Twin Peaks Sunrise

This day started at 5:20am and went until 2:30am the next day. After another one of our famous fort rumpuses in the empty upstairs room, Meghan, Barrett, Corinna, Amy and I awoke to our alarms at 5:20 to get up to Twin Peaks to watch the sunrise. We got ready, putting on many layers, met Chelsie, Maria and Nick down in the kitchen and sleepily left the house to walk around in the morning chill and find the van. We piled in and made the drive up to Twin Peaks. Obviously when we parked and got out of the van it was still dark, so we made our way up the rest of the hill on foot in the freezing wind hitting us. We had to wait about eight minutes (though it felt like an eternity) in the dark, and just when we felt like we wanted nothing more than to head back to the warmth of the car, the first glimmer of the suns rays were visible behind the hills, beginning to light the whole dark city below. It was like nothing I can describe in words and pictures cannot do it justice. It was however, one of the most revered moments of my life: sitting on a hilltop with good friends all around me, watching the sunrise in the quite morning air, lighting the city I've come to love so much with a soft warm glow. That is a hard moment to beat.

Left to Right: Meghan, Me, Corinna, Barrett, Amy, Chelsie, Maria all on top of Twin Peaks.

Corinna, Me and San Francisco!

Cliche, but I love this pictures series. Especially us dancing. Funny thing is, we had no idea Nick was taking these. Now that is capturing the moment. :)

After the sun had risen, we decided to explore more parts of the early morning city. Our next stop? The Cliff house! We made it off the beaten path a bit and ended up climbing down the cliffs to some tide pools and caves.

But not before Barrett and I had the chance to fight on the Cliff House balcony. Typical...gotta love our roommate relationship.

The discover of several very neat caves made it onto our agenda...and this was all before breakfast! Amazing!

Since it was only 7:45, we decided to head over to one of the most popular pancake spots in town. They always have a huge line out the door, but they open at 8, so we were able to get a table. Cute little place in the Mission with delicious lemon blueberry pancakes, amongst other things. Funny side story: As I was eating, I began looking at the artwork on the walls. Much of it seemed to have the same qualities as the artwork I see at The Arc everyday. I looked over to pleasantly be surprised by a name of an artist I recognized, and they were from The Arc. This pancake place was sponsoring artists from The Arc and helping sell their work, which I later read on a place that was on the wall. Totally made my day (as if this day could have gotten any better).

We decided it was time to get the van back to the house in case it was needed for more important things. Also, we weren't sure we were really supposed to be joy riding around the city in it.

It was about 10 by the time we got back and we were all still going strong, so the next stop on our list? The hair salon for some feather extensions. Never thought I'd participate in something so on the hype, but Barrett, Meghan, Becky, Amy and I all agreed we'd get them together before leaving the city.

As we were coming back from getting our feathers, we were taken by surprise by Merna, who had seen us get off the bus and hidden on some one's front porch so she could jump out at us (have I mentioned how much I love the Urban staff? haha). Anyway, we talked to Merna for a while and then decided it would be best to go get some lunch. So, after lunch, I'm not gonna lie, it was pretty difficult to stay awake. But, it was already almost 3:00, so we decided it wouldn't be wise to fall asleep at that point. The park was our solution. We headed over to bask in the sunshine and try to get some home work done. All it resulted in was us talking, looking at the clouds and drawing thins on each others limbs. A very hippie reminiscent SF afternoon if I do say so myself. We we again greeted by Merna who as walking by and saw us. She hung out with us for a bit, until the sun began going down and it was getting too cold to stay outside. We headed back to the house for dinner and to see what our next activity would be. Silent Disco anyone?
That's right. Our evening plans consisted of a Silent Disco. For those of you who may not know what that is, it does not mean people awkwardly dance with no music. Everyone is given a pair of headphones to wear and the DJ plays the same thing on everyone's headphone station. Pretty great idea. However, we thought it started at 10, but it actually began at 11, so we had about 45 mins to kill. We ended up wandering into a small diner that has been on Market St. since 1916. We ordered some sodas and put a quarter in the juke box to request some songs. It felt like we'd stepped into the past for a while.

We eventually made it to the silent disco, which turned out to be a blast! Hilarious when you'd take off your headphones and the whole room was quite with a bunch of people dancing about like they're in a club.

We got home around 2:20 and all fell into bed, exhausted. Meghan didn't even make it to her bed, but spent the night curled up next to me on the foot of my bed.

Another best day to add to the list. I felt like this picture of our shadows was a good ending point. This was when we drove into Golden Gate Park to see the buffalo before breakfast that morning.

If Breaking into a Hotel wasn't Enough...

Friday night comes around and we've got no plans. Nothing to worry about, since we always manage to find something to do in this amazing city. After laying on Meghan's floor for a good three hours after dinner, we eventually thought it would feel so good to go in a hot tub. Well, we are in San Francisco! One of the biggest tourist traps, making it home to many hotels down near the theater district. We found that the Hilton had a pool and jacuzzi, so off we went to catch the 5 Fulton. So basically, Meghan, Corinna, Barrett, Amy and I have to be the worst at sneaking into somewhere we aren't supposed to be. All of us were freaking out as we were about to go into the lobby. Then we realized that this is a huge hotel and that no one would know if were were staying there or not. We found out what floor the pool was on and got on the elevator. When we got to the doors to the pool we had to wait for someone with a card key to open the door for us. Down the hall a hotel staff person was walking towards us. We panicked and ran around the corner all filing into a single stall bathroom, slamming the door behind us, well actually we quickly tried to find room to close the door since five people was about four too many to be in this bathroom. A few seconds later we realized how ridiculous we were being and so we sent Corinna out to see if anyone was around to open the pool door. A couple was coming back into the hotel, so Corinna grabbed the door behind them and we all ran back out of the bathroom towards the pool.
Despite our paranoia we were able to enjoy at least a good 30 minutes of relaxing hot tub time. However, we failed to think about the fact that we were going to have to ride the bus back, in the cold, all wet. Totally worth it haha. To warm up, we stopped by one of our favorite restaurants, Little Delhi, for some delicious $1 Hot Chai Tea. Meghan went in to get us some to go and the rest of us stood outside and waited. While we were waiting for her, a woman right in front of us was pulling away from the curb in her car, as another guy tried to catch the yellow light in the intersection behind her. They collided right in front of us and both got out of their cars, the man yelling (mostly profanities and insults about the woman's driving). A couple that was standing next to us outside the restaurant began getting involved, screaming at the man to calm down and "shut the f--- up!" All four of us were shocked that these random people were so angry over this fender bender. A few seconds later a motorcycle cop arrived and began trying to calm everyone down. After about a minute more of screaming between the man in the accident and the couple that had been bystanders, the cop yells "You", pointing at the couple, "shut up and get going, since this really doesn't concern you. And You sir", turning to the man in the accident, "need to calm down immediately."

