Crab Feast

My cousins Michael, Carma and Julie just spoiled me with a crab feast. These were the biggest, most delicious crabs - 2 lbs each. I think this is the tail end of the San Francisco crab season. Why did I wait so long to indulge?

Women Dancing on the Women's Building

The blog Mission Mission captured Flyaway's dancers on the Women's Building. Although this isn't the music that will be with the final dance piece, the Andy Miller did a great job of picking the tunes and editing the moves.

Come by tonight to the Women's Building at 3543 18th Street in San Francisco between 5:30-6:30 to see a rehearsal and to meet the artists in a curbside conversation. I will be there with chocolates in hand for our viewers.



Building Dance from Andy Miller on Vimeo.

Pre-1906 San Francisco

This link takes you to seven minutes of amazing footage documenting life along Market Street in San Francisco in 1906, just days before the earthquake struck. The movement is relaxing, especially if you turn off the volume. It feels like a well-choreographed dance.

Four Wheels Keep on Turning

Amazing news! I'm just days away from getting a car. Sorry Andy, but it won't be a Honda - however the vehicle is a good deal. Just waiting to get it checked out and make sure all is healthy. I've already named it Freddy as my last car was George.

Having my cousin Ben's car has been a reminder of how much time I save with having four wheels. Yesterday I was able to drive into San Francisco in the pouring rain and save an hour of BART commuting and then I drove to a meeting across the city. The cost savings of driving vs BARTing aren't that much different either. Using City Car Share is the most expensive option of all.

I'll be honest, I'm worried about the lifestyle change. Walking and bike riding keep me in super shape. So, the challenge will be making sure I still walk and ride as much as possible and don't become a car potato.

NorCal Softie

It has only taken 16 months to turn me back into a Northern California Softie. The rain hit today and it is as though we are having a snowstorm for which we are unprepared.

My wimpy umbrella turned inside-out as soon as I stepped out the door. Why is it that once they do that they can't stop, as though they have learned a new trick?

Of course I dropped off my waterproof boots to get new zippers, yesterday. Instead I'm wearing my super sexy high heel black boots that look waterproof but are now hosting puddles in which my socks and feet are marinating.

My lovely raincoat, on which I sprayed waterproofing, is drenched and Now so is my wool sweater. Trying to outsmart the rain I am wearing my short pants which are also now soaked.

But you know what? I'm smiling today because I enjoy unusual, funny experiences that make us behave differently. I love jumping around the puddles and swirling my broken umbrella. After all, it is only water.

LunaFest Films By, For and About Women

Tonight I attended the LunaFest film festival of short films by, for and about women. Each of the films touched me deeply and together they made me feel strong and proud to be who I am. Lately I've been feeling that life is passing me by because I am not living the standard protocol of being married, having a family, buying a house. Tonight I recognized that I'm living a unique life and every day is experienced to the fullest - with each choice my own. Plus, my friends are my extended family and what a tremendous network of women I have in my life.

Although I attended the film festival alone I met some wonderful women this evening who were eager to pull me into their circle. Some of the best vibes I've had in a San Francisco arts experience, ever.

Citizen Dance

Walking through San Francisco's Mission District is so much like being part of a giant, improvisational citizen dance. People linger, run, pause, panhandle, scream, cry, and meander the streets day and night. The best way to self-choreograph through this dance is to walk with confidence but without aggression, with purpose but with casualness, with certainty but with room for spontaneity. It requires a learned movement vocabulary that is unique to this area of the City.

This dance reminds me of the unique movement of London. Walk on the left or the right, you're never sure but you have to move with swiftness and purpose. You are certain to brush up against other folks with nearly every step. I recall walking down an empty street with just another person across the block. For some reason we both crossed the street towards each other and actually brushed shoulders in the middle of the road. It was a beautiful moment of Londoners finding each other. In The Mission I would say it is an effort to avoid that moment of contact if you want to keep safe.

