Tuesday, August 31, 2010

A so-called summer in San Fran

Let me start with a short background. I am working in SF, in the ghetto to say the very least, where drug addicts roam and homeless people sleep. I live in a house in a predominantly residential area with a little nightclub nearby called "Tropi-Gala" that plays some sweet and challenging Latino beats. After a month in this queer place, where anything goes and nerdy is the new black, I have a few observations I thought would be fun to share.

1. The TV conundrum.

Last week, while looking desperately for parking for my car, I saw this guy drive up, take the spot I was vying for, get out of the car with a TV, leave it on the street and drive off. For fear of a bomb attack, I chose to not park my car in that spot and parked elsewhere. The next morning, I returned to the same street to find the TV still waiting there. Funnily enough, a week later I saw two TV sets just lying on the street, back to back, with no apparent purpose! I am not sure why this happens, or if its a common practice but apparently its a done deal!!

2. Street Cleaning

Those familiar with some parts of the city might remember this nightmare. Every street has a certain date and time when the street is cleaned. During this, generally 2-3 hour period, cars cannot be parked on the street. Since there is a perpetual dearth of parking spots after 6pm, the only streets that have any empty spots are the ones with street cleaning the next morning. So for a WHOLE WEEK, the only place I could park my car was streets like those. So every morning, I kicked my ass out of bed at 8.30am to find and re-park my car in a less tow-able area. It is brutal to have to have to wake up EVERY morning and waste fuel, battery and energy REPARKING your car!

3. Homeless People

They are a phenomenon. its a lifestyle. They wear their hair a certain way, flaunt their style with pride. There is an unsaid competition between the homeless people on who can come up with the most innovative money grabbing techniques. These guys will make posters, write cool notes, sing songs, dance, juggle balls. just about ANYTHING. There was this one lady on the sidewalk, who'd made a life-size poster with a lot of unusual comments written on it. She held it and sang and shook every single day from 9 am to 1am . She even had a chair, just in case she got tired. This is the modern day beggar. Innovative, with a chair!

4. Supersize me

Oh yes. I used to wonder, HOW does somebody eat 1500 calories in one meal from the comfort of my stingy singaporean portions, where you have to pay 50c for an extra grain of rice. These people really lay it on THICK. Weight Watchers says, "If you want to lose even a gram of fat, don't finish your meal. Carry a doggie bag wherever you go" Hell, yeah. If I ate more than a meal a day, i'd be consuming atleast 2500 calories. This is leaving out coffee, beer or cookies, the staple free food you get at events. No wonder Americans need to book 2 seats on an aeroplane. And alas, the healthiest meal costs the most. You can get a 1000 calorie meal for $4 but for a good 600 calorie pasta, you must pay atleast $15

5. Public Transport Hell

The caltrain be DAMNED. And I am serious. To get from a "city" that's 10 miles from another "city", there is ONE train that comes ONCE and hour. So yes, if you miss it. You wait. For an hour. At a Mcd. And consume a 600 calorie fries box. Hellz yeah. And to make things better, the cost of the ticket is by zone. To go from the last stop of zone 2 to first stop of zone 3 costs $4.50! So I have paid $4.50 for a 3 minute caltrain ride. I could have walked there!