could it get any better?

First Foley, now the preacher man in Colorado. Oh how I
love the hypocrites with their Family Values. Really, if
one wrote a movie script about the current political
events, it would be tossed out as being ridiculously far
too dramatic and unbelievable. 

Yes, the elevator was still out today. I walked up and down
those stairs with nary a complaint. Talked to a customer
who said that people who work in bookstores tend to have
"an edge" about them. I glared at him and he said, "oh, I
meant that in a good way". Right.

Tomorrow will be a mess. The Pet Shop Boys will be in at
6pm. I've been calling them the Petco Guys. I will report
in tomorrow night. Send nice thoughts my way, please....

sorry for the inconvenience

Stairs - Vatican Museum
Originally uploaded by kohvitass.

Our elevator is broken and won't be fixed until Monday. Of course we have escalators, but getting from my office to the first floor is no easy task, especially with carts of books or boxes of DVDs. I didn't bring my camera to work, so I used a photo from Flickr® that pretty much resembles our stairs at work. I hope you feel sorry for me, I certainly do.

the two californias

When I worked in a big box chain bookstore in Berkeley,
Ishmael Reed used to come in all the time. That was one
of the few good memories from that particular experience.

Here is one of his poems from a just published book,
New and Collected Poems,1964 - 2006.

UNTITLED

When California is split in two
The Northern part will be called
The Republic of Jambalaya
The Southern part will be called
Summer Camp

Ismael Reed

media day with won tons

Grey and rainy so I spent most of the day indoors and
Husbando termed it Media Day since we started out this
morning watching Jon Stewart at 8am, then moved to
The World's Fastest Indian, an inspirational true story
starring Anthony Hopkins. Oh, I did vote this morning
before I started on my computer ~ it took me one hour
and the entire kitchen table. Tonight I think we'll watch
Water - A Deepa Mehta Film, but it sounds a little
depressing. Submitted a short piece for rejection, but
at least I can file it away forever.

Lunch? Out to 34th and Balboa for won ton soup and
steamed buns at the Shanghai Dumpling Shop. Can
you think of a better rainy day? 

they spoil the vines & tender grapes

We both loved The Little Foxes at ACT last night, but
first I want to talk about the amazing discovery that there
were TONS of kids in costumes in the heart of downtown!
And better yet, it seems like those little grocery and liquor
stores give out candy by the fistful. It was so touching
to watch the little ones of multi multi ethnicities, some
with parents and some without, carrying their huge bags
of candies. And there were some unusual costumes and
even a few children in wheelchairs. Because I'm such a
city woman, I loved this about 400 times more than I
would those bland burbs with expensive decorations and
formula Halloweeniness.

But now to the vines. Here is where Ms. Hellman found
the title ~ from Song of Solomon (2:15):
Take us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines for
our vines have tender grapes.
(alluding to the rich capitalists who crush their own history
and all the people who happen to be in their way, but you
already knew that - pardon my preach)

You will not be disappointed in this play! The set for one
thing ~ rich red and dramatic with a long winding staircase
begging for emotional speeches. Glorious costumes and
some fine acting. But, as always, it's the writing...the
words and the characters that kept me wide awake after
a full day of work and a big sandwich from
Lefty O’Doul’s - San Francisco Restaurant Review

American Conservatory Theater - ACT San Francisco

pre-work halloween post

I have a very sane 9 to 6 work schedule today, then we are
going to ACT to see Little Foxes, so it will be too late to
write tonight when I get home. I usually dress down for the
holiday (jeans, at least), but I'll have to be somewhat
professional today due to after work theatre. I will wear the
pumpkin earrings that K. gave me a few years ago.

Checked Flickr® for a ghost photo, but couldn't figure out
how to steal one for my blog. They have 99,313 of those
and I started getting lost browsing, so figured I had just better
get to the writing. Our prompt for Round Robin today was
Ghosts, so I wrote about ex-employees coming in and me
not knowing their names and not particularly caring about
them either, to be perfectly honest.