One Year Anniversary

I have been back in San Francisco for one year, a full year, 365 days, 12 months. Honoring this moment is important for moving forward. This evening I will be sailing on the San Francisco Bay with some close friends - both old and new. What better way to get perspective?

The year was both fast and slow. Sometimes I can't believe I've been here that long and there are all those days between me living in the UK and now. Other times it feels like a blip on the radar screen of life. So much has changed, all for the better. Ultimately, I am living my dreams and reaching my goals. This week has been a bit emotional and I suspect that this milestone may be at the center.

Here's to savoring every minute of the next year, connecting with friends, building new relationships and getting creative.

The Knights Who Say "Mama-se, mama-sa, ma-ma-coo-sa"

I went to see Spamalot last night with Rene in San Francisco. It was his first time at the show and my third, having seen it in London and Las Vegas. By far Vegas was the best performance. Perhaps it was my fourth row seat and King Arthur being played by John O'Hurley (who was supposed to be in last night's show but was replaced by an understudy).

Last night, unfortunately the woman in front of me leaned forward for the entire performance so that I had to constantly dodge back and forth to see the action. I wanted to gently take her shoulders and pull them back. This is what makes live theatre so different from sitting on your couch.

The beauty of live theatre, audience and all, is that potential for spontaneity. Each performance is different because of the chemistry between actors and audience. Last night's show had a particularly wonderful moment when the Knights Who Say Ni changed to the Knights Who Say Mama-se, mama-sa, ma-ma-coo-sa, the famous chorus from Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Something." The audience took a collective sigh and the actor then said, "it is so hard to say good bye to the King of Pop. He touched so many people." This made us all laugh. It was the perfect adieu to such a theatrical and mysterious pop icon.

Four Wheeling... soon?

Now that I'm committed to staying in the Bay Area I'm starting to crave four wheels. I think that because work was my focus, two wheeling was fine because I would go into San Francisco for meetings and then back home. Now that I'm invested in staying here my life is expanding out past this back and forth commute.

Earlier this week I used City Car Share twice and unfortunately the second time my special key wouldn't work when I was leaving the Marin Headlands. This meant I was stranded for a few hours and ended up getting home at 10:30pm. The lock didn't work because of the keys getting run-over last week when I dropped them. This experience in combination with the bike fall on Monday are pointing me towards getting a car. Also, showing up at meetings all sweaty and bike-greasy.

I'm thinking a used Miata - cute an sporty! Probably some good deals out there.

Tres Leches Fantasy

Yesterday I had a fabulous client meeting and rewarded myself with the world's most delicious slice of Tres Leches (three milks) from DeLessio Bakery on Market Street. Ironically, this huge slice of cake cost me $3.95 and last week I had the worst bowl of oatmeal there and it cost me $10.00. Clearly, Tres Leches is the new breakfast food for price and taste factor.

Trout Fishing in America

This weekend, looking at the Arion Press website, I discovered a book that I'd never heard of before called Trout Fishing in America by Richard Brautigan. Rene informed me that it was not at all about trout fishing and I knew immediately I had to give it a read. Although it was a trippy set of random incidents, all somehow linked to Trout Fishing in America (as a person, place and thing), it was easy to read, unlike Naked Lunch which worked better as a film.

After finishing the book, which was centered in 1961 San Francisco, I had a realization that Jim Kweskin was probably some how connected to this work. Searching the web I found this fantastic map called Humbead's Revised Map which mentions both Jim Kweskin and Richard Brautigan.

I can only imagine the stories these two men could tell about life in San Francisco in the 1960s. Luckily Jim Kweskin is playing July 11 at Freight and Salvage in Berkeley. We have tickets. This is the first time I'll have seen him perform live.

Two Wheels or Four?

Perhaps I should promote myself as the "consultant on wheels" since I now show up to nearly every client meeting with bike helmet in hand and Ike the Bike at my side. This works in San Francisco. People are totally fine with me parking my bike in their offices. Sure, I sometimes show up a bit less beautiful in the hair department but always have a lovely glow in my cheeks.

