You guys, the Valencia swing is back! And this time it comes affixed with streamers! What fun. Mission Mission has been chronicling the plight of the swing on Valencia Street ever since a kindhearted soul strung it up last December. Then, like Maleficent swooping in on a hot party, a kooky neighborhood local cut it down, screeching, "This isn’t a playground." It went back up again a month later, this time with steel cables. Alas, that one was also pruned by the anti-fun police, aka a city official. But, ha, now it's back! For how long? Who can say. It's probably being brutally torn down right now. However, that shouldn't stop you from erecting a swing in your own neighborhood. more ›

Love it or hate it — pst, we love it — the new playground in Dolores Park got a wee bit of a makeover with some fun street art. Jeremy Novy painted some of his famous koi on the rubber matting. You like? He also drew some clouds and a line of ants, both of which are sure to delight the thong of kids playing in the park again. Mission Mission has more images for your enjoyment or disapproval, depending on which side of the street-art fence you sit. more ›

Forget Shitter. Dragon Lovers Camera is the app you really need. In fact, it might be the only app you'll ever need. Why? Because: dragons! more ›

The lovely Michele Mandell brings word that noted KQED restaurant-review show Check, Please! Bay Area is looking for a few good reviewers. Might you be one of them? The rules, in addition to being camera-ready, are as follows: You must be at least 21 years old, you must be willing to travel to and participate in a taping at KQED studios in San Francisco, you must be free on a weekday for a few hours, and you must be able to travel to any restaurant location within a 50-mile radius of San Francisco at your own expense. more ›

Last minute smartypants fun, folks! Former SFist editor Jackson West and local writer/artist Susie Cagle will host a San Francisco Awl Meetup this evening. And, holy smokes, here are the exciting details: more ›

Another SF Bike Party ride pedals around the city for your Friday night pleasure, and you shouldn't miss it. The theme for the evening? Female icons. Since march is Women's History Month, and March 8 is International Woman’s Day, SF Bike Party wants to celebrate with a "Favorite Female Icon" ride. All riders (gender be damned) should dress as your favorite female icon and/or role model. more ›

Further Confusion, billed at the world's largest anthropomorphic (or "furry") convention, is currently spreading lint and color audacity in San Jose now through the 17th. Guests of honor include Blotch and Paul Kidd. more ›

"The Bubble Maestro" by Darwin Bell. more ›

Remember, folks: the Embarcadero zip line, brought to you by some sort of joyous Canadian tourism board, opens for business at today. more ›

Everything from yoga near the beach to a hot tub party to comics performing while lying down on the sidewalk (including Nato Green and Kamau Bell) occurred on Saturday during a large sit/lie law protest. Sidewalks from all over the city -- Haight and Cole, 16th and Mission, Folsom and 7th, 16th Avenue and Moraga -- all played host to concerned citizens attending the Stand Against Sit/Lie rally. more ›

Yee hah! Right in front of SFist HQ on Stillman Street in SOMA, we spotted a daredevil who said his name is Troy taking advantage of the weekend emptiness to practice some of his mad skillz on a motorcycle. more ›

See, this is why a brick fight would've worked so much better. The Department of Public Works is fuming after the clean-0up cost for this year's annual flash pillow night at Justin Herman Plaza came out to $35,000. And now they want the fight's organizers to pony up the money. Trouble is no one knows who exactly the organizers are. Because, you know, it's a "flash mob" event. more ›

COMEDY: Real couples tell the stories of how they first met while improv actors reenact the scene through sketches and songs at How We First. more ›

Tis the season, folks. Here are a few of SFist's favorite holiday moments. Whether they be food, TV shows, movies or songs, each of these things get us in the holiday mood. And how.
more ›

Bernal Heights native, artist and film director Abo Greenwald interviewed a lady who makes homes for Homies. You know, those collectible figures based on Chicano characters? That you can buy from a vending machine? Those. more ›

At long last, the Bart swing is a reality. more ›

San Francisco played host to some sort of massive, public pie fight at the Powell Street cable car turnaround last week. Real pie, however, wasn't used. No filling, crust, or whipped cream was transformed into delicious weapons. Shaved cream was used instead. And here's a clip of the melee. more ›