I have been substituting for the Round Robin and am better
for it these past 8 days. Thanks, Mistress Jane!

i love a mystery

I am thoroughly enjoying this new novel about a 16 year old
girl who disappears for a few weeks. The reader never knows
what is true and what is fantasy. I don't know why it's titled
the same as Bettelheim's book about fairy tales, but I'm
quite sure it wasn't an accident.

Click Here: Check out "Powell's Books - The Uses of Enchantment: A Novel by Heidi Julavits

On the way home tonight on BART a young Asian woman
was completely engrossed in Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina",
I enjoyed watching her read, I hope she didn't miss her stop,
I've done that from time to time.

how do you say dysfunctional in spanish?

Last night we watched Only Human ~ and I would rate it
two out-loud giggles. It is a Spanish movie about a young
Jewish woman (a tv reporter) who brings home her new
college professor boyfriend, who just happens to be
Palestinian. Her family is quite crazy even before this,
sort of a Meet the Fockers de España. Don't read too
many reviews because the pivotal plot element is more
fun if you don't know in advance that it's going to happen.
(It's only about 90 minutes, so you aren't investing too
much of your shrinking leisure time here.)

now how much? by the pound?

pumpkins 2006
Originally uploaded by the omster.

Every year I buy our pumpkins from the Mexican guys on a truck (two trucks this year!) on Harrison, around 22nd Street or so, I guess. I think I pay twice as much as I would at Safeway, but they are always so nice and help me drag the pumpkins to my car. I wanted 7 this year, but Husbando pointed out that they take FOREVER to compost, even with very active worms, plus we all know that I don't like to see pumpkins in December, so they have a limited shelf life at our house. So I only bought 4 this year, but they are big mothers and beautiful in their own orange way.

Sunday, Oct. 29th - meet Eric (and Jane)

Don't miss this unusual author event for the book I
discovered last week. I'll be there to have my copies
signed ~ excellent holiday gifts for those creative types
on your gift list who just happen to love/live in our City.

Click Here: Check out "The Writing Salon :: Events"

we'd rather eat than write

the day ends
Originally uploaded by the omster.

...and lame ageist jokes are always good this time of year.

pink and gold and filled with calories

the day starts
Originally uploaded by the omster.

Sunrise from our back deck ~ the most perfect time of year. Busy day off including a flu shot at the Public Health Department (so organized) and then an unusual b.day lunch at Original Joe's in the Tenderloin with The Great Plotniks. Like going back in time before we worried about cholesterol and our blood pressure. Or how to decorate a restaurant, for that matter. We enjoyed ourselves immensely, as we always do with TGPs. Then tonight at Tiapos (my writing group) we celebrated two birthdays and discussed why so many writers are Scorpios. TGP said he is a Scorpio with Clueless rising...

photos and recipes

Two things I can never seem to throw away. I have a pork
chop recipe here from Susan when I was at the Univ.
of Colorado about 200 years ago. It's awful, too. Photos
I can understand, but what's this attachment to old
recipes? It's not as though I cook more than twice a year.

So last night Husbando asked me if I could make some
waffles for dinner tonight. Turns out that we are both too
full from lunch at Boulevard today, so I'll make them
another time. When I looked for the recipe, however, I
had to think about the source. Frank was the ex-husband
of Pat. Pat died about 18 or so years ago. We never
met Frank, but these waffles are delicious ~ unusually
light and tasty.  I'll photograph them, maybe, when we
do have them. That's something for you to look forward to.

Frank's Waffles
Sift together:
one cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda

Mix together carefully (?):
1 lb. sour cream
4 egg yolks
the flour mix from above

Beat the 4 egg whites with a
little salt (make sure no yolk is
in there (why?)

Fold mixture into beaten whites slowly.

That's it folks, get out your waffle irons.