Oh the things you see just walking down the street here. Pretty fascinating. On the bus ride back we had another interesting, though more comical and less angry experience. On Muni buses, in order to get the back doors to open when the bus stops, you must step down into the stairwell. Obviously first time Muni riders don't know this. Most simply look confused and then flustered as everyone on the bus begins yelling "step down" at them, however, this man chose to handle things differently. The bus stops and the man waiting to get out doesn't know how to open the door. Before anyone could yell instructions at him, he screams at the top of his lungs and then begins to moan "Driver, let me out. Let me out please!" To make the guy stop yelling, the driver opened the back door, but the guy was too busy yelling to notice. Just as they are closing, he realizes and tries to hop out. The man standing next to him jokingly goes "Oh, missed your chance." The man then starts screaming again "I'm trapped! They are holding me hostage! Crazy Californians!" The bus driver again opened the door for him and everyone on the bus starts yelling "Go! The doors are open! Go now!" As he exits the bus he yells "I'm from New York. We don't have to deal with things like this! But thank you for releasing me!" Hilarious!

And people say San Franciscan's are wacked. NY could give SF a run for it's money.

What a night.

A "bombastic" Final Site Vist.

Well, in the closing of the semester, final site visits came around. We were instructed to give 15-20 min presentations in a meeting with our site supervisor and a member of the urban staff. Meredith and I received a phone call from the reception desk that Barry had arrived for me and we went downstairs to one of the conference rooms, me with my learning contract and several examples of my semester work in hand.

Usually I am not a good presentation giver, but this was easy. One, because it was only with two other people, and I know them both pretty well; and two, because it was something I am now really very passionate about, making it fun to share my thoughts and what I've learned with others.

I went through my learning contract goals one by one, giving Barry examples of work I'd done and then having Meredith provide feedback. I showed some tangible examples of my semester work (newsletters, photos, designs) and told some stories that exemplified some of the principles I've learned.
Barry thanked me for my presentation and told me I'd done well. Meredith and I returned upstairs, discussing the presentation. As we set foot back in the office door, the phone rang; it was the reception desk calling to tell us that Brad and another woman were here for me. Confused, Meredith and I wandered back downstairs. Brad apologized for being late, explaining he had hoped to sit in on my presentation with Tatiana (a board member from Westmont, visiting to evaluate the Urban program). He asked if I would mind giving it briefly again. So, I got out another copy of my learning contract, went into the gallery and gave my entire 15 minute presentation again. About half way through, Brad gets this worried look on his face, says "Oh I'm so sorry. I've just remembered I didn't lock my car and my computer is in there", and runs out of the room, leaving me and Tatiana to sit and wait, trying to make conversation.
What an awesome experience.

The day just got better, as we were having community dinner provided by Meghan and Katie. They sent out an email, saying it was theme dinner (we often have those) and everyone should dress "bombastic". I walk into the house to find Merna standing in the hallway looking well, hella bombastic (like my Nor Cal slang? haha). Black sequined skirt, stilettos, eye makeup, glitzy rings and chewing bubble gum. "Merna! Whoa..." I exclaimed. "Well, I'm just dressing the part. Want some gum?" Before I could answer, Brad comes walking down the hallway looking not so bombastic, but trying desperately with a sombrero on his head. Yep, that's our staff. Man, I love living in this house with all it's crazy people. Great theme dinner! Great day!

I'm 20

Since it was Easter weekend, I was able to head home for a couple days and also celebrate some of my birthday with my family before I left on Monday. Easter was good, but quite this year. We had our annual egg hunt and a good brunch with the family. Monday I was able to have lunch with my family before I headed back on a plane to SF.

When I got back to the house a couple good friends took me out to dinner, which was great. We went out for delicious Thai food, thanks to Corinna for being equivalent to google and knowing several restaurant reviews off the top of her head.

Anyway, we got a little bored waiting for the bus on the way back and began taking pictures.
Nick, Barrett, Meghan and I trying to sit on the bar after Meghan had just fallen off...pretty funny.

Piggy back rides from Barrett!And proposals from Meghan... Apparently I rejected her with a punch to the face haha. Poor Meggy...

Thanks for a great birthday, guys! I can't believe I'm 20! Weird...but I think it'll be a good year. :)

Like usual, the bus ride back was incredibly entertaining. The bus was packed, so we were all standing in a very tight space. This woman behind me began talking to man that was several people in front of me. She began accusing him of staring at her, calling him many obscene names, threatening that a cop lived in her building, and if he didn't stop looking at her, she'd call him up. I'm not really sure what she expected, since she was freaking out and the entire bus was looking at her. During the ride, the bus lurched forward and Nick stumbled back into the lady. Barrett, Nick and I all thought "Oh no! She is going to start cussing him out now." But, in a very normal and sweet voice, after Nick timidly said he was sorry, she goes "Oh, that's quite alright." A second later? She goes back to yelling at the same guy for sexual harassment or whatever she thought he was doing. Interesting people reside here, that is for sure.

