What’s it like living alone out in the avenues?

Local commuter David Enos shares some insights:

This living alone out in the avenues business is a weird thing.  It’s isolated out here.  Been waking up from bad dreams, finding myself staring at such things as Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara’s imdb pages until dawn, then getting in another hour or two of sleep before another shift.  An endless, silent train home and then doing it over again.

Sounds peaceful enough. Read on for the punchline.

[Map by Google Maps]

46 Responses to “What’s it like living alone out in the avenues?”

  1. Emily says:

    Yes. (From 27th Avenue).

  2. Haz Been says:

    Hmmm, I would describe it as mellow bars with seating room with a diverse patronage, restaurants with really, really good “ethnic” food made by said ethnicity, and a distinct absence of privileged dot bombers yelling “woohooo” because they think people around them will think they are fun.

    You’re right…that sounds awful.

  3. Bob says:

    I love living in the Inner Sunset. But there are two problems with living out here:

    1) No one wants to trudge all the way out the Sunset.

    2) I never want to leave the Sunset, because everything I need is on Irving between 7th and 25th.

  4. Stevie b says:

    The Richmonds the shit, it beats living around all the privileged wannabe slummers that occupy some other districts! This city is to small to consider the avenues ‘far out’.

  5. tk says:

    It’s the quietest place I’ve ever lived in SF, that’s for sure. (I’m at the very very edge of the map above – so not really “out in the Avenues,” but close.)

  6. freakbeatfuzz says:

    The Richmond forever, Sunset never. It’s great (as long as you own a car, that is).

  7. Herr Doktor Professor Deth Vegetable says:

    I lived at 45th and Noriega for a while. Was nice being out by the ocean, but the weather in the sunset/richmond is terrible.

  8. MrEricSir says:

    The fog is like a nice wet slap in the face after you come home drinking. Helps sober you up a bit before going to bed.

    • village idiot says:

      Just so.

    • Herr Doktor Professor Deth Vegetable says:

      I don’t care what the weather is like at night, I care what it is during the day when I’m trying to wake up and get out of the house.

  9. Emily says:

    It ain’t so bad!

  10. Greg says:

    Brilliant, lazy people and those adverse to fog. HaHa

  11. JMC says:

    Paging Morgan Spurlock–how about a SF edition of “30 days”?

  12. Not a Transplantciscan says:

    Takes about an hour to get there from Downtown SF by MUNI train, feels far away… just saying not complaining, lived there for 12 years back in the 90′s… that’s it…

  13. scum says:

    I grew up on 27th between California and Lake and it was pretty rad.

  14. chalkman says:

    I lived in the sunset for 10 years, living at the end of taraval by the beach was great, living at 30th and Noriega sucked. 19th and Kirkham was loud as fuck with all the trucks, and 9th and Judah was good. Muni did take an hour from the bottom of taraval, and ha ha on ever getting a taxi!

  15. mike says:

    sf is small. takes 15 minutes via the wiggle. best asian food in the city

  16. EverythingSucks says:

    The Richmond is great if you never care about leaving. Lots of great food but going to shows or meeting up with people who don’t live there is a major hassle. Oh and the weather is perpetually horrible. No neighborhood is perfect (sorry mission), but there are a lot better places that the Richmond/Avenues in SF.

    • Herr Doktor Professor Deth Vegetable says:

      I used to be up there pretty regularly to see movies at the Alexandria or the Coronet, but sadly no more. Nowadays the only time I make it up there is to go to the Russian Bakery and Europa Europa. (Which is to say, not as often as I would like)

  17. Mehdi says:

    The mission wouldn’t be a problem to live in except for the people that live in the mission. No one gives a shit about your fixie bike or your PBR. Get on with your life.

    • rod says:

      it sounds like maybe you are the one that needs to get on with your life. stop worrying about what other people are drinking and get a life.

  18. sunset suspect says:

    The ‘guest’ post are getting worst and worst here. and what this says..

    http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lzch556juN1rp9ywso1_r2_500.png

  19. Adam says:

    Been livin in the Sunset since I moved here about 4 to 5 years ago, and I fuckin love it. Though, I tend to love everything that the average San Franciscan hates.

    1) The long bike rides to get into town. They are really not as bad as they seem. I work in the SOMA district and to get there it only takes a little over 20 minutes, and the ride is a great refresher in the morning. I actually look forward to it, after a while you get completely used to it and it feels as if you riding it on cruise control. Not to mention, the buns of steel and killer biking calves you get from riding miles every day.

    2) Public transportation is not bad at all. The N Judah, in my mind, is one of the most convenient lines in the city.

    3) Weekend mornings – there is no other place that I’d rather be than in the inner Sunset.

    4) It is peaceful as all fuck, you have Golden Gate Park right there, no noises waking you up at night, very easy going. If I am craving some action refer back to 1 or 2.

    • tk says:

      You’ve still got the I-just-got-here stars in your eyes! I love it. Don’t worry, in another 3-4 years you’ll be a bitter, cynical asshole like the rest of us.

  20. JLW says:

    First of all people who are complaining about 20 minute bus rides, WAAAHHH! SUCK-IT-UP! You do realize that you’re complaining about a 20 minute bus/train ride into/through a MAJOR METRO AREA in one of the most desirable cities in the world, right? If any of you had lived in ANY SUBURB in the entire U.S. without good viable public transport, complaining about the 15+ min bus/train ride would make you sound like an idiot.

  21. Gwglw says:

    Suck the shit from my ass.