Mission Mission

If you’re interested in hearing more and being heard on San Francisco’s new PayDayPlus SF loan, or just near Capp Street this Thursday, the New America Foundation is holding a community conversation about said loan. The conversation is called Springing the Debt Trap, and in attendance will be, among other local financial notables, our City Treasurer, José Cisneros.

From the website:

Sold to consumers as short-term relief during a cash crunch, pay day loans carry interest rates of over 400 percent and catch working people with a steady source of income in a long-term debt trap.

On December 17th at 11:30am, San Francisco City leaders, in partnership with local credit unions, will help relieve this burden on hardworking San Franciscans by launching PayDayPlus SF, a low cost emergency loan available to City residents at 13 locations.

Weigh in at the Mission Neighborhood Center, 320 Capp St.

There’s a metric fuckton of bands playing today at ATA celebrating their 25th anniversary. BBQ starting now and music at 1pm. Get your ass down there! Hopefully the sun comes out and doesn’t fake us out like it did yesterday. WTF sun? It was like “hey it’s a nice day”… sike! HAIL TIME. 992 Valencia St.

Saw this guy doing his thing last night at the Lab (16th and Capp). WTF dude, why don’t you play an instrument that actually exists?

But seriously, Jozef Van Wissem is the best one-of-those-players I have ever seen. According to Jozef’s wikipedia, the instrument is a Renaissance lute and his current approach is to write out traditional Baroque pieces backwards and add his own themes and variations. If I had to describe the sound, it’s like God barfing a golden slip-n-slide into James Hetfield’s brain while he’s vacationing at his summer home south of Tajikistan. Check out this vid of him that I recorded on my fashion/social accessory informationPhone:

In case you missed the post from the other day, bags of brew are all the rage in China these days.  For seventy two US cents, you can knock back 5 beers in a Chris Daly disapproved receptacle.  Since I know you all were curious how the hell you drank from these, you’re supposed to impale your beer with a straw and share with friends.  Beyond the style points, the real benefit of this setup is that you have a place to put your vomit in afterwards.  Bag o’ Brew: where have you been all my life?

Anyways, since this isn’t a blog about China, you can follow all the oriental action on the other blog that I otherwise never have a reason to update and no one reads in general.

P.S. – When I get back to the Mission, I want to open a bar that only serves beer in plastic bags.  Good idea / bad idea?

Oh shit, son! It’s getting hella steamy inside Cha-Ya tonight. If the vegetarian Japanese restaurant is a-rockin’ don’t come knockin’!

Btw as a representative of the Asian culture I should inform you that in fuedal Japan serving a neighboring family vegetarian sushi was an act of war.

Available now, at Bi-Rite.  ‘Tis the season!

I just wanted to give you proof that The Candy Store Collective on 16th Street uses living plants to provide a modest amount of shade to people standing in front of their shop.

P.S. If I buy an Italian sports car am I trying to prove that I’m not a wuss, or do I just have a phobia about talking on the phone?

I was checking out the Cartoon Art Museum and saw this sweet original page from Spain Rodriguez‘ “Mission Nites” comic. The first panel is sorta surreal, huh? That dollar store used to be an 89-cent store! Those run-down theaters actually were open at some point!

They also have a small but undeniably awesome exhibit of some sets and puppets from the recent Wes Anderson movie Fantastic Mr. Fox. These sexxy puppets should tide you over until Furcon 2010. It’s running until Jan. 10 so get down there and cough up $6 ($4 if you have a student ID or passable forgery).

Speaking of fur suits, you probably walked right by 826 Valencia and didn’t realize that Max’s real (and apparently filthy) “Where The Wild Things Are” wolf suit is chillin’ in their window. Ewww, betcha it’s covered in boogers and cookie crumbs.

(via emblem30‘s flickr)

P.S. Go ahead, tell me all about how pretentious you think Wes Anderson movies are.

P.P.S. Should I buy a home in Concord?

Mission Mission received an email  this morning from Kai Hsing, founder/writer/producer/editor of The Quotidian, an ongoing documentary project that aims to capture how people are finding new ways to create change in their communities.  From Kai:

I thought you should know about our latest story that goes behind the scenes of Mission Street Food, which I know you are familiar with by now. In the video, we not only try to capture what the MSF events are all about, but also visit a couple charitable organizations to see how money donated from the event is being used to benefit the community. Finally, we take a look at how MSF’s charitable model might be replicated in a neighborhood near you, or even elsewhere in the country.

Nice.  Now on with the show:

You can read more here, if so inclined.

San Francisco is awesome because things like Mission Street Food work.  I’m curious to hear about more of these springing up across the country, so if you know a thing, don’t forget to holler.