Gavin 2.0

Love that our local glamour pus, Mayor Gavin Newsom is tossing his jet black, hair gelled, smarty pants self into the gubernatorial mosh pit along with the other lightweights like Meg Whitman former CEO of Ebay, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (just recently re-elected for a second term.) Also running for the states' top office is the old school, nose hair sprouting crowd include state Attorney General Jerry Brown and Democratic Lt. Gov. John Garamendi.

Only 13 months to go before the 2010 gubernatorial primaries and the virtual world rocks with all things Gavin Newsom. What I love the most is the campaign strategy surroundings this newly announced campaign. To quote the Mayor of SF: "We can't afford to keep returning to the same old tired ideas and expect the same result," Feel the love radiate from your computer monitor with his three-minute YouTube announcement, part of the unprecedented "virtual fly-around" campaign announcement done entirely in the new media. Yeah!

His advisers hope the unusual new media-based campaign roll out reaches an estimated half-million computer users in the first 24 hours - which would underscore what Newsom has called a "2.0 campaign" for the 2010 Democratic nomination. A key target will be the "millennial" voters, those technology-bred Californians born between 1982 and 2003 - part of the largest and most diverse generation in history - who helped boost Obama to the presidency, his advisers said.

Never too early to get that merchandising out there... Tee shirts? Get 'em here!

The Pot-Hole That Ate Your Car

My commute this morning was out of my ordinary hurry local scurry. Commuting 880 is not so bad as there is a car pool lane. I of course felt like the odd duck out among the steady stream of Prius drivers sporting yellow HOV stickers leading the parade of morning commute cars. Not so bad really. No complaints even with the driving habits. The complaint comes from having the ability to bust a move (not nutty speed mind you) but faster than the posted 65mph since we are talking rush hour traffic and not to point of the obvious, if this IS the only line of traffic moving then why not keep it moving?

The rub comes from driving conditions. The highways in Guatemala have fewer potholes than our local interstate. Pathetic.

So who do I bitch to ?

California has the worst road and highway pavement conditions in the nation according to The Road Information Program. Meanwhile Californians now pay the seventh-highest gas tax nationwide ( which btw I think should be even higher) 18.4 cents per gallon in federal gas tax and another 18 cents in state gas tax, plus 7.5 cents uniform state and local sales tax, plus any optional local sales taxes for transportation. Our golden state ranks next to last in transportation spending. California's $7.9 billion transportation budget comes out to only $251 per person. Only South Carolina pays less at $223 per person. Source: San Jose Mercury-News. Urban roads in Los Angeles are the third-worst in the nation, with 33 percent rated in "poor" condition. San Jose's rank fifth-worst with 30 percent rated "poor." San Francisco-Oakland's rank sixth-worst with 29 percent in "poor"condition. Source: Caltrans .

There is no surprise that driving on roads in disrepair accelerates vehicle deterioration and depreciation much like the mound of uneaten kid-snack lurking beneath my car seats. Triple A calculates that drivers in California’s biggest cities pay as much as $700 annually for repairs and early vehicle replacement costs. The national average is $400. I suppose the bright side is that my car is just transportation, and the only thing brighter would be accessible public transportation but I shall save that rant for a future blog post. Mean while, today was a spare the air day. Be nice to see people actually embrace the notion. Wishful thinking on my part.

....Is The Magic Number

People always remind me how certain things come in three's. So this auspicious number did indeed pan out today. Hanging on the boat for the weekend is a nice depressurization from the normal world, and this
morning we awoke to a knock on the hull of Tramuntana. Coffee in hand we went outside to say good morning. The couple visiting came by to say " we wanted to see your boat because we too have been contemplating a catamaran for world cruising." Weirdly enough, the woman was someone who has sat beside my husband at high tech board meetings for the last four years. Neither realized the other was a sailor. Top it off, said couple just sold a Los Gatos home and live bay side of where we reside here on the water...weird. Next The Pacific Strictly Sail show going on here in Oakland which made for a fun outing of all things salty. These delicious little dingies that resemble a margarine tub sporting a stick were available to test sail. Needless to say the instant my 6 & 8 year olds' hands held that tiller the rest was history. The representative for these cute little dingies lives near Boston and as he mentioned the suburb, I mentioned a friend who lives in the same enclave.. yes, he knows my friend. Knows the whole clan actually....weird.
The trifecta of the day was meeting the man responsible for my present day life as I know it. Richard Spindler is the publisher of the local sailing rag Latitude 38. Latitude runs a crew list to connect sailors and crew, and when I relocated to San Francisco from Chicago I was told this was the best spot to meet other sailors. Fast forward sixteen years and voila- I met Rob and went went sailing as a beta test and the rest of course is history. Anyways... I had never met Richard and was delighted to introduce him to my family. I think he hears these kinds of stories often as it is the Bay Area and LOTS of sailors have met as a common connection to Latitude.

The truth is things really may arrive in three's... for me it may be my third and last cocktail of the evening as we sit an enjoy this sultry Alameda evening that feels weirdly like somewhere else.

Feeling Lucky?

I am not one to play the lottery. Considering it a game for the mathematically challenged but with the announcement of a $5 donation, I rethought my bias on this one. Supporters enter a draw for several prizes including a day with the former US president Bill Clinton. As secretary of state, Mrs Clinton is banned from fund-raising but loyalists such as long-time Democratic strategist James Carville have stepped into the breach. I have decided to change my outlook on lottery chances- feeling lucky perhaps? The other prizes are tickets to the season finale of the hit talent show American Idol (boring...) and lunch in Washington with James Carville (could be fun) sounds as thought a pre-planned the day with Mr Clinton involves meeting him in New York and attending "several interesting events." I, of course have my own short list of fun things to do with Mr. Bill. Can you imagine how much fun one could have in a strip club with this chic magnet of a guy?? How about showing up at any event or concert- carte blanche seating and hob nobbing with who-know's-who.

