makizo in SF

Somewhere in J-town

2011-07-04T20:59:00.001-07:00

Happy 4th of July :)

corner store

2011-05-30T22:10:00.000-07:00

My roommate and his friends stopped by a liquor store on Church & 15th one drunken night and they found the DVD on the counter. It was a documentary film about the liquor store owner.

[should I?? should I support local stores?] my roommate's friend bought the DVD and she lent it to us ;p

The beloved corner shop owner left his family in his home country a decade ago to start a new life in San Francisco. He worked 7 days a week, from morning to midnight. He sent money to his family and promised them to bring them all to America. This story might sound like any other immigrant story in the US. However, it made me realize that every single person has their own life story to tell but it's so easy to dismiss. I pass by this store everyday but I wouldn't feel any different about the store if I hadn't watched this DVD. The person who works at the store is not just a store owner. He is someone's father and husband.

I'm just wondering how many people I will meet in my life? how well can I get to know others? and how deep I can get involved with others' lives? Of course it's impossible to get to know well every single person I meet. But I simply want to do my best to be nice to people I meet even if I only see the person once in my life time. yes, I will treat others with respect no matter what. :)
Even if I treat others nicely, I get mistreated some times and I get hurt. but still, I shouldn't give up. I will treat others with respect and be nice to others. ;p I know this now that the more I get hurt by others, the less chance that I will hurt others. If someone hurts my feeling, that might be another chance to learn how to avoid hurting others.
　
well, I started to write about the corner store DVD and I ended up with talking about how much I'd like to be nice to others? That's kind of weird?? ;) but i guess it's so typical of my writing.. my journal don't make any sense most of the time.

One of my best friends just got engaged, my friend got a promotion, a gallery contacted me, I saw cute clouds in the sky this afternoon, I got my new MacBook pro, and my friend gave me an amazing hair cut...there are so many things to appreciate now.

I really wish my loved ones' happiness and I hope I can make them as happy as they have made me ;)

Thirsty Bear Brewing Company (SOMA)

2011-03-25T14:13:00.001-07:00

Thirsty Bear Brewing Company
661 Howard St
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 974-0905
www.thirstybear.com

It's an interesting combination brew house/tapas place. oh yes, the beer is tasty :) We were lucky that we went there on Sunday. They have live flamenco performances every Sunday evening.
I really wanted to have the "golden vanilla" beer, but they were all out that day. (I guess that is the most popular one?) so I had a seasonal IPA (forgot what it's called..) and sangria instead. They both were good. happy!

polar bear pilsner

chocolate espresso bread pudding & kozlov stout butter. yum yum

Ritual Coffee Roasters (Mission)

2011-03-14T17:38:00.000-07:00

Ritual Coffee Roasters
1026 Valencia St
(between 21st St & Hill St)
San Francisco, CA 94110
(415) 641-1011
www.ritualroasters.com

A great friend of mine loves this cafe.
I think they serve one of the best latte in the city. the latte is always not too strong, not too weak, it's always just right ;) most of the cafes in the city are usually hit or miss. Depending on the barista, the drink comes out either really good or just crappy. This place has never failed me (so far). They consistently serve good drinks ;p
You may be surrounded by all hipsters and nerds here, but it's a nice place to hang out with a friend for a cup of afternoon coffee.

If you are lucky, you don't experience the long line like today;)

sorry, this is a crappy picture from my cell phone, but the vegan doughnut is amazing! :p

An 8.9/9.0-magnitude earthquake hit Japan...

2011-03-12T11:54:00.000-08:00

Although I was relieved to hear that my family and friends in Japan are ok, it still breaks my heart to see what has happened to Japan. Just the idea of losing my family almost killed me last night and I cannot imagine how devastating it must be for those people who have just lost their loved ones.
It won't be easy to recover from this catastrophic disaster, but I do have faith in Japan. We are tenacious. We went trough many tragedies in our history but we always overcame and became stronger. I hope and believe that Japan will be reborn again and grow even stronger.

日本の皆さん
私は今海外に住んでるので、今回、本当にいろいろもどかしかったです。
twitterやmixiの情報ってすごいなって思いました。助かりました。
日本の家族や友達が無事って分かって凄く安心したけど、今回安心出来なかった人達も居るって考えると胸が痛みます。それに倒壊した家々や津波の映像をみると本当に心苦しいし、今後の復興活動の大変さも考えちゃいます。けど、日本って強いと思うのです。もちろん問題もいっぱいあるし、ダメダメなところもいっぱいある国だけど、立ち上がる強さはどこにも負けてないって思ってます。今回もここから絶対立ち上がって、バネにしてより一歩前進するって信じてます。
私にできるのは、こうやってしがないblog発信したりw、今日を生きれなかった人達の分まで毎日精一杯全力で生きる事なんじゃないかな、って思います。
つーわけでがんばりましょう！

The Grind Cafe (Lower Haight)

2011-03-10T14:35:00.000-08:00

The Grind Cafe
783 Haight St
(between Pierce St & Scott St)
San Francisco, CA 94117
(415) 864-0955
www.thegrindcafe.com

I love pancakes! who doesn't ??? (oh well, maybe some people don't like pancakes. sad sad world..)
I like this place because I can get a bunch of different types of pancakes here. I had coconuts/walnuts pancakes and they're just perfect. Great pancakes always put a smile on my face and make my day ;) that's why I prefer eating pancakes in the morning so I can start my day with happy warm feeling :)
yay! pancakes!

coconuts&walnuts inside

no latte art...that's a shame :(

cafe flore (Castro)

2011-03-10T14:04:00.000-08:00

Cafe Flore
2298 Market St
(between Sanchez St & Noe St)
San Francisco, CA 94114
(415) 621-8579
cafeflore.com

This is one of my favorite places in the city. good food, inexpensive drinks, friendly bartenders and cute outside seating :)

They have a great home made sangria. ($20 for a carafe) I don't know what they put in the sangria, but I got really really drunk! yeah, this sangria almost killed me.

I know it's not the best place to get wasted, so I probably shouldn't drink the sangria again. well, maybe I won't...or I will...:p

mimosa with fresh squeezed blood orange juice..yum!

I love the steak salad :)

Squat & Gobble (Lowe Haight)

2011-03-09T21:58:00.000-08:00

Squat & Gobble
237 Fillmore St
(between Haight St & Laussat St)
San Francisco, CA 94117
Neighborhoods: Lower Haight, Hayes Valley
(415) 487-0551
www.squatandgobble.com

I come here often not just because this is probably the closest cafe to my apartment but also I feel like I can stay here as long as I want :)
most of my sketch drawings for "When Bad Gossip Goes Good" were done at this cafe.
I guess this is my favorite place to work :)! They got free wifi and very friendly staffs..on top of that, I like their vanilla bean tea and the Belgian waffles :p

about this blog

2011-03-09T19:06:00.001-08:00

I'm a Japanese artist currently living in San Francisco. I love art, I love cafe..and I do love San Francisco.
I have no idea how long I can live in this lovely city. I may have to leave here soon or I may stay here for another 10 years? who knows? but one thing I do know is that I'm going to love and enjoy my life in SF as long as I stay here.
I'm writing this blog in order to keep a record of my art work and my days in SF. oh, and it's for my English practice? ;p