Vega Freeman-Brady Explains the Inspiration for Bernal Star

/ Todd_Lappin / 17 Comments

bernalstar

The transformation and rebranding of the venerable Liberty Cafe has generated lots of buzz in Greater Cortlandia. Now called Bernal Star, with a menu focused on burgers, Cali-comfort food, and craft beer, your Bernalwood editor observed a thick crowd of curious neighbors waiting for tables outside Bernal Star  last Friday evening.

But why the change? What’s up with Bernal Star? What’s the big idea?

In an email to Bernalwood, Vega Freeman-Brady, the proprietor of Bernal Star and Vega (across the street), shared her thoughts on these questions, along with her vision of what she wants the restaurant to become:

Dear Bernal Heights,

It is with a heavy heart that I write to inform you that the Liberty café closed its doors on Monday June 16th. As many of you may know, our restaurant was the proud brainchild of Cathie Guntli. She opened shop in 1994 to cook simple hearty food in a neighborhood that was a bit run down. It was bold and unpretentious. She served good food that was unabashedly American in a restaurant that felt like home. It helped put Bernal Heights on the map and changed our neighborhood forever. Cathie was good, kind and a delight of a human being.

We lost Cathie five years ago. It would be a crime to say that the restaurant was unaffected. The Liberty Café was her restaurant, her cuisine, her idea. The love and hard work that she put into it was appreciated by all. Her memory will always be cherished in Bernal Heights.

We are stepping away from Cathie’s restaurant and creating our own. We want to create a laid back, brunch, lunch, dinner restaurant – a place to hang out with family and friends. We will only serve grass-fed, humanely raised meats and organic dairy and produce.

Liberty was always in the center of the Bernal Heights community, so in keeping that line, we will be hosting local chefs once a month, on the last Thursday of the month in the back cottage for international dinners. The idea is to encourage local cooks/chefs to meet people in the neighborhood and highlight their talents.

Also, we will be serving 6 beers on tap and will ideally have more than one Bernal brew… Looking forward to seeing you/discussing involvement in the new restaurant – Bernal Star!

Sincerely,

The Bernal Star (and Liberty) Staff & Management

Daily/weekly Events:

*Movies on the heated patio (sundown)
*1/2 off all bottles of wine on Tuesdays
*Daily Beer and Burger Happy hour ($15 burger and a beer 4pm -6pm)
*Monthly international dinners w rotating guest chefs (let us know if you would like to be a guest chef!) in the Cottage

We have 6 local beers on tap, and would love to serve any bernal brews – if you have some, or know someone who does, please contact us!

www.bernalstar.com 415.695.8777

Hours:
Sunday/Monday 9am – 3pm
Tuesday – Friday 10am – 10pm
Saturdays 9am – 10pm

PHOTOS: Telstar Logistics

Your Bernal Heights Crime Report for May 2014: Violent Crime Down, Property Crimes Up, and Dates with Prostitutes May Not Go as Planned

/ Todd_Lappin / 9 Comments

Police Telephone

Neighbor Sarah, your invaluable volunteer Bernal Heights crime reporter, attended the SFPD Ingleside Community meeting in June, and she filed these summary notes on the latest Bernal Heights crime trends. Read on, read carefully, be smart, and stay safe:

Notes from Ingleside community meeting.
June 17, 2014

Capt. Falvey presided. There was some sort of malfunction in getting the Compstat profile, so he didn’t have a handout with May’s stats.

CRIME STATS & TRENDS
Violent crimes are down quite a bit YTD. City-wide, homicides are at 13, which is a contrast to the early- to mid-2000s when the average was 90-100 a year.

Shootings in the district are down 40% YTD. Probably many factors contributing to it, including jobs program run out of Mayor’s Office for Violence Prevention, gun buyback, community groups, garden project/employment for youth, 1099 Sunnydale (offering city services), and video cameras in the Sunnydale.

Robberies are down 27 or 28% YTD. Fewer cell-phone robberies.