Previous fundraising appeals have shrunk down the debt for Mrs.Clinton, she is still saddled with an I.O.U of $2.3m, which is owed to Mark Penn, a pollster and political strategist (whittled down from $25.2m .) The email that arrived today stated " Your contribution today not only gives you the chance at winning one of these fantastic prizes, it'll also help our dear friend, Hillary Clinton, pay off the very last of her campaign debt." Is it too soon to plan what to wear on my potential outing? I suppose sporting a blue dress may be out.

Green Is Good

If you did not have an opportunity to get out today and enjoy all that is Spring, then let me give you a glimpse into a day in the life of a pitch perfect Friday. Dodging leaf blowers is not my forte as of late, but when is the last time you walked barefoot in that just-cut green grass ? Green fresh cut aroma should be bottled for the not so sunny days.. walking in freshly cut grass feels sooo good and is a great way to kick start the day. Followed by a very green lunch, packaged in, you guessed it- environmentally green packaging enjoyed alfresco. Segway to the afternoon, nothing like a little SFBay salt water lavage to clean up ones outlook on life-as if it could be any brighter. The quintessentially California vision of the great outdoors played like an infomercial today as everything unfurled effortlessly unplanned. What's not to like about a completely impromptu approach to life. Even if it is just for one day. Playing without a plan is a luxury, but what's a sunny Friday without a little diversion of deliciousness (pick your poison.) Don't feel bad if you missed the opportunity to enjoy the magnificent spring weather as tomorrow is supposed to be another stellar day-hooray!

String Theory

I have my own duality of theme for string theory as of late. Creative genius reins in my little insular world, and with that a thematic course of action has lead to a path of cardboard boxes, duct tape, scissors, Popsicle sticks and of course string ending in an original artform developed by my artists in residence ages 6 & 8.

The imaginative play of kids remains the same regardless of societal norms, financial where-with -all, and geography. From experiencing kids in Thailand building "boats" from styrofoam washed ashore to my own mad scientists building cross bows from paperclips the concept is the same: left to imaginative play one will make due with what one has. I know this is not an epiphany for many but the idea that less is more in the current global crisis is at least comforting to put a happy spin on all things recyclable.

How does this translate to the adult world of responsibility? Supporting artistic programs like this one which inspires and serves up a creative twist for something as pedestrian as a trash can or bin. Our own community could certainly channel this type of creative juju. The Museums of Los Gatos is starting a Thursday Evening Lecture Series that brings a breadth of informational artistic concepts to light. The first of the series is April 23 from 7 to 9. Presenter Cathy Kimball will discuss art in the present tense. The community support of these grassroot endeavors ensures future success. Please consider attending, even if you have never felt "plugged" into the local art scene. Self actualization seems too airy-fairy but the idea is to stir a creativeness we all possess but maybe haven't tapped since the day of using paper and string.

At least that's my theory for what it's worth.....

Cha-Ching

Is that baby giving you the finger? No worries..it's the mood dujour for many.
Feeling blue sorta boo hoo today as you mail your taxes to Uncle Sam? Apparently paying a huge amount of ones' earnings makes for happy campers, at least in Denmark where almost 70% of salaries are tax income for the country. It would be a curious beta test to live in a society where bankers earn as much as artists. So as we cry the blues today, this holiday for the IRS let's remember that it could always be worse. We could be Ukrainine. To be taxed in the Ukraine, is much like visiting the proctologist office. A global ranking of countries with the worse taxation system is awarded to this country. From a global perspective if anyone should be cranky it would be this part of the world which come to think of it the weather is just about as miserable. Prozac in the morning coffee is a lot like Cheerios for breakfast stateside. According to the WSJ America has a very small number of taxpayers -- the 10% of the country that makes more than $92,400 a year -- pay 72.4% of the nation's income taxes. They're the tip of the triangle that's supporting virtually everyone and everything. Why am I not Republican again?? Their burden keeps getting heavier. So take it to the streets, as many people did today. Tea Party antics this tax day against what the protesters believe are higher-than-necessary taxes and excess government spending, largely on the part of the Obama administration. The demonstrations mark the culmination of a movement spurred in part by a February rant from CNBC personality Rick Santelli that generated more than a million views on YouTube - and even a White House response. As you might recall, Santelli - surrounded by traders in Chicago - complained that Americans were being forced by the Obama administration to "subsidize the losers' mortgages" and called for a "Chicago tea party" to show his and others' anger. Gotta have a hobby.

Of course, the tea party that seems to have inspired the comment - the Boston Tea Party, that iconic 1773 protest in which Massachusetts colonists dumped tea into Boston Harbor - was tied largely to taxation without representation by the British government. That's no longer an issue for most Americans ( well- maybe the District of Columbia can bitch.)
The antithesis of party mentality this tax day: the tax professionals, like KPMG have the most boring, non creatively packaged information available on the world wide web. I suppose it's tough to break outta that beancounter mentality and think left brain creative. At least spending time reading about the world of taxes globally could be a more appealing experience but then again I can't imagine I would be considered a prime end-user of the website.

Remember cranky pants, the post office will be collecting/postmarking until midnight. Could be worse as you could be in Denmark, paying your taxes perhaps working at KPMG and dealing with that 24 hours of winter darkness thing. Could always be worse.