Notes from the City

Interested in some useless knowledge?

I’ve walked around downtown San Francisco each day for nearly three weeks, so while I’m not exactly a local expert, I’ve got some general notes to share.

• Women wear flats.  I would like to boldly state that nearly 70 to 75 percent of females are wearing flat shoes around the Financial District and beyond.  These women are certainly well dressed – some in formal business attire, most in fashionable casual – but yes, they keep it low to the pavement when out and about.  I believe Avery Jessup from NBC’s 30 Rock once said “flats are for quitters,” however I think wearing flats shows that ladies in the City are in fact full of posturepedic good sense, even if they change at the office.
• No texting and walking.  In one of the most tech-savvy cities in the U.S., you’d think everyone would have their cell phone in their hand as they walk around.  Not so much.  I see a lot of people with earphones, talking into their phone’s microphone, but not a lot of phones held to ears, or held out in front of people while texting or emailing.  Another reason for the lack of outward phone use may be that I am mostly examining business-day groups of people walking in pods, so perhaps they are more engaged in the here and now.
• The kids are in the ‘hoods (neighborhoods).  Today I walked through Chinatown (which is the oldest and largest Chinatown in North America, by the way) as well as North Beach (which is famous for its Italian eateries and flare), and saw tons of families and even little kids playing soccer in a park.  There you go, originally I had commented on the lack of kids, but I knew they had to be somewhere in San Francisco!

It’s easy to appreciate the newness and differences in city living when you move from a smaller area across the country, especially when you are on foot by day taking it all in.  However, there is another thing that I currently appreciate and that is the comfort of normalcy.  Ladies and gentlemen, we finally have a couch, pots and pans to cook with, a full fridge and even cable TV.   Life in the City is good.