Live and let Levi

So we finally got to go to the new Levi stadium, home of the putative SF 49ers. In the same way that people are omtting redskins from the Washington teams name, so it should be with the 49ers. 

Unless the name is supposed to be a comment on their distance from SF?

 Getting there is easier than the old stadium, from the East Bay, at least, with no toll to pay which gets an automatic star in my eyes. 

There are multiple wallet gougingly priced parking areas which were  there beforehand and are now making the nearby companies a little extra cash in these hard pressed, internet boom times. Anything less than $40 and you've got yourself a bargain!

Walking up to the stadium, we passed the local train stop which is conveniently placed close to the main entrance.

Security and ticket check was quick and well manned, at least it was 2 hours before kick-off.

The main entrance is up a large, wide stairwell allowing good flow of people, before and after the game.

For 100 club levels, there are separate ground level entrances on the left and right sides. Here is where one of the weird incongruities exist. There are 10 SEPARATE clubs within the stadium. And you can only go to the one you are assigned to, which always makes you want to see the others because they must be, you know, better.

The stadium itself has the usual seating on one side and on the home side? A monolith. I guess they took design lessons from the Stanley Kubrick school of design because that thing is imposing. tHe walkways are wide, with lots of room and there is an outside ring to bypass the  concessions if you want to get from point to point quicker.

We walked around the stadium and went to all the levels and the views, even from the  vertiginous 400/sherpa level, were pretty good. The Bud light and Pepsi levels are SRO spaces with basic views, good mingle space and some of the only free seating in the whole place. While up there, the cheerleaders came on a walk about for some photo ops. From here, if you look up, you can see the large screens , if you can't watch the game,

The food choices are good with the usual burger, hot dog, pizza holy triumvirate we've come to expect in a stadium. But on top of this there are Vegan choices at just about every stand. 

More interesting were the Bao buns and an excellent, no compromise curry which was unexpectedly good. All meals were around $12 irrespective whatever you eat. Alcohol, the mainstay of football, is over $10 a beer which isn't bad if you own a Silicon Valley netwerking company but a little OTT for the rest.

Water is over $5  bottle which is pretty rude, considering that half  the crowd is seriously  dehydrated by the end of the first quarter due  to the  non-relenting sun. Yup, because  when you get to your seats, you'll find that, unless you're  in the club seats on the monolith side, you're going to be sweating like a horse's butt. After a race.

This will probably improve by the end of the year when the temperature goes down but at present you feel the full effect of the sun. 

The seats in C114 were extremely comfortable, well cushioned but very close to the seats in front. I had an aisle seat so it  wasn't so bad. They have little hooks on them but god knows why as ladies aren't allowed to bring in their handbags anyway!

With club level in 114, there is  a lounge underneath the seats with a large, airconditioned space with  some seating scattered around which quickly filled up with refugees from the  sun.

In the lounge there's a weird sort of motion action computer game which is visually impressive and advertising the wares of some IT company.

At the end of the game, exit was via the club exit which saved a bit of time over the main concourse. Police weren't quite sure where to let people cross the road to get to the car parks which was really something that should've been a bit more prepped for considering this is the third or fourth function. With hot, tired and drunk people this could've caused a scene. I'm sure it will  improve.

Overall a positive experience, way nicer than candlestick. Those who prefer the old stadium are really looking through rose tinted specs. But premium seating is horrifically expensive. Printed seat price was $438 though I paid less than a third the night before. And these were on the away team side and not even the premium "all you can et" invitees of the bank seats.

I'd like to experience the home side to see the differing lounges and facilities but I'll wait till the novelty factor wears off and the resale pricing settles.

Pebble Beach at last

Many moons ago when I wore a younger (and slimmer) man's clothes, I used to enjoy video games. This was less about fluid, integrated motion. More like supercharged pong.

Indiana Jones, Leisure Suit Larry, Command and Conquer. Instant classics anda lot of fun. But among the sport games there was one that stood out for my brother and I; Jack Nicklaus' Greatest 18 Holes of Major Championship Golf .

And amongst those there was one course that stood out; Pebble Beach. Maybe it was the proximity to water. Maybe that people lived on this legendary course. But for whatever reason, it was a somewhere I wanted to see.

Cut forward 30 years and I finally got to see it properly. The occasion was an invite to the Nature Valley Golf Open; a retirement nest egg for some pretty good golfers of yore.

The first tee.

