Today was one of those summer days we are happy to see in San Francisco--warm, sunny, bordering on hot but saved by a cooling breeze. A time for reflection as I strolled down Valencia Street towards the Marsh to drop off the finished DVD for Sunday's benefit.
My Baby Boom Generation is known for being fueled by drugs; this generation--I don't know if it has a name--is definitely fueled by caffeine. I passed three independent coffee houses along the way--no Starbucks on this strip--filled with 20 & 30 somethings with their phones/PDAs/iPods and laptops. I laughed to myself as I realized they are closer in spirit to the Beat Generation of the 50s than they are to us or the Gen Xers before them.
As the Beats congregated in North Beach, the Mission is now the hip place to gather. It's an area that retains its gritty city vibe--cars, sirens, hustle and bustle--populated by people from diverse backgrounds who still, for the most part, manage to smile at each other as they pass on the street.
It is literally a hot spot weather wise, which brings a tie to an even earlier time in San Francisco history. It's an area of sunshine in a city often covered with fog---with the added bonus of flat land in the midst of hills. The Spaniards that arrived from Southern California made the Mission District their home base, just as these new young arrivees do now.
Yes, the more things change, the more they remain the same. One constant in this city that touches me is how it reveres eccentrics and individualists. I think that's one reason I embrace this as my home.
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