We all have ideas in our minds of what the Gold Rush years were like, and what blossomed from that. No doubt, our thoughts–and the actual history–involve a lot of alcohol. In fact, in 1852, San Francisco had 350 bar rooms, and in 1853, 537 places in the city were serving alcohol. Ever wondered what exactly San Franciscans were sipping on in the 1800s? If so, read on.

I’m a huge fan of the The Sycamore and their sister spot The Willows. Both are great neighborhood spots where you can get a great beer, a yummy bite, play some boardgames, and chill out with your friends. So it is with excitement that I announce that The Sycamore is reopening

Just as bold upon its release as it is today, director Elia Kazan and writer Budd Schulberg‘s masterpiece A Face In The Crowd – about the charming rogue Larry “Lonesome” Rhodes (Andy Griffith) who parlays his local TV fame into a national bully pulpit – remains a darkly comic satire

This was sent out by SURJ Bay Area the other day and I figured I’d get the word out to those of you who didn’t already know about it. Dear SURJ Bay Area — This Wednesday, November 15th, Wealth and Disparities in the Black Community – Justice for Mario Woods

Classic Jewish folk tales are now on display at Contemporary Jewish Museum are new works created by 16 artists. In Jewish Folktales Retold: Artist as Maggid  (storyteller), the artists perused the 2009 book Leaves from the Garden of Eden: One Hundred Classic Jewish Tales by Howard Schwartz and chose a tale from which to create a piece, or multiple pieces.

Guest Post by Sayre Piotrkowski For most of the past month I have been reading We Were Eight Years In Power by my favorite author, Ta-Nehisi Coates. The book is something like a greatest hits collection culled from Coates’ work in the pages of the Atlantic magazine. Nine essays, eight

This originally appeared in my Broke-Ass City column in the San Francisco Examiner. It’s that time again. The call goes out on Facebook, comments are made, friends are tagged, emails come tumbling in. There’s even a post on Craigslist … My roommates and I are searching for a new person