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)

Sunset Ocean Skaters from dreamerafterall.com on Vimeo.

This video isn't a must watch, but good way to squander a minute before getting back to being productive.

September 19th, 2010, on the beautiful Montara beach not far from San Francisco. Surfers were flirting with gentle waves in a playful way, safe from the great white sharks. They were looking like skaters on the ocean, offering an amusing sight to a young lady sitting in the sand, patiently waiting for her very own surfer to reappear.

I've never been to an ODDBALL FILMS movie night before, but this screening is pretty tempting.  Their press release, stolen from Mission Loc@l:

The Obsession With Things That Go
Event: “Hot Wheels!” Guest curator Pete Gowdy and Oddball Films present an evening of rare 16mm films about things that go- cars, bikes, skateboards, soapbox cars and more. Featured films include Roller Skate Safely (1981), early 80s quads in action; Dust Eaters (1955), “dust eaters”, “grease monkeys” and the “birds” they race- wild souped-up jalopies!; Tough On Two Wheels (1955), awesome British bikes in action!; The Bike Parade (1938), vintage bicycle bonanza; Skateboarding to Safety, skateboarding in all its 1970s glory; Motor Mania (1950), mild-mannered Goofy goes berserk when he gets behind the wheel; Automania 2000 (1963), Oscar-nominated animation from the brilliant Halas & Batchelor Studio and much more!
Date: Friday, September 17, 2010 at 8:30PM

Oddball Films
275 Capp St San Francisco
Limited Seating $10.00 RSVP Only
info@oddballfilm.com or
415-558-8117

(link)

If you missed last year's Chilibowl at Potrero del Sol, it was 'fucking tight' and definitely worth checking out this year.  To quote what I wrote about the occasion last summer:

The Chilibowl was an incredible way to squander away a Saturday afternoon: water balloons full of beer, a blood geyser coming out of a guy’s head, filthy jokes from the announcers, a punk band playing awesome songs like “you are dead, motherfucker” and “crack on Mission St.” within a few dozen yards of a playground full of children, and, of course, skateboarding.

That's right, not only is the Chilibowl full of shittalking and blood, it's at Potrero del Sol, which is just like Dolores Park without the cops, trash and whiny neighbors.  If you want to get psyched up for a good time, check out this crappy iPhone video I shot + edited last year with some weak-ass Dan the Automator track dumped on top of it:

If skateboarding sounds like too much fun and you'd rather do more of the same old shit, a bunch of local businesses are shutting down 18th from Dolores to Guerrero so you can drink wine and eat food on the pavement near Dolores Park, as opposed to the urine-soaked grass you usually enjoy.  (link)