Shopping for mom?

This one feels like a little bit of a cop-out, but I wasn't terribly inspired by anything that came today. Daily Candy did have some fun Mother's day gift ideas, so check that out. But the age range is not so much for my mother, but rather if I were to be a mother myself... I particularly liked the knitwear espresso cups (if only I drank espresso) and the pillows with pockets for your cold fingers or toes. Clever.

There were some other fun things there, and one linked me to this online store - greenergrassdesign. It's kind of like going to the museum gift shop online - they have all the cool stuff in one place.

Check it out - might be more for your friends than your mom, unless you have a super hip mom, which someday, I hope to be.

Art By The Bay

This weekend is a great chance to add some local art into your home. Visit the Spring Open Studios at Hunter's Point Shipyard to see local artists in their spaces. There are 160 Artists open with 250+ on site, so chances are pretty good that you might find something you like!

There is Fine Art, including painting, printmaking, drawing, sculpture, and photography, Fine Crafts including jewelry, textiles and ceramics, and even some demonstrations to watch. And the studios are on 15 acres of land, so you'll also get your exercise roaming around!

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry

Some of you may know this already, but right here in SF, we have a great resource that some may not realize is accessible to all - the JCC. Not just for Jews though! I came across a couple cooking and wine classes they have there that look like fun! Another portuguese wine tasting event, and a breadmaking class (unfortunately both at the same time, 6 pm on May 3, so I may have to pick one.)

But purusing their site, there were tons of other classes that sounded great too! There's an adult summer camp that could be a kick and even a class on canning your own pickles. The Jewish Delis always have the best dills, so why not learn from the source?

Shalom.

Beer-Pong-A-Thon

OK, just when you thought you'd seen everything, there's one more...

The First Annual Beer-Pong-A-Thon is coming to Jillians in the Metreon this Sat, April 28, from noon to 4. You can go as a spectator or a team. If you win, you get to go to Vegas for the World Series of Beer Pong. Who knew?!

Make sure you check out their website if you've forgotten how to play - they have a very good instructional video posted. And there's another goofy beer pong video here to give you something to work towards.

Bottoms up!

Goodbye and Hello

Often times this forum is a great place to find out new stuff, but sometimes, it's worth mentioning the old also. One of my favorite chill out places in the inner sunset is Canvas Gallery, which also has a great coffee shop and food offerings day and night. Unfortunately, those days are almost over and their last day in business is April 29. Canvas has all sorts of events planned this week, to go out in style, so if you share the love, give them one last visit.

In their place though, rumor has it, another Pacific Catch will be opening up. That place, in the Marina currently, has all my favorite foods under one roof at great prices. Where else can you get Ahi Tuna Wasabi Bowls, Fish Tacos AND Sweet Potato Fries. Now whithin walking distance of my place! Thanks to Tablehopper who let us in on the secret. :)

Film Fest Fun

The San Francisco International Film Festival is almost here - it starts this Thursday, April 26, so check out the listings now to decide what movies are on you list!

Personally, I'm looking forward to a Parker Posey movie called Broken English. She never fails to entertain. And a couple interesting documentaries - one on tea and the other on punk rock. Not two things one would often put in the same place, but hey, I like 'em both! And... I'm sort of intrigued by Cold Prey, a Norweigan slasher thriller about snowbarders in an abandoned cabin. I may need to go to the 1:30 in the afternoon showing of that though.

Enjoy the film!

Earth Day Extravaganza

Ok, so I missed a day. So sorry. But today, I'm going to make up for it with many listings of Earth Day events going on this weekend!

First off, KFOG has a nice listing of a bunch of stuff here.
And another listing on Greenopia too.
Stuff going on at the Zoo, basically in every park around the bay area, and lots of family friendly stuff too.

