21 Replies to “November 29, 2025: Reader Tips”

  4. The Haight-Ashbury history in San Francisco. The early days…

    “In the postwar 1950s, North Beach (right next to The Battery) was the happening scene for jazz, poetry, and folk music. Local young folkies included guitarist Jerry Garcia and singer Janis Joplin, who was accompanied by guitarist Jorma Kaukonen; Kaukonen studied at the University of Santa Clara and would eventually perform with Hot Tuna and Jefferson Airplane. After a very short stint in the Army, Garcia moved to Palo Alto at age 18, where he met guitarist and Atherton resident Bob Weir in 1963; together they would form the Grateful Dead.”

    https://www.thebatterysf.com/article/the-haight-ashbury

    The later years…

    “Mixed in with the flower children were unsavory types, including Charles Manson, who lived at 636 Cole Street after being released from an early stint in prison. Manson would later become a cult leader; along with three of his followers, he was convicted in 1971 of seven murders that were committed in Southern California in 1969. All the media interest also attracted celebrities, as noted in a famous pot bust of world-renowned ballet dancers Rudolf Nureyev and Dame Margot Fonteyn at 42 Belvedere Street in July 1967.”

    1. Good, accurate, reading of The Haight and North Beach throughout the years. The hippie era truly was an age of innocence in the sense that we (they … as I was just a few years too young to consider myself a full-fledged hippie) were simply trying to break free from the shackles of a preordained existence enslaved to money and status.

      It all crested with the powerful wave that is/was a boomer generation coming of age. The psychedelic era was one of personal exploration and simply youthful fun and exuberance. No generation of children EVER on the planet had as much freedom and access to resources as the hippie (and we fringe hippie) generation. But it was all bound to end and implode as youth gives way to adulthood, and pleasure degenerates to pain. But it was an amazing, glorious time to be a Bay Area kid of 10-11 yo watching and experiencing the music, the scene, and yeah the newly opened present of sexuality.

      And as a side note, my very first girlfriend (for lack of a better term) in 1969 had previously dropped acid and actually experienced flashbacks while we were together. No, I never did or have as I was quite a bit more of strait laced Baja-hippie.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hallucinogen_persisting_perception_disorder

      It’s funny that nobody seems to mention the often horrifying side effects of acid, as drugs keep getting re-legalized in our surrender after war on drugs. Now, fentanyl is killing our youth instead of making them see fancy colours. And the free love – free drugs era had its downsides that history is want to ignore.

      https://youtu.be/glpyyDBZkRo?si=CJnISMOcZRSsd_v2&t=12

      And as another aside … yes, I do still visit The Haight … as the Amoeba record store is best in the Bay Area … and I can usually find something at Rasputin’s too. However, the street scum can be unpleasant.

      2. Absolutely. The two FBI agents he killed used to hunt pheasants on my uncle’s place in South Dakota.

    2. My wife was panicked as we drove South, down I-5 to Thanksgiving 2020. She was afraid the CHP would pull us over and see we were maskless and traveling to a family gathering with more than 10 attendees … inside … lasting longer than 2hr.

      California’s Travel Restrictions for Thanksgiving
      Overview of Restrictions
      California Governor Gavin Newsom has implemented strict measures to limit unnecessary private travel during the Thanksgiving holiday. This decision is part of a broader effort to combat the surge in COVID-19 cases across the state.
      Key Details of the Ban
      Travel Limitations: The governor has urged residents to avoid non-essential travel. This includes gatherings with people from different households.
      Mask Mandate: Individuals are required to wear masks when outside their homes, with few exceptions.
      Business Closures: Many non-essential indoor businesses are closed to reduce the risk of virus transmission.
      Impact on Gatherings
      Social Gatherings: Indoor gatherings are restricted to a maximum of 10 people, down from previous allowances. This aims to minimize the risk of spreading the virus during family gatherings.
      These measures reflect the state’s commitment to public health and safety during a critical time, as officials anticipate that holiday travel could exacerbate the ongoing pandemic.

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