One type of robbery is trending up – people on prostitution websites arrange ‘dates,’ then rob the would-be client (who is carrying cash and is arriving alone, and who is also embarrassed to report crime or follow through on IDing suspects). Made some good arrests in a case where a 21-year-old single guy was robbed and wasn’t afraid to come forward – police made a fake appointment, then, after brief chase, arrested a group of five people. But another one of these happened last week, so there is more than one crew of people doing this.

Aggravated assault still high, driven by felony domestic violence.

Property crimes up since 2011, when ‘realignment’ occurred and property criminals were released from prisons.
– Auto thefts up 45% vs average before then.
– Burglaries improving now (26 in May vs average of 42 over last 2 years), but spike in first part of June (on pace for 35).
– 65% of stolen cars in May were pre-2001 Hondas and Acuras. Auto theft arrests up 30%. – 1/3 of cars recovered in district were stolen in outside district or cities.

TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT
Citations still up YTD (+31%) – SFPD focus on pedestrian safety
– A little lower in May than in first four months
– If you have intersections that you’d like traffic enforcement operations at, email sfpdinglesidestation@sfgov.org. At the request of a Bernal neighbor, I submitted the intersection at Bernal Heights Blvd/Bradford/Esmeralda.
– 94% of tickets in recent months have gone to motorists; 4% to pedestrians; 2% to bicyclists.

SCAMS
Current scam where people call you saying you owe the IRS money and they’ll appear at your house in 45 minutes unless you go wire money. The IRS does not do this. Spread the word.

Also seeing fake PG&E inspectors who are asking to check something in back yard. When you’re out in the back with that person, an accomplice comes in and robs your house. As for PG&E ID, call PG&E, and/or call police and have them sort it out if one of these people knocks on your door.

One thing that is NOT a scam is the SF Police Officers Association calling to sell tickets to an upcoming rodeo at Cow Palace. Chief has received many questions/complaints about this.

CRIME PREVENTION TIPS
30-40% of burglaries are still through open windows or unlocked doors. Do NOT leave windows open, even on 2nd or 3rd floors – burglars will climb up and get in. Lock side doors and make sure locks are in good order before you leave for vacation.

Recent burglary in Miraloma Park was thwarted by alert neighbor who noticed a guy standing as lookout in a driveway. Police came and arrested him. Other guy jumped out of second-story window and was caught a few blocks later because he’d hurt his feet in the jump. Turned out he was wanted for attempted murder in Oakland.

UPCOMING EVENTS
National Night Out – Tues., August 5, 5-8pm at Police Academy (350 Amber Dr., next to Diamond Heights Shopping Center). Specialty units, police demos, NERT, ALERT, Walk SF, Bike Coalition, SFSAFE will all be on hand. Very fun event for kids and a great way to tour police academy. Free BBQ dinner and lots of giveaways. Also very convenient to Silver Tree Day Camp – come by on your way home and have a free meal!

Sunday Streets in the Excelsior – Sunday, Sept. 28

Fiesta on the Hill – Bernal Heights – Sunday, October 19

Other events
Contact the MTA to apply for a permit for block 
St. Mary’s Park/Rec Center – July 12 – community playdate and picnic
McLaren concert series – free concerts

Q&A
St. Mary’s Park area – pattern of robberies by group of 4-5 kids/teens (12-15 years old). Any update? Arrests were made after winter series of robberies. Not sure if current robberies are same group (ie, now out of detention) or different group. Police increasing patrols. St. Mary’s Rec Center manager was at the meeting and said they have more staff in the summer for the day camps and are stationing people around park to keep an eye out.

NO MEETING IN JULY – the captain will be away. Next meeting will be in August.

There you have it. Please give Neighbor Sarah a sexy Steve McQueen wink for all the hard we she does coordinating with the SFPD and typing up these notes. Thank you, Sarah!

PHOTO: Telstar Logistics

The Evolution of Bernal’s Lesbian Community, as Viewed from Wild Side West

/ Todd_Lappin / 18 Comments

Wild Side West

There’s an interesting story on the cover of SF Weekly this week that looks at the changing geography of San Francisco’s lesbian community.

