My daughter can’t walk past the labyrinth on Bernal Hill without following the route to reach home base at the center.
So does that mean she will have a more enlightened Buddha-nature than other sentient beings who don’t spend so much time tracing the path?
Mu!
Video by Telstar Logistics
On the subject of Bernal’s vintage Coca-Cola mural, it’s good to see that Supervisor David Campos has well and truly come around, at last. Today he told the San Francisco Examiner:
“We have decided that on balance the best approach is to move forward and protect the sign which ultimately is there, not for the purposes of advertising Coca Cola, but for the purpose really of giving us a sense what the neighborhood was like,” Campos said. “There is a historic value to that sign.”
Since that’s exactly what Bernalwood has been saying since day one, we can only say, Hurrah! The Examiner says Campos will introduce legislation next week to save the sign, and we’ll keep you posted as soon as the details become known.
Photo: Halsted Bernard
Because we’re all about the love, Bernalwood republishes this Missed Connection from Craigslist as a public service to romantics in our community:
You: Standing outside Bernal Yoga, short bobbed light-brown hair with a blue streak in front, petite, adorable. ~6pm, Monday (2/28).
Me: Walking distractedly down Cortland Ave. Brown hoodie, leather jacket, short dark hair, boyish. Noticed you standing there. You immediately riveted my attention. You looked up & caught me checking you out. Embarrassed, I looked down. When I dared glance back up, you met my gaze, took a sip from your water bottle then smiled. I smiled back and wanted to stop right there on the street to speak to you. Couldn’t think of a way fast enough before my walk carried me by. I crossed the street to Good Life grocery. You were getting on a bike, then rode out of my life.
Give me another chance to see your smile?
Photo: Telstar Logistics
When we say that Bernalwood is chic and glamorous, we’re not kidding. (Well, not always.) Hummingbird Girls is a cute vintage fashion website, and one of the site’s recent posts features a photo shoot taken on our always-glam hill:
When I first moved to San Francisco I lived in Bernal Heights. It’s a wonderful little neighborhood with lots of lovely shops down Courtland, the main road. The coffee shops are filled with regulars and The Good Life Market grocer knows your name. Now I live just below this pretty hill that always shines above the clouds. But it’s still nice to go and visit all my old haunts.
Oh, and for all you fashionistas keeping score at home:
Photos: Hummingbird Girls
During this time of year, wildflowers pair with Bernal Hill’s rakish microwave antenna tower almost as well as peanut butter and chocolate.
Photo: Telstar Logistics
This morning Bernalwood received a crime report from a reader who lives on the 1500 block of Alabama near Cesar Chavez:
At 10:15 last night my wife and I were watching a noisy action movie in the front room when seven shots were fired close by. We hit the floor, but when nothing else happened — I didn’t hear any car zooming away, if indeed the shooter escaped via a car, because it took me a minute to shut off the noisy movie — I looked outside while calling 911. The strange thing is that all was quiet for about three minutes, and then
some female screaming started. The cops started pouring into the block about a minute later. Even though I couldn’t see any details, it was clear that someone had been hit, because the whole block was blocked off for a couple of hours and the cops were going around putting down those numbered yellow evidence cones. I don’t see any news about it yet this morning but given the spate of recent shootings I wouldn’t be surprised if the Chronicle has something soon.
Anyone else hear or see it?
Update: SF Appeal has the story:
A San Francisco man was shot in the Mission district Sunday night and rushed to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, a police sergeant said.
The 27-year old man was sitting in a car in the 1500 block of Alabama Street at Cesar Chavez at around 10:20 p.m. when suspects approached, shot the victim multiple times, and then drove away, Sgt. Mike Andraychak said.
Photo: Telstar Logistics
After a surreal weekend that saw the story of Bernal’s Coca-Cola mural controversy land on the front page of Fox News and our Ski Bernalwood trail map land on the ABC World News, it’s time for us to keep it real by introducing a few new residents of Bernal Heights: Three chickens.
Living in a back yard near Crescent and Andover in Bernalwood, the chickens are named Notorious R.E.D., Checkers, and Garuda. And though they have exceptionally small brains, they are typical Bernal residents in that they have a stylish home, gourmet aspirations, and their own blog. The blog is called Yolk Tales, and it describes a typical day’s quest for fresh-laid eggs as follows:
I was opening up the coop this morning to fetch the newly laid egg, and Checkers darted out into the yard. With sleep in my eyes and my pajamas still on, I chased that little bird around the yard for a good five minutes before grabbing her and tossing her back into the run. I’m sure it would’ve been rather amusing had there been an audience. I love having the ladies roam around in the yard, but they get a taste of freedom and crave more and more. And they’re fast.
But not fast enough. The chickens are already producing eggs, and our sources tell us these homebrewed eggs pair nicely with Niman Ranch center-cut bacon:
Keep an eye on Yolk Tales for further developments.
Photos: Yolk Tales
While the City Planning Commission runs on bureaucratic autopilot and Supervisor David Campos thinks really, really, really hard about whether Bernalwood’s vintage Coca-Cola mural is worth saving, homeowner Richard Modolo is making plans to cover up the historic mural to avoid facing $100 daily fines.
