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It’s a beautiful day outside.  But I’m sick, indoors, cranky and trying to stuff myself full of Vitamin C and Zinc.

But life outside continues.  Sunday I brought you a shark, today it’s a mouse.  And it’s looking for love.

I’m not sure who this artist is, but I wish I had more info.  I do notice that I it’s changed my life in a little itty bitty way.

Until I noticed this street art sprouting up in the Outer Sunset, I found myself overly-focused on what I was doing, looking down and hurrying through life.

But the last few weeks have been a little different.  I am constantly looking up.  Constantly searching for little bits of treasure hidden on SF’s utility poles.  And it’s actually made life more interesting.

So whoever you are, please don’t stop.  I’m sure I’m not the only one that’s intrigued, interested and grateful for the little smiles you’re adding to life through these carved wood surprises.

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I know I should be blogging about San Francisco real estate, but instead, I’m running around trying to keep up with active buyers, both in and out of escrow, and getting some listings up and running!  (In fact, check out this 1BR steal of a condo in Diamond Heights and this 2BR 2BA 2PK condo in NoPa for some AWESOME opportunities!)

So when things calm down, I’ll have some more real estate posts for you soon – but in the meantime, I thought I’d share some more rogue Outer Sunset art with you.

And you know what, readers?  If you’re stopping by to check out my posts, you are sweet.  But I promise, I won’t bite.

First, out here on the Great Highway, we had to SURRENDER!

Now, there’s Tulips and Nervous Virgins.

Our utility poles in the Outer Sunset are just getting more and more interesting…………

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I’ve had a few rough days.  First, it was a sinus headache that (still) makes me feel like I’m being continuously punched in the forehead.  And then, it was the passing of a matriach, my step-grandmother, a 91 year old woman with the spirit of a twenty-something, the memory of an elephant and a heart of gold.  I always knew her as “Babushka Luba” (yes, there are more Lubas out there than just me) and was amazed to discover that she had a life long before she was a Babushka and in fact, she was one of a few female soldiers with the Soviet Army in WWII.  Her platoon made it all the way to Berlin before the war ended.  And, well, her collections of medals was truly impressive.  She’ll be missed by her kids, her grandkids, her great-grandkids, and by anyone whose life she touched.

So when Bennett Hall sent over the above picture of the Golden Gate Bridge, it brought a happy moment to a few otherwise stressful days.  Here he described the photo:

This photograph of the bridge was made in 1980 between passing storms with an 8×10″ view camera.  Waves from the heavy surf hit the sea wall causing these spectacular curtains of water, shooting up to 20′ into the air.

The motion effect is created using a slow shutter speed, about 1/4 second.

Available as a limited edition giclee from the artist studio Studio printed archival 12-color pigment print on premium photo paper Signed and numbered by artist

The original photograph is available.

And as a bonus, readers of Luba’s SF real estate blog get 40% off.

A little bit about the guy kind enough to provide us with such an awesome pic:

Bennett Hall, San Francisco native, photographer and design, operates a San Francisco studio dedicated to sustainable U.S. forested custom picture framing at lower prices for everyone.  Currently, Hall is selling his 30-year collection of framed and unframed San Francisco, and world historical photography, personal art photography and other collectible pieces at clearance prices.  Services for businesses are emphazed through Hall’s company Business Image Group, creating graphical environments that express the culture, history and marketing messages of his clients.

This, seen on a telephone pole in the Outer Sunset today.

$10 Java Beach coffee card to the first person that can REALLY tell me to what or to whom I should be surrendering.  Another $10 Java Beach coffee card to the first person that can tell me if there’s more of these around, and where.  (And yes, I’ll be confirming their location.)

For now, I’ll take it to mean “surrender to the sunshine.”

And you people think that the Mission is the only place where “interesting” things happen.  Hmph.

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If you’re at Fort Point today, you’re probably a tourist or you’re wearing a wetsuit!

This photo from 1890 is from the Golden Gate Recreation area from Above Fort Point – but if you notice, something is missing.  It’s big, it’s red, and it’s being retrofitted right now!  (Yes, it’s the Golden Gate Bridge if you hadn’t guessed.)

Fort Point was constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers between 1853 and 1861 to prevent entrance of a hostile fleet into San Francisco Bay during the Civil War.  Between 1933 and 1937 the Fort was used as a base of operations for the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Today, it’s not just a place to go and explore history, but it’s also one of the most unique surfing destinations in the world.

