This morning I was going to pack up the truck full of boxes and drive across the GG Bridge to my school. It is always a foreboding feeling of walking into my classroom at the end of summer, which technically doesn't end for 16 more days. As I was fiddling around with a couple of boxes of papers that I should never have boxed, but threw out instead in June, I told my wife about today's plan. Janine told me to wait and go on Thursday. I really like it when Janine tells me not to work. So, change of plans for today.
She got up early to take a 6:30 shower since the water was going to be shut off on our street at 7 am. For once, she was actually ready to go to work by 7:45, so I decided to hitch a ride, and we went out to coffee in the Mission District, which is on the way to her work. Of course, there are several cafes in the Mission, on Valencia and the adjoining blocks. But, drive another few blocks to Folsom and 20th, where I used to take writing classes through Writing Salon, and it is easy to find several cafes that spot this post industrial, loft spaced, hip neighborhood, that is somewhere between Mission and Potrero Districts. A favorite cafe in the area is Atlas Cafe, which has amazing espresso, good sandwiches and excellent salads.
My wife wanted to try Progressive Cafe, which she drops into from time to time on her way to work when she has time. I ordered a cappucino and she ordered a soy latte. The cafe is open until 10 pm, which is more common in the Mission, but not in my sleepy neighborhood. A sign in front advertised a band playing next weekend, and an application for a limited cabaret license was posted in the window (as is the regulation in San Francisco). The menu had the usual bagel and baked goods array for breakfast, and a reasonably priced lunch menu, as well as appetizers that focused on Mediterranean food. They even have beer and wine. Progressive is a place that one could come anytime of the day. It has plenty of space, and since it is on a corner, plenty of large windows. The furniture is what I consider standard issue 1970s cafe - wood tables and chairs, as well as three sets of sidewalk tables. Old timey, 1930s - 50s jazz maintained the mood. Free wifi was also available.
Oh, and of course the coffee. My double cap was delivered in a large bowl size cup, that was more common before the boutique coffee houses downsized the cappucino to two shots of espresso and 4 ounces of milk. This large bath of a cup often has it pitfalls, typically washing out the coffee with milk, and destroying the flavor of the coffee, but this was not the case. The coffee had a cocao after taste that lasted well in the cup a half hour after being served. I enjoyed the cappucino very much.
As is the case of several of the cafes in this pocket of the east Mission district, friends often meet, several others meet for business meetings. The different between cafes in this part of town and the Haight and NOPA is that people are not afraid to talk to each other, as opposed to just look down at their laptops and focus on the mundane internet and emails, when their friends are just around the corner, waiting to meet and chat at a cafe, just like Progressive.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Thursday, July 26, 2012
An experiment to end summer with...no useless Internet and media
In the course of wondering about turning off cable TV completely, I started thinking about all of the other extraneous inputs into my neural network that seem to constantly knock my brainwaves off kilter - the Internet seems to be a major source of noise in my daily life. So, here is a set of rules that I will try to live up to for one week, and report out. Just to reassure all of my readers (thanks you two), I will still drink plenty of coffee and review a couple of other cafes this coming week - I mean with all that extra time on my hands of not sitting in front of the Internet...
Yes to:
1. Checking email for work, family and friends
No to:
2. FB posts, but allowed to check in on events
3. computer games of any kind
4. News cycle monitoring - I seem hopelessly addicted to posting on HuffPost
5. random browsing
6. advertising
7. online purchases
Yes to:
8. Downloaded books
9. May download and read currently subscribed magazines and the SF Chronicle
10. Poetry of the day type entries - literary in nature only
11. Blog postings on my blogs
12. Use google maps to find places I am going to
13. Reading actual, physical books, magazines and newspapers
14. MLB.com to check baseball
15. Websites directly produced by my place of employment and CTA.org
The idea of reading non-hyperlinked materials is that I might actually read an entire story or article before I feel like clicking somewhere to look up something and get distracted. I feel like I have developed a healthy dose of IADD - Internet Attention Deficit Disorder or even a CADD - Computer Attention Deficit Disorder where my never ending quest for knowledge bring me ever in more contact with links to an ever broadening range of freely associated topics to the point that an article or post is never just an encapsulated piece of information, but often a trigger for 10 or 15 other associations easily found on the web, where the original message is easily deconstructed, disrupted or completely disregarded unless it requires a postal response or a calendar event.
Yes to:
1. Checking email for work, family and friends
No to:
2. FB posts, but allowed to check in on events
3. computer games of any kind
4. News cycle monitoring - I seem hopelessly addicted to posting on HuffPost
5. random browsing
6. advertising
7. online purchases
Yes to:
8. Downloaded books
9. May download and read currently subscribed magazines and the SF Chronicle
10. Poetry of the day type entries - literary in nature only
11. Blog postings on my blogs
12. Use google maps to find places I am going to
13. Reading actual, physical books, magazines and newspapers
14. MLB.com to check baseball
15. Websites directly produced by my place of employment and CTA.org
The idea of reading non-hyperlinked materials is that I might actually read an entire story or article before I feel like clicking somewhere to look up something and get distracted. I feel like I have developed a healthy dose of IADD - Internet Attention Deficit Disorder or even a CADD - Computer Attention Deficit Disorder where my never ending quest for knowledge bring me ever in more contact with links to an ever broadening range of freely associated topics to the point that an article or post is never just an encapsulated piece of information, but often a trigger for 10 or 15 other associations easily found on the web, where the original message is easily deconstructed, disrupted or completely disregarded unless it requires a postal response or a calendar event.
