Wait, you're at work today? On this Independence Day work-week holiday? more ›

What with Fourth of July just around the corner, police departments all around the Bay Area tend to get flooded with calls mistaking gunfire for fireworks. How can you tell the difference? Well, Precita.org informs us that "gunshots are usually fired in closer succession, often 1-2 shots per second." Also, from our own experience, and what with SFist HQ located near 715 Harrison, gunshots have a more tinny, slap-across-the-face-ish sound to them. Now you know, so listen closely before you frantically dial 911 on Friday night. more ›

While only nine cities in the Bay Area allowed to sell "safe and sane" fireworks (i.e., sparklers, fountains, snakes, and flowers [psst, you can totally turn the latter into a mini bottle rocket by drilling a small hole in the end of the cylinder]), one of those cities, Watsonville, might curb their fiery Fourth of July fun. According to the Merc, a ban on the sale of fireworks in Watsonville might take place since the area has, well, pretty much been on ablaze for the last month or so. more ›

Whether this is a hate crime or simply a theft, we are flabbergasted that this story has barely made the news. The valuable bronze plaque commemorating the Armenian Genocide that occurred in the early 20th century was discovered missing on Sunday the 23rd, during an event to recognize Armenian Independence Day. more ›

-- Brazilian Independence Day Celebration: Help celebrate Brazil's independence from Portugal by getting drunk, listening to master drummer Jorge Alabe, maybe doing a forbidden dance or two, and much more. The festivities start at 7 p.m. at Rhythmix Cultural Works, 2513 Blanding, Alameda; $15. more ›

The Asian Art Museum's monthly throwdown, Matcha, kicks off around 6pm with DJs, tours, workshops and cocktails. The Live Action Cartoonists, a performance troupe that combines comics and theatre, will perform highlights from Science (Fiction) an experimental production that re-interprets Tezuka Osamu’s Astro Boy. 200 Larkin St., SF. more ›

What with Paris Hilton's release earlier this week and the upcoming celebration of American Independence (sorry, Londonist!), we've been thinking a lot about freedom. Freedom to vote, freedom to choose, and most importantly, freedom to blog. Here are a few things we're happy we've been free to blog about this week. more ›

Nancy Pelosi is sticking up for her constituents, amidst all the recent news that San Francisco has the highest gas prices in the nation. more ›

What better way to celebrate Independence Day than with new plays that unapologetically explore the state of the nation? more ›

This might get us in a bit of trouble, but we actually like the Chron's token conservative columnist Debra Saunders. Yes, we don't usually agree with her, but we like the fact that she has the intellectual integrity to call foul on her own side when she disagrees with them. Frankly, our political discourse would be a whole lot better if pundits didn't just repeat the party line. Every once in awhile, however, Debra grabs a big bucket of popcorn, a pen and paper, and plays Jan Wahl. Which is fine, we've played movie critic a few times too. Except that when she does, the usually intelligent Saunders smokes whatever stuff Anne Coulter does and goes on some liberal conspiracy tirade, seeing liberal propaganda in the least political of movies. more ›

Stage Fog gets you into the great outdoors this week. more ›

Before we moved to the Bay Area, all our knowledge on Cinco de Mayo came from our time spent at our local Chi-Chi's, (which played host to a perennially broken sign reading "17 days until Cinco de Mayo"), that Ween song, and stuff from history class. more ›