Whether you call it soda, pop, or cola, you'll have to pay more to buy it if Gavin Newsom gets his way: Matier and Ross report that Mayor Newsom is thinking about taxing city vendors of sugary soft drinks to pay for his Shape Up SF kid fitness programs. The thinking's that the fructose corn syrup that gets added to your Coke [we grew up in the South, so we call 'em Cokes, though we've......

It was a deadly weekend to be famous, that’s for sure. As one commenter already pointed out today, famous people tend to die in threes: Bill Walsh, Tom Snyder, and of course, ABC 13’s Marvin Zindler from Houston, who -- while still tied-up with breathing tubes, in his hospital bed, and very pissed off at 24-Hour Fitness -- gave and gave until the very end. But another one squeaked in there among those three: Ingmar......

Got old athletic shoes? Put them to good use. Help Nike turn old sneaks into community playing surface . The company's program has turned more than 19 million pairs of unwanted shoes into so-called "Nike Grind" for that purpose -- notable city spots include a basketball court in Hunter's Point and the first tee at Harding Park golf course. Until May 30, you can take your old athletic shoes to the Union Square Niketown (Post at Stockton)....

Looks like there's a budding trend for private companies to supply healthier school lunches in schools throughout the greater Bay Area. Some of these companies, as seen in the article in the SJ Merc, have plans to expand their school programs and even reach into homes....

Today's random survey comes to us from Men's Health which listed San Francisco as the #1 city in their "Top Five Cities to Find a Mate" survey. San Jose is listed at #3, making this neck of the woods the hook up capitol of the country. San Jose was also listed as one of the Top 5 best cities for hooking up by Jane Magazine (don't ask us how we know that) but SF was nowhere to be seen (couldn't find a link, but trust us on this). ...

A hearing was held with the Board of Supervisors’ Land Use and Economic Development Committee yesterday to discuss the whole Healthy Saturday's issue. On one side, biker enthusiasts and anti-carites. On the other side: advocates for the disabled and various friends of DeDe (FODs). At the end of the debate, Supervisor, main sponsor, and recall victim Jake McG, decided to postpone the vote until next week. The reason for a delay in the decision was because Gavin wanted to hold a sit-down with people on both sides to hammer out some sort of compromise. ...

So, we’ll admit that we are completely hooked on all sorts of herbal and homeopathic remedies. We wander down the aisles at Rainbow with awe. We love that tingly-clean feeling we imagine we feel when we splurge on a kombucha tea. We dream about detoxing out all of our sludge. ...

ith fare evasion and it's effect on MUNI's budget being one of last week's big stories, we thought we'd ask our MUNI driver what the what is about all things MUNI fares. And remember, if you have any questions you'd like answered, send them to editor@sfist.com ...

-More officers are sent to the Ocean View neighborhood after two men were shot within an hour of each other last night. -They still can't figure out who it was that was in that apartment on Haight Street. They do know he was naked and handcuffed. -Now the Native Americans are getting involved with those trees in Berkeley as they're claiming it's sacred ground. Boy, this new fitness center is getting off to a great......

Let's take you back on the Wayback Machine to last spring when the Board of Supervisors wanted to close down Kennedy Drive like it is on Sunday. They voted for it, Gavin vetoed it, then sought a compromise on the issue by asking for a study. The study was to see if closing the street down on Saturday's would hurt museums attendance, make life miserable for neighbors, and make it more difficult for people to get to the museums. Well, on Valentine's Day, the report came out and said the effect of closing down Kennedy Drive on everything would be pretty much nothing. In fact, it said that attendance went up on Sundays. How you like them apples? ...

If SFist were to have a dream job, it would be in one of those think tanks that puts together all those studies that are so amazingly obvious that even six year old children could figure out as true. Like all those studies saying that people talk a lot about the Super Bowl. Or that people spend way too much time on the Internet at work. Today, we get news on two studies of similar dimension....

Mountain biking is a grass-roots sport that is only about one bake sale above your local group ride in terms of publicity and prestige, but it is an exciting sport that requires intense fitness, training, and dedication. At SFist, we understand the sport and the culture around it. We also understand what makes a good mountain bike race. To that end, we've reviewed the 2007 MTB racing season in order to provide our readers with a summary of this year's most interesting Northern California events.