The photo is brought to us courtesy of Bennett Hall, and was hand-tinted by him as well.  It comes from his collection of San Francisco Images, the original photo is mostly like attributed to Taber/Watkins

This image is on display publicly at Momos Restaurant and in the US District Courts Exhibits at 450 Golden Gate Ave
US District Courts  San Francisco Bay Area • Community History exhibits, 2002-2011.

A little bit about the guy kind enough to provide us with such an awesome pic:

Bennett Hall, San Francisco native, photographer and design, operates a San Francisco studio dedicated to sustainable U.S. forested custom picture framing at lower prices for everyone.  Currently, Hall is selling his 30-year collection of framed and unframed San Francisco, and world historical photography, personal art photography and other collectible pieces at clearance prices.  Services for businesses are emphazed through Hall’s company Business Image Group, creating graphical environments that express the culture, history and marketing messages of his clients.

There are just under 100 unique and distinct districts in San Francisco according the the San Francisco Realtors Association.

Other sources will list just over 100.  But no matter how you count them, there’s no denying that there’s A LOT of variety when it comes to what neighborhood you ultimately choose to call “home!”

Whether you like your neighborhoods full of nightlife vs. life on the quiet side, completely urban vs. bordering nature, or if you prefer your shopping high-end vs. funky and thrifty, there’s a neighborhood for you here in SF.

You want views? Hills? Public schools? Walkability? Something trendy? Something polished? Something family oriented? A single person’s dream? San Francisco has it all.

But how do you decide which San Francisco “Nabe” is right for you?

Well – I suggest using BOTH of these sites to find out.

1)  Visit Zephyr Real Estate’s neighborhood guide. Zephyr has 89 districts in San Francisco and has broken them up into little blurbs of digestible information.  Neighborhoods have a description, photos, links to available homes for sale, real estate market statistics, demographic info, and in many cases, even a  short video highlighting the neighborhood in greater detail.  It’s polished, easy to read and the SF real estate stats and available listings are constantly updated.

2) Visit NabeWise. This site splits SF into 104 districts (frankly, more accurate than our SF real estate board if you ask me – Lower Haight gets its own home here, whereas our board lumps it into Hayes Valley.)  The only way I can really accurately describe this site is the Yelp! of local neighborhoods.  It features a neighborhood summary, highlights, lowlights, maps, trends and most importantly, in my opinion, reader reviews.  People can post photos, videos and review their own neighborhoods and those which they frequent.  You get a glimpse of the neighborhoods both through the eyes of locals and those that step foot there along their travels.  You can see who lives there (hipsters, beautiful people, students, liberals) and so much more.  I personally just started playing with the site and managed to squeeze out one review of the Outer Sunset. But so far, I’ve really enjoyed reading other people’s opinions of the various San Francisco hoods.

So, Zephyr Real Estate’s neighborhood guide will give you the polished presentation that markets each neighborhood, while NabeWise will give you an insider’s scoop and actual people’s perceptions of every nook and cranny in San Francisco that you’d want to call “home.”

And of course, if you’re considering buying or selling a home in any of these awesome neighborhoods, well, you know who you can call!

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Yes folks, this cool Outer Sunset spot has been a secret that only locals have known about the last few days.  But today, you get the scoop!

There’s plenty of outdoor seating, generous use of natural materials and a down to earth vibe you can’t help but notice.

But hurry, it looks like their liquor selection is limited! 

Happy Friday!

I *love* watching planes land at SFO!  Considering the on again, off again torrential downpours we’re having, this plane was lucky to land in between raindrops.

As for those ON that plane, well, I just hope they looked at this week’s weather report and not last week’s.  Bet the little shops at the airport will make a killing selling umbrellas… if the bottled water costs like $5, bet the umbrellas are like $50!

And yeah, after I took this shot, I saw at least 10 planes all lined up and ready for a slow taxiing till take-off.  Looks like that rain had caused some flight delays.

Hope the rain hasn’t slowed you down too much!  Stay dry, San Francisco! 

I know, I know, you’re tired of me talking about our awesome weather, but I just couldn’t help but smile as I went past these Cherry Blossoms trees in Hayes Valley (Pierce Street to be exact.)

We’re seeing Cherry Blossoms in bloom ALL OVER SF!  The glorious sunshine has fooled the trees into thinking it’s really spring and they’re blooming left and right.  Driving through Golden Gate Park is, frankly, magical!

And remember, Cherry Blossoms are a symbol of the fragility of life – here today, gone sooner than you realize – so don’t just enjoy the Blossoms while you can, but get out there and enjoy San Francisco!

UPDATE!!!!  CORRECTION!!! STOP THE PRESSES!!! 

Thanks to James leaving a message in the comments below, I now know those are PLUM blossoms!  NOT cherry!  But they still sure are PURDY!