Exclusion, inclusion, and the S.F. vs. L.A. conundrum

After decades as a Californian who has lived in both San Francisco and Los Angeles for extended periods, I think I have the experience and baseline knowledge to weigh in on the way... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Feline good

By Michael Snyder

Cats are cool. I’m talking the domesticated kind that live in relative harmony with people, not the wild predators who don’t care what you think of them as long as you&... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Pizza my mind

By Michael Snyder

Who doesn’t like pizza? Maybe a better question should be, “What kind of pizza do you like?” So many variations on the theme of doughy crust, tomato sauce, and ch... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Getting personal with public works

By Michael Snyder

Call it the time-lapse effect. I go in and out of San Francisco and Los Angeles in roughly two-to-three-month cycles, and due to that lifestyle I see things change in strange and u... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Flagrant flu foments free-fall

By Michael Snyder

At the turn of the new year, my body kidnapped me. For more than a week, I was basically incarcerated at my Los Angeles digs, weak and bed-ridden, wavering from the sweats to the c... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Begin again . . . and again

By Michael Snyder

Dawn breaks on the first day of a new year, and all things seem possible — especially in a state like California with two big cities where, traditionally, people relocate to rene... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Present Company

By Michael Snyder

Cheers to you and yours! We’re navigating the season of gratitude, giving, and hope — the extended wintertime celebration that starts when we give thanks around a turkey, c... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Take-offs and take-it-offs

By Michael Snyder

So there I sat in the friendly confines of Club Fais Do Do — the Los Angeles venue where regular burlesque shows, courtesy of the Peepshow Menagerie production company, invariabl... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Renovation or desecration?

By Michael Snyder

Russian Hill is the only neighborhood I’ve called home in San Francisco. Consequently, I take a proprietary interest in the people, the businesses, and even the buildings tha... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Everything old is new (and grooving) again

By Michael Snyder

I recently had the opportunity to see one of my favorite rock bands in the world — one that, amazingly, has existed for roughly a half-century. That band is San Francisco’s... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Digging the roots in grand ole fashion

By Michael Snyder

For many years, a chain restaurant used the advertising slogan, “When you’re here, you’re family.” That’s canny salesmanship for a business eager to p... Read More

Coastal Commuter

To beret or not to beret

By Michael Snyder

I wear a beret. Pretty much all of the time. In fact, it’s become kind of a trademark over the years. Some may think of it as an odd affectation. I mean, who wears a beret? S... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Destination cities on display

By Michael Snyder

Those of us who live in San Francisco or Los Angeles (or both) know all too well that we’re flying headlong into tourist season — or we’re already there. Actually, so... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Working café to café

By Michael Snyder

As I write this, I am sitting in my San Francisco office — the Royal Ground coffee shop on Russian Hill. It’s evening, and I’ve got a few hours to crank out a column,... Read More

Coastal Commuter

Parking up your problems

By Michael Snyder

For all of the current lobbying and enthusiasm over public transportation (including taxis and app-enabled car services), automobiles remain an inescapable fact of urban life. And ... Read More

Coastal Commuter