I keep flirting with the idea of buying or leasing a car. As an independent consultant I believe I can write off at least a portion of my rental lease. Each time I mention going four-wheels to family and friends they say "don't do it". Interesting, they all have cars. But then they remind me that there are so many hidden costs: payments, insurance, repairs, and gas.

My concern is that I am using City Car Share more often each month and the money I'm putting into that company be paying for a lease and providing me with four wheels 24/7. Then again, I nearly always use City Car Share for business and that in itself is write-off.

Cost-benefit-analysis in process.

What Men Want

Naomi and I went to see a dance performance this evening of Scott Wells and Dancers as part of the San Francisco International Arts Festival. The title of this sold out show was What Men Want and our grand conclusion was "each other."

The pieces ranged from delicately choreographed to agressive homoerotic wrestling. Very San Francisco in terms of pushing the gender boundaries. There is something so wonderful about the male form in dance. Often I find modern dance difficult to watch with the tendancy to use a jagged dance vocabulary. With this work I was enthralled by the fluidity of movement.

Random Sample Comes to Life

For one of my arts clients I have conducted an online survey and one of the questions asks respondents if they would be willing to participate on a focus group. First of all we had a whopping 10% response rate on our survey. Unbelievable. But then we had a 30% response of YES on focus group participation. I was hoping for 10-20 folks. We ended up with 500!

So, using my new found statistics knowledge I created a list of random numbers using an Excel macro and selected a sample from my population of respondents. Last night I facilitated the first of two focus groups and it was amazing to meet that random sample live and in person. We do it again on Thursday with another group.

What was most interesting about this sample were the similarities and differences amongst the group. Similarities were that they all live in San Francisco (not that amazing) and are all connectors in their network of friends. This actually wasn't one of our survey questions but it did tell us a lot about who loves the organization, responds to online surveys and the type of people that attend the arts programming. What was different was their ages, ethnicities, nationalities, and careers. Also, there was only one man and he definitely had the body language of, "protect me from these extroverted arts lovers."

I knew I would find a use for statistics. Now can I get a passing grade in the course?

Tap Dancing on Eggshells

This week's work theme has been tap dancing on eggshells. It culminated with me facilitating a strategic planning retreat on the 33rd floor of a San Francisco skyscraper. Floor to ceiling windows and I am not a fan of heights. The meeting was a huge success and believe me I was happy to reach the ground floor when it was over. Success indicator: facilitator did not faint.

Searching googlefor an image to include in this post I discovered that none exist. The world needs some images of people tap dancing on eggshells.

Preparing for UK Business Trip

In preparation for my business trip to England, Scotland and Wales at the end of February I needed to get in touch with my UK bank. Thanks to the ease of Skype I was able to seamlessly contact the bank by phone. Oh how lovely to hear the Glaswegian accent of the woman at the service centre. It was so familiar and I knew I was in good hands.

At the conclusion of our conversation the call centre woman, who had become increasingly excited throughout our call, (not because of my account balance), asked me where from the States I was calling. When I told her San Francisco I could just imagine the smile on her face and the gleam in her eyes. "Oh lovely, what is the weather like there?" I told her the truth, sunny and warm. "Oh bring some of that sunshine with you when you visit" was her response. I asked her about the snow they are experiencing today and she told me it had blanketed the entire UK but hoped it would melt before I got there. "I can use a little snow" I told her.

Beautiful Blue

Just an observation but it seems that JetBlue has more than their share of beautiful, gay, flight attendants. Perhaps it is because I'm flying between DC and Oakland/SF, two of the country's gay meccas. Eye candy supreme.

New Urban Art Piece

At Mission and 15th in San Francisco.

The Garage

The Garage art space is a super secret and unexpected arts space hidden in SOMA (South of Market) in San Francisco. The outside is an assuming red door and inside is this 17 seat theater space. Talk about emerging alternative arts. "Stuff" like this is the reasons I love the arts. The secret is out 975 Howard Street!