Mission District

A Man in a Burrito Costume Wants YOU to Donate to Killing My Lobster

It's December, which means it is the time of the year in which every non-profit not just wants your money, but REALLY wants your money.  Well, San Francisco-based comedy troupe/comedy school Killing My Lobster (makers of the acclaimed Coffee Wars, Man Vs. Wild: Berkeley, and Oakland! shorts) also REALLY wants your money.  Only, instead of showing you pictures of starving children, meth addicts, and puppies, their call for donations is full of costumed individuals.  What do they want the money for?  Office Space.  Equipment rentals.  And more costumes, of course.

Donate, if you're so inclined.

Spreading Christmas Cheer at 16th and Mission

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

And the angel said unto them, 'Fear not: for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.' 

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.

Weekly Neighbourhood Vandalism Update: 24th and Valencia Edition

Emilie Ridley is South African by way of Cape Cod. He attended Evergreen college in the late 70s, where he experimented with acid in a polygamist tribe before moving to San Francisco to open a biodegradable dog kennel business. He has been here ever since. This is his story…

This is concerned citizen Emilie Ridley here, bringing the community an update on the damages perpetrated by trespassing vandals in our neighbourhood.

This would-be Charles Burns dreams up a smashing, vile concept:  brats of the future have TWO mouths which shout “WOOO” in the night.

I ate sushi last Tuesday, except mine was not nearly as unpleasant as this supposedly artistic defecation. Since then I've gone vegan. Does your food have a face? 

Oh, this is a depiction of me? How lovely. I just drew a picture of you, in my hankerchief, with my bloody nostrils, you rot wankers.

Winos in San Francisco? I hadn't quite noticed.  Oh wait, the whole lot of you were sprawled retching on my porch this morning.

If it weren't bad enough with all the “WOO!”-ing, litter and awful smell, now those meddling kids are “gussying up” our walls with scribbles from their meaningless childhoods.

Next week, I'll take you on a disheartening tour into the depraved antics of so-called Saint Nicks.  A Merry Christmas, indeed.

Mexican Food For Marina Residents Headed to Valencia

Inside Scoop is reporting that Marina taco shop Tacolicious, along with a new tequila bar, is coming to Valencia @19th:

Assuming all goes to plan, owner Joe Hargrave is hoping for a late spring/early summer debut in the Mission. The second Tacolicious location will mirror the original in many ways, from the lively vibe to the farm-fresh purveyors to most of the menu itself

Executive chef Telmo Faria, who will oversee both locations, says that they’ll add a bicycle delivery service, ranging from 30th to 15th and Folsom to Dolores Park, or thereabouts. And just for laughs, the Marina Girl salad will be replaced by the Skinny Jeans salad.

It's going to be really interesting to see how this place does amongst countless real taquerias.  It makes sense that Tacolicious works on Chestnut because the Marina doesn't have any good Mexican food, but Valencia?  You'd think people wouldn't even bother.

Regardless of whether people will eat here or not, I'm most interested to see if the HipNimbys Chicken John FREAKS THE FUCK OUT that a Marina-based chain is invading Valencia Street.  After all, this is pretty much the 1967 Arab-Israeli War all over again

(link / illustration via Inside Scoop - Thanks for the tip, Henri!)

Vandalism Increasing on Public Art

The SF Chronicle ran a story on the growing number of tags going up on public art:

Increasingly, sculptures, monuments and a diversity of public art installations are falling victim to the same disrespect that sidewalks, walls and street signs have long suffered - unauthorized graffiti tagging and vandalism.

“In previous years, an incident would happen every two or three months, but lately it seems to be … happening monthly,” said Marcus Davies, the Arts Commission's civic art collection registrar.

It's a growing concern because the commission has a mere $15,000 of its $11 million yearly budget to clean up the tags, carvings and other unwanted artistic contributions to the 3,500-piece, $90 million collection, said Luis Cancel, the commission's director of cultural affairs.

The Chronicle goes on to say that every time someone tags a piece of work owned by the Arts Commission, it costs the city $5,000 because special care must be taken to clean up art (as opposed to just painting over a utility box).

The Arts Commission isn't the only one noticing the rise in vandalism.  KKKatie, who was infamous in her graffiti bombings of murals, public buildings and public artwork, might be rotting in prison, but people have  picked up where she left off.  Cancer Carl, whose tags and pieces can be seen all over the city, recently took it upon himself to hit the Banksy of Sycamore.  Another tagger bombed the mural on Public Works (it has since been painted over, as seen in this photo).  The mural on Valencia and 19th was getting hit so much this summer that they just painted over the entire thing a month ago.  The Chronicle is clearly going after the easy story (“taggers defacing city-owned art costing taxpayers bank”), but the situation, while certainly not a recent one, is not exclusive to city property.

Which brings me to the photo I used for this post.  The other day I was walking past Clarion Alley, which sits directly across from a police station, and I saw this bitch wearing all black (seen standing in the middle of the shot next to her leather-fetish boyfriend) making bold strokes with a silver pen over a mural.  I stopped and started fumbling for my camera, but her friend saw me, said something to her and she stopped.  Instead of just walking away, she attempted to shield herself from my view and started photographing her tag, as some sort of trophy honoring her 15-second accomplishment.

Even if I don't agree with it, I've always understood why kids tag.  But aren't 20-somethings supposed to have moved past it? It really blows to watch career baristas trashing what makes the city a pleasure to live in.

(Read the whole thing over at SFgate)

The Leftover Sandwich: Meat-Eater's Edition

I already ejaculated all over Ike's vegan version of the same sandwich (summary: it's really good!), so I feel it is my duty that there is a cheap, meat-filled version available now at Zeitgeist.  I wasn't able to review the dish myself, but I'd personally lose my shit for any sandwich that was filled with mashed taters.

Also, my friends and I snapped a photo in Zeitgeist.  We're such badasses.

The Chronicle Discovers "San Francisco's mad, marvelous Mission District"

The Chronicle featured a “virtual stroll” through the Mission today, much to the delight of SFgate commenters (“Thank goodness its only a virtual tour.” / “Beautiful. And smells way better from the comfort of my living room.”).  On face value, there is nothing wrong with a virtual tour of the Mission, especially if it satiates C.W. Nevius fans' desire to explore the neighborhood.  However, this photoessay is a bizarre journey into a Mission that no longer remains.

According to the Chronicle, 12 Galaxies is still open, Bruno's continues to serve food, a “quasi-verified” Banksy mural remains above Amnesia, and Excelsior is actually part of the Mission.  They even mention Mr. TV, who I haven't seen on Valencia since the Summer.

Call me a hater, but shit like this just makes me feel pity for the dying publication.

(Side note, why does Google maps list Buena Vista and Dolores as the same park?)

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