Thursday, May 30, 2013

Riding the cable car as a resident by Tony Green

One of the most famous tourist attractions in San Francisco are its world renowned cable cars. 
Millions of tourists from all over the world a year visit the city just to get the opportunity to experience the ride through the city streets. As a long time residents of the Bay Area my family decided to pretend we were tourists and make a pilgrimage as a family.  Once we got in line after purchasing our tickets we waited over an hour while being entertained by a homeless person with a saxophone.

Image of cable car
My wife and kids found open seats once the new car was ready for boarding; therefore, I rode the cable car standing up.  Once I made sure I had a firm grip on the rail I was pleasantly surprised when I realized when I had the best view of all. At one point during the ride we cruised past Lombard Street (a.k.a. the crooked street). A stunning view of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz Island, followed which was in plain view to riders on the left side of the train, complemented by the sound of horns moving vehicles in the path of the oncoming cars out of the way. I needed to hold on tight as the left turn was made onto Hyde Street prior to passing within inches of parked automobiles and the cable car speeding in the other direction.


Finally, we arrived at Fisherman’s Wharf and the conductor announced the end the ride. After a second of hesitation everyone dismounted the cable car to continue the rest of their day. In short, six bucks a person seems like a lot to shell out for a short trip through the hills of the City of San Francisco. Riding the cable cars is more than a short ride; it is an opportunity to experience of one of the world most interesting places. Honestly, you should not have to travel around the world to check out this attraction if you live here. Especially since I have lived in the Bay Area for over 13 years; shame on me. If only my drive across the Bay Bridge to back to Livermore would be half as entertaining.

Photo courtesy of www.streetcar.org 

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Acoustic Guitar for me by Tony Green


Tony on his acoustic guitar
I took guitar lessons years ago at my local community center and while I have not practiced much over the years the lure to play the guitar still exists for me. Many people learn to play in order to form and join rock bands which primarily use electric guitars.

And why not? People always gravitate toward performers. How many times have you checked out a band and the guy on the guitar might not be very good looking yet all pretty ladies in attendance are eager to hang out with him?

Perhaps, I am different, since the only guitar in my closet which I intend to play is an acoustic one.  
The concept is simple, a person and their instrument singing ballads from the heart does more for the soul than a group playing the latest electric/electronic equipment to a stadium of thousands. 
I remember during my time in college on Sunday nights one of our favorite hangouts had an “unplugged” night where the performers completed their play sets using instruments which did not require electricity.

I thought it was fascinating to feel the experience of the sound created by a hand played instrument and a person’s voice.

I recall listening to “Songs of Freedom“ by a 4 CD-ROM compilation of Bob Marley’s greatest hits  where a few of the songs sounded better with Bob signing in his trademark voice then the finished production version. How can you beat that?

I admit I probably will never play will enough to play my favorite Bob Marley songs but still get the urge to pick up my guitar and strum a few notes after a hard day at work. There is nothing more relaxing. Maybe this will motivate me to actually tune my guitar….