It describes how “San Francisco’s lesbian enclave has shifted four times in the last 30 years, from Valencia Street to Noe Valley to Bernal Heights, and now, to Oakland, moving around in response to or anticipation of the next economic upheaval.” The Bernal Heights portion of that history turns out to be rather interesting — while providing a useful reminder that many of today’s venerable old-timers were once bizarre newcomers as well:

Bernal Heights was still largely an immigrant neighborhood [in the mid-1970s], so lesbians who moved there during the ’80s and ’90s were often perceived as perpetrators, rather than victims, of an early gentrification wave.

Against that backdrop, we then take a look at Bernal’s lesbian community, as seen through the prism of The Wild Side West on Cortland:

Domestic proclivities, compounded by the gender wage gap, are undermining the notion of a lesbian district. Younger, artsy people are descending on Oakland, but they don’t have the density, or the urgency, to create their own township. And there aren’t enough left in San Francisco to maintain a cultural critical mass.

Fritz, a gravelly voiced woman in a hooded sweatshirt, considers herself the “ambassador” of the Wild Side West, a historic lesbian bar in Bernal Heights. She offers tours to all variety of interlopers: ogling tourists, straights from the neighborhood, correspondents from local newspapers. Many are first-time patrons; some aren’t sure whether to treat the place as a neighborhood watering hole, or a shrine to Bernal’s past.

In fact, it’s a little of both.

The Wild Side West seems frozen in time, even as the city transforms all around it. And, on a balmy Thursday afternoon in May, it’s still packed with regulars: old men hunched over frothy beers, coarse-haired women unfolding crinkled newspapers, a large dog who lies, panting, in the corner. Fritz is unloading a bag of hot dog buns for anyone who wants to stick around later and watch the Giants game; she’s also taken it upon herself to lead another tour.

Sure, the neighborhood is changing, she acknowledges, strutting through the bar’s ample backyard and pausing to point out various amenities — the wood swing, the barbecue grill, the mannequin with a bottle-cap bikini. Fritz sits down at a picnic table and bunches her mouth studiously, taking mental stock of the new elements.

“When they got rid of the pay phones, that’s when the property values went up,” she says. Bernal used to be a working-class area with a small but noticeable population of drug dealers; now it’s dotted with organic tea houses and Pilates studios. In January, the online real estate brokerage Redfin crowned it the hottest neighborhood in the US, based on property listings searches; the median home price is just shy of a million dollars.

Fritz and her partner, June (not her real name), want to partake in the boom, too — they’re eyeing a $1.3 million house with two bedrooms upstairs and a studio on the ground floor. They think that by pulling together their savings, and June’s salary as a lawyer, they’ll be able to scrounge up the money.

Looking toward the future, she has few reservations about joining a new class of well-heeled startup workers and “couples pushing strollers” — even if she becomes the old-timer who doesn’t quite fit in anymore. A Long Island native, Fritz works at the Inlandboatmen’s Union and considers herself staunchly blue collar — making her part of an ever-dwindling population.

“I’ve seen younger gay women move in, but they’re mostly in the tech field,” Fritz says. The lesbians who came to drive forklifts or paint houses can’t afford their rent anymore.

PHOTO: Telstar Logistics

 

Here Are the 10 Cheapest Homes For Sale in Bernal Heights Right Now

/ Todd_Lappin / 7 Comments

curbed10cheapest

What does a bit more than half-a-million buy in Bernal Heights these days? For those morbidly inclined to explore that question, our real estate-obsessed friends at the CurbedSF blog have pulled together an interesting list of the “The 10 Least Expensive Properties for Sale in Bernal Heights”:

Finding a deal in Bernal Heights has become next to impossible, but we’ve combed the listings and mapped the ten least expensive homes for sale in the neighborhood. They start at $500,000 and head on up to $899,000. A few have been flipped in the past year, while others are probably about to be sold to flippers. Quite a few have unwarranted space and one recommends building a brand-new home to replace what’s there now.

It’s a revealing list — notice that all the properties are on the Bernal borderlands, for example. Yet for anyone with the fortitude to do some renovation and remodeling, there may be opportunities for some wannabe homeowners. Maybe.

