Crystal

Calhoun Terrace
Telegraph Hill
Saturday morning

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I was born in a place of edges – the parallels that carved out the state boundary, the sharp angle of the winter snow. Our days were guided by temperature, watching the the rise and fall of a line against lines. The three lines that made up the horizon: highway, plains, and sky. When the sky turned purple, we knew to be scared of torrent spiral wind.  It was a foreign shape that would snap and zag, appearing suddenly, destroying mercilessly.

My life in San Francisco is marked by curves: sidewalks crawling over hills, curlicues in crema, the Victorian accents found in old houses straining under layers of paint. Palm fronds trace out drifts of wind. Below the city, the straight edges heave their weight. They lean into each other like impatient shoppers and every once in awhile, their fighting carries upward suddenly, destroying mercilessly.

I like to travel – so far, to over a hundred countries and all continents.  My work, my life, revolves around maps, one that’s plotted along lines and curves. There are many sweet moment of traveling but a notable one: it happens on the plane, usually when you’ve touched down at SFO. You are tired, happy, ready to go home. You’ve been to Rapa Nui, Spitsbergen, Villa Las Estrellas, wherever, and your seatmate leans over and says, “Is this home or vacation for you?” I say both.

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You can see a slideshow of Crystal’s photo shoot here.

Crystal’s links:

Laura

Calhoun Terrace Stairs
Telegraph Hill
Friday afternoon

My motto: “Dance, like no one is watching.”

I recently figured out the exact moment when I knew I would be a creative adult. It was when I was ten. I got to freestyle in my ballet classes. The piano player would cue music that I hadn’t heard before and I danced my little heart out. This freedom and creativity has always stayed with me. The feeling that ‘I should dance outside of the box’ helped push me to move to San Francisco from Los Angeles (and away from my family and friends) seven years ago.

It took a lot of faith and courage for me to move away from L.A. I stored all of my belongings and thought I would give it six months in San Francisco before deciding whether to stay or move back to L.A. I didn’t expect and wasn’t ready to fall in love with our city and the freedom of the people as quickly as I did. To live in San Francisco you have to be accepting and open. People might not start that way, but they change. I knew I had to stay.

When I came to San Francisco, I did not have any contacts or had a job arranged. In fact, I had always lived near my family. I was in search of my passion. I was in search of my identity and my home. I quickly realized that San Francisco was my playground and I felt alive and free. In fact every time I traveled to other cities, I continued to feel a pull back.

San Francisco is a magical city where you always seem to find new nooks and crannies. When I meet other San Franciscan locals, they have their own special places to show me. Our versions of the city can be completely different based on our own experiences. Some of my favorite places and things to do in San Francisco are the Palace of Fine Arts, the art murals at Coit Tower, the Embarcadero famer’s market on Saturday mornings, window shopping in maiden lane, sipping lattes at Caffe Roma in North Beach, indulging on Nutella crepes at The Crepe House on Polk Street. Where are your favorite places to go and things to do in San Francisco?

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You can see a slideshow of Laura’s photo shoot here.

Laura is the North Beach blogger for the Examiner.
Her lifestyle blog is Under the Sheets–shhh.