Second day of San Francisco trip. Started off with food from Boudin at Fisherman’s Wharf, then chocolate from Ghirardelli. Explored the city some more, ending up at Haight-Ashbury, where I purchased a delightful rainbow argyle sweatshirt. More photos on flickr.

First day in San Francisco. Asian Art Museum in the morning, followed by lunch at Orphan Andy’s in The Castro. We wandered towards Haight-Ashbury, but got sidetracked by Buena Vista Park. And then Corona Heights Park, which actually had a better view. Walked down Broadway at night past the strip clubs and aggressive bouncers, who tried to lure us in with promises of illicit underage strippers. Then Pier 39, where we listened to grouchy slumbering sea lions. More photos over at my flickr page.

And many more on Flickr.

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As always, more on my Flickr page.

(P.S. All of my Paris Flickr photos are now public and can be found here.)

Bullet article 2/28; co-written with Stephanie Breijo
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Sunday evening. A fateful night for one lionhearted UMW journalist.
Confronted with an endless sea of crimson velvet and sparkling Hollywood starlets, Stephanie Breijo, UMW junior and bosom friend to the famous, took her first step onto the fuzzy, life-changing surface of Hollywood’s red carpet.
“Well, attending the Oscars is actually a family tradition. We come from a poor Slavic background,” Breijo said. “We’re pierogi farmers and in order to attend each year, we have to sell our livestock and barrels of pierogi and take a …

This is gradually becoming my catch-all creativity blog. My latest Bullet article!
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A Plague on Both Your Blouses: Renaissance Festival for the Modern College Student

Think of Maryland, and what comes to mind? Seafood? Mediocre baseball teams? Bad drivers? How about thousands of people running around in Elizabethan costume?
The Maryland Renaissance Festival is the second-largest fair of its kind in the United States, running every fall season from August to October since its opening in 1977. The festival itself takes place in a recreation of an old English village just northwest …

So I was googling around for Japanese vending machines and came across this website. Vending machines for fresh eggs, hot ramen, water salad, “used” panties (ugh), pet beetles (not making this up!), toilet paper, alcoholic beverages… one machine even charges your cell phone while you shop! Seriously, go look.
Here‘s another fascinating site. And did you know that there’s one vending machine for every 23 people in Japan?
And here is further information on the used panties thing. Eeewwww. (But they also have an interesting commentary on cultural differences that …