I wasn’t awake to witness it, but Neighbor Anita was, so she captured this tasty photo of yesterday’s sunrise.
Author: Todd_Lappin
Chatty Sutrito Tower Joins Twitter, Hints at Top Secret Purpose
This was probably inevitable.
It’s an established fact that Bernal’s own Sutrito Tower at the top of Bernal Hill is a bit of a Sutro Tower wannabe. Whatever the much bigger, much more famous Sutro does, Sutrito Tower wants to do too.
Well, along with the Bay Bridge, the TransAmerica Building, and One Rincon, Sutro Tower is also very active as an anthropomorphized presence on Twitter… so it was only a matter of time until the social-climbing Sutrito Tower decided to create an account as well:
Yes, if you follow @Sutrito, you no longer have to wonder what our iconic tower is pondering at any given time; instead, you can follow along in realtime to know *exactly* what he/she/it is thinking — or causing you to think via his/her/its diabolical mind-control powers. For example:
More importantly, as Bernalwood as always suspected, it seems that our Sutrito Tower leads an exciting double-life, functioning as a vital telecommunications relay tower by day, and an extraterrestrial beacon for earth-bound UFOs at night:
We urge you to follow @Sutrito on Twitter, to learn more about our tower’s revealing inner dialog, and to know in advance when you might wake up to find this happening in your own back yard:
PHOTOS: Telstar Logistics
Jesus Crucified on Bernal Hill (Again)
I was enjoying a delicious dinner at a glamorous French bistro in Potrero Hill on Friday night when suddenly my phone began buzzing maniacally. It was Neighbor Scott, a new Bernal resident who lives in the upper elevations of Folsom Street:
Ah yes. I smiled knowingly…
As a Bernalwood newbie, our Neighbor Scott was unfamiliar with the crucifixion ritual re-enacted each year up on the Hill. The photo shown above was taken in 2011, but this year Neighbor Nina captured some video footage of the re-enactment procession as it climbed up Folsom Street:
She writes:
[St. Anthony’s church] celebrates Good Friday with a reenactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ along Folsom St in Bernal Heights. Poor quality, but you get the gist of it. You can hear them chanting and whipping Jesus. You might be able to see the person playing Jesus carrying a cross, but my vantage point was not ideal and the truck stopped right in front of me. Sorry about that!
PHOTO: Top, Good Friday 2011 on Bernal Hill, by Brian Wong
Now Showing: California Poppies on Bernal Hill
Tis the season for wild California Poppies, and Julie captured several beautiful specimens during a walk on Bernal Hill last weekend:
The California State flower is the Eschscholzia californica. Known as the California Poppy or Golden Poppy, it is springing up everywhere. Here in San Francisco, it grows in the cracks of sidewalks and roads and can be found in all the parks. It varies in color from white to dark orange.
UPDATE: Ed Brownson added this gem to the Bernalwood Group on Flickr:
PHOTOS: Julie aka Rudha-an, Ed Brownson
Feral Anatomy Textbook Terrorizes Precitaville
Alongside all the usual handbills about missing cats and lost dogs, this one on Folsom near Precita really stands out: An anatomy textbook has broken free of its shackles and is now on the loose.
If you happen to see an anatomy textbook rooting through your backyard, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CAPTURE IT. Anatomy textbooks are notoriously jittery, and often quite heavy. Instead, remain calm and call a professional anesthesiologist to ensure that the text is safely subdued.
PHOTO: Telstar Logistics
Newfangled Electric Bike Conquers Folsom Street Hillclimb
A tidy crowd assembled at Precita Park last weekend to take one of the newfangled electric bicycles from The New Wheel bike shop on a test drive up the fearsome Folsom Street hill.
Your Bernalwood reporter passed on Sunday’s opportunity, because I’d taken one of the bikes for a private ride the day before. My steed was a OHM Urban XU700 SE, which sells for $3699. It came with sporty amenities as leather grips, an air suspension, a rear rack and a 48V battery, in addition to a 0.5 horsepower electric motor tucked away in the rear hub. New Wheel owner Brett Thurber gave me a 30 second tutorial on how to adjust the bike’s motorized boost settings, and then I took off for adventure.
I started from The New Wheel shop on Cortland, but I immediately headed north, toward the top of Bernal Hill. The uniqueness of the electric bicycle became apparent from the moment when I began pedaling up Wool Street.
An electric bike is not like a scooter or a moped; the electric motor isn’t designed to work independently from the pedals. Instead, you pedal an electric bike just like a conventional bicycle, and when you do the electric motor provides a wonderful boost that makes each turn of the cranks carry you much, much farther than it would normally.
You can feel the assist from the electric motor as you pedal. It’s an odd sensation — kind of like having superhero strength or Six Million Dollar Man bionic implants. I was huffing and puffing when I reached the top of Wool, but I was huffing much less than I would have had I been on a regular bike, and the trip had taken about a third less time to complete.
