San Francisco or East Bay residents who have had that ‘one too many’ can get home free and safely by calling for a taxi.

The Safe and Sober program will run from 3 p.m. to 3 a.m. on Wednesday, March 17.

Remember, rides will be given from a bar or restaurant to a residence, not to other drinking locations.

Let the operator know that you need a “Safe and Sober Free Cab Ride Home ” and mention Berg Injury Lawyers when requesting a free ride.

For a free ride home within the city of San Francisco, call Luxor Cabs at (415) 282-4141.

For a free ride home within Alameda, Oakland, and Berkeley city limits, call Veterans Cab at (800) 281-4488.

Thanks to the Berg Injury Lawyers Safe and Sober Program

Or:
AAA is offering a free five-mile tow home (make sure your bar of choice is within 5-miles from home) for you, or your tipsy friend.

Obviously a tow truck will not hold all your friends, so keep it to two.

Call the AAA operator @ 800-222-4357 (AAA-HELP) and say, “I need a Tipsy Tow”.

Note: You or your tipsy friend need not be a AAA member!

Where: The San Francisco Bay Area

When: St.Patrick’s Day – March 17th

6 PM to 6 AM on the morning of the 18th.

Central Valley Farm Girl

I feel blessed that I was raised in the cornucopia of the Central Valley. I was a farm girl. With a seemingly never ending supply of water, my parents grew an abundance of fresh vegetables on a half acre of land. What they didn’t grow was available from a farm just up the road. I can remember riding home with the new produce, inhaling the sweet aroma coming from a crate of peaches while popping a few hastily dusted off grapes into my mouth.

Now, after years of drought mixed with the worries of endangered fish and water sucking subdivisions, the amount of water pumped out the Sacramento Delta has put the Central Valley’s $20-billion a year agriculture industry in danger. Protecting salmon and housing is important, but when weighed against the impact the lack of water is having on valley farms, how do we determine which is the more important?

I fear that many of those who live in the San Francisco Bay area may not realize that the concern is not just for the financial losses of the corporate farmer. Family farmers, migrant workers, and the numerous businesses that support agriculture may disappear. The Central Valley could become dotted with ghost towns, and imported produce in the Bay Area could become a luxury.

I am ready to support a plan or legislation that may be proposed by Senator Dianne Feinstein. She is working hard to help ease the problem.

Senator Dianne Feinstein

Take a look at the AgJobs Bill.

Larry's Office

I remember the thrill when in 1977 the founder of CNN, Robert Edward “Ted” Turner II, took Courageous out for sail and defended the America’s Cup. (Today I’m not sure if I would trust Ted with a plastic toy boat in the bathtub.)

Now founder and CEO of Oracle Corporation, Larry Ellison, is living the victory. After 15 years the America’s Cup trophy is headed back to America where it will be displayed at the Golden Gate Yacht Club.

I hope that Mr. Ellison and the city of San Francisco would see the benefits of hosting the next Cup on our shores.

Larry’s Office

SF has declared an emergency due to the coastal erosion happening at Sloat blvd. and the Great Highway. If you enjoy the beach, and give a rats ass about our local government making sound, sustainable, policy in regards to our environment then you may want to read this and sign the petition!

SurfPulse Save Sloat!

One solution to this erosion, which has been used previously up and down the california coastline is to “armor” the coast with rip-rap (lg boulders) or sea walls. Both of which have been proven to be effective in the short term. These “solutions” also have been proven to simply relocate the problem, up or down the coast. E.g. putting rip-rap at Sloat will simply accelerate erosion of the beach, north and south.

From Nov. last year, but posted recently as a NASA image of the day we bring you a killer 3D view of the San Andreas Fault running up the peninsula and out to see north of Pacifica. This project is about mapping which parts of the fault are creeping past each other with little “stickiness,” and which parts appear to be locked together—places where pent-up stress may be released suddenly in a major earthquake.

San Andreas Fault Satellite Imagery

To read more about NASA’s mission to map the San Andreas and related faults with radar imagery, please read Scientists Search for a Pulse in Skies Above Earthquake Country.