Paul, Eric, Jane and shellfish

I picked up this book at work because I so love the illustrator
(Paul Madonna), but then I noticed that the author used to
teach at Jane's Writing Salon The Writing Salon :: Welcome
so I brought it home and now I will buy it because it's truly
wonderful. Oh, the author is Eric Maisel, and I probably met
him at one of Jane's soirees. Anyway, here is a quote from
this little gem of a book:

San Francisco and Paris are sister cities. They are not
connected by architecture, class structure, or climate.
They are not connected by their shellfish preferences (in
San Francisco it is crab, in Paris it is mussels), their history
(Wild West provincial versus urbane royal), or their
museums...
They are connected by being two of the world's very few
bohemian meccas. Each is an important, well-marked stop
on the bohemian international highway.
Amazon.com: A Writer's San Francisco: A Guided Journey for the Creative Soul: Books: Eric Maisel,Paul Madonna

where else?

fort mason
Originally uploaded by the omster.

Sometimes I get jaded and have to remind myself that not everyone going to the theatre gets to walk a few extra steps to see something as exquisite as this...

a little more magic

Yesterday when we went to the Magic Theatre out at Fort
Mason, I asked Husbando if he thought Elaine May might be
in the audience and he said, "Yes". Even better than that,
she was introduced before the production of Moving Right
Along and that was such a treat as I have admired her
for a long, long time.

Three one act plays, not easy to do because of the set
changes and other technical obstacles, but these all work
because of some fabulous acting (Marlo Thomas and Mark
Rydell in particular) and May's excellent writing. The last
one ("George is Dead") was my favorite, but all 3 are
well worth the price of the ticket.

Magic Theatre - San Francisco's home for New Plays

And we found free parking, so my karma has returned...

getting ready to run

from our cafe
Originally uploaded by the omster.

For some reason taking photos from inside our cafe didn't work very well, but at least you'll get an idea of our great view. Post and Powell streets were wall-to-wall happy women. The race began a little after 6:30am. I love working downtown, but you know that.

thousands of women runners at 6am

nike marathon
Originally uploaded by the omster.

This year I brought my camera and the good Doctor J went up to the roof to get this photo. A lot of streets were closed off this morning for the Nike® event, so I ended up parking in the company parking space. When I walked to work it felt like the middle of the day as the streets were filled with women of all colors and ages in their shorts and tank tops and baseball caps. There was so muich electricity in the air and when we watched them all from the cafe on the 2nd floor, they were jumping up and down with excitement. It was a perfectly warm morning for a good run. It's a whole new running world with the addition of cameras and cell phones now! Despite the inconvenience, I love having this happen right under our noses so early in the morning.

and I'll take one of those, and those, and those...

italian bakery
Originally uploaded by the omster.

This is often my destination when I take an afternoon walk. Perhaps that is why I don't lose the final 5 lbs. Everything here is exquisite, but we are partial to the almond torte, cookies, napoleans and cakes. It's on Mission at 26th, if you've never been there.

my single day off

So far I've sent 3 reminder emails to me at work, so this
is why I need two days in a row, which I'll have next week.

And file this under ~ HAS SHE BEEN IN RETAIL TOO LONG?
Within the past year, I have had these experiences while
shopping/standing in line at other stores:
1) Walgreen's ~ I was waiting for the photo clerk and
     someone asked me where the toothpaste was.
2) Williams-Sonoma ~ at the counter and ready to pay,
     and a customer requests that I help her find the
     ramekin dishes advertised in the catalogue.
3) Last Monday at the post office. A line of 10 people,
    I am in the middle. A man zooms over, selects me
    from all the rest and says, "Where are the green forms?"
    Not feeling helpful, I respond, "sorry, not my responsibility".
    "I know that", he says gruffly. I relent and point them out
    and do not say, "under the Forms sign".

Beautiful clear and sunny day today ~ I will get a long solo
walk and think non-retail thoughts for a couple of hours.