I stopped to take a closer look at my machinery. There’s a little control panel on the right side of the handlebars that allows you to dial in how much electric-assist you want (as well as other bits of data such as power remaining, degree of battery-regenerating resistance, and so on). A thumb-activated “plus” switch lets you dial up the boost, and a “minus” reduces it. Below that, there’s a small red “cheat” button that activates the electric motor even when you’re not pedaling. (Brett Thurber hadn’t told me about that.)
From Wool I looped around Bernal Heights Boulevard and coasted down to Precita Park. Then I turned around to head up, up, up that fearsomely steep section of Folsom Street.
For your evidentiary satisfaction, this video captures the entire Folsom street climb, with musical accompaniment from the Bullitt soundtrack (which seemed appropriate).
As you can see, the electric bike made fast work of the hill, even though I was pedaling with one hand off the handlebars (to hold the video camera).
The electric bikes from The New Wheel are impressive machines. No, they’re not cheap; the least expensive one in the story goes for $2550. But then again, an electric bike is vastly cheaper than a Toyota Prius or a Chevy Volt, and much much much easier to park. For anyone looking for a practical way to get anywhere around town and get a little exercise at the same time, electric bikes may be an interesting option — even if your ride means a nightly trip home up that fearsome stretch of Folsom Street.
PHOTOS: Telstar Logistics
Fallen Tree Limb on Anderson Generates High-Tech Koan
If a tree limb falls on Anderson Street but no one is there to tweet it, does it still make a sound?
Quite honestly, I have no idea. But if a tree limb falls on Anderson and Angel Cervantes finds it, at the very least we get an excellent photograph out of the deal. Angel tweets:
Broken tree limb on Anderson, but Bernal Heights survives Windpocalypse 2012.
PHOTO: Angel Cervantes
Tonight: Books, Booze, and a Benefit for Paul Revere School
Books, booze, and a benefit for Bernal’s Paul Revere School… together at last! It happens TONIGHT on Cortland, and Neighbor Jake brings the details:
I’m a Bernal resident (Holly Park Circle) and my daughter also goes to one of Bernal’s public schools, Paul Revere. We’re having a fundraiser on Thursday, April 5 at Red Hill Books and The Lucky Horseshoe. The working title of the event is ‘Libations for Literacy.’ We’ll have live music! We’re also raffling off some pretty swell prizes, including an Apple TV, an iPod Shuffle, dinner for six delivery, a Sunset magazine package, a Succulent table-top garden, wine tasting for two at VinoRosso and a Fit Lite one-month membership.
SF Examiner Taste Tests the Yumminess at 903 Cortland
In case you missed it, last week’s SF Examiner included a tasty little write-up about 903 Cortland, the new Sandbox Bakery spinoff that’s wowing Bernalwood:
Mutsumi Takehara — mother of two, elite pastry chef and owner of the Sandbox Bakery in Bernal Heights — wanted a place in her neighborhood where parents and kids could have a good time eating together. Her bakery started that mission two years ago, but 903, her restaurant down the block, completes it.
The tiny space has an open kitchen with an ordering counter and only 15 seats around three communal tables in the back, not counting the high chairs lined up against the wall. Thai chef Nute Chulasuwan and Mexican chef Miguel Rosas play in the kitchen, each day creating dishes for the daily-changing menu.
With Takehara’s Japanese sensibility, 903 becomes a United Nations of cooking: Japanese, Thai, Mexican.
And American, because Mutsumi’s contractor husband, Mike Bradsord, is responsible for moist smoked brisket and chickens that turn on the rotisserie he installed. Some dishes insouciantly fuse two or three national cuisines, though others represent just one.
PHOTO: 903 Cortland’s rice burger filled with Japanese fried chicken. SF Examiner via Sandbox Bakery
Mission Blogger Challenges David Campos for City Supervisor
We bring interesting news.
In a political development that is, at once, hilarious, absurd, and yet eminently serious, Mission District blogger Kevin Montgomery has announced plans to run against David Campos, our incumbent District 9 Supervisor.
As you’ll see in Mr. Montgomery’s announcement video, Bernal Heights sits squarely at the center of his decision to run for office:
A few notable things about the video. First, nice pop-culture nod to Herman Cain at the very end. Second, we did not know that Mr. Montgomery owns a collared shirt. Third, he raises some pointed questions about the priorities of Supervisor Campos and much of San Francisco’s Progressive establishment, particularly as they relate to the development of the infrastructure we need to maintain our City’s economic vitality.
Mind you, Mr. Montgomery made this announcement on April Fool’s Day. Yet Bernalwood’s political analysts nevertheless believe he is at least 87% serious about his proposed Supervisorial bid. Our estimate is derived from a longstanding acquaintance with Mr. Montgomery, his blog, his passions, and his preparation for the campaign.
