Gather up your reusable bags because a Farmer’s Market is coming to Clement Street!

Today was the final hurdle to the market happening – needed SFMTA approval of the street closures and bus reroutings that are required to accommodate the Sunday market. We got word via Foggy Notion’s Twitter that everything was approved at the SFMTA meeting:

That means the first market will take place on Sunday, June 23 (yes, in just 1 week!). The market will be run by the Agricultural Institute of Marin (AIM), which currently runs other markets at Stonestown, Civic Center, and in other Bay Area locations.

The Clement Street farmer’s market will feature a wide range of local products, including eggs, milk, cheeses, meats, plus children activities, and live music. The market will also provide matching dollars for “food stamp” users, and additional bike parking.

This initial approval is for a 6 week pilot of the market, which will run on Clement Street every Sunday between 2nd and 4th Avenues from 9am until 2pm.

Sarah B.

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time for a lesson about the birds and the bees… Hang on – we’re talking about REAL birds and bees!

Next week, Golden Gate Park is the site of celebrations and special events for National Pollinator Week, devoted to learning more about the birds, bees, butterflies, and other creatures that help plants reproduce, e.g. the key pollinators in our ecosystem. All the big players in Golden Gate Park are participating – the California Academy of Sciences, Conservatory of Flowers, and Botanical Garden.

The week is made up of special events about all aspects of pollination. Stop by the Academy of Science’s living roof to explore the lives of pollinators including birds, bats and bees (June 17, 19, & 21 at 1:30pm). Or pop in on the Academy’s “Birds & Bees” themed Nightlife on Thursday night and groove to DJ Eric Sharp.

The Academy of Sciences is also hosting a chat with an Academy Botanist Tom Daniel, who will share intriguing tales of how plants use the power of attraction on animals (June 22 at 2pm), and on June 22 & 23 at 2:30pm, join in for a 30-minute nature walk, exploring gardens and groves that surround the Academy.

On Saturday, June 22 from 10am until 12noon, the Conservatory of Flowers hosts “What’s the Buzz?”, where kids can get hands on learning about pollination. Pot your own zucchini plant to take home, see the kinds of foods we eat that are the result of pollination, examine a demonstration beehive courtesy of the SF Bee Keepers Association, and get a temporary butterfly tattoo. And don’t miss the Butterflies and Blooms exhibit while you’re there.

Also on Saturday from 12noon to 2pm, the Botanical Garden hosts a Honey Tasting & Pollinators Tour, featuring an array of honey flavors and textures harvested locally by Robert Mackimmie of City Bees, a guided pollinator garden tour and a discussion of urban beekeeping.

Get your buzz on!

Sarah B.

It’s summer and that means it’s time for fun, out of school adventures. Which should include one of the most unique overnight experiences you can have in San Francisco – sleeping over at the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park.

Several times a year, the Academy of Sciences hosts their Penguins & Pajamas event, inviting families to enjoy a fun night of activities, including a sleepover in the African Hall, Aquarium, Lower Swamp, or Islands of Evolution areas of the Academy.

Each sleepover includes a host of fun activities like planetarium shows, live animal demonstrations, exploration of the Rainforests of the World exhibit, as well as a fun late night snack, and breakfast in the morning. And just in case you didn’t get to see everything on your sleepover night, you also get free admission to the Academy for the following day.

One of the best benefits of attending Penguins & Pajamas is that the Academy is far less crowded than normal. We stopped in to check it out when they first launched the event, and loved the freedom, space and time we had to leisurely enjoy everything the Academy has to offer.

We’ve teamed up with the California Academy of Sciences to give away free passes to one adult and child for this Saturday’s (June 15) Penguins & Pajamas event (includes admission for one adult and one child, plus overnight parking). To enter, you must live in the 94118 or 94121 zip codes, and be available to attend this Saturday’s overnight. To enter, fill out the entry form by 12noon on Thursday, June 13. We’ll draw a winner at random and notify by end of day Thursday.

Click here to enter for a chance to win Penguins & Pajamas passes

For more information on the Penguins & Pajamas event, visit the Academy website for full details on the event schedule, what to bring, and more. And if June 15 doesn’t work for you, there are additional family sleepovers coming up on October 18th, November 8th and December 28th.

Good luck!

UPDATE: Congrats to Jon K who won the drawing!

Sarah B.

This Thursday, Neck of the Woods (406 Clement) will host the YMCA’s Annual Comedy Night Fundraiser, featuring local, professional comics.

The lineup of local comics in this year’s show are Shanti Charan, Colleen Watson, Joe Tobin, Sandy Stec, and Ronn Vingh.

This is a 21+ event, and tickets are $15 per person. They can be purchased online, at the YMCA front desk on 18th Avenue, or the night of at the venue for $20.

Doors open at 7pm, the giggles start at 8pm. So go get some laughs and support the Richmond District YMCA!

Sarah B.