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Borderlands Cafe, 870 Valencia
For over a year I have walked down Valencia from time to time in search of another coffee establishment. On Valencia,let alone most of the Mission District, my job is not difficult. The large, long storefronts of the Mission have answered my prayers for space between tables, a place where the square footage creates the aura that morning sunlight needs, reflecting off of the wood floor coming through the large storefront windows. That is possible in the Mission, in several locations.
Some cafes in the Mission want to let you know how hip they can be, or that you are drinking coffee literally brewed by 22 year old gods, that you are just barely a worthy guest to drink from their fine porcelain. Or there are other cafes where you as a guest have entered a new paradigm, of sitting alongside other like minded patrons drinking espresso drinks (at the we don't make no stinking coffee cafe) participating in a new paradigm of collaborative work-play (I really did hear the owner at one cafe explain this to a "client." The cafe, like the bar has been the center of the business world in many cultures for well over whenever people started drinking coffee - can I hate people who use the word "paradigm?").
My favorite cafes, however, along these lines, are the two or three where the line is out the door, because everyone and their mother must drink from this beanery before they die, or another one opens that is cooler, where it is not just about the coffee, but who is drinking the coffee. I try to fathom the business casual hipsters sitting at the front tables checking out the clientele, waiting for someone famous, or other genetically gifted people smart enough to know that this place IS IT! What I like about these type of cafes is the types of baristas you'll meet. One type of barista has the acumen of a Chinese Acrobat, where each stroke of their craft is so gracefully executed, from the inspection of the espresso filter, to the pump of the coffee dispenser to the angle at which the steamed milk is poured over the espresso for a cappuccino is as carefully played either for show, or a demonstration of true expertise. The other type of barista at these cafes are so absorbed in the reality of coffee that each breath they take is a meditation, that they become the zen masters of my coffee experience, capable of delivering that koan in a cup, that strike of a cup that splits my skull in half with an instant karmic release. Which cafes am I talking about - if you are reading this, you know who you are, and in either case probably don't care.
So, imagine the dream of owning a bookstore that is also linked physically to an adjoining cafe. In my inner beatnik, that sounds like the best place to have poetry readings, stage readers theater, or to have book club meetings. Well, the sun is reflecting off of the large open space here, and the only disruptions to the morning peace is the brewing of the next espresso by the single attendant behind the counter. My fantasy of this place is that it is a collective, and that the entire building is owned by some well endowed person who wanted to create the perfect melding of literature and caffeine (they also sell loose tea). Of course this well endowed person, or this highly profitable collective, whichever it is, has tapped into their inner beatnik, and bank account, to make this happen. But I don't really know what the financial arrangement is, my fantasies that it is a collective aside. (i just had to ask - The cafe and bookstore are owned by one Alan Bates, who leases the building. My kudos to him for fulfilling his inner beatnik.)
Of course, there is some coffee to consider here. The espresso drinks are ground one drink at a time. Unfortunately, the beans were not up to par, today. I will return here, since the space is incredible. For those early risers, the hours are 8 am to 8 pm, and this place will never be in danger of being a laptop morge, since they do not offer wifi. On top of that, no music has been played since I have been here for the last 45 minutes. I assume this would be a great place to read, or write a novel. The cafe is not particularly a morning spot, as other nearby cafes (see above), are in this neighborhood. In the last 45 minutes two different couples sat in the back, and a total of five single patrons sat at the tables, and one person came in for two iced coffees to go. The menu is light breakfast and lunch, mostly sandwiches and bagels. They also offer a variety of meat and cheese plates, which until recently, in the City, I have only seen in Europe. All of the patrons at the single tables came in to read or write. I like a cafe like this. If this cafe was in my local neighborhood, I would be here whenever I got the chance.
Some cafes in the Mission want to let you know how hip they can be, or that you are drinking coffee literally brewed by 22 year old gods, that you are just barely a worthy guest to drink from their fine porcelain. Or there are other cafes where you as a guest have entered a new paradigm, of sitting alongside other like minded patrons drinking espresso drinks (at the we don't make no stinking coffee cafe) participating in a new paradigm of collaborative work-play (I really did hear the owner at one cafe explain this to a "client." The cafe, like the bar has been the center of the business world in many cultures for well over whenever people started drinking coffee - can I hate people who use the word "paradigm?").
My favorite cafes, however, along these lines, are the two or three where the line is out the door, because everyone and their mother must drink from this beanery before they die, or another one opens that is cooler, where it is not just about the coffee, but who is drinking the coffee. I try to fathom the business casual hipsters sitting at the front tables checking out the clientele, waiting for someone famous, or other genetically gifted people smart enough to know that this place IS IT! What I like about these type of cafes is the types of baristas you'll meet. One type of barista has the acumen of a Chinese Acrobat, where each stroke of their craft is so gracefully executed, from the inspection of the espresso filter, to the pump of the coffee dispenser to the angle at which the steamed milk is poured over the espresso for a cappuccino is as carefully played either for show, or a demonstration of true expertise. The other type of barista at these cafes are so absorbed in the reality of coffee that each breath they take is a meditation, that they become the zen masters of my coffee experience, capable of delivering that koan in a cup, that strike of a cup that splits my skull in half with an instant karmic release. Which cafes am I talking about - if you are reading this, you know who you are, and in either case probably don't care.
