February 22, 2010

Mission District, San Francisco


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photo by Donald Kinney

Usually the weather in the Mission district is a bit nicer than the rest of the City, but not early on Saturday -- it was cold and windy -- just a bit out of my comfort zone (((by the grace of God I am not homeless))).   But I had great fun on my brief walk-around -- some of the window displays are highly creative.

Now, I ask you -- who couldn't use a set of Self-Empowerment cards, or a $40 book on Surviving Jellyfish Stings, a genuine Aretha Franklin doll?   And what about a Bondage and Truth Lasso -- that could probably come in handy in certain situations.   But who in the heck is going to need to pay extra for Glow in the Dark matches -- just strike the regular variety and they're pretty much guaranteed to glow -- wonder who the poor sucker was who bought them.



click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney

These drawings, along with dozens of others are in the window of a used book store on Valencia Street.   Now, I recognized the name of Edna Lewis -- she used to be known as the Julia Child of the South, but I had to check the Wikipedia for information on Octavia Estelle Butler -- but of course when I saw her photograph in the Wikipedia I instantly recognized her -- probably from television as I have never read anything she has written.   But her writings are extensive -- here's a short quote from the long Wikipedia article:
Octavia Jr., nicknamed Junie, was paralytically shy and a daydreamer, and was later diagnosed as being dyslexic.   She began writing at the age of 10 "to escape loneliness and boredom";   she was 12 when she began a lifelong interest in science fiction.   "I was writing my own little stories and when I was 12, I was watching a bad science fiction movie called Devil Girl from Mars," she told the journal Black Scholar, "and decided that I could write a better story than that.   And I turned off the TV and proceeded to try, and I've been writing science fiction ever since."




click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney

Well, here you go -- I don't think you need me to interpret this fine and expressive mural, but it's a great one isn't it?



click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney

And what I know about the Virgin Mary you could fit on the head of a pin -- but that isn't going to stop me from telling you all about my childhood struggle to sort out the differences between Protestants and Catholics.

You see, I grew up in a Protestant family, and we took our involvement with church activities and our belief in God supposedly to the highest level.   Not that our family didn't have problems -- mainly with that Don boy who was SO recalcitrant.   But my parents had deep suspicions and fears about Catholics -- oh, to make a long story short -- all the Catholics were going to end up in Hell.   (((oh brother)))


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6 comments:

Rhett Redelings said...

Seems to me a truth lasso would be worth more than that. Still in all, an Aretha Franklin doll... how delightfully random! Fun shots. Thanks.

Rhett Redelings said...

Regarding Protestants vs. Catholics... what is it about Christian faiths that the followers tend so often to be concerned with whether or not other people are going to Hell and less about whether or not they themselves might?

AphotoAday said...

HI RHETT -- Love your comment about "believers" worrying more about others and less about themselves... Heck, I KNOW I'm going to hell, but as Alfred E. Newman once said; "What, ME worry?" --I've always kind of thought that, just like God, Heaven and Hell exist between our ears...

Brad said...

The Mission is an awesome place to shoot - everything about it. You snagged some pretty cool store front images. For me, those are some of the things that makes the neighborhood interesting.

You been to the pirate store on Valencia? I bought a glass eye there. Everyone needs a couple in their pocket...

Louise said...

Why did I think you grew up Catholic?

I need to check out Junie. I love Edna Lewis.

The first one is great, though. I'm thinking that the glow-in-the dark matches (for a mere $1) might be more useful than the $40 jellyfish book because yes, they glow, once you light them, but maybe you can't find them if they don't glow in the dark?

I don't even know what to say about the Folk Bondage Truth Lasso. $80? Wouldn't a cheap bottle of wine work?

Louise said...

Oh, I just read Rhett's second comment. So true. And how are you sure you're going to hell?

 
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