The Chronicle’s C.W. Nevius writes about a woman with a four-year-old son begging on the street in the Financial District. Nearby office workers, led by a sympathetic woman named Anna Samovol, got the woman and her child winter coats and Christmas gifts and eventually paid for them to go live with relatives in Pennsylvania.

Feel-good story? Not anymore. The woman and her kid are back. Samoval said, “I saw her at the BART station. I was pissed off.”
 
I’ve felt frustrated by beggars too. When I worked downtown I would encounter the same beggars on the same corners literally for years on end. When a familiar face was replaced by another mendicant, only to return a day or two later and reclaim his spot, I joked with co-workers that the unfamiliar guy must have been a temp. On another day, I passed a beggar with an amusing sign, then encountered another beggar a little farther on.

Me: You should have a sign like that guy back there.
Second beggar, unamused: The other day he had a kitten.

But generally I found them not a source of amusement but a pain in the ass. I told myself that they were lazy, that it was their fault they were there, that if it wasn’t their fault then they probably had something wrong with them that couldn’t be helped by my small donation. A story like the one about the woman and her son who were shipped to Pennsylvania only to return to the streets of San Francisco seems to reinforce that idea. If a ticket back home to relatives won’t help, then what good can I do by giving a dollar, or even a hundred dollars?

Finally I realized that all these projections on my part were futile. If I give someone a quarter, or a plane ticket, they don’t owe me anything in return. They don’t owe me improved behavior, or recovery from whatever is oppressing them, or disappearance from my sight. They don’t owe me anything. A gift is just that.

If I want to be pissed off by the fact there are beggars on the streets, there are plenty of good targets for my anger: start with Proposition 13 and the war on drugs, and go from there.

Eight hundred City College classes are being cancelled during the next school year due to the California budget disaster and the generally crappy economy, but you can save a class and have it named after you by donating $6000 to the school.

Just find the cancelled classes in their online schedule — the Music Department, for example, looks like this, with the cancelled classes highlighted in red:

As a late Father’s Day present, how about choosing something your Dad loves, and naming a City College class in the subject after him? For example, The A.E. Pritchard class in electric organ. (I don’t think they have a class in electric organ, but you get the idea.) Does the $6000 sound a little pricy in this economy? How about getting your friends to chip in? Maybe your writing group would like to sponsor a “Basic Writing” class. Because it’s time to stop making fun of people who can’t write and do something about it.

Lots of good music has been, and continues trickling through the local live music stream lately, and this week is no exception. Tonight, the amazing and amusing Dengue Fever is at The Castro Theater, while the Red Devil Lounge offers up a rare opportunity to see Ian ‘Mac’ McLagan’s latest band. The silver haired Brit who relocated to Austin TX, continues his legacy as a road warrior with a resume including too many greats & near greats to mention in one blog post. If you are familiar with the Faces and Rod Stewart, The Rolling Stones or Billy Bragg…you have likely been exposed to his key tickling skills.

Mac's Latest Release on his Maniac imprint "Never Say Never"

His latest indie album is a solid & sincere effort from a veteran rocker, and of course he’ll likely spice up the live set with old faves, possibly dating back to his first chart topping days circa 1966 with Steve Marriott & Ronnie Lane in The Small Faces.

On Thursday night, while Bimbo’s in North Beach features Cake, meanwhile the deep down underground will possibly be sucked into the Vortex Room with Mr. Lucky and the Ramshackle Romeos. Others may be down on Harrison @ The Eagle Tavern. Bands playing there include former Nice Strong Arm bandleader Kevin Thompson’s new project “bun bun bun” and Sunward Spike. Ruby Howl hits the stage in the middle slot, a band featuring the talented alterna-chanteuse Laurie Hall who has played in numerous local combos over the past couple decades. Maybe you saw her with her mom in the Hall Flowers, or with her sis in Ovarian Trolley, or perhaps opening for the Pixies reunion at The Greek with Knife + Fork. She knows her craft and has a new band called Ruby Howl plying their trade with her husband Pat and a somewhat shy drummer who wishes to remain anonymous. More info on Ruby Howl at
http://www.myspace.com/rubyhowl

Pat & Laurie

Friday night , two soul music legends hit the stage on a double bill at the Independent, Booker T. Jones of the MG’s preceded by Detroit’s own Bettye LaVette, both of whom are promoting new albums on the Anti label, an Epitaph offshoot.