So, imagine the dream of owning a bookstore that is also linked physically to an adjoining cafe. In my inner beatnik, that sounds like the best place to have poetry readings, stage readers theater, or to have book club meetings. Well, the sun is reflecting off of the large open space here, and the only disruptions to the morning peace is the brewing of the next espresso by the single attendant behind the counter. My fantasy of this place is that it is a collective, and that the entire building is owned by some well endowed person who wanted to create the perfect melding of literature and caffeine (they also sell loose tea). Of course this well endowed person, or this highly profitable collective, whichever it is, has tapped into their inner beatnik, and bank account, to make this happen. But I don't really know what the financial arrangement is, my fantasies that it is a collective aside. (i just had to ask - The cafe and bookstore are owned by one Alan Bates, who leases the building. My kudos to him for fulfilling his inner beatnik.)
Of course, there is some coffee to consider here. The espresso drinks are ground one drink at a time. Unfortunately, the beans were not up to par, today. I will return here, since the space is incredible. For those early risers, the hours are 8 am to 8 pm, and this place will never be in danger of being a laptop morge, since they do not offer wifi. On top of that, no music has been played since I have been here for the last 45 minutes. I assume this would be a great place to read, or write a novel. The cafe is not particularly a morning spot, as other nearby cafes (see above), are in this neighborhood. In the last 45 minutes two different couples sat in the back, and a total of five single patrons sat at the tables, and one person came in for two iced coffees to go. The menu is light breakfast and lunch, mostly sandwiches and bagels. They also offer a variety of meat and cheese plates, which until recently, in the City, I have only seen in Europe. All of the patrons at the single tables came in to read or write. I like a cafe like this. If this cafe was in my local neighborhood, I would be here whenever I got the chance.
Monday, July 23, 2012
Jumpin Java Cafe - Noe near Henry
At 139 Noe, in the quiet Duboce Triangle neighborhood north of the Castro, a quiet and unassuming cafe awaited my visitation for sometime. The macchiato was excellent. The furniture and bulletin board reminded me of the cafes I grew up with, perhaps now a classic coffee house look, that always feels warm and comforting to me. The low lights allow for every single patron to work on their laptops. The music was barely audible, but calming, and the one couple that was in constant conversation did not carry from the window seat at the front of the restaurant.
I was able to really focus here, writing two lengthy blog entries, before deciding it was time to go. I fact, the space is so ambient, that I completely lost track of time, not realizing until about twenty minutes ago that had spent over two hours here. I would highly recommend Jumping Java Cafe for a computer induced coffee experience, a good read, or a journal entry. If the ambience is the same as it is in the later morning, I imagine that this would be a great cafe to enjoy an early morning cup of coffee as consciousness slowly returns with the sun rise.
Summer's quick conclusion - rules for a school teacher's summer.
As summer progresses to its bitter conclusion, I usually start to think about wasting time, or confusing that with quality down time. I start to think about all the things I haven't done in the summer, things I used to prioritize when I first started teaching 17 years ago, that included entire self improvement plans. I would envision summer as an infinite amount of time just waiting for this self motivated person to become the vegetarian, yoga practicing, thin, poetically inclined, gallery obsessed, hiker who listened to books on tape (now replaced by endless podcasts) while driving across the Western US to the majestic and mystical sun rises that should fill summers, making them the most memorable parts of my life.
Most of that has not panned out, but I do have a couple of simple rules for summer, that lead me every year to what I consider successful summers. Since Janine is not a teacher, neither are my best friends or close family, most of this list is geared towards individual goals or activities, that include Janine, friends or family when they have the time off.
First, let me say that I live in the heart of the beautiful city of San Francisco. With nothing else to do, taking a half hour walk can take me to some very incredible places practically around the corner, since I live in the geographic center of the City. I can also walk to over 20 cafes in 15 minutes, matched by many more bars and restaurants, and at least a dozen venues to hear live music. I must qualify this, since I have lived here for over twenty years, leading to the habit of avoiding certain streets and blocks sheerly out of habit. Last year, I decided to find the best macchiato in the vicinity, taking me to over 23 cafes in 21 days, finding several excellent cafes nearby. This was a relatively inexpensive effort, in contrast to searching for a specific dish at the thousands of restaurants in this city. It was also good exercise, as well as launching this blog, which my other three readers thoroughly enjoy to this date.
So, rule one - take a walk somewhere new everyday, rain or shine, hot or cold.
Second, document your experiences. As an avid journal writer and photographer, I write about my new routes, the cafes I have searched out and have photographed the architecture, urban fawna, and setup shots to add to my FB photo collection.
Another rule, involves breaking the link between work and the beginning of summer. I have found that when I have lingered at home at the beginning of summer, I can't seem to get work out of my mind. Over the years, I have developed a system of reflecting on my successes and failures in the classroom, setting goals for the following year. This has always ensured that I do not teach the same year twice, always switching up and trying new things, in the hopes that both students and I find some new magic each year.
