This is the way to feed the homeless

http://www.yelp.com/biz/l-a-burrito-project-los-angeles

http://losangeles.metromix.com/events/event_review/urban-do-gooders-the/346427/content

A simple veg burrito- beans, rice, mild salsa: inexpensive to make (on average, less than 40 cents a burrito!), easy to eat (often the homeless will have problems eating hard fruit like apples which are aparently common in homeless shelters), easy to hand out (these guys ride around LA on their bikes handing out burritos) and very little left over trash (no plastic containers and no utensils; just parchment paper or tin foil).

A project like this is something I would whole heartedly support, fund and volunteer for. I may be a little biased as I think burritos the world's greatest food (I would go so far as to say they were a gift for the deities), but I honestly think this idea is one of the better solutions I have heard to date. One person/agency can't clothe, house, feed and provide medical care for every homeless person in this city. However, something small like a burrito is more than doable.

The LA-based group were featured on KCRW's Good Food program over the weekend. Aparently they were inspired by something similar in the Mission and there are outposts in Houston, Detroit and Syria (!).

I did it

Well, most of it. I completed 4.5 of the 5 mile run. I walked after a mile in due to my ongoing foot pain. After the second mile, I found a groove and pressed on. Had I known I was so close to the half way mark (Hopper's Hands), I wouldn't have cut across and started on the return journey so soon.

I'm feeling pretty jazzed tonight. The right foot is a little sore but I'll take tomorrow off and run the same course Saturday morning, just to see if I really can do it.

The ragazzo was waiting for me at the finish line, having finished quite a few minutes ahead of me. Seeing him in the distance was enough motivation to push through the last 1/4 mile when I probably would have walked it.

Tonight's reward for a job well done: tandoori curry.

I don't know what I'm doing anymore

I'm in for a world of hurt tonight-- I mistook tonight's charity race as a 5k run not a 5 mile run. Bit of a difference there, wouldn't you say? The longest I've been able to complete in one session was 3 miles. Adding 2 additional miles might be pushing it for me. I purposely didn't run last night in anticipation of the extended course tonight. I'm also going to be out there with running enthusiasts. If that's not pressure and/or motivation, I don't know what is.

Finishing within an hour will be my main goal. Oh yah, and not dying. That's a goal too.

There is no "late night" in this city

Why do restaurants refuse to put their hours of business on their website? Its bad enough San Francisco has a serious lack of late night restaurants, but when I do find a place I think could possibly be open after 10 pm, there's nothing that actually confirms my suspicions. If you won't put your hours on a website, at least update your business listing on Yelp.

Meh! Getting dinner after 9 pm should not be this difficult. No, I am not making things worse for myself, so don't even go there.

I don't have a title for today's post

I honestly didn't think I had the willpower to hurl myself out the front door after coming home tonight. A normal work day, cramped train home, then 45 minutes door-to-door on a jam packed 22-Fillmore back to Fleet Feet to return my shoes. Another 30 minutes on the bus and a 15 minute walk to the apartment. That being said, I should have made dinner, curled into a ball and read my past issues of Bon Appetit.

What did I do instead? I broke in my new new running shoes on a 2.2 mile loop. While listening to Flight of the Conchords.

Oh yes. You're jealous. I'll be going again tomorrow morning. That's how excited I am about these shoes.

At some point, I had a cat cradled in my arms, picking at the nylon in my running shorts. Apparently the navy blue color offended her so much she ran off to eat kibble. What you see to the left is what generally happens as soon as I sit at my computer to do some work. Insert my left arm with a handy dandy built-in tummy scratcher under all that fur, and you've got a cat that won't be going anywhere for awhile.

I attended a coworkers wedding over the weekend and brought the ragazzo with me. From what I could tell (and what he told me), he enjoyed the weekend. I'm glad, because I'd like to see more of that happening soon (not the wedding bit, but the weekends away)! The bride was gorgeous in her hand made dress and the reception was a blast. The drive to and from was less than scenic thanks to our lovely Central Valley. For anyone reading in California or planning a trip to California, Merced blows. Basically everything between Oakland and Yosemite sucks; all 175 miles of it.

Soundtrack to a nearly perfect weekend

Longview - Electricity
Rocco Deluca And The Burden - Speak To Me
Robbie Williams - By All Means Necessary
Serge Gainsbourg - Ballade de Melody Nelson
Rufus Wainwright - Peach Trees
Johnathan Rice - My Mother's Son
Serge Gainsbourg & Jane Birkin - La chanson de Slogan
Rocco Deluca And The Burden - Mystified
Jason Falkner - She Goes To Bed
Regina Spektor - Somedays
Scissor Sisters - Lovers In The Backseat
Jason Falkner - Say It's True
Richard Ashcroft - Break The Night With Colour
Rhett Miller - Terrible Vision
Jason Falkner - Goodnight Sweet Night
Rufus Wainwright - Rebel Prince
Jason Falkner - I Don't Mind

With life comes death

Big British Biz has been in a state of shock since Monday morning’s announcement of a well-respected and loved colleague’s death. Meetings have been cancelled, business trips rearranged and nearly all work has come to a standstill. The mood around the office has been somber to say the least. Today is the memorial and burial service; I very much doubt anything productive will be accomplished.

There’s no denying life is a circular pattern of events. A colleague has passed, a fellow office-mate is marrying his fiancée this weekend, and a third is expecting a child in a few weeks. There will be more deaths, more births, more marriages, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it. While it’s never a happy time when you loose your husband/father/brother/uncle, life doesn’t stop and neither should you. I’ve lost many family members in my short life and I’ve learned this lesson from every one of their passings. To avoid sounding like a Socialist propaganda pamphlet, I’m going to stop here.

I just realized I pulled hair out of my bra and there is someone sitting less than 6 feet from me, diligently working on a task. Sorry buddy; I may be in an introspective mood, but that doesn’t make me classy.