With Independence Day on a Friday but gas prices bumping five dollars a gallon, we’re celebrating the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth close to home.

I saw that occasional SF Metblogs contributor and relentless self promoter and sex book author Violet Blue is the latest recipient of the tempest in a web teapot award. The LA Times website has David Sarno covering a fracas in which any Violet Blue mentions or posts have been deleted from Boing Boing and it’s archives.

Writes Sarno:

“I’ve been wracking my brain thinking of what issues I might’ve come down on the wrong side of,” Blue told me on the phone. “There’s been no argument, there’s been no disagreement, no flame war, none of the usual things.”

Could Boing Boing really be a Stalin era throwback that wants to erase it’s own history, and somehow have the world to believe the widely read SF Gate columnist doesn’t exist?

At AdRants they speculated a possible conflict with blog ad provider Federated Media, which seemed somewhat unlikely to be involved in editorial concerns (IMHO ) since they supply ads for dozens of popular sites including the Metblogs network.

BoingBoing eventually issued it’s own terse comment and explanation after the web “sh*tstorm” lapped up on it’s serenely acerbic shores:

“[Violet’s] posts were removed from public view a year ago. Violet behaved in a way that made us reconsider whether we wanted to lend her any credibility or associate with her. It’s our blog and so we made an editorial decision, like we do every single day. We didn’t attempt to silence Violet. We unpublished our own work. There’s a big difference between that and censorship.”

Read the LA times blog, or for a more concise semi ad biz related wrap up read more at AdRants.

The Calif. Dept. of Forestry, in charge of fighting the hundreds of fires around the state, has posted a PDF of the major incidents as of this morning. An interactive Google Map is also available.

Meanwhile, the sky in the Bay Area cleared Sunday and yesterday. Today it’s overcast and foggy… And after last week’s horribly smoky conditions, now I don’t know if this overcast is part smoke or what.

One of the endangered spots is Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. They have a fire blog, Sitting with Fire; a feature in the L.A. Times a few days ago documented the outpost’s preparations for the worst. The resort-cum-monastery is closed at least until July 11.

New College of California, a 37-year-old alternative school in the Mission District that offered undergraduate degrees as well as graduate degrees in psychology and law, will close its doors for good tomorrow after graduating its final class.

The school was stripped five months ago of its accreditation and hasn’t paid its staff since November. Professors volunteered their services to finish the school year for the students who didn’t transfer to other local schools such as John F. Kennedy Univeristy in the East Bay.

The future of the Roxie Theater, owned by the school since 2006, is in doubt. A New College graduate took over operation of the theater last year and is trying to put together the funds to purchase it, the Examiner reported.

Flickr photo by Steve Rhodes

A quick reminder about this afternoons BYOWB, Bring your own Water Balloon. If you are attending and take pics, feel free to send them to us at Metblogs and we are happy to post.

Date: June 11th, 2008 (The Duke’s Birthday)
Time: 6pm
Place: Alamo Square in San Francisco, CA

If you’re siding with the Mexican’s, wear blue shirts.
If you’re siding with the Texans, wear brown shirts.

Send pics to richard AT metblogs DOT com

An Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) starts at Moscone today, and thousands of feverish geeks are gathering in anticipation of the usual announcements of new products. Expectations for a next-gen iPhone were so high that Twitter suggested a search string so breathless fans worldwide could vulture the news. But if you’d like your updates in English sentences, SFGate is liveblogging Steve Jobs’ announcement. Also liveblogging is Gizmodo.

A couple weeks ago on the MediaBistro site Agency Spy, a blog about the advertising industry, there was a post about a mysterious (to me) booklet published by “an international trends-led publishing, events and consultancy business” called Piers Fawkes. The booklet, PSFK Snapshot, purported to be a sort of guidebook to San Francisco’s most cutting-edge culture, the places to find the real trend-setters, or “influencers,” which I think is the more current term.

Curious, I ordered the book (seen at left). It’s a square booklet about 4 inches on a side, and about 56 pages long. It lists a few cafes, restaurants, art galleries, community events and so on. The list is pretty standard hipster fare: Blue Bottle Coffee, Red Poppy Art House, The Crucible, Maker Faire, Burning Man. In other words, nothing you wouldn’t learn living in San Francisco for one week, or by reading this blog, SFist, and BoingBoing for a month or so.

I got through the whole book in about 90 seconds, and when I was done I understood even less what the book was for. Suppose it is absolutely essential to know that the most snobbish coffee fanatics go to Blue Bottle. If I’m in the advertising industry, what is that knowledge going to get me?

In fact, I was much more interested in the booklet as a product of the Blurb publishing website, where you can upload photos and text and have them print a pretty little book. If I were a photographer, or preparing a booklet for my mother’s 70th birthday or something, it looks like a great service.

more thoughts after the jump

Today’s the annual San Francisco version of Carnaval — always the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, since its traditional Mardi Gras date happens in February when the weather is likely to be horrid here — featuring squads of be-feathered dancing girls and boys cavorting and shimmying down Mission St. It’s a great parade, if you’ve never seen it. And if you miss it, just check Flickr in a few hours. (Update: try the 2008carnaval tag.)

Also today, conveniently beginning a few hours after the parade of nearly-naked people: the annual Masturbate-a-thon, a benefit for the Center For Sex and Culture. It starts at 3:00 pm, features live performances by real porn stars, and is open to all persuasions. Interestingly, it costs $20 to participate — and $40 to just watch.

One of the photos accompanying today’s Chronicle story on SFGate.com about the gay marriage decision gives a glimpse into San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom’s desk drawer: Altoids, and a large bottle of something that looks like Rolaids, or maybe aspirin. Both standard equipment for a busy politician. (What, no hair spray?)

In just one short month from now… plenty of lead time being provided here, the BYOBW crew is starting BYOWB! Remember, no big wheels, just waterballoons.

Date: June 11th, 2008 (The Duke’s Birthday)
Time: 6pm
Place: Alamo Square in San Francisco, CA

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If you’re siding with the Mexican’s, wear blue shirts.
If you’re siding with the Texans, wear brown shirts.