Three rules here: 2. Start the year end review at the beginning of May. I survey the students on successes and failures, then start to outline what I will do different the following year. 3. Get on a plane!!! This is my favorite rule. Go visit my dad in Boston, my mom in LA, my son in Seattle. The sooner the better. Getting on a plane and staying somewhere fora at least a week helps to break the cord between work and summer. The power of a disassociative situation requires the brain to turn on the radar to all of the new sensory details that are constantly being observed every day of a trip at the other end of a flight.
4. Save money for summer. If you could save your tax return, or stash away ten percent of your income for your summer vacation, then you will live life without worrying where your next dollar is coming from. I know that some people still get paid vacations, but with the demise of the social safety net in this country, most corporations have followed suit, eliminating the paid vacation, or at least scaling it back considerably.
This blog, as well as social sites like Facebook were born out of the need to let other people know that you have a life. There is nothing like sharing your life with your friends and family, because in turn, they will also share their exciting vacations with you via these networks. But more importantly, after two weeks, two months or even two years, documenting your vacations helps to take you back to that place that you were at mentally just by flipping throu some old pictures from time to time. I almost can feel my feet lift as I walk up a hill in Istanbul right now, on my way to the Hagia Sophia as I look at the pictures from my most recent vacation.
If you can, take a vacation or share your entire summer with your loved ones. As I clarified at the beginning of this entry, I take most of my summer by myself. My wife usually can get two weeks of paid vacation, and we have typically attended a music camp in the low Sierras for the past nine years. The trip to Turkey was the first vacation we took just by ourselves, no family, not even able to speak Turkish, and except for sharing an apartment with two camp friends, and a few visits with friends that have relocated in Istanbul, we were the only two people that we could have a meaningful conversation with beyond the first few sentences for an entire three weeks. We had an amazing time together.
The next most important feature of a productive summer is to leave time to do absolutely nothing for about two solid weeks. Out of my eight solid weeks of vacation time, I have found through the luxury of experimentation, that it takes a complete and sustained two solid weeks for a person's body and mind to relax, calm down, and just tune down to normal. I am sure that when I retire, whenever that may be a financial reality, I will have to avoid taking more than two weeks of downtime in any sustained fashion, because it can be a bit mind-numbing. Losing track of days, not having a list of to-dos goes a long way, to making me feel like I am going senile, but there is nothing like wondering what my priorities are on any given day when going to coffee is the only thing I can think of.
After about two weeks, and this has happened every summer that I can remember, I start to get a little bored of doing nothing. Thus, the summer project was born. Rules: 5. Plan a time frame for two weeks of nothingness, of endless abandon, when it doesn't matter if you shave, do anything, and hopefully lose track of time. 6. In May, make a list, with my wife, of summer chores that need to get done. File this somewhere on your computer with a timer set at the end of the projected two week down time period. Look at the list at the end of the two weeks and decide when you plan to accomplish these goals in the subsequent weeks. Plan on getting some of these items done, and it is amazing how the productivity gene kicks in and helps move me back into the Back To School mode that returns at the beginning of August. Lastly, I usually like to stay at home the last week before I have to report to staff meetings and teacher trainings. This allows me to savor the last little bit of SIMM that remains. Of course, I will savor summer as much as possible the weekend before school starts, and knowingly, will not be productive on the first couple weekends once school is in session.
Most of that has not panned out, but I do have a couple of simple rules for summer, that lead me every year to what I consider successful summers. Since Janine is not a teacher, neither are my best friends or close family, most of this list is geared towards individual goals or activities, that include Janine, friends or family when they have the time off.
First, let me say that I live in the heart of the beautiful city of San Francisco. With nothing else to do, taking a half hour walk can take me to some very incredible places practically around the corner, since I live in the geographic center of the City. I can also walk to over 20 cafes in 15 minutes, matched by many more bars and restaurants, and at least a dozen venues to hear live music. I must qualify this, since I have lived here for over twenty years, leading to the habit of avoiding certain streets and blocks sheerly out of habit. Last year, I decided to find the best macchiato in the vicinity, taking me to over 23 cafes in 21 days, finding several excellent cafes nearby. This was a relatively inexpensive effort, in contrast to searching for a specific dish at the thousands of restaurants in this city. It was also good exercise, as well as launching this blog, which my other three readers thoroughly enjoy to this date.
So, rule one - take a walk somewhere new everyday, rain or shine, hot or cold.
Second, document your experiences. As an avid journal writer and photographer, I write about my new routes, the cafes I have searched out and have photographed the architecture, urban fawna, and setup shots to add to my FB photo collection.
Another rule, involves breaking the link between work and the beginning of summer. I have found that when I have lingered at home at the beginning of summer, I can't seem to get work out of my mind. Over the years, I have developed a system of reflecting on my successes and failures in the classroom, setting goals for the following year. This has always ensured that I do not teach the same year twice, always switching up and trying new things, in the hopes that both students and I find some new magic each year.
Three rules here: 2. Start the year end review at the beginning of May. I survey the students on successes and failures, then start to outline what I will do different the following year. 3. Get on a plane!!! This is my favorite rule. Go visit my dad in Boston, my mom in LA, my son in Seattle. The sooner the better. Getting on a plane and staying somewhere fora at least a week helps to break the cord between work and summer. The power of a disassociative situation requires the brain to turn on the radar to all of the new sensory details that are constantly being observed every day of a trip at the other end of a flight.