A couple things that stand out to me:

Penguins in the Park- a showing of Happy Feet along with other earth friendly activities and exhibits. I just recently watched Happy Feet and was surprised at how loaded it was with "save the earth, save the penguins" messages. I thought it was just a silly cartoon about singing and dancing penguins. Since saving Antarctica is one of my pet projects, I encourage everyone to see this movie, adults and kids alike!
Details:
Dolores Park is a perfect place for a picnic, which is why the setting will be all the more delightful when families gather there with their picnic dinners and blankets to watch a screening of the animated film “Happy Feet” in celebration of Earth Day. Other activities will include a light bulb exchange, a “Happy Feet” dance lesson, a community art project, and displays and exhibits by local green vendors.
When: April 21, 4 to 10 PM
Where: Dolores Park, San Francisco

Green Apple Music and Arts Festival - in Golden Gate Park - good bands, could be a blast if it's not raining on Sunday!

Visit one of my favorite places in SF, the Center for the Book for their Earth Day Extravaganza where you can make letterpress prints, bind an earth day journal using leaves and natural materials and make earthy beautiful postcards to send to you elected officials. Mon April 23 1-5pm.

For a schwanky shindig on Monday the 23rd, support the Friends of the Urban Forest at Arcadia 2007, a silent auction of art about trees, food, drink, muisic and more. Kind of pricey at $125 a pop, but you'd be helping save the urban trees!

Spring cleaning - get rid of all those electronics you've replaced and dispose of them properly at the Green Citizen Electronics Recycling Center near you.

And if you must travel further afield this summer, make sure to purchase your carbon offsets so that you can ease your green conscience as you fly across the globe. Daily Candy Travel had a great summary of all these options this week.

Dance Away

Not only is Earth Day coming up, but it is also National Dance Week next week. The week will be "kicked" off with a Conga Line around Union Square on this Friday, April 20. Along with the Conga Line there will be other performances going on in the square to keep you entertained at lunch hour. So, finish your hot ham and brie panini, get off your bum, and dance off the calories! You'll find the line circling somewhere around Union Square from 11:30-1:30pm.

There are all sorts of other dance events going on for this celebratory week too. Everything from hula hooping dance lessons, special performances by the pros at ODC, LINES, and the SF Ballet, kids shows from the YMCA, Salsa and Tango and so much more. And lots of stuff is Free!

Kick up those heels!

Jazz it up!

The W hotel is hosting a special event tomorrow - a celebration of Jazz Appreciation month with performances by Lavay Smith (remember her from the swinging dot com days at Cafe Du Nord?) Also, there will be a display of photos of the best female jazz musicians and a benefit auction.

Swing on by tomorrow evening to check it out. Sounds cool!

Here's the Scoop!

Tomorrow, April 17 is the Annual Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's! Hurrah! And it might even be warm enough. Visit their site to find the B&J's closest to you and go get yourself a scoop!

And hopefully you're toasting to your taxes being done too!

Jello Art

FunCheapSF was full of goodies this week. I'll start with this one...

I wish I didn't already have plans for sat nite because this one is a priceless Only In SF experience. As part of the opening reception for a show "Taste 2007" of art about food, there are going to be jello sculptures of SF landmarks being served!

Combine food, art, and a wacky, creative presentation and that's the recipe for a "typical" San Francisco experience.

Port of call

Quick - if you have no plans tonight - make some to go to this Portuguese wine tasting thing - ViniPortugal! It sounds great. I'd go if I didn't already have other wine club obligations.

Hosted at the SF Palace Hotel (a favorite landmark of mine too), the Portuguese Trade and Tourism Office and the Port and Douro Wines Institute are introducing more than 48 Portuguese wine producers and more than 400 wines including Port TONIGHT from 5:30-8pm.
The $25 donation at entry also goes to a good cause. Everyone wins!

La La Land

Just sneaking this one in before midnight here... I had hoped something more enticing would present itself today, but alas, no such luck. So instead I turn it over to Los Angeles. I used to always go there just to visit family, but slowly in my adult life, I've learned that there's a whole lot more going on there. And I now know a lot more people there too which makes it fun. So, I plan on consulting this guide from Daily Candy Travel on the next trip down. Some of the stuff I've already been to, but agree it's a must see to get the true flavor of the place. Plus I totally appreciated their nod to Clueless, one of my all-time favorite movies.

