it’s not about you

Okay, so if you know me, you know I’m technology-averse. Okay, so that’s not so much true as technology is averse to me. I live by the three-foot rule: so long as Joshua is within three feet of my computer, it works (I think it just likes boys, I’m just sayin’).

I could not care less about the latest you-know-what. When the Kim family got lost last year, I was amazed that James made a living reviewing gadgets and talking about them. I would rather be a customer service rep for an insurance agency (that probably won’t translate: CSR for big insurance = BAD) or be terminally pregnant or … something. If I had my husband’s job, I would kill myself. I HATE technology. Hate it. The only reason I have a blog is because Joshua set it up. Wi-fi? Joshua. Biz site? Joshua. Personalized ringtone? Joshua. God forbid he should ever die. I’d be screwed (please pause while I cross myself).

But this, THIS, I got hot about. I mean, this is right up there with learning to play Pole Position, with getting my first SLR, with, you know, itself.

Joshua gets downright giddy when he talks about it. We watched the video back when Steve Jobs introduced it and showed how to use it. Joshua turned to me, surely expecting me to be passed out on the couch and drooling from sheer boredom, and i was sitting completely erect, wide-eyed, staring at the computer screen and murmuring, “I want one…”

It comes out Friday. I’m not gonna stand in line or anything, and we’re not buying them right away - after all, we have perfectly good phones and computers (shift keys aside), but it will be likely our next tech purchase. And I CANNOT WAIT.

So, last week, our damn-fine-looking mayor decided to reduce the number of city-owned trash cans on the streets of our fair city. Apparently this little piece of news got “thrown out,” what with all the other political excitement we’ve had lately, and was “buried” so we didn’t have to “waste” our time on it (take that, Cecilia Vega!).

Who knew, that at $700 a pop, and saving the city almost $215,000, just for the cans themselves, that removing them would anger so many people? Any business that sells food or beverages is required by law to have their own trash can outside, and many businesses don’t even have trash service (fascinating, I know). Do we really have that much trash we have to throw away? I mean, really?

I think it kind of makes sense - Gavin’s reasoning is that the current cans are being used for household trash, which they aren’t supposed to be, and people are throwing too much trash in them. Sounds like an Onion article, I know.

It makes me think of the day we got our car…

I was driving home after having picked it up, and was on 20th Street at a red light at Folsom. There was a teenage girl crossing the street with the Folsom’s green light, eating a bag of chips. She finished, and just let the bag go, mid-air. Just like that. She let it go. She didn’t even bother to take the time to throw it to the ground, as if that was even too much trouble for her. There was a trash can right on the corner as she stepped up onto the sidewalk.

I was amazed. Is it so hard to just wait the one and a half seconds and put it IN the trash can? Why throw it on the ground, I mean, just let it go mid-air? I’m always surprised when people don’t want to take more ownership of their community. I just don’t get it.

That would be my son. Sticking his hand in the toilet.

Not good for your PR, yo.

Or this, or this or this either, by the way.

Or, really, this, although Cameron is really more in trouble than you are.

Thought you might want to know.

Lots of things have been happening in the news in San Francisco lately. Between Ed Jew’s problems, Gavin Newsom’s and Chris Daly’s verbal fisticuffs, and the resurgence of gang activity in the Mission (Dad, you should stop reading right now), it’s been a busy month. Oh, and it’s Pride, too.

Ed Jew:
Dude, seriously? Please, step down. Step down, step down, step down. If you’re not completely corrupt, then you’re just stupid. Either way, you shouldn’t be a leader of our city and so you’ve got to go.

And, Ed, may I offer you a tip? If you’re trying to prove you live in the Sunset, don’t turn yourself in in Burlingame, where your other house is. Doofus.

Chris Daly:
Dude! Your credibility? Totally SHOT. You want people to take you seriously and have respect for you? Then show it for others. This is not junior high (although it IS city politics, you could very well make that argument…). You want to accuse Newsom of using cocaine? Then do it in the proper venue. All you’re doing is making yourself look like a total ass. And bring some proof to the table. By the way, using people who claim to have done coke with the mayor isn’t exactly credible - they’re cokeheads for cryin’ out loud.

And that Gavin? Aren’t you a damn fine-looking mayor? Except for that episode last year when you decided to “try something new.” Please. Keep the hair gel. (My friend Robin said that when news of Gavin’s affair came out, a collective sigh of disappointment could be heard throughout the Castro. Too funny.)