4. Save money for summer. If you could save your tax return, or stash away ten percent of your income for your summer vacation, then you will live life without worrying where your next dollar is coming from. I know that some people still get paid vacations, but with the demise of the social safety net in this country, most corporations have followed suit, eliminating the paid vacation, or at least scaling it back considerably.
This blog, as well as social sites like Facebook were born out of the need to let other people know that you have a life. There is nothing like sharing your life with your friends and family, because in turn, they will also share their exciting vacations with you via these networks. But more importantly, after two weeks, two months or even two years, documenting your vacations helps to take you back to that place that you were at mentally just by flipping throu some old pictures from time to time. I almost can feel my feet lift as I walk up a hill in Istanbul right now, on my way to the Hagia Sophia as I look at the pictures from my most recent vacation.
If you can, take a vacation or share your entire summer with your loved ones. As I clarified at the beginning of this entry, I take most of my summer by myself. My wife usually can get two weeks of paid vacation, and we have typically attended a music camp in the low Sierras for the past nine years. The trip to Turkey was the first vacation we took just by ourselves, no family, not even able to speak Turkish, and except for sharing an apartment with two camp friends, and a few visits with friends that have relocated in Istanbul, we were the only two people that we could have a meaningful conversation with beyond the first few sentences for an entire three weeks. We had an amazing time together.
The next most important feature of a productive summer is to leave time to do absolutely nothing for about two solid weeks. Out of my eight solid weeks of vacation time, I have found through the luxury of experimentation, that it takes a complete and sustained two solid weeks for a person's body and mind to relax, calm down, and just tune down to normal. I am sure that when I retire, whenever that may be a financial reality, I will have to avoid taking more than two weeks of downtime in any sustained fashion, because it can be a bit mind-numbing. Losing track of days, not having a list of to-dos goes a long way, to making me feel like I am going senile, but there is nothing like wondering what my priorities are on any given day when going to coffee is the only thing I can think of.
After about two weeks, and this has happened every summer that I can remember, I start to get a little bored of doing nothing. Thus, the summer project was born. Rules: 5. Plan a time frame for two weeks of nothingness, of endless abandon, when it doesn't matter if you shave, do anything, and hopefully lose track of time. 6. In May, make a list, with my wife, of summer chores that need to get done. File this somewhere on your computer with a timer set at the end of the projected two week down time period. Look at the list at the end of the two weeks and decide when you plan to accomplish these goals in the subsequent weeks. Plan on getting some of these items done, and it is amazing how the productivity gene kicks in and helps move me back into the Back To School mode that returns at the beginning of August. Lastly, I usually like to stay at home the last week before I have to report to staff meetings and teacher trainings. This allows me to savor the last little bit of SIMM that remains. Of course, I will savor summer as much as possible the weekend before school starts, and knowingly, will not be productive on the first couple weekends once school is in session.
Bye bye Cable TV - a change of life's plan.
My wife and I have decided that we really don't need cable TV anymore. It is not about cost, but it is over $100 month, but after having 200 channels, HBO and a DVR we have figured out that we are getting older watching TV. Television is relatively cheap compared to other avenues for entertainment, and it is easy to sit in front of the tube and spend an entire evening being entertained. But it is also a one way form of entertainment. The interaction is with a flat panel, 40 inches diagonal, sometimes including pumping sound through the stereo for a movie or fav show. Because we have a DVR, we do not suffer through commercials, which makes our time more efficient, and also allows us the freedom to watch shows when we want to. But ultimately we are missing something with each other. When we watch TV, As I imagine is true for most American couples, we are looking forward, and not at each other. Our interactions revolve around taking breaks, getting food or taking a phone call. Generally, we eat in front of the TV as well. For us, like most Americans, the American dream has been reduced to endless hours on a comfortable couch, a stereo system (used mostly to watch movies), with a big screen TV, a subscription to a movie channel or two and a DVR.
Maybe we could add good lighting for watching a show as well. On top of that, we both have laptops, so if the show we are watching is just all right, or is really my wife's favorite, then I can tune out, browse the Internet, and still be there for the snack request. When we added up the weekly shows that we watch intentionally, we are somewhere between 7 - 14 hours a week. For some Americans, that is three nights of television. But I did qualify our viewing habits with the word "intentionally." Unintentionally, we probably watch at least twice as much television as we think we do: too tired to go to sleep, getting sucked into bad movies, finding something new, watching old recordings on the DVR.
What all of this has done for both of us, since 2004, for over eight years, is taken us away from various endevours, or other forms of entertainment, including spending time with friends. After our trip to Turkey for three weeks, we realized that there is an entire world out there, let alone right in our apartment. I own countless books I have not read, Janine has stacks of fabric not sewn, and if we didn't each own a bike, I wouldn't wonder when was the last time that we took a bike ride.
Now, to be clear, we are not splitting up from the media entirely. In fact, there are still some TV shows that we will still subscribe to. With our Apple TV, we can rent or subscribe to several current television shows that we watch, ultimately at a fraction of the cost of cable. A typical series costs between $25 - 36 for an entire season, and since we watch about six series a year, we are going to save a considerable amount of money. Likewise, we can rent movies that we want to see, maybe one to two a month at about $4 each. On top of that, with Netflix, if we ever had the need to just become a vegetable, for $9 month, we can stream endless amounts of older and more standard movies that neither of us have ever seen. All said and done, I envision that our viewing time will go down to around 6 hours a week, being more selective with our purposeful viewing. I know this is not unheard of - leaving cable for the various on-demand systems that now exist. I am sure this would not work for the majority of Americans who feel compelled to sit in front of the TV every night, or for a family who has many different viewers with different interests. Among our friends who own televisions, we are not the first to leave the programmed universe behind for more selective viewing options.
