Posts tagged “san francisco”
A friend asked where to live in SF, so I made a custom Google map breaking down the neighborhoods, with comparisons to London equivalents for context. Extremely subjective, so don't @ me.
Going to Outside Lands. Pumped.
I built a Google Maps app to find your nearest San Francisco fire station after needing the info for renter's insurance. Took five hours, never actually bought the insurance. But hey, I learned the Maps API, practiced JavaScript, and helped the city. Worth it.
Went out in the Castro last night and was reminded why I don't do that anymore. It was like a religious right fever dream of gay stereotypes. I know better than to generalize, but wow. Note to self: those are not my people.
A big year: moved from London to San Francisco, got an iPhone, relaunched the site after 7 years, worked too hard, and blogged less than I'd like. More life updates than deep thinking, but the foundations are in place for a better 2008.
On holiday in Trinidad, back in SF for NYE. Anyone have interesting plans?
I mapped Trinidad against San Francisco and the Bay Area: they're roughly the same size, meaning my daily commute to Sunnyvale crosses most of my home country. Also, I'm now 243 miles closer to Trinidad than when I lived in London.
Facebook Mobile means UK pokes literally vibrate in my pocket, which is strange and delightful. Also had a great weekend: sneak preview of Ratatouille, then an 11-mile bike adventure around San Francisco with some WWDC geeks. Next weekend is Pride. Oh dear.
Just your typical SF weekend: a giant horde of zombies colliding with 5000 anarchists on bicycles. Nothing unusual here.
Found my go-to SF club: DNA Lounge, run by a retired Netscape programmer who does it for love, not money. Perfect venue, great crowd dressed like extras from Hackers. Someone stole a tiny flashlight off my keyring but left my iPod. Small price for a brilliant night.
Seeing Orion over Valencia Street got me thinking about how San Francisco's geography shapes its culture. A dense, isolated city on the edge of a vast ocean and empty continent fills you with an urge to connect and build. Maybe that's why the internet happened here.
Walking San Francisco at night, I spotted Orion overhead. A poem about dreams, concrete, grass in the cracks, old men begging, and a city of eternal children reshaping the world. I'm far from who I thought I'd be. Grateful for that. Here to make the next world.
I went to Yuri's Night at NASA Ames, a science expo honoring Gagarin's first spaceflight that turns into a rave by midnight. Surreal highlights: a fake bureaucracy dome, unbaked "piazzas," and a busload of hot Stanford kids interning at Google.
Drinking and snark at an anti-Burning Man party, winning $11 at a lesbian poker night, and spending Easter watching drag queens, gay men, and hunky Jesus competitions in the park. San Francisco, I love you.
Spent Sunday in Dolores Park at a proper tea party in formal wear, complete with cucumber sandwiches, china from thrift stores, and dancing with a cane. A marching band showed up. San Francisco is making me even gayer. It was grand.
Quick life updates: found an indie club (Popscene), got a new bed, loving the SF sunshine and omnipresent hippies. Futurama refs aren't geeky enough here. Yahoo Widgets 4 launches Wednesday. Also bought a massive brushed aluminium computer. Giant monitors next month.
Used a friend's visit as an excuse to tourist around SF, hitting Marin Headlands and Point Reyes. Back is healing slowly. Finally did grocery shopping after four weeks, though the massive US portion sizes mean I barely need to eat anyway.
I spend a whirlwind Saturday mattress shopping and furnishing an entire San Francisco apartment from scratch, encountering a cast of memorable characters along the way. The experience crystallizes a real cultural difference: in America, money is an enabler and service is genuinely enthusiastic. By midnight, I'm home.
I'm falling hard for San Francisco. Between touring the Paramount Theatre, exploring the Mission, and marveling at Castro's gay hardware stores and the February sunshine, I'm overwhelmed in the best way. Huge portions, cheap taxis, hills with views. This city is my shiny new toy.
I've just moved to San Francisco, and American capitalism is already blowing my mind. Within hours of getting my keys to a totally empty flat, Craigslist connected me with Luke, a charming cabinet-maker moonlighting as a furniture courier, who whisked me to IKEA and back for half the delivery price.
Blogging from Yahoo's wifi bus on route 280, past a lake with birds. This is nothing like the Northern line.
Just arrived in San Francisco and I can't stop smiling. It's hot, sunny, weirdly affordable, and looks like SimCity. I love it here.
I'm moving to San Francisco. Intermission.
Still don't know when I'm moving to San Francisco, and won't until after January 4th. We're all just going to have to deal with the uncertainty. Also: Christmas shopping done, budget thoroughly destroyed, no regrets.
After being made redundant, I somehow ended up with four job offers from Yahoo's US office. I'm joining Yahoo! Widgets in San Francisco, leaving London and my beloved friends behind. It's a huge step, but I left Trinidad once and survived. Onwards and upwards.
(Etymology: "I love SF" -> "I heart SF" -> "I "I less-than-three SF" -> "I cone-ass SF" -> "I ass-cone SF") The reason I'm loving SF is that somebody made that joke and everybody in the car got it without having to explain. Also, nice weather and good food.
Heading to San Francisco (Sunnyvale, really) for handover work following my department's shutdown. I'll be there from the 27th through November 2nd, including Halloween. If you're in the area, get in touch!
I love Buttoned Down Disco, where we celebrated M's birthday. Thanks to Housemate T for the tip.
