The Castro, SF

Anyone who hasn’t yet seen the movie “Milk”, I highly recommend it.

It was 1981 when my boyfriend (promoted to "husband" now) and I moved to the border of the Castro and Mission districts, only 3 years after Supervisor Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone’s assassination. It is a sunny part of the city (for those who knows the San Francisco weather patterns, sunny is real good), affordable neighborhood (our one bedroom flat was only $400 a month rent), and conveniently down Market Street from Downtown (only 3 subway stops for me to get to work).

On those rare warm nights, we could walk to Castro Street to get an ice-cream from Double Rainbow, which used to be located north of the Castro Theater. I considered the Castro as the safest neighborhood for me since I didn’t have to worry about being picked up. (Yes, I made sure that I clutched onto my boyfriend’s arm to clearly show that he was taken. Lol.) The Castro Theater (still in operation today) is a beautiful piece of art deco styled architecture (designed by Timothy L. Pflueger) and is a perfect example of the grand movie palaces built in the 1920s. We loved hearing the organists playing, live, on the Wurlitzer organ before the movies started. We enjoyed many old films there, including those with Betty Boop, Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant, and numerous art films. Today, they also include live performances. Read more about the Castro Theater here.

Another event we used to enjoy at the Castro was the Halloween street party. In the beginning years, it was a ton of fun to walk over there on Halloween night. I still remember one guy had a mask/make-up that looked like his companion bull dog. In terms of costumes, creativity abound. And of course, some said the best costume was the lack of one. Everyone was out having a great time, and the street was closed to traffic for the evening. In the recent years though, it had become too rowdy and the city decided to shut it down. There was an attempt to move the party to the parking lot of the ballpark, but hardly anyone showed up. I think someone missed the point here – once you move something out of context, it’s just not the same. The movie “Milk” today brought back so many fond memories. There are so many things that we take for granted today that were the results of Harvey Milk’s struggles. I want to thank him, the Mayor of Castro Street, for standing up for the minority groups – the gays/lesbians, the Asians, the African-Americans, the seniors, and the handicapped. He helped make San Francisco a very tolerant city.

STOREWIDE SALE Thanksgiving Weekend Only

This is my FIRST annual sale, starting Wednesday 11/26 and lasts until Monday 12/1. Details are posted on my Shop Announcement. I'm hoping this will add a boost to my online store, and to help everyone out in this slow economy.

Since most of my jewelry and accessories are one-of-a-kind creations, once they are gone, they are gone. For pieces from my limited editions, I will re-list as soon as I can during these 6 days. All purchases will be gift wrapped and sent by First Class domestic mail, FREE, to you.

Wishing everyone a happy and yummy Thanksgiving.

Well Behaved Women Seldom Make History

As I was walking around the local library today, a book popped out at me. The name is “Well Behaved Women Seldom Make History”, by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. She is a Pulitzer Prize winning author, and wrote these words in 1976.

Ulrich’s original quote first appeared in American Quarterly in spring of 1976, entitled “Virtuous Women Found: New England Ministerial Literature, 1668-1735.” The article begins with this paragraph:

"Cotton Mather called them 'the hidden ones.' They never preached or sat in a deacon's bench. Nor did they vote or attend Harvard. Neither, because they were virtuous women, did they question God or the magistrates. They prayed secretly, read the Bible through at least once a year, and went to hear the minister preach even when it snowed. Hoping for an eternal crown, they never asked to be remembered on earth. And they haven't been. Well-behaved women seldom make history."

Ulrich’s intention was not to incite behaviors like Britney Spears or Madonna, nor behaviors of history-changing women such as Joan of Arc or Rosa Parks. In her own words, she was “making a commitment to help recover the lives of otherwise obscure women.” Instead of being forgotten, she was trying to acknowledge ordinary women, calling for history to pay attention to these women and their local and domestic contributions.

Since 1976, her quote has taken on a life of its own, appearing on T-shirts, coffee mugs, bumper stickers and such. Today, many people associate the slogan “Well-behaved women seldom (or sometimes written as “rarely”) make history” with feminism. Without the suffragists, we wouldn’t have been able to vote today. Without Rosa Parks, would I have to go to the back of the bus even though I’m not Caucasian?

Can you remember the achievement of the following “Famous First” women: Elizabeth Ann Seton, Victoria Claflin Woodhull, Edith Wharton, Amelia Earhart, Shirley Chisholm, Sally Jean Priesand, Dr. Sally K. Ride, Geraldine Ferraro, Janet Reno, and Hillary Clinton.

Featured by A Beaded Affair

A Beaded Affair has featured my work on her blog. Thank you so much, Lois.

Micro Engraving

Micro carving/engraving has 3000 years of history, in the Shang Dynasty in China. The artisans had a strong foundation in calligraphy, excellent control of their hands, worked in total concentration, and possessed unparallel eyesight. The requirements are so demanding that there were only a handful of these experts. Majority of this art were commonly seen on oracle bones, stone, wood, ivory, human hair and requires a microscopic of 100 magnification in order to read them.

Some of the better known micro engravers today who practice this art include Feng Yaozhong (Zhejiang) who carves on sesame seeds with works listed in the Guinness Book of World Records, Li Qiufeng (Shandong Province) who carved the full text of Confucius teachings on porcelain, Shen Weizhong (Suzhou) who engraves poems on pieces of hair only several mm long, and Zhang Yunhu (Shanghai) who reproduced the 300 Tang Poems of over 10,000 characters on a 3cm square piece of ivory.

To the right is a sterling bracelet where I engraved Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s “How do I love thee” poem. I would consider my inscriptions as mini engravings since you do not need a microscope to read the text. Yes, it required a lot of practice, breath-holding, and total concentration. This bracelet was purchased by a gentleman for his wife to celebrate a special birthday. I love happy endings. :)

A Beaded Affair

Lois of A Beaded Affair is the talent who created this incredible wire wrapped ocean jasper. I like how the center wire curves to reflect the natural curve and circular patterns on this ocean jasper cabochon.

When Lois gets a free moment from running her realty office in the Philadelphia area (Willow Grove in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania) or from wire wrapping gemstones, she seeks out incredibly beautiful bead strands for listing at her “candy” store. She has fancy drilled amazonite, malachite coins, graduated garnet, sardonyx with very striking white stripes, deliciously colored Botswana agate, and so much more. Currently, she is offering free shipping when you buy 3 items or more. Don’t forget to grab some very hard to find square copper wires so you too, can give a try at wire wrapping gem cabochons. So check out her Etsy store right away. You won’t be disappointed. She is an avid antique jewelry collector too.

I’m so glad to be a teammate with her at the eSMArts Guild. Lois will be our store manager for the new Team Shop. She is one of the most qualified candidates, plus the fact that she has a big heart. Proceeds of the shop sales will go towards good causes. So check out the shop for more details. Basically, the eSMArts shop is filled with a spectrum of handcrafted art created by the team members. Where else can you find a better one-stop shopping shop for the upcoming holidays?