Hopper's Hands

What the heck are Hopper's Hands?
The turnaround point on the running trail leading to Fort Point has a red sign with the outlines of two hands, and everybody, runners and walkers alike, instinctively gives it the "high ten" when they reach it.

A quick Google search reveals the story behind Hopper's Hands: Ken Hopper, a Golden Gate Bridge ironworker, works double duty as a suicide prevention volunteer. He's stopped about 30 suicides so far. The sign was made by the bridge's sign painter, and placed here to honor Hopper's continuing efforts. The Golden Gate Bridge seems to be a magnet for suicides. For more information, check out this excellent seven-part series on the topic: Lethal Beauty.

I've never noticed it before today, but there is another, companion sign near the ground with outlines of dog paws. How cute! Now the dogs can do a high ten! This lower sign must have been there a while, as it is faded and seems to be worn down from countless paw-taps. I don't run with a dog, but still, how could I have missed it?

On An Island

David Gilmour, late of Pink Floyd, has finally released his third solo album. "On An Island" is a beautifully packaged CD; the disc is in a little book (with tastefully designed lyrics pages) instead of a plastic case. The music inside is best heard in its entirety. There are no "hit singles" here, which is a good thing because that would distract from the texturally rich whole of the work. Gilmour's distinctive guitar is dominant, yet it sets a gentle and emotional pace throughout. It's mellow, not "adult contemporary" mellow, but "Wish You Were Here" mellow. If you like that Pink Floyd album, you'll like this one. Relax, and let On An Island grow on you.

David Crosby and Graham Nash join Gilmour for some sublime three part harmony on the title track: "Let the night surround you ... We're halfway to the stars..." Perfection!

There are no "crank it up" highlights, and that's probably by design. This is a plodding, atmospheric, dreamy, mood-setting album; ideal background music for reading, yoga, or a game of Scrabble. This is "an Island" well worth escaping to. Listen to it at night, preferably a rainy night, for best results.

David Gray at the Paramount Theatre

Seeing David Gray live on Sunday night is a nice way to wind down the weekend. Sophisticated but unpretentious, deep but danceable, Gray's music demands close attention to feel the emotion he invokes. Oakland's Paramount Theatre is an elegant and comfortable concert hall, ideal for tonight's show.

The opening act was perfectly matched to David Gray. Matt Hales, better known as Aqualung, played several fresh sounding songs not too far removed from Radiohead or Rufus Wainwright.

Aqualung's biggest applause was for "Brighter Than Sunshine" which is getting a lot of airplay on KFOG -- FreeThinker's favorite local radio station.


Like his recordings, Gray's set was mellow, moody, and introspective. His gritty and raspy voice, and frequent head-bobbing, gives a contrasting but welcome edge to the gentle instrumentation. It's the flip side of, say, Art Garfunkel fronting a punk band. Don't laugh -- it just might work. David Gray has set the bar.

His biggest hit "Babylon" was saved for the encore, and the show was over after the surprise final song - a cover of The Cure's "Friday I'm In Love."

Across The Bay 12K

It's a beautiful day in the San Francisco Bay Area, and a perfect morning for a foot race. The Across The Bay 12K is the best bridge run anywhere: it starts at East Fort Baker, near Sausalito, winds up the hills to the Golden Gate Bridge (on the rarely used west side), through the Presidio, then along the Bay to Aquatic Park. FreeThinker's 12K time: 1:06:16.

Sadly, a recent tragedy was on everybody's minds at this event. Ashlyn Dyer, an avid runner, was struck by a hit-and-run driver during a morning run in the Presidio on March 2, and died in the hospital on March 14. If the hit-and-run driver did the right thing and reported the incident, Ashlyn may have survived. Instead, she suffered irreversible brain injury caused by the lack of oxygen from the time she was hit until paramedics arrived and began resuscitation. The hit-and-run driver is still at large; anyone with information is asked to call the Park Police at 415.561.5150 or the San Francisco Police Department's anonymous tip line at 415.575.4444.

One runner had a poignant sign pinned to her back which read "In memory of Ashlyn Dyer. May she run in peace." I wanted to photograph it, but I lost her in the crowd.

Here are some photos before and after the race. It's still a beautiful day. I'm going back outside to play!

Lead Me Not Into Temptation

Today was "free coffee" day at Starbucks, at least within a two-hour window. Between 10 AM and noon, Starbucks stores all over the nation passed out free 12 oz. cups of its Verona blend. Could this be an attempt to hook the few remaining people who have not yet tried Starbucks? Like the saying goes, "The first one's free."

Having been informed of the promotion early in the morning, I gathered some coworkers for a quick break. We were at the corner Starbucks at 9:59 and we got the first of the many hundreds of cups to be passed out to the line starting to form. Wait -- FreeThinker drinking coffee? Did he fall off the wagon? No! The caffeine addiction is definitely over. The occasional coffee or tea is OK, and this was a test. The price was certainly right. Guess what? It was quality coffee, and I finished the cup, but it was no more enjoyable than water. I got a slight buzz, but it felt useless and unnecessary.

I am no longer tempted by coffee or any source of caffeine. My energy level is constant throughout the day -- no more artificial spike after the morning coffee. No more afternoon slowdown. My sleep quality is improved and my dreams seem even more vivid. A new era has definitely begun!

Happy Pi Day!

Today is Pi Day. No, it’s not about those tasty round pastries, it’s about the Greek letter Pi, which is used as the mathematical constant of the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter in Euclidean geometry. Mathematicians, physicists, and engineers frequently use this number in their calculations. Nobody knows how big pi is, because when you start typing it, 3.1 4 1 5 9 2 6 5 3 5 8 9 7 9 3 2 3 8 4 6 2 6 4 3 3 8 3 2 7 9 5 0 2 8 8 4 1 9 7 1 6 9 3 9 9 3 7 5 1 0 5 8 2 0 9 7 4 9 4 4 5 9 2 3 0 7 8 1 6 4 0 6 2 8 6 2 0 8 9 9 8 6 2 8 0 3 4 8 2 5 3 4 2 1 1 7 0 6 7 9 8 2 1 4 8 0 8 6 5 1 3 2 8 2 3 0 6 6 4 7 ... you get tired fast and give up. So let’s round it down to just 3.14, which is why March 14 is Pi Day. (3rd month, 14th day.)

If you want to memorize more digits of pi, try this handy mnemonic: How I need a drink, alcoholic in nature, after the heavy lectures involving quantum mechanics. The first word has 3 letters, the second word has 1, the third has 4, the fourth has 1, the fifth has 5, and so on. Get it? This is a fun way to liven up the conversation at engineer’s cocktail parties.

Join me today, especially at 1:59 (3/14 1:59) in pondering science, randomness, infinity, irrationality, and transcendentalism. And don’t forget to wish Albert Einstein a happy birthday too! FreeThinker will be enjoying a Pi pie with his geeky friends, but no coffee, thank you very much.