#metoo Consider the man?

Posted on September 14, 2018 by CityFella

Believe the woman!

I am a supporter of the #meetoo movement. For hundreds of years men, have abused women, at home, school and in the work place simply because they could. I was one of those men who remained silent because speaking up could damage my upward mobility. Many women suffered in silence for those same reasons. Its not just an American issue, its a global issue. It is one of the reasons that I believe women should have a greater presence in government, because the root of the abuse is power.

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Silence at the Boys Club

https://sacratomatovillepost.com/2017/11/29/the-operating-hours-of-the-boys-club-may-change-without-notice/

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It is also why I believe those in powerful positions almost feel its is within their right to abuse women and others.

I recently learned that someone accused me of touching them in appropriately at a holiday party last year. The individual said I brushed her breasts and she was offended. I don’t remember the incident or the women. But apparently she knows me and has spoken to others about the event. Two women at a resent gathering defended me, they have known me for sometime and alerted me. If given the chance, I would apologize to her. I wish she would have said something when it happened as I would have bent over backwards to apologize.

Today, I’m troubled. I am powerless and will have to let it pass. If she was afraid to talk to me a year ago, its not likely she will speak to me today. I am not a high profile person, but known in some circles. I wonder how many people has she told and how many people believe her? It will pass.

There is a sudden turn, a brush as the two of you are reaching for the same dinner roll. Hands…..there is intent and accidents.

There are many men, especially men of color who are/were in prison,others killed because someone believed the woman. If the woman says she was uncomfortable, or harassed I strongly believe the matter should be investigated. While I support the movement, I’m not ready to give anyone a blank check . I wonder have we tilted too far in one direction. Believe the woman……. Consider the Man?

CityFella

Early Morning Flight out of Sacramento International Airport? Plan Ahead!

Posted on June 24, 2018 by CityFella

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For years, flying out of Sacramento International was simple. There was no reason to show up a couple of hours ahead. The traffic WAS minimal. Well that was so 2016.

For years, there were few non stops east of Denver. Today there are non stops to Charlotte, Orlando, Newark and Houston. Southwest plans non stops to New Orleans and Alaska just announced a flight between Sac and Kona Hawaii, this winter. The result is more traffic . .

More than a million travelers flew in and out of Sacramento in May. Air Canada returned to SMF with flights to Vancouver. Frontier returns in August .

If you have a flight that depart before 6:45am leave early,. With only two northbound lanes on I-5 the traffic backup begin about 4:30am. Sometimes beyond the 99 split. over three miles from the airport.

Once in the airport, parking and shuttle are very efficient. However, if you are traveling through terminal A, (which is currently under constructuion) again plan ahead. The Terminal was constructed before 9/11 and the early morning security lines are the longest in the airport with lines often backing up over the bridge that connects the terminal with the parking garage.

A fix is on the way, and should be completed by next year. The airport has advised early morning travelers on United, American, Delta to arrive two hours ahead.

Travelers with flights departing between 8am and 6pm should not have any delays, with security waits average less than 20 minutes*

Sacramento International Airport remains one of the easiest airport to travel in and out .

The current bottle neck is an easy fix by simply increasing the number of lanes entering the airport from one to two.

*as of this date

CityFella

Broke Down Diva

Posted on May 23, 2018 by CityFella

What is a”Broke Down Diva?”

A woman who wants everything her way and nothing else! (Jennie.G)

A Female that expects everything from someone else (Trophy wife) ( Stephanie F)

A pretender, a Diva wanna be, who gets off on belittling others, wants to live the lives of the Rich and famous but she eats at Denny’s and shops at Ross (Wayne. C)

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The Sacramento Applebee staff knows who she is. She visits the restaurant on Friday nights with an entourage (6 to 10 people) during the restaurants busiest period between 7-8. She doesn’t want to wait and has on occasion slipped onto table as the patrons were leaving insisting, her table cleaned immediately! She makes the staff wait, as she inspects the water glasses and if one doesn’t meet her standard then she demands all the glasses replaced. Everyone food, must meet her standards, or they’re returned. Ignoring her means DRAMA, something she seems to enjoy. If doesn’t matter if “A” server has her hands full of hot platters, doesn’t have to be her server. SHE must be attended to immediately. Loud disagreements are common place, if she isn’t getting her way! ” Any in fraction should come with a discount, after all it wasn’t perfect, something she expects every time. She has memorized the customer service number and has complained in the past when her all demands weren’t met! She openly tells her friends the wait staff should be thankful that they are receiving a tip from her. She feels her 4% or 9% tips are more than generous considering the service!

