Orchids and Onions
Failed immigrant blog for all.
Sunday, April 6, 2025
Demo, April 5, 2025 and Orlie's mural
Tuesday, April 1, 2025
More art, more joy.
I'm slated to be a part of the volunteer effort to help seal the latest mural to grace our nearly-newly minted park. This mural, like the last one to go up, is on the western-facing wall of one of our public lavatories found along the Lower Great Highway, the road next to the Upper Great Highway, the one that's becoming a park. The official opening day for the park, a name has yet to be determined, is April 12, if I'm not mistaken.
You might recall my having recently posted about the mural that had been defaced by dipsticks who are, presumably, big-mad at having yet another place in which to recreate safely here in the city. If not, then here you go---Vandalism.
The above snippets show the work of Orlie K., an artist whose work I've admired for a number of years now. They are incredibly skilled at bringing to life both flora and fauna in the most unique and whimsical way. I also really enjoy their color choices. I was a bit too close to the mural to be able to snap a wide shot. If you're curious to see more of Orlie's work and are able to access Instagram, then check out Orlie's page: https://www.instagram.com/orliegrams/?hl=en.
Monday, March 17, 2025
Vandalism
Monday, March 10, 2025
Quick update on cats and Ocean Beach Park aka The Great Highway
Big boy Bartie is still alive, thank goodness, but the trick will be how to keep these two kitties, whom I refer to as 'furrenemies' from slaughtering each other over the long haul. The hubs and I have decided to sequester the cats when we aren't at home. Each area of the house, in which the cats reside in our absence, has a litter box and bowls of food and water. We've been operating in this mode for the past couple of weeks and it's been good...so far!
Backyard Bartie |
In other news--on Friday, March 15th at 5am, the Upper Great Highway will close permanently to car traffic. Below is a shot of an artist called Emily Fromm creating a mural showcasing some of the history of the westside of the city. Highlights of her piece include the Cliff House (1890s version) and the long gone, but not forgotten Playland-at-the-Beach. Emily's work is fun and whimsical and I'm glad she's been tapped to be the first of, hopefully, many artists who will contribute to sprucing up the area along the Great Highway with eye-catching creations.
The artist, Emily Fromm, at work on the walk-path that flanks the Upper Great Highway. |
Friday, February 14, 2025
When it rains, it pours.
It has been pouring water out of the sky on and off for the past week, I'd say, and I really wish the title of this post were actually referencing rain. Did you know that a cat's claw can puncture and potentially fatally injure another cat without so much as a blood splatter or any other visible marker letting one know that something were amiss? I did not know this, but I am learning the hard way that this is true. Nursing an ill kitty back to health is already challenging, but it's been made more so as my husband has had to travel out-of-state to tend to his recently deceased aunt's affairs. To be honest, I really don't wish to talk about anything too heavy, so I'll share with you, as if I were a 'someone' in the film industry, my Criterion Closet picks.
First I should ask if you've seen the videos shared by Criterion of film industry folks literally standing in a closet-sized room looking at shelves of movies carefully before selecting their prized favorite flicks? If you like the person who has been selected to participate, then it can be a fun watch. Here's the Criterion link for those who wish to learn more--Criterion
Here is my film list:
1) Laura, a film by Otto Preminger starring Dana Andrews, Gene Tierney, Vincent Price and Clifton Webb, has got to be my most favorite of the film noir genre, next to Double Indemnity. It's an engaging watch that I never tire of even though I know 'who done it'! Release date: 1944.
2) High Tide, a film by the remarkable Gillian Armstrong and starring the incomparable Judy Davis from 1987, still packs a punch as a tense, well-acted mother/daughter drama for the ages. Like Australian accents and Elvis tribute acts? You'll like this!
3) The Third Man, Carol Reed directing and starring Orson Welles, Joseph Cotton and Trevor Howard, is probably my favorite Orson Welles film. The film is set in post-war Vienna and shot mostly on-location. There's intrigue, affairs of the heart, illegal activity and more! What I really like were the bit players speaking untranslated dialect in the film. If you've an ear for Austrian dialects, then you'll find these bits of dialogue a real treat.
4) The American Friend, an early-ish Wim Wenders film from 1977, starring Bruno Ganz and Dennis Hopper, is an adaptation of a Patricia Highsmith novel called Ripley's Game. The film has the swagger of American '70s cinema a la Robert Evans with a gritty continental flare. Speaking of flare, don't forget to check out Ganz's trouser game in the film. Har-har.
5) Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, directed by Robert Altman and starring Karen Black, Cher, Kathy Bates and Sandy Dennis is a film that feels a bit overlooked in Altman's oeuvre. Based on the play of the same name, it's about an all-female Jimmy Dean fan club who convene 20 years after Dean's death in 1955. It's a fun romp that retains the feel of a stage play.
There are so many great films; this list could be longer! So, I'm curious to know--what would some of your Criterion picks be?
Monday, January 27, 2025
Vision Zero, nowhere near-o.
Ten years ago, SF committed to something called Vision Zero. What it meant was that by 2024, SF would suffer no more traffic deaths after implementation of various traffic-calming measures meant to be rolled out (forgive the pun) city-wide. These would include, but not be limited to: lowering speeds limits, putting in speed humps/bumps, and adding traffic cameras. Under the last Mayor, progress toward eliminating pedestrian deaths as a result of reckless motorists was NOT made. I suspect that the proposed measures were both not implemented in a timely fashion and not actually put in city-wide. The city has added a few more bike lanes around town, largely unprotected (read: white paint on the ground), and we all know that a splash of paint does not shield one from injury.
In 2024, there were twenty-four pedestrian deaths as a result of distracted motorists. It's foul. The last car-related pedestrian death of the year was in my neighborhood and just a few days before Dec. 31st. An older woman, walking alone in the early morning hours in lanes of traffic on the Great Highway for reasons not initially provided*, was struck and killed by a driver.
The new SF Mayor, an heir to the Levi-Strauss fortune, Dan Lurie hasn't yet shown his commitment to Vision Zero, but he has spoken on the record about not wanting The Great Highway, a car roadway along the Pacific Ocean, to become a park. Oh, well, buddy! The majority of San Franciscans voted in favor of the park, so it's coming. At least visitors to the new park won't have to worry about drivers crashing into them.
Image courtesy of WALK SF |
*It has since come to the fore that the woman was suffering from some sort of dementia and had wandered away from home. -very sad, indeed.
Friday, December 6, 2024
Earthquakes and old friends...
Demo, April 5, 2025 and Orlie's mural
I made a couple of signs for the demo today. My buddy met me at Civic Center around noon, so she could grab a bite to eat before the event k...