by Gene Mahoney

November 2001

I was in Silicon Valley recently and got to talk with Hamid Shahabi, an immigrant from Afghanistan and the owner of New York Pizza.You may have heard what happened to him on September 22nd. Here it is in his own words: "Three kids walked by and flipped me off. I asked them why. They said they were giving me the peace sign. A customer said that wasn't true. Then they pushed me and ran away." Hamid scraped his elbow on the sidewalk, though it's looking better as of October 6th, when I met him. Local citizens, reading about this unfortunate incident in the paper, have voiced support for the victim, some even bringing him flowers, cards, and candy. If you want to stop by and buy a slice from Hamid he's at 325 Hamilton Avenue in downtown Palo Alto)....

Many protesters of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War used to say that even though they were against us being over there, they'd be the first one in line to join the army if WE were attacked. A lot of those guys are now protesting the war we're having now. I guess they meant WE as in California. Oh wait, they had protests in New York, too. I guess some of those guys mean WE as in Brooklyn or Queens.... If you're ever in Javalencia Cafe (I forgot the address, but it's right near Back to the Picture framing on Valencia Street in the 'new' Mission) you may be lucky enough to hear Mr. Hiram Harvell play the piano there. Mr. Harvell says he plays "Negro Blues Piano "' and will sell you one of his cassettes for merely $15 if you ask him. Or at least leave a tip, it'll help pay his rent....

Thanks for all the CD's you've been sending me of bands many of you guys are in. I'll try to give them plugs in this column when I get a chance to listen to them. I've been so busy lately. Even more than usual. I moved! Thank God. I was living in Da Hood, in San Francisco's Ingleside district near SF State. I'm convinced we had less than ten days of sunshine there during the entire summer. Constant fog isn't so bad if you're breathing in all those negative ions by the ocean, but I was in a gray area (figuratively and literally) by being a 15 minute drive from the beach and a 15 minute drive from sunny downtown. I was the only white boy in the neighborhood, but most of the brothers there were nice to me. I didn't get much shit. I was kickin' it (Is that how you say it?) on Victoria Street, off Randolph. My next door neighbor, Mrs. Johnson, was very sweet. She probably went to church 5 times a week. That type. She even sent us a Christmas card every year. Very nice.

I used to do my laundry at this laundromat up the block from me. This Vietnamese guy and his wife owned it. But the wife was a little crazy. They would close at 7pm and one time I was running a little late, so she started pointing at the clock, screaming , and hitting me. The old man pulled her off and apologized. Then one day it didn't open. A week went by and it still didn't open. A month. Two months. I figured the guy was visiting Vietnam for a while. Three months. Four months. Hell, I think it's been shut for over 6 months now! What the hell happened? I suppose the best part of living there was seeing the hard working, always friendly Hassom, who owns Java On Ocean, one of the best coffeehouses in the city (located on Ocean at Faxon. Or is it Faxom? I went there every day for 16 months and I forgot the name of the cross street). A lot of young black kids dream of making it out of Da Hood. So did this 36 year old white guy.

The weather's a lot nicer where I live now -- on the San Mateo/Burlingame border. Yes, I've sold out and moved to the suburbs! Hey, say what you want, but I prefer the more laid back lifestyle here. Parking isn't a problem (neither is some creep breaking into your car). That happened to me recently on Hyde between Post and Geary in the Tender-Nob. But hey, I'm not bitter. So the guy got my $600 car stereo that I had for a whole month. In my younger days, I would have wished death upon him. Not any more. As a matter of fact, let's all join hands and say a prayer for him: Oh Lord, may you have pity on the poor soul who was forced to break into my car and take something that did not belong to him. He probably needed the money for food. Or drugs. And he can't help it. It's society's fault. He has absolutely no control over his actions. So please, Lord. Do not kill him. Stick him in jail instead. In a cell with a 300 pound psycho who will sodomize him repeatedly for years and years and years and years. Thank you, Lord. Okay, back to Da column....

Fans of the late French author Marcel Proust can get a 'zine called Proust Said That, published by Miss P., the owner of -- that's right -- Caffe Proust (1801 McAllister at Baker, 345-9560).... Let me tell you about this really cool travel agency (that just happens to advertise with me). Seriously, folks, this is not just your typical, average every day travel agency, these guys are unique. In addition to trying to get you the lowest fare, the cats at Value Vacation (3901 - 23rd Street at Sanchez, 824-2250) also put on shows displaying the works of local artists. Taking advantage of its Victorian era building's 14' ceiling, they have created a makeshift gallery known as Noe Art Space. Go there for an exhibition of narrative photography by Stephen Albair called False Bloom, which runs from 11/10 to 12/14. The artist's reception will be 7 to 10 pm on 11/10. Gallery hours are from 9am to 6pm Monday through Friday or by appointment....

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Gene can be emailed here.