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She arrives at the hotel in her signature gold outfit, with matching purse, polyester on parade. She wants nothing but the best, her initial tone is pleasing, if she is displeased it becomes shrill. She arrived at 1am with a story. Another hotel had her on hold for more than an hour OMG! OMG! she cried! She wanted a suite but a suite wasn’t available. She was appalled! “You don’t have a suite! (They expected her to say OMG-but she didn’t) She is expecting a visitor. She has always stayed in a suite at this hotel. And her demeanor says she had never experienced a pedestrian room! A room without a sofa and amenities! She reluctantly accepts a “pedestrian room. A few minutes later, she returns and says she is sick to her stomach. How could she face her company in such a room? She calls the reservation line to locate a suite in the greater Sacramento Area, however, she doesn’t want to spend much. They locate a reasonably priced suite near Cal-Expo that’s 20 dollars more. She apologizes, and thanks the front desk for not charging her for THAT room. Oh my gawd!

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Tracee is well known to the merchants of this small foothill community. For her outrageous behavior, demanding discounts and returns. Some of the cashiers go on a break when she walks in. She is always over dressed and over perfumed. She wears stilettos in the rain, everyone knows where she is at all times by the clacking sounds of her shoes. She often keeps the items until the last day they can be returned. She will argue past closing time. One supervisor said, I hate to say it, but I think we all hate her. She goes out of her way to be mean and just nasty! There is no reason for her to be like that! If anyone in this town is a Broke Down Diva, Tracee (not her real name) fits the bill.

Bleak and Scary “J” Street

Posted on March 15, 2018 by CityFella

A few days ago, I picked up a few friends from Boston and drove them from Airport to their downtown hotel. . This was their first visit to Sacramento. From the airport, I was peppered with questions about my city. They were in town to attend a workshop and worried about having options in the evenings.

In the car, they were taking the in city, asking about undeveloped areas in Natomas near the Sleep Train Arena. In Boston, there aren’t any large undeveloped parcels. There were smiles, as we crossed over the American River looking downtown. “Ohh this is nice and bright” “What’s that?” pointing at Old Sac, more ooh’s.

As we exited onto “J” street, the car became silent. I slowed down so they could see the Golden One Center and someone said, I see you have homeless here too. The car was silent as we arrived at the Sheraton. We’re having dinner tomorrow right? Yes.

After dropping them off, I drove back to 3rd and J streets and looked at the area after dark as if it was my first time.

J Street ,is the Gateway to downtown Sacramento. Everyday, thousands of people visiting Sacramento for the first time enter via J street.

As you enter J street , to the right, there is the bright Holiday Inn, to the left was a closed (at 10pm ) resturant. Next to the Holiday Inn is the rear of Downtown Commons which is very dark. Across from it ,is The Pier Lounge which is bright.

As you cross 5th Street, the brightest building is not the New Sawyer Hotel and Condominiums, its the new Kaiser Permanente building.

From 6th to 7th Street everything is dark.

On the left side of “J” street, between 7th and 8th there is a series of vacant buildings with homeless people sleeping in front of them and one Subway Resturant and a bail bondsman.

Between 8th and 9th Streets is modern apartment building with a few closed restaurants. Across from it is an office building.

9th and 10th Cesar Chavez Park on the Left Side and on the Right side are a few closed businesses and on the corner of 10th is the Citizens Hotel.

The block between 10th and the 11th Street is the worst block in Downtown Sacramento. With the exception of a Liquor Store across from the Citizens Hotel, every building on both sides of the street is vacant.

Thing begin to get better beyond 12th Street near the Sheraton Hotel. The areas is bright, with restaurants and activity. With the exception of the crowds outside the 7/11 the area feels safe.

For the first time since moving here, I saw the city through the eyes of a visitor. After a driving a few mostly vacant blocks on J Street, I’m not sure if I would want to continue.

“J” is Sacramento’s welcome mat. It is the first thing visitors see off Interstate 5. It is the exit, drivers wanting a break from the road on route to San Francisco or Los Angeles from Portland and Seattle or would take. The first few block on “J” street might determine if the visitor wants to see more of the city.

Sacramento often forgets ,”K” is just one street in Sacramento. Millions has been spent on Kay Street To get to K street one has to exit onto J Street.

Sacramento is a wonderful and beautiful city filled with amazing trees and historic areas. The midtown area is vibrant day and night with something for everyone. One could spend a full day touring our wonderful museums.

