Cade had this to say on today's post about the Richmond:

I know that via blog comment isn't really a good way to start a discussion that will have any actual insight, but seriously, why dont people that live in the mission leave more? It is not the end all and be all of San Francisco. People that live in the Mission will be the first one to bitch about not wanting to to go “all the way out” to the Richmond, but in reality, the furthest away you are going to have to travel to any part of town is 7 miles, so its really NOT that far away at all. Hell, its hard enough to get people to venture out to SOMA from the Mission, which is even closer, not to mention that if you have a bike like a good lil Mission resident, your bike ride is only going to be 25 minutes if you make the “hella long” trek out to the Richmond , still faster then a damn bus or car ride, and its not that epic of a ride either, the panhandle is pretty flat.

I just get really tired of hearing about how great the city is from people who live in the Mission and rarely leave. They aren't really experiencing the whole city as much as those who have to actually put an effort into making it down to hang out with those who feel like there is no reason to leave. I implore you, go to Crissy Field sometime, take a look around and tell me that the view from there, encapsulating the entire city sans bay bridge, isn't worth the 35 minutes it took riding down there to get to see. Hot damn, ride with that special someone, bring a sandwich and tall boy, and holy shit you have the recipe for a great date situation and you have spent the grand total of leftovers in the fridge. (See not only are you doing something “exotic” and seeing great “foreign” views, but its the economical date and who is more attractive in these tough times then a thrifty spender? Ladies????)

I realize that there is some bit of sarcasm in your post, and I'm not trying to direct my bit of animosity at you KevMo, I just seriously have been wondering why people think the Mission is the only good part of the city and why places like the Richmond or Presidio get little love. I figure I may as well go to the source of news for much of the Mission, and really, most of S.F residents to try and help explain it to me. Don't get me wrong I like the mission, I do, but I also realize there is SO MUCH MORE to this great city then just 2 or 3 square miles of it.

Now if anyone can let me in on why they be hatin on venturing out of the mission bubble, please do so, I'm all ears…

I would make my typical snide remark of “It's the fog, stupid,” but yesterday was evidence that fog is a shitty excuse.  Lack of street art?  No Victorians?  Bars that fill up with college kids at 9:30?  Honestly, I'm too lazy to figure out the answer.

(photo by zzz_zzz)

Ever wanted to know what a Mission District Halloween looked like through the lens of a 7-year-old camera from Sears?  You're in luck.

“Two Turntables and a Microphone” clearly took home the prize for “most culturally relevant costume.”

In an ocean of delusional people believing wearing a Giants jersey and a beard was a costume, one man knew how to not suck at Halloween.

Ordinarily a Jesus holding an 18 of Tecate is not noteworthy, but this cool kid was walking down Mission Street barefoot.

A giant burrito strapped to a messenger bag?

Best UPS driver costume I saw all night.

Lady Gaga riding a demon horse-bike.

FInally, I'll leave you with a snap of a horse making sweet, sweet love with a zombie.  Time to start counting down the days to Santacon.

Local wordsmith Dave Eggers was at AT&T Park yesterday, where he conducted a uniquely San Francisco interpretation of 'World Series coverage' for the Bay Citizen.  Armed with a sketch book, Eggers captured the experience of game one by turning his pen on the fans in and around the park.  The full set can be seen at Bay Citizen. 

Fashionistas rocking panda hats is nothing new (the phenomenon, as described by Zach: “look at me, I'm a white kid in a low income ethnic neighborhood, zomg I'm so zany!”), but once the Giants secured a spot in the playoffs, it suddenly became cool to start caring about baseball.  Just the other day I spotted the troubling sight of a dude with a panda hat sewn into his helmet riding a fixie through the TL.  Clearly something is going on here.

According to AsianWeek, the fad was discovered by two dudes working as heating, ventilating, and air conditioning/electrical technicians while vacationing in the winter-paradise Bejing:

The idea to market and sell the cute and fluffy headgear came in January this year after Wesley paid a visit to Beijing, China. While standing at the entrance of the Forbidden Palace in the harsh winter cold, Wesley bought himself a panda hat from a nearby street vendor to keep warm.

“I thought we could bring it here to the States and make it work here,” says Wesley. “So after I came back we ordered a few and sold them on Facebook.”

[…]  Soon thereafter, the two formed The Head Panda and decided to expand their business across the Bay Area. During the San Francisco Giants’ home opener in April, the two set up shop near the Third Street Bridge across from AT&T Park. Hoping to capitalize on some Kung Fu Panda supporters, the pair arrived with 170 panda hats in hand at 11:00 am for a 1:05 pm first pitch. They sold out by 12:45 pm.

While the article at hand didn't really discuss the developing cool kid embrace of panda bear head-warming technology, it did make a passing reference to the phenomenon growing beyond Pablo “Kung-Fu Panda” Sandoval:

…they have added few other animals—fox, bunny, sheep, lion, husky, tiger, and bears to their list. Since their debut in March, they have launched their official website where one can buy a plush friend of their own anytime.

With their expansion, the two have also begun to have their brand recognized outside of Giants games. A few weeks ago, Jon sported a henna tattoo of the company’s logo on his arm. while sitting in class at City College of San Francisco. A classmate recognized the logo from a panda hat she bought at a Giants game.

So there you go…. panda, husky and the elusive 'el tigre' awaits the heads of tweens and cool kids pushing the boundaries of what it means to be fauxhemiam.  Hell, even the knockoff artists are getting into the game for those of you looking to save a buck or two:

(photo by earlyadopter)