MAP: via CurbedSF

“Graffiti Bandit” Eliminates Graffiti, Keeps West Bernal Sexy, Needs Your Help

/ Todd_Lappin / 11 Comments

JOE 3

VAN 2

There’s an anti-graffiti warrior on patrol along Bernal’s western frontier, and Neighbor Jaime Ross with the North West Bernal Alliance tells Bernalwood he could use your support:

North West Bernal has a one-man graffiti abatement program.

His name is Joe (shown above), and until recently he wasn’t willing to let anyone know about him, for fear of reprisal from taggers. And he went out under cover of night. But now he has no choice but to go public. He needs your donations to continue the never-ending job of keeping our neighborhood free from graffiti.

Here’s the back story:

In 1989, the top concerns at the North West Bernal Alliance meetings were graffiti and safety.

All the buildings along the Mission St corridor, from Cesar Chavez were vandalized. The property owners didn’t seem to care, so Joe (a member of the NWBA) decided to go out and get rid of as much graffiti as he could. That’s how the NWBA Graffiti Abatement program started.

Joe worked hard at it, and after several weeks he painted out all the graffiti from Chavez to Randall. But new graffiti appeared almost daily. It was an enormous job just keeping that area clean.

It took almost 3 years to get to a place where he was able to remove graffiti quickly. Then he was ready to tackle Mission Street from Randall to the 280 overpass.

Some days it took 10 hours to clean that area, but he was determined to get rid of all of it.
Once that removal became routine, he moved on to Glen Park.

By 1997 he was covering about 25 miles a day working 6-8 hours a day. He had some help but still it was a huge undertaking.

Joe depended on sporadic donations from grateful merchants and a few grants from SF Beautiful. He’s getting some money from a Community Challenge Grant, formally the Beautification Fund, The Department of Public Works donates paint for city trash cans; telephone poles; traffic call boxes and postal furniture, but it doesn’t nearly cover the cost for all the other paint and supplies Joe needs, so he’s using his own money.

Joe’s daily route consists of 36 miles, and Mondays he covers an additional 7 miles for a total of 43 miles of graffiti abatement.

We’d be grateful for your support to keep our neighborhood free from graffiti with a tax deductible donation. We’ll be happy to send an acknowledgment letter on our letterhead for tax purposes.

Please go to our website and click “Donate” on the right

Or you can send a check to:
North West Bernal Alliance 
 PO BOX 40989
San Francisco, CA 94140-0989

PHOTOS: North West Bernal Alliance

The New York Times Loves Bernal Author James Nestor’s New Book, and You’re Invited to His Party on Friday

/ Todd_Lappin / 1 Comment

deepreview2

Oh, by the way, did you catch that item  in Sunday’s New York Times Book Review? You know, the review of the brand-new book by Bernal Heights author (and anticool motorist) James Nestor?

Neighbor James’s book is called Deep: Freediving, Renegade Science, and What the Ocean Tells Us About Ourselves, and here’s a taste of what the NYT had to say about it:

In the epilogue, “Ascents,” Nestor comes back up through the depths, rapidly enough to give the reader a version of the bends, but it serves as a beautiful construct allowing him to revisit “Deep’s” dramatis personae. It’s the finale of Nestor’s reportorial trip down to Hades and back again. Through his eyes and his stories, it’s a journey well worth taking.

BOO-YA!  To celebrate this, and the publication of the book, Neighbor James says, “there is a Book Release party, to which all Bernalwooders are invited.” That means you!

The party is on Friday, June 27 at the truly fabulous Ohio Design studio at 630 Treat (near 19th Street) in The Mission. Be there to give Neighbor James a much-deserved high-five:

DEEP_invite

 

Revealed: Miss Darcy’s Not-So Secret Summer Stroll Macaroon Cookie Recipe

/ Todd_Lappin / 2 Comments

Stroll 2014

Summer Stroll 2014

Heartfelt Cookies

Last week’s Summer Stroll on Cortland was totally glamtacular. The sidewalks were crowded with stylish Bernalese of all ages, seeing and being seen. There was lots of terrific art to find and enjoy. There was music in the streets. And over at Heartfelt, Miss Darcy was handing out some rather tasty macaroons.

Martha Stewart may visit Bernal Heights from time to time, but Heartfelt proprietor (and Bernal neighbor) Darcy Lee is our homegrown, full-time original. So naturally, Bernalwood wanted to know more about those deeeelicious macaroons we had at Heartfelt during the Stroll. Like, what’s the secret recipe?