Unfortunately, the first time visitors have to drive through a seedy and scary mess to get to get to the beauty.

CityFella

Greed: Sacramento

Posted on February 21, 2018 by CityFella

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If your a renter in Sacramento, you more than a bit worried these days. The rumors are true. Rents are on the rise in a big way. Not in small increments but several hundred dollars a month. Gia lived in her Pocket area apartment with her daughter for 15 years, re-signing her lease was a simple formality until last October. Her landlord would only agree to a month to month lease. Her rent increased $150.00 a month and by December it was raised from $1220 a month to $1445. She is currently in the process of moving to Woodland, her new landlord agreed to a one year lease.

There are many Gia’s in Sacramento, many are worried. In many cities, with rent control or rent stabilization, landlords are only permitted to raise the rent significantly if there are major capital improvements, otherwise they are limited to a percentage.

Sacramento, isn’t Santa Monica, San Francisco or New York. There are no laws preventing rent gouging, allowing landlords to increase rents to the moon and beyond.

Gia isn’t out of her old apartment, 15 years is quite a challenge. She loved her old apartment, it was a 10 minute drive to her job in Elk Grove. On this day she is bitter and angry. As she cleared her dining room, her landlord moved in new counter tops, new linoleum and a new dishwasher,something she asked for five years ago, she says its more than a slap in the face .

Its clear, there are people who can afford sixteen hundred dollars for a one bedroom apartment. New apartments are opening in midtown every month with new tenants paying upward of $2300 a month. Between 2016 and 2017 Sacramento had the highest year over year rent increases than any city in the nation.

These rent increases have displaced many Sacramentians and is contributing to the cities homeless population. Throughtout the city, owners are increasing rent by 40% and higher, adding no more than a can of paint. Simply because they can. Welcome to the new gold rush. Greed: Sacramento.

CityFella

Just another Refugee from San Francisco

Posted on January 30, 2018 by CityFella

I saw a familiar head in line at the BelAir Market on West El Camino. We used to call him Peanut head back in the day. I hadn’t seen Peanut head in more than ten years. We lost contact after my family moved to Sacramento in the nineties. There he was, in living color, in South Natomas. I like a lot of my friends in the Bay, he gave many excuses why he couldn’t visit Sacramento. The number one excuse, was the heat. The number two was, it wasn’t the city and there wasn’t anything to do here. I parked my cart and intercepted him before he left the store.

It seems Peanut head moved to Sacramento four years ago. Family members from Hayward and Fremont soon followed. His younger brother and his partner will arrive this spring.

Peanut head lost his job nearly 30 years and owned a home in the Haight. After an extended visit in Sacramento he sold his home and paid cash for a home near his friend (a refugee from Los Angeles) in South Natomas. Today, he owns several properties in Sacramento and has his sights on Oak Park. He LOVES Sacramento, for more than a half an hour he talked about how much he loved it here. We discovered we enjoy the same restaurants in midtown., he his a major soccer fan and often attends sporting events in the area.

In the last few years, nearly a dozen friends had quietly moves to Sacramento. If your a Millennial its possible to own a home here. If your a baby boomer with children or grandchildren in the state. You can sell you home in Los Angeles and San Francisco and with the savings have an easier retirement.

Sometimes its difficult to find someone who was born and raised here to have a good word about their city. Like the central character in Ladybird, they only dreams to leave the city.

I think the refugees are wining ,as Sacramento is the fastest growing big city in the state. While the local say there isn’t much here, the refugees are amazed by what is here. The initial attraction here is the lower cost of living. Sactown cost are higher than most southern cities. Its much lower than the coastal areas of California and Washington.

Refugees have nothing put praise about the city and they are coming in by the car load.

Wikipedia Says, Sacramento has one of the highest LGBT populations per capita, ranking seventh among major American cities, and third in California behind San Francisco and slightly behind Oakland, with roughly 10% of the city’s total population identifying themselves as gay, lesbian, or bisexual and Sac is as the most “hipster city” in California.

After twenty years in Sactown, I wish it were a bit more urban. A bit more vertical. However what keeps me planted is the diversity, the people. I travel often and one thing I haven’t heard in Sacramento, “people who look like me isn’t welcome in this part of town”. Something you hear in many cities.. So far, not in Sacramento.

The new refugees don’t share my complaints. Go to a restaurant along 16th Street in one of the new buildings or walk along “R”St corridor and you’ll hear (well, with one very vocal exception from Los Angeles who cant wait to leave this pile of …) I like Sac.

CityFella