My ‘hood:
We know. We’ve got problems. I do, in fact, take the kids to the park where the shooting occurred. I don’t let Killian fly colors or play soccer with the big boys, so we’re usually okay. And I impose a strict 2 a.m. curfew on Judah - if she’s not in the door by then, I take away her Polly Pockets. But this, this is not the solution. The Mission has its problems, but there are so many good things about it as well, and I’m not just talking about learning the art of poop-dodging while taking a stroll, though that IS a handy skill.

We have a huge mix of diversity here, and cultural backgrounds are only the jumping-off point. There are very poor people who live here alongside very rich people. Families live next to single hipsters, nannies next to financial district suits. There’s a retirement facility, a community music center, a group of self-professed Satanists (true!), a community activist center, and park, all on my block. There’s tons of shops, restaurants, bars, clubs, parks, a vibrant arts community, and a plethora of public transportation. We’re centrally-located, and I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, “It’s always sunny in the Mission.” And, AND, we have Ritual and Tartine. I mean, come on. I love my neighborhood. And I’m going to be sad to leave it. Sniff, sniff.

I get asked if I’m scared to live in my neighborhood. I’ve read places online where people are actually encouraged not to explore the Mission while visiting San Francisco because it’s “not safe.” MOST of the shootings occur at night, but there are some during the day. MOST of the violence is targeted and specific - it’s extremely rare to be a random target of violent crime. And truthfully, your odds are pretty good - I mean it’s mostly in suburban-rural areas where someone goes totally ape-shit and does something crazy. I try to avoid wearing gang colors and I leave my grill at home (I only bring it out for those special occasions).

The Bright Spot:
At least there’s some justice after all in this world.

1. Since Jill’s comment, I have heard the phrase “sour grapes” not once, not twice, but THREE TIMES this week and I think there’s a conspiracy afoot (and Jill, we need to all hang out, at least once, before you pop).

2. My computer. OH MY GOD. The shift key has lost its mind. And is now removed from my keyboard. Using the other shift key is a total pain in the ass.

3. My power cord has decided it only wants to work in ONE position. What is WITH my laptop???

4. My son has learned the art of SCREAMING HIS BLOODY HEAD OFF. If this were a podcast, you would get an aural taste. COUNT YOURSELF AMONG THE BLESSED THAT IT’S NOT.

5. Two nights ago, we didn’t get any sleep due to above-mentioned number four, and his two teeth that popped through this week. I woke up after said sleep-deprived night and got head-butted right smack in the face. I think he broke my nose, but I’m not real sure. It hurts like hell. And so do my front four teeth (his front four have all come in in the past three weeks - baby Tylenol is his friend - so is the rum. And the whiskey). Not enough Advil for me in the world, my friends. My dentist is going to love this.

6. We’re moving. We found a flat (in our price range) in the Outer Richmond on 30th Ave. A half block from Golden Gate Park. Two bedrooms, one and a half bath, formal dining, living room with a working fireplace, kitchen with a gas stove, disposal and dishwasher, all hardwoods, and tile in the kitchen, parking garage, storage unit, W/D hookups, and a YARD. With real grass. And patio space. Did I mention it was a half-block from Golden Gate Park?? We move middle of July. i hear that hiring movers is worth every penny. I think we’re gonna go that route. Good Lord, I'’m tired of moving. This will be our seventh move in five years of marriage (July 6th - woot!!). And we have our own mailbox to boot.

7. We’ve been going to Mission Bay Community Church. And we’re going to join. And I’m going to be on the steering committee (I think). Good Lord, what have we done?? Does this mean we’re Presbyterian now?? Tracey and Lee Ann should be getting a good kick out of this.

8. MBCC is reading the Bible in 90 days. I’m so way behind. I’m somewhere in Exodus reading about a bunch of whiny Israelites, while everyone else in on their way to Judges or Ruth or something. And it’s good. It’s good practice/exercise/discipline.

9. Yeah, so that’s all I’ve got for now. I’m really busy. Hoping to post more often, sooner than later. I have lots of thoughts on lots of things. Really?, you say; you don’t say?, you say.

Ciao.

via The Washington Post.

Ooh, I bought myself a half a million dollar home out in the goondocks and it has, like, you know, EVERYTHING, but I have to walk a block to get my mail, so I’m gonna whine and whine and throw a hissy fit about it.

GET OVER IT.

Oh, yeah. My favorite part is where a lawyer for an interest group opposed to communal mailboxes ACTUALLY calls it “discrimination” against people buying new homes. Really. He does.

Bless their little hearts.