What is Gender?

A simple question to answer, yes? Perhaps if we still lived in a world were male and female was roles were limiting and clearly defined. Where men are seen as the providers, the protectors, the dominate in society; and where women are put in the roles of the nurturers, the supporters and the submissive. I'm not saying that they can't be any of those things, but let's be honest, we are far past these primitive notions of men must be the sole providers and that women cannot (or should not) hold a job or live independently (just a few examples). And, if we are being really honest, we can see that gender isn't as black and white or as simple as male and female. There is a whole community becoming more and more prevalent of gender non-conformists, transgendered and transsexual people. Weather you believe it is right, wrong or don't have an opinion on it, we can't ignore the fact that it is there.
Last week we had a speaker come to the house for our Urban Studies seminar to speak to us about transgender issues. So many questions were brought up that I had never even begun to think of before. Until Willie came to speak I wasn't aware of how little I knew about the transgender community. You often hear about "Transgender" when talking about the LGBT acronym, grouping it with three sexual orientations instead of dealing with it as a subject of gender identity, which is what it is.
This gets to the root of the question of what exactly is gender? I confidently can say I am female, but what truly makes me female? Obviously it must be more that just what chromosome I was given or what I look like. I believe it has to even go somewhat beyond the cultural expectations placed on my gender. These questions are hard ones to answer. Yes, I am a woman, but no, I do not want to be mostly defined by my femininity. I refuse to be held to certain expectations or roles because I am female. I want to be held to expectations based on who I am, not what I am. Though it must contribute, I don't believe I am who I am simply because I am female.
Now, to get even more confusing, what if a person doesn't feel as if they are the gender they are born? Essentially that is what a transgendered person is. We hear terms like "transvestite" or "drag queen/king", but don't realize that these are people who often simply "play" with gender. Yes, these people often belong to the LGB community, but fall more into the category of gender non-conformists rather than people seeking to become and belong to the opposite gender.
Interesting things to think about. How do you tell someone that they must love who they are if they feel as if every part of them doesn't belong to the gender they were born? How do you dismiss some one's feelings if they are uncomfortable going into their gender's bathroom? It is difficult for most of the population, having never felt these particular insecurities, to understand where people who feel this way are coming from. But, just because it is difficult to understand, doesn't mean it isn't a legitimate issue.
Though confusing, I'm glad I've been given these opportunities to be exposed to different members of the population regarding not just this topic, but many others as well. I hope that I can come to respect, even if I don't fully comprehend, others that are different than I am, no matter their differences.
Thoughts on this?

"Laughter is an instant vacation"

It's days like today that I can look back on, recall the smallest details and have one of the biggest smiles put upon my face. From start to finish this day was jam packed with good things.
No sleeping in on this Saturday. Most of us were up at 8 to head to Karen's house for brunch. After getting off the bus three stops too early and then walking half a mile uphill in the wrong direction, we eventually arrived about half an hour later than we were planning (whoops). We enjoyed a nice morning brunch, some hang out time in Karen's living room, a tour of Jacob's (her nine year old son) tree house and to top it all off, some hilarious mad-libs. I left Karen's happy, full and hoping to make some headway on my homework. That didn't work out too well for when we arrived back at the house, Barrett, Meghan and I decided it would be a good idea to try and play frisbee between our windows. That activity lead to the frisbee falling and getting stuck on the roof, so we had to go out our window and get it. That then lead to us trying to find a spot on the roof to hang out. We eventually found our spot on the third story and proceeded to bring some snacks and our computers, hoping we would all make some headway on the research paper. That didn't work out too well as we began people watching passers-by on the street below, yelling hello to them, and spotting some cherries growing in the tree in front of us.
Excited about our find, Barrett and I ran downstairs to try and pick some. Barrett climbed the tree, while I stood on the sidewalk catching the cherries she threw to me and Meghan looked over the edge of the roof from two stories up. A woman running by stopped, gave me one of the weirdest looks (I then realized people could not see Barrett in the tree, so I looked like I was talking to it) and turned to ask me if I lived in the house. I told her I did and she asked what it was. I was forced to explain the whole "it's an off-campus college program" spiel to her while I looked like an idiot who had just been talking to a tree,, when really, Barrett was the total creep crouched in the tree. Anyway, I threw some cherries up to Meghan (that took a few tries) and we all tried to eat them. They were bitter and disgusting, but still worth the fun trip down stairs and a good distraction from homework.
By that time, we had to start getting ready to go for our trip down the coast to Pie Ranch in Pescadero for their monthly pot-luck and Barn Dance! YeeHaw! Meghan and I threw some cornbread in the oven for the pot-luck, got ready and the minute the cornbread was done we bolted out the door to make a quick stop at the Bernal Heights Library branch to pick up a copy of "Where the Wild Things Are" (yes, the children's book...I'll explain later) before exiting the city.
The hour and a half drive was filled with laughter, amazement, rejoicing and many fond memories. Meghan was riding shotgun and had full control of the radio, so we sang and danced for a good while. Amy had fallen asleep in the very back row of the car and Barrett and Meghan urged me to take a detour down a road that looked like "fairyville" (but really, it did). It is amazing. You drive half an hour outside SF and you are in what looks like a foreign land...I'd even go so far as to say Narnia ;) The landscape was beautiful! However, for most of the drive we were caught in a lot of fog, so you couldn't see a lot, but it did add to the mystery of the places. Any who, back to the detour to fairyville. We came out of the road at a culdesac with a bunch of cute, but run down houses near the fields and beach. Meghan goes "Talk about your fixer upper", quoting the Lion King, which we had watched recently to compare qualities Mufassa and Brad Berky (our program director) share; we concluded that they are one in the same. As Meghan finished speaking, I see Amy's head pop up in the rear view mirror and the following utterance comes out of her mouth, "Talk about yovef heo sufefh sluf...". Had to be there, but one of the funniest moments of the semester. I think Barrett and I were crying and Becky took almost a full five mins to regain a normal breathing pattern. None of us knew what she had said!
Still laughing, we got back on the main highway towards Pescadero. A few mins later, Barrett screams from behind me and all of us turn to look at her (well, not me of course, since I was driving and would never avert my eyes from the road...). She was looking out the window and pointing into the fog. We all glanced to our left and saw King Kong. No joke! It was a thirty-forty foot tall gorilla standing in the field on the side of the road. What the hell is wrong with Northern CA? Love it.
As we drove further, we decided the beach to our right was too tempting to not pull off and look at. Still making our way through the fog, we got out of the car to join hands and spring through a field of wild flowers towards the deserted beach. It was like a scene from a movie, seriously. We ran around the beach and cliffs for a while, taking some pictures and then finally getting back in the car to chow down of the corn bread that was now our dinner, since we had sacrificed the pot luck for our epic beach adventure.
I love these girls so much! Band pose...we have too much fun