Here’s what Miss Darcy shared with us:

Rosa’s Coconut-Date Macaroons

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

4 large egg whites
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp cornstarch
1 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 tsp distilled white vinegar
2 tbsp boiling water
1 cup chopped dried Medjool dates (or 1 cup cherry-flavoured dried cranberries, roughly chopped for a festive twist)
1 cup finely chopped pecans
3 cups sweetened shredded coconut

Position an oven rack in the centre of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on high speed until opaque and foamy.

In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cornstarch. Stir with a small whisk to blend. Reduce the mixer speed to medium-low and gradually add the sugar mixture; mix for about 30 seconds, gradually bringing the mixer back to high speed and mix for 1 minute.

Immediately add the vanilla and vinegar and continue to mix for at least 2 minutes, or until the egg whites hold stiff, glossy peaks, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice.

Reduce the speed to medium-high and add the boiling water all to once. The egg whites will swell up and then resettle as all the water is incorporated. Mix for 2 more minutes, then set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the dates (*or cherry-flavoured dried cranberries), pecans and coconut; using your hands, toss the ingredients until evenly distributed. This helps to avoid clumping, which can cause the egg whites to break down a bit too much due to over-stirring.

Gently fold in the coconut mixture into the egg white mixture until blended. Using a 1 1/2-inch-diameter ice-cream scoop, place scoops of batter 1 inch apart on the prepared pans. Bake one sheet at a time for 8 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 225°F and bake for 40 minutes longer, or until the macaroons are an even light brown.

Remove from the oven and let cook on the pan for 15 minutes. Transfer the cookies to wire racks to cook completely.

Store in an airtight container in a cool dry place for up to 1 week.

PHOTOS: Telstar Logistics

You’ll Be Shocked — Shocked! — by KRON4’s Investigation of Precita Park

/ Todd_Lappin / 107 Comments

shockedshocked

KRON-4 reporter Stanley Roberts investigated Precita Park in Bernal Heights recently. His reporting yielded conclusive proof that there are many off-leash dogs in Precita Park (despite what the sign says), and that visitors to Precita Park should watch out for poop. Journalism!

For more detail, lets go to KRON’s exclusive report. Over to you in Precita Park, Stanley:

PHOTO: Telstar Logistics

Scary Brush Fire Burns Grass, Damages One Home in South Bernal

/ Todd_Lappin / 51 Comments

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alemanyfiresite

Late yesterday afternoon, several Bernalese reported seeing a grim column of smoke rising from the skies of south Bernal, around I-280.

The cause was a brush fire, which spread quickly around Ellsworth, just south of Moultrie. The Chronicle reported:

Reports of the blaze near the corner of Ellsworth Street and Alemany Boulevard came in around 3 p.m., said Mindy Talmadge, a Fire Department spokeswoman.

One home on Moultrie Street sustained some damage, though Talmadge said that portion of the fire was put out quickly. The fire was contained around 4 p.m., and the cause was under investigation, Talmadge said.

Close call. Note also that when we zoom and enhance the dramatic photo above, as captured by Daniel Harper, we see some Bernal neighbors frantically using a hose to keep the flames at bay. Yikes:

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PHOTO: Top and detail, Daniel Harper

 

Star Sighting: Martha Stewart Dined at Ichi Sushi Last Night

/ Todd_Lappin / 8 Comments

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Perhaps you heard the rumors swirling around La Lengua last night?

Well, they’re true: Martha Stewart was in San Francisco yesterday, and she stopped in for dinner at Neighbor Tim and Erin Archuleta’s Ichi Sushi + Ni Bar in Bernal Heights.

Here’s the proof, via Twitter — with a cute little typo to provide a perfect touch of “I’m writing this while totally buzzing on Ichi” Marthenticity:

marthatweet

 

PHOTO: Top, via Wikipedia

Thursday: New Attractions, New Restaurants at the 2014 Cortland Summer Stroll and Art Walk

/ Todd_Lappin / 8 Comments

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strollshirts

Continuing a tradition that dates back many thousands of years, to the Age of the Ancient Bernal Druids, the 2014 Summer Stroll happens on Cortland Avenue tomorrow, Thursday, June 19. Solstice-style.