On Saturday night @ Annie’s Social Club, old school punkers will be in force catching Social Unrest, and Ribzy as well as the debut of Jello Biafra’s latest unnamed musical project. Before leaving on a reunion tour with his old band, Faith No More bassist Billy Gould will be backing Biafra alongside drummer Jon Weiss and guitar wizard Ralph Spight of Victim’s Family. If you get bored of the jurassic punks onstage at this Alcoholocaust, head to the backroom and be yer own D.I.Y rock star via the punk schlock karaoke set up…

I was perusing the latest @sfmetblogs followers on Twitter and found some really interesting businesses and news sources that are active and interesting. Consider checking them out!

@abc7newsBayArea
News and notes directly from the ABC7 newsroom in San Francisco.

@BayAreaCheap
Twittering great stuff to see and do “on the cheap” in the (not so cheap) San Francisco Bay Area.

@bunsandchou
Buns and Chou Chou are rabbits who host their own TV show: Rabbit Bites.

@CheapandEasySF
Because San Francisco’s Not Just for Rich People

@CityofSF
CityofSF is a Twitter service to update people on current events and happenings in San Francisco

@CurbedSF
Curbed SF, the San Francisco nabe and real estate blog. We like architecture and planning, too.

@GhirardelliSQ
More than just the best chocolate! Wine tasting, great food and fun shopping

@INGB2Breakers
I’m Amy @ ING Bay to Breakers in San Francisco. Sharing race updates, costume ideas, fun giveaways, etc.

@munidiaries
Muni Diaries – a place to share and read rider tales

@NinersNation
49ers Blogger for SB Nation

@odcsf
ODC is a groundbreaking contemporary arts institution with longstanding roots in SF and home to our Dance Company, ODC School/Rhythm & Motion & ODC Theater

@sanfranfeed
San Francisco – News Feed

@SFBRAVOCLUB
San Francisco Opera’s BRAVO! CLUB is a group of young adults, aged 21-40, dedicated to building a new audience for San Francisco Opera.

@SFBusinessTimes
Covering businesses headquartered in San Francisco, Oakland, East Bay and Marin

@SFChron_alert
Get breaking news alerts on the Bay Area’s biggest stories from the San Francisco Chronicle.

@SFstandup
Guide to comedy in the San Francisco Bay Area

@Shopping_SF
Follow me for all the freebies, cheap events, and funtastic events..from SF’s hit Shopping! The Musical..Now in its fourth hit year!

@SJMetblogs
San José Metblogs is part of a worldwide network of city-specific blogs, where authors write stories about life in their city from a personal, local perspective

@tskifeed
Tahoe Ski Feed

Even if you are the most anti-Valentines’ Day, anti-mushy person in the universe, it’s pretty hard to avoid all the fun that happens on Feb. 14th in San Francisco. There are hundreds of events and here are a handful that I would definitely be attending if I wasn’t in Los Angeles with my honey for the weekend. So go and report back on how much fun you had!!

Have bike? Have some pre-Valentines’ Day fun tonight at the SF Bike Coalition’s “Love on Wheels.” This is a great opportunity to meet fellow bicyclists and maybe even ride away hand in hand.

What better way to take all that aggression bubbling in you out on the entire city at Pillow Fight! Bring your pillow to Justin Herman Plaza at 6pm and be prepared to whack a few moles.

Fancy some tea and crumpets? Crown & Crumpet have a menu full of l’amour and a it’s a great excuse to dress-up like you did as a kid for tea parties.

Had a hard week? How about a full day of massage? Yes please! You and your playmate can spend an entire day learning how to massage each other at The Center For Healing and Expression. Sounds better than a box of chocolates!

Have you ever attended a “no pants party?” Trust me when I say everyone should do it at least once. The Knockout is hosting the “5th Annual Underwear Party.” You don’t even have to fret over what to wear! Be sure to check your undies for holes!

For a list of other fun events on Love Day, check out SF Station and Upcoming