Playing Tourist #5 -- December 8, 2013

Today we played tourist. I had some one-day Muni passes that we needed to use by the end of the year.  We parked at Daly City BART and rode to the Embarcadero.  We stopped at the Hyatt Regency to look at the Christmas village in the central fountain.  We caught a California Street cable car whose decorations were sponsored by the San Francisco Symphony.  We got off at Taylor and found that a concert was about to start at Grace Cathedral, so we moved on.  Huntington Park was not decorated.  I guess it has not been since a friend retired.  We went to the lobby of the Fairmont and looked at the Christmas tree and the giant gingerbread house. 

We walked down Mason to the cable car barn.  This was the first time I had seen the new Chinatown Recreation Center completed.  It looks nice.  We liked the lions sitting in one window.  In the barn, we saw that the Powell Street cable was stopped.  A group of shopmen was splicing the cable.  It was interesting to watch.  We had a chat with Jose Godoy, who was excited about a new cable car book and a patch he had designed to celebrate Muni's centennial. 

We caught a Powell-Mason car out to Bay and Taylor, were I took this photo of car 16, whose decorations were sponsored by Ghirardelli Chocolate.  We had pumpkin pancakes at the IHOP.  We walked along Fishermans' Wharf, which was very crowded.  The crab smelled good. 

We got in line for a Powell-Hyde car at Hyde and Beach.  We waited about 45 minutes, but the view was nice.  We got on a car sponsored by the Buena Vista.  As we waited to leave, someone came on the radio to plead for traffic control around Union Square.  The Powell Street cable had been repaired, so we made it all the way to Post before traffic stopped completely.  We looked at the animals in the windows at Macy's, then got back on BART. 

Crabs are Coming -- November 30, 2011

I was happy to learn that the crab processors have agreed to pay the fishermen a decent amount.  Crabs should be in the stores soon.

I took the photo of former Giants mascot Crazy Crab on 06-May-2011.

Update 01-December-2011: Today we had the first clear morning this week and I could see the lights of the crab boats as I drove down the hill towards the ocean.

China Clipper Anniversary -- November 22, 2010

Today is the 75th anniversary of Martin M-130 flying boat China Clipper taking off from Alameda, on its way to Manila. This was the beginning of scheduled trans-Pacific service. The first flight carried only mail. It went by stages to Honolulu, Midway, Wake and Guam. The pilot, Edwin C Musick, was forced to fly under the still-under-construction Bay Bridge. The three M-130s were replaced a few years later by Boeing B-314s.

Tonight we went to the Taco Bell at the beach to eat dinner and watch the crab boats.

Waterless Knox #13 -- November 21, 2010

The Waterless (air-cooled) Knox automobile was manufactured in Springfield, Massachusetts. I like the name Waterless Knox. It reminds me of a Doctor Seuss character. This ad is from the 25-March-1907 Salt Lake Herald.

Yesterday we went to 5 o'clock mass for the Feast of Christ the King. It was raining when we got to Good Shepherd. After a while, we saw flashes of lightning and heard some loud thunderclaps. We had strong winds and hail during the night. There was supposed to be more of the same during the day today, but it was sunny and cold.

We could see the lights of the crab boats in a line offshore.

Catholic Schools Week #2 -- January 25, 2009

Today is the start of Catholic Schools Week. I'm grateful that my parents put me in Catholic schools for 12 years.


At 5 o'clock mass yesterday, Good Shepherd celebrated the start of Catholic Schools Week. There was a good turnout of kids and parents. Good Shepherd gave our daughter a great education and continues to do the same for many other children. It is worth considering if you live in or near Pacifica.
http://www.goodshepherd-school.org/


After mass, the Knights of Columbus had a crab dinner. We had a nice time.