Sat nite art crawl - The Mission

photos by "the undercover brother"





I did the round of art shows in The Mission: Low Gallery opening, Needles & Pens, Pond gallery, Adobe Bookshop and Complex Ion's Hyper Mechanism @ The LAB. It was a tight squeeze with a lot of social elbowing. I'll have to go back on a quiet day and take better pics.

I must have been attracted to shiny, white things as evidenced by the suspended, doll-like sculpture and the mesmerizing white boots of The Disappointment's lead singer, Ann. Both objects were in full force at The Lab, which made me take mental note to check out both, the venue and the band, more often.

When my friend J asked me how the band was, I told him their name was "The Disappointment" so there wasn't much to live up to. Now if they were named "The Fantastics".... they'd better deliver. After hearing them play that night, I must say they are light years away from disappointing. The Disappoinment are, in fact, FANTASTIC! Heavy, lush guitars, a rockin' drummer and a vocal sound w/a Smiths/Cardigans/EBTG bent. Not to make much on comparisons, but they float in that realm. Lucky for me, they play at The Makeout Room tonight so I may fill my ears with more non-disappointing sounds.

The LAB is a sizeable gallery on the corner of 16th St & Capp, in The Mission. It's an interesting corner next to the Bart station, bustling w/blue collar workers, artists, God-fearing soapbox evangelists, hookers, junkies and their dealers. Despite this edgy backdrop, I've always felt comfortable on this street and make sure to have my wits about me. After years of living in tropical island paradise, I'm not adverse to this urban landscape. Besides, it being The Mission, you can count on a slew of trendy restuarants, shops and venues only a block away. The LAB and it's location are no exception -- Ti Couz, the Kilowatt, Otsu Vegan, Urban Forage and some of the best taquerias, only steps away. So I sound a beacon to the SF peeps, please check out Hyper Mechanism at The LAB before it goes away.

Hyper Mechanism
The LAB - Mission District
2948 16th Street
San Francisco, CA 94103
www.thelab.org

The Disappointment
www.shelflife.com

Get Lucky @ Merry Karnowsky Gallery, LA

Artist friends, Friends With You, will open their show "Get Lucky" @ the Merry Karnowsky Gallery this Saturday. You must, you must, you must increase your bust...err, I mean attend the show LA peoples. Okay? Go have fun and watch out for calf-biting artists and tricky plush.

Get Lucky
Merry Karnowsky Gallery
170 South La Brea Avenue
Los Angeles, California

Meet me on Fairfax, follow the scent of green bananas

My friend K is an amazing writer, photographer, music aficianado, collector, mad knitter, foodie and all around talent. She introduced me to fresh strawberries macerated in brown sugar & sour cream and I never looked back. She has some great blogs that will make your eyes drool: the scent of green bananas and meet me at the corner of third and fairfax.

If you're in LA, make sure to check out the joints in her fairfax blog. You will not be sorry.

End Capitalism

Roy & I trekked to Rainbow Grocery for crunchy, granola toothpaste that wouldn't make me gag. I love Rainbow for the great bulk items (honey, shampoo, nori... you name it), cheeses and row upon row of natural beauty products. I often spend way too much time deciding on a special granola/nut mix. I'm still working that one out.

After my long, drawn out (yet wise) consumerism, we leave the worker-owned coop and find this stencil art on the sidewalk. This ices my cake of coop grocery stores and bouts of Frontline.

Location: in front of Rainbow Grocery
1745 Folsom Street @ Division
Mission District, SF

Rudy's Russian Tea cookies

Rudy's red chair, rudy's red chair. Now say it 3x fast! I've tried to make this chair my icon, but for the life of me cannot figure it out. So I dedicate this blog to Rudy's red chair. This chair has significantly seen many gatherings of friends, feasts and conversation.

I believe I took this pic last Xmas morning. Rudy was making an incredible batch of Russian Tea cookies, that I must say, beat out the nunnery on Guam who shell out their annual treats come Xmas. Their name escapes me, "Our Lady of.....?"

If this pic had smellavision you'd be salivating at the scent of vanilla, butter, sugar and warm, crumbly Russian Tea cookies waiting on the side for their powdered-sugar bath. Ok, kettle's on.

made things

I started a new blog for craft & fashion projects: made things. You can find it here www.madethings.blogspot.com . This is my Prozac.

Naan & Curry - The Tenderloin

There's this intersection in SF's Tenderloin I call "The Golden Triangle". It's a gritty, busy corner. Not pretty and a thoroughfare for the neighborhood junkies and the like. That's a small downer compared to the real reason I love this spot. Every corner at the intersection (Ellis & Larkin) boasts a great eatery, diner, noodle joint, etc.... Call it what you will. This slice of yummy, deliciousness never lets down.

If you ever find yourself stranded after a movie or looking for eats post swanky bar, hit this corner. Vietnam II has a delicious pho worth fighting for. Anyways, I wander off from my real point.......

It was Roy's day off and he wanted to celebrate a hard-earned payday w/a viewing of "The Incredibles." We decided to check out 1000 Van Ness theaters, over the Metreon, due to the slew of cheap eats nearby. We buy tickets early and seek a noshy joint. I remember passing by "Naan & Curry" on O'Farrell street while on the 38. It's like "11:11", once I heard of Naan & Curry (which I'll refer to as N&C) its name gets dropped everywhere. "Oh I LOVE N&C", "It's my favorite Pakistani/Indian joint", etc... I filed this info away for the next time I'm rolling in extra dough.

Well N&C is not located at "The Golden Triangle," but it is a few blocks down and seems to have gleaned a helluvalot of magic from that intersection. The food is delish! Delish I say! Sublime Spinach w/Paneer (homemade cheese) is creamy & delicate, yet packed w/spicy undertones. The lamb curry & garbanzos were infused w/ginger, mace, dried plums and more spice marrying into a perfectly stewed, tender curried-love. We also had a wonderful chicken bryahni (excuse me spelling pls), beef kabob, raita and enough gorgeous naan to sop up juices. I was dying for a lassi, but knew my stomach would not hold much more. You can't beat a thrifty meal at N&C before a late afternoon movie.

Now I wonder how I rate this? Being this is my first post, I must give N&C a shout out in the only way I know how..... It was "D.G." Damned Good in my book, and only pennies. You could spend $5-8 per person and come away satisfied. Can I also say N&C makes for good breakfast leftovers?

Naan & Curry - Tenderloin
478 O'Farrell @ Jones
San Francisco, CA 94102

Rating: D.G. (Damned Good)
Budget: thrifty
Crowd: local Indian, Pakistani crowd w/a steady strem of artsy-like hipsters
Decor: multi-colored, day glo flourescent lights softened w/exotic banners of fabric