To get there it takes 2+ hours form the East Bay, so while on SF's footstep, it's just a bit outside (to paraphrase Bob Uecker). Driving in they impose a $10 entrance fee which is reimbursed if you eat/drink there.

There's a putting green with surrounding plaques of founders, players and of course Bing Crosby; wonderful singer and austere father.

Bing and others


The clubhouse is a gorgeous, imposing place with trophies lining the walls from Golf tourneys and the Concours d'Elegance; a car competition and auction. It feels like a place which shouldn't let me in and yet... it's public! And as casual as a Californian supermarket. Well, maybe a Wholefoods.

Went there on the best kind of visit; a freebie. Got to sit in a private room and watch the golf the way it should be watched; on TV.



That's John Daly's blonde head in the center of the screen. Thankfully can't see his pants

But this was Pebble Beach, so we walked the course. Or at least the water bordered part.
And it was beautiful. Manicured course in the way a tournament course is, with rough that wouldn't be out of place on a baseball/cricket field. It is a residential course, though with properties at prices that would buy a small African country


Hole 6


And 7

The beauty of this championship is that it had Golfers names I could recognize. And put a face to the name.







I recognized the names and faces of Langer, Vijay Singh and Tom Kite amongst many, many more. 17 in total that I knew well.

That Golf has lost popularity since the Tiger went down is indisputable. Nike has shut it's Golf division down, based as it was on one man who ended up having less than a ramrod back. Dick's have decreased the pros employed and Golfsmith filed for bankruptcy

There are approximately 15,204 courses in the USA, down from a high of 16,052. I used to play on a regular basis but haven't picked up a club in 4 years. Now I'm not saying I'm wholly to blame but it just isn't as appealing to the young; what with the time it takes, the cost of equipment and the cost of playing. And since Tiger went down, there really hasn't been the superstar that people find to inspire or emulate. My own kids look at me as if I'm mad if I suggest they try it out.

But it's always fun to watch the Ryder and President's Cups when they do come around, like most big events. And it was fun to see these guys, most of whom have made enough to retire comfortably, play the game for mostly pleasure.

Who won? Not even sure but my walk around the course wasn't spoiled.

Live and let Levi

So we finally got to go to the new Levi stadium, home of the putative SF 49ers. In the same way that people are omtting redskins from the Washington teams name, so it should be with the 49ers. 

Unless the name is supposed to be a comment on their distance from SF?

 Getting there is easier than the old stadium, from the East Bay, at least, with no toll to pay which gets an automatic star in my eyes. 

There are multiple wallet gougingly priced parking areas which were  there beforehand and are now making the nearby companies a little extra cash in these hard pressed, internet boom times. Anything less than $40 and you've got yourself a bargain!

Walking up to the stadium, we passed the local train stop which is conveniently placed close to the main entrance.

Security and ticket check was quick and well manned, at least it was 2 hours before kick-off.

The main entrance is up a large, wide stairwell allowing good flow of people, before and after the game.

For 100 club levels, there are separate ground level entrances on the left and right sides. Here is where one of the weird incongruities exist. There are 10 SEPARATE clubs within the stadium. And you can only go to the one you are assigned to, which always makes you want to see the others because they must be, you know, better.

The stadium itself has the usual seating on one side and on the home side? A monolith. I guess they took design lessons from the Stanley Kubrick school of design because that thing is imposing. tHe walkways are wide, with lots of room and there is an outside ring to bypass the  concessions if you want to get from point to point quicker.

We walked around the stadium and went to all the levels and the views, even from the  vertiginous 400/sherpa level, were pretty good. The Bud light and Pepsi levels are SRO spaces with basic views, good mingle space and some of the only free seating in the whole place. While up there, the cheerleaders came on a walk about for some photo ops. From here, if you look up, you can see the large screens , if you can't watch the game,

The food choices are good with the usual burger, hot dog, pizza holy triumvirate we've come to expect in a stadium. But on top of this there are Vegan choices at just about every stand. 

More interesting were the Bao buns and an excellent, no compromise curry which was unexpectedly good. All meals were around $12 irrespective whatever you eat. Alcohol, the mainstay of football, is over $10 a beer which isn't bad if you own a Silicon Valley netwerking company but a little OTT for the rest.

Water is over $5  bottle which is pretty rude, considering that half  the crowd is seriously  dehydrated by the end of the first quarter due  to the  non-relenting sun. Yup, because  when you get to your seats, you'll find that, unless you're  in the club seats on the monolith side, you're going to be sweating like a horse's butt. After a race.

