Baghdad by the Bay

I love San Francisco.

Even when it tries to kill me.

My routine is quite a bit different now than it was a month ago. The day still starts at 6AM, but instead of a 35-minute bike ride, my transit now starts with a light rail hop, then an hour on Caltrain, then a mere 5 minutes or so on bike. And that riding feels incredibly different. This is the first time in my life that I've ridden in a strongly urban area, let alone during rush hour.

But it isn't bad, of course. Not even close. Just different. My rides used to be pretty solitary. In those 35 minutes, I sometimes would not pass a single other rider. By contrast, the area around the station is simply teeming with activity. From the moment my wheels touch pavement, I am constantly within sight of at least several other riders, sometimes an entire pack. That does wonders to offset the stress I feel from crumbling pavement and a steady stream of automobiles. I feel more visible and, in a weird way, empowered than I am used to feeling. By now San Francisco drivers are well trained to expect bikes on the road, so they tend to look out for us, and even if they don't, it's good to know I have potential help around if I need any.

The amount of support around here is really interesting. Bicyclists form a very politically powerful group in the city, and make their influence felt through both hard and soft power. In hard power, they can put pressure on the city to enact policies that support their goals, such as increasing the number of bike lanes, shutting certain streets to auto traffic, etc. And, simply by having a large and passionate group, they are able to make even more important changes on their own. One of the best examples is the free bicycle valet parking at the San Francisco Caltrain station. I'm still amazed that this even exists. For no charge at all, you can bring your bike in to a tiny store located immediately adjacent to the Caltrain station, and they will store it away for you. The process is incredibly quick. If nobody else is in line, it takes about 15 seconds to drop off your bike, and maybe 40 to get it back. On the few occasions when there has been a line, the patrons have been extremely kind, and will let someone cut in line if they need to catch a train that's about to leave.

I really want to do something for these guys. It's a private enterprise, albeit one providing a public service, and they evidently make their living through operating as a real-life bike shop. They mainly sell foldable bikes, which are very popular among commuters, along with a small but thorough collection of cycling accessories like rain gear, helmets, etc. Probably the best idea/service they offer is a tune-up shop. You can drop the bike off, ask for what you need (derailleur adjustment, flat tire repair, whatever), and it will be done when you come back and pick it up.

The net effect is that this feature has allowed me to commute a very far distance with extremely low stress. Bicycle cars on Caltrain tend to be extremely crowded, and sometimes the conductors have to turn people away. I'd be happy to rent a locker, which you can find at every Caltrain station, but supply has not kept up with demand and all the major stations are sold out. If it wasn't for the good folks at Warm Planet, I'd need to wrestle my bike on and off the train every day - make that TWO trains, both the Baby Bullet and the VTA - and generally need to lug around a chunk of metal for not much added benefit. As it stands my bike stays in the city, I use it exactly how I want to, and can blissfully enjoy the rest of my commute.

It isn't for nothing that San Francisco was recently ranked America's #2 "Green City". I think it takes a whole lot of different factors acting in concert for a green city to really become possible. On the one hand, you do need public infrastructure in place - we individuals work through the government to set up systems of trains, parks, recycling programs, and other massive efforts. Entrepeneurial businesspersons can add to the party with flexible work schedules, innovative new technologies, energy efficiency, "green housing," and kick off economies of scale. Ultimately, it is a region's individual citizens who must make the lifestyle choices within the framework provided by the region and decide to ride the train, take the job close to home, start a compost pile, or replace their light bulbs. Individual action is necessary, but only becomes feasible if the local environment supports it. That's what's so special about the Bay Area: it's a perfect storm of big socialist government (San Francisco), genius tech-savvy business (Silicon Valley), and left-wing tree-huggers (Berkeley).

Oh, yeah: I had my first near-accident in the city. How exciting! It happened - or rather, ALMOST happened - at the intersection of 8th St. and Bryant. This is a funky traffic circle, where five streets come together with stop signs and traffic runs one-way within the circle. I was actually doing the right thing - I came to a complete stop, pulled in, and started doing the circle to the right, though if this was a standard intersection I would simply have turned left. As I was passing the second intersection in the circle, I realized that (a) this huge car had come up behind me; (b) this huge car was passing me; (c) no: this huge car was attempting to exit the traffic circle by passing through the space that I, the lowly cyclist, would momentarily be occupying in my orbit.

There wasn't any time for rational thought. I think I tacked a bit to the left, and stopped pedaling, though I don't think I actually hit the brakes. I remember thinking "Oh, no..." and being convinced that I would slam into the side of this car, my only consolation being a nice marker left in the metal side. I was fortunate, though, and missed it by an inch. I continued along the traffic circle, wobbily, and made my desired exit onto Townsend.