The San Francisco Examiner reports:
After being notified last month that the billboard didn’t have an advertising permit from The City, Modolos was given 30 days to either remove the sign, apply for a permit or request a reconsideration notice.
But choosing the latter option would have required Modolos to pay $3,400 up front for the initial hearing and possible fees, according to the notice. “Just as I’m reading this thing, I’m thinking how can you possibly do anything,” Modolos said. “They’re making it so difficult.”
So Modolos opted to cover the sign for the time being. He said he’ll find out later this week if the department approved his plans.
Bernal Heights residents who support the billboard have expressed interest in seeking help from Supervisor David Campos, who represents the area, to protect it by creating a “historic sign district.”
Planning Commission vice president Ron Miguel said that although the sign isn’t currently legal, there are ways that it could be made legal. “Somehow, it’s got to be resolved,” Miguel said.
Ya think?
Bernalwood has been receiving regular updates from both Richard Modolo and the City Planning Department. Only Supervisor David Campos has yet to weigh in, and yet only he can now save the mural. But after two weeks of uncertainty and controversy, Campos has yet to declare a position. Apparently, this is a difficult decision, so he needs still more time to think about it…
Photo: Supervisor Campos, via Guillaume Paumier via Wikipedia
Fox News got the memo about Bernal’s Coca-Cola mural controversy.
So what do Fox News and Bernalwood have in common?
Normally, almost nothing (apart from the fact that we’re both fair and balanced). But this week…
We recently discovered some unnerving evidence of UMO’s to Holly Park. What could these markings mean for little-leaguers and kickballers on the Hill?
Notice the fresh tracks on 14 Limited at Ski Bernalwood
Wow. That was an intense storm that blew through early this morning. And when I went downstairs to make a cup of coffee, I noticed some snow(ish) accumulation in the back yard:
“If there’s snow(ish) here, there might even be fresh powder at altitude!” I exclaimed. So I piled into the Jeep, dropped it into 4WD, and set a course for Ski Bernalwood.
The lifts were running when I arrived, but conditions were still pretty extreme on the North Face:
It was a similar scene on the South Face, where the earlybirds had already tracked-out the cornice at Cornelio’s Folly:
By that point, my caffeine levels were dropping into the red zone, so I decided to head back home to recharge. Along the way, I noticed whitewater on Cesar Chavez, and a few of the local kayakers were out shooting the rapids on their way to work.
Those of you who bought season passes to Ski Bernalwood will want to keep those boards waxed and ready, because more storm activity is expected in the next 24 hours.
Photo: Telstar Logistics
I don’t know which came first: the immaculate 1949 Ford pickup or the beautifully restored house on Wool Street. Whatever the order, the truck was blocking the driveway of the house, so it’s safe to assume they’re a pair.
And so well paired, don’t you think? It took a lot of commitment to harmonize both those elements, but the results are so very sweet. Nicely done, neighbor.
Photo: Telstar Logistics
First, the good news: The effort to save Bernal’s historic Coca-Cola mural is gaining widespread media attention, spreading from this blog, to the SF Examiner, to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Now the bad news: Supervisor David Campos is apparently unsure if the Coca-Cola mural is worth saving. Dozens of Bernal residents have told us that the mural generates a tangible sense of joy and connection to the neighborhood. But Supervisor Campos says he’s worried about the theoretical risk that a 70 year-old mural might encourage childhood obesity. Or something. (Why am I experiencing such an unpleasant sense of deja vu?)
From today’s San Francisco Chronicle:
Campos is still mulling the issue.
“We haven’t really taken a position either way,” Campos said. “We want to hear more from the neighborhood.”
He said he’s already received a handful of passionate e-mails from both sides.
“We’re trying to fight childhood obesity,” he said. “We don’t want to promote kids drinking Coca-Cola.”
Campos will need to make a decision quickly.
Indeed he will. Because while he mulls, the clock is ticking, and the City Planning Department continues to demonstrate an unsettling myopia about the mural. Both the letter and the spirit of the law are obviously open to interpretation in a scenario like this, yet such subtleties are lost on the City’s zealous apparatchiks — history, context, common sense, and neighborhood sentiment be damned.
Campos, meanwhile, says he needs more time to lick his finger, point it in the air, and take the measure of the political winds.
That suggests he needs you to offer guidance, fellow citizen. Campos told the Chron that he wants to “hear more from the neighborhood.” So why not deliver some of the clarity that he finds so elusive? Supervisor Campos can be reached here:
Voice: (415) 554-5144
Email: David.Campos@sfgov.org
One final note: Bernalwood attempted to contact Supervisor Campos last week, but our email to him received no reply. However, if Supervisor Campos feels that he was misrepresented in the Chronicle, or if he would like to clarify the record regarding his position on the historic Coca-Cola mural, Bernalwood would be pleased to publish his statement in full. Our email is bernalwood at gmail dot com, and operators are standing by.
Photo: Supervisor Campos
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