What will we do with the extra $70 a month, and the extra time on our hands? The rest of our lifetime awaits...
Maybe we could add good lighting for watching a show as well. On top of that, we both have laptops, so if the show we are watching is just all right, or is really my wife's favorite, then I can tune out, browse the Internet, and still be there for the snack request. When we added up the weekly shows that we watch intentionally, we are somewhere between 7 - 14 hours a week. For some Americans, that is three nights of television. But I did qualify our viewing habits with the word "intentionally." Unintentionally, we probably watch at least twice as much television as we think we do: too tired to go to sleep, getting sucked into bad movies, finding something new, watching old recordings on the DVR.
What all of this has done for both of us, since 2004, for over eight years, is taken us away from various endevours, or other forms of entertainment, including spending time with friends. After our trip to Turkey for three weeks, we realized that there is an entire world out there, let alone right in our apartment. I own countless books I have not read, Janine has stacks of fabric not sewn, and if we didn't each own a bike, I wouldn't wonder when was the last time that we took a bike ride.
Now, to be clear, we are not splitting up from the media entirely. In fact, there are still some TV shows that we will still subscribe to. With our Apple TV, we can rent or subscribe to several current television shows that we watch, ultimately at a fraction of the cost of cable. A typical series costs between $25 - 36 for an entire season, and since we watch about six series a year, we are going to save a considerable amount of money. Likewise, we can rent movies that we want to see, maybe one to two a month at about $4 each. On top of that, with Netflix, if we ever had the need to just become a vegetable, for $9 month, we can stream endless amounts of older and more standard movies that neither of us have ever seen. All said and done, I envision that our viewing time will go down to around 6 hours a week, being more selective with our purposeful viewing. I know this is not unheard of - leaving cable for the various on-demand systems that now exist. I am sure this would not work for the majority of Americans who feel compelled to sit in front of the TV every night, or for a family who has many different viewers with different interests. Among our friends who own televisions, we are not the first to leave the programmed universe behind for more selective viewing options.
What will we do with the extra $70 a month, and the extra time on our hands? The rest of our lifetime awaits...
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Woke up this morning at half past four...
Insomnia and coffee consumption might have some relationship, or so I've been told, once too many times, but I know that jet lag from my Turkey trip is still ongoing. I have had two full nights of sleep since I landed in California 8 days ago. My wife, by contrast can sleep anywhere at any time, so this has not been an issue for her. I have been awake, reading the Economist, the Huffington Post, and have skimmed some of my kindle books - all in anticipation of waiting for the sun to rise so I can take a walk to get some coffee. Since most coffee houses don't open until 7 a.m., the two hours or so that I have had to "wait" finally occurred to me, that I could be at my usual, working week coffeehouse that opens at 6 a.m. everyday of the week - Central Coffee, Tea, and Spice.
I discovered Central CTS last summer in search of new cafes when I decided to find new cafes in NOPA, north of the PAnhandle that separates Oak and Fell out my front door to the street. I have lived here for almost 21 years this September, but not once have I visited this cafe that has been in business as long. In fact, I didn't even know it existed in my conscious mind.
If someone told me that I could go to a cafe that was two short blocks from my house that opened one hour before I had to be home at 7 a.m. to take a shower and get ready for work, well, I imagine great things would have happened to me in my life. I constantly think of what my life would have been like if I could have had that truly religious experience of waking up with a great espresso drink in a near empty cafe with cool music softly lulling me awake in the morning for the past twenty years. Who knows, but I am happy to have finally found Central CTS.
It is one of those "it is never too late" moments that are usually reserved for people getting married at 45 for the first time, or going to medical school at 50, but I will be sufficiently satisfied to know that I am one of the few people in my world who drinks coffee in cafes at 6 a.m., that it seems as monumental as getting a PhD in something that I know I am eminently qualified to have been awarded. My imaginary honorary PhD, gladly accepted, as I delivered that now famous commencement speech, inspired scores of the best and brightest of our future generation to go forth, but to not forget the sunrise. I mean, literally, get out of bed at 5:30 a.m. and take a walk to Central CTS as they are opening their doors to treasure those golden moments of the first fumes of the arabica bean as they take you into the realm of consciousness. There is plenty more that I can expound on about the nature of this metaphysical reality, but you'll have to find the speech on Google.
Central CTS uses Mr. Espresso beans, which yield an excellent chocolate flavor in a macchiato. The cup can sit for over an hour and each sip maintains its original flavor. The cafe's decor is very minimal and the layout fits around two large steel framed bay windows, that are perfect for watching the street as the sun rises, or just for people watching of this neighborhood establishment. I have gotten to know a few of my coffee breathren here, and have noticed a loyal clientele of locals who frequent the place as part of their morning routine. Several bicyclists stop here, one block away from the major entrance to Golden Gate Park, as well as many dog lovers, who stop here before or after a walk through the Panhandle with their loving canine.
I discovered Central CTS last summer in search of new cafes when I decided to find new cafes in NOPA, north of the PAnhandle that separates Oak and Fell out my front door to the street. I have lived here for almost 21 years this September, but not once have I visited this cafe that has been in business as long. In fact, I didn't even know it existed in my conscious mind.