So grab your bike, sharpen your elbows, and strap on a number plate for some challenging dirt action, or pack up the camp chairs, the cooler, and the kids, and head out to the races for a cheap day of fun and entertainment. Even if you aren't interested in competing, check out some of these events. You will see amazing feats of cycling prowess, discover the latest in space-age materials and designs, and probably pick up an armful of free posters, stickers, and other industry schwag.

The story about Rex Farrance, the PC World editor shot to death in a home invasion robbery gets more complicated, as his 19-year-old son tells the media that the "drug trade" alluded to by the police was in fact a stash of licensed medicinal marijuana that the son was keeping at the father's house with the father's knowledge. Farrance's wife, who was pistol-whipped in the attack, strongly denies any drug dealing in the house --......

So many crime stories of note today that we're running an off-cycle SFist Blotter! A man flying back to his home in Vermont from a trip to San Francisco was repeatedly stung by a scorpion that somehow got on the plane. No, he hasn't seen Snakes on a Plane (someone asked). "I'm pretty selective about what I see," he said. A casual carpool driver from Hercules was carjacked this morning. She picked up the usual......

A snowstorm hit Tahoe and other outlying areas today and while it's a huge pain for drivers up there, it's all good for ski resorts. So far this season has been far below the normal amount of rainfall and as a result, only a few resorts are open, mainly with man-made snow. That's why today's snowfall is a big help. In fact, many of the resorts are saying they're going to be able to open up a few more runs over the weekend. ...

Ohmeed Popal, the hit-and-run SUV driver who rampaged through Pacific and Laurel Heights about three months ago, has been deemed sufficiently sane to be tried for 18 counts of attempted murder in San Francisco court. Popal's PD reported that Popal's mental health has markedly improved after they changed his medication. In court, Popal was reported to have smiled and greeted his family as he was brought in. However, Popal did not enter a formal......

-In a surprise to no one, battle looms over free WiFi. We'd be more surprised if this thing ever happens. ...

Wednesday will deposit $20 million into your Nigerian bank account if you'll write SFist a $20,000 check. [before the FBI comes after us for committing fraud, we're kidding, we're kidding!] Tonight: Parlez-vous meetup? San Franciscan French speakers are meeting up at 8 p.m. at Catalyst Cocktails (312 Harriet, at Bryant and 6th) to practiquent the language, and boivent some drinks. (did we conjugate those right?) Thursday: Now that the Basque ETA has declared a cease fire, Artists' Television Access is screening "Silent Voices," a documentary about people victimized by the movement. $5, 8 p.m., 992 Valencia. and Friday: The Temple of Poi puts on a fire-dancing performance at 7:30 tonight at Union Square, totally free. Poi is a dance form where you move weighted things around your body on a cord -- fire, lights, glasses of water, you name it. If you fear fire and/or Union Square, go instead to the Precita Eyes benefit fundraiser at their studios on 24th and Harrison, where finalists in the Mural Appreciation Month competition will display their work, and you can watch a live mural performance too. 2981 24th St, 7-10 p.m....

More folks than we'd ever expected mentioned the January 16th New Yorker article about Bunkerd Faphimai and his gym, Fight and Fitness to us, perhaps because our favored male companion trains there. "What's it like in there?" they'd ask us. "Is it scary?" "Well, no" we'd say, right before they'd remind us that the love of our life spends a lot of his free time choking and beating people, so maybe our perception is......

Saturday: It's all so confusing! The San Francisco Golden Gloves event that's been going on all week isn't actually the Golden Gloves (seriously, click on that link and read that story, it's pretty interesting) that USA Boxing (boxing's governing body) recognizes. The sanctioned Golden Gloves was held to such little fanfare that we missed it, earlier this month. This week's non-sanctioned Golden Gloves-monikered event is handled by the same folks who handled last year's, an......