So many things going on in this picture...haha

At this point, we were finally nearing our destination, though we were having such a great time in the car already. Then, this happened to make us forget about our destination for a few mins. We turned around a bend and one of the most beautiful, amazing scenes I've ever seen was before my eyes. Picture this, the fog suddenly clears as we round the corner and a landscape of fields and hills stretches before us on our left with the setting sun lighting it up, making the colors warm and vibrant and glowing. To the right of the mountains are some puffy pink clouds with golden linings that rise above the crashing ocean waves that are to the right, also illuminated by the glow of the evening sun. Part of me is sad I didn't have my camera with me to snap a photo, but the other part of me is glad because I was able to fully capture the moment with my mind instead of worrying if my photo would depict what I was seeing as accurately as possible. Interesting thought...but for another time. Anyway, I feel as if now I MUST move to Nor Cal some day...everything about it seems to be so right for me, but that's also another topic. Upon seeing this sight all of us went silent and then all let our screams of awe.

Though this journey was amazing in itself, we had an amazing evening, dancing the night away to the live country band and swingin' our partner's round and round. Who knew square dancing could be so much fun?! We each danced a few dances with each other as well as some guys who asked us to dance. I have never laughed so much at a dance in my life. It was excellent.

The drive home was also eventful...how could it not be with this bunch? We looked for several places to stop along the way in hopes of cooling off in the ocean. We couldn't find a good spot for beach access and gave up after a long drive down a rather creepy dark road, where Meghan thought it would be a good idea to bring up the topic of who the third twin was between her, me and Barrett (evil twin running an ice cream shop...long story). Barrett and I both said it was her because of Barretts impervious logic that Meghan is also Lord Voldmort. I chimed in saying very matter-of-factly that "If Lord Voldmort was in the car, I wouldn't even care about crashing it." Cause that makes perfect sense! Like I said, eventful drive.

When we arrived home, surprisingly enough we didn't head to bed. We didn't even start getting ready for bed. We built a fort!!! Corinna, Meghan, Barrett, Amy and I took over a third floor room and had a mild (as opposed to a wild) rumpus, complete with Barrett's dramatic reading of "Where the Wild Things Are" before the lights went out. Like girls do, we lay there for another 45 mins talking about different things and actually having some pretty deep and constructive conversations.

I apologize for the length of this post, but the small details are mostly for my record. This had to be one of the most fun days of my life with some of the most amazing people I've had the opportunity to become friends with this semester.

My First Baseball Game was a lot O' Orange

Giants vs. the Dodgers at AT&T Park. And you know what? I rooted for SF instead of LA...what can I say? I guess it's captured my heart. Actually, I think to truly call yourself a San Franciscan, one must support the Giants since they won the World Series last season. :) As you can see, we were pretty dang excited! We all had so many layers on...it was freezing!

Corinna and I were very eager to get in the gates.

AT&T Park: Home of the San Francisco Giants.

Meghan, Nick, Corinna and Barrett all ready for the game to begin.

Their field has an amazing view! And, if you look closely at the screen, you'll see Brian Wilson! The Giant's pitcher, whom we (mainly Barrett) are mildly obsessed with.

Barrett, Me, Becky and Amy...and a GIANT (haha get it?) baseball glove.

The stadium also offers an excellent view of the Bay Bridge, so obviously we all had to get a picture in front of it (even if you can't see it...it's that small string of lights in the background).

Well, it was a great night, filled with many cheers, screams and laughs. The Giants won, walking out of the stadium was like nothing I've ever experienced, and the long walk to Market St. to catch a less busy bus was much needed. But seriously, getting out of there was ridiculous. You know how most crowds are angry and pushy? Well, not this one. Everyone was so excited the Giants won, so all the fans were singing and smoking pot to celebrate while in the multi-level ramp that took about 10 mins to get down. Only in SF...

I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed my first baseball game and have since become a Giants fan. Go Giants!