If someone told me that I could go to a cafe that was two short blocks from my house that opened one hour before I had to be home at 7 a.m. to take a shower and get ready for work, well, I imagine great things would have happened to me in my life. I constantly think of what my life would have been like if I could have had that truly religious experience of waking up with a great espresso drink in a near empty cafe with cool music softly lulling me awake in the morning for the past twenty years. Who knows, but I am happy to have finally found Central CTS.
It is one of those "it is never too late" moments that are usually reserved for people getting married at 45 for the first time, or going to medical school at 50, but I will be sufficiently satisfied to know that I am one of the few people in my world who drinks coffee in cafes at 6 a.m., that it seems as monumental as getting a PhD in something that I know I am eminently qualified to have been awarded. My imaginary honorary PhD, gladly accepted, as I delivered that now famous commencement speech, inspired scores of the best and brightest of our future generation to go forth, but to not forget the sunrise. I mean, literally, get out of bed at 5:30 a.m. and take a walk to Central CTS as they are opening their doors to treasure those golden moments of the first fumes of the arabica bean as they take you into the realm of consciousness. There is plenty more that I can expound on about the nature of this metaphysical reality, but you'll have to find the speech on Google.
Central CTS uses Mr. Espresso beans, which yield an excellent chocolate flavor in a macchiato. The cup can sit for over an hour and each sip maintains its original flavor. The cafe's decor is very minimal and the layout fits around two large steel framed bay windows, that are perfect for watching the street as the sun rises, or just for people watching of this neighborhood establishment. I have gotten to know a few of my coffee breathren here, and have noticed a loyal clientele of locals who frequent the place as part of their morning routine. Several bicyclists stop here, one block away from the major entrance to Golden Gate Park, as well as many dog lovers, who stop here before or after a walk through the Panhandle with their loving canine.
Location:Central Coffee, Tea, and Spice
Friday, July 13, 2012
Long walk in the SF fog - Bean There Cafe
Last night we had several power outages. Even this morning, as Janine was getting ready for work the lights went out. In five or ten minutes, I could hear the police whistle helping to direct traffic at Oak and Masonic near our apartment. I decided it was time for a long walk, ultimately to coffee, but also to see which blocks in the neighborhood were also down.
I decided to walk across the Panhandle, scooted by Central Coffee, Tea, and Spice, didn't see anyone I knew, then decided it was time for what I call the three parks walk before I ended up at Bean There Cafe on Steiner. I had earlier crossed the Panhandle, would make my way up to Alamo Square, then would come down Pierce, after taking in the Foggy city scape, to Duboce Park, scurry around the Noe and Sanchez area west of Market before cutting back to the Cafe. Along the way, I walked down Noe, south of Duboce Park, and saw Jumping Java Cafe just north of Henry. I thought about going in, but since it was foggy and overcast, I wanted more light.
I made it to a packed Bean There. I ordered a cap and sat down to write in my journal. The coffee here, using Mr. Espresso roasted coffee is great. I sipped my morning coffee while listening to a group of local neighbors who I have often seen here talk about the political history of the 1980s. I like this cafe because it is a well lit space that allows for friends to chat up a storm, while right next store someone else can work on her laptop. It also has a wide sidewalk on the other side of the length of windows, that offers the perfect row of outdoor tables to take in a sunny morning cup of coffee or a $2 (4 cup) pot of tea from their wide variety of blends and pure varieties. If this cafe was not a bit closer to my apartment, I would make this my morning hangout on my 6 a.m. walks. It is a perfect 15 minute walk away from my place, which allows me to escape the confines of my neighborhood, without taking too long to get there. The fact that it is close to Duboce Park does allow for the morning detour to a place where I can watch people and their dogs before setting up a writing and coffee experience.
I decided to walk across the Panhandle, scooted by Central Coffee, Tea, and Spice, didn't see anyone I knew, then decided it was time for what I call the three parks walk before I ended up at Bean There Cafe on Steiner. I had earlier crossed the Panhandle, would make my way up to Alamo Square, then would come down Pierce, after taking in the Foggy city scape, to Duboce Park, scurry around the Noe and Sanchez area west of Market before cutting back to the Cafe. Along the way, I walked down Noe, south of Duboce Park, and saw Jumping Java Cafe just north of Henry. I thought about going in, but since it was foggy and overcast, I wanted more light.
I made it to a packed Bean There. I ordered a cap and sat down to write in my journal. The coffee here, using Mr. Espresso roasted coffee is great. I sipped my morning coffee while listening to a group of local neighbors who I have often seen here talk about the political history of the 1980s. I like this cafe because it is a well lit space that allows for friends to chat up a storm, while right next store someone else can work on her laptop. It also has a wide sidewalk on the other side of the length of windows, that offers the perfect row of outdoor tables to take in a sunny morning cup of coffee or a $2 (4 cup) pot of tea from their wide variety of blends and pure varieties. If this cafe was not a bit closer to my apartment, I would make this my morning hangout on my 6 a.m. walks. It is a perfect 15 minute walk away from my place, which allows me to escape the confines of my neighborhood, without taking too long to get there. The fact that it is close to Duboce Park does allow for the morning detour to a place where I can watch people and their dogs before setting up a writing and coffee experience.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
The Return of the Summer Coffee Adventure
You might wonder if I stopped drinking coffee since last summer's effort to find the best cafe, on foot in the City of San Francisco. Last year's attempt at a blog had several faults, but the most glaring was the lack of timely posts. Most of my entries were transposed from handwritten journal entries about the 23 cafes that I sat in and drank their coffee in 21 days around the city, including three cafes in Humboldt, an independent coffee house in Buena Park, that would pass, as well as a review of a Pete's Coffee at San Francisco International Airport.