This will probably improve by the end of the year when the temperature goes down but at present you feel the full effect of the sun. 

The seats in C114 were extremely comfortable, well cushioned but very close to the seats in front. I had an aisle seat so it  wasn't so bad. They have little hooks on them but god knows why as ladies aren't allowed to bring in their handbags anyway!

With club level in 114, there is  a lounge underneath the seats with a large, airconditioned space with  some seating scattered around which quickly filled up with refugees from the  sun.

In the lounge there's a weird sort of motion action computer game which is visually impressive and advertising the wares of some IT company.

At the end of the game, exit was via the club exit which saved a bit of time over the main concourse. Police weren't quite sure where to let people cross the road to get to the car parks which was really something that should've been a bit more prepped for considering this is the third or fourth function. With hot, tired and drunk people this could've caused a scene. I'm sure it will  improve.

Overall a positive experience, way nicer than candlestick. Those who prefer the old stadium are really looking through rose tinted specs. But premium seating is horrifically expensive. Printed seat price was $438 though I paid less than a third the night before. And these were on the away team side and not even the premium "all you can et" invitees of the bank seats.

I'd like to experience the home side to see the differing lounges and facilities but I'll wait till the novelty factor wears off and the resale pricing settles.

Just a little old lady

One of the beauties of living in SF as opposed to a town with agoraphobia in Iowa is the ability to see people that you've never heard of tell stories that you've never heard.

Last week My daughter and I went to see an little old lady of 96 tell us of her experiences in the war. (By little old lady I mean close to 4 foot 2 and by War I mean WW2.)

And it was fascinating. She was Jewish and lived through the war relatively unscathed ( minus a lost fiancé) until French liberation. When liberated she felt the need to do something and became a spy reporting on German positions from behind enemy lines, due to her 1. Being female and 2. Speaking perfect German.

She kept it pretty hidden until the 90's when she eventually decided to tell her story. And now she tours the world telling it. And, boy, is she sharper than a box of Wilde witticisms.

One of the more interesting side bits was the presentation of a proclamation by a Jewish US soldier who was one of the first to publish photos from inside the concentration camps.

Naturally because this was America there's a book to sell and we bought it.

This was at a theatre in Livermore, an area better known for its wines

 ( Wente, Concannon) than its culture. And it was sold out. 

Hot Chick!

When I was younger I loved jazz. I would walk into Hillbrow with others ( usually tortured girlfriends or sometime alone to see various artists. Whether it was Rumours in Rockey St or King Of clubs in downtown Joburg, I would go to them all.

And as time has progressed, I've seen less and less. When your evening options decrease, the appeal to others of an evening of discordant notes can be quite unappealing.

But there's always been a hit list of jazz musos that I've wanted to see. And slowly I've ticked them off.

Joe Pass at Ronnie Scott's. 

Pat Metheny in a Warsaw skating rink.  

Al Jarreau in a Joburg amphitheater.  

Hugh Masekela playing and in Kippies chilling after South Africa outgrew apartheid.

Chuck Mangione, the best known flugelhornist and Lee Rittenour at the Cape Town Jazz festival. Sadao Watanabe, saxophonist extraordinaire at the Market Theatre in Johannesburg. 

Andreas wollenweider somewhere in Africa.

Tony Bennett mercifully singing short at the Giants games.

But even though I can't play for buggery, my favorite jazz is piano jazz. And here there is a holy quintuplet that I have finally finished this week.

It started with the greatest, Oscar Peterson at the RFH many years ago, a year or so after he'd had his stroke. And music must be great therapy as he didn't miss a note to my adoring ears.

Went to Japan when 17 and totally by coincidence, Chick Corea was playing with his band at a club called, I think, the Latin quarter in downtown Tokyo. I don't know how I got there but I know that I don't know how I got home as this was a night sponsored by Suntory whisky and all the drinks were free.

Then by another stroke, saw George Shearing in London as well with the bonus feature of Mel Torme. On a nostalgia tour and sometimes those are the best kind.

When I first arrived in SF, I was getting used to the area with no idea that the whole world eventually passes through here. And one night saw that Keith Jarrett was coming, man of the legendary Koln concert album which I've treasured for years. A side view and a pair of ears was all I needed that night.

Finally the fifth and last of the greats I've wanted to see came to town. In combination with Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock was here. I missed the first round of tickets but on daily checking I finally found a single in the side tier.