Friday, April 8, 2011

Little Moments, Big Smiles

This post is a dedication to one of my favorite people I've had the privilege of meeting. Howard, one of our clients, who is famous for his many exotic hats and guitar playing, walked into our office yesterday to find me addressing letters. He began talking to me about the new song he'd just learned to play and then stopped, picking up the picture of Rosie the Riveter that was laying on my desk. He goes "Dnelle," (that's kind of what it sounds like when he says my name)"who is this?"
"That's the iconic image of Rosie the Riveter" I replied.
"Oh yeah, I know Rosie", he said, "But where did I meet her, Dnelle?"
"I don't know, Howard. I've never had the privilege of meeting her."
Upon seeing me addressing envelopes, he says "So, you are sending letters?"
"Yes."
"Can you do me a favor? Send one to Rosie for me. Say 'Dear Rosie, This is from Howard and I miss you. I want to talk to you soon. From Howard.' Make sure she knows it's from me."
I couldn't help but have a huge smile on my face as I assured him I'd get right on that.
He then strolled back out of the office saying "Thank you! Make sure you say 'From Howard'."
:)

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Oh the People I Meet...

Last Wednesday I had the privilege of attending a church in the city called Glide Memorial, which is located in the Tender Loin District (famous for being one of the poorest parts of town). Glide is often referred to as "a last stop for people seeking a higher order". One of their main philosophies, after loving God and accepting Christ, is loving and accepting all people of all types, backgrounds, social standing etc. They wish to achieve a community where the marginalized are accepted. After they pray they finish with "amen, praise God, right on, namaste, shalom". All this makes for a very interesting mix of people and a very unique church experience.
The first half of the service was pretty much what you'd expect from any charismatic church environment, but about half way thorough, things go interesting. The pastor was well into his sermon, when a man walked up and asked if he could have a seat next to me on the bench. I of course, told him he could, trying not to show any reaction to what he was wearing, which included the following: grey slacks, a blue dress shirt, a black and white floral print dress over top, a plastic lei of green leaves around his neck and some in his hair. But, the best additions were the bright pink wig over his long dread locks and a button pinned to his dreaded beard, reading "I heart trans". If his attire wasn't enough, he had the personality to match. As he sat down and situated his three large purses, he turned to me and said "I'm Edmund Juicy! What's your name?"
As we prepared for a song, he grabbed one of his handbags on the floor and begun digging through it. He pulled out a maraca and commanded me to hold it for him. He re-closed his bag, set it on the floor and took the maraca abruptly from me, then getting up to dance around the room with it, shouting "Hope" at the top of his lungs. When the sermon resumed, Mr. Edmund Juicy sat back down and began digging though a bag again. He turned to me saying, "I was looking for my peppermint gum and instead guess what I found instead?! My marijuana breath spritzer!" He then lifted it up and said "Thank you, Lord", sprayed it into his mouth, lifted again thanking Jesus and put it away. I didn't even know that existed...oh well.
The fun didn't stop there. As we began the final song, Edmund commanded everyone in our row to stand up, pulling out some pom pom's from the depths of his bag. He handed one to Becky, who was on the other side of me and then grabbed my left hand, forcing me to dance around the room with him and his pom poms. What an experience...
The unusual encounters weren't over for the day. Becky and I were walking down Market St., where we ran into Barrett (I run into her all over the city...it's really weird) and decided to try out this breakfast place called Dottie's. We'd heard good things about it and it always has a line out in front, indicating it's worth the wait. We got in line and the man in front of us began chatting. He was with his high school aged daughter and they had just come from serving in a soup kitchen downtown. She was really not into talking with us, where as he acted ecstatic to have people willing to talk with him. She eventually went inside to sit down, loosing interest in the conversation. At this, he goes "Alright, now we can have some fun."
He pulled out a folded up piece of paper and asked me when my birthday was. "April 25", I replied, very confused. He looked at the piece of paper, and told me that my "archetype" was a Queen of Diamonds, meaning I am the "Master Teacher". He then did the same for Becky and Barrett, who are apparently the "Ultimate Giver" and also "Master Teacher". He was thrilled to learn that Barrett and I were the same thing and began to tell us what our vocation in life should be. We must watch out for other because we both have the gift of assessing situations and we have a great capacity for dexterity and the ability to teach through our actions and words. We also apparently are able to finish each other's sentences, know what the other person is thinking and could talk every night and never run out of things to talk about. We thought we could attribute some of that to the fact that we have been living with each other for a year haha. Becky apparently cannot go into Criminal Justice (her major) because she can't stand to see people suffer and her ability to give will get in the way-generous to a fault is what he said.
At that point, his daughter and him were called to sit down for their meal, but not before he wrote down a website with natural precautions you can take to protect yourself against radiation poisoning because "the world needs people like [us] to stick around a little longer."
Wow, all we wanted were some pancakes and we ended up getting our fortunes read in line. Oh, San Francisco, you never fail to surprise me.
The pancakes were delicious and we spent the rest of the afternoon taking advantage of the free day at the Asian Art Museum. What a day.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Chuch Experiences

Becky, Corinna, Barrett and I made our way over to Portrero Hill to attend a Church called Sojourners. It is a community of people that redefine what "family" means. Most of them live in several houses together and meet for dinner and worship every Sunday evening in the living room of one of the houses. We found out about it because one of our speakers for the Urban program lives in this community and is the pastor. He is homosexual and has chosen to live a celibate life, making this community a good option for his life. It was incredible to be welcomed into this diverse setting. So many people of different age, gender, social standing-it really was beautiful to see them all under one roof in genuine acceptance and love of one another and their troubles they bring. One thing I took away from the service was the principle of affirmation. There was time set aside to affirm each other within the community. It is a regular thing that they do, meaning it didn't have to be this big one-time production. It was very simple and personal, like "I enjoyed spending time with you doing this activity last week." It was a really refreshing form of affirmation that is a good reminder to what it does or doesn't have to be. This last Sunday, Barrett and I attended a service at a church called St. Gregory Episcopal, which is very rooted in the arts. It was unlike anything I'd ever experienced in a church service. The round ceiling of the room was lined with about 100 different painted "saints", including figures like Lady Godiva, Martin Luther King, Queen Elizabeth, Gandhi, William Butler Yeats, all surrounding Jesus in the center. I appreciated that they recognized these figures in society in a way, but am not entirely sure exactly how I feel about representing them as saints. Anyway, at the end of the service, we gathered in a circle and danced around as we sang the final song-very different experience. One thing that was done in both of these churches that I'd never done before was passing communion. I've always had to come up to the front and there are two decided people standing there to give you communion. Both Sojourners and St. Gregory's pass the bread and cup around the room, requiring the act to be more participatory, as you give it to your neighbor as you have just received it. I really enjoyed this personal aspect that was added to the ceremony by doing it this way.