Our broker is E.F. Wednesday, and he says.... Tonight: Intersection for the Arts is sponsoring "Battle From The Margins," a short film and video festival featuring works by queer women of color. $5-15 sliding scale, show starts at 7 at 446 Valencia (between 15th and 16th). Thursday: Remember when SFist Mary-Lynn profiled the Princess Project, a group that provides free prom dresses and accessories to teenage girls who can't otherwise afford them? They're having their annual silent auction benefit at Dolce SF. Auction items include items from the Giants, the Gap, Plumpjack (maybe it's a date with Gavin!), and 24 Hour Fitness, among others. Also, a raffle! 6:30-9:39, $5 suggested entry fee, $5 for a raffle ticket, at 440 Broadway (between Montgomery and Kearny). and Friday: You've got your choice of hip-hop events tonight -- the SF Public Library, Colored Ink, and the Brava Theater are sponsoring "The Streets Have Spoken," a hip-hop theater piece inspired by the number of unsolved murders in San Francisco at the Bayview Opera House on 4705 3rd Street (near Oakdale) at 7 p.m. Or you can check out Asian-American hip-hop performers courtesy of Locus Arts at Space 180 (180 Capp Street, between 16th and 17th), 9:30-12. ...

We admit it, it's been a slow couple of weeks here at SchwartzenWatcher HQ. Nothing much has been going on as the Governator has been pretty quiet lately being all wonky and acting all Governor-like. But then, like manna from heaven, we get word that after a few days in D.C. schmoozing with other Governors and enjoying the fact that the Chinese control our ports and not a bunch of A-rabs, we discover that from there, Arnie is off to Columbus for the Arnold Fitness Expo and Arnold Classic. And kicking things off will be a pay-per-view Mixed Martial Arts Championship, the Gracie Fighting Championships actually, one that will be have as it's master of ceremonies our Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Our Governor is SO not like your Governor. ...

OK mountain bikers, it's raining this weekend, and that means most of the trails out there are muck. Yeah, sure, some trails like the Bobcat and Miwok trails in the Marin Headlands , the Mitchell Canyon and Deer Flat roads on Mt. Diablo, and the North Peak Access Road up Montara Mountain are probably still rideable, but beyond that, the trails are just too fragile for responsible riding right now....

We must admit -- as silly as they are, we love these non-scientific, arbitrary rankings lists put out by the likes of Men's Health and Men's Fitness, mostly because it's usually a good excuse to make fun of Los Angelinos. Men's Fitness' 2006 Fittest/Fattest rankings are out, and (thanks, guys), they didn't let us down....

If you're like us, you still have a few disturbing holes on your holiday gift giving. Union Square is now officially insane, Stonestown is too generic, and all the nifty little boutiques are picked over all to hell. A lot of times gift certificates can seem kind of generic, but in some cases they make for the most awesome gifts ever, as in the case of The Body Gallery Pilates studio. Set in a......

The holiday parties and dinners are adding up, but we can't let that slow us down, even if we're, uh, having an interesting time fitting into our jeans. But here at SFist, we cannot allow carb counting, calorie obsession or shallow breathing in our 501s prevent us from all the cocktails the holiday has to spare, no sir. Which is why we're thanking our lucky stars, bombshells and cherry-bomb pinup idols for Bombshell Betty......

We're glad to see a return of Sex and the City to TV, for no other reason than it gives us an excuse to complain anew about the show, which focusses on the adventures of four wealthy, socially-successful women who have trouble finding mates because they're self-obsessed, irresponsible assholes. Narrated by a sex-advice columnist who has the sexual insight of a 14-year-old and can't go five minutes without VOing, "and that's when I realized,"......

Because there's so much going on with Herr Governator, we thought we'd need to turn it into a weekly feature. Yay? First last week's big story about the mistress and payment and the hush money that we were totally saving for the inevitable press circus that never came. Guess that's what happens when somebody isn't killed or doesn't disappear in a Caribbean country. -It was reported last week by the L.A. Times that before the......

--> Poor Arnie. His polls are dropping, over 10,000 people protested against him on Wednesday, and now he's in trouble for product placement in one of his ads. In a new ad, Arnie is seen talking to a bunch of people in a lunchroom and both the Pepsi and Arrowhead Water logos are prominently displayed on the drinks people are drinking. And for a few brief seconds in the ad, one can also make......

Mark over at HotelChatter tipped us off to some anonymous photos taken from the inside of local hotelier Joi de Vivre's new boutique hotel on the Embarcadero, Hotel Vitale. While the project was initially given the go-ahead way back in 1997, delays have included the downturn in tourism after the dot-bomb and attacks of September 11th. Now that local tourist spending is on the rebound, Joi de Vivre hopes to cash in on a......