Zellerbach is part of the UCBerkeley campus where the heart of the cultural campus is based.

I but while it's based on a University campus, the average age of the crowd was that of university age parents.

It's a place with the redeeming characteristic of incredible acoustics. 

There was a preconcert talk given by a true hepcat, a brief alcohol fueled break then the lads came on.

There's a genuine warmth and camaraderie between these two. They started playing together BEFORE I was born. A little chat with an appreciative audience, a pug for a vegan cafe ( Cafe Gratitude in Berkeley, if you want to know) and then the y started playing.

No song introductions. The first song went on for half an hour. People would clap as they recognized bits of songs. And it was all sheer magic down to the single interactive encore. 

Final pianist ticked off.

Charity begins....everywhere

We belong to a church which, through relations with a priest from it's past, is aligned with a kid's housing and schooling charity spread through various horrifically poor countries in South America. Because of that they hold an annual fundraising dinner which raises enough money to run a small city.

 In one dinner.

 Over $50,000 is raised at that dinner, excluding the auction items, to help run the homes. These auction items ranged from handmade art and wines to more wonderfully, immediate things like Baseball playoff tickets and a Willie Mays signed ball (which I lost.)

 And despite the promise of the rubber chicken dinner the Mexican themed food wasn't bad.

 This is repeated throughout the US with varying degrees of effectiveness, Some charities are run like mom and pop stores while others have vast networks of staff and professional fundraisers.

 NCCS stats from 2010:

 Number 1,014,800
 Number File with IRS 507,589
Total Revenue 1,376,134,817,210
 Total Assets 2,479,799,049,073

Note: Excludes out-of-scope and approximately 900 so-called "mutual benefit" public charities

 A MILLION charities! Charitable/non-profit status is a wonderful, coveted thing, with over a million charities and other non-profits with over a trillion dollars in revenue and double that in assets.

 Some are charities which are well established givers, like the Red Cross or Salvation Army. And then there's the NFL. Yup. The billion dollar NFL, whose CEO psys himself $44 million a year and whose office are in the centre of Manhattan is a registered non-tax paying non-profit.

 But how can you tell the good from the bad, knowing that your money is going to good uses, not just admin? Well there is help at hand with, amongst others: www.charitywatch.org
 Which of course, is a non-profit charity itself.

 It rates companies according to various criteria, including accountabilty, effectiveness of giving on an A-Z scale.

 The big boys like Red Cross and, yes, Livestrong, get straight A's. And some guys get straight F's, like the heart string tugging named "Childhood Leukemia Foundation." At the least, they provide jobs for people so they can't be all bad?

 Many sports players in the states have foundations of various effectiveness which have the triple effect of giving back, tax deductibility and giving the athlete something to do after their immediate sporting fame is gone. Most consist of a golf tourney or so where old players get to mix with business men for a mutual back rub. And there's nothing wrong with a good back rub.

Small fish in a big pond: Johnny Clegg in the USA

Johnny Clegg is one of the greatest South African musicians with an ability to sell out venues of thousands. He's appeared with some of thegreatest musicians on stages throughout the world.

His songs have been used in movies throughout the world, from Jock of the Bushveld to George of the Jungle.

<a href="http://youtu.be/9WylXCbJ1Fw"></a>

He's appeared onstage with Nelson Mandela, for goodness sake. (Admittedly, he did write a song about him)

And I've seen him twice in the US at venues holding 300 people.

First time was at the Great American Music Hall in downtown SF, a venue with a great history of high quality acts, with a 14 piece group.

The second was in the hills of Palo Alto at Montalvo Arts Center, a beautiful venue in a colonial house on a hill. This is one of the few music venues without the smell of skunk throughout, though some of the superannuated audience looked like they'd imbibed in the not to distant past. Instead of a raucous beer garden there was a wine table. And instead of hot dogs, kale.

He appeared here with a smaller 5 man band and featured his talented son in an unexpectedly good opening act. And this pensioner is fitter than most people half his age, strutting within the confines of the stage with total spacial confidence. He's still touring for... I don't know why. Is it the exposure? The money? Or could it possibly be that he actually enjoys it?

The audience here was not a youthful splurge, but a smattering of scatterlings.  Looking at this I realize that he's been with me most of my life; from my early university days at the Free People concerts through Ellis Park concerts to the most recent ones in the US.

More importantly, he's been there through South Africa's changes as a constant to look back on and help carry people through the present. He is the true gatherer of the scatterlings of Africa.