Happy Thurday-almost Friday-yay the weekend! Here are some local links to keep you occupied…

• The SFMTA is moving ahead with a program to limit the parking of oversized vehicles on the city streets, including Fulton Street in the Richmond District. Fulton is known for having large RV’s and campers that park for long periods of time. New, no overnight parking signs will be posted and violators will be fined $100. The initial pilot will run for three months.
• Real estate website Socketsite has renderings of the new Grocery Outlet that will go into the old Delano’s Market space at 6333 Geary. In addition to upgrades inside, the exterior will sport “metal canopies and murals on the building’s west facade”. Plus new landscaping. They’re in front of the Planning Commission this afternoon, who has recommended approval of their plans. Thanks to reader Cath for the tip.
• Get Thee To The Nunnery, a women’s clothing store on Clement near 10th Avenue, will be closing their doors at the end of June. The store has been in their location for nearly 30 years, and the owner is retiring. In 2011, they won a “Best of SF” award from SFWeekly for “Best Literary Clothing”. We know they have a lot of fans and will be missed! Stop in to say adieu. “Truly fabulous. There has not ever been a time that I have been in this store where I have not found something so amazing, so unique, and so special.” – Rachel B., Yelp. Thanks to reader Mary for the tip.
• This Saturday, the first Chipotle Cultivate Festival is taking place in Hellman Hollow from 11am until 7pm. Dubbed as a “food, ideas, and music festival”, attendees can enjoy goodies from local chefs and farms, plus live music from the likes of Mayer Hawthorne and The Walkmen. Free admission.
• Just when you think you know a Sesame Street character… Remember that creepy guy who dressed up in an Elmo costume and harassed some kids and parents at Rossi Park last October? He made his way back to NYC and is currently on trial for trying to extort $2 million from the Girl Scouts (he used to work for the organization).
• In crime updates this week… In 2009, sushi chef Ryosuke Yoshioka was brutally murdered in the parking lot of the Office Max on Geary and Arguello by Peter C. Fong, a mentally ill man who was experiencing a psychotic break, according to his lawyer. Late last month, Fong was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in a mental hospital. [SFGate.
  
  And in a murder from 2000, the state Supreme Court reinstated the second-degree murder conviction of Tari Ramirez, who fatally stabbed his 28 year old ex-girlfriend Claire Tempongko, in front of her two children in her Richmond District apartment. Ramirez will continue serving his sentence of 26 years to life.

This Saturday kicks off the 37th Annual San Francisco Free Folk Festival which takes place right in our neighborhood at Presidio Middle School (30th Avenue & Geary).

The festival is two full days of music and dance workshops, concerts, dance parties, crafts, vendors, formal and informal music-making, and fun for the whole family. All ages and musical interests are welcome. All events and workshops are open to anyone who wants to drop in and participate or just listen.

Check out the full list of performers for the festival here, which runs on both Saturday and Sunday from 12noon until 10pm.

Performers range from bands like Blind Lemon Pledge (Delta and Chicago blues) to The Easy Leaves (“this dynamic duo headlines some of the biggest venues in town with their catchy country folk sounds”) to the Lighthouse String Band (Irish and Scottish traditional music). There is really something for every musical taste at this festival!

If you want to soak up the atmosphere and learn something too, check out the extensive schedule of workshops and jam sessions. There’s a Beatles Sing and Play Along, a CJBA Jug Band Jam, a Flash Mob Choir, and instructional sessions like How to Run a Successful Pickers’ Circle.

Admission to the festival is completely free. If you can’t walk or bike there or take public transpo, there is on-site parking at the school lot for $8.

Sarah B.

Photo by Gilles Martin-Raget

In honor of their new Impressionists on the Water exhibition that opens this weekend, the Legion of Honor will have a special item on display this Sunday: the America’s Cup trophy.

A little history on the impressive trophy:

In the more than 150 years since that first race off England, only four nations have won what is often called the “oldest trophy in international sport.” For some perspective, consider that there had been nine contests for the America’s Cup before the first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens in 1896.

The America’s Cup trophy will be on display on Sunday only, from 9:30am to 5:15pm, in the Legion’s Gallery 12 (on loan from its current home at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Yacht Club).

Come by to see the trophy up close and have your photo taken with it. Then don’t miss the Impressionists on the Water exhibit, celebrating pleasure boating and competition, and featuring more than 80 paintings and works on paper by Impressionists such as Claude Monet, Gustave Caillebotte, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Camille Pissarro and Post-Impressionists such as Maurice Denis and Paul Signac.

Sarah B.

Hip-hop dancers at last year’s festival

This Sunday is the 26th annual Multicultural Children’s Art Fair, taking place at the Richmond District Neighborhood Center (741 30th Avenue near Cabrillo).

The festival runs from 12noon until 4pm and features youth performers, hands-on arts and crafts, carnival games and a bake sale.

The event is free so stop by with your family o Sunday for some fun!

Sarah B.