arquay.com

I went to Trader Joe’s for the first time ever on Sunday.  I know, I know, it’s shocking that I’d never been.  For years I’ve read their catalog which, for some reason, I always received in the mail. I found it amusing and in passing I’d always referred to the newsprint circular as “…like J. Peterman for food”.

Upon first entering I was completely overwhelmed.  Though I’m certain that had to do with the fact that I went at the worst possible time (Sunday early evening) at the worst location (9th Street). But I was really impressed by the selection.  I liked the prepared meals and salads and the fact that you could get vegetables and meats prepackaged in smaller portions.  But the thing I really liked was the prices.  At the checkout I was surprised that my two large, very stuffed bags of food only amounted to ~$60.  Comparable shopping experiences at Whole Foods and Bristol Farms routinely cost upwards of $150!

I haven’t tasted everything just yet but so far so good.  I will definitely go back but next time I’ll be armed with a shopping list and a sense of purpose.

Yesterday I went to Guitar Solo on Townsend to have the action taken down on my guitar. Guitar Solo has almost legendary status in the city because it is known for it’s acoustic guitar selection and even better Tech. I had stopped in before but never had anything done until yesterday. I must say I was not disappointed. The Guitar Tech, Dave, was a really great guy. He took it in the back and basically decided that he could take down the action but that there would still be issues because of the way that my guitar was constructed. Part of the conversation went like this:

Me: So what you’re saying is I should get a new guitar
Dave: Well…

Before you think he’s a shyster who’s just trying to separate a fool from his money I should set you straight. He’s right. My guitar is, to put it mildly, a piece of crap. I only bought it because it was a good starter and I always intended to upgrade to something better.

He explained that he might not be able to give me perfect results but that he would see what he could do. It was obvious that he had a real respect for the craft because he spent a lot of time in the back trying to make it as nice as possible. When he could have just taken my money and phoned it in. It seemed that he really cared whether or not I was happy with the end result. While he was at it I asked him to change the strings and pins. The pins, by the way, were nice wooden ones that he gave me a more than 50% discount on.

To my credit, I resisted the urge to buy any of the many guitars that I tried out while waiting for the Guitar Tech to finish. I really liked the Blueridge BR43 and the Wechter 5713. The Wechter was a small parlor guitar but it had a really nice sound and the back and sides was a gorgeous matte rosewood.

I’d highly recommend Guitar Solo. When small shops are getting crushed by mega chains like Guitar Center, it’s nice to see a local business that cares about quality and service. Oh, and the whole thing only ran me about $50 and that’s including the strings and pins.

Earlier today I went to a pre-season SF v. Oakland game at PacBell. Today was a ridiculously nice day. The seats were in the lower level and the sun was really shining down. A fallen comrade has season tickets so who am I to turn down a free game?

Having formerly lived half a block from PacBell, I’ve been to many, many games. But every time I go I’m always amazed by the huge, albeit bourgeois, selection of food. Today, for example, I had a bowl that included Jamaican jerk chicken, black beans and rice. It was pretty damn good.

What happened with the game you ask? Oh, the Giants got their asses kicked when the A’s scored 6 runs in the 7th inning. But no matter, I had some frozen lemonade to distract me during the 8th.

Last Monday I saw a coworker’s band perform at Amnesia. Towards the end of their set my coworker (who is the lead singer) tells the crowd:

I’d like to dedicate this next song to my coworkers who are all sitting up front tonight. This next one goes out to them especially Arquay!

The name of the song, I kid you not, “She’s No Angel”. Ok, so I’ll never win the “Coworker of the Year” award. I can dig that. But right after she made the dedication a guy in the back yells out:

Ain’t that the truth!

Brutal. I don’t even know that dude. I can’t help it if my fly Pumas cause people to hate on me.

I stopped in to Sellers Markets this morning to get myself an egg-a-muffin.  After waiting a short while my order was ready.  The cook calls out: “Arquay!.

Now on the surface…this isn’t terribly remarkable.  Except for the fact that he actually pronounced my name correctly.  I actually did a double take and smiled at the not oft heard pronunciation.

It was my first time going there for breakfast.  This almost makes me want to consider an egg-a-muffin-only diet.

Yesterday during an impromptu visit to the Puma store (go figure) I decided to venture upstairs in search of super-cool t-shirts. I pressed the button for the elevator but to no avail. I asked the salesman if it was out of order to which he replied: There’s a celebrity upstairs shopping with his entourage.

On mention of the term “celebrity” I immediately assumed it was some low-level D-lister like Bookman from Good Times. So I decide to risk it and hoof it up the 2 flights. But I was treated to major a surprise as I rounded the final corner of the spiral staircase. Looking me dead in the eye was none other than Mr. Human Beat Box himself!

He was just doing his thing, shopping for shirts and there were a few guys and a lone photographer with him. After looking around a bit, I nodded to the photographer for confirmation that it was indeed Mr. Fresh. He confirmed it and said that I could talk to him.

I walk over to him and say: Excuse me, Doug E. Fresh! He didn’t reply “YES?” but it was still cool. I told him I was a big fan and then he posed for a pic. On the way out I saw MC Shan milling around outside.

See people, this is why I love SF.

So last Wednesday I saw AvenueQ at the Orpheum. It was hilarious, I’d highly recommend it. Before the play started, I was looking through the program and I saw that a woman named Jennie Kwan was doing was an understudy for Christmas Eve. The name and the face looked familiar but I couldn’t place it. Then I read in her bio “Califorinia Dreams, cast regular”.

I knew it! I’d recognize Sam the exchange student from anywhere. And then, like a long lost dream, it all came flooding back:

Surf dudes with attitudes
Kinda groovy
Laid back mood
Sky above and below
Good vibrations
Feeling mellow
Can’t give it up
Don’t waaaaaana stoooooop

Come on now…sing along if you know it!

California Dreams
Don’t wake me up if I’m dreaming
(California Dreams)
Just let me lie here in the sun
Until my day is doooooooooone

That’s right. Don’t pretend like I’m the only one who watched this unoriginal, less interesting SBTB rip-off.

Sigh. Will Saturday mornings ever be the same?