SF 2006: The Last Days

San Francisco 2006: The Last Days

On Thursday, I returned to Macworld Expo and went from one side allll the way over to the other side of the Exhibit Hall. That night King and I went to the 1906 Earthquake Slide Show (there was a flyer in an earlier photo) at the local library branch. The Haight-Ashbury Neighborhood Council (HANC) put this on for their monthly meeting. It was quite interesting, seeing the City before, during, and after those events one hundred years ago. I recognized some of the landmarks, but the packed basement obviously recognized many more (King was surprised by some sights). There have been some recent discoveries, such as the death of thousands instead of the official count of 473 (or something); the locals didn’t want the world to realize how catastrophic it really was — bad for tourism and investments. This neighborhood happened to be spared after most of the City had burned. The nearby Golden Gate Park was a refugee camp for a couple years. The acerbic commentary by the presenter was a hoot; he plainly took this subject very seriously, and if he didn’t have a specific anecdote or answer to a question, his reply would be “No.” or “Don’t know.” I enjoyed the experience; this organization has a heritage of extreme individuals banding together for a common cause, and that’s always a recipe for a good show. HANC began in 1957 in response to the threat of inner-city highways being constructed along the Park, cutting right through the neighborhood I’ve been staying in. It was evidently the first attempt of a community group to stand up to Big Highway, and it worked. Good for them.

On Friday I stayed in, resting and writing an article about the Expo for the weekly Chattanooga magazine, The Pulse. On Friday night we all went to the Red Vic to catch a 3-D movie. And then of all of a sudden it was Saturday, the day of my return to Chattanooga. After a scenic brunch at the Beach Chalet, we took a trip to the San Francisco Airport (SFO).

I had another good trip to San Francisco this year, so that makes seven in a row! Looking forward to 2007. 🙂