Sponsored by your local merchants from the Bernal Business Alliance, this year’s stroll features some sexy highlights:

  • Lots of open doors, live music, snacky snacks, and spiked drinks for grownups from your favorite Cortland shops and restaurants. Miss Darcy from Heartfelt promises home-baked cookies! (Not the funny kind.)
  • A rather cosmopolitan Art Walk, with local artists displaying their work along Cortland!
  • A trusted source tells Bernalwood the new Red Hill Station restaurant will soft-open on the night of the Stroll, serving oysters, wine, and beer. (The full opening happens on Friday, 6/20; preview pictures here). Congrats, Neighbors Amy and Taylor!
  • Also, after its brief transformation, the former Liberty Cafe will reopen in time for the stroll. Now renamed Bernal Star, the new motto is “Brunch. Burgers. Brews.” Drama!
  • Miss Karen from The New Wheel adds, “We have new t-shirts! They were designed by Jennifer Keith on the North Side, printed by Pelican Print Shop down on Bayshore, and will be available in adult and kids sizes (medium and large) tomorrow near the library for just $10! I’ve attached a photo of the fabulous ladies of Heartfelt showcasing the look!” (Shown above)

That’s the executive summary; here’s the official 411 about what else you should look for at the 2014 Cortland Summer Stroll:

The Bernal Business Alliance cordially invites you to the 4th Annual Summer Stroll. Join friends, neighbors and local businesses, for a fun and festive evening all along Cortland Ave. Enjoy a variety of special treats offered by local merchants and restaurants, including live music, food and drink. This year’s stroll introduces a neighborhood Art Walk. Businesses along the Cortland corridor will be hosting the work of local Bernal Heights artists. So grab your friends and family and take a stroll down Cortland Ave. It’s sure to be a grand time for all!

Special thanks to the following local businesses for sponsoring this event: The Good Life Grocery, Bernal Hill Reality, Little Bee Baking, Bernal Heights Outdoor Cinema, Inclusions Gallery, The Lucky Horseshoe, Heartfelt, Holy Water, Integral Body, The Liberty Cafe, The New Wheel, Bernal Beast, State Farm Insurance, Succulence, Fit Bernal Fit, Vega, Chamalyn Teas & Honey, Vinorosso Enoteca, Chef Stephanie, Netpop, Kingmond Young framing & photography, Climb Real Estate, Unlimited Hair Care, Chloe’s Closet, Bernal Business Alliance, Andi’s Market, The Wild Side West, Bernal Bucks, Moki’s Sushi and Pacific Grill

Bernal Neighbor, Now Studying in Barcelona, Creates Rather Intense Robot-Enhanced Dance Video

/ Todd_Lappin / 1 Comment

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Neighbor Carmen is from Bernal Heights, but she’s now finishing up a grad program in glamorous Barcelona, Spain, where she just produced a rather intensely lovely video piece. “I’m a Bocana kid, missing SF, wanting my neighbors to see what we Bernalites are capable of,” she said in her email to us.

Amen to that. Here are Neighbor Carmen’s technical notes:

This is my last project at IAAC, in Barcelona. Our school has a digital fabrication laboratory, and one of our tools is a 6 axis Kuka Robot. My latest research has been focused on exploring the aesthetic dimension of robotic movement. Since I’m studying interaction design, and using technology to augment the human experience I created a dance piece that allows us to question the rigid definition of what is human and what is machine as well as how we interact with the machines we use.

The simple run down:

In order to do this, I built a symbol movement language, based on traditional movements such as a circle, rotation, curve, wave, extension, contraction, line, meander. A sequence of moves were put together to create a visual choreography that I gave to the dancer. I then asked her to interpret it, intuitively with her body or through the space. The same sequence was given to the robot through code, and the kuka moved along that path in space the orientation of its tool moved along the path. This process makes the input parameters the same for both beings yielding spontaneous results. Without knowing the outcome, and being able to change the choreography and dancer I was looking for spontaneous connections between the two.