San Fran Voice

Last night was one of those nights when I felt like being out and about but didn’t actually feel like wandering too far from home. Luckily, it never takes too much time to get to a place in San Francisco where something was happening. In my case, I just needed to wander around the corner to the North Beach library where I found a melding of creative minds at a cozy little reading by three North Beach poets. These poets harkened back to the old days of the Beat Generation that filled the bars and cafes here … but of course I wasn’t here in those days so I can’t attest to what nostalgia their coming together last night created. What I can attest to is that it was an hour well spent amongst people who have opted to make creating poetry a regular part of their daily lives, rather than just a passing phase.

I can tell you about the poetry, of course. But poetry read aloud is something which is better experienced in person than via post-activity description. You can read it for yourself or catch up with the poets at other readings as they are all active around town. Look for Jessica Loos, Mark Schwartz and Ronald Sauer. The Beat Museum is a good place to start for locating these folks who read about days past and present with an energy that transcends time.

The poetry was worth hearing, but what caught my attention and interest was less the poetry than the crowd of people gathered to hear it. We all know that I love to people-watch, that observing other characters in the dance of life is where much of my inspiration comes from. There was no shortage of inspiration there. The people were casually themselves, unique in ways both subtle and obvious. The androgynous body sitting two seats ahead of me never turned for me to get a better look, but the hair hanging down in layers of purple, orange and blonde caught my attention for more than a moment. The stoic man in the front right corner of the seating area would have appeared solemn if it weren’t for the decorative feathered hat and peasant-type blouse he wore. The gentleman who sat sketching the scene is probably someone I ought to know although I don’t. And Mark Schwartz’s boisterous laugh filled the room in a way that reminded me we should all laugh with such lack of restraint.

It is these glimpses into the lives of people that make poetry out of the city. And San Francisco hums with this poetry every single day.

photo link

Since I haven’t been keeping as on top of things as perhaps you, a San Fran Voice reader, might like, I figured I’d point you in the direction of some of the city’s other great blogs. They’re listed at my Hub Pages article on the topic which you can find here. Of course, they include this one, so make sure that you keep coming back even though I’ve been slacking a little bit. The interviews and other info (including some hot new music reviews that I’ve been putting off for awhile) will be up shortly.

San Francisco is a city which leaves its impressions upon people. In honor of that, writers and artists, comedians and actors, and visitors from across the globe have made mention of San Francisco in print and in voice. Quotes about San Francisco vary as much as the people who make up this city. Each morning, San Fran Voice gives you one to think about as you wander through the city streets, letting it leave its mark on you.

Today’s quote is from Eric Maisel, the local author of A Writer’s San Francisc: A Guided Journey for the Creative Soul. If you follow the daily quotes at all, you know that I have quoted him before. Partially, this is because he is quote worthy. But mostly it is because his writing is something which I enjoy, which I return to again and again to feel that kindred spirit that writers in an area can sometimes feel with one another, even though they may not know each other in person.

Tourists come to cities like San Francisco for reasons that run deeper thatn ‘there are things to do here,’ since the things they end up doing, like riding a cable car or traipsing through an anchored submarine - mind your head, please! - are not that special. You wouldn’t spend three thousand dollars to fly you, the wife, and the kids to see if a certain bridge is really golden (it isn’t - it’s red-orange). No, cities like San Francisco are important because the heart needs a break from its everyday aching.

And if there is any spot in the world beautifully distracting enough to cure the aching of an everyday heart, San Francisco is surely it.

San Fran Voice trolls the online world to find video clips from and about San Francisco. Check the archives to see the ones that you’ve missed.  Posted here every morning at 9.

Explanation: Today’s YouTube pick is pirate comedy from the Bay Area … does it really require any further explanation?Okay, okay … learn how to sound, move and swordfight like a “real pirate”.

San Francisco is a city which leaves its impressions upon people.  In honor of that, writers and artists, comedians and actors, and visitors from across the globe have made mention of San Francisco in print and in voice.  Quotes about San Francisco vary as much as the people who make up this city.  Each day, San Fran Voice gives you one to think about as you wander through the city streets, letting it leave its mark on you.

Today’s San Francisco quote is … for SF writers.  It comes from a SoMa Literary Review interview with local author Kemble Scott.  See the entire interview here.

