Marion, Eugene, and Me
My friend Eugene invited me to join him, his wife Keani, and their neighbor Marion, on Friday, June 26, for an excursion to San Francisco to visit some interesting sites and see some of his professional work. What a good idea! Just about any reason to go to San Francisco is good for me and I looked forward to a guided tour of some unusual locations. And we'd be traveling in Eugene's '69 Ford convertible! Cool.
Unfortunately Keani was not feeling well, but Marion, Eugene, and I headed out at 8:00 am, with sweaters and jackets and hoodies. Eugene and Marion first directed us through Marion's home neighborhoods through Caesar Chavez and Church streets, then we headed up to Laguna Honda hospital to see some of Eugene's copper metal work. I had not been to these locations before, and to have a guided, personal tour was special. Did you know that Bing Crosby used to come to Laguna Honda to entertain the patients?
Next we traveled to Golden Gate Heights' mosaic staircase, near Moraga and 17th Ave., to see some handiwork of one of Eugene's comrads. We just happened to arrive when one of the members of the neighborhood committee responsible for the project was visiting, and she gave us quite a bit of the history and stories about the work. If you click on the picture you'll get an enlarged version showing a lot of the detail on the steps, which illustrate a view from the ocean bottom up through land to the moon and sun.
Eugene and I made it to the top of the stairs, where there is a great view of the avenues and the ocean beyond. I was winded, but what caught me by surprise was the ache in my calf muscles the next day!
Bidding farewell to our new acquaintance we headed for Golden Gate Park and the Police Stables. Eugene's crew had recently worked on making some fencing more horse-friendly, and he asked if he could come by and bring some friends to visit. The two people taking care of the horses were very friendly and generous with carrots which we fed to the police horses.
After feeding the horses some treats we visited the tack room and museum. Some photographs were taken in the 1880s and 1890s.
Heading out of the park we traveled east toward North Point and Embarcadero, cutting through Pacific Heights with its great view of the Marina, Alcatraz and the beautiful water and beyond. We visited the city Soil Test Lab at the old water treatment plant, where Eugene had some crafty metal work of his to show. But first we took a slight detour toward stairs that lead up to Coit Tower, where Eugene explained to me the fine points of bending metal piping.
At the Soil Test Lab we had the good fortune to run into Darren, Chief Enchilada and friendly "from-here" SF native, who had no end to his praise for Eugene's fine craftsmanship. Darren and Marion compared notes on all the hang-outs and landmarks that only locals growing up in San Francisco would recognize. Getting such rich information about the flavor of living in San Francisco was quite a treat for me on this day.
And here is some complicated, creative craftwork by Eugene. The blue devices are for testing soil samples and the workspace required something to help the technicians breath while the soil testers blow up a dust storm. All the sheet metal (non-blue) work is Eugene's creative design and handiwork, including the aluminum siding. He listens to the technicians' needs, looks at the work and the equipment, and pulls the necessary design out of his magic hat (i.e., much experience and skill and saavy)!
Last stop on our visit was lunch! Marion treated us to one of her favorite restaurants on Fisherman's Wharf: Scoma's. It is tucked away off the main tourist streets, out on the wharf -- we would have missed it if Marion had not been our guide. I had delicious pasta pomodoro with grilled prawns, very yum. Marion insisted that Eugene and I split her desert: a flourless chocolate cake with whipped cream, rasberry sauce and mint leaves. And the view of the San Francisco skyline was delicious too. What a great morning in San Francisco, home of warm and friendly people. Thank you!
Unfortunately Keani was not feeling well, but Marion, Eugene, and I headed out at 8:00 am, with sweaters and jackets and hoodies. Eugene and Marion first directed us through Marion's home neighborhoods through Caesar Chavez and Church streets, then we headed up to Laguna Honda hospital to see some of Eugene's copper metal work. I had not been to these locations before, and to have a guided, personal tour was special. Did you know that Bing Crosby used to come to Laguna Honda to entertain the patients?
Next we traveled to Golden Gate Heights' mosaic staircase, near Moraga and 17th Ave., to see some handiwork of one of Eugene's comrads. We just happened to arrive when one of the members of the neighborhood committee responsible for the project was visiting, and she gave us quite a bit of the history and stories about the work. If you click on the picture you'll get an enlarged version showing a lot of the detail on the steps, which illustrate a view from the ocean bottom up through land to the moon and sun.
Eugene and I made it to the top of the stairs, where there is a great view of the avenues and the ocean beyond. I was winded, but what caught me by surprise was the ache in my calf muscles the next day!
Bidding farewell to our new acquaintance we headed for Golden Gate Park and the Police Stables. Eugene's crew had recently worked on making some fencing more horse-friendly, and he asked if he could come by and bring some friends to visit. The two people taking care of the horses were very friendly and generous with carrots which we fed to the police horses.
Ofc. Horse
After feeding the horses some treats we visited the tack room and museum. Some photographs were taken in the 1880s and 1890s.
Heading out of the park we traveled east toward North Point and Embarcadero, cutting through Pacific Heights with its great view of the Marina, Alcatraz and the beautiful water and beyond. We visited the city Soil Test Lab at the old water treatment plant, where Eugene had some crafty metal work of his to show. But first we took a slight detour toward stairs that lead up to Coit Tower, where Eugene explained to me the fine points of bending metal piping.
At the Soil Test Lab we had the good fortune to run into Darren, Chief Enchilada and friendly "from-here" SF native, who had no end to his praise for Eugene's fine craftsmanship. Darren and Marion compared notes on all the hang-outs and landmarks that only locals growing up in San Francisco would recognize. Getting such rich information about the flavor of living in San Francisco was quite a treat for me on this day.
And here is some complicated, creative craftwork by Eugene. The blue devices are for testing soil samples and the workspace required something to help the technicians breath while the soil testers blow up a dust storm. All the sheet metal (non-blue) work is Eugene's creative design and handiwork, including the aluminum siding. He listens to the technicians' needs, looks at the work and the equipment, and pulls the necessary design out of his magic hat (i.e., much experience and skill and saavy)!
Last stop on our visit was lunch! Marion treated us to one of her favorite restaurants on Fisherman's Wharf: Scoma's. It is tucked away off the main tourist streets, out on the wharf -- we would have missed it if Marion had not been our guide. I had delicious pasta pomodoro with grilled prawns, very yum. Marion insisted that Eugene and I split her desert: a flourless chocolate cake with whipped cream, rasberry sauce and mint leaves. And the view of the San Francisco skyline was delicious too. What a great morning in San Francisco, home of warm and friendly people. Thank you!
Eugene's Wheels. Nice ride, rides nice.
posted by Kent at
9:26 PM
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