We know we're piling on the video clips today. Sorry. But since it's a stormy day, we figured why not. more ›

Now that boozing, urinating, and nudity have been banned from the ING Bay to Breakers race, a run famous for boozing, urinating, and nudity -- seriously, we're sorry; this is partially our fault -- residents have sounded off on the B2B Fackbook page. more ›

Did you know that today is Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day? It is. And whether or not this is a holiday drummed up by the fat cats in the bubble wrap industry, we feel it deserved your attention. Bubble Wrap for those of you so green you don't even know what we're talking about, is a clear plastic material that uses pillows of air and is commonly used for packing fragile items. Think a sheet of air ravioli. Popping said bubbles is highly addictive. For bubble wrap-popping simulated fun, check out this this Flash site, or this one to get your pop on. more ›

More time is being wasted over in Berkeley over those damn oak trees. This time the Berkeley City Council voted last night that they it "will not seek a stay of a judge's order allowing UC Berkeley's athletic center project to proceed," according to CBS 5. Good. Also, many of the protesters, who awesomely are starting to view themselves as Christ-like figures as of late, held a small rally outside Berkeley City Hall last night. And this is our favorite quote from one of the pro-oak grovists: more ›

After a judge ruled that the University of California can cut down those cumbersome old oak trees, the kids still stuck up in the grove aren't coming down. What else is new, right? But in the end, the protesters have no one to blame but themselves. The twee aesthetics the sitters used to save said trees turned off any fence sitters, and "Dumpster Muffin"'s dilettante-ish and affected temper tantrum earlier this month made some supporters eyes roll. But what the Save the Memorial Oak Grove did accomplished was having fun. They turned lemons into a festive, extended tree-fort playdate. Kudos, guys! But if any of you still want those oak trees to remain standing, there will be an Oak Grove Supporters Plan March at Berkeley City Hall tomorrow. Go here for more details. more ›

While police have tried to starve and cutoff supplies to the few remaining protesters up in the UCB oak grove, another tree-sitter was arrested yesterday afternoon at around 5 p.m. Performing yoga exercises on the median strip on Piedmont Avenue in front of the grove of trees, it seems, police arrested someone going by the moniker "Redwood." According to university spokesperson Dan Mogulof, the protester came along "very quietly." more ›

UCB's plans to mow down an oak grove and put up a sports training facility were put on hold. It seems a judge halted the plans until "the university can prove the project would not violate state earthquake-safety laws, a judge ruled Wednesday," says the Gate. The university, though, thinks it's a rule in their favor, keeping "their plan alive, arguing that the center would not violate state law because it would not touch any fault lines." more ›

The battle to save an oak grove on the UC-Berkeley campus turned even uglier yesterday. Protesters sang bizarre Native American-ish sounding songs (seriously, check this out) and threw buckets of urine at police and arborists (where "an acrid tang hung in the air afterward." Ew.) more ›

Five remaining tree climbers over at the University of California at Berkeley -- you know, the ones who have been protesting the school's plan to tear down the Memorial Oak Grove to put in a shiny new ball-throwing stadium -- are being threatened to come down via 25 police officers and a cherry picker. According to UCB officials, the tree protesters might have to come down as early as today, Tuesday, or be removed by the long arm of the law. Literally. more ›

In January we mentioned a global Monopoly board game where you could vote on which cities you want on Hasbro's latest version of the popular board game, Monopoly Here and Now: The World Edition. Fun, right? Well, not for some. Hasbro recently removed the country name "Israel" after "Jerusalem" when it received complaints from pro-Palestinian groups. And then, you guessed it, Hasbro received even more heat from people online who noticed the only city without a country was Jerusalem. more ›

Patrick Frost, 35, and Christopher Gerwig, 32, of San Francisco are still nowhere to be found since reported missing since reported missing last Saturday night at Alpine Meadows, just north of Lake Tahoe. Described as "expert skiers," Frost and Gerwig were last seen on Saturday morning at an Alpine Meadows bar "listening to advice about different outlying areas to ski." more ›

Meet the biker of the year. more ›