Since then things have been pretty smooth - knock on wood - and that experience seems to have been an aberration. After some contemplation over the best lesson to take from it, I've decided to keep my existing route. I remain convinced that following traffic laws and acting like a car should still be the safest thing to do, as opposed to turning into traffic or riding on the sidewalk. However, I do now check over my shoulder a few times as I ride the circle, and I now ride closer to the middle of the lane. If I'm feeling charitable, I think that the driver believed that I was going to exit at the same spot as him, in which case there would have been plenty of room and no collision. I'm trying to be more visible and make it clear where I'm getting off.

Cycling aside, the city is treating me well. I still just feel like I'm only experiencing a tiny slice of it, the industrial region that stretches from 4th to 9th in SOMA. Still, even in there, there's an energy and vibrancy that feels wonderful to me. Example: at my previous job, if we ever wanted to get food for lunch, we would need to pile into cars and drive for several minutes. Here, we just head out the door, and have decent options within a single city block, and great options within a three-block radius. There are lots of cars out there, but even more pedestrians, many other business folks rushing around to do their important businesslike things. Even going to Trader Joe's feels weirdly fulfilling. They have a TJ's, which is on the ground floor of an incredibly dense commercial block, right next to the three-story Mercedes Benz dealership. I dunno, I guess it's a little thing, but it makes me happy to go there.

I do need to find more excuses for staying in the city and/or exploring other places. After three years in the region I have a decent grasp of the city, but still nowhere near what I would want. Hmm... I guess I would break it down like this:
Neighborhoods that I know well and can navigate without a map:
North Beach
Chinatown
SOMA
Mission Beach

Neighborhoods that feel familiar and comfortable, but I haven't traveled well in:
Japantown
Inner and outer Richmond
Nob Hill
Russian Hill
Tenderloin (not so much "comfortable")
Pacific Heights
Haight-Ashbury

Neighborhoods that I feel like I kind of know, even though I haven't really spent much time there:
The Mission
Inner and outer Sunset
Portrero Hill
Castro
Twin Peaks

Neighborhoods I don't know well at all:
The Marina
Cow Hollow
Noe Valley
Bayview
Hunters Point

There's a lot to learn!

Lately, I've been feeling like I'm a horrible person because I get happy when I read about the housing market. I do feel bad for the people who are being caught by this mess, but at the same time, part of me wants prices to crash down to a reasonable level so I can buy a nice little Victorian place in the city. Hey, I'm just sayin'.

At the same time, I'm learning to be a little more... realistic about what to expect. While I still love the idea of living in the city, I'm also recognizing the advantages of San Jose. Besides the obviously lower cost of living (hah! I never thought I would get to write that), San Jose also is sunnier. It's also warmer, although that's kind of a wash for me - during the summer months, it would be pretty nice to take 15 degrees off the top. On the other hand, there are other benefits to the city that are hard to take advantage of from afar but that would be quite nice if I lived there - a ton of free and cheap options for music (something that sadly isn't part of my life right now), the possibility of being even more car-free, more cultural institutions, and general coolness.

It's also been interesting to think about the differences between cultures. I think this is true of almost anywhere in the country, but societies that seem homogeneous from the outside seem anything but once you get closer. For example, in my present situation, I'm used to (and guilty of) people talking about "the Midwest". Well, as Midwesterners know, there's a world of difference between the average person from a small town in Missouri and the average person from Chicago. And an Illinoisian (? what's the word for this?) would recognize a big gap between Wheaton and Chicago. And a Chicagoan would scoff at the idea that someone from the North Shore would have anything in common with someone on the South Side. And on and on.

Northern California is just another example of that. From my old perch in the Midwest, I had this fuzzy idea of the "West Coaster," who was a friendly and laid-back person. Generalizations are fine, but people from Silicon Valley do seem to be more result-focused, more likely to be obsessive about a few particular topics, and more likely to enjoy their toys. San Franciscans appear (in general!) to be more idea-focused, more likely to pursue a wide range of interests, and more likely to enjoy socializing. In all honesty I'm probably more of a SV person at heart, but I enjoy SF people.

Back to the commute - it's interesting all the little ways that it affects my lifestyle. Because I get home so late, I need to be really careful about what and how I eat, because I have a lot fewer hours now between supper and bed. Making dinner is now out of the question, so I do my cooking on the weekend and heat leftovers during the week. The overall rhythm is the same as before, the difference is just that now I need to plan ahead a little more.

I'm also reading even more than usual, which is good. It's an eclectic blend of stuff... novels and nonfiction from the library, news on my iphone, and occasionally a newspaper that someone left lying around. I recently acquired a MacBook, so it will be interesting to see how that affects things. I might try and do some more writing, or maybe experiment with tethering my iphone and do some work that way.

Anyways, that's it from me for now. Apologies for the long gap between posts - as you may expect, life has been a little hectic. Hope everyone is doing well! Enjoy the few remaining months before the election!