 7x7 but it has sure put a mark on local magazine writing and looks to continue providing entertainment for the residents of the tenderloin.

MARCH 16th

Sitting outside an isolated bar in the Embarcadero a young and very nervous journalism student waits for Staff Editor of San Francisco Magazine, Matt Bloom, to show up. Upon arrive he shakes her hand and proceeds inside to order a cold beer. Half a beer later, a few laughs and some casual talk later the interview starts.
Matt Bloom’s height is just as high as his confidence level as he begins to speak about himself and his career. Sporting trendy oversized sunglasses which cover almost his entire baby face and button up plaid shirt, it is hard to not be attracted to this 25 year old from what he calls “strip mall heaven” right outside of Chicago. Upon leaving the suburbs he went to University of Montana where he double majored in Spanish and Journalism. However, it was a single magazine writing class that influenced his path after graduation.
Bloom got his first job in South Carolina at Columbia Metropolitan Magazine where he made some fast cash only to bail and spend the next six months driving across the country. Living out of his car, surviving off pizza and partying too much eventually landed Matt back at his parent’s new house in Half Moon Bay. In February 2007 Matt landed himself an internship at San Francisco Magazine. Right away he was put to work and sent out to interview some pretty big names including Bill Pullman who Matt claims was more nervous than him during the interview. A year and some change later, he is now enjoying his staff editor cubical in a colorful office off Vallejo Street.
As staff editor his main responsibilities are editing the web pages, uploading print content to the site, editing and publishing blog entries from fellow staff writers, travel pieces and various freelance pieces. The company has about 15 on the editorial side and a few more than 15 on the management/ advertisement side. Although no job is all glitz and glam, Matt claims, “It’s fun. It’s a fun job. Hell, I eat oysters and drink champagne three days a week.” On the other side, he lets me in on some of the negative parts of the job. “I hate to talk shit on the management but someone is making money off this magazine and it sure isn’t me. The money is really tough sometimes.” Matt says and then takes another swig of his beer.
With the recent economy and election battles it was inevitable the subjects would come up. Keeping the conversation positive Matt states, “I believe it can only go up from here. With the election coming up and things settling down in the near future things have got to get better. I guess it just hasn’t directly effected in my job enough to make me worry.” Magazines may be seeing the brunt of the problems in Journalism right now but with San Francisco Magazine’s parent company Modern Luxury, it is hard to imagine problems in the future. In fact, although most people do not have disposable income for lifestyle magazines right now, San Francisco magazine is actually the only magazine owned by Modern Luxury that is currently meeting its goals. The current circulation is 100,000 subscriptions and 300,000 published.
Perhaps this has to do with the amount of work put into the production of he magazine. During the beginning of the month Bloom will work between 25-35 hours a week and when deadlines approach at the end of the month weeks reach about 50-60 hours. Bloom adds, “A lot of the time I go home and bring work home with me. This business is about ideas more than grinding it out. When you think of something, you have to get on it.”
San Francisco Magazine recently started another quarterly magazine called “The Men’s Book” in which Matt Bloom serves as the San Francisco Managing Editor. In the first article Bloom wrote several articles on baseball. When asked about it, Bloom tells me he is a huge Giants fan but he would not want to be a sports writer because “it’s just dry sarcastic statistics from an insiders perspective.” However he says he would eventually like to get into the music field and write more true journalistic pieces with less fluff. In his spare time, Matt also enjoys sitting in Dolores Park, getting a drink with friends and freelance writing.
Matt hopes that in about a year or so he will be able to use his experience with San Francisco Magazine and move onto something bigger and better. It is very clear that there are good things in the future for this talented young man. And yes ladies, he is single and available.

Laundry Locker.

Out of the hundreds of things people have to do each week, laundry always seems to be the biggest hassle. It seems as though even when you attempt to pay someone to take care of it, you then have to deal with rude laundry mat workers and not-so-convenient business hours.

Laundry Locker, San Francisco’s own eco-friendly laundry mat, has just extended its services with its new location in the Lower Haight district.

Laundry Locker’s new and extremely simple services are quit possibly one of the easiest things you may ever do in your life. For first time users, simply drop off laundry and take the key from the locker, place order and make payment online or by phone, wait for a text message or email notification when your clothes are ready and then pick up your items—24 hours a day.

Currently approximately 380 building are being served in San Francisco but with its new public lockers located on Haight Street they have begun to serve the fast growing neighbor hood and its residents.

“It’s a genius idea,” said local resident Kat Gregory. “Since I live and work in the Lower Haight I can drop my clothes off before work and pick them up the very next day on my walk home.”

Orders that are placed before 9 a.m. will be returned by 6 p.m. the next day. Pick up services are offered Monday thru Friday and drop off services Tuesday thru Saturday.

In addition to being very convenient, all services are eco-friendly. By using top of the line ultra-efficient washers and dryers as well as recycling all hangers and bag, Locker Laundry is putting a new spin on laundry.

“It’s exciting to see new services like this opening up in the Lower Haight as the area gets more popular,” said Gregory.

Costumers may also leave items with concierge in select buildings or have them picked up and dropped off at your own home. In addition, Laundry Locker provides stain treatment, starch and various other special laundry needs.

Prices range from $1.35 per pound for wash and fold and from $3.49 for dry-cleaning services.

The people of the Haight district are already raving about Laundry Locker on Yelp, Best of City Search and SF Guardian’s Best of the Bay.

“Who ever thought I would be getting a text message saying my underwear are clean, folded and ready to be worn?” said Gregory.