Long story short, Kevin Montgomery usually goes by the handle KevMo. (HINT: Visualize the sign outside the store on Bayshore.) His blog, The Uptown Almanac is an anthropologically revealing chronicle of 20something Mission life, as told from the point-of-view of the crowd that enjoys drinking beer and/or energy drinks while lounging on the grass in Dolores Park. We mean this affectionately.
Indeed, KevMo is Bernalwood’s standing archetype of the mythical Mission hipster, even though he actually can’t stand hipsters — which sort of proves our point. Bernalwood has teased him at times, with jokes about hipster ennui and fixie bikes, and delightfully, he sometimes rises to the bait. But he’s got a great sense of humor, a sharp wit, YIMBY sensibilities, and a deep interest in civic engagement.
It’s not yet clear if KevMo will, you know, actually run. He says he’s waiting to see how the whole redistricting thing shakes out. Yet Bernalwood hopes he does. There are some interesting cultural and economic trends coalescing in this particular place at this particular time in the early 21st century. Win or lose, it would be fantastic if a KevMo run for the Board of Supervisors helped energize that conversation within District 9.
Scenes from the Continuing Yelp-ification of Bernal Heights
Bernalwood contributor David Gallagher shared this photo he snapped during a walk through Bernal Heights on Saturday morning.
I thought the reviews included on the poster were a useful feature that made it easier for me to assess the personal relevance of this particular garage sale. However, I would have also liked some additional social signals — say, a counter indicating how many Likes or Favorites this garage sale had received — before deciding whether or not to add it to my Events calendar.
PHOTO: David Gallagher
Bernal Celebrity Explains Why You Should Absolutely Definitely Buy Tickets to the Next Pop-Up Magazine, TODAY!
Pop Up Magazine is an innovative event that gives interesting writers, artists, and creative-types the opportunity to tell magazine-style stories in front of a live theater audience. Picture a well-curated collection of TED Talks, but shorter, less formulaic, and vastly more fun.
Pop Up Magazine started at the tiny Brava Theater on 24th Street in 2009, but just three years later it’s already so wildly popular that it’s now held at Davies Symphony Hall. The sixth installment happens on April 25th, 2012, and tickets go on sale today at noon.
Bernal resident and New York Times contributing writer Jon Mooallem will give one of the presentations on the 25th, and he emailed us a nice explanation of what the whole Pop Up Magazine thing is all about:
Pop Up commandments prevent me from saying anything about what I’ll be doing on April 25th, and I’m not allowed to reveal who else is contributing either. I can say that I’ve been part of all five issues so far, and they’ve always been an absolute hoot — enthralling, entertaining, and moving in the most surprising ways. And I’m always stunned and cripplingly intimidated by the cast of talented writers, photographers, filmmakers and radio folks that Pop Up manages to pull together — including, not coincidentally, many Bernal-ites.
At past issues, I’ve talked about the Billy Possum, a short-lived rival to the Teddy Bear; lost wallets that are found decades later; UPS, FedEX and the nature of Buddhism; and a long-ago congressional plan to jumpstart a hippopotamus-ranching industry in America that was infiltrated by spies. I think that’s a pretty good representation of the range of topics overall.
Tickets go on sale Tuesday at 12 noon. For your convenience, emergency sirens around the city will blare to remind you.
Clever touch, that well-timed Tuesday siren.
Run, don’t walk, to your Internet terminal when tickets go on sale today at noon. Buy your tix immediately, because if the past is any guide, this issue of Pop Up Magazine will sell out very quickly.
For Sale on eBay: Awesome San Francisco Shipyard Ashtray
As Bernalwood explained a while ago, there’s a deep and important historical connection between our now-glamorous neighborhood and the sad, abandoned, and mildly radioactive ruins of the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard near Candlestick Point:
Although no contemporary realtor would ever use the words “Bernal Heights” and “Hunter’s Point” in the same sentence, the fact of the matter is that the history of the two neighborhoods are closely intertwined. That’s because once upon a time, the now-abandoned San Francisco Naval Shipyard at Hunter’s Point employed tens of thousands of San Franciscans, and many of those workers lived in Bernal Heights.
Try it out: Next time you meet a Bernal Heights old-timer — most likely, a retired male senior citizen — ask where they used to work. Quite often, they’ll say they worked at the shipyard.
Anyhoo, right now on eBay, there’s a terrific momento from the heyday of the Hunter’s Point Naval Shipyard for sale. It’s a “Vintage Fukagawa Porcelain San Francisco Naval Shipyard Ashtray,” and it shows the shipyard’s classic insignia with its awesome motto: “Our Service for Ships Means Ships for Service”
As I write this now, the bidding starts at $14.99 with a $19.99 Buy It Now option. As a charter member of the Hunter’s Point History Geek Fan Club, I’ve already got one exactly like this, so I’m out. Hurry!