In addtion to what they list here, I'd also suggest making an appointment to see the Eames House in Pacific Palisades. It was a really fascinating visit, and really gave the flavor of what was going on with the mid-century modern world of architecture and design coming from California.

Just wasting time

You've got taxes to file, laundry to do, bills to pay, dinner to make, all that stuff of daily life, but you're just not in the mood.

Today, daily candy sent this link to the most soothing time wasting on-line game called Boomshine. You click on a colored dot and then it "pops" all the other dots that it comes in contact with and you try to pop as many as it asks for each level.

I just passed level 10 - not sure how long this thing goes, but it's awesome! And it has nice soothing music and pretty colors. How can you go wrong?

Make your reservations now!

Foodies, get ready! The SF Chronicle top 100 restaurants came out recently, and now it's time for Dining Out for Life where your dining dollars can help fight AIDS.

So, cross reference the lists, and this'll be the perfect opportinuty to splurge on one of the best of SF while also doing some good for the world. Or, find your favorite neighborhood place on the list, and make a night of it.

A few I'm tempted by are Firefly, Destino, EOS, and RNM. Not all on the top 100 list, but all good in my book!

Happy Eating!

Not just for Grandma's house

Are you doing a spring spruce-up to your place? Or a complete remodel? Either way, I just came across this super cool wallpaper on Nestmaker that would add a touch of whimsy to your decor.

It's called the Collection from a french company, and you can do things like put up a permanent (albeit well designed) stack of magazines on top of your loo. Or just add some cool bold graphics to an empty wall in the kitchen to give it some life.

Or, even if the landlord says no wallpaper, you can still be an armchair designer of your future dream home. :)

Giddy-Up!

It's that time of year again, time to put aside your San Francisco values, put on your cowboy hat, and head down to the Cow Palace for the Grand National Rodeo!

I went last year when I won tix from FunCheapSF, and had a blast! Those boys sure can ride them bulls! Make a night of it - starting with a BBQ sandwich and a beer, ride a mechanical bull in the mercantile area, then hit the stands and watch the action. It starts tomorrow, and goes through April 14. Different events are on different nights, so if you care, check out the schedule before you go. And if you want to go all out, go one of the nights that has a concert as part of the event at the end!

Ride 'em cowboy!

Remember Kozmo.com?

This one in from Daily Candy today - a utilitarian post, but you need that stuff sometimes. Remember Kozmo.com? They'd deliver whatever random stuff you wanted to buy from them whenever you wanted - A DVD, popcorn, ice cream, and the new Tony Hawk PlayStation game at 10pm on a tuesday. Ahh... the glory days of the dotcom.

Well, this new service, Likety Ship, kind of reminded me of them, but with a better business model that will hopefully stick around longer. These guys will pick up your stuff and trek it across the city for you within 4 hours, at the best price they can find. How nice! Kind of like a messenger service you use at work, but they don't revolve soley around the financial district.

They also say they'll work on craig's list and e-bay orders. Definitely good for not wanting to go to that random dude's place in the mission to pick up the TV you bought off craig's list.

How convenient!

BYOBW

What's the BW stand for? Big Wheel, of course! This looks like a must see event for anyone in SF on Easter Sunday. BYOBW is a Big Wheel race down Lombard street.

Check out the website - but beware - there is loud music that comes on too, so put your headphones on before you check it out at work. The photos are hilarious, and it just looks like a sight to be seen!

I've got plans to head to the 'rents in the east bay for Easter, but I kind of want to see this... What would Jesus do? :)

Coffee and a giggle

This one made me giggle today when I saw it. Another clever find at Charles and Marie.
The Taz Ah mug looks like a plain white mug for your boring workstation, but when you pick it up to drink, on the bottom is a cute drawing of a dog's nose, pig nose, or bunny nose. It's sure to give your coworker sitting across from you a little laugh to start off the morning.

And if you act fast enough, the bunny could be the perfect addition to someone's Easter basket this Sunday.