Monday, March 28, 2011

Banksy Day!

This Saturday morning, we awoke and came up with a plan of setting out into the city and seeing every Banksy mural. If you don't know about Banksy, here is a link to his website http://www.banksy.co.uk/index.html, so you can go check him out. He is an anonymous street artist who goes by the name of Banksy and is famous for his black and white street art, often with red graffiti lettering near by and a political meaning. His murals originally began springing up in the early 2000's in the UK, but can now be seen many places around the world. I absolutely love his work! I think he is amazing. Anyway, Meghan, Barrett, Corinna and I decided to go on an expedition: 6 Murals, 6 Miles, 6 Hours 6 Courses. We kept great photo documentation, and even kept a Captain's log. We also turned this walking expedition into a progressive picnic, hence the 6 courses. We packed a course for each mural, where we stopped to eat it...lots of food haha. The first one was on Haight St., but when we arrived, we discovered that it had been whitewashed. If you look closely, you can see that it was painted over. From looking it up later, we know this one was a rat (one of his staple images). You can see Barrett, Corinna and Meghan were sad...then it started to rain as we ate our first course of cheese and crackers, sitting down on the steps of a store and then sharing our snack with some homeless hippies near by. Despite the disappointment of the first mural being gone, we did not loose heart and proceeded to pick some dandelions as we passed Buena Vista Park, heading for The Mission. When we finally arrived, after the long walk to from Haight Ashbury to The Mission District, only to discover a blank wall again. This too was on the side of a building and had been whitewashed. We were so depressed we stopped for lunch at the park across the street.

The third mural we found also in The Mission. This one was still there, but had been quite defaced by graffiti. We began to loose hope...

...but then we found a dinosaur mural (not by Banksy) and our persistence was restored.We headed down Mission St., coming to where SOMA and The Mission border each other. There we saw our first pristine Banksy...pretty cool!There were also some koi on the ground near the mural. These are not by Banksy either, but I thought it was a good time to mention that these appear all over the city-there literally must be hundreds. It's really quite fun to be walking along and then stumble upon some more fish at your feet. Have I mentioned I love this place? ;)

As we made our way through SOMA, we passed by my workplace. So, there is The Arc :) The fifth Banksy was also a sucess! A rat on the corner of 13th and Howard.

We were really excited, as you can see... Isn't his style so neat?

All the way in Chinatown, was where the next one was. This one has been preserved by some plastic over top and is on a side St. off of Grant. Pretty cool, no?

We were exhausted by this time and sat down in front of it to enjoy our last course of food. During that time, we had some rather strange encounters. First, we asked some people to take our picture in front of it. The people were going on and on about how this was a Banksy and then when they take our picture, the picture is just of us. Now why would you zoom in on the four of us for a picture where we are clearly crouching down in front of something, especially if you know the significance of that something? Oh well, we got another picture with the mural haha. Some other people that walked up, asked us if this was a Banksy mural. We replied that it was and then one of them says to the other two, "Yeah, guys that is why they are eating in front of it."

"No, we were just hungry" Corinna said.

"Oh, you aren't doing some type of Banksy ritual?" she asked

What the heck is a "Banksy ritual"? Whatever.

A few minutes after that, these British people walked by and their child escaped from their clutches to chase a pigeon, which happened to be at us. Never in my life have I seen a look of pure rage like that on a human face. This little five year old kid looked like he was out for blood as he swung his foot at that pigeon and screamed. All the while, his parents were calling "No, Jimmy! Come back!" I felt sorry for them, but it was hilarious at the same time; especially when Corinna began screaming because the pigeon was coming nearer to where we were sitting on the sidewalk.

Aw, some love from Meghan. :)

What an incredibly fun, yet long day. When we came back home, we all crashed. It was so worth it though. I had also heard that there was a Banksy in North Beach, which we didn't make it to. We looked it up, and sure enough there is. We were all very disappointed we hadn't completed our journey, but at the same time, I don't think any of us could have made it to North Beach after our other six miles. So, one final one to be seen...

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Death Metal

Last night I went to my first ever Death Metal concert (it very well might have been my last). How did this come about, you ask? Well, it all started with a phone call on Thursday afternoon from my supervisor, Meredith. She left me a voicemail telling me that R.D. (a guy that works at The Arc) had left a note for me on my desk. She read me the note when I returned her call-it was an invitation to R.D.'s concert. Before I go any further, let me give some background. My friend Meghan works at St. Anthony's foundation, which is a homeless service provider in the city. R.D. leads a group from The Arc in volunteering there every week, so he knows Meghan through that. We never crossed paths until about the third week of my internship when I was at USF's computer lab with a group from The Arc. I was there taking pictures and interviewing clients. R.D. was there with another group and asked if I was from The Arc. I told him that I was interning there with Meredith. He immediately made the connection and goes "Are you from some program that is from a college in Santa Barbara?" "Yeah, how did you know?" I replied. "Do you know Meghan? Red hair, works at St. Anthony's." I obviously did and then we began chatting about other things, like the city and how he plays in two bands. He told me that he would let me know when they played if I wanted to come. So, he actually did end up inviting me and Meghan to come out to West Oakland and hear his Death Metal band play. He was considerate and told us it was totally fine if that wasn't our cup of tea and that he would let us know when the Neo Classical band was playing. Random combination, I know. Of course we couldn't pass up an invitation like that and decided to make our way to West Oakland. We rode BART in and found the venue, Church of the Buzzard (not kidding; it was called that), by the loud sound coming from it. We walked into what was a very death rock setting: heads and skulls, funky lighting, ravens lining the walls and ceiling. After adjusting to our surroundings and the incredibly loud sound coming from the band, I spotted R.D. on the drums and immediately pointed him out to Meghan. Both of us were shocked. He is this very calm, quite, sweet guy, about 40, really long hair, which is always up in a pony tail. It was so out of character to see him with his hair down, eyeliner on and completely rocking out on the drums. After his band was done playing, I went up to say hello, Meghan and Amy (who came along too) followed. "Hi, R.D." I said. He did a double take, clearly shocked that we had come. He was immediately back to the R.D. we know: a very calm and sweet, shy soul. He was obviously really excited we had come out, but he didn't expect it at all. We chatted for a bit about music and such and he gave me a cassette tape of his band's music. We stuck around for a few more songs by another band and R.D. took off to go unload all the band equipment, still very obviously baffled that we had showed up. Getting back was almost more intense than the music we heard, and that's saying something haha. Something that I found very interesting was the plethora of people that attended this event. When you hear the genre death metal, most likely you think of a bunch of hard core, black leather clad rockers with eyeliner and metal studs. And, yes, there were some of those stereotypical death metal fans there, but beside that, there was such a variety--broad range of style, age, personality. I mean, take R.D. for example: you'd think he was airing on the side of hippie and he has this hard-core death metal side, but then also a soft, neo-classical side. Truly a display in not judging a book by it's cover. Also, it's good to remember that people have many different likes. Just because they like one thing, doesn't mean they can't like something that would seem pretty opposite. Anyway, it was really nice to be invited and really experience this "being integrated" into my workplace. I love the fact that there isn't a lot of ageism here. San Francisco seems like a place that is totally accepting of any age being friends and hanging out-you can meet a lot of pretty cool people when you open your eyes to the possibilities.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Back to the 70's and Mission High

From the moment I entered the doors at The Arc yesterday, I was swept up into the back room, camera in hand, to watch and photograph the 70's musical medley going on. The "Archestra", fronted by Rob, John (two staff people), Howard and a few other clients, played some hits like "We Will Rock You" by Queen, "Dancing Queen" by Abba and "Play that Funky Music" by Wild Cherry and a few others Meredith and I couldn't quite recognize. I ran around the room, snapping pictures until Howard decided I needed to go dance with them and pulled me through the audience to the front of the stage. Hilariously embarrassing! After I escaped, I headed by toward Meredith and waited from the dance portion of the show to being. I stayed for the rest of the show and then headed back to the office, where Meredith and I had a laugh. She goes "Wasn't that videographer really attractive." "I didn't see him" I replied. Just then, who walks through the door but the videographer? He was attractive. haha We managed to not look at each other and laugh, but when he left, I told her I agreed and she goes "Right! Don't tell Mike." (her husband). I told her my lips were sealed and we laughed saying it was too bad he was too old for me and too young for her. Today work consisted of some more fun out of the oridnary experiences. I was to meet Sharon (a client of The Arc) at Mission High School, where she mentors students with developmental disabilities. I can't describe how amazing Sharon is-she is one of the most positive and lovable people I've ever met. She is hilarious and so much fun to talk to. It was a great day getting to know Sharon better and seeing what an inspiration she is to these kids, as an adult with disabilities. I did some interviewing and picture taking and accompanied them on their trip to the grocery store, which offers practice in everyday tasks and interacting. Then it was back to the Arc for another productive, yet hilarious meeting with Meredith, Mark, Laura and Jaiden. Great couple of days!

Friday, March 18, 2011

Home, Life, Individualism

Being at home has been really great, though it was weird to leave the city for the first time since being there. I am glad to be able to spend some time with family and friends. It's a good encouragement and reminder for what I still have to look forward to this summer even though leaving San Francisco will be difficult. I've been able to play with Katie quite a bit and spend some good time with my mom as well as my grandma, Gary, Betsy, Justin, August and Grace. The days down here in sunny So Cal have been gorgeous and a great break from all the rain and gloom of up North. Honestly, in some ways, going back to southern California was like culture shock. For example, every time I would see or hear a bus, something in me would go "Wait, do I need to be on that?" Another thing was the lack of walking-I got in a car to go anywhere and everywhere, except for the park one afternoon with Katie. Apart from the transportation, it's been a bit weird not having people out and about everywhere around you and the lack of high rises. I can't exactly explain it, but the cultures of these two places are just so different. San Francisco pretty much anything goes- people singing on the street as they pass you, people wearing odd clothing and ultimately just expressing themselves more outwardly to the general public. Southern California people, I have noticed, as a whole, are more reserved and not as free spirited (not exactly the right term, but I don't have a better one). Going home showed me the changes I believe have taken place in me. I've always been an advocate for individuality, but I think living in a city that prides itself on being individualistic has taught me that there are many parts to that. Individuality doesn't always come down to being counter-cultural; its more about being who you are, looking within and being secure with what you find. Individuality is supposed to be freeing, not limiting or exclusive.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Not Sure Where, Not Sure What...

At the corner of Grove and Van Ness a building overhang provides a few inches of shelter from the elements. The brief indentation of the wall allows a slight bit of comfort and privacy from the trampling feet of the sidewalk.

Each morning I pass this safety nook. I take notice of it's slight protection and it's usual two inhabitants that seem to never speak to the sidewalk tramplers, never bother the world turning, never have a place to be.

Yesterday morning two new guests had arrived. One in a blue jump suit, the other in black with a blue tie. Black Suit was instructing Blue Suit on what bars were to be placed over the safety nook.

This morning cold, metal, restrictive bars stood where once two humans had. "Where did they go?" I wonder to myself on my walk down the block. "Where will they go?" also runs through my mind. This is not a one-time incident.

Why must we fight against the poor when it is poverty itself that should be our enemy?

"It's not my problem." says Black Suit.

Friday, March 11, 2011

I ended up not going to work yesterday because Meredith had called me, telling me she wasn't feeling well and that I should just take the morning off too. We had a meeting to go to that evening to begin discussing the theme and save the date designs for The Arc's annual Arc Angel Donor Breakfast that is happening in October. I hope I will get to come up and visit that weekend. It sounds like a blast and it will be their 60th anniversary. Anyway, I arrived at The Arc for the meeting with Meredith, Mark, Laura, Jaiden and the two graphic designers putting together different designs. The third "save the date" and theme proposal rested on the iconic image of Rosie the Riveter and the "We Can Do It" slogan. I think it's going to turn out pretty great. I'm excited that I get to be part of some of the planning and see what goes into an event like this.

When the meeting was over, Mark advised me not to go to Cancun for Spring Break but to have fun. Meredith gave me a hug and told me to say hi to my family for her and relax over the break. Walking down 11th street towards the bus, I almost broke into tears for having to leave for a week. Half of me felt pathetic and the other half of me knew my feelings weren't completely unwarranted and that they were probably mostly coming from the knowledge of the future date when I will have to permanently leave this place. I hate knowing this is going to be over. Why does something I enjoy and feel so compelled to do with life have to be so far from home and school?

Now, its not that I'm not excited to go home; I am. It's just I've been so loved, welcomed and taught so much by this place and these people, I think it will be one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I know that I do this sort of thing-get really attached to things and think they are the absolute greatest while I'm in them, but this is the first really sustainable thing that I've been attached to. I also can't entirely explain it, but my attachment isn't like anything I've ever felt before.

But, I have to trust that, like there was a reason I was brought here, there is a reason to go back. And I know that I will never forget the people I've met on this amazing journey in discovering who I am more and more.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Now Swing Your Partner Round and Round

Getting in touch with some Country roots...in the City? Who said it couldn't be done! There is always something to be found in San Francisco on a weekend evening and tonight was no exception. We have pretty much begun to rely on SFfuncheap.com for all our community activities. Meghan and I were looking online and discovered the Harvey Milk community center in The Castro was holding a "How to Homestead" night and square dancing. We decided to put on some boots and head on down for some homesteadin' fun. When we arrived, a short film selection was going on, including our personal favorite-Dandelion Wine. It was just plain bizarre. I'm all for artsy and indie films, but it was trying way to hard. This had us all thinking "what have we gotten ourselves into?" But, we stuck it out and were so glad we did. Square dancing began and the four of us (Corinna, Meghan, Barrett and I) took turns being dance partners, switching almost every dance. One dance required a group of five, so an awesome elderly man, Russ, joined our group and began doing a few jigs when it was his turn to be in the middle. Such an awesome experience to have a community experience with such a diverse group of people. This is one thing I think that I love about the city-how easy it is to just go to different events and be confident that others there will be just as (if not more) excited about it as you are. Barrett and I danced the last two dances together and had quite a few laughs at some of our worse mess-ups, like elbowing a woman in the stomach (all Barrett). Another great mistake was forgetting what to do when "promenade around the hall" was called. Whoops...we caused a few crashes. :) What a blast this was! We are definitely going again before we leave SF. Ye Ha!

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Berkely Retreat

Today included much reflection on what our experiences in S.F. have been so far. The whole group got together and headed over to Berkeley for the day. It was great to all get together and be able to converse in a safe community setting. We discussed our challenges, successes and thoughts about what we've been encountering. The discussion at one point was centered around how it was different to work for non-profits not affiliated with a Christian organization. In my opinion, it has been enjoyable to work with a, for lack of a better term "secular" organization. I need to sometimes escape the religious bubble I've surrounded myself with and be with people that don't necessarily think the same things as I do. Without this would my faith really be credible? We began debating if others perceive us differently and if yes, how so. In my experience and opinion, no. I'm not a better person than someone else because I have certain beliefs. Believing in something doesn't automatically raise a person above other human beings. I don't feel like I stand out more as a good person than others that I work alongside. There really isn't any difference or divide except the fact that I know where to turn to give the glory and run for help when I need it. I know I don't do these things enough, but I am learning. After all, that is what life is about-it's all one big learning experience. After our discussion, we were given the day to wander Berkeley and then reconvene at Brad's (our program director) house for dinner and a movie. We played taboo while we waited for the food to arrive, which was a blast and then before starting the movie, Brad told us that there would be ice cream and sundae toppings for dessert. He listed the toppings, which were things like fruit, chocolate and "gOOmie bears". His pronunciation of the word for whatever reason was hilarious. He said it's how they pronounce it in South American countries. The hilarious Brad comments didn't stop there. He started sneezing due to allergies, so we jokingly suggested he use some of the bee pollen (it is supposed to help with allergies...who knew?) we had in the fridge at the urban house. He goes "Bee pollen. It sounds like a rapper." "That is your new nick-name, Brad!" Meghan and I said. His response? He tried to rap. "Yo yo, my name is Bee Pollen. I got my allergies, got my rims, look at me!" I couldn't breathe for the next ten minutes...he is hilarious! What a great day... Enjoy some pictures. Meghan, Brian and I in the back of the Urban van, ready for our day in Berkeley! Corinna and Becky wandering UC Berkeley's campus. Meghan and I photo bombed by CorinnaRawr... Strike a pose on the steps...

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