Archive for San Francisco
Coworkers Buzzing Around the Bay
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After my visit to the new, cool coworking space BZhive in San Rafael, I asked the owners Hila and Dani if they would be interested in sharing some of their favorite Bay Area places with me.
Here are some of the places owner and artist Hila buzzes around the bay to when she is not working:
Where is your favorite place to hike or bike in the Bay Area?
Terra Linda/Southern Novato Hills – different trails, mostly the “shortcut” from Terra Linda to Sleepy Hollow (San Anselmo).
What do you love most about the Bay Area?
The weather, the air, the view, the people. I’m coming from a relatively hot and humid climate (Tel Aviv) so the weather here is just perfect. I only wish the beach and the water were warmer. The people here are much more relaxed and patient. Above all we love San Francisco- one of my favorite cities if not “the” favorite. gracious and gorgeous. I love it especially when it’s gray (which is most of the time) it gives it just the perfect bittersweet taste of melancholy.
What is your favorite restaurant in the Bay Area?
The Slanted Door in SF love the the food the scene and view.
(I think Hila and I have similar taste. I love this restaurant!)
Favorite Coffee/Tea shop?
Cafe Gratitude especially the one in Berkeley. I’m grateful for a great food- especially the sweets… and you know you are safe there- it’s all vegan! (Another one of my favorites.) 
Favorite park? Bon Tempe Lake (From Fairfax)
Favorite place to shop?
Crossroad Trading. Favorite location is Irving st in SF. I like the idea of recycling and exchanging. AND what great finds! (I’m telling you, I think Hila is my long lost sister.)
Read more about BZhive in the MarinIJ.
Be sure to follow BZhive on Twitter to keep up with the latest happenings at the hive.
The social interaction and possible collaboration that comes when people get out of the home office can also make people more productive, according to a 2008 study by Stephen Humphrey, formerly a management professor at Florida State University’s business school.
“People who work interdependently with others have better performance ratings, lower stress, lower turnover intentions, and greater work and organizational satisfaction,” the study found. – Jim Welte, MarinIJ 2/7/10
Stay tuned you just might see me working out of BZhive one of these days.
Shopping with a View in San Francisco
Posted by: | CommentsAs you may or may not know my neighbor Amy and I are pretty dedicated hikers. We go out every morning (6-7 days a week) with our dogs for a hike. However on super rainy days we do not go. This is problem because hiking is what we do for exercise. I decided instead of being a wimp on rainy days I’d go out and buy some rain gear so at least we could still get out when it is pouring rain, even if we didn’t go on the trails we could walk up and down the winding hilly streets of our neighborhood.
I wanted good quality rain gear but I didn’t want to spend the money I would have to if I went to REI. Instead, I went to the Sports Basement in San Francisco. The Sports Basement is an awesome place for getting great deals on quality brand name athletic clothing. A few years ago I bought a big puffy down Northface jacket from the Sports Basement. I called REI first to compare prices and it was $50 cheaper at the Sports Basement.
The Sports Basement in the Presidio is located in one of the most beautiful spots in San Francisco. It’s right across the street from the Crissy Field Beach located below the Golden Gate Bridge. The views are breathtaking. You can see the bridge, Alcatraz and the city skyline. We were lucky because when we got to the store it was not raining so we took a walk on the beach before doing our shopping. The boardwalk was full of happy people walking, jogging, rollerblading, biking and playing with their dogs.
It’s fun to shop at Sports Basement. It has a very casual friendly feel. There are couches throughout the store and they encourage you to hang out and chat. There is even a play area for kids. Lot’s of community stuff going on there. I found a great rain jacket and a pair of convertible pants I love! We’re back to walking or hiking everyday and it feels great!
A look back at 2009
Posted by: | CommentsHappy New Year!
Today is 01.02.2010 which is a palindrome. I thought this would be a great day to review the past year. Sally Around The Bay is less than a year old. I had the idea of starting this blog floating around in my head for awhile, but I did not start working on it until the beginning of last year. I think it was right around New Year’s last year when the name finally came to me. I remembered that my name, Sally was actually a word in the English dictionary meaning to go out on a venture or an excursion (usually off the beaten path).
Last year around this time I was feeling a little burned out and decided I needed to do something to motivate myself to get out of the house and try new things. I know when I travel I like to find the “local” spots to try rather than the typical overpriced tourist traps so I figured people might be interested in reading about the various local gems I found. I was right. Since I started this blog back in April I have had so much support and encouragement and have made a lot of new friends. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read my blog over the past year.
I was just reviewing my blog posts thinking about 2009. I’m so thankful I started this blog. I have met some of the most amazing people because of it. I have also discovered some pretty awesome restaurants and businesses around the bay area.
I think the blog experience that I personally got the most out of was the visit to the farm in Petaluma. I got to meet Tara Smith who I found incredibly inspirational. I met Tara thanks to Peggy (my Twitter friend turned real friend) mentioning the farm on Twitter. View photos of the farm visit here.
Another fun experience was visiting Mrs. Grossman’s sticker factory. When I saw Mrs. Grossman on Twitter my brain went on fast forward down memory lane. I was so happy when they invited me to come in for a tour.
My blog inspired me to be bold, to try new things. As many of you know I did a big bold move when I wrote the open letter to MiniSF telling them about my Big Mini Dream. That was fun. I did not get my Mini (yet) 
I’m still hoping… but I did have a ton of fun with it and did catch their attention. Thank you to each of you that supported my Big Mini Dream. I was amazed at all the support I got. You people are awesome!
I got a new hat to help save a home.
Thanks to my blog I got out of my comfort zone and tried new shops and restaurants.
Some of my favorites were:
Coast Café in Bolinas.
Naan ‘N’ Curry in San Francisco
Toronado & Rosamunde Sausage Grill in San Francisco
The Whipper Snapper in San Rafael
Peju Winery in Napa
Also learned I like more than one Sushi restaurant in the Bay Area and that Thai food makes me smile. I think I discovered the best Chinese food in the Bay Area. Oh and I almost forgot the best Dim Sum in San Francisco!
Discovered Fourth Street in Berkeley.
Shopping at Gioia in San Anselmo.
Met a super cool relationship expert and the bloggers at MoreMarin. I also met Lissa Rankin from Owning Pink.
Thanks to my blog, I got interviewed on the BlogHer show The Juice and was mentioned on the Miniology radio show. Also something exciting to me was I got sponsors for my blog (check out the upper right column —> and be sure to click on them. Thanks!)
I can’t forget Mill Valley on Tuesday Nights or Marilyn, the fun master. I met Marilyn earlier this year, she always reminds me to have fun. I also met ATOMsanRafael who are super nice people that fixed one of my broken appliances.
My fondest memories from 2009 are the TweetUps and the wonderful people I met at the TweetUps especially Diane Fischler and Ken Underscore.
Twitter is Magical
Awesome Marin TweetUp
Stay tuned for future TweetUps in Marin! Working on one for February. (Still looking for a restaurant in Novato to volunteer). Moylan’s – hint hint.
Happy New Year!
I look forward to another year of blogging.