Coffee drinking has never been better, except for the fact that my cafe buddies at my old digs are always wondering where I've been, if I'm sick or something, or if I lost my job. None of the above. I am simply at one of the 20 cafes that I can walk to in about 15 minutes around my neighborhood, the Haight Ashbury of Sixties fame. For sometime, it was obvious that my part of town was more enamored with Pot Dispensaries (there are a lot of medical conditions in my neighborhood) as well as the paraphernalia shops that somehow crowded out any opportunities for a great cafe to make a decent cup of coffee on the Haight. Besides the pot business, tattoo laboratories, about 10 shoe stores, at least a dozen vintage and evening wear boutiques, I always had this fantasy that a coffee place would be here, but until this Spring one had not existed for at least six years, since Casey's Coffee, Tea, and Spice closed its doors.
Instead of just taking this blog to a local favorite after last summer's treasure hunt, which yielded such places as Bean There, Matching Half, and Central Coffee, Tea, and Spice (no relation to Casey's), I decided it was time for a long walk to Valencia around 20th. This part of Valencia, in the Mission District, the coolest part of town for artists and hipsters has a slew of flagship cafes within eight blocks of each other. After a 40 minute walk on a brisk, sunny morning, I had my heart set on Ritual Cafe. As I approached the temple of hipper than thou Cappuccino, I started to faulter, remembering that there were in fact other places that can sling espresso along with the best of them that I have never been to. Thus, I arrived at Javalencia.
Jvia (for short) is a narrow and unassuming store front with odd matching chairs and tables, hand made railings and stenciled Azteca artwork facing a wall of large framed posters, lit by two strips of spot lights and light shades. The staff speaks Spanish openly with the customers, who often respond in English, with the occasional phrase from High School or a response from a fluent speaker who shifts gears from English.
The cafe wasn't busy on this Thursday morning. A couple of tables were occupied, the music played softly in the background, as the barrista and main counter person, took orders. My macchiato was prepared as soon as I ordered it, then my bagel was handed off to the second employee for its toasting and butter. The bagel, made by New York Bagels, was the best bagel I ever had, advertised as the "Best boiled Bagel." No doubt. The macchiato likewise was excellent. An hour later, the last of it still maintained its flavor even at room temperature. I would come here again for a low key coffee experience, to read, to have a quiet conversation with a friend, or even to write my next post to this blog.
Atmosphere - 10; Food - 10; Coffee - 10.
Coffee drinking has never been better, except for the fact that my cafe buddies at my old digs are always wondering where I've been, if I'm sick or something, or if I lost my job. None of the above. I am simply at one of the 20 cafes that I can walk to in about 15 minutes around my neighborhood, the Haight Ashbury of Sixties fame. For sometime, it was obvious that my part of town was more enamored with Pot Dispensaries (there are a lot of medical conditions in my neighborhood) as well as the paraphernalia shops that somehow crowded out any opportunities for a great cafe to make a decent cup of coffee on the Haight. Besides the pot business, tattoo laboratories, about 10 shoe stores, at least a dozen vintage and evening wear boutiques, I always had this fantasy that a coffee place would be here, but until this Spring one had not existed for at least six years, since Casey's Coffee, Tea, and Spice closed its doors.
Instead of just taking this blog to a local favorite after last summer's treasure hunt, which yielded such places as Bean There, Matching Half, and Central Coffee, Tea, and Spice (no relation to Casey's), I decided it was time for a long walk to Valencia around 20th. This part of Valencia, in the Mission District, the coolest part of town for artists and hipsters has a slew of flagship cafes within eight blocks of each other. After a 40 minute walk on a brisk, sunny morning, I had my heart set on Ritual Cafe. As I approached the temple of hipper than thou Cappuccino, I started to faulter, remembering that there were in fact other places that can sling espresso along with the best of them that I have never been to. Thus, I arrived at Javalencia.
Jvia (for short) is a narrow and unassuming store front with odd matching chairs and tables, hand made railings and stenciled Azteca artwork facing a wall of large framed posters, lit by two strips of spot lights and light shades. The staff speaks Spanish openly with the customers, who often respond in English, with the occasional phrase from High School or a response from a fluent speaker who shifts gears from English.
The cafe wasn't busy on this Thursday morning. A couple of tables were occupied, the music played softly in the background, as the barrista and main counter person, took orders. My macchiato was prepared as soon as I ordered it, then my bagel was handed off to the second employee for its toasting and butter. The bagel, made by New York Bagels, was the best bagel I ever had, advertised as the "Best boiled Bagel." No doubt. The macchiato likewise was excellent. An hour later, the last of it still maintained its flavor even at room temperature. I would come here again for a low key coffee experience, to read, to have a quiet conversation with a friend, or even to write my next post to this blog.
Atmosphere - 10; Food - 10; Coffee - 10.
Location:Javalencia Café
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