“San Francisco has such a rich literary history, from Jack London to Amy Tan. Today there’s a community of writers here that’s comparable to what it must have been like for artists a hundred years ago in Paris . You can find Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Chabon offering advice to would-be novelists, or Dave Eggers mentoring inner-city kids. Heck, you can bump into Lemony Snicket out walking his dog! There are endless ways to connect with other writers, whether they are famous or still unpublished. It can be remarkably inspiring.” – Kemble Scott
 

We love our site, of course … but we also like supporting all of the other great blogging that’s happening all throughout the blogosphere.  One way that we do that is by chiming in on the blog carnivals that are going on all throughout the year.  We were recently featured on a bunch of them.  Here’s an update on the latest ones where you can find us:

• An old post on The San Francisco Writing Life was featured in the carnival by the Aficionados of Ink which has all kinds of writing info for you fans of the penned word.  It also got noticed at the Carnival of Creators.
• A new “lessons in love” post made the rounds and found its way into The Observations on Life carnival and our own Carnival of Cities which was hosted at The DC Traveler this week.  It also got props from our own sister cities by Homespun Honolulu and San Diego Beat.
• And our interview with artist Judy Gittelsohn was featured in the “just stuff” section of the Thoughts and Philosophies carnival.

Don’t forget that we’re also hosting our own carnivals – one for San Francisco and one for

Ghosts of San Francisco is the first full-length book by your favorite SF blogger.  It’s being put together - right now, as you read this - by Schiffer Books and will be officially out in June.  It’s got stories that delve into the deep history of the area and tales of those spirits which are haunting the city today.  Here’s an excerpt to get you wet with longing for more:

Montandon Townhouse: A Cursed Home

Lombard Street is famous for being the crookedest street in the world. Daily, visitors from all across the globe traipse up to the peak of this glorious San Francisco hill in order to experience one of the wonders for which San Francisco is known. In more recent years, the street also became known as the location of the Real World House San Francisco, increasing traffic to the area by visitors seeking to get a brush with California fame. Activity bustles here at almost all times. But there is something unsettling happening on Lombard Street which is frequently not known by those who hover around this crooked part of Lombard, taking pictures and relaxing on their vacations.

The trouble seems to have begun in the 1960’s, when Pat Montandon (well-known as the author of The Intruders) moved in to a house on the famous street. It was a time when astrology was becoming increasingly popular among certain groups in the city, and Montandon, who frequently hosted social gatherings at the Lombard home, threw a party which was themed to this popular event. The party included a tarot reader. It should have been all fun and games, but during the reading, something went awry. For reasons unknown, the tarot reader faced Montandon and cursed her aloud, saying that she was vexing Montandon as well as the home that she lived in.

It is hard to say whether the number of tragedies in Montandon’s life which occurred shortly thereafter have anything to do with the curse. But it is not hard to see that luck was not with her after that time. Problems which ensued shortly after the purported curase included the vandalism of her home, the destruction of her car and even threats on her life. Montandon’s reputation become marred with links to numerous affairs and her promising career fell short of its potential.

The home, too, suffered in the wake of the curse. In 1969, there was a fire in the Montandon Townhouse. The roots of the fire are mysterious and the circumstances which surround the tragedy are almost impossible to explain. At the time, Montandon’s best friend, Mary Louise Ward, was staying in the home. When the damage from the fire was over, her dead body was found in the house. Although there is no known reason why she would do so, it appears that perhaps Ward caused the fire, because the front door of the home was chained and barred from the inside and Ward’s body was found in a bedroom which was also locked from the inside. Autopsy reports revealed that Ward had been dead before the fire reached her body, but they could not determine a cause of death.

Whether or not Ward committed suicide in the home is unknown, but what is known is that two other friends of Montandon’s did committed suicide in the house within a short time of one another. Shortly thereafter, signs of spirit activity began to be painfully noticeable. Locked windows would open on their own. A constant chill filled the house. Sounds without sources were not uncommon. Trying to escape the tragedy that was permeating her life, Montandon moved from the location. However, curiosity (and perhaps a need for closure) motivated Montandon to hire two psychics to investigate the activity in the home.

The experts, Gerri Patton and Nick Nocerino, came to the home, having been given no information about the location. Almost immediately, Nocerino relayed the experiences of the home, including the names and details of those who had died within its walls. After verifying this information, the psychics took photos which, when printed, showed the image of a woman bent over a drawer, her hand raised in surprise as though she had just discovered something from which she was automatically recoiling. The photo, marked with a strange light, differed from the negative of the photo (which did not show the woman at all). Due to skepticism, photos were taken a second time in the presence of witnesses in the home, and the same results occurred.

An exorcism was performed on the house and Montandon moved on with her life. Those who live in her home today may not even be aware of the tumultuous history of the home, as it is believed that the curse was lifted with the performing of the exorcism. However, when Lombard Street experiences a rare moment of quiet stillness, you can feel a chill in the air there that points to this deeply involved past.

San Francisco is a city which leaves its impressions upon people.  In honor of that, writers and artists, comedians and actors, and visitors from across the globe have made mention of San Francisco in print and in voice.  Quotes about San Francisco vary as much as the people who make up this city.  Each day, San Fran Voice gives you one to think about as you wander through the city streets, letting it leave its mark on you.

Today’s San Francisco quote is … from a poem by George Sterling.

She is fairer than others are
Whom they sing the beauty of.
Her